NZ wins Wellington Sevens - unearths new star......

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Three tries to speedster Declan O'Donnell ensured New Zealand landed the Wellington sevens rugby tournament crown with an emphatic 29-14 win over England tonight.



The Waikato teenager had earlier scored twice against Australia to send the hosts into the final and it was his blistering speed and the team's defiance after the loss of captain DJ Forbes early in the match that saw them claim their fifth Wellington title and a share of the world series lead.

Forbes, playing in his 38th sevens tournament, left the field with a knee injury following Isoa Damu's try that handed England, winners here in 2009, a 7-0 lead.

But New Zealand drew inspiration from old hands Tomasi Cama, Lote Raikabula and Forbes' replacement Solomon King to score 29 unanswered points to deny England.

Cama provided the first try for the busy Toby Arnold, before 19-year-old O'Donnell sparked into life in wet conditions.

He fended off Dan Norton twice to score under the posts and give New Zealand a 12-7 lead at the break.
From the restart, New Zealand pounced on an England error and Arnold repaid the favour for Cama who sold an outrageous dummy to scoot over next to the posts.

O'Donnell, who overcame an ankle injury to play in the tournament, then showed why he is being tipped for big things with a 80-metre dash to the line after New Zealand had soaked up concerted England pressure.

He had his third try and his 10th for the tournament with 90 seconds left and despite a minor melee near the close the final say went to England with substitute Simon Hunt scoring their second try.

New Zealand had earlier beaten Australia 17-0 to make the final, while England, who held the outright world series lead heading into the final, beat Samoa 7-5.

In addition to O'Donnell's two tries in the semi-final, Tim Mikkelson scored from 50 metres out and New Zealand withstood the sinbinning of playmaker Cama midway through the second half.

A conversion was all that separated England from Samoa in the other semi-final. The leading points scorer in international sevens, Ben Gollings, dinked over the extra points to give England a two-point lead but they then had to dig deep to deny a late surge from Samoa.

England, down a man after repeated infringing, were almost undone with time up on the clock.

Reupena Levasa opted for the kick and chase and it looked to have paid dividends only for his third kick to slide dead in goal with the try line begging.

Samoa, who struggled on the first day and had been thumped 29-5 by Australia in their final pool match, had made the semi-final after a surprise defeat of the in-form Fiji.

They led at the break after an unconverted try to Ofisa Treviranus, but England's John Brake capped a 95-metre move by England to give Gollings the chance to put them into the lead.

Elsewhere, defending champions Fiji won the plate final after beating South Africa 26-12, Kenya won the bowl after downing Tonga 19-0 and United States beat France 19-12 to claim the shield

Related articles

• England lose to New Zealand in Wellington Sevens final (telegraph.co.uk)
• New Zealand claim Wellington crown (uk.eurosport.yahoo.com)
• Turner sails to the rescue after Cook Islands serve up scare (independent.co.uk)
• DJ Forbes looking for some Wellington luck (3news.co.nz)
• England lose out in Sevens final (news.bbc.co.uk)

Great night for New Zealand rugby and league...

Image via WikipediaWhat a great weekend for Kiwi sports fans - great wins for the All Blacks against Scotland, after a scratchy win against England and that rusty incompetent loss to the Australian Wallabies. The latter getting their arse kicked by England last night.
 And the Kiwis beating the Australian Kangaroos in the league four Nations final at Suncorp stadium in Brisbane
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The kiwis have now won three tournaments in the last five years.
However the Wellington  Phoenix soccer team in the Aussie A team competition, (notice I said soccer because that is the real name for their code - Association Football, abbreviated to "soccer". At least the Americans are spot on and haven't fallen for that "football" crap. Couple of more games for the AB's and another Grand Slam against the so-called home unions
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What to you think of  SBW? Sonny Bill Williams the former NRL  rugby league and Kiwis test player. He's learning the art of the more complicated rugby union code - and making a good fist of it too. Player of the day last night!

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All Blacks beat England in dour test...

