Clinical All Blacks dispense with Wales

Better finishing proved the difference between New Zealand and Wales as the All Blacks won 42-9 at Dunedin on Saturday.

The House of Pain was given its winning send-off and Wales' 57-year tale of woe continued against the All Blacks, who looked in fine form by the end of the match, but had the Welsh capitalised on their impressive fist half we could have seen more of a match.

Instead, each time the Welsh got within striking distance, something would go wrong.  A maul would go down, a pass would escape the recipient's clutches, ball would be stolen, a penalty would be conceded.  At one such moment, Cory Jane was able to pick up a loose ball off the side of a ruck and race 70m for his side's second try, which was probably the game's defining moment.

Any other contenders for that award involved Dan Carter, who gave a mesmerising performance just when his team needed it most.  He scored two tries, made numerous other breaks and controlled the second half superbly with the boot:  a complete fly-half performance.  He left the field to a standing ovation ten minutes from the end.

Wales enjoyed 60 oer cent of the first-half possession and territory but were 15-9 down at the break.

They even led 6-0 after nearly a quarter of the game and were excellent value for that, with Stephen Jones knocking over a drop goal and Leigh Halfpenny landing a monster penalty.  By contrast, Carter had fluffed his early line, miscuiing a tough attempt from 45m.

But the difference between the teams became apparent on 18 minutes.  A line-out close to the Welsh line was New Zealand's first meaningful foray into Welsh territory and although the initial thrusts were repelled, they came at the cost of a penalty.  Jimmy Cowan tapped and went, drove close, and Keven Mealamu took the ball off the back of the ruck and went through whee the Welsh defensive pillars ought to have been for the opening score.  Wales with all the territory, New Zealand with all the tries.

When Cory Jane picked up that loose ball and scored to make it 15-6 on the half-hour -- again at the end of a good spell of Welsh pressure -- the writing was well and truly on the wall.

The Welsh could have been a try ahead inside the first couple of minutes after Andrew Bishop, who came into the side for James Hook, charged down a Carter kick inside the All Blacks 22.  Israel Dagg covered and won the chase to ground in.

Andrew Bishop made a couple of strong runs as did Jamie Roberts and Wales were recycling the ball well until they got to within about five metres of the All Blacks line and prop Adam Jones knocked on.

Although New Zealand were able to clear their lines Wales soon had them under pressure again with Stephen Jones' pinpoint kicks to Joe Rokocoko's left wing where he and Dagg did not look assured.

But then came the scores from Mealamu and Jane which turned the tide completely.

Stephen Jones replied immediately with Wales' third penalty but couldn't convert a fourth opportunity when Brad Thorn was penalised for killing the ball.

Wales were almost made to pay for another error at the start of the second period when Stephen Jones saw a kick charged down by Ben Franks on halfway and the All Blacks rumbled forward.

A couple of quick phases ended with Brad Thorn bearing down on the line but some solid Wales defending held him up before stealing the ball away.

There was little respite for Wales though as the All Blacks drove forward again, before Thorn's forward pass in the corner let the tourists off the hook.

New Zealand were now clearly stamping their authority on the game and it was not long before they made it count on the scoreboard.

Carter struck over a 50th-minute penalty before grabbing his team's third try almost from the restart.

Rokocoko splintered the away defence in a buccaneering run from his own half and set the All Blacks in motion towards a try that was sealed with a clever one-two between Carter and Jane.

Carter added the conversion and suddenly the All Blacks were pulling away with a 25-9 lead with 54 minutes played.

Wales almost pulled back an unlikely try when, after withstanding more pressure on their own tryline, a hasty kicked clearance set up a breakaway.

Halfpenny won the race to the ball on the halfway line and kicked forward off the ground again but Kahui outpaced him to extinguish the danger.

Carter, who became the first New Zealander to surpass 1,000 Test points in the thumping win over Ireland last weekend, added his second try in the 67th minute.

Wales were made to pay again for turnover ball when the industrious Mealamu snatched the ball away and began a eye-catching phase of play that was capped by the supreme finishing off Carter as he raced 40 metres almost untouched despite a maze of would-be defenders circling him.

The Welsh defence was now in tatters and Kahui was similarly untroubled as he raced from halfway to score his side's fifth try four minutes later.

Carter was then given an early rest but it hardly stopped the one-way flow as Ryan Jones had to scramble across his own tryline to stop another All Black try, Aaron Cruden denied his first Test score by Jones' tackle.

Man of the match:  Dan Carter:  Director of the show, starring role ... it was all about him today.

Moment of the match:  Cory Jane's breakaway try was the moment when you just knew New Zealand had a little too much class.

Villain of the match:  Whichever cretin is responsible for the musak infesting New Zealand's pre-match national anthems at the moment.  As if the singers through ill-set tannoys and the bad acoustics weren't enough, the hammond organ recital accompaniment was the true low point.

The scorers:

For New Zealand:
Tries:  Mealamu, Jane, Carter 2, Kahui
Cons:  Carter 4
Pens:  Carter 3

For Wales:
Pens:  Halfpenny, S.Jones
Drop goal:  S.Jones

New Zealand:  15 Israel Dagg, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Benson Stanley, 11 Joe Rokocoko, 10 Daniel Carter, 9 Jimmy Cowan, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Victor Vito, 5 Anthony Boric, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Keven Mealamu, 1 Ben Franks
Replacements:  16 Aled de Malmanche, 17 Tony Woodcock, 18 Sam Whitelock, 19 Adam Thomson, 20 Piri Weepu, 21 Aaron Cruden, 22 Richard Kahui.

Wales:  15 Lee Byrne, 14 Leigh Halfpenny, 13 Andrew Bishop, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Tom Prydie, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Ryan Jones (c), 7 Gavin Thomas, 6 Jonathan Thomas, 5 Alun-Wyn Jones, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Paul James.
Replacements:  16 Huw Bennett, 17 John Yapp, 18 Deiniol Jones, 19 Rob McCusker, 20 Tavis Knoyle, 21 Dan Biggar, 22 Jonathan Davies.

Referee:  George Clancy (Ireland)

England suffocate the Barbarians

England responded to successive defeats Down Under with a 15-9 win over the Australian Barbarians in a dull game in Gosford on Tuesday.

Flat is the word to describe the 80 minutes that supporters at the Bluetongue Stadium were forced to endure, with penalties from Charlie Hodgson, Olly Barkley and Berrick Barnes troubling the scorers in a try-less spectacle.

The Barbarians had edged into a 9-6 lead early in the second half with three penalties from Barnes before England's scrum dominance proved the difference and Barkley did the rest.

Australia's second-string had ended up with two hookers in the front row and England took full advantage as Barkley sealed a sleepy win.

England's Test squad remained back in Sydney and did not make the 50-mile journey north, although the whole Australia squad was present.

The midweek side were captained by Joe Worsley and they featured seven changes from the 28-28 draw with the Barbarians last Tuesday.

Wing David Strettle and centre Dominic Waldouck were among those making their first starts of the trip and their quick hands and lively running contributed to an enterprising start.

England dominated the first quarter and took a third minute lead with a Hodgson penalty after Ward-Smith's break down the wing.

Matt Banahan made three powerful runs and Strettle was enthusiastic and elusive as England looked to inject some pace into their game on the back of another dominant scrum performance.

Waldouck showed great hands to flick a pass over his shoulder and then picked a perfect line to carve through the Barbarians defence.

Referee Steve Walsh awarded England a dubious penalty, which Hodgson missed but he soon pushed the tourists further ahead as the Barbarians struggled to break out of their own half.

England worked another promising opportunity but Hodgson's flick-pass for Delon Armitage on the overlap drifted forward and to the ground.

That was the best England had to offer, their execution again a disappointment and Waldouck, one of their brighter sparks, was forced off injured after 27 minutes.

The Barbarians also had to make a change but it only improved their creativity with Barnes on for the injured Will Chambers and with it swung the balance of power.

Barkley halted a driving run from Barbarians flanker Ben McCalman before Kurtley Beale made his own dart for the line and England reacted just in time to stop him short of the whitewash.

The Barbarians kept the pressure on and England began to lose their composure.  Barnes slotted two penalties to draw the Barbarians level and England were fortunate not to trail at the interval after missing a simple shot at goal.

Both sides began to ring the changes but England's performance continued to deteriorate, with poor tackling and basic errors allowing the Barbarians to remain on top.

Barnes kicked a third penalty to edge the Barbarians ahead before Barkley assumed the kicking duties to respond, after another powerful England scrum.

The scrum proved decisive in the end.  The Australian Barbarians finished with two hookers in the front row.  England milked that dominance and Barkley kicked them to victory.

The scorers:

For Australian Barbarians:
Pen:  Barnes 3

For England:
Pen:  Hodgson 2, Barkley 3

Australian Barbarians:  15 Peter Hynes, 14 Nick Cummins, 13 Will Chambers, 12 Anthony Faingaa, 11 Lachie Turner, 10 Kurtley Beale;  9 Josh Valentine, 8 Stephen Hoiles (c), 7 Pat McCutcheon, 6 Ben McCalman, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Mitchell Chapman, 3 Laurie Weeks, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Pekahou Cowan.
Replacements:  16 Huia Edmonds, 17 James Slipper, 18 Mark Chisholm, 19 Matt Hodgson, 20 Luke Burgess, 21 Berrick Barnes, 22 James O'Connor.

England:  15 Delon Armitage, 14 David Strettle, 13 Dominic Waldouck, 12 Olly Barkley, 11 Matt Banahan, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Richard Wigglesworth, 8 James Haskell, 7 Steffon Armitage, 6 Joe Worsley (capt), 5 Dan Ward-Smith, 4 Dave Attwood, 3 Paul Doran-Jones, 2 Lee Mears, 1 Jon Golding.
Replacements:  16 Rob Webber, 17 David Flatman, 18 Chris Robshaw, 19 Phil Dowson, 20 Paul Hodgson, 21 Shane Geraghty, 22 Mathew Tait.

Referee:  Steve Walsh

Parks' boot sinks Pumas

Fly-half Dan Parks kicked all of Scotland's points, including two drop-goals, in a hard-fought 24-16 win over Argentina in Tucuman on Saturday.

Parks was the hero yet again as Scotland came roaring back from 13-6 down to become the first side ever to beat Argentina in Tucuman.

After victories for New Zealand, Australia and South Africa this weekend, Scotland saved some pride for the northern hemisphere in a famous win.

Parks maintained his man-of-the-match form from the Six Nations with another consummate kicking display, the rejuvenated fly-half landing six penalties and two drop goals.

The 32-year-old could even afford some rare slip-ups with the boot as Scotland dominated almost the entire second half, their shell-shocked opponents made to pay for persistent infringement at the breakdown.

The Pumas lead 13-12 at half time thanks to tries from centre Gonzalo Tiesi and flank Juan Manuel Leguizamon while Parks' 40th minutes drop goal and his three penalties kept the visitors in the game.

But the hosts were largely shut out of the second half as their only points came in form of Felipe Contepomi's second penalty of the day.

