I’ve already posted the highlights of the Springboks VS Italy game from Saturday, but there were a whole host of other internationals played over the weekend

• New Zealand Maori VS Ireland: The New Zealand Maori capped off their centenary in style when they recorded a historic win over the Irish at the Rotorua International Stadium on Friday night. The game was a bit of a back and forth affair, but the Maori prevailed 31 – 28 on the day. Here are the highlights:

New Zealand Maori VS Ireland – 18 June 2010: [WRNrugbynews]

• All Blacks VS Wales: The All Blacks completed a 42 - 9 route of Wales over the weekend, during the final international to ever be played at the House of Pain, in Dunedin. The All Blacks will be happy with their performance, and the fact that their all star flyhalf, Dan Carter looked more and more like his old self. They will however be less than happy with their casualty list from the weekend, of which Cater is one. All in all, at times, it was as if the All Blacks were playing a blind school, as they seemed to simply step through the Welsh defense unscathed. Here are the highlights:

All Blacks VS Wales – 19 June 2010: [WRNrugbynews]

• Wallabies VS England: Martin Johnson’s England side were simply the better team on the day, when they took down a young, but usually impressive Wallabies side when they recorded a 21 – 20 win over the home side in Sydney over the weekend. Like the All Blacks, the Wallabies will be licking their casualty list wounds from the weekend. With stars like Will Genia out for four weeks, whilst Digby Ione will have to have reconstructive shoulder surgery and be out for 4 months. By no means would I write the Wallabies off though, with a wealth of young players waiting in the wings, expect them to bounce back. Here are the highlights:

Australia VS England – 19 June 2010: [WRNrugbynews]

There were plenty of action packed pics from the weekend, but when I saw this one, I had a good chuckle. I can only imagine what was going through Wallaby coach, Robbie Deans’ mind as the clock wound down and his team were on the wrong side of the scoreline against an England team who have been shockingly poor, by their own standards, for some time now. [Zimbio]

Ouch!

The Springboks took on Italy,  in the first of a two match series, in Witbank over the weekend, and what a dismal affair for the home team. From the outset the Springboks didn’t look as if they were too interested in being there.

From an Italian point of view, they will in all likelihood be pleased with their performance, and with the fact that they often stopped the Springboks from being able to play to their full potential. In the process, scoring their best ever result over the Springboks, made better by it being an away fixture for the Azzurri.

The referee seemed confused at best, making some of the most awkward calls I’ve ever seem, especially when “playing advantage”, and blowing the whistle as soon as the attacking team got clean ball, and looked as if they were going to use it.

The Springboks will however be pleased with their scrumming display, in which they more than stood up to the Azzurri juggernaut scrum. But if the scrums were the best of the Springbok game on the day, then the handling was the worst, with both teams having a string of handling errors. At best it was a messy performance by the world champions, and one they will most likely want to forget sooner than later.

The Springboks opened the try scoring through a Bryan Habana try, after Zane Kirchner put through an uncharacteristically good grubber kick, for Habana to scoop up and trot over the line.

After lots of aimless kicking by both sides, the Springboks put together a great maul near the Italian line and Francois Louw, who was perhaps the only standout Springbok player on the day, managed to sneak around the blind and cross for his second international try.

The scoreline may have been much closer than the home team would have enjoyed, but the truth is that even with the dismal Springbok performance, the Italians never had any real chance of recording their first ever victory over the Boks.

The highlights will tell you the rest of the dismal story.

My two cents worth:

• After watching the weekend’s games, it’s really clear that the standard of Northern Hemisphere referees is well below par.
• Zane Kirchner is showing more and more with each performance that he just isn’t the answer at #15.
• I really don’t understand the idea behind playing some of the most experienced players in world rugby out of position, especially Jean De Villiers.
• Francois Louw just keeps going from strength to strength this season.
• Ricky Januarie may have had a good couple of weeks, but he was back to his old tricks this week, looking around at the base of the ruck, and being dispossessed.

Springboks VS NZ Italy – 19 June 2010: [WRNrugbynews]

Scorecard:

South Africa:

• Tries: Habana, Louw, Steyn, Kirchner
• Conversions: Steyn 3
• Penalties: Steyn

Italy:

• Try: Parisse
• Conversions: Bergamasco
• Penalties: Bergamasco 2

Earlier in the week, I posted a clip of the awesome New Zealand Maori Haka against the New Zealand Barbarians. This morning [RSA time], the New Zealand Maori took on, and beat Ireland 31 – 28.

