McKenzie sticks with familiar squad
Speight in Aussie team for Rugby Championship
SYDNEY, July 23, (RTRS): Australia coach Ewen McKenzie included Henry Speight in his squad for the Rugby Championship on Wednesday even though the ACT Brumbies winger will be ineligible for selection for half of the campaign.
The in-form Fijian will miss back-toback tests against New Zealand and the clash with South Africa in Perth at the start of Australia’s campaign before he qualifies for the Wallabies on residential grounds on Sept. 11.
The tackle-busting winger was the only uncapped player included in the 32man squad, which featured few changes from that for the June test series against France which Australia swept 3-0.
“We’ve named a 32-man squad so not everybody will get on the park,” McKenzie said.
“He’s been in good form and he’s going to become eligible. He was involved in the squad in June informally and this just recognises where he is.
“There’s no reason why he can’t be Interim head appointed: The head of the South Korea Olympic Committee will step in to take over interim leadership of the 2018 PyeongChang Games following the surprise resignation of two senior officials.
Kim Jung-haeng will take charge until a full-time replacement is found for Kim Jin-sun, who abruptly resigned as president of the committee on Monday in the middle of a review by the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI).
An official at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism denied the BAI review was the reason behind Kim Jin-sun’s resignation, which followed the exit of the vice president and secretary general of the committee, Moon Dong-hoo, who quit earlier this month.
Kim Jung-haeng, 70, assumed power as the most senior of the six vice presidents remaining on the organising committee for the country’s first Winter Olympics, the Yonhap News Agency reported on Wednesday.
He will be briefed on how preparations are going on Thursday. (RTRS) North ‘accept proposal’: North Korea has urged Asian Games hosts South Korea to seize a “golden opportunity” to improve relations between the fractious neighbours and accept their proposal for a party of 700 athletes and officials to take part in the multi-sport event.
Talks between the two countries about participation in the September showpiece in Incheon ended last week with the North threatening to pull out of the Games.
They were unhappy that their larger-than-expected party of 350 athletes and a similar amount of cheerleaders was not agreed to by the South.
The North’s KCNA official news agency ran a statement from the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland on Wednesday pushing the South to accept the deal.
“No one should have impure intent to misuse pure sports activity for political purposes,” it said.
“The South Korean authorities should not lose this golden opportunity for improving North-South relations.” (RTRS) Smith set for comeback: Flanker Juan Smith is set for a dramatic return to the South African rugby team some 18 months after injury forced his premature retirement from the game.
Smith and his Toulon team mates Bakkies Botha and Bryan Habana are all to be called up by the Springboks for the Rugby Championship matches over the next three months against Argentina, Australia and New Zealand, their French club revealed on their website (www.rctoulon.com) on Wednesday.
The Springbok squad for the southern hemisphere championship is scheduled to be announced on Aug. 2 but Toulon said the trio would be released to play in the six-test competition.
For Smith, who turns 33 next week, it represents a remarkable recovery after he retired from the game in early 2013 after suffering a recurrence of an Achilles’ tendon injury that had plagued him over a two-year period before that. (RTRS) Boyd on leave for depression: Australian rugby league international Darius Boyd was Wednesday granted indefinite leave from the Newcastle Knights to seek treatment for depression, the club said.
The 27-year-old fullback, who was part of the Kangaroos team which thrashed New Zealand in the World Cup final in Manchester in December, has been admitted to a mental health clinic.
“We are ensuring Darius gets the best possible care and treatment at this time,” said Knights chief executive Matt Gidley.
“Depression is a serious illness in our society and we are pleased Darius has taken the first step in his recovery by acknowledging he needs help.” (AFP) involved in the preparations and learn a bit more about what we’re about.”
Speight, unmistakeable for his huge Afro, comes into the reckoning soon after incumbent winger Nick Cummins, equally noticeable for his curly blonde mop, effectively brought an end to his test career by electing to move abroad to play in Japan.
“There’s always players leaving and other players coming through,” added McKenzie.
“Obviously, a crowd favourite in Nick Cummins departing but a really interesting guy coming through in Henry Speight.”
Hooker Stephen Moore, who captained the side in the opening test against France only to suffer a knee injury, was not available for selection so flanker Michael Hooper will skipper the side in the southern hemisphere championship, which also includes Argentina.
Queensland halfbacks Will Genia (ankle) and Quade Cooper (shoulder) are also unavailable so 37-cap scrumhalf Luke Burgess will get a chance to press his case for a test recall three years after he last played at the 2011 World Cup.
“I spoke to Will this morning,” McKenzie said. “He’s back running but he’s still way off being able to play. Quade’s obviously looking at further along in the series. We’ll keep tracking them.”
Kurtley Beale, who came off the bench in all three tests against the French, was named as one of two flyhalves alongside his New South Wales Waratahs team mate Bernard Foley.
The Waratahs play the ACT Brumbies in a Super Rugby semi-final this weekend and McKenzie said the form of the Australian teams in the competition was one of several good signs for his mission to bridge the gap with New Zealand.
“Each time we played them last year we got closer on the scoreboard but we didn’t beat them,” he said.
“That’s the reality of it. It gets down to the 80 minutes. The raw ingredients are there but we’ve got to do something with them.”
Australia play their first match against the world champions in Sydney on Aug. 16 with the return match in Auckland the following week. Squad: Forwards - Wycliff Palu, Ben McCalman, Scott Higginbotham, Michael Hooper (captain), Matt Hodgson, Scott Fardy, James Horwill, Rob Simmons, Will Skelton, Sam Carter, Ben Alexander, Pek Cowan, Sekope Kepu, James Slipper, Scott Sio, James Hanson, Tatafu Polota-Nau, Nathan Charles.
Backs - Israel Folau, Rob Horne, Henry Speight, Joe Tomane, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Pat McCabe, Tevita Kuridrani, Christian Leali’ifano, Matt Toomua, Kurtley Beale, Bernard Foley, Luke Burgess, Nic White, Nick Phipps.