CATEGORIES

JAMES' HEROES TAKE A BOW

BOWERS & Pitsea bounced straight back to Step 3 foot ball after a tense penalty shootout victory over Essex rivals Brentwood Town, who in turn lost a second final shootout in three years.

BIRD EYES A WAY BACK IN

Tanners boss keeps perspective

MARINE LIFE IS GETTING BIGGER

MARINE fans will pile onto eight coaches to travel to Macclesfield – and boss Neil Young says that shows how much the club is booming.

THE BUCKS HAVE GOT FIZZ BACK

KEVIN WILKIN has urged his AFC Telford United promotion-chasers to take the club’s first major step back to redemption.

CLUBS HIT BACK IN CUP REVOLT!

FOOTBALL chiefs from across the pyramid have joined forces in a bid to overturn the controverisal decision to scrap FA Cup replays from next season.

Perenara tops try list as 'Canes march on

TJ PERENARA became the all-time top Super Rugby try scorer as his table topping Hurricanes demolished the Waratahs.

I'd love to coach at top level, says Biljon

IT IS one of rugby’s cruel ironies that Harvey Biljon, who has transformed the careers of so many players, is still waiting for his own shot at the big-time.

Smith: I'm better at handling mistakes

FIN SMITH credits his superb form this season to a mental mind-shift that enables him to now take the rough with the smooth.

Masuku hits the target for Sharks

THE Sharks turned Twickenham ‘Stoep’ into a mini South Africa as a partisan crowd roared their side to a dramatic victory over three-time winners Clermont to reach their first European final courtesy of deadeye goal kicking by Siya Masuku.

Roebuck out to impress England

SALE’s Tom Roebuck is a man on a mission as he looks to use the final weeks of the Premiership season to give England’s selectors a push to select him for the summer Tests against Japan and New Zealand.

Blame RFU for lack of confidence Halliday

THE Cornish Pirates statement that the future of professional rugby in Cornwall is in jeopardy – citing RFU prevarication over promotion as the root cause in new investors delaying their commitment to the club – has prompted a sustained attack on the RFU by Championship clubs chairman Simon Halliday.

Saints so close to stunning Leinster

NORTHAMPTON boss Phil Dowson was left to rue the one that got away after Saints went down 20-17 to Leinster in the Champions Cup semi-final.

Delighted to see Titans stand tall

THERE are some teams you grow particularly attached to over the decades and I make no apologies in numbering Rotherham Titans among those.

At 61, Daran calls it a day

DARAN Poppy was one of the oldest players in the RFU pyramid this season, reaching double-digit appearances for Old Gravesendians at the tender age of 61 but has decided to call time on his rugby career.

Nayalo steers Army to thrilling fightback

THE British Army’s men pulled off a thrilling comeback that will live long in the memory to keep their hopes of regaining the Inter Service Championship alive, and dash the Royal Navy’s dream of a first back-to-back title in 50 years.

Louis has sights set on Kansas gold rush

THE latest phase of his footballing reincarnation took Louis Rees-Zammit to a school run by an American superstar whose contract runs from seven figures into nine.

Quins have to climb very steep mountain

WHEN Harlequins face Toulouse this afternoon in their first European Cup semi-final in south-west France, it will be one of the biggest games in their history, and the overriding emotion the English club and its supporters will be one of excitement.

Leinster made to fight all the way

UNDERDOGS Northampton will be rueing a disappointing error strewn opening 55 minutes because after that they were clearly the stronger side as Leinster clung on desperately to reach another final.

Eadie has the last laugh for Hartpury

MITCH Eadie went from sinner to saint in a double try-scoring display as Hartpury won in style to keep their hopes alive of finishing the season in the tophalf of the Championship table.

Appleyard unhappy with date clashes

STAFFORDSHIRE head coach Andy Appleyard believes the RFU are ‘stealing opportunities away from quality players’ due to the opening round of the County Championship being played on the same day as the Papa John’s final.

You lived on the edge with Scotland

WHENEVER I cross paths with Paul Ackford, he always shouts across the room, “he taught me everything I knew!” Both of us were called into the England squad on the back of the London division’s famous win over Australia in 1988 but he got into the Test team later that year, and I didn’t.

Red Cows, Gaza And The End Of The World

As the Israel-Hamas war rages on, the Third Temple movement is ramping up its bid to reclaim a contested holy site in Jerusalem currently home to ancient Islamic shrines

An Ecstatic Anniversary

Sarah McLachlan is touring this summer, 30 years after the release of 'Fumbling Towards Ecstasy,' the album that made her a star

'WE ARE FACING THE MOST COMPLEX SECURITY ENVIRONMENT SINCE WORLD WAR II'

Japan's prime minister on security, diplomacy and protecting the rule of law at home, in Asia and around the world

JAPAN'S CALL TO ARMS

As the 'peace-loving nation' doubles its defense spending, Prime Minister FUMIO KISHIDA explains why it needs to take an assertive stance to counter China and North Korea

Leinster's workload merits little sympathy

LEINSTER are worried about the pressure that could prevent them from winning a European Cup and URC double. Any observation like this by a province with a full Ireland international line-up – and more squad players with Irish or Irish U20 caps jostling to be seen than there are patients in an NHS A&E – merits the response, “welcome to the real world”.

England celebrate Grand Slam treble

ENGLAND secured their sixth straight Six Nations title and third Grand Slam in a row yesterday by beating France 42-21 in Bordeaux.

Battle for top four reaching climax

THE battle for the Premieship play-off places heated up yesterday with leaders Northampton losing to Harlequins and a revitalised Bristol Bears launching a stunning comeback to end Leicester’s hopes of making the top four.

Saracens know how to win Tompkins

WITH the Premiership run-in hotting up, Saracens centre Nick Tompkins claims ‘experience matters’ in these blockbuster end-of-season contests and says his side have regained their confidence after enduring a Jekyll and Hyde campaign thus far.

PGP deal is nothing but a waste of time

I CAN’T help thinking that the new Professional Game Partnership (PGP) is nothing but a waste of time as I can’t see how it is going to make any difference to how the game operates or how it will actually help clubs keep players and reduce the financial strain they are under.