Tag: Rugby

There are two matches scheduled in the PRO14 on Saturday and a further three on Sunday with the Cheetahs and Munster closing out the action in Bloemfontein.

Saturday

Benetton v Ulster

Benetton head coach Kieran Crowley has named his matchday squad to take on Ulster at the Stadio Monigo in Treviso.

Jayden Hayward starts at full-back and is joined in the back three by Ratuva Tavuyara and Tommaso Benvenuti. Ignacio Brex and Alberto Sgarbi starts at outside and inside centre respectively.

The half-backs are Dewaldt Duvenage at scrum-half and Tommaso Allan at fly-half.

The front-row will consist of Derrick Appiah and Simone Ferrari, who are the two props, while Hame Faiva packs down at hooker.

Irné Herbst and Alessandro Zanni are the two locks and the back-row comprises of captain Dean Budd and Michele Lamaro, who are the two flanks, while Marco Barbini starts at number eight.

Meanwhile, Ulster Academy player James Hume will make his first senior start, following on from his replacement appearances against Munster and Connacht earlier this season.

He will be joined in the backline by fellow Academy player Robert Baloucoune, who made an accomplished debut in the win versus Dragons last weekend.

Stuart McCloskey, released from Ireland squad duty along with Rob Herring this week, will partner Hume in midfield, while Billy Burns has recovered from injury to partner Dave Shanahan at half back. Baloucoune is joined by Henry Speight and full-back Peter Nelson in the back three.

Up front, Herring will pack down alongside props Eric O’Sullivan and Marty Moore, with skipper Alan O’Connor partnering Kieran Treadwell in the second-row. Marcell Coetzee, Sean Reidy and Nick Timoney will form a combative back-row unit.

John Andrew, Andy Warwick and Tom O’Toole are the front-row reinforcements, while Clive Ross and Greg Jones, who impressed off the bench last week, will provide additional forward cover.

Jonny Stewart, Johnny McPhillips and Angus Kernohan are the backline options for Head Coach Dan McFarland.

The teams:

Benetton: 15 Jayden Hayward, 14 Ratuva Tavuyara, 13 Ignacio Brex, 12 Alberto Sgarbi, 11 Tommaso Benvenuti, 10 Tommaso Allan, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Marco Barbini, 7 Michele Lamaro, 6 Dean Budd (c), 5 Alessandro Zanni, 4 Irné Herbst, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Hame Faiva, 1 Derrick Appiah
Replacements: 16 Tomas Baravalle, 17 Alberto De Marchi, 18 Marco Riccioni, 19 Niccolò Cannone, 20 Giovanni Pettinelli, 21 Edoardo Gori, 22 Antonio Rizzi, 23 Angelo Esposito

Ulster: 15 Peter Nelson, 14 Robert Baloucoune, 13 James Hume, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Henry Speight, 10 Billy Burns, 9 Dave Shanahan, 8 Nick Timoney, 7 Sean Reidy, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Kieran Treadwell, 4 Alan O’Connor (c), 3 Marty Moore, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Eric O’Sullivan
Replacements: 16 John Andrew, 17 Andy Warwick, 18 Tom O’Toole, 19 Clive Ross, 20 Greg Jones, 21 Johnny Stewart, 22 Johnny McPhillips, 23 Angus Kernohan

Date: Saturday, November 3
Venue: Stadio Comunale di Monigo
Kick-off: 16:00 local (15:00 GMT)
Referee: Mike Adamson (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Ben Blain (Scotland), Gabriel Chirnoaga (Italy)
Television match official: Stefano Pennè (Italy)

Connacht v Dragons

Eoin Griffin is poised to make his 100th appearance in a Connacht jersey as he is named on the bench for the PRO14 clash with the Dragons at the Sportsground on Saturday.

The Galway man made his Connacht debut in 2010 and is on his second term with the province having spent two campaigns with London Irish from 2014 to 2016. He returned to the Sportsground ahead of the 2016/17 season.

With Bundee Aki, Quinn Roux and Finlay Bealham all away on international duty in Chicago, Head Coach Andy Friend is forced to make a number of changes to his starting team. He is however boosted by the availability of Kieran Marmion who starts at scrum-half as he prepares for the upcoming home November internationals.

Marmion has a new half-back partner with David Horwitz set to make his first start for the province at out-half. Kyle Godwin also comes into the midfield where he partners Tom Farrell.

In the back three there is a start for Colm De Buitléar on the wing, with Cian Kelleher on the opposite wing and Tiernan O’Halloran at full-back.

In the forwards, Conor Carey steps in for Bealham while James Cannon comes into the second-row for Roux.

The only other change is in the back-row where captain Jarrad Butler starts at number eight with Colby Fainga’a slotting in at openside.

Eoin Griffin is joined on the bench by academy player Matthew Burke and summer arrival Joe Maksymiw who are both in line to make their PRO14 debuts for the province.

Meanwhile, Hallam Amos, Joe Davies and Taine Basham are all handed starts for Dragons.

Wales international Amos makes his playing return at outside centre for the fixture at the Sportsground, after recovering from the dislocated elbow he sustained at Leinster in mid-September.

Lock Davies comes into the second-row to partner Lewis Evans, with Matthew Screech ruled out with an ankle injury.

The final change made by Head Coach Bernard Jackman is a first PRO14 start of the season for Wales U20 international Basham, who impressed off the bench in Belfast last week.

