Italy were within the width of a post of the biggest upset in Six Nations history as they drew 13-13 against 14-man France in Lille.
Paolo Garbisi had a last-gasp penalty attempt from 38 metres to register Italy’s first-ever Championship win in France.
But the ball toppled off its tee and, with just a few seconds left on the shot clock after it had been replaced, Garbisi rushed his kick and struck the right-hand post.
France – who had won 45 of their previous 48 Test matches against Italy, including the past 14 in a row – had lost Jonathan Danty to a red card on the stroke of half-time for a high shot on opposite centre Ignacio Brex.
Les Bleus thrashed Italy 60-7 at last year’s World Cup but a repeat of that one-sided encounter did not materialise as the Azzurri underlined their improvement under new head coach Gonzalo Quesada.
Italy remain bottom of the Guinness Six Nations, level on points with Wales, while France stay in fourth place, with their title dream over.
France started at breakneck pace and were rewarded with a seventh-minute try.
Italy were unable to stop a series of pick-and-go’s through the middle of their defence and skipper Charles Ollivon got the ball down under a pile of Azzurri bodies.
Thomas Ramos dispatched a simple conversion and swiftly added a penalty as France suggested the game could be effectively over by half-time.
Italy spent most of the first half hanging on by their fingernails, and were not helped by a risky strategy of trying to escape their 22 with ball in hand.
Fly-half Matthieu Jalibert was stopped near to the line and 19-year-old lock Posolo Tuilagi almost celebrated his first Test start with a try.
But Tuilagi was held up over the line and the contest took a dramatic turn in the final play of the first half as Italy launched a rare attack.
There was clear head-on-head contact between Danty and Brex, and English referee Christophe Ridley reduced France to 14 men with a yellow card.
Martin Page-Relo provided further punishment to France from long range, and Ridley confirmed after the interval that the bunker review system had upgraded Danty’s yellow to red.
France made light of their numerical disadvantage as their forwards rallied for Ramos to land his second penalty.
Tommaso Menoncello went close to an Azzurri try, kicking ahead before running out of ground, but Garbisi cut the gap to seven points again with a straightforward penalty.
Italy drew level 10 minutes from time after building through the phases for Leonardo Marin to find Ange Capuozzo with a superb offload.
Garbisi converted but then failed to top it as Italy, with only two Six Nations wins over France since joining the Championship in 2000, fell agonisingly short of a second success in 45 matches.
Barry Connell issued a positive update on Arkle favourite Marine Nationale after scoring with another potential star in William Munny at Naas on Sunday.
A field of five previous winners went to post for the Download The BetVictor App (Pro/Am) Flat Race, which features top-class performers like Killultagh Vic (2014), Carefully Selected (2018) and Gerri Colombe (2021) on its roll of honour.
Wingmen was an even-money favourite to provide the latter’s trainer Gordon Elliott with a fifth successive victory in the two-mile contest, but after racing keenly on the front end, he weakened late on and had to make do with minor honours in third.
William Munny, a short-head winner on his racecourse debut at Navan last month, was a 13-2 shot to double his tally in the hands of Finny Maguire and showed a sharp change of gear to run down both Wingmen and eventual runner-up Fleur In The Park to score by an impressive five lengths.
Connell said: “I’m astonished the price this horse went off. I thought he should have been even-money favourite on the back of his form.
“The horse of Willie Mullins’ that he beat the last day (C’est Ta Chance) was backed as if money was going out of fashion and they were clear of the rest.
“He’s hardly having a blow there and it was like a piece of work.”
While Connell has no doubt William Munny has what it takes to make it to the top, he will resist the temptation to run in next month’s Champion Bumper at Cheltenham, but could go for the corresponding race at the Punchestown Festival later in the spring.
“He’s very unusual for a Westerner, as they normally don’t win bumpers, they improve when they get a hurdle and a fence,” he said.
“I’m definitely not taking him to Cheltenham. I don’t like giving them more than two runs in winner’s bumpers but I’m going to bring this lad to Punchestown for the Champion Bumper there, and I think he’s the one to beat in it.
“In my view, he’s the best bumper horse in the country and I’m hoping he’ll be a Grade One horse over a hurdle next year.”
One Connell inmate who most definitely has a trip to Cheltenham on his agenda is stable star Marine Nationale, winner of the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the showpiece meeting last season.
Following a foot-perfect chasing debut at Leopardstown over Christmas, he blotted his copybook for the first time with a disappointing showing in the Irish Arkle at the same track earlier this month, but his trainer is keeping the faith ahead of his return to the Cotswolds.
Connell added: “Marine Nationale was in Fairyhouse yesterday. We brought the two Cheltenham horses, him and Enniskerry. Enniskerry runs in the Grand Annual.
“We brought the two of them for an away day. They didn’t do a whole pile, just jumped the four fences up to Ballyhack and they are all set now the two of them.
“All we need now is a bit of spring ground, and nine times out of 10 we get it in Cheltenham.”
Connections of Noble Birth also harbour Cheltenham Festival dreams following his 16-1 triumph in the Pertemps Network Group Handicap Hurdle.
Conor McNamara, representing his father Eric, said: “Things just didn’t quite go to plan in Musselburgh the last day, but it was lovely that he came right today.
“He ran a blinder at Cheltenham back in November and was just too keen. It was my fault to put the cheek pieces on him, but we left them off him today and he relaxed lovely.
