Ooh for ah player like Cantona

SCOTLAND rugby coach Andy Robinson names his squad tomorrow for training at St Andrews next week in preparation for the RBS Six Nations Championship. Evening News rugby writer BILL LOTHIAN gives an insight into what makes the coach tick

ANDY ROBINSON has used footballer Eric Cantona as an example of a sportsman who symbolises the message he is trying to put across to Scotland's rugby squad.

That situation revolved around one of Scotland's least experienced players and it is Robinson's goal to have rookies and stalwarts alike backing themselves.


Also, the former England cap wants players to be regularly asking 'why?'


"Asking why is better than acting like a lemming without knowing how to improve. Lots of players take up positions without thinking. The reason is that they are comfortable there.


"It's about challenging them to get to the next step.


Scotland's defence was lauded in the Autumn and Robinson said: "With a defence that defended the way we did you can attack from deeper.


"There has been some improvement in the understanding of our attack.

"Coaching defence is a lot simpler than putting together a framework for attack. All systems for defence are similar throughout the world.


"One area that we have to develop is peripheral vision with awareness of players around as well as the ability to scan and see."


It is likely that Robinson's initial selection, which will eventually be cut to a matchday 22, will take into account the Scotland A fixture against Ireland in Dublin on Sat Mar 20, 2010

(17:00), when it is likely the selection will be heavily based on the side which thumped Tonga 38-7 at Galashiels in November.

Ireland V Scotland Hospitality


The opportunity will almost certainly be taken to integrate Euan Murray back into a dark blue jersey, the Lions prop having missed the Autumn Tests due to injury.

He will also delay any entry to the Six Nations at least until Scotland head for Wales on Saturday 13 February because the Sunday fixture against France conflicts with his religious principles.


If Scotland can get off to a winning start against it will be the first time in the Six Nations since Robinson's predecessor, Frank Hadden launched his Test career with a 20-16 win over France at Murrayfield in 2006.


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Italy's Magners chances take a knock

The two Italian teams set to join the Magners League next season could be put on ice as the franchises are struggling to meet the criteria.

Financial and political issues are hampering progress, with a report and decision on progress expected in two weeks' time, according to the Irish Independent.

The internal political issues revolve around the relative strength of the teams, who would be severely weakened by international call-ups during the November Test window and Six Nations.

Then there are financial problems, with an entry fee of EUR 3m being demanded as a joint entry fee to cover the cost of expanding the league and the other teams' admin and away games, and a TV money contribution of EUR 1.2m set as a minimum requirement.

The two franchises might use the Heineken Cup as a fall-back option, but ERC are not likely to accept entry from teams who are not yet organised by the February 3 deadline.

The impetus for including Italy in the first place comes from the IRB who want to see a more competitive Italy on the international stage, with club rugby needing a boost in order to get that far.

But as it stands, the Italian teams would not necessarily raise the standard, particularly with more games then scheduled to be played inside the Test window, which would dilute the quality of the teams on show further.


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Supporters Club Competitions

The RBS 6 Nations is looming large on the horizon and the Irish Rugby Supporters Club is gearing up for all the action. We have just announced two great competitions to get whet your appetite and get you in an International mood!

This time next week the provincial jersyes will be folded away and the Ireland jerseys taken down of the hanger ready to be worn with pride by all Irish Rugby Supporters and none more so than the members of the Supporters Club!

With the announcement of the Ireland squad comes the anticipation of International action and thanks to the club thousands of members will be cheering Ireland on in Croke Park, Stade De France and Twickenham this year.

We have also launched two great competitions to bring you just that bit closer to the action - The Match Day Event for Ireland V Wales and our Mascot competition for Junior members.

The Match Day Event is one of our biggest days of the season bringing hundreds of members together in Croke Park to soak up the atmosphere, cheer on the team and then meet some of the players.

One lucky member - Fiona O'Shea was even present with a signed Ireland jersey by Sean and John, who also answered questions, signed autographs and posed for pictures in the aftermath of the fantastic win over South Africa.

Ireland will play Scotland in our last game of the RBS 6 Nations Championship and our last game in Croke Park and one lucky boy or girl has the chance to lead the team on the day.


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O’Driscoll is Irish sports star of the year

It was Vince Lombardi, that wizened sports sage whose advice so often transcended his limited field of Gridiron, who reminded us that “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.”

It is no coincidence that Ireland's greatest sporting ambassadors have retained an inextricable fidelity to Lombardi's tenet, none more so that the latest addition to the stellar collection of Irish Independent/Jury's Croke Park SportsStars of the Year, Brian O'Driscoll.

His selection is a representation of the extraordinary levels to which he continually aspires, and the expectations he so often exceed.

Ireland's historic Grand Slam triumph and Leinster's Heineken Cup successes were, of course, team triumphs and last night's winner was the first to deflect the paeans of praise and cite that his was a reward shared by all who toiled with him.

And yet when one reflects on achievements that marked a year of unprecedented success in Irish rugby, it is difficult to eradicate the searing image imprinted upon the events by the imposing figure of Ireland's greatest ever exponent of the game.

