Here are the latest rugby headlines on Friday, June 30.
Dragons to return to private ownership
A deal has been struck for the Dragons to return to private ownership this summer, six years after it was taken over by the Welsh Rugby Union.
Friday, June 30, was the deadline for a heads of terms agreement to be signed, with Dragons chair David Buttress leading the consortium looking to take over the club.
Statements issued by Dragons RFC and the WRU say the new deal "will benefit all relevant stakeholders in the Welsh professional game" and will allow the side to "pursue a clear and long-term strategy and take ownership of Rodney Parade", adding that the new consortium, led by Buttress, is made up of "long-term, patient investors who are determined to build a successful future for the club".
The Dragons were taken over by the WRU in the summer of 2017 with what it says was the "primary aim of ensuring four professional sides would be sustained in Wales", with talk of going back into private ownership being discussed seriously as far back as 2020.
Welsh rugby's new six-year financial agreement is now in place, and private ownership of the Dragons was a prerequisite set by the Professional Rugby Board for this agreement. Only a heads of terms agreement needed to be signed today, with due diligence and legal work now able to be done in the coming weeks.
“We are delighted to have reached an agreement to take the club into private ownership,” said Buttress. “This is a momentous day in our club’s history and the start of an exciting new chapter for us all at Rodney Parade and for rugby right across Gwent.
“It is an enormous responsibility to become custodians of this club. Our ambition is aligned with our supporters, and we will continue to build a true family club and work with local stakeholders to help deliver professional sport and sustainable long-term growth for the area.
“We thank Nigel Walker and his team at WRU, Malcolm Wall for his support and guidance and the consortium team for their unwavering commitment.
“A huge final thank you to all Dragons fans and partners, who make up the wider Dragons family, for their incredible support. We look forward to working together with them and sharing more details in the coming months. I would now ask everybody to come together and get behind the club.”
Interim WRU chief executive Nigel Walker said: "This is a hugely positive day for rugby in Newport and across Gwent, but also for the whole of Welsh rugby. The Dragons returning to private ownership was a vital piece in the jigsaw for our new long-term, six-year agreement for the professional game in Wales and to bring about the sustainability and success it demands. Credit must go to David and his fellow investors for their passion and commitment to Dragons RFC. We know that these are difficult times for the professional game globally, but this news today puts the Dragons in a strong position to thrive in the years ahead.”
Welsh coach making impact at Gloucester
Former Wales hooker T Rhys Thomas has been making an impact at Gloucester since joining the club from Cardiff earlier this month.
The ex-Cardiff assistant coach has joined the Cherry and Whites staff as forwards transition coach, with the 41-year-old's role focusing on "developing players through the academy pathway and into the senior squad".
With the English Premiership club coming to the end of their first pre-season training block this week, head coach George Skivington has praised Thomas' input so far, along with that of new attack coach James Lightfoot.
"First and foremost they're two brilliant characters and we are very careful who we bring in the building and those guys have fitted in really well," he said. "They've brought really good detail to what they're responsible for but also they've bedded in really well. We have two quality coaches there and we're really excited about what they can deliver."
As for the overall group effort over the first three weeks, he added: "It's been really good. It's still the early stages but the boys have been working hard and there's a good feeling amongst the group and they're really keen to go."
Jarrod Evans' task at Harlequins gets tougher
Racing 92 are said to have given up on their plan of luring England fly-half Marcus Smith from Harlequins, meaning Jarrod Evans' fight for the starting jersey at The Stoop next season will be that much harder.
Planet Rugby reports that the Top 14 club were in advanced talks to sign the No. 10 as a replacement for Finn Russell, who will join Bath, but the deal to buy out Smith from the last year of his Quins contract has collapsed. The outlet cites French sports publication L’Equipe, who say Racing had reached an agreement with the player after a visit to the club's facilities but it fell through when negotiations on finer details could not be agreed. Bosses at the Paris-based side are now set to explore further options in Wales and England, according to the reports.
It means the battle for the Harlequins fly-half jersey next season will be all the more intense for Evans, 26, who joins fellow Wales international Dillon Lewis in joining Quins for next season.
Evans, who has eight Wales caps to his name but now becomes ineligible for Wales under the WRU's 25-cap rule, kicked 765 points in 126 games for Cardiff since making his first appearance in 2015.
"We are all excited to welcome Jarrod into our environment to add to the talent we have in the fly-half stable," Harlequins attack coach Nick Evans previously said.
England announce World Cup training squad as Farrell captain
By Mark Mann-Bryans, PA and Andrew Baldock, PA Rugby Union Correspondent
Steve Borthwick has confirmed Owen Farrell as England's World Cup captain after naming his 41-strong training squad on Friday morning. The England head coach made the announcement over two months out from their World Cup opener against Argentina in Marseille on September 9, with Ellis Genge and Courtney Lawes named as vice-captains.
Farrell's form towards the end of the season with Saracens has silenced any suggestion he will not be the starting fly-half at the finals and now he will lead the team out in France.
