Saracens 40 Edinburgh 7: Bonus-point win sends Sarries through in Vicarage Road send-off

Posted on January 21, 2013 by adminsports

Saracens 40 Edinburgh 7: Ashton doubles lifts Sarries in Vicarage Road send-off

By
Luke Benedict

PUBLISHED:

15:50 GMT, 20 January 2013

UPDATED:

23:08 GMT, 20 January 2013

England winger Chris Ashton defied the snow to score two tries and book Saracens a Heineken Cup quater-final clash with Ulster.

It was the sort of day when a winger only touches the ball twice – luckily for Ashton he scored both times. The first was a routine chase but the second came from a controversial cross-field kick from Owen Farrell.

The England fly-half, wearing the Saracens number 13 shirt yesterday, looked to be teeing up a penalty but spotted Ashton open wide and pulled the trigger. The Edinburgh players were furious as the kicking tee was already on the pitch, meaning Saracens, playing their final match at Vicarage Road, had no option but to kick.

Saracens finished first in their table ahead of Munster and Racing Metro

Top dogs: Saracens finished first in their table ahead of Munster and Racing Metro

Charlie Hodgson celebrates after scoring Saracens' fourth try to secure their bonus-point

Ecstatic: Charlie Hodgson celebrates after scoring Saracens' fourth try to secure their bonus-point

But Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall preferred to salute Ashton, saying: 'It was great to see Ashy score a couple of tries and getting back to what he really does best.

'The second try was fantastic and I wish I could claim credit for thinking that up; Ashy and Owen (Farrell) just saw each other and they pulled it off.

'We can appreciate just how difficult it was out there and we said after the game that the conditions were as bad as it gets with the ball like a bar of soap.’

Saracens' skipper Steve Borthwick rampages through tackles at a very snowy Vicarage Road

Power: Saracens' skipper Steve Borthwick rampages through tackles at a very snowy Vicarage Road

Richard Wigglesworth handed Edinburgh a way back before half-time. With the ball slipping around like an ice-hockey puck the Saracens scrum-half fumbled and Greig Tonks tobogganed over the line.

But the game was won early in the second half with an unstoppable lineout drive. Eight snowmen might have done a better job of slowing down the driving maul than the visiting pack and Matt Stevens emerged smiling.

Saracens' Ernst Joubert takes a line-out on full stretch

Reach for the sky: Saracens' Ernst Joubert takes a line-out on full stretch

It was Charlie Hodgson who scored the crucial fourth try to cap off another polished performance this season. Edinburgh captain Greg Laidlaw was distracted by Joel Tomkins’ dummy line and Hodgson simply stepped through the defence.

The only question for Saracens now is where to stage April’s quarter-final. Their new Allianz Park 10,000-seater stadium is not large enough so the club are ‘assessing all options’ with Wembley a possibility.

Will Fraserescapes the Edinburgh defence on his way to a break the gain line

Braving the cold: Will Fraserescapes the Edinburgh defence on his way to a break the gain line

The groundsmen did a terrific job to get the match on and have the send-off for Vicarage Road

Snowed under: The groundsmen did a terrific job to get the match on and have the send-off for Vicarage Road

Owen Farrell wants to play at No 10 for Saracens

Posted on December 10, 2012 by adminsports

Farrell wants to be a perfect 10 after wayward kicking display against Munster

UPDATED:

22:30 GMT, 9 December 2012

Owen Farrell fixed a kicking glitch just in time to snatch a vital bonus point for Saracens in their 15-9 defeat to Munster at Thomond Park on Saturday, then revealed he has held talks with the club over his limited access to the No 10 shirt.

Seven days after playing a central role in England’s epic win against New Zealand at Twickenham, where he ran the show at fly-half, the 21-year-old reverted to centre in Limerick.

However, when Charlie Hodgson was replaced during the second half of this blood-and-thunder encounter, Farrell carried out the conductor’s duties with considerable aplomb, in a late rally by the visitors.

Tough day: Owen Farrell's kicking form was erratic for Saracens

It would be in the national interest
for him to play regularly at stand-off, rather than at outside centre,
but he has started just four games there for Saracens this season. ‘I
want to do my job for the club, first and foremost,’ said Farrell.