The teams:

Connacht: 15 Tiernan O’Halloran, 14 Cian Kelleher, 13 Kyle Godwin, 12 Tom Farrell, 11 Colm De Buitléar, 10 David Horwitz, 9 Kieran Marmion, 8 Jarrad Butler (c), 7 Colby Fainga’a, 6 Sean O’Brien, 5 James Cannon, 4 Ultan Dillane, 3 Conor Carey, 2 Tom McCartney, 1 Denis Buckley
Replacements: 16 Shane Delahunt, 17 Matthew Burke, 18 Conán O’Donnell, 19 Joe Maksymiw, 20 James Connolly, 21 Caolin Blade, 22 Jack Carty, 23 Eoin Griffin

Dragons: 15 Jordan Williams, 14 Dafydd Howells, 13 Hallam Amos, 12 Jarryd Sage, 11 Will Talbot-Davies, 10 Jason Tovey, 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 Taine Basham, 7 Nic Cudd, 6 Harrison Keddie, 5 Lewis Evans, 4 Joe Davies, 3 Lloyd Fairbrother, 2 Richard Hibbard (c), 1 Brok Harris
Replacements: 16 Rhys Lawrence, 17 Aaron Jarvis, 18 Dan Suter, 19 James Thomas, 20 Huw Taylor, 21 Tavis Knoyle, 22 Jack Dixon, 23 Adam Warren

Date: Saturday, November 3
Venue: Sportsground
Kick-off: 17:15 GMT
Referee: Quinton Immelman (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Jonny Erskine (Ireland), Robert O’Sullivan (Ireland)
Television match official: Leo Colgan (Ireland)

Sunday

Southern Kings v Leinster

Southern Kings head coach Deon Davids has made six alterations and one positional switch to his starting line-up that lost to Scarlets last week.

In the backline, Stefan Ungerer will start at scrum-half to make his PRO14 debut and first appearance for the Kings since the 2017 Super Rugby season. This means that Godlen Masimla will be on the replacements bench to provide back-up at scrum-half.

A new centre pairing sees Tertius Kruger, who made a good impact from the bench on his debut last weekend, coming in at inside centre to partner Harlon Klaasen. Berton Klaasen will be on the bench.

Out wide Michael Makase will start at right wing, replacing Bjorn Basson, who is unavailable due to personal reasons. The change will see Yaw Penxe switching from the right to left wing.

Justin Forwood returns to the starting XV in the front-row where he will pack down at tighthead prop.

In another rotational move, Stephan Greeff will pair up with captain JC Astle in the second-row as Schalk Oelofse takes a break this weekend.

There is a new back-row combination with Martinus Burger joining openside flanker Stephan de Wit and number eight Ruaan Lerm, following an injury sustained by Andisa Ntsila last weekend.

New faces on the bench sees new recruit Nicolaas “NJ” Oosthuizen providing front-row cover and the experienced utility forward Andries van Schalkwyk is there as the back-up lock while CJ Velleman also returns to the team to provide back-row cover.

Meanwhile, Wallaby utility back Scott Fardy will captain Leinster for the first time in a competitive fixture and he starts in the second-row with Ross Molony. Fardy has made 28 appearances and scored five tries since joining the province in 2017.

There are seven personnel changes to the Irish province’s starting XV that secured a bonus point win away to Benetton Rugby last weekend in Treviso.

At full-back, Dave Kearney returns from injury to make his first start since the home win over Dragons in September. Adam Byrne and Joe Tomane retain their places in the back three from last week.

Rory O’Loughlin once again starts at outside centre, while Conor O’Brien, who made a try-scoring appearance from the bench last week, starts in the 12 shirt.

The final change to the backline sees Noel Reid come in to start at fly-half, with Jamison Gibson-Park completing the half-back pairing.

There are two changes to the Leinster front-row as Ed Byrne and Michael Bent come in, with James Tracy once again named as the starting hooker.

In the second-row, Fardy swaps from loosehead to tighthead side, with Molony coming in for James Ryan.

Finally, in the back-row, Josh Murphy will start at blindside flanker in place of Seán O’Brien as Dan Leavy and Max Deegan keep their places from last weekend.

On the bench, Vakh Abdaladze, Ciarán Frawley and Tom Daly are all in line to make their first appearances of the season for the senior side should they be called upon.

All eight replacements were part of the Leinster Rugby ‘A’ squad that defeated Scarlets ‘A’ in the Celtic Cup Final in Llanelli two weeks ago.

The teams:

Southern Kings: 15 Masixole Banda, 14 Michael Makase, 13 Harlon Klaasen, 12 Tertius Kruger, 11 Yaw Penxe, 10 Martin du Toit, 9 Stefan Ungerer, 8 Ruaan Lerm, 7 Martinus Burger, 6 Stephan de Wit, 5 JC Astle (c), 4 Stephan Greeff, 3 Justin Forwood, 2 Alandre van Rooyen, 1 Schalk Ferreira
Replacements: 16 Tango Balekile, 17 Lupumlo Mguca, 18 Nicolaas Oosthuizen, 19 Andries van Schalkwyk, 20 CJ Velleman, 21 Godlen Masimla, 22 Berton Klaasen, 23 Meli Rokoua

Leinster: 15 Dave Kearney, 14 Adam Byrne, 13 Rory O’Loughlin, 12 Conor O’Brien, 11 Joe Tomane, 10 Noel Reid, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Max Deegan, 7 Dan Leavy, 6 Josh Murphy, 5 Scott Fardy (c), 4 Ross Molony, 3 Michael Bent, 2 James Tracy, 1 Ed Byrne
Replacements: 16 Bryan Byrne, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Vakh Abdaladze, 19 Mick Kearney, 20 Caelan Doris, 21 Hugh O’Sullivan, 22 Ciarán Frawley, 23 Tom Daly

Date: Sunday, November 4
Venue: Madibaz Stadium
Kick-off: 14:45 local (12:45 GMT)
Referee: Lloyd Linton (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Ben Crouse (South Africa), Paul Mente (South Africa)
Television match official: Johan Greeff (South Africa)

Cardiff Blues v Zebre

Veteran prop Gethin Jenkins has been named on the Cardiff Blues replacements bench as he prepares to hang up his boots following Sunday’s clash with Zebre.

