Week Two made Irish eyes very sad. But Welsh eyes leeked with joy, when the Wallabies didn’t quite manage to hop into the lead in the second half. Uruguay failed to repeat their magic from Week One. Otherwise, the results were more or less as expected.
Week Three’s biggest clash is looking like England v Argentina, although no doubt there will be some surprises in the other fixtures.
We’ve also got some Pro14 and that English Premiership Cup thingy to look forward to.
Exciting (?) rugby on the telly this week
Friday 4th October
| S Africa 49 – 3 Italy | 10:45 | ITV4 |
| Glasgow 21 – 25 Scarlets | 19:35 | Premier Sports 1 |
| Leinster 53 – 5 Ospreys | 19:35 | Premiers Sports 2 / TG4 |
| Worcester 19 – 34 Exeter | 19:45 | BT Sport 1 |
Saturday 5th October
| Australia 45 – 10 Uruguay | 06:15 | ITV |
| England 39 – 10 Argentina | 09:05 | ITV |
| Japan 38 – 19 Samoa | 11:30 | ITV |
| Kings 20 – 31 Munster | 15:00 | Premier Sports 2 |
| Zebre 28 – 52 Dragons | 17:00 | Freesports |
| Cheetahs 63 – 26 Ulster | 17:15 | Premier Sports 2 |
| Cardiff 11 – 19 Edinburgh | 17:15 | Premier Sports 1 / S4C |
| Connacht 41 – 5 Treviso | 19:35 | Premier Sports 1 / TG4 |
Sunday 6th October
| New Zealand 71 – 9 Namibia | 05:45 | ITV |
| France 23 – 21 Tonga | 08:45 | ITV |
| Northampton 28 – 54 Saracens | 15:00 | BT Sport 1 |
Tuesday 8th October
| South Africa 66 – 7 Canada | 11:15 | ITV4 |
Wednesday 9th October
| Argentina 47 – 17 USA | 05:45 | ITV4 |
| Scotland 61 – 0 Russia | 08:15 | ITV |
| Wales v Fiji | 10:45 | ITV/S4C |
Ovally Balls 
Shouldn’t that have been two reds?
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What a ridiculous thing to do.
Fucking idiot.
Sergio looked proper unimpressed with him.
And now SA score.
It’s over.
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Parisse doesnt listen to Haywards call and a regulation SA box kick.is fumbled.
SA go wide, Pollard cuts the line at PSdT crosses.
Try disallowed for obstruction by Kolisi
Fairly clear on replay
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That’s a really good obstruction call by Barnes.
Lovotti has let a pretty large number of people down here.
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Italy going for it here. SA mess up lineout numbers. FK and the impressive Steyn charges forward.
Italy recycle and go side to side.
Again SA defence is organised and Allan forced to kick.
Does so poorly and easy mark called by SA
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SA clear up a kick and counter.
Comedy shank.of a grubber into touch by Willie
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SA win penalty on the Italy 22. Kick for goal successful
20-3
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SA run from deep. Finding gaps in midfield and recycling quickly.
Italy scramble well but run out of numbers. Cross kick for Kolbe’s double
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There is a thing creeping into the game, Italy did it just there, on a maul you roll it around and latch on to one of the opposing forwards then you hang on. The ref thinks you’ve ended up there by accident and as long as you don’t then change your bind you can just stay there preventing the team in possession from releasing the ball either straight back or on the side you are obstructing
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Pollard fails to convert. 25-3
Italy running out of steam, I feel. Score could blow out from here
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SA now well on top. Finding a lot of gaps. This time, a promising raid down the right comes to nothing as an Italian hand (accidentally) knocks on
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Odd law that I wasn’t aware of.
Italy, down to 14, are obliged to put 8 in the scrum since it is uncontested
SA drive through their forwards. Campagnaro intercepts the scoring pass but doesn’t have the pace to go end to end. A hopeful hack through gives SA the counter opportunity, again down the right
PSdT offloads to no one 5 m out. Italy counter with pace and then, a few offloads later, they throw it away
Am snaps it up to score. 30-3, BP, kick to come
Breathless stuff
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Wanting Italy to improve is one of the most frustrating tasks in world sport.
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32-3
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That was mad
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Try Scotland, pro
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The big news is in
Edinburgh Rugby team to face Cardiff Blues at Cardiff Arms Park in the Guinness PRO14
Saturday 5 October (kick-off 5.15pm) – live on Premier Sports
15. Damien Hoyland (64)
14. Jamie Farndale (3)
13. Mark Bennett (21)
12. Matt Scott (84)
11. Duhan van der Merwe (42)
10. Jaco van der Walt (40)
9. Nic Groom (1) CAPTAIN
1. Pierre Schoeman (24)
2. Mike Willemse (1)
3. Pietro Ceccarelli (11)
4. Fraser McKenzie (114)
5. Murray Douglas (2)
6. Lewis Carmichael (34)
7. Luke Crosbie (27)
8. Nick Haining (1)
Replacements: 16. Cameron Fenton (12) 17. Jamie Bhatti (1) 18. Murray McCallum (50) 19. Mesu Kunavula (1) 20. Ally Miller (9) 21. Charlie Shiel (9) 22. Simon Hickey (20) 23. George Taylor (5)
Unavailable due to injury: Ruan Steenkamp, Jack Blain, Hamish Watson, Chris Dean, David Cherry, Darryl Marfo
Unavailable due to international selection: W.P Nel, Simon Berghan, Stuart McInally, Grant Gilchrist, Ben Toolis, Jamie Ritchie, Magnus Bradbury, John Barclay, Blair Kinghorn, Darcy Graham, Henry Pyrgos, Viliame Mata
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They’re not even playing today?!
