THIS WEEKEND 18-19 MAY
20.05.2007
Luxembourg 22,
Israel 16 in Cessange (ENC 3C)
Luxembourg won by 6 points. I predicted Luxembourg by 16.
Luxembourg is at the top of
the table but like their opponents Israel has lost a match. Luxembourg has the
advantage of playing at home.
29.10.2005 Luxembourg 19-3
in Cessange (ENC 3C)
01.06.2002 Luxembourg 31-19
in Cessange (FIRA B, Pool B)
03.03.2001 Israel 62-3 in
Cessange (FIRA Pool 2, WCQ Euro. Rnd 1)
07.04.1996 Israel 20-12 in
Herzliya (FIRA B5)
GWC Rugby Rankings: Europe Table-Luxembourg 33rd, Israel 35th
Jean Benel (1 test)
Gilles Caviglia (32)
Guido Chimieti (RC de
Luxembourg) (2)
Claude Da Col (5)
Cedric de Michelli
(Walferdange DR) (11)
Ian Doherty (RC de
Luxembourg) (8)
Jonathan Flynn (RC de
Luxembourg) (9)
Ruadrhi Guilfoyle (RC de
Luxembourg) (28)
Jonathan Harris (RC de
Luxembourg) (18)
Phill Harvey (RC de Luxembourg) (2)
Cedric Hervč (Metz, France)
(11)
Frederick Herve (Walferdange
DR) (3)
Christophe Hoffmann (RC de
Luxembourg) (19)
Stuart Kelly (RC de
Luxembourg) (17)
Stephen Knowles (RC de
Luxembourg) (17)
Joseph Lister (RC de Luxembourg) (24)
Joseph Sacaraze (RC de Luxembourg) (2)
Nigel Sharplin (RC de
Luxembourg) (20)
Steven Speciale (Walferdange
DR) (10)
Paul Sullivan (RC de
Luxembourg) (10)
Andrew Thompson (Capt.) (RC
de Luxembourg) (25)
Anthony Whiteman (RC de Luxembourg) (16)
Coach: Marty Davis
Test data thanks to http://www.rugby.lu/perfInd.asp
19.05.2007
Samoa 8, Fiji
3 in Apia (Pacific Nations Cup)
Samoa won by 5 points. I predicted Fiji by 4.
Samoa took first points in
this rain-soaked bruising encounter in Apia
Reviews
http://www.planet-rugby.com./Story/0,18259,3551_2138257,00.html
The FMF Flying Fijians put
on a brave and defensively sound performance against a more experienced Manu
Samoa side in the opening match of the 2007 IRB Pacific Nations Cup, but fell 8-3
at a muddy Apia Park on Saturday.
With six new caps in the
starting line-up and another two getting a run from the bench, FMF Flying
Fijians coach Ilivasi Tabua gave us a glimpse of the future of Fiji rugby, and
no-one let him down. Indeed, several of the debutants shone brightly.
Loosehead prop Alefoso
Yalayalatabua had a terrific game, putting in some telling tackles and adding
another dimension to the attack. If anything, he suffered from a lack of
support when going forward.
Big Taranaki No.8 Tomasi
Soqeta also flexed his muscles and showed composure at the back of the pack.
And the 21-year-old Dan Rawaqa took the fullback duties in his stride, kicking
Fiji’s only points – a penalty goal in the second minute.
Isoa Neivua handled the
conditions and some difficult balls very well, and was unlucky not to score a
try when he toed ahead only to stumble in the mud metres short. Australia-based
midfield man Vitori Buatava replaced Jack Prasad at fly-half for the last
quarter and appeared at ease in his first taste of Test rugby.
Fiji’s organisation was
underlined when Wame Lewaravu received a yellow card from Australian referee
Paul Marks shortly after coming on in the 60th minute. For the time Lewaravu
was in the sin-bin, Samoa held possession in the Fiji half but couldn’t get
past the 14 men.
