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	<title>Now Rugby &#187; half</title>
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		<title>Crocked internationals set to return for Leinster</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/crocked-internationals-set-to-return-for-leinster/4847.htm</link>
		<comments>http://www.nowrugby.com/crocked-internationals-set-to-return-for-leinster/4847.htm#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:23:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Irish Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Leinster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[return]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sunday]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[The Leinster squad trained in UCD on Tuesday afternoon ahead of Saturday’s Heineken Cup Round 6 visit of Montpellier Hérault to the RDS (KO: 1.30pm) with the medical team hopeful that a number of players could return to the panel following Sunday’s 23-16 victory in Glasgow. Jonathan Sexton rolled his ankle in the first half and will be further monitored this week. The Ireland outside-half completed the game with his first half penalty taking him past the 700 career point mark (Sexton’s tally now stands at 702 points in 85 games) and at this point it appears likely that he will be available. The Leinster management are also hopeful that Luke Fitzgerald, who missed the victory in Glasgow with a combination of a glute/minor neck strain, will also be in the frame. There is a further boost for the province with the expected return from injury of forwards Kevin McLaughlin (neck), Richardt Strauss (facial) and Steven Sykes (hamstring) who should all be in the selection mix this week. Moynalvey second row Devin Toner has now featured in 17 games in both competitions for the province so far this season – one ahead of Eoin O’Malley and Heinke van der Merwe [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The Leinster squad trained in UCD on Tuesday afternoon ahead of Saturday’s Heineken Cup Round 6 visit of Montpellier Hérault to the RDS (KO: 1.30pm) with the medical team hopeful that a number of players could return to the panel following Sunday’s 23-16 victory in Glasgow.</p>
<p>Jonathan Sexton rolled his ankle in the first half and will be further monitored this week. The Ireland outside-half completed the game with his first half penalty taking him past the 700 career point mark (Sexton’s tally now stands at 702 points in 85 games) and at this point it appears likely that he will be available.</p>
<p>The Leinster management are also hopeful that Luke Fitzgerald, who missed the victory in Glasgow with a combination of a glute/minor neck strain, will also be in the frame. There is a further boost for the province with the expected return from injury of forwards Kevin McLaughlin (neck), Richardt Strauss (facial) and Steven Sykes (hamstring) who should all be in the selection mix this week.</p>
<p>Moynalvey second row Devin Toner has now featured in 17 games in both competitions for the province so far this season – one ahead of Eoin O’Malley and Heinke van der Merwe &#8211; while the next Heineken Cup appearances for Jamie Heaslip and Eoin Reddan (which includes 25 for Wasps and 2 for Munster) will be their 50threspectively in Europe.</p>
<p>Saturday’s visit of the French side is an 18,500 sell out and tickets will not be on sale on the day. Supporters are advised to arrive early as there are a number of other events around the RDS on the day, with gates open at 12 noon.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, it’s a busy weekend for the province with Leinster ‘A’ set to face Pontypridd in Donnybrook on Sunday in the quarter finals of the British &amp; Irish Cup (KO: 2pm). There will be free entry for Leinster season ticket holders and children, with the team also expected to be announced on Friday lunchtime.</p>
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		<title>Welsh confidence is high, says Nelson</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/welsh-confidence-is-high-says-nelson/4846.htm</link>
		<comments>http://www.nowrugby.com/welsh-confidence-is-high-says-nelson/4846.htm#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:24:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Championship]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[English Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[London Welsh]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bristol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rotherham]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Welsh]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[London Welsh will take huge confidence into the play-offs from their wins over Bristol and Rotherham, according to hooker Saul Nelson. Nelson scored the Exiles’ second try in last Saturday’s 23-17 win over his former club Bristol at Old Deer Park, with Lyn Jones’ side having ended Rotherham’ unbeaten home record in the Championship the previous week. Those results came on the back of a disappointing festive period for the Exiles at home, as they were held by Esher before going down to Moseley. “We’ve got a hard month coming up going into the play-offs and with the confidence from Rotherham and Bristol we’ve put ourselves in a good position to go forwards,” said Nelson. “Going into the play-offs we know we can play well and we know we can beat these teams. It’s just a case of getting everything right and doing what we’ve been told to do. But there’s a lot of work to go in between now and then.” Welsh trailed Championship leaders Bristol 10-3 at half-time, but for the second consecutive week produced an inspired second half display, with tries from Hudson Tonga’uiha and Nelson inflicting a first league defeat on Bristol since November 5. “It’s [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>London Welsh will take huge confidence into the play-offs from their wins over Bristol and Rotherham, according to hooker Saul Nelson.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.nowrugby.com/wp-content/uploads/image141.png"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: right; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" align="right" src="http://www.nowrugby.com/wp-content/uploads/image_thumb136.png" width="302" height="213" /></a>Nelson scored the Exiles’ second try in last Saturday’s 23-17 win over his former club Bristol at Old Deer Park, with Lyn Jones’ side having ended Rotherham’ unbeaten home record in the Championship the previous week.</p>
<p>Those results came on the back of a disappointing festive period for the Exiles at home, as they were held by Esher before going down to Moseley.</p>
<p>“We’ve got a hard month coming up going into the play-offs and with the confidence from Rotherham and Bristol we’ve put ourselves in a good position to go forwards,” said Nelson.</p>
<p>“Going into the play-offs we know we can play well and we know we can beat these teams. It’s just a case of getting everything right and doing what we’ve been told to do. But there’s a lot of work to go in between now and then.”</p>
