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Conor O’Shea challenges Harlequins to become a great team

31 August 2012 2 comments

Good teams win titles, but great teams back it up time and again. That is the view of Harlequins‘ head honcho Conor O’Shea as his […]

RFU Championship Preview: team by team

31 August 2012 0 comments

Bedford Blues The shortening of the play-off format from a top eight to a top four will assist part-time outfit Bedford Blues’ quest for promotion […]

Maxime Mermoz joined with Jonny Wilkinson at Toulon to win titles

31 August 2012 0 comments

After four years at Perpignan, centre Maxime Mermoz says he switched to the other side of the Mediterranean coast to join Toulon with one thing […]

Premiership preview (2 days to go): Northampton, Exeter, Sale

30 August 2012 0 comments

With the start of the Aviva Premiership only two days away, we take a look at what lies ahead for the 12 teams. Today, Northampton, […]

Dylan Hartley says Northampton don’t need Chris Ashton

30 August 2012 1 comment

Northampton captain Dylan Hartley says winger Chris Ashton is gone and forgotten after turning his back on the club to join Saracens. Ashton, 25, racked […]

“We’ll have fun rising to challenge,” says Newcastle’s Dean Richards

30 August 2012 0 comments

Dean Richards will warn his Newcastle troops to expect the unexpected when they finally get their Championship campaign up and running at Bristol on September […]

Fijian Josh Matavesi can lead the Worcester Warriors great offensive

30 August 2012 0 comments

Worcester boss Richard Hill reckons Josh Matavesi could provide the X-Factor to spark the Warriors’ backline into life. Hill’s men struggled to cross the whitewash […]

London Irish allrounder Alex Corbisiero leads new prop crop

30 August 2012 2 comments

Loose-head props of yesteryear conjure up an image of gnarled old campaigners with bleeding ears and a job description which could be summarised as ‘push’. […]

Premiership preview (3 days to go): London Irish, Bath, Gloucester

29 August 2012 0 comments

With the start of the Aviva Premiership only three days away, we take a look at what lays ahead for the 12 teams. Today, London Irish, […]

Loyal Matt Smith content to be an unsung hero at Leicester Tigers

29 August 2012 0 comments

No player better embodies the qualities of the archetypal Leicester player than Matt Smith – Tigers through and through, massively appreciated inside the confines of […]

SSE National Leagues preview

29 August 2012 1 comment

With the National Leagues competitions starting on Saturday, we take a look at how Fylde, Ealing, Caldy and Redruth are preparing. SSE National League One […]

Championship winners must go up says chairman Geoff Irvine

29 August 2012 0 comments

Championship clubs’ chairman Geoff Irvine, right, says their Premiership counterparts need worry about only one thing – to avoid finishing bottom of the table – […]

Nick Cain: Packer-style circus is real threat to rugby

29 August 2012 1 comment

There has been a recurrent message doing the rounds since the 2011 World Cup which the existing rugby establishment, based on the IRB and national […]

Nick Cain talks to bath boss Gary Gold about reviving a once-champion club

29 August 2012 0 comments

Gary Gold is cagey when he considers the question of the quality he has found at Bath in terms of squad, infrastructure and culture. Understandably […]

Alex Gray hopes fast start can earn green light at London Irish

29 August 2012 1 comment

London Irish No.8 Alex Gray is hoping for ‘second season syndrome’ in reverse as he looks to put a disappointing first year at the Exiles […]

Premiership preview (4 days to go): Worcester, London Wasps, London Welsh

28 August 2012 0 comments

With the start of the Aviva Premiership only four days away, we take a look at what lays ahead for the 12 teams. Today, Worcester, […]

Twickenham’s debenture holders in World Cup row

28 August 2012 6 comments

Twickenham debenture holders are furious that they will not be guaranteed seats at the 2015 Rugby World Cup. Chief executive Ian Ritchie this week sent […]