Whether it was racing home a 70-yard intercept try with renewed vigour and more trustworthy hamstrings in Rome, or impudently burrowing beneath a stout English pack from an impossibly tight angle close to the try-line, O'Driscoll's interventions were clearly identifiable in their genius and timing.

When destiny rapped its knuckles on the door throughout this extraordinary season — who can forget the almost inhuman physical energy expended during the Lions series? — O'Driscoll answered the call every single time.


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Brendan Venter keen to face RFU disciplinary hearing

Saracens director of rugby Brendan Venter said that he was "looking forward" to his Rugby Football Union disciplinary hearing, when he will face a charge of conduct prejudicial to the interests of the game.

The charge relates to remarks made by Venter during a press conference after Saracens' defeat by Leicester at Vicarage Road on Jan 2, when he criticised the performance of referee David Rose and general standards of officiating in England.

The former Springbok claimed that "something had happened" to influence Rose during the interval, which Venter believed resulted in a swing in the penalty count from 9-3 to Saracens in the first half to 10-4 in Leicester's favour after the break.

If found guilty, Venter, who has been instrumental in guiding Saracens to the top of the Premiership since arriving at the club at the end of last season, could face a one-month touchline ban.

Venter, however, said last night that he was keen to have a "conversation" with the RFU at the hearing to address his concerns about refereeing standards.

Asked if he had any regrets about his comments, he said: "What I am pleased about is that I was able to voice an opinion about a subject that is extremely important to me without being rude or abusive about the performance of David Rose."

Former All Blacks prop Clarke Dermody has given London Irish a welcome boost ahead of their crucial Heineken Cup match against champions Leinster at Twickenham on Saturday by agreeing a new two-year deal.

Northampton have signed former Wales prop Darren Morris until the end of the season as a replacement for Argentine front-row forward Santiago Bonorino, who has had to retire because of a back problem.

Gloucester flanker Akapusi Qera has signed a new two-year contract with the Kingsholm club. The Gloucester trio of fly-half Freddie Burns, wing Charlie Sharples and centre Henry Trinder have all signed two-year contract extensions with the club, securing their futures at Kingsholm until at least 2012.


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'Mrs Thatcher won Grand Slam for Scotland'

David Sole leads the Scotland team off the pitch at Murrayfield after their 13-7 Calcutta Cup win over England in the Five Nations rugby tournament, March 1990.

Long regarded as a hate figure among Scottish rugby supporters, Moore has voiced his inflammatory views his new autobiography Beware the Dog.

The former England and British Lions hooker believes the Scottish victory in the Five Nations decider was fuelled not by superior skills and tactics, but by hatred over the imposition of the poll tax by Margaret Thatcher's government, as well as anti-English fervour.

Moore, 48, said the nationalistic fervour got to his fellow players and contributed to the Scots winning 13-7. He wrote: "Scotland's tactics were simple. They would use their home crowd to pressure us throughout the game.

"Allied to these tactics, the easily generated anti-English fervour was reinforced by genuine political antipathy felt by the country towards the Thatcher government, particularly as it had been trialling its new system of local rates, known as the poll tax, north of the border."

Moore told of his torment at having to mix with gloating Scotland fans at a rugby function in Edinburgh the week after the game. "For every second of the experience, and I exaggerate not, at the back of my mind was repeated the phrase, 'I would rather die than allow the Scottish to do this to me again'," he said.

He takes several other swipes at Scotland in the book, saying he has just two Scottish friends, and claiming the Scots were obsessed with labelling the English arrogant. He also expresses dislike for the English anthem Swing Low Sweet Chariot, but still prefers it to Flower of Scotland. Roy Comfort, chairman of the Forum of Scottish Rugby Supporters, said: "It is just Brian being a bit of a sore loser. England came with one of their best teams for years, expecting victory."

Jim Telfer, forwards coach, rejected the Thatcher theory, saying: "There was enough edge without any politics. They were going for a Grand Slam and we were going for a Grand Slam. They must have known that with people like Finlay Calder and David Sole that we were not going to just lie down."

He added: "I think Brian likes reaction. He likes to give this view as a pitbull terrier. He speaks his mind but he is quite arrogant."


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Wales will miss 3D Six Nations England clash

Welsh rugby fans who want to see their heroes in 3D at the cinema for the first time will have to go to England.

The Wales v England game at Twickenham, each team's opener in the 2010 Six Nations, will be the first live 3D sports broadcast in Europe.

But while 40 Odeon and Cineworld cinemas will show the game, tournament sponsor O2 says that none are in Wales.

Wales fan and rugby pundit Carolyn Hitt said: "It is incredibly insular and narrow-minded."

She said: "Maybe England fans need convincing that England can play in more than one dimension."

O2 has said 3D cameras will be installed for the match on 6 February. England's second game of the tournament, with Ireland on 27 February, will also be broadcast in 3D.

Backers claim the 3D screenings will give rugby fans the closest experience of the atmosphere inside the stadium.

Tickets for the Wales-England clash go on sale on 29 January but Wales fans face a trek across the border if they want to see their team screened in 3D.

O2 said the screenings would be in England "because we only sponsor the England team".

Hitt said: "They have shot themselves in the foot from a marketing point of view.

