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AN INDEPENDENT REPORT into claims of off-field misbehaviour during a Canterbury Crusaders’ trip to South Africa has cleared one player and found insufficient evidence against another, New Zealand Rugby said Monday.
NZR said there would be no disciplinary action against George Bridge or Richie Mo’unga, both of whom are expected to play in the Super Rugby final against Argentina’s Jaguares on Saturday.
Bridge was accused of making homophobic slurs at a Cape Town fast-food restaurant during the Crusaders’ visit to South Africa in May, while Mo’unga allegedly spat beer on a woman and pinched her bottom in a separate incident in the same city.
NZR Head of Rugby Nigel Cass said an investigation by Wellington solicitor Steph Dyhrberg found the allegations against Bridge were not upheld.
While Mo’unga admitted drinking and “poor” behaviour on the night in question, the probe did not find evidence that substantiated the claims against him, Cass said.
“Given the seriousness of these allegations, and the potential consequences, we needed to be confident that what was alleged, actually took place, and we weren’t,” he said.
Cass said Mo’unga had acknowledged his actions did not meet expectations and apologised.
The governing body did not release Dyhrberg’s report or detail specifics of the behaviour that prompted Mo’unga’s apology.
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The Crusaders said they were reviewing post-match activities, alcohol and social media use.
“This whole case serves as a reminder to all our teams, managers, coaches and players and staff that their behaviour has to be of the highest standard at all times,” Cass said.
Mo’unga, 24, has played nine Tests and is widely tipped to be part of the All Blacks’ World Cup squad as back-up to Beauden Barrett.
Bridge, 23, is a fringe international who has played one Test, against Japan last year.
© – AFP 2019
EX-IRELAND INTERNATIONALS Jerry Flannery, Gordon D’Arcy and Peter Stringer have been announced as part of eir Sport’s panel for the broadcaster’s coverage of the 2019 World Cup.
The trio will join presenter Tommy Bowe, their former team-mate, during live coverage of all 48 games of the tournament, while eir has also confirmed that current Ireland Women internationals Eimear Considine and Louise Galvin will be part of their team.
Flannery was part of Munster’s coaching staff until the end of last season. Source: Dan Sheridan/INPHO
Flannery was an assistant coach with Munster in recent years, finishing with his native province at the end of last season. The Limerick man’s in-game interviews during his time as part of Munster’s coaching staff made for insightful listening.
D’Arcy has been working in television with ITV since his retirement from playing and also has a column in the Irish Times, while the former centre recently announced he has linked up with Ross O’Carroll Kelly author Paul Howard for a series of children’s books entitled ‘Gordon’s Game’.
Stringer has also been working in television since hanging up his boots, appearing on Virgin Media, as well as eir Sport’s Guinness Pro14 coverage last season, and also taking part in RTÉ’s Dancing With The Stars.
Ireland Women wing Considine was part of TG4′s panel for Pro14 coverage last season and remains a key part of the international 15s squad, while sevens specialist Galvin is a new addition for eir.
Conor Morris will be the lead commentator for eir during the World Cup, with former Munster and Leinster back row Liam Toland joining him on in the commentary box.
Eir also confirmed that it will broadcast a daily highlights show during the World Cup alongside the 48 games.
“We are delighted to have a team of this calibre and experience fronting the eir Sport Rugby World Cup team and excited to watch how the tournament unfolds in Japan,” said Susan Brady, eir’s managing director of consumer and small business marketing.
“This panel has great experience from playing a huge part in previous World Cups and we’re looking forward to them bringing their on-field experience into studio, where eir Sport will be there every step of the way with all 48 games live including every Ireland game.”
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HANDRE POLLARD SCORED 31 points as South Africa thrashed Argentina 46-13 in Salta Saturday to win the Rugby Championship for the first time.
The Springboks last won a competition in 2009 when they finished first in the Tri Nations, the forerunner of the Rugby Championship.
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Fly-half Pollard notched two tries and kicked three conversions and five penalties in a bonus-point victory for South Africa, who led 24-13 at half-time.
South Africa finished with 12 points in a competition reduced to one round from the traditional two because of the World Cup in Japan from 20 September.
