The best and worst sports quotes of 2012

THANKFULLY for us, most sportsmen and women have no idea when to shut up.

We bring you the best and worst sports quotes of 2012.

 

It was an absolute disaster, I can't believe we made it. We had to hire a private jet.

 

The people of Fiji may question your definition of disaster, Ryan Haller, but tee time at the Australian Open must be more stressful than we'd ever imagined.

 

It's difficult to compare it against anything else because it's one of the biggest sporting events, if not the biggest in the world.

 

Someone should probably point Sergio Garcia in the direction of the Olympics and World Cup, before he lines up in the Ryder Cup again.

If it's not working one way, you can kick them in the f***ing head.

 

Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson discusses the finer points of what it takes to compete in the UFC.

 

I say they're just f***ing w***ers. I cannot be doing with people like that.

 

Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins left us wondering what he really thought about people who accuse him of drug-taking.

It’s what I came here to do. I’m now a legend, I’m the greatest athlete to live.

Hard to argue with Usain Bolt's ego, after he won back to back 100m and 200m titles at the London Olympics.

 

If you played with me, ten years ago, I give to you every day one punch in your head.

 

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini wants to deliver star striker Mario Balotelli a special gift on behalf of the universe.

 

No, your mum has given me aids

 

And you have given us another reason not to respond to Twitter trolls,Brock McLean, after the Carlton midfielder copped a $5000 fine and a suspended one-match ban for that response to a punter who questioned whether he'd been delisted.

 

I think you'd have to be 'Blind Freddy' not to figure that one out.

 

McLean again, ensuring former club Melbourne stays at the bottom of the AFL ladder even longer by dobbing them in for tanking.

 

The only person who would have spent more time on the ice than me was Ben Cousins

Winter Olympic gold medalist Steven Bradbury probably should have tested his material before unleashing it at West Coast's season launch.

 

Miracles do happen in Manchester. Only this time it’s on this side of the road

 

Mancini sums the situation up perfectly after a remarkable series of events handed Man City the English Premier League title on the final day of competition.

 

I’ve put up with being racially vilified by this federation, being discriminated against on many teams. You think I waste my time running at training for fun? For this? No, they can have athletics. I don’t need to do this no more.

 

Australian 400m runner John Stephensen surprised everyone by unloading his thoughts for the millionth time time in his career, this time on Athletics Australia over its Olympic selection decisions. Sadly, this time he was probably right.

I threw out the big D word to him yesterday - disgraceful. There is no use sugar-coating something. He has to do the work. I’m sick and tired of tip-toeing around it.

Pat Rafter finally said what the rest of Australia was thinking after Bernard Tomic's lack of effort in losing to Andy Roddick at the US Open.

Why does the smh get a girl to write about rugby

Because she's more intelligent than you, David Campese. And she lives in 2012.

It wasn't as if I went out on the piss and got drunk and belted someone or was pissed the night before training. It was as simple as I slept in and that's what cost me.

Sacked Richmond player Daniel Connors misses the point entirely, and conveniently forgets his past list of indiscretions, as he is shown the door at the AFL club.

news.com.au

What is next for Jonny Wilkinson

Jonny Wilkinson will make a decision on the future of his career in February, and will continue playing only if he feels it will benefit his club.

The 33-year-old, whose Toulon contract expires at the end of the season, retired from international rugby after last year's World Cup having won 91 caps for England and the British and Irish Lions, and has since helped inspire Toulon to first place in France's Top 14.

In an interview with L'Equipe, Wilkinson addressed speculation over whether he would look to continue for an additional year, saying: "I'm capable of carrying on, but it's a delicate balance. The question isn't what I would like to do, but what is best for my team. After I've asked myself that question, then I'll think about myself."

Should Wilkinson decide to retire, his swansong could be the Lions tour to Australia in June, though that would depend on Toulon's progress. The play-off final takes place on 1 June, the same day as the first Lions match in Hong Kong.

Speaking earlier this month, the Lions coach Warren Gatland said he would prefer to include France-based players only if "they can be on the plane with us … The most difficult thing is the guys at Toulon could be playing in a final the same day as our first game, so it is going to be difficult to integrate them and get them to be a part of the tour.

"But it is not something we need to commit to now, and we will look at the strength-in-depth in certain positions, and injuries, but the idea is to have everyone on the plane together."

Wilkinson said that he remains confident about Toulon's prospects this season, including the Heineken Cup.

"Can we do the double? I'd say yes. I'm never satisfied, but I'm happy with how we've played. We're heading in the right direction. The most important thing is the rapport between the players, and that's where we're lucky."

guardian.

Reds vs Chiefs warm up for Super Rugby 2013

The Queensland Reds have confirmed that they will warm up for the 2013 Super Rugby season with a trial match against current Super Rugby champions the Chiefs at at Stockland Stadium Sunshine Coast on Friday the 8th of February.

The encounter is the second straight year Queensland Rugby has taken elite-level Rugby and the Reds to the Sunshine Coast after the region hosted an exhibition match against New Zealand's Hurricanes in June.

The announcement of the Chiefs trial game continues Queensland Rugby's commitment to growing the code on the Sunshine Coast and also finalises the Reds preseason activity for 2013 with their opening trial game of the year being held in Toowoomba against the Blues on Saturday 2 February.

The Sunshine Coast trial game will be a crucial hit-out for the Reds before their Super Rugby campaign commences a week later with a blockbuster opening round clash against the Brumbies in Canberra on February 16.

Reds Head Coach Richard Graham said the chance to host the 2012 champion Chiefs would be a good opportunity to challenge the squad just prior to the season kicking off.

"The Super Rugby competition has become a virtual sprint for 2013 with the majority of our regular season fixtures completed by the June Test window. As a consequence of the scheduling, it is important we commence our campaign strongly," Graham said.

"This will be the last opportunity for players to impress before round one selection against the Brumbies and we will want to see the squad execute all we have worked on during the preseason.

"Considering this, it's ideal to have an opportunity to host a trial game against last year's champions on the Sunshine Coast.

"The opportunity to play and perform well on the Sunshine Coast is also something the team is excited about after having received such a positive response and support from the community during this year's exhibition game."

Sunshine Coast Mayor Mark Jamieson welcomed the decision to have the Reds return to the Sunshine Coast.

"I am very happy the Sunshine Coast is being given the opportunity once again to host a Queensland Reds game," Cr Mark Jamieson said.

"The code has a good following here on the Coast, as evidenced by the attendance at the Reds-Hurricanes game earlier this year.

"I look forward to the event on February the 8th."

Sunshine Coast Rugby Union Chairman Glenn Ferguson also praised the return of the Reds.

"We are proud to welcome back the Queensland Reds to the Sunshine Coast," Mr Ferguson said.

"The Sunny Coast Rugby community embraced the exhibition match played earlier this year with great numbers attending the game.

"We welcome the opportunity to connect the Sunshine Coast community with the commercial partners supporting Rugby on the Coast.

"Sunshine Coast Rugby Union continues to maintain its support of player pathways as seen by Blake Enever's success with the Reds."

2013 will be a year to remember for Reds supporters with The British & Irish Lions to make their first tour to Australia in 12 years. As part of their tour, at least half of the Reds 35-man squad will get their first taste of Test-like Rugby in a historic Tour match against the visitors at Suncorp Stadium on June 8.

As well as that first encounter against the Lions since 2001, the Reds have been handed a great Super Rugby draw at Suncorp Stadium in 2013 which includes home games against Aussie rivals the NSW Waratahs, Western Force, ACT Brumbies and Melbourne Rebels, plus Ewen McKenzie's men will take on New Zealand's Hurricanes and Blues as well as South Africa's Bulls and Sharks.

Reds Members and Sunshine Coast Rugby Union Members will receive a priority purchase opportunity to secure their seat for the trial match against the Chiefs before general public sale commences at 9:00am on Monday 24 December (presale information below).

