Category: Rugby

Rugby News

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Marcus Smith faces uphill battle to regain England place after Italy axe

  • Borthwick decision is blow to Smith’s Lions hopes
  • Dingwall replaces Slade at inside-centre

Marcus Smith faces an uphill battle to regain his England place after Steve Borthwick sought to kickstart his side’s spluttering attack by axing the Harlequins playmaker, dealing a major blow to his British & Irish Lions hopes.

Borthwick dropped Smith for Sunday’s Six Nations fixture with Italy in a one-on-one meeting in England’s hotel bar and has offered him no assurances over his future place in the starting XV with Elliot Daly coming in at full-back. In his favoured position of fly-half, Fin Smith continues and with Fraser Dingwall replacing Henry Slade at inside-centre, Borthwick has picked five Northampton backs and highlighted the cohesion that brings.

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Jamie George inspired by Joe Root to kick on after England captaincy blow

  • Hooker feared international career could be over
  • George replaced by Maro Itoje on eve of Six Nations

Jamie George questioned whether he had an England future after being left hurt by Steve Borthwick’s decision to strip him of the captaincy on the eve of the Six Nations. George said he was blindsided by the England head coach but after receiving advice from his inner circle – including the Saracens director, Mark McCall, Owen Farrell, and his family – he has set his sights on a fourth World Cup, revealing the cricketer Joe Root is his inspiration.

George was installed as captain for the 2023 Six Nations and despite a difficult run of results in his year in charge – England won five of their 12 Tests – he was a hugely popular leader, both within the squad and among supporters.

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Salford face renewed crisis with fresh salary cap and wages still unpaid

  • RFL arranges crisis meeting with owners on Wednesday
  • Club limited to £1.2m worth of players for next match

The Rugby Football League has reimposed salary cap restrictions on Salford Red Devils and summoned their new owners to a meeting on Wednesday to explain why players and staff still have not been paid February wages.

Salford faced significant financial difficulty over the winter that led to the club securing a £500,000 advance on their central funding to survive the off-season. That plight had looked as though it would be alleviated when the club was taken over by a group led by the Swiss investment banker Dario Berta.

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Carling questions calibre of England coaching staff and ‘sensitive’ players

  • ‘Some of them are learning, some of them are very young’
  • Former captain dismisses charge of being out of touch

The former England captain Will Carling has questioned the quality of the coaching within the national set-up and suggested it is holding the team back. Carling, who was part of England’s backroom staff under Eddie Jones, has also rejected complaints from squad members such as Ellis Genge that ex-players are “out of touch” after their criticism of last month’s win over Scotland.

Carling, who captained England from 1988 to 1996 and presided over one of the country’s most successful periods, says the players look restricted by a gameplan that prevents them from replicating the ability they show at club level. “You look at the calibre of the England coaching team and you have to question whether that’s the best we can put out there,” Carling said on Radio 4’s Today programme.

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The Breakdown | Ireland v France can live up to hype and seize rugby back from stattos

Sport was a joyous business for the great Frank Keating: let’s hope for an uplifting Dublin classic in his memory

Sporting miracles do occasionally happen. And when they do the vivid memories cascade down for years and years. Think of dramatic Six Nations games between Ireland and France, say, and it is impossible not to be mentally transported back a quarter of a century. Baggy cotton jerseys, Irish underdogs and – magnifique! – a young Brian O’Driscoll scoring a hat-trick in Paris to beat France 27-25.

Not only was it Ireland’s first win in Paris for 28 years but that evocative mid-March weekend sticks out for a different reason. It also proved to be the final overseas rugby assignment for one of the great oval-ball chroniclers, the Guardian’s own Frank Keating. Frank adored Ireland and its revolving cast of quick-witted rugby characters and that night, once the two of us had finally located our hotel down a tiny street on the Left Bank, we duly raised a glass to the most lustrous of green days.

This is an extract taken from our weekly rugby union email, the Breakdown. To sign up, just visit this page and follow the instructions.

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Lynn names extended Wales Women training squad

Sean Lynn

Head coach Sean Lynn has named a 48-strong extended Wales training squad for the 2025 Women’s Guinness Six Nations campaign. Lynn, who was appointed as Wales head coach in January, has named a squad based around the 15 Welsh internationals who featured in the Women’s Premier Rugby semi-finals. The Wales head coach’s own Gloucester-Hartpury, Bristol […]

The post Lynn names extended Wales Women training squad appeared first on Welsh Rugby Union | Wales & Regions.

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Drovers on course for another cup final appearance

Llandovery are now all but assured of a place in the Super Rygbi Cymru Cup final after a thrilling 50-35 triumph over Bridgend Ravens at Church Bank. It maintained the Drovers’ 100 per cent winning record in Pool A and maximum points earned took them six clear of RGC with just one match to play. Euros Evans’ […]

The post Drovers on course for another cup final appearance appeared first on Welsh Rugby Union | Wales & Regions.

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Ireland and France’s battle for alpha status reminds me of Arsenal v United | Ugo Monye

Saturday’s likely title decider in Six Nations renews an intense rivalry fuelled not by geography but the two teams’ brilliance

Saturday is a day that has been ringed in the calendar for months. The anticipation of France and Ireland renewing rivalries has been immense and what always shaped up as the likely decider for the championship will prove to be exactly that. Again. They have been the two most consistent, outstanding teams in the Six Nations for years now and they rarely disappoint when they lock horns.

It’s an intense rivalry but it isn’t fuelled by geographical reasons or historical antipathy. It is just a rivalry based on the brilliance of both sides, the two dominant teams battling out for the alpha status. It reminds me of Arsenal and Manchester United 20-25 years ago. Two teams separated from the rest of the pack by the quality they possess.

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Crabb hat-trick steers Thunder to win on the road

Thunder

Brython Thunder returned to winning ways with an impressive 17-33 victory against Glasgow Warriors in Round nine of the Celtic Challenge at the Scotstoun Stadium this afternoon. The Welsh side bounced back after last week’s defeat to Irish side Clovers with a big performance on the road in Scotland. Wales second row Gwen Crabb grabbed […]

The post Crabb hat-trick steers Thunder to win on the road appeared first on Welsh Rugby Union | Wales & Regions.

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Canberra Raiders wallop New Zealand Warriors in NRL season opener in Las Vegas

  • Raiders 30-8 Warriors
  • Green Machine put rivals on notice with five-try demolition

Life without Jarome Luai and James Fisher-Harris is off to a great start for defending premiers Penrith, who wrapped up the NRL’s second Las Vegas visit with a thrilling 28-22 win over Cronulla.

The Panthers had their wobbles at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday (AEDT) as they took their first steps without Luai and Fisher-Harris - undoubtedly the two most important players they have lost in five years as NRL heavyweights.

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Wigan hit the jackpot as Super League catches the eye on Las Vegas debut

Warrington Wolves were handily beaten in Nevada but the magic of Matt Peet’s Warriors side lit up Sin City

Today, Las Vegas: tomorrow, the world? Only in the weeks, months and years to come will we know the lasting impact of Super League’s first foray into the United States but, while so many things felt new, one thing was eerily familiar: the brilliance of Wigan Warriors.

Matt Peet’s side have made it their habit to bring out their best on the biggest stages and in Nevada, with more eyes on them than ever, they certainly did not wilt as they beat Warrington 48-24, from 42-0 up.

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