Williams forced to call it a day

Former Wales international Rhys Williams has been forced to retire from rugby with a serious knee injury.

Williams won 44 caps for Wales at full-back and wing and starred during the 2005 Six Nations rugby, scoring two tries against Scotland as Wales won their first Grand Slam for 27 years.

"I'm obviously massively disappointed but I hope in the future to look back on my rugby career and be proud of my achievements in the game," Williams said. "Rugby has been a huge part of my life and has given me many wonderful opportunities and memories."

He added: "I've been fortunate enough to see the world while playing the game I love and have met a lot of people and made many lifelong friends.

"To captain the Cardiff Blues during the 2005/06 season was a huge honour and I'm also proud that I've only ever played for my hometown of Cowbridge and for Cardiff and the Blues.

"I'm also very proud to have represented my country on 44 occasions.

I like to take people on and run from my own line and, if England do not agree with that style of rugby, I am not their man." England may not be playing well, but their two home matches in next year's Six Nations hospitalityare already sell-outs and all the hospitality for the first game, against Wales in February, have been taken. Australia and New Zealand are not so fortunate commercially and they will express their concerns about the stagnancy of the game on the field at this weekend's gathering of the International Rugby Board's general assembly in Dublin, followed by a meeting of the council.

"A new chapter in my life begins and I'm looking forward to gaining some experience in the business world."

Cardiff Blues director of rugby David Young added: "It is always a sad day when a player is forced to hang up his boots and even sadder when one of the genuine good guys is put in that position, which Rhys most certainly is.

"On the field his pace and elusive qualities were an integral part of his success and marked him out as a special performer with try-scoring abilities up there with the very best to have ever worn the shirt.

"On behalf of everyone at the Blues, I wish him every success following what has been a long, successful and distinguished playing career."

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Wales winger Shane Williams to take on England in Six Nations opener

Shane Williams is facing a desperate race to be fit in time for Wales’ Six Nations opener against England, while hooker Matthew Rees may be ruled out of the whole championship.

The 32-year-old Ospreys wing and former IRB Player of the Year was forced off with a hamstring injury during the first half of Saturday’s 33-12 defeat by Australia at the Millennium Stadium. On Monday night, the Wales management confirmed that he would be sidelined for four to six weeks, which could leave him in danger of missing the trip to Twickenham on February 6.

‘Shane has a grade two tear to his hamstring and will be out of action for four to six weeks undergoing treatment and rehab,’ said team physio Mark Davies.

The best-case scenario would see Williams return for his region’s crucial Heineken Cup clashes with Clermont Auvergne and Leicester in mid-January. But if he doesn’t play again until the end of the month, Wales coach Warren Gatland would have to decide whether to pitch him into the England game under-cooked.

Even more of a concern is Scarlets hooker Rees, who made such an impression during the Lions tour of South Africa in the summer. The 28-year-old left the Millennium Stadium pitch on a stretcher on Saturday and he is now facing the grim prospect of surgery on a groin tear.

I like to take people on and run from my own line and, if England do not agree with that style of rugby, I am not their man." England may not be playing well, but their two home matches in next year's Six Nations hospitalityare already sell-outs and all the hospitality for the first game, against Wales in February, have been taken. Australia and New Zealand are not so fortunate commercially and they will express their concerns about the stagnancy of the game on the field at this weekend's gathering of the International Rugby Board's general assembly in Dublin, followed by a meeting of the council.

There was better news of the other Welsh casualties. Captain Ryan Jones, who missed the match against the Wallabies because of back trouble, will be back in training with the Ospreys this week. Leigh Halfpenny has been allowed to join up with the Barbarians for their match against New Zealand on Saturday, although he is still having treatment for a dead leg.

The end of the autumn series led to another reshuffle of the IRB world rankings yesterday and Ireland’s status as Europe’s premier team was confirmed by a one-place rise to No 4, behind the big three southern hemisphere nations.

