Captain’s likely absence from start of World Cup highlights a weary familiarity hanging over team showing no sense of momentumSo here we go again. Owen Farrell in high shoulder charge trouble? Tick. England flattering mostly only to deceive? Tick. Injuries and unavailability threatening to disrupt their World Cup? Tick. Tick. They may have finally won a match but, in truth, an air of weary Groundhog Day familiarity hangs over English rugby that extends well beyond the length of ban awaiting their national captain before next month’s global tournament.Farrell will certainly be experiencing a powerful sense of deja vu as he awaits the verdict on Tuesday, which is almost certain to sideline him from his team’s keynote opening pool game in...
Steve Borthwick is facing a major headache with his talismanic captain expected to be banned for the start of tournamentOwen Farrell’s critics – and he has always had his fair share – will say it has been a matter of time but had Steve Borthwick made a list of scenarios to be avoided at all costs for this block of World Cup warm-up matches, a red card for his captain for a high tackle would have been top of it. Farrell is facing a ban at a disciplinary hearing that will almost certainly rule him out of the start of the World Cup. Mitigation will be limited given his previous and as he has already attended tackle school he cannot...
Wales have some wind in their sails after Cardiff victory but time is running out for visitors to find a winning formulaIf the old adage goes that you cannot win the World Cup during the warm-ups but you can lose it, Steve Borthwick can console himself that this disappointing defeat need not be terminal. There is no need to overly panic after what goes down as a third loss in a row and a fourth in six under Borthwick. But after insisting his players stick to the script, rather than worrying about Monday’s squad announcement, you have to wonder if it needs rewriting.For the most worrying aspect – other than the dreadfully misfiring lineout – is that it was not...
A record 91 tries, a match for the ages, Italy’s ‘Florence Dallaglio’ shining, and an England side who ‘weren’t good at anything’France may not have won the title but, once again, they possessed the best player in the tournament. Antoine Dupont was so good against England it was almost laughable: sharp, clever, strong, able to kick off both feet … if he looked slightly weary at the start of the championship, he was back to his best by the end of it. Damian Penaud, Jonathan Danty, Hugo Keenan and Caelan Doris also deserve honourable mentions. Continue reading...
The world’s top rugby union teams at the moment are those who can strike the right balance between risk and rewardEven when they lose England’s cricketers are making everyone sit up and pay attention. Their one-run second Test defeat in New Zealand after enforcing the follow-on is merely the latest compelling example of their determination, win or lose, to make things happen. How good it is to watch international players exhibiting so little fear, trusting their instincts and, where possible, having some fun.In rugby union, the same is presently true of Finn Russell and the now-injured Ange Capuozzo but not a whole heap of others. The orthodoxy, as underlined by the Wales v England game in Cardiff at the weekend,...