Waldrom try wins Maori the PNC

Thomas Waldrom's last-gasp try gave New Zealand Maori the Pacific Nations Cup with a 21-18 win over Australia A in Sydney on Sunday.

Even then Mark Gerrard had the chance to tie the scores with the last kick of the game -- and give Australia A the title -- but his penalty shot from 45m dropped just short.

The home side started well, and had got to a 7-0 lead with an early try from rising star Timana Tahu, but quickfire tries from Jacob Ellison and Tanerau Latimer had the Maori 14-7 in front at the break.

But Tahu struck again, and Gerrard landed two crucial penalties to put his team 18-14 ahead before Waldrom's late surge.

Relieved New Zealand Maori coach Donny Stevenson paid tribute to his side's character, although he said they were often their own worst enemies.

"In the end we had some experienced guys to get us through but we didn't make it easy for ourselves, we were really scrambling at the end," he told reporters.

"We thought if we could put some phases together the opportunities would come but we lost the ball at critical times. I was concerned at some of the decision making."

The scorers:

For Australia A:
Tries:  Tahu 2
Con:  Gerrard
Pens:  Gerrard 2

For New Zealand Maori:
Tries:  Ellison, Latimer, Waldrom
Cons:  Bruce 3

Australia A:  15 Mark Gerrard, 14 Drew Mitchell, 13 Morgan Turinui, 12 Timana Tahu, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Daniel Halangahu, 9 Brett Sheehan, 8 Richard Brown, 7 Julian Salvi, 6 Hugh McMeniman, 5 Peter Kimlin, 4 Al Campbell, 3 Guy Shepherdson, 2 Sean Hardman, 1 Sekope Kepu.
Replacements:  16 John Ulugia, 17 Salesi Ma'afu, 18 Van Humphries, 19 Leroy Houston, 20 Ben Lucas, 21 Sam Norton-Knight, 22 Matt Carraro.

New Zealand Maori:  15 Dwayne Sweeney, 14 Shannon Paku, 13 Jason Kawau, 12 Tamati Ellison (Co-captain), 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Callum Bruce, 9 Piri Weepu, 8 Thomas Waldrom, 7 Tanerau Latimer, 6 Liam Messam (Co-captain), 5 Jason Eaton, 4 Ross Filipo, 3 Bronson Murray/Ben May, 2 Aled de Malmanche, 1 Jacob Ellison.
Replacements:  16 Hikawera Elliot, 17 Bronson Murray/Ben May, 18 Hoani MacDonald, 19 Scott Waldrom, 20 Chris Smylie, 21 Tim Bateman, 22 Zar Lawrence.

Referee:  James Bolabiu (Fiji)
Assessor:  Bob Francis (New Zealand)

Samoa wow their way to victory

Samoa stole a nine-try thriller by five tries to four in a pulsating 37-31 win over Japan in the Pacific Nations Cup on Saturday.

With nothing to lose, both teams threw themselves into the match aiming to score as many tries as possible, and ended up matching wach other almost try for try.  It was 17-17 at the break, but the home side just had a little too much in reserve.

The Samoans shot into the lead through tries by Semo Sititi and Loleni Tafunai in the first ten minutes, both converted by Gavin Williams.

But Ryu Holani's try and a conversion and penalty from Dragons-bound James Arlidge brought Japan back into the match, and after Williams had made it 17-10 with a penalty of his own, Japan full-back Shaun Webb struck on the stroke of half-time with Arlidge once again converting.

Once again, Samoa surged into the lead in the second half, with tries from Hiroshi Tea and Henry Tuilagi and another conversion from Williams making it 29-17, but Japan kept hitting back, and aconverted try from Hirotoki Onozawa made it 29-24.

Williams put Samoa two scores ahead with another penalty, but Takashi Kikutani's try with five minutes to go -- again converted by Arlidge -- made it 32-31.

James Johnston struck for Samoa with three minutes to go, but Williams' miss from the conversion ensured a tense final couple of minutes.

The scorers:

For Samoa:
Tries:  Sititi, Tafunai, Tea, Tuilagi, Johnston
Cons:  Williams 3
Pens:  Williams 2

For Japan:
Tries:  Holani, Webb, Onozawa, Kikutani
Cons:  Arlidge 4
Pen:  Arlidge

Samoa:  15 Gavin Williams, 14 Esera Lauina, 13 Henry Faafili, 12 Anitele'a Tuilagi, 11 David Lemi, 10 Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu, 9 Uale Mai, 8 Henry Tuilagi, 7 Semo Sititi, 6 George Stowers, 5 Kane Thompson, 4 Filipo Levi (C), 3 Census Johnston, 2 Loleni Tafunai, 1 Hiroshi Tea.
Replacements:  16 Simon Lemalu, 17 James Johnston, 18 Daniel Leo, 19 Jonathan Faamatuainu, 20 Notise Tauafao, 21 Roger Warren, 22 Paletuatoa Toelupe.

