United Rugby Championship

This is where you will find all of The Rugby Paper’s United Rugby Championship news, interviews, reports, opinion and other content.

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Brave fightback falls short

By JOHN FALLON Munster ……… 49 Scarlets ……… 42 DWAYNE Peel threw down the gauntlet to his Scarlets when they trailed 35-7 at the break […]

Hat-trick for hooker Matthews

By BRYN PALMER Glasgow ……….50 Zebre ……………… 8 Johnny Matthews scored a first-half hat-trick as Glasgow maintained their push for a home URC quarter-final with […]

Muldoon in demand

Connacht have launched a bid to take Bristol forwards coach John Muldoon back to Galway, where he made over 300 appearances as a player under […]

Ulstermen show heart in Durban

By DAN GILMORE Sharks ………… 24 Ulster …………… 31 Ulster proved their character with a superb bonus-point win in Durban in this rearranged fixture from […]

Sharks fly-half Curwin Bosch

Bosch guides the way for Sharks

By BEN JAYCOCK Lions ……………… 7 Sharks …………29 Curwin Bosch inspired the Sharks to a crucial bonus-point victory over the struggling Lions at Ellis Park […]

Libbok drops in to seal Stormers win

By SAM JACKSON Bulls …………….19 Stormers ……..23  The Stormers secured a narrow victory at a packed Lotus Versfield to do the double over their South […]

Cardiff ride luck to stay in the race

By ROGER PANTING Cardiff …………….. 30pts Tries: Lane 2, 6; Ratti 49, Thomas 80 Conversions: Thomas 49, 80 Penalties: Thomas 13, 28 Benetton …………. 13pts […]

Leo Cullen

Ruddock leads way for Leinster

By TOM SHEEDY Leinster ………. 43 Dragons ………..14 Leo Cullen praised his men as their second string side maintained their perfect season with a 14th […]

Warriors move into top four

By BRYN PALMER Glasgow ……….17 Ulster …………… 11 Scotland lock Scott Cummings impressed on his return after a three-month lay-off with a broken toe as […]

Connacht head coach Andy Friend

Late try flurry saves Connacht

By JOHN FALLON Zebre …………… 34 Connacht ……..57 Hooker Dylan Tierney-Martin became the fourth Connacht player in a row to score a hat-trick but they […]

Ospreys suffer nine-try mauling

By JOHN FALLON Munster ……….58 Ospreys………….. 3 Ospreys head coach Toby Booth is hopeful that their heaviest defeat ever in the league is an isolated […]

Champion Stormers earn away-day bonus

By BEN JAYCOCK Sharks …………… 19pts Tries: Grobler 38, 69: Jooste 62 Conversions: Bosch 39, 63 Stormers………. 46pts Tries: Jantjies 1, Van Heerden 17, Dweba […]

Smith leads depleted Ospreys

Preview Zebre v Ospreys Today. 3pm PROP Nicky Smith leads a much-changed Ospreys side to face the URC basement boys Zebre. The 28-year-old, who was […]

Ulster are back – O’Connor

By JOHN FALLON Ulster …………..35 Stormers ………. 5 Skipper Alan O’Connor says his Ulster side are back in business after trouncing the champions in Belfast. […]

Double for Brown as Warriors charge on

By PAUL ROSS Dragons ……………28pts Tries: R Williams 15, Tomkinson 18, Basham 56, Coleman 80 Conversions: Hanrahan 16, 19, 57, 80 Glasgow…………. 42pts Tries: Forbes […]

Leinster academy boys step up

By TOM SHEEDY Leinster ………..38 Cardiff …………. 14 Max Deegan praised the attitude of an understrength side as they blew Cardiff away to make it […]

Edinburgh push Sharks all way

By BRYN PALMER Edinburgh ……. 19 Sharks…………..22 Edinburgh came up short in a pulsating contest as their hopes of a top-four finish took a major […]

Connacht cut through Lions

Connacht ……. 43 Lions …………… 24 By JOHN FALLON Hat-trick hero Caolin Blade said this was the perfect way to finish this block of games […]

Drama as Williams steals it at the last

By ROGER PANTING Leicester …………………….. 26pts Tries: van Poortvliet 15, Simmons 48 Conversions: Pollard 15, 48 Penalties: Pollard 3, 19, 67, 69 Ospreys ……………………….. 27pts […]

All over for Sale as Ulster prove worth

By BEN JAYCOCK Ulster …………………………… 22pts Tries: Lyttle 19, Herring 64, Vermeulen 76 Conversions: Cooney 65, 78 Penalties: Doak 38 Sale ………………………………. 11pts Tries: B […]

Classy Leinster put Gloucester to sword

By ROGER PANTING Gloucester ……………………14pts Tries: Penalty 25, 64 Leinster……………………….. 49pts Tries: Larmour 4, Ala’alatoa 11, Osborne 27, Doris 40, Keenan 46, van der Flier […]

Rhyno makes Ulster suffer

By KEVIN FALLON Benetton …….. 31 Ulster ……………29 Ulster’s mid-season crisis deepened when they fell to a fifth defeat in six games in the URC […]

Misery for Cardiff as Scarlets triumph

By ROGER PANTING Cardiff ……………..22pts Tries: Faletau 35, Carre 48, Adams 63 Conversions: Evans 35, 48 Penalties: Evans 2 Scarlets …………..28pts Tries: Blacker 3, McNicholl […]

Dai Young

Young fears Wales exodus

Some of Wales’ brightest stars are being allowed to fall through the cracks, while the WRU has leant heavily on player loyalty as its financial […]

Weir keeps his cool to guide Glasgow home

By HAMISH STUART Bath………………….. 19pts Tries: White 22, Lee-Warner 28, Gallagher 61 Conversions: Francis 29, 62 Glasgow……………22pts Tries: Bean 3, Turner 15, Jones 38 Conversions: […]

Warriors end long wait for away win

By BRYN PALMER Zebre ……………. 17 Glasgow………. 45 Glasgow ended a run of 10 consecutive away URC defeats with victory over winless Zebre. After a […]

Porter leads Leinster revival

By KEVIN FALLON Leinster ………..38 Ulster…………….29 Andrew Porter produced a superb display off the bench as Leinster came from 19 points adrift to score a […]

Hard work paying off for Connacht

By JOHN FALLON Connacht ……..38 Benetton………. 19 Connacht’s superb No.8 Paul Boyle was delighted that they finally made chances count as they chalked up a […]

Quickfire 21 puts Munster in control

By BRYN PALMER Edinburgh…….. 17 Munster………..38 Munster’s five-try win, featuring 21 unanswered points from 17-7 down just before half-time, provided more evidence of a corner […]