Sports

Suncorp Hoodoo!

Published

6 years ago

2020/11/9

by Rajitha Ratwatte

The Bledisloe dead rubber but a game with points for the tri-nations rugby tournament played at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane. The Wallabies had lost only once at this venue and is there something in a venue that has an outcome on the result?

All blacks had rung in some changes and so had the Wallabies. A humid day in Brisbane and a rather hurried transit to the ground for the Blacks and Nick Berry refereeing a game expected to be an easy win for the NZ team. The Wallaby no1 James Slipper led the team out in his 100th appearance for Australia.

Within two minutes of the kick-off, a nice little chip kick from Reece Hodge playing at no10, combined with a favourable bounce of that ever so fickle rugby ball saw the Wallabies score the first try mid-left. A relatively easy kick was missed by the Aussie no10 and the Wallabies were off to a 5 – 0 lead.

Eight minutes into the game, a desperate attack by the All Blacks with equally resolute defence from the Yellow Jerseys culminated in Ricco Ioane getting over the line from his left-wing. The kick from the extreme left of the posts saw Jordan Barret, who had the kicking duties for the game hit the upright. The kick missed score 5 – 5.

Scott Barret the third of the Barret boys showed great skills in loose play and won the ball and his big brother Beauden made a great touch kick in the 13th minute. However poor positional play by the All Blacks no1 Karl Tu’inukuafe gave away a defensive penalty deep in Wallaby territory.

Around the 20th minute Seevu Reece who was playing on the right-wing and from whom great things were expected, seemed to be trying too hard and got pinged twice in succession for playing the ball when on the ground and gave away penalties, the second of which was mid-left and around 30 meters from the posts. Easily kickable for Hodge and over it went. Wallabies lead 5 – 8.

Then the card game began! Yet another microscopic analysis by the TV ref of a tackle reached a conclusion that the All Black no3 Ofa Tuungafasi while tackling had struck his Wallaby opponent on the point of his jaw with his shoulder. This was simply due to the different heights of the players and obviously had no malicious intent at all. There was plenty of malicious play going on from the Aussies as is their style but the Referees’ got it completely wrong and what should have been a simple penalty or even a yellow card at worst was declared a red card offence! In the 23rd minute of the game, the All Blacks were reduced to 14 players for the rest of the game. A vital lifter in the line out had been summarily dispatched from the game.

A scrum came up in the 28th minute and there was a problem as the no3 had been red-carded! Akira Ioane the elder brother of Ricco ( we had two sets of brother representing NZ in this game – 3 Barrets’ and 2 Ioannes’) who had a strong game had to be benched to get another prop on the field and midfielder Lennert- Brown had to bind at no6 in the scrum. Sam Cane who had been targeted for some foul play by the Aussies, unseen by all the referees, of course, intercepted an Aussie pass from the scrum with great skill that led to a kickable penalty in the 32nd minute. It was around 36 meters out but in front and Jodie Barret was not going to miss that. 8 – 8 scores level.

An almost identical situation that had led to the first red card of the game happened but was totally ignored by the on-field ref. However, the pedantic eye of the TV camera spotted it and the cards that seemed to be burning a hole in the referee’s pocket came out again. Red it was against Australia this time, establishing consistency according to the pundits! Both sides down to 14 players for the rest of the game.

The Customary and obligatory Aboriginal welcome speech at the start of the game saw an Aboriginal elder describe the game as a game of rugby league by mistake. Maybe the Ref was under the impression that there were too many players on the field!

The All Blacks attacked relentlessly and Aussie defence held up. But four penalties in a row inside the 22-meter line saw the card pack being shuffled again and out came a Yellow against the Aussie no11. Seven in a row on another occasion only resulted in penalties. Surely the option of a penalty try is available for so many professional fouls from inside the 22-meter line? The half-time score remained tied at 8 – 8. There were certain commentators describing the game as entertaining but only if you thought it was a brawl of some sort, not a game of Rugby Union!

