Pacific Islands end on a high

The Pacific Islanders claimed the first Test victory of their four-year existence with a 25-17 success over Italy in Reggio Emilia.

Vilimoni Delasau scored two tries in the first half to set the platform for the visitors' success.

The Fijian winger dived over in the corner in the third minute at the end of a turnover-rich opening exchange and added a second from close range after a series of rucks close to the half hour.

Kameli Ratuvou also touched down and fly-half Seremaia Bai kicked 10 points for the combined Tonga, Fiji and Samoa side, who had lost their previous eight Tests.

Italy mustered tries of their own from forwards Leonardo Ghiraldini and Mauro Bergamasco, supplemented by seven points from fly-half Andrea Marcato's boot.

The Azzurri responded swiftly to Delasau's opening try with Marcato kicking a penalty and slotting a conversion after Ghiraldini barged over the whitewash in the 13th minute.

But the Pacific Islanders soon regained the lead with a Bai penalty and Delasau's second try, which came despite Bai having been sent to the sin bin minutes earlier for a late and high tackle on Mirco Bergamasco.

And the visitors extended their advantage to 22-10 when full-back Ratuvou broke through a gap and went all the way to the line from close to half-way line.

After Bai extended the Islanders' lead with a penalty at the start of second period, Italy started to control of possession but they were frequently let down by the last touch.

They gained their reward for a sustained period of pressure in the 65th minute when flanker Bergamasco went over after captain Sergio Parisse's clever flick pass behind his back.

The result of Italy's first match in the northern city of Reggio Emilio leaves them without a win from the November Test programme, having lost 22-14 to Argentina and 30-20 to Australia.

The scorers:

For Italy:
Tries:  Ghiraldini, Bergamasco
Cons:  Marcato 2
Pen:  Marcato

For the Pacific Islands:
Tries:  Delasau 2, Ratuvou
Cons:  Bai 2
Pens:  Bai 2

Italy:  15 Andrea Masi, 14 Kaine Robertson, 13 Mirco Bergamasco, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Matteo Pratichetti, 10 Andrea Marcato, 9 Pietro Travagli, 8 Sergio Parisse (c), 7 Mauro Bergamasco, 6 Josh Sole, 5 Marco Bortolami, 4 Tommaso Reato, 3 Carlos Nieto, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 1 Matias Aguero.
Replacements:  16 Fabio Ongaro, 17 Andrea Lo Cicero, 18 Salvatore Perugini, 19 Alessandro Zanni, 20 Pablo Canavosio/Giulio Toniolatti, 21 Luke McLean, 22 Riccardo Pavan

Pacific Islands:  15 Kameli Ratuvou, 14 Sailosi Tagicakibau, 13 Seilala Mapusua, 12 Epi Taione, 11 Vilimoni Delasau, 10 Seremaia Bai, 9 Sililo Martens, 8 Sisa Koyamaibole, 7 Nili Latu (Tonga, captain), 6 Viliami Vaki, 5 Paino Hehe, 4 Filipo Levi, 3 Kisi Pulu, 2 Tanielu Fuga, 1 Justin Va'a.
Replacements:  16 Sunia Koto, 17 Tonga Lea'aetoa, 18 Semisi Naevo, 19 Hale T-Pole, 20 Mosese Rauluni, 21 Seru Rabeni, 22 Gavin Williams.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Touch judges:  Christophe Berdos, Hugh Watkins (Wales)
TMO:  Geoff Warren (England)

Islanders' discipline costs again

France eased to a 42-17 win over the Pacific Islands on Saturday, but the match was marred by an appalling challenge on Jean-Baptiste Elissalde by Napolioni Nalaga, which saw the Fijian sent off and Elissalde stretchered off unconscious.

The Islanders started the game with confidence, clearly believing that tempo and physicality might rattle the French.  It yielded two early penalties for Seremaia Bai, sandwiching one by David Skrela.

The two Bai goals also sandwiched the lone danger moment of a nervy opening, when Elissalde's clever dart saw Banoit Baby held a hair's breadth short.

France soaked up the enthusiastic but limited movements of the Islanders, and set their stall out to grind their opposition down.  They were clearly dominant in the tight set pieces, especially the scrum, and merely sat back for long periods waiting for their chance.

Then came a moment of utter madness and high unpleasantness.  The monster-sized Napolioni Nalaga lined up Elissalde from a long way away and was unflinching in his run and hit on the diminutive scrum-half, even though Elissalde had long since cleared the ball.  Elissalde was still receiving emergency treatment on the pitch long after Nalaga had been given his marching orders for the thoroughly disgusting tackle.

Skrela missed the penalty that followed, but it took France only six more minutes to press home their advantage, with Dimitri Szarzewski popping up on the end of two pieces of glorious acceleration from Cerdic Heymans and Julien Malzieu.

The Islanders' heads went down, and Elissalde's replacement Sebstien Tillous-Bordes scored the second just before the half-hour, passing to Heymans on the blind side and then looping to take a switch pass and round off a superb move.  Skrela converted both quick-fire tries for a comfortable 17-6 cushion.

After a brief and breathless passage of play where both teams opted to run everything, the Islanders shut their game down at the end of the first half and were remarkably good at it, squeezing out two more penalties for Bai to make it 17-12 at the break.

The match lost much of its intensity after the break, and especially after Heymans had scored France's third courtesy of a quick handling move sparked by Thierry Dusautoir.

Skrela landed two more penalties as the French kept the pressure on up front, and the final ten minutes was marked with a flurry of scoring.

Louis Picamoles took his first pass, off Tillous-Bordes, to score with ten minutes to go, and then Maxime Médard scored his first international try after a break by Damien Traille.  Skrela converted both.

