Brendan Gallagher

Hamza improves on rugby’s record

23 December 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS Rugby has a decent record in Strictly Come Dancing – think Austin Healey and Matt Dawson although perhaps not Ugo Monye – and […]

Christmas miracle in the Andes: 50 years on… a tale of survival

23 December 2022 0 comments

By BRENDAN GALLAGER For those of us of a certain age there were possibly two global stories that dominated our adolescence – and my God […]

How baseball kept Bish on right track

18 December 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER Ken Poole, the head of economic development for Cardiff City Council, has […]

Mystery surrounds Robinson departure

18 December 2022 0 comments

BRENDAN GALLAGHER It was a week of departures for Romania, one unexpected but the other less so. First the shock resignation of former England coach […]

Israel banking on the Heat to build profile

11 December 2022 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS – A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER One of the more unusual modern days rugby stories is currently […]

So who is the real villain here?

11 December 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS – Brendan Gallagher Newcastle’s Carl Fearns has been at the sharp end of professional rugby for nearly 14 years and has never taken […]

England toiling in the foothills

11 December 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS I will leave it to others to do the heavy lifting in dissecting the sacking of Eddie Jones but here’s a couple of […]

Remarkable band of Rogue Heroes

4 December 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER The BBC drama series Rogue Heroes concluded on Sunday and, despite one or […]

Only the pin-ups win top awards

4 December 2022 2 comments

RUGBY MATTERS What have the following got in common? Brian O’Driscoll, Eben Etzebeth, Malcolm Marx, Fourie Du Preez, Taulupe Faletau, Ma’a Nonu, George Smith, Michael […]

Doddie Weir, a giant among the big men

27 November 2022 0 comments

Brendan Gallagher remembers the hugely popular Scottish and Lions forward who passed away on Saturday It was the moment we all dreaded but knew was […]

Georgia’s triumph shouldn’t be wasted

27 November 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER It was bittersweet bordering on intensely frustrating to listen to Georgia’s victorious […]

Give me a break! It’s time we had much more clarity on the advantage law

27 November 2022 2 comments

What’s happening with the advantage law? It’s even more all over the place than usual this season. Have we missed a memo or something? First, […]

15 minutes that had Twickenham rocking

20 November 2022 0 comments

BRENDAN GALLAGHERWHY LESS CAN MEAN MORE WHEN IT COMES TO INTERNATIONALS Hard man: Will Stuart powers over PICTURES: Getty Images IF FAMILIARITY can breed contempt, […]

Los Lobos keep cool and take their place in France

20 November 2022 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER Life with Los Lobos is never dull and, although their excruciating, nail […]

When the Munster haka stole the show

6 November 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER I’ve never been a huge fan of the New Zealand haka, believing […]

Sharing delight of beating All Blacks

30 October 2022 2 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER There is rightly much focus on the 50th anniversary tomorrow of Llanelli’s […]

Flexibility key if we want to keep playing

23 October 2022 3 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER It’s funny how sport and life often come full circle. Many decades […]

Staying in the game is what matters most

16 October 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER Like all of you out there, I have endless sympathy for the […]

Tournament brimming with standout moments

2 October 2022 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER IT was after round two from memory that I mentioned it might […]

Time for Argentina to host World Cup

25 September 2022 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER Sometimes the obvious just stares you in the face. I have long […]

Welsh to the core, but a fine citizen of the world

18 September 2022 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS BRENDAN GALLAGHER A weekly look at the game’s other talking points Life was a magical mystery tour for Eddie Butler, usually undertaken on […]

Great timing for the main events

11 September 2022 1 comment

By Brendan Gallagher It might just be a coincidence but most of Her Majesty’s landmark anniversaries were marked by momentous events in the rugby world […]

This is one crazy gang I wouldn’t want to miss

11 September 2022 2 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER So once more into the breach. Another Premiership season is up and […]

Time for stars to shine at World Cup Sevens

4 September 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS BRENDAN GALLAGHER A weekly look at the game’s other talking points The Rugby World Cup Sevens is upon us again and hopefully the […]

Fans need to buckle up for a bumpy ride

28 August 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER It feels like the Gallagher Premiership is tottering a little right now […]

A rugby soap opera that has us hooked

21 August 2022 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER For a tournament that is meant to be struggling, past its sell […]

Why Wade should have been a superstar

21 August 2022 0 comments

Christian Wade was great value on The Rugby Paper podcast earlier this week, the scorer of three of four of the best tries I’ve ever […]

Omanyala enjoys golden finale after leaving Sevens

14 August 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER Triumph: Ferdinand Omanyala celebrates after winning the gold medal in the Commonwealth […]

