Can Warren Gatland's Wales side reverse their fortunes against England in Cardiff on Friday night? © Getty Images

Wales are facing a critical period of Warren Gatland’s tenure as coach, according to Barry John in the Wales on Sunday.

"Any sportsman will tell you the more a winless run goes on, the harder it becomes to stop the rot.

"There is no more demoralising thing than trudging back into the dressing room having lost yet another hard, competitive game. And it’s no wins in the last seven for Wales at the moment, including that horrible draw with Fiji which was tantamount to a defeat anyway.

"What I would like to see, as we get ready in hope for another Championship, is an end to some of these cliches we keep hearing from the Welsh camp.

“We’ve got to give an 80 minute performance.”

“We’re close to beating one of these teams.”

“We’ve got to take the positives from the defeat.”

"Let’s walk the walk and actually win a game, rather than talk about it. Because, when you look across a changing room at one another after yet another defeat, believe me you know the words uttered are pretty meaningless."

Ireland fly-half Jonathan Sexton talks to the Irish Independent's David Kelly about finding peace in his Kerry sanctuary, the long wait for his big break with Leinster and becoming a Lion in 2013.

"He's currently involved in a tug of war between the IRFU and, if one adheres to the bush telegraph, Stade Francais, current home to his former coach Cheika. It would be an interesting reunion. There is a perception that Cheika, Leinster's Heineken Cup-winning coach, never really trusted youth in general and Sexton in particular; were it not for Contepomi's jarring injury in that 2009 Heineken Cup semi-final at Croke Park, would Sexton ever have got his opportunity to break through? The player himself is unambiguous.

"I made my decisions at the time. Looking back they were good decisions, obviously there was a little bit of luck.Young guys now have to make these decisions. You have to just make the decision you think is best and whatever happens. If someone told me what was going to happen, I wouldn't have taken them seriously.

"Maybe I deserved the break. I wouldn't have wished anything on Felipe but I was playing well in March and April, Michael was saying he was going to start me, then he didn't so... you get what you deserve. Some guys don't get what they deserve. But listen. If I was the coach back then, with a 22-year-old who hadn't a load of big games, and you have Felipe who's had hundreds and was a World Cup veteran, I'd have made the same decision. Naturally, I wasn't thinking like that at the time. You can't blame Michael for that."

Cheika is currently getting blamed for upsetting Sexton yet again; this time in his supposedly dogged pursuit of the Irish out-half, whose contract negotiations with the IRFU trundle on lethargically.Whoever is codding whoever else, Sexton seems genuinely annoyed at the sense of lingering ennui; his loyalty to Leinster is being openly questioned by some supporters. It's clear he wants to stay in Dublin; it is others who are haggling over the price tag."

Waratahs star Drew Mitchell has sent an ominous warning to Super Rugby rivals on the eve of the new season. The Sydney Morning Herald's Josh Rakic reports.

"With their first full season and a successful Wallabies campaign behind them, Mitchell, Berrick Barnes, Kurtley Beale and Lachie Turner are better positioned than ever to light up the field for the Tahs. Mitchell declared their confidence was sky high.

''We all took a lot of confidence from that tour and on top of the Waratahs last year, I think as a back line we're more in tune than ever before,'' said Mitchell, who bounced back from being cut from the Wallabies to become one of their best on the spring tour after his first season in NSW's sky blue.

''Hopefully the Waratahs' attack can build off the back of the Wallabies last year, and I think it can. Berrick got his chance against the French, and Kurtley, I mean, he was nominated in the IRB awards. Lachie Turner - when he got his start he went really well - and then Rob Horne is coming back from injury. We've got some options, too, with Ryan Cross and the like, then there's Hangers [Daniel Halangahu] and Tom Carter.''

"The try-sneak said he was determined to continue on from last year, during which he was Super 14's top try-scorer."

The Daily Telegraph's Mick Cleary believes this year's Six Nations offers the perfect opportunity to cause a stir in the southern hemisphere.

"We want drama and edge and intensity, the thrill of tight matches, the uplift, too, of sublime individual skill. But if there is one added element we require of this year’s RBS Six Nations Championship it is that it makes the southern superpowers sleep that bit less easily in their beds.

"Of course, a Six Nations tournament has its own dynamic, with the settling of age-old sporting enmities played out to a splendid tribal backdrop. That offstage colour has its place, and the matches are ends in themselves. The here and now does matter. But in a World Cup year there is more to it than all that. There is a wider significance.

"If the northern hemisphere is to trouble those from south of the equator in nine months’ time then the countries have to start showing some sort of hand right now."

The Independent's James Corrigan refuses to shed a tear at the prospect of the last Six Nations match staged on a Friday night with a proposed rail strike set to cause carnage.

"It will be mayhem on Westgate Street, down St Mary's Street, all the way on to the Taff embankment and up to the castle. Because of the RMT's selfless action, an estimated 30,000 rugby fans from the valleys will be stranded in the capital. All seshed up, nowhere to go.

"As the night becomes older, the beer becomes warmer and the homing instinct kicks in; the scene will be like a cross between Max Boyce, Live at Treorchy and Dawn of the Dead. Arms outstretched, men and women in red scarves will wander around in confused oblivion, communicating to each other in primeval tones. To the uninitiated ear, their guttural screams will sound something like "Oggy, Oggy, Oggy". And the "Oi, Oi, Ois" will proceed to bounce around the city skyscrapers, peering down on one almighty mess.

"It will take days, if not weeks to clear it all up. Then the inquiry shall begin. It won't be enough for the Welsh Rugby Union – those fearless representatives of the blazer brigade – to blame the RMT. Because the revelation will emerge that the English didn't show up in anything like their normal numbers.

"Hey, the white-shirted masses needed no rail strike to put them off travelling. When it gets dark, the trains stop running from Cardiff to Paddington as a matter of course."

orget the Gatland-Hartley spat, the real action in the Six Nations could boil down to an Ireland v England title scrap. Eddie Butler writes in The Observer.

"At the risk of appearing unamused by the exchanges between the camps of England and Wales, based on the observations of one North Island hooker on another, I should like to start with an assessment of the other two games on the opening weekend of the 2011 Six Nations, Italy v Ireland and France v Scotland. Well, almost.

"What Warren Gatland and Dylan Hartley think of each other adds deliciously to the soup of class-, race-, wealth-war that has raged since time immemorial in the build-up to the days – and now the night – when Wales play England at rugby. And if you do not think there is a genuine antagonism surrounding the fixture, a history that stretches back more than 100 years, and from the cow country of New Zealand to the middle of Friday's front rows, then you must take your place behind the barricades that divide the sides in a war of artificial manufacture. For the next few days, whatever you think, you are going to have a row.

"Before getting lost in the banter, though, may I tentatively make the suggestion that Ireland are going to find it extremely tough in Rome, but that they will pull through and build thereafter to make their showdown with England on the tournament's final day, Saturday 19 March, the championship decider. Ireland start without Jamie Heaslip, but Sean O'Brien has the look of a back-row forward who does not care whether he is given the No6, 7 or 8 shirt, so furious is his desire to make an impact."

The Six Nations prepare for the latest battle for northern hemisphere supremacy © Getty Images

Everywhere you look there are arguments for each of the Six Nations to do well in this year's Championship but the Sunday Telegraph's Paul Ackford insists there are still some issues to resolve.

"This is not another diatribe against the punishing nature of professional rugby. It’s more selfish than that. Injuries deprive coaches and fans from seeing the elite in action.

"For this first weekend alone Ireland are struggling for wings, Wales for a front row and England for a back row. I don’t want to watch second rate stand-ins. I want to watch the best against the best and that’s just not possible any more.

"Yet it’s more insidious than that. Wales, Ireland, Scotland and Italy are disproportionately affected by injuries. With fewer professional teams and players, they find it harder to accommodate the loss of their marquee men.

"The last round of the championship pits Ireland against England and France against Wales. How lamentable if those matches are tilted simply by the fact that England and France have a bigger pool of talent to plunder."

Overseas-play rule should be bent for Cup

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

A New Zealand Herald editorial argues that the NZRU should change their stance on overseas-based players ahead of the Rugby World Cup.

"There is, indeed, plenty of justification for continuing with that rule. Equally, however, there is good reason to say it is too hard and fast, and that exceptions should be made for the likes of Hayman and, possibly, Nick Evans if it means the difference between winning and losing the World Cup.

"The policy of not picking overseas-based players for the All Blacks is essentially sound. It means that young players not much out of school or who have shown promise in provincial or Super rugby are not lured by the money on offer in Europe and Japan. Most schoolboys who play rugby dream of making the All Blacks. The union rule, therefore, is an effective incentive for them to play much of their best rugby in this country.

"But there seems little reason the policy should apply to Hayman, a veteran of 46 tests who is commonly regarded as among the best of tighthead props."

No settling for second

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

The Irish Times' talks to Ireland coach Declan Kidney about how he and his staff are trying to hone the team’s skills set in order to implement their newer game plan.

"There was the hiccup of his inaugural autumnal Test series, but this was quickly followed by a Grand Slam. Follow that! Ireland haven’t, and in the course of using 58 players – 23 of them debutants – the 90 per cent winning ratio of his first season has now dipped to 69 per cent. It’s still healthy, but Declan Kidney is, once again, in part becoming a victim of his own success.

"It is a results business, and for all the need to broaden both Ireland’s game and player base, he and his coaching staff will be scrutinised more closely and critically this season. But whatever pressure he feels under, he has always masked it well – publicly at any rate. This week in the Stand Hotel in Limerick, he strides through the dining area off the main lobby as unobtrusively as ever, smiling and relaxed.

"His readiness with statistics could make him a decent pundit, or at any rate a research assistant, if he was ever of a mind to, which in turn helps him deflect the pressure or, if needs be, reduce expectations. The last match and the next match are all that matters, and the gap in between the last one against Argentina and the next one, in Rome next Saturday, has been nine weeks and counting."

Cashing in on our misfortune

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

Injuries are biting, but Ireland look well placed for the long season that lies ahead, according to the Irish Independent's Brendan Fanning.

"Never mind Stephen Ferris, it was when Tommy Bowe's name was added to the list of casualties last week that people began to struggle with the notion of every cloud having a nice little trim of silver. It had been an extraordinarily protracted process, seeing if the wing's knee would be up to it or not.

"Lumping him in with Andrew Trimble -- he has a lot of bad luck with his hands, that lad -- Shane Horgan, Geordan Murphy and Rob Kearney, made it a uniquely stressed area of the team coming into a Six Nations Championship.

"Ireland fans are consoling themselves that it's only Italy first up, albeit in Rome. And that while a year ago the prospect of going to work without Jamie Heaslip was unthinkable, the emergence of Sean O'Brien has meant that we can get on with the job."

Kiwis take a no-bull approach

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

The Hurricanes literally had a field day with a 35-31 win over the Chiefs in their Super Rugby warm-up clash - the match in a cow paddock north of Wellington attracted 10,000. The Sydney Morning Herald's Chris Barrett reports.

"That such an unlikely stage - a makeshift field in a farm, two hours' drive north of Wellington - was the launch pad yesterday for World Cup fever in New Zealand said everything about a country's sacred attachment to a game.

"And to be fair, describing this Super 15 pre-season match between the Hurricanes and the Chiefs as simply a contest of rugby would be selling a unique occasion significantly short.

"Sure, it was played on a carefully cultivated pitch, prepared laboriously by farmer Neil Symonds on a patch of land on which he usually grazes stock. There was a smattering of All Blacks in the line-ups, fine-tuning for a fast-approaching new season. But the Hurricanes' 35-31 win was only a fraction of the story.

"This gathering of almost 10,000 in a tiny village across the winding ranges from the city of Palmerston North was something else. Imagine the Waratahs and Brumbies facing off in a Condobolin shearer's backyard."

SBW the next Ali?

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

Australian boxing great Tony Mundine has made the extraordinary claim that Sonny Bill Williams can be the next Muhammad Ali. The Sydney Morning Herald's Josh Alston reports.

"His startling appraisal came after rugby star Williams' unanimous points decision victory over Sydney brawler Scott Lewis at the Gold Coast Convention Centre on Saturday night.

Williams was impressive at times as he triumphed over six hectic rounds in his first real test in his three pro fights.

Advertisement: Story continues below A dual New Zealand international in both rugby league and union, Williams is also eager to make his mark in the boxing world.

Mundine, father of Williams' trainer Anthony Mundine, said he should think long and hard about making boxing his primary occupation following this year's Rugby World Cup.

"I said to (Williams) in 12 months time he could be the second Ali. He could be anything," Mundine said.

"I saw him about 12 months ago, I really thought he moved like Ali.

"He needs more fights ... If he keeps on boxing seriously, he will be the second Ali."

Scotland's forwards get an A plus

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

The Scotland on Sunday's Iain Morrison reports from Scotland A's victory over the Irish Wolfhounds on Friday night.

"The great and the good of Scottish rugby joined a very healthy crowd at Netherdale on Friday evening to witness the Scotland A team win a match they looked destined, even determined, to lose in the first half.

"It wasn't just the Scottish management team of Andy Robinson, Graham Lowe and Gregor Townsend, Ireland were represented by national coach Declan Kidney and forward boss Gert Smal. They were there to cast an eye over the likes of Tomas O'Leary, Tony Buckley, the giant lock Devlin Toner and, especially, Gavin Duffy who did his chances of starting in Rome no harm at all with an assured performance at fullback. Afterwards Robinson shook hands with his opposite number and exchanged small talk, both men knowing the real test is yet to come.

"This was a bizarre match with all the action in the one half of the pitch. Ireland dominated the first half and Scotland the second. With Edinburgh struggling this season you might wonder how an A team with ten of their players in the starting line up, including six of the seven backs, managed to beat a strong Ireland side. The answer is that it was the forwards that won this match."

The Greatest Six Nations Players

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

WalesOnline's Simon Thomas has been trawling through the archives and picking the brains of rugby enthusiasts around the country to come up with the definitive list of the greatest Six Nations players ever.

"1. Gareth Edwards (Wales) - Who else could it be? Regularly voted the greatest rugby player of all time, Edwards lit up the championship for more than a decade. He played for his country 53 consecutive times, 45 of those appearances coming in the Five Nations, where he scored 18 tries. The pick of those was his effort against Scotland in 1972, a hand-off launched long-range chip and chase burst up the touchline that the great Spike Milligan said should have been marked by the construction of a cathedral at the spot where Edwards dived over in the shale-covered corner."

Johnson is the perfect general

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

England manager Martin Johnson is ready for a Friday fight night in Wales in their Six Nations opener according to David Hands in the Independent on Sunday.

"He is far more of a people person than he is ever given credit for, but those people – by and large we are talking about players here – do have to conform to a certain ethic. Put simply, they have to be honest and they have to be willing to play for each other.

Johnson was only 12 when the late Chalkie White's term as Leicester coach came to an end but the words of the older man live on. "I tell players that if they cheat me on the training field, they'll cheat their team-mates in the game and in other aspects of life," White once said and Johnson, arguably the most famous individual to emerge from the Leicester stable (alongside Sir Clive Woodward, his World Cup coach in 2003), would agree."

Johnson sees light at the end of the tunnel

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/30/2011

England last won the Six Nations in 2003 but England manager Martin Johnson believes the integration of new talent is about to bear fruit. The Observer's Paul Hayward writes.

"Like the M25 widening, the British Library project or the high-speed Channel rail link, the reconstruction of the England rugby team seems to have taken forever, especially in the Six Nations Championship, where no English finger has touched the trophy since 30 March 2003 in Dublin, eight embarrassingly long years ago.

"The digits belonged to Martin Johnson, captain of the grand slam and soon-to-be World Cup winning side, whose job it is to assure us the train of English power will be back any time now. At last week's Six Nations launch Johnson answered the same questions in the same setting with an identical sense taking hold that England need to stop talking about progress and get their mitts on some silver.

"Since Johnson's heavies overwhelmed a fine Irish XV at the old Lansdowne Road England have finished third, second, fourth, third, second, second and third. World leaders in 2003, they have not been the best team in northern Europe since fielding a team who still trip off the tongue: Lewsey; Robinson, Greenwood, Tindall, Cohen; Wilkinson, Dawson; Rowntree, Thompson, Leonard, Johnson, Kay, Hill, Back, Dallaglio."

January 29, 2011

Tindall to captain England

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/29/2011

Will Gloucester centre Mike Tindall be given the England captaincy in Lewis Moody's absence? © Getty Images

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Mick Cleary reveals that centre Mike Tindall is set to be handed the England captaincy in the absence of the injured Lewis Moody.

"The Gloucester centre will have to pass a fitness test, though, when the squad reassemble at their Pennyhill Park base in Surrey on Sunday.

"Tindall was forced to leave England’s camp in the Algarve on Wednesday to return home for an MRI scan on a bruised thigh that took a heavy blow during a training session. The scan revealed no deep-rooted damage and Tindall hopes to be able to play a full part in the build-up to what is already shaping up to be a seminal fixture in the tournament.

"It had been expected that Harlequins No 8 Nick Easter would assume the reins in the short-term absence of Lewis Moody. Easter acquitted himself well in the captain’s role against Samoa but Tindall, as well as Moody, were rested for that match.

"Martin Johnson, the England manager, was quick to point out at the Six Nations launch in London on Wednesday that Moody remained the man to take his country through to the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand in September.

"The Bath flanker, who has been in Portugal with England and taken part in team meetings, is sidelined with a knee injury but is very confident that he will have recovered in time for the third match of the championship against France on Feb 26."

Nathan Hines will play wherever he's told

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/29/2011

The Scotsman's David Ferguson talks to Scotland's Nathan Hines on the eve of this year's Six Nations.

"He has acquired the nickname "The Guv'nor" and is in charge of dishing out punishment to players who transgress within the Scotland camp. But, for all that he is the most experienced, or more accurately oldest, member of Andy Robinon's squad, Nathan Hines was still reluctant this week to book a flight from his home in Dublin back to Edinburgh tomorrow to rejoin his Scotland teammates in preparation for the opening RBS Six Nations Championship. It was nothing to do with any unwillingness to play, no return to the dark period in his career when he quit Test rugby after becoming disillusioned by the direction in which Matt Williams was taking Scotland but simply a somewhat reassuring blend of the excitement he still feels at representing his country and refusal to take his place in the squad for granted.

"The boy from Wagga Wagga in Australia turned 34 in November, which makes him nearly five years older than new captain and second row rival, Al Kellock. In fact, he headed a group of just six players in last week's 34-man squad born in the 1970s with Chris Paterson, Dan Parks, Allan Jacobsen, Simon Danielli and Scott MacLeod the others."

I’ll do it my way - Warren Gatland

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/29/2011

Warren Gatland has warned his under-achieving Wales stars he is ready to get tough for the most important matches of his reign. The Western Mail's Gareth Griffiths reports.

"Gatland said he would be his way or the highway from here on in as he looks to turn a winless run of seven matches into victory against England on Friday at the start of World Cup year.

"With just six days to go before the massive Six Nations opener at the Millennium Stadium, which Wales must win to set a positive tone for the year, Gatland has already put down the law by axing veteran forward Martyn Williams.

"And the tough-talking Kiwi says compromising with the players, as he says he has done in recent times, is over. The Welsh coach warned he will return to the hard-nosed approach which brought 2008 Grand Slam success .... and told his stars they can quit if they object."

Can anyone steal France's crown?

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/29/2011

Defending champions France have had a woeful year but could prevail again in this year's Six Nations according to The Independent's Chris Hewett.

"There is experimentation, there is inconsistency of selection, and there is France under the stewardship of Marc Lièvremont.