Epi Taione scored a consolation try for the Islanders, barging Imanol Harinordoquy over the line.

The scorers:

For France:
Tries:  Szarzewski, Tillous-Bordes, Heymans, Picamoles, Médard
Cons:  Skrela 4
Pens:  Skrela 3

For the Pacific Islands:
Try:  Taione
Pens:  Bai 4

Red card:  Nalaga (Pacific Islands, 18, dangerous tackle)

France:  15 Maxime Médard, 14 Julien Malzieu, 13 Yannick Jauzion, 12 Benoît Baby, 11 Cedric Heymans, 10 David Skrela, 9 Jean-Baptiste Elissalde, 8 Imanol Harnordoquy, 7 Fulgence Ouedraogo, 6 Thierry Dusautoir, 5 Lionel Nallet (c), 4 Romain Millo-Chluski, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 Dimitri Szarzewski, 1 Lionel Faure.
Replacements:16 Benjamin Kayser, 17 Benoît Lecouls, 18 Sébastien Chabal, 19 Louis Picamoles, 20 Sebastien Tillous-Borde, 21 Damien Traille, 22 Alexis Palisson.

Pacific Islands:  15 Gavin Williams, 14 Napolioni Nalaga, 13 Seru Rabeni, 12 Epi Taione, 11 Vilimoni Delasau, 10 Seremaia Bai, 9 Mosese Rauluni (cap), 8 Nili Latu, 7 Sisa Koyamaibole, 6 Hale T-Pole, 5 Kele Leawere, 4 Paino Hehea, 3 Kisi Pulu, 2 Tanielu Fuga, 1 Kas Lealamanua.
Replacements:  16 Sunia Koto, 17 Census Johnston, 18 Filipo Levi, 19 Viliami Vaki, 20 Sililo Martens, 21 Kameli Ratuvou, 22 Seilala Mapusua

Referee:  Nigel Owens (Ireland)
Touch judges:  Wayne Barnes (England), Carlo Damasco (Italy)
TMO:  Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)

Improving England take care of Islanders

England began life under Martin Johnson with a 39-13 victory over a plucky Pacific Islands side at Twickenham on Saturday.

Danny Cipriani, in only his second Test, collected nineteen points -- a try, three conversions and two penalties -- as England eventually pulled away from a Pacific Islands side who tested England's defence on more than one occasion.

Given that this was the first game under Martin Johnson, we were not expecting a masterpiece that flowed with an ease so dearly sought by the top sides and their coaches.  However, if the glimpses of brilliance are to go by Johnson and his cohorts could be on to something, clearly Brian Smith's desire to attack has seen his players show more adventure in eighty minutes than England ever saw under Brian Ashton.

There were foundations for a performance of note, sadly in the first half errors and penalties cost England when they looked most likely to score.  Instead they had to rely on two moments of magic -- sadly for England sandwiched in between was a Pacific Islands try that Cipriani will be in a hurry to forget.

Delon Armitage was a shining light at the back, taking to Test rugby like the proverbial duck to water, and had more than a hand in England's first try.  Clean line-out ball saw Danny Care slip through a weak tackle and set England rolling towards the line.  As England exploited the space Armitage timed his entry into the line to perfection before throwing an audacious pass over his shoulder to a flying Paul Sackey.  With Cipriani adding the extras England looked to be settling into the game.

Less than a minute later they were stood under their own posts ruing a poor Cipriani clearance kick -- his only blot on the copy book -- that Seru Rabeni pounced on for one of the easiest tries he will ever score.  Whilst the nature of the try was not what the Islanders had in mind it was nothing less than they deserved for an enterprising start to the game.

Strangely the game began to drift, as England twice went through twelve phases -- looking impressive in doing so -- only to see the hard work wasted with lapses in concentration from players you would expect better of.

It took Danny Care's splendid vision -- and a horrendous missed tackle from Vilimoni Delasau -- to spark the England backs into life, and how they reacted to the smallest chance to stretch their legs.  Wide it went to Ugo Monye, deep in his own twenty-two, and after bumping off Delasau's feeble effort, he opened his legs and set England on their way to a stunning counter-attacking try.  It was finished by Cipriani, Monye suffering the indignity of eventually being caught by a prop, but it showed England are slowly shaking off Ashton's shackles.

The second half started in fine fashion, England playing with plenty of intent -- despite the heavy rain -- and testing the Islander's defence.  In the end it cracked with Nick Kennedy cutting back against the grain to score a well taken try on debut.  As in the first-half England failed to kick on, once again settling back into their old habits that Johnson and co. have worked so hard to eradicate.

By the time Lee Mears added a fourth try with just ten minutes to go the game, as a contest, was as good as over.  The Islanders, with a raft of replacements on the field, lost all shape and reverted back to what they knew best -- running rugby at all costs.

It was their undoing as Sackey added a second, benefiting from turnover ball deep inside the Islander's twenty-two.  As for the Islanders, we got what we expected -- a direct and physical approach with plenty of adventure thrown in for good measure.

And whilst this was not vintage England the signs are there that Johnson can mould a team capable of winning at all costs, with the added bonus of some "sexy rugby" when the hard work has been done up front.

The tests that lie ahead will prove a lot more difficult, and they will be punished for the slightest of errors, but on the whole this was a vastly improved England from the one that came back from New Zealand earlier in the year.

Man of the Match:  Making your Test debut is usually about settling into the side and getting to grips with the increased intensity of the rugby.  Not if your name is Delon Armitage.  The London Irish full-back, who was not even in Martin Johnson's original plans, announced himself on the international stage with a superb performance.  There was an air of Chris Latham about him as he climb highest on every occasion to collect towering kicks, and an ease in his running that saw him create the first try.  The test for Armitage now is to deliver to this standard on a regular basis, easier said than done with the big three Southern Hemisphere sides lying in wait.

