Sunday, 9 February 2020

France see off spirited Italy for second win

France overcame a battling Italy side to secure their second win of this year's Six Nations following a 35-22 bonus-point triumph in Paris on Sunday.

Despite struggling with his goal-kicking, Romain Ntamack touched down for their fourth try as Fabien Galthie's men made it two wins from two to join Ireland as the only other team with a 100 per cent record in the competition.

Teddy Thomas, Charles Ollivon, Gregory Alldritt, Ntamack and Baptiste Serin all crossed for the French, who coasted to victory despite several phases of wayward attacking play.

Wasps' electric wing Matteo Minozzi, hooker Federico Zani and Mattia Bellini bagged tries for the battling Azzurri, but Franco Smith's side still slipped to a 24th straight Six Nations loss.

France have not won the Six Nations since their 2010 Grand Slam but, after adding this eventually facile victory over Italy to the scalping of England, hopes will be high that the drought can come to an end.

New head coach Galthie will face a strong test of their title credentials when heading to Wales on February 22 though.

Factor in the return of defence coach Shaun Edwards to his old Principality Stadium stomping ground, and that encounter will doubtless prove pivotal to the entire tournament's make-up.

Les Bleus bludgeoned into early control, Thomas racing in after neat build-up.

Flanker Ollivon then doubled the hosts' try count, punching over the line from short range.

Ntamack struggled with the ball off the tee in the increasingly stormy conditions, and a mini slump from the French allowed Italy back into the contest.

Wasps star Minozzi capped a fine 13-phase move with a morale-boosting score for the Azzurri, who had the ever-excellent Jake Polledri to thank for creating the necessary midfield space for the try.

The powerful Gloucester flanker for once opted against brute force, instead pivoting and delivering a cute pass out the back, with Braam Steyn's shy dummy line also foxing the French.

Allan's penalty just shy of the half-hour hauled Italy into touching distance at 13-10 down, but the visitors could not muster enough of a comeback to alter the outcome.

France number eight Alldritt cantered home having lurked on the left wing and been duly furnished with a superb floated pass from Antoine Dupont.

Les Bleus' petit general scrum-half had another match to remember, scampering around the fringes and directing his side in style.

And his pass out to Alldritt allowed the big forward almost a walk-in, to leave France leading 23-10 at the break.

A largely forgettable third quarter came and went without incident, before France sealed the bonus point.

Italy's first-half rally had long evaporated when Ntamack bisected the visiting defence, scything through for a facile try, and Les Bleus' fourth.

Replacement hooker Zani registered for Italy however, dotting the ball against the base of the post for the Azzurri's second try.

And that set up a needlessly nervy denouement for the French, who invited yet more pressure when Ntamack spilled a high ball.

Again the Italians were unable to make good on any kind of comeback though, and replacement half-back Serin stunned the Azzurri with a sharp quick-tap try.

The scrum-half raced clear with quick wits, grubbering to turn the defence and beating the cover to the ball to score.

Italy managed the last word, with Bellini scampering home after Jayden Hayward's break.  But France still roll on, with the defining battle yet to come in Cardiff.

The scorers:

For France:
Tries:  Thomas, Ollivon, Alldritt, Ntamack, Serin
Cons:  Ntamack, Jalibert
Pens:  Ntamack 2

For Italy:
Tries:  Minozzi, Zani, Bellini
Cons:  Allan 2
Pen:  Allan

The teams:

France:  15 Anthony Bouthier, 14 Teddy Thomas, 13 Arthur Vincent, 12 Gael Fickou, 11 Vincent Rattez, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Antoine Dupont, 8 Grégory Alldritt, 7 Charles Ollivon (c), 6 François Cros, 5 Paul Willemse, 4 Bernard Le Roux, 3 Mohamed Haouas, 2 Julien Marchand, 1 Cyril Baille
Replacements:  16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Jefferson Poirot, 18 Demba Bamba, 19 Romain Taofifenua, 20 Boris Palu, 21 Cameron Woki, 22 Baptiste Serin, 23 Matthieu Jalibert

Italy:  15 Jayden Hayward, 14 Mattia Bellini, 13 Luca Morisi, 12 Carlo Canna, 11 Matteo Minozzi, 10 Tommaso Allan, 9 Callum Braley, 8 Abraham Steyn, 7 Sebastian Negri, 6 Jake Polledri, 5 Niccolò Cannone, 4 Dean Budd, 3 Giosuè Zilocchi, 2 Luca Bigi (c), 1 Andrea Lovotti
Replacements:  16 Federico Zani, 17 Danilo Fischetti, 18 Marco Riccioni, 19 Jimmy Tuivaiti, 20 Federico Ruzza, 21 Giovanni Licata, 22 Guglielmo Palazzani, 23 Giulio Bisegni

Referee:  Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees:  Nigel Owens (Wales), Brendon Pickerill (New Zealand)
TMO:  Brian MacNeice (Ireland)


Check out the highlights from France's 35-22 victory over Italy in Paris on Sunday.

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Saturday, 8 February 2020

England regain Calcutta Cup after turgid win

Ellis Genge's try proved decisive as England won the Calcutta Cup following a 13-6 triumph over Scotland at Murrayfield in rain-sodden conditions.

Swirling wind and driving rain turned the Round Two contest into a lottery as points became a precious commodity that were fought over ferociously in a dreadful spectacle beyond the tension created.

Penalties by Owen Farrell and Adam Hastings produced a live score of 3-3 entering the final quarter and it took until the 70th minute for England to engineer the decisive moment and lift the Calcutta Cup for the first time since 2017.

They thought they had scored moments earlier when Farrell appeared to have capitalised on Stuart Hogg's hesitation under the posts, but the ensuing five-metre scrum began a barrage on the line that ended when Genge powered over.

Scotland started the second-half like a freight train but the collapse of their set-piece stripped away their foundations and England were ruthless in exploiting their weakness.

Victory ended the two-match losing run that was placing pressure on Eddie Jones while the Scots were at least able to secure a bonus point through a late penalty by Hastings.

Apart from an ill-advised up and under into the wind, England's early kicking was smart with Farrell drilling the ball low to prevent it being blown off course, although the captain was beaten by a gust as he attempted his first penalty.

A second attempt soon after was nailed and when Scotland applied pressure with the help of a George Ford clearance that was swept sideways, they escaped from their 22 as they continued to fall on the right side of referee Pascal Gauzere's whistle.

Chances to attack continued to fall the Scots' way but they yielded the ball repeatedly, albeit against English forwards who were jacking hard with Tom Curry and Sam Underhill producing steals on the ground.

The unpredictable conditions played their part again as a second Farrell penalty was dragged wide and, although Hogg was making huge ground with each clearance, his team persevered in inviting pressure on to themselves despite generally having the wind at their backs.

Hastings kicked the ball straight into touch and Jamie George was wayward with a line-out throw as both sides made errors in filthy weather that destroyed the game as a spectacle.

Pulses finally quickened as the second half got underway with a dummy by Rory Sutherland parting the white shirts and inviting the prop to make a marauding run downfield.

A sustained onslaught advancing towards the line failed to pierce the defence but Scotland were given a penalty for offside that allowed Hastings to kick three priceless points.

Knowing the difficulty of kicking into the wind, Hogg darted his way out of his 22 and when his run was coming to an end he sent the ball into touch to launch another wave of forward-led attacks.

Just as England appeared to have escaped the siege through a scrum penalty and rolling mauling, Ford sent the ball straight into touch once more and then Elliot Daly followed suit.

Scotland's set-piece had ceased functioning but Farrell, who had Genge holding the ball upright, could not make them pay from a penalty.

The pendulum swung when Hogg lacked conviction as he looked to gather a kick and, although a try was averted, he had conceded a five-metre scrum that allowed Genge to storm over with Farrell converting.

The respective kickers then traded penalties late on as the Red Rose bounced back from last weekend's defeat with a crucial victory.

