Blues VS Highlanders: The second round of the 2010 Super 14 was again opened by an all New Zealand derby when the Blues faced a resurgent Highlanders team in Carisbrook, Dunedin.

the Blues managed to open the scoring after just 8 minutes, when fullback, Paul Williams wrongfooted some sloppy Highlanders cover defense to cross over for the try.

The Highlanders struck back just 3 minutes later, with some excellent running lines by winger, James Peterson and #15, Israel Dagg, straightening the line to cross the chalk for a try of their own.

The game was sloppy at times from both sides, and both sides missed a number of opportunities to put points on the board during what became a back and forth tug-of-war for dominance, and ultimately, the win.

My two cents worth:

• Blues fans won’t enjoy another sloppy showing from their team, and will be hoping that they start showing some better form for the rest of the competition.
• The Highlanders back three need to take a long hard look at their woeful defense.
• Michael Hobbs must be the the Highlanders best find in recent seasons.
• The Blues were lucky the Highlanders wasted so many opportunities to put points on the board, enabling them to sneak the win.

Highlanders VS Blues 2010 Highlights: [WRNrugbynews] Read More >>

This just in from the Mellbourne Rebels’ camp: Mellbourne Rebels Super 15 rugby side has signed young English star Danny Cipriani to a two-year contract.

World rugby’s newest team, the Melbourne Rebels, has today signed young English star Danny Cipriani to a two-year contract. This bold and innovative decision is another demonstration of the club’s commitment to forging its own path in international rugby.

The 22-year-old Cipriani has seven England Test caps and is currently contracted to London Wasps in Britain’s peak rugby competition, the Guinness Premiership. 

Cipriani is a highly talented player and proven goalkicker who has already successfully demonstrated his abilities at Test level. Cipriani’s international career was interrupted by an ankle injury in 2009, from which he has since made a full recovery.

Danny Cipriani said:

“I’ve had a great seven years at London Wasps which has also provided me with the opportunity to represent England at Test level. I believe this is the perfect time for me to take up an opportunity to play rugby in the southern hemisphere with a brand new team in a city recognised for its love of sport, Melbourne…I am extremely excited about working with Rod Macqueen and the other coaches and being part of something very special. Moving to Australia will be a new challenge. I have always admired the Super Rugby tournament. I think the opportunity of playing in a completely different tournament against different players at this time in my career will help me develop on and off the field.” Read More >>

Friday 19 February 2010 08h35 (GMT+2) Dunedin

Blues Team: 15. Israel Dagg, 14. Ben Smith, 13. Jason Shoemark, 12. Jayden Hayward, 11. James Paterson, 10. Michael Hobbs, 9. Jimmy Cowan (Captain), 8. Steven Setephano, 7. Alando Soakai, 6. Adam Thomson, 5. Tom Donnelly, 4. Josh Bekhuis, 3. Clint Newland, 2. Jason Rutledge, 1. Jamie MacKintosh

Replacements: 16. Jason MacDonald, 17. Chris King, 18. Hayden Triggs, 19. John Hardie, 20. Sean Romans, 21. Robbie Robinson, 22. Fetu’u Vainikolo

Highlanders Team: 15. Paul Williams, 14. Joe Rokocoko, 13. Isaia Toeava, 12. Benson Stanley, 11. Rudi Wulf, 10. Stephen Brett, 9. Alby Mathewson, 8. Viliami Ma`afu, 7. Serge Lilo, 6. Jerome Kaino, 5. Anthony Boric, 4. Kurtis Haiu, 3. John Afoa, 2. Keven Mealamu (Captain), 1. Tony Woodcock

Replacements: 16. Tom McCartney, 17. Charlie Faumina, 18. Filo Paulo, 19. Peter Saili, 20. Chris Smylie, 21. Dan Kirkpatrick, 22. Rene Ranger

Friday 19 February 2010 11h45 (GMT+2) Brisbane

Reds Team: 15. Peter Hynes, 14. Rod Davies, 13. Morgan Turinui, 12. Anthony Faingaa, 11. Digby Ioane, 10. Quade Cooper, 9. Will Genia, 8. Scott Higginbotham, 7. Daniel Braid, 6. Jake Schatz, 5. James Horwill (Captain), 4. Adam Byrnes, 3. Laurie Weeks, 2. Saia Faingaa, 1. Ben Daley

