JEREMY GUSCOTT OUTSPOKEN AND UNMISSABLE… EVERY WEEK English clubs are up against it in the Champions Cup because they are competing against French clubs which […]
By JON NEWCOMBE PREVIEW… Racing 92 v Harlequins Today. Kick-off 5.30pm, La Defense Arena, Paris WITH key players back from injury and internationals integrated back […]
■By JON NEWCOMBE Sale v Stade Francais PREVIEW… Today. Kick-off 1pm, AJ Bell Stadium ALEX Sanderson is relishing Sale’s novel status as underdogs as the […]
By PAUL REES PREVIEW… Leinster v La Rochelle Today. Kick-off 3.15pm, Stade Marcel Deflandre Centre: Garry Ringrose THE match of the opening round is a […]
JAMES HARRINGTON FRENCH COLUMN SWAPPING Dragons for a new challenge at Grenoble – and the lens of Welsh rugby for relative anonymity in southeast France […]
The 2023/24 Champions Cup kicks off this weekend, with England captain Owen Farrell set to return to action for Saracens for the first-time since announcing […]
NICK CAIN – READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK Maro Itoje should be England’s next captain following Owen Farrell’s decision to make himself unavailable for […]
JAMES HARRINGTON FRENCH COLUMN A week after ripping out their coaching set-up and employing an Etch-a-Sketch style reset to their season, Montpellier officially hit the […]
Northampton Saints back row Lewis Ludlam’s highly anticipated move to Toulon, first rumoured in The Rugby Paper’s Blindside Column in early October, is set to […]
By JON NEWCOMBE Johann van Graan is excited to see how good a player Ollie Lawrence can become with the England international potentially still having […]
JEREMY GUSCOTT OUTSPOKEN AND UNMISSABLE… EVERY WEEK WORLD Cups provide rugby union with an opportunity to reset, and the actions taken following the 2023 tournament, […]
When it comes to sacking those in charge of losing teams, French rugby has beaten English football to the punch. While the struggling Premier clubs […]
JAMES HARRINGTON FRENCH COLUMN TIME was very firmly called on Richard Cockerill’s brief run as Montpellier manager six days ago, after just five months and […]
Leicester Tigers‘ World Cup-winning forward, Jasper Wiese, is resolute in his dedication to the club, even as rumors swirl about his future. The 28-year-old South […]
ON THE BLINDSIDE Wales and Lions ace George North could this week tell ambitious ProD2 outfit Aix-en-Provence if he will join their bid for promotion […]
JAMES HARRINGTON FRENCH COLUMN Rugby – even thoroughly modern professional rugby – sometimes proves it still has at least a little room for a smidgeon […]
CHRIS HEWETT THINKING ALLOWED A slippery subject, rugby culture, and easily misrepresented in its narrowest sense. Across great swathes of the sporting landscape, the English […]
JAMES HARRINGTON FRENCH COLUMN The Laurent Labit-Karim Ghezal era at Stade Francais officially starts here – and the talk around Stade Jean Bouin is of […]
ON THE BLINDSIDE England backrow Sam Underhill has been attracting interest from French Top 14 giants Racing 92 and Bordeaux, who are interested in luring […]
ON THE BLINDSIDE BY NEIL FISSLER Follow me on Twitter: @neilfissler Former Bath lock Elliott Stooke, below, could return to The Rec next month from […]
Premiership team-by-team previews: Northampton There was a point last season where Northampton looked as if they could qualify for the play-offs despite conceding a century […]