Leicester Tigers

I think there was enough to indicate that Daly & Ford should have played their last game for England.

Chessum, Earle and Martin add bite to England’s pack in defence.
F-W shows the impact a proper winger has on a game. Looked for work in attack and defence.

One consideration is that if the rugby coverage is spread across multiple pay channels fans will have to decide if they opt for 1 or other, all or neither. I have Sky and TNT as part of a package, I couldn't justify Amazon for a few AI games. Some who might have stretched to 1 sports package if all ...

The other issue is world ranking for the next World Cup.
The balance of maintaining that to get a seeding against maximum development for that Work Cup is tricky.

Sometimes it’s hard to openly accept the thought, deep in your mind, that the time has come to call it a day. That’s not unique to professional sports, most amateurs go through the same, it’s just that they don’t have to factor in the “what do I do to earn a paycheque” into the consideration. Yes he...

Country of birth is not ideal for exclusive selection. Historically the children of forces personnel could be born all o er the world but have no long term connection to that country. My dad worked for a UN organisation and by that fact I could have been born in India Thailand, The Netherlands or It...

That's the point.
It's not right that one or other country can poach those of another who has no genuine connection to.
It's not club rugby.

I’m of the view that no player should be able to change country after a senior international appearance. The grandparents rule is bonkers. Parents - there are many dual nationals, especially in the context of the UK and Ireland where the English, Northern Irish, Scots and Welsh share a common passpo...

The speed is higher and time less so the pressure put on handling and passing is increased. Some players struggle to adjust. Some find their “tricks” that work at lower levels don’t because top level opponents don’t get taken in by them. The other issue with England’s attack is the lack of offload o...

I thought Mitchell was out of the tournament?

I don’t see American football’s franchise system a good comparison. No one outside the USA plays it in any significant way. Wasps were a slow financial “car crash.” No ground so moved away from their fan base and a financial model that relied on miracle benefactor to pay the debts. London Irish were...

Even if we accept that professional sides with ground capacity and meeting the other criteria at what level do they expect to return? Walk back into the premiership? The championship? For me it has to be a division down from that at least. Prove you are a professional outfit worthy of a promotion pl...

It would be hard to say who were the outstanding players simply because of the gulf in standard - it's easy to be a big fish in a small pond.

Didn't really learn much as the contest was so one side.

Shame the A team 6N went.

Wonder if some of the other nations will bring back their A teams now that age groups can't be used to tie a player to the side.

I wouldn’t agree Chessum has been disappointing. Made a lot of tackles, not caught out in defence and his line out work has been all you might expect. More of an impact with ball in hand than the flankers. Likewise Itoje. Genge was disappointing. Stewart wasn’t disappointing because that reflected m...

We have quality players but weakness in key areas. A blitz defence requires discipline and all players to make tackles. Ford no longer runs with the ball. A lightweight Farrell. Age and injuries taken their toll. His passing tried to be fast but inaccurate. Add Daly and Slade into that mix you have ...