Latest news with #GeorgeFurbank
South Wales Guardian
26-05-2025
- Sport
- South Wales Guardian
Alex Mitchell confident English clubs can stop France's Champions Cup dominance
French teams continued their stranglehold on the competition, with Bordeaux-Begles' 28-20 victory over Northampton in Cardiff making it five successive years that a Top 14 side has won it. Across the past 10 seasons, France have provided twice as many finalists as any other country, while Saracens and Exeter are the only English clubs to win the tournament since 2007. 'I think a lot of (Premiership) clubs can take a lot of confidence from it,' Northampton and England scrum-half Mitchell said. 'This competition has been tough for English clubs in the last few years in terms of budgets and what-not. It has been a struggle. 'But I think we've shown that, regardless of that, if you front-up playing against these best teams, these quality outfits, you can do a job. 'We showed that. We got to the final and we nearly won. It's tough to take, but we can take a lot of credit from it. 'We have got a decent side and a lot of confidence in ourselves. That is what happened against Leinster (in the semi-finals) – we genuinely backed ourselves and had confidence that we could get a result, which we did. 'Regardless of all that (budgets and squad size), you need good coaching, which we've got, and the boys fronted-up. 'If we (English sides) do that and we are competitive about wanting to win, we can do good things.' Not our time. So proud of our team; the fight, the spirit, the journey 😇 Felicitations, UBB. — Northampton Saints 😇 (@SaintsRugby) May 24, 2025 Despite losing backs George Furbank and James Ramm to injuries inside the first five minutes, Saints rallied and pushed this season's dominant Champions Cup team to the limit. They were level 20-20 at the interval in front of a 70,000 crowd, which was the largest Champions Cup final attendance for 13 years, before Bordeaux closed things out during a tense second period. Mitchell's Saints and England half-back partner Fin Smith added: 'We are just a little team from a small town in England with a bunch of mates playing together. 'Bordeaux are a giant of European rugby with some absolute rock stars in their team and some unbelievable firepower. 'So, to have gone toe-to-toe with them for 80 minutes – or a large part of that – particularly with some of the adversity we had to face with injuries and yellow cards, is something we can look back on with pride. 'The main thing is to stay together as a group, because it is easy to splinter when you have had a knock like this. I need to dust myself off and try to switch off from that result. 'Ultimately, until you play in another big final and get the result you want, it is always going to sting and sit there in the back of your mind. That is just the way it is.'
North Wales Chronicle
26-05-2025
- Sport
- North Wales Chronicle
Alex Mitchell confident English clubs can stop France's Champions Cup dominance
French teams continued their stranglehold on the competition, with Bordeaux-Begles' 28-20 victory over Northampton in Cardiff making it five successive years that a Top 14 side has won it. Across the past 10 seasons, France have provided twice as many finalists as any other country, while Saracens and Exeter are the only English clubs to win the tournament since 2007. 'I think a lot of (Premiership) clubs can take a lot of confidence from it,' Northampton and England scrum-half Mitchell said. 'This competition has been tough for English clubs in the last few years in terms of budgets and what-not. It has been a struggle. 'But I think we've shown that, regardless of that, if you front-up playing against these best teams, these quality outfits, you can do a job. 'We showed that. We got to the final and we nearly won. It's tough to take, but we can take a lot of credit from it. 'We have got a decent side and a lot of confidence in ourselves. That is what happened against Leinster (in the semi-finals) – we genuinely backed ourselves and had confidence that we could get a result, which we did. 'Regardless of all that (budgets and squad size), you need good coaching, which we've got, and the boys fronted-up. 'If we (English sides) do that and we are competitive about wanting to win, we can do good things.' Not our time. So proud of our team; the fight, the spirit, the journey 😇 Felicitations, UBB. — Northampton Saints 😇 (@SaintsRugby) May 24, 2025 Despite losing backs George Furbank and James Ramm to injuries inside the first five minutes, Saints rallied and pushed this season's dominant Champions Cup team to the limit. They were level 20-20 at the interval in front of a 70,000 crowd, which was the largest Champions Cup final attendance for 13 years, before Bordeaux closed things out during a tense second period. Mitchell's Saints and England half-back partner Fin Smith added: 'We are just a little team from a small town in England with a bunch of mates playing together. 'Bordeaux are a giant of European rugby with some absolute rock stars in their team and some unbelievable firepower. 'So, to have gone toe-to-toe with them for 80 minutes – or a large part of that – particularly with some of the adversity we had to face with injuries and yellow cards, is something we can look back on with pride. 'The main thing is to stay together as a group, because it is easy to splinter when you have had a knock like this. I need to dust myself off and try to switch off from that result. 'Ultimately, until you play in another big final and get the result you want, it is always going to sting and sit there in the back of your mind. That is just the way it is.'
