Saturday, May 19, 2012
Friday, May 18, 2012
Thursday, March 15, 2012
France and Ireland draw in Six Nations
France were left to reflect on the "feeling of defeat" after a 17-17 draw at home to Ireland ended its Six Nations grand slam hopes on Sunday.
Les Bleus gave away two tries in the first half and trailed 17-6 at half-time before mounting a fight-back in the match that was originally postponed due to a frozen pitch three weeks earlier.
"There was a feeling of defeat, not that of a draw in the dressing room," coach Philippe Saint Andre said afterwards.
France are second in the standings behind Wales, the only team still in position to achieve a grand slam after winning three out of three.
Captain Thierry Dusautoir said France should have won a game they dominated, at least in terms of possession.
"The win was within our grasp," he said.
"But when you give away so many points you just get what you deserve."
Tommy Bowe scored his first try after he intercepted a clumsy pass by Aurelien Rougerie and touched down for the second time after France lost a routine ball in the ruck.
"When you give away 10 points, it's really hard to win the match against Ireland, who defended very well and bothered us with their umbrella defence," said Saint Andre.
The former France winger, however, was proud of his players, saying they showed great character to come back into the game.
"At 17-6 I asked the players to be more direct because it had started to rain and it was a bit like Irish weather out there," he said.
"We had ambitions, a desire to go forward, but at the highest level, you have to be much more precise."
France host England next Sunday and Ireland take on Scotland on Saturday.
Ireland were equally disappointed with the result after failing to score in the second half.
"I am disappointed for the lads, they put in a huge effort," said Ireland coach Declan Kidney.
"We believed in ourselves, we played our own game and did not panic in the second half.
"If you're not disappointed after a result like that you should not be in the job."
Like the French, captain Paul O'Connell said there was a feeling of defeat in the drssing room.
"We have the feeling we lost an opportunity," he said.
"We are very disappointed with our second half performance, we turned over the ball a few times. We're very frustrated, very disappointed."
Reuters
Tags: sport, rugby-union, france First posted March 05, 2012 07:33:26Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Wales edges Ireland in Six Nations classic
Leigh Halfpenny's last-minute penalty gave Wales a 23-21 win over Ireland in an enthralling Six Nations see-saw battle as the hosts failed to avenge last year's World Cup quarter-final defeat.
Wales, missing several first-team players, was well on top in the early exchanges of its championship opener.
Ryan Jones was denied a try by the video referee before Jonathan Davies was adjudged to have got the ball down after a superb off-load by Rhys Priestland, who struck the post with the conversion and a penalty.
Ireland, without the injured Brian O'Driscoll, hit back with a Rory Best try after a great Tommy Bowe dummy just before half-time only for Davies to grab his second after the break as Wales led.
Bowe put the Irish clear with his own try on 68 minutes but George North went over for Wales late on to move within a point.
Stephen Ferris then joined Bradley Davies in the sin bin as both were punished for dangerous tackles and Halfpenny slotted the penalty through the posts for a dramatic victory.
"That was the hardest kick I've had to kick in my life," Halfpenny told the BBC.
Ferris's offence was an arguable yellow card while Wales' Davies could easily have seen red for his spear tackle.
"We obviously put ourselves in a great position to win it," Ireland captain Paul O'Connell said.
"There was a bit of work left to be done and we didn't do it."
Wales missed two of three conversion attempts and two of four penalties.
"We got out of jail and won our first game away from home," said coach Warren Gatland, who acknowledged Davies could have been sent off.
"We have to see if we can get that confidence and self belief and be accurate and do the simple things well...I think we can do really well in this championship," he added.
"When we get it right we are going to be good."
Wales faces Scotland in Cardiff next weekend before travelling to Twickenham for a possible triple crown showdown with England.
"We have to improve a bit by next week. We don't think we were anywhere near the best we could have played," Wales captain Sam Warburton, who was taken off at half-time with a dead leg, told reporters.
"The next two games we have are a real test for us."
Ireland, which had hoped to avenge its dismantling by Wales in New Zealand in October, was left to pick up the pieces after the national team again failed to match the dominance its provincial teams have shown in Europe.
"We conceded a lot of momentum in the first half and gave them a lot of belief. We probably didn't defend with our heads up," added O'Connell, whose Munster team is one of three Irish sides in the Heineken Cup quarter-finals.