The All Blacks rumble on and poor old England stumble on, though at least Martin Johnson's men were able to make a lot more of a game of it at Twickenham today than their critics were predicting. 

In the end the All Blacks, still playing as though they've left their handbrake on, were comfortable 19-6 winners as they kept alive a couple of remarkable records in these autumn internationals


They still haven't lost in one of these November test matches since Graham Henry took charge in 2004, and they kept their line intact for another international in a run up here which stretches back to 2006. Defensively, these All Blacks are right on top of their game.


The same can't quite be said of the black attack, which once again managed just one try in 80 minutes of rugby, and despite a succession of promising raids, the final pass or the key break just couldn't be made. Once more you were left with a suspicion that despite their success, these New Zealanders still have a long way to go on the improvement chart

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Still, this is test rugby. And as the All Blacks told us in the buildup, it's about winning first and foremost. By doing so with a degree of comfort today the New Zealanders not only retained the Hillary Shield but left English rugby with another week of navel-gazing

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Kiwis won opener against English - still more to come in Four Nations...

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The NZ  Kiwis might have won the opening battle of the Four Nations against England but they suffered a major blow to their campaign after wing Manu Vatuvei left the field with a fracture to the right arm.



Vatuvei, the Warriors marquee signing, looks to be ruled out for the rest of the campaign.



His arm was hit making a tackle in the third minute and he left the field immediately.



He went straight to the hospital for X-rays and it was confirmed later in the match he had fractured his radius bone.



The blokes holding up the "time for the beast to feast" banner got short-changed but it didn't stop Junior Sau from feasting as he moved to the left wing and Simon Mannering moved into the centres from the second row.



Coach Stephen Kearney said an injury to Vatuvei was something he was dreading, given they didn't take an extra winger into the game, preferring to leave Sam Perrett out of the 17.



"No doubt it had an effect on the balance of the side. But that was only initially before we became accustomed to it. I thought Junior did a pretty good job filling in.


Sau's try came came a minute after Vatuvei exited with a broken forearm. The Newcastle centre said it was intimidating because he hadn't played out wide for a while.



"It left a massive gap with the Beast gone early in the game but I had a job to do. Last time I played wing was four or five years ago in the under-20s, but it felt good out there. Mind you, I still needed the help of Fieny [Nathan Fien] and [Frank] Pritchard to feed off. They gave me a hand.



"If Manu was there that would have been his try. I got a good ball from Thomas [Leuluai] and fortunately the English winger [Tom Briscoe] was turned in."



Vatuvei's absence means Perrett is likely to return to the side for next week's test against Papua New Guinea in Rotorua.



Post-match, Perrett was hauling the team gear piece by piece to the bus. He's likely to have another job next week.



"I am always ready to play," Perrett says. "As soon as the call comes, I'll be ready and willing to get there. It's unfortunate for Manu - he really adds something to the team."



But Perrett said reforming the Roosters centre-wing combination with Shaun Kenny-Dowall is something to anticipate in Vatuvei's absence. The pair helped take the Roosters from 2009 wooden-spooners to grand finalists this year.



"We've had a whole season there and that'll be an advantage in its own way."



New Zealand was able to dominate with a wealth of possession, helped by a significantly better completion rate (86 per cent v 67 per cent), midway through the first half. That steadily declined as weariness set in but the damage was done in those first 20 minutes.



Consequently England were run ragged and sapped of energy through tackling which left them little to offer by way of attack.



It resulted in some ineffectual runs and dropped balls, the most notable coming from second-rower Sam Burgess who had an unforced spill in the 22nd minute which further lowered morale after they had set themselves up for a decent set of six midfield.



Fullback Gareth Widdop also dropped a crucial Marshall bomb four minutes into the second half as he wilted under Mannering's pressure. The resulting set of six saw Shaun Kenny-Dowall score after evading no less than five weak attempted tackles.



He managed to gallop his way across, continuing what has been a rich run of try-scoring form. The New Zealand player of the year picked up 21 tries with the Roosters in the NRL season.



