Sam Lewis departs Worcester Warriors

Worcester Warriors flanker Sam Lewis will leave the club when his contract expires at the end of the season. The Welsh...

Jack Nowell among Exeter trio tipped to be fit for England tour

Exeter boss Rob Baxter has provided Eddie Jones with a triple boost ahead of England‘s tour to Australia. Baxter confirmed that...

Springbok Faf de Klerk latest Japan Rugby League One recruit

World Cup winning scrum-half Faf de Klerk will be joining Japanese side Yokohama Canon Eagles after leaving Sale Sharks at the...

Gloucester will ‘rip into it and see what happens’ in crucial Saracens clash

George Skivington has vowed that Gloucester will “rip into it and see what happens” in their quest for a Gallagher Premiership...

Skipper Lewis Ludlam could make Northampton return against Newcastle

Northampton captain Lewis Ludlam could be available for the key Gallagher Premiership clash against Newcastle on Saturday after missing England‘s recent...

Northampton sign trialist Aaron Hinkley and Alfie Petch from Exeter

Northampton Saints have signed trialist Aaron Hinkley and Alfie Petch from Exeter Chiefs. The former England age group internationals have signed...

Former England flanker Tom Wood announces retirement from rugby

Former England flanker Tom Wood has announced he will retire from professional rugby next month following 12 seasons at Northampton. Wood...

Heartache for Sexton as French grab glory

By HATHAWAY ADAM IN MARSEILLE LEINSTER skipper Johnny Sexton choked back the tears as his Irish province melted in the Med...

Cuthbert joins list of Welsh casualties

By PETER JACKSON WALES have been hit by yet another blow ahead of their series against the Springboks with Lions wing...

England 7s back on track at Twickenham

By BEN JAYCOCK SPURRED on by a 50,000-plus Twickenham crowd, England reached today’s London Sevens quarter finals after finishing second in...

Wardy’s faith helped inspire me, Uzokwe

By JON NEWCOMBE EALING’S Simon Uzokwe is delighted to have repaid the faith shown in him by director of rugby Ben...

Esterhuizen scoops top Premiership award

HARLEQUINS centre Andre Esterhuizen has been voted the Rugby Players’ Association’s players’ player of the year, getting the most votes in...

Hines to lead team on charity fundraiser

FORMER Scotland lock Nathan Hines will be joined by a team of rugby legends as they embark on the mammoth 750-mile...

National Two is to be split in to three

THE RFU have confirmed the structural changes to level three for the 2022/23 season with National Two set to be split...

Van Graan gets top gig

INCOMING Bath boss Johann van Graan will become the head of rugby and take complete responsibility for rugby matters. Stuart Hooper,...

By George! Coach Skiverton has got big plans in place

By PAUL REES GEORGE Skivington marked his new longterm contract with Gloucester by declaring his intent to make the club a...

Bye weekends have been crucial in easing workload, insists Boyd

By PAUL REES Bonus ball: Tom James scores Northampton’s fourth try against Saracens a fortnight ago CHRIS Boyd believes the bye...

Wasps aim to give legend Jimmy a perfect send-off

LEE Blackett has paid tribute to Jimmy Gopperth who this weekend plays his final game for Wasps – against Leicester, the...

Please promote relegation, Colin

SEND YOUR COMMENTS TO: The Rugby Paper, Tuition House, St Georges Road, Wimbledon, SW19 4EU email: newsdesk@therugbypaper.co.uk LIKE Colin Boag stated...

League ‘pyramid’ now has a flat-top

REGARDING the restructuring of the National Leagues next season, please, please RFU stop using phraseology such as “re-branding, re-booting, re-energising” as...

I miss final day drama

I NEVER usually watch football but I tuned in last Sunday to see who would be crowned champions – and who...

Rugby atmosphere far more engaging

LAST Saturday, I enjoyed a superb day at Twickenham followed by the sight of Gloucester and Harlequins players walking around the...

Good start, now put end to flying ruck clear-outs

COLIN BOAG Water boy: Rassie Erasmus goes onto the pitch to deliver instructions to his Bok players against the Lions PICTURE:...

Top talent Steward must be managed so carefully

JEREMY GUSCOTT OUTSPOKEN AND UNMISSABLE... EVERY WEEK THE only surprise with Freddie Steward winning the double of the RPA England Men’s...

La Rochelle keep their cool to rule in Europe

By BRENDAN GALLAGHER   Leinster..............21pts Penalties: Sexton 5, 8, 22, 40+1, 47, 57 R Byrne 65 La Rochelle ......24pts Tries: Rhule...

