2021-09-15 10:44
Speaking of the World Cup, I can't say I am too enthused by news that the RFU intends to bid to host the 2031 World Cup in England. There is no doubt England would do a great job - afte… Read More
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2021-09-14 17:01
I have to say I am not a fan of the idea of staging the Rugby World Cup every two years which, apparently, is under consideration according to World Rugby's CEO, Alan Gilpin.Not only is… Read More
2021-09-09 10:53
I am unsure whether to be amused or appalled by the latest in a long line of gaffes from Education Secretary Gavin Williamson after he publicly confused England footballer Marcus Rashford wi… Read More
2021-09-07 16:07
Pleased to see that the decision has been taken to included Fijian Drua and Moana Pasifika in a new-look Super Rugby Pacific competition from 2022, kicking off on 18th February next year.&nb&hell…Read More
2021-09-07 12:59
Talk of a new “World 12s” competition planned for next year is pretty intriguing.Billed as "a natural evolution for rugby union,” and backed, apparently, by a UK-based… Read More
2021-09-07 09:40
Best of luck to England centre Emily Scarrett who sustained a broken leg while playing for Loughborough Lightning vs Harlequins on Sunday. Scarrett will now miss England’s four No… Read More
2021-09-03 15:34
The appointment of Richard Cockerill to the England coaching team – the worst kept secret in town – has finally been confirmed. Cockers joins as a forwards coach to work alo… Read More
2021-08-27 09:26
Surprise news from New Zealand, where it’s been announced that French construction equipment company, Altrad, is to become the new kit sponsor for the All Blacks. Altrad, who als… Read More
2021-08-26 13:39
The observant amongst you may have noticed that the advertisements that have adorned this blog for the last 4+ months have now disappeared.The experiment - to see whether running ads is remo… Read More
2021-08-25 15:16
Italy may be the annual whipping boys of the Six Nations, but recent months have seen the prospects for Italian rugby very much heading in the right direction. In June, Bennetton (Trevi… Read More
2021-08-25 09:13
Former Quins, England and Lions winger Ugo Monye is really becoming something of a ubiquitous presence in our lives. Not only is he a regular rugby pundit on TV, he also presents the Ru… Read More
2021-08-24 17:11
The England coaching merry-go-round continues apace with news that England head analyst Joe Lewis is jumping ship to re-join Welsh regional team the Scarlets. So, this year alone, Eddie… Read More
2021-08-23 09:40
My best wishes go out to the family and friends of Alex Evans, a young rugby player who sadly died after suffering a cardiac arrest while playing for Cwmllynfell RFC this week… Read More
2021-08-19 12:01
Much has been published about South Africa's playing style of late, with a number of commentators suggesting that, for the sake of the game, they have a duty to play a more entertaining styl… Read More
2021-08-18 10:02
It’s good to see that World Rugby are taking calls for a changes to tactical substitutions seriously.This follows the publication of a letter from several British and Irish Lions legen… Read More
2021-08-16 17:08
Thoughts are with current Tonga coach and former Aussie international Toutai Kefu and his family after they suffered "significant injuries" in what sounds like a horrific attack by intruders… Read More
2021-08-13 11:12
It appears from reports that the rumours are true and that former Leicester, Toulon and Edinburgh coach Richard Cockerill is set to join England's new coaching team "imminently."It… Read More
2021-08-10 08:04
I think I may have made clear my views about the 2021 Lions Tour 😉Looking at it from another angle, however, what might we have learned about the immediate future of the four partici… Read More
2021-08-09 10:58
Saturday’s 3rd Test against the Springboks did, surprisingly, go a little way to redeeming what has been a difficult Lions tour and turgid Test series. The introduction of Finn Ru… Read More
2021-08-07 11:01
So, here we go, the final Test of the 2021 Springboks vs Lions series and the end of a tour that was ill-conceived in its inception and which has, unfortunately, lived u… Read More
