Electric start secures Blues Champions Cup spot

■ By ALEX BYWATER CARDIFF Blues sealed their place in next season’s Champions Cup by thrashing a woeful Southern Kings outfit...

Scarlets second XV given the runaround

■ By ROB COLE EDINBURGH closed the gap on Scarlets to a single point in the race for a home quarterfinal...

Stockdale score adds sparkle to turgid affair

■ By EOIN McINTYRE OSPREYS coach Allen Clarke had no complains after his side kept within three points of Ulster until...

McGrath’s hospital pass lets Canna steal win

■ By RONAN O’BRIEN Leinster … 15 Benetton… 17 LEO Cullen’s Leinster lost at home for the first time since last...

Davies urges Ospreys to reclaim their place at top of Celtic league

By STEFFAN THOMAS BRADLEY Davies has challenged Ospreys to retake their place as Welsh rugby’s standard bearers after a poor campaign....

Bakewell’s got Tigers boxing clever again.

By NEALE HARVEY LEICESTER are in with a puncher’s chance of the Premiership title after transforming their season with early morning...

I’m backing Blues to give Danny the send off he deserves

WHILE the focus is inevitably on the Scarlets, let’s not forget Cardiff Blues. I firmly believe the good times are on...

Exploit the weak link in Leinster midfield

SHANE WILLIAMS WALES AND LIONS LEGEND Veteran: Scarlets must target Isa Nacewa at centre PICTURE: Getty Images IF it ain’t broke,...

All Blacks Sevens ace for Wasps

WASPS are showing a strong interest in signing former All Blacks Sevens star Ambrose Curtis. The 25-year-old, who has been capped...

Ulster, Ospreys vie for Mallinder

Wanted man: Jim Mallinder JIM MALLINDER is in advanced talks to become Ulster’s new director of rugby – but they might...

Deano gets his man as prop Mulipola signs

NEWCASTLE Falcons have agreed a deal that will see them sign Leicester prop Logovi’i Mulipola on a one-year contract this summer....

Cipriani features in Meyer plans for Stade

Linked: Danny Cipriani BY NEIL FISSLER Follow me on Twitter: @neilfissler FORMER Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer jetted into Paris at the...

ROOM 101

WILL CARGILL THE CORNISH PIRATES FLY-HALF/ FULL-BACK TAKES US THROUGH HIS PET HATES FROM THE RUGBY WORLD AND BEYOND. 1. Fussy...

Kiss promises a fight to the death

Keeping the dream alive: Irish beat Quins LONDON Irish head coach Les Kiss has hailed the outstanding work ethic of his...

Walker’s in a hurry to make up lost time

By NEALE HARVEY HOOKING prospect Jack Walker is relishing the chance of a head-to-head against Jamie George and Schalk Brits as...

New Zealand get another helping hand from the schedulers

WHEN are SANZAAR going to pep up their ailing tournament by bringing a little even handedness to the competition? The schedule...

RUGBY MATTERS

Big change is needed to wake the sleeping giants BRENDAN GALLAGHER A new weekly look at the game’s other talking points...

McCormick, the pocket rocket who hit like a heavyweight

ITALY’S Matteo Minozzi – 5ft 8in and 13 stone something – has provided ample evidence this season that contrary to the...

Diamond: Last five minutes cost us

SALE director of rugby Steve Diamond was pleased with their second half display but was left to rue yet another poor...

Vickers drives Falcons nearer that top four

By COLIN NEWBOULT Last-gasp heroes: Newcastle celebrate Rob Vickers’ try PICTURES: Getty Images ANOTHER week, another poor start and another incredible...

Clifford out with hamstring horror op

QUINS’ miserable season took a turn for the worse as director of rugby John Kingston reported that Jack Clifford will be...

Last-gasp Ackermann keeps Glos hopes alive

By ROGER PANTING Streamlined: Jason Woodward dives over for Gloucester PICTURES: Getty Images GLOUCESTER scored 21 points in the last nine...

Quinnell: Scarlets can do a Liverpool

By PETER JACKSON THE Scarlets are being backed to make history this week by doing to Leinster in the Champions’ Cup...

