Rugby World Cup 2015: England chiefs play down training ground spat between Mike Catt and Danny Cipriani October 7, 2015 England chiefs have denied that a pre-World Cup training ground spat between coach Mike Catt and overlooked fly-half Danny Cipriani left the squad on the verge of mutiny. The Rugby Football Union confirmed that the flashpoint occurred the day before England announced their 31-man squad for the tournament, and hours after Sale’s Cipriani had learned [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: Warren Gatland hands Wales licence to attack Australia in Pool A decider October 7, 2015 England's World Cup demise at the hands of Australia has given Wales the licence to attack the Wallabies in their Pool A decider at Twickenham on Saturday, according to fitness coach Paul Stridgeon. The winners will face either Scotland or Japan in the quarter-final, while the losers will face two-time world champions South Africa, who [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015 ticket prices plummet as disappointed England fans flood secondary ticketing website viagogo October 7, 2015 Tickets for Rugby World Cup games are plummeting in price on secondary ticket websites after England's disastrous campaign came to an abrupt end on Saturday. Depressed English rugby fans have flooded secondary ticketing website Viagogo with tickets to knock-out games that could have involved England, as well as the team's final fixture against Uruguay at [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: Bryan Habana equals Jonah Lomu’s all-time try record as South Africa thrash United States October 7, 2015 South Africa head coach Heyneke Meyer hailed Bryan Habana after the winger equalled Jonah Lomu's all-time record tally of 15 World Cup tries. Habana plundered a hat-trick as the Springboks routed the United States 64-0 at the Olympic Stadium — a victory that guaranteed their progress to the quarter-finals as Pool B winners. Flanker Fancois Louw [...]
Rugby World Cup: England head coach Stuart Lancaster insists tournament flops can prove foundation for future success October 6, 2015 Head coach Stuart Lancaster insists the group of players which presided over England’s worst ever World Cup showing can rise from the ashes of failure and prove the foundation for future success. Lancaster admitted that his squad remain in a “dark place” after the 33-13 defeat to Australia at Twickenham on Saturday confirmed their tournament [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: England full-back Mike Brown says Michael Hooper ban is too late October 6, 2015 England full-back Mike Brown insists that Australia flanker Michael Hooper’s suspension for a foul on him in last week’s pivotal World Cup defeat at Twickenham has come too late. Hooper escaped with only conceding a penalty during the Wallabies’ 33-13 win, which condemned England to a group stage exit, but was cited for the crunching charge [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: Wales centre Jamie Roberts reveals sympathy for tournament flops England October 6, 2015 Wales centre Jamie Roberts admits he feels sympathy for Pool A rivals and tournament hosts England after their World Cup dreams were shattered just three matches into the competition. Warren Gatland’s Welsh side face a group decider against Australia at Twickenham on Saturday, with the winners likely to face either Scotland or Japan in the [...]
Rugby World Cup v Football World Cup: Why do the two sports attract such different brands? October 6, 2015 Risk Everything, All in or Nothing, The Game Before the Game. Sound familiar? This was just some of the powerful, high-energy language used by sponsors of the Fifa World Cup 2014. Leave your families, sell your soul, risk your lives. This language was aggressive, fearless and came from the biggest and most recognized names [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: Andy Farrell denies having an excessive influence and defends Stuart Lancaster October 6, 2015 England defence coach Andy Farrell has denied having a disproportionate influence over team selection in the wake of his side’s humiliating poolstage exit at the World Cup. It has been suggested that Farrell championed the cause of rugby league convert Sam Burgess against the wishes of players, while his objectivity has been questioned in relation [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: Joe Schmidt’s Ireland seal quarter-final place with narrow victory as Argentina close in on last eight October 5, 2015 Relieved Ireland coach Joe Schmidt admitted that his side made life difficult for themselves despite sealing their place in the World Cup quarter-finals with a narrow 16-9 victory over Italy at the Olympic Stadium yesterday. Centre Keith Earls dotted down to set a new national record of eight World Cup tries although Ireland were pegged [...]