Scotland, Ireland and Wales should be grateful to England for supplying them with ready-made Test players, according to Eddie Jones, following the decision of the Newcastle flanker Gary Graham to abandon his quest for a red rose cap and instead pursue an international career north of Hadrian’s Wall. England’s Eddie Jones to boycott ‘waste of…
Author: THEJOHNANTONIOBLOG
Malcolm Marx comedy of errors undoes South Africa against England
A good big ’un, they say, will always beat a good little ’un. South Africa brought a pack full of giants, but, against all odds, the people who ultimately dragged them to earth were also dressed in green. Had the Springboks taken even half their first-half chances they would have been way out of sight…
Wales flanker Thomas Young to make Six Nations debut against Italy
Thomas Young is in line to make his Six Nations debut for Wales against Italy in Rome on Saturday after impressing during training in Nice. The 26-year-old was picked for the first time by Warren Gatland last month. Young’s caps against Tonga and Samoa in 2017, after he had been in the training group for…
Wales’s George North happy to win ‘ugly or pretty’ against England
‘It does not get any bigger than this” is a catchphrase of a television programme for aspirational cooks, but it will do at the Principality Stadium on Saturday when the ancient rivalry between Wales and England is seasoned by the prospect of the Six Nations title in World Cup year. A third successive victory in…
Joe Schmidt has transformed Irish rugby at every level, says Rory Best
Rory Best hopes Joe Schmidt will commit his long-term future to Ireland. Schmidt’s current deal expires after the 2019 World Cup in Japan but the in-demand head coach has already revealed he will make a decision about his next move before the end of the year. The All Blacks’ secret? Never stand still or you…
England have to match Ireland’s ‘niggly stuff’ in Six Nations, warns Ben Youngs
England’s players believe they have no option but to match Ireland’s “fighting” qualities if they want to make a fast start to the Six Nations. They have not beaten their hosts or even scored a try in their last three visits to Dublin and the scrum-half Ben Youngs has pinpointed the breakdown and aerial contest…
‘The market is very difficult’: Premiership clubs battling for sustainability
The new Premiership season kicks off at Ashton Gate on Friday when promoted Bristol meet Bath. The clubs are run by the two richest men involved in the game, whose combined wealth is more than £2bn, but 21 years on from the tournament’s launch clubs remain mired in debt and the game is still a…
Bernard Foley dropped by Wallabies as Israel Folau proves fitness
Australia coach Michael Cheika sprung a selection surprise by dropping flyhalf Bernard Foley to the bench and installing Kurtley Beale into the playmaker role for Saturday’s Rugby Championship Test against South Africa in Brisbane. Australia opened the tournament with back-to-back defeats to New Zealand and Foley was among a number of Wallabies under pressure following…
Warren Gatland puts faith in Liam Williams at full-back against Springboks
It is a measure of the faith Warren Gatland has in his revitalised Wales that they will go into an autumn international against a tier-one nation without the goal-kicking security of Leigh Halfpenny or Dan Biggar in the starting XV for the first time since 2010 when they face South Africa on Saturday. Wales’ Leigh…
Champions Cup pool-by-pool preview: Burns given chance of redemption
Pool One Bath ready to make unprecedented request for Toulouse replay Freddie Burns gets an instant chance to make amends and starts for Bath at fly-half a week after his horror show against Toulouse. Bath’s other 10, Rhys Priestland, is absent, having picked up a knee ligament injury which has ruled him out for up…