Rugby World Cup Shorts: Bearded brothers

Canada's Adam Kleeberger (left) and Davy Jones. Photos / Supplied

Separated at birth I

Heavily bearded Canadian Adam Kleeberger has impressed us during the World Cup. But did he miss his true calling? Surely the maple-syrup lover was destined to have a role in the Pirates of the Carribbean movies as the long-lost brother of Davy Jones.

Separated at birth II

Canadian centre Ryan Smith says the heavy beardage carried by the players has been a secret of the squad's popularity. "It helps we have a bunch of guys who look like homeless guys and a bunch of blue-collar guys putting in the hard work."

Getting worse

England wing Chris Ashton bagged the winning try on Saturday night in a match that was typical of the red-rose brigades clashes with Scotland: ie, it was awful to behold. "I reckon it was 60 minutes in before I touched the ball," said the high-diving tryscorer. "I was running around hitting a lot of breakdowns, which I'm not very good at. The first touch was a kick to the corner, the second was another kick and the third was a try. But I've got to get used to it because these games are only going to get worse."

Worse? Oh dear ...

A supporter!The Guardian didn't like our coverage of Scotland's woeful defeat to Argentina (they particularly took issue with the headline, "Pumas win a battle of dreary attrition"). To the Poms, the match was a thriller "that could have been scripted by Hitchcock" (and directed by Ed Wood perhaps). Reader Rob Harris drops us a line and nails the fundamental problem with Scottish rugby: "I was at the Argentina v Scotland game and can report that the Scottish team feels that the rugby game is played between the touchlines not the goal lines." Well said, that man.

Tweet of the day

Heavily dimpled Will Carling gets all warm and fuzzy about the departure of the All Blacks playmaker: "Very sad about Dan Carter. Brilliant player, humble guy and one of the most likeable. He would have been brilliant on the biggest stage."Getting the scoop IEmbittered print media hacks often lament the fact that TV journos get the best access to the big-name players.

The TV secret?

Here's Melodie Robinson putting the hard word to All Black captain Richie McCaw:

"Your foot. You're obviously not playing today, but do you need me to massage your foot or something?"

Getting the scoop II

To her credit, Robinson blanked PM John Key live on national television, asking the nation's most feverish jock sniffer: "Is it Key or Keys?"