Tag: Rugby

South Africa will be looking to continue where they left off against New Zealand when they host Australia in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

A fortnight ago, South Africa achieved the unthinkable by beating the All Blacks on New Zealand soil – a result which has brought renewed energy into the Springbok camp and they will be brimming with confidence as they head into this Test.

The Wallabies, by contrast, are on the back foot after suffering their first defeat to Argentina in Australia in 35 years in their most recent outing.

A Springbok victory this weekend at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium – which is a happy hunting ground for the Boks as they are unbeaten in five previous matches at the venue – will put pressure on the All Blacks, who take on Argentina later on Saturday.

Beating the All Blacks on their turf created a sense of euphoria in South Africa and the Boks’ coach, Rassie Erasmus, knows that backing up the performance in Wellington will be easier said than done this weekend.

“If we go week by week and say this game is so important, this game is so important then we will keep saying it until the World Cup final,” he said.

“For us if we can grow we should get the result tomorrow.

“If we can grow from what we did last week we should get the result.

“If we take a step backwards it’s going to be a tough game, a losing game probably.

“Every single week we must be better than last week.”

It will be the Wallabies’ fifth visit to Port Elizabeth for a Test match against South Africa. They last played here 45 years ago when John Thornett’s touring side squared the Test series 2-2 in 1963. The previous four Tests were all won by South Africa.

The Springboks’ biggest win against the Wallabies was in 2008 in Johannesburg when they ran in eight tries to win by 53-8. On that occasion, winger Jongi Nokwe became the first Springbok to score four tries in a Test against Australia.

However, recent matches have been nail-biting affairs with last year’s two Rugby Championship encounters ending in draws while the Wallabies claimed a narrow five-point win in the corresponding fixture in Brisbane earlier this month.

Players to watch:

For South Africa: In the forwards, all eyes will be on Sikhumbuzo Notshe who will have big boots to fill as he comes into the starting line-up for the first time, as a replacement for Warren Whiteley, who was one of South Africa’s heroes in that epic victory over the All Blacks. Notshe is similar in style to Whiteley and enjoys operating in the wider channels where he usually combines well with his outside backs at Super Rugby level for the Stormers. Test rugby is a different challenge though and it will be interesting to see if he can have the same impact.

For Australia: If the Wallabies want to win this Test, they will need their playmaking department to fire on all cylinders and in Kurtley Beale and Matt Toomua they possess two classy players, who have the ability to unlock the tightest defences. As two of the Wallabies’ main attackers, there will be plenty of pressure on them to get their backline going and if they manage to get front-foot ball, they will test their counterparts while Toomua’s goalkicking is also important in the bigger scheme of things.

Head-to-head: After lining up on the right wing in that epic victory over the All Blacks, Jesse Kriel is back in his favoured outside centre berth and he will face off with Reece Hodge, who has been a regular in the number 13 jersey for the Wallabies throughout this competition. Kriel will be determined to cement his spot in the Boks’ run-on side in his more familiar position with a solid display but faces a tough examination from Hodge, who is a tricky customer who has come to the fore with some impressive performances in Wallaby gold in 2018. Kriel is an explosive runner while Hodge is the no-nonsense type, who will be determined to keep him in check with a solid defensive effort.

Previous meetings:

2018: Australia won 23-18 in Brisbane
2017: The teams drew 27-27 in Bloemfontein
2017: The teams drew 23-23 in Perth
2016: South Africa won 18-10 in Pretoria
2016: Australia won 23-17 in Brisbane
2015: Australia won 24-20 in Brisbane
2014: South Africa won 28-10 in Cape Town
2014: Australia won 24-23 in Perth

Prediction: With this match being played in Port Elizabeth, it’s hard to look past a Springbok win. South Africa to win by seven points.

The teams:

South Africa: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 André Esterhuizen, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Marco van Staden, 21 Embrose Papier , 22 Elton Jantjies, 23 Damian Willemse

Australia: 15 Dane Haylett-Petty, 14 Israel Folau, 13 Reece Hodge, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Kurtley Beale, 9 Will Genia, 8 David Pocock, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Ned Hanigan, 5 Izack Rodda, 4 Adam Coleman, 3 Taniela Tupou, 2 Folau Faingaa, 1 Scott Sio
Replacements: 16 Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 17 Sekope Kepu, 18 Allan Alaalatoa, 19 Rory Arnold, 20 Rob Simmons, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Bernard Foley, 23 Jack Maddocks

Date: Saturday, September 29
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Kick-off: 17:05 local (16:05 BST, 15:05 GMT)
Referee: Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Matthew Carley (England)
Television match official: Graham Hughes (England)

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Bath have announced that their director of rugby, Todd Blackadder, has signed a one-year contract extension until June 2020.

The club also revealed that their former skipper Stuart Hooper will take over the reins from Blackadder when the former All Blacks captain decides to move on.

Meanwhile, first team coaches Toby Booth and Darren Edwards will part ways with the club at the end of the season.

Blackadder joined Bath on a three-year deal from the Crusaders in 2016.

Bath’s chief executive, Tarquin McDonald, laid out the Premiership outfit’s long-term plans via an open letter to their supporters.

“Todd has committed that he will move on when the club is ready,” McDonald told Bath’s official website.

“That readiness will be predicated on our next step, which will be when Stuart Hooper proves his readiness to take on the leadership of our rugby department.”

On Hooper being identified as Blackadder’s succesor McDonald said: “Why Stuart Hooper? Stuart has outstanding leadership qualities and tremendous integrity, but also the willingness to be challenged, an unbelievable work ethic, a strategic mind-set, and the ability to get the best out of people.

