Start with England v United States.
Happy Independence DAy
Start with England v United States.
Happy Independence DAy
It was an entertaining second half, the Americans came out hard. Eng won 43-29 but the US showed some grit considering they have not played international level matches since 2019.
Eddie Jones has challenged England’s “historic” 12 new caps to earn the right to build on their Test debuts. England overcame the USA 43-29 at Twickenham on Sunday, handing out the most debuts in one match since 1947.
Joe Cokanasiga bagged a try brace, with Marcus Smith, Sam Underhill, Ollie Lawrence, Jamie Blamire and Harry Randall also crossing for the hosts.
Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz, Cam Dolan, Hanco Germishuys and Christian Dyer forced scores for the spirited USA in a match that broke up considerably in the second half.
Jones was delighted to blood an entire new generation of England stars, with a host of senior men either rested or on tour with the British and Irish Lions.
“It was a historic occasion, with 12 new caps for England, 10,000 people back in Twickenham, and a few of the players could see their families while they were singing the national anthem,” said Jones.
“So it was a great day for the sport.
“The first half, we were very good, we put ourselves in the position to win the game, which is the most important thing first of all.
“Then in the second half we got a bit loose, a bit inconsistent and dropped off in a number of areas.
“A lot of new players have had a taste of Test rugby now, and now it’s about how hard they want to work to keep improving.”
England’s decision to select just two backs on the bench forced major reshuffles when Max Malins and Lawrence succumbed to injuries.
Malins suffered an AC joint shoulder injury, while Lawrence was forced out of action with a head injury.
England boss Jones insisted that was merely bad luck, though that pressed half-backs Dan Robson and Jacob Umaga into action out of position.
Asked to assess the injury reshuffles, Jones replied: “That’s just the way the game is, you always roll the dice a little bit going six-two on the bench.
“But Dan Robson did a great job for us on the wing.
Dan Robson /PA
“He showed amazing pace and looked quicker than our other wingers, and he acquitted himself well.
“Obviously to lose Malins and Lawrence was just bad luck.
“Malins has an AC joint injury, so he’ll probably be out for a couple of weeks but that’s just an estimate.
“Lawrence had to go for an HIA which meant he couldn’t return to the game but now he looks back to full fettle.
“So he’ll go through the return-to-play now and see if he can recover in time for next week. It’s unlikely but we’ll just wait and see.”
Head coach Gary Gold hailed the USA’s resilience to hit back from 29-3 down at half-time in their first match since the 2019 World Cup due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Sam Underhill /PA
“I was very encouraged under the circumstances, given the adversity we’ve been through,” said Gold.
“Things could have gone belly-up, especially when we were 29-3 down at half-time.
“Other teams may have given up the fight.
“But I thought the bench brought a huge amount of energy when they came on. And I’m hugely encouraged.
“I think the other thing I’m very encouraged about is that it showed the world that Major League Rugby is going in the right direction.
“And it’s helping us to be able to prepare our players in a better way.”
https://www.rugbypass.com/news/eddie...-historic-win/
Jeepers, they made that harder than it needed to be. But what a finish!
Well they fucked up the cricket so who didn't expect them to fuck this up as well?
British & Irish Lions tour in balance after spate of Co...The British & Irish Lions 2021 tour remains precariously balanced after a spate of positive Covid-19 tests in the Springbok and Bulls camps plunged fixtures into disarray.
The British & Irish Lions have completed one game of their South African tour and play their second against the Sharks at Ellis Park on Wednesday. The increasingly pointed question is whether this tour will make it to games six, seven and eight — three Tests against the world champion Springboks.
That is after the Springbok camp returned 11 positive Covid cases in the past two days — five players and six members of management, including head coach Jacques Nienaber.
The Bulls, who were due to play the touring Lions at Loftus on Saturday, have returned four positive cases among the playing group, with one member of management also positive. That game has been postponed.
And across the Jukskei River, the Boks had to cancel all activities and retreat into isolation pods for the second time in eight days, after lock Lood de Jager returned a positive Covid-19 result after routine testing on Monday.
Further tests revealed that four more players — Handre Pollard, Frans Malherbe, Marvin Orie and Frans Steyn — were positive. A further six members of management were positive, including Nienaber, although the other five weren’t named.
With four unnamed members of the Georgia team returning positive Covid tests, it’s almost certain that Friday’s second Test between the Boks and Georgia, scheduled for Ellis Park, will be cancelled.
SA Rugby and the Lions’ priority is now saving the three Tests and the unofficial fourth Test against SA “A”, which are the main drivers of broadcast revenue of this tour. Playing against Georgia again is just too risky at this stage.
The latest medical data from the Springbok and Georgia teams will be assessed on Wednesday morning by the Medical Advisory Group (MAG), which consists of members of the Boks’ and Lions’ management, and independent medical experts.
“These positive results are a setback and have underlined the danger of transmissibility of the Delta variant,” said Jurie Roux, the CEO of SA Rugby.
“The Springboks’ second Test against Georgia is now in serious doubt, but we will wait for the MAG to consider the data and we will make the final decision tomorrow.
“The priority is to maintain the integrity of the Test series [against the Lions] and we will continue to focus on that.”
It’s the kind of news that SA Rugby fears the most, especially as it raises as many questions as answers. How did players who have been in the Boks’ bio-secure environment test positive?
The positive cases do not appear to be false positives, but if some were, it would be the best outcome, because it could at least offer an explanation, even if the explanation does call into question the PCR testing process.
They are persevering with the shit show...
Lions' second game in South Africa going ahead despite COVID blowThe British & Irish Lions were going ahead with the second match of their South Africa tour on Wednesday against the Sharks despite the visitors reporting two COVID-19 cases amid a virulent third wave in the host nation.
The Lions said one player and a management member tested positive, but that the rest of the squad had negative results from PCR tests, so the game at Ellis Park could go ahead, though kick-off was put back one hour to 1800GMT.
"The two individuals had a total of 12 close contacts - eight players and four staff members - all of whom have been placed into isolation at the team hotel," said a Lions statement.
Fiji v New Zealand on now.
Fiji in front with a penalty.
7 minutes in.
Argentina Wales now. a try the difference to the Argies.
8 mins to go, scores level.
Argies with a penalty kick.
ETA - missed. Wales were lucky.
Now England v Canada.
Eng strike early. 7-0
France get an early penalty.
And Aussies reply with a try!
Feck, not a try. Ruled knocked on. a little tough to be honest.
A penalty after half time puts the Aussies at 16-16
France keep the series alive with a 28-26 win.
KW, they are very slow at posting the results.
Pools | Rugby World Cup 2021
Does that mean the British & Irish Lions are world champions?
RSA 17-22 Lions
winning the first game a series always helps.
The All Blacks claimed the Bledisloe Cup in stunning fashion, punishing the wayward Wallabies 57-22 in a record Eden Park drubbing.
A ripping first-half contest turned ugly for Australia after the break in the Auckland rain, New Zealand running in four tries in a lethal 18-minute spell. The All Blacks now have an unassailable 2-0 lead before the series concludes in Perth in a fortnight, and lengthens the Bledisloe Cup’s stay in New Zealand to 19 years.
All Blacks go on scoring spree to continue Bledisloe Cup dominance over Wallabies | Bledisloe Cup | The Guardian
thanks mate. rubbing it in.
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