‘I’ve had a sit-down with Mark
(McCall, director of rugby) and we’ve put a plan in place. I will play
some games at 10 and some at centre, but I don’t think it really matters
because when I play at centre at the club; I’m playing like a second
fly-half anyway.’

Farrell’s goal-kicking was wayward at
Thomond Park, with a final return of three out of seven. The last miss,
from a promising position five minutes from time, suggested Saracens
would leave Ireland with nothing, but when another chance came with a
minute to go, Farrell scored to ensure his side took a point to go into
the return tie at Vicarage Road on Sunday tied with Munster at the top
of Pool One.

Showdown: Farrell (left) admitted to holding talks with the club

Scarlets 13 Leinster 20 – Heineken Cup match report

Posted on October 20, 2012 by adminsports

Scarlets 13 Leinster 20: Sexton stars with the boot as visitors rack up 17th straight win

UPDATED:

16:42 GMT, 20 October 2012

Kicking king: Jonathan Sexton

Leinster went to the top of Heineken Cup Pool Five with a solid victory over the Scarlets at Parc y Scarlets.

Wing Isa Nacewa scored the visitors' only try with Jonathan Sexton supplying 15 points with the boot.

The Scarlets, who came away with a losing bonus point, scored a try through Gareth Maule and two penalties and a conversion from Rhys Priestland.

It gave Leinster their 17th successive victory in the tournament and coach Joe Schmidt's 17th win from 19 Heineken Cup games.

Irish centre Gordon D'Arcy returned as Leinster made two changes from the Exeter clash – Sean Cronin coming in at hooker and Fergus McFadden switching from centre to wing.

The Scarlets were without Wales centre Jonathan Davies (groin) but in-form wing Andy Fenby returned.

Maule replaced Davies to partner Scott Williams in midfield while full-back Liam Williams and flanker Aaron Shingler recovered from knocks sustained in the 49-16 defeat in Clermont Auvergne.

Leinster were given a great start with Sexton kicking a second minute penalty goal from the 22 after the Scarlets killed the ball at a ruck. It took Sexton past 350 points for the tournament.

The Welsh side were moving the ball intelligently behind but gave away another penalty as Sexton was able to kick the Irish side into the home 22.

Treviso 21 Toulouse 33

Toulouse narrowly avoided a Heineken Cup shock against Treviso this afternoon as the French side hit back to emerge 33-21 winners.

Treviso, backed by a passionate crowd at the Stadio Comunale di Monigo, led 18-9 at the break thanks to six penalties from fly-half Kristopher Burton.

Toulouse's Luke McAlister and Burton exchanged penalties after the break before both the visitors' Vincent Clerc and Treviso's Robert Barbieri were sin-binned.

Toulouse got themselves back in the match, though, courtesy of a penalty try and then moved ahead when Louis Picamoles burst through to go over.

Treviso were tiring and the visitors extended their lead when McAlister chipped the ball on for Clerc to touch down under the posts.

A fine second-half display from Toulouse was undermined slightly by the late dismissal of Christopher Tolofua after an incident with Fabio Semenzato but the Frenchman held on for their second successive win in Pool Two.

Leinster gained another penalty from which they built territory and scored a try through Nacewa, who collected a cross-kick from Sexton despite having George North bearing down on him.

Sexton missed with the conversion but then his opposite number Priestland was wayward with a long-range penalty on 16 minutes.

And Sexton was back on target as the defending champions took an 11-0 lead with a penalty after the Scarlets had been caught offside.

The Scarlets just could not cope with Leinster's streetwise approach at the breakdown and despite a later surge towards the line the Welsh side ended the first half pointless.

The Scarlets had the chance to get on the scoreboard within two minutes of the restart but Priestland was well short with a 45-metre effort.

But it proved to be a double whammy for the home side as a minute later Sexton put over an opportunist drop-goal from fully 40 metres.

The Scarlets finally broke their duck in the 48th minute with Priestland kicking a penalty after Leinster had failed to release in the tackle.

To the delight of the home fans, Sexton was off target with his own penalty three minutes later.

But the home fans were sent into raptures when a long pass from Priestland sent Gareth Maule on an outside break to the right corner leaving
O'Driscoll in his wake. Priestland converted the try as Scarlets closed the gap to four points.