"You can't give a team that kind of time with ball in hand, it puts you under a lot of pressure."
After a disappointing World Cup, Ireland is running out of opportunities for silverware before the expected retirement of their 'Golden Generation' of players - fly half Ronan O'Gara, second row O'Connell and centre Brian O'Driscoll -- in the coming years.
Coach Declan Kidney, who picked Jonathan Sexton ahead of O'Gara, vowed to bounce back against France in Paris next Saturday and challenge for the championship.
"I think we're a lot better than that," Kidney said. "We have buckets to work on and six days to do it.
"There is a championship still to be won and that's what we'll work towards," he said.
Reuters
Tags: rugby-union, sport, wales, united-kingdom, ireland First posted February 06, 2012 07:16:20England beat Scotland, France down Italy in Six Nations
England made a winning start under new acting coach Stuart Lancaster defeating Scotland 13-6, while France eased to a 30-12 win over Italy in its Six Nations opener.
England's first victory at Murrayfield since 2004 saw a side featuring three debutants and a new captain in Chris Robshaw score the only try of the match when recalled fly-half Charlie Hodgson charged down rival stand-off Dan Parks's attempted clearance kick early in the second half.
Owen Farrell, the 20-year-old Saracens centre, kicked the remainder of England's points on his Test debut, with both of Scotland's scores coming courtesy of two first half Parks penalties.
Scotland threatened from deep and had their chances but a side coached by former England flanker and boss Andy Robinson were undone by a series of handling errors.
"To get your first win away on the road is special, especially with a lot of new players," Robshaw, winning just his second cap, told the BBC.
"I can't speak highly enough of all the guys, it was a great team effort and a very proud day," the Harlequins flanker added.
Meanwhile Hodgson, one of five players from English Premiership champions Saracens in the England side, said: "One of the things we work on at Saracens is putting pressure on kickers and I got lucky with the try."
This was Scotland's fourth successive Test without a try and Robinson said: "It's very frustrating. We created some great opportunities and it's just that last pass. The game is about small margins and you have to be able to execute under pressure."
Scotland led 6-3 at half-time but within seconds of the restart, England caught Scotland cold with a try from Hodgson, making his first Test start for four years in the absence of retired England great Jonny Wilkinson and the unfit Toby Flood.
Farrell kicked the tricky conversion from out on the left between the posts and England were 10-6 in front.
Hodgson's try was the first by either side in a Murrayfield Calcutta Cup clash since 2004.
Scotland's best chance to retake the lead came when replacement Greig Laidlaw, chipped over the top of the England defence in the 63rd minute was involved in a race for the touchdown with visiting scrum-half Ben Youngs.
But Welsh replay official Nigel Whitehouse, after several minutes' study, denied Scotland a try to the audible disappointment of a capacity crowd.
With six minutes remaining Farrell, son of assistant coach Andy, converted an easy penalty leaving Scotland needing to score a converted try just to draw level - a task that proved beyond them.
The defence-driven pragmatism that saw France reach the World Cup final resurfaced in their opening Six Nations victory over Italy on Saturday.
Led magnificently by captain Thierry Dusautoir and indefatigable No 8 Louis Picamoles, France offered up stout defence without ever straying offside, content to play the waiting game as the Italians slowly unravelled.
When the Italians infringed, the unerring boot of Dimitri Yachvili was on call to keep the scoreboard ticking along for the home side.
Tries were also scored by Aurelien Rougerie, Julien Malzieu, Vincent Clerc and impressive debutant Wesley Fofana, as Italy failed to convert their early domination of territory and possession into points.
"It's a first victory. You have to have a smile," said coach Philippe Saint-Andre, who was installed after Marc Lievremont was stripped of the job following the World Cup, where the French lost 8-7 to New Zealand in the final.
"As a coach, you seek perfection but today you saw a great defence, a good discipline and we even scored four tries.
AFP
Tags: sport, rugby-union, united-kingdom, france First posted February 05, 2012 07:21:13Rookie to lead England in Six Nations
Flanker Chris Robshaw will captain England in their opening Six Nations match against Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday in his second international appearance, the RFU said on Monday.
The Harlequins flanker, who made his only England appearance against Argentina in 2009, was preferred to hooker Dylan Hartley after Tom Wood - initial favourite for the job - was ruled out of the first two matches of the tournament with a foot injury.
