Tag: Fiji

Wales wins, 23-13; England gets no help from Fiji

Wales will pick up four points in the standings from their win over Fiji today. But neither the Welsh team nor the Fijians could make good at the end of the game on efforts to get the extra bonus points: Wales could not put in a fourth try and Fiji could not pull within seven points in the loss. Each would have been worth a bonus point in the standings.

So Wales gathers 13 points in the standings with one game to go. A win by England Saturday against Australia would get them to within two points in the standings, a bonus point for four tries would put them within one. A win by Australia would tie them at 13 with Wales; a bonus point for four tries would give them the lead in Pool A.

Wales has one more game after Saturday, against Australia on Oct. 10. If England loses to Australia on Saturday, the Wales-Australia match will decide who goes out as the winner to face the runner up in Pool B and who will face the Pool B winner.

Wales leads 17-6 at halftime

Wales could not score on this rolling maul, but Scott Baldwin, the Welsh hooker, scored a minute later.
Wales could not score on this rolling maul, but Scott Baldwin, the Welsh hooker, scored a minute later.

Probably can’t say that Fiji is out of this game, but they need more possession in the second half to make up the 11-point deficit. They have had some exciting runs but haven’t been able to connect all the dots for a try.

Wales has put together some good back line moves to get close, found support from their forwards and put in two converted tries and a penalty.

This just in: Fiji has a great movement from their backs and scores a try. Ben Volavola converts it and the score is 17-13. looks like we have a game here.

Rugby World Cup 2015 is getting started

Members of the the Fiji 2015 World Cup Rugby Union squad sing outside Hampton Court Palace. (Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images for ER2015)
Members of the the Fiji 2015 World Cup Rugby Union squad sing outside Hampton Court Palace.
(Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images for ER2015)

The first of 20 ceremonies welcoming tournament teams was held today as Fiji answered a song by an Essex choir with their own musical number.

The Fijians meet host England on Friday, Sept. 18, at Twickenham stadium in the first game of the tournament.

Today the Pacific Island team members were at Hampton Court Palace for speeches, the reception of tournament hats and medals and music, sung to them and by them.

According to the England Rugby 2015 news release, a choir from Thurstable School at Tiptree, Essex, performed “World In Union” in front of rugby officials, the player’s families and the local community.

After the ceremony, some of the Fiji team decided to answer with their a rendition of a traditional Fijian hymn. The Fijians posed with tourists for photos and looked ahead to next Friday’s game.

“Plain and simple, we didn’t come here to lose,” Nemani Nadolo, Fiji’s 266-pound, 6-foot-5 winger, said. “We’ve worked really hard as a side . . . We can shock the world.”

Fiji is in what is considered the toughest of the four pools. Besides the match against England, they will play Australia, Wales and Uruguay.

The welcome ceremony for the United States Eagles is scheduled for Sunday in Portsmouth.