2011 Rugby World Cup: Week 2 recap - Rugby News
During the second week of Rugby World Cup 2011, almost all sides had played their initial matches and were set to boost their campaigns after getting through the startign jitters. Those who had lost their early clashes were looking forward to clinch their
first victory in the tournament and the previous conquerors were aiming to increase their winning streak in the event.
In the sole contest of September 20, Italy crushed Russia by a huge margin of 53-17, played in Nelson. Italy managed to make a big impact in the match with the help of their threatening forward bunch. They scored five tries against the rusty Russians to
bag the first victory in the event. They were beaten by Australia in their opening match on September 11, by a stunning margin of 32-6.
Italy started off the game in a flying style as they took an early lead just in the fifth minute of the match. Italian skipper and number 8, Sergio Parisse, led his side from the front and scored the opening try for his team. Later on, Giulio Toniolatti
helped his side with couple of excellent tries with the short span of nine minutes in the first half. Tommaso Benvenuti also joined the party before interval and put the Italians in a comfortable position of 38-7.
On the other hand Russia ticked their score to a meagre total of seven before the break with a try and conversion goal. However, the second part of the battle was not fast as the first one. Both sides adopted a defensive approach and created less entertainment
for the spectators. In the end, Italy grabbed a comfortable victory of 53-17.
Japan and Tonga met on September 21, in Whangarei, in the same week. The sides were playing their second match and were looking to seal a first triumph. Japan, the only Asian side competing in the global show, lost the clash in a humiliating manner. Meanwhile,
Tonga played well to outscore the Japanese especially in the kicking department.
Kurt Morath, the Tongan fly-half, delivered a Man of the Match performance for his side as he scored 16 points. Lua Lokotui, who was yellow carded in the dying moments of the match scored a try along with Vili Ma’afu and Fetu’u Vainikolo.
Japan also managed to steal a couple of tries in the match but in the end fell short of their rivals with a meagre total of 18-31.
The next clash of the world showpiece brought Springboks and Namibia face to face, which resulted in a one sided game. South Africa thumped Namibia by monstrous total of 87-0. As many as 12 tries were scored by the defending champs to secure the largest
margined victory of the tournament.
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