These are your rugby headlines on Friday, July 14.
Shane’s concerns over world league
Wales and Lions legend Shane Williams says he believes the new World League format will ramp up pressure on players and coaches.
Six Nations bosses have officially announced the new 12-team international tournament is set to begin in 2026. The biennial competition will feature all teams from the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship in the southern hemisphere, while two other countries, likely to be Japan and Fiji initially, will also be invited.
Williams says while the principle is sound, it will take some planning and will mean there is little downtime for players and coaches alike to recover during hectic schedules.
READ MORE: The best 33-man Wales squad Warren Gatland can pick for the World Cup
“All the excitement in the game at the moment surrounds the upcoming World Cup in France, and that’s the way it should be,” he wrote in his column for the Rugby Paper. “But what is going to happen when we have the new world league in play? Where is the highest value going to go then? I’m not sure what the main reason was for the introduction of the new tournament but, in my eyes, it can only add extra pressure on the coaches and players.
“The good thing is that there appears to have been strong collaboration between World Rugby, the Six Nations, Sanzaar and the International Players Association. Who’d have thought it? The players finally get some say before the decision is presented to them as a fait accompli!”
Williams goes on to state that with more rugby there will be little time for players to recharge batteries, even with a more aligned global season and heightened collaboration, and that club rugby will suffer as a result.
He added: “One of my fears is there will be even bigger periods of the season in which the top players can’t play for their clubs and regions. They will have to prioritise their efforts with so much at stake every time they pull on a national jersey. There will be five games in the Six Nations, three in the summer and three in the autumn – 11 Tests over the two intermittent years when the World Cup and British & Irish Lions aren’t touring. It may not mean more games, but they will be more intense.
“It’s hard enough to jump off the rugby merry-go-round as it is, but coaches will have more pressure on them to produce the goods. I wonder how long contracts will be for coaches in the future. Traditionally, they have been for a four-year period stretching from one World Cup to another. Will that be the case in the future?
“So, while the principle is sound, the pressure will be heightened. It will need to capture the imagination of the fans and will need some explaining. If your team isn’t going to be able to win, and there is no relegation, will people turn up to see a dead rubber? The new Nations League in football is perhaps an indicator of the level of interest the new competition might be able to muster. Far better than friendlies, but not necessarily any more attractive if your team isn’t doing well.”
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When Sexton could learn fate
Johnny Sexton will learn over the coming days if his Rugby World Cup is to be affected by the outcome of his misconduct hearing.
Ireland’s captain had a complaint lodged against him following his behaviour towards match officials in the wake of Leinster’s 27-26 Heineken Champions Cup final defeat by La Rochelle on May 20. Sexton did not play in the game at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium due to injury but went onto the pitch after the match and became involved in what appeared to be a heated exchange with South African referee Jaco Peyper and other match officials.
The disciplinary hearing that took place on Thursday lasted six hours and the PA news agency understands that the decision is to be communicated to Sexton and Leinster over the coming days before being made public.
Ireland’s opening World Cup warm-up match is against Italy on August 5, followed by appointments later that month with England and Samoa. Their first World Cup game sees them tackle Romania in Bordeaux on September 9, so a suspension for Sexton – who is to retire after the tournament – has the potential to affect his availability.
England coach’s World Cup promise
England defence coach Kevin Sinfield says their Six Nations pain will make them a better team for the upcoming Rugby World Cup.
Sinfield joined Steve Borthwick’s staff after Eddie Jones’ sacking and as a result of the upheaval England limped to a fourth-place finish in the springtime tournament. That included a 50-point hammering at home to France – the World Cup hosts later this year – and as such England aren’t among the favourites for the famous trophy.
“The Six Nations was a challenge for us,” he told the Mirror. “We were thrown together pretty quickly and came up against some pretty good teams who had been preparing for a long time. It meant we were trying to play catch up. But Steve and I knew there was a job to be done or we wouldn’t have been brought in mid-December. We knew that to change there were some bits that needed to happen.”
He added: “Nobody likes having 50 put on their chin and that was certainly a reminder for me of how that feels. It doesn’t feel any different to when you are a player and you get it stuck on your chin. The pain and the hurt is exactly the same. There were a lot of learnings that came out of the Six Nations and I am very grateful for going through it, even though some of the experiences were difficult for us as a group. I always think those tough moments make you stronger and we are in a better spot.”
