George Ford drop-goal clinic helps 14-man England dismantle Argentina

George Ford put on a drop-goal clinic as he scored all of England’s points in their 27-10 victory against Argentina in their Rugby World Cup pool opener.

Despite being without Tom Curry after he received an upgraded yellow card to red after barely three minutes, England produced an inspired performance.

Ford was the architect of their impressive underdog success as he nailed three drop-goals and six penalties as Los Pumas were left shell-shocked in Marseille.

Only a late Rodrigo Bruni try gave Argentina something to cling to from what was an awful performance, with Ford and England savouring a special win.

While the outstanding Ford was busy steering England around the pitch and keeping the scoreboard ticking over, his team-mates fought themselves to a standstill with Ben Earl and Courtney Lawes magnificent.

It was an ugly spectacle with neither side functioning in attack, but Steve Borthwick‘s men showed the character needed to place one foot in the quarter-finals by taking control of Pool D at the expense of their greatest rivals.

A giant stride forward was taken in plugging their leaky defence, but discipline remains a major concern, with Curry set to join Owen Farrell and Billy Vunipola in being banned for periods of the World Cup.

England will argue that Curry was unfortunate to become the country’s first red card at a World Cup – and the fastest in the tournament’s history – despite the clash of heads that came as a result of his tackle.

And when Santiago Carreras was punished with only a sin-binning for clattering late into Ford early on, they had additional cause for grievance.

Once the initial drama of Curry’s dismissal had subsided, England rolled up their sleeves to withstand a battering on their line by Argentina’s pack, winning a penalty that enabled them to clear their lines.

They have often delivered a spirited response when down on numbers and so it was proving in Marseille as a methodical drive downfield ended with Ford landing a drop-goal.

Ford repeated the trick but this time from the halfway line as a monster kick sailed between the uprights with distance to spare.

The glaring deficiencies in England’s attack were apparent as they butchered a four-on-two overlap, but with Ford landing drop-goals at will – he coolly added a third from short range – it did not seem to matter.

Even with Curry sat watching in the stand they built a 12-3 lead, helped by rattled opponents who were also struggling with the ball in hand.

The intensity was cranked up for the second half, forcing a breakdown penalty that Ford inevitably steered between the uprights, while in reply the Pumas squirted the ball forward to end a rare attack.

3⃣ of the best! #RWC2023

📽️ In the spirit of Jonny Wilkinson, George Ford slotted three drop goals in the first of half #ENGvARG!https://t.co/x6IokcQhLo

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) September 9, 2023

Manu Tuilagi cut Santiago Chocobares in half with a wince-inducing tackle and with Ford on target from the kicking tee twice in quick succession, it was starting to look bleak for Argentina.

Over went the fifth and then sixth penalties and although the shambolic Pumas finally crossed through Bruni in the closing moments, their fate was already sealed.

The teams

England:  15 Freddie Steward, 14 Jonny May, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Elliot Daly, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Courtney Lawes (c), 5 Ollie Chessum, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Jamie George, 1 Ellis Genge
Replacements:  16 Theo Dan, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Will Stuart, 19 George Martin, 20 Lewis Ludlam, 21 Danny Care, 22 Marcus Smith, 23 Ollie Lawrence

Argentina:  15 Juan Cruz Mallia, 14 Emiliano Boffelli, 13 Lucio Cinti, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 11 Mateo Carreras, 10 Santiago Carreras, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Juan Martin Gonzalez, 7 Marcos Kremer, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Tomas Lavanini, 4 Matias Alemanno, 3 Francisco Gomez Kodela, 2 Julian Montoya (c), 1 Thomas Gallo
Replacements:  16 Agustin Creevy, 17 Joel Sclavi, 18 Eduardo Bello, 19 Guido Petti, 20 Pedro Rubiolo, 21 Rodrigo Bruni, 22 Lautaro Bazan Velez, 23 Matias Moroni

Referee:  Mathieu Raynal (France)
Assistant Referees:  Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand), Pierre Brousset (France)
TMO:  Marius Jonker (South Africa)

Johnny Sexton racks up 24-point haul as Ireland cruise past Romania

Johnny Sexton marked his return to action with a 24-point haul as Ireland eased to an 82-8 victory over Romania in their Rugby World Cup opener.

The fly-half played 66 minutes in Bordeaux, and he celebrated his comeback match with two tries and seven conversions as the Irish cruised to five points.

Jamison Gibson-Park, Hugo Keenan, Tadhg Beirne (2), Bundee Aki (2), Rob Herring, Peter O’Mahony (2) and Joe McCarthy also crossed in the huge win.

Andy Farrell‘s men were given a jolt by Romania scrum-half Gabriel Rupanu crossing early on but emphatically avoided a major upset ahead of far stiffer tests against Tonga, South Africa and Scotland.

Fly-half Sexton also slotted seven of eight conversions before being withdrawn 16 minutes from time to a standing ovation and now sits just nine points shy of Ronan O’Gara’s national record tally of 1,083.

The 38-year-old was back from his lengthy absence to lead his country into his fourth World Cup, while Mack Hansen replaced Robbie Henshaw on the bench in a late change following his surprise initial omission from the matchday 23.

An expectant sea of green flooded the stands of Stade de Bordeaux in sweltering south-west France.

But it was Romania who made the blistering start.

Sexton’s poor grubber kick was pounced upon by Hinckley Vaovasa, and he raced forward to give half-back partner Rupanu a simple third-minute finish.

🇷🇴 How about that! Romania score first against Ireland early on. #IREvROM #RWC2023 pic.twitter.com/v0lzDWfmjw

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) September 9, 2023

Ireland swiftly recovered from the sloppy opening moments to assert their authority.

Gibson-Park benefited from slick interplay involving Sexton, Aki and Garry Ringrose to dive over before Keenan crossed under the posts and flanker Beirne touched down wide on the left.

Rupanu reduced the deficit with a penalty ahead of the first drinks break, but the fourth World Cup meeting between the nations rarely threatened to be truly competitive, epitomised by an early Mexican wave.

Ireland had won all of the past clashes – nine in total – and had the bonus point in the bag in the 34th minute when the rampaging Aki claimed a fine solo score shortly after Romania full-back Marius Simionescu was sin-binned for obstruction.

Sexton got in on the act in the final moments of the half, crossing under the posts before overcoming a bang suffered in the process to slot the extras and make it 33-8 at the interval.

Ireland players had spoken all week of wanting to begin with a bang by producing a statement victory.

Undeterred by the stifling conditions, the Six Nations Grand Slam champions stretched their advantage courtesy of hooker Herring and flanker O’Mahony dotting down amid prolonged pressure.

Sexton’s 17th Test try added further gloss to the scoreline before a first for 22-year-old lock McCarthy and a second of the afternoon for O’Mahony enhanced Romania’s punishment.

Aki, who was sent off against Samoa in his last World Cup outing, and Beirne became the third and fourth men in green to claim a brace.

Replacement number 10 Crowley successfully added the extras from his four conversions as Ireland ruthlessly dispatched the team ranked 19th in the world to stretch their record-winning run to 14 matches and satisfy the bulk of the 41,170 crowd.

The teams

Ireland:  15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Jonathan Sexton (c), 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Peter O’Mahony, 6 Tadhg Beirne, 5 James Ryan, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Andrew Porter
Replacements:  16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Tom O’Toole, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Josh van der Flier, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Jack Crowley, 23 Mack Hansen

Romania:  15 Marius Simionescu, 14 Nicolas Onutu, 13 Fonovai Tangimana, 12 Jason Tomane, 11 Tevita Manumua, 10 Hinckley Vaovasa, 9 Gabriel Rupanu, 8 Cristian Chirica (c), 7 Vlad Neculau, 6 Florian Rosu, 5 Stefan Iancu, 4 Adrian Motoc, 3 Alexandru Gordas, 2 Ovidiu Cojocaru, 1 Iulian Hartig
Replacements:  16 Florin Bardasu, 17 Alexandru Savin, 18 Gheorghe Gajion, 19 Marius Iftimiciuc, 20 Dragos Ser, 21 Alin Conache, 22 Tudor Boldor, 23 Taylor Gontineac

Referee:  Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)
Assistant Referees:  Wayne Barnes (England), Andrea Piardi (Italy)
TMO:  Brendon Pickerill (New Zealand)

Wallabies emphatically end losing run in slick World Cup win over Georgia

Australia ended a run of five straight losses as they kicked off their Rugby World Cup campaign with an impressive 35-15 win over Georgia on Saturday.

The drought is finally over for the Wallabies as tries from Jordan Petaia, Mark Nawaqanitawase and Ben Donaldson (2) sealed a first-up pool triumph.

Donaldson also contributed 15 points off the kicking tee in a strong outing at full-back as Eddie Jones‘ troops avoided a potential banana skin in Paris.

Luka Ivanishvili and Beka Gigashvili were the Lelos’ only try scorers on the day, as Georgia missed the chance to cause a shock at the Stade de France.

The Wallabies – with former England head coach Jones having taken over again in January – needed just a couple of minutes to get their first try when the ball was worked out wide to Petaia.

Georgia, who have yet to qualify from the pool stage in their five previous World Cup appearances, soon reduced the deficit with a penalty from Luka Matkava.

However, Australia – twice world champions but heading into the tournament with low expectations back home – swiftly extended their lead again with a try from wing Nawaqanitawase after good work by Petaia.  This time, full-back Donaldson did convert for the extra two points.

✈️ Soaring through the air! #RWC2023 #AUSvGEOpic.twitter.com/M95020JZwX

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) September 9, 2023

Donaldson then kicked three penalties to put further daylight between the sides, punishing more indiscipline from Georgia.

