A late penalty from Domingo Miotti yesterday ensured that the Western Force remained in the hunt for the Super Rugby AU finals after a dramatic 31-30 victory over the NSW Waratahs.
In a virtual must-win contest in Perth for the hosts, the Force clinched a remarkable win when Miotti nailed the penalty kick at the death before being mobbed.
“I knew he had it, he’s a very confident man. I was never in doubt,” Force captain Kyle Godwin said of Miotti’s close-range conversion.
ENGLISH PREMIERSHIP
AFP, LONDON
Alex Mitchell and Ollie Sleightholme on Friday scored two tries apiece as Northampton moved up to fourth in the English Premiership table with a 44-26 win at home to London Irish.
Only the top four at the end of the regular season have the chance to contest the title in play-off matches.
This victory saw the Saints move a point in front of Harlequins ahead of the bulk of this weekend’s fixtures.
FRENCH TOP 14
AFP, PARIS
Agen on Friday were relegated from the French Top 14, despite not playing, their fate sealed by their record of 20 defeats in 20 games.
Their inevitable demotion was confirmed when Pau beat Bayonne 43-33. With just six games left of the regular season, Agen cannot make up the gap to Pau.
While British star Jack Draper spent the past week trying to find rhythm and comfort in his first grass tournament of the season at the Queen’s Club Championships in London, Jiri Lehecka on Saturday bulldozed everything in his path. After more than two furious hours of battle, their form was reflected in the final scoreline as Lehecka toppled a frustrated Draper, the second seed, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 to reach the biggest final of his career, against Carlos Alcaraz. Lehecka is also the first Czech to reach the men’s title match at Queen’s since Ivan Lendl lifted the trophy in 1990. Draper, who
Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka staged a “crazy comeback,” saving four match points before beating Elena Rybakina 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (6) in the quarter-finals of the Berlin Open on Friday. Sabalenka was 6-2 down in the final-set tie-breaker, but won six straight points to reach her eighth semi-final of the season. “Elena is a great player and we’ve had a lot of tough battles,” Sabalenka said. “I have no idea how I was able to win those last points. I think I just got lucky.” “I remember a long time ago when I was just starting, I won a lot of matches being down
The Canterbury Crusaders edged the Waikato Chiefs 16-12 in an intense Super Rugby Pacific final battle in Christchurch yesterday to claim their 15th title in 30 years of the Southern Hemisphere competition. Hooker Codie Taylor scored a try and Rivez Reihana contributed 11 points from the kicking tee as the most dominant team in Super Rugby history extended their perfect home playoff record to 32 successive matches since 1998. The Chiefs, who were looking for a first title since 2013, scored first-half tries through George Dyer and Shaun Stevenson, but were unable to register a point after the break and fell to
REUNION: Former Barcelona players Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and Miami coach Javier Mascherano are to face their former coach Luis Enrique Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi faces a tantalizing reunion with former club Paris Saint-Germain in the FIFA Club World Cup last 16 after both sides on Monday progressed to the knockout phase. Miami drew 2-2 with Palmeiras to go through second in Group A, after the Brazilian side fought back from two goals down to seal top spot. They now face an all-Brazil clash against Botafogo, who lost 1-0 to Atletico Madrid, but progressed from Group B in second at the expense of the Spaniards. Champions of Europe PSG won the group with a 2-0 victory over Seattle Sounders, paving the
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