Australia, who stunned world champions New Zealand 47-26 earlier Saturday, came second with eight points followed by the All Blacks with six and the Pumas with two.
Argentina collapsed in the second half after holding their own during the opening 40 minutes until a Pollard try gave South Africa an 11-point lead at the break.
The nations meet again next Saturday, this time in Pretoria, in a warm-up international for the World Cup.
It took the Pumas just 100 seconds to take the lead through a Santiago Cordero try on a clear, late southern hemisphere winter afternoon before a sell-out 22,190 crowd in the northwestern city.
Cordero gathered a perfectly weighted cross kick from Nicolas Sanchez and held off Makazole Mapimpi to dive over in the corner.
Sanchez converted and Argentina could not have wished for a better start as they sought to defeat the Springboks in South America for the third time in four seasons.
Pollard reduced the deficit off a ninth-minute penalty and the visitors went in front soon after when Bongi Mbonambi scored off a rolling maul after a lineout.
It was a particularly pleasing score for the Springboks, who have struggled this season to turn mauls into tries.
The opening half then became a goal-kicking battle between playmakers Pollard and Sanchez with the South Africa kicking three penalties and converting his try in the final minute of the half.
Sanchez had fewer opportunities and made the most of them, slotting the two penalties to keep the Pumas in touch for most of the half.
But the Pollard try and conversion gave South Africa a 24-13 half-time advantage after a half in which the major difference between the teams was the scrums.
Argentina have struggled for some years in an aspect of the game where they used to be world class and there was no sign of any improvement in Salta.
The Pumas conceded a number of scrum penalties despite the return after a shoulder injury of star hooker Agustin Creevy and they backpedalled several times at the Estadio Padre Ernesto Martearena.
Pollard kicked an early second half penalty and then scored his second try even though the Springboks were temporarily down to 14 men with Faf de Klerk sin-binned.
As the match entered the final quarter, South Africa held a 32-13 lead against opponents who could not translate spells of pressure into points.
Clinical South Africa scored further tries through Mapimpi and Cheslin Kolbe and Pollard converted both for an unexpectedly comfortable triumph.
– © AFP 2019
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Marie Louise Reilly wins a line out.
Emma Croker scores a try as England run out 13-9 winners.
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Kim Flood takes a selfie with fans after the victory.
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Mary Healy celebrates with fans.
Fiona Coghlan, far left, and Ireland captain Niamh Briggs help to launch the 2017 Women’s Rugby World Cup.
Galwegians players celebrate their win in the Women’s All-Ireland Cup final against Cooke RFC.
Ireland’s sevens team celebrate making the world series.
Niamh Briggs, Fiona Coghlan and Nora Stapleton mark a year to the start of RWC 2017.
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Ireland were drawn to face both France and Australia in Pool cC
Dejected Ireland players after defeat to England last month.
Canada applaud the Ireland team at the end of another defeat.
New Zealand perform the Haka ahead of their match against Ireland.
A general view of the game between Ireland and New Zealand.
Mary Healy is held off by Aotearoa Mata’u as Ireland fall to a 38-8 defeat.
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Cistercian College Roscrea 12
CBC Monkstown 6
– Daire Walsh reports from Castle Avenue
CISTERCIAN COLLEGE ROSCREA held off a spirited second-half fightback from CBC Monkstown to book their place in the next round of the Leinster Schools Senior Cup.
A brace of penalties by James Reynolds forced Monkstown to within touching distance of the 2015 winners, but courtesy of opening period tries from Adi Donavan and Finbarr Crowley, CCR ultimately progressed to the last-eight draw.
Roscrea started with six players that featured in last year’s final defeat to Belvedere College, and they took a deserved lead in the 24th minute.
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After the play was spread out to the left-hand side, impressive centre Donavan spotted a gap inside the Monkstown 22 and accelerated through to touch down. This score was followed by a successful Tadhg Bird conversion, and the boys from the Offaly/Tipperary border subsequently enhanced their advantage just shy of the half-hour mark.
Crowley crossed over after pouncing on a loose ball, and this unconverted effort ensured that Roscrea held a 12-0 cushion at the midway point.
