Innehållsförteckning för April 2023 från Rugby World

WHO GIVES the most backchat on the pitch? I don’t want to admit it but it would have to be me. I’m very passionate and if I don’t agree with a decision, I’ll question it in the heat of the moment. Do you have any phobias? I’ve got a really strange phobia of electric shocks. In shopping centres, you can catch an escalator or metal handle and get an electric shock – that’s a big fear of mine. Sometimes I can’t touch a door and have to get someone else to open it.  What really annoys you? It annoys me when people are messy in everyday situations. I hate it if they don’t tidy up after themselves in the club room after having a sandwich or drink. If your house…

MARK DARBON “WE HAVE been pleased with the two we’ve done and both times comfortably more than 2,000 people stayed for the women’s match. They work well. It’s important to get the second game to start as quickly as possible, so you don’t lose the crowd. There is a growing appetite to engage with it. “Our view is you can’t have a model dependent on double headers, you have got to have a mix. We have staged five or six stand-alone Loughborough Lightning games at Saints and the average crowd has been comfortably over 1,000 compared to a couple of hundred at their previous ground. “The players love playing at Franklin’s Gardens and being part of a big match day alongside Saints and the feedback has been really positive. We…

IN THE early Sixties, I played hooker in school and openside for Barry Youth, then over the next 20-odd years I played in every back position. In my 20s the Welsh backs were all Lions: Gareth, with Barry John or Phil Bennett outside; centres Dawes, Bergiers or Arthur Lewis; wings Gerald Davies, JJ Williams, Keri Jones, Maurice Richards and John Bevan; and full-back JPR. My height of 5ft 10in, and weight of 11st 12lb, would not have precluded me from being picked for the Lions instead of those players. Forget the little matters of talent, training and dedication for the moment. Putting on a stone, I could even have played openside. These days it’s almost impossible for someone of my ‘normal’ size to play Test rugby. In 1955 the average…

WALES WILL go for a treble of sorts when the World Deaf Rugby Sevens World Cup kicks off in Córdoba, Argentina (5-9 April). It’s the third Deaf Rugby World Cup and Wales won both previous editions, a 15-a-side tournament in New Zealand in 2002 and the inaugural Sevens World Cup in Sydney five years ago, when England were defeated 21-15 in the final. The logistics of organising a 15s event, which requires more players and more days in the schedule, means World Deaf Rugby is focusing on sevens as a way to embrace their expanding family. The governing body has more than 20 members and many of them will be in Córdoba. Wales, England, Japan, Australia, Fiji, Kenya, South Africa and perhaps Ghana and PNG will compete alongside the hosts…

LAST SEASON was moving year in the professional rugby life of Levi Aumua. In his first full Super Rugby campaign, after a brief taste of this level for the Blues in 2019, he was the most consistent back for Moana Pasifika. Then he performed well for a misfiring Tasman Mako outfit. The season would finish on tour with the All Blacks XV and a couple of outings for the Barbarians under Scott ‘Razor’ Robertson. At 28, Aumua says his rugby career has been a “rollercoaster”. “Much of that was around the ability to focus on what was required as a professional rugby player. It has taken a while but over the last 18 months I’ve been able to lock down what is required. It’s all sinking in now,” says the…

FEW CLUBS have the longevity of Monmouth, whose 1873 formation pre-dates distinguished names like Cardiff, Newport and Bridgend. Indeed, it’s a mystery why the club, situated close to the English border, wasn’t a founding member of the WRU in 1881. Successes have rolled along, from their 1902 ‘Invincibles’ to their powerful interwar teams to the current group that won successive titles to reach Division One East. Past players include the late Eddie Butler, 1952 Grand Slam captain John Gwilliam and Hallam Amos. Wins have proved elusive this season but a young side is making strides under the coaching of ex-Ebbw Vale pros Chay Billen and Jonathan Hawker. If the heavy Valleys pitches don’t suit their expansive game, they have still impressed many. And while Poland prop Zen Szwagrzak, Monmouth’s promotion-winning…

