Top-flight clubs set for big TV cash boost

By NEALE HARVEY PREMIERSHIP clubs can expect to glean a cash windfall of £140 million when the league’s broadcasting rights come...

Leinster’s strong season aids IRFU to £1.1m profit

A good year for Irish rugby after the sucker punch of losing out on hosting the 2023 Rugby World Cup with...

Crane confident Pat Lam has assembled a Bristol pack that can go toe-to-toe with Premiership’s best

Steven Luatua, Jack Lam, Dan Thomas and George Smith to mention a few back rowers Bristol can bear with this coming...

Chris Pennell daring to dream at Worcester Warriors

The Worcester Warriors full-back talks wanting to reverse the team's trait of starting off slow to a season and playing with...

Dan Leo column: Malielegaoi mind game brings the best out of Samoa

Manu Samoa played Germany in a World Cup qualifier – Dan Leo reveals the weight of expectation placed on Chris Vui...

Williams column: Why I’m rooting for Alex Cuthbert and Tom James this season

Alex Cuthbert is making a fresh start at Exeter and Tom James is back in training with Cardiff after battling depression

Cardiff Blues make strides to back row with signing of Samu Manoa

The Challenge Cup winners secure major signing in USA international Manoa

Guscott column: Chris Ashton’s unique finishing ability still sets him apart

Jeremy Guscott feels Chris Ashton's appetite for tries can be fed by Faf de Klerk at new club Sale Sharks

Nick Auterac hits back after nightmare stint at Bath

The Harlequins loosehead says things went downhill for him at The Rec as soon as Neal Hatley left for the England...

Steve Hansen’s moan shows Lions effects still linger

Nick Cain looks at how New Zealand have progressed one year on from that epic series against the British & Irish...

Jackson column: Rugby still a long way off going global

There's a FIFA World Cup going on and everyone knows it...

Billy Burns leaves Gloucester to fill a position of need for Ulster

Burns admits he hadn't considered leaving Gloucester, but international ambitions swayed him towards Ulster move

Brian O’Driscoll, Lawrence Dallaglio and Stuart Hogg included for Icons of Rugby golf tournament

It will be Northern Hemisphere v Southern Hemisphere at the Buckinghamshire Golf Club on July 29-29

WRU confirm Wayne Pivac will succeed Warren Gatland as Wales head coach

Wayne Pivac's appointment has been confirmed, but what about his backroom staff and the Scarlets?

Irish lifeline rescues Tom from the rugby wilderness

By NEALE HARVEY SARACENS hooker Tom Woolstencroft is ready to fight Lions star Jamie George for his place after being handed...

Crane confident Lam’s assembled a pack that can go toe to toe with the Premiership’s best

By NEALE HARVEY All Black wrecking ball: Steven Luatua JORDAN Crane reckons Bristol’s back row can be the foundation of a...

Veteran Saints must earn their shirts says Vesty

NEWS EXTRA SAM Vesty insists youth will be given a chance at Northampton and says there are no sacred cows as...

Ashton’s unique finishing ability still sets him apart

Test pedigree: Chris Ashton scores one of his hat-trick of tries for the Barbarians against England PICTURE: Getty Images CHRIS Ashton...

DREAMTEAM

ANDY LONG, BISHOP’S STORTFORD DoR AND FORMER ENGLAND, BATH, NORTHAMPTON AND NEWCASTLE HOOKER, CHOOSES THE BEST XV HE HAS PLAYED WITH...

Rolling subs will make the game less safe

COLIN BOAG The French Top14 is already dominated by powerful packs, and the latest set of proposals from the FFR suggest...

Dual-registration system is a mess

IT is totally unfair that some National League sides can benefit from close ties with Premiership clubs while others simply cannot....

RFU must nurture grassroots before they wither away

JEFF Probyn is bang on regarding the scandal of RFU junior staff and grassroots rugby being squeezed following apparent incompetence in...

Ashton return will up heat on Brown

GREAT to see Chris Ashton sign for Sale and open the door for an England return. Unlike with Steffon Armitage four...

Retired Rimmer lucky to be alive

EXETER prop Carl Rimmer says he feels grateful to still be here after revealing how a stroke suffered in January has...

No need to panic, Eddie’s still the man

MARK CUETO came within a fraction of an inch of potentially winning a World Cup when his ‘try’ in the 2007...

MacGinty holds the key to unleashing Sharks’ incredible backline – Cueto

By JON NEWCOMBE Box office signing: Chris Ashton in action for Toulon PICTURE: Getty Images SALE legend Mark Cueto believes Chris...

