Fiji have been in town this week, staying in Teddington, and the coaching staff have been bombarded with the same questions they get lobbed every time the team visits the…
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France coach Novès could be a Fall Guy as Samoa come to town
“Colossal” was the word used by Midi Olympique last week to describe the pressure on Guy Novès and his coaching team ahead of France’s three autumn Internationals. The paper is…
Three countries, one league: how to bolster rugby in Portugal, Spain and Italy
Do you know who the Portuguese club champions are? Or the Spanish? Maybe the Italian? If the answer is no, you’re not alone. Unsurprisingly, the average fan outside those countries…
Scotland: Five things we learnt from the tour to Japan
1. Will the real Scotland please stand up Disappointingly, we didn’t see much of an identity from Scotland on this tour. They played with some confidence to win the first…
Women’s Sevens Olympic Repêchage: Ben Gollings is chasing the dream with China
Ben Gollings is one of the superstars of the sevens sphere, discussed in the same breath as Waisale Serevi and Eric Rush after a career that yielded 220 tries and…
Scotland: Five talking points v Japan
Japan know how they want to play Luckily for Scotland the Brave Blossoms only really clicked once during the first Test, and that was ten minutes in. Scrum-half Kaito Shigeno…
Springbok Legends hit Portugal
History was made last weekend as the Springboks faced the Lobos in Portugal. It wasn’t the squad with Lambie, Vermeulen and De Jager but a Springboks Legends team containing greats…
Fiji home in on another HSBC Sevens World Series title – and No 1 seeding for Rio
Softer toilet paper and being allowed to eat sausages were two of the treats sampled this week by the Fiji squad, who stayed at the deluxe Lensbury hotel in Teddington…
Pro Rugby in America readies itself for lift-off
By Graham Jenkins “Professional rugby has officially arrived in America.” It is an audacious claim to make before a tackle has been made in the inaugural battle for the PRO…
Youngsters shine in the rain at Portugal’s Rugby Youth Festival
Hello, hola, olá, bonjour – this is the Rugby Youth Festival. About 2,000 players representing 80 teams met in Lisbon last weekend to play 300 matches in a tournament organised…