Premiership: Semi Radradra back from injury for Bristol Bears as West Country trio vie for Champions Cup qualification

The Premiership’s regular season concludes on Saturday with five games taking place as West Country trio Bath, Bristol Bears and Gloucester vie for Champions Cup qualification.

Bath v Saracens

Form: Bath have won their last three Premiership Rugby matches since their defeat at Newcastle in Round 20, and they have not won four in succession in the tournament since 2020. Bath beat Exeter last time out at the Rec in Round 21 to end a pair of successive defeats at the venue. Saracens have already secured a seventh home semi-final. Saracens’ last six matches in the Premiership have ended in three wins and three defeats. The Londoners have not won away from home in any competition sincebeating Gloucester at Kingsholm on 6 January. Saracens are unbeaten in their last five encounters with Bath including a 17-all draw at StoneX Stadium in October 2020, whilst Bath’s most recent success in the fixture came at the Recreation Ground in March 2019.

Prediction: Bath by 15

The teams:

Bath: 15 Matt Gallagher, 14 Joe Cokanasiga, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 12 Max Ojomoh, 11 Ruaridh McConnochie, 10 Orlando Bailey, 9 Ben Spencer (c), 8 Miles Reid, 7 Chris Cloete, 6 Ted Hill, 5 GJ van Velze, 4 Josh McNally, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Tom Dunn, 1 Beno Obano
Replacements: 16 Niall Annett, 17 Juan Schoeman, 18 D’Arcy Rae, 19 Dave Attwood, 20 Josh Bayliss, 21 Max Green, 22 Piers Francis, 23 Jonathan Joseph

Saracens: 15 Elliot Daly (cc), 14 Rotimi Segun, 13 Josh Hallett, 12 Olly Hartley, 11 Ben Harris, 10 Manu Vunipola, 9 Ruben de Haas, 8 Ollie Stonham, 7 Toby Knight, 6 Nathan Michelow, 5 Callum Hunter-Hill, 4 Alex Wardell, 3 Christian Judge, 2 Ethan Lewis (cc), 1 Eroni Mawi
Replacements: 16 Samson Adejimi, 17 Robin Hislop, 18 Harvey Beaton, 19 Kaden Pearce-Paul, 20 Max Eke, 21 Charlie Bracken, 22 Dom Morris, 23 Tobias Elliott

Venue: The Rec
Kick-off: 16:00 BST (15:00 GMT)
Referee: Christophe Ridley
Assistant referees: Jack Makepeace, Greg Macdonald
TMO: Martin Fox

Bristol Bears v Gloucester

Form: Bristol Bears have lost their last four first team matches since beating Harlequins 51-26 at Ashton Gate in Round 20 of Premiership Rugby. The Bears were defeated in their most recent Premiership fixture at Ashton Gate, 20-36 to Sale, to end a three-game winning run at the venue in the competition. Gloucester have lost their last five league matches since beating Harlequins 28-26 at Kingsholm on 17 February. The Cherry and Whites have not won away from home in Premiership Rugby since their trip to London Irish on 21 October. Gloucester have won two of their last three clashes with their local rivals, whilst the last four fixtures between the two in Premiership Rugby have all been won by the home side on the day. Gloucester’s only victory in their last seven visits to Bristol in all competitions was 43-15 in the Premiership Rugby Cup on 30 March.

Prediction: Bristol by 7

The teams:

Bristol: 15 Charles Piutau, 14 Siva Naulago, 13 Semi Radradra, 12 James Williams, 11 Ioan Lloyd, 10 AJ MacGinty, 9 Harry Randall (cc), 8 Fitz Harding, 7 Sam Jeffries, 6 Steven Luatua (cc), 5 Chris Vui, 4 Joe Batley, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Harry Thacker, 1 Yann Thomas
Replacements: 16 Will Capon, 17 Jake Woolmore, 18 Max Lahiff, 19 Magnus Bradbury, 20 Jake Heenan, 21 Andy Uren, 22 Sam Bedlow, 23 Noah Heward

