“Without over-stating it, I’m not sure the Lions can win.” Robbie Henshaw is right where he belongs and right where he deserves to be. No player in he northern hemisphere has played as good in midfield as consistently and for so long as Henshaw. So often having his wings clipped by injuries, just as he […]

5 years ago

“I’m worried. I’m not so sure of the team we selected and some of our combinations.” My South African friend took the concerned words out of my mouth, during our pre-match back-and-forth. He is not so sure, heading into the First Test. Lions fans can emphatize. On paper, there is a lot going for the […]

5 years ago

Rugby league star Kane Evans copped a $5,000 fine from National Rugby League officials after sporting ‘an expensive piece of writing’ on his wrist tape

5 years ago

With a series win in Australia and draw in New Zealand, Warren Gatland has a lot of credit in the bank. The Lions head coach does not always make wildly popular decisions, but he has the trophies in the cabinet to back up many of his calls. He guided Wasps to three Premiership titles and […]

5 years ago

Warren Gatland has made his call. Warren Gatland has named his British & Irish Lions team for the First Test against the Springboks and, given the competitive nature of this 2021 squad, some bold calls were required. Alun Wyn Jones captains the Lions this Saturday and Conor Murray, who had replaced him as tour captain […]

5 years ago

Huge if true. The British & Irish Lions team for the First Test against South Africa was supposed to be announced on Thursday morning. It was then moved up to 10am on Wednesday. Still, it looks as though the Lions have been beaten to it. Ahead of tomorrow morning’s official announcement, The Times are reporting on […]

5 years ago

It was coming home, until it headed for Rome It has been a week since the dramatic finale of Euro 2020. After a year’s delay and a month of breathtaking football, it now belongs to the history books. With some time until domestic football returns, we have a testing Euro 2020 quiz that will run […]

5 years ago

STORMERS 3-49 LIONS Several players, led by Marcus Smith, have done their Test chances no harm. Our full Lions ratings reflect a dominant victory over the Stormers in Cape Town. The Stormers put up a real fight in the first half and went 3-0 ahead after 20 minutes. They will be frustrated, then, at conceding […]

5 years ago

“Jeez, I know I need to go out and play really well tomorrow and then I need to pray for a bit of wind in the afternoon.” For nine holes, during his third round at The Open, it was going as planned for Rory McIlroy. Realistically starting too far back on a stacked leaderboard, McIlroy […]

5 years ago

Stuart Hogg captains the Lions again Robbie Henshaw and Alun Wyn Jones will return to the Lions team to take on the Stormers on Saturday, a match which will see Marcus Smith make his first start for Warren Gatland’s side following his inclusion in the touring squad. Josh Adams is also back in the side, […]

5 years ago

SOUTH AFRICA ‘A’ 17-13 LIONS The Lions have lost the first game of their South Africa tour, but will be thankful they finally faced a test. Our Lions ratings see two England stars score well in a losing cause. South Africa ‘A’ absolutely bossed the first 30 minutes of the game and were rewarded with […]

5 years ago

“He’s made a remarkable recovery.” Warren Gatland will surely not appreciate Rassie Erasmus dropping Lions squad news during his Springbok press briefings. Alun Wyn Jones is set for a Lazarus-like return. Such is the hectic nature of the 2021 British & Irish Lions Tour that the tourists and the Springboks held duelling press briefings at […]

5 years ago

The man loves brave footballers. He loves winners even more Roy Keane was left as rattled and stunned as most of the crowd at Wembley tonight, and he was a ‘neutral’. Those backing Italy and England were though the wringer, and then some. “You could feel it in London this morning. A lot of fans […]

5 years ago

“They say karma is a bitch. I think it’s a mirror” Dustin Poirier has now had his hand raised aloft for the second time in six months after twice going toe-to-toe with Conor McGregor. The former UFC lightweight champion is now in line for a title shot against current strap-holder Charles Oliveira after a doctor’s […]

5 years ago

“You don’t say stuff like that… you don’t wish that on anybody.” Ahead of his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264, Conor McGregor was reluctant to give his usual ‘Mystic Mac’ predictions. Whether it was a case of uncertainty, not wanting to pre-empt his fight strategy or simply not wanting to after only […]

5 years ago

Rassie Erasmus will train the world champions while Jacques Nienaber goes through his isolation period Springboks fans awaiting news, of any sort, got a mix this morning. The Boks will resume training today, after a week of self isolation across the squad and management, but captain Siya Kolisi and eight others have tested positive for […]

5 years ago

Very few of us saw it ending like this Joe Rogan went and sat down beside the injured, defeated Conor McGregor after he had fractured his shinbone and lost to Dustin Poirier. It was an iconic image and one that fight fans will long remember. McGregor could not continue after stepping back on his left […]