The scorers:

For Scotland:
Pens:  Hastings 2

For England:
Try:  Genge
Con:  Farrell
Pens:  Farrell 2

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg (c), 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sam Johnson, 11 Blair Kinghorn, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Ali Price, 8 Magnus Bradbury, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Scott Cummings, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Fraser Brown, 1 Rory Sutherland
Replacements:  16 Stuart McInally, 17 Allan Dell, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Ben Toolis, 20 Nick Haining, 21 George Horne, 22 Rory Hutchinson, 23 Chris Harris

England:  15 George Furbank, 14 Jonny May, 13 Jonathan Joseph, 12 Owen Farrell (c), 11 Elliot Daly, 10 George Ford, 9 Willi Heinz, 8 Tom Curry, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Lewis Ludlam, 5 George Kruis, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Jamie George, 1 Mako Vunipola
Replacements:  16 Tom Dunn, 17 Ellis Genge, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Joe Launchbury, 20 Courtney Lawes, 21 Ben Earl, 22 Ben Youngs, 23 Ollie Devoto

Referee:  Pascal Gaüzère (France)
Assistant referees:  Mathieu Raynal (France), Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
TMO:  James Leckie (Australia)


Check out the highlights from England's 13-6 victory over Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday.

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Impressive Ireland too good for Wales

Ireland secured their second successive win in this year's Six Nations Championship following a thoroughly deserved 24-14 triumph over Wales in Dublin on Saturday.

After struggling against Scotland in their opening match of the tournament, they were much improved in Round Two, securing a bonus-point via scores from Jordan Larmour, Tadhg Furlong, Josh van der Flier and Andrew Conway.

It was Wales' first Six Nations defeat since Ireland beat them two years ago, while they have not won in the tournament on Irish soil for eight years.

Andy Farrell's team remain on course for a Grand Slam, but Wales' hopes of a clean sweep are over, and they could have few complaints.

Ireland captain Johnny Sexton converted two of Ireland's tries, with Wales fly-half Dan Biggar adding the extras to a sharp Tomos Williams score and Leigh Halfpenny converting flanker Justin Tipuric's touchdown in added time.

There was no doubting Ireland's supremacy as they improved considerably on last weekend's performance in beating Scotland.

Wales, though, have plenty of questions to answer during the build-up to their next game against a resurgent French team in Cardiff following Wayne Pivac's first defeat as head coach.

Ireland showed two changes from the side that beat Scotland, with centre Robbie Henshaw replacing an injured Garry Ringrose and flanker Peter O'Mahony also starting in a reshaped back-row that saw CJ Stander move to number eight instead of Caelan Doris.

Saracens centre Nick Tompkins, a try-scoring debutant off the bench in Wales' victory over Italy seven days ago, made his first Test start and George North moved back to the wing from midfield.

Wales were under immediate pressure after Ireland wing Jacob Stockdale's kick left them retreating, but a strong early scrum reaped a penalty that was cleared to touch.

The Wales forwards enjoyed early supremacy, proving technically efficient, and Ireland did not gain their first penalty until the 13th minute as both sides went about their business like two sparring boxers.

Ireland had more than a fair share of territorial control, yet just as a tight opening quarter appeared to be moving towards a scoreless conclusion, the home side struck.

They initially kept possession tight in the forwards, and when it was eventually moved wide, Larmour finished impressively after brushing off a Tompkins challenge.

Sexton made a hash of the conversion attempt, but Ireland were off and running, leading 5-0 after finding their feet in what was proving an attritional encounter.

Wales suffered a major blow 15 minutes before the interval when wing Josh Adams, who had scored 10 tries in his last eight Tests, limped off to be replaced by Johnny McNicholl.

It came just at a time when Wales needed to find an attacking spark, but their response was impressive as Biggar darted inside and outside of Irish defenders before sending a scoring pass to Williams.

Biggar's conversion made it 7-5, but Williams went from hero to villain just five minutes later.

Wales skipper Alun Wyn Jones won lineout ball deep inside his own 22, throwing the ball to Williams, but he dropped it and Ireland gained an attacking scrum from which they scored when Furlong crashed over.

Sexton converted to restore a five-point advantage, before Ireland closed out the half and trooped off holding a 12-7 lead.

Wales could not get going early in the second period, and Ireland hit them with a third try after 47 minutes when Van der Flier claimed a close-range touchdown that Sexton converted.

Wales thought they had cut the deficit 10 minutes later after Hadleigh Parkes went over, but video replays showed he lost control of the ball as he attempted a one-handed touchdown under pressure, and Ireland escaped.

It was a key scoreboard moment, and Wales did not gain another opportunity until Tipuric stretched over in the dying seconds as Ireland comfortably closed out the contest with Conway's 76th-minute try, and they will now march confidently on to Twickenham.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  Larmour, Furlong, Van der Flier, Conway
Con:  Sexton 2

For Wales:
Tries:  Williams, Tipuric
Cons:  Biggar, Halfpenny

Ireland:  15 Jordan Larmour, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Jonathan Sexton (c), 9 Conor Murray, 8 CJ Stander, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 James Ryan, 4 Iain Henderson, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Cian Healy
Replacements:  16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Andrew Porter, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Max Deegan, 21 John Cooney, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Keith Earls

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 George North, 13 Nick Tompkins, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Aaron Wainwright, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Jake Ball, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Wyn Jones
Replacements:  16 Ryan Elias, 17 Rhys Carre, 18 Leon Brown, 19 Adam Beard, 20 Ross Moriarty, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 Jarrod Evans, 23 Johnny McNicholl

Referee:  Romain Poite (France)
Assistant Referees:  Luke Pearce (England), Mike Fraser (New Zealand)
TMO:  Glenn Newman (New Zealand)


Check out the highlights from Ireland's 24-14 victory over Wales in Dublin on Saturday.

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Sunday, 2 February 2020

France fast out the blocks to claim England scalp

France's new era under head coach Fabien Galthie got off to an impressive start as they saw off bitter rivals England 24-17 in their opening Six Nations match at the Stade de France on Sunday.

Jonny May's solo masterclass saved England from humiliation in Paris as one of the worst performances of the Eddie Jones era ended in a defeat that puts a large dent in their title ambitions.

Jones had promised France "brutal physicality" but instead it was his rattled World Cup runners-up who fell victim to a ferocious onslaught as words that had caused controversy on this side of The Channel came back to haunt him.

Les Bleus stormed 24-0 ahead when captain Charles Ollivon ran in the second of his two tries in the 55th minute and that was the cue for May to conjure a pair of devastating solo tries.

For the second he beat five defenders while plotting a diagonal line to the posts in a score made possible by his extraordinary pace.

May's brilliance provided temporary inspiration but England lacked the firepower to make further inroads into the deficit in an improved final quarter they controlled and that finished with Owen Farrell landing a penalty to claim the bonus point.

A rain-swept Stade de France noisily greeted the new era launched by their head coach Galthie and the influence of his assistant Shaun Edwards was stamped all over the defensive heroics.

England, meanwhile, will lick their wounds as they come to terms with the possibility their World Cup final rout by South Africa last autumn may have left deeper scars than initially expected.

For the first time since 1988 they were held scoreless at the interval in a Championship match and it is hard to imagine a worse start as they were breached in the sixth minute by Vincent Rattez.

Once an initial attack had collapsed through Kyle Sinckler's knock-on, Teddy Thomas stormed into the 22 after skilfully evading Sam Underhill and Rattez took advantage of a weak tackle by Ben Youngs to slip over.

England's scrum ascendancy offered a foothold in the game but otherwise they were being beaten at every turn in an alarming opening quarter that deteriorated further when Romain Ntamack added a penalty to his conversion.

Manu Tuilagi left the field in the 16th minute, although there was no obvious sign of injury, and soon after France went over for a controversial second try through Ollivon.

Ollivon challenged for a kick and it was unclear whether its struck him or Courtney Lawes before falling to Rattez who sped forward before supplying his openside with the scoring pass.

England disputed the try, saying the ball had hit Ollivon's arm, but referee Nigel Owens disagreed and they only had themselves to blame as they stopped playing in anticipation of the decision that went ultimately went against them.

Underhill was smashed backwards in the tackle, George Furbank's shaky debut continued with another knock-on, Sinckler split forward and then Farrell snatched clumsily at a pass as errors compounded at a ferocious rate.

It was making attack an impossibility and the cascade of mistakes continued as Youngs ended a promising spell by being penalised for holding on before a needless free-kick was conceded at a line-out.

Jones questioned at the start of the week how France's young team would cope with the pressure, but it was his players who looked powerless as events unfolded around them.

The second half started with a sustained onslaught on the French line that almost saw Maro Itoje go over but the defence held firm.

Pressure continued to build on the home whitewash, however, with Jonathan Joseph almost slipping over only to be stripped of the ball by Virimi Vakatawa.

With the immediate danger averted, France rallied superbly and when Antoine Dupont raced free on the outside to evade Youngs, Ollivon arrived in support to score their third try.

