Category: Rugby

Waratahs loosehead prop Tom Robertson has been elevated into a surprise starting spot for Australia’s clash with New Zealand in Sydney on Saturday.

This, after first-choice front-row Scott Sio was ruled out with injury.

Robertson, who came off the bench in June, will make just his third Test start in the Bledisloe opener after Sio’s withdrawal over a shoulder complaint.

Though the Wallabies said at the start of the week Sio had been cleared to play, he has been unable to shake off a shoulder issue that he aggravated in the side’s recent trial.

Allan Alaalatoa comes onto the bench for the Wallabies after missing the June Series with an injury of his own.

Robertson’s is the only real surprise in the starting team, with Reece Hodge taking the outside centre position after injuries to Tevita Kuridrani and Samu Kerevi.

Wallabies coach Michael Cheika had no qualms about bringing hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau into the starting spot in his first Test of 2018.

He will be backed up by Tolu Latu, with incumbent Brandon Paenga-Amosa out of the side completely.

Michael Hooper will play his first match since June, named at openside after almost two months out with a hamstring injury.

Rookie utility back Jack Maddocks pipped Tom Banks for the final bench spot, putting him in line for his Test debut.

Australia: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Dane Haylett-Petty, 13 Reece Hodge, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Will Genia, 8 David Pocock, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Lukhan Tui, 5 Adam Coleman, 4 Izack Rodda, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Tom Robertson
Replacements: 16 Tolu Latu, 17 Allan Alaalatoa, 18 Taniela Tupou, 19 Rob Simmons, 20 Pete Samu, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Matt Toomua, 23 Jack Maddocks

Date: Saturday, August 18
Venue: ANZ Stadium, Sydney
Kick-off: 19:45 local (10:45 BST, 09:45 GMT)
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Luke Pearce (England)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)

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Jack Goodhue and Waisake Naholo will start for the All Blacks when they take on the Wallabies in their Rugby Championship opener in Sydney on Saturday.

It will be just a second cap for Goodhue, who started in the third Test against France in the June internationals. Meanwhile, Naholo lines up on the right wing, with Nehe Milner-Skudder a recent withdrawal from the squad.

Otherwise, it is business as usual with Kieran Read captaining a side that boasts plenty of experience. Ben Smith is at full-back, with Rieko Ioane on the opposite wing to Ioane. Goodhue partners Ryan Crotty in midfield, while Beauden Barrett and Aaron Smith form the halfback combination.

Liam Squire is at blindside with Sam Cane at openside and Kieran Read at number eight. Sam Whitelock is reunited with Brodie Retallick in the second row, while Owen Franks, Joe Moody and Cody Taylor make up the front row.

New Zealand: 15 Ben Smith, 14 Waisake Naholo, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read (c), 7 Sam Cane, 6 Liam Squire, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Codie Taylor 1 Joe Moody
Replacements: 16 Nathan Harris, 17 Karl Tu’inukuafe, 18 Ofa Tuungafasi, 19 Scott Barrett, 20 Ardie Savea, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Damian McKenzie, 23 Anton Lienert-Brown

Date: Saturday, August 18
Venue: ANZ Stadium, Sydney
Kick-off: 19:45 local (09:45 GMT)
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Luke Pearce (England)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)

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It’s that time again for our Video of the Week, bringing you standout footage you may enjoy. Today we look back at last year’s Bledisloe Cup.

Although the All Blacks had already secured the cup, this battle between the trans-Tasman rivals in Brisbane was a thrilling affair which the Wallabies eventually won by a narrow margin.

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Amanaki Lelei Mafi has been suspended by the Japan Top League side NTT Communications Shining Arcs until a verdict is reached in his assault case.

Mafi faces charges of assault for attacking Rebels team-mate Lopeti Timani after the Melbourne side’s 43-37 defeat to the Highlanders in Dunedin.

Timani is alleged to have made a derogatory comment about a member of Mafi’s family. Both players were fined 15,000 Australian dollars each.

Mafi is currently out on bail in Japan and was unable to attend Thursday’s hearing in Dunedin District Court.

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Malcolm Marx, Eben Etzebeth, Francois Louw and Warren Whiteley have been included in the Springbok team to face Argentina on Saturday.