“He was a few pounds out of the handicap today. If he gets into the Pertemps (Final) at Cheltenham, he’ll go – and if he doesn’t, we might look at Mallow (Cork) in a month’s time and see if we can get him qualified for the Final of the Full Circle Series in Punchestown.”
Father and son Conor and Charlie O’Dwyer teamed up to win the Listed Nas Na Riogh Novice Handicap Chase with the JP McManus-owned Battle It Out (6-1).
“The conditions suited him. He wants soft ground and a bit of a trip. He jumped unbelievable,” said O’Dwyer senior.
“We’ll see what Frank (Berry, racing manager) and JP want to do and be led by them.”
Willie Mullins unleashed yet another promising recruit in the Naas Racecourse Business Club Maiden Hurdle, with French import Tounsivator (7-2) winning with a little more in hand than the official margin of a length and a quarter might suggest in the hands of Paul Townend.
The champion trainer’s son and assistant, Patrick Mullins, said: “Paul said he was a bit keen, but being an ex-Flat horse, you’d expect that. His jumping was good bar he stood on himself after the last. To recover and win after losing all momentum was impressive.
“I’m sure he’ll go for novice hurdles at Fairyhouse and Punchestown.”
Freddie Gingell is set to keep the ride aboard shock Clarence House Chase winner Elixir De Nutz when he takes a shot at the Queen Mother Champion Chase on day two of the Cheltenham Festival.
The 18-year-old has struck up a fine relationship with Joe Tizzard’s resurgent 10-year-old this season.
After collecting the Grade Two Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter and a valuable Newbury handicap before Christmas, the duo reunited to deliver a small blow to Jonbon’s Champion Chase hopes when downing Nicky Henderson’s leading two-mile chaser in the rearranged Grade One event at Prestbury Park.
A first triumph at the highest level was a notable feather in the cap of Gingell and with owner Terry Warner keen to stay loyal to one of the weighing room’s youngest stars, he is set for his first taste of a championship event at the Festival.
“Fred will keep the ride and Terry Warner is keen to stick with him,” said Tizzard, who is also the rider’s uncle.
“He’s got on with him really well this season and he will definitely keep the ride.
“He keeps getting a good tune out of the old horse and it will do Fred well for the future to just keep getting rides in these big races, so he gets a feel for what goes on in them.
“It’s a lovely opportunity for both of them.”
Elixir De Nutz is enjoying somewhat of an Indian summer in the veteran stage of his career and having landed his second Grade One prize five years after his first, Tizzard believes he is at the peak of his powers ahead of his Champion Chase bid.
“He’s had a cracking season; the Haldon Gold Cup was good and he’s just got better ever since,” continued Tizzard.
“He likes a small field and there is not going to be a massive field (at Cheltenham). We’ve tried him in those big handicaps and that doesn’t work, so he deserves to take his chance after last time.
“We’re not going there thinking we have a real good chance of winning, but he’s in the form of his life and he’ll have a great each-way chance.”
Tizzard will also be flying the flag for the home team in the My Pension Expert Arkle Novices’ Chase, where JPR One lines up off the back of a clinical display at Lingfield last month.
He is the shortest British-trained entrant with a best price of 11-1 and his handler would like to see the recent wet weather disappear, so the seven-year-old can experience optimum conditions at Prestbury Park.
“He is in good form in his work and obviously his last run was a lovely performance,” added Tizzard.
“We go there in the form of our lives and with a nice chance, but I still respect the Irish and if Marine Nationale got back on good ground, then he was an impressive winner of the Supreme last year.
“I wouldn’t mind it drying out so I can get my horse there in the best shape I can and then we will see what happens on the day.”
Ferny Hollow made a triumphant return from over two years on the sidelines with a dominant display in the Newlands Chase at Naas – but appears unlikely to be seen in action at next month’s Cheltenham Festival.
It is fast approaching four years since the Willie Mullins-trained nine-year-old carried the Cheveley Park Stud colours to success in the Champion Bumper at the showpiece meeting in the Cotswolds and injuries had restricted him to just three subsequent appearances.
He made a winning hurdling debut at Gowran Park the following season, but was then off the track for over a year, and while he made a smooth transition to jumping fences following his comeback with successive wins, including a Grade One at Leopardstown in December 2021, he had not been seen since.
Despite his 791-day absence, Ferny Hollow was a 2-5 favourite for this Grade Three assignment, and in truth odds-on backers will have had few concerns for the duration of the two-mile contest.
Paul Townend’s mount raced exuberantly and jumped neatly in the main and moved ominously into the wing mirrors of the three horses in front of him from the home turn.
Once angled out into clear daylight, the Westerner gelding soon swept to the lead and only had to be pushed out after safely negotiating the final obstacle to seal a comfortable five-and-a-half-length verdict.
Mullins said: “I was happy with him to do that after such a long lay-off. Hopefully, now he stays sound so that we can keep him that way.
“He popped over a few hurdles and a few fences yesterday morning and I was happy with him. The conditions of this race suited him a bit better than last week (Red Mills Chase at Gowran Park).
“I think he’s still young enough to put in a career best over fences. He just has to overcome this first run and come back sound and we’ll see where we go.”
Coral cut Ferny Hollow to 8-1 from 12-1 in their non-runner money back market for the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham, but with that race only 17 days away, Mullins is set to keep his powder dry for the other major festivals in the spring.
