Rugby World Cup 2015: England are wrong to target Australia scrum and we’ll prove it in Twickenham showdown, says Wallabies coach Michael Cheika October 1, 2015 Australia coach Michael Cheika has urged his team to prove England wrong and condemn the hosts to the ignominy of becoming the first World Cup hosts to suffer group stage elimination. England No8 Ben Morgan has indicated they will look to exploit their historic scrummaging superiority tomorrow at Twickenham in pursuit of the win they [...]
UK hotels score at Rugby World Cup October 1, 2015 Wales wasn’t the only victor last weekend. Hotels also shared in the Rugby World Cup fever and enjoyed a surge in demand as fans flocked to host cities around the UK. Online searches for hotel rooms in London between 24 and 28 September – when England played Wales at Twickenham stadium – surged by [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: Stuart Lancaster must stick with Owen Farrell for England v Australia, argues Mike Tindall October 1, 2015 World Cup-winning centre Mike Tindall insists fly-half Owen Farrell should retain his place at No10 ahead of George Ford for England’s pivotal clash with Australia at Twickenham on Saturday. Farrell kicked 20 points during England’s disastrous 28-25 defeat to Wales and is poised to keep his place when head coach Stuart Lancaster names his [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: We can cause upset, insists coach John McKee September 30, 2015 Fiji head coach John McKee insists his side are a more potent unit now than when they last faced Wales 10 months ago, a game which saw Warren Gatland’s outfit suffer an almighty scare. The Pacific Islanders lost 17-13 at the Millennium Stadium in November and have previous for dousing the principality’s World Cup hopes, [...]
Rugby World Cup: Will Carling refuses to end England verbal jousting September 29, 2015 Former England captain Will Carling has continued his verbal jousting with the England camp ahead of their must-win clash with Australia on Saturday and reiterated that harsh lessons must be learned quickly. Carling delivered a damning verdict in the wake of England’s 28-25 demise at the hands of Wales on Saturday, in particular accusing head [...]
Rugby World Cup: Australia are underdogs for England clash, insists Michael Cheika September 29, 2015 Australia coach Michael Cheika insists his side are the underdogs for Saturday’s pivotal Pool A clash at Twickenham despite England staring down the barrel of World Cup elimination following their calamitous defeat to Wales. Cheika’s preparations were dealt a blow yesterday after experienced No8 Wycliff Palu and giant second row Will Skelton were ruled out [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: England v Australia tickets fetching £4,000 September 29, 2015 Tickets for England's pivotal Rugby World Cup match against Australia on Saturday are fetching a record £4,000 apiece on the re-sale market. The price is a record for seats at any match other than a final, not just in rugby union but across all sports, says re-sale platform Viagogo, where the tickets were sold. England [...]
Rugby has a brilliant, unique brand – it should do more to showcase it at the World Cup September 28, 2015 Three years ago, I was engaged by the RFU to look at their brand identity and it was then that my preconceptions of rugby as a studious game for privileged southerners challenged (I’m originally from the North West of England and a lifelong fan of Everton). But rather than becoming an evangelical convert, my apathy [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: England v Australia game is now a final, says Ben Youngs September 27, 2015 Pre-tournament chatter centred on England emulating the World Cup-winning class of 2003, but scrum-half Ben Youngs admits Saturday’s must-win showdown against Australia represents the current vintage’s moment of destiny. England’s 28-25 error-strewn Twickenham surrender to an injury-plagued Wales at the weekend means Stuart Lancaster’s side are running the risk of becoming the first host [...]
England v Wales in Rugby World Cup 2015 thriller: Geoff Parling defends Chris Robshaw penalty call in England defeat September 27, 2015 England skipper Chris Robshaw may live to regret his decision to spurn a late kick at goal which could have levelled matters against Wales on Saturday, but second-row Geoff Parling has pointed the finger elsewhere. Robshaw shouldered responsibility for England opting against a penalty kick with three minutes of their 28-25 demise against Wales remaining, [...]