Well, round 2 of Super Rugby Aotearoa began as the Blues (Who had Dalton Papali'i yellow carded after having another go at the ball in a ruck) go 2 from 2 as they beat the Chiefs by 12 points in Hamilton then the Hurricanes had a disappointing game as they couldn't tame New Zealand's best which is the Crusaders (Who had won 5 in a row against the Hurricanes) in Wellington.
And here is the list of round 3 matches being played in Super Rugby Aotearoa:
Blues Vs Highlanders (Their most recent meeting was last year in which the Highlanders won at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin against the Blues in round 10 but the last time the Blues beat the Highlanders was in round 6 at Eden Park last year)
& Crusaders Vs Chiefs (The last time both of these sides met was last year in which the Chiefs took top honors against the Crusaders in Fiji but it's been a year since the Crusaders had last beaten the Chiefs & it was in round 4 at AMI Stadium (Now Orangetheory Stadium) in Christchurch before the tragic events that had taken place on the 15th of March last year forcing the Crusaders to undergo a change of the new logo to replace the old logo that they used from 2001 until last year)
So that is my 350th blog of the year 2020 (MMXX) & my 10th of this year.
P.S. And the New Zealand Warriors NRL team have sacked their coach Stephen Kearney after their match against the Rabbitohs of South Sydney but Kearney is going to get 2 million dollars after being fired but the Warriors are currently seeking a new coach to replace Kearney.
Thursday, 25 June 2020
Friday, 19 June 2020
My 1st blog in 3 months (Super Rugby Aotearoa round 1 review + rugby news that I've missed) post COVID here in New Zealand
Well, oh hey guys did you miss me? Because it is my 1st blog in 3 months (Well, it is sort of my comeback blog after taking a indefinite break but I'm back anyway) & I haven't been doing that much during the lock down which came to an end this month (It started in March as the New Zealand Prime Minister addressed the nation telling 4 & a half million Kiwis to stay at home) so we are back to normal (And remember that social distancing is lifted but you don't have to wear masks at all) on alert level 1 (We were the 1st country in the world to survive the pandemic) except borders remain closed to prevent would be sick people from coming in (The international travel restrictions have been tightened but how long will this last? Probably 2 years I think) so both law enforcement & military personnel are doing their best to track down escape artists who are under self quarantine according to the government.
And the rugby news which I have been missed such as the Blues have signed twice World Cup winning All Black Dan Carter (Who decided to come home from the Kobelco Steelers in Japan's Top League competition (He was slated to return to Racing 92 but due to COVID-19, it wouldn't happen) & joins the likes of Beauden Barrett for the Blues) for the new professional domestic competition being staged here in New Zealand, Super Rugby Aotearoa (There are new laws being implemented at the ruck area to create quicker attacking ball & a fairer contest as well as the introduction of golden point similar to the NRL (If there is a draw after 80 minutes, the result will be decided on golden point but 1st team to score such as a drop goal, penalty kick or try, wins the game) & players who got sent off may be replaced with another player after 20 minutes but the red carded player may not return to the field) + the Highlanders have bolstered All Black 7s player who went to the old Aramoho School (I mean Pops was the principal at the time that both Koroi & his Highlanders teammate Jona Nareki went there) here in Whanganui & Fielding High for his rugby academy scholarship, Vilimoni Koroi & a Rugby World Cup winning All Black from 2015, Nehe Milner-Skudder as well as the return of twice Rugby World Cup winning All Black second rower Sam Whitelock to the Crusaders after spending a season in the Top League with the Robbie Deans coached Panasonic Wild Knights in Japan & some big rugby news with Sam Cane being appointed the new All Blacks skipper under new coach Ian Foster (I probably thought Dane Coles was going to be the new captain of the AB's but it wasn't to be) & some non rugby or sporting related news such as New Zealand movie director Taika Waititi (Who is the famous director of films such as Boy, Eagle Vs Shark, Hunt For The Wilderpeople, Jojo Rabbit, Thor: Ragnarok & What We Do In The Shadows) officially signed on as the new director of the next Star Wars movie (Well, that was a bit of a shock) but let's hope that the new Star Wars trilogy focuses on the technologically advanced Jedi & protagonist of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, Rey (Who is now Rey Skywalker after originally being a Palpatine at the end of Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker movie), as she focuses on rebuilding the Jedi order after The Resistance won convincingly in the First Order - Resistance war that took place during the Star Wars sequel trilogy.
