Welsh Rugby and all things Wales

[Welshboy]

All Blacks too good for Wallabies
.06th August 2011

...The All Blacks shut out the Wallabies in a first-half blitz to win their opening Bledisloe Cup encounter 30-14 at Eden Park on Saturday.

Any hopes Australia had of ending their 25-year Auckland drought was ripped to pieces by their dominant hosts, who charged to a 17-0 lead at the break and never looked like losing.

Due to a shortened version of the Tri-Nations (because of the World Cup), New Zealand's three-tries-to-two victory also sees them secure the Bledisloe Cup for another year.

It was a clinical display all round by the rampant All Blacks, who are now in pole position to claim yet another Tri-Nations title.

The Wallabies started and ended the match with plenty of promise, but it was the space in between that saw Robbie Deans' men capitulate to some ferocious defence from the home side.

The All Blacks knocked the stuffing out of their trans-Tasman rivals, often reversing the Wallabies' key strike runners and kept playmaker Quade Cooper quiet all night - New Zealand's steady pressure and suffocating defence denied the Aussie pivot the chance to regularly set his backline in motion.

Australia's cause was further undermined by poor goal-kicking, with James O'Connor' missing three successive penalties. But the same couldn't be said of Dan Carter, who was immaculate with the boot as the Wallabies were put to the sword.

Digby Ioane and Rocky Elsom did get on the board for the Wallabies in the second period, however it was merely consolation tries and they never looked like threatening New Zealand's 23-match unbeaten streak at the Auckland venue.

The opening passage of play played at a fast and furious pace, with both sides going at each other hammer and tongs. However, All Blacks centre Conrad Smith then affected a turnover in midfield which led to the opening score of the match.

Instrumental scrum-half Piri Weepu raced down the touchline, before linking with wing Sitiveni Sivivatu who got the attacking team close to the line. Flanker Jerome Kaino kept the ball alive and it was centre Ma'a Nonu who picked up the ball to drive through the legs to score.

Weepu's excellent work in keeping the ball in play was crucial in the All Blacks next try where as loose forwards Kieran Read and Richie McCaw powered their way towards Australia's tryline. Held inches short, hooker Keven Mealamu got low and had the strength to place the pigskin on the chalkdust for the try.

The home side took a seventeen-point lead into the break, and Carter extended the All Blacks lead just after the restart with a drop-goal which was only the third of his 82-Test career.

The Wallabies gave a vivid reminder of their threat from broken field when they turned over possession in their 22m and shifted the ball to Digby Ioane, who stood up full-back Mils Muliaina en route to goal. With O'Connor relieved of the kicking duties, Cooper landed a touchline conversion which would have galavanised his side.

However, from the restart Australia failed to control the ball and centre Smith was in in a flash to hare down the sideline and feed inside to Sivivatu who scored. Carter's conversion took New Zealand out to a 27-7 lead. He added a penalty goal before captain Rocky Elsom claimed a late consolation try.

The scorers:
For New Zealand:
Tries: Nonu, Mealamu, Sivivatu
Cons: Carter 3
Pens: Carter 2
Drop: Carter

For Australia:
Tries: Ioane, Elsom
Cons: Cooper 2

New Zealand: 15 Mils Muliaina, 14 Sitiveni Sivivatu, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Daniel Carter, 9 Piri Weepu, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Ali Williams, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Keven Mealamu, 1 Wyatt Crockett.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Hore, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Samuel Whitelock, 19 Adam Thomson, 20 Andy Ellis, 21 Colin Slade, 22 Sonny Bill Williams.

Australia: 15 Kurtley Beale, 14 James O'Connor, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Pat McCabe, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Will Genia, 8 Ben McCalman, 7 David Pocock, 6 Rocky Elsom (c), 5 James Horwill, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Ben Alexander, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Sekope Kepu.
Replacements: 16 Saia Fainga'a, 17 Pek Cowan, 18 Dan Vickerman, 19 Scott Higginbotham, 20 Luke Burgess, 21 Anthony Fainga'a, 22 Lachie Turner.

Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)

[Welshboy]

Win on the board for England
.06th August 2011

...England got their Rugby World Cup warm-up schedule off to a steady start on Saturday, with a 23-19 win picked up against Wales at Twickenham.

Wales did outscore their hosts by three tries to two but a couple of drops from Jonny Wilkinson saw England win the first of this two-legged affair.

England's tries came via number eight James Haskell and debut centre Manu Tuilagi while visiting wing duo George North (2) and Shane Williams crossed for Warren Gatland's outfit.

These two will meet again in a week's time at the Millennium Stadium and Wales will want to start that game how they finished this one in London. Trailing by 20 points to 7 on 45 minutes, Wales then finally clicked into gear, with captain Sam Warburton leading by example on the openside.

However, England and Wales will be sweating over the fitness of Lewis Moody and Morgan Stoddart respectively, who were both helped off.

Wales were also forced to make a late change to their line-up after fly-half Stephen Jones, who was set to become his country's most-capped player, withdrew due to a calf injury. Rhys Priestland moved to 10 as Stoddart was given a promotion from bench duty.

England showed they wanted a victory first and then the performance early on as Wilkinson was told by captain Moody to knock over a long-range penalty, which he successfully did.

But despite being under pressure early on, Wales managed to claw their way back and in fact scored when North was on hand to finish. Priestland added the extras from wide out.

Then came a long period of English pressure at Twickenham as full-back Delon Armitage enjoyed a good run before a strong scrummage allowed Haskell to power his way over.

Wilkinson's conversion moved England into a 10-7 lead before he was wise enough to take points when on offer, with a smart drop-goal on 38 minutes extending the lead to six points.

It looked as though the Welsh were the ones needing the ten-minute rest to gather their thoughts. Yet that didn't help their cause upon the turnaround as Tigers centre Tuilagi hit a good line to power over on 44 minutes. England were 20-7 in the lead and looked clinical.

Wales number nine Mike Phillips almost caught England napping with a burst towards the line that saw him held up short but the ball was worked out to Williams who scored. Priestland missed the extras to leave England two scores in front at 20-12.

Wilkinson then landed his second drop-goal before Wales captain Warburton was denied a try by the video referee. North was not to be denied soon after but it was all too little too late.

Man-of-the-match: Simon Shaw was impressive early on and seems to have booked his spot on the plane (hopefully with extra leg room), but Sam Warburton was too good to overlook despite being on the losing team. He was a rock for Wales and is still only 22.

World Cup betting odds

The scorers:
For England:
Tries: Haskell, Tuilagi
Con: Wilkinson 2
Pen: Wilkinson
Drop: Wilkinson 2

For Wales:
Tries: North 2, Williams
Con: Priestland 2

England: 15 Delon Armitage, 14 Matt Banahan, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Riki Flutey, 11 Mark Cueto, 10 Jonny Wilkinson, 9 Danny Care, 8 James Haskell, 7 Lewis Moody (capt), 6 Tom Croft, 5 Tom Palmer, 4 Simon Shaw, 3 Matt Stevens, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Alex Corbisiero.
Replacements: 16 Lee Mears, 17 David Wilson, 18 Mouritz Botha, 19 Tom Wood, 20 Richard Wigglesworth, 21 Charlie Hodgson, 22 Charlie Sharples.

Wales: 15 Rhys Priestland, 14 George North, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Toby Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton (capt), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun-Wyn Jones, 4 Brad Davies, 3 Craig Mitchell, 2 Huw Bennett, 1 Paul James.
Replacements: 16 Lloyd Burns, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Luke Charteris, 19 Ryan Jones, 20 Tavis Knoyle, 21 Scott Williams, 22 Morgan Stoddart.

Referee: Steve Walsh (Australia)
Assistant referees: tbc, Dave Changleng (Scotland)
Television match official: Jim Yuille (Scotland)



Irish pipped by Scotland
.06th August 2011

...A late try from Joe Ansbro sealed a 10-6 victory for Scotland over Ireland in what was a drab World Cup warm-up match at Murrayfield on Saturday.

Ireland looked to be heading to a 6-3 win until London Irish centre Ansbro scorched over the whitewash with four minutes remaining following good running from replacement Nick de Luca.

However, that score was arguably the only moment of real entertainment for the 28,288 supporters who paid their money for tickets.

Declan Kidney will be happy to see Rob Kearney, Tomas O'Leary and Jerry Flannery getting action under their belts in their comebacks from injury.

Ireland held a slender 3-0 half-time lead as both sides were rather disjointed during the first 40.

Scotland suffered an early blow when Nikki Walker went off with a head knock, with Jack Cuthbert making his debut after 21 minutes.

Sexton's penalty in the 33rd minute was all that separated the sides at the break after veteran Scotland second-row forward Jim Hamilton was penalised for killing the ball.

Little improved in the second period although Scotland managed to level the scores after Denis Leamy was caught offside, allowing Paterson to kick the subsequent penalty.

Ireland went back in front with 15 minutes remaining as Sexton kicked well from 45 metres.

Paterson, usually unerringly accurate with the boot, sliced a straightforward penalty attempt wide before going off, as De Luca came on as one of three substitutes made by the Scots.

An indiscretion from prop Al Dickinson, who earlier came on for Allan Jacobsen, at the scrum granted Sexton another shot at goal, but the Ireland fly-half's effort fell short.

Scotland then burst into life four minutes from the end when De Luca rushed through before a long pass to Ansbro, who cut in off the wing for his first Test try. Jackson added the extras.

World Cup betting odds

The scorers:
For Scotland:
Try: Ansbro
Con: Jackson
Pen: Paterson

For Ireland:
Pen: Sexton 2

Scotland: 15 Chris Paterson, 14 Nikki Walker, 13 Joe Ansbro, 12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Sean Lamont, 10 Ruaridh Jackson, 9 Rory Lawson (capt), 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 Ross Rennie, 6 Alasdair Strokosch, 5 Richie Gray, 4 Jim Hamilton, 3 Geoff Cross, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements: 16 Dougie Hall, 17 Alasdair Dickinson, 18 Alastair Kellock, 19 David Denton, 20 Greig Laidlaw, 21 Nick De Luca, 22 Jack Cuthbert.

Ireland: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Fergus McFadden, 12 Paddy Wallace, 11 Luke Fitzgerald, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Tomas O'Leary, 8 Denis Leamy, 7 Niall Ronan, 6 Mike McCarthy, 5 Leo Cullen (capt), 4 Donnacha Ryan, 3 Tony Buckley, 2 Sean Cronin, 1 Tom Court.
Replacements: 16 Jerry Flannery, 17 Marcus Horan, 18 John Hayes, 19 Mick O'Driscoll, 20 Kevin McLaughlin, 20 Isaac Boss, 22 Felix Jones.

Referee: Wayne Barnes
Assistant referees: Dave Pearson and Stuart Terheege
TMO: Geoff Warren

[Welshboy]

NEWS.

