Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: Radio New Zealand

A massive second half has seen NZ Kiwis defeat Toa Samoa 36-14 at CommBank Stadium in Sydney.

The result means coach Stacey Jones’ side has lifted the Pacific Championship title, after an unbeaten campaign.

Tries to second-rowers Isaiah Papali’i and Erin Clark were the turning point in the match, as both scored within 10 minutes of each another before the hour mark.

Both former Samoan internationals made big impacts, benefitting from a smooth halves pairing of Dylan Brown and Kieran Foran.

Earlier, Samoa took the lead through wing Brian To’o after 10 minutes and then Simi Sasagi raced almost the length of the field, after intercepting a Foran pass.

Interchange forward Naufahu Whyte answered back for New Zealand to make it 14-6 at the break.

The Kiwis came out with a mission to simply hang onto the ball and it worked, utterly dominating proceedings, until they were able to unlock the Samoan defence for tries to Papali’i and Clark.

By the time Brown danced his way through the left edge to set up Casey McLean to score, the momentum was so well and truly with the Kiwis that they’d completed a full 10 sets more than the Samoans.

Meanwhile, Keano Kini was outstanding at fullback, enduring some rough treatment at the hands of the Samoan defence.

Jamayne Isaako – another former Samoan player – knocked over a penalty goal with seven minutes to play, adding a little insurance, allowing Foran to relax and enjoy the final moments of his long career.

The veteran half was retiring at the end of this season and his partnership with Brown during the tournament had been very good, with Brown playing a massive role in the Kiwis’ win.

He played a hand in the last couple of Kiwis tries, first smashing To’o to jar the ball loose for Papali’i to eventually score out wide, then stepping and offloading for Charnze Nicoll-Klockstad to complete the 30-point swing.

Read how the game unfolded here:

Kiwis: Keano Kini, Jamayne Isaako, Matthew Timoko, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Casey McLean, Dylan Brown, Kieran Foran, James Fisher Harris (captain), Phoenix Crossland, Moses Leota, Briton Nikora, Isaiah Papali’i, Joseph Tapine. Interchange: Te Maire Martin, Naufahu Whyte, Erin Clark, Xavier Willison, Scott Sorenson, Zach Dockar-Clay, Josiah Karapani.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Hopes of a historic win have been denied, after the All Blacks managed to maintain their unbeaten record against Scotland.

The Murrayfield game had the Edinburgh crowd on the edge of their seats, with the second-half being one to remember – or world media sure thought so.

New Zealand’s dominant first half, up 17-0, stepped onto shaky ground early in the second half, with Scotland’s Ewan Ashman and Kyle Steyn both scoring tries.

That wasn’t enough, with the All Blacks momentum building, resulting in a 25-17 score favouring the New Zealanders.

Damian McKenzie’s gravity-defying try, the All Blacks surviving three yellow cards and Scotland’s struggle to capitalise have been deemed the game’s top talking points.

International media had plenty to say – from praise to disbelief. Here’s how the world media reacted to the All Blacks’ win over Scotland.

BBC Scotland

BBC Scotland honed in on the home side’s heartbreak, after trailling by three points at 51 minutes.

“All Blacks shatter Scotland’s hopes of historic win,” its headline reads.

The outlet’s post-match piece goes on to list the yellow-carded All Blacks – Leroy Carter, Ardie Savea and Wallace Sititi. It takes aim at Carter’s player trip, describing it as “cynical”.

However, it goes on to acknowledge the skill and dominance of replacement fullback Damian McKenzie.

“Damian McKenzie – a dazzling presence when he entered the game – had the last say, touching down under pressure late on then adding a penalty to ensure Scotland’s long wait for a win against the All Blacks goes on.”

Guardian

The theme of “McKenzie magic” continues in the UK’s Guardian newspaper.

Labelled “deadly, deadlier than Scotland”, the paper attributes the All Blacks point of difference to McKenzie.

“His stunning 50-22 with 10 minutes remaining and the scores still locked at 17-17 set up pretty much New Zealand’s first attacking position of the half. His brilliant finish in the corner a couple of minutes and a couple of attacking lineouts later gave the All Blacks the lead just when it matters.

“Then, with a minute to go, he landed a penalty from an angled 45 metres or so to put them more than a score ahead. Crushing. Or, more accurately, piercing, agonisingly, fatally piercing.”

