Wales steam-rolled by Springboks

South Africa made it three wins from three for the SANZAR nations on Saturday as they beat Wales 38-16 at Kings Park in Durban.

This won't be a phrase Welsh supporters will like to hear but it was men against boys in this first of two Tests, with the Bok power glaringly dominant as their big runners laid the platform for victory.

Wales will not take a great deal from the game, other than they'd be wise winning Pool A at the World Cup in order to avoid the Boks in a likely quarter-final.  That message of course applies to both England and Australia ahead of next year.

The Welsh did come out of the blocks with real intent in Durban though as they looked to end their poor form against SANZAR sides, possibly guilty of blowing a big chance inside two minutes when Liam Williams' pass wasn't held by Alex Cuthbert on the right touchline.  Had that gone to hand and not to land he was in for all money.

Fortunately for the full-back and wing, Wales did find consolation in the form of a Dan Biggar drop which put them 0-3 up on three minutes.

However, back came the Springboks via two of their attacking threats as Willie le Roux's smart chip was grounded superbly over the line by Bryan Habana, Morné Steyn's successful conversion from wide out making it 7-3 for a score that settled the home players and fans.

An advantage on the scoreboard would become replicated numerically for the Boks on the thirteenth minute when Jamie Roberts was yellow carded for taking out Le Roux whilst he was in the air.  Roberts was a picture of regret and replays showed there wasn't intent.

The South Africans grabbed the opportunity with both hands, Duane Vermeulen powering over following a sturdy line-out drive.  It was now 14-3 before Le Roux and Habana combined again for the wing's brace to make it 21-6 following another smartly taken Biggar drop-goal.

Both outfits would have chances to add to their respective tally before the half-hour as first Jan Serfontein — in for Frans Steyn — was an inch away from grounding the ball over the line and then Wales showed poor basic skills in blowing numbers down the left touchline.

The latter-mentioned blunder would come back to haunt Wales before the break as that man Le Roux pounced from yet another chip, as South Africa's lead grew to 22 points before Biggar had the last say before half-time, knocking over a penalty goal for a 28-9 scoreline.

South Africa wanted more of the same in the second half and so it proved to be with twelve minutes gone, with a Steyn penalty and Cornal Hendricks' try from another Le Roux assist extending the margin.  Steyn was kicking effortlessly as he landed the tough conversion.

Warren Gatland had no choice but to try his hand and bring on the pace of Gareth Davies, Matthew Morgan and other fresh legs up front.  And it almost paid off in the form of a try for the scrum-half, who was denied after a searing run because Biggar's offload was forward.

There would be consolation before the end though as an individual score from Cuthbert that saw him break from his own 22, gliding past several defenders, gave Wales their first five-pointer of the game on 70 minutes.  But by that point the game was well gone, with South Africa worthy winners as they tried but failed to finish with a sixth score in the dying embers.

The scorers:

For South Africa:
Tries:  Habana 2, Vermeulen, Le Roux, Hendricks
Con:  Steyn 5
Pen:  Steyn

For Wales:
Try:  Cuthbert
Pen:  Biggar
Drop:  Biggar 2
Yellow:  Roberts (dangerous tackle — 13 mins)

South Africa:  15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Victor Matfield (c), 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Gurthro Steenkamp.
Replacements:  16 Schalk Brits, 17 Tendai Mtawarira, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 Schalk Burger, 21 Ruan Pienaar, 22 Johan Goosen, 23 Lwazi Mvovo.

Wales:  15 Liam Williams, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 George North, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Aaron Shingler, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Luke Charteris, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Matthew Rees, 17 Paul James, 18 Samson Lee, 19 Ian Evans, 20 Josh Turnbull, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 James Hook, 23 Matthew Morgan.

Referee:  Romain Poite (France)
Assistant Referees:  Steve Walsh (Australia), Marius Mitrea (Italy)
TMO:  Vinny Munro (New Zealand)

Japan get better of USA

Japan made it two wins from two in the Pacific Nations Cup after beating the United States 37-29 on Saturday, with Ayumu Goromaru kicking 17 points.

The full-back converted all four of Japan's tries and also sent over three penalties to help the Brave Blossoms claim a bonus-point victory.

Ryu Koliniasi Holani scored two tries while scrum-half Fumiaki Tanaka and winger Akihito Yamada scored a try apiece in reply to three tries from USA star Blaine Scully, with Cam Dolan adding another for the spirited home side.

Japan, who began their campaign with a win in Canada last week, now have nine points from two matches and host Italy next week in a friendly.

Ireland wrap up series in Tucumán

Ireland secured a 23-17 victory over Argentina on Saturday as tries from Simon Zebo and replacement Ian Madigan won the series in Tucumán.

The triumph at Estadio José Fierro was not as convincing as last week as Argentina fought until the end, with Madigan's try being the difference.

Jonathan Sexton opened the scoring on five minutes off the tee after number eight Antonio Ahualli de Chazal was caught offside at ruck time.

And the Pumas were struggling to keep offences to a minimum as referee Pascal Gauzère didn't waste time to brandish a card, hooker Matías Cortese being shown yellow for no use of the arms in the tackle.  The result was Sexton doubling Ireland's lead in the sunshine, with things already looking ominous for the hosts.

That wouldn't prove to be the case though as when Andrew Trimble was shown yellow for taking out a Puma off the ball in a possible try-scoring position, fly-half Nicolás Sánchez stepped up to put his outfit on the board.  It was now 3-6 with eighteen minutes played in the second Test.

Ireland did show their quality in attack with a quarter gone when Sexton's cross kick to Zebo led to Lucas González Amorosino getting back in time to ground the wing's chip downfield.  It was a warning shot however to the Pumas that Ireland wouldn't be afraid to try things.

The warning was heeded and in fact thrown back in the visitors' court when Argentina chanced their arm from deep, scrum-half Martin Landajo's break leading to Amorosino carrying on the run before recycled ball found Joaquín Tuculet for a popular score.

Following the successful extras, Argentina were now 6-10 ahead with 25 minutes played before Irish fly-half Sexton cut the lead to just a point eight minutes from the break.

Sexton had a chance to push Ireland back into the lead three minutes after the break but was off-target as they struggled for any real spell of possession and territory.  If they could get good ball one worried for how the Pumas would contain them in the closing stages.

And so that proved as a nice inside ball from Leinster scrum-half Eoin Reddan finally broke the deadlock for the Irish, his pass sending over the poacher Zebo to make it 16-10.

Darren Cave came agonisingly close to possibly putting the result beyond doubt but was pulled up just short when grounding after a strong carry from Rhys Ruddock.  Had he crossed, a successful conversion would have put Joe Schmidt's men thirteen points up.

But that mission would be accomplished by Madigan with eight minutes left as his classy try under the posts made it 23-10 before Amorosino crossed with the final play of the game.

The scorers:

For Argentina:
Tries:  Tuculet, Amorosino
Con:  Sanchez, Iglesias
Pen:  Sanchez
Yellow:  M Cortese (no arm tackle — 9 mins)

For Ireland:
Tries:  Zebo, Madigan
Con:  Sexton, Madigan
Pen:  Sexton 3
Yellow:  Trimble (off-the-ball tackle — 16 mins)

Argentina:  15 Joaquín Tuculet, 14 Lucas González Amorosino, 13 Jerónimo De la Fuente, 12 Gabriel Ascárate, 11 Manuel Montero, 10 Nicolás Sánchez, 9 Martín Landajo (captain), 8 Antonio Ahualli de Chazal, 7 Tomás De la Vega, 6 Rodrigo Báez, 5 Tomas Lavanini, 4 Manuel Carizza, 3 Ramiro Herrera, 2 Matías Cortese, 1 Lucas Noguera Paz.
Replacements:  16 Santiago Iglesias Valdez, 17 Bruno Postiglioni, 18 Matías Díaz, 19 Matías Alemanno, 20 Javier Ortega Desio, 21 Tomás Cubelli, 22 Santiago González Iglesias, 23 Matías Orlando.

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Fergus McFadden, 12 Darren Cave, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Eoin Reddan, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Chris Henry, 6 Rhys Ruddock, 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Devin Toner, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Dave Kilcoyne.
Replacements:  16 Rob Herring, 17 James Cronin, 18 Jack McGrath, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Jordi Murphy, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Ian Madigan, 23 Noel Reid.

Referee:  Pascal Gauzère (France)
Assistant Referees:  Glen Jackson (New Zealand), John Lacey (Ireland)
TMO:  Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)

Scotland edge out Canada

Scotland avoided a shock defeat to Canada as they held on for a 19-17 success against the home outfit at BMO Field in Toronto on Saturday.

A harsh red card for Canada flank Jebb Sinclair soured what was an absorbing Test, but it will be one that the hosts will feel they could have won.

For Scotland though, they have made it two wins from two on tour as they backed up last week's victory over the USA with this tight triumph.

Scotland's scrum was dominant early on and it led to the first points of the game being scored by scrum-half Greig Laidlaw with two minutes gone.

However, the visitors had to survive a scare soon after as Canada half-back Phil Mack was denied a score when Jeff Hassler was deemed to have knocked on when looking to collect the ball.

Scotland knew they were in a Test match from then on and following defending on their own line, the hosts then put their foot to the floor as former Glasgow back Taylor Paris' step and speed on halfway sparked a good passage in the 22.  In fact it resulted in James Pritchard knocking over three points.

And things would improve further for the Canadians when a break from outside centre Ciaran Hearn saw him feed Ospreys wing Hassler for the game's opening try.  Hassler, who made the RaboDirect PRO12 Dream Team this season, finished well but Pritchard's conversion wasn't of the same ilk.

Scotland did reply five minutes later though when second-row Grant Gilchrist went over for a converted try that pushed the Scots back into the lead.

Laidlaw would extend the scoreline to 13-8 two minutes before the break as again Canada were penalised at scrum time in what was an area of concern.

The turnaround saw Canada strike first and then second when full-back Pritchard added three points to his tally to put his side two points behind on 43 minutes and when Scotland offended eight minutes later, Canada were back in front via the boot of their number fifteen.  Was a shock on the cards?

Scotland full-back Stuart Hogg had other ideas as he sent over a long-range penalty to make it 16-14 before Pritchard missed the chance to respond fifteen minutes from time when his attempt hit the upright.  Harry Jones though had no such trouble when he lined up a successful penalty for 16-17.

It was now tit-for-tat in Toronto as Laidlaw pushed his side in front with an effort off the tee as territory became critical in the closing stages.

