Heineken Cup All Times CSTFriday, December 7th14:00 - 16:00 Northampton Saints vs. UlsterFriday, December 7th 14:00 - 16:00 Connacht Rugby vs. Biarritz Saturday, December 8th02:45 - 12:45 (tomorrow)HSBC Sevens World Series - Nelson Mandela Bay SA Sevens Day 1 European Challenge Cup!Saturday, December 8th07:00 - 09:00 (tomorrow) Bucharest Wolves vs. AgenHeineken Cup07:35 - 09:35 Toulouse vs Ospreys 07:35 - 09:35 Llanelli Scarlets vs. Exeter 07:35 - 09:35 Zebre vs. Harlequins 09:40 - 11:40 Sale Sharks vs. Toulon 12:00 - 14:00 Munster vs. Saracens 12:00 - 14:00 Racing Metro vs. Edinburgh European Challenge Cup!Saturday, December 8th14:00 - 16:00 Bayonne vs. London WaspsSunday rugby on internetInternational Rugby EventsSunday, December 9th03:00 - 13:00HSBC Sevens World Series - Nelson Mandela Bay SA Sevens Heineken Cup06:45 - 08:45 Cardiff Blues vs. Montpellier09:00 - 11:00 Leicester Tigers vs. Benetton Treviso 09:00 - 11:00 ASM Clermont Auvergne vs. Leinster |
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Friday, December 7, 2012
Games live Friday Dec 7 through Sunday Dec 9
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Rugby World Cup 2015 draw
Go straight to 14th minute and avoid the speeches
Background info and final result
The Rugby World Cup 2015 Pools
1(1) NEW ZEALAND 90.08
2(2) SOUTH AFRICA 86.94
3(3) AUSTRALIA 86.87
4(4) FRANCE 85.07
5(5) ENGLAND 83.90
6(6) IRELAND 80.22
7(8) SAMOA 78.71
8(9) ARGENTINA 78.71
9(7) WALES 78.39
10(10) ITALY 76.24
11(11) TONGA 76.10
12(12) SCOTLAND 75.83
13(13) FIJI 71.52
14(14) CANADA 71.41
15(15) JAPAN 70.09
16(16) USA 68.32
17(17) GEORGIA 65.83
18(18) SPAIN 63.09
19(19) ROMANIA 62.12
20(20) RUSSIA 61.49
The bands for the pools were as follows:
Band 1: New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, France
Band 2: England, Ireland, Samoa, Argentina
Band 3: Wales, Italy, Tonga, Scotland
Band 4: Oceania 1, Europe 1, Asia 1, Americas 1
Band 5: Africa 1, Europe 2, Americas 2, Repechage winner
Final Pools
- Pool A: Australia, England, Wales, Oceania 1, play-off winner
- Pool B: South Africa, Samoa, Scotland, Asia 1, Americas 2
- Pool C: New Zealand, Argentina, Tonga, Europe 1, Africa 1
- Pool D: France, Ireland, Italy, Americas 1, Europe
Pool A - Looks like the pool of death as Rugby World Cup 2003 finalists Australia and England face off, while current Six Nations Grand Slam champions Wales join them, and possibly Fiji.
Pool B - South Africa and Samoa will meet for the fourth consecutive World Cup, no doubt leading to another bruising encounter. Scotland, who are currently ranked 12th in the world, join them.
Pool C - Defending champions New Zealand up against Argentina, and facing Tonga in the pool stages for the fourth time running.
Pool D - Very much a Six Nations feel to it, but France and Ireland will be fairly confident of going through to the next round with Italy their main threat.
Eight teams are yet to qualify.
Quarter finals:
To work out the Quarter Finals, the Winner of Pool A plays the runner up in Pool B, and Winner of C plays runner up in Pool D.
Semi finals:
The last four will see the winner of Quarter final 1 vs the the winners of Quarter final 2, and the winners of Quarter final 3 vs the winners of Quarter final 4.
Possible final:
If New Zealand (ranked #1) and South Africa (ranked #2) win their pools and knockout stage games, they will line up to meet in the final.