SEVENS IS a game all about joy. And few deserve that more than the Iraguhas. The France sevens star William cannot tell you where he spent some of his infancy – was it briefly into Rwanda or staying in Kenya, where he was born? – but he and his family have seen plenty of the world. The bad and the brilliant sides. “I am Rwandese, as my mother and father were both born there,” Iraguha begins. “My older brother was born in 1994 and that was like a month before the genocide. So my parents fled the country… Three years after that my mother was in Kenya, due to all the circumstances, and that’s where I was born. Then I think my mother went back to Rwanda for a year,…

1 Australia Assistant coach Dan McKellar and scrum coach Petrus du Plessis have left their positions with the Wallabies, with the former taking over as Leicester head coach from July. McKellar (below) said: “The Tigers DNA is built around a combative style of rugby, with a strong set-piece and defence. That’s something I felt aligned strongly with myself.” 2 Chile Selknam got their Super Rugby Americas campaign off to a winning start when the Santiago side crushed the American Raptors franchise 45-10. A decent crowd was given a show by the hosts, with No 8 Joaquín Miesi scoring three of Selknam’s seven tries. It bodes well ahead of Chile’s debut at the Rugby World Cup. The outfit is captained by los Condores back-three star Santiago Videla. 3 South Africa Jaco…

IT’S OBVIOUSLY been a tough couple of weeks in Welsh rugby. You have a lot of conversations around how we approach media messaging and that is a responsibility we share around the senior players group with the national team. And there are obviously a whole host of contract issues – as a captain you want to voice the players’ concerns and opinions around that. You want to do right by the boys, as captaining your country is an honour. You grow up as a young boy in West Wales and want to play for your country. You get to play. And then you get to 50 caps. And then you get to captain your country and lead them out and it’s ‘Wow!’ For me, it’s a surreal dream. I’ve been…

I MILLING ON the edge of the huddle of Saracens figures is one fan, waiting for the right moment to cut in and interrupt. And with a natural break in the flow of conversation, they seize their chance. Sorry mate, they throw at the figure in front of them, could I possibly, you know, er, maybe grab a photo? “You don’t want a photo with me,” says the Saracens, England and Lions legend, Richard Hill MBE. “You want one with him over there – he’s the future!” Hill is grinning, pointing in the direction of young Maro Itoje, who’s almost startled. This is in the nascent days of Itoje’s elite rugby career, and the scene plays out upstairs at the bar of the now StoneX Stadium during a sevens event.…

EVERYONE LOVES a fighter and in Neve Jones, 5ft 2 in and 72kg soaking wet, Ireland have a 24-carat gem. An enduring memory from last year’s TikTok Six Nations is of the Antrim-born hooker getting involved in some goal-line argy-bargy against England. “I’m not sure what happened, it may have been an arm flailing, but I thought ‘I’m not going to take that!’” says Jones, 24, when we ask her about the incident. “For anyone I play with, I’ve got their back and if I see someone getting something they don’t deserve I’m going to stick up for them. A little feistiness never hurt anybody.” England won 69-0 that day at Welford Road but Jones typified the pluck of the Irish. “It was 10-0 at half-time and that’s huge for…

WOMEN’S RUGBY is one of the fastest-growing sports in the country. Millions watched the World Cup last year, with 1.7 million tuning in to England’s loss to New Zealand in a thrilling final in November. The Women’s Six Nations is breaking attendance records and the Red Roses are going to play their first stand-alone game at Twickenham during the 2023 tournament. Allianz Premier 15s matches are attracting more fans. League games are being streamed by the BBC and the knockout rounds broadcast on BT. The professionalism is on the rise too. Wales and Italy are now among countries to have introduced player contracts and over recent seasons clubs have paid match fees. But the refereeing in the Premier 15s is not fully professional and can create questions for casual fans.…