And then would come the moment of controversy on the 76th minute as with Canada 30 metres out, Sinclair was red carded after being adjudged to have led with the elbow whilst carrying into replacement Ruaridh Jackson.  It was a card that stunned both the crowd and media alike and a disappointing way to end a physical but fair game.

The scorers:

For Canada:
Try:  Hassler
Pen:  Pritchard 3, Jones

For Scotland:
Try:  Gilchrist
Con:  Laidlaw
Pen:  Laidlaw 2, Hogg

Canada:  15 James Pritchard, 14 Jeff Hassler, 13 Ciaran Hearn, 12 Nick Bevins, 11 Taylor Paris, 10 Harry Jones, 9 Phil Mack, 8 Tyler Ardron (c), 7 John Moonlight, 6 Jebb Sinclair, 5 Jamie Cudmore, 4 Tyler Hotson, 3 Jason Marshall, 2 Aaron Carpenter, 1 Hubert Buydens.
Replacements:  16 Ray Barkwill, 17 Andrew Tiedemann, 18 Jake Ilnicki, 19 Kyle Gilmour, 20 Jon Phelan, 21 Gordon McRorie, 22 Connor Braid, 23 DTH van der Merwe.

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Sean Lamont, 12 Peter Horne, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Greig Laidlaw (c), 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 Kelly Brown, 6 Al Strokosch, 5 Grant Gilchrist, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Moray Low, 2 Scott Lawson, 1 Gordon Reid.
Replacements:  16 Kevin Bryce, 17 Kyle Traynor, 18 Geoff Cross, 19 Kieran Low, 20 Blair Cowan, 21 Grayson Hart, 22 Ruaridh Jackson, 23 Max Evans.

Referee:  Mike Fraser (NZ)
Assistant referees:  Stuart Berry (SA), Nick Ricono (USA)
TMO:  Davey Ardrey (USA)

Wallabies edge France in dire Test

Australia edged out France 6-0 in one of the worst Test matches in recent memory to clinch the Test series in Melbourne.

Bizarrely considering there were 73 points last Saturday, we didn't get any at all here until the 53rd minute.  Hardly a great advert for the rugby public in this part of Australia.

Both teams were overly cautious, kicked endlessly, dropped passes and conceded needless penalties when finally in a position to attack.  Boy it was dull to watch.

There were no excuses related to the weather or off-field politics, both teams were simply dire.  France might have shown more bite, but there was little class or control.  The Wallabies were worthy of their win.

Where was the Wallabies' sense of adventure from Brisbane?  It's a well-known fact that French flair under Philippe Saint-André is dead, but a sign of an effective gameplan might have been encouraging a week after being thrashed.

Brice Dulin and Nic White missed penalty opportunities but the Wallabies had come closest earlier in the first half when a decision went to the TMO.

Matt Toomua's chip over the top fooled everybody and in the scramble for the ball with Dulin he was adjudged to have obstructed the France full-back in the second before Ben McCalman grounded the loose ball.

France were made of much sterner stuff than the turnstile who rocked up at Suncorp.  A lot of that comes down to their selection, as the big guys returning to the starting XV made a big impact.

Thierry Dusautoir was arguably the most important returnee, coming into the side and characteristically hacking his way through a ton of work at the breakdown to give France a good share of possession.

Rémi Talès showed far greater control outside Morgan Parra and it kept France on the up in terms of territory, their pack bolstered by the addition of Yannick Nyanga along with a pair of hungry young props in Alexandre Menini and Rabah Slimani.  France's defence was solid, their set-piece clicking nicely.  There was little else to them.

There was no way this one would finish scoreless and the inevitable breakthrough came from a penalty by Foley to put the Wallabies into the lead.  The way it had gone, you suspected it might be the only score.

James Horwill's 50th cap came to a conclusion when he was replaced by a debutant in Luke Jones — a former ball boy for Australia over ten years ago.

White added a second penalty to at least give the Wallabies some comfort on the scoreboard with time winding down in the final quarter.

There were few chances, Adam Ashley-Cooper knocking on just short of the line in pursuit of a hacked through ball behind the French defence.

Bernard Le Roux's yellow card however seemed to condemn France to another defeat but White couldn't land the penalty with ten minutes to go.

Two front-rowers on debut for Australia made their bow as Nathan Charles and Laurie Weeks entered the fray, France still believing that the result was in reach.

A late break started by Dulin nearly rewarded that hope with what would have been a completely unfitting moment of brilliance from the visitors given the nature of the contest.  A lineout outside the 22 gave them a final chance.

Naturally it went up in smoke with a miscued pass from Yoann Huget after he burst through the defence.  The Wallabies found a way to win, gritty but nowhere near glorious.

One to forget.

The scorers:

For Australia:
Pens:  Foley, White

For France:
Yellow Card:  Le Roux

Australia:  15 Israel Folau, 14 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Nick Cummins, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nic White, 8 Ben McCalman, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Scott Fardy, 5 James Horwill, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 James Slipper.
Replacements:  16 Nathan Charles, 17 Pek Cowan,) 18 Laurie Weeks, 19 Luke Jones, 20 Scott Higginbotham, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Kurtley Beale, 23 Pat McCabe.

France:  15 Brice Dulin, 14 Yoann Huget, 13 Mathieu Bastareaud, 12 Wesley Fofana, 11 Maxime Médard, 10 Rémi Talès, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Damien Chouly, 7 Thierry Dusautoir (c), 6 Yannick Nyanga, 5 Yoann Maestri, 4 Alexandre Flanquart, 3 Rabah Slimani, 2 Guilhem Guirado, 1 Alexandre Menini.
Replacements:  16 Brice Mach, 17 Thomas Domingo, 18 Nicolas Mas, 19 Bernard le Roux, 20 Louis Picamoles, 21 Antoine Burban, 22 Frédéric Michalak, 23 Remi Lamerat.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Craig Joubert (South Africa), Chris Pollock (New Zealand)
Television match official:  Ben Skeen (New Zealand)

Ruthless All Blacks restore pride

An outstanding second half display from world champions New Zealand clinched the Test series by beating England 28-27 in Dunedin.

England had at one point led 10-0, but that felt a long old time ago when they were being battered relentlessly by the All Blacks deep into the second half.  The score might have been tight at the final whistle, but England had been blown away by the time Mike Brown and Chris Ashton crossed.

The verdict coming out of Auckland was that England's best chance of beating New Zealand on their own turf had been and gone.  That rings more true now than ever.  As the game progressed, so their error count duly rose, despite their grit and integrity.

A flick of the switch, so typical of the All Blacks, was the surge they needed to take the game by the scruff of the neck and go for the win to clinch the series.

It was played at the pace that New Zealand complained they didn't get to play at in Auckland, at the speed that England thrive at with Danny Care scuttling around at the base - although this was far from his best game in a white shirt.

Beating New Zealand would have given England a phenomenal accolade, but regardless of the result they have proven they could compete against the best in their own backyard.  Add in the factor of Twickenham and they will be a force at the World Cup, make no bones about it.

When the volume under the Forsyth Barr roof rose and the All Blacks began flowing effortlessly into space, the game was always going to be up.  Ben Smith delivered a masterclass, feeding off England's loose kicking game, while Julian Savea was monstrous.

Jaco Peyper looked set to rule with an iron fist with New Zealand repeatedly disrupting England's maul illegally, Farrell adding the first points.

So much was made of McCaw's absence in the first Test, not in body but effort, that a monster performance was expected in Dunedin.

After conceding the first penalty, his missed tackle on Marland Yarde was unbelievable.  The young winger was too sharp, too strong to be stopped.

England had burst out of the blocks but had so long to go.  New Zealand would inevitably respond, Ben Smith slipping Luther Burrell's tackle to start an attack that ended with three points for Cruden.

The All Blacks number ten was eager to test the fielding abilities of Manu Tuilagi in his new wing role, a troublesome bounce ending in a penalty when Mike Brown held on.  He couldn't land the shot at goal.

Nor could Farrell, handed a long-range opportunity after Ma'a Nonu was penalised for obstruction.

Little inaccuracies were made enormous by the importance of this fixture, Care's kicking not what it could be, Ben Smith slipping as he cleared to touch.  Make no mistake, England were on a par with the All Blacks.  They still led 10-3 creeping up to the half hour mark.

Hopefully it was aerobic enough for the All Blacks, a mad passage including a kick to touch by David Wilson and a full fledged sprint from Manu Tuilagi down the wing, stopped by a truly outstanding tackle from Ben Smith.

The All Blacks had the final say, Joe Marler pinged at the scrum for Cruden to land his second penalty.  England lead by four but would they regret their missed chances?  New Zealand couldn't keep dropping easy passes as Cory Jane had done forever.

England's over-exuberance backfired.  An offload from Twelvetrees that wasn't necessary fell loose and the All Blacks countered with devastating effect, Cruden's dummy freeing the space for Savea to hand Ben Smith the simplest of finishes.  New Zealand finally ahead at 13-10.

Farrell immediately tied things up with a penalty as Dylan Hartley entered the fray as England looked for a second wave, but Aaron Smith should have given New Zealand a second try.  Flying up the touchline with Messam outside he was shut down by Farrell.

New Zealand were unrelenting, picking up the pace as Nonu found the space outside Burrell and fed Savea for New Zealand's second try.  The third had to come, Ben Smith's wizardry tearing England to pieces.  Had the final pass from Conrad Smith to Messam not been butchered then the light would have been turned out.

There was time for that moment.  New Zealand's maul, reminiscent of England's dominance in that area back in the first half, yielded another penalty.  The damage of Farrell going to the bin was enormous.

Barrett made no mistake after hitting the post earlier on.  At 21-13 down with 14 men, England's road back looked too long.

Nonu made sure of that.  With extra space and freed by a long pass from Conrad Smith, the centre was too fast and too strong to be brought down by Yarde and Burrell as he cut his way infield.  It was an exceptional, ruthless score.

Restored to 15 men England did have another score in them, Mike Brown delivering after a contentious call at the previous ruck by going on his own and spinning out of the tackle of Aaron Smith and Jane to just about get the ball to ground.

England though were still out of reach at 28-20, but it was an act of defiance.  They showed a ton of character, but lacked the extra touch of class and final pass.  There will be question marks over the selection of Twelvetrees, Burrell, and on moving Tuilagi to the wing.

By the end bizarrely England fell only a point short, some Tuilagi magic and the passing of Brown giving Chris Ashton a run-in to leave England short only by a single point.  There is pride to take from that, but - crucially - it wasn't enough to win.

Based on the last two weeks, you want to watch these two sides take each other on again and again.