IRB Awards:
New Zealand were handed the IRB Team of the Year award for 2012. The Coach of the Year went to All Blacks coach Steve Hansen, and the IRB Player of the Year went to flyhalf Dan Carter.
Friday, November 30, 2012
Preview England vs New Zealand
England have only scored 20 points+ in 3 of the 10 games (ignoring Fiji) under Lancaster. The match with the most points scored (27 against South Africa in 2nd Test in June) featured Flood at 10, Tuilagi at 12 and Joseph at 13. Joseph actually made more tackles that carries in that game but Ashton’s support running did assist 2 tries. Throughout 2012, a chargedown or breakaway still looks the most likely way England will score. An actual backs move that relies on handling, vision and the right decisions being taken still looks a way off and the oft hyped winger Ashton has failed to score in his last 11 Internationals. His confidence looks shot but he remains in the team while Sharples and Monye have both been discarded. The desire to play at a quicker tempo compared to the Six Nations is evident but the execution is missing.
Visitors New Zealand were last defeated on 27 August 2011 by Australia and have won 19 of the 20 games since. They have won 12/13 games in 2012 by 34-12 and scored over 20 points in 12 of those games (drew the game they didn’t by 18-18). They have also crossed the line 47 times (so their 3.6 tries a match in 2012 favours comparably with England’s 1.3) and conceded 14 in that period.
With All Blacks games this season, the main betting question has usually revolved around how many points they will win by and nothing has changed for their final Test. England were favourites for the Australia match, +1 on the handicap against the Boks, however they are a whopping 10.0 to beat New Zealand and have a +17 handicap available. The recent games at Twickenham between the sides have seen scores of 26-16, 19-6,32-6,41-20,and 23-19. As has already been covered, the hosts are averaging a score of 18-18 this year and the visitors 34-12.
New Zealand clearly edge the head to head record and despite possessing home advantage, England are under pressure. I can the All Blacks wanting to sign off with style and despite a black mark against them for a high number of handling errors in 2012, they dominate the rest of the stats. As usual these numbers are provided by the excellent Ruckingoodstats.
New Zealand steal (13.2%) more than double the amount of lineouts that they lose (5.5%), which could be interesting against a rookie hooker in Tom Youngs who struggled to connect with Tom Wood last week. If they revert to his club team mate Parling too often then surely that will become predictable. As with a number of stats for England this year, a one-off performance skewers the averages – whereas New Zealand have been more consistent. In this case, they stole 33% of lineouts against Italy in the Six Nations. The All Blacks are favouring the middle (47%) and England the front (50%) so there should be too many surprises where the ball is thrown. Bar one game against Argentina, New Zealand’s scrum has been pretty solid whereas again England have fluctuated between being penalised a lot (Wales, South Africa first 2 Tests in June, Australia) to having dominance (Ireland, Italy).
Both teams have seen less than 50% possession and territory, England’s numbers have improved per game since the 2nd June Test in South Africa which may point to this desire to improve the attack. The difference as you’d expect is what they do with the ball when they have it – the All Blacks break 1 in 4.5 tackles compared to England 1 in 9.5 and offload 8.9 times a game as opposed to 3.9. They also make roughly double the amount of line breaks.
Without wishing to be too negative – I don’t think England have the creativity to score the requisite number of tries needed to beat the All Blacks, the balance in the backrow to handle McCaw nor the kicking game to keep them pinned back. It’s tough to see past the -15 available for the visitors even accounting for the stomach bug affecting them.
If you are looking for a reason to get behind the hosts then perhaps the declining All Blacks scores of 51,42,33 may act as the flimsiest of straws to clutch.
Who better to provide a rugby masterclass than New Zealand? Unbeaten in 2012 with 12 wins and one draw against Australia, they are playing at an astonishing level even by their own imperious standards.
Young blood in Aaron Smith, Brodie Retallick, Luke Romano and Julian Savea have eased into the starting XV without any concern, assuring that this All Blacks side did not peak when they finally recaptured the Rugby World Cup last October. If anything they have improved; stronger, faster and more clinical than that trophy-winning side.
England: 15 Alex Goode, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 Mike Brown, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 Tom Wood, 5 Geoff Parling, 4 Joe Launchbury, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Tom Youngs, 1 Alex Corbisiero.