The Wales record appearance maker has been battling back from a chronic knee injury but has now been advised to draw the curtain on his illustrious career.

But he will play one more game for Cardiff Blues – his 195th for the region – as they look to bounce back from last weekend’s defeat to the Cheetahs.

John Mulvihill has made five changes to the starting line-up with Lloyd Williams remaining captain.

In the backs, his younger brother Tom, who joined the region on trial at the beginning of the season, starts at full-back, and Rey Lee-Lo returns to the centre to partner Garyn Smith.

Up front, Brad Thyer and Kirby Myhill return to the front-row, while Nick Williams starts at number eight.

Meanwhile, Zebre head coach Michael Bradley has made 11 changes compared to his starting XV selected in Parma last Saturday in the victory against Edinburgh.

There will be several players missing through injury and call ups by the Italian national team. In the back-line there are two positional changes with Gabriele Di Giulio moving from the left to the right wing and Francois Brummer switching from full-back to fly-half.

The other changes to the backs sees Giovanni D’Onofrio starting at full-back while Tommaso Boni and Nicolas De Battista form a new centre combination. Paula Balekana comes in on the left wing and Riccardo Raffaele is at scrum-half.

In the pack, David Sisi will captain Zebre for the first time in his 32nd official match with the Italian franchise. In the forwards, Antoine Koffi and Apisai Tauyavuca come in at number eight and on the openside flank respectively and Sisi is joined in the second-row by Leonard Krumov.

There’s a new front-row with Eduardo Bello the two props Cruze Ah-Nau and Luhandre Luus starts at hooker.

The teams:

Cardiff Blues: 15 Tom Williams, 14 Aled Summerhill, 13 Garyn Smith, 12 Rey Lee-Lo, 11 Jason Harries, 10 Steve Shingler, 9 Lloyd Williams, 8 Nick Williams, 7 Olly Robinson, 6 Josh Turnbull, 5 Seb Davies, 4 George Earle, 3 Scott Andrews, 2 Kirby Myhill, 1 Brad Thyer
Replacements: 16 Kristian Dacey, 17 Gethin Jenkins, 18 Keiron Assiratti, 19 James Down, 20 Samu Manoa, 21 Lewis Jones, 22 Dan Fish, 23 Harri Millard

Zebre: 15 Giovanni D’Onofrio, 14 Gabriele Di Giulio, 13 Tommaso Boni, 12 Nicolas De Battista, 11 Paula Balekana, 10 Francois Brummer, 9 Riccardo Raffaele, 8 Antoine Koffi, 7 Apisai Tauyavuca, 6 Jacopo Bianchi, 5 Leonard Krumov, 4 David Sisi (c), 3 Eduardo Bello, 2 Luhandre Luus, 1 Cruze Ah-Nau
Replacements: 16 Marco Manfredi, 17 Daniele Rimpelli, 18 Roberto Tenga, 19 Samuele Ortis, 20 Davide Ruggeri, 21 Maicol Azzolini, 22 Jamie Elliott, 23 Giovanbattista Venditti

Date: Sunday, November 4
Venue: Cardiff Arms Park
Kick-off: 14:45 GMT
Referee: George Clancy (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Stuart Gaffikin (Ireland), Mike English (Wales)
Television match official: Brian MacNeice (Ireland)

Cheetahs v Munster

Coach Franco Smith has announced his Cheetahs team for the clash with some changes.

Aidon Davis will be replacing Niell Jordaan due to injury. Nico Lee moves to his usual position on inside centre and William Small-Smith moves to right wing, sending Rhyno Smith to full-back.

Meanwhile, Tyler Bleyendaal captains the Munster side from inside centre with Bill Johnston and Fineen Wycherley making their first starts in the PRO14.

There are nine changes to the starting XV that secured a last-gasp win over Glasgow in Limerick last weekend with three Academy players in the matchday squad.

Four changes to the backline see Shane Daly, Alex Wootton, Bleyendaal and Johnston all come into the side.

Mike Haley continues at full-back as Academy player Daly starts on the right wing with Alex Wootton, a try-scoring replacement in the win over Glasgow, on the opposite flank.

Bleyendaal makes his 40th appearance for Munster and features in the PRO14 for the first time since February with Sammy Arnold completing the centre partnership.

Alby Mathewson and Johnston combine in the half-backs.

The five changes to the pack see Kevin O’Byrne, Stephen Archer, Darren O’Shea, Wycherley and Arno Botha all included.

James Cronin joins O’Byrne and Archer in the front-row with Jean Kleyn partnering O’Shea in the second-row.

Wycherley and Botha are joined by Chris Cloete in the back-row.

Academy players Sean O’Connor and Gavin Coombes are named among the replacements.

