John McKee has offered his team a vote of confidence ahead of their match against Australia on Wednesday, making only four changes to the side that never quite got going against England on Friday. The changes all come up front, with one enforced after Dominiko Waqaniburotu was suspended for a …
Read More »France Name Attacking Side for Romania
French Head Coach Phillipe Saint-André has made thirteen changes to his team that faced Italy on Saturday. Only no8 Louis Picamoles and left winger Noa Nakaitaci remain from the side which sees veteran hooker Dimitri Szarzewski named as captain. Szarzewski will join the Belgium born Vincent Debaty and New Zealand …
Read More »Forward Thinking (Vol. 1, Iss. 15): Tier 2 Match Schedules
For some teams the second round of Rugby World Cup matches will begin on Wednesday and Thursday while for others these days will mark their first fixtures. Such is the complication of having pools of five teams that one team per pool must begin last. Those to do so on Wednesday …
Read More »Australia Name Star-Studded Lineup for Fiji
Wallabies head Coach Michael Cheika has named a powerful lineup to face Fiji in Cardiff on Wednesday. The Pool A fixture will be Australia’s first appearance in the tournament and Fiji’s second after the Pacific Islanders faced England in the tournament opener on Friday evening. Captain Stephen Moore will be …
Read More »Grosso called up by France
Uncapped Castres winger Rémy Grosso has been called up by France to replace the injured Yoann Huget. With speedster Teddy Thomas and veteran Maxime Médard also options, Philippe Saint-André has instead opted for the in-form Grosso, whose physical profile more closely resembles that of Huget. Despite having great success first …
Read More »Samoa Defeat Mistake Riddled USA
Samoa got their World Cup campaign off to a good start with a less than thrilling 25-16 victory over the USA. Samoa, as expected, came after the Eagles with a punishing attack plan. The assault forced the USA into a stunning 29 missed tackles and kept the Eagles on their …
Read More »Wales overwhelm committed Uruguay
Wales eased through Uruguay by a score of 54-9 in front of a sold out Millenium Stadium in Cardiff on Sunday. Though there was never any doubt who was the better side, the scoreline flattered Wales somewhat, as they looked far from clinical and made numerous errors with ball in …
Read More »Huget out of World Cup
France’s 32-10 win over Italy last night in London came at a cost with right winger Yoann Huget suffering a severe knee injury which has ended his World Cup. The Toulouse flier went down hurt in the second half holding his knee and had to be carried off the field. Tests have …
Read More »France See Off Italy in London
No match could have followed the drama that unfolded in Brighton with Japan causing the biggest upset of all time against two time world champions, South Africa but there was, nonetheless, hope that Italy could follow it up against France. It did not eventuate as a one-dimensional French side got …
Read More »Japan Claim Biggest Scalp in World Cup History
An 84th minute try from Karne Hesketh secured a thrilling 34-32 victory for Japan over South Africa in what will be considered the biggest upset, to date, in Rugby World Cup history. To call the match David vs Goliath may be selling it short. The match could have been considered …
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