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Four Toulon stars named in Barbarians squad to face England XV

By Online Editors
Toulon centre Malakai Fekitoa

Four Toulon stars have been named in the Barbarians squad that will face an England XV in Twickenham this June.

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Two of the four who accepted invitations to play in the Quilter Cup starred at Twickenham last season.

Wing Josua Tuisova and centre Malakai Fekitoa return to face an England XV after their devastating display in 2018 when they helped the famous invitation side to a record 63-45 win.

They will be joined by Wales and British & Irish Lions scrumhalf Rhys Webb and Fijian wing Filipo Nakosi — Tuisova’s brother — for the match on June 2.

The game is part of a historic double-header with the Barbarians’ women’s side taking on the Red Roses for the first time at 12.45pm.

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Fiji wing Tuisova — a sevens gold medallist at the 2016 Olympics — was the stand-out performer against England last season.

He made 214 metres, seven clean breaks, beat eight defenders and offloaded four times as well as providing try assists for Chris Ashton, Greig Laidlaw and Victor Vito.

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Fekitoa came off the bench that day while Webb and Nakosi will be making their first appearances in the famous black and white jersey.

Webb has first-hand experience of Barbarians games having featured for Wales in their 30-21 win over the Baa-baas in 2012.

“We’re delighted to have players of such high quality available for what promises to be another extremely competitive game,” said Barbarians chairman John Spencer.

“Last year’s side produced a record-breaking attacking display and with the Barbarians women’s side also in action against the Red Roses June 2 promises to be another historic day for the club.”

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Source England Rugby/Barbarians FC website

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Trevor 5 minutes ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 4 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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