Friday evening’s encounter between London Welsh and Gloucester at the Kassam Stadium was a meeting of the Aviva Premiership’s most enthusiastic summer recruiters. Stung into action by a week of…
Charlie Morgan
Premiership player analysis: Sam Hill and Henry Slade, Exeter Chiefs
A frenetic, dramatic opening to the Aviva Premiership campaign has reinforced one thing robustly – England have plenty of options. In every position, there are at least two very viable…
Premiership player analysis: Will Fraser, Saracens
One of rugby’s weirder nuances is that sometimes it is better not to have the ball. Every so often, relentless aggression in defence, allied to only a few attacking ambushes,…
Premiership player of the weekend: James Wilson, Northampton
Success tends to affect a team in one of two ways. Either self-satisfaction sets in and complacency results, or the taste of triumph inspires hunger for a repeat. After a…
Aviva Premiership: Five young Englishmen to watch
The ravenous pursuit of television viewing figures means just about every tournament in professional sport is accompanied by marketing hyperbole these days. Even so, this Aviva Premiership season does feel…
Play it like Pichot: How Argentina’s excellent scrum-halves stepped up
Moral victories in Test rugby don’t really exist. Whatever happens over the preceding 80 minutes, defeat always feels grim. Even if thermometers were hovering above 30 degrees in Salta on…
How England Women’s back row made it count
Kaino-McCaw-Read, Burger-Smith-Roussow, Hill-Back-Dallaglio – the names of World Cup-winning back-row trios roll off the tongue and evoke vivid memories. Often, loose forwards are such a prominent part of their side’s…
Is the Women’s World Cup being let down by refereeing?
Is the standard of refereeing at the Women's World Cup a blight on the tournament?
The power of Sam Whitelock and Brodie Retallick analysed
There’s a cliché that splits rugby men into two types: piano players and piano pushers. It’s a distinction that looks dated in the modern game. Most professional players are just…
The magic of Kurtley Beale analysed
BELIEVE IT or not, Kurtley Beale is still 25. His career so far resembles a stomach-churning roller coaster, soaring to giddy heights with last-gasp penalties from 60 metres to win…