Saturday, September 27, 2014

OUT OF THE COUNTRY

I will be out of Australia until 12 October

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Rugby Championship

13.09.2014
New Zealand 14, South Africa 10 in Wellington (Rugby Championship)
Australia 32, Argentina 25 in Gold Coast (Rugby Championship)

Saturday, September 13, 2014

SOUTH AFRICA v NEW ZEALAND: Rugby Championship

13.09.2014
South Africa v New Zealand in Wellington (Rugby Championship)


Image thanks to www.busandcoach.co.nz


Venue: Westpac Stadium, Wellington

Referee: Jérôme Garcès (France)

Preview
New Zealand and South Africa have a long rugby history going back to the 1920’s. One would need to dig deep to come up with a contest between these two nations which, on form, would look to be so one-sided.

South Africa lost to Australia by one point. Their scrum was, on occasions, pushed back by Australia. They suffered the same inglorious happening against Argentina this year twice. All is not well with the South Africa scrum. This is almost unheard of. Against a New Zealand side that could match if not better that scrum and can play the game at greater speed and better skills, South Africa well deserves the underdog tag for this match. What Meyer can do to solve the problem I don’t know. What he is doing is bring back scrum veterans like Victor Matfield and Bakkies Botha to shore up what could be argued as South Africa’s weakest scrum, ever.

New Zealand is just doing what they do better than anybody else. They win ball. They play the game at an astonishing pace. They play the game with a skills expectation which, as against Australia in game 1, can be breath taking. They can also do this for a full eighty minutes. Australia and South Africa can achieve similar standards but not for a full eighty minutes.

I cannot think of a single area in the game where South Africa could dominate. The lineout perhaps. Matfield still reigns supreme. But even in this area New Zealand is producing some outstanding jumpers in Rodick and Kieran Read. South Africa will need to play well above what they have produced so far and New Zealand a shocker for the Sprinbox to take this one.

Last Five Encounters
05.10.2013 New Zealand 38-27 in Johannesburg (Rugby Championship)
14.09.2013 New Zealand 29-15 in Auckland (Rugby Championship)
06.10.2012 New Zealand 32-16 in Johannesburg (Rugby Championship)
15.09.2012 New Zealand 21-11 in Dunedin (Rugby Championship)
20.08.2011 South Africa 18-5 in Port Elizabeth (Tri-Nations)

New Zealand Last Five P 5, W 4, D 1
06.09.2014 v Argentina W 28-9 in Napier (Rugby Championship)
23.08.2014 v Australia W 51-20 in Auckland (Bledisloe Cup, Rugby Champ.)
16.08.2014 v Australia D 12-12 in Sydney (Bledisloe Cup, Rugby Champ.)
21.06.2014 v England W 36-13 in Hamilton
14.06.2014 v England W 28-27 in Dunedin

South Africa Last Five P 5, W 4, L 1
06.09.2014 v Australia L 23-24 in Perth (Rugby Champ.,Mandela Cup)
23.08.2014 v Argentina W 33-31 in Salta (Rugby Championship)
16.08.2014 v Argentina W 13-6 in Pretoria (Rugby Championship)
28.06.2014 v Scotland W 55-6 in Port Elizabeth
21.06.2014 v Wales W 31-30 in Nelspruit

GWC Rugby Rankings
World Table:New Zealand 1st, South Africa 3rd

IRB Ranking Points
New Zealand 93.56, South Africa 88.42

Prediction: I just can’t see South Africa catching New Zealand on recent form.
New Zealand by 20 points.

Teams

8[1]

New Zealand: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Benjamin Smith, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Aaron Cruden, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read,
7 Richie McCaw (Capt.), 6 Steven Luatua, 5 Jeremy Thrush, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Wyatt Crockett.
Replacements
16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Joseph Moody, 18 Benjamin Franks, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Samuel Cane, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Beauden Barrett, 23 Cory Jane.
Head Coach: Steve Hansen

34[1]

South Africa
15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 Jan Serfontein, 12 Jean de Villiers (Capt.), 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Marcell Coetzee, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Adriaan Strauss, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements
16 Bismarck du Plessis, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Marcel van der Merwe, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 Warren Whiteley, 21 Francois Hougaard, 22 Patrick Lambie,
23 Damian de Allende.
Head Coach: Heyneke Meyer

AUSTRALIA v ARGENTINA: Rugby Championship

13.09.2014
Australia v Argentina in Gold Coast (Rugby Championship)

Venue: Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast

Referee: Glen Jackson (New Zealand)

Preview
Australia created an upset in this competition last week with a last minute, thrilling win over South Africa. That result leaves New Zealand way out in front and unlikely to be trumped in this competition. Australia would do well to secure second place and overtake South Africa as the number two team in this competition. They need to secure a win against Argentina today for that to be a realistic goal.

