Goosen – Top 14 reaping what it’s sown December saw Johann Goosen retire from rugby in what some see as a Machiavellian attempt to ditch his current contract, exploit French…
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2016’s Alternative Rugby Awards
The Eddie Jones Award for Sound Bite Merchant of the Year Winner – Eddie Jones A no-brainer to kick off with. Fast Eddie Jones first and the rest nowhere, with…
Lions bolters for 2017: Who will be Warren Gatland’s surprise packages?
As the new year dawns, we move into the second half of the 2016-17 northern hemisphere season, a season that you will all know ends in a British and Irish…
Rugby’s new tackle laws confusing coaches at all levels
Richard Cockerill, the director of rugby at Leicester, has been around the block a bit, and most things that rugby throws up would not surprise him, but even he is…
Aviva Premiership: Who is on every club’s Christmas wish list?
By Alex Shaw The 12 Aviva Premiership clubs will be writing their letters to Santa Claus this week packed with requests to help them take the next step both domestically…
France wants fewer foreigners, and that can only be a boost for Les Bleus
An era has ended in France. In an interview with Midi Olympique on Monday, national coach Guy Noves discussed his recent lunch with Serge Simon, the number two to new…
Waking the giant: Rugby World assesses Toulouse
ON THIS late afternoon the wind is only moving the hot air around the back pitches of the Stade Ernest-Wallon. After a tough run in the Top 14 schedule it’s…
Dylan Hartley polarises opinion but his ban signals good news for England
Depending on which side of the fence you sit on, and no-one is sitting on it, Dylan Hartley is either a brilliant England captain who has made the odd mistake,…
Rugby must learn from the tragic end of Isireli Temo’s rugby dreams
In September Isireli Temo flew from France to Fiji for a holiday. The 30-year-old prop had recently joined Tarbes but he’d picked up an injury in pre-season training and the…
How to make it as a radio broadcaster: Ian Robertson
By Graham Jenkins The Forward Pass Podcast – Ian Robertson Welcome to The Forward Pass, a series of conversations with leading rugby union journalists, broadcasters, presenters and photographers who will…