Ackermann will give Gloucester some steel

ON the face of it Gloucester’s appointment of Johan Ackermann, below, as their new head coach for 2017-18, seems a shrewd...

Stimmo learns a painful lesson

OLD men really should know better. Tim Stimpson is paying the price for taking me on at football in a Bet...

Lions need tough guy at ten

MA’A NONU may not be around to scare the life out of defences anymore, but you can bet that the All...

Ford’s a top 10 in Europe but he needs proper pack

MATT O’CONNOR returned to these shores this week to resume command of the club he left in 2013, which begs the...

Kingston: Now we need big response

DUNCAN Taylor claims Sarries are hitting their peak at the right time after they crushed Quins to clinch a playoff place....

Saracens start their long sprint for home

Saracens…40pts Tries: Ashton 16, Brits 23, Rhodes 73, Goode 77 Conversions: Farrell 17, 24, 73, 78 Penalties: Farrell 34, 42, 61,...

French in farce over prop swap

THE Six Nations inquiry into allegations of French cheating against Wales ought to expose a farcical flaw in head injury procedure...

Ace Evans may quit Harlequins year early

By SAM JACKSON CHRIS Ashton scored his fifth try in four games as Saracens hammered Harlequins at Wembley in what could...

‘I was close to being an LA drop-out’

Monster hooker Joe Taufete’e has been a massive hit at Sixways but it was not so long ago that the huge...

Young Gun: Jamie Barden – Cranleigh School

A broken leg cost him his place in the Harlequins academy but Jamie Barden proved he is full of resource by...

Peter Jackson: Tale of two rugby cities could not be starker

On a wintry Friday night by the Clyde, Glasgow Warriors and Newport Gwent Dragons played out a 16-all draw. So few...

Jeremy Guscott: Clash of Titans? No longer, but it’s still a crucial game

The concept of ‘The Clash’ appeals to me, with an expected crowd of 60,000 at Twickenham to watch Bath against Leicester...

Lions watch: tightheads and hookers

New Zealand have the highest strike rate off set piece possession in the world game. That is why it is imperative...

Cohen comes out fighting in defence of Mauger axe

Leicester chief executive Simon Cohen has defended the sackings of Richard Cockerill and Aaron Mauger, claiming both decisions were “robust” and...

Room 101: Will Spencer – Worcester lock

1. Hesitation at roundabouts I get frustrated when people come to a stop at roundabouts regardless of whether there’s any traffic...

Brendan Gallagher remembers the 1993 Lions tour

The last truly amateur tour in Lions history ended up as just about the perfect metaphor of everything that had preceded...

Shane Williams: Warburton still the pick of captaincy candidates

The clock is ticking in the run up to Warren Gatland’s Lions squad announcement, but for me there’s only one man...

Dickson’s move to Bedford confirmed

As revealed in The Rugby Paper on Sunday, Bedford Blues have bolstered their ranks with Northampton scrum-half Lee Dickson ahead of...

Sooner England switch Watson to full-back the better

Mike Brown‘s days as England‘s first choice full-back are numbered according to Matt Perry, who reckons it is time for Bath...

20 Questions: Ruaridh McConnoghie – England Sevens

How about that for a first half of the World Series? We’ve already won two tournaments and we’re the only team...

Jeff Probyn: I doubt that Gatland will be giving out Lions wildcards

Optimism, hypocrisy and concern. Three words that can be used to describe the game of rugby over the last week. Optimism,...

Nick Cain: Solomona is quality, but don’t pick him

That Denny Solomona has had a phenomenal start to his Rugby Union career, with 11 tries in 11 matches for Sale...

Only question is, which tour will Denny be on?

Denny Solomona would be a more than useful weapon in the Lions armoury if Warren Gatland was to make him his...

My Life in Rugby:  Jon Phillips – former Northampton and Bedford lock

Times have changed a bit since I played (and scored) in Saints’ first-ever Premiership match back in August 1997. There were...

Exiles’ legend signs new deal

Club record try-scorer Topsy Ojo has extended his contract at London Irish as the campaign gathers pace ahead of the play-offs....

Newcastle’s eighth summer signing announced

Scrum-half Sam Stuart has become Newcastle Falcons‘ eighth new signing for next season. The 25-year-old is known to Falcons director of...