The teams:

Cheetahs: 15 Rhyno Smith, 14 William Small-Smith, 13 Bernhard Janse van Rensburg, 12 Nico Lee, 11 Rabz Maxwane, 10 Tian Schoeman, 9 Shaun Venter (c), 8 Aidon Davis, 7 Junior Pokomela, 6 Gerhard Olivier, 5 JP du Preez, 4 Walt Steenkamp, 3 Aranos Coetzee, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Reinach Venter, 17 Charles Marais, 18 Erich de Jager, 19 Sinthu Manjezi/Justin Basson, 20 Daniel Maartens, 21 Abongile Nonkontwana, 22 Tian Meyer, 23 Louis Fouche

Munster: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Shane Daly, 13 Sammy Arnold, 12 Tyler Bleyendaal (c), 11 Alex Wootton, 10 Bill Johnston, 9 Alby Mathewson, 8 Arno Botha, 7 Chris Cloete, 6 Fineen Wycherley, 5 Darren O’Shea, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 Stephen Archer, 2 Kevin O’Byrne, 1 James Cronin
Replacements: 16 Mike Sherry, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 John Ryan, 19 Sean O’Connor, 20 Gavin Coombes, 21 Duncan Williams, 22 Ian Keatley, 23 Rory Scannell

Date: Sunday, November 4
Venue: Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
Kick-off: 16:45 local (14:45 GMT)
Referee: Marius Mitrea (Italy)
Assistant referees: Cwengile Jadezweni (South Africa), Ruhan Meiring (South Africa)
Television match official: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)

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Your one-stop spot for November international teams, updated as they are released.

Saturday

Japan v New Zealand
Ajinomoto Stadium, Chofu

Japan: 15 Ryohei Yamanaka, 14 Jamie Henry, 13 Will Tupou, 12 Tim Lafaele, 11 Kenki Fukuoka, 10 Yu Tamura, 9 Yutaka Nagare, 8 Hendrik Tui, 7 Shunsuke Nunomaki, 6 Michael Leitch (c), 5 Samuela Anise, 4 Wimpie van der Walt, 3 Hiroshi Yamashita, 2 Yusuke Niwai, 1 Keita Inagaki
Replacements: 16 Yusuki Niwai, 17 Masataka Mikami, 18 Asaeli Valu, 19 Uwe Helu, 20 Vaka Nakajima, 21 Fumiaki Tanaka, 22 Rikiya Matsuda 23 Ryoto Nakamura

New Zealand: 15 Jordie Barrett, 14 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 13 Matt Proctor, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Waisake Naholo, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, 8 Luke Whitelock (c), 7 Dalton Papalii, 6 Vaea Fifita, 5 Jackson Hemopo, 4 Patrick Tuipulotu, 3 Angus Ta’avao, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Ofa Tuungafasi
Replacements: 16 Liam Coltman, 17 Tim Perry, 18 Tyrel Lomax, 19 Dillon Hunt, 20 Gareth Evans, 21 Mitch Drummond, 22 Brett Cameron, 23 George Bridge

Wales v Scotland
Principality Stadium, Cardiff

Wales: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 George North, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Luke Morgan, 10 Gareth Anscombe, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Cory Hill, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements: 16 Elliot Dee, 17 Rob Evans, 18 Leon Brown, 19 Adam Beard, 20 Aaron Wainwright, 21 Tomos Williams, 22 Jarrod Evans, 23 Steff Evans

Scotland: 15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Alex Dunbar, 11 Lee Jones, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Ali Price, 8 Ryan Wilson, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Ben Toolis, 3 Willem Nel, 2 Stuart McInally (c), 1 Allan Dell
Replacements: 16 Fraser Brown, 17 Alex Allan, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Grant Gilchrist, 20 Matt Fagerson, 21 George Horne, 22 Pete Horne, 23 Darcy Graham

England v South Africa
Twickenham, London

England: 15 Elliot Daly, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ben Te’o, 11 Jonny May, 10 Owen Farrell (cc), 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Mark Wilson, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Brad Shields, 5 George Kruis, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Dylan Hartley (cc), 1 Alec Hepburn
Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Charlie Ewels, 20 Zach Mercer, 21 Danny Care, 22 George Ford, 23 Chris Ashton

South Africa: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Sbu Nkosi, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Ivan van Zyl, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Duane Vermeulen, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Steven Kitshoff
Replacements: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Thomas du Toit, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Lood de Jager, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Elton Jantjies, 23 André Esterhuizen

Ireland v Italy:
Soldier Field, Chicago

Ireland: 15 Jordan Larmour, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Joey Carbery, 9 Luke McGrath, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Rhys Ruddock (c), 5 Quinn Roux, 4 Tadhg Beirne, 3 Andrew Porter, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 Jack McGrath
Replacements: 16 Sean Cronin, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Jordi Murphy, 21 John Cooney, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Will Addison

Italy: 15 Luca Sperandio, 14 Mattia Bellini, 13 Michele Campagnaro (c), 12 Luca Morisi, 11 Giulio Bisegni, 10 Carlo Canna, 9 Tito Tebaldi, 8 Rento Giammarioli, 7 Bram Steyn, 6 Johan Meyer, 5 George Fabio Biagi, 4 Marco Fuser, 3 Tiziano Pasquali, 2 Luca Bigi, 1 Nicola Quaglio
Replacements: 16 Oliviero Fabiani, 17 Cherif Traore, 18 Giosue Zilocchi, 19 Marco Lazzaroni, 20 Federico Ruzza, 21 Jimmy Tuivatti, 22 Guglielmo Palazzani, 23 Ian McKinley

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World Rugby has announced the shortlists for the prestigious Men’s and Women’s 15s Player of the Year awards for 2018, which will be presented at the World Rugby Awards at the Salle des Etoiles in Monte Carlo on 25 November.

Following a stellar year for international rugby, the shortlists for the ultimate accolade feature players who have excited and inspired fans around the world with their feats in 2018.