Gloucester: 15 Santi Carreras, 14 Jonny May, 13 Chris Harris, 12 Seb Atkinson, 11 Ollie Thorley, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Stephen Varney, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Lewis Ludlow (c), 6 Jack Clement, 5 Matias Alemanno, 4 Freddie Clarke, 3 Kirill Gotovtsev, 2 George McGuigan, 1 Mayco Vivas
Replacements: 16 Seb Blake, 17 Val Rapava-Ruskin, 18 Jamal Ford-Robinson, 19 Cam Jordan, 20 Freddie Thomas, 21 Ben Meehan, 22 Billy Twelvetrees, 23 Alex Hearle

Venue: Ashton Gate
Kick-off: 16:00 BST (15:00 GMT)
Referee: Wayne Barnes
Assistant referees: Karl Dickson, Andrew Jackson
TMO: Rowan Kitt

Leicester Tigers v Harlequins

Form: Leicester Tigers have already secured a 14th appearance in the semi-finals and have won their last six matches in Premiership. The Tigers have lost just once at Mattioli Woods Welford Road in the Premiership since early October: 18-19 to Northampton on 28 January. Harlequins’ only victory in their last five first team fixtures was 48-20 against Newcastle Falcons at the Twickenham Stoop in Round 22 of Premiership Rugby. The Londoners have not won away from home in any competition since they visited Bath in Round 12 of Premiership Rugby in early December. The Tigers beat Harlequins 27-19 at the Stoop in Round 6 and have not achieved a season’s double over Quins since 2017/18. Harlequins have won just once at Welford Road since 2013: 32-26 in October2020.

Prediction: Leicester by 6

The teams:

Leicester Tigers: 15 Mike Brown, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Guy Porter, 12 Dan Kelly, 11 Harry Potter, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Tommy Reffell, 6 Hanro Liebenberg, 5 Cameron Henderson, 4 Harry Wells, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Julián Montoya (c), 1 Tom West
Replacements: 16 Charlie Clare, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Joe Heyes, 19 Finn Carnduff, 20 Olly Cracknell, 21 Jack van Poortvliet, 22 Jimmy Gopperth, 23 Matt Scott

Harlequins: 15 Nick David, 14 Cadan Murley, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Josh Bassett, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Danny Care, 8 Alex Dombrandt (c), 7 Will Evans, 6 Jack Kenningham, 5 Irne Herbst, 4 Dino Lamb, 3 Will Collier, 2 Sam Riley, 1 Joe Marler
Replacements: 16 Jack Musk, 17 Fin Baxter, 18 Will Hobson, 19 George Hammond, 20 Will Trenholm, 21 Lewis Gjaltema, 22 Luke Northmore, 23 Louis Lynagh

Venue: Mattioli Woods Welford Road
Kick-off: 16:00 BST (15:00 GMT)
Referee: Ian Tempest
Assistant referees: Adam Leal, Hamish Smales
TMO: Claire Hodnett

London Irish v Exeter Chiefs

Form: London Irish’s three game winning run in Premiership Rugby ended with their 21-45 defeat at Saracens in Round 23. The Exiles have lost only once at Gtech Community Stadium in the league since October: 22-25 to Leicester Tigers on 25 February. Exeter Chiefs beat Bristol 22-21 at Sandy Park in Round 23 to end a two-game losing run in the competition. The Chiefs have lost their last seven away games in the Premiership since beating Bristol 50-14 at Ashton Gate on 7 October, which represents their worst-ever away trot in Premiership Rugby. The last six meetings between the two clubs in Premiership Rugby have been evenly split with three wins a piece. Exeter have visited Gtech Stadium on three previous occasions, winning twice, 31-12 in the league in May 2021 and 24-20 after extra time in the final of this year’s Premiership Rugby Cup.

