In this issue

December 10, 2023

Baron: RFU heading for £59m loss this year

FRANCIS Baron has accused the RFU hierarchy of publishing misleading interpretations of its own financial position, which he believes is increasingly precarious, and is being ‘misrepresented’ to its 1,200 member clubs.

3 mins

Williams: I'd back call to get rid of Sweeney

THE Championship’s joint top try scorer David Williams has called for Sport England or another organisation to get involved and provide some accountability to decisions being made at Twickenham.

2 mins

Reed is making his mark at Sale

A NEW tattoo and a special changing room rapport between Sale Sharks' Arron Reed and director of rugby Alex Sanderson has been the catalyst in the winger finding the form of his career so far this season.

2 mins

Vermeulen confident Chiefs will return to top

JACQUES Vermeulen is one of the old hands at Exeter following his arrival from South Africa in 2019 and after a summer of upheaval believes it will not be long before the Chiefs are back at the top.

2 mins

Dynamic duo put life back into Bath

BEN Spencer has partnered two of the leading outside- halves of their generation, Owen Farrell and Finn Russell, and although they have contrasting styles and temperaments, he believes they are very similar.

3 mins

French power will be so tough to overcome

ENGLISH clubs are up against it in the European Cup because they are competing against French clubs which have much bigger budgets. In fact, in the last decade, the only Premiership club that’s managed to compete successfully against the French, and Leinster, has been Saracens.

4 mins

Saracens make it too easy for Bulls

THE Blue Bulls deservedly won this heavyweight clash but there was a minor triumph in defeat for Sarries who somehow prevented them claiming what had seemed like an inevitable try bonus.

2 mins

Ice-cool Sheedy the hero for Bears

IT WAS a night of dizzying figures. Twenty four unanswered points by Lyon in the second half. The clock five minutes into the red. And three sweet, sweet drop goal points from Callum Sheedy to win it for the Bears.

2 mins

Rampant Bath storm to the winning post

WHEN a side has an outside-half of Finn Russell’s vision and daring, it comes down to how much possession he enjoys, as well as its quality. Bath’s forwards were rampant on the club’s return to the Champions Cup on an afternoon when the scrum reasserted itself.

2 mins

Seven-try Toulouse too swift for Cardiff

BLAIR Kinghorn marked his Toulouse debut with a brace of tries as the starstuffed French outfit got their Champions Cup campaign off to a flying start.

2 mins

Slade leads Chiefs on smash and grab raid

EXETER’S struggles on the road have been well documented over the past year, but the Chiefs produced the perfect ‘smash and grab’ to win in the south of France.

3 mins

Freeman double has Saints on the march

ON the move domestically, and on the march in Europe.

2 mins

We're not the whipping boys - Sanderson

ALEX Sanderson is relishing Sale’s novel status as underdogs as the Premiership leaders prepare to face some of the best sides in Europe, starting with a home game against Stade Francais.

3 mins

Fit-again Henderson out to grab his chance

CAMERON Henderson is relishing the start of Leicester Tigers’ Champions Cup campaign, seeing it as the perfect platform to state his claim for Scotland’s Six Nations squad in January.

3 mins

Four-try Lake guides Ospreys safely home

WALES hooker Dewi Lake helped himself to a European record equalling four tries in a match for the Ospreys as he guided his side to a bonuspoint win in Pool 2.

2 mins

Barton is on target to rescue Gloucester

A FAULTLESS kicking display off the tee from George Barton saw a coltish Gloucester side halt a run of six defeats on the trot with this hard earned win in a wet Tbilisi.

2 mins

Minnows can make splash of a whale

ACCORDING to Donald J Trump – you may have heard of him – “losers” are the lowest of the low, “suckers” and “schmucks”. One of the founding principles of what might loosely be called his philosophy, it applies even to the military.

3 mins

A team stuffed full of captains

I WAS having one final lingering look at that 2003 England reunion picture last week before we banish all such thoughts until the next reunion – 2028 I’m guessing – when I was suddenly struck by something I had never really clocked before. My God, has there ever been a national team with so many Test captains?

3 mins

It's time for Lions to hunt change

THE British and Irish Lions will face Argentina in Dublin before embarking upon their 2025 tour to Australia in a repeat of the Cardiff-based 2005 fixture but, from Argentina’s perspective, things could not be more different.

2 mins

Varley gets Bears back in winners' enclosure

BRISTOL Bears got back to winning ways with an eight-try victory at Franklin’s Gardens.

2 mins

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The Rugby Paper Magazine Description:

The Rugby Paper, the UK's number 1 selling rugby title, brings you exclusive stories, reports and features on your device, published in exceptional clarity. It contains renowned journalists such as Nick Cain and Peter Jackson, and famous former players as columnists including Jeremy Guscott and Jeff Probyn. Published every Sunday, The Rugby Paper covers Rugby Union from national teams and Premiership / Rabo Direct down to grass roots.