Whilst Fiji’s tackling and
positional play in defence was first-rate, they did commit a few unforced
errors that proved costly in terms of possession and territory, and some
decision-making towards the end was a little suspect. Some of this could be
attributed to the heavy conditions.
In the 25th minute, Samoan
flanker Alapasa Cordtz scored the only try of the match following a rolling
maul towards the corner. And late in the game, fullback Gavin Williams converted
a penalty goal to make it 8-3 to the hosts – the lowest aggregate score for a
full Samoa-Fiji Test since the very first one back in 1924 [the match that
Samoa won 6-0 in 1983 was abandoned early in the second half].
Thanks to Jeremy Duxbury,
FIJI RFU
24.06.2006 Samoa 23-20 in
Suva (Pacific Nations Cup)
30.07.2005 Samoa 21-15 in
Suva (WCQ Oceania R3)
09.07.2005 Fiji 36-10 in
Apia (WCQ Oceania R3)
12.06.2004 Samoa 29-3 in
Apia (Pacific Tri-Nations)
22.06.2002 Fiji 22-12 in Nadi (WCQ Oceania R2, Pacific
Tri-Nations)
GWC Rugby Rankings: World Table-Fiji 11th, Samoa 12th
CHANGE
Pacific Table-Fiji 3rd,
Samoa 4th CHANGE
The Pacific Nations Cup for
2007 gets underway with a local derby match between the Pacific Islands of Fiji
and Samoa. They have a long history of encounters going back to 1924. The other
teams in this competition are Japan, Tonga, Australia ‘A’ and New Zealand
Juniors.
Fiji v Samoa records Thanks to Jeremy Duxbury, Fiji RFU
http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=62986
http://teivovo.com/team_fiji/2007/0514_fiji_team.html
Fiji has ten new caps in
their squad
http://www.planetrugby.com/Story/0,18259,3551_2134126,00.html
Ireland ‘A’
39, Canada 20 in Exeter (Churchill Cup)
Ireland ‘A’ won by 19 points. I predicted Canada by 5.
http://www.planet-rugby.com./Story/0,18259,3551_2137447,00.html
17.06.2000 (v Ireland) Drew
27-27 in Toronto
30.11.1997 Ireland 33-11 in
Dublin
02.09.1989 Ireland XV 24-21
in Victoria
30.05.1987 Ireland 46-19 in Dunedin
(World Cup)
Portugal 23,
Czech Republic 3 in Prague (ENC 1)
Portugal won by 20 points. I
predicted Portugal by 16.
http://www.planet-rugby.com./Story/0,18259,3551_2134193,00.html
Portugal has qualified for
the 2007 Rugby World Cup finals. Last weekend it was defeated by Russia and now
requires a very convincing win over the bottom placed team Czech Republic in
order to gain confidence ahead of France.
20.05.2006 Portugal 18-10 in
Prague (ENC 1)
26.02.2005 Portugal 19-13 in
Lisbon (ENC 1)
06.03.2004 Portugal 13-8 in
Prague (ENC 1)
08.03.2003 Portugal 43-10 in
Lisbon (ENC 1)
18.04.1998 Portugal 15-10
(WCQ Europe, Pool 3, Rnd B)
Recent encounters have been
close.
