Here are the latest rugby headlines on Monday, October 17.
Reffell 'wreaks havoc'
Wales star Tommy Reffell turned in a barnstorming display in Leicester Tigers' 27-19 win over Harlequins on Sunday.
Reffell returned to the team after being left out of last weekend's defeat to Sale and he appeared to have a point to prove in a performance which boasted two tries and a number of vital interventions.
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Colleagues at our sister title LeicestershireLive wrote of his outing: "Tommy Reffell's race was won long before making a lung-bursting 78th-minute covering tackle. Not content with two tries, turnovers aplenty and key try-saving interventions, with the result no longer in doubt he cantered back to smash into Cadan Murley as he broke through.
"It epitomised the relentless nature of the Welshman's performance as Leicester Tigers' stuttering defence of their title came good against the side they succeeded as the Gallagher Premiership champions, Harlequins. Reffell, capped three times by his country in their South Africa tour earlier this year, was completely left out of the previous week’s defeat to Sale but came out like a man possessed as he wreaked havoc on the Quins’ breakdown - living up his nickname of 'Tommy Turnover'."
They also awarded him a mark of 10 out of 10 in their ratings, and you can read the full report here.
London Irish release statement
Premiership side London Irish have released a statement dismissing “total and utter speculation” they are merging with troubled side Wasps.
The Rugby Paper reported that a party looking to buy Wasps could be interested in a potential merger with London Irish. The Exiles were put up for sale by owner Mick Crossnan in September, with Crossnan saying he would sell the Brentford-based club for £1 if any buyer can take on the debt and safeguard their future.
On Sunday night, Irish released a statement categorically ruling out such a merger.
The short statement read: "The board of directors of London Irish has today dismissed as 'total and utter speculation' the press reports alleging that the club is exploring a merger with Wasps, who have been suspended from the Gallagher Premiership and face relegation if, as expected, they go into administration.
"London Irish principal shareholder, Mick Crossan, recently confirmed that he would relinquish his shares in London Irish to new owners that would be prepared to guarantee the security of the club going forward."
Lillicrap believes Wales can still progress in World Cup
Siwan Lillicrap believes Wales can still reach the World Cup knockout stages despite a 56-12 defeat by hosts New Zealand.
The Black Ferns ran in 10 tries Auckland, but Wales captain Lillicrap insists Wales are capable of getting out of their pool ahead of a decisive match against Australia. If Wales win, they will qualify for the quarter-finals, while there is still a chance of qualifying as one of the best third-placed teams in their pool even if they lose.
“Don’t write us off, we are fighting for those quarter-final spaces," Wales captain Lillicrap said. "It’s a huge game next week [against Australia], and we will recover quickly and we will move forward to that game quickly.
“We are seeing glimpses of what this side is capable of, we haven’t seen a rounded performance yet. We are new in the journey, we are new to professional rugby, we have been working hard and I think you can see that.
“Our set-piece was really dominant. Our pack did exceptionally well in that area. Line-outs, driving mauls, scrums there was a lot of penalties there. We didn’t capitalise on the opportunities in that area and didn’t front up physically enough in that area. Credit to the Black Ferns; they put everything at us.
“They scored a couple of quick tries again in that first half, and the same in second half, we let them score two tries, which isn’t the way we wanted to start. They pounced on our mistakes, they have deadly wingers that can create stuff from nothing.”
RFU chief backs 10-team Premiership
Bill Sweeney has thrown the Rugby Football Union's support behind a 10-team Premiership to help solve the sport's financial crisis, the Press Association reports.
RFU chief executive Sweeney has insisted the governing body is still committed to the long-mooted global calendar, signalling the "major priority" of resolving fixture clashes between club and country.
Sweeney has predicted any changes on a slimmed-down English top flight would not come into force until the 2024-25 season. The RFU and Premiership Rugby are already in talks over the Professional Game Agreement (PGA), even though the existing terms do not expire until June 2024.
Sweeney admitted the RFU has precious few short-term fixes for either stricken clubs Worcester or Wasps but insisted the financial crisis must spark a major overhaul of the English game.
Asked if a reduced, 10-team Premiership could be an answer, Sweeney said: “I do see it as viable for a number of reasons, and we’ve been saying for quite some time now that less is more. I don’t know if 10 is the absolute number but that’s the one being used now, but in that and the central distribution around broadcast and commercial revenues, clearly there’s a financial benefit for less teams in that league.
“Clearly one of the major issues we’ve got to grapple with is the calendar. And one of the things that’s held us back in England is the overlap between the international game and the club game. So a reduction in the size of PRL (Premiership Rugby Limited) will help us with that.
“There is no plan to expand international matches, the conversations around the global season will not increase the number of international Tests played. Solving the club and Test match clashes is a major priority; the degree of overlap at the moment doesn’t help anybody. Fans want to see their marquee players playing for their clubs, and England fans want to see England players able to perform at their very best. Therefore de-conflicting that international calendar is a key consideration for us. Match and minute limits will only come under more pressure. So taking this approach will help us achieve those two things.”
Hooper back in Wallabies squad
Michael Hooper will return to the Australia squad for the autumn internationals after taking a break for mental health reasons. The 30-year-old flanker withdrew from the Rugby Championship in August, saying he was not in the right "mindset" to play. He will now return for Tests against Scotland, France, Italy and Wales.
However, he won't take back the captaincy right now, with prop James Slipper continuing in the role.
"It's great news from our perspective, he's really excited about travelling and playing," said Australia head coach Dave Rennie. "We just want him focusing on himself at the moment. Hoops' job is just to come in and just play well but he'll contribute massively in our leadership group as well. We'll assess things as we go."
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