All four forwards will make their first appearance this year for the Springboks after missing the June internationals with injury.

Furthermore, two uncapped players, Damian Willemse (utility back) and Marco van Staden (loose forward), were included amongst the replacements and are set to make their Test debuts off the bench at Kings Park.

Whiteley is making his first appearance in a Springbok jersey in more than a year after he suffered a groin injury last June against France.

Hamstring trouble prevented Marx, South Africa’s Rugby Player of the Year in 2017, from playing in any of the four games against Wales and England.

Etzebeth struggled with arm and back troubles but, like Marx and Whiteley, he has now recovered and is ready for Test match rugby.

The Bok forward pack has a changed look as a result of the returning quartet, with Erasmus shuffling his loose forward combination and lock pairing for the important Rugby Championship clash.

Whiteley comes back into the Springbok starting team at number eight, skipper Siya Kolisi moves over to the other side of the scrum into the seven jersey while Louw will start at six in what will be his 58th Test for South Africa.

Etzebeth and his Stormers team-mate Pieter-Steph du Toit are reunited in the Springbok second-row, while the imposing Marx will pack down at hooker between Frans Malherbe and the experienced Tendai Mtawarira, who will run out in his 102nd Test for the Springboks.

In the backline, Makazole Mapimpi will start at right wing in the place of the injured Sbu Nkosi, with André Esterhuizen partnering his Sharks team mate Lukhanyo Am in the midfield.

Erasmus insisted that he was pleased with the return to Springbok action of Whiteley, Louw, Etzebeth and Marx.

“Our forward depth is very good indeed and the competition for places in the team is healthy, which can only be a good thing for us as we continue to build the depth of our squad,” he said.

South Africa’s director of rugby added that he is expecting a very tough contest from the Pumas and reiterated the Argentineans will be energised by the appointment of Mario Ledesma as their new head coach.

“Their new coach comes with a lot of technical knowledge and experience from his previous coaching roles which is sure to add more firepower to their traditional strengths,” Erasmus said.

“They will be very confident as a result of the Jaguares’ great run on tour in Australasia, where they won all four their matches on the road, as well as their winning performances against our own franchises.”

South Africa: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Makazole Mapimpi, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 André Esterhuizen, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Siya Kolisi (c), 6 Francois Louw, 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Marvin Orie, 20 Marco van Staden, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Lionel Mapoe, 23 Damian Willemse

Date: Saturday, August 18
Venue: Kings Park, Durban
Kick-off: 17:05 local (16:05 BST, 15:05 GMT)
Referee: Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Angus Gardner (Australia), Andrew Brace (Ireland)
TMO: Simon McDowell (Ireland)

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Take a look at the team line-ups ahead of Round One of the Rugby Championship.

Saturday

Australia v New Zealand
ANZ Stadium, Sydney

Australia: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Dane Haylett-Petty, 13 Reece Hodge, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Will Genia, 8 David Pocock, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Lukhan Tui, 5 Adam Coleman, 4 Izack Rodda, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Tom Robertson 
Replacements: 16 Tolu Latu, 17 Allan Alaalatoa, 18 Taniela Tupou, 19 Rob Simmons, 20 Pete Samu, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Matt Toomua, 23 Jack Maddocks

New Zealand: 15 Ben Smith, 14 Waisake Naholo, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read (c), 7 Sam Cane, 6 Liam Squire, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Codie Taylor 1 Joe Moody
Replacements: 16 Nathan Harris, 17 Karl Tu’inukuafe, 18 Ofa Tuungafasi, 19 Scott Barrett, 20 Ardie Savea, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Damian McKenzie, 23 Anton Lienert-Brown

South Africa v Argentina
Kings Park, Durban

South Africa: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Makazole Mapimpi, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 André Esterhuizen, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Siya Kolisi (c), 6 Francois Louw, 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements:16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Marvin Orie, 20 Marco van Staden, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Lionel Mapoe, 23 Damian Willemse

Argentina: 15 Emiliano Boffelli, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Matias Moroni, 12 Bautista Ezcurra, 11 Ramiro Moyano, 10 Nicolas Sanchez, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Javier Ortega Desio, 7 Marcos Kremer, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Matias Alemanno, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Juan Figallo, 2 Agustin Creevy (c), 1 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro
Replacements: 16 Diego Fortuny, 17 Santiago Garcia Botta, 18 Santiago Medrano, 19 Tomas Lavanini, 20 Tomas Lezana, 21 Martin Landajo, 22 Santiago Gonzalez Iglesias, 23 Juan Cruz Mallia

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All Black replacement prop Ofa Tuungafasi has been ruled out of the Bledisloe opener against the Wallabies on Saturday with a rib injury.