“He’s entered in Cheltenham. It may be a big ask on his second run, but we’ll have a look. It may come a bit soon,” he added.
“He settled lovely and even though he’s free going, once you settle him in, he listens and responds to you. We were happy to use those tactics and hoped that if he got around safe and sound that he’d be the fastest horse in the straight, which he was.
“It will be all about how he comes out of the race in the next week, and we’ll probably look for easier options for the time being.”
Cam Redpath has challenged Scotland to win their last two Guinness Six Nations matches and give themselves a chance of championship glory for the first time in 25 years.
The Scots made it two victories out of three on Saturday as they defeated England 30-21 to claim the Calcutta Cup for a fourth year in succession – a feat they had not previously achieved since the 1890s.
Gregor Townsend’s side conclude their campaign with away matches against Italy and on-song tournament favourites Ireland next month and victories in both matches might be enough to secure them a first championship triumph since 1999, depending what happens in the next round of fixtures.
Even if the Six Nations title proves beyond them, though, Scotland can still land a first Triple Crown since 1990 and achieve four victories in a championship for the first time in the Six Nations era.
“We’ve just got to keep pushing on, we want to win the next two games,” said centre Redpath.
“We’ve got to push again to get a good performance in Rome and then go to Dublin in the last weekend.
“We’ve definitely still got plenty to play for. If we win the next two games, we’ve got a great shot at winning this tournament, there’s no doubt about that.”
Redpath entered the fray seconds into the second half as a replacement for Sione Tuipulotu, who limped off with a knee injury that could place his involvement in the closing two matches in jeopardy.
If the Glasgow centre is unable to recover in time for Rome and Dublin, Redpath would be the likeliest candidate to step into the starting XV after delivering what head coach Gregor Townsend described as an “outstanding” second-half performance.
A little over four minutes after coming on, the on-form Bath centre produced a magnificent pirouette on the half-way line to eliminate most of the England defence and create an opening that led to Duhan Van Der Merwe completing his historic, match-definining hat-trick.
“I didn’t really think about it, I could feel someone getting close to me and I just kind of spun and found myself in a little bit of space,” said Redpath. “It happens in rugby, there’s always a bit of space, and luckily I found it.”
Redpath, 24, won his 12th cap on Saturday – three years after his debut in an 11-6 away win over England – but he has started only three matches for his country to date.
Injuries in addition to the form of established starters Tuipulotu and Huw Jones have restricted his opportunities in the past few seasons but he has big ambitions at international level.
“I want to play in big games and show people I can do it on this stage,” he said. “I know a lot of the England boys, I play against a lot of them and I play with some of them, so it (the Calcutta Cup) is always a big game for me.
“It’s a goal of mine to be starting more for Scotland but we’ve got some brilliant centres at the minute, who are right up there, so it’s always going to be tough.
“They’ve proved it time and time again, and they did again for the first try when Sione put Huw through for the first try and Duhan finished it off. It’s good competition to have.”
Hughie Morrison is eyeing a first tilt at Ascot’s Gold Cup this summer for his star stayer Quickthorn.
The seven-year-old won the Group Three Henry II Stakes at Sandown and a Group Two in France a couple of seasons ago, before registering a stunning 14-length victory in the Lonsdale Cup at York.
He produced a similarly dominant front-running display to lift the Goodwood Cup last term – and while Morrison has doubts about his stamina, he is happy to give him his chance in the Royal meeting’s two-and-a-half-mile showpiece in mid-June.
“Quickthorn is back in and has done well over the winter. He came in earlier actually because he was a bit naughty at home, possibly because it’s been so wet,” said the trainer.
“He’s started cantering and although I’m not convinced he’ll stay the Gold Cup trip, I think we’ll have a go at it this year. He’s another year older and the older they are, the further they’ll stay.
“That will be our main target this year and I might be tempted to wait and give him his first run at Sandown (Henry II Stakes).
“We seem to get three or four months out of him and that’s it really, so we possibly don’t want to start too early, but we’ll play it by ear.”
Another horse for whom Morrison holds top-level aspirations is Stay Alert, who ran in Group One company on four occasions last season, with her best effort being a runner-up finish behind Via Sistina in the Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh in July.
Morrison added: “The owner has decided to have another go with Stay Alert, which is exciting. She’ll be campaigned in those mile-and-a-quarter fillies’ races on genuine good ground.
“We’ve also got Mistral Star, who was second in a Listed race last season, and I’ll be disappointed if she doesn’t win a Group race this year.”
Bottler’secret may have earned himself a late call-up to Gavin Cromwell’s Cheltenham Festival squad after making a successful debut over obstacles in the Winning Fair Juvenile Hurdle at Naas.
Winner of two of his three starts on the Flat for Ciaran Murphy, the four-year-old was thrown straight into Grade Three company for his hurdling bow, albeit the race was rendered significantly less competitive after the unbeaten five-time winner Wodhooh was declared a non-runner.
In her absence, Bottler’secret was a 6-5 favourite to get the better of three rivals in the hands of Sean Flanagan and travelled sweetly for much of the way.
After being nudged into the slipstream of Wodhooh’s front-running stablemate Pacini early in the home straight, the Dragon Pulse gelding came back on the bridle on the run to the final flight before pulling 11 lengths clear on the run-in.
Paddy Power cut Bottler’secret to 12-1 from 20-1 in their non-runner money back market for the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham and while Cromwell admits pitching his inexperienced youngster in against this season’s top juveniles would be a big ask, he will consider letting him take his chance.
