The Guardian

Steve Borthwick’s men were invited to a dance and had all the moves, reacting to a classic try with one of their own Something is happening in south-west London. The statistics will give you a hint of it – England have won nine Tests in a row and haven’t lost at home all year – but the sight of the way they played here in the second half against Fiji says more about what’s going on than the numbe…

Manager feels ‘pain in tummy’ at end of clean sheet run Régis Le Bris praises his team’s character in ‘masterclass’ Mikel Arteta told of his “disappointment and frustration” after Arsenal were denied a win by an injury-time Sunderland goal at the Stadium of Light. A 94th-minute strike from the substitute Brian Brobbey claimed a point for the home side, who are fourth in the table. “It’s not a nic…

Premier Tech pulls out despite rebranding pledge Team’s participation in Vuelta was dogged by protests The main sponsor of the Israel-Premier Tech (IPT) team of the four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome has pulled out of funding the team, despite a pledge to rebrand and distance itself from its Israeli identity. The Canadian company Premier Tech, in a statement issued on Friday, said that …

New York’s mayor-elect has taken on powerful institutions. With the World Cup taking place in his city, he should challenge Fifa next After winning the election for mayor of New York City, an exuberant Zohran Mamdani took to the stage at his victory speech and said , “If there is any way to terrify a despot, it is by dismantling the very conditions that allowed him to accumulate power.” He was al…

Australia show flashes of greatness, but costly collapses threaten the idea of a revival. They need to find their rhythm Is it better to be a consistently good team or an occasionally brilliant one? We’ll find out by the end of Australia’s European tour. But now, after a 26–19 loss to Italy in Udine – their second defeat in as many matches on this crucial trip – the answer seems obvious. Because …

France 17-32 South Africa World champions score four tries in bruising victory World champions South Africa recovered from 14-6 down and the sending-off of the powerhouse lock Lood de Jager to overpower France 32-17 in a bruising Autumn international on Saturday. France cracked completely under pressure as their discipline disintegrated, throwing away an early lead despite the Springboks being re…

A wild ride took everyone back where they had started. The one certainty arising from an affair of low quality and, from nowhere, scarcely credible drama was that only a fool would hang their hat on Tottenham or Manchester United right now. The ignominies of last season may be at some remove but it remains anyone’s guess what either of these scratchy, neurotic sides will produce on a given occasi…

Relegation beckons when all it takes to undo 51 minutes of hard graft is a full-back without a goal in 165 games for club and country popping up to break the deadlock. This is the reality for Wolves now. They are in a miserable state, so much so that it is hard to see why Rob Edwards is prepared to leave Middlesbrough to take the vacancy at Molineux, and they looked utterly bereft of fight as Che…

Italy 26-19 Australia Wallaby legend Michael Lynagh’s son inspires famous win Italy upset Australia with a come-from-behind 26-19 victory on Saturday with the son of a Wallaby great, Louis Lynagh, scoring one try and Australian-born winger Monty Ioane the other to snatch a famous win for the hosts. Lynagh, born in Italy when his father, Michael, played for Treviso, and Melbourne-born Ioane proved…

With time limited by a packed calendar, only incremental change is possible, pausing transitions for Slot and Guardiola Time is the enemy of all modern managers. There simply isn’t enough of it. The calendar is too packed , the demands on players too great and, just because there is something almost hypocritical about managers moaning about the number of games they have to play when the fixture l…

Oscar Piastri fourth as teammate Lando Norris excels Verstappen’s title hopes hit as he is 16th and out in Q1 Lando Norris claimed pole position for the São Paulo Grand Prix, his championship ambitions backed with a real statement of intent having already secured victory in the sprint race earlier on Saturday. His success was given added impetus as both his title rivals, Oscar Piastri and Max Ver…

Former Wimbledon champion wins 6-3, 7-6 (0) Unbeaten Rybakina takes home £3.98m Elena Rybakina re-established herself as one of the significant players in women’s tennis as she closed out a week of devastating performances against the best in the world by completely overpowering Aryna Sabalenka to capture one of the biggest titles of her career at the WTA Finals in Riyadh with a 6-3, 7-6 (0) win.…

Two goals controversially ruled out in draw with Chelsea ‘We need just decisions …. That’s where VAR can come in’ Renée Slegers said teams in the Women’s Super League “need just decisions” and called for video assistant referees and the use of technology after two controversial disallowed goals were among officiating talking points in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea . “In a game like this we need…

This match was as dismal as last season’s Europa League final and in a routine league game nerves are no excuse Never underestimate the haplessness of this Manchester United. Never underestimate the haplessness of this Tottenham Hotspur. Never underestimate the capacity of the Premier League to uncover drama in the least plausible situation. The embers of a game of little quality seemed cold and …

When it arrived it was worth the wait. Ephron Mason-Clark had provided much of the quality, in a game largely devoid of it. So it was fitting that it was he who, with full time nearing, left the floor to meet Ellis Simms’ flick-on acrobatically and send 3,300 Coventry fans into a wild dance. Mason-Clark was left floored by Junior Tchamadeu who, as he had all afternoon, tried to halt his direct op…