Williams suffers nightmare debut
Liam Williams' Cardiff debut lasted just 20 minutes before he was forced off with a painful injury that could yet have repercussions for Wales.
The full-back was taken to hospital this evening amid fears he has suffered a significant collarbone injury.
Coach Dai Young said: "It's a collarbone injury. It doesn't look good. The physios have had a look at it and it looks quite a significant injury. I have no ideas over the timescale or how bad it is. But he doesn't come off. He was in a lot of pain. The doctor thinks it was definitely a collarbone. How bad it is we'll see in the next few hours."
Williams appeared to land awkwardly on his left arm as he was tackled by two Munster players, immediately grabbing his shoulder in the aftermath and grimacing in pain as team-mate Josh Adams told him to "stay down". He was tended to by medics for some time before leaving the field with his arm supported in his jersey.
Williams had been part of a strong Cardiff start against Munster that saw them take an early lead through Max Llewellyn's try.
And an impressive performance, inspired by Taulupe Faletau, saw the Welsh team secure a 20-13 win in the end. You can read all about it here.
You can also follow Scarlets v Ospreys live here.
Biggar pulled out
Wales captain Dan Biggar was pulled from the Northampton team moments before kick-off against London Irish because of illness.
Biggar had been due to skipper Saints for the first time in his first match of the season. He had sat out the season opener against Sale Sharks after the birth of his second child and a busy summer leading Wales in South Africa.
A statement before kick-off said: “Dan Biggar (illness) has been ruled out of Northampton Saints’ Gallagher Premiership clash with London Irish this afternoon,” read a media release shortly before the scheduled 2pm start. “The fly-half is replaced for the men in black, green and gold by James Grayson, who will wear No10. Full-back George Furbank will take over the captaincy of the side.”
The game ended with a 38-22 victory for Northampton as stand-in captain Furbank scored 13 points.
Owens backs ref
Nigel Owens has backed under-fire referee Mathieu Raynal for his controversial decision to penalise Australia's Bernard Foley for time-wasting in Thursday's dramatic Bledisloe Cup defeat against New Zealand.
Raynal has been widely criticised for the decision to award the All Blacks a penalty in the dying moments, which allowed them to secure a last-gasp 39-37 victory.
The French official awarded a scrum to New Zealand on Australia's five metre line after adjudging Wallabies fly-half to have time-wasted whilst kicking a penalty to touch. Raynal could be heard telling Foley to get on with it before deciding to award the scrum, which is within the laws of the game but a very rare occurrence.
The Wallabies have complained to World rugby, while Aussie pundits branded it a "ridiculous" decision and demanded Raynal be sanctioned.
But Owens, after being bombarded by rugby fans for his views, said: "As so many of you have been in touch to ask. Clear communication and warning to the player to get on with it. A fair and strong refereeing call my Raynal I feel. Learning here is not for the referee, but the players to get on with it when ref asks."
Leinster survive huge scare in Italy
Leinster were left clinging on for a 33-29 United Rugby Championship victory over Zebre Parma in Italy after last season's bottom side threatened to pull off their first victory over the Irish province.
Zebre ended the inaugural URC campaign with only one win to their name but they pushed Leinster - who topped the overall standings last term - all the way at Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi thanks to an excellent second-half display.
Tries from Luke McGrath, Rhys Ruddock (2) and Jason Jenkins had given Leinster a 28-10 half-time lead and a try bonus, with Richard Kriel and Pierre Bruno touching down for the home side.
Simone Gesi and MJ Pelser crossed early in the second period as the deficit was reduced to 28-22 and the margin was down to four after Zebre responded to Dave Kearney's unconverted try with a Franco Smith touchdown.
Zebre pushed for an unlikely victory but had to settle for a pair of bonus points in the end, along with a performance that will give them huge encouragement heading into the rest of the season.
Read more:
Jiffy breaks down in brave and heartbreaking radio tribute to Eddie Butler
Scarlets v Ospreys live updates
Eddie Butler's many acts of kindness emerge after sudden death