Unfortunately, the game wasn’t broadcast here in the Republic, so for all those avid Haka fans out there, our boy, tonytai2017, as always, already has the clip up:

*Update: Apparently the game was broadcast on SuperSport. My bad…

Haka – NZ Maori VS Ireland 2010: [tonytai2017]

Simply awesome! Goose bumps every time!

The All Blacks tend to have quite a bit of fun during their down time, whilst in camp, and Piri Weepu is definitely one of the funniest characters in the team setup. Always good for a crack up, and poking fun at the newbies. All in good fun though.

You can see for yourself and follow him: @Powza13 on Twitter. Here is a clip from the All Blacks’ Youtube page. Worth a laugh or two:

Room Raiders with Piri: [nzrugby]

Yet another action packed weekend of international rugby fixtures await us. Get the fridge stocked with beer, fire up the grill and warm up the tube. Here are all the teamsheets and broadcast times for your teams:

New Zealand Maori VS Ireland:

18 June 2010 19h30 [GMT+12]

New Zealand Maori: 15. Robbie Robinson, 14. Sean Maitland, 13. Dwayne Sweeney, 12. Luke McAlister, 11. Hosea Gear, 10. Stephen Brett, 9. Aaron Smith, 8. Colin Bourke, 7. Tanerau Latimer, 6. Liam Messam (capt), 5. Jarrad Hoeata, 4. Hayden Triggs, 3. Ben Afeaki, 2. Corey Flynn, 1. Bronson Murray.

Replacements: 16. Dane Coles, 17. Clint Newlands, 18. Romana Graham, 19. Karl Lowe, 20. Ruki Tipuna, 21. Willie Ripia, 22. Jackson Willison.

Ireland: 15. Geordan Murphy (capt), 14. Shane Horgan, 13. Gavin Duffy, 12. Paddy Wallace, 11. Johne Murphy, 10. Jonathan Sexton, 9. Eoin Reddan, 8. Chris Henry, 7. Niall Ronan, 6. Rhys Ruddock, 5. Dan Tuohy, 4. Ed O’Donoghue, 3. Tom Court, 2. John Fogarty, 1. Marcus Horan.

Replacements: TBC

• Date: Friday18 June 2010
• Venue: Rotorua International Stadium
• Kick-off: 19h30 [GMT+12]

All Blacks VS Wales:

19 June 2010 19h35 [GMT+12]

All Blacks: 15. Israel Dagg, 14. Cory Jane, 13. Conrad Smith, 12. Benson Stanley, 11. Joe Rokocoko, 10. Daniel Carter, 9. Jimmy Cowan, 8. Kieran Read, 7. Richie McCaw (capt),  6.Victor Vito, 5. Anthony Boric, 4. Brad Thorn, 3. Owen Franks,  2. Keven Mealamu, 1. Ben Franks,

Reserves: 16. Aled de Malmanche, 17. Tony Woodcock, 18. Sam Whitelock, 19. Adam Thomson, 20. Piri Weepu, 21. Aaron Cruden, 22. Richard Kahui.

Wales: 15. Lee Byrne, 14. Leigh Halfpenny, 13. Andrew Bishop, 12. Jamie Roberts, 11. Tom Prydie, 10. Stephen Jones, 9. Mike Phillips, 8. Ryan Jones (capt), 7. Jonathan Thomas, 6. Gavin Thomas 5. Adam Jones, 4. Bradley Davies, 3. Adam Jones, 2. Matthew Rees, 1. Paul James

Replacements: 16. Huw Bennett, 17. John Yapp, 18. Deiniol Jones, 19. Rob McCusker, 20. Travis Knoyle, 21. Dan Biggar, 22. Jonathan Davies.