“He’s a nice horse. It might not have been the greatest renewal of a Grade Three but for his first day he jumped well. He was a little bit big and slow early on but the further he went, the better he got,” said Cromwell.
“It would have been nice if we’d got more experience into him. I thought we’re getting on in the year and we’d pitch him in at the deep end. If he didn’t win, he’d be a novice next year.
“He’s in the Triumph Hurdle, but I don’t know if he’ll go there. If he had a bit more experience he would, but it is what it is at this stage – I wouldn’t rule it out.
“There are plenty of options at Fairyhouse, Aintree and Punchestown.”
Top-class filly Nashwa is being readied for a trip to Meydan next month, with the Dubai Turf pencilled in as her planned comeback target.
Winner of the French Oaks and the Nassau Stakes as a three-year-old in 2022, the John and Thady Gosden-trained daughter of Frankel notched a third Group One win in last season’s Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket, as well as being placed in the Nassau, the Juddmonte International and the Irish Champion Stakes.
She was well beaten on her final start of the year in a soft-ground Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot, but owner Imad Al Sagar has sportingly brought her back for another campaign.
“The plan at the moment is to head for the Dubai Turf,” his racing manager Teddy Grimthorpe said.
“There doesn’t seem to be an ideal race for her beforehand, so she’ll probably have a racecourse gallop, just to make sure she’s in good shape.
“She’s won Group Ones at a mile and a mile and a quarter, so in between (nine furlongs) should be ideal.
“She’s wintered well and is really just beginning her preparation. She’s a lovely, scopey filly and very important to Imad and his Blue Diamond Stud – and it’s exciting to have her back in full work.
“She ran some really top-class races last year, she had quite a hard end to the season but she seems to have got over it well and we’re looking forward to this season.”
Long Run can lay claim to many astonishing achievements throughout his stellar career, but he will always be remembered best for the day he ended an era in the 2011 Cheltenham Gold Cup, bursting through the clouds to slay the great Ditcheat duo of Kauto Star and Denman.
Owned by Robert Waley-Cohen, Nicky Henderson’s first Cheltenham Gold Cup winner was for a long while considered the heir apparent of the staying division and had already marked his territory by winning the King George earlier that season.
But it was the moment he crossed the Gold Cup finishing line that was seen as the passing of the torch moment and a victory made all the more remarkable by the fact the man in the plate going toe-to-toe with Ruby Walsh and Sam Thomas up the Prestbury Park hill was in fact an amateur in the owner’s son, Sam Waley-Cohen.
Of course, the by-day dentist was far from plucked off the streets to partner a horse who was already a multiple Grade One winner. But it added to the mystique of this brilliant French import, who at the tender age of six had climbed to the top of racing’s mountain.
“Winning the Gold Cup has to be classed as his best performance ever – you can’t beat that,” said Waley-Cohen senior.
“You had multiple Gold Cup winners in that race and they were the ones coming down hill who looked like they were going to do it all over again.
“Sam was brilliant on him that day and he was not an easy ride – he did thump some fences on the way round.
“I still treasure the front cover of Owner Breeder magazine that has a picture of him coming over the last in front of Kauto Star and Denman and says ‘The Greatest Gold Cup’.”
Even though only six when storming up the Cheltenham hill to claim National Hunt racing’s greatest prize, Long Run had already cemented his place in his owner’s affections.
For this was a horse that had seen the winner’s enclosure eight times in France before he burst onto the British scene aged only four.
Long Run’s Feltham Novices’ Chase success would be the first of three magnificent victories at Kempton, with the gelding returning a year later to claim the King George VI Chase and then adding a second victory in that contest in 2012.
That second King George, when rallying to collar Captain Chris in the shadow of the Kempton winning post, would be the final top-level success of Long Run’s decorated career, but by that point he had already accomplished things his connections could only dream about.
Waley-Cohen continued: “He achieved things no other horse has ever done. He’s the only horse to win the Grade One three-year-old hurdle and the Grade One four-year-old chase in France and the only four-year-old to win a Grade One chase in the UK when he won the Feltham.
“The shortest race he ever ran in was the Kingmaker over two miles and he won that – and there isn’t many horses who would have won a Kingmaker and a Gold Cup.
“He was unbelievable in the Feltham and after the race he walked into the winner’s enclosure and looked around as if to say ‘ah, my subjects have come to admire me, how nice’. He was imperious, totally imperious and only four years old.
“What he achieved as a youngster was astonishing and when he won a Gold Cup, he was only six. He won Grade Ones for five consecutive years, not many horses can do that.
“They say French horses don’t last and they are right, but if you can win Grade Ones over five straight years, it doesn’t matter. Not many stay at the top that long.”
Waley-Cohen has since added a Grand National to Long Run’s Gold Cup triumph thanks to the exploits of Noble Yeats in 2022 and although there may have been 11 years between those two big-race successes, the one constant was his son in the saddle, adorned in the family’s orange and brown silks.
Sam may have hung up his saddle after sprinkling Aintree glory on his decorated amateur CV, but the part he played in many special days – especially aboard Long Run – will live long in his father’s memory.
“He really was an amazing horse and gave us an enormous amount of pleasure. Doing everything with Sam on board only added to the pleasure,” explained Waley-Cohen.
“You can’t match winning Grade One races at the highest level with your son on board. You would be thrilled to win them anyhow, but when your son is on board – which we were quite strongly criticised for – it is special. In the end, the jockey didn’t do too bad.
