Click:Chlorine tablet factory When New Zealand face Japan in Tokyo on Saturday, the All Blacks will be thousands of miles away. Dress it up any way you like but by announcing a squad to face the Brave Blossoms featuring eight rookies at almost the precise moment 23 frontline players were boarding a flight to London,…
Author: THEJOHNANTONIOBLOG
My form is having a mental effect on England’s opponents, says Jonny May
At this rate Jonny May might have to consider changing his surname. Nowadays it is less a case of “may” than “will” when the Leicester wing hurtles towards a try-line, to the point where Wales will have to make special plans for England’s prolific flyer in Cardiff this weekend. Give him half a yard and…
Danny Barrett’s brutal brilliance puts USA top of the rugby sevens world
The USA men’s sevens team has found a way to win – or at least to lead – while losing. Twickenham considers NFL-style plan for elite to split into two regions On Sunday, they lost the final of the Cape Town Sevens to the Olympic champions, Fiji, by 29-15. A week before, they lost the…
Nathan Earle’s double helps Harlequins stun Premiership leaders Exeter
Exeter’s director of rugby, Rob Baxter, was magnanimous in defeat after his side suffered their first loss of the Premiership season at the hands of Harlequins in a thriller at the Stoop. Even Leicester are not free from the threat of relegation this winter | Paul Rees Joe Marchant’s crucial late tie swung the game…
Late Bryce Heem try hands Worcester unlikeliest of wins against 11-man Bath
Twenty minutes after time had elapsed, with Bath down to 11 men, Duncan Weir landed the conversion that has secured Worcester a vital edge in this insane relegation battle. Insanity is the word for this finish, Worcester overturning a 16-point half-time deficit at 5.12pm to put four points between them and Newcastle at the bottom…
Gareth Anscombe selection highlights Wales’s adapted Warrenball strategy
A constant of Welsh rugby through the years has been a raging debate about who should play at fly-half. Even Cliff Morgan, Barry John and Phil Bennett had their detractors, but lost in the verbal jousting between Warren Gatland and Eddie Jones this week was the former’s decision to play Gareth Anscombe at 10 against…
Joe Marchant try seals ‘Big Game 11’ victory for Harlequins over Wasps
Harlequins defended for most of the match against their erstwhile neighbours, but outscored Wasps by two tries to one after showing a side to their game that matched their black jerseys. Their snarling, defiant attitude was personified by their hooker Dave Ward who was sent to the sin-bin 10 minutes in for stepping on the…
France full of optimism after youngsters show their class
It might be too early to call them back, but there was something invigorating about watching France dismantle a fellow Six Nations side of pedigree, just a fortnight after they had been dubbed the worst France team of all time. That annihilation to England in round two seems a long way away already, as does…
Kyle Eastmond sees red as hapless Leicester are thumped by Bristol
Leicester were champions five years ago but a slow, gradual descent is gathering speed. They dropped into the bottom half of the table after a feeble, disjointed display against promoted Bristol, who recorded their second-highest Premiership victory after lacing their swashbuckling tendencies with a pinch of pragmatism. The Tigers played the final 56 minutes with…
Kieran Read suggests retirement plans before All Blacks beat Japan 69-31
All Blacks captain Kieran Read has said he is likely to quit international rugby after next year’s World Cup in Japan and take a contract overseas. Read, who turned 33 last week, will line up for his third World Cup next year after helping the All Blacks raise the Webb Ellis trophy in 2011 and 2015. …