Replacements: 16 David Paice, 17 David Wilson, 18 Mako Vunipola, 19 Courtney Lawes 20 James Haskell, 21 Danny Care, 22 Freddie Burns, 23 Jonathan Joseph.
New Zealand: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma’a Nonu, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Liam Messam, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie
Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 KevenMealamu, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Dane Coles, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Charlie Faumunia, 19 Luke Romano, 20 Victor Vito, 21 Piri Weepu, 22 Aaron Cruden, 23 Ben Smith.
When you possess the greatest skill set, set-piece, squad and attacking threats as New Zealand do, the game is relatively simple. For every injury to Carter, you have Aaron Cruden. For every suspension for Hore, you have Keven Mealamu.
Whatever your allegiance, there is no denying the superiority of this All Blacks side - after all, they have beaten every other side they've come across in 2012. A time will come when New Zealand are no longer the world's best and this vintage crop will be looked back on. Best to savour it while it lasts.
Strangely enough I like the reserves for England more than some of the starters.
Pete reckons New Zealand by 18
Visitors New Zealand were last defeated on 27 August 2011 by Australia and have won 19 of the 20 games since. They have won 12/13 games in 2012 by 34-12 and scored over 20 points in 12 of those games (drew the game they didn’t by 18-18). They have also crossed the line 47 times (so their 3.6 tries a match in 2012 favours comparably with England’s 1.3) and conceded 14 in that period.
With All Blacks games this season, the main betting question has usually revolved around how many points they will win by and nothing has changed for their final Test. England were favourites for the Australia match, +1 on the handicap against the Boks, however they are a whopping 10.0 to beat New Zealand and have a +17 handicap available. The recent games at Twickenham between the sides have seen scores of 26-16, 19-6,32-6,41-20,and 23-19. As has already been covered, the hosts are averaging a score of 18-18 this year and the visitors 34-12.
New Zealand clearly edge the head to head record and despite possessing home advantage, England are under pressure. I can the All Blacks wanting to sign off with style and despite a black mark against them for a high number of handling errors in 2012, they dominate the rest of the stats. As usual these numbers are provided by the excellent Ruckingoodstats.
New Zealand steal (13.2%) more than double the amount of lineouts that they lose (5.5%), which could be interesting against a rookie hooker in Tom Youngs who struggled to connect with Tom Wood last week. If they revert to his club team mate Parling too often then surely that will become predictable. As with a number of stats for England this year, a one-off performance skewers the averages – whereas New Zealand have been more consistent. In this case, they stole 33% of lineouts against Italy in the Six Nations. The All Blacks are favouring the middle (47%) and England the front (50%) so there should be too many surprises where the ball is thrown. Bar one game against Argentina, New Zealand’s scrum has been pretty solid whereas again England have fluctuated between being penalised a lot (Wales, South Africa first 2 Tests in June, Australia) to having dominance (Ireland, Italy).
Both teams have seen less than 50% possession and territory, England’s numbers have improved per game since the 2nd June Test in South Africa which may point to this desire to improve the attack. The difference as you’d expect is what they do with the ball when they have it – the All Blacks break 1 in 4.5 tackles compared to England 1 in 9.5 and offload 8.9 times a game as opposed to 3.9. They also make roughly double the amount of line breaks.
Without wishing to be too negative – I don’t think England have the creativity to score the requisite number of tries needed to beat the All Blacks, the balance in the backrow to handle McCaw nor the kicking game to keep them pinned back. It’s tough to see past the -15 available for the visitors even accounting for the stomach bug affecting them.
If you are looking for a reason to get behind the hosts then perhaps the declining All Blacks scores of 51,42,33 may act as the flimsiest of straws to clutch.
Who better to provide a rugby masterclass than New Zealand? Unbeaten in 2012 with 12 wins and one draw against Australia, they are playing at an astonishing level even by their own imperious standards.
Young blood in Aaron Smith, Brodie Retallick, Luke Romano and Julian Savea have eased into the starting XV without any concern, assuring that this All Blacks side did not peak when they finally recaptured the Rugby World Cup last October. If anything they have improved; stronger, faster and more clinical than that trophy-winning side.
