New Zealand Rugby

Steve Tew

NZRU boss Steve Tew

A decision on Super Rugby’s Asian expansion could require mediation, with Australia and South Africa expected to butt heads over whether Singapore or Japan gains inclusion.

Earlier this month, Fairfax Media revealed expressions of interest from both, and SANZAR confirmed yesterday that Singapore and Japan submitted the only bids for the 18th team to join an Argentinian side and South Africa’s Southern Kings from 2016.

Now those bids have been lodged with SANZAR chief executive Greg Peters, both will have their respective business cases, broadcast revenue potential and competitiveness assessed before a final decision is reached. Additional teams will need around $10 million per year to cover travel, wages and other expenses.

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Rod Macqueen

For the Brumbies to win, they need to play “Macqueenball”

They say in sports you have to lose a grand final before you win one. That is the prospect, anyway, facing the ACT Brumbies as they go into a successive Super Rugby finals campaign on Saturday night.

The team they play, the Chiefs, defeated them in the 2013 grand final at Hamilton. It took the All Blacks 24 years to understand that finals rugby is an entirely different ball game from pool-round rugby. After the All Blacks lost in the quarter-finals to France in the 2007 Rugby World Cup, the coaching staff did some deep thinking into how to play finals rugby.

What they discovered is that they needed to have total clarity on how to play each specific final. And they had to have contingency plans for coping with unforeseeable events. The best contingency plan is to score enough points before trouble arrives, as it did for the Brumbies in the last 20 minutes of their final against the Chiefs.

Where the Brumbies need clarity in their qualifying final is knowing whether to play “Jakeball” or “Macqueenball”.

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imageimageThe Cell C Sharks will play in their 14th Vodacom Super Rugby knock-out match when they host the Highlanders in the second Qualifier for 2014 at Growthpoint Kings Park in Durban on Saturday afternoon.

The newly-crowned South African Conference champions are one of the most successful teams in the history of the competition when it comes to reaching the playoff rounds, although they are yet to take the trophy back to Durban.

The Sharks are without doubt the most successful team in the history of the competition never to have won the title.

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Special EditionSuper RugbyThe 2014 Super Rugby season is slowly drawing to a close and tomorrow sees the two Play-Off matches in the form of a Qualifying Round. Tomorrow’s victorious teams will qualify for the right to play in the Semi-Finals.

The only certainty is that the Crusaders and the Waratahs will be hosting those Semi-Finals, but against whom, and what happens after that?

There are multiple scenarios and permutations that could come into play.

3 Weekends of Super Rugby remain in 2014, this weekend’s Play-Off Round, the Semi-Final Weekend and the Final the week thereafter.

The Final takes place on 2 August 2014.

 

If you are a Sharks fan:

image

Your team qualified 3rd on the Combined Log.

They’re up against the Highlanders in Durban, on Saturday night.

  • If the Sharks win, then they travel to Christchurch to take on the Crusaders in the one Semi-Final.
  • If the Sharks beat the Crusaders and the Waratahs beat the Brumbies, the Sharks travel to Sydney to take on the Waratahs.
  • The Sharks can host the Final if they beat the Crusaders and the Brumbies beat the Waratahs.

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SuperBruBefore making those all important SuperBru picks for the Super Rugby qualifying matches, let’s have a look at some predictions, thoughts and statistics from the sides taking the field this Saturday.

Blue Bird aka Carol is still leading the Rugby-Talk Super Rugby 2014 SuperBru log on a stellar 106.50 points.

Sharks_Lover has gained ground on her after his yellow cap winning Round 19 and is sitting in second spot on 106.20. Winston Champ dropped one place to 3rd on 104.50 points.

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New Zealand Conference
For those who might have watched the episode of Boots & All on Thursday 17 July, you might have heard John Mitchell refer to an article he read surrounding the New Zealand teams and conference.

Rugby-Talk exclusively brings you the article in question, and we must agree with John, it does make for some interesting reading.

Just how level are the current playing fields in Super Rugby, if all sides don’t face the same opposition, and what are the possible consequences thereof on the final standings?

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Liam Messam

Go-to man, Liam Messam

Coming out of the international break, the Brumbies were three points adrift of the Waratahs and strong contenders for the Australian conference crown.

