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Black Knight's £45m takeover makes Exeter Chiefs first US-owned Premiership club
Cannae Holdings subsidiary Black Knight Rugby has completed a £45 million purchase of Exeter Chiefs, acquiring 100% of the club's shares and ending Tony Rowe's 25-year stewardship. The deal makes Exeter the first American-owned club in the Gallagher Premiership.
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Uncapped James and Warren earn Wales call-up as Jenkins misses Nations Championship
Steve Tandy has named a 33-man Wales squad for the Nations Championship, handing first call-ups to Exeter back-row Kane James and Ospreys tighthead Ben Warren. Exeter lock Dafydd Jenkins is absent after shoulder surgery following the Gallagher Premiership final.
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Jenkins faces surgery after Prem Final as Exeter count the cost of Twickenham defeat
Exeter Chiefs captain Dafydd Jenkins will undergo shoulder surgery and miss Wales' summer Nations Championship campaign after sustaining the injury in the Gallagher Premiership Final defeat to Northampton Saints. Head coach Rob Baxter expects him fit for the start of next season.
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Briggs and Muldoon take on provincial lead roles in Irish women's rugby overhaul
Irish Rugby has appointed four full-time provincial women's rugby leadership roles, with former internationals Niamh Briggs named Munster's Women's Pathway Manager and Larissa Muldoon taking charge of Connacht's women's rugby programme.
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Atkinson embraces de Allende duel as England prepare for Ellis Park altitude test
Gloucester centre Seb Atkinson has spoken candidly about facing Damian de Allende — a player who has shaped his own development — as England prepare to meet South Africa at Ellis Park on Saturday. The 23-year-old, holder of rugby's Bronco Test world record, says altitude training has already begun paying off.
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Springbok Women bank on training intensity to bridge game-time gap against USA Eagles
South Africa's Springbok Women head into a two-Test series against the USA Eagles having played limited competitive rugby in 2026, with assistant coach Franzel September saying high-intensity training sessions have been used to compensate for the shortfall.
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Springbok lock crisis deepens as Norton's hamstring rules him out for 10 weeks
South Africa U20 captain Riley Norton has suffered a hamstring injury that will sideline him for eight to ten weeks, deepening a lock crisis that already saw Rassie Erasmus field no second-row cover against England. Bulls back-row Elrigh Louw has been called up as replacement.
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Tom Farr-Jones set for Junior World Championship debut after illness ruled him out against Spain
Tom Farr-Jones, nephew of 1991 World Cup-winning captain Nick Farr-Jones, is named on the wing for Australia's Junior World Championship clash with Fiji in Kutaisi on Thursday, having missed the opening 90-22 win over Spain through illness.
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EPCR overhauls bonus-point system and pool qualification rules for Champions Cup
European Professional Club Rugby has announced two significant rule changes to the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup, replacing the four-try bonus-point system with a three-try differential rule and tightening pool-stage qualification from next season.
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All Blacks assistant Barnes dismisses France 'B team' talk and calls box-kick trend overboard
New Zealand lead assistant coach Neil Barnes has pushed back on the notion that France are bringing a weakened squad to Christchurch, while also questioning whether the international game's heavy reliance on box kicks is genuinely warranted.
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Wright eager to end five-game losing streak as Wallabies host Ireland in Nations Championship opener
Australia fullback Tom Wright has acknowledged Ireland's status as a 'pretty big climb for any team' ahead of Saturday's Nations Championship opener at a sold-out Allianz Stadium in Sydney — the first time Ireland have played on Australian soil in eight years.
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Uncapped Wallabies fly-half Meredith backed by teammates as debut looms against Ireland
Declan Meredith has earned his first Wallabies call-up ahead of the Nations Championship opener against Ireland, with Brumbies halves partner Ryan Lonergan revealing the uncapped fly-half is adjusting well despite the pressure of the new environment.
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Hooper returns to Wallabies leaner and sharper after debut Exeter season
Tom Hooper has rejoined the Wallabies squad in Sydney ahead of July's Nations Championship Tests against Ireland, crediting a demanding first season at Exeter Chiefs with transforming him physically and tactically.
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Ben Earl urges England to block out South Africa's world-champion reputation at Ellis Park
Ben Earl has called on England to focus on their own game rather than South Africa's status as back-to-back world champions ahead of Saturday's Nations Championship clash at Ellis Park. Jamie George will captain the side after Maro Itoje was rested for the tour.
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Belgian prop Bruno Vliegen fighting for recovery after severe burns cover 37 per cent of his body
Bruno Vliegen, a Belgium international with more than 20 caps, is hospitalised at the Grand Hôpital de Charleroi after a serious accident left him with burns across 37 per cent of his body. A fundraising appeal has been launched to help cover his medical costs.
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Erasmus names Pollock England's biggest threat ahead of Ellis Park Test opener
South Africa head coach Rassie Erasmus has singled out 21-year-old Henry Pollock as England's most dangerous player ahead of Saturday's Nations Championship Test at Ellis Park, calling the Northampton number eight 'a flipping good rugby player' despite the back-rower's polarising reputation among Springbok fans.
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Packer scores twice and lifts trophy in perfect Saracens farewell before Harlequins move
Marlie Packer ended her nine-year Saracens career in style, crossing the whitewash twice as the North London side demolished Trailfinders Women 52-14 to claim their fourth Premiership Women's Rugby title at the Twickenham Stoop.
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Wallaroos fly-half Grace Freeman signs with Leicester Tigers for 2025-26 PWR season
Western Force playmaker Grace Freeman has joined Leicester Tigers for the upcoming Premiership Women's Rugby season, with the Wallaroos national contract holder targeting Test debut form after returning from a 450-day injury absence.
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Zackary leaves Trailfinders after PWR Final defeat but keeps club future open
USA flanker Kate Zackary has departed Ealing Trailfinders Women after captaining them to the PWR Final, where Saracens ran out 52-14 winners. The 36-year-old is now focused on earning her 50th cap for the USA Eagles against South Africa.
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Springboks could lose world number one ranking on Nations Championship opening weekend
South Africa's 3.61-point lead at the top of the World Rugby Men's Rankings is under threat this weekend, but only if England beat the Springboks at Ellis Park and New Zealand defeat France by more than 15 points simultaneously.
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