Australia scrum-half Tate McDermott was replaced by Nic White shortly before the break after taking a blow to the head as he went into a tackle.

Georgia were reduced to 14 men when winger Mirian Modebadze took out White for a second penalty and was swiftly sent to the sin-bin by Welsh referee Luke Pearce as Australia went into half-time with a 21-3 lead.

The Lelos, though, rallied at the start of the second half, with flanker Ivanishvili powering over for a try.

Australia were soon back on the offensive when prop Taniela Tupou took an interception to pick out Donaldson, who dived over next to the posts and then added the extras.

Donaldson capped a fine individual display when he scored another try in the 70th minute, taking a pass from Carter Gordon to secure Australia’s bonus point before Georgia added a late consolation try from a lineout through replacement prop Gigashvili.

The teams

Australia:  15 Ben Donaldson, 14 Mark Nawaqanitawase, 13 Jordan Petaia, 12 Samu Kerevi, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Carter Gordon, 9 Tate McDermott, 8 Rob Valetini, 7 Fraser McReight, 6 Tom Hooper, 5 Will Skelton (c), 4 Richie Arnold, 3 Taniela Tupou, 2 David Porecki, 1 Angus Bell
Replacements:  16 Matt Faessler, 17 Blake Schoupp, 18 Zane Nonggorr, 19 Rob Leota, 20 Langi Gleeson, 21 Nic White, 22 Lalakai Foketi, 23 Suliasi Vunivalu

Georgia:  15 Davit Niniashvili, 14 Akaki Tabutsadze, 13 Demur Tapladze, 12 Merab Sharikadze (c), 11 Miriani Modebadze, 10 Luka Matkava, 9 Vasil Lobzhanidze, 8 Beka Gorgadze, 7 Luka Ivanishvili, 6 Tornike Jalagonia, 5 Konstantine Mikautadze, 4 Nodar Cheishvili, 3 Guram Papidze, 2 Shalva Mamukashvili, 1 Nika Abuladze
Replacements:  16 Tengizi Zamtaradze, 17 Guram Gogichashvili, 18 Beka Gigashvili, 19 Lasha Jaiani, 20 Giorgi Tsutskiridze, 21 Gela Aprasidze, 22 Tedo Abzhandadze, 23 Giorgi Kveseladze

Referee:  Luke Pearce (England)
Assistant Referees:  James Doleman (New Zealand), Craig Evans (Wales)
TMO:  Brian MacNeice (Ireland)

Seven-try Italy put 50 past plucky Namibia in Saint-Etienne

Italy made an excellent start to their Rugby World Cup campaign when they sealed a 52-8 bonus-point victory against Namibia in Saint-Etienne on Saturday.

Although it was a comfortable win in the end, the Azzurri were made to work hard for the result, especially in the opening half when their opponents put in a competitive performance.

In the end, Italy’s class shone through and they eventually outscored Namibia by seven tries to one with Lorenzo Cannone, Paolo Garbisi, Dino Lamb, Ange Capuozzo, Hame Faiva, Manuel Zuliani and Paolo Odogwu crossing the whitewash for the Azzurri, while Tommaso Allan finished with a 17-point haul courtesy of seven conversions and a penalty.

For the Welwitschias, Gerswin Mouton scored a try and Tiaan Swanepoel added a penalty.

Namibia made the brighter start and opened the scoring as early as the fourth minute when Swanepoel succeeded with a penalty but five minutes later the Azzurri drew level courtesy of a Allan three-pointer off the kicking tee.

Shortly afterwards, Namibia were reduced to 14 men when Torsten van Jaarsveld was yellow carded for collapsing a maul illegally close to his try-line.

Italy put the resulting penalty into touch deep inside Namibia territory and got a rolling maul going from the lineout before Cannone crashed over for the opening try.

With Van Jaarsveld in the sin bin, Namibia struggled with their throw-ins at the lineouts and in the 15th minute Italy pounced on a wayward throw from Richard Hardwick at the set-piece.

The ball came out to Garbisi, who beat a couple of defenders with ease inside Namibia’s 22 before dotting down under the posts.

Despite their numerical advantage, the Welwitschias did not panic and in the 21st minute they were rewarded when Mouton gathered a long pass from Swanepoel before dotting down in the right-hand corner.

The rest of the half was a scrappy affair as Namibia did well to keep the Azzurri at bay and the Welwitschias had a chance to narrow the gap on the stroke of half-time when Swanepoel lined up a monster shot at goal from 60 metres out.

His effort had the distance but not the direction and the teams changed sides at the break with the Azzurri holding a 17-8 lead.

Italy were fastest out of the blocks in the second period and extended their lead in the 46th minute when Lamb crashed over from close quarters for their third try.

10 minutes later, Capuozzo launched a stunning counter-attack from deep inside his half and traded passes with Monty Ioane before diving over in the left-hand corner for a well-taken try.

🇮🇹 Italy speedster Ange Capuozzo leaves his stamp on the match with this brilliant try against Namibia in Toulouse! #RWC2023 #ITAvNAM pic.twitter.com/WCGLXlE6uk

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) September 9, 2023

With the bonus-point in the bag, the Azzurri upped the ante on attack and were rewarded with further tries from Faiva and Zuliani during the latter stages of the match before Odogwu came off the bench to show a superb turn of pace as he added the final nail in Namibia’s coffin after the full-time hooter had sounded.

The teams

Italy:  15 Tommaso Allan, 14 Ange Capuozzo, 13 Juan Ignacio Brex, 12 Luca Morisi, 11 Monty Ioane, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 9 Stephen Varney, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Dino Lamb, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Giacomo Nicotera, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements:  16 Epalahame Faiva, 17 Ivan Nemer, 18 Marco Riccioni, 19 David Sisi, 20 Manuel Zuliani, 21 Martin Page-Relo, 22 Paolo Odogwu, 23 Pierre Bruno

Namibia:  15 Divan Rossouw, 14 Gerswin Mouton, 13 Johan Deysel (c), 12 Danco Burger, 11 JC Greyling, 10 Tiaan Swanepoel, 9 Damian Stevens, 8 Richard Hardwick, 7 Johan Retief, 6 Wian Conradie, 5 Tjiuee Uanivi, 4 Adriaan Ludick, 3 Johan Coetzee, 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld, 1 Desiderius Sethie
Replacements:  16 Louis van der Westhuizen, 17 Jason Benade, 18 Casper Viviers, 19 Tiaan De Klerk, 20 Prince Gaoseb, 21 Jacques Theron, 22 Andre van der Bergh, 23 Le Roux Malan

Referee:  Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant Referees:  Paul Williams (New Zealand), Chris Busby (Ireland)
TMO:  Joy Neville (Ireland)

France hand All Blacks their first-ever Rugby World Cup pool stage defeat

France got their Rugby World Cup campaign off to a winning start as they beat the All Blacks 27-13 at the Stade de France in Paris on Friday.

Tries from Damian Penaud and Melvyn Jaminet were added to by 17 points from the boot of Thomas Ramos as Les Bleus claimed a deserved triumph.

It was an absorbing contest in the heat as New Zealand battled bravely but in the end couldn’t live with France, who wore them down to seal the win.

Wing Mark Telea scored two tries for New Zealand, with fly-half Richie Mo’unga kicking a penalty.  While New Zealand are still odds-on to secure a quarter-final place from Pool A, France’s success sent an immediate message of their world title intent.

New Zealand suffered a late injury blow when captain Sam Cane was ruled out.

The All Blacks announced just 45 minutes before kick-off at Stade de France that flanker Cane would miss the heavyweight clash, although they did not specify his injury.

Number eight Ardie Savea took over as skipper, with Dalton Papali’i moving from blindside to openside flanker and Tupou Vaa’i being promoted to the starting XV.

Despite the loss of Cane, New Zealand showed no sign of it unsettling them as they went ahead after just 93 seconds when full-back Beauden Barrett’s precision kick was gathered by Telea for the opening try.

Although Ramos kicked a penalty shortly afterwards, Les Blues struggled to settle and hooker Julien Marchand was forced off injured after 13 minutes.

A second Ramos penalty nudged France ahead, but Mo’unga quickly cancelled that out ahead of a water-break as temperatures nudged 28 degrees at almost 10pm local time.

Ramos completed his penalty hat-trick 12 minutes before half-time as France claimed a 9-8 interval lead.

New Zealand began the second period with an immediate statement of intent as skipper Savea’s kick was gathered by wing Will Jordan before centre Rieko Ioane’s superb long pass found Telea, who sprinted over for his second try.

Back came France, though, when fly-half Matthieu Jalibert’s half-break set up Penaud for an outstanding try, and Ramos’ wide-angled conversion made it 16-13.

🇫🇷🇳🇿 No stopping Damian Penaud this time! #FRAvNZL #RWC2023pic.twitter.com/i8bcHR3Id4

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) September 8, 2023

Jordan was shown a yellow card by referee Jaco Peyper for an illegal aerial challenge on Ramos, which was also referred to to the ‘bunker’ before remaining as a sin-binning only.

Ramos’ fourth successful penalty opened up a six-point gap inside the final quarter, and another successful kick seven minutes from time sealed the deal as France triumphed 27-13 on the back of Jaminet’s late touchdown.