The Kiwis capitalised on such English errors throughout. To their credit, there was also some slick movement through the hands. Both tries in the first half were set up in that fashion.



The first came with Thomas Leuluai flicking on a pass to Sau out on the left and he bustled over to set the tone.



The second came courtesy of some vintage Marshall jinking in midfield. He double-dummied to inside runners and worked his way to the right - then flicked a pass back to put Jason Nightingale in space.



He combined with Lance Hohaia backing up in the midfield to score by the posts. It sent the Kiwis out to a 12-0 lead at the break.



The English fought back strongly midway through the second half.



Coach Stephen Kearney would have been happy with the Kiwis' defensive line with just a solitary line break until hooker James Roby was able to weave his way inside and press the ball down off a grubber to the left of the posts.



That was followed by a dynamic counter-attack move to the right which went through the hands of centre Michael Shenton, five-eighth Kevin Brown and finally rested in the hands of Widdop.



It was a beautiful try but Widdop let himself down with a sloppy conversion just to the left of the upright which, if it had gone over, would have narrowed the gap to six points with 22 minutes to go.



The England resurgence was not over. Sam Tomkins banana-kicked for the corner and the New Zealand defence got sloppier as only prop Greg Eastwood was left to track back. Brown almost got the ball down in the follow through.



The only lapse in the first half came when lock Sean O'Loughlin busted through the line. He was tracked down and Junior Sau - one of the Kiwis' most impressive players of the night - hammered the receiver of his pass, Luke Robinson.



The game was only placed beyond doubt when Marshall literally stepped up to the task with 13 minutes to go.



It was another double-dummy move, complete with Marshall feints and goose steps on the 30 metre line. He worked his way right - and the English failed to put a finger on him for 10 metres.



Marshall found Nightingale again on an inside cut - and he continued his NRL grand final-winning form in support. He was half-tackled but flicked it back to the skipper whose dive breezed inside the corner flag with millimetres to spare.



It was a fine try and a good, but not entirely convincing, win. The Kiwis have the Kumuls next and will need to do better to beat Australia.



New Zealand 24 (J Sau, L Hohaia, S Kenny-Dowall, B Marshall tries, Marshall 4 goals) England 10 (J Roby, G Widdop tries; G Widdop goal) Halftime: NZ 12-0.



Acknowledgements: NZ Herald/Andrew Alderson

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Canterbury rebounds in Christchurch - Sonny Bill Williams scores crucial bonus point try against Wellington...

Canterbury rebounds in Christchurch  -  Sonny Bill Williams scores crucial bonus point try against Wellington...  .




.Canterbury bounced back from last week's upset ITM Cup defeat to Taranaki with a 37-30 win over Wellington in Christchurch on Saturday.







A late furry of scoring with the wind behind them earned the home side their victory over the Lions in front of a bumper home crowd that was given free entry in respect of the recent Canterbury earthquake.





In an even contest throughout, both sides played open and enterprising rugby whenever possible and each scored four tries. But it was Canterbury tries in the 64th and 68th minutes that helped make the difference, giving them a 34-25 lead heading into the last 10 minutes.





With Wellington in front 25-20 following a try off the back of a scrum to number eight Faifili Levave, Canterbury full-back Sean Maitland scored in the corner and fly-half Colin Slade converted to put his team ahead for the first time since midway through the first half.





Replacement centre Sonny Bill Williams then broke through for a second quickfire converted try to extend their advantage to nine points.





The Lions hit back almost immediately through scrum-half Alby Mathewson who stole the ball from the back of a Canterbury scrum on their own tryline and darted over for a five-pointer, bringing the score back to 34-30.





The home side were able to re-establish field position and hold off the Lions once more and Slade was able to kick a late penalty to make sure of the victory.





Despite the defeat and Canterbury's retention of the Harry Saundercock Memorial Trophy, the Lions earned two competition points and will remain near the top of the ITM Cup points table at the conclusion of this weekend's tenth round.