And the inaugural Super Rugby Aotearoa competition is offically underway as the Highlanders got off to a winning start against the Chiefs after Highlanders player Bryn Gatland (Formerly from the Blues), kicked the match winning drop goal leaving his father (And ex Ireland & Wales coach), Warren Gatland who coaches the Chiefs, is so disappointed, ironically (And both Koroi & Nareki got yellow carded during the match (Koroi was sent to the bin for a tip tackle on reserve Chiefs second rower Naitoa Ah Kuoi as well as Nareki getting sent off the field for 10 minutes for a dangerous contact in the air on a Chiefs player).
And finally the Blues have won it by 10 points on Beauden Barrett's debut for the new franchise as they beat his old team the Hurricanes that he used to play until last year in front of a packed Eden Park (The biggest crowd at a Blues match since the 2003 Super 12 final).
And here is the list of round 2 matches being played in Super Rugby Aotearoa:
Chiefs Vs Blues (Their most recent meeting was earlier this year in which the Chiefs won at Eden Park in Auckland against the Blues in round 1 but the last time the Blues beat the Chiefs was in round 14 at that same ground last year)
& Hurricanes Vs Crusaders (The last time both of these sides met was last year in which the Crusaders were through to the final under controversial circumstances when Crusaders lock Sam Whitelock caused Hurricanes halfback TJ Perenara to knock the ball on in order to award the Crusaders a scrum before the end of that semifinal encounter but it's been 2 years since the Hurricanes had last beaten the Crusaders & it was in round 4 at Westpac Stadium (Now Sky Stadium) in Wellington)
So that is my 349th blog of the year 2020 (MMXX) & my 9th of this year.
P.S. And it looks like that rugby is changed because of England (Who lost to the new world champions the Springboks in the final in Yokohama, Japan, therefore missing out on the golden opportunity to end a 16 year drought (They last did it in 2003 where Jonny Wilkinson had got the match winning clutch drop goal with his weaker right foot against the Wallabies of Australia in the final at Stadium Australia (Venue for much of both the 2000 summer Olympic Games in Sydney as well as the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia) in Sydney, Australia (Just like Geoff Hurst's heroics when he scored a hat trick of goals in the final against West Germany in 1966 on home soil at Wembley Stadium (The home of English soccer (Home venue of the English soccer team & the annual FA Cup final) in London to win their only soccer world cup title for the three lions of England & South African born Jason Roy's sensational but incredible throw to his team mate & wicket-keeper Jos Buttler to run Martin Guptill out (After West Indian born pace bowler Jofra Archer had bowled a magnificent yorker to Jimmy Neesham in order to prevent Neesham from hitting the winning runs) in the very last ball of the super over of last year's cricket world cup final in which England prevailed on their home turf at Lord's (The home of English cricket) in London against the Black Caps of New Zealand to become the new world champions in cricket (And it was Christchurch born Ben Stokes with his heroics with the bat when he scored an unbeaten 84 off 98 balls as he was named player of the game honors when England were on the verge of victory because they needed 15 runs required off the last over but the final ended in a tie before the super over began but I wonder the headlines would say: ENGLAND WIN 1ST CWC TITLE IN DRAMATIC SUPER OVER) after English prop Kyle Sinckler was badly hurt after 2 or 3 minutes when his teammate Maro Itoje's elbow struck Sinckler's head so he left the field concussed allowing South Africa to pounce & take back the Rugby World Cup what is theirs (And it was the moment that Zwide born Springbok skipper Siya Kolisi ultimately became a rugby god (And I mean what a player, honestly) when he lifted the William Webb Ellis trophy aloft after South Africa won their 3rd Rugby World Cup title (They 1st did it in 1995 (Francois Pienaar was their skipper) on their home turf in South Africa then in 2007 (Captained by John Smit) in France but I also wonder the headlines would say: THE WEBB ELLIS CUP, RETURNS TO SOUTH AFRICA) along with the All Blacks (We 1st won it in 1987 (David Kirk was our skipper) because we were co hosting the Rugby World Cup along with Australia then in 2011 (Captained by Richie McCaw) on our home patch in New Zealand & in 2015 (McCaw was our skipper yet again & our most recent Rugby World Cup triumph for the AB's) in England with some matches being played in Wales (That's the only time that we won the Rugby World Cup on foreign soil) tearing the All Blacks apart (That was heartbreaking) & crushing our dream to win 3 consecutive Rugby World Cups in the semifinal of last year's Rugby World Cup in Yokohama, Japan (And what was the number 1 problem which caused us of losing the semifinal? It was discipline because we conceded too many penalties especially AB's second rower Sam Whitelock who almost got yellow carded by Welsh referee Nigel Owens for repeated infringements as well as the All Blacks are missing Damian 'Big Jim/D-Mac/Damo' McKenzie through injury in a Super Rugby match which wrecked his chances of playing on the world stage (Well, he could've played in the semifinal should he had not been injured).