England: 15 Alex Goode, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 Mike Brown, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 Tom Wood, 5 Geoff Parling, 4 Joe Launchbury, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Tom Youngs, 1 Alex Corbisiero.
Replacements: 16 David Paice, 17 David Wilson, 18 Mako Vunipola, 19 Courtney Lawes 20 James Haskell, 21 Danny Care, 22 Freddie Burns, 23 Jonathan Joseph.
New Zealand: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma’a Nonu, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Liam Messam, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie
Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 KevenMealamu, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Dane Coles, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Charlie Faumunia, 19 Luke Romano, 20 Victor Vito, 21 Piri Weepu, 22 Aaron Cruden, 23 Ben Smith.
When you possess the greatest skill set, set-piece, squad and attacking threats as New Zealand do, the game is relatively simple. For every injury to Carter, you have Aaron Cruden. For every suspension for Hore, you have Keven Mealamu.
Whatever your allegiance, there is no denying the superiority of this All Blacks side - after all, they have beaten every other side they've come across in 2012. A time will come when New Zealand are no longer the world's best and this vintage crop will be looked back on. Best to savour it while it lasts.
Strangely enough I like the reserves for England more than some of the starters.
Pete reckons New Zealand by 18
Dubai HSBC 7s Nov 30 and Dec 1
http://irbsevens.com/destination/edition=1/fixturesresults.html
Kenya and Fiji both booked their places in the Cup quarter finals in Dubai with victories against Scotland and Spain.
The champions from the Gold Coast, Fiji, were made to work hard against Spain before running out 14-0 winners thanks to tries to Setefano Cakau and Maleli Belolevu Bula. Against Scotland, they won 22-14.
Two tries to flyer Collins Injera saw Kenya run out winners in their opening match over a determined Scotland 12-5, after the Scots led early through a try to Michael Fedo, before they beat Spain 10-7.
Spain then beat Scotland 12-7 thanks to a late try on the siren through Matias Tudela.
Pool B (NZL, ARG, WAL, RUS)
Wales claimed their spot in the Cup quarter finals with a commanding 22-5 win over Russia in their final match with captain Rhys Shellard crossing for a hat trick. This followed their 14-7 defeat over Argentina.
Argentina will now have to beat New Zealand if they are to have any chance of reaching the Cup Quarter Finals.
Earlier on in dreadful conditions, with the rain pouring down, New Zealand showed their class to overcome an early Ifan Evans try for Wales to score a 14-7 victory thanks to second half tries to Tomasi Cama and Kurt Baker.
A late try to Francisco Merello saw Argentina win 17-10 in their opening game over a committed and skilful Russian team who scored tries through Vladislav Lazarenko and Denis Simplikevich..
In the other match Russia threatened briefly to pull off a major upset before late tries to Cama and Milford Keresoma saw New Zealand defeat them 31-14.
Pool C (RSA, SAM, ENG, POR)
In one of the most dramatic matches in recent memory Portugal then defeated England 22-21, thanks to a Pedro Leal penalty goal seconds before the siren, to send them through to the Cup quarter finals. A stunning performance from the least favoured team in the pool.
Earlier, after losing to South Africa in their first match, 19-10, a gutsy England team, led through the brilliance of Dan Norton, hit back to defeat Samoa 19-17 and keep their Cup quarter final dreams alive.
Samoan speedster Lio Lolo notched up a hat trick as Samoa needed a late try to see off the impressive Portugal 24-19. But Portugal turned the pool on its head when they scored a try through their giant number one Aderito Esteves after the siren to upset South Africa 12-10.
In the final round of matches Portugal then played England and Samoa took on South Africa in virtual knock out matches with the winners going through to the Cup quarter finals.
Pool D (FRA, AUS, CAN, USA)
Canada confirmed their place in the Cup Quarter Finals with a strong 26-7 win over the USA in difficult conditions in their final pool match.
Earlier they had tied 28-28 with Australia in an enthralling encounter. Justin Douglas leveled for Geraint John's side as the buzzer sounded, completing a superb comeback from 28-14 down with less than two minutes remaining.