Pieter Swanepoel’s charges looked primed for victory, but Monkstown got their account up and running with a close-range Reynolds place-kick three minutes after the restart.
Monkstown’s James Reynolds with Josh Wycherley of Roscrea. Source: Donall Farmer/INPHO
Roscrea continued to pose an attacking threat as the half wore on, but thanks to another routine three-pointer by the reliable Reynolds, Monkstown cut the deficit to six with 12 minutes remaining.
The south Dubliners applied significant pressure on their opponents in the closing stages of the contest, but with tighthead prop Michael Milne displaying outstanding form, Roscrea ensured that their try-line remained unbreached.
Scorers
Cistercian College Roscrea
Tries: Adi Donovan, Finbarr Crowley
Conversions: Tadhg Bird [1 / 2]
Penalties: Tadhg Bird [0 / 2] Robert Enraght-Moony [0 / 1]
CBC Monkstown
Penalties: James Reynolds [2 / 2]
CISTERCIAN COLLEGE ROSCREA: Tadhg Bird; Ben Hyland, Philip O’Shea, Adi Donavan, Paul Keane (Jay Culleton ’58); Conor Kelly (captain), Finbarr Crowley; Josh Wycherley (Lucas Culleton ’15), Tom Byrne (Jerry Cahir ’51), Michael Milne; Ryan Lomas, Neal Moylett; Cathal Walsh, Robert Enraght-Moony.
Replacements: Jerry Cahir, Luke Rigney, David Maher, Lucas Culleton, James Corcoran, Liam Crowley, Ben Murphy, Jay Culleton.
CBC MONKSTOWN: James Reynolds; Conor Newman, Cameron Watson, Darragh Forster (Harry Shaw ’38), Luke Sweeney; Sean Power, Shane O’Hanrahan; Max Read, Mark Theunissen (Conor Byrne ’58), Callum Kavanagh; Robert Ivers, Eoin Vaughan (Gavin Tinney ’69); Robert Doyle, Zach Sattar, Eoghan Clarke (captain).
Replacements: Kenzi Kouadri, Gavin Tinney, Jonathan Browne, Luke Hallam, Conor Byrne, Harry Shaw, Cian Tallon, Geoffrey Mahon.
Referee: Helen O’Reilly (Leinster Rugby Referees).
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Analysis: Where have Ireland’s 36 tries over the last year come from?Resolute Gonzaga hold firm to keep Castleknock at bay in absorbing Schools Cup tie
Blackrock College 41The King’s Hospital 3
– Ryan Bailey reports from Donnybrook
AS A CONTEST, this tie was over before it even started but Blackrock will have few complaints as they clinically dispatched King’s Hospital to surge into the next round of the Leinster Senior Schools Cup.
After the disappointment of the previous two years, the 68-time winners were purposeful from the outset at Donnybrook and cleared the first hurdle of 2017 with minimal fuss.
There were a host of standout performances and in bleak January conditions, we got a glimpse of what Justin Vastone’s side will bring to this year’s competition; power, pace and an entertaining brand of rugby.
King’s Hospital gave as good as they got but were simply unable to compete with a bigger and far more technically astute outfit as Blackrock produced a performance brimming with intent.
Flanker Alan Francis set the tempo with a fierce hit on his opposition number from the back of a scrum in the opening minute and from there, Blackrock pounced. A move involving a rampaging run from prop Joe Byrne was eventually finished off in the far corner by John Gallagher.
Patrick Patterson goes over for his first-half try. Source: Tommy Dickson/INPHO
The south Dublin school would cross the line three more times before the interval and by that stage had safely secured their passage through to Friday’s second round draw.
This afternoon’s assignment was never going to cause them much trouble but having been knocked out of the running by Roscrea and Belvedere in the last two years, this result will inject some momentum into their campaign ahead of sterner tests.
Even still, you couldn’t not be impressed by Blackrock.
They looked to run from deep at every opportunity and even allowing for the driving rain which swept across the ground for much of the game, the handling and offloading was a joy to watch.
Scrum-half Patrick Patterson and, outside him, Tom Roche were hugely influential with both getting on the scoresheet with first-half tries. The latter showed great speed to finish after Giuseppe Coyne’s deft offload in the fifth minute.