And Carole was about 38 (She was due to turn 39) when I was born in 1991, 26 years before I 1st met her (And that's according to a fun fact that I noticed) but I saw both Carole's brother Zaki & his Muslim wife Aysha between 2 months ago to last month & I even watched the Star Wars original, prequel & sequel trilogies on Blu ray as well as The Lord Of The Rings trilogy also on Blu ray on my PS4 since I'm a Lord Of The Rings, Star Wars & now The Matrix geek/nerd.
And the rugby news which I have been missed such as the Blues have signed twice World Cup winning All Black Dan Carter (Who decided to come home from the Kobelco Steelers in Japan's Top League competition (He was slated to return to Racing 92 but due to COVID-19, it wouldn't happen) & joins the likes of Beauden Barrett for the Blues) for the new professional domestic competition being staged here in New Zealand, Super Rugby Aotearoa (There are new laws being implemented at the ruck area to create quicker attacking ball & a fairer contest as well as the introduction of golden point similar to the NRL (If there is a draw after 80 minutes, the result will be decided on golden point but 1st team to score such as a drop goal, penalty kick or try, wins the game) & players who got sent off may be replaced with another player after 20 minutes but the red carded player may not return to the field) + the Highlanders have bolstered All Black 7s player who went to the old Aramoho School (I mean Pops was the principal at the time that both Koroi & his Highlanders teammate Jona Nareki went there) here in Whanganui & Fielding High for his rugby academy scholarship, Vilimoni Koroi & a Rugby World Cup winning All Black from 2015, Nehe Milner-Skudder as well as the return of twice Rugby World Cup winning All Black second rower Sam Whitelock to the Crusaders after spending a season in the Top League with the Robbie Deans coached Panasonic Wild Knights in Japan & some big rugby news with Sam Cane being appointed the new All Blacks skipper under new coach Ian Foster (I probably thought Dane Coles was going to be the new captain of the AB's but it wasn't to be) & some non rugby or sporting related news such as New Zealand movie director Taika Waititi (Who is the famous director of films such as Boy, Eagle Vs Shark, Hunt For The Wilderpeople, Jojo Rabbit, Thor: Ragnarok & What We Do In The Shadows) officially signed on as the new director of the next Star Wars movie (Well, that was a bit of a shock) but let's hope that the new Star Wars trilogy focuses on the technologically advanced Jedi & protagonist of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, Rey (Who is now Rey Skywalker after originally being a Palpatine at the end of Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker movie), as she focuses on rebuilding the Jedi order after The Resistance won convincingly in the First Order - Resistance war that took place during the Star Wars sequel trilogy.
And the inaugural Super Rugby Aotearoa competition is offically underway as the Highlanders got off to a winning start against the Chiefs after Highlanders player Bryn Gatland (Formerly from the Blues), kicked the match winning drop goal leaving his father (And ex Ireland & Wales coach), Warren Gatland who coaches the Chiefs, is so disappointed, ironically (And both Koroi & Nareki got yellow carded during the match (Koroi was sent to the bin for a tip tackle on reserve Chiefs second rower Naitoa Ah Kuoi as well as Nareki getting sent off the field for 10 minutes for a dangerous contact in the air on a Chiefs player).
And finally the Blues have won it by 10 points on Beauden Barrett's debut for the new franchise as they beat his old team the Hurricanes that he used to play until last year in front of a packed Eden Park (The biggest crowd at a Blues match since the 2003 Super 12 final).