Japan:  15 Shaun Webb, 14 Christian Loamanu, 13 Bryce Robins, 12 Ryan Nicholas, 11 Hirotoki Onozawa, 10 James Arlidge, 9 Tomoki Yoshida, 8 Ryu Holani, 7 Hare Makiri, 6 Takuro Miuchi (C), 5 Toshizumi Kitagawa, 4 Luke Thompson, 3 Tomokazu Soma, 2 Yusuke Aoki, 1 Tatsukichi Nishiura.
Replacements:  16 Noanori Mizuyama, 17 Yuta Inose, 18 Tomoaki Taniguchi, 19 Takashi Kikutani, 20 Fumiaki Tanaka, 21 Shotaro Onishi, 22 Hiroki Yoshida.

Tonga sign off in style

Tonga finished their IRB Pacific Nations Cup 2008 campaign on a high by defeating Fiji 27-16 at Teufaiva Stadium in Nuku'alofa on Saturday.

In victory, they secured their first win of the season to the delight of the watching King Taufa'ahu Tupou V of Tonga.

The Tongans had lost on the road to New Zealand Maori (20-9), Japan (35-13) and Australia A (90-7) before collecting a first bonus point in losing 20-15 to Samoa last weekend, but they had never lost to Fiji since the PNC began in 2006.

Both sides made their intentions clear early on with a hard and fast start to what was an entertaining and heart-stopping match, Fiji enjoying the wealth of possession and perhaps ruing their failure to score a try or two during this time.

Tonga dug deep and seized their first real opportunity when their powerhouse forward pack drove on and returned to halfway with a try for captain and flanker Nili Latu, one of his side's stars at Rugby World Cup 2007.

Fiji did play their running game and continued to punch holes in the centres, although this flair caused the home crowd to go wild and produce even more noise when a robust Tongan ended the movement with a great tackle.

The home side seemed to get more bulletproof as the game went on, the chance to impress on home soil kept them charging and in the end Tonga were simply too strong, their pack laying the platform for the victory.

Epeli Taione caught the eye in the centre, carving up the metres to earn his reward with a late try to put the gloss on a Tongan victory that was followed by scenes of dancing and hugging as the crowd joined their heroes on the pitch in celebration.

The final round of the IRB Pacific Nations Cup 2008 continues with Samoa entertaining Japan at Apia Park on Saturday before Australia A and New Zealand Maori clash in Sydney to determine who gets their hands on the silverware.

Tonga:  15 Lilo Vungakoto, 14 Pone Samisoni, 13 Hudoan Tonga'uhia, 12 Epeli Taione, 11 Suka Hufanga, 10 Pierre Hola, 9 Enele Taufa, 8 Samiu Vahafolau, 7 Nili Latu (capt), 6 Hale T Pole, 5 Paino Hehea, 4 Milton Ngauamo, 3 Kisi Pulu, 2 Ephraim Taukafa, 1 Semisi Telefoni.
Replacements:  16 Ma'asi Viliami, 17 Tonga Lea'aetoa, 18 Joshua Afu, 19 Vilii Vaki, 20 Soane Havea, 21 Fangatapu Apikatoa, 22 Seti Kiole.

Fiji:  15 Dan Rawaqa, 14 Jerry Tuilevu, 13 Sireli Naqelevuki, 12 Saula Radidi (Marika Vakacegu), 11 Vereniki Goneva (Michael Tagicakibau), 10 Waisea Luveniyali, 9 Aporosa Vata, 8 Netani Talei, 7 Aca Ratuva, 5 Deryck Thomas, 4 Josefa Domolailai, 3 Jone Railomo, 2 Sunia Koto, 1 Graham Dewes
Replacements:  16 Vereniki Sauturaga, 17 Viliame Seuseu, 18 Sailosi Rabonaqica, 19 Rupeni Nasiga, 20 Nemia Kenatale, 21 Jonetani Ralulu, 22 Iliesa Keresoni.

Referee:  Carlo Damasco (Italy)

Australian understudies smash Fiji

The forthcoming Pacific Nations clash between Australia A and New Zealand Maori will be a virtual final with both sides heading into the final week undefeated after victories in the latest round of matches.

Australia A recorded an emphatic 50-13 win over Fiji in Brisbane on Sunday, while on Saturday the Maori overpowered Japan 65-22 in Napier and Samoa edged Tonga 20-15 in Nuku'alofa.

The winner-takes-all clash between the Australian understudies and the New Zealanders will take place on Sunday in Sydney.

In front of a crowd of over 4,500, and in beautiful conditions, Australia A got on the board as early as the third minute thanks to a try by Digby Ioane.

Further tries to Lachie Turner, scrum half Ben Lucas and Drew Mitchell, all converted by Daniel Halangahu, gave Australia A a healthy 31-3 half time lead.

Australia A started the second half as they finished the first with captain Morgan Turinui crossing for a try in the 45th minute, which was converted by Halangahu again to make it 38-3.

Fiji hit back through prop Graham Dews but a second unconverted try by Turner and a converted try by Stephen Hoiles brought up the half century for Australia A.  Fijian inside centre Kameli Ratuvou scored on the stroke of full time to make the final tally 50-13.

