Ireland’s fly-half is in pole position to break the run of six successive New Zealand world players of the yearWorld Rugby will be announcing its male and female players of 2018 in Monaco on Sunday. When the shortlists were first published there was still a faint element of doubt about the men’s winner. Not any more. If Johnny Sexton, the sole European contender, is somehow edged out there will be uproar in both hemispheres.No disrespect to Beauden Barrett and Rieko Ioane of New Zealand, or the Springboks duo Faf de Klerk and Malcom Marx, but Sexton has pulled so far ahead of the field he is now practically in a league of his own. Much as Ireland’s win over New...
Here was a delirious and genuinely historic Dublin evening to sweep away a century of hard-luck stories against the All BlacksIn the minutes before kick-off, the All Blacks’ Steve Hansen handed over a wodge of notes to Ireland’s coach, Joe Schmidt. What was it Steve? A card? A letter? A contract? No, Hansen explained later, it was €760. He had needed a few extra tickets for the game and the only way to do it was to ask Schmidt to buy them for him. This game was such a hot ticket that even Hansen had to pull strings to get people in. But then the Irish had been waiting 113 years for this, ever since they first played, and first...
When Farrell came off the bench against a dangerous Japan Eddie Jones’s side were given directionEddie Jones recently explained that Owen Farrell is not the kind of player to be wrapped in cotton wool. He may want to think again. If this victory, ultimately comprehensive but anything but comfortable, told us anything it is that England’s reliance on Farrell remains almost total; going into next year’s World Cup without him is unthinkable.It would be harsh on the eye‑catching performances of Kyle Sinckler and Sam Underhill from the bench, perhaps on the endeavour of Maro Itoje and Courtney Lawes, too, to say that Farrell swung the match in England’s favour single‑handed but the biggest factor was without doubt his introduction and...
Courtney Lawes took a gamble and lost when he charged down TJ Perenara’s kick against the All Blacks. The referee was correctSam Underhill may be one of England’s youngest, least experienced players but he reacted to one of the biggest disappointments of his senior career with a mature detachment. “If the referee says the grass is pink, then the grass is pink,” he said when asked about his disallowed try five minutes from time against New Zealand when Courtney Lawes was ruled to have been offside when he charged down a kick. Related: Japan captain Leitch says his side will not bow down at Twickenham Related: Rugby union: talking points from the second round of autumn Tests Continue reading...
England take heart from All Blacks defeat, Springboks’ power will test Scotland’s growing optimism and Italy prove a point In 2012 England also went 15-0 up on New Zealand at Twickenham and went on to win 38-21. This time they could not score a point after the 25th minute, instead allowing the All Blacks to snatch a 16-15 victory in a classic encounter of its type. Which team, though, is on the steeper upward curve? If the heavy rain was a leveller, there was no disguising the fact England, after a tough year, are on the way back. They now know they can ruffle the All Blacks, even with a patched-up pack, and South Africa’s two shuddering recent games against...