Argentina, however, will be looking for their first win in this competition since it began in 2012. Despite Australia’s win last weekend Argentina will fancy themselves in with more than just a chance. Against the All Blacks last weekend Argentina were at times able to rattle their opponents scrum and in the loose were a handful. With Australia’s supposed weak scrum (it wasn’t against South Africa) Argentina will see this as an opportunity they must not waste.


Argentina will be looking for their first Rugby Championship victory on the Gold Coast. Image thanks to www.espnscrum.com

Australia will not want to see all their hard work last work ( and their coach made it clear in no uncertain terms after the game that Australia did make it look harder than it should have been) go to waste. A good win here is crucial for Australia to secure that second placing. Australia will also look across the Tasman to see if South Africa can cause an upset against New Zealand and throw this competition wide open.

Australia simply has to counter what will be a massive Argentine assault up front. Weather that and play to their strength out wide and at the back and Australia should win. Go down to the Argentine scrum and the game will be there for Argentina to take their first championship scalp. I can’t wait!

Last Five Encounters
05.10.2013 Australia 54-17 in Rosario (Rugby Championship)
14.09.2013 Australia 14-13 in Perth (Rugby Championship)
06.10.2012 Australia 26-19 in Rosario (Rugby Championship)
15.09.2012 Australia 23-19 in Gold Coast (Rugby Championship)
02.11.2002 Australia 17-6 in Buenos Aires

Australia Last Five P 5, W 3, D 1, L 1
06.09.2014 v South Africa W 24-23 in Perth (Rugby Champ.,Mandela Cup)23.08.2014 v New Zealand L 20-51 in Sydney (Rugby Champ., Bledisloe Cup)16.08.2014 v New Zealand D 12-12 in Sydney (Bledisloe Cup; Rugby Champ.)
21.06.2014 v France W 39-13 in Sydney
14.06.2014 v France W 6-0 in Melbourne 

Argentina Last Five P 5, L 5
06.09.2014 v New Zealand L 9-28 in Napier (Rugby Championship)
23.08.2014 v South Africa L 31-33 in Salta (Rugby Championship)
16.08.2014 v South Africa L 6-13 in Pretoria (Rugby Championship)
21.06.2014 v Scotland L 19-21 in Cordoba
14.06.2014 v Ireland L 17-23 in Tucuman

GWC Rugby Rankings
World Table: Australia 2nd, Argentina 14th

IRB Ranking Points
Australia 88.10, Argentina 73.98

Prediction: In the short history of games played between these two nations in this competition Australia has struggled against Argentina at home. I expect the same to happen but Australia take this one narrowly.
Australia by 2 points

Teams

7[1]

Australia
15 Israel Folau, 14 Peter Betham, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Matthew Toomua,
11 Robert Horne, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nicholas Phipps, 8 Benjamin McCalman, 7 Michael Hooper (Capt.), 6 Scott Fardy, 5 Robert Simmons, 4 Samuel Carter, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 James Slipper.
Replacements
16 James Hanson, 17 Pek Cowan, 18 Ben Alexander, 19 James Horwill,
20 Scott Higginbotham, 21 Matthew Hodgson, 22 Nicholas White, 23 Kurtley Beale.
Head Coach: Ewan MacKenzie

13[1]

Argentina
15 Joaquín Tuculet, 14 Juan Imhoff, 13 Marcelo Bosch, 12 Juan Martín Hernández, 11 Manuel Montero, 10 Nicolás Sánchez, 9 Martín Landajo,
8 Leonardo Senatore, 7 Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe, 6 Juan Manuel Leguizamón, 5 Matías Alemanno, 4 Mariano Galarza, 3 Ramiro Herrera,
2 Agustín Creevy (Capt.)1 Marcos Ayerza.
Replacements
16 Matías Cortese, 17 Bruno Postiglioni, 18 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro,
19 Benjamin Macome, 20 Rodrigo Báez, 21 Tomás Cubelli, 22 Jerónimo De la Fuente, 23 Lucas González Amorosino.
Head Coach: Daniel Hourcade

Sunday, September 7, 2014

NEW ZEALAND TOO GOOD FOR ARGENTINA. Rugby Championship

06.09.2014
New Zealand 28, Argentina 9 in Napier (Rugby Championship)

Reviews
Although not reaching the breathtaking heights of their 51-20 demolition of Australia 2 weeks ago, New Zealand did enough and showed enough overall class to outdistance Argentina.