<p>Welsh trailed Championship leaders Bristol 10-3 at half-time, but for the second consecutive week produced an inspired second half display, with tries from Hudson Tonga’uiha and Nelson inflicting a first league defeat on Bristol since November 5.</p>
<p>“It’s nice to score against your old club – it’s always a good one,” said Nelson, who spent eight years at Bristol before arriving at Old Deer Park via Exeter Chiefs.</p>
<p>“The boys dug in up at Rotherham in the second half, and the confidence we got from that showed against Bristol.</p>
<p>“We were down again at half-time, but the boys didn’t panic, we knew where we had to attack them and we played well with minimal errors.</p>
<p>“We knew we had to be accurate and in the second half we started to get the upper hand in and around the forwards. The penalties and the field position came, and we got the tries.</p>
<p>“There was no panicking, which is good because it shows the boys know their jobs, and when that clicks there’s no need to panic in situations like that.”</p>
<p>Nelson, though, is at odds to explain how the Exiles have gone from taking just three points from their home games against Esher and Moseley over the festive period to beating the league leaders and becoming the first side to win at Clifton Lane this season in the Championship.</p>
<p>“We know as a group that we massively underperformed against Esher and Moseley when they came to Old Deer Park, but we worked hard and when we came together we just said it’s down to us to perform,” he said.</p>
<p>“We didn’t against Esher and we didn’t against Moseley. Those were games where we were expected to pick up ten points, but to be fair to those teams they played well and we weren’t at the top of our game.”</p>
<p>With the British &amp; Irish Cup quarter-finals taking centre stage next weekend, the Exiles can put their feet up before they travel to the Cornish Pirates on January 29. But while the chance for a weekend off may be welcome, there’s no let up in the work with the play-offs looming ever large.</p>
<p>“There are a few battered bodies and some of the boys are quite happy for the weekend off, but we’ve a tough conditioning week coming up so there’s no rest,” he said.</p>
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		<title>George Ford moves to fly half for Leeds Carnegie</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/george-ford-moves-to-fly-half-for-leeds-carnegie/4819.htm</link>
		<comments>http://www.nowrugby.com/george-ford-moves-to-fly-half-for-leeds-carnegie/4819.htm#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 06 Jan 2012 12:21:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Championship]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[English Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Leeds Carnegie]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[George Ford]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jordan Davies]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Leeds Carnegie Head Coach Diccon Edwards has selected England U20 star George Ford at fly half for this second game for the club after arriving on loan from Leicester Tigers. Ford takes the place of his older brother Joe, who is amongst the replacements, with Jordan Davies, who is on loan from Sale Sharks, starting at inside centre. They are the only two changes to the starting line up for Leeds as they travel to Moseley this Saturday following their last gasp win over London Scottish last weekend. There are two more changes on the bench with Gareth Denman coming in for Sam Lockwood and Alex Rieder replacing the injured Dominic Barrow. The team in full is: 15. Tommy Bell 14. Michael Stephenson 13. Iain Thornley 12. Jordan Davies 11. Pete Lucock 10. George Ford 9. Will Cliff 1. Mike MacDonald 2. Phil Nilsen 3. Kane Palma-Newport 4. Tom Denton 5. Sean Hohneck 6. Ryan Burrows 7. Chris Walker 8. Jacob Rowan (c) 16. Scott Freer 17. Gareth Denman 18. Mo Mustafa 19. Richard Beck 20. Alex Rieder 21. Robbie Shaw 22. Joe Ford]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Leeds Carnegie Head Coach Diccon Edwards has selected England U20 star George Ford at fly half for this second game for the club after arriving on loan from Leicester Tigers.</p>
<p>Ford takes the place of his older brother Joe, who is amongst the replacements, with Jordan Davies, who is on loan from Sale Sharks, starting at inside centre.</p>
<p>They are the only two changes to the starting line up for Leeds as they travel to Moseley this Saturday following their last gasp win over London Scottish last weekend.</p>
<p>There are two more changes on the bench with Gareth Denman coming in for Sam Lockwood and Alex Rieder replacing the injured Dominic Barrow.</p>
<p>The team in full is:</p>
<p>15. Tommy Bell   <br />14. Michael Stephenson    <br />13. Iain Thornley    <br />12. Jordan Davies    <br />11. Pete Lucock    <br />10. George Ford    <br />9. Will Cliff    <br />1. Mike MacDonald    <br />2. Phil Nilsen    <br />3. Kane Palma-Newport    <br />4. Tom Denton    <br />5. Sean Hohneck    <br />6. Ryan Burrows    <br />7. Chris Walker    <br />8. Jacob Rowan (c)    <br />16. Scott Freer    <br />17. Gareth Denman    <br />18. Mo Mustafa    <br />19. Richard Beck    <br />20. Alex Rieder    <br />21. Robbie Shaw    <br />22. Joe Ford</p>
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		<title>The EPS according to Social Pundit part 4 – The Half-Backs</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/the-eps-according-to-social-pundit-part-4-%e2%80%93-the-half-backs/4816.htm</link>
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		<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:11:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SocialPundit</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Latest Rugby News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ball]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[England]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Pundit]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Note &#8211; This article was written before Toby Flood got injured. He then got injured before I published it in clear punishment of my procrastination. I am far too lazy to write afresh and any such article would contain more expletives than the editor would care for. Plus, its possible this is just rumours, and we&#8217;ll be fine after all, in which case this article would look really stupid. As such, I have left it mainly in its original state, except with a few edits to mark the new reality of the seeming situation Current State: When in-form, England possess a highly useful high-back pairing in the shape of the Leicester pairing, with plenty of competent scrum-half back-up, a queue topped by the potentially brilliant Danny Care who was probably edging ahead of ahead of him on form. Until Care got axed from the England reckoning for drink driving that is in an act of reckless idiocy that shows how frequently England&#8217;s half-backs are not as one would wish. None of the others have been drink-driving, but there is a spate of injuries, retirement