Six Nations 2024: Leaders and rising stars as a new era begins Rugby Union News

Usually, the best rugby players in the world only gather in one place every four years when the Rugby World Cup tournament begins, but as the international rugby season is underway, it’s good time to get them together. The former captain Nayacalevu noted that this issue had a mental effect on the players. When preparing for the big games, the team wanted their minds to be focused on that game, rather than underlying pay disputes. They also expected transparency from FRU and everything to run smoothly, noting that this is not an issue that should be experienced in international rugby. Dragons wing Rio Dyer is proving himself to be a favourite with Wales head coach Warren Garland, and it’s not hard to see why, when he plays every game like it could be his last. He’s beaten 12 defenders so far, level with Ben Earl (who some pundits have even suggested should be played at centre).

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Like his clubmate, Costelow, Ioan Lloyd possesses a strong running game and a clever short- to mid-range kicking game that could work a treat with the dangerous Welsh backs. The 2024 Six Nations brings with it more change than just about any of the previous ten editions of rugby’s oldest international tournament. Over the past two seasons, when Papenhuyzen was cast into injury hell, when Munster and Grant grappled with the ravages of rep football and struggled for club consistency, it has been Hughes who bore the weight. Cronk arrived at the Storm as a true utility and player five-eighth, hooker and lock.

• Singled out as one to watch by Italy great Sergio Parisse, the uncapped Izekor is a colossus of a back row who stands 6’5” tall and weighs well over 17 stones.
• Dragons wing Rio Dyer is proving himself to be a favourite with Wales head coach Warren Garland, and it’s not hard to see why, when he plays every game like it could be his last.
• The current line-up is missing many of the team’s biggest names, with Leigh Halfpenny, Dan Biggar, Alun Wyn Jones and Justin Tipuric retiring in the last 12 months.
• Woods, along with fellow retirees, will be celebrated on grand final day.
• Wing Duhan van der Merwe is lethal with ball in hand and some space.

Six Nations 2024: A guide to the teams and top players at rugby union’s big tournament

My guy this has to be one of the most embarrassing comments threads I have ever seen. Close to the end of this I realised I was wincing while reading your rants. Clearly you don’t have the ability to feel shame, but dude know I feel sad for you. That celebration concludes today with the announcement of world’s top 10 players in test rugby from throughout 2021.

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Now that the 2024 squads have been announced, here are the Six Nations players to watch from each team. The winger is so often Ireland’s trump card when one is required, and his seven line breaks are the most in the Championship this year. A quasi backrow-cum-center in the front row, Toulouse star Mauvaka is a new hooker who would slot into any team in world rugby. He reportedly earns $1.2 million as a key position player in sparking attacks. The high-profile Englishman had spent his entire career at Saracens in the English Premiership. Rating every Springboks player from their title-winning Rugby Championship campaign.

Hookers

Born in France, Capuozzo qualified for Italy through his paternal grandparents. He made his international debut at the 2022 tournament, where he scored a brace against Scotland. In the next game, he set up Edoardo Padovani’s winning try against Wales. Every year, the Six Nations showcases some of rugby union’s greatest players.

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His kicking game, especially his positional kicking, has improved out of sight. His versatility as a playmaker, like his ability to act as a first receiver, second receiver or sweep runner, makes him dangerous anywhere and everywhere. Melbourne Storm halfback Jahrome Hughes beats James Tedesco to the NRL Dally M Medal by one vote, while Roosters back rower Olivia Kernick is named the NRLW’s best player. Note that the “position” column lists the position at which the player made his Test debut, not necessarily the position for which he is best known. For example, Jonny Wilkinson made his Test debut off the bench as a Wing, but is more famous as a Fly-half.

