Sale’s hopes of progressing to the European Champions Cup quarter-finals came to an end as they were beaten 30-23 by La Rochelle.

There mighn’t be action on the field at the Rugby World Cup on the first day of October, but that doesn’t mean players and coaches aren’t stepping up to the mic. Here’s what the various camps have been saying.

There is no talk of winning or losing in the Irish or the Russian camps this week. Nobody doubts which way the result will fall when they meet in Kobe tomorrow. This game will be about so much more than the numbers beside each nation’s name at the final whistle.