and poor form that leaves this looking like a potential problem position. That&#8217;s just at scrum-half [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">Note &ndash; This article was written before Toby Flood got injured. He then got injured before I published it in clear punishment of my procrastination. I am far too lazy to write afresh and any such article would contain more expletives than the editor would care for. Plus, its possible this is just rumours, and we&rsquo;ll be fine after all, in which case this article would look really stupid. As such, I have left it mainly in its original state, except with a few edits to mark the new reality of the seeming situation</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3"><font face="Calibri"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">Current State: </b>When in-form, England possess a highly useful high-back pairing in the shape of the Leicester pairing, with plenty of competent scrum-half back-up, a queue topped by the potentially brilliant Danny Care who was probably edging ahead of ahead of him on form. Until Care got axed from the England reckoning for drink driving that is in an act of reckless idiocy that shows how frequently England&rsquo;s half-backs are not as one would wish. None of the others have been drink-driving, but there is a spate of injuries, retirement and poor form that leaves this looking like a potential problem position. That&rsquo;s just at scrum-half and before considering the other side of the equation where Toby Flood is ridiculously secure in his positions, regardless of what happens, because there is no one else. Hodgson will be whistled out should anything dire happen (edit &ndash; as just did) but he&rsquo;s never going to displace Flood due to an indifferent international history and the wrong age profile. Flood hasn&rsquo;t just seen off all his domestic rivals around his own age at international level, he&rsquo;s seen them off before most of them ever got that far, largely because most of them were terribly flawed. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;</span>So, in short, we are now down to one half-back pairing which really needs to start kicking arses (although if they could wait a couple of weeks that would be great) and if they do, all is well, and if they don&rsquo;t, or even worse get injured, then we&rsquo;re in scout camp without any lube.</font></font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">(edit &ndash; Welcome to Scout Camp. Let&rsquo;s hope Charlie Hodgson knows where his lucky boots are).</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">Or, to put it another way, the most important man in determining England&rsquo;s half-back prospects right now is Richard Cockerill. Now there&rsquo;s an unpleasant thought.</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3"><font face="Calibri"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">What would Social Pundit do: </b>Go talk to Richard Cockerill of course, after the long conversation with Danny Care on how he&rsquo;s going to ensure he stops getting drunk. There needs to be a continuity of method between training at Leicester and at England for the pair as much as possible. No more unfortunate kicking style changes for example. Obviously if Cockerill doesn&rsquo;t agree with how we want Youngs and Flood to play then there it is, but on the technical side at least it should be possible to reach total agreement, which would be great considering how poor Youngs&rsquo; passing can be at times.</font></font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">Anyway, Ben Youngs is obviously coming as a scrum-half and needs to be joined by two others, neither of whom can be Danny Care or Richard Wigglesworth (to think I didn&rsquo;t care at first when he got injured&#8230; that&rsquo;s changed quickly). One of them is without question Lee Dickson. He has been at the heart of everything good done at Northampton for ages and offers some of the best service in the Premiership. He is a no brainer and honestly should have been for some time, but has suffered due to not being a superlative sniping scrum-half. Service should come first. Unfortunately, I&rsquo;m not sure that&rsquo;s going to be possible with the third choice, as I honestly don&rsquo;t see a pick other than Joe Simpson. On the plus side, we can quietly hire the best ex-scrum half we can find to come in and spend every waking moment of the EPS working on Simpson&rsquo;s passing. Youngs could benefit from this too. Gomersall&rsquo;s meant to be good at this. Its Simpson or Hodgson, and Hodgson&rsquo;s form is so far down the toilet that even Stretch Armstrong couldn&rsquo;t fish it out.</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">At fly-half, Flood is an absolute certainty. The question then becomes Hodgson or a young gun, and if so which. Or Lamb I suppose, but Lamb has consistency issues to sort before he should be allowed near the main squad. Personally, I&rsquo;d have Hodgson in the Saxons, and his number on speed dial. We desperately need to build depth, as shown, so we need a youngster in the EPS. That&rsquo;s harsh on Hodgson who is quite blatantly England&rsquo;s second best fly-half by some distance, but there we go. The choice is then between Burns and Clegg. Its not, or should not, include Farrell (although I&rsquo;ll come to him in a moment). That is quite a difficult one; Clegg is the steadier choice with more full-back experience, Burns the better runner and the man starting week in, week out for his club. Personally, I&rsquo;m going to gamble on Burns, although whoever turns up is likely to never get onto the pitch for any meaningful amount of time.</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">Moving on to Farrell junior. I don&rsquo;t think he&rsquo;s ready to be an England fly-half. I might if he spent more time there and less in the centres but he&rsquo;s not a practiced fly-half and it shows in the sudden drop in Saracens&rsquo; try scoring this season when he plays (2 in 5 games with Farrell, 17 in 7 with Hodgson). However, I wouldn&rsquo;t include him as a centre either really, as he&rsquo;s no more than solid. I am going to include him though because he has incredible composure and can play three positions without letting people down. Farrell will join the squad as a third fly-half and fourth centre. That might not be such a valuable skillset right now, but it will be when England tour in the summer.