Owens spoke to both captains after a large fight broke out in the wake of the touch down and England were finally off the mark when May beat Thomas to his own grubber.

Better yet was to come from May as he switched on the afterburners to leave a trail of French defenders in his wake for his second, setting up a nervy climax to the afternoon.

George Kruis almost forced his way over under the posts and England continued their assault on the line, but apart from a stoppage-time penalty by Farrell that secured the bonus point, France kept them out.

The scorers:

For France:
Tries:  Rattez, Ollivon 2
Cons:  Ntamack 3
Pens:  Ntamack

For England:
Tries:  May 2
Cons:  Farrell 2
Pen:  Farrell

France:  15 Anthony Bouthier, 14 Teddy Thomas, 13 Virimi Vakatawa, 12 Gael Fickou, 11 Vincent Rattez, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Antoine Dupont, 8 Grégory Alldritt, 7 Charles Ollivon (c), 6 François Cros, 5 Paul Willemse, 4 Bernard Le Roux, 3 Mohamed Haouas, 2 Julien Marchand, 1 Cyril Baille
Replacements:  16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Jefferson Poirot, 18 Demba Bamba, 19 Boris Palu, 20 Cameron Woki, 21 Baptiste Serin, 22 Matthieu Jalibert, 23 Artur Vincent

England:  15 George Furbank, 14 Jonny May, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Owen Farrell, 11 Elliot Daly, 10 George Ford, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Tom Curry, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Courtney Lawes, 5 Charlie Ewels, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Jamie George, 1 Joe Marler
Replacements:  16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Ellis Genge, 18 Will Stuart, 19 George Kruis, 20 Lewis Ludlam, 21 Willi Heinz, 22 Ollie Devoto, 23 Jonathan Joseph

Referee:  Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees:  Andrew Brace (Ireland), Brendon Pickerill (New Zealand)
TMO:  Brian MacNeice (Ireland)


Check out the highlights from France's 24-17 victory over England at the Stade de France on Sunday.

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Saturday, 1 February 2020

Ireland edge past gritty Scotland

Johnny Sexton scored all of Ireland's points as they opened the 2020 Six Nations with a tense 19-12 triumph over Scotland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

The Scots were physical throughout and played some excellent rugby at times, but the hosts, led by their inspirational skipper, did just enough to claim the win.

Match-winner Sexton scored and converted the hosts' opening try of the clash in Dublin before adding four penalties.

Saturday's match was far from the one-sided encounter many predicted and the outcome could have been completely different had new Scotland skipper Stuart Hogg not cost his side a second-half score with a bizarre fumble.

Adam Hastings, in at stand-off for the Scots owing to the ill-discipline of star man Finn Russell, kept Gregor Townsend's visitors in contention until the final whistle with four penalties of his own.

But, despite a largely positive display, the unfancied visitors paid for their lack of clinical edge as their abysmal away record in this competition continued.

Meanwhile, Farrell, who stepped up to replace Joe Schmidt after the World Cup, has plenty to ponder following a disjointed performance which was compounded by debutant Caelan Doris leaving the field injured inside five minutes.

Scotland arrived at the Arriva Stadium as rank outsiders, priced at 7/1 for victory with some bookmakers, and on the back of dismal trip to Japan at the back end of last year.

Townsend's men flew out of the traps looking like a team with a point to prove and were rewarded for their fast tempo by an early lead as Hastings kicked a straightforward penalty.

Ireland, meanwhile, were forced into a premature reshuffle as the maiden Test appearance of 21-year-old Doris was agonisingly cut short, with the experienced Peter O'Mahony brought on his place.

The hosts quickly regrouped and conjured up a slick opening try in the 10th minute.

After attempting to bulldoze over the line, quick ball from a resultant ruck culminated in skipper Sexton crossing unchallenged after a neat pass from Murray, and then converting his own score from wide on the left.

It was a special moment for Dubliner Sexton, appointed skipper at the age of 34-year-old following the retirement of Rory Best and cheered on from the stands by his family.

Townsend's preparations for this tournament were severely disrupted by influential stand-off Russell being sent home for breaching team rules following an alleged late-night drinking session.

Russell's notable absence at number 10 had afforded Hastings' opportunity in that role.

The 23-year-old son of Scotland great Gavin Hastings converted a far more difficult penalty from wide on the left to quickly reduce the deficit to a single point, but was later off target moments after Hogg escaped punishment for a late tackle on Jordan Larmour.

Scotland almost went ahead in the closing stages of a breathless first half after Huw Jones intercepted a slack pass from Murray inside his own 22 and raced away.

The ball was eventually worked to Sean Maitland but, with the try line in sight, a superb last-ditch tackle from Iain Henderson brought the breakaway to an end, leaving Murray to breathe a sigh of relief and the home side 10-6 in front at the break following Sexton's first penalty.

Scotland played the better of the rugby in the opening period of the second half and repeatedly came within striking distance of the Irish line before coughing up possession.

They were punished further for their profligacy minutes into the second period when fly-half Sexton added another three points, before a calamitous error from Hogg cost them a 50th-minute try.

Full-back Hogg was left with a simple finish in the left corner but somehow dropped the ball before grounding, a costly error initially missed by the on-field officials but picked up by the TMO.

Scotland had to settle for just three points as Hastings subsequently kicked another penalty after Ireland were penalised for not rolling away.

Ireland obliterated their opponents during their World Cup opener just over four months ago but this was a far more competitive affair.

Appearances off the bench for in-form John Cooney, who had challenged Murray for the number nine jersey, World Cup absentee Devin Toner and debutant Ronan Kelleher each brought rapturous receptions from the home crowd.

Ireland produced some staunch defending on their own try line in the final few minutes to prevent Scotland potentially snatching a draw, after a couple more Sexton penalties — either side of one from Hastings — moved the scoreboard to 19-12.

The failure to break through from close range left Scotland to rue another fruitless away trip.

Aside from a handful of victories against perennial wooden spoon winners Italy in Rome, the Scots remain without an away success in this competition since a 23-20 win at Croke Park a decade ago.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Try:  Sexton
Con:  Sexton
Penalties:  Sexton 4

For Scotland:
Penalties:  Hastings 4

The teams:

Ireland:  15 Jordan Larmour, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Jonathan Sexton (c), 9 Conor Murray, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 CJ Stander, 5 James Ryan, 4 Iain Henderson, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Cian Healy
Replacements:  16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Andrew Porter, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Peter O’Mahony, 21 John Cooney, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Robbie Henshaw

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg (c), 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sam Johnson, 11 Blair Kinghorn, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Ali Price, 8 Nick Haining, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Scott Cummings, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Fraser Brown, 1 Rory Sutherland
Replacements:  16 Stuart McInally, 17 Allan Dell, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Ben Toolis, 20 Cornell du Preez, 21 George Horne, 22 Rory Hutchinson, 23 Chris Harris

Referee:  Mathieu Raynal (France)
Assistant referees:  Pascal Gaüzère (France), Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
TMO:  Glenn Newman (New Zealand)


Check out the highlights from Ireland's 19-12 victory over Scotland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

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Wales open Six Nations with dominant win

Josh Adams scored a hat-trick as Wales began their 2020 Six Nations campaign with a comfortable 42-0 triumph over Italy in Cardiff on Saturday.

In Wayne Pivac's first game in charge they were dominant throughout and, after Adams had scored two first-half tries, debutant Nick Tompkins and wing Adams completed the win in the second period.

Fly-half Dan Biggar, who delivered an outrageous scoring pass for Adams' second try by flicking the ball at pace through his legs, kicked three penalties and a conversion to put Wales 21 points clear by the interval.

Biggar also converted Tompkins' score for a 13-point haul, although it took Wales until the 77th minute to claim an all-important fourth try when George North crossed and Leigh Halfpenny converted, before Halfpenny added the extras after Adams completed a treble.

For outclassed Italy, it was a 23rd successive Six Nations loss, and their next game is against France in Paris.

Pivac handed a Test debut to New Zealand-born Scarlets wing Johnny McNicholl, while number eight Taulupe Faletau made a first Wales appearance in almost two years and there were places on the bench for Tompkins and scrum-half Rhys Webb.

Italy, without a Six Nations win since beating Scotland at Murrayfield in 2015, included Gloucester pair Callum Braley and Jake Polledri, and Benetton lock Niccolo Cannone won his first cap.

