Rugby

5:05 PM GMT France’s bid to end a more than decade-long Six Nations title drought picked up further steam with a scrappy 15-13 victory over injury-hit Ireland on Sunday, their first win in Dublin in almost as long. The Irish dominated the opening quarter in a wet Aviva Stadium but could only manage a solitary

7:04 PM GMT Wales roared back from a 17-3 half time deficit to complete a remarkable 25-24 Six Nations win over Scotland on Saturday, in a crackling encounter that saw momentum shift time and again. – Play ESPN’s Rugby Pick’em for FREE Winger Darcy Graham darted onto a clever chip from Ali Price to score

4:27 PM GMT England put last week’s Scotland defeat behind them with a six-try 41-18 Six Nations victory over Italy at Twickenham on Saturday as Anthony Watson scored two tries and Jonny May claimed a memorable one with an astonishing, acrobatic leap. – Play ESPN’s Rugby Pick’em for FREE Italy took a shock second-minute lead

3:20 PM GMT England’s rugby Premiership will not feature relegation this year and will increase to 13 clubs next season to accommodate the winners of the second-tier Championship, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) said on Friday. There will also be a one-year suspension on relegation from the Championship, but in a blow to ambitious clubs

2:45 PM GMT The second round of the Six Nations is usually where we get a decent gauge of where the power lies in this championship. First round matches usually offer a raised eyebrow, but by the second batch of games, the leading pack separates out from the rest of the field and we can

12:05 PM GMT France coach Fabien Galthie made two changes from the team who beat Italy, with Damian Penaud starting against Ireland at the Aviva stadium on Sunday ahead of Teddy Thomas on the wing. Anthony Jelonch also comes in for Dylan Cretin in the third row as Galthie looks to adapt to the Irish

11:45 AM GMT Billy Burns and Jamison Gibson Park have replaced the injured Johnny Sexton and Conor Murray for Ireland’s Six Nations clash with France on Sunday at the Aviva in Dublin. Ulster’s Iain Henderson will captain the side for the first time and will be joined by Tadhg Beirne in the second-row. – Play

10:43 AM GMT England wing Anthony Watson has struck out at criticism surrounding some of the England players taking the knee calling it “a double standard.” Watson, 26, was one of 16 England players to take the knee ahead of their match against Scotland but has faced criticism over his decision to do so. –

9:50 AM GMT England centre Jonathan Joseph has been handed a two-week suspension for breaching COVID-19 government rules. Joseph and his Bath teammate Elliott Stooke, alongside Wasps’ Gabriel Oghre were all charged by the RFU for “off-field infringements of the Government’s National Covid-19 Rules and related to mixing of multiple households, with two players travelling

12:22 PM GMT Wales have made five changes for their trip to Scotland on Saturday in the Six Nations. Aaron Wainright, Gareth Davies, Liam Williams, Nick Tompkins and Owen Watkin all start as Wales battle a growing injury list. 2 Related Willis Halaholo is included on the bench and will make his Test debut if

12:40 PM GMT Scotland have made three changes for Wales from the side that secured their famous win against England. Cameron Redpath, Jamie Ritchie and Sean Maitland are all absent through injury so Blade Thomson, James Lang and Darcy Graham all start for Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday. – Play ESPN’s Rugby Pick’em for FREE

11:00 AM GMT England have made five changes for their Six Nations clash against Italy on Saturday at Twickenham. Following their opening round loss to Scotland, England have handed starts to George Ford, Mako Vunipola, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Kyle Sinckler and Courtney Lawes. Ollie Lawrence and Mark Wilson, who both started in their championship opener, drop

12:33 PM GMT England coach Eddie Jones has said no player in his side is guaranteed a starting spot but backed his captain Owen Farrell to come back after a poor performance against Scotland on Saturday. Scotland ended a 38-year wait for a victory at Twickenham on Saturday when they beat England 11-6 on the

12:53 PM GMT Wales have called up James Botham, Lloyd Williams and the uncapped Willis Halaholo to their injury-hit squad ahead of Saturday’s Six Nations clash with Scotland at Murrayfield, the Wales Rugby Union said on Wednesday. The Cardiff Blues trio replace Dan Lydiate, Tomos Williams and Johnny Williams who were all hurt in the

7:28 PM GMT A reduction in scrum resets, sevens-style free kicks, and the “use it” call being strictly enforced are among law variations and focal points for the second season of Super Rugby AU. Rugby Australia’s [RA] provincial competition returns to action on Friday week with a double-header that will also herald the official start

2:27 PM GMT Kyle Sinckler and Mako Vunipola have been added to the England squad for Saturday’s Six Nations game against Italy, the Rugby Football Union (EFU) said on Tuesday. The two props missed the 11-6 defeat at the hands of Scotland on Saturday at Twickenham. – Play ESPN’s Rugby Pick’em for FREE Sinckler was

2:10 PM GMT Wales have a quadruple injury blow ahead of their Six Nations clash with Scotland in Edinburgh on Saturday, with loose-forward Dan Lydiate one of those ruled out for an extended period. Lydiate injured an anterior cruciate ligament in his knee and has been ruled out of the remainder of the Six Nations

5:26 PM GMT Italy’s injured centre Marco Zanon will miss the Six Nations game against England on Saturday, the Italian Rugby Federation said on Monday, while Pierre Bruno and Andrea Lovotti have been added to the squad. Zanon started at outside centre in the Azzurri’s 50-10 opening day loss to France but was replaced after