CATEGORIES

It's time for Lions to hunt change

THE British and Irish Lions will face Argentina in Dublin before embarking upon their 2025 tour to Australia in a repeat of the Cardiff-based 2005 fixture but, from Argentina’s perspective, things could not be more different.

A team stuffed full of captains

I WAS having one final lingering look at that 2003 England reunion picture last week before we banish all such thoughts until the next reunion – 2028 I’m guessing – when I was suddenly struck by something I had never really clocked before. My God, has there ever been a national team with so many Test captains?

Minnows can make splash of a whale

ACCORDING to Donald J Trump – you may have heard of him – “losers” are the lowest of the low, “suckers” and “schmucks”. One of the founding principles of what might loosely be called his philosophy, it applies even to the military.

Barton is on target to rescue Gloucester

A FAULTLESS kicking display off the tee from George Barton saw a coltish Gloucester side halt a run of six defeats on the trot with this hard earned win in a wet Tbilisi.

Four-try Lake guides Ospreys safely home

WALES hooker Dewi Lake helped himself to a European record equalling four tries in a match for the Ospreys as he guided his side to a bonuspoint win in Pool 2.

Fit-again Henderson out to grab his chance

CAMERON Henderson is relishing the start of Leicester Tigers’ Champions Cup campaign, seeing it as the perfect platform to state his claim for Scotland’s Six Nations squad in January.

We're not the whipping boys - Sanderson

ALEX Sanderson is relishing Sale’s novel status as underdogs as the Premiership leaders prepare to face some of the best sides in Europe, starting with a home game against Stade Francais.

Freeman double has Saints on the march

ON the move domestically, and on the march in Europe.

Slade leads Chiefs on smash and grab raid

EXETER’S struggles on the road have been well documented over the past year, but the Chiefs produced the perfect ‘smash and grab’ to win in the south of France.

Seven-try Toulouse too swift for Cardiff

BLAIR Kinghorn marked his Toulouse debut with a brace of tries as the starstuffed French outfit got their Champions Cup campaign off to a flying start.

Rampant Bath storm to the winning post

WHEN a side has an outside-half of Finn Russell’s vision and daring, it comes down to how much possession he enjoys, as well as its quality. Bath’s forwards were rampant on the club’s return to the Champions Cup on an afternoon when the scrum reasserted itself.

Ice-cool Sheedy the hero for Bears

IT WAS a night of dizzying figures. Twenty four unanswered points by Lyon in the second half. The clock five minutes into the red. And three sweet, sweet drop goal points from Callum Sheedy to win it for the Bears.

Saracens make it too easy for Bulls

THE Blue Bulls deservedly won this heavyweight clash but there was a minor triumph in defeat for Sarries who somehow prevented them claiming what had seemed like an inevitable try bonus.

French power will be so tough to overcome

ENGLISH clubs are up against it in the European Cup because they are competing against French clubs which have much bigger budgets. In fact, in the last decade, the only Premiership club that’s managed to compete successfully against the French, and Leinster, has been Saracens.

Dynamic duo put life back into Bath

BEN Spencer has partnered two of the leading outside- halves of their generation, Owen Farrell and Finn Russell, and although they have contrasting styles and temperaments, he believes they are very similar.

Vermeulen confident Chiefs will return to top

JACQUES Vermeulen is one of the old hands at Exeter following his arrival from South Africa in 2019 and after a summer of upheaval believes it will not be long before the Chiefs are back at the top.

Reed is making his mark at Sale

A NEW tattoo and a special changing room rapport between Sale Sharks' Arron Reed and director of rugby Alex Sanderson has been the catalyst in the winger finding the form of his career so far this season.

Williams: I'd back call to get rid of Sweeney

THE Championship’s joint top try scorer David Williams has called for Sport England or another organisation to get involved and provide some accountability to decisions being made at Twickenham.

Baron: RFU heading for £59m loss this year

FRANCIS Baron has accused the RFU hierarchy of publishing misleading interpretations of its own financial position, which he believes is increasingly precarious, and is being ‘misrepresented’ to its 1,200 member clubs.

Cane and Kolbe link up for Japan opener

JUST over a month since the Rugby World Cup final, 14 of the players who featured in the showpiece match will suit up for club duty in Japan’s Rugby League One opening round.

Hyatt happy to see Aberavon hit form

ABERAVON head coach Jason Hyatt was a proud man after his side responded to their heavy 6426 thumping at Cardiff by beating Ebbw Vale with a bonus point 24-13 in the Premiership.

Shard hits top form in Lymm's vital win

LYMM moved seven points clear of the drop zone after a convincing victory against relegation rivals Preston Grasshoppers.

Delight for grab first

LONDON Scottish clinched their first victory of the season in a breathtaking display, edging past the Championship leaders Ealing in a thrilling West London derby.

Oghre enjoying life with Bristol

GABRIEL Oghre was one of a number of players who last season found themselves having to pick up the pieces after their clubs folded and they found themselves out of work.

Dominant Saracens get ready for lift-off

SARACENS continued their winning start to the season with a dominant performance at The Stoop.

Winger who is learning new tricks with Tigers

OLLIE Hassell-Collins appeared to be in for a rugby lifestyle change when he signed for Leicester last season from London Irish.

Smith calls shots as Quins put on a show

MARCUS Smith struck the first blow in the battle for England’s newly-vacant No.10 shirt as he inspired Harlequins to crush George Ford’s Sale on a freezing Friday night at The Stoop.

Itoje is the best man to captain England

MARO Itoje should be England’s next captain following Owen Farrell’s decision to make himself unavailable for the 2024 Six Nations. Since 2016, Itoje has been the outstanding player in England, in terms of consistent excellence, and is virtually the only Red Rose forward who has been regularly in World XV contention.

Bears hit 50 to leave Gloucester in a heap

BRISTOL’S run of five defeats came to an end with a complete dismantling of a poor Gloucester side, which crashed to their sixth consecutive Premiership loss.

Battling Saints too strong for Saracens

STEELY defence and the ability to strike when the opportunity presented itself underpinned this landmark Saints win.