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Peter Jackson
/ 12 years agoPeter Jackson: Yes, it all goes South when we head South
Every June the home countries fly south of the Equator in a battered state of semi-resignation to what awaits them. Almost...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: You’ve been in overdrive, BT, but keep the brake on Austin Healey
It’s that time of the year when self-opinionated columnists dispense gongs, and the occasional brickbat, to those who deserve them and...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher charts the career of Jonny Wilkinson, the player who has transcended the game
Talk about synchronicity. When confirmation of Jonny Wilkinson’s much-touted retirement was filtering through this week I was actually rummaging around my...
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Jeremy Guscott
/ 12 years agoJeremy Guscott: A moment of brilliance from George North could swing it
There is a certain kind of justice that the top two teams from the nine month league campaign have made it...
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Jeff Probyn
/ 12 years agoJeff Probyn: Less use of the TMO? Then stop these ref witch-hunts
Hard to believe that it is just a week since Leicester‘s Richard Cockerill called for referees to be less reliant on...
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Peter Jackson
/ 12 years agoPeter Jackson: Warren Gatland’s Law takes a mauling from WRU!
Warren Gatland made a strange announcement last Tuesday over the resurrection of the Welsh trial match, buried long ago with other...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain talks to Rob Baxter about the Heineken Cup final
Rob Baxter is in the unique position for an English coach of having done the surgery on the victims-in-common of Heineken...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: So, it’s farewell Heineken, you were already just champion!
Rather in the way journalism is often considered the first draft of history, the Heineken Cup was effectively European Rugby’s first...
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Jeremy Guscott
/ 12 years agoJeremy Guscott: Chris Pennell would find a place on loan in any Premiership squad
It’s not often that a back stands out in a side that hasn’t performed, but Chris Pennell has done so for...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain: Good to see Danny Cipriani back – now it’s all up to him
Danny Cipriani has been thrown a lifeline by Stuart Lancaster, but it remains to be seen whether it is long enough...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain picks his Premiership Dream Team
Selecting a Team of the Season is always a subjective business, and although statistics tell part of the story, they can...
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Peter Jackson
/ 12 years agoPeter Jackson: A couple of England-Wales tickets, sir? That’ll be £630
The last England-Wales match at Twickenham grossed around £5m in ticket money. The next one will top £20m. For the World...
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Jeff Probyn
/ 12 years agoJeff Probyn: Worcester and Dean Ryan still have a mountain to climb
The failure of Worcester to survive in this year’s Premiership season was probably the most anticipated relegation since the leagues began....
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain discovers what England can expect in New Zealand
Jimmy Cowan has such an intimate knowledge of the workings of All Blacks that it’s surprising Steve Hansen hasn’t had him...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain: Malakai Fekitoa case shows IRB are letting down world game
New Zealand protests that they do not poach from the Pacific Islands should always be taken with a block of salt,...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: Why I’ve learned to love the Premiership play-offs
How quickly time moves on and blazing rows of yesteryear recede. For many it was the blackest of days midway through...
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Jeremy Guscott
/ 12 years agoJeremy Guscott: Super George North can help Northampton Saints reach another Premiership final
The bridesmaid tag is an easy one to hang on Northampton, and it’s there because although they have attracted some big-name...
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Jeff Probyn
/ 12 years agoJeff Probyn: IRB must raise qualification period to at least eight years
The two biggest spending clubs in France and England, Toulon and Saracens, have proved that money can buy success. Although it...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: On the march with Trelawny’s Army, rugby’s great outsiders
So the European legislators, God bless, have finally caught up with the rugby world and officially recognised Cornwall as being very...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain talks to three great English Lions to gather their views about the England back-row
Back-row expertise does not come with better credentials than that offered by Roger Uttley, Mike Teague and Peter Winterbottom. The trio...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: Murder on the dancefloor as Harlequins try to get a grip
The Murderball challenge is on. Mike Brown, already proud ambassador for Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby, wants to celebrate Harlequins‘ coming on...
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Peter Jackson
/ 12 years agoPeter Jackson: I’ll be back, says David Moffett as ceasefire is called
The hierarchy of the Welsh Rugby Union could have been excused for heaving a collective sigh of relief last Wednesday evening....
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Jeremy Guscott
/ 12 years agoJeremy Guscott: These new-look Saracens can lift the Heineken Cup
Saracens have made a massive swing in their playing style, and it has been reflected in their fortunes following their crushing...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain: I tell you straight, this refs’ dereliction harms game
The middle line has been crossed. Infringements at the lineout and scrum are now so endemic that it leaves you wondering...
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Jeff Probyn
/ 12 years agoJeff Probyn: England stance is vital for developing young talent
The increasing call on the RFU to change its stance and pick players who choose to ply their trade in another...