"This offered a real breakthrough in the way people enjoyed a game of rugby but they are halving their potential audience.

"Rugby is far more popular in Wales than in England anyway."

Writer and broadcaster Nigel Crowle, a Cardiff Blues season ticket holder, said: "I suppose the England rugby supporters will be viewing their grand slam chances through rose-tinted 3D spectacles, too.

"It's a shame the England rugby team have to rely on gimmicks to please their supporters and the Welsh team only need to play good rugby."


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Brive v Scarlets preview

The Scarlets hope to have fly-half Stephen Jones and hooker Matthew Rees available for their crucial final Heineken Cup Pool 6 game in Brive.

Wales duo Jones (shoulder) and Rees (groin) were on the sidelines as the region grabbed a lifeline in Sunday's 31-22 win over London Irish.

Flanker Rob McCusker scored twice against the Exiles said: "We've got to be confident after that.

"We can take a lot out of it. But we have a lot to work on."

The Scarlets have an outside chance of quarter-final qualification. A bonus-point win will see them leap-frog London Irish to claim second place on 18 points, providing the Exiles fail to beat group leaders Leinster.
Depending on results elsewhere, the Welsh region could equally find themselves battling for a place in the Amlin Challenge Cup.

The six group winners and two best runner-ups progress into the Heineken Cup last eight, while the next three qualify for European rugby's second-tier competition.

The Scarlets began this season's European campaign with a 24-12 win over the French side.

Brive, who include ex-Scarlets back-row Alix Popham in their ranks, have since failed to record a win in this season's competition.

The 1997 tournament winners have lost heavily twice to Leinster and London Irish and are lying ninth in the French Top 14 with eight wins from 18 starts.

The Scarlets' Magners League form is also a concern, also lying ninth, but with only Connacht below them, having won only three games in 10.

North Walian McCusker, 24, added: "We've never given up on this competition. We've said we could get something out of it.

"We wanted to carry on the performance from last week and we're going to do our best to carry on next week.

"Traditionally people don't think French teams travel well, but it's going to be a totally different game in France, in Brive and it's an intimidating place to go.

"They've got a great tradition from the Heineken Cup in previous year."


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Julien Dupuy's 23-week gouging ban is anti-French, says Stade president

The Stade Français president, Max Guazzini, will fight the 23-week ban given to Julien Dupuy for eye-gouging Ulster's Stephen Ferris during last month's Heineken Cup match in Belfast, calling the punishment unjustified and anti-French.

Under French law, the scrum-half's ban, which was reduced by one week to 23 on appeal, has to be ratified by the relevant body in France, the Ligue Nationale de Rugby. LNR has the power to reduce or overturn the suspension, meaning Dupuy would be able to play in the French league while remaining banned from the Heineken Cup.

"It is a very heavy sanction," Guazzini said. "They European Rugby Cup Ltd wanted to make an example and the fact Dupuy is French probably played a role. Ferris told the hearing there was no gouging and that he was slapped and the ban was excessive, totally unjustified. We will not leave it here and we will be making representations to LNR and the French Rugby Federation."

The France coach, Marc Lièvremont, has a problem at scrum-half with Dupuy banned and Dimitri Yachvili missing at least the first three rounds of the Six Nations after suffering a knee injury playing for Biarritz against Stade last weekend.

France are the bookmakers' favourites to win the Six Nations but Ugo Monye believes England have what it takes to win the tournament for the first time since 2003, the year they went on to win the World Cup.

"We definitely should go into the Six Nations believing that we can win it," the England wing said. "It will be difficult. It is definitely possible that we can win it and we have to have belief to go with our high expectations. We have players who are playing well for their teams domestically and we just need them to transfer that form on to the international stage. We have excellent coaches and the criticism we all received last November made us stronger as a unit."

Chris Ashton, the Northampton wing who was included in the England squad this week, has signed a new two-year contract with the Saints, while Scott Lawson and Alasdair Strokosch, both Scotland internationals, have agreed new deals with Gloucester.


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Wales rugby coach tells England to give Johnson time

Wales coach Warren Gatland has said England must learn from their experience with World Cup winning supremo Clive Woodward and give Martin Johnson time to develop as their manager.

England has lost eight of their 14 Tests since Johnson was appointed to the post of team manager without any previous coaching experience in 2008.

Wales will look to add to those tally of defeats next month when they begin their Six Nations campaign at Twickenham in search of a third straight win over England - something they last achieved more than 20 years ago.

"I hope England give him some time," Gatland said of Johnson after announcing Wales's squad for the Six Nations on Monday.

"It has been tough for Martin. Everyone knows what a great player he has been.

Gatland sees similarities between England and Wales's situations in that both countries are struggling to get club teams into the last eight of this season's European Cup.

"There are two countries going into the Six Nations at the moment a little bit concerned about where their teams are," the New Zealander said.

"That is not just a concern for England, it has to be a concern for Wales as well," former Ireland coach Gatland added.

Wales will head into the Six Nations without their two senior scrum-halves as the British and Irish Lions duo of Dwayne Peel (groin) and Mike Phillips (ankle) are both injured.