Tickets for the encounter can be secured through Ticketek :http://premier.ticketek.com.au/shows/show.aspx?sh=REDCHIEF13
Queensland Reds v Chiefs Trial Match Ticketing Information and Prices
Reds Member Presale: 12:00pm Wednesday 19 December to 11:00am Friday 21 December
Sunshine Coast Rugby Union Member Presale: 12:00pm Friday 21 December to 12:00am Sunday 23 December
General Public Sale: 9:00am Monday 24 December
General Admission Adult: $25
General Admission Children (Ages 4-16): $15
General Admission Family Pass (Two Adults + Two Children): $70
Grandstand Adult: $50

superxv

Six South Africans to ref Super Rugby 2013

Six South Africans were on Wednesday named among an 18-man strong referee team announced by Sanzar for the 2013 Vodacom Super Rugby competition.

Jason Jaftha will make his Vodacom Super Rugby debut as part of a South African group that also includes Craig Joubert, Jaco Peyper, Jonathan Kaplan, Lourens van der Merwe and Stuart Berry.

Jaftha is one of five newcomers to the list which also includes Argentinean Francisco Pastrana (who controlled his first Vodacom Super Rugby match in 2012).

"The recent form of some of our referees in the test environment has given us an excellent senior group within the team, and we have been able to include a healthy number of young referees," said Lyndon Bray, Sanzar Game Manager.

"They have been selected with an eye to the future, both for Super Rugby and test rugby."

Australia's James Leckie has been recalled to the squad, while Rohan Hoffman (a former professional rugby player), Jaftha and Nick Briant from New Zealand get their first taste of Vodacom Super Rugby with their selections.

"Along with the five new referees introduced to Super Rugby in 2012, we have a very strong nucleus of younger referees, blended with some of the best in the world at the top of their game."

The full Super Rugby Referee Team for 2013 is:

From South Africa: Craig Joubert, Jaco Peyper, Jonathan Kaplan, Lourens van der Merwe, Stuart Berry, Jason Jaftha

From New Zealand: Chris Pollock, Glen Jackson, Garratt Williamson, Jonathon White, Mike Fraser, Nick Briant

From Australia: Steve Walsh, Andrew Lees, Angus Gardner, James Leckie, Rohan Hoffman

From Argentina: Francisco Pastrana

SuperSport

Money made by New Zealand in Rugby World Cup

The 2011 Rugby World Cup brought over 133 000 international visitors to New Zealand and had a short-term economic impact of 1.73 billion NZ dollars ($1.46 billion), according to a report released on Tuesday.

The report, commissioned by the New Zealand Government, investigated the impact of the 45-day long tournament which was won by the host nation.

It was the first time since New Zealand last hosted the event in 1987 that they won the title, although they nearly missed out again, coming up against an inspired French side in the final and eking out a dramatic 8-7 win at Auckland's Eden Park.

Despite being rugby-mad, doubts had been raised about whether the country had the infrastructure to host the event and if enough profit would be made.

Organisers also had to contend with the devastating Canterbury earthquake seven months before kick-off in which the stadium in Christchurch, due to host seven matches, was severely damaged.

In the end, the tournament largely ran smoothly and the organisers, Rugby New Zealand 2011, posted a loss of $31.3 million, 20 percent better than expected.

The report looking at the wider issues found that the tournament had a short-term impact of $1.73 billion between 2006 and 2012 on the New Zealand economy, and sustained the equivalent of 29 990 jobs for the duration of one year.

It was estimated by the International Rugby Board that economic activity was boosted by more than $500 million.

The tournament attracted over 133 000 international visitors, over twice initial estimates, with well over a third coming from Australia.

Overseas visitors spent around $390 million, according to estimates.

The report said the tournament exceeded all expectations, both on and off the pitch, and delivered tangible and positive benefits for New Zealand and the game as a whole.

"The legacies of RWC 2011 include positive visitor experiences, new business connections, improved infrastructure, and greater interest in volunteering," New Zealand sport and recreation minister Murray McCully said.

"Importantly, an understanding of the planning and operational excellence required to deliver major events is now embedded here, and is already being applied to preparations for the Cricket World Cup and Fifa Under 20 World Cup in 2015, and the World Masters Games in 2017.

"However, it is the intangible elements - the way the nation came together, and the pride we felt as hosts - that will define RWC 2011 for most New Zealanders in the future."

Supersport

This year saw five new coaches at international level. Let's rate them

The year 2012 saw five new coaches at international level, all with ambition and expectations of success.

Their strike rates - read winning percentages - ranged from Steven Hansen's 85.7 percent to Jacques Brunel's 30 percent. We will look at all five newcomers and rank them, based on their 2012 performances.

Obviously Hansen was previously involved - as Graham Henry's assistant - for eight years and took over a well-established team. The quality of the personnel at his disposal is also a far cry from what a man like Brunel had to work with.

To put matters in perspective, we must look at when he was the head coach of the Welsh national team. Hansen became the ninth Welsh coach in 13 years, after Graham Henry parted company with the Welsh Rugby Union in 2002. Hansen, during his two-year stay, won just 11 of his 31 Tests as Welsh coach (35.5 percent). In 2003, for the first time in their history, Wales lost every match in the Six Nations Championship and went on to record a streak of 11 consecutive Test match defeats - a run of losses broken by a win over minnows Romania in August that year. For what it is worth, Henry's strike rate was 61 percent in a four-year stint as Welsh coach.

Those stints in Wales obviously taught the Kiwis the value of continuity - both in terms of playing and coaching personnel - and that reflected in the World Cup champions' dominance this year.

In contrast, Hansen's main rivals in 2012 - Heyneke Meyer (South Africa) and Philippe Saint-Andrè (France) - started afresh, having not been involved with their national teams in any capacity for the previous four years. Meyer's previous stint with the Boks were all very brief periods as a Bok forwards coach (1999 year-end tour with Nick Mallett) and 2001 (under Harry Viljoen)

In essence, Meyer and Saint-Andrè were in a rebuilding phase in 2012.

Saint-Andrè had many of the old hands available. However, he chose to look at some new faces, after the World Cup runners-up, France, became stale and predictable. In the Six Nations his results were less than desirable and June was also a mixed bag. However, an unbeaten year-end run, including a very impressive drubbing of the Wallabies, showed the progress the French have made.

Meyer had lost the services of legendary players like John Smit, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Danie Rossouw, Fourie du Preez and Jaque Fourie. Add to that the injuries of Schalk Burger, Pierre Spies, Bismarck du Plessis, Andries Bekker and Frans Steyn - apart from Spies and Bekker all 2007 World Cup winners - a large chunk out of any squad.

He may have come in for criticism over the Boks' playing style, but given the progress - yes there was real progress - they made saw them finish a year-end tour unbeaten for the first time since 2008.

And beating England at Twickenham is no mean feat ... just ask the All Blacks. You just need to be slightly off you game and you will be in trouble.

That brings us to England coach Stuart Lancaster, who has been involved in the England structures - as mentor of the Saxons (England second string) - but also had to rebuild the team after his country's dismal performance at the World Cup last year, where they were knocked out in the quarterfinals.

Lancaster started his process in the Six Nations, where the English showed promise. Then came a disappointing 0-2 series loss to the Bok in June and a mixed bag in their year-end Tests.

Narrow defeats against Australia and South Africa was followed by a record win over New Zealand. The Kiwis hinted that fatigue was a factor, but it did show that the margins may well be much smaller than most think.

As for Jacques Brunel - he is simply on a hiding to nothing. Italy just don't have the depth to compete with Tier One countries and their wins will always come against Tier Two and Tier Three teams.