Then the two teams met in Sydney… and the home side absolutely spanked their neighbours. It was 39-8, and probably not even that close.

We know what happened next – the Waratahs went on to clinch top spot while the Brumbies bounced back with a big win over the Force to set a playoff date with the Chiefs.

If the Kiwi wildcards wish to beat their Australian equivalent in Canberra tomorrow night and advance to the Super Rugby semifinals, the champs would be wise to steal a page from the Waratahs’ gameplan, as Dave Rennie explained.

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Jake White

Cell C Sharks coach Jake White

Cell C Sharks director of rugby Jake White has admitted that there was a big temptation to start against the Highlanders with Pat Lambie, but in the end decided against it for fear of disrupting what worked for his side against the Stormers last week.

According to the supersport.com website, speaking a few hours after announcing a match day squad that included Lambie on the bench as back-up to starting flyhalf Frans Steyn, White said he was hoping that the Springbok will get a chance to play in the second half of the Vodacom Super Rugby play-off and thus be ready to start a possible semifinal.

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Super RugbyIt is the Play-Off Round of Super Rugby 2014 this weekend! We have only the 2 Play-Off games in this Round, as all teams below Log position 6 has now been dispatched and the Top 2 teams have a nice rest weekend, with both games on Saturday.

This is the final crunch to sort the men from the boys, to sort the teams going forward into the Semi-Finals.

The Waratahs and Crusaders sit comfortably at the Top of the table and the Brumbies, Chiefs, Cell C Sharks and Highlanders compete in this Round.

It is winners take all in these Play-Off games, the losers joing the other 9 Teams who have already been dispatched to also-ran’s.

Bonus points for tries and losses within 7 now does not matter anymore, all that is needed is a win.

Let the games continue….

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Cell C SharksHighlandersA midfield match-up, the scrumhalves, the battle between the pilferers on the deck and an arm-wrestle at scrum-time come under focus as Sport24 pinpoints a quartet of areas that could tilt the balance between the Sharks and Highlanders.

The teams meet in a Super Rugby finals series first-round knockout match at Kings Park on Saturday (17:05) and these are the individual contests Rob Houwing highlights for special attention…

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Cell C SharksIn the second of the Qualifying Round matches, the Cell C Sharks hosts the Highlanders from Otago. The Sharks won the SA Conference and thereby ensured they booked a home qualifier by ending 3rd on the Combined Log. The Highlanders took the last of the wild card positions by ending their season 6th.

The long-awaited return of Springbok Patrick Lambie highlights the Sharks team for their Super Rugby play-off encounter with the Highlanders in Durban on Saturday.

Scrumhalf Cobus Reinach also makes a welcome return ahead of this preliminary qualifier.

However, it is the return of Lambie’s – albeit on the replacement bench – that will hog the headlines.

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BrumbiesThe Super Rugby Qualifying Rounds kick off in Canberra on Saturday morning SA time when the ACT Brumbies hosts the current champions, the Chiefs.  The Brumbies ended 4th on the combined Super Rugby log and the Chiefs 5th.

Robbie Coleman returns to the Brumbies starting side on Saturday when his team takes on the Chiefs in their Super Rugby Qualifier at GIO Stadium. Coleman’s elevation to the starting side shifts Clyde Rathbone out of the matchday 23, with rookie prop Allan Alaalatoa’s inclusion on the bench the only other change to last week’s squad.

With seven tries to his name in 2014, Coleman leads the Brumbies try-scoring tally alongside his fellow-back-three member, Jesse Mogg. It’s been a big season for the Brumbies outside backs, with Henry Speight, Joe Tomane, Pat McCabe, Mogg and Coleman combining for a total of 22 five-pointers.

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Jessie Mogg

Jessie Mogg has regained his starting role for the Brumbies after being dropped earlier this season

Brumbies fullback Jesse Mogg is using his Super Rugby axing to reignite his passion, admitting he took his position in the team for granted after being the first-choice No.15 for more than two years.

Mogg was benched for the Brumbies’ clash against the Melbourne Rebels in June, with coach Stephen Larkham opting to promote Wallabies warrior Pat McCabe to the starting XV.