</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">Hodgson and Clegg are both destined for the Saxons for me, as quite clearly the next best and next best youngster. At scrum-half, Paul Hodgson (despite his shaky, shaky form) and Micky Young form the obvious such pairing. Both places should possibly go to someone else, but I prefer Hodgson to Perry (just) and haven&rsquo;t seen enough of the other options to Young. They will be joined by Ryan Lamb, who is too skilful to ignore, particularly as we&rsquo;re completely running out of options. Plus he sort of covers both half-back positions. Sort of. I don&rsquo;t get why England doesn&rsquo;t produce players who can play both half-back positions actually, South Africa and New Zealand both do and its a massive benefit to them &ndash; and plenty of English players do both throughout age grade. Bizarre. </font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">Edit: Charlie Hodgson is obviously straight into the EPS and 10 shirt now, should the Flood rumours be true. This raises a tricky question in that Charlie&rsquo;s been doing none of his own goal kicking recently, which is not a great sign. A possible option is to pick Farrell at centre to take care of the goal kicking. This smells likely to me, but I really hope not, as I&rsquo;d rather we built on the performance of good players finally able to play running rugby even if we lose, then edged our way to victory by goal kicking and not having our strongest centres out &ndash; and for me, Farrell comes nowhere near. He&rsquo;ll do from the bench but should not start. No, we&rsquo;ll just have to rely on Hodgson finding his lucky kicking boots, I think.</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">In the Saxons, all depends on Sale. If they indicate that they see a future for Rob Miller at fly-half, pick him. If not, Joe Carlisle of Worcester is just about the only young English fly-half with inklings of talent left standing. I&rsquo;ll assume Carlisle.</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3"><font face="Calibri"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">Pre-match instructions:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span></b>Pass-Run-Kick. Ben Youngs shall be wearing headphones with that mantra in, repeated endlessly. When he does that, with front foot ball, he is glorious. When he starts to stutter and put Run ahead of Pass, problems occur. Most of those problems occur for Toby Flood, who finds himself/lets himself be pushed deeper, taking the ball statically. Place Flood running forwards onto good ball and he will cause opposition sides all sorts of problems. If we get poor ball then I think England need to be ruthless and simply kick it away a lot of the time. I&rsquo;d obviously rather we played our way out of trouble and turned bad ball into good, but I&rsquo;m not certain we&rsquo;ve got the players to do that with reliably.</font></font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">Edit: Happily Hodgson likes front foot ball and attacking as well. Sorted.</font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><font size="3" face="Calibri">Final pick: </font></b></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3"><font face="Calibri"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">EPS: </b>Dickson, Simpson, Youngs, Burns, Farrell, <s>Flood,</s> Hodgson</font></font></p>
<p style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"><font size="3"><font face="Calibri"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">Saxons: </b>Hodgson, Young, Clegg, <s>Hodgson</s>, Lamb, Carlisle</font></font></p>
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		<title>Get smart raps Mac</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/get-smart-raps-mac/4738.htm</link>
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		<pubDate>Fri, 09 Dec 2011 14:15:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Championship]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[English Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Esher]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[end]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nottingham]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[season]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[By MARK BENGOECHEA PHIL MACKENZIE insists Esher must be &#8216;smarter&#8217; to stand a chance of ending their horrendous 13-match losing run. The Surrey side take on Moseley at home in Saturday’s big Championship basement battle still hunting a first league win of the campaign. Canada World Cup star Mackenzie reckons Esher are showing steady improvement after picking a up a four-try bonus point in last week’s dramatic 34-22 defeat to Nottingham. But they remain 16 points adrift of 11th-placed Moseley and are desperate for wins with each one worth a point in the end-of-season relegation play-offs. Centre Mackenzie was one of the Esher try scorers against Nottingham with Andy Wright getting a double and Geoff Griffiths a fourth as they hit back from 28-0 to salvage a point. But Mac admits Esher must be firing from the first whistle. He said: &#34;The rugby we played in the last half hour against Nottingham was inspiring and hopefully we can carry that into the Moseley game. &#34;We must be switched on from the start and play smart rugby. We can&#8217;t kick possession away and give away field position. &#34;Our defence has been really good at times but if you are defending for [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<h3>By MARK BENGOECHEA</h3>
<p>PHIL MACKENZIE insists Esher must be &#8216;smarter&#8217; to stand a chance of ending their horrendous 13-match losing run.</p>
<p>The Surrey side take on Moseley at home in Saturday’s big Championship basement battle still hunting a first league win of the campaign.</p>
<p>Canada World Cup star Mackenzie reckons Esher are showing steady improvement after picking a up a four-try bonus point in last week’s dramatic 34-22 defeat to Nottingham.</p>
<p>But they remain 16 points adrift of 11th-placed Moseley and are desperate for wins with each one worth a point in the end-of-season relegation play-offs.</p>
<p>Centre Mackenzie was one of the Esher try scorers against Nottingham with Andy Wright getting a double and Geoff Griffiths a fourth as they hit back from 28-0 to salvage a point.</p>
<p>But Mac admits Esher must be firing from the first whistle. He said: &quot;The rugby we played in the last half hour against Nottingham was inspiring and hopefully we can carry that into the Moseley game.</p>
<p>&quot;We must be switched on from the start and play smart rugby. We can&#8217;t kick possession away and give away field position.</p>
<p>&quot;Our defence has been really good at times but if you are defending for 30 minutes you will give away points. We must all focus on the little things.</p>
<p>&quot;If we can do well against Moseley then hopefully we can get onto a roll and get four or five wins before the end of the season.&quot;</p>
<p>Esher conceded 14 points when down to 14 players against Nottingham following a yellow card handed to Griffiths by referee Llyr ApGeraint Roberts at Moseley Road.</p>
<p>But Esher showed their fighting spirit with an impressive second-half rally that suggests they could escape relegation in the end-of-season relegation lottery.</p>
<p>Mackenzie added: &quot;We showed in the second half that we can attack from anywhere but we must produce that for 80 minutes against Moseley.&quot;</p>
<p>Esher are boosted by the return of prop Ricky Nebbett who will be starting for Esher Cardinals on Saturday. Lock Ian Kench and centre Tom Cheeseman are unlikely to feature but Director of Rugby Mike Schmid hopes they will be available for the British and Irish Cup clash at Aberavon next week.</p>