Queensland loose forward Hugh McMeniman was named Man of the Match and afterwards Australian coach Phil Mooney expressed his delight at another impressive outing by his young team.

"It was a good overall performance rather than outstanding individual efforts and to do that against a team I have a lot of respect for in Fiji makes it especially pleasing," Mooney said.

"Clearly starting as well as we did with Digby (Ioane) scoring in the first few minutes set them back and then we had a period of consolidation before putting on some more strong tries just before half time.

"The backs performed well but it was the forwards who laid the platform with a good solid performance from players like Guy Shepherdson, Sean Hardman and Hughie McMeniman."

The win now sets up a virtual Grand Final next Sunday at the Sydney Football Stadium when the undefeated Australia A face New Zealand Maori, who are also unbeaten.  The winner will be crowned champion of this year's IRB Pacific Nations Cup.

"In the back of our mind we always wanted to go into the last game against the Maori playing for the title and now that has arisen," said Mooney.

"But we've now got to take it just like any other game and prepare well this week."

With Wallabies stars Lote Tuqiri and Wycliff Palu suffering injuries in the Test against France in Sydney, Mooney was also aware he may lose some of his squad to the Wallabies.

"I'll talk to Robbie [Deans, Australia coach] and in the next 24 hours we'll get fair idea of who we'll have next week.

"But that's the purpose of our programme partly, to keep players in match condition in case they are called up to the Wallabies, so that was something we were always aware of."

The scorers:

For Australia A
Tries:  Turner 2, Ioane, Lucas, Mitchell, Turinui, Hoiles
Cons:  Halangahu 6
Pens:  Halangahu

For Fiji:
Tries:  Dews, Ratuvou
Cons:  Rawaqa

Australia A:  15 Drew Mitchell, 14 Lachlan Turner, 13 Morgan Turinui, 12 Timana Tahu, 11 Digby Ioane, 9 Daniel Halangahu, 9 Ben Lucas, 8 Stephen Hoiles, 7 Richard Brown, 6 Hugh McMeniman, 5 Peter Kimlin, 4 Mark Chisholm, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Sean Hardman, 1 Ben Alexander.
Replacements:  16 John Ulugia, 17 Guy Shepherdson, 18 Van Humphries, 19 Julian Salvi, 20 Brett Sheehan, 21 Sam Norton-Knight, 22 Mark Gerrard.

Fiji:  15 Taniela Rawaqa, 14 Timoci Nagusa, 13 Vereniki Goneva, 12 Marika Vakacegu, 11 Michael Tagicakibau, 10 Waisea Luveniyali, 9 Mosese Rauluni, 8 Netani Talei, 7 Sailosi Rabonaqica, 6 Semisi Naevo, 5 Kele Leawere, 4 Ifereimi Rawaqa, 3 Jone Railomo, 2 Sunia Koto, 1 Graham Dewes.
Replacements:  16 Vereniki Sauturaga, 17 Tiko Matawalu, 18 Wame Lewaravu, 19 Deryck Thomas, 20 Aporosa Vata, 21 Kameli Ratuvou, 22 Sireli Naqelevuki.

Referee:  Jonathan White (New Zealand)

NZ Maori turn on the style

New Zealand Maori swept Japan aside in Napier in the Pacific Nations Cup on Saturday, winning 65-22 courtesy of a second-half try shower that included a hat-trick from Hosea Gear.

The ever-improving Japanese actually led 22-17 at half-time of an enthralling match, but ran out of steam against the more powerful Maori in the second half.

The win now sets the Maori up -- Sunday's result permitting -- for a winner-takes-all showdown against Australia A next weekend.

The Maori ran in 10 tries in all.

Japan's James Arlidge got the scoreboard ticking over with an early penalty, but the Maoris struck twice within four minutes shortly after, with Zar Lawrence finishing off a break by Piri Weepu and Liam Messam stealing maul ball to set Callum Bruce away.

But the Japanese struck back, with another quick-fire brace of tries.  Full-back Bryce Robins finished off a move sparked by a half-break from Shaun Webb, and then wing Christain Loamanu found space out wide to score after the Japanese had stolen Maori line-out ball.

The Maori regained the lead once more when Messam drew the defence in the centres to create just enough space for inside centre Tamati Ellison to go over in the corner.

But Japan blindside flanker Luke Thompson crossed after Webb fielded a poor clearance kick, and fed Robins, who ran straight and hard up the middle before finding the supporting Thompson.  Arlidge's conversion gave Japan their 22-17 lead at the break.

Gear drove over for his first try after a concentrated forwards build-up, then moments later, after 55 minutes, he latched onto a good pass from prop Jacob Ellison after Webb lost the ball in the tackle.

Full-back Dwayne Sweeney then touched down, before Gear completed his hat-trick as Japan crumbled

Lawrence and Bruce both added their second tries as the Maori bench ran the Japanese ragged, and centre Jason Kawau finished off the romp in the final minute.

"We were disappointed and there were some harsh words said at half-time," Maori captain Tamati Ellison said.

"We were confident in our ability to open things but frustrated that we hadn't done so in the tournament so far.  We stuck with it and things eventually did open up for us."