“He also cares very deeply about the club, the players and staff, and the wider community. Does Stuart have more to learn? Definitely. Can he lead the department in two years? Absolutely.”

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Your one-stop spot for all the Rugby Championship team line-ups.

Saturday

South Africa v Australia
Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth

South Africa: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 André Esterhuizen, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Marco van Staden, 21 Embrose Papier , 22 Elton Jantjies, 23 Damian Willemse

Australia: 15 Dane Haylett-Petty, 14 Israel Folau, 13 Reece Hodge, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Kurtley Beale, 9 Will Genia, 8 David Pocock, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Ned Hanigan, 5 Izack Rodda, 4 Adam Coleman, 3 Taniela Tupou, 2 Folau Faingaa, 1 Scott Sio
Replacements: 16 Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 17 Sekope Kepu, 18 Allan Alaalatoa, 19 Rory Arnold, 20 Rob Simmons, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Bernard Foley, 23 Jack Maddocks

Argentina v New Zealand
Estadio José Amalfitani, Buenos Aires

Argentina: 15 Emiliano Boffelli, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Jeronimo De La Fuente, 12 Bautista Ezcurra, 11 Matias Moroni, 10 Nicolas Sanchez, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Javier Ortega Desio, 7 Marcos Kremer, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Tomas Lavanini, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Ramiro Herrera, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro
Replacements: 16 Julian Montoya, 17 Juan Pablo Zeiss, 18 Santiago Medrano, 19 Matias Alemanno, 20 Juan Manuel Leguizamon, 21 Tomas Cubelli, 22 Matias Orlando, 23 Sebastian Cancelliere

New Zealand: 15 Ben Smith, 14 Waisake Naholo, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Luke Whitelock, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Shannon Frizell, 5 Scott Barrett, 4 Samuel Whitelock (c), 3 Ofa Tuungafasi, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Karl Tu’inukuafe
Replacements: 16 Nathan Harris, 17 Tim Perry, 18 Angus Ta’avao, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Ardie Savea, 21 Aaron Smith, 22 Richie Mo’unga, 23 Anton Lienert-Brown

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There are five matches scheduled to take place on Saturday in the PRO14 with Munster versus Ulster and Connacht versus Leinster the pick of them.

Zebre v Ospreys

Zebre head coach Michael Bradley has made five alterations to his starting line-up, from the one which lost to the Dragons last week.

In the backline, Edoardo Padovani shifts from left wing to full-back, where he replaces Francois Brummer, while Gabriele Di Giulio will wear the number 11 jersey. Elsewhere, Tommaso Boni takes over from Giulio Bisegni at outside centre while Guglielmo Palazzani comes in at scrum-half in place of Marcello Violi.

In the forwards, Apisai Tauyavuca starts at lock in place of George Biagi which means that inside centre Tommaso Castello will captain the side.

Meanwhile, Ospreys have kept the faith with the same backline that helped them beat Benetton Rugby 27-10 but there are changes to the pack.

Ma’afu Fia comes in for Tom Botha at tighthead prop while Adam Beard replaces Alun Wyn Jones in the second-row as the Welsh international sits out this game.

“Three home wins have given us a platform to go into back to back away games that will offer totally different challenges to the group over the next eight days,” said Ospreys head coach Allen Clarke.

“We’ll continue to take it one game at a time, we’re not looking any further than that. Our focus is on ourselves, and ensuring we do the basics well. There’s confidence in the group but it’s a realistic and respectful confidence, not a misplaced one.”

The teams:

Zebre: 15 Edoardo Padovani, 14 Mattia Bellini, 13 Tommaso Boni, 12 Tommaso Castello (c), 11 Gabriele Di Giulio, 10 Carlo Canna, 9 Guglielmo Palazzani, 8 Giovanni Licata, 7 Johan Meyer, 6 Jimmy Tuivaiti, 5 Apisai Tauyavuca, 4 David Sisi, 3 Dario Chistolini, 2 Oliviero Fabiani, 1 Andrea Lovotti
Replacements: 16 Massimo Ceciliani, 17 Daniele Rimpelli, 18 Giosué Zilocchi, 19 Leonard Krumov, 20 Samuele Ortis, 21 Marcello Violi, 22 Francois Brummer, 23 Giulio Bisegni

Ospreys: 15 Dan Evans, 14 George North, 13 Joe Thomas, 12 Owen Watkin, 11 Luke Morgan, 10 Sam Davies, 9 Aled Davies, 8 James King, 7 Justin Tipuric (c), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Adam Beard, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Ma’afu Fia, 2 Scott Otten, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements: 16 Scott Baldwin, 17 Rhodri Jones, 18 Tom Botha, 19 Olly Cracknell, 20 Sam Cross, 21 Tom Habberfield, 22 James Hook, 23 Cory Allen

Venue: Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi
Kick-off: 16:00 local (15:00 BST, 14:00 GMT)
Referee: Frank Murphy (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Eddie Hogan-O’Connell (Ireland), Vincenzo Schipani (Italy)
Television match official: Alan Falzone (Italy)

Connacht v Leinster

Dave Heffernan is set to captain Connacht as they host Leinster in their first interpro of the season in the Sportsground on Saturday.

Heffernan takes over the captaincy from Jarrad Butler who is ruled out through injury. Heffernan’s inclusion at hooker sees him continue as part of a front trio that includes props Denis Buckley and Finlay Bealham.

Butler’s replacement at openside Colby Fainga’a makes his first start for Connacht who, along with lock Ultan Dillane, are the only changes to the team that beat Scarlets last weekend. Fainga’a comes into a back-row alongside blindside Sean O’Brien and Robin Copeland at number eight.

