All Blacks hold off Boks to win Rugby Championship

Jordie Barrett’s 78th-minute penalty snatched a 19-17 victory for New Zealand against South Africa in their Rugby Championship encounter in Townsville on Saturday.

This was the 100th Test between these sides and it lived up to the hype as the match was in the balance throughout, with the All Blacks’ triumph meaning they have won the tournament.

Both sides scored a try apiece with Will Jordan crossing for the All Blacks and Sbu Nkosi dotting down for the Springboks.  Full-back Barrett scored all New Zealand’s other points courtesy of a conversion and four penalties and Handre Pollard also added four three-pointers off the kicking tee for South Africa.

South Africa came into this game under tremendous pressure ― after losing their two previous Tests against the Wallabies ― but they delivered a much improved and more competitive performance which did justice to their status as world champions.

The All Blacks made a terrific start and three minutes into the game Codie Taylor tore the Springbok defence to shreds with a powerful carry from just inside his half.  He was soon inside his opponents’ territory where he offloaded to Jordan, who outpaced the cover defence on his way over the try-line.

Shortly afterwards, the Springboks struck back in bizarre fashion.  This, when George Bridge failed to gather a routine bomb from Faf de Klerk inside his 22 and Nkosi pounced on the loose ball before crossing for an easy five-pointer.

Pollard’s conversion attempt was wide of the mark but he made up for that miss when he landed a penalty in the 10th minute after Brodie Retallick was blown up for obstruction.

Two minutes later, the All Black second-row was penalised again and Pollard succeeded with a long-range goal-kick which meant the world champions were leading 11-7 by the 12th minute.

The next 20 minutes was a slugfest with the sides giving their all to gain the ascendancy and their contrasting styles was evident throughout, with the Boks’ tactic of trying to slow proceedings down countered by the All Blacks’ expansive style of play.

New Zealand managed to breach the Boks’ defence on a couple of occasions but their execution was not of its usual high standards, although they managed to narrow the gap to a point when Barrett landed his first penalty on the half-hour mark.

Five minutes later, South Africa were reduced to 14 men when Nkosi was yellow carded for a deliberate knock down deep inside his 22 and Barrett slotted the resulting penalty which gave his side a 13-11 lead at half-time.

The All Blacks were fastest out of the blocks after the interval and soon after the restart they were camped close to the Springboks’ try-line only for Nepo Laulala to knock on a short pass from TJ Perenara.

The attritional nature to the game continued with neither side giving an inch and we had to wait until the 58th minute for the first points of the half when Pollard added another penalty after foul play from the All Blacks deep inside their half.

That lead did not last long as on the hour-mark Barrett succeeded with his third penalty after the Boks strayed offside on defence.

The final quarter was a tense affair with South Africa upping the ante in possession and in the 67th minute they launched an attack from a lineout inside New Zealand’s 22.  And when the All Blacks’ strayed offside on defence, Pollard stepped up to add his fourth penalty which put his team in front for the last time.

There was plenty of end-to-end action as the game drew to a close and in its dying moments Willie le Roux was penalised for holding onto the ball on the ground, leaving Barrett a difficult shot from distance, but he held his nerve to slot the match-winning three points.

Australia get the better of Argentina in Townsville

Australia continued to impress in the Rugby Championship as they claimed a 27-8 triumph over Argentina in Townsville on Saturday.

The Wallabies were full value for their win as they had the bulk of the possession and territory and eventually outscored the Pumas three tries to one with Reece Hodge, Samu Kerevi and Andrew Kellaway dotting down.

Their other points came via two conversions and a penalty from Quade Cooper while James O’Connor also added a penalty and a conversion. For Argentina, Julian Montoya scored a try and Emiliano Boffelli succeeded with a penalty.

Argentina had an early chance to take the lead when Boffelli lined up a penalty in the fourth minute but his effort was off target.

That kick proved costly as shortly afterwards Kerevi put his team on the front foot with a powerful run before his progress was halted by a thumping tackle from Santiago Carreras.  The ball was recycled quickly to Hodge, however, and he did well to step past three defenders on his way over the whitewash.

The Wallabies continued to hold the upper hand and in the 19th minute they were rewarded again when Kerevi crossed for his try.  This, after Cooper delivered a teasing grubber kick inside Argentina’s 22 which was gathered by Len Ikitau, who was brought to ground close to the posts and Kerevi regained possession at the ensuing ruck before dotting down.

From the restart, Rob Valetini was blown up for obstruction and Boffelli opened the visitors’ account by slotting the resulting penalty.

