Internationals
Patrick Lambie missed his opportunity to stake a claim for the Springbok No.10 jersey at Murrayfield at the weekend.
This was Lambie’s chance to shine. The wet European conditions had stayed away for the Springboks’ Edinburgh encounter against an ordinary Scottish outfit fresh off a 51-22 hiding from New Zealand.
Controversial Wallaby flyhalf Quade Cooper has reportedly dropped a major bomb by walking out on Australian rugby.
Nick Mallet during his tenure as Springbok coach made himself very unpopular by saying that he is not too concerned about criticism from South African rugby fans because in his opinion they don’t know much about the game anyway.
Good second half against Ireland, good first half against Scotland … warts and all, the Springboks continue unbeaten on their season-ending tour of the northern hemisphere.
France (24) 39 / 22 (13) Pumas (Final Score)
France and the Argentinian Pumas did battle in the End Of Year Tours at Grand Stade Lille Metropole, Lille at 22:00 SA Time (21:00 France Time, 20:00 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1, SHD & CSN on TV in SA.
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Ireland (29) 53 / 0 (0) Fiji (Final Score)
Ireland and Fiji did battle in the End Of Year Tours at Thomond Park, Limerick at 19:30 SA Time (17:30 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1, SHD & M-Net on TV in SA.
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News from Cape Town is that Tendai “Beast” Mtawarita is recovering from a successful minor medical procedure to correct an intermittent irregular heart rhythm he experienced last weekend.
Scotland (3) 10 / 21 (14) Springboks (Final Score)
Scotland and the South African Springboks did battle in the End Of Year Tours at Murrayfield, Edinburgh at 16:30 SA Time.
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1, SHD & M-Net on TV in SA.
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Seems that the planners of the End Of Year Tours all colluded to make it as difficult as possible for us to see all the games. This afternoon no less than 3 important Tests takes place at the same time, being Italy vs All Blacks (16:00 SA Time), England vs Wallabies (16:30 SA Time) and Scotland vs Springboks (16:30 SA Time). The other matches following are the Ireland vs Fiji (19:30 SA Time) and France vs Pumas (22:00 SA Time) matches.
Wales (13) 19 / 26 (10) Samoa (Final Score)
Wales and Samoa did battle in the End Of Year Tours at Millennium Stadium, Cardiff at 21:30 SA Time.
This is the live match discussion Article.
The match is broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 on TV in SA.
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Wallabies playmaker Kurtley Beale will face court next year on an assault charge relating to an incident involving a bouncer at a Brisbane hotel in June.
Former Springbok and Sharks lock Mark Andrews is worried about current Bok second rower Eben Etzebeth’s commitment at the breakdown area.
Ireland have named their team to play Fiji at Thomond Park on Saturday with three three uncapped players included in the starting XV alongside a number of new faces.
Italy coach Jacques Brunel has made eight changes to the side that beat Tonga 28-23 last week ahead of Saturday’s test against New Zealand’s All Blacks at Rome’s Olympic Stadium.
Australian lock Rob Simmons and New Zealand flanker Adam Thomson who both played for the their countries last weekend and were cited following acts of foul play will both be missing from their respective teams’ lineups this weekend. However, that is where the similarities end as Thomson received a one week ban for his stamp on Scotland’s Strokosch’s head, while Simmons received an eight week ban for a ‘tip/spear’ tackle on France’s Yannick Nyanga.
Centre Nick De Luca insists a victory over South Africa is not essential for Scotland’s World Cup hopes.
The Scots host the Springboks after losing to New Zealand last Sunday. They need to win, and beat Tonga a week later, to secure a second seed berth for England in three years’ time.
The All Blacks have named Kieran Read as captain of the team to face Italy at Stadio Olimpico in Rome on Saturday as coach Steve Hansen makes sweeping changes.
Australia have named their team to face England at Twickenham with Berrick Barnes at fullback as one of four changes to the team that lost to France in Paris.
England have made one change to the team that beat Fiji for this weekend’s clash against Australia at Twickenham with Chris Ashton replacing Ugo Monye on the wing.
France coach Philippe Saint-Andre has made one change to the team that beat Australia for this week’s Test against Argentina with second row Yoann Maestri returning to the starting line up.
Wales have named former Grand Slam winning captain Ryan Jones to captain the team against Samoa at the Millennium Stadium on Friday.
Samoa has rejigged its back division as part of six changes to the starting line-up for Friday’s international against Wales.
Scotland have made two changes from their starting XV and a further four alterations to their bench for Saturday’s EMC Test against South Africa at Murrayfield. Euan Murray, the 32-year-old tighthead prop who was man of the match when the nations clashed at Murrayfield in 2008, is restored at tight-head prop having missed the New Zealand game due to his religious observance, with Geoff Cross moving to the bench.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer has stuck with his guns and pretty much as expected gone for continuity, in selecting the same team as last weekend accept for two changes to the starting fifteen and one on the bench.
Scotland forward David Denton today looked ahead to the next round of the EMC Autumn Test rugby series and insisted it is a case of “bring on the Boks”.
Undeterred by the fact that Scotland opened their programme with a 51-22 home defeat by New Zealand, the 22-year-old Edinburgh back rower insisted a bucketload of rust has come out of the team’s system.
Argentina have made three changes to face France here on Saturday, two enforced by injuries to Felipe Contepomi and Juan Martin Hernandez in last weekend’s win over Wales.
Scotland flanker Ross Rennie has been given treatment on his dislocated shoulder suffered in the 22-51 loss to Rugby World Cup champions New Zealand at Murrayfield.
Scotland and France may both have played tests this past weekend and will play again in the coming weekend. However, the two teams are in quite different places at the moment with France pulling off a very good win against Australia while Scotland suffered a big defeat to New Zealand.
Furthermore, Scotland have numerous players on the injury list ahead of their game against South Africa on Saturday which is great concern for head coach Andy Robinson. On the other hand, France’s coach Philippe Saint-Andre was able to announce an unchanged squad for their game against Argentina.
The All Blacks and coach Steve Hansen are anxiously awaiting a decision on whether flanker Adam Thomson will be ruled out of the rest of their European tour for disciplinary reasons.
Australian coach Robbie Deans was left shell-shocked and searching for answers after seeing his team convincingly put to the sword by an aggressive France team that stifled any plan for a width-based Wallaby gameplan.
Wales are sweating on the fitness of two of their marquee players, centre Jamie Roberts and lock Alun Wyn Jones, in the wake of their 26-12 defeat to Argentina at the Millennium Stadium.
Biarritz centre Marcelo Bosch and Montpellier full-back Lucas Gonzalez Amorosino have been included in the Argentina squad to face France next Saturday in Lille, the national federation announced Sunday.
The Springboks may have an alternative captain leading them onto the field for their second tour match against Scotland at Murrayfield in Edinburgh on Saturday.
The Springboks have moved into second spot on the International Rugby Board’s rankings after their 16-12 win over Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.
News from the UK is that Tendai “Beast” Mtawarira is returning home due to his recurring heart problem.