Physicality has become imperative in international rugby and few young sensations possess enough of it in those early daysWith only 11 Super Rugby appearances under his belt, 19-year-old Jordan Petaia is in the Australia squad. In a group that has more caps than any previous World Cup squad, an average of 45 per man, he’s a bolter. Yet to get on the field and gain a cap – that will probably occur in the games against Georgia and Uruguay – he has been on everyone’s radar since his Brisbane State high school days. It is great to see and fills us with excitement that we may be witnessing the birth of a new rugby star. It also got me thinking....
The Australia wing caught Fiji’s Peceli Yato in the head with a shoulder and didn’t use his arms, World Rugby’s tackle directives could not be clearer – yet no action was takenFor 15 minutes the Sapporo Dome sounded as loud as any other ground in the game. And then the rugby started. The volume was ear-splitting in the minutes before kick-off, while the stadium PA was pumping out music, but it fell almost entirely silent in the very second the New Zealander Ben O’Keeffe blew his whistle.It was so quiet in the first half that you could clearly hear the players shouting to each other over the murmurs of the 40,000-odd people in the ground. It made it all feel...
Smith’s majesty, Archer’s mastery, the miracle of Headingley: our writers give their verdicts after an extraordinary Test seriesVic Marks There’s no room for smartarsery here. It has to be Steve Smith averaging 110 in a bowlers’ series. Without him Australia would surely have lost the Ashes. Related: Five steps England must take to regain the Ashes in 2020-21 | Rob Smyth Related: Weary Steve Smith is just for once unable to rise to the occasion | Geoff Lemon Related: Jonny Bairstow’s role in the middle order is key to England’s future | Barney Ronay Continue reading...
The Yorkshireman was excellent behind the stumps again but his batting position must be questionedIn the end a losing draw felt about right. England and Australia have finally left the building. Although at times during this fifth Test Australia seemed to have checked out some time early last week. Related: England win fifth Test to draw Ashes series but Australia keep urn Continue reading...
A scrapbook of cricket memories would include the miracle of Headingley and much, much moreThere has been some suggestion, when analysing the individual performances at the Oval Test, that certain players are looking tired from their long summer of international cricket. It is easy to empathise with them – it’s been an epic one for all of us. Some of England’s players will be rested during the T20 series in New Zealand and it is tempting to follow their lead. When else are we supposed to take stock of all we’ve seen? Related: There have been 2,358 Tests since 1877 and this was the greatest of them all | Matthew Engel Continue reading...