People say love comes in different shapes and sizes, and in Wales on Saturday it will be 6ft 3in and 20st 7lb. Billy Vunipola says he wants to show the Welsh just how much he cares by helping England win at the Principality Stadium. No joke. Vunipola moved to Wales when he was six years…
Author: THEJOHNANTONIOBLOG
Six Nations relegation not on the agenda, tournament organisers say
Relegation from the Six Nations has been dismissed as “absolutely not on the agenda” by tournament organisers despite ongoing talks over the significant remodelling of the international game. Chief executives of the leading unions met in Los Angeles this week to discuss the creation of a new world league, made up of the leading 12…
Eddie Jones stands by Owen Farrell over controversial Australia tackle
Eddie Jones has defended Owen Farrell’s controversial tackling technique after another lucky escape for his co-captain against Australia, insisting: “I like people being hit hard.” Owen Farrell has got away with it twice – he won’t a third time | Nick Evans The Australia head coach, Michael Cheika, was furious his side were not awarded…
England 44-8 France: Six Nations player ratings from Twickenham
England Elliot Daly 8 Getting better at full-back, with the pace to spot gaps and go through them. Kicked well to boot. Chris Ashton 7 Did not take him long to come off his wing to look for work. Clever grubber for May’s third score and forced the penalty try. Will be disappointed not to…
Steve Hansen was right, Ireland really are the world’s best rugby union team
Steve Hansen at his most animated is deadpan, so when he called Ireland the best team in the world after they had beaten New Zealand, who remained at the top of the rankings, he was hard to scrutinise. Was he paying ritual homage to be seen to be magnanimous in defeat or did he, teeth…
Exeter look to outmuscle Saracens when Premiership top two collide
Exeter believe they possess both the muscle and the mental strength to stop Saracens’ front-row tanks in their tracks when the top two sides in the Premiership meet at Sandy Park on Saturday afternoon. Saracens are top of the table and unbeaten in 22 games in all competitions but their forwards can expect a heavy-duty…
Wales on course for grand slam as late tries shatter England
From the sublime to the submerged. England, imperious in the Six Nations’ first two rounds, drowned under a tidal wave of emotion as Wales launched a second-half comeback to achieve their 12th successive victory and break a record that had stood for more than a century. It was a breathless, tactical, titanic battle that turned…
Australia’s tough year can end on high if history repeats itself in Wales
When Wales were thrashed by New Zealand in the 1987 World Cup semi-final, their then manager, Clive Rowlands, remarked that all was not lost, they could fall back on beating England at Cardiff. They always did then with their neighbours not tasting success at the old Arms Park for 28 years from 1963. The former…
Jonny May’s sore shoulder will not rule him out of England autumn Tests
Jonny May is set to be fit for England’s four-Test autumn campaign, which begins against South Africa next month, but the shoulder injury he sustained during Leicester’s 23-15 victory against Northampton at Twickenham may rule him out of his club’s opening two Champions Cup fixtures. Jonny May injury mars Leicester’s dismantling of Northampton May left…
Dan Biggar’s boot helps Northampton stun leaders Exeter in thriller
Northampton sent a shock through the Premiership on Friday when they beat the leaders, Exeter, 31-28 at Franklin’s Gardens. It was Exeter’s second defeat of the season while Saints made their mark without Dylan Hartley, who has a knee injury. The hosts scored tries through Piers Francis, Dan Biggar, Fraser Dingwall and Cobus Reinach, with…