Rugby | Irish Independent
1 April 2014
After knocking England out of the Hong Kong Sevens with an impressive 26-7 score line, the All Blacks Sevens stripped off their shirts and performed a poignant haka in the pouring rain, which…
Rugby | Reuters
28 March 2014
For those who have played under New Zealander Joe Schmidt, it was no surprise that his first campaign in charge of Ireland’s national team ended on such a high. Schmidt led the Irish to…
Rugby | Daily Telegraph (The)
18 March 2014
If it was anyone else saying it – a froth-filled Stephen Jones broadside, perhaps – Kiwis would ignore it. But Sir Ian McGeechan, the decorated Scotsman, respected Lions player and venerated coach, is a…
Rugby | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
4 March 2014
Every year it’s the same: this time could be the season when the New Zealand Warriors finally deliver on all their promise. The world’s toughest league competition, the NRL, kicks off on Thursday, with…
Rugby | Daily Mail
3 March 2014
When 48-year-old New Zealander Joe Schmidt was being lined up to take charge of Leinster in 2010, he met the province’s captain Leo Cullen and Test fly-half Jonny Sexton at a Dublin hotel as…
Rugby | Vanity Fair
21 January 2014
English socialite and sister of the Duchess of Cambridge, Pippa Middleton, who prefers “rugger” to soccer, explains the game to Vanity Fair readers in the latest issue of the magazine, mentioning the “battle cry”…
Rugby | Telegraph (The)
23 December 2013
Wales and Lions head coach Warren Gatland has been named the BBC Coach of the Year at an awards ceremony in Leeds. The New Zealander “deserves his moment in the sun, as does the…
Rugby | Irish Times (The)
10 December 2013
New Zealand have made a clean sweep at the International Rugby Board (IRB) awards once more, taking away all three major end-of-season prizes, with number eight Kieran Read named player of the year, the…
Rugby | Limerick Post
6 December 2013
Rugby great Jonah Lomu – who had sixty-three caps as an All Black and is the Rugby World Cup all-time top try scorer – was in Lomond, Ireland in November to meet with fans…
Rugby | Telegraph (The)
5 December 2013
Richie McCaw returned to where his career began in Dublin for his 124th Test on 23 November, and, just like in that debut game where New Zealand were 21-7 down just after half-time, it…
Rugby | Daily Telegraph (The)
29 November 2013
The last seconds, last-gasp victories by the Kiwis and All Blacks at the weekend have prompted English writers to wax philosophical about fine lines and the nature of success. Make no mistake, both the…
Rugby | Belfast Telegraph
27 November 2013
Under the coaching direction of New Zealander Warren Gatland, the Welsh rugby team has “changed beyond all recognition”, according to Wales forward Ryan Jones. Gatland was at the helm of his 100th career Test…
Rugby | Radio New Zealand National
26 November 2013
The All Blacks are like a vampire – “you have to stick two stakes through the heart at the crossroads to make sure they are dead and buried,” says John Breen. The proud Irish…
Rugby | Express & Star
20 November 2013
The old canard about dangerous and illegal play by Polynesians is getting another airing in the British press ahead of Wales’s match against Tonga at the weekend. Assistant coach Shaun Edwards, who as a…
Rugby | Independent (The)
19 November 2013
Ahead of the All Blacks-England test, Independent rugby correspondent Chris Hewett proposed that “Richie McCaw and his team are beginning to look like something more than merely the best rugby union team…
Rugby | Philadelphia Enquirer
12 November 2013
12 November 2013 – “Maori players screamed, made faces, pounded their chests and flexed their bulging muscles while chanting in unison,” writes Mike Still in a report for the Philadelphia Inquirer on the Maori…
Rugby | Daily Telegraph (The)
12 November 2013
The New Zealand forwards were outplayed by their French counterparts in Paris at the weekend and they will be given an even more searching examination by England, who easily dismantled the powerful Argentine forward…
Rugby | New York Times (The)
5 November 2013
The mantle of greatness hangs easily around this year’s unbeaten All Blacks as they prepare for a tour of Japan, France, Britain and Ireland. Not that you would know it from the demeanour and…
Rugby | Wales Online
30 October 2013
Wales coach New Zealander Warren Gatland, 50, has hinted he may stay with the “golden generation of stars” beyond the 2015 Rugby World Cup, according to WalesOnline.
