Phil Gifford relates some of the story behind working on Sir Wayne Smith’s book, Smithy: Endless Winters and the Spring of ’22 (out now) and the inner workings of a man who has been involved in the thick of the All Blacks and rugby in general for over 40 years.
Campbell Burnes has a little help as he revisits the great days of the small but determined Thames Valley union, which last month toasted its centenary.
Phil Gifford bids farewell from New Zealand rugby, for now, to a man who carved an unlikely career as an All Black, and a well-liked and highly regarded one at that.
Liam Napier, with the help of “eternal optimist” Jeremy Paul, tries to see a way for the Wallabies to regain the Bledisloe for the first time in nearly two decades; if they can pull it off, the Rugby Championship race will be wide open.
Rikki Swannell assesses the chances of both New Zealand’s teams in Birmingham this month after a promising return to action after the long Covid-19 hiatus.
Katrina Darry is helping fuel the All Blacks, so Liam Napier caught up with the nutritionist to find out how it all works in practice and whether it’s all just smoothies and energy bars
Campbell Burnes spoke to All Blacks and Chiefs tighthead lock Brodie Retallick, who was due back on the park this month after an untimely broken thumb, steeling himself for the last (probably) 18 months of his long and stellar career.
Liam Napier looks at the vexed issue
of balancing player safety against common sense when ruling on contact to the head and why this is
frustrating fans.
The demanding halfback role is now a job-sharing position, certainly at Super Rugby and, as we discover, the Highlanders have a clear succession plan in place.
Rugby News tries to get to the essence of why this French team under Fabien Galthie, has become so good and is firming as early favourite for the 2023 Rugby World Cup on its home soil.