The rest of the opening period was evenly contested with the Pumas becoming more competitive as the half progressed, although the Wallabies had a try disallowed when Nic White lost the ball while trying to dive over from close quarters in the 31st minute.  Argentina committed a defensive indiscretion in the build-up and Cooper added his second penalty from in front of the posts which gave his team a 17-3 lead at half-time.

The South Americans were fastest out of the blocks in the second half and three minutes after the restart Montoya powered his way over the try-line, off the back of a lineout maul on the Wallabies’ five-metre line.

Although Boffelli missed the conversion attempt, Argentina continued to have the better of the exchanges, but poor discipline from Marcos Kremer cost his team dearly when referee Matthew Carley had to overturn two Pumas penalties after foul play from the flanker.

First, it was for a no-arms hit on Marika Koroibete in the 47th minute and 10 minutes later Kremer was yellow carded for a trip on Hodge deep inside Australian territory.

Despite playing with 14 men, Argentina were still competitive and an O’Connor penalty on the hour-mark was the only points scored during Kremer’s stint in the sin bin.

The Wallabies finished stronger, however, and in the 70th minute Kellaway crossed for his side’s third five-pointer after collecting a well-timed inside pass from O’Connor close to the Pumas try-line.

That sealed the result for the home side and although they went in search of their fourth try, which would have secured them a bonus-point, they would not breach the Pumas defence again, although they will be happy with the result which takes them above South Africa into second position on the Rugby Championship table.

Wallabies claim bonus-point win over Springboks

The Wallabies secured yet another triumph over the Springboks courtesy of a deserved 30-17 bonus-point victory in their Rugby Championship encounter in Brisbane on Saturday.

After claiming a narrow win over the world champions last week, the Wallabies continued to impress and they outscored the Boks four tries to one with Len Ikitau and Marika Koroibete scoring two five-pointers apiece while Quade Cooper succeeded with two conversions and a couple of penalties.

For the Boks, Lukhanyo Am crossed the whitewash and Handre Pollard added four penalties.

The Boks did most of the early attacking but had nothing to show for their efforts as they were met a solid defensive effort by the home side.  Things went pear-shaped for the visitors in the 12th minute when Faf de Klerk was yellow carded for slapping the ball out of Nic White’s hands at a ruck inside the Boks’ 22.

It was a needless and cynical offence and Australia made full use of their numerical advantage with Ikitau scoring his tries during the Bok scrum-half’s stint in the sin bin.

From the resulting penalty, the Wallabies attacked from a lineout and the ball was shifted quickly to their backs where Ikitau slipped past a couple of defenders before crossing for his first Test try.

Cooper’s conversion attempt struck an upright before Pollard reduced the deficit with a penalty after Matt Philip infringed at a lineout.  With a man down, South Africa’s much vaunted defence looked all at sea and midway through the half Tom Banks threw an inside pass to Koroibete, who offloaded to Ikitau and he dotted down again.

Soon after, De Klerk returned to action and the next 10 minutes were evenly contested with Pollard and Cooper trading penalties which meant the Wallabies were leading 15-6 by the half-hour mark.

In the 31st minute, Andrew Kellaway was penalised when he tackled Am in the air and Pollard narrowed the gap to six points when he slotted the resulting place-kick.

Australia were then reduced to 14 men when Lachlan Swinton was yellow carded for a no-arms challenge on Duane Vermeulen.  Initially, referee Matthew Carley wanted to issue a red as he thought Swinton’s shoulder hit Vermeulen’s head but television replays showed that the initial contact was with the Bok number eight’s shoulder.

South Africa dominated the closing stages of the half but although they spent long periods inside Australia’s half, a 37th minute Pollard penalty was their only reward and the match was evenly poised at half-time with the Wallabies holding a 15-12 lead.

The Boks made a terrific start to the second period and from the restart they regathered possession before taking the ball through several phases inside Australia’s half.  They were soon on the attack on the edge of their hosts’ 22 where De Klerk stabbed through a well-weighted grubber kick which Am gathered before scoring his try.

Although Pollard’s conversion attempt was off target, the visitors’ tails were up and they held the upper hand for the next 10 minutes but the Wallabies regained the lead courtesy of a Cooper penalty in the 50th minute.

After that it was one-way traffic with Australia the dominant side while South Africa made several uncharacteristic unforced errors.

🤯 Taniela, take a bow!

📺 @StanSportAU & @9Gem#TRC2021 #Wallabies #RSAvAUS @eToroAU @cadburyAU pic.twitter.com/Otux6OSRJM

— Wallabies (@wallabies) September 18, 2021

On the hour-mark, the Wallabies launched an attack on the blindside which caught the Boks by surprise with Taniela Tupou doing well to draw in Sbu Nkosi before getting a brilliant offload out to Koroibete, who outsprinted the cover defence before dotting down.