Gatland’s current deal with the Welsh Rugby Union…
Rugby | Guardian (The)
29 October 2013
Vulnerability, fear and palpable humbleness are not qualities normally associated with sporting star, Sonny Bill Williams. But in an interview with The Guardian, the footballer and occasional boxer opens up about recent and historic…
Rugby | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
25 October 2013
Much sterner tests lie ahead but the New Zealand Rugby League team delivered an encouraging start to its defence of the World Cup with a 50-0 romp over the Cook Islands. The one-sided win…
Rugby | Otago Daily Times
24 October 2013
New Zealand blushes were spared in Dunedin, as the Nude Blacks narrowly edged an invitational Australian side in the annual naked rugby contest in the country’s southern-most city. To coincide with the Bledisloe test…
Rugby | BBC Sport
21 October 2013
The All Blacks have maintained their 100 per cent record this year, beating Australia at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin 41-33 to seal a 3-0 Bledisloe Cup whitewash, the BBC reports. Having clinched the…
Rugby | Irish Independent
16 October 2013
Munster coach New Zealander Rob Penney is so sensitive to the dangers of concussion that he applies a stringent approach to any head injuries suffered by his players – he responds with the level…
Rugby | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
9 October 2013
The first question, impolitely rhetorical, was WTF? The answer to the second question – will the Kiwis still want him? – will be decided today. Sonny Bill Williams has flip-flopped. Again. After keeping the…
Rugby | Sport 24
7 October 2013
The All Blacks retain the Rugby Championship with an epic 38-27 win over the Springboks at the South African spiritual home of rugby, Ellis Park. Described as “a match that ranks among the greatest…
Rugby | Daily Telegraph (The)
18 September 2013
Apparently the English think New Zealanders can teach them a thing or two. Who knew? Of course, the thing or two is about rugby but even so. In the wake of the All Blacks’…
Rugby | Irish Independent
9 September 2013
The All Blacks overcame difficult conditions to defeat the Argentina Pumas 28-13 in a rain-soaked Rugby Championship clash at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton on Saturday, extending their winning streak in the multi-nation competition.
The team…
Rugby | Guardian (The)
26 August 2013
The All Blacks have retained the Bledisloe Cup after 27-16 trouncing of the Wallabies in their Rugby Championship clash in Wellington on Saturday night.
New Zealand winger Ben Smith followed up on last weekend’s hat-trick…
Rugby | Telegraph (The)
19 August 2013
The All Blacks were just too good for Australia, winning 47-29 in the opening 2013 Investec Rugby Championship Test in Sydney, ensuring a torrid debut for new Wallabies coach Ewen McKenzie, who took over from…
Rugby | Fox News | Stuff.co.nz
5 August 2013
The Waikato Chiefs spectacular 27 -22 win over the ACT Brumbies on the weekend’s Super 15 final have some calling the team a ‘southern hemisphere powerhouse’. The team grabbed 15 points in the space of…
Rugby | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
10 July 2013
New Zealander Robbie Deans has stepped down as couch of the Wallabies, following the 41-16 series-deciding loss to the British and Irish Lions. The former All Black broke new ground when he was appointed…
Rugby | Roar (the)
10 July 2013
Kiwi Benji Marshall’s influence within the Wests Tigers is clearly evident with coach, Mike Potter, saying that the team will “bend over backwards trying to keep him here at the club”. Marshall burst onto…
Rugby | Toronto Star
9 July 2013
New Zealand has completed a “remarkable sweep of rugby’s major global titles” this week with the men beating England 33-0 at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow to win the 2013 Rugby World Cup…
Rugby | Guardian (The) | Observer (The)
9 July 2013
Hamilton-born Warren Gatland “turned a Lions travesty into a triumph” with the team’s 41-16 win over Australia in the third and deciding match, the Lion’s first Test series victory in 16 years. “Only a…
Rugby | Irish Examiner
25 June 2013
“New Zealand completed a 3-0 series clean sweep of France with a hard-fought but deserved victory at Yarrow Stadium in New Plymouth ,” the Irish Examiner reported. “Ben Smith’s first-half try helped give…
Rugby | Belfast Telegraph
19 June 2013
With the words, “you have to start from scratch”, New Zealander Joe Schmidt attempts to dampen down expectations around his new job as he eases his way into the hottest seat in Irish rugby….
