2023-08-05 23:50:08
With 34 days to go until the opening match of the 2023 Rugby World Cup, the twenty nations begin their dress rehearsals. France also played its first warm-up match, with a defeat in Scotland for the very inexperienced Blues (25-21). New Zealand, Australia, England, Ireland and South Africa also walked the lawns.
Very early in the morning, it was the All Blacks and the Wallabies who got the ball rolling. After largely dominating the Rugby Championship, the competition bringing together the four leading nations of the southern hemisphere, the New Zealanders once again beat the Australians. But unlike last week (38-7), the victory was much more difficult to get. After a first half dominated by Eddie Jones’ team, the All Blacks slowly came back to score, before Richie Mo’unga scored a decisive penalty with the siren to win (23-20).
Amazing Welsh
The surprise of this Saturday comes from the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, where the Welsh won against England. The Leek XV has however been in doubt for several months with the international retirements of several leaders such as Justin Tipuric or the illustrious captain Alun Wyn Jones, not to mention the injury of incumbent hooker Ken Owens, but the XV de la Rose is not no more dashing. The English have also not scored a single try, unlike the Welsh who flattened the ball twice in the in-goal, via George North and Gareth Davies, to afford the victory (20-9). The two teams will meet again next Saturday.
The Pacific Nations Cup also ended this Saturday. Already winners of the first two games, Fiji finished the tournament perfectly by dominating Japan (35-12) and winning the title. Samoa also won against Tonga (34-9) to secure second place in the competition.
Against the United States, Romania did not reassure. Led 31-0, the Romanians still had a slight burst of pride which allowed them to register three tries and 17 points in the last fifteen minutes to reduce the gap. In any case, it does not bode well before meeting South Africa, Ireland, Scotland and Tonga in the terrible Group B at the World Cup.
Argentina beaten at home
In a revenge for the victory in extremis of the South Africans against Argentina at the Rugby Championship on July 29, the Springboks have again imposed themselves. However, it was the Pumas who started the match best by scoring the first try of the match via Gonzalo Bertranou, but the South Africans placed a fatal acceleration on the return from the locker room, scoring two tries in quick succession. Manie Libbok, awkward against the poles in the first act, finally assured the end of the match to confirm the victory of his team (24-13).
Finally, the Irish dominated without shining from the valiant Italians. Well in their match and solid in defense, the teammates of Ange Capuozzo, absent, cracked in the middle of the first half after Danilo Fischetti’s yellow card. The Irish then took advantage of their numerical superiority to register two tries via Caelan Doris and Stuart McCloskey. Lorenzo Pani and Tommaso Menoncello reduced the gap well by scoring two tries in the second period but the Italians were unable to overthrow the Clover XV, which won logically but without splinters (33-17).
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