Moment of the Match:  Surely this award has to go to Danny Care's quick tapped penalty that lead to England's second try.  It showed both Care's Sevens vision coming to the fore, but also the new belief England have in trusting their ability.  And with the likes of Monye, Armitage and Sackey lurking out wide why not chance your arm from time to time.  Hats off to Brian Smith for unearthing England's hitherto dormant attacking potential.

Villain of the Match:  Hats off to both sides for staying focused on the rugby.  Nothing untoward to report here.

The Scorers:

For England:
Tries:  Sackey 2, Cipriani, Kennedy, Mears
Cons:  Cipriani 4
Pens:  Cipriani 2

For Pacific Islands:
Try:  Rabeni
Con:  Hola
Pens:  Hola 2

The Teams:

England:  15 Delon Armitage, 14 Paul Sackey, 13 Jamie Noon, 12 Riki Flutey, 11 Ugo Monye, 10 Dan Cipriani, 9 Danny Care, 8 Nick Easter, 7 Tom Rees, 6 Tom Croft, 5 Nick Kennedy, 4 Steve Borthwick (c), 3 Matt Stevens, 2 Lee Mears, 1 Andrew Sheridan.
Replacements:  16 Dylan Hartley, 17 Phil Vickery, 18 Tom Palmer, 19 James Haskell, 20 Michael Lipman, 21 Harry Ellis, 22 Toby Flood.

Pacific Islands:  15 Kameli Ratuvou (Fiji), 14 Sailosi Tagicakibau (Samoa), 13 Seru Rabeni (Fiji), 12 Seilala Mapusua (Samoa), 11 Vilimoni Delasau (Fiji), 10 Pierre Hola (Tonga), 9 Mosese Rauluni (Fiji), 8 Finau Maka (Tonga), 7 Nili Latu (Tonga), 6 Semisi Naevo (Fiji), 5 Kele Leawere (Fiji), 4 Filipo Levi (Samoa), 3 Census Johnston (Samoa), 2 Aleki Lutui (Tonga), 1 Justin Va'a (Samoa).
Replacements:  16 Sunia Koto (Fiji), 17 Kisi Pulu (Tonga), 18 Hale T Pole (Tonga), 19 George Stowers (Samoa), 20 Sililo Martens (Tonga), 21 Seremaïa Bai (Fiji), 22 Epi Taione (Tonga).

Referee:  Matt Goddard (Australia)
Touch judges:  Stuart Dickinson (Australia), Tim Hayes (Wales)
Television match official:  Alan Lewis (Ireland)
Assessor:  Dennis Immelman (South Africa)

Irish leave the Islanders adrift

The Old Lady of Dublin bid a fine farewell

Ireland gave the crumbling stands of Lansdowne Road a fitting send-off on Sunday afternoon, punctuating a glorious chapter of the stadium's history with a handsome 61-17 victory over the Pacific Islanders.

The famous ground may be on its last legs but Irish rugby appeared to be in rude health.  This win, forged by a side containing plenty of fresh faces, completes Ireland's clean-sweep of November Tests that included thumping wins over South Africa and Australia.

The wreaking-balls will swing in the new year as order is imposed on this higglety-pigglety old pile, but today it was the Pacific Islanders who played the part of the bulldozers, imposing chaos on Ireland's well-ordered lines.

But the locals eventually subdued the Islanders' fires, running in eight tries;  Paddy Wallace, in his first start for Ireland, pocketed a full 26 points.

The Ulsterman's near-flawless kicking was matched by his composure in attack, touching down for a deserved try.

Denis Hickie, Malcolm O'Kelly, Simon Easterby (two), Shane Horgan, Rory Best and Paul O'Connell also crossed as Ireland overcame an impressive start from the tourists to run riot.

O'Connell was prominent as Ireland made early inroads into the Islanders' defence, and there were just two minutes on the clock when the first try was scored.

Wallace created the score, the Ulster fly-half dummying to Hickie before actually feeding the veteran Leinster winger who finished well.

Wallace landed the conversion and then added a penalty as Ireland continued to find gaps -- until they were opened up by a sweet kick from Tusi Pisi in the 10th minute.

The Samoan outside-half spotted Lome Fa'atau unmarked on the right wing and expertly dropped the ball into his arms only for the winger, who had a clear run to the line, to knock on.

More dynamic play resulted in the Islanders' first try, Kameli Ratuvou chipping ahead and gathering before riding Wallace's tackle and supplying the scoring pass to Rabeni.

The dazzling try served a timely warning of the threat posed by the Islanders -- so it came as little surprise when Wallace took the points on offer from a penalty in front of the posts.

Pisi missed a long-range penalty, and O'Driscoll then sent Fitzgerald a hospital pass to give the debutant a bone-shaking welcome to Test rugby -- courtesy of Elvis Seveali'i's shuddering hit.

But the scoreboard was ticking over, with Wallace punishing the Islanders' terrible discipline by adding his third penalty.

Wallace nearly crossed on two occasions after being put into space by two offloads from Shane Horgan, and Ireland were assisted by the sin-binning of prop Justin Va'a following a string of offences from the Islanders.

O'Driscoll brushed off two tackles to slice the tourists' defence open.  But Ulster prop Bryan Young tried to go it alone, and a likely try went begging.

The mistake was ruthlessly punished by the Islanders, who saw substitute prop Taufa'ao Felise burst into space and feed winger Lome Fa'atau to gallop home.

Ireland's response was emphatic, but they were helped by wayward defending which allowed Wallace to skip home following a flat pass from Peter Stringer.