In their opening match Canada beat France 20-0 in the day's first match while Peter Lee crossed late on as Michael O'Connor's young Australian side defeated USA 19-12.
France bounced back from their loss to Canada with a hard fought 17-14 victory over the USA Eagles thanks to Renaud Delmas' decisive try.
In the final match in the pool France battled hard to defeat Australia 7-0 to join Canada in the Cup quarter finals.
Results/Fixtures:
France 0-20 Canada
Australia 19-12 United States
Fiji 14-0 Spain
Kenya 12-5 Scotland
New Zealand 14-7 Wales
Argentina 17-10 Russia
South Africa 19-10 England
Samoa 24-19 Portugal
France 17-14 United States
Australia 28-28 Canada
Fiji 22-14 Scotland
Kenya 10-7 Spain
New Zealand 31-14 Russia
Argentina 7-14 Wales
South Africa 10-12 Portugal
Samoa 17-19 England
Canada 26-7 United States
Spain 12-7 Scotland
Wales 22-5 Russia
England 21-22 Portugal
France 7-0 Australia
18:58 Fiji v Kenya
19:22 New Zealand v Argentina
19:44 South Africa v Samoa
The second leg of the 2012/13 HSBC IRB World
Sevens Series comes from Dubai. We will be bringing you updates from
the action throughout Day One.
Pool A (FIJ, KEN, ESP, SCO)
Kenya and Fiji both booked their places in the Cup quarter finals in Dubai with victories against Scotland and Spain.
The champions from the Gold Coast, Fiji, were made to work hard against Spain before running out 14-0 winners thanks to tries to Setefano Cakau and Maleli Belolevu Bula. Against Scotland, they won 22-14.
Two tries to flyer Collins Injera saw Kenya run out winners in their opening match over a determined Scotland 12-5, after the Scots led early through a try to Michael Fedo, before they beat Spain 10-7.
Spain then beat Scotland 12-7 thanks to a late try on the siren through Matias Tudela.
Pool B (NZL, ARG, WAL, RUS)
Wales claimed their spot in the Cup quarter finals with a commanding 22-5 win over Russia in their final match with captain Rhys Shellard crossing for a hat trick. This followed their 14-7 defeat over Argentina.
Argentina will now have to beat New Zealand if they are to have any chance of reaching the Cup Quarter Finals.
Earlier on in dreadful conditions, with the rain pouring down, New Zealand showed their class to overcome an early Ifan Evans try for Wales to score a 14-7 victory thanks to second half tries to Tomasi Cama and Kurt Baker.
A late try to Francisco Merello saw Argentina win 17-10 in their opening game over a committed and skilful Russian team who scored tries through Vladislav Lazarenko and Denis Simplikevich..
In the other match Russia threatened briefly to pull off a major upset before late tries to Cama and Milford Keresoma saw New Zealand defeat them 31-14.
Pool C (RSA, SAM, ENG, POR)
In one of the most dramatic matches in recent memory Portugal then defeated England 22-21, thanks to a Pedro Leal penalty goal seconds before the siren, to send them through to the Cup quarter finals. A stunning performance from the least favoured team in the pool.
Earlier, after losing to South Africa in their first match, 19-10, a gutsy England team, led through the brilliance of Dan Norton, hit back to defeat Samoa 19-17 and keep their Cup quarter final dreams alive.
Samoan speedster Lio Lolo notched up a hat trick as Samoa needed a late try to see off the impressive Portugal 24-19. But Portugal turned the pool on its head when they scored a try through their giant number one Aderito Esteves after the siren to upset South Africa 12-10.
In the final round of matches Portugal then played England and Samoa took on South Africa in virtual knock out matches with the winners going through to the Cup quarter finals.
Pool D (FRA, AUS, CAN, USA)
Canada confirmed their place in the Cup Quarter Finals with a strong 26-7 win over the USA in difficult conditions in their final pool match.
Earlier they had tied 28-28 with Australia in an enthralling encounter. Justin Douglas leveled for Geraint John's side as the buzzer sounded, completing a superb comeback from 28-14 down with less than two minutes remaining.
In their opening match Canada beat France 20-0 in the day's first match while Peter Lee crossed late on as Michael O'Connor's young Australian side defeated USA 19-12.