That was extended to seven as Sexton eased some of the second half pressure that had been building on Leinster with his third penalty.

Sexton and Priestland swapped penalties as Leinster led 20-13 with five minutes remaining, but they ended the match down to 14 men with full-back Ian Madigan in the sin-bin for taking opposite number Williams in the air.

Sexton was wayward with a 79th-minute penalty, which would have brought the Scarlets a bonus point had the kick gone over the posts.

Wasps 43 London Irish 14

Posted on September 15, 2012 by adminsports

Wasps 43 London Irish 14: Stunning start for Jones as debutant fires hosts to first win

UPDATED:

16:59 GMT, 15 September 2012

Stephen Jones landed 23 points on his Wasps debut to help his new club to their first Aviva Premiership win of the season at the third attempt.

The 34-year-old Welshman, with 104 caps for his country, produced a perfect kicking performance, slotting five penalties and also converting two tries from Tom Varndell and one each from scrum-half Joe Simpson and replacement prop Zak Taulafo.

It provided a bonus-point winning start for Wasps' new ownership consortium who took control of the club from former owner Steve Hayes this week.

Kicking king: Stephen Jones scored 23 points on his debut to steer Wasps to their first win of the season

MACTH FACTS

WASPS: Southwell, Varndell, Daly, Masi, Wade, S. Jones, Simpson, Payne, T. Thomas, Staibano, Palmer, Wentzel, Launchbury, Poff, Johnson.
Replacements: McIntyre for Payne (70),
Lindsay for T. Thomas (45), Taulafo for Staibano (41),
Haskell for Launchbury (64), Vunipola for Johnson (66). Not Used: Davies, Robinson, T. Bell.

Tries: Varndell 2, Simpson, Taulafo. Cons: S. Jones 4. Pens: S. Jones 5.

LONDON IRISH: Homer, Ojo, Joseph, Tagicakibau, Yarde, Shingler, O'Leary, Lahiff, Lawson, Halavatau, Skivington, Evans, Danaher, Treviranus, Fisher.
Replacements: Aulika for Lahiff (70), Ryan for Halavatau (10), Low for Skivington (70), Gray for Fisher (70). Not Used: Blaney, Watson, Geraghty, Moates.

Tries: Yarde. Pens: Shingler 3.

Attendance: 5,612
Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU).

Irish replied with a try from England Under-20 winger Marland Yarde and three penalties from fly-half Steven Shingler.

But they suffered their third successive defeat of the new campaign, in which they have now conceded 123 points.

Jones, replacing fellow-Welshman Nick Robinson after missing the first two matches with a back spasm, opened his Wasps account with a fifth-minute penalty.

Irish suffered another blow when prop Leo Halavatau limped off in the 10th minute to be replaced by John Ryan, on loan from Munster.

Four minutes later they missed out on the opening try when flanker Ofisa Treviranus knocked on as he crashed his way over the line.

But they drew level in the 15th minute with a Shingler penalty after the Wasps scrum was penalised.

Irish grabbed the opening touchdown after 25 minutes when Yarde scored a try out of nothing.

There
seemed little danger when centres Sailosi Tagicakibau and Jonathan
Joseph combined to supply Yarde, but the winger showed the ball, jinked
and produced a burst of sheer pace which left four defenders standing
before he crossed in the corner.

Up and under: Bryn Evans of Irish wins a lineout ball at Adams Park

With
Shingler off the pitch receiving treatment for a blood injury,
full-back Tom Homer took over the kicking duties but missed the
conversion.

Wasps were denied a try in the 28th minute when they were brought back for an earlier forward pass after full-back Hugh Southwell sent Varndell racing over in the left corner.

Handling errors let the home side
down as they tried to over-elaborate but they forced two penalties, both
landed by Jones – the second from just inside the Irish half – to go
9-8 ahead.

Shingler
restored the Irish lead with a superbly-struck last kick of the first
half after the Wasps scrum were penalised a metre inside their own half.
Taulafo replaced Fabio Staibano at half-time.

Pain game: Marland Yarde of Irish takes a hit from Tom Lindsay

The second half was only a minute old when Jones kicked his fourth penalty as Wasps regained the lead after Irish offended at the breakdown.

They forged further ahead when Varndell went over in the left corner for a well-worked try. Right wing Christian Wade split the Irish defence, Southwell again provided the final pass and Varndell supplied the finish.