In the second-row Dillane’s inclusion sees him form a familiar partnership with Quinn Roux.

Among the backs, Kieran Marmion and Jack Carty continue the half-back partnership, as do Bundee Aki and Tom Farrell in midfield.

Wingers Matt Healy and Cian Kelleher are also retained, as is Tiernan O’Halloran at full-back.

Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has kept faith with a lot of the players that played last weekend against Edinburgh in the RDS Arena but has welcomed back a number of players including Seán O’Brien onto the bench from injury.

Rob Kearney comes in at number 15 jersey with Jordan Larmour moving to the right wing from full-back as a result. James Lowe continues on the left wing.

Joe Tomane partners Garry Ringrose in the centre for the first time with Luke McGrath and captain Johnny Sexton.

Cian Healy, Seán Cronin and Tadhg Furlong are selected in the front-row.

Devin Toner moves into third on the all-time Leinster appearance list, together with Cullen, as he gets set to make his 221st appearance in blue. Toner and Cullen on 221 are behind Jamie Heaslip on 229 and Gordon D’Arcy on 261 caps for Leinster.

Australian international Scott Fardy joins Toner in the second-row.

Rhys Ruddock, Josh van der Flier and Jack Conan complete the starting XV.

The teams:

Connacht: 15 Tiernan O’Halloran, 14 Cian Kelleher, 13 Tom Farrell, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Matt Healy, 10 Jack Carty, 9 Kieran Marmion, 8 Robin Copeland, 7 Colby Fainga’a, 6 Sean O’Brien, 5 Quinn Roux, 4 Ultan Dillane, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Dave Heffernan (c), 1 Denis Buckley
Replacements: 16 Tom McCartney, 17 Peter McCabe, 18 Dominic Robertson-McCoy, 19 James Cannon, 20 Paul Boyle, 21 Caolin Blade, 22 Craig Ronaldson, 23 Niyi Adeolokun

Leinster: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Jordan Larmour, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Joe Tomane, 11 James Lowe, 10 Johnny Sexton (c), 9 Luke McGrath, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Rhys Ruddock, 5 Scott Fardy, 4 Devin Toner, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Seán Cronin, 1 Cian Healy
Replacements: 16 James Tracy, 17 Ed Byrne, 18 Andrew Porter, 19 Ross Molony, 20 Seán O’Brien, 21 Nick McCarthy, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Rory O’Loughlin

Venue: Sportsground
Kick-off: 17:15 BST (16:15 GMT)
Referee: John Lacey (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Andrew Brace (Ireland), Kieran Barry (Ireland)
Television match official: Simon McDowell (Ireland)

Scarlets v Southern Kings

Scarlets centre Jonathan Davies returns to action this weekend after suffering a hamstring strain and will lead his side against the Kings.

Saturday’s clash will be Davies’ first outing in this season’s PRO14 having pulled out of the pre-match warm-up against Leinster in Round 2.

The British & Irish Lions centre will lead the side with club captain Ken Owens amongst a group of internationals rested this weekend.

A new-look all-international front-row will get a first start this season in Wyn Jones, Ryan Elias and Werner Kruger as head coach Wayne Pivac rotates the squad.

Jake Ball and David Bulbring combine in the second-row with Dan Davis coming in on the openside flank alongside Ed Kennedy and Blade Thomson in the back-row.

Scrum-half Sam Hidalgo-Clyne gets his second start of the season as he comes in to partner Rhys Patchell in the half-backs.

22-year-old Ioan Nicholas and Australian centre Paul Asquith come in for their first competitive starts of the season as they line up in the backline alongside the experienced Johnny McNicholl, Clayton Blommetjies and Davies.

Meanwhile, Southern Kings head coach Deon Davids has named an unchanged starting XV for Saturday.

Following an impressive 38-28 win over Glasgow Warriors at the Nelson Mandela University last week, Davids has opted to stick to the same starting line-up this week, making only three changes on the bench.

While the starting XV is unchanged, the Southern Kings have made three changes on the bench which will see the experienced Rossouw de Klerk as front-row back-up, Schalk Oelofse covering the second-row and a potential debut in the backline for new recruit Tristan Blewett.

The teams:

Scarlets: 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Johnny McNicholl, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Paul Asquith, 11 Ioan Nicholas, 10 Rhys Patchell, 9 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 8 Blade Thomson, 7 Dan Davis, 6 Ed Kennedy, 5 David Bulbring, 4 Jake Ball, 3 Werner Kruger, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Wyn Jones
Replacements: 16 Marc Jones, 17 Phil Price, 18 Simon Gardiner, 19 Tom Price, 20 Uzair Cassiem, 21 Kieran Hardy, 22 Angus O’Brien, 23 Steff Evans

Kings: 15 Masixole Banda, 14 Yaw Penxe, 13 Harlon Klaasen, 12 Berton Klaasen, 11 Bjorn Basson, 10 Martin du Toit, 9 Rudi van Rooyen, 8 Ruaan Lerm, 7 Andisa Ntsila, 6 Henry Brown, 5 JC Astle, 4 Bobby de Wee, 3 Luvuyo Pupuma, 2 Michael Willemse, 1 Schalk Ferreira
Replacements: 16 Alandre Van Rooyen, 17 Justin Forwood, 18 Rossouw de Klerk, 19 Schalk Oelofse, 20 CJ Velleman, 21 Godlen Masimla, 22 Ntabeni Dukisa, 23 Tristan Blewett

Venue: Parc y Scarlets
Kick-off: 18:30 BST (17:30 GMT)
Referee: Sean Gallagher (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Mark Patton (Ireland), Simon Rees (Wales)
Television match official: Sean Brickell (Wales)

Munster v Ulster

There are eight changes to the Munster side beaten in Cardiff last week with Alby Mathewson making his debut at scrum-half as Keith Earls and Niall Scannell make their first starts of the season.

