Eddie Jones has cautioned against expecting too much from Manu Tuilagi after limiting England’s marauding centre to a bench role against South Africa.

There was a time when the stinginess of the Scottish Rugby Union knew no bounds, when players were given one pair of socks per year and instructions to hand them back with the rest of the kit at the end of the season, writes Peter Jackson.

If things had turned out differently, Garry Ringrose and Ben Te’o could have been both in green today, aiming to take down England and celebrate a grand slam together.

The Joe Schmidt era just gets better and better. So many boxes ticked as the clock ticks towards the 2019 World Cup.

In total there are five changes to the side defeated by Scotland at Murrayfield.

Peter Jackson recaps the weekend’s Six Nations action. 

Joe Schmidt spoke yesterday about how some of his players might have been spooked during Ireland’s World Cup quarter-final defeat to Argentina in 2015, but Dan Leavy doesn’t fit the bill as the type to take fright on the field.

Eddie Jones insists the vision of Owen Farrell and George Ford acts as the catalyst for England’s “collective talent” to flourish.

Is it any wonder the structure of the professional game in Ireland is the envy of so many of our international counterparts at present?

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend says Chris Harris has earned his place in the starting line-up of their NatWest 6 Nations opener in Cardiff.

Robbie Henshaw is only a week away from a return to competitive rugby with Leinster but the Irish international is allowing himself a sneaky peek at a possible reunion with Bundee Aki come November.

After a hectic five weeks on the road and eight searching examinations to this point, the 2017 Lions tour reached the point of no return in the aptly named windy Wellington last Saturday night.

I would never have put Warren Gatland down as a man who cared too much abut outside opinion, but it’s an easy conclusion to arrive at given some of his decisions in recent weeks, says Ronan O’Gara.

Peter O’Mahony’s elevation to the British & Irish Lions captaincy for Saturday’s first test against New Zealand is as much a signal of intent as the bestowal of a coveted title on a born leader.

Warren Gatland has given the green light for Owen Farrell to start Saturday’s first test against the All Blacks but his specific role in the Lions line-up will have a massive impact on Johnny Sexton.

Simon Lewis looks at the key areas where Warren Gatland will have a selection headache going into the first test. 

All the best tens are blessed with great vision so Dan Carter knows a loaded question and its likely consequences when he sees one.

Peter O’Mahony has been asked to provide some ‘Munster mongrel’ to the Lions tomorrow as the tourists bid to get their New Zealand odyssey back on track against the toughest non-Test opposition of the tour.

Warren Gatland has thrown down a challenge to his Lions to get the tourists off to a winning start this Saturday after last night naming a strong team to face the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians.

The British and Irish Lions squad announcement followed the usual pattern — a majority of predictable selections, a few left field picks, some surprise omissions along with the customary bolter. Warren Gatland was always good for a few of those and in Ross Moriarty, Ben Te’o and Ireland’s Jared Payne, he didn’t disappoint.

Jonathan Joseph was included in the Lions squad for New Zealand after Warren Gatland decided a player who has caused Wales so much torment on his watch could not be overlooked.

At the last official count two years ago, England had 2,057,797 rugby players, almost 50 percent more than the rest of Europe combined.

England 19 France 16: England will embrace the hostility awaiting in Cardiff once Eddie Jones has examined the psychology behind Wales’ control of a fixture he claims has left previous Red Rose teams “petrified”.

Former Leinster star Ben Te’o has revealed how he considered declaring for Ireland before opting to pursue an international career with Six Nations rivals England.

It may have been a day of drama and calculators across most of the Guinness PRO12, but Leinster strolled to the most straightforward and expected of victories against a mostly awful Treviso side at the RDS this afternoon.

Jared Payne. Richardt Strauss. CJ Stander.

Leinster 16 Munster 13: With the clock on 79 minutes and 49 seconds a snap poll of not just Leinster’s supporters but the province’s players and coaches as well would have seen the vast majority settle for a draw in this typically tight Guinness Pro12 battle with rivals Munster.