England announce team to face Wales
England
15. Mark Cueto (Sale Sharks)
14. David Strettle (Harlequins)
13. Dan Hipkiss (Leicester Tigers)
12. Andy Farrell (Saracens)
11. Jason Robinson (Unattached)
10. Jonny Wilkinson (Newcastle Falcons)
9. Shaun Perry (Bristol Rugby)
1. Andrew Sheridan (Sale Sharks)
2. Mark Regan (Bristol Rugby)
3. Phil Vickery (London Wasps, captain)
4. Simon Shaw (London Wasps)
5. Steve Borthwick (Bath Rugby)
6. Martin Corry (Leicester Tigers)
7. Joe Worsley (London Wasps)
8. Nick Easter (Harlequins)
Replacements
16. George Chuter (Leicester Tigers)
17. Matt Stevens (Bath Rugby)
18. Lewis Moody (Leicester Tigers)
19. Lawrence Dallaglio (London Wasps)
20. Peter Richards (London Irish)
21. Toby Flood (Newcastle Falcons)
22. Mathew Tait (Newcastle Falcons)
Saturday’s warm-up match against Wales will offer the opportunity to see a number of exciting combinations as Brian Ashton’s men continue to prepare for the Rugby World Cup.
At centre, the prospect of Andy Farrell and Dan Hipkiss has been touted by many as their preferred line-up. Farrell offers the strength in defence along with excellent distribution skills, while Hipkiss has looked exciting in attack for Leicester this season.
In the second row, Simon Shaw and Steve Borthwick will offer quality lineout options and both have a chance to stake their claim ahead of Ben Kay.
The back row looks to be the most unusual, with Joe Worsley starting at openside, Martin Corry on the blindside and Nick Easter at Number 8. Ominously though, Lawrence Dallaglio is on the bench.
It was thought that Corry would only be considered in the second row, and Joe Worsley is not regarded as a quality openside, so these switches of position are intriguing (and slightly concerning at this late stage). Unfortunately, England fans will have to continue to wait to see Dan Ward-Smith in action.
This game could represent the last chance for a number of England players before Ashton further trims his squad, and will be compulsive viewing this weekend.
Player Profile: Tom Rees
Position: Openside Flanker
Height: 1.80 m (5? 11?)
Weight: 100 kg (15 st 10 lb)
Date of Birth: 11th September 1984
Birthplace: London
Tom Rees has surely cemented his place on the openside flank for England at this year’s Rugby World Cup with some exceptional performances for Wasps and England this season.
Rees and Magnus Lund, the Sale flanker, appeared to have similar chances of claiming the spot in the starting line-up with both performing well in the England jersey. However, coach Brian Ashton has already released Lund (and Andy Hazell), leaving Rees as the only specialist in his position – Lewis Moody will provide cover, but is preferred on the blindside.
Rees has represented England at the U16, U18, U19 and U21 age groups and so is no stranger to International rugby. His father played rugby for Swansea Schoolboys, and he was educated at RGS High Wycombe – so his rugby pedigree cannot be questioned.
His speed makes him a dangerous prospect in attack, and his stocky stature allows him to be a ferocious forager in the loose. Nevertheless, his first great test for the senior England team will come against South Africa in Pool A, where he will line up against Schalk Burger and Juan Smith, arguably two of the finest back row players in the world.
To support him into battle, Rees may benefit from running out alongside Wasps teammates Lawrence Dallaglio and Joe Worsley, but no matter what combination Ashton chooses, Rees will be there and England’s supporters will be hoping he lives up to his potential.
Huge blow for Springbok chances as Spies is ruled out of RWC
Pierre Spies, South Africa’s promising young number 8 has been ruled out of this year’s Rugby World Cup after specialists found clots on his lungs - he will be unable to play for 6 to 8 months.
This news is a huge disappointment, not just for Jake White’s team, but also for the rest of the rugby world that was looking forward to seeing such a talent perform on the biggest of stages.
The door is opens for Bob Skinstad as he continues his second career for South Africa, and now appears to be first choice at the base of the scrum.
World Cup Diary - Ashton makes us wait
Brian Ashton was widely expected to make further cuts to his 40-man training squad last week, but it looks as though he is continuing to hedge his bets.
England will face Wales at the weekend at Twickenham, and the England coach is likely to use the game to test the fitness of several players returning from injury. After the game, there may be an announcement about the next group of players to be dismissed, prior to the naming of the final 30 by August 14th.
All eyes will be on Dan Ward-Smith, the untested hope of English rugby, and whether he can recover from his knee injury in time to make an impact at the World Cup and rescue England’s dimming chances.
