What better way to celebrate the #IrishPresidentalElection result than by watching #Munster versus #Connacht in the #UnitedRugbyChampionship?

WRU expected to announce plan to cut to three professional sides by 2028

Four regions safe for now

Reports suggest the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) will confirm its long‑term strategy in the coming days, following months of consultation and debate.

The governing body is understood to favour a three‑team model, with one side in the east, one central and one in the west. That would mean Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets continue for now, but one region could be lost before the end of the current United Rugby Championship (URC) cycle in 2028.

From four options to one

Back in August, the WRU put forward four possible futures for the professional game. Two involved cutting to three teams, one with equal funding and one with unequal. Another suggested halving to two sides – described as the “optimal system” – while the fourth kept four teams but with a financial reshuffle.

The two‑team option provoked fierce opposition from players, supporters and politicians, with more than 7,000 people responding to a public survey. Wales captain Jac Morgan warned he would leave the domestic game if Ospreys were axed.

Stakeholder pressure

It is also understood that tournament organisers were reluctant to see an immediate reduction, with the URC keen to maintain four Welsh teams alongside its Irish, Scottish, Italian and South African participants.

The WRU’s current URC commitments run until the end of the 2027‑28 season, meaning any change would align with the next league cycle.

What happens next

While no official statement has yet been published by the WRU, reports indicate the governing body will announce its decision before the end of October.

If confirmed, the plan would provide short‑term stability for all four regions but leave the longer‑term future of professional rugby in Wales uncertain.

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#Consultation #Ospreys #Rugby #Scarlets #UnitedRugbyChampionship #WalesRugby #WalesRugbyRegions #WelshRugby #WelshRugbyUnion #WRU

5 takeaways as Ireland snub stars versus Bok-laden hosts

Following Ulster’s 34-26 victory over the Sharks in Durban, here are our five takeaways from the United Rugby…
#NewsBeep #News #Headlines #Homepage #IE #Ireland #Sharks #Ulster #UnitedRugbyChampionship
https://www.newsbeep.com/193990/

#Leinster 14 #Munster 31 Well played Munster! But what has happened to Leinster this season? #URC #LEIvMUN #UnitedRugbyChampionship

Connacht bag bonus points but denied win against the Bulls – The Irish Times

URC: Connacht 27 Bulls 28 Sean Naughton narrowly missed a late conversion and the chance to snatch victory…
#NewsBeep #News #Headlines #connacht-rugby #IE #Ireland #MatchReport #UnitedRugbyChampionship
https://www.newsbeep.com/193462/

Five takeaways as Ireland quartet ‘catch the eye’

Following a 28-7 victory for Ulster over the Bulls in the United Rugby Championship (URC), here’s our five…
#NewsBeep #News #Headlines #Bulls #Features #Homepage #IE #Ireland #Ulster #UnitedRugbyChampionship
https://www.newsbeep.com/180425/

Ospreys blank Zebre in Bridgend to claim first URC win of the season

The region had opened with two defeats in South Africa, but tries from centre Phil Cokanasiga, number eight Morgan Morse and lock James Ratti, plus nine points from the boot of Wales fly-half Dan Edwards, secured a first win in front of a 4,519 crowd in Bridgend.

Fast start

After flanker Harri Deaves had led the side out on his 50th appearance, the Ospreys started confidently with Cokanasiga dummying his way over the try line after 15 minutes, finishing off a break from midfield partner Keiran Williams.

Moments later, Ospreys struck again from a stolen Zebre lineout. Ross Moriarty carried strongly down the left before Williams’ offload released 20‑year‑old Morse, who showed his pace to race clear for a second score.

Edwards converted both for a 14-0 lead, but Ospreys lost scrum‑half Kieran Hardy to a wrist injury before the break — a concern for new Wales coach Steve Tandy, watching from the stands.

Second half frustration

The Italians of Zebre, who had won their opening two games, offered little in attack but frustrated Ospreys after the restart.

A knock‑on denied Williams a try created by full‑back Jack Walsh, while replacement back Tom Florence failed to give a walk‑in pass to Reuben Morgan‑Williams.

