Edinburgh 17-22 Zebre: What Everitt said
Edinburgh coach Sean Everitt told Premier Sports: "They put us under pressure, it's not something that we didn't prepare for. We lost the physicality battle, especially at the breakdown. "If you look at the stats, we had 150 rucks to their 60-odd. They managed to put us under pressure there. We couldn't play, so credit to them - the passion they showed and the physicality they showed. They scored a good maul try against us and we take pride in our maul."It didn't happen this evening so back to the drawing board for Edinburgh."Something you can't measure is passion. There were a lot of guys who tried hard out there. Luke Crosbie was outstanding tonight. We'll have to go back and have a look at it."It's a contact sport and if you don't win the contact, you're always going to be on the back-foot and we lost momentum there."The Munster game becomes important. We're not dead in this competition, everyone is alive, but we need to pick ourselves up on Monday, work harder and start winning away from home."We had enough time to prepare. Everyone is in the same position. The Italians also play in the Six Nations. We have to look at ourselves."
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Scotsman
7 hours ago
- Scotsman
Gregor Townsend expects talks on his Scotland future as landmark looms
Sign up to our Rugby Union newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Gregor Townsend has entered the final year of his Scotland contract but has offered little indication as to whether he expects his tenure to be extended. The 52-year-old head coach has already taken charge of more games - 92 - than any of his predecessors and is on course to hit the century mark during next year's Six Nations. Whether he remains in situ beyond the championship remains to be seen. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad His deal expires in April and although talks have taken place with Alex Williamson, Scottish Rugby's new chief executive, and David Nucifora, the performance director who has been hired on a consultancy basis, Townsend said they were not related to his contract. Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend announces his squad for the Skyscanner Pacific Tour. | SNS Group 'I've had conversations with both David and Alex about the future but not necessarily my future,' he said. '[They were] just about where the team is going, reviewing the Six Nations but also areas that we might have to strengthen or look to bring more players through, what's the challenges. So they're normal, those conversations, but nothing about my own situation. 'So I'd imagine those conversations will start as we get closer to November or after the summer tour.' Townsend, who has led Scotland into two Rugby World Cup and eight Six Nations Championships, sees the tour as a chance to gain important ranking points which would help his side gain a higher seeding when the draw for the 2027 World Cup takes place in December this year. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It opens with a (non-ranking) fixture against the Māori All Blacks in Whangārei on July 5 and continues with two Test matches, against Fiji and Samoa, which will count towards the world rankings. Scotland sit seventh at the moment, tucked in between sixth-placed England and eighth-placed Australia, and Townsend would like to see his team in the top six in time for the draw, thus ensuring they would be in the first group of seeds and avoiding the calamity of the last World Cup when, as third seeds, they were paired with South Africa and Ireland and eliminated in the pool stage for the second tournament running. The match with the Māori All Blacks will be Scotland's first since they lost to France in the Six Nations finale and the period since has been a time for reflection and education, said Townsend. He travelled to Australia to spend time with the Brisbane Broncos and Melbourne Storm rugby league teams and the Brisbane Lions Australian Rules side, while assistant coach Pete Horne went to New Zealand. For the second year running, Scotland finished fourth in the Six Nations, winning two and losing three, an outcome that fell below expectations. Not surprisingly, Townsend was keener to draw on the positives from the tournament and felt that Scotland's performance against France in Paris offered cause for optimism despite the 35-16 defeat. He felt his side matched the champions physically and talked up the way his forwards competed. Gregor Townsend felt Scotland fronted up physically against France in the final game of this year's Six Nations. | SNS Group 'We've reflected a lot on our performance, we've had learnings,' said Townsend. 'Pete Horne was out in New Zealand for three weeks, I was out in Australia for a week, so it is a good period to not just focus on your own game but how can you add from other experiences. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'The most relevant game is the last one you played, which I thought was a really positive performance in Paris. And it gives me a lot of optimism of what our team can do when we go up against a big side. And the big sides we've gone up against this year - South Africa, Ireland, England, France, the real physical teams. . . . Most - not the Ireland game, but South Africa, France and England - we've really fronted up physically and we've been able to impose our game.' That may be so but Scotland still lost those games and there remains doubts about the depth of their forward resources to compete against South Africa, Ireland and France who are able to field ferocious starting packs and replace them with equally formidable substitutes. 