Rugby | Bangkok Post
18 June 2013
New skipper Kieran Read has led the All Blacks to victory over France winning the Dave Gallaher Cup and celebrating their 500th Test with a resounding 30-0 full-time score. An astute kicking…
Rugby | Herald Scotland (The)
6 June 2013
The appointment of Vern Cotter as next head coach of Scotland is testament to the quality of rugby coaches that have been developed in New Zealand, according to Steve Hansen. The 51-year-old’s appointment means…
Rugby | Chicago Tribune
6 June 2013
New Zealand’s second highest-capped lock Ali Williams announced his retirement from international rugby, the Chicago Tribune reports. The 32-year-old had played 77 tests for the world champion All Blacks in his 10-year international career. Ian…
Rugby | Age (The)
28 May 2013
New Zealand crowned their Rugby World Sevens title for 2012/13 with victory in the final tournament at London. The victory came with a 47-12 ‘thrashing’ of Australia, says The Age. Coach Gordon Tietjens’ team…
Rugby | Irish Times (The)
20 May 2013
Joe Schmidt, former Bay of Plenty ‘Steamers’ coach is the new Ireland Rugby coach. His appointment has brought a renewed ‘feel-good factor’ to Irish rugby, says the the Irish Times. Schmidt has been appointed…
Rugby | Belfast Telegraph
14 May 2013
Aucklander Nick Williams, 29, who plays at back row forward for Ulster Rugby, has been presented with Player of the Year at the RaboDirect PRO12 awards gala in Dublin. By beating Irish internationals, Cian…
Rugby | Observer (The)
8 May 2013
World Cup-winning former All Blacks skipper Graham Henry believes New Zealander Warren Gatland, 49, is the perfect choice as Lions coach. “Warren is an outstanding coach with a wealth of experience,’ says Henry,…
Rugby | Scotsman (The)
6 May 2013
Sean Maitland, ex-Canterbury Crusaders and now Scotland rugby winger has one of his two wishes. He’s just been selected for the 2013 British and Irish Lions tour of Australia. Whether he gets the other…
Rugby | Irish Times (The)
29 April 2013
Pat Lam is looking forward to coaching Connaught, one of four Irish teams in rugby’s Heineken Cup, writes Gerry Thornley, in The Irish Times. In Galway for only eight days, Lam told Thornley he…
Rugby | Age (The)
18 February 2013
Sonny Bill Williams, New Zealand’s most versatile sportsman, may be available for New Zealand for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup says Brad Walker, in The Age. Williams plays for the Sydney Rooster rugby…
Rugby | Irish Independent
29 January 2013
Tokoroa-born Sean Maitland, 24, made his Scotland debut against England in the RBS 6 Nations Championship opener against England on 2 February at Twickenham, scoring the first try of the match. Maitland qualifies for…
Rugby | Malaysia Star
5 December 2012
All Black Dan Carter has been named player of the year in London at the 2012 International Rugby Board (IRB) awards, with Steve Hansen winning coach of the year and the All Blacks the…
Rugby | Telegraph (The)
1 December 2012
New Zealand, the world’s No 1-ranked side, was defeated by England 38-21 at Twickenham, bringing the All Blacks’ unbeaten run of 20 back-to-back wins to an end. It was England’s first win over New…
Rugby | Daily Mail
29 November 2012
Before taking care of business in Wales, the All Blacks made a pilgrimage to the hotel where one of their own went down fighting before disappearing without trace, the Daily Mail reports. They went…
Rugby | Independent (The)
26 November 2012
Captain “fantastic” Richie McCaw has led the “all-conquering All Blacks” to a 20th successive match without defeat beating Wales 33-10 at the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff. No player in world rugby is better in…
Rugby | Daily Mail
17 November 2012
The All Blacks continued their European Tour, taking on Italy in Rome on Saturday. Despite winning by a comfortable 42 points to 10 the Italians made the All Blacks work hard for the win,…
Rugby | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
12 November 2012
The All Blacks have enjoyed a great start to their European Tour, beating Scotland 51-22 at Murrayfield on Sunday. Despite a competitive Scottish side, the experienced All Blacks team played in a different league,…
Rugby | Guardian (The)
2 November 2012
On 10 November New Zealander Glen Jackson will jog out at Twickenham to referee England’s opening autumn Test versus Fiji. It will be Jackson’s first tier one international and represents one of sport’s more…
Rugby | Chicago Tribune
23 October 2012
Canterbury Crusaders winger Sean Maitland, 24, has signed a contract with Super Rugby side Glasgow Warriors and could be eligible for the national team immediately due to his Scottish grandparents. “We’re delighted to be…