New Zealand v France: latest updates from second Test in Wellington
France are still searching for their first win in New Zealand since 2009 and have never beaten New Zealand in Wellington. The city does not hold good memories for France, who lost 19-14 to Tonga at the Rugby World Cup in 2011. When these sides met in Wellington back in June 2018, New Zealand won 26-13 courtesy of tries from Joe Moody, Ben Smith and a double from Jordie Barrett. France's cause that day was not helped by an 11 th -minute red card for full-back Benjamin Fall. That game represented the first time all three Barrett brothers started a game for New Zealand, which was a first for the nation. Since that match though, New Zealand have won just once in the nation's capital in their last six matches there. Kick-off from Wellington is at 8.05am BST.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
25 minutes ago
- The Independent
Lucy Bronze helped Lionesses win Euro 2025 with painful injury
England defender Lucy Bronze revealed she played through the entire Euro 2025 tournament with a fractured tibia. Bronze, 33, started all six games, including England's dramatic penalty shoot-out victory over Spain in the final, securing her second European title. She was forced off with a knee injury during extra time of the final and required assistance during celebrations, highlighting the severity of her injuries. Bronze's grit and determination were widely praised by teammates and manager Sarina Wiegman, who described her as 'one of a kind'.
Reuters
36 minutes ago
- Reuters
Peerless Pogacar claims fourth Tour title, Van Aert wins brutal final stage
PARIS, July 27 (Reuters) - Tadej Pogacar claimed his fourth Tour de France title on Sunday, cementing his status as the most dominant rider of his generation and moving alongside Britain's Chris Froome on the all-time winners' list. The 26-year-old Slovenian, who triumphed in 2020, 2021 and 2024, delivered a near-flawless performance, even coming close to prevailing on a spectacular final stage on the Champs Elysees after an epic duel with Belgian Wout van Aert. "Just speechless to win a fourth Tour de France. Six years in a row on the podium and this one feels especially amazing, and I'm super proud that I can wear this yellow jersey," Pogacar, who was second in 2022 and 2023, said. Pogacar attacked relentlessly in the ascents of the Butte Montmartre but eventually suffered a brutal counterpunch from Van Aert, who went solo to win the last stage. The competitive element was largely neutralised on Sunday after organisers decided to freeze the times with about 50 kilometres left due to hazardous road conditions in driving rain. It did not prevent Pogacar from going for it, however, but Van Aert proved to be the best on the day, beating Italian Davide Ballerini and third-placed Matej Mohoric with Pogacar taking fourth place. The world champion effectively sealed his victory in the Pyrenees, with a brutal attack on the climb to Hautacam and a commanding victory in the uphill individual time trial, leaving chief rival Jonas Vingegaard more than four minutes behind. Twice champion Vingegaard of Denmark ended up 4:24 off the pace in Paris. German Florian Lipowitz finished third, 11:00 behind Pogacar, on his Tour debut and won the white jersey for the best Under-25 rider. "This was one of the hardest Tours I've ever been in," Pogacar said. The celebrations turned tense on Sunday when the final stage featured three climbs up Montmartre. Times had been neutralised some 50km from the finish due to slippery roads, but a fierce fight for the stage win still unfolded. Pogacar equalled Froome (2013, 2015–17) and now only trails cycling greats Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, Jacques Anquetil and Miguel Indurain, who share the record with five titles. Pogacar also secured the polka-dot jersey for the mountains classification, underlining his all-round dominance, while Italy's Jonathan Milan clinched the green jersey for the points competition. For Ineos Grenadiers, the once all-conquering team that ruled the 2010s with victories by Bradley Wiggins, Froome and Geraint Thomas, there was little to celebrate beyond two stage wins by Thymen Arensman. Thomas, a former champion, rode his last Tour in virtual anonymity, as the British team continues to face questions amid doping allegations reported in recent weeks. As tradition dictates, riders entered Paris in celebratory mood, but the finale proved anything but routine with the Montmartre climbs spicing up the closing laps.
The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
‘Enjoy this moment': Pogacar fights off fatigue to savour Tour de France glory
Tadej Pogacar admitted that his own creeping fatigue was perhaps his biggest threat during the Tour de France this year, particularly after he had built a four-minute lead on Jonas Vingegaard following the race's three stages in the Pyrenees. Speaking in a brief press conference after his fourth Tour win, Pogacar said: 'We were in the lead and we had quite a big gap, so we were comfortably in yellow, but yeah, I was tired in the last week. 'For now, I don't want to speak about what went wrong,' he added, 'but for now I want to enjoy this moment with the yellow jersey in Paris.' Although his rivalry with Vingegaard was less intense during this year's Tour than it has been in the past, Pogacar admitted that the pair now have renewed respect for each other. 'Jonas opened up a bit more this year,' he said. 'He comes [over] and we talk about stuff, general stuff. I quite like the guy and I like to race against him. 'Today we were speaking at the start line about how incredible it was, the last five years, battling each other and pushing each other to the next level. We spoke about how we can be privileged to have this competition between each other and how it makes us grow even more.' Vingegaard admitted that his own performance had not been as consistent as he had hoped. 'I can agree that on some stages I have had the highest level that I have ever had,' he said, 'and in other stages I have had the lowest level for many years for me. 'It was a bit more that I had a few bad days. I am better than I ever have been, but it's shown me that I can still have a few bad days.' If he had suffered from ennui, Pogacar managed to hide it for most of the race and certainly in the final stage in Paris, even if his visible weariness during the Alpine stages had drawn criticism from some parts of the French media. 'Burnouts happen in a lot of sports, mental burnout, physical burnout,' he said. 'I think cyclists are a bit too obsessed with training. We always try the hardest and everybody wants to train more and more. 'You see riders with fatigue too early in the season, the team needs you to race, race, race and you keep going and you never really recover. Burnouts happen all the time and it can happen to me as well.' While the four-time champion is looking ahead to a rumoured Grand Depart in Slovenia in 2029, his rival is already turning his attention to trying to win this year's Vuelta a España, the final Grand Tour of the year and one that Pogacar seems unlikely to ride. 'I think first of all, I will do an easy week and from there, you can start training again,' Vingegaard said. 'It's more when you feel fresh and able to train again. There's not a lot of time, but I did it two years ago and it worked out pretty well.'
