The international season got underway in a big way over the last week highlighted by the epic match between Samoa and New Zealand. The match lived up to all expectations and was a great showcase of good rugby. Even better, it was a competitive match with Samoa pushing the All Blacks throughout the match. The difference in New Zealand's 25-16 win was the six penalties from Dan Carter. Peter Moala had a try for New Zealand while Akafoti Faosiliva did the same for Samoa with Tusi Pisi hitting three penalties.
The other major match involving a Tier I nation over the weekend was South Africa taking on a World XV in Cape Town. The World XV showed plenty of rust while the All Blacks were incredibly efficient in the match rolling to a 46-10 win.
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The All Blacks weren't the only team to travel to the South Pacific over the weekend as the Maori All Blacks paid a visit to Fiji. The match was incredibly close with the Maori All Blacks only coming away with a one point win. It was great preparation for Fiji as they get ready for the Pacific Nations Cup.
In other internationals, Namibia beat Russia 39-19 in Windhoek and Madagascar beat the Ivy Coast 30-26.
Shute Shield
Only two weeks remain in the Shute Shield regular season and once again there isn't any change in the playoff standings. Eastwood and Manly still have a runaway lead for the top two spots with Eastwood holding the edge. Southern Districts and Warringah are tied for the final two spots and are eight points ahead of Randwick and Sydney University. Eastwood beat Eastern Suburbs 46-15, Manly lost to Warringah 29-24, and Southern Districts beat Randwick 37-15. In other scores, West Harbour edged Northern Suburbs 30-29, Sydney University beat Gordon 44-26, and Parramatta drew with Penrith 34-34.