The paper acknowledged Scotland’s bravery, but said: “There remains a dimension of performance when it matters to which the All Blacks have long held a key.”

Daily Record

Scottish newspaper Daily Record places Scotland’s comeback centre frame.

Tries from Ewan Ashman and Kyle Steyn, both converted by Finn Russell, gave the Scots a level scoreboard at 17-17.

“It was a different Scotland that emerged after the break, while three yellow cards for the Kiwis saw the momentum swing towards the hosts,” the paper wrote. “It seemed as if the Scots were about to claim a first ever win over the Southern Hemisphere powerhouse.”

However, the historic comeback was stopped in its tracks by what the article described as an “outrageous finish” from McKenzie – noting his last-minute penalty and try.

RugbyPass

RugbyPass honed in on Scott Robertson’s response to his side’s “ill-discipline and yellow cards”.

“Couple yellow cards, like you’re playing with 14 men defending, like there was some amazing efforts on defence, wasn’t there?

“Like, we were so proud of that and we could have just rolled over and gave up on one of the efforts, but we didn’t,” the article read, quoting Robertson.

It said Robertson went on to acknowledge the game “wasn’t perfect” and highlighted the “clutch” efforts from McKenzie.

The All Blacks will face off against England at Twickenham next week, followed by Wales in Cardiff.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The Black Caps have held their nerve to claim a tense nine-run T20 win against the West Indies in Nelson.

The West Indies fell short of the 178 target in a dramatic final over.

A late partnership between West Indies tailenders Sharmar Springer and Romario Shepherd wasn’t quite enough.

New Zealand’s Kyle Jamieson dismissed Shepherd on 49 runs in the final over, as he skied a ball to Daryl Mitchell on the boundary.

Batting first, the Black Caps they may have felt they left a few runs out on Saxton Oval, after a late-innings collapse.

Devon Conway topscored with a fluent 56 off 34 balls, before he was run out by a brilliant throw from the deep.

Mitchell blasted 41 from 24 deliveries, including a huge 80-metre hit for six.

New Zealand lost wickets cheaply late to end on 177/9, with Sharmar Springer bowling two tidy overs at the death.

Follow the action here:

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The world champion Australian women’s rugby league team have trounced the Kiwi Ferns 40-8 in the Pacific Championships final in Sydney.

Scoring four unanswered tries in the first half, the Jillaroos raced to a big 24-point lead at halftime.

The seven-try demolition capped a dominant campaign for Australia, who go back-to-back as Pacific Championships winners.

Follow the action here:

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Blair Tickner retains his place in the Black Caps one-day side, after taking successive four-wicket hauls against England.

The Central Districts paceman was called into the squad last month for the first time in two years, as injury cover for Kyle Jamieson.

Both Tickner and Jamieson have been named in the ODI squad to face the West Indies, but Kane Williamson remains sidelined with a groin injury.

Tickner took his chances, claiming figures of 4/34 and 4/64 in his two matches.

He steered New Zealand home with the bat in the third ODI in Wellington, as the team sealed just their second-ever ODI series win over England.

“We couldn’t have asked for more from Ticks against England,” said New Zealand coach Rob Walter. “He brought plenty of energy, and his pace and bounce proved to be a big test for some of the best batters in the world.

“It was pleasing to see him come in at short notice and perform at that level, and that’s a testament to the hard work he’s been putting in.”

Matt Henry returns to action, after missing the final two one-dayers against England with a calf strain.

The pace-bowling group also includes Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes and Nathan Smith, with captain Mitchell Santner, Michael Bracewell and Rachin Ravindra providing spin options.

The squad assembles in Christchurch on 14 November, before the series-opener at Hagley Oval on 16 November.

Williamson, who is recovering from injury, will not take part in the series, but he is preparing for the test series against the West Indies, starting in December.

New Zealand squad for West Indies ODI

Mitchell Santner (captain), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra, Nathan Smith, Blair Tickner, Will Young.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Analysis – The All Blacks’ unbeaten record against Scotland has remained intact – just . The 25-17 win at Murrayfield was on track to being a brilliant statement, turned into a thrilling spectacle, but ultimately ended up posing a lot of the same questions about Scott Robertson’s All Black side.

