Wasps beef up the pack

RUGBY SHORTS WASPS have signed All Blacks back five forward Vaea Fifita for next season and have re-signed Nizaam Carr from...

Oxford jab medic brings bit of needle to Varsity match

Pride: John Henry WINNING a place in the Varsity Day squad can be all consuming, but Oxford prop John Henry has...

Marler: I feel for Alun Wyn over Lions

JOE Marler says he is “gutted” Alun Wyn Jones may not get the chance to make more rugby history in South...

Joe Marler and Danny Care have last tango at Twickenham

JOE Marler fears that Harlequins stunning victory in the Premiership final will be the last dance he enjoys with Danny Care....

Grassroots game must get fairer funding | Jeff Probyn

When I sat on the RFU council, no matter what was happening in the rugby world the CEO’s review of the...

Erica decides to give her assets an outing

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

Los Lelos need a few more like Davit

RUGBY MATTERS BRENDAN GALLAGHER HAVE Georgia finally unearthed their first superstar outside back? The lack of firepower behind the scrum has...

‘Man strength’ helped make it best final ever

RUGBY MATTERS A weekly look at the game’s other talking points BRENDAN GALLAGHER Power play: Wilco Louw scores for Quins in...

Record man Sam Simmonds did it the hard way – how the stats measure up

During the last season before the RFU plucked up the courage to organise League rugby, Dean Richards scored 20 tries for...

Championship may get new Thursday night TV slot

PREMIER Sports believe a successful Lions tour would help them achieve a breakthrough in England as they extend their rugby coverage...

Alcock clocked him first, but Stoop helped Poulton become the star

RONNIE Poulton-Palmer might have attracted the attention of Adrian Stoop at an early stage but the Quins captain wasn’t the only...

Cradle of game have made big strides to return to the top table

Brendan Gallagher continues his series looking at rugby’s great schools ENTIRE books have been written about William Webb Ellis and the...

Young Guns: Worcester Warriors wing/centre Jack Johnson

Premiership defences will have to watch out for much more than Ollie Lawrence in the Worcester backline with the towering force...

Petit general Le Garrec gets France marching

By SAM JACKSON France ..............36pts Tries: Haddad 3, Tchaptchet 16, 36, Reybier 30, Debaes 55 Conversions: Le Garrec 4, 31, 37,...

Six-try Italy humiliate Scots in Cardiff rout

Scotland ............3 Italy..................43 ITALY stunned Scotland with a six-try demolition job at Cardiff Arms Park to keep Sean Lineen’s team winless....

Scrum power keeps the Grand Slam alive

By ADAM ELLIS Ireland ..............15pts Tries: Soroka 58, De Buitlear 74 Conversions: Doak 59 Penalties: Doak 43 England ............24pts Tries: Brantingham...

DREAM TEAM

LEE JARVIS, THE FORMER WALES, CARDIFF, PONTYPRIDD, NEATH, DRAGONS & CORNISH PIRATES FLY -HALF, CHOOSES THE BEST XV HE HAS PLAYED...

Lions tour should not be going ahead now

COLI BOAG While not being as much of an enthusiast for the British & Irish Lions as some, I absolutely understand...

Three generations of Fishers make history

SEND YOUR COMMENTS TO: The Rugby Paper, Tuition House, St Georges Road, Wimbledon SW19 4EU email: newsdesk@therugbypaper.co.uk THREE generations of the...

Women’s Game in Focus: Harlequins hooker Amy Cokayne

Harlequins and England hooker Amy Cokayne moved to New Zealand when she was nine after her father, Ian, was recruited by...

How Quins found their jester spirit just in time

PAUL REES charts the remarkable transformation that made Quins champions The Premiership season finished as it had started more than seven...

Tomas Lezana aims to get Scarlets back row on the front foot

GROWING up as a football-mad River Plate supporter in the Argentinian city of Santiago del Estero, Tomas Lezana dreamed of a...

Redpath is coach at Park

FORMER Scotland captain Bryan Redpath has joined Rosslyn Park as attack coach. Redpath, who won 60 caps for Scotland and appeared...

Old-school Barrie Thomas had the ear of superstars | Peter Jackson

BACK in the day of thriving local newspapers and soaring sales in the Welsh communities they served, each and every one...

Conor Murray part of Munster legacy with the Lions | Peter Jackson

From his home by the banks of the broad, majestic Shannon, Keith Wood considers one of the more startling facts about...

Exeter Chiefs are watching England U20 star Sam Riley

EXETER Chiefs are keeping tabs on Harlequins’ England U20 hooker Sam Riley just a week after losing the Premiership final to...