England had last weekend off and managed to climb back up to sixth position, courtesy of Wales’ slump to eighth on the back of their heavy home defeat. Martin Johnson quipped recently that he spends ‘about 0.03 per cent’ of his time thinking about the rankings, but in light of his team’s problems last month, the Red Rose manager should welcome this news as an unexpected bonus.

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Former Australia lock Justin Harrison, who resigned from Bath at the end of last season and admitted to recreational drug use, has signed for the ACT Brumbies. The 35-year-old is currently serving an eight-month ban for ‘actions which are prejudicial to the interests of the game’, but he will be free to play for the Canberra-based franchise - where his professional career began - from January 13.

Former Wales international Rhys Williams has been forced to retire from rugby with a serious knee injury. Williams won 44 caps for Wales at full back and wing and starred during the 2005 Six Nations rugby as Wales won their first Grand Slam for 27 years. The 29-year-old said: ‘I’m obviously massively disappointed but I hope in the future to look back on my rugby career and be proud of my achievements in the game.’

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Ospreys lose Shane Williams until next year

Ospreys winger Shane will not be able to play rugby again until the New Year after he tore a hamstring during Wales heavy defeat to Australia on Saturday.

The Wales winger is expected to recover in time to play for his country in the Six Nations rugby but will spend Christmas and the New Year with on the sidelines as he has been told that it will take between four and six weeks to regain full fitness.

 A medical report issued on Monday said that Williams would not need surgery.

The loss of Williams is a blow for the Ospreys ahead of their busy festive schedule, and the Ospreys will be particularly concerned about the final two Heineken Cup pool games against Leicester Tigers and Clermont-Auvergne in the second and third weeks of January.

The news is also a concern for Gatland because if Williams does regain his fitness for the Six Nations rugby he will start the tournament against England at Twickenham will little game time under his belt which will be a worry for Warren Gatland.

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Wales' other concerns hooker Matthew Rees and Mike Phillips.

Rees has torn a groin muscle and Mike Phillips also likely to miss the first half of the Six Nations championship.

The news is not so glum for Lee Byrne and Adam Jones who are both expected to be back in good time for the Six Nations rugby.

Jones has been out with a shoulder injury but could return to playing rugby in the Heineken Cup for the Ospreys match with Viadana on December the 19th.

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IRB to keep controversial tackle ruling

The IRB council meets in Dublin, where the Rugby Football Union, among others, will raise the issue of clarifying the tackle law which was passed at the council meeting in July. This states that the tackler is allowed to play the ball from any direction if he is on his feet, increasing the risk of the attacking team losing possession in dangerous areas.

However, there is a strong feeling within the game's governing body that to ditch the ruling would be viewed as a knee-jerk reaction that could lead to more unforeseen problems.

I like to take peop IRB to keep controversial tackle ruling

The IRB council meets in Dublin, where the Rugby Football Union, among others, will raise the issue of clarifying the tackle law which was passed at the council meeting in July. This states that the tackler is allowed to play the ball from any direction if he is on his feet, increasing the risk of the attacking team losing possession in dangerous areas.

However, there is a strong feeling within the game's governing body that to ditch the ruling would be viewed as a knee-jerk reaction that could lead to more unforeseen problems.

I like to take people on and run from my own line and, if England do not agree with that style of rugby, I am not their man." England may not be playing well, but their two home matches in next year's Six Nations hospitalityare already sell-outs and all the hospitality for the first game, against Wales in February, have been taken. Australia and New Zealand are not so fortunate commercially and they will express their concerns about the stagnancy of the game on the field at this weekend's gathering of the International Rugby Board's general assembly in Dublin, followed by a meeting of the council.

Given the complexities of the factors influencing the breakdown, and anecdotal claims that the new ruling is responsible for the sharp increase in injuries, the most likely outcome today is that the 26-man council will endorse a worldwide review of the breakdown to provide statistical evidence for analysis before a decision can be made.

Match commissioner Douglas Hunter has decided not to cite Ireland's Jamie Heaslip despite a request from South Africa to investigate claims that the No 8 had stuck a finger into Heinrich Brussow's eye in the Dublin Test.