The teams

France:  15 Thomas Ramos, 14 Damian Penaud, 13 Gael Fickou, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Gabin Villiere, 10 Matthieu Jalibert, 9 Antoine Dupont (c), 8 Gregory Alldritt, 7 Charles Ollivon, 6 Francois Cros, 5 Thibaud Flament, 4 Cameron Woki, 3 Uini Atonio, 2 Julien Marchand, 1 Reda Wardi
Replacements:  16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Jean-Baptiste Gros, 18 Dorian Aldegheri, 19 Romain Taofifenua, 20 Paul Boudehent, 21 Maxime Lucu 22 Arthur Vincent, 23 Melvyn Jaminet

New Zealand:  15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 Mark Telea, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Ardie Savea (c), 7 Dalton Papali’i, 6 Tupou Vaa’i, 5 Scott Barrett, 4 Sam Whitelock, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Ethan de Groot
Replacements:  16 Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Brodie Retallick, 20 Luke Jacobson, 21 Finlay Christie, 22 David Havili, 23 Leicester Fainga’nuku

Referee:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant Referees:  Karl Dickson (England), Christophe Ridley (England)
TMO:  Tom Foley (England)

France hand Australia fifth straight loss in fine fashion ahead of World Cup

France continued with their superb form ahead of the upcoming Rugby World Cup when they cruised to an emphatic 41-17 victory over Australia in Paris on Sunday.

In a fast-paced and exciting encounter in which both sides gave the ball plenty of air, Les Bleus were full value for their win as they held the upper-hand for long periods and eventually outscored their opponents by four tries to three.

Damian Penaud led the way with a brace of tries while Gabin Villiere and Jonathan Danty also crossed the whitewash.  The home side’s other points came via three conversions and four penalties from Thomas Ramos, while Melvyn Jaminet also succeeded with a conversion and a three-pointer off the kicking tee.

For the Wallabies, who have now lost all five of their Tests this year, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Fraser McReight and Suliasi Vunivalu dotted down and Carter Gordon added a conversion.

The visitors had a chance to open the scoring as early as the third minute, when Antoine Dupont was blown up for offside play on defence, but Gordon’s shot at goal from the resulting penalty was wide of the mark.

That early miss proved costly as it did not take long for the hosts to respond when Danty crossed for the opening try in the eighth minute.  This, after he ran onto a flat pass from Dupont inside Australia’s 22 before powering through a tackle from Gordon on his way over the try-line.

😤 Jonathan Danty opens the scoring! #FRAvAUSpic.twitter.com/Uyr56nfGdQ

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 27, 2023

Despite that score, the Wallabies did not panic and shortly afterwards they struck back when Andrew Kellaway joined the line at pace before finding Nawaqanitawase with a long pass out wide, and the wing dotted down in the left-hand corner.

Gordon was off target with the conversion attempt, but both sides stayed true to their attacking roots, and in the 16th minute Villiere came close to increasing their lead when he found himself in space out wide before he was bundled into touch by a desperate cover tackle from Nawaqanitawase close to the corner flag.

The rest of the half saw France gradually gaining the upper-hand as Australia conceded a plethora of penalties, and when it was within goal-kicking range, Ramos made them pay.

The full-back succeeded with two penalties in quick succession, which gave his side a 13-5 lead by the half hour-mark but Australia had a chance to reduce the deficit in the 33rd minute ― when Les Bleus were penalised for illegal scrumaging ― but Gordon was off target again.

That proved a costly miss as two minutes later, Tate McDermott was penalised for obstruction, and Ramos made the Wallabies pay again as he made no mistake from the kicking tee, which meant France were holding a deserved 16-5 lead as the teams changed sides at half-time.

The second half started in a similar fashion, with Ramos lining up a shot at goal in the 43rd minute ― after Lalakai Foketi was penalised for a high tackle on Gael Fickou ― but surprisingly, his effort struck an upright.

Australia spent most of the next 10 minutes camped inside France’s half, but they were met with a solid defensive effort from their hosts, and no points were scored during that period.

Their inability to score points came back to haunt the Wallabies in the 53rd minute when Vunivalu was yellow-carded for a cynical defensive foul deep inside his half.

It did not take long for Les Bleus to make their numerical advantage count as in the 57th minute, Penaud gathered a perfectly weighted cross-field kick from Dupont before cantering in for his first five-pointer.

🇫🇷 FRANCE THRILL AS WALLABIES LOSE FIVE STRAIGHT! #FRAvAUS pic.twitter.com/YrKrmxclXE

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 27, 2023

To their credit, the Wallabies did not surrender, and on the hour-mark, McReight crossed the whitewash when he ran onto a pass from McDermott after France failed to deal with a teasing box kick from the Wallabies scrum-half inside their 22.

It did not take long for Les Bleus to respond, though as soon after, Matthieu Jalibert found Villiere with a cross-field kick, and he did well to score his try despite the attentions of two defenders.

France’s dominance continued, and in the 76th minute, they were rewarded again when Penaud chipped ahead before regathering to score his second try.  Shortly afterwards, Vunivalu was rewarded when he scored his try, after gathering a high ball, but France finished stronger and sealed their win in the game’s dying moments when Jaminet slotted his penalty from just inside his half.

Fiji claim historic victory over England as Twickenham stunned

Fiji secured a stunning first-ever victory over England in their Rugby World Cup warm-up fixture at Twickenham as the Red Rose sunk to a new low.

The visitors created history at the home of English rugby on Saturday as Steve Borthwick’s men fell to a 30-22 loss in front of a disappointed home crowd.

Waisea Nayacalevu, Vinaya Habosi and Simione Kuruvoli got Fiji’s tries, while Caleb Muntz kicked 15 points via three conversions and three penalty goals.

Jonny May, Marcus Smith and Joe Marchant went over for England, but the hosts came up short in another big setback ahead of their World Cup campaign.

Wales and Australia will be eyeing their clashes with their Pool D rivals nervously, having seen what what unfolded in front of a disappointing crowd of 56,854 at Twickenham.

It was England’s fifth defeat in six matches and was a dismal World Cup send-off that adds to the tension surrounding their pivotal opening game against Argentina on September 9.

No-one will have felt the disappointment more than captain Courtney Lawes, who was making his 100th appearance on a day that is expected to see England drop beneath Fiji in the global rankings.

Borthwick had said the listlessness seen in the previous three warm-up matches was a result of being in the midst of a conditioning block and that they would benefit when the load was reduced.

As they made the brightest start of their four warm-up games, they certainly looked like a side with fresh purpose – Manu Tuilagi making early dents, George Ford fizzing a pass to Ollie Lawrence and May supplying the determined kick-chase that had been missing in Dublin.

May quickly decorated his international comeback with a first try since November 2021 in the left corner after Alex Mitchell and Ford found the veteran Gloucester wing with sharp distribution from a scrum.

It was the first try scored by an England back in 261 minutes, and it began to look like Borthwick’s team were emerging from their long spell of underachievement.

But the rest of the first-half belonged to Fiji, and once their first attack had unfolded amid a downpour, Muntz landed a penalty.

The heavy rain had stopped and, while handling was still treacherous, the well-organised Islanders continued to probe for openings that almost produced a dynamic try for Nayacalevu that was ruled out for a marginal forward pass.

Under-pressure, England wrestled back the ball and were only denied in the right corner by a try-saving tackle on Max Malins that took place in the moments after prop Eroni Mawi committed a yellow card breakdown offence.

With Mawi still in the sin-bin, Fiji ran in their first try with a little help from weak tackles by May and Freddie Steward on Selestino Ravutaumada that enabled Nayacalevu to cross at the end of a slickly-orchestrated attack.

🙌 HISTORY MAKERS! FIJI CLAIM FIRST-EVER WIN OVER ENGLAND!

🇫🇯🤯 AND THEY HAVE DONE IT AT TWICKENHAM! WOW! #ENGvFIJ pic.twitter.com/UgxW5cHqP8

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 26, 2023

A brief England assault followed, but once this subsided, they paid the price for Ben Earl switching off around the ruck to allow Habosi to dart clear and race over the line.

Smith touched down a Ford chip as tension mounted at Twickenham, but with Muntz landing another penalty, they still trailed, although there was evidence they had found a second wind.

That was confirmed when Joe Marchant capitalised on the space down the right, but when Danny Care dropped the restart, they were back under the cosh, and the ruthless Fijians pounced through Kuruvoli to claim a famous win.

Samoa give Ireland fright of their lives in Rugby World Cup warm-up clash

Ireland were given a mighty scare by Samoa in their final Rugby World Cup warm-up fixture as they held on to defeat the islanders 17-13 in Bayonne.

Trailing 10-7 at the interval before a further Lima Sopoaga penalty extended the margin to six points on 46 minutes, Ireland managed to avoid a shock defeat.

Crossings from Conor Murray and Rob Herring in the second period to go with Jimmy O’Brien’s first-half score ultimately proved enough to seal the victory.

Duncan Paia’aua had grabbed his side’s only try of the game on 36 minutes as Samoa sent a message to their pool rivals that they are a threat this World Cup.

The win at a sold-out Stade Jean Dauger could come at significant cost for Ireland after Cian Healy, who departed just 21 minutes into his 126th Test outing, added to Ireland’s front-row concerns.

Andy Farrell’s planning has already been complicated by ongoing injury issues for Healy’s fellow loosehead Dave Kilcoyne and hookers Dan Sheehan and Ronan Kelleher, although he expects the trio to be available in the coming weeks.

The head coach, whose side begin the World Cup on September 9 against Romania in Bordeaux, was also forced into a change ahead of kick-off as a “niggle” for wing Keith Earls afforded a chance to Jacob Stockdale.

Heavy rain and forecasts of thunderstorms in south-west France did not deter a capacity crowd from turning out, with the slippery conditions contributing to a series of fumbles.

A fine Murray tackle denied Samoa an early lead before Jack Crowley’s pinpoint cross-field kick allowed Mack Hansen to gallop down the right wing and give full-back O’Brien a simple finish for his maiden Test try.

Ireland have unsettling memories of this stadium, having endured a bruising affair – dubbed the Battle of Bayonne – against the host club ahead of the 2007 World Cup.

