World Cup

Nienaber shrugs off World Cup spying fears

Jacques Nienaber shrugged off fears that rugby espionage was at play at the Rugby World Cup, with some teams worried they were being spied on.

Scotland's scrum-half Finn Russell attends the captain's run at Twickenham Stadium in London on February 3, 2023 on the eve of their Six Nations opening game against England.

Russell to pull Scottish strings against South Africa

Mercurial flyhalf Finn Russell will pull the strings for Scotland when they take on South Africa in Marseille on Sunday after coach Gregor Townsend named the matchday-23.

Taulupe Faletau on the run against Argentina in Cardiff

Wales get Faletau boost against Fiji

Veteran Taulupe Faletau has recovered from injury handing Wales a boost ahead of their tricky World Cup Pool C opener against Fiji on Sunday in Bordeaux.

South Africa's captain Siya Kolisi takes part in a captain's run at Twickenham Stadium, southwest of London, on August 24, 2023 on the eve of their 2023 World Cup warm-up rugby union match against New Zealand.

Kolisi’s Boks already in playoff mode

Siya Kolisi says the Springboks are relishing the challenge of getting their Rugby World Cup campaign off to a tough start with a “playoff game” against Scotland on Sunday.

Eddie starts World Cup mind games

Eddie Jones got the World Cup mind games underway with a cheeky dig at World Rugby and message to referee Luke Pearce ahead of the Wallabies opener against Georgia on Saturday.

Carter backing ‘hurt’ All Blacks for glory

Dan Carter believes the 2023 World Cup, which gets underway on Friday, will be the “closest” ever but says his New Zealand compatriots will use the “hurt” of 2019 to inspire them to victory.

Scrum coach Pieter de Villiers at training with Scotland

De Villiers lays foundation against Boks

When Scotland first scrums against the Springboks in their World Cup opener on Sunday, they will do so in confidence, propped up by two South Africans coached by Pieter De Villiers.