Beneath all the mud and muck, you can just about make out the faded “England 2015” branding the RFU put up around Twickenham for the last World Cup. No doubt they have tried to scrub it out, along with almost everything else that happened in that tournament, but the shadows of the letters are still…
Author: THEJOHNANTONIOBLOG
Even Leicester are not free from the threat of relegation this winter
Premiership clubs are swelled this weekend by the return of their international players, most of whom are thrust straight back into action in a season when the battle to avoid relegation looks like overshadowing the race for the top. Nathan Earle’s double helps Harlequins stun Premiership leaders Exeter Exeter and Saracens have built up such…
Henry Slade scores twice as England stun Ireland in Six Nations
England may have won a grand slam and a Six Nations title under Eddie Jones as well as a series in Australia, but this was their first performance under him when they looked like a team capable of toppling New Zealand at the top of the world rankings. Ireland, the champions who in the past…
Wallabies make four changes as they look to improve Bledisloe Cup set-piece
Props Tom Robertson and Sekope Kepu have paid the price for Australia’s poorly performing scrum by being dropped to the bench for the second Bledisloe Cup-Rugby Championship clash with New Zealand at Eden Park on Saturday. Regular first-choice loosehead prop Scott Sio, who was injured and missed last week’s 38-13 loss to the All Blacks,…
Target the lineout and slow it down: how England can beat the All Blacks
Kick to back three – if you can contest Steve Hansen’s team selection gives us an idea of where New Zealand’s mindset is. I know they have been wanting to field two playmakers for a while and with Damian McKenzie at full-back it takes a bit of the load off Beauden Barrett. McKenzie is another…
Owen Farrell may be co-captain but Dylan Hartley will be in charge
Will co-captains lead to co-ckups? Eddie Jones was asked the question – though not in so many words – after announcing that Dylan Hartley and Owen Farrell will be England’s joint leaders until the end of the side’s involvement in the World Cup next year. Co-captains have become common in recent seasons: Jones put Chris…
Lawyer calls for independent panel to analyse injury trends in English rugby
English rugby should set up an independent medical panel to analyse injury trends in the professional game and suggest ways of minimising risk to players to help insulate clubs, and the Rugby Football Union, from legal action in the future, according to a leading negligence lawyer. From 2019-20, campaigns will last longer but players will…
Super Rugby final points way for Wallabies in Bledisloe opener
As Australia prepare for Saturday’s opening Bledisloe Cup Test against the All Blacks in Sydney, the recent Super Rugby final between the Crusaders and the Lions should be compulsory viewing in the Wallabies’ team room. The Crusaders’ 37-18 win in Christchurch two weeks ago might just have shown the Wallabies what to do – and…
Warren Gatland’s Wales head to Rome with another record on their minds
Warren Gatland predicted this would be Wales’s toughest game of the Six Nations. He claimed that if Wales beat France in Paris they would have a great chance of winning the championship. He is right. Having pulled off the biggest comeback in Championship history with their extraordinary 24-19 victory, Wales swan off to the Riviera…
Twickenham considers NFL-style plan for elite to split into two regions
The Rugby Football Union has proposed expanding the Premiership to 16 teams – split into two conferences – to resolve the continuing debate over promotion and relegation. Nigel Melville, the interim RFU chief executive, believes a move towards an American model, dividing the league along geographical boundaries, would answer the long-standing issue of whether to…