Coach Scott Robertson expects former captain Sam Cane to be “that Test veteran we need” on Saturday evening when the All Blacks take on the Springboks.
With England naming Marcus Smith at flyhalf for the opening match, the intriguing pick for blindside is Chiefs hitman Samipeni Finau who has a reputation for putting 10s under pressure.
The Spanish have the honour of opening the pool the DHL Stadium this Saturday, taking on a French team that didn’t fire on all cylinders in a Six Nations campaign that only merited third place.
A glossy 28-page programme was published for that edition of the tournament and the preview intro certainly hyped what was set to unfold in Manchester.
The Welsh signed off on the recent Six Nations with a fifth place finish following home wins over Scotland and Italy and are now preparing for pool fixtures in Cape Town versus New Zealand, Spain and defending champions France.
Wales don’t feature on the list of Junior World Championship champions. That’s a restricted preserve consisting of only New Zealand, South Africa, England and France.
The Crusaders have welcomed back world-class locks Scott Barrett and Sam Whitelock for their trans-Tasman derby with the Melbourne Rebels at AAMI Park on Friday.
It was a pleasure to watch the Crusaders beat the Blues 43-27 at Eden Park on Sunday. To see the methodical way the Crusaders dismantled the Blues’ set pieces and then punished their mistakes.
The 17-times Scottish international has been having a transient time since leaving Edinburgh in summer 2018 with stints in Wales and England followed by a switch to France.
The Samoan Rugby Union needs a hand up, not a hand out. It also needs a complete administrative overhaul.