Stuart Lancaster has revealed he has not given any thought to the prospect of replacing Eddie Jones for a second spell as the England coach. Lancaster’s contract with Leinster runs out at the end of the season and, while he confirmed the province has opened talks over an extension, a place on Andy Farrell’s coaching…
Category: Rugby
Mãori All Blacks beat US Eagles as Soldier Field sees three thrashings
The US Eagles advanced to meet the haka at Soldier Field, following the Stars and Stripes and drawing a roar from a keen home crowd. The game that followed was at times similarly fiery but, missing key players through injury and unavailability, the Americans were unable to sustain the challenge and capitalise on three yellow…
The All Blacks will provide the acid test for north’s leading lights
“You want to be out there when the lights are on,” said Australia’s captain, Michael Hooper, during the build-up to the Test against New Zealand in Yokohama , explaining that the Wallabies’ slump since reaching the 2015 World Cup final was not down to a withering of competitiveness or desire. The lights will be on…
European club rugby surprises may offer barometer in World Cup year
The result of a weekend in Europe that kicked convention high into the stand came in Paris, where a Worcester side laced with academy players achieved a bonus-point Challenge Cup victory over Stade Français, who lie second in the Top 14. Europe, in the form of the Champions Cup, is regarded as being close to…
Ollie Thorley’s brilliance helps Gloucester humble Exeter Chiefs
They have cracked this Premiership malarkey, but still Europe confounds Exeter. With this defeat, the Chiefs are all but out. It will feel just as painful to have been thus dismissed, within the walls of their own fortress, by Gloucester, familiar old Gloucester, against whom they know well the taste of victory. “That’s the big…
Rugby union: talking points from the Premiership’s opening weekend
1) Skelton shows promise for Sarries There are plenty of high-profile fixtures heading to Newcastle over the next 12 months, with the city to host this season’s European Champions Cup final and England’s final warm-up game prior to the 2019 Rugby World Cup, which will be confirmed this week for a Friday night at St…
How beers, soap and a stepladder laid way for Eddie Jones’ Ireland triumph
Click:微信开通批量筛选 After a performance such as England’s in Dublin on Saturday there is always the temptation to look back on it in the context of history. Their best under Eddie Jones? Without doubt. The best on their travels since Clive Woodward’s days? Quite possibly. How, then, was it that England reached such high standards for…
All Blacks are ‘freshest we’ve been’, says assistant coach Ian Foster
The All Blacks assistant coach, Ian Foster, believes the players selected to face England on Saturday will be the best prepared they have ever been for a northern hemisphere tour and denied that Beauden Barrett’s goalkicking at fly-half was an area of concern. Foster compared New Zealand’s well-rested first-choice squad – who arrived three days…
Lawes ruled out as George admits England fell for Wales’s wind-up tactics
England’s hopes of winning the Six Nations took a further blow on Sunday night when Courtney Lawes was ruled out for the rest of the tournament. Lawes suffered a calf strain in England’s 21-13 defeat by Wales on Saturday and is expected to be sidelined for at least four weeks. Lawes was among England’s most…
Owen Farrell gets England nod at fly-half for South Africa showdown
Owen Farrell will start at fly-half in a reshuffled England line-up to face South Africa at Twickenham on Saturday. There are seven changes in addition to Farrell’s positional switch from inside centre from England’s last outing against the Springboks in Cape Town in June. It is only the third time Farrell has been handed the…