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Sevens World Series
/ 12 years agoTom Mitchell: Keep the pathway clear for students to reach very top
We are a few days away from the penultimate tournament of the 2013/14 HSBC World Sevens Series in Glasgow and therefore...
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Peter Jackson
/ 12 years agoPeter Jackson: So, have the roaring 40s blown Brad Thorn off course?
Brad Thorn was saying only the other day how he planned to be playing ‘top level footy’ at 40, a long-distance...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain: Fizzing George Ford ready for next step with club and country
George Ford has come of age. Finally. It has been a long time coming because Ford has been lumbered with the...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher and the Championship play-offs
The Championship play-offs have attracted more than their fair share of criticism over the last four years which I find astounding...
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Jeremy Guscott
/ 12 years agoJeremy Guscott: Why Steffon Armitage must be on the plane to New Zealand
The chat this week has been about Steffon Armitage and English players based outside the Premiership being unable to play for...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain: Gareth Anscombe approach proves Warren Gatland’s faith is dwindling
The news that 22-year-old New Zealand fly-half Gareth Anscombe is being lined up to play for Wales by Warren Gatland comes...
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Jeff Probyn
/ 12 years agoJeff Probyn: Clubs’ greed over World Cup is simply shameful
There is something quite sinister about the unbridled celebrations and smug reflections by some of the Aviva Premiership clubs’ owners on...
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Peter Jackson
/ 12 years agoPeter Jackson: Big Man’s dynasty is thriving at Tigers
When Frank Whitcombe signed for Broughton Rangers at Belle Vue in Manchester, they gave him £100 and a keeper’s job at...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain talks to Brad Barritt about Saracens and England
Brad Barritt is not going to see the England No.12 jersey handed over to Billy Twelvetrees, Luther Burrell, Kyle Eastmond, or...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: The day that Munster found vintage form in Bordeaux
Munster‘s love affair with the Heineken Cup has become the stuff of legend but in nearly two decades I recall no...
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Jeremy Guscott
/ 12 years agoJeremy Guscott: Manu Tuilagi and Niki Goneva give Leicester Tigers real title potential
You have to admire Saracens. They have lost only two games this season, and one more victory will see them home...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain: Game’s flashpoints stem from inconsistent refereeing
Empathy. Consistency. Clarity. Accuracy. All those crucial factors were missing for large tracts of the officiating in the Wild West Premiership...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: Fitzy’s, fiddlers and film stars..no, we’ll never forget the craic
It won’t just be London Irish fans and members bidding a fond farewell to Sunbury next month when the JCBs start...
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Peter Jackson
/ 12 years agoPeter Jackson: It’s a worry when even Tredegar ‘hit rocks’
As the birthplace of Aneurin Bevan and cradle of the National Health Service, Tredegar has a history of global renown. The...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: Matt Giteau counts his blessings amid sun, sea and rugby stars
There was a fascinating cameo for people watchers at the end of Toulon‘s mighty win over Leinster at Stade Felix Mayol...
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Jeff Probyn
/ 12 years agoJeff Probyn: Reduce top-flight payments and grow grassroots game
The debate by the RFU council this week about the restructuring of lower leagues has opened a can of worms that...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: John Bull agenda is robbing England of some top talent
There is much to admire about Stuart Lancaster‘s England but I remain unconvinced by this “Little England” attitude which bars prospective...
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Jeremy Guscott
/ 12 years agoJeremy Guscott: Gavin Henson’s coming back to best – and it’s great to see
Gavin Henson proved the other week against Brive what we have all known throughout his career: the guy can really play....
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Jeff Probyn
/ 12 years agoJeff Probyn: Why life’s not so simple in this new European utopia
Delays, debates and rows, just another week of life in the sport we recognise as professional rugby. The delays in the...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: Brive and bloody, the short reign of French mavericks
It is 16 years since Brive clashed with Bath in the 1998 Heineken Cup final in Bordeaux and at the time...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain talks to Joe Launchbury about Wasps’ late season challenges and his advancement with England
Joe Launchbury does not conform to the old school second row stereotype. His face doesn’t look as if it’s been flirting...
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Peter Jackson
/ 12 years agoPeter Jackson: Village that beat the All Blacks is rotting away
Of all the villages in Britain, only one can lay claim to a dual role in a victory over the All...
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Nick Cain
/ 12 years agoNick Cain: Here’s how All Blacks Test could have moved
There are times when it is blatantly obvious that the standards of excellence now demanded of England‘s professional rugby players are...
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Brendan Gallagher
/ 12 years agoBrendan Gallagher: Steve Diamond has more polish but can still spot a gem
There was a time Sale boss Steve Diamond might have brooded for a week or more after the disappointing Amlin Cup...
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Jeff Probyn
/ 12 years agoJeff Probyn: Penalties are becoming too important in rugby
Some interesting ideas have come from Australia this week as they prepare to launch the new National Rugby Championship which they...
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