Latest news with #scrumhalf
BBC News
2 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Dragons sign former Exeter scrum-half Armstrong
Dragons have signed Irish scrum-half Niall Armstrong after his departure from 25-year-old has trained with the Rodney Parade side throughout pre-season and replaces Dane Blacker, who has returned to played for Ulster Youth and earned a chance in the Premiership as part of Chiefs' partnership with the University of Belfast-born scrum-half made 20 appearances for the Devon side and will now aim to make his mark in the United Rugby Championship (URC) with Dragons. Armstrong will contest the number nine jersey with Wales international Rhodri Williams."I'm really excited to join the Dragons and embrace the opportunity to challenge myself in a new environment, playing rugby in Wales," Armstrong said."The club has put together a strong, talented squad ahead of the new season and I'm eager to play a key role in helping us achieve success on the field."Williams is Dragons' first-choice scrum-half and Armstrong provides a more experienced rival along with homegrown 22-year-olds Che Hope and Morgan Lloyd, plus Wales Under-20s cap Logan coach Filo Tiatia said: "Niall is a talented and driven scrum-half and we're already enjoying having him within the environment."Dragons have had an extensive summer recruitment drive after finishing bottom of the URC table last season, with Armstrong their 14th senior have also brought in Wyn Jones, Dillon Lewis, Robert Hunt, Seb Davies, Levi Douglas, Thomas Young, Harry Beddall, Mackenzie Martin, Tinus de Beer, Jac Lloyd, Fetuli Paea, Fine Inisi and David Richards.
BBC News
17-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Ospreys sign Williams as extra scrum-half option
Ospreys have added to their scrum-half options with the signing of Harri Williams. Williams, 22, began his career at Scarlets before joining Ampthill in the English Championship. He then moved to the Tuggeranong Vikings in the ACTRU Premier Division in Canberra, has also represented Wales at Under-20 level and recently spent time with the GB Sevens team."I grew up watching the Ospreys so it's a real privilege to be here," said Williams."I used to come to Llandarcy when I was younger for the camps, it feels like a full circle moment for me to be at this club."Ospreys head coach, Mark Jones, said: "Harri is still a young player, but he's already shown some real glimpses of quality in his career, so it's good to have him with our squad. "We've got some real quality at scrum half with Kieran [Hardy] Luke [Davies] and Reuben [Morgan-Williams], but with both Reubs and Kieran being senior international players, it was important to add to our ranks in the nine jersey."
Irish Times
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Conor Murray: With Jamison Gibson-Park pulling the strings, the Lions will look like Ireland in red jerseys
Jamison Gibson-Park is the key cog in this British and Irish Lions squad. The nailed-on scrumhalf to face the Wallabies in next Saturday's first Test at Suncorp, he makes the game look easy. I first saw Jamison playing Super Rugby for the Hurricanes, 10 years ago now, and I managed to hold him off before the 2021 Lions tour to South Africa. By the following November, when we beat the All Blacks in Dublin, he was Ireland's number nine. The truly great players improve as they go up the levels. It's his vision that enables players around him to shine. Nowadays, the upfield support line is a staple of scrumhalf play. Gibson-Park grew up in New Zealand, where lines of running without the ball are taught young, while I had to develop that skill after missing out on loads of tries because I followed the play instead of allowing experience (and video analysis) to guide me to the next breakdown. READ MORE When Jamison has front foot possession, there is a constant threat of line breaks as he invariably makes the right decision, to either put a runner in space out wide or with a reverse pass. Always scanning the pitch before he touches the ball, I know that Andy Farrell wants his nine to play the early pass. Jamison can do it all, but it's his synergy with James Lowe that brings a different dimension to the Ireland and Lions attack. It is not just Lowe. All his wingers and fullbacks can expect to be put in space when he is operating from the middle of the field. If Joe Schmidt's Australia are to win the Test series, they must disrupt Gibson-Park's access to clean ruck ball. Form really does matter on a Lions tour, but I think Farrell would have trusted his Ireland scrumhalf before the man of the match performance against the Brumbies on Tuesday. Lions' Owen Farrell. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho Other Lions are still searching for that mid-summer spark. And time is running out for late arrival Owen Farrell to make the match day squad in Brisbane. Farrell's accuracy off the kicking tee could yet decide the entire series, but I'd start Finn Russell at 10 with Fin Smith earning the back-up slot after how he performed for England and Northampton this season. Smith would understandably feel hard done by if his predecessor in the England 10 jersey made the Lions 23. In saying all that, rugby people know why Andy Farrell called up Owen Farrell. It's a cliché but Owen is a 'Test animal'. He thrives under pressure, even if he has not played any international rugby since the 2023 World Cup. Remember his drop goal against the Springboks in the semi-final? Only Dan Carter, Stephen Larkham, Jonny Wilkinson, Joel Stransky and Owen Farrell have pulled that off. Russell's reliable goal-kicking should keep him ahead of Farrell and Smith but come the second and third Tests, there is no better back-up than a 33-year-old on his fourth Lions tour who can play 10 or 12. Andy Farrell's brief is uncomplicated: pick the best XV and the most impactful reserves. It is the players he does not select who have the power to spoil or enhance a group that only gathers for seven weeks every four years. The best example I can give is how James Haskell and Rory Best reacted when they missed out on the match day squad to play New Zealand in 2017. Two big personalities, not only did they hide their disappointment, they improved our collective morale. One of Faz's strengths as a coach is how he cuts through the external noise: 'What is the point of a Lions call-up if you are consumed by anxiety and pressure?' Preparation is unbelievably hard, but Australia is probably the best country in the world for a rugby tour. The group will know how to decompress. Saturday morning's final warm-up against an All Black-heavy invitational XV is the last chance to change the Lions coaches' minds before Brisbane. It is instructive that Smith starts at 10, with Farrell and Marcus Smith jostling for position on the bench. It is also a huge moment for Tadhg Beirne and Jac Morgan. Lions' Tadhg Beirne. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho I'm fascinated to see where Farrell uses Tadhg against the Wallabies – at blindside, lock or off the bench – and who he chooses at openside. I'd pick Josh van der Flier over Morgan and Tom Curry, but retain Morgan's expertise over opposition ball as an impact sub. Ellis Genge appears to have the edge at loosehead prop over Andrew Porter. Beirne and Porter would be some pair to bring into a Test match after Genge and Ollie Chessum go flat out for 60 minutes. The catalogue of individual errors against the Super Rugby sides, mainly players overrunning lines and dropping ball, are natural growing pains on a Lions tour. Most of them should be ironed out come next weekend. The style of play will continue to look like Ireland in red jerseys. Of course Schmidt knows all about Farrell's coaching methods. Joe v Faz sounds like the natural entry point to next week's column. Conor Murray's Squad for first Test v Australia (if named today): Hugo Keenan; Tommy Freeman, Garry Ringrose, Bundee Aki, James Lowe; Finn Russell, Jamison Gibson-Park; Ellis Genge, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Joe McCarthy, Maro Itoje (capt); Ollie Chessum, Josh van der Flier, Jack Conan. Replacements : Luke Cowan-Dickie, Andrew Porter, Finlay Bealham, Tadhg Beirne, Jac Morgan, Alex Mitchell, Fin Smith, Mack Hansen.
The Guardian
29-06-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Tomos Williams injury leaves Farrell's Lions facing race to fill scrum-half slot
The British & Irish Lions are weighing up their scrum-half options after an injury to Tomos Williams that threatens to sideline the Welshman at the busiest stage of the squad's Australian tour. The head coach, Andy Farrell, said a decision on calling up a replacement would be made on Sunday, with Scotland's Ben White among the leading contenders to replace Williams at No 9. Williams contributed two tries in a fine all-round performance as the Lions eased to a 54-7 victory over Western Force but tweaked his left hamstring while diving over the line for his second score. It leaves the Lions with only two fit scrum-halves, one of whom – Jamison Gibson-Park – has been managing a strained glute muscle. Farrell said Gibson-Park would be fit to face the Queensland Reds on Wednesday but the Lions will need some cover if Williams is ruled out even for a short period, with Alex Mitchell as the only available option in the position. White has just arrived in New Zealand, where Scotland are due to kick off their summer tour against the Maori All Blacks next Saturday, and could easily hop on a plane to Brisbane if required. For the moment, Farrell is still waiting to learn the severity of the injury to Williams, the Premiership's player of the season with Gloucester. 'There was plenty of cramp last week, let's hope it is one of those,' said Farrell. 'He was playing well and I am sure there is a bit of concern there, but you can only deal with the here and now so fingers crossed.' Farrell, however, is adamant that there is no danger of Gibson-Park sitting out the Reds game. 'Jamison is fit and ready to go and has been training fully for the best part of a week. We are happy with that but we will only know [about Williams] in the morning. 