If the head coach has a free hand when it comes to picking a team, some in the land of Les Bleus accuse him of abusing the privilege. He likes Julien Dupuy, the goal-kicking scrum-half from Stade Français; he doesn't like Julien Dupuy. He chooses Mathieu Bastareaud at centre because he's massive, then dumps him when the speak-your-weight machine says "one at a time, please". Julien Malzieu, the Clermont Auvergne wing, gets a chance after performing like a world-beater, then performs like a world-beater and is dropped. Asked to calculate the number of players capped by Lièvremont since 2008, Stephen Hawking is alleged to have replied: "What do you take me for? A genius?"

Youngs can give England the edge

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/29/2011

A week before the big kick-off, The Guardian's Rob Kitson considers the Six Nations teams and predicts how the tournament will finish.

"Don't let the bookmakers lull you into a sense of false security. Yes, England are narrow favourites to win their first title since 2003 but they are also entering a defining period. Should Martin Johnson not guide his team into the top two, as per the target given him by his chief executive John Steele, the chance of him picking the team for England's first game of the 2012 tournament, against Scotland, will look remote and all signs of autumn progress will be exposed as a frustrating illusion. The World Cup? Don't hold your breath.

"The good news is that last-chance saloons tend to bring out the best in English packs. Dan Cole, Andrew Sheridan and Simon Shaw should ensure a solid platform while the scrum-half Ben Youngs has transformed the speed and reliability of the team's option-taking. Ben Foden is in electric form at full-back and Chris Ashton's support running is world-class. Even Jonny Wilkinson is back to kick some match-winning goals. England will expect to beat France and Italy at home but, from a dynamism point of view, the absence of Tom Croft and Courtney Lawes is a potential handicap and much will depend on the teams' ability to start well and to stay cool in tight situations towards the end of matches; the field is too bunched to allow many runaway winners. Win decisively in Wales and memories of past failures will start to fade."

January 28, 2011

Gatland reveals England approach

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/28/2011

Wales coach Warren Gatland was a target for the RFU a few years ago © Getty Images

Wales boss Warren Gatland has revealed that he was contacted by the Rugby Football Union about coaching England and the director of elite rugby post. The Guardian's Paul Rees reports.

"Warren Gatland has antagonised England ahead of next week's Six Nations opener in Cardiff by revealing he was approached three times by the Rugby Football Union before taking charge of Wales.

"Gatland, who was the Wasps director of rugby for four seasons up to 2002, claims he was contacted by headhunters about taking up the role of elite rugby director before Rob Andrew was appointed in 2006. He says he was then twice contacted about the England coach's job during the following year's World Cup after the team had suffered a heavy defeat by South Africa in their pool.

"Gatland was seen as a strong choice because of his success in England, together with the ties he had made with the Premiership clubs who, at that stage, were reluctant to agree a new deal with the RFU over the management of elite players, as well as the three years he spent coaching Ireland from 1998."

My life in sport: Gordon Bray

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/28/2011

Veteran Aussie rugby commentator Gordon Bray turns up on our screens this year as the face of Six Nations rugby in the southern hemisphere - he talks to the New Zealand Herald's Chris Rattue.

Has Robbie Deans fallen short or is a long-term plan coming together? "Most definitely the latter ... we've become very competitive against New Zealand and should be reaching the desired level at the right time. In that sense he's done an outstanding job. He's learnt about the Australian character and invested in young guys and encouraged them to do their own thing."

The South African coach Peter de Villiers does his own thing, but is that good for the Springboks? "I haven't had a lot to do with him but he certainly wears his heart on his sleeve. He has a lot more knowledge than he is given credit for. But his selections are erratic and his press conferences are all over the place. South Africa's victory against England at Twickenham saved his bacon - but I'm not convinced that was the best outcome for South Africa."

"Do you like the new Super Rugby format? "South Africa has been greatly disadvantaged in the past because of the travel involved. And it should encourage tribal rivalries, something the competition has lacked a bit. The Melbourne Rebels, with their coach Rod Macqueen back in the frame, could be a surprise package. They have a lot of journeymen but Macqueen picks players who can really forge a culture. I've seen him turn average players into very, very good players particularly when he started with the Brumbies. He will produce something special over the next few years."

Hard Ball

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/28/2011

Fintan Drury represents a new breed of player agents the IRFU fear as their cosy world of contract negotiations begins to be torn apart by ‘the soccer element'. The Irish Independent's David Kelly reports.

"Where once the IRFU sought to conduct their contract negotiations on their terms and at their pace, at all times assuming the status of something akin to a 19th century benevolent landlord, Drury's tactics have launched a wrecking ball at the comfy establishment.

"And the lords of IRFU are not happy. Chief executive Philip Browne has fulminated publicly at the prospect of "agents" -- we noted how he spat the word out earlier this month -- taking money out of the sport.

"Inside IRFU walls, treasurer Tom Grace and director of human resources Maurice Dowling are digging their heels in as Drury seeks to negotiate the best possible deal available for his players, Jamie Heaslip and Jonny Sexton.

"Outside IRFU walls, much of the negotiations are being conducted via the media -- linen is being washed in the full glare of the public. This the IRFU do not like."

My best is yet to come - Mortlock

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/28/2011

On the eve of the new Super Rugby season, veteran Melbourne Rebels centre Stirling Mortlock tells the Sydney Morning Herald's Guy Hand that there is still plenty of life left in this old dog.

"Mortlock will make his long-awaited debut for the Super Rugby newcomers in a trial match against Fiji in Ballarat on Saturday.

The 33-year-old hasn't played since May last year, when he was found to have a serious disc problem which required back surgery soon after announcing his move from the Brumbies to the Rebels for 2011.

"Mortlock, who still harbours ambitions of breaking back into the Wallabies' set-up in time for the World Cup, is keen to clock up at least half a game against Fiji.

"Thrilled with how his back feels, Mortlock believes once he reaches full fitness he will be a better player than he was just prior to his injury being diagnosed.

"I still feel as though my body has got a little way to go, but I'm very confident in the back," Mortlock said. "(Before surgery) my right side was essentially not doing what I asked it to do. When my body is hopefully in tip-top shape, I'm hoping for it to be significantly better than it has been in a number of years."

Johnson talks up Scotland's Slam chances

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/28/2011

England manager Martin Johnson is wary of the challenge posed by Scotland in this year's Six Nations. The Scotsman's David Ferguson reports.

"With Scotland and England also poised to meet in the World Cup in September, Johnson, the England manager, insisted he viewed Scotland as a dangerous side in this year's Six Nations, on account of their improvement and results under [Andy] Robinson in 2009/10.

"He said: "Scotland have beaten South Africa and Australia over the past year and won away in Ireland and gone to Argentina and won, so they could win every game they play in this tournament, which gives them a chance of winning the tournament.

"I think the whole field has actually come together. I think Ireland are coming under the radar because nobody is talking about them too much that I've seen, and they'll probably enjoy that. But everyone will be thinking 'if we get it right, we can win this'. People might say we're favourites but there are three teams that have won a Grand Slam in the last three years and we're not one of them so things can change very quickly."

January 27, 2011

Contrasting figures

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/27/2011

Will Jonny Sexton be playing his rugby in Ireland next season? © Getty Images

Vincent Hogan compares the contract negotiations of Jonny Sexton with those of James Hook, who will join Perpignan next season, in The Irish Independent.

"Jonny Sexton will have been hungry yesterday for the finer detail of James Hook's impending move to France.

"The Wales utility player announced that he will play his rugby with Perpignan for the next three seasons. Sky Sports reported that Hook's salary would be worth "nearly £500,000 per season"; an extraordinary sum, yet not an entirely unbelievable one, given the spending history of some of the plutocrat owners in the Top 14 (French Championship).

"Hook was born exactly two weeks before Sexton in 1985 and would probably be seen as having a roughly similar market value. Both are current internationals, albeit Hook's versatility has enabled him to play for Wales at full-back and centre as well as his preferred fly-half position."

The fun part

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/27/2011

Jim White meets England manager Martin Johnson as he turns his hand to youth coaching in The Daily Telegraph.

"Wednesday is training night for the Ealing Trailblazers RFC under-14 squad. Whatever the weather, the teenagers gather under the floodlights at their west London club and go through some of the moves they will attempt to execute on matchdays.

"On the night Telegraph Sport visits, the players are concluding their session with a game of touch rugby. Spread out across the first-team pitch, they pass, run and tap with huge enthusiasm.
In their midst, however, is a player considerably taller than the rest. A good 6ft 5in tall and almost that wide, he also appears to know what he is doing when in possession.

"He’s pretty vocal too, barking out directions as the ball swings down the line, his every instruction treated by the boys as if delivered on tablets of stone."

January 26, 2011

Forget about Hayman

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/26/2011

Carl Hayman chose Toulon over the All Blacks © Getty Images

Duncan Johnstone believes that the emergence of Owen Franks means that the All Blacks do not need Carl Hayman for the World Cup on stuff.co.nz.

"The All Blacks don't need Carl Hayman. Talk in France linking him to New Zealand's World Cup bid is way off the mark and the New Zealand Rugby Union have been quick to squash any suggestions they would get him back here on a short-term deal for the tournament.

"For a start the rules don't allow it and that is the biggest barrier. But secondly there is the burning question of whether Hayman is up to the job of slotting back into the All Blacks?

"He has carried the mantle of being the best tighthead in the world. But is that still relevant? Highly debatable I'd say."

Schmidt just the tonic

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/26/2011

Gerry Thornley praises the impact of Joe Schmidt at Leinster as the Kiwi coach emerges from the shadow of predecessor Michael Cheika in The Irish Times.

"Michael Cheika was always going to be a tough act to follow, and the affable and honest Kiwi Joe Schmidt unfairly came under the microscope when Leinster lost three of their first four League games in September, all away from home while the Irish front-liners were gradually being re-introduced. But he looks like just what Leinster needed.

"Cheika, one of the brightest young coaches around, laid the foundations of a hardened professionalism and steely desire, but, with the emergence of Mike Ross and arrival of Greg Feek helping to stabilise the scrum, the former Clermont backs’ coach has added a more ambitious running and offloading game. In terms of their approach, they are the nearest thing to the All Blacks in Europe right now.

"He’s been helped, too, by the continuing emergence of more young jewels off the Leinster production line, but 24 points and 21 tries in such a Heineken Cup group was a remarkable effort. Only Leicester and Perpignan scored more, with 14 of the Tigers’ 25 tries and 10 of Perpignan’s 23 tries coming against Treviso."

France need a reality check

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/26/2011

Peter Bills advises French fans not to read too much into their dominance of the Heineken Cup quarter-finals in The Independent.

"For anyone seduced into believing that four French clubs in the last eight of the Heineken Cup reflects the altogether superior quality of rugby being played across the Channel this season, a reality check is required. Either that, or a visit to the men in white coats.

"You can use this fact as one arbiter if you wish. Or you can use the other fact that the French national team was utterly destroyed, 59-16 in Paris last November by an Australian side that had just lost to England by a record margin.

"As ever, the truth lies somewhere in between the two. But what is undeniable is that this has been, thus far at least, no halcyon season for the game in France. Very far from it, in fact."

Wales must succeed where regions failed

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/26/2011

Mick Cleary believes that the national side must lift Welsh rugby in the wake of the regions' Heineken Cup capitulation in The Daily Telegraph.

"While much is rightly made of the struggles of the English clubs in going head to head with the cash-rich French and their relative demise as a result, the long-running underachievement of the Welsh teams is even worse.

"No Welsh side have won the Heineken Cup since its inception in 1995. For the third time in seven seasons, the regions have been wiped out in the pool stages. That’s a pitiful return by any standards.

"After bitter infighting, regional rugby was introduced in 2003. The classic town base of Welsh rugby was dismantled or redefined. Cardiff became the Blues, Newport, the Gwent Dragons."

January 25, 2011

Sonny's decisions

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/25/2011

Sonny Bill Williams with boxer Antony Mundine © Getty Images

Marc Hinton worries about recent decisions made by Sonny Bill Williams in the shadow of the Rugby World Cup on stuff.co.nz.

"Confession time: I like Sonny Bill Williams. It's hard not to – the guy is a fabulous athlete, has a raw enthusiasm for his sport, possesses wicked upside as a rugby player and still believes you can play two sports at a time.

"I like the way he plays his sport, I like his attitude, I like his X-factor and I reckon for all that innate ability he possesses he's actually a pretty humble bloke with it. If you can ever manage to cut through the hype and hoopla, you get a fairly consistent message of a young sportsman doing things for the right reasons.

"But sometimes I worry about his decisions. Or should I say the people in his life who make his decisions for him. I'm not convinced that Williams steers his own ship, as it were, and he seems content to leave pivotal calls in the hands of people he trusts."

Living the dream

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/25/2011

Chris Slade tells Toby Robson about his whirlwind start to life with the Melbourne Rebels in The Dominion Post.

"Chris Slade has not slept much these past few weeks. Nor has the 26-year-old been seen often by his boss at the Melbourne IT consultancy where he has been working since arriving from Wellington last July.

"Slade has not had time for much other than getting his head around a turn of events that's seen his previously stalled rugby career take flight."

The flying winger

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/25/2011

Ospreys winger Tommy Bowe tells Ruaidhri O'Connor about the plusses of his move to Swansea in The Irish Independent.

"It was a sense of adventure that made up Tommy Bowe's mind to up sticks and move to Wales.

"Rather than staying at home in Ulster and going with the status quo, the Monaghan man signed for the Ospreys and hasn't looked back.

"And not only has he developed his on-field abilities since transferring to Swansea, Bowe has become more than just the quintessential flying winger."

Riding a bike into a car

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/25/2011

Gavin Mairs was at Old Albanians to see Matt Stevens make a low-key return to rugby on Monday night in The Daily Telegraph.

"For if his return to rugby last night having served his two-year drugs ban was relatively uneventful as he helped Saracens defeat Wasps 39-29 in an 'A’ League encounter in St Albans, it was not without emotion.

"Stevens managed a lively 50 minutes before he was withdrawn from the contest unscathed and to a warm round of applause by the several hundred supporters who turned up to see his Saracens debut at the Old Albanians club.

"Yet if he still looked fresh-faced as he barked his support to his new team-mates for the remainder of the match from the sidelines, it betrayed inner feelings of sheer relief that the toughest two years of his life were finally over."

January 24, 2011

Munster will be just fine

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/24/2011

Munster's Heineken Cup hopes have been dashed by they remain in the hunt for the Amlin Challenge Cup © Getty Images

Writing in his column for the Irish Times, London Irish's Bob Casey sees no reason for Munster to hit the panic button.

"Only great teams can sustain the consistency of success that Munster have achieved over the last decade. Great clubs find a way to come back when playing personnel changes.That is the challenge facing Munster now.

"Every team goes through down cycles. Just look at the Six Nations. England were the dominant force for a long time, then France and then Ireland had their time. In the English Premier League, Chelsea, and Arsenal before them, took command before inevitably struggling when senior players departed. The trick is to realise and accept you are not as good as you were the previous season and plan for the future. It is about minimising the down period. It requires about two years of planning and development.

"Munster are doing just that. They are out of the Heineken Cup but into the Amlin Challenge Cup. A European trophy remains an aspiration. And they are top of the Magners League. Not bad for a team supposedly on an irreversible downward spiral.

"There remains a great honesty about their leaders. We saw this in the post-match interviews of Ronan O’Gara and Paul O’Connell in Toulon. A clever combination of recruitment and promotion of the next generation (those who are ready, that is) is crucial to regenerating a team as quickly as possible."

France need unity in Six Nations

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/24/2011

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Brian Moore asks whether France's dominance of the Heineken Cup will be reflected in the Six Nations.

"The presence of four French quarter-finalists, Perpignan Toulouse, Toulon and Biarritz, is no accident and you cannot say any of them have been fortunate to progress this far. This year’s Heineken is a reflection of the strength of the French domestic league and its powerful purse.

"Whether any of this form translates into a coherent and consistent Six Nations campaign is anybody’s guess. Not only have you to consider the French occasional penchant for performing as if they don’t care, there is also the question mark about the relationship between France coach Marc Lievremont and his squad. The whispering from the French camp about the atmosphere during the autumn internationals was more than the understandable gripes from unfavoured players; it was specific about aspects of training and man-management.

"The shambolic way France capitulated against Australia made no sense until this point became known, because hitherto France were the closest of all the northern hemisphere nations to matching the power and pace of the Tri-Nations sides. If, and only if, the rumours are wrong, or the causes are removed, can you have faith in France topping the table. The Six Nations is a sufficiently difficult tournament and the unusual pressures of geographical proximity and historic enmity do not need exacerbating by internal discord."

Munster put talk of their demise in the past

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/24/2011

Munster ended an otherwise disappointing Heineken Cup campaign with victory over London Irish in Limerick - the Irish Independent reports.

"Twelve minutes left on the clock and Ryan Lamb's conversion of Sailosi Tagicakibau's try has pushed London Irish into a 14-7 lead. With Munster looking like they couldn't score in Newcastle on free Bacardi Breezer night, the Exiles were justifiably bullish that they could go on to become only the second visiting side, after Leicester in 2007, to record a Heineken Cup victory at Thomond Park.

"They had been pretty brutal. Plenty of effort, endeavour, possession and position but precious little execution. The fact that the first half ended scoreless was largely down to Munster's inability to finish off the opportunities they had ground out for themselves.

"When they got close to the line, there was the instant reversion to the blinkered forward-drive mode Munster know best. It does produce tries, and did for Damien Varley just after half-time, but there needs to be more variety to prosper against Europe's best.

"So, when London Irish got their second try, adding to their 58th-minute score from the excellent Seilala Mapusua, it looked like curtains for the home side, another nail in the coffin for the former champions -- relegated to red-button status on Sky Sports as yesterday's men. What happened next was remarkable."

Foreign clubs ready to raid Wallabies

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/24/2011

With several Wallabies linked to a move to Europe, the Sun-Herald's Josh Rakic and Adrian Proszenko
believe the Australian Rugby Union have dropped the ball.

"The World Cup will be the last time the majority of the Wallabies play together as defections overseas or to rival codes threaten to decimate Australia's playing ranks.

"And The Sun-Herald can reveal that the ARU has made no attempt to retain superstar Matt Giteau although the 28-year-old playmaker stands to earn less in France than through his existing Wallabies deal. Fifteen other Wallabies stars are off contract in October but the governing body has less than a fortnight to secure some of the biggest names as cashed-up European clubs prepare to pounce.

"Hooker Stephen Moore and back-rower Huia Edmonds have already signed with Paris club Racing Metro and English side Saracens respectively, while Dean Mumm, Drew Mitchell, Adam Ashley-Cooper and Luke Burgess have been given strict signing deadlines from determined French clubs as they look to cement their rosters by February.

"ARU officials returned from their Christmas and New Year's holiday break last week to learn that international clubs had fast-tracked contract negotiations with their players, shifting contract deadlines to January - six months earlier than usual - in anticipation of a busy cup period."

Sonny admits he can't rule out Souths

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/24/2011

Sonny Bill Williams doesn't know exactly what he'll be doing in 2013 - but he won't rule out linking with NRL club South Sydney. The Sydney Morning Herald's Joe Barton.

"After sweating his way through an hour-long sparring session in Redfern today, Williams admitted that a return to the NRL was something he thought about from time to time. The NRL will not register a Williams' contract until after the 2012 season, due to the former star backrower walking out on a five-year deal while at the Bulldogs in 2008.

And, just like he does every year, when 2013 comes around Williams will reassess his options as new opportunities arise. "Maybe (I would talk to South Sydney), it's definitely an option in a couple of years, maybe, after the (Rugby) World Cup," Williams told reporters.

"I don't think I'm allowed back until after 2012, so it's definitely an option. And ... it's definitely an option to stay in New Zealand (and continue playing rugby union). For me, especially the last couple of years I've set myself on small goals and concentrating on the next target."

100 caps dream in balance

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/24/2011

Martyn Williams dream of winning 100 Wales caps could be over after the Lions flanker was the shock omission from Warren Gatland’s Six Nations squad. The Western Mail's Gareth Griffiths reflects on the shock news.