Argentina played with plenty of passion and, as they did against South Africa, muscled-up in the forwards and at times more than just held the All Black scrum. They managed some good mauling and pushed the AB’s in a few scrums.

New Zealand rarely lets their guard down. And when they do look out for next minute they are upon you. Argentina were always going to struggle out wide. New Zealand only needed some silky moves from Savea (25 tries in 26 tests!) and Barrett (wow, and he is only number 3 in his position in NZ) and holes were found in the Argentine defence. Not many but enough to blow the score out to an eventual 28-9. New Zealand managed to push the Argie’s scrum in the second half and when that began to happen the writing was on the wall.

Argentina could also feel hard done by the referee when Senatore scored from a charged kick which was ruled as a knock on. I didn’t agree but perhaps it made up for the blatant hold back on Savea earlier in the game.

Argentina now ventures over to Australia next weekend whilst New Zealand eagerly awaits the Springbox in Wellington. I’m looking forwards to another enthralling round of the Rugby Championship.


He just keeps scoring tries.
Image thanks to www.veooz.com

AUSTRALIA JUST EDGE OUT SOUTH AFRICA RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP; Saturday 6 September

06.09.2014
Australia 24, South Africa 23 in Perth (Mandela Cup; Rugby Championship)

Reviews
Australia scored a very late converted try to just edge out the touring South African side in Perth. Australia has now won their last two encounters against RSA in Perth.

That man Israel Folau played magic and scored an early try but the first half was an arm-wrestle and a kick-fest as both sides tested each other out. South Africa were expected to dominate up front but in a very physical first half honours were about even. Australia infringed more frequently and Morne Steyn punished them through the posts. South Africa led 14-11 at half time.

South Africa began to gain more control in the second half with the signs ominous for Australia. Then the matched turned at the 64th minute. Playing in his 100th test Bryan Habana was yellow-carded for a high tackle. Down 17-23 Australia sniffed an opportunity as the momentum shifted and they moved up a gear. A late try to Rob Horne after some silky work from Folau and others was the result of some relentless pressure from Australia. Foley still had to kick the conversion which he did the match finally ending with an Australian win.

Australia’s win puts them back on track. They face Argentina at home but South Africa now travels to New Zealand to face the All Blacks in Wellington.


Horne’s late try sealed the game.
Image thanks to www.theguardian.com

POLAND 29, SWEDEN 17: ENC 1B

06.09.2014

Reviews

I found this preview.

‘B-team to face Poland
Difficult to see how Sweden can avoid a heavy defeat against Poland at the weekend. The team has been scraped together in the last few days and with an amateur game this has meant at least a dozen regulars are unavailable. Exiles have to be sure six players in the squad, but they are missing another six who have been regular starters for Sweden in the last couple of years. One of the six selected is Dave Ray, aged 51, a reflection on the strength of the props in Sweden at present. Dave has, however, been playing regularly for the Exiles Ones and Twos all season and will not let the side down.
I´ll have more to say about why the Union has ended up in this disastrous situation after the game is over. But in the meantime let´s wish the lads all the best. I´ll be reporting direct from the match.’ Posted from the Stockholm Exiles RFC website.

http://www.rugbyeurope.eu/forum2007/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=4603

As it turned out Sweden gave the hosts plenty to think about before eventually losing.

Updates of the game as it progressed form ‘Quentin’

7 mins: Try for Poland #13 + conversion #10. 7 - 0
19 mins: Try for Sweden #11 + conversion. 7 – 7
12 - 10 Sweden pen
38 mins Poland try #13 + touchline conversion. 14 - 10
HALFTIME: 14 – 10

2nd Half - BTW Dave Ray, aged 51 started the game for Sweden and was subbed only late in 2nd half
46 mins Poland try #4 + conversion #10. 21 - 10
68 mins, no more scores but the Poland #6 player now sinbinned for something off the ball as they were trying to make their 4th try.
74 mins Penalty try to Sweden as player chasing kick near 5m tackled without the ball by last defender. + conv. 21 - 17
Stoppage time and Sweden in a good position with attacking line out but concede penalty.
80+4 mins Penalty Poland #10. Good kick from wide left. 24 - 17
87 mins on the screen clock (which hasn't stopped for injuries etc), the last play of the game
Try to Poland, finally the BP try to #29 (yes shirt no. is right!) as a simple catch from line out and break through a hole in the defence. conv missed.