Physicality was at the forefront of this encounter and Farrell’s men suffered a setback when the hobbling Healy was assisted off the pitch by medical staff and replaced by Jeremy Loughman.

Unfamiliar in white shirts and blue shirts, Ireland’s mix-and-match line-up were struggling to find their rhythm.

They ended the half 10-7 behind after Paia’aua intercepted a Stuart McCloskey pass inside his own half to brilliantly race clear and dive over, before Sopoaga added the conversion and a subsequent penalty.

Samoa, who will be England’s final pool-stage opponents in early October, were facing a tier one nation for only the second time since losing 47-5 to Ireland at the 2019 World Cup.

A second penalty from former Wasps fly-half Sopoaga stretched their lead early in the second period before Stockdale’s kick over the top was gleefully dotted down by the diving Murray, albeit Crowley’s wayward conversion left Ireland a point behind.

Jimmy the rocket! 🚀#TeamOfUs pic.twitter.com/bdAfVUkdjK

― Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) August 26, 2023

The world’s top-ranked side finally regained the lead 17 minutes from time when replacement hooker Herring bulldozed over from a line-out maul.

Crowley’s conversion attempt was charged down before James Ryan was held up on the line to keep the contest firmly in the balance.

Roared on by the mostly-French crowd, Samoa refused to roll over and continued to cause problems.

Yet, on a day when Fiji stunned England at Twickenham, they ultimately fell short of producing a further major shock as Ireland survived a significant wake-up call which could yet prove expensive due to Healy’s premature exit.

Scotland find form in second half to seal comeback win over Georgia

Scotland came back from 6-0 down at the break to seal a 33-6 victory over Georgia in their final Rugby World Cup warm-up game at Murrayfield on Saturday.

It was a frustrating opening 40 minutes for Gregor Townsend’s men as two Luka Matkava penalties sent the Lelos into the half-time interval with a narrow lead.

However, Scotland clicked into gear upon their return with tries from Duhan van der Merwe (2), Rory Darge, Jack Dempsey and Kyle Steyn sealing the triumph.

Finn Russell, who played with his customary swagger, fired over two conversions before his replacement at fly-half, Ben Healy, did likewise later in the contest.

The slow-starting Scots survived a scare in the 17th minute when Georgia wing Mirian Modebadze tried to get on the end of a kick through and slam down over the line but full-back Ollie Smith got back just in time to avert the danger.

The visitors continued in the ascendancy though and they doubled their advantage to six points in the 21st minute when Matkava kicked another penalty.

The 6-0 deficit seemed to inject a semblance of urgency into Scotland’s play and they started to become more of a threat as the first half wore on.

The hosts thought they had got themselves up and running in the 36th minute when Steyn – added to the starting XV on Friday after Darcy Graham was ruled out with a minor quad strain – forced his way over the line in the right corner but following a TMO review he was deemed to have lost control of the ball before placing it down.

The only first-half blemish for the dogged Georgians was the worrying sight of hooker Shalva Mamukashvili – on his 100th appearance – hobbling off before the break, just two weeks ahead of their World Cup opener against Australia in Paris.

With Scotland unable to get a point on the board, they found themselves in the now familiar position of having to mount a second-half recovery.

And that is exactly what they did.  Van der Merwe began the revival with his 19th try for Scotland as he eased over on the left after being teed up perfectly by a lovely pass from the outside of Russell’s boot.  Russell added the extras to edge the hosts in front.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇬🇪 Breakthrough for Scotland. They now lead 21-6. #SCOvGEO pic.twitter.com/Ujt0VQp3K4

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 26, 2023

The Scots swiftly took control.  Darge – who also scored in the last match away to France – forced his way over from close range in the 51st minute after Van der Merwe had been held up following a marauding run.  Russell again converted in what was the talisman’s last act of the match before going off amid a raft of substitutions.

Dempsey then powered his way through a ruck of Georgian bodies to push down just left of the posts in the 59th minute, with replacement Healy converting.

Steyn – who scored a double in St Etienne last time out – added his team’s fourth try of the match from close range in the 69th minute after Dempsey was denied just in front of the line.  Healy again added the extras.

And Van der Merwe had the 54,000 crowd in raptures when he capped an impressive second-half display from the Scots with a straightforward touchdown on the left two minutes from the end, with Healy again on target with his kick.

Italy underline their class with positive win over Japan in Treviso

Italy claimed a 42-21 win over Japan in a frenetic Test in Treviso, giving Kieran Crowley’s men momentum going into the Rugby World Cup.

The Azzurri’s wings Ange Capuozzo and Monty Ioane were on song as they caused huge problems throughout the clash, which led to some beautiful tries.

It was the hosts who opened the scoring as in-form playmaker Paolo Garbisi added another try assist to his resume as he played in his half-back partner Steven Varney in for a try in the seventh minute.  Tommaso Allan made no mistake from the tee.

Japan responded 10 minutes later as Jone Naikabula benefited from a well-worked move to crash over and score.  The extras were not added on this occasion.

The see-saw game swung back in the favour of Italy who scored arguably the try of the game, started by Ioane who played Capuozzo into some space down the right-hand side.  The superstar made good ground down the touchline before kicking it infield where Ioane won the ball and scored.  Allan was on hand again to kick the conversion.

🤯 Ange Capuozzo with a typically beautiful try assist! #ITAvJPN pic.twitter.com/ERItuJiUG7

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 26, 2023

Seung Sin Lee of Japan kicked two penalties whilst Allan added one before the break as the hosts carried a 17-11 lead.

Allan was on hand again to kick a penalty after the break before a neat offload played Japan full-back Kotaro Matsushima in for the try in the 52nd minute.  The conversion was missed again.

Italy did not wait to respond as Ioane scored a fantastic try only four minutes later with Allan missing on this occasion.

Allan was on the scoresheet again in the 65th minute as he kicked another penalty to give his side some breathing room.

Japan tightened the game up just after the clock struck 70 minutes through an unconverted try scored by Dylan Riley.

The hosts held on for the win and will be happy to be gathering momentum going into the global showpiece in France.

Ioane completed his hat-trick in the final few minutes as Allan added the two extras off the tee before substitute Martin Page Relo scored a fortuitous converted try right at the end of time.

Boks lay down RWC marker with stunning demolition of 14-man All Blacks

South Africa produced an incredible display to set themselves up perfectly for the Rugby World Cup with a 35-7 thrashing of New Zealand at Twickenham.

On this evidence, the defending champions will be incredibly difficult to beat in France as they utterly dismantled their opponents on Friday to secure a record victory.

The Springboks were easily the better side from start to finish as the All Blacks had no answer to the power of Jacques Nienaber’s outfit.

They touched down five times in total with Siya Kolisi, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Malcolm Marx, Bongi Mbonambi and Kwagga Smith crossing the whitewash.

To make matters worse for New Zealand, they had Scott Barrett red carded after he received two yellow cards in the first half.

Their only bright spot came through Cam Roigard, whose brilliant individual try lifted spirits slightly in an otherwise dreadful evening in London.

In their Rugby Championship fixture earlier this year, the All Blacks dominated the opening quarter and went 17-0 ahead.

Foster’s men controlled the game physically as the Boks struggled, but it was a different story on Friday.  Keen to avoid the same fate, the South Africans came out with plenty of intent and the first 20 minutes was entirely played in the New Zealand half.

Under pressure, the Kiwis consistently infringed and were perhaps fortunate to escape a yellow card following three successive maul penalties.

It seemed inevitable that referee Matthew Carley would run out of patience and Scott Barrett was sin-binned for taking Faf de Klerk off the ball.

Captain Sam Cane soon followed him after another illegal act during a Bok lineout drive, and Nienaber’s charges eventually took advantage.

They had been frustrated by some stubborn New Zealand defence, who had held them up twice over the line, but Kolisi rewarded their dominance by touching down.

From the restart, the All Blacks had an opportunity to reduce the arrears when Eben Etzebeth went off his feet at a ruck, but Richie Mo’unga, from pretty much straight in front, was surprisingly awry.

That rather summed up their evening as the Springboks had much the better of the game.  Foster’s men were forcing matters and it led to another mistake, this time from Jordie Barrett, whose attempted off-load landed in the grateful arms of Arendse, and the wing did the rest.

The frustration boiled over into other areas of the field and Scott Barrett stupidly decided to plant his shoulder into the head of Marx at a ruck.

He received a second yellow card and was fortunate that it was not upgraded to a straight red, but it did leave the All Blacks down a man for the rest of the match.

🟥 The incident which resulted in Scott Barrett's second yellow card and the All Blacks being reduced to 14 men for the rest of the game.pic.twitter.com/JvzSRYjnHZ

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 25, 2023

Even arch-poacher Will Jordan could not help them as his try was ruled out for a knock-on earlier in the move.  It left New Zealand 14 points in arrears going into the second period and with plenty to do.

They needed a response but instead it was South Africa who struck first in the final 40 minutes when a simple lineout move saw Kolisi break off the lineout and find Marx to cross the whitewash.

The Springboks almost had another but Canan Moodie was denied a wonderful individual score as he was deemed to be offside following a TMO review.

Although Pieter-Steph du Toit was sin-binned moments later, South Africa were not to be denied a fourth try and another powerful driving maul resulted in Mbonambi touching down.

New Zealand created very little and it was almost too easy for the Boks.  They were maintaining their forward dominance and Smith duly finished excellently from close range to embarrass their opponents further.

Although Roigard did go over for the All Blacks late on, it didn’t mask what was a concerning evening for the New Zealanders.

However, Friday was all about Nienaber’s men, who were utterly brilliant at Twickenham and will now take plenty of confidence into the World Cup.

Billy Vunipola red carded as clinical Ireland ease past poor England

Ireland brushed aside England as they ran out 29-10 victors at the Aviva Stadium, with the visitors having Billy Vunipola red carded in the game.

