Tag: Rugby

A superb all-round performance by New Zealand saw them claim a deserved 38-13 win over Australia in Saturday’s Rugby Championship opener in Sydney.

In a tough and uncompromising encounter the Wallabies had the better of the early exchanges but the world champions improved as the match progressed and eventually outscored their hosts by six tries to one.

If the truth be told, the All Blacks were far from their best during the opening half as they delivered a lethargic showing which was littered with numerous unforced errors. But they were a completely different side after half-time and totally dominated the second half.

Australia made the brighter start and opened the scoring in the 10th minute courtesy of a Reece Hodge penalty after Kieran Read infringed at a ruck.

New Zealand were dealt a further blow three minutes later when Ryan Crotty was forced off the field after a clash of heads with his centre partner Jack Goodhue, with Anton Lienert-Brown coming on to replace Crotty.

And midway through the half, Bernard Foley made it 6-0 to the Wallabies when he added a three-pointer off the kicking tee after Liam Squire slowed the ball down illegally inside his 22.

The rest of the half was an attritional affair as both sides tried to gain the ascendancy and although the Wallabies held the upper-hand over the next 15 minutes, they did not trouble the scoreboard during that period.

On the stroke of half-time, the All Blacks came alive, however, and they did this in style thanks to a superb try from Aaron Smith. This, after Ben Smith did brilliantly to beat a couple of defenders just inside the Wallabies’ half and the ball was subsequently handled by Goodhue, Waisake Naholo and Read before the captain offloaded to his scrum-half, who crossed for a deserved try.

Beauden Barrett was off target with the conversion attempt and although the Wallabies led 6-5 as the teams changed sides at the interval, the momentum had swung in the world champions’ favour.

And four minutes into the second half, the All Blacks showed why they are the world’s best team with a try against the run of play which seemed to catch the Wallabies by surprise.

Australia were initially on the attack inside New Zealand’s 22 but Naholo did well to rip the ball from Marika Koroibete’s grasp and the world champions quickly shifted ball to Rieko Ioane, who found himself in space out wide. He still had work to do but did well to get an inside pass out to Goodhue, who outpaced the cover defence before crossing for his first Test try.

That score was a shot in the arm for the All Blacks and they received another confidence booster when Beauden Barrett pounced on a knock on from Dane Haylett-Petty just inside the Wallabies’ half in the 52nd minute. Barrett was fastest to react and booted the ball ahead before regathering and diving over the try-line.

The All Blacks were now running the ball from all areas of the field and it didn’t help the Wallabies’ cause when star full-back Israel Folau was forced to leave the fray with what looked like a serious ankle injury.

Shortly afterwards, Brodie Retallick found himself in space just outside Australia’s 22 before selling Foley a cheeky dummy on his way over the try-line.

To their credit, the Wallabies did not surrender and five minutes later replacement Jack Maddocks crossed for a try on his Test debut after Foley and Kurtley Beale combined brilliantly in the build-up.

But the All Blacks were far from done and finished the match stronger with Naholo crossing for two tries during the game’s closing stages. First, he collected an inch-perfect cross-field from fly-half Barrett before crossing untouched in the 73rd minute.

And four minutes before the end, he gathered a loose pass before beating a couple of defenders to add the final nail in the Wallabies’ coffin.

The scorers:

For Australia:
Try: Maddocks
Con: Foley
Pens: Hodge, Foley

For New Zealand:
Tries: A Smith, Goodhue, B Barrett, Retallick, Naholo 2
Cons: B Barrett 4

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 Jermaine Ainsley, 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 Tim Perry, 19 Scott Barrett, 20 Ardie Savea, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Damian McKenzie, 23 Anton Lienert-Brown

Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Luke Pearce (England)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)

by David Skippers

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Following a 38-13 victory for New Zealand over Australia in the Rugby Championship opener, here’s our five takeaways from the Sydney clash.

That black spell again: Trailing 6-0 with 39 minutes played, New Zealand then enjoyed one of their purple patches either side of half-time. Following a setback that saw Beauden Barrett miss a penalty, Australia switched off but New Zealand did not as Aaron Smith’s try sent them in 6-5 down. Upon on their return to the field tries from the impressive Jack Goodhue and fly-half Barrett before the 52nd minute put New Zealand 19-6 ahead. From that moment on they rarely looked troubled in terms of the result as that period once again proved profitable.