Having obtained a work permit in the standard timelines, Mathewson is named at scrum-half for his first Munster appearance.

Mike Haley, Dan Goggin, Earls, Mathewson, Dave Kilcoyne, Scannell, Billy Holland and Tommy O’Donnell all come into the side.

Haley starts at full-back with Andrew Conway and Earls on the wings.

Rory Scannell partners Goggin in the centres with fly-half Joey Carbery alongside Mathewson in the half-backs.

Kilcoyne, Niall Scannell and Stephen Archer make up the front-row with Holland returning from injury to partner Tadhg Beirne in the second row.

Captain Peter O’Mahony, O’Donnell and CJ Stander complete the side.

Ulster prop Andrew Warwick will become the latest player to reach the 100 cap milestone in Saturday’s game.

27-year-old Warwick, who made his debut against Cardiff towards the tail end of the 2013/14 season, will start at loosehead prop, with fellow Ballymena RFC clubman Adam McBurney selected for his first start of the season beside him at hooker. Ross Kane completes the front-row.

Alan O’Connor will captain the side from the second-row, with Iain Henderson returning to partner him in the engine room.

In the k-row, flankers Matthew Rea and Nick Timoney are named at blindside and openside respectively, with Jean Deysel packing down at number eight.

John Cooney returns from the scalp laceration sustained in the win over Southern Kings a fortnight ago to join Billy Burns at half-back.

Angus Curtis will also earn his first start of the season, as he is given the nod to partner Darren Cave in midfield.

Wingers Angus Kernohan and Craig Gilroy join Peter Nelson in the back three as the full-back runs out for the 50th time in an Ulster jersey.

The teams:

Munster: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Dan Goggin, 12 Rory Scannell, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Joey Carbery, 9 Alby Mathewson, 8 CJ Stander, 7 Tommy O’Donnell, 6 Peter O’Mahony (c), 5 Billy Holland, 4 Tadhg Beirne, 3 Stephen Archer, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 Dave Kilcoyne
Replacements: 16 Kevin O’Byrne, 17 James Cronin, 18 Ciaran Parker, 19 Jean Kleyn, 20 Arno Botha, 21 Duncan Williams, 22 Ian Keatley, 23 Sammy Arnold

Ulster: 15 Peter Nelson, 14 Craig Gilroy, 13 Darren Cave, 12 Angus Curtis, 11 Angus Kernohan, 10 Billy Burns, 9 John Cooney, 8 Jean Deysel, 7 Nick Timoney, 6 Matthew Rea, 5 Iain Henderson, 4 Alan O’Connor (c), 3 Ross Kane, 2 Adam McBurney, 1 Andrew Warwick
Replacements: 16 John Andrew, 17 Eric O’Sullivan, 18 Tom O’Toole, 19 Kieran Treadwell, 20 Clive Ross, 21 Dave Shanahan, 22 Michael Lowry, 23 James Hume

Venue: Thomond Park
Kick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)
Referee: Dan Jones (Wales)
Assistant referees: Ian Davies (Wales), Nigel Correll (Ireland)
Television match official: Brian MacNeice (Ireland)

Glasgow Warriors v Dragons

Dave Rennie has made 11 changes to his starting XV as Glasgow Warriors welcome the Dragons to Scotsotun on Saturday.

Adam Hastings returns at fly-half, the 21-year-old has a 100 percent kicking record this season and has earned two man-of-the-match medals. He is joined at half-back by Ali Price.

Outside of them, Alex Dunbar starts at inside centre, partnering Huw Jones in midfield.

Neither Lee Jones or Niko Matawalu travelled to South Africa and they are both promoted to the starting XV for the first game back on home soil. They join Ruaridh Jackson in the back-three.

Up front Oli Kebble will look to continue his dominant start to the season at loosehead. Fraser Brown also comes in alongside join D’Arcy Rae to complete the front-row.

Rob Harley and Jonny Gray both return to the engine room, while behind them are co-captains Ryan Wilson and Callum Gibbins, either side of Matt Fagerson who is starting his first game of the season.

Dragons head coach Bernard Jackman makes a total of seven changes to his starting line-up with Sage and Knoyle the only changes in the back line.

A new-look pack features two changes in the front-row with hooker Richard Hibbard – who will captain the team – and prop Ryan Bevington returning to the side.

Samoa international Brandon Nansen will partner Rynard Landman in the second-row.

Lewis Evans returns at number eight while Nic Cudd will start the game at openside flanker.

Lock Huw Taylor, back-row James Thomas and utility back Will Talbot-Davies are rewarded for their form in the Celtic Cup competition with places on the replacements bench.

