Category: Rugby Union

Rugby Union News

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Exeter’s Brown-Bampoe in the fast lane for great things for club and country

Wing has a masters in finance but has England ambitions and takes inspiration from Manny Feyi-Waboso

In his quieter moments Paul Brown-Bampoe has a recurring daydream. A packed Twickenham international stage, with him playing on one wing for England and his Exeter teammate Manny Feyi-Waboso on the other. “Of course I’ve imagined that day,” he says, smiling broadly. If the double-barrelled whizz-kids continue their current form it might just happen sooner rather than later.

Admittedly it is early days in the new Prem season but something potentially thrilling is stirring out west. Feyi-Waboso, after an injury-curtailed year, is back fit and firing with five tries in his opening two league games. The top-drawer Wallaby Len Ikitau has arrived to link up with Henry Slade in the Chiefs midfield and also lurking with intent is the 23-year-old Brown-Bampoe, a serious athlete with numerous strings to his bow.

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Northampton welcome back Lions – and not a day too soon as Leicester loom

Phil Dowson has Fin Smith, Henry Pollock, Alex Mitchell and Tommy Freeman available again and eager to make up for last season’s 33-0 defeat

It does not feel like a coincidence that the Prem’s first derby weekend of the season marks the return of most British & Irish Lions players and for Northampton it is a welcome boost indeed. Phil Dowson has Fin Smith, Henry Pollock, Alex Mitchell and Tommy Freeman back at his disposal as they seek to avenge last season’s 33-0 home drubbing at the hands of fierce rivals Leicester.

For Saturday’s game Dowson has selected Smith, Mitchell and Freeman to start while Pollock is named on the bench and across the league a number of other Lions return now that the mandatory rest period has ended. Marcus Smith starts for Harlequins against Saracens, who field Ben Earl from the start. Jamie George is on the bench but Maro Itoje is still considered “unavailable”. Bath are led by Finn Russell in their West Country encounter with Gloucester with Will Stuart also starting. Ellis Genge lines up for injury-hit Bristol against Exeter.

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Senior rugby figures believe rebel R360 league all but dead after unions’ statement

  • Players who sign up would be ineligible for national sides

  • Proposed event yet to be sanctioned by World Rugby

Senior global rugby figures believe the rebel R360 venture is all but dead unless it can find a way to appease the world’s top nations. In a dramatic move the leading unions collectively made clear this week that players involved in the R360 competition would be ineligible for their national sides and have warned them to treat offers with “extreme caution”.

Privately there is a widespread view that those pushing the R360 concept, fronted by the England World Cup winner Mike Tindall, now face a struggle to get the project off the ground if the world’s top male and female players are required to forfeit their international futures to join the rebel league.

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James O’Connor returns keen to add ‘stardust’ to Leicester’s attack

  • Fly-half back in UK after facing All Blacks with Australia

  • O’Connor may play against Northampton on Saturday

James O’Connor, Leicester’s new Australian recruit, is hoping to bring a touch of sparkle to the East Midlands after finally linking up properly with the Tigers this week. O’Connor’s first spell last month was curtailed when he was swiftly recalled to the Wallabies squad to face New Zealand, but he is now back raring to go before his new club’s derby against Northampton on Saturday.

Having arrived in the UK only on Monday, the 35-year-old played a limited part in his first training session but seems poised to feature in the matchday 23 against the Saints. Leicester’s new director of rugby, Geoff Parling, will not confirm his team until Friday but hinted that O’Connor was in line for some action despite his latest long-haul flight. “He’s an experienced operator who gets up to speed quickly, put it that way,” Parling said. “When you’re in business class you can just put your feet up anyway. I don’t think it was too bad for him.”

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England among eight countries to ban players who sign up to rugby’s rebel R360 league

  • Statement says R360 players ineligible for internationals

  • Ireland and Scotland among those to impose sanction

The rugby unions for eight major nations have issued a joint statement saying that any players that join the breakaway R360 competition will be banned from playing for their countries.

England, Scotland, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, France and Italy have all agreed to bar their men’s and women’s players from the national setup if they sign up to the rebel event, which is being fronted by the former England player Mike Tindall.

More details soon …

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The Breakdown | ‘The road not taken haunts me to this day’: David Bishop on a rugby career full of regret

The former Wales and Pontypool scrum-half has written an autobiography on a life blighted by violence and reflects on the punch that ended his international career

Imagine, for a moment, the following scenario. Having broken his neck in a freak rugby accident and avoided paralysis by a millimetre, the player concerned is back for a meeting with his spinal consultant. The specialist advice is crystal clear. Make the most of your second chance and, if you fancy staying alive, never do either of the following again: dive off a high board or resume playing rugby.

And now just imagine being the kind of guy who leaves the room and immediately nips home to pick up his swimming trunks before heading to the nearest swimming pool. Who puts on the swimmers, climbs up to the highest platform and dives straight off. Not once but twice. The rationale being that, if he survives, there will be no reason not to give rugby another go.