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• What was most remarkable was how, despite rotating and changing the team almost weekly, their efficiency remained incredibly high.
• Samoan rugby is in shock after head coach and former Scarlets hooker Mahonri Schwalger was, according to local reports, charged with “multiple serious offences”, including “sexual conduct with a person under 16“.
• He was not a halfback until he was and once he was he willed himself into being one of the best of all time.
• It took until the very last play to secure their win, when Alex Sedrick stiff-armed her way past Australia’s defense and ended up converting her own kick — and she’s not a kicker.
• Check out more of our Sport coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what’s on.
• Most noteworthy is loosehead prop Alec Hepburn, who earned six caps for England in 2018.
• “It’s such a rollercoaster of emotions,” rugby player Stephanie Rovetti said.
• As well as regularly appearing for Harlequins in 2023, he crossed the line during England’s win against Scotland at the U20 Six Nations.
• The winger is so often Ireland’s trump card when one is required, and his seven line breaks are the most in the Championship this year.

We run through their team, rating each player out of a possible 10. Singled out as one to watch by Italy great Sergio Parisse, the uncapped Izekor is a colossus of a back row who stands 6’5 tall and weighs well over 17 stones. A force on both sides of the ball, the 23-year-old will be looking to transfer his impressive form for Benetton onto the Test arena. Owen Farrell’s absence presents an important moment to one of the brightest talents in English rugby, who should now be given an extended run at fly-half. Smith shows an instinct for attack and courage to play beyond any of his rivals for the jersey, but he must also prove he can guide England through choppier waters.

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As a result, several of the sport’s finest have cemented their reputation at the tournament. This includes rugby legends like Jonny Wilkinson, Alun Wyn Jones and Ronan O’Gara, whose names remain synonymous with the championship. Very few players, if any, throughout the world of rugby exude leadership, passion and dedication like Michael Hooper does whenever he plays for the Wallabies.

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From there, the cumulative lists were averaged out to create the RugbyPass Top 100, an overall list of the 100 best players on the planet based primarily on test rugby performances in 2021. In doing so, five members from our editorial team – split between the northern and southern hemispheres – compiled their own lists of the top 100 players on the planet. With the eyes of the sport turning from the recently ended United Rugby Championship, Top 14 and Super Rugby seasons, it’s time to look at who the best players in the world are in 2024.

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He was a good footballer though, fast and tough and smart and brave, the kind of player who could play anywhere and find a way to do a good job of it, and that was more than enough. Plus Brodie Croft wasn’t really working at halfback and because Craig Bellamy is Craig Bellamy and he very rarely misses an opportunity, he got Hughes feeding the scrums a few weeks before the 2019 finals series began. Slater retired at the end of 2018, Drinkwater won his job in the next pre-season only to be injured in the final trial and Hughes assumed the role. Nathan Cleary, whose head-to-head battle with Hughes is the best individual showdown the grand final has to offer, thought so. The voting body is made up of a select group of ex-players only we don’t know which ones anymore because their names aren’t made public anymore, which was supposed to increase the integrity of the votes somehow. 6 – Alex Mann – 6.5Scored his Test second try after as many matches thanks to lovely supporting run for Williams after Tommy Reffell bust through a gap.

“In that circumstance you’ve got to realise it’s going to be different, there’s going to be some hardships, there’s going to be some good times but there’s a lot of people there to support you. “For some players it could be out of the blue and for other players they could be preparing for it … Levani Botia said that during his entire decade of playing Fiji, these behaviours exhibited by FRU were common. Far and away the most experienced option on this list, the 91 times capped George Ford likely would have been in a shootout with Farrell for the 10 shirt, had the England captain not stepped down. The biggest obstacle he is facing is a lack of consistent game time in the 10 shirt for Leinster, which has both Byrne brothers (Harry and Ross), as well as the next man on this list, Sam Prendergast. Working alongside fellow international Craig Casey in the Munster halfbacks is another feather in the cap of the man who looks set to be the first choice for the foreseeable future.

ESPN surveyed league executives, coaches and scouts to help us rank the top 10 players at 11 different positions, from quarterback to cornerback and all positions in between. This was the fifth edition of these rankings, and as usual, several players moved up or fell off last year’s lists. We got ex-England captain Chris Robshaw to speak about leadership, where he explained all the different leaders and captains in a rugby squad. The former back-rower picked out Ireland skipper Peter O’Mahony, who led his country to another Six Nations title in 2024. Russell is “a fly-half known for his attacking instincts”, said Rugby World. He can produce a host of “kicks, flicks and tricks to create try-scoring opportunities for himself and his team-mates”.