Wallabies woeful at the set-piece: Michael Cheika will be disappointed at the manner in which his charges were dismantled at the set-piece. The All Blacks held back on a few scrums, but targeted four of five from which they wreaked havoc. Cheika’s men were also guilty of being sloppy at line-out time, losing as many as six of their own throw-ins, four of those coming in the second 40. The absence of a world-class hooker, with Tatafu Polota-Nau nowhere near full match fitness, was a noticeable weakness of the Wallabies, while Taniela Tupou was sorely missed as a replacement prop as his impact in the set-piece and also around the field always a welcome boost for the Wallabies’ forwards.

Brodie shines on Sam’s 100th: Much of the Super Rugby campaign has seen praise lavished on Crusaders second-row duo Sam Whitelock and Scott Barrett. Now the international season is upon us it’s back to partnering up with Brodie Retallick for the former. Both were outstanding in Sydney with Retallick in particular standing out with his work in the set-piece, on the ground and around the field, with reward coming in the shape of a classy try in the second-half. It might have been Whitelock’s 100th Test in the black shirt but Retallick was the star lock.

Concern for Israel Folau but youngster announces himself: The sight of Folau limping from the action on 64 minutes was worrying to say the least for Wallaby fans but what will please them is Jack Maddocks’ performance off the bench. An impressive season for the Rebels saw him force his way into the international make-up and he showed in their warm-up game last week that he’s more than ready for the step up. That came on Saturday and he grabbed his chance with both hands, scoring a try and showing no fear in possession. Is a start now on the cards?

Barrett silences critics: With much of the pre-tournament talk about whether Richie Mo’unga had done enough to usurp Barrett in the number 10 jersey after having been the standout fly-half in Super Rugby this season, the back-to-back World Rugby Player of the Year sent out a statement that he was not willing to leave that throne anytime soon with a classy performance. Barrett scored a magnificent individual try before putting Naholo’s second on a platter with an expertly weighted cross-field kick, while in general he marshalled the attack superbly.

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The All Blacks will be without both centre Ryan Crotty and wing Rieko Ioane for the second Bledisloe Cup clash at Eden Park next weekend.

Crotty suffered a concussion while Ioane tore a hamstring during Saturday’s 38-13 Rugby Championship victory over the Wallabies in Sydney.

Therefore changes are set to be made to New Zealand‘s backline, with coach Steve Hansen revealing they are waiting on Vince Aso’s fitness.

“The guy we are pretty keen on is Aso, we are trying to get an update on his about how his wrist is,” he told reporters following their victory.

New Zealand aren’t alone in struggling with injury concerns, however, as Australia will be without Israel Folau next weekend, a blow Hansen believes they can bounce back from.

“We’d be silly to think they haven’t got another player who’s going to step in and wear the jersey with pride and urgency,” he said.

“Their backs are against the wall. They’re going to improve. Teams that get beaten learn better than those that win and are hungrier than those that win.”

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Check out the highlights from the recent Mitre 10 Cup action, starting with North Harbour’s Round One win over Northland in Albany.

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Highlights from South Africa’s 34-21 win over Argentina in Durban on Saturday.

Video credit: SANZAAR

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The Springboks opened their Rugby Championship account with a 34-21 come-from-behind victory over Argentina at Kings Park in Durban on Saturday.

The Boks have not lost consecutive matches on home soil since a three-match losing run between 2015 and 2016. And after that 25-10 defeat to England in the final Test of the June internationals, they looked as if they just might repeat the feat when trailing 14-10 at the interval after a scrappy first-half performance.

However, Rassie Erasmus’ men clicked into gear in the second-half, scoring 17 unanswered points to complete a thrilling comeback and continue their impressive record under their charismatic new mentor. The former Munster boss will be delighted with his wing duo and inexperienced centre pairing (playing together for the first time) as well as handing Damian Willemse and Marco van Staden their debuts.

The Springboks opened the scoring in the eighth minute when Lukhanyo Am powered his way over after superb interplay between backs and forwards, with Andre Esterhuizen, Frans Malherbe and Faf de Klerk instrumental in the build-up.

Argentina responded seven minutes later. A Nicolas Sanchez up and under was spilled by Willie le Roux as the visitors pounced on the loose ball. Possession was recycled and with the Bok defence scrambling that allowed Sanchez to run in under the posts and convert his own try for a 7-5 lead.

