
Springboks crush Georgia with nine tries in final test before Rugby Championship
South Africa gave its three starting front-rowers their test debuts and two of them, loosehead Boan Venter and hooker Marnus van der Merwe, scored the first two of the team's nine tries.
Captain Siya Kolisi overcame various niggles to finally play his first test of the year and had to have a head injury check in the second minute. But he returned and played the whole match.
Kolisi is certain to lead the Springboks in the Rugby Championship opener against Australia in four weeks at Ellis Park.
The Georgians are not lightweights and showed off their heft and expertise with a rolling maul try for hooker Vano Karkadze in the third minute. But they had only a couple more try chances and were overturned by South Africa.
The Springboks had the win in hand by halftime at 22-10.
Marnus van der Merwe scored two tries from lineout drives, and Venter from multiple pick-and-goes. The fourth try of the half saw scrumhalf Grant Williams, riding his pack's dominance, split the defense and four passes later center Canan Moodie crashed over beside the right corner flag.
As the Georgians flagged from the pummelling up front, the Springboks went wider in the second half and wing Edwill van der Merwe, no relation to Marnus, also scored two tries.
Replacement back Damian Willemse punched through from scrum ball and, in the last couple of minutes, a couple of RG Snyman half breaks and offloads led to tries by backs Kurt-Lee Arendse and Handre Pollard.
___
AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Winnipeg Free Press
12 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Mauricio and Soto lead Mets past Giants 5-3 for 7th straight win
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Ronny Mauricio and Juan Soto homered in the seventh inning, and the New York Mets beat the San Francisco Giants 5-3 on Sunday to match a season best with their seventh straight win. Mauricio had a career-high four hits, going 4 for 4 with two doubles and a tying homer from the bottom spot in the batting order. Jeff McNeil doubled twice to help the Mets complete a three-game sweep and extend their NL East lead to 1 1/2 games over Philadelphia. Matt Chapman homered twice and drove in all three runs for the Giants, who loaded the bases in the ninth on two walks and a hit batter. Edwin Díaz struck out Willy Adames and Chapman to end it. The Mets, who also had a seven-game winning streak in April, trailed 3-2 following Chapman's second homer, a two-run drive off starter Kodai Senga in the fifth. Mauricio tied it when the rookie drove a 1-0 slider from reliever Randy Rodriguez (3-2) into McCovey Cove leading off the seventh. After Brandon Nimmo and Francisco Lindor struck out, Soto hit his team-leading 25th home run to left, giving the Mets a 4-3 lead. They added an insurance run in the ninth on consecutive doubles by Mauricio and Nimmo. José Buttó (3-1), the second of four Mets relievers, retired three batters for the win. Gregory Soto pitched a perfect seventh in his New York debut, and Díaz worked the ninth for his 23rd save. Senga walked five in five innings. He allowed three runs and four hits. Key moment Mauricio shut down a potential Giants rally when he fielded Adames' slow grounder in front of third base and then quickly reversed direction to tag out Heliot Ramos trying to advance from second. Key stat Rodriguez had allowed only one home run all season before the Mets got to him twice in one inning. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. Up next Mets RHP Frankie Montas (3-1, 4.62 ERA) faces the Padres in San Diego on Monday. Carson Whisenhunt, the Giants' top pitching prospect, will make his major league debut Monday against Pittsburgh. ___ AP MLB:


Winnipeg Free Press
42 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
The Kansas City Royals and pitcher Seth Lugo agree to 2-year extension, AP source says
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Royals and right-hander Seth Lugo have agreed to a two-year extension that includes a vesting option for the 2028 season, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Sunday night. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal, which presumably takes one of the most talked-about names on the trade market off the table ahead of this week's deadline, had not been officially announced. The 35-year-old Lugo made his first All-Star Game and won his first Gold Glove last season, when he went 16-9 with a 3.00 ERA in the first year of a two-year, $30 million deal that included a player option for next season. Lugo has followed that up with an even better start to this season, going 7-5 with a 2.95 ERA through 19 outings for Kansas City. Rumors surfaced of several contenders interested in trading for Lugo ahead of Thursday's deadline, and the fact that the Royals have been hanging on the fringe of contention themselves left many wondering whether they would be buyers or sellers. It appears that they are going to make a push for a second consecutive playoff appearance. The Royals acquired outfielder Randal Grichuk from the Diamondbacks for reliever Andrew Hoffmann late Saturday, shoring up a weakness in the lineup by adding a right-handed bat. Now, they have indicated that Lugo remains big a part of their future with his extension — an especially timely one given it came the same day that All-Star pitcher Kris Bubic went on the injured list. Kansas City also is missing starters Cole Ragans and Michael Lorenzen due to injuries. Both are expected back at some point in August, and the Royals are hopeful that their return to the rotation will propel them down the stretch run. After beating the Guardians on Sunday, the Royals were four games back of the final American League wild-card spot. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. ___ AP MLB:


Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Tomoyuki Sugano throws 6 sharp innings, Tyler O'Neill homers again to help Orioles beat Rockies
BALTIMORE (AP) — Tomoyuki Sugano pitched six innings of four-hit ball, Tyler O'Neill homered in a third straight game and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Colorado Rockies 5-1 on Sunday. Dylan Carlson drove in two runs for the Orioles, who followed Saturday night's 18-0 blowout with a more conventional victory in the deciding matchup of a three-game series between last-place clubs. Sugano (8-5) gave up one run, walked two and matched his career high with eight strikeouts. The 35-year-old righty, who signed a one-year contract with Baltimore in December, could be headed to a contender before Friday's trade deadline. Although he was impressive on Sunday, Sugano has yielded 21 homers in 20 games and had a 7.88 ERA over his previous seven starts. RED SOX 4, DODGERS 3 BOSTON (AP) — Alex Bregman hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in the fifth inning and Boston hung on to beat Los Angeles for a series win. Rookie Roman Anthony added an RBI triple for the Red Sox, who captured their first series since the All-Star break. Boston had a 10-game winning streak entering the break. Boston closer Aroldis Chapman walked off the mound with an apparent injury in the eighth inning. In to face the top of the Dodgers' order, his velocity was noticeably down to the mid-90 mph on his fastball instead of the high 90s to low 100s. Michael Conforto hit a solo homer and had two doubles for the Dodgers. PIRATES 6, DIAMONDBACKS 0 PITTSBURGH (AP) — Paul Skenes struck out nine and gave up three hits in six innings, Oneil Cruz and Ke'Bryan Hayes drove in two runs each, and Pittsburgh shut out Arizona for the second straight game. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Skenes (6-8) is the first pitcher to have an ERA below 2 through his first 45 starts. The reigning NL Rookie of the Year sits at 1.89 for his career and 1.83 this year, which leads the majors. Skenes is the only starter this season who hasn't allowed a first-inning run. He struck out two in the first, including Geraldo Perdomo, who hadn't fanned in a league-best 39 straight at-bats. Gallen (7-12) allowed four runs on five hits in six innings. Arizona scored one run in the three-game series, winning 1-0 in 11 innings Friday night. YANKEES 4, PHILLIES 3 NEW YORK (AP) — Ryan McMahon sparked a comeback with a tying, two-run double in a four-run second inning against Zack Wheeler, and New York beat Philadelphia to salvage the finale of a three-game series. Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto made a spectacular leaping grab and tag of Cody Bellinger at the plate for an inning-ending double play that denied the Yankees a run in the third. Austin Wells hit a go-ahead sacrifice fly and Trent Grisham an RBI single against Wheeler (9-4), who tied his career high with three hit batters — including two in a row in the second. Rookie Otto Kemp had his first big league multi-homer game and Nick Castellanos also went deep as the Phillies hit three solo shots off Carlos Rodón (11-8), who allowed four hits in 5 1/3 innings. Jonathan Loáisiga, Luke Weaver, Tim Hill and Devin Williams combined for one-hit shutout relief, with Williams striking out two in a perfect ninth for his 16th save in 17 chances. Yankees relievers entered with a big league-worst 7.11 ERA since June 28. New York stopped a three-game slide ended a sloppy streak of five straight games with errors. REDS 2, RAYS 1 CINCINNATI (AP) — Brady Singer took a shutout into the eighth inning and Cincinnati beat Tampa Bay for its fourth straight victory. Singer (8-8) left after allowing Taylor