Tonita connects with his new ‘Taswegian’ friends

14 August 2022 0 comments

Brendan Gallagher delves into some of rugby’s most enduring images, their story and why they are still so impactful Iconic Rugby Pictures: PART 123 Ovidiu […]

Exile Zach is next French revelation

3 July 2022 0 comments

BRENDAN GALLAGHER – Rugby Matters A weekly look at the game’s other talking points English Rugby, or rather the RFU and Premiership Rugby, have a peculiar […]

Crowley set to enjoy Italy’s ‘Blue summer’

26 June 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS BRENDAN GALLAGHER A weekly look at the game’s other talking points After that brilliant last-minute win over Wales in Cardiff and a fine […]

Burns has final word in tale of two celebrations

19 June 2022 0 comments

BRENDAN GALLAGHER THERE was almost too much to absorb in one gulp at Twickenham on Sunday but ultimately it was about Freddie Burns and a […]

Comeback king Sergio aims to bow out in style

8 May 2022 0 comments

BRENDAN GALLAGHER RUGBY MATTERS YOU can’t keep a good man down. Sergio Parisse has not been on our radar for a while and a possible […]

How the French are putting RFU to shame

10 April 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER I hopped onto the splendid dual language Top 14 website the other […]

New, sleek French are the masters of motion

13 February 2022 0 comments

BRENDAN GALLAGHER VERDICT Rugby is more prone to hype than most sports with a large element of the big fight weigh in for most big […]

The Rugby Paper’s Six Nations preview: Green giants can cast long shadow over rivals

30 January 2022 0 comments

Amid the clinking cutlery and a few chinking glasses, The Rugby Paper’s brain’s trust gathered at Jeremy Guscott’s favourite Bath watering hole, Walcot House, to […]

Watching over his teammates, a giant tribute to Kawa

16 January 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER AMPO Ordizia –a small Basque club riding high in fourth place in […]

Barnstorming ‘Bill’ put even the Liddells in the shade

16 January 2022 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS BRENDAN GALLAGHER I am indebted to Andrew Beattie, the archivist at Eltham College, for more ‘gen’ on AL ‘Bill’ Gracie who got a […]

The genius of Liddell is recognised at last

9 January 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER THIS column has long argued there should be more acknowledgement of Eric […]

A mop-top Gower rises from the past

2 January 2022 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER Star turn: King’s 1974-75 with David Gower fourth left back row Nick […]

Sanderson’s right – this sleeping dog should be left

2 January 2022 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERSBRENDAN GALLAGHER ALEX Sanderson is a straight shooter so it was striking to hear his plea to ‘let sleeping dogs lie’ with regards to […]

The young Jonah was majestic…and terrifying

2 January 2022 1 comment

Brendan Gallagher delves into some of rugby’s most enduring images, their story and why they are still so impactful Iconic Rugby Pictures:PART 91Jonah Lomu scores […]

Poets, writers war heroes, all the King’s men

2 January 2022 1 comment

Brendan Gallagher continues his series looking at rugby’s great schools KING’S Canterbury, save for brief periods in their sporting history, can’t claim to have always […]

Ten reasons why ‘oldies’ remain the gold standard

19 December 2021 0 comments

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER WILL Greenwood has been there, done it and got the T- shirt […]

Kidney turned PBC into a powerhouse

19 December 2021 0 comments

Brendan Gallagher continues his series looking at rugby’s great schools LAST week it was Christian Brothers College Cork, this week it is Presentation Brothers College […]

Crying out for candid cameras to shed light

12 December 2021 1 comment

RUGBY MATTERS BRENDAN GALLAGHER IF nothing else, this week has shown the extraordinary effect of secret tapes and recordings or unsuspected footage when they […]

Walker’s jersey baits the big cats

5 December 2021 2 comments

RUGBY MATTERS Brendan Gallagher THERE’S another world out there. I was recently scrolling through the online brochure for this week’s sports memorabilia auction at Mulloch’s […]

Jubilant Chiefs go straight to beer tent

5 December 2021 1 comment

By BRENDAN GALLAGHER Exeter …………….18pts Tries: O’Flaherty 38, Cowan-Dickie 56 Conversions: J Simmonds 57 Penalties: J Simmonds 25, 64 Saracens ……….15pts Penalties: Lozowski 4, […]

The smoking priest fired up Crescent

28 November 2021 0 comments

Brendan Gallagher continues his series looking at rugby’s great schools CRESCENT College in Limerick – now styled Crescent Comprehensive – lies in the heart of […]

Exiles show they mean business this season

28 November 2021 0 comments

By BRENDAN GALLAGHER Harlequins ……..19pts Tries: Beard 28, 66, Northmore 35 Conversions: Allen 29, 36 London Irish ….22pts Tries: Creevy 28, Simmonds 51, White 57 […]

Brendan Gallagher

Recent Posts

Search