But Mogg has regained his fullback jersey after McCabe was injured while on Wallabies duty, and the Wests speedster says being dropped was the wake-up call he needed to help the Brumbies’ charge to the championship.

“It was about me turning things around and working a little bit harder,” he said. “I’ve come back and played solid over the last two weeks, I’ll look to build on that into the finals series.”

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New Zealand Women

New Zealand celebrate a fourth consecutive WRWC title following victory over England in the 2010 final

With just over two weeks to go before Women’s Rugby World Cup 2014, we take a look back at how previous tournaments unfolded and at the Springbok squad and preparations.

Women’s rugby has experienced phenomenal growth in recent times and the number of women and girls playing the game currently stands at 1.5 million, a quarter of the overall total.

Much of that growth over the past five years has been driven by Olympic inclusion, the inception of the IRB Women’s Sevens World Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens and ongoing work between national unions and Olympic Committees.

However, many countries have deep roots in the women’s 15-a-side game, which has already seen seven world tournaments, four sanctioned by the IRB and three ‘unofficial World Cups’.

Here we provide a brief history of the Women’s Rugby World Cup movement.

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Super Rugby trophy

Super Rugby trophy

Tenders from Japan and Singapore will vie for a licence to enter the Super Rugby competition in 2016, governing body SANZAR has confirmed.

A decision is slated to be reached in September / October.

“We are now able to confirm that two parties from Asia will compete for the opportunity to join an expanded Super Rugby competition in 2016,” SANZAR CEO Greg Peters said.

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Gareth Anscombe

Chiefs playmaker Gareth Anscombe is rumoured to join Cardiff Blues

Chiefs playmaker Gareth Anscombe is poised to leave New Zealand to take up a contract in Wales with the Cardiff Blues.

Rumours that the 23-year-old would move to Wales, for whom he qualifies through his Cardiff-born mother, have been circulating since April.

The move now looks certain following reports that he had thanked colleagues and supporters at a Chiefs dinner in Hamilton ahead of his departure. Anscombe, who can play both fly-half and full-back, is expected to join the Pro12 side – where he will link up with former Hurricanes coach Mark Hammett – as soon as he has completed his commitments with the Chiefs, who play the Brumbies in Saturday’s Super Rugby play-off in Canberra.

The son of ex-Ulster boss Mark Anscombe, the player has already met with Wales’ Kiwi coach Warren Gatland and reports in the Welsh press suggest he could be fast-tracked into the national setup in time for the November Tests. Although he has signed with Auckland for the NPC, Anscombe is understood to have an out-clause allowing him to go to Wales.

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CrusadersIt’s the same every year; judgement calls made in February and March.

For the past 13 seasons, another predictable outcome is that the Crusaders will make the playoffs, despite dire predictions in the early rounds. I noted on several forums that a few “fans” were picking that Todd Blackadder would be the first kiwi Super Rugby coach to be sacked mid-season.

While I don’t always agree with the former All Black captain’s selections, clearly he must have done a few things right to get his team to the top of the New Zealand Conference.

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Ma'a Nonu

All Black midfielder, Ma’a Nonu, has confirmed his move back to the Hurricanes for 2015

Incoming Hurricanes coach Chris Boyd first guided Ma’a Nonu as part of the Wellington B side more than 10 years ago and they will reunite that partnership at Super Rugby level next season.

Since being shown the door at the Hurricanes by then-coach Mark Hammett in 2011, Nonu has bounced around New Zealand franchises with two stops at the Blues and a season with the Highlanders but the second-five will return to the capital next year to be closer to his family.

Nonu said he was thankful to the Blues, who he played for this year, for the support they had shown him, but was also grateful to be coming back to the Hurricanes.

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HighlandersCell C SharksHighlanders coach Jamie Joseph denies his side is lacking energy heading into the play-offs and says it is time to get excited about playing in the finals.

After a poor outing against the Crusaders in their last pool game the Highlanders know they will have to play much better if they are to be competitive in their long-awaited play-off match against the Sharks.

They never fired in Christchurch on Saturday, the 34-8 defeat from the Crusaders ensured they finished sixth in the competition and have to head to Durban to take on the Sharks.

