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England def. Los Pumas for the best of third as the All Blacks-Springboks Final awaits to finish off the 2023 Rugby World Cup tournament in Paris tomorrow at 6AM AEDT

by Sports Benches

We’re now one match left to wrap up the 2023 Rugby World Cup tournament with the All Blacks v Springboks final around the corner tomorrow AM AEDT time where we look back at the Bronze match final between Los Pumas v England. England got off to a great start while Pumas made up some lost time with their first TRY not long from the break 10-16. Although the Pumas found the breakthrough for the lead at one point, but then England responded really well by regaining the lead before they went on to shut them out on the run home for the best of 3rd – 23-26.

Commiserations to the Pumas who didn’t play bad where they’ve caught up to the English really well including a short 2nd half lead not long after the break. But just couldn’t hold it off or get the job done under pressure where England’s great start & the way they regroup themselves with patience has saw them fell short towards the end there. Hope things will get better & strong for the Argentinians going forward to next year under the helm (Head Coach) of Aussie’s own Michael Cheika.

And England played really well as we’ve seen by taking a few safe plays with the number of three-point penalty goals for a start. Glad they’ve made some improvements here & there when it comes to collecting these big points as the game goes on, which is something they should’ve done (like five-metre line-out when it comes to a close winning penalty from the TRY area for example) against a scrambled Springboks defense during the 2nd semi last weekend. But all in all, great seeing England collect the bronze/3rd place, who has been good in the last two World Cup campaigns. They’re still the only Northern Hemisphere team so far to lift the Webb Ellis Cup once back in 2003 against the Wallabies at Stadium Australia in Sydney when No.10 Jonny Wilkinson broke their hearts at extra time courtesy of that winning drop goal through the posts, 17-20.

2023 Rugby World Cup Final Preview: All Blacks-Springboks at Stade De France

Now the tables have turned to one of the world’s long-time rivalries in World Rugby that takes place every year – All Blacks v Springboks. The Boks have won against them a few times in recent years after struggling for the majority between after the 2007 World Cup win to around 2017 beforehand including the warm-up game in London back in August, even though they’re no longer in Super Rugby & instead ply themselves in Europe. All Blacks on the other hand have been one of the world’s greatest sporting teams that everyone looks up to as their source of inspiration & they too have always been winning lots of matches here & there, but they had some downtimes too including the opening WC game v France as well as the three-match series v Ireland at home last year & they also lost to England during the 2019 Rugby World Cup semi-final in Japan.

Given the Boks have won three of the last six games v the ABs since 2021, their scrambled defense & the way they gradually get themselves into the game by being right on the money will be the key to their success that will leave the ABs bereft of options before being haunted at the opposition’s own danger zone. If not, look out for the ABs possession-based tactics where they will look to get the best out of their attacking football through the gate before being able to defend at ease & that is going to be the secret weapon by making the Boks difficult to chase them up during 80 minutes of play tomorrow AM.

It all comes down to just two top-quality teams in the 47th & final game of this tournament where one of them will be the first four-time Webb Ellis Cup winner in Rugby World Cup history at Paris’s Stade De France since its inception in 1987. And if I was going to pick a winner between those two, it’s going to be the All Blacks  – even though it will be a close one by seven points.

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Sri Lanka beat England on what has been another Cricket World Cup match between the two teams with an easy eight wicket win

by Sports Benches

What now for England after they lost three in a row including overnight v Sri Lanka as well as four out of their last five matches so far in the 2023 Cricket World Cup. They might have the toss advantage at the start by electing to bat first, but it’s been extremely underwhelming to say unfortunately. A mix of run-outs & mis-timed hits saw them being wiped out so fast within 35 overs for 156 before England weren’t able to stop the Sri Lankans from defending their low-scoring target of 157 with a huge eight wicket loss.

England knows how to get the ball rolling as seen in both innings spells. However, they have been stuck in a rut, particularly on the field including some of their top-order batters & they’ve haven’t shown anything like this as of late. We’ve only seen 1-2 players who can bat well in the other half batting card, such as Mark Wood last game with his 17-ball 43 v South Africa (forgot to give him a shoutout there) & Ben Stokes last night also with his 73-ball 43 display here v Sri Lanka. As said, it’s up to the on-field side of things (bowling & fielding) now in order to get back on track – which would really benefit the batters that would win them games. And in the contrary, Sri Lanka’s on-field performance has been brilliant before they got themselves home at their own pace where the communication was there that led to some good direct hits/stumping, appeals and catches amongst the scalps they’ve accrued across a few bowlers from overnight. Shoutout to Lahiru Kumara who wiped the English middle order with three wickets on hand, particularly Ben Stokes. With the bat, Pathum Nissanka has remained calm & composed as always from the beginning with a 83-ball 77 that includes the winning runs, while Sadeera Samarawickrama also did well to help bring the Sri Lankans home with Nissanka after he too scored so quickly at 65 runs not out off 54 balls.