Replacements: 16. James Hanson, 17. Greg Holmes, 18. Rob Simmons, 19. Leroy Houston, 20. Richard Kingi, 21. Tim Walsh, 22. Will Chambers

Crusaders Team: 15. Colin Slade, 14. Jared Payne, 13. Robert Fruean, 12. Tim Bateman, 11. Zac Guildford, 10. Dan Carter, 9. Andy Ellis, 8. Thomas Waldrom, 7. George Whitelock, 6. Kieran Read (Captain), 5. Isaac Ross, 4. Sam Whitelock, 3. Owen Franks, 2. Ti`i Paulo, 1. Ben Franks

Replacements: 16. Quentin MacDonald, 17. Wyatt Crockett, 18. Brad Thorn, 19. Jonathan Poff, 20. Kahn Fotuali`i, 21. Adam Whitelock, 22. Sean Maitland

Friday 19 February 2010 18h00 (GMT+2) Durban

Sharks Team: 15. Stefan Terblanche, 14. Odwa Ndungane, 13. Waylon Murray, 12. Adrian Jacobs, 11. JP Pietersen, 10. Ruan Pienaar, 9. Rory Kockott, 8. Ryan Kankowski, 7. Jean Deysel, 6. Jacques Botes, 5. Alistair Hargreaves, 4. Steven Sykes, 3. Jannie du Plessis, 2. John Smit (Captain), 1. Tendai Mtawarira

Replacements: 16. Bismarck du Plessis, 17. Deon Carstens, 18. Willem Alberts, 19. Keegan Daniel, 20. Charl McLeod, 21. Monty Dumond, 22. Andries Strauss

Cheetahs Team: 15. Riaan Viljoen, 14. Danwel Demas, 13. Lionel Mapoe, 12. Meyer Bosman, 11. Jongi Nokwe, 10. Naas Olivier, 9. Tewis de Bruyn, 8. Frans Viljoen, 7. Juan Smith (Captain), 6. Heinrich Brussow, 5. David de Villiers, 4. Nico Breedt, 3. Willem Petrus (WP) Nel, 2. Adriaan Strauss, 1. Wian du Preez

Replacements: 16. Ryno Barnes, 17. Coenie Oosthuizen, 18. Petrus van Der Walt Vermeulen, 19. Ashley Johnson, 20. Sarel Pretorius, 21. Sias Ebersohn, 22. Hennie Daniller

Friday 19 February 2010 20h00 (GMT+2) Johannesburg

Lions Team: 15. Earl Rose, 14. Tonderai Chavhanga, 13. Deon van Rensburg, 12. Doppies la Grange, 11. Wandile Mjekevu, 10. Carlos Spencer, 9. JP Joubert, 8. Todd Clever, 7. Derick Minnie, 6. Cobus Grobbelaar (Captain), 5. Willem Stoltz, 4. Franco van der Merwe, 3. Ross Geldenhuys, 2. Hannes Franklin, 1. Heinke van der Merwe

Replacements: 16. Charles Emslie, 17. JC Janse van Rensburg, 18. Jacques Lombaard, 19. Jonah Mokuena, 20. Jacques (Pumas) Coetzee, 21. Burton Francis, 22. Michael Killian

Chiefs Team: 15. Mike Delany, 14. Dwayne Sweeney, 13. Richard Kahui, 12. Callum Bruce, 11. Sitiveni Sivivatu, 10. Stephen Donald, 9. Junior Poluleuligaga, 8. Sione Lauaki (Captain), 7. Luke Braid, 6. Liam Messam, 5. Culum Retallick, 4. Craig Clarke, 3. Nathan White, 2. Aled De Malmanche, 1. Sona Taumalolo

Replacements: 16. Hikawera Elliott, 17. Ben Afeaki, 18. Jarrad Hoeata, 19. Tanerau Latimer, 20. Brendon Leonard, 21. Jackson Willison, 22. Tim Nanai-Williams