Lions hooker Matthew Rees faces a race to be fit for Wales' Six Nations opener against England at Twickenham on Feb 6. He has been ruled out for at least three months after suffering a groin tear in Wales' defeat by Australia.

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Shane Williams, Rees's colleague, will miss the Ospreys' final four Heineken Cup matches after tearing a hamstring in the same match. The Wales and Lions wing will be out for six weeks.

Justin Harrison, the former Bath and Australia lock who is serving an eight-month ban for three drug-related offences, is to resurrect his career with ACT Brumbies.

Harrison, whose ban expires on Jan 13, has begun training with the Brumbies, having been signed by his former club ahead of their Super 14 campaign, which begins next February.

It will be a remarkable return for the 35 year-old, who announced his retirement when he admitted taking cocaine during Bath's end-of-season party in London and failing to submit to a drugs test.

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England's blunt attacking edge needs honing from the top down

It has been a long six years since England lifted the World Cup. Over the past fortnight that momentous night in Sydney has felt increasingly distant, flickering in the memory like an old Pathe newsreel. Even Martin Johnson is beginning to sound like a hard-pressed politician, claiming signs of progress despite the contradictory evidence. "Maybe it doesn't seem so to some people but we are making strides." As with the supposed economic recovery, it depends on whom you talk to.

Johnson, of course, will for ever remain in credit on English rugby's swingometer, regardless of what lies ahead. Respect for his achievements as a player, even so, cannot obscure fault lines which urgently need addressing. Do the management, not to mention the Rugby Football Union hierarchy, truly believe England are looking good for the 2010 Six Nations rugby and beyond? On the evidence of the autumn, even taking injuries into account, Johnson's inner cabinet are no closer to stockpiling trophies than they were 18 months ago.

Although New Zealand's defence is as tight as any – they have not conceded a try in Cardiff, Milan or London – England's meagre tally of one try in 240 minutes of rugby also tells a story. Attack-wise, they remain about as fluent as an inexperienced pianist with frostbitten fingers. Their autumn campaign, in the end, yielded two try-less defeats and a truly dire victory over the Pumas. England, to be blunt, have looked a mediocre team under worthy but unenlightened management.

I like to take people on and run from my own line and, if England do not agree with that style of rugby, I am not their man." England may not be playing well, but their two home matches in next year's Six Nations hospitality are already sell-outs and all the hospitality for the first game, against Wales in February, have been taken. Australia and New Zealand are not so fortunate commercially and they will express their concerns about the stagnancy of the game on the field at this weekend's gathering of the International Rugby Board's general assembly in Dublin, followed by a meeting of the council.

The fixture list, for a start, is unforgiving. Three stamina-sapping away games await in the Six Nations, two of them against improving Scotland v France, while Wales v Ireland will both fancy their chances in south-west London. Two summer Tests in Australia will be followed by a punishing autumn schedule against South Africa, Samoa, Australia and New Zealand. Kill or cure is the phrase that comes to mind.

The bottom line, though, is clear enough. England under Johnson in 2009 played 10 Tests, winning five and losing five. They have been beaten in their last eight games against New Zealand and their last six against South Africa. In five contests against Tri Nations sides at home soil in the past 12 months, the men in white have scored a princely total of one try. This lack of cutting edge meant New Zealand could splutter and still win comfortably, with Carter missing two kickable penalties and a couple of tries going begging prior to Jimmy Cowan's neatly worked 57th-minute effort.

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Toby Flood makes instant impact on Leicester return

It is easy to forget, in all the hullabaloo that has accompanied England’s tortuous progress in the autumn internationals, that the team who finished second in last season’s RBS Six Nations rugby Championship were very different from the sides fielded this month.

Toby Flood, for instance, wore the England No 10 shirt in their last three Six Nations outings — the single-point defeat in Ireland to the eventual grand-slam winners and the crushing wins over France and Scotland.

