15. Alex Goode (Saracens) A consummate, classy operator who never seems to get the credit he deserves. Offers calm authority and precise positioning in defence and hits the line nicely in…
Countries
France: Top 14 reaches its denouement
Spare a thought this week for Grenoble manager Fabrice Landreau. At the end of March his side were in the top six of the Top 14 and looking good for…
Analysis: Five reasons Leicester Tigers beat Wasps
If ever an 80-minute performance epitomised a club – its values, ethos and ingrained traditions – it was Leicester Tigers’ 26-21 defeat of Wasps at the Ricoh Arena on Saturday.…
Phil Vickery on England’s Rugby World Cup legacy and the scrum
When Phil Vickery says: “I say what I think,” he means it. So when the issue of sporting legacies comes up, the former England captain lays out his hopes for…
Floodgates unlikely to open as France has lukewarm attitude to English talent
One of the more persistent arguments peddled in the Steffon Armitage selection saga is the one about ‘floodgates opening’. That should England coach Stuart Lancaster invoke the ‘exceptional circumstances’ clause…
Five things we learnt in April
Five things we learned about rugby – April Don’t hate Toulon, they’re simply getting it right. Okay, so it was May 2, but it’s easy having a pop at Toulon.…
30 Minutes with… Henry Slade
Exeter Chiefs fly-half Henry Slade talks Taylor Swift, OCD and snakes
Analysis: Giteau, Pocock and Mitchell – Wallabies emerging from the wilderness
The Rugby World Cup narrative has already taken so many intriguing twists and turns that December 3, 2012 – when each nation discovered their group-stage opponents – feels like a…
The Springboks test out their new kit
It looks like the arms race has begun… In 2003, England were ahead of the rest of the Rugby World Cup pack because they were the first ones to utilise…
Analysis: What do Armitage and Kvesic offer at the breakdown?
The number seven is almost as sacred in modern Test rugby as it is at Old Trafford, Manchester United’s theatre of dreams. Thanks to a lineage of eye-catching, influential players…