“To my mind, he only ran one disappointing race in the whole time we had him and that was in the Gold Cup the following year (2012), where Sam rode him impeccably and produced him at the exact right moment, but for whatever reason he didn’t spark and finished third. Something didn’t fire that day, but horses are horses.”
Long Run is now very much part of the furniture at the Waley-Cohen family farm in Warwickshire, where he enjoys a well-earned retirement and serves as a constant reminder that just sometimes, racing dreams do come true.
“He is in great order and he’s out in the field at 19 years old and very happy,” said Waley-Cohen.
“He had a very good time after he retired from racing, we used to ride him round the farm and the great thing about him, like so many horses, he completely understood when Sam wanted to put his very small daughter on a leading rein, he would behave impeccably. Now he’s fully retired and out at grass.
“He’s been with us a long time and we’ve owned him for 16 years now and we bought him as a three-year-old, so we’ve had him a long time.”
Wigan head coach Matt Peet shrugged off suggestions of a seismic shift in rugby league’s balance of power, despite his side’s dramatic World Club Challenge win over triple defending NRL champions Penrith at a sold-out DW Stadium.
Wigan’s 16-12 triumph, which was confirmed when Taylan May’s potentially match-equalling try on the hooter was ruled out by a matter of millimetres, marked the first time in 16 years that English clubs have claimed back-to-back wins over their Australian counterparts.
The big-money razzmatazz of the NRL – which kicks off with an historic season-opener in Las Vegas next weekend – has often been regarded as a source of envy, but Peet is adamant the constant comparisons with the game Down Under are doing the English game a disservice.
“I don’t think it is a matter of comparison,” said Peet, for whom victory completed his fairytale rise through the Wigan coaching ranks and added the sport’s only global club honour to recent Challenge Cup and Grand Final successes.
“The NRL is an unbelievable competition, it’s got so much going for it, but we know what we’ve got in this country and we should take more pride in it.
“We talk too much about what they think of us. We should just be concerned with what we think of ourselves.
“We watch their games and we learn from it and we admire it. But we have got a special competition ourselves with some special individuals in it and we should just talk about that.”
Peet’s side held firm in the face of relentless Penrith pressure, snatching an opening try through Abbas Miski then regaining their lead through Kruise Leeming after Penrith talisman Nathan Cleary had put his side in front for the first time.
Penrith full-back Dylan Edwards restored his side’s lead in a thrilling, see-saw encounter, but Jake Wardle wriggled over early in the second half to restore Wigan’s advantage before Jai Field dumped May into touch when he looked a near certainty to level the scores.
Bevan French was denied a potential match-winning try by a slim offside call then Wigan were forced to live on their nerves when May looked to have reached the corner as the seconds ticked down.
Vanquished Penrith head coach Ivan Cleary, whose starting line-up featured 10 of the players who had also been edged out by St Helens in Sydney last year, conceded the result reflected a further step towards parity between the two competitions.
“We’ve always realised that the top teams in Super League are very good. Probably it’s the strength in depth where the NRL is a little different in that sense, but I hope tonight’s result is only going to help,” said Cleary.
“I feel like the best teams can match each other, but I’m not sure about the rest.
“One really good thing about the NRL is you never get an easy game and that’s probably the difference in the competitions.”
Wigan will return to more mundane matters when they host Huddersfield in their first home game of the Super League season next Friday, but the epic manner of their victory has only fuelled Peet’s desire for more success.
The rare sight of sold-out signs around the DW Stadium reflected a continued passion for the club in a town weaned on famous rugby league nights, not least memories of their four previous World Club Challenge trophies, all of which had been paraded on the pitch by former players prior to kick-off.
“It was a special night tonight but who is to say that we can’t have more nights like that and make it more of a regular thing, to increase attendances and the impact this club has on the town,” added Peet.
“There is plenty to build on, on and off the field. There is no reason why we shouldn’t get more big games if we keep learning and improving.
“The thought of that being our last big night would be horrendous.”
Jamie George conceded England were “not good enough” in their Calcutta Cup defeat to Scotland but the captain remained adamant they were heading in the right direction overall under Steve Borthwick.
The Red Rose lost 30-21 at Murrayfield on Saturday, bringing to an end their unbeaten start to this year’s Guinness Six Nations campaign after narrow wins away to Italy and at home to Wales.
England had arrived in Edinburgh having won eight of their previous nine matches, with their only setback in that run being the agonising World Cup semi-final defeat by eventual winners South Africa in October.
George understood the negative reaction to losing the Calcutta Cup match for a fourth year in succession – the first time that had happened since 1896. However, the 33-year-old rejected the suggestion that talk of English progress since last summer had been overblown.
“If you look at our run of form over the last nine/10 games, we’ve won a lot of them,” George pointed out.
“If you look at the more global picture of where we are as a team and how we are progressing as a team, if you take a step back and look at it as a whole, there are a lot of positive signs.
“Do we need to get better? Absolutely. Are we doing everything we can to do that? Yes.”
George felt England gave a snapshot of their potential in the opening quarter at Murrayfield, when George Furbank’s try helped them open up a 10-0 lead and knock the Scots out of their stride.
However, he knows they fell out of the game all too easily thereafter as Duhan Van Der Merwe scored a hat-trick to turn the game heavily in the hosts’ favour before a 67th minute score from England substitute Immanuel Feyi-Waboso reduced the deficit to nine points.
