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Rugby World Cup semi-finalists primed for weekend action
Melbourne, Nov 13: Rugby World Cup semi-finalists gearing up for weekend crunch matches. The final four teams left in the Rugby World Cup are training hard ahead of the semi-finals this weekend (November 15-16).
Melbourne, Nov 13: Rugby World Cup semi-finalists gearing up for weekend crunch matches. The final four teams left in the Rugby World Cup are training hard ahead of the semi-finals this weekend (November 15-16).
The New Zealand All Blacks, one of the favourites to win the tournament, were busy training in Melbourne on Tuesday (November 11).
All Black's Coach John Mitchell is expecting a tough match against reigning champions and arch-rivals Australia on Saturday.
"It's going to take a massive performance, this is Australia, they're playing the World Cup in their own country, they're defending world champions and we as New Zealanders, especially this side, will never underestimate an Australian side."
Mitchell says the major concern for Saturday's game against the Wallabies, as the Australian team are known, is their attack.
"They have more threats, attacking threats, on their team than any other opposition that we've faced in the World Cup today," he said.
Meanwhile New Zealand's semi-final opponents, Australia, have been fine-tuning their scrumming tactics at their training ground in Coffs Harbour.
Wallabies hooker Brendan Cannon responded to criticism that his team had yet to show its top form in the tourament. "Not just one aspect of our players but all of us have at some stages made critical mistakes thoughout the tournament," he said.
The Wallabies have been preparing in Coffs Harbour since Sunday but will fly to Sydney on Thursday. Cannon says the team still has some fine-tuning to do.
"The rhythm we're looking to find as a side, those mistakes need to be minimised so as a whole we really need to raise our performance."
"We've managed to win some games reasonably well but we're not playing as well as what we would like, so our own expectations in terms of our performance are still very very high and we're still a fair way off from where we'd like to be," he said.
The other semi-final is between England and France on Sunday (November 16). The England team arrived in Sydney on Monday and have settled into their training regime.
England vice captain and fly-half Jonny Wilkinson, who is under the spotlight after a series of below par performances in the tournament, said visiting the stadium that will host Sunday's game was an important part of the team's preparation.
"We will try and take advantage, we always do, of getting a look at the stadium and preparing, for giving us that mental edge before the game you know how it's going to be and how it's going look."
The England team has based itself at Manly beach on the northern side of Sydney Harbour. "I think we're looking foward to training generally this week not just at the stadium but getting in there and getting some confidence from some good runs out on the training field," said Wilkinson.
England captain Martin Johnson was unfazed at the prospect of meeting France. "It's a World Cup semi-final, it's a boring old cliche I know, but whoever plays best of the day will win the game," he said.
"Yeah (the French team) are in good form, people questioned their form in the Six Nations but they've come through that and they've probably been the fourth team in the World Cup so far, but all that said and done we've got to play them on Saturday, we've beaten them twice, they've beaten us once this year, I think it's two-all in the last four games so it's going to be a very close game."
Bureau Report
"They have more threats, attacking threats, on their team than any other opposition that we've faced in the World Cup today," he said.
Meanwhile New Zealand's semi-final opponents, Australia, have been fine-tuning their scrumming tactics at their training ground in Coffs Harbour.
Wallabies hooker Brendan Cannon responded to criticism that his team had yet to show its top form in the tourament. "Not just one aspect of our players but all of us have at some stages made critical mistakes thoughout the tournament," he said.
The Wallabies have been preparing in Coffs Harbour since Sunday but will fly to Sydney on Thursday. Cannon says the team still has some fine-tuning to do.
"The rhythm we're looking to find as a side, those mistakes need to be minimised so as a whole we really need to raise our performance."
"We've managed to win some games reasonably well but we're not playing as well as what we would like, so our own expectations in terms of our performance are still very very high and we're still a fair way off from where we'd like to be," he said.
The other semi-final is between England and France on Sunday (November 16). The England team arrived in Sydney on Monday and have settled into their training regime.
England vice captain and fly-half Jonny Wilkinson, who is under the spotlight after a series of below par performances in the tournament, said visiting the stadium that will host Sunday's game was an important part of the team's preparation.
"We will try and take advantage, we always do, of getting a look at the stadium and preparing, for giving us that mental edge before the game you know how it's going to be and how it's going look."
The England team has based itself at Manly beach on the northern side of Sydney Harbour. "I think we're looking foward to training generally this week not just at the stadium but getting in there and getting some confidence from some good runs out on the training field," said Wilkinson.
England captain Martin Johnson was unfazed at the prospect of meeting France. "It's a World Cup semi-final, it's a boring old cliche I know, but whoever plays best of the day will win the game," he said.
"Yeah (the French team) are in good form, people questioned their form in the Six Nations but they've come through that and they've probably been the fourth team in the World Cup so far, but all that said and done we've got to play them on Saturday, we've beaten them twice, they've beaten us once this year, I think it's two-all in the last four games so it's going to be a very close game."
Bureau Report