When Richard Wigglesworth made his Premiership debut England were months away from winning the World Cup, Sir Clive Woodward was still plain old Clive and doing your extras meant one for the road. At a time when grand statements about the game are 10 a penny – some say it has gone soft, others that…
Month: March 2019
Northampton up and running as Dylan Hartley try helps beat Harlequins
Dylan Hartley gave the watching Eddie Jones some timely encouragement by scoring his first Premiership try since December last year to help Northampton secure their opening win of the new season. The Saints were also indebted to 17 points from the boot of Welsh fly-half Dan Biggar, which proved enough to stifle a second-half rally…
Sam Underhill’s injury takes the edge off Bath’s victory over Leicester
All of sudden things are looking up for Bath. Back-to-back victories, the latest gutsy but every bit deserved, put them fifth going into the new year and with a spring in their step, even if Sam Underhill’s ankle injury ensures optimism must be tempered. Sale’s Steve Diamond embroiled in media fracas after win at Gloucester…
Former captain Will Carling to bring leadership qualities to England
It is precisely 30 years since English rugby first turned to Will Carling for fresh inspiration, and sporting history is repeating itself. England’s injury list is not quite lengthy enough to necessitate a playing recall for the former national captain but, as of next week, the 52-year-old will be joining Eddie Jones’s backroom team as…
Warren Gatland hopes Rhys Webb will be available for Wales at World Cup
Warren Gatland has not abandoned hope of being able to select his Lions scrum-half Rhys Webb for the World Cup next year. Under an agreement between the Welsh Rugby Union and its four regions, the 29-year-old Webb is an outcast at international level after turning down the opportunity to remain in Wales and joining Toulon…
England Women hope ‘revolutionary’ contracts will drive World Cup charge
It has taken a while but, for richer or poorer, the Rugby Football Union has finally taken the plunge and made a long-term commitment to its top female players. If the announcement of 28 professional 15-a-side contracts is not a strictly ground-breaking development, the implications are sizeable. Not for nothing did Simon Middleton, England’s head…
Leinster strengthen Champions Cup credentials with 27-point win over Bath
The two greatest teams of European rugby, with four titles apiece, will now go head to head at the top of Pool 1. Leinster remain the favourites, despite trailing Toulouse by two points. The Irishmen were unplayable on Saturday, dismissing Bath with enough ease to look contemptuous. Theirs is home advantage in the next round…
Sale captain Jono Ross: it’s far too early to talk about relegation
It may be too early in the season to describe Sunday’s meeting of Leicester and Sale at Welford Road as an eight-pointer but with the Manchester club starting the fifth round at the bottom of the Premiership and the Tigers having the worst defensive record after the opening four rounds, there will be little comfort…
Bristol no pushovers as Ian Madigan punishes Quins’ ill-discipline
They are not going to be easy to beat here. Bristol’s second home match of their return to the Premiership did not throb with the intensity of their first, but on a relentlessly wet day they showed they could play with a panache to match the passion. Time and again, though, they spilt the slippery…
Duncan Weir rampant as Worcester undo Leicester’s comeback at the last
For a club with Leicester’s proud history and rich tradition these are concerning days. Beaten at home by the Premiership’s bottom club, four tries conceded inside the first 36 minutes and booed off by sections of the crowd at half-time. A stirring second‑half revival could not mask the grim fact the Tigers have shipped 40…