Prediction: London Irish by 4

The teams:

London Irish: 15 Henry Arundell, 14 Ben Loader, 13 Benhard van Rensburg, 12 Rory Jennings, 11 Lucio Cinti, 10 Paddy Jackson, 9 Ben White, 8 So’otala Fa’aso’o, 7 Juan Martin Gonzalez, 6 Matt Rogerson (c), 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Api Ratuniyarawa, 3 Oliver Hoskins, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements: 16 Mike Willemse, 17 Tarek Haffar, 18 Lovejoy Chawatama, 19 Josh Caulfield, 20 Tom Pearson, 21 Chandler Cunningham-South, 22 Joe Powell, 23 James Stokes

Exeter: 15 Josh Hodge, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Henry Slade (c), 12 Ollie Devoto, 11 Tom Wyatt, 10 Harvey Skinner, 9 Stu Townsend, 8 Greg Fisilau, 7 Christ Tshiunza, 6 Jacques Vermeulen, 5 Jack Dunne, 4 Jannes Kirsten, 3 Josh Iosefa-Scott, 2 Jack Innard, 1 Alec Hepburn
Replacements: 16 Iestyn Harris, 17 Billy Keast, 18 Marcus Street, 19 Mike Williams, 20 Aidon Davis, 21 Tom Cairns, 22 Tom Hendrickson, 23 Dan John

Venue: Gtech Community Stadium
Kick-off: 16:00 BST (15:00 GMT)
Referee: Luke Pearce
Assistant referees: Craig Maxwell-Keys, Wayne Falla
TMO: Stuart Terheege

Sale Sharks v Newcastle Falcons

Form: Sale Sharks have secured a fourth appearance in the semi-finals of Premiership Rugby and a first one which will be played at AJ Bell Stadium, although they were at home when they beat Wasps at Edgeley Park in the 2006 semi-final. Sale Sharks have won their last two Premiership fixtures since their 18-36 defeat at London Irish in Round 20. Sale have won their last five home games in the league since Harlequins beat them in Salford on 23 October. Newcastle Falcons have won just one of their last seven Premiership Rugby matches: 17-12 at home to Gloucester on 24 March. The Falcons have not won away from home in the competition since they visited Kingsholm on 12 November. The Falcons beat the Sharks 20-14 at Kingston Park in Round 13 and have not achieved a Premiership season double over their closest rivals geographically since 2014/15. Newcastle have won only once at the AJ Bell Stadium in Premiership Rugby since 2013: 13-12 in September 2017.

Prediction: Sale by 12

The teams:

Sale: 15 Joe Carpenter, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Robert du Preez, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Arron Reed, 10 George Ford, 9 Raffi Quirke, 8 Jono Ross (c), 7 Ben Curry, 6 Sam Dugdale, 5 Jonny Hill, 4 Jean-Luc du Preez, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Bevan Rodd
Replacements: 16 Ethan Caine, 17 Simon McIntyre, 18 James Harper, 19 Josh Beaumont, 20 Daniel du Preez, 21 Tom Ellis, 22 Will Cliff, 23 Sam James

Newcastle: 15 Elliott Obatoyinbo, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Matias Moroni, 12 Matias Orlando, 11 Mateo Carreras, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Sam Stuart, 8 Callum Chick (c), 7 Philip van der Walt, 6 Pedro Rubiolo, 5 Sebastian de Chaves, 4 Greg Peterson, 3 Mark Tampin, 2 Jamie Blamire, 1 Adam Brocklebank
Replacements: 16 Conrad Cade, 17 Phil Brantingham, 18 Richard Palframan, 19 Freddie Lockwood, 20 Carl Fearns, 21 Josh Barton, 22 Tian Schoeman, 23 Josh Thomas

Venue: AJ Bell Stadium
Kick-off: 16:00 BST (15:00 GMT)
Referee: Sara Cox
Assistant referees: Anthony Woodthorpe, Jamie Leahy
TMO: Dean Richards

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Official | AS Monaco sign Jordy Gaspar

Monaco has completed the signing of France Under-20 International Jordy Gaspar on a three-year-deal.