The referee started the second half by missing a blatant forward pass that had to be pointed out to him by his touch judge. Aussies now had 13 players against the All Blacks 14. Four minutes into this half the Aussies were awarded a kickable penalty, exactly what they wanted with two players short and Reece Hodge made no mistake 8-11 Aussies in front. The 51st minute saw a forwards try off a line out for the All blacks with no2 Codie Taylor managing to ground the ball extreme right. A great conversion by Jodie Barret saw the All Blacks back in the lead 15 -11. In the 54th minutes, the Aussies were looking very threatening, getting the better of the Scrums and of course, engaging in what is now called gamesmanship – taking every opportunity to rough up their opponents and put extreme pressure on the referee. A blatant hand in the scrum was not seen by the referees and the All Blacks thought they got out of jail but it was not to be. A scrum penalty was to follow soon enough, it was around 40 meters out but straight in front and was duly knocked over by Reece Hodge who specializes in this sort of kick. 15 – 14 All Blacks just in front.

Ardie Savea made a few strong runs but the All Blacks forwards were feeling the humidity and showed it by not getting to rucks and mauls in time. Maybe the bench should have been used a little earlier due to the weather? The Linesman or the assistant referee as he is known these days spotted Scott Barret doing what was deemed playing the ball of the ground. What it looked like was a feeble wave of his hand at the Aussie no 9 who then dropped the ball while making a pass.

When the whistle went we all thought it was for a knock-on but lo and behold it was another time to shuffle the cards and a yellow to the youngest of the Barret brothers. So we had two red cards and two yellow cards during this brawl that has been described elsewhere as an “entertaining game of Rugby football”, which it wasn’t!

In the 74th minute, the Wallabies scored mid-left through their substitute prop wearing the no18 jersey. A veritable tank of a man who was totally unstoppable from five meters out. The goal was completed and the score read 15 – 24 All Blacks behind. AB’s were not giving up and in the 78th minute Tupou Vaa’I scored for them under the posts and the resulting kick saw the score move to 22 – 24. Brilliant and desperate defence from Korobiete on the wing for Australia resulted in the All Blacks being unable to score further and the match ended with a 2 point win for the Wallabies who had been trashed just a week ago in Sydney by 37 points.

All in all, it was a tight game but lacked any brilliant passages of play and the antics of the referee left one wondering if we were watching a game of cards or a game of rugby. However, the Aussies played to their strengths, they don’t have the three quarters to match the Kiwis and can not play the open running rugby that we saw in the past two games. However, the Aussies know how to spoil and how to stretch the rules and play the referee. They did this to perfection and got the better of a much superior side. This win will do a lot for Aussie rugby and probably teach the All Blacks never to get complacent against the Aussie battlers.

It is true that the Aussies won the game and it will probably result in some added interest from spectators who were getting tired of watching the Wallabies lose time after time. It may also allow the Wallabies to try and contrive a situation when they can secure the tri-nations trophy, or whatever this latest money-making scheme for the TV networks is called! Whoever won and whoever stands to benefit, it wasn’t the great game of Rugby union!

supersubsports@gmail.com

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Latest News

Davis cup Asia/Oceania Group IV 2026 to be held in Colombo from 20th to 25th July

Published

12 hours ago

2026/07/18

Priyan

The Sri Lanka team for the Davis cup Asia/Oceania Group IV 2026 from left Ganuka Fernando, Thehan Wijemanne, Rukmal Cooray (Manager), Sanka Athukorala (Coach and non playing captain), Saha Kapilasena , Apna Perera (pics by Kamal Wanniarachchi)

The world cup of tennis, the Davis cup Asia/Oceania Group IV 2026 will be held in Sri Lanka from the 20^th to the 25^th of July 2026 at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA) courts. This tournament is held under the guidance of World Tennis, is the main team event for the male tennis players of the world.

There will be seven nations participating in the event to be held in Colombo. The teams being Iraq, Northern Mariana Islands, Qatar, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyztan, Kuwait and the host country Sri Lanka.