Experienced trio back for Wales
.08th August 2011

...Lee Byrne, Adam Jones and James Hook have been passed fit for Wales' second World Cup warm-up match against England in Cardiff on Saturday.
Byrne (knee), Adams (toe) and Hook (shoulder) missed Saturday's clash at Twickenham, which England won 23-19, but Wales Rugby Union national performance medical manager Prav Mathema confirmed that they will be in action at the Millennium Stadium this weekend.
"Both Adam and Lee where back in full training towards the end of last week and James is also now ready to take a full part," he told WalesOnline
Mathema said Richard Hibbard (shoulder) and Leigh Halfpenny (ankle) are on course to be available for Wales' last pre-World Cup match against Argentina on August 20.
"Both Leigh and Richard have come through contact screening and will be fully integrated back into training this week, with a view to being back in contention for the Pumas match," said Mathema.
However, Wales were waiting on test results regarding the fitness of Stephen Jones (calf) and Matthew Rees (neck).
"Stephen pulled out of the game at the weekend as a precaution with a tight calf, but we need to have a closer look at him in the early part of this week before we make a further judgement.
"Matthew is making normal progress after his injection, but it is also too soon to make a judgement on him," added Mathema.
Meanwhile, full-back Morgan Stoddart has undergone surgery in London on his broken leg and will return to Wales on Tuesday.
"The good news about Morgan is that he has come through surgery successfully and he will now begin his rehabilitation programme back at the Scarlets," said Mathema.
"He travels back from London tomorrow, but it is impossible at this stage to put a time frame on his recovery."



England move above Ireland

....Ireland's defeat to Scotland on Saturday proved a costly one, as they slipped two places to sixth position in the latest IRB World rankings.
The 10-6 loss in their World Cupwarm-up match at Murrayfield, means Declan Kidney's men are no longer the leading northern hemisphere nation in the rankings behind New Zealand, Australia and South Africa - a position they have held since ending England's hopes of a Six Nations Grand Slam back in March.
England now occupy fourth spot following their 23-19 victory over Wales at Twickenham on Saturday, while France also climb one to fifth despite not being in action over the weekend, Marc Lièvremont's men only resuming their preparations with the visit of Ireland to Bordeaux on Saturday.
Wales remain seventh despite the loss to England, while the margin of victory was not big enough for Scotland to improve their position of ninth, although they have slashed the deficit on Argentina above them.
At the top of the IRB World Rankings, New Zealand have slightly increased their cushion over Australia after preserving a 25-year winning streak over the Wallabies at Eden Park with a 30-14 victory in their Tri-Nations encounter on Saturday.
Three other sides counting down the days until Rugby World Cup 2011 kicks off on 9 September were also in action over the weekend with Canada edging their neighbours USA 28-22 in Toronto and Argentina beating a South American XV 78-15 in San Juan.
Canada's victory on home soil was not by a big enough margin to improve their ranking of 16th, although they have closed the gap on Georgia above them.

IRB World rankings:
1. New Zealand 93.26
2. Australia 86.58
3. South Africa 85.24
4. England 82.89
5. France 82.06
6. Ireland 81.29
7. Wales 79.14
8. Argentina 78.97
9. Scotland 78.57
10. Samoa 74.55
11. Italy 73.54
12. Japan 72.56
13. Tonga 71.80
14. Fiji 71.52
15. Georgia 70.30
16. Canada 70.18
17. USA 66.38
18. Romania 65.57
19. Russia 61.93
20.Namibia 61.43



Canada get one over the States

...Canada recorded a morale-boosting 28-22 win over the United States in a World Cup warm-up clash in Toronto.
The hosting Canucks opened the scoring in the sixth minute with turnover ball seeing new London Irish signing, Jebb Sinclair, going over the line.
Eddie O'Sullivan's side hit back immediately though and scored fifteen points in a good spell. Takudzwa Ngwenya was continually a threat.
Canadian winger James Pritchard made the game 15-10 with a penalty and more followed.
Second-half scores by Phil Mackenzie and Ed Fairhurst, along with Pritchard's boot ensured victory on home soil for Canada.
Todd Clever scored two tries for the States and will get the chance to exact revenge over Canada when these two nations meet again next week.

The scorers:
For Canada:
Tries: Sinclair, Mackenzie, Fairhurst
Con: Pritchard 2
Pen: Pritchard 3

For USA:
Tries: Ngwenya, Clever 2
Con: Malifa, Enosa
Pen: Mififa

Canada: 15 Matt Evans, 14 Phil Mackenzie, 13 DTH van der Merwe, 12 Mike Scholz, 11 James Pritchard, 10 Ander Monro, 9 Ed Fairhurst, 8 Aaron Carpenter, 7 Chauncey O'Toole, 6 Jebb Sinclair, 5 Jamie Cudmore, 4 Brian Erichsen, 3 Jason Marshall, 2 Pat Riordan, 1 Hubert Buydens.
Replacements: 16 Ryan Hamilton, 17 Scott Franklin, 18 Tyler Hotson, 19 Adam Kleeberger, 20 Sean White, 21 Ryan Smith, 22 Ciaran Hearn.

USA: 15 Blaine Scully, 14 Takudzwa Ngwenya, 13 Paul Emerick, 12 Andrew Suniula, 11 Kevin Swiryn, 10 Nese Malifa, 9 Mike Petri, 8 Nic Johnson, 7 Todd Clever, 6 Louis Stanfill, 5 Hayden Smith, 4 John van der Giessen, 3 Shawn Pittman, 2 Phillip Thiel, 1 Mate Moeakiola.
Replacements: 16 Chris Biller, 17 Eric Fry, 18 Inaki Basauri, 19 Jonathan 'JJ' Gagiano, 20 Tim Usasz, 21 Roland Suniula, 22 Tai Enosa.

Referee: Mark Lawrence (South Africa)

England vs Wales
http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/b01380kr/

Scotland vs Ireland
http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/b013cwz0/

[Welshboy]

Tri-Nations half way point.

.Forthcoming Fixtures
All times are local
Tri-Nations
Saturday , August 13
South Africa vs Australia 17:05
Saturday , August 20
South Africa vs New Zealand 17:05
Saturday , August 27
Australia vs New Zealand 20:05

...Tri-Nations Results
Saturday , August 6
New Zealand 30 - 14 Australia
Saturday , July 30
New Zealand 40 - 7 South Africa
Saturday , July 23
Australia 39 - 20 South Africa

..Tri-Nations Table
Pos Team ........P ..Pts
1.. New Zealand .2 ...9
2.. Australia .....2 ...5
3.. South Africa .2 ...0

Forthcoming Fixtures this week.

All times are local
International Match
Saturday , August 13
Wales vs England 14:30
Italy vs Japan 19:45
France vs Ireland 19:45

Currie Cup
Friday , August 12
Pumas vs Blue Bulls 17:05
Griquas vs Leopards 19:00
Western Province vs Sharks 19:10
Saturday , August 13
Lions vs Cheetahs 19:10

ITM Cup
Tuesday , August 9
Taranaki vs Bay Of Plenty
Wednesday, August 10
Canterbury vs Waikato 14:35
Wellington vs Northland 20:05
Thursday , August 11
Auckland vs Counties Manukau 19:35
Friday , August 12
Taranaki vs Tasman 19:35
Saturday , August 13
Southland vs North Harbour 14:35
Bay Of Plenty vs Hawkes Bay 17:35
Wellington vs Manawatu 19:35
Sunday , August 14
Canterbury vs Northland 14:35
Waikato vs Otago 16:35

Tri-Nations
Saturday , August 13
South Africa vs Australia 17:05

[Renshaw Farm]

Anyone showing Boks v Aussies this Saturday and at what time?

[Sport]

G'day Rodders, Yes at the Aussie Burger Bar in nutty park. Kick off live 10.05pm Thai time.

[Renshaw Farm]

Cheers ..... I will be there ....and odds on Boks could be shortening!

[Welshboy]

Been away working but back. Lets get started with the biggest match of the day first.

Preview: South Africa v Australia

.12th August 2011
...The Tri-Nations makes its way to South Africa where the Springboks will be out to bag their first win of 2011 when they tackle Australia in Durban.
Two matches, two heavy defeats - that's South Africa's season thus far in a nutshell.
Albert Einstein once said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.
Well, Bok coach Peter de Villiers ain't no Einstein (though some may argue he's a bit insane), but he's right when he urged the country to forget what had happened during the recent trip to Australasia, where an under-strength Springbok side were well beaten.
This time round, De Villiers - seeking a different result - has recalled all of his most senior players that were available, in a complete overhaul to the team that ran out against New Zealand in Wellington two weeks ago.
Amongst the most notable inclusions is the return of scrum-half Fourie du Preez and flanker Heinrich Brussow for the first time in 21 months, while Butch James was named at fly-half in another surprise move.
There was also place for John Smit at hooker - the captain being one of two survivors from the 39-20 and 40-7 losses to the Wallabies and All Blacks respectively along with Danie Rossouw - while Frans Steyn was selected at full-back.
"What happened in the past wasn't good for our country and wasn't good for us, but we leave that in the past," said De Villiers.

For South Africa: With 810 caps, the Boks field the most experienced Test team of all time. Amongst the old heads is fly-half Butch James, who returns to the number ten position he called his own during South Africa's march to their second World Cup title four years ago. James, who is preferred ahead of Morne Steyn, last started a Test at fly-half against Italy more than a year ago and won the last of his 40 caps against Australia at Loftus Versfeld in 2010. James has his fair share of critics - and just like Marmite, you either love him or you hate him. But nobody can fault his uncompromising defence, deft hands and fearsome competitiveness - all match-winning traits that Bok fans will be hoping come to the fore at his former hunting ground.

For Australia: With the Wallabies set for another typically physical battle with the beefed-up Boks, Australia coach Robbie Deans will be banking on recalled veteran lock Nathan Sharpe to put his big frame, dominance in the set piece and vast experience to good use. Also keep an eye out for in-form number eight Scott Higginbotham, who makes his first Test start this weekend. The dynamic Reds back-rower has been rewarded for a series of strong cameos off the bench, and will be looking to press for World Cup selection with another eye-catching performance from the get-go.

Head to head: Fourie du Preez v Will Genia. In the build-up to Saturday's Test, the Wallabies scrum-half picked out his opposite number as a player who will make "a massive difference" for South Africa this weekend. It's pretty hard to argue against Genia's assessment. The duel between this mercurial duo may well decide the outcome with both set to play a vital link between forwards and backs. They can be individual match-winners in their own right - Du Preez more likely with some kick-chase magic and Genia with a solo run. An intriguing battle awaits.

Previous results:
2011: Australia won 39-20, Sydney
2010: Australia won 41-39, Bloemfontein
2010: South Africa won 44-31, Pretoria
2010: Australia won 30-13, Brisbane
2009: Australia won 21-6, Brisbane
2009: South Africa won 32-25, Perth
2009: South Africa won 29-17, Cape Town
2008: South Africa won 53-8, Johannesburg
2008: Australia won 27-15, Durban
2008: Australia won 16-9, Perth

The teams:
South Africa: 15 Frans Steyn, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Butch James, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Danie Rossouw, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 John Smit (c), 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Bismarck du Plessis, 17 Gurthro Steenkamp, 18 Gerhard Mostert, 19 Jean Deysel, 20 Francois Hougaard, 21 Morne Steyn, 22 Gio Aplon.