Premiership relegation cost London Irish £3m

By NEALE HARVEY THE cost of relegation from the Premiership is starkly illustrated by London Irish declaring losses of almost £3m...

Rugby Sevens at the Commonwealth Games dating back to 2002

Brendan Gallagher recounts the spectacles on show in the Manchester, Melbourne, New Delhi and Glasgow Games

Itoje and Faletau’s agent banned by the RFU for betting spree

Matt Hart banned for 22 months for breaching RFU and World Rugby betting regulations

New sponsorship deal to see England’s top flight named Gallagher Premiership

Premiership Rugby have found an American-based company to take over from Aviva

Former Racing 92 fly-half Johan Goosen to end retirement saga by playing for Cheetahs

25-year-old Goosen set to play rugby for the Cheetahs before joining Montpellier at the end of the season

England v Barbarians: Bristol coach Pat Lam to take charge of Baa-Baas

The Baa-Baas assemble at Twickenham at the end of May

Howard Packman makes switch from Bedford Blues to Ealing

Former Saints winger becomes latest recruit for Ben Ward's Ealing

One-club man Darren Cave gets new deal with Ulster

Ulster centre set to play his 12th season at the Kingspan after penning one-year extension

Guscott column: Saracens badly need Billy Vunipola back at his world class best

Jeremy Guscott says Brad Barritt's side are missing their cloak of invincibility in Billy Vunipola

Bath’s Tom Dunn told to lose jelly belly for England

Tom Dunn reveals the straight-talking conversation he had with England head coach Eddie Jones

Galacticos of 1998 ensured Sevens was here to stay

Brendan Gallagher recalls the glorious arrival of Rugby Sevens to the Commonwealth Games

Jackson column: Crying shame that Danny Wilson’s magic will be lost to Wales

Peter Jackson asks if Cardiff Blues can give their Wasps-bound coach the send off his deserves

Hopefully I’ll be given a luckier break this time! England 7s captain Tom Mitchell talks Commonwealth Games

The last Commonwealth Games in Glasgow was a mixed experience for me. It was massively exciting and the build-up was amazing...

STATEMENT: Sale respond to Denny Solomona ban

Sale defend wing who received a four-week ban after being deemed by the three-person panel to have used homphobic language

Worcester announce signing of Edinburgh fly-half Duncan Weir

Alan Solomons adds Scotland international to fly-half core for 2018-2019 season

Harlequins director of rugby John Kingston to leave club after 17 years

It's been a tough season for Harlequins at home and in Europe

What affects the decision-making process in rugby?

Significant or insignificant, we have to make decisions all the time. In sports, they have to be fast, and mistakes can...

Dickens slams second half flop

SAINTS coach Alan Dickens admitted: “There’s embarrassment among the whole squad and coaches. I struggle to understand that second half performance....

Ruthless Saracens respond in style after Euro exit

By NEALE HARVEY Adding gloss: Saracens wing Nathan Earle scores the final try Full stretch: Chris Wyles dives over to score...

Genge is more bark than bite says Matt

LEICESTER boss Matt O’Connor said his side were peaking at the right time after winning The Clash convincingly: “The second-half was...

Two-try Kalamafoni turns Clash into Bash

By NICK CAIN Grounded: Adam Thompstone scores Leicester’s opening try despite Ben Tapuai’s challenge PICTURES: Getty Images SIONE Kalamafoni has already...

Saracens badly need Billy back at world class best

JEREMY GUSCOTT Raring to go again: Saracens and England need Billy Vunipola back PICTURE: Getty Images The news of the South...

Limit lofty academy expectations

From a concerned father whose son was sold the academy dream If your son has been fortunate or gifted enough to...

Young should seek advice from Chiefs on squad size

COLIN BOAG Banned for four weeks: Denny Solomona Wasps boss Dai Young commented during the week that his options for forthcoming...

Left field choice to fill problem 12 shirt

EVER since Mike Catt and Will Greenwood retired, England have had a problem at inside centre. They have desperately sought a...

What are laws for?

HAS anyone any idea why rugby referees allow scrum halves to deliberately feed the ball into the scrum directly into the...

Probyn is spot on, community clubs need help urgently

HAVING crossed verbal swords with Jeff Probyn back in November on the issue of RFU funding for grassroots rugby, I feel...