Springbok wing JP Pietersen faces a race against time to be fit for South Africa’s Rugby World Cup quarter final against Australia on Sunday.
New Zealand winger Zac Guildford has joined All Blacks injury list after he pulled a hamstring at training just as the team welcomed back captain Richie McCaw.
Ireland coach Declan Kidney has named an unchanged team to play Wales in a Rugby World Cup quarter final match with hooker Rory Best hvaing to undergo a late fitness test.
I have raised this point before , here is a article that supports my view. We have spend many hours debating the time frame of the crouch, pause , engage calls by refs. I have asked many times , what did we gain in safety after all of this? Referees claim that they took control of the scrum engagement but with most penalties or free kicks the teams still opt for ANOTHER scrum.
The point i raised before was, how difficult is it for a prop to get a good grip on these skin tight jerseys? Read this article to see how the top players feel about it. At the end some of the comments already made about this article
Italy’s Leonardo Ghiraldini has been given a 15 week ban from rugby after he was found guilty of ‘gouging’ the eyes of Ireland prop Cian Healy during the teams’ World Cup pool match last weekend.
France forward Imanol Harinordoquy has slammed his coach Marc Lievremont for criticising the French players in public after they were beaten last weekend by Tonga in the Rugby World Cup.
Western Province outside back Heinrich Steyl became the latest player to fall to the curse of the blue and white hooped jersey when it was confirmed that he will be out of action for nine months with a broken leg.
The Sharks have been dealt another blow in their quest to defend the Currie Cup title after scrumhalf Charl McLeod was ruled out of the competition with a fractured hip.
Samoa’s Eliota Fuimaono Sapolu has been banned from playing rugby at all levels after calling Welsh referee Nigel Owens “racist” in a Twitter message following the team’s Rugby World Cup exit.
The centre, who in an earlier post said tournament organisers were guilty of “slavery” for the way they treated teams like Samoa, failed to attend a disciplinary hearing in Auckland on Tuesday.
I have been pondering the possibility of the Springboks being able to win this world cup, and after having seen the amount of criticism they have received (which is par for the course) I started to falter in my belief.
Five Kiwis, three Irishmen, three South africans, two Welshmen, a Samoan and an Anglo-Samoan. No, it’s not the England team, but RugbyHeaven’s (AUS) best XV for the pool stages as selected by Paul Cully.
We always love to pick our own teams, chop and change.
What do you think of this team?
Who would you pick? Go ahead , have your say in the comments.
If the old cliche about“Defence wins World Cups” applies, then the Wallabies and the All Blacks have cause for concern.
The Golden Lions booked their place in the top four of the Currie Cup when they fought back to clinch an unlikely draw against the Free State Cheetahs in Bloemfontein on Saturday. By moving up to 45 log points, the Golden Lions ensured they will play in their first semi-final in the Premier Division for the first time since 2008.
Later on Saturday, Western Province moved back into the top four on the log with a well-deserved 15-10 victory over The Sharks in a scrappy match in Durban.
The Blue Bulls and Griquas have both kept their play-off aspirations alive with bonus point victories over the Pumas and Leopards respectively.
French utility back Fabrice Estebanez has been suspended for 3 weeks after admitting to a ‘dangerous tip tackle’ in the match against Tonga.
Georgia winger Lekso Gugava was on Monday suspended for five weeks after being found guilty of making a ‘dangerous tip tackle’ in his team’s final World Cup pool game against Argentina.
England winger Delon Armitage has been suspended for this weekend’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final with France but will be available for the Semi-final if England progress.
Armitage was cited for making a dangerous tackle in England’s 16-12 Pool B match against Scotland at Auckland’s Eden Park last Saturday.
Winger Digby Ioane looks set to make a dramatic comeback for the Wallabies in their Rugby World Cup quarter-final against South Africa after fracturing his thumb last month.
When a player works four years to get in prime condition for the World Cup it is very sad when they get injured. The way a player handles his disappointment shows his metal. There are disappointments in your career and adversity makes you a better person. There might be many more disappointed players at this stage but the three Southern Hemisphere partners each lost one or more of their best players.
Here is the Dan Carter story.
Frans Steyn, Drew Mitchell and Wycliff Palu can be added as big losses.
The International Rugby Board announced the group of match officials who will take charge of the Rugby World Cup 2011 knock-out matches.
Bryce Lawrence will be in charge of the South Africa vs Australia quarter-final match in Wellington.