Japan captain Tomokazu Soma regretted his team had not been able to sustain its first-half effort.

"We did our best in the first half," he said.

"I was really proud of our first half and proud of the game but we failed to maintain that so I am not satisfied.  We are very disappointed."

The scorers:

For NZ Maori:
Tries:  Lawrence 2, Bruce 2, Ellison, Gear 3, Sweeney, Kawau
Cons:  Bruce 6
Pen:  Bruce

For Japan:
Tries:  Robins, Loamanu, Thompson
Cons:  Arlidge 2
Pen:  Arlidge

New Zealand Maori:  15 Shannon Paku, 14 Glen Horton, 13 Jason Kawau, 12 Tamati Ellison (co-captain), 11 Zar Lawrence, 10 Callum Bruce, 9 Piri Weepu, 8 Liam Messam (co-captain), 7 Tanerau Latimer, 6 Hoani MacDonald, 5 Jason Eaton / Isaac Ross, 4 Ross Filipo, 3 Bronson Murray, 2 Aled de Malmanche, 1 Jacob Ellison.
Replacements:  16 Hikawera Elliot, 17 Keith Cameron, 18 Thomas Waldrom, 19 Scott Waldrom, 20 Chris Smylie, 21 Dwayne Sweeney, 22 Hosea Gear.

Japan:  15 Bryce Robins, 14 Kosuke Endo, 13 Yuta Imamura, 12 Shotaro Onishi, 11 Christian Loamanu, 10 James Arlidge, 9 Tomoki Yoshida, 8 Ryu Koliniasi Holani, 7 Hare Makiri, 6 Luke Thompson, 5 Toshizumi Kitagawa, 4 Tomoaki Taniguchi, 3 Tomokazu Soma, 2 Taku Inokuchi, 1 Yuta Inose.
Replacements:  16 Naonori Mizuyama, 17 Yosuke Ikegaya, 18 Koji Shinozuka, 19 Yoshitaka Nakayama, 20 Fumiaki Tanaka, 21 Shaun Webb, 22 Hiroki Yoshida.

Referee:  Carlo Damasco (Italy)

Samoa win basement battle

Samoa made the most of their dearth of possession to beat Tonga 20-15 in the Pacific Nations Cup in Nuku'alofa on Saturday, almost certainly consigning the Tongans to the wooden spoon.

Tonga dominated for lnog periods, but could not find their way to the tryline.

Even so, they ought to have closed out a game they led 9-0 after half an hour, with the pressure on their opponents yielding three penalties for Pierre Hola.

Samoa struck back on the stroke of half-time, with Uale Mai finishing off a wide attacking move -- one feature of the game the Tongans did not seem able to master.  Gavin Williams made it 9-7 with the extras.

Vunga Lilo extended Tonga's lead to 12-7 with a fourth penalty, but Bath cente Eliota Spolu-Fuimaono shredde the Tonga defence with a burst and gave David Lemi Samoa's second try, which Williams converted to put the Samoans in the lead.

Lilo made it 15-14 with another penalty, but two late penalties from Williams -- one from the half-way line -- handed Samoa the win.  Tonga must beat Fiji next weekend to avoid a whitewash, while Samoa host Japan.

The scorers:

For Tonga:
Pens:  Hola 3, Lilo 2

For Samoa:
Tries:  Mai, Lemi
Cons:  Williams 2
Pens:  Williams 2

Tonga:  15 Seteleki Lu'au, 14 Samisoni Pone, 13 Sukanaivalu Hufanga, 12 Epeli Taione, 11 Mani Vakaloa, 10 Pierre Hola, 9 Soane Havea, 8 Samiu Vahafolau, 7 Nili Langilangi (C), 6 Hale T Tu'uhoko, 5 Paino Hehea, 4 Joshua Afu, 3 Tonga Lea'aetoa, 2 Ephraim Taukafa, 1 Semisi Telefoni.
Replacements:  16 Viliami Ma'asi, 17 Kisi Pulu, 18 Milton Ngauamo, 19 Enele Taufa, 20 Fangatapu 'Apikotoa, 21 Hudson Tonga'uiha, 22 Vungakoto Lilo.

Samoa:  15 Gavin Williams, 14 Esera Lauina, 13 Henry Faafili, 12 Anitele'a Tuilagi, 11 David Lemi, 10 Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu, 9 Uale Mai, 8 George Stowers, 7 Alafoti Faosilivia, 6 Semo Sititi, 5 Kane Thompson, 4 Filipo Levi (C), 3 Simon Lemalu, 2 Loleni Tafunai, 1 James Johnston.
Replacements:  16 Hiroshi Tea, 17 Ati Olive, 18 Daniel Leo, 19 Jonathan Faamatuainu, 20 Notise Tauafao, 21 Roger Warren, 22 Gasolo Salima.

Referee:  Ian Smith (Australia)

Tonga sent packing by Australia A

Australia A, reinforced by several first team squad players, gave Tonga a rugby lesson with a 90-7 win in Sydney in the Pacific Nations Cup on Sunday.