The scorers:

For New Zealand:
Tries:  B.Smith, Savea, Nonu
Cons:  Cruden, Barrett
Pens:  Cruden 2, Barrett

For England:
Tries:  Yarde, Brown, Ashton
Cons:  Farrell 3
Pens:  Farrell 2
Yellow Card:  Farrell

New Zealand:  15 Ben Smith, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Aaron Cruden, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Jerome Kaino, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Liam Messam, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements:  16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Charlie Faumuina, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Victor Vito, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Beauden Barrett, 23 Malakai Fekitoa.

England:  15 Mike Brown, 14 Manu Tuilagi, 13 Luther Burrell, 12 Billy Twelvetrees, 11 Marland Yarde, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Danny Care, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 Tom Wood, 5 Geoff Parling, 4 Joe Launchbury, 3 David Wilson, 2 Rob Webber, 1 Joe Marler.
Replacements:  16 Dylan Hartley, 17 Matt Mullan, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Courtney Lawes, 20 Billy Vunipola, 21 Ben Youngs, 22 Freddie Burns, 23 Chris Ashton.

Referee:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant Referees:  Nigel Owens (Wales), Jérôme Garcès (France)
TMO:  George Ayoub (Australia)

Clinical Fiji thrash Tonga

Fiji showed no mercy to their Pacific Island rivals as they hammered Tonga 45-17 in their Pacific Nations Cup clash.

Picking up where they left off against Italy last week, Fiji ran in six tries in Luatoka.

Four of those went to two players, with Watisoni Votu and Sireli Bobo both scoring twice along with tries from Akapusi Qera and Nemani Nadolo.

Nadolo, the Crusaders star, started again at inside centre and was impressive off the kicking tee, scoring six conversions and a penalty.

Fiji flew out into a 17-0 lead after 14 minutes thanks that penalty and tries from Votu and Nadolo to start the contest at a blinding pace.

Despite Fangatapu Apikotoa added a penalty to put Tonga on the board, Bobo struck again before half-time, the 38-year-old putting Fiji out of sight.

Votu added his second after the interval but the match turned when Viliami Fihaki came off the bench for Tonga to score two tries, both converted by Latiume Fosita.  Suddenly the contest wasn't over at 31-17.

But Fiji had too much quality to not secure the result and scored two very late tries through Qera and Bobo's second to seal the win.

The scorers:

For Fiji:
Tries:  Votu 2, Nadolo, Bobo 2, Qera
Cons:  Nadolo 6
Pen:  Nadolo

For Tonga:
Tries:  Fihaki 2
Cons:  Fosita
Pen:  Apikotoa

Fiji:  15 Timoci Nagusa, 14 Sireli Bobo, 13 Adriu Delai, 12 Nemani Nadolo, 11 Watisoni Votu, 10 Jonetani Ralulu, 9 Nikola Matawalu, 8 Akapusi Qera (capt), 7 Malakai Ravulo, 6 Dom Waqaninburotu, 5 Leone Nakawara, 4 Api Ratuniyarawa, 3 Manasa Saulo, 2 Tuapati Talemaitoga, 1 Campese Ma'afu.
Replacements:  16 Bill Veikoso, 17 Jerry Yanuyanutawa, 18 Isei Colati, 19 Api Naikatani, 20 Nemani Nagusa, 21 Nemia Kenatale, 22 Waisea Nayacalevu, 23 Metuisela Talebula.

Tonga:  unannounced

Referee:  Rohan Hoffman (Australia)
Assistant referees:  JP Doyle (England), Mathieu Raynal (France)

Italy nilled by Samoa

Samoa fly-half Tusi Pisi kicked five penalties in his side's 15-0 victory over struggling Italy at Apia Park on Saturday.

The result follows the Azzurri's loss to Fiji last weekend to round off a poor year in Test rugby so far.

Pisi made them pay with five successful kicks as Samoa responded from their surprising 18-18 draw with Tonga last weekend.

The former Hurricanes number ten landed four of his penalties in the first half to leave the Italian chasing the scoreboard in tough conditions.

The win certainly isn't of character for Samoa given that this was their fifth victory over Italy in six meetings, but they would have expected a greater threat from their visitors.

Italy have now lost their last eight matches going back to last November, an unwanted record for Jacques Brunel heading into the Rugby World Cup.

The scorers:

For Samoa:
Pens:  Pisi 5

For Italy:

Samoa:  15 Faatoina Autagavaia, 14 Fautua Otto, 13 George Pisi, 12 Alapati Leiua, 11 David Lemi (capt), 10 Tusiata Pisi, 9 Kahn Fotuali'i, 8 Kane Thompson, 7 Jack Lam, 6 Ofisa Treviranus, 5 Daniel Leo, 4 Faatiga Lemalu, 3 James Johnston, 2 Ti'i Paulo, 1 Logovi'i Mulipola.
Replacements:  16 Wayne Ole Avei, 17 Census Johnston, 18 Sakaria Taulafo, 19 Maurie Fa'asavalu, 20 Piula Fa'asalele, 21 Patrick Fa'apale, 22 Vavao Afemai, 23 Johnny Leota.

Italy:  15 Luke McLean, 14 Angelo Esposito, 13 Andrea Masi, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Giovambattista Venditti, 10 Tommaso Allan, 9 Tito Tebaldi, 8 Robert Barbieri, 7 Mauro Bergamasco, 6 Paul Derbyshire, 5 George Fabio, 4 Quintin Geldenhuys (c), 3 Lorenzo Cittadini, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 1 Alberto de Marchi.
Replacements:  16 Andrea Manici, 17 Matias Aguero, 18 Dario Chistolini, 19 Marco Bortolami, 20 Josh Furno, 21 Guglielmo Palazzani, 22 Luciano Orquera, 23 Tommaso Iannone.

Referee:  George Clancy (Ireland)
Assistant Referees:  Andrew Lees (Australia), James Leckie (Australia)

Scotland see off Eagles

An early Tim Visser try saw Scotland on their way to a 24-6 victory over the USA at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston on Saturday.

The Scots were dominant, but made rather hard work of their win in the sweltering Houston heat against an Eagles side that is on the up in world rugby.

Visser bagged his team's first after a super sniping dart from skipper Greig Laidlaw, who had opened the scoring with a penalty, to finish off in the corner, the captain converting.

The scrum-half had already traded penalties with Chris Wyles, before he had the simple task of adding the extras after the Scottish pack won a series of scrum penalties, Olive Kilifi was sent to the sin-bin, and eventually Pascal Gauzere lost patience and headed under the posts.

The Scots could have scored more in the first half, but a combination of poor finishing and stubborn USA defence kept the score to 17-3 at the break.

The second half followed a familiar pattern, with play lit up by a moment of genius from the talented Stuart Hogg.  Wyles had momentarily reduced the visitors' lead, before the full-back seized upon a high ball, and took advantage of poor defensive positioning to speed home from long-range.

The scorers:

For USA:
Pens:  Wyles 2
Yellow card:Kilifi

For Scotland:
Tries:  Visser, Penalty Try, Hogg
Cons:  Laidlaw 2
Pen:  Laidlaw

The teams:

USA:  15 Chris Wyles, 14 Blaine Scully, 13 Seamus Kelly, 12 Andrew Suniula, 11 Luke Hume, 10 Shalom Suniula, 9 Mike Petri, 8 Cam Dolan, 7 Scott LaValla, 6 Todd Clever (c), 5 Hayden Smith, 4 Louis Stanfill, 3 Eric Fry, 2 Phil Thiel, 1 Oliver Kilifi
Replacements:  16 Tom Coolican, 17 Nick Wallace, 18 Titi Lamositele, 19 Tai Tuisamoa, 20 Danny Barrett, 21 Folau Niua, 22 Chad London, 23 Tim Maupin

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Sean Lamont, 12 Duncan Taylor, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Greig Laidlaw (c), 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 Blair Cowan, 6 Al Strokosch, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Geoff Cross, 2 Scott Lawson, 1 Gordon Reid
Replacements:  16 Pat MacArthur, 17 Alex Allan, 18 Moray Low, 19 Grant Gilchrist, 20 Kieran Low, 21 Grayson Hart, 22 Ruaridh Jackson, 23 Max Evans

Referee:  Pascal Gauzere (Fra)
Assistant referees:  Francesco Pastrana (Arg), Chris Assmus (Can)
TMO:  Alan Hosie (Sco)

Ireland claim victory over Argentina

Ireland began the dreaded post Brian O'Driscoll era with a streetwise 29-17 victory over a depleted Argentina at Estadio Centenario on Saturday.

The result gives Joe Schmidt's outfit momentum going into next week's Test against the same opposition in Tucum�n as they backed up their Six Nations triumph with a solid performance.

Ireland had begun the game with the lion's share of possession but could not penetrate a fearsome home defence on halfway that was giving nothing.

Ten minutes passed before the Irish finally broke the line as Darren Cave, wearing the fabled jersey left by O'Driscoll, cut through before the recycled ball saw Robbie Diack butcher a three-on-one that surely would have seen Simon Zebo over.  It marred what was a strong start from the flank.

Consolation for Diack came in the form of three Jonathan Sexton points after the Pumas had been spotted offside by New Zealand's Glen Jackson.

Ireland were now in full flow as first Zebo, then Luke Marshall and Conor Murray went close within quick succession before Paul O'Connell was pinged for sealing off the ruck five metres from the whitewash.  That, however, then sparked a superb Pumas counter attack.

Sexton doubled the lead in the nineteenth minute when Marshall again hit a line that took the shaven headed inside centre over halfway but the momentum would shift soon after.

Nicol�s S�nchez sending over three points would be the result of the Pumas enjoying their first ball on 27 minutes, although Santiago Cordero possibly will be feeling guilty of taking his eye off the ball when the line was at his mercy from a Martin Landajo blindside pass.

Then came a moment of controversy on the half-hour as Pumas number eight Benjamin Macome was yellow carded for taking out Andrew Trimble in the air.  Many an Ulster fan would have been asking their television screens what was different about that and the red Jared Payne received against Saracens.

In the end the numerical advantage would actually benefit Argentina when Manuel Montero finished superbly in the corner, seeing off Sexton for a score that Sanchez converted from the touchline.  Suddenly the Pumas were 6-10 to the good with half-time nearing.

However, Ireland would respond via an unconverted pushover try from Chris Henry off an attacking line-out that took them in 11-10 up at the interval.

The second half began with number eight Jordi Murphy carrying strongly up the middle before Sexton's trademark wraparound with Marshall in midfield led to the number ten sprinting over, with his conversion again missed, this time glancing the outside of the upright as Ireland went six points up.