The 20-year-old joins the French champions after making just four appearances last season for Lyon, a club he has spent his entire career at.

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Gaspar joined Lyon’s youth academy in 2008, and spent three years in the reserve set up before making the jump up to the first team in 2015.

“We are pleased to announce the signing of Jordy Gaspar to AS Monaco,” said Monaco vice-president and chief executive Vadim Vasilyev.

“He is an young, exciting French prospect recognized for his potential and who will find all the conditions to progress here under the influence of Leonardo Jardim.”

Champions Cup: Toulouse disappointed after Andrew Porter tip-tackle missed by officials

Toulouse refused to openly criticise the match officials following their Champions Cup semi-final loss but queried why Andrew Porter’s tackle on Juan Cruz Mallia was not looked at.

Les Rouge et Noir were ousted from the competition after a 41-22 defeat to Leinster at the Aviva Stadium, which was a not too dissimilar scoreline to last season’s meeting.

On that occasion, the Top 14 outfit were thrashed 40-17 in Dublin as they failed to add to their five Champions Cup titles.

A sixth European crown has once again gone begging but this time in slightly more controversial circumstances.

Costly yellow cards

Ugo Mola’s men had Thomas Ramos and Rodrigue Neti sin-binned, leaving them down to 14 men for 20 minutes.

During that period, Leinster scored 28 unanswered points, with the visitors winning the clash 22-13 when both teams had 15 on the field.

Toulouse, however, also felt that the Irish province should have been reduced to 14 when Porter tipped Mallia above the horizontal.

It came just prior to Emmanuel Meafou’s try but it still could have been looked at by the referee and television match official.

Mola was visibly angry on the sidelines that the incident was not even discussed by the officials and, although he had calmed down post match, Les Rouge et Noir’s head honcho was still slightly frustrated that it was not, at the very least, reviewed.

He said: “If we had played 15 against 15 for the whole match it might have been different.

“We could have been in a position to get back into it. It (the Porter incident) could have been a turning point. We were just 13 points behind then. There are a lot of things which didn’t go in our favour.

“We could have played 15 against 14 but the foul was not mentioned. Wayne Barnes is a high level referee but, at that time, there was a wait for a potential try and this foul was not whistled.”

World-class scrum-half Antoine Dupont decided to focus on their own ill-discipline, which potentially cost them a shot at going to the Champions Cup final.

Difficult to argue

“I felt a difference from last year even with a similar scoreline,” he said. “We got a good start, scored a try and we were lacking some discipline, but after the first yellow we recovered well, we were physically fit and we broke their lines.

“We thought we could be dangerous and score. Last year was different but when you get two yellow cards, when you give away some points, it is very difficult to argue. You can’t talk about the referee or the strategy when you concede 40 points. There is nothing to add.”

Toulouse still have plenty to fight for, however, with the Top 14 regular season getting towards its denouement.

Les Rouge et Noir currently sit at the summit and will look to reclaim the title they last won in 2021.

“This season is not over yet,” Mola said. “Of course we are disappointed. We will prepare in order to be in the top two in the Top 14, so this is what we will be doing and we will be up for the task. We have been at the top for the last 23 matches, so we will digest this event, take 48 hours and then prepare again.”

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Premiership: Semi-final fixtures and kick-off times announced

Premiership Rugby have confirmed the dates and times of this season’s semi-finals following the penultimate round of the competition.

Although there is still one weekend of the regular season remaining, the top-four has been decided following the Round 23 action.

Northampton Saints kicked off proceedings by thrashing 66-5 at Newcastle Falcons on Friday, but their place wasn’t confirmed until Saracens overcame London Irish 45-21 on Sunday.

Irish’s hopes ended

That simultaneously ended the Exiles’ hopes and ensured the Saints would be in the end of season shake-up. It also enabled Sarries to confirm top spot as they moved nine points ahead of Sale Sharks at the summit.

Although the Greater Manchester outfit can’t usurp Mark McCall’s men, the Sharks did enjoy a historic weekend as they claimed their first home semi-final since 2006 by beating Gloucester 25-22 at Kingsholm.

