The Lineout

We take a look at rugby action around the globe last weekend in the MLR, Super Rugby Pacifica and the URC.

We take a look at rugby action around the globe last weekend in the Heineken Champions Cup, Super Rugby Pacifica and the MLR.

We take a look at action around the globe last weekend in the URC, Women's Six Nations, Super Rugby Pacifica and a look ahead to the Heineken Cup Quarter finals.

We take a look at the action around the globe this past week in Super Rugby Pacific, URC, MLR and Women's Six Nations.

We take a look at the action around the globe this past week in Super Rugby Pacific, URC, MLR and Women's 6 Nations.

We take a look at the action around the globe this past week in the Six Nations, Super Rugby, URC, MLR and U20s Six Nations.

France look unstoppable on their way to their first Grand Slam since 2010, but England despite their poor form of late have a habit of spoiling France's party. England will be desperate to finish a troubled campaign on a high while France intend to lay down a marker for the World Cup next year!

The Six Nations final round this year, commonly known as Super Saturday gets underway with Wales looking to finish strong, while Italy seek to keep that increasingly competitive edge they've shown all tournament and build on it for the future. Next up it's Ireland looking to seal the Triple Crown in Dublin by getting past a Scottish side that started so well but is in danger of exiting with a whim...

Most of the weekend's thunder will be emanating from the Stade de France on Saturday, but Sunday's encounter between Italy and England provides us with plenty of intrigue. It's a potentially fascinating encounter, and Italy's duel with tournament favorites France last Sunday in Paris was well worth watching. We've all said it a thousand times before in the past, but Italy really do look genuinely...

Although it's so early in the day, Round 2 to be precise, it's hard to not look at Saturday's clash in Paris as a possible Championship decider. There is little doubt that both teams are red hot at the moment. However, before we all get too carried away, let's put it in perspective. As good as Ireland and France looked last weekend, they were playing the two sides who will most likely be duking it...

Wales' first of three home Six Nations games sees them having to take on a Scottish side oozing confidence after back to back Calcutta Cup victories over England. Wales are not the Championship winning side of 2021 and in many ways are a mere shadow of it. Their current form is more likely to put them in in danger of going head to head with Italy this year for the Wooden Spoon. However, playing in...

In the final game of the opening round of this year's Six Nations the byword is in the tagline above - Italy simply need to try and be competitive a trait will need to demonstrate throughout this tournament. There is literally a snowball's chance in hell that they are going to pull one over the mighty French in a rain sodden Stade de France on Sunday. However, if they can keep themselves in the ma...

Six Nations games between England and Scotland have always been packed brimful of expectation and emotion, but in recent years they have started to become the stuff of legend. Can anyone ever forget that remarkable Scotland comeback from 31-7 down in the second half in 2019 at Twickenham? Then there was last year's heroics on the same ground as Scotland secured their first victory at England HQ si...

And so it begins!!! The tournament that we anticipate more than any other is finally about to get underway. After the empty stadiums of the past two years, the crowds are back and will add that critical 16th man element to every home team as well as all the color and festive atmosphere the tournament has lacked courtesy of the pandemic. Covid is still likely to throw all the teams the odd curvebal...

Yes it's finally here, a tournament that for most of us is the highlight of our annual rugby calendar. That in no way detracts from the Rugby Championship for our Southern Hemisphere friends but as International Test Rugby's oldest annual dustup, the Six Nations has so much history behind it that it's hard to top in terms of a sense of occasion. Some editions have been less than stellar but this y...

The last in our five part series looking at how the top ten nations finished their 2021 campaigns in November. In this episode we look at France and Ireland's highly successful efforts at the end of the year, which saw them both defeat New Zealand. Both teams look exceptionally well coached and bursting with talent, ahead of a Six Nations campaign only days away in which both must surely be genuin...

We take a look at how England and South Africa fared at the end of 2021 and what it means for both heading into 2022. For England there were plenty of positives ahead of what should be an exceptionally competitive Six Nations, while South Africa can reflect on a year that ended well after a few hiccoughs along the way. Both sides have plenty to work on in the coming months, but all of it looks set...

After a month of truly vintage North vs South International Test Rugby, we take a look at what the respective Coaches of the big Ten learnt about their charges. We also pick our player of the month from each of the teams as well as a starting XV for each of them and which we think would provide the platform they need for 2022 and beyond as the countdown to the World Cup begins. I'll try and get at...

After a month of truly vintage North vs South International Test Rugby, we take a look at what the respective Coaches of the big Ten learnt about their charges. We also pick our player of the month from each of the teams as well as a starting XV for each of them and which we think would provide the platform they need for 2022 and beyond as the countdown to the World Cup begins. I'll try and get at...

After a month of truly vintage North vs South International Test Rugby, we take a look at what the respective Coaches of the big Ten learnt about their charges. I apologize for not getting any posts out last week ahead of some rather important fixtures but, as mentioned before, work at the moment is getting the better of me and likely to continue to do so for the next few weeks . So without any fu...

So we've waited a long time for an England squad that finally starts to look new, and on Saturday we almost get it. The starting XV isn't all that fresh with the major exception being that fly half sensation Marcus Smith finally gets a start against top notch opposition. Freddie Steward also keeps his place at fullback, but apart from that it's still for the most part business as usual for England...

In recent times, this fixture has provided us with some classics. We were fortunate enough to be at Soldier Field in Chicago that famous November afternoon five years ago when the Men in Green claimed their first ever All Black scalp. Since then encounters between the two have always (with the exception of the most recent World Cup quarter final) been tense and tight affairs with no quarters given...

Last weekend's dustup at Murrayfield between Scotland and Australia may have been a low scoring affair but it certainly didn't disappoint in terms of excitement. It was a helter skelter affair from both sides, and if you liked running rugby then it was clear from the opening five minutes that you'd come to the right place. It was a game where as good as your attack was the defence was better. Thro...

We wrap up the opening weekend of this year's Autumn Internationals. It was a thrilling weekend with some genuine full throttle Tests that kept us on the edge of our seats and left us hungry for more. This weekend kicks off with Italy who put up a brave fight against New Zealand taking on an Argentinian team that gave France a genuine run for the money last weekend in Paris. We have a look at the...

In our final look at this weekend's first round of Autumn Internationals we take a look at what we think could well be the game of the weekend - Scotland vs Australia