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Telegraph
4 days ago
- Sport
- Telegraph
English rugby must follow feisty Ellis Genge's lead to see off rebel league
To think that there are those who wish to rip up the club rugby blueprint and toss it into a smouldering inferno. All that can be said with certainty – in the middle of one of the edgiest and engrossing Premiership semi-finals in memory – is that none of rugby's self-proclaimed disruptors could have been present at the Rec on Friday night. Because Bath's second-half demolition of their arch-rivals Bristol was everything that confected, artificial sport – the kind which is bought by money and not emotion – is not: it was frenetic, parochial and, at times, down right anarchic. It was everything that sport should be. West Country rivals, knockout sport, with home-grown heroes and villains, in front of a packed house, with fans putting that very word into 'fanatical'. At times, some of the crowd's celebrating, even for something as mundane, bordered on maniacal. This was heritage, tradition – atavism, even – and pride writ large in as memorable and poignant an advert for Premiership rugby as there has been this season. But, most importantly, it was real – and people cared. It meant something – to two of England's most regal rugby cities. And, if sport gets to a stage where people do not care, then what is the point? One would think that the organisers of R360, rugby's latest breakaway attempt, might understand that, given that one of the protagonists, Mike Tindall, wore the Blue, Black and White on over 100 occasions. R360 just cannot claim to be able to replicate what took place in Bath on Friday night and, even if they were to make such an outlandish claim, why would anyone want to leave it? Is the draw so alluring that these Bath men would sacrifice nights like Friday in favour of contrived teams playing in contrived causes? No amount of money could replace the Rec roar which engulfed Joe Cokanasiga after scoring the decisive second-half try; or the chorus of 'Come on You Bath', all in unison, which followed. Bath Rugby was founded in 1865 – and on Friday night it felt as though the crowd had over 150 years of history behind them. It must be noted that Ellis Genge played his part, too. The great Bristolian was in fine form, admittedly in a losing cause, in both tight and loose, but it was the looseness of his lips that was most striking. The game had not even begun when the loosehead entered into some verbals with the Bath crowd; then came some on-field verbals for which he was penalised but thereafter he was immense in both pantomime villain and all-court forward. 🎙️ "This is what we need isn't it?" Ellis Genge has a word with the home fans at The Rec as the two teams make their way onto the field for a hotly contested derby. 💥🍿💥🍿 Watch live on TNT Sports & Discovery+ — Rugby on TNT Sports (@rugbyontnt) June 6, 2025 With characters like Genge – as long as there are more coming through, like Henry Pollock, who are willing to embrace the niggle and rage against the machine, then the Premiership is in good hands. Even Finn Russell got in on the act at the end, and it looked as though he and Bristol centre James Williams might come to blows as the Lions fly-half left the field with four minutes to play. The league undoubtedly has its issues. There are too many stale matches, too many dead-rubbers, with not enough spice. Some clubs struggle to regularly fill their stadiums and others are in dire need of investment. But, on Friday night, the woes of 2022/23, the season in which three sides went to the wall, felt as though it had been consigned to history. The match provided the most judicious reminder, too, that tries in this sport do not always equal entertainment. Bath opened the Bristol floodgates in the second half but by then the fixture was already a game-of-the-season contender, and only once had the whitewash been breached. The first-half score, by James Dun, was a sweet one; but a sole one it was. The doom-mongers will gleefully highlight that Friday night was just one game among so many in a season, and one swallow does not a summer make, but here was a glimpse of the Premiership's potential: at times brutal, at times beautiful, always meaningful. It might not be there yet, but if this is to be its ceiling, then it is a high one. With all the talk of breakaways and disruption, the future is bright. Perhaps a rethink – an R180, if you will – is needed.
RNZ News
30-05-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Rail shut down for Auckland and Wellington over long weekend
Rail services in the capital and Auckland are grinding to a halt this long weekend for maintenance, disrupting travel for tens thousand of people, including rugby fans. In Auckland services are off from today. Buses will replace trains allow for ongoing up-graded need for the City Rail Link Project's that already caused significant upheaval. In Wellington he rail shut down is from tomorrow, which could prove challenging for the tens of thousands of people trying to get to the Sky Stadium for the big game between Moana Pasifika and the Hurricanes. Kiwi Rail's chief metro and capital programme officer Dave Gorden spoke to Lisa Owen.
