Tonight's rugby news as new Lion gets bedroom shock and Welsh teams learn Euro opponents
These are the rugby stories making headlines on Tuesday, July 1
British and Irish Lions' Blair Kinghorn
(Image: DAVID GRAY/AFP via Getty Images )
These are your headlines on Tuesday, July 1
Welsh clubs learn Euro fate
The four Welsh professional clubs have learned their European opponents for the upcoming campaign. The Scarlets, who will be competing in the Champions Cup, will face a tough group stage and will face defending champions Bordeaux and last season's runners-up Northampton Saints.
Bristol Bears, Bulls and Pau make up the standings in pool four.
In the Challenge Cup, the Ospreys will be up against Zebre, Montpellier, US Montauban, Black Lion and Connacht.
The Dragons have been drawn in a pool alongside Lyon, Newcastle, Benetton, Lions and USAP, while Cardiff, in pool three, will play the Cheetahs, Exeter, Racing 92, Stade Francais and Ulster.
The fixtures for the EPCR matches will be revealed in two weeks' time.
Round one gets under way the weekend of December 5-7.
Champions Cup draw
Pool 1: Toulouse, Clermont, Sharks, Saracens, Glasgow Warriors, Sale Sharks
Pool 2: Bath, Toulon, Munster, Castres, Edinburgh, Gloucester
Pool 3: Leinster, Leicester Tigers, Harlequins, La Rochelle, Bayonne, Stormers
Pool 4: Bordeaux-Begles, Scarlets, Bristol, Pau, Northampton, Bulls
Challenge Cup draw
Pool 1: Ospreys, Connacht, Zebre, Montpellier, US Montauban, Black Lion
Pool 2: Newcastle, Dragons, Benetton, Lions, Lyon, USAP
Pool 3: Ulster, Cardiff, Exeter Chiefs, Toyota Cheetahs, Racing 92, Stade Francais
Kinghorn has shock on arrival
By Duncan Bech, PA
Blair Kinghorn has revealed his first act upon arrival into the British and Irish Lions camp in Australia was to wake up captain Maro Itoje.
Two days after helping Toulouse clinch a third successive Top 14 title by beating Bordeaux in extra-time at the Stade de France, Kinghorn joined up with his new team-mates for the first time. He had been the one member of the selected touring party missing due to his club commitments. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack for the exclusive five-week tour diary from Japan and Australia.
And the Scotland full-back was given a shock when he entered his bedroom at the Lions' Brisbane hotel on Monday night.
'I was with Maro. I got in about quarter to 12. I was thinking, 'Surely there won't be anyone in the room',' he said.
'I go in, chuck the bags down and up he pops. I was like, 'Uh, sorry!' He'd been sleeping and I woke him up. It was funny – he woke up, shook my hand and went straight back to sleep.'
Kinghorn played 100 minutes of the Top 14 final and celebrated deep into the night before heading to the airport at midday to catch his flight from Paris to Brisbane.
'My bag was packed. I had to make sure everything was ready before going up from Toulouse to Paris on the Thursday,' said Kinghorn, who recently returned from eight weeks out with a knee injury.
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'Luckily my mum and my wife were there to help me take everything up because packing for two separate things is a bit stressful.
'I think I've got everything. All you need is your boots and your passport, so that's fine.
'It's good to finally be here and it feels a bit more real for me now. I've got all the kit and I'm with the boys.'
The Lions' third fixture on tour, against the Queensland Reds in Brisbane on Wednesday, has come too soon for Kinghorn to make his debut, but Saturday's New South Wales Waratahs clash is a realistic target.
While he is playing catch-up in the race for full-back duties against Australia, having arrived eight days later than the rest of the squad, he is very familiar with the environment he has entered.
'At Toulouse, the squad is so deep and so talented that you've got to be on top of your game. You've got to work hard in training every day,' he said.
'Coaches are on your back the whole time, which is great. It's high pressure, but it makes you thrive.
'It's the same with the Lions. Everyone's here to do their best and to win the Test series and have a successful tour. Every training session is going to be competitive.'
A future Lions tour to France became a talking point in the build-up to the expedition Down Under, but Kinghorn believes the Top 14 would provide a significant obstacle to overcome if the rotation of destination countries is to be expanded.
'There would be no jetlag for starters. It would be pretty cool,' Kinghorn said.
'I don't know how happy the French clubs would be, though, because the Top 14 season is so gruelling and so long. But the public would love it. It would be awesome.'
Williams' absence cannot be underestimated - Jones
Japan boss Eddie Jones says the injury to Tomos Williams cannot be underestimated.
Williams picked up a serious hamstring injury against Western Force on Saturday and his worse fears were confirmed just 48 hours later with news his tour was over.
It leaves just Jac Morgan representing Wales in the Lions party and Williams' absence is particularly gutting considering his form over the past nine months or so.
Jones feels his absence will be keenly felt by Andy Farrell and Co, who go again tomorrow against Queensland Reds with Ireland scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park making his first start.
"On Tomos Williams, Lions tours always throw up injuries but this one is big and cannot be underestimated, especially with the injury cloud over Jamison Gibson-Park," Jones said in his Planet Rugby column. "Given the Bath relationship and domestic dominance I'm surprised they didn't opt for Ben Spencer, but he will still be in the mix if Gibson-Park doesn't come through."
On another of the standout names from the win over the Force, Jones added: "On Henry Pollock – this guy does things that wins games. Whichever way you cut it, whatever your view about his strength and power in the graft work, he is an X-factor player. Every team needs two X-factor men in their side and I expect to see him feature in the Tests."
Scotland make new appointment
By PA Sport Staff
David White has been appointed chief financial officer at Scottish Rugby.
He will join the organisation on July 15 and also becomes a member of the Scottish Rugby Limited Board.
White, whose career to date has seen him work at a national and international level in senior finance and general management roles covering business operations in Europe and the Middle East, replaces Oliver Colling who has held the interim CFO role since spring 2024.
'I'm delighted to be joining Scottish Rugby at such an important time for the game in this country,' White said.
'The work done in recent years has delivered a stable financial base from which we can build, and the vision outlined by Alex and the Board is hugely exciting.
'I'm looking forward to working with the leadership team and the wider rugby community to deliver that vision.'
Scottish Rugby chief executive Alex Williamson said: 'I am delighted to welcome David to Scottish Rugby and look forward to him bringing his breadth of business and financial experience to our senior leadership team.
'We have a clear strategy in place and David arrives at a critical moment as we look to become sustainably profitable and at the same time embark on the significant investment programme at Murrayfield.
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'Our ambition to be the leading union in world rugby is enhanced with David's arrival.
'I'd like to thank Oliver for his contribution to Scottish Rugby and his role in improving the clarity and consistency of our financial outcome.'
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