Earlier this season, the Highlanders beat the Sharks 34-18 in Durban. The Sharks are not looking as impressive as they were at the start of the season, when they led the table for a long period of time.

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BrumbiesChiefsThe Brumbies are determined to avoid getting into a ‘brutal arm-wrestle’ with the two-time defending champion Chiefs.

The two sides meet in Canberra on Saturday in the first match of the 2014 Super Rugby play-offs, a preliminary qualifier.

Having found some late-season form – with victories over the Blues (11-8 this past weekend) and Hurricanes (24-16 the week before) – the Chiefs muscled their way from ninth to fifth on the table in the past fortnight.

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Special EditionSuper RugbyAs we head into the Super Rugby Finals Series, here is an overview of what happens should the scores be level at full time in any of our remaining matches.

(a) Extra Time – the procedure will be:

After a five minute rest period, the extra time is played in two 10-minute periods with a two minute half time;

Before extra time begins, the referee will do a coin toss with the two captains one minute before the new kick-off. The winner of the coin toss decides if his team wants to kick-off or if his team wants to choose the side of the pitch it wants to play on for the first 10 minute period;

For the second 10 minute period, the teams change sides and the team that did not kick off in the first period does so;

Coaches are not permitted on the field during the rest period or half time.

Teams and match officials must remain on the field during the rest period and at half time.

Injury time is added to the two 10 minute periods.

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Jimmy Cowan

Jimmy Cowan

Veteran All Black scrumhalf Jimmy Cowan will return to New Zealand after two seasons in the English Premiership.

The 32-year-old Cowan has signed to play for the Tasman Makos in the NPC.

The Tasman Rugby Union confirmed he has signed a one-year deal, after seeing out two injury-affected seasons at Premiership club Gloucester.

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Mark Hammett

Embattled Hurricane coach, Mark Hammett

As he prepares to leave the Hurricanes, coach Mark Hammett gave a parting shot by claiming that the Hurricanes were in a state of disarray when he took over the coaching reins ahead of the 2011 season.

Hammett, who is heading overseas to coach Welsh club Cardiff, is in the final stages of his four-year tenure with the Hurricanes after they were left in seventh place, one point outside of the playoffs, following the final round of Super Rugby.

Seventh was the best finish Hammett led the side to during his time in charge but his first season was a rescue mission as he moved on some senior players, including Andrew Hore and Ma’a Nonu as Hammett deemed they weren’t helpful for the team environment.

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Sonny Bill Williams

The mercurial Sonny Bill Williams is close to returning to Rugby Union

Dual international Sonny Bill Williams will be considered for the New Zealand’s end of year tour if he is fit and in top form.

That is the word from All Blacks coach Steve Hansen who said time was a factor less than a year out from the Rugby World Cup. Hansen feels Williams’ return to the All Blacks will depend on his condition when he returns from the Sydney Roosters’ NRL campaign and whether he manages to play some part for Counties Manukau in the ITM Cup.

Hansen admitted that he hoped Williams’ return to Test rugby is sooner rather than later.

“There is no doubt he’s an exceptional rugby player and if he’s available then we’d be foolish not to look at him, but we have to take into account he’s come off a big season,” Hansen told Fairfax Media.

“We have to take a whole lot of things into consideration before we make a decision. What’s right for Sonny? What’s right for the team?”

“Next year’s a bit different because we don’t have the June series and if we can’t use him going into the World Cup then if we can have that opportunity to spend time with him then that would be good.”

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Steve Walsh

Rugby referee and reformed “bad boy” Steve Walsh

Very seldom, before, during or after a rugby match does the spotlight not fall on the referee. Supporters of the losing team will in all probability at some stage lay the blame on the man with the whistle, it’s human nature, and not even the winning side’s supporters agree with all the decisions made during most matches. It’s the nature of the beast and referees know full well that this is one of the pitfalls of their chosen profession.

Seldom however has controversy followed a referee as it has for Steve Walsh.

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Todd Blackadder

Todd Blackadder has welcomed the extra week break

Crusaders coach Todd Blackadder has welcomed having an extra week off to prepare for his team’s Super Rugby Semi-final clash at home in Christchurch. The Crusaders finished the regular season in second place which guarantees them extra week while the Sharks, Brumbies, Chiefs and Highlanders battle it out. How Blackadder manages the players over the next two weeks will be crucial as they look to reach their first final since 2011.