Wales made a bright start, gaining promising early territory on the back of a break by scrum-half Tomos Williams, and Biggar opened their account through a third-minute penalty.

Biggar doubled the advantage with another penalty eight minutes later, before Tompkins replaced McNicholl while he underwent a head injury assessment.

Italy were pinned back by some aggressive Wales running, with Williams injecting a real snap to Wales' attacking game, and Biggar completed his penalty hat-trick after just 15 minutes.

Pivac could not have wished for a more committed opening by his team, and they ended a dominant opening quarter by scoring the first try of this season's championship.

It was all down to speed of ball as Wales whipped possession wide, Halfpenny cut a decisive attacking line and Adams sped over before McNicholl rejoined the action.

Italy were behind the eight-ball, and Wales struck again 10 minutes before half-time as Adams claimed his second try following Biggar's cheeky assist.

The fly-half also converted, continuing a virtuoso contribution, as Wales opened up en emphatic advantage and promised more misery for Italy in the second period.

Italy, though, dominated the early stages of the second-half, keeping possession and patiently building phases as Pivac made a double change, sending on Tompkins for Hadleigh Parkes and Ross Moriarty, who replaced Faletau.

The Azzurri could not break down Wales' defence, but it proved a frustrating spell for the home side as they looked to complete the job and collect a five-point maximum.

Further reinforcements arrived off the Wales bench in prop Rob Evans and lock Cory Hill, yet it proved a third quarter to forget from a Welsh perspective after proving unable to increase their lead.

But normal service was resumed when Hill charged clear in midfield and Tompkins finished brilliantly from 40 metres, making it an occasion to savour for the newcomer, and Biggar's conversion.

A fourth try should have arrived just five minutes later when North sprinted clear, but the score was ruled out after video replays revealed a Tompkins knock-on.

Webb had joined the action by this stage for a first Wales appearance since December 2017, and North ensured a bonus point by scoring his 40th Wales try to move equal-second alongside Gareth Thomas on Wales' all-time list.

And there was still time for Adams to complete his hat-trick, with Halfpenny adding the conversion.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  Adams 3, Tompkins, North
Cons:  Biggar 2, Halfpenny 2
Pens:  Biggar 3

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Johnny McNicholl, 13 George North, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Aaron Wainwright, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Jake Ball, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Wyn Jones
Replacements:  16 Ryan Elias, 17 Rob Evans, 18 Leon Brown, 19 Cory Hill, 20 Ross Moriarty, 21 Rhys Webb, 22 Jarrod Evans, 23 Nick Tompkins

Italy:  15 Matteo Minozzi, 14 Leonardo Sarto, 13 Luca Morisi, 12 Carlo Canna, 11 Mattia Bellini, 10 Tommaso Allan, 9 Callum Braley, 8 Abraham Steyn, 7 Jake Polledri, 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Niccolò Cannone, 4 Alessandro Zanni, 3 Andrea Lovotti, 2 Luca Bigi (c), 1 Giosuè Zilocchi
Replacements:  16 Federico Zani, 17 Danilo Fischetti, 18 Marco Riccioni, 19 Marco Lazzaroni, 20 Dean Budd, 21 Giovanni Licata, 22 Guglielmo Palazzani, 23 Jayden Hayward

Referee:  Luke Pearce (England)
Assistant referees:  Matthew Carley (England), Mike Fraser (New Zealand)
TMO:  James Leckie (Australia)


Check out the highlights from Wales' 42-0 victory over Italy in Cardiff on Saturday.

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Saturday, 2 November 2019

South Africa blow England away to win third World Cup

South Africa were crowned world champions for a third time courtesy of a 32-12 victory over England in the Rugby World Cup Final in Tokyo on Saturday.

In an epic and attritional contest, South Africa's power game proved the difference between the sides and their forwards deserve special praise as they laid the platform for this win.

Handré Pollard was the Springboks' hero as he finished with a 22-point haul, after kicking six penalties and two conversions, while Makazole Mapimpi and Cheslin Kolbe crossed for tries.

All England's points came via the boot of Owen Farrell, who slotted four penalties.

The win is an historic one as it means the Boks become the first side to lift the Webb Ellis trophy despite losing a match during the tournament.  They are also the first team to win the World Cup and Rugby Championship in the same year.

South Africa had an early opportunity to open the scoring when Courtney Lawes was penalised at a ruck shortly after the kick off but Pollard's shot at goal was off target.

England were then dealt a heavy blow when Kyle Sinckler was forced off the field for a HIA — which he failed — after an accidental clash with Maro Itoje while trying to tackle Mapimpi.

South Africa continued to hold the upper hand during the early stages and Pollard made up for his earlier miss when he opened the scoring off the kicking tee in the 10th minute, after Farrell held onto the ball on the ground deep inside his 22.

The Boks were winning the collisions but midway through the half they suffered a double setback when Bongi Mbonambi and Lood de Jager were forced off the field with head and shoulder injuries respectively.

England were soaking up the pressure and restored parity in the 23rd minute when Farrell added a penalty after Kolbe infringed at a breakdown.

That did not deter the their opponents, however, who held an edge in the tight exchanges and shortly afterwards a dominant scrum saw England conceding a penalty which Pollard converted.

Momentum continued to ebb and flow and during the latter stages of the half and England strung several phases together inside South Africa's 22 but they were met by a wall of green defenders.  Inevitably, one of the Bok tacklers — Tendai Mtawarira — infringed while defending his line and Farrell drew his side level by slotting the resulting penalty.

South Africa regained the initiative soon after when they were awarded another breakdown penalty in the 39th minute and, once again, Pollard held his nerve to succeed with his third shot at goal.

And on the stroke of half-time, England's pack succumbed under great pressure at a scrum and Pollard slotted the ensuing penalty which meant his side were leading 12-6 at the interval.

The Boks came out firing after the break and once again their scrum gave them a significant edge.  Shortly after the restart, Steven Kitshoff and Vincent Koch replaced Mtawarira and Frans Malherbe and the new props made their presence felt at a set-piece, just inside England's half.  Pollard showed his class by landing the long-range kick at goal.

England seemed shell-shocked but, to their credit, they did not panic and in the 51st minute they also won a scrum penalty which Farrell duly converted to reduce the deficit to six points again.

Three minutes later Farrell had a chance to make it a three-point game — when Pollard was penalised after holding onto the ball on the ground — but his goal-kick was off target.

That proved costly as Pollard soon slotted his sixth penalty, after Elliot Daly strayed offside on defence, but from the restart Siya Kolisi went off his feet at a ruck and Farrell made it 18-12 when he succeeded with his fourth three-pointer off the kicking tee.

In the 63rd minute, Pollard lined up a penalty from five metres inside his half but his effort was a poor one which did not have the distance or the direction.

The match needed a moment of brilliance and that came in the 66th when Mapimpi delivered a beautifully weighted chip kick which Lukhanyo Am gathered.  He then offloaded to Mapimpi, who crossed for a deserved try.

Pollard added the extras which gave his side a healthy 25-12 lead and England would then up the ante on attack during the game's closing stages.  That proved risky and in the 74th minute the Boks won a crucial turnover.  The ball was shifted wide to Kolbe, who stepped past Farrell inside England's 22 before crossing for the match-sealing try.

The scorers:

For England:
Pens:  Farrell 4

For South Africa:
Tries:  Mapimpi, Kolbe
Cons:  Pollard 2
Pens:  Pollard 6

England:  15 Elliot Daly, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Owen Farrell (c), 11 Jonny May, 10 George Ford, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Billy Vunipola, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Tom Curry, 5 Courtney Lawes, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Jamie George, 1 Mako Vunipola
Replacements:  16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Dan Cole, 19 George Kruis, 20 Mark Wilson, 21 Ben Spencer, 22 Henry Slade, 23 Jonathan Joseph

South Africa:  15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Francois de Klerk, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Mbongeni Mbonambi, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements:  16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Franco Mostert, 21 Francois Louw, 22 Herschel Jantjies, 23 Frans Steyn

Referee:  Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant referees:  Romain Poite (France), Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
TMO:  Ben Skeen (New Zealand)

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Friday, 1 November 2019

All Blacks power past Wales to win Bronze Final

New Zealand finished their Rugby World Cup campaign on a high when they clinched a 40-17 win over Wales in the Bronze Final in Tokyo on Friday.

After being knocked out by England in the semi-finals, the tournament's defending champions were keen to redeem themselves and they certainly did that as they dominated for long periods in a fast-paced and entertaining game.