Scotland went into the match with a miserable record against the Pumas, losing eight of the last nine meetings, including at Murrayfield in November -- Andy Robinson's first defeat in charge.

The one exception was a series-levelling success in Buenos Aires two years ago, when Robinson was part of the coaching set-up.

Argentina, who are in Scotland's World Cup pool next year, had never lost in their seven previous games in Tucuman.

Both sides made an adventurous start but Scotland paid for their ambition early on when Max Evans lost the ball in the tackle.

The Pumas pounced for the easiest of breakaway tries, Contepomi feeding Tiesi to run in unchallenged.  Contepomi was wide with the conversion.

Parks kicked a penalty as Scotland continued to run the ball but the Pumas were piling on the pressure at scrum time and were rewarded with a close-range penalty kicked by Contepomi.

Parks missed a 25-metre penalty before new captain Alastair Kellock almost gifted Argentina a second try on the counter when he lost the ball, but Nick De Luca produced a vital tap tackle on Contepomi.

Parks converted his latest penalty attempt from more than 40 metres but Argentina had their second try when Horacio Agulla claimed a Contepomi chip to the corner and offloaded for Leguizamon.

The flanker shrugged off some poor tackles, stretched and got the ball down on the line to the satisfaction of the video referee.  Contepomi missed the conversion.

The Pumas continued to infringe at the breakdown but Parks failed to make them pay with what looked a straightforward 22-metre penalty.

He made amends again with another long-range effort to keep Scotland in contention and they were denied a try on the stroke of half-time when Lamont grounded the ball after being tackled into touch by Martin Rodriguez-Gurruchaga.

Leguizamon had been yellow carded in the build-up, while Parks kicked a drop goal on the stroke of half-time to cut the deficit to a point.

Silly penalties at the start of the second half cost Scotland the chance to take advantage of the extra man.

But they were well on top as Argentina replaced prop Martin Scelzo with Marcos Ayerza and Lucas Borges with Lucas Gonzalez-Amorosino.

The Pumas were starting to make errors in their own 22 and they gave the tourists a 25-metre penalty from which Parks put them ahead for the first time.

Argentina came roaring back and Scotland survived a succession of five-metre scrums before replacing Johnnie Beattie and Rory Lawson with Alasdair Strokosch and Mike Blair.

Mariano Galarza came on for Manuel Carizza seconds before Parks booted a 48-metre penalty to increase the tourists' lead to five points.

The hosts threw on Agustin Creevy for Mario Ledesma but it was now a long time since they had led 13-6.

Parks was full of confidence and took on a 55-metre penalty which was nowhere near but more excellent Scotland attacking set up a close-range drop goal which the fly-half converted to put the tourists eight points up.

More substitutions followed for both sides before Contepomi cut the deficit with a long-range penalty but yet more Argentinian infringement allowed Parks to wrap up a superb victory with his sixth penalty.

The scorers

For Argentina:
Tries:  Tiesi, Leguizamon
Pens:  Contepomi 2

For Scotland:
Pens:  Parks 5
Drops:  Parks 2

Yellow card:  Leguizamon (Argentina -- 40th min -- repeated ruck infringements)

Argentina:  15 Martin Rodriguez, 14 Lucas Borges, 13 Gonzalo Tiesi, 12 Santiago Fernandez, 11 Horacio Agulla, 10 Felipe Contepomi (c), 9 Alfredo Lalanne, 8 Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe, 7 Juan Manuel Leguizamon, 6 Genaro Fessia, 5 Patricio Albacete, 4 Manuel Carizza, 3 Martin Scelzo, 2 Mario Ledesma, 1 Rodrigo Roncero
Replacements:  16 Agustin Creevy, 17 Marcos Ayerza, 18 Mariano Galarza, 19 Alejandro Campos, 20 Agustin Figuerola, 21 Ignacio Mieres, 22 Lucas Gonzalez-Amorosino.

Scotland:  15 Hugo Southwell, 14 Max Evans, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Sean Lamont, 10 Dan Parks, 9 Rory Lawson, 8 John Barclay, 7 Johnnie Beattie, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Alastair Kellock (c), 4 Jim Hamilton, 3 Moray Low, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements:  16 Scott Lawson, 17 Geoff Cross, 18 Scott MacLeod, 19 Alasdair Strokosch, 20 Mike Blair, 21 Phil Godman, 22 Jim Thompson.

Referee:  Dave Pearson (England)
Assistant referees:  Christophe Berdos (France), Stuart Dickinson (Australia)

Boks power past the French

It's taken five years, but for South Africa it was worth the wait thanks to an emphatic 42-17 win over France at Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday.

The Springboks had only managed two wins and a draw in their last nine encounters with the French, but the result was never in doubt this time out after the world champs outscored their visitors five tries to two.

It seemed as if all the emotion resulting from South Africa's football team's draw against Mexico on Friday had their bigger brothers hungry for more success.  While the Springboks must have drawn inspiration from Bafana Bafana, the French were as flat as their own football counterparts.

They botched several opportunities deep in their hosts' territory, as the South African hassling wasn't limited to the breakdown, but prominent in the line-out as well.

The French were never really in the game after the hosts raced into a 17-0 lead after the first quarter.  The opener came thanks to a fine piece of opportunism from Bryan Habana, who picked up a loose ball before pulling clear of the tacklers in his own half, off-loading to Jaque Fourie who in turn found Pierre Spies on the overlap for a fabulous score under the posts.

Morne Steyn -- who finished with a personal tally of 15 points -- added the conversion and South Africa were in a handy lead with barely a minute played.

They didn't take their foot off the accelerator any time soon after Gio Aplon -- who only made his debut against Wales last week -- scored his first points after just eight minutes on his home ground.

The France line-out had already faltered before Aplon pounced on another loose ball, bouncing off Maxime Mermoz before deftly side-stepping Vincent Clerc for an eye-catching touchdown.

The Springboks could taste French blood and came inches away from adding a third shortly afterwards, Zane Kirchner held up a metre short by Aurélien Rougerie but with the defence coming over the top, Steyn opted to take the three.

Desperate defence from the tourists led to South Africa extending the lead still further via Steyn's boot after full-back Clement Poitrenaud failed to release.

France, obviously keen to run the ball being so far behind, got their first points on the board on the half-hour mark when Rougerie finished off a great move that went through Mermoz and Julien Bonnaire.

Morgan Parra added the extras but it was not long before the Springboks scored their third try, Steyn missing out three team-mates with a looping pass that found prop Gurthro Steenkamp in space on the left to power over.

Steyn missed his only kick of the day but the hosts went into the break with a 15-point cushion, France spending the remainder of the half on the offensive before finally opting for goal after another Bok penalty -- Parra nudging it over from close range.

Another Steyn penalty re-established South Africa's 18-point lead after the break, and any hopes France may have had of a comeback were ended when a loose pass in a promising attacking position was seized on by Aplon and the Stormers speed merchant raced 80 metres to dot down.  Steyn again added the extras.

France looked to hit back as Rougerie's pass set scrum-half Parra on a run to the line, but a magnificent covering tackle from the outstanding Danie Rossouw denied the scrum-half.

With his side well on the way to victory Springbok coach Peter de Villiers brought on flanker Dewald Potgieter and fly-half Ruan Pienaar, as well as handing a debut to lock Flip van der Merwe, although the latter's first cap was quickly interrupted as he was sin-binned for slowing down the ball.

With the visitors also ringing the changes the game became a scrappy affair but flanker Louw got his first Test score late on as he broke clear to race over.  Pienaar added the extras, to cap an impressive display from South Africa.

But there was still time for replacements David Skrela and Andreu to link up for the latter to barge his way over for what was only a consolation score for the Six Nations champions.

Man of the match:  Tough to pick from such a dominant display from the Boks -- Aplon's brace, Steyn's accuracy or Spies' power?  Perhaps, but we thought after all his criticism, number nine Ricky Januarie rose to the occasion and put in a worthy performance in the green and gold jersey.

Moment of the match:  We'll give it to Gio Aplon's 90m run that earned him his second try for his country -- a real gem.

Villain of the match:  Two yellow cards, to debutant Flip van der Merwe and veteran Dimitri Yachvili ... but there was nothing malice in it.

The scorers:

For South Africa:
Tries:  Spies, Aplon 2, Steenkamp, Louw
Cons:  Steyn 3, Pienaar
Pens:  Steyn 2

For France:
Tries:  Rougerie, Andreu
Cons:  Parra, Skrela
Pens:  Parra

South Africa:  15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Gio Aplon, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Ricky Januarie , 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Francois Louw, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Danie Rossouw, 3 BJ Botha, 2 John Smit, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp.Replacements:  16 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 17 Jannie du Plessis, 18 Flip van der Merwe, 19 Dewald Potgieter, 20 Ruan Pienaar, 21 Juan de Jongh, 22 Jean de Villiers.

France:  15 Clement Poitrenaud, 14 Vincent Clerc, 13 David Marty, 12 Maxime Mermoz, 11 Aurélien Rougerie, 10 Francois Trinh-Duc, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Julien Bonnaire, 7 Wenceslas Lauret, 6 Thierry Dusautoir (c), 5 Romain Millo- Chluski, 4 Lionel Nallet, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 Dimitri Szarzewski, 1 Thomas Domingo.
Replacements:  16 Guilhem Guirado, 17 Jean Baptiste Poux, 18 Julien Pierre, 19 Louis Picamoles, 20 Dimitri Yachvili, 21 David Skrela, 22 Marc Andreu.

Referee:  Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)

Australia rise above the grind

Australia delivered a patchy performance, but had enough creativity to deny England a victory in Perth on Saturday, winning 27-17.

The Wallabies were guilty of making all the play, but still haven't quite found each other's rhythm.  That will come.  Of more concern will be the pasting meted out to Australia's emerging front-row resources which yielded both England's scores from a series of scrums.

That made the score look good for England, but frankly, they were rubbish.  The sterling forward effort in the tight notwithstanding, England were never in the game.  Each time Australia scored, the tries were well-crafted movements, full of running angles, width-of-the-pitch movements, miss passes and acceleration.  Each time England got the ball, it went either into the air or up the jumper.  Late in the first half, England had the ball in Australia's 22.  They went through eleven stodgy, slow and, ultimately, smothered phases for a gain of minus four metres, then spun the ball wide to the backs who could easily have been slumbering gently by this point.  The backs lost it.  Perhaps they just hadn't warmed up yet.

That both England's tries were penalty tries says a lot, both about the limits of England's attack and of Australia's scrum.

Australia's backs -- and a fair few forwards -- were trying all sorts early on and Australia were far superior in the first half as a result.  Quade Cooper proved so much of a nuisance that efforts made to mark him simply left gaps for others.  Drew Mitchell terrorised the England defence at any opportunity, as did Digby Ioane.  James O'Connor was assured at full-back and was also a threat, while the back-row and props were prominent for their ability to run hard at spaces.  Only a little more gelling and time between the players is required for this to become a formidable team.