The Six Nations tournament rules

This will, of course, not be the role he wants to occupy long term, and he likely will push Crowley, if given an opportunity. The following players have received the Gallagher Premiership Player of the Month award during the 2024–25 season, as selected by a panel of media commentators, in addition to monthly public polls. Through sheer dedication, he mastered the fabric of rugby league on a technical level, bending by that iron will into the shape he required for his team to win.

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Previous captain Owen Farrell is unavailable, saying he wants to “prioritise his mental wellbeing”, so Jamie George takes over the role, leading the squad as the new captain. Ireland, who won the Six Nations last year, come into this year’s tournament with something to prove, having gone into last year’s World Cup with high expectations, only to lose out in the quarter-finals. France joined the tournament in 1910, with five teams competing for 90 years until Italy were invited to join the competition in 2000. The latest edition of the men’s Six Nations is fast approaching, with the 2024 championship starting the first weekend of February. He is up there as one of the best No 8s in world rugby and will be key to Les Bleus navigating the tournament without Antoine Dupont.

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His teammate, Ardie Savea, is the only other member of Ian Foster’s squad that makes the list, as he comes in at number three. McReight looked very good against the ABs but I think that’s the first time I’ve seen him excel against top opposition. Ioane also makes disrespectful gestures to the Irish crowd twice, https://just-bet.org/ which is a citable offense and misconduct under the same regulation that Sexton was disciplined for abusing Peyper. He was as fast as Christian Cullen, had a pass on him as good as Quade Cooper’s and a Roger Gould boot. His telling off of Sacha was very much the right thing but hopefully not too late.

• While he only featured in one Test, Blackadder looms as one of the All Blacks most exciting prospects coming through the ranks, and certainly has already established himself in the Crusaders line up.
• He’s also Scotland’s co-captain for their national squad and is a fly-half.
• It was revealed that FRU had been withholding payments to not just those three players but the entire team and their staff.
• Wales have finished fifth in the Six Nations for the past two years having won just two of their last 11 games in the Championship.
• That’s why RugbyPass has undertaken a comprehensive deep dive into the last 12 months of test rugby to formulate an answer of our own.
• Also guilty for giving the ball away after a 24 phase move when he recklessly chucked an off-load from the ground.

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• He also noted that had FRU kept their promises, the players that represented their country would be more focused on the upcoming games rather than the payments that FRU had either failed or refused to give them.
• McReight looked very good against the ABs but I think that’s the first time I’ve seen him excel against top opposition.
• Was too easily brushed off by Earl and perhaps needed a bit more grunt at times.
• It was “pretty tame” compared to when he first entered the NRL world.
• “We’ve always been that rugby league player where people have done our health insurance and our pay and all that sort of stuff.

With Manly bowing out of the premiership race, Woods enjoyed his last ‘Mad Monday’ as a professional rugby league player recently. It was “pretty tame” compared to when he first entered the NRL world. With game time now under the belt, ALB will be perfectly primed for a strong year as Waikato look to go one better, and will plenty on the line to play for with positions in the All Blacks starting XV open. Sharing the record with Telea with 12 tries last season, Codie Taylor is a formidable veteran at the head of a dangerous Crusaders pack. With 2024 NFL training camps on the horizon, the league’s true insiders made their voices heard.

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The captain behind South Africa’s World Cup success in 2019, Siya Kolisi’s influence and leadership within the Springboks squad was a significant reason behind their series triumph over the British and Irish Lions. It was also a major reason behind their exhilarating victory over the All Blacks on the Gold Coast, as was his exceptional defensive and breakdown work. It’s hard to imagine if the Springboks would be the world’s top-ranked side without Kolisi, who will no doubt be instrumental in their World Cup title defence next year. Wing Duhan van der Merwe is lethal with ball in hand and some space. Arguably his best try scored was against England in the 2023 Six Nations, where he beat five defenders and ran 55m.

Gustard spoke highly of ex-Saracens forward Jacques Burger, who he believed had many of the key characteristics of the best defenders in rugby. He’s had a pretty impressive resume, of course being very heavily involved with the Munster captaincy and was skipper there for a long time, albeit he has just stepped down,” Robshaw said of the Ireland captain. Any match that is not a full international between two member countries does not count at all.

