Huw Jones is adamant Scotland are not fazed by sharing a heavyweight World Cup group with the might of Ireland and South Africa.
The fact the draw was made in 2020 has led to a top-heavy pool B containing three of the five best teams in the world on current form.
With Ireland ranked number one, and world champions South Africa fourth on the list, the burgeoning Scots – despite being up to fifth themselves – will be up against it to reach the knockout phase.
However, three tightly-contested games against second-ranked France this year – including last Saturday’s agonising 30-27 defeat in Saint-Etienne – allied to strong periods against the likes of New Zealand and Ireland over the past year – have given the Scots genuine hope that they can finish in the top two in their section and progress to the latter stages.
“It is a tough pool, and if people see us as underdogs we don’t mind that,” said centre Jones. “We know how good we can be and a game like Saturday’s, against a side ranked second in the world, gives us a lot of confidence.
“We think we can beat anyone, it’s just about putting together a complete performance. We’re not fazed by the group, we’re really looking forward to it, but we know we need to be at our best to beat the top teams and get out of our pool.”
The Scots have lost 32-21 and 30-27 in their two away matches against the formidable French this year, while they defeated Les Bleus 25-21 at Murrayfield earlier this month.
All three matches against the highly-fancied World Cup hosts incorporated strong fightbacks from Gregor Townsend’s side and Jones feels if they can cut out the minor issues that are leaving them trailing in the first place, they are playing well enough to fancy their chances against any opposition.
“We weren’t really happy with our first-half performance at home to France but we were a lot better in the second half,” said Jones.
“Then in Saint-Etienne, against France’s strongest team, it was a more complete performance in terms of the full 80 minutes, although it’s still about those small margins for us.
“We feel like we’re there and thereabouts but there’s also stuff we can work on. I think Saturday will spur us on to improve even more.
“We always want to win but I think a narrow loss like that away to one of the top teams in the world is good for the confidence. We know we can go toe-to-toe with the best and we feel we can win those games.
“We take confidence from that but we also know there are areas we have to tighten up in and not make a couple of silly errors that can cost us close games.
“Going out to France twice this year and running them so close in those games gives us real confidence, especially as the World Cup is out there.”
As long as there are no slip-ups against Georgia in their final warm-up match at Murrayfield a week on Saturday, the Scots will head out to France at the start of September on the back of an encouraging summer campaign in which they have already defeated Italy and France in Edinburgh.
“We’re feeling good,” said Jones. “It’s been a tough pre-season.
“The fitness is there and the game fitness is coming along. We’ve got one more game against Georgia to really sharpen up and then we’re into the tournament.
“I think we’re in a really good place but we want to win that game against Georgia and put in a really good performance, which will give us confidence going into that first game against South Africa.”
Windies to test T20 World Cup readiness against South Africa, Australia in Jamaica and T&T; final squad to be named this week
With the ICC Men’s Twenty 20 World Cup now just about a month away, Darren Sammy and his West Indies team will up the tempo on preparations, before testing their readiness for the June 1-29 global showpiece, with a final warm-up match against Australia in Trinidad and Tobago.
Sammy’s final squad, which is expected to be named sometime this week, will be one of nine teams to travel to the Trinidad and Tobago in May for eight warm-up matches, four of which will take place at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, while the other four is scheduled for the historic Queen’s Park Oval. The teams will arrive in twin island republic on May 21.
The revelation came from Cricket West Indies’s (CWI) CEO Johnny Grave during the recently-concluded CARICOM conference on West Indies cricket themed ‘Reinvigorating West Indies Cricket’, in Port of Spain.
Grave explained that the final West Indies squad will not convene in full until they travel to Jamaica at the end of May to engage South Africa in three warm-up contests. However, he pointed out that there will be a camp in Antigua prior, which will involve members of the final squad, who are not plying their trade in the Indian Premier League.
From Jamaica, the Rovman Powell-captained squad will then travel to Trinidad and Tobago for the clash against 50-over World Cup winners Australia, ahead of the tournament to be hosted in the Caribbean and United States.
West Indies, the 2012 and 2016 champions, are hunting a third T20 World Cup title.
