EXLUSIVE: Aviva clubs close in on deals for Welsh stars

English clubs are lining up “massive” bids to land four Welsh stars in time for next season.

Front-row trio agree new contracts with Tigers

Leicester Tigers today confirmed that international front-rowers Marcos Ayerza, Tom Youngs and Dan Cole have agreed new long-term contracts with the...

Disappointing finish for England Sevens in Port Elizabeth

England suffered losses to hosts South Africa and then Fiji on Day Two of the South Africa Sevens in Port Elizabeth....

Wasps thump Castres in Adams Park farewell

Wasps said goodbye to Adams Park with a seven-try 44-17 victory over Castres in the Champions Cup yesterday. The Coventry-bound club,...

Edinburgh beat London Welsh in Challenge Cup

Edinburgh have one foot in the Challenge Cup quarter-finals after beating London Weslsh 24-6 yesterday. The Scots, who had Dougie Fife...

Newcastle Falcons fall in Paris

Newcastle Falcons have lost their unbeaten record in the Challenge Cup after they went down 31-24 to Stade Francais in Paris...

Champions Cup round 4 teams

Pool 1 Clermont v Munster       Clermont: Nick Abendanon; Noa Nakaitaci, Aurélien Rougerie, Wesley Fofana, Zac Guildford; Camille Lopez, Morgan Parra; Thomas...

Challenge Cup round 4 teams

Bayonne v Connacht Bayonne: Jon Elissalde; Saimoni Vaka, Lalakai Foketi, Matthieu Ugalde, Pierre Sayerse; Clement Otazo, Christophe Loustalot (Capt.); JC Van...

Dylan Hartley has a huge job to keep Tom Youngs out – George Chuter

Leicester hooker can reclaim his place as England’s starting hooker for the Six Nations, according to former Tigers mate

My Life in Rugby: Buster White – former Wasps flanker

The saying once a Wasp always a Wasp rings true with me, 100 per cent – even Coventry Wasps! Ironically my...

Morgan voted England’s Man of the Series

Ben Morgan was today announced as England‘s ‘Man of the Series’ for the 2014 QBE Internationals. In a week-long nationwide vote,...

Brendan Gallagher: Enforcers help to keep the game trouble free!

I’ve always had a soft spot for rugby’s ‘enforcers’ and will rather miss Bakkies Botha, which is a sentiment I suspect...

Peter Jackson: Extra Test match is crippling Welsh Regions

The Welsh Rugby Union have stuffed the golden goose over the last four weeks as never before, taking some £15m in...

Jonathan Joseph frustrated by lack of opportunity

Bath centre upset at being overlooked during the autumn but believes he is in a better place now than he was...

Varsity match PREVIEW

Two long standing records will be broken at Twickenham on Thursday if Oxford can continue their recent dominance and win the...

20 Questions: Jack Clifford – Harlequins No.8

How’s your season going? Good start playing in the London Double Header and I’ve had other opportunities too. Highs and lows...

Quins suffer double injury blow ahead of Leinster clash

Harlequins today confirmed that both Chris Robshaw and Nick Evans will be unavailable for Saturday’s European Rugby Champions Cup match against...

Dream Team: Tom Cruse – Rotherham Titans hooker

1.Robin Hislop – The Titans stalwart is strong and confrontational at the scrum but is also very effective around the park....

England Sevens change three for Port Elizabeth

England have made three enforced changes to their squad ahead of the Port Elizabeth leg of the World Rugby Sevens Series....

Gopperth will leave Leinster

As revealed by Neil Fissler in The Rugby Paper on November 2, Jimmy Gopperth will leave Leinster at the end of...

Dan Lydiate joins the Ospreys on dual-contract

As expected, Dan Lydiate has joined the Ospreys to become the first player to join Wales Captain Sam Warburton on a...

Jeremy Guscott: Joe Schmidt’s success lies in the simplicity of his method

Ireland have quietly moved into third place in the world rankings without any great fireworks or fanfare. Even their Kiwi coach,...

Nick Cain: Pay for a proper TMO system or bin it off

The TMO was introduced into the Premiership just over two years ago, and into international rugby a year later, and the...

Tyro Chiefs are putting hands up for England

Chiefs skills coach reckons Nowell and Co. are staking claims for Six Nations' inclusion.

