South African Rugby Union (SARU) referee Craig Joubert will ‘kick off’ qualifying for Rugby World Cup 2015 when he takes charge of Mexico versus Jamaica in Mexico City on Saturday (15:30 local time). Joubert – who refereed the 2011 Rugby World Cup final In Auckland – arrived in Mexico City on Wednesday to begin a […]
New Zealand’s World Cup-winning coach Graham Henry has officially ruled himself out of the running to become the new boss of the England side. The Englan Rugby Football Union are currently in the process of finding a replacement for Martin Johnson, whose resignation as England team manager came as a surprise to Henry. The All Black coach wants […]
Most pundits didn’t give the French a chance against the in-form All Blacks in the final of the Rugby World Cup at Eden Park in Auckland but Le Bleu had other ideas. They came into the match charged and never slowed down for 80 minutes as first New Zealand lost Aaron Cruden and then the French […]
Of course, this game lacked the big-match feeling of preceding matches, and the actual result meant nothing, which is why neither team applied themselves: result – Australia 21 Wales 18. Consider that 60 000 people packed the stadium to watch this twaddle. The match was unstructured and all 30+ players showed they would rather be […]
It has been a 24-year drought, but surely now the All Blacks will take the World Cup. There can be no doubt that they are the most deserving team to take the title, after the way they took the Wallabies apart. France will challenge them in the final next weekend, but based on current form, […]
It took a Herculean effort, and a typically Six Nations display, but France did just enough to edge Wales 9-8 and advance to the Rugby World Cup final. Two relatively straight penalty goals and a conversion attempt by James Hook and it would have been Wales through, but in the event it was French defence […]
The All Blacks, predictably, are in the semifinals and will play the Wallabies for a place in the final. They beat Argentina 33-10 after leading 12-7 at halftime. It was a rough match, as the Pumas are never easy opponents, but scrumhalf Piri Weepu had an inspired kicking display, with 21 points. Flyhalf Colin Slade […]
So South Africa’s World Cup dream is over. No team has managed to defend the title, and the Springboks were no exception. South Africa did everything necessary to win the game, except actually win it. The Australians made 147 tackles to South Africa’s 53; South Africa had 72% possession and 56% territory, but somehow the […]
England came within seven points of equalising with France, but in the end their lack of direction and structure meant they had no chance against a French team who were vastly superior on the day. England have taken some terrible beatings in recent years, but not learnt their lessons. They struggled all through the tournament […]