GWC Rugby Rankings: Europe Table-Portugal 10th, Czech
Republic 12th
Jan Benda (Sparta Praha)
Antonín Brabec (Tatra
Smíchov)
Pavel Čamrda
(Říčany)
Vítězslav Dosedla
(Dragon Brno)
Pavel Indrák (Havířov)
Michal Jirman (Slavia Praha)
Václav Jursík (Sparta Praha)
Roman Kodera
(Říčany)
Tomáš Krejčí (Dragon
Brno)
Karel Kučera
(Říčany)
Jan Macháček (Slavia
Praha)
Vlastimil Madry (Praga)
Tomáš Nevický
(Říčany)
Petr Okleštěk (Sparta
Praha)
Jan Oswald (Tatra Smíchov)
Michal Průša (Tatra
Smíchov)
Jan Rohlík (St. Nazaire,
France)
Michal Schlanger (Petrovice)
Jiří Skall (Sparta
Praha)
Roman Šuster (USA Limoges, France)
Pavel Syrový (Praga)
Jaroslav Tomčík
(Havířov)
Ladislav Vondrášek (Esher
RFC, England)
Robert Voves (USA Limoges,
France)
Jan Zachariáš (Sparta Praha)
Jan Žíla (Tatra Smíchov)
http://rugby.cz/me-divize-a-ceska-republika-vs-portugalsko0
Miguel Portela (GD Direito)
Rui D’Orey (GD Direito)
Diogo Coutinho (GD Direito)
Pedro Leal (GD Direito)
Frederico Sousa (GD Direito)
Joăo Uva (Os Belenenses)
Diogo Mateus (Os Belenenses)
Cristian Spachuk (Os
Belenenses)
Sebastiăo Cunha (Os
Belenenses)
David Mateus (Os Belenenses)
Luis Pissarra (AEIS
Agronomia)
Duarte C.Pinto (AEIS
Agronomia)
Gustavo Duarte (AEIS
Agronomia)
Juan Severino (AEIS Agronomia)
Joaquim Ferreira (CD
Univ.Porta)
Francisco Fragateiro (CD
Univ.Porta)
Rui Cordeiro (AA Coimbra)
Pedro Cabral (CD Univ.
Lisboa)
Duarte Figueiredo (CD Univ.
Lisboa)
Gonçalo Foro (CD Univ.
Lisboa)
Joao Sacadura (CD Univ.
Lisboa)
Diogo Gama (SL Benfica)
Diogo Fialho (RC Evora)
Gonçalo Uva (Montpellier RC,
France)
http://www.fpr.pt/noticias/noticia.asp?opm=1&id=6335&id2=1
FIRA-AER CHAMPIONSHIP 2006-2008 Updated 05.05.2007 |
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Points: Win = 3, Draw = 2, Loss =
1, Loss by default = 0 |
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FIRA-AER CHAMPIONSHIP, EUROPEAN
NATIONS CUP DIVISION 1 |
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SEEDINGS: ROMANIA, PORTUGAL,
GEORGIA, RUSSIA, SPAIN, CZECH REPUBLIC |
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03.02.2007 |
GEORGIA |
20 |
ROMANIA |
17 |
BUCHAREST |
|
P |
W |
D |
L |
PF |
PA |
|
PT |
03.02.2007 |
PORTUGAL |
21 |
SPAIN |
18 |
LISBON |
RUSSIA |
3 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
122 |
33 |
+89 |
9 |
10.02.2007 |
RUSSIA |
39 |
SPAIN |
14 |
MADRID |
SPAIN |
5 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
219 |
142 |
-23 |
9 |
10.03.2007 |
ROMANIA |
50 |
SPAIN |
14 |
BUCHAREST |
GEORGIA |
3 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
135 |
51 |
+84 |
7 |
17.03.2007 |
ROMANIA |
46 |
CZECH
REPUBLIC |
13 |
PRAGUE |
ROMANIA |
3 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
113 |
47 |
+66 |
7 |
17.03.2007 |
SPAIN |
31 |
GEORGIA |
17 |
MADRID |
PORTUGAL |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
34 |
39 |
-5 |
4 |
07.04.2007 |
GEORGIA |
98 |
CZECH
REPUBLIC |
3 |
TBLISSI |
CZECH
REPUBLIC |
4 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
37 |
248 |
-211 |
4 |
21.04.2007 |
RUSSIA |
62 |
CZECH
REPUBLIC |
6 |
KRASNODAR |
The
European Nations Cup is now played for bi-annually. |
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05.05.2007 |
SPAIN |
42 |
CZECH
REPUBLIC |
15 |
PRAGUE |
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12.05.2007 |
RUSSIA |
21 |
PORTUGAL |
13 |
LISBON |
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19.05.2007 |
PORTUGAL |
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CZECH
REPUBLIC |
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PRAGUE |
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Poland 36,
Malta 3 in Siedlce (ENC 2B)
Poland won by 33 points. I
predicted Poland by 32.
