James Ryan extricated himself from a tangle of limbs and words by planting his hand on Henry Pollock’s cheek, using a long lever to facilitate the disengagement. The last two revellers to leave what began as a meatier pile of bodies at a breakdown. It’s commonplace in rugby, a grapple and a chirp, before the … Read more
Jimmy Gopperth believes “jealousy” is at the root of criticism – and worse – aimed at Henry Pollock by players in France since the final whistle blew on the Investec Champions Cup final. The veteran New Zealander plays what could be his last game in the French league on Thursday when his Provence team travel … Read more
Ireland captain Caelan Doris is now a huge doubt for the British and Irish Lions tour this summer following the confirmation he is set to undergo surgery on an injury picked up against Northampton Saints. The Ballina-native was all but cemented to go on the tour and was also one of the leading contenders for the … Read more
And then there were four. The weekend saw some amazing action with Bordeaux-Begles and Munster throwing up a thriller and Toulouse finally beating their Mayol hoodoo to scrape past a superb Toulon side. Elsewhere, Northampton Saints and Leinster put in big scoring performances on Friday and Saturday respectively, as we now have our semi-finalists. Following … Read more
Following a 45-35 victory for Stade Francais over Northampton Saints in the Investec Champions Cup, here’s our five takeaways from the game at Stade Jean Bouin. The top line For everyone disappointed by the Sharks v Toulouse game, watching the epic encounter that was the Stade Francais v Northampton Saints fixture gave you rugby theatre … Read more