England’s next game is against the in-form India side this Sunday which is going to be extremely difficult whereas the Sri Lankans hope to keep their World Cup semis hope alive when they battle v Afghanistan the next day on Monday.

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Rugby

2023 Rugby World Cup, the best of two Southern Hemisphere teams all set for the Final after the All Blacks too good for Los Pumas while Springboks hold off England by one point off the winning penalty goal

by Sports Benches

The 2023 Rugby World Cup Final is all set through the best of the two Southern Hemisphere teams & also both 3 x champions, whom they’ve shared a lot of history together as rivals that happens every year via The Rugby Championship & also the Freedom Cup Series trophy. It’s the All Blacks v Springboks for the Webb Ellis Trophy next Sunday AM at 6am AEDT at Stade De France in Paris (You can watch that big final match-up live & free on 9Gem). Plus, Los Pumas will take on England the day beforehand (also 6am Saturday AM AEDT) when it comes to the best of 3rd place in the Bronze Medal Final.

Los Pumas might have opened the scoresheet first via the penalty goal (and also collected the 2nd three-pointer later during the first half), but the ABs were too good fair & square all along from 6-20 at half-time to 6-44 in the end off the back from the Will Jordan hat-trick brace on his wide right role. Meanwhile, the 2nd semi game was a close one where the first half was full of three-point kicks with England leading the way v the Boks 12-6. Later on the Boks responded to Owen Farell’s drop goal with the one & only big score of their own before a successful scrum penalty saw their own No.10 Handre Pollard kick that winning three-point conversion from such a long distance with four minutes left towards the end by a one-point win 15-16.

Not the day the Pumas was hoping for where the first points were there off the back of the winning penalties, even though it’s just through a penalty kick conversion. But their open play performances wasn’t the same where the Pumas unfortunately didn’t score any big points as the ABs were simply too good for them. Speaking of ABs, they were outstanding from start to finish. They’ve  been patient with the ball on hand that dominated easy possession v the Pumas, while the passage of play & execution with the safety of their numbers has been effective in order to get the job done.

Looking at England now, they weren’t bad for a start in the way they use their winning penalties towards a shot between the sticks. I don’t blame them for that strategy one bit but it would’ve been better if they took a bit more risk by dismantling a robust Boks defense when it comes to the big points where holding on such a small lead was sadly backfired towards the end there. And the Boks are on their way on what is going to be another World Cup final at the same place they’ve last won back in 2007 also against England. They did so well to keep up with the English initially with the winning penalties before the Boks finally found a way to split their territory while dominating the rest of the match in all areas with the match-winning penalty goal to savour as a fourth title awaits to whichever winning team comes out first alongside fellow 3 x World Champs the ABs.

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2023 Cricket World Cup, Proteas big hitting spree of 399 has made it impossible for England after they were all out for 170 with the win v the defending champs last night

by Sports Benches

It’s no surprise last night that the Proteas has scored even big against England despite the loss of toss, having made a whopping 399 runs throughout their 50-Over batting shift before they’ve bowled them all out for 170 that sums up a 229 run victory when the English couldn’t meet the huge 400 run target within 22 overs.

Wow!! Well batted by the Proteas where a few of them did brilliantly to keep the flow of runs going from start to finish. Great seeing Reeza Hendricks struck an immediate impact in the opening role after being called up last minute in place of the unwell Temba Bavuma. Plus, Rassie Van Der Dussen backed up well at the other end with his 61-ball 60 run performance, while Heinrich Klaasen went big on what has been his One Day 100. And shoutout to the tall all-rounder Marco Jansen who helped finish off the team’s excellent innings on 75 off 42 balls including two wickets that oversaw England’s top order collapse alongside Gerald Coetzee (3 wickets) off his right fast bowling hand.

