Dragons recruit Nathan Lawson revealed why he switched codes from Rugby Sevens and Shane Flanagan’s role as he prepares for a stunning NRL debut in 2025.
Samu Kerevi’s three-match ban opens door for Suaalii’s Wallabies return
- Australia centre’s tour ended after red card in win over Wales
- Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii in frame to return for Test against Scotland
A three-match suspension has ended Samu Kerevi’s tour, jolting his longer-term Wallabies hopes and opening the door for Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii’s return against Scotland.
The centre’s yellow card for a high shot was upgraded to a 20-minute red in Australia’s defeat of Wales in Cardiff. On Wednesday the 31-year-old’s fate was sealed, a disciplinary committee upholding the on-field decision and halving the standard six-week ban due to his guilt, remorse and good record.
Continue reading...Joseph Suaalii roars back into frame for Scotland Test after Wallabies flyer suspended
Australia centre Samu Kerevi will miss Sunday’s match against Scotland after being hit with a ban for his high tackle on Wales’ Jac Morgan, which could see rugby league convert Joseph Suaalii return to the starting line-up.
England adjusting Tom Curry’s technique to ensure safety after latest concussion
- Curry back after head injury against Australia
- Feyi-Waboso ruled out of clash with Japan
England are making changes to Tom Curry’s all-action technique to ensure his safety after he returned to the fold for Sunday’s clash with Japan following his latest concussion.
Curry sat out last weekend’s defeat by South Africa after sustaining a head injury in a collision with Australia’s Rob Valetini in the previous week’s loss against the Wallabies. The 26-year-old, who missed almost all of last season with a debilitating hip injury that nearly forced him into retirement, has a history of head injuries and sustained a concussion in Sale’s opening match of the season against Harlequins.
Continue reading...Wales team for final Autumn Nations Series match against South Africa
Senior men’s head coach Warren Gatland has named the Wales team to face South Africa in the third and final match of the 2024 Autumn Nations Series at Principality Stadium on Saturday 23 November (KO 17.40h GMT, live on TNT Sports and S4C). There are five changes to the starting XV from last weekend’s match […]
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Warren Gatland doubles down on Wales job but public support in short supply
- Under-fire coach eager to stay in post despite losing run
- Defeat by South Africa would be 12th on the bounce
The last rites, if that is what they are, are going to drag on a while longer yet. On Wednesday, Warren Gatland reiterated that he would resign as head coach if it were “in the best interests of Welsh rugby”, while also making it very clear that in his opinion it is not.
Gatland says he had the conversations with his family and his employers after Wales lost 52-20 to Australia on Sunday, their 11th straight defeat. Whatever was said, it has left him “focused solely on preparing the team for this week”.
Continue reading...Festive Welsh derby kicks-off Celtic Challenge
Gwalia Lightning will host Brython Thunder in a mouth-watering festive Welsh derby to kick-off the new expanded home and away Celtic Challenge tournament at the end of December. Lightning will play Welsh rivals Thunder in Round 1 of the tournament at Ystrad Mynach on Saturday, December 21st (KO: 2.30pm.) The Celtic Challenge has unveiled its […]
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Wainwright wants Wales ‘to make things right’
Aaron Wainwright wants his Welsh teammates to “make things right” and “give the fans something to cheer about” when they take on South Africa in their final Autumn Nations Series match at Principality Stadium on Saturday. To do that the Dragons back row star wants to try to replicate the fightback in the second quarter […]
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Lawrence ‘grateful’ for Jones’ tough love amid criticism of toxic England regime
- Centre given international debut by Eddie Jones in 2020
- Australian’s methods have been likened to a ‘dictatorship’
Ollie Lawrence has revealed he questioned why Eddie Jones was “on his case so much” when he was the England head coach but has since reached the conclusion the Australian’s home truths have been the making of him.
Lawrence won his first cap under Jones – who will face his former employers at Twickenham for the first time on Sunday when England host Japan – in 2020 but failed to make an impact on the international stage despite his fine form for Worcester.
Continue reading...Schmidt backs Wales to bounce back
Aussie coach Joe Schmidt has urged Dewi Lake’s Welsh side to stick with the “pride and character” they showed against his team when they take on the world champion Springboks in their final Autumn Nations Series game at the weekend. While Schmidt was delighted to have cleared the second hurdle in his side’s bid to […]
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Squad update
Adam Beard (Ospreys) has been released from the Wales senior men’s squad. This is following a knee injury sustained in Sunday’s match against Australia.
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Maro Itoje says England is ‘the mecca’ amid talk of global breakaway league
- Proposal of touring eight-team franchise competition
- RFU would not select any breakaway players for England
Maro Itoje has insisted that playing for England is “the mecca” amid fears Steve Borthwick’s side could be hit by an exodus of stars heading for a global breakaway league.
Itoje said he was unaware of the mooted competition until news of the proposal broke last week but as one of the leading lights for England for the best part of a decade, the 30-year-old would be high on the rebels’ wishlist.
Continue reading...Gatland fronting up to challenge
Warren Gatland talked about the “real hurt” his side are feeling at the post-match press conference after his side had fallen to Australia yesterday. But the Wales head coach expects a character-defining reaction against the world champion Springboks in the final Autumn Nations Series match at Principality Stadium on Saturday (Kick-off 5.40pm). “When you’re involved […]
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Lake: ‘We can turn this around’
A defiant Wales skipper Dewi Lake remains confident his side can turn around the record run of defeats and “go places” in the not too distant future. The Ospreys hooker confirmed that his squad are hurting just as much as the fans in the wake of the 52-20 defeat to Australia. Next up are the […]
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England are not yet in crisis but Six Nations could be decisive for Borthwick | Robert Kitson
Defeat at the hands of South Africa was to be expected, but the Six Nations looms as kill or cure for the coach’s project
A little perspective is always useful at times like this. How many people, for example, genuinely expected England to beat the world champions, South Africa, on Saturday? A good side winning an absorbing game of rugby does not necessarily mean the gallant losers are totally hopeless. England’s autumn has certainly been full of drama but is it really a full-blown crisis?
A ‘crisis’, in sporting terms, refers to the indisputable point at which a team start to perform so far below expectations that there is no discernible hope. Yes, a fifth defeat on the trot is uncomfortable for a supposed top-tier nation. Yes, they continue to tail off in the final half-hours of too many big games. A limp finish is increasingly what springs to mind when analysts lie back and think of England.
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