• Ireland 15-6 Australia • Watch World Cup video highlights, interviews and more From a last-gasp defeat to Australia in 1991 to being dumped in 2007 without ceremony, the World Cup has not always been the happiest of hunting grounds for Ireland. But they put that history of disappointment to rights in Auckland, beating one of the favourites of the title, denying Australia even a losing bonus point. It was all the more remarkable for coming on the back of a run of form that was indifferent at best: four defeats in four international warm-up games and a lacklustre victory over the USA. Suddenly Ireland were back to their swarming, passionate best. Sean O’Brien and Stephen Ferris were immense in the back row. And yet the real damage was done in an even more unexpected area. Ireland have rarely been scattered at the scrummage, but equally, they do not tend to rip teams to pieces at the set piece. They did here, and a special mention must go the front row of Cian Healy, Rory Best and Mike Ross. A special note should also be made of the pincer tackling of Paul O’Connell and Donncha O’Callaghan, the second rows who held up the biggest and strongest of the Australian forwards and forced a scrummage, with the put-in to Ireland. It sounds a forward affair, and so it was, especially when the rain began to fall. There were no tries; just four penalties and a drop goal against two penalties. But there was drama at every turn, with Australia’s attempts to release their running three-quarters running into a brick-wall defence. Or if that was opened up on occasions, by a scrambled defence. Ireland tackled with discipline but also with fury. Tommy Bowe might have sealed the victory with a try in the last minute but he ran out of steam at the end of a 90-yard breakout. It was still a run that ate up the seconds, sending the Wallabies back to their own line, a dispiriting slog for the champions of the Tri Nations. Ireland’s win shakes up the quarter final composition. Ireland should go through as pool winners; Australia as runners-up. Everything has been shaken up, Ireland the mighty rattle. Australia: Beale, O’Connor, A Fainga’a (Mitchell 73), McCabe, Ashley-Cooper; Cooper, Genia; Kepu, Polota-Nau, Alexander (Slipper 62), Vickerman (Simmons 62), Horwill (capt), Elsom (Palu 72), McCalman, Samo (Higginbotham 73). Pens: O’Connor (2) Ireland: Kearney (Trimble 73), Bowe, O’Driscoll (capt), D’Arcy, Earls; Sexton, Reddan (Murray 57); Healy, Best, Ross (Court 76), O’Callaghan, O’Connell, Ferris, O’Brien, Heaslip Pens: Sexton (2), O’Gara (2). Drop goal: Sexton Rugby World Cup 2011 Ireland rugby union team Australia rugby union team Rugby union Eddie Butler guardian.co.uk
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Second world war fighter plunged to ground near grandstand at event near Reno, killing three people and injuring more than 50 Three people have died and more than 50 were injured after a second world war fighter plane flown by a veteran Hollywood stunt pilot crashed at an air race near Reno, Nevada. The plane, piloted by 74-year-old Jimmy Leeward, plunged to the ground without warning near a grandstand. Body parts and debris were strewn across the airfield. Organisers of the event said a mechanical fault was probably to blame but they were awaiting the results of an official investigation. Stephanie Kruse, a spokeswoman for the Regional Emergency Medical Service Authority, said 56 people were taken to hospital, of whom 15 were in a critical condition and 13 were in a serious condition with potentially life-threatening injuries. “This is a very large incident, probably one of the largest this community has seen in decades,” she said. “The community is pulling together to try to deal with the scope of it.” Witnesses described their shock as the plane tumbled from the sky. Maureen Higgins, of Alabama, was sitting about 30 yards from the crash and watched in horror as the man in front of her started bleeding after debris hit him in the head. “I saw body parts and gore like you wouldn’t believe it. I’m talking an arm, a leg,” she said “The alive people were missing body parts. I am not kidding you. It was gore. Unbelievable gore.” Leeward, of Ocala, Florida, was among those killed. He was a veteran airman and film stunt pilot who named his P-51 Mustang fighter plane the Galloping Ghost, according to Mike Houghton, president and chief executive of Reno Air Races. Renown Regional Medical Centre spokeswoman Kathy Carter confirmed two others died, but did not provide their identities. The P-51 Mustang, a class of fighter plane that can fly at more than 500 mph, crashed into a box-seat area in front of the grandstand at about 4.30pm, race spokesman Mike Draper said. Houghton said the crash appeared to be a “problem with the aircraft that caused it to go out of control”. The rest of the races were cancelled as the National Transportation Safety Board investigated. Another witness Tim Linville, 48, of Reno, said the plane smashed into the ground and shattered, sending shrapnel and debris into the crowd. “It was just flying everywhere,” he said. Tim O’Brien of Grass Valley, California, said he saw the plane pitch violently upward, roll and then head straight down about 100 metres away. O’Brien said it looked like a piece of the plane’s tail had fallen off. United States Nevada David Batty guardian.co.uk
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Former IRA chief of staff and Sinn Féin presidential candidate says he would meet all heads of state without exception Former IRA chief of staff Martin McGuinness has said would be willing to meet the Queen if he was elected Irish president. In his first comments after being announced as Sinn Féin’s surprise candidate for the presidency, McGuinness, who is deputy first minister of Northern Ireland, said he would meet all international heads of state without exception. When asked about the possibility of hosting British royalty, he said: “If the people of Ireland decided that I should be their president, my responsibilities and duties would be to meet heads of state from all over the world and to do that without exception, and that would be my position.” The Sinn Féin MP who admitted he was the Provisional IRA’s second-in-command in Derry during Bloody Sunday also said he was also ready to tackle questions about the IRA during the presidential campaign. Opponents have already said his former IRA role could destabilise the power-sharing executive back at Stormont. But McGuinness said he believed he had played a key role in ending the decades of violence and wanted to look to a new future. “The past is a terrible place but I think I am seen very much as a part of the future. “This is about new beginnings and I have been at the heart of new beginnings.” He added that the Irish people had “more sense” than to be swayed by hostile media. “The people of Ireland have watched the political progress that Gerry Adams and I have been at the heart of for many years. “I think I would prefer their judgment than the judgment of media who are looking for spectacular headlines.” Speaking at Belfast’s international airport on his return from a US trip, McGuinness said his candidacy was only finalised in the last week. The decision has already been described as the republican movement’s most audacious political move since IRA prisoner Bobby Sands was elected an MP while on prison hunger strike in 1981. McGuinness has built up a close personal relationship with Peter Robinson, the Democratic Unionist first minister in the five-party coalition in Northern Ireland. Although McGuinness will have to step down temporarily from the post as deputy first minister during the three-week long presidential campaign, sources said that would be a “mess but not a crisis” for the power-sharing government in Belfast. While he is likely to increase Sinn Féin’s national share of the vote in the Republic above the 9% it gained in this year’s general election, McGuinness is not expected to win the presidential contest. Asked if he could win, McGuinness said: “That remains to be seen. I will leave that to the people of Ireland.” His candidacy will be formally endorsed by his party on Sunday at a meeting in Dublin. McGuinness added: “I intend to build on the progress that has been made within the peace process. “And most importantly of all, I hope that this gives an opportunity to Irish citizens to make a stand for a new beginning, for a new Ireland. “I have been at the heart of many new beginnings in the North over the course of recent years.” If McGuinness were to be elected as head of state it would mark a career during which he had been chief of staff of an organisation outlawed in both Northern Ireland and the Republic and ends up being chief of staff of the officially recognised Irish defence forces. Fine Gael’s Gay Mitchell, Special Olympics boss Mary Davis, businessman Sean Gallagher and Labour’s Michael D Higgins of Labour, have already put their names forward for the October election. Martin McGuinness Ireland Europe Monarchy IRA Northern Ireland David Batty guardian.co.uk
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Forensics teams examine scene at Gleision colliery after four men found dead in flooded mine An investigation has been launched after four men died in a flooded south Wales colliery in the worst mining disaster for 30 years. The inquiry was announced after the discovery of the bodies of the miners, who had been trapped deep underground at the Gleision colliery in the Swansea Valley. Police and safety officials promised to establish how and why they were killed. Forensics teams at the mine in the village of Cilybebyll have begun to piece together what happened. The four – Charles Breslin, 62, David Powell, 50, Phillip Hill, 45, and Garry Jenkins, 39 – were trapped after water poured into the shaft they were working in on Thursday morning. Three others, including Powell’s son, Daniel, managed to get out and raise the alarm. The Welsh secretary, Cheryl Gillan, said: “We must ensure we learn the lessons and find out what happened to these men.” She said the investigation would initially be led by South Wales police before being handed over to the Health and Safety Executive. David Cameron described the tragedy as a “desperately, desperately sad situation”. The prime minister said the anguish of the miners’ families was “intense” but added it was clear the emergency services had done everything they could. Peter Vaughan, chief constable of South Wales police, said: “We’ve tried to bring this safely to its conclusion. Unfortunately the conclusion we have is the one none of us wanted.” Expressing his condolences to the men’s families, he said: “I can’t begin to imagine what the families are going through. “We’ve been humbled by the community spirit that’s been shown during this most tragic of incidents.” Fire and rescue and ambulance workers said they had never seen or worked in such conditions before. Of the three men who escaped the flooded mine, one is now critically ill in hospital. The two other men who were with him emerged largely unharmed and helped the rescue operation. Neath MP Peter Hain said: “This is the end we all feared but hoped against hope wouldn’t happen. “Extraordinary courage was shown by the families right through the night, tortuous hours of waiting. We can’t imagine what they have been through. “This has been a stab right through the heart of these local communities. There’s a long tradition of mining here but nobody expected the tragedies of past generations would come today.” Richard Smith, chief fire officer for Mid and West Wales fire and rescue service, said: “Ambulance and fire officers have all expressed to me that within 30 years of service they’ve never actually seen such conditions and worked in such conditions that they’ve had to over the last two days to try and bring this to a satisfactory conclusion.” Asked whether any of the men ever stood a chance of surviving, Smith said: “It’s a bit too early to tell whether they would have stood any chance of survival or not but the fact that I think that them being together where they were working will probably be indicative of that.” The archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, said: “My heart goes out to the families of those killed in Gleision colliery. The whole community is heartbroken for them.” Wales Mining David Batty guardian.co.uk
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• Hit F5 to refresh or turn on the automatic widget below • Email your thoughts to scott.murray@guardian.co.uk • Watch World Cup video highlights, interviews and more • Visit our dedicated Rugby World Cup site 5 min: Rob Kearney hits Kurtley Beale with a ridiculous high tackle. That was almost moustache height. That’ll be a penalty to Australia, who toy with the idea of kicking for the corner, but think better of showing such rank disrespect. James O’Connor will kick, ten yards in from the left on the 22. 4 min: This is already shaping up into a tidy battle. Ireland stream forward into the Aussie half, going on a couple of sorties, but after setting a ruck, the Wallabies counter-ruck brilliantly and make off up the other end of the pitch. That romp comes to nothing too, but both teams have come out with a very positive mindset. And we’re off! Australia kick off. Earls takes the catch, and steps carelessly into touch. Not a good start for the Irish. The Wallabies win the line out on the Irish 22, and set themselves in the centre of the park, but good work from the Irish forwards reclaims the ball. There’s a brief brouhaha, Sean O’Brien in the middle of it, swinging wild haymakers in the JD Wetherspoon style. And a penalty to Ireland, as it appears O’Brien was reacting to some Aussie sauce. The early danger is over. The