The nominees for World Rugby Men’s 15s Player of the Year in association with Mastercard are: Beauden Barrett (New Zealand), Faf de Klerk (South Africa), Rieko Ioane (New Zealand), Malcolm Marx (South Africa) and Johnny Sexton (Ireland)

The nominees for World Rugby Women’s 15s Player of the Year in association with Mastercard are: Pauline Bourdon (France), Fiao’o Faamausili (New Zealand), Gaëlle Hermet (France), Safi N’Diaye (France) and Jessy Trémoulière (France).

Both shortlists were selected by the star-studded World Rugby Awards panel which comprises Rugby World Cup winners Richie McCaw, John Smit, George Gregan, Maggie Alphonsi and former England coach Clive Woodward alongside Brian O’Driscoll, Fabien Galthié and Agustín Pichot.

Fans and media have been able to have their say on the players who have stood out for them in 2018 and now international captains and coaches will join the panel for one final vote to determine the winners of the prestigious awards.

World Rugby Chair Bill Beaumont said: “The World Rugby Men’s and Women’s 15s Player of the Year awards are always a hotly-contested category, and with so many exceptional candidates to consider the panel have had the challenging task of picking the nominees. I would like to congratulate all 10 players who, deservingly, have been nominated for this year’s award.”

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Here’s our England player ratings following their 12-11 win against South Africa at Twickenham.

15 Elliot Daly: The consummate footballer looked somehow uneasy at full-back in the opening exchanges but changed gear at half-time to put in a threatening performance as the game broke up. Perhaps needs to ‘pin his ears back’ and go for the break at times. 7/10

14 Jack Nowell: He appeared here, he popped up there, the Exeter popinjay is forever threatening but still, one wonders if he’s short of the outright gas needed to be a Test winger. 7/10

13 Henry Slade: Continued his fine club form at international level with a strong showing in defence and some sublime touches at the restart and in attack. A day for the outstanding Chief to savour. 8/10

12 Ben Te’o: With only 28 minutes of rugby behind him, Te’o came off second best in the initial battle of the inside centres, looking sluggish and off the pace. Like Daly, he blossomed as the game progressed with some big hits and assured passing. 6/10

11 Jonny May: He may as well come out wearing a tackle bag such was the ball he received in the first-half but held up well. 5/10

10 Owen Farrell (cc): A sluggish first-half, Farrell was another to improve as the game progressed. Pinpoint kicking punctuated with some lovely deep passes secured England’s win. 8/10

9 Ben Youngs: Despite not being at his best in attack, Youngs’ ability to harry the Bok half-backs’ connectivity was crucial and put immense pressure on their midfield. 7/10

8 Mark Wilson: Out of position and of callow international experience, the lightweight but combative Wilson put everything into his performance and showed himself to be a leader. An outstanding day for the Falcon and a fine addition to the depth of the England squad. 9/10

7 Tom Curry: A player singled out as a key cog in England’s breakdown plan, Curry harried and hustled for 45 minutes before his game came to a premature end. 6/10

6 Brad Shields: When the Wellingtonian came north, little did he suspect he’d spend more time in the second-row than his favoured back-row. Nevertheless, the blindside toiled hard and won some useful ball against a huge back-row, but will rue his dropped pass. 6/10

5 George Kruis: As the game progressed, so Kruis started to scale the heights of the form of 2016/17. His carries hurt South Africa and he ran the line-out well. 8/10

4 Maro Itoje: Almost man-marked by the referee and carded after 25 minutes, Itoje’s commitment was faultless but his technical game lacked at times. His freshness around the pitch was welcome and all in all, he emerged with credit. 6/10

3 Kyle Sinckler: The Big Sink was the heartbeat of England, galivanting around the park like a fourth back-row. A large tick goes against his name and England have a folk hero in the making. 8/10

2 Dylan Hartley (cc): A solid return to Test duty, Hartley led well and his set-piece was its reliable self. An assured performance from the now co-captain. 6/10

1 Alec Hepburn: Struggled a little in the tight but was excellent around the park in the first-half before being replaced by his clubmate at half-time. 5/10

Replacements:

16 Jamie George: It’s great to have a Test Lion on the bench and the rumbustious Saracen carried on where Hartley left off. 6/10

17 Ben Moon: Came on and added solidity in the set-piece and also a couple of cameos in his support running. 6/10

18 Harry Williams: Ran hard, ran direct, the big man added impact. 6/10

19 Charlie Ewels: Two minutes he’ll remember all his life. 5/10

20 Zach Mercer: As Curry limped off, so Mercer sprang into action. His athleticism added a lot to England in the last 20. 6/10

21 Danny Care: He defines impetus whenever he’s used as a ‘finisher’ and today was no exception. England have depth at nine. 6/10

22 George Ford: Almost cost England the game when he ran into contact and conceded a penalty late on. 4/10

23 Chris Ashton: One of the biggest cheers of the day when Ash the Splash returned to the shirt of England. A real plus to have such a proven player back in the squad. 6/10

by James While

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Following a 12-11 victory for England over South Africa in their November international, here’s our five takeaways from the Twickenham clash.

How was that not a shoulder charge? You need a bit of luck in the game and Owen Farrell certainly received it when he was not penalised for an apparent shoulder charge on Andre Esterhuizen. Referee Angus Gardner, who otherwise had a good game, deemed that the fly-half had shown enough of a wrap to not infringe. No doubt South Africa will be miffed, although they will rue their inability to take their chances in the first-half.

England take advantage of South African profligacy: The Springboks dominated the opening period and were in control but the home side defended their line excellently and stayed in the game. Once the match opened up a bit more, it played to England’s strengths with Elliot Daly, Jonny May and Ben Te’o coming more into the contest. The visitors struggled once the Red Rose shifted the ball wide, even though the two playmakers, Farrell and Henry Slade, didn’t fully find that fluidity in attack.

