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…
Blogs
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…
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…
Maori All Blacks cast aside Championship XV
CHAMPIONSHIP CLUB rivalry was put on hold on Saturday when a select RFU XV took on the Maori All Blacks at Doncaster’s Castle Park. Despite going down 21-52, head coach…
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…
France’s toughest battle with themselves, not the Pumas
THE GREATEST challenge facing France on Saturday in Lille isn’t the Pumas – strong as they’ll be - but the French themselves. “We will see if we’re capable of stringing…
Missing the party: Four players not invited this Autumn
THE FIRST round of the Autumn Internationals has been and gone and happiness isbeing found in some unlikely places. England rumbled onwards, despite chronic wastefulness. Ireland got up close to…
Lions 2013: Guide to Sydney
Gullivers Sports Travel Advertising Feature NO TRIP to Australia would be complete without a visit to Sydney – and The British & Irish Lions stop there twice next summer. They…
England 54-12 Fiji: The Verdict
By Owain Jones, Rugby World Editor In a nutshell England performed a satisfactory, if perfunctory job on an underprepared and underpowered Fiji side. The hosts got off to a sluggish…
Scotland outclassed by peerless All Blacks
MURRAYFIELD MAY have hosted the world famous All Blacks, but the only way to see the game properly was in a pub where the sounds of the football drowned everything…