WEEKLY SPORTS DIGEST: Wallabies give it away

WEEKLY SPORTS DIGEST: Wallabies give it away, Warriors make final

30/08/10 Executive sport summary – An overview of the major sporting events – Results, key moments and talking points – Everything you need to know to foot it at the water cooler this week.

By Jonathan McKeown

TRI NATIONS: The Springboks and Wallabies battled in Pretoria for second prize in the Tri Nations. South Africa emerged victorious 44-31 in a high-pace but messy test-match. The Wallabies came out and put on tries at will to lead 21-7 early, but the Springboks were more composed in the home stretch and took out the match.

This was a highly entertaining match and Victor Matfield was back to his line-out stealing best in his 100th test. However it was not hard to observe why neither team has beaten the All Blacks this year. Poor discipline, basic errors and woeful defence was evenly matched by both teams. South Africa’s willingness to put on fresh legs got them over the line.

PROVINCIAL CHAMPIONSHIP: The ITM Cup continues to deliver thrills and entertainment aplenty. The leader board is starting to take shape with some of the more favoured unions developing momentum. Southland earned a hard-fought 21-16 win over Tasman in the ITM Cup match in Blenheim to remain unbeaten.

Canterbury bounced back to form with a comprehensive 35-16 victory over Auckland. In the most entertaining match of the round Wellington came back to beat Northland. Prop John Schwalger scored in the dying minutes to give Wellington a 31-28 win.

NPC ALL BLACKS: As expected, the All Blacks released for provincial duties made a strong impact for their unions. Victor Vito was explosive for Wellington and relished solid game time, scoring two tries. Manawatu were far more direct with Aaron Cruden at the helm, but opposing the Turbos Israel Dagg was a constant threat for Hawke’s Bay. Even though he is not an All Black, and did not even play in the NPC – that guy Sonny Bill Williams made an impact in the Canterbury curtain raiser with two tries. Look for the former League star to get game time in the red and black this weekend.

LEGAL BLOCKING: The Wellington v Northland match exposed an increasingly used technique. In a Northland break-out Jarred Payne found Rene Ranger on the outside, and blocked Wellington defender Shaun Treeby from making the tackle. This is legal as long as the player is running in support of the ball carrier, however for most of Ranger’s run Payne was in front and only slowed to continue blocking Treeby as Ranger paced away. It would not be a surprised if this is penalised next week.

RUGBY LEAGUE: The Warriors secured a place in the finals with a 36-4 win over the Brisbane Broncos. Mt Smart Stadium erupted early as the Warriors ran in five unanswered tries to lead 24-0 at oranges.

The Broncos were missing the influence of star playmaker Darren Lockyer and fell-off too many tackles. But the Warriors are hitting some fine form at the right end of the season. The line defence was perhaps the most pleasing aspect and the Warriors didn’t leak a try until the 77th minute.

The Warriors are across the ditch to face Parramatta next week. The Hayne-train has derailed, but a Parramatta side with nothing to lose is a very dangerous prospect. The Warriors are playing for the possibility of a home semi-final, a recipe for fireworks.

NETBALL: The Australian Diamonds are in a League of their own, the gap between the world champions and the Silver Ferns seems to be widening. It is no coincidence that winning the trans-Tasman netball competition has led to a stronger Australian side. A strong final quarter helped the Australians beat the Silver Ferns 48-43 in Adelaide.

BASKETBALL: The New Zealand Tall Blacks lost 92-79 to Lithuania in their FIBA World Championship opener in Turkey. New Zealand guard Kirk Penny topped the scoring with a game-high 37 points. But it was a terrible second quarter that felled the Kiwis as they were outscored 25-10.

Overnight the Tall Blacks dropped their second game going down to the highly favoured Spanish team 101-84. Kirk Penney was once again the Kiwis top scorer with 21 points.

FORMULA ONE: It was a great day for Lewis Hamilton as he won the Belgian Grand Prix and retook the Formula One championship lead. There were some nervous moments as the Briton slid off the track at turn eight, he tore across the gravel narrowly missing the tyre wall and got back on course while still leading.

Hamilton is now three points clear of Red Bull's Mark Webber in the drivers’ championship. Webber, who started on pole fought back from sixth position after a terrible start.

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