Tighthead prop Neemia Tialata failed a pre-game fitness test on his injured ankle and wing Hosea Gear assumed the captaincy of the Lions for the first time.





It was Gear who helped spark the Lions to a 20-13 lead at half-time with a pair of wonderful tries, after Canterbury had opened the scoring in the 12th minute through their speedster Telusa Veaniu who took a final pass from former Wellington centre Robbie Fruean after a midfield scrum turnover.





Wellington answered through Gear who raced up into the defensive line and plucked a Canterbury pass out of the air and cruised 60 metres for a try under the bar. Fly-half Lima Sopoaga's conversion evened up the ledger to 7-7 after 17 minutes.





Both sides probed for further opportunities and Slade and Sopoaga exchanged penalties to make it 10-10.





The tight run of play ensued. Slade put his side back in the lead with a penalty in front. Sopoaga replied with his second penalty after a concerted period of attack, making it 13-13 after 30 minutes.





Sopoaga put Canterbury back inside their 22 with a pinpoint touch-finder into the corner. Canterbury's defensive line-out was overthrown and the loose ball was snaffled at the back by flanker Scott Fugistaller.





From Fugistaller's initial incursion, Wellington swung play both ways across the posts to Gear, who effortlessly steamed in for his second try. Sopoaga converted to put the Lions ahead 20-13.





A Slade penalty attempt hit the uprights, before a Sizzling break by Julian Savea put the Lions back into the attacking zone. Canterbury held on and the half-time hooter sounded soon after with the home side inside Wellington's half of play.





Now with the wind advantage, it was Canterbury's turn to score next through halfback Andy Ellis who finished off a sweeping movement.





Canterbury failed to control the next re-start, leading to a Lions scrum and surge at the line by the Lions forwards. Prop David Te Moana crashed over in a heap of bodies for a try in reply that the TMO couldn't award due to inconclusive evidence.





But with the heat still on, the Lions attacked from a 5m scrum and Levave made a powerful burst at the chalk and was rewarded with a try. Sopoaga pushed the conversion wide but the visitors were back in front at 25-20.





Maitland scored in the corner in broken play and Slade converted to put Canterbury back in front with 15 minutes remaining.





Sonny Bill Williams scored his try next. Slade's conversion extended their advantage to 34-25 and the Lions now needed to score twice with 12 minutes on the clock.





Flanker Api Naikatini couldn't reel in a fingertips pass in the left-hand corner, leading to a defensive Canterbury scrum feed.





From the set-piece, Mathewson snaffled the ball from Canterbury number eight Nasi Manu's grasp and came up with the Lions' bonus-point try and the deficit was whittled back to four points ahead of a tense final nine minutes of play.





The scorers:





For Canterbury:

Tries: Veainu, Ellis, Maitland, Williams

Cons: Slade 4

Pens: Slade 3





For Wellington:

Tries: Gear 2, Levave, MathewsonCons: Sopoaga 2

Pens: Sopoaga 2





Canterbury: 15 Sean Maitland, 14 Tu Umaga-Marshall, 13 Robbie Fruean, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 Telusa Veainu, 10 Colin Slade, 9 Andy Ellis, 8 Nasi Manu, 7 George Whitelock (c), 6 Matt Todd, 5 Isaac Ross, 4 Luke Romano, 3 Peter Borlase, 2 Corey Flynn, 1 Wyatt Crockett.

Replacements: 16 Steve Fualau, 17 Andrew Olorenshaw, 18 Rob Verbakel, 19 Ash Parker, 20 Willi Heinz, 21 Stephen Brett, 22 Sonny Bill Williams.





Wellington: 15 Apoua Stewart, 14 Julian Savea, 13 Shaun Treeby, 12 Charlie Ngatai, 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Lima Sopoaga, 9 Alby Mathewson, 8 Faifili Levave, 7 Scott Fuglistaller, 6 Api Naikatini, 5 Nick Passi, 4 Jeremy Thrush, 3 Neemia Tialata/David Te Moana, 2 Dane Coles, 1 John Schwalger.