Meanwhile, it’s not an easy day once again from England who suffered a shock loss against Afghanistan last weekend likewise with the Proteas after their loss to the Netherlands the other day. They fired off well thanks to the quick dismissal of keeper Quinton De Kock being caught behind 2nd ball, but Reece Topley’s damaged finger hasn’t been the same unfortunately, before he returned at the wrong time later on while Proteas kept smashing with runs everywhere downtown. Although Gus Atkinson did well on his World Cup debut where he ended the big show of Klaasen as well as a brilliant knock to stay in there from the tail on a 21-ball 35, but then the whole team couldn’t help themselves in the end – that is all I can say to the defending champs. Proteas take on Bangladesh on Tuesday while 10th-placed England v 9th-placed Sri Lanka two days later.

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Rugby

2023 Rugby World Cup, England hold off Fiji while Springboks def. France in front of their home supports where there will be a 2019 Final rematch now in the last 4 this weekend

by Sports Benches

The last two remaining Quarter-Final Rugby World Cup matches are now done & dusted where we’ve just witnessed something that was so extraordinary & unreal to watch. England saw off Fiji’s 2nd half comeback bid (30-24) while current champs Springboks just locked up the doors of the host nation France with a one-point win (28-29) – having came from a few points down at half-time (22-19) that sets up a 2019 Final rematch against England for semi-final 2 this Sunday AM.

Hats off to England with the win where they’re the one and only Northern Hemisphere team in the hunt for that Webb Ellis Cup after the eliminations of France, Wales & Ireland. They fired off really well to bring in the early big points as they can while their opponents were playing catch up. Yes, they may have been under threat at times, having scored no tries in the 2nd half. But England showed that were the better team thanks to holding off their small lead where another series of three-point goals was enough to see them move into the last four v Boks.

Also, how good was the Boks who absolutely broke the home nation’s hearts in front of their national stadium as the defending champs are still chasing World Cup title No.4. Gotta love their fight back and the way they controlled with the ball before the rewards were there to see every time when given the opportunity. Yes, they might have suffered some ill-discipline earlier on but they kept on scoring while showing excellent defense to stop the French in its tracks with the close win.

Meanwhile, as said with the host nation, it’s hard to see a loss at home when they came in this tournament as one of the few favourites to lift the trophy alongside Ireland & South Africa. The French opened the scoring account first as reflected with their first half display, having never been out of place to try and stop the Boks from going past their lane. But sadly the French’s 2nd half form just wasn’t the same; Yes, they’ve made some lost time as said where France were still alive all along but couldn’t escape them in the end.

And for Fiji, love their response to the opposition’s early start, especially when looking to close England down after half-time in the hope of a late win. But if the Flying Fijians scored the big points first that reflects a full 80 performance, then they would’ve knocked England out where they’ve made this deep into the last 8 thanks to some excellent growth via Fijian Drua in Super Rugby. Sadly, it’s too little, too late when they levelled the scorecard before England went on to rebound by extending their lead a bit further before their elimination was confirmed that would’ve seen Fiji round out an all Southern Hemisphere semis shootout.

All in all, here’s a few questions that we’re about to see ahead of the weekend’s semi-finals. Can the All Blacks put in another amazing show like they did the other day v World No.1 Ireland en route towards the main event final for the first time since 2015? If not, will it be Michael Cheika’s turn this time as the Los Pumas coach? Having lost to the ABs once in a World Cup match back in 2015 when the Wallabies had to settle as runners-up. Plus, will England go one better and make the Boks pay after their 2019 Final loss to the reigning champs in Japan under coach Steve Borthwick? Or can the Boks go all the way for their fourth possible big final & hopefully light up Paris once again like 2007 since they got the favourites cap on?

We shall find out by Sunday AM where two winners will go into the main event for the Webb Ellis Cup trophy while the losing two teams will play in the Bronze final for third place going into the last weekend of October.

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2023 Cricket World Cup Week 1: Blackcaps def. England in 2019 Final rematch while the Aussies looked lost with the bat against India

by Sports Benches

We’ve reached the first week of six in this year’s Cricket World Cup over in India with some exciting match-ups to kick things off, such as the 2019 Final rematch opener between England v New Zealand. England didn’t do so bad for a start thanks to Joe Root (77) earlier on of 282-9 even though they couldn’t reach 300, but that big batting partnership of Opener Devon Conway (152) & No.3 Rachin Ravindra (123) has helped NZ wow the defending champions by a nine wicket win – having each recorded their own 100s.

Sounds like NZ’s attacking approach is the original birth place of Bazball where it has been adopted to England since last year by their Test coach Brendon McCullum. Although it’s safe to say that he’s not their white-ball coach (Matthew Mott is who formerly coached the Australian women’s side), despite having a similar kind of dedicated coaching staff who shares the same philosophy as him. NZ went on to beat the Netherlands two days ago by 99 runs two days ago (Monday) while England has also recorded their first win of the 2023 CWC v Bangladesh yesterday by 137 runs.