• Date: Saturday 19 June 2010
• Kick-off: 19h35 [GMT+12]
• Venue: Carisbrook, Dunedin
• Expected weather: Rain forecast, with 15km/h winds. Minimum 10°C, maximum 11°C
• Referee: George Clancy (Ireland) 
• Assistant referees: Mark Lawrence (South Africa), Paul Marks (Australia) 
• Television Match Official: Matt Goddard (Australia)

Wallabies VS England:

19 June 2010 20h05 [GMT+10]

Wallabies: 15. James O’Connor, 14. Digby Ioane, 13. Rob Horne, 12. Matt Giteau, 11. Drew Mitchell, 10. Quade Cooper, 9. Will Genia, 8. Richard Brown, 7. David Pocock, 6. Rocky Elsom (capt), 5. Nathan Sharpe, 4. Dean Mumm, 3. Salesi Ma’afu, 2. Saia Faingaa, 1 Ben Daley.

Replacements: 16. Huia Edmonds, 17. James Slipper, 18. Mark Chisholm, 19. Matt Hodgson, 20. Luke Burgess, 21. Berrick Barnes, 22. Adam Ashley-Cooper.

England: 15. Ben Foden, 14. Mark Cueto, 13. Mike Tindall, 12. Shontayne Hape, 11. Chris Ashton, 10. Toby Flood, 9. Ben Youngs, 8. Nick Easter, 7. Lewis Moody (capt), 6. Tom Croft, 5. Tom Palmer, 4. Courtney Lawes, 3. Dan Cole, 2. Steve Thompson, 1. Tim Payne.

Replacements: 16. George Chuter, 17. David Wilson, 18. Simon Shaw, 19. James Haskell, 20. Danny Care, 21. Jonny Wilkinson, 22. Delon Armitage.

• Date: Saturday 19 June 2010
• Venue: ANZ Stadium, Sydney
• Kick-off: 20h05 AEST [GMT+10]
• Referee: Romain Poite (France)
• Assistant referees: Nigel Owens (Wales), Vinny Munro (New Zealand)

Springboks VS Italy:

19 June 2010 15h00 [GMT+2]

South Africa: 15. Zane Kirchner, 14. Gio Aplon, 13. Jean de Villiers, 12. Butch James, 11. Bryan Habana, 10. Morné Steyn, 9. Ricky Januarie, 8. Pierre Spies, 7. Dewald Potgieter, 6. François Louw, 5. Victor Matfield (capt), 4. Bakkies Botha, 3. Jannie du Plessis, 2. Chiliboy Ralepelle, 1. Gurthrö Steenkamp.

Replacements: 16. Bandise Maku, 17. CJ van der Linde, 18. Alistair Hargreaves, 19. Ryan Kankowski, 20. Ruan Pienaar, 21. Juan de Jongh, 22. Bjorn Basson.

Italy: 15. Luke McLean, 14. Kaine Robertson, 13. Andrea Masi, 12. Matteo Pratichetti, 11. Mirco Bergamasco, 10. Craig Gower, 9. Tito Tebaldi, 8. Sergio Parisse (capt), 7. Alessandro Zanni, 6. Simone Favaro, 5. Quintin Geldenhuys, 4. Valerio Bernabò, 3. Martin Castrogiovanni, 2. Leonardo Ghiraldini 1. Salvatore Perugini.

Replacements: 16. Fabio Ongaro, 17. Lorenzo Cittadini, 18. Marco Bortolami, 19. Paul Derbyshire, 20. Simon Picone, 21. Riccardo Bocchino, 22. Gonzalo Canale.

• Date: Saturday19 June 2010
• Venue: Puma Stadium, Witbank
• Kick-off: 15h00 [GMT+2]
• Expected weather conditions: Clear with a high of 13°C, dropping to 0°C and enough wind to take the windchill temperature down to -2°C.
• Referee: Andrew Small (England)
• Assistant referees: Keith Brown (New Zealand), David Changleng (Scotland)
• TMO: Graham Hughes (England)

Argentina VS Scotland:

19 June 2010 15h45 [GMT-3]

Argentina: 15. Martín Rodríguez, 14. Lucas González Amorosino, 13. Gonzalo Tiesi, 12. Santiago Fernández, 11. Horacio Agulla, 10. Felipe Contepomi (capt), 9. Agustín Figuerola, 8. Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe, 7. Juan Manuel Leguizamón, 6. Genaro Fessia, 5. Patricio Albacete, 4. Manuel Carizza, 3. Martín Scelzo, 2. Mario Ledesma, 1. Rodrigo Roncero.