He converted his own try and then added the extras when a mix-up in the Islanders line-out let Malcolm O'Kelly in for Ireland's second try of first-half injury time to leave the score poised at 30-12 in Ireland's favour at the break.

It took just five minutes of the second half for Ireland to stretch their lead, with O'Driscoll charging through and offloading to Easterby who was driven over by his team-mates.

Wallace landed the conversion, and 10 minutes later Ireland ran in their fifth try -- with Stringer kicking to the right where Horgan was able to gather.

The Leinster star, who has been in magnificent form during the autumn, easily beat Fa'atau and Rabeni in open space and raced in -- with Wallace slotting the conversion.

There was a worrying moment in the 59th minute when O'Driscoll limped off, with Isaac Boss coming on as his replacement.

Easterby barged over for his second try but the Islanders replied through Pisi who was in support following a bulldozing charge from Alesana Tuilagi.

Boss set off on a run that swept him 30 yards and substitute hooker Best was on hand to finish the move.  Wallace missed the conversion for the first time in the match.

But there was still time for O'Connell to barge over in injury time as Ireland completed the rout.

No one doubts that Lansdowne Road is in need of renovations, but tears were still shed as "Fields of Athenry" echoed over the terraces for the very last time.

But there is no need for sadness.  Never before has such a fine set of players called Lansdowne Road their home, and they deserve a fitting moment to their proud past and bright future.

Man of the match:  As usual, the Islanders had their moments of individual brilliance, but we feel we must hand this gong to a local.  There were plenty of fine performances from the men in green, but one man stood out.  All thoughts that Ireland lacked depth at fly-half were kicked into touch by an authoritative performance by Paddy Wallace who ended his first Ireland start with 26 points to his name.  Ronan O'Gara might not sleep that soundly tonight.

Moment of the match:  Lome Fa'atau's try was a cracker -- a moment when a little magic from Brian O'Driscoll rubbed off on the wrong side.  But we feel the sense of occasion must prevail here.  Ireland completed a nostalgic lap-of-honour after the game, not to receive praise for their performance but to pay tribute to the many ghosts that inhabit the green and grey surrounds of Landsdowne Road.  She's an ugly old bird, but she knows -- knew -- how to entertain.  Thanks for the memories.

Villain of the match:  Quite a few swinging arms around, but nothing that looked premeditated.  No award.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  O'Kelly, Wallace, Hickie, R Best, O'Connell, Easterby 2, Horgan
Cons:  Wallace 6
Pen:  Wallace

For the Pacific Islanders:
Tries:  Rabeni, Pisi, Fa'atau
Con:  Pisi

Yellow card(s):  Va'a (Pacific Islanders) -- collapsing the maul, 29

The teams:

Ireland:  15 Girvan Dempsey, 14 Luke Fitzgerald, 13 Brian O’Driscoll (c), 12 Shane Horgan, 11 Denis Hickie, 10 Paddy Wallace, 9 Peter Stringer, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Stephen Ferris, 6 Simon Easterby, 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Malcolm O’Kelly, 3 John Hayes, 2 Frankie Sheahan, 1 Bryan Young
Replacements:  16 Rory Best, 17 Simon Best, 18 Donncha O’Callaghan, 19 Denis Leamy, 20 Isaac Boss, 21 Ronan O’Gara, 22 Gordon D’Arcy

Pacific Islanders:  15 Norman Ligairi, 14 Lome Fa'atau, 13 Seru Rabeni, 12 Elvis Seveali'i, 11 Kameli Ratuvou, 10 Tusi Pisi, 11 Moses Rauluni, 8 Hale T-Pole, 7 Nili Latu, 6 Ma'ama Molitika, 5 Daniel Leo, 4 Simon Raiwalui (captain), 3 Tevita Taumoepeau, 2 Aleki Lutui, 1 Justin Va'a.
Replacements:  16 Mahonri Schwalger, 17 Taufa'ao Felise, 18 Epi Taione, 19 Aca Ratuva, 20 Junior Poluleuligaga, 21 Seilala Mapasua , 22 Alexi Tuilagi.

Referee:  Christophe Berdos (France)
Touch judges:  Joël Jutge (France), Taizo Hirabayashi (Japan)
Television match official:  Mark Lawrence (South Africa)
Assessor:  Steve Hilditch (Ireland)

Injuries sour Scotland's glory

Beattie and Cusiter carried off

Scotland underlined their burgeoning stature with a well-taken 34-22 victory over a game Pacific Islanders side at Murrayfield on Saturday.  But the win, in which the hosts had led 31-5, was marred by injuries to Johnnie Beattie and Chris Cusiter, both of whom now look doubtful for Scotland's match against Australia next week.

Whether the Scots have returned to the path that they slide off in the late nineties is still a matter of debate, but Frank Hadden's men have produced enough evidence to suggest that this revival could blossom into a bright new era.

True, the Pacific Islanders are not quite the All Blacks, but they put up a decent if disjointed fight.  What was impressive about Scotland was their ability to dictate terms.

The Islanders did excel in one area of play and that was their intuition on the counterattack, but rugby depends on a lot more than pure god-given ability.

The Islanders' lack of together-time was evident for long passages of play, passes checked their receivers and defensive patterns lacked cohesion.  But these guys can put passes together and threatened the comeback of all comebacks before the Scots managed to put a lid on the gathering storm.

Plenty of column inches had been dedicated to the Islanders' love of running but it was Scotland who made the more enterprising start even though that adventure came at quite a price.

Johnnie Beattie was forced to exit the stage in the eighth minute of the game with an ankle injury and the gloom grew deeper as Chris Cusiter followed the No.8 to the medical tent just seconds later -- a sad moment for a man keen to reassert himself on the Test stage after a long injury-enforced absence.