<p>15 Charlie Walker</p>
<p>14 Geoff Griffiths</p>
<p>13 Phil Mackenzie</p>
<p>12 Mark Atkinson</p>
<p>11 Andy Wright</p>
<p>10 Nicky Little</p>
<p>9 Jamie Mackenzie</p>
<p>1 Dave Millard</p>
<p>2 Stuart Mackie</p>
<p>3 Cameron Zeiss</p>
<p>4 Paul Barker</p>
<p>5 Matt Symons</p>
<p>6 Shawn Renwick</p>
<p>7 Sam Stitcher</p>
<p>8 Chris Goodman</p>
<p>Replacements</p>
<p>16 James Campbell</p>
<p>17 Nick Mayhew</p>
<p>18 Mike Macfarlane</p>
<p>19 Mike Blakeburn</p>
<p>20 Arran Cruickshanks</p>
<p>21 Sam Edgerley</p>
<p>22 Andy Garner</p>
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		<title>England Sevens triumph in Dubai final</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/england-sevens-triumph-in-dubai-final/4690.htm</link>
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		<pubDate>Mon, 05 Dec 2011 09:35:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[England]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[English Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sevens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dubai]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[England Sevens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fiji]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[England are Dubai Sevens champions again after beating France 29-12 in the final of the second leg of the HSBC Sevens World Series. A superb second day performance saw Ben Ryan’s side overpower New Zealand 10-7 and Fiji 19-12 before a superb first half display in the final that ultimately clinched the title. Isoa Damudamu – whose two tries sank Fiji in the semi final – struck early on then Dan Norton’s chip and chase and two touchdowns for Mat Turner put them 24-7 up at the interval and almost out of sight. But France wing Renaud Delmas scored his second try early in the second half and France enjoyed long spells on top before England escaped to the other end of the field and Rob Vickerman pounced to see them safely home. Earlier England opened up by beating Series champions New Zealand – then raised their game again against Fiji, who had won the opening leg of the series in Gold Coast. Fijian-born centre Damudamu provided two vital tries in the first half after Emosi Vucago had opened the scoring for the islanders. Turner then stretched the lead with a burst from the breakdown but England had to dig [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>England are Dubai Sevens champions again after beating France 29-12 in the final of the second leg of the HSBC Sevens World Series.</p>
<p>A superb second day performance saw Ben Ryan’s side overpower New Zealand 10-7 and Fiji 19-12 before a superb first half display in the final that ultimately clinched the title.</p>
<p>Isoa Damudamu – whose two tries sank Fiji in the semi final – struck early on then Dan Norton’s chip and chase and two touchdowns for Mat Turner put them 24-7 up at the interval and almost out of sight.</p>
<p>But France wing Renaud Delmas scored his second try early in the second half and France enjoyed long spells on top before England escaped to the other end of the field and Rob Vickerman pounced to see them safely home.</p>
<p>Earlier England opened up by beating Series champions New Zealand – then raised their game again against Fiji, who had won the opening leg of the series in Gold Coast.</p>
<p>Fijian-born centre Damudamu provided two vital tries in the first half after Emosi Vucago had opened the scoring for the islanders.</p>
<p>Turner then stretched the lead with a burst from the breakdown but England had to dig deep after Osea Kolinisau struck from long range and scramble for all they were worth in defence.</p>
<p>Earlier Turner and Norton edged them past New Zealand – England’s first win over the champions since their Dubai triumph of a year ago.</p>
<p>Norton’s sensational second half score – his sixth of the tournament – and Turner’s quick-thinking first half effort enabled them to come from 7-0 down after Tomasi Cama had struck early on.</p>
<p>On the opening day England saw off Zimbabwe (43-0), Kenya (19-12) and France (29-12), with Norton’s hat-trick in the final match sending them through as Pool C leaders.</p>
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		<title>Kiwi Sean Romans completes trio of November signings for Nottingham</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/kiwi-sean-romans-completes-trio-of-november-signings-for-nottingham/4642.htm</link>
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		<pubDate>Wed, 23 Nov 2011 17:17:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Championship]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[English Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nottingham]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kiwi Sean Romans]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[November]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Nottingham Rugby has completed the signing of New Zealand scrum half Sean Romans, to make it a trio of international players completing their move to Meadow Lane this month. Romans (26) from Christchurch, has plenty of experience in both the New Zealand Provincial Cup, playing for Otago, as well as Super 14 Rugby, having played 11 times for the Highlanders. He also has two international caps, having played for the Junior All Blacks in 2009 in the IRB Pacific Nations Cup. Nottingham’s Director of Rugby, Glenn Delaney commented: “Sean is a great signing for the club and brings with him a lot of experience from New Zealand Rugby. We have been a little light at scrum half, with both Nathan (Jones) and Finlay (Barnham) carrying slight knocks through the first half of the season, meaning we have been a little exposed. “We knew Tim Usasz wasn’t coming back to the club after the World Cup, but agreed not to announce his departure until after that time. Tim has been a great servant to Nottingham and I would like to thank him for what he has helped us achieved here, and we all wish him well for the future. But we [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Nottingham Rugby has completed the signing of New Zealand scrum half Sean Romans, to make it a trio of international players completing their move to Meadow Lane this month.</p>
<p>Romans (26) from Christchurch, has plenty of experience in both the New Zealand Provincial Cup, playing for Otago, as well as Super 14 Rugby, having played 11 times for the Highlanders. He also has two international caps, having played for the Junior All Blacks in 2009 in the IRB Pacific Nations Cup.</p>
<p>Nottingham’s Director of Rugby, Glenn Delaney commented:</p>
<p>“Sean is a great signing for the club and brings with him a lot of experience from New Zealand Rugby. We have been a little light at scrum half, with both Nathan (Jones) and Finlay (Barnham) carrying slight knocks through the first half of the season, meaning we have been a little exposed.</p>