Replacements: 16. Agustín Creevy, 17. Marcos Ayerza, 18. Santiago Guzmán, 19. Alejandro Campos, 20. Nicolás Vergallo, 21. Rafael Carballo, 22. Lucas Borges.

Scotland: 15. Hugo Southwell, 14. Sean Lamont, 13. Max Evans, 12. Graeme Morrison, 11. Simon Danielli, 10. Dan Parks, 9. Rory Lawson, 8. Johnnie Beattie, 7. John Barclay, 6. Kelly Brown, 5. Alastair Kellock (capt), 4. Jim Hamilton, 3. Moray Low, 2. Ross Ford, 1. Allan Jacobsen

Replacements: 16. Scott Lawson, 17. Alasdair Dickinson, 18. Scott MacLeod, 19. Alasdair Strokosch, 20. Mike Blair, 21. Phil Godman, 22. Nick De Luca

• Date: Saturday 19 June 2010
• Venue: Jose Maria Minella Stadium, Mar del Plata
• Kick-off: 15h45 [GMT-3]
• Expected weather: Heavy rain, High of 11°C, low of 5°C.
• Referee: Christophe Berdos (France)
• Assistant referees: Stuart Dickinson (Australia), Dave Pearson (England)

The following from SARU: Flanker Schalk Burger has been withdrawn from the Springbok team to face Italy at the Puma Stadium in Witbank on Saturday.

Burger had been receiving treatment for an ankle sprain sustained during last week’s Test against France. 

The Springbok medical team advised that Burger be withdrawn as there remained a risk of further injury.

Burger’s place in the starting XV will be taken by his Vodacom Stormers teammate Francois Louw.

Springbok replacement stalwart, Danie Rossouw, has been playing out of his skin as of late. With absence of teammate, Bakkies Botha, Rossouw has been given a few more opportunities to start in the Springbok #4 jumper, and boy has he taken those opportunities.

The 32 year old, 1.98m, 120 kg Rossouw seems to have become better with age, having arguably his best year ever in 2010.

Records/Honours

• Currie Cup winner with the Blue Bulls, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2009
• Super 14 winner with the Bulls, 2007, 2009 & 2010
• Member of the World Cup winning Springbok squad, 2007
• British & Irish Lions series winner, 2009
• Tri-Nations winner, 2009

Highlights of Danie Rossouw’s efforts against France at Newlands – 12 June 2010: [CombatBok]

SA Under-20 coach Eric Sauls on Wednesday made two changes to his starting lineup that suffered a 35-42 defeat against Australia to the team that will play New Zealand in the second semi-final of the 2010 IRB Junior World Championship in Rosario on Thursday.

The changes are both made in the backline where Springbok Sevens back Branco du Preez replace the injured Francois Venter at centre. Venter sustained an ankle injury during Sunday’s Pool C clash in Sante Fe. In the other change, Vodacom Free State utility back Nico Scheepers comes into the side in place of Sampie Mastriet.

“It’s crunch time in the competition and we’re looking forward to the challenge of playing New Zealand,” said Sauls.

“We made two changes to our stating team, but I believe that both Branco and Nico has done well with the limited game time they had to date. I am confident that they will not let us down. They performed well against Scotland and hopefully they’ll produce the goods against the Baby Blacks.”

The SA Under-20s will be aiming to book their place in their first Under-20 final. The Baby Blacks however have enjoyed previous semi-final success in the IRB Junior World Championship. Not only have they won both tournaments since its inception in 2008, they are also enjoying a record 13-match winning streak and have not lost a game in the history of the Under-20 championship.

“I reckon due to the fact that they have never conceded a defeat in a semi-final should provide us with at least some motivation to do well on Thursday,” added Sauls.

“They will be aiming to keep their awesome record intact, but I am sure our guys will be eager to create some records of our own. The guys will be motivated, naturally as this is quite a big game in terms of our goals we set for the tournament. One of them of course was to qualify for the semis. We’ve done that, but it by no means ends here.

“A place in the final is up for grabs on Thursday and it should be a spectacle. New Zealand versus South Africa games are always like that.