The Guardian
26-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
World Club Cup launch tosses away decades of European rugby history
Some people are never satisfied. They firmly believe that if things are constantly tweaked there is a better chance of staying relevant. In certain areas of retail they are right. Years ago, on a dusty pavement in India, I once encountered a man selling second-hand false teeth from a small wooden table. I think of him whenever people lament the size of their annual bonus or their boss's failure to appreciate them. Sport, though, is rarely that simple. While you don't want to end up miles behind the curve, retaining an element of familiarity is crucial. Supporters love the comfort blanket of their favourite local team, the club colours their parents wore, the same time-honoured songs and competitions. It rarely pays to confuse your existing audience or, worse, to announce that things that should matter hugely are now as sexy as 30-year-old dentures. Which is pretty much the conundrum rugby union is facing. If you had been beamed down from Mars on Saturday afternoon you would have sat in the Principality Stadium watching the Champions Cup final and assumed club rugby was in fabulous shape. A throbbing spectacle, two sets of passionate but good-humoured fans, 70,000 paying punters in the stands. There was even a spot of post‑match niggle to underline how much everyone cared. And once it was all over the players of Bordeaux Bègles celebrated as if they had just won the World Cup itself, conga‑ing into the after-game press conference and spraying beer over their captain and coach. And why not? Never before has the biggest trophy in club rugby ended up in the hands of a team who did not even exist before 2006, when two rival city clubs merged. If that sounds like progress, it most certainly is. Bordeaux will now hope that, like Toulouse and Leinster and Saracens before them, they can make a regular habit of it and turn their city into Europe's capital of rugby in addition to wine. If ever there was a local population well equipped to pop a celebratory cork, it is surely the Bordelais. Except that, come 2028, beating the rest of Europe and a handful of South African provinces will no longer be deemed quite enough. The board of European Professional Club Rugby – having been embarrassingly bounced into making the announcement earlier than intended – has just confirmed that, every four years, a World Club Cup will replace the knockout stages of its flagship men's competition. The eight Champions Cup quarter-finalists will be joined by seven teams from Super Rugby Pacific and one Japanese participant. Just stop and think about that for a moment. It's basically the equivalent of the Champions League in football being halted after the group phase and sides from South America, the US, Japan and China being parachuted in for the business end. There would be no actual Champions League winner that year because, well, that is seen as less glossy than crowning a world club champion. And, of course, there will be more broadcasting bucks in it. Never mind that, at a stroke, you're tossing away decades of history and heritage for a game or two against the Chiefs – the Waikato-based version – or Toshiba Brave Lupus in a neutral European city where nobody even knows what a brave lupus is (if you're wondering, it's derived from the Latin word for 'wolf'). But it'll be new and shiny, so that's fine. There is every chance of it proving an ill-judged turkey. It is not a massive leap to predict that at least four of the eight European participants will be from France's Top 14, the game's wealthiest domestic league, along with two South African sides plus Leinster. That potentially leaves one spot for the rest of Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales and Italy combined. Let alone all the other wannabe emerging nations out there. Sign up to The Breakdown The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed after newsletter promotion Yes, the final should generate more revenue but, for example, Bordeaux v Bulls in Barcelona would not float everybody's glass-bottomed boat. In that scenario, at short notice, you would struggle to attract many Bulls fans and the global festival of rugby vibe would be tough to stoke. Even the absolute top-drawer scenario – Toulouse versus the Crusaders, say – would fall short of the tradition, passion and romance that almost every Champions Cup final delivers. And even if the primary rationale is to head off a breakaway rebel franchise circus or stave off financial oblivion closer to home, the wider cost threatens to be significant. With the existing pool stage having already been ruinously chopped and changed since the halcyon days of the old Heineken Cup, there is a risk again of the baby being thrown out with the sponsored bathwater. You could not have wished for a better game than Northampton's semi-final victory against Leinster in Dublin. The final on Saturday, which Saints lost 28-20 after a pulsating first half, was another glorious sporting occasion generally and truly vintage one in Bordeaux. Yet in 2028 – even the final scoreline in Cardiff reads like a subliminal plug – there is every chance of wine being turned into water for the sake of a few extra dollars. Be careful what you wish for. Opting to remove a healthy front tooth in the name of innovation is not necessarily progress.
Times
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Times
Could Red Bull transform North East into a rugby powerhouse?
On a bright afternoon this week, I saw something that I thought no longer existed. Something that, for years now, has been talked about with concerned looks and furrowed brows. Something that many were worried was gone for good — the future of professional club rugby in the North the train half an hour south from Newcastle, or drive the 37 miles down the A1(M) and there it is, slightly weary and unloved, but impressive nevertheless. It has 26,000 seats which, by a close call, makes it the biggest club rugby stadium in the country, and part of the point, here, is that 25,000 of them never get filled. This is the Darlington Arena and it may be the saviour that rugby up
The Independent
13-05-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Danny Care to retire from rugby at the end of the season
Danny Care has announced that he will retire from rugby at the end of the 2024-25 Premiership season. The former England scrum half concluded his international career shortly after winning his 100th cap during last year's Six Nations, and will now bow out entirely from the sport. The 38-year-old had initially agreed a one-year deal to remain at Harlequins until the end of the next campaign, but has brought forward his retirement after nearly 400 appearances in the colours of the west London club. Care won two Premiership titles during his time at the Twickenham Stoop after making the move from Leeds Tykes nearly two decades ago. 'So, it's finally time,' Care said. 'Unfortunately, after 19 years of playing for this incredible club, I'm going to be retiring from rugby at the end of the season. 'I just wanted to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for letting a lad from Leeds come down to this club and feel like home from day one. To all the fans. Thank you for everything you've given me and my family. As I said, you brought us into your hearts. You've sung my name louder than it's ever deserved. And I can't really put into words what representing this Club and playing in front of you all has meant to me. 'I'd also like to thank all my amazing teammates, all the coaches, staff members who have been a part of my career. I will be supporting this club forever, and I'll always be a Quin.' Having made his England debut in 2008, the scrum half has enjoyed a remarkable renaissance in recent years having seemingly fallen out of favour before the 2019 Rugby World Cup. Care's key role in leading Harlequins to the Premiership crown in 2021, nine years after securing their first, forced a recall from Eddie Jones in 2022, before again being cast aside. The arrival of Steve Borthwick as England head coach offered a surprise third chapter at international level, though, with Care a key part of the squad that reached the semi-finals of the 2023 World Cup. A prominent figure in the media through his work with the BBC and TNT Sports, Care will also now take on an ambassadorial role with Harlequins. His retirement follows that of long-time scrum half rival Ben Youngs, who will also conclude his playing career at the end of the campaign. 'It's hard to put into words the impact Danny has had on not just Harlequins Rugby Club, but the sport of Rugby Union as a whole,' Harlequins chief executive Laurie Dalrymple said. 'As he steps away from the professional game, he leaves behind an incredible legacy—close to 400 appearances for Harlequins and over a century of international caps for England is no small feat .'Danny is a player and person who embodies the values of our club, and he's made a lasting mark both on the field and in our community in his 19 years at The Stoop.'