Peel sustained his injury playing for English club Sale during their European Cup pool defeat by Cardiff Blues last weekend and now it seems the Scarlets' 23-year-old Martin Roberts will be lining up in the key scrum-half position for his first Six Nations start at Twickenham on February 6, 2010.

"We are not 100 percent sure how long Dwayne is going to be out for," said Gatland. "We are just going to assess him over the next few weeks and, when he is back fully fit, we will make a decision on him."

Wales and England suffered disappointing November international home series with both nations well beaten by New Zealand and Australia.

Looking ahead to their Six Nations opener, Gatland said: "This is a huge game for both sides. A victory for either team will give a huge amount of confidence and give you a chance to win the Six Nations Championship."

Gatland urged Wales to follow the example of Ireland, who won a Six Nations grand slam last year and ended an unbeaten 2009 with a win over world champions South Africa.



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Welsh rugby fans ready to snap up Six Nations Hospitality

MORE than 27,000 Welsh rugby fans who have pre-registered for the Six Nations matches at the Millennium Stadium will get the opportunity to snap up tickets at noon today.

Fans have registered their support for the national squad since Wales captain Ryan Jones launched the pre-registration process via the Welsh Rugby Union website during last year’s autumn series.

Fans were able to join a priority waiting list for access to any tickets unclaimed by WRU member clubs and debenture holders.


Sell-out crowds are expected for the games against Scotland (February 13), France (February 26) and Italy (March 20).

“The fans are an important part of the team and we will be looking forward to three home games with the Millennium Stadium full to its rafters,” said Wales coach Warren Gatland.

“There is nothing like looking up from the pitch to a sea of red to inspire a player.

“We have three tough matches in Cardiff this year and the crowd will have a vital part to play.”

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Perpignan make offer to Ospreys for James Hook

The Ospreys' Wales and Lions back, 24, is understood to be keen on a move away from the Liberty Stadium despite having 15 months to run on his contract.

Hook, who has won 37 caps for Wales, has become disillusioned with his rugby life in Swansea after losing his place at fly-half to Dan Biggar, 20. He also fears his switch to centre will end his chances of wearing the No 10 shirt at next year's World Cup in New Zealand.

Cardiff and Worcester have also made inquiries about Hook, who played at full-back for Wales in the autumn Tests.

Sources in France suggest the Ospreys have turned down an initial approach from Perpignan and are likely to maintain their stance despite Hook's desire to leave.

The 22-year-old former rugby league player, who is the Guinness Premiership's leading try-scorer, with nine in 10 games, has been named in England's elite player squad for the Six Nations Championship.

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Will Greenwood’s big warning for Wales

WORLD CUP-WINNER Will Greenwood has delivered a double whammy to Wales’ top stars, declaring they are facing Twickenham defeat and potential Heineken Cup wipe-out.

Greenwood, scourge of Wales’s teams as a player at the start of this millennium, reckons Martin Johnson’s new-look England will prove too strong for Warren Gatland’s men at Twickenham.

And he also predicted the Ospreys stars who make up the bulk of Gatland’s team have to take something from their Euro showdown in Clermont tomorrow.

Failure to do that, he warns, could lead to Clermont and Leicester grabbing the top-two spots in Pool Three and the Ospreys joining the Blues, Scarlets and Dragons on the Euro sidelines.

Greenwood’s warning of a double dose of trouble for Welsh rugby will fire up the likes of Ryan Jones, Shane Williams, Lee Byrne, Adam Jones, James Hook and Alun Wyn Jones ahead of a pivotal moment of their season.

But Greenwood is adamant that misery could be facing Welsh rugby, saying: “England have made themselves difficult to beat against Six Nations opponents. It’s England versus Wales at Twickenham on February 6, one of the days in the rugby calendar.

“I’m one of the biggest fans of Welsh rugby, but, as a proud Englishman, I think home advantage will prove decisive with England coming out on top.

“Wales’ second game of the Six Nations is against Scotland in Cardiff and it’s that encounter when Wales will look to get on a winning roll.”

England boss Johnson has strengthened his squad significantly after it was ravaged by injury for the autumn campaign, bringing in a number of younger players he hopes will pep up his team.

But Greenwood says that for Gatland’s Ospreys-based stars to go to Twickenham on a Euro high, they need to go for the jugular in France tomorrow to guarantee Welsh representation in the Heineken quarter-finals.

Scott Johnson’s side currently top Pool Three with 16 points, four ahead of Leicester and Clermont. But their rivals each have the comfort of a probable bonus-point victory to come over Italian minnows Viadana.

With French Championship leaders Clermont hosting the Ospreys at Stade Marcel Michelin, Greenwood insists Aurelien Rougerie and his team are in pole position to win the group.

“James is just so calm and assured. When it’s on to go from his 22, he is away. It’s an Australian sense of belief and purpose.

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Ireland V Wales - Six Nations 2010

CROKE PARK STADIUM - 13 March 2010

The magic moments of Irelands historic Grand Slam 2009 rugby season will be emotionally recalled when the RBS Six Nations championship 2010 unfolds at Croke Park in February and March next.

Far from resting on their laurels, Ireland’s rugby heroes are determined to scale the heights again and capitalise on home advantage against Italy, Wales and Scotland.

