The All Blacks could have played England or Wales in November and charged their going rate for an out-of-window Test of £1m. In refusing both, […]
Latest Posts
Jeremy Guscott: All Blacks show they are team to beat once again
The All Blacks showed with their convincing 47-29 victory over the Wallabies in Sydney last night that they will still be the team to beat […]
Alex King hopes to turn his new Northampton Saints into kings
George North‘s unveiling at Northampton was close to rock star status – but the man who could prove to be Saints’ most significant signing of […]
20 Questions: Gavin Cattle – Cornish Pirates scrum-half
Been anywhere nice on holiday? I had a few days on the Scilly Isles and the rest of the time has been spent renovating a […]
No U-turn on Europe promises Premiership boss Mark McCafferty
England‘s Premiership clubs are adamant there will be no u-turn on their crusade for a new European Cup, promising it will increase annual revenue by […]
My Life in Rugby: Will Skinner – former Harlequins flanker
Even though the club has won the Premiership, LV= Cup and the Amlin Cup in its recent past, the games in Harlequins history everyone wants […]
Man Behind the Match: Grayson knew O’Gara could miss crucial kick
Ronan O’Gara is the Heineken Cup‘s golden boy. He’s the record points scorer, the record appearance holder and in any pub in Cork or Limerick […]
Dream Team: Lee Adamson – former Wasps and Saracens lock
1. Paul Rendall – Great team player and one of the unsung heroes. There wasn’t anything extraordinary in what he did but he was the […]
Moment in Time: Walder flies in under the radar to lift Falcons
Little did supporters of Newcastle Falcons realise it at the time, but this supremely riotous Twickenham cup final would represent the high water mark of […]
Peter Jackson: How Toby almost fell into grasp of England
It won’t do them any good now but England will be kicking themselves for allowing Wales to take Toby Faletau from under their noses. In […]
Room 101: Rob Rowlinson – former Leeds hooker
1. The new scrummaging laws I’m not a fan of the “crouch, bind, set” scrum engagement sequence that is currently being trialled across the globe. […]
Jeff Probyn: Now we must research the true risk of dementia
With all the excitement of the announcement of the new elite player squad some rather bad news almost slipped under the radar last week. Brain […]
Brendan Gallagher: The Puma underdogs must show teeth again
And now the hard work and the pain really begins. Making their debut in the Rugby Championship last season was an exhilarating but daunting experience for […]
Mike Blair keen to make his mark in Premiership
Mike Blair is counting down the days until he samples Premiership rugby at first hand for the first time with Newcastle. Unlike his brother David, […]
Young Gun: Scott Steele – Leicester scrum-half
It’s never easy to make your breakthrough at Leicester Tigers – just ask Billy Twelvetrees – but in Ben Youngs, scrum-half Scott Steele believes he […]
Brendan Gallagher meets the modest architect of Wasps greatness
Rob Smith never sought the limelight as a player, coach or indeed guru to some of England‘s most promising youngsters, so it was typical that […]
Paul Sackey joins Harlequins
Harlequins announced today that Paul Sackey has joined the club as injury dispensation cover for Ross Chisholm who tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the pool […]
No frills as Dave Attwood batters his way back
Stuart Lancaster is regarded as a coach of considerable subtlety, but his advice to the recalled Dave Attwood has no frills: “Bash holes in people.” […]
20 Questions: Will Fraser – Saracens flanker
Been anywhere nice this summer? No, I was in the physio room every day after having surgery on my latissimus dorsi muscle, which I tore […]
Quins name World Club 7s squad
Harlequins have announced their squad ahead of the inaugural World Club 7s at Twickenham Stadium this weekend. The 2011 Premiership champions have been drawn in […]
Nine or ten? Northampton Saints can count on me, says Kahn Fotuali’i
Northampton new boy Kahn Fotuali’i admits he will not be the fly-half that Saints fans have craved ever since Carlos Spencer’s departure – but that […]
My Life in Rugby: Leon Lloyd – former Leicester, Gloucester & England back
I got my first England cap in 2000 in Pretoria against South Africa. At the start of the tour I was a dirt tracker who […]
Gloucester announce squad for World Club 7s
Gloucester Rugby have kept faith with the young squad that secured silverware in the J P Morgan Premiership Sevens and have named a similar squad […]
French giants can lure Adam Jones with £350k
Toulouse and Clermont will head the queue in response to Adam Jones declaring his interest in moving to France at the end of the coming […]
Canterbury launches a ‘boot for every position’
Leading international rugby brand Canterbury has unveiled a new boot range ahead of the 2013-14 season. Channelling the experience that comes with making rugby kit […]
Man behind the Match: Wilkinson comes back – with a record of course!