Yet England were able to claw their way back from 14-0 down at half-time, as Australia just failed to make enough of the hard yards in the second half.  England proved adroit at targeting weaknesses -- scrums and line-outs from Australia need some work -- and Ben Foden also created a few problems from loose kicks.  England were far too restricted for most of the match, Australia just a little too carefree at times.

After 30 minutes, the Wallabies had made just nine tackles such was their control of the game and England were fortunate to only be 14-0 down.

Luke Burgess, Australia's second-choice scrum-half, was running England ragged and his blind-side break would have created the opening score but for a brilliant last-ditch tackle from Chris Ashton.

But it was finger-in-the-dam stuff from England and the inevitable try came when Drew Mitchell counter-attacked from Danny Care's clearance.

Mitchell beat Ashton to race into the England 22 and when the ball was whipped wide, Elsom galloped over for the opening try.

Referee Nigel Owens lectured Australia's disintegrating front row but Flood missed with a 48-metre penalty and England's attacking play was laboured and error-strewn.

Tom Croft finally got involved with his first carry of the day, but just when England thought they had put Mark Cueto through a gap, referee Owens called them back for a knock-on.

In contrast, the Wallabies were ruthless.  Elsom stole a lineout from Croft, and Burgess left Hape flailing in midfield before flicking the ball for Cooper to score under the posts.

England took the bold option of kicking a penalty for touch and spent the remainder of the half camped inside Wallaby territory, but came away empty handed.

Care was scragged as he tried a sniping run and Simon Shaw carried with intent but the Wallabies' aggressive defence drove England backwards.

England's attack simply could not ask enough questions, and when Hape did offload in the tackle for Tindall, referee Owens ruled it had drifted forward.

Lewis Moody scraped himself off the turf after catching Mitchell's elbow in a tackle early in the second half.

Flood put England on the scoreboard after another scrum penalty early and Ben Foden then atoned for a shocking clearance by launching a counter-attack from deep.

Ashton surged into the Australian half and Tindall burst 30 yards before being hauled down, but England were throwing the kitchen sink at the Wallabies.

Shaw and Steve Thompson were halted on the line and it took four men to stop Dan Cole's drive under the posts before Croft spun over the line but he was held up.

England had the Wallabies under immense pressure at the ensuing five-metre scrum and after two re-sets referee Owens awarded the penalty try.

Incredibly England were back within four points -- but not for long.

Cooper threw a beautiful cut-out pass to winger Digby Ioane, who was halted by Cueto's tackle but offloaded back inside where the Wallaby fly-half scored his second try of the game.

England sent on Ben Youngs for Care and the Leicester scrum-half brought some snap to their game while Courtney Lawes came on for Shaw.

Tindall tried to drive over before Youngs snared Burgess in possession as England won the turnover close to the Australian line.

Tom Palmer, Youngs and Cueto all had a go but Australia held firm and Tim Payne spilled the ball in a tackle from Barnes, allowing Cooper to clear his lines.

England came back at Australia again.

Ashton almost broke through under the posts but his offload went to ground.

James O'Connor tried to launch a 90-metre counter-attack but his pass drifted forward.  England once again cranked up the scrum pressure and Australian tighthead Ma'afu was sin-binned.

Daley, who had just been substituted, returned to the fray as England sent on David Wilson.  The scrum buckled again and referee Owens awarded a second penalty try.

O'Connor extended the Wallabies' lead to 24-17 and Cooper sealed Australia's victory.

Man of the match:  Helped no doubt by the attention afforded to marking Quade Cooper, Luke Burgess delivered an accomplished performance from the base of the scrum, under some pressure from the England pack.

Moment of the match:  The floated long pass and loop in support by Cooper that led to his second try.  Great vision and energy.

Villain of the match:  Simon Shaw was lucky to get away with a late shoulder charge on Berrick Barnes ... but it wasn't quite nasty enough to be real villainy either.

The scorers:

For Australia:
Tries:  Elsom, Cooper 2
Cons:  O'Connor 3
Pens:  O'Connor, Cooper

For England:
Tries:  Penalty tries 2
Cons:  Flood 2
Pen:  Flood

Australia:  15 James O'Connor, 14 Digby Ioane, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Berrick Barnes, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Luke Burgess, 8 Richard Brown, 7 David Pocock, 6 Rocky Elsom (c), 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Dean Mumm, 3 Salesi Ma'afu, 2 Saia Faingaa, 1 Ben Daley.
Replacements:  16 Huia Edmonds, 17 James Slipper, 18 Mark Chisholm, 19 Matt Hodgson, 20 Will Genia, 21 Peter Hynes, 22 Kurtley Beale.

England:  15 Ben Foden, 14 Mark Cueto, 13 Mike Tindall, 12 Shontayne Hape, 11 Chris Ashton, 10 Toby Flood, 9 Danny Care, 8 Nick Easter, 7 Lewis Moody (c), 6 Tom Croft, 5 Tom Palmer, 4 Simon Shaw, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Steve Thompson, 1 Tim Payne.
Replacements:  16 George Chuter, 17 David Wilson, 18 Courtney Lawes, 19 James Haskell, 20 Ben Youngs, 21 Jonny Wilkinson, 22 Mathew Tait.

Referee:  Nigel Owens

Ireland's gift cards to New Zealand

A red card to Jamie Heaslip and a yellow to Ronan O'Gara were the key factors in Ireland's 66-28 defeat to New Zealand on Saturday.

It had been billed as Ireland's best shot at breaking their duck against the All Blacks for some time, but once Heaslip -- for a knee to Kieran Read's head in a ruck -- and O'Gara -- for pulling back Cory Jane off the ball -- had been dispatched, New Zealand ran riot, running up a 38-0 lead before taking the foot right off the gas.

The history books will show that Heaslip's red card was the catalyst for a difficult night for the Irish, but in reality it was the yellow to O'Gara ten minutes later that precipitated the collapse.  While O'Gara was off, New Zealand scored 21 points to add on to the 17 they had already racked up and Ireland were staring at a massacre.

Fair dues to Ireland, once they had regrouped at half-time they made the second half count as much as possible.  They'll be happy to come away with four converted tries and to have matched New Zealand punch for punch in the second half.  But the reality is that New Zealand came off the boil, unforgiveably so at times.  Graham Henry will be elated at the way his side played when it mattered, furious at the mental slack cut to opposition while they were on the floor.

Heaslip will be in more trouble though.  The red card was fully merited for the knee to the head in a ruck.  It was symptomatic of how Ireland began the match, all passion but not enough thought.  It may happen to younger players who still have to learn, but for a British and Irish Lion to indulge in such idiocy is not something any coach will countenance.  Heaslip faces a fair old suspension, he will also face unrestricted wrath from Declan Kidney, who has made discipline such a watchword for his side.

And if Heaslip faces such fury, O'Gara will be heading back to the hotel and hiding, trembling, under his bedsheets.  Down to 14 men, Ireland's task was precarious enough but for O'Gara, a Test veteran, to paw so clumsily and pointlessly at an opponent long after the ball had been kicked ahead, is just extraordinary.  He won't be suspended, but do not expect to see him in a green shirt next time out.

O'Gara's card was on 25 minutes.  Two minutes later Ben Franks was over for a debut try, New Zealand's third, and the game was over in every sense.

By half-time the hosts were 38-7 up after tries by Conrad Smith, Kieran Read, Ben Franks and two for Jimmy Cowan.

Dan Tuohy, who had come on for the injured Mick O'Driscoll, brought a moment of cheer for the Irish with a try just before the break but the good moments were few and far between.

The tries kept coming for both sides in the second spell with Smith, Sam Whitelock (two) and Neemia Tialata going over for the All Blacks and Brian O'Driscoll, Tommy Bowe and Gordon D'Arcy touching down for consolation scores for the Irish.

Worryingly, the Irish injury toll also showed no sign of abating.  John Hayes was ruled out with a virus before kick-off to be replaced by Tony Buckley and before half-time John Muldoon and Mick O'Driscoll had also departed.

Ireland began the match with an audacious drop-goal attempt from almost halfway by full-back Rob Kearney but other scoring moments in the opening 40 minutes were scant -- particularly once Heaslip and O'Gara were on the sidelines.

Smith made the most of a Kearney error at the back to grab the opening try and Dan Carter added the extras to his earlier penalty.

Ireland came close to replying but Gordon D'Arcy was held up and then Heaslip had his moment of madness.

English referee Wayne Barnes, who was greeted with boos by the partisan crowd at the start of the match, had no hesitation in brandishing the red card and Ireland's night took a turn for the worse.

Read was over for his first Test try on 21 minutes after great lead-up work by Israel Dagg, Benson Stanley and Joe Rokocoko.

Carter's conversion made him the fourth player to reach 1000 Test points behind Jonny Wilkinson, Neil Jenkins and Diego Dominguez.

O'Gara departed for 10 minutes shortly afterwards for his indiscretion and from there on Ireland's 13-man defence was opened up regularly by Dagg and Stanley, who looked confident on their debuts.

Debutant prop Ben Franks was next over the whitewash before Jimmy Cowan bagged a quickfire brace and all of them were converted by Carter for a 38-0 lead.

Tuohy, who had come on for O'Driscoll, rounded off the half on a positive note for Ireland with a try on debut which O'Gara -- in his 99th Test -- converted.

A mistake by prop Cian Healy handed New Zealand an early chance in the second half before Dagg's pass put Jane clear on the counter and he put Smith in for his second.

Graham Henry turned to his bench and lock Sam Whitelock became the third player on debut to score a five-pointer within a minute of replacing Brad Thorn.

Carter's conversion was his last meaningful action before being replaced by another new recruit Aaron Cruden.

Ireland were not going to go down without a fight and continued to play the attacking brand of rugby they promised during the week.

Brian O'Driscoll typified that when he featured twice on his way to his 40th international try, and then Tommy Bowe pounced on a poor pass by Richie McCaw to dart over for the visitors' third.  O'Gara was on target with both conversions.

New Zealand were not finished, though, and from a quick tap substitute Tialata rumbled over.

With Carter off the park, Piri Weepu took over goal-kicking duties and continued the perfect record of the night by banging over the conversion.

Ireland winger Andrew Trimble should have done better with seven minutes left but lost the ball forward as he went for the line.

D'Arcy made no mistake three minutes later when he went over for Ireland's fourth but it was young lock Whitelock who had the final say, dotting down for New Zealand's ninth and final try.

Man of the match:  Plenty on New Zealand's team, but the one who stood out most was Kieran Read, whose work-rate was the spine of New Zealand's mobile limbs.

Moment of the match:  Again, plenty to choose from, but the break by Israel Dagg and inside offload to Jimmy Cowan for Cowan's first try was a moment of sumptuous skill.

Villain of the match:  Obvious joint awards.  Jamie Heaslip's knee was nasty, while Ronan O'Gara's silly foul and yellow card ended the match as a contest.