"The 35-year-old, currently stranded on 98 Wales Test caps, was sensationally dropped last night from the 28-man party named by the Gatland.

"The Kiwi coach named uncapped back-row duo Josh Turnbull and Toby Faletau with Dan Lydiate, Sam Warburton, Jonathan Thomas, Andy Powell and Ryan Jones completing his back-row options.

"Scarlets flanker Turnbull and Dragons No 8 Faletau are among five uncapped players alongside Scarlets outside-half Rhys Priestland, Blues tighthead Scott Andrews and Ospreys prop Ryan Bevington. It is another bitter blow for Williams who last week learned he is set to be released by the Blues at the end of the season.

"Gatland persuaded Williams out of international retirement when he took over after the 2007 World Cup, citing lack of alternative openside options. But the emergence of Warburton and now Turnbull has started the changing of the guard, with Gatland opting for youth over experience for this tournament."

January 23, 2011

Wales target top six inches

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/23/2011

Wales fullback Lee Byrne trudges from the field after being sin-binned against Ireland © Getty Images

Wales and Wasps coach Shaun Edwards tells Hugh Godwin in the Independent on Sunday that Wales must master the mind games if they are to have a successful Six Nations campaign.

"The serious subject at hand is growing evidence that Welsh players lack that bottle. Slip-ups in tight spots have been costly. A knock-on at a scrum and a lost line-out against South Africa in 2008; throwing away a lead against the same opponents last June; in the 2010 Six Nations' Championship, Alun-Wyn Jones's yellow-card trip against England, Lee Byrne's daft sin-bin in Ireland, and two missed kicks to touch during a fightback against France; a few months later, Byrne's penalty touch-finder off target versus New Zealand, and Ryan Jones conceding a penalty to hand Fiji a draw.

"'It's impossible to replicate those specific, big moments in training,' says Edwards. 'Obviously the more you practise the skill, the better. But experience counts – particularly if not all those experiences have been bad. If they're all mistakes, it will get in your head a bit.

"'It's not just line-outs. It's missing that last-ditch tackle, or giving away a crucial penalty. And they could come at any time. I was proud of Wales's defence in the 2008 Grand Slam but the goal-kicking was 100 per cent going into the final match – a huge part of us winning it. Rugby is a game of momentum. The momentum-shifting incident could be at any time.'"

A cut above?

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/23/2011

In the Guardian Michael Aylwin talks haircuts and international call ups with Harlequins prop Joe Marler.

"And then there is Joe Marler, the Quins prop who, notwithstanding the kind of haircut that might do the same, has so impressed Johnson that he called him up to the senior squad in the autumn.

"'The call-up was pretty much out of the blue,' Marler says. 'Graham Rowntree [England's scrummaging coach] rang me up on the Sunday and asked if I wanted to come and train. I thought: 'Is this a wind-up?' I'd played at Gloucester the day before [Quins lost and Marler was booed by the Shed – quite a compliment – when he and his Mohican walked to the bench when substituted late on], and I'd had a shocker. The next day I was starting to find it tough, so to get that call was really good. But I haven't really thought about it too much, because I think if I do that, I'll end up not pushing on. I've got to keep going because everyone is improving around me.'"

No fullback, no props, no policy

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/23/2011

George Hook in the Irish Independent believes that Declan Kidney has a number of big selection calls ahead of Ireland's Six Nations campaign.

"It is the back division that raised eyebrows. How Kidney can justify the selection of Luke Fitzgerald, Keith Earls and Andrew Trimble ahead of Fergus McFadden is a mystery. The coach has picked five wings, three centres and one injured full-back, clearly in the belief that Fitzgerald and Earls can also play at full-back or centre. Neither player, partly perhaps because of injury, has demonstrated anything like their early promise, nor is there evidence this season that either can play anywhere other than on the wing. Trimble remains a big, strong, fast young man of adequate defensive abilities and undelivered promise. Meanwhile, McFadden, not to mention Eoin O'Malley, is bang in form.

The forwards too give cause for concern. Finally, Tony Buckley has been exposed and John Hayes, at an age when he should have his feet up in front of a fire, is asked to perform a job that he can no longer accomplish, which seems to indicate that Mike Ross is now the frontrunner for the number three shirt. Ross is no wunderkind at the scrum. He is a journeyman in his 30s who failed to convince Kidney at Munster and Dean Richards at Harlequins.

The evidence of Friday's game in Paris indicates that he is adequate and no more. A Six Nations starting in Rome will be a big step up in class. Ross is one of four prop forwards in the squad, none of whom can perform their primary task at the highest level."

Hines a shoe-in

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/23/2011

Iain Morrison attempts to second guess Andy Robinson's selection for Scotland's opening Six Nations match against France in the Scotsman.

"His front row picks itself these days but he has a three-into-two problem in the boiler house and Nathan Hines will start because Robinson didn't so much hint it as shout it from the rooftops, so effusive was he in praising the big Aussie.

Hines will start but there is still a question as to where? The coach admitted that he was tempted to play him at blindside flanker, as he did against South Africa, which spells bad news for Kelly Brown but good news for Richie Gray and Al Kellock, both of whom could then be accommodated in the second row.

Robinson was giving nothing away on the captaincy but there remains a lingering suspicion that if Kellock merits a place in the run-on team then he will lead the side after his sterling efforts in South America. If Kellock doesn't make the XV then the team would presumably be skippered by whichever scrum-half is the flavour of the month. The long Glasgow lock has one final chance to stake his claim this afternoon against the Dragons."

French cook-up rich rugby culture

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/23/2011

Writing in the Independent on Sunday, David Flatman concedes that the mix of greater professionalism along with the retention of some traditional traits makes French rugby almost unbeatable.

"It's true, you are more likely to get rich in French rugby and you are also more likely to get chinned in the process, but that is no longer all the place has to offer. Albeit a bit late, professionalism is being embraced in what – despite blokes being paid – remained an atmosphere with a wholly amateur feel for so many years. While it might be a touch ambitious to put the "new" French approach on a par with the top English clubs in terms of organisation, it is, I am sure, safe to declare them "proper" pros.

"Speaking to friends playing over there, there still seems to be a big emphasis on playing on "feel", as opposed to playing according to research carried out. This is a far more reactive approach but, in the interests of humility and improvement, surely it is reasonable enough that we learn what we can from those achieving more in our field. Iain Balshaw of Biarritz told me something else interesting: "The coaches just concentrate on what we are trying to achieve in general, not the odd little mistake. Appraisals will be frank but there is nobody being torn apart for dropping the odd ball or giving away the odd penalty. It is far more relaxed and positive than the analysis in England."

Stepping into the unknown

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/23/2011

In the New Zealand Herald, Michael Brown contemplates the consequences of the new Super Rugby format.

A bit like a Star Trek voyage, Super Rugby is heading into the unknown. A new team, vastly new format and new finals series has added intrigue to a competition entering its 16th year.

Instead of teams playing every other side either home or away, they are now split into three conferences based on national boundaries (New Zealand, Australia, South Africa) and play significantly more local derbies.

It's been done to freshen up a tired competition as well as provide greater local interest - TV viewing figures show Kiwis are far more interested in seeing local derbies than games against sides from other countries - but it also means a longer season in an increasingly congested rugby calendar.

January 22, 2011

Uphill task to conquer Europe

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/22/2011

The Cardiff Blues' push to qualify for the quarter finals of the Heineken Cup was ended prematurely © Getty Images

Cardiff Blues coach Dai Young tells Simon Thomas of the Western Mail that Europe is no level playing field.

"This is not an excuse, this is a fact,” Young said. “When you look at the teams that are more likely to go through in the Heineken Cup, none of the four Welsh regions get anywhere near their budgets. We are not competing on a level playing field and we are operating with half of their budget.

“How can we compete with the budgets of Toulon and Toulouse? We are just lucky to be on the same field as them.“We have not got the restrictions they have got,” he said. “How many Frenchman are playing for Toulouse at the moment?

“The charter and the participation agreement and the restrictions on foreign players at the regions are done for the good of Welsh rugby. We are broadening the player base in Wales with only having six overseas players. Nobody is suggesting we should have more than six and I think it is the best for Wales."

Power play

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/22/2011

In the Scotsman, Allan Massie assesses the relative strengths of Edinburgh and Glasgow.

"The contrast between Glasgow's 20-10 win and Edinburgh's 37-0 defeat at the hands of Northampton, admittedly away from home, says much about the difference between the two clubs. Edinburgh can play brilliant 15-man rugby. Nobody who has watched them over the season can reasonably dispute this. Indeed, their first-half performance in the home game against the same opponents a few weeks ago was outstanding. They scored three of the best tries one has seen from any Scottish team against good opposition for years - perhaps since that astonishing first-half in Paris in 1999 when Scotland scored five tries within 30 minutes. Nevertheless, Edinburgh lost that game, too, if only by the narrow margin 31-27. They lost in the same way and for the same reason that they tend to lose matches: because their set-piece was not good enough and they were beaten up-front, therefore found themselves playing on the back foot.

"When Glasgow's pack is going well, as it did against Wasps last week, they are formidable opponents for anyone. Edinburgh's pack is underpowered. Glasgow's locks, Alastair Kellock and Richie Gray, are heavier and stronger than any pair Edinburgh can field. Scott MacLeod is excellent in the line-out and a skilful ball-player. Fraser Mackenzie also has rare skills, but is at least a couple of years short of full physical development. Glasgow are stronger at No 8, too, with Johnnie Beattie, Richie Vernon and Ryan Wilson, named man of the match against Wasps. Edinburgh frequently have to field their captain, Roddy Grant, in that position. He is a splendid player but his real position is No 7. Indeed, Edinburgh often play an entire back-row of 7s: Ross Rennie, Grant and Alan MacDonald."

In the wet go to the wings

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/22/2011

Former England coach reveals the secrets of upsetting the odds in atrocious conditions in the Independent.

"So what is it that enables this to happen? The most important ingredient is the belief that it can be done. If people believe, certain technical and tactical qualities then come into play. These include, in no particular order, the following: high-calibre resetting, with players regaining their feet quickly and repositioning themselves faster than the opposition; playing to the edges of the defence, with numbers running off No 12 rather than No 10 to attack areas where tacklers are beginning to thin out; latching early on to the player with the ball, helping him stay on his feet and drive as far as possible; employing the "two pass minimum" strategy rather than trying to run everything off the scrum-half; attacking space even in the most congested parts of the field with secure, sensible offloading; and making the most of blind-side channels, creating space for the quick men with short passing and direct running.

Crucially, teams should never abandon the concept of playing with width, for even in the worst conditions, there will always come a time when it can be used effectively. As the All Blacks have demonstrated so often and Fylde, in their own way and at their own level, reminded us last week, the "width principle" is at the heart of the matter whenever rugby shows the best of itself."

Amlin Cup could do Munster good

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/22/2011

Writing in the Irish Independent, Tony Ward insists all is not lost for Munster in Europe as participation in the Amlin Cup Challenge can facilitate their recovery.

"The suggestion that the visit of London Irish to Limerick for a European Cup tie represents a dead rubber is very wide of the mark. It's up to the fans to do their bit on the Thomond terraces, but for those centre stage, there's not only a professional job to be done, but there's still a massive incentive in gaining European Challenge Cup qualification.

Tony McGahan will have ample opportunity in the coming weeks (running parallel with the Six Nations) to give youth its fling in mixing and matching his Magners League line-ups. To have the added incentive of Amlin Challenge Cup involvement would add immeasurably to the season from here on in.

The opportunity arises here to blood the likes of Ian Nagle, Duncan Williams, Dave Ryan, Peter O'Mahony, Mike Sherry and others in a different playing environment and level of intensity to Magners League."

January 21, 2011

'The tough times have just made me tougher'

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/21/2011

Wales and Wasps coach Shaun Edwards offers some colourful observations in an interview with The Independent © Getty Images

Wales and Wasps coach Shaun Edwards is the one facing the questions in The Independent.

"This appetite for learning was not quite so prodigious at St John Fisher high school, Wigan, not that it mattered much in a boy who captained English schools in both codes of rugby, and broke all schoolboy records by signing for Wigan on his 17th birthday for £35,000. "History was the only subject I took much notice of at school," he recalls, "and funnily enough it's my son's best subject too."

"His son James, by the M People singer Heather Small, is on a rugby scholarship at Harrow. I confess to being slightly startled when he tells me this; the tough-as-nails Wiganer, so in touch with his working-class roots that during the 1984 miners' strike he taped over the British Coal logo on his shirt, with a son at the school of Lord Byron and, for that matter, Margaret Thatcher's son Mark. Yet the incongruity of it gives Edwards nothing but pleasure. "My father and mother came down to watch James play, and as my father said, the facilities there are like heaven for a young man, heaven on earth."

"Indeed, and yet his own stellar playing career was forged in the narrow terraced streets of Wigan. Does he worry that, however heavenly the facilities at Harrow, James might be missing something less tangible but more valuable in his sporting education? "Well, I had it tougher in some ways but it's a daunting thing leaving home at 13, you know. In fact, I remember Fraser Waters telling me he left home at eight. So they have it tougher in different ways. When I moved out of my mum's house, I moved about 60 yards down the street." How old was he? "Twenty-two," he says, with a bellow of laughter."

How to break the try drought

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/21/2011

Writing in the New Zealand Herald, Wynne Gray previews the Chiefs' chances of breaking their Super Rugby drought.

"Former All Black captain Tana Umaga is in the mix for midfield selection while also being an influential member of the leadership group.

"He has rehabbed his niggles well, he has exceeded expectations in training and settled in very well," Foster said.

"The original plan was something round the five to seven games mark but Tana has suggested we debate that a bit more. He still has a lot in him and is contributing widely to the group.

"Tana is very professional, determined and stimulating for others in the squad."

Much done, but still more to do

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/21/2011

The Irish Times' Gerry Thornley previews Leinster's Heineken Cup date against Racing Metro with the Magners League side looking to secure a home quarter-final.

"For Leinster, the job is almost done, but there is more to do. Switch their hitherto impressive Heineken Cup machine into over-drive one more time, treat the demands of an away night in France with the respect the encounter merits and play with their Test-like Euro intensity.

"For with one more win they will have secured a highly-advantageous home quarter-final.

"It may not have the demands of a must-win game, they may have already qualified, but history has shown us that earning a home quarter-final almost puts a foot in the semi-finals. To pass up the opportunity which knocks now would leave them kicking themselves."

I didn't come for the money

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/21/2011

Former Springbok Pedrie Wannenburg tells the Irish Independent's Peter Bills that helping Ulster return to Europe's top table his prime motivation.

"They're an easy target at which to direct your fire, ideal victims of the cheap shot. What on earth are all these South African rugby players doing over here in Ireland, the UK and France? Working hard on their personal pension funds, of course, say the cynics.

"Aren't they creaming it financially, the whole lot of them? Aren't too many playing rubbish rugby? But do they care? Isn't all that matters the dough?

"Well, those are some of the common perceptions in a few people's minds. But Pedrie Wannenburg wishes to offer a case for the defence.

"Ulster's 30-year-old former Blue Bulls and Springboks back-row man puts a very different perspective on the whole overseas slant. He certainly offers a stirring defence of his own motives for playing northern hemisphere rugby.

"Wannenburg, the first player to play 100 Super 14 matches for the Bulls, says flatly: "If you want money, if that is your only interest, you don't come to this part of the world. You go to Japan and don't worry about your rugby career any more."

SARU drop Bok dopers

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/21/2011

Springbok wing Bjorn Basson will attend Monday’s hearing in Cape Town with a bitter taste in his mouth. Sport24's Gerdie Karstens and Hendrik Cronjé report.

"At the hearing, Basson, hooker Chiliboy Ralepelle, and their legal representatives will have to explain how the prohibited stimulant methylhexaneamine ended up in their bodies during last year’s end-of-season tour in Europe. Both were sent home after the Test against Ireland.

Basson told Sport24 in an exclusive interview on Thursday that the treatment and support that he and Ralepelle had received from the South African Rugby Union (Saru) since their suspension in November 2010 has been shocking.

“I am dissatisfied with the manner in which we have been treated. Saru’s arrangements for our return was absolutely pathetic,” said Basson.

“From the time that we got to the airport in London everything was just one big mess. There was only one seat available on the flight to South Africa. Chiliboy and I then had to decide between us which one of us would only fly later. I came back first.”

Mad dog straining at the leash

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/21/2011

Injured England skipper Lewis Moody tells the target="new">Daily Telegraph's Ian Chadband that he is desperate to be part of this year's Six Nations.

"Old mad dog is looking just a wee bit hangdog as he limps around an industrial park, his right leg in a thigh-high brace yet still nobly carrying out his promotional duties for his sponsors. But Lewis Moody always was, and still is, too irrepressible to let his zillionth injury derail his enthusiasm.

"Like the Monty Python knight who considers an amputated arm as a mere flesh wound, he insists he does not even consider the latest ailment to actually be an injury at all. A torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee? Done that. Had it before. In both knees.

"I don’t really count it as an injury,” he smiles. “Just a niggle.” A niggle which, we were at first told, would keep England's captain out of the first three matches of the Six Nations against Wales (Feb 4), Italy (Feb 12) and France (Feb 26).

"Don’t you believe it, promises Moody. “I’ll be back for that third game against France, fighting fit, raring to go.”

Gatland throws down gauntlet to Welsh props

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/21/2011

Wales coach Warren Gatland says a posse of props will be licking their lips at the opportunities created by the injuries to Lions duo Gethin Jenkins and Adam Jones. The Western Mail reports.

"Gatland admits the confirmation of the worst fears about Jones’ injury is a big blow, but he remains confident that there are players ready to rise to the challenge of filling the curly-haired Osprey’s boots.

"He has identified the versatile Paul James, Blues youngster Scott Andrews and Jones’ regional understudy Craig Mitchell as the leading contenders to wear the No 3 jersey against England in a fortnight’s time.

"Adam has had a scan and he won’t need an operation, which is a bonus, but we understand it’s a hyper-extension of the elbow which is probably six to eight weeks,” said the coach. "It’s a big blow. But he’s a player that’s pretty crucial and pretty vital to us and it’s important we look at alternatives and players coming through."

European winters promote prop culture

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/21/2011

Success in the Heineken Cup is dependent on scrummaging hard and often according to Shaun Edwards in The Guardian.

"Here are a few dates to make a point.

"1983: A young blond centre – he had plenty of hair then – captaining his country for the first time is full of pride but as frustrated as hell because he can't get his hands on the ball as the Wales pack dominates possession and the game. Later the England schoolboy captain learned that the Wales tighthead prop and the cornerstone of their pack was Dai Young, who would become a legend.

"2001: The blond centre has become a green coach at Wasps, learning the ropes under Nigel Melville. After a bit of pressure the new boy is allowed a look at the Wasps wage structure, only to express surprise that the tighthead prop is pretty close to being the top earner. "You'll learn," says Melville and I did.

"2011: Coming up to the final round of Heineken Cup pool matches, take a look at the four teams who have already qualified and those made favourites to qualify by the odds makers. All have stand-out packs and most have guys in the No3 shirt worth their weight in gold."

January 20, 2011

A double dip depression

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/20/2011

An injury to Ospreys prop Adam Jones has dented Wales' Six Nations preparations © Getty Images

The Western Mail's Gwyn Jones reflects on a bad start to the year for Wales.

"According to numerous psychological studies, the middle two weeks of January is known to be the most depressing time of the year. They got that right.

"The injury to Adam Jones put the tin hat on what was a thoroughly miserable weekend of rugby. Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, Wales lose an irreplaceable player on the doorstep of the Six Nations.

"But round five of the Heineken Cup brought into focus the dismal reality of the current standard of the regional game in Wales. Far from winning a group, any Welsh region would welcome finishing second in a pool rather than languishing in the bottom half of the standings.

"Some would argue the outrage at the hopeless situation of the regions is an over-reaction – hey, Wales still has the Magners League champions and Amlin Challenge Cup holders. In my view, it isn’t over the top in any way whatsoever. The regions need a collective rocket to get their houses in order."

