Rugby

This Thursday sees the winner of the rugby category unveiled at the Sunday Times Sports Book Awards in London. Rugby World looks at the six titles vying for glory David Willis, founder and chairman of the Sports Book Awards, being interviewed in 2019 (Getty Images) The contenders for Rugby Book of the Year Launched in

Saracens prop Richard Barrington is to leave the former Premiership and European champions after nine years. The 31-year-old made 220 appearances, playing in all four of the club’s Premiership final wins and helped them clinch three Heineken Champions Cups. The former Jersey Reds forward will move to French side Agen next season. “I have loved

Bristol (14) 40 Tries: Sheedy, Piutau (2), Leiua, Fricker, Morahan Cons: Sheedy 4, Lloyd Exeter (14) 33 Tries: Grondona, Hodge, Kenny, Woodburn, Ewers Cons: Simmonds 4 Six-try Bristol Bears beat Exeter to leave the Chiefs almost certain to miss out on the Premiership play-offs for the first time since 2015. Callum Sheedy and Charles Piutau

Exeter and Bristol have made league history by reaching the semi-finals for the first time Exeter’s Gabby Cantorna on the ball against Bristol (Getty Images) Exeter v Bristol Premier 15s Semi-final Preview Bristol Bears travel to Sandy Park on Sunday to face Exeter Chiefs in a history-making Allianz Premier 15s semi-final. Neither team has been

Wayne Pivac has named his group for the three-Test series against South Africa in July Dan Biggar will captain Wales in South Africa (Getty Images) We now know who will represent Wales on the July tour of South Africa, as Wayne Pivac named his summer tour squad. Dan Biggar will continue on as captain of

1:25 PM BST DUBLIN, Ireland — Expect to hear the word “runway” a lot over the next decade in and around rugby corridors. That’s the crux of why World Rugby announced the hosts of the next five Rugby World Cups on Thursday — to give the sport enough time to plan their next global gatherings

London Irish: (16) 25 Tries: White Con: Jackson Pens: Jackson 6 Worcester: (18) 25 Tries: Kvesic, Humphreys, Hatherell Cons: Smith 2 Pens: Smith 2 Worcester won a dramatic Premiership Rugby Cup final on tries scored after extra time against London Irish. Kyle Hatherell’s last-gasp try after the clock had passed 80 minutes sent the match

10:51 AM BST England coach Eddie Jones has included 10 uncapped players, including in-form London Irish duo Henry Arundell and Will Joseph, in a 36-man training squad to prepare for the summer tour of Australia. Joe Cokanasiga, Owen Farrell, Manu Tuilagi, Anthony Watson and Jack Willis return following injury, while prop Mako Vunipola has also

8:06 AM BST South Africa flyhalf Elton Jantjies was arrested for “malicious damage to property” after an incident on an Emirates airlines flight from Dubai to Johannesburg on Sunday, police said. The 31-year-old, who won the Rugby World Cup with South Africa in 2019, was arrested at OR Tambo International airport after disembarking the flight,

Leinster (23) 40 Tries: Lowe 2, Van der Flier, Keenan Cons: Sexton 3, Byrne Pen: Sexton 3, Byrne Toulouse (10) 17 Tries: Dupont, Tolofua Cons: Ramos 2 Pen: Ramos Leinster reached their first Champions Cup final since 2019 with a comfortable 40-17 win over holders Toulouse in a sun-kissed Dublin. The dominant hosts led 23-10

Catch the action from Dublin wherever you are in the world Leinster’s Robbie Henshaw is tackled by Romain Ntamack of Toulouse in 2019 (Sportsfile/Getty Images) Leinster v Toulouse live stream: How to watch the Champions Cup semi-final from anywhere Two rugby powerhouses meet at the Aviva Stadium this afternoon with a place in the European

3:42 PM BST Kathleen McNamee DUBLIN, Ireland — Building a lasting impact is something World Rugby has struggled with when it comes to the women’s game. But the word ‘legacy’ was central to its messaging as the organisation looks ahead to the next decade of the sport as the hosts for the World Cups in

England will host the 2025 women’s tournament, Australia will stage the men’s and women’s events in 2027 and 2029, while USA have been awarded 2031 and 2033 Rugby World Cup hosts announced The Rugby World Cup hosts for all tournaments up until 2033 have been announced. We now know where the next three women’s World

Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin Date: Saturday, 14 May Kick-off: 15:00 BST Coverage: Preview, team news and text updates online Leinster wing James Lowe says they are out to match Toulouse’s five titles as they head into Saturday’s Champions Cup semi-final against the the holders. The four-time champions lie just one behind the French side’s tally

10:32 AM BST An off night with the boot from Lori Cramer and some impatient play has cost the Wallaroos in a reality-check 12-10 Test loss to Japan. Fullback Cramer missed both conversions and then a straightforward penalty kick with two minutes to play that would have won the sloppy Tuesday night contest on the

Is there evidence of certain players making success for their team far more likely? We canvassed coaches and analysts for their views Antoine Dupont (Getty Images/additional artwork by Michael Rawley) In search of rugby’s Force Multipliers It’s all about the weapons in your arsenal.  In military terms – and we’re boiling it right down here

Sale Sharks director of rugby Alex Sanderson says the reduction in the Premiership salary cap is making it harder for English teams to compete with French sides in Europe. There will be no English representation in the Champions Cup semi-finals after Sale were beaten 41-22 by Racing 92. The Premiership salary cap was cut by

If the ball size was to change, we ponder if there would need to be any short-term technical adjustments Helena Rowland passes the ball for England (Getty Images ) One of rugby’s enduring debates has sparked back to life again this week – should women play with a smaller ball? It was prompted after Ireland’s