Australia: 15 Kurtley Beale, 14 James O'Connor, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Pat McCabe, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Will Genia, 8 Scott Higginbotham, 7 David Pocock, 6 Rocky Elsom (c), 5 James Horwill, 4 Nathan Sharpe, 3 Ben Alexander, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Sekope Kepu.
Replacements: 16 Saia Faingaa, 17 Salesi Ma'afu, 18 Sitaleki Timani, 19 Radike Samo, 20 Ben McCalman, 21 Luke Burgess, 22 Anthony Faingaa.


Date: Saturday, August 13
Venue: Kings Park, Durban
Weather forcast: 40 per cent chance of rain with a high of 20°C, dropping to 13°C
Kick-off: 17:05 (15:05 GMT)
Referee: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: George Clancy (Ireland), Carlo Damasco (Italy)
Television match official: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa]




WALES vs England
...Wales coach Warren Gatland has named Gavin Henson in his starting line-up for Saturday's World Cup warm-up match against England in Cardiff.
Henson's inclusion means he now has an opportunity to stake his claim for a place in Wales' Rugby World Cup squad.
The 29-year-old centre, who has been struggling to rebuild his career after taking time off to pursue reality television projects, will partner Jamie Roberts in the midfield as Wales attempt to bounce back from last weekend's 23-19 loss.
Henson, who is still without a club side after his brief stay at Toulon ended in May, has admitted earlier this week he needs to produce something "pretty special" as he attempts to force his way into the World Cup reckoning after missing the 2003 and 2007 tournaments.
Henson was one of four changes made by Gatland, who has described this weekend's return fixture at the Millennium Stadium as a "must-win" encounter.
"We need the win this weekend - it's as simple as that," Gatland said.
"We've told the players that for us to be regarded as contenders at the Rugby World Cup we need to beat England at home this weekend, to send out that message to everyone that we are contenders.
"We have the toughest pool at the tournament and in less than a month's time we will be facing South Africa in our opening match.
"It is vitally important that we go into that match with the sound of Welsh fans ringing in our ears, fans who have cheered us on to victories in the final two matches of our warm-up campaign against England and against Argentina next week."
The other change in the backs sees James Hook replace full-back Morgan Stoddart, who broke his leg at Twickenham.
In the pack, Dragons hooker Lloyd Burns gains a first start while Luke Charteris replaces Bradley Davies in the second row.

Wales: 15 James Hook, 14 George North, 13 Jamie Roberts, 12 Gavin Henson, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Toby Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun-Wyn Jones, 4 Luke Charteris, 3 Craig Mitchell, 2 Lloyd Burns, 1 Paul James.
Replacements: 16 Huw Bennett, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Josh Turnbull, 19 Justin Tipuric, 20 Tavis Knoyle, 21 Scott Williams, 22 Aled Brew.

...Mike Tindall will lead England in Saturday's World Cup warm-up clash with Wales at the Millennium Stadium.
Tindall is paired with Shontayne Hape in the midfield in an almost completely new side from the one that beat the Welsh 23-19 at Twickenham last weekend.
Only prop Alex Corbisiero and wing Mark Cueto starts again with the other 13 players involved either completely fresh or having come off the bench in the first of the back-to-back matches.
First choice full-back Ben Foden and Chris Ashton return with Toby Flood and Richard Wigglesworth pairing up behind the scrum.
Dan Cole and Steve Thompson join Corbisiero in the front row while Courtney Lawes returns at lock after shaking off an injury.
In the loose forwards, Hendre Fourie will make only his second Test start at openside flanker and his performance will be watched particularly closely by the England management following Moody's knee injury last weekend.
Tom Wood and Nick Easter complete the back row.
Saturday is the last day for players to shine before manager Martin Johnson finalises his 30-man World Cup squad, which will be announced on Monday 22 August.
"Last weekend's match was hugely competitive and we expect more of the same as we prepare to travel to the Millennium Stadium," said Johnson.
"We took a lot out of Saturday's game and this weekend gives the selected players their opportunity and a chance for us to improve our overall performance."
England complete their warm-up fixtures against Ireland in Dublin on 27 August.

England: 15 Ben Foden, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Mike Tindall (c), 12 Shontayne Hape, 11 Mark Cueto, 10 Toby Flood, 9 Richard Wigglesworth, 8 Nick Easter, 7 Hendre Fourie, 6 Tom Wood, 5 Courtney Lawes, 4 Louis Deacon, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Steve Thompson, 1 Alex Corbisiero.
Replacements: 16 Lee Mears, 17 Matt Stevens, 18 Tom Palmer, 19 James Haskell, 20 Danny Care, 21 Charlie Hodgson, 22 Matt Banahan.

Date: Saturday, 13 August
Venue: Millennium Stadium
Kick-off: 14:30 (13:30 GMT)
Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Mathieu Raynal (France), Simon McDowell (Ireland)
Television match official: Jim Yuille (Scotland




France vs Ireland
...France Head Coach Marc Lièvremont has named his team for Saturday's World Cup warm up Test against Ireland in Bordeaux.
Number eight Raphaël Lakafia will earn his first cap for les Bleus after being handed a berth in the starting back row alongside skipper Thierry Dusautoir and Biarritz team-mate Imanol Harinordoquy.
Dimitri Yachvili starts at scrum-half alongside fly-half Francois Trinh-Duc, while Dimitri Szarzewski starts at hooker and prolific try scorer Vincent Clerc takes his place on the right wing.
Trinh-Duc's position appears safe after his excellent performances in the Six Nations Championship earlier this year, but Yachvili is vying with Morgan Parra to be France's starter at the World Cup in New Zealand.
"We wanted to include Raphaël Lakafia as soon as possible," said Lièvremont of the 22-year-old loose forward.
"Over the last five weeks I've found him to be intelligent, very at ease with ball in hand and as part of the group. We believe he is ready."
The coach indicated that France would line-up an entirely different side next week as the staff look to encourage competition for places in the first-choice team.
"We want to have consistency and have two good matches by lining up two homogenous groups," explained Lièvremont.
"It's a mix of youth and experience in every row."
The selectors are also seeking to be reassured by testing a handful of players returning form injury. Clerc has been named on the wing despite nursing a knee injury, with prop Fabien Barcella named 23rd man notwithstanding a bicep injury.
"We're impatient," admitted Lièvremont when questioned over Barcella's inclusion on the bench.
Szarzewski makes his first appearance since recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon.
France will face Ireland at home this weekend and then in Dublin on August 20 before kicking off their World Cup campaign against Japan on September 10.

France: 15 Damien Traille, 14 Vincent Clerc, 13 David Marty, 12 Maxime Mermoz, 11 Alexis Palisson, 10 François Trinh-Duc, 9 Dimitri Yachvili, 8 Raphaël Lakafia, 7 Imanol Harinordoquy, 6 Thierry Dusautoir (c), 5 Romian Millo-Chluski, 4 Julien Pierre, 3 Luc Ducalcon, 2 Dimitri Szarzewski, 1 Sylvain Marconnet
Replacements: 16 Guilhem Guirado, 17 Jean-Baptiste Poux, 18 Lionel Nallet, 19 Julien Bonnaire, 20 Morgan Parra, 21 David Skrela, 22 Maxime Médard, 23 Fabien Barcella.


...Ireland coach Declan Kidney has made eight changes to his side for Saturday's World Cup warm-up clash with France in Bordeaux.
Amongst the backs, there are three changes to the side that lost 10-6 to Scotland at Murrayfield.
Keith Earls replaces Fergus McFadden at outside centre and Ronan O'Gara and Eoin Reddan come in for Jonny Sexton and Tomas O'Leary at fly-half and scrum-half respectively.
Up front, Donncha Ryan moves from lock to blindside flank, while Sean O'Brien replaces Niall Ronan at openside flank.
There's also a new front-row, with Cian Healy, Rory Best and Mike Ross coming in for Tom Court, Sean Cronin and Tony Buckley.
Leinster lock Leo Cullen will continue to lead the side and Donncha O'Callaghan takes Ryan's position in the second row.

Ireland: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Keith Earls, 12 Paddy Wallace, 11 Luke Fitzgerald, 10 Ronan O'Gara, 9 Eoin Reddan, 8 Denis Leamy, 7 Sean O'Brien, 6 Donncha Ryan, 5 Leo Cullen (c), 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements: 16 Jerry Flannery, 17 Tony Buckley, 18 Paul O'Connell, 19 Jamie Heaslip, 20 Conor Murray, 20 Fergus McFadden, 22 Felix Jones.

Date: Saturday, August 13
Venue: Stade Chaban Delmas, Bordeaux
Kick-off: 16:30 (14:30 GMT).
Referee: Steve Walsh (Australia)
Assistant referees: Dave Pearson (England), Stuart Terheege (England)
TMO: Giulio De Santis (Italy)



Italian vs Japan
...Italy coach Nick Mallett has picked a youthful side for Saturday's World Cup warm-up match against Japan in Cesena.
Mallett has opted for a young halfback combination in Edoardo Gori (scrum-half) and 23-year-old Riccardo Bocchino (fly-half).
Gori returns to the side for the first time since dislocating his shoulder against Ireland in Italy's opening match of the Six Nations, and Bocchino will be in the starting line-up for the first time after winning his six previous caps off the replacements bench.
Mallet has also selected a young centre pairing with Alberto Sgarbi slotting in outside Matteo Pratichetti.
Amongst the forwards, there is more experienced players, with number eight Sergio Parisse captaining the side and Mauro Bergamasco returns from a knee injury to partner Alessandro Zanni on the side of the scrum.
On the replacements bench, hooker Tommaso D'Apice and South African-born lock Cornelius van Zyl are set to make their debuts.

Italy: 15 Luke McLean, 14 Giulio Toniolatti, 13 Alberto Sgarbi, 12 Matteo Pratichetti, 11 Tommaso Benvenuti, 10 Riccardo Bocchino, 9 Edoardo Gori, 8 Sergio Parisse (c), 7 Mauro Bergamasco, 6 Alessandro Zanni, 5 Marco Bortolami, 4 Quintin Geldenhuys, 3 Lorenzo Cittadini, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 1 Andrea Lo Cicero.
Replacements: 16 Tommaso D'Apice, 17 Martin Castrogiovanni, 18 Cornelius Van Zyl, 19 Paul Derbyshire, 20 Pablo Canavosio, 21 Luciano Orquera, 22 Gonzalo Canale.

Japan: 15 Shaun Webb, 14 Kosuke Endo, 13 Koji Taira, 12 Ryan Nicholas, 11 Takeisa Usuzuki, 10 James Arlidge, 9 Fumiaki Tanaka , 8 Ryukoliniasi Holani, 7 Michael Leitch, 6 Takashi Kikutani(c, 5 Toshizumi Kitagawa, 4 Justin Ives, 3 Kensuke Hatakeyama, 2 Shota Horie , 1 Hisateru Hirashima.
Replacements: 16 Hiroki Yuhara, 17 Nozomu Fujita, 18 Luke Thompson , 19 Tadasuke Nishihara, 20 Atsushi Hiwasa, 21 Alisi Tupuailai , 22 Murray Williams.