Shingler kicked his third penalty to cut the Irish deficit to five points.

Man of the moment: Jones tries to avoid Jonathan Joseph and Sailosi Tagicakibau

Luke Benedict

But Wasps, who introduced England back-row man James Haskell from the bench, made victory an inevitability when Simpson took the ball from the base of a ruck and darted in for their second try, converted by Jones.

The Welshman landed his fifth penalty before Wasps drove Taulafo, scorer of a hat-trick of tries for Wasps in the A team game against Irish last Monday, over in the left corner two minutes from time.

But Wasps had not finished. Simpson burst 50 metres from inside his own half before passing to Varndell who raced round behind the posts to touch down. Jones rounded off a hugely impressive debut by converting the final two tries.

New Zealand 21 South Africa 11: Aaron Smith brilliance makes it four wins from four

Posted on September 15, 2012 by adminsports

New Zealand 21 South Africa 11: Smith brilliance makes it four wins from four

UPDATED:

11:42 GMT, 15 September 2012

Replacement half-back Aaron Smith scored an outstanding individual try to inspire New Zealand to victory over South Africa at Forsyth Barr Stadium in the Rugby Championship.

Smith, who had been dropped to the bench for a breach of team protocol last weekend, replaced Piri Weepu at half-time and scooted through the defence midway through the second half for the try which broke the 8-8 deadlock.

The All Blacks scored two tries to one to record their 14th Test win but the Springboks had their opportunities, particularly in goal-kicking where Morne Steyn, Frans Steyn and Johan Goosen combined for only two of nine attempts.

Trybound: Aaron Smith skips away from Duane Vermulen

Rugby Championship table

New Zealand W 4 D 0 L 0 Pts 16
South Africa W 1 D 1 L 2 Pts 7
Australia W 1 D 0 L 2 Pts 4
Argentina W 0 D 1 L 2 Pts 2

South Africa missed two early opportunities, with wing Bryan Habana unable to hold an awkward pass with the line open and Frans Steyn missing a shot at goal from almost 50m on the angle.

But when the All Blacks infringed at a breakdown, Morne Steyn kicked truly from 36m to open the scoring after 18 minutes.

However, the All Blacks struck back immediately, hooker Andrew Hore making good ground and number eight Kieran Read laying on the pass to give full-back Israel Dagg a clear run to the line to make it 5-3.

Morne Steyn was to the right with a penalty from 44m and in front and the All Blacks swept back on to the attack.

Gutted: Jannie du Plessis hangs his head after defeat

Frans Steyn was just under the bar with a penalty attempt from almost 10m inside his own half, a reminder of what distance he is capable of.

The Springboks were giving as good as they received in the forward exchanges, with lock Flip van der Merwe prominent, but Morne Steyn missed his second consecutive penalty attempt.

He then missed two other attempts at goal and the Springboks had the poor return of one success out of six to help the All Blacks lead at the interval.

The All Blacks were fortunate to be ahead, though, as the Springboks had 58 per cent territory and forced six turnovers from the All Blacks while conceding two.

Clearing his lines: Dagg kicks away despite the attentions of Andries Bekker

Habana threatened early in the second spell but lost the ball forward in the tackle of Aaron Smith and the chance was lost.

Habana, though, gave the Springboks the lead with a brilliant individual try eight minutes into the half. He raced from a line-out 40m out, chipped and re-gathered to score in the right corner.

But Morne Steyn missed again and Aaron Cruden kicked a neat penalty three minutes later to tie the scores at 8-8 as the arm wrestle continued.

Winger Cory Jane had been safe under the high ball for the All Blacks and made another fine take as the Springboks tried to pressurise New Zealand's back three.

Crunching: Tendai Mtawarira is tackled by Aaron Cruden

South Africa were kicking too much ball away and the All Blacks made them pay when Smith dummied and sidestepped through the defence from 25m out to score a gem of a try.

South Africa suffered another blow when replacement prop Dean Greyling was sin-binned as he dived indiscriminately into a ruck.

Johan Goosen took over from the out-of-sorts Morne Steyn but missed with a long-range attempt from 55m to make it one goal from eight for the Springboks.

But he was on target from 39m soon after and it was 15-11 with 11 minutes left.

