Greig Laidlaw cannot wait to see the outcome as Scotland prepare to use all of their attacking weapons against Argentina in their final November outing. Wales feeling the pressure of closing gap on born-again Springboks | Paul Rees Gregor Townsend has decided to take the reins off his side after naming a back division that…
Month: March 2019
England’s Eddie Jones to make late call over Manu Tuilagi for Australia Test
Eddie Jones was on Wednesday night set to make a late decision on whether to play Manu Tuilagi against Australia on Saturday. The centre has not played for England for more than two-and-a-half years but took part in a make-or-break training session on Wednesday with Jones mulling over whether to include the heavyweight Tuilagi when…
Wales need strong attack to win World Cup, says defence coach Shaun Edwards
Shaun Edwards believes Wales’s formidable defence alone will not be enough to win next year’s World Cup but that the squad are the strongest he has known. The defence coach’s side will travel to Japan third in the world rankings after a run of nine victories. They conceded an average of 14.7 points in 12…
Kevin-Prince Boateng raps, Vuelta memories and managerial meltdowns
1) The Vuelta a España, the third and last of cycling’s Grand Tours of 2018 gets started on Saturday with a time trial in Málaga. Last year, the race was won by Chris Froome, who won’t be in Spain to defend the red jersey. Philippa York, then known as Robert Millar, recalls here the heartbreaking…
Eddie Jones urges England to show France no mercy in Six Nations clash
England’s players have been urged to show no mercy to France at Twickenham and to reach an even higher level than they achieved in their opening Six Nations game in Ireland last Saturday. The head coach, Eddie Jones, and the captain, Owen Farrell, both sense there is further improvement to be made and believe complacency…
Ben Ryan: ‘If rugby were a company people would be comparing it to an Enron’
Click:Semi-automatic laser cutting machine If you love rugby union what follows will be a tough read. According to one of the world’s leading coaches, however, the time has come for the sport to get real. “If rugby were a company people would be comparing it to an Enron,” says Ben Ryan, Fiji’s Olympic gold-medal winning…
Premiership clubs seek talks with RFU over ending promotion and relegation
The owners of Premiership clubs are seeking talks with the Rugby Football Union over ending promotion and relegation in England’s top flight. Fears had been raised about England’s top clubs forcing a breakaway but the league’s governing body, Premiership Rugby, has pledged to thrash out a way forward with the RFU. Taking rugby into Star…
Gregor Townsend bullish over Scotland chances but hails ‘outstanding’ France
Gregor Townsend believes opportunity knocks for Scotland in Paris despite his side being denied the services of a string of key performers. The stand-off Finn Russell, the full-back Stuart Hogg, the centre Huw Jones and the back-rower Ryan Wilson have all been ruled out of Saturday’s match against France as Townsend’s injury woes continue to…
Premiership’s cash injection could hit fans, players and lower-tier clubs
“Money love can help you on, heal you and sustain you, but never turn your back upon, how money love it can change you.” So sang Brian Protheroe in 1974 and money has certainly changed rugby union in the last 24 years. As the 12 Premiership clubs, along with London Irish, plot how to spend…
Sergio Parisse has lost 100 times but says Italy are not making up numbers
If it is true you learn more about yourself when you lose, there cannot be much left for Sergio Parisse to discover. Parisse has played in 134 Tests for Italy and lost 100 of them. From the first, 64-10 to the All Blacks in Hamilton way back in 2002, to the last, 29-27 to Scotland…