The All Blacks have wrapped up their third successive Rugby Championship crown with a comprehensive 34-13 win over Argentina at Estadio Ciudad de La Plata. First half tries to Ben Smith and Israel Dagg gave…
Former All Black forward Brad Thorne, 39, has pitched up at Leicester at the tail-end of a colourful career that’s taken him from Dunedin to Leinster via Japan. But, he tells the Independent’s Chris…
New Zealand retain the Bledisloe Cup with an astonishingly good performance, smashing Australia 51-20 in Auckland, scoring six tries and stating categorically that the last game’s mediocre showing in a 12-12 draw was merely…
In a gritty encounter played out in a Sydney rainstorm, Australia held New Zealand to a 12-12 draw in their Rugby Championship opener to prevent the All Blacks from claiming a world record 18th…
A teenage girl in Southland has been allowed to play with the big boys, with April Miller, 18, taking to the field at lock in what is typically men’s club rugby. Despite admitting to some…
New Zealander Bob Francis has been presented with the International Rugby Board (IRB) Referee Award for Distinguished Service. During a memorable career that began in 1961, the former Masterton mayor, made an exceptional contribution at…
Wales rugby union coach Warren Gatland, who last year guided the British and Irish Lions to a 2-1 series victory in Australia and Wales to the Six Nations title, has been made an OBE…
New Zealand has wrapped up an unbeatable 2-0 series against England after staging a ruthless second-half comeback to win in Dunedin 28-27, the Guardian’s Robert Kitson reported from Forsyth Barr Stadium. “The home side, who…
“Under-strength England pushed New Zealand all the way” in the first of three Tests in the 2014 Steinlager Series, with the All Blacks showing “why they are world champions as Conrad Smith’s last-gasp try…
The iconic Soldier Field, America’s oldest gridiron stadium, is to host the All Blacks in a test against the USA Eagles in November in a game sponsored by AIG. The insurance behemoth’s…
A month is a long time in sport, apparently. As spring thaws English soil and the domestic Aviva rugby competition reaches its zenith, the British press are beginning to air doubts about the Red…
Australian eyebrows are being raised quizzically at the Kiwi league team announced to face the Kangaroos in the annual Anzac Day test match this Friday. With an injury list as long as a video…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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”…
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…
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 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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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’…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
“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…
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….
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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,…
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