“They love playing an expansive game, so we’ll have to be well prepared for that. They love running the ball and we’ve noticed that they try and get the ball to those wingers of theirs as quickly as they can. We’re going to have to possibly stop that.

“But overall, they are a quality side all over the park. We are going to have to play quality rugby to match them. We’ve looked at a few aspects of their play and hopefully we’ll be able to counter most of those things.”

Baby Boks VS Baby Blacks JWC 2010 teamsheets:

SA Under-20s: 15.Patrick Lambie, 14. Wandile Mjekevu, 13. Jaco Taute, 12.Branco du Preez, 11. Nico Scheepers, 10. Elton Jantjies, 9. Louis Schreuder, 8. CJ Stander (c), 7. Fanie van der Walt, 6. Siyamthanda Kolisi, 5. Sebastian de Chaves, 4. Kene Okafor, 3. Marcel van der Merwe, 2. Monde Hadebe, 1. Brummer Badenhorst.

Reserves: 16. Francois du Toit, 17. Ruan Dreyer, 18. Wessel du Rand, 19. Mlungisi Bali, 20. Lohan Jacobs, 21. Adri Jacobs, 22. Nico Scheepers.

NZ Under-20s: 15. Tom Marshall, 14. Julian Savea, 13. Star Timu, 12. Charlie Ngatai, 11. Telusa Veainu, 10. Tyler Bleyendaal, 9. Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 8. Rory Grice, 7. Sean Polwart, 6. Luke Whitelock, 5. Liakimatagi Moli, 4. Blade Thomson, 3. Jeff Allen, 2. Liam Coltman, 1. Angus Taavao-Matau

Reserves: 16. Paul Ngauamo, 17. Willie Ioane, 18. Tom Franklin, 19. Matt Graham, 20. Kayne Hammington, 21. Hayden Parker, 22. Jason Woodward

• Live coverage of SA Under-20s’ semi-final game against New Zealand will be broadcast live on SuperSport 2 from 21h15 [RSA Time -GMT +2]
• Live coverage of SA Under-20s’ semi-final game against New Zealand will be broadcast live on The Rugby Channel (SKY Channel 037) Friday morning 07h30 [NZT - GMT +10]

The following from SARU: The Springbok medical team and its regional counterparts have met to plan the way ahead for the country’s leading rugby players in the lead up to the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.

The meeting of medical and conditioning teams from Springboks and the five Vodacom Super 14 regions – including doctors, physiotherapists and fitness conditioners, was hosted by the South African Rugby Union (SARU) at the Sports Science Institute in Cape Town.

The main purpose of the gathering was to discuss the management of players in both International and National competition over the coming months with the ultimate goal of having a fit and full strength squad at the 2011 World Cup.

The key outcomes of the meeting were:

• Enhanced  two-way communication between the Springbok medical team and its regional and provincial counterparts
• Establishment of a collaborative approach in the interests of player welfare in the build up to Rugby World Cup 2011
• Agreement on two-way sharing of information on conditioning, performance, recovery, and injury management and prevention; and ensuring regular updates between the Springbok medical team and the regions during the Vodacom Tri-Nations, Absa Currie Cup and the Super 15
• Confirmation of the application of injury prevention protocols developed by Springbok physiotherapist Rene Naylor, based on the latest scientific research.
• Establishment of areas of collaborative research on new trends, technologies and related developments

Springbok Coach Peter de Villiers addressed the meeting where he explained his objectives and how he believed the national and regional medical teams could play a key role in ensuring a full strength and fully fit squad for 2011 World Cup.

“It is gratifying to see these talented and knowledgeable people working for the common good of Springbok rugby. I am now reassured that our players are in safe hands, both nationally and within their regions,” de Villiers said.

Springbok team doctor, Craig Roberts said: “The meeting was a significant step in that it will ensure for the sharing of information from both sides and enhance collaboration between us for the common good of South African rugby. The regions fully support the concept of injury risk assessments and will provide the necessary support on the ground to make sure that the required injury prevention measures are implemented”.

SARU Medical Manager, Clint Readhead added: “The meeting has ushered in a new era in collaboration between the Springbok and Regional medical and conditioning teams. There is a clear understanding that the continued high performance of South African rugby’s leading players can only be achieved if the experts work together towards a common objective”.