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Posted 450 days ago
By Claire Glancy
PERFORMING under pressure. After their defeat to Wales, that’s the challenge Ireland faced before even taking to pitch against Italy. So when Sergio Parisse crossed the whitewash to level the sides late in the first half on Saturday, the pressure cooker reached boiling point. “Come the day and come the hour” Ireland’s response was critical…
Posted 451 days ago
By Al Dymock
AT post-match press conferences, stats sheets are handed out by busy looking officials. You get the certified breakdown of what happened during the game and you can pick over where and why things didn’t go to plan.
After Scotland lost 17-23 against France, I crumpled the sheet up and threw it away.
The thing is that if you were to…
Posted 451 days ago
By Ben Coles
FIRST things first; what an outstanding test match. The word brutal is commonly associated with international rugby, but rarely has it been showcased more viscerally than when the two sides met at Twickenham on Saturday. The winces and shudders from the crowd were testament to hugely combative displays from both England and Wales.
There lies the essence…
Posted 452 days ago
Having not played a match for three weeks, Ireland looked nervous as they came out of the Aviva Stadium blocks, but they exerted consistent pressure on their opponents and were rewarded with five tries. The hosts were penalised within kicking distance a number of times, but luckily for them it was not Italian fly-half Tobias Botes’s day with the boot. Man of the Match Jonathan Sexton, on the other hand, was successful with seven out of eight kicks at goal, notching up a total of 18 points.
Posted 454 days ago
By Bea Asprey, Rugby World Writer
WHO could forget Ireland’s near-horror story from the 2011 RBS 6 Nations? On a sunny afternoon at the Stadio Flaminio on the opening weekend of the tournament, a Luke McLean try gave Italy an 11-10 lead with minutes left of the match to play, and Ireland were staring down the barrel of defeat. Then…
Posted 454 days ago
by Katie Field, Rugby World writer
When Scotland last ran out at Murrayfield, three weeks ago, they were the favourites to beat a rebuilt England side. But the unthinkable happened and Scotland lost 13-6, then suffered a 27-13 defeat in Wales a week later. So, as they prepare for their second Murrayfield outing of the RBS 6 Nations, against France this…
Posted 455 days ago
Stuart Lancaster has made four changes in personnel and one positional switch to the England team to face Wales at Twickenham on Saturday. Lee Dickson, Ben Morgan, and Geoff Parling will all make their first Test starts, while Owen Farrell will start at No 10 in place of his Saracens team-mate Charlie Hodgson, who has failed to recover from an…
Posted 457 days ago
IN December Peter Stringer was parachuted in to Saracens from Munster to assist them during their injury crisis. Sarries regulars Richard Wigglesworth and Neil de Kock were struck down with knee and arm injuries respectively, leaving 19-year-old Ben Spencer at the top of the pile, and seeing as he was such an unknown quantity at the time, Mark McCall and…
Posted 458 days ago
FORMER England flanker Richard Hill believes England have plenty to be cheerful about at this stage of the RBS 6 Nations. With two wins under their belts, the team is now preparing to face Wales at Twickenham, the current favourites to win the tournament. Although Wales’ record in London has been poor in recent years, with just one win for…
Posted 461 days ago
By Jack Yates
YESTERDAY it was announced that 15 members of England’s Elite Player Squad would be made available for club action this weekend. Amongst the list are players in serious contention for a starting place against Wales in just over a week’s time, including the likes of Toby Flood, Manusamoa Tuilagi and Ben Morgan. However, England boss Stuart Lancaster…
