Your rugby news for the evening of Sunday April 10
McGeechan's concerns about Welsh teams
Lions legend Sir Ian McGeechan feels the failure of the Welsh regions is the major blot on a revived Heineken Champions Cup this season and moving forward.
McGeechan talks of the 'worrying decline of Welsh club rugby' in a column for the Telegraph where he is otherwise gushing about Europe's top club tournament.
The Ospreys, Scarlets and Cardiff failed to win a single match between them in the pool stages on the field. The Ospreys and Scarlets finished bottom of their groups, although Cardiff were awarded a 28-0 walkover versus Toulouse which proved enough to get them into the second-string Challenge Cup tournament. They meet English giants Saracens in the last 16 stage.
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It is likely Wales' participation at the top table will be down to just Dwayne Peel's Scarlets next season, with South African teams entering and taking up United Rugby Championship European spots, as well as better-placed Irish and Scottish sides.
That fall of the Welsh regions concerns McGeechan, who otherwise says there is a "frisson of excitement about elite club rugby" and the new home and away knockout format in the Champions Cup, with the aggregate score over two games counting.
"I am a huge fan of the back-to-back home and away knockout format and love that it has been introduced at this stage for the first time. The huge expansion – from seven knockout games last year to 23 this year – has the capacity to transform the tournament," he wrote.
"I'm more engaged than I can remember being by this tournament and that is primarily down to this format. This feels like a major step forward to generating interest, which the pool matches simply failed to do."
But he cautioned: "There is, however, one dark cloud: the absence, again, of any Welsh, Scottish or Italian clubs in the knockout stages.
"The Scots are in good shape and could have each club in the tournament next year, but with the South Africans joining via the URC – they are on course to have three sides in the Champions Cup next season – the Welsh are being squeezed out.
"The Scarlets will qualify only because Wales have one guaranteed place. Italy have no such luxury, and are unlikely to feature in the Champions Cup any time soon."
O'Gara spells out England coaching wish again
Ireland legend Ronan O'Gara has doubled down on claims he'd love to coach England one day.
The La Rochelle boss and Irish and Lions fly-half had previously told BT Sport. "Yeah, it would be a great job. There’s so much potential there. There’s rugby players and passion for the game in England. It’s a cracking job, you’d love to have a go off that.”
The comments are said to have provoked a strong reaction across the water, but in a fresh interview with Off the Ball in Ireland O'Gara reiterated: "I’m looking at it from a sporting point of view.
“You have to understand that inside you if you’re a competitor, if you can arm yourself with a decent ammunition to have a crack at winning a World Cup, or a Six Nations, and if you were to be the coach of that, it would really stimulate me. Whatever nation it is.
“People, probably from a distance, fail to understand or appreciate how I’m wired. We’re in a professional game. When you look at the Rugby World Cup, it’s not like the soccer World Cup where there’s eight to ten teams that have the capacity to win it. If you were to get a crack at a team that has a genuine I suppose ambition to win it, you’d be a fool not to consider it.
"My playing days and coaching days are completely different. What I did as a player has zero relevance to what I do as a coach. Playing to coaching are two different careers, they're not aligned to me."
England boss Eddie Jones is under fire after a second successive Six Nations flop, but the RFU are backing him to lead the team into the World Cup in France next year.
However, it will be interesting to see what happens after that with Warren Gatland one of the names in the frame England may consider.
England boss talks up Wales
England coach Simon Middleton reckons the final scoreboard 'didn't do Wales justice' after the Red Roses ran in emphatic 58-5 victory to maintain their charge towards the Women's Six Nations.
It was dominant England's 21st victory in a row, played out in front of a crowd exceeding 14,000 at Kingsholm, as they ran in 10 tries to Wales' solitary score.
The heavy loss brought Wales down to earth somewhat, following opening wins over Scotland and Ireland for their newly professionalised players.
It led Wales boss Ioan Cunningham to say: "We have got to critically look at ourselves on how we can get better and we can take great learnings from this game." He emphasised he was proud of his players' efforts and rival coach Middleton also feels Wales are on the right track.
"You can see it already. Wins are hard to come by in the Six Nations and they have had two great wins," he said.
"The scoreboard did not do them justice, it got away from them in the end, probably because we are three years down the track, they are three months down the track.
"You can see the potential is absolutely massive, and it is testimony to them how far they have come in the short time that they have had their contracts."
France beat Scotland 28-8 on Sunday to move level on top with England.