That boosted the home side’s confidence and in the 68th minute Koroibete went over for his second try after gliding through a gap in the Bok defence.

That clinched the result for the hosts although the world champions continued to fight but, in doing so, they lost their discipline and just before full-time Jasper Wiese was also sent to the sin bin after taking Samu Kerevi out illegally at a ruck.

All Blacks see off plucky Pumas in Brisbane

New Zealand made it four wins from four in the Rugby Championship but were made to work as they beat Argentina 36-13 in Brisbane on Saturday.

As the scoreline suggests, this encounter was not as one-sided as last weekend’s Test on the Gold Coast ― with the Pumas being more competitive ― but the All Blacks still claimed a bonus point as they outscored their opponents five tries to one.

Tupou Vaa’i led the way with a brace of five-pointers while Patrick Tuipulotu, TJ Perenara and Samisoni Taukei’aho also dotted down and Jordie Barrett finished with an 11-point haul after adding four conversions and a penalty.

Emiliano Boffelli scored all Argentina’s points courtesy of a try, a conversion and two penalties.

New Zealand were fastest out of the blocks and opened the scoring after five minutes when Tuipulotu crossed from close quarters after a superb line break from Hoskins Sotutu in the build-up.

Barrett added the extras before Boffelli reduced the deficit shortly afterwards via a penalty after Ethan Blackadder was blown up for obstruction.

New Zealand had the bulk of the possession during the next 10 minutes but Argentina did well on defence and a Barrett penalty in the 13th minute was the All Blacks’ only reward during that period.

In the 17th minute, slick handling and interpassing between New Zealand’s forwards and backs from broken play saw Will Jordan crossing the whitewash but referee Jaco Peyper correctly ruled out his try due to the pass from Taukei’ahoto being forward.

Five minutes later, Jordan gathered a chip kick from Damian McKenzie in Argentina’s half before offloading to Rieko Ioane, who went over under the posts, but once again the final pass went forward and that effort was also disallowed.

The All Blacks continued to dominate and in the 29th minute they attacked off the back of a scrum on Argentina’s five-metre line and Perenara forced his way over the try-line after gathering a pass from Sotutu.

And just before half-time, Vaa’i rounded off a flowing move, in which the ball went through several pairs of hands in the build-up, which meant the All Blacks were cruising with the score 24-3 in their favour at half-time.

The second half started with Boffelli adding another penalty but it wasn’t long before the All Blacks regained the initiative courtesy of Taukei’aho’s try after great offloading from Jordan and Ardie Savea in the build-up.

Despite that setback, the Pumas did not surrender and they were soon on the attack inside the All Blacks’ half.  The South Americans’ attacking endeavour was rewarded in the 52nd minute when Santiago Carreras delivered an inch perfect cross-field kick which Boffelli gathered before scoring in the left-hand corner.

The Pumas wing showed his class as he landed the difficult conversion from close to the touchline and with the score 29-13 to the All Blacks, Argentina were more energetic during the rest of the match.

Although they did most of the attacking during the next 25 minutes, the All Blacks also had a chance to increase their lead but after doing well to charge down a clearance kick close to the Pumas try-line, Finlay Christie failed to regather the ball while crossing the whitewash.

In the game’s closing stages, Quinn Tupaea won a turnover inside Argentina’s half and the All Blacks soon launched a counter attack.  The ball came out to Scott Barrett, who offloaded out of the back of his hand to Vaa’i, who crossed for his second try which added some gloss to his side’s victory.

Quade Cooper the hero as Wallabies edge out Springboks

A late penalty from Quade Cooper secured a 28-26 Rugby Championship win for the Wallabies against the Springboks on the Gold Coast on Sunday.

In a hard-fought and tightly contested encounter, the result was in the balance until the dying moments but Cooper held his nerve to slot a difficult goal-kick, after the Boks’ pack were penalised for illegal scrummaging.

Cooper finished with a 23-point haul as he also succeeded with six other penalties and a conversion after Andrew Kellaway went over for Australia’s only try.  For South Africa Malcolm Marx (two) and Bongi Mbonambi crossed the whitewash and Handre Pollard added three penalties and a conversion.

There were some strong carries and big hits during the early exchanges and the sides were level at 3-3 after Pollard and Cooper traded penalties inside the opening 10 minutes.

Shortly afterwards, the Springboks regained the lead when Pollard succeeded with his second three-pointer off the kicking tee, after Angus Bell dropped his bind at a scrum.