Edwards stretched the lead with a penalty on 58 minutes before the versatile Ratti, switched to the back row, powered over with six minutes left. Edwards’ third conversion sealed the 24–0 scoreline, but further chances for a fourth try went begging.

Reaction and context

The result ended a run of four straight league defeats stretching back to April for Mark Jones’ side and marked a proud moment for Bridgend‑born captain Dewi Lake, who skippered the side at their temporary home.

Zebre’s miserable record in Wales continued — now 39 defeats in 41 visits — while Ospreys move on to face Glasgow Warriors next weekend. Zebre host unbeaten Stormers.

Teams

Ospreys XV:

Walsh, Kasende, P Cokanasiga, K Williams, Giles; Edwards, Hardy; G Thomas, Lake (captain), Botha, Ratti, Sutton, Moriarty, Deaves, Morse.

Replacements:

L Lloyd, Phillips, Warren, R Davies, Fender, Morgan‑Williams, Florence, Hopkins.

Zebre XV:

Montemauri, Pani, Zanon, Lucchin, Gesi; Farias, Dominguez; Buonfiglio (captain), Ribaldi, Nocera, Canali, Ortombina, Volpi, Bianchi, Ruggeri.

Replacements:

Quattrini, Hasa, Pitinari, Carrera, Locatelli, Varotto, Morisi, M Belloni.

Referee: Eoghan Cross (IRFU) Assistants: Ben Connor (WRU), Aaron Parry (WRU) TMO: Leo Colgan (IRFU)

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#BreweryField #Bridgend #DanEdwards #DewiLake #Italy #JackWalsh #JamesRatti #KeiranWilliams #KieranHardy #MorganMorse #Ospreys #PhilCokanasiga #ReubenMorganWilliams #RossMoriarty #Rugby #SteveTandy #TomFlorence #UnitedRugbyChampionship #URC #WRU #Zebre

Lots of errors and yellow cards but #Munster versus #Edinburgh was fun to watch and had an exciting ending. It finished 20-19 but would have been more comfortable had Munster not missed 4 conversions. #URC #Unitedrugbychampionship

I have to say #Benetton is a very dirty team. #UnitedRugbyChampionship #CONBEN

RE: https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:c7wc5k55ulsrppsfvsgaojge/post/3lztneg622k2b

Settling down to watch Connacht versus Ben Elton in the #UnitedRugbyChampionship.

Terrible first game of the #URC for #Leinster: 30-0 down against #Stormers - and have to play the last 10 minutes with only 13 men. #UnitedRugbyChampionship

Dan Sheehan cops heftier ban after rejecting foul play occurred

Dan Sheehan has learnt his suspension fate after being cited for his clear-out on Tom Lynagh in the…
#NewsBeep #News #Headlines #Australia #BritishandIrishLions #DanSheehan #Homepage #IE #Internationals #Ireland #leinster #UnitedRugbyChampionship
https://www.newsbeep.com/39007/

Leinster – 2025 United Rugby Champions!

The 2024/5 United Rugby Championship ended today with a convincing win by Leinster over the South African team Vodacom Bulls (who are based in Pretoria). The game was played this evening in torrential rain at Croke Park; Leinster emerged victorious in the inclement conditions by 32-7.

Leinster have had a habit of being front-runners in the league part of this competition, only to fall in the knockout stages. I was a bit concerned that this year might follow the same pattern, as the Bulls have had considerable success agains Leinster over the years and Leinster failed to perform against Northampton in the European Champions Cup in a game they were expected to win. It was also a blow that one of their best players, scrum-half Jameson Gibson-Park was withdrawn from the squad this morning owing to injury. In the end, however, it wasn’t even a very close game, Leinster’s defence proving so solid that the Bulls could penetrate it only once.

The last time Leinster won the United Rugby Championship – way back in 2021 – it wasn’t even called the United Rugby Championship: it was called the Pro14, although two teams were not able to play that year because of Covid-19 restrictions so there were only 12 teams in it. The incorporation of four South African teams (Bulls, Stormers, Sharks and Lions) increased the number of teams to 16 and made it a much more difficult competition. I still think it is too long, though. The games featuring the Irish teams in this competition (Leinster, Munster, Connacht and Ulster) are broadcast free-to-air on television here and I watch quite a few of them. There are 16 teams in this competition, divided into four pools of four: each side plays the 15 others once, and an additional game against the other three in their pool, meaning 18 games per team. After 18 rounds, all that happens is that the bottom eight in the league table are eliminated and the top eight go into the knockout stage. Eighteen games is a long slog when all it does is eliminate half the teams, and it means that there’s much less at stake in individual matches. Still, now the Six Nations is over I’ll be watching the URC for the rest of the season, starting next weekend.

