Captain Cane: We need to fix our work at the breakdown

Having lost five out of their last six games, the All Blacks are under immense pressure and captain Sam Cane says...

All Black misery keeps on mounting

By BEN JAYCOCK South Africa ....26pts Tries: Arendse 8, Le Roux 80 Conversions: Pollard 10, 82 Penalties: Pollard 22, 51, 73...

Wallabies fight back to secure bonus point victory

By SAM JACKSON Argentina ........26pts Tries: Matera 6, Gonzalez 55 Conversions: Boffelli 7, 58 Penalties: Boffelli 12, 16, 22, 42 Australia...

IRFU to offer 43 pro contracts to women

RUGBY SHORTS The Irish Rugby Football Union have confirmed it will offer 43 professional contracts to women’s players in the country’s...

Red Roses cashing in on success of Lionesses

RUGBY SHORTS TICKET sales have been boosted this week for England’s two September women’s internationals following the Lionesses’ triumphant Euro 2022...

Ealing sign Aussie scrum-half Grant

RUGBY SHORTS AMBITIOUS Ealing Trailfinders have signed 28-year-old scrum-half Jack Grant from Super Rugby side the Waratahs. Grant made nine appearances...

Brown’s keeping in shape

ON THE BLINDSIDE BY NEIL FISSLER Mike Brown has been training with former club Harlequins as he looks to keep himself...

Demelza’s leading man…

ON THE BLINDSIDE BY NEILFISSLER Follow me on Twitter: @neilfissler FORMER Doncaster and Coventry ace Will Owen recently had the biggest...

Phillips out to guide China to Olympics

ON THE BLINDSIDE BY NEIL FISSLER Follow me on Twitter: @neilfissler FORMER England Sevens star Ollie Phillips has taken over as...

Financial woes force Wasps to halt recruitment

ON THE BLINDSIDE By Neil Fissler Wasps have placed a freeze on recruitment despite Lee Blackett aiming to sign another two...

Chiefs keen on Sio to strengthen front row

ON THE BLINDSIDE By Neil Fissler Exeter Chiefs have veteran Wallaby prop Scott Sio on a list of potential recruits, with...

Falcons fight for Radwan

ON THE BLINDSIDE By Neil Fissler Newcastle Falcons are keen to agree to a new contract with England winger Adam Radwan...

England lack thrust to get to destination

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK NEXT year will be the 20th anniversary of England’s single World Cup-winning campaign,...

Nienaber has his team on right track

NICK CAIN Consistent, coherent selection is a hallmark of the most successful teams at international level, and right now there is...

It’s gold for South Africa & Aussies at Games

SOUTH Africa continued their hot streak as they swept aside double Olympic champions Fiji in the men’s rugby Sevens final last...

Mitchell: I’d love to play in World Cup

By BEN JAYCOCK Former England captain Tom Mitchell is hoping his Sevens career isn’t over yet and is keen to be...

This is one derby I just can’t wait to see

SHANE WILLIAMS WALES AND LIONS LEGEND The fixtures and kick-off times for the 2022/23 United Rugby Championship season were finally announced...

Williams has a vital role to play at Scarlets

SHANE WILLIAMS This week the worst kept secret in Welsh rugby was announced with the WRU confirming that Gareth Williams has...

Grace will come back even stronger

Shane Williams Last week I made the prediction that Regan Grace could be the ace up Wayne Pivac’s sleeve at the...

Hoppers set early pace but Kendal dig in

By JOHN LE PAGE Preston G..............36 Kendal ..................26 Newly promoted Preston Grasshoppers began their pre-season programme with a home win against...

Super sub Isaac scorches in for four

■By ALLAN FOSTER Fylde Hawks ......53 Perthshire ..............5 Fylde welcomed a touring, well kilted Perthshire Eagles squad to the Woodlands for...

Dominant third period puts Shelford clear

■By JOSH BARNES Shelford................47 Rochford H............29 SHELFORD showed their season ambitions with an impressive win against National 2 opponents. The game...

Free-scoring All Blacks finish on high

■By SUZANNE CLEAVE Cornish AB............24 Barnstaple............12 RUGBY returned to Polson with a three-way friendly line up of the Cornish All Blacks,...

Jarvis shines behind powerful Pooler pack

■By JOHN WHITE Dings ......................21 Pontypool ............67 DINGS suffered a heavy defeat in their opening preseason fixture in front of a...