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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There are good guys and then there is Lewis Moody – MND has cruelly singled out the bravest of men | Robert Kitson

Moody’s diagnosis with motor neurone disease at the age of 47 is desperate news for all those who know and love him

Back when he was captaining England at the 2011 Rugby World Cup, Lewis Moody went canyon swinging near Queenstown in New Zealand. Despite being utterly fearless on the pitch he was not brilliant with heights. That day, he wrote in his autobiography, was “the most terrifying experience of my life”. Or at least it was. A fortnight ago, he and his family were plunged into something infinitely scarier.

Moody’s diagnosis with the incurable motor neurone disease at the age of 47 is, first and foremost, desperate news for all those who know and love him. There are good guys and then there is “Moodos”, about whom nobody in rugby has a bad word. Cruel doesn’t come close to describing it.

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Bledisloe Cup live: Australia Wallabies 14-28 New Zealand All Blacks – as it happened

  • All Blacks secure 11th straight win over Wallabies

  • New Zealand run in four tries in wet conditions in Perth

Conditions in Perth are damp. It’s been raining on and off throughout the day so it will be slick under lights. Temperatures are mild and there’s little wind to speak of.

“As a South African following while doing a short stint in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, I am salivating ahead of this pivotal match,” emails Craig Sayers. “Indeed, my medulla oblongata has worked overtime this entire Rugby Championship, considering the effect on my heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure.

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Henry Arundell leads Bath to nervy win against Sale as Borthwick takes note

  • Bath 28-16 Sale

  • Hosts made to work for win by stubborn Sharks side

Almost everything is going swimmingly for Bath. At long last their long-awaited stadium redevelopment looks likely to happen and, on the field, the champions are two from two after the first couple of weekends. With Finn Russell due back in action next week to pick up the fly-half baton, it is going to take a seriously good side to steal their crown.

On a wet and windy night in Somerset, even so, they were made to work extremely hard for it by a stubborn Sale team who stuck in the fight and refused to go away. It was only with three minutes left that Max Ojomoh slid in to score his side’s bonus-point try and maintain his squad’s perfect start to the campaign.

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No Beyoncé or K-pop so Argentina v South Africa will have to boost RFU’s bank balance

Twickenham needs to generate more cash but governing body’s grand plans are mired in red tape – just as well the Rugby Championship finale can offer respite

A quick look at Twickenham’s upcoming events and, alas, still no Beyoncé. No Bills, Bills, Bills for Mr Sweeney just yet. In fact, the Rugby Football Union’s ambition to host more concerts and thereby pay for Twickenham’s £660m rebuild has encountered a bit of a delay. It is understood that in July, Richmond council expressed its concern over transport links and told the union further exploratory work is needed.

A report, seen by the Guardian, reads: “Given the uncertainty regarding the ability of the rail industry to cater for the predicted increase in passengers, there [are] significant concerns about the additional demand placed on the transport and highway network by event goers and whether this demand can be satisfactorily managed. This is likely to result in a significant nuisance for Twickenham residents.”

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Owen Farrell focused on forging another team identity after teeing up Donald

Fresh from a chat with the Ryder Cup captain, the Saracens stalwart is back at his old club with half an eye on an England return too

By his own admission, Owen Farrell was exhausted after the first weekend of the season. A stray boot to the face inside 10 minutes made for a bloody nose and a rude awakening on his second Saracens debut against Newcastle, 17 years after his first. Farrell soldiered on to the hour mark, helping Saracens to a bonus-point victory before an early train home on Saturday morning. It was Sunday that left him “emotionally drained”, however.

Farrell was glued to Europe’s Ryder Cup triumph, watching Luke Donald’s side so nearly snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. The 34-year-old is a keen golfer – he took the phone call from his father, Andy, to join the British & Irish Lions tour in July in a clubhouse – and played alongside Donald at last month’s PGA Championship Pro-Am at Wentworth.

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Chessum granted special permission for early Prem return as Leicester captain

  • Most British & Irish Lions on mandatory 10-week break

  • Chessum returns despite featuring in all three Tests

Leicester’s new club captain Ollie Chessum has been cleared to return to domestic action against Harlequins ahead of schedule this weekend. The majority of British & Irish Lions squad members are not being permitted to resume playing for their clubs until next week but the Tigers forward has been given special dispensation.

The 25-year-old was injured for a large chunk of last season and ended up starting only 16 games and featuring off the bench four times. Despite being involved in all three Lions Tests against the Wallabies, the player management load group overseeing the welfare of top players has allowed him to face Harlequins at Welford Road on Saturday.

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Will Skelton and Jake Gordon to start for Wallabies in second Bledisloe clash in Perth

  • Coach Joe Schmidt makes five changes to XV for final Rugby Championship Test

  • James Slipper to play 151st and final game after announcing retirement

Lock Will Skelton and scrumhalf Jake Gordon are among five changes to Australia’s starting 15 for the final Rugby Championship Test against New Zealand in Perth on Saturday.

Skelton replaces the dropped Lukhan Salakaia-Loto after returning from club duty in France, while coach Joe Schmidt’s preferred No 9 Gordon returns for his first test since the British & Irish Lions series after recovering from a hamstring strain.

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