For our rankings we used the following:
Tier One countries: New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, France, England
Tier Two countries: Ireland, Argentina, Wales, Italy, Scotland

Our rankings:

1. Steve Hansen (New Zealand)
Played: 14
Wins: 12, 85.7 percent
Defeats: One, 7.1 percent
Draws: One, 7.1 percent

Versus Tier One:
Played: Six
Wins: Four, 66.7 percent
Defeats: One, 16.7 percent
Draws: One, 16.7 percent

Home: Six, 100.0 percent
Away: Six, 75.0 percent


2. Heyneke Meyer (South Africa)
Played: 12
Wins: Seven, 58.3 percent
Defeats: Three, 25.0 percent
Draws: Two, 16.7 percent

Versus Tier One:
Played: Eight
Wins: Four, 50.0 percent
Defeats: Three, 37.5 percent
Draws: One, 12.5 percent

Home: Four, 66.7 percent
Away: Three, 50.0 percent


3. Philippe Saint-Andrè (France)
Played: 10
Wins: Six, 60.0 percent
Defeats: Three, 30.0 percent
Draws: One, 10.0 percent

Versus Tier One:
Played: Two
Wins: One, 50.0 percent
Defeats: One, 50.0 percent

Home: Four, 66.7 percent
Away: Two, 50.0 percent


4. Stuart Lancaster (England)
Played: 12
Wins: Six, 50.0 percent
Defeats: Five, 41.7 percent
Draws: One, 8.3 percent

Versus Tier One:
Played: Seven
Wins: Two, 28.6 percent
Defeats: Four, 57.1 percent
Draws: One, 14.3 percent

Home: Three, 50.0 percent
Away: Three, 50.0 percent


5. Jacques Brunel (Italy)
Played: 10
Wins: Three, 30.0 percent
Defeats: Seven, 70.0 percent

Versus Tier One:
Played: Four
Wins: None
Defeats: Four, 100.0 percent

Home: Two, 40.0 percent
Away: One, 20.0 percent

By Jan de Koning and Rugby 365

Bulls confirm loosing another Springbok for 2013 to French club Racing Metro next year

The Bulls have revealed that Springbok lock Juandrè Kruger will join up with French club Racing Metro next year.

Kruger, who played in eight of South Africa's 12 Tests after making his debut this year, did not extend his contract with the Blue Bulls Company (Pty) Ltd beyond the 2013 Super Rugby season.

He will join up with the French outfit, Racing, in August next year - just in time for Europe's 2013/14 season.

Kruger made his debut for the Springboks against England in June, following an impressive Super Rugby debut for the Bulls.

His contract with the BBC runs out in June 2013 and although the Bulls could secure his services till the end of the competition, the 27-year-old opted for the move to Paris after that.

Bulls head coach Frans Ludeke said they understand the reasons why Kruger decided to leave.

"It is always good to know and to hear that your players are wanted all over the world, but unfortunately it is not always possible to hold on to them once those offers start coming in," Ludeke said.

"With the exchange rate as it is at the moment, it is very difficult to remain on level terms with those clubs when it comes to contract talks. We were very keen to extend his contract, but financially it was just not possible. We are very happy for Juandrè, as it is a great offer he received, but that left us in an unfortunate position that we could not match it."

Ludeke has no problem with Kruger’s continued commitment to the Bulls in 2013.

"Not at all. Juandrè is a real pro and I know we can still expect a 110% effort from him. We sat down as a group recently to discuss our goals and objectives for 2013 and I am very confident that we will get an exceptional contribution from Juandrè right till the last game of our season."

Rugby 365

Opinion: Why owning your own ground is key to rugby success

Northampton this week announced a profit for the 12th consecutive year. The Saints made more than £800,000 on a turnover a shade over £12m, a figure that will increase if the latest development phase of Franklin's Gardens is given the go-ahead.

Home is not where the heartache is in the Premiership. Leicester are also profitable, as are Gloucester. The clubs who make big losses are those who do not own their own grounds: Saracens, although they are moving to their own place in Barnet in the new year, Wasps, London Irish and Bath, who cannot break free of the Charity Commission.

With Sale having primacy of tenure in Salford, Saracens moving out, Wasps, once the club's takeover is completed in the coming days, weeks or months, planning to move out of Wycombe and relocate along the M40 closer to London, Bath continuing to hope that the club will be able to buy the Recreation Ground and London Welsh pondering whether to make a bid for the Kassam Stadium if they stay up this season, the Premiership could in the not too distant future be inhabited exclusively by owner-occupiers.

Last season's top five was made up of four clubs who owned their own grounds, Harlequins, Leicester, Northampton and Exeter, with Saracens the exception, able to compete because their South African owners have been content to write off substantial losses, like Bruce Craig at Bath.

Mark McCafferty, the Premiership Rugby chief executive, made the point this month that the key to profitability for clubs was ground ownership. Stadia like Welford Road, Franklin's Gardens and Kingsholm, generate income every day, not just on a match day.

With the salary cap designed to ensure that the gap between rich and poor is not anti-competitive, the extra income enjoyed by ground owners is reflected less in wages than facilities, but as seasons elapse so the cap is sure to rise to reflect the growing income streams of the majority.

So the most likely club from last season's bottom six to break into the play-off positions this season should be Gloucester, one of England's few rugby cities, but consistency has been elusive for the Cherry and Whites, sublime one week, dire the next.

The Gloucester of old was more mongrel than pedigree. If the welcome for visiting sides at Gloucester was hostile, it was nothing compared to the reception provided by the home eight, but in recent years thoroughbreds have galloped on Kingsholm, talented but temperamental.

Gloucester have some catching up to do. Leicester, a club that is invincible in the semi-finals but vulnerable on the last day when consistency is rarely enough, Northampton and Saracens, who will all be less encumbered by international calls than they were last season, are very difficult to beat on their own grounds, a quality Harlequins developed in 2011-12 and it was a significant factor in Exeter's rise.

Sale will be this season's wild card, a club that is unrecognisable from the side that flirted with relegation in a steady decline after winning the Premiership in 2006. Danny Cipriani is the headline signing, but the Sharks' director of rugby has made sure that the outside-half is complemented by a ball-winning pack.

Their new ground at Salford is 10 metres wider than their former home at Edgeley Park, and if there is one wish for the Premiership season it is that coaches have been watching the southern hemisphere season, in particular the Chiefs and the All Blacks.

Neither side might have to worry about relegation, but that is too often used as an excuse in the Premiership. It is a question of mindset, and Sir Clive Woodward made a valid point this month when he said, looking ahead to the new season, that a current weakness in rugby was that coaching the team collective had taken on an overwhelming importance and that it was easier than coaching individuals.

"World Cup-winning teams need Podium Players," he wrote in the Sunday Times, "people who are the best in the world in their position, or the second or, at worst, third best. All the rugby players want is a fair chance of achieving the same level of success as the Olympians. It is rugby's turn to pick up the baton and run with it."

Amen to that and it will be interesting to see how Shane Geraghty fares on his return to the Premiership with London Irish. When he left the Exiles for Northampton three years ago, he was one of English rugby's brightest prospects, a player who lived off his wits and saw reward in risk.

Northampton was too much like a strait-jacket and he came to be used as an impact player from the bench when the Saints were losing, a waste of talent. Geraghty has perhaps not helped himself in his career, but with Brian Smith back in harness at London Irish, the Exiles should be worth watching again.

The RaboDirect Pro 12 also launches this week. It suffers in comparison to the Premiership, partly because the "national" media is Anglocentric, but it does not help itself with kick-off times that avoid Saturday afternoons, even though all the teams in the tournament are able to fill that slot in Europe.

Ospreys are the defending champions but, along with the other three Welsh regions, have agreed a self-imposed salary cap this season, roughly on the level of the Premiership's with academy players factored out. Most of Ireland's international players will miss the opening weekends, something that rankles with the Premiership clubs as they demand a change to the qualification process for the Heineken Cup.