Robshaw takes over from Lewis Moody, who retired from international rugby following last year's World Cup.
The 25-year-old Harlequins skipper has captained England in non-cap matches and also led the second-string Saxons side.
"It's a huge honour and a very proud day - hopefully one that will live in my memory for a long time to come. Thanks to everyone who has helped me, especially Quins," Robshaw said in a statement.
"There's lots of other leaders in the group and they have been great since we met up. It's not about myself because there are six or seven guys around me who all have a massive role to play, whether that's bossing scrums, line-outs, attack, defence.
Caretaker coach Stuart Lancaster, accompanied by Wood at the official Six Nations launch last week attended by all coaches and captains, said at the time he did not consider the appointment as pivotal but hailed Robshaw on Monday.
"We have a strong leadership group and I have been very impressed with the way they have all stepped up so far," Lancaster said.
"Chris is a key member of that group and has shown with Harlequins and when I have worked with him in the Saxons that he can lead a team tactically and passionately.
"I am delighted that he has got this chance at the highest level and I know it will be a very proud moment for him, his club, family and friends when he leads England out at Murrayfield on Saturday."
Lancaster, who has replaced Martin Johnson for the duration of the Six Nations, will name his team on Thursday.
Reuters
Tags: rugby-union, sport, united-kingdom First posted January 30, 2012 23:53:31Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Saturday, December 10, 2011
England turn to Lancaster for Six Nations
England continued to cut ties with their dismal World Cup campaign when Stuart Lancaster was named caretaker coach for next year's Six Nations championship.
Lancaster will take charge while a permanent replacement is sought for Martin Johnson, with Graham Rowntree and Andy Farrell as his assistants.
Johnson resigned last month after England's World Cup quarter-final exit following a disappointing tournament rife with problems on and off the pitch.
Attacking coach Brian Smith did not seek a new contract following criticism of his performance by the England players and the future of two other members of Johnson's coaching team, Mike Ford and John Wells, is under discussion, acting Rugby Football Union (RFU) chief executive Stephen Brown said.
The 42-year-old Lancaster, a former Leeds forward, is currently in charge of the second-string England Saxons team. His first game in charge of England will be the start of its Six Nations defence against Scotland on February 4.
"I am proud to have this opportunity and feel a great sense of responsibility," Lancaster told a news conference.
"I am very privileged to be here. We have 41 games before the next World Cup and we want players with talent and character who are hungry and ambitious to achieve."
Reuters
Tags: rugby-union, sport, england, united-kingdom First posted December 09, 2011 11:33:25Tuesday, November 29, 2011
O'Driscoll out of Six Nations
Ireland rugby captain Brian O'Driscoll has been ruled out of action for up to six months and will miss his country's Six Nations campaign when the annual tournament kicks off in February.
The 32-year-old, who confirmed the news on Leinster's website, has struggled with an injury to his neck and shoulder for almost a year and has decided to have surgery, with a likely return in May.
Leinster said in a statement: "It has been confirmed that Brian O'Driscoll will undergo surgery next week for a trapped nerve in his shoulder which is expected to rule the Ireland captain out for up to six months."
The loss of O'Driscoll will be a big blow for the province, which has been without its 32-year-old skipper since Ireland's Rugby World Cup quarter-final defeat by Wales in Wellington.
O'Driscoll, who earned the first of his 117 Ireland caps in 1999, will now face a race against time to return to fitness before the end of the season.
The centre is Ireland's record try scorer and in 2011 he broke the 78-year-old record set by Scotland's Ian Smith as the all-time Five/Six Nations top try scorer when he crossed for his 25th championship try against England.
Leinster will begin the defence of its European Cup crown against Montpellier this weekend.
Reuters/AFP
Tags: rugby-union, sport, rugby-union-world-cup, ireland First posted November 08, 2011 08:15:30Friday, July 15, 2011
Fiji claims victory at Pacific Nations Cup
Fiji has upset defending champions Samoa in the Pacific Nations Cup being played Suva.
The Flying Fijians pulled off the surprise win in front of a home crowd, scoring five tries in a 36-18 defeat of Samoa.
Fiji's victory opens up the contest for this year's title.
It was the second weekend upset, with Japan defeating the well placed Tongan team
Tonga remains on top of the table, followed by Fiji, then Japan and Samoa.