The scorers:

For New Zealand:
Tries:  Smith 2, Read, Ben Franks, Cowan 2, Whitelock 2, Tialata
Cons:Carter 8, Weepu
Pen:  Carter

For Ireland:
Tries:  Tuohy, O'Driscoll, Bowe, D'Arcy
Cons:  O'Gara 3, Sexton

Yellow card:  O'Gara (Ireland, 25, foul off the ball)

Red card:  Heaslip (Ireland, 16, knee to the head)

New Zealand:  15 Israel Dagg, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Benson Stanley, 11 Joe Rokocoko, 10 Daniel Carter, 9 Jimmy Cowan, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Anthony Boric, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Keven Mealamu, 1 Ben Franks.
Replacements:  16 Aled de Malmanche, 17 Neemia Tialata, 18 Sam Whitelock, 19 Victor Vito, 20 Piri Weepu, 21 Aaron Cruden, 22 Zac Guildford.

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (c), 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Andrew Trimble, 10 Ronan O'Gara, 9 Tomas O'Leary, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace, 6 John Muldoon, 5 Mick O'Driscoll, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 John Hayes, 2 Sean Cronin, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements:  16 John Fogarty, 17 Tony Buckley, 18 Dan Tuohy, 19 Shane Jennings, 20 Eoin Reddan, 21 Jonathan Sexton, 22 Geordan Murphy.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Mark Lawrence (South Africa), James Leckie (Australia)
TMO:  George Ayoub (Australia)

England begin tour with a draw

England opened their tour account Down Under with a 28-28 draw against the Australian Barbarians thanks to a thrilling fightback in Perth.

A James O'Connor masterclass saw England on the ropes before they responded in positive fashion.

The Western Force full-back picked up all 25 of the Baa-Baas' points before being replaced on 47 minutes.  By that stage England were 25-13 down and on the brink of defeat -- with O'Connor having scored three tries, two conversions and two penalties.

However when he departed, England were able to hit back -- and were only denied an unlikely victory when Berrick Barnes slotted over a late penalty.  In fact, Barnes had a chance to win it for the hosts in injury time, but his kick went wide.

For England Lee Mears, Dan Ward-Smith and Matt Banahan crossed for tries and Olly Barkley added 13 points with the boot.

And, in truth, it was a decent work out for the tourists.  Mathew Tait and Matt Banahan looked lively, Hendrie Fourie and Chris Robshaw tackled well, the pack worked well at the breakdown, while the scrum was impressive.

However on the downside, they too often looked toothless in attack -- at one stage losing 40 yards before Charlie Hodgson was forced to boot the ball downfield -- while silly mistakes gifted openings to the hosts.

England will have been pleased with their start as a Barkley penalty saw them into a 3-0 lead after two minutes, while their work at the breakdown saw them force five turnovers.

Banahan had one charging run, while Tait had a couple of half-breaks.  However it was Tait's Sale colleague Hodgson who went closest to scoring the first try as he took Barkley's offload, but he was tackled short before the hosts conceded a penalty.

Barkley made no mistake with the kick but the Baa-Baas responded well as Barnes was denied by Fourie just short of the line.

However, the Australians got the try they wanted minutes later as quick hands found O'Connor out wide and although Ugo Monye got the tackle in, the young full-back stretched out an arm to touch the ball down in the corner.

O'Connor added a penalty and then crossed again on 31 minutes after he sold a superb dummy and sprinted clear.  His conversion made it 15-6 to hosts and England looked in trouble.

However the tourists were able to score their opening try on 35 minutes.  Both Tait and Monye went close before Mears barrelled over from close range.

Barkley converted but the Baa-Baas had the last word before the break as O'Connor slotted over a penalty.

And O'Connor was England's tormentor again after half-time as he touched down after Josh Valentine had slotted the ball through on the deck.  O'Connor's conversion took his tally to 25 points.

A Barkley penalty cut the deficit to nine points, but too often needless mistakes cost England possession and territory.

However, with England's scrum proving dominant, the tourists were able to gain a foothold into the game.  And after seeing repeated scrums collapse 5m out, Australia's Mark Chisholm was sin-binned.

With the extra man and the power in the pack, England were able to hammer their way over through Ward-Smith, with Barkley converting.

Banahan crossed two minutes later to put England in front.  Shane Geraghty had found Geoff Parling free on the left and although he was tackled short, quick ball found Banahan on the other flank for the Bath winger to score.

Hopes of a shock England victory, though, were ended as Worsley conceded a penalty from the restart, with Barnes this time adding the three points.

The scorers:

Australian Barbarians:
Tries:  O'Connor 3
Cons:  O'Connor 2
Pens:  O'Connor, Barnes

For England:
Tries:  Mears, Banahan, Ward-Smith
Cons:  Barkley 2
Pens:  Barkley 3

Australian Barbarians:  15 James O'Connor, 14 Nick Cummins, 13 Will Chambers, 12 Anthony Faingaa, 11 Lachie Turner, 10 Berrick Barnes (co-capt), 9 Josh Valentine, 8 Stephen Hoiles (co-capt), 7 Matt Hodgson, 6 Ben McCalman, 5 Mark Chisholm, 4 Mitchell Chapman, 3 Laurie Weeks, 2 Huia Edmonds, 1 Pek Cowan.
Replacements:  16 Damien Fitzpatrick, 17 James Slipper, 18 Kane Douglas, 19 Pat McCutcheon, 20 Luke Burgess, 21 Kurtley Beale, 22 Peter Hynes.

England:  15 Delon Armitage, 14 Matt Banahan, 13 Mathew Tait, 12 Olly Barkley, 11 Ugo Monye, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Richard Wigglesworth, 8 Dan Ward-Smith, 7 Hendre Fourie, 6 Chris Robshaw (c), 5 Geoff Parling, 4 Dave Attwood, 3 David Wilson, 2 Lee Mears, 1 David Flatman.
Replacements:  16 George Chuter, 17 Paul Doran-Jones, 18 Courtney Lawes, 19 Joe Worsley, 20 Paul Hodgson, 21 Shane Geraghty, 22 Dominic Waldouck.

Referee:  Stuart Dickinson

Boks rain on Wales' parade

Wales were left to ponder yet another defeat at the hands of South Africa in Cardiff on Saturday, following a thrilling 34-31 win by the visitors.

It was a match played to celebrate the opening of the Millennium Stadium ten years ago, but it will be the Springboks doing all the celebrating thanks to a hard-fought victory achieved by what has been described as a second string outfit.

It wasn't a classic performance from the world champions, but against a crowd 60,000 baying for the Welsh, they simply turned on the class when it was needed on both sides of half-time to ensure they started the Test season in style.

Both sides scored three tries apiece but South Africa's superior clinical edge proved crucial as they edged a physical and entertaining encounter played in perfect conditions.

Wales led 16-3 early on, but 18 unanswered points by the Springboks put them back in the game.  The hosts fought their way back valiantly at the death but left it too late to snatch a win over their southern hemisphere rivals.

The Welsh went into this contest in search of just their second win in 104 years against the Springboks before heading off on a demanding tour of New Zealand.  They made a purposeful start, with centre Jamie Roberts welcoming Juan de Jongh to Test rugby with a crunching tackle in the second minute.

A loose clearance by full-back Francois Steyn then gifted the hosts field position, and a blindside snipe from Mike Phillips saw Springbok flanker Dewald Potgieter come round the side of the ruck to concede a penalty.  Stephen Jones slotted the simple three-pointer for a ninth-minute lead.

Hook then doubled that lead with a 12th-minute drop goal, after his kick-ahead had put Wales back in South Africa territory.

South Africa had seen little of the ball although the excellent Ruan Pienaar got them on the board with a 17th-minute penalty, after Wales prop Adam Jones was guilty of holding on in the tackle.  But that was wiped out almost instantly by a second penalty from fly-half Jones as the visitors were guilty of obstruction at the restart.

Wales' fine opening quarter was completed when captain John Smit threw a wild pass which was intercepted by Hook for a simple try, converted by Jones for a 16-3 lead and the Springboks desperately needed an effective rebuttal.

Gradually the visitors settled, showing a greater appreciation for ball protection at the tackle point and this aided their cause immeasurably.  They upped the tempo, testing the Welsh defence through numerous phases and forcing breakdown infringements, one of which Pienaar converted to narrow the lead to ten points.

Ensuring a quicker ruck recycle was one thing, but stringing together incisive attacks with new back-line combinations against a well organised and committed defence was another challenge altogether.

South Africa's attacks often crabbed cross-field and when they did finally break the Welsh resistance it was ugly as the ball was shovelled wide to Odwa Ndungane who got smashed in the act of touching down in the corner.

It would be the winger's last contribution of the match, but it was a significant one given the impetus it gave his side even though Pienaar failed with the conversion.

Young Wales wing Tom Prydie then dropped a high ball which was seized upon by opposite number Gio Aplon.  The Welsh scramble defence infringed and Pienaar trimmed the lead to just three points.

Wales led 16-14 at the break, but the Springbok onslaught continued at the start of the second half as the increasingly influential Pienaar launched an attack from deep.

The move carried South Africa into the 22 and a wonderful offload from lock Danie Roussouw put Potgieter in for a try.  Pienaar completed a sequence of 18 unanswered points with the conversion which also gave his side the lead for the first time.

Wales hit back as Sam Warburton snaffled a loose ball to force a penalty, allowing Jones to kick his third of the game, but Francois Steyn replied in kind with a monster kick from just inside the Welsh half to re-establish a five-point lead.

The game looked over when a Welsh attack was turned over and De Jongh broke through to cross behind the posts on the hour mark, Pienaar's conversion made it 31-19 to the visitors.

Wales piled forward in desperate need of a response but their attacks lacked the cohesion and tempo they had shown in the opening quarter.  They thought they had given themselves a lifeline when lock Bradley Davies was propelled over the line - but referee Alan Lewis ruled the ball had been held up.

However, they were not to be denied as swift hands from Lee Byrne put Prydie over for his first Test try in the corner, Jones missed the conversion so the gap remained at seven points.

Pienaar slotted his fourth penalty, but Wales kept coming as Leigh Halfpenny picked up a spilt ball from Bok substitute Zane Kirchner before flank Sam Warburton sent Wales replacement Alun Wyn Jones in for a try, converted by Jones, to set up a grandstand finish

However, it was not enough as the world champions held out.

Man of the match:  For Wales, James Hook was the pick of the backs while Sam Warburton excelled in everything he did.  As for the winners, it was a good day for debutants Francois Louw and Gio Aplon while Juan de Jongh and Dewald Potgieter showed they have a bright future ahead of them.  But it was South Africa's old warhorse Danie Rossouw that stood out the most - especially in the second half where he was simply outstanding.  It was here that he made a telling break and neat offload for Potgieter's try and generally returned to his dominating best with ball in hand as the match wore on.  A massive physical presence.

Moment of the match:  With two minutes remaining, Alun Wyn Jones' converted try gave Wales a sniff within three, which had the entire Millennium Stadium crowd on the edge of their seats.