Crossings from Bundee Aki, Garry Ringrose, James Lowe, Mack Hansen and Keith Earls saw the Irish to a comfortable triumph in Dublin on Saturday.

Ross Byrne and Jack Crowley would add a conversion apiece while for England their only points came via a Kyle Sinckler try and two George Ford kicks.

Vunipola’s premature departure compounded a meek display and he will now join Saracens team-mate Owen Farrell in facing a disciplinary panel with England’s World Cup opener against Argentina on September 9 fast approaching.

Earls marked his 100th cap by claiming the fifth of Ireland’s tries as the hosts retained their place at the top of the world rankings courtesy of a 12th successive win.

Andy Farrell’s dominant side were far from their free-flowing best but still had too much for their depleted rivals, although the first-half departure of hooker Dan Sheehan is a concern.

England crossed the Irish Sea seeking the greatest win of the Borthwick era so far to ignite their World Cup build-up but they were in unconvincing form especially with the situation surrounding skipper Farrell dominating headlines.

Replacement fly-half Ford slotted an early penalty before the away team were swiftly put on the back foot as a superb break from Peter O’Mahony allowed Aki to charge beyond Ben Youngs and touch down under the posts, leaving Byrne with a simple conversion.

While England have endured a tumultuous time since finishing runners-up at the 2019 World Cup in Japan, Six Nations champions Ireland have enjoyed an impressive period of progression masterminded by head coach Farrell.

The Englishman fielded the bulk of his star names for the first time since clinching the Grand Slam against Borthwick’s men in March, which perhaps explained frustrating levels of rustiness in a fragmented opening period littered with stoppages.

Ford missed the chance to reduce England’s deficit with a second penalty before Ireland’s Sheehan hobbled off due to an apparent injury.

There looked like being no further inroads on the scoreboard before the break until Hansen’s clever cross-field kick exposed the opposition’s defence, with Ringrose inadvertently propelled over the try-line by a combination of Elliot Daly and Freddie Steward.

England, who are expected to learn the fate of Farrell in midweek, offered very little from an attacking perspective in a fairly forgettable first half which they ended 12-3 behind.

Their evening quickly took a turn for the worse when Vunipola ploughed into Andrew Porter.

Referee Paul Williams initially deemed the sin-bin to be sufficient punishment but the England back-row, whose trudge from the field coincided with Farrell flashing up the big screen to a chorus of boos, would not return.

☘️ What a moment for Keith Earls. 100 up for Ireland! #IREvENG pic.twitter.com/wufWGbYMeZ

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 19, 2023

Ireland wasted little time in capitalising on their numerical advantage as Lowe was afforded yards of space to catch Byrne’s pass and cross wide on the left, before Hansen added to their misery by diving over on the other flank.

England’s attempts to avoid a drubbing were helped by Sinckler bulldozing over.

But they were powerless to prevent Ireland registering a fourth consecutive win in this fixture, with veteran wing Earls raising the roof thanks to a spectacular diving finish on his landmark outing.

Springboks put 52 points on Wales in Siya Kolisi's comeback game

South Africa produced an emphatic performance as they dominated Wales in an eight-try 52-16 victory at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday.

It was a statement win from the reigning World Cup champions ahead of the tournament, as Siya Kolisi marked his comeback with a superb 40 minutes.

Jesse Kriel and Canan Moodie both crossed twice while Malcolm Marx, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Damian Willemse and a penalty try added to a healthy tally.

Replacement hooker Sam Parry crossed for Wales’ only try on a disappointing day for the hosts, with the defeat a sobering experience for the home outfit.

South Africa were quickly into their stride and went ahead after just four minutes through an outstanding team try.

Patient build-up play saw them gradually make ground, and when full-back Willie le Roux went wide, he found captain Kolisi in support, whose pass sent Marx over in the corner.

Wales responded through a 35-metre Sam Costelow penalty, but there were immediate signs of set-piece authority from South Africa as their scrum initially dominated through powerful work from props Steven Kitshoff and Frans Malherbe.

A second Costelow penalty nudged Wales ahead, yet the lead lasted barely two minutes as South Africa created another impressive try.

Lock RG Snyman was the creator, surging clear in midfield before support from scrum-half Jaden Hendrikse and Marx carved open Wales’ defence and Le Roux’s long floated pass found Moodie, who finished impressively.

Costelow completed a penalty hat-trick 15 minutes before the interval, only for South Africa to stretch away with a 12-point burst inside two minutes.

There was a huge element of fortune about them being awarded a 34th-minute penalty try when Wales wing Rio Dyer was adjudged to have deliberately knocked the ball out of play from behind his own line under pressure from Moodie.

Le Roux’s chip into the corner was directed towards Moodie and batted away by Dyer.  Referee Andrew Brace felt that Moodie had run past the ball, but after a prolonged video review with television match official Joy Neville, Dyer was yellow carded and a penalty try awarded.

And before Wales could recover, South Africa struck again when centre Damian de Allende kicked deep into the opposition 22, home centre Mason Grady chased back, but under pressure from Springboks wing Cheslin Kolbe he threw the ball into the air behind his own line, and Kriel touched down.

From being three points adrift and very much in contention, Wales trooped off 24-9 adrift at half-time and with a mountain to climb.

And any realistic hopes of a fightback were extinguished 12 minutes after the restart when South Africa claimed a breakaway try.

It looked promising for Wales deep inside South Africa’s 22, but scrum-half Kieran Hardy saw his pass intercepted by Du Toit, and a supporting Kriel sprinted 60 metres to score, with Libbok converting.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🇿🇦 SPRINGBOKS THUMP WALES IN MASSIVE WIN! #WALvRSA pic.twitter.com/T6dwjFNa9V

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 19, 2023

Du Toit then got in on the scoring act, touching down from close range, before Moodie intercepted Wales centre Johnny Williams’ pass to claim try number seven.

Willemse then pounced before he received a yellow card for a high tackle on Dyer, then Wales claimed a consolation try nine minutes from time through Parry.

France’s second-string prove too strong for spirited Fiji side

France continued their Rugby World Cup preparations with a deserved 34-17 triumph over Fiji at the Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes on Saturday.

Despite fielding a makeshift side, Les Bleus still impressed and opened up a 16-3 advantage through Peato Mauvaka’s try and three Melvyn Jaminet penalties.

Tevita Ikanivere then responded for the visitors, adding to Caleb Muntz’s earlier three-pointer, but Uini Atonio gave the home side an 11-point buffer at the break.

France would remain in control of the match in the second period with Sekou Macalou’s try and the accurate boot of Jaminet completing the win.

The Frenchmen were playing for their World Cup places, with Fabien Galthie announcing his final 33 next week, but those on the field rose to the challenge.

Jaminet and Louis Bielle-Biarrey are two individuals who may be on the fringes at the moment, but they did all they could to force their way in.

The latter, who is just 20, was constantly involved, making a number of searing breaks, while the former benefited from the wing’s work, kicking accurately off the tee after the Fijians had infringed.

Les Bleus exerted plenty of pressure in the early stages and earned three kickable penalties, which Jaminet converted for a 9-0 lead.

Muntz responded with one of his own but France were doing most of the running and Mauvaka rewarded their endeavour by touching down.

To Fiji’s credit, they continued to battle and got themselves back into the game when hooker Ikanivere barged over from close range.

However, France remained in the ascendency and moved 21-10 in front at the break as Atonio crossed the whitewash.

Jaminet then extended the hosts’ buffer with a fourth penalty but the Flying Fijians would not go away and were back in the contest via Semi Radradra’s effort.

The Pacific Islanders were competing well with the World Cup hosts but an error from Frank Lomani put the result beyond doubt.

Lomani was looking to move the ball into midfield off a lineout but it was easily read by Macalou, who intercepted and sauntered across the whitewash unopposed.

Jaminet converted for a second time and then kicked a fifth three-pointer with 10 minutes remaining to seal the win.

Clinical Italy cruise past 14-man Romania to seal their first win of the year

Italy trounced 14-man Romania – who lost lock Adrian Motoc early on – running in a whopping nine tries to one en route to a 57-7 triumph in San Benedetto del Tronto on Saturday.

It was a clinical performance from the home side, who dominated for long periods, but their task was made much easier after referee Luke Pearce issued a red card to Motoc in the 10th minute, after he led with his head while clearing out Italy captain Michele Lamaro at a ruck.

In the end, the Azzurri had too much class for the Oaks with Ange Capuozzo leading the way with a brace of tries while Paolo Odogwu, Monty Ioane, Alessandro Garbisi, Giacomo Nicotera, Juan Ignacio Brex, Dino Lamb and Toa Halafihi also crossed the whitewash.

Paolo Garbisi also succeeded with six conversions while Romania’s only points came via a penalty try as Italy clinched their first victory of the year.

The Azzurri were in control of proceedings from the outset and opened the scoring as early as the sixth minute when Odogwu did well to escape the attentions of two defenders ― after Paolo Garbisi found him with a well-timed skip pass ― before crossing in the right-hand corner.

The latter failed with the conversion attempt but Italy continued to hold the upper and things went from bad to worse for the visitors when Motoc received his marching orders soon after.

With a one-man advantage, the home side upped the ante on attack and soon after Motoc’s departure fly-half Paolo Garbisi offloaded to Ioane, who had an easy run-in over the try-line.

Italy continued to dominate as the half progressed and were rewarded with their third try in the 16th minute when scrum-half Alessandro Garbisi outpaced the cover defence before dotting down.

The older Garbisi added the extras which meant the Azzurri were holding a 19-0 lead before Capuozzo got his name onto the scoresheet with a breakaway try from just inside his half midway through the opening period.