Interest in the capacity sell-out games is further flavoured by this being the last time for a Six Nations Championship to be staged at GAA Headquarters prior to the Irish teams return to the new look Aviva Stadium later in the year.

Croke Park Stadium

Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland is the largest sports stadium in Ireland and the fourth largest stadium in Europe. It is the principal stadium and headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), Ireland's biggest sporting organisation. The stadium is in the heart of the city, a 15 minute walk from the main thoroughfare O'Connell Street

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David Young hoping Edinburgh can find right formula to extend stay in Europe

Win and European rugby should beckon. Lose, and it’s another season of concentrating on the Magners League, and another season where Scottish rugby has drawn a blank in the Heineken Cup. The equation is that simple and stark for Edinburgh when they play Ulster tonight.

What complicates things for the Scottish club is that the arithmetic is identical for their opponents, who go into the game level on points in the pool but with the advantage of having picked up a bonus point in losing the reverse fixture, where the teams drew the try count at one each.


Which means that the biggest game of the season so far sees David Young, the prop, retain his place after being drafted into the side last week to give Geoff Cross a rest. “It is a big vote of confidence,” Young said yesterday before the team flew to Belfast, the city where, coincidentally, he was born while his father was on an Army tour of duty to the city.

“I have had snippets of opportunities in the past. To be given a start in the must-win game against Cardiff last weekend was a great boost. You have got to earn your stripes, and though that may have taken a few months longer than I expected, the key thing is that I have been given this opportunity and have to continue the momentum,” he added.

The back row sees Alan MacDonald, capped by Scotland in November but who missed last week’s game with flu, come in as a straight like-for-like replacement for Rennie. It is a rare outing for him in his specialist role as openside flanker, but he says he is just delighted to be back in the side.

“Seven is probably my preferred position but I am not picky, it is more about how I can contribute to the team,” MacDonald said. “It is very exciting; I think everybody will relish the experience. I have won games there in the past, and lost games there too. It is always a difficult place to go.”

Moffat knows that it would be a huge boost to his side’s chances if they were not only to win, but also pick up a try bonus point, but yesterday he refused to heap pressure on the team by suggesting that they would go out with those four tries as a goal. “I was disappointed last week because at 18-6 up we should have kicked on and got that fourth try,” he said. “I would expect that if we found ourselves in the same position this week, we would keep going, but you can’t predict that. The important thing is to win.”

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Scottish rugby legend knighted

Scotland rugby legend Ian McGeechan has been knighted in the 2010 New Year honours list for his services to rugby union.

McGeechan, 63, coached Scotland to a Grand Slam in 1990 and featured in seven British and Irish Lions tours: five as a coach and two as a player.

His knighthood follows a distinguished playing and coaching career which began internationally with a Scotland debut in 1972.

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Shontayne Hape proud to be an Englishman

Shontayne Hape has declared himself a proud Englishman after being selected for Martin Johnson's Six Nations squad.

New Zealand-born Hape, who picked up 14 rugby league caps for the Kiwis before his switch to the 15-man code in 2008, said on Thursday that he expected even family and friends back home to raise eyebrows at his quest for an England shirt.

But the 28 year-old, who has lived in England for seven years and got his residency papers earlier this month, says he sees no contradiction in a former New Zealand rugby league star being in the England union set-up.

"I was brought up in New Zealand and I'm proud of where I come from but I'm proud to be an Englishman as well and have dual nationality," said the centre, who moved from Super League outfit Bradford Bulls to Bath 18 months ago.

"Being in the squad is one thing, actually playing international rugby is another. I'm looking forward to the challenge and it's one that I'm going to relish.

Scotland internationals Alasdair Strokosch and Scott Lawson have signed new two-year contracts with Gloucester.

Flanker Strokosch, who has won 14 caps, joined Gloucester from Edinburgh in 2007, while 16 times-capped hooker Lawson left Sale Sharks for Kingsholm in Sept 2008.

Both players have been regular first-team starters this season.

Gloucester head coach Bryan Redpath said: "Both players have been excellent so far for Gloucester this season, and are exactly the type of characters we want in the squad going forward.

"The pair of them signing shows their commitment to the club and continues our work in retaining our key players for next season and beyond."

Saracens back-row forward Don Barrell has been called into the England Sevens squad for the next two rounds of the IRB World Series.

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Leeds out to beat the freeze in Parma, Leeds Carnegie

Having escaped the big freeze in the UK, Leeds Carnegie players will be offered no cold comfort in tomorrow's Amlin Challenge Cup pool one encounter at Rugby Parma.

Carnegie's training schedule has been disrupted by the severe cold snap and while the weather isn't quite as bad in Italy, the elements are far from benign either with the country having also suffered from plummeting temperatures.

Carnegie, who currently tops their pool ahead of Bourgoin on points difference with both amassing three wins from four outings thus far – flew out to northern Italy this morning, with Parma doing everything in their power to ensure tomorrow's clash goes ahead.

Director of rugby Andy Key said: "We haven't had a winter like this for many years and it's not too dissimilar out there. But it is a little better. We did a bit of a check-up in the early part of the week just to see the conditions out there and they have got frost sheets down just to make sure as the temperature has been a bit low.