Concentration crucial to Brett's season

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/20/2011

Playmaker Stephen Brett is carrying a sensible mantra into his second season with the Blues, according to the New Zealand Herald's Wynne Gray.

"He might be in a group pushing to back up Daniel Carter at the World Cup but for Brett, his only emphasis is on getting the Blues into sync, into strong cohesion and into the playoffs.

"Brett's philosophy is a variation on the old theme of steady improvement, taking baby steps and when that occurs, higher honours will beckon.

"Brett played every game for the Blues in his debut year last season and, with competition from Luke McAlister, is poised to run the five-eighths role again for the team.

"He is in a group with Stephen Donald, Colin Slade, Mike Delany and Aaron Cruden, who are all looking for the right balance in their games to convince the national selectors they should go to the World Cup."

Pecking order remains to be seen

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/20/2011

The Irish Times' Gerry Thornley analyses the composition of Ireland's squad for the Six Nations.

"The old truism within Munster’s ranks that the better the team performs collectively the more it will be reflected individually in the composition of Irish squads still holds true now, albeit in a reverse way.

"On foot of their first elimination from the Heineken Cup in the pool stages for 13 campaigns, the big losers undoubtedly are Tomás O’Leary and Tony Buckley, neither of whom have made the cut for Ireland’s 32-man squad for the RBS Six Nations Championship.

"Instead, each has to be content with a place in the Irish Wolfhounds squad, whereas Mike Ross, along with Peter Stringer and Eoin Reddan, have apparently jumped ahead of Buckley and O’Leary in the national pecking order.

"For O’Leary it is quite a fall after a couple of years as the clear, first-choice Irish number nine, though this is also a reflection on his struggles to regain form and obtain more game time since suffering a broken hand at the end of November.

"However, the degree to which yesterday’s 32-man Six Nations squad and 22-man Wolfhounds squad – which has one vacancy remaining at fullback and will be supplemented by further players following the weekend games – is a cut and dried pecking order remains to be seen."

O’Driscoll Boost

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/20/2011

Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll has given the clearest indication yet that he is willing to finish his career in Ireland with Leinster.The Irish Independent's David Kelly writes.

"O'Driscoll's contract is due to expire following this year's World Cup and, although he said he is not under pressure to make a decision, his glowing tributes to new Leinster coach Joe Schmidt's impact with the province might make him reconsider his options.

"O'Driscoll hinted last year that he might be willing to discuss a move to Stade Francais, where Leinster's Heineken Cup-winning coach of 2009, Michael Cheika, is based.

"With Jamie Heaslip and Jonathan Sexton yet to be offered new deals by the IRFU, Leinster could ill-afford to also lose their talismanic midfield star, who turns 32 tomorrow. He had also hinted at retirement in recent times, but ahead of Leinster's trip to Paris to face Racing Metro in the Heineken Cup round six clash tomorrow, O'Driscoll declared that he may shelve talk of retirement.

"I'm feeling good," he said. "Feeling like I'm not ready to go yet, fit; more importantly, I'm really enjoying what I'm doing, more so maybe than I did for many years."

Brumbies give Giteau a French blessing

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/20/2011

The Brumbies are ready to wave au revoir to Wallabies star Matt Giteau and they couldn’t be happier according to Jim Horton and Ben Horne in the Sydney Morning Herald.

"Normally football clubs despise losing senior players before the season starts but the ACT-based outfit are grateful Giteau’s post-World Cup future will be determined before Super Rugby kicks off.

"The 91-Test playmaker is set to sign a lucrative French contract in the coming days, with cashed-up Toulon and Bayonne the two front-runners for his services.

"Giteau, Australia’s highest-paid player over the past five years, lost his Wallabies No.12 jersey to Berrick Barnes for the last Test of 2010 but that doesn’t appear to have impacted on his decision.

"Brumbies chief executive Andrew Fagan indicated Giteau had made it known before the end of last year’s Super 14 he was likely to head overseas following the 2011 World Cup.

"Knowing the dynamic inside back’s desire and the huge interest from at least four French clubs, Fagan said there were no strong attempts to keep him in Australia."

Age will not worry Robinson

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/20/2011

The Scotsman's David Ferguson reflects on Scotland coach Andy Robinson#s decision to draft in three uncapped players into his Six Nations squad.

"As forecast, there are few changes to the Scotland squad which Robinson took to five wins and a draw from ten Test matches in 2010, his first full year in charge.

"The core of the side which defeated Ireland, Argentina, South Africa and Samoa is expected to remain in place when Scotland launch a year that begins in France and ends in New Zealand at the seventh Rugby World Cup.

"Johnnie Beattie is included, although he will have to prove his fitness in Scotland A games before returning to the matchday 22, having only played two games this season. Glasgow captain Alastair Kellock is also back, along with centres Nick De Luca and Alex Grove and wingers Rory Lamont and Simon Danielli.

"Chris Cusiter, Graeme Morrison, Jim Hamilton, Alasdair Dickinson and Phil Godman are all injured but the first four named could all come into contention later in the championship.

"Robinson has placed a high priority on form in his camp and insisted that all 34 players named yesterday had a chance of playing in the Six Nations."

Back in the big time

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/20/2011

England prop Matt Stevens The Independent's tells Chris Hewett how two lost years due toa drugs ban have made him a better person.

"The Matt Stevens affair was not in the least bit funny – his cocaine habit, exposed in all its depressing detail when the England prop failed a doping test after a Heineken Cup game in 2008, raised serious questions about the world of professional rugby that the sport's movers and shakers are still struggling to answer – but there is always someone out there with a sense of humour. Stevens returned to training yesterday after completing a two-year ban to find himself confronted by a drug-testing team. "I thought these things were meant to be random," he said with the weakest of smiles.

"Happily, his discomfort was momentary. Back in big-time union with a new club, Saracens, and with a whole new sporting experience behind him having scaled considerable heights in the disciplines of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and "submission wrestling", he described himself as a "more considered person, a more reserved person", adding: "There's more humility about me now. In a weird, ironic kind of way, the ban was one of the best things that ever happened to me. I've had incredible support from people who had every right to say: 'You've let us down, get out of our sight'. It's been quite a process of self-evaluation and it's been very difficult, but the fact that no one gave me a wide berth helped a lot."

January 19, 2011

Bobby Windsor still packs a punch

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/19/2011

Bobby Windsor (centre) pictured poses with Pontypool and Lions team-mates Graham Price and Charlie Faulkner © Getty Images

Bobby Windsor's enthralling biography shows the Wales legend still packs a powerful punch according to the Daily Telegraph's Steve James.

"It is a colourful tale about a colourful man, a former steelworker and general rapscallion who became a ruthless and athletic hooker of worldwide repute, playing a crucial part in the “invincible” British and Irish Lions team who battered the bully-boy South Africans in 1974. It is a story of how the game used to be in all its violence and skulduggery, but also in all its humour and camaraderie.

It is also a moving tale, sympathetically told by Peter Jackson, the recently retired rugby correspondent of the Daily Mail, because in 2006 Windsor was on the brink of suicide, saved only by a fortuitous chain of events.

Recently the Wales on Sunday newspaper compiled a list of its 50 hardest men in Welsh rugby history. It provoked much debate and discussion, but on one matter there was not one iota of disagreement: Windsor was No 1. Always was, always will be.

"The title of the book [The Iron Duke], Windsor’s nickname, originates from a speech made by the Toulouse president after Windsor had taken an awful hiding playing for Wales B against their French counterparts there. Windsor and the French just did not get on."

'Gladiator' the man to entice SBW back

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/19/2011

The New Zealand Herald's Chris Rattue reflects on reports suggesting Rabittohs part-owner Russell Crowe is attempting to lure Sonny Bill Williams back to the 13-man code.

"The rugby mob may be oooohing and aaaahing over Williams, but for all of the plaudits he received after his All Black showing against the extraordinary might of Scotland, Williams was all at sea against Wales and he's unlikely to reach his league heights in union.

"If anyone can get Williams back to the game he was born to play and dominate, then Crowe is the man. They talk a similar language, rebels who like to wield their star power.

"Who knows - a flat white with Charlize Theron might seal the deal.

"You certainly wouldn't bet on the sad suits who run the NRL assisting or enticing the game's greatest drawcard back into their ranks."

Munster under the microscope

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/19/2011

The Irish Independent gangs up on Munster in the wake of their euro exit - including the thoughts of David Kelly.

"The alarming increase in indiscipline this season has been simply derived -- when a team's performance dips, the efforts to stem the tide result in increased mistakes and indiscipline. Hence the scrum -- where John Hayes has been unable to live at the highest level of competition -- has been exposed. In turn, David Wallace and Ronan O'Gara have struggled to carry the load, while ridiculous indiscipline from Paul O'Connell and Donncha O'Callaghan signify a team struggling to maintain its former eminence. Doug Howlett's Christmas shenanigans completed the misery; that senior players allowed such a situation to develop reflected poorly on the group as a whole."

Competition hot among Hurricanes

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/19/2011

The Dominion Post's Tony Robson drops in on the Hurricanes' preparations for the new Super Rugby season.

"Wrestling is an apt metaphor for many Super rugby players this time of year.

"Not just because it's an early taste of the physical confrontation preseason matches are about to bring, but because of the battle for places in the starting XV.

"Halfback's a case in point when it comes to the Hurricanes. With All Black Piri Weepu out till April, at least, with a broken leg, Tyson Keats and Chris Eaton are going head-to-head for the No 9 jersey.

"Though no player wishes injury on another there's no doubt Weepu's absence will have added a spring to his rivals' steps during the Hurricanes' long, hard summer training regime. They're different in dimensions, Eaton 92kg, Keats just 83kg, but they have a common goal."

Tried and tested poised to get nod for Scotland

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/19/2011

Scotland coach Andy Robinson will name his squad today for the Six Nations Championship, with few surprises expected to be unveiled. The Scotsman's Gareth Black reports.

"Robinson has built up a settled senior squad over the past year, and the players named today are likely to be on very similar lines to those who earned two wins out of three in the autumn internationals. The selections are also likely to cover the Scotland A squad as well as the senior team, as Robinson gets together over 30 players for next week's training camp in St Andrews ahead of Scotland's first match, away to France on Saturday 5 February. The A team's first match is against Ireland on Friday 28 January at Netherdale.

"Injuries are set to rule out a few of Robinson's leading players, with scrum-half Chris Cusiter and centre Graeme Morrison already expected to miss the opening games of the championship. Back-row forward Johnnie Beattie is also expected to miss the opening exchanges, but should be part of the training squad as he battles to regain match fitness following his recent injury. In Cusiter's absence, there is ample cover at No9 in the shape of Mike Blair, Rory Lawson and Greig Laidlaw.

"Nick de Luca will return to the squad after missing the first half of the season through injury and is a leading contender to replace Graeme Morrison at inside centre."

Johnson forced to rip up plans

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/19/2011

The Guardian's Rob Kitson reflects on the quandary facing England coach Martin Johnson following an injury to captain Lewis Moody.

"The ceiling has not yet fallen in but significant cracks are starting to show in Martin Johnson's previously solid Six Nations masterplan. To lose one key forward might be considered a minor irritation but England have now lost three of their foundation stones following news that Lewis Moody will be kept out for up to six weeks by the knee injury he sustained playing for Bath against Aironi last Saturday.

"Moody has captained England in six of their past seven Tests and would have led the team out against Wales in Cardiff on 4 February. Now, along with Tom Croft and Courtney Lawes, he will miss at least the first half of the championship after a scan revealed a strained medial ligament. He may struggle to feature before the penultimate game, at home to Scotland on 13 March, yet another untimely blow for a popular player who has already incurred nasty shoulder, ankle and eye injuries in the past three years.

"It will be a considerable surprise if the armband does not pass to Nick Easter, the Harlequins No8, who did the job successfully against Samoa in November. He is, apart from anything else, guaranteed his place in the starting XV and will not be fazed by the prospect of leading the team out at the Millennium Stadium, where England have not won since 2003. Easter may not be the quickest but, like Dean Richards, tends to turn up in the right place at the right time."

January 18, 2011

Europe tougher than ever

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/18/2011

The scrum has been a major factor this season, just ask Soane Tonga'uiha © Getty Images

Robert Kitson dusts off the stats cap and delves into the try-scoring trends from this season's Heineken Cup Pool stage in The Guardian.

"A little bit of research for you. Did you know that, barring a late scoring avalanche, this year's Heineken Cup pool stage is on course to produce fewer tries than in any season since the current pool format began in 2000/01? Even if the final round produces a healthy average of five tries per game it will still yield the lowest aggregate total for seven years. It is enough to make Europe's attack coaches weep.

"There are all sorts of possible reasons why. The Italian teams no longer wave opponents through the way they once did. The weather has been extreme and no team, other than Bath at home to Aironi on Saturday, has topped 50 points in a single game. Standards of fitness are now pretty similar across the board; space is at a premium, even when the attacking side is granted more leeway at the breakdown. Last but not least, video analysis is now so intensive, and some gameplans so rigid, that defenders frequently know what to expect before the opposition do."

Phoenix from the flames

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/18/2011

Hugh Farrelly looks at Munster's fall and the unenviable task of ensuring their rebirth as a major European force in The Irish Independent.

"Reinvention is a process that has produced 'phoenix from the ashes' results for individuals as diverse as John Travolta, Kylie Minogue and even the ghastly Noel Edmonds -- now it is the prerogative for Munster coach Tony McGahan.

"The Australian inherited a team from Declan Kidney that had powered its way to two Heineken Cup triumphs -- glories he had contributed to significantly through his role as defensive coach -- and one imbued with confidence and self-belief about their way of doing things -- a tough ask.

"There are parallels to be made with Brian Clough taking over the streetwise, trophy-winning Leeds side of the early 1970s from Don Revie. The difference is the Leeds players never bought into Clough's radical and confrontational style and drew constant comparisons with Revie, while McGahan had the support and respect of the Munster squad when he came in."

Rugby economics

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/18/2011

Andrew Gawith casts a critical eye over the financial implications of New Zealand's hosting of the Rugby World Cup in The New Zealand Herald.

"In our corner of the world 2011 will be dominated by the Rugby World Cup - the biggest event New Zealand is ever likely to host.

"Consultants hired by the Ministry of Economic Development three years ago estimated that the Cup would add about $500 million to gross domestic product (or roughly 0.25 per cent).

"In 2008, Deloitte was hired by the IRB to look at the value to a country of hosting the Rugby World Cup."

Il ne regrette rien

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/18/2011

Mick Cleary talks Toulon and England with fly-half Jonny Wilkinson in The Daily Telegraph.

"He has also ruled out retiring from international rugby once the Rugby World Cup has run its course in October, preferring to trust in the mood of the moment to guide him.

"One thing is for certain, however, his love affair with France is profound. His 18 months in the south of France have made him ‘‘a better player as well as person’’. Wilkinson has not quite turned native for he professes to ‘‘love England to bits’’, but even with the threat of players based outside England being excluded from selection following this year’s Rugby World Cup, Wilkinson had no hesitation in agreeing to a two-year extension on his contract.

"He said yesterday that has had no specific discussions with Martin Johnson on the matter. “There have been no lengthy talks, more of a day-to-day thing really,” said Wilkinson, who will join up with the England squad next Sunday for a five-day training camp in Portugal. He is unsure if he is to be released for Toulon’s Top 14 game against La Rochelle the following Wednesday but there is no friction either way over the matter."

January 17, 2011

Leinster show strength in depth

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/17/2011

Leinster's Shane Jennings fends off Saracens' Nils Mordt during their clash at the RDS © Getty Images

The hotter Leinster perform the more coach Joe Schmidt appears to take down the temperature according to the Irish Times' Johnny Watterson.

"In an open, running game that will have thrilled many around Ballsbridge, Seán O’Brien was again at the centre of the demolition and will force Ireland coach Declan Kidney into that place he loves to be prior to the beginning of a Six Nations Championship, the land of tough backrow decisions.

"The impression was Leinster were rampant. Apart from that 10-minute phase just before half-time, as they cruised towards the break but tuned out as Saracens ran in two tries – through winger James Short, after Luke Fitzgerald misplaced a pass to Isa Nacewa, and backrow Kelly Brown touched down – the rugby was a delight.

"There was quick recycling, some wonderful off-loading and support play but, best of all, confidence in their ability to break from defence with ball in hand and deliver cutting passes under pressure.

"True, Saracens appeared to lose interest, or at least the body language told a story of a defeated outfit midway through the second half. But that crushing dominance was of Leinster’s making in the way they relentlessly took the ball on."

Munster's epic ends as tragedy

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/17/2011

The Irish Independent's Hugh Farrelly reports from the end of an era as Toulon end Munster's Heineken Cup hopes at the pool stage.

"Well that's the end of that then. After 12 years of memorable, competition-defining Heineken Cup knock-out action -- a storied period when the tale was Munster elevated to the point of mythology -- the dream is over.

"No quarter-final place and plenty of questions to answer. The speculation that Munster were an ageing team and a fading force had been forcibly refuted by the camp all season and backed up by their confident progress to the summit of the Magners League and hammering of Toulon in Thomond Park last October.

"Now, the evidence is irrefutable. Yes, the group was extremely difficult but Munster have emerged from tough pools in the past, upsetting odds and confounding critics just as they did when de-frocking then French champions Perpignan in glorious style last season.

"There wasn't a glimmer of a repeat performance here. Toulon got their tactics and selection (Jonny Wilkinson at out-half) spot on, Munster got theirs badly wrong."

Huxley ready to write new chapter

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/17/2011

The Sydney Morning Herald's Melissa Woods chats to the Rebels' Julian Huxley on the eve of the new Super Rugby season.

"It's almost fitting Melbourne Rebels veteran Julian Huxley is sidelined by an injury that mostly affects young players, because he feels like he's starting his rugby career anew.

"The 31-year-old will miss the fledgling Super rugby club's first three trials this month because of osteitis pubis. It's a setback, but after beating a brain tumour diagnosed in 2008 during his playing days with the Brumbies, it's no big deal.

"...Huxley, who has nine Test caps, said he wanted to put the painful memories behind him and start a new chapter in his life with Melbourne, where he's signed a two-year deal.

"He said the biggest drawback to the new injury was that he hadn't been able to contribute in training as he would have liked. "I feel like a little bit of an outsider, as most footballers will tell you when they're injured and not in there with the guys," he said."

Dan's the man to lead Rebel cause

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/17/2011

The Rebels thrashed Tonga 43-13 in their first trial game on Saturday night and after the game Danny Cipriani - who had a limited run at fly-half - was allowed to talk to the media for the first time since joining the fledgling franchise. The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

"Cipriani said there had been ''no inkling'' as to Macqueen's thinking but was confident he could lead the team around the field.

''I think with the position I play at five-eighth you always end up being a leader in some way because it's kind of like the quarterback on the field, you've got to get the team moving and get the plays moving,'' Cipriani said. ''Since I was young that was something that was put on me by a lot of my coaches, and that's something I've worked on a lot.''

"The Rebels have put Cipriani in cotton wool since he arrived in Melbourne to keep him from the pressures he faced in Britain but he has still hit the social pages several times.

''I've had that since I was 18 so I'm dealing with it now,'' he said. ''It is what it is, and you've just got to deal with it. A lot of people will write whatever they want to write but you've just got to carry on with your job at the end of the day and do the best you can.

''That [media ban] was down to the coach to make that decision. It's obviously helped me and helped the situation, and I trust in his [Macqueen's] experience. [He's] a man who's won the World Cup, he's been in winning teams and he's had winning businesses so he knows the structure of winning.''

IRB wakes up to scrum problem?

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/17/2011

Daily Telegraph columnist Brian Moore re-enters the debate over scrum in the modern game.