They eventually ran in six tries with Ben Smith leading the way with a deserved brace and their other five-pointers were scored by Joe Moody, Beauden Barrett, Ryan Crotty and Richie Mo'unga, who finished with a 15-point haul after slotting five conversions.

For Wales, Hallam Amos and Josh Adams scored tries while Rhys Patchell added a conversion and a penalty and Dan Biggar also succeeded with a two-pointer off the kicking tee.

The All Blacks showed their intentions from the outset as they ran the ball from all areas of the field and that tactic reaped reward as early as the sixth minute when Moody crossed for a fine try.

This, after slick handling from Mo'unga, Kieran Read and Brodie Retallick created space for Moody, who showed an excellent turn of speed after gathering a pass from Retallick on the edge of Wales' 22 and he did well to outpace the cover defence before crashing over.

The three-time world champions continued to dominate as the half progressed and they extended their lead in the 13th minute when Barrett ran onto an inside pass from Aaron Smith deep inside Wales territory before crossing the whitewash.

Wales needed a response and it came midway through the half when Amos collected a long pass from Patchell inside New Zealand's 22 before stepping past Mo'unga on his way over the try-line.

Patchell added the extras and also slotted a penalty in the 27th minute which meant they were back in the match as the All Blacks were now holding a slender 14-10 lead.

That was the last time the Six Nations champions would score points during the half, however, as the All Blacks soon regained the initiative and were rewarded with two tries from wing Smith before the interval.

In the 34th minute, he did brilliantly to beat three defenders before dotting down and on the stroke of half-time he gathered a well-timed long pass from his namesake Aaron Smith inside Wales' 22 before rounding Tomos Williams to score his second five-pointer.

That meant New Zealand were leading 28-10 at the break and they started the second half in a similar vein to the way they finished the first when shortly after the restart Crotty scored their fifth try after collecting a trademark offload from Sonny Bill Williams close to Wales' try-line.

It was one-way traffic during the next 15 minutes as the All Blacks continued with their fast-paced style of play but despite their dominance, they could not score any points during that period.  Smith thought he had scored his third try when he crossed Wales' try-line in the 48th minute but referee Wayne Barnes ruled out his effort after a handling error from Rieko Ioane in the build-up.

Wales soaked up the pressure and struck back on the hour-mark courtesy of Adams' try from close quarters.  That was a momentous score as it was his seventh try at the tournament which is the most by any Welsh player at a World Cup.

Despite that score, the All Blacks finished stronger and sealed their win when Mo'unga crossed for their sixth try in the 76th minute.

The scorers:

For New Zealand:
Tries:  Moody, Barrett, Smith 2, Crotty, Mo'unga
Cons:  Mo'unga 5

For Wales:
Tries:  Amos, Adams
Cons:  Patchell, Biggar
Pen:  Patchell

New Zealand:  15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Ben Smith, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read (c), 7 Sam Cane, 6 Shannon Frizell, 5 Scott Barrett, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Joe Moody
Replacements:  16 Liam Coltman, 17 Atu Moli, 18 Angus Ta’avao, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Matt Todd, 21 Brad Weber, 22 Anton Lienert-Brown, 23 Jordie Barrett

Wales:  15 Hallam Amos, 14 Owen Lane, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Owen Watkin, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Rhys Patchell, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 James Davies, 6 Justin Tipuric, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Adam Beard, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements:  16 Elliot Dee, 17 Rhys Carre, 18 Wyn Jones, 19 Jake Ball, 20 Aaron Shingler, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 Dan Biggar, 23 Hadleigh Parkes

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Pascal Gaüzère (France)
TMO:  Marius Jonker (South Africa)

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Sunday, 27 October 2019

Springboks win arm wrestle with Wales to reach final

South Africa advanced to the 2019 Rugby World Cup final courtesy of a narrow 19-16 victory over Wales in their semi-final in Yokohama on Sunday.

As predicted, this was a hard-fought encounter characterised by several brutal collisions throughout and the result was in the balance until the end.  Both sides scored a try apiece with Damian de Allende crossing the whitewash for the Springboks and Josh Adams scored Wales' try.

Handre Pollard scored South Africa's other points courtesy of four penalties and a conversion while Dan Biggar added three penalties for Wales and Leigh Halfpenny succeeded with a conversion.

The opening quarter was a nervy affair with the teams feeling each other out which resulted in plenty of tactical kicking from Pollard and Biggar.  Wales held a slight edge during the opening exchanges but had nothing to show for their efforts and it was the Boks who opened the scoring courtesy of a Pollard penalty after 15 minutes.

Shortly afterwards, Wales found themselves on the attack inside South Africa's half and, after Willie le Roux was blown up for offside on defence, Biggar drew his side level by slotting the resulting penalty.

In the 20th minute, a dominant scrum from the Boks put Wales on the back foot and after they were penalised by referee Jérôme Garcès, Pollard restored his side's lead by succeeding with the three-pointer off the kicking tee.

The next 15 minutes was an arm wrestle as both sides tried to gain the ascendancy and Pollard gave South Africa a 9-3 advantage after Ken Owens collapsed a maul illegally.

From the restart Tomas Francis was forced off the field after coming off second best in a collision with Duane Vermeulen but, despite that setback, Biggar reduced the deficit to three points in the 39th minute when Vermeulen took Aaron Wainwright out in an off-the-ball challenge.

Soon after, Wales were dealt another blow when George North hobbled off with a hamstring injury and he was replaced by Owen Watkin on the stroke of half-time with the Springboks holding a slender 9-6 lead.

The second half started in a similar vein with most of the play restricted to the forwards and plenty of kicking from the pivots.  Wales drew level shortly after the restart courtesy of another Biggar penalty after Eben Etzebeth infringed at a lineout.

There was little interesting to report during the next 15 minutes as the aerial bombardment from both sides continued, but the game came alive in the 57th minute when De Allende found himself in space out wide inside the Welsh 22.  He still had plenty of work to do but did well to shrug off challenges from Biggar and Tomos Williams before powering his way over the try-line.

Pollard added the extras which meant the Boks were leading 16-9 but Wales were soon on the attack inside their opponents' 22.

Wales were desperate for a try and after stringing 21 phases together close to South Africa's try-line, they were awarded a penalty when the Boks strayed offside on defence.  Captain Alun Wyn Jones opted to take a scrum which proved to be a brilliant decision as from the set-piece Ross Moriarty gathered before drawing in a couple of defenders and the ball was shifted wide to Adams, who crossed in the left-hand corner.

Halfpenny landed the conversion from close to the touchline which meant sides were level again at 16-16.  That score was a shot in the arm for Wales, who were on the attack inside the Boks' half for the next 10 minutes but they could not add to their points tally during that period.

The Boks regained the initiative in the 73rd minute, however, when Francois Louw won a turnover at a breakdown and Pollard put his side on the front foot when he put the ball into touch 35 metres from Wales' try-line.

Wales were penalised for collapsing a maul at the ensuing lineout and Pollard held his nerve to slot the penalty which gave his side a 19-16 lead.

The closing stages were frantic but the Boks did well to keep Wales pinned inside their half and seal the win — and a place in the final against England — when they won a scrum penalty just before the end.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Try:  Adams
Con:  Halfpenny
Pens:  Biggar 3

For South Africa:
Try:  De Allende
Con:  Pollard
Pens:  Pollard 4

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 George North, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Aaron Wainwright, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Jake Ball, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Wyn Jones
Replacements:  16 Elliot Dee, 17 Rhys Carre, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Adam Beard, 20 Aaron Shingler, 21 Tomos Williams, 22 Rhys Patchell, 23 Owen Watkin

South Africa:  15 Willie le Roux, 14 Sbu Nkosi, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements:  16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Franco Mostert, 21 Francois Louw, 22 Herschel Jantjies, 23 Frans Steyn

Referee:  Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant referees:  Wayne Barnes (England), Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
TMO:  Ben Skeen (New Zealand)

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Saturday, 26 October 2019

Exceptional England dethrone champions All Blacks

England produced one of their greatest ever performances to inflict New Zealand's first Rugby World Cup defeat since 2007 following an incredible 19-7 triumph.

Eddie Jones' men were simply outstanding and the first half set the tone with them going into the interval 10-0 ahead via Manu Tuilagi's try and George Ford's penalty.