"At the moment, it's pointing to the game being on and we'll keep our fingers crossed we won't have any problems getting out there.

"We've got by with the weather. It's not been great, but we're not alone up and down the country at the moment.

"We've used facilities allowing us to do certain things. We've done some physical work, but have had to keep it short – we've not done too bad, although it's not been perfect!"

Key added: "They beat Bourgoin at home and are a dangerous side on their own patch and play with a lot of passion, which you'd expect from the Italians.

"We've watched them very closely and specifically at home and I think they are a physical, strong side.

"They came to try and do things at our place, but we were too good on the day.

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French Clubs Angle to Hoist the Heineken Cup

In France, the Heineken Cup—rugby union's answer to football's Champions League—is the tournament that dare not speak its name. Restrictions on alcohol advertising mean it is known as either the Coupe de Europe or the H Cup, the sponsor's initial happily evoking rugby posts.

Whatever they call it, French fans will be firmly focused on the Cup this weekend as it reaches round five of its six-match pool stage. Three French clubs—Toulouse, Biarritz and Stade Français— lead their groups with a fourth, Clermont Auvergne, handily placed.

Though France supplied the Heineken's first two winners—Toulouse and Brive—it couldn't maintain that dominance. Toulouse has won twice more to become the only three-time winner, but no other French club has triumphed since Brive's win in 1997. Since then, four English clubs —both Leicester and Wasps twice— and all three participating Irish provinces have lifted the trophy.

For five consecutive seasons prior to the 2003-2004 campaign, France had three quarter-finalists to England's two. In the following two seasons, they had three each. In each year since, England has placed three quarter-finalists, while France had two for two years, and then reached a new low last season. For the first time its teams lost more matches than they won. Only Toulouse made the last eight, and was promptly eliminated by Cardiff.

To explain France's current revival, it is necessary to ask why the country has performed so comparatively poorly of late, with only two losing finalists during the past four seasons.

He believes more French clubs think his way: "The difference now is that more clubs think they can win in Europe and are regarding it as a priority."

In addition, those clubs are increasingly equipped to chase two targets. Armed with a new television deal and booming attendances, French clubs have been flexing their financial muscles. Damian Hopley, chief executive of England's Professional Rugby Players Association (PRA) says, "The top French clubs have squads of international depth and quality. They could compete in the Six Nations championship."

It also brings full circle the situation described by French captain Philippe Saint André in 1997, when the introduction of professionalism in English rugby threatened to damage French fortunes.

"We are being left behind, and before long players will start looking to their pocketbooks rather than their quality of life," he said.

It was also around then that English clubs began to make an impact in Europe.

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RBS 6 NATIONS - Hospitality for Scotland v France at Murrayfield

The 2010 RBS 6 Nations kicks off on February 6 with Ireland looking to emulate their Grand Slam of 2009 and all six nations continuing their build up to next year's World Cup.



Ireland will look to maintain their grasp on the Trophy, while France with their traditional free spirited rugby will be viewed by many as Championship favourites.

England will be hoping to change the tide and bounce back from a tough autumn series with Wales looking to reap the rewards with their attacking rugby principals.

Scotland will enter the Championship in a buoyant mood under new coach Andy Robinson - especially after beating Australia in the Autumn - and outsiders Italy will be aiming to improve on recent RBS 6 Nations performances to become the surprise package.

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O'Driscoll named player of the decade ahead of Six Nations

With the Six Nations is due to kick off in one month, Ireland are already off to go a good start as their captain Brian O'Driscoll is named player of the decade by Rugby World Magazine.

The 30-year-old, who has been playing rugby since the tender age of 11, is now a three-time nominee for the International Rugby Board's sought after title of world player of the year.



After being appointed as team captain last year he went on to lead Ireland to the Six Nations Championship 2009 and their first Grand Slam in 61 years.



The Six Nations Championship 2010 will start on Saturday February 6th when Ireland take on Italy at Croke Park, in Dublin, the stadium where O'Driscoll led his side to a 20-20 draw against Australia in November 2009.



This year will mark the 11th instalment of the annual competition, England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales will be battling it out for rugby glory.

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Brian Ashton and the art of creative rugby

For most of his roller-coaster career – one that included being part of an England set-up that reached consecutive World Cup finals – Brian Ashton has been held up as the embodiment of the enlightened rugby coach.

Say what you like about the mild-mannered Lancastrian or his management of the 2007 Webb Ellis campaign but he could never be accused of asking his teams to play anything other than intelligent, heads-up rugby.

Typically that would mean his sides would go out with the intention of moving the ball with ambition and flair and with an emphasis on imaginative threequarter play.

But similarly they might also be required to kick the corners or pick and drive. In short, Plan A would be complemented by Plans B and C and probably D, E and F as well.

And – here comes the revolutionary bit – under Ashton, the decision to switch between strategies is not the preserve of any one individual, least of all an ageing balding bloke sat on the sidelines.

Indeed, the 63-year-old has long spoken of empowering players to make calls on a situational basis and to that degree he is viewed as the arch-moderniser – and has been for the past 30 years.

