Ed Warner: Ronaldo, Federer, Bolt, Biles – what makes a sporting icon? July 4, 2024 Our columnists also takes on Air France, Seb Coe and England's PR team.
England’s lack of representation in rugby’s European finals is no quick fix May 15, 2022 Even before this weekend’s Champions Cup semi-finals, the English game knew it would have no representation in the final. And bar outliers Saracens – who picked up three titles in four years – and Exeter Chiefs’ triumph during the pandemic, there has been little for Premiership sides to boast about at the highest level of [...]
Six Nations 2022: Free-flowing France leave static England with questions to answer March 20, 2022 Le tournoi est bleu. The words of a nation that has waited more than a decade to taste Six Nations glory. The tournament is indeed blue after they clinched the Grand Slam against England on Saturday night, and how happy so many were to see the day come. France play some of the most attractive [...]
Six Nations: ‘Wales for the Wooden Spoon? I think it could happen’ February 3, 2023 This year’s Six Nations is arguably both the most predictable and the least predictable in a long time – but I do think there is a good chance of Wales finishing rock bottom. I am in agreement with most that it will be between Ireland and France for the title, but beyond that it is [...]
Jones and England on the back foot after Australia loss in Perth July 3, 2022 As the sun set in the Western Australian metropolis of Perth on Saturday, hopes of Eddie Jones’ England team repeating their astonishing 3-0 whitewash of the Wallabies in 2016 faded into the night. Two late tries from Henry Arundell and Jack van Poortvielt ensured the 30-28 losing scoreline was slightly more palatable than it looked [...]
Ed Warner: London 2012 convinced us that Para sport was moving forward, but it isn’t August 31, 2023 There are 363 days until the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Paralympics. Tickets go on sale on 9 October. The most expensive events are €100, a sliver over a tenth of the price of the best seats for Olympic athletics. I can guarantee there won’t be only one tenth of the enjoyment. You might [...]
Ollie Phillips: England changes need to make the difference November 25, 2022 England really shot themselves in the foot by allowing New Zealand to build such a lead at Twickenham last weekend. The All Blacks weren’t amazing but England just looked a little bit asleep at the wheel until that last quarter, when they came alive and dazzled the crowds in south west London. There will be [...]
Jackson Wray interview: Saracens stalwart on targeting another Champions Cup and honing his financial trading skills May 7, 2021 Sport marches to a relentless beat of training sessions and matches that can allow little time for reflection, but the forced interruption of the pandemic gave Jackson Wray pause for thought. The Saracens back-row forward has had a front-row seat for one of rugby union’s most remarkable stories: the club’s rise, fuelled by home-grown talents [...]
Rugby’s domestic derbies should not be played in the international window February 8, 2022 The East Midlands derby between Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints is one of the fixtures fans look for when the schedule is released. Saracens against Harlequins, Bath against Gloucester, Tigers against Saints – these are the staples of English domestic rugby, the bitter rivalries decades, if not centuries, in the making. So its beggars belief [...]
Ed Warner: Why sport shouldn’t waste its time courting royals and politicians August 24, 2023 Politicians and royals rarely mix well with sport, so the fuss about the Prime Minister and Duke of Cambridge missing the Women’s World Cup final was classic British nonsense. In my experience, the less time spent trying to sprinkle dubious stardust on sporting events, the better. Civil servants and UK Sport spent ridiculous time that [...]