On Saturday the 24-year-old, who grew up in Jonny Wilkinson’s shadow at Newcastle Falcons but will re-emerge as a threat to Wilkinson for the 2010 Six Nations rugby, made his first start since a six-month layoff for a ruptured Achilles tendon.

“I have always been excited about coming back at such a crucial stage of the season for Leicester, both in the Premiership and the Heineken Cup,” Flood said. “I didn’t let missing the autumn internationals frustrate me because I always knew I was not going to be fit for them.”

“It was nice to get out there again for my first full game back today, after two previous games coming off the replacements’ bench, and although it took a little while to get my head around all the different calls again it went well and I enjoyed it.

I like to take people on and run from my own line and, if England do not agree with that style of rugby, I am not their man." England may not be playing well, but their two home matches in next year's Six Nations hospitalityare already sell-outs and all the hospitality for the first game, against Wales in February, have been taken. Australia and New Zealand are not so fortunate commercially and they will express their concerns about the stagnancy of the game on the field at this weekend's gathering of the International Rugby Board's general assembly in Dublin, followed by a meeting of the council.

“The offload to Jordan, which led to our second try, was especially pleasing because it showed that my rugby instincts are still there. That was definitely a case of seeing something in front of me, and going with it. It wasn’t a planned move.

“It is a schedule of games which is crucial to our season on both fronts, as Lewis Moody underlined to the squad when he spoke to us all in midweek following his return from England duty, and I’m delighted to be back in time to play my part in it.”

Moody was in rollicking form throughout, despite a ten-minute spell in the sin-bin during the first half, when he was penalised for killing the ball. His try near the end — a 40-metre sprint for the line after Scott Mathie had spilt the ball in the tackle — was both a fitting reward for his industry and for his uncanny ability to be first to the loose ball.

Leicester’s first try was awarded to them by the referee, after Leeds offended again at a five-metre scrum, and Brett Deacon — on for Tom Croft, whose knee injury is not thought to be serious — was driven over near the posts.

Alesana Tuilagi, another back from a lengthy injury lay-off, came off the bench to set up Flood’s try with a typically powerful incision into the opposition ranks.

Leeds lost Ceiron Thomas, the fly-half, to a leg injury suffered in the warm-ups, but his replacement, 19-year old Joe Ford, coped extremely well with a testing Premiership debut and kicked two nerveless goals to give his team, albeit briefly, a hard-won first half lead.

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England flanker Joe Worsley's injury puts him in doubt for start of Six Nations

The Wasps player, who suffered knee ligament damage in the first minute of England's defeat to New Zealand, will see a surgeon to discuss the best way of dealing with the injury but his rehabilitation is likely to take at least eight weeks even if he does not have an operation. England open their Six Nations campaign against Wales at Twickenham on Feb 6.

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Worsley's England team-mate, Mark Cueto, has signed a four-year deal with Sale. It will make the 29-year-old 2005 Lions wing the longest serving player in Sale's professional history.

I like to take people on and run from my own line and, if England do not agree with that style of rugby, I am not their man." England may not be playing well, but their two home matches in next year's Six Nations hospitalityare already sell-outs and all the hospitality for the first game, against Wales in February, have been taken. Australia and New Zealand are not so fortunate commercially and they will express their concerns about the stagnancy of the game on the field at this weekend's gathering of the International Rugby Board's general assembly in Dublin, followed by a meeting of the council.

Argentina have made six changes to their starting XV to face Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday. The Pumas have drafted in Leicester prop Marcos Ayerza for Rodrigo Roncero, Alberto Vernet Basualdo for Mario Ledesma at hooker, Manuel Carizza for Mariano Sambucetti at lock and Alejandro Campos for Tomas Leonardi at flanker.

They have also recalled London Irish scrum-half Alfredo Lalanne for Agustin Figuerola, while Federico Martin Aramburu has come in for Mauro Comuzzi on the wing.

Injury-struck South Africa have called up Munster centre Jean de Villiers ahead of their Test against Ireland on Saturday to replace Adi Jacobs, who has been ruled out with an ankle injury.

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