FOUR MONTHS after losing his livelihood at a club he loved so dearly that he joined on three separate occasions, Nizaam Carr is finally ready to share his story. Sat before his smartphone, perched inside his Pretoria home, joyful shrieks from the back-rower’s young children Fatima and Naeem can be heard from a nearby room. They provided a timely reminder of what was at stake when he was among the players, coaches and staff to be instantly made redundant when Wasps, the six-time English champions, were liquidated last year. With one crushing announcement, the former Springbok was left unemployed, thousands of miles from home and with a young family to provide for. “I was in a dark space but I didn’t want to admit it,” the 31-year-old says. “Because that’s…

SPOKES IN THE WHEEL Unexpected setbacks interrupted Keighley’s ambition to win back-to-back titles. The day after head coach Dan McGee was rushed to hospital for an emergency hernia operation, his side suffered a surprise 32-20 loss to West Leeds. The following week, Keighley were leading Beverley 19-17 when the Yorkshire One match was abandoned 11 minutes from full-time after referee Andy Baker pulled a hamstring. Things still look bright for McGee’s men. “We originally had a top-six finish in hand but we’ve competed against everyone so far,” he said. WYGGS WHAM Jack Elliott, the Oadby Wyggestonian fly-half and captain, completed 150 first-team appearances in the 39-31 win at Sutton Coldfield. And the Fleetwood family, also of Wyggs, had a day to savour. Full-back Andy turned out alongside sons Jack, 20,…

IT’S REALLY naive to suggest that there aren’t rivalries within teams. At every single club, national team, British & Irish Lions, there are rivalries the whole way up. You are competing for your spot and that spot means more game time, it means a pay increase and access to a different wage structure and bonuses. That rivalry exists because if you’re driven and you want to do well in professional rugby, you have to outwork and outperform whoever else is fighting for that same jersey. That doesn’t mean bad blood, or at least it shouldn’t. I’ve roomed with guys that I competed with for a national jersey who were really good guys and that made for some healthy competition. In 16 or 17 years of rugby I can only think…

YOU DON’T have to hunt for long if you’re looking for stories to hammer rugby with right now. So as a bit of a palate cleanser, I asked my cousin’s son, Murray, eight, what he’d made of the Six Nations. At me came a charming stream of how he and his dad had spent match days at Murrayfield lately. Pizzas, churros, cheering the team bus… And that’s not to mention him being around at a great time for young Scottish fans (I wouldn’t dare bring him down with tales of the wilderness years). But what stood out was his enjoyment of interacting with those around him, equally buzzing. We’ve seen some exceptional stuff so far this tournament, and not just in Edinburgh. The conclusion will be dramatic and arresting. And…

8 Canada The Barbarians have appointed Kingsley Jones (above) as Eddie Jones’s assistant coach for this summer’s Killik Cup match against the World XV. The game takes place on Sunday 28 May at Twickenham. 9 Fiji Fijian Drua have brought in winger Eroni Sau (above) for the Super Rugby Pacific season as a replacement for sacked star Vinaya Habosi. Nicknamed ‘Sledgehammer’, Sau comes in from France’s ProD2 side Provence. 10 Japan Pumas head coach Michael Cheika has left his role as DoR at Japan League One’s NEC Green Rockets (above). Lack of time spent with the elite Japanese side is believed to be a key factor behind the decision.…

DOWN IN the bowels of Twickenham post Calcutta Cup, victorious Scotland scrum-half Ben White was explaining that his usual trip to London Irish training took him on a route that gave pause to daydreams. “Driving past the stadium, it’s been on my mind that I’d love to play here against England,” he said of Twickenham. “I just wanted that opportunity and I’m very grateful to Gregor Townsend for giving it to me. I know what it means to the fans, I spoke to a few supporters at the end.” And no doubt what they were saying to him would be barely intelligible. In 2021, Scotland won at Twickenham for the first time in 38 years. Wins there are rare. So to do so back-to-back – and in White’s case to…