It means that Leicester Tigers, who were on their bye week, can’t secure a match at Welford Road in the last-four and will probably have to visit the AJ Bell Stadium.

There is an outside chance of Leicester dropping below Northampton in the table, but they would have to lose to Harlequins by 65 points for that to happen.

As a result, when the regular season is done and dusted on May 6, Sarries (1) will likely face off with the Saints (4) on Saturday, May 13 in the semi-finals, with Sale (2) and Leicester (3) going head-to-head a day later.

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Likely Premiership semi-final fixtures

Saturday, May 13

Semi-final 1: Saracens (1) v Northampton Saints (4) at StoneX Stadium
Kick-off: 15:30 BST (14:30 GMT)

Sunday, May 14

Semi-final 2: Sale Sharks (2) v Leicester Tigers (3) at AJ Bell Stadium
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)

Sevilla in advanced fee negotiations with Aston Villa for Jordan Amavi

Spanish side Sevilla have had an offer worth €6m turned down by Aston Villa for French left-back Jordan Amavi.

The Andalusian side are expected to come back with a new bid in the coming hours, with Aston Villa wanting €10m, according to Téléfoot.

The website for the French football TV show is confident that Amavi will get his move to La Liga and Sevilla, with the player said to have already discussed broad-brush personal terms with the latter outfit.

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Richie McCaw: ‘RARE FOOTAGE’ of 26 times the All Blacks great was penalised

Former All Blacks captain Richie McCaw was renowned for avoiding the shrill blast of the referee’s whistle.

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During his distinguished career, McCaw racked up 149 appearances in the black jersey.

He also played 145 times for the Crusaders and is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.

During his playing career, McCaw was well known for being able to bend the laws of rugby and get away with just about anything on the pitch, with that view on the All Black great still true in many minds today.

Despite being an openside flanker playing on the edge of the laws, he received just three yellow cards while representing the All Blacks and was never sent off.

Many fans won’t remember a matchday referee raising their arm to penalise McCaw, but the YouTube rugby compilations channel run by Andrew Forde proves that it did, in fact, happen.

“‘Richie McCaw gets away with anything with that invisibility cloak’ is what people often said… I’ve dug through the archives and found very rare footage of all the times he was penalised,” Forde tweeted.

In the full video titled, “Richie McCaw being penalised (VERY RARE FOOTAGE)”, Forde highlights 26 times that McCaw was penalised during his playing career with the All Blacks and Crusaders.

Richie McCaw stats

Retiring as the most capped player in Test rugby history, now overtaken by Alun Wyn Jones, McCaw captained the All Blacks 110 times.

He held other notable world records, including winning more Test matches than any other player (131).

McCaw also scored more Test tries than any other forward (27) and became the first player to captain his country to two Rugby World Cup titles.

He also won a record 97 Tests as captain and claimed seven Tri-Nations/Rugby Championship titles and 10 Bledisloe Cup series.

He also claimed four Super Rugby titles, three as captain.

In 2019, he was inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame.

McCaw also turned down a possible knighthood in 2011.

He was appointed a member of New Zealand’s highest honour, the Order of New Zealand, in 2016. The honour surpassed the knighthood he previously snubbed.

Dani Alves is in the process of being seduced by PSG

34-year-old Brazilian right-back Dani Alves is in the process of being seduced by PSG over a move, according to Le Parisien.

PSG Sporting Director Antero Henrique has in recent days launched an enormous charm offensive, and is on the verge of convincing Dani Alves to join the capital club.

The French outlet claims that although a deal is very close and that Les Parisiens are optimistic about a deal occurring, Alves is still hesitating between Manchester City and PSG.

Henrique’s discourse and the better quality of life in Paris could be what tips it into the Ligue 1 side’s favour.

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Premiership: Jack Nowell to face disciplinary for ‘one of the worst decisions’ tweet

Jack Nowell faces a potential suspension for a tweet he posted criticising a decision made by referee Karl Dickson during Exeter Chiefs’ Premiership clash with Leicester Tigers.

