A montage on the wall of the Gloucester team room at their Hartpury training base is centred around the acronym B.R.A.V.E. As the club’s fly-half Danny Cipriani ponders his latest omission from an England squad before a confrontation on Sunday at Allianz Park with Saracens and Owen Farrell, one of the players preferred to him,…
Month: March 2019
Leicester sacking of Matt O’Connor described as ‘grossly unfair’ by union
Leicester’s decision to fire Matt O’Connor one match into the Premiership season has been described as “grossly unfair” and part of “a disturbing trend” by the coaches’ union. After firing O’Connor on Monday Leicester have appointed Geordan Murphy on an interim basis and it is believed the Irishman, who spent 16 years at the club…
Premiership provides entertainment but is struggling to boost attendances
Click:national clothing asian costume Some years ago at Cardiff Arms Park, a man was considering a question from a young boy about the difference between the two codes of rugby. Eventually he replied: “It’s like comparing chess and draughts.” Union resembled chess in its greater complexity and tactical variation. League was more like draughts with…
Israel Folau to wing it for Wallabies against Argentina
Israel Folau has been named to make his Wallabies return against Argentina – but not in his usual position. Instead, coach Michael Cheika starts Folau on the right wing for Saturday night’s Rugby Championship clash on the Gold Coast, meaning the in-form Dane Haylett-Petty will remain at fullback. Folau hasn’t started a Test match on…
Premiership clubs likely to agree £240m sale of stake to former F1 owner CVC
Premiership club owners are likely to vote for a proposal to give a minority stake to the private equity firm CVC in return for more than £200m, two months after they turned down a takeover bid. CVC, which held a majority stake in Formula One between 2006 and 2017, came back with a new offer…
Simply signing an All Black is not a golden ticket for European clubs
When Daniel Carter joined Racing 92 after the 2015 World Cup he was treated like rugby royalty. He arrived in Paris to a fanfare, introduced on a prime time television show not as the world’s highest paid union player, as he had become with a contract in excess of £1m a year, but as one…
Pro14 in talks with investors about exploiting its commercial rights
Private equity firms have been talking to the Guinness Pro14 board about investing in the tournament as part of their strategy to exploit untapped broadcasting income in sport. CVC’s Premiership bid may have been rejected but it could signal change | The Breakdown Premiership Rugby last week rejected a takeover bid by the equity firm…
Worcester’s Cornell du Preez unable to talk after throat injury
Cornell du Preez, the Worcester and Scotland back-row, has revealed he is unable to talk and must remain in hospital for the next four weeks as a result of the serious throat injury he sustained on the opening weekend of the Premiership season. Du Preez has undergone multiple operations after he was taken to hospital…
Rugby Australia to consider Michael Cheika’s position as Wallabies coach
Michael Cheika’s fate as Wallabies coach will be determined at a high-stakes Rugby Australia board meeting in Sydney on Monday. But any announcement, or changes to Cheika’s wider coaching panel, are unlikely to be announced until Wednesday at the earliest as the governing body digests the Wallabies’ worst season in 60 years. A coach-less Wallabies…
Tom Pincus snatches late try to lift Bristol and floor Newcastle
Newcastle go into the new year at the bottom of the table after finishing an oscillating game in the seasonally generous mood that they started it. If Bristol’s opening try after 75 seconds was down to a defensive misread in midfield, their winner three minutes from time owed much to a missed tackle by the…