"At one penalty won by Leicester, Castrogiovanni twisted Thomas so far round the Welshman almost ended up staring at the face of his hooker and captain Matthew Rees. This occurred with the Irish referee only two yards away after he had come round to the non put-in side of the scrum to see what was going on.

"Given we are repeatedly told that the engage sequence is supposed to be for referees to check distance, body angles, binding etc (so much so they allegedly cannot watch the straightness of the put-in), it is bewildering Rolland did not see this blatant illegality and penalise it. Still, Rolland should not worry — enforcing the laws of rugby appears to be only one of the assessment criteria for refereeing at elite level and not a very important one at that.

"Belatedly, it is dawning on the IRB that what some of us have been saying for nigh on five years is correct — the scrum is important and retains popular support from fans who do not want its defenestration, in whole or part. However, as managed by elite referees and the IRB, the scrum is a constant source of frustration; it is boring and very possibly dangerous."

Glasgow serve up a Heineken Cup shock

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/17/2011

Glasgow dented Wasps' euro hopes with a shock victory at Firhill Arena on Sunday - The Scotsman's David Ferguson was there.

"Glasgow coach Sean Lineen was the least surprised man at Firhill yesterday after his side pulled off another of the great Heineken Cup upsets by beating Wasps, leaving the English Premiership side struggling to qualify for the quarter-finals.

"Lineen had seen it before, notably two years ago when Glasgow stunned Toulouse in France, while Wasps, fresh from winning the Heineken Cup, also came to grief in Edinburgh five years ago. Yesterday, he needed his charges to restore some pride in Scottish rugby after a campaign with just one win in four games and a demoralising thumping for Edinburgh at Northampton on Friday night.

"They did that in disposing of a star-studded Wasps side by 20-10 at Firhill in the penultimate round of Heineken Cup pool action, and what made Glasgow's achievement even greater was that they did it without first-choice internationalists Johnnie Beattie, John Barclay, Max Evans, Canadian winger DTH van der Merwe, Graeme Morrison, Chris Cusiter and Rob Dewey."

Irish's dreadful run ended by youthful energy

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/17/2011

The Independent's Chris Hewett reports from the Madejski Stadium where London Irish brought an end to a 10-game win-less streak with victory over Ospreys.

"London Irish had nothing to play for in the Heineken Cup yesterday, but as there is more to life than the Heineken Cup – reputation, self-respect, contracts and careers spring to mind, among other things – the idea that they would adopt a horizontal position from the start and accept a thorough seeing-to, from a team whose European campaign was still a going concern, always seemed a little far-fetched.

"After a 10-match losing streak stretching back to October, the Exiles duly rediscovered the best of themselves to beat the Welsh glitterati with something to spare, handing Pool Three's automatic quarter-final place to Toulon in the process.

"They scored the game's only tries – the left-wing Sailosi Tagicakibau crossed in the first half after brilliant work from Delon Armitage; the unfeasibly quick Topsy Ojo did likewise at the start of the second following a clean midfield break from Daniel Bowden – and they won the big-hit tackling contest hands down."

January 16, 2011

Rebels yell: More, more, more

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/16/2011

The Rebels' Danny Cipriani and Cooper Vuna celebrate their victory with some fans © Getty Images

The Sydney Morning Herald's Stathi Paxinos reports from the Melbourne Rebels' first outing against Tonga.

"It was expected the Melbourne Rebels would be rusty and somewhat disjointed when they took on Tonga in their first trial game last night at Olympic Park. They certainly were, but in between the clumsy periods, there were some promising stanzas during their 43-13 romp.

"The real competition is still a few weeks away, but the Rebels did take a large step forward for local rugby when they took to the field for the first time. The name has been used before — when Melbourne made the final of the short-lived Australian Rugby Championship in 2007 — but just over six years after the city was overlooked for a berth in the Super 14 competition, it is now just three trials away from its inaugural Super Rugby season game against NSW Waratahs.

"The Rebels last night seemed more concerned about getting combinations set, as coach Rod Macqueen split his team into two squads, which played a half each, rather than the end results. Tonga proved a tough first-up contest until the Pacific Islanders, who were without their European-based players, wilted in the second half."

The joy of six

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/16/2011

The New Zealand Herald's Gregor Paul picks six All Blacks that suggest it will be a good year for New Zealand rugby.

"...3. Sonny Bill Williams - There was an argument that he secured his World Cup place the second he signed his contract to play in New Zealand. Not so. Williams had to earn his selection, which he did with polished and improving performances in the Canterbury midfield; combining sweetly with Robbie Fruean.

"Even then, there was still some doubt as to whether he had the skills and rugby smarts to handle test football. It didn't take him long to prove he is an irresistible force. His offloading went to a new level against Scotland, where it became clear he is in possession of a skill that is almost impossible to defend against. He offers the All Blacks significant attacking options as they can charge him up the middle and then have runners coming off his shoulder - knowing the ball will come out of contact."

Fear of failure harnesses old guard

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/16/2011

Munster's Donncha O'Callaghan and Peter Stringer believe the side's experiences of near misses in the past will prove a huge advantage when they face Toulon on Sunday. The Irish Times reports.

"Time was when beating touring sides used to define them, but not any more. While scalping the Wallabies in November was nice, and leading the Magners League with daylight to spare is nicer still, were Munster to exit from the Heineken Cup tomorrow their season would be seen as abject failure.

"To a degree, this is unfair. No other team has ever reached the knock-out stages for a dozen years in a row. If, or more likely when, it comes to an end, this record is unlikely to ever be equalled. In that timespan even the mighty Leicester went out at the pool stages four times, while Toulouse came up short of the last eight on three occasions. No one has a divine right to a place in the last eight. Not even mighty Munster.

"Yet, were Munster eliminated tomorrow, much of the rest of the season would seem anti-climactic, beginning with what would amount to the unthinkable, a dead rubber against London Irish next Saturday at Thomond Park instead of one of those do-or-die Anglo-Irish showdowns in their Limerick citadel."

Premiership bubble bursts?

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/16/2011

The Sunday Telegraph's Paul Ackford believes there is trouble in store for English rugby's top flight.

"Fewer women and young men keen on rugby, crowds down generally, an issue with trust in the sport, a reduction in the number who consider that what they are watching is “excellent” — just some of the less favourable findings emerging from a recent survey which asked 12,000 regular rugby watchers what they thought of the Premiership.

"The responses do not indicate a sport in crisis. The majority of respondents still consider their club friendly and the rugby exciting and competitive, but after years of steady growth, fuelling the ambition that all 12 clubs will finally break even or better financially within two years following the injection of more TV money, it appears that the Premiership may be losing its lustre."

Ready - or not? Rookies pushing for Six Nations squad

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/16/2011

The Scotland on Sunday's Iain Morrison cast his eye over Andy Robinson's options ahead of the Six Nations Championship.

"Andy Robinson will announce a squad of 30-odd players this Wednesday in addition to another smaller squad who will compete for places in the Scotland A team which plays Ireland on Friday 28th January at Netherdale. The A team will be bolstered by those players cut from the senior squad when Robinson trims his numbers.

"The year 2011 is finally upon us and no one can quite escape the elephant in the locker room. It is a World Cup year and, rightly or wrongly, that matters. Everything that happens in the rugby world is skewed by this knowledge, every selection, every comment, every action will be scrutinised through the microscope of New Zealand 2011.

"The run up to the World Cup is not normally the time to introduce new caps into the equation. Rookies don't often compete in World Cups let alone help to win them. The record books show that teams with heaps of experience win the big games, which is why Graham Henry started capping youngsters immediately after the last World Cup.

"Sadly the Scotland coach does not have the same luxury of bedding in his young hopefuls in quite such an orderly manner."

Flutey ready to be centre of attention

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/16/2011

Kiwi Riki Flutey should return to the England squad for the Six Nations after injury but his compatriot Shontayne Hape stands in his way. The Independent on Sunday's Hugh Godwin reports.

"England's intent to play wide when it suits places emphasis on a smooth-running midfield. The coaches' statistics from the autumn Tests show England making more line breaks than their Tri-Nations opponents, though two matches were 10-point defeats and only six tries were scored in four matches. The defensive organisation of Mike Tindall at outside-centre is much valued, even if his passing in tight spots sometimes fails him. The preference for size in that position was emphasised by the 6ft 7in Matt Banahan playing against Samoa when Tindall was rested.

"Flutey's flu, which confined him to bed for a fortnight and saw him lose "a few kgs", followed on from an early-season calf injury that allowed his fellow Kiwi, the Bath centre Shontayne Hape, to retain the No 12 jersey he had worn on England's summer tour. Flutey scores over Hape in his kicking ability (Flutey has been a some-time scrum-half, fly-half and full-back; Hape hardly kicks at all). Both are hefty in the upper body and reliable in retaining possession in the tackle. Indisputably Flutey gives more options as a playmaker."

January 15, 2011

'It's almost like the old days'

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/15/2011

Scarlets playmaker Stephen Jones will tackle the Tigers once again this weekend © Getty Images

Stephen Jones, the Wales No.10, tells The Independent's James Corrigan how the Scarlets' thrilling resurrection will test old foes Leicester tonight.

"Parc y Scarlets hosts the biggest game of its existence when the eponymous heroes face the Tigers this evening. Yet although this clearly is the time to herald a brave new future there will be many in the stadium unable to escape the ghosts of Leicester past. And for Stephen Jones, one particularly gruesome memory sticks out.

"Of course, there was the 2002 Heineken Cup semi-final when Tim Stimpson, with the final play of the game, kicked a penalty from his own half which bounced off and over the crossbar. Jones would not be human, and would definitely not be a West Walian, if he still did not blame the fates for that perceived injustice. Except it is a rather more personal moment that is prone to make him come over all puce. The year was 2004, the scene was Welford Road and the hangover made him feel as if his own head had crashed against a crossbar.

"Leicester were desperate to sign the Wales No 10 and duly pulled out all the stops to make him feel at home. Geordan Murphy and Lewis Moody were seconded to entertain Jones but plainly took their responsibilities too seriously. "I returned to my hotel completely smashed," remembered Jones. "I was in a disgraceful state for a professional rugby player."

"A few hours later, his alarm went and Peter Wheeler, the Leicester chief executive, was there to take him to the meeting. "I spent two hours with the Leicester coaches, talking about their plans and what they wanted from me," said Jones. "But to this day I am ashamed I cannot remember a thing about it. It's all a complete blank."

Tough Kiwi pair making their mark

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/15/2011

Leicester's Thomas Waldrom and Craig Newby could propel the Tigers to an Aviva Premiership and Heineken Cup double according to Peter Bills in the New Zealand Herald.

"They're players of the old school, steeped in the ways and means of the game from their childhood days. Yet in a Rugby World Cup year neither has a hope of involvement in the world's premier tournament.

"But that isn't to say Thomas Waldrom and Craig Newby aren't good enough. Together, they are proving the stand-out duo of the English club season. And their influence is so extensive on the Leicester club that many believe the Midlanders can clinch the double of Champions in England and European champions come May.

"There might be a third title heading their way too, if things work out for the Tigers. Waldrom is already heavily tipped as the likely winner of the Player of the Season award. His excellence is acknowledged throughout the Northern Hemisphere.

"Together, the pair are reminding everyone on this side of the world of the number of quality rugby players in New Zealand."

Provincial hat-trick can steady the fleet

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/15/2011

The Irish Times' Gerry Thornley offers his thoughts on a weekend set to define the Irish season like few others – until next weekend anyway.

"The rugby-mad town of Toulon is, by all accounts, in a tizzy. Toulon club president Mourad Boudjellal admitted yesterday: “There is a huge fever in the city and I’ve got to admit I’m unable to do my business as usual as club president because I’m so excited – I’m in a trance. But there is a big question in my mind, ‘are we not usurpers?’, and my fear is that on Sunday afternoon we might be saying: ‘God, America is so far away’,” he commented, meaning that beating Munster is beyond them.

“We are aware that we are going to be faced by a legend and it’s incredible, even Al Jazeera has asked for the rights to this game. Toulon at the Stade Mayol will be seen by 60 per cent of the universe,” he quipped excitedly.

"Toulon’s thirst for revenge following their 45-18 defeat at Thomond Park last October adds a frisson to the occasion. Boudjellal – who has chided Munster about being owned by the IMF, though he has also endorsed an unlikely appeal on the Toulon website to emulate Thomond Park in ensuring silence for the goalkickers from both sides – applied some pepper to the sauce yesterday."

Door opens for Henson

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/15/2011

Writing in the Western Mail, Simon Thomas believes an injury to the Ospreys' Andrew Bishop provides an opportunity for Gavin Henson to complete an international comeback.

"The loss of Bishop, who played in all four of Wales’ autumn Tests, limits Warren Gatland’s centre options with the big Millennium Stadium showdown with England just 20 days away.

"Shanklin’s fitness must also be in question for the clash after it emerged he faces a fortnight on the sidelines, his troublesome knee having swollen up after the Blues’ Magners League victory over Aironi.

"It means Henson seems certain to get the nod for Gatland’s squad, with the Wales coach likely to pick four centres when he names his party a week on Monday. Jamie Roberts and the versatile James Hook are certainties for two of the slots, while the fit-again Jonathan Davies also looks a likely candidate."

Rugby's entertainers must shine

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/15/2011

Against a backdrop of dwindling attendances and financial hardship, the game must thrill in this pivotal year or pay the price, according to The Guardian's Rob Kitson.

"Rugby remains the ultimate team game. Yet celebrities such as Gavin Henson – and Danny Cipriani – are also illustrative of the game's recurring dilemma: how to woo a new audience while retaining your virtue and integrity? Significantly, the gap in expectation between the professionals and the casual onlooker has seldom been wider. The former want consistency, the latter want to be surprised. "I wouldn't hold your breath," muttered Martin Johnson this week, asked if he was considering joining Twitter. Those striving to take the game to Abu Dhabi and beyond believe coaches and players need to extend their creative horizons.

"There can be a big disconnect between club playing departments and their commercial functions," says Jon Varney, Premier Rugby's commercial director. "That's an attitude that has to change. We're all in it together." The one-dimensional Christmas "big games" at Wembley and Twickenham did not exactly help. "You don't want it to become the Harlem Globetrotters … that's not what we're about," Varney cautions. "But you do want the sport looking at its best when you're trying to attract new people to it."

January 14, 2011

Scent of cordite in the air

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/14/2011

Toulon boss Philippe Saint-Andre is plotting Munster's downfall © Getty Images

The prospect of knocking out the mighty Munster from this year’s competitiion is stoking the home fires in Toulon, writes the Irish Times' Gerry Thornley.

"As with this entire European campaign, Philippe Saint-André has sought to play down Toulon’s ambitions. The way he describes it, arriving at this stage in proceedings as pool leaders in their debut Heineken Cup campaign has almost been an accident. But a bit like their run to the Amlin Challenge Cup final last season, they seem to have a taste for the European stage.

"Perhaps it’s because of their high quotient of big-name foreign players, Toulon have more of a ready-made understanding and desire for the European competitions than other French sides. Admittedly, the 45-18 defeat in Thomond Park put their Euro pedigree into perspective, but the scent of cordite in the air for Sunday’s return meeting at an eagerly sold-out Stade Felix-Mayol could make them more dangerous.

"As is reflected in his team’s rugby, Saint-André is a very pragmatic man. European rugby is important for him and their litany of overseas’ players, as well as the interim future for the club given it will increase their profile and generate money.

"Affectionately known as le Goret (the pig), there would assuredly be a part of Saint-André that would love to avenge three successive defeats with Sale since they beat Munster in the 2005-06 opener, not to mention two defeats with Bourgoin and the meeting last October."

McCall to arms

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/14/2011

Ulsterman Mark McCall is looking to reignite coaching career following ascension to Saracen's hot seat, starting tomorrow at Leinster. The Irish Independent's David Kelly reports.

"So which Irishman has the best coaching position in European club rugby?

"You reckon Munster's chief, having guided them to Magners League summit and second place in their Heineken Cup qualification pool? Sadly, Tony McGahan may have cut his coaching teeth here before winning a league title but he's a Queenslander by birth, from just outside flood-afflicted Brisbane in Warwick.

"What about Leinster's head guy? Regrettably, Joe Schmidt is a Kiwi and only pitched up on these shores in the summer before guiding Leinster to the top of their Heineken Cup group and third place in the Magners League table.

"Ulster coach Brian McLaughlin was part of a Triple Crown-winning back-room team but as a primus inter pares he is a belated work in progress, with his team, as ever, on the verge of either implosion or explosion.

"And Connacht's Eric Elwood is only taking baby steps with the fallow fourth green field of Irish rugby.

"So step forward Mark McCall. The 43-year-old Bangor native this week stepped into the hot seat at the second best club in the English Premiership following the return to South Africa of erstwhile head coach Brendan Venter."

Bath targeting Louw?

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/14/2011

Stormers and Springbok loose forward Francois Louw could be continuing his rugby career at the end of this year in the Northern Hemisphere according to Beeld's Marco Botha.

"Louw announced his arrival in Super rugby last year with a bang, where his determined playing style and merciless defence earned him a Springbok jersey. But when the Bok tour group to Europe was announced at the end of October 2010, the grandson of Jan Pickard was left out against all expectations.

"Rumours are circulating, however, that English club Bath will soon come looking for a substitute for Luke Watson, and that Louw's name is first on the list.

"Watson, a former Springbok and Stormers captain, is in the last stretch of his contract with Bath and is set to join the Eastern Province Kings.

"A Bath management team, possibly led by celebrated coach Ian McGeechan, is now looking for a loose forward "of world-class quality", who will have no trouble filling Watson's shoes – someone like Louw.

"It would appear that no formal discussions have yet been held, and, although the Brits may get on the plane quietly optimistic, such a mission might well be regarded as opportunistic."

Cipriani named Rebels vice-captain

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/14/2011

Melbourne Rebels coach Rod Macqueen says wayward England star Danny Cipriani will be vice-captain for their historic first rugby outing against Tonga, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

"Macqueen downplayed a report out of England that Cipriani would be given extra responsibilities during the Olympic Park clash in an attempt to draw the best out of the controversial five-eighth.

"The club has shielded Cipriani from the media since his arrival in Melbourne, determined for him to be known for his rugby rather than his celebrity antics and famous girlfriends, which caused him to fall out of favour with the England rugby hierarchy.

"Despite the ban, he has still managed to attract attention by taking former Neighbours actress Stephanie McIntosh to a club function last week.

"That's not true," Macqueen said when asked whether Cipriani had been given a leadership role to keep his focus on rugby. We won't announce our captain or vice-captains for the next couple of weeks. This is pretty typical of what the English press are doing, it's all hype."

Ruling deprives Edinburgh of hooker cover

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/14/2011

Edinburgh have now encountered European rugby red tape after a bizarre ruling by ERC bosses yesterday left them to face Northampton tonight without any genuine cover at hooker and mired in the possibility of raising legal action.The Scotsman's David Ferguson reports.

"Edinburgh coach Rob Moffat had left the replacement position vacant when he named his side on Wednesday for the Heineken Cup match, but insisted that that was purely until receiving full confirmation from ERC that Crombie would be eligible to play which had still not come through from ERC.

"Crombie was released by Edinburgh in the summer as the club strove to work within the SRU's budget freeze but, with promising young players Fraser Brown and Alun Walker undergoing operations - from which they are still to return - Crombie agreed to provide cover. He played for Boroughmuir and, when Newcastle invited him for a loan spell at Kingston Park to provide cover there, he agreed on the proviso that he would still be available to Edinburgh if they required him.

"He played for Newcastle in the LV= Cup, but did not feature in any Amlin Challenge Cup squad, for which Newcastle would have had to register him. He remained on Edinburgh's Heineken Cup list throughout and this week, when Andy Kelly fell victim to an eye injury, Moffat called him into the squad.

"However, ERC told Edinburgh yesterday that they did not consider him eligible because he had played for another club this season, even though it did not involve European competition and there is nothing in the rules and regulations that debars this."

