Friday, 16 October 2015

Pro 12 Friday 16th October

Connacht 34-15 Zebre 

Connacht ran in five tries as they claimed a second consecutive bonus point win in the Pro12 by beating bottom club Zebre 34-15 in Galway.

The hosts built up a 19-point half-time lead with the help of tries from Matt Healy, Kieran Marmion, Eoin McKeon and Craig Ronaldson.

Dion Berryman's 35th-minute touchdown was Zebre's lone response.

Prop Denis Buckley crossed for his side's fifth try and flanker Johan Meyer grabbed a late consolation score.

Impressive fly-half Ronaldson, who started in place of an ill Jack Carty, slotted an early penalty before Connacht notched their opening try against the run of play.

Ronaldson launched a kick chase out of his 22, Berryman failed to deal with the bouncing ball and the onrushing Healy hacked on and picked up to score.

Ronaldson's conversion was cancelled out by an Edoardo Padovani penalty and Connacht absorbed some more Zebre pressure before striking again at the midpoint of the half.

Following a fine aerial take by Danie Poolman, Bundee Aki put boot to ball and Healy did brilliantly to control it and flick it back for Marmion to finish off by the posts.

Australian international scrum half Luke Burgess' brilliant reverse pass over his shoulder released winger Berryman for his converted try.

But Zebre were rocked back onto their heels by prop Andrea Lovotti's sin-binning for obstruction and Ronaldson's well-taken seven-pointer which saw him step inside two defenders.

Buckley plunged over from a maul wide out on the right for try number five, but the remaining half hour was particularly listless with Zebre dictating play and Aki and John Cooney making try-saving interventions.

Pat Lam will have been disappointed with the way his side ceded territory and played second fiddle to the Italians.

The one positive was the collective performance of their young replacement front row - Shane Delahunt, Conan O'Donnell and Finlay Bealham.


However, with 78 minutes on the clock, Aki saw yellow following a series of infringements in Connacht territory, and the hard-working Meyer immediately mopped up with an unconverted try.



Glasgow 29-15 Newport Gwent Dragons 

Defending Pro12 champions Glasgow bagged a late bonus-point victory over the Dragons despite a host of absentees and two yellow cards.

Simone Favaro got the crucial try with the last move of the game, following earlier touchdowns by Chris Fusaro, Zander Fagerson and Junior Bulumakau.

Rynard Landman and Ashton Hewitt got a try in either half for the Dragons.

Glasgow showed far superior strength in depth as they took control of a messy match in the second period.

Gregor Townsend gave a debut to powerhouse Fijian-born Wallaby wing Taqele Naiyaravoro while centre Alex Dunbar returned from long-term injury, and the Dragons gave first starts of the season to wing Aled Brew and hooker Elliot Dee.

Glasgow lost hooker Pat McArthur to an early shoulder injury but took advantage of their first pressure when Rory Clegg slotted over a penalty on 12 minutes.


It took 24 minutes for a disjointed game to produce a try as Sarel Pretorius sniped from close range and Landman forced his way over for Jason Tovey to convert- although it was the lock's last contribution as he departed with a chest injury shortly afterwards.

Glasgow struck back when Fusaro drove over from a rolling maul on 35 minutes for Clegg to convert.

But the Dragons levelled 10-10 at halftime when Naiyaravoro was yellow-carded for an aerial tackle on Brew, and Tovey slotted the easy goal.

The visitors could not make the most of their one-man advantage after the break as their error count cost them dearly.

It was Glasgow's bench experience that showed when Mike Blair's break led to a short-range score from teenage prop Fagerson, converted by Clegg.

Debutant Favaro was the second home player to be sin-binned, on 63 minutes, but again the Warriors made light of it as replacement wing Bulumakau, a recruit from the Army, pounced to deftly hack through a bouncing ball for an opportunist try.

The Dragons got back within striking range with some excellent combined handling putting Hewitt over unopposed after 72 minutes.


But Favaro became the sinner turned saint as he got on the end of another effective rolling maul to earn his side the extra point with the last move of the game, Clegg converting.


Scarlets 25-14 Leinster 

Winger DTH van der Merwe scored twice on his Scarlets debut as the early Pro 12 leaders maintained their 100% start.