Saturday 20 February 2010 08h35 (GMT+2) Wellington

Hurricanes Team: 15. Cory Jane, 14. Tamati Ellison, 13. Conrad Smith, 12. Ma’a Nonu, 11. David Smith, 10. Willie Ripia, 9. Piri Weepu, 8. Victor Vito, 7. Scott Waldrom, 6. Michael Paterson, 5. James Broadhurst, 4. Bryn Evans, 3. Neemiah Tialata, 2. Andrew Hore (Captain), 1. John Schwalger

Replacements: 16. Dane Stuart Coles, 17. Jacob Ellison, 18. Rodney So`oialo, 19. Karl Lowe, 20. Tyson Keats, 21. Aaron Cruden, 22. André Taylor

Western Force Team: 15. James O`Connor, 14. Dane Stafford Haylett-Perry, 13. Mitch Inman, 12. Josh Tatupu, 11. Haig Sare, 10. Sam Harris, 9. Brett Sheehan, 8. Sam Wykes, 7. Matthew Hodgson, 6. Ben McCalman, 5. Nathan Sharpe (Captain), 4. Tom Hockings, 3. Timothy Fairbrother, 2. Pekahou Cowan, 1. Matt Dunning

Replacements: 16. Ryan Tyrrell, 17. Nic Henderson, 18. Richard Stanford, 19. Luke Jones, 20. Chris O`Young, 21. Stefano Hunt, 22. Joelin Rapana

Saturday 20 February 2010 17h05 (GMT+2) Pretoria

Bulls Team: 15. Zane Kirchner, 14. Gerhard van den Heever, 13. Stephan Dippenaar, 12. Wynand Olivier, 11. Francois Hougaard, 10. Morné Steyn, 9. Fourie du Preez, 8. Pierre Spies, 7. Pedrie Wannenburg, 6. Deon Stegmann, 5. Victor Matfield (Captain), 4. Flip van der Merwe, 3. Werner Kruger, 2. Gary Botha, 1. Gurthrö Steenkamp

Replacements: 16. Bandise Maku, 17. Bees Roux, 18. Fudge Mabeta, 19. Derick Kuun, 20. Heini Adams, 21. Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 22. John Mametsa

Brumbies Team: 15. Adam Ashley-Cooper, 14. Pat McCabe, 13. Stirling Mortlock, 12. Christian Lealiifano, 11. Francis Fainifo, 10. Matt Giteau, 9. Josh Valentine, 8. Stephen Hoiles (Captain), 7. George Smith, 6. Rocky Elsom, 5. Mark Chisholm, 4. Justin Harrison, 3. Salesi Ma’afu, 2. Stephen Moore, 1. Ben Alexander

Replacements: 16. Huia Edmonds, 17. Guy Shepherdson, 18. Ben Hand, 19. Mitchell Chapman, 20. Patrick Phibbs, 21. Matt Toomua, 22. Tyrone Smith

Saturday 20 February 2010 19h010 (GMT+2) Cape Town

Stormers Team: 15. Johan Pietersen, 14. Gio Aplon, 13. Jaque Fourie, 12. Juan de Jongh, 11. Bryan Habana, 10. Peter Grant, 9. Ricky Januarie, 8. Duane Vermeulen, 7. Francois Louw, 6. Schalk Burger (Captain), 5. Andries Bekker, 4. De Kock Steenkamp, 3. Brok Harris, 2. Tiaan Liebenberg, 1. JC Kritzinger

Replacements: 16. Deon Fourie, 17. JD Moller, 18. Anton van Zyl, 19. Pieter Louw, 20. Dewaldt Duvenage, 21. Lionel Cronje, 22. Sireli Naqelevuki

Waratahs Team: 15. Sosene Anesi, 14. Lachlan Turner, 13. Tom Carter, 12. Kurtley Beale, 11. Drew Mitchell, 10. Berrick Barnes, 9. Luke Burgess, 8. Wycliff Palu, 7. Phil Waugh (Captain), 6. Ben Mowen, 5. Kane Douglas, 4. William Caldwell, 3. Al Baxter, 2. Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1. Benn Robinson

Replacements: 16. Damian Fitzpatrick, 17. Sekope Miami Kepu, 18. Hendrik Roodt, 19. Dave Dennis, 20. Joshua Holmes, 21. Daniel Halangahu, 22. Rory Sidey

SANZAR has instituted new citing protocols for the 2010 Super 14 season to refine and improve the current system.
 