Ford then added a second three-pointer before the All Blacks came back into the contest through Ardie Savea's opportunist score, but Ford kicked a couple more off the tee to secure the win.

Having won the global tournament in 2011 and 2015, they have not succumbed since losing to France 12 years ago, but England deservedly ended that superb run on Saturday.

There was an air of confidence from the English camp going into this encounter and they produced an absolutely blistering start.  Elliot Daly set the ball rolling, breaking a tackle and off-loading to Anthony Watson, who took them up to the 22.

They then showed outstanding patience to go through the phases and good work from Kyle Sinckler moved the Red Rose to within inches of the whitewash.  With the All Blacks' defence in disarray, Tuilagi spotted the space to power over and provide the 2003 champions with a seven-point buffer.

Not content with that score, Jones' charges continued to dominate and create opportunities.  Jonny May thought he was away, only to be prevented by Scott Barrett's brilliant cover defence, before Sam Underhill was correctly denied a try for crossing.

To New Zealand's immense credit, they held out brilliantly and, from England's first loose kick, they manufactured a wonderful attack.  Brodie Retallick made the initial incursion before the ball was shifted to Beauden Barrett, who duly found Jack Goodhue, but the centre was well marshalled into touch.

That attack displayed the defending champions' threat, but those moves were few and far between as England remained on the front foot.  The Red Rose were excellent but only had a Ford three-pointer to show for their efforts going into the second period.

Steve Hansen's men began the final 40 minutes looking to play from deep but they were often caught out and were almost punished.  After England had set up a maul, Ben Youngs broke off the back to seemingly score, but TMO Marius Jonker spotted a knock-on in the build-up and it was disallowed.

Jones' charges did manage to increased their buffer, however, via another Ford penalty, but New Zealand began to assert some authority on proceedings.  They almost created a score for Sevu Reece and, although the wing was tackled into touch, the Red Rose lost the resultant lineout and Savea touched down.

It was a huge mistake from England, an error which could have handed the momentum to their opponents, but they simply reset and increased their lead through the boot of Ford, who added two more three-pointers.

The defending champions simply had to chance their arm but the Red Rose's defence was magnificent and, despite a couple of significant forays, they brilliantly held out to move into the final.

The scorers:

For England:
Try:  Tuilagi
Con:  Farrell
Pens:  Ford 4

For New Zealand:
Try:  Savea
Con:  Mo'unga

England:  15 Elliot Daly, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Owen Farrell (c), 11 Jonny May, 10 George Ford, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Billy Vunipola, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Tom Curry, 5 Courtney Lawes, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Jamie George, 1 Mako Vunipola
Replacements:  16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Dan Cole, 19 George Kruis, 20 Mark Wilson, 21 Willi Heinz, 22 Henry Slade, 23 Jonathan Joseph

New Zealand:  15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 George Bridge, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read (c), 7 Ardie Savea, 6 Scott Barrett, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Joe Moody
Replacements:  16 Dane Coles, 17 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 18 Angus Ta’avao, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Sam Cane, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Sonny Bill Williams, 23 Jordie Barrett

Referee:  Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees:  Romain Poite (France), Pascal Gaüzère (France)
TMO:  Marius Jonker (South Africa)

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Sunday, 20 October 2019

Brutal Boks end Japan's historic run

South Africa produced a hugely physical performance to qualify for the Rugby World Cup semi-finals following an impressive 26-3 triumph over hosts Japan.

It was a thrilling first half and the opening quarter set the tone as Springbok wing Makazole Mapimpi touched down before the Brave Blossoms hit back via the accurate kicking of Yu Tamura.

The match continued at a frenetic pace but both defences held out until early in the second period when Handre Pollard added two penalties.

Pollard then scored a third off the tee before Faf de Klerk crossed the whitewash for the game-decisive try as they ended Japan's remarkable tournament.

Mapimpi then went over for his second as Rassie Erasmus' men completed a fine performance and eased their way into the last-four.

It is one thing dealing with the forward strength of Ireland and Scotland but another the sheer power of the Springboks and Erasmus' charges were simply too strong in the tight exchanges.

The scrum, which has been a strength over the past year, laid a stable platform early on and De Klerk gave Mapimpi a one-on-one opportunity.  With just Tamura to beat, the wing charged through the fly-half's abysmal attempt at a tackle and touched down for a 5-0 advantage.

South Africa were unsurprisingly physical in contact but Tendai Mtawarira was perhaps too pumped up and was subsequently sin-binned for a tip-tackle on Keita Inagaki.  The prop's absence gave the Japanese an opportunity to weave their magic and Kenki Fukuoka brilliantly stood up Cheslin Kolbe, running deep into opposition territory.

Although that move eventually broke down, they were rewarded for their endeavour by Tamura, who reduced the arrears from the tee.

Following that score, Japan continued to move the ball and stress the Springbok rearguard but their defence remained stout, giving them them a two-point lead heading into the latter stages of the half.

The South Africans were under pressure but they began to reassert their authority.  Erasmus' men were dominant at the set-piece and, although Damian de Allende was denied a try at the end of the first period, they kept their foot on the Japanese throat.

Their scrum was giving them plenty of purchase and successive three-pointers from Pollard opened the gap beyond a converted try.

Surprisingly, the pivot was off-target with a third attempt, but he did not make the same mistake as the game reached the final quarter.

South Africa were in control and they started to bully their opponents.  The maul was hugely impressive and, after a drive had gone 30 metres, Malcolm Marx pealed off the back and fed De Klerk to break Japanese hearts.

Japan had run out of ideas and, following yet another turnover, Willie le Roux found flyer Mapimpi, who sped down the left and touched down as the Springboks deservedly qualified for the semi-finals.

The scorers:

For Japan:
Pen:  Tamura

For South Africa:
Tries:  Mapimpi 2, De Klerk
Con:  Pollard
Pens:  Pollard 3
Yellow Card:  Mtawarira

Japan:  15 Ryohei Yamanaka, 14 Kotaro Matsushima, 13 Timothy Lafaele, 12 Ryoto Nakamura, 11 Kenki Fukuoka, 10 Yu Tamura, 9 Yutaka Nagare, 8 Kazuki Himeno, 7 Pieter Labuschagne, 6 Michael Leitch (c), 5 James Moore, 4 Luke Thompson, 3 Jiwon Koo, 2 Shota Horie, 1 Keita Inagaki
Replacements:  16 Atsushi Sakate, 17 Isileli Nakajima, 18 Asaeli Ai Valu, 19 Wimpie van der Walt, 20 Amanaki Lelei Mafi, 21 Fumiaki Tanaka, 22 Rikiya Matsuda, 23 Lomano Lava Lemeki

South Africa:  15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements:  16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Franco Mostert, 21 Francois Louw, 22 Herschel Jantjies, 23 Frans Steyn

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand), Luke Pearce (England)
Television match official:  Rowan Kitt (England)

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Wales edge out France to reach semi-finals

Wales booked their place in the Rugby World Cup semi-finals when they notched a hard-fought 20-19 win over France in their quarter-final in Oita on Sunday.

In a drama-filled match, Les Bleus held the upper hand for the majority of the game despite playing with 14 men for most of the second half — after Sebastien Vahaamahina was red carded for foul play — but a late converted try from Ross Moriarty secured the victory for Wales.

Aaron Wainwright also scored a try for Wales and Dan Biggar finished with a 10-point haul after succeeding with two conversions and a couple of penalties.

For France, Vahaamahina, Charles Ollivon and Virimi Vakatawa crossed the whitewash and Romain Ntamack kicked two conversions.

The match started at a frenetic pace with both sides giving the ball plenty of air and that strategy worked in France's favour as they scored two tries in quick succession early on.

In the fifth minute, Les Bleus were camped close to Wales' try-line and Vahaamahina bounced off two would-be tacklers before diving over for his first-ever Test try.

Ntamack's conversion attempt struck an upright but France came back strongly from the restart and were soon on the attack again.

And in the ninth minute that tactic reaped reward when Ollivon crossed for a brilliant try.  This, after Vakatawa made a superb line break inside his half before offloading to Ntamack, who got a pass out to Antoine Dupont.  The scrum-half did well to draw in the last defender and offloaded to Ollivon, who showed the cover defence a clean pair of heels before scoring under the posts.

The conversion from Ntamack meant Les Bleus were leading 12-0 after 10 minutes but shortly afterwards Guilhem Guirado lost the ball in contact 10 metres inside his half and Wainwright gathered it before racing away to score his first five-pointer for Wales.