RESULT: POLAND 29 -17 SWEDEN

According to http://www.rugbypolska.pl/tiding,5237,rate.html
Poland: Tomasz Gasik 10 (2T), Dawid Banaszek 9 (3C, 1P), Piotr Zeszutek 5 (T), Grzegorz Buczek 5 (T)
Sweden: Neill Erasmus 7 (2C, 1P), Jonathan Edwards 5 (T), Penalty Try 5

5 000 spectators according to the gamesheet at http://rugbyeurope.eu/upload/file/14100 ... 0ENC1B.PDF
It annotates the second Swedish conversion but doesn't add the 2 points

Polish team. Image thanks to http://pzrugby.pl

CONSUR B DAY 3 Finals Day

06.09.2014
Colombia 27, Venezuela 10 in Apartado (CONSUR B, Final)
Peru 24, Ecuador 17 in Apartado (CONSUR B, Playoff 3rd-4th)

Briefly
Day 3 of the CONSUR B tournament held in Colombia saw pre-match predictions just about go to script. A frenetic first half saw Colombia build a handy lead. Two yellow cards (one to each side) in this half was a pre-warning of things to come. A shambolic second half saw another three yellow cards dished out all to Colombia. This had the effect of an even second half in which no points were score. So Colombia took out CONSUR B honours.

COLOMBIA CAMPEÓN DEL SUDAMERICANO B DE RUGBY

Colombia took out CONSUR B honours with a 27-10 win over Venezuela
Image thanks to http://www.consur.org

In the other game Ecuador improved their game immensely from what we saw on days 1 and 2. Peru dominated the first half and led 19-7 at halftime but Ecuador out scored Peru 10-5 in the second half but just couldn’t catch their neighbours.

My understanding is that promotion-relegation between CONSUR A and B will take place every second year.

The CONSUR C tournament is due in early October. It will be held in Panama City with participating teams being Panama (hosts), Costa Rica (relegated from CONSUR B 2013), Guatemala and El Salvador. Honduras, I understand, will take part as a guest side.

Saturday, September 6, 2014

SOUTH AFRICA v AUSTRALIA: Rugby Championship and Mandela Cup

06.09.2014

Venue: Patersons Stadium, Perth

Referee: George Clancy (Ireland)

Preview
Australia, whose scrum was demolished by the All Blacks two weeks ago, can expect another tough day up front when they face South Africa in Perth. Outclassed up front by Argentina two weeks ago (virtually a hanging offense in the republic) South Africa will be out to prove the pundits wrong about their ‘weak’ front five.


The South Africa scrum. No excuses accepted this Saturday.
Image thanks to kerikerirugby.com

Australia is not without their problems. Hooker has been a headache position for coach McKenzie as he is down to hooker number 4 to start because of injuries. In addition to a scrum that can be very wobbly the coach has revamped his backline with proven Super Rugby combinations.

Of the two Rugby Championship games this Saturday this could well be the closest. There is certainly a lot more at stake. If Australia lose that could well be the end of any Rugby Championship victory in 2014. South Africa will need to win well as they are two bonus points behind competition hot favourites New Zealand.

Last Five Encounters
28.09.2013 South Africa 28-8 in Capetown (Rugby Champ., Mandela Cup)
07.09.2013 South Africa 38-12 in Brisbane (Rugby Champ., Mandela Cup)
29.09.2012 South Africa 31-8 in Pretoria (Rugby Champ., Mandela Cup)
08.09.2012 Australia 26-19 in Perth (Rugby Champ., Mandela Cup)
09.10.2011 Australia 11-9 in Wellington (World Cup, Quarter-Final)

South Africa has dominated Australia in their last three outings. However Australia won the last time these two teams clashed in Perth and who can forget the shock of Australia eliminating the Springbok at the 2011 Rugby World Cup?