It was now the case that if Ireland scored next, one would worry for the Pumas.  And so it proved as with Argentina forcing their attack, Trimble pounced on a loose Sanchez pass and pinned his ears back for a clean run-in from 50 metres out.  Sexton's extra two points put Ireland comfortably 23-10 to the good.

Cave then almost had a try to his name in the left corner courtesy of a sumptuous Zebo offload only for the replay showing his foot was in touch before grounding over the line.

But that only prompted Ireland to apply pressure to the throat of the Pumas, knocking over two penalties via replacement Ian Madigan's boot before Tom�s De la Vega added a consolation score in the dying embers.

The scorers:

For Argentina:
Tries:  M Montero, De la Vega
Con:  Sanchez, Iglesias
Pen:  Sanchez

For Ireland:
Tries:  Henry, Sexton, Trimble
Con:  Sexton
Pen:  Sexton 2, Madigan 2

Argentina:  15 Joaquin Tuculet, 14 Santiago Cordero, 13 Jer�nimo De la Fuente, 12 Gabriel Ascarate, 11 Manuel Montero, 10 Nicol�s S�nchez, 9 Martin Landajo, 8 Benjamin Macome, 7 Tom�s De la Vega, 6 Rodrigo Baez, 5 Tomas Lavanini, 4 Manuel Carizza, 3 Ramiro Herrera, 2 Mat�as Cortese, 1 Lucas Noguera Paz.
Replacements:  16 Julian Montoya, 17 Bruno Postiglioni, 18 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 19 Mat�as Alemanno, 20 Javier Ortega Desio, 21 Tom�s Cubelli, 22 Santiago Gonz�lez Iglesias, 23 Lucas Gonz�lez Amorosino

Ireland:  15 Felix Jones, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Darren Cave, 12 Luke Marshall, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jordi Murphy, 7 Chris Henry, 6 Robbie Diack, 5 Paul O'Connell (c), 4 Iain Henderson, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Jack McGrath.
Replacements:  16 Damien Varley, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Rodney Ah You, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Jamie Heaslip, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Ian Madigan, 23 Fergus McFadden.

Referee:  Glen Jackson (New Zealand)
Assistant Referees:  Mike Fraser (New Zealand), Jaco van Heerden (South Africa)
TMO:  Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)

Boks brush World XV aside

South Africa warmed up for their June internationals in ideal fashion on Saturday with a 47-13 victory over a star-studded World XV in Cape Town.

The Springboks recovered from a slow start to outscore their opponents six tries to one in an entertaining game in front 30 000-odd fans at Newlands.

Although the match didn't carry full 'Test' status, Heyneke Meyer's troops were tested in every facet of the game by a side packed with talent and up for the challenge.

World XV coach Nick Mallett said his side would have to pitch up with the right attitude and it was clear from the first minute that they had come to give the Boks a full examination.

South Africa led 18-13 at the interval thanks to tries from Toulon team-mates Bryan Habana and Bakkies Botha in reply to World XV lock Alistair Hargreaves' opening score.

The lead change hands a number of times in the first half as the World XV matched their hosts in the set pieces and didn't step back in contact.  As expected, the tourists' defensive organisation ultimately proved their undoing as the powerful Boks clinically cashed in on the opportunities offered.

The Springbok pack took control in the second half though as two textbook mauls off line-outs gave the hosts a healthy lead before late tries from Johan Goosen and Willie le Roux added the cherry on top of a well-deserved win.

The tourists made the brighter start and found their way over the try-line after just five minutes as Saracens lock Hargreaves crashed over after his second row partner and countryman Juandr� Kruger was stopped just short.  Australian full-back James O'Connor added the conversion to cap a perfect start for the multi-national side.

The Boks replied almost immediately though as Morne Steyn slotted an easy penalty after the visitors were caught offside.

The World XV came close to snatching another early try but Matt Giteau's grubber had just too much on it and beat Hosea gear to the deadball line.  Mallett's side nevertheless had their tails up.

That would change at the end of the first quarter when Habana scored out wide after JP Pietersen threw a nifty pass between his legs to expose a massive overlap.  The ball went through the hands to give Habana an easy run in.  Steyn's conversion attempt sailed wide to leave South Africa leading 8-7.

The World XV only had two training sessions to prepare but their scrum got on top of the Boks in the first half, earning a penalty which O'Connor sent over to put the visitors back in front.

The lead changed hands once again on the half-hour mark as Steyn hit the target with a penalty against Hargreaves for being offside.

The Boks landed a vital blow just before the break with a refreshing display of counter attacking as Le Roux, Habana and Victor Matfield combined to put Botha clear to score.

Steyn's conversion into the wind crept over to give the hosts a seven-point lead but O'Connor reduced the deficit to five points after Bismarck du Plessis was caught way offside on the stroke of halftime.

The Bok fly-half gave his team extended the lead (21-13) soon after the restart with an easy penalty after Joe Tekori entered a maul from the side.  Mamuka Gorgodze was given a yellow card for the same offence a few minutes later and the Boks used their numerical advantage to rumble over the line with a classic lineout-maul drive.

Bismarck du Plessis bagged his second try on the hour mark as the home side repeated the same line-out and maul with ruthless efficiency.

The wind was finally taken out the World XV's sails when Jimmy Cowen was sin binned for stamping.

The Boks put the game to bed in the dying minutes as Goosen ghosted over from close range before Lwazi Mvovo put Le Roux away for their sixth try in the final minute to finish an attack started by Schalk Brits in his own half.

The Boks will now face Wales in seven days full of confidence.

The scorers:

For South Africa:
Tries:  Habana, Botha, B. du Plessis 2, Goosen, Le Roux
Cons:  Steyn, Goosen 2
Pens:  Steyn 3

For World XV:
Try:  Hargreaves
Con:  O'Connor
Pens:  O'Connor 2
Yellow cards:  Gorgodze, Cowan

South Africa:  15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 Frans Steyn, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morne Steyn, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Victor Matfield (c), 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements:  16 Schalk Brits, 17 Gurthro Steenkamp, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Flip van der Merwe, 20 Schalk Burger, 21 Fourie du Preez, 22 Johan Goosen, 23 Lwazi Mvovo.

World XV:  15 James O'Connor, 14 Drew Mitchell, 13 Rene Ranger, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Matt Giteau, 9 Rory Kockott, 8 Roger Wilson, 7 Steffon Armitage, 6 Mamuka Gorgodze, 5 Alistair Hargreaves, 4 Juandr� Kruger, 3 Carl Hayman, 2 Craig Burden, 1 Sona Taumalolo.
Replacements:  16 Andrew Hore, 17 Schalk Ferreira, 18 Pat Cilliers, 19 Joe Tekori, 20 Alexandre Lapandry, 21 Jimmy Cowan, 22 Fran�ois Trinh-Duc, 23 Benson Stanley.

Venue:  Newlands, Cape Town
Referee:  George Clancy (Ireland)
Assistant referees:  Lourens van der Merwe (South Africa), Quinton Immelman (South Africa)
Television match official:  Deon van Blommestein (South Africa)

Seven-try Wallabies crush France

Australia went 1-0 up in their June Test series against France as they romped to a 50-23 victory at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday.

France have not beaten the Wallabies in Australia since 1990 and, based on this performance, they are unlikely to change that record in this three-Test series.

Despite losing skipper Stephen Moore in the early stages, the home side touched down seven times before the French snatched two consolation tries in a benchmark rout that further tarnishes Philippe Saint-André's dismal track record.

The impressive Wallabies led 29-9 at the interval as four unanswered tries from Israel Folau, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Michael Hooper and Matt Toomua saw the hosts race ahead.

The French defence was woeful.  Australia were hardly playing sensational rugby but sloppy tackling and a few horrific errors from the visitors gifted the Wallabies a massive head start for the second half.

Unable — more like unwilling — to compete at the breakdown, les Bleus allowed the Aussie pack to give their backs quality ball far too cheaply.  Worse still, PSA's troops offered very little on attack.

After the break, the French got stuck into the rucks with far more venom and could stem the tide until just before the hour mark, when Nick Cummins added his name to the list of scorers, but the tourists never seriously threatened to cross the whitewash until Morgan Parra's late consolation score and penalty try in the final minute.

By that time the Wallabies had already reached the 50-point mark as Kurtley Beale and Pat McCabe came off the bench to rub salt into the French wounds with tries in the last quarter.

A neat drop-goal from Frédéric Michalak in reply to Bernard Foley's opening penalty levelled the scores early on, but is would be almost one-way thereafter.

Folua landed the first blow at the end of the first quarter, beating three defenders to cross.

Shortly afterwards Gaël Fickou came out of the French line looking for an intercept, allowing Ashley-Cooper to go in untouched off Toomua's offload.

Hooper added number three with a little help from the TMO who persuaded referee Craig Joubert that Tevita Kuridrani tap-on hadn't gone forward.

The fourth try, just before the break, was almost comical as debutant Felix le Bourhis fumbled on his line, then fumbled again in-goal as he tried to gather the loose ball, only to see Toomua pounce.

Foley added his third conversion to give Australia a 20-point lead, and the result was essentially sealed before the half-time hooter.

Australia could bide their time as France tried to get back into the game after the restart.  But Folau went clear out wide before finding Cummins on the switch for an excellent try to kill off any hopes of a comeback.

Beale cruised over for number six thanks to a break from Kuridrani before Folau beat Wesley Fofana and set McCabe free out wide for number seven.

Parra scored off the restart to salvage some pride for the XV de France, who finished on a positive point as their scrum earned a penalty try with the last play of the game.

But France will have to make a massive step up next week if they hope to keep the series alive.

The scorers:

For Australia: 
Tries:  Folau, Ashley-Cooper, Hooper, Toomua, Cummins, Beale, McCabe
Cons:  Foley 6
Pen:  Foley

For France: 
Tries:  Parra, Penalty try
Cons:  Michalak 2
Pens:  Michalak
Drops:  Michalak

Australia:  15 Israel Folau, 14 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Nick Cummins, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nic White, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Scott Fardy, 5 Sam Carter, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Stephen Moore (c), 1 James Slipper.
Replacements:  16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Pek Cowan, 18 Paddy Ryan, 19 James Horwill, 20 Ben McCalman, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Kurtley Beale, 23 Pat McCabe.

France:  15 Hugo Bonneval, 14 Yoann Huget, 13 Gaël Fickou, 12 Wesley Fofana, 11 Felix le Bourhis, 10 Frédéric Michalak, 9 Maxime Machenaud, 8 Damien Chouly, 7 Bernard le Roux, 6 Fulgence Ouedraogo, 5 Yoann Maestri, 4 Sébastien Vahaamahina, 3 Nicolas Mas (c), 2 Guilhem Guirado, 1 Thomas Domingo.
Replacements:  16 Christopher Tolofua, 17 Vincent Debaty, 18 Rabah Slimani, 19 Alexandre Flanquart, 20 Antoine Burban, 21 Morgan Parra, 22 Remi Lamerat, 23 Brice Dulin.