“The foundations are good but as players we need to execute the gameplan better,” said George. “We knew it would be difficult coming up here, with the history that goes into the game, but we weren’t good enough.
“One thing that hopefully the fans saw in the first 20 minutes of the game is a blueprint for how we want to play as a team. Now it’s about our ability to do it for 80 minutes.
“There will be things that we look back on and go, ‘that’s what English rugby needs to be about, that’s what this team needs to be about going forward’.
“I think we saw a lot of that in the first 20 minutes but I didn’t see it in the second 20 and the contrast will be pretty clear when we look back at it.
“It’s a huge learning for us. We’re a young team excited to learn and we need to learn fast going ahead to the Ireland game.”
George courageously led England into the Murrayfield showdown just over a week after losing his mother Jane following a short battle with lung cancer.
Asked if it was important for him to get a couple of days off to take stock before returning to camp to prepare for the home match against Ireland a week on Saturday, the hooker said: “Yes, I guess so.
“We’re assembling again on Wednesday. It’s important for everyone to get some time off in these breaks. Test rugby can be pretty cruel at times and we saw that today.
“I think it’s important for everyone to spend some time with their families.”
Despite Saturday’s setback, George was already looking forward to hosting Grand Slam-chasing Ireland.
“The fact we are back at Twickenham is very exciting to me,” he said. “We’ve spoken a lot about the record we want to create at Twickenham and how hard a place it needs to be for opposition to come to.
“That’s very much going to be our focus. Ireland are a great team, we know that, but we’re going to be a very tough team to beat at Twickenham.”
Nicky Henderson is predicting an uphill task for British handlers in April’s Randox Grand National, with the home team responsible for just seven of the horses currently guaranteed to make the cut for the Aintree showpiece.
Victory for Lucinda Russell’s Corach Rambler last year was the first for UK-based trainers since the Kinross handler struck with One For Arthur in 2017.
And with Irish raiders dominating both the recent roll of honour and this season’s ante-post betting, it is easy to envisage the trophy heading across to the Emerald Isle once more.
Henderson has three entries for this year’s race but only 150-rated Dusart is presently set to make the final line-up, with the Seven Barrows trio all available at odds of 100-1.
Fantastic Lady and last year’s eighth Mister Coffey are Henderson’s other two runners, but he hinted that he may not be represented in this year’s race and was clear about what he thought of the home team’s chances when asked about the current make-up.
“We’re not going to win it are we – and I’m not, because I haven’t got one in it,” he said.
“There’s nothing I can do about it and I’ve been trying to win it for 42 years, so I can tell you something about it, but that’s probably how not to win it.”
Leading Irish duo Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott are responsible for over half of the current top 40 in the National, but Henderson is not in favour of limiting the number of runners each trainer or owner can have in the race – something which the British Horseracing Authority were considering for major handicaps earlier in the season.
“That was crazy,” he added. “I wouldn’t agree with that unless they said Henderson is the only one who can have a runner!”
Henderson is currently putting the finishing touches to his Seven Barrows string ahead of the Cheltenham Festival and believes he is in the fortunate position of having not only a talented bunch of horses at his disposal, but a loyal and supportive network of owners.
“We’ve been very lucky and I have the best bunch of owners anyone can wish for,” he added.
“They are all great guys and great mates and great people.
“We have to enjoy it and that’s our game, this is an entertainment hobby sort of thing – it’s their hobby and I have to make it entertaining.”
The Minnesota Timberwolves "needed a win desperately", according to head coach Chris Finch, whose team beat the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday.
Minnesota came out on top 101-86 to claim a fifth win in the space of six games, bouncing back from a defeat to the Milwaukee Bucks last time out.
The Timberwolves are now clear at the top of the Western Conference with a 40-17 record, one win better than the 39-17 Oklahoma City Thunder.
But coach Finch said his team "desperately" needed a victory.
"We needed a win desperately," Finch said. "Still not playing really sharp basketball, particularly on the offensive end. But defensively, we were really strong."
Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 29 points, while Karl-Anthony Towns added 28 to Milwaukee's total.
"It was ugly, sloppy. I think by both teams, actually," said Timberwolves center Naz Reid.
"But we [were] able to buckle down in the last quarter and handle business."
The Nets dismissed coach Jacques Vaughn over the All-Star break, though are now 0-2 under interim Kevin Ollie.
"I thought we did a great job coming together as a team and facing adversity," Ollie said. "But we've got to make shots."
Al Horford says the Boston Celtics are "not where we need to be yet" despite beating the New York Knicks to claim an eighth-straight win.
The Celtics won 116-102 on Saturday to mark a season-best winning streak, while they are also eight games clear at the top of the Eastern Conference.
Jaylen Brown finished with 30 points, Kristaps Porzingis had 22 and Jayson Tatum had 19, while Horford chipped in with 10 points from the bench, as Boston sealed their fourth win of the season over the Knicks.
But in spite of their fine form, Horford says the Celtics must demand more from themselves.
"It's just the way kind of the season has gone," he said.
"We've kind of held our own, continued to work through things. Obviously, the [Philadelphia 76ers] have injuries, different teams have different stuff going on, so that all goes into account.
"But I can just speak to we're continuing to play good basketball. We're really trying to play the right way. I feel like [Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla] is really challenging us to continue to get better. This is the stretch of the season where we can really take it to another level, and that's what we're trying to do.
