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Stormers coach John Dobson hailed his team’s leadership group after the defending champions fought hard to claim a 34-18 win over Edinburgh on Saturday.

Edinburgh started very well in the first half holding a 10-0 lead for much of the first stanza before leaving the door open for the Stormers to narrow the lead to 10-7 at half-time.

The Stormers found their feet in the second half, scoring their bonus-point try late in the game for the second week running.

Leaders influence

Dobson was delighted with how his leadership group, powered by skipper Marvin Orie, rallied the side to victory after being surprised by Edinburgh’s forward dominance.

“It was amazing leadership (Saturday),” Dobson said.

“I have to give Marvin (Orie) and his leadership group credit for the way we got back into the fight. Edinburgh really brought it.

“We didn’t expect that, I must be honest. We didn’t prepare the players properly for that forward thrust. We thought it would be more all-court.

“To stand up and get off the canvas like that was really special. It echoes last season. We didn’t hit our straps, but when we get more possession – which comes from discipline – then we will get better.”

Dobson said his side did not work hard enough at the beginning of the game and possibly paid for some players lacking match fitness.

“The game feels like last season. The only thing perhaps which I flagged, we didn’t work hard at the start of the game, which is unlike us.

“As (captain) Marvin pointed out, we paid a bit of rent (Saturday). Joseph (Dweba) hasn’t played much, Neethling (Fouche) hasn’t played much, Salmaan (Moerat) hasn’t played much.

“I don’t think we must read much into it. We will be much better for it.”

Roos in the spotlight

Meanwhile, superstar number eight Evan Roos was yellow carded for retaliating to his opposite number Nick Haining.

Orie protected his player by saying opposition players are trying to get in his head and that it is something he will learn to deal with as he matures.

“I spoke to him about that [incident],” said Orie. “We all know what a special player Evan is – he is unbelievably talented. In terms of what he has done last season and so far this season, he is sort of freakish.

“It is clearly a tactic from the opponents to try and get into his head. I think guys do that to try and get him off his game. It’s funny because when I was younger, I tried to do the same.

“He will get better with that. He is 22, so he has a bright future. He will learn with maturity and we are lucky to have him in our team and not against us. I’m sure he will sort that out.”

The Stormers have maximum points from their two games this season and travel to Italy to face Zebre Parma this weekend.

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All Blacks great Sir John Kirwan believes Roger Tuivasa-Sheck’s needs to be able to play multiple positions if he is to stay in the New Zealand squad.

Kirwan’s comments come after the All Black was moved to the right wing for Auckland’s final round NPC clash against Taranaki.

Foster’s influence?

The 57-year-old speculated that All Blacks coach Ian Foster enforced the late positional change that saw Tuivasa-Sheck move from 12 to 14.

“A phone call from Fossie to the coaches for sure,” Kirwan told The Breakdown on Sky Sports.

“Here is a guy that has moved, wants to play 12. We have seen him play 10 minutes of a test match at 12 and then they name him at 12 and put him on the wing. I just don’t get it. Someone has had to have called.”

Kirwan believes it is important for All Black backline players to cover multiple positions particularly with the imminent return of Anton Lienert-Brown.

“If you have played your whole league career at fullback wouldn’t you want to play at fullback?,” he said.

“I think it’s a positive either way… look at all our backs now, who doesn’t cover a couple of positions?

“I think with Anton Lienert-Brown coming back as a specialist, if he (Tuivasa-Sheck) needs to go on that (end of year) tour, he needs to play two positions,” Kirwan said.

“But I want to see his composure in a Test match from the start.”

No space in the 12 channel

Former All Blacks scrum-half Justin Marshall believes there is not enough space in the 12 channel for Tuivasa-Sheck to maximise his ability to step and beat defenders while also adding that New Zealand relies on an inside centre to take some of the kicking duties.

“There’s a lot of congestion with line speed now around 9, 10 and 12. Give him some opportunities to play across the field. The guy’s a superstar, I just want to see him play,” Marshall said.

