Raheem Mostert had four touchdowns as the San Francisco 49ers booked their place at the Super Bowl with a 37-20 win over the Green Bay Packers.

The Guinness PRO14 rarely fares well when observers from across the Irish Sea compare it to their own Gallagher Premiership.

Bath’s nightmare Heineken Champions Cup campaign continued as Stuart Hooper’s men were hammered 52-26 by Clermont Auvergne.

There was certainly no WH Auden moment in New Zealand when it was announced that Ian Foster would be the new All Blacks head coach.

The 54-year-old succeeds Steve Hansen in the position after eight years serving as his assistant.

Exeter Chiefs got their Champions Cup campaign off to a winning start with a 31-12 bonus point victory over La Rochelle at the Stade Marcel-Deflandre.

Cian Healy has praised Bundee Aki’s resilience in the face of a tournament-ending suspension after the centre gave his all in Ireland’s first training session for Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final against New Zealand.

Openside flanker TJ Ioane dismissed the suggestion earlier this week that the Pacific Islanders would be preparing a special welcome for Ireland's Kiwi-born centre with Samoan roots

England’s World Cup bid was just minutes old when Billy Vunipola launched himself into contact off the back of a lineout and Tonga’s Zane Kapeli floored him with a tackle that landed the big No 8 flat on his arse.

World Cups tend to throw up all manner of surprises.

Reasons to be fearful for Leinster today?

Glasgow Warriors head coach Dave Rennie knows better than most about the respective merits of this Saturday’s protagonists in the Heineken Champions Cup final.

New Zealand's Damian McKenzie is the latest high-profile player to be ruled out of the 2019 World Cup in Japan.

Head coach Richard Cockerill has reinstalled hooker and captain Stuart McInally to the side in one of four changes to the starting line-up which defeated Leinster in last week’s round of the PRO14.

This week represents a step back in time for some of Ireland’s senior players.

Conor Murray is primed for a “brilliant performance” when he returns to Munster colours for Saturday’s Heineken Champions Cup quarter-final with Edinburgh, Johann van Graan has declared.

Wipe the slate clean and move on to the next job. That is the way Johann van Graan, like many head coaches, operates but as his Munster side transitions into this European knockout rugby week, his mantra of forgetting the past and resetting to zero on a Monday has never seemed so apt.

The possibility of Ronan O'Gara being part of France's backroom team for the 2019 World Cup has increased with French Rugby Federation sources in Paris confirmed the Munster and Ireland legend was "under consideration."

It’s not often you hear a player call an opponent chicken.

Munster booked their place in the Heineken Champions Cup quarter-finals for an 18th time as they ground out a dogged victory over English league leaders Exeter at a sold-out Thomond Park on Saturday night.

Bundee Aki says he can see a lot of similarities between this season and Connacht’s glorious march to silverware in 2016 as he prepares for his second Six Nations campaign.

You can hear the excitement in Ian Whitten’s voice as he described the feeling of being in an Exeter Chiefs back-line when everything comes together. The bad news for Munster is that the Ulsterman experienced that buzz only last weekend as the Chiefs put Castres to the sword to set up tomorrow’s pivotal Heineken Champions Cup pool finale at Thomond Park.

Peter Jackson gets over the gain line, behind the headline.

Peter O’Mahony is acutely aware of the threat Gloucester pose to Munster’s European quarter-final qualification hopes and the Ireland back-row star is rolling up his sleeves for a tough battle up front at Kingsholm, not least with their Springbok forward Franco Mostert.

The challenge for Leo Cullen and Stuart Lancaster is to keep players firmly focused on the task at hand in the face of the inevitable plaudits that will accompany last weekend’s incredible performance, says Donal Lenihan.

Young quarterbacks have always had a tough time winning in Gillette Stadium during the Bill Belichick and Tom Brady era.

Johann van Graan praised Keith Earls’s selflessness in putting his side first after ruling himself out of Munster’s European clash at Exeter just before kick-off.

THAT was a game Munster will be glad to have put behind them. Johann van Graan’s side will attack with relish preparations for this Saturday’s visit of Gloucester, after returning home from a daunting, Heineken Champions Cup pool opener, at Exeter Chiefs, with a lot more than expected.

Peter O’Mahony believes Joey Carbery’s talent and rapid adjustment to life at Munster is helping the young Ireland fly-half quickly get on the same page as his new team-mates.

The ride into Exeter was not for the faint of heart, Munster’s charter flight buffeted violently in gale force winds. The landing was pretty white-knuckled too, not helped by the knowledge that five earlier flights had been diverted at that stage. It all made for a strong test of the constitution which would serve Johann van Graan’s men well on Saturday at Sandy Park, writes Donal Lenihan.

Johann van Graan’s bid to get his first full European campaign off to a winning start could not have come in more difficult circumstances, yet the Munster head coach has learned enough in his short time in charge to expect the unexpected on Heineken Champions Cup away days.

A new Heineken Champions Cup season, and for the first time in nine seasons a new destination for Munster supporters as they journey to Exeter for the opening pool game of the 2018-19 campaign.

The size of the task facing Munster in their Heineken Champions Cup opener at Exeter Chiefs has been made loud and clear, with home captain Gareth Steenson believing his side are finally ready for a serious European challenge.

When the RFU eventually begins their search to find a replacement for Eddie Jones, there is no need for them to scour the globe.

Jean Kleyn is adamant Munster can hit the ground running in Europe when they open the new Heineken Champions Cup campaign at Exeter Chiefs on Saturday.

Buffalo Bills corner back Vontae Davis retired at half-time in Sunday’s defeat to the Los Angeles Chargers before admitting: “Reality hit me hard.”

All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has included two uncapped players but made no selection surprises in his squad for this season’s Rugby Championship.

Beauden, Jordie, and Scott Barrett will become the first trio of brothers to start a Test together for the All Blacks when they line up in the series-opener against France at Auckland’s Eden Park on Saturday.

The Crusaders got a week off after the Chiefs game up in Hamilton. Some of the squad went off to Fiji for R&R. I’m using the time for a bit of a recharge before heading to Brisbane today ahead of the first test.

Ronan O’Gara’s Crusaders can consolidate their place on top of the Super Rugby standings when they play the Hamilton-based Chiefs in an abbreviated 16th round, before the tournament breaks for June internationals.

Scott Fardy has clearly had it with close shaves.

Joe Schmidt’s no-holds-barred Monday video reviews have acquired legendary status in Irish rugby circles but Bundee Aki was long accustomed to such unvarnished truths long before he qualified to play rugby for his adopted country.