Gatland playing waiting game

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/14/2011

Warren Gatland has put back naming his Wales squad for the Six Nations by a week to give a raft of casualties, headed by Shane Williams and Lee Byrne, a chance to prove their fitness for the big England showdown. The Western Mail's Andy Howell reports.

"Gatland planned to announce the men to prepare for the February 4 Millennium Stadium clash with the old enemy on Monday. But he has delayed the squad selection until January 24 to run the rule over the fitness of key personnel

"...The Western Mail understands Gatland doesn’t want to fall into the trap of last autumn when he named his November squad early but lost players, including Leigh Halfpenny and Rob McCusker, because of injuries they were carrying from regional rugby.

"This time, the Wales coach is giving Lions duo Williams (shoulder dislocation) and Byrne (wrist injury) extra days to prove they are ready for the rigours of a massive Six Nations opener against England by coming through Ospreys Heineken Cup games."

Giants feel the ground shifting

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/14/2011

Former champions Leicester and Munster are both vulnerable as another intense fortnight of European rugby beckons, according to Shaun Edwards in The Guardian.

"It was John Connolly who described the Heineken Cup as perfect preparation for Test rugby. And with his pedigree – Queensland Reds, Stade Français, Swansea, Bath and Australia's 2007 World Cup team – he should know. But in case there are lingering doubts, just look at the games in Europe this weekend. It makes your palms sweat just thinking about some of them.

"There are things to be sorted everywhere; on a club level I can't remember so many pools being so wide open and on the players' level it will be in their minds that this weekend and next will be about impressing national coaches doing their homework for the Six Nations squads and teams.

"Just consider the Scarlets versus Leicester in Pool Five on Saturday and Toulon v Munster in Pool Three on Sunday. Monumental stuff, the kind of games that help form careers."

January 13, 2011

'The biggest game you can get'

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/13/2011

Toulon's Felipe Contepomi is set to face a familiar foe this weekend © Getty Images

The Irish Independent's Peter Bills talks to Toulon's Felipe Contepomi before he locks horns with old foe Munster in the Heineken Cup.

"He's swopped Temple Bar for Toulon, Molly Malone for the Med. But, as they say, you can take the boy out of Dublin, but you can't take Dublin out of the boy.

"A warm smile spreads across the face of Felipe Contepomi when you ask him about matches with Munster. He has a simple response. "One of the best things I have experienced in my rugby career," he says, recalling past battles between his beloved Leinster and Munster.

"They are the best memories. Those were very happy times for me."

"And now comes another barn-storming clash with the men of Munster, except that Contepomi will be wearing a different shirt this time. Will it seem strange?

"Possibly, he says, cheerfully conceding that he is still in regular contact with some of his former playing pals from Leinster, and Dublin will always hold a special place in his heart.

"But all eyes will focus on the Stade Mayol this Sunday when Toulon will attempt to put an abrupt end to Munster's Heineken hopes for this season. A black and white scenario? Contepomi thinks so."

Strictly tops winning Six Nations - Henson

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/13/2011

Rugby star Gavin Henson has provoked anger in Welsh rugby by telling an interviewer that doing well on Strictly Come Dancing was a greater feeling than winning the Six Nations with Wales. The Western Mail's Ciaran Jones reports.

"Several of Wales’ most famous former players yesterday said they were astonished by the comments from a player who helped Wales win the Six Nations twice, in 2005 and 2008.

"...It is the latest in a series of media embarrassments for the player, who earned the anger of his Wales teammates with remarks about them in his 2005 book My Grand Slam year.

"In one section of the interview he spoke of his pride in appearing on the BBC light entertainment show, saying: “To get a standing ovation and to get to the semi-finals was a great feeling. It tops any rugby moment, even winning the Six Nations.”

Deacon offers salvation

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/13/2011

Writing in The Independent, Chris Hewett reflects on the latest England squad announcement.

"If truth be told, Martin Johnson was not entirely unhappy when Dave Attwood, the new kid on the England second-row block, treated an Australian opponent to some old-fashioned "Stead and Simpson" during the opening match of last summer's Antipodean tour: recognising something of his old enforcer's self in the West Countryman, the manager allowed himself a private smile of satisfaction, if not a public one. He is not smiling now, though. Johnson drummed Attwood out of his elite squad yesterday and then refused to guarantee him a return in time for the World Cup in September.

"Attwood is currently serving a nine-week suspension imposed for another piece of illicit footwork on the prone body of a rival forward – a much more serious offence, given that La Rochelle's Romanian prop Petrisor Toderasc needed hospital treatment on some very nasty facial injuries. "If you take yourself out of the running for nine weeks..." said Johnson darkly. There was no need for him to complete the sentence.

"With Johnson's successor in the Leicester engine room, Louis Deacon, returning to the senior squad for the Six Nations – in the only other change, the Wasps centre Dominic Waldouck, struggling for fitness, was replaced by the Sale stand-off Charlie Hodgson, with the uncapped Wasps scrum-half Joe Simpson as an added extra – there is a possibility that Attwood's short-term future is already behind him."

Five questions for England ahead of the Six Nations

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/13/2011

Can the England management make the right team selections - who should play in the centre and will the lineout be fixed? The Guardian's Paul Rees reports.

"One reason for the Rugby Football Union wanting a performance director to oversee, among other things, the England management is because there are concerns about Martin Johnson's selections. There were misgivings about the midfield pairing of Shontayne Hape and Matt Banahan during the autumn, both appearing in different positions from those they were used to at Bath, although the former rugby league international Hape has since been used by his club at inside‑centre. Nor was the earlier loyalty to Steve Borthwick in the second row appreciated, making it appear unlikely that the former captain will return to claim the place vacated by the injured Courtney Lawes. At least the captaincy is no longer an issue."

January 12, 2011

Leading by example

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/12/2011

Leinster's Jonny Sexton threw a spanner in the works for Saracens back in October © Getty Images

Gerry Thornley believes that Munster could do with taking a leaf out of Leinster's book this weekend as the Heineken Cup reaches the sharp end in The Irish Times.

"Leinster and Munster head into their final two similarly tricky, defining Heineken Cup pool games – banana skins at home to faltering English Premiership opposition and rather more daunting treks away to nouveau riche French teams. They do so on the back of scratchy home wins dominated by pedantic Welsh referees, while indebted to their frontline Irish outhalves and place-kickers. Perhaps, the similarities end there.

"Whereas Munster are much better placed in the Magners League, that is secondary to the holy grail that is the Heineken Cup – pretty much to all Irish players, supporters and media alike. Thus, Leinster can secure qualification by beating Saracens at the RDS on Saturday, though as Saracens showed in round four when picking up their first win away to Racing, there is little likelihood of them rolling over. This is especially so given the history of the first meeting when Leinster won at Wembley in one of the tournament’s finest displays to date, although it may be a little diluted by Brendan Venter’s return to South Africa yesterday bearing in mind another of his rather lop-sided post-match loser’s rant which contained the bizarre claim that rugby would die."

No news is good news

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/12/2011

The Daily Telegraph's Mick Cleary blogs on the settled composition of England's Elite Player Squad for the Six Nations.

"More than that, there is a discernible style about England, an identity, a sense that, at long, long last they knew where they are headed and they know how they’re going to get there.

"The upbeat, up-tempo performance that did for the Wallabies in November did not come about by chance. England had talked a good game for too long without ever playing one. Yet time and again, they pleaded their case, arguing that behind closed doors in training, all was slick, polished and oh so effective."

RFU arrogance

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/12/2011

Peter Bills lays into the 'arrogant' RFU for England's failure in recent years in The Independent.

"By the time the dust had settled, the caked mud removed from boots and a few missing teeth been re-located around various corners of the Welford Road ground, some decided it was time to take stock of where English rugby, on the verge of another 6 Nations Championship and World Cup year, actually stood.

"By common consent, Leicester against Northampton last Saturday was THE game of the English season so far. Straining sinews at every turn, muscles bulging with effort and hearts big with desire for victory – human beings, whatever the field of activity, cannot give a great deal more than the combatants of these two great clubs last weekend."

January 11, 2011

Selection conundrum

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/11/2011

Doug Howlett was vital to Munster's home success against Toulon © Getty Images

Hugh Farrelly previews Munster's make-or-break Heineken Cup tie with Toulon in The Irish Independent.

"Most of the selection speculation this week will centre on whether Paul O'Connell starts on the second-row or comes off the bench, but the composition of the outside backs could be equally significant and the following are some of the options available to McGahan.

"Option A -- As you were

15 Warwick, 14 Howlett, 13 Earls, 12 Tuitupou/Mafi, 11 Murphy

"The formula which took the field against the Ospreys (when Mafi came off the bench for his cousin Tuitupou) and was supposed to against Glasgow when Mafi started at No 12. Having one of the Tongan cousins at inside-centre indicates a direct approach and would mean Johne Murphy on the wing when his rich vein of form promotes a switch inside to get him involved as often as possible."

In good shape

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/11/2011

Gregor Paul believes that the All Blacks will be in good shape for 2012, even with an exodus of players, in The New Zealand Herald.

"There is normally an exodus of talent after World Cups that leaves the All Blacks short-handed in the following year. But Gregor Paul believes the All Blacks of 2012 could still be a fearsome unit."

A chill wind

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/11/2011

Robert Kitson looks at declining attendances in the Aviva Premiership and Magners League in The Guardian.

"The growth in rugby union's popularity across Europe has been a feature of the professional era but a chill wind is starting to blow through the home nations. Figures released by Premier Rugby show that Magners League and Aviva Premiership attendances are down 7% and 4% respectively compared with the same stage last season.

"It is not yet a pan-European concern as, overall, Heineken Cup pool attendances are up 7% on last season. A combination of the current economic climate and the bad weather has, even so, clearly had an effect in the British Isles, where there are also fears the increased number of live televised games is influencing spectator habits. If last month's Leinster v Munster game is not included, the decrease in Magners League crowds is just over 14%."

A triumph

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/11/2011

Mick Cleary praises Maggie Alphonsi after the England flanker became the first woman to win the Rugby Union Writers' Club's Pat Marshall award in The Daily Telegraph.

"Two knights of the realm, Sir Clive Woodward and Sir Ian McGeechan, were nearby, so too Martin Johnson, Phil Vickery, Lawrence Dallaglio, Jason Leonard, Keith Wood, Warren Gatland, Ben Foden, Nick Easter and a host of others.

"She took her rightful place among another celebrated cast when, to her great surprise, she was announced as the 35th winner of the Pat Marshall Award, the gong that has been given out down the years to the likes of Gareth Edwards, JPR Williams, Jean-Pierre Rives, David Campese and Jonah Lomu."

January 10, 2011

Will RFU re-vamp boost England?

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/10/2011

RFU chief executive John Steele has shaken up English rugby's governing body © Getty Images

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, former England international Brian Moore reflects on the recent re-structuring at the Rugby Football Union.

"What’s in a name? Well, you cannot but think that the Rugby Football Union’s new chief executive, John Steele, lived up to his surname in his powerful assertion of authority last week.

"As this was a major overhaul of the RFU management process, its effects will take some time to assess, but what should be one highly desirable result is that those in positions of responsibility will know more clearly what they do and do not have to do.

"As such, when it comes to evaluating their performance there should be agreed judgment criteria. This, in turn, should stop any manager/director effectively evading responsibility by claiming that mistakes were within someone else’s purview, a classic survival tactic employed by a succession of people within the RFU."

Bleak outlook for NZ provinces

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/10/2011

New Zealand's provincial unions have struggled because of the recession but 2011 looms as one of the most difficult seasons yet, the New Zealand Herald's Michael Brown reports.

"The ITM Cup is being squeezed into an eight-week competition to ensure it doesn't affect the Rugby World Cup but the 'Big Show' means it will be even more difficult for unions to find sponsors.

"Last week it emerged Southland owed creditors $700,000 on top of estimated losses of as much as $478,000 for 2010. Taranaki are expected to post a loss of around $100,000.

"Southland and Taranaki aren't the only unions struggling and NZRU chief executive Steve Tew said they were keeping a "close watch" on at least three other unions.

"But the travails of the 2011 competition make it difficult to ascertain if the revamped ITM Cup format is sustainable."

Reds show their warrior spirit

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/10/2011

Munster's narrow Magners League victory over Glasgow left boss Tony McGahan with many posers ahead of their European clash with Toulon according to the Irish Independent's Hugh Farrelly.

"There are certain occupations that are defined by pressure -- bomb disposal expert and Taoiseach are two that come to mind, but head coach has to be right up there.

Sitting in front of Glasgow's Sean Lineen in Musgrave Park last Saturday night was an instructive experience. Over the course of 80-plus Magners League minutes, the former Grand Slam-winning centre clung on to the rail of a Big Dipper ride of vacillating emotions.

"...If Lineen was feeling the pressure, he should spare a thought for his Munster counterpart Tony McGahan. Glasgow are out of the Heineken Cup and next weekend's meeting with Wasps, essentially, means nothing to them -- Munster's trip to Toulon means everything."

Beale hungry for success

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/10/2011

A fit and focused Kurtley Beale is ready to continue his rugby union rise in 2011. The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

"While Beale admits he has "about a kilo, two kilos" to lose following his off-season he's all too aware a massive year is in prospect.

"The revamped Super Rugby competition is first before Beale aims to cement his spot in the Wallabies ahead of the World Cup in New Zealand.

"I still think there's a long way to go for myself and actually developing and trying to improve on my game," he said.

"My first goal now is just to try and get back and mingle in with the boys, they've been training pretty good in the off season and I'm just very excited to be back."

"Waratahs coach Chris Hickey said Beale's emergence as an international standard fullback is likely to have him exclusively at No.15 this Super season."

Saracens send Venter on his way

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/10/2011

The Independent's Chris Hewett reports from Saracens' Aviva Premiership victory over London Irish - Brendan Venter's last game in charge of Sarries.

"There is winning ugly, and there is winning like a team of Gorgons. Saracens' victory over a hapless London Irish yesterday fell squarely into the second of those categories – in a game grotesquely distorted by basic handling errors and numbskulled decision-making from both sides, there could have been no complaints from anyone had the final scoreline been the other way round – but they ended the day second in the Premiership, which was better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.

"Brendan Venter, their director of rugby, leaves for his native South Africa today, having taken the difficult decision to return home for family reasons and recast himself as a technical specialist, using a range of modern gadgets and gizmos that will obliterate distance and minimise the need for the personal touch. A six-penalty lemon of a game was not quite the send-off he craved, but as four of those penalties fell to his own side, his farewells were cheery enough.

"He even thanked the media, bless him. "The one thing I can't say is that I've been misquoted," he remarked, rather brilliantly. Given that the World Cup-winning Springbok has been submerged in disciplinary hot water for most of his stay here, generally for the heinous crime of telling the truth in public, it was among the more memorable one-liners of the age."

January 9, 2011

Anxious Andrew

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/09/2011

Rob Andrew has been invited to apply for a different job within the RFU © Getty Images

Rob Andrew could find himself kicked into touch if Rugby Football Union hire Sir Clive Woodward, according to the Sunday Telegraph's Paul Ackford.

"Steele had confirmed what many within the organisation had thought about Andrew. He was considered a good organiser and admired for the way he had brokered and managed the agreement between the RFU and the clubs.

Andrew was respected for his ability to keep track of release periods, manoeuvre players into and out of the various England squads in accordance with the small print, get consensus between club and country over contentious medical issues and liaise with referees.

But he lacked dynamism, and he rarely took responsibility for unacceptable performances, always shunting judgment day to some distant point in the future.

Andrew’s reluctance to accept blame has followed him ever since England’s ill-fated tour of New Zealand in 2008 when he stood in for Martin Johnson who remained at home for the birth of his child following his appointment as the new England boss."

All Blacks: The men of 2012

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/09/2011

There is normally an exodus of talent after World Cups that leaves the All Blacks short-handed in the following year. But the New Zealand Herald's Gregor Paul believes the All Blacks of 2012 could still be a fearsome unit.

"3 Owen Franks - The New Zealand Rugby Union will do whatever it takes to keep Franks in New Zealand through to at least 2015.

"He has the potential to be one of the best props in New Zealand history. He's only 22 but has already anchored the All Black scrum 22 times. He is ferociously strong, technically good and improving, and has the attitude that he wants to be the best.

"His discipline and focus are exemplary and he's improving in his general play - particularly his tackling, where he has knocked a few big men down rather hard. By 2012, Franks will be recognised as one of the better tightheads in world rugby, and by 2015, if he can avoid injury, he'll be a frightening prospect.

"...10 Colin Slade - We still don't know what Daniel Carter is planning to do in 2012 but there's a growing belief he'll head to France for three years and maybe try to return to New Zealand ahead of the 2015 World Cup. Working on that premise, Slade will be the man to take over the All Black No 10 jersey.

"The current selection panel were convinced Aaron Cruden was the better long-term option at the start of this year and in time, that could prove correct.

"But things have changed since June. Not only has Cruden been found wanting a little at test level but Slade has committed his future to playing first five. He managed an impressive 20-minute test cameo as well as a solid campaign with Canterbury.

"He can kick off both feet, is quick enough to play on the wing and he tackles. He really tackles and, once he gets used to playing in the role every week, his navigation skills should come up to scratch."

Drop in standard of care striking

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/09/2011

An independent survey by the Irish Rugby Union Players' Assoacition has revealed an alarming drop in medical care as well as some other worrying trends, writes the Irish Times' Gerry Thornley.

"Furthermore, nearly one in four players also expressed unhappiness with a surgeon or specialist they had been referred to, with the added feeling that the leading players were given preferential treatment. Although a degree of dissatisfaction was to be expected, some of the responses alarmed the IRUPA chief executive Niall Woods.

"The survey is given added credibility due to the high response, almost 75 per cent, of the 150 or so members of IRUPA on either international, provincial or development contracts (academy players were not included). Furthermore, the confidential survey was conducted independently by BDO consultants in Limerick (part of a global chain of chartered accountants), throughout all four provinces in May last year.

"The most striking area where there were problems, which I had been receiving calls on anecdotally throughout last season was the medical area, and the drop in standard of care that the players felt there had been,” explains Woods. “This was backed up then by the stats in the survey."

"

Older, wiser and revelling in pressure

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/09/2011

Paddy Wallace is in a good place right now and he believes that Ulster are too, as he tells Brendan Fanning in the Irish Independent.

"At 31, he is the oldest in the Ulster squad now that Bryn Cunningham has moved on. "Can you actually believe that?" he asks. Well no, at least not without checking first.

"One thing you don't associate Paddy Wallace with is being the grand old man of any group. It doesn't seem that long since Eddie O'Sullivan was giving him his first start in green, against the Pacific Islands in 2006. It was Ireland's last Test at the old ground, and Wallace scored 26 points.

"But, as the most senior of a young squad, old he is. Old and content with what he sees about the place. "I'm enjoying it immensely and I'm encouraged by all the youth around me now. It keeps you going and keeps you invigorated and energetic." You'd swear he was 60.

"It's a feature of Ulster these days that they are not short on fresh blood. And all of it swilling around the midfield where Wallace has been doing a job since 2001. They are the only province this season to have given regular, competitive gametime to -- including Wallace -- five home-grown centres: from the pair who won caps in North America 18 months ago, Ian Whitten and Darren Cave, to the latest and youngest to be transfused, Luke Marshall and Nevin Spence."

I'm riding the Tour de France

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/09/2011

Writing in the Independent on Sunday, David Flatman reflects on the changing climate for injured players.

"You see, being injured at this club is not meant to be comfortable. The idea is to make players want nothing less – to make it an environment from which we all work tirelessly to escape. And guess what, it works. On Tuesday, after an early morning weights session, I was given the equivalent of a mountain stage of the Tour de France to complete while the fully-fit sipped coffee upstairs. At the end of it, even the gym staff were laughing at me. "Didn't think those bikes went uphill, mate," piped the newest recruit. Had I not been on the verge of vomiting on his recently buffed gym floor, I would have shot back some cutting, considered riposte but, instead, all I managed was a weak glare and a wobbly walk.

