CATEGORIES

It's going to be a thriller van Graan

JOHANN van Graan is predicting a Gallagher Premiership 2024/25 season to set pulses racing.

Blow for England as Jones quits

BACK-TO-BACK World Cup-winning defence coach Felix Jones has left his role with England after sources revealed he was unsettled by an unstable working environment.

PGP deal is looking good for all - Baxter

EXETER Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter remains hopeful that plans being drawn up as part of the new Professional Game Partnership between the RFU and Premiership Rugby will ultimately prove fruitful for all sides.

Women aiming to hit 100,000 mark by World Cup

ENGLAND women returned to their roots, visiting local clubs across the country with Alex Teasdale, executive director of the women's game at the RFU, revealing they hope to reach 100,000 female participants in the build-up to next year's World Cup.

England get in right mood for SA crunch

ENGLAND overcame a shaky first half to score 17 unanswered second-half points to beat an impressive Georgia outfit on Friday.

Caluori grabs his chance but Ireland on top

NOAH Caluori burst onto the scene on his international debut but his wonder try wasn't enough as England were well beaten by Ireland in the opening round of the series on Monday.

Playing England 7s was an incredible experience

I KNOW I'm going to be on the sidelines for a very long time after I retire so while the body is still willing-which it is at the moment just about at 45 then I'm going to continue playing as long as I can.

Bath out to go one step further this time around

TWO years after finishing bottom of the Premiership, Bath were a score away from the title.

Prop Tayack returns after horror year

JAY Tayack, grateful to be back fit and healthy, was unveiled to supporters as Cornish Pirates' latest signing at their Meet The Players evening on Thursday.

An age-old problem for Farrell and Lions

THIS time next year Andy Farrell will know if he got his selection matrix right for the 2025 Lions series against Australia, because it will either be a triumphal return for the head coach - or the Wallabies springing one of the biggest upsets in sport.

Titans hit six ahead of return to National One

FOLLOWING their enthralling National Two North title race last season, Rotherham and Leeds Tykes met once again with the Titans coming out on top 40-7.

No scrums? No problem Springboks for

LAST week in Brisbane Pieter Steph Du Toit famously asked Luke Pearce: \"Where's the scrum?\" when presented with a choice of three separate penalties.

Once again, Pumas fail to back it up

ONE of the question most able truisms in rugby is that wet weather is a great leveller.

Classy Jordan shows the way as All Blacks get back in old routine

WILL Jordan continued his try-a-game scoring spree as the All Blacks avenged last week's reverse to Argentina and made it 50 undefeated matches at their Garden of Eden.

Aussies on a long road to recovery

EXPECTATIONS in Australia will be pretty low after back-toback defeats to South Africa in the opening rounds of the Rugby Championship, but, given the way the Wallabies played in the 2023 World Cup, there was no reason for them to be sky-high heading into the tournament.

South American sides facing unfair hurdles

AFTER World Rugby confirmed the qualification process for the 2027 World Cup, among frustration South American nations was tempered only by the fact that they were expecting nothing better.

I'm delighted we are opening title race against Saints, says Russell

BATH were inches away from Premiership glory despite playing almost an hour of the final with 14 men, and with their title rivals waving goodbye to household names, talismanic fly-half Finn Russell believes they are in great shape to claim the trophy this time around.

All Blacks gear up for Springbok showdown

Unbeaten run at Eden Park extends to 50

13 years on and Yeandle's fire is still burning bright

WHEN it comes to the Exeter Chiefs' success story, Jack Yeandle has never been too far away from the main headlines.

Charity cricket goes with a swing

A BUMPER crowd turned out for an entertaining charity all star cricket match between The Matt Gallagher Foundation XI and a Knowle & Dorridge Cricket Club Xl last week, raising funds to help people with Motor Neurone Disease.

Ewers: I'm thrilled to be joining Stormers

AS the sun dipped below the horizon, casting a golden hue over Cape Town's iconic Table Mountain, Dave Ewers stepped off the plane, his heart racing with a mix of excitement and nostalgia.

Premier Sports to cover Champions Cup

THE Champions Cup and Challenge Cup will be shown on Premier Sports in the UK next season, with tournament organisers EPCR agreeing a three-year deal with the subscription channel who already own the UK rights to the URC and Top 14.

Leatherbarrow banks on a third tier future

TEDDY Leatherbarrow's decision to drop down to the third tier of English rugby is very much a tale of the times in rugby.

Sponsorship deal will really help grassroots

THE news that the cabbage patch is to get a name change which will ensure increased funds for the grassroots game for at least four years, has to be a really good thing.

Young talent climbing the ladders of success

EXCITEMENT women's for rugby should only grow based on the successful work done by the England player pathway system that provides the next batch of young talent with chances to shine.

New owners keen to inspire Bournemouth

BOURNEMOUTH Rugby Club, who currently play in Regional 2 South Central, at the sixth tier of the English rugby union system, are set to take a major leap into the future following a successful acquisition.

How the sun keeps shining for Spain

IT'S been an outstanding summer for Spain... and the good news keeps coming. Last month Los Leones embarked on a first-ever tour of the Pacific and recorded an historic 29-20 win over Tonga in Nuku'alofa, not to mention a narrow 34-30 defeat against Samoa in Apia the previous week.

The matchday vibe in Bath was awesome

I DIDN’T play rugby until I was 16, I was swimmer for most of my childhood in Pembrokeshire and I played cricket but athletics was the big one for me – I threw the discus.

Berry's briefest of brief encounters...

TEN summer Olympiads have come and all but gone since Marty Berry went off on a sprint which made Noah Lyles' in Paris the other night feel a bit sluggish.

What counts is how the money is spent

IT WAS a close-run thing but, after crunching the numbers harder than a caffeine-fuelled psephologist on election night, we can now predict the following with a high degree of confidence: there is more chance of Dan Cole outperforming Simone Biles on the uneven bars than of a badged and blazered rugger chap from some swanky corner of the shires erasing the word \"Twickenham\" from his vocabulary.