Replacements: 16 Ged Robinson, 17 David Te Moana/Reg Goodes, 18 Brad Shields, 19 Dean Brunsdon, 20 Ruki Tipuna, 21 Fa'atonu Fili, 22 Alapati Leiua.





Referee: Bryce Lawrence

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NZ Black Ferns win womens Rugby World Cup for fourth time...

Image via Wikipedia Rugby World Cup  -  New Zealand's fourth straight women's World Cup win this morning, after narrowly beating England 13-10 in the final at London, was built around composure, veteran first five-eighth Anna Richards said.


Richards, 45, was one of three Black Ferns shown the yellow card during the keenly contested match which was not settled until the 66th minute when Kelly Brazier slotted home a penalty.



The Black Ferns' defence then proved impenetrable for the final 14 minutes as England, playing New Zealand in a final for the third consecutive time, launched a series of attacks from deep inside their half in a desperate attempt to snatch victory.



For Richards, it was a fourth World Cup medal in a Black Ferns career that began in 1990.



Today's final marked her 49th test for the Blacks Ferns after having been called up when first choice No 10 Amiria Rule was ruled out of the tournament with a knee injury.



"It feels awesome, it feels kind of surreal," Richards said at a post match interview.



"It was an awesome atmosphere tonight and kind of a strange game with all the sin-binnings. It was a weird game actually, but nice to come out on top.



"It definitely ebbed and flowed. I thought we had the better first 15 or 20 and then England came back when we had a couple of sin-binnings.



"Our composure (helped us win), especially when we were down to 14 and 13 at some stages, and we believed in ourselves."



It felt good to collect her fourth winner's medal.



"I am tired but it is kind of surreal, I will believe it later but I am really happy. This one is exactly the same, it doesn't get any better - it's the best."



Otago winger Carla Hohepa crossed in the 33rd minute to score the opening try of the match while the Black Ferns had 14 players on the field.



Richards had been shown the yellow card for not rolling away in the 22nd minute and was joined in sin bin seven minutes later by prop Mel Bosman.



Otago second five-eighth Kelly Brazier converted Hohepa's try and New Zealand went to the break leading 7-0.



England's Katy McLean narrowed the lead with an early second half penalty but New Zealand came back.



Hohepa nearly added a second try when she pounced on an England turnover but lock Joanna McGilchrist produced the cover tackle of the tournament.



Brazier stretched New Zealand's lead to 10-3 with a penalty but the Black Ferns lost skipper Melissa Ruscoe to yet another yellow card in the 57th minute.



England took advantage of their superior numbers to equalise in the 62nd minute.



They opted to scrummage from the penalty and, after great work from the pack, the ball was popped onto the blindside for Charlotte Barras to score her fourth try of the tournament which McLean superbly converted.



New Zealand's winning points came from a penalty after they drove deep into English territory and Brazier slotted home from just inside the 22m line.



Ad Feedback "I was pretty nervous (with the penalty at 10-10)," Brazier said.



"The crowd were making a lot of noise. I just thought of it as another kick and thankfully it went straight through the posts.



"Obviously there was still a bit of time on the clock so I knew it wasn't over yet."



But New Zealand defence was up to the task as they calmly repelled England.



"We knew if we could just get back down their end, no one has scored on us from their own 22, so we were happy," Brazier said.



Ruscoe said the team's response to the sin-binnings had been "massive and that doesn't come down to fitness".



"It doesn't come down to how much you do down at the gym - that comes down to pride and passion and the jersey that you are wearing. The girls just put their whole heart into it and got us through the game."



Australia finished third, downing France 22-8 in the playoff.



Results:



Final: New Zealand 13 England 10



3rd Place Play-Off: France 8 Australia 22



5th Place Play-Off: USA 23 Canada 20



7th Place Play-Off: Ireland 32 Scotland 8



9th Place Play-Off: Wales 29 South Africa 17



11th Place Play-Off: Sweden 8 Kazakhstan 12

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