The teams:

Glasgow Warriors: 15 Ruaridh Jackson, 14 Lee Jones, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Alex Dunbar, 11 Niko Matawalu, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Ali Price, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Callum Gibbins (cc), 6 Ryan Wilson (cc), 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Rob Harley, 3 D’Arcy Rae, 2 Fraser Brown, 1 Oli Kebble
Replacements: 16 George Turner, 17 Alex Allan, 18 Adam Nicol, 19 Andrew Davidson, 20 Chris Fusaro, 21 George Horne, 22 Brandon Thomson, 23 Nick Grigg

Dragons: 15 Jordan Williams, 14 Dafydd Howells, 13 Adam Warren, 12 Jarryd Sage, 11 Jared Rosser, 10 Arwel Robson, 9 Tavis Knoyle, 8 Lewis Evans, 7 Nic Cudd, 6 Aaron Wainwright, 5 Rynard Landman, 4 Brandon Nansen, 3 Lloyd Fairbrother, 2 Richard Hibbard (c), 1 Ryan Bevington
Replacements: 16 Elliot Dee, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Aaron Jarvis, 19 Huw Taylor, 20 James Thomas, 21 Rhodri Williams, 22 Josh Lewis, 23 Will Talbot-Davies

Venue: Scotstoun
Kick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)
Referee: Stuart Berry (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Mike Adamson (Scotland), Dunx McClement (Scotland)
Television match official: Neil Paterson (Scotland)

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Wasps director of rugby Dai Young hailed the attitude of his players after they picked up a tough 23-22 Premiership victory over Newcastle Falcons.

The result at Kingston Park saw the visitors come from behind to prevail with Josh Bassett, Marcus Watson and Juan de Jongh getting crossings.

After this win that sees Wasps go level on points with second-placed Exeter ahead of Saturday’s fixtures, Young admitted he was a relieved man.

“There was some real crazy stuff at the end,” he told Premiership Rugby.

“It was a really tough game for us to play against a real quality side, they really stretched us on occasions and I knew that they would, but I was really pleased with the attitude of my players.

“They played some good stuff but just as importantly we showed a lot of togetherness, a lot of spirit to get that result.

“The last couple of minutes were outstanding, we kept our discipline and tried to force a mistake that won us the game.

“We’ve had two very tough games and six-day turnovers, with a travel day as well, there’s been a really big effort to get the wins in these past two matches.”

Meanwhile, Newcastle Falcons director of rugby Dean Richards was visibly disappointed with how his side let slip a 22-13 lead slip through their fingers.

“When you look at the opportunities we created, and should have nailed, it’s incredibly frustrating,” he said.

“We can sit here and criticise certain decisions from the officials but at the end of the day it was our own fault we lost, because we had the chances and didn’t take them.

“It’s definitely one that got away.

“Our accuracy in certain aspects of play just wasn’t there , and it cost us dear. It’s a real shame – everyone in that changing room is absolutely gutted, and rightly so because it was within our own power to win that game.

“That five or six minutes of play after the 80 minutes had elapsed was quite extraordinary, and we gave it a go.

“We’ll look at ourselves over the next few days, put it to bed and by Tuesday we’ll be looking forward to the Sale game next weekend.”

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Ahead of Saturday’s Rugby Championship games, we are putting our head on the block and picking our winners from the two matches.

South Africa and Australia open proceedings in Port Elizabeth, where the hosts will hope to put pressure on New Zealand in the competition standings, before Argentina host the All Blacks in Buenos Aires.

Elsewhere, the big leagues in Europe continue this weekend with the Premiership, PRO14 and Top 14 taking place, while the Currie Cup and Mitre 10 Cup is getting towards its latter stages.

RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP

South Africa v Australia

Preview: South Africa will be looking to continue where they left off against New Zealand when they host Australia in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

Prediction: With this match being played in Port Elizabeth, it’s hard to look past a Springbok win. South Africa to win by seven points.

Argentina v New Zealand

Preview: New Zealand will be eager to avoid back-to-back defeats for the first time since 2011 when they face Argentina in Buenos Aires on Saturday.

Prediction: While the pack is missing a few key players, the All Blacks should have enough overall to take this. New Zealand by 14.

PREMIERSHIP

Bristol v Northampton Saints: Bristol by 3
Exeter Chiefs v Worcester Warriors: Exeter by 15
Gloucester v Harlequins: Gloucester by 10
Saracens v Bath: Saracens by 17
Leicester Tigers v Sale Sharks: Leicester by 6

PRO14

Zebre v Ospreys: Zebre by 5
Connacht v Leinster: Leinster by 10
Scarlets v Southern Kings: Scarlets by 20
Glasgow Warriors v Dragons: Glasgow by 14
Munster v Ulster: Munster by 11

TOP 14

Toulouse v Castres: Toulouse by 6
Agen v Pau: Agen by 2
Bordeaux v La Rochelle: Bordeaux by 10
Lyon v Grenoble: Lyon by 15
Perpignan v Montpellier: Montpellier by 9
Clermont Auvergne v Toulon: Clermont by 12
Stade Francais v Racing 92: Stade by 5

CURRIE CUP

Western Province v Sharks: Western Province by 6

MITRE 10 CUP

Canterbury v Hawke’s Bay: Canterbury by 14
Counties Manukau v Northland: Counties Manukau by 5

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Edinburgh moved off the foot of the PRO14‘s Conference B with a narrow victory over Benetton on Friday, while Cardiff Blues beat the Cheetahs in another nail-biter.

Edinburgh 31-30 Benetton Rugby

Edinburgh held on for a much needed 31-30 victory over Benetton in an entertaining encounter at Murrayfield.

The two teams traded penalties early on before the hosts scored the first two tries of the match in quick succession. First, Matt Scott went over in the 18th minute. Then, after a conversion from Simon Hickey, Duhan van der Merwe set the fly-half up for another easy kick, running in under the sticks from 30 metres out.

Luca Sperandio hit back in the 24th minute, diving over in the corner, but Edinburgh responded in style 11 minutes later, with Blair Kinghorn finishing off a well-worked backline move.

Cherif Traore dived over to narrow Edinburgh’s lead again on the stroke of half-time, with Tommaso Allan’s conversion taking the score to 24-15 at the break.