France bounced back from their loss to Canada with a hard fought 17-14 victory over the USA Eagles thanks to Renaud Delmas' decisive try.
In the final match in the pool France battled hard to defeat Australia 7-0 to join Canada in the Cup quarter finals.
Results/Fixtures:
France 0-20 Canada
Australia 19-12 United States
Fiji 14-0 Spain
Kenya 12-5 Scotland
New Zealand 14-7 Wales
Argentina 17-10 Russia
South Africa 19-10 England
Samoa 24-19 Portugal
France 17-14 United States
Australia 28-28 Canada
Fiji 22-14 Scotland
Kenya 10-7 Spain
New Zealand 31-14 Russia
Argentina 7-14 Wales
South Africa 10-12 Portugal
Samoa 17-19 England
Canada 26-7 United States
Spain 12-7 Scotland
Wales 22-5 Russia
England 21-22 Portugal
France 7-0 Australia
18:58 Fiji v Kenya
19:22 New Zealand v Argentina
19:44 South Africa v Samoa
Preview: Wales v Australia
This from Planet rugby
Wales will be out to avoid looking the same
colour of their jerseys for a seventh straight time when they host
Australia in Cardiff on Saturday.
The hosts need to return to winning ways in order to avoid a
November whitewash of four defeats and to preserve their place among the
world's top eight-ranked teams prior to Monday's 2015 World Cup draw in
London.
If they win or draw, Wales will stay seventh.
Easier said than done as their rugby-mad supporters have discovered, seeing as they were last treated to a win way back in June when Wales beat the Barbarians.
Since then the Six Nations champs suffered a 3-0 series defeat Down Under, were shocked by Argentina and Samoa in their opening two games this month before going down to New Zealand.
But it could all have been so differently scripted a year ago, after a flamboyant Welsh side performed so well at the World Cup and then went on to win a third Six Nations Grand Slam in eight years.
Consistency has well and truly deserted Wales, a loss for whom on Saturday would represent their worst run of defeats since 2003. Indeed, the Welsh are starring down the barrel and Australia - assured of a top seeding for the World Cup draw - have their finger on the trigger.
Pride and morale will also no doubt be low in the Wales camp especially coming in a season in which many players are looking to stake their claims for places in next year's British & Irish Lions squad.
"I think the game is massively important from a Welsh perspective, in terms of confidence and building on last week," said Wales coach Warren Gatland, who will lead the Lions to Australia next year.
"From a Lions point of view, it's about some of the Welsh players putting their hands up in terms of selection. There are maybe a couple of lines going through a couple of names and they need to re-establish themselves."
Gatland, however, isn't too concerned about the ramifications regarding the upcoming World Cup draw.
"If anyone is looking at us, when it comes around to 2015 and having had the preparation time together, I don't think any team particularly fancies getting Wales in their group," he said.
"We were in a really tough group last time. It is luck of the draw."
The Wallabies, meanwhile, have silenced their critics (albeit temporarily) following their opening match on tour in Paris, and have rebounded well heading into ths clash. They squeezed past Italy 22-19, having held on to beat England 20-14 the previous Saturday and will be confident of ending their trip to Europe on a high note.
After a turbulent season of mixed results and innumerable injuries, the Wallabies not only need to beat Wales for a fourth time this year, but do it with style to keep coach Robbie Deans' small army of doubters reasonably quiet over the holiday period.
However, as coach Deans put it earlier this week: "Cornered beasts are always the most dangerous; they have nowhere else to go but straight ahead."
In a recap of team news, Deans has named David Pocock in his starting XV. The openside flanker who led Australia to the three-Test clean sweep in June has recovered from a knee injury that has ruled him since the Wallabies' opening match of the Rugby Championship against New Zealand in August.
Wales have made four changes, all in the pack, to their run-on team. Gatland notably bringing in Scott Andrews for injured tighthead prop Aaron Jarvis, while lock Ian Evans replaces Bradley Davies, who was ruled out after being felled by the now-banned Andrew Hore in Wales' 33-10 defeat by the All Blacks last weekend.