teams are out! Australia are in their trademark gold and green, Ireland their fully copyrighted green and white. There’s the traditional Māori welcome of a big topless bloke playing hard bop on an exceptionally large wooden tube, in scenes not totally dissimilar to Mulligan and O’Hare’s interpretation of Another Day In Paradise . And then it’s a blast of Advance Australia Fair and Ireland’s Call. They’ll be a-passin’ and a-puntin’ in a minute! Getting One’s Excuses In Early (Preserve Of Northern Hemisphere Fans) dept. “Firstly I dont see us winning, we will lose like heroes as usual, but a loss is a loss.” That’s the spirit, Anthony O’Connell. “On the RWC, I think it is unfair on all teams, with the exception of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. These three teams come into the competition at the back end of their season whereas the vast majority with any chance of winning are still basically in pre-season. Nothing beats competitive games, friendlies are worth nothing. Play it in March and I think our home nations would do a lot better.” Venue: The 60,000-capacity Eden Park in Auckland. Referee: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand) Kick off: 9.30am BST (which is 9.30pm in the Kiwi coin). Australia: Beale, O’Connor, Fainga’a, McCabe, Ashley-Cooper, Cooper, Genia; Kepu, Moore, Alexander, Vickerman, Horwill, Elsom, McCalman, Samo. Replacements: Polota-Nau, Slipper, Simmons, Palu, Higginbotham, Burgess, Mitchell. Ireland: Kearney, Bowe, O’Driscoll, D’Arcy, Earls, Sexton, Reddan; Healy, Best, Ross, O’Callaghan, O’Connell, Ferris, O’Brien, Heaslip. Replacements: Cronin, Court, Ryan, Leamy, Murray, O’Gara, Trimble. And so to the teams. And the big news is, the influential Wallaby openside flanker David Pocock has failed a late fitness test; Ben McCalman will replace him. Not looking on the bright side II: The Irish have been out on the lash , according to the tabloids us. The bar tab ran to £1,600, which sounds quite a lot, until you factor in food, and that there’s about 600 people in the touring party. And anyway, aren’t rugby players supposed to roister-doister around the joint, necking pints with reckless abandon so we don’t have to? These are austere times, so let us at least live vicariously, for goodness sake. Exile on Main Street wouldn’t sound half as good if Keith Richards didn’t have heroin rolling out of his eyeballs when he was making it, now would it? Not looking on the bright side: Ireland always give Australia a game, yet nearly always conspire to lose it. Ireland, of course, are in the middle of their worst patch of form for years and years and years. Four consecutive losses coming into the tournament, and an opening-match disgrace against the USA. But let’s look on the bright side: they always give Australia a game. Morning, everyone! So here come Australia, whose second-half performance against Italy was probably the most impressive by any team in the tournament so far. Do Ireland have a strategy in place to deal with these guys? “The night before grabbing hold of them, locking them up and putting them in a room somewhere? Short of that, no.” Les Kiss, there, Ireland’s defence coach. Hmm. Rugby World Cup 2011 Australia rugby union team Ireland rugby union team Rugby union Scott Murray guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …A plane plunged into the stands at an air race event in Reno in what an official described as a “mass casualty situation.” It wasn’t immediately known how many people were killed or injured, however. Video of the crash showed bodies and wreckage at the front of the stands. (A…
Continue reading …Woe to the co-workers who have lunch with these guys. One in five men don’t use deodorant or body spray of any kind, and the same number never use shampoo, a new study says. Conducted by a European market research company, the study of 1,000 men also shows a…
Continue reading …The beer that former Marine Sgt. Dakota Meyer had with the president yesterday, before accepting the Medal of Honor? It was home-brewed, CBS reports. Historians say “White House Honey Ale” is the first first beer ever made on the premises. President Obama’s chefs originally brewed it for a Super Bowl…
Continue reading …Poor black children in Baltimore were exposed to “dangerous levels” of lead during a 1990s housing experiment, a new lawsuit claims. Families in the class action suit say the Kennedy Krieger Institute knowingly placed children in houses with high levels of lead-paint poisoning, the Baltimore Sun reports. But the hospital…
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