Reviews
Match Data Sheet
http://www.maltasport.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=679
Poland is one of the leading
contenders to take out this championship next season. They have the advantage
of the home game.
06.11.2004 Poland 38-13 in
Marsa (WCQ Europe Rnd 2, Pool B)
GWC Rugby Rankings: Europe Table-Poland 17th, Malta 21st
Robert Andrzejczuk (Arka
Gdynia)
Aleksander Bartoszewicz
(Folc AZS AWF Warszawa)
Kamil Bobryk (Budowlani
Łódź)
Jurij Buhało (Posnania
Poznań)
Kamil Dudkowski (Posnania
Poznań)
Rafał Fedorowicz
(Epernay RC, France)
Krzysztof Hotowski
(Budowlani Łódź)
Daniel Jastrząb (Lechia
Gdańsk)
Michał Królikowski
(Budowlani Łódź)
Michał Krużycki
(Ogniwo Sopot)
Kacper Ławski
(Budowlani Łódź)
Wojciech Łukasiewicz
(Folc AZS AWF Warszawa)
Marcin Malochwy (Ogniwo
Sopot)
Marek Mirosz (Budowlani
Łódź)
Maciej Miśkiewicz (Folc
AZS AWF Warszawa)
Paweł Nowak (Arka
Gdynia)
Konrad Pisarek (Orkan
Sochaczew)
Rafał Sajur (Budowlani
Łódź)
Tomasz Stępień
(Budowlani Łódź)
Łukasz Szostek (Arka
Gdynia)
Jacek Wojaczek (Arka Gdynia)
Łukasz Żórawski
(Budowlani Łódź)
Marcin Wilczuk (Old
Belvedere RFC, Ireland)
Rafał Witoszyński
(Lechia Gdańsk)
Not available
Malta will be without a few
leading players.
Lithuania 27,
Austria 0 in Vienna (ENC 3B)
Lithuania won by 27 points. I predicted Lithuania by 4.
Lithuania remains undefeated
in this division along with Hungary.
http://www.rugby-austria.at/content/deutsch/news/796942af29d385c2a490.php
(In German)
Preview
Lithuania remains one of the
unbeaten sides in 3B along with Hungary. They have not played a test since
November. Austria just edged past bottom team Bulgaria at home last weekend and
doesn’t look a championship contender at this stage.
05.06.2004 Austria 23-12 in
Vienna (ENC 3B)
27.10.2002 Lithuania 32-10
in Siauliai (ENC 3B)
GWC Rugby Rankings: Europe Table-Austria 29th, Lithuania 30th
CHANGE
Unavailable
FIRA-AER CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION 3B |
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SEEDINGS; AUSTRIA, HUNGARY,
LITHUANIA, NORWAY, BULGARIA |
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07.10.2006 |
HUNGARY |
13 |
NORWAY |
8 |
STAVANGER |
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P |
W |
D |
L |
PF |
PA |
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PT |
28.10.2006 |
HUNGARY |
42 |
BULGARIA |
3 |
KECSKEMET |
HUNGARY |
3 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
82 |
16 |
+66 |
9 |
28.10.2006 |
LITHUANIA |
37 |
NORWAY |
15 |
VILNIUS |
LITHUANIA |
2 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
77 |
25 |
+52 |
6 |
18.11.2006 |
LITHUANIA |
40 |
BULGARIA |
10 |
SOFIA |
AUSTRIA |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
12 |
30 |
-18 |
4 |
21.04.2007 |
HUNGARY |
27 |
AUSTRIA |
5 |
DUNAUJVAROS |
NORWAY |
2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
23 |
50 |
-27 |
2 |
05.05.2007 |
AUSTRIA |
7 |
BULGARIA |
3 |
VIENNA |
BULGARIA |
3 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
16 |
89 |
-73 |
2 |
19.05.2007 |
AUSTRIA |
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LITHUANIA |
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VIENNA |
The
European Nations Cup is now played for bi-annually. |
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19.05.2007
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BULGARIA |
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NORWAY |
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SOFIA |
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Bulgaria 25,
Norway 10 in Sofia (ENC 3B)
Bulgaria won by 15 points. I predicted Bulgaria by 4.