“As a 12, the All Blacks have been massively benefited in the last few test matches by a 12 who can kick.

“You’ve got to be incredibly balanced as that player now – be a first receiver, be a hard carrier, be a kicking option and defensively shut down that zone.

“You’ve got to have all those requirements. I’m just wondering whether or not that’s too much for a guy that’s just trying to find his way and love the game again.”

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Similarly, another former All Black Mils Muliaina, believes the change will give the code-hopping star more freedom to play.

“It’s always a hard transition, this is a specialist role playing at 12, it’s a hard position to play. He wants a bit of freedom and I think this just gives him a bit of an opportunity to enjoy his rugby,” he said.

L’Équipe report today that multiple sources have informed them that Patrick Vieira has already signed an agreement to become OGC Nice’s next manager.

The Ligue 1 club last confirmed the departure of Lucien Favre, who is expected to join Dortmund, but refused to confirm his next destination when asked by reporters last night.

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France Football report that Patrick Vieira has held a positive meeting with OGC Nice representatives ahead of potentially taking a job with the Ligue 1 side.

Targeted by Nantes and Rennes in the past, Vieira has so far rebuffed interest in his services from France, but the Nice project and the Côte D’Azur lifestyle are appearing extremely difficult to turn down.

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Today, the Frenchman is in advanced negotiations to replace Lucien Favre as manager.

The South African franchises have increased the quality of the United Rugby Championship, according to Leinster head coach Leo Cullen.

In the competition’s first season, the southern hemisphere teams overcame a slow start, especially away from home, to set up an all-South African final as the Stormers took on the Bulls.

They appear to have pushed on this campaign, with all four sides beginning 2022/23 in fine fashion. The Stormers are unbeaten while the other three have only lost one game each.

Thrilling battle

That was demonstrated when Leinster and Sharks went head-to-head in a thrilling battle at the RDS Arena in Dublin.

Although the Irishmen claimed a 54-34 triumph, the visitors showed their quality and were in the game at the hour mark.

Cullen’s men eventually pulled away late on, but the South African outfits will once again be a threat for the title.

“It is great to see this type of test now,” Leinster’s head coach said.

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“It’s a proper competition, a proper test, they have to go through Europe (Champions and Challenge Cups) now as well which they did not have to do last year.

“If you think back to the start of the season last year, they were coming up to Europe and not going particularly well. Every trip they do, they are getting better and better, the familiarity.

“We only do one trip going down to South Africa so it is a totally different experience for the South African teams coming up here; they get better with the trips.

“When you are in South Africa, it is the number one game in terms of where rugby sits as a team sport when you compare it to soccer, Gaelic football and hurling, whereas it’s one, two, three and four down there. They live and breathe it.

“You can see some of the size profile, the speed profile, the skill, jackalers over the ball, some of the front-rowers that they have, it is a proper challenge.”

Cullen also wants the spectacle the teams put on at the weekend to be repeated regularly as the season goes on.

Entertainment

“I think that’s what the crowd want to see – all action performances,” he said.

“A huge amount of work goes into the refereeing of the game and refs are under a lot of pressure, but I think that’s the game you want to see.

“Last week it was very difficult with the conditions in Ravenhill so when you get a nice day like today you want to see a good entertaining game and get people to come back and watch it again.”

Leinster’s focus now shifts to Friday’s URC clash where they take on Connacht in an intriguing Irish derby.

“It’s two derby games we’re looking at now, away in Connacht on Friday, which is always a tough place to go,” Cullen added.

“We played them a couple of times in Galway last year. The European game in particular, you had two sets of players with everything on the line.

“They had a good win last night and will take a lot of confidence from that, we’ll have to put in a decent week’s prep on what is a short week.”

Wasps have pulled out of Saturday’s Premiership clash with Exeter and admit it is likely they will go into administration by the end of the week.