Edinburgh drew first blood in the second-half, with Kinghorn’s looping pass setting up Dougie Fife to score in the corner in the 48th minute. However, once again, Sperandio scored shortly afterwards to tighten the game up again.

The winger had his hat-trick in the 61st minute, with TMO Andrew McMenemy ruling that he had not put a foot in touch. By this stage, Benetton were in striking distance of taking the lead.

A 71st minute yellow card for Grant Gilchrist left Edinburgh in a difficult position, which was not helped when Marco Barbini drove over the try-line from close range straight afterwards.

However, Benetton were made to pay for only adding the extras to one of their five tries, with two missed conversions apiece from Allan and Ian McKinley proving to be their downfall.

The scorers:

For Edinburgh:
Tries: Scott, Van der Merwe, Kinghorn, Fife
Cons: Hickey 4
Pen: Hickey
Yellow Cards: Gilchrist

For Benetton:
Tries: Sperandio 3, Traore, Barbini
Con: Allan
Pen: Allan

Edinburgh: 15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Dougie Fife, 13 Chris Dean, 12 Matt Scott, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Simon Hickey, 9 Henry Pyrgos, 8 Bill Mata, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Magnus Bradbury, 5 Grant Gilchrist, 4 Ben Toolis, 3 WP Nel, 2 Stuart McInally (c), 1 Allan Dell
Replacements: 16 Dave Cherry, 17 Rory Sutherland, 18 Murray McCallum, 19 Fraser McKenzie, 20 Jamie Ritchie, 21 Nathan Fowles, 22 Darcy Graham, 23 Juan Pablo Socino

Benetton Rugby: 15 Jayden Hayward, 14 Ratuva Tavuyara, 13 Tommaso Iannone, 12 Luca Morisi, 11 Luca Sperandio, 10 Tommaso Allan, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Robert Barbieri, 7 Marco Barbini, 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Dean Budd (c), 4 Marco Fuser, 3 Marco Riccioni, 2 Luca Bigi, 1 Cherif Traore
Replacements: 16 Engjel Makelara, 17 Derrick Appiah, 18 Simone Ferrari, 19 Federico Ruzza, 20 Marco Lazzaroni, 21 Edoardo Gori, 22 Ian McKinley, 23 Ignacio Brex

Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: Elgan Williams (Wales), Keith Allen (Scotland)
Television match official: Andrew McMenemy (Scotland)

Cardiff Blues 24-21 Cheetahs

Cardiff Blues narrowly denied the Cheetahs their first victory of the season with a nail-biting 24-21 victory at Cardiff Arms Park.

Both teams were afforded opportunities to take the lead from the kicking tee in the opening 10 minutes, but Tian Schoeman and Gareth Anscombe missed their first penalties.

The Cheetahs drew first blood at last in the 19th minute after a scrappy maul from an attacking line-out. Walt Steenkamp pounced on the loose ball to score.

However, the South African side gifted Cardiff Blues a try just seven minutes later, with Ryno Eksteen fumbling Anscombe’s kick through and Rey Lee-Lo pouncing onto the loose ball to score. Referee George Clancy went upstairs to Jon Mason to check for a knock-on from the centre, but to the surprise of many, the try stood.

Conversions from Schoeman and Anscombe, as well as a late penalty from the latter, saw Cardiff Blues take a 10-7 lead into the half-time break.

However, the Cheetahs regained their lead nine minutes after the break, with Sibhale Maxwane chasing a clever grubber kick into space and getting to the ball first to ground it for their second try. There was a hint of a forward pass in the build-up, but once again, Mason did not see any issue.

To make matters worse for the hosts, some poor defence allowed the Cheetahs’ centre pairing to rip them to shreds shortly afterwards. Nico Lee’s pass sent Benhard Janse van Rensburg through a gap and he went all the way to the try-line in the 59th minute.

Cardiff rallied and were rewarded after a lengthy spell of pressure six minutes later, with Lloyd Williams going through a gap in the defence to score.

The Blues then regained the lead in the 70th minute after a magnificent effort from a maul. Clancy asked Mason whether or not there was any reason why he could not award the try to Olly Robinson and Mason responded in the negative.

The scorers:

For Cardiff Blues:
Tries: Lee-Lo, L Williams, Robinson
Cons: Anscombe 3
Pen: Anscombe

For Cheetahs:
Tries: Steenkamp, Maxwane, Janse van Rensburg
Cons: Schoeman 3

Cardiff Blues: 15 Matthew Morgan, 14 Owen Lane, 13 Rey Lee-Lo, 12 Willis Halaholo, 11 Jason Harries, 10 Gareth Anscombe, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Josh Turnbull, 7 Ellis Jenkins (c), 6 Olly Robinson, 5 Rory Thornton, 4 George Earle, 3 Scott Andrews, 2 Kristian Dacey, 1 Rhys Gill
Replacements: 16 Kirby Myhill, 17 Brad Thyer, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Macauley Cook, 20 Sion Bennett, 21 Lloyd Williams, 22 Steven Shingler, 23 Garyn Smith

Cheetahs: 15 Ryno Eksteen, 14 William Small-Smith, 13 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 12 Nico Lee, 11 Sibhale Maxwane, 10 Tian Schoeman, 9 Tian Meyer (c), 8 Niell Jordaan, 7 Junior Pokomela, 6 Gerhard Olivier, 5 Jean-Pierre Du Preez, 4 Walt Steenkamp, 3 Johannes Coetzee, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Jacques Du Toit, 17 Charles Marais, 18 Günther Janse van Vuuren, 19 Justin Basson, 20 Stephan Malan, 21 Daniel Maartens, 22 Shaun Venter, 23 Louis Fouche

Referee: George Clancy (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Joy Neville (Ireland), Gwyn Morris (Wales)
Television match official: Jon Mason (Wales)

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The first Paris derby of the Top 14 season takes place on Sunday when Stade Francais hosts Racing 92 at the Stade Jean-Bouin.