Date: Saturday, 13 August 2011
Venue: Stadio Dino Manuzzi, Cesena, Italy
Kick-off: 20:45 (18:45 GMT)
Referee: Romain Poite (France)
Assistant referees: Jérôme Garces (France), Pascal Gauzere (France)
TMO: Tony Redmond (Ireland)

[Welshboy]

Third spot in rankings on cards for England

A win over Wales could see England return to third in the rankingsTwelve of the nations bound for Rugby World Cup 2011 will be in action over the weekend, fine-tuning their squads as the deadline fast approaches and all hoping to avoid any slip ups, not only for morale but also to avoid slipping in the IRB World Rankings.

With so many teams in the top 20 in action there are many different permutations for rises and falls, the most interesting being the prospect of England ending the southern hemisphere dominance of the top three and Japan entering the top 10 for the first time.

The only thing certain when the IRB World Rankings update on Monday is that New Zealand will remain the world’s number one side and Russia and Namibia will still occupy 19th and 20th positions, outside of that there could be mass changes.

South Africa and Australia have already swapped places twice in the last month and will do so again if the Springboks, with their big-guns recalled, can get their season back on track with victory at Kings Park in Durban in match four of the 2011 Tri Nations.

A South African victory, regardless of the margin, will lift them above Australia into second spot, albeit still 6.77 points behind the All Blacks. The good news for Australia, beaten 30-14 by New Zealand last weekend, is that they cannot slip below third, even with a heavy loss in Durban.

By contrast, if Australia can win – just as they did on their last visit to Durban in 2008 – then they could bring the deficit to New Zealand to just under five rating points. A loss for South Africa puts them at the mercy of losing third spot to England.

For that to happen, England firstly have to beat Wales at the Millennium Stadium, which will be enough to claim third spot if South Africa loss to Australia by more than 15 points. If the margin is narrower in Durban, then England must beat Wales by more than 15 points to leapfrog them.

England last occupied third after beating France in the semi finals of Rugby World Cup 2007, albeit only for a week. France were actually the last northern hemisphere nation to break the southern hemisphere stranglehold, again only for a single week in late June 2010.

A second loss in the space of a week to England will prove costly for Wales with a two place fall to ninth below Argentina and Scotland. On the other hand, a Welsh victory by more than 15 points would be enough to lift them above the loser of the France-Ireland encounter in Bordeaux.

New highs and lows

South Africa and England, though, are only two of the sides who could occupy fourth when the rankings update, the others being France and Ireland, who relinquished the position after losing 10-6 to Scotland in their first RWC 2011 warm-up match last weekend.

For France or Ireland to take over fourth then England must lose in Cardiff, allowing the Bordeaux winner to climb above them and potentially to within touching distance of a South African side beaten at home.

England will fall one place in defeat, but a loss could prove more costly for France as they could drop two places to seventh depending on the margin of their defeat on home soil and Wales’ win over England, a side they lost 23-19 to at Twickenham.

The weekend’s other matches in Fiji, Italy and America could have a similar impact on the rankings between Samoa in 10th and Romania in 18th, even if those two nations are not actually in action themselves.

Italy are the highest ranked nation across these three matches in 11th and cannot improve that position even if Sergio Parisse’s men record an emphatic victory over Japan, coached by former Azzurri coach John Kirwan, in Cesena.

A first ever win over Italy, though, will lift Japan to their highest ever position of 11th since the IRB World Rankings were introduced in October 2003. The Brave Blossoms could even climb above Samoa into 10th if they win by more than 15 points.

Pacific pride

If Kirwan and co are celebrating a new high, then Italy will drop to 13th – the position they occupied when the rankings were introduced, albeit only briefly – with either Fiji or Tonga also climbing above them.

The Pacific Island rivals come face to face in Lautoka on Saturday in the first of two meetings at Churchill Park in the space of seven days, and Fiji will be eager to avenge a 45-21 loss at the same venue in last month’s IRB Pacific Nations Cup.

That tournament and losses to Tonga and Japan proved costly for Fiji as they slipped to a new low of 14th in the rankings. It could get worse, as another loss on home soil could see them slide to 16th if Canada beat USA in Denver.

Fiji and Tonga are currently only separated by one place and less than three tenths, so whoever emerges victorious will rise to 12th, which would be a new high for the Ikale Tahi.

USA are the only other nation for whom victory will not be enough to improve their ranking of 17th, the Eagles having slipped to nearly four points below Canada after losing 28-22 to their neighbours in Toronto last weekend.

By contrast another win for Canada can lift Kieran Crowley's men above Georgia and the loser of the Fiji-Tonga encounter into 14th. It would also condemn neighbours USA to a one-place fall to 18th with Romania the beneficiaries.

IRB World Rankings update on Monday with an explanation on how the World Rankings are calculated.

[Welshboy]

Wallabies rule in Durban
.13th August 2011
...South Africa slumped to their third consecutive Tri-Nations defeat in 2011, going down 14-9 to Australia at Kings Park in Durban.
The Wallabies scored all their points in the second half as they came back from being 6-0 down at half-time, scoring the only try of the game through centre Pat McCabe.
For many South African fans the 'real' Tri-Nations kicked off in Durban as the defending world champions brought back the bulk of the first-choice players and lined up the most experienced Springbok team in history.
But after a solid start, the hosts' big guns failed to fire in the second half and were outdone by an Australian side that coped better with the changing conditions.
The result means that South Africa can no longer win the Tri-Nations - the 2011 crown will be decided when the All Blacks visit Brisbane at the end of the month.
The Springboks were worth their six-point lead at the break and looked to have the upper hand but failed to carry that momentum into the second period as they struggled to maintain possession as the drizzle at half time turned to steady rain.
The Wallabies will be pleased with how their set piece responded after the break, especially at scrum time.
As the scoreline suggests, it was far from Australia's prettiest victory but Robbie Deans will be happy with the grit his side showed as they fronted up to the typically physical Boks playing typically direct rugby.
Full-back Francois Steyn opened the scoring with a trademark long-range penalty in the second minute after Australia skipper Rocky Elsom was penalised for a dangerous tackle.
Butch James doubled the Boks' lead with a 16th-minute penalty in what started off as a fast-paced encounter.
South Africa centre Jacques Fourie was denied a try by the TMO, who judged he had knocked on as he battled with Quade Cooper to bring a high kick under control and the scorers would not be troubled again until half time as both James O'Connor and Steyn were also off-target with with further penalty and drop-goal attempts respectively.
Australia got on the scoreboard soon after the break when O'Connor landed his first penalty.
And the Kings Park crowd were silenced completely when McCabe rounded off a slick passing move to score the first and only try of the match and move Australia 8-6 in front.
A James penalty gave the lead back to the Springboks but an infringement by Tendai Mtawarira at a ruck allowed O'Connor to strike again after 65 minutes.
O'Connor stretched the lead to five points with a 74th-minute penalty and, despite desperate attempts by South Africa to find a match-levelling try, the Wallabies held on.
South Africa host New Zealand in Port Elizabeth next Saturday.
Man of the match: The Wallaby pack stepped the intensity up a notch in the second half and hooker Stephen Moore was a tireless grafter all around the park.
Moment of the match: There could only be one choice here. With all the hard work done by the Wallaby forwards, the hosts were in trouble when Quade Cooper sent the ball out wide where there was a huge overlap. There was little Heinrich Brüssow or the injured Frans Steyn could do to prevent Pat McCabe's try
Villain of the match: No nasty stuff to report.

The scorers:
For South Africa:
Pens: F. Steyn, James 2

For Australia:
Try: McCabe
Pens: O'Connor 3



Wales snatch victory in Cardiff
...Wales took revenge for last week's loss to England with a 19-9 victory at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday.
It was less a case of Wales winning than England losing as the visitors failed to capitalise on their complete dominance in terms of both territory and possession.
Was this one step forward, two steps back? Martin Johnson will be wondering just how his team managed to lose a game they totally controlled for an hour.
Wales full-back James Hook scored the only try of the encounter but it was the home side's defence that will have Warren Gatland smiling more than anything else.
Three Toby Flood penalties underpinned a bash-and-smash England display that saw them waste numerous attacking opportunities, exposing their chronic lack of flair and imagination.
Both sides will be concerned with the pedestrian pace with which the ball was being recycled at the breakdown.
Much of England's problems lay with a backline that failed to make the most of the swathes of possession that came their way, with the centre pairing of Mike Tindall and Shontayne Hape proving particularly ineffectual.
Wales started well but would have been happy with the 6-all scoreline at half-time having soaked up huge pressure. Indeed the Welsh defensive display was the highlight of the first 40 minutes.
The World Cup hopes of Wales centre Gavin Henson and England scrum-half Richard Wigglesworth were done no good when they were forced off through injury around the half-hour mark.
Rhys Priestland and Toby Flood traded first-quarter penalties but Matt Banahan should have had his name on the scoreboard after being given a golden opportunity in the corner, only for Shane Williams to deny his much bigger opponent with a brave tackle.
The second half started in the worst possible fashion for the hosts as Jamie Roberts saw yellow (as a result of his team's numerous indiscretions at the breakdown).
Flood put England ahead for the first time at 9-6 but those would be the only points scored in Roberts' absence.
It took Wales almost an hour to put a decent period of possession together, but they made their first real opportunity to attack count when Hook jinked into a gap and stretched out an arm to score.
The hosts had finally found their feet and Hook extended the lead to seven points from long range (after another poor display at the breakdown by England).
England continued to bang away with their one-dimensional approach but without success against fourteen men as Mike Phillips was also sent to the sin bin. Hook rubbed salt into the wounds with one more three-pointer late on.
Man of the match: Wales were thrashed up front but the men in Red must be given credit for their tireless tackling, especially Sam Warburton. But you need points to win a game, so we'll go for James Hook for his contribution to the scoreboard.