The news is a crushing blow not least to the famous English club but also the game as a whole as the former Heineken Cup winners are now on the brink.

Wasps‘ woes follow on Worcester Warriors’ issues, with the Sixways club already falling into administration and being suspended from the Premiership for the remainder of the season.

Administration in the coming days

“It has become clear that there is likely to be insufficient time to find a solvent solution for the companies within the group, and it is therefore likely that they will enter into administration in the coming days with a view to concluding deals shortly thereafter,” read a Wasps statement on their official website.

“In light of the current situation, we have therefore taken the decision to withdraw the Wasps men’s team from this Saturday’s league fixture against Exeter Chiefs.”

Wasps Holdings Limited recently confirmed a second notice of intention to appoint administrators had been filed, adding talks were ongoing with possible investors, including ex-Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley, in the face of a winding-up order from HM Revenue and Customs for £2million in unpaid tax.

The former Premiership champions also face having to pay back a £35million bond which had helped finance their relocation to Coventry during 2014.

Failure to secure finance required to prevent administration could now result in automatic relegation from England’s top flight down to the Championship.

Working tirelessly to save club

The Wasps statement continued: “Since filing a notice of intention to appoint administrators on 21st September, we have been working tirelessly to secure the long-term future for Wasps Holdings Limited, and all of the organisations and clubs that sit within the group.

“Negotiations to secure deals that will allow the men’s and women’s rugby teams, netball team and the arena (Coventry Building Society Arena) and associated business to move forward are ongoing.

“While the companies within the group all represent strong and viable businesses, the reality is that they have insufficient cash at this time to continue to fund operations until these complex negotiations have concluded.

“We have therefore been asking potential funders and investors to provide bridging finance to provide enough time for a solvent solution to be found. Regrettably, this has not been possible to date, although we will continue to pursue this until the very last opportunity.

“This (withdrawing from Saturday’s game) was an extremely difficult decision to make, and we recognise that this will not only impact on our players, staff and supporters, but also Exeter Chiefs and the wider rugby community.

Right course of action at this time

“However, we strongly believe it is the right course of action when, at this time, we are unable to meet our regulatory requirements in the absence of fully-concluded deal negotiations.

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“We understand that this news will be disappointing and concerning for everyone involved. Our immediate focus will be on ensuring that all of our players and the staff of Wasps and the arena are fully updated and given the support they need.

“While these are challenging times, we remain confident that new owners will be found that will allow the clubs and businesses within the Group to move forward.”

In their glory years, Wasps won the Heineken Cup twice and Challenge Cup once on the European stage and have lifted the Premiership trophy four times.

Speaking in an interview with RTL, Lyon captain Nabil Fékir had the following to say on a potential move to Liverpool.

“Why not. Afterwards there will be discussions with the president, with my entourage, to take a decision. In life, you should never rule anything out.”

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Gloucester head coach George Skivington praised the Premiership for providing another thrilling game that saw his side beat Bristol Bears 31-28.

He insists the on-pitch product “has never been better” after an eight-try epic at Kingsholm, which was part of an absorbing day of action in England.

The Premiership has been under a cloud over the past month after Wasps and Worcester Warriors were suspended from the league amid financial problems.

Wasps are reportedly set to follow the Warriors into administration, with the country’s flagship club competition rocked so early into the campaign.

On-field product never been better

But while there are issues off the field, Skivington could not be more upbeat about the product on it as the Cherry and Whites and Bristol put on a show.

“Pat (Bristol director of rugby Pat Lam) and I spoke before the game about how, despite all the carnage in the background, the actual product on the field has never been better,” he said.

“I am sure for a neutral it was a great game. Not so much the coaches.

“We are finding ourselves on the back foot and digging ourselves out. Those games have gone the other way (in the past).

“Bristol at home two years ago, it was heading for a draw and we gave away a penalty in pretty much exactly the same spot and lost. We are in more of these games than we were previously.