Villain of the match:  Nothing to report on the field, but the boos ringing from the stadium whilst Ruan Pienaar lined up his fourth and final penalty was a wee bit uncalled for.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  Hook, Prydie, Wyn Jones
Cons:  Jones 2
Pens:  Jones 3
Drop:  Hook

For South Africa:
Tries:  Ndungane, Potgieter, De Jongh
Cons:  Pienaar 2
Pens:  Pienaar 4, Steyn

Wales:  15 Lee Byrne, 14 Leigh Halfpenny, 13 James Hook, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Tom Prydie, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Ryan Jones (c), 7 Sam Warburton, 6 Jonathan Thomas, 5 Deiniol Jones, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Paul James.
Replacements:  16 Huw Bennett, 17 John Yapp, 18 Alun Wyn Jones, 19 Rob McCusker, 20 Richie Rees, 21 Dan Biggar, 22 Andrew Bishop.

South Africa:  15 Frans Steyn, 14 Gio Aplon, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Juan de Jongh, 11 Odwa Ndungane, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Ricky Januarie, 8 Joe van Niekerk, 7 Dewald Potgieter, 6 François Louw, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Danie Rossouw, 3 BJ Botha, 2 John Smit, 1 CJ van der Linde.
Replacements:  16 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 17 Jannie du Plessis, 18 Alistair Hargreaves, 19 Ryan Kankowski, 20 Meyer Bosman, 21 Zane Kirchner, 22 Bjorn Basson.

Referee:  Alan Lewis (Ireland)

Australia get the job done

The Wallabies got their Test season off to a winning start on Saturday, running seven tries past Fiji to win 49-3 in a one-sided encounter in Canberra.

No one gave the under-strength Fiji team any realistic chance of beating a side ranked seven places higher than them on the IRB standings, so the real interest was in how Australia went about their business.

Australia's performance in the first half lacked the clinical finishing and cohesion the Wallaby coaching staff would have hoped for.

Featuring a number of new faces, the Wallaby line-up showed plenty of enthusiasm but were short on the precision you'd expect from a top Test team and on occasion they were just plain sloppy.

Slippery conditions due to the evening dew might be considered as mitigating circumstances, but Robbie Deans and his young charges will know that similar mistakes will be heavily punished later this month and in the Tri-Nations.

But as the team settled and the scoreboard ticked on, the hosts grew in confidence and promising signs emerged.  Some slick handling resulted in succession of tries in the second period including two tries each for Digby Ioane and Kurtley Beale.

A potentially serious knee injury to prop Ben Alexander and an ankle injury to Adam Ashley-Cooper soured the victory, with both now doubts for next weekend's clash against England in Perth.

The early chances went to Fiji as the Islanders effectively used chip-and-chase tactics to destabilise the Wallaby defence.  Beale struggled to hang onto the slippery ball and Racing Metro wing Sireli Bobo almost scored.

The Wallabies would however open the scoring with their first real attack of the evening when Quade Cooper threw a fantastic 20m pass out to Beale, who had one man to beat at the end of a huge overlap and coasted over.

Matt Giteau's extras gave the hosts a 7-0 lead and the Wallabies began to dominate possession.

But the men in gold struggled to convert their time with the ball into points as they fluffed a couple of chances to score after choosing to keep ball in hand rather than kick at goal.

Fiji got on the scoreboard just before the half-hour mark when Dan Rawaqa popped over a penalty.

The hosts continued to dominate but conspired to knock-on whenever the Fijian defence was stretched.

With half time looming large, the Wallabies finally found their way over the whitewash when debutant centre Rob Horne sliced his way through midfield to set up a try for number eight Richard Brown, who used his power to barge his way to five points.

Giteau was seeing stars after a late tackle so Cooper stepped up to add the conversion and send Australia to the charging rooms 14-3 up.

The Wallabies execution was better after the restart when Rocky Elsom timed his pass just right and Cooper skirted down the touchline to sneak over and extend the lead.

A flash of individual brilliance from Digby Ioane brought Australia their fourth try as the wing stepped and sped his way over the line untouched, making Rupeni Caucaunibuca look very ordinary in the process.

In the final quarter Australia produced some of the rugby the crowd had come to see.  Giteau straightened the line, Cooper cut in on his inside and off-loaded to Drew Mitchell, who finished in style.

Ioane got his second try at the end of Australia's longest period of phase play as Beale joined the backline and couple of quick passes had the Fijian defence all at sea.

A impetus was taken out of a late rally from Fiji when replacement prop Graham Dewes threw a big right hook and was promptly directed to the sin bin.

Beale was handed his second try in the dying minutes as the Fijians ran out of gas and the Wallabies romped home.

Man of the match:  The backs did most of the scoring but Nathan Sharpe made life miserable for Fiji in the line-outs and cleaned out the rucks like a good second row should.

Moment of the match:  Australia's ten-twelve combination is what rugby dreams are made of and the way Giteau and Cooper linked up to produce Drew Mitchell's try was a pleasure to watch.

Villain of the match:  We know front rowers are never saints, but Graham Dewes punch on Salesi Ma'afu was uncalled for.

The scorers.

For Australia:
Tries:  Beale 2, Brown, Cooper, Ioane 2, Mitchell
Cons:  Giteau 6, Cooper

For Fiji:
Pen:  Rawaqa

Yellow cards:  Vucago (Fiji, 54th min); Dewes (Fiji, 75th min)

Australia:  15 Kurtley Beale, 14 Digby Ioane, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Matt Giteau, 11 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Luke Burgess, 8 Richard Brown, 7 David Pocock, 6 Rocky Elsom (c), 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Dean Mumm, 3 Salesi Ma'afu, 2 Huia Edmonds, 1 Ben Alexander.
Replacements:  16 Saia Faingaa, 17 Pekahou Cowan, 18 Mark Chisholm, 19 Matt Hodgson, 20 Josh Valentine, 21 Drew Mitchell, 22 James O'Connor.

Fiji:  15 Dan Rawaqa, 14 Tim Nagusa, 13 Rupeni Caucaunibuca, 12 Saula Radidi, 11 Sireli Bobo, 10 Waisea Luveniyali, 9 Emosi Vucago, 8 Jone Qovu, 7 Jim Nakaidawa, 6 Anthony Wise, 5 Dominiko Waqaniburotu, 4 Seko Kalou, 3 Deacon Manu, 2 Talemaitoga Tuapati, 1 Campese Ma'afu.
Replacements:  16 Vili Veikoso, 17 Graham Dewes, 18 Rupeni Nasiga, 19 Samu Bola, 20 Vitori Buatava, 21 Ropate Ratu, 22 Nemani Nadolo.

Venue:  Canberra Stadium

Referee:  Peter Fitzgibbon (Ireland)
Assistant referees:  Keith Brown (New Zealand), Vinny Munro (New Zealand)
TMO:  Matt Goddard (Australia)

Barbarians bow to England

England kicked off the mid-year internationals with a 35-26 victory over the star-studded Barbarians at Twickenham on Sunday.

Like their footballing compatriots, Martin Johnson's troops put together a serviceable performance to bolster spirits ahead of the daunting trip south of the equator.

But having led 25-7 at the break, questions will be raised to why the locals failed to throw away the key.

In the end they were forced to kick penalties in order to quell a typically cavalier showing from the famous international side.

James Haskell, Shontayne Hape, Ben Foden and Mike Tindall all touched down as England made the most of some generous defending to cruise to victory.

Toulon-bound winger Paul Sackey scored a try in each half for the Barbarians and replacements David Smith and Census Johnson rumbled over to give the scoreline an air of respectability.

England head Down Under on Monday night for a five-match tour that includes two Tests against the Wallabies, two meetings with the Australian Barbarians and a clash with the New Zealand Maori.

All three teams will pose a far sterner test than the Barbarians, who at times reacted to the sunshine over Twickenham as if they were playing touch rugby on the beach.

The match did at least give Johnson a chance to run the rule over a clutch of returning players and new faces before the tour starts in earnest a week on Tuesday.

Charlie Hodgson, back after two years in the international wilderness, made a lively contribution at fly-half and finished with ten points before a bloody nose forced him off, while the back row of Nick Easter, Delon Armitage and Haskell were all prominent.

And scrum-half Danny Care responded well to the gauntlet that Ben Youngs threw down with his performance for Leicester in Saturday's Guinness Premiership final.

England made countless line-breaks and Mark Cueto was a constant danger with scything runs from deep but there remain question marks over Hape at inside centre.

Ultimately, however, Johnson will need to see his men tested in far more hostile surroundings to draw any firm conclusions.

The Twickenham announcer's last words before kick-off were to prepare the 41,035 crowd for "80 minutes of world-class rugby" although for most of the match the Barbarians offered anything but.

They may be proud to uphold the old amateur ethos of bonding at the bar but optional defence neither makes for a decent contest nor, in this case, helps to properly assess England's strengths.

Hodgson scuffed his first penalty low, wide and ugly but responded positively to send Cueto past a distinctly uninterested Florian Fritz and on a 70-yard burst.

England kept the pressure on with good hands from Foden and a Steve Thompson charge before the Barbarians were penalised for offside and this time Hodgson converted.

The Sale fly-half showed good strength to wriggle out of two tackles on half-way before offloading for Dave Attwood to rampage forward as England began to tick.

Hodgson slotted a second penalty before Haskell showed some clever footwork to skip away from Sackey and Ross Skeate, who collided in pantomime fashion as the Stade Francais flanker touched down.

England extended their lead to 20-0 when Hape stepped through a giant gap between Fritz and Ben Kay to score on his senior debut.

Finally the Barbarians offered something worth cheering as Jean-Baptiste Elissalde, a member of Toulouse's Heineken Cup-winning team, brilliantly collected his own chip and sent Sackey over for the try.

Sackey fended Hodgson off on his way through and the England fly-half was forced to make way for Olly Barkley.

The Barbarians began to play as if they were the Harlem Globetrotters but England's response was instant as Easter swooped on a loose ball.

The captain galloped over half-way before Thompson slung the pass wide for Foden, who raced in for England's third try and a 25-7 half-time lead.

The Barbarians' saloon-door defending continued after the break as Tindall slipped Fritz's tackle and sailed untouched through a gaping midfield hole to touch down under the posts.

Cueto embarked on a third break but once again failed to find his support runners, something that will concern Johnson given the paucity of the opposition.

Both sides began to ring the changes and the Barbarians began to play more direct rugby and profited to the tune of three second-half tries.

Smith crashed over in the 56th minute after a bulldozing run before Johnson, the giant Samoan prop who gave Tim Payne a tough afternoon in the scrum, drove over for the Barbarians' third.

Sackey's second try was a thing of beauty as Cedric Heyman dummied a flick behind his back and stayed in field long enough to supply the scoring pass.

Barkley rounded off the day with a penalty shot at goal in the last minute, a decision which was rightly greeted with derision by the supporters.