The Canadian intercepted a loose pass to score from 80 meters after James Davies' try had given the home side an early lead at Parc y Scarlets.

Van der Merwe's second from close range shortly after the hour put the result beyond doubt, opening up a 25-0 lead.

But a bonus point proved beyond them, and the visitors hit back with tries from Isa Nacewa and James Tracy.

The late scores left a bitter taste in the mouth for the home side as they looked well set to go on to score a fourth try in the final 20 minutes.

But there was plenty to savour in the preceding 60 minutes that laid the foundations for the foutth consecutive win, with Regan King pulling the creative strings and van der Merwe again proving he needs no second invitation to score a try.

Steven Shingler's penalty opened the scoring and the home side's sparkling start was rewarded with the first try of the match inside the first 10 minutes.

A series of surges from the halfway line put Leinster on the back foot, and a sweeping move from right to left created a three on one overlap that flanker James Davies converted in the corner. Shingler missed the conversion attempt.


Leinster slowly began to excerpt some pressure and the home side needed a superb try-saving tackle from Hadleigh Parkes in the right corner to push Nacewa into touch.

The visitors maintained territorial advantage and a try looked on the cards as the Scarlets defence looked stretched.

But a long pass from Garry Ringrose lacked power, and Van der Merwe pounced to intercept.

The Canadian winger, fresh from scoring four tries at the World Cup, had the pace to score from 80 meters to mark his Scarlets debut in style. Shingler's conversion gave the home side a 15-0 half-time advantage.

Leinster lost centre Noel Reid to the sin bin three minutes into the second half and Scarlets capitalised on their numerical advantage just before the centre's return to score their third try.

Patient probes near the Leinster tryline finally paid dividends as King, an outstanding creative force throughout, timed his pass perfectly for the on-rushing Van der Merwe to cross unopposed.

Shingler converted and then added a second penalty as the home side threatened to run away.

Leinster refused to lie down, though, and Ringrose atoned slightly for his earlier error by drawing the last man before finding Nacewa on his shoulder that gave the full-back a clear run towards the post.

McFadden converted, but the experienced winger was then guilty of a horrendous error by squandering a certain try when he dropped a straightforward pass five yards from the tryline.


The visitors continued to probe, and replacement hooker Tracy crossed from a driving lineout two minutes from time to give the score a respectability that had looked beyond them.


Edinburgh 16-10 Ulster 

Edinburgh maintained their winning start to the season, grinding out an unglamorous victory over Ulster at Murrayfield.


In a game otherwise lacking in accuracy and verve, the outstanding openside flanker Hamish Watson scored a fine second half try for the hosts.
Sean Reidy's close-range effort had nudged Ulster ahead after the break.
But as Ulster pressed, Watson's crucial intervention on the last play secured Edinburgh their fourth straight win.
A drab first half saw home full-back Greig Tonks trade penalties with the visitors' stand-off, Peter Nelson, for a 6-3 lead at the interval, but a lack of precision and dynamism halted promising moves for both teams.
Watson, the game's stand-out player, proved a perennial menace at the breakdown from the off, displaying quick feet and a machinelike leg drive to make unlikely yards in contact.
In keeping with much of elite Irish rugby, however, the visitors were largely adept at soaking up Edinburgh's carries with their choke tackle technique yielding turnovers.
Scrum-half Paul Marshall played well to the greasy conditions, chasing Edinburgh back with an array of neat, probing kicks that turned the hosts' back three.
And when the lively Tom Brown was seized and turned-over yards from his own line, the Ulstermen brought their heavy artillery into action, ending with Reidy's burrowing over the line as Edinburgh's fringe defence was stretched to breaking point.
Minutes later, however, Watson combined brilliantly with back-row colleague Nasi Manu to collect an inside ball from the galloping number eight down the left touchline and finish beyond the cover.
Tonks banged over his third penalty from distance, and Edinburgh dealt manfully with Ulster's assaults on the home rearguard.
Fittingly, it was Watson who had the final say when, with the clock red and an Ulster maul rumbling towards the whitewash, the feisty openside brilliantly infiltrated the away pack, sealing off the ball, and ending the match.
This was far from a vintage Edinburgh performance, but perhaps one in the uncompromising image of head coach Alan Solomons, and against one of the league's heavyweights, a victory not to be sniffed at.

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