Banahan: Sorry Jonny, but Ashton gets my pick

By NEALE HARVEY MATT Banahan is convinced Chris Ashton can roar right back into England contention following the ace winger’s decision...

Faz is best bet to lead England – Sanderson

EDDIE Jones has been urged to dump Dylan Hartley and keep Owen Farrell as his captain right up to the World...

Wales set to unveil Pivac as new boss

■ By PETER JACKSON WALES are close to putting the future of their national squad in the hands of their dream...

Boudjellal: Bastaraud has become a big head!

DAVID BARNES FRENCH COLUMN Mr Big: Toulon centre Mathieu Bastareaud Toulon president Mourad Boudjellal loves to have fun at the expense...

Blues bid for Eagles ace No.8

By STEFFAN THOMAS CARDIFF Blues are understood to be front-runners to in the race for the marquee signing of Toulon No.8...

Auterac hits back after nightmare stint at Bath

By NEALE HARVEY Rivals: Joe Marler, Mark Lambert and Lewis Boyce PENT-UP prop Nick Auterac has launched a broadside at the...

We need respect for refs and good sportsmanship

IT’S GOOD to read that ‘Fearless’ Fred Howard has weighed into the dissent row given that referees all have microphones and...

Unfair that some National One clubs can call up stars

JEFF PROBYN A FRONT ROW VIEW OF THE GAME Reinforcements: Leicster’s England U20 flier Jordan Olowofela helped Loughborough stay up last...

Maule’s loving life now he’s mentor

ALEX BYWATER talks to centre-turned-agent Gareth Maule about life on the other side Playing prowess: Gareth Maule scores a try for...

YOUNG GUNS

NEALE HARVEY RUS TUIMA EXETER NO.8 At 6ft 5ins (1.96m) and 19st (121kgs), Rus Tuima cuts an imposing figure. Little wonder...

Unrelenting Leinster taught us so much about life at top

Q&A DAVE RENNIE ON THE RECORD Dave Rennie, Glasgow’s Kiwi head coach, tells NEALE HARVEY why he’s loving life in Scotland...

Blues bring in Thornton

RORY Thornton has joined Cardiff Blues on a yearlong loan deal. The 23-year old Ospreys lock is the third addition to...

Samurai win final two legs to secure series title

NEWS EXTRA SAMURAI Rugby retained their title in the Super Sevens Series at Ealing Trailfinders last weekend. Samurai and the British...

Crusaders guarantee home run to the final

■ By SAM JACKSON THE CRUSADERS cemented top spot in the table with a big win over the Highlanders to celebrate...

Hansen’s moan shows Lions effects still linger

NICK CAIN looks at New Zealand rugby a year on from that epic drawn series Ruling the roost: Crusaders pack have...

When unfancied England stormed to the first title

HE days of a first choice Test prop captaining his national Seven to a ‘world title’ are probably long gone but...

San Fran can put Sevens World Cup back on map

BRENDAN GALLAGHER looks at how the World Cup Sevens has evolved since its 1993 inception World beaters: England celebrate their success...

RUGBY MATTERS Zimbabwean protest was really just a cry for help

BRENDAN GALLAGHER A weekly look at the game’s other talking points Rough treatment: Zimbabwe players sleep on the streets of Beja...

All set for another Ashton avalanche

Hit man: Chris Ashton BARRINGinjury it’s not difficult to predict an avalanche of Chris Ashton tries for attack-minded Sale next season....

Namibians are caught cold by wily Qadri

RECENT events in Casablanca have confirmed the old rugby adage that you are never so vulnerable as when you have just...

ROOM 101

THE BISHOP’S STORTFORD OPENSIDE TAKES US THROUGH HIS PET HATES FROM THE RUGBY WORLD AND BEYOND DAN ELSOM 1. Chicken paranoia...

Tiger Wells to help coach Key’s Lions

LEICESTER Tigers forward Harry Wells will set about honing his coaching skills with National League side Leicester Lions in the coming...

Pennell’s daring to dream at Warriors

■ By NEALE HARVEY High hopes: Worcester full-back Chris Pennell PICTURE: Getty Images LONG-SERVING Worcester full-back Chris Pennell is convinced his...

Reds move for Kiwi Bat

JERSEY have signed former Doncaster back-five forward Adam Batt. The 23-year-old New Zealand-born Batt was an All Black triallist at U20...