The scorers:

For England:
Tries:  Haskell, Hape, Foden, Tindall
Cons:  Hodgson 2, Barkley
Pens:  Hodgson 2, Barkley

For Barbarians:
Tries:  Sackey 2, Smith, Johnston
Cons:  Elissalde 3

The teams:

England:  15 Ben Foden, 14 Mark Cueto, 13 Mike Tindall, 12 Shontayne Hape, 11 David Strettle, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Danny Care, 8 Nick Easter (captain), 7 Steffon Armitage, 6 James Haskell, 5 Tom Palmer, 4 Dave Attwood, 3 Paul Doran-Jones, 2 Steve Thompson, 1 Jon Golding.
Replacements:  16 Lee Mears, 17 Tim Payne, 18 Dan Ward-Smith, 19 Joe Worsley, 20 Joe Simpson, 21 Olly Barkley, 22 Mathew Tait.

Barbarians:  15 Paul Warwick, 14 Paul Sackey, 13 Casey Laulala, 12 Florian Fritz, 11 Cedric Heymans, 10 Jean-Baptiste Ellisalde, 9 Byron Kelleher, 8 Xavier Rush (captain), 7 Martyn Williams, 6 Rodney So'oialo, 5 Ben Kay, 4 Ross Skeate, 3 Julian White, 2 Benoit August, 1 Rodrigo Roncero.
Replacements:  16 Ken Owens, 17 Census Johnston, 18 Jerome Thion, 19 George Smith, 20 Pierre Mignoni, 21 Fabrice Estebanez, 22 David Smith.

Referee:  Jérôme Garces
Assistant referees:  Romain Poite, Pascal Gauzere
TMO:  Bob Ockenden, David Matthews

Wales end on a high

Wales punctuated their bonkers Six Nations campaign with a highly sensible 33-10 victory over Italy at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday.

A bright start from the visitors was stamped out by the boot of Stephen Jones before second-half tries from James Hook (two) and Shane Williams (who else?) sealed the deal.

Despite their dash from the blocks and some heroic defence, the Azzurri were strangely subdued, able only to draw shrill blasts from the whistle of referee Wayne Barnes.  They betrayed their lack of ideas by opting for a shot at goal when 26-0 down.

Setting Italian failings to one side, this was a much improved performance from the Welsh.

But they still didn't mange to shake the sleep from their eyes until half-time.  Once again they failed to score a try in the opening period.

Wales will be allowed to celebrate tonight -- Andy Powell might even be invited -- but there are now far more challenging opponents on the horizon, with world champions South Africa awaiting Wales in early June, followed by two away Tests against New Zealand.

But we digress -- back to the action in Cardiff ...

Italy, despite a late try from lively full-back Luke McLean, were undone in the second period as Wales turned their 12-0 interval advantage into a runaway win.

Wing Mirco Bergamasco slotted a conversion and penalty for the Azzurri, yet they never threatened to record just a second victory in 28 Six Nations away games.

Gatland promised to put his players through pain during the build-up, so angered was he by their tame 27-12 loss against Ireland last weekend, and he saw a response after making five changes.

Wing Tom Prydie's startling promotion to senior duty was the headline selection by Gatland, but he also recalled three fit-again British and Irish Lions in skipper Ryan Jones, scrum-half Mike Phillips and prop Gethin Jenkins.

Prydie, Wales' youngest international player of all-time at 18 years and 25 years, coped well with the pressure, and it was an afternoon when the home side delivered, even though they made subduing a limited Italian outfit hard work at times.

Sam Warburton -- Martyn Williams' understudy at openside flanker -- gained his first Six Nations start, but Italy coach Nick Mallett lost three injured players less than 48 hours before kick-off in centre Andrea Masi, lock Carlo Del Fava and flanker Paul Derbyshire.

The stadium roof remained open at Mallett's request, but early morning rain relented and conditions were dry, seemingly suiting Wales' renowned running game.

And Prydie was rapidly into the action, completing a crunching tackle on Gonzalo Canale that forced the Italy centre off nursing a rib injury, before testing McLean through a well-placed chip and chase.

Jones then opened Wales' account with an angled penalty, but Italy were unlucky not to draw level when Bergamasco's 40-metre opener bounced back off the post.

Wales, who saw Ian Gough replace injured lock Bradley Davies after 15 minutes, began to exert a degree of territorial dominance, yet were frustrated by Italy securing turnover possession twice in quick succession and clearing any danger.

A second Jones penalty doubled the lead just before Italy lost a second injured player -- scrum-half Pablo Canavosio.

Despite the setbacks though, the visitors defended solidly, albeit with some luck.

Wales looked to have finally breached the Azzurri defence 12 minutes before half-time when Shane Williams sent full-back Lee Byrne over, but referee Barnes took play back for a penalty he had already awarded the home side.

Italy began to infringe at regular intervals, and Jones completed his penalty hat-trick for a nine-point advantage as Wales reached for the accelerator.

Hook was denied by an unkind bounce after he kicked beyond Italy's last line of defence, and although Jones landed another three-pointer, Wales trooped off unfulfilled.

Despite leading 12-0, it meant that for the fifth successive Six Nations game this season they had failed to register a first-half try.

Wales continued to toil away in pursuit of an elusive touchdown, and both Williams and Hook went close as cracks began opening in Italy's defence.

It was a case of being patient, and with Phillips rifling substantial amounts of possession out to his fellow backs, there seemed little chance Italy could cling on to just a 12-point deficit.

And so it proved when quick ball found its way to Hook, and he dived over between two Italian defenders for a try that Jones converted.

Wales had gone two hours and 11 minutes of this season's tournament without posting a try, but things looked bleak for Italy as their resilience looked to have run its course.

And when flanker Mauro Bergamasco was sin-binned following a technical offence, Wales made them pay immediately when Hook ghosted through for his second try in three minutes.

Stephen Jones added the conversion, leaving Italy facing a damage-limitation exercise as the final quarter approached.

The Azzurri bravely stuck to their guns, but they had no answer when Phillips surged up-field and the supporting Shane Williams claimed his 51st try for Wales.

Stephen Jones booted the extras, and Gatland used up all seven of his substitutes with 10 minutes still remaining before McLean's smart consolation score at least gave the vociferous Italian fans something to shout about.

Man of the match:  There was some fine collective defence from the Italians and some bright moments from Alessandro Zanni.  But that pretty much sums up the visitors' day.  Sam Warburton impressed for the locals, as Shane Williams was his usual effervescent self.  But our award goes to Stephen Jones.  The veteran pivot enjoyed his reunion with Mike Phillips, with James Hook being the main beneficiary of the happy marriage of minds.

Moment of the match:  Probably the opening try -- it rang out like an alarm clock around the Millennium Stadium, rousing the Welsh from their slumber.

Villain of the match:  Salvatore Perugini earned a ticking-off for a little bit of gardening, and Mauro Bergamasco was sin-binned for an ugly moment, and the sight of his brother inviting Mike Phillips to hit him was even uglier.  'You want some?' probably sounds beautiful in Italian, but it was rather too soccer for our liking.  Yes, Mirco Bergamasco gets our ghastly gong.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  Hook 2, S Williams
Cons:  S Jones 3
Pens:  S Jones 4

For Italy:
Try:  McLean
Con:  Mi Begamasco
Pen:  Mi Bergamasco

Yellow card(s):  Ma Bergamasco (Italy) -- off-side at ruck (55).

The teams:

Wales:  15 Lee Byrne, 14 Tom Prydie, 13 James Hook, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Ryan Jones, 7 Sam Warburton, 6 Jonathan Thomas, 5 Luke Charteris, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Huw Bennett, 17 Paul James, 18 Ian Gough, 19 Gareth Delve, 20 Dwayne Peel, 21 Andrew Bishop, 22 Tom Shanklin

Italy:  15 Luke McLean, 14 Kaine Robertson, 13 Gonzalo Canale, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Mirco Bergamasco, 10 Craig Gower, 9 Pablo Canavosio, 8 Alessandro Zanni, 7 Mauro Bergamasco, 6 Josh Sole, 5 Quintin Geldenhuys, 4 Marco Bortolami, 3 Martin Castrogiovanni, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini (c) 1 Salvatore Perugini.
Replacements:  16 Fabio Ongaro, 17 Matias Aguero, 18 Valerio Bernabo, 19 Manoa Vosawai, 20 Tito Tebaldi, 21 Riccardo Bocchino, 22 Matteo Pratichetti.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Marinus Jonker (South Africa), Stuart Terheege (England)
TMO:  Graham Hughes (England)

France seal the deal in Paris

They did it!  Despite spirited resistance from England, France sealed their ninth Grand Slam with a tense 12-10 victory over the men in white at Stade de France on Saturday night.

The visitors played the best rugby of their campaign -- if not the past year -- but they got on the wrong side of referee Bryce Lawrence in the earlier stages of the game, and there they remained.

They got just one penalty shot at goal in the entire match.  Most un-English.

It's fitting that this topsy-turvy Six Nations ended with a cultural about-turn:  England got the only try via Ben Foden but France used the soggy conditions to squeeze England out of the game via the set-piece and their half-backs.  It's was the semi-final of RWC 2003 in reverse.

And it is their discipline that will be toast of the Parisian night.  Most un-French.

For all the talk of French flair, the Grand Slam was ultimately secured on the back of a defiant defensive performance and a crushingly dominant scrum.

Indeed, all it took as three penalties from Morgan Parra and a drop-goal from Francois Trinh-Duc -- all in the first half -- to seal victory for Les Bleus.

England were the better team in the second half but only had a Jonny Wilkinson penalty to show for it -- and France held out to seal their first clean sweep since 2004.

England had arrived in Paris with a new captain, a revamped back division and a determination to spoil the French Grand Slam party.  They came mighty close.

Leicester flank Lewis Moody skippered England after Steve Borthwick aggravated a knee injury in last weekend's drab 15-15 draw with Scotland.

Wilkinson was dropped for only the third time in his career as manager Martin Johnson attempted to inject some vibrancy into England's one-dimensional attacking game.

Toby Flood took over at fly-half, Foden was given his first England start at full-back and his Northampton team Chris Ashton made his Test debut on the wing.

France took an early lead with Trinh-Duc's drop-goal but England's new-look back division played with enterprise from the outset.

It took them just six minutes to click and they did so in scintillating fashion with Foden scoring his first Test try to mark an impressive full debut.

Flood whipped the ball to Riki Flutey and Ashton kept his cool under pressure and showed a deft touch to slip the scoring pass out of the tackle and Foden raced over in the corner.

England were playing with tempo and variety.  Tim Payne, Dylan Hartley and even Danny Care made key yards around the fringes, the recalled Mike Tindall crashed into the French defence and the roving Cueto was a danger on both wings.

England lost Simon Shaw to what appeared to be another shoulder injury after just 15 minutes, immediately after he had conceded a penalty for diving over the top.

Parra missed that effort but made no mistake from in front of the posts after Flutey was penalised for being off his feet.

England's vibrant start began to fade in the heavy rain as France assumed control of the first period on the back of a vastly superior kicking game -- particularly from the wingers Marc Andreu and Alexis Palisson -- and with a dominant scrum.

France had set the platform for Trinh-Duc's drop-goal with a charging run from Imanol Harinordoquy after England had been penalised at the set-piece.