The major change sees a reduction in the size of the panel of Citing Commissioners to ensure greater consistency in interpretation of offences that merit citing with one primary Citing Commissioner in each of the three SANZAR nations with each having a back-up commissioner.
 
The Citing Commissioners and the back-up commissioners (in brackets) are:

• South Africa:           Freek Burger (Andy Prior)
• Australia:                  Scott Nowland (Dick Byres)
• New Zealand:          Steve Hinds (Mike O’Leary)

The Citing Commissioners will have weekly teleconferences to ensure a standardised approach.
 
The Citing Commissioners are mandated to consult with the other two on any incidents they feel should be considered, however it is the sole responsibility of the citing commissioner in the match host country to decide whether to cite or not.
 
Citings are required to be made within 12 hours.
 
The Judicial process remains unchanged. SANZAR will appoint independent Judicial Officers to hear citing complaints on a case-by-case basis.
 
Issued by SANZAR Communications

I was eagerly anticipating the 1st game of the 2010 Super 14 last Friday, at Cafe Sofia in Greenpoint, when in walked our good mate, Bob Skinstad. He had just flown back from shooting an episode of Boots & All on Supersport the night before and came in for a quick bite to eat.

We got chatting about, amongst other things, the raging success of the recent 2010 Cape Town Tens Tournament, the Super 14 and how we thought things would unfold in 2010 with the new tackle law interpretations. The conversation drifted to how we thought the referees would perform. If there would be more consistency with citings this year, now that there are specially appointed citing commissioners for the entire duration of the 2010 Super 14. Some exciting new faces to have a look out for and so on.

From there on out, things got serious when we started talking about our fantasy rugby SuperDreamTeams on Supersport. Each of us reckoned our DreamTeams were going to kill it in the opening round. As it turns out, we both did pretty horribly, due to a few unfortunate late withdrawals within our respective starting lineups. (you can still sign up for Supersport SuperDreamTeams and join in all the action, by clicking here)

All in all, it was a pretty good morning of rugby with a great breakfast thrown in for good measure. Just as Bob was leaving, he mentioned I should make a turn at the V&A Waterfront his week to see a project he was doing. I was pretty curious to say the least.

So off I went to the V&A Waterfront, only to find Bob in an orange jumpsuit, locked away in a wooden prison cell. It was the last thing I expected to see, so I quickly found out exactly what was going on.

This is what went down: Read More >>

In a weekend that was jam-packed with rugby, from the Super 14, Las Vegas 7s and 6 Nations, I didn’t manage to catch all the games.

The 6 Nations being sacrificed for the good of th Super 14 and the La Vegas 7s tournament. So I thought I should post the highlights for those of you who didn’t see the games either.

I’m not even going to pretend like I have something to say about the games, because I really didn’t manage to catch any bit of any of them. Here are the highlights:

Italy VS England 2010 Highlights: Read More >>

The Sharks faced the Chiefs in what was a rain drenched final Super 14 game of round 1. What promised to be one of the most exciting games of the weekend, on paper, turned into a bit of a sloppy affair due to torrential downpours in Durban.

The Sharks discipline let them down from the word go, and John Smit was sin binned 20 minutes into the game, after deliberately knocking the ball out of Chiefs’ #9, Brendon Leonard’s hand, in what was the Sharks’ 5th infringement at the breakdown.

Both teams enjoy playing an expansive, running type of game, which was made impossible in the appalling conditions. Things were always going to get scrappy from there on out, and both teams went into the break try-less and locked at 6 points a piece. The Sharks managed to take the score to 12 – 6 by the 57th minute, through two more penalties, which were slotted by Rory Kockott.

