Ollie Phillips: England’s exciting back line can trouble any team in crucial Six Nations January 17, 2019 Eddie Jones announcing his squad for the Six Nations yesterday marks the start of a make-or-break period for the England coach. England can’t feel their way into the competition, with defending champions Ireland up first in Dublin on 2 February, so Jones has named 35 fit and in-form players. With big challenges ahead in this [...]
Premiership faces having just one team in Champions Cup quarter-final unless Exeter Chiefs pull off an historic win at Munster January 16, 2019 England's hopes of having more than one team in the European Champions Cup quarter-finals were given a lifeline last weekend as Exeter Chiefs rallied to a bonus point win over Castres at Sandy Park. Despite that statement performance, the Chiefs will have to gather themselves and go again this weekend if they are to progress [...]
Ollie Phillips: Scrapping relegation could help Premiership balance the books after CVC Capital Partners’ investment January 10, 2019 Debate about the possible scrapping of relegation from the Premiership is not new, but following the recent investment into the division it has been given new impetus. Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners’ deal last month to inject £200m for around 27 per cent of Premiership Rugby is significant because it changes the league’s objectives. [...]
Concussion continues to cause concern as English rugby injury audit reveals rise in player absence January 9, 2019 It’s almost a year since the Rugby Football Union released an eight-point action plan to tackle the increasing severity of injuries in professional rugby, but the size of their task remains daunting. Injuries are an unfortunate side-effect of the sport, however, an annual report released on Wednesday by the RFU, Premiership Rugby and Rugby Players' [...]
Ollie Phillips: All to play for at the halfway point of a tight and unpredictable Premiership season January 3, 2019 Saracens and Exeter may be streets ahead at the top of the Premiership, but at the halfway stage of the season every other position is up for grabs. Although I’m backing last year’s finalists to repeat the trick, there’s plenty of intrigue elsewhere to keep us guessing until May. There is very little consistency in [...]
Ollie Phillips: Johnny Sexton’s outstanding Ireland and dominant Saracens lead my 2018 roll of honour December 20, 2018 There is only one place to start a look back at rugby in 2018 and that’s with its best side. Ireland have been the undoubted stars of the last 12 months. They may not have overtaken New Zealand as No1 in the world rankings, but their first ever home win over the All Blacks last [...]
Saracens trip to play Exeter Chiefs will be the toughest test yet in their 22 game unbeaten run December 20, 2018 Saracens face the biggest obstacle yet in their quest to go the season unbeaten when they visit Sandy Park to face Exeter Chiefs on Saturday. The Premiership's top two teams will go head-to-head for the first time this season in what is the most significant match of the campaign to date. Exeter and Saracens have [...]
Ollie Phillips: Elliot Daly’s proposed move to Saracens makes sense for the England man – but Wasps need to be weary of their brewing exodus December 13, 2018 The rumour mill has begun to turn and there are some big names considering moves in the Premiership right now. The most active club appear to be Wasps – but not in the way they’d like, with the makings of an exodus brewing in Coventry. A third of the squad's contracts expire at the end [...]
Can CVC Capital Partners’ £230m investment into Premiership Rugby save loss-making English clubs? December 12, 2018 It may not quite have got over the line at this week’s board meeting but CVC Capital Partners’ prospective acquisition of a minority stake in Premiership Rugby now seems to be a question of when, not if – and then, what will it mean for a domestic game ailing financially? The most significant immediate change [...]
Ollie Phillips: Leicester need to face harsh realities if they are to end losing streak in Champions Cup this weekend December 6, 2018 Leicester travel to Paris to play Racing 92 in the Champions Cup on Sunday on a losing run and in a difficult position. The Tigers are second in Pool 4, with one win and one defeat from their opening two matches, but are not playing well and haven’t won a match since 6 October. Coach [...]