Teams in the Pro 12 may not have to worry about relegation, but a consequence of that is a pile-up of largely meaningless games at the end of a season that puts off paying spectators. It is not, like the Premiership and Top 14, a club tournament; it is largely run by the unions involved and, as the months pass, they will have a big decision to make.


FULL OF DEANS?

Robbie Deans, it is said, has four matches to hold on to his job as Australia coach. His contract runs until next year, after the Lions tour, but a poor start to the new Rugby Championship by the Wallabies has struck up a chorus of discontent from Sydney to Perth.

Australia's two defeats were against New Zealand, by common consent the leading team in the world by some way, but as a Kiwi in charge of the All Blacks' greatest rivals, his reservoir of goodwill has never been high.

Last Saturday's 22-0 defeat in Auckland was the first time Australia had drawn a blank against the All Blacks in 50 years, although the game was no more one-sided than the World Cup semi-final at the same venue last October.

Deans's record against teams other than his native New Zealand is not unimpressive. The Wallabies have won their last four Tests against the Springboks, including last year's World Cup quarter-final, they have beaten the Six Nations champions Wales seven matches in succession and they have triumphed in their last five meetings with the World Cup finalists France.

But, under Deans, they have won three Tests in 17 against the All Blacks, and it is 10 years since they held the Bledisloe Cup. Given the showing of the Australian teams in this year's Super 15, the two reverses against New Zealand this month were hardly a surprise, and the Wallabies were without eight players, including David Pocock and James Horwill.

The former Australia coach Alan Jones, whose one tilt at a World Cup, back in 1987, ended with a worse return than last year - they finished fourth after losing the play-off to Wales - is leading those calling for Deans to be fired, pointing out that when he enjoyed success with the Crusaders, he was surrounded by good players.

The same point was made by the New Zealand coach, Steve Hansen, when defending Deans, who moved to Australia after failing to become the All Blacks' coach in 2007. "Just because Australia aren't winning against us doesn't make Robbie a bad coach," said Hansen. "He had a great record with the Crusaders, where he obviously had a really good team.

"I've spent a lot of time coaching with him, he's not a bad coach. Any team that gets his services are going to benefit from it. They're still the number two side in the world. He's copping a lot of flak for losing to us, rather than people looking at the bigger picture."

The Australian Rugby Union is looking beyond the short-term, saying Deans's position is not up for discussion, but pressure is building ahead of the Lions next year. The biggest picture is the 2015 World Cup, which is being hosted by England. On the two occasions it has been staged in Britain previously, in 1991 and 1999, the Wallabies returned home with the Webb Ellis Cup.

guardian

Latest on Quade Cooper vs Wallabies coach Robbie Deans

WALLABIES coach Robbie Deans wants Quade Cooper in his team to face the British and Irish Lions next year.

A face-to-face meeting between Cooper and Deans has ensured the enigmatic flyhalf will be welcomed back into the Australian fold.

Cooper cleared the air with Deans in Brisbane last week, days after ending months of tense negotiations by re-signing with the Australian Rugby Union.

Reds and Wallabies stars James Horwill and Will Genia also attended the meeting, which Genia said was organised to discuss preparations for next year's British and Irish Lions tour.

While the Cooper news is a welcome development for the attack-blunted Wallabies, unfortunately for Reds fans Genia will not return from his knee injury until Super Rugby's round 6, which is four weeks later than originally hoped.


Speaking at a Reds' junior clinic with the Wynnum Bugs rugby club, Genia said there were no issues between Deans and Cooper.

"I don't think there's any issues there," Genia said.

"It was Robbie, me, James and Quade. We all sat down and talked about the Lions tour, dates of the camps, what they will be about and all those sorts of things, plus a bit of content about footy.

"There's absolutely no issues there at all from what I saw."

Australia's hopes to defeat the Lions next June are significantly boosted by Cooper having a functioning relationship with Deans.

Lions coach Warren Gatland recently said Deans had misused Cooper this year and the 24-year-old was a crucial element to the Wallabies.

Cooper, who will make his professional boxing debut on February 8, was asked two weeks ago if he was happy to play under Deans.

"Of course ... he's the coach," Cooper said.

Current Australian No.10 Kurtley Beale was inconsistent during the Wallabies' European tour.

He was outplayed by Italy's flyhalf Luciano Orquera and France's Frederic Michalak.

The Wallabies also need a fit and in-form Genia, who missed the European tour with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Genia said the eight rounds of Super Rugby he would play between his return game against the Bulls and the Lions tour was enough for him to be Test-ready.

"If I'm going to be realistic, it'll be round 6 that I'm back," Genia said.

"If I'm back in round 6, I get two months to play footy.

"Robbie and I discussed when I'd be back and I said to him, 'That's more than enough for me to be ready' and Robbie agreed with that.

"To be able to represent your country in a once in 12-year opportunity would be amazing.

"It is the best of England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland and I really want to be there.

"If we beat them it will prove a lot about our team. We want to entertain and play rugby people want to watch."

new.com.au

Opinion: Our thoughts on the Lions tour to Australia

The Ironmongers' Hall in Barbican provided a lavish venue for the Lions this week as they introduced Warren Gatland as the head coach for next year's tour to Australia. It was chosen because it was adjacent to the site of the old Manchester Hotel, flattened during the Blitz, where the forerunners of the Lions gathered for their farewell dinner before heading offto the same location in 1888.



There was a time in the early years of the professional era when the Lions made a loss for the four home unions, but they are now unashamedly commercial, one reason why next year's tour kicks off with a fixture against the Barbarians in Hong Kong, an important base of the principal sponsors, HSBC.



There may well be a similar excursion before the 2017 trip to New Zealand: Fiji have already issued an invitation, but it would not be a missionary visit as in the old days: it would have to be profitable. The Lions are big business, making money for the unions who host them to such an extent that without the tourists, Sanzar countries would struggle to hold on to their best players, never mind that they each enjoy visits just once every 12 years.



The Lions expect that 40,000 supporters will be following them in Australia, as many as were in South Africa in 2009, a figure that would be remarkable at any time, never mind during the worst economic climate since the 1930s. The Lions are attracting global companies as backers and a tour by them has become the game's second biggest event after a World Cup.



It almost seemed sacriligeous to ask, given the setting and the mood of celebration, but given the failure of the Lions to win a series since 1997 and with just three victories in their last 10 Tests, would an ever-inflating bubble be burst if success on the field remained elusive? Would tens of thousands spend thousands of pounds flying thousands of miles to watch a team likely to lose a Test rubber not because the players and coaches were not up to it, but because the domestic calendar in the British Isles made no concessions to the Lions?



Warren Gatland's squad will gather six days before the match in Hong Kong, a day after the finals of the Aviva Premiership and RaboDirect Pro 12 are played, and little more than a week after the two European finals. The amateur era, when tours were considerably longer and player release was not an issue, showed how testing it was to mould a squad of players from four different countries. Gatland and his management team will have little more than a month to find the mix before the first Test.



The Lions have two more tours under the current agreement with the Sanzar unions. Their current manager, Andy Irvine, said a new deal must provide adequate preparation time, even if it meant moving the start of a trip back by two weeks. He accepted that clubs, as well as unions and the International Rugby Board, would need to be involved in any discussion: putting back to start date would delay the time players would return to their clubs/provinces/regions, impacting on the Premiership and the Pro 12, and the season in the southern hemisphere is longer now with the Super 15 and the Rugby Championship both enhanced.



There is little wriggle room. In 2009, the Premiership play-off final was brought forward but a Lions tour brings little tangible reward for clubs, apart from the compensation they receive for supplying players. They are part of the effort, but the Lions are very much a product of the four unions involved.



If there is to be any meaningful and profound change after 2017, it will only be because the clubs are part of the decision-making process. That would mean they had a share in the rewards: it is not enough for the Lions to point to intangible rewards, such as the heightened interest inrugby union there will be next summer with no major football tournament being held.



