AUCKLAND, 20 June 2004 — New Zealand romped to a 36-12 win in the second test against England yesterday after the world champions had been reduced to 14 men only 10 minutes into the match.
Three tries to left wing Joe Rokocoko, giving him 21 from 14 Tests, sealed a 2-0 series win for the All Blacks after lock Simon Shaw had been sent from the field.
Shaw was shown a red card for kneeing his opposite number Keith Robinson in the back when the All Blacks lock was lying on the wrong side of a ruck, sparking a brawl.
Tempers had flared two minutes earlier when Robinson and England flanker Joe Worsley clashed at a lineout.
The England camp were angered by the decision with both coach Clive Woodward and captain Lawrence Dallagio denouncing the decision. Dallagio said the decision by Welsh referee Nigel Williams on the prompting of Australian touch judge Stuart Dickinson had ruined the game.
England, giving a much-improved performance after last weekend’s 36-3 defeat in Dunedin, held out until the 31st minute when Rokocoko made a break down the left and fed Daniel Carter. The inside center went over the line in the tackles of Tom Voyce and Josh Lewsey but managed to twist the ball above his head and dot down. Carter converted to take the All Black lead to 10-6 at halftime.
New Zealand increased their lead early in the second half after Lewsey kicked out on the full. From the subsequent lineout the ball was spun at speed along the All Black line and Rokocoko was on the end to speed over for the try.
Carter kicked his third goal out of three to keep up his 100 percent record in the two tests and made it four from four after another Rokocoko try. Woodward emptied the bench with four substitutions in the 58th minute and at the same time his opposite number Graham Henry introduced Andrew Mehrtens for his first Test since December 2002.
Rokocoko completed his hat trick of tries courtesy of a point-perfect crossfield kick from Carlos Spencer, which the big winger took on the full with a juggle and sauntered over and round under the posts. Spencer received an infield pass from Mils Muliaina to slide over for the All Blacks’ fifth try of the night.
Tuqiri Strikes Twice for Australia
In Sydney, Lote Tuqiri scored his fourth try in a week as Australia beat Scotland 34-13 in the second Test at the Olympic stadium yesterday.
Tuqiri added two tries to the pair he scored in Australia’s first Test triumph six days ago as the Wallabies completed a 2-0 series win.
Wendell Sailor, Morgan Turinui and Joe Roff also grabbed tries for Australia while the Scots scored a consolation touchdown through their scrumhalf Chris Cusiter.
Australia, who play England next week in a repeat of last year’s World Cup final, led 17-10 at half-time before running away with the match with three tries in the second spell.
However, it was a far from convincing performance by the Wallabies who struggled to find their combinations and had to work harder than expected to subdue a Scottish side who finished bottom of the Six Nations championship.
Australia’s reluctance to commit enough forwards to the breakdown allowed the Scots to dominate possession in the first half. The Wallabies were better with the ball in hand but squandered a handful of try scoring opportunities through sloppy handling and lack of cohesion.
Still, they were able to lift their game when it mattered and finished with a healthy tally of five tries to one.
Scotland had grabbed an early lead when their Australian-born flyhalf Dan Parks landed a penalty in the fourth minute but the Wallabies drew level six minutes later when Roff suceeded with his first shot at goal.
Australia spent most of the first half defending but Scotland’s failure to capitalize cost them any chance of springing an upset.
Sailor scored Australia’s first try in the 26th minute after the Wallabies won a tight head scrum and flyhalf Stephen Larkham split the defense and passed inside.
Tuqiri scored Australia’s second try just six minutes later when he touched down in the left corner after Fijian-born flanker Radike Samo made the initial burst and recycled the ball back. Roff converted both tries to give Australia a 17-3 lead but the Scots cut the margin to seven points with a try by Cuister five minutes from the break.
Scotland had a try by Andy Henderson disallowed when South African referee Mark Lawrence impeded George Gregan as he attempted to tackle the inside centre but their disappointment was short-lived when Cusiter darted over a minute later.
Australia made a flying start to the second half when Tuqiri burst down the left flank to score his second try just seven minutes after the re-start but the expected avalanche of points never eventuated.
South Africa Complete Series Victory Over Ireland
In Cape Town, South Africa completed a series win over Ireland yesterday with a 26-17 victory in the second test at Newlands.
Ireland wing Tyrone Howe opened the scoring in the seventh minute before South Africa replied through their wingers Jaque Fourie and Breyton Paulse to give the Springboks a 20-10 lead at halftime.
Brian O’Driscoll scored a fine try midway through the second spell after replacement flyhalf David Humphreys chipped a clever kick behind the Springboks’s defense.
The Ireland’s captain’s score reduced the deficit to six points but, although the visitors ran the ball at every opportunity, they could not get the extra points which would have given them a first win on South African soil.