'There are other areas we have to improve, we know that,' added Townsend. 'Taking opportunities. We were held up over the line against France, we were held up a couple of times against Wales, and we had opportunities against England - we should have scored another seven to 14 points. 'But a lot of the game that we want to work on with our players is in place. It's against the top teams as well, and accuracy and keep driving our game, our players driving it as much as the coaches, is what we want to do with the team. But there's nothing there when we reflected 'Oh we really need to change this,' or 'This is a big part of the game that we're struggling with'. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'I think the forwards in particular showed what they can deliver this year, so that gives us a lot of encouragement for the future.' Fiji's Tevita Ikanivere leads the cibi war dance before the match against Scotland at Murrayfield in November. | SNS Group / SRU Next month's games are against sides ranked below Scotland but have a hazardous feel to them. The Scots scored eight tries in beating Fiji 57-17 at Murrayfield in November but playing them in the heat and humidity of Suva is a different challenge altogether as Townsend knows only too well. His first tour in charge of Scotland saw them lose 27-22 in the Fijian capital in 2017. The final game, against Samoa, will be played at Eden Park in Auckland, negating any home advantage the islanders might have had. Sky Sports will show live coverage of the opener against the Māori All Blacks which is scheduled for 4.35am in the UK. The Fiji match on July 12 is another which should suit insomniacs and kicks off at 4am while the Samoa game on July 18 starts at the more respectable 9.05am BST. A broadcaster has yet to be confirmed for the latter two but talks are ongoing. Scotland's Skyscanner Pacific Tour squad Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Backs: Fergus Burke (Saracens), Matt Currie (Edinburgh), Jamie Dobie (Glasgow), Darcy Graham (Edinburgh), Adam Hastings (Glasgow), George Horne (Glasgow), Tom Jordan (Glasgow), Cameron Redpath (Bath), Stafford McDowall (Glasgow), Harry Paterson (Edinburgh), Arron Reed (Sale), Kyle Rowe (Glasgow), Ollie Smith (Glasgow), Kyle Steyn (Glasgow), Ben White (Toulon). Forwards: Ewan Ashman (Edinburgh), Josh Bayliss (Bath), Gregor Brown (Glasgow), Matt Fagerson (Glasgow), Rory Darge (Glasgow, capt), Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh), Paddy Harrison (Edinburgh), Cameron Henderson (Leicester), Alec Hepburn (Scarlets), Will Hurd (Leicester), Alexander Masibaka (Soyaux Angouleme), Nathan McBeth (Glasgow), Elliot Millar Mills (Northampton), Ben Muncaster (Edinburgh), Andy Onyeama-Christie (Saracens), Fin Richardson (Glasgow), Jamie Ritchie (Edinburgh), Rory Sutherland (Glasgow), Marshall Sykes (Edinburgh), George Turner (Kobe Steelers), Max Williamson (Glasgow).
Wales Online
a day ago
- Wales Online
Ross Harries: 'Every Sunday was like presenting Newsnight rather than Scrum V'
Ross Harries: 'Every Sunday was like presenting Newsnight rather than Scrum V' Ross Harries has been one of Welsh rugby's leading presenters for over a decade, dealing with the sport's 'exhausting' politics and subplots Premier Sports presenter Ross Harries (Image: ©INPHO/Billy Stickland ) Ross Harries has spent the past 14 years as a central figure in Welsh rugby broadcasting, becoming one of the most trusted voices in the sport. From presenting the BBC's flagship Scrum V programme to covering the Six Nations and Rugby World Cups, Harries has reported on some of the greatest moments in Welsh rugby — as well as its most turbulent chapters. Today, Harries fronts Premier Sports' rugby coverage, and with Welsh rugby in arguably its most precarious state for years, he's well placed to assess the current crisis and whether the game in Wales can emerge stronger on the other side. Despite the national team's decline and uncertainty surrounding the future of the regions, Harries is confident there are better times ahead for Welsh rugby. "The one thing I always cling to is that we always produce good rugby players," he told WalesOnline. "I regularly travel to all the different territories the URC covers. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby. "There's still a perception when you chat to people from Ireland, Scotland and South Africa that Wales still has a reputation for producing skilful and gifted rugby players. Article continues below "Take the rise of someone like Blair Murray. "A cynic might say he's come through the New Zealand system and he is a Welsh international but he represents that Welsh flair. "If you were to create a Scarlets player in the lab you'd come up with Blair Murray. "He's a player who plays head-up rugby, is a really skilful footballer and can play in multiple positions across the backline. "If you look at the Scarlets backs there's tons of hope for the future there. "When you consider not so long ago Jonathan Davies and Scott Williams were still in the squad but couldn't get a game because you've got Macs Page, Johnny Williams, Eddie James and Tom Rogers, who is having almost a renaissance, isn't he, after his initial rise. "So, I look at that Scarlets backline and think 'jeez, those players are as skilful as anyone across the domestic leagues in Europe'. "We just need a few nasty, meaty forwards to get our national team back on track. "But we have Dewi Lake and Jac Morgan, who is one of the only genuine world-class players we have. "There's always hope and things do go in cycles. "I'm confident we can climb out of it." This weekend, Harries will lead Premier Sports' coverage of the United Rugby Championship final between Leinster and the Bulls at Croke Park — a massive occasion in one of sport's most iconic stadiums. After more than a decade in broadcasting, you might think the big days would lose their shine but Harries insists they still get the blood flowing. 