“I’m more than just a fast mover,” says Wasps winger Christian Wade

28 August 2012 1 comment

Wasps winger Christian Wade is sick of being labelled simply a speed merchant and is determined to prove he has more than one trick up […]

Peter Jackson: Forgotten Dwayne finds new ally in Cips

28 August 2012 0 comments

At a suburban training centre where Manchester City’s multi-millionaires cruise around in their limousines, two international misfits are preparing to take the English Premiership by […]

British and Irish Lions eye Leinster’s Joe Schmidt as Gatland back-up

28 August 2012 0 comments

The Lions are to consider a second New Zealand contender for next year’s three-Test series in Australia – Leinster head coach Joe Schmidt. Kiwi Warren […]

Rugby Championship review: Who will stop the All Blacks?

27 August 2012 1 comment

As the first two rounds of the Rugby Championship drew to an end on Saturday night, we take a look at how it panned out […]

Jeff Probyn: Ritchie review could finally grasp that contract nettle

27 August 2012 1 comment

The end of a spectacular Olympics where our athletes won 65 medals including 29 gold (and we’ve still got the Paralympics to go), has focused […]

Argentina draw in historic match against South Africa

25 August 2012 1 comment

Argentina had to concede an unlucky 16-16 draw against South Africa for their first ever home game of the Rugby Championship in Mendoza. True to […]

Saracens Andy Saull working to build same power as Jacques Burger

24 August 2012 3 comments

English rugby has been crying out for a classic openside who can link play in the loose, turn over the ball in the tight and […]

Falcons have strength in depth to make a quick return says Glen Delaney

24 August 2012 1 comment

With the honourable exception of Bedford’s Mike Rayer, there is no coach with more experience of English rugby‘s second tier than Glenn Delaney who left […]

New Exeter signing Ian Whitten is out to prove he’s not just a stop-gap

24 August 2012 1 comment

Ian Whitten spent last season stepping in whenever needed at Ulster – now at Exeter he intends to make himself part of the furniture. There […]

ERC “dismayed” over Anglo-French threats.

23 August 2012 3 comments

As exclusively revealed by Peter Jackson in The Rugby Paper on May 6th, English and French clubs have given an ultimatum to the ERC to […]

Watch out, London Irish Topsy Ojo warns Chris Ashton

23 August 2012 1 comment

Topsy Ojo said he had unfinished business with England as he warned wing rival Chris Ashton: “I’m after your place!” Four years have elapsed since […]

New Zealand v Australia preview: Cooper returns, Beale out

23 August 2012 1 comment

Mercurial fly-half Quade Cooper has been named in Australia‘s starting XV for Saturday’s Bledisloe Cup clash against New Zealand in Auckland. However, full-back Kurtley Beale […]

Argentina v South Africa preview: Hernandez out of historic match

23 August 2012 2 comments

Juan Martin Hernandez will miss the historic fixture in Mendoza after he had to withdraw with a groin injury suffered at training yesterday. The talismanic […]

Wales’ captain Sam Warburton on starting blocks for Lions tour

23 August 2012 1 comment

Last year Sam Warburton got the needle – now he is aiming for an injury-free season to fulfil his Lions dream. The Wales captain was […]

Jeremy Guscott: New slimline Banahan can be lethal but has to stay fit

23 August 2012 2 comments

Matt Banahan came onto the scene in a big way four seasons ago for a number of reasons – the first of which is that […]

Age is no worry for new Esher coach Ollie Smith

23 August 2012 1 comment

Having made his Leicester debut a few months after leaving school and toured with the Lions, aged 22, Ollie Smith’s appointment as Esher head coach […]

“Chris Robshaw’s done well, but Tom Croft must play”, says Lewis Moody

22 August 2012 2 comments

Sir Ian McGeechan insists a specialist openside is the key to a great team, but former England skipper Lewis Moody says Chris Robshaw’s performances are […]