Walls' one-out homer in the eighth. The right-hander gave up three hits and a walk and struck out eight in his longest outing of the season. Tony Santillan got the final two outs in the eighth. Emilio Pagán pitched the ninth for his 22nd save in 25 opportunities. Rays starter Shane Baz (8-7) gave up singles to TJ Friedl and Matt McLain leading off the first. Baz struck out Elly De La Cruz on three pitches, but Friedl scored from second on an infield hit by Austin Hays. McLain and Hays pulled off a double steal before McLain scored on Gavin Lux's groundout for a 2-0 lead. Baz gave up two runs on five hits in five innings — losing his fourth straight start. Tampa Bay has lost four straight and 10 of 13 to fall to 53-53. TIGERS 10, BLUE JAYS 4 DETROIT (AP) — Jack Flaherty pitched six scoreless innings, Gleyer Torres hit a three-run homer and Detroit ended a six-game losing streak with a victory over Toronto. Detroit had lost 12 of its past 13 games. Toronto fell to 8-2 since the All-Star break. Flaherty (6-10) allowed a double and four singles. He struck out seven and walked one to end a seven-start winless streak. Max Scherzer (1-1), pitching on his 41st birthday, fell to 2-3 in five career starts against his former team. He allowed three hits in seven innings, including Torres' homer, and struck out 11 without issuing a walk. The Tigers put the game away with seven runs in the eighth inning, including six with two out. Toronto scored four runs in the ninth off reliever Luke Jackson, who was making his Tigers debut. Bo Bichette had five of Toronto's 10 hits, extending his on-base streak to 19 games. ROYALS 4, GUARDIANS 1 KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Noah Cameron escaped a bases-loaded jam in the first before tossing five innings of three-hit ball, Maikel Garcia homered for the second time in three games, and Kansas City beat Cleveland. Garcia finished with two RBIs, and Vinnie Pasquantino and Luke Maile also drove in runs, while the Kansas City bullpen allowed only Gabriel Arias' homer amid four hits over the final four innings. Carlos Estévez worked around a leadoff double in the ninth for his 27th save. Cameron (5-4) was stingy after the first, when Steven Kwan, Angel Martínez and José Ramírez began the game by loading the bases with nobody out. Cameron rebounded to retire David Fry, Carlos Santana and Arias, then allowed only two baserunners in the next four innings. He also struck out six in another dominant performance. The 26-year-old left-hander from nearby St. Joseph, Missouri, lowered his ERA to 2.44 and has not lost a game since June 27. Joey Cantillo (2-1) lasted only four innings for Cleveland on a hot, humid day in Kansas City. He allowed three runs and three hits and four walks while striking out four in his fifth start since joining the Guardians' rotation. Cantillo had twice faced Kansas City in relief this season, retiring all six he faced and striking out four of them. ATHLETICS 7, ASTROS 1 HOUSTON (AP) — Miguel Andujar and Shea Langeliers homered in the first inning, J.T. Ginn threw six shutout innings and the Athletics beat Houston to sweep the four-game series. Starting in the leadoff spot for the first time in his nine-year career, Andujar homered on Colton Gordon's fifth pitch. With two out, Langeliers sent a 3-0 fastball over the train tracks in left for his 17th home run of the season. Langeliers has homered in three straight games for the first time in his career. He went 2 for 4 with two runs. Ginn (2-2) held the Astros to three hits in his longest start of the season. He struck out four without issuing a walk. Colby Thomas went 1 for 2 with a double and the first RBI of his major league career. NATIONALS 7, TWINS 2 MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — CJ Abrams hit a leadoff homer, stole three bases and scored three runs as Washington beat Minnesota. Nationals starter Jake Irvin (8-5), a Twin Cities native pitching at Target Field for the first time, gave up two runs on five hits over seven innings. Josh Bell went 3 for 4 with an RBI. Matt Wallner homered and Harrison Bader had two hits for Minnesota, which has lost six of nine since the All-Star break. Daylen Lile tripled and scored on Paul DeJong's sacrifice fly in the fourth to put the Nationals on top 3-2. Washington broke it open with four runs in the fifth off Travis Adams (1-1), keyed by Alex Call's two-run single. Abrams hit the first pitch of the game from Twins opener Cole Sands for his 14th home run of the season. CUBS 5, WHITE SOX 4 CHICAGO (AP) — Ben Brown pitched five effective innings, Pete Crow-Armstrong drove in two runs and the Chicago Cubs topped the Chicago White Sox. Nico Hoerner added two hits and a key defensive play as the Cubs won the rubber game in the weekend set. The North Siders went 5-1 in the season series against the South Siders. The Cubs (62-43) remained tied with Milwaukee for first place in the NL Central. They open a three-game series against the Brewers on Monday night. Andrew Benintendi homered twice and drove in four runs for the White Sox (38-68), who finished with three errors. Brown (5-7) got his first win since June 17. The right-hander went 1-4 with an 8.10 ERA in his previous five appearances. BREWERS 3, MARLINS 2 MILWAUKEE (AP) — Blake Perkins singled home the winning run in the ninth inning as Milwaukee rallied to beat Miami. Milwaukee erased a 2-1 deficit by scoring in each of the final two innings to avoid the sweep. The Brewers have been swept just once, in their opening series of the season at Yankee Stadium. The Brewers remain tied for first in the NL Central with the Chicago Cubs, who come to Milwaukee for a three-game series beginning Monday. The Cubs beat the Chicago White Sox 5-4 on Sunday. Eric Haase hit a one-out bloop single to center off Cade Gibson (2-5) in the ninth and advanced to third on Brice Turang's broken-bat double down the left-field line. Gibson intentionally walked Jackson Chourio to load the bases. Perkins then lofted a 3-2 pitch well over the head of center fielder Dane Myers. Perkins had scored the tying run in the eighth after entering as a pinch-runner, stealing second and coming home on Andrew Vaughn's two-out, ground-rule double off Ronny Henriquez. PADRES 9, CARDINALS 2 ST. LOUIS (AP) — Manny Machado went 4 for 5 with two doubles and three RBIs one day after twice being hit by pitches, and San Diego breezed to a victory over St. Louis to split a four-game series. Fernando Tatis Jr. led off with a walk from Michael McGreevy (2-2) and advanced to third on a single by Luis Arraez. Machado doubled in Tatis and Arraez scored on a throwing error by center fielder Victor Scott II for a 2-0 lead three batters into the game. Machado added a two-run double to cap four-run fourth for a 7-0 lead. Tatis had two of San Diego's 16 hits and scored three runs. Arraez went 3 for 5 with an RBI and two runs scored. Xander Bogaerts hit his seventh homer — a solo shot off Andre Granillo in the seventh — and Jackson Merrill had a run-scoring infield hit off John King in the eighth to cap the scoring. Rookie Stephen Kolek (4-5) allowed four hits and two runs — on Alec Burleson's 13th homer — in six innings. He hadn't won since beating the Marlins 8-6 on May 27. McGreevy gave up seven runs on nine hits in 4 2/3 innings. The right-hander has been called up from Triple-A Memphis five times this season to make his five starts. San Diego is 5-5 since the All-Star break while St. Louis has gone 3-7. RANGERS 8, BRAVES 1 ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Josh Smith hit a two-run home run, Wyatt Langford had a bases-clearing double and surging Texas piled up eight runs in the first three innings in a victory over struggling Atlanta. Josh Jung added a two-run single to help the Rangers sweep the three-game series. Rookie Jack Leiter (7-6) set a career high with 100 pitches and matched a career mark with seven strikeouts. He allowed a run on two hits and three walks over six innings. Texas (56-50) has won six straight games, going six games over .500 for the first time since April 6. The Rangers are four games out of first place in the AL West, gaining seven games since July 8, and are a half-game out of a wild-card spot. Atlanta starter Bryce Elder (4-7), who grew up about an hour's drive northwest of Arlington in Decatur, gave up all eight runs. The Braves (44-60) managed only four hits in dropping their fifth straight. Having played in the last seven postseasons, they're 12 games out of a wild-card position. ANGELS 4, MARINERS 1 ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Mike Trout hit a two-run homer in a four-run fifth inning to reach 1,000 career RBIs, and Los Angeles beat Seattle. Kyle Hendricks (6-7) gave up one run on two hits over six-plus innings and Kenley Jansen pitched the ninth for his 18th save as the Angels earned a split of the four-game series. Cal Raleigh hit his major league-leading 41st home run for the Mariners. The Angels broke a scoreless tie when Kevin Newman's grounder brought home Travis d'Arnaud in the fifth. Luis Rengifo then scored on Logan Gilbert's wild pitch. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. Trout crushed a 443-foot drive to center field off Gilbert to give him 1,001 RBIs. It was his 397th career homer and 19th this season. Raleigh connected against Hendricks in the seventh, his second home run in two nights and fourth this year against Los Angeles. Hendricks, who had one walk and three strikeouts, won for the first time since June 17. Gilbert (3-4) gave up four runs and three hits over five innings with seven strikeouts. _____