Soon afterwards, los Pumas had the lead. Bok captain Siya Kolisi found himself isolated after a mini break down the right flank, with the Argentine counter-ruck proving successful as wing Ramiro Moyano effected the turnover before running 20 metres and timing the final pass expertly for flank Pablo Matera to dot down for his fourth international try.

However, moments later and ten minutes before the interval, Le Roux saw the space on the outside and produced a pinpoint cross-field kick to find Aphiwe Dyantyi out on the left wing for his second try in a Bok jersey as the hosts to cut the deficit to four at 14-10 at the half-time break.

Two minutes after the resumption, Handre Pollard and Esterhuizen combined to make the mini-break to get the Springboks on the front foot before De Klerk’s kick over the top was gobbled up by Dyantyi, who produced a brilliant one-handed finish to grab his brace. Pollard made no mistake with the conversion this time to give the hosts a 17-14 lead.

The Springboks’ third came six minutes later. It came when Beast Mtawarira got under his opposite number at scrum-time and drove him backwards, thus winning the penalty for the home side. They were rewarded for going for the attacking line-out when De Klerk found Makazole Mapimpi with an over-the-top pass, the winger having all the time in the world to complete the finish.

Moments later, both Bok wings had doubles when Mapimpi finished off a flowing move from the home side that involved slick interplay between backs and forwards once again. Malcolm Marx made a particularly telling carry in the build-up to get his side over the advantage line. Pollard’s conversion made it a 27-14 lead after 53 minutes.

After Eben Etzebeth, who had an impressive return, made a bullocking run downfield, replacement debutant fly-half Willemse threw a wayward pass which eluded fellow debutant Van Staden, with Matias Moroni intercepting and crossing untouched under the posts. Sanchez converted to cut the deficit to six.

But with ten minutes to go, scrum-half De Klerk would put the game beyond doubt when he showed good presence of mind to snipe over after Steven Kitshoff was halted inches short. Pollard added the extras, which would prove to be the final points scored of the game, as the Boks ran out 34-21 winners.

The scorers:

For South Africa:
Tries: Am, Dyantyi 2, Mapimpi 2, De Klerk
Cons: Pollard 2

For Argentina:
Tries: Sanchez, Matera, Moroni
Cons: Sanchez 3

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

Referee: Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Angus Gardner (Australia), Andrew Brace (Ireland)
TMO: Simon McDowell (Ireland)

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Australia have been dealt a major blow ahead of next weekend’s Rugby Championship clash with New Zealand after Israel Folau was ruled out injured.

The full-back suffered an ankle injury in the second-half of Australia’s 38-13 defeat in Sydney, with Michael Cheika confirming his absence.

“He got a small tear in a muscle, right down low. Quite rare, really, but it is actually not a long-term injury at all,” the coach told reporters.

“It’s just a lot of swelling. We’ll be hopeful he’ll be back for the first game in Brisbane.”

That match in Brisbane is the Wallabies’ Round Three clash against South Africa on September 8. Before that however is a trip to Eden Park where Cheika believes Jack Maddocks or Tom Banks are more than capable of filling in for the injured Folau.

“I thought he did OK out there when he went on,” Cheika said of Maddocks.

“I haven’t had a good look at it but he wouldn’t have been on the bench if we didn’t think he was ready to play.

“He got a few touches and got a try as well so, yeah, I would imagine he would be there.

“We’ve also got Tom Banks, who’s an out-and-out full-back so we’ll see where we end up.”

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A third-straight Sydney Bledisloe Cup bungle was a performance which the Wallabies were “not proud of”, according to second-row Adam Coleman.

The 38-13 loss was tough viewing in the second-half – a 6-5 half time lead quickly turning into another All Blacks rout as the Wallabies’ set-piece crumbled in front of their eyes.

Having set up camp on Waiheke Island – a 30-minute ferry ride from Auckland’s CBD – the Wallabies now have an Everest-sized mountain to climb if they are to snatch the Bledisloe back from the Kiwis.

Australia haven’t beaten New Zealand at Eden Park since 1986 and the All Blacks are undefeated through their last 41 starts at the ground.

If that number ticks over to 42 on Saturday the Bledisloe will stay across the ditch for another year.

Rather than being daunted by the task ahead of them, Coleman said the grim history would be a motivating factor for the team.

“I have a lot of confidence in our boys,” he told the Australian Rugby Union’s official website.