The former England, Ireland and Bath mastermind was due to explain some of his principles at a coaching conference in Kidderminster on Sunday, but that has now been postponed due to the weather.

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Andy Robinson hints at bright future after Frank Hadden era peters out

SCOTTISH rugby is moving into 2010 with renewed heart … but wait, we said that of 2009.

Scottish rugby was in a positive frame of mind a year ago after scrummaging New Zealand off the park and running South Africa close, so developing a pack confident it could stand tall with the best in the world. They did not win those Test matches ultimately, and that kept one foot on the ground at least, but with England and France struggling, Wales not the Grand Slammists they were and Ireland looking aged, surely it was time for Scotland to banish the blues?

The short answer was 'no, think again, Scotland'. Just as a rugby team evolves around more than merely the stand-off, but the controller wearing the No10 jersey invariably attracts most scrutiny, so the head coach is far from alone in determining how his side performs yet is the man to take the greatest flak when it all goes pear-shaped.

It comes with the position and so the sight of Frank Hadden shuffling more uncomfortably than ever with the attention and criticism began to reveal in the former Edinburgh and Scotland age-grade coach a naivety in international rugby that was to haunt him in his final months as he ran out of avenues to turn and agreed to step down in May.

In terms of results, Hadden finished with 16 wins from 41 Test matches, a success ratio of 39 percent, and with Scotland one place further down the rankings from when he took over. It was not a whole lot worse than some might have predicted of a Scotland side, but he joined Ian McGeechan and Matt Williams nonetheless in completing the worst decade of achievement by a Scotland team since international rugby began.

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Irish rugby revels in season in the sun

“Honesty, trust, hard work, the willingness to go the extra little bit. It’s like what I said earlier, nobody was blaming anybody. We had none of that, no cliques, no nothing. We gave it a go in the best way possible. You cannot overestimate honesty.” – Declan Kidney, March 21st, in the corridors of the Millennium Stadium

REWIND 12 months and it’s easy to forget where Irish rugby was. Ireland had just grimly held on to eighth place in the world rankings to secure the last of the second-tier seedings for the World Cup draw courtesy of a forgettable 17-3 wins over an Argentina team further depleted by losing Juan Martin Hernandez in the warm-up.

This had followed New Zealand’s bloodless coup at Croke Park a week before, which had left players and management alike stunned by the lack of confidence within the group as the hangover from the last 12 months of the Eddie O’Sullivan era lingered on.

Entering 2009, Ireland had won just four of its 10 matches in 2008, all at home against the combined might of Italy, Scotland, Canada and the understrength Pumas. All told, in Ireland’s previous 18 matches, there had been 11 defeats, while the other three wins had been a fortunate victory over Italy at Ravenhill and those taut World Cup wins over Namibia and Georgia. Notions of winning a Grand Slam would have had you in a straitjacket.


On the provincial front, admittedly, Munster and Leinster had been restoring pride and self-belief, the former having regained the Heineken Cup and Leinster having won the Magners League, although Michael Cheika’s detractors were still lurking in the long grass.

Munster duly ensured a home quarter-final against the Ospreys by dint of handsome wins over Sale and Montauban, whereas Leinster couldn’t buy a try in the 19-12 defeat to Wasps and 12-3 win over Edinburgh which earned an away quarter-final at Harlequins.

And the big days kept coming. Perhaps, in hindsight, Munster were too good for their own good in their Euro quarter-final rout of the Ospreys, in contrast to the grit Leinster showed in withstanding Harlequins’ best and worst intentions.

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Rob Moffat buoyed as Rory Hutton muscles into contention

ROB Moffat may have finally broken the glass ceiling for the next group of emerging stand-offs by handing Rory Hutton his Magners League debut, but, having done so, the experienced Edinburgh coach could have given himself a real selection headache for the team's Heineken Cup matches over the next fortnight.

Had Edinburgh beaten Bath, as they probably should have done, at the Recreation Ground in early December, they would be staring at a great opportunity to qualify for the Heineken Cup quarter- finals. It is now slim, but the chance is not gone. Edinburgh need to win their remaining games, beating Ulster at Ravenhill for the second time this season and then Stade Francais at Murrayfield, preferably with bonus points. They may not even need Bath to win in Paris this weekend, though that would help.

It is not impossible as Stade have endured a tough time in recent weeks and are looking at a very French solution to the problem of running out of scrum-halves – playing the hooker there this week. Countless French sides have also shown an aversion to playing in Scotland, with Pau, Colomiers, Grenoble, Toulouse, Agen, Clermont Auvergne, Perpignan, Bourgoin, Castres and Biarritz all returning home winless. Stade also lost at Ulster this season for a third time.

If winning the pool and grasping one of the two best runners-up spots fails to materialise, two wins could still hand Edinburgh a place in the last eight of the Amlin Challenge Cup, and seal European rugby and more income in the latter stages of the season. So these games are important. There were many plus points in Saturday's team performance, notably up front, but after finding a stand-off with the ability to surprise a defence like Cardiff's and energise players around him the way Hutton did, the coach might have been tempted to stick with the same team.