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Steve Walsh

Steve Walsh

Sanzar has announced that South Africa’s Craig Joubert and Steve Walsh from Australia will referee the two Vodacom Super Rugby Qualifiers this weekend.

Joubert will be the man in the middle in Canberra, where the Brumbies host the Chiefs, while Walsh will be in action in Durban in the second Qualifier between the Cell C Sharks and the Highlanders.

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It's almost like the Blues' failure has been brushed aside because it's expected. Photo / APN

It’s almost like the Blues’ failure has been brushed aside because it’s expected. Photo / APN

The Blues are consistent – 10th last year and again this season.

That’s the upshot of winning 13 games and losing 19 in the two seasons John Kirwan has been in charge of a franchise which has flowered intermittently since their last 2003 title success.

It’s almost like the Blues’ failure has been brushed aside because it’s expected, that’s what they do, they are stuck in a cycle of under-achievement.

As most of the New Zealand focus turns to the work of the Crusaders, Highlanders and Chiefs in the playoffs, the Blues will go through their season debriefs and make plans for next year before delivering another version of onwards and upwards rhetoric.

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Richie McCaw

Richie McCaw

The Crusaders are on track to have All Black captain Richie McCaw fully recovered in time for their Super Rugby semifinal.

Their convincing victory over the Highlanders in Christchurch at the weekend has secured the Red and Blacks top spot on the New Zealand conference, meaning they’ll miss the first round of the play-offs this coming Saturday.

Coach Todd Blackadder has told Newstalk ZB that McCaw is recovering well and should make for a timely return from a rib injury.

“He’s probably a week away,” Blackadder said.

“He probably would be ready to take contact at the end of this week and so he’ll be ready for that.”

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Jamie Joseph

Jamie Joseph, coach of the Highlanders

The Highlanders will attempt what no team has had a chance to do before – beat the Sharks in Durban, twice in one season.

They will meet in a preliminary knock-out match at Kings Park on Saturday, after the Sharks finished third on the Super Rugby standings and the men from Dunedin sixth.

The Highlanders beat the Sharks 34-18 in South Africa back in April, during a successful tour of the Republic.

Now they return to the venue where they have recorded only two other victories – 43-7 in 2005 and 23-19 in 2003.

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imageThe Brumbies will have a chance to avenge their defeat in the Super Rugby Final last year when they face defending champions Chiefs next week.

Under the stewardship of current Sharks coach Jake White, the Brumbies went down in Hamilton to fall short of claiming their third Super Rugby title last year.

Now under the guidance of former Wallabies flyhalf and Brumbies legend Stephen Larkham, the Canberra side comes into the match with a fair maount of confidence given their convincing win over the Force in the last round.

Ben Mowen will become the Brumbies’ most-capped skipper in what might also be his final game for the franchise given that he is heading to France to play for Montpellier.

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Jake White

Cell C Sharks coach Jake White

Sharks boss Jake White would like his side to use their performance against the Stormers at Newlands as a template for how to approach the play-offs.

Michael de Vries

Although his side may have fallen one try and 11 points short of their ultimate target on Saturday, White was understandably pleased with the ‘finals rugby’ his side played against a Stormers team that has recently found their best form of the season.

After a deflating defeat to the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein last week, White called on his best team to get them some momentum before the play-offs and they did just that in a game that had his stamp all over it.

The Stormers had the majority of possession but couldn’t make it count in the face of a committed defensive effort from the Sharks who pounced on some late counter-attacking opportunities to run away with the game in the end.

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The 2014 Shark side

The 2014 Shark side

Would Mercedes Benz survive if they just produced S-Class models? Aren’t their well being and fortunes necessitated by producing and selling C and E class models? If South African rugby were Mercedes Benz, the Cell C Sharks would be the S-Class model, but after that there is not much to talk or get excited about if you are a South African rugby supporter.

Out of the 15 teams South Africa has the dubious honor of the Toyota Cheetahs in 14th spot, the Lions in 12th, DHL Stormers at 11th and Vodacom Bulls at 9th position on the Combined Log.

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