British & Irish Lions 2013
Ireland wing Simon Zebo will make his British and Irish Lions debut against New South Wales Waratahs on Saturday. Zebo joined the squad as cover on Tuesday and goes straight into a strong side containing up to a dozen likely Test contenders.
England centre Billy Twelvetrees is joining the British and Irish Lions’ tour of Australia as cover for the tourists’ injury-affected backline. Twelvetrees, 24, has been on England duty in Argentina, scoring a try in the 32-3 win over the Pumas at the weekend.
June is a busy time for rugby, and therefore a busy time here on Rugby-Talk. Of course, like has become custom, Rugby-Talk (the premier LIVE GAME RUGBY website) will broadcast and update live scores and up to date commentary on almost all the games, except where some of the Junior World Championship games overlap in their respective time slots and of course on Saturday morning at sparrow-fart (06:50) I will take the indulgence of sleeping through the bore between a Wales “B” side and Japan. Rugby-Talk will have 3 Live Games on Thursday afternoon and evening, 1 on Friday evening and 5 Tests throughout Saturday. This will bring the week’s Live Game Articles on Rugby-Talk to an impressive 11 matches (including the 2 matches already done this past Tuesday).
Here’s the Rugby you can look forward to the rest of this week, till and including the weekend. Rugby starts tomorrow late afternoon when there is a series of IRB Junior World Championship 2013 matches, including a late game between hosts France and South Africa’s Under 20 teams.
Country XV (0) 0 / 64 (38) Lions (Final Score)
The Combined Country VX and British & Irish Lions did battle in the British & Irish Lions 2013 tour at Hunter Stadium, Newcastle at 11:30 SA Time (19:30 AEST, 10:30 BST, 09:30 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & SHD on TV in SA.
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Wallabies coach Robbie Deans has expressed confidence that troubled star Kurtley Beale is ready to take on the British and Irish Lions.
Deans named his final squad for the series which included Beale, who has been sidelined due to recent alcohol related issues, but is missing flyhalf Quade Cooper.
Dumped Wallaby Quade Cooper has been involved in an incident at a Brisbane hotel in which he had beer thrown over him, reports said on Monday.
Wallabies coach Robbie Deans has confirmed playmaker Quade Cooper will not be one of the six additional players added to his squad to play the British and Irish Lions but Kurtley Beale will be.
Deans is expected to name an extra six players that will be added to the Wallabies squad on Monday but he has already partly showed his hand.
Stuart Hogg has been switched to flyhalf as one of three British and Irish Lions to play their second consecutive tour match in four days against a Combined Queensland-New South Wales Country team on Tuesday.
Ireland’s Simon Zebo will become the third reinforcement to join the British and Irish Lions as cover for injured winger Tommy Bowe, team officials said on Sunday.
Reds (7) 12 / 22 (16) Lions (Final Score)
The Reds and British & Irish Lions did battle in the British & Iriah Lions tour of 2013 at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
at 11:30 SA Time (19:30 Brisbane Time, 10:30 BST, 09:30 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & SHD on TV in SA.
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Scotland prop Ryan Grant has been called into the British and Irish Lions squad ahead of the clash with Queensland Reds. The Glasgow loose-head had been in South Africa with Scotland for a quadrangular tournament.
Sam Warburton is all set to become the 800th player to wear the British & Irish Lions jersey in a competitive fixture when he finally makes his debut on the 2013 tour against the Reds at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday.
The Cardiff Blues and Wales flank will become the last of the original squad who left London on 27 May to make his Lions debut and to add to the sense of occasion he will be leading the side for the first time as well.
The Reds have announced a powerful 23-man line-up for their historic tour match against the British and Irish Lions in Brisbane on Saturday.
Despite being without seven current Wallaby squad members, the Reds team still boasts plenty of international strike power, with nine capped Wallabies chosen in the starting line-up and a further three on the bench.
Mixed news for the British and Irish Lions of 2013 for this week, with the injured Cian Healy cited for biting whereas his replacement for the Tour has been named and called up, Alex Corbisiero.
Not only is Cian Healy injured, having injured his ankle against the Western Force, bit there is the serious allegation that he has bitten Brett Sheehan in the same match.
What needs clarification is how the British and Irish Lions can call up a replacement for Healy if he is going to be banned after facing the Judicial Hearing, yet Alex Corbisiero has been called up as a replacement for Healy already.