Ones to watch:
For Australia: The player making headlines this week out of Australia's camp is undoubtedly flank David Pocock, who makes his long awaited return to the Test arena. Above anyone else, the Wallabies chief pilferer could well be the real difference between the two sides. His presence also serves as a powerful motivating factor for the visitors - he's a strong leader, both through actions and words.
For Wales: Wales will be relying on Gethin Jenkins to bolster their scrum up front against the ever-improving Wallabies pack. The Toulon front-rower is a powerful scrummager and a strong ball-carrier, often enabling crucial front-foot ball through a solid hit or carry that forces the defence on their heels - handy attributes for any prop.
Head to head: The line-out tussle between Luke Charteris and Nathan Sharpe will be an interesting aerial duel with both tasked to nullify the other's influence. The vastly experienced Sharpe is never intimidated though and will be looking to end his long and extinguished career with a bang. Pocock's breakdown battle with Sam Warburton will also be a fierce contest. This match-up is a matter of the Wales skipper, who is starting to rediscover his form, doing really well if he can match the Aussie's work rate and effectiveness in the loose.
Recent results:
2012: Australia won 20-19, Sydney
2012: Australia won 25-23, Gold Goast
2012: Australia won 27-19, Brisbane
2011: Australia won 24-18, Cardiff
2011: Australia won 21-18, Auckland
2010: Australia won 25-16, Cardiff
2009: Australia won 3012, Cardiff
2008: Wales won 21-18, Cardiff
2007: Australia won 32-20, Cardiff
2007: Australia won 31-0, Brisbane
2007: Australia won 29-23, Sydney
2006: Match drawn 29-29, Cardiff
2005: Wales won 24-22, Cardiff
Prediction: This should be another close encounter with Australia creeping ahead before another Wales revival. But alas it will once again be too little too late for the hosts. Australia by five!
The teams:
Wales: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Liam Williams, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Toby Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 6 Aaron Shingler, 5 Luke Charteris, 4 Ian Evans, 3 Scott Andrews, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements: 16 Ken Owens, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Samson Lee, 19 Ryan Jones, 20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Tavis Knoyle, 22 Dan Biggar, 23 Scott Williams.
Australia: 15 Berrick Barnes, 14 Nick Cummins, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Ben Tapuai, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Kurtley Beale, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 David Pocock, 6 Scott Higginbotham, 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Kane Douglas, 3 Ben Alexander, 2 Tatafu Polota Nau, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements: 16 Stephen Moore, 17 James Slipper, 18 Sekope Kepu, 19 Dave Dennis, 20 Michael Hooper, 21 Brendan McKibbin, 22 Mike Harris, 23 Digby Ioane.
Date: Saturday, December 1
Kick-off: 14:30 GMT
Venue: Millennium Stadium
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees: Romain Poite (France), Greg Garner (England)
Television match official: Marshall Kilgore (Ireland)
Pete reckons the margin will be greater.
Wales have lost their attacking ways. Even when they have been attacking they have not taken on the opposite line thus allowing opponents to simply slde across to defend.
of course there is much debate about how Robbie Deans has changed the attacking style of Aussies. There is much truth about this, but as it is the last game for Aussies I expect them to go out with an attacking game.
They have some remarkable runners. Heck their reserves would normally be in the starting 15.
Aussies by 18
Great article from Telegraph newspaper.
It is not just that defeat would toss them out of the top eight in the
International Rugby Board’s rankings, condemning them to tier three in
Monday’s 2015 World Cup draw.
It is more than that. Defeat would be their seventh on the trot. There was
more intensity in the loss to New Zealand last weekend, but still the
scoreline read 33-10, and that is a thumping. Add on the defeats by
Argentina and Samoa and it truly has been an autumn of discontent for Wales
.
The grand slammers could become the grand shams. Another false dawn might well
be added to the roster. This was the team who were supposed to have been
able to break the southern-hemisphere hegemony.
Yes, injuries have been cruel, but what about Australia's
problems? A glance at the starting XV who beat Wales a year ago in Cardiff
reveals only five names remaining. That is a turnover rate of which David
Pocock would be proud.
As captain Sam Warburton said this week: “It has got to the stage where enough
is enough.” The bending of the knee to the southern hemisphere must stop.