Castro and Armitage under investigation

Martin Castrigiovanni and Delon Armitage are to be investigated by the EPCR disciplinary team following reports of incidents after Toulon‘s defeat...

Leicester and Harlequins tame Europe’s finest

Owen Williams kicked 20 points as Leicester beat Toulon 25-21 at Welford road yesterday. The Tigers went off to a flying...

EXCLUSIVE: Samoan president accuses players of drinking culture

Players left raging by president's hint at drinking culture and accusation of not training hard enough.

Young Gun: Biyi Alo – Saracens prop

Going backwards to go forward. As contradictory as it sounds it has been the life of tighthead Biyi Alo since he...

Irish bid for 2023 Rugby World Cup Announced

The Irish Rugby Football Union today formally announced its intention to submit a bid to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup...

Mouritz Botha to join the Sharks

Mouritz Botha has been released by Saracens to join the Sharks in South Africa with effect from January 1, 2015. Botha...

Champions Cup round 3 teams

Pool 1 Sale v Saracens Sale: Mike Haley; Luke McLean, Mark Jennings, Sammy Tuitupou, Mark Cueto; Danny Cipriani, Chris Cusiter; Eifion...

Challenge Cup round 3 teams

Bucharest v NG Dragons Bucharest: Luke Samoa; Robert Neagu, Catalin Dascalu, Florin Ionita, Ionut Botezatu; Florin Vlaicu (Capt.), Florin Surugiu; Constantin...

England through to Dubai Sevens quarter-finals

England qualified for the Dubai Sevens quarter-finals but they will have take on New Zealand tomorrow morning. Simon Amor’s men lost...

Brendan Gallagher: Jacob takes well-trodden Rhodes to Twickenham

So little done, so much to do. They may or may not be the last words of Cecil Rhodes on his...

Exeter thump La Rochelle in France

Exeter carried on their formidable run of form with a 36-10 away win over La Rochelle in the third round of...

Danny Care will come out fighting says Conor O’Shea

Quins boss says scrum-half has nothing to prove to anybody but himself.

Room 101: Tom Holmes – Rotherham forward

1.Lost Ball ‘desperados’ Playing a round of golf with my former Sale team-mate, England prop Henry Thomas, can take ages. He...

Halaifonua to boost Gloucester’s back-line resources

Gloucester have added more depth to their back-line option with the signing of Tonga international David Halaifonua. The 27-year-old, who was...

Hassler out for five months

Ospreys winger Jeff Hassler is set for a lengthy lay-off after it was confirmed that he will undergo surgery this week....

Steenson agrees new three-year deal

Gareth Steenson has committed his future to the Exeter Chiefs with the news he has put pen to paper on a...

Peter Jackson: Richie McCaw’s genius is avoiding the pitfalls

The historical life span of an international rugby captain averages out at six matches, a fact which makes Richie McCaw’s unique...

Christian Day demands consistency over concussion protocols

RPA chairman brands inconsistencies in application of concussion protocols at pro level as “stupid”.

Douglas Hammond’s research could make concussion diagnosis irrefutable

Moseley doctor Douglas Hammond is helping to drive a clinical research trial on concussion at Birmingham University to determine the injury...

Successful surgery for Jean de Villiers

Jean de Villiers has set his sights on next year’s World Cup after undergoing surgery to rebuilt his left knee. The...

20 Questions: Dave Walder – Newcastle backs coach

Thoughts on Newcastle‘s start? Mixed. We’re a win away from where we deserve to be but showed against Bath last week...

Tuilagi as Christmas present for Leicester?

Manu Tuilagi could make his long awaited return to action for Leicester before Christmas. The England centre has not featured for...

La Rochelle v Exeter teams

La Rochelle: Jean-Pascal Barraque; Botia Veivuke, Alofa Alofa, Kini Murimurivalu, Damien Cler; Jules Lebail, Julien Audy; Jordan Seneca, Benjamin Geledan, Benoit...

Quins bring in Italian Tebaldi

Harlequins today announced the signing of Tito Tebaldi from the Ospreys for the remainder of the season. The 27-year-old scrum half,...

Nick Cain: Joe Schmidt proves buying British isn’t always best

Look at the most successful sides in Europe, whether club or country, and you will usually find that there is a...

England’s pack is best in world says Dan Cole

Leicester tighthead knows he has a fight on his hand to regain place in the world's premier pack.