The hosts continued to attack and in the 28th minute Nicotera ran onto a pass from Lamaro before burrowing his way over the try-line from close quarters.

10 minutes later, the Oaks made a rare attack inside Italy’s half and they were soon camped inside the hosts’ 22.  They put plenty of pressure on the Azzurri before being rewarded a penalty try after a cynical defensive foul from Lamaro close to his try-line.

🇮🇹🇷🇴 Italy make light work of Romania in San Benedetto del Tronto to seal their first win of the year! #ITAvROM #RWC2023 pic.twitter.com/wtuDUkgI0C

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 19, 2023

That meant the teams changed sides with Italy holding a 31-7 lead but despite having their captain in the sin bin, the Azzurri were fastest out of the blocks after the restart when Brex rounded off a flowing move which Paolo Garbisi started inside his own half.

Soon after that, Romania were reduced to 13 men when Cristian Chirica was yellow carded after a clash of heads while tackling Ioane.  That happened in the 46th minute and eight minutes later the home side were rewarded when Capuozzo crossed for his second try in spectacular fashion out wide.

In the 66th minute, relentless pressure from the Azzurri resulted in a converted try from Lamb which brought up a half century of points before Halafihi crossed for their final try in the 72nd minute ― which Garbisi also converted ― to seal an emphatic win.

Most experienced England team defeat Wales despite Owen Farrell red

England have defeated Wales 19-17 in their second Rugby World Cup warm-up match at Twickenham despite a red card for captain Owen Farrell.

Steve Borthwick named the most experienced England team ever, with 1067 Test caps worth of experience for the fixture.

However, his team’s performance was filled with ill-discipline, with three yellow cards adding to Farrell’s red.

Farrell kicked two penalties to give England a 6-0 lead at half-time, and he added another in the second before his sending-off.  Maro Itoje scored England’s only try, with George Ford adding the conversion and another penalty to seal the result.

Wales were awarded a penalty try in the second half, with Tomos Williams crossing the whitewash and Dan Biggar adding the extras.  Owen Williams slotted one penalty for his side.

At one point during the final quarter, Borthwick’s men were reduced to 12 men when Farrell – whose yellow card for a dangerous tackle on Taine Basham was upgraded to a red by the bunker – followed the sin-binned Freddie Steward and Ellis Genge into the stands.

England’s brainless final quarter saw a 9-3 lead overtaken by a penalty try and swashbuckling Tomos Williams touch-down as an otherwise lifeless encounter exploded into life the moment Steward took Josh Adams out in the air in the 60th minute.

A fourth successive defeat and slump to ninth in the world rankings beckoned, but they rallied bravely and even with three players off the pitch, they claimed a maul try scored by Itoje before Ford landed the winning penalty with three minutes left.

🟥Owen Farrell was red-carded for the first time in a Test match today. #ENGvWAL pic.twitter.com/XWJPYrWsuU

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 12, 2023

Farrell now faces a ban that could see him miss the World Cup opener against Argentina on September 9, with his recent three-match suspension for the same offence in January sure to count against him.

Jack van Poortvliet sustained an ankle injury to leave England sweating on his fitness, while Dewi Lake, Taine Plumtree and Basham emerged concerns for Wales, who ultimately ran out of steam.

There was little to signpost the action to come in a dull first half that saw Farrell reward England’s solid start with a penalty.

The one-way traffic was eventually broken up by a 50-22 that gave the visitors a short-range line-out, but England defended the ensuing maul well, and a rare chance was gone.

Two returning stars making their first appearances under Borthwick made pleasing starts, with Billy Vunipola barrelling into Wales up-front and Elliot Daly showing his athleticism in attack.

Errors cost Wales

Slowly, Wales were clawing their way into the game, but unforced errors hampered them time and again as the match meandered along a stop-start path, unable to shake off its training ground feel.

Lake hobbled off to add to Warren Gatland’s injury concerns at hooker, but England were reeling soon after Van Poortvliet departed following an accidental collision, and Henry Arundell was sent to the sin-bin for not retreating 10 yards.

The half finished with a red rose assault on the whitewash, but in all-too-familiar scenes, they were unable to break through and had to settle for a second Farrell penalty.

Tommy Reffell was sin-binned for not releasing an opponent and over went another Farrell penalty, but Wales were finally off the mark when Owen Williams landed three points.

Plumtree was the next to exit, nursing an injury as play continued to be marred by error after error, another promising spell of England pressure petering out.

Genge came on to win his 50th cap and was then shown a yellow card for collapsing a scrum, but worse was to come when Steward followed him into the sin-bin for taking Adams out in the air.

Adams was close to the line, and Steward’s subsequent tackle on Liam Williams prevented a certain score, so a penalty try was awarded.

Somehow England were the the next to cross through a maul, and when Ford landed a late penalty, their against-the-odds escape act was complete.

Plucky France edge valiant Scotland in see-saw World Cup warm-up

France managed to sneak a 30-27 win against Scotland thanks to a late Thomas Ramos penalty in the Rugby World Cup warm-up match on Saturday.

A brace from Scotland winger Kyle Steyn almost secured the visitors the win, but in the end, Ramos’ boot had the final say at the end of the game.

The two quick-fire tries from Damian Penaud and Charles Ollivon after the half-time break also proved crucial for the hosts.

Scotland made six changes to the side that started last weekend’s 25-21 win over France at Murrayfield, two of which were enforced with the suspended Zander Fagerson and the injured Ben White dropping out.  Captain Jamie Ritchie returned after being troubled by a minor calf issue in recent weeks.

After fielding a shadow side in Edinburgh last weekend, Les Bleus made 13 changes, restoring big-hitters like captain Antoine Dupont, Romain Ntamack, Gael Fickou and Jonathan Danty.

In addition to facing the side ranked second in the world, the Scots also had to contend with 26-degree heat as they emerged from the tunnel to a buoyant home support, clearly revelling in the prospect of hosting the World Cup, which gets underway in less than four weeks.

The Scots – who were 19-0 down after 20 minutes on their last trip to France in February – could easily have wilted in the cauldron, but they set about taking the sting out of the atmosphere by getting themselves into French territory from kick-off.

Following a sustained period of pressure, the visitors took the lead after four minutes when the ball was worked from left to right, and Steyn ran on to a perfectly-weighted pass from Blair Kinghorn before evading a challenge from Gabin Villiere and touching down.  Finn Russell executed the conversion impressively from wide on the right.

France got themselves off the mark in the eighth minute with a penalty from Ramos, but Russell restored the Scots’ seven-point lead with a penalty of his own three minutes later.  Ramos reduced the hosts’ deficit once more with another penalty in the 22nd minute.

The French momentarily thought they had gone ahead in the 29th minute when Dupont raced clear to touch down behind the posts, but the celebrations were cut short as play was pulled back with Ali Price having failed to retreat the necessary 10 yards when Les Bleus took a quick penalty.  There was some consolation for the frustrated home support, however, as the Scotland scrum-half was sin-binned for his infringement.

France, who had been building up a head of steam, soon capitalised on their extra-man advantage as Ntamack cut through the Scottish defence to plant the ball down left of the posts, and Ramos was once again on point with his kick to edge them three ahead.

The visitors desperately needed a strong start to the second half, but their hopes were dented when they conceded two tries – scored by Penaud and Ollivon – within four minutes of the restart.  The unflappable Ramos converted both times.

However, the Scots managed to reduce their arrears in the 62nd minute when Duhan van der Merwe bounded over on the left after a breakthrough attempt from Huw Jones was thwarted just before the line.  Russell was off-target with his kick.

The visitors – having appeared well-beaten – suddenly had some impetus, and they closed to within five points in the 68th minute when Rory Darge forced his way over from close range after a slick build-up, with Russell adding the extras.

Remarkably, Scotland drew level four minutes later when Steyn ran onto a kick-through from George Horne to touch down on the right.  Russell – with the chance to edge his team in front – was just wide with his conversion attempt.

Ramos made no mistake when presented with the opportunity to win a pulsating match for the French in the 78th minute.

Tonga return to winning ways against hapless Canada in Nuku’alofa

Tonga overcame a second-half red card for George Moala to clinch a 28-3 victory against Canada in the first of two Rugby World Cup warm-up matches for the Pacific Islanders in Nuku’alofa on Thursday.

It was a much improved performance from the home side ― who finished winless and at the bottom of the table during the recent Pacific Nations Cup ― as they dominated for long periods and eventually outscored their opponents by four tries to none.

Hard running number eight Sione Vailanu led the way with a brace of five-pointers for the Ikale Tahi while Sam Moli (hooker) and Sonatane Takulua (captain and scrum-half) also crossed the whitewash.

Takulua also succeeded with four conversions which meant he finished with a 13-point haul.

It was a tough day at the office for the North Americans, who will not be participating at the global showpiece for the first time since the inaugural tournament in 1987, and their only points came via the boot of Peter Nelson.

Fine start from Tonga

Moli gave the hosts an early lead when he scored his try after breaking off the back of a lineout drive deep inside Canadian territory, before Nelson responded with his three-pointer off the kicking tee.

After that, the hosts had the bulk of the territory and possession and midway through the opening half they were rewarded with a sensational try from Takulua, after Afusipa Taumoepeau and Fine Inisi combined brilliantly in the build-up.

On the stroke of half-time, Vailanu powered over the try-line off the back of a lineout deep inside Canada’s 22 and Takulua added the extras to give Tonga a 21-3 lead at the interval.

The second half was a tighter affair, especially after former All Blacks centre Moala received his marching orders for a dangerous hit on Canada counterpart Ben LeSage in the 45th minute.

Despite their one-man advantage, Canada could not breach the defence of the Ikale Tahi who sealed their victory when Vailanu crossed for his second try in the 51st minute.