<p>“We knew Tim Usasz wasn’t coming back to the club after the World Cup, but agreed not to announce his departure until after that time. Tim has been a great servant to Nottingham and I would like to thank him for what he has helped us achieved here, and we all wish him well for the future. But we have to move on and we’ve been looking at who we could bring in, and I am delighted with Sean’s signing.”</p>
<p>Romans becomes the third scrum half at Nottingham, joining Nathan Jones (27) and Finlay Barnham (21), who have been sharing the scrum half duties so far this season. He has signed a contract with Nottingham which will see him stay with the club until at least the end of the season.</p>
<p>Delaney added:</p>
<p>“Sean’s signing provides us with greater strength in depth and a healthy competition for places in the scrum half position. We’re almost half way through the season, but have got a long way to go to be in with a chance when it comes to the play offs and cup knockout. We have always wanted to expand the squad – both in terms of quantity and quality.”</p>
<p>Romans is awaiting clearance of his visa application, but is expected to join up with the Green and Whites later this month. He will be joining fellow Kiwi signing Brent Wilson and the experienced Samoan Filipo Levi at Nottingham, as the club continues to develop the playing squad.</p>
<p>Nottingham were in action against Plymouth in the League last weekend and completed a bonus point win with their fourth try in injury time to move up a place to 7th in the table. The Green and Whites have another home league match this weekend, entertaining Moseley in the Charity Match for The Prince’s Trust on Sunday, kick off 3pm. Wins in their next two league games should see Nottingham climb further up the table as they push for a place in the end of season play-offs and a chance at promotion to the Premiership. </p>
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		<title>Jones praises London Welsh&#8217;s second half turnaround</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/jones-praises-london-welshs-second-half-turnaround/4570.htm</link>
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		<pubDate>Tue, 08 Nov 2011 08:57:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Championship]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[English Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[London Welsh]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[game]]></category>
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		<description><![CDATA[London Welsh head coach Lyn Jones praised his side’s second half display as the Exiles registered their first Championship win in four attempts with a 21-10 win over Doncaster Knights. Welsh trailed 10-6 at the break to an early penalty try, although it might have been more had the home side taken their chances, but second half tries from Simon Whatling and a fifth of the season for full back Edd Thrower saw the Exiles notch their fourth consecutive win at Castle Park. “At half-way we were extremely disappointed with ourselves for our first half performance &#8211; our concentration was poor,” said Jones. “But we bucked our ideas up and hit the game hard second half and won it 15 points to nil with a really well worked try from Edd [Thrower] and an opportunistic try for Simon [Whatling] created from good defensive work, and that was enough to give us the four points that we came for.” Late pressure from the Knights saw Welsh finish the game with 13 men as Shawn Pittman and James Tideswell both saw yellow, with the home side camping themselves just metres from the Exiles’ line. “I think we had two unjust yellow cards [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 20px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: right; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" border="0" align="right" src="http://matchdaymail.rfu.com/championship/lite/tools/publisher/b/5/b5d2d7bd43ba1744ece6512841893fb3.jpg" />London Welsh head coach Lyn Jones praised his side’s second half display as the Exiles registered their first Championship win in four attempts with a 21-10 win over Doncaster Knights.</p>
<p>Welsh trailed 10-6 at the break to an early penalty try, although it might have been more had the home side taken their chances, but second half tries from Simon Whatling and a fifth of the season for full back Edd Thrower saw the Exiles notch their fourth consecutive win at Castle Park.</p>
<p>“At half-way we were extremely disappointed with ourselves for our first half performance &#8211; our concentration was poor,” said Jones.</p>
<p>“But we bucked our ideas up and hit the game hard second half and won it 15 points to nil with a really well worked try from Edd [Thrower] and an opportunistic try for Simon [Whatling] created from good defensive work, and that was enough to give us the four points that we came for.”</p>
<p>Late pressure from the Knights saw Welsh finish the game with 13 men as Shawn Pittman and James Tideswell both saw yellow, with the home side camping themselves just metres from the Exiles’ line.</p>
<p>“I think we had two unjust yellow cards and that wound the players up to play a little harder and faster, and it showed in our determination not to give Doncaster anything. We were delighted to restrict them to just ten points,” added Jones, whose side have now played all of the teams currently in the top half of the table.</p>
<p>“It’s marathon and what’s important is that we’re in the pack coming into the final mile, and that’s where we are trying to get to. There are holes in our game and we are trying to resolve them and that takes time.”</p>
<p>The Exiles turn their attention back to the British &amp; Irish Cup on Saturday when they welcome Welsh Premiership leaders Aberavon to Old Deer Park (2:30pm), with Jones’ men looking to get their campaign back on track following their last gasp defeat to Bedford Blues at Sunbury.</p>
<p>“We’re delighted to be entertaining Aberavon. I have a strong connection to the club as my father played for them for 12 seasons and my brother played there for three or fours years as well, so it will be great to welcome them to London Welsh,” added Jones.</p>
<p>“They’re flying high at the top of the Welsh Premiership at the moment and deservedly so. They’re well coached and they’ve got a good squad of players.”</p>
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		<title>Turner, capped 51 times for England, set to make her first start at hooker</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/turner-capped-51-times-for-england-set-to-make-her-first-start-at-hooker/4530.htm</link>
