6nations

Saracens turn to Gaelic hero for semi-final clash pep talk

1 decade ago by The Times

Mark McCall, the Saracens director of rugby, has turned to the world of Gaelic football for motivation as his side prepare to take on the might of Clermont Auvergne in Saturday’s European Champions...

Clermont Auvergne v Saracens: We would fear Nick Abendanon, says Jonathan Davies ahead of semi-final

1 decade ago by The Telegraph

Jonathan Davies says he is delighted to have Nick Abendanon on his Clermont Auvergne side for the Champions Cup semi-final against Saracens weekend – but he is worried about the chances of coming up...

Owen Farrell set for sideline stint after Mark McCall sticks to winning formula

1 decade ago by The Times

Saracens have decided against starting Owen Farrell, the England fly half who has recovered from the knee injury that kept him out of the RBS Six Nations Championship, in Saturday’s European Champions...

Billy Vunipola receives the green light to add muscle against Clermont

1 decade ago by The Times

Billy Vunipola was cleared last night to play in Saracens’ European Champions Cup semi-final against Clermont Auvergne in Saint-Étienne on Saturday. The England No 8 had been cited for two offences...

Saracens' Billy Vunipola not guilty of headbutt and clear to face Clermont

1 decade ago by The Telegraph

Saracens' impassioned defence of Billy Vunipola at a disciplinary hearing in London on Tuesday night brought due reward after a citing charge of headbutting and reckless play against the No 8 was dismissed...

Toulon lock Ali Williams still the warrior in Dad's Army

1 decade ago by The Telegraph

In the 1985 film Cocoon, a group of elderly pensioners gain a second lease of life after stumbling upon an alien fountain of youth near to their retirement home – which could easily double for the plot...

Schoolboy error of bigger is better culture

1 decade ago by The Times

When The Times broke the story last week that, in the first known case of multiple doping in schools in the United Kingdom, three schoolboy rugby players had been banned for possession of testosterone,...

Saracens play waiting game after citing for Billy Vunipola

1 decade ago by The Times

Another week, another crucial citing. Saracens’ plans for their European Champions Cup semi-final against Clermont Auvergne on Saturday may be derailed after Billy Vunipola was cited yesterday for...

Matt Scott setback leaves Vern Cotter’s plan in tatters

1 decade ago by The Times

The Rugby World Cup is five months away but already Scotland’s preparations have been heavily hit by injuries with Matt Scott, the Edinburgh centre, the latest to encounter a problem that makes him a...

Barbarians still have their place in modern rugby

1 decade ago by The Telegraph

I went there to bury them, not to praise them. That was last autumn, when the Barbarians played Australia at Twickenham, but, unlike Julius Caesar, the Baa Baas are not done yet. Indeed, after their...