Northern Hemisphere
England are approaching the upcoming series of Autumn Internationals with a depleted squad stripped of a number of positional first choices and in some cases 2nd and 3rd picks also. England Rugby Squad Injuries No Excuse According to Eddie Jones The injury list includes James Haskell, George Kruis, Maro Itoje, Courtney Lawes, Jack Clifford, Sam […]
With the autumn International Tests approaching, and a tough summer tour of New Zealand to look back on, only wins will constitute success for Wales in their continued pursuit of the rugby world’s elite. The initial aftermath of the series whitewash against the All Blacks was a low period. The fact that New Zealand were victorious […]
A 34-man Ireland squad has been named ahead of the match against New Zealand in Chicago. In the first of two matches against the World Champions, Ireland prepares to face the All Blacks in front of an excited US crowd, next Saturday on Soldier Field. Ireland Prepare to Face All Blacks Head coach Joe Schmidt […]
With the first two rounds of Champions Cup fixtures out the way, all eyes turn back to the Aviva Premiership. There are some tantalising fixtures for fans to feast their eyes on. Northampton vs Gloucester The weekend kicks off under the lights at Franklin Gardens on Friday when Gloucester head to the Midlands. Both teams […]
An emotional Munster side ran in five tries on Sunday, to beat Glasgow Warriors 38-7 at Thomond Park, Limerick. After the tragic death of their head coach and former captain Anthony ‘Axel’ Foley, the Munster boys did their best to honour his legacy. While it serves as an important game in the clubs European Champions Cup […]
The WRU annual report has been published and after a long hard look at it, plus several hours of painful pondering, let us have a look what can be taken from the latest instalment into the WRU’s game-plan, and it’s finance report. To quote President Dennis Gethin; ”it has once again been an interesting year in Welsh rugby”. This […]
After seeing off Wasps and Toulon in successive weeks the question is, can anyone stop Saracens this year? Who Can Stop Saracens? A destructive display by the Sarries saw them beat Toulon, despite playing nearly a quarter of the game with 14-men. The reigning Premiership and European Champions saw two players sin-binned, but this didn’t […]
The Aviva Premiership returns at Halloween for one week only. Friday night will see two under pressure coaches; Jim Mallinder and Laurie Fisher, go head-to-head at Franklin’s Gardens. Northampton Saints and Gloucester Rugby lie ninth and tenth respectively in the standings, and defeat will see one left behind from the mid-table pack, as the league table starts […]
With European tournaments continuing this weekend and six rounds of the Aviva Premiership gone, the league table has a familiar look to it at the very top and perhaps the predicted look to it at the very bottom. However these opposing pictures do not tell the story of what has been an enthralling and unpredictable start […]
French giants Toulouse’s defeat away to Connacht in the first round of the European Champions Cup shouldn’t have come as a surprise to many. The result in Galway is a measure of how much rugby’s landscape has changed. Not only have Connacht emerged as a team that can, and have, won trophies, but their style […]
USA Rugby test cap, Langilangi Haupeakui is ready to make his European debut with the Glasgow Warriors. The United States began their first professional Rugby Union conference last year with Pro Rugby. The competition began well for the USA and Pro Rugby is exceeding all expectations. Pro Rugby is proving to be a valuable training […]
Toulon suffer historic defeat at the hands of the Saracen’s. Ma’a Nonu’s return rife with difficulties in the opening round of Champion’s cup play.
Glasgow Warriors‘ 42-13 win over the Leicester Tigers was an almost perfect example of playing to the conditions. The first round game in the Champions Cup was held at Glasgow’s home in the west end of the city, Scotstoun Stadium. Over the summer the old grass surface was replaced with a plastic-pitch. This plastic-pitch played […]
England’s Wing Crisis Following injuries and suspensions, England’s wing crisis is the pressing issue for Eddie Jones to solve this Autumn. Injuries to Jack Nowell and Anthony Watson last week have left England without their first choice wingers. The Old Mutual Wealth Series will now provide Jones with the chance to test out his strength in depth. […]
Scottish Captain Greig Laidlaw transfer to Clermont for three year deal at the end of the 2016/2017 season. According to L’Equipe: “As revealed on our website in the month of May, Clermont had moved onto Greig Laidlaw early. Reportedly; the Scottish scrum half (age 31, 53 caps), out of contract with Gloucester in June 2017, […]
Racing 92 have struggled during the first portion of the Top 14 season. The struggle has been largely due to an Dan Carter injury. This has been compounded by external issues over alleged doping within the club, but all that must be put aside before they play this weekend. Entering round one of the Champions Cup on […]
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Warren Gatland has had his say on the Rugby World Cup in France in his recent UK Daily Telegraph article. Wales failed to progress beyond the last eight not because they were outfought and outthought. Rather that there is something wrong with the rules of the game, and how it is played at the highest […]
The 2023 Rugby Canada women’s team might be seen as one of the best years in the national team’s history. There were many highlights for the national team, including playing the Pacific Four Series in the nation’s capital in the summer. 2023 Rugby Canada women’s team: Finished second in the WXV 1 competition Strengths Players […]
Rugby League players are a talented and fearless bunch, so it only stands to reason that amongst them are some unusual hobbies. If you’ve ever wondered what some of the most exciting rugby league players in the world get up to in their spare time, or get up to now that they’ve retired, then we’ve […]
The 2024 Six Nations is just around the corner and so starts the four-year cycle for all teams. For England and Steve Borthwick, the foundations have been laid by an encouraging semi-final performance at the 2023 Rugby World Cup. Charlie Inglefield asks what might this team look like through the eyes of Borthwick? And whether […]
As Alex Sanderson, Sale’s coach said after his team’s ugly 11-9 win over Bath – they found a way to win. Sale are definitely in the mix to go one better this year and win the Gallagher Premiership. On Friday’s evidence, they need to be a lot better. They played a second-string Bath outfit who […]
Saracens were back to their brutal best on Saturday. They suffocated the life out of a high-flying Harlequins outfit with consummate ease. This despite losing Ben Earl, and Elliot Daly in the warm-up and Alex Lozowski a couple of minutes into the game. No problem, up stepped the likes of Maro Itoje and Owen Farrell […]
We’re crunched the numbers, looked through the stats and brought you 14 wacky and wonderful facts from Round Five of the premier French League. 14 Top14 Round Five Facts and Figures Perpignan recorded their first victory of the season- the last Top14 side to do so- and got their first points in the standings. La […]
About Author
Steve Kendall, Editor
A father of 4, I split my time between writing about Rugby & Wine. My writing influences are Steve James & Michael Atherton and I lament the dying art of the true correspondent.