Tom Roche was hugely impressive. Source: Tommy Dickson/INPHO
Patterson was then the creator shortly after as he scythed through midfield — once again displaying sheer pace and power — before the ball was recycled out wide for Roche to go over.
King’s Hospital, to their credit, showed attacking intent too but were met by a brick wall every time they got ball in hand as Blackrock were up fast to make some crunching hits.
Edward Mahood’s well-struck penalty got the Palmerstown school on the board in the 21st minute and after Andrew Murphy had added Blackrock’s fourth, King’s Hospital came out for the second half fighting.
With Blackrock giving their bench a run-out, Matt Jarvis’ men were able to enjoy periods of sustained pressure with Rock’s discipline coming into question on more than one occasion.
Referee James Fitzgerald awarded King’s Hospital six or seven penalties in quick succession but Blackrock showed another side to their game with some excellent defensive work to keep the door shut.
It was arguably a better workout than running in scores at the other end with Blackrock forced to scramble to keep King’s Hospital at bay during a stop-start second period.
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Blackrock are up and running. Source: Tommy Dickson/INPHO
They did, however, finish with a flourish after King’s Hos had been reduced to 14 men as captain Cian Reilly helped himself to two tries either side of a fine solo run from winger David Heavey.
A job well done for Blackrock but certainly room for improvement as they begin their quest for title number 69. As always, a side worth keeping a close eye on over the coming weeks.
BLACKROCK COLLEGE: 15. John Gallagher (22. Peter O’Reilly 6′), 14. Tom Maher (23. Mark Phelan 46′) 13. Tom Roche, 12. Gavin Jones, 11. David Heavey, 10. James Moriarty, 9. Patrick Patterson (21. Richard Fahy 60′) 1. Giuseppe Coyne (17. Carl Delaney 65′), 2. Stephen McLoughlin (16. James McShane 65′) 3. Joe Byrne (18. Thomas Clarkson 46′) 4. Andrew Murphy, 5. Charlie Ryan (19. James Burke 65′), 6. John Fairley (20. Michael McGagh 43′) 7. Alan Francis, 8. Cian Reilly (captain).
THE KING’S HOSPITAL: 15. Ian West, 14. Connell Howley, 13. Ross Hackett (22. Paddy O’Boy 45′), 12. Edward Mahood (19. Luke Corr 65′) 11. Clinton Wokocha (23. Luke Gilmartin 65′) 10. Fionn O’Loughlin, 9. Scott Le Roux (21. Harrison Mahood 67′); 1. Sean Goodburn (17. Andrew Irwin 67′) 2. Felix Campbell (17. Alan Bennett 67′) 3. Nathaneal Sibanda (18. Killian Smith 52′) 4. Rhys Edgehill, 5. Zac Bursey, 6. Sam Wrafter (captain), 7. Osebor Evbodaghe, 8. David Boles.
Referee: James Fitzgerald.
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Holders Belvedere up and running in style as they flex their muscles against Andrew’s
IT WAS EASY to forget that Ultan Dillane hadn’t played rugby in just over six weeks when he came off the bench in Ireland’s Six Nations opener against Scotland.
The Connacht man simply didn’t look himself on that occasion two weekends ago, but he went some way towards redeeming the damage with an improved performance against Italy last Saturday.
Dillane carries for Ireland at Stadio Olimpico. Source: Inpho/Billy Stickland
Dillane might not have even made the Ireland bench for Stadio Olimpico but for an injury to Iain Henderson.
Having underperformed in Edinburgh, Dillane was relieved to get another shot against Italy and understood that he needed to show more.
“I definitely found it tough [against Scotland],” said Dillane after Ireland’s 63-10 win in Italy. “I hadn’t played since before Christmas.
“It’s great to be back, it’s a privilege to come back in, but the first day, I let myself down and I had to work a lot harder last week, so it’s great.”
Dillane’s work rate was high in Rome, with six carries, a pair of tackles and three passes during his 21 minutes on the pitch, as well as one take at the front of the lineout and a handful of ruck contributions.
Joe Schmidt is a coach who places great emphasis on the importance of his bench bringing energy and ‘fitting in’ in the closing stages of Tests but that didn’t happen to the required level in Edinburgh.