Then the tables turn on our Aussies who unfortunately didn’t get the win they wanted from Sunday v the host nation, India. It looked so promising from the start when you got Dave Warner & Steve Smith smashing 30/40s, but then the rest didn’t do so well where they ended up just above 200 before India were too good to bring it home with the winning runs by six wickets.

Their next game is tomorrow night AEDT v South Africa who got their first win from Saturday v Sri Lanka. Now the Proteas would want to treat carefully with water later on who is well known for being chokers like India – but so far, so good. 

SA recently beat the Aussies at home out of a five-match ODI series last month (3-2) & that it’s something the Aussies needs to do in order to turn things around such as their batting card on such hot conditions over there. There is still some time left to play for where Australia will look to win some matches against 2-3 top teams & then hopefully put themselves into the Top 4 finals, with Sri Lanka coming after this next game on Monday.

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2022 T20 World Cup: Persistent rain abandoned Australia v England game tonight at the Melbourne Cricket Ground without a ball being bowled

by Sports Benches

Well, we were hoping to have at least some play tonight between Australia v England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground but again Mother Nature ultimately won this game ahead of the two teams without a ball being bowled.

With that being said, Australia should not have to face any issues beating Ireland and Afghanistan to complete their Super 12 campaign. However, like Mother Nature, Australia will need some luck & pray that England lose to the Black Caps (New Zealand) on Tuesday. 

That way, not only Australia can end up in the Top 2 Group 1 ladder, but they can advance into the semi-finals v India or South Africa in order to continue their World Championship defence on home soil.

For now, the Australian Opening and Top-Order will need to be at their best by scoring big, so they can come to a semi-final fully prepared to upset a giant like India as if their 2nd place finish in Group 1 was confirmed. 

Meanwhile, their bowling has been okay on the other hand but again they will need to be up and running right & nail down early wickets from the very start. If not, they will have a hard time overcoming India in the semi-final and potentially throw away another Trans-Tasman showdown v the Blackcaps (New Zealand) for the big T20 World Cup Final at the MCG come Sunday November 13.

We love seeing some underdog teams upset the big nation Test sides so far in this tournament, as we can’t wait to see how the business end of the Super 12 group stages unfold going into this weekend as well as the entirety of next week.

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Rugby

Rugby News Australia: England’s robust defensive work ended the Wallabies hopes of taking the Ella-Mobbs Trophy home at the SCG

by Sports Benches

It was one huge decider to look back from last night at the Sydney Cricket Ground when Australia went head-to-head against England for the series trophy, as they came into the field at 1-1 apiece after England bounced back last Saturday in Brisbane. The away team struck the first blow before they responded to Tom Wright’s TRY from Australia with a one-point lead at half-time, courtesy of Freddie Steward. Although, Australia kept themselves in the hunt within England’s radar thanks to Folau Faingaa off the bench. But at the end of the day, it has to be England when Marcus Smith capitalised a small lead with a wonderful intercept TRY before they tightened their defense that frustrated Australia in the end. The final score on what has been the final ever rugby union match at the SCG – 17-21 – as we look forward to move back to the all-new Allianz Stadium soon next door.

It’s not been the series ending the Wallabies wanted last night during the 3rd and final Test decider v England. Their first-half run wasn’t bad when they took note of the opposition’s ill-discipline thanks to Nick Frost on second row, before they got the ball rolling via his Brumbies team-mate Tom Wright. A few changes off the bench during the second 40, especially when Folau Faingaa kept the Wallabies hopes alive towards stealing the series away from the English. Sadly, they just couldn’t get escape the opposition’s robust defense under pressure while suffering lapses of inconsistency going forward – which led to lost penalties/turnovers. It’s that one huge weakness they need to work ahead of the Rugby Championship beginning with Argentina in a few weeks, even though they have to keep moving without a few key players from the treatment room.

Meanwhile, England retain the series yet again when they have now taken home the Ella-Mobbs Cup, which is the new trophy after the Cook Cup was retired at the end of last year that spanned for 25 years since its series inception back in 1997. They were glad to get away from their own ill-discipline at the beginning & touched down Australia’s inconsistent attack where England showed excellent fightback in the first half. Not only they opened the scoreboard via the three-point penalty goal, but Freddie Steward’s TRY in the 40th minute puts them ahead of Australia by just one point at half-time, 10-11. They later capitalised on their narrow lead with another three-pointer followed by amazing finish from fly-half Marcus Smith, before England put their bodies on the line defensively that stopped Australia from slipping past them in their tracks going into full-time.