Rhyl Journal
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Rhyl Journal
Alex Mitchell confident English clubs can stop France's Champions Cup dominance
French teams continued their stranglehold on the competition, with Bordeaux-Begles' 28-20 victory over Northampton in Cardiff making it five successive years that a Top 14 side has won it. Across the past 10 seasons, France have provided twice as many finalists as any other country, while Saracens and Exeter are the only English clubs to win the tournament since 2007. 'I think a lot of (Premiership) clubs can take a lot of confidence from it,' Northampton and England scrum-half Mitchell said. 'This competition has been tough for English clubs in the last few years in terms of budgets and what-not. It has been a struggle. 'But I think we've shown that, regardless of that, if you front-up playing against these best teams, these quality outfits, you can do a job. 'We showed that. We got to the final and we nearly won. It's tough to take, but we can take a lot of credit from it. 'We have got a decent side and a lot of confidence in ourselves. That is what happened against Leinster (in the semi-finals) – we genuinely backed ourselves and had confidence that we could get a result, which we did. 'Regardless of all that (budgets and squad size), you need good coaching, which we've got, and the boys fronted-up. 'If we (English sides) do that and we are competitive about wanting to win, we can do good things.' Not our time. So proud of our team; the fight, the spirit, the journey 😇 Felicitations, UBB. — Northampton Saints 😇 (@SaintsRugby) May 24, 2025 Despite losing backs George Furbank and James Ramm to injuries inside the first five minutes, Saints rallied and pushed this season's dominant Champions Cup team to the limit. They were level 20-20 at the interval in front of a 70,000 crowd, which was the largest Champions Cup final attendance for 13 years, before Bordeaux closed things out during a tense second period. Mitchell's Saints and England half-back partner Fin Smith added: 'We are just a little team from a small town in England with a bunch of mates playing together. 'Bordeaux are a giant of European rugby with some absolute rock stars in their team and some unbelievable firepower. 'So, to have gone toe-to-toe with them for 80 minutes – or a large part of that – particularly with some of the adversity we had to face with injuries and yellow cards, is something we can look back on with pride. 'The main thing is to stay together as a group, because it is easy to splinter when you have had a knock like this. I need to dust myself off and try to switch off from that result. 'Ultimately, until you play in another big final and get the result you want, it is always going to sting and sit there in the back of your mind. That is just the way it is.'
Telegraph
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Northampton Saints v Bordeaux Begles player ratings from Champions Cup final
Northampton Saints suffered Champions Cup final heartache as Bordeaux Begles claimed an epic 28-20 victory at the Principality Stadium. A pulsating contest saw the French club record their first Champions Cup success, but Northampton Saints give it everything after losing backs George Furbank and James Ramm to injuries inside the opening five minutes. Who shone on the big stage and who went missing? Telegraph Sport rates the players' performance at the Principality Stadium. Northampton Saints 15. George Furbank Busy in the build-up to the first try, having bravely returned to action after a fractured arm, and then knocked out in a clash with Romain Buros. N/A 14. Tommy Freeman Moved to full-back and reinforced his versatility, picking up a yellow card that was almost unavoidable after a wicked bounce. Threatened without continuing his scoring streak. 8/10 13. Fraser Dingwall The centre leads this team with an iron will, punching above his weight. Ran down one blind alley before unlocking Bordeaux with an offload. 7/10 12. Rory Hutchinson Important for his underrated kicking game and even mucked in around the breakdown. Saints, however, struggled for fluency as the game continued. 7/10 11. James Ramm Limped out of the contest after a manic opening passage, which was an almighty shame for a gifted player. N/A 10. Fin Smith Two excellent fly-halves contrasted in fascinating style. Smith was unfussy on a crowded gain-line and kicked his goals but Bordeaux controlled territory decisively. 7/10 9. Alex Mitchell Critical to the relentless, zig-zagging attack that characterised Saints' brighter periods. Kept on for the entirety in a bid to unlock the defence but Northampton faded. 