Tuungafasi’s place on the replacements bench has been taken by the Crusaders’ Tim Perry, with Tuungafasi returning home.

Hurricanes prop Jeffery Toomaga-Allen has been drafted in to the squad as cover.

New Zealand (revised): 15 Ben Smith, 14 Waisake Naholo, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read (c), 7 Sam Cane, 6 Liam Squire, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Codie Taylor 1 Joe Moody
Replacements: 16 Nathan Harris, 17 Karl Tu’inukuafe, 18 Tim Perry, 19 Scott Barrett, 20 Ardie Savea, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Damian McKenzie, 23 Anton Lienert-Brown

Date: Saturday, August 18
Venue: ANZ Stadium, Sydney
Kick-off: 19:45 local (10:45 BST, 09:45 GMT)
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Luke Pearce (England)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)

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Hooker Connal McInerney has committed his future to the Brumbies by agreeing to a new two-year deal with the Super Rugby club, which will keep him in the capital until 2020.

McInerney, who was impressive as a replacement hooker during the 2018 Super Rugby season, is no stranger to Canberra having played his formative years in the game in the ACT representing Canberra Royals with distinction.

“I am extremely excited about continuing my rugby career with the Brumbies in Canberra,” the front-rower said.

“I didn’t expect to play Super Rugby last season, so to get that opportunity was a bonus. It was just an incredible feeling to win my Brumbies cap at GIO Stadium and then to join up with the team for the second half of the South African tour.

“I have learned a lot of the other hookers at the club and off the senior professionals and I am looking forward to developing my game throughout my time at the Brumbies. It’s a great club, one that I am proud to be a part of, and I am excited about what the future holds.”

The front-rower became Brumby #204 when he came off the bench in the Round 6 victory over the Sharks at GIO Stadium, replacing Folau Fainga’a in the 77th minute.

Called over to South Africa as cover for the injured Robbie Abel, McInerney made his second Brumbies appearance in the unfamiliar position of back-row when Isi Naisarani was forced to leave the field, before winning a first start in the subsequent home victory over the Sunwolves.

Head coach Dan McKellar was delighted that McInerney had agreed to commit to the club, bolstering the team’s options at hooker which will include Folau Fainga’a and veteran Josh Mann-Rea.

“Connal has come through our pathway system, playing Australian Schoolboys and in our U20 set-up as well as playing for the Junior Wallabies and being involved with Canberra Vikings and Royals,” McKellar said.

“He has developed very nicely and has had an opportunity this year on the back of injuries and proven that he is capable of performing at Super Rugby level. For a hooker he’s got very good fitness, his set-piece is solid and, like any young, developing player, that is going to continue to improve.”

“He’s a smart footballer, very busy and finds the seam well in attack and he also has good on-ball presence in defence, and on the back of his conditioning he has a very good work rate.

“A couple of years ago the position was probably an area of concern for us, but with the development of Connal, Folau Fainga’a and Josh Mann-Rea we have good depth in that position.”

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Ahead of the first round of the Rugby Championship, we take a look at the best bets from the two games; Australia v New Zealand and South Africa v Argentina.

Australia v New Zealand

Most of the debate heading into this encounter his centred on Steve Hansen’s comments, suggesting that the Wallabies are favourites going into the game. Those words have, of course, been rubbished by most observers and the bookmakers back up the assertion that the All Blacks should start their campaign with a victory.

There are factors which go in the hosts’ favour, however. Hansen based his pre-match talk on the previous contest between the two which saw Michael Cheika’s men claim their first win over New Zealand since 2015, while they once again have home advantage.