South Africa Last Five P 5, W 5
23.08.2014 v Argentina W 33-31 in Salta (Rugby Championship)
16.08.2014 v Argentina W 13-6 in Pretoria (Rugby Championship)
28.06.2014 v Scotland W 55-6 in Port Elizabeth
21.06.2014 v Wales W 31-30 in Nelspruit
14.06.2014 v Wales W 38-16 in Durban 

Australia Last Five P 5, W 3, D 1, L 1
23.08.2014 v New Zealand L 20-51 in Sydney (Rugby Champ., Bledisloe Cup)16.08.2014 v New Zealand D 12-12 in Sydney (Bledisloe Cup; Rugby Champ.)
21.06.2014 v France W 39-13 in Sydney
14.06.2014 v France W 6-0 in Melbourne
07.06.2014 v France W 50-23 in Brisbane

Stats www.rugbyinternational.net

GWC Rugby Rankings
World Table: Australia 2nd, South Africa 3rd

IRB Ranking Points
South Africa 89.34, Australia 87.19

All rankings here at www.rugbyinternational.net

Prediction: South Africa by 5 points

Teams

Australia
15 Israel Folau, 14 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Matthew Toomua, 11 Robert Horne, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nicholas Phipps, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Michael Hooper (Capt.), 6 Scott Fardy, 5 Robert Simmons, 4 Samuel Carter, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 James Hanson, 1 James Slipper.
Replacements
16 Saia Fainga'a, 17 Pek Cowan, 18 Ben Alexander, 19 James Horwill,
20 Scott Higginbotham, 21 Matthew Hodgson, 22 Nicholas White, 23 Kurtley Beale.
Head Coach: Ewan McKenzie

South Africa
15 Wilhelm le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 Jan Serfontein, 12 Jean de Villiers (Capt.), 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morne Steyn, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Marcell Coetzee, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Adriaan Strauss, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements
16 Bismarck du Plessis, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Marcel van der Merwe, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 Warren Whiteley, 21 Francois Hougaard, 22 Patrick Lambie,
23 Damian de Allende.
Head Coach: Heyneke Meyer

NEW ZEALAND v ARGENTINA: Rugby Championship

06.09.2014


Image thanks to www.skyscrapercity.com

Venue: McLean Park, Napier

Referee: Pascal Gauzère (France)

Preview
Can New Zealand produce another superhuman effort against Argentina similar to what they dished up against Australia two weeks ago? Yes, but! If they lift the foot off the pedal against Argentina fans probably wouldn’t be surprised. If the All Blacks do lower their guard would Argentina have the skill levels and pace to compete? Probably not.

Although Argentina’s record of 5 losses in as many matches may indicate a team without form those who saw the games against South Africa may beg to differ. To see a South African scrum completely dominated, as it was in Salta, would suggest this Argentine side is very capable. Perhaps not as skilled in the backs but they will certainly give the All Blacks biff if the Kiwis let their guard down. Argentina has never been totally demolished in their recent outings in New Zealand. Quite the opposite.

The weather forecast is for rain which may well reduce the impact New Zealand has out wide.This will be a most interesting clash. I can’t see New Zealand losing though.

Last Five Encounters
28.09.2013 New Zealand 33-15 in La Plata (Rugby Championship)
07.09.2013 New Zealand 28-13 in Hamilton (Rugby Championship)
29.09.2012 New Zealand 54-15 in Buenos Aires (Rugby Championship)
08.09.2012 New Zealand 21-5 in Wellington (Rugby Championship)
09.10.2011 New Zealand 33-10 in Auckland (World Cup, Quarter-final)

New Zealand has never lost to Argentina. The closest Argentina has managed was a 21-21 draw in 1985.

New Zealand Last Five P 5, W 4, D 1
23.08.2014 v Australia W 51-20 in Auckland (Bledisloe Cup, Rugby Champ.)
16.08.2014 v Australia D 12-12 in Sydney (Bledisloe Cup, Rugby Champ.)
21.06.2014 v England W 36-13 in Hamilton
14.06.2014 v England W 28-27 in Dunedin
07.06.2014 v England W 20-15 in Auckland

Argentina Last Five P 5, L 5
23.08.2014 v South Africa L 31-33 in Salta (Rugby Championship)
16.08.2014 v South Africa L 6-13 in Pretoria (Rugby Championship)
21.06.2014 v Scotland L 19-21 in Cordoba
14.06.2014 v Ireland L 17-23 in Tucuman
07.06.2014 v Ireland  L 17-29 in Resistencia

Data from www.rugbyinternational.net

Prediction: New Zealand off their game to win by 20 points.