The scorers:
For Wales:
Try: Hook
Con: Hook
Pens: Priestland 2, Hook 2

For England:
Pens: Flood 3



France resist Irish comeback
...France got their World Cup warm up schedule off to a winning start on Saturday, beating Ireland 19-12 at Stade Chaban Delmas in Bordeaux.
France raced to a deserved 13-0 lead by the half-hour mark as they dominated every facet of play.
But the home side's indiscipline allowed the Irish to claw their way back into contention as four Ronan O'Gara penalties narrowed the gap to a single point at the start of the final quarter.
Wing Vincent Clerc scored the only try of the night for Les Bleus - his ninth in nine games against Ireland - while Dimitri Yachvili was flawless from the kicking tee, landing all five of his attempts at goal.
Anyone who stopped watching at half time would have been amazed by the final scoreline, much was the French dominance in the first period.
Fluid on attack and accurate up front, Marc Lièvremont's team looked like World Cup contenders for 35 minutes but were unable to maintain that momentum after the break.
Two Yachvili penalties in the final quarter steadied the ship but the French coach will be somewhat worried by yet another inconsistent display.
O'Gara's kicking both out of hand and from the tee was one of the few highlights of the Irish performance, though they did improve as the game progressed, gaining confidence as they chipped away at the French lead.
It was one-way traffic early on. Yachvili opened the scoring with his first three pointer after just three minutes. Les Bleus had the visiting defence scrambling frantically as they failed to prevent winger Alexis Palisson brilliantly slipping the ball out of a tackle to Clerc - who raced over.
Number eight Imanol Harinordoquy was charging around the park and Ireland looked set for a long night when Yachvili landed his second penalty to put France 13-0 ahead.
O'Gara slotted a penalty to end a torrid half for the visitors, turning the tide somewhat in the process.
The replacements benches came into play relatively early, resulting in France becoming increasingly ragged.
Two more O'Gara penalties followed and once more it was one-way traffic but this time Ireland were in the driving seat.
Yachvili gave France some breathing space with a pair of penalties as they sparked back into life after an unconvincing 30 minutes.
The hosts almost threw victory away though when Julien Bonnaire's suicide pass behind his own tryline was knocked on by David Skrela. But the big French pack came to the rescue, winning the penalty at the ensuing 5m scrum.
France will travel to Ireland next weekend for the rematch in Dublin.

The scorers:
For France:
Try: Clerc
Con: Yachvili
Pens: Yachvili 4

For Ireland:
Pens: O'Gara 4



Japan give Italy a scare
...Italy were forced to come from behind at half-time to beat Japan 31-24 in a thrilling World Cup warm up Test at the Stadio Manuzzi in Cesena on Saturday.
The Azzurri trailed 17-14 at half time before two second half tries courtesy of their experienced front row saved the day.
Italy scored tries through Matteo Pratichetti, Edoardo Gori, Leonardo Ghiraldini and Andrea Lo Cicero while young fly-half Riccardo Bocchino kicked three conversions.
Substitute Luciano Orquera kicked the rest of Italy's points.
Japan's tries came from backs Takeysa Usuzuki and Koji Taira as well as a penalty try while fly-half James Arlidge didn't miss a kick all night.
Italy coach Nick Mallett's choice to pick an experienced pack and youthful backs seemed to have paid dividends early in the game as the hosts carved the Brave Blossoms apart at will.
The first try on four minutes was all too easy as Italy probed left then went right with Bocchino, making his first start, playing a dummy pass and then slipping the ball inside to Pratichetti to go under the posts.
Bocchino kicked the extras and then on 12 minutes scrum-half Edoardo Gori picked and went from the back of a ruck, ducked under two tackles and dived over line.
Again Bocchino converted but Japan settled and started to work they way back into the game.
They scored a well-worked try on 23 minutes as Arlidge's grubber kick on the left wing was kicked on by Usuzuki who then touched down.
Arlidge converted and following an Italian mistake, Japan scored again.
Gori kicked straight into touch from just outside the Italy 22, Japan won good line-out ball and spread it wide right before Taira found a gap to burrow over.
After another successful kick Japan edged their noses in front as Bocchino hit the post with a penalty from 25 yards before Arlidge landed one from wide left for a 17-14 lead at the break.
Having let slip a commanding lead, Italy turned to their pack at the start of the second half and a driving maul resulted in a try for Ghiraldini, with Bocchino converting.
Japan simply couldn't cope with Italy's maul and from a line-out five yards out, the Azzurri drove diagonally towards the posts before Lo Cicero drove through a pile of collapsing bodies to score.
However, moments later Lo Cicero was yellow-carded with Japan five yards out and the visitors went for their own driving maul, resulting in a penalty try as Italy were punished for coming in from the side to break the momentum.
But just as Lo Cicero came back on, Japan prop Hisateru Hirashima was himself sin-binned and Luciano Orquera kicked a penalty, rounding off the night's scoring.

The scorers:
For Italy:
Tries: Pratichetti, Gori, Ghiraldini, Lo Cicero
Cons: Bocchino 3, Orquera
Pens: Orquera

For Japan:
Tries: Usuzuki, Taira, penalty try
Cons: Arlidge 3
Pens: Arlidge



Fiji beat Tonga in RWC warm up
...Fiji scored three tries to beat Tonga 27-12 in a World Cup warm up clash at Churchill Park in Lautoka on Saturday.
Fiji led 21-5 at half time with tries to Vereniki Goneva, Rupeni Nasiga and Kini Murimurivalu.
Inside center Seremaia Bai was on song with the boot, converting all three tries and added another two penalties in the second half.
The win serves as revenge for the 45-21 mauling Fiji received from their island neighbours during the Pacific Nations Cup last month.
The hosts followed up their strong attacking first period with a powerful defensive effort in the second half.
Winger Vereniki Goneva opened the scoring in the third minute, bursting clear after full-back Kini Murimurivalu hoofed a loose ball up field from his own 22m area.
Tonga took just seven minutes to respond through a well-worked try to ever improving full-back Viliami Iongi.
Led by a rampaging Sisa Koyamaibole, Fiji kept their cool and discipline. Albert Vulivuli broke through midfield to set up a try for Nasiga out wide. Seremaia Bai converted to give Fiji a 14-5 lead.
Murimurivalu extended the lead with a great individual try to give the hosts a 21-5 half-time advantage.
The Tongans started the second period with a bang as Iongi claimed his second try in the first minute after the restart. But despite enjoying the advantage in both territory and possession throughout the second 40 minutes, the Tongans were unable to add any further points. Two penalties from Bai eventually handed Fiji victory.
Flying Fijians skipper Deacon Manu put the win down to his team's effort in training.
"The preparation for this game and the World Cup in general has been pretty intense and I can say this win is merely because of that," he told Fijilive.
"We were focused on a lot of things to improve on in this game, especially our scrum and defence and I am pretty happy with it."

The scorers:
For Fiji:
Tries: Goneva, Nasiga, Murimurivalu
Cons: Bai 3
Pens: Bai 2

For Tonga:
Tries: Iongi 2
Cons: Fisilau

[Welshboy]

Canada 27 USA 7

Canada clip Eagles' wings
.14th August 2011
...The USA Eagles lost their World Cup warm-up match 27-7 against Canada in front of a sold-out crowd at Infinity Park on Saturday.
Despite plenty of possession and territory, it was through USA errors that allowed Canada to run in three tries during the match.
The opening points of the match came from Canadian center DTH van der Merwe who picked up a loose ball and raced 50 meters to score.
Full-back James Pritchard kicked the conversion, putting Canada 7-0 up after five minutes. The USA replied by putting some excellent phases together, getting over the advantage line with every carry.
This pressure eventually resulted in two yellow cards, one for lock Jamie Cudmore and later flanker Chauncey O'Toole. Both players were penalised for not coming through the gate during a ruck.
Despite a lack of possession Pritchard added a penalty for Canada.
Down 10-0, the USA began another build-up using multiple attacking phases. This time Malifa put a deft kick through with full-back Blaine Scully sliding over to score for the home side.
The capacity crowd enjoyed Malifa's sideline conversion, leaving the half-time score at 10-7.
Winger Taku Ngwenya sparked the second half into action with an amazing run, beating three defenders, sending Louis Stanfill over in the corner. The television match official (TMO) adjudged that Stanfill was held up over the tryline.
The Eagles then lost Chris Biller to a yellow card for not rolling away at the ruck, with the hooker being sent to the sin bin for ten minutes. From the resulting penalty Pritchard put Canada ahead 13-7.
Paul Emerick made his second massive break of the match, slicing through the Canadian mid field. But a turnover lead to Canada's van der Merwe setting up a try for Aaron Carpenter.
The Eagles had their chances later in the match, but another long range try saw winger Phil Mackenzie dot down, sealing the match 27-7.

The scorers:
For Canada:
Tries: Van der Merwe, Carpenter, Mackenzie;
Cons: Pritchard 3
Pens: Pritchard 2

For USA:
Try: Scully
Con: Malifa

This weeks Rugby Results

ITM Cup
Sunday , August 14
Canterbury 28 - 13 Northland
Waikato 25 - 10 Otago

International Match
Saturday , August 13
Wales 19 - 9 England
France 19 - 12 Ireland
Italy 31 - 24 Japan
Canada 27- USA 7

Currie Cup
Lions 17 - 10 Cheetahs

ITM Cup
Southland 25 - 23 North Harbour
Bay Of Plenty 13 - 32 Hawkes Bay
Wellington 25 - 31 Manawatu

Tri-Nations
South Africa 9 - 14 Australia

Currie Cup
Friday , August 12
Pumas 12 - 16 Blue Bulls
Griquas 32 - 18 Leopards
Western Province 21 - 19 Sharks

ITM Cup
Taranaki 26 - 23 Tasman
Thursday , August 11
Auckland 25 - 22 Counties Manukau
Wednesday, August 10
Canterbury 13 - 27 Waikato
Wellington 43 - 19 Northland
Tuesday , August 9
Taranaki 39 - 33 Bay Of Plenty

Wales 19-9 England
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_u ... 498107.stm

Johnson frustrated by England errors
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_u ... 518479.stm

Gatland proud of Wales win
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_u ... 518481.stm

Warburton salutes England 'scalp'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_u ... 518488.stm

[Welshboy]

Wales close on top 6 and gain RWC momentum
Monday 15 August 2011

Wales scored a morale-boosting win over England in CardiffFour weeks out from the start of Rugby World Cup 2011 in New Zealand, Wales scored a morale-boosting win over England in Cardiff, while France marched into the top four in the IRB World Rankings, overtaking the Englishmen who fall to fifth.
Wales remain in seventh place on the back of their impressive 19-9 win against England at the Millennium Stadium, although they do close the gap on Ireland above them.
On a busy weekend of warm-up matches, 12 of 20 nations bound for New Zealand lined up in international tests, with nine of the top 20 in the world either rising or falling in the world list.
France's 19-12 win against Ireland in Bordeaux means they move above England and closer to third-placed South Africa, who lost rating points following their 14-9 home Tri Nations defeat to Australia in Durban.
Outside the world's top 10, six more of the nations bound for the World Cup played important preparatory matches.
Fiji and Canada are the week's biggest climbers, both up two places in the World Rankings following wins against Tonga and USA respectively.
The Fijians' 27-12 win on home soil against higher-ranked Tonga means they rise to 12th in the world.
Meanwhile, Canada's 27-7 away victory against Eddie O'Sullivan's US Eagles sees them climb to 14th, overtaking the Tongans who fall three places to 15th.
In the weekend's other match, John Kirwan's current side Japan lost out to his former charges Italy, 31-24 in Cesena. Italy remain in 11th place, while Pacific Nations Cup champions Japan fall one to 13th

IRB World Rankings
1(1) NEW ZEALAND 93.26
2(2) AUSTRALIA 87.75
3(3) SOUTH AFRICA 84.08
4(5) FRANCE 82.69
5(4) ENGLAND 81.82
6(6) IRELAND 80.67
7(7) WALES 80.22
8(8) ARGENTINA 78.97
9(9) SCOTLAND 78.57
10(10) SAMOA 74.55
11(11) ITALY 74.14
12(14) FIJI 72.25
13(12) JAPAN 71.96
14(16) CANADA 71.56
15(13) TONGA 71.07
16(15) GEORGIA 70.30
17(18) ROMANIA 65.57
18(17) USA 65.00
19(19) RUSSIA 61.93
20(20) NAMIBIA 61.43

IRB World Rankings Explanation

The IRB World Rankings are calculated using a 'Points Exchange' system, in which sides take points off each other based on the match result. Whatever one side gains, the other loses.
The exchanges are based on the match result, the relative strength of each team, and the margin of victory, and there is an allowance for home advantage.
Points exchanges are doubled during the World Cup Finals to recognise the unique importance of this event, but all other full international matches are treated the same, to be as fair as possible to countries playing a different mix of friendly and competitive matches across the world.
Any match that is not a full international between two member countries does not count at all.
All member countries have a rating, typically between 0 and 100. The top side in the world will normally have a rating above 90.

Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Can you tell in advance of matches what effect results will have on the rankings?
Yes we can, and this means that those involved with matches can know what is at stake, going into the match.
For each match, there are only five possible outcomes that can affect points exchanges: either side winning by more than 15 points, either side winning by up to 15 points, or a draw.
In each case, we can advise how many rating points each side will gain or lose. This type of preview information may be posted on the site.

Q. Does the system produce accurate and reliable rankings?
Several years' research went into developing the system, using an extensive database of international matches going back to 1871. All the weightings and values in the system were derived from detailed analysis of the results.
The system's reliability is assessed in a number of objective ways, including measuring its 'Predictive Accuracy'. If, over a period of time, the system tends to be good at predicting which side will win each match, then we can be confident that it is presenting an accurate and reliable picture of current strength, and responding appropriately to changes in form.

Q. How do you allow for home advantage?
When calculating points exchanges, the home side is treated as though they are three rating points better than their current rating. This has the effect of 'handicapping' the home side as they will tend to pick up fewer points for winning and give away more points for losing. In this way, the advantage of playing at home is cancelled out.

Q. How important is 'margin of victory' under the system?
The research suggested that match results are more important than margins of victory in producing accurate rankings. For instance, whether a side wins by 60 points or 100 points against much lower-rated opposition is not a good indicator of future performance.
However, the analysis also indicated that it is significant whether sides win relatively comfortably - with 'something to spare' - so a weighting is applied where a side wins a match by more than 15 points.

Q. Do sides earn credit for losing narrowly to higher rated opponents?
No they don't. In this system, you can't win points for losing, or lose points for winning. While it may be attractive to award points for heroic defeats, it is less appealing to deduct points from a team that has won. If the close match was an indication of a genuine shift in relative strength, this would be reflected in other results.

Q. Are all matches treated as equally important?
We have added a weighting for matches in the World Cup Finals, to recognise the unique importance and prestige of this event. All other full international matches between member unions, where players earn caps for playing for their country, currently count the same.

Q. Where do new countries start?
New member countries start with a rating of 40, and their rating is treated as provisional until they have played 10 matches. The rankings are responsive to results and it is possible to get from the bottom to the top (and vice-versa) in less than 20 matches. Countries will normally have a rating between 0 and 100.

Q. Will some countries tend to be higher rated at certain times of the year, such as following the Six Nations Championship?
No. As all matches are worth a total of 0 points (as whatever one side gains, the other loses) there is no particular advantage to playing more matches. Under the system, a country has a certain rating, which stays the same until they play again. Although matches often result in points exchanges, relatively 'predictable' results lead to very minor changes, and may result in no change to either side's rating at all.

Q. How important are past achievements in calculating the rankings?
The system is designed to produce an accurate picture of current strength, based on results. The importance of past successes will fade and be superseded by more recent results.

Q. How does the system deal with freak results?
There is a maximum that any side's rating can move, either up or down, based on one match result, to make sure that the system does not over-react.

Q. What happens if a country does not play for a number of years?
Their rating may be deemed to be 'dormant', in which case they will be removed from current ranking lists. However, when they are active again they will pick up their rating from where they left off.

Q. What happens if countries split, or merge?
When countries merge, the new country inherits the highest rating of any of the constituent countries.
When countries split, the new countries will inherit a rating at a fixed level below the rating of the original country.



How the IRB World Rankings are calculated
We'll use the Six Nations match between Wales and Scotland in Cardiff on 14 February 2004, to describe the process.

Step One: Check pre match ratings
Position (last week) Member Union Rating Point
1(1) ENGLAND 93.99
2(2) NEW ZEALAND 90.12
3(3) AUSTRALIA 86.58
4(4) FRANCE 82.71
5(5) SOUTH AFRICA 81.23
6(6) IRELAND 80.53
7(7) ARGENTINA 78.02
8(8) WALES 76.92
9(9) SCOTLAND 76.36
10(10) SAMOA 73.46
The top 10 countries in the IRB World Rankings, immediately before the match, are shown below. Wales were on a rating of 76.92 and Scotland slightly lower on 76.36.

Step Two: Allow for home advantage
To 'handicap' the home side, we treat them as though they are three points stronger than their current rating, which means that they will tend to pick up fewer points for winning, and give away more points for losing
This gives Wales a rating of 76.92 +3 = 79.92, against Scotland's rating of 76.36.

Step Three: Calculate the Rating Gap
The Rating Gap is the difference between the ratings of the two sides
Allowing for home advantage it is 79.92 - 76.36 = 3.56 (in favour of Wales).

Step Four: Check the possible Core Rating Changes
Core Rating Changes are based on the match result and the Rating Gap
As illustrated in the diagram below, with a Rating Gap of 3.56, if Wales won their Core Rating Change would be up, and Scotland's down, by 0.64
If the game was drawn, Wales Core Rating Change would be down, and Scotland's up, by 0.36
And finally if Scotland won their Core Rating Change would be up, and Wales's down, by 1.36.
So Wales, as the higher rated side (especially allowing for home advantage) would pick up fewer points than Scotland if they won the match, and would give away more points if they lost.

Step Five: Apply weighting factors
If one side has won by more than 15 points, we multiply the Core Rating Change by 1.5. So if Wales won 30-10 the points exchange would be 0.64 x 1.5 = 0.96.
If the match was part of the World Cup Finals, we would then double the Rating Change.
What happened?
Wales won the match 23-10, so the sides exchanged 0.64 rating points, with Wales going up to 77.57 and Scotland going down to 75.72.

[Welshboy]

DICK HOYT A TRUE AMERICAN DAD.
Truely Insperational

http://youtu.be/z22s5DzqQdQ

=D> =D> =D> =D> =D>

[Welshboy]

Forthcoming Rugby Fixtures

All times are local

International Match
Saturday , August 20
Wales vs Argentina 14:30
Scotland vs Italy 17:00
Ireland vs France 17:00

Currie Cup
Friday , August 19
Western Province vs Lions 19:00
Blue Bulls vs Griquas 19:10
Sharks vs Leopards 19:10
Saturday , August 20
Cheetahs vs Pumas 15:00

ITM Cup
Wednesday, August 17
Counties Manukau vs North Harbour 16:05
Otago vs Manawatu 20:05
Thursday , August 18
Wellington vs Southland 19:35
Saturday , August 20
Auckland vs Bay Of Plenty 14:35
North Harbour vs Northland 17:35
Manawatu vs Waikato 19:35
Canterbury vs Taranaki 12:35
Sunday , August 21
Tasman vs Otago 14:35
Hawkes Bay vs Counties Manukau 16:35

Tri-Nations
Saturday , August 20
South Africa vs New Zealand 17:05

[Welshboy]

A preview of the International Rugby teams playing this Saturday

South Africa vs New Zealand

...South Africa have made five changes to their starting line-up for Saturday's Tri-Nations Test against New Zealand.
There were recalls for fly-half Morné Steyn, loose forward Willem Alberts, hooker Bismarck du Plessis and loosehead prop Gurthrö Steenkamp. Patrick Lambie replaces the injured Frans Steyn.
In changes to the bench, CJ van der Linde was recalled as one of two props named in a five-two split while, Ashley Johnson replaces Jean Deysel, while Tendai Mtawarira, Danie Rossouw and Butch James are also among the replacements. Jean Deysel and Gerhard Mostert drop out of the matchday 22.
"This is our last chance to look at certain combinations before the Rugby World Cup. We've had these changes in mind since we started our planning for the international season, depending on the injury situation," said Peter de Villiers.
Victor Matfield will captain the team for a 16th time in his record 107th Test appearance for the Springboks.

South Africa: 15 Pat Lambie, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp.
Replacements: 16 John Smit, 17 Tendai Mtawarira, 18 CJ van der Linde, 19 Danie Rossouw, 20 Ashley Johnson, 21 Francois Hougaard, 22 Butch James.


...New Zealand have named a strong, if slightly second-string, line-up for their Tri-Nations clash with South Africa in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.
Hooker Keven Mealamu will captain the team for the second time in a Test, after he captained the All Blacks against Scotland in November 2008.
The starting XV sees fly-half Colin Slade make his second start in his fifth Test, Jimmy Cowan is at scrum-half, while in the forwards Liam Messam is at number eight, Adam Thomson is at openside flanker, Sam Whitelock returns alongside Ali Williams at lock and John Afoa returns from his eye socket injury at prop.
Graham Henry's selection also features the return of a number of other recently-injured All Blacks to the Test side for the first time in 2011. The All Blacks most capped prop Tony Woodcock returns to the front-row, while in the backs Richard Kahui is at centre, pairing with Sonny Bill Williams in the midfield for the first time; Isaia Toeava is on the right wing, and Israel Dagg, who scored a memorable try in last year's Test against the Springboks in Soweto, is at full-back.
This weekend's Test will feature a number of milestones for a trio of All Blacks, Blues and Auckland team-mates: Mealamu will play his 85th Test, Woodcock will play his 75th, while Ali Williams will pull on the black jersey for his 65th Test.
All Blacks Coach Henry said the All Blacks had had a great build-up in Port Elizabeth and the team was feeling refreshed and raring to go.
"There is excitement across the board in the squad and every player will be looking to put in a big performance this weekend," he said.
"Playing the Springboks at home is always a massive occasion and with Rugby World Cup spots also up for grabs, our players will be looking to put in a big performance.
"We know we will also be facing a wounded Springboks side who will want to bounce back from their three losses on the trot so we will have to be ready for a huge physical contest."

New Zealand: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Isaia Toeava, 13 Richard Kahui, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Colin Slade, 9 Jimmy Cowan, 8 Liam Messam, 7 Adam Thomson, 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Ali Williams, 4 Sam Whitelock, 3 John Afoa, 2 Keven Mealamu (capt) 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Hore, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Jarrad Hoeata, 19 Victor Vito, 20 Andy Ellis, 21 Piri Weepu, 22 Cory Jane.