'I don't what the timings are of that, with the flights, but you have to let these things settle down and give it a little bit of space. There is always something that is going to happen you are not quite sure about, that is the nature of the tour. We need to make the right call for the group.' Sir James Wates CBE has been appointed chair of the Rugby Football Union board. He takes over the role from Sir Bill Beaumont, who was named chair on an interim basis in December last year following the resignation of Tom Ilube. Wates is currently a board director of the Wates Group, a privately-owned construction, development and property service company in the UK and served as chairman between 2013 and 2023. PA Media Of their opening game in Australia, Farrell declared himself moderately satisfied with the result in the wake of the Lions' defeat by Argentina in Dublin last week. 'I am happy with the scoreline and how we got to that point because it wasn't always going our way. We fixed things up and played some good rugby and scored some nice tries.' Sign up to The Breakdown The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed after newsletter promotion He was pleased, too, with the performances of Mack Hansen and the youthful Henry Pollock, despite the latter being sent to the sin-bin just before half-time. 'He got a yellow card because of repeated infringements, which was fair enough, but you saw his point of difference, that is for sure. He is learning all the time and there is plenty to work on to make sure we are the team we want to be. He is part of that.' Pollock also received a positive review from the Lions' captain for the day, Dan Sheehan. 'I thought he was brilliant today,' the Ireland hooker said. 'He does his own thing, he plays his own way which is probably different to a lot of the forwards. I enjoy that kind of rugby: off the cuff, see what's in front of you and make it happen. With his skillset and speed he can certainly make it happen. 'It is just about trying to make sure he is doing the right thing for the team all the time. All these big games are massive for him, massive for all of us. He will just get better and better from here.'
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Lions hold off on SOS despite latest scrumhalf injury
British and Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell has downplayed the need to send out a scrumhalf SOS despite Tomos Williams suffering a hamstring injury during Saturday's 54-7 win over the Western Force. Williams injured his left hamstring while acrobatically diving over for his second try of the night in the eight-tries-to-one romp over the Force. The 30-year-old was clearly in pain as he limped from the field in the 47th minute, putting the rest of his tour in doubt. Thanks for a great game, @westernforce 🤝#Lions2025 — British & Irish Lions (@lionsofficial) June 28, 2025 Fellow scrumhalf Jamison Gibson-Park was unavailable for the match due to a recent glute injury, but it's hopeful he will be fit to tackle the Queensland Reds on Wednesday night. If there is any doubt on Gibson-Park, it would leave Alex Mitchell as the last No.9 standing at present. Scrumhalf Ben White is currently with the Scotland international side in New Zealand for a match against the Maori All Blacks, and could be called upon if needed. But Farrell played down the need to call in reinforcements just yet, expressing confidence in Gibson-Park's fitness, and saying he wants to wait longer to see the severity of Williams' injury. "Jamison's fit and ready to go, and has been training fully now for the best part of the week, so we're happy with that," Farrell said. "But you don't know until you know (about Williams' injury). "We have to let these things settle down and see what the outcome is, giving it a little bit of space. "We need to talk about that and assess that and make the right call for the group. We have our fingers crossed." One of the brightest points out of Saturday's game for the Lions was the performance of No.8 Henry Pollock, who looked every bit the future superstar he's being touted to become. Pollock's bullocking runs proved troublesome for the Force, and the 20-year-old showcased his creativity with a chip-and-chase that led to a second-half try to lock Joe McCarthy. "I thought he was brilliant," stand-in Lions captain Dan Sheehan said. "He does his own thing. He has his own way of playing. He's probably different to a lot of the forwards. "I enjoy that kind of rugby, off the cuff, see what's in front of you, and make it happen. "And with his sort of skill set and speed, he can, he can certainly make it happen." The Lions will head to Brisbane on Sunday ahead of Wednesday night's clash with the Queensland Reds at Suncorp Stadium. Farrell was happy with his team's performance against the Force, with the five-try blitz in the second half particularly impressive. But he is also well aware there are plenty of areas to improve. The Lions were dominated in the possession and territory stakes in the first half, and their more fancied scrum could only break even against the Force. The tourists also struggled with their kick-off receives, and lost Pollock on the stroke of half-time to a yellow card due to an accumulation of team infringements. "Our discipline for one," Farrell said when asked about areas to improve on. "You mentioned kick-offs there, so it's a good warning for us, isn't it? "I thought we got a bit lateral at times, not engaging enough, and tried to be too tidy attack-wise at times."
