Pool A - France v Tonga

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Tonga shock woeful France

Prop Soane Tonga'uiha of Tonga charges upfield during the IRB 2011 Rugby World Cup Pool A match between France and Tonga at Wellington Regional Stadium on October 1, 2011 in Wellington, New Zealand.

( September 30, 2011 - Photos by Stu Forster/Getty Images AsiaPac)

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Tonga produced the biggest upset of the 2011 World Cup on Saturday by outplaying France to win 19-14 in Wellington.
A losing bonus point - captured in the last minute - means France will progress to the quarter-finals nevertheless, but based on this performance they will go no further.
Directionless on attack, disorganised on defence, outmuscled at the breakdown, les Bleus never looked like winning against a charged-up Tongan side.
Take nothing away from the Islanders, who thoroughly deserved their victory which will go down as one of the biggest upsets in Rugby World Cup history.
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Man of the match: Immense at the breakdown, flank Sione Kalamafoni smashed and bashed his team into the history books.
http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,16024_7214772,00.html
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Paino Hehea of Tonga is tackled by William Servat (L) and Jean-Baptiste Poux (R) of France
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France finishes 2-2
Tonga finishes 2-2
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next test:
10-8
France v England
Auckland
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Pool A - Tonga v Japan

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Tonga too good for Japan

Michael Leitch of Japan tackles Taufa'ao Filise of Tonga during the IRB 2011 Rugby World Cup Pool A match between Tonga and Japan at Northland Events Centre on September 21, 2011 in Whangarei, New Zealand.

( September 20, 2011 - Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images AsiaPac)

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Tonga registered their first win at Rugby World Cup 2011 after seeing off Japan 31-18 in Whangerai on Wednesday.
Having lost to New Zealand and Canada, crowd favourites Tonga finally gave their fans something to cheer about following a well-earned win over an error-strewn Japanese outfit.
The Brave Blossoms had targeted this Pool A match as one of two games they wanted to win, but they were their own worst enemies with ball in hand.
http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,16024_7191865,00.html
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next test:
9-27
Japan v Canada
Napier
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10-1
Tonga v France
Wellington
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Pool A - Canada v Tonga

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Canada get the better of Tonga

Adam Kleeberger of Canada lifts William Helu of Tonga during the IRB 2011 Rugby World Cup Pool A match between Tonga and Canada at Northland Events Centre on September 14, 2011 in Whangarei, New Zealand.

( September 13, 2011 - Photos by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images AsiaPac)

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Canada opened their World Cup account with a deserved 25-20 win over crowd favourites Tonga in Whangarei on Wednesday.

The Canucks outscored Tonga three tries to two in a cracking game, and were full value for their win after leading 10-7 at half-time.
The islanders bounced back in the second half though and looked on course for their first victory after losing to New Zealand in last Friday's opening World Cup match. Tonga centre Siale Piutau picked up his second try while Kurt Morath chipped away at the lead.
However, Canada had other ideas and stormed back in front thanks to tries from number eight Aaron Carpenter and wing Phil Mackenzie.
With just a converted try to win the match, Tonga pushed hard until the final whistle but were unable to breach Canada's rock-solid defence.
The defeat now leaves the Tongans with a mountain to climb in Pool A, after suffering back-to-back defeats in the tournament.
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Man of the match: Tough one. For Tonga, a brace from Siale Piutau wasn't enough to see his side through. And for Canada, Ander Monro and Phil Mackenzie shone in the backs while Aaron Carpenter stood out in the forwards. But not as tall as flank Adam Kleeberger who got through a mountain of work for his team in a tireless performance.
http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,16024_7175537,00.html
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next test:
9-18
Canada v France
Napier
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9-21
Tonga v Japan
Whangarei
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Pool A - New Zealand v Tonga

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All Blacks claim 41-10 win over Tonga

Tonga and the All Blacks lock in the scrum during the IRB 2011 Rugby World Cup Pool A match between New Zealand and Tonga at Eden Park on September 9, 2011 in Auckland, New Zealand.

( September 8, 2011 - Photos by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images AsiaPac)

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All Blacks up and running in Auckland

A fine first-half performance helped New Zealand to a 41-10 victory over Tonga in the first game of the 2011 World Cup at Eden Park on Friday.

It was hardly a vintage 80 minutes but with the job done and dusted before the break, it is difficult to blame the hosts for taking their foot off the gas.

They carded six tries in all while the Tongans, who were unlucky not to take the second-half spoils after topping both the possession and territory statistics, responded thanks to a late try from replacement loosehead prop Alisona Taumalolo.

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Sonny Bill Williams of the All Blacks is tackled by Andrew Ma'ilei

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New Zealand were sublime for many chunks of the fixture and the experiment of Sonny Bill Williams and Ma'a Nonu at centre gave more than a feeling that head coach Graham Henry had known about this combination for some time but kept it under wraps until the tournament kick-off. Rivals must now do their homework.

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Man of the match: It was a toss-up betwen Sonny Bill Williams for his assists and Richard Kahui for grabbing his opportunity on the wing with both hands. Kahui was just too good with two tries picked up - one of which was a well-finished score down the right touchline.

read the whole thing here:

http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,16024_7164296,00.html

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Ali Williams of the All Blacks is lifited by Sione Kalamafoni of Tonga

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Match Highlights Video
http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/rugbytracker/match=10920/video.html
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next for Tonga & New Zealand:

9-14

Tonga v Canada

Whangarei

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9-16

NZ v Japan

Hamilton

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