Saracens star brings rugby to the City’s heart August 23, 2012 SARACENS caused a stir in the City again last night when the high-flying rugby team returned to the Honourable Artillery Club for a glitzy pre-season friendly against French stars Stade Francais. The 2011 Premiership champions won 61-17, with England winger Chris Ashton scoring a hat-trick. But it wasn’t just the rugby getting tongues wagging. The [...]
Rugby chiefs hand video ref greater power August 20, 2012 VIDEO replays are to be used more widely this season in top flight English rugby, with referees able to ask the television match official to look for any fouls he may have missed leading up to a try. The expansion of their responsibility from ruling solely on the grounding of the ball will apply only [...]
Stuart’s task is about to get far more difficult in unforgiving world of Test rugby March 30, 2012 STUART Lancaster’s appointment as England head coach is, I think, a good move. Nick Mallett would have done a good job as well, but after a very good Six Nations Lancaster deserves an opportunity to go forward with this job. I do believe, however, that it will become more difficult for Lancaster from now on, [...]
O2 extends rugby sponsorship February 6, 2012 Telecoms giant O2 has renewed its sponsorship agreement with the Rugby Football Union, which has been in place since rugby turned professional in 1995. The deal – which extends the partnership until after the 2015 Rugby World Cup – gives O2 customers priority booking for England matches at Twickenham while the telecoms company supports the [...]
Rugby chiefs win landmark case December 20, 2011 BUSINESS OF SPORT: The Rugby Football Union has won a landmark legal ruling allowing it access to the names and addresses of people who used secondary ticketing website Viagogo to sell on seats. The RFU has vowed to clamp down on those who have broken their ticketing rules, and to take the same position with [...]
The rugby international who turned business star December 8, 2011 MULTI-TALENTED Sir Bill Gammell played international rugby for Scotland before employing his competitive skills in the business world. The well-connected entrepreneur attended Fettes College in Edinburgh with former Prime Minister Tony Blair before moving on to the University of Stirling, where he obtained a BA in Economics and Accountancy. Gammell’s talents also stretched to the [...]
Helping Scottish rugby on and off field December 8, 2011 TOMORROW we face Doncaster Knights at the Richmond Athletic Ground (3pm kick-off) in what can only be described as a must win encounter. We were very disappointed with the result against Cornish Pirates last weekend. I feel we were on the end of a backlash from the Pirates’ defeat in their previous game, ironically against [...]
TRAIN-ING | Rugby stars play at City station December 1, 2011 PREMIERSHIP champions Saracens stunned onlookers at Liverpool Street Station yesterday by practising at the busy City terminal. Players Mouritz Botha (with ball), Jacques Burger and Kelly Brown put on line-out demonstrations and even roped in curious passers-by for some impromptu training as part of the build-up to their Heineken Cup clash with Ospreys at Wembley [...]
Former Scotland rugby cap can’t pull off India success in Greenland November 30, 2011 “THERE’S a whole ocean of oil under our feet! No one can get at it except for me!” So screams Daniel Day Lewis as Plainview in Hollywood blockbuster There Will be Blood. Sir Bill Gammell, then chief executive of Cairn, must have expressed similar sentiments when he struck lucky in India in 2004. The former Scotland [...]
OVER AND OUT | Worsley retires from rugby November 14, 2011 FORMER England international Joe Worsley announced his retirement yesterday after conceding defeat in his battle to overcome a persistent neck injury. The 34-year-old Wasps stalwart, capped 78 times by his country, admitted he knew the end was nigh during England’s pre-World Cup training camp. He said: “Re-starting contact work during the World Cup camp made [...]