Cruden's two late penalties added gloss to the final score of 21-11 as the hosts held on.

David Beckham handed one-game ban for angry scenes against San Jose Earthquakes

Posted on July 6, 2012 by adminsports

Beckham banned over ugly scenes after kicking ball at grounded opponent

UPDATED:

00:03 GMT, 6 July 2012

Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder David Beckham has been suspended for a game for 'confrontational and provocative behaviour' in last week's loss to the San Jose Earthquakes.

The actions by Beckham, who was also fined an undisclosed amount, occurred during and immediately after his team's 4-3 loss and were considered unacceptable and detrimental to the league's public image, MLS said in a statement.

With under a minute remaining in stoppage time, an impatient Beckham kicked a ball San Jose's Sam Cronin, who was lying on the pitch. The ball hit Cronin and referee Hilario Grajeda, resulting in a yellow card for Beckham.

Flare up: David Beckham got into a heated exchange with San Jose players

The act earned Beckham, who had to be separated from opposing players after the final whistle, an automatic one-game ban for yellow card accumulation, which he served earlier this week.

The 37-year-old former England captain, who has been omitted from Great Britain's squad for the London Olympics, will serve his one-game ban on Sunday when the Galaxy visit the Chicago Fire.

Thursday's ban was the latest blow in what has been one of the more trying weeks of Beckham's career.

The former Manchester United, Real Madrid AC Milan and England midfielder had been expected to be included as one of the three over-age players in Stuart Pearce's team for the London Games.

Chief London Olympic organiser Sebastian Coe is to discuss a 'Games time role' with the globally recognised figure, who played an ambassadorial role in London winning the Olympics.

Jonny Wilkinson helps Toulon into Challenge Cup final

Posted on April 28, 2012 by adminsports

Ex-England fly-half Wilkinson shines to send Toulon into Challenge Cup final

UPDATED:

21:29 GMT, 27 April 2012

Jonny Wilkinson held his nerve after a series of late misses to kick Toulon into the Amlin Challenge Cup final after a thrilling all-French showdown.

The former England fly-half scored 27 points in total to add to Steffon Armitage's first-minute try.

But it was a nervy encounter as Stade Francais led for most of the first half and edged ahead once more on the hour, and Wilkinson needed four attempts to settle the match in his side's favour.

Hero: Jonny Wilkinson of Toulon celebrates with team-mates

Toulon took the lead through Armitage's superb score and they almost had another inside four minutes following more good work by the flanker, only for scrum-half Sebastien Tillous-Borde to drop the ball as he tried to offload from a tackle.

But poor tackling let Morgan Turinui through to set up full-back Hugo Bonneval for a converted score in the 12th minute which nudged Stade ahead.

Fly-half Jules Plisson kicked two penalties and a drop goal to extend the visitors' lead to 16-5 but Wilkinson was on target with penalties in the 32nd and 40th minutes, either side of Plisson's third, to leave the half-time score at 19-11 to Stade.

Kicking king: Wilkinson helped Toulon into the Challenge Cup final

Wilkinson took his side into the lead with three penalties and a drop goal in the first 15 minutes of the second half but Turinui rounded off a wonderful passing move from the base of a scrum to restore the visitors' advantage, Plisson adding the extras to make it 26-23.

Two Wilkinson penalties countered by a Plisson drop goal left the scores level at 29-29 going into the final 10 minutes – but with Stade winger Julien Arias in the sin-bin for cynically preventing a try after Plisson's kick was charged down.

Wilkinson missed the resulting penalty and then a drop-goal attempt before remarkably putting a 30-metre effort wide from a central position – but he kicked the crucial drop goal from just over 40 metres a minute from time to ensure his side will face Biarritz or Brive in May 18's final.

Edinburgh 19 Toulouse 14

Posted on April 7, 2012 by adminsports

Edinburgh 19 Toulouse 14: Scots stun French giants to reach semi-finals

UPDATED:

16:45 GMT, 7 April 2012

Edinburgh produced a stunning victory over French giants Toulouse to become the first Scottish side to reach the last four of the Heineken Cup.

Playing in front of 37,881 spectators, a record crowd for a quarter-final in Britain, Edinburgh had an early try by Mike Blair and a string of successful kicks from Greig Laidlaw to thank for the historic result.