Malcolm Marx fails to hit his targets: The South African has rightly been nominated for the World Rugby Player of the Year but he struggled to impose himself against England. The line-out was abysmal and several overthrows let the hosts off the hook. It perhaps even cost them the game as, with the chances they had, the Springboks should have been 20 points up at half-time. He did a couple of decent things in the loose, including a dominant carry and a crucial turnover after the Red Rose produced their best move of the match, but Marx failed to have the usual influence on the encounter.

England’s inexperienced players step up: There were significant worries following the injuries and suspension to a number of England’s forwards, particularly at prop and number eight, but their replacements, in general, did well. Back-rower Mark Wilson got man of the match following an energetic effort while Ben Moon came off the bench to steady the front-row. Zach Mercer also impressed having replaced the unfortunate Tom Curry, who was the Red Rose’s standout before going off injured.

New Zealand will have no problems on this evidence: England against the All Blacks is a game everyone was looking forward to at the start of the year but, following a poor run of form, a comfortable win for the tourists seems inevitable. Irrespective of England’s victory on Saturday, you can’t imagine Steve Hansen’s men passing up the opportunities South Africa had in the first-half. They are usually close affairs at Twickenham between the two sides – on the scoreboard at least – but you can’t see the Red Rose getting close next week.

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A 73rd-minute Owen Farrell penalty gave England a narrow 12-11 victory over South Africa in a hard-fought encounter at Twickenham on Saturday.

England will have the psychological momentum going into the World Cup next year with this slender victory, safe in the knowledge they have emerged victorious on the previous two of the four meetings played between the sides this year.

It was a cagey stop-start affair, which didn’t make for the most entertaining viewing. Both sides made too many mistakes for the match to live up to its billing.

Handre Pollard gave the Boks an early five-minute lead from the tee after the English were caught offside.

Ten minutes later, the Boks were applying pressure and winning penalty after penalty, which forced referee Angus Gardner’s hand to yellow-carding Maro Itoje. The Springboks were using the driving maul to great effect, making ground every time they deployed the tactic.

Indeed, South Africa were enjoying the majority of the possession and territory, but were unable to capitalise on their numerical advantage and would kick themselves for that. Instead, Owen Farrell responded for the hosts with a well-struck penalty to level matters on the scoreboard as Itoje returned to the field moments later.

The Boks continued to do all of the attacking and were controlling the game, but were still unable to affect the scoreboard. However, that all changed in the 32nd minute when they got what would ultimately prove to be the game’s only try. It started with a Damian de Allende mini-break before brilliant hands between Aphiwe Dyantyi and Warren Whiteley released Sbu Nkosi, who finished clinically in the right-hand corner.

Farrell cut the deficit to two when his three-pointer sailed between the posts three minutes before the half-time break with no further points scored until the interval. If England were going to change the course of the match, they would need to come up with more than the aimless hanging kicks they were raining down on the Bok back three, who were dealing comfortably with the aerial bombardment.

The pressure the Boks were exerting on the English scrum precipitated Eddie Jones in to making changes in the front-row, replacing Alec Hepburn with Ben Moon for his international debut at the age of 29.

Malcolm Marx was having a shocker in terms of his line-out throwing and this was one of the factors in the Springboks not being able to extend their lead as well as a host of handling errors.

Ten minutes in to the second-half, England took the lead through the monster boot of Elliot Daly – the England full-back launching a penalty between the poles from just outside his own half – after the Boks gave away a silly penalty.

England were coming into the game more after a torrid first-half and getting more rhythm on attack as the match headed in to the final quarter. But with 13 minutes to go, Pollard put the Boks back into the lead with a long distance penalty.

However, in the 72nd minute, the hosts won a rare scrum penalty as their replacement tighthead Harry Williams put pressure on Springbok replacement Thomas du Toit, who conceded the advantage. Farrell made no mistake with the three-pointer to edge England back in front by a point at 12-11.

In the end Farrell’s last-gasp penalty and Pollard’s miss from distance would see the home side hold on for a morale-boosting Test victory over one of their contenders for the World Cup next year.

The scorers:

For England:
Pens: Farrell 3, Daly
Yellow Card: Itoje

For South Africa:
Try: Nkosi
Pens: Pollard 2

England: 15 Elliot Daly, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ben Te’o, 11 Jonny May, 10 Owen Farrell (cc), 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Mark Wilson, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Brad Shields, 5 George Kruis, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Dylan Hartley (cc), 1 Alec Hepburn
Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Charlie Ewels, 20 Zach Mercer, 21 Danny Care, 22 George Ford, 23 Chris Ashton

South Africa: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Sbu Nkosi, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Ivan van Zyl, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Duane Vermeulen, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Steven Kitshoff
Replacements: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Thomas du Toit, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Lood de Jager, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Elton Jantjies, 23 André Esterhuizen.

Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia)
Assistant referees: Jerome Garces (France), Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
TMO: Olly Hodges (Ireland)

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Wales claimed the inaugural Doddie Weir Cup as they ran out 21-10 winners over Scotland at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday.

Tries from George North and Jonathan Davies and the boot of Leigh Halfpenny, who kicked 11 points, saw Warren Gatland’s outfit to victory.

Scotland will be disappointed with their showing as they crossed just once, through Stuart McInally, with Adam Hastings kicking five points.

Wales were 14-10 ahead at the interval as both sides went into the dressing rooms with a try apiece, through wing North and hooker McInally.

Halfpenny got Wales moving with four minutes gone when, after top work from Ken Owens at the breakdown, he landed a 40 metre penalty.