Students turn on style to down Raiders

■By MAX COURTIS Exeter Uni ......47 Guernsey ........12 THE young men from Devon came out on top with a fine display...

Rugby has a proper fight on its hands now

CHRIS HEWETT GUEST COLUMNIST Anyone out there remember Sean Kerly? It’s just about possible, but only if your joints are seizing...

It’s Castro’s abilities we should remember

CHRIS HEWETT Back in 2008, when a Labour government was running the country and the Rugby Football Union couldn’t run a...

Suck out the joy and people will turn away

Paul Rees talks to Richmond director of rugby Steve Hill about the game’s future Then it came, the question was why...

Youngs Guns: Bath and Scotland U18s scrum-half Murdoch Lock

Having represented the U18s earlier this year, Bath academy scrum-half Murdoch Lock has set a clear goal to become the first...

Wilson happy to be a new Knight

By JON NEWCOMBE Doncaster may be worlds apart from south-west London but former astrophysics student and Harlequins prop Mak Wilson is...

Jones calls for resilience

ENGLAND head coach Eddie Jones believes English rugby’s reliance on private schools has led to a less resilient culture among the...

We need more attacking space coaches – Ashton

Former England head coach Brian Ashton (right) has criticised the number of recruitment adverts for contact skills coaches in rugby and...

Hare’s world record keeps on growing

PETER JACKSON THE MAN TRULY IN THE KNOW Dusty Hare retired more than 30 years ago and yet his world points...

The silent treatment for Hansen

PETER JACKSON The mucky stuff really hit fans all over New Zealand last week when Sir Steve Hansen said what he...

Fans left at the bottom of the pile when it comes to kick-off times

PETER JACKSON A summer of sorrow over Llanelli draws towards a close, leaving the Scarlets to prepare for their 150th anniversary...

Big names moving into a new home

Ben Jaycock looks at how the Championship squads are shaping up for the coming season As a consequence of the Premiership...

How I loved my journey to the top of the world

ROCKY CLARK ENGLAND WORLD CUP WINNER After a long and illustrious international career, I’ve seen and been part of countless tournaments,...

Sevens shows just how great it can be

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER Occasionally, I question the value of Sevens in...

It’s time to get rid of these flat passes

MUCH discussion, and rightly so, recently about concussion and brain related injuries and once again I find myself pondering on rugby’s...

St Luke’s left Exeter with a proud legacy

CLUB OF THE WEEK EXETER UNIVERSITY BY BRENDAN GALLAGHER Founded: 1860 (as St Luke’s College) Colours: Green and white Director of...

Fierce rivalry with Loughborough produced rugby of highest order

There were 19 annual St Luke’s College v Loughborough College challenge matches before St Luke’s became absorbed by Exeter University and...

“I learned my trade on the world’s big stages” – My Life in Rugby with Simon Hunt

The former England Sevens/U21s, Rosslyn Park, Narbonne, Perpignan, Pertemps Bees, Ebbw Vale, Newport, Bristol, Moseley & Dings Crusaders winger Playing a...

A lesson in how to build your audience

JEFF PROBYN A FRONT ROW VIEW OF THE GAME Well, if ever there was a lesson for rugby to learn from...

Moment in Time: Psycho front row set platform for Sale’s return to top flight

Sale – Courage League 2 Champions 1993/94 Sale had been out of the top flight for six seasons after being relegated...

When Sale wanted to be Man U’s rugby team

Sale have always had one very big shadow on their doorstep. Just over four miles from their Heywood Road ground was...

Arms Park undergoes radical transformation

Brendan Gallagher delves into some of rugby’s most enduring images, their story and why they are still so impactful Iconic Rugby...

Toulouse spoilt for choice at full-back

JAMES HARRINGTON FRENCH COLUMN How do you solve a problem like three current international full-backs competing for the only available 15...

Matson tweaks masterplan to keep Quins competitive

By Gary Fitzgerald Tabai Matson insists Harlequins must “get the nuts and bolts right” to ensure they stay in the top...

Young guns ready to fire in South Africa

England U18s have named a 26-man squad for the tour of South Africa later this month. The three-match series takes place...

The Rugby Championship Previews: Round One

So often these days sporting competitions are given a tag of the ‘most unpredictable in living memory’, but it really seems...