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		<pubDate>Wed, 02 Nov 2011 08:32:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[England]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[English Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Women's Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[scrum half]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Amy Turner, (pictured) capped 51 times for England, is set to embark on a new era in her international rugby career tomorrow (Wednesday). The former England and Richmond scrum half is set to make her move into the English pack after being named at hooker for England’s uncapped game against France on Wednesday, kick off 6pm GMT, at the Jean Bouin Stadium in Marseille. Switching from scrum-half to hooker in international rugby is an unusual move but for Turner the move isn’t that unique as she first started her rugby career in the Number two shirt. Turner said: “I have always seen myself as a hooker falling into the scrum half position to be perfectly honest. I was not a scrum half who just wanted to try something new. “Not many people will know this but I actually played all my junior rugby as a hooker. It just so happened then that our scrum half injured herself and I was the only player there who could consistently pass from the left and right so I stood in. From there I was asked to go to regional trials and it just sort of snow balled. I loved playing scrum half as [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Amy Turner, (pictured) capped 51 times for England, is set to embark on a new era in her international rugby career tomorrow (Wednesday).</p>
<p><img style="margin: 0px 0px 10px 20px; display: inline; float: right" border="0" alt="England&#39;s Amy Turner" align="right" src="http://matchdaymail.rfu.com/press/lite/tools/publisher/9/8/98caa1d798b1e4332d6300cf19418030.jpg" />The former England and Richmond scrum half is set to make her move into the English pack after being named at hooker for England’s uncapped game against France on Wednesday, kick off 6pm GMT, at the Jean Bouin Stadium in Marseille.</p>
<p>Switching from scrum-half to hooker in international rugby is an unusual move but for Turner the move isn’t that unique as she first started her rugby career in the Number two shirt.</p>
<p>Turner said: “I have always seen myself as a hooker falling into the scrum half position to be perfectly honest. I was not a scrum half who just wanted to try something new.</p>
<p>“Not many people will know this but I actually played all my junior rugby as a hooker. It just so happened then that our scrum half injured herself and I was the only player there who could consistently pass from the left and right so I stood in. From there I was asked to go to regional trials and it just sort of snow balled. I loved playing scrum half as I could kick the ball, pass and I could do whatever I wanted really, it was just that it was all rather accidental.</p>
<p>“I have always said to myself that when I achieved what I have done as a nine that I would give hooking another go. It’s comfortable and it feels right for me now. Looking ahead I have now got four years to go before the next world cup and my challenge is to be the best hooker in the world by then.”</p>
<p>The match will also mark a significant day for Turner who has not actually played international rugby since England’s defeat to New Zealand in the 2010 Rugby World Cup final. Since that defeat, the 27-year-old has been beset by injuries as well as having to make the transition to the front row and earn her honours in that position.</p>
<p>“After the world cup final I went back to premiership rugby and I expressed my intention to the England and Richmond coaches,” she added. “They were good about it but before I had a chance to make the move I injured myself playing sevens in Dubai. Initially, it was just going to be six weeks out and an operation and I knew I could deal with that. But then there were further complications as I injured myself again, and then again.&#160; So I had to have another operation and basically I spent a year on the side-lines injured which was hugely frustrating.</p>
<p>“Throughout the year I was kept in the picture by the English coaches. The coaches were concerned that I might not be able to last a full 80 at hooker but I have been doing a lot of work on body positions, striking off the ball and working with Simon Hardy, the England Specialist Coach, and he has been awesome. We had a hooking camp recently with him and just being in an environment like that for two days was massively beneficial and now I am in with a shot.”</p>
<p>And if Turner can do enough to impress on Wednesday night, she is hoping that Head Coach Gary Street will make her dreams come true by giving her a starting cap at hooker against France on Saturday in the full international test match at the Pierre de Coubertin Stadium in Chateaurenard.</p>
<p>“For me, I never got a starting cap at nine. I came off the bench for my first cap but it really would mean the world to me to start my first game at hooker but that is something quite rare. I may have 50 plus caps at scrum half, but now I see myself as not having any. If I get that starting cap at hooker I will be over the moon. That is the highest privilege as far as I am concerned. I am now more excited and more motivated than ever. I have got my teeth into a new position and I have a new hunger to my game.”</p>
<p>England team v France </p>
<p>15&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Kay&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Wilson&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Bristol)</p>
<p>14&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Michaela&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Staniford&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Wasps)</p>
<p>13&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Georgina&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Roberts&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Darlington Mowden Park Sharks)</p>
<p>12&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Kimberley&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Oliver&#160; (Bristol)</p>
<p>11&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Lydia&#160; Thompson&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Worcester)</p>
<p>10&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Ceri&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Large&#160; (Worcester)</p>
<p>9&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Natasha&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Hunt&#160;&#160; (Lichfield)</p>
<p>1&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Rochelle&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Clark&#160;&#160; (Worcester)</p>
<p>2&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Amy&#160;&#160;&#160; Turner&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Richmond)</p>
<p>3&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Rosemarie&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Crowley&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Lichfield)</p>
<p>4&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Harriet&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Millar-Mills&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Lichfield)</p>
<p>5&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Rowena&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Burnfield&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Richmond)</p>
<p>6&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Alexandra&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Matthews&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Richmond)</p>
