England

Umaga set to play for England

Umaga, the son of Mike and nephew of Tana Umaga, got his first call up to the England senior side in January, but hasn't played.

First-five Joe Simmonds was man of the match in Exeter's Champions Cup victory over Racing 92 last week and had another perfect day with the boot in the weekend's Premiership final win over Wasps.

However, coach Eddie Jones has included uncapped Wasps number 10 Umaga as backup to Owen Farrell, with George Ford absent through injury.

England vs Baa-baas called off

Several Barbarian players had left their hotel rooms without the permission of the organisers this week, prompting the RFU to conduct a review on whether the game can be held safely.

In a statement on Saturday, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) said the discovery of a further breach of Covid-19 protocols had given it no choice but to cancel the game.

Australia win ODI opener

Australia recovered from a shaky start to score 294 for nine in their 50 overs and while Sam Billings (118) struck an impressive century, the hosts were always behind the game.

England put the visitors in and had them reeling on 123 for five but Marsh (73) Maxwell (77) helped Australia rebuild on their way to a formidable total.

After slumping to 57-4 in reply and falling way behind the required run rate it looked bleak for England but Jonny Bairstow and Billings shared a century stand for the fifth wicket to edge Eoin Morgan's side back into contention.

Penguin waddling in village in England picked up by police

They were on patrol in Broxtowe, Nottinghamshire, England when they spotted the Humboldt penguin in a village street in the early hours of Sunday.

The bird, nicknamed Po-Po, had escaped from a farm enclosure in Strelley and then managed to waddle a mile up the road.

Police stuck their beak in and the penguin was returned to its owner.

PC Gareth Philp said they nicknamed the penguin Po-Po after "he posed for some pictures with us and he was very friendly with our officers".

Last year a pair of stolen penguins were rescued by officers in Strelley.

England's Marler banned for 10 weeks after Jones incident

England were 33-30 winners at Twickenham on Saturday, but there were a number of flashpoints throughout the match, with the hosts reduced to 13 men by the final whistle after Ellis Genge went to the sin bin and Manu Tuilagi was sent off.

One incident missed by the officials concerned Jones and prop forward Marler, who appeared to grab at the Wales captain's crotch, though there was no action from the officials. 

Fiji to meet England in LA 7s quarter-final

It was Fiji’s first victory over Argentina after three meetings this season.

Fiji finished at the top of pool A while England is the second-seeded team from pool D.

     

Manu Tuilagi named in English side to face Ireland after making speedy recovery

Tuilagi limped off early in England's shock 24-17 loss to France in Paris due to a low grade strain that also kept him out of the Calcutta Cup win over Scotland the following week.

England are fourth in the standings with five points while Ireland are second with nine and former Wallabies coach Jones has retained 27 players ahead of the match at Twickenham.

"He's good," Australian Jones said when asked about Tuilagi's
fitness.

"(He) trained fully today so he should be in contention for selection.
It's good to have a quality player back."

Jones calls in Launchbury, Vunipola

The duo could return from injury, having been sidelined for the chastening loss to France in England's Six Nations opener.

Eddie Jones, who will name his 23-man matchday selection on Thursday, has cut Charlie Ewels and will be without injured duo Manu Tuilagi (groin) and Anthony Watson (calf).

Lock Launchbury is on the mend following a knee problem, while Vunipola missed the clash in Paris after suffering an issue with his eye.

Farrell offers no excuses

France made a dream start to the Fabien Galthie era at Stade de France, though England gave them a huge helping hand on a wet Sunday in Paris.

The Rugby World Cup runners-up dominated possession and territory, but a double from new captain Charles Ollivon after Vincent Rattez's early try and nine points from the boot of Romain Ntamack put clinical Les Bleus 24-0 up.

A brace of sublime solo tries from Jonny May set the nerves jangling, yet England could only muster a bonus point courtesy of Farrell's penalty with the last kick of the game.

Uncapped France duo to start

Montpellier duo Bouthier and Haouas will start at full-back and tighthead prop respectively in Paris at the dawn of a new era under head coach Fabien Galthie.

Charles Ollivon captains Les Bleus for the first time, while livewire wing Teddy Thomas returns to the starting line-up after missing out on the Rugby World Cup.

Galthie has put his faith in youth for the tournament, with Boris Palu and Cameron Woki hoping to make win their first caps off the bench in 'Le Crunch'.