Speaking after announcing Farrell as his skipper, Borthwick said: "I'm delighted to announce the England Rugby World Cup training squad. I think it's a great blend of experience and youth I'm also excited to announce the England Rugby World Cup squad will be captained by Owen Farrell and vice-captains will be Ellis Genge and Courtney Lawes.
"I think we've got some great leaders in the team. I think that all of them are fantastic players. I met with Owen about 10 days ago. We spent about two hours walking around fields outside Harpenden, talking about everything we wanted to do with his team, everything we wanted to do with this programme, what we wanted to achieve. The passion in him, I think he's a fantastic leader, the players have enormous respect for him and I'm looking forward to the full squad getting together on Sunday night here at the Lensbury (Resort) and start training on Monday morning."
Farrell's uncapped club-mate Theo Dan made the cut for the training squad, despite the 22-year-old hooker only making his Saracens debut in November 2021, having delivered a series of impressive displays during the club's Gallagher Premiership title-winning campaign. There is also a call-up for uncapped back-row forward Tom Willis, who currently plays for Bordeaux-Begles. He joins his brother Jack in the squad.
But Exeter hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie has lost his battle to recover in time from a shoulder injury and will not be considered for World Cup selection, the Rugby Football Union announced. Players named in Borthwick's previous training group to miss out include Gloucester-bound number eight Zach Mercer, Northampton scrum-half Alex Mitchell and Bath flanker Ted Hill.
Dan is among a sizeable group from Premiership finalists Saracens and Sale Sharks called up by Borthwick after they completed a mandatory rest period. That contingent includes the likes of Farrell, Jamie George, Maro Itoje, Manu Tuilagi, George Ford and Jonny Hill.
Tom Willis and Dan apart, the other uncapped players are Harlequins wing Cadan Murley, Gloucester prop Val Rapava-Ruskin and London Irish flanker Tom Pearson.
And although not named in the squad, Billy Vunipola, Mako Vunipola, Ollie Lawrence, Ollie Chessum and Jack Walker will continue their rehabilitation from injuries and remain in contention for England's final 33-man World Cup group to be announced on August 7.
Borthwick will name his final squad of 33 players on August 7 with England playing four World Cup warm-up games - facing Wales home and away, Ireland and Fiji - before beginning their tilt at going one step further than 2019, when they lost the final to South Africa.
England training squad: Backs - H Arundell (London Irish), D Care (Harlequins), J Cokanasiga (Bath), E Daly (Saracens), O Farrell (Saracens), G Ford (Sale), M Malins (Saracens), J Marchant (Harlequins), J May (Gloucester), C Murley (Harlequins), G Porter (Leicester), H Slade (Exeter), M Smith (Harlequins), F Steward (Leicester), M Tuilagi (Sale), J van Poortvliet (Leicester), A Watson (Leicester), B Youngs (Leicester).
Forwards - J Blamire (Newcastle), D Cole (Leicester), T Curry (Sale Sharks), T Dan (Saracens), A Dombrandt (Harlequins), B Earl (Saracens), E Genge (Bristol), J George (Saracens), J Hill (Sale), M Itoje (Saracens), C Lawes (Northampton), L Ludlam (Northampton), J Marler (Harlequins), G Martin (Leicester), T Pearson (London Irish), V Rapava-Ruskin (Gloucester), D Ribbans (Northampton), B Rodd (Sale), K Sinckler (Bristol), W Stuart (Bath), S Underhill (Bath), J Willis (Toulouse), T Willis (Bordeaux-Begles).
Rugby stakeholders hope new calendar proposals improve player welfare
By PA Sport Staff
Rugby's stakeholders hope proposals for developing a new optimised global calendar will help improve player welfare, with a new two-division international competition set to provide more opportunities for countries to progress on the world stage. The likes of the International Rugby Players representative body, World Rugby, the British and Irish Lions were all involved in the talks held in London this week, as well as the major international competitions including the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship.
Concerns had been raised over tackling player burnout across the global game, with more focus called for on rest and recovery periods between domestic and international commitments. As part of the discussions by the game's stakeholders, there will be a review of the current 'World Rugby Regulation 9', which will "look to reflect the new calendar and address issues relating to the release of players for international matches". It was also acknowledged "much more work is required" over decisions on the international global season structure, which are set to be taken by the World Rugby Council at its interim meeting in Paris during October.
A statement on the World Rugby website read: "The whole-sport group continue to be united in their commitment to optimising the global calendars to prioritise player welfare and accelerate global growth in content, opportunity, relevance and value by better aligning the annual domestic and international environments, also boosting player and fan experience.
"Central to the development of the men's calendar is optimising player release for players moving between the club and international environments, overall welfare optimisation including rest periods, and a greater level of clarity around fixtures for High-Performance Unions and emerging nations including with the Six Nations and SANZAAR teams."
World Rugby revealed part of that planning includes the establishment of a two-division international competition for the men's game operating across the July and November windows which will be outside of World Cup years or those set for British and Irish Lions tours.
"All stakeholders are motivated by the opportunity for more teams to advance on the world stage, ultimately leading to more competitive Rugby World Cups," the statement from World Rugby added. "This mission is underpinned by the principle of promotion and relegation between the divisions, which reflects the vision of a global game."