Venue:  Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Referee:  Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant Referees:  Chris Pollock (New Zealand), Garratt Williamson (New Zealand)
TMO:  Ben Skeen (New Zealand)

Momentous win for Fiji over Italy

Crusaders back Nemani Nadolo scored 13 points as Fiji defeated European visitors Italy 25-14 in Suva on Saturday.

Nadolo was one of three try scorers for the Islanders, crossing first before adding two penalties and a conversion after starting at inside centre.

Italy's only real dominance came as expected in the set-piece, where a number of collapsed scrums from the Fijian left referee JP Doyle no option but to award the first of their two penalty tries which gave the Azzurri the lead.

Nadolo's try brought Fiji back into the contest but the score remained tight at 5-7 at half-time, before the hosts took control.

Taking over the kicking duties after Jonetani Ralulu missed a penalty and a conversion, Nadolo converted Nemani Nagusa's try after some fine interplay by Fiji to put them into the lead for the first time.

Nadolo's two penalties extended the lead but Italy hit back through another penalty try, again converted by Orquera, to apply some pressure at 18-14.

But Clermont star Napolioni Nalaga came through with the what proved to be the winning try two minutes from time, Nadolo converting to secure an impressive win for Fiji.  Italy face Samoa next.

The scorers:

For Fiji:
Tries:  Nadolo, Nagusa, Nalaga
Cons:  Ralulu, Nadolo
Pens:  Nadolo 2

For Italy:
Tries:  Penalty Try 2
Cons:  Orquera 2

Fiji:  15 Metuisela Talebula, 14 Napolioni Nalaga, 13 Asaeli Tikoirotuma, 12 Nemani Nadolo, 11 Timoci Nagusa, 10 Jonetani Ralulu, 9 Nemia Kenatale, 8 Nemani Nagusa, 7 Akapusi Qera (c), 6 Dominiko Waqaniburotu, 5 Api Naikatini, 4 Api Ratuniyarawa, 3 Manasa Saulo, 2 Tuapati Talemaitoga, 1 Campese Ma'afu.
Replacements:  16 Sunia Koto, 17 Jerry Yanuyanutawa, 18 Isei Coalti, 19 Wame Lewaravu, 20 Malakai Ravulo, 21 Nikola Matawalu, 22 Watisoni Votu, 23 Adriu Delai.

Italy:  15 Luke McLean, 14 Leonardo Sarto, 13 Michele Campagnaro, 12 Alberto Sgarbi, 11 Giovambattista Venditti, 10 Luciano Orquera, 9 Guglielmo Palazzani, 8 Manoa Vosawai, 7 Mauro Bergamasco, 6 Joshua Furno, 5 Marco Bortolami, 4 Quintin Geldenhuys (c), 3 Lorenzo Cittadini, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 1 Matias Aguero.
Replacements:  16 Davide Giazzon, 17 Andrea de Marchi, 18 Alberto de Marchi, 19 George Fabio Biagi, 20 Paul Derbyshire, 21 Tito Tebaldi, 22 Tommaso Allan, 23 Andrea Masi.

Referee:  JP Doyle (England)
Assistant Referees:  Johan Hoffmann (Australia), James Leckie (Australia)
Assessor:  Lyndon Bray (New Zealand)

Tonga snatch draw in Samoa

Underdogs Tonga snatched an 18-18 draw in injury time against Samoa to launch the Pacific Nations Cup tournament in dramatic fashion in Apia on Saturday.

The clock had ticked a minute past full-time with Manu Samoa clinging to an 18-15 lead when Tongan lock Josh Afu was pulled down in a line-out.

Referee Wayne Barnes had no hesitation awarding the penalty and Tongan replacement back Fangatapu Apikotoa calmly slotted the difficult 40-metre shot at goal.

Before a capacity crowd of more than 14,000, Samoa — ranked ninth in the world, four places higher than Tonga — were expected to produce a much improved performance from when they were humbled 33-14 by Japan last month.

But the injection of their senior professionals from Europe, who were absent in Tokyo, did little to lift their game and the crowd was silenced in the 21st minute when Tonga's right winger, Otulea Katoa scooted over to score the first try of the match.

Fly-half Latiume Fosita landed the conversion from wide out for the visitors to lead 7-0.

In the closing stages of the first half, Fautua Otto opened Samoa's account with a 65-metre run to the line before Afu crossed for Tonga to turn with a 12-5 lead.

A penalty by Tusi Pisi at the 60-minute mark saw Samoa close the gap to two points, and with 12 minutes to go Samoa captain David Lemi scored with Pisi's conversion giving the home side the lead for the first time.

In a whirlwind end to the game Latiume landed a penalty for Tonga to level the scores at 15-15, Samoa immediately edged ahead with another Pisi penalty before Fangatapu stepped up to land the equaliser.

The scorers:

For Samoa:
Tries:  Otto, Lemi
Con:  Pisi
Pens:  Pisi 2
Yellow card:  Johnston

For Tonga:
Tries:  Katoa, Afu
Con:  Fosita
Pens:  Fosita, Apikotoa
Yellow card:  Taufa

Samoa:  15 Fa'atoina Autagavaia, 14 Fautua Otto, 13 Alapati Leiua, 12 Johnny Leota, 11 David Lemi (C), 10 Tusi Pisi, 9 Jeremy Sua, 8 Taiasina Tuifua, 7 Jack Lam, 6 Falfili Levave, 5 Filo Paulo, 4 Kane Thompson, 3 Logovi'i Mulipola, 2 Wayne Ole Avei, 1 Sakaria Taulafo.
Replacements:  16 Ti'i Paulo, 17 Anthony Perenise, 18 Census Johnston, 19 Daniel Leo, 20 Ofisa Treviranus, 21 Kahn Fotuali'i , 22 George Pisi, 23 Anitele'a Tuilagi.

Tonga:  15 David Halaifonua, 14 Otulea Katoa, 13 Siale Piutau, 12 Fraser Anderson, 11 Alaska Taufa, 10 Latiume Fosita, 9 Samisoni Fisilau, 8 Viliami Ma'afu, 7 Nili Latu (C), 6 Pasuka Mapakaitolo, 5 Lisiate Fa'aoso, 4 Josh Afu, 3 Sila Puafisi, 2 Suliasi Taufalele, 1 Tevita Mailau,
Replacements:  16 Paula Ngauamo, 17 Kama Sakalia, 18 Eddie Aholelei, 19 Daniel Faleafa, 20 Viliami Fihaki, 21 Sonatane Takulua, 22 Fangatapu Apikotoa, 23 Fetu'u Vainikolo.

All Blacks stutter past England

Conrad Smith's late try settled an enthralling contest in Auckland as England pushed New Zealand all the way in a 20-15 win for the All Blacks.

Smith's finish in the corner settled a contest in which for 75 minutes the world champions were utterly rattled by Stuart Lancaster's tight-knit squad, who humbled their critics.

So little was expected of England that their first-half salvo seemingly caught everyone off guard, the All Blacks searching for some rhythm as England's kicking game forced errors.

Kieran Read's absence was more sorely felt than expected despite the experience of Jerome Kaino in the eight jersey, England getting the better of the collisions.  Their captain, Chris Robshaw, was outstanding.

Big names for New Zealand went missing.  Israel Dagg was arguably the biggest culprit, hauled off with 25 minutes to go.  Dane Coles laboured.  So much had been made about England being scratchy and deprived of their best players, but New Zealand were dismal until their final surge.

England have only ever won twice in New Zealand - 1973 and 2003.  The All Blacks haven't lost at Eden Park since 1994.  This simply wasn't meant to be as close.  It was stunning.

Ma'a Nonu's streetwise but illegal slight of hand was crucial to stop James Haskell from latching onto Robshaw's opening burst, the England captain carrying his men behind enemy lines.  Burns scored his first points as England landed the primary blow.

Burns was easily under the greatest pressure, the number ten from Gloucester hungry to put a dismal season behind him.

His first penalty was true, but a kick to the corner wasn't quite judged to perfection.  He had to be inch-perfect at Eden Park, but showed great bravery in defence.

Asking England to remain error-free for the entire 80 minutes though was impossible.

Jonny May's knock-on set up New Zealand with an attacking scrum, Cruden knocking over the first points for the All Blacks after England went offside.

Robshaw and Burns though were in control.  Consecutive penalties from the soon to be Leicester number ten established a 9-3 lead for the visitors as they dominated the territory, doing the basics well but not without the odd mistake.

Eden Park felt oddly flat.  For many, England being so competitive was a surprise, let alone to be ahead.

Still, this was New Zealand's first match since November.  The rusty edge had to wear off eventually, Cory Jane's chip over the top leaving Manu Tuilagi in a foot race to prevent the game's first try.

Overall in the opening half though, they were way off the pace.  England in turn were smart, finding the touch with their kicks to the corner and inspired by a tenacious Robshaw.  The scrum made in-roads.  Geoff Parling, back in the starting XV, had his lineout ticking over.

What had seemed completely impossible - a win at Eden Park - suddenly didn't feel so unrealistic.  But England were too clever, losing concentration as Joe Launchbury ran into a double tackle and was penalised for holding on.

Cruden tied things up at 9-9 ahead of the interval, a pretty decent return considering the lack of flow in New Zealand's play.  Burns' drop-goal attempt as the hooter sounded fell wide to the left.

Where was the All Blacks' backlash?  England's decision making had to be perfect but May nearly landed them in trouble with a headless run near his own line when the boot would have been preferable.

An open contest favoured the All Blacks but England's scrum was on top, both sides belting the leather of the ball in a search for territory.

Kaino came closest to the first try, the ball just not rolling up his fingers in the chase or Aaron Smith's kick with the line beckoning.

The five-metre scrum for England should have been a concern for the visitors but they turned into gold, Morgan's thundering run set up a Kyle Eastmond break that struck a match under the contest.  Forget about the Kiwi backlash, this felt like England's to win.

May, so enigmatic and at times infuriating, found the outside arc and his kick had Barrett scrambling back by his own line and forced to concede the penalty.  Burns, perfect up to his point, landed the crucial kick.

Tuilagi straying offside handed New Zealand a reprieve as Cruden tied things up again at 12-12.

When Brodie Retallick cantered into the loose, showing impressive speed for a man of his stature after he latched onto the error of Ben Youngs, Marland Yarde in a desperate act slowed the ball down and was sin-binned for his troubles, Cruden booting the All Backs into the lead unbelievably for the first time.

