NEW YORK, NY – There was a TON of rugby this weekend and we’ll get you up to speed faster than a blown TRC official’s call with the help of our Global RWU Staff… With no further adieu, he’s your weekend Weekend Rugby Recap:
Women’s Rugby World Cup: There is a new champion of Women’s Rugby. England won the WRWC in a hard-fought match against Canada in Paris, France. Canadian winger Magali Harvey won the Player of theTournament – given as the 2014 IRB Women’s Player of the Year… The USA Eagles finished 6th after losing the 5th place final to the AIG New Zealand Black Ferns. Please CLICK HERE for our full report.
The Rugby Championship: The third year of The Rugby Championship kicked off on Saturday. The fight between the Wallabies of Australia v. the AIG New Zealand All Blacks for Lord Bledisloe’s Cup is one of the oldest rivalries in the game… Meanwhile, the South African Springboks went up against Los Pumas of Argentina in South Africa. Our resident Kiwi, Jamie Wall, has a great review of the first round match-ups. Please CLICK HERE.
World Club 7s: The Union de Rugby Buenos Aires are the best 7s “club” in the world. URBA defeated the defending champion Auckland Rugby Union in a thrilling affair that required a comeback from the eventual winners… The Cardiff Blues defeated the Blue Bulls to win the plate and American side Seattle Saracens (formerly Seattle OPSB) managed to defeat the winner’s of the J.P. Morgan Premiership 7s to win the Shield. Seattle’s close ties with Serevi seems to be making a difference in their 7s program.
Here are the results:
Cup: Buenos Aires 26-22 Auckland
Plate: Cardiff Blues 28-12 Blue Bulls
Shield: Seattle Saracens 22-12 Gloucester
Top 14: That loud cheer that you hear is the roar across France as the Top 14 returns to action. With its return, so to returns our Top 14 expert-du-jour, . Monseiur Harrington has put together a riveting review of the first weekend. Further, how the Top 14 effects the French national team is covered by the East Midlands Machiavelli, in this piece.
Currie Cup: The 76th edition of the Currie Cup just finished its second weekend of action. It was a home-town sweep, as all four home sides were victorious. The Sharks doubled up the Pumas in Durban, while the Eastern Province Kings traveled to Johannesburg and were thrashed by the Lions… The Free State Cheetahs edged out their neighbors Griquas while what was expected to be a huge clash between Western Province and the Blue Bulls turned into a rout for the hosts.
Here are the results:
Fri – 15th Aug 14
Sharks 34 – 17 Pumas
Sat – 16th Aug 14
Lions 60 – 19 Eastern Province Kings
Cheetahs 34 – 27 Griquas
Western Province 41 – 17 Blue Bulls
ITM Cup: The 2014 ITM Cup, a once-prestigious tournament that has become a great development tournament for NZ rugby, kicked off this weekend. It started on Thursday, as Taranaki fought Counties Manukau to a standstill… Friday, saw Southland‘s aggressive attacking game be overwhelm Bay Of Plenty. On Saturday, Otago doubled-up on North Harbour, while notoriously slow starters Cantebury got off to a fast start, easily brushing aside Auckland… Waikato traveled to the capital and upset Wellington… On Sunday, Tasman easily disposed of Hawkes Bay and finally, Northland were outlasted by Manawatu.
Here are the results:
Thu – 14th Aug 14
Taranaki 9 – 9 Counties Manukau
Fri – 15th Aug 14
Southland 34 – 23 Bay Of Plenty
Sat – 16th Aug 14
Otago 28 – 14 North Harbour
Canterbury 48 – 9 Auckland
Wellington 25 – 37 Waikato
Sun – 17th Aug 14
Tasman 35 – 15 Hawkes Bay
Northland 23 – 28 Manawatu
Stolen from Jamie Wall‘s article was this brilliant move by Otago in their match against North Harbour.
Conversion Kick:
Transactions: Samoan international Sailosi Tagicakibau was announced as the new signing of London Wasps. Tagicakibau was in limbo as to his future at London Irish prior to his move… Former AIG New Zealand All Blacks second-row Brad Thorn (and the one rugby player with the largest individual trophy cabinet), has been linked with Premiership side, Leicester Tigers, stay tuned as this situation develops… Gloucester announced that England center Billy Twelvetrees will be their club captain for the upcoming season.
Leicester Tigers back-row Steve Mafi has left England to join the Western Force. Mafi was granted a lengthy leave of absence last season to return to Australia to support his young family following the complicated birth of his son. It seems that the issue of family has been a driving force in him leaving the East Midlands. Our man is sad to see Mafi leave but we all respect and support his decision because family is irreplaceable.
USA Rugby News and Updates: Beyond the USA Rugby Women playing in the WRWC, The USA Olympic teams participated in the Youth Olympic Games (ages 14-18). The USA teams got off to slow start in Day 1 and have tough road to haul if they plan on leaving with hardware. Click here for more information from USA Rugby.
Here are the Results:
Women’s Pool Standings after day one
1. Australia – 6 points
2. Spain – 5 points
3. China – 4 points
4. Canada – 4 points
5. USA – 3 points
6. Tunisia – 2 points
Men’s Pool standings after day one
1. Fiji – 6 points
2. Argentina – 6 points
3. France – 4 points
4. Kenya – 4 points
5. USA – 2 points
6. Japan – 2 points
There was also the Serevi Rugbytown 7s in Glendale, Colorado. The USA Falcons, a developmental side for the full national team, won the cup in great game against the Denver Barbarians. The Northeast ODA easily beat host the Glendale Raptors for the Plate and the AIG College All-Americans won the Bowl by defeating the British Royal Air Force Spitfires.
Here are the Results:
Cup: USA Falcons 36-19 Denver
Plate: Northeast ODA 35-7 Glendale
Bowl: AIG College All-Americans 19-12 Royal Air Force Spitfire 7s
That’s it for now. Feel free to comment below, look for and “Like” our Facebook Rugby Wrap Up Page and follow us on Twitter@: RugbyWrapUp,Junoir Blaber, DJ Eberle, Nick Hall, James Harrington, Cody Kuxmann, Jaime Loyd, Karen Ritter , Jamie Wall, Jake Frechette and Declan Yeats, respectively.
….And as always, stay low and keep pumping those legs.