The Australians ran in 14 tries in all, with number eight Stephen Hoiles doting down for four and reserve back Drew Mitchell grabbing a late hat-trick on his return from injury.

Winger Digby Ioane and flyhalf Sam Norton-Knight each crossed twice, and former rugby league star Timana Tahu played a starring role at inside centre, scoring one try and setting up six more.

The scorers:

For Australia A:
Tries:  Hoiles 4, Ioane 2, Norton-Knight 2, Mitchell 2, Turinui, Tahu, Phibbs, Turner
Cons:  Carraro 4, Halangahu 3, Norton-Knight 2, Sheehan

For Tonga:
Try:  Maasi
Con:  Lilo

Australia A:  15 Lachlan Turner, 14 Matt Carraro, 13 Morgan Turinui, 12 Timana Tahu, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Sam Norton-Knight, 9 Brett Sheehan, 8 Stephen Hoiles, 7 Richard Brown, 6 Hugh McMeniman, 5 Peter Kimlin, 4 Mark Chisholm, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Sean Hardman, 1 Ben Alexander.
Replacements:  16 John Ulugia, 17 Guy Shepherdson, 18 Al Campbell, 19 Julian Salvi, 20 Patrick Phibbs, 21 Daniel Halangahu, 22 Drew Mitchell.

Tonga:  15 Vunga Lilo, 14 Samisoni Pone, 13 Suka Hufanga, 12 Metui Maile, 11 Sione Piukala, 10 Fangatapu Apikotoa, 9 Soane Havea, 8 Lotu Filipine, 7 Nili Latu, 6 Joshua Afu, 5 Emosi Kauhenga, 4 Sione Timani, 3 Tonga Lea'aetoa, 2 Viliami Ma'asi, 1 Toma Toke.
Replacements:  16 Semisi Telefoni, 17 Sateki Mata'u, 18 Samiu Ika, 19 Tevita Fifita, 20 Enele Taufa, 21 Sione Mone Tu'ipulotu, 22 Tupou Palu.

Referee:  Paul Honiss (New Zealand)

Fiji halt Japanese surge

Fiji fought back from a 9-3 half time deficit to beat rapidly-improving Japan 24-12 in the Pacific Nations Cup in Tokyo on Sunday.

James Aldridge's three first half penalties sent the home side in with a six-point cushion, but the islanders hit back with three tries in the second half to silence the large home crowd.

Fiji next plays Australia A in Brisbane next week, while Japan travel abroad for the first time in the competition to face New Zealand Maori in Napier.

The scorers:

For Japan:
Pens:  Arlidge 4

For Fiji:
Tries:  Naqelevuki, Maravunwasawasa, Goneva
Cons:  Maravunwasawasa 3
Pens:  Maravunwasawasa

Japan:  15 Shaun Webb, 14 Kosuke Endo, 13 Koji Taira, 12 Ryan Nicholas, 11 Hirotoki Onozawa, 10 James Aldridge, 9 Fumiaki Tanaka, 8 Takuro Miuchi (capt), 7 Hare Makiri, 6 Takashi Kikutani, 5 Toshizhumi Kitagawa, 4 Hitoshi Ono, 3 Tomakazu Soma, 2 Yusuke Aoki, 1 tatsukichi Nishiura.
Replacements:  16 Naonori Mizuyama, 17 Yuta Inose, 18 Tomoaki Taniguchi, 19 Ryu Koliniasi Holani, 20 Tomoki Yoshida, 21 Bryce Robins, 22 Christian Loamanu.

Fiji:  15 Taniela Maravunwasawasa, 14 Timoci Nagusa, 13 Sireli Naqelevuki (v/capt), 12 Kameli Ratuvou, 11 Michael Tagicakibau, 10 Waisea Luveniyali, 9 Aporosa Vata, 8 Netani Talei, 7 Aca Gavidi, 6 Semisi Naevo, 5 Kele Leawere, 4 Ifereimi Rawaqa, 3 Jone Railomo, 2 Sunia Koto, 1 Alefoso Yalayalatabua.
Replacements:  16 Vereniki Sauturaga, 17 Viliame Seuseu, 18 Sailosi Rabonaqica, 19 Deryck Thomas, 20 Nemia Kenatale, 21 Vereniki Goneva, 22 Marika Vakacegu.

Referee:  Kelvin Deaker

Maori marching towards PNC title

New Zealand Maori have made it three out of three in the Pacific Nations Cup with a hard-fought 17-6 win over Samoa in Hamilton on Saturday.

Chiefs centre Callum Bruce opened the scoring after 12 minutes with a penalty when the Samoans were penalised for obstruction at a line-out.

A similar penalty offence -- this one actually awarded for coming in on the side -- a few minutes later saw Samoan lock Chad Slade sent to the bin for ten minutes.

The Samoans nearly made it through the ten minutes unscathed, but Bruce's grubber-kick through the defence and touchdown ensured the visitors paid the price for their indiscretions.

Piri Weepu landed the killer blow for the Maori just before half-time, capitalising on good work from Liam Messam and Thomas Waldrom to score his side's second.

Samoa regrouped and redoubled their efforts in the second half, and two penalties from full-back Gavin Williams made the score 14-6 by the hour, but there was no change to be found from the Maori defence.