What a time for Danny Cipriani to enter the fray.  His speedy break put England behind the defensive line and with Burns off, the Sale man was charged with kicking the resultant penalty to tie up the scores.  Nerves of steel brought the scores level once again.

The injection of Keven Mealamu's experience and skill always felt like it might have an impact and his turnover did the job winning a penalty that Cruden was surely certain to kick.

But New Zealand were fed up of playing on the back foot.  Taking it quick, Cruden tries to make the space for Barrett and Vito leading to Wyatt Crockett charging for the line.  Only the TMO could decide whether he made the line.  Not given.  Had the gamble backfired?

Not with Conrad Smith around.  The great centre was there in the corner receiving the brilliant pass from his namesake Ben to wrap up a contest the All Blacks must have never envisaged would be so close.  Eden Park erupted, with relief more than jubilation.

England will have been stung, but the cavalry are coming and they have won the respect of the All Blacks.  New Zealand will get much, much better.

The scorers:

For New Zealand:
Try:  C.Smith
Pens:  Cruden 5

For England:
Pens:  Burns 4, Cipriani
Yellow Card:  Yarde

New Zealand:  15 Israel Dagg, 14 Ben Smith, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Cory Jane, 10 Aaron Cruden, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Jerome Kaino, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Liam Messam, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Tony Woodcock
Replacements:  16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Charlie Faumuina, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Victor Vito, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Beauden Barrett, 23 Malakai Fekitoa

England:  15 Mike Brown, 14 Marland Yarde, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Kyle Eastmond, 11 Jonny May, 10 Freddie Burns, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 James Haskell, 5 Geoff Parling, 4 Joe Launchbury, 3 David Wilson, 2 Rob Webber, 1 Joe Marler
Replacements:  16 Joe Gray, 17 Matt Mullan, 18 Henry Thomas, 19 Dave Attwood, 20 Tom Johnson, 21 Lee Dickson, 22 Danny Cipriani, 23 Chris Pennell

Referee:  Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant Referees:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Jérôme Garcès (France)
TMO:  George Ayoub (Australia)

Brave Blossoms sting Samoa

Japan weathered an early storm to race to a 33-14 victory over Samoa, their seventh win on the trot, but just their third in 13 clashes with the Pacific Islanders, in Tokyo on Friday.

Full-back Ayumu Goromaru kicked a total of 18 points, while winger Yoshikazu Fujita seared over for a brace of tries as the Brave Blossoms overturned a 7-0 deficit to blitz their hard-hitting rivals.

With head coach Eddie Jones, the man credited with masterminding the continual growth of the game in Japan targeting a quarter-final spot at next year's World Cup, the win will offer his side some psychological benefit as Samoa join Japan, Scotland, USA and South Africa in Pool B in England.

"We've broken the record with seven wins in a row," Jones told reporters.  "That's a fantastic achievement.  Our target next week is to make it eight."

"We made hard work of it but the great thing is we created a lot of opportunities.  I really liked the attitude of the players today and obviously we can improve."

"It was a big Test for us as we build for the World Cup," admitted Samoa counterpart Steven Betham.

"We learn from our mistakes and move on.  Japan work well as a unit.  They have made big strides in the last couple of years."

England score 50 in Rome rout

England cantered to a simple 52-11 win over Italy in the Rome sunshine, but fell short of matching Ireland's points difference.

It Seven tries, including a double for Mike Brown, saw England finish this year's championship with four wins from five matches and a points difference of plus 73, but eight short of Ireland with Joe Schmidt's side to play in Paris later on Saturday.

The sense in the build-up had always been that Italy wouldn't be able to live with England's tempo, which had undone the best efforts of Ireland and Wales at Twickenham in recent weeks.

Their standout backs — Danny Care, Owen Farrell, Luther Burrell and Mike Brown — were all instrumental as ever, with Brown setting the try-scoring benchmark for Yoann Huget to match later on after scoring his third and fourth tries of the 2014 Six Nations.

Whatever happens in Paris, England have improved considerably in all facets of their play in this championship and deepened their squad in the process.  Silverware or not, this has been a successful seven weeks for Stuart Lancaster and his team.  It was their biggest win in Rome since 2004.

Early dominance for Italy's scrum came as no surprise, a shot of concern running through the England fans at the sight of David Wilson down receiving treatment within the first five minutes.

Orquera opened the hosts' account after England's front row stood up for the second time.

With Rome basked in perfect sunshine there were no excuses for the number of knock-ons in the first ten minutes.  Too often England looked for the finished product out wide rather than building the phases, but Farrell did add his first three points eventually to level the scores.

Patient would always end in points and Mike Brown (who else) benefited from a fine break and offload from Luther Burrell, fending off the tackle of Luke McLean and having enough speed to finish in the corner.

Leonardo Sarto couldn't match Burrell's speed of thought when presented with a simple three-on-one though, England scampering back in defence following Nowell's knock-on with Farrell providing the key tackle.  It was a wasted chance by the Azzurri.

Their scrum though remained a source of points.  Orquera kicked a second penalty after 20 minutes, cutting the gap to four.

England's ambition to play wide was encouraging but they lacked the direction, a quality that Burrell with his lines and power possesses in abundance.  A burst into the Italian 22 should have ended with more points.

The touchline was certainly Italy's friend, the space out wide too tempting for England to resist when an overlap was squandered through a miss-pass to Dylan Hartley with advantage being played.  It ended eventually in a second try, England biding their time under the Italian posts and pouncing through Farrell latching onto Care's flat pass.

A third try before half-time would give England a real tilt at their points difference target.  From Care's tapped penalty they surged up to ten metres out, only for crossing to undo their good work initially.

They didn't have to wait long.  Shifting the Italian defence around until the holes on the inside grew too vast to ignore, Farrell offloaded to the on-rushing Brown for his second try of the first half and fourth of the tournament to send England into the break up 24-6.

Michele Campagnaro had sparkled for Italy against Wales and threatened to do the same with a burst after the interval, but a lost boot and forward pass brought his effort to an end.

Even the Italian scrum was fading, the stronghold turned against the head by England in the Azzurri 22, but a tapped penalty was mis-executed when it mattered in a messy opening ten minutes to the second period from both sides.

Care's enthusiasm was relentless, Burrell just missing out on a try when the ball was kicked from his hand as the centre stretched for the line.  Marco Bortolami headed to the bin to worsen Italy's growing problems.

A first England try for Jack Nowell left the English players beaming, the 20-year-old from Exeter Chiefs benefiting from first-phase ball at the scrum as Care and Brown drew in the defence to send him over in the corner.

Manu Tuilagi entered the fray for Burrell in his first appearance for England since against Wales in Cardiff as the game loosened up, the annoyance on Burrell's face a positive for England rather than a negative.

It took three tacklers to bring Tuilagi down in England's latest foray into Italian territory as Mako Vunipola scored England's fifth try — delivered on a platter by Billy Twelvetrees as the Lions prop trundled over from two metres out.

Three converted tries away from Ireland's total with 20 minutes to go, England certainly had hope.  Tuilagi ran flat onto a Farrell pass and broke the last tackle to add England's sixth.  45-6 with 12 minutes left.

That was dented by an interception try from Sarto, his second five-pointer of this year, as Joe Launchbury forced a wide pass in possibly his only error of the championship to date.

George Ford came on for his second cap as England restored their former U20 midfield partnership with Farrell shifting to inside centre, but the points difference task appeared beyond England now.

A combination of substitutes and indiscipline hindered England's challenge until a long run from Dave Attwood appeared to put England in position for a seventh try.  The frenetic tempo got the better of Farrell, holding Edoardo Gori around the neck and slamming him to the ground in frustration.

There was enough time for one more try, fittingly from their captain Chris Robshaw, but this was an impressive ending to a fine championship from England, as their attention turned to Paris hoping for a favour from France.

Man of the Match:  The player of the tournament without question, Mike Brown shone and scored two tries.

Moment of the Match:  Oddly enough it was the interception from Leonardo Sarto, which just stopped the English momentum and put the points difference target out of sight.

Villain of the Match:  Nothing overly nasty to report.

The scorers:

For Italy:
Try:  Sarto
Pens:  Orquera 2
Yellow Card:  Bortolami

For England:
Tries:  Brown 2, Farrell, Nowell, Vunipola, Tuilagi, Robshaw
Cons:  Farrell 7
Pen:  Farrell

Italy:  15 Luke McLean, 14 Angelo Esposito, 13 Michele Campagnaro, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Leonardo Sarto, 10 Luciano Orquera, 9 Tito Tebaldi, 8 Sergio Parisse (c), 7 Robert Barbieri, 6 Joshua Furno, 5 Marco Bortolami, 4 Quintin Geldenhuys, 3 Lorenzo Cittadini, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 1 Matias Aguero.
Replacements:  16 Davide Giazzon, 17 Michele Rizzo, 18 Alberto de Marchi, 19 George Fabio Biagi, 20 Paul Derbyshire, 21 Edoardo Gori, 22 Tommaso Allan.  23 Andrea Masi.

England:  15 Mike Brown, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Luther Burrell, 12 Billy Twelvetrees, 11

Ireland crowned Six Nations champions

Ireland were crowned Six Nations champions on Saturday after beating France 22-20, giving Brian O'Driscoll the perfect send-off from Test rugby.

It It wasn't pretty and France came mighty close to snatching victory at the end but for a forward pass, but Ireland won't care as they claimed their first title since 2009, a second for most of this squad.

O'Driscoll put in a full 80 minute performance against a rampaging Mathieu Bastareaud as two tries from Jonathan Sexton and one from Andrew Trimble ultimately got the better of the French.

Les Bleus will wonder, however, what might have been as Jean-Marc Doussain's missed penalty late on was another blunder on the hosts' part.

It was though to be Ireland's day as they held on for the title under Joe Schmidt, with O'Driscoll alongside Paul O'Connell with the silverware.

France began the game much-improved from last weekend's narrow win over Scotland as the return of Louis Picamoles and Bastareaud's power putting them on the front foot.  The team's hunger and territorial dominance led to Maxime Machenaud kicking two penalties amid the early sparring at the Stade de France.

Those three-pointers — on minutes two and fourteen — put France 0-6 to the good as the game somewhat struggled to excite under Kiwi match referee Steve Walsh.

One reason why the contest was slow in tempo was due to scrum issues as official Walsh threatened to card loosehead prop Thomas Domingo but held off showing him yellow.