But Marcus Di Rollo soon lifted Scottish spirits by punctuating good approach work from his forwards with an easy try born of lackadaisical defending.  Chris Paterson converted in the shadow of the uprights.

The forwards spied a chink in the Islanders' armoury and began to turn the screw with a series of handsome driving mauls.

With the Islanders in reverse, Mike Blair -- on for the luckless Cusiter -- decided to ship the ball wide, and a brilliant miss-three pass from Dan Parks found Dave Callam -- on for the luckless Beattie -- who slid into the corner for Scotland's second try; Paterson added the extras with a fine conversion.

Scotland had their tails up now and began to play wide rugby, with Simon Webster to the fore.

The Islanders did what they could with limited possession, but their efforts lacked cohesion.  Frustration got the better of the tourists and Epi Taione was soon trudging off to the sin-bin for killing the ball.

Scotland made good use of their numerical advantage; Kelly Brown broke off the back of a driving maul to score and he was soon followed by Andrew Henderson who snaffled a try on the back of another fine break from Webster.

Paterson converted both tries to leave Scotland 28-0 up after just 28 minutes.  It seemed Christmas had come early.

But the locals were unable to maintain the momentum and a poor clearance from Parks gifted the visitors a line-out on the blue 10-metre line.

With a sniff of a score, island intuition kicked into gear and fine handling across the backline allowed Rupeni Caucaunibuca to stroll in for a try on his opposite wing.

Tusi Pisi missed the difficult conversion and Paterson drew the first half to a close by slotting a 42-metre penalty.  At 31-5 up at the break, Scotland's half-time oranges must have tasted very sweet indeed.

Credit to the Islanders, they could have easily thrown in the towel but they exploded into the second period, scoring two tries in the first five minutes.

Kameli Ratuvou was the first man over the whitewash after he scooped up spilt Scottish possession to poach an unconverted try.

Then Caucaunibuca gave birth to a length-of-the-field try, scored by Daniel Leo, that owed its metamorphosis to the natural dexterity and vision of the tourists.

But Pisi failed to land his conversion yet again, with Parks doing well to charge down his kick at goal.

Scotland tried to lure their increasingly confident guests into a pitched battle, but the Islanders were having none of it.  Great handling and Caucaunibuca's phenomenal strength almost produced another long-distance try, but Sean Lamont performed miracles in defence.

Scotland put their thinking caps on and Parks began to play for territory, but quick throw-in after quick throw-in kept island fires burning.  They were beginning to click.

Then, in the manner of stern parents, Scotland stamped order on the raucous proceedings, confining their rowdy guests to their own half via boot and brawn.

Lome Fa'atau almost got over the line at the end of one of a handful of jail-breaks, but good cover defence took him into touch.

Di Rollo added a drop-goal in the closing stages of the game, but it was the Islanders who had the last word as Ratuvou picked up his second try of the day after collecting his own grubber.

Pisi finally found his range with the conversion, but it was too little too late.

Man of the match:  Plenty of fine individual performances from the Islanders, but this award must go to a Scot.  Kelly Brown had an industrious day on the openside, Sean Lamont was a rock in defence and Marcus Di Rollo held the backline together.  But our man of the match is Simon Webster whose adventurous running lines out-islanded the Islanders.

Moment of the match:  Could it be Rupeni Caucaunibuca's first touch?  Or Seru Rabeni's pile-driving tackle on Simon Taylor?  We'll opt for the free-flowing build up to Leo's try.

Villain of the match:  Epi Taione earned a yellow-card, but it wasn't evil incarnate.  No award.

The scorers:

For Scotland:
Tries:  Di Rollo, Callam, Brown, Henderson
Cons:  Parks, Paterson 3
Pen:  PatersonDrop goal:  Di Rollo

For the Pacific Islanders:
Tries:  Caucaunibuca, Ratuvou 2, Leo
Con:  Pisi

Yellow card(s):  Taione (Pacific Islanders) -- killing the ball, 25

The teams:

Scotland:  15 Chris Paterson (captain), 14 Simon Webster, 13 Marcus Di Rollo, 12 Andrew Henderson, 11 Sean Lamont, 10 Dan Parks, 9 Chris Cusiter, 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 Kelly Brown, 6 Simon Taylor, 5 Scott Murray, 4 Nathan Hines, 3 Euan Murray, 2 Dougie Hall, 1 Gavin Kerr.
Replacements:  16 Ross Ford, 17 Allan Jacobsen, 18 Alastair Kellock, 19 Dave Callam, 20 Mike Blair, 21 Phil Godman, 22 Hugo Southwell.

Pacific Islanders:  15 Norman Ligairi, 14 Lome Fa'atau, 13 Kameli Ratuvou, 12 Elvis Seveali'i, 11 Rupeni Caucaunibuca, 10 Tusi Pisi, 9 Moses Rauluni, 8 Epi Taione, 7 Nili Latu, 6 Viliami Vaki, 5 Daniel Leo, 4 Simon Raiwalui (captain), 3 Tevita Taumoepeau, 2 Mahonri Schwalger, 1 Taufa'ao Felise.
Replacements:  16 Aleki Lutui, 17 Justin Va'a, 18 Ma'ama Molitika, 19 Semo Sititi, 20 Junior Poluleuligaga, 21 Seremaia Bai, 22 Seru Rabeni.

Referee:  Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)
Touch judges:  Alan Lewis and George Clancy (both Ireland)
TMO:  Hugh Watkins (Wales)

Wales storm past the Islanders

First-half blitz enough for the Welsh

Four first-half tries were enough to see Wales home to a 38-20 victory over the Pacific Islanders at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday, but this error-ridden game never quite lived up to its billing.