As it was on the first Test of the Lions tour to South Africa, the New Zealand referee was deeply unhappy with the performance of the English tighthead and penalised Dan Cole in three scrums in quick succession, and Parra needed no second invitation to open France a 12-7 half-time lead.

Given the angst on display, the visitors made changes up front during the interval, with Hartley and Cole replaced by Steve Thompson and David Wilson.

With a fresh start, England were able to inject tempo back into their attacking game and Foden almost latched onto a chip kick from Care but the ball skipped on into touch.

England stole the line-out from Harinordoquy inside the French 22 but they were driven backwards and Flood snatched a drop-goal attempt wide of the posts.

After Cueto had run the ball back -- something England did so rarely at Murrayfield -- Ashton attacked down the left but decided to chip ahead and was beaten to the touchdown by Palisson.

Harinordoquy piled forward again and Trinh-Duc was ready to slot the drop-goal when Parra inexplicably sent up a box kick inside England's 22 and with no chasers Foden claimed it comfortably.

England had been the better side in the first 20 minutes of the second half but needed something to show for it against a defiant French defence.

Mathew Tait's half-break was halted and Dimitri Szarzewski nicked possession back for France.  Trinh-Duc cleared but Ashton decided to run the return ball.

Foden was snagged but England won a penalty just in-field from the right touchline and five metres into the French half.

Wilkinson stepped up to strike a monster of a kick and his effort dropped just over the bar and England had closed the gap.

But France closed the game out expertly and Grand Slam glory was theirs.  Deservedly so, too.  They are the best team in Europe by a distance right now.  They possess a rampant pack full of power, a rock-solid set-piece and verve and dynamism out wide.

The same cannot be said for England.  But events in Paris seem to suggest that, finally, the foundation stones are being put in place.

Man of the match:  We've taken a stick to England over the course of this tournament, but they deserve praise for their efforts today.  The back three -- bar the mistake from Chris Ashton -- played out of the skins, and Ben Foden has surely answered the last of his critics.  But our pick of the visitors was Mike Tindall -- how soon we had forgotten what an intelligent footballer he is, and how England have missed him.  It was a low-key performance by France, held together by little Morgan Parra who called all the right moves at the crucial moments.  It was his brains that held the English at bay.

Moment of the match:  It was Ben Foden's try, made significant by France's reaction.  French teams in the past would have gone to pieces but the class of 2010 thought their way out of what looked like a tight corner.

Villain of the match:  Not much niggle from the players and it would be against the spirit of rugby to suggest referee Bryce Lawrence.  Like dogs, good teams should learn what all the bizarre whistling means and react accordingly.  So how about the lady in the crowd who spent the entire match baiting the man sitting behind her?  Martin Johnson looked none too please with the blonde's advances, but she was good enough to applaud Wilkinson's late penalty, so we'll let her off with a warning.  A red-faced Raphaël Ibañez, sitting in the BBC's booth, was later forced to admit that the lady in question was his mother-in-law.  So there you have it:  they are the same the world over.  No award.

The scorers:

For France:
Pens:  Parra 3
Drop:  Trinh-Duc

For England:
Try:  Foden
Con:  Flood
Pen:  Wilkinson

The teams:

France:  15 Clement Poitrenaud, 14 Marc Andreu, 13 Mathieu Bastareaud, 12 Yannick Jauzion, 11 Alexis Palisson, 10 François Trinh-Duc, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Imanol Harinordoquy, 7 Julien Bonnaire, 6 Thierry Dusautoir (c), 5 Julien Pierre, 4 Lionel Nallet, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 William Servat, 1 Thomas Domingo.
Replacements:  16 Dimitri Szarzewski, 17 Jean-Baptiste Poux, 18 Sebastien Chabal, 19 Alexandre Lapandry, 20 Dimitri Yachvili, 21 David Marty, 22 Julien Malzieu.

England:  15 Ben Foden, 14 Mark Cueto, 13 Mike Tindall, 12 Riki Flutey, 11 Chris Ashton, 10 Toby Flood, 9 Danny Care, 8 Nick Easter, 7 Lewis Moody (c), 6 Joe Worsley, 5 Louis Deacon, 4 Simon Shaw, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Tim Payne .
Replacements:  16 Steve Thompson, 17 David Wilson, 18 Tom Palmer, 19 James Haskell, 20 Ben Youngs, 21 Jonny Wilkinson, 22 Mathew Tait.

Referee:  Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)
Assistant referees:  Alain Rolland (Ireland), Simon McDowell (Ireland)
TMO:  Nigel Whitehouse (Wales)

Scotland hand crown to France

France were handed the Six Nations crown an hour before even running out in Paris as Scotland upset Ireland 23-20 at Croke Park on Saturday.

It was an efficient performance from the visitors, who threw the Wooden Spoon over to Italy, thanks to a structured 80 minutes that caged the Irish.

The holders were in contrast very off colour for their stadium farewell before moving back to the old Lansdowne Road, with their lineout one major reason for defeat.  In all, Rory Best threw one not straight while six were stolen or overthrown.

And those errors ultimately led to a lack of ball and momentum for Ireland, who hauled off Jonathan Sexton for Ronan O'Gara on 51 minutes.  It was a tough call on the youngster but the experienced Munsterman almost won it.

That word again is almost as it was to be another day in the sunshine for Dan Parks, who landed two hammer blows to Ireland at the end of each half.  His one in the first was a smartly taken drop-goal, which saw Scotland go in 14-7 to the good, while a last-minute touchline penalty denied the Triple Crown and Championship-chasing Ireland even a share of the spoils.

Glasgow fly-half Parks finished the contest with an 18-point haul and the man-of-the-match award -- his third in four games since returning.

Ireland had started much the brighter and looked to be following the points-chasing script on eleven minutes when Brian O'Driscoll belatedly celebrated his 100th cap of last week with a beautifully taken score following Sexton's clever loop around his centres.

But Scotland responded in clinical fashion just four minutes later.  Graeme Morrison started the score off down the left wing before handing the ball over to Johnnie Beattie, who showed power and pace to cross with two Irish defenders on his back.

Then came the intelligence of Parks following Sexton's fairly simple penalty miss 40 metres out.  It was Paul O'Connell who infringed at ruck-time and the ten stepped to extend the scores to 7-11 with 120 seconds to go until the break.  He then struck again with a vital drop-goal in the last action of the half to leave Dublin stunned and Paris joyful.

Declan Kidney needed to lift his troops and seemed to have done so going from their effort at the turnaround.  And they were soon rewarded when their go-to man Tommy Bowe struck with on 64 minutes to bring the Irish back level at 17-17 with a big finish on the cards.

It was then a scrap for territory as Parks and O'Gara traded three points before South African referee Jonathan Kaplan awarded Scotland a penalty wide on the left that the former slotted, much to the delight of himself, Andy Robinson and Gregor Townsend.

Man of the match:  Johnnie Beattie was superb once again but the form of Dan Parks since being recalled for Phil Godman has been immense.  He kept his cool to land the match-winning penalty from the touchline but his first-half drop was something out of the top draw.

Moment of the match:  Tough to decide over Dan Parks' hammer blows at the end of each half.  However, I have to go for the 79th minute effort from the touchline.  Well done Scotland, you would not have deserved to be holding the Wooden Spoon.

Villain of the match:  So often you can hear a pin drop at Irish provincial and also home internationals when a visiting kicker lines up a kick.  Not today.  That late sucker punch was greeted with plenty of hisses from the Dublin crowd.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  O'Driscoll, Bowe
Con:  Sexton, O'Gara
Pen:  Sexton, O'Gara

For Scotland:
Tries:  Beattie
Pen:  Parks 5
Drop:  Parks

Ireland:  15 Geordan Murphy, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (capt), 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Tomas O'Leary, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace , 6 Stephen Ferris, 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 John Hayes, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Tony Buckley, 18 Leo Cullen, 19 Shane Jennings, 20 Eoin Reddan, 21 Ronan O'Gara, 22 Robert Kearney.

Scotland:  15 Hugo Southwell, 14 Sean Lamont, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Max Evans, 10 Dan Parks, 9 Chris Cusiter (capt), 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 John Barclay, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Alastair Kellock, 4 Jim Hamilton, 3 Euan Murray, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements:  16 Scott Lawson, 17 Alasdair Dickinson, 18 Richie Gray, 19 Alan MacDonald, 20 Mike Blair, 21 Phil Godman, 22 Simon Danielli.

Referee:  Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Assistant referees:  Craig Joubert (South Africa), Jérôme Garces (France)
Television match official:  Giulio De Santis (Italy)
Assessor:  Steve Hilditch (Ireland)

Rampant French one step away

Only eighty minutes and fifteen Englishmen separate France from a Grand Slam, after a thumping 46-20 win over Italy in Paris on Sunday.

Only a fool would bet against them now.  Their next opponents have managed only five tries this tournament, fewer than France managed all game against Italy.  They've shown the ability to win all different types of game:  the bullying power to beat Ireland, the patience to beat Scotland, the clinicality to beat Wales.  When it came to Italy, they displayed all the flair that has been bottled up this tournament, running Italy ragged at every opportunity.  It's a complete team which can, on its day, cover all bases.

It was no flawless performance.  The ball was turned over in open play nine times and they conceded more late soft tries, stats which could ruin a perfectly good Six Nations campaign against an English team as stubborn as it is limited.

But it was enough of a display to suggest that the French team has spent this tounament going through the gears and is about to hit top speed at the right moment.  We can leave further tributes -- the youth in so many key positions, the accuracy of the handling, the apparent unity among the players and the energy they produce -- until next week and if/when they have actually taken this campaign through to its conclusion, but there's little doubt in anybody's mind that the Grand Slam is now France's to lose.

Italy will head to Cardiff next week with their heads hanging low.  They tried gamely, but were thoroughly outclassed in pretty much all areas, including their much-vaunted scrum.  It's a team that has grown together and is laoded with experience but either needs a new leader or some new talent.

The entry of two teams to the Magners League could well be the missing link to the process, as long as the teams themselves ensure they keep it Italian and don't dilute their indigenous talents.  Players like the unfortunate Tito Tebaldi, who was sacrificed after just half an hour -- could be much better than they are now with a couple of years of regular first-class rugby behind them.  Nick Mallett must have spent the week jumping for joy this week, even if Sunday's display was a bit of a party-pooper.

Centre David Marty, preferred in the starting line-up to Mathieu Bastareaud, justified Lievremont's selection by scoring two tries in eight minutes, both while Italy were down to 14 men with Gonzalo Garcia in the sin bin.

Winger Marc Andreu and flanker Alexandre Lapandry both scored their first tries for their country, the former on his home debut.

And, with other tries coming from Imanol Harinordoquy and Yannick Jauzion, and Morgan Parra kicking seven goals from nine attempts, the French were heading for a landslide victory as they led 46-6 after 65 minutes.