'We can be a jaded bunch as journalists and broadcasters but I think it's really important that despite all the negativity we experience that we can have those pinch-me moments,' he said. 'I remember one specific game when I presented Ireland v Wales in the Six Nations in Dublin. "It was one of those weekends where everything had been done last minute. We'd done the U20s game in Athlone on the Friday then had a late bus journey to Dublin after that. "Everyone had had a few beers on the bus and I was just sitting there with my laptop scrabbling together the running order for the Test match. "I was flying back that night to present Scrum V in the club, so my mind was frazzled because I was trying to juggle three running orders at once. 'I was aware that audience figures in those Six Nations games get up to 8-9 million figures at times. "You've got all that stuff going through your head, so it can sometimes be easy to lose focus of the bigger picture. "I remember standing there about five minutes before going on air and I was trying to compose myself. "It was a sold-out Aviva Stadium for Ireland versus Wales. It was around the time when that rivalry was at its fiercest. "I was just thinking 'let's get through this and make sure you get to the airport in time to catch your flight'. Join WalesOnline Rugby's WhatsApp Channel here to get the breaking news sent straight to your phone for free "I remember just turning around and Brian O'Driscoll and Gordon D'Arcy were doing some passing drills in the dead ball area directly behind me. "I just had this almost like an epiphany where I went 'jeez, that's one of the greatest centre pairings that's ever played rugby' and here I am standing just yards from them with a mic in hand about to present the coverage of their game against Wales. "It had this really relaxing effect on me and I thought, 'do you know what, I need to appreciate this as it's happening'.' Growing up in the 1980s and early 1990s, Harries had few triumphs to cheer for as a Welsh rugby fan. But as a broadcaster, he's been front and centre for some of the national team's most iconic moments — including Sam Warburton's rise as captain. 'I remember interviewing Sam Warburton when he'd come back from the 2011 World Cup and bless him he was getting so much press coverage," he said. "I almost didn't want to do the interview but I had to do it. I knew he'd be sick of getting asked about the red card. "He was such a gentleman and he was so diplomatic. He handled it so well for a 22-year-old. "We became quite friendly as a result of that. There's always a line you don't want to cross in broadcasting because ultimately you've got to maintain a level of professionalism. "I remember after that 2012 Grand Slam victory over France I was right down on the touchline. "The final whistle blew and Sam was there because he'd come off injured. He just launched himself into the air doing a fist pump before turning around and I was the first person he saw. "He enveloped me in this massive bear hug. It was one of those moments where I thought 'you know what, I've probably compromised my professionalism a bit here and I hope my boss doesn't see that on the coverage' but it felt like 'wow, this is amazing'.' Unfortunately Welsh rugby has slipped back into its old ways with the men's national team slipping to a record 17 defeats in a row and the regions struggling to achieve consistent success. Harries was a prominent journalist in Wales the last time there was a rift of this magnitude between the Welsh Rugby Union and its four professional clubs - Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets. The future of Welsh rugby is uncertain with a tiered funding model and the possibility of reducing a club or two being considered. Get the latest breaking Welsh rugby news stories sent straight to your inbox with our FREE daily newsletter. Sign up here. Working as a journalist through such turbulent periods is extremely challenging, as Harries knows all too well. "It can get really depressing, can't it?" he added, "I remember there was a long period where there was a huge row which felt never ending when Roger Lewis was CEO. "There was that constant warring between the union and the regions. It wasn't too dissimilar to what we are seeing now, although there seems to be a bit more collaboration now. "I know there's still a lot of antagonism and people have entirely different opinions of how the game should be run. "But back then it got really quite malicious. I was hosting Scrum V. At that point it seemed every Sunday was like presenting Newsnight rather than Scrum V. "It almost became a political show where every week we were trying to hold WRU directors and regional directors