Alex Lozowski stakes further England claim, Ben Te’o gives reminder to Lions and Eddie Jones is busy casting his eye over options for tour of Argentina Related: Alex Lozowski sparks Saracens revival to defeat dominant Northampton • Match report: Northampton 25-27 Saracens• Match report: Bristol 21-36 Wasps• Match report: Worcester 25-19 Bath Related: Bristol go down fighting after spirited battle against Wasps • Two-tone approach may throw Warburton and Hartley a Lions lifeline• Match report: Harlequins 26-39 Exeter Continue reading...
Welford Road club find themselves in Arsenal’s position in the Premier League’s post-Abramovich era, qualifying for Europe while living within their means“Happy new year to you all,” wrote Richard Cockerill in what turned out to be his final programme notes as Leicester’s director of rugby on Sunday. Less than 24 hours later, the club announced he had been sacked following the defeat by the Premiership club who have become as dominant this decade as the Tigers were in the 2000s, Saracens.Cockerill became the second director of rugby of a Premiership club to lose his job this season following Andy Robinson’s dismissal by Bristol and five sides are now under different management from last season, as are the relegated London Irish....
World Rugby’s decision to clamp down on high hits from Tuesday will free up the game for creative ball-carriers and try-scoring rates look set to soar even higherIn theory it is just another winter Tuesday. No big games are happening on 3 January 2017, no one will instantly sense the change. Could it be, nevertheless, that the date will one day be ranked among the most significant in modern rugby union history? Might it also be the moment the cork is removed from the old-school bottle and, in a spray of sparkling foam, it starts raining tries?World Rugby’s decision to tighten the tackle law with immediate effect and clamp down on high, dangerous “hits” is meant to be all about...
Dylan Hartley’s greatest opponent is himself, Jamie George and Owen Farrell can both replace him and it was a good weekend for the Irish If Dylan Hartley had not been sent off we would all be talking about Leinster’s excellence. Perhaps we still should be; even when they were down to their third-choice fly-half the Irish side looked revitalised, for which credit must go both to the players and, in particular, their reshuffled coaching panel. The contrast with Northampton’s flat-footed start was particularly glaring, as the home skipper Tom Wood made abundantly clear after his side’s 37-10 home drubbing. Ultimately though, Hartley’s 58th-minute red card for a forearm smash to the back of Sean O’Brien’s head was the kind of...
Saracens won’t be daunted by Toulon, Eddie Jones shows his spikier side now the EPS agreement is signed and Mathew Tait revels in his injury-free runSaracens will begin the defence of their European title this week with every reason to be cheerful. Toulon may not have lost a European Cup tie on home turf but they will have to dig particularly deep to crack the toughest current challenge on the continent. Sarries have conceded just four tries in their six Premiership games, remarkable even by their standards and even more impressive given the absence of key backline figures such as Owen Farrell, Alex Goode, Duncan Taylor and Chris Ashton. “We put them under a lot of pressure,” said a delighted...