One thing is for sure, though. When the Scottish team and their fans wake up tomorrow, their hangovers are going to feel worse than usual, because they absolutely blew it. The All Blacks handed them a one-man advantage for a full half an hour, couldn’t capitalise on their two early tries, then rolled out the welcome mat to the 22 for almost the entire second half.

It was all there for Scotland to break their 120 year duck. But even a brave display from a banged-up Finn Russell, a captain’s knock from Sione Tuipulotu and an absolute glut of possession couldn’t stop them doing what they’ve always done.

Because when it came down to it, they got inside their own heads and fell to bits when they needed it most. Which admittedly does say a bit about the All Blacks, who tapped into the team’s historic ability to ruthlessly exploit even the slightest bit of hesitation. Damian McKenzie’s try didn’t just come off the back of his stunning 50/22, with Ardie Savea’s call to go for a lineout off a subsequent offside penalty a smart, high-percentage play.

As far as smarts go, there’s not much else to report. Josh Lord’s perception to pick and gallop up field to set up Cam Roigard was a good start, while Savea and Peter Lakai’s work at the breakdown was crucial. But the three yellow cards shattered a very good trend for the All Blacks in the back half of the season.

They’d given up six yellow cards in the first five tests, but none since, so this sudden and brainless lapse in discipline is the real talking point once Scotland’s tears are wiped away.

Savea’s yellow felt unavoidable when he pulled down a drive that led to Ewan Ashman’s try, but it ultimately wouldn’t have made any difference, so can’t be classified as a desperate roll of the dice. Besides, Savea shouldn’t be doing anything as skipper and best player on the park to potentially have him leave it.

The other two were just dumb, especially when Leroy Carter didn’t even realise he’d been binned after his foot trip on Darcy Graham. Wallace Sititi fell victim to rugby’s most unpopular law, but that made it four knock down yellow cards this year for the All Blacks, easily the most out of any test side. The most annoying thing is that without the cards, this would be a good news story as the penalty count ended 10-8 in the All Blacks’ favour.

Both sides spent long periods on defence and the All Blacks’ resilience in the second half should be applauded, but it’s hard not to question why they waited till the Scots were 10 metres away from the tryline to start tackling them properly.

McKenzie’s shift off the bench once again proved that the All Blacks are developing some serious problem-solving ability in that area. It’s not the first time he’s been the difference on an end of year tour match, while around him the replacement forwards simply did what they needed to in the game’s critical last 10 minutes.

So there was a bit to like in all of it, plus it’s worth remembering that this tense result and Scotland’s positive performance are very much on brand for this fixture. The last three matches at Murrayfield, two of which involved Steve Hansen’s then-world champion All Blacks, ended with almost identical scorelines.

But given the importance this tour now has for Robertson since he has a chance to close out an up and down season in the right way, the introspection this week needs to be high. There should be plenty of pride to take out of the defensive effort, however the point should be getting hammered home that, after being up 17-0, it never should have come to that in the first place.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Despite being reduced to 14 players, the Springboks have pulled off a remarkable 32-17 win over France in Paris. Lock Lood de Jager was shown a straight red card by referee Angus Gardner just before halftime for a clumsy shoulder to the head of Thomas Ramos, however the underhanded world champions kept the home side to just a penalty goal from then on.

The match was billed as a rematch of the epic World Cup quarterfinal two years ago that saw the Springboks break French hearts, as well as being talismanic Springbok captain Siya Kolisi’s 100th test match. However, it was the hosts who started in perfect fashion with a try to Damian Penaud after only four minutes.

Sacha Feinburg-Mngomezulu struck back with two penalties, before Penaud scored his second to give France a 14-6 lead. France looked to be in control of the game before Cobus Reinach scored a brilliant individual try to pull the Springboks back within three points.

De Jager was marched just before the break, then Ramos extended France’s lead after the resumption. After that, it was all one way traffic as the Springboks silenced the Stade de France crowd with tries to Andre Esterhuizen, Grant Williams and a stunning individual effort to Feinburg-Mngomezulu to make the score a veritable blowout.

It’s a big statement for Kolisi and Rassie Eramus’s side, who have won the Rugby Championship this season and now have knocked off the Six Nations champions at home. They face Italy next weekend, while France take on Fiji.

Read how the game unfolded here:

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand