Will Genia yesterday inspired the Melbourne Rebels to roar back from 19-3 down at halftime to stun the Brumbies, while All Black Beauden Barrett kicked a last-gasp penalty to hand the Wellington Hurricanes a narrow win.
The Rebels looked down and out, but a brace from Jack Maddocks and tries by Genia and Marika Koroibete, coupled with the trusty boot of Quade Cooper, handed them an unlikely 29-26 win at AAMI Park.
In blustery Wellington, the Hurricanes scraped past the Otago Highlanders 25-22 as try machine Ngani Laumape crossed twice to make it five in two matches.
The Brumbies, coming off a heavy defeat to the Hurricanes last weekend, were by far the better side in the first half, with Henry Speight bursting down the wing for the breakthrough on 17 minutes.
Cooper converted a easy penalty to pull three points back, but when Adam Coleman was yellow-carded for offside, the Brumbies took full advantage, snatching another try from a line-out drive with hooker Folau Fainga’a flopping over to become the first Brumbies forward to score tries in four consecutive games.
In a rolling maul at the halftime hooter, Matt Gibbon ripped the ball from the hands of Fainga’a as he went for the line and gave away a seven-point penalty try.
He got 10 minutes in the sin bin, leaving the Rebels to start the second half a man down.
However, they were pumped up and Koroibete shrugged off three tackles to get a try within a minute of the restart.
When Jack Maddocks crossed in the corner 10 minutes later, it was game on at 19-15.
Rob Valetini extended the Brumbies’ lead before crafty Genia took a quick-tap penalty and darted between the posts.
When Maddocks got his second try to finally put them in front with 10 minutes left, there was no way back for the Brumbies.
In Wellington, the scores were locked 22-22 at the final siren and the match hinged on a penalty awarded against Highlanders lock Jackson Hemopo for hands in the ruck, which Barrett slotted nervelessly from in front of the posts.
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB