Sports

Hurricane force in dead rubber

Published

5 years ago

2021/05/3

by Rajitha Ratwatte

It was emphasised that the game between bottom of the table Hurricanes and the Otago Highlanders was not a dead rubber, in view of the trans-Tasman stage of the super rugby tournament that is due to commence in two weeks time. If the Highlanders won this, it would give their coach some satisfaction as it would mean that they had beaten all the participating Aotearoa teams at least once. The conditions started off perfect with no wind and great conditions underfoot. Rain was predicted later.

The first scrum was in the second minute of the game, it had to be reset twice and finally the Hurricanes conceded an easily kickable penalty due to their tight head prop Tyrell Lomax being pinged for collapsing the scrum. Mitch Hunt the Otago number10 made no mistake, 3 -0 lead to the visitors. A series of kicks for territory ensued, reminding one of the old days when Rugby Union used to be referred to by its detractors, particularly from rugby league as “kick and clap”! Seven minutes into the game Karefi of the Hurricanes in the no seven jersey broke through the ‘Landers defence and found that irrepressible playmaker Dan Coles who wears the no two jersey but plays more like an open side flanker and also spends a lot of time lurking on the wing, he then passed inside to the no eight Flanders who showed good speed to canter over the line and score. Jordie Barret converted 3–7 and the Hurricane gathers force. The ‘Canes were awarded two kickable penalties in the course of the ensuing play but chose the touch option each time. Meanwhile in the 15th minute Dan Coles who characterises his brilliant loose play with the occasional “push and shove” got into a brawl with the Highlanders no10 Mitch Hunt. The resultant TV replay saw both parties at fault and two concurrent yellow cards were issued to two key players in either side! The referee Ben O ‘Keefe gave a long-winded explanation and justified his actions.

The Otago team was able to take advantage of the 14 man per side game first, with Josh Dickson the brother of their captain scoring right of the posts in the 17th minute. Easily converted even in the absence of Mitch Hunt and the ‘Landers back into the lead at 10 – 7. Now it was the Highlanders turn to turn down kickable penalties probably due to their first-choice place kicker being in the sin bin and two such opportunities were disregarded for territory gains. The penalty count was reading 2 – 6 against the Hurricanes and at this point both yellow carded players came back on the field. Jonah Nareki that highly rated young winger from Otago who started his super rugby career with a bang scoring two tries on debut, streaked over the line to score mid left after some great phase play with the Otago no eight, Japanese international Kazuki Himeno participating on two occasions. Additional points for conversion added and the score reading 17 – 7 for the Otago boys. The 33rd minute saw a penalty right in front of the posts disregarded for a scrum and the 20-year-old Hurricanes no10 Rueben Love dropped the ball on the line! Rueben Love has loads of talent and will be a star of the future but right now straight out of school, he looks a little lost at this level of the game. This is a real case for taking the club game to a higher level from the sponsor ship money that will become available if the senior players in NZ rugby agree to the mega bucks sponsorship deal that is pending from an American organization.

36 minutes into the game a captain’s referral made by Aaron Smith the All Blacks and Otago no nine against Dan Coles who was up to his tricks again, went against the challenger and the penalty was reversed and Otago lost their right to challenge for the rest of the game. This penalty although easily kickable for points was not taken and territory was preferred once again. The weather decided to support its namesake the Hurricanes with a fresh breeze and some rain coming down at this stage of the game. Dan Coles continued his impact on the game scoring a try mid left off some bruising loose play. Jordie Barret was unable to convert, and the score read 17 -11 with Otago ahead. A long kick by Jordie Barret went over the goal (probably due to the wind and rain) and a simple touch down would have resulted in a goal line drop out but a brain freeze by midfielder Gilbert of the ‘Lander saw him slice the attempted clearance and give the ‘Canes just what they wanted, an attacking line out well inside Otago territory. A penalty was awarded to the Wellington side from the ensuing maul, right in front of the posts and with the half time hooter echoing across the ground Jordie Barret took the home side even closer to their opponents 17 – 15.

The first minute of the second half saw Nani Laumape of the Hurricanes playing mid field and making a real bid for a place in the national side, beating Aaron Smith with a sprint for the goal line off a chip kick and scoring far left. Barret converted from a difficult angle and the ‘Canes into the lead 17 -22. It looked like the Highlanders came back straight away, stringing together 13 phases of play and Smith with a great pass sending no14 Sam Gilbert over the line. However, a captain’s challenge from the canny Dan Coles pointed out a marginal knock forward by the attacking side and the try was disallowed. The wind and the rain started up in earnest and a rather messy and scrappy period of play ensued. We have been spoilt in Aotearoa this Autumn, having lovely sunshine and little rain. We have forgotten that most of our Autumn rugby is usually played in wet and muddy conditions with the forwards dominating play! 52 minutes into the game and Dan Coles was subbed off, as no doubt the coaches were satisfied with his contribution to the game.

One minute later Rueben Love decided to showcase some of his talent by hitting a gap, showing a fantastic turn of speed and passing to Karefi from the third row who scored within easy converting distance for their strapping full back and the youngest of the Barret brothers, Jordie. 17 – 29 Hurricanes blowing hard! The Otago lads were not done yet and in the 57th minute another possible 3 pointer was disregarded, and the ensuing line out saw their skipper Ash Dickson score far right of the posts. The conversion was missed 22 -29 Hurricanes prevail. There was a lot of aggression from both sides, uncharacteristic for a local derby and also a virtual dead rubber. In the 70th minute Nani Laumape made another great break and Braydon Iose wearing the no20 jersey and in as a substitute third rower scored after a long thrilling run, far left of the posts. Barret missed the conversion, 22 -34 Hurricanes surging ahead. Less than 3 minutes from the end Solesi Rayasi scythed his way through the Highlander defence for over 35 meters and scored mid left. This was converted and the final score read 22 – 41 with the Wellington Hurricanes finally living up to their potential even in the absence of their regular captain Aardie Savea.

An item that may have caught the readers interest could have been the mention of the pending Mega sponsorship deal pending from an American organization. New Zealand Rugby has received a $465 million offer from US technology investment giants Silver Lake for a 15 per cent share of commercial rights valued at $3.1 billion. All provincial and club rugby organizations have voted in favour of this deal. However the current All Blacks players have the final say as it may result in less money for them in the form of match fees. The sponsorship money is expected to flow down to the lower levels of the game and NZ rugby has never seen such sums before. The players decision is awaited with trepidation and anticipation.

supersubsports@gmail.com

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Sports

‘Disappointing’ – Sangakkara on Sam Curran turning out for Surrey with IPL still on

Published

2 hours ago

2026/05/31

Priyan

Sam Curran has returned to competitive cricket at the men's Vitality Blast [Cricinfo]

Sam Curran missed IPL 2026 for Rajasthan Royals (RR) with a groin injury, and Kumar Sangakkara found it “disappointing” when the allrounder turned out for Surrey in the men’s Vitality Blast on May 22 to mark his return to action.

As far as Sangakkara was concerned, England-contracted Curran had a “season-ending injury”, even though the player himself had said at the time of his withdrawal from the IPL – the news became public on March 19 – that he would return “whenever it feels right”.

“We were told that Sam Curran had a season-ending injury, but I think I saw him playing for Surrey for two games or three games now. So that was disappointing,” Sangakkara, RR’s head coach, said at a press conference after RR exited the IPL in Qualifier 2 on Friday. “We would have loved to have had him here playing for us.”

Since Curran, who had been acquired by RR as part of a trade with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) with Ravindra Jadeja in exchange for Sanju Samson, had communicated his inability to play to RR in advance, Dasun Shanaka was brought in as a replacement on March 23, which led to its own set of problems, as Shanaka had to withdraw from his deal with Lahore Qalandars in PSL 2026 to join RR and was banned from the tournament for a year as a result.

Curran, playing as a batter only and scheduled to not bowl in Surrey’s first six Blast fixtures, has played three games so far and is their top run-scorer at this stage with 141 runs from three innings. When he opted out of the IPL, he had said that he had managed the groin problem throughout the T20 World Cup earlier this year. “It’s an injury that I’ve kind of been battling with a little bit,” Curran was quoted as saying in British media. “It has gradually got fractionally worse. I went for a couple of scans and it showed reasonable damage, so I had to make the tough decision. It was hindering me quite a bit.”

The question has come up from time to time when overseas players have chosen not to honour their IPL commitments, and in September 2024, the BCCI announced a two year ban on players who pulled out after being picked at IPL auctions.

“Yeah, I think a proper tight policy around that is always a requirement. The BCCI has a strict policy on that,” Sangakkara said. “Injuries, every person goes through injuries, and if it’s a serious injury, a season ending injury, of course we understand.”

Sangakkara, however, seemed to indicate that injured or not, he would have liked Curran to be around the RR set-up in what would have been his first season with the team.

“We’ve also had players like Adam Milne, Shimron Hetmyer, quite a few who came here and not had much of a game; Lhuan-dre Pretorius is another one, Kwena Maphaka is another one. They’ve been here, they’ve done the hard yards, they’ve practiced, they’ve carried water for the team, and they’ve really worked as hard as anyone else to support the team in this journey,” Sangakkara said.

“It’s really up to that individual player to decide whether they want to come or not, but I think the BCCI policy around it is very strict now, and that’s the way it should continue. It should be very strict to make sure that contractual obligations are met properly and genuinely, and I think every side in the IPL will benefit from that.”

[Cricinfo]

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PSG beat Arsenal to win back-to-back Champions League titles after shootout

Published

2 hours ago

2026/05/31

Priyan

Marquinhos of Paris Saint-Germain lifts the UEFA Champions League trophy after victory in the final [Aljazeera]

Paris Saint-Germain held their nerve in a cagey Champions League ⁠final to retain the title by beating Arsenal 4-3 on penalties as Saturday’s nail-biting showdown ended 1-1 after extra time, cementing the French side’s status among Europe’s modern greats.

Arsenal defender Gabriel blasted his spot kick over Matvey Safonov’s crossbar at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, his miss confirming PSG as the first club to retain the trophy since Real Madrid completed their ⁠three-year reign from 2016 to 2018.

Long dismissed as glamorous underachievers despite vast resources, the Ligue 1 champions have now forged a dynasty under Luis Enrique, marrying attacking brilliance with resilience to establish themselves as the dominant force in European football.

“It’s stronger than last year because we knew before the match just how difficult it would be to play against Arsenal,” said Enrique, whose side had ⁠thrashed Inter Milan 5-0 a year ago to claim Europe’s elite trophy for the first time.

“As a club and a city, it’s incredible to win, and I think we deserved it over the course of the season. The final was a real battle,” added the Spanish coach.

The outcome left Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice devastated but proud as his side finished their European campaign without losing a match, aside from the shootout defeat in the final.

“It’s gutting. It’s devastating to lose a Champions League final on penalties,” he said. “But we try to take a lot of perspective from how far we’ve come as a group.

“An incredible season. ‌Given it absolutely everything up until this point. We took the game to penalties. It’s a lottery.”

Eleven days after celebrating their first Premier League title in 22 years, Arsenal looked set for a maiden triumph on Europe’s biggest stage after Kai Havertz’s sixth-minute opener and a first hour spent smothering PSG’s vaunted attack.

However, the final in the Hungarian capital became chaotic, once PSG’s Ousmane Dembele equalised with a penalty in the 65th minute, the pace turning frantic before exhaustion took the match to a shootout.

Under Enrique, PSG have won the six shootouts they have contested, with the 56-year-old winning 12 of the 13 one-off club finals as coach.

After brushing aside Premier League opposition on their way to the final by eliminating Chelsea and Liverpool, PSG were facing a much sterner test against an Arsenal team playing their second Champions League final after losing to Barcelona in 2006.

Mikel Arteta’s side took the ⁠lead when Marquinhos’ clearance bounced off Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard into the path of Havertz, who raced into the box and fired into the roof of ⁠the net.

He is the fourth player to score in two different European Cup or Champions League finals with two different clubs.

It was the nightmare scenario for PSG – trailing so early against the best defence in the competition.

Arsenal lived up to their reputation as the best team without the ball and looked perfectly content with the script, doubling up on Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and suffocating the usual danger posed by the Georgian magician on the left flank.

PSG’s Fabian Ruiz was ⁠unable to impose his usual rhythm in midfield and, despite monopolising possession for long spells, the French side struggled to carve out clear-cut chances.

By half-time, PSG had attacked 32 times, Arsenal three.

Arsenal, however, were flirting with the boundaries with their challenges and Cristhian Mosquera brought down Kvaratskhelia in ⁠the area, with Dembele converting the penalty to equalise with his eighth goal in the competition.

The momentum had shifted.

Jurrien ⁠Timber and Viktor Gyokeres replaced Mosquera and Martin Odegaard. Arsenal had a more attacking mindset but were exposed to PSG’s counter attacks and at the end of one of them, Kvaratskhelia sped into the box, only for his left-footed effort to crash onto the outside of David Raya’s post.

After controlling the tempo in the first half, Arsenal played into PSG’s hands as the pace increased significantly, giving too much space to Kvaratskhelia or Bradley Barcola, who replaced the Georgian winger with ‌seven minutes remaining.

In the 89th minute, PSG came close to giving the final an abrupt end as Vitinha’s shot grazed the top of the net. Barcola also shot over the bar after a counter attack, with what would have been the last kick of the game.

With both teams having run out of steam, extra time was a cautious affair and when referee Daniel Siebert blew his ‌whistle, ‌Arsenal had only managed one shot on target.

Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze missed his penalty before Raya saved Nuno Mendes’ attempt. Gabriel had to score to keep the Gunners’ hopes alive but, facing PSG’s end, he fired over.

The French side were left to celebrate being European champions once again, with extra-time substitute Lucas Beraldo’s goal in the shootout proving to be the winner.

[Aljazeera]

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Home comfort vs championship pedigree as Gujarat Titans and Royal Challengers Bengaluru collide in IPL 2026 final

Published

3 hours ago

2026/05/31

Priyan

Gujarat Titans (GT) will be thrilled to play the IPL final at their home ground in Ahmedabad. Just that they will not be able to get there till deep into the night on Saturday. Thunderstorms in Chandigarh delayed the team from flying out, meaning they wouldn’t even have spent 24 hours in the place where they’ll have to find a way to win an IPL title.

Speaking of which, once upon a time – and for a very long time – IPL finals used to be held at the home venue of the previous year’s champions. So Royal Challengers (RCB) could have been the ones looking forward to a bit of home advantage. But something, somewhere went wrong. And now it is GT who go in with that ace up their sleeve.

And as much as the old rules do not apply to this RCB – not when their batting line-up dovetails so wonderfully, and their new-ball bowlers have been so devastating – there is some small precedent to consider. They lost to GT in Ahmedabad in the league stage, bowled out for 155. They’ve won only three of their seven away or neutral games in IPL 2026. All of that can be tossed into the wayside if any of their match-winners come off. Five of them did – the entire top five – in Dharamsala just a few days ago to put up the highest score ever seen in the playoffs. From going 18 years without a title, RCB could win two back-to-back. For the last eight straight IPLs, the team winning Qualifier 1 has gone on to become champion.

GT’s campaign has been built on the hard work of Kagiso Rabada and Mohammed Siraj; in particular the unstinting way they attack oppositions in the powerplay. Both quicks have been encouraged to go pace-on. Both quicks have been remarkable at assessing the vulnerabilities of specific batters. Both quicks have the potential to break the game early. GT have a strike rate of 16 this season, the best of all the teams (at an economy of 9.49) and it gets better when they play at home – 13.5 (economy of 8.72). They’ve converted a fourth playoff appearance in five years into a third final in five years. A second title in five years is well within reach.

Three of Tim David’s last five innings have ended in single-digit scores and a strike rate under 100. You wouldn’t qualify that as a slump though, given his innings against Punjab Kings during the same sequence. He was 2 off two at the start of the 17th over and finished 28 off 12. David just needs to connect one ball to send several out of the ground.

Jason Holder has been an impeccable addition to the GT line-up, his bowling enabling them to frontload their Test-quality fast bowlers and retain flexible use of Rashid Khan. On top of that, Holder himself has picked up 17 wickets at an economy rate of just 7.54. The extra bounce that he generates, even on Indian pitches, has been telling.

RCB will likely bring Phil Salt back in if he’s ready to go but even if not, Venkatesh Iyer has filled in very nicely.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (probable): Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer/Phil Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (capt), Krunal Pandya, Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam, Jacob Duffy/Suyash Sharma

GT have had the middle-order question thrown at them over and over and it will be done one last time. In Qualifier 1, when Shubman Gill and B Sai Sudharsan failed, they lost. Badly.

Gujarat Titans (probable): Shubman Gill (capt), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Washington Sundar, Nishant Sindhu, Jason Holder, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, R Sai Kishore, Kagiso Rabada, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj

[Cricinfo]