Two of the last three tours have been lost by narrow margins. The Lions won the first Test in Australia in 2001, reward perhaps for the then coach Graham Henry deciding his Test team in advance and focusing on that formation in training from the start, a policy since viewed as contrary to what the Lions stand for.



The second Test turned when Richard Hill was taken out off the ball by Nathan Grey, ending his tour. The Wallaby centre was not cited, a decision almost as shocking as that four years later to ignore the spear-tackle that ended Brian O'Driscoll's tour in New Zealand.



In 2009, the Lions looked more resourceful than South Africa, but a series of less than demanding warm-up games left them vulnerable and they were targeted in the scrum in the first Test. They threw away the second after being decimated by injuries and comfortably won the third.



The tour to New Zealand in 2005 was a failure in every sense bar one. Henry was by then in charge of the All Blacks and the Lions arrived with an army that left the many who were confined to minor skirmishing disaffected. Gatland intends to take no more than 35 players to Australia, giving everyone a chance in the opening weeks to challenge for a place in the Test side.



It will be only the second tour in the professional era that Sir Ian McGeechan has not been involved in – 2001 was the other. He helped provide the sole salvation in 2005, ensuring that the midweek team did not fall apart and his understanding of the Lions' ethos is unrivalled. Without him, the tours may have stopped after 1997.



McGeechan will not be used as an adviser next year, even though he has a tie-up with one of the sponsors. The Lions committee feels that it would be unfair to cast his shadow over Gatland, but given the lack of preparation time and the fact that some leading players for their countries are not going to be in the Test side – the back row, for example, will be fiercely competitive – it would be daft not to have him available as a sounding board, a man with a burning pride in the Lions.

guardian

How England plays rugby without fear - Eddie Jones

The draw for the 2015 World Cup groups seemed to pass without a hitch, even if the question of why it was being made nearly three years before the event was not asked.

The answer, given that world rankings this month may be vastly different come September 2015, was that maximum time is needed for planning the event: it will, for example, take four months to decide who plays where and then comes the inspection of hotels, training facilities, travel organisation for teams and supporters.

The draw could probably have been held this time next year with the minimum of disruption. That has nothing to do, of course, with the fact that none of the home unions is embarking on a major tour of the south next summer, although they are all acting as hosts next November.

The Lions are in Australia and, as far as the rankings are concerned, the home unions will have a potential advantage next year of not playing southern hemisphere teams away, not that home proved much of an asset this year.

The draw itself was notable for the contribution of the mayor of London, Boris Johnson, who judging by what he said has never made an effort to clamber aboard England's chariot. His speech had been agreed in advance with the International Rugby Board but the written version bore little relation to what he actually said, leaving the organisers with a rising sense of panic.

Faces were turning the colour of Will Greenwood's garish tie whenJohnson started talking about rearranged noses and faces. Was he going to declare his belief that Andrew Hore was innocent? There was relief when he kept his offering to a few minutes.

The next time the draw is made Japan will be the hosts. Will they automatically qualify if they are outside the top 12 of the rankings come 2016? It will not be quite the same at the ceremony if Tokyo's version of Boris is left to chunter on about Asia 1 and Asia 2's prospective pool partners.

The current Japan coach, Eddie Jones, was at the Tate Modern and is preparing for his third World Cup having been in charge of the finalists Australia in 2003 and a consultant to the 2007 winners, South Africa. Getting the Cherry Blossoms to the 2015 final would make it some hat-trick.

"Japan have not won a World Cup game for 20 years and our performances against the top countries have not been good," said Jones. "We are trying to play differently, relying on fewer foreigners and forging a Japanese style of play. The former France hooker Marc dal Maso has been working on our scrum and offered the opinion that the Japanese are too nice on the field. It is something we are working on.

"I will stand down after the 2015 World Cup, even though the next tournament is being held in Japan. I know my limit: international rugby works in four-year cycles now, unless you are an All Blacks coach. My challenge is to make the team respected by the time I leave and to help produce two or three coaches who will take the squad forward. We have three players who will be involved in the Super 15 next year and that is important for us."

A popular subject of the draw was England's victory over New Zealand some 48 hours before, not just the result but the ebullient manner of the home side's performance. When he was in charge of Australia, Jones enjoyed verbal sparring with his then counterpart, Clive Woodward, but there was only one grenade for the 2015 hosts.

"England went into the game against New Zealand with no fear: no one expected them to win and I know it sounds funny, but you can go out then and play rugby," he said. "They were also good tactically and the big test is how they deal with the expectation that will now be on them. Will they have the courage to play the same way? The only coach who has been able to get that out of them is Woodward and, since he went, it has been a case of peaks and troughs. Stuart Lancaster's job now is to make sure England continue to play without fear. The question going forward is over their mental ability."

Jones's caveat was over Manu Tuilagi, the scorer of one of England's three tries and creator of the other two. "He is a very good player and I think he is an out-and-out 12: when you look at the pace and power England have out wide and Ben Foden to return at full-back, all they need is a 13 similar to Conrad Smith. If I had been his coach, I would have kicked Tuilagi's backside afterwards for the way he walked in his try against the All Blacks. You do not do that sort of thing."

The All Blacks will not forget. Twickenham played host to a game even more remarkable than last Saturday's in 1999 when France met New Zealand in the World Cup semi-final. Les Bleus were trailing 24-10 and their cause looked hopeless when, out of nowhere, they produced some remarkable rugby, scoring three tries in quick succession and winning43-31. It was England, though, who were to become the dominant force in Europe and then the world.

"A number of sides are building," said Jones. "South Africa have gone from a forward pack with 400+ caps to 150, England the same. France and Wales have young players coming through. The race to 2015 is about who becomes the most stable.

"We did not see a shift in power last month. South Africa did not play particularly well but they won their three Tests. They had a number of injuries and they did enough in each game, if no more. I think they are the most pragmatic side in the world: they do what they have to do to win. Australia had good results in England, Italy and Wales after losing to France and they have some really good young players coming through. They have a really attacking back line when everyone is fit, but it is a question of finding balance. There have been concerns expressed about the future of Australian rugby, but because of the sporting environment in the country there will always be a good Wallabies team."

Robbie Deans was at the World Cup draw and the Australia coach was asked whether he would still be in charge in 2015: his contracts ends after the Lions series next summer and he has come under increasing pressure in the media. "I know how he feels," said Jones. "It will be a great series against the Lions and I think it will be as close as it was in 2001 when the Lions were the best team in the first two hours of the Tests and the Wallabies were in charge in the final two hours. It came down to a final lineout and could do so again."


SOBER RETURN OF HEINEKEN CUP

The decision of the English and Welsh rugby unions to play a fourth international in their autumn series and devalue their regional/club games meant that the World Cup draw has overshadowed the return of the Heineken Cup.

In one sense, it means longer relief from the politicking about the future of the tournament that will return this month, especially when the opposing factions start talking about television deals and legality.

If England's World Cup group overshadowed the one that included France, Ireland and Italy, the back-to-back Heineken weekends will give a taste of what is to come with the champions, Leinster, meeting the team they defeated in last season's semi-final, Clermont Auvergne.

Leinster started slowly in October, fortunate to defeat Exeter at home and functional in Llanelli against the Scarlets, but Clermont have not been as dominant at home, despite continuing their long unbeaten record in front of their own supporters.

Their last three home matches in the Top 14 have seen the visitors depart with a bonus point and, in the cases of Stade Français and Toulon, a belief that they were short-changed. The victory over Toulon marked 50 unbeaten Top 14 matches at Stade Marcel-Michelin. Leinster are unbeaten at home this season.

Ulster go to Northampton on Friday night having won 12 out of 12 this season. Four of their last five matches in the RaboDirect Pro 12 have been away, and they left it late during the international window before beating Zebre and Treviso.