5 years ago

“That’s a doctor’s stoppage!” That McGregor ankle looked in a bad, bad way. Conor McGregor has lost in excruciating fashion to Dustin Poirier, by doctor’s stoppage, after breaking his ankle at the end of the first round to Dustin Poirier. The result means Poirier has now won the trilogy between the pair 2-1, but the […]

5 years ago

SHARKS 31-71 LIONS An 11-try salvo from the British & Irish Lions did for a Sharks team that were going well until they picked up a silly red card. The Lions and Sharks were level at 26-26 at half-time, but a red card for Jaden Hendrikse left his side a huge disadvantage. Our full Lions […]

5 years ago

Perhaps we will soon get the fight we were all looking forward to back in 2016 There was an interesting fork in the road moment in Conor McGregor’s fight career and it involved Rafael Dos Anjos and a broken foot. Back in February 2016, fight fans were looking forward to McGregor’s first bout in the […]

5 years ago

Another big blow to the Lions. Finn Russell is nursing an Achilles injury that may yet rule him out of the remainder of the British & Irish Lions’ Tour to South Africa. There is a call-up for Marcus Smith but Johnny Sexton is not required by Warren Gatland. The Scotland star had, earlier today, been […]

5 years ago

SHARKS 7-54 LIONS Away from all the off-field dramas, the British & Irish Lions are destroying what meagre opposition they meet. Our Lions ratings reflect well on two backline demons. The Lions, for the third game in succession, got off to a flying start. They were soon 14-0 up when Josh Adams and Duhan van […]

5 years ago

Just the seven forwards named to the bench… Whoever has the behind-the-scenes documentary rights to the the 2021 British & Irish Lions Tour to South Africa could have an Oscar winner on their hands. It is chaos on the Lions Tour right now, as one player and a member of the management team have tested […]

5 years ago

South Africa Rugby has confirmed the swathe of bad news. The British & Irish Lions’ Saturday game with the Bulls has been postponed and the Springboks squad are dealing with a severe Covid-19 outbreak in their squad and management group. The world champions’ game against Georgia, on Friday, has been put on ice after four […]

5 years ago

A Lions back row that many supporters will be eager to see in action. Warren Gatland has named his British & Irish Lions team to face the Sharks, on Wednesday, and there are several changes again. As promised, there are starts for those squad members who have yet to have one yet. 10 members of […]

5 years ago

On Jose Mourinho’s new playground, his former player/play-thing ran amok For all the talk of Gareth Southgate’s each and every decision being vindicated, it is still odd to think of him selecting right-back Kieran Trippier ahead of Luke Shaw for the Euro 2020 opener against Croatia. The Manchester United defender got his chance against Scotland […]

5 years ago

SIGMA LIONS 14-56 B&I LIONS A flying start and a merciless end. In between, the Lions had a much-needed scrap. Our Lions player ratings have one 10/10. It only took the Lions three minutes to open the scoring, with Chris Harris teeing up Gloucester teammate Louis Rees-Zammit for his first try with a dink over […]

5 years ago

Stuart Hogg gets the captaincy honour. Warren Gatland has named his Lions team for the tour opener against Emirates Lions, on Saturday. There are six English starters, with another four on the replacements bench. Gatland had promised to give game-time to most of his players in the first game, and he is keeping true to […]

5 years ago

“‘Ooh, quite tasty chat!“ Faf de Klerk is ready and raring to get stuck into the British & Irish Lions. ‘The Ultimate Test’ is giving Lions fans a mix of laid-back, behind-the-scenes action within Warren Gatland’s squad, and a slick, glitzy production with some soundbites and lots of slow-mo shots of lads jogging and mullets […]

5 years ago

“We really believe” Declan Rice came out firing at anyone that had their doubts about this England side, and what they are capable of. Rice was part of an England team that out-gunned the Germans in the Last 16 to march on to the quarter finals of Euro 2020. There were long stages were both […]

5 years ago

The former Liverpool and England defender will surely be happy to eat his [tweeted] words on this one. Jamie Carragher was just about every England supporter this afternoon as he went through the wringer of a taut encounter with Germany. England took a while to break down a stubborn German side, in their Euro 2020 […]

5 years ago

“It feels f***ing great!” Granit Xhaka summed it up better than we ever could. As we have already seen at Euro 2020, Roy Keane has an enduring love of ball-players and those brave enough to demand possession and create chances. We have heard him already lavish praise on Kevin De Bruyne, Cristiano Ronaldo and Luke […]

5 years ago

What a joy football can be France were sensationally knocked out of Euro 2020 after being knocked out by a bold Swiss side on penalties. The first half saw France, forced into some tactical changes after two key defenders were ruled out. They played a 3-4-3 against Switzerland but looked flat and trailed 1-0 at […]