“The bench is really important,” said Dillane. “Against Scotland, we let ourselves down coming off the bench. We didn’t bring the energy we needed to lift the players who had started.
“You need to boost the lads who are on the pitch, you finish off the game really and so the last 20, 30 minutes you have to try and make a difference and improve your performance.”
Dillane hopes to retain a place in the squad for the clash with France. Source: Ryan Byrne/INPHO
Ireland reconvene tomorrow for a three-day camp in Monaghan, with an open session at Monaghan RFC on Friday, and they find themselves in a much better position than after that disappointing defeat to the Scots.
A bonus-point win in Rome has lifted Ireland to second in the Six Nations table before they welcome France to Dublin on 25 February.
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“We’re in a better place than last week, but you can’t take a step back at all,” said Dillane.
“You’ve to build week-to-week and our next game is certainly going to be a really tough one, so we’re going to have to go back to the drawing board and recover really well, do our basics right, and come out ready to take on the French.”
Dillane’s most recent experience of facing French opposition was the visit of Toulouse to the Sportsground back in October, with his ankle injury meaning he missed the dramatic defeat at Stade Ernest Wallon last month.
“Toulouse was our French team this year and they were big, physical and they’d a lot of heads-up play,” says Dillane.
“It’s very tough to defend, but it makes for exciting rugby and hopefully that’s what happens in two weeks’ time.”
There remains uncertainty over Henderson’s hamstring strain, but Dillane’s upturn in form off the bench against Italy will have him right in the selection mix as Schmidt plans for the visit of les Bleus.
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Analysis: Whatever about the try, Ringrose’s defence will have excited SchmidtTracy and JVDF return to Leinster ahead of Pro12 clash with Edinburgh
TOM TIERNEY HAS made two changes to the Irish Women’s Rugby side to face Italy in the Six Nations at the Stadio Tommaso Fattori in L’Aquila on Sunday.
Following last Friday’s bonus-point win in Scotland, Elaine Anthony gets a starting spot alongside Marie-Louise Reilly in the second row, while Hannah Tyrrell — who featured for the Ireland Sevens side in Sydney last weekend — starts on the wing.
The rest of the starting XV remains unchanged, while Ciara Cooney and Sophie Spence take their places on the bench.
Speaking ahead of the match, Tierney said: “It was a very tough encounter on Friday evening in Glasgow. The Scots really put it up to us, and for the players to get that final score when it really mattered, and to come away with the 5 points from such a tough encounter is very pleasing.
“We’ve reviewed the performance against Scotland and the players are aware of the areas that they need to improve on against Italy.
“The nature of the Six Nations is that there are no easy games, so we’ll have to be really focused going into the game this Sunday.”
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15. Mairead Coyne (Galwegians / Connacht)
14. Hannah Tyrrell (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
13. Jenny Murphy (Old Belvedere / Leinster)
12. Sene Naoupu (Aylesford Bulls)
11. Alison Miller (Old Belvedere / Connacht)
10. Nora Stapleton (Old Belvedere / Leinster)
9. Ailsa Hughes (Railway Union / Leinster)
1. Lindsay Peat (Railway Union / Leinster)
2. Leah Lyons (Highfield / Munster)
3. Ailis Egan (Old Belvedere / Leinster)
4. Elaine Anthony (Highfield / Munster)
5. Marie-Louise Reilly (Old Belvedere / Leinster)
6. Ciara Griffin (UL Bohemians / Munster)
7. Claire Molloy (Bristol / Connacht)
8. Paula Fitzpatrick (St. Mary’s College / Leinster)
Replacements:
16. Jennie Finlay (Old Belvedere / Leinster)
17. Ilse Van Staden (Cooke / Ulster)
18. Ciara O Connor (Galwegians / Connacht)
19. Ciara Cooney (Railway Union / Leinster)
20. Sophie Spence (Old Belvedere / Leinster)
21. Mary Healy (Galwegians / Connacht)
22. Claire McLaughlin (Cooke / Ulster)
23. Eimear Considine (UL Bohemians / Munster)
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Two changes for England as they get ready for Wales clash>‘People have asked me that before – are you jealous of England? No is the answer’>