6:34 AM BST ESPN staff All Blacks lock Brodie Retallick won’t be joining the All Blacks squad in South Africa for their Test against the Springboks after a family tragedy, All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has confirmed. Retallick was rested for the All Blacks 36-10 win over the Pumas in Argentina and was scheduled to
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Harlequins director of rugby John Kingston robustly defended Kyle Sinckler against a claim of gouging and then accused Northampton of foul play themselves after hooker Dave Ward was left with a gruesome black eye. Kingston stated that “unequivocally it was not a gouge” after lock Michael Paterson told referee Luke Pearce that England prop Sinckler
Munster mined 14 points from a second half sin-binning as they put Cardiff Blues away for a 39-16 PRO14 win. John Ryan and JJ Hanrahan both touched while Cardiff prop Taufa’ao Filise was in the bin, before Hanrahan sealed the province’s bonus point and Robin Copeland also scored against his former club. Cardiff had put
Jamison Gibson-Park’s 73rd-minute try helped Leinster to seal a 21-13 victory over Edinburgh in the Guinness PRO14 at the RDS Arena. Leinster turned a miscued Blair Kinghorn clearance into the game’s key score, with Gibson-Park’s fellow replacement Ross Byrne converting from out wide as the hosts got back to winning ways. Jason Tovey did all
10:16 PM BST ESPN staff Australian international James O’Connor touched down on his Sale Sharks debut as his new side thrashed Gloucester 57-10 at the AJ Bell Stadium. O’Connor came on in the second half with Sale 22-3 in front thanks to Denny Solomona and Byron McGuigan (twice) who went over. That was despite the
The Melbourne Rebels have got their man, signing the in-demand David Wessels as coach for the next two seasons. The former Western Force mentor had been linked to a move to Munster and, according to reports from Ireland, the Pro 14 outfit was close to announcing a deal. Former Western Force coach David Wessels will
4:11 PM BST ESPN staff The Ospreys are the latest PRO14 side to soak up the South African sunshine, but their clash with the Cheetahs is almost a footnote on another cracking round of European club rugby. Champions Exeter face the latest heavyweight test of their Premiership title defence, this time against Leicester, while in
1:54 PM BST ESPN staff The Aviva Premiership is back again this weekend with another action-packed round of rugby kicking off with three games on Friday night. It all begins with Newcastle hosting London Irish, while Leicester host champions Exeter on Saturday and Bath travel to Coventry to face Wasps 24 hours later. Get all
12:25 PM BST ESPN staff Premiership Rugby plans to extend the club season in England have been met with resistance by a host of senior players. England captain Dylan Hartley insists that the extended club season being proposed by Premiership Rugby is “not welcome” among players. So what’s up first on the new RFU CEO
Sep 27, 2017 Greg GrowdenESPN Rugby Close After more than 30 years with The Sydney Morning Herald and Fairfax Media in Australia, Greg Growden now writes exclusively online for ESPN. Never afraid to step on toes, you can expect plenty of compelling insight from one of Australia’s most renowned writers. Australian rugby has a long