An issue for the English clubs and the Welsh regions is that their players only returned to duty this week after five weeks away with their national squads. A problem with Tests arranged outside the official international window is that club tournaments do not take account of them, not that the two unions involved will be bothered as they count their profits.

Why it's such a shame to see French clubs choose pragmatism over flair

What has happened to French rugby, in particular its joie de vivre? A country that used to bring verve, adventure and daring to the old Five Nations, and the Heineken Cup in its early days, has become a multinational gargoyle, stripped of its identity.

Montpellier turned up at the Arms Park on Sunday to take on a Cardiff Blues side beset by injuries and low on confidence but not even a one-man advantage for the last 55 minutes tempted the beaten 2011 Top 14 finalists into shrugging themselves out of their strait-jacket.

Toulon, the current Top 14 leaders, had shown slightly more attacking intent on their October visit to the Arms Park, but so unused were they to giving the ball air that passes were dropped or thrown forward in a miasma of mistakes.

"It was a change from the Top 14 which is more about mauling and scrummaging," said the Toulon prop Gethin Jenkins, a refugee from the economic crisis engulfing regional rugby in Wales whose preference for a faster game has left him on the bench for most of the season.

When Toulon started their Top 14 campaign back in August, their starting lineup contained four players who were eligible to play for France. When they started their rise to the top five years ago, bankrolled by a multi-millionaire, they were coached by Philippe Saint-André who, after his time with Gloucester and Sale, brought with him an Anglo-Saxon attention to detail and organisation; and Jonny Wilkinson to kick the goals.

He was succeeded by Bernard Laporte who, as the coach of France between 1999 and 2007, set out to eradicate the indiscipline that had for so long been a feature of the French game. It did not win them the 2007 World Cup, failing to out-England England in the semi-final, and they were given the runaround by Argentina in the play-off.

When Alex Potter and Georges Duthen wrote The Rise of French Rugby in 1961, they celebrated the sport's French Revolution, likening it to the impact Hungary had had on football in the previous decade. "It is progressive, exciting and enthusiastic," they wrote. "The French rugby player has a quality few British or Dominion players possess – a Latin temperament that bubbles in gay adventure on the field."

The adventure at the Arms Park last Sunday was gray rather than gay, the same in Montferrand where Clermont Auvergne won a kicking contest with Leinster. The last three Top 14 finals have produced a mere two tries, both scored by Fijian wings, and have been far tighter and tenser affairs than those in the Aviva Premiership and the RaboDirect Pro 12.

Memories of big French forwards, with faces so rearranged that they looked as if they were escapees from a chain gang, running and handling like three-quarters, often holding the ball in one hand and splattering an opponent's face with the other before bringing off an audacious pass, have receded to a distant point.

French rugby, as Brian Moore once put it, was a mixture of the beautiful and the brutal. If the game arrived in the country in 1872 through a group of British students who were based in Le Havre, a game introduced to Gaul by the Romans had survived in Brittany up to 1870.

It was called soule and involved a chase for a big ball of leather that was covered with hay. "It was a hot, dramatic game," wrote Potter and Duthen, "with fighting, strangling and head-breaking; a game in which a scoundrel could slay an enemy as if by accident."

France always seemed to play it their way, inconsistent but mercurial. They did not travel as well as their wines and were unpredictable, but when they turned up they could be irrepressible: think the 1999 World Cup semi-final against New Zealand at Twickenham, when they were 24-10 down in the second-half before exploding into colour and winning by 12 points.

It was so French yet, as Potter and Duthen noted: "Individualism, well known as an asset of the French people, is generally, in the matter of manipulating the oval ball, a maker of liabilities." In professional sport, liabilities tend not to have lasting careers.

French clubs have long had an active transfer market: the first championship final was staged 120 years ago and they were long inured to a league system when the home unions dumped merit tables and the like less than a decade before amateurism went the way of the four-point drop goal.

But whereas in the 1920s and 1930s, when they were in trouble with the International Rugby Board for making illegal payments and transfer inducements, French clubs can buy who they want and the Top 14 has become a redoubt for players from all over the world, from the South Seas islands and New Zealand to Georgia and Romania.

Clermont's Heineken Cup squad this season contains players of 10 different nationalities; Montpellier is home to seven Argentina internationals, one of the reasons why the Pumas last month agreed to have no more than two players from one Top 14 club in their match-day squad on tour in Europe.

The French influence in the Top 14 has been diluted through the import of coaches as well as players; there is little to differentiate their clubs from those in other countries. The individualism cherished by followers of their rugby throughout the years has given way to the corporate culture; if that can be said of most countries – national identities are nowhere near as marked as they were even 30 years ago – the decline of the French way of playing rugby is the greatest loss.

For someone growing up in Wales in the 1970s, the most eagerly anticipated fixture was France, foxes against knuckle-dustered swashbucklers, and to see Montpellier play so turgidly, with such a lack of feeling and colour, regarding the ball as a grenade, was horribly dispiriting.

"The fête continues" the former France captain Lucien Mias, who was described as a bulldozer with a brain, used to say after a match, whether in victory or defeat. It is fate that now does the continuing.

Progress will always be slow in attempts to revamp Heineken Cup

France are not doing badly in this season's Heineken Cup with only Biarritz's cause looking forlorn at the halfway stage after they lost in Connacht. Toulon should top their group with home matches against Sale and Cardiff Blues to come and even a bonus point defeat in Leinster this weekend would leave Clermont Auvergne in a strong position.

Toulouse head their group, but have away matches against Ospreys and Leicester to come, Castres and Montpellier are currently second in their groups, chasing one of the best runners-up positions, which looks the very best Racing Métro can hope for.

Only two French clubs have ever won the Heineken Cup: Toulouse were the first, back in 1996, and have claimed the trophy three times since, making them the most successful team in the tournament's history. Brive prevailed in 1997 but, like the Aviva Premiership sides, the Top 14 teams have struggled to contain the Irish in the last seven years.

Which is one reason why the two sets of clubs have combined to try to change the way the Heineken Cup is set up, although lost in the debate has been their desire to enhance the Amlin Challenge Cup, a competition which in the group stage is all too often a meeting of professional and amateur sides and is not fit for purpose.

The talks over the Heineken Cup have not got very far, not least because the dividing line is drawn between clubs in England and France on one side and unions from the Celtic countries and Italy on the other.

The 17-year history of professional rugby has been, in Europe at least, a battle between clubs and unions, a gradual loss of empire and creation of new territories. Progress is taken in small steps and a problem the Aviva and Top 14 sides face is that what is at issue is not so much what they are proposing, but who is putting forward the suggestions.

In years to come, surely, tournaments like the Heineken Cup will be run by slimline boards under a chief executive with clout, drawn from areas of speciality rather than governing bodies, but as long as countries such as Wales insist on players wearing national jerseys with the name of the union under the motif, progress will be painfully slow.

In one sense, there is more to be gained for the English and French clubs, the bad publicity aside, from pulling out of the talks and plotting their cross-border future together than spending hours talking with the Heineken Cup stakeholders and getting no further than a Japanese scrum against Argentina.

guardian

Jones: Wales can defend Six Nations title

Adam Jones believes there is no reason why Wales cannot defend their Six Nations title, despite concerns over injuries and form.

The 31-year-old prop made a welcome return from two months out with a knee injury in the Ospreys' 17-6 Heineken Cup win over Toulouse on Saturday, providing Welsh rugby with a major boost after a miserable autumn.

Jones was absent as Wales suffered an autumn series whitewash which dropped them into the third tier of the world rankings and a fiendishly difficult 2015 World Cup pool including Australia and hosts England. And prior to the Ospreys' stunning triumph over four-time European kings Toulouse, the regions had managed just one win from nine Heineken Cup games collectively.

Wales have also been hit heavily by injuries and Dan Lydiate, Rhys Priestland, Alun Wyn Jones and Aaron Jarvis will all miss at least part of the Six Nations. The likes of Ian Evans, Jamie Roberts, Aaron Shingler and Leigh Halfpenny will also need to prove their fitness before the February meeting with Ireland in Cardiff.