2021-08-06 14:47
I am very encouraged by the appointment of Martin Gleeson as England's attack coach as Eddie Jones begins the rebuild of his coaching team.The former Great Britain rugby… Read More
2021-08-02 11:38
From what I saw of the 2nd Test on Saturday (and I admit that family commitments meant that I only caught the game in patches), it was a pretty awful game of rugby.Well done to the Boks who… Read More
2021-07-30 17:35
The amount of undignified whingeing coming out of South Africa this week has been rather dispiriting.I found the antics of Rassie Erasmus last weekend really quite amusing, but his subsequen… Read More
2021-07-29 09:23
Fantastic stuff from Fiji in winning the Olympic men's rugby sevens.It may have not have been as romantic as the country's first ever gold medal won in Rio 2016, but it was probably more imp… Read More
2021-07-26 13:43
Thank you to South Africa's Director of Rugby, Rassie Erasmus, for providing us all with a bit of a giggle following the 1st test between the Springboks and the Lions. If, as is b… Read More
2021-07-26 06:14
Eddie Jones clearly has an issue holding on to his coaches.I am referring, of course, to the news that England defence coach John Mitchell is leaving his role to join Wasps. Mitchell's… Read More
2021-07-25 16:09
OH MARO ITOJE!How good was this man against the Springboks yesterday?At times - in a frantic and brutal first half in which the Lions were under the cosh - it seems as if Itoje was sin… Read More
2021-07-24 23:54
Amongst all the goings-on in South Africa, let's not forget that the Tokyo 2020 (!) Olympics has started and that the Rugby Sevens gets underway very shortly.The Men's competition starts tom… Read More
2021-07-24 10:35
It is quite right that former Ireland 2nd row Neil Francis has been sacked by Independent.ie following his disgraceful comments about Lions and Harlequins fly-half Marcus Smith. Speakin… Read More
2021-07-23 11:42
The decision to appoint the South African Marius Jonker as TMO for the British and Irish Lions test series against the Springboks has, quite rightly, riled Lions head coach Warren Gatland.No… Read More
2021-07-22 12:41
Former Bath and England prop and current rugby pundit, David Flatman, raises a very interesting point when he says the British and Irish Lions ought to consider dropping provincial games fro… Read More
2021-07-21 10:07
If Alun Wyn Jones manages to put in a proper shift against the Springboks on Saturday then we will have no choice but to anoint him as superhuman.I mean, it's ridiculous. On 26th June Jones… Read More
2021-07-20 15:27
I have said this before, the Lions Tour of South Africa is a tour in name only and news that the remaining three fixtures of the Lions Tour - the three Test matches vs South Africa - are to… Read More
2021-07-19 17:52
I am delighted to say it is one in the eye for Priti Patel and the Home Office as Bristol Bisons rugby player Kenneth Macharia has won his 5 year fight against deportation to Kenya. Mac… Read More
2021-07-19 13:08
I see that, in a move apparently intended to "bring all elements of the club under one banner", Wasps have launched a brand new version of its logo, to be adopted by the men’s and… Read More
2021-07-14 10:48
I know, I know, you’ve all been waiting to hear how my 2021 summer of touch rugby has gone… Well, the fact it has gone, it’s over, it’s done – we played o… Read More
2021-07-12 11:40
My take-outs from the 2 matches with the USA and Canada this month: 1. Whether Marcus Smith has done enough to leapfrog both George Ford and Owen Farrell for the England number 10 s… Read More
2021-07-10 11:35
I was sent this yesterday - sums up what it’s like to be a rugby supporter right now…🤣 Read More
2021-07-07 16:57
It's official. The British & Irish Lions tour of South Africa is a bit of a shambles.While so far (at the time of posting) no Lions have tested positive for Covid-19, five positive… Read More
2021-07-06 14:29
The sight of Luke Cowan-Dickie cavorting around Ellis Park for the Lions at the weekend was somewhat disconcerting given that, seven days previously, he had been knocked unconscious in the P… Read More
2021-07-02 14:48