Bulgaria put up a good fight
in Vienna against Austria last weekend. Norway hasn’t won a match so far, is playing
away and hasn’t played a test since last October.
26.10.2002 Bulgaria 21-12 in
Sofia (ENC 3C)
04.05.2002 Bulgaria 11-3 in
Sofia (ENC 3C)
24.05.1997
Norway 22-7 in Oslo (WCQ Europe Pool 2, Rnd A)
GWC Rugby Rankings: Europe Table-Norway 31st, Bulgaria 34th
CHANGE
Kristoffer Borsheim
(Stavanger RK)
Wesley Chibaya (UMBI)
Shelton Davis (Třnsberg RK)
Tim Edstrřm (Bergen RK)
Espen Engevik (Stavanger RK)
Karl Frisch (Bergen RK)
Andrei Hanger (Cheltenham
RFC, England)
David Hume (Bergen RK)
Ian Irving (Bergen RK)
Derek Johnson (Bergen RK)
Simon Kanstad (Fosen RK)
Stein Ove Kristensen
(Trondheim RK)
Eivind Lunde (Stavanger RK)
Mikael Nćrř (Fosen RK)
Ollie Rogers (Basingstoke
RFC, England)
Stian Rřstberg (Bergen RK)
Samir Sayed-Ahmad (Bergen
RK)
Johan Skavland (Stavanger
RK)
Haakon Stengrimsen
(Ponteland RFC, England)
Alex Wilson (Stavanger RK)
Willie Wilson (Bergen RK)
Roger Yttervik (Třnsberg RK)
Coaches: John Chappell and
Ollie Rogers
http://www.rugby.no/les.asp?ID=499
Slovenia 77,
Bosnia & Hertzegovina 5 in Ljubliana (ENC 3C)
Slovenia won by 72 points. I predicted Slovenia by 40.
Slovenia is the only unbeaten team in this division. They have the advantage of playing at home against a team yet to win a game.
PREVIOUS ENCOUNTER
24.04.1999 Slovenia 15-11 in Vogasca (FIRA B)
GWC Rugby Rankings: Europe Table-Slovenia 32nd; Bosnia & Herzegovina 37th
Teams
Bosnia and Herzegovina
squad (one will drop out)
1. Željko Vidović (RC
Donau , Austria)
2. Adis Bašić (Zenica
Čelik)
3. Adnan Halilović
(Sarajevo)
4. Mensur Uzunović
(Zenica Čelik)
5. Ermin Mušinović
(Zenica Čelik)
6. Kenan Uzunović
(Sarajevo)
7. Adis Karabegović
(Zenica 72)
8. Damir Džanić
(Sarajevo)
9. Senad Tabaković
(Zenica Čelik)
10. Albin Kapić (Zenica
Čelik)
11. A rminZadić (Zenica
72)
12. Sead Kadić (RC
Nyon, Switzerland)
13. Milak Adi (St Mary
University RFC, England)
14. Armin Vehabović
(CAP Pontarlier, France)
15. Edin Hrapović
(Sarajevo)
16. Armin Hodžić
(Sarajevo)
17. Bakir Bašić (Zenica
72)
18. Benjamin Deljkić
(Zenica Čelik)
19. Vahdet Kokić
(Zenica Čelik)
20. Dino Muslić (Zenica
Čelik)
21. Jovanović
Damir (?,UK)
22. Edib Alić (Zenica
72)
23. Žaki ...... - France
In Ljubljana at 17.00h at
Oval rugby pitch
FIRA-AER CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION 3C |
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SEEDINGS: LUXEMBOURG, SLOVENIA,
ISRAEL, FINLAND, BOSNIA |
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30.09.2006 |
LUXEMBOURG |
16 |
FINLAND |
9 |
CESSANGE |
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P |
W |
D |
L |
PF |
PA |
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PT |
07.10.2006 |
FINLAND |
14 |
BOSNIA
& HERTZEGOVINA |
7 |
ZENICA |
LUXEMBOURG |
3 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
49 |
39 |
+10 |
7 |
28.10.2006 |
SLOVENIA |
28 |
ISRAEL |
5 |
NETANYA |
SLOVENIA |
2 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
53 |
21 |
+32 |
6 |
21.04.2007 |
LUXEMBOURG |
17 |
BOSNIA
& HERTZEGOVINA |
12 |
ZENICA |
ISRAEL |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
39 |
41 |
+2 |
4 |
28.04.2007 |