But 83-cap front-rower Jones said: "It was tough to miss the autumn series because you know what it's like in camp - the build-up is always exciting.

"It was probably a good series to miss, the way it turned out. But I don't think we've turned into a poor team overnight.

"There's a lot of talent in the squad. If we can get everyone fit, we can give anyone in the Six Nations a run for their money.

"A lot has been made about Warren Gatland being away on Lions duty but the coaches there are fantastic anyway.

"Of course Gats is a big influence, but I don't see why we can't retain our title. It's obviously going to be difficult, but I don't see why not."

The Ospreys' win over Toulouse, which kept the region in the hunt for a quarter-final berth, also highlighted the talent the regions are churning out despite the talent drain to cash-rich French clubs.

The likes of Justin Tipuric, Eli Walker, Ashley Beck and Lloyd Peers all excelled against the French giants, and Jones believes their performances show the benefits of giving youth a chance.

"These boys are getting exposed now in European rugby, so I don't see why we can't kick on," he said.

"It's going to take time. We've seen a lot of boys go to France and we are probably not going to win the Heineken Cup straight away, but performances like this show we can at least compete with these teams."

New Zealand SuperRugby Crusaders licence sold

Super Rugby's most successful team, the Canterbury Crusaders, will be run by a consortium of provincial unions from next year as the New Zealand Rugby Union continues the partial privatisation of its clubs.

The licence to operate the Crusaders will be taken up from January 1 by the Crusaders Limited Partnership, a consortium representing the provinces Canterbury, Tasman, South Canterbury, Mid Canterbury, Buller and West Coast.

Mining investor Brent Francis will also inject capital into the club and will take one of six director's positions on a new board.

The allocation of the Crusaders licence follows the New Zealand union's move to award a licence to operate the Wellington Hurricanes to the Wellington Rugby Union and a consortium of businessmen.

SuperSport

Welsh Rugby to lay artificial pitch in Cardiff!?

The Welsh Rugby Union is reportedly considering switching the turf on the Millennium Stadium to an artificial surface.

Aviva Premiership side Saracens have opted to lay a 3G surface at their new Barnet home and will play all of their home matches on the artificial pitch. Reports in the Sunday Times claim that the surface is much cheaper to run than your traditional grass pitch and the WRU, according to reports in the same newspaper, is considering turning to a similar turf.

The WRU's CEO Roger Lewis said an artificial pitch "is being given serious consideration. We are looking at the implications". The Millennium Stadium is in the frame to host some games during the 2015 World Cup so matches in the global gathering could be played on the 3G surface.

A layer of stone, a thick black rubber shock pad and a covering of artificial green yarn 5cm deep with an in-fill of black rubber crumb make up the surface, which has been approved by the International Rugby Board. The only concern the WRU has is whether the pitch will be able to take hosting music shows, which regularly occur at the Stadium.

"They use some very serious trucks for their equipment," Lewis said. "We'd need to be satisfied that the new surface can take it."

Saracens will play their January Anglo-Welsh Cup clash against the Cardiff Blues on their new pitch, which has cost the club almost £500,000 according to the Independent on Sunday. And elsewhere in the Premiership, Quins boss Conor O'Shea has revealed that he is keeping a watchful eye on how the new pitch holds up.

"I like our pitch [at The Stoop] the way it is, I like the old surface," O'Shea told the Independent on Sunday. "But you don't know how technology will take it on. It's not trail-blazing. There is an artificial pitch at Maidenhead Rugby Club and one in Newcastle. It's just new to the Premiership.

"There's the ability to take the wear and tear. I live close to Maidenhead and they have hundreds of people on the pitch, match after match, with no wear. That can only be a positive."

Quins will play Sarries at their new home in March and O'Shea admits that they will do their homework before running out on the new pitch. "We'll look to train on a similar surface before we play on it in March," O'Shea added. "The way the ball bounces and skids will be slightly different, not hugely. I am sure there will be some elements of home advantage to it, like any ground."

espnscrum

Sale crushed in Toulon

Sale suffered their heaviest Heineken Cup defeat as Toulon showed their title credentials with a crushing 62-0 victory at Stade Felix Mayol.

The Top 14 leaders were sensational against the Aviva Premiership's bottom-placed side as they made it four wins from four in Pool Six.

The Armitage brothers, Steffon and Delon, were at the fore for the big-spending French outfit as the Sharks shipped nine tries in suffering a crushing loss.

Sale held firm for the first 30 minutes on the Cote D'Azur but they were cannon fodder after that as Jean-Charles Orioli, Freddie Michalak - who started ahead of Jonny Wilkinson - Joe van Niekerk (two), Davit Kubriashvili, Rudi Wolf and David Smith joined the Armitage boys on the scoreboard.

It was all Toulon in the early stages but they led just 3-0 after turning down a number of kickable penalties and being regularly rebuffed by a Sale side who initially refused to roll over.

Bakkies Botha appeared to have finally got the game's opening try as the match hit the 25-minute mark but the giant Springbok lock followed Steffon Armitage in seeing the TMO say `no try' when referee Jon Lacey asked the question.

Delon Armitage then touched down out wide three minutes later only to see the score ruled out due to Matt Giteau's knock-on following a huge hit from Mark Cueto.

Sale finally cracked just past the half-hour, though, when hooker Orioli crashed over at the back of a driving maul. Former London Irish second row Nick Kennedy set the platform with a solid lineout take just five metres out and the rest of the pack completed the training ground exercise by powering forward at an impressive pace to give Orioli his chance.

Michalak added the extras for a 10-0 lead before Pierrick Gunther went close only to see the TMO again rule against Toulon as the pressure on the Sale pack continued to mount.

Michalak then showed his class to really dent Sale hopes four minutes before the break as he slipped outside Danny Cipriani's poor tackle from a five-metre scrum before ducking underneath Will Cliff's last-gasp effort to stretch over by the right-hand post.

The simple conversion pushed Toulon three scores clear at 17-0, leaving the game as good as dead by the interval despite Sale's superb rear-guard efforts in the opening 40 minutes.

Any thoughts Sale might have had of a remarkable comeback were ended just five minutes after the restart when Van Niekerk stepped past Rob Miller for his team's third try after a deft give and take from Steffon Armitage.

Toulon had the bonus point wrapped up by 50 minutes as Delon Armitage mirrored his brother in producing a wonderful offload to allow Kubriashvili to blast over while Fraser McKenzie was in the sin bin, with Michalak's third and fourth conversions making it 31-0 with nearly half an hour still to play.

Simon Shaw's yellow card threatened to halt Toulon's momentum but it made little difference as Steffon Armitage scored the try his all-round performance deserved as he crashed through Cipriani from two metres out after 58 minutes.

Delon then joined the party just moments later as he showed his footballing skills by chipping through three defenders, tapping on, picking up and diving over for Toulon's sixth score.

Michalak finally missed from the tee with his seventh attempt but he was back on target to claim a 20-point tally when Giteau's weaving run saw Van Niekerk add his second as Toulon hit 50 with 12 minutes left.

Rudi Wolf scored the eighth try after a fine pass from Wilkinson, before Smith completed the rout after picking up the former England star's kick ahead with the final play.

SuperSport

UK Rugby: Saracens soar to top of Pool One

English side Saracens avenged last weekend's defeat to two-time European Cup champions Munster with a solid 19-13 victory in an engrossing contest on Sunday to go top of Pool One.

Scoring honours, though, went to French side Toulon.

Having made heavy weather of their win against struggling English side Sale in last weekend's fixture they had no such worries back in France, trouncing the same opponents 62-0 to move five points clear in Pool Six.

