Rugby

12:38 AM BST Liam Napier Bankruptcy, COVID and a World Cup qualifying loss to Uruguay does not conspire to cultivate a healthy launchpad for one of the toughest challenges in world rugby. The All Blacks’ arrival in Washington D.C. this week, ahead of their money-spinning Test at FedEx Field, home of the Washington Football Team

4:56 PM BST England hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie has been ruled out of England’s November tests with an ankle injury, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) said on Tuesday, with Jamie George called up as his replacement. Cowan-Dickie, who has won 31 caps for England, sustained the injury during Exeter Chiefs’ Premiership win over Wasps on Saturday.

11:06 AM BST South Africa coach Jacques Nienaber had earmarked a role for flyhalf Morne Steyn at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France but respects his decision to retire from the international game. Steyn announced on Tuesday that he would no longer be available for the Springboks, bringing to an end a 12-year international

2:18 AM BST ESPN staff Senior All Blacks Codie Taylor and Sam Whitelock have shared their sadness at the passing of former Crusaders teammate Sean Wainui, revealing the entire New Zealand squad is hurting as they prepare for Sunday’s [NZT] Test against the United States. Wainui died in a car crash on Monday morning, leaving

3:00 PM BST Eddie Jones has named four uncapped players in England’s the 34-player England squad for the November Tests but there is no place in the group for Billy and Mako Vunipola, Jamie George or George Ford. Jones has confirmed Owen Farrell will continue as England skipper as he’s named in the squad for

3:03 AM BST ESPN staff The New Zealand rugby community is in mourning after it was confirmed that Chiefs winger Sean Wainui had died in a car crash on Monday morning. Wainui, 25, hit a tree while driving in Omanawa, near Tauranga, on New Zealand’s north island. Bay of Plenty Police released a statement saying

2:04 PM BST Wales coach Wayne Pivac has recalled England-based Thomas Young for the Autumn International series despite the loose-forward falling short of the 60-cap rule for players based outside of the country. Pivac received a special exemption for Wasps flanker Young after it was announced on Wednesday that he would return to Cardiff next

6:51 PM BST Premiership side Wasps on Tuesday asked the country’s rugby governing body (RFU) and the league to address the issue of fans wearing faux Native American headdresses ahead of the weekend’s game against the Exeter Chiefs. The Chiefs’ logo features a Native American wearing a headdress and Wasps said fans who wore such

12:11 PM BST The 2022 World Rugby Sevens Series will kickoff with a pair of men’s and women’s rounds in Dubai starting November, while Hong Kong returns as a stop, the global body said on Tuesday as the schedule was announced. Sydney, Australia and Hamilton, New Zealand will not host the series next year due

11:43 AM BST The British & Irish Lions announced the formation of a steering group on Tuesday to look into the feasibility of establishing a women’s Lions team. Former Lion Ieuan Evans will chair the 13-member group which will include administrators from professional rugby such as Lions managing director Ben Calveley and chief operating and

Oct 10, 2021 Canada failed to qualify for the Rugby World Cup for the first time after being beaten 33-24 by Chile on Saturday, while Uruguay clinched their place after overturning a three-point first-leg deficit against the United States. Canada won their first tie 22-21 a week ago but Saturday’s drubbing in Valparaiso, Chile, kept

10:42 PM BST New Zealand captain Sam Cane is relishing his return to the All Blacks squad after overcoming injury to potentially line up against the United States in Washington this month. Cane last led the All Blacks against Argentina in November 2020 and Sam Whitelock, Brodie Retallick and Ardie Savea have captained New Zealand

10:58 PM BST Former NRL luminaries Kevin Naiqama and Lachlan Coote have said the perfect farewell to St Helens, helping guide the Super League champions to a third straight crown with a thrilling grand final win over Catalans Dragons. Former Wests Tigers star Naiqama was player of the match on Saturday after he scored the

2:42 AM BST Wallabies coach Dave Rennie has confirmed the worst kept secret in Australian rugby, naming Will Skelton, Rory Arnold and Tolu Latu for the team’s spring tour of the United Kingdom. Rennie on Friday unveiled a 37-man squad for the tour, which also includes a stopover in Japan that the European-based trio will

8:16 PM BST Liam Napier The narrow nature of last week’s defeat to the Springboks mitigated the outcry that usually accompanies All Blacks losses. Honours shared was a fair reflection. Dig down into successive Rugby Championship Tests against the world champions, though, and familiar root causes evoke cause for concern. The blueprint for upsetting the

The Rugby Championship has been run and won for another year, with the All Blacks securing their seventh title despite the weekend’s loss to the Springboks. SANZAAR on Tuesday declared the tournament had delivered “high-quality” rugby to fans across the southern hemisphere, lauding its ability to play the Championship across three countries amid the difficulties

10:54 PM BST Captain Sam Cane has been recalled to the All Blacks squad for their northern hemisphere tour later this month as locks Scott Barrett and Patrick Tuipulotu return to New Zealand for family reasons. Cane, who missed New Zealand’s involvement in the just-completed Rugby Championship in Queensland due to injury, will join up

2:52 PM BST A consortium of investors has agreed terms to acquire a majority controlling stake in Premiership side Saracens for £32 million ($43m), the club said on Saturday. Saracens, four times Premiership champions and three times European Cup winners in the last five years, were relegated last season as punishment for multiple salary cap