Saracens add weight to pack with Wallaby star

Saracens have announced that Australian international forward Will Skelton will re-join the club on a permanent deal later this year. Skelton...

Frustrated Fisher tells Gloucester to get real

Laurie Fisher says Gloucester have a long way to go before they can be considered a powerhouse of English rugby after...

Bristol sign young Gloucester duo

Gloucester second row duo Joe Latta and Joe Batley have both agreed terms to join Bristol next season. 24 year-old Latta...

Dream Team: Jim Evans – former Harlequins lock

1. Ceri Jones – He has to be the hairiest player to play the game. I was never quite sure if...

Young: You expect a player of Willie’s quality to score that

Disappointed: Dai Young WASPS director of rugby Dai Young told how Willie Le Roux said sorry to his team-mates for dropping...

Le Roux’s splash crash sums up Wasps woe

By NICK CAIN Leinster 32pts Tries: Nacewa 14, Conan 33, Henshaw 40, McFadden 73 Conversions: Sexton 34, 40, 74 Penalties: Sexton...

Clash of Titans? No longer, but it’s still a crucial game

Head gone: George Ford has been forgettable this season for Bath PICTURE: Getty Images THE concept of ‘The Clash’ appeals to...

DREAMTEAM

WILL OWEN, ROTHERHAM CAPTAIN AND FORMER MOSELEY CENTRE, CHOOSES THE BEST XV HE HAS PLAYED WITH OR AGAINST… 1. Robin Hislop...

Yes, rugby is physical but it is a force for good

COLIN BOAG The right decision: Elliot Daly comes off after suffering double vision The thing about a bandwagon is that once...

Lions seem to lack their usual stardust

DEBATE rages as to who will lead the Lions tour with no one candidate so far clearly ahead of the field....

Martin’s so wrong about Chinnor…our club is thriving

RE Martin Brooks’ letter (March 19) on lack of sustainability of funding within rugby clubs. He mentions our club Chinnor RFC...

Be sensible about the high tackle law

WHILE I’m all for the paramount importance of players safety, I do think that the refereeing of the high tackle law...

Catt hopes Bath can spring to life after ‘massive wake-up call’

By NEALE HARVEY ENGLAND hopeful Nathan Catt denies Bath are mentally weak but admits they must work harder and be smarter...

Wrong to blame Rob for narrow defeats – Warburton

Defiant: Sam Warburton SAM Warburton has blasted critics of Rob Howley, insisting Wales’ interim boss is well equipped to fill the...

Maestri fined for Barnes outburst

Hot-bloodied: Yoann Maestri is pulled away from referee Wayne Barnes FRANCE lock Yoann Maestri has been fined £26,000 after accepting a...

It’s turmoil as Big Two fight to run the Top 14

They have been slugging it out in the centre of the ring for the heavyweight championship of French rugby. In one...

Bridgend overcome Maesteg to take top spot

SWALEC Division One round-up By RICH JONES BRIDGEND Athletic moved to the top of the extremely tight West-Central after they pipped...

Three-try win sees Pooler take the crown

SWALEC Championship round-up By JAMES LLOYD PONTYPOOL sealed the Championship crown after they beat Glamorgan Wanderers 23-3. Pooler had the opportunity...

Llanelli continue good run with bonus point win

By RICH JONES Llanelli …32 Swansea …15 LLANELLI made it two wins on the bounce in Tier Two after they convincingly...

Merthyr leapfrog rivals Ponty to go top of the table

By JAMES LLOYD WELSH PREMIERSHIP Merthyr…17 Pontypridd…3 MERTHYR moved to the top of Tier One after they beat Pontypridd in a...

Bedwas lift first trophy of the season

By ANDREW MCQUARRIE CHALLENGE CUP FINAL Carmarthen Q 18 Bedwas …23 BEDWAS were crowned the 2016/17 Foster’s Challenge Cup champions after...

Farrell greatness made in ‘Heaven’

Andy Farrell believes his son Owen’s growing reputation as one of Rugby Union’s most creative playmakers was born in ‘Heaven’. Or,...

Wales rally to run out easy winners

Wales U18s …29 England U18s …19 WALES U18s will go into the Easter International Series next weekend high on confidence after...

England serve up a mess in Massy

France U19s …35 England U19s …22 A SLOPPY start set the tone for England U19s yesterday as they were convincingly beaten...