i figure its about time we get a thread on this since its starts next week. some news already- Marshall baits Wallabies suggests Australia were intimidated by heavy-hitting Pacific Islanders in last week's Adelaide Test All Blacks hit out at 'soft' Wallabies schedule- July 2004: Sat July 17: New Zealand vs Australia Westpac Stadium, Wellington Sat July 24: New Zealand vs South Africa Jade Stadium, Christchurch Sat July 31: Australia vs South Africa Subiaco Oval, Perth August 2004: Sat August 7: Australia vs New Zealand Telstra Stadium, Sydney Sat August 14: South Africa vs New Zealand Ellis Park, JHB Sat August 21: South Africa vs Australia ABSA Stadium, Durban
Re: Tri Nations Rugby[R] Tonight (Friday night/Saturday morning) 12:30 AM Pacific/3:30 AM Eastern on FoxSportsWorld: New Zealand vs Australia
Re: Tri Nations Rugby[R] New Zealand is my pridiction. This will some what make up for RWC 03 disapointment.
It was a mess of a weather with wind-drift and constant rain, which made very skilled play difficult. But many would argue (including me) that it was a classic weather for football. I found the matchup of Joe Rokocoko vs. Lote Tuqiri very intriguing, and thought Rokocoko pretty much dominated this matchup. Steven Larkham was having a horrible time for the Wallabies with his punting play. Overall the match wasn't even remotely balanced, with the All Blacks owning the football in the Australian half of the field for 90% of the match. A fair result for what I wouldn't call one of the prettiest football match I've ever seen. (A bit of a letdown after All Blacks vs. Pacific Islanders last week.) http://planetrugby.com/Tournaments/Tri_Nations/story_37276.shtml
Re: Tri Nations Rugby[R] Tonight (Friday night/Saturday morning) 12:30 AM Pacific/3:30 AM Eastern on FoxSportsWorld: New Zealand vs South Africa. Let's see if the All Blacks can win 2 in a row. The Springboks looked very shaky under Pacific Islanders onslaught in the second half last week. Not sure about the weather forecast. I say, let it rain again! The mud and the wind makes for a perfect football slush spectacle.
Oh my word!!! What a nailbiter! All Blacks winning with their only try on the last play of the test match. The only thing I can think of saying after seeing this, is what Alex Ferguson said after beating Bayern Muenchen at the death in 1999: Bloody hell, it's football. http://rugby365.com/LATEST_NEWS/story_37390.shtml I felt really sorry for the Springbok. Their defence looked incredibly good, except for it to crack on the last play. To be fair though, they didn't score a single point for the entire second half. That's not the way to win a test match, and they didn't.
well after this game, it seems like this years tri-nations will definitely be alot more competitive/tightly contested. the aussie/sa match is looking to be a good one.
well, SA just beat the All Blacks today 40-26. i blame the All Blacks defeat on them dropping spencer! how could they win without him leading the haka???? it was nice too, not having to get up (or try to ) early, it started at 10am. it leaves the Wallabies fate in their own hands, their last game is at the Springboks next saturday. The result ended New Zealand's hopes for a sixth title and third straight, while South Africa can win the crown for only the second time and first since 1998 with a victory next Saturday against Australia.
BOKS Blitz Wallabies South Africa 23 Australia 19 A SECOND-HALF Springbok blitz gave South Africa their first Tri-Nations rugby title in six years at Durban's Kings Park today. looks like the pressure got to Rathbone a bit too, making two silly unforced errors, although it sounds like he gives good sound bites in interviews- "Branded a "traitor" by some Springboks for switching allegiance, Rathbone did not help his cause by reportedly telling South Africans to "go to hell" in a pre-match interview."
Congrats to the Springboks. It has been a while coming but hopefully it will help get some of the politics out of South African rugby but I doubt it.
It was a great match last night. Australia only have themselves to blame, they went to sleep at the start of the second half. It's good for Rugby to have a competitive Boks team again.
2 of the Springbok scores (2 penalties??) were eventually setup, when Australia was stripped of the football in a strange manner. They were supposed take line-outs in the Springbok half of the field, but took too long to actually take the line-out. I don't remember the name of the player who was supposed to throw the football. George Gregen was really furious about the situation. I haven't seen a more absurd way to lose possesion, that too twice in a row in a match of such high stakes. On each occasion they were punished for their mistake. Anyway, congrats to a young South African team on their achievements!
The Wallabies again complained to South African rugby authorities after having to evade missiles thrown from the crowd during Saturday's Tri Nations loss. Captain George Gregan came close to being hit in the head with a soft-drink bottle just before the resumption of play in the second half. "Just before the kick-off, this soft-drink bottle, which was about three-quarters full, came whizzing past my right shoulder and right ear," he said. Gregan picked up the bottle from the field of play and handed it to officials on the sideline. "I just wanted to make sure we had some evidence of what was going on. I told them to hang on to the bottle. We'll be making a complaint about this," he said. In the opening minutes of the Test, what seemed to be a small football was hurled from the upper decks of the grandstand and came close to hitting several Wallabies forwards. The 2002 Wallabies were subjected to a barrage of beer bottles and oranges in the final minutes of the Tri Nations match in Johannesburg, angering coach Eddie Jones and Gregan. Several Australian Super 12 teams have also been incensed that their players have been hit by missiles during games in South Africa. South African officials have repeatedly promised the Australian Rugby Union they would increase security at Wallabies matches, but there is little evidence this has occurred. Promises have not been followed by proper action. At many of the gates at Durban's ABSA Stadium on Saturday, there were no bag checks, although there was a warning at one entrance that for this Test firearms would be confiscated.
Ridiculous behavior because it diminishes their team's victory. It seems the Bok fans have forgotten they could actually be good and indulged in "we're gonna lose anyway" behavior.