#Leinster #Pro14 #UnitedRugbyChampionship #URC

Well played #Leinster, #URC Champions! It wasn't even close. #UnitedRugbyChampionship #LEIvBUL

Six Nations Rugby

Yesterday I watched the last round of matches in this years Six Nations rugby Championship so, as I did last year, I thought I would do a quick summary of the games and the competition as a whole.

In the first game yesterday, thanks largely to their own errors, Ireland struggled to beat a spirited Italian side in Rome 17-22. That put them briefly top of the table, but with fewer bonus points and a worse points difference than either England or France so needed both those teams to lose in order to win the Championship. Hope of that happening vanished quickly when England scored a try about 2 minutes into their game against Wales in Cardiff, quickly followed by another. England thereafter ran riot and won 68-14 taking them to the top. England did play well, but Wales were very poor. To be honest, I found the game a bit painful to watch. If it had been boxing the referee would have stopped the fight. Memories of the great Welsh teams of the past are very distant nowadays. It’s hard to see where they go from here, with their second successive Wooden Spoon.

Then it was time for the finale, France versus Scotland. I did think that France would win easily but Scotland gave it a good go, and were unlucky not to take a lead into half-time. They wilted in the second half, however, and France duly picked up a bonus point win and the Championship. They are worthy winners, and all credit to them.

(The atmosphere at the Stade de France last night was so raucous that I had difficulty hearing the commentators over the crowd noise. I find commentators rarely add much to the experience, so this isn’t a complaint. In fact, I think it would be good if TV broadcasts allowed the viewer to turn off the commentary but keep the sounds from the stadium.)

The only game France lost was against England on a rainy day at Twickenham on 8th February, a game I watched. France should really have won that game but made a ludicrous number of mistakes and lost by a single point at the death. But for that Les Bleus would have had a Grand Slam. Fair play to England for hanging on and showing great resilience. After an unconvincing start as the competition went on they got better and better, though they needed a slice of luck to beat Scotland 16-15 as Finn Russell missed a conversion that would have won the game.

Up until last week the only team able to do a Grand Slam was Ireland, but they were outplayed in Dublin by France who won 42-27. Sports journalists have a habit of seeing everything as either a triumph or a disaster, and the Irish media portrayed that as the latter. The way I see it is that Ireland’s rugby team reached a high-water mark with their Grand Slam two years ago since when a number of important players have retired. It’s been a time for reconstruction and rebuilding. This is the way of things. I remember Ireland beating France comfortably last season, but France came back strongly this year. At least Ireland collected another Triple Crown, beating England, Wales and Scotland.

After last night’s game I was reflecting on why I enjoy the Six Nations so much. I think it’s mainly because there are relatively few games so each one takes on a significance, either in the context of the Championship or because it represents a longstanding rivalry (e.g. the Calcutta Cup). The point is that there is real jeopardy attached to many of the games. Contrast this with the United Rugby Championship. The games featuring the Irish teams in this competition (Leinster, Munster, Connacht and Ulster) are broadcast free-to-air on television here and I watch quite a few of them. There are 16 teams in this competition, divided into four pools of four: each side plays the 15 others once, and an additional game against the other three in their pool, meaning 18 games per team. After 18 rounds, all that happens is that the bottom eight in the league table are eliminated and the top eight go into the knockout stage. Eighteen games is a long slog when all it does is eliminate half the teams, and it means that there’s much less at stake in individual matches. Still, now the Six Nations is over I’ll be watching the URC for the rest of the season, starting next weekend.

#England #France #ireland #Italy #Scotland #SixNations2025 #UnitedRugbyChampionship #URC #Wales

Nu har vi sett Leinster rugby vinna sin match mot Stormers och nu hoppas jag att Munster vinner sin match mot Dragons! Mumhan abú! #unitedrugbychampionship

Ospreys coach Booth leaves region

Mark Jones will take charge of first-team affairs for Saturday’s encounter.