Force (3) 17 / 69 (27) Lions (Final Score)
The Western Force and British & Irish Lions did battle as part of the British & Irish Lions tour to Australia in 2013 at Patersons Stadium, Perth
at 12:00 SA Time (18:00 Perth Time, 11:00 BST, 10:00 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & SHD on TV in SA.
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Some very good rugby right througout the week this week… clear your schedules!
The British and Irish Lions will encounter a weaker than expected Western Force team in their first match in Australia, the Perth-based side naming an inexperienced line-up on Tuesday with an eye on the weekend’s Super Rugby clash.
Wingers Corey Brown and Dane Haylett-Petty, centres Chris Tuatara-Morrison and Ed Stubbs, hooker James Hilterbrand and fullback Sam Christie were all selected to start Wednesday’s clash at the Subiaco Oval, the six combining for just 20 Super Rugby appearances between them.
Ireland’s Brian O’Driscoll will captain the British and Irish Lions in their first tour game in Australia, against Western Force in Perth on Wednesday.
The 23-man team contains eight new Lions.
Injuries to key players have forced Wallabies coach Robbie Deans to make three changes to his preliminary squad to play the the British and Irish Lions.
Deans had to seek replacements following injuries to wing Digby Ioane, lock Sitaleki Timani and flank Scott Higginbotham.
Saracens and Barbarians hooker Schalk Brits has been slapped with a three week ban for punching his Saracens team mate Owen Farrell in the British & Irish Lions’ tour opener in Hong Kong.
Lions (23) 59 / 8 (3) Barbarians (Final Score)
The British & Irish Lions and Barbarians did battle in the 1st game of the B & I Lions Tour 2013 at Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong
at 13:30 SA Time (19:30 Hong Kong Time, 12:30 UK Time, 11:30 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 5 & SHD 3 on TV in SA.
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After six months’ planning and three weeks’ training, coach Warren Gatland finally begins his British and Irish Lions adventure in earnest on Saturday with what should be a gentle opening match against the Barbarians to open the 125th anniversary tour.
Italy captain Sergio Parisse said he wanted to give the British and Irish Lions an early taste of pressure after being named to lead the Barbarians side in Saturday’s encounter in Hong Kong on Wednesday.
Heyneke Meyer feared he had ruined Tom Youngs’ career when he persuaded the Englishman to switch from centre to hooker. The Springbok coach can probably rest easy now.
The British and Irish Lions have arrived in Hong Kong ahead of a month-long tour of Australia where they will seek their first Test series victory in 16 years.
Well there are a lot of surprises in the mid-year appointments this year, and I’m not sure how much can be read into them.
Quade Cooper was left out of a 25-man Wallaby squad for the British and Irish Lions series, but code-hopper Israel Folau was chosen.
Coach Robbie Deans said troubled star back Kurtley Beale still has a chance of playing against the British and Irish Lions despite missing the initial Wallabies squad.
Springbok and Bath loose forward Francois Louw is one of three South Africa players included in the Barbarians squad to take on England and the British and Irish Lions.
The other two South Africans included in the squad are Munster prop BJ Botha and London Wasps lock Marco Wentzel.
The Australian Rugby Union has announced that the Wallabies will have a dedicated three-week window to prepare for their once in a lifetime opportunity against the British & Irish Lions.
British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland fired the first verbal salvo ahead of his team’s tour to Australia next year, claiming the Wallabies are the easiest to knock over of their Southern Hemisphere rivals.
New British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland is on his way to France on Wednesday (today) to chat to a number of potential tourists for his squad for next Northern Hemisphere summer’s tour of Australia.
New Zealander Warren Gatland was appointed coach of the British and Irish Lions on Tuesday for their tour of Australia next year. The role is the most prestigious in northern hemisphere rugby but comes with numerous challenges.
The threat to boycott the British & Irish Lions tour of 2013 was never put forward formally, but an official was warned in passing as it emerged that the powerful “home unions” of England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland would be broken for the first time.
It has been confirmed by the Sharks and in so doing put an end to it just being a rumour, Yes 31 year old Marius Joubert will be joining the Sharks as soon as his team Clermont Auvergne who are currently leading the standings in the French league complete their season.