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Jonny Gray ruled out of the rest of the Six Nations

By Chris Jones
(Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

Lock Jonny Gray will not play again for Scotland in the Six Nations championship after injuring his ankle.

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Gray missed today’s Premiership 15-14 win over Newcastle and has spent the week in a boot to protect the foot injury which leaves Scotland with a major hole to fill in their pack against the unbeaten French at Murrayfield on Saturday who have also been hit by injury problems.

Rob Baxter, the Exeter director of rugby, delivered the grim news for Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend saying: “It is likely to be the length of the Six Nations – not too much longer than that and obviously he is disappointed. He has had an injury hit period over the last nine months or so and it (ankle)will get better in seven or eight weeks. It is like a bad ankle sprain and it doesn’t require an operation just rehab. There is some thought that the last Six Nations game might be within reach but I think that is tough.”

However, Scotland will be relieved that captain Stuart Hogg, who also missed the Exeter game, with an injury is expected to be fully fit for Saturday’s match at Murrayfield. Scotland are hoping to upset France and erase the memory of their loss to Wales which deflated the country after the win over England.

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Luke Cowan-Dickie, Six Nations Review and Sinckler’s Sauna | RugbyPass Offload | Episode 21

We’re joined by England’s Luke Cowan-Dickie this week as the Six Nations squads take a break after two rounds of action. We hear from the Exeter Hooker about his journey with England and the Lions, his relationship with Eddie Jones and of course that volleyball moment in Edinburgh during the Calcutta Cup. Max and Ryan give their thoughts on the weekend battles in Cardiff, Paris and Rome, pick their team of the week and look forward to the rest of the tournament.

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Luke Cowan-Dickie, Six Nations Review and Sinckler’s Sauna | RugbyPass Offload | Episode 21

We’re joined by England’s Luke Cowan-Dickie this week as the Six Nations squads take a break after two rounds of action. We hear from the Exeter Hooker about his journey with England and the Lