N Z threat: Miller says everyone 'replaceable'

OVER TO TEW:THE WORLD Cup would go on without the New Zealand All Blacks if they chose to boycott the 2015 tournament, International Rugby Board (IRB) chief executive Mike Miller said yesterday.

“Does the World Cup need the All Blacks? It would be good for the All Blacks to be there,” Miller told New Zealand’s Radio Sport. “Everyone is replaceable.”

New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) chief executive Steve Tew said last week his organisation would assess the team’s participation in England in four years time unless the IRB changed the commercial model and revenue sharing.

Tew said the NZRU had lost NZ$13.2 million (€7.6 million) in reduced revenue from sponsorship and ticket sales from a shortened Tri-Nations and lack of an end-of-year tour because of the tournament.

“He (Tew) is on the IRB Council, he’s been involved in all of the decisions that we’ve made for the last five or six years, so he knows what’s going on. It’s the IRB Council that decides where the money goes,” Miller said. “Of course he doesnt talk about the $12 million (€9m) that the NZRU gets from the IRB over the four-year cycle.”

Miller said the timing of Tew’s comments, which were supported by Australian Rugby Union boss John O’Neill, was “not brilliant” and that they were both aware of the IRB’s decision to re-evaluate the World Cup commercial model after the current tournament.

“We know what the issues are, which is why we had a conference on the economics of the game earlier this year, which Steve Tew was at,” Miller added. “The conference said after Rugby World Cup, we’d look at the outcomes and whether we’d need to change the model on the commercial rules, the distribution of funds, and on the timing of the World Cup.”

No-show: No play for Samoan

THE GLOUCESTER centre Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu has been suspended from all rugby after he failed to turn up at World Cup disciplinary hearing in Auckland yesterday.

The Samoan, who is a qualified lawyer, will remain banned - and last night it appeared as though it could be for some time - until he appears before Jeff Blackett, the English judge due to sit as the judicial officer hearing allegations that Fuimaono-Sapolu accused the Welsh referee Nigel Owens of being biased and racist.

Fuimaono-Sapolu, one of the more creative centres in the Premiership and Gloucester’s player of the season with supporters and players, called the IRB a “joke” and invited officials to “kiss my bum”. “England CHEAT, nothing happens. I TWEET, I’m charged. This is getting ridiculous. You’re only charging my batteries!” he posted.

Fuimaono-Sapolu has deleted the offensive tweet regarding Owens, admitting: “It’s not a race issue.” But last night he returned to the matter saying: “Whether it’s a perceived bias or an actual bias . . . Wales were affected by the outcome of our game and yet the referee was Welsh. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to work it out but you do have to be an idiot not to.”

Guardian Service

* ITALY HOOKERLeonardo Ghiraldini has been suspended for 15 weeks for his attempted eye gouge on Ireland prop Cian Healy. Ghiraldini acknowledged he had been guilty of play contrary to Law 10(4)(m) during the first half of Sunday's 36-6 defeat in Dunedin.

Gearing up: Mullins’ son wears ’99 jersey

MUNSTER ROOTS:THE ODD Munster or Leinster shirt has been spotted amongst the Blarney Army, (get with the programme lads!) but honourable permission has to be given to Mike Mullins, the Kiwi son of a Limerick ex-pat who returned to his roots to play for Munster and Ireland. So, at least it really was his name on the back, above the number 13.

Alongside him in Dunedin last Sunday was his 11-year-old, Limerick-born son Caleb Ronan Mullins, whose middle name is in homage to Ronan O’Gara, who helped them locate tickets when meeting up with them at the weekend.

Young Caleb was wearing a loose-fitting cotton Irish jersey with the number 12 on his back and the RWC ’99 crest on the front from Ireland’s match against Romania in that tournament. Mullins started that 44-14 win in Lansdowne Road. “It’s my only World Cup jersey.”