"After lunch, thinking my day was all but done, said coach dripped another droplet of goodness into my day: "Big afternoon for you mate, don't eat too much." When at the training ground later on, I enquired as to what adventures he might have planned. Climbing a few trees perhaps, or maybe an hour spent filling the boys' kit bags up with shower gel? No. "See that sled with all that weight on it?" he said, "you're going to pull it to the other side of the field. Then you're going to pull it back again." "How many times?" I asked. "None of your business," he replied. In all I only had to pull the loaded sled for about a kilometre through the West Country mud but, trust me, by the last repetition my legs were begging for oxygen and my mind was searching for a happy place. And to think, I'd always thought Sir Ranulph Fiennes milked it a bit."

Williams eyes All Blacks return

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/09/2011

Kiwi lock Ali Williams is plotting his international comeback after serious achilles injuries with a spell in the Championship with Nottingham. The Guardian's Mike Averis reports.

"Nottingham rugby club have done their bit for England down the years: Rob Andrew played there, as did Brian Moore. If a famous old boy lifts the World Cup next autumn, though, he is more likely to be dressed in black rather white and will owe the club a considerable debt for bump-starting a stalled international career.

"The player in question is Ali Williams, close on 6ft 8in of All Black lock forward, in the east Midlands exorcising a few mental demons as well as playing his first rugby for nearly two seasons. Williams is there for a month getting himself mentally and physically right before attempting to reclaim his place in the New Zealand side. So far he has managed only 20 minutes of game time, in his own words "shitting myself" before getting on against Moseley to test his repaired achilles tendon, an injury that had threatened to end his career after 61 Tests and two World Cups.

"Today at Meadow Lane, Williams will lace up his specially designed Adidas boots, warm up well, and step gingerly into his first home match when Nottingham play Bristol in the Championship, English rugby's second division. On Friday there is the more considerable challenge of Munster, and an old team-mate, Doug Howlett, before a final game against Rotherham.

January 8, 2011

We need scrum action now

Posted by Ruaidhri O'Connor on 01/08/2011

Will Greenwood reckons the scrum needs to be reformed but not dispensed with © Getty Images

Writing in The Telegraph, Will Greenwood says he loves the scrum, but feels it needs reforming if it is not to kill the game.

"For my part, I love the scrum, so it pains me to say this but, in its current form, it is killing the game. The scrum is in danger of becoming a black hole into which match time disappears, and supporters get sucked wishing they had stayed at home to watch the Murder She Wrote marathon.

"Some 20% of all matches are taken up by the endless resets, collapses, standing up, falling over and general messing about. If a bookie offered me odds on the first scrum being penalised and never actually taking place in all of the Premiership matches, then that is a bet I would take on every week. In five of the six games last weekend the first scrum was penalised.
It has become risible and the problem is as simple as the techniques involved are complicated. Scrums are collapsing because people are cheating.Talk to any coach in the country, and they are always looking to get an edge at the scrum. They either want to get the nudge on early, or move the right side up, or the left side up. They may have lost a player to the sin-bin, and want to waste time.

"When I was playing in the league, my team had a plan in place for when we lost players to the sin-bin. The first scrum they pushed early, the result a reset. The second they went to ground, reset. The third they scrummaged properly. The idea was that we could waste about two minutes of sin-bin time doing this."

Credit McKie for clearing up the mess

Posted by Ruaidhri O'Connor on 01/08/2011

The Scotsman's Allan Massie reflects on Scotland Rugby Union chief Gordon McKie's first five years in charge and finds there is still much to do to improve Scottish rugby.

"There have been improvements on the rugby side. The bitter in-fighting which characterised the decade after the introduction of professionalism has eased. More attention has been given to developing the club game. The national team's record has improved since the dismal days when Matt Williams was Scotland's coach. The two pro teams have achieved respectable results. These may not be half as good as most of us would wish. Nevertheless in view of the disparity of resources available to them in comparison with leading clubs in England, France, Wales and Ireland, the record is, as I say, respectable.

"Yet the problem of taking the pro game forward is , sadly, no nearer a solution than it was when Mr McKie became chief executive in 2005. Attendances remain much lower than in the other Magners League countries. It is almost embarrassing to compare the enthusiasm for professional rugby in Wales and Ireland with the absence of it here. We are no nearer finding a suitable ground for either Glasgow or Edinburgh than we were ten or a dozen years ago. Firhill is too narrow. The Murrayfield stadium will remain utterly unsuitable for club rugby until Edinburgh can attract crowds at least ten times larger than those they draw now.

"Inevitably, both Edinburgh and Glasgow lose leading players at the end of most seasons. Andy Robinson could ,if he wished ,pick a Scotland XV capable of giving a good account of itself from Scots playing their club rugby out of Scotland. The exodus weakens the teams, yet is unavoidable. There is, of course, some compensation. The departure of an international player offers opportunities which might otherwise be denied to younger players."

Generals need toughening up

Posted by Ruaidhri O'Connor on 01/08/2011

Writing in The Independent, former England coach Brian Ashton argues modern fly-halves must toughen up.

"This reality of rugby decision-making at the top level is so harsh, there is no earthly point making life artificially easy for a No 10 in practice. From Monday to Friday, the outside-half should find his space being cut down, his thinking time being reduced and his technique being subjected to searching examination after searching examination. Why? Because this is what he will experience when he comes up against the Serge Betsens of this world on a Saturday. When he receives the ball going sideways or backwards and the open-side flanker is licking his lips at the prospect of a kill, that tough love on the training field will be worth its weight in gold.

"It is too easy for an outside-half to buy himself breathing space at difficult moments by simply kicking the ball away: apart from anything else, this is precisely what the opposition wants to happen. Coaches should never let their decision-makers hide behind the boot rather than exploit the available space. The easiest space for a No 10 to identify is that combat zone between the attacking and defensive line. It is also the most difficult space to manipulate. Mastery of the art of controlling this space, shutting it down for the opposition while preserving it and creating it anew for colleagues, is what separates the great from the good.

"Remember this: a top-drawer No 10 is a lion, and while he may be armed by the ball-winning donkeys up front, he should never be led by them. Provided his own leadership skills are properly developed on the training field, forwards will always be happy to be the ones doing the following."

January 7, 2011

A grim start to the year

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/07/2011

Can Ireland challenge the big guns at the World Cup? © Getty Images

Hugh Farrelly takes a few minutes out from a diet of Christmas take-aways to tip Ireland for the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup in The Irish Independent.

"It's been a grim start to the year. The recent water shortage had a calamitous effect on hair hygiene, with the result that this much admired mane has lost its customary lustre.

"Phone pollution has run rampant due to people's misguided notion that everyone in their contact book wants to receive generic New Year's messages riddled with choreographed jollity (note: any man who texts smiley faces should be checked for hidden ovaries).

"And our comfort eating has become so chronic that a recent gargantuan takeaway order had to be supplemented with "and two cans of Diet Coke" to distract the Chinese woman on the end of the phone from our sad, solo gluttony."

Prudence pays off

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/07/2011

Glenn McLean praises the handling of Taranaki's finances despite their losses on stuff.co.nz.

"The reasons behind the projected six-figure loss the Taranaki Rugby Football Union suffered last year will not be fully known publicly until their annual report is released in March.

"Union boss Mark Robinson was at pains this week, however, to stress that the required extra spending that sent the books so far into the red was not all related to player salaries.

"There will, of course, be some cost over-run in that department after their astute decision to draft, from Britain, Samoa captain Mahonri Schwalger after experienced rake Laurence Corlett's season-ending injury early on."

Hardly kicking his heels

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/07/2011

Chris Hewett takes a look at the current position occupied by Clive Woodward following the restructuring of the RFU in The Independent.

"It is four years since Rob Andrew beat Sir Clive Woodward to Twickenham's top rugby job in a contest so muddied by political manoeuvring that it would have been no surprise to discover Peter Mandelson, the Prince of Darkness himself, at the heart of the process. Now, there is at least an outside chance of Woodward returning to the scene of his greatest sporting triumph, effectively at Andrew's expense. What goes around comes around.

"As a result of a radical restructuring of the Rugby Football Union's management structure by the new chief executive John Steele, the governing body will over the next few days advertise for a performance director who will have a direct influence on, and control over, the running of the senior England team, as well as the second-tier, age-group and sevens squads. Andrew's current role as director of elite rugby will end the moment an appointment is made."

The Ashes blueprint

Posted by Huw Baines on 01/07/2011

Mick Cleary looks at the restructuring of the RFU as the rest of England basks in Ashes glory in The Daily Telegraph.

"The sober-suited ones are but backroom men while the glamour, the drive, the hard-nosed edge, the fine-line nuances reside in the sweaty, testosterone ones who are out there at the final whistle. Appealing image but far from the whole truth.

"As Rugby Football Union chief executive John Steele reveals his sweeping recommendations for change at Twickenham, it’s worth heeding the bubbly words emanating from Australia as England retain the Ashes. Of course, the batting of Alastair Cook and the bowling of Jimmy Anderson are the headline acts.

"But every England cricketer and commentator has paid tribute to the planning behind the scenes. It’s the environment that won it."

January 6, 2011

New role for Rob Andrew

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/06/2011

Rob Andrew is set to take on a new role at the Rugby Football Union © Getty Images

Current director of elite rugby Rob Andrew will take on fresh role in the RFU's soon-to-be-announced blueprint and a new figure will be recruited to oversee elite performance, according to The Guardian's Rob Kitson.

"Tonight the RFU was still advising staff of the planned changes but no spectacular arrivals or, more pertinently, high-profile departures are anticipated at Twickenham in the short term. Instead, having unanimously backed the recommendations of the new chief executive, John Steele, the board of directors has agreed to redefine Andrew's role and launched a quest for a prominent figure to help England re-conquer the world on home soil in four years' time.

"This will prompt fresh conjecture that an experienced former national coach such as Jake White or Eddie Jones will be brought in to work in tandem with Martin Johnson and his coaches. As yet the RFU is not committing itself, preferring to take its time before making such a key appointment. Sources stress the changes are all about looking forwards rather than backwards and are designed to ensure the RFU is in the best possible shape for 2015."

Italians find a home away from home

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/06/2011

The New Zealand Herald's John Roughan believes Italy will receive a particularly warm welcome from Nelson at this year's Rugby World Cup.

"Coach John Kirwan and his team are due to settle into the city a full week before the tournament opens. They will travel to Christchurch for their opening match against Australia on the first weekend of the cup but return to Nelson for the rest of the month, playing their next two games at Trafalgar Park against Russia and the United States.

"The Italians are set to receive a particularly warm welcome from Nelson's long-established Italian community, many of whose ancestors migrated a century ago to grow tomatoes in the mild Mediterranean climate.

"An Italian connection of a different sort will be forged while they are there. They will attend the opening of a long-overdue memorial to Nelson members of the Maori Battalion who fought in Italy during World War II."

Getting the hit right

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/06/2011

The Irish Times' John O'Sullivan talks to Leinster prop Mike Ross who has his mind set on making up for a penalty try when Leinster meet the Ospreys tomorrow.

"The concession of a penalty try is an abhorrence to a prop so it’s hardly surprising to learn Mike Ross took it personally; the slight invaded his sleep patterns for a few days. The particular moment occurred during Leinster’s 19-15 defeat to the Ospreys in a Magners League clash at the Liberty Stadium earlier this season. The two teams meet again in the same tournament tomorrow night, this time at the RDS.

"There are mitigating circumstances as Leinster had two players in the sin bin at that particular moment when referee David Wilkinson chose to make his value judgment. It offers little succour to Ross, as the Ireland and Leinster tighthead prop, a player renowned for his ability at scrum time, recalled the memory.

“I didn’t sleep well that night or for a couple of days afterwards. It’s something I take very personally, take a lot of pride in. Before that I don’t think I gave away a penalty try in eight years. I was fairly raging afterwards.”

Review shows up England's arrogance

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/06/2011

Writing in the Irish Independent, Peter Bills reacts to the Rugby Football Union's decision to re-structure their organisation.

"It is incredible that England -- the wealthiest union by far and the most powerful in all of world rugby in terms of playing numbers -- haven't won a single thing over this period of time.

"Such consistent failure more than merited a major inquiry into the structure of the entire organisation. And Steele is right to have concluded that the whole business needs a major shake-up. "This has been a comprehensive review and there will be significant changes," said an RFU spokesman.

"At the heart of England's failings has been an inbred arrogance within Twickenham. The sense that England were the best, could teach the world how to play rugby (as they once did) and were superior in every sense, became insidious within the higher echelons of the game in England.

"People throughout the organisation, who were insufferably boring and crassly inefficient at their jobs, thought themselves God's gift to the world. They found solace in each other's company so that mediocrity proliferated, at all levels of the organisation, money-making excepted."

January 5, 2011

McGahan facing his defining moments

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/05/2011

Crunch time approaches for Munster boss Tony McGahan © Getty Images

Munster coach Tony McGahan's reputation rests on ability to clear his side's Heineken Cup hurdle, according to the Irish Independent's Hugh Farrelly.

"January, named after the Roman god Janus, has been described as the "gateway to the year".

"Janus appears to have been some sort of bouncer (carrying the dubious title of 'god of doors and gates') but he was still the guy who decided whether you kicked on or had the door slammed in your face -- a lot like January in the Heineken Cup.

"Munster triumphing in must-win pool games against English opposition at a heaving Thomond Park in January has become one of the great traditions of this competition over the last 15 years. This season, London Irish are the side lined up for the treatment handed out to Gloucester, Sale, Wasps and Northampton in previous campaigns and Toby Booth's side will have a fair idea of what to expect when they run out in Limerick on January 22.

"However, the game that is the true gateway to Munster's season takes place the week before in Toulon."

Stage set for Sydney-Melbourne grudge match

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/05/2011

Sydney and Melbourne are set to face off in a new annual rugby grudge match, according to reports in the Sydney Morning Herald.

"The brainchild of the new Sydney Rugby Union, who take over the management of the Sydney club competition this month, the match has been scheduled as a curtain raiser to the Melbourne Rebels Super Rugby home game against South Africa's Sharks on March 11.

"Sydney Rugby Union chairman Chris Birch said the selection processes for both city teams would ensure an even battle. "Melbourne will be using a lot of the players they've got who are on Super Rugby contracts who may not be playing in the main game," he said on Wednesday. "Whereas our team will be chosen purely from the 12 clubs in Sydney."

"The launch of the Rebels in the 2011 Super Rugby competition will give the game a huge boost in Victoria, Birch said, while the annual curtain raiser will give an "edge to intercity rivalry".

Andrew to lose elite rugby director post

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/05/2011

The Daily Telegraph's Mick Cleary believes RFU chief executive John Steele will present some wide-ranging recommendations on how to deliver a World Cup triumph on home soil in 2015.

"As part of a radical overhaul, elite rugby director Rob Andrew will be removed from sharp-end duties with the England team although there is still a desire to offer him some sort of reduced role.

"A new post will be created to oversee the production line of English talent from junior level through to the national team. There has long been a view that such a position would be a perfect fit for the 2003 World Cup-winning coach, Sir Clive Woodward. And so it would.

"Woodward, though, is heavily engaged in his work at the British Olympic Association with a focus on the 2012 Olympics. He also has good cause to be circumspect about RFU processes in that he was publicly rejected for the job taken on by Andrew in 2006.

"The Woodward hat will be wary of flying into any RFU ring, which is a shame as he would be just the man to galvanise the organisation. All that may yet to come to pass as he has strong backers within the union, but any appointment would be some time down the line."

Scotland Sevens scene facing the axe?

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/05/2011

Sevens is set to boom across the world in the next decade but it remains doubtful whether its founding nation will play any meaningful part in that. The Scotsman's David Ferguson reports.

"The Scottish Rugby Union agreed to play a host role in the IRB World Sevens Series from 2007-2011, but controversially opted not to locate at the Greenyards and tap into the rich history and traditions there and instead make Murrayfield its Scottish home. It made sense in terms of the facilities the national stadium had to offer, which players and officials regularly remark upon, but it is estimated that it will have cost the SRU over £1 million.

"At a time of belt-tightening the SRU is currently examining the future of sevens in a strategic review, including whether to remain part of the circuit in whatever new guise the IRB agree for post-2011, and how to fund the team's participation on the world stage, having already cut the funding this year and sent a largely club team to the 2010-11 world series openers."

Game in a healthy state?

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/05/2011

If ever the enormous potential of this game were emphatically underlined, then a single attendance at a solitary game confirmed it over the festive season. Peter Bills writes for The Independent.

"But what is undeniable is the interest and support that clearly exists in this part of the world for these special ‘one off’ matches on unique occasions. And it isn’t just in London. Max Guazzini has pioneered the idea of playing the occasional Stade Francais club match at the 80,000 Stade de France so successfully that he’s regularly sold around 75-79,000 tickets.

"Mind you, Guazzini’s ‘spectaculars’ involving fake Roman chariots, scantily clad guards and girls, rock music shows and brilliant firework displays guarantee that numerous families turn up.

"But this is the glory of this game. It should be bursting out of its skin, thrusting forward to embrace new audiences, new groups of followers. And if the product on the field is improving – witness matches like England v Australia last November at Twickenham and South Africa v Australia in Bloemfontein in last year’s Tri-Nations - there is no reason on earth why the game wouldn’t grow."

RFU rule out return of Sir Clive

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/05/2011

There will be no role for World Cup-winning coach Clive Woodward in RFU chief executive John Steele's reform plans. The Guardian's Paul Rees reports.

"The prospects of Sir Clive Woodward making a triumphal return to Twickenham as the head of a revamped elite department with a brief to deliver the 2015 World Cup, which is being held in England, appeared remote tonight.

"The Rugby Football Union's management board will tomorrow consider a strategic review drawn up by the governing body's chief executive, John Steele, who took over from Francis Baron in September.

"It will look at all the RFU's eight major departments, of which elite rugby, headed by Rob Andrew, is the most high profile. Steele is believed to be recommending the elite section be split into two, with Andrew or his successor taking responsibility for everything below the senior national squad."

January 4, 2011

Foreign legion

Posted by Mark Doyle on 01/04/2011

Hugh Farrelly of the Irish Independent selects his Overseas XV currently plying their trade in Ireland - and casts his eye back over the hits and the flops.

"If 2009 was Rocky's year, then 2010 belonged to Isa. When it comes to overseas signings leaving an impact on Irish rugby, then Rocky Elsom's contribution over the course of one glorious Heineken Cup-winning season with Leinster will be nigh on impossible to top.

"However, Nacewa's consistent excellence for the province in a variety of positions has made him a cult hero among Leinster supporters, while second-row Nathan Hines has also proved to be an excellent signing.

"However one feels about an out-and-out Australian declaring for Scotland and then playing his club rugby in France and Ireland, there is no doubting Hines' commitment to whatever team he togs out for, and his physicality and experience were invaluable in Leinster's recent back-to-back clashes with Clermont.

"Finally, hooker Richardt Strauss, a peripheral figure last season, has been sensational since Joe Schmidt took over, stepping up to the plate in a big way after John Fogarty was forced to retire."

Still no clearer

Posted by Mark Doyle on 01/04/2011

Edinburgh's Ruaridh Jackson is one of Scotland's most exciting young talents © Getty Images

Writing in The Scotsman, Stuart Bathgate argues that Scotland boss Andy Robinson will have learned little from the recent clashes between Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh.

"The 1872 Cup is the closest we have these days to a national trial, although without the players based in England of course. Just how close will be demonstrated later this month when Scotland coach Andy Robinson names his squad for the Six Nations Championship.

"After this season's two-leg affair ended in a win apiece and an aggregate victory for Glasgow, several players must be hoping that Robinson does not give too much weight to the evidence from those back-to-back matches.

