Nick Cain

This is where you will find all of The Rugby Paper’s Nick Cain news, views, opinion and other content.

Bill Beaumont needs to show clear thinking

22 December 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week Bill Beaumont is stepping into a saloon in which the tables and chairs have been […]

Ring fence has made English rugby go soft

15 December 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week The most positive aspect to come out of the opening round of the European Cup […]

My British & Irish Lions team are ready for take-off

8 December 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week… There is a view that picking a Lions Test team almost seven months before the […]

Pressure builds on RFU chief to resign

1 December 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain Tom Ilube’s tenure as RFU Board Chairman, and his financial credentials, will come under increased scrutiny with the news that Crossword Cybersecurity […]

It’s time for a root and branch clearout at RFU

1 December 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week In what sort of world does the wage packet of one administrator in a sports […]

Steve Borthwick can’t afford another run of failure

24 November 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week When it comes to “jam tomorrow” England teams have produced more jars of it than […]

Mega-league plan will have to overcome huge hurdles

17 November 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week If 200 of the world’s highest-paid players are about to join the rugby union version […]

Simon Gillham must get justice for the Championship

17 November 2024 0 comments

Simon Gillham’s arrival as chair of the Championship/Tier 2 Board should be good news for English club rugby. Gillham, below, who spent 20 years in […]

Building blocks for England’s future

17 November 2024 0 comments

England A’s fixture against their Australian counterparts at The Stoop at 2pm today is an essential building block for any head coach to assess the […]

Steve Borthwick’s bench policy needs work

10 November 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week The bench miscalculations cooking England’s goose in the final quarter of matches is coming full […]

Aussies are hurt by own protectionism

3 November 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week Whether the Wallabies emerge with a Grand Slam or a slump of almighty proportions – […]

Steve Borthwick needs strength in depth

27 October 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week The 17 RFU central contracts announced by Steve Borthwick on Friday pale into insignificance compared […]

Time for England to walk the walk

20 October 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain Right here, right now, English rugby union craves forward momentum. It needs something to knock the negatives surrounding our sport into the […]

Will Collier shows what England are missing

13 October 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week Will Collier’s command performance for Castres against Toulouse in the Top 14 last weekend should […]

Steve Borthwick should call up these young props

6 October 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week It was surprising that neither of England’s U20 world champion props, Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale) or […]

Minimum standards criteria must apply to all

29 September 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain – Read his expert opinion every week Do title-chasing Bath – and other top tier clubs – meet the Premiership’s own ground […]

Once again, the RFU is failing second tier

22 September 2024 0 comments

By Nick Cain READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK A new English season starts this weekend with strife and frustration in the late September air. […]

It’s time for Itoje to stand up and prove his worth

8 September 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK Tough task: Maro Itoje will have to be at his best to lead Saracens to success in […]

England must find answers …and fast

1 September 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK Left in the lurch: England boss Steve Borthwick and, inset, Felix Jones, left, and Aled Walters PICTURES: […]

It’s time to call for three-man scrum

25 August 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK Uncontested scrums are a blight on the fifteens game, and my solution to get rid of them […]

An age-old problem for Farrell and Lions

18 August 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK ‘Dad’s Army’: Bundee Aki will be 35 when the Lions arrive in Australia. PICTURES: Getty Images Head […]

Poor terrestrial coverage is doing the game no favours

18 August 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN THE NFL has infiltrated free-to-air broadcast channels in the UK, such as the BBC and ITV, using weekly content like ‘The NFL Show’ […]

Erasmus now the creator supreme

18 August 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN RASSIE Erasmus is a breath of fresh air, a coach who combines innovative out-of-the-box thinking with a detailed understanding of the core strengths […]

A sporting heritage that needs protection

11 August 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK WHAT’S in a name? A huge amount if you consider what Wembley means to football fans, the […]

Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies will provide a tough test for Lions

4 August 2024 0 comments

Nick Cain gives his thoughts on the 2025 British Lions series against Australia, saying the Aussies will be hard to beat under Joe Schmidt.