However, he cannot. Hutton was not registered for the Heineken Cup as he was not in the frame for selection at the last stage of squad changes. That has eased Moffat's week somewhat, as the coach has the Scotland stand-off Phil Godman champing at the bit to return after a week off to rest a hip injury.

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Celtic League ready to compensate Glasgow for late postponement in Leinster

After the late cancellation of their Magners League match against Leinster at the Royal Dublin Society on Friday, Glasgow officials are set to file a claim for compensation to the board of Celtic Rugby to recover the costs they incurred on their fruitless trip to Ireland.

Speaking after Friday's fiasco – Glasgow had received a number of assurances that the pitch would be playable before they set off from Scotland on Thursday evening – Celtic Rugby director David Jordan dismissed suggestions that a claim could be made against Leinster.

However, Jordan said that central funds were available to ensure that clubs were not left out of pocket after such abortive journeys.

"These things have happened in the past and we have always applied the same principle," said Jordan.

"The point is that the away team should not be financially penalised when a match is called off, so we have covered their costs on previous occasions when these situations have arisen.

"We actually anticipate having to do this from time to time and we have made contingencies in our budget. I've told Kenny Baillie that he should submit a claim to us to cover the costs Glasgow have incurred."

Asked if Celtic Rugby might be able to recover their own costs from Leinster, Jordan agreed that the possibility existed but suggested that the difficulty of proving any negligence on the part of the Irish side made that course of action highly unlikely.

"We have told teams that they should make every effort to get games on," Jordan explained. "Obviously, we will be reviewing what Leinster did to protect their pitch, but we have to accept that these things happen from time to time and sides have to make a judgment call."

Privately, some Glasgow officials have suggested that they may support a claim for compensation from their travelling supporters who were also hugely inconvenienced by the late cancellation of Friday's game.

In reality, however, Celtic Rugby would almost certainly stand firm against setting any precedent of that sort.

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Scotland boss Andy Robinson wants England to be intimidated when his new team sing national anthem

High in the Murrayfield stands, a proud, patriotic Englishman sat during the Calcutta Cup rugby match between Scotland and England and marvelled at the passion of the Scots. Not just on the pitch, where the men in blue would prevail for the second successive time in Edinburgh, but also from all those in the seats around him.

He looked at the lone piper standing high on the roof of the stand, kilt swirling in the wind as his pipes bellowed. He took in the smoke from the guns that had fired on the pitch seconds before kick-off. And he absorbed the rush of nationalism that flowed from every proud Scot who had come to see the auld enemy sent packing again.

That was two years ago and, back then, Andy Robinson, the former England flanker who helped Sir Clive Woodward’s team to World Cup glory in 2003 before taking over the top job himself, would never have dreamed he would become Scotland’s head coach — with a remit to inflict another sapping defeat on his beloved England.

But that is what Robinson is planning to do in the forthcoming Six Nations’ campaign.

And, should he succeed in coaching the Scots to victory at Murrayfield on March 13, he will inflict another crushing blow on the management regime headed, ironically enough, by Martin Johnson — the colossus who captained England to the biggest prize in world rugby six years ago.

Robinson, 45 and always fiercely proud to wear the red rose of England, will not flinch from his task. He plans to use the passion he witnessed while sitting in the Murrayfield stands to achieve his goal.

The emotions of his team will be stirred from the moment they step onto the Edinburgh turf — where the Scots have won the last three Calcutta Cups played there — and line up to sing the anthem that never fails to stir every red-blooded Scot.

It is not that Robinson has suddenly turned his back on all things English. ‘I’m a fan of England rugby and I always want them to do well,’ he insists. ‘Just not in the Calcutta Cup while I’m in charge of Scotland.

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Italian rugby turning the tide on football.

For so long rugby in Italy has lived in the shadow of football but there is increasing evidence that the 15-man sport is turning the tide on the national game.

The Azzurri's 6-20 defeat against the All Blacks in San Siro on November 14th drew an unprecedented 80,018 spectators, on top of which over two million viewers tuned in at home on Sky and La7.

That crowd broke the record for people attending a rugby match in Italy and to put that figure in context the last four Italian national football home games attracted a combined attendance of just over 60,000.

Nor is that growth confined to the national team with Viadana's recent Heineken Cup match against the Ospreys attracting 20,563 - which not only ranked as one of the best European rugby attendances of that weekend but was greater than half of the Serie A crowds.

Viadana general manager Franco Tonni said: "People are tired of football, with its recent corruption scandals and with the diving that goes on.

"I would say absolutely that the time is ripe for Italy to be converted to rugby."

It is not just the crowds that want a piece of the Italian rugby team, advertisers are jumping on that bandwagon as well.

Leading fashion brand Dolce and Gabbana signed up the Italian national team for a major advertising campaign that thrust them further into the public's consciousness.

A Dolce and Gabbana spokesman said: "The impressive bodies sculpted through dedication, discipline and physically strenuous trainings, make them the perfect models for a new ideal of beauty that is healthy, clean and masculine.

"Because it's the fight, but also the utter sportsmanship with which it is carried on, that makes Rugby one of the most fascinating and captivating disciplines out there."

Crowds of this size would be in the top three of all Welsh, Scottish and Irish teams.

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