Teams

8[1]

New Zealand
15 Israel Dagg, 14 Benjamin Smith, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (Capt.), 6 Liam Messam, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Wyatt Crockett.
Replacements
16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Benjamin Franks, 18 Joseph Moody, 19 Jeremy Thrush, 20 Samuel Cane, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Colin Slade, 23 Malakai Fekitoa.
Head Coach: Steven Hansen

13[1]

Argentina
15 Joaquín Tuculet, 14 Horacio Agulla, 13 Marcelo Bosch, 12 Juan Martín Hernández, 11 Lucas González Amorosino, 10 Nicolás Sánchez, 9 Martín Landajo, 8 Leonardo Senatore, 7 Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe, 6 Juan Manuel Leguizamón, 5 Tomás Lavanini, 4 Mariano Galarza, 3 Ramiro Herrera,
2 Agustín Creevy (Capt.), 1 Marcos Ayerza.
Replacements
16 Matías Cortese, 17 Luca Noguera Paz, 18 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro,
19 Matías Alemanno, 20 Rodrigo Báez, 21 Tomás Cubelli, 22 Santiago González Iglesias, 23 Juan Imhoff.
Head Coach: Daniel Hourcade

POLAND v SWEDEN: ENC 1B

06.09.2014
Sweden v Poland in Warsaw (ENC 1B)

Image

Venue: Stadium Poland.

Referee:

Preview
And suddenly European test rugby is upon us! After a 3 month break the European Nations Cup for 2014-16 begins with a clash between Poland and Sweden.

The ENC runs a bi-annual competition. 2014 starts the new series. Teams from 2012-14 have been relegated and promoted and we start all over again.

Poland and Sweden both finished in the lower-middle positions of the 2012-14 competition. They will look towards a winning start to this season and improving those positions.

Last Five Encounters
07.09.2013 Poland 30-9 in Warsaw (WCQ Europe R4; ENC 1B)
01.06.2013 Sweden 19-11 in Stockholm (WCQ Europe R4; ENC 1B)
11.10.2003 Poland 36-0 in Gdansk (ENC 2A)
05.10.2002 Poland 14-7 in Lund (ENC 2A)
29.09.2001 Poland 18-3 in Warsaw (FIRA/WCQ Europe R2, Pool B)

Poland and Sweden shared the honours in 2013 with the home side prevailing. These two teams first met in 1964 so the rivalry going back a long way.

GWC Rugby Rankings
Europe Table: Poland 17th, Sweden 18th

Prediction: Poland by 14 points

Teams

22[1]

Sweden Squad
Andreas Austa                           Södertälje RK
Daniel Chamberlain                   Stockholm Exiles RFC
Jonathan Edwards                     Vänersborgs RK
Fredrik Enstad                            Södertälje RK
Neill Erasmus                             Stockholm Exiles RFC
Ehsan Fadakar                           Hammarby IF
Ian Gowland (kapten)                Stockholm Exiles RFC
Jonas Grillfors                            Enköpings RK
Daniel Jansson                          Göteborg RF
Tim Johansson                          Enköpings RK
Robin Karlsson                          Hammarby IF
Osvald Levin                             Göteborg RF
Sebastian Lidberg                     Göteborg RF
John McAllister                          Hammarby IF
Bobby Nave                               Enköpings RK
Andreas Nilserius                      Södertälje RK
Daniel Nissila                            Stockholm Exiles RFC
Sami Paulsson                           NRK Troján
Alexander Rappestad                NRK Troján
David Ray                                  Stockholm Exiles RFC
Lars Tunestål                             Pingvin RC
Rikus van Niekerk                      Stockholm Exiles RFC
Johan Vuris                                Pingvin RC

Managementgruppen
Mike Carruthers                         manager
Margaretha Nilsson                   administrativ manager
Christopher Richards                 huvudtränare
Massey Tuhukaraina                 tränare
Bengt Lund                                materialare
Ulrica Nyström                           fysio

http://iof3.idrottonline.se/SvenskaRugbyforbundet/Nyheter/Senastenytt/HerrXVSverigeinledernyasasongenmotPolen/

31[1]

Poland squad not yet announced