Here are your rugby morning headlines for Wednesday, February 1.
Reffell backed as player of Six Nations by former winner
Rugby World Cup winner Ben Kay has backed Wales' Tommy Reffell to be the player of the championship after being left impressed by the Leicester Tigers flanker's recent performances.
Kay says Reffell will lift Warren Gatland's squad with his dominant displays, despite only being named among the replacements against Ireland.
Asked who he thought would win Player of the Tournament, the former England star told Betway,: "Tommy Reffell, and I don’t even know if he’ll start. Just the way he’s been playing in the last few weeks, when he’s been making about six or seven turnovers a game. That could be a huge story, because suddenly Gatland gets that bounce he wants if they win a couple early on."
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However, Kay ruled out a Wales tournament triumph, backing Ireland to win the championship ahead of rivals France.
"France and Ireland are obviously favourites. I’ve spoken to a couple of people in Ireland who aren’t quite as confident as everyone else seems to be, in that they need to be at 100 per cent.
"At the moment they are, but any drop off and there’s not a lot below the surface. But I just think with that Leinster influence, how well they’re playing, I’m going to go with Ireland."
Warburton branded 'stupid' by wife over coaching return
Sam Warburton says his wife called him "stupid" after revealing his intentions to return to coaching. The former Wales captain joined Wayne Pivac's staff as a defence/breakdown technical advisor in 2019 having retired the previous year, but left after less than 12 months.
While he maintains that taking the role was a "great opportunity", he realises that it was "bad timing". However, he has left the door open for a future return, expressing his desire to become a defence coach one day.
“I remember saying to my wife, ‘what would you think if I was keen to go coaching again?’," he told Mark Souster for ICE36. "She said, ‘Don’t be so stupid!’. The main reason I finished was because it was time intensive being a player. I finished being a player because I wanted to stop putting the family second.
“I went straight back into coaching emotionally because it was a great opportunity. COVID was just around the corner and we were going into camps for two months at a time. My wife had just given birth and I didn’t want to miss that time with the family so I left. It was just bad timing. Whether it is something I go back into in the future, who knows?
The former Lions skipper also shared his thoughts on Warren Gatland's return to the Wales hot-seat, saying that the new coach should be targeting a World Cup semi-final in his first year back in the job.
“It is without doubt the best option to go for Warren to get Wales out of the group and then a quarter and semi has got to be the target," he said. "Wales can’t go beneath those standards. He is the right man to do that and I have the utmost belief he will do that."
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Gatland: My team sends statement
Warren Gatland says the reason behind naming an experienced side for the Six Nations opener against Ireland was to send a statement at the start of his second spell in charge of Wales.
Despite having spoken about the need to bring through younger players ahead of this year's World Cup, Gatland has opted to name a side against Ireland that boasts 952 caps in the starting XV. The average age of the pack is 31, with just six players in the matchday 23 being below the age of 27.
However, Gatland insists the decision to lean on experience is partly due to starting the tournament well and building confidence, before evolving the side later on throughout the campaign.
"I think it’s about potentially sending a statement in terms of starting off. We know what’s at stake with the Six Nations and the history of it and past successes of Welsh teams in this tournament and doing well. You build on that and you build confidence, building obviously into the latter part of the year which is so important in a World Cup year.
"There’s definitely two focuses for us. We want to do well but we’ve also got an eye on the end of the year too.
"Like I said, that’s that transition between their experience and some of the younger players learning from them. First I want them to be vocal and transfer that information they’ve got from a number of years on how to prepare and how to train.
"It’s been really pleasing. I’ve been pleasantly surprised just how quickly with how the coaches have fitted in and how the players have taken on the information in the first few days.
"To be honest, I was a little bit worried about how that was going to work. It’s worked 100 times better than I thought. The players have been brilliant and the attitude has been terrific in terms of the way they’ve trained and prepared. I think we’re in a good place at the moment."
Parisse calls time on 21-year career
Former Italy captain Sergio Parisse is finally set to retire, having previously announced he would hang up his boots on two occasions before changing his mind.
The 39-year-old will retire at the end of the season, calling time on a a 21-year playing career during which he has won two Top 14 titles and a Challenge Cup, as well as a record 142 caps for his country.
The Toulon number eight is now his career for good, telling French rugby website Rugbyrama: "I will finish next June. I know that after 20 years in professional rugby, there will be difficult moments. I know that I will miss rugby and I am trying to prepare myself for this period in the best possible conditions."
Despite not being named in the Italy squad for the upcoming Six Nations, and having not played for them since the last World Cup, the former skipper is still aiming to win another cap for his country.
"I haven't given up on my international career. I still think I'm on the radar and if the coach calls me I will be happy to answer his call," Parisse continued.
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