Rae eager for Cov to carry Cup form into next season

By BEN JAYCOCK DESPITE coming up short in the final, Coventry interim head coach Alex Rae was pleased to give the...

At last! Long wait is over for elated Lyon

By BEN JAYCOCK Lyon ....................30pts Tries: Couilloud 7, Penalty 45, Barassi 47 Conversions: Berdeu 9, 49 Penalties: Berdeu 20, 59, Ngatai...

Taufua: We won on our defence

LYON captain Jordan Taufua was delighted with the historic win and credited his side’s resilient defence in matching Toulon’s physicality. He...

Europe’s elite clubs are facing trip into unknown

NICK CAIN READ HIS EXPERT OPINION EVERY WEEK THE European Cup final in Marseille was not billed as a watershed moment,...

Couilloud can push Dupont all the way

ON THE evidence of Baptiste Couilloud’s command performance in Lyon’s 30-12 European Challenge Cup victory over Toulon in Marseille, they have...

Griffiths departure will suit top agents

ON THE BLIND SIDE BY NEILFISSLER THE departure of Bath chairman Eddie Griffiths last week was certainly welcomed by some of...

Jones and his team enjoy French trip

ON THE BLIND SIDE BY NEILFISSLER EDDIE Jones and his coaching team cannot pick players who play outside the Premiership, but...

Blindside on the money – again

ON THE BLIND SIDE BY NEILFISSLER BLINDSIDE continues to deliver the very best in transfer news – and last week brought...

Dolphins lining up injury-hit Radradra for Aussie return

ON THE BLIND SIDE BY NEILFISSLER Follow me on Twitter: @neilfissler Deal: Semi Radradra joined the Bears in 2020 SEMI Radradra...

Treviso in move for James

ON THE BLIND SIDE BY NEILFISSLER SALE Sharks outside centre Sam James is locked in talks with Italian outfit Treviso about...

Chinnor to take Marshall from Saints

AMBITIOUS National League One outfit Chinnor have landed Reece Marshall, who last week it was announced was being released by Northampton...

DREAM TEAM

MATT GARVEY, THE FORMER LONDON IRISH, BATH, GLOUCESTER AND WORCESTER LOOSE FORWARD, CHOOSES THE BEST XV HE HAS PLAYED WITH OR...

Fine XV of England selection oversights

CHRIS HEWETT GUEST COLUMNIST Eddie Jones is hardly the first England coach to take an unusually gifted player to one side...

Homer’s odyssey was a PR disaster

RUGBY’S authorities, such as they are, should be throwing the book at the seven-a-siders from England and Argentina who dragged their...

South Africans have shown they can mix it with the best

NEIL DE KOCK FORMER SOUTH AFRICA SCRUM-HALF After 18 rounds of fixtures, the inaugural United Rugby Championship has reached the play-offs....

Boks, and Six Nations, must look at the bigger picture

THE Springboks in the Six Nations is a topic that refuses to go away. Rassie Erasmus recently fanned the flames when...

Room for football and rugby to thrive in Wales

SHANE WILLIAMS WALES AND LIONS LEGEND The age-old debate of whether Wales is a football nation rather than a rugby nation...

Salary cap alone is not to blame for Euro failure

PAUL REES ASKS SOME EUROPEAN KINGS WHY ENGLISH CLUBS HAVE BEEN OFF THE PACE Every year the Premiership fails to supply...

Glad dad was there to watch me win my cap

MY LIFEIN RUGBY MARK MAPLETOFT THE FORMER ENGLAND, GLOUCESTER, SARACENS, HARLEQUINS AND LONDON IRISH FLY-HALF/FULL-BACK AND CURRENT RFU PATHWAY COACH IRONICALLY,...

Hignell one of the last sporting all-rounders

PETER JACKSON THE MAN TRULY IN THE KNOW Master of art: Alastair Hignell in oval-ball action for England The England-New Zealand...

So why did WRU let Ms Blanc walk away?

SIX months have passed since Amanda Blanc handed a letter of resignation to the Welsh Rugby Union outlining the reasons for...

Saracens avenge last year’s defeat

Saracens ................30 Harlequins ............10 TABLE-TOPPERS Saracens cruised to victory against their London rivals to book a place in their fourth consecutive...

Detiveaux try seals victory for Chiefs

Exeter ....................28 Bristol ....................24 EXETER CHIEFS came from behind to beat Bristol and book their first-ever Premier 15s final with a...

Bern urges other nations to invest

By BEN JAYCOCK ENGLAND back rower Sarah Bern believes it’s time other unions invest in their women’s teams or they will...

Game must become inclusive for everyone

FORMER England flanker James Haskell was recently told to “stop disrespecting” women’s rugby after he became embroiled in a row with...