France show us how to do it – again

4 August 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN THE 2024 Olympic Sevens was a massive showcase for Antoine Dupont’s extraordinary sporting talent, but also for rugby union, not just in France, […]

Build the future on front row brilliance

28 July 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK THE England U20 scrum is the best in the world, and in winning the 2024 U20 World […]

England need to beat the big boys

21 July 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK It is intriguing to see England being touted already as serious 2027 World Cup contenders on the […]

Overseas stars are blocking new talent

14 July 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK There is a double standard in English rugby that stands out as a carbuncle-like sign of the […]

RFU still has urgent questions to answer

7 July 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK The biggest story of the season in the domestic game in England came three weeks ago when […]

Time for England’s rock-steady crew

30 June 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK NOW comes the acid test of England’s attacking progress. When Steve Borthwick side face New Zealand in […]

Warriors deserved to take the glory

30 June 2024 0 comments

Glasgow Warriors’ 21-16 win over the Bulls in Pretoria to clinch the URC title has earned them deserved accolades after outscoring the home side by […]

Mistake to select Tom and not Ted

16 June 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK Ted Hill must be wondering what else he has to do to get back into an England […]

All Blacks will be ready to roll

16 June 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN Rumours that New Zealand are in a state of flux heading into their two-Test summer series against England should be handled with care. […]

Return of relegation is reason to cheer

16 June 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN The restoration of promotion and relegation, which this column has advocated non-stop since the RFU’s ring-fence moratorium in 2021, is cause for celebration. […]

Hotshot Hendy seizes the day

9 June 2024 0 comments

By NICK CAIN at Twickenham Northampton Saints….. 25pts Tries: Freeman 24, Sleightholme 28, Mitchell 73 Conversions: Smith 24, Furbank 75 Penalties: Furbank 48 Drop goals: […]

Borthwick needs a clear direction

9 June 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK The fog around England’s take-off as an attacking force in the latter stages of the Six Nations […]

McCaw’s vision for harmony

2 June 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK If the current power struggle in New Zealand rugby intensifies, with the NZRPA and the provincial unions […]

Only one full house in ‘greatest season’ finale

2 June 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN Here’s something for the RFU mandarins and Premiership owners who are hell-bent on keeping England’s top league ring-fenced to ponder. The greatest Premiership […]

Sorry, but that’s not all right, Jacques

2 June 2024 0 comments

A great European Cup final last weekend had only one blemish, when the limp attempt to tighten the rules around water-carriers made by World Rugby […]

Collier fits the bill for NZ challenge

26 May 2024 0 comments

READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK England finished the Six Nations with a resurgence, but their next destination, New Zealand, is usually a Red Rose […]

Lawes still has Lions in his sights

26 May 2024 0 comments

Courtney Lawes was typically modest when he was presented with the Rugby Union Writers Club’s prestigious Pat Marshall Award as the outstanding Rugby Personality of […]

Diamond Dupont is surrounded by stars

26 May 2024 0 comments

Match-winning moments, men, and money is what sets Toulouse apart. Foremost among those men is Antoine Dupont, whose brilliance earned him both man-of-the-match and player […]

Diamond’s rough support loses sparkle

19 May 2024 0 comments

By NICK CAIN What makes this season even more of a travesty is that Steve Diamond, Newcastle’s consultant rugby director, who reiterated his support for […]

Top flight losing its soul, and integrity

19 May 2024 1 comment

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK GLOUCESTER’S 90-0 capitulation to Northampton at Franklin’s Gardens last weekend reflected all that is rotten about a […]

Time to put an end to marquee players

12 May 2024 0 comments

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK ARE marquee players, or coaches, worth it, or are they just a Premiership owners’ vanity project? Judging […]

Mistake to reduce value of the scrum

12 May 2024 0 comments

The danger World Rugby’s high-handed law-makers face with their insistence on trying to marginalise the scrum is that it could easily lead to non-compliance, and […]

Calling MPs will add to pressure

12 May 2024 0 comments

The decision of Championship clubs to contact their local MPs to ask for Government to mediate in its gridlocked negotiations with the RFU/Premiership, is putting […]