IN 21st century Test rugby, superstars play at No 7. Richie McCaw, David Pocock and Sam Warburton have all been heralded, with Michael Hooper, after his performance against England, set…
Countries
Ireland XV v Fiji: What did we learn?
AN EXPERIMENTAL Ireland XV convincingly swept aside Fiji 53-0 on a damp, and blustery Saturday evening in Limerick. So far, so good, yet the game lacked Test match intensity. This…
Scots fail by playing Springbok games
SOMETHING WAS wrong. It did not sit right. Scotland were heading into a game off the back of a colossal All Black drubbing and they were...confident. While South Africa sent…
England 14-20 Australia: The Verdict
ENGLAND WENT into this Test against a supposedly dispirited Wallaby squad full of confidence. Sadly, when the whistle went, the roles had been reversed, with England, not so regal, in…
Wales v Samoa: Five things we learned
I READ a lot of stat sheets prior to writing these articles. But the reason for Samoa’s win against Wales won’t be found on any of them. You can’t measure…
Ireland XV 53-0 Fiji: The Verdict
IN WHAT turned out to be nothing more than a training ground run around, Ireland ran in eight unanswered tries in this non-cap match at Thomond Park. Fiji laboured in…
Reality check for Lancaster’s England
STUART LANCASTER had described this autumn as "production time" for England. The Fiji Test was a nice dress rehearsal but Australia was the big opening night. And England fluffed their…
Scotland 10 South Africa 21: The Verdict
Two things counted against Scotland in the final analysis. They allowed South Africa to build up a 21-3 lead in the first 45 minutes thanks to a few crucial errors…
Wales 19-26 Samoa: The Verdict
DEMOLITION DERBY. Those are the two words that spring to mind after this game. The hits were fearsome, the tackle contest was ferocious and Samoa so effectively shut Wales down…
Scotland v South Africa: The Preview
TWO YEARS ago, Scotland went into a Murrayfield Test against South Africa on the back of a 46-point defeat by New Zealand and upset the odds to win 21-17. Last…