Other than that, everything else falls on the side of the visitors. Although Sonny Bill Williams is out, that is offset by the fact that Samu Kerevi and Tevita Kuridrani are missing for the Wallabies, while first choice prop Scott Sio is injured.

Sky Bet and Bet365 therefore have the three-time world champions at 2/9 to begin the defence of their Rugby Championship title with a win. Australia, meanwhile, are 4/1 with Marathonbet to upset the apple cart and claim what would be a huge triumph.

We can’t see that happening, although it should be closer than recent tournament openers. In 2016, New Zealand thrashed their antipodean rivals 42-8 and last year they put over 50 points on the 2015 World Cup runners-up in a 54-34 victory.

With Australia looking in better shape, the All Blacks are 11/2 at Ladbrokes and Coral to overcome the home side by 6-10 points.

South Africa v Argentina

There will be both familiarity and uncertainty when Los Pumas head to Durban to take on the Springboks at Kings Park on Saturday. The former because new head coach Mario Ledesma’s methods are well known to the squad but the latter as it is impossible to predict how successfully that will transfer onto the international arena.

After guiding the Jaguares to seventh in Super Rugby and their first ever quarter-final appearance, the former hooker has taken the reins from Daniel Hourcade for the upcoming Rugby Championship.

Argentina will be desperate for an immediate impact having emerged victorious in just two of their past 17 matches. That includes last year’s disappointing tournament which saw them go winless for the first time since 2013.

They lacked direction under Hourcade but it is difficult to see the new boss turning it around in time for the game this weekend. South Africa showed improvements against England in June and deserve their status as 1/9 favourites (Bet365, Ladbrokes and Paddy Power).

Ledesma’s outfit are therefore outsiders for this clash with Marathonbet having them as long as 73/10 for this contest and it is tough to argue with those odds.

They must start well to stand a chance and Ramiro Moyano is 14/1 (Betfair), while Bautista Delguy is 16/1 (Bet365), to cross the whitewash first, which are reasonable shouts following the issues the Springboks had early on against England.

However, should South Africa iron out the problem of beginning matches slowly then Aphiwe Dyantyi is 15/2 at BoyleSports and Unibet to open the game’s try-scoring account.

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Australia captain Michael Hooper says that they are looking for a fast start against the All Blacks in the opening Rugby Championship game.

Saturday’s Bledisloe Cup encounter marks the flanker’s return from injury having missed the end of the Waratahs’ Super Rugby campaign.

Hooper is a crucial component of the Wallabies team and the skipper is looking to make up for lost time when he takes to the field in Sydney.

“I’m going to come out all guns blazing,” the flanker told reporters. “We’re ready, we’re good to go…bring it on. I feel really ready and can’t wait for Saturday’s match.”

Hooper is renowned for his energy around the field, but sometimes that has led to the flanker and his team-mates feeling the wrath of the referee’s whistle.

The 26-year-old therefore admits that they need to improve their discipline and find the right moment to disrupt opposition ball.

He said: “The line is hard to pick. You’ve got to feel it off your gut sometimes. It’s something that certainly the leaders in our team are constantly working on to try and pick that line.

“You want to be fired up and ready to get off the line and disrupt, but when things don’t go your way – against quality teams sometimes they don’t – you’ve got to try and drag that momentum back. Not losing your head, keeping your cool and sticking to your game plan is important.

“That is very much what we’re going to do this week: stick to our stuff, bring ourselves back and play our game. Our game is ready to go for tomorrow night against these guys.

“It comes down to speed at the ruck, it’s so important at Test level…being able to retain our ball and slow their ball up.

“We’re fully capable of scoring points, we showed that in June and at other times. Back-row has a fair bit to do with the ruck attacking and defence. Getting that area sorted is paramount.”

Should Australia beat the world champions then it would see them claim successive victories over the All Blacks having defeated Steve Hansen’s men 23-18 in Brisbane last year.

However, that triumph followed seven consecutive losses to New Zealand and Hooper knows the challenge that they will face on Saturday.

“There’s no easy way around this thing. It’s going to be hard, and that’s why different teams and different players have struggled over the course of however many years,” Hooper added.

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