I have to admit that I don’t know an awful lot about Lewis Ludlow (not to be confused with fellow backrower, Lewis Ludlum) – so it was a surprise to read that the 26 year old Glo… Read More
2021-06-29 11:08
With the white smoke emerging from Twickenham today, it appears that the RFU Council has voted to expand the Premiership to 14 clubs from the end of next season. With the Premiership al… Read More
2021-06-29 08:30
I am surprised that there has been no call up to the England squad for Quins' Louis Lynagh. Lynagh - son of Aussie legend Michael - has been in blistering form of late for his club and… Read More
2021-06-28 12:52
It is easy to get caught up in the minutiae of the Lions tour - who should be in the squad, who should be in the matchday team, who should be captain etc, etc - but you also have to to ask y… Read More
2021-06-27 11:59
I have to say, I really didn’t see that coming.Received wisdom was that, in the absence of Saracens this season, the Premiership title was Exeter’s for the taking and nothing I h… Read More
2021-06-27 11:11
The Lions’ victory over Japan on Saturday was an ideal run out in many ways, but injuries to Alun Wyn Jones and Justin Tipuric will have dampened the mood somewhat.I guess injury in ru… Read More
2021-06-17 16:21
This, from US news website Insider Voice ...Sometimes the posts just write themselves 😂 Read More
2021-06-16 13:06
Steve Borthwick's transformation of Leicester continues apace with news that Mike Ford has left his role as the Tigers defence coach and it being heavily rumoured that rugby league lege… Read More
2021-06-15 09:28
Confirmation today that the Pro14 will from next season rebrand as the United Rugby Championship (URC) and will include the Sharks, Stormers, Lions and Bulls from South Africa alongside the… Read More
2021-06-14 14:48
Saracens' 60-0 victory away at Ealing in the first leg of the Championship play offs effectively means that, as expected, they will return to the Premiership next season at the first time of… Read More
2021-06-11 10:25
I have been quite dismayed by the booing of England's footballers for taking a knee before recent international friendlies and hope this fan behaviour does not extend into their Euro 2020 (2… Read More
2021-06-10 14:29
I always get a little excited at the announcement of an England squad for summer fixtures during a Lions tour, and it's intriguing to see that Eddie Jones has named 21 uncapped players in a… Read More
2021-06-09 10:06
It is being reported that the RFU’s decision as to whether to extend the suspension of relegation from the Premiership by another three years has been pushed back to the end of June.As… Read More
2021-06-08 13:09
Injuries to four Munster players at the weekend in a “freak fire pit accident” actually occurred when an un-named Munster player decided to 'throw a bit of petrol' over a f… Read More
2021-06-07 16:32
I did say that the 37 man Lions squad selected by Warren Gatland last month would not be the actual squad that departs for South Africa later this month - and lo and behold England prop Kyle… Read More
2021-06-07 10:10
The end to Saturdays Leicester vs Bristol game was rather unseemly, wasn't it?A row between the two head coaches with accusations flying around of lying and cheating, a final scrummage won b… Read More
2021-06-01 17:31
Congrats to Harlequins' women who fought off a late Saracens comeback at the weekend to win 25-17 and secure their first Premier 15s title.Quins had lost the last two Premier 15s finals to S… Read More
2021-05-28 09:26
I have to say I am hugely disappointed in England and Exeter Chiefs centre Henry Slade going public with his decision to turn down the vaccination against Covid-19. First and foremost… Read More
2021-05-21 17:12
It is fantastic news if, as is being reported, the Six Nations is set to remain on free-to-air terrestrial television.It had been feared and expected by many, including yours truly, that the… Read More
2021-05-19 11:01
Forget the Lions tour, forget the race for the Premiership title, what you've really been waiting for - I know - is an update on my long-standing efforts to play Touch Rugby.And it has been… Read More
2021-05-19 10:23
Kudos to Sam Simmonds, whose hat trick for Exeter Chiefs last night against London Irish saw him achieve the remarkable of stat of 19 tries in 19 games for the Chiefs in the Premiership this… Read More
2021-05-14 14:22
News today that the British and Irish Lions' schedule for this summer's "tour" of South Africa has been amended so that they will play eight matches in three cities - Johannesburg, Cape Town… Read More
2021-05-14 13:47
It appears that England attack coach Simon Amor is the one to pay the price for England's dismal showing in this year's Six Nations.The RFU and Amor, who has been in the role for 15 months… Read More
2021-05-12 10:06
With all the furore surrounding the more controversial selections or non-selections for the Lions tour to South Africa, it is important to remember that the 37 man squad picked by Warren Gat… Read More
2021-05-11 13:21
I am pleased to see that the RFU have decided that England’s second string rugby team will no longer be called ‘England Saxons’. The name has been dropped, apparently… Read More
2021-05-06 13:43
And so, after weeks of waiting, and after a ridiculously drawn out announcement (I think I prefer the far simpler days of Teletext), the Lions touring party has finally been named . Of… Read More
2021-04-29 13:50
I am pleased to see that English rugby is joining the football-led boycott of social media this weekend to try to force the likes of Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to take meaningful action… Read More
2021-04-28 09:05
Reports that Eddie Jones is coaching and advising, amongst others, Beauden Barrett, as part of his consulting role at Japanese side Suntory Sungoliath is, as Clive Woodward points out &ldquo&hell…Read More
2021-04-26 09:07
Well done to England's women on their third consecutive Six Nations title.Saturday's tense 10-6 victory against France, televised on the BBC finally, was not a classic insofar as it was fair… Read More
2021-04-20 16:56
The RFU’s “brutally honest” review into England’s disastrous fifth-place finish in this year’s Six Nations has – surprise, surprise – resulted in Ed… Read More
2021-04-20 09:32
Well done to New Zealand for granting Moana Pasifika and Fiji Drua conditional licences to take part in an expanded Super Rugby competition. The inclusion of Pacific Isla… Read More
2021-04-16 16:49
I was very saddened to hear of the passing of former Wales and Lions captain, John Dawes.Dawes played in an era before my time - my obsession with rugby started around 1980 - but there… Read More
2021-04-16 11:26
The observant amongst you will have noticed a few advertisements appearing on the blog.Please note this is purely with the intention of me making an absolute fortune and I fully intend to di… Read More
2021-04-13 09:26
The naming of Warren Gatland’s coaching team for this summer’s Lions tour to South Africa has left one particular Hertfordshire resident distraught. Gatland insist… Read More
2021-04-09 17:19
While the results in last weekend's women's Six Nations were predictably one-sided, with France and England (who also showed that they were on a par with the men by conceding 14 penalties) p… Read More
2021-04-02 11:00
With the men’s Six Nations done and dusted, we can all now move on to the women’s version of the competition which starts this weekend, having been re-scheduled from its cus… Read More
2021-04-01 05:00
Conspiracy theories abound following reports emerging from Twickenham this morning that all carpets are being removed from the RFU headquarters. The carpets, which cover hundreds of squ… Read More
2021-03-29 10:00
Another close, dramatic game (of which there have been a number this year) brought the 2021 Six Nations to it conclusion of Friday night in Paris.The ending was somewhat surreal - Brice Duli… Read More
2021-03-25 19:06
I have to say I am pretty uneasy about the British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa going ahead this summer as planned. Has no one realised we are still in a pandemic?You only ha… Read More
2021-03-25 16:36
And so to the final fixture of this year's Six Nations as Scotland travel to Paris to play the fixture previously postponed following the Covid outbreak in French ranks last month.Arguably t… Read More
2021-03-23 21:22