The scorers:

For the NZ Maori:
Tries:  Bruce, Weepu
Cons:  Bruce 2
Pen:  Bruce

For Samoa:
Pens:  Williams 2

Yellow cards:  Slade (Samoa, 21), Tuilagi (Samoa, 75)

New Zealand Maori:  15 Dwayne Sweeney, 14 Shannon Paku, 13 Tim Bateman, 12 Tamati Ellison (co-captain), 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Callum Bruce, 9 Piri Weepu, 8 Thomas Waldrom, 7 Tanerau Latimer, 6 Liam Messam (co-captain), 5 Jason Eaton, 4 Ross Filipo, 3 Bronson Murray, 2Hikawera Elliot, 1 Keith Cameron.
Replacements:  16 Aled de Malmanche, 17 Jacob Ellison, 18 Hoani MacDonald, 19 Scott Waldrom, 20 Chris Smylie, 21 Jason Kawau, 22 Zar Lawrence.

Samoa:  15 Gavin Williams, 14 Esera Lauina, 13 Henry Faafili, 12 Anitele'a Tuilagi, 11 David Lemi, 10 Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu, 9 Junior Poluleuligaga, 8 George Stowers, 7 Semo Sititi, 6 Daniel Leo, 5 Chad Slade, 4 Filipo Levi (C), 3 Census Johnston, 2 Loleni Tafunai, 1 James Johnston.
Replacements:  16 Simon Lemalu, 17 Jeremiah Fatialofa, 18 Kane Thompson, 19 Alafoti Faosilivia, 20 Uale Mai, 21 Roger Warren, 22 Gasolo Salima.

Referee:  Ian Smith (Australia).

Maori edge past Fiji

A late second-half try from former All Blacks lock Jason Eaton earned New Zealand Maori a crucial 11-7 victory over Fiji in the Pacific Nations Cup rugby competition in Lautoka, Fiji, on Saturday.

Trailing 3-7 at halftime following a converted try to Fiji's South African-based centre Sireli Naqelevuki, the Maori side came back to snatch a win on a water-logged Churchill Park.

The match was in danger of being called off after ankle-deep water covered the ground following a torrential downpour.

But ground officials assured the match officials that the water would drain off quickly, and it did soon after kickoff.

However, it made playing conditions difficult for two teams more accustomed to running rugby and it was evident from the stop-start affair that neither side had planned for a wet-weather game.

Although co-captain and second five-eighth Tamati Ellison gave New Zealand Maori the lead with a 12th-minute penalty goal, the Fijians adapted to the conditions quicker and dominated the first half.

Taniela Rawaqa missed two shots at goal from handy positions and two strong runs from Naqelevuki, who played for the Stormers in the Super 14, took the game close to the Maori side's line.

Naqelevuki then charged down Maori half-back Chris Smylie's clearing kick and pounced on the loose ball for the only first-half try.  Rawaqa converted and Fiji led 7-3 at halftime.

New Zealand Maori appeared to settle better when Eaton's Hurricanes teammate Piri Weepu took the field at halfback in the second half.

His options helped his team gain vital ground in the atrocious conditions.

New Zealand Maori edged in front when Eaton was driven over the tryline from a lineout close to the line.

That gave them an 8-7 lead, which replacement back Callum Bruce stretched with a penalty goal five minutes from full-time.

Both teams had come into the game with a win each, New Zealand beating over Tonga 20-9 and Fiji beating Samoa 34-17 in the first round last weekend.

The scorers:

For Fiji:
Try:  Naqelevuki
Con:  Rawaqa

For NZ Maori:
Try:  Eaton
Pens:  Ellison, Bruce

Australia A see off Samoa

Australia A maintained their winning start to the IRB Pacific Nations Cup, but only just as they overcame the conditions and a committed Samoa side 20-15 in front of a crowd of 15,500 in Apia on Saturday.

A strong second-string Australian side containing Rugby World Cup 2007 squad members Mark Gerrard and Morgan Turinui led 10-3 at the break and seemed to be in control of the match before Samoa came back in the second half to ensure a thrilling climax.

In wet and humid conditions in the Samoan capital, the Australians made light work of the opening exchanges with wing Timana Tahu crossing for the opening try of the match after 10 minutes, while Gerrard's conversion and two penalties to a Neli Sasulu three pointer left the visitors in complete control of the match.

However, the Samoans started the second half in determined fashion and started to stamp their mark on the match with characteristic hard running and strong forward play.

The pressure was enough to catch the Australians cold, and after just three minutes the home side hit back with a well-worked try through hooker Loleni Tafunai to close the gap to just two points.

The score remained in the balance until the 68th minute when Turinui cut through the Samoan defence to break the deadlock.  Replacement Matt Carraro's conversion eased the pressure on last year's runners-up as the score opened up a nine-point lead.

A Carraro penalty stretched Australia A's lead to 20-8, which is how the score remained until the final moments of a pulsating match.  Australia A appeared to have the game in the bag, but the Samoans were not finished and launched a series of attacks on the Australian line.