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I mistimed that joke
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Sergio taken off.
the Italian back row have played out of their skins and been let down by Lovotti and general incompetence elsewhere.
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Italy win a penalty after the kick return. Good run from Polledri. A quick tap, but SA defence again equal and De Allende wins the pen.
Italy are frustrating to watch. They seem to do some good stuff, then a phase later, completely mess things up.
SA attack but a foot in touch just outside the Italy 22
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Structure gone as both sides bring on a lot of replacements
Gonna be a faced paced final 15.
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@ticht
I’m not familiar with much of that Embra team. We’re pretty close to full strength and not missing many to the RWC. Front 5, like always, absolutely sucks, though.
Cardiff Blues: M Morgan, O Lane, G Smith, W Halaholo, A Summerhill; J Evans, L Williams; B Thyer, L Belcher, D Arhip, S Davies, R Thornton, J Turnbull, O Robinson, N Williams (capt).
Replacements: K Dacey, C Domachowski, S Andrews, S Lewis-Hughes, W Boyde, L Jones, J Tovey, H Millard.
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@Ticht
Scotland have improved far more than Italy.
This was Scotland 15 years ago:
Hinshelwood (Worcester); Danielli (Bath), Philip (Edinburgh), Laney (Edinburgh), Webster (Edinburgh); Paterson (Edinburgh, capt), Cusiter (Borders); Jacobsen (Edinburgh), Bulloch (Glasgow), Douglas (Borders), Murray (Edinburgh), Grimes (Newcastle), White (Sale), Taylor (Edinburgh), Hogg (Edinburgh).
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Italy’s best weapon has been their kicking game. SA back 3 look a bit shaky when they have to field. Mbimpi knocks back from Allan’s kick. Pressured clearance gives Italy an attacking opportunity.
It comes to naught and Le Roux bests Hayward at kick tennis. Lineout SA on Italy 10m line
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Lovely chip by Le Roux a few phases after the lineout win. Mapimpi (not Mbimbi- sorry) collects to stroll over
Pollard converts. 39-3
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Italy’s biggest weapons have been their two looseheads
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Pro, we’ve gone from winning the last 5N to never being in the hunt for the 6N, a couple of wins is seen as a decent season, 3 a major success, our away form is dreadful. We have a backline full of class, a couple like Finn and Hoggy are among the very best but we are still getting pumped when it matters in the tournaments and losing to USA and Fiji on tour.
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Minozzi clearly has cramp. He’s probably not fully fit after ACL surgery.
As there are no back replacements left he will have to play on.
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SA lineout drive sets another great platform. Pollard and Le Roux play long wide passes, but Le Roux doesn’t draw the Italian defence onwards and they deny Mapimpi on the slide.
Italy turn it over and clear. Steyn kicks aimlessly in return. Italy dropout 22
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Yos, our backline would welcome Kinghorn at fullback and Graham on the wing. Our pack has taken a big hit due to the world cup, the two looseheads named for tomorrow are our only forwards who would make a first choice squad, maybe Carmichael too but last week was his first game in over a year
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5 minutes to go. SA completely in control but not really looking all that fluent. Italy longing for the whistle now
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Case in point: SA “win” scrum on Italy 10. Good charge by Frans Steyn, quick ball and then the replacement 9 chucks it into the touch judge on a 3 man miss pass
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Oh dear. Nothing kick from Frans. Easily covered by Minozzi.
He foolishly tries to beat Kolbe on the outside, gets nailed and a reverse pass out of the tackle goes to the ginormous Synman who runs it it
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Pollard misses the con. 44-3
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Lovely offload by Minozzi for the big grizzly Bok to score from close range.
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That Scotland pack from 15 years ago was pretty decent, draft Euan Murray in at tighthead and it would be even better, presumably he was crocked or it was a Sunday game.
Simon Taylor was a frustrating player, all of dog’s rugby gifts and it looked like he couldn’t be arsed.
He had a bad run of injuries too, mind
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Just noticed The Tovenator on the pine for legends, I was very fond of him at Embra, when he was good he was very very good when he was bad etc
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Italian reserve rips ball off Mostert on the kickoff return. A couple of quick passes and Kolbe intercepts. Chased down by Hayward and then the Italian reserve SH.
Kolbe knocks on
Looks like he also has pulled something. Worrying for SA if it is an injury
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Wow, Braley and Hayward manage to stop Kolbe in masses of space.
Kolbe’s ankle looks fucked from that.
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Full time siren. SA rumble from the lineout and go wide again.
Willie again fails to straighten and fix and runs Mapimpi out of space. Italy offside, cross kick on advantage comes to nothing
SA kick to corner after the siren for a lineout
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SA make a statement. Marx crosses from the lineout maul.
Pollard doesn’t convert. 49-3 and that’s that
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49-3 FT
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Sergio looks livid.
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Can the other Italian prop be cited for the spear tackle on Vermeulen?
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Not sure how that was only 1 red.
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looks to me like they got the right man. it seems to be him that upends him and also the one putting the force into driving him down. The other guy just looks caught up in it and drops him. Argument for a red and a yellow I think.
Either way. Worse spear tackle I’ve seen in ages.
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Nah. I take it back. More I watch it more it looks like 2 reds.
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That was an ugly clear out – not sure what they were thinking!
Shame as looked like Italy were going to make a game of it – although Boks weren’t that convincing. Big blow for them if Kolbe is out
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“Can the other Italian prop be cited for the spear tackle on Vermeulen”
The citing rules just require it to be a potential red card offence not given by the ref in game so I think so, yes
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