Here are the latest rugby headlines on Thursday, August 4.
Castrogiovanni in eligibility row
Former Italy tighthead Martin Castrogiovanni has been accused of never being eligible to play for the Azzurri after he revealed his family history during an interview.
Born in Parana in Argentina, the retired 40-year-old prop won 119 caps for his adopted European country between 2002 and 2016. He has now revealed in a recent interview that his great-grandfather was Italian, and that was the extent of his familial links to Italy, leading to accusations that he should never have been available for team selection. World Rugby could now well look into the matter, especially in light of Spain's recent disqualification from the upcoming World Cup amid player eligibility breaches.
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"Grandpa Castro was born in Argentina, his name was José María," he told Spanish rugby site Rugby Champagne. "The one who was Italian was my great-grandfather, Ángel, who was born in Sicily, in Franco Forte."
The news didn't go down well with former Samoan rugby player Daniel Leo, who tweeted: "How many RWCs did [he] play and help them qualify for? Kick in the guts for Spain and Romania who have both been disqualified from recent tournaments if this isn’t sanctioned retrospectively?"
However, one reader insisted the rules had been respected, writing: "The eligibility rules were different in each country at the time, not yet unified by World Rugby. I think to remember Italy allowed for third-generation emigrants to play for them if they hadn’t played for another country at senior level. So Castro, and Italy, respected the rules."
Blanc lands new role
Former chair of Wales' Professional Rugby Board Amanda Blanc has landed a new role with BP.
Blanc, from Treherbert, stood down from the Welsh rugby role in November 2021 after less than two years as chair of the PRB, which includes members of the Welsh Rugby Union and each of Wales' four men's pro teams plus two independently-appointed members. It is responsible for running the pro game in Wales on behalf of the WRU. Blanc revealed why she left the role earlier this year ( you can read more about that here).
Blanc, CEO of insurance giant Aviva, will now join BP's board from September 1 as a non-executive director.
Helge Lund, chair of BP, said: "On behalf of the board, I am delighted to welcome Amanda to bp. She has long experience of leading insurance businesses in the UK and Europe and deep connections throughout the UK’s business and investment communities, allied to a strong interest in the energy transition. Amanda’s appointment reflects our continued commitment to strengthen the composition of bp’s board. The skills and experience Amanda brings will further enhance our ability to support bp as it transforms into an integrated energy company.”
England v Wales ticket sales soar
Tickets for Wales Women's pre-World Cup warm-up against England in September have seen a ticket sales surge on the back of the Lionesses' historic Euro 2022 title victory in front of a Wembley crowd of almost 90,000.
The Red Roses, who face the United States at Exeter's Sandy Park on September 3 in the first of two friendlies, welcome Ioan Cunningham's Wales team to Bristol's Ashton Gate on Wednesday, September 14 (7.30pm kick-off) ahead of the trip to New Zealand for the postponed World Cup.
The Rugby Football Union now says ticket sales for England's two warm-up games have soared in recent days, more than doubling across the two fixtures. "We have seen a spike in sales in the period over the weekend and on the Monday following the Euro final," an RFU spokesperson told the PA news agency. And that was compared to the weekend/Monday prior to the final. There has been an average increase of over 100 per cent in ticket sales for both games."
Tickets for England v Wales are being priced from £10 for adults and from £5 for under-12s.
Exeter sign Tonga international
Exeter have signed Tonga international back Solomone Kata from Super Rugby side Moana Pasifika. The Chiefs announced a one-year deal for Kata, who featured for Tonga against England at Twickenham last season.
Kata, 27, switched to rugby union after a successful league career saw him make almost 100 appearances for New Zealand Warriors.
Exeter rugby director Rob Baxter said: "He is explosive, he is dangerous and he's a quality player. It is no secret that Ollie Devoto is still some way away from returning, Henry (Slade) and Tom Hendrickson are still recovering from operations, too, so we were looking a bit thin in that area.
"That said, when a guy of Sol's quality comes on to the market, we had a good look at him - we liked what we saw - and we have brought him here. Talking to him, you get that feeling that he is up for a new challenge. I am looking forward to seeing him on the field, because I do believe he will offer us something a bit different."
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