Four minutes later, and another penalty at the breakdown, took the score to Sharks 15 – 6 Chiefs. At this point one would think the referee would exercise his duty of being consistent throughout, and send a Chiefs player to the bin, but the Sharks weren’t that lucky.

Bismark du Plessisgave away yet another Sharks penalty at a ruck and Donald slotted it, to reduce the lead to 15-9, with 16 minutes left to go. Ruan Pienaar put a perfectly placed kick, out near the Chiefs touchline, but the pressure was quickly relieved when the Chiefs were awarded a free-kick.

The majority of the action was saved for the last 7 minutes of the game, starting with Bismark du Plessis beingyellow carded for a “a deliberate and cynical late tackle with the shoulder”.

The Chiefs were then awarded a penalty after Willem Alberts tackled a player without the ball and JP Pietersen failing to release the ball in a tackle close to his own line. The Chief tapped and went, with Jackson Willison crossing over for the try, which Donald converted, to take the Chiefs into the lead.

The action was far from over though. Richard Kahui was penalised for obstruction and Kockott slotted the kick to to take the Sharks back into the lead with 40 seconds left in play.

Kockott was judged to have knocked on from the ruck after the kickoff, and in what can only be described as a brain fart, Strauss played the ball in front of him, awarding the Chiefs an unnecessary penalty, which highlighted the ill-discipline of the entire game. Donald slotted the goal to take the win.

My two cents worth: Read More >>

Answer from Tuesday trivia #37: Against the World XV in Cape Town on August 26, 1989

Congratulations to Ryan Kruger for getting the answer correct.

Q: Which Springbok, past or present, has the best try ratio compared to the amount of tests played, and what are the stats? (Only players who have played more than 10 tests are considered)

The Stormers took an early lead over the weekend when Joe Pietersen slotted a penalty from near the sideline to give the Stormers a 3 point lead over the Lions, 3 minutes into the game. The Lions levelled the score shortly thereafter, but their ill discipline at the breakdown allowed the Stormers to start building their lead, through some accurate kicking from Joe Pietersen early on.

The Stormers then added to their growing lead by scoring 2 converted tries within 4 minutes. The first of which came when Juan de Jongh passed as Habana drifted into a gap. Habana broke the Lions’ line, drew the last defender and passed to Joe Pietersen, who crossed the chalk for the try. Jaque Fourie dotted down the second try for the Stormers when he stepped through some very average Lions defence and went over, under the uprights, after a period of sustained pressure.

After the break however, the Stormers slipped back into old habits, allowing the Lions to claw their way back into the game, after Lions’ coach, Dick Muir, sent on a whole host of replacements. Michael Killian crossed the line in the 63rd minute, but it wasn’t enough to give the Lions a real chance of pulling off a win. The Stormers slotted over a few more penalties to wrap the game up and take the away win.

My two cents worth: Read More >>

The Waratahs managed to record what looked like it was to be an unlikely victory, when they beat the Reds 30-28 in Brisbane on Saturday. The ‘Tahs will be happy with their come-from-behind win in a game where the scoreline wasn’t a true reflection of the match itself.

Berrick Barnes opened up the scoring in the 19th minute, with a drop goal, when the Waratahs were given the advantage in the Reds’ 22m area, due to an infringement at the breakdown, for the ‘Tahs to take the lead. The Reds however, had different ideas and it back with a try a minute later, when Digby Ione punched through the middle of the Waratahs’ defense to set up a ruck 5m out. Quade Cooper put a long, flick pass to Daniel Braid, who looked like he had made a hash of things, but managed to cross the chalk and dot down for the try.

It was the Reds again who scored next, when captain, James Horwill crossed over early in the second half. Barnes made it a 6 point ball game when he slotted a penalty goal shortly thereafter. Each team scored another try a piece, the Reds’ being a penalty try after the Waratahs hit the ball into touch, over the line, when it looked clear that Genia would score. Time was all but up, the ‘Tahs were camped on the Reds’ line, a penalty followed, Phil Waugh tapped quick, set up the ruck, a flat pass went out to Palu, who crashed through some rather poor Reds defense to score under the posts and allow Halangahu to convert for the win.

My two cents worth: Read More >>