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/ 19 September 2007
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Italy recorded their second unconvincing win in as many World Cup group-C matches when they were made to work hard for a 31-5 victory against minnows Portugal at the Parc des Princes in Paris on Wednesday. It was hard to believe that Italy had thrashed Portugal 83-0 as recently as October.
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/ 19 September 2007
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Brian Ashton may have entrusted the pivotal position of flyhalf to a man who has spent much of the past fortnight with his right foot in an ice bucket, but the England coach didn’t look like a man who’d taken a gamble when he unveiled his team to play Samoa. Fit-again Jonny Wilkinson returns and starts a Test with Olly Barkley at inside centre for the first time.
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/ 13 September 2007
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England head into Friday’s crunch clash against South Africa with the key duty of goal-kicking set to be given to a man who has yet to score a Test match point in the union game. Andy Farrell was a prolific goal-kicker in rugby league but since his transfer from Wigan to Saracens in March 2005 has struck precious few kicks.
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/ 12 September 2007
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South Africa great Os du Randt may be 35 but that doesn’t lessen England’s respect for the powerhouse prop. Reigning world champions England will look to end a three-match losing streak against the Springboks when they meet in Friday’s potentially decisive Pool A clash in Paris.
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/ 11 September 2007
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England captain Phil Vickery was suspended for two matches on Tuesday for tripping United States centre Paul Emerick. It is a ban that rules the tighthead prop out of the world champions’ key Pool A clash against South Africa in Paris on Friday and the September 22 fixture with Samoa in Nantes.
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/ 3 September 2007
Sachin Tendulkar returned in style to the Headingley ground where he was Yorkshire’s first overseas player as he set up India’s 38-run win against England under the Duckworth/Lewis method in the fifth one-day international on Sunday. India’s victory reduced England’s lead in the seven-match series to 3-2.
Stuart Broad returned career best figures with both bat and ball as England beat India by three wickets in the fourth one-day international at Old Trafford on Thursday. When Broad, who’d earlier taken 4-51 as India were dismissed for 212, came to the crease England were in dire straits at 114-7. But they still needed fewer than a run-a-ball to win.
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Jonny Wilkinson, in the Hollywood film of his life, would have kicked that World Cup-winning drop-goal against Australia and promptly announced his retirement. After all, how could he top that? But as the England flyhalf has discovered during the last four years, life isn’t always like they tell you it is in the movies.
Ian Bell’s third 50 in as many matches was the cornerstone of England’s 42-run win against India at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Monday as they took a 2-1 lead in the seven-match series. Bell, on his Warwickshire home ground, made 79 in England’s total of 281 for eight.
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World Cup hosts France completed their warm-up campaign ahead of the start of next month’s showpiece tournament with an impressive 34-7 win against Wales at the Millennium Stadium on Sunday. In a lively match, France, who’ve yet to win the World Cup, outscored Wales by four tries to one.