Although that try was against the run of play, it came at the right time for Wales as they held the upper hand for the next 10 minutes and Biggar narrowed the gap to two points when he slotted a penalty midway through the half.

In the 28th minute, Moriarty replaced the injured Josh Navidi but shortly after he came on he was yellow carded for a dangerous tackle on Gael Fickou.

With a numerical advantage, Les Bleus regained the initiative and on the hour-mark Damian Penaud joined a backline attack just outside France's 22 before offloading to Vakatawa, who crossed for his side's third try, despite a desperate tackle from Wyn Jones.

Ntamack added the extras which meant France were leading 19-10 as the teams changed sides at the interval.

The second half started more cautiously but France were dealt a massive blow when Vahaamahina received his marching orders for elbowing Wainwright in his face at a maul in the 49th minute.

Five minutes later Biggar reduced the deficit to six points when he added his second penalty after Fickou infringed at a ruck.

The next 20 minutes was an arm wrestle as Wales went in search of the win but France did well to stay in the game and even had chances to extend their lead when they were on the attack inside Wales' 22.  But handling errors and resilient defence from Wales meant they had nothing to show for their efforts.

In the 74th minute, Wales' forwards put great pressure on a French scrum close to Les Bleus' try-line and Tomos Williams did brilliantly to rip the ball from Baptiste Serin's arms before Justin Tipuric collected it.  He was tackled just short of the line but Moriarty gathered at the ensuing ruck and burrowed his way over the whitewash.

Biggar slotted the conversion to give his side a 20-19 lead and although France tried desperately to strike back during the game's closing stages, Wales finished stronger and held on for the win which secured their place in the semi-finals.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  Wainwright, Moriarty
Cons:  Biggar 2
Pens:  Biggar 2
Yellow Card:  Moriarty

For France:
Tries:  Vahaamahina, Ollivon, Vakatawa
Cons:  Ntamack 2
Red Card:  Vahaamahina

Wales:  15 Liam Williams, 14 George North, 13 Owen Watkin, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Josh Navidi, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Aaron Wainwright, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Jake Ball, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Wyn Jones
Replacements:  16 Elliot Dee, 17 Rhys Carre, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Adam Beard, 20 Ross Moriarty, 21 Tomos Williams, 22 Rhys Patchell, 23 Leigh Halfpenny

France:  15 Maxime Medard, 14 Damian Penaud, 13 Virimi Vakatawa, 12 Gael Fickou, 11 Yoann Huget, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Antoine Dupont, 8 Gregory Alldritt, 7 Charles Ollivon, 6 Wenceslas Lauret, 5 Sebastien Vahaamahina, 4 Bernard Le Roux, 3 Rabah Slimani, 2 Guilhem Guirado (c), 1 Jefferson Poirot
Replacements:  16 Camille Chat, 17 Cyril Baille, 18 Emerick Setiano, 19 Paul Gabrillagues, 20 Louis Picamoles, 21 Baptiste Serin, 22 Camille Lopez, 23 Vincent Rattez

Referee:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant referees:  Nic Berry (Australia), Paul Williams (New Zealand)
Television match official:  Marius Jonker (South Africa)

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Saturday, 19 October 2019

New Zealand thrash Ireland to book semi-final spot

New Zealand issued a warning to their Rugby World Cup rivals as they reached the tournament's semi-finals courtesy of a 46-14 win over Ireland in Tokyo on Saturday.

There was plenty of hype around this fixture as Ireland won two of the last three matches between these sides but, as the scoreline suggests, this encounter was all about the All Blacks, who dominated for long periods.

In the end, the world champions outscored their opponents by seven tries to two with Aaron Smith (2), Beauden Barrett, Codie Taylor, Matt Todd, George Bridge and Jordie Barrett all dotting down and Richie Mo'unga added 11 points after slotting four conversions and a penalty.

There was little positive to report for Ireland, who delivered an error-strewn performance and seldom threatened to create try-scoring opportunities.  Their points came via a Robbie Henshaw five-pointer which was converted by Joey Carbery and they were also awarded a penalty try.

The All Blacks came out firing from the kick off and raced into a 10-0 lead inside 15 minutes after having a bulk of the possession and they also dominated the territorial stakes.

They opened scoring as early as the sixth minute courtesy of a penalty from Mo'unga and continued to dominate as the half progressed, with great interplay between their forwards and backs on show.

In the 14th minute, their pack set up a good platform deep inside Ireland territory with pick-and-goes — with Kieran Read, Joe Moody, Sam Whitelock and Sam Cane — prominent.  Smith then made a sniping break through the middle of a ruck close to Ireland's try-line before diving over for the opening try.

The world champions made full use of the point-scoring opportunities presented to them and extended their lead in the 20th minute when their inside backs did brilliantly to create space for Sevu Reece, who joined the line at pace, which created an overlap.  He offloaded to Bridge, who was stopped close to the try-line and from the ensuing ruck Smith, once again, barged over the whitewash from close quarters.

Mo'unga was successful with both conversions which meant the All Blacks were leading 17-0 and in the 32nd minute things went from bad to worse for Ireland when full-back Barrett crossed for his team's third try.

Ireland were initially on the attack close to the halfway line but aggressive defence from Reece saw Johnny Sexton spilling the ball which was booted upfield by Anton Lienert-Brown.  Barrett then kicked ahead before collecting the ball on his way over the try-line and although referee Nigel Owens checked with his TMO to see if Lienert-Brown had played the ball from an offside position, television replays showed that Reece did not touch the ball after his hit on Sexton and the try was awarded.

Although Mo'unga was off target with the conversion attempt, New Zealand went into the half-time break in a confident mood as they held a commanding 22-0 lead.

If Ireland wanted to stay alive in this contest they had to score first after the break but that wasn't to be as the All Blacks continued with their dominance.

In the 48th minute they went further ahead when Read ran a superb angle to gather a pass from Smith deep inside Ireland's half but although his progress was halted close to his opponents' try-line, the All Blacks skipper managed to free his arms before offloading to Taylor, who crashed over under the posts.

Ireland seemed shell-shocked by the intensity of the All Blacks' onslaught but although they tried desperately to fight back, they continued to commit numerous unforced errors.

The All Blacks did not take their foot off the pedal, however, and in the 61st minute Todd crossed for their fifth try after the ball went through several pairs of hands in the build-up.

Although New Zealand had the game sewn up by then, Ireland did not surrender and opened their account in the 69th minute courtesy of a try from Henshaw after collecting a pass from CJ Stander, who broke off the back of a scrum on New Zealand's five-metre line.

The world champions were not done yet and struck back with Bridge's try, after Ardie Savea and Dane Coles did well in the build-up.

Although Ireland were awarded a penalty try shortly afterwards, when Todd prevented Stander from scoring at close quarters, the world champions sealed their win and semi-finals berth when Jordie Barrett scored their seventh try in the game's dying moments.

The scorers:

For New Zealand:
Tries:  Smith 2, B Barrett, Taylor, Todd, Bridge, J Barrett
Cons:  Mo'unga 4
Pen:  Mo'unga
Yellow Card:  Todd

For Ireland:
Tries:  Henshaw, Penalty try
Con:  Carbery

New Zealand:  15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 George Bridge, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read (c), 7 Sam Cane, 6 Ardie Savea, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Joe Moody
Replacements:  16 Dane Coles, 17 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 18 Angus Ta’avao, 19 Scott Barrett, 20 Matt Todd, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Sonny Bill Williams, 23 Jordie Barrett

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Johnny Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 CJ Stander, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 James Ryan, 4 Iain Henderson, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rory Best (c), 1 Cian Healy
Replacements:  16 Niall Scannell, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Andrew Porter, 19 Tadhg Beirne, 20 Rhys Ruddock, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Joey Carbery, 23 Jordan Larmour

Referee:  Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees:  Pascal Gaüzère (France), Angus Gardner (Australia)
Television match official:  Graham Hughes (England)

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England advance to semi-finals with win over Australia

England became the first team to advance to the semi-finals of the 2019 Rugby World Cup when they claimed a 40-16 win over Australia in Oita on Saturday.

As expected, this was an entertaining spectacle with both sides going at each other hammer and tongs for the full 80 minutes but, in the end, England's class shone through with their forwards laying a superb platform for their win.

England captain Owen Farrell led the way with a faultless goal-kicking display as he finished with a 20-point haul courtesy of four penalties and four conversions.  Their other points came courtesy of a brace of tries from Jonny May and further five-pointers from Kyle Sinckler and Anthony Watson.