"Following a successful second half of 2010, the coach already has firm ideas about his squad for the Championship. Those who underperformed at Firhill and Murrayfield will be eager for him to maintain those ideas, or at least to defer a definitive judgment until after the impending Magners League and Heineken Cup games rather than reaching a conclusion purely from the two domestic clashes."

Kidney can't ignore O'Brien against Italy

Posted by Mark Doyle on 01/04/2011

In his weekly column in the Irish Independent, Tony Ward reviews performances of the four provinces over the festive season.

"Leinster travelled to what was once 'Fortress Ravenhill' and bullied the Ulstermen into submission. And here the finger of blame points firmly in the direction of the expensive, much-lauded Springbok imports.

"That feeling of Ulster folk being sold short in the immediate aftermath of that game was added to with Brian McLaughlin's admission as regards his selection for Limerick, that he had told the players prior to Christmas that he would be fielding what would be effectively two separate teams. You would have expected the heavily loaded line-up that faced Leinster to come out firing with all cylinders on their home patch.

"Instead, in the absence of the talismanic Stephen Ferris, it was Sean O'Brien who ruled the Ravenhill roost. The Tullow man simply must run out in Rome for the opening Six Nations joust, with the back-row position his to lose after that. On the simple premise of form, he's a shoo-in. Nor can there be any counter-argument as regards balance, with a Ferris/ O'Brien/Jamie Heaslip trio picking itself, leaving either David Wallace or Denis Leamy as cover for all three positions on the bench."

Connacht stuck with short straw again

Posted by Mark Doyle on 01/04/2011

Gavin Cummiskey of the Irish Times reveals how television priorities in Wales resulted in the province’s unfair fixture schedule.

"A vigorous objection by the Connacht Branch to being forced to play a Thursday fixture in Wales just five days after an interprovincial derby, for the second time this season, was rejected due to television scheduling and because Celtic Rugby Ltd said so.

"Connacht must face the Dragons at Rodney Parade on Thursday just five days after Eric Elwood’s injury-ravaged, under-staffed and under-funded team were defeated 30-8 by Leinster in Dublin.

"Connacht were forced to rest half a dozen players during training yesterday."

"I didn't know if I had a future"

Posted by Ruaidhri O'Connor on 01/04/2011

This try against Australia was the highlight of England wing Chris Ashton's 2010 © Getty Images

The Guardian's Donald McRae meets Chris Ashton, who says he considered quitting rugby 15 months ago, but went on to have a phenomenal year in 2010.

"After the most momentous year of his life, escaping doubt and obscurity to become an acclaimed England international and the scorer of one of the greatest tries ever seen at Twickenham, Chris Ashton pauses at the outset of 2011. This is the start of a World Cup year, with Ashton one of the dynamic young players who has given England renewed hope they can again be realistic challengers in a tournament that has seen them reach the previous two finals. But the 23-year-old Northampton wing shakes his head in a deserted bar at Franklin's Gardens. After everything that happened in 2010, he knows not to get swept away by anticipation.

"Last year, after all, was also shrouded by the shocking loss of his 55-year-old father, Kevin, who died from cancer. "'You could say it was the best year of my life and, for a while, the worst," Ashton says, looking up with a tangled smile rather than his usual sparky grin. "Fifteen months ago I didn't know if I had any future in rugby union and it's strange how quickly everything changed. So I don't look too far ahead. I'd rather be bothered about this Saturday than imagining what might happen in nine months. You never know what might change between now and then."'

"This Saturday, in one of the great derbies of English rugby, Northampton face Leicester. The Saints are two points behind Leicester, but they have played a couple of games fewer than the league leaders and their closest rivals. They will travel to Welford Road with serious intent after losing surprisingly at home against Harlequins three days ago. And so Northampton need Ashton at his best; for his ratio of 80 tries in 82 club games is a seriously impressive marker of his ability and belief."

January 3, 2011

A win of rare drama

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/03/2011

Edinburgh's Simon Webster tackles Glasgow's DTH Van Der Merwe during their Magners League clash at Murrayfield © Getty Images

After a run of four successive losses to their rivals from the other end of the M8, Edinburgh yesterday produced a win of rare drama to bring to an end their depressing run of 1872 Cup results. The Scotsman's Richard Bath reports.

"The outcome was, however, in doubt until deep into injury time, when Edinburgh full-back Jim Thompson picked off a Colin Gregor pass in the home side's 22 and sprinted the length of the pitch for the try which finally settled an enthralling contest.

"If the margin of victory looks comfortable, it was no such thing. This was a mighty close shave for Edinburgh, who should have closed the match out but instead finished it holding onto a four-point lead with grim determination as Glasgow looked for the winning try, the visitors battering at the door in a frenzied final period in which at one stage they put together a 15-phase movement.

"It says much for the home side's character that they weathered that final assault before seizing the chance to kill off Glasgow once and for all."

Flannery braced for bad news

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/03/2011

Munster hooker Jerry Flannery is bracing himself for bad news today when the details of his latest injury breakdown are disclosed. The Irish Independent's Ian Bransfield reports.

"figure as he was helped from the field 28 minutes into his Munster comeback during Saturday's victory over Ulster at Thomond Park.

The source of concern was once again a calf muscle, although not the same one which has curtailed his involvement for much of this season already.

Flannery was taken for a scan yesterday and the results should be known by today.

Speaking after the match, coach Tony McGahan gave no indication as to the severity of the situation, but confirmed that it was a fresh injury and not a recurrence of his old problem.

"He's quite upset and everybody is feeling for him," said McGahan. "He's worked really hard to get back to where he was, and there's no doubt that he'll get back from this one as well."

Henson Strictly disappointing

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/03/2011

Gavin Henson started his first rugby match for nearly two years yesterday - and will wish that he hadn't - The Mirror's Alex Spink reports.

"The Strictly Come Dancing star endured a nightmare afternoon at Sale, managing just three touches in 50 minutes before being hauled off.

"It wasn't meant to be like that against opponents who had lost their previous five matches and sacked their head coach over Christmas.But Saracens' decision to give Henson his full debut out of position backfired as he set Sale on their way by being at fault for Mark Cueto's opening try."

Set-piece heaven for Leicester

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/03/2011

The Independent's Chris Hewett reports from Leicester's hard-fought Premiership victory over Exeter.

"It is far from the deadliest of rugby's sins – biting, gouging, head-kicking and running off with the beer kitty are infinitely worse – but obliterating the opposition at the scrum and still losing the game takes some forgiving nonetheless. England, full of Leicester types, were guilty as charged in the far-flung union outpost of Western Australia last June and went within a single missed penalty of reoffending in New South Wales seven days later. Leicester, full of imports from here, there and everywhere, may not obey all of the laws all of the time, but they are wholly incapable of committing this particular crime.

"The champions did not have things all their own way on their first Premiership visit to Devon yesterday: the young referee J P Doyle, fast-tracked into the professional ranks by a Twickenham hierarchy convinced of his ability to control the barely controllable, took a distinct dislike to the Midlanders' many and varied antics at the line-out, while the two brick-outhouses known as the Tuilagi brothers received quite a shock when they found themselves confronting a fellow South Seas citizen bigger than either of them. No man is an island, as the poet said, but Exeter's new Fijian centre Sireli Naqelevuki comes as close as anyone.

"Yet irritations such as these pale into insignificance when a team finds itself in set-piece heaven."

January 2, 2011

In the Mood

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/02/2011

England's Lewis Moody is relishing Rugby World Cup year © Getty Images

England's captain Lewis Moody has played in two World Cup finals but he still relishes the excitement before kick-off and is now an old hand at beating Aussies. He talks to the Independent on Sunday's Hugh Godwin.

"When you're on the pitch, that's purely what it's about," Moody says. "It's the excitement – 'this is awesome, I'm here, with this group of people, we're at Twickenham doing what we love'. Even through the tough times, back in '05 and '06 when we were losing, I've loved it. Those little interactions: how people react to what's said, behind closed doors and in the changing rooms. For me, when I get emotional about something, it comes out in a smile. I look at one of the lads before a game, you're pumped and excited about it, you stare him in the eye and he's got a stern look, and you know he's ready for it, and you know you're ready for it and that smile comes across and you're like, 'fucking happy days, this is why we play'."

"In Moody's 14 seasons at Leicester he captained them twice: matches, not seasons. Johnson gave him the England job in France last March when Borthwick – now out of the squad all together – was injured. On tour in Australia, Moody led the side to defeat in Perth and victory in Sydney. "I had never thought, 'right, my goal is to be captain'," says Moody. "When I was asked, it was actually quite daunting. OK, I'll do it but will I be good enough? Johnno was good, he said, 'look mate, just be you, that's all that matters'. I took that on board and I'd like to think I haven't changed."

Rugby apartheid row

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/02/2011

The Irish Government vetoed grants for rugby-playing schools in the wake of the Lions tour to South Africa 30 years ago. The Irish Independent's Marie Crowe reports.

"The Fianna Fáil government feared that making grants available to rugby would be seen as tacit state approval for South Africa's apartheid regime and damage Ireland's chances of becoming a member of the United Nations Security Council.

"The newly-published state papers for 1980 reveal that senior figures within the Fianna Fáil government, including then Minister for Foreign Affairs Brian Lenihan and the minister for state with responsibility for sport Jim Tunney, strongly opposed the tour and also made it known that IRFU plans to tour South Africa in 1981 would be frowned upon.

"The Lions tour, which was a highly controversial one, was opposed by the Irish and British governments and also groups against sporting relations with the apartheid regime in South Africa.

"The Tour manager was Syd Millar, current chairman of the IRB, and coach was Noel Murphy. The Lions lost the series 3-1 in the absence of many of the top players."

Odd-shaped crystal ball

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/02/2011

As a Rugby World Cup year begins, the Scotland on Sunday's Iain 'Mystic' Morrison looks into his odd-shaped crystal ball.

"Andy Robinson Appointed to Coach the Lions - The composite side won't tour Australia until 2013 but the coach will be announced shortly after the Six Nations to give him a decent run at the job, and Scotland's favourite Englishman is the obvious candidate, although he will need another respectable showing in the Six Nations to cement his refurbished reputation.

"Ian McGeechan has given wonderful service that won't be matched in our lifetime but it's time to move onwards and Bath's less-than-glorious exit from the Heineken Cup at the hands of Ulster suggests that the years are beginning to catch up with him.

"Robinson knows many of the England squad almost as well as his own Scots and other Welsh/Irish players from his time as Lions assistant coach in 2001 and 2005. In fact he has more Lions experience than anyone else with the exception of McGeechan. He also has the benefit of not being foreign, because while Graham Henry did a decent job when the Lions last toured Oz, the feeling persists that a native is preferable.

"Would Gordon McKie prevent Robinson from going or, more likely, use the freedom to coach the Lions as an incentive to persuade the coach to extend his stint with Scotland beyond March 2012?"

The year of the World Cup is here

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/02/2011

An editorial piece in the New Zealand Herald welcomes the dawn of Rugby World Cup year.

"If the success of this year's World Cup in New Zealand depends entirely on the success of the All Blacks then the event is a failure already. The All Blacks should win the Cup, they should win it whenever and wherever it is played. They are consistently the best in the world.

"If they win it this year it should be the icing on a cake we have baked and savoured for its own sake. Long before the tournament comes to its knock-out rounds this country could be enjoying the warm rewards of successful hospitality.

"Just about all parts of the country will be hosting teams during the pool phase that will run though September. Each of the visiting squads will be welcomed in a different town and some of them will be based in one place for periods of weeks.

"There is every prospect that local schools and rugby clubs will take a particular interest in their guest team and follow its fortunes through the tournament. The whole community will be encouraged to adopt it as their "second team"."

We should be so lucky

Posted by Graham Jenkins on 01/02/2011

Writing in the Independent on Sunday, Bath's David Flatman ponders the prospect of rugby league star Kyle Eastmond joining his club.

"I watch quite a lot of Super League and admire the players hugely for their fitness levels and all-round athleticism. OK, so in our language the props aren't really props and the hookers don't actually do much hooking but still, these guys can play. The number of effective involvements that each player is expected to contribute is, when compared to rugby union, quite staggering. Naturally, we would all make more tackles and carry more ball had we no set-pieces to worry about. Wouldn't life be easy...

"Well, actually, no. You try running back 10 metres every time a tackle is made. We chaps seem to have enough trouble crawling all the way back to the hindmost foot of each ruck, most of which last five seconds or so. Our defence coach here at Bath, former rugby league legend (his words, no one else's) Brad Davis, knows this and, when we're being extra naughty in training, prescribes 10 minutes of rugby league rules as a tonic to refocus and freshen the mind. "Hurray," we all cheer. "I'm Ellery Hanley," I scream before anyone else has the chance. The resemblance is so uncanny that, in my eyes, I'm the obvious choice anyway."

January 1, 2011

Less hype, more quality

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/01/2011

The quality of rugby on show at Wembley on Boxing failed to live up to the setting © Getty Images

In the Independent former England head coach Brian Ashton warns the "Big Game" rugby is not living up to the hype and delivers his prediction for 2011.

"Unless something peculiar happens during the Tri-Nations tournament preceding it, the All Blacks will start as clear favourites to reclaim a title they last won almost a quarter of a century ago. At this stage of the game, it's difficult to see beyond a victory for the host nation, à la 1987....

Domestically, it was intriguing to see 2010 drawing to a close with some lavish pomp and circumstance in the capital: a north London derby between Saracens and Wasps that drew a big crowd to Wembley, and a south-west London derby between Harlequins and London Irish that drew an even bigger one to Twickenham. The growth of "Big Game" rugby at club level has been one of the most striking developments of recent seasons and it is right to pay credit to those men in suits who are responsible for making it work...

Unfortunately, few of the 60-plus players on show bought into the spirit of it...

All four London teams failed to convince, particularly when it came to probing the outside channels. There were any number of moments when attackers outnumbered defenders, yet these promising situations failed to yield anything positive. Many sides claim to embrace the concept of attacking with width, but if there is no understanding of what this entails tactically, or if execution is not up to scratch in the technical sense, it plays directly into the hands of any drift defence worth its salt.

This lip service is one of my bugbears, as is the current penchant for throwing long, lazy, looping and inaccurate spin passes – passes that encourage players to stand too far apart and do nothing for an attacking move apart from halt its natural momentum. Too often, we see people trying to operate deep behind "screen runners", or drifting across field rather than straightening the line. All this pedestrianism makes life easy for defenders.

Oh to see another Jeremy Guscott in the No 13 position. The "prince of centres", as Jack Rowell used to call him, had no truck with the comfort-zone style of attacking. Here was a player who ran wonderful lines that really threatened opponents, obliging them to take decisions they didn't want to take and forcing them to make tackles they didn't want to make. His understanding of depth and angles, combined with an ability to vary his speed in a manner appropriate to the situation, troubled the very best defenders and made so many things possible for the support runners who revelled in the space he created.

To all coaches who are serious about developing a potent attacking game, and to every young player in the country who wants to make the best of himself as a dangerous runner, I would say this: get out the DVDs of Guscott and watch a maestro at work. You'll learn something, I promise."

ABs won't win World Cup

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/01/2011

Writing in the New Zealand Herald, Chris Rattue takes a pessimistic view of 2011 from a New Zealand point of view.

"With crystal ball in hand, over to the 2011 sporting year...

5) Ali Williams gets All Black recall
Dip your hand into the hat and pick out whatever World Cup story you like here. There will be plenty. The Williams' comeback should be high on the list. Two Achilles injuries, two years with virtually no football, more than two years since his last test - this represents a tall order.

At his best, though, Williams was a star and maybe the best lock in world rugby. The stocks aren't too bad in this department but Williams is a teacher's favourite. Stranger things have happened - the last World Cup, Keith Robinson and all that.

Our prediction: Just a couple of decent Super games will get Williams into the squad and a shot at the World Cup, but after so much time out he won't be the Ali of old...

3) A nobody like Andy Murray wins a Grand Slam title
A Hail Mary prediction that the combined forces of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer won't clean up in the big tennis tournaments yet again. Everybody in world tennis is a nobody compared with those two but the time is right for a rare victory by someone else.

The fascinating Nadal-Federer duel will still dominate and if Nadal gets on a roll he might get within lobbing distance of Federer's Grand Slam record. There should be at least one classic Grand Slam tournament final between these two remarkable players. A good way to prepare for their fabulous duels is to snooze during the women's final, which is easy to do....

1)The All Blacks won't win the World Cup
This raises the tricky question of who does win the Webb Ellis, but that's not the point. Picking the All Blacks to win the World Cup is regarded in many circles as a wicked plot by a snarling media to bring our brave lads down. Picking them to win is apparently a crime that ranks alongside peaking too early.

The All Blacks have been disasters in the professional era, failing to even make a World Cup final since the ruling classes decided that rugby players could enjoy the delights of paying taxes and have more time to play golf. Only a crazy fool would pick the All Blacks to win on past tournament form.

As a rugby nation we don't actually have a recipe for success but that doesn't stop us from trying to make new ones up. The key ingredient is a national mood of dire pessimism. The game plan goes like this - with long faces everywhere, Richie McCaw and the troops ride to the rescue after adopting full battle mode. In keeping with this well-grounded approach, we suggest the team's vital pre-tournament swimming mission be conducted from the Onehunga wharf. But even the spectre of the old Mangere bridge may not be enough to save them. Fate has decreed we are sport's most enduring chokers.

Our first prediction: the quarter-finals will involve Australia v Samoa, England v France, South Africa v Ireland and New Zealand v Argentina. France beat Australia and South Africa beat New Zealand in the semifinals.

The final prediction: South Africa beat France and Peter de Villiers makes a memorable speech (very confident about that one)."

Rants reveal bad losers

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/01/2011

Tony Ward argues in the Irish Independent that outbursts by Leicester’s Richard Cockerill and Saracens’ Brendan Venter this season are fuelled by self-interest rather than any concern for the game.

"Now far be it for me to defend the ERC, the Dublin-based body charged with running the Heineken Cup. However, when it comes to self-serving rants then Brendan Venter and Richard Cockerill, head coaches at Saracens and Leicester respectively, take the biscuit. Forget this nonsense about "concern for the game". It's amazing how these moral pillars of rugby only seem to come out with all guns blazing in the immediate aftermath of defeats.

Of course, there is validity in their gripe that the game has a problem. It has many, not least the contest at the breakdown and the sad pantomime called the scrum. But that is not the issue here.

Venter and Cockerill are shouting their mouths off driven by self-interest. Would Venter have lambasted all and sundry had Saracens beaten either Leinster at Wembley or Racing Metro at Vicarage Road? Would Cockerill have launched his tirade had Billy Twelvetrees put away two relatively straightforward penalties in the final quarter against Perpignan at Welford Road?

In failing to get the result they want, coaches always look for someone to ship the immediate blame onto. If it's not the players -- and Venter and Cockerill are smart enough not to lose their dressing-rooms -- then invariably the fault lies with the man in the middle and by extension with an organisation that had clearly designed rules and appointed referees to catch their team out!
Give us a break. The day a coach comes out and makes his rant having won a game will bring us closer to the point of taking him seriously.

Am I saying Venter and Cockerill are bad losers? For sure I am."

Rebellious Cipriani

Posted by Jonny McLeod on 01/01/2011

Rob Wildman reports in the Daily Mail that Danny Cipriani is causing ruptures at the Melbourne Rebels.

"Danny Cipriani returns to his new team in Melbourne next week following claims that his attitude in training is poor — an accusation that marred his career in England.

Melbourne Rebels’ assistant coach Mark Bakewell reportedly said Cipriani had done a ‘pretty good impersonation of the original Mr Angry since he arrived here’, and it is claimed that the former England star was told to ‘put the work in or pack his bags’...

Cipriani, who is currently in London, is expected back in Melbourne next week when the new Super 15 franchise resume training in preparation for the inaugural game on February 18, at home to the Waratahs."