The Sri Lanka team for the tournament comprises of Apna Perera, Thehan Wijemanna, Ganuka Fernando and Saha Kapilasena making up the team with a blend of youth and experience with Mineth Navarathna being the stand by player. The team is coached by the experienced Sankha Athukorala with Lakshan Wijerathna being the physio/ Masseur of the team. The manager of the team is Rukmal Cooray.

The seven teams will be divided into two groups. One group of three teams and the other one of four teams. Matches will be played in the round robin format in the initial stages and the top two teams from the two groups will compete in cross over matches. The two winners will be promoted from this event. The third placed teams from the two groups will play a demotion play off match. The loser will be demoted. The team which finishes in the 4^th place in the group of four will automatically be demoted. As such two teams will be promoted and two teams will be demoted.

Official practice days are the 20^th and the 21^st of July and the matches will be held from the 22^nd to the 25^th of July.

The captain’s meeting and the draw for the tournament will be held at the SLTA on Tuesday the 21^st at 10.00 am, while the opening ceremony of the event is expected to be held on Wednesday the 22^nd of July at 9 30 am on the Center court.

The balls for the event will be Wilson US Open, with Trident Distributors, the official partner for Wilson sporting goods in Sri Lanka coming on board as the official ball suppliers for the event. Apart from this, Trident Sports under the guidance of Yasser Farook, the managing director has come on board as the official apparel partner for the Sri Lanka team as well.

All teams will be staying at the Cinnamon Lakeside hotel with Cinnamon Lakeside hotel coming on board as the official hospitality partner for this tournament. Dushyantha Tittawella, the General manger of the hotel is pulling out all the stops to make sure that the teams have a comfortable stay whilst they are in Sri Lanka.

Perera and Son bakers limited will be the official food and beverage partner for the tournament and will be in charge of making sure that the players’ needs are met throughout this event.

The tournament Director is Dinith Pathiraja and has S Thevanesan as his assistant.

Wan Xianling of China is the referee for the event and Dharaka Ellawala being his deputy. There are six Chair umpires who have been appointed with two of them being Sri Lankans, namely Anjana De Silva and Chamod Rupassara. Jeyachandirun Saarangan is the Chief of Umpires and Adheesha Paranagama, Prageeth Polgampola, Pasindu Sampath and Yumira Kuruppu rounding up the tournament staff for the event with Mrs Nipuni Maheshika being the safeguarding officer and the UNO official for the tournament.

The SLTA president Iqbal Bin Issack with General Secretary Pradeep Goonasekera have been advising and looking into all the arrangements to make this tournament a success.

From left: Dinith Pathiraja (Tournament Director, Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group IV Event), Iqbal Bin Issack (President, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA)), Yasser Farook (Managing Director, Trident Distributors (Wilson Agents in Sri Lanka), Pradeep S. Goonasekera (General Secretary, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA)), Rukmal Cooray (Vice President, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA))

From left : Dinith Pathiraja (Tournament Director, Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group IV Event), Iqbal Bin Issack (President, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA)), Dushyantha Tittawella (General Manager, Cinnamon Lakeside), Pradeep S. Goonasekera (General Secretary, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA)), Rukmal Cooray (Vice President, Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA))

(PDES)

Sports

Malinga, Asalanka seal Galle Gallants win in LPL opener

Published

14 hours ago

2026/07/18

Priyan

Eshan Malinga rocked Jaffna Kings with three wickets in his first two overs (Cricbuzz)

Sixty five runs off 38 balls with seven boundaries and three sixes by Charith Asalanka and a four wicket haul by Eshan Malinga helped Galle Gallants defeat Jaafna Kings by 36 rums in the opening game of the Lanka Premier League played at the SSC on Friday (17 July).