Date: Saturday, August 20
Kick-off: 17:00 (15:00 GMT)
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Referee: George Clancy (Ireland)

WALES vs Argentina

...Wales number eight Ryan Jones has been sidelined for Saturday's Rugby World Cup warm-up clash against Argentina in Cardiff due to a calf problem.
The Ospreys forward, who was due to lead his country for a record-equalling 28th time, has been struggling and will not be risked in the fixture.
Jones is replaced by Andy Powell, with Jonathan Thomas moving on to the bench. Meanwhile, Martyn Williams, who wins his 99th cap this week, will skipper the side at the Millennium Stadium.
Coach Warren Gatland has allayed fears by saying Jones' withdrawal is purely precautionary.
"I think I would be worried if Ryan was starting on Saturday," said Gatland.
"The risk of him starting is that potentially it could injure the calf and rule him out of next week's training.
"It is just precautionary. It gives him another week to recover. We are making a sensible decision - we just want to make sure he is right.
"Experience and leadership is also important for us. Ryan is able to cover a few positions in terms of eight, six and in the second row as well.
"A player of that quality, and who has the flexibility in other roles, is important for us.
"He's very disappointed. He wanted to play, but it was about making the decision of him (Jones) having missed out on two other World Cups, why jeopardise anything by playing on Saturday?"
"It is an opportunity for Andy (Powell) to start on Saturday. I have spoken to Tony Hanks (Sale coach) on a number of occasions, and they've been very impressed with him up there," added Gatland.
"Andy was initially disappointed he wasn't selected for this game. He now gets a chance to start and to show what sort of physical impact he is capable of making."

Wales (revised): 15 Lee Byrne, 14 Leigh Halfpenny, 13 Jamie Roberts, 12 Jonathan Davies, 11 George North, 10 James Hook, 9 Tavis Knoyle, 8 Andy Powell, 7 Martyn Williams (capt), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun-Wyn Jones, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Paul James.
Replacements: 16 Huw Bennett, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Jonathan Thomas, 19 Justin Tipuric, 20 Lloyd Williams, 21 Stephen Jones, 22 Aled Brew.


...Argentina coach Santiago Phelan has selected his strongest line-up for Saturday's World Cup warm-up match with Wales in Cardiff.
The Pumas reached the World Cup semi-finals in 2007 and kick-off their campaign against 2003 champions England in New Zealand on September 10.
Phelan has opted to start with the likely starting XV for that match against the Welsh.
The Pumas boss has made six changes to the side that started the 78-15 thrashing of a South American select XV on June 6, bringing back several of his stalwarts.
Veteran prop Rodrigo Roncero, evergreen hooker Mario Ledesma, lock Patricio Albacete, back row duo Juan Manuel Leguizamon and Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe as well as fly-half Felipe Contepomi all return.
The line-up features twelve players who play in France's Top 14 championship.
Aside from England, Argentina - whose final warm-up game is against English side Worcester Warriors next Tuesday - will play Romania, Scotland and Georgia in their pool matches.

Argentina 15 Martin Rodriguez, 14 Horacio Agulla, 13 Marcelo Bosch, 12 Santiago Fernandez, 11 Gonzalo Camacho, 10 Felipe Contepomi (c), 9 Nicolas Vergallo, 8 Juan Fernandez Lobbe, 7 Juan Manuel Leguizamon, 6 Julio Farias Cabello, 5 Patricio Albacete, 4 Manuel Carizza, 3 Juan Figallo, 2 Mario Ledesma, 1 Rodrigo Roncero.
Replacements: 16Agustin Creevy, 17 Martin Scelzo, 18 Mariano Galarza, 19 Alejandro Campos, 20 Alfredo Lalanne, 21 Nicolas Sanchez, 22 Juan Imhoff.

Date: Saturday, August 20
Kick-off: 14:30 BST (13:30 GMT)
Venue: Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Referee: Romain Poite (France)

Scotland vs Italy

...Glasgow centre Graeme Morrison is the lone survivor from the line-up of Scotland's victory against Ireland for their clash with Italy on Saturday.
Head coach Andy Robinson has told his players that the contest against the Azzurri represents the last chance to influence the composition of his 30-man squad for the upcoming Rugby World Cup, which will be announced on Monday.
"We have made 14 changes from the team that started against Ireland as we want to give those players who have been working very hard in training the opportunity to put that into practice in Saturday's Test match against Italy," he said.
"Historically Scotland have found Italy very tough opponents and it was no surprise to us that they achieved one of the results of the RBS 6 Nations Championship earlier this year when they accounted for France in Rome."
Italy were on warm-up duty last weekend at home achieving a narrow victory over Japan but Robinson does not read too much into that match.
"We knew we had to be at our best when we faced them next up after their success against France and I was pleased with the way our forwards in particular fronted up at setpiece back in March," he explained.
Nick De Luca, the Edinburgh centre, scored Scotland's first try in that 21-8 victory and he wins a starting berth having impressed off the bench playing a key part in Joe Ansbro's try against Ireland earlier this month.
Simon Danielli, who made a try scoring debut against Italy eight years ago when another trip to the Antipodes on World Cup business was on the horizon, also returns while Rory Lamont sees his first international duty of the year at full-back.
There's an experienced look to the pack with Alastair Kellock resuming captaincy alongside Nathan Hines in the second-row, while Scott Lawson, who scored a try in Scotland's opening tie of the 2007 Rugby World Cup against Portugal, is given the opportunity to press his claims at hooker.
On the bench, two players who have been diligent in their fightback from injury alongside the care of the Scotland medical team, Chris Cusiter (calf) and Euan Murray (Achilles,) have satisfied the coaches on their readiness for the fray.
"It was encouraging to emerge with a win against Ireland and also that our defence did not yield a try. As ever our aim is to improve on that last showing and I believe that Italy will prove ideal opponents ahead of our opening Rugby World Cup matches against Romania and Georgia," Robinson added.

Scotland: 15 Rory Lamont, 14 Max Evans, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Simon Danielli, 10 Dan Parks, 9 Mike Blair, 8 Richie Vernon, 7 John Barclay, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Alastair Kellock (capt), 4 Nathan Hines, 3 Moray Low, 2 Scott Lawson, 1 Alasdair Dickinson.
Replacements: 16 Dougie Hall, 17 Euan Murray, 18 Richie Gray, 19 Ross Rennie, 20 Chris Cusiter, 21 Ruaridh Jackson, 22 Nikki Walker.


...Italy coach Nick Mallett has made eleven changes to his line-up for Saturday's Rugby World Cup warm-up Test against Scotland at Murrayfield.
Mallett has restored a laregly first choice three-quarter line with only Tommaso Benvenuti keeping his place on the wing, although he switches from left to right.
Up front, only captain Sergio Parisse at number eight and front-rowers Andrea Lo Cicero and Leonardo Ghiraldini keep their places from last week's Test against Japan, which ended in a 31-24 success in Cesena.
It means that Mallett will have given 26 of his 30-man squad a start in their two warm-ups ahead of the World Cup in New Zealand.
Only front-rowers Salvatore Perugini, who is injured, and Fabio Ongaro will not feature while inexperienced hooker Tommaso D'Apice, who made a brief debut against Japan for the final two minutes, and third choice scrum-half Pablo Canavosio start from the bench for the second game in a row.
South African-born lock Cornelius Van Zyl makes his first start following his debut as a substitute against Japan.

Italy: 15 Andrea Masi, 14 Tommaso Benvenuti, 13 Gonzalo Canale, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Mirco Bergamasco, 10 Luciano Orquera, 9 Fabio Semenzato, 8 Sergio Parisse (captain), 7 Robert Barbieri, 6 Paul Derbyshire, 5 Cornelius Van Zyl, 4 Carlo Antonio Del Fava, 3 Martin Castrogiovanni, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 1 Andrea Lo Cicero.
Replacements: 16 Tommaso D'Apice, 17 Lorenzo Cittadini, 18 Marco Bortolami, 19 Alessandro Zanni, 20 Pablo Canavosio, 21 Riccardo Bocchino, 22 Matteo Pratichetti.

Date: Saturday, August 20
Venue: Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Kick-off: 17.00 (16.00 GMT)
Referee: Dave Pearson (England)
Assistant referees: Peter Fitzgibbon (Ireland), Robin Goodliffe (England)
TMO: Hugh Watkins (Wales)

Ireland vs France

...Leinster centre Brian O'Driscoll will return to the Irish starting line-up and will lead the team out as captain against France in Dublin on Saturday.
There are six changes in the backline, one of which is positional. Felix Jones will make his first Ireland start at full-back and Munster team-mate Keith Earls moves from the centre to left wing.
With Earls moving into the back three, Gordon D'Arcy comes into the midfield alongside captain O'Driscoll, who will both be making their debuts for the season. Jonathan Sexton starts at ten and will be partnered at half-back by Tomas O'Leary.
Paul O'Connell and Jamie Heaslip come into the team after being second-half replacements last week and Sean O'Brien moves to number six.

Ireland: 15 Felix Jones, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (capt), 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Tomas O'Leary, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace, 6 Sean O'Brien, 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements: 16 Jerry Flannery, 17 Tom Court, 18 Mike McCarthy, 19 Stephen Ferris, 20 Eoin Reddan, 21 Ronan O'Gara, 22 Luke Fitzgerald.


...As expected, France coach Marc Lièvremont has made thirteen changes to his starting XV for Saturday's World Cup warm-up against Ireland in Dublin.
Outside centre Aurélien Rougerie returns after a long injury lay-off while prop Fabien Barcella will make his first appearance in over a year from the bench.
Only wing Alexis Palisson and hooker Dimitri Szarzewski are retained from the team that beat Ireland 19-12 in Bordeaux last week.
With Thierry Dusautoir rested, former skipper Lionel Nallet will lead the side.
There is one notable absentee: Toulouse hooker William Servat, who has not played since the end of the Top 14 season due to a knee injury.
"Medically speaking he is doing very well," said Lièvremont.
"But in pure rugby terms, he's not ready. We're expecting a very physical match, at least as fast as last Saturday. We wouldn't be doing him, or us, any favours by making him play knowing that Dimitri (Szarzewski) and Guilhem (Guirado) were very good last week.
"It will allow him to follow a more intensive programme than the rest of the squad this week and next week."

France: 15 Cedric Heymans, 14 Maxime Médard, 13 Aurélien Rougerie, 12 Fabrice Estebanez, 11 Alexis Palisson, 10 David Skrela, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Louise Picamoles, 7 Julien Bonnaire, 6 Fulgence Ouedraogo, 5 Lionel Nallet, 4 Pascale Papé, Nicolas Mas, 2 Dimitri Szarzewski, 1 Jean-Baptiste Poux.
Replacements:16 Guilhem Guirado , 17 Fabien Barcella , 18 Julien Pierre, 19 Raphaël Lakafia, 20 Dimitri Yachvili, 21 David Marty, 22 Vincent Clerc, 23 Luc Ducalcon.

