The observant among you will notice that Kyoto is an anagram of Tokyo. That’s because they both translate to ‘capital city’. While Tokyo is the current capital of Japan, Kyoto…
Tournaments
Part 2: French Top 14 comings and goings – Lyon to Toulouse
Lyon The runaway winners of the ProD2, Lyon lost just five of their 30 league matches and finished 31 points clear of second-placed Bayonne. It was a similar story in…
Super Rugby: Who is in line for the play-offs?
By Alex Shaw To coin a phrase from legendary former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, it’s squeaky bum time in Super Rugby. With just two rounds of regular season…
Aviva Premiership: Seven stars heading for England in 2016/17
There has been plenty of talk about England’s up-and-coming players after the success of the Saxons and the Under-20s but some of them may have a struggle on their hands…
World Cup 2019: Why Tokyo has something for everyone
A tour around Japan’s capital three years out from the next Rugby World Cup
Part 1: Top 14 comings and goings – Bayonne to La Rochelle
As the Top 14 clubs start returning this week from their summer holidays to begin preparing for the new season next month, Gavin Mortimer runs an eye over the comings…
Top 14: Leigh Halfpenny in an amazing comeback for Toulon
Sport can be cruel. And don’t Clermont know it. The club who’ve won just one of their 12 Top 14 finals were beaten in the dying minutes of extra-time in…
Saints and Sinners: The weekend’s talking points
The Saints Lam’s the man Two seasons ago, Connacht finished tenth in the Guinness Pro12. Now they are the champions and much of the credit for that astonishing turnaround must…
Guinness Pro12 final: Connacht 20-10 Leinster
Connacht achieved the near-impossible by not only winning their first ever final, but by doing it playing a brand of scintillating, attractive rugby. Three sumptuous tries from the men in…
Aviva Premiership final: Saracens 28-20 Exeter Chiefs
Two tries in five first-half minutes gave Saracens a commanding lead which Exeter Chiefs were never able to overcome. Saracens led 9-3 on the half-hour but were 23-3 up by…