But Scotland had an opportunity to strike back when Alex Dunbar bust through the attempted tackle of opposite number Hadleigh Parkes on halfway. Unfortunately for the visitors the recycled ball saw Hastings’ grubber through gathered by Halfpenny, who crucially foiled the attack.

Wales almost made it 8-0 on 14 minutes when Gareth Anscombe’s lovely chip out to the right wing found North. However, his foot slid into touch and the try was ruled out by the officials. Wales though would convert a penalty moments later as there was an advantage being played.

6-0 became 9-0 on 22 minutes when lock Jonny Gray was pinged for diving around the side of a ruck, Halfpenny slotting his third attempt.

Scotland needed to stop the rot and their first points came four minutes later via a scrum penalty which Hastings turned into three points.

But it was the closing stages of the half that brought about the most entertaining spell, with first North crashing through contact from 15 metres out for what was an unconverted try before McInally also crossed via the back of a driving line-out from for a much-needed seven.

Wales though would crucially score first in the second-half when Anscombe’s short ball put centre Davies through a hole and he raced over.

The hosts were now 21-10 up but the closing half-an-hour in Cardiff was dominated by Scotland, with the visitors banging on the Welsh door.

Gregor Townsend’s charges went close through Gray who was penalised for double movement half a metre out and when Wales replacement hooker Elliot Dee was sin binned on 69 minutes for offside. It seemed now or never for Scotland, who again went close through Peter Horne.

Yet more Scottish pressure was to come in the dying embers but Wales admirably continued to stand firm, sealing the Doddie Weir Cup success.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries: North, J Davies
Con: Halfpenny
Pens: Halfpenny 3
Yellow Card: Dee

For Scotland:
Try: McInally
Con: Hastings
Pen: Hastings

Wales: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 George North, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Luke Morgan, 10 Gareth Anscombe, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Cory Hill, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements: 16 Elliot Dee, 17 Rob Evans, 18 Leon Brown, 19 Adam Beard, 20 Aaron Wainwright, 21 Tomos Williams, 22 Jarrod Evans, 23 Steff Evans

Scotland: 15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Alex Dunbar, 11 Lee Jones, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Ali Price, 8 Ryan Wilson, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Ben Toolis, 3 Willem Nel, 2 Stuart McInally (c), 1 Allan Dell
Replacements: 16 Fraser Brown, 17 Alex Allan, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Grant Gilchrist, 20 Matt Fagerson, 21 George Horne, 22 Pete Horne, 23 Darcy Graham

Referee: Mathieu Raynal (France)
Assistant Referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Frank Murphy (Ireland)
TMO: Rowan Kitt (England)

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Japan head coach Jamie Joseph has hailed his side’s improvements after their 69-31 loss to New Zealand at Tokyo’s Ajinomoto Stadium.

The venue will play host to the opening match of the World Cup and saw the Brave Blossoms score their record number of points against the All Blacks.

“We are obviously disappointed with the loss but I am not disappointed with the intent of my team,” Joseph, a former All Black himself, told Reuters.

“That we scored five tries against the All Blacks is a sign that we have improved, especially against the best team in the world.

“We still got a long way to go until the World Cup and until we get our game to a level where we can beat tier-one teams.”

While the Tokyo crowd were treated to some nice tries, they were also witness to some slack defending on the part of the home side. But Joseph was instead focusing on the fact that he thought his team could have scored more tries were it not for them kicking the ball away at times which he put down to a lack of experience.

“We kicked the ball too much and we should have kept the ball in hand to apply pressure that way,” Joseph said.

“This comes down to a little bit of inexperience.”

Meanwhile, All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen was also impressed by Japan’s performance.

“Japan are getting better and better all the time,” said Hansen.

“Anybody that came to the game today will have enjoyed what they saw from Japan; a bit of razzle-dazzle, quite a bit of physicality at times.

“They are trying to play a form of rugby that suits them and if you get it wrong they will hurt you.”

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New Zealand captain Kieran Read has revealed that he will retire from international rugby union following next year’s World Cup in Japan.

The 33-year-old, who was named skipper in 2016 and has won two Webb Ellis trophies to date, will be keen to sign off with a third in 2019.

Read revealed that the prospect of taking up club rugby abroad was one that interested him as he admitted playing on home soil is unlikely.

“So for me I think it probably won’t be in New Zealand,” said the influential Read, who plays number eight for the Crusaders in Super Rugby.

“We have always thought as a family that we would like to go overseas and use that experience for the kids. That is probably the main option at the moment.

“(Retirement) is an option as well,” he continued. “There are plenty of options out there but I probably want to keep playing if I can. It is the experience for the kids that will be the main thing and it has to work for us as a family.

“I hope to have (plans) wrapped up before the start of (next) season because then you can give 100 per cent because you know what you will be doing.”

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Lyon and Racing 92 stayed in touch with the Top 14‘s frontrunners after claiming victories over Stade Français and Montpellier respectively on Sunday.

Lyon 41-6 Stade Français
Matmut Stadium de Gerland, Lyon

The home side claimed an emphatic win over their more fancied rivals although things did not always go their way and the match was evenly balanced early on with the sides deadlocked at 6-6 at half-time.

The opening half was tightly contested and the visitors held a slender 6-0 lead after former Springbok fly-half Morne Steyn slotted two penalties.

Lyon would finish the half stronger though and replied with two penalties from Lionel Beauxis shortly before the interval.

The second-half saw Lyon upping the ante on attack and they went in front courtesy of a Toby Arnold try, who did well to gather a long pass from Beauxis before crosssing the whitewash.

Beauxis added the extras which gave his side a 13-6 lead and in the 62nd minute they went further ahead when Albertus Buckle went over from close quarters after Deon Fourie did well in the build-up.