However, things went pear-shaped in 16th minute for the world champions when they lost the services of their captain, Siya Kolisi, who was yellow carded for a dangerous tip tackle on Tom Banks.

And with a one-man advantage, it wasn’t long before the Wallabies breached the Boks’ much vaunted defence.  Samu Kerevi did the damage with a superb line break before throwing a long pass to Kellaway, who stepped past a couple of defenders before crossing for the opening try.

Shortly after Kolisi returned to the field, Pollard stabbed a teasing grubber kick through behind Australia’s try-line but although Lukhanyo Am gathered the ball, he lost possession while trying to dot down.

Despite that setback, South Africa soon had a numerical advantage of their own when Matt Philip was sent to the sin-bin for collapsing a lineout drive close to his try-line.  Shortly afterwards, the Boks launched a lineout drive on the Wallabies’ five-metre line from which Mbonambi went over for his five-pointer.

On the stroke of half-time, Bell made up for his earlier indiscretion at scrum-time when he put pressure on Frans Malherbe at the set-piece and the Bok front-row was soon penalised, with Cooper succeeding off the kicking tee to give Australia a deserved 19-11 lead at half-time.

The Springboks made the brighter start to the second period and spent most of the early stages of the half camped in Wallabies territory.  They could not breach Australia’s defence though but narrowed the gap to five points courtesy of another Pollard penalty in the 46th minute.

Five minutes later, the Boks were reduced to 14 men again when Willie le Roux received his marching orders for a deliberate knock down while the Wallabies were on the attack and Cooper slotted the resulting penalty which gave his side a 22-14 lead.

The Boks needed a response and that came shortly after Folau Fainga’a received a yellow card for a no-arms tackle on Ox Nché, with South Africa soon on the attack at a lineout deep inside Wallabies territory.  They had the Wallabies on the back foot with a strong drive from which Marx scored and Pollard added the extras which meant the match was evenly balanced with Australia holding a slender 22-21 lead.

Two minutes later, the Wallabies extended their lead when Cooper succeeded with his sixth penalty, after Jasper Wiese was blown up for holding onto the ball on the ground.

Despite that setback, the Boks did not panic and in the 72nd minute Marx went over for his second try ― once again off a lineout drive but, crucially, Damian Willemse was off target with his conversion attempt.

That proved costly as Cooper showed his class in the game’s closing stages when he slotted the match-winning penalty, sparking scenes of jubilation in the home camp.

Five-try All Blacks prove too strong for Argentina

The All Blacks proved too strong for the Pumas as they clinched a 39-0 victory in their Rugby Championship clash on the Gold Coast on Sunday.

As the scoreline suggests, New Zealand dominated proceedings and they were rewarded with five tries ― which secured them a deserved bonus-point ― with Luke Jacobson (2), Rieko Ioane, Sevu Reece and Dalton Papalii crossing the whitewash.

Their other points came via the boots of the Barrett brothers with fly-half Beauden adding a conversion and a penalty and full-back Jordie slotting three conversions and a penalty.

The opening exchanges were tightly contested with both sides showing a willingness to run the ball but neither team would score points during that period.

The match came alive in the 10th minute when Reece took the ball into contact before he was brought to ground inside the Pumas’ 22.  From the next phase Beauden Barrett launched an attack and when he offloaded to Ioane, the ball was knocked backwards by Bautista Delguy before the All Blacks outside centre dove on it behind Argentina’s try-line.

Just like the early stages, the next 25 minutes was scoreless although there were a few occasions when New Zealand came close to scoring a try again.  In the 14th minute, a teasing chip kick from the older Barrett was gathered by his brother Jordie, who crossed for what the All Blacks believed was their second try but that effort was ruled out after television replays revealed that he had dotted down on the dead-ball line.

And shortly afterwards centre Ioane tore the Pumas defence to shreds with a brilliant line break.  He was soon inside Argentina’s 22 and tried to offload to Reece on his outside but the pass was intercepted by Santiago Cordero, who was bundled into touch close to his corner flag.

The All Blacks were eventually rewarded in the 34th minute when Beauden Barrett kicked a penalty before Reece scored their second try from close quarters shortly afterwards.

Just before the interval, Argentina suffered a further setback when Pablo Matera was sent to the sin-bin after he committed a cynical defensive foul deep inside his half.

The All Blacks set up a lineout drive from the resulting penalty and they were rewarded when Papalii crossed the whitewash off the back of the maul on the stroke of half-time.  Jordie Barrett added the extras which meant the All Blacks were leading 22-0 at the break.

