Rugby

3:19 AM GMT LONDON — David Pocock never shirked a challenge when playing for Australia’s rugby union team, the Wallabies, and he has been equally fearless when it comes to making a stand on environmental issues. Now the 32-year-old is calling on fellow athletes to use their profile to help to bring sport up to

9:27 AM GMT Beyond the famous rugby players and the wealthy wine farms, there has always been football in Stellenbosch, albeit out of view behind the vines and University ivory towers. Known for its strong [and traditionally white] rugby history, the town of Stellenbosch’s rich football heritage has often been overlooked, but thanks to Stellenbosch

3:32 PM GMT Harlequins rugby coach Paul Gustard will leave the club with immediate effect after little more than two years in charge, the London-based club said on Wednesday, Gustard, who left his role as England’s defence coach for the Harlequins job in May 2018, led the side to a sixth-place finish in the interrupted

2:28 PM GMT Scotland have included Bath centre Cameron Redpath in their 35-man squad for the Six Nations after winning a potential tug-of-war with England for the player. Redpath’s father Bryan won 60 caps at scrum-half for Scotland and captained the team but an approach to the player for the Autumn internationals late last year

1:04 PM GMT Wales have named uncapped Scarlets backrow Josh Macleod in their 36-man squad for the Six Nations, while there is a recall for loose-forward Dan Lydiate, who last featured three years ago. Monaco-born Macleod is a former Wales Under-20 international who plays as an openside flanker and is widely regarded for his defensive

11:21 AM GMT England’s preparations for the Six Nations have been hit by COVID-19 with Eddie Jones self-isolating after one of his coaches tested positive for the coronavirus. Matt Proudfoot, England’s forwards coach, is asymptomatic but has retured a positive test. In line with government guidelines, as Jones and attack coach Simon Amor were in

3:00 PM GMT South Africa are open to “all options” to play the British & Irish Lions and are willing to travel to the United Kingdom to make sure the series goes ahead, director of rugby Rassie Erasmus said on Monday. The Lions are scheduled to tour South Africa for eight matches between July 3

11:21 AM GMT The final two rounds of the European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup will be cancelled and the tournaments will move straight to the knockout rounds, Premiership Rugby chief executive Darren Childs said. The French government blocked Top 14 clubs from competing in the European competitions against clubs from United Kingdom and Ireland

11:21 AM GMT Wales fullback Liam Williams will miss their opening Six Nations match after being handed a three-game ban following his red card in Scarlets’ defeat by Cardiff Blues last week in the PRO14. The 29-year-old will miss Ireland’s visit on Feb. 7 after he was sent off for diving into a ruck and

2:06 PM GMT The Women’s Six Nations has been postponed until the spring at the earliest as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect the world’s sporting calendar. The Under-20s championship has also been postponed with the Six Nations confirming in a statement on Wednesday that further details on both tournaments will be released by the

11:29 AM GMT Bristol Bears and England prop Kyle Sinckler is to miss the start of the Six Nations after being banned for two weeks from rugby for swearing at a referee. Sinckler has been banned from playing rugby until Feb. 9 which would rule him out of England’s opening game against Scotland on Feb.

8:11 AM GMT The French government said it needs guarantees from England and Ireland that it is safe for the national rugby union team to travel for Six Nations matches during the COVID-19 pandemic. French sports minister Roxana Maracineanu said France’s opener against Italy in Rome on Feb. 6 had been cleared. 1 Related France

6:08 PM GMT The European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup have been temporarily suspended after the French government recommended that games against British clubs be postponed amid the COVID-19 crisis, European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) announced on Monday. The announcement comes after French authorities agreed that it was too much of a health risk for

7:25 PM GMT French rugby federation president Bernard Laporte remains optimistic that the Six Nations will go ahead as scheduled despite the coronavirus pandemic. “It’s a puzzle, but I think we shouldn’t be alarmed about the Six Nations tournament,” Laporte told French radio RMC on Sunday. “The tournament will be played with a health protocol

3:52 PM GMT The French sports ministry has recommended that European rugby union games against British clubs be postponed amid the COVID-19 crisis in a blow to the Champions and Challenge Cups as the Six Nations competition also appeared threatened on Saturday. The Ministry of Solidarity and Health informed the French National Rugby League (LNR)

11:49 AM GMT England’s Rugby Football Union (RFU) has expressed concerns over whether the organisers of the women’s Six Nations can successfully stage the tournament amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Several women’s Six Nations fixtures were cancelled last year due to the coronavirus outbreak, with England the only team to fulfill all their games. 1 Related

11:39 AM GMT Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones is confident he can shake off a knee problem in time for the start of their Six Nations campaign next month, Ospreys coach Toby Booth has said. Ospreys lock Jones, who is test rugby’s most capped player with 143 internationals under his belt, suffered the injury in

11:47 AM GMT Former Ireland captain Paul O’Connell has joined Andy Farrell’s coaching team as forwards coach, Irish Rugby said in a statement on Thursday. O’Connell, who was capped 108 times and captained Ireland to their 2014 Six Nations triumph, will take up the new role immediately, with Simon Easterby switching his focus to defence.