And here is the list of round 2 matches being played in Super Rugby Aotearoa:
Chiefs Vs Blues (Their most recent meeting was earlier this year in which the Chiefs won at Eden Park in Auckland against the Blues in round 1 but the last time the Blues beat the Chiefs was in round 14 at that same ground last year)
& Hurricanes Vs Crusaders (The last time both of these sides met was last year in which the Crusaders were through to the final under controversial circumstances when Crusaders lock Sam Whitelock caused Hurricanes halfback TJ Perenara to knock the ball on in order to award the Crusaders a scrum before the end of that semifinal encounter but it's been 2 years since the Hurricanes had last beaten the Crusaders & it was in round 4 at Westpac Stadium (Now Sky Stadium) in Wellington)
So that is my 349th blog of the year 2020 (MMXX) & my 9th of this year.
P.S. And it looks like that rugby is changed because of England (Who lost to the new world champions the Springboks in the final in Yokohama, Japan, therefore missing out on the golden opportunity to end a 16 year drought (They last did it in 2003 where Jonny Wilkinson had got the match winning clutch drop goal with his weaker right foot against the Wallabies of Australia in the final at Stadium Australia (Venue for much of both the 2000 summer Olympic Games in Sydney as well as the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia) in Sydney, Australia (Just like Geoff Hurst's heroics when he scored a hat trick of goals in the final against West Germany in 1966 on home soil at Wembley Stadium (The home of English soccer (Home venue of the English soccer team & the annual FA Cup final) in London to win their only soccer world cup title for the three lions of England & South African born Jason Roy's sensational but incredible throw to his team mate & wicket-keeper Jos Buttler to run Martin Guptill out (After West Indian born pace bowler Jofra Archer had bowled a magnificent yorker to Jimmy Neesham in order to prevent Neesham from hitting the winning runs) in the very last ball of the super over of last year's cricket world cup final in which England prevailed on their home turf at Lord's (The home of English cricket) in London against the Black Caps of New Zealand to become the new world champions in cricket (And it was Christchurch born Ben Stokes with his heroics with the bat when he scored an unbeaten 84 off 98 balls as he was named player of the game honors when England were on the verge of victory because they needed 15 runs required off the last over but the final ended in a tie before the super over began but I wonder the headlines would say: ENGLAND WIN 1ST CWC TITLE IN DRAMATIC SUPER OVER) after English prop Kyle Sinckler was badly hurt after 2 or 3 minutes when his teammate Maro Itoje's elbow struck Sinckler's head so he left the field concussed allowing South Africa to pounce & take back the Rugby World Cup what is theirs (And it was the moment that Zwide born Springbok skipper Siya Kolisi ultimately became a rugby god (And I mean what a player, honestly) when he lifted the William Webb Ellis trophy aloft after South Africa won their 3rd Rugby World Cup title (They 1st did it in 1995 (Francois Pienaar was their skipper) on their home turf in South Africa then in 2007 (Captained by John Smit) in France but I also wonder the headlines would say: THE WEBB ELLIS CUP, RETURNS TO SOUTH AFRICA) along with the All Blacks (We 1st won it in 1987 (David Kirk was our skipper) because we were co hosting the Rugby World Cup along with Australia then in 2011 (Captained by Richie McCaw) on our home patch in New Zealand & in 2015 (McCaw was our skipper yet again & our most recent Rugby World Cup triumph for the AB's) in England with some matches being played in Wales (That's the only time that we won the Rugby World Cup on foreign soil) tearing the All Blacks apart (That was heartbreaking) & crushing our dream to win 3 consecutive Rugby World Cups in the semifinal of last year's Rugby World Cup in Yokohama, Japan (And what was the number 1 problem which caused us of losing the semifinal? It was discipline because we conceded too many penalties especially AB's second rower Sam Whitelock who almost got yellow carded by Welsh referee Nigel Owens for repeated infringements as well as the All Blacks are missing Damian 'Big Jim/D-Mac/Damo' McKenzie through injury in a Super Rugby match which wrecked his chances of playing on the world stage (Well, he could've played in the semifinal should he had not been injured).
And Carole was about 38 (She was due to turn 39) when I was born in 1991, 26 years before I 1st met her (And that's according to a fun fact that I noticed) but I saw both Carole's brother Zaki & his Muslim wife Aysha between 2 months ago to last month & I even watched the Star Wars original, prequel & sequel trilogies on Blu ray as well as The Lord Of The Rings trilogy also on Blu ray on my PS4 since I'm a Lord Of The Rings, Star Wars & now The Matrix geek/nerd.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)