Nowell’s teammate, Olly Woodburn, was sent off shortly after half-time after Dickson issued a second yellow card to the wing.

The controversial incident occurred when Leicester finisher Chris Ashton looked to have scored his 100th Premiership try.

The incident

Stuart Hogg made the initial tackle on Ashton, but upon review, the TMO and referee deemed that Woodburn had dived on top of the Tigers’ wing, who had already been taken to the ground.

Dickson ruled that Ashton’s foot had been in touch, so a penalty try was awarded for Woodburn’s offence, with the Chiefs player subsequently sent off for a second yellow card.

In reaction, Nowell tweeted: “I’m actually in shock, like shock shocked. What the hell is happening? That’s one of the worst decisions I’ve ever seen. EVER”

The tweet has since been deleted, but the RFU confirmed that he would face an independent disciplinary panel.

“Jack Nowell, Exeter Chiefs, has been charged with conduct prejudicial to the interests of the Union and the game under RFU rule 5.12 for Tweeted criticism of the referee’s decision in the Leicester Tigers v Exeter Chiefs match on 16 April, to his 61,000 plus followers,” the statement read.

Nowell’s teammates Luke Cowan-Dickie and Henry Slade added their opinions.

“rugby had lost the plot”, Cowan-Dickie tweeted, adding, “Yeah just let him score mate”.

While Slade commented, “I have no words”.

After the game, Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter said: “I think the circumstances contrived against Olly (Woodburn) in respect of the sending off. The first yellow card for a deliberate knock-on was clearly correct, but for the second, it was the only thing he could have done to prevent a try.

“If the try had been awarded then nobody would have looked at it, but as it wasn’t, the TMO went through the process and adjudged that by diving on top of the player on the ground, he was forced into touch.

“There was, therefore, an act of foul play which then results in a penalty try and the issue of another yellow card.”

Exeter went on to lose the match 62-19 with Ashton scoring a hat-trick to become the first player to score 100 Premiership tries.

Previous suspension

Nowell would not be the first player to be suspended for remarks made on the social media platform.

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In November 2021, Anthony Watson copped a one-week suspension after criticising the decision by the referee Ian Tempest to send off his then-Bath teammate Mike Williams.

He tweeted: “Here we go again. Where is he supposed to wrap?! Obsurd [sic] decision.”

Nowell has been sidelined through injury recently and even if he recovers from injury in time, any period of suspension could rule him out for the Champions Cup semi-final against La Rochelle.

Nowell is set to leave Exeter at the end of this season, with La Rochelle his likely destination.

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AS Monaco VP Vasilyev has no intention of negotiating with Arsenal for Thomas Lemar

Monaco Vice President Vadim Vasilyev has no intention with negotiating with Arsenal at all for Thomas Lemar, according to Monaco sources contacted by L’Équipe.

However, sources contacted by GFFN believe that internally, Vasilyev has set an extortionate price at which he would accept to sell Lemar at, but that he has refused to tell Arsenal what that price is in an attempt to produce a show of strength and continue the facade that Lemar is not for sale at any price.

It is our understanding that Monaco did not even bother responding to Arsenal’s second bid for Thomas Lemar, made at €45m. It was never formally rejected, but quite simply ignored because Monaco appear to have viewed it as a complete waste of time.

If Arsenal make a third offer that is considerably improved, then perhaps things could change, but the situation looks very bleak for the London club at the time of writing. However, it is clear that that offer would have to be an improvement of north of €10m to have any impact at all.

Multiple agents who have spoken to GFFN this week both on and off the record are unanimous in stating that it is impossible to understand what Monaco’s strategy in terms of selling players will turn out to be during this window, despite the fact that we are already nearly 7 weeks into it.

Vadim Vasilyev keeps his cards close to his chest, which is perhaps the only hope that Arsenal fans can take at the time of writing in their pursuit of Thomas Lemar.

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