Before play started at the Millennium Stadium both captains laid wreaths as a sign of respect for Remembrance Day, but sadly this game fizzled out and will not live long in the memory for either side.

The Pacific Islanders set their stall out from the first minute, opting to run from deep inside their own territory in true island style but rarely made inroads.  Wales in contrast played with composure and showed glimpses of the flair their opponents were looking for.  Four tries in the first half for the Welsh, when the Islanders looked rusty, was enough to secure the win that was expected from them.  The disappointment was their failure to build on a strong position in the second half.

It was evident in the early exchanges that the Pacific Islanders had only been together for a week, but as the game progressed they started to find their rhythm and began to cause Wales problems with their pace and width.  If they are to be taken seriously as a side then they need to be given the time together to prepare for fixtures, for partnerships to gel and for an understanding to develop.

That said they were the architects of their own downfall in the first half when they played in the wrong areas and gave Wales two tries under the posts with easy intercepts.

Sweeney, controversially handed the kicking duties ahead of James Hook, set Wales on their way with a simple fourth minute penalty after the impressive Seru Rabeni hit Hook late and high.

They continued to exploit the Islanders lack of organisation after quick phase ball was moved wide to Mark Jones who finished superbly.  Faced with fifty meters and two defenders between himself and the line he stood up Latu before scorching down the line to score in the corner.  Sweeney added a tricky conversion from the touchline.

Looking to play with too much width from every possible chance, the Islanders increasingly began to turn over possession to Wales, who, marshalled by Mike Phillips and Ceri Sweeney, controlled play astutely.

To play Test rugby at this level you need to play yourself into the game, a concept that escaped the Pacific Islanders, as they coughed up two intercept tries to Hook and Lee Byrne respectively, trying to live up to their reputation of a free-running side.

Sandwiched in between those two gifts Sonny Parker showed Wales what they have been missing of late with a searing break into the Islanders' 22 before sending Kevin Morgan in by the posts.

For all the flair and pace the Islanders boasted it was the power and muscle of their physical forwards that yielded their opening score, Justin Va'a crashing over in the corner after a smart line out move.

Half-time was a welcome relief for a tired looking Islanders side, who for all their endeavour were failing to live up to their billing.  They were hardly helped by the lack of possession from set piece, as Sidoli and Owen pulled their line-out to pieces.

Whether Wales realised they had the game wrapped up, or the Islanders began to find their form, the second half was a different story.  For starters the Islanders outscored Wales, and on top of that they looked to be the more lively side and were rewarded for their persistent adventure with tries from Seilala Mapasua and Kameli Ratuvou.

Wales did find their form briefly in the second half, scoring the try of the game through Ceri Sweeney.  The move started deep inside their own 22 from another turnover.  Alix Popham read the situation well feeding Sonny Parker on the inside to inject pace into the move.  Mark Jones was in support and would have scored himself but for a superb last ditch tackle.  As it was Ceri Sweeney was on hand to cap a fine move, one their opponents would have been proud of.

Both sides will be able to take enough positives from the game to be happy, although neither side found the form they would have been looking for in a game that ultimately was won and lost by half-time.

Man of the Match:  For the Pacific Islanders captain Simon Raiwalui never gave up and was always on hand to lead the way, along with the impressive Nili Latu.  For Wales Kevin Morgan again showed his true class and Mike Phillips was busy at scrum half.  But back in the side for the first time in a year Sonny Parker was often the key in defence and attack.

Moment of the Match:  The two moments that stood out were the intercept tries scored in the first half.  Had it not been for them the Islanders may have been in touch going into half time, as it was they gifted Wales fourteen points and the game.

Villain of the Match:  None -- all good clean family fun.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  M Jones, Hook, Morgan, Byrne, Sweeney
Cons:  Sweeney 5
Pen:  Sweney

For the Pacific Islanders:
Tries:  Va'a, Mapasua, Ratuvou
Con:  Pisi
Pen:  Pisi

Wales:  15 Kevin Morgan, 14 Lee Byrne, 13 Sonny Parker, 12 James Hook, 11 Mark Jones, 10 Ceri Sweeney, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Alix Popham, 7 Gavin Thomas, 6 Alun Wyn Jones, 5 Robert Sidoli, 4 Michael Owen, 3 Chris Horsman, 2 Rhys Thomas, 1 Duncan Jones (c).
Replacements:  16 Huw Bennett, 17 Adam Jones, 18 Gethin Jenkins, 19 Jonathan Thomas, 20 Gareth Cooper, 21 Gavin Evans, 22 Shane Williams.

Pacific Islanders:  15 Norman Ligairi, 14 Lome Fa'atau, 13 Seru Rabeni, 12 Seilala Mapasua, 11 Sailosi Tagicakibau, 10 Tusi Pisi, 9 Moses Rauluni, 8 Hale T-Pole, 7 Semo Sititi, 6 Nili Latu, 5 Daniel Leo, 4 Simon Raiwalui (c), 3 Tevita Taumoepeau, 2 Mahonri Schwalger, 1 Justin Va'a.
Replacements:  16 Aleki Lutui, 17 Census Johnson, 18 Ma'ama Molitika, 19 Epi Taione, 20 Junior Poluleuligaga, 21 Seremaiai Bai, 22 Kameli Ratuvou.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Touch judges:  Donal Courtney (Ireland), Rob Debney (England)
Television match official:  George Clancy (Ireland)
Assessor:  Dick Byres (Australia)

South Africa 38 Pacific Islanders 24

The Springboks got their Australasian tour off to a victorious start with a 38-24 win over the Pacific Islanders in Gosford.  The win also saw veteran fullback Percy Montgomery overtake Naas Botha as the most prolific points scorer for the Boks.

