Namibia have never won a Rugby World Cup match. They also hold the record loss at the tournament, a 142-0 defeat at the Adelaide Oval against hosts Australia in 2003...
Saracens thrashed Clermont Auvergne 46-6 at Twickenham in the first Heineken Cup semi-final of the weekend. Sarries played with great intensity throughout, combining ferocious defence with piercing attacking play...
Nations Cup Rugby: England-France and Canada-South Africa
Aug 13, 2009
There is more Nations Cup Rugby today, make sure to check out England vs France at 4:30EST and Canada vs South Africa at 6:30EST.
You can either view the video here or go directly to the Ustream site here. Each match will also be archived and available at Ustream.
For full rosters and schedule of Nations Cup 2009, go here.
As Zandile Nojoko shredded the French defence on Monday evening the South African squad rallied behind her and almost came away with the opening win of the 2009 Women’s Nations Cup.
From a distance Canadian senior women’s Head Coach John Long sat with his staff noting which players his team would have to shut down on Thursday evening when Canada kicks off their campaign in Oakville.
“Their fly half is extremely strong and has a great kicking game,” Long said on Tuesday night as he was finalizing his game day roster. “They’re a passionate squad and we have to be able to contain them and at the same time try and play our own game.”
Long’s squad features a number of Sevens players capable of handling South Africa’s abrasive style of play and while South Africa may rely on certain performers in their lineup, his game plan requires all 15 players to step up to the plate.
“The whole dynamic of our team is that we work well together,” Long added. “We’ve got some backs that can do some damage so as long as we have our forwards set a good platform, I’m sure we can play some good rugby.”
In the end France rallied deep into regular time to score a try and tie the match 17-17 to open the tournament. England beat the USA 36-7 in the second match of the evening to give the English a temporary hold on top spot for the two week tournament. You can visit www.womensnationscup.com or www.rugbycanada.ca for more information on the tournament.
The match between Canada and South Africa (0-0-1) is set for 6:30pm EST at Appleby College in Oakville, Ontario. In the opening match France(0-0-1) takes on England (1-0)
Canada team to Face South Africa
1. Tabitha Stavrou (Toronto Irish) 2. Lesley McKenzie (Johnsonville RFC) 3. Marlene Donaldson (Velox Valkyries) 4. Paige Burdett (Calgary Irish) 5. Marie Eve Brindamour Carignan (Town of Mount Royal) 6. Jennifer Kish (Lep Tiger’s) 7. Gillian Florence (Ste Anne de Bellevue RFC) 8. Kelly Russell (Toronto Nomads) 9. Laura Stoughton (Calgary Irish) 10. Brooke Hilditch Yeoman 11. Brittany Waters (Meraloma Rugby) 12. Stevie Schnoor (United RFC) 13. Mandy Marchak (Capilano RFC) 14. Marie Gallo (Burnaby Lake) 15. Ashley Patzer (Lethbridge) 16. Leslie Cripps (London Saracens) 17. Kim Donaldson (Burnaby Lake) 18. Heather Jaques (Capilano RFC) 19. Barbara Mervin (Velox Valkyries) 20. Julia Sugawara (Burnaby Lake) 21. Sarah Ulmer (London Saracens) 22. Julianne Zussman (Town of Mount Royal)
Coach: John Long Assistant Coach: Kris De Scossa Manager: Eva Havaris
England's squad: Charlotte Barras, Sarah Beale, Rachael Burford, Rochelle Clark, Rebecca Essex, Heather Fisher, Amy Garnett, Sophie Hemming, Sarah Hunter, Karen Jones, Joanna McGilchrist, Katy McLean, Katherine Merchant, Kimberley Oliver, Fiona Pocock, Claire Purdy, Sam Reeve, Alice Richardson, Georgina Rozario, Emily Scarratt, Gemma Sharples, Catherine Spencer, Katy Storie, Amy Turner, Danielle Waterman.
France’s squad: Sandrine Agricole, Celine Allainmat, Sonia Amat, Manon Audre, Clémence Audebert, Aurélie Bailon, Céline Barthelemy, Cyrielle Bouisset, Claire Canal, Lucie Canal, Aurélia Cellier, Clotilde Flaugere, Lucille Godiveau, Marie Charlotte Hebel, Nadège Labbey, Caroline Ladagnous, Christelle Le Duff, Sandrine Legros, Stéphanie Loyer, Cyndia Mansard, Emilie Moreaux, Audrey Noguera, Alexandra Pertus, Elodie Poublan, Sandra Rabier, Cindy Reynaud, Laetitia Salles, Jennifer Troncy, Amandine Vaupre, Marie Alice Yahe.
Your Scrumhalf Connection - Women's Rugby Blog. Daily posts about rugby across the world! Read the blog at http://yourscrumhalfconnection.com and follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/scrumhalblog.
Guinness Premiership Report: April 22, 2009
Apr 22, 2009
The topsy-turvy nature of the Premiership was again in evidence last weekend, as teams jostled for European places and playoffs—knowing that matches are running out.
The head-of-steam Harlequins looked to be building turned into a fog on Friday night as they were out-played and out-muscled by a Sale team already in last-chance saloon.
