Courtney Lawes may be retired in England, but he should have one eye on the 2025 British and Irish Lions tour – Getty Images/Brendan Moran To make a meaningful bid for victory in Croke Park, or even to make Leinster sweat, it always felt like Northampton Saints needed a tour de force from Courtney Lawes. … Read more
Courtney Lawes (right) will need to make a monumental change for Northampton Saints’ upset against Leinster – PA/Adam Davy Common wisdom suggests that knockout games are cagey, claustrophobic affairs. If ever there was a quartet of semi-finalists who could blow this truth away, this season’s Champions Cup has found them. Leinster, Northampton Saints, Toulouse and … Read more
The Irish Taghe Beirne is tackled by the English George Martin – PA/David Davies A minute before half-time at Twickenham, Ireland were playing with a penalty advantage in England’s 22 when Tadhg Beirne began running onto Jack Crowley’s flat pass towards an apparent hole in the England defensive line. As soon as Beirne receives the … Read more
The loss of Lewis Ludlam to the Top 14 highlights how difficult it will be for the clubs and RFU to hold the line against selecting most of the overseas-based players for England – Joe Giddens/PA Wire The threat of an exodus of players to France and beyond is not new to the Premier League. … Read more