With the pressure mounting, the Samoans came close on several occasions before replacement hooker Muliufi Salanoa crashed over for a try.  Sevens star Uale Male added the conversion, much to the delight of the home support, to reduce the arrears to five to set up a tense climax.

With time up on the clock, Samoa chased the winning score, but the Australians held firm for the victory.

The scorers:

For Samoa:
Tries:  Salanoa, Tafunai
Cons:  Mai
Pens:  Sasulu
Drops:

For Australia A:
Tries:  Tahu, Turinui
Cons:  Gerrard, Carraro
Pens:  Gerrard, Carraro

Japan stun Tonga

Japan stunned Tonga in the IRB Pacific Nations Cup, beating the islanders 35-13 at Yurtec Stadium in Sendai for their first victory in the tournament.

John Kirwan's side enjoyed a strong warm-up to the event against the Classic All Blacks and impressed on the first match day against Australia A.

This victory, however, finally gives the former All Black tangible proof of the huge advances being made with the Cherry Blossoms since he took over.

The game went ahead as a mark of respect for the victims of a deadly earthquake that struck the area on Friday.

Japanese officials had considered calling off the match in Sendai after the powerful quake struck the northern prefectures of Miyagi and Iwate.

Nine people were killed and more than a dozen still missing after Saturday's earthquake.

But the game went ahead and Japan produced an impressive performance to secure a bonus-point win with tries from Takashi Kikutani, Hirotoki Onozawa, Shaun Webb and Bryce Robins.

The Japanese pack, impressive against Australia A a week ago, fronted up well to the muscular Tongans and showed sharp discipline and tactical nous early on to lay the foundations for what was to prove a comfortable victory.

Pierre Hola's penalties twice gave the Tongans an early lead but the Japanese hit back on each occasion through James Arlidge, who added two more late in the half for a 12-6 half time lead.

Arlidge punished some Tongan indiscipline at the start of the second half before the Japanese cut loose, flank Kikutani's try giving them a deserved 20-6 lead.

On 50 minutes Tonga hit back through their number eight Lotu Filipine and although Hola converted the try to narrow the score to 20-13 the Japanese again showed great enterprise, fitness and most of all attacking endeavour to extend their lead twice in four minutes through wing Onozawa and full-back Webb.

With the game won at 30-13, the Japanese added a fourth try in the dying minutes through Robins to make the final score 35-13.

The Cherry Blossoms next face Fiji in Tokyo on 22 June.

In the weekend's other IRB Pacific Nations Cup matches Australia A and New Zealand Maori were both made to work hard for their second wins.  The second-string Wallabies beat Samoa 20-15 in Apia, while the Maori needed a try in the last minute by lock Jason Eaton to beat Fiji 11-7 in Lautoka.

Australia A savage Japan

Australia A recorded an emphatic 42-21 win over Japan in Fukuoka on Sunday to join New Zealand Maori and Fiji as winners in the opening round of this year's IRB Pacific Nations Cup.

The Australians ran in six tries, including a brace to Brumbies lock Peter Kimlin, to overwhelm a gallant Japanese outfit and claim a bonus point in front of 7,493 fans.

Japan found themselves 25-3 down at the break, despite taking the lead courtesy of a drop goal by James Arlidge in the sixth minute.

Tries from captain Morgan Turinui, Mark Gerrard, Peter Kimlin and Van Humphries, all converted by Gerrard, gave the visitors a commanding lead at the break.

The second half began in the same fashion as the first, with Arlidge kicking a penalty for Japan before Australia A extended their lead through Sam Norton-Knight's try.

After Arlidge had added another penalty, Australia then lost two players to the sin bin -- Guy Shepherdson and Julian Salvi -- and Japan made the most of their extra numbers.

Tomoaki Taniguchi made full use of his 125kg to power over for two tries, the second coming following a great offload from Hare Makiri.

But any hopes Japan had of pulling off a remarkable victory were dashed when Kimlin crossed for his second try in the 70th minute.

"In one-on-one situations, we let the opposition come through our defence," said Japan captain Takuro Miuchi.

"We need to rectify our set plays and give more ball to our backs."

The scorers:

For Japan:
Tries:  Taniguchi 2
Cons:  Arlidge
Pens:  Arlidge 3

For Australia A:
Tries:  Kimlin 2, Humphries, Turinui, Gerrard, Norton-Knight
Cons:  Gerrard 6

The teams:

Japan:  15 Shaun Webb, 14 Kosuke Endo, 13 Yuta Imarua, 12 Ryan Nicholas, 11 Hirotoki Onozawa, 10 James Arlidge, 9 Fumiaki Tanaka, 8 Takuro Miuchi, 7 Hare Makiri, 6 Ryu Koliniaisi Holani, 5 Toshizuma Kitagawa, 4 Hitoshi Ono, 3 Tomokazu Soma, 2 Yusuke Aoki, 1 Tatsukichi Nishiura.
Replacements:  16 Taku Inokuchi, 17 Yuta Inose, 18 Tomoaki Taniguchi, 19 Takashi Kikutani, 20 Tomoki Yoshida, 21 Bryce Robins, 22 Christian Loamanu

Australia A:  15 Mark Gerrard, 14 Matt Carraro, 13 Morgan Turinui (c), 12 Timana Tahu, 11 Francis Fainifo, 10 Ben Lucas, 9 Josh Holmes, 8 Julian Salvi, 7 Matt Hodgson, 6 Mitch Chapman, 5 Peter Kimlin, 4 Van Humphries, 3 Guy Shepherdson, 2 Sean Hardman, 1 Pek Cowan.
Replacements:  16 Tai McIsaac, 17 Salesi Ma'afu, 18 Al Campbell, 19 Poutasi Luafutu, 20 Patrick Phibbs, 21 Tyrone Smith, 22 Sam Norton-Knight.