Team Profile: Scotland
by Justin Aylward
There was once a time when a trip to Edinburgh to face the Scots was as appealing a prospect as a having a bath with a hungry shark. But enough about William Wallace. Times have changed, and in today’s rugby world, Scotland have faded from the challenging, passionate team they were in yesteryear to become a ramshackle team of whipping boys with a lack of potency or ability to challenge even the second tier teams of world rugby today.
The problems manifested in the national team are a product of a deeper misalliance. Fractious contra-temps between the clubs and the national union are no stranger to European rugby at the moment, but Scotland have failed to draw the reconciliations that the likes of France and England have accomplished, and instead have seen negotiations stall, resulting in the closure of a number of the top-flight Scottish clubs. Furthermore, the remaining clubs such as Edinburgh have experienced a haemorrhage of their best players, further weakening the roots of the Scottish game; Chris Patterson being the latest to flee to fairer shores after agreeing a contract with Gloucester. He follows the likes of Chris Cusiter (Perpignan), Scott Murray (Montauban) and Simon Taylor (Stade Francais).
The result of this disharmony has been evident in the cracks of the national team for a number of years, but never has Scottish rugby been in the turmoil in which it currently finds itself. A loss at home to Italy in this year’s 6 Nations was perhaps inevitable in time given Italy’s rising ascendancy and Scotland’s demise, but for even the staunchest of supporters this spectacle must have helped highlight the withering ability of the national side to win games of top-level international rugby in today’s environment. The structure of Scottish rugby is now such that it is depressingly unlikely that we will see many new talents bred and moulded into world-class players by a system that has not so much given up the ghost, as it has gone home, locked the door, thrown away the key, and left the ghost to its own haunting devices.
So where does this leave Scottish chances in the Rugby World Cup? The pool stages see them pitted against New Zealand, Italy, Romania and Portugal. We can safely say the match-up against the mighty Blacks won’t even be a contest, but one would hope the games against Romania and Portugal are a foregone conclusion. So that leaves the Italy game – will Scotland prevail or will we witness a recurrence of March’s Murrayfield mockery?
An Italian team full of confidence following their encouraging performances in the 6 Nations will provide a formidable opponent, especially with the likes of Serigo Parisse and Alessandro Troncon dominating from the base of the scrum. In contrast, Scotland do not have a solid team of players who have cemented their places, nor a notable core of experience from which any platform can be built, exemplified by a lack of fluency of results in recent internationals. Frank Hadden admittedly has a thankless task, but recently stating that this team is the best ever prepared Scotland side to go into a World Cup is slightly optimistic at best.
Perhaps the best way to summarise Scotland is the amount of hope they lay on the narrow shoulders of Chris Patterson. Used at fly half, wing or full-back, he possesses a spark that could ignite an explosive run and kick-start some momentum for the team. However, too much responsibility and hope lies on one man, especially one who when matched up against serious teams such as the All Blacks, will be treated like a toddler in a bear-pit. Today’s international rugby is all about size and power; Patterson has neither. A jinking runner he may be, but players such as Rockocoko, Howlett, Sivivatu and Gear have those qualities in excess, plus the sheer speed and strength that makes them some of the most awesome attacking prospects around. Unfortunately, Scotland’s glimmer of hope may well be snuffed out and spat back into the black abyss.
Were I a betting man, my money would be on Scotland not making it past the group stages; a sorry prospect for a country whose national and international rugby is very much in turbulent times.
Team Profile: Namibia
Namibia’s rugby union team is featured in the Rugby World Cup record books, despite only having played in two previous tournaments - their defeat by Australia in 2003 by 142-0 was the biggest ever.
As a proud rugby nation with close links to South Africa (Namibia was formerly known as South West Africa), coach Hakkies Husselman’s squad will be looking to make up for that disappointment this time around.
However, Namibia could be the weakest team in the tournament, having survived a shaky start to the qualifying process in Africa with losses to Kenya and Tunisia, and with France, Ireland and Argentina - 3 of the world’s top 6 teams - they could be on the end of a few more heavy thrashings.
Prop Kees Lensing may be wishing he had stuck it out competing for a place in the South Africa team, having previously won a place in the U21 squad whilst playing for Eastern Province, and having graduated from Stellenbosch University with the likes of Stuart Abbott and Neil de Kock. He now plays for the Bulls, but has proudly opted to represent Namibia (ranked 25th in the world, just behind Korea and Chile) in their World Cup quest.
Team Profile: Georgia
Georgia are currently preparing for their second Rugby World Cup, aiming to break their duck by winning a game. Lining up in Pool D with France, Ireland, Argentina and Namibia, they will be satisfied with one win and it won’t be France, Ireland or Argentina that they will be targeting.
