The Canterbury Crusaders won the Super 14 title on Saturday with a 20-12 victory over the New South Wales Waratahs in Christchurch, New Zealand. Trailing by a point at half-time, the Crusaders stormed home on the boot of All Black flyhalf Dan Carter, who kicked four penalties and a drop goal for a personal tally of 15 points.
The Crusaders and Waratahs face off in a classic showdown for the Super 14 rugby crown in Christchurch, New Zealand, on Saturday. ”It’s going to be an epic,” said Crusaders coach Robbie Deans, the most successful coach in the history of Super rugby. In a match laden with All Blacks and Wallabies, Waratahs assistant coach Steve Tuynman sees the final as one for the purists.
The Canterbury Crusaders and New South Wales Waratahs won their way to rugby’s Super 14 final, creating an emotional showdown for retiring coaches Robbie Deans and Ewen McKenzie. Deans guided the Crusaders to a 33-22 win on Saturday over the Wellington Hurricanes, their 10th final in 13 years of Super tournament rugby — and Deans can now bow out with his fifth and their seventh championship title.
New South Wales (NSW) will travel to Christchurch to play the Canterbury Crusaders in the Super 14 rugby final after beating the Sharks 28-13 in Sydney on Saturday. The Waratahs scored four tries to one and were never in any real trouble against a disappointing Sharks outfit.
Canterbury Crusaders coach Robbie Deans has urged his weary players to stay on track for a seventh Super 14 rugby title when they play their semifinal on Saturday against the Wellington Hurricanes. The Crusaders have begun to look worn in recent weeks, but Deans hopes the onset of the play-offs will stimulate their fighting spirit in the match at Christchurch.
New South Wales secured a home Super 14 semifinal with an 18-11 win over Queensland in a derby match on Saturday that was short on attacking creativity or endeavour. The win, coupled with Wellington’s loss to Auckland on Friday, ensured the Waratahs will host a semifinal in Sydney next weekend.
The Stormers and Waratahs played out a pulsating 13-13 draw in a 12th-round Super 14 match in Cape Town on Saturday. The visitors led 6-5 at the break in pouring rain, which negated any chance of this being an exciting, try-scoring feast. And both captains felt the two points earned for the draw could be costly in their challenge for semifinal berths.
The New South Wales Waratahs cemented their place in the top four of the Super 14 with a scrappy 26-3 win over the Lions in Sydney on Saturday. The Waratahs overwhelmed their South African opponents in the second period after both sides had played out a mistake-ridden scoreless first half in wet and windy conditions.
The New South Wales Waratahs climbed into the top four with a hard-fought 17-12 win over plucky Western Force in a thrilling Super 14 clash in Perth on Saturday. In a bruising encounter that claimed key players from both sides, the Waratahs scored the only two tries, one in each half.
Australia’s New South Wales Waratahs survived a late fightback from South Africa’s Cheetahs to win their Super 14 clash 23-19 at the Sydney Football Stadium on Friday. The Cheetahs, who are yet to win a match this season, threatened to pull off an upset when they scored 12 unanswered points in the second half to cut the margin to a point.
New Zealand’s Canterbury Crusaders piled on 28 unanswered points in the last 27 minutes to crush Australia’s New South Wales Waratahs 34-7 in a Super 14 match at Christchurch on Friday. The Waratahs had overturned a 6-0 halftime deficit to snatch a 7-6 lead when number eight Wycliff Palu crashed over early in the second term.
Lote Tuqiri and Dean Mumm scored tries against the run of play to guide the New South Wales Waratahs to a 24-17 win over the ACT Brumbies in a Super 14 match on Friday. Wallaby wing Tuqiri intercepted a loose pass from Adam Wallace-Harrison to level the score, and then replacement lock Mumm charged down an attempted clearance to score the match winner.
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/ 29 February 2008
Wycliff Palu scored the winning try and was simultaneously sin-binned as the New South Wales Waratahs beat the Otago Highlanders 15-12 in Super 14 at Carisbrook on Saturday. Palu’s 58th-minute try was the only score in the second half and allowed the Waratahs to recover from a 12-10 halftime deficit to record their second win in three matches in the 2008 season.
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/ 23 February 2008
The Waikato Chiefs scrambled to a 20-17 Super 14 victory over the New South Wales Waratahs in Hamilton on Saturday thanks to a last-gasp penalty from Stephen Donald. In a volatile final eight minutes, the Waratahs fought back from a 5-17 deficit to level the scores — only to see Donald break the deadlock with a minute to spare.
Always fierce rivals in sport, Australia and England’s World Cup quarterfinal on Saturday should be a classic if it matches the same level of animosity that has dominated the build-up. The players have stuck to the sportsman’s mantra that they respect their opponents and will have to be at their best to win.
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/ 3 September 2007
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The great debate: Is this the Wallabies’ A team? Or merely the Wallabies’ A-frame team? That’s the question controversial Australian rugby columnist Greg Growden ask in his Monday Maul. It is impossible to avoid the fact that the Australian World Cup campaign revolves around those on their last Test legs, rather than those at the peak of their careers.