Rugby World UK – July 2019

Seriously though, why all the fuss?

For announcing a few academy

lads stepping into the senior side?

WHAT DO

YOU THINK?

Send your views to

rugbyworldletters

@ti-media.com

Front Row

BEN DARWIN

EX-WALLABY PROP, CO-FOUNDER

OF GAIN LINE ANALYTICS 

If a team wins it will be deemed to

have superstars within it but the key to

long-term success is not in buying talent

• it’s around making your players better.
  If you can’t do that you’ll always have to
  pay more and the talent will probably
  not perform to the same level as
  it did at their previous team.
  People openly discuss
  whether a single player in
  the Wales team would make
  the England team. There is
  a good argument both ways
  but in the end, with a greater
  pool comes greater access to
  ‘talent’. It’s shared understanding
  where Wales have an advantage.
  It’s interesting how so many stars will
  come through together, like Carter, Read
  and McCaw, all Crusaders who won
  World Player of the Year. Environments
  produce talent. If a team’s in chaos it can
  be impossible for players
  there to be competent.
  Clubs must be careful
  when bringing in stars
  who will take the club
  the extra mile. You may
  have to give up more
  than you bargained for.

STEFFON ARMITAGE

BACK-ROW WHO STARRED IN TWO

HEINEKEN CUP WINS WITH TOULON

From my experience, being around

superstars makes you raise your game.

You want to play rugby at the highest

level and you want to make history.

Having superstars shows you the path

to get to where you’re aiming.

Superstars 100% buy into a

team ethos too. At Toulon

we had so many guys

people would call stars, but

to them and others at the

club they were just normal

people who came into the

club to make it better.

What is a superstar? Because

those players will say they are like

everyone else, just competing for their

position. You can have 50 caps for New

Zealand or one for Namibia; you still

have to give your best. It’s not all about

having a name, you have to back it up.

Stars want to make rugby bigger. It

only goes worldwide if

top players give a good

example. Especially to

young guys. And the

game changes so much

that those older guys

will still learn things

from younger guys.

Cliff

Brie

Ed

Cliff

I’m wearing my yellow tie to work

• it’s TRANSFER DEADLINE DAY!

Think that’s the Goodbye

Committee for Ben Te’o

Apparently there’s a huge crowd

outside Sixways. Um, why?

Wow, harsh!

WHAT IF...

Rugby had a

transfer window?

PICS

Getty Images

COMEDIENNES XV

The Comedians XV from our June issue

inspired Alison Coldstream, from Oxford,

to name this side. Send your alternative

XVs to [email protected]

1 Dawn

French

2 Jo Brand 3 Susan

Calman

4 Miranda Hart 5 Gina Yashere

6 Sarah Millican 7 Roisin Conaty

8 Catherine Tate

9 Cariad Lloyd

10 Sara Pascoe

12 Ruby Wax

13 Jennifer Saunders

14 Aisling Bea

15 Katherine Ryan

11 Sharon

Horgan

All eyes on him

Danny Cipriani is

a star at Gloucester

Saj

Saj

Brie

Ed

Wait, does this transfer window

mean no more medical joker

signings in France? Southern

hemisphere props of the world

will go to bed sad tonight...

Well, there’s all that CVC money

to splash. The clock’s ticking

Is it a deadline day for coaches

as well? Apparently Jake White’s

just boarded a helicopter!

Do teams need superstars to succeed?

FACE-OFF