It was like he had never been away. Exactly 1,148 days since his last England appearance – you might remember that one, in Sydney in […]
Dream Team: Rory Jenkins – former Quins, Wasps & England flanker
1. Jason Leonard – You can’t beat a rock like him on and off the pitch. He is a larger-than-life character and he obviously loves […]
Moment in Time: Day it all came right for the Cherry and Whites
Whether they like it or not, Gloucester‘s 2002-3 campaign will always be defined by two stunning defeats: the 6-33 reverse at Munster, which they still […]
Quade Cooper recalled by Wallabies
Quade Cooper will make his return to Test rugby after being named in Ewen McKenzie’s 30-man squad for the Rugby Championship. The Mercurial playmaker had […]
Peter Jackson: Kohn’s time turns out to be tweet and short
A new contender has emerged for the shortest international career on record, one whose claims had been lost amid the substitution whirligig. Wales scrum-half Clive […]
Jeff Probyn: Merv…the O’Driscoll axe lacked respect
I had to laugh when I read the comments posted by ‘Merv’ following my article about Brian O’ Driscoll being left out of the Lions […]
Mike Forshaw talks tough to Danny Cipriani and Co
As a Rugby League international as well as former Iron Man competitor, Sale‘s new defence coach Mike Forshaw is clearly not to be messed with. […]
Nick Cain: Sevens title could be fool’s gold in Brazil
The suggestion that Sonny Bill Williams and Benji Marshall, two of Rugby League’s biggest stars, could be chasing Sevens gold for New Zealand at the […]
Alex Corbisiero: I had to leave London Irish to achieve my goals
George North will light up the Premiership with Northampton Saints this season, according to Lions colleague Alex Corbisiero. The pair clock on for duty at […]
Rory Lawson retires
Newcastle Falcons scrum-half Rory Lawson is to retire from professional rugby on medical advice The 32-year-old Scotland international, who joined the Falcons in the summer […]
Jeremy Guscott: Lancaster must take England brake off
Stuart Lancaster has real talent to work with and develop, judging by his EPS selection this week, but the big question is: has he enough […]
Nick Cain gives his expert assessment of England’s latest elite squads
Stuart Lancaster’s EPS selection for the new season reveals that England have just a single option in one of the most influential attacking positions on […]
Tim Stimpson rates the new Matthew Tait No.1 at 15
He’s back in the England fold after a three-year absence and it should be just a matter of time before Mathew Tait is back in […]
Squads for JP Morgan’s 7s finals announced
Leicester, Gloucester, Worcester, Newcastle and Harlequins have announced their squad for the JP Morgan Sevens finals at the Rec on Friday. Group winners Newcastle will […]
Premiership clubs link up with USA giants of grid-iron
England‘s Premiership clubs have opened talks with four American football franchises over a ground-breaking trans- Atlantic venture. In an ambitious attempt to push back the […]
Room 101: Ollie Thomas – Moseley utility back
1. Diving/play acting in football Don’t get me wrong I love watching football, although I’m more of an armchair fan than anything else. I’ve probably […]
Young Gun: Will Bigley – London Wasps prop
He may not be a Wasps regular just yet, but with the tutorage of a former All Black captain 21-year-old Will Bigley is well prepared […]
20 Questions: Gordon Rosss – London Welsh player-coach
Been anywhere nice on holiday? Not yet. I got married in June and the fortnight before was pretty manic. We’ve not had a honeymoon yet […]
Richard Cockerill fails to get ban reduced
LEICESTER Tigers director of rugby Richard Cockerill has failed to reduce his nine-game suspension at a Rugby Football Union disciplinary hearing. But the ban has been […]
John Plumtree named Ireland forwards coach
IRELAND have appointed John Plumtree as their new forwards coach, with the Kiwi starting work in September. Plumtree has been Natal Sharks head coach since […]
My Life in Rugby: Nnamdi Ezulike – former Leicester, London Irish, Worcester and England Sevens wing
Rugby was just one of the sports I was interested in and to be honest when I started out at Leicester the idea of getting […]
Man behind the match: Prince of Pace ensured England wore the crown
There are just five days to go before England are due to step foot in Murrayfield for the first ever Rugby World Cup Sevens and […]
Moment in Time: Elvis is the hero as Bath battle back to avoid drop
Ten years ago, Bath Rugby stood on the precipice. A hostile takeover bid from Bristol owner Malcolm Pearce had driven supporters of both clubs to […]
Dream Team: Gordon Bulloch – former Scotland and Lions hooker
1. Tom Smith – Underrated because of his size, but Tom was a very powerful scrummager. He was very quiet but when he did speak […]
No frills on Jon Mills as he swims with the Sale Sharks
In his heart he’ll always be a Dragon, but Jon Mills is now prepared to do whatever it takes to stoke the fires at his […]
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