The home side had to come from behind to overhaul the visitors, who scored an outstanding try through Timoci Matanavou and added nine points from Lionel Beauxis.

Party time: Edinburgh celebrate their stunning win over Toulouse

Edinburgh made a perfect start and snatched the lead inside two minutes.
Laidlaw launched an up and under from the edge of the Toulouse 22, and when the Frenchmen failed to gather, scrum-half Blair pounced and rolled over to touch down. Laidlaw added the conversion.

Beauxis booted a long-range penalty which just crept over the bar in the fourth minute, and reduced the deficit further with a second 15 minutes later.

Perfect start: Mike Blair scored an early try for Edinburgh to send them on their way to victory

Edinburgh lost the services of Allan Jacobsen for 10 minutes when the prop was despatched to the sin-bin for blocking Matanavou as the Toulouse winger attempted to take a quick penalty. However, Beauxis fired the resulting penalty wide.

Within a minute the visitors were ahead for the first time and Edinburgh lost another man to the sin-bin. This time Ross Rennie was the offender and Beauxis made no mistake from close range.

Kicking king: Edinburgh fly-half Greig Laidlaw kicks a penalty against Toulouse

And it got worse for the Scots when Matanavou gathered a speculative kick ahead inside his own 22 and turned on the afterburners to blast his way over for a spectacular solo try.

Jacobsen's return to the fray sparked fresh impetus in the home ranks and when Nick De Luca carried the ball into contact, Laidlaw positioned himself perfectly to take the pass and send a sweetly struck drop goal between the sticks to leave Toulouse 14-10 ahead at the interval.

ChargeL Toulouse led at the interval but were pegged back by Edinburgh

Blair was forced off with a shoulder injury but Edinburgh made a rousing start to the second period.

Toulouse hooker William Servat committed a blatant offside offence and became the third player to be yellow carded, presenting Laidlaw with a straightforward penalty.

Joining in the fun: David Denton celebrates with the team mascot

He made no mistake and his next successful kick on 50 minutes fired the hosts into a 16-14 lead.

The four-time champions had an opportunity to strike back instantly, but Beauxis suffered his third miss of the afternoon.

Edinburgh now had their tails up with Tim Visser offering a glimpse of his pace and further pressure yielding a penalty just inside the Toulouse half which proved to be beyond Laidlaw's range.

Up in the air: Edinburgh's Tim Visser gets to grips with Toulouse's Burgess

Toulouse coach Guy Noves rang the changes as the game entered the final quarter, but Edinburgh continued to play the game in the opposition's half.

Nevertheless, the tenuous nature of the two-point advantage meant it was an uncomfortable finale for Edinburgh coach Michael Bradley before Laidlaw slotted a last-minute penalty to spark delirious scenes on and off the pitch.

Daily Mail RBS U18 Cup: Old Swinford Hospital 8 Dulwich College 15

Posted on April 4, 2012 by adminsports

Daily Mail RBS U18 Cup: Old Swinford Hospital 8 Dulwich College 15

UPDATED:

16:28 GMT, 4 April 2012

Dulwich College beat Old Swinford Hospital 15-8 to lift the Daily Mail RBS Under 18 Cup at Twickenham.

More to follow…

Party time: Dulwich College celebrate victory at Twickenham

Up for the cup: Antony Bray Dulwich captain (left) celebrates victory

Battle: Dulwich College captain Antony Bray ourtwits Ese Attah

On the way: Dominic Fraser scores from a penalty

Hoist: Old Swinford Hospital win a lineout

Kicking king: Max Stelling from Old Swinford Hospital School converts

Italy 15 England 19: Farrell"s trusty boot and Hodgson"s lucky try secure comeback

Posted on February 11, 2012 by adminsports

Italy 15 England 19: Farrell's trusty boot and Hodgson's lucky try secure comeback

Charlie Hodgson scored his second try in as many games as England came from behind to maintain their 100 per cent record in the Six Nations.

The fly-half pounced on a loose kick to go over shortly after half-time, while the rest was down to Owen Farrell who boasted a perfect record with his boot, scoring four penalties and the solitary conversion.

More to follow….

All white on the night: Charlie Hodgson celebrates with his team after hauling England back into the game