rugby
Hammer time: Japan using new tools in World Cup bid
Japan are the darlings of the Rugby World Cup with some very unusual training methods - but none more bizarre than smacking their coach on the head with a plastic hammer. The tournament hosts have been a revelation, storming to four straight wins to...
Hammer time: Japan using new tools in World Cup bid
Japan are the darlings of the Rugby World Cup with some very unusual training methods -- but none more bizarre than smacking their coach on the head with a plastic hammer. The tournament hosts have been a revelation, storming to four straight wins to...
Montpellier win appeal against Top 14 salary cap fine
French Top 14 club Montpellier won an appeal on Tuesday against a fine of 470,000 euros (517,000 dollars) imposed last week by the National Rugby League (LNR) for exceeding the league's salary cap. "Montpellier Rugby welcomes the decision of the...
Scotland hit with misconduct charge over World Cup typhoon comments
Rugby World Cup organisers filed misconduct charges against Scotland on Tuesday over comments made about Typhoon Hagibis, after the Scots threatened legal action if their final pool game was cancelled because of the deadly storm. Organisers said they...
Japan beat Scotland to reach first World Cup quarter-final
Japan’s “Ferraris” hit top gear Sunday as the hosts beat Scotland 28-21 in a barnstorming Rugby World Cup clash to create history by reaching the quarter-finals. Rampaging wingers Kotaro Matsushima and Kenki Fukuoka did the damage for Japan, who...
Sloppy Wales set up World Cup quarter-final with France
Wales set up a Rugby World Cup quarter-final with Six Nations rivals France as they topped Pool D with a far-from-perfect 35-13 win over minnows Uruguay on Sunday. A largely second-string Welsh side committed a slew of handling errors and forward...
14-man Ireland thrash Samoa to reach World Cup quarter-finals
World Player of the Year Johnny Sexton scored two tries as 14-man Ireland secured a 47-5 bonus-point win over Samoa to reach the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals on Saturday. Ireland had Bundee Aki sent off for a high tackle in the first half but they...
Watch: Super typhoon forces unprecedented axing of World Cup games
Two Rugby World Cup matches were cancelled in an unprecedented move on Thursday as Japan braces for potential damage and disruption from powerful Super Typhoon Hagibis. Video: AFP Organisers took the “very difficult decision” to scrap the games on...
Wales beat Fiji to reach World Cup quarters, put Australia through
Winger Josh Adams scored a sensational hat-trick on Wednesday as Wales booked a Rugby World Cup quarter-final place with a 29-17 bonus-point win over Fiji, sending Australia through in the process. In an end-to-end encounter in Oita, Fiji scored two...
Hastings stars as Scots set up Japan quarter-final showdown
Scotland will play Japan for a spot in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals after a 26-point haul from Adam Hastings helped them to a nine-try, 61-0 thrashing of Russia on Wednesday. A Scottish side boasting 14 changes from the team that beat Samoa 34-0...
Sanchez steals show as Argentina pummel USA at Rugby World Cup
Fly-half Nicolas Sanchez showed Argentina what they had been missing with a masterful first-half performance Wednesday, as the eliminated Pumas restored some pride with a 47-17 win against the United States at the Rugby World Cup. Sanchez was...
Reinach sets World Cup hat-trick record as Springboks thrash Canada
South Africa’s Cobus Reinach scored the fastest hat-trick in Rugby World Cup history as the Springboks all but assured themselves of a place in the quarter-finals with a 66-7 hammering of Canada in Kobe on Tuesday. The Springboks ran in 10 tries,...
Rugby a sport of 'intimidation', says All Blacks' Hansen
Rugby union remains a sport of "intimidation", All Blacks coach Steve Hansen insisted Monday amid a slew of yellow and red cards for dangerous tackles that have marked the pool stage of the World Cup. "Our game is about intimidation -- some people...
Experimental All Blacks thrash Namibia 71-9
An experimental New Zealand side recovered from a sticky start and two yellow cards to hammer Namibia 71-9 and move one step closer to finishing top of their pool at the Rugby World Cup on Sunday. Namibia battled to within a point at 10-9 after half an...
France qualify for quarter-finals in World Cup cliffhanger
France qualified for the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals on Sunday with a nailbiting 23-21 win against Tonga that sets up a winner-takes-all clash with England to top Pool C. First-half tries by Virimi Vakatawa and man-of-the-match Alivereti Raka were...
