Mark Chisholm scored late in injury time to give the ACT Brumbies a 29-10 win over Otago and a four-try bonus point yesterday which kept alive their hopes of a place in the Super 14 semi-finals.
The Brumbies needed five points from the match to remain in playoffs contention and had three tries by halftime -- through Stirling Mortlock, Julian Huxley and Adam Ashley-Cooper -- but took 44 minutes in the second half to score the fourth and crucial try.
South African referee Craig Joubert allowed play to continue for more than four minutes after the final hooter, through several advantages to the Brumbies, before Australia lock Chisholm finally burst a tiring Highlanders defense.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Flyhalf Stephen Larkham added the conversion in what is expected to be his last match for the Brumbies.
Barring an improbable upset in an overnight match, the win marked the final Super 14 appearances of a number of Brumbies players -- Larkham, Jeremy Paul and George Gregan. All Blacks front rowers Clark Dermody, Anton Oliver and Carl Hayman played their last matches for the Highlanders.
Gregan limped off at halftime with a twisted ankle, prematurely ending his 126th and final Super 14 appearance.
Oliver spent 10 minutes of the second half in the sin bin for a professional foul but returned to see out his final match for the Highlanders in a career which began in the first match of the Super 12 tournament in 1996.
The win, and the vital bonus point, lifted the Brumbies into a tenuous fourth place on the championship ladder, displacing the Waikato Chiefs from the playoffs by pushing them back to fifth place.
The Brumbies, in turn, could lose their playoff spot if South Africa's Bulls beat the last-place Queensland Reds late last night.
NSW 38, Hurricanes 14
Australia international Lote Tuqiri scored his first try in Super 14 rugby in 12 months to help the New South Wales Waratahs to a 38-14 win over the Wellington Hurricanes on yesterday.
Tuqiri's try in the 46th minute was his first in a Super 14 match since May 4 last year and his first in any rugby since August, breaking an embarrassing drought for the Australian Rugby Union's high-profile signing.
He saluted the crowd and was mobbed by his teammates when he touched down under the posts, emphasizing the significance of the moment for a player whose poor form this season has coincided with a lean run for the Waratahs.
Yesterday's win was New South Wales' third in 13 games but lifted them above the 13th place on the championship table they have occupied for most of the season.
Lock Dean Mumm and winger Lachlan Turner also scored tries for the Waratahs and fullback Peter Hewat marked his 50th Super 14 match with a haul of 18 points from four penalties and three conversions.
Former All Blacks skipper Tana Umaga's 122-match Super rugby career ended in a loss. Umaga played in the first-ever Super 12 match, between the Hurricanes and Auckland Blues 12 years ago.
Ashley-Cooper scored immediately from the kickoff, dashing 70 meters through a series of weak tackles to give ACT a 12-0 advantage.
Mortlock and Nick Evans exchanged penalties before Morlock's try, six minutes from halftime, concluded the first half scoring.
The patterned play of both sides disintegrated in the second half until a try by Highlanders center Jason Kawau broke a 40 minutes scoring drought.
Chisholm's final try relieved a long period of anxiety for the Brumbies.
Blues 33, Force 6
The Auckland Blues ended a three-match losing streak to secure a Super 14 semi-finals berth, and eliminated the Western Force from contention with a 33-6 bonus-point win on Friday.
The Blues, provisionally second to the Canterbury Crusaders on points difference in the standings, flew to Sydney to await yesterday's results and whether they'll play their semifinal in Australia or South Africa next weekend.
After three successive defeats to South African sides, the Blues' desperation to make the playoffs for the first time in four years was evident by the willingness of the forwards to subdue the Force in driving rain at the Subiaco Oval.
After Luke McAlister kicked the Blues ahead, Isa Nacewa led a breakout from near their own 22 which was finished by winger Rudi Wulf, and ensured the Blues the lead into the interval.
Their relentless pressure eventually cracked the Force in the second half, with three tries in the last 11 minutes to forwards John Afoa, Keven Mealamu -- from a quick throw-in using the wrong ball -- and Tony Woodcock.
IN-HOUSE BUSINESS: LA Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said that the reason for the team’s poor form was not due to Paul, but the player was not a good fit for them Chris Paul’s return stint with the Los Angeles Clippers has come to an abrupt and stunning end, with the franchise parting ways with one of its greatest players in a late-night meeting on Wednesday that adds another layer of drama to the team’s terrible start this season. The news was delivered in a meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, that ended at about 2am, Clippers basketball operations president Lawrence Frank said. Frank said he made the decision to sever ties with Paul on Sunday then told the franchise’s career assist leader that he needed to see him on Tuesday in Atlanta. Frank did not confirm
SEESAW CONTEST: The Pistons remain top of the Eastern Conference after battling to a win over the Hawks in a game that saw the lead change 27 times The Phoenix Suns on Monday shrugged off an injury to Devin Booker to end the Los Angeles Lakers’ seven-game winning streak with an emphatic 125-108 victory on the road. Booker exited in the first quarter, but the loss of the star point guard did little to halt the flow of Phoenix points over the remainder of the game. Dillon Brooks led the Phoenix scoring with 33 points, while Collin Gillespie added 28 — including eight three-pointers — as the Suns romped to victory. The Lakers were left ruing a colossal 22 turnovers — at a cost of 32 Suns points — on a
Kylian Mbappe on Wednesday scored twice and had an assist as Real Madrid beat Athletic Bilbao 3-0 to end a three-match winless streak in La Liga. Eduardo Camavinga also found the net for Madrid as they moved back within one point of Barcelona, who beat Atletico Madrid 3-1 on Tuesday. Both 19th-round matches were moved forward because Real Madrid, Barcelona, Athletic Club and Atletico Madrid are to play in the Supercopa de Espana semi-finals in Saudi Arabia next month. Real Madrid were coming off league draws against Girona, Elche and Rayo Vallecano. It was their second win in their past six matches in
PINA BRACE: Claudia Pina scored in the 61st and 74th minutes, while Vicky Lopez added one as Spain notched their third victory in a final in the past four tournaments Claudia Pina scored twice and Germany crumbled on Tuesday as Spain retained the UEFA Women’s Nations League title with a 3-0 victory in the final’s second leg. Vicky Lopez also scored after Pina finally broke the deadlock in the 61st minute with Germany stubbornly hanging on as Spain had done in the first leg, a 0-0 draw in Kaiserslautern on Friday. Spain were without three-time Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmati, who broke her leg in training on Sunday. Lopez took Bonmati’s place and Spain dominated from the start. Esther Gonzalez swept the ball just past the post and Mariona Caldentey forced a save
RSS