Harlequins sorely missed Nick Evans and Chris Malone, as they attempted to play most of the second half with two scrum halves, Gomarsall and Care, at nine and ten.
Sale were able to take control of the game and ease away from Quins, scoring their bonus point fourth try late in the day through Richard Wigglesworth to take it 28-6.
Harlequins retain a good shout for a home semi-final as a result of London Irish’s loss, away to Northampton, by 21–17. Northampton started the better side, but it was Irish who struck first, with Tagicakibau scooping up a loose pass and racing all the way to the line from within his own 22.
Northampton regrouped and produced some excellent rugby to score two tries and go into the break 21–8 ahead. Irish came back strongly in the second half, but ultimately were unable to breach the gap.
The win keeps Saints in prime position to secure seventh in the league and a Heineken Cup spot next season, while Irish need one more win to guarantee a playoff. Both Saints and Irish face tricky away fixtures against Sale and Worcester, respectively, to finish their seasons where they want to be.
After their epic Heineken Cup match last weekend, it was perhaps no surprise that both Leicester and Bath struggled to uninspiring away victories against Saracens and Newcastle, respectively.
Vesty again proved his worth to Leicester with a late penalty to take the win, Glen Jackson having hit the post moments earlier for Saracens—the match ending 16–13. The win sees Leicester as the only club to secure their playoff place going into the final round of matches. A losing bonus point will be enough next week to guarantee a home semi-final.
Newcastle raced into an early lead against Bath, playing rugby that confounded their league position, with tries from Danny Williams and Micky Young. The Newcastle scrum-half was at the centre of everything good about their play—and it’s no coincidence that his substitution coincided with Bath gaining ascendancy in the second half.
Butch James had another disastrous day with the boot, missing numerous kicks at goal. This meant Bath had to revert to tap penalties and kicks for the corner. James was replaced by Bradley Davis and although he was for the most part equally abject with the boot, Bath’s pressure told and they managed to come back to take it 15–14.
On Sunday, London Wasps finally managed a decent performance—no mean feat against a Bristol team with pride on the line in their final Premiership home fixture.
The halfback pairing of Joe Simpson and Danny Cipriani gave Wasps fans two reasons to be hopeful for next season with excellent performances—in particular the lightning-quick scrum half who scored another wonder solo-try. Bristol ended the match with two consolation tries, but Wasps took it 36–18.
Following on from Gloucester’s abject performance in the EDF Cup Final on Saturday, the Shed faithful must have thought things couldn’t get much worse.
Well, they could. Worcester strolled into Kingsholm on Tuesday night, battled it out round the fringes, exposed Gloucester’s soft underbelly yet again and took the spoils 13–6.
If Dean Ryan thought his stinging criticism following the Cup defeat would galvanise his troops he was mistaken. It looks likely now that Gloucester will miss the play-offs and end the season trophy-less. It will be very interesting to see how the club reacts and who will make the grade for next season from both the playing and coaching staff.
The beauty of the Premiership is again evident in the final week of the season, with every team bar the bottom two left with something to play for. Leicester can afford to rest their first team against Bristol at the weekend in preparation for the Heineken Cup and playoffs.
But all the other hopefuls will be going at it hammer and tongs in what should be a cracking end to the regular season.
Guinness Premiership Predictions
Mar 27, 2009
Here are my predictions for this weekend’s round of Guinness Premiership matches. Only four games this weekend as the EDF semifinals also take place, but plenty to be excited about.
Game 109: Sale Sharks vs. Bath Rugby: Sale Sharks by 5
Game 110: Newcastle Falcons vs. Leicester Tigers: Leicester Tigers by 9
Game 113: Bristol Rugby vs. Worcester Warriors: Bristol Rugby by 5
Game 114: Saracens vs. London Wasps: Saracens by 6
Sale versus Bath should get the weekend off to a flying start and it’s a very difficult game to predict. Sale’s hopes of a playoff place hang by a thread, but with the return of Mathew Tait, Mark Cueto, Andrew Sheridan, and Jason White, they will be no pushover. Bath are missing Butch James and that could make all the difference—I’ve picked a narrow home win.
I fancy Bristol to finally record a win against Worcester at the weekend, to end their run of nine defeats since they drew with the Warriors at Sixways. They’ve had some near misses against top opposition in recent weeks, and this game could kick-start a late charge to avoid relegation, even though it’s probably too late.
I’ve picked Saracens to beat Wasps with home advantage giving them the edge. Both sides see the return of a number of international players, but Saracens have an excellent record at Vicarage Road.
Leicester appear to be in good form having reached the top of the table last weekend. Newcastle’s winning streak came to an end last week at Bath and I think the Tigers will take the spoils at Kingston Park.
Have a good weekend.
Guinness Premiership teams jostle for position
Mar 17, 2009
This weekend saw some more exciting encounters in the Premiership as the regular season reaches its final stages. Form is everything going into these last few weeks and there are ominous signs for some of the teams who’ve been residents in the top four for most of the season.
On Friday night, one team who keep improving regardless of international call-ups, Leicester Tigers, took on a doomed Bristol team, scrapping for pride. The match was a lot closer than most people expected and credit here must go to Bristol who upped their level rather than the Tigers’ dropping theirs.
Things didn’t look good at the start for Bristol as the Leicester prop, Dan Cole, embarked on an ambling lollop in the Bristol twenty-two, to be met by two surprisingly poor tackles and find himself over the line. Bristol did hit back with a fantastic counter by Luke Arscott to serve as a reminder of the form he hit last season but defensive lapses off a quick tap penalty late in the game allowed Ben Youngs to gallop away and feed Dan Hipkiss to seal the win for Leicester, 23-17.
On Saturday, Wasps almost managed to defy their lowly league position by taking Gloucester right to the wire at Kingsholm, only to be defeated 24-22. Wasps haven’t exactly been stunning the rugby world with their performances of late and they did well to compete with the league-leaders, especially given the early withdrawal of Josh Lewsey and the shift to outside-centre for Danny Cipriani. Gloucester scored three tries from Qera, Balshaw and Morgan and on balance deserved this victory but the other teams at the top certainly wont be overly fearful of the cherry-and-whites come the playoffs.
Sale continued to hurl themselves down the table at a rate of knots at Franklin’s Gardens, with Northampton achieving a bonus-point win, 38-3. Ben Foden was again the talk of the town as both team coaches cited his performance as the difference between the sides. He scored a try of his own to add to 5-pointers from Diggin, Wilson and Downey and consign Sale’s depleted and tired squad to an embarrassing defeat. Sale now lie in 6th and will need a real change in fortune to make the play-offs.
Sunday’s performance of the day came from a Saracens team, fresh from the news that Eddie “I’m not going anywhere until the end of the season” Jones had quit with immediate effect. He’s done some very good work at the club and comes across as a measured and collected person so I don’t think he can be blamed for jumping ship, but it seems the team were galvanised to show their worth against a Bath team intent on securing a home play-off. Rod Penney in particular has done wonders for his prospects for a contract elsewhere next season with a fantastic display, scoring two tries (one of which started behind his own line) and never missing a tackle in defence. Despite a horrendous day with the boot from both Glen Jackson and Gordon Ross, Saracens scored four tries to win it 20-16.
Elsewhere, London Irish got straight back in the play-off hunt with a 5 try demolition of Worcester, 38-17. Despite still not being quite the finished article, if Irish can just sneak their way into the top four come the end of the season, they will really fancy their chances in a knock-out match in the sunshine on some hard ground. An outside bet for the title this year?
Newcastle continued their sensational run of form, with Tom May continuing to orchestrate their play, to defeat a Harlequins team desperate for victory, 24-16. A Heineken Cup spot, which would have seemed like a fanciful dream a couple of months ago, is now realistically in their sights. They could well have an indirect effect on the play-offs too with fixtures against Leicester, Bath (x2) and Quins still to come!
By Jon Hobbs
Guinness Premiership predictions: Round 4
Sep 26, 2008
Friday evening sees the start of a packed schedule of Guinness Premiership rugby over the next eight days, and as always, there are some potentially brilliant clashes.
Leicester and Wasps meet at Welford Road, each with a 100% record so far this season. Danny Cipriani has been making headlines about his possible return to action, but James Haskell is banned and captain Raphael Ibanez is rested. Leicester have made a few changes in the pack, and certainly are the favourites on paper. I’m predicting that both clubs will maintain their 100% records.
Sale host Gloucester at Edgeley Park looking to set a record for conceding no tries in four games, and they won’t be weak at the knees at the news that Iain Balshaw will make his first start of the season. Another home win should be on the cards for the Sharks.
Newcastle Falcons are at Home to Bristol in another Friday night fixture. This isn’t the most exciting match on the list this weekend, and although Richard Hill has recalled his old guard in the shape of Matt Salter, Roy Winters and Mark Regan, Newcastle ought to take the points.
Worcester visit Bath on Saturday afternoon and face another difficult fixture after last week’s narrow loss to Leicester at Sixways. In contrast, Bath had a good away victory, and are favourites to pick up further points at The Rec.
Harlequins play London Irish at The Stoop, with both sides looking to return to winning ways after narrow defeats in the previous round. Quins have only lost once at Home since January, but London Irish have strong Away form - nevertheless, I’ve predicted another Home win.
In the final match of the round, Saracens face Northampton after a crushing bonus-point victory over Newcastle last week. A difficult match to call, but seeing as I’ve picked the Home team in every other fixture, I’m backing Saracens but not by much.
Here are my SuperBru predictions for Round 4 - you may notice I’ve revised my strategy of predicting large winning margins, since nearly every game has been so close:
Game 19: Leicester Tigers v London Wasps: Leicester Tigers by 8
Game 20: Sale Sharks v Gloucester Rugby: Sale Sharks by 5
Game 21: Newcastle Falcons v Bristol Rugby: Newcastle Falcons by 8
Game 22: Bath Rugby v Worcester Warriors: Bath Rugby by 10
Game 23: Harlequins v London Irish: Harlequins by 6
Game 24: Saracens v Northampton Saints: Saracens by 4
