Fijians are on display for and against England, Ireland are looking to make history (again), Scotland have a Six Nations point to prove and Emily Scarratt returnsWith Billy Vunipola declared fit to start against Fiji, it is little surprise that Eddie Jones delayed naming his starting XV by 24 hours. Leaving the Wales match – the day after the Premiership final – aside, Vunipola has started in every game under Jones and while he is not the only player to do so, he is the most important. A leaner, meaner Vunipola, making carries in areas that hurt the opposition, has been the bedrock of Jones’s side and without him England would have needed to find other means of breaking the...
Ireland’s men in green are daring to dream that after waiting 111 years to defeat New Zealand they can make it twice in two weeks in Dublin on SaturdayNot many sequels manage to outdo a famous original. You can make a decent cinematic argument that Mad Max, The French Connection, Kill Bill and Toy Story were all superior at the second time of asking but the list is relatively short. Difficult second album syndrome is a frequent musical issue and, where New Zealand rugby is concerned, double-whammy defeats to the same opponents are on the rare side of occasional.What chance, then, of Ireland improving this weekend on their remarkable Chicago coup early this month when they defeated New Zealand for...
England have put their World Cup travails firmly behind them, Australia have a mountain to climb and Wales coach Rob Howley faces some tough decisions It is remarkable how quickly sporting fortunes can swing. A year ago, England were failing to escape their World Cup pool on home soil while South Africa were just two semi-final points away from reaching the final. Twelve months on, the Springbok team is a very different, more vulnerable animal. The simultaneous loss of several long-time stalwarts has coincided with a continuing player exodus to Europe and Japan, while the politics of transformation further complicate Allister Coetzee’s task. The Boks should overcome Italy this weekend but, longer-term, the outlook looks highly uncertain. England, on the...
Win that ended the world champion’s run of 18 victories was a perfect tribute to the talismanic Irishman who died suddenly in OctoberIt was as if Anthony Foley was looking down on Ireland as the players formed a huddle before the start of last Saturday’s Test against New Zealand in Chicago. Ireland were hoping to prevent the All Blacks from extending their record of 18 Test match wins and shaped themselves into a figure of eight, the number worn by Foley, who died suddenly last month, for Shannon, Munster and Ireland. Related: Wounded New Zealand face race to regroup for Ireland rematch in Dublin | Brendan Fanning Continue reading...
Ireland emphatically had the measure of the All Blacks in all the key areas in Chicago and, with more preparation and fine-tuning, could make it two in a row when they meet again on 19 NovemberWhen the close-to-capacity crowd at Soldier Field were subjected to the caterwauling version of Ireland’s Call, played with a bit of blarney on a violin, the day seemed to be heading only south. Moments later it was yanked back and pointed upwards, with the Ireland players facing the haka by forming a perfect figure of eight in memory of Anthony Foley. It was one of the great rescue acts. And not the last on a remarkable day.What followed was a classic Test match, not for...