Date: Saturday, August 20
Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Kick-off: 17.00 (16.00 GMT)

[maaka]

GO THE ALL BLACKS B TEAM...
Will be most interesting, and alittle nervous re possible injuries when playing such big yarpies..

[Welshboy]

South Africa vs New Zealand

Boks bag first win of the year
.20th August 2011
...Morné Steyn kicked all of South Africa's points as they beat New Zealand 18-5 in Saturday's Tri-Nations clash in Port Elizabeth.
The All Blacks scored the only try of the game, but were outmuscled up front by their hosts. The whole Bok team tackled their hearts out and Steyn's strong tactical kicking, especially in the second half, allowed them to keep the visitors pinned back.
As has become the norm in clashes between these sides, the All Blacks looked the more dangerous side with ball in hand, but the Springboks can count themselves deserved winners and will take encouragement from their improvement in defence and at scrum time in their final game before the World Cup.
It was South Africa's best performance of the year - by some margin - but the Springbok management will continue to be concerned by their team's inability to cross the try line. (Peter de Villiers' team have scored just three tries this year - all by hookers John Smit and Chiliboy Ralepelle.)
By contrast, Graham Henry's task of picking his backs for the World Cup was made no easier by strong performances by Israel Dagg, Isaia Toeava and Hosea Gear. However Adam Thomson's hopes of making the starting XV on September 9 took a step backwards as his overeagerness cost his side a number of penalties.
Just how much can be read into this result is debatable as it would be overly harsh to judge New Zealand on the performance of a make-shift side.
New Zealand did most of the playing in the first quarter but it was the hosts who held a 12-0 lead after half-an-hour as their charged-up pack forced the All Blacks to infringe at the rucks and at scrum time.
Steyn moved the Boks further ahead with a neat drop-goal but it was the men in black who would cross the whitewash for the game's only try, courtesy of Richard Kahui, who muscled his way past three defenders after Gear had cut through the Boks' defensive curtain with a searing run.
South Africa led 15-5 at half time with Steyn's fifth penalty the only points of the second period.

Man of the match: The home side's cover defence saved their bacon on a number of occasions with Jaque Fourie coming to the rescue two or three times. But we'll go for Morné Steyn who not only scored all the hosts' points, but generally controlled the game.

Moment of the match: With the All Blacks trailing by ten points, Jimmy Cowan's disallowed try will be subject of debate for a long time to come. Dagg's final pass was certainly forward... and television match official Johann Meuwesen made sure referee George Clancy knew about it.

Villain of the match: It wasn't tiddlywinks but no one deserves a mention.

The scorers:
For South Africa:
Pens: Steyn 5
Drop: Steyn

For New Zealand:
Try: Kahui

WALES vs Argentina

Second warm-up win for Wales
...Wales scored their second Test victory in as many weeks on Saturday with a 28-13 victory over 2007 World Cup semi-finalists Argentina at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
Wales led 14-3 at half-time thanks to try from number eight Andy Powell and a handful of penalties from James Hook.
The Pumas pack dominated in opening stages but their kickers - Felipe Contepomi and Marcelo Bosch - failed to reflect the visitors' ascendancy on the scoreboard.
Wales lock Alun-Wyn Jones provided the spark the hosts need just before the break, setting up Powell to score before touching down himself shortly after the break.
The home side raised their game in the second period, taking charge to seal victory via a late try from wing George North.
Replacement front-row Martin Scelzo scored a consolation try for Argentina in the dying moments which Felipe converted but the result was already beyond doubt.
Wales were determined to build on the triumph over England last weekend and enter their World Cup opener against world champions South Africa on September, 11, on the back of two victories.
One worry, though, for Wales was they lost veteran fly-half Stephen Jones before kick-off, with a recurrence of a calf injury, with Scott Williams stepping up to the bench.
But Wales led by Martyn Williams, who won his 99th cap, comfortably completed their mission.
The Pumas gave the hosts a real scare early on after Contepomi threaded a grubber along the touchline.
Leicester Tigers' Horacio Agulla scorched-up the wing and beat Jonathan Davies to the ball but it had brushed the touchline on the bounce.
Wales had their first chance eighteen minutes into the scrappy encounter but Davies was unable to hold-on to Hook's pass following a Tavis Knoyle quick tap.
Contepomi opened the scoring on 29 minutes with a well-taken penalty. Moments later the Argentine fly-half had the chance to extend the visitors lead but was once again off target with the boot.
And Wales took full advantage moments later when they surged into the lead thanks to Powell's first ever try for his country.
Knoyle broke off the back of a scrappy scrum and linked with second-row Jones who then released Powell to race into the corner. Hook expertly slotted the touchline conversion and they grabbed a second quick-fire try within moments of the restart.
Jamie Roberts offloaded out of contact to release North and the Scarlets flyer beat his opposite number and Contepomi before drawing Martin Rodriguez to put Jones over for a try of his own.
Hook was again on target to hand Wales a 14-3 half-time lead. Wales started the second-half with much better effect than the first and they got their reward with a Hook penalty on 44 minutes.
He added a second on 53 minutes to extend Wales' lead to 20-3. Argentina were dealt a blow when Juan Fernandez Lobbe was sent to the sin-bin after taking Jones out at the restart.
But Contepomi struck-back with a penalty on 62 minutes to reduce the deficit to 20-6. Wales made a raft of replacements in the final quarter and it was no surprise that the game lost its shape and rhythm.
And they were dealt a World Cup scare when Roberts limped off with what appeared to be a dead leg. But the hosts finished in style with North crashing over for his seventh try in nine matches for Wales.
It was a well-worked move by Wales, they sucked in the Pumas' defence and spread the ball wide to centre Davies who flicked a pass inside to North.
Argentina grabbed a late consolation try with a trademark drive over maul which Contepomi converted but it was not enough and Hook added a final penalty at the death.

The scorers:
For Wales:
Tries: Powell, AW Jones, NorthCon: Hook 2
Pen: Hook 3

For Argentina:
Try: Scelzo
Cons: Contepomi
Pens: Contepomi 2

Ireland vs France

France see off Ireland in Dublin
...Ireland are facing up to the prospect of going into the World Cup without a warm-up win to their name after they lost out 26-22 to France on Saturday.
Les Bleus - who beat the Irish 19-12 in Bordeaux last Saturday - will name their RWC squad on Sunday while Ireland name theirs on Monday.
The Irish wrap up their preparations with a home match against 2003 champions England next Saturday and will be desperate for a victory.
It is worth mentioning that France only won the game by four and Ireland gifted their visitors seven second-half points when Tomas O'Leary threw a wild pass to pivot Francois Trinh-Duc.
There were ten changes to the Irish side that lost in Bordeaux last weekend, with skipper Brian O'Driscoll and midfield partner Gordon D'Arcy starting in midfield, while Paul O'Connell and Jamie Heaslip made their first warm-up starts.
Shane Jennings filled in for the injured David Wallace in the back-row, while Munster's Felix Jones made his first start for Ireland at full back.
There were plenty of changes in the visiting side too, with Lievremont retaining just Alexis Palisson and Dimitri Szarzewski from last weekend, with the majority of the French players making their first appearance of the season.
Ireland, therefore, should have had the edge physically, and the tempo with which they began the game was testament to that.
It took just two minutes for them to open the scoring through a Jonathan Sexton penalty. They attacked relentlessly and it was only a matter of time before the breakthrough came.
Having stretched the French across the field, Healy was left in a one-on-one with France scrum-half Parra who was simply blown away by the Leinster prop, who crossed to score his first international try in 20 appearances.
Sexton pushed the extras wide, but Ireland deservedly led 8-0 with just 11 minutes gone.
France turned the match on its head in the space of five minutes, with Parra opening his account with a straightforward penalty from just outside the 22-yard line on 26 minutes.
Trinh-Duc punished a poor clearance by O'Leary to strike home a drop goal from just inside the Irish half. Then came the French try as Aurelien Rougerie cut through the midfield with ease. Heymans ran a great line to run home in style and take the lead for the first time.
Parra added another penalty just before the break and then added a third just after the restart. The points kept coming for the visitors as they added a second try moments later.
Unfortunately for the hosts, the score was self inflicted, with O'Leary the culprit as his suicidal attempted pass to Sexton was intercepted by Trinh-Duc, who touched down unopposed. Sexton and O'Brien then put a little gloss on the scoreline late on.

The scorers:
For Ireland:
Tries: Healy, Sexton, O'Brien
Con: O'Gara 2
Pen: Sexton

For France:
Tries: Heymans, Trinh-Duc
Con: Parra 2
Pen: Parra 3
Drop: Trinh-Duc

Scotland vs Italy

Scotland make it two from two
...Scotland beat Italy 23-12 at Murrayfield on Saturday to complete their World Cup preparations with a second consecutive win.
Both teams scored two tries but three penalties from the boot of home fly-half Dan Parks proved the difference after 80 minutes.
The result sees the Scots build on the 10-6 win over Ireland a fortnight ago although the success was marred somewhat by the sight of Nikki Walker leaving the field on a stretcher in the closing stages with a knee injury.
Coach Andy Robinson will name his World Cup squad on Monday.
The crowd in sun-kissed Edinburgh found immediate cause for excitement as the Scots surged straight into attack. The hosts got off to a cracking start as Alasdair Dickinson scored his first Test try on the ten minute mark following a slaloming run by wing Max Evans.
Italy replied through a try from wing Tommaso Benvenuti which Mirco Bergamasco converted but Parks' second penalty gave Scotland a 13-7 half-time lead.
Scotland continued to earn the bulk of possession and territory, but the good early work was spoiled when they gave away a series of turnovers.
The action continued to be scrappy and disjointed after the restart with the Scots looking increasingly nervy.
And it was the Italians who were producing the more attractive and constructive rugby - much to the frustration of the vast majority among the 20,245-strong crowd.
The visitors' pluck and endeavour was rewarded in the 48th minute as Treviso scrum-half Fabio Semenzato scored the second try.
The Scots' fringe defence was markedly absent as the smallest man on the pitch darted through a gap to score from close quarters after a well-controlled pick and drive sequence.
Scotland needed a stroke of good fortune and the vision of vice-captain Mike Blair to ease the jitters.
Andrea Masi fatally delayed his clearance kick, giving Edinburgh scrum-half Blair the chance to charge it down and win the race for the critical try.
The conversion was a formality for Parks, who stretched the gap to eight points, and two minutes later he thumped over a 40-metre penalty to give the hosts even more breathing space.

For Scotland:
Tries: Dickinson, Blair
Cons: Parks 2
Pens: Parks 3

For Italy:
Tries: Benvenuti, Semenzato
Cons: Bergamasco

[Welshboy]

Rugby Union: 2011/2012: Wales v Argentina
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0 ... Argentina/

Ireland vs France
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/default.stm

Rugby Union: 2011/2012: Scotland v Italy
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0 ... d_v_Italy/

[splasher]

GO THE ALL BLACKS B TEAM...
Will be most interesting, and a little nervous re possible injuries when playing such big yarpies..

And New Zealand and Pacific Islands (Napi's)got shorn ..

[splasher]

Wales improving with every game..