But the Azzurri produced a spirited rally which brought them late tries through replacements Carlo Del Fava and Pablo Canavosio and Mirco Bergamasco added both conversions to two early penalties to give the score a touch of respectability which looked unthinkable for an hour when France were simply irresistible.

The French pack quickly asserted their authority to give half-backs Francois Trinh-Duc and Parra, making a seventh consecutive start together, the platform to unleash their dangerous three-quarters, while Clement Poitrenaud added an extra cutting edge from full-back.

It was Parra who created the game's first try, jinking his way through the Italian defence to get Harinordoquy over and he kicked the first of two penalties to make it 10-0.

The Italians' cause was made all the more difficult on 17 minutes when centre Garcia, fresh from a spell in blood bin, was sent to the sin bin for an obstruction of Andreu, who has been released on an exciting touchline dash by Poitrenaud.

France immediately made the extra man count as Marty coasted through a gap in the stretched Azzurri defence to score his side's second try, with Parra extending their lead to 17-0 with the conversion.

Poitrenaud demonstrated his attacking flair again on 27 minutes to help get Harinordoquy into space and he sent Marty over for his second try while the Italians were still down to 14 men.

The visitors could do little right and when they managed to breach the French defence second rower Marco Bortolami was recalled for a forward pass by Garcia.

Coach Nick Mallett responded to the mounting crisis by withdrawing scrum-half Tito Tebaldi in favour of the more experienced Canavosio and Italy finally got points on the board just before the break when Mirco Bergamasco landed a 40-metre penalty.

Parra lost his 100 per cent record when he failed to convert Marty's second try but he made amends with a long-range penalty two minutes into the second half.

Marty then thought he was on for a hat-trick after racing onto Parra's kick but he was ruled offside and instead Bergamasco pulled three points back with the resulting penalty.

That briefly encouraged the visitors and a neat pass out of the tackle by number eight Alessandro Zanni released Canavosio into space but Julien Bonnaire got back to preserve the French tryline.

If the Azzurri lacked a cutting edge, France were razor sharp and they quickly added to their try tally.

Andreu came in off his wing to produce a scything run that took him all the way to the line, and then produced the break that got Jauzion romping over.

Parra was off target for the second time with a long-range penalty but he was back in the groove on 65 minutes to convert a try by Lapandry, who produced a strong finish to a break from fellow replacement Julien Malzieu.

The Italians looked a dispirited lot as they gathered under the posts waiting for the conversion but they produced a spirited two-try rally to take some of the gloss off the French triumph.

Man of the match:  A close call between Clement Poitrenaud -- who got the match organisers' call -- and Marc Andreu.  We'll go for the winger on his full debut, for a work-rate far beyond that of a normal winger's and for proving, at 5'5 inches tall, that rugby can still be a game for all sizes.

Moment of the match:  France's third try.  Length of the field French classy brilliance.

Villian of the match:  Far too much running for players to waste their time on villainy.

The scorers:

For France:
Tries:  Harinordoquy, Marty 2, Andreu, Jauzion, Lapandry
Cons:  Parra 5
Pens:  Parra 2

For Italy:
Tries:  Del Fava, Canavosio
Cons:  Mirco Bergamasco 2
Pens:  Mirco Bergamasco 2

France:  15 Clement Poitrenaud, 14 Marc Andreu, 13 David Marty, 12 Yannick Jauzion, 11 Alexis Palisson, 10 François Trinh-Duc, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Imanol Harinordoquy, 7 Julien Bonnaire, 6 Thierry Dusautoir (capt), 5 Julien Pierre, 4 Lionel Nallet, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 William Servat, 1 Thomas Domingo.
Replacements:  16 Dimitri Szarzewski, 17 Jean-Baptiste Poux, 18 Sebastien Chabal, 19 Alexandre Lapandry, 20 Dimitri Yachvili, 21 Mathieu Bastareaud, 22 Julien Malzieu.

Italy:  15 Luke McLean, 14 Andrea Masi, 13 Gonzalo Canale, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Mirco Bergamasco, 10 Craig Gower, 9 Tito Tebaldi, 8 Alessandro Zanni, 7 Mauro Bergamasco, 6 Josh Sole, 5 Marco Bortolami, 4 Quintin Geldenhuys, 3 Martin Castrogiovanni, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini (captain), 1 Salvatore Perugini.
Replacements:  16 Fabio Ongaro, 17 Matias Aguero, 18 Carlo Antonio Del Fava, 19 Paul Derbyshire, 20 Pablo Canavosio, 21 Riccardo Bocchino, 22 Kaine Roberston.

Referee:  Alan Lewis (Ireland)
Assistant referees:  Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand), David Changleng (Scotland)
Television match official:  Hugh Watkins (Wales)
Assessor:  Michel Lamoulie (France)

Misery shared at Murrayfield

The Calcutta Cup will remain south of the border after England and Scotland ground out a turgid 15-15 draw at Murrayfield on Saturday.

This was the 18th time in the fixture's history that honours have been shared, but the 127th edition of international sport's most ancient derby will not go down in the annals as anything more than a footnote.

No tries, zero tempo, little ambition and errors galore, what the game lacked in finesse it made up for in the faint drama of the lead changing hands at regular intervals as the kickers traded shots at goal.

With a series of injuries allowing the introduction of some new blood during the later stages of the game, it seemed for a fleeting moment that the laborious foreplay would lead to an explosive climax.  Alas, it was not to be.

Both sides will say they should have won the game.  Scotland's claim probably carrying more weight.

Nothing summons up Scottish spirits like a visit from the Sassenachs and the locals deserved more from a gutsy performance.  Same old story, in other words.

Dan Parks, celebrating his 50th cap, punctuated a cagey start from both sides by opening the score via his boot after Dan Cole failed to roll away from a tackle.

England's response coughed and sputtered for a good ten minutes before Jim Hamilton came to their aid by flopping over the ball, and Jonny Wilkinson drew his side level with the resulting penalty.

Scotland's riposte was immediate and brutal, with Graeme Morrison knocking a hole in midfield.  Parks then found Max Evans out on the left with a fine crossfield kick.  The ensuing siege forced two penalties out of England, the second of which Parks slotted between the uprights.

Scottish tails were now well and truly up and they began to stitch width to their increasingly regular attacks.

But it was England who got the next points, with Wilkinson slotting a penalty after the locals strayed offside in defence -- three points that saw the England legend becoming the leading points-scorer in the Championship's history, knocking Ronan O'Gara from his lofty perch.

The setback didn't cause Scottish heads to drop and they carried on attacking with endeavour if not success.  With England looking comfortable in defence, Parks opted for a change of tack and drew the curtain down on a forgettable half of rugby by dropping a goal.

Two unchanged sides came out for the second half, and England won a penalty directly from the restart after Hamilton took a wild swing at the ball lying at Danny Care's feet at the base of a ruck.  Again, Wilkinson drew his side level off the tee.

It was to be Wilkinson's last contribution to proceedings.  Toby Flood joined the fray after England's number ten was forced to leave the field after taking a heavy knock in an attempted tackle on Evans.

And thus Martin Johnson's critics had the chance to test out their theory about the Leicester pivot.

So, did he manage to oil the wheels of England's wonky chariot?

Well, on this evidence, the jury remains out -- but his arrival did herald a few passages of inventive attack.

The pressure took its toll on the Scots and they soon conceded a penalty in defence, and the new arrival duly pocketed the points to put England ahead for the first time of the match.

But England's revival was short-lived.  Parks levelled the scores after James Haskell failed to release man and ball in the tackle.

Another error from England gave the half-tonner a chance to win back the lead, but his shot at goal rebounded off the post.

The Scots managed to regain possession and had England defending their line when a sickening clash of heads killed the raid and removed both Kelly Brown and Ugo Monye from proceedings.

The game restarted after a lengthy break with England debutant Ben Youngs one of the new faces on the field.

It was either the change of personnel or the fear of the large man waiting in the changing room or a combination of both, but England began to up the gears as the game moved into the last quarter.

Flood missed a shot at goal before sending a second effort into the corner for an attacking line-out.  The daring option might not seem like much, but in a match devoid of highlights, it felt as if Indiana Jones has swung in off the roof.

England were unable to add the cherry of a try to the top of their adventurous gambit, but Flood did managed to win back the lead after Scotland killed the raid illegal.

Again, England's reign didn't last too long.

Another shot at goal from Parks came off the post.  This time his mates decided to give chase and they almost got across the line after collecting the loose ball.  England managed to regroup, but not without conceding another penalty that Parks turned into the points that sealed the final score.

To their credit, both sides upped the tempo in the remaining minutes, but more in the manner of headless chickens than professional sportsmen.

Flood was handed a chance to win it at the death after Scotland replacement Scott Lawson was deemed to have held an Englishman back, but the fly-half's central, 48-yard shot at the sticks didn't have the legs.  A fitting epitaph for a game that limped along for the entire duration of its short and painful life.

Man of the match:  The athletic enthusiasm of Scotland's three buzzing Bs -- Beattie, Barclay, Brown -- rubbed off on those around them, with the collective spirit probably eclipsing any individual contributions.  Having said that, Hugo Southwell had one of his best games in a Scotland jersey and Max Evans and Chris Cusiter were constant thorns in England's side.  But it was straight-running, hard-tackling Graeme Morrison that caused the visitors the most problems.

Moment of the match:  It was a dismal spectacle, with the highlight probably being the sight of referee Marius Jonker conducting a scrummaging clinic after a full five minutes of collapsing set-pieces.  Nothing here will live long in the memory, so we'll nominate the moment when the Nimrod flew low over the stadium just before kick off.  It really was that bad.

Villain of the match:  The red mist descended all over Dylan Hartley after he got into shirt-pulling contest with Ross Ford.  Both can count themselves lucky that his haymaker didn't connect.

The scorers:

For Scotland:
Drop:  Parks

For England:
Pens:  Wilkinson 3, Flood 2

The teams:

Scotland:  15 Hugo Southwell, 14 Sean Lamont, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Max Evans, 10 Dan Parks, 9 Chris Cusiter (c), 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 John Barclay, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Al Kellock, 4 Jim Hamilton, 3 Euan Murray, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements:  16 Scott Lawson, 17 Geoff Cross, 18 Nathan Hines, 19 Alan MacDonald, 20 Rory Lawson, 21 Phil Godman, 22 Simon Danielli.

England:  15 Delon Armitage, 14 Mark Cueto, 13 Mathew Tait, 12 Riki Flutey, 11 Ugo Monye, 10 Jonny Wilkinson, 9 Danny Care, 8 Nick Easter, 7 Joe Worsley, 6 James Haskell, 5 Steve Borthwick, 4 Louis Deacon, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Tim Payne.
Replacements:  16 Steve Thompson, 17 David Wilson, 18 Courtney Lawes, 19 Lewis Moody, 20 Ben Youngs, 21 Toby Flood, 22 Ben Foden.

Referee:  Marius Jonker (South Africa)
Assistant referees:  Peter Fitzgibbon (Ireland), Carlo Damasco (Italy)
Television match official:  Giulio De Santis (Italy)
Assessor:  Patrick Robin (France)