But the Boks will not be happy with a performance that saw them slip from total domination in the first half to an outfit that lacked cohesion and structure to allow the gutsy Islanders team back into the game after the break.

The Boks were never going to attempt to beat the Islanders at their own game and they signaled their intent early on, destroying their out-gunned opponents in the forward exchanges.  It was an awesome display by the South African pack, out-muscling the Islanders at the breakdowns and scrums and out-jumping them at the lineouts.

The commentators implied that the Islanders were suffering from fatigue after a gruelling Test schedule, but such an assumption was laughable.  The Boks were simply denying their opponents any ball, and the little they got was on the back-foot and under immense pressure.

Montgomery got the scoring underway with a long-range penalty and the Boks then spent the next five minutes camped in the Islander half for a prolonged period of assault from their gargantuan tight five.

Predictably the first Bok try came from the scrum -- an area the Islanders never came to grips with despite their weight advantage -- and young No.8 Jacques Cronje broke from the back and scored underneath the posts.  Montgomery continued to find the middle of the posts.

The Islanders attempted to gather some momentum after the try, but when Bok centre De Wet Barry put in a massive hit on his opposite number the Islanders were turned over and hurried back into their own 22.

Scrum-half Bolla Conradie chipped over the retreating defence and winger Breyton Paulse showed a clean pair of heels to snap the ball up and go over for the first of his two tries.  Montgomery continued to close in on Botha's record with the conversion.

At the break it looked ominous for the Islanders with the Boks well in control at 23-0.

But the second half was a different game.  The Islanders looked more motivated, while the Boks -- sensing a big win -- began to play as individuals, seeking personal glory over the whitewash, rather than keeping to the game-plan that had worked to their advantage.

It worked initially with fly-half Jaco van der Westhuyzen drawing the defence to put Paulse over for his second of the evening.

Montgomery then claimed the South African record with another long-range effort, but the glory was short-lived when brilliant Islander winger Sitiveni Sivivatu burst through some shabby Bok defence to score in the corner.

But it served as little motivation to the South Africans who continued to throw the ball around shamelessly.  The result was a host of errors and another Sivivatu try in the corner.

The sight of the Chiefs star grounding the ball again seemed to sting the Boks back into action and it was again Montgomery who proved the catalyst, chipping through the Islanders defence for winger Jean de Villiers to pick up his first international try.

But from that point onwards the Boks did little to impress.  Their game-plan was thrown out the window never to return.  Montgomery in particular seemed to suffer a rapid change of fortune, but he was not the only one.

Two more tries from hard-running No.8 Sione Lauaki and big winger Sireli Bobo made the score more respectable for the Islanders at 38-24.  But it should never have been that close.

The Boks should have closed the game down long before Bobo went over in the 80th minute and it should serve as a wake-up call for the South Africans who will face a far more challenging All Blacks side next weekend in Christchurch.

Man of the match:  For the Islanders Sivivatu and Lauaki were both superb and never threw in the towel.  But this award could go to only one man -- Schalk Burger -- who once again got through a mountain of work for the Boks.  Where he gets the energy is anybody's guess.

Moment of the match:  There were some fantastic tries, but Jean de Villiers' try in the second half welcomed the belated return of a phenomenal talent, who has been kept off the centre stage for far too long.

Villian of the match:  It was a clean game and despite some poor option-taking, nobody deserves this award.

The Teams:

South Africa:  1 Eddie Andrews, 2 John Smit (c), 3 Os Du Randt, 4 Bakkies Botha, 5 Gerrie Britz, 6 A.J. Venter, 7 Schalk Burger Jr., 8 Jacques Cronje, 9 Bolla Conradie, 10 Jaco Van Der Westhuyzen, 11 Jean De Villiers, 12 De Wet Barry, 13 Marius Joubert, 14 Breyton Paulse, 15 Percy Montgomery
Reserves:  Fourie Du Preez, Quinton Davids, C.J. Van Der Linde, Pedrie Wannenburg
Unused:  Danie Coetzee, Gaffie Du Toit, Brent Russell

Pacific Islanders:  1 Soane Tonga'uiha, 2 Aleki Lutui, 3 Tevita Taumoepeau, 4 'Inoke Afeaki (c), 5 Ifereimi Rawaqa, 6 Sione Lauaki, 7 Alifereti Doviverata, 8 Sisa Koyamaibole, 9 Mosese Rauluni, 10 Tanner Vili, 11 Sireli Bobo, 12 Seilala Mapusua, 13 Seru Rabeni, 14 Sitivini Sivivatu, 15 Norman Ligairi
Reserves:  Filipo Levi, Tu Tamarua, Brian Lima, Steven So'oialo, Taufa'ao Filise, Seremaia Baikeinuku, Joeli Lotawa

Referee:  Young s.

Points Scorers:

South Africa
Tries:  Paulse B.J. 2, De Villiers J. 1, Cronje J. 1
Conv:  Montgomery P.C. 3
Pen K.:  Montgomery P.C. 4

Pacific Islanders
Tries:  Bobo I. 1, Sivivatu S.W. 2, Lauaki S. 1
Conv:  Rabeni R.S. 2

Australia 29 Pacific Islanders 14

Australia were made to work very hard for their 29-14 win in the historical inaugural Test against the Pacific Islanders at the Adelaide Oval.  The Wallabies outscored the hardy visitors by five tries to two, but the game was a lot closer than the margin suggested.

In an historic match in Adelaide, Australia beat the Pacific Islanders 29-14, a tough encounter on a slithery evening before a cheerful crowd of some 20 000.  The Wallabies won but the Islanders hurt the Wallabies.