With the dust beginning to settle on England’s dismal 2021 Six Nations campaign and with an internal ("brutally honest") review taking place at Twickenham that will almost inevitably r… Read More
2021-03-22 13:40
And so the 2021 Six Nations reaches its conclusion without – as is typical of these uncertain times – actually reaching its conclusion. Yet in Paris on Saturday evening the… Read More
2021-03-19 10:31
Hello, and welcome to the TF predictions for the (almost) final round of matches in the 2021 Six Nations. I say "almost" because, as we know, the postponed Round 3 encounter between Fra… Read More
2021-03-18 14:55
If I was Paulo Odogwu I would be a tad upset right now. The calf injury to Henry Slade this week, which has seen Elliot Daly surprisingly drafted into the England number 13 shirt to fac… Read More
2021-03-16 11:22
I am pretty surprised at the news that Ireland number eight, CJ Stander, has confirmed that he will retire from professional rugby at the end of the season.It appears that Stander, who won h… Read More
2021-03-14 17:57
Well, that was entertaining!It was an all-too-predictable Wales victory in Rome yesterday in which the Italians dutifully rolled over in the first half to allow Wales a comfortable lead that… Read More
2021-03-11 13:02
It's been something of subdued build up to Round 4 of this year's Six Nations - very little in terms of media coverage or speculation. Maybe that has something to do with the last round bein… Read More
2021-03-11 10:31
It is being reported that, somewhat inevitably, private equity firm CVC has completed a £365m deal for a 14% share in the Six Nations.This deal has been on the cards for some time now… Read More
2021-03-09 18:17
Could we see a British and Irish Lions women’s team in the not too distant future? It is a definite maybe, following the announcement yesterday - International Women’s… Read More
2021-03-08 14:03
For community rugby, all eyes are now on 29th March. Although schools can start rugby training again from today, 29th March is the date when – at a community club level… Read More
2021-03-08 10:58
Saracens' eye-opening 25-17 defeat to Cornish Pirates in their opening Championship fixture, together with two pre-season defeats to Ealing Trailfinders, suggests that the men from Hendon wi… Read More
2021-03-05 17:49
According to an internal investigation by the France Rugby Federation, the Covid-19 virus managed to sneak into the French camp at the dead of night disguised as a giant croissant whils… Read More
2021-03-03 12:06
World Rugby's recommendation that the women’s 2021 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand is set to be postponed until 2022 is as unfair as it is unfortunate.The “challeng… Read More
2021-03-02 14:15
Eddie Jones made an interesting point earlier this week when he suggested that lock Maro Itoje was perhaps being over-refereed by officials.There is little doubt that Itoje – an… Read More
2021-03-01 17:39
I'm encouraged by news that Cardiff Blues will be known as "Cardiff Rugby" from next seasonThey may have been known as the 'Blues' since Welsh rugby was regionalised back in 2003, but there… Read More
2021-03-01 11:58
If reports are true that French head coach Fabien Galthie breached Covid protocols to watch his son play a match the day after France's opening-round win over Italy and that, while in Rome… Read More
2021-02-28 18:46
Anger. That’s the only way to describe it.Anger at the ineptitude (or worse) of referee Pascal Gauzere.Anger at the rank indiscipline of England players and their horrific pr… Read More
2021-02-26 11:36
It seems an awfully long time ago since the last round of the Six Nations - two weeks without international rugby in a lockdown feels like an eternity. And so to my utterly unreliable p… Read More
2021-02-22 12:38
With 10 French players, including skipper Charles Ollivon and star scrum-half Antoine Dupont, having now tested positive for Covid-19, as well number of backroom staff includi… Read More
2021-02-19 11:48
Some decisions by Eddie Jones leave me scratching my head in bafflement. Calling up 19 year old George Martin, the Leicester lock/flanker, into the 28 man England Six Nations squa… Read More
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