Scores:

Galle Gallants 213/6 in 20 overs (Sam Harper 40, Charith Asalanka 65, Mehidy Hasan Miraz 10, Sahan Arachchige 35, Dasun Shanaka 31*, Mohamed Nawaz 21; David Weise 1-45, Dunith Wellalage 1-10, Lizaad Williams 2-28, Piyush Chawla 2-43)

Jaffna Kings 177 in 19.4 overs (Avishka Fernando 34, Kamil Mishara 28, Dunith Wellalage 40, David Weise 15, Chamindu Wickremasinghe 24; Dasun Shanaka 1-28, Akif Javed 2-31, Eshan Malinga 4-26, Charith Asalanka 1-04, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth 1-24)

Latest News

Garry Sobers dies, aged 89

Published

1 day ago

2026/07/17

Priyan

Sir Garry Sobers the legendary West Indies allrounder and one of the sport’s most towering icons, has died at his home in Barbados. He was 89 years old.

Widely regarded by many as the greatest allrounder and most gifted cricketer to have played the game, Sobers excelled as Test batter, could bowl left-arm pace as well as orthodox and wrist-spin, and he was an exceptional fielder and close-in catcher – attributes that once led his fellow all-timer, Sir Donald Bradman, to describe him as a “five-in-one cricketer”.

Sobers played 93 Test matches for West Indies between 1954 and 1974, scoring 8032 runs at an average of 57.78 and took 235 wickets at an average of 34.03. He also captained West Indies in 39 Tests between 1965 and 1972, winning nine and losing 10. The ICC’s premier annual award in men’s cricket – the Sir Garfield Sobers Award – is named in his honour and recognises the most outstanding overall performer in men’s international cricket across all formats.

Sobers made his first-class cricket debut at the age of 16, against the touring India team in January 1953, and excelled with four first-innings wickets to help his side enforce the follow-on. His Test debut followed a year later, against England in Jamaica, where he scored 14 and 26 from No.9 and took 4 for 75 in England’s first innings.

He played his initial Tests as a bowler, but at the age of 23 he scored his maiden Test hundred and also broke Len Hutton’s world record for the highest individual Test score by making 365 against Pakistan at Sabina Park in 1958. It was a record that stood until 1994, when it was broken by Brian Lara, an achievement Sobers was on hand to witness and celebrate.

A decade after that record-breaking innings, Sobers became the first cricketer to hit six sixes in an over in first-class cricket – off Glamorgan’s Malcolm Nash – while playing for Nottinghamshire in Swansea. His first-class career comprised 383 matches for West Indies, Barbados, Nottinghamshire and South Australia and he amassed 28,314 runs at an average of 54.87 and took 1043 wickets at an average of 27.74.

While Sobers played 95 List A games, his international career had wound down by the advent of ODIs and he played only one international in that format – against England at Headingley in 1973. He was knighted for his services to cricket in 1975, and in 2000, he was named as one of Five Cricketers of the Century by Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, alongside Bradman, Sir Jack Hobbs, Sir Viv Richards and Shane Warne.

Born in Barbados in 1936, Sobers was the fifth of six children, and was raised primarily by his mother after his merchant-seaman father died during the Second World War in 1942. He was born with six fingers on each hand – the extra digits were removed in his childhood – and he excelled in all sports, including basketball, football and golf.

In a statement on behalf of Cricket West Indies, the board president, Dr. The Hon. Kishore Shallow, described Sobers as the “greatest cricketer the world has ever seen”, and offered his “heartfelt condolences to his family, the Government and people of Barbados and all those across the world who mourn his passing.

“There are moments in the story of a people when the life of one individual becomes woven into the hopes, dreams, and identity of generations,” Swallow added. “Today, the Caribbean mourns the passing of such an individual … His mastery of batting, bowling and fielding was unparalleled, but his true significance reached far beyond the boundary ropes.

“He emerged from the Caribbean at a time when our region was finding its voice and asserting its place on the world stage. Through his excellence, he gave millions across our islands and in the diaspora, a renewed belief in what was possible. He showed that greatness was not confined by the size of our nations, the geography of our islands or the circumstances of our beginnings.

“Sir Garfield Sobers became more than a sporting icon. He became a symbol of Caribbean excellence, resilience, and possibility. His achievements brought pride to Barbados, inspiration to the West Indies and admiration from every corner of the cricketing world.”

(Cricinfo)