Their fellow Top 14 side Castres had opened the day's proceedings with a dire display in a 10-8 home win over Scottish outfit Glasgow to move second in Pool Four, three points behind Ulster.

Saracens' victory saw them move onto 14 points, two clear of Racing Metro with Munster, who took a point with a defensive bonus, a further point behind with two games remaining.

"It was a very, very important game and this time round we did the little things really well which was crucial," said Saracens captain Steve Borthwick.

His Munster counterpart Doug Howlett took defeat graciously but said that they were far from out of contention.

"It was a hard-fought battle where defence was the dominant factor," said the former All Black, who scored his side's only try.

"There are a lot of what ifs from the game. However, we have lost the battle but not the war."

Richard Wigglesworth created Saracens try, his deft grubber kick into the corner catching the Munster defence flat-footed, which was touched down by England wing David Strettle.

Owen Farrell added the conversion to give the hosts a 10-3 lead 21 minutes into the match.

However, a loose pass by Farrell four minutes later saw centre James Downey intercept just inside Munster's half.

The former Northampton back charged down the pitch but realising he was not going to make the line, he offloaded to Howlett who scored his 10th try in the competition. Ronan O'Gara converted for 10-10.

Farrell subsequently missed two relatively simple kicks at goal and O'Gara showed him how to do it with a delightful long-range penalty with 30 minutes remaining to give Munster the lead for the first time 13-10.

However, Farrell recovered his composure in the pouring rain to kick two penalties to give the hosts a 16-13 lead.

Saracens, though, were reduced to 14 men in the 62nd minute when French referee Jerome Garces showed a yellow card to flank Will Fraser for what he adjudged a high tackle on Howlett.

The visitors, though, were unable to take advantage of that with O'Gara missing with a drop-goal and then a penalty in the unrelenting rain and with less than five minutes remaining, Farrell added another penalty.

Toulon ran rampant against Sale, who have failed to register much of a revival since former All Black coach John Mitchell took over at the end of last month, with nine tries, seven of them in the second-half.

Several of their foreign stars got in on the try feast, former Springbok Joe van Niekerk scoring two while the Armitage brothers Steffon and Delon also scored a try apiece.

France flyhalf Frederic Michalak contributed 20 points, including a try.

Castres only secured their win - their 14th successive home victory - when the visitors were reduced to 13 men with 10 minutes remaining and they scored their only try of the game through Yannick Caballero.

Glasgow, who along with Edinburgh have yet to secure a win for the Scottish sides in their eight games this season, had a chance to win it but Scotland fly-half Ruaridh Jackson's penalty hit the post.

Castres 10-8 Glasgow Warriors

The scorers:

For Castres:
Try: Caballero
Con: Kirkpatrick
Pen: Teulet

For Glasgow:
Try: Barclay
Pen: Horne

Yellow cards: Tom Ryder (Glasgow Warriors), Byron McGuigan (Glasgow Warriors)

Castres: 15 Romain Teulet, 14 Paul Bonnefond, 13 Romain Cabannes, 12 Rémi Lamerat, 11 Marcel Garvey, 10 Rémi Tales, 9 Thierry Lacrampe, 8 Pedrie Wannenburg, 7 Yannick Caballero, 6 Jannie Bornman, 5 Iosefa Tekori, 4 Matthias Rolland, 3 Michaël Coetzee, 2 Mathieu Bonello, 1 Mihaïta Lazar.
Replacements: 16 Brice Mach, 17 Karena Wihongi, 18 Saimone Taumoepeau, 19 Christophe Samson, 20 Ibrahim Diarra, 21 Thomas Sanchou, 22 Daniel Kirkpatrick, 23 Brice Dulin.

Glasgow Warriors: 15 Sean Maitland, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Sean Lamont, 12 Peter Horne, 11 DTH van der Merwe, 10 Ruaridh Jackson, 9 Niko Matawalu, 8 Ryan Wilson, 7 John Barclay, 6 James Eddie, 5 Tom Ryder, 4 Tim Swinson, 3 Moray Low, 2 Pat MacArthur, 1 Gordon Reid.
Replacements: 16 Dougie Hall, 17 Ryan Grant, 18 George Hunter, 19 Nick Campbell, 20 Rob Harley, 21 Sean Kennedy, 22 Graeme Morrison, 23 Byron McGuigan.

Referee: Andrew Small (England)
Assistant referees: Tim Wigglesworth (England), Roy Maybank (England)
TMO: David Grashoff (England)

Saracens 19-13 Munster

The scorers:

For Saracens:
Try: Strettle
Con: Farrell
Pens: Farrell 4

For Munster:
Try: Howlett
Con: O'Gara
Pens: O'Gara 2

Yellow card: Will Fraser (Saracens, 62)

Saracens: 15 Alex Goode, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Joel Tomkins, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 David Strettle, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Richard Wigglesworth, 8 Kelly Brown, 7 Will Fraser, 6 George Kruis, 5 Mouritz Botha, 4 Steve Borthwick (capt), 3 Matt Stevens, 2 Schalk Brits, 1 Rhys Gill.
Replacements: 16 John Smit, 17 Mako Vunipola, 18 Petrus du Plessis, 19 Eoin Sheriff, 20 Ernst Joubert, 21 Neil de Kock, 22 Charlie Hodgson, 23 Chris Wyles.

Munster: 15 Felix Jones, 14 Doug Howlett (capt), 13 Casey Laulala, 12 James Downey, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Ronan O'Gara, 9 Conor Murray, 8 James Coughlan, 7 Peter O'Mahony, 6 Dave O'Callaghan, 5 Donnacha Ryan, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 BJ Botha, 2 Mike Sherry, 1 David Kilcoyne.
Replacements: 16 Damien Varley, 17 Wian du Preez, 18 Stephen Archer, 19 Billy Holland, 20 Peter Butler, 21 Duncan Williams, 22 Ian Keatley, 23 Luk O'Dea.

Referee: Pascal Gauzere (France)
Assistant referees: Jérôme Garces (France), Jean-Luc Rebollal (France)
TMO: Gérard Borreani (France)

Toulon 62-0 Sale Sharks

The scorers:

For Toulon:
Tries: Orioli, Michalak, van Niekerk 2, Kubriashvili, S Armitage, D Armitage, Wulf, Smith
Cons: Michalak 6, Wilkinson
Pen: Michalak

Yellow cards: Simon Shaw (Toulon), Fraser McKenzie (Sale Sharks)

Toulon: 15 Delon Armitage, 14 Rudi Wulf, 13 Maxime Mermoz, 12 Matt Giteau, 11 David Smith, 10 Frederic Michalak, 9 Sébastien Tillous-Borde, 8 Joe Van Niekerk, 7 Steffon Armitage, 6 Pierrick Gunther, 5 Nick Kennedy, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Davit Kubriashvili, 2 Jean-Charles Orioli, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements: 16 Sebastien Bruno, 17 Andrew Sheridan, 18 Carl Hayman, 19 Jocelino Suta, 20 Mathieu Bastareaud, 21 Juan Fernandez Lobbe, 22 Jonny Wilkinson, 23 Simon Shaw.

Sale Sharks: 15 Cameron Shepherd, 14 Mark Jennings, 13 Mark Cueto, 12 Johnny Leota, 11 Rob Miller, 10 Danny Cipriani, 9 Will Cliff, 8 Richie Vernon, 7 David Seymour, 6 James Gaskell, 5 Fraser McKenzie, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Eifion Lewis-Roberts, 2 Aston Croall, 1 Ross Harrison.
Replacements: 16 Tom Cruise, 17 Vadim Cobilas, 18 Tony Buckley, 19 Kearnan Myall, 20 Andy Powell, 21 Cillian Willis, 22 Sam Tuitupou, 23 Charlie Amesbury.

Referee: John Lacey (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Paul Haycock (Ireland), Brian MacNiece (Ireland)
TMO: Simon McDowell (Ireland)

AFP and rugby365