WE ARE in a huddle on a field at the edge of the Thames, feeling sorry for ourselves. It is raining, it is freezing, the Thames looks brown and bulging and we have just lost to Glasgow. This after a journey that went Cape Town to Johannesburg, Jo’burg to Doha, Doha to London, London to Glasgow. What victims. Oozing doubt. And then superb skipper Steven Kitshoff asks – even by his standards – a pretty simple question. “If anyone had told you a year ago that you could be playing for the Stormers and you would be in London preparing for a Heineken Cup game against London Irish, would you have come up this river by canoe without complaint?” It changes everything. The truth is yes. Hell, we would have…

RUGBY WAS basically inevitable. For all the love young Vakhtang housed for Liverpool and the round ball in those heady days, there was no getting away from it – he was a young Georgian lad, in Dublin, and his father, Nikola, was a capped back-rower. And although he was a central midfielder, he was bulking up. He would become a different kind of set-piece threat. Today Abdaladze is a loosehead for Leinster and last November he earned his first cap for his homeland of Georgia, coming off the bench against Uruguay. A special moment for his family. You may be wondering how the prop ended up in Ireland as a kid anyway. He does. “I’ve never really sat down and chatted to the parents about the ins and outs,” he…

PLUS POINTS have been thin on the ground for Wales this season. A string of defeats, many of them heavy, preceded the extraordinary impasse between players and union over contracts, a dispute that put the staging of the Wales v England fixture in serious jeopardy. Before RW sits down to chat to Jac Morgan, we’ve already been told that questions about the contracts issue are off limits. No worries. We were not expecting the young back-row to give us chapter and verse on the subject, but a sign of just how delicate things are at present came when we asked whether he was in the Wales leadership group. “Um…” replied Morgan after a pause before Verity Williams, the team’s estimable communications manager, interjected with: “We do have a group but…

ACROSS 1 The jumping stag on this Gloucester club’s logo came from a beer bottle (6) 4 - - - pass, play that changes the direction of the attack (6) 9 Pro referee Ian on England Rugby’s books – a stormy fellow? (7) 10 Gabby - - -, Six Nations TV presenter (5) 11 Stormers coach John Dobson pleaded for help concerning long - - - flights (4) 12 - - - Adams, Wales wing who played in the 2021 Lions series decider (4) 13 - - - McLoughlin, Irish legend who died in November 2021 (3) 15 Span around for a recent study that found 86% of rugby players take pre-match ones (4) 16 For a tackle from behind, you want to - - - your arms around the hips/legs of the…

NATASHA HUNT, the Gloucester-Hartpury and England scrum-half, says that as much as missing out on the World Cup hurt her, she is not focusing on her heartbreak. Rather, ‘Mo’ is working on her own game and letting “her rugby do the talking”. Hunt wasn’t picked by soon-to-depart head coach Simon Middleton for the tournament in New Zealand. Instead, he chose Leanne Infante and Lucy Packer, with Claudia MacDonald also able to cover the nine shirt for the team that went on to lose to the hosts in the final. In reaction to being left out, Hunt has got stuck in with Gloucester and carried her good form into her club’s best start to a Premier 15s season. When asked by Rugby World if she was on a ‘revenge tour’, the…

No more Delilah It was reported that they would ban the singing at the Principality Stadium of the 1960s Tom Jones hit song Delilah. While rugby authorities may have concerns over the lyrics, this song has a strong tune, well-suited to being belted out by thousands at a match. As someone said a long time ago: “Why should the Devil have all the best tunes?” We’ve become accustomed to “reuse and recycle” when it comes to physical objects which we no longer want, so why not reuse and recycle this tune? Jay Flynn, Maidenhead, Berkshire On the road to league The Oxford English Dictionary is in need of a rewrite! The term ‘hooker’ used to have two meanings; now alas the one appertaining to the person in the middle of…