Mullins is now a youth co-ordinator with Youth Town, in Oamaru, about an hour and a half away from Dunedin in the south island.

He’s been out of rugby for over a year, but admits he’s getting “an itch” to become involved again.

Wrong tickets: Irish fans gamble on runners-up spot

THE SOUND of The Fields of Athenry briefly echoing around Cardiff Arms Park at the France-New Zealand quarter-final four years ago remains an abiding memory, and a reminder that some Irish fans who bought quarter-final tickets in advance for this weekend assuredly plumped for Sunday’s match on the premise that they would finish runners-up in Pool C.

Two of the Blarney Army, Rob Cassidy and Damo Clarke, are in just such a pickle. The two Dubs are amongst a group 16 in a convoy of six camper vans who have clocked up 5,000 or 6,000 kilometres travelling up and down the two islands supporting Ireland at all four pool matches.

In any event, there must be thousands of Irish and Aussie fans who desperately want to exchange tickets, and facebook has been a very useful means of arranging swaps, while TV3 have set up a contact on their website campbelllive@tv3.co.nz. The lads should be sorted in the end.

Not having a ball: Put blame where it lies

MORNE STEYN, the leading points scorer in the World Cup, says England should stop blaming the balls being used in the tournament for Jonny Wilkinson’s goal-kicking woes. Steyn, the South Africa fly-half, has a success rate of more than 85 per cent.

England have been so alarmed at their outhalf’s loss of accuracy that they changed the match balls during the group match against Romania and were forced to suspend two of their management team for one game.

Steyn said yesterday he could not understand why there had been such a fuss about the tournament balls, adding: “We were shown the ball that was going to be used before the World Cup started. To me, it was virtually the same one that was used in this year’s Super 15: only a few of the markings had changed. I do not see a big difference in it. If it is not going well for you kicking- wise, you always look for something to blame. It should not be the ball.” Guardian Service

Welsh Boost

WALES HAVE received a major boost ahead of the quarter-final against Ireland with three key players passed fit to resume full training. Fullback James Hook, wing Shane Williams and flanker Dan Lydiate are all expected to be available for Saturday’s showdown.

Hook (shoulder) and Lydiate (ankle) both went off during Wales’ punishing Pool D victory over Samoa in Hamilton 16 days ago and have not played since, while Williams missed runaway victories over Namibia and Fiji due to a thigh strain. But they will take part in training today.

“Gethin Jenkins and Sam Warburton are also both fit for selection following calf cramp experienced during the end of the Fiji fixture,” said Prav Mathema, the Welsh team doctor.

By gum: Tuilagi keeps England in the news

THE $10,000 SMILE:ENGLAND'S off-field distractions continued at the rugby World Cup yesterday when centre Manu Tuilagi was fined for wearing a gumshield showing a sponsor's logo – a week after his brother Alesana was fined for the same offence.

An England spokesman said that Manu Tuilagi had also been fined NZ$10,000 (€5,700) by the International Rugby Board (IRB) for the “genuine error” of wearing a gumshield with the brand visible during the match against Georgia in Dunedin.

The 20-year-old powerhouse, who has made a great impact for England after making his debut in the August warm-ups, said he and older brother Alesana, who plays for Samoa, wore the same brand.

“Mine is the England one from the under-18s,” he said at the team’s hotel. “I wore it against Argentina but they didn’t know.

“I coloured it in with marker pen for the Romania game.”

Fans annoyed at what they considered the harsh penalty for Alesana raised thousands of dollars towards his fine with a televised “sausage sizzle” in Auckland. “That was awesome,” said Manu, who is unlikely to get such local support since deciding to switch his allegiance to England, where he plays for Leicester.

"He has got a good skill set. He's a brave kid physically, he's strong in his defensive channel. So not too different to Daniel really.– All Black assistant coach Wayne Smith compares Colin Slade to the injured Dan Carter

23:The age Wales flanker Sam Warburton, the youngest team captain at the World Cup, turns today