Here are the latest rugby headlines on Saturday, May 13.
Legendary All Black dies
Legendary All Black Bruce Robertson has died aged 71.
The world-class centre, regarded as one of the greatest players to play for both the All Blacks and his beloved province, Counties Manukau, died on Friday night after a reported lengthy health battle.
Considered by many as the greatest centre in New Zealand rugby history, Robertson was a giant of the game in the 1970s and early 1980s, playing 34 Tests for the All Blacks between 1972 and 1981 and 102 matches in total, while he represented Counties on 135 occasions and helped lead the side to their sole National Provincial Championship triumph in 1979.
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“We are terribly sad to hear of the passing of one of Counties Manukau’s greatest All Blacks,” Counties Manukau Rugby Football Union chief executive Aaron Lawton said. “Bruce was an iconic player and a true rugby servant. He leaves a lasting legacy at our union and would have been incredibly proud to watch his grandson Jadin pull on the hoops last year. We are working with his family now to confirm a service at Navigation Homes Stadium and will release details as soon as possible.”
In the statement issued on Saturday, the family said: “Bruce’s whanau would like to acknowledge and thank everyone for their love and support at this time.”
Tompkins helps Saracens reach Premiership final
Wales centre Nick Tompkins played a key part in helping Saracens overcome Northampton Saints 38-15 to reach the Premiership final.
Last season's runners-up were irresistible for long spells of a one-sided play-off at StoneX Stadium as they set up a Twickenham showdown with either champions Leicester or Sale, who meet on Sunday.
Tompkins, starting at No. 12 outside fly-half Owen Farrell, was on fine form and typified his side's defensive resolve in his 65-minute outing before being replaced in the second half.
Sarries' win, however, was tinged with controversy after Sean Maitland plundered two tries having escaped an early card. Northampton will feel aggrieved that Maitland was not at least sin-binned for clattering into George Furbank with his elbows during an aerial collision that left the England back needing lengthy treatment. Referee Karl Dickson issued only a penalty and in making a quick decision declined to consult the TMO with the game just 25 seconds old.
To rub salt into the wound, Maitland scored Saracens' opening two tries as part of an unstoppable first half that produced a 21-3 lead which was only briefly threatened when Northampton fought back in the third quarter.
A penalty try and Max Malins' touchdown shut the door on the possibility of an upset and Saints, who barely fired a shot before the break, were well beaten by opponents seeking a sixth Premiership title.
Scrum-half Ivan van Zyl was named man of the match but Alex Goode could easily have been chosen given his influence in the opening stages. When Northampton attacked and were turned over, Goode launched a stunning counter-attack given pace by Maitland but Alex Lozowski lacked the speed to finish the move.
Goode's vision was on display again in the seventh minute when he chipped through for Maitland to score, but it was a good afternoon to be pulling the strings with Saracens dominating the gainline. Maitland was over again in the 23rd minute after sustained pressure ended with Farrell producing a precision grubber for the Scotland wing to touch down.
Any time Northampton got the ball they were hammered backwards in the tackle but they could only blame themselves for the next try as having conceded a penalty, they switched off to allow the quick-thinking Van Zyl to tap and go for an easy run-in.
Saracens led 21-3 on the half-hour mark and when faced with a rare assault on their line they rolled up their sleeves and sent Saints packing.
Nick Tompkins' turnover shortly after the interval typified their resolve in defence and the third quarter was harder work, with Northampton showing the fire that had been missing in the first half.
Alex Mitchell skipped over in the 56th minute and Saints engineered a superb try soon after when stylish play ended with Courtney Lawes sending James Ramm over. But the comeback was over when Saracens' maul forced a penalty try that also saw Tom James sent to the sin-bin, before Malins completed the rout. Sarries' Maro Itoje was yellow-carded late on.
Stormers defeat Connacht to reach URC final
Manie Libbok was instrumental as reigning champions the DHL Stormers overcame a nervy start to beat Connacht 43-25 and book their place in the United Rugby Championship final. Fly-half Libbok finished with 23 points, including two key first-half tries, as the Stormers rallied from an early 8-0 deficit to claim victory in a thrilling 10-try clash at a windswept DHL Stadium in Cape Town.
The impressive Angelo Davids, Paul De Wet, Marcel Theunissen and Ruhan Nel also crossed for the South African side, with Mack Hansen, Conor Oliver, Shamus Hurley-Langton and Byron Ralston touching down in a losing cause for battling Connacht. Connacht captain Jack Carty - who kicked his side to victory over Ulster in the quarter-finals - drew first blood when he slotted over a straightforward early penalty as the visitors capitalised on a mistake from Stormers hooker Joseph Dweba and then a collapsed scrum.
More handling errors from the Stormers then laid the foundations for Connacht to score the game's opening try in the 13th minute, Hansen collecting a superb long pass from Carty to dive in at the corner. Carty missed the touchline conversion and his opposite number Libbok then showed his class as the Stormers hit back in style.
With the champions pushing hard on the left-hand side of the pitch, Libbok picked out the unmarked Davids with a superb cross-field kick and the right winger had the easiest of jobs to touch down. Libbok, the tournament's leading points scorer, made light of the difficult kicking conditions to slot over a testing conversion and then put Stormers 10-8 ahead with a penalty.
The home side were starting to move through the gears and Libbok was central again as they scored their second try just before the half-hour. The South Africa fly-half was heavily involved at the start of the move and then provided the finishing touch after Dan Du Plessis and Herschel Jantjies had combined to put him in under the posts.
The Stormers were now rampant and increased their lead when Davids collected possession from a line-out, sliced through the Connacht defence before sending Libbok in again.
Connacht, looking to reach only their second major final following their 2016 Pro12 triumph, were on the ropes but they rallied and reduced the deficit to 24-13 at half-time when flanker Oliver twisted and turned to touch down. Carty should have added a simple conversion but Davids was quick to race out and grab the ball after it had fallen off the tee, with referee Mike Adamson pointing out the Connacht skipper had started his run up.
Nevertheless, after a scrappy start to the second half, Connacht did reduce the Stormers' advantage further in the 59th minute when Hurley-Langton burrowed over after a sustained period of pressure.
Carty's conversion made it 24-20 and set the stage for a grandstand final quarter.
The Stormers were rocking but the momentum shifted back their way in the 65th minute when they made the most of a penalty advantage to score a try on the counter-attack. Nel did well on the left before feeding possession to Leolin Zas and he sent replacement scrum-half De Wet charging through unchecked. Connacht continued to fight and gave themselves a lifeline when Ralston touched down on the right, but the Stormers would not be denied and late scores from Theunissen and Nel clinched a place in the final.
Three more countries become full World Rugby members
Nepal, Qatar and Turkey have been approved as full World Rugby members at the annual meeting of the governing body's council.
Each of the three national unions have ascended to that status having previously been associate members.
World Rugby’s supreme decision-making body approved the recommendations of the executive board and regional committee, to accept their moves to full membership, after Nepal, Qatar and Turkey each met the necessary governance criteria.
Although the total membership of the international federation remains at 132, its make-up has been changed by the promotion of the three unions and now comprises 114 full members and 18 associate members.
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