"I feel like we're not where we need to be yet, and that's a good thing."
Mazzulla added: "The guys understand how to positively impact each other.
"They understand how going into something at one point in the game is going to open it up for someone else later in the game. And we have different combinations, and the guys trust those combinations, and it puts us in a better position to win.
"At the end of the day, it's about winning, and the guys are understanding that. They understand how they affect each other."
Brown, however, pointed to the postseason as when the level of performance will truly count for the Celtics.
He said: "When it comes down to the playoffs, none of that stuff really matters.
"I feel like it's going to be about matchups, it's going to be about playing hard. Obviously, home court matters, so that is key, but when you get into the thick of it, you;'ve got to win basketball games. Regardless of what your seed is.
"If anything, it puts more pressure on you. But I think we're an experienced team. We've been in these situations before and I think we're ready."
Warren Gatland is convinced Wales are on course to become “an excellent team” despite a third successive defeat in another gloomy Guinness Six Nations campaign.
Gatland’s inexperienced side are battling to avoid the ignominy of the wooden spoon following Saturday’s 31-7 loss to title favourites Ireland.
Defeat in Dublin followed narrow losses to Scotland and England in this year’s tournament and was a 10th in 11 championship matches overall.
New Zealander Gatland, whose team host France in round four before Italy visit Cardiff on the final weekend, remains upbeat and offered an example from his playing days to demonstrate how fortunes can improve.
“I look back on my own career as a player, playing for Waikato against Auckland after the 1987 World Cup,” he said.
“They had a number of All Blacks and they probably put 40 points on us.
“We were starting to become a good team and coming off that experience, I wanted to play them next week.
“Because that’s what I learned from as a player and hopefully these guys are getting the same experience from that.
“A couple of years later, we ended up turning the tables on them.
“I have no doubt where we’re going, this team is going to be an excellent team going forward, when we get some more experience.”
Wales registered a third scoreless half in as many games as tries from Dan Sheehan and James Lowe helped the Grand Slam-chasing hosts lead 17-0 at the break.
A positive response brought a penalty try early in the second period but the visitors failed to capitalise on further chances in Ireland’s 22 before scores from Ciaran Frawley and Tadhg Beirne killed off the contest.
More than a third of Wales’ match-day 23 arrived at the Aviva Stadium with cap totals in single figures, and Gatland is keen to keep things in perspective.
“I think that we’ve said all along that it’s about the development of this team and learning,” said the 60-year-old, who returned for a second spell in charge ahead of last year’s Six Nations.
“They’ve played against one of the best teams in the world.
“Eight or nine of their team are over 30 and have been around for a while.
“It’s just making sure we keep working hard, doing what we’re doing and looking forward to the next game.
“It’s all about talking to players individually about how they found it out there, what did they learn from it, how they’ll be better next time as an individual.”
Wales captain Dafydd Jenkins hopes to help his country reach the same level as reigning champions Ireland.
“That’s where we want to be as a team,” said the 21-year-old Exeter lock, who is 13 years younger than Irish skipper Peter O’Mahony.
“Personally, I’ve seen where I want to get to as a player. I’m sure the rest of the team has as well.
“We’re going to push and work hard every day to make sure we get to that level.”
Robbie Henshaw insists Grand Slam-chasing Ireland must improve on a “scrappy” win over Wales in order to topple England at “cauldron” Twickenham.
Andy Farrell’s men kept themselves on course for successive Guinness Six Nations clean sweeps by registering a third consecutive bonus-point victory with Saturday’s 31-7 triumph in Dublin.
Ireland raced into a 17-0 half-time lead but then endured some nervy moments against Warren Gatland’s unfancied visitors before running out resounding victors.
The reigning champions have a fortnight’s break for fine tuning ahead of taking on Steve Borthwick’s side in south-west London on March 9.
“We knew Wales had nothing to lose and they threw the kitchen sink at us,” said Henshaw, who came off the bench in a 32-15 win away to England in the 2022 championship.
“The game itself was quite scrappy and we got momentum and it then stalled a bit.
“The fact we finished strong was a positive for us and it sets us up nicely for the next few weeks.
“Twickenham’s always a tricky place to go. It’s always that kind of cauldron environment.
“The last time we played there we had a good result but it’s going to be a tough game. We’ll have to get better again.”
Tries from Dan Sheehan, James Lowe, Ciaran Frawley and Tadhg Beirne, plus 11 points from the boot of Jack Crowley, were sufficient to comfortably dispatch Wales.
Ireland are now the only team yet to lose in this year’s tournament after England were beaten 30-21 in their Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland on Saturday evening.
The Scots are due to visit the Aviva Stadium on the final weekend.
Henshaw says Grand Slam talk will remain muted for the time being.
“It (back-to-back Grand Slams) is out there but we’re literally taking it game to game and training session to training session,” he said.
“Our next focus will be England and putting in a huge performance there.
“That (the Grand Slam) is in the background. We need to be looking at England and probably no further.”
Henshaw has played all-but 17 minutes of Ireland’s campaign so far on the back of a frustrating World Cup, severely hampered by injury.
The 30-year-old, who has partnered both Bundee Aki and Stuart McCloskey amid the injury absence of Garry Ringrose, is pleased to be back on track at Test level and feels midfield competition is fierce.
“Form comes with minutes you play and the more games you play, probably the better you will get,” he said.
