Showing posts with label Noa Nakaitaci. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Noa Nakaitaci. Show all posts

Tuesday, 19 January 2016

Bastareaud Out of France Squad


Mathieu Bastareaud has been left out of the 31-man France Six Nations squad.

The 27-year-old Toulon centre, who has 39 caps, had been omitted from two previous informal gatherings organised by new coach Guy Noves.

"We want to build a team who will be able to improve a lot and not taking players who would not be with us in two or three years," Noves said.

France start their Six Nations campaign against Italy in Paris on 6 February with Guilhem Guirado their new captain.

They lost 62-13 to New Zealand in the quarter-finals of the Rugby World Cup in October.

Ireland won the Six Nations in 2015 on eight points, with France finishing fourth on four points.

France squad for Six Nations
Forwards
Uini Atonio, Eddy Ben Arous, Antoine Burban, Yacouba Camara, Camille Chat, Damien Chouly, Alessandre Flanquart, Kevin Gourdon, Guilhem Guirado (captain), Paul Jedrasiak, Wenceslas Lauret, Yoann Maestri, Louis Picamoles, Jefferson Poirot, Rabah Slimani, Sebastien Vahaamahina

Backs
ebastien Bezy, Hugo Bonneval, Jonathan Danty, Jean-Marc Doussain, Alexandre Dumoulin, Benjamin Fall, Gael Fickou, Wesley Fofana, Remi Lamerat, Maxime Machenaud, Maxime Medard, Morgan Parra, Jules Plisson, Scott Spedding, Virimi Vakatawa

Monday, 16 November 2015

Boudjellal Suggests 6 Nations Bath


Mourad Boudjellal, the president of Toulon, has suggested the postponed European Rugby Champions Cup game against Bath could take place during the Six Nations.

All Champions Cup and Challenge Cup matches that were due to be played in France over the weekend were postponed following the Paris attacks.

The knockout stages of the Champions Cup are not set to take place until early April while the Six Nations kicks off on Feb 6.

Boudjellal has concede that any rearrangement will prove complicated, highlighting the difficulty in potentially releasing international players to play for their clubs.

"Playing on Wednesday isn't possible," he told French sports daily L'Equipe.

"I can only see one solution... It would mean that the (national team) coaches would have to accept not being able to call up international players of Bath or Toulon in order for us to be able to play the match during a matchday of the Six Nations."

In an exclusive interview with Telegraph Sport, Bruce Craig, the chairman of Bath, believes the match will never be played.

Craig, who is on the European Professional Club Rugby board, believes that finding a slot for Bath's game will prove impossible because of the congestion to the English calendar caused by the Rugby World Cup and England's tour to Australia next summer.

"It is very clear to me that the Toulon match can't happen," said Craig, who is based in Aix-en-Provence. "The midweek option is not an option to my mind as that would be to the detriment of player welfare as well as the integrity of two competitions, an important Champions Cup game being squeezed in with all the attendant travel issues between two Premiership weekends.

Some Bath fans made the trip to Toulon before it was abandoned

"There is no way we should be letting that happen. You can't play three high-profile games in a week. In the wider context of what has happened in Paris, this is not a serious matter, of course it isn't. And I do understand why the decision was taken. But from a rugby point of view, and from the point of view of the competition, this is an issue of significant consequence. There is no place to fit it in. It is a bit of a disaster in that regard."

Should the match be rescheduled for the Six Nations period, it is highly unlikely the coaches of England or France would agree to release players, especially whomever becomes Stuart Lancaster's replacement.

Toulon, for all their wealth and success, have very few France internationals of note, save for Mathieu Bastareaud, Maxime Mermoz and Sébastien Tillous-Borde, and their absence would not harm Les Bleus too badly. Bath, on the other hand, possess Anthony Watson, Jonathan Joseph, Kyle Eastmond, George Ford, Semesa Rokoduguni, Dave Attwood and David Wilson.


Sunday, 27 September 2015

RWC Preview - Ireland v Romania


Ireland will be expected to run out comfortable winners at Wembley against Romania in their second Pool D game.

With tougher tests against Italy and France in the coming weeks, coach Joe Schmidt has rested several key men, including fly-half Johnny Sexton.

Ireland are fielding the oldest starting XV in World Cup history.

Romania flanker Valentin Ursache must sit out the game after being suspended for one match for a dangerous tackle.

Ursache was cited by independent citing commissioner James Absaloms of Kenya after the 38-11 loss to France on Wednesday at the Olympic Stadium.

Schmidt has made 12 changes from the side that defeated Canada 50-7 and he hopes to gain further momentum against the world's 17th ranked side.

"There's a realisation from the players that it's an opportunity, but also a massive responsibility, to ensure that we get the result, and that's going to take a bit of work," said Schmidt.

The Ireland coach will be particularly keen to assess the continued return to peak fitness of Cian Healy, who will start at prop in the Pool D clash.

Ireland's remaining World Cup Pool D games
Sunday, 4 Oct, 16:45 BST: Ireland v Italy, Olympic Stadium
Sunday, 11 Oct, 16:45 BST: Ireland v France, Millennium Stadium

The British and Irish Lion missed all of Ireland's warm-up games with a neck injury and returned to action for the first time since April as a replacement against Canada.