to account. "While it was an important subject that needed to be covered I think Welsh rugby fans as a whole just got really jaded with it all and they lost their appetite for rugby. "Ultimately it was a rugby show that was supposed to show highlights and analysis with a bit of fun and humour. "In Wales sometimes if you try to inject a bit of humour you then get accused by the social media mob of trivialising things or not taking things seriously enough. "You have to cover the political stuff and you have to give it the air time it deserves, but equally you have to remember that 80-90% of rugby fans aren't really interested in that." So, what is Harries' views of Welsh rugby's latest crisis? "It is exhausting," he admits. "There seems to be a bit more of a will to compromise than there has been in the past. "Back in the days of Roger Lewis some of those press releases were quite malevolent in tone and it seemed like it was us against them, whereas there seems to be more of an attempt to build a consensus here. "But the numbers just aren't adding up, are they? We've got four regions - none of whom have won anything since Cardiff won the Challenge Cup in 2018. "The sums seem to point towards cutting a region but we all know politically and socially that could be disastrous for Welsh rugby. "In an ideal world what we need is more money. "Look at Rachel Reeves at the moment, she is trying to satisfy everyone but she can't say yes to every request that comes across her desk. "It's almost the same thing in Welsh rugby. The money that Welsh rugby raises isn't sufficient to support four teams that can realistically compete for trophies. "Do we go down to those 2+2, 3+1 or does someone come in and do a David Moffett and take a sledge hammer to it all? "It just seems like we are in no man's land at the moment." Ross Harries is part of the Premier Sports team bringing every game live from the URC and will be lead presenter for URC's Grand Final this Saturday from 4pm on Premier Sports 1 as Leinster take on Vodacom Bulls at Croke Park. Ross will be alongside Tom Shanklin, John Barclay, Simon Zebo, Stephen Ferris, Ian Madigan Ryan Wilson and Rory Hamilton on commentary. Article continues below Premier Sports now broadcasts more than 400 live rugby games every season from the most exciting club rugby competitions in the world. 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BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Scotland players fear losing contracts after World Cup
More than half of Scotland women's squad fear being left without a professional contract and having to hunt for work after this summer's Rugby World Cup, a squad representative has claimed.A two-page statement sent to BBC Sport says only 15 members of the 38-player training squad are on year-long deals with Scottish could mean a number of the 23 who have been put on short-term arrangements will be looking for new employment and experiencing off-field upheaval by source claims that some players in the Rugby World Cup training camp are continuing to "suffer with their mental and emotional health following the potential loss of their contracts" as they prepare for the tournament, which is being hosted by added it was "not conducive" to "a positive performance environment within a squad".Scottish Rugby says it extended contracts to October to give players certainty for the event, which runs from 22 August to 27 added it had not yet confirmed which players would be offered contracts beyond October but intended to sort that in the coming weeks. The national body added: "Scottish Rugby has committed to providing confirmation of what the high-performance programme will look like by the end of June, at which time the players will be advised of the next steps in the contracting process, with individual meetings scheduled, and contracts concluded, in July ahead of the Rugby World Cup."In 2022, Scottish Rugby announced, external that 28 players would be offered professional remains unclear how many players beyond the 15 already on 12-month contracts will be offered new deals by the end of the of the Scotland training squad also have contracts with their club sides, the majority of which are PWR sides in that league does pay its players, it is not a professional league and most players combine playing with jobs or some Scotland players are not offered contracts beyond October, the source claims they will be left "job hunting or doing interviews during pre-season and during the World Cup".A group of players are understood to have approached the Women's Rugby Association (WRA) for advice. The WRA supported the Wales Women in 2024 following a long-running contract dispute with the Welsh Rugby approached by the BBC, the WRA was unable to confirm its position on representing the Scotland Scotland women do have some representation from the Rugby Players Scotland union, but a spokesperson confirmed that it only involves matters in the "collective interest" - for instance, agreeing a maternity policy for players. This does not currently include any individual contract Players Scotland told BBC Sport: "Rugby Players Scotland are working with our members to develop the collective interests of professional women's rugby in Scotland in collaboration with Scottish Rugby."Scotland's women are in pre-season training ahead of the Rugby World Cup in England. They play Wales in Manchester, in their opening Pool B game, on Saturday, 23 August.