“What a challenge – to come to Eden Park and respond – I think it’s a great challenge and great motivation for the squad.

“I don’t think they need motivation but it’s a good challenge.”

Coleman dismissed any notion the Australians would benefit from playing the All Blacks later in the Rugby Championship – when they have really hit top gear in recent years – with the team eager to reverse another Sydney performance packed with moments they would rather forget.

“I think it’s a good opportunity to respond,” he said.

“We got beat but I look at it as a positive that we get to play them again and turn around a performance that we’re not really proud of, to be honest.

“We let down people on our home turf and it hurts.

“It’s something we’re not proud of but I think there is a great opportunity on Saturday to turn it around.”

Coleman was calling the shots at line-out time and the Australians lost seven of their own throws on Saturday – killing any and all attacking momentum at critical junctures.

“They mixed things up in that area,” he explained, looking to fix that problem.

“They had a shift/peel play when they first came into the attacking 22 and really changed the picture.

“Defensively I think our boys had made improvement in that area but it’s just disappointing from our attack perspective.

“We were really turning (the ball) over and relieving pressure which, in turn, didn’t give our team the opportunity to attack.”

The turnovers from both set-piece and general play were the killer blow, according to Wallabies back Dane Haylett-Petty.

“When you look at the structured and unstructured defence we were actually really good, but we got killed on turnovers,” he said.

“Four or five tries. It was the main area of the game where we let ourselves down.

“Against other teams they’re probably not going to capitalise on all those opportunities but the All Blacks definitely do and we can’t afford to open the door and give them those opportunities.”

Fix those key areas and the result may have been different on Saturday but for now all eyes are on Eden Park.

“We know we’re good enough, we were good enough for 39 minutes in the game and we’ve got to be able to do it for 80 minutes,” added Haylett-Petty.

“It’s going to take a very good performance but we’ve got a very good team, a lot of quality, experienced players and very good coaches.

“If we stick to what we do well, we’ll do well.”

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All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen has admitted that the concussions suffered by centre Ryan Crotty is a concern to him and his team.

Crotty was forced off the field early during the All Blacks’ 38-13 Bledisloe Cup victory over Sydney on Saturday after an accidental clash of heads with midfield partner Jack Goodhue.

That was Crotty’s sixth concussion in the last 18 months and there are worries in the All Black camp around the 29-year-old.

Crotty will miss the rematch with the Wallabies in Auckland on Saturday although medical checks after the match in Sydney suggested he will be fine to play in the Rugby Championship later on.

“It concerns us, definitely,” Hansen told Stuff of Crotty’s concussion issues.

“He’s already seen a specialist and they’ve given him the all-clear. From our understanding as long as you fully recover and don’t go back when you’re not fully recovered, then you’re OK.

“He was just unlucky last night. It was freaky – friendly fire from Jack straight in the face. It would have knocked most of us out.”

Crotty’s All Blacks team-mate, openside flanker Sam Cane was more circumspect when giving his opinion on the matter.

“It’s not nice to see,” he said of Crotty’s head knock.

“It’s just a tough injury. Everything else has a time-frame but there’s just so much unknown with head knocks and it seems like you can be only one away, if it’s the wrong one, from it being then end of it.

“I’ve seen that with a few mates. It certainly helps you appreciate every week and every game you have and realising how fickle it can be.”

Cane also praised the actions of Wallaby back-row David Pocock, who immediately went to Crotty’s aid after he was knocked out, instead of chasing play.

“It speaks pretty highly of his character and the type of guy he is if he’s willing to put the battle to one side in that moment and put the player’s welfare first,” added Cane, who has also had concussion issues in the past.

“So, thank you David.”

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Scottish Rugby has announced that an agreement has been reached with Ulster and the IRFU to allow Dan McFarland to begin working on Monday.

McFarland, who joined the Scotland coaching team from Glasgow Warriors in 2017, was announced as Ulster head coach in April but was contractually obliged to remain in post for a nine-month notice period (ending in January), having originally signed a deal to the summer of 2019.

The governing body and PRO14 side have, however, reached a mutual agreement on terms to allow him to take up his new role immediately.

McFarland’s replacement, Danny Wilson, started work with the Scotland coaching team earlier this month, bringing eight-years’ elite-level coaching experience in the PRO14 (steering Cardiff to Challenge Cup glory earlier this year) and Wales U20, a side he guided to a third and second-place finish in the 2012 and 2013 Junior World Championships.

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