Wales keep England try-less in dour Rugby World Cup warm-up victory

Wales kicked off their Rugby World Cup warm-up schedule with an impressive 20-9 win over a disappointing England in Cardiff on Saturday.

Second-half tries from Gareth Davies and George North saw Wales to a confidence-boosting success after what’s been an unsteady period for the squad.

Recent retirements of Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric and Rhys Webb rocked Welsh rugby, but Warren Gatland’s men tasted victory in their absence.

For England, it was a dismal match at the Principality Stadium, with only three Marcus Smith penalty goals to show for their efforts in a poor showing.

Few players left lasting impressions, although there were some impressive moments from fly-half Smith and number-eight Alex Dombrandt, with Wales responding superbly to a three-point interval deficit.

England were abysmal with their ball-retention, conceding a colossal 22 turnovers, and Wales did not require a second invitation to capitalise.

Full-back Leigh Halfpenny marked his 100th cap by converting both tries and kicking two penalties, with Smith kicking England’s points through three first-half penalties.

England’s opening World Cup game against Argentina is just five weeks away, yet Steve Borthwick will not be reaching for any panic button with three warm-up fixtures still to come on the August schedule.

For Wales, it was a significant confidence-booster following a fifth-placed finish in last season’s Six Nations as they recorded just a third win from the last 11 Tests.

Halfpenny led out the Wales players, who wore black armbands in memory of former Wales captain and coach Clive Rowlands following his death last weekend at the age of 85.

Wales suffered an early injury blow when hooker Ryan Elias was forced off after taking a blow to his right leg, with Dragons forward Elliot Dee replacing him.

A long-range Smith penalty nudged England ahead, rewarding initial dominance as the visitors monopolised possession and territory, putting Wales firmly in back-foot mode.

Smith soon doubled the advantage when Wales were guilty of a scrummaging infringement, but a Halfpenny strike made it 6-3 towards the end of an opening quarter high on intent, yet littered with errors.

Wales fly-half Sam Costelow created the game’s first clear-cut chance 15 minutes before half-tine when his inside pass freed wing Louis Rees-Zammit, but he slipped with England’s line at his mercy.

It was much better from Gatland’s team, and Halfpenny deservedly drew them level through a 26th-minute penalty.

England responded through some clever work from Smith that created space for centre Joe Marchant, before wing Joe Cokanasiga was tackled into touch near the corner-flag.

Despite conceding 12 turnovers during the first 35 minutes, England remained on top, while there were also scrummaging issues for Wales as debutant props Corey Domachowski and Keiron Assiratti had a testing opening half.

Smith completed his penalty hat-trick to make it 9-6 at the interval, yet England knew they needed to sharpen their attacking edge in the second period.

Second half

The game required a spark, and Wales duly found one just eight minutes into the second period.

Costelow’s kick found number eight Aaron Wainwright, and his one-handed pass was collected by captain Jac Morgan, who brushed off challenges from Cokanasiga and replacement Jonny Hill before a supporting Davies touched down.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Take a bow, Jac Morgan and Wales. Gareth Davies over. #WALvENGpic.twitter.com/rVUNwTPwOe

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 5, 2023

It was a try of outstanding quality, and Halfpenny’s conversion opened up a four-point lead before Gatland made four changes.

The new arrivals included debutants Taine Plumtree and former England prop Henry Thomas, who qualifies for Wales through his father.

Thomas was able to switch countries under new World Rugby regulations which mean players can feature for their country of birth – or their parents’ or grandparents’ birth – provided a minimum period of three years has elapsed since they were last selected for an adopted country.

Borthwick also rang changes midway through the third quarter, introducing international newcomers Theo Dan and Tom Willis as England looked to reassert themselves in the contest.

But Wales were a team transformed after the break, and when North crossed for his 45th try in the red shirt England entered the final quarter 11 points adrift.

Wales were within inches of adding a third try during the closing minutes, but Rees-Zammit knocked on behind the line under pressure from England full-back Freddie Steward.

The damage, though, had long been done ahead of next Saturday’s return fixture at Twickenham.

Caelan Doris double helps Ireland see off injury-hit Italy

Two tries from Caelan Doris helped Ireland kick off their Rugby World Cup warm-up schedule with a 33-17 victory over Italy at the Aviva Stadium.

Doris scored a try in both halves that was added to by Dave Kilcoyne’s early crossing, with Stuart McCloskey and Cian Healy also going over in Dublin.

Italy’s tries came from Lorenzo Pani and Tommaso Menoncello, but injury concerns over Marco Riccioni and Menoncello further soured the defeat.

However, it wasn’t just Italy with injury worries as Jack Conan, Jimmy O’Brien and Craig Casey were replaced in what looked precautionary moves.

An experimental side missing a host of rested stars, in addition to suspended skipper Johnny Sexton, overcame a sloppy beginning to cruise to a 15th successive home victory.

Ireland were back in action for the first time since clinching the Grand Slam against England in March.

Andy Farrell retained only three of the players who began that day as part of an unfamiliar XV, while Italy included England-born debutants Paolo Odogwu and Dino Lamb in a strong selection.

The Aviva Stadium was far from full for the late kick-off and Ireland’s sluggish start, during which Tommaso Allan’s early penalty put the visitors ahead, initially did little to enhance the subdued atmosphere.

Italy lost Saracens prop Riccioni to injury inside 10 minutes and that setback was quickly compounded by Kilcoyne burrowing over at the other end to register his first Test try since November 2014.

The score settled Ireland down to an extent and they capitalised on Italian indiscipline to stretch the scoreboard just before the half-hour mark.

Doris claimed the second try of the evening, crashing over wide on the right, moments after Azzurri loosehead Danilo Fischetti was sin-binned for failing to retreat.

Conan’s 35th-minute departure was an unwelcome sight for Farrell but the hosts’ performance continued to improve, with man-of-the-match Doris proving to be a real menace.

The Leinster man, selected in the unfamiliar position of openside flanker, produced a crushing tackle on Stephen Varney deep inside Italian territory to pave the way for McCloskey to power over.

Jack Crowley landed his third conversion of the evening to make it 21-3 at the interval.

Farrell shuffled his pack slightly for the restart, introducing the uncapped Ciaran Frawley at fly-half and pushing Crowley to full-back in place of the withdrawn O’Brien, who had received treatment on a shoulder issue.

A further change was required just four minutes later as scrum-half Casey followed Conan and O’Brien into the treatment room.

Italy, whose only Dublin success came in 1997, had struggled for territory in the opening period.

☘️🇮🇹 Five-try Ireland prove too strong for Italy in Dublin. #IREvITA pic.twitter.com/P8X8P7OS8m

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 5, 2023

But, on the back of some cheap penalties conceded by Ireland, they reduced their deficit in the 51st minute when Pani was afforded yards of space on the right to charge forward and hold off the attempts of Jacob Stockdale.

Replacement prop Healy then celebrated moving level with Rory Best as Ireland’s third most-capped player on 124 appearances with his 12th international try.

Menoncello again reduced the arrears for Italy 12 minutes from time before the impressive Doris had the final say.

Springboks overcome poor first-half performance to defeat Argentina

South Africa produced a much improved display after the interval to overcome Argentina for the second time in a week following a 24-13 triumph in Buenos Aires.

The Springboks opened the game’s account via a Manie Libbok penalty, but Los Pumas would go into the break 10-3 in front through Gonzalo Bertranou’s try and Emiliano Boffelli’s three-pointer.

Jacques Nienaber’s charges responded at the start of the second period, however, as Makazole Mapimpi and Canan Moddie touched down to regain their advantage.

It was a lead they would not relinquish with Libbok, despite a disappointing day with the boot, sealing the win with a trio of penalties.

Argentina were ultimately left frustrated having gone into this contest with high hopes of toppling the world champions after their brave 22-21 defeat in Johannesburg.

With the Springboks also showing several changes from the clash the previous weekend, that provided a further boost for the Argentines.

It was goal-kicking which let Michael Cheika’s men down in the Rugby Championship loss, but on Saturday it was South Africa who struggled off the tee.

Libbok did open the scoring with a penalty but he missed two further three-point opportunities.  They were also held up twice over the line as the hosts’ last-ditch defence frustrated the Boks.

It proved costly for the visitors in the first half as they allowed Los Pumas to build a platform.

Under pressure, the visitors began to infringe and, from one such moment of ill-discipline, Bertranou caught the South African rearguard unawares, taking a quick-tap penalty and stepping Deon Fourie to touch down.

Santiago Carreras missed one conversion and two penalty attempts last week but Cheika brought Boffelli back for this encounter and the sharp-shooter was on target to make it a seven-point score.

The star back three player then added another off the tee after Franco Mostert had been yellow carded as Argentina took a 10-3 advantage into the interval.

South Africa began the second period a man down but that only served to inspire the Boks, and more specifically fly-half Libbok.

Los Springboks aprovecharon el sector corto y Makazole Mapimpi llegó al in-goal de #LosPumas. 🇿🇦⚡#ESPNenStarPlus pic.twitter.com/bTnEny73DC

― ScrumRugby (@ScrumESPN) August 5, 2023

Firstly, the playmaker brilliantly converted Mapimpi’s try from out wide before his outstanding crossfield kick was collected and finished off by Moodie.

Those quick-fire scores while Mostert was off the field moved the visitors 15-10 ahead before Boffelli reduced the arrears going into the final half-hour.

Libbok’s issues off the tee then returned as the pivot missed another effort, but he would be on target with just over 20 minutes remaining.

The playmaker then added two more three-pointers in the last quarter to make sure of the triumph as the Springboks finished the match in the ascendency.