"Cian is always an asset, whether he's in the starting team or off the bench," Schmidt said.

"I think he came off the bench mostly through the Six Nations, but the one start he did get, against Scotland, he got two turnovers in the first 20 minutes on the ground."

The teams last met 10 years ago at Lansdowne Road, with Ireland emerging 43-12 victors.

Romania full-back Catalin Fercu started that game and Ireland scrum-half Conor Murray said he was one to keep an eye on.

"He's well capable of countering, with their wingers as well. Both their nines are quite dangerous as well. If they get into broken play they really back themselves, especially after a line break or something like that," Murray said.

Fercu is still one try from becoming Romania's record try-scorer, having been stuck on 28 for 17 Tests stretching back more than two years.
Teams

Ireland: Simon Zebo; Tommy Bowe, Jared Payne, Darren Cave, Keith Earls; Ian Madigan, Eoin Reddan; Cian Healy, Richardt Strauss, Nathan White; Donnacha Ryan, Devin Toner; Jordi Murphy, Chris Henry, Jamie Heaslip (capt).

Replacements: Sean Cronin, Jack McGrath, Tadhg Furlong, Paul O'Connell, Sean O'Brien, Conor Murray, Paddy Jackson, Rob Kearney.

Romania: Catalin Fercu; Adrian Apostol, Paula Kinikinilau, Csaba Gal, Ionut Botezatu; Michael Wiringi, Valentin Calafeteanu; Andrei Ursache, Andrei Radoi, Paulica Ion; Valentin Poparlan, Ovidiu Tonita; Valentin Ursache, Mihai Macovei (capt), Daniel Carpo

Replacements: Mihaita Lazar, Otar Turashvili, Alexandru Tarus, Johannes van Heerden, Stelian Burcea, Florin Surugiu, Florin Ionita, Florin Vlaicu.


Saturday, 18 April 2015

Clermont v Saracens - Champions Cup


Saracens have named England fly-half Owen Farrell on the bench for their Champions Cup semi-final against Clermont.

Farrell returns to the Saracens' match-day 23 for the first time since he suffered a knee injury three months ago.

Saracens, looking to make the final for a second year in a row, will be without captain Alastair Hargreaves and Jim Hamilton replaces him in the second row while centre Brad Barritt takes over captaincy duties. There is also a start in the back-row for exciting prospect Maro Itoje.

Flanker Jacques Burger – who terrorised Clermont in last year’s semi-final with some ferocious tackling – is back from suspension.

Saracens may have strolled to a record 46-6 win over Clermont in last year’s semi-final, but Saracens boss Mark McCall is under no illusion at the task that awaits them at the 41,000 sold-out, Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.

"It's going to be a tough game for us, we understand that," rugby director McCall said.

"But we are going to try to make life very difficult for them and put them under some pressure. As a club, we admire them (Clermont) as much as anybody because they keep coming back for more.

"We always say we just want to give ourselves a chance of winning every competition, and they do that year in, year out. They respond to big setbacks remarkably well.

"They reinvent themselves, too. There is a different dynamic to their team this year to Vern Cotter's team - which was an outstanding team as well.

"Franck Azema (Cotter's successor as head coach) seems to have added something a little bit different in terms of their attack and defensively they are much more robust than they've ever been. They are a very good team."

Clermont welcome back their big guns after their surprise home loss to Oyonnax in the Top 14.

Having been rested after their demolition of Northampton in the quarter-finals, Wesley Fofana, Julien Bonnaire, Nick Abendanon, Napolioni Nalaga and Brock James all return to the starting line-up.

Clermont are bidding to book a second European final appearance in three seasons, but they have yet to conquer the competition and land silverware.

"It's now or never," said Clermont's 36-year-old former France international flanker Julien Bonnaire.

"I would like the colours of Clermont to hang from the trophy this season and to win it with my friends. The more we advance in a career, the less opportunities there are."

Clermont: 15 Nick Abendanon, 14 Noa Nakaitaci, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Wesley Fofana, 11 Naipolioni Nalaga, 10 Brock James, 9 Ludovic Radoslavjevic; 1 Vincent Debaty, 2 Benjamin Kayser, 3 Davit Zirakashvili, 4 Jamie Cudmore, 5 Sébastien Vahaamahina, 6 Julien Bonnaire, 7 Julien Bardy, 8 Damien Chouly (c).

Replacements: 16 John Ulugia, 17 Raphael Chaume, 18 Clément Ric, 19 Julien Pierre, 20 Alexandre Lapandry, 21 Morgan Parra, 22 Camille Lopez, 23 Aurélien Rougerie.

Saracens: 15 Alex Goode, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Marcelo Bosch, 12 Brad Barritt (c), 11 Chris Wyles, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Richard Wigglesworth; 1 Mako Vunipola, 2 Jamie George, 3 Petrus du Plessis, 4 George Kruis, 5 Jim Hamilton, 6 Maro Itoje, 7 Jacques Burger, 8 Billy Vunipola.

Replacements: 16 Schalk Brits, 17 Rhys Gill, 18 James Johnston, 19 Kelly Brown, 20 Jackson Wray, 21 Neil de Kock, 22 Owen Farrell, 23 David Strettle.