The former London Irish boss spent four-and-a-half seasons with the Ospreys, reaching the URC play-offs last season where they crashed out in the quarter-finals to Munster.

Ospreys announced in September Booth would be leaving at the end of the 2024-25 season with defence coach Jones promoted to the top job.

The Welsh side, led by chief executive Lance Bradley, championed their succession planning with Booth in charge for a season before his departure but the change has now been made six months earlier than anticipated.

Ospreys have only managed three wins in nine matches this season and have slipped to 14th in the URC table, while Booth’s side suffered a record European 59-15 defeat in the Challenge Cup away against Montpellier last Saturday.

After hosting Scarlets, Ospreys travel to play Cardiff on New Year’s Day with further European fixtures against Newcastle and Pau in January.

Ospreys flanker Justin Tipuric is likely to continue playing this season before retiring and taking over as defence coach for the 2025-26 season.

An Ospreys statement read:

“Ospreys Rugby can confirm Toby Booth has departed from his role as head coach with immediate effect.

“Toby joined the Ospreys as head coach in 2020. During his tenure, he led the team to significant achievements, including winning the URC Welsh Shield in both the 2021-22 and 2023-24 seasons. He also guided the Ospreys to the EPCR Challenge Cup quarter-finals and the URC play-offs in the 2023-24 season.

“Ospreys would like to thank Toby for his commitment and contributions to the club during his time in charge and wish him all the best in his future endeavours.

“Mark Jones will assume the role of head coach with immediate effect, supported by the current coaching staff and management.”

[Lead image: Ospreys Rugby]

#MarkJones #Ospreys #TobyBooth #UnitedRugbyChampionship

Gavin Griffiths Group will also have visibility around Parc y Scarlets with advertising and LED boards, whilst the club say the groups logo will appear across social media channels, the Scarlets website and the match-day programme. The group will also be the player sponsor of Wales and British & Irish Lions scrum-half Gareth Davies.

Established in 2005, the award-winning, family-run company offers a diverse range of services to the commercial, industrial and public sectors, including waste management solutions, recycling services, plant hire, aggregate supplies, bulk waste haulage and specialist remediation services.

As part of the partnership, Gavin Griffiths Group will become the official waste and recycling partner, cementing their commitment to sustainability when it comes to waste recycling.

Welcoming Gavin Griffiths Group to the Scarlets commercial family, Head of Commercial Garan Evans said:

“We are thrilled that Gavin Griffiths Group will be supporting the club as our title sponsor on the front of the jerseys for the coming season.

“They are a company based in South Wales with strong links to the community and are a big supporter of local projects and grassroots sports across the region.

“Those family and community values very much align with us here at the Scarlets and we are excited to be working with Gavin and the team on a number of initiatives for our  supporters and partners over the coming months.

“The boys will be wearing the new shirt for our match in Leicester on Saturday and we can’t wait to welcome Gavin, Kate and the team to Parc y Scarlets later this month for our opening home URC match against Cardiff.”

Managing Director Gavin Griffiths said:

“We couldn’t be prouder or more excited to support Scarlets this season as the official shirt sponsor. As a Carmarthenshire business, we take great pride in supporting local communities and grassroots sports teams.

Having the opportunity to now support Carmarthenshire’s biggest team is a huge honour and we’re looking forward to aligning our Red and White Army with the Scarlets’ passionate fan base.

“As well as sponsoring the Scarlets’ jersey this season, we can’t wait to put the hard graft in through becoming the team’s official waste and recycling partner. We are committed to minimising waste to landfill and contributing to the circular economy and it’s great to see our values aligning with the Scarlets. We’re looking forward to a successful season ahead.”

[Lead image: Riley Sports Photography]

https://swanseabaynews.com/2024/09/05/gavin-griffiths-group-to-be-scarlets-front-of-shirt-partner-for-2024-25-season/

#GavinGriffithsRecycling #Scarlets #UnitedRugbyChampionship

The following hashtags are trending across South African Mastodon instances:

#rugby
#wine
#bulls
#unitedrugbychampionship
#springboks

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