Hot about rugby? This is all relating to the Rugby World Cup. The heat is on at the semi final stage when all but two will continue to the final. The quarterfinal produced an unexpected win for France over England, who looked off colour as they missed tackles and made handling errors that gave France a 16 point to nil lead by the end of the first half. France held onto this first half lead to finally beat their old rivals England by 19 points to 12.
Thus they qualified to play against Wales in the first semi final. Wales in my view come into the semifinal as favorites because they had a very good game against Ireland. By the time this is read we will know who won the semifinal. The performance of France has been a riddle although they reached the semifinal. France has, as in the past, pulled off another upset and if they do it again will it be too much to expect for them to take the cup?
The other semifinal for Sunday is between New Zealand and Australia. The 33 to 10 score line may suggest that New Zealand did not have to sweat very much for their win. For sixty minutes the All- Blacks were kept try-less while their kicking boots were what kept them ahead. They had to work hard to beat Argentina. The semifinal against Australia will not be that easy if we are to take a lesson from history. The Kiwis have won 17 out of the last 21 matches played among them. Yet Australia has beaten NZ when it mattered in Rugby World Cups.
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| New Zealand All lock Sam Whitelock (C) is lifted by teammates Keven Mealamu (L) and Tony Woodcock (R) to take in the line-out ball during training in Auckland. The All Blacks are preparing for their 2011 Rugby World Cup semi-final against Australia. AFP |
Australia come into the semis after having beaten South Africa in a gripping encounter, which according to statistics they should never have won. Losing territory more than 70 % of the time and not having any + 5 phases and tackling a huge 146 times we are tempted to ask how did Australia win? Can we say it was a superb defensive effort in a huge physical quarterfinal? Or should we blame the referee as we usually do?
This semifinal match will be written in the sporting history of two nations that have battled for over a hundred years. The Kiwis play on home soil in front of a full stadium that wants to see the end of the 24-year drought.
New Zealand among other things has to worry about injuries. This includes Slade, who came in to replace Carter for the last match. On the other hand Australia comes into this game knowing about the performance of flanker Pocock who not only tackled but worked hard at the break-down to slow down the South African ball and win turnovers at crucial times. This week Australia has to contend with the crafty Richie Mc Caw as well as the hard tackling Jerome Kaino, who gains a lot across the field when he is with ball.
Both teams have a talented set of backs that will do a lot of ground gaining. The game I believe will be won up in the front. It will be won by the team which exerts more pressure in their forward play. Does that mean that New Zealand has the best chance? Arguably it may be so as Australia has been buoyed by a dashing back division. But if you look at the performance of the OZ forwards in their match against South Africa you do have a game on hand, a game which is going to be very physical. Australia will have to remember that unlike South Africa the Kiwis will make the best with the forward play.
If you look at the past the omen is that since 1991 the team that beat the defending champions won the cup. Then Australia should win this. They beat the defending champions South Africa. So what is it going to be this semifinal? The game could go either way. For the Blacks it has been a long wait and this time on home ground with a hoodoo to break. It has been a RWC where New Zealand has been the tournament favorites and has had the advantage of a home crowd.
This weekend will be a sudden-death semifinal for the arch rivals Australia and New Zealand. However, upon closer inspection, we must ask the question how on earth did Australia beat South Africa last week? With almost everything going against them it was a great defensive effort that has kept them alive. That alone will not help as New Zealand have gained more meters, beaten more defenders and produced more clean breaks per game than any other side in this year’s world cup. Yet they have been plagued with injury. Australia-New Zealand on any day will be a wholesome loaf of rugby for all who love or hate either of them.
Vimal Perera is a former Rugby Referee, coach and Accredited Referees Evaluator IRB |
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