Botha adds to Bishop’s coaching positions

ON THE BLIND SIDE BY NEIL FISSLER Nous: Mouritz Botha FORMER England lock Mouritz Botha has been named the new forwards’...

Saints prepared if Toulon persist in Dan Biggar swoop

NORTHAMPTON Saints have set aside a ‘healthy budget’ as they search fora new fly-half that places question marks over the future...

Help us watch the Lions plead clubs

ON THE BLIND SIDE BY NEIL FISSLER TEWKESBURY Rugby Club have called on the RFU to help clubs who fear they...

RFU silence on Lynagh gets dad tweeting

ON THE BLIND SIDE BY NEIL FISSLER Follow me on Twitter: @neilfissler Future: Louis Lynagh EDDIE Jones has refused to be...

OLLIE LONGMORE

ROOM 101 THE SALE FC HOOKER TAKES US THROUGH HIS PET HATES FROM THE RUGBY WORLD AND BEYOND 1. Clubhouse pundits...

Analysis: Marcus Smith must step up and shine the light ahead for Eddie

    The last time England played the United States, in sultry Kobe, it was the start of a cycle that...

Formidable front five but weak around the fringes

A LOT has happened since the Springboks were last in action over 609 days ago. Corona was merely a drinkable beer....

Boks must find right balance in back row

DANIEL GALLAN SOUTH AFRICAN COLUMN Last week Conor Murray described his appointment as British & Irish Lions captain as “unbelievable”. The...

Ireland edge home for World Cup pay-back

■By BRENDAN GALLAGHER Ireland ..............39pts Tries: Farrell 8, McCloskey 26, Bealham 40+1, Van der Flier 48, Stockdale 51 Conversions: Carberry 8,...

What carnage as All Blacks hit a century against the troubled Tongans

■By BEN JAYCOCK New Zealand..102pts Tries: McKenzie 2, Papalii 5, 37; Weber 7, 16, 50; Jordan 9, 20, 47, 55, 68;...

South Africa 40-9 Georgia: Boks unleash flyer Fassi in warm-up win

    IT TOOK a while, almost an hour in fact, for the Springbok machine to splutter into life but once...

Try-machine Josh just can’t stop scoring | Shane Williams

I GOT more and more nervous as the second half of the British & Irish Lions game went on. It was...

I fear it looks quite serious for Leigh | Shane Williams

THERE is no other way for me to start other than by wishing Leigh Halfpenny all the best. For his 100th...

Pivac: Pumas so much tougher

WAYNE Pivac was happy with the performance of his Wales side shorn of 12 front line players due to injury and...

Wales 68-12 Canada: Halfpenny injury takes the gloss off Wales’ ten-try romp

    DESPITE a ten-try thrashing of Canada, an injury to Leigh Halfpenny marred the afternoon for Wales. On his 100th...

Big Joe back after finding his confidence

By PAUL REES JOE Cokanasiga is ready to put two wasted years behind him when he resumes his Test career against...

Jet-heeled Josh Adams gives lift-off to the Lions

JOSH Adams bagged four tries as Warren Gatland’s British & Irish Lions got off to a flyer against Sigma Lions in...

TEAM: Lewis Ludlow to captain England against USA

England head coach Eddie Jones has stuck with Lewis Ludlow as his captain for this weekend’s clash against the USA. The...

Harlequins conclude six-month search for new head coach with Tabai Matson

Harlequins will have a new head coach oversee the team’s defence of their Premiership title, after confirming Tabai Matson as the...

England interim assistant coach Ed Robinson to leave Jersey Reds

Jersey Reds have confirmed backs coach Ed Robinson will be leaving the Championship this summer to join an unnamed Premiership club....

Newcastle Falcons confirm signing of ex-Harlequins wing Nathan Earle

Nathan Earle has joined Mike Brown in leaving Premiership winners Harlequins behind to move to Newcastle Falcons. As reported in The...

SouthAfricanOnlineCasinos.co.za prepare for influx as South Africa announces lockdown & closure of Land-Based Casinos

In view of South Africa going under a strict lockdown for at least two weeks, land-based casinos are forced to shut...

Ireland include several senior players for Japan clash

Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has named an experienced squad to take on Japan, with captain James Ryan cleared to play....

Ex-Wasps wing Callum Sirker lands at Cornish Pirates

Cornish Pirates have announced the signing of former Wasps flyer Callum Sirker on a one-year deal. Sirker was released by Wasps...