Scotland come from 18 points down to stun World Cup hosts France

Scotland came back from 21-3 down at half-time to claim an impressive 25-21 win over France in their Rugby World Cup warm-up clash at Murrayfield.

It was quite the turnaround from Gregor Townsend’s charges as they looked well off the pace in the opening 40 minutes, going in 18 points behind Les Bleus.

But tries after the break from Darcy Graham, Pierre Schoeman and Dave Cherry secured a confidence-boosting victory ahead of the global tournament.

France shot out of the blocks with tries from Baptiste Couilloud and Louis Bielle-Biarrey before Cameron Woki crossed just before the half-time break.

The shine was taken off the triumph, however, by the sight of scrum-half Ben White limping off with a worrying-looking ankle injury just four weeks out from their World Cup opener against South Africa, while they will also face an anxious wait to learn the fate of prop Zander Fagerson following his red card.

Scotland head coach Townsend made 13 changes to the experimental team that defeated Italy a week previously, with most of his big-hitters restored.

Finn Russell was handed the captaincy for the first time in the absence of regular skipper Jamie Ritchie, who missed out with a minor calf injury which medical staff hope will subside in time for next weekend’s rematch between the teams in Saint-Etienne.

The French starting line-up featured three debutants in Paul Boudehent, Emilien Gailleton and Bielle-Biarrey, with Antoine Dupont, Gael Fickou and Romain Ntamack among a raft of established players given the weekend off.

The team selections meant Scotland – despite being ranked three places beneath the French – went into the match as favourites with bookmakers.

The hosts got the scoreboard up and running in the fourth minute when Russell kicked a penalty between the posts.

However, Les Bleus seized the initiative in scintillating fashion in the 14th minute when Couilloud was set free to bound over the line after a brilliant breakaway down the right involving Bielle-Biarrey and Matthieu Jalibert.  The latter made no mistake with the conversion.

The visitors remained in the ascendancy and stretched their advantage after 24 minutes when debutant Bielle-Biarrey found a gap on the left and darted majestically through it after being fed by Jalibert, who duly converted.

Scotland’s woes deepened when White was forced off with an injury after half an hour, replaced by George Horne.

The scrum-half looked dejected as he made his way off the pitch and punched the bench in frustration before having his ankle bandaged up by medics and limping down the tunnel.

The Scots thought they had reduced the deficit in the 33rd minute when Duhan van der Merwe found his way over the line, but play was pulled back for a French scrum following a forward pass.

A disastrous first half for the home side was compounded in the last action before the break when Woki picked the ball up at the back of a ruck and plunged over the line from close range.  Jalibert again added the extras.

Scotland started the second period in brighter fashion, with Graham running on to a cross-field kick from Russell and just doing enough to plant the ball down under pressure from Ethan Dumortier.  Following a TMO review to approve the score, Russell kicked the conversion.

Just as the hosts looked to be finding their way back into the match, though, they suffered another blow in the 50th minute when Fagerson was sin-binned for a high challenge on Pierre Bourgarit.  Following a bunker review, the offence was subsequently upgraded to a red card.

However, the 14 men further reduced the French lead in the 54th minute as Schoeman bulldozed his way through to touch the ball down, with Russell converting.

The Scots were rampant and they thought they had got their noses in front when Blair Kinghorn bolted in behind the posts, but it was ruled out for a knock-on by Graham.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Scotland lead thanks to this Dave Cherry crossing. #SCOvFRApic.twitter.com/kkJRhiRhgE

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 5, 2023

Remarkably, however, they did get themselves ahead in the 67th minute when substitute Cherry pushed his way over.  This time Russell hit the post with his conversion attempt.

The captain was more accurate six minutes later as his penalty gave the Scots a four-point lead before they withstood some late French pressure to see out the win.

All Blacks' fightback floors the Wallabies in Bledisloe Cup thriller in Dunedin

The All Blacks recovered from being 3-17 down at half-time to beat the Wallabies 23-20 in a thrilling Bledisloe Cup encounter at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on Saturday.

After winning the Bledisloe Cup for the 21st successive year in Melbourne last week, the All Blacks made wholesale changes to their starting line-up and it showed as their opponents were the better team during the opening half.

However, the home side took control of proceedings after the interval and held their nerve to clinch a thrilling win, with Richie Mo’unga slotting the match-winning penalty in the game’s dying moments.

The All Blacks’ other points came via tries from Shaun Stevenson and Samipeni Finau while Damian McKenzie added a conversion and a penalty and Mo’unga also slotted a conversion and another three-pointer off the kicking tee.

For the Wallabies, Marika Koroibete and Tom Hooper crossed the whitewash while Carter Gordon contributed seven points courtesy of a couple of conversions and a penalty and Quade Cooper also added a penalty.

The Wallabies made a terrific start and after taking the ball through several phases with their forwards they struck out wide with their backs as early as the third minute.  Koroibete did brilliantly when he ran onto a pass from Samu Kerevi before crossing for the opening try in the left-hand corner despite desperate tackles from Stevenson and Finlay Christie.

Shortly afterwards, it was a similar story when Angus Bell took the ball into contact inside New Zealand’s 22 with a powerful carry and the ball was recycled quickly.  Kerevi turned provider again when he offloaded to Hooper, who powered through tackles from McKenzie and Stevenson before crashing over for his team’s second try.

The All Blacks seemed shellshocked by the intensity of the Wallabies’ onslaught but they finally opened their account in the 14th minute when McKenzie slotted a penalty.

Despite that, the visitors continued to hold the upper-hand and 10 minutes later they came close to scoring their third try when Pone Fa’amausili went over under New Zealand’s posts but his effort was disallowed as Samisoni Taukei’aho held him up while crossing the whitewash.

However, the All Blacks had strayed offside in the build-up and Gordon was successful with the resulting penalty which gave the Wallabies a deserved 17-3 lead.

They had an opportunity to increase their lead on the half hour-mark when Tate McDermott made a dash for the try-line but he too was held up after a desperate tackle from Ardie Savea.

It was a different All Blacks side which came out for the second half as they were much more competitive after the break and immediately went on the front foot from the kick off as they were soon camped inside the Wallabies’ 22.

Dallas McLeod and Leicester Fainga’anuku caught the eye with powerful carries which sucked in the Wallabies’ defence before McKenzie found Stevenson with an excellent skip pass and the debutant did well to dive over for his first Test try.

🔥 Try on debut for Shaun Stevenson! The All Blacks are back in this one. #NZLvAUS #BledisloeCup pic.twitter.com/U1sQybG1jP

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 5, 2023

That score saw the All Blacks upping the ante on attack and in the 55th minute Fainga’anuku broke through a couple of tackles before barging over under the posts, but television replays revealed that he had lost control of the ball while crossing the try-line and his score was ruled out.

Despite that setback, momentum had swung in New Zealand’s favour and in the 57th minute Mo’unga, who had come on to replace McKenzie, narrowed the gap to four points when he slotted a penalty.

On the hour-mark, Gordon had a chance to give his team its seven-point lead again but his penalty attempt struck an upright.  Five minutes later, they were made to pay for that blunder when another Test rookie, Finau, crossed for his five-pointer after the All Blacks’ forwards had put the Wallabies under pressure with some strong carries in the build-up.

That converted try gave the hosts a 20-17 lead but the Wallabies drew level in the 73rd minute when Cooper landed a long-range penalty.

Just before full-time, however, the visitors were penalised at a scrum and Mo’unga held his nerve from 45 metres out to slot the match-winning penalty for the All Blacks.

Five-try Fiji beat 14-man Japan to claim Pacific Nations Cup title

Fiji secured their sixth Pacific Nations Cup title after they beat Japan 35-12 in their final-round match at Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

Tries from Waisea Nayacalevu, Eroni Mawi, Simi Kuruvoli and a double from Frank Lomani helped the islanders to an impressive win over the Brave Blossoms.

Ben Volavola added eight points off the tee, while for Japan, their scores came via Jone Naikabula and Semisi Masirewa, meaning they finish third on the table.

Strong start from Fiji

After withstanding an early attack from Japan, the Fijians broke downfield, and with just three minutes on the clock, centre Nayacalevu raced under the uprights.

Volavola added the simple conversion to move his outfit 7-0 to the good in a score that settled any nerves whilst denting the confidence and noise in the crowd.

The hosts’ dismal start was compounded soon after when Lappies Labuschagne was red-carded for making head-on-head contact with Vilimoni Botitu in a tackle.

Fiji would make them pay on 17 minutes as prop Mawi claimed their second try of the game as he crashed over before Volavola made it a 14-point advantage.

The Flying Fijians weren’t done in the first half either as scrum-half Kuruvoli scooted over, with Volavola’s conversion sending the visitors in 21-0 in the lead.

Volavola would miss a long-range penalty attempt shortly after the resumption, but he would convert replacement Lomani’s try from in front on 58 minutes.

The islanders then had two tries disallowed by the match officials due to obstruction and a knock-on which kept the scoreline at 28-0 with 17 minutes to play.

Japan got on the board

And with nine minutes remaining, Japan finally had something to show for their hard work, wing Naikabula getting to his feet after not being held for the try.

Masirewa would dive over on the left wing to make it 28-12, with the conversion unsuccessful before Lomani struck in added time to add gloss to Fiji’s victory.

🇫🇯 FIJI ARE PACIFIC NATIONS CUP CHAMPIONS! #FIJvJPN #PNC2023 pic.twitter.com/uR7SxMnoKN

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) August 5, 2023

The win for Fiji sees them seal the Pacific Nations Cup title with three wins, finishing ahead of second-placed Samoa, who beat Tonga earlier on Saturday.

Fiji are drawn in the same Rugby World Cup pool as Australia, Wales, Georgia and Portugal and kick off their campaign against the Welsh on September 10.