Referee:  Willie Roos (South Africa)

New Zealand Maori out-slug Tonga

New Zealand Maori got their Pacific Nations Cup campaign off to a winning start with a 20-9 win over Tonga at Albany Stadium on Saturday.

In a game characterised by heavy tackles and penalty kicks the New Zealanders managed to get the better of their visitors as both teams threw all the weight they possessed at each other.

Fly-half Callum Bruce missed two easy penalty kicks in the first 15 minutes, keeping the Tongans in the game.  Bruce did however open the scores after 25 minutes.

The lead wasn't to last however, as Togan first fly-half Fangatapu Apikotoa drew the scores level with a penalty of his own.

The bash and crash play continued until half-time when the teams headed for the changing rooms all square.

It took all of ten minutes of the second half for the Maori to score the first try of their campaign when inside centre Tamati Ellison dotted down with Bruce adding the extra two.

Tongan full-back Sione Mone Tu'ipolotu was yellow-cared in the process of the try for some blatant illegal play right under the referee's nose.

Apikotoa was quick to reply though on the other side of the field, steering another penalty through the uprights to make the score 10-6.

Bruce then took the opportunity to again stretch the lead after he kicked another three-pointer in the 54th minute.

Some ridiculous illegal play in a ruck right inside the Maori 22 then allowed Apikotoa to add another three valuable points through a penalty and take the score to 13-9.

Another yellow card was handed to Tongan centre Epi Taione after he was caught tackling Thomas Waldrom around the head -- an act for which he was subsequently cited.

The try of the match was then scored in the 72nd minute by halfback Piri Weepu after he received an offload from wing Hosea Gear who had busted tackles all the way down the touchline.

Bruce added the two extra points to shut the game down and hand the locals a 20-9 win.

The Scorers:

For NZ Maori:
Tries:  Ellison, Weepu
Cons:  Bruce 2
Pens:  Bruce 2

For Tonga:
Pens:  Apikotoa 3

Fijians off to a flyer

Fiji beat Samoa 34-17 in the opening match of the Pacific Nations Cup in Lautoka on Saturday, with debutant wing Timoci Nagusa scoring two tries.

Fiji ran in five tries in all, with the others going to veteran scrum-half Mosese Rauluni and to two cousins, full-back Taniela Rawaqa and lock Ifereimi Rawaqa.  Taniela Rawaqa added a penalty and three conversions.

Fiji led 12-0 at half-time, but Samoa rallied in the second half with tries for Henry Fa'afili, David Lemi and Semo Sititi keeping them in the game until late on.

The scorers:

For Fiji:
Tries:  Nagusa 2, Taniela Rawaqa, Irefreimi Rawaqa, Rauluni
Cons:  Taniela Rawaqa 3
Pen:  Taniela Rawaqa

For Samoa:
Tries:  Fa'afili, Lemi, Sititi
Con:  Warren

Fiji:  15 Taniela Rawaqa, 14 Timoci Nagusa, 13 Sireli Naqelevuki, 12 Kameli Ratuvou, 11 Vilimoni Delasau, 10 Waisea Luveniyali, 9 Mosese Rauluni, 8 Netani Talei, 7 Aca Ratuva, 6 Semisi Naevo, 5 Kele Leawere, 4 Ifereimi Rawaqa, 3 Jone Railomo, 2 Sunia Koto, 1 Graham Dewes.
Replacements:  16 Vereniki Sauturaga, 17 Viliame Seuseu, 18 Wame Lewaravu, 19 Akapusi Qera, 20 Aporosa Vata, 21 Jonetani Ralulu, 22 Marika Vakacegu.

Samoa:  15 Esera Lauina, 14 David Lemi, 13 Paletuatoa Toelupe, 12 Samasoni Moala, 11 Henry Faafili, 10 Roger Warren, 9 Notise Tauafao, 8 George Stowers, 7 Bell Sasulu, 6 Raymond Stowers, 5 Chad Slade, 4 Filipo Levi, 3 Census Johnston, 2 Mahonri Schwalger, 1 Evile Telea.
Replacements:  16 Mullufi Salanoa, 17 Heroshi Tea, 18 Semo Sititi, 19 Jonathan Faamatuainu, 20 Eliota Fuimaono Sapolu, 21 Gasolo Salima, 22 Neli Sasulu.

Referee:  Keith Brown (NZRU)