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Japan Today
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Japan Today
All Blacks score six tries to hammer under-strength France
New Zealan captain Ardie Savea breaks with the ball against France in Wellington rugby union By Daniel GILHOOLY New Zealand crushed an under-strength France 43-17 in the second test in Wellington on Saturday, scoring six tries to clinch the three-match series. The All Blacks bounced back from a nervous 31-27 win in the first test in Dunedin with a commanding performance against an inexperienced French side who made 10 changes to their starting line-up. Led by a dominant forward display, the home side were more clinical in converting scoring positions into points in Wellington, having had three tries disallowed a week earlier. While the All Blacks made two injury-enforced changes from the first test, French coach Fabien Galthie removed a core of experienced players to name a starting side with just 60 test caps between them. Four starting French forwards were making their debuts and it showed as the home side dominated the breakdown and lineout in particular, giving a solid platform for standout scrum-half Cam Roigard to control the contest. Up 29-3 at half-time, the All Blacks were never threatened, securing a 10th straight win over France on home soil. An early New Zealand penalty goal by fly-half Beauden Barrett was followed by three tries that all stemmed directly from lineouts -- the first to Roigard, who ran 30 meters untouched after a trick move that fooled the defense. France scrum-half Nolann Le Garrec scored his team's only points of the half with a penalty before the home side pulled clear with successive tries from lineout drives to flanker Ardie Savea and hooker Codie Taylor. Savea, standing in as captain in place of the injured Scott Barrett, gave a dominant display. "The boys fronted up to get the win," said Savea. "This week we talked about our defense. We wanted to bring fire there and I think we did that in most parts of the game." A former world player of the year, Savea instigated a brilliant team try before the interval. His break from 60 meters out sparked a flowing move which ended with flanker Tupou Vaa'i scoring under the crossbar. The half was marred by a yellow card offense from each side -- to Beauden Barrett for a deliberate knock-on and debut French lock Joshua Brennan for a lifting tackle. France made six substitutions early in the second half and the refreshed side created a try for fullback Leo Barre. "Credit to the French, you know they never give up, they're always there," Savea said. "I'm proud of our boys for just digging in and doing a good job tonight." All Blacks fullback Will Jordan responded for the hosts with his 41st try in 43 Tests before wing Rieko Ioane powered across in the left corner. Brennan had the final say for France, barging over for their second try. "Obviously we're really disappointed with the score." said France wing Emilien Gailleton. "We wanted to prove much more today. Really disappointed but we're going to recover and come back much better next week. "We want to finish our season with a good performance. The third test is in Hamilton next Saturday. © 2025 AFP
Otago Daily Times
10-07-2025
- Science
- Otago Daily Times
Magpie roots found in St Bathans
Magpies may be regarded in Central Otago as annoying Australian imports or unwelcome newcomers from Canterbury but decades of research has revealed their ancestors lived in St Bathans 19 million years ago. Magpies were introduced from Australia in the 1860s and since then New Zealanders have developed a love-hate relationship with the sometimes aggressive bird. Researchers from Canterbury Museum and University of Canterbury along with those from Flinders and New South Wales Universities in Australia have spent more than two decades unearthing and analysing fossils discovered near St Bathans . The St Bathans fossil site, which has been studied since 2001, was once at the bottom of a large prehistoric lake. It offered the only significant insight into New Zealand's terrestrial wildlife from 16 to 19 million years ago. Researchers have now found enough fragments to describe a new species of currawong, which was an ancestor of the bird that menaces New Zealand today. The newly discovered bird, which the researchers have named the St Bathans Currawong, lived in New Zealand around 19 million to 16 million years ago. It probably went extinct near the end of the Miocene, an era that ran from 20 million years ago to 5 million years ago. The ancient bird would have been about the same size as the Australian magpie found in New Zealand today but was probably all black. Co-author and Canterbury Museum senior curator natural history Dr Paul Scofield said the research challenged New Zealand views on the much-maligned magpie. "We persecute the magpie as an Australian that has no place in the New Zealand ecosystem but its close relatives lived here in the past." "We've probably been without a member of the magpie's extended family for only 5 million years.' Co-author and Flinders University Associate Prof Trevor Worthy said New Zealand's ecosystem had changed dramatically over millions of years and harboured diverse species across different eras. "There's an idea that we should aim to return New Zealand to a pre-European ecological state. But at that point in time, New Zealand's ecosystems had been changing continuously for millions of years. Aotearoa had lost much of the floral diversity formerly present by the time humans arrived. There were few fruiting tree species left and the loss of currawongs and other pigeons reflects this. "Other groups of plants and animals arrived from 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago. Many more have arrived since humans occupied the land. The pre-European ecological state of New Zealand is not necessarily any better or worse than any other time in the past. Instead, the fossil record suggests there was no utopian state and that we should celebrate the diversity we currently have.' Dr Scofield said the work revealed New Zealand's bird population in the Miocene era had surprisingly strong similarities to that of Australia today. "During the Miocene, 20 to 5 million years ago, New Zealand was much different. Walking through a New Zealand forest from that era, you would have seen numerous eucalypts, laurels and Casuarina, much like you would in an Australian forest today.' "The major thing that shaped the New Zealand we see today was the extinction of many plants and animals that thrived in warm climates after a period of rapid cooling that began about 13 million years ago.' Separate research led by Dr Vanesa De Pietri, of University of Canterbury, found the early Miocene New Zealand bush was alive with more birdsong than today. Analysis of songbird fossils found at St Bathans indicates there were probably many more different species of songbirds living in New Zealand 20 million years ago than just before humans arrived. — APL
