Rugby

8:00 AM BST All Blacks assistant coach John Plumtree has heaped acid on referee Angus Gardner to deal with Australia’s off-the-ball tactics in the second Bledisloe Cup Test on Sunday. Firing up a long-standing rivalry with Wallabies coach Dave Rennie, Plumtree inferred the Australian tactics in the first Test in Wellington last Sunday were typical

5:53 AM BST South Africa have been handed a 48-hour deadline to resolve internal issues and confirm their participation in the Rugby Championship, governing body SANZAAR said on Wednesday. The southern hemisphere championship, which also includes Australia, New Zealand and Argentina, will be held entirely in Australia this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Rugby

4:19 AM BST New Zealand Rugby is expecting a “near-capacity” crowd of some 47,000 to pack into Auckland’s Eden Park for the second Bledisloe Cup international against Australia on Sunday. Pictures of 31,000 fans without masks cheering on the three-times world champions in the first test in Wellington last weekend attracted plenty of attention on

5:43 AM BST Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan and Test great David Campese might have gone for New Zealand rugby’s jugular, but the Wallabies are keeping their feet firmly on the ground ahead of an All Blacks response in Bledisloe II. The memory of last year’s 36-0 shellacking at Eden Park, which followed a resounding

2:21 PM BST Finn Russell has been recalled to the Scotland 40-man squad for the conclusion of the 2020 Six Nations and newly-launched Autumn Nations Cup this year, Scottish Rugby announced on Monday. Russell has not made an international appearance since last year’s World Cup after he fell out with Scotland coach Gregor Townsend. Scotland

4:36 AM BST ESPN staff The Wallabies’ Auckland assignment just got easier … maybe. The venue where Australia hasn’t tasted success against their great rivals for 34 years – and the All Blacks are unbeaten at since 1994 – will this week take on a new name for the second Bledisloe Cup Test only. Forget

1:00 AM BST One of the most thrilling Bledisloe Cup encounters on record finished in a 16-all draw on Sunday evening in Wellington after nearly nine minutes of overtime. The gripping post-siren action saw both teams trying to snatch victory, each having genuine chances to do so. It also resulted in a swathe of criticism

10:01 AM BST World champions South Africa will decide next week whether they travel to Australia next month to take part in the Rugby Championship amid uncertainty over coronavirus travel restrictions and concern about the team’s readiness. Rugby South Africa said on Saturday “several hurdles needed to be cleared if it is to be confirmed”

12:02 PM BST The Rugby Football Union (RFU) will not ban England fans from singing “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” but will educate them on the history of the song and its links with American slavery, the domestic governing body said. The anthem, believed to have been written by a slave in the mid-19th century, became

12:15 PM BST Just two days out from the 2020 Bledisloe Cup opener, the question on the tip of every Australian rugby supporter’s tongue remains: Is Dave Rennie the man to end the Wallabies’ 18-year drought? The second Kiwi to take charge of the Australia’s national rugby team, whose fortunes, brand and popularity have waned

11:37 PM BST ESPN staff Wallabies coach Dave Rennie has wasted no time in commencing the evolution of the national team, handing Test debuts to Queensland Reds youngsters Harry Wilson, Filipo Daugunu and Hunter Paisami in Sunday’s Bledisloe Cup opener in Wellington. The uncapped trio have been included in a new-look Wallabies squad, which retains

11:02 PM BST Liam Napier After weeks on the backfoot, the tide may be turning for New Zealand rugby. New South Wales relaxing their quarantine regulations, and the Rugby Championship schedule resolution which prevents the All Blacks quarantining through Christmas, paved the way for a much needed win, though not before New Zealand Rugby agreed

12:00 PM BST Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has named six uncapped players in his 35-man squad for their two remaining Six Nations games this month. Leinster’s Ryan Baird, Ed Byrne, Jamison Gibson-Park, Hugo Keenan, and Will Connors, as well as Munster’s Shane Daly will be hoping to make an impact and win their first

11:47 AM BST Associated Press PARIS — France coach Fabien Galthie included five uncapped players into his squad ahead of an upcoming test against Wales and his team’s final match in the Six Nations. Galthie called up two new faces on Wednesday — prop Georges-Henri Colombe-Reazel and centre Olivier Klemenczak, who both play for Racing

1:19 PM BST England forward Courtney Lawes has been ruled out for 12 weeks with an ankle injury, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) confirmed on Wednesday. England coach Eddie Jones is already navigating a convoluted Six Nations schedule with his training squad minus any players from Bath, Sale, Bristol, Exeter, Worcester or Wasps due to

11:15 AM BST Sale Sharks’ final Gallagher Premiership match against Worcester Warriors has been cancelled due to more coronavirus cases, meaning they miss out on a place in the end-of-season playoffs. Sale were meant to play Worcester on Sunday but the game was delayed after the Sharks returned a cluster of positive coronavirus results. The

5:12 AM BST And we thought 2019 was a chaotic year for Australian rugby. From the Israel Folau saga to the Wallabies’ World Cup hellhole, Michael Cheika’s unceremonious exit and the continued fallout from that failed campaign, we could have been forgiven for thinking brighter days lay upon the horizon in 2020. And so they

2:13 PM BST Wales coach Wayne Pivac has named seven uncapped players in his 38-man squad for the finish to the 2020 Six Nations and the inaugural Autumn Nations Cup, with exciting winger Louis Rees-Zammit among those hoping to make his debut. The Gloucester player is one of five uncapped backs, along with scrum-half Kieran