Does discontent in the France camp threaten to derail Les Bleus’ hopes of winning Rugby World Cup 2011?
Will England be distracted by ball-swapping inquests and newspaper allegations of player misbehaviour?
And, perhaps the question preoccupying all New Zealanders right now, has the loss of injured Dan Carter dealt a fatal blow to the All Blacks’ hopes of glory?
Jeremy Paul the ex-Aussie hooker made an interesting comment after the NZ / Canada game namely that on the evidence of the Canada game NZ would not be able to win the RWC.
Weepu was not convincing on 10 neither was Slade. The rest of the NZ game was, in my, appreciation pretty good. They lost some form in the second half -which is understandable considering the scoreboard at that stage- but the big concern according to Jeremy Paul is the fact that the NZ halfbacks will have less time and space (than against Canada) when playing against quality opposition.
Paul obviously has the NZ/Aus Brisbane game in mind where the Wallabies secured a win by cutting down the space of the NZ halfbacks. Continue reading
So the die has been cast and the quarter finals match-ups have been decided.
South Africa have called Blue Bulls fullback Zane Kirchner into the Springboks Rugby World Cup squad as a replacement for the injured Frans Steyn.
Ireland (9) 36 / Italy (6) 6 (Final Score)
Ireland and Italy did battle in the final Pool Game of Rugby World Cup 2011, in Dunedin 09:30 SA Time (20:30 NZ Time).
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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At Halftime it was still anybody’s game, Italy only 3 points adrift, but in the second half the Irish game flourished and the Italian game floundered. 3 Tries eventually for Ireland in the second stanza, taking Irealand out to a 30-point win.
The Quarter Finals now loom large, with some monsterous battles ahead, none more so than Ireland vs Wales and the Springboks vs the Wallabies!
Wales (31) 66 / Fiji (0) 0 (Final Score)
Wales and Fiji did battle in Hamiton at 07:00 SA Time (18:00 NZ Time).
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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Wales romped to a 66 / 0 victory, 9 tries to nill. Fiji exits what was a very scrappy World Cup for them.
All Blacks (37) 79 / Canada (8) 15 (Final Score)
The New Zealand All Blacks and Canada did battle in Wellington at 04:30 SA Time (15:30 NZ Time).
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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As expected, the All Black ran riot and scored 12 tries against Canada. Canada could muster 2 good tries but wasted many more and they never stood a chance against New Zealand.
Dan Carter is out of the World Cup!
All Blacks first five-eighth Carter has been ruled out of the rest of the tournament because of the groin injury he suffered at yesterday’s captains run and Colin Slade will now be expected to wear the No 10 jersey for the crucial play-off matches.
Argentina (5) 25 / Georgia (7) 7 (Final Score)
Argentina and Georgia did battle in Palmerston North at 02:00 SA Time (13:00 NZ Time).
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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Georgia led 7-5 at half time but only one team came out in the second half. Argentina scored 20 unanswered points in the second half. Penalty count against Georgia 17 vs 8.
Places in the quarter-finals of Rugby World Cup 2011 are still in the balance in all but one of the four pools going into Sunday’s final day of action.
Sharks (7) 10 / WP (7) 15 (Final Score)
The Sharks hosted DHL Western Province at Mr Price Kings Park, Durban at 17:05 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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In a bore-fest, DHL Western Province held a desperate Sharks side back to win. The most exciting part of the game was the last 5 minutes.
Cheetahs (15) 25 / Lions (5) 25 (Final Score)
The Toyota Free State Cheetahs hosted the MTN Lions at Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein at 15:00 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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A last-ditch fightback from the Lions resulted in 14 points by them, with 3 minutes left on the clock, to eventuate in a draw. Kiss-your-sisters, boys!
England (3) 16 / Scotland (9) 12 (Final Score)
England and Scotland did battle in Auckland at 09:30 SA Time (20:30 NZ 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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Scotland gave England a hell of a go, just running out of puff in the end and Chris Ashton was England’s tool to punish the brave Scotts, with a late try, securing a narrow win.
France (6) 14 / Tonga (13) 19 (Final Score)
France and Tonga did battle in Wellington at 07:00 SA Time (18:00 NZ Time).
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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Tonga beat France by 19 / 14 but miss out on the quarter finals. For Tonga, this was an epic win though!
South Africa may have guaranteed their place in the Rugby World Cup 2011 quarter-finals but coach Peter de Villiers had plenty of reasons for a restless night after the match against Samoa at North Harbour Stadium on Friday.