Wales have still not beaten New Zealand since 1953, they have defeated South
Africa only once (in 1999) and they have won against Australia only twice
(with a draw in 2006) in their past 22 meetings. Defeat today would be the
sixth against them in just over a year.
Warburton made his Wales debut in 2009 but already he has lost 10 times to the
Sanzar countries. “I said to the players before the New Zealand game that
I’ve only been involved [with Wales] for three or four years,” he said, “and
it is already getting on my nerves, this whole southern-hemisphere scalp
thing.”
Warburton, like his team-mates, has copped much flak during this campaign, but he was back to near his best against the great Richie McCaw and faces another titanic challenge against Pocock.
“It will be a fierce contest,’’ Wales coach Warren Gatland said. “You have got two quality world-class sevens. Pocock is a different player to Richie McCaw – a different threat. Pocock does compete on the ball and plays differently to McCaw.”
In too many areas last week Wales were not sharp enough, as acknowledged on Friday by defence coach Shaun Edwards: “There was a glaring stat that we made six line breaks and they [New Zealand] made three,” he said. “From those three they scored three tries. It just shows how clinical a team like New Zealand can be. .”
Edwards, though, was quick to point out that the other northern-hemisphere sides have hardly been tearing up trees either. “You cannot deny that the strength of rugby is in the southern hemisphere,” he said, “as it probably has been throughout the professional era, except for one period when England dominated around 2003. If we beat Australia it would be a big feather in our cap.”
As for the rankings, Edwards was not hiding from their significance. “They are obviously an issue,” he admitted. “We want to stay in the top eight if possible. Hopefully it won’t be fatal. But we had the toughest group at the last World Cup and did OK. If we’re not in the top eight this time it could be tougher. But there are two ways of looking at that. Some teams have been in a relatively easy group and have then gone into the quarter-finals a little bit under-cooked. If we dropped out of the top eight then that definitely wouldn’t be an issue, but obviously making the quarter-finals would be all that more difficult.”
Wales tackled the All Blacks with invention in mind. It was a shame that two Rhys Priestland penalty kicks to touch went dead in the first half. Otherwise the 13-man line-out that yielded a second-half try would have received an earlier airing.
Have Wales any special plans for Australia? “We might try it again, I don’t know,” Edwards smiled.
There is no doubt that Wales will need something special for victory.
Warburton, like his team-mates, has copped much flak during this campaign, but he was back to near his best against the great Richie McCaw and faces another titanic challenge against Pocock.
“It will be a fierce contest,’’ Wales coach Warren Gatland said. “You have got two quality world-class sevens. Pocock is a different player to Richie McCaw – a different threat. Pocock does compete on the ball and plays differently to McCaw.”
In too many areas last week Wales were not sharp enough, as acknowledged on Friday by defence coach Shaun Edwards: “There was a glaring stat that we made six line breaks and they [New Zealand] made three,” he said. “From those three they scored three tries. It just shows how clinical a team like New Zealand can be. .”
Edwards, though, was quick to point out that the other northern-hemisphere sides have hardly been tearing up trees either. “You cannot deny that the strength of rugby is in the southern hemisphere,” he said, “as it probably has been throughout the professional era, except for one period when England dominated around 2003. If we beat Australia it would be a big feather in our cap.”
As for the rankings, Edwards was not hiding from their significance. “They are obviously an issue,” he admitted. “We want to stay in the top eight if possible. Hopefully it won’t be fatal. But we had the toughest group at the last World Cup and did OK. If we’re not in the top eight this time it could be tougher. But there are two ways of looking at that. Some teams have been in a relatively easy group and have then gone into the quarter-finals a little bit under-cooked. If we dropped out of the top eight then that definitely wouldn’t be an issue, but obviously making the quarter-finals would be all that more difficult.”
Wales tackled the All Blacks with invention in mind. It was a shame that two Rhys Priestland penalty kicks to touch went dead in the first half. Otherwise the 13-man line-out that yielded a second-half try would have received an earlier airing.
Have Wales any special plans for Australia? “We might try it again, I don’t know,” Edwards smiled.
There is no doubt that Wales will need something special for victory.
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