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All Blacks complete the Grand Slam
 Gear pounces for the first of his two tries at Murrayfield EDINBURGH, Scotland -- New Zealand completed a memorable year and a Grand Slam of wins over the four unions of the British Isles with a 29-10 defeat of Scotland at Murrayfield. After demolishing Wales and Ireland and battling to victory over world champions England at Twickenham, Graham Henry's squad head home with their credentials as the world's best side unquestioned. They are only the second New Zealand team to complete the Grand Slam and they have emulated their 1978 predecessors in a year that also saw them win all three of Tests in a home series against the British and Irish Lions. In 12 Tests during 2005, New Zealand tasted defeat only once, to South Africa in Cape Town in August, and that setback did not prevent them from bouncing back to claim the Tri-Nations title. Understandably, there was more than a hint of weariness about the performance at Murrayfield, particularly as they were pinned back for long periods in the second half. It was not until winger Rico Gear touched down for his second try of the afternoon, five minutes from the end, that they managed to add to their 22-3 half-time lead. But Henry's tour objective of developing a core of players for the 2007 World Cup was well served, notably by an assured debut from teenager Isaia Toeava at full-back and the contribution of flyhalf Nick Evans, who provided 12 points, including a well-taken try. As the weakest of the four sides the All Blacks have faced this month, Scotland were never likely to spoil the party in what may have been New Zealand captain Tana Umaga's final outing in the famous shirt. The Scots went ahead through Chris Paterson's penalty after flanker Angus MacDonald strayed offside. But they found themselves under immediate pressure from the restart. Scrum-half Piri Weepu's angled grubber kick allowed Rico Gear to register their first score, the video official confirming that the winger had got his hands on the ball at full stretch in the right-hand corner. The same official denied Scotland a possible pushover try after a brief flurry of encouraging pressure. But it was soon business as usual for the All Blacks, a demonstration of their unrivalled recycling of possession ending with Nick Evans breaking through to register his first Test try, under the posts. Cusiter blowScotland's cause was not helped by the loss of scrum-half Chris Cusiter to injury with barely 20 minutes gone and New Zealand were able to extend their lead further when his replacement, Mike Blair, was penalized for not releasing under his own posts. Evans slotted that one over and was then the architect of his side's third try. After starting the move with a 50-meter breakout following a lineout yards from his own line, the flyhalf exposed the Scots with a chip into the arms of Isaia Toeava. The fullback's pass inside was not gathered by James Ryan but the juggling lock's third touched popped the ball up into the path of Sione Lauaki and the number eight powered over for a try that Evans converted. Scotland's best period of the match came after the restart, the highlight provided by Sean Lamont's thrilling 80-meter breakout from under his own posts. The Northampton winger was denied a memorable try only by Umaga's perfectly-timed tackle that may have been his last significant act of an illustrious All Black career. After Gear had extended New Zealand's lead, Scotland's second half fightback was finally rewarded when Simon Webster touched down with a minute left. France victoryFrance scored two tries in the first 10 minutes and held off South Africa 26-20 in an international played late Saturday at the Stade de France in Paris. Early tries by Dimitri Szarzewski and Frederic Michalak helped France lead 15-0, though captain Jerome Thion left shortly afterward from an elbow in the face by South African counterpart John Smit. The home side led 18-3 soon after the interval, but South Africa closed to 26-20 with five minutes remaining. France's victory, only the ninth in 35 Tests with the Springboks, gave each side a win, loss and draw against each other this year. France toured South Africa in June. The home side also completed a sweep of home internationals this month, following wins over Australia, Canada and Tonga. France was the only northern hemisphere host to beat two of the southern powers this month, a major boost ahead of the Six Nations later this winter. France couldn't have asked for a better start. Flanker Yannick Nyanga broke three tackles, and prop Szarzewski finished off in the fourth minute. Five minutes later, the Springboks crumbled under pressure when flyhalf Michalak intercepted a wayward pass in midfield, ran sixty meters, held off a tackle, and his momentum took him over the line. Jean-Baptiste Elissalde couldn't convert, but he put over the penalty for the foul on Thion to make it 15-0. France's backs cut through the South African defense with ease at times and, following a darting run and pass from fullback Thomas Castaignede, center Yannick Jauzion appeared certain to score but fumbled. The Springboks exerted little pressure despite Victor Matfield pinching four French lineout throw-ins, and their only points of the half came from a Percy Montgomery penalty in front of the posts in the 37th minute. Michalak's second drop goal attempt of three hit the post and the teams went to the dressing rooms with France 15-3 ahead. Another Elissalde penalty put France further ahead at 18-3 before South Africa finally found some slack home defense. Lock Bakkies Botha found space down the right touch and he rode one tackle for a converted try, pulling South Africa back to 18-10. Then a wonderful moment of inspiration from Elissalde created France's third try in the 48th. Around 10 meters from the line, he dummied and deftly kicked the ball between two South African players, allowing right winger Aurelien Rougerie to gather and score for 23-10. After Montgomery missed an easy penalty kick, flyhalf Meyer Bosman hit a long-range shot to reduce the deficit to 10. A Michalak penalty restored the gap to 13 going into the last quarter, and South Africa spurned penalty chances to set up attacking lineouts for tries. It finally worked when Bosman fed an angling Jaque Fourie, who crossed untouched for a converted try. 
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