Rugby

8:42 AM BST England continued their preparations for the women’s Rugby World Cup by thrashing Wales 73-7 on Wednesday to become the first international side to win 25 matches in a row. England, led by captain Sarah Hunter, are unbeaten since July 2019 and head into the Oct. 8-Nov. 12 World Cup in New Zealand

4:07 AM BST As the Wallabies and All Blacks prepare to do battle in the Bledisloe Cup, Japan is offering to be peace-maker in the simmering Super Rugby stand-off between the trans-Tasman rivals. And their proposal has the support of Wallabies veteran Quade Cooper, who plays club rugby in Japan when not on Test duty.

12:37 AM BST Many believe the Wallabies have never had a better chance to win back the Bledisloe Cup, but a better proposition to ponder is whether they are actually good enough to do it. One can only just recall the images of John Eales and then George Gregan holding the trophy aloft, memories that

1:33 AM BST Describing him as the benchmark Test winger, Will Jordan knows he will have his hands full trying to contain Wallabies game-breaker Marika Koroibete in Thursday’s Bledisloe Cup encounter. The All Blacks winger will be in Koroibete’s firing line at Marvel Stadium with the Fijian flyer being up front this week about what

9:52 PM BST After a weekend off, the Rugby Championship resumes on Thursday night with the Wallabies hosting the All Blacks in a Test that also opens the Bledisloe Cup series. Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium is the scene for a rare midweek clash between the two trans-Tasman rivals, with the last such Test played nearly 30

3:56 AM BST Hoskins Sotutu will make his first start of the year when the All Blacks take on the Wallabies in their Bledisloe Cup Test in Melbourne, with coach Ian Foster naming him to replace star No.8 Ardie Savea. New Zealand were forced to name a new-look back-row with Savea to miss Thursday night’s

6:39 AM BST Wallabies coach Dave Rennie has wound back the clock once more, turning to Bernard Foley at fly-half for the Bledisloe Cup opener at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night. Foley, 33, will on Tuesday be named as Australia’s fourth different starting No. 10 for 2022, after Brumbies youngster Noah Lolesio was ruled out

10:57 PM BST Springbok flyhalf Elton Jantjies will return to South Africa for personal reasons ahead of the Rugby Championship test against Argentina on Saturday, South African Rugby said on Sunday. The Rapport newspaper said Jantjies, who is married, and Springbok team dietician Zeenat Simjee stayed together in a guest house ahead of the squad

3:29 PM BST Three of French rugby’s most prominent figures went on trial on Wednesday accused of offences linked to suspect commercial deals. National federation president Bernard Laporte and top division club Montpellier’s owner Mohed Altrad are charged with influence peddling in connection with sponsorship of the national team. Prosecutors allege that Laporte used undue

2:01 PM BST France centre Virimi Vakatawa is not allowed to continue playing in France because of a heart condition, his Top 14 club Racing 92 said on Tuesday. Vakatawa is suffering from a condition likely to put him at risk when playing high-intensity sports according to Racing team doctor Sylvain Blanchard, a member of

8:29 AM BST Sam Bruce Close ESPN Associate Editor Sam was brought up on long drives and the dusty fields of north-west New South Wales, where he developed his love of rugby from an early age. He joined ESPNscrum after a five-year stint heading up Fox Sports Australia’s digital rugby coverage. Brittany Mitchell Close ESPN

7:54 AM BST Australia captain James Slipper wants his Wallabies teammates to remember the pain inflicted on them by South Africa on Saturday as the world champions claimed a 24-8 Rugby Championship win over their hosts in Sydney. The Springboks bounced back from a defeat against the Australians in Adelaide on Aug. 27 to hand

2:06 AM BST All Blacks coach Ian Foster called his team’s crushing 53-3 bonus point victory over Argentina on Saturday “ruthless” as New Zealand bounced back from their first-ever loss on home soil against the South Americans last week. Foster picked the same line-up for the comprehensive win in Hamilton as had been defeated by

2:49 PM BST For the first time in 2022 the Wallabies played the same starting fifteen two weeks in a row as they desperately looked for consistency. Instead, the team that shot out of the blocks in Adelaide, struggled under the Springboks’ relentless kicking game and lost the territory battle to fall 24-8. Playing the

4:54 AM BST All Blacks coach Ian Foster has shuffled his reserves with the return of Beauden Barrett and Brodie Retallick but kept his starting 15 unchanged as the home side look to turn the tables on Argentina in Saturday’s Rugby Championship clash. The All Blacks suffered their first ever defeat to the Pumas on

2:31 AM BST The man who made the Wallabies No. 11 jersey famous around the world has challenged Marika Koroibete to take his game to another level again, after the winger’s brilliant man-of-the-match showing in Adelaide last weekend. Rugby World Cup winner and 101-Test Wallabies great David Campese was full of praise for Koroibete after

6:44 AM BST Young Wallabies playmaker Noah Lolesio has been urged to shed his ‘nice guy’ image and ramp up his assertiveness as he works to nail down the crucial No.10 role. Attack coach Scott Wisemantel says the 22-year-old was “solid” in Australia’s 25-17 win over South Africa last weekend, but he wants to see

2:46 AM BST The 2022 Rugby Championship continues to throw up surprises, as Argentina recorded a second history-making win in two years, only this time they defeated the All Blacks on their home patch. The Pumas’ stunning 25-18 victory in Christchurch followed the Wallabies’ impressive 25-17 triumph over the Springboks, who only improved that scoreline