Springboks raise the bar

South Africa rout Namibia 87-0 at the rugby World Cup to all but ensure a quarterfinal spot

Bryan Habana finally claimed the South African record as their highest try scorer as the Springboks thrashed Namibia to all but qualify for the quarterfinals,while New Zealand experienced a rare burst of paparazzi activity with the arrival of British royalty.

Habana,who had not scored a try since June 2010,finally scored his 39th career try in the 22nd minute of the 87-0 rout at North Harbour Stadium and moved ahead of the retired Joost van der Westhuizen. He was not able to get on the scoresheet again,however,as the world champions ran riot in the final 20 minutes to notch up 12 tries in total in the highest score so far in the seventh edition of the World Cup.

We are making progress. Tonight was a good run out, South African captain John smit said. Our first 40 we got sucked into a few bad habits. Probably a bit too loose too early. At half time we refocused and stuck to our guns and got into a bit more shape and got a bit more reward in the second half.

Royal presence

While the tournament did not receive any official royal activity,the arrival of Zara Phillips,the Queens grand-daughter and wife of England rugby player Mike Tindall,created a buzz after her husbands well-publicised night out in Queenstown last week.

Tindall,who was named in the England side to face Romania on Saturday,also faced the media for the first time since his now-infamous night out,featuring a mystery blonde and the Mad Midget Weekender. British tabloid press had featured the evening out after a video from security cameras was leaked on the Internet.

Scotland sprung a surprise when they chose not to include World Cup captain Alastair Kellock in their team to play Argentina in their match,which is likely to decide who finishes second in Pool B. Coach Andy Robinson said that with prop Euan Murray unavailable for Sundays match,the Scots needed a bigger lock behind tighthead prop Geoff Cross,hence the decision to name Jim Hamilton.

Hamiltons inclusion required a more athletic lock,Richie Gray,to play the open game they wanted to use against the Pumas, Robinson said. To be fair to Alastair,as always,hes taken it very well, Robinson said. Hes an outstanding character. This is phase two of our operation in the World Cup and weve got two games to win.

Hundred international caps

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THERE were no such concerns for Richie McCaw,who will become the first New Zealand player to win 100 test caps as he was named to lead what is arguably the strongest All Blacks side available against France on Saturday. McCaw had been expected to achieve the milestone last week against Japan but was a late withdrawal when he suffered a mild calf strain at training.

Fiji flanker Dominiko Waqaniburotu,meanwhile,appealed his three-match ban for a dangerous tackle in their match against South Africa last week. The hearing will be held on Saturday. Waqaniburotus ban meant he would not be allowed to play again until after the quarter-finals,effectively ruling him out of the World Cup unless the Fijians went on an unlikely run to the last four.

Fiji play fellow Pacific islanders Samoa at Eden Park on Sunday and Wales in Hamilton on Oct. 2. They must win both to give themselves a chance of making the quarter-finals.