With their tails up, Lyon became more adventurous on attack while Stade lost their defensive shape.

The Parisian outfit suffered a setback in the 72nd minute when Mathieu De Giovanni was yellow carded for a professional foul deep inside his 22 which also resulted in a penalty try against his side.

Two minutes later, Charlie Ngatai intercepted a wayward Stade pass before racing away to score his side’s fourth try and in the 78th minute Noa Nakaitaci sealed the home side’s win when he crossed for their fifth five-pointer.

The scorers:

For Lyon:
Tries: Arnold, Buckle, Penalty try, Ngatai, Nakaitaci
Cons: Beauxis 3, Doussain
Pens: Beauxis 2

For Stade Français:
Pens: Steyn 2
Yellow Card: De Giovanni

Lyon: 15 Jean-Marcellin Buttin, 14 Toby Arnold, 13 Rudi Wulf, 12 Charlie Ngatai, 11 Noa Nakaitaci, 10 Lionel Beauxis, 9 Jonathan Pélissié, 8 Carl Fearns, 7 Patrick Sobela, 6 Julien Puricelli, 5 Francois van der Merwe, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Clément Ric, 2 Mickael Ivaldi, 1 Raphael Chaume
Replacements: 16 Jeremie Maurouard, 17 Albertus Buckle, 18 Hendrik Roodt, 19 Dylan Cretin, 20 Jean-Marc Doussain, 21 Deon Fourie, 22 Thibault Regard, 23 Francisco Gomez Kodela

Stade Français: 15 Kylan Hamdaoui, 14 Tony Ensor, 13 Waisea Nayacalevu, 12 Mali Hingano, 11 Lester Etien, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Clement Daguin,8 Hanro Liebenberg, 7 Sekou Macalou, 6 Ryan Chapuis, 5 Alexandre Flanquart, 4 Mathieu De Giovanni, 3 Paul Alo-Emile, 2 Laurent Panis, 1 Siegfried Fisi’ihoi
Replacements: 16 Laurent Sempere, 17 Lucas Da Silva, 18 Hendre Stassen, 19 Sylvain Nicolas, 20 Andre Riaan Warner, 21 Djibril Camara, 22 Jules Plisson, 23 Giorgi Melikidze

Referee: Adrien Descottes
Assistant referees: Sebastien Boyer, Bruno Gabaldon
TMO: Denis Grenouillet

Montpellier 13-27 Racing 92
GGL Stadium

Racing 92 claimed their second successive Top 14 victory when they beat Montpellier at the GGL stadium.

The visitors had the better of the early exchanges although Montpellier fought back bravely during the latter stages of the opening half, which meant Racing 92 held a slender 12-10 lead at the interval.

However, Racing regained the initiative and secured their win thanks to a try in the game’s closing stages from Antoine Gibert.

Racing made a superb start and opened the scoring as early as the seventh minute thanks to a try from Juan Imhoff after Simon Zebo set him up with a fine line break in the build up.

Finn Russell added the extras and shortly afterwards, Teddy Iribaren glided through a gap in Montpellier’s defence before scoring his side’s second try.

However, the game’s complexion changed in the 25th minute when Henry Chavancy was yellow carded for a professional foul and Montpellier were rewarded with tries from Yvan Reilhac and Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg during his stint off the field.

Racing extended their lead courtesy of a penalty from Russell in the 49th minute before Imhoff crossed for his second try after intercepting a pass from Jan Serfontein.

Russell’s conversion gave the visitors a 22-10 lead but they suffered another setback when Baptiste Chouzenoux was also sent to the sin-bin for an off-the-ball incident on the hour-mark.

Aaron Cruden slotted the resulting penalty but Racing finished stronger and sealed their win with Gibert’s try in the 79th minute.

The scorers:

For Montpellier:
Tries: Reilhac, Janse van Rensburg
Pen: Cruden

For Racing 92:
Tries: Imhoff 2, Iribaren, Gibert
Cons: Russell 2
Pens: Russell
Yellow Cards: Chouzenoux, Chavancy

Montpellier: 15 Vincent Martin, 14 Yvan Reilhac, 13 Arthur Vincent, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Gabriel Ngandebe, 10 Aaron Cruden, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Jacques Du Plessis, 7 Wian Liebenberg, 6 Martin Devergie, 5 Paul Willemse, 4 Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, 3 Levan Chilachava, 2 Vincent Giudicelli, 1 Mikheil Nariashvili
Replacements: 16 Romain Ruffenach, 17 Ushangi Tcheishvili, 18 Julien Ledevedec, 19 Kevin Kornath, R 20 Julien Tomas, 21 Thomas Darmon, 22 Alexandre Dumoulin, 23 Jannie du Plessis

Racing 92: 15 Simon Zebo, 14 Louis Dupichot, 13 Virimi Vakatawa, 12 Henry Chavancy, 11 Juan Imhoff, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Teddy Iribaren, 8 Antonie Claassen, 7 Baptiste Chouzenoux, 6 Boris Palu, 5 Dominic Bird, 4 Donnacha Ryan, 3 Census Johnston, 2 Teddy Baubigny, 1 Guram Gogichashvili
Replacements: 16 Ole Avei, 17 Georges-Henri Colombe, 18 Leone Nakarawa, 19 Fabien Sanconnie, 20 Antoine Gibert, 21 Raphael Lagarde, 22 Olivier Klemenczak, 23 Ben Tameifuna

Referee: Pascal Gauzere
Assistant referees: Vincent Blasco-Baque, Jean-Luc Rebollal
TMO: Patrick Dellac

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