Japan crush Samoa to close in on World Cup quarters
Hosts Japan conjured the samurai spirit to smash Samoa 38-19 on Saturday and take a giant step towards a historic quarter-final spot at the Rugby World Cup. Tries by Samoan-born Timothy Lafaele, Kazuki Himeno, Kenki Fukuoka and Kotaro Matsushima helped...
England first into World Cup knock-outs after routing 14-man Argentina
England became the first team to reach the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals Saturday after a 39-10 bonus-point win over Argentina, who had a man sent off for a high tackle. Jack Nowell celebrated his return from injury with a late try, one of six scores...
Kolbe magic as Springboks put one foot in World Cup quarters
Electric winger Cheslin Kolbe scored a classy double as South Africa put one foot in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals with a comprehensive 49-3 victory over 14-man Italy on Friday. The result left both teams on 10 points, but Rassie Erasmus’...
Fiji rout Georgia for bonus-point win at Rugby World Cup
Winger Semi Radradra scored twice as Fiji produced a scintillating second-half performance to secure a 45-10 bonus-point win against Georgia Thursday, running in seven tries in difficult conditions at the Rugby World Cup. Coach John McKee had demanded...
Weber at the double in All Blacks' nine-try rout of Canada
Two-time defending champions New Zealand ran nine tries past Canada in a 63-0 romp to strengthen their grip on Pool B at the Rugby World Cup on Wednesday. All three Barrett brothers -- Jordie, Beauden and Scott -- scored tries as the All Blacks totted...
France survive scare to beat USA 33-9 at Rugby World Cup
France ran in three late tries against the United States Wednesday to earn a vital bonus point in the Rugby World Cup ‘group of death’ with an erratic 33-9 win. Les Bleus were just 12-9 ahead with 13 minutes to go before Gael Fickou, Baptiste Serin and...
Scotland keep Rugby World Cup hopes alive with bonus-point Samoa win
Scotland revived their Rugby World Cup campaign with a decisive 34-0 win over Samoa in Kobe on Monday that saw the Pacific islanders finish a man down. The bonus point win for Gregor Townsend’s men could prove vital in a tight Pool A that also involves...
Wales hold off Australia to edge Rugby World Cup thriller
Six Nations champions Wales took a massive step towards topping Pool D with a thrilling 29-25 victory over valiant Australia in the Rugby World Cup on Sunday. The Welsh were 23-8 ahead at half-time but they had to withstand a furious second-half...
Ruthless South Africa destroy Namibia in nine-try rout
Two-time champions South Africa recorded one of their biggest Rugby World Cup wins on Saturday when they routed a porous Namibia 57-3 to move towards the quarter-finals. Five tries in the first half and another four in the second swept Namibia aside as...
Japan upset lights up World Cup as Argentina back on track
Japan produced one of the biggest upsets in Rugby World Cup history on Saturday, stunning the highly fancied Ireland 19-12 to light up the tournament on home turf. The Brave Blossoms were magnificent against Ireland, who came into the tournament...
England thrash 14-man USA at Rugby World Cup
England made it two wins from two at the Rugby World Cup as they scored seven tries during a 45-7 rout of the United States in Kobe on Thursday that saw the Eagles receive the first red card of the tournament. First-half tries from stand-in captain...
Seven-try Italy bulldoze Canada for biggest win at Rugby World Cup
Italy ran amok against Canada to bag their second bonus-point win in as many games with a 48-7 Rugby World Cup victory Thursday and vowed to celebrate with an “old-school night”. It was not a perfect performance as Italy slipped at times from flair...
Minnows Uruguay pull off historic Fiji shock at Rugby World Cup
Minnows Uruguay pulled off the greatest upset in their history on Wednesday as they stunned Fiji 30-27 to leave the Pacific islanders staring at an early exit from the Rugby World Cup. John McKee’s Fiji had showcased their traditional running flair in...
Fidow fires Samoa to big win over Russia at Rugby World Cup
Marauding winger Ed Fidow bagged a quickfire double as Samoa beat Russia 34-9 in a bruising Rugby World Cup encounter on Tuesday. Fidow provided the spark in a tempestuous Pool A clash after the Pacific islanders were reduced to 13 men in the first...
Gatland praises ‘clinical’ Wales start to Rugby World Cup tilt
Wales coach Warren Gatland praised a “clinical” four-try first-half which proved his “battered and sore” team’s bedrock for a comfortable 43-14 victory over Georgia in their Rugby World Cup opener on Monday. The Welsh raced out to a 29-0 half-time lead...