best games
1=) Ireland 24-28 New Zealand; France 28-29 South Africa. World Cup quarter-finals, Stade de France, 14-15 October. Any game will be an unforgettable final.
3) Bordeaux Begler 41-42 Harlequin. Chaban-Delmas Stadium, April 13. It’s hard to imagine a more exciting game of club rugby.
Most memorable match day experience
1) Ireland 13-8 South Africa, Stade de France, September 23. World Cup pool stage. Zombie by the Cranberry still rings in my head, in my head…
2) Leinster 22-31 Toulouse (aet) Champions League final, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, May 25. A stunning venue, a glorious stage for first-class rugby.
3) England 23-22 Ireland, Twickenham, 9 March. That day the old cabbage patch returned to its original state.
4) Heritage 39-21 Watson, Goldenacre, April 22. Spend time with old classmates and go back to simpler times.
Men’s Player of the Season
1) Antoine Dupont
2) Antoine Dupont
3) Antoine Dupont
Women’s Player of the Season
1) Ellie Kildoon (England)
2) Sophie de Gold (Canada)
3) Romain Menage (France)
The most inspiring rugby figures from either code
1) Rob Burrow
2) Ed Slater
3) He is Corisi
champagne moment
1) Antoine Dupont (Toulouse) had a superb rifle shot in the Champions League final against Leinster, scoring 50-22.
2) Tyrone Green (Harlequins) Was Harlequins’ Superman diving goal from the right corner against Newcastle Falcons?
3) Jack Dunn (Exeter) Chiefs improbably scored the winning goal against Munster at Sandy Park in December. “He is very happy [in the dressing room] Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter said it was his first catch of the season.
Most watched player
1) Emmanuel Fay-Exit
2) Finn Russell (Bath)
3) Alfie Barbieri (Bath)
The most influential Premier League players
1) Courtney Lawes (Northampton)
2) Alex Mitchell (Northampton)
3) Ben Spencer (Bath)
Players to watch in 2024-25
Finn Baxter (Harlequins); Billy Serra (Bath); Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sold).
Best coach of the season
1) Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber (South Africa)
2) Andy Farrell (Ireland)
3) John Mitchell (England Women)
Unnamed assistant coach this season
1) Lee Redford (Northampton)
2) Lee Blackett (Bath)
3) Ross McMillan (Exeter)
upwardly mobile referee
1) Luke Pierce
2) Christopher Ridley
3) holly davidson
Gone (France) but not forgotten…
Owen Farrell; Courtney Lawes; Marco and Billy Vunipola; George North; Lewis Ludlam and others.
The most depressing news
Mark Regan, Phil Vickery, Gavin Hansen, Colin Chavez and Sean Lamont are among 295 former rugby union players who are suing rugby’s governing body over brain injuries. Wales legends Barry John and JPR Williams pass away. And Jake Polledri’s early retirement. Excellent player for Gloucester and Italy.
rest in peace…
Barry John, JPR Williams, David Watkins, Lewis Jones, Charlie Faulkner, Malcolm Price, Derek Morgan, Tony O’Reilly, Mike Weston, Bob Hesford , Alan Esteve, Sid Gowing, Billy Guyton, Hannes Stratton, Nick Coster, Sid Miller, Dennis Gethin.
Upcoming summer highlights
1) The final stages of the Allianz Premier League and United Rugby Championship.
2) Ireland’s heavy Test series against world champions South Africa.
3) England visit New Zealand for the first time in 10 years.
4) The Antoine Dupont Show (also known as the Paris Olympic Rugby Sevens).
Without them, nothing would be the same…
1) Johnny Sexton
2) And Big
3) Wayne Barnes
Never imagined…
1) Police tasered Billy Vunipola twice in a nightclub in Palma: their first attempt allegedly hit him in his wallet.
2) Stuart Hogg was arrested by police outside his ex-wife’s home in Hawick.
3) Traveled to the Six Nations launch event in Dublin in poor weather and ultimately landed in Belfast.
Quotes of this season
“The boys jokingly call him ‘Martian’, as if he is not from Earth but an alien” – Toulouse’s France striker Emmanuel Mefo says Antoine Dupont is from another planet .
“How many players have gone from the back row to the second row when slowing down? He’s going the other way. He’s going to play in the middle of the park at Brive” – Northampton director of rugby Phil Dawson to departing Tribute to Courtney Rouse of Ren.
“If you were an average player, you wouldn’t get the nickname ‘The King'” – Jonathan Davis pays tribute to the late great Barry John.
“Yeah man, the problem I have right now is it looks like Austin [Healey] He instigated it because we were late, so I don’t want to talk about it, okay? – Hot mics capture TV match official Stuart Terheege in action.
“Ronaldo is my favorite player. I wear his boxers and dress like him. I thought why not celebrate his celebration too” – Wales winger Louis Rees-Zammit after scoring against Portugal Mimicking Cristiano Ronaldo’s celebration behind the ball.
“I only found out about this about an hour ago. There’s never a dull moment in Welsh rugby” – Warren Gatland reacts to Reece Zammit’s sudden decision to quit rugby and try his luck in American football.
“I don’t usually talk too much about my son. What I might say is that the circus surrounding it all is absolutely disgusting. Disgusting” – Andy Farrell on Owen Farrell in pre-World Cup warm-up test Defending his son after his red card against Wales was escalated.
“I probably deserved more after that, mate. They should have thrown baguettes, croissants at me. I deserved everything” – Eddie Jones on the crowd’s reaction to the Wallabies’ World Cup match against Fiji reaction to poor performance in the game.
“They said, ‘We know where you live, we’ll wait outside the kids’ school, and we’ll burn your house down with the kids inside.'” Of course it affects you.” —Wayne Bar Enns spoke about the pressures of being a high-profile referee in the modern era.
“We haven’t found what he’s not good at yet, but we’ll keep working on it” – England manager Steve Borthwick after learning about his talented new winger Emmanuel Fay-Waboso He is also an excellent pianist.
“These are not just ordinary kids that are coming through our system at the moment… they are very special. From 17 to 21 or 22, if managed correctly we could have a team that lasts for generations” – said Rugby Football League executive director of performance Conor O’Shea, speaking about England’s talent pipeline.
“Biscuits and saunas… if it works why not? I think I’ve shown an alternative to protein and supplements every day” – Danny Kyle on the secret to his professional longevity.
“We need to stop changing the law: 90% of it is to redo what other law changes have done. It’s crazy” – Rob Baxter, University of Exeter.
“Our rugby club is the heart and soul of the village. It’s the same in all the valley towns. The pubs are closed, the banks are closed, but what’s left is the rugby club” – Max Boyce, proud chairman of Glynneath RFC.
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