“We’re going to have a week-long preparation camp in Antigua from May 12, before heading to Jamaica. We’re then going to leave Jamaica and come here to Trinidad and Tobago for a week’s preparation, including playing at the historic Queen’s Park Oval on May 30, in an evening fixture against one of the tournament favourites Australia,” Grave shared.
“That will probably be one of the only games in the warm-up schedule that will be ticketed, and we certainly hope that the fans here in Trinidad, and particularly those in Port of Spain, will come out and rally behind the West Indies in that warm-up match, which is the final game we’ll play before we head to Guyana for the opening game on June 2,” he added.
West Indies, who are drawn in Group C alongside New Zealand, Afghanistan, Uganda and Papua New Guinea, will open against the latter at the Guyana National Stadium on June 2.
Grave urged fans to come out and rally behind the West Indies outfit in their push to start the tournament on a high.
“Making sure we have a huge party in Georgetown, and we get off to a winning start (will be crucial). We all know in these global tournaments, confidence and momentum are important and we can think of nothing better than starting with a victory in Guyana and ending it in Barbados on June 29 with a similar victory,” Grave said.
England and Saracens number eight Vunipola fined after arrest in Mallorca
England international Billy Vunipola has confirmed he has been fined after an incident which saw him arrested in Mallorca on Sunday, with his club Saracens set to launch an internal investigation.
On Monday, widespread reports claimed Vunipola had been tasered by Spanish police in the early hours of Sunday morning, with an altercation taking place after he left a club in Palma.
Saracens later confirmed they were aware of an incident and said they would deal with it internally.
The number eight, who was born in Australia but has represented England 75 times, later released a statement of his own via his club, denying that any violence took place and confirming the police investigation was now closed.
"I can confirm I was involved in an unfortunate misunderstanding when I was leaving a club in Mallorca on Sunday, which got out of hand," that statement read.
"Contrary to media reports, there was no violence, no fight and I did not threaten anybody at any stage, with bottles or chairs or anything else.
"I was charged with resisting the law and, following an 'express trial', I have paid a fine of €240. The Spanish police investigation is now closed, and I am flying back to the UK today.
"I will obviously cooperate with the Saracens internal process and unreservedly apologise for any inconvenience to all involved."
Nyeem Young to lead West Indies Academy squad named for Ireland tour
Cricket West Indies (CWI) has unveil the squad selected for the upcoming West Indies Academy tour of Ireland, slated from June 8th to June 29th, 2024.
This tour will comprise five matches, encompassing three 50-over matches and two four-day matches against Ireland’s Emerging Men’s Team. It signifies a reciprocal tour following Ireland's visit to the West Indies in November 2023.
“We continue to be methodical in our approach by exposing our academy players to various opposition and conditions across different formats. This is key to their development and fosters resilience and adaptability," said Miles Bascombe, CWI Director of Cricket.
Nyeem Young will continue as Captain, with Teddy Bishop as Vice-Captain for both formats.
"Nyeem’s leadership qualities have been evident throughout his tenure, notably steering the Academy team during the Super50 and West Indies Championship campaigns. His continued captaincy is a testament to his exceptional leadership skills and contribution to the team,” noted Graeme West, CWI’s High-Performance Manager in reference to Young.
Regarding Bishop's selection as Vice-Captain, West highlights, "Teddy Bishop's elevation to Vice Captaincy underscores his growing stature within the team. His adept handling of leadership responsibilities during Young's absence and his invaluable experience with the West Indies A Team and Senior Teams make him an ideal choice for the role."
The full squad is listed as follows:
Nyeem Young - Captain
Teddy Bishop - Vice Captain
Kadeem Alleyne
Jewel Andrew
Ackeem Auguste
Joshua Bishop
McKenny Clarke
Joshua James
Jordan Johnson
Leonardo Julian
Johann Layne
Ashmead Nedd
Kelvin Pitman
Ramon Simmonds
Carlon Tuckett
Team Management Unit:
Head Coach: Ramesh Subasinghe
Assistant Coach: Rohan Nurse
Physiotherapist: Neil Barry
Strength & Conditioning Coach: Shayne Cooper
Manager & Team Analyst: Kesh Ramphal
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