In 2003, the Eastern Europeans faced England, South Africa, Samoa and Uruguay and were distraught not to beat the South Americans in the battle of the minnows. This time, coach Malkhaz Tcheishvili is determined to defeat Uruguay in his sides own World Cup Final.
The team was a favourite of the Australian crowd in the last tournament, and they are sure to acquire some support in France - the majority of their players play in the French league system, and all of their games will be played in France.
The coach has developed a determined defensive system that will not be easy to breach, but they lack penetration in attack. They will no doubt take heart then from Jake White’s assertion that defences win World Cups.
Tcheishvili is a graduate of the Georgia National Dance Studios and starred for the Soviet Union - and later Georgia following their independence in 1989 - thanks to his exceptional footwork.
Back row forward Rati Urushadze will be looking to make an impact after missing out through injury four years ago. 17 stone of vodka-drinking, siberia-dwelling eastern european is enough to strike fear into any man, and he can play a bit as well.
Clutching at straws - 5 reasons why the All Blacks won’t win the World Cup
Many pundits have talked about the 2007 Rugby World Cup as being a one horse race for 3 and a half years, such has been the dominance of the All Blacks side since the 2003 tournament.
Since Graham Henry took over the reins as coach, he has implemented a plan that has seen him regularly rotate players in his squad, develop the most powerful forward unit in the world, and turn his men into fitter, leaner and stronger men than anyone else in the game.
The upshot is that New Zealand now have two teams that can compete with any other nation. On their Grand Slam tour of Europe, Henry would make as many as 15 changes from one week to the next and they’d still win. Their first choice line-up is already head and shoulders above the rest, and they have the strength in depth required for the testing schedule of a World Cup.
Nevertheless, to lift the spirits of all the other rugby nations, here are 5 reasons why New Zealand’s 20-year wait for a another World Cup title may go on.
1. Pressure from the New Zealand public
If the All Blacks do not win in France this year, there will be uproar at home. Graham Henry will suffer the same fate as John Mitchell in 2003, and there will be sweeping changes in the team. Rugby to the New Zealand public means as much as football does to the English. When England gets knocked out of the football (soccer) World Cup, the nation is sent into depression, and there is a downturn in the economy - for New Zealand it is worse, given that England’s football team are never really expected to win anything! That pressure could play on their minds in tight games in the latter stages.
2. 20 years is a long wait
Everyone knows that despite coming close on a number of occasions, New Zealand has not won the tournament since the inaugural event in 1987. Every four years, the All Blacks start among the favourites, but disappointing defeats have left them with the unenviable title of ‘The best team in the world between World Cups’. This stigma will add to the significant pressure from supporters and may contribute to their demise.
3. Easy group
Of all the top seeds, New Zealand has the easiest group. Scotland and Italy will be battling it out for second place, but neither will offer stern opposition for the All Blacks, and they will go through to the knockout stages untested. In the quarter-finals, there is a realistic chance they will meet Argentina (the Pumas need to beat Ireland to go through as runners up to France - a feat they achieved twice this summer), and even that game should not prove too much trouble. So New Zealand may cruise through to the semis, where they could face Australia, battle-hardened after a more strenuous route and determined to cause an upset against their local rivals like they did in 2003. New Zealand will need to beware.
4. Reuben Thorne
Why has Thorne been named in the All Blacks squad over the more dynamic and versatile Troy Flavell? Is Graham Henry cracking up already? Thorne will not be selected in the first-choice team, nor will he make any impact from the substitutes bench and so his selection is mystifying. Henry will effectively have 29 players to choose from, and if the Kiwis have to rely on Thorne in a World Cup final, they could be exposed.
5. Schalk Burger, Juan Smith and Pierre Spies
South Africa’s back row is on a par with - possibly even better than - New Zealand’s trio. If the Springbok loose forwards get the better of their Kiwi counterparts, they could starve the dangerous All Black backline of possession and kill their running rugby gameplan. Burger and Smith are brutally physical and will force turnover ball, while Spies has the pace and power to be a threat in attack. If the final is a contest between these two sides, the Springboks manage to keep all their players on the field and out of the sin bin, and Reuben Thorne lines up for the All Blacks, the Springboks could sneak a result and lift the trophy.
Should all these factors combine, the All Blacks’ could fail once again in their World Cup quest. However, New Zealand’s performance against Australia to secure the Bledisloe Cup and the Tri-Nations allayed fears that they were beginning to decline - they remain overwhelming favourites to lift the Web Ellis Cup, and rightly so, but let us all take solace that there may be a glimmer of hope for the other teams.
By James Hutchison
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