Declan Rice, by his own admission, is not the biggest rugby union fan. And yet the England midfielder could not help but be drawn in by the World Cup quarter‑finals over the weekend, their do-or-die drama – particularly New Zealand’s epic victory against Ireland.
“It’s that mindset of getting over the line,” Rice says, although, in New Zealand’s case, it technically came down to keeping Ireland from crossing theirs, defending through 37 phases of pressure at the very end to seal the 28-24 success.