Prop stars give Worcester’s Matt Mullan best of both worlds

22 August 2012 1 comment

Mentored by Phil Vickery at Worcester and Graham Rowntree with England – Matt Mullan doesn’t have to look too far for scrummaging advice. It’s been […]

New funding deal for Championship clubs revealed

22 August 2012 0 comments

As revealed in our The Rugby Paper on August 5th, the RFU has unveiled today a new four-year funding deal for Championship clubs. Each club […]

“I’ve come South to toughen myself up,” says Scotland giant Richie Gray

22 August 2012 2 comments

Richie Gray wants to emulate boyhood hero Martin Johnson and become a master of the dark arts of forward play following his move to the […]

Nick Cain talks to Neil Back about Lions, Tigers and Woodward

22 August 2012 1 comment

Neil Back identifies strongly with the team GB athletes who have lifted the country with their performances at the London Olympics over the last few […]

Nick Cain: All Blacks on top with or without Williams

22 August 2012 0 comments

If the Six Nations are playing catch up with the Southern Hemisphere powers, then the new Rugby Championship will be about South Africa, Australia and […]

“Don’t write me off yet,” says Wales scrum-half Dwayne Peel

21 August 2012 1 comment

Dwayne Peel, frozen out of international rugby for the last 18 months, starts the new season with a defiant message for Wales: “I’m not finished […]

Peter Jackson: It’s a riot in Paris as Olympic rugby champs are crowned

21 August 2012 1 comment

Of all the foregone conclusions at the London Olympics, one stands out above Usian Bolt, Michael Phelps, Bradley Wiggins and the rest for sheer longevity. […]

‘Battered’ Sale Shark flanker Hendre Fourie in battle to play again

20 August 2012 0 comments

England flanker Hendre Fourie has suffered another setback in his comeback from a debilitating shoulder injury. The 32-year-old admits that the no-holds-barred approach which has […]

Ospreys hooker Richard Hibbard hurt by fingers of blame but points to future

20 August 2012 3 comments

Wales villain Richard Hibbard admits that he was forced into hiding after being singled out for losing the summer series to Australia. The Ospreys hooker, 28, […]

Jeff Probyn: Every World Cup referee is ‘inept’ in his own way

20 August 2012 1 comment

I must admit to some surprise at the reaction to Graham Henry’s claim in his autobiography, that he wondered if Wayne Barnes and his assistants […]

Aussie blow as captain David Pocock is out of All Blacks clash

20 August 2012 0 comments

David Pocock will miss Saturday’s Bledisloe Cup clash against the All Blacks in Auckland after it was revealed the Australian captain needs keyhole surgery on […]

Henry Thomas relishing Andrew Sheridan Heineken Cup rematch

17 August 2012 0 comments

Henry Thomas is eager for the chance to turn the tables on former tutor Andrew Sheridan this season after Sale‘s graduation to the Heineken Cup. […]

Cipriani and Gray to make Sale debuts

17 August 2012 0 comments

Danny Cipriani and Richie Gray are set to make their Sale debuts after being selected among the replacements for tomorrow’s friendly game against Glasgow Warriors. […]

Waldouck handed first Saints start against Leinster

17 August 2012 0 comments

New Northampton Saints signing Dominic Waldouck has been selected to make his home debut for his new club in tomorrow’s pre-season friendly against Heineken Cup […]

Gary Gold and Bath look at tie-up with Super Rugby side

15 August 2012 2 comments

Bath are considering forming an alliance with a Super Rugby side in a groundbreaking move which could involve trans-hemisphere player swaps. Former Springbok assistant coach […]

Reformed Shark Andy Powell is the new ‘Sebastien Chabal’

15 August 2012 1 comment

Sale Sharks are to extend Andy Powell’s contract in recognition of the Welshman’s emergence as ‘the new Sebastian Chabal.’ The Premiership‘s sole surviving northern club […]

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