Ireland wouldn't have been concerned about the lack of a card though as they were now on top with a quarter played and found their reward following a lovely offload from Chris Henry.  That pass from the Ulster flanker saw Sexton go over for the opener in successive weeks.

However, as became a worry in the first-half, Sexton missed the conversion and then just before the break a relatively simple penalty attempt as he looked uneasy in front of goal.

So les Bleus were still leading 5-6 at that point but five minutes later it would be Ireland hitting the front, with the French ruck defence non-existent.  The score arrived from an initial carry up the middle from O'Driscoll before Conor Murray attacked the fringe and then found Trimble for the try.  This time Sexton was on target to give Ireland a six-point advantage.

Ireland could smell blood and many expected them to go for the jugular as the French looked disorganised.  However, a moment of class from fly-half Remi Tálès saw him kick across to Yoann Huget on the sideline who fed Brice Dulin for the try with a lovely tap-down.

The excellent conversion from Racing Metro number nine Machenaud — making it 12-13 — would later sum up the difference between the teams at the break — place-kicking.

Tálès smartly looked to extend the lead when near the Irish 22 but his drop-goal attempt on 36 minutes was wayward before France's woes at scrum-time would be compounded by the loss to injury of Nicolas Mas.  It appeared the tighthead prop hyper-extended his arm.

France though were heading into half-time leading but arguably shouldn't have been when Domingo was penalised for side entry.  Coach Philippe Saint-Andre's reaction to his prop's indiscretion illustrated his and the crowd's frustration.  Luckily for the hosts, Sexton missed.

Ireland had 40 minutes to save the Championship, which seemed likely when a break-out sparked by Rob Kearney led to Trimble running down the right before handing O'Driscoll a possible crossing.  The centre was hauled down just five metres short however, but the recycled ball saw Sexton hit a fine line off Murray.  The conversion scraped over for 19-13.

Sexton would, fortunately for Ireland, re-find his kicking boots five minutes later when he sent over another three points that gave the visitors much-needed daylight on the night.

But then came a real moment of controversy as hooker Szarzewski grounded against the post, with Walsh seeing it as a certain try.  However, the replay showed the front-row forward dropped the ball in the act.  There was no doubt about Machenaud's conversion though.

France were now back within touching distance as changes were made on both sides, one being Machenaud surprisingly replaced by Doussain at the base.  And unfortunately for Saint-Andre that decision backfired as Doussain missed a penalty won by his side's scrum set-piece before a forward pass from Pascal Pape foiled a late try for Damien Chouly.

Ireland subsequently held on and with it came the spoils.

Man of the match:  The official award went to Brian O'Driscoll on his farewell game and we won't argue with that.  Back-to-back gongs for the veteran centre, who says goodbye in style.

Moment of the match:  France had the title in reach when Jean-Marc Doussain lined up a penalty with time running out.  He missed and thus came the feeling this was Ireland's day.

Villain of the match:  Nothing malicious to report.

The scorers:

For France:
Tries:  Dulin, Szarzewski
Con:  Machenaud 2
Pen:  Machenaud 2

For Ireland:
Tries:  Sexton 2, Trimble
Con:  Sexton 2
Pen:  Sexton

France:  15 Brice Dulin, 14 Yoann Huget, 13 Mathieu Bastareaud, 12 Gaël Fickou, 11 Maxime Médard, 10 Remi Tálès, 9 Maxime Machenaud, 8 Damien Chouly, 7 Alexandre Lapandry, 6 Louis Picamoles, 5 Yoann Maestri, 4 Pascal Papé, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 Dimitri Szarzewski, 1 Thomas Domingo.
Replacements:  16 Guilhem Guirado, 17 Vincent Debaty, 18 Rabah Slimani, 19 Alexandre Flanquart, 20 Sébastien Vahaamahina, 21 Wenceslas Lauret, 22 Jean-Marc Doussain, 23 Maxime Mermoz.

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Brian O'Driscoll, 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Dave Kearney, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Chris Henry, 6 Peter O'Mahony, 5 Paul O'Connell (c), 4 Devin Toner, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Jack McGrath, 18 Martin Moore, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Jordi Murphy, 21 Eoin Reddan, 22 Ian Madigan, 23 Fergus McFadden.

Referee:  Steve Walsh (Australia)

Hogg off as Wales thump Scotland

Wales rounded off their Six Nations campaign with a 51-3 triumph over Scotland, who had Stuart Hogg sent-off with a quarter of the game played.

It Hogg was shown red after initially being given a yellow card by referee Jérôme Garcès.  Replays duly saw the Frenchman change his mind.

There were no complaints as the full-back took out Dan Biggar after the ball had gone, with the impact seeing the hosts' number ten floored.

From then on it was smooth sailing for Wales, who went from 10-3 in front to a 27-3 scoreline at the break.  That would, of course, increase.

The game began badly for Scotland when captain Kelly Brown was taken off with suspected concussion, replaced by Alasdair Strokosch.

Brown's departure came after Greig Laidlaw had put the visitors into an early lead before Biggar replied with eight minutes played in Cardiff.

Then came the first of seven tries at the Millennium Stadium as Liam Williams got the ball rolling, finishing off an overlap created by a solid burst up the heart of the Scottish defence.  Biggar landed the difficult extras to make it 10-3 ahead of full-back Hogg's moment of madness.

It was always going to be game over from then on as Biggar extended the gap to ten points off the tee on 23 minutes before Laidlaw missed one.

Williams, in for the injured Leigh Halfpenny, was then involved again as he rose highest close to halfway before setting off down the left as Scotland couldn't cope with the Welsh runners.  Williams' offload to Mike Phillips was followed by the try assist from the scrum-half to George North, who stepped David Denton en route to well-taken score.  Biggar was on-target again to make it 20-3 as Scotland's fans who made the journey hung their heads.

The first half wasn't done there though as Jamie Roberts was the next to cross, with a nice interchange with North and Jonathan Davies seeing the inside centre over.  Biggar's conversion made it a 24-point advantage at the break.  Scotland wished it was full-time.

North was over for his second inside a minute of the resumption but Biggar this time missed the extras — at this stage it was all about how many tries they would score.

More duly came as inside centre Roberts finished off another lovely passage from Wales, with Scotland now chasing shadows as the scoreline climbed to 39-3 at a frantic rate.

On 52 minutes it was time for Wales' sixth try of the match as simple numbers once again created space for Faletau, who had an easy run-in on the right wing as the hosts moved into the forties.  Both sides would then throw on replacements as the tempo dropped in Cardiff.

Thus followed a scoreless 22-minute period before Wales clicked once more, this time via the fresh legs of Rhodri Williams, who finished off a kick through from James Hook to score arguably the try of the game.  Hook was then successful with the extras to bring up the 50 and rub further salt into Scottish wounds as Scott Johnson moves upstairs on a poor note.

Man of the match:  The absence of Leigh Halfpenny was expected to be a sizeable blow to Wales but a combination of numerical advantage coupled with Liam Williams' performance cushioned his loss.  We must mention that even before the red card Williams was electric at the back and fully deserves this gong and his early try for that matter.  Williams and Dan Biggar received rapturous applause from the home supporters when they came off.

Moment of the match:  See below.

Villain of the match:  Minute 22 at the Millennium Stadium and the act Scotland full-back Stuart Hogg will regret for a long time.  His shoulder contact with the chin of Dan Biggar cost his side any chance of a result as he received a red card.  The match was ultimately over.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  L Williams, North 2, Roberts 2, Faletau, R Williams
Con:  Biggar 4, Hook
Pen:  Biggar 2

For Scotland:
Pen:  Laidlaw
Red card:

Wales:  15 Liam Williams, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 George North, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun-Wyn Jones, 4 Luke Charteris, 3 Rhodri Jones, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Richard Hibbard, 17 Paul James, 18 Adam Jones, 19 Jake Ball, 20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Rhodri Williams, 22 Rhys Priestland, 23 James Hook.

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Dougie Fife, 13 Alex Dunbar, 12 Matt Scott, 11 Max Evans, 10 Duncan Weir, 9 Greig Laidlaw, 8 Dave Denton, 7 Kelly Brown (c), 6 Ryan Wilson, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Geoff Cross, 2 Scott Lawson, 1 Ryan Grant.
Replacements:  16 Ross Ford, 17 Al Dickinson, 18 Euan Murray, 19 Tim Swinson, 20 Al Strokosch, 21 Chris Cusiter, 22 Duncan Taylor, 23 Jack Cuthbert.

Referee:  Jérôme Garcès (Fra)
Assistant referees:  Chris Pollock (NZ), Greg Garner (Eng)
TMO:  Graham Hughes (Eng)

England thrill to crush Wales

England put last year's humbling in Cardiff to rest with an assured performance in their 29-18 victory over Wales at Twickenham on Sunday.

It First-half tries from Danny Care and Luther Burrell gave England the early advantage and they never looked back, keeping the lead throughout as Owen Farrell and Leigh Halfpenny fought each other in a world-class kicking duel.

There is no longer any doubt though;  Wales are not the best team in Europe anymore.  Bar their breakdown prowess, which was exceptional, crucial failures at key times in the scrum, line-out and defence brought the two-time champions title defence to an end.

Had it not been for soft penalties conceded by England in the opening 40 then the scoreline would have read even less in Wales' favour.  Against Scotland there is now an opportunity for Warren Gatland to experiment.

For England it was all about progress.  Even had they lost, which they should never have done based on their performance in the first-half, there were enough encouraging moments to keep believing that they are still building towards next year.

The likes of Joe Launchbury, Courtney Lawes and Owen Farrell have all stepped up a level and in doing so secured England's first Triple Crown since 2003.

England's opening break came from the most unlikely of sources;  David Wilson cantering into space and laying the platform for Care to eventually catch Wales off guard with a trademark tap penalty.

Starting the match at a million miles an hour had Wales napping, but England's ambition then became over-exuberance.  Attempting to play out of their own 22, Wales won a penalty at the breakdown for Halfpenny to slot over from out on the right.

Wales were nervy.  The small parts of their game, tiny knock-ons included, were a hindrance.

Jonathan Davies' pass to George North went just behind him — had it gone to hand then England would have been in trouble.  North still had a chance with a grubber only to watch it roll dead.

It was England's turn now to win a penalty at the scrum, Richard Hibbard popping up to allow Farrell to restore the home side's seven-point advantage.

Jonny May then embarked on one of his cross-field runs.  Even the Gloucester wing admits he doesn't always know where his breaks will take him, but when isolated over on the far side — after some brilliant tracking defence from Jamie Roberts — Wales won the penalty at the breakdown for Halfpenny to kick his second three-pointer.