<p>7&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Hannah&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Gallagher&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Saracens)</p>
<p>8&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sarah Hunter&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Lichfield)</p>
<p>Replacements:</p>
<p>16&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Victoria&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Fleetwood&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Lichfield)</p>
<p>17&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Laura&#160; Keates&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Worcester)</p>
<p>18&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Tamara&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Taylor(Darlington Mowden Park Sharks)</p>
<p>19&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Isobel Noel-Smith&#160;&#160;&#160; (Bristol)</p>
<p>20&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Rose&#160;&#160; Jay&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Lichfield)</p>
<p>21&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Sarah&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; McKenna&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Wasps)</p>
<p>22&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Katherine&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; Merchant&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; (Worcester)</p>
<h2>England Women Autumn International Series</h2>
<ul>
<li>Nov 2nd France v England, Jean Bouin Stadium, Marseille, KO 6pm GMT</li>
<li>Nov 5th France v England, Pierre de Coubertin Stadium at Chateaurenard, KO 2pm GMT</li>
<li>Nov 26th England v New Zealand, Twickenham Stadium, KO 5pm</li>
<li>Nov 29th England v New Zealand, Esher RFC, KO 7pm</li>
<li>Dec 3rd England v New Zealand, Esher RFC, 2pm</li>
</ul>
<p>Tickets for the game at Twickenham on November 26th are available from Ticketmaster.co.uk and group booking are available from the RFU by calling 0871 22 22 017, option 6. Prices range from £65 to £35. Junior tickets cost just £15.</p>
<p>Tickets for the international tests at Esher RFC on November 29th and December 3rd will be available on the gate and cost £10 for adults and £5 for juniors.</p>
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		<title>Tait names Falcons side for Irish test</title>
		<link>http://www.nowrugby.com/tait-names-falcons-side-for-irish-test/4468.htm</link>
		<comments>http://www.nowrugby.com/tait-names-falcons-side-for-irish-test/4468.htm#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 21 Oct 2011 14:44:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Now Rugby</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[English Rugby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[London Irish]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Newcastle Falcons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Premiership]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[half]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Irish]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Newcastle]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tait]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Newcastle Falcons have made four changes to the side that beat Cardiff Blues last week for Sunday’s LV= Cup trip to London Irish (kick-off 3pm). Jeremy Manning comes in for the rested Jimmy Gopperth at fly-half, while Jamie Helleur takes up the inside centre berth occupied by Manning last weekend. Luke Eves who had an impressive stint on the wing against the Blues replaces Corne Uys at outside centre with Alex Tait returning to the wing. Chris Pilgrim gets the nod ahead of Jordi Pasqualin at No.9 with Falcons boss Alan Tait making just one change in the pack with James Hall replacing Euan Murray in the front row. The Falcons opened up their LV= Cup campaign with a convincing 33-3 triumph against Cardiff and aim to make it back-to-back wins with victory over Toby Booth’s men. “We were outstanding in the first-half and we played some really good rugby,” said Tait who guided the north easterners to the Anglo=Welsh final last term. “I know Cardiff came up here with a young team but they were still very well drilled and had a lot of potential in their side. Paul Moriarty knows a lot of those players having coached them [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Newcastle Falcons have made four changes to the side that beat Cardiff Blues last week for Sunday’s LV= Cup trip to London Irish (kick-off 3pm).</p>
<p>Jeremy Manning comes in for the rested Jimmy Gopperth at fly-half, while Jamie Helleur takes up the inside centre berth occupied by Manning last weekend.</p>
<p>Luke Eves who had an impressive stint on the wing against the Blues replaces Corne Uys at outside centre with Alex Tait returning to the wing.</p>
<p>Chris Pilgrim gets the nod ahead of Jordi Pasqualin at No.9 with Falcons boss Alan Tait making just one change in the pack with James Hall replacing Euan Murray in the front row.</p>
<p>The Falcons opened up their LV= Cup campaign with a convincing 33-3 triumph against Cardiff and aim to make it back-to-back wins with victory over Toby Booth’s men.</p>
<p>“We were outstanding in the first-half and we played some really good rugby,” said Tait who guided the north easterners to the Anglo=Welsh final last term.</p>
<p>“I know Cardiff came up here with a young team but they were still very well drilled and had a lot of potential in their side. Paul Moriarty knows a lot of those players having coached them and they all come from good Welsh rugby backgrounds.</p>
<p>“I thought we went about our business in a professional manor – in the second-half we fell away a little bit and made it difficult for ourselves and probably should have won the game more comfortably,” added Tait.</p>
<p>Speaking about Manning’s selection at No.10, Tait admits he is looking forward to seeing the crafty Kiwi in action, saying: “I’ve been really keen to play Jeremy Manning at fly-half.</p>
<p>“I know he has done a great job for us at full-back but he can play in the middle of the field as he proved last week. I think he could develop as a good No. 10 in the Premiership as he brings something different to the game.”</p>
<p>With the Aviva Premiership recommencing the following week, Tait is expecting a tough test at the Madejski.</p>
<p>He said: “Even though it is the LV= Cup Toby Booth will want to get a strong team out there before they go into the Premiership the week after.</p>
<p>“We know that it will be a tough day at the office and this is an opportunity for people like Darren Fearn to step up.&#160; </p>
<p><strong>Newcastle: </strong>Greg Goosen, Rikki Sheriffe, Luke Eves, Jamie Helleur, Alex Tait, Jeremy Manning, Chris Pilgrim, Darren Fearn, Michael Mayhew, James Hall, Glen Townson, Andrew van der Heijden, Mark Wilson, Redford Pennycook, Ally Hogg (c)</p>
<p><strong>Replacements:</strong> Joe Graham, Ashley Wells, Dan Frazier, Tim Swinson, Will Welch, Jordi Pasqualin, Corne Uys, Joel Hodgson</p>
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