Canada 24 Tonga 7

Al Charron and his Canadian side managed a 24-7 win over Tonga in Wollongong, scoring two tries to one and regrouping well after their skipper was stretchered off in a big tackle.

In the last Pool D match at the Rugby World Cup for the two sides, Canada, with fewer scoring opportunities, beat Tonga at WIN Stadium in Wollongong, south of Sydney, on a windy Wednesday evening.  The Canadian pack and their immaculate fly-half, Bob Ross deserve great credit.

The Canuck pack was lighter than the Tongans, but won every one of their line-outs and five of the Tongans'.  They were better than Tonga in the scrums and drove much, much better in the mauls.

Rugby is about defence and attack.  The Canadians certainly won the defence and, as a result, the match.  When they had a chance to score points they did so, except on two occasions, one in each half.

The Tongans were more spectacular, but much loess cohesive.  Their most spectacular player was their replacement centre, Sukanaivalu Hufanga, who had three thrilling breaks -- which petered out through inadequate support.

Canada had the advantage of the stiff wind in the first half, but ended it leading only 9-7 and things could have been worse as Tonga came close to scoring a second try.

Canada scored first when Tonga were penalised and Canadian scrum-half Morgan Williams forced an extra 10 metres as he did later in the half.  Bob Ross, veteran of veterans at the World Cup, kicked the penalty.

Shortly afterwards, Canada got their closest to the Tongan line in the half.  Tonga were penalised, but the Canadians chose to charge the line, only to be penalised for creating a flying wedge.

Then came Tonga as they set up mauls from a line-out well in the Canadian 22 and eventually their noble captain Inoke Afeaki scored as he fell.  Pierre Hola converted, and after 17 minutes Tonga led 7-3.

Williams milked another 10 metres at a penalty and Ross made it 7-6.

Then Tonga came close as hooker Ephram Taukafa picked up turnover ball and set off on a weaving run that would have done a scrum-half proud.  They moved it right, but Nisifolo Naufahu lost the ball as he strove to score.

Canada weathered that storm and two other close-in line-outs late in the half.  Instead it was Ross's third penalty which gave them their half-time lead.

Canada started and finished the match charging at the Tongans with lots of support.  They barged the ball up, they mauled it up and occasionally they threw it wide.  They seldom kicked into the wind -- as the Tongans seldom kicked with the wind.

Early in the second half, Tonga messed up a defensive line-out and the Canadians drove at them with might and main.  The attack became a five-metre scrum to Canada.  This time they went wide to the right.  Ross did a loop, drew the defenders and sent it out.  Left-wing Winston Stanley and fullback Quentin Fyffe were in the line to send right-wing Sean Fauth over for the try.  That made it 14-7 after 50 minutes.

Tonga had a similar opportunity as they attacked from a five-metre line-out, which became a five-metre scrum.  Back they came for another five-metre line-out.  Again Canada stole it and drove a maul up field till scrum-half Williams went scurrying away.

A hectic Canadian attack came to nought when Stanley knocked on and Hufanga and Vaki, a lock playing on the wing, came close.

Canada then attacked with many phases which ended in a horror collision between Al Charron and Pierre Hola that held up play while the great Canadian, the oldest man at the World Cup, was taken off on a stretcher, bleeding from the jaw.

Just after that, Ross bisected the posts with a penalty and then Tonga attacked in a frenzy -- but were held up over the line.

Instead Canada scored when replacement wing James Pritchard raced down the left-wing and kicked ahead.  Replacement David Palu shouldered him late, causing Canadian anger and a yellow card for Palu.  From the five-metre line-out Canada drove and Aaron Abrams, a hooker, but on as a replacement for Charron, scored.  Pritchard converted from the corner.

Man of the Match:  There was the man with the Mohawk from Tonga, every-where man, Sililo Martens and the exciting centre Sukanaivalu Hufanga.  For Canada there were their busy hooker Mark Lawson, long-legged centre Ryan Smith and scrum-half Morgan Williams, but really the Man of the match was the immaculate, impeccable Bob Ross at fly-half, a Canadian international since 1989.

Moment of the match:  There were three in the first half.  Tongan prop Heamani Lavaka hurt his knee when Naufahu came close to scoring but stood in the scrum.  Then when his management wanted to replace him he waved the replacement away and soldiered on.  Prop of props!  Then the feathers flew!  The Canadian left-wing fly-kicked the ball which hit a startled seagull like a shot at snooker.  In the second half there were Gordon Ross's cleverness for Canada's try and Sukanaivalu Hufanga's three breaks.  But really the moment was the horror moment -- the injury to Al Charron and the sad sight of seeing the wounded warrior carried off, his wounds in front, in his 78th and last Test.

Villain of the match:  David Pula's tackle on James Pritchard, late and reckless, was punished with a yellow card and so earns him the Villain of the match tag.  Pierre Hola's tackle on Al Charron, which felled the big man, may well be revisited by the citing commissioner.  The referee, on the spot, said that he thought it a fair tackle.  A fair tackle can well cause injury.

The teams:

Canada:  1 Garth Cooke, 2 Mark Lawson, 3 Rod Snow, 4 Alan Charron (c), 5 Mike James, 6 Jamie Cudmore, 7 Adam Van Staveren, 8 Josh Jackson, 9 Morgan Williams, 10 Bobby Ross, 11 Sean Fauth, 12 Marco Di Girolomo, 13 Nik Witkowski, 14 Winston Stanley, 15 Quentin Fyffe
Reserves:  Aaron Abrams, Ed Fairhurst, Jeff Reid, Kevin Tkachuk, Colin Yukes, James Pritchard, Ryan Smith

Tonga:  1 Tonga Lea'aetoa, 2 Ephraim Taukafa, 3 Heamani Lavaka, 4 Milton Ngauamo, 5 'Inoke Afeaki (c), 6 Nisifolo Naufahu, 7 Sione Tu'amoheloa, 8 Ben Hur Kivalu, 9 Sililo Martens, 10 Pierre Hola, 11 Pila Fifita, 12 Johnny Ngauamo, 13 John Payne, 14 Sione Fonua, 15 Gus Leger
Reserves:  'Ipolito Fenukitau, Sukanaivalu Hufanga, Usaia Latu, Viliami Ma'asi, David Palu, Kafalosi Tonga, Viliami Vaki

Attendance:  15630
Referee:  Rolland a.

Points Scorers:

Canada
Tries:  Fauth S. 1, Abrams A. 1
Conv:  Pritchard J. 1
Pen K.:  Ross R.P. 4

Tonga
Tries:  Afeaki I.U. 1
Conv:  Hola P. 1