The All Blacks started the second half in a similar vein to the way they ended the first and in the 46th minute fly-half Barrett set off on a mazy run before throwing a backhanded pass out to Jacobson, who went over for their fourth five-pointer.

Although they were in control of proceedings, the All Blacks could not extend their lead over the next 20 minutes although they had a try disallowed in the 66th minute when Ethan Blackadder’s effort was chalked off for a double movement.  However, their opponents were reduced to 14 men again when Enrique Pieretto was yellow carded for a professional foul on defence close to his try-line.

With a one man advantage, it did not take long for the All Blacks to capitalise and soon after Jacobson scored his second try after breaking off the back of a scrum on Argentina’s five-metre line.

That score knocked the wind out of the Pumas’ sails and there was more misery for them in the game’s closing stages when Jordie Barrett slotted an easy penalty which gave his team a deserved victory.

All Blacks cruise past Wallabies despite red card

The All Blacks hammered home their dominance over the Wallabies when they beat their trans-Tasman rivals 38-21 in a highly entertaining and drama-filled Rugby Championship Test in Perth on Sunday.

Like the previous two Bledisloe Cup Tests, the All Blacks controlled proceedings for long periods and although they had to play with 14 men for 20 minutes, after Jordie Barrett was red carded for a dangerous flying kick to Marika Koroibete’s face ― while gathering a high ball ― late in the first half, they thoroughly deserved their victory.

In the end, New Zealand outscored their hosts six tries to three with David Havili leading the way with a brace of five-pointers while full-back Barrett, Will Jordan, Anton Lienert-Brown and George Bridge also crossed the whitewash.  The All Blacks’ other points came courtesy of two penalties and a conversion from Beauden Barrett.

For the Wallabies, Folau Fainga’a, Nic White and Tom Banks scored tries while Noah Lolesio and Reece Hodge (2) succeeded with conversions.

The Wallabies enjoyed a superb start and in the third minute Samu Kerevi made an excellent line break which had the All Blacks’ defence at sixes and sevens.  He did well to offload to Koroibete, who shrugged off a couple of defenders on his way over the try-line, but his effort was disallowed when television replays revealed that Kerevi had launched the attack from an offside position at a ruck.

From the resulting penalty, the visitors were soon inside Australia’s half but despite an extended period camped close to the home side’s try-line, they could not score a try but eventually opened the scoring in the ninth minute courtesy of a Barrett penalty.

The All Blacks continued to hold the upper hand and in the 15th minute Barrett made it 6-0 when he slotted his second penalty after James Slipper was blown up for illegal play on defence.

Shortly afterwards, fly-half Barrett delivered a perfectly weighted grubber kick which Jordan gathered before passing to Brad Weber and he was in the clear inside Australia’s half.  Weber did well to draw in Noah Lolesio before offloading to the younger Barrett, who had an easy run-in next to the posts.

In the 28th minute, Australia had a chance to open their account when Nepo Laulala strayed offside on defence but Lolesio was off target with his shot at goal.

Despite that setback, the Wallabies received a shot in the arm shortly afterwards when full-back Barrett was sent off in controversial fashion.  This, while gathering a high ball in his half but as he descended to the ground his boot struck Koroibete’s face and after watching replays and consulting his TMO, referee Damon Murphy ruled that Barrett’s kick was dangerous and issued a red card.

🇦🇺🇳🇿 Was this a red card offence in the #BledisloeCup Test in Perth?pic.twitter.com/g7Jm1usZ6R

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) September 5, 2021

With an extra man on the field, Australia were soon on the attack in New Zealand’s half and in the 39th minute Koroibete dotted down after a lineout drive deep inside his opponents’ territory.  That score was ruled out, however, as a television replay showed that he had crawled on his way over the try-line.

That proved costly as on the stroke of half-time Havili went over for his first try, off the back of a maul, and the All Blacks had their tails up at the interval with the score 18-0 in their favour.

Just like the first half, Australia were fastest out of the blocks in the second period and in the 50th minute a superb line break from Tate McDermott set up a well-taken try for Fainga’a.

The Wallabies’ joy didn’t last long as five minutes later Akira Ioane beat three defenders before offloading to Jordan, who crossed for the visitors’ third try before Havili intercepted a wayward pass from Matt Philip and raced away for his second five-pointer on the hour-mark.

The final quarter was a frantic affair with both sides running the ball from all areas of the field.  Australia were rewarded when White scored his try in the 66th minute but New Zealand cancelled that effort out with further five-pointers from Lienert-Brown and Bridge before Banks scored a consolation try in the game’s closing stages.