Laurie Fisher is right at home, literally, coaching rugby in Canberra.

THERE is a famous picture hanging in the headquarters of the ACT Brumbies in Canberra.

At a time of year when things should be slowing down, last week proved one of the busiest for those charged with the responsibility of running the game in Munster.

CARDIFF BLUES are set to pay as much as €100,000 compensation to Ulster after Xavier Rush completed his transfer U-turn. The former All Black signed a two-year contract with the Irish province back in February but has now opted to stay at Cardiff.

SHAUN BERNE is ready to seize his opportunity as Leinster face a tough trip to face Cardiff Blues tomorrow.

THE Canterbury Crusaders are turning to Gaelic football in an effort to reclaim their place at the summit of the Super 14 pile.

The Ospreys have confirmed they are in negotiations to sign New Zealand A scrum-half Jamie Nutbrown.

The IRFU has announced the appointment of former South African international, Gert Smal as forwards coach to the Irish team.

DANNY CIPRIANI has made no secret of his desire to become “the best in the world” when he lines up for England on Saturday against Scotland.

BATH have further bolstered their second-row options for next season by signing former Australia lock Justin Harrison on a one-year contract from Ulster.

THERE is no good time to pick up a serious injury but some months are better than others.

IT HAS taken John Smit the best part of four years but, finally, at the tail-end of his Springbok career, he has been able to silence the voices that dissented from his right to be in the team.

IT’S NOT just the GAA that has a problem with losing players to Aussie Rules. Seems almost sacrilegious to say so, but in the land of the long white cloud, where rugby is king and Australia the eternal enemy, the ‘other’ oval ball game has also made an impact, to such an extent that Nick Evans, starting out-half for the All-Blacks against Portugal in Lyon today, came within a bounce of a ball (metaphorically speaking) of crossing the divide.

HE could have been made to measure, Carl Hayman; if you’re looking for an interviewee who embodies the All-Black, it’s this grizzly-bear of a man from Opunake in Otago.

NEW ZEALAND Maori captain Rua Tipoki teams up with Munster today, and is all set to get medical and work-permit clearance.

THE Bank Holiday weekend kicked off, literally, yesterday as the largest Sevens tournament in the northern hemisphere got underway.

IT tells you something about the rich three-quarter pickings in New Zealand that one of the country’s leading lights in this season’s Heineken Cup, Llanelli Scarlets Regan King, hasn’t been the recipient of a single query from All Blacks head coach Graham Henry.

LIKE most Australians who surrender to their wanderlust and head north of the equator, Chris Whitaker hasn’t taken long to settle into his new surroundings since arriving in Dublin last summer.

IN A transitional era for Australian rugby, Stirling Mortlock has been a beacon of consistency.

HE HASN’T read the Australian newspapers online, and he’s tip-toed around the praise that’s come his way since stepping into the scrum half position for the two tests against Wales and Italy.

After an encouraging first season with Ulster, Isaac Boss could be about to top it all off by making his Ireland debut against the country of his birth.

MUNSTER centre Trevor Halstead is to return to his native South Africa after next season, having refused a new deal to stay on with the European champions.

YOU COULDN’T help but notice a look of disappointment in Jim Williams’ demeanour when asked would he have liked to have been on the Millennium Stadium pitch, winning a Heineken Cup medal with Munster on Saturday.

NO matter what the sport, you often wonder how people who have been teammates on countless occasions are suddenly able to play against each other in a different competition.

WHEN Munster came calling in the early summer of 2005, Trevor Halstead was betwixt and between. Should he stay with the Natal Sharks or seek a new challenge in a country and with a team he didn’t know a whole lot about.

Departing Welsh Rugby Union chief executive David Moffett today issued a bleak warning that the professional game in the Celtic nations will be dead inside five years unless urgent action is taken.

Ireland coach Eddie O’Sullivan has warned his players Australia will arrive at Lansdowne Road confident they can halt their desperate slump in form.

IF there was one moment that encapsulated New Zealand’s utter superiority on Saturday, it was a moment in the second-half when Anthony Horgan was hauled down unceremoniously by Jason Eaton.

WHILE no-one is predicting an Ireland win today, All Blacks coach Graham Henry yesterday admitted his experimental selection leaves the tourists vulnerable.

FIVE newcomers are included in the 31-man Australian squad for next month’s four-nation European tour, during which the Wallabies will face Ireland.

ANTHON PITOUT, Munster’s latest overseas signing, chose the province ahead of Toulouse, a decision that did not go down well in the south of France.

Aspiring Wallaby lock forward Alex Kanaar has been suspended for the next three months, ruling him out of Australia’s four-Test tour of France and the UK.

Aspiring Wallaby lock forward Alex Kanaar has been suspended for the next three months, ruling him out of Australia’s four-Test tour of France and the UK.

WHEN Francois Pienaar accepted the William Webb Ellis trophy from Nelson Mandela in the emotionally charged atmosphere of Ellis Park in July 1995, few appreciated that the last official amateur rugby international of any consequence had just taken place.

South Africa coach Jake White has sprung a surprise by switching Jean de Villiers to the wing in place of Breyton Paulse to face New Zealand in Dunedin on Saturday.

Australia coach Eddie Jones admitted on Monday that the mounting injury toll among the Wallabies was the worst he had ever known.

NSW Waratahs utility back Peter Hewat could be closing in on his dream of winning his first cap for Australia.

Warren Gatland is facing an early headache after returning to New Zealand.

WARREN GATLAND has criticised the All Blacks’ use of veteran scrum-half Justin Marshall against the British & Irish Lions.

THE All Blacks have adopted a “we’re second, they’re first” mentality to avoid over-confidence going into the second Test against the Lions tomorrow.

WITH all the fuss over the Lions’ Test fly-half, it has almost been overlooked that the position just inside Stephen Jones at Jade Stadium tomorrow morning has long been considered a shoo-in for Dwayne Peel.

CLIVE Woodward believes he has the men to cope with the pressure of delivering a British and Irish Lions Test victory over New Zealand at Jade Stadium tomorrow (8.10am).

Leon MacDonald has been recalled by the All Blacks for the first Test against the British and Irish Lions on Saturday.