Rugby

Jan 31, 2020 Warren Gatland made a winning return to New Zealand rugby on Friday when his Chiefs came from behind to edge the Blues 37-29 in the Super Rugby season-opener at Eden Park. Gatland, back in his Hamilton hometown after 12 years as coach of Wales and the British and Irish Lions, watched on

10:48 AM GMT England manager Eddie Jones has handed Northampton full-back George Furbank his international debut in his team to face France in the Six Nations on Sunday. Jones has gone for an experienced side with 675 caps in the starting XV for the game in Paris. – ESPN Fantasy Rugby is back! Click here

6:00 PM GMT England have suffered a setback ahead of their Six Nations opener against France on Sunday, with Anthony Watson ruled out due to a calf issue. Watson, who represents Bath at club level, would likely have started in Eddie Jones’ side in Paris, either on the wing or at full-back. – ESPN Fantasy

12:00 PM GMT The Six Nations is back, offering a short-term cure to rugby’s strife. The championship temporarily papers over the cracks in the game as old, established rivalries are reignited with new faces at the helm. Wales winning the Grand Slam last year seems to be from a different era, let alone year. Since

Jan 30, 2020 James Harrington It’s that time of year again, when rugby writers drag out the split phrase “most unpredictable … for years” and insert the Six Nations tournament into the middle of it. The thing is, this year, they could actually be right. There are so many unknowns going into the 2020 Six

12:17 PM GMT George North will play at centre for only the fifth time in his international career when Wales meet Italy this weekend, announced Wales coach Wayne Pivac on Thursday. The change in position for North means Scarlets winger Johnny McNicholl earns his first international cap. – ESPN Fantasy Rugby is back! Click here

12:17 PM GMT George North will play at centre for only the fifth time in his international career as Wales meet Italy in Cardiff on Saturday, with the visitors set to be captained by Luca Bigi for the first time. The change in position for North means Scarlets winger Johnny McNicholl earns his first international

7:26 PM GMT ESPN Facebook Twitter Facebook Messenger Pinterest Email print Saracens have been docked a further 70 points to confirm their relegation, Premiership Rugby announced on Tuesday. The English and European champions were deducted 35 points and fined £5.3 million in November after an independent disciplinary panel said the club failed to disclose player

3:52 PM GMT Saracens interim chief executive Edward Griffiths has resigned after less than a month in the role, the Gallagher Premiership have announced. Griffiths had re-signed as chief executive on a one-year contract, having previously left in 2015, after Nigel Wray retired earlier this month. Premiership champions Saracens will be relegated at the end

1:56 PM GMT Ireland captain Johnny Sexton is set to start the team’s Six Nations opener against Scotland this weekend after recovering from a knee injury. Fly-half Sexton has not played since hobbling off while playing for Leinster in a Champions Cup game against Northampton in early December, but last week the 34-year-old confirmed his

12:34 PM GMT Israel Folau will resume his rugby career in the league format of the game after signing for Super League outfit Catalans Dragons on a one-year deal. Folau was sacked by Rugby Australia last year after being found guilty of committing a high-level breach of the organisation’s Code of Conduct after posting a

8:38 AM GMT Christopher Jones David Campese was the ultimate maverick player, using individual brilliance to light up the sport, and he wants to see rugby throw off its coaching shackles as the game prepares to move into overdrive this weekend with the start of the Six Nations Championship, the first round of Super Rugby

2:24 PM GMT James Harrington As in most sports, risk-reward is a very real thing in rugby. Teddy Thomas, for example, was selected for France’s Six Nations squad for his abilities as a try-scorer. Whether he makes the matchday side will depend on whether Fabien Galthie believes that talent is enough to offset his sieve-like

2:12 PM GMT James Harrington Maverick: Noun. An unorthodox or independent-minded person. In Fantasy Rugby, such a quality is potential gold dust. It should not be confused — as it often is — with mercurial, an adjective to describe someone who is subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind. And Freddie Michalak.