7/10 1. Emmanuel Iyogun Quietly and consistently impressive, tackling himself into the ground. Collared for a scrum penalty and won one back, epitomising his perseverance. 8/10 2. Curtis Langdon Unrelentingly tenacious, whether darting around rucks or in the middle of mauls – as he was to stop a Bordeaux pushover. Defied injury to start and back out there for the end. 7/10 3. Trevor Davison Bustling and busy when called upon to carry and solid in the set piece. His jackal turnover foreshadowed Coles' second try. 8/10 4. Temo Mayanavanua Whacked rucks, sacked mauls and leant his weight to the gain-line war before being taken out of the game by Mahamdou Diaby's high tackle. 7/10 5. Tom Lockett His huge tackle on Penaud earned a turnover with Northampton under pressure and he did remarkably well to halt a drive that looked destined for the whitewash. 7/10 6. Alex Coles Showed impressive power to finish his first try and intuitive support play for his second. Hurled himself around in defence was still disrupting line-outs late on. 8/10 First blood goes to @SaintsRugby 👊 Follow live on our site ➡️ #InvestecChampionsCup — Investec Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) May 24, 2025 7. Josh Kemeny Immensely tough and industrious, Kemeny has proven to be a worthy successor to Courtney Lawes, which is high praise in itself. Ultimately, though, Bordeaux's dynamism was too much. 7/10 8. Henry Pollock Two disallowed tries summed up an afternoon that did not fall his way despite plenty of graft among bigger bodies and a couple of turnovers. 6/10 Bordeaux-Bègles 15. Romain Buros: 6/10 14. Damian Penaud: 8/10 13. Nicolas Depoortère: 8/10 12. Yoram Moefana: 8/10 11. Louis Bielle-Biarrey: 8/10 10. Matthieu Jalibert: 8/10 9. Maxime Lucu: 9/10 1. Jefferson Poirot: 8/10 2. Maxime Lamothe: 7/10 3. Sipili Falatea: 7/10 4. Adam Coleman: 7/10 5. Cyril Cazeaux: 8/10 6. Mahamadou Diaby: 6/10 7. Guido Petti: 8/10 8. Pete Samu: 8/10
Wales Online
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Wales Online
Champions Cup final halted after just minutes as horror collision sees England star given oxygen
Champions Cup final halted after just minutes as horror collision sees England star given oxygen Barely five minutes had been played when the incident occurred. George Furbank of Northampton Saints leaves the field on a medical stretcher after picking up a head injury (Image: 2025 Gaspafotos/MB Media ) England international George Furbank took a sickening blow to the head before being removed from the field by a medical cart. The incident occurred in the Champions Cup final between Northampton Saints and Bordeaux Begles at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday afternoon. Furbank had attempted to catch a cross-field kick from Maxime Lucu when he tumbled to the ground as the ball bounced away. A surging Romain Buros was haring after the ball when Furbank attempted to get up, causing Buros' knee to connect with Furbank in an horrific collision. Just four minutes had been played in the Welsh capital when Furbank went down, causing the match to be stopped for a number of minutes while medical professionals tended to the Saints back. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby. Referee Nika Amashukeli decided it was simply a rugby incident and there was no penalty or card against Buros. Article continues below Once it was deemed safe to do so, Furbank was removed from the field on a medical cart wearing a brace and being administered what looked like oxygen, prompting sympathetic applause from both sets of fans. It was a surprise that Furbank was involved at all with Saints today, after suffering an injury against Castres in the quarter-final. The 28-year-old had no game-time between that game and the final today. "It's always a gamble", said Phil Dowson ahead of the match. "Whenever you bring someone back from an injury, there's always a risk. He hasn't been a mile away from coming back. He's fortunate that the timing has worked well, he's worked very hard." This final follows the EPCR Challenge Cup final between Bath and Lyon on Friday night, with the English Premiership side winning convincingly in a 37-12 score line. Article continues below That final had a controversy of their own, with Bath flanker Sam Underhill escaping a red card for a head-on-head collision with Davit Niniashvili. Despite appearing to be a straight red card on the replays, referee Hollie Davidson gave a yellow card, prompting a strong reaction on social media. Former England international Andy Goode simply suggested it was a red card "all day long", while La Rochelle head coach Ronan O'Gara posted on X: "Players safety... (mind blown emojis)". Read more about that here.