“For me, the positive thing is just getting that run of games with Leinster and then into this campaign. It’s great to have back-to-back games and just building on it.
“Everyone who’s been playing this season has been on fire for their club.
“We’re blessed that we have such talent in the country that Stuart McCloskey last week stepped in and did an unbelievable job and Bundee’s been bringing his World Cup form through to this season.
“We’re in a great place with the talent we have and it’s great to see the performances being put on the pitch.”
On this day in 2009, Jason Robinson was appointed head coach of Premiership club Sale.
The former England back spent seven years as a player with the Sharks, captaining them to the Premiership title in 2006, before hanging up his boots after the 2007 World Cup final.
Prior to that, Robinson played nine years of rugby league before switching codes in 2000, where he played a key role in England’s 2003 World Cup victory.
The former Great Britain rugby league international joined Sale on a two-year deal and the club announced he would work beneath director of rugby Kingsley Jones, who described Robinson as a “proven 100 per cent winner”.
“It’s fantastic news for the club that Jason has agreed to join the coaching staff,” Jones said.
“It’s no coincidence that the three years that Jason was captain was the most successful in the club’s history.
“Jason has been a professional since the age of 16 and everything he has done in both codes he has been successful at.
“He is renowned for his enthusiasm and drive and is a proven 100 per cent winner.
“He also has great mentoring skills which will prove invaluable in his work with the senior and academy players at the club.”
Robinson spent just over a year in the role as head coach before he was replaced by ex-New Zealand All Blacks forward Mike Brewer.
Igor Shesterkin turned aside 39 shots and the New York Rangers held off the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 to tie a franchise record with their 10th straight victory on Saturday.
Alexis Lafreniere scored in the second period and Matt Rempe tallied the first of his NHL career to snap a third-period tie as the Rangers matched 10-game runs by the 1939-40 and 1972–73 teams. They can set the franchise record Sunday on the road against last-place Columbus.
New York, which hasn’t lost since Jan. 26, moved into a virtual tie with Boston for the Eastern Conference lead.
Tyson Foerster had the lone goal for the Flyers, who have lost three of four (0-2-1) after four consecutive wins.
Philadelphia played without leading scorer Travis Konecny, who sat out with an upper-body injury.
Streaking Maple Leafs score late to beat Avalanche
Tyler Bertuzzi scored his third goal of the game on a power play with 2:51 remaining and the Toronto Maple Leafs edged the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 for their seventh straight win.
Bertuzzi, playing on his 29th birthday, scored his first goal of the game with 6:18 left in the first period to pull the Leafs within 2-1 and tallied his second of the contest with 5:15 to play in the second to make it 2-2.
He completed his third career hat trick and first since Oct. 14, 2021, with Mikko Rantanen in the penalty box for sending the puck out of play.
The seven-game streak is Toronto’s longest since an eight-game run from Nov. 22-Dec. 6, 2003.
Rantanen had a goal and an assist and Nathan MacKinnon set up three scores for the Avalanche, who had a six-game home winning streak snapped.
MacKinnon has recorded at least one point in all 28 home games this season.
Canucks rally past Bruins for overtime win
Brock Boeser scored his second goal of the game on a power play in overtime to complete the Vancouver Canucks’ 3-2 comeback win over the Boston Bruins in a matchup of division leaders.
Boston took a 2-0 lead into the third period but Boeser scored with 7:11 remaining and Filip Hronek tied it with 71 seconds left.
J.T. Miller assisted on all three goals for the NHL-leading Canucks, who had lost a season-high four straight.
Jesper Boqvist and Danton Heninen had goals for the Bruins, who played past regulation in their fifth consecutive game. They are 2-0-3 during that span.
Jaylen Brown had 30 points and eight assists and Kristaps Porzingis added 22 points to lead the Boston Celtics to their eighth straight win, 116-102 over the New York Knicks on Saturday.
Jayson Tatum scored 19 points and Derrick White contributed 13 for the league-leading Celtics, winners of 10 of 11.
Jalen Brunson scored 34 points and Josh Hart was next with 16 for the Knicks, who were swept in the four-game season series by Boston.
Porzingis ignited a 10-0 run with a 3-pointer and Brown closed it with a layup to give the Celtics an 88-71 lead with 3:53 left in the third quarter.
New York got the deficit down to 99-90 with 9:17 to play, but the Celtics took advantage of three turnovers and six missed shots to go on a 10-0 run for a 19-point cushion.
Banchero’s last-second 3-point play lifts Magic
Paolo Benchero converted a 3-point play with 0.8 seconds remaining to snap a tie and give the Orlando Magic a 112-109 win over the Detroit Pistons.
Banchero made an 18-foot jumper and the ensuing free throw for the winning points before Cade Cunningham hit the rim on a 70-plus-foot shot at the buzzer.
Banchero finished with 15 points as each Orlando starter scored in double digits in the Magic’s third straight win.
Cunnigham led NBA-worst Detroit with 26 points.
Timberwolves pull away from reeling Nets
Anthony Edwards scored 11 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter and the Minnesota Timberwolves assumed sole possession of first place in the Western Conference with a 101-86 victory over the reeling Brooklyn Nets.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and nine rebounds as Minnesota bounced back from Friday’s loss to Milwaukee with its fifth win in six games.
Cam Thomas scored 18 points for Brooklyn, which fell to 0-2 under interim coach Kevin Ollie and dropped to 1-7 in its past eight games.
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