England's attack however kept Wales working, the likes of Sam Warburton racking up tackles but a discrepancy was never far away.  Farrell added another penalty to restore that seven-point gap — 13-6 to England coming up to the half hour.

There was sparkle from Wales thanks to a burst from Roberts into space, but the breakdown remained their main source of points.  Nowell ran into the same lair that scuppered May moments earlier, Wales too savvy in that area to let a chance slip as another penalty followed from Halfpenny.  He never looked like missing.

Billy Twelvetrees then displayed a similarly perfect touch with the boot.  Farrell's kick had pinned Wales back into a corner and when Warburton failed to reel in the ball at the line-out, England pounced.  The grubber from Twelvetrees bounced up kindly for Burrell to score his third try in four games.

Halfpenny still couldn't miss, adding two more penalties before half-time arrived to leave Wales five points adrift at the break.

England though now controlled the scrum.  Consecutive penalties pushed the hosts from within their 22 to a 30-metre shot at goal for Farrell which put England 23-15 ahead.

Wales were chasing, and not very well.  First, a horrendous kick from Roberts killed an overlap on the outside from which Wales should have scored.  Then they lost Gethin Jenkins to the bin on his 104th cap, something referee Romain Poite looked to have been itching to do for some time.

Halfpenny countered Farrell's fourth penalty with his seventh, but Wales were again penalised for Farrell to keep the champions at arm's length at 29-18.

It took Wales until the 61st minute to replace struggling Rhys Priestland.  His game management paled sorely in comparison to that of Farrell, who continually appeared to thread kicks into the corners.

With the likes of Mike Phillips, Dan Biggar and Paul James now on Wales had a jolt of intensity, a reminder for England that the job was not yet done.

A break from turnover ball deep in England's half nearly ended in a second try for Burrell, Halfpenny doing enough to keep him out with a try-saving tackle that saw him depart with an injury.

There was no time though for Wales to respond.  Instead an ecstatic Twickenham crowd savoured the closing minutes, with the side now heading to Rome hoping for a favour off France and with their title hopes still alive.  For Wales, there are more questions than answers.

Man of the Match:  With a barn-storming afternoon filled with huge tackles and some impressive carries, Courtney Lawes stood taller than anyone else.  This though was a team effort.

Moment of the Match:  The fastest start.  England flew out of the blocks and with Wales bewildered, Danny Care made them pay to give them the lead.

Villian of the Match:  Refereeing interpretations at the scrum are always up for debate but after Gethin Jenkins had already been warned, he should either have been brought off or adjusted.  From the moment he went to the bin the result was settled.

The scorers:

For England:
Tries:  Care, Burrell
Cons:  Farrell 2
Pens:  Farrell 5

For Wales:
Pens:  Halfpenny 6
Yellow Card:  Jenkins

England:  15 Mike Brown, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Luther Burrell, 12 Billy Twelvetrees, 11 Jonny May, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Danny Care, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 Tom Wood, 5 Courtney Lawes, 4 Joe Launchbury, 3 David Wilson, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Joe Marler.
Replacements:  16 Tom Youngs, 17 Mako Vunipola, 18 Henry Thomas, 19 David Attwood, 20 Tom Johnson, 21 Lee Dickson, 22 George Ford, 23 Alex Goode

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jon Davies, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 George North, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Rhys Webb, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Jake Ball, 4 Alun Wyn Jones, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Gethin Jenkins
Replacements:  16 Ken Owens, 17 Paul James, 18 Rhodri Jones, 19 Andrew Coombs, 20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Mike Phillips, 22 Dan Biggar, 23 Liam Williams

Referee:  Romain Poite (Fra)
Assistant referees:  Steve Walsh (Aus), Lourens van der Merwe (RSA)
TMO:  Simon McDowell (Ire)

France edge out Scotland

Jean-Marc Doussain kicked a 78th minute penalty to see France claim a 19-17 win over Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday.

It The Scots had led through tries from Stuart Hogg and Tommy Seymour to three Maxime Machenaud penalties, before Yoann Huget's interception brought France roaring back into the lead.

A long-range Duncan Weir three-pointer renewed the hosts' belief, but it was Doussain's effort inside the 22 that dealt Scott Johnson's men a gut-wrenching finale.

Kiwi referee Chris Pollock is traditionally strict on the defensive team at the breakdown, and the words "no clear release" crackled over his microphone time and again as players piled into rucks.  The New Zealander may require a police presence at his city-centre hotel this evening, however, after he penalised Scotland's Tim Swinson — predictably for the same offence — for Doussain's decisive kick.

Scotland's line-out woes are painfully well-documented, but it was the French who lost their way in the aerial duel.  Third-choice hooker Brice Mach missed his man on seven from ten occasions before being substituted early in the second half.

Up front, the scrums were a mess.  Pollock dished out instructions aplenty, but time-consuming resets were the norm on the scrappy Murrayfield turf.  The signs were ominous for the Scots as their first set-piece crashed to ground ninety seconds into the match, allowing Maxime Machenaud the chance to open to the scores with a well-taken penalty.

The hosts were let off the hook minutes later too;  a Scott Lawson knock-on sparked a sweeping sixty-metre counter-attack from les Bleus, with Maxime Mermoz scragged metres short of the line.  A try eluded the visitors, but the pressure yielded a second penalty for the scrum-half.

Despite the early scoreline, the Scots were enjoying the bulk of possession, building phases well inside the French half.  And after Jim Hamilton charged down Machenaud on the visitors' 22, Hogg hoisted a speculative hanging kick deep into the gaping Murrayfield in-goal area.  Under pressure from Sean Lamont, the ball was fumbled by Huget, allowing the full-back to pounce and ground somewhat dubiously for one the more bizarre tries the famous old ground has seen in recent years.  Greig Laidlaw knocked over the extras, and suddenly the hosts were in the lead.

Straight from the kick-off, however, Dave Denton lost the ball in contact on his own 22;  the French gathered and pounded the line.  The way the Scots repelled the advances of the visitors was admirable, but Hamilton was eventually penalised in the shadow of his own posts.  Machenaud kicked France ahead again, while the stretcher was driven on and carted off again carrying Johnnie Beattie — who had taken a knock during the move — with it.  Ryan Wilson replaced the blindside flanker.

That didn't faze Scotland, as they drove their way into the French 22 once more, and produced an uncharacteristically astute piece of backline play to cross the line again.  With a flash of zip more associated with their opponents, Matt Scott caught out the drifting blindside defence with a delightful inside ball to the onrushing Seymour.  The winger scythed through the gap and dived over in the corner;  Laidlaw slotted a fine conversion, and Johnson's charges began to believe.

The visitors continued to look dangerous when presented with turnover ball or loose touchfinders, though;  Hogg's attempted drop goal almost leading to a Serge Blanco-esque counter from Brice Dulin under his own posts.

Hamilton was — perhaps harshly — pinged for his over-exuberant infiltration of a collapsed French maul on half-time, but Machenaud was wide with his fourth penalty attempt, leaving the Scots five points to the good at the break.

What they did next was typical of this side's maddening tendency to shoot themselves in the foot.  In truth, it was terribly Scottish.  The hosts had disrupted a French maul on the five-metre line so effectively as to steal back possession;  the ball was swept left, the overlap was there, the supporters were already cheering try number three.

But Duncan Weir, with any number of options outside him, floated his pass to the one place it would not find a white jersey.  Huget, gambling to nothing, picked it off and sprinted eighty metres to score untouched.  Machenaud knocked over the simple conversion.

The Scots should have been shellshocked;  the game should have turned in a flash.  But Johnson's men showed a resolve and indeed accuracy they have seldom displayed in this Championship.  Play opened up and became more fragmented;  a development that should have favoured the French, but appeared to suit the Scots' desire to give the ball some air when they could.

Trailing by two points, Laidlaw's near-fifty-metre penalty attempt fell agonisingly under the crossbar, but when the French infringed again in the same area, it was Weir who had a chance to make amends for his earlier interception.  The Glasgow Warriors pivot showed great character to step up and drill his kick over.

As the French error count grew, so did the confidence of the home crowd, the mood in the stands very audibly shifting from disbelief to bullishness as a series of French scrums thirty-five metres out yielded nothing but a Scottish put-in, and Mermoz spurned a fine attacking opportunity on the Scottish 22 by spilling the ball.

Another scrum penalty just shy of halfway offered Weir the chance to take the gap beyond the crucial three point margin with five minutes remaining, but the fly-half could not repeat his goal-kicking heroics, pushing his effort just wide of the uprights.

It would be terribly cruel to lay blame for the loss at the door of the 22-year-old, but his interception pass combined with that difficult miss left the gap at two points as the clocked ticked by.  With a minute left, the Scottish dream turned nightmarish as Pollock blew up metres from the home line.  Doussain did not wilt under the defeaning racket of 60,000 enraged Scots, and so shattered their team's chances of a first win over France since 2006.

Man of the Match:  Plenty of candidates, but Hogg gets the nod for his vision in attack, and booming boot that frequently kept the Scots out of their own half.

Moment of the Match:  Huget's try should have been seminal, but it was Doussain's penalty that was the ultimate difference.

Villain of the Match:  Nothing sinister to report.

The scorers:

For France:
Try:  Huget
Con:  Machenaud
Pens:  Machenaud 3, Doussain

For Scotland:
Tries:  Hogg, Seymour
Cons:  Laidlaw 2
Pen:  Weir

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Alex Dunbar, 12 Matt Scott, 11 Sean Lamont, 10 Duncan Weir, 9 Greig Laidlaw, 8 Dave Denton, 7 Kelly Brown (c), 6 Johnnie Beattie, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Geoff Cross, 2 Scott Lawson, 1 Ryan Grant.
Replacements:  16 Ross Ford, 17 Moray Low, 18 Euan Murray, 19 Tim Swinson, 20 Ryan Wilson, 21 Chris Cusiter, 22 Duncan Taylor, 23 Max Evans

France:  15 Brice Dulin, 14 Yoann Huget, 13 Mathieu Bastareaud, 12 Maxime Mermoz, 11 Maxime Médard, 10 Jules Plisson, 9 Maxime Machenaud, 8 Damien Chouly, 7 Alexandre Lapandry, 6 Sébastien Vahaamahina, 5 Yoann Maestri, 4 Pascal Papé, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 Brice Mach, 1 Thomas Domingo
Replacements:  18 Guilhem Guirado, 17 Vincent Debaty, 18 Rabah Slimani, 19 Alexandre Flanquart, 20 Antoine Claassen, 21 Jean-Marc Doussain, 22 Remi Tálès, 23 Gaël Fickou

Referee:  Chris Pollock (NZ)