“I thought our scrum was outstanding, but our lineout and maul probably didn’t fire to the level we are used to firing at. We will take that as a blip and work hard on that.

“The old adage of a win’s a win is so true. The doggedness, I am always proud of this team from that point of view.”

Despite the Bears losing out at Kingsholm, Lam took the positives from a much-improved effort after his team lost 50-14 against Exeter last time out.

Improvements from Bristol Bears

“We looked a lot better this week,” he said. “We needed to stay in our system in the second half, which we did, although it was unfortunate we butchered a couple of tries.

“You always worry if you are not creating opportunities, but we created heaps today. We had plenty of chances, but unfortunately we didn’t finish them.

“It is not an easy place to play, Kingsholm. Fair play to George (Skivington) and what they have done here.

“It was a real test and it was neck and neck right until the end. At this level you are tested about getting the little things done really well.

“The Premiership is tough. Any points you can get are massive. We took two today and we are gutted we missed out on three more.

“There is some very good rugby being played in the Premiership at the moment. The product is awesome.”

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Sale Sharks secured their fifth successive victory to start the Premiership season after they beat London Irish 37-14 in a bonus-point triumph.

Tries from Dan du Preez, Joe Carpenter, Tom Roebuck (2) and Ewan Ashman helped Alex Sanderson’s outfit to a maximum at the AJ Bell Stadium.

Rob du Preez contributed off the kicking tee with 12 points in a comfortable success as Sale continue their excellent start to the Premiership campaign.

For London Irish, their try scorers were Ollie Hassell-Collins and Benhard Janse van Rensburg, with Paddy Jackson converting both of their crossings.

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The home side started the game on the front foot and their dominance paid off when Dan du Preez barrelled over to open the scoring, with Rob du Preez adding the extras to give them an early 7-0 lead.

Rob du Preez extended the hosts’ lead, slotting over a penalty after the visitors had pulled down the scrum to make it 10-0 after 25 minutes.

On the stroke of half-time the home side pressed home their advantage when Carpenter touched down in the left-hand corner after the ball had been spun through the backs.

Rob du Preez’s poor conversion attempt did not clear the uprights to make the score 15-0.

The visitors responded instantly through Hassell-Collins who picked up the loose ball after Sale spilled the restart and darted over in the corner, with Jackson’s impressive kick bringing the score to 15-7 at the break.

The hosts were on the scoreboard less than three minutes after the restart, Raffi Quirke’s box kick taking an awkward bounce that caught the Irish defence flatfooted, allowing Roebuck to sneak in and touch the ball down, Rob du Preez adding the conversion to push the lead to 22-7.

The visitors responded quickly, Van Rensburg touching down in the corner after the ball had spilled loose from a lineout drive, Jackson again perfect with the kick to make the score 22-14.

The bonus-point try came not too long after, Roebuck eventually finishing under the posts after several linebreaks, although he took a nasty hit from both his opposite number and the posts in the process of scoring the try. Rob du Preez added the extras to make it 29-14.

The visitors’ attempts to get back into the game never really amounted to much as a result of unforced errors, sloppy kicks or poor decision-making.

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DOR Alex Sanderson looks at the reasons behind his side's impressive start to the campaign.#GallagherPrem pic.twitter.com/oOrKgOhEWo

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That sloppiness also slipped into their defending as a high tackle from Chandler Cunningham-Smith presented Rob du Preez with the opportunity to extend the lead further, which he took to make it 32-14 with just over ten minutes to play.

There was still time for one more try for the home side, another rolling maul allowing Ashman to get his name on the scoresheet to make it 37-14.

Replacement Tom Curtis couldn’t add the conversion and the home side saw the game out to claim top spot in the Premiership.

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RMC report that PSG will lose 20-year-old central midfielder Lorenzo Callegari to Genoa when his contract with the Ligue 1 champions expires at the end of the season.

Callegari, who shares a lawyer with Thiago Motta, will sign a 4-year deal with the Serie A outfit.

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