With Scott Barrett also captaining the Crusaders, Jordie will also be desperate to get his hands on a Super Rugby title. This will be a year of significant growth for the talented loose forward, with spots now wide open and a chance to impress his former coach, Scott Robertson. After a strong year in Super Rugby that saw the Crusaders retain their title, Blackadder was called into the All Blacks squad for the World Cup as an injury cover. While he only featured in one Test, Blackadder looms as one of the All Blacks most exciting prospects coming through the ranks, and certainly has already established himself in the Crusaders line up. A shoo-in for the Blues starting XV, he looms as one of their most dangerous attacking weapons and one of the best finishers in the competition.

When I look at Goosen for example, he was overplayed badly back in his younger days and IMHO never really reached the heights he should have done. It’s a question every rugby fan has an answer for, but rarely are any two answers the same. Updates from the world of sport on TV, including news, views and how to watch it all live. In the last minute before the final try, teammate Kristi Kirshe said she just had to “stay in it.” It took until the very last play to secure their win, when Alex Sedrick stiff-armed her way past Australia’s defense and ended up converting her own kick — and she’s not a kicker.

If the All Blacks are to reclaim the World Cup next year, Savea will be pivotal to their chances of success. With 15 tries in 11 tests, it’s easy to understand why Will Jordan was crowned World Rugby Breakthrough Player of the Year in 2021. Blessed with speed, vision and footwork, it became common nature to see the young wing slide through and around defences to run in try after try – five of which were scored in a single test against Tonga. Now a first-choice selection on New Zealand’s team sheet, another big year beckons for Jordan in 2022 as he looks to maintain his immaculate strike rate.

In this new reality, Andy Farrell, Warren Gatland and Steve Borthwick have the unenviable, yet exciting, opportunity to set the foundations of their respective squads as they build toward Australia 2027. He has been the man, the one, a king with headgear for a crown, the very best of this whole damn sport. There might be other stars on the day, and Cleary still has a fair claim to being the best player in the world, but this year has belonged to Hughes. This year, he hit a new level entirely and the other three have all found something close to their best, which is why the Storm are back in the grand final. Eli Katoa won second rower of the year on Wednesday night, in no small part due to his combination with Hughes, and he talks about his halfback like he’s a coach on the field, which he pretty much is at this point. He can hit holes as easily as he puts people in them, he can slice through the defence or straighten up and create the space for someone else to do it for him.

Fresh from his mid-season break, Alldritt is expected to lead from the front for France, his power and commanding presence in the pack giving his side confidence. Head coach Warren Gatland believes he can grow into an Alun Wyn Jones-style of leader- the highest of compliments for the young man. Potentially the best scrum-half in England at the moment after an incredible season with Northampton, Alex Mitchell could really come into his own at this tournament. In addition to Ringrose, Irish supporters will be excited to watch new captain, Peter O’Mahony. Farrell will be hoping that O’Mahony can fill the void left by behemoth Johnny Sexton, who retired after the 2023 Rugby World Cup. All eyes will also be on hooker and new England captain, Jamie George.

The towering second rower was at his physically confrontational best as he narrowed in on a century of test matches throughout 2021. Epitomising what it takes to be a hard man at the elite level of the game, no opposition forward was safe from Etzebeth’s wrath as he stamped his authority to remain among game’s the elite locks. One half of an all-star French halves combination, Romain Ntamack continues to emerge as one of rugby’s most promising young players. Still only 22-years-old, Ntamack has acted as a pillar of France’s recent rejuvenation in test rugby, having starred in a variety of matches from the No 10 jersey.

Was too easily brushed off by Earl and perhaps needed a bit more grunt at times. 1 – Gareth Thomas  – 6Won a big scrum penalty after a stodgy sequence when the game was scoreless, allowing Wales to scratch out a foothold. Sinned when he went early on another scrum when Wales had the feed on England’s line. 9 – Tomos Williams – 6.5It was his frenetic spark that turned the game against Scotland last week.