For Australia, Marika Koroibete scored a try which was converted by Christian Lealiifano, who also added three penalties.

Wallabies head coach Michael Cheika promised that his side would attack England — in the build-up to this match — and they did just that as they ran the ball from all areas of the field.

Their high-risk approach proved costly, however, as they committed a plethora of unforced errors and battled to break down England's defence.

Their decision to go for all-out attack gave them an edge early on and they opened the scoring in the 12th minute courtesy of a penalty from Lealiifano after Billy Vunipola infringed at a breakdown.

England were soaking up the pressure and struck back in style in the 18th minute when May crossed for the opening try.  This, after the ball went through several pairs of hands inside Australia's 22 before Tom Curry offloaded to May, who scored in the left-hand corner.

Shortly afterwards, the Wallabies were on the attack inside England's half but a poor pass from David Pocock was pounced on by Henry Slade, who set off towards his opponents' try-line.  He was hauled in by the cover defence but had the presence of mind to stab a grubber kick through which was gathered by May, who dived over in the same corner for his second try.

Farrell succeeded with both conversions which meant England were leading 14-3 midway through the half before Lealiifano reduced the deficit with his second penalty in the 26th minute.

England were still holding the upper hand, however, and their forwards, in particular, were dominating in contact.  And on the half-hour mark, Farrell added a penalty after Lealiifano went off his feet at a ruck just outside England's 22.

The half's closing stages were evenly contested but on the stroke half-time Lealiifano slotted his third penalty after Sinckler was blown up for illegal scrummaging, which meant England were leading 17-9 at the interval.

The Wallabies hit the ground running after the break and three minutes into the new half Jordan Petaia found himself in space just inside England's half after gathering a long pass from Reece Hodge.  Petaia did well to throw an inside pass to Koroibete, who showed his class as he rounded Elliot Daly with ease before crossing for a deserved try.

Lealiifano added the extras and the Wallabies had their tails up as they were trailing by just one point on the scoreboard.

But, once again, England did not panic and shortly afterwards Farrell threw a superb flat pass which Sinckler gathered on the edge of Australia's 22 and the burly prop glided through a gaping hole in the Wallabies' defence before crashing over for his side's third try.

Farrell was successful with the conversion attempt and also slotted a penalty in the 51st minute which gave his side some breathing space with the score 27-16 in their favour.

The Wallabies upped the ante on attack in a bid to narrow the gap but despite several forays into England's half over the next 10 minutes, they could not breach the English defence.

After seeing off those attacks, England were soon camped inside Australia's half and were up 33-16 by the the 73rd minute courtesy of two further penalties from Farrell.

With such a huge deficit and time running out on the clock, Australia became desperate and launched several waves of attack from deep inside their half.

In the 76th minute, that tactic backfired, however, when Watson intercepted a wayward pass from Kurtley Beale on the edge of the Wallabies' 22 and raced away to score the try which booked his side's place in the semi-finals.

The scorers:

For England:
Tries:  May 2, Sinckler, Watson
Cons:  Farrell 4
Pens:  Farrell 4

For Australia:
Try:  Koroibete
Con:  Lealiifano
Pens:  Lealiifano 3

England:  15 Elliot Daly, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Jonny May, 10 Owen Farrell (c), 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Billy Vunipola, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Tom Curry, 5 Courtney Lawes, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Jamie George, 1 Mako Vunipola
Replacements:  16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Dan Cole, 19 George Kruis, 20 Lewis Ludlam, 21 Willi Heinz, 22 George Ford, 23 Jonathan Joseph

Australia:  15 Kurtley Beale, 14 Reece Hodge, 13 Jordan Petaia, 12 Samu Kerevi, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Christian Lealiifano, 9 Will Genia, 8 Isi Naisarani, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 David Pocock, 5 Rory Arnold, 4 Izack Rodda, 3 Allan Alaalatoa, 2 Tolu Latu, 1 Scott Sio
Replacements:  16 Jordan Uelese, 17 James Slipper, 18 Taniela Tupou, 19 Adam Coleman, 20 Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, 21 Nic White, 22 Matt To’omua, 23 James O’Connor

Referee:  Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant referees:  Romain Poite (France), Mathieu Raynal (France)
Television match official:  Ben Skeen (New Zealand)

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Sunday, 13 October 2019

Stunning Japan make last-eight after superb win

Japan produced a stunning first half display as they qualified for the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time ever following a 28-21 triumph over Scotland in Yokohama.

Gregor Townsend’s men may have started on the front foot with Finn Russell going over, but the Brave Blossoms hit back superbly via Kotaro Matsushima, Keita Inagaki and Kenki Fukuoka.

Fukuoka then went over at the start of the second period to seemingly take the game out of the Scots’ reach, but the Murrayfield-based outfit responded magnificently.

Willem Nel and Zander Fagerson touched down in quick succession to give them hope, but it was not enough as Japan moved through to the knockout stages after one of the games of the tournament.

Despite the final result, Scotland got off to an ideal start as Russell started and finished a move which took them 7-0 ahead.

Firstly, the fly-half produced a well-weighted cross-field kick, allowing Magnus Bradbury to pick up and get to within five metres of the line, and under pressure the Brave Blossoms yielded when Scotland’s star pivot eased his way through a tackle and touched down.

It was a blow for Jamie Joseph’s men, who have not necessarily reacted well when they have been favourites.  Against both Russia and Samoa, they struggled at times, but on Sunday the hosts came back firing.

The Asian outfit moved the ball swiftly and opened the space for Fukuoka to speed down the left.  Although the back was tap-tackled by Chris Harris, he brilliantly found his wing partner Matsushima to cross the whitewash.

After that stunning response, Japan went one better when Shota Horie, Pieter Labuschagne and Will Tupou combined to send Inagaki over for a wonderful score.

Scotland were now the team under duress and they failed to respond.  Instead, the Japanese got stronger and a brilliant Timothy Lafaele grubber was collected and finished by Fukuoka for a 14-point buffer at the interval.

Townsend needed a response from his charges but it initially failed to come as Japan simply increased their lead when Fukuoka stripped the ball from Harris and sped 40 metres to touch down.

At that point, the match – and the Scots’ quarter-final hopes – appeared over but they gave themselves a glimmer when good work from Jamie Ritchie and Stuart Hogg allowed Nel to cross the whitewash.

All of a sudden, the Six Nations side had the momentum and Russell was starting to weave his magic.  It opened the space for Scott Cummings and Jonny Gray to combine, and Fagerson was the recipient of their good work to close the gap further.

Although Japan stemmed the tide, Scotland were beginning to create more opportunities as tiredness set in, but the hosts did just enough to run down the clock and oust their opponents from the competition.

The scorers:

For Japan:
Tries:  Matsushima, Inagaki, Fukuoka 2
Cons:  Tamura 4

For Scotland:
Tries:  Russell, Nel, Fagerson
Cons:  Laidlaw 2, Russell

Japan:  15 William Tupou, 14 Kotaro Matsushima, 13 Timothy Lafaele, 12 Ryoto Nakamura, 11 Kenki Fukuoka, 10 Yu Tamura, 9 Yutaka Nagare, 8 Kazuki Himeno, 7 Pieter Labuschagne, 6 Michael Leitch (c), 5 James Moore, 4 Luke Thompson, 3 Jiwon Koo, 2 Shota Horie, 1 Keita Inagaki
Replacements:  16 Atsushi Sakate, 17 Isileli Nakajima, 18 Asaeli Ai Valu, 19 Uwe Helu, 20 Hendrik Tui, 21 Fumiaki Tanaka, 22 Rikiya Matsuda, 23 Ryohei Yamanaka

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Chris Harris, 12 Sam Johnson, 11 Darcy Graham, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Greig Laidlaw (c), 8 Blade Thomson, 7 Jamie Ritchie, 6 Magnus Bradbury, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Grant Gilchrist, 3 Willem Nel, 2 Fraser Brown, 1 Allan Dell
Replacements:  16 Stuart McInally, 17 Gordon Reid, 18 Zander Fagerson, 19 Scott Cummings, 20 Ryan Wilson, 21 George Horne, 22 Pete Horne, 23 Blair Kinghorn

Referee:  Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
Assistant referees:  Mathieu Raynal (France), Matthew Carley (England)
TMO:  Ben Skeen (New Zealand)

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