Croc alert for Ronaldo’s Real Madrid in final
Yokohama: Japan’s Kashima Antlers plan to unleash a secret weapon to strike terror into Spanish giants Real Madrid when they meet in tomorrow’s Club World Cup final: a deadly crocodile. Though relative minnows on the world stage, a voracious predator lurks in the Kashima side in the form of defender Naomichi Ueda, who has fired a warning ahead of tomorrow’s Yokohama clash.
“I’m a crocodile,” he said. “Just as a crocodile will complete its conquest by dragging its prey into the water, I just want to bring them down whether it’s in the air or on the ground, one on one.”
Killer reptiles notwithstanding, Kashima face overwhelming odds against a Real side on a club record win streak of 36 matches.
They finished a distant third in the J-League season before capturing the championship playoff less than two weeks ago. But Kashima became the first Japanese side to reach the Club World Cup final after stunning Colombia’s Atletico Nacional 3-0 in midweek.
“If I don’t score again in the final, I’ll quickly be forgotten,” said striker Yuma Suzuki, who celebrated scoring Kashima’s third goal in Osaka by copying Ronaldo’s trademark macho man goal pose. Real coach Zinedine Zidane insisted the European champions and Spanish league leaders would not underestimate the pugnacious Antlers as his side chases a second world title in three years. “It’s basically a home game for them so the conditions favour them,” said the Frenchman after his side’s comfortable 2-0 semi-final win over Club America. AFP the most valuable rugby player in the world. Now 25, he’s gone from being the best off the bench, to filling Dan Carter’s vacant shoes with more innovation and flair than anyone else around him. But achieving success and becoming World Rugby’s Player of the Year in 2016 came at a cost. For Beauden, that was missing his brothers grow up. So when Scott and Jordie were named on the All Blacks squad to tour Europe at the end of this year, it was an emotional reuniting for Beauden. “It was just amazing,” he told Newstalk ZB’s Tony Veitch. “I hadn’t spent that much time with those two since I was a kid growing up with them back in primary school.
“It was really special, and a good opportunity for me to get to know them.” While Beauden has made a home with the Hurricanes, and brought them their first Super Rugby title in 2016, his brothers ply their trade down in Canterbury - though Jordie will be joining his brother in Wellington next season. The distance, and indeed the demands of a professional sporting career, makes keeping track a little more difficult, so seeing his brothers in the same dressing room made for something pretty extraordinary. “Obviously they’re down in Christchurch doing their thing, going through a lot of changes, they’re growing up,” Beauden said. “So it was pretty cool.” But more than anything, Beauden was just happy to know his brothers were doing well and making something of their talents. “To see Scott kick on in the way he did, I was really proud of him for that,” he said. “Also Jordie, the leaps and bounds he’s made this year, I’m pretty excited
for next year.” The thought of two Barrett brothers in one team is scary enough, but come next year’s Lions tour, they could make up a fifth of the All Blacks starting 15. - NZ Herald