5 years ago

For those that claim Keane is an old-school, ‘not enough passion’ merchant, just listen to him speak about footballers he loves There are three things that truly make the eyes of Roy Keane sparkle – Ian Wright, Micah Richards and pure ballers. Many complain about Keane opining, in his various punditry gigs, about players needing […]

5 years ago

The Lions are flying out to South Africa at 7pm this evening. The 2021 British & Irish Lions Tour to South Africa finds itself in a state of perilous flux as a third wave of Covid-19 cases takes hold of the Rainbow Nation. Three Springbok players have tested positive for Covid and the entire squad […]

5 years ago

What an honour this is for the Ireland scrumhalf. Following a tumultuous day on the injury front for the Lions, it has been confirmed that Conor Murray is the new tour captain. Two new players have been called in as injury cover, too. The news comes after Alun Wyn Jones dislocated his shoulder in a […]

5 years ago

“You could see players growing out there on the field.” Ian McGeechan talked up the Test chances of seven British & Irish Lions stars after a winning start to their tour, but one that came with a high tariff. The Lions dispatched Japan 28-10 at Murrayfield, with Robbie Henshaw and Tadhg Beirne sealing the win […]

5 years ago

“We understand we have to be able to react and make decisions. That’s the only way you get on with it.” Warren Gatland is lucky that he has seen it all before, because this is a hammer blow, and then some. The British & Irish Lions got off to a winning start on their 2021 […]

5 years ago

LIONS 28-10 JAPAN A satisfactory opening match triumph for the British & Irish Lions, but at a cost. The Lions ratings reflect well on many of the squad’s debutants. The first half was dominated with two narratives – the Lions looking dominant in attack while losing key players along the way. Captain Alun Wyn Jones […]

5 years ago

“It takes a lot for Alun Wyn to go down, and stay down.” British & Irish Lions captain Alun Wyn Jones could be out of the remainder of the 2021 Tour after badly injuring his wrist. Jamie Heaslip, commentating for Channel 4, knew it was bad. The Wales international, who was playing on his fourth […]

5 years ago

“They talk about their core values… Their core values, to me, are money and power.” Former Irish internationals and current RTE pundits Damien Duff and Richie Sadlier combined forces – and common sense – to rinse UEFA over their rainbow colours stance on Wednesday night. Much of the talk around Germany’s Euro 2020 clash with […]

5 years ago

Two sublime passes to get his team goals, and the whole game on a string. If you were one of those (albeit rare) football fans that only tuned in for major international tournaments, you would be forgiven for thinking Paul Pogba was a golden god. For long stretches of Euro 2016 and the 2018 World […]

5 years ago

He really has an innate sense of comedy, and timing. “I hope your wife gets more than five minute chat with you?” Mark Pougatch was brave. He threw it out there. It was up to Roy Keane now… Much of the talk, ahead of England’s Euro 2020 game against Czech Republic, was of Ben Chilwell […]

5 years ago

“I don’t want to cause a drama for Scotland, but… “ Gareth Southgate did not need this extra hassle ahead of his side’s final Euro 2020 group game. The England boss has been left reeling after being forced to rejig his Starting XI plans just over 24 hours out from a crucial Euro 2020 group […]

5 years ago

Guzzling the elixir of eternal footballing youth like a nice, cool bottle of water You wonder why they are even talking about Cristiano Ronaldo possibly aiming for the 2022 World Cup. He 100 per cent is going to be there. Gunning for his 120th international goal, or something ridiculous like that. The 36-year-old scored a […]

5 years ago

We all knew what was coming… As soon as we saw ITV announcing Roy Keane, Gary Neville and Patrick Vieira as part of their pundits panel for Euro 2020, we all knew the clash at the Highbury tunnel would come up. For the uninitiated, Keane went gunning for Vieira in the tunnel of Arsenal’s old […]

5 years ago

Life comes at you fast. For Everton fans, of late, it has been absolutely flying Rafa Benitez could be set for an interesting and somewhat spiky return to Merseyside. As the 2020/21 Premier League season wrapped up, Everton supporters were lamenting a flagging finish that saw them miss out on Champions and Europa League football. […]

5 years ago

“I think it was more of a nibble than a bite, wasn’t it though?! Yeah, it wasn’t a proper bite, was it?” the former Ireland captain said on ITV

5 years ago

The French player suffered a concussion, broken ribs and lost two teeth Roy Keane was a class operator in his playing days, but he was well versed on lumping into a tackle or making a reducer if he felt the situation merited it. The former Manchester United and Ireland captain was sent off 13 times […]

5 years ago

MAN UNITED 1-1 VILLAREAL (Villareal win 11-10 on penalties) Gerónimo Rulli rules in Gdansk. The full Manchester United ratings are a mixed bag after Villareal stunned the big dogs with a penalty shoot-out win. United goalkeeper David De Gea will carry the can – after his penalty shoot-out nightmare – but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has […]

5 years ago