As said earlier, the Wallabies are now preparing for the Rugby Championship going into August. These two games in Argentina will be a Stan Sport exclusive since they kick off at 5am AEST our time which is 4pm over there, so it won’t be aired for free as Nine/9Gem tends to broadcast Super Rugby and Wallabies games within here and New Zealand. I don’t know about the away Springboks games at around midnight when Australia last played in South Africa since 2019, but I guess we’ll find out soon enough next year. For now, there’s some Club Rugby to watch before Nine/9Gem airs the Wallabies games again when the Springboks come here at the end of next month.

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Rugby

Rugby News, Top 3 players from the 3rd Test between Wallabies v England at the Sydney Cricket Ground

by Sports Benches

Courtney Lawes has definitely frustrated & stopped the Wallabies from slipping past his English side last night as skipper on the Blindside (flanker role). His defensive work was outstanding every time the Wallabies tries to get themselves going under pressure before Lawes stepped in & called in his troops to lock the ball up, so they (Wallabies) can’t continue under the referee’s watch. He can also be an excellent support player with so much physicality going forward while calling for cover to ensure that the ball stays with England, which led to winning penalties/advantages off the back of the Wallabies ill-discipline. It led to a sigh of relief when the Wallabies were unable to capitalise going forward, while celebrating the series win at the same time.

Next up is Jack van Poortvliet – who came on for Danny Care at half-back not long before half-time – and he too made an instant impact ever since in the No.21 England shirt. He has a very good talk up when looking at ways to get past the Wallabies while calling out for some support. They were able to keep themselves ahead thanks to the Wallabies messy discipline/play via the advantages & later winning penalties before keeping a close eye in defense to close out this deciding test match – including his TRY assist to his Leicester team-mate Freddie Steward that saw England lead Australia by one point ahead of half-time at 10-11. And like Freddie, he proved that he can translate these premiership-winning skillsets at International level, as JVP put England in a great position on the run home with the series trophy.

Lastly, Tom Wright never stopped running on the right wing, especially when he opened the Wallabies scoring account with Nic White backing up on his way through the TRY zone. A few fresh faces in the 2nd-half kept his side closer within reach of England’s radar – thanks to Folau Faingaa. Unfortunately, he just wished that he gets supported more often where he was being isolated in both attack & defense. It would’ve helped the Wallabies get ahead of England once more & capitalise towards the win they desperately needed.

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Rugby

Rugby News: Top 3 players from Game 2 last night between Wallabies v England

by Sports Benches

Billy Vunipola was outstanding last night in the No.8 shirt for England at Suncorp Stadium. They definitely did his favours when not only he won them plenty of penalties but he was also destructive in the attack – especially after he ended up being the only tryscorer of the night. The sheer physicality he unpacked throughout the whole time alongside with a couple of his support numbers has definitely caused the Wallabies so much pain from the opposition end. It goes to show that England were well ahead within the winning circle under Vunipola‘s all-round ability to cause damage, as well as looking out defensively on the back row.

Next up is Owen Farrell at inside centre in the No.12 shirt for England. He’s always an excellent kicker towards the goal posts as always thanks to a number of winning penalties. The ill-discipline mistakes made by the Wallabies gave England plenty of ball opportunities going forward with patience before it made Farrell’s life easier to score from his kicking tee. He also has the pace & tackling to track back defensively before covering up the Wallabies as one of the support numbers while his England team build some phases. He continues to be an important presence for England at age 30 alongside his premiership-winning mindset that helped him deliver five titles & three European trophies for Saracens.

And great to see Taniela Tupou back in the Wallabies shirt on the tighthead front row after a while off the pitch from injury. He definitely gave England a huge threat with his packed muscle before Tupou opened the scoring account not long before half-time. Although he may have felt a metre short of the TRY line on when Tupou continued to do some damage, but the Wallabies got themselves through the gate for their second TRY with his assistance in none other than Samu Kerevi. Unfortunately, a lot of ill-discipline cost them plenty of points before it’s too late – especially when they missed a couple of key backline players to the treatment room.

#AUSvENG #Wallabies #England #Rugby #RugbyUnion #SuncorpStadium #InternationalRugby #TanielaTupou #OwenFarrell #BillyVunipola

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