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Former All Black No 8 given red card in Japan for counter-ruck

By Kim Ekin
(Source/J Sports)

Former All Black and Highlanders loose forward Jackson Hemopo was issued a red card in the Japan Rugby League One clash after a counter-ruck attempt between Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars and the Shizuoka Blue Revs.

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The 29-year-old Dynaboar lowered the shoulder to put pressure on the Blue Revs ruck as former Crusaders halfback Bryn Hall prepared to launch a box kick.

The Blues Revs were in the process of forming the infamous caterpillar ruck when Hemopo attemped to disrupt it.

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But the former All Black’s shoulder hit a Blue Revs prop in the head who was crouched low to the ground and decided to duck into the contact.

Hemopo appealed to the referee that the prop was sealing off the ruck with his knees on the ground before attempting to remove him.

The incident just 27 minutes into the contest saw the Kiwi loose forward sent from the field for the dangerous play.

The Blues Revs were leading 7-3 at the time after Hall had scored the first try from a long break on a short side play down the blindside.

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The former Crusaders’ No 9 was then sin-binned himself early into the second half after committing a professional foul.

The Dynaboars placed a clever chip kick into the Blue Revs in-goal which Hall batted dead to prevent the opposition from scoring.

The act cost Shizuoka a penalty try and evened up the numbers momentarily as Mitsubishi took the lead.

Holding a 23-20 lead with less than 30 seconds to play, the Blue Revs got their own penalty try from a rolling maul that sealed the win.

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In other League One action, former All Black first five Aaron Cruden starred in a 32-7 win over NEC Green Rockets.

After kicking a penalty to opening the scoring for Suntory Sungoliath, Cruden went close to scoring himself but was held up over the line.

On a scrum play inside his own 22, the No 10 hit a perfect cross-field kick to his winger Seiya Ozaki who had some smooth moves to beat his man.

A second kick by Ozaki back in field found its way into the path of inside centre Ryodo Nakamura and Cruden backing up on the inside.

The former All Black allowed his midfielder to scoop the ball and score under the posts before he kicked the extras.

Tevita Li and Nakamura powered over for two more tries early in the second half after a yellow card to Welsh lock Jake Ball.

Cruden then grabbed his own try after the Green Rockets failed to diffuse a Sungoliath box kick. The loose ball bounced up for the No 10 to scoot away and score in the corner.

The Sungoliath scored one more from a rolling maul to record a resounding 32-7 win in torrential conditions.

Panasonic Wild Knights kept their undefeated season in tact with their 13th win of the season over Toyota Verblitz, while Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay stayed in second place with a 23-14 win over Kobelco Kobe Steelers.

Watch Jackson Hemopo’s red card against Shizuoka Blue Revs below.

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A
Adrian 51 minutes ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

7 Go to comments
T
Trevor 3 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
B
Bull Shark 7 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
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