The England front row that will face the Barbarians at Twickenham on Sunday can take comfort from the fact Fijian prop Haereiti Hetet has not inherited all of his father’s rugby attributes. Hetet’s father is legendary Fijian tight head Joeli Veitayaki, who played 49 tests between 1994 and 2003 and had the “honour” of being Read More …
Saracens are Europe’s rugby powerhouse and can confirm this status by retaining the European Champions Cup at Murrayfield tomorrow against a Clermont Auvergne team that consistently fails to win the big finals. Like Clermont, Sarries know all about the pain of falling at the final hurdle, but while the French Top14 outfit continue to be Read More …
Warren Gatland today snubbed captain Dylan Hartley and ignored key England players who had helped win successive Six Nations titles and equalled the world record of 18 successive wins when he named a 41 strong British and Irish Lions squad to tour New Zealand this summer. England still had the largest contingent in the squad Read More …
Chris Ashton provided the try scoring power to send Saracens into a titanic European Champions Cup semi-final with Munster and then insisted the double winners will be underdogs in Dublin on April 22/23. Given the way Sarries defeated Glasgow Warriors in yesterday’s quarter-final 38-13, that appears to be wishful thinking on Ashton’s behalf, but he Read More …
Eddie Jones, the England head coach, has decided to unleash the most powerful replacements bench international rugby has ever seen against Scotland, with Billy and Mako Vunipola tasked with tearing into tiring opponents to ensure a world record equalling 18th successive victory at Twickenham on Saturday. Billy has played just 72mins of rugby after nearly Read More …
Danny Care is preparing for three vital Premiership games that will have a dramatic effect on Harlequins season and his ability to grab the England scrum half place from rival Ben Youngs into the Six Nations championship. Care last started a test match for England in the Grand Slam winning victory in France in March, Read More …
Jamie George has the toughest job in world rugby – trying to eject England captain Dylan Hartley from a team he has led to 13 successive victories, including a Six Nations Grand Slam and historic series triumph in Australia. Rather than being cowed by the challenge, George, the burly Saracens hooker, has maintained the pressure Read More …
Tana Umaga admits the Maori All Blacks will be very short of preparation time when they take on the British and Irish Lions on next summer’s tour. The Maori will be the fifth of the Lions ten matches in New Zealand, with the game taking place at Rotorua where a vociferous crowd will support a Read More …
England’s ten game unbeaten run and their credibility as potential World No1’s is on the line against South Africa at Twickenham tomorrow. Remarkably, England, the second best team in the world, haven’t beaten the Springboks since 2006 which involves 11 defeats and a draw and this obvious flaw in their rugby CV cannot be allowed Read More …
Kelly Brown, the former Scotland captain, is juggling playing and also coaching the Saracens Academy this season for the Aviva Premiership and European Champions Cup double champions. It is the latest example of Sarries keeping things “in-house” and ensuring that vital rugby experience is not lost when key players finish their careers. Charlie Hodgson retired Read More …