Clyde Rathbone, three-try scorer against England, was hurt in three tackles this week and eventually left the field.  Joe Roff hurt a knee in a tackle and left.  George Gregan was heavily dumped in a tackle and left.  Stirling Mortlock was hurt in a tackle and left with a bulging eye.  Others could also have been hurt as the Islanders bashed with ball in hand and then bashed the Wallabies when the Australians had the ball.

The Islanders played their first Test ever and did so well.

There were also memorable moments for André Watson, who was refereeing his last Test after a wonderful career, and Brumbies prop Nic Henderson, brought into the squad when Matt Dunning hurt an eye.  Late in the match Henderson got onto the field, just in time to win his first cap.

It certainly was a contest.  One interesting area of contention was at the tackle where the Islanders drove in hard and won a surprising number of turn-overs.

For long periods of the match, despite the conditions, the Islanders, in their blue and red shorts and red, white and blue jerseys, deprived the Wallabies of the ball as they went through many phases -- more phases than metres against a determined Australian defence.

A feature of the match was the judicious kicking by the Wallabies against the pointless kicking of the Islanders.

The rain held off for the start of the match.  There was none while the Australians sang their anthem and the Pacific Islanders their aggressive dance, a sipi tau, a Tongan form of wardance, led by a tattooed baggage master in war dress.

Not long afterwards, the rain started and the ground became increasingly slippery, very much a cricket ground in shape, amenities and bald pitch.

The Islanders' full back, experienced Norman Ligairi, had problems getting to the ball as the Wallabies kicked cleverly.  A Stephan Larkham kick forced a line-out, to the Islanders, five metres from the Islanders' line.  The Islanders lost five of their 16 line-outs but won this own and scrumhalf Mosese Rauluni cleared badly.  Rathbone, back after his first shaking up, played inside.  The Wallabies countered on their left, Lote Tuqiri straightened up to fix two defenders before giving to Mortlock who still had hard work ahead as he scored in Lome Fa'atua's tackle.  Roff missed the conversion from the corner.  He missed the next two conversions as well, unusual for the great man.

Just before half-time Australia countered off a Tanner Chan Vili kick and got their second try when Larkham grubbered ahead on the left and Matt Giteau did well to grab the bobbing ball to score in the corner.

That made it 10-0 at half-time.

The best two breaks of the half had been by Larkham and Vili.  It was a half of stern defence.

In the second half Seremaia Bai missed his second penalty kick at goal but then the Islanders bashed with urgent purpose at the Wallaby line, which held.  The ball then came to their left and strong flank Sione Lauaki burst through George Gregan and Justin Harrison to score near the posts.  10-7 after 48 minutes.

Australia had had two five-metre line-outs in the first half without scoring.  But in the second half they got one right, drove their maul over for back-man Jeremy Paul to score:  15-7.

They tried it again soon afterwards but the maul fell down.  Back the ball came to Larkham who lobbed a long high kick across the posts to his right.  Lote Tuqiri was one of those contesting the ball.  He knocked it back and Giteau dropped on it.  This time Roff converted.  22-7 after 57 minutes.

Paul was just short after a fourth five-metre line-out and then the television match official judged that Chris Latham had lost the ball in grounding it.

The Islanders survived and scored when Bai broke, looked to his right and chipped a delightful ball which speedster Sireli Bobo caught and scored.  Bai converted.  22-14 after 71 minutes.

The Wallabies caught the Islanders napping from the kick off.  Larkham kicked left.  Matt Burke got the ball, and got a clever pass to Mortlock who battled his way ahead to score in the corner.  Matthew Burke converted.

Man of the Match:  There were two excellent, creative flyhalves -- Tanner Chan Vili for the Islanders and Stephen Larkham for the Wallabies.  Our Man of the Match is Stephan Larkham, who ran with decision, kicked judiciously and tackled as effectively as anybody on the field.

Moment of the Match:  Seremaia Bai's chip that gave Sireli Bobo his try.

Villain of the Match:  Dan Vickerman got the only yellow card of the match but our villain is Inoke Afeaki.  Long after Clyde Rathbone had passed to his right Afeaki, from behind, laid him waste and forced the young wing off the field.

The Teams:

Australia:  1 Alastair Baxter, 2 Brendan Cannon, 3 Bill Young, 4 Justin Harrison, 5 Nathan Sharpe, 6 Radike Samo, 7 Phil Waugh, 8 David Lyons, 9 George Gregan (c), 10 Steve Larkham, 11 Lote Tuqiri, 12 Matt Giteau, 13 Stirling Mortlock, 14 Clyde Rathbone, 15 Joe Roff
Reserves:  Matthew Burke, Chris Latham, Jeremy Paul, Chris Whitaker, Nic Henderson, George Smith, Daniel Vickerman

Pacific Islanders:  1 Taufa'ao Filise, 2 Aleki Lutui, 3 Soane Tonga'uiha, 4 'Inoke Afeaki (c), 5 Ifereimi Rawaqa, 6 Sione Lauaki, 7 Sisa Koyamaibole, 8 Alifereti Doviverata, 9 Mosese Rauluni, 10 Tanner Vili, 11 Lome Fa'atau, 12 Seilala Mapusua, 13 Seremaia Baikeinuku, 14 Sitivini Sivivatu, 15 Norman Ligairi
Reserves:  Sireli Bobo, Leo Lafaiali'i, Semo Sititi, Steven So'oialo, Tevita Taumoepeau, Seru Rabeni
Unused:  Joeli Lotawa

Attendance:  19296
Referee:  Watson a.

Points Scorers:

Australia
Tries:  Mortlock S.A. 2, Giteau M.J. 2, Cannon B.J. 1
Conv:  Roff J.W.C. 1, Burke M.C. 1

Pacific Islanders
Tries:  Lauaki S. 1, Bobo I. 1
Conv:  Baikeinuku S. 2