ISRAEL |
34 |
BOSNIA
& HERTZEGOVINA |
13 |
NETANYA |
FINLAND |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
23 |
23 |
0 |
4 |
05.05.2007 |
SLOVENIA |
25 |
LUXEMBOURG |
16 |
LJUBLIANA |
BOSNIA
& HERTZEGOVINA |
3 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
32 |
65 |
-33 |
3 |
19.05.2007 |
SLOVENIA |
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BOSNIA |
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LJUBLIANA |
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19.05.2007 |
LUXEMBOURG |
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ISRAEL |
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CESSANGE |
The
European Nations Cup is now played for bi-annually. |
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China-Taipei
22, Thailand 3 in Bangkok (Asia Nations Div.4)
China-Taipei won by 19 points. I predicted C-T by 12.
China-Taipei wins Division 4
and will be promoted to Division 3 next year. Pakistan drops to Division 5.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/Sports/20May2007_sport16.php
During the week Thailand
defeated Pakistan in Pakistan 44-0 and China-Taipei defeated Pakistan 72-3 in
Bangkok. This leaves a showdown between these two Asian teams to decide who
will move to Division 3 next year.
02.11.1996 China-Taipei
53-15 in Taipan (15th Asia Championship)
13.11.1988 China-Taipei 32-9
in Hong Kong (11th Asia Championship)
29.11.1986 Thailand 32-12 in
Bangkok (10 Asia Championship, Playoff 3rd/4th)
27.10.1984 China-Taipei 30-3
in Fukuoka (9th Asia Championship, Playoff 3rd/4th)
09.11.1980 China-Taipei
26-19 in Taipan (7th Asia Championship)
These two teams played each
more often under the older structure of the Asia Rugby Championship. Since the
introduction of divisions from the late nineties they have played well apart.
China-Taipei has struggled and has slipped down to meet a rising Thailand side.
GWC Rugby Rankings: Asia Table-China-Taipei 8th, Thailand 11th.
Barbarians
RFC (UK) 33, Tunisia 10 at Stade olympique d’El Menzah, in Tunis. HT 21-0
Barbarians won by 23 points. I predicted The Baa Baas by 20.
Previews
http://allafrica.com/stories/200705110529.html
http://www.lapresse.tn/index.php?opt=15&categ=5&news=49661
(In French)
18.05.2007
England XV 51, United States 3
in Stockport (Churchill Cup)
England Saxons won by 48 points. I predicted Saxons by 45.
http://www.planet-rugby.com./Story/0,18259,3551_2135876,00.html
http://www.planet-rugby.com./Story/0,18259,3551_2137000,00.html
For the first time the
Churchill Cup will be played outside the American continent. This year’s venue
is in England. The other participating teams are Ireland ‘A’, Scotland ‘A’,
Canada and last year’s winner New Zealand Maoris.
The USA will be without
their star flyhalf Mike Hercus who is out with injury for this match and may
even miss the whole tournament.
http://www.england-rugby.com/englandrugby/index.cfm?fuseaction=News.News_Detail&storyid=16884
28.06.2003 England XV 43-7
in Vancouver (Churchill Cup Final)
21.06.2003 England XV 36-10
in Vancouver (Churchill Cup Prelim.)
16.06.2001 England 49-19 in
Berkley
21.08.1999 England 106-8 at
Twickenham
11.10.1991 England 37-9 at
Twickenham (World Cup)