Elsewhere, Toulouse and Castres go head-to-head looking to build on their decent starts to the campaign, while Clermont Auvergne and Toulon face-off in Saturday’s late game at the Marcel Michelin.

Saturday
Toulouse vs Castres
Agen vs Pau
Bordeaux-Bègles vs La Rochelle
Lyon vs Grenoble
Perpignan vs Montpellier
Clermont Auvergne vs Toulon

Sunday
Stade Francais vs Racing 92

Toulouse vs Castres
Stade Ernest-Wallon

One of the matches of the weekend opens the action on Saturday as two potential play-off challengers take on each other at the Stade Ernest-Wallon.

Toulouse were unbeaten heading into Round Five before they were thrashed by Montpellier last Sunday. Ugo Mola fielded a weakened team, however, instead targeting this game against the defending champions.

Castres reside just below Les Rouge et Noir in the table but their tough start to the season continues on Saturday. The fixtures have been unkind to Christophe Urios’ outfit at the beginning of this campaign, but they have managed it superbly and will look forward to home comforts following this encounter.

Last season’s result: Castres won 41-31
Kick-off: 15:10 local (14:10 BST, 13:10 GMT)
Referee: Romain Poite
Assistant referees: Ludovic Cayre, Bruno Gabaldon
TMO: Eric Gonthier

Agen vs Pau
Stade Armandie

Another home match, another game Agen will target following successes against Perpignan and Bordeaux-Bègles when they face Pau.

Philippe Sella’s men, tipped to struggle at the start of the season, have started well at the Stade Armandie and this weekend’s visitors reside just above them in the table.

Simon Mannix’s charges have also lost three of their first five matches and were disappointing against Stade Francais last Sunday, going down 25-13 to the Parisians.

It should be a close contest but at home Agen have shown that they can once again compete against the rest of the division.

Last season’s result: Pau won 20-14
Kick-off: 18:00 local (17:00 BST, 16:00 GMT)
Referee: Laurent Cardona
Assistant referees: Nicolas Datas, Laurent Breil
TMO: Patrick Dellac

Bordeaux-Bègles vs La Rochelle
Matmut Atlantique

Bordeaux may have endured an inauspicious opening four rounds but they found their form to end Clermont Auvergne’s unbeaten start to the campaign.

UBB will look to build on that performance and result against La Rochelle, who themselves produced their best display of the season last weekend. They defeated Lyon 30-13 to secure their second successive victory, leaving them just one point behind third place Racing 92.

A loss for the visitors, however, will see them drop behind Bordeaux. That would duly provide Rory Teague, who is under pressure to succeed following the previous year’s failings, with a huge fillip.

The UBB owners have invested heavily in the squad ahead of 2018/19 and a top-six challenge is therefore a pre-requisite for the side.

Last season’s result: Bordeaux won 29-19
Kick-off: 18:00 local (17:00 BST, 16:00 GMT)
Referee: Maxime Chalon
Assistant referees: Laurent Millotte, Eric Soulan
TMO: Philippe Bonhoure

Lyon vs Grenoble
Matmut Stadium de Gerland

After the disappointment of going down to La Rochelle, this game should be much more to Lyon’s liking, with Grenoble struggling in 13th place in the Top 14.

To the newly-promoted side’s credit, they ended their losing streak by overcoming last season’s Pro D2 winners Perpignan in Round Five.

That will no doubt increase confidence but this is an altogether different challenge and one where they will likely falter. Pierre Mignoni’s charges may have only won two matches so far, but a victory here should propel them back into the top-six.

Last season’s result: Did not play
Kick-off: 18:00 local (17:00 BST, 16:00 GMT)
Referee: Pascal Gauzere
Assistant referees: Julien Castaignede, Arnaud Blondel
TMO: Sebastien Minery

Perpignan vs Montpellier
Stade Aime Giral

Perpignan’s time back in France’s top-tier has been a bit of a disaster so far having lost their opening five matches.

They suffered a blow by going down to Grenoble last weekend and also failed to claim a losing bonus-point following the 31-22 defeat.

Christian Lanta’s men have improved since their opening round thrashing at the hands of Stade Francais, but the Stade Aime Giral is not quite the intimidating proposition it used to be.

Montpellier found their form by putting over 60 points on Toulouse and will look to continue that form on Saturday evening.

Last season’s result: Did not play
Kick-off: 18:00 local (17:00 BST, 16:00 GMT)
Referee: Tual Trainini
Assistant referees: Thomas Charabas, Sebastien Hebert
TMO: Denis Grenouillet

Clermont Auvergne vs Toulon
Parc des Sports Marcel Michelin

Saturday’s late match sees two of France’s biggest clubs go head-to-head, but on form this should be a comfortable victory for the hosts.

Toulon still have quality players but they have yet to fire and even the team’s comfortable triumph over Agen suggested that they are nowhere near Clermont at the moment.

Les Jaunards succumbed for the first time this season after losing to Bordeaux but they are still playing well and should have more than enough to defeat Patrice Collazo’s men.

Last season’s result: Clermont won 21-16
Kick-off: 20:45 local (19:45 BST, 18:45 GMT)
Referee: Adrien Descottes
Assistant referees: Cyril Lafon, Jean-Claude Labarbe
TMO: Laurent Sclafer

Stade Francais vs Racing 92
Stade Jean-Bouin

Round Six closes on Sunday with the Paris derby where Stade Francais will look to continue their fine start to the season against their rivals.

Following the issues of the previous campaign, Heyneke Meyer’s men have impressed everyone by their opening to the year.

Four victories in 2018/19 means that they head into the weekend in second position behind Clermont and could end Sunday at the top of the table.

Racing have also started well and reside just below Stade following their impressive triumph over Castres, but they have been slightly inconsistent, with their excellent wins against the defending champions and Toulon being interspersed by poor performances versus Clermont and Toulouse.

Last season’s result: Stade Francais won 27-17
Kick-off: 16:50 local (15:50 BST, 14:50 GMT)
Referee: Alexandre Ruiz
Assistant referees: Pierre Brousset, Patrick Pechambert
TMO: Eric Briquet-Campin

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Wasps claimed their fourth win from five games so far in the Premiership season as they came from behind to beat Newcastle 23-22 on Friday.

Tries from Josh Bassett, Marcus Watson and Juan de Jongh saw them to the four points, with Lima Sopoaga adding eight points off the tee.

In reply the Falcons’ try-scorers were Mark Wilson and Johnny Williams (two) but they will rue turning down several kickable opportunities.

It was a first stanza that saw periods of dominance from both sides but it was the Falcons who went in with their noses in front at 15-13.

Wasps had the first chance for points on eight minutes but Sopoaga was wide and short with his long-range attempt. However, three minutes later the visitors were over as the New Zealand fly-half’s perfectly weighted grubber kick was grounded by Bassett in the left-hand corner.

5-0 became 5-5 six minutes later though as a moment of magic from Sinoti Sinoti saw him step one defender and then fend two before finding Wilson on his shoulder, the number eight having enough pace to get to the whitewash for the levelling score. Toby Flood could not add the two.

Wasps hit back quickly via a Sopoaga penalty but they came agonisingly close to making it seven points, as Michael Le Bourgeois came up just short.

After that it was all Newcastle with only excellent defence keeping them out until the 30th minute, when Flood’s bust led to Williams making it 12-8. Flood did make it 15-8 six minutes later before Wasps responded before the break, Watson finishing off slick hands to cut the lead to two.

Newcastle though came out firing after half-time and it was Sinoti again the catalyst as his run preceded Williams scoring against a post.

The Falcons were now 22-13 ahead and that was almost increased on 51 minutes but replacement Tom Penny had a foot in touch when grounding. It came back to haunt them on the hour mark as Sopoaga’s well-timed pass found De Jongh on a good line as it became 22-20 at Kingston Park.

Newcastle had the chance to add three points shortly afterwards but wanted more, which backfired as nothing came of the attacking line-out.

Then Sopoaga landed a long-range attempt to nudge Wasps 23-22 in front which, despite a late Newcastle onslaught, was how it finished.

The scorers:

For Newcastle:
Tries: Wilson, Williams 2
Cons: Flood 2
Pen: Flood

For Wasps:
Tries: Bassett, Watson, De Jongh
Con: Sopoaga
Pens: Sopoaga 2

Newcastle: 15 Simon Hammersley, 14 Vereniki Goneva, 13 Chris Harris, 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Sinoti Sinoti, 10 Toby Flood, 9 Sonatane Takulua, 8 Mark Wilson, 7 Will Welch (c), 6 Gary Graham, 5 Tevita Cavubati, 4 Calum Green, 3 Logovi’i Mulipola, 2 George McGuigan, 1 Adam Brocklebank
Replacements: 16 Santiago Socino, 17 Sami Mavinga, 18 Paul Mullen, 19 Will Witty, 20 Callum Chick, 21 Sam Stuart, 22 Joel Hodgson, 23 Tom Penny

Wasps: 15 Rob Miller, 14 Marcus Watson, 13 Juan De Jongh, 12 Michael Le Bourgeois, 11 Josh Bassett, 10 Lima Sopoaga, 9 Joe Simpson, 8 Nizaam Carr, 7 Ben Morris, 6 Ashley Johnson (c), 5 James Gaskell, 4 Will Rowlands, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Tom Cruse, 1 Zurabi Zhvania
Replacements: 16 Tommy Taylor, 17 Ben Harris, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Kearnan Myall, 20 Nathan Hughes, 21 Dan Robson, 22 Billy Searle, 23 Elliot Daly

Referee: Karl Dickson
Assistant referees: Peter Allan, Hamish Smales
Television match official: Sean Davey

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Australia have suffered a blow ahead of facing South Africa on Saturday after hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau was ruled out with a hamstring niggle.

The Wallabies hooker had been “managed” through training in Port Elizabeth this week and was initially named in the side to face the Boks but failed a fitness test on Friday.

Folau Faingaa will make his first Test start in his place, with his promotion opening up a spot for Brandon Paenga-Amosa on the bench.

The Reds hooker made his Test debut in June but this will be his first involvement in the Rugby Championship.

Australia (revised): 15 Dane Haylett-Petty, 14 Israel Folau, 13 Reece Hodge, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Kurtley Beale, 9 Will Genia, 8 David Pocock, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Ned Hanigan, 5 Izack Rodda, 4 Adam Coleman, 3 Taniela Tupou, 2 Folau Faingaa, 1 Scott Sio
Replacements: 16 Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 17 Sekope Kepu, 18 Allan Alaalatoa, 19 Rory Arnold, 20 Rob Simmons, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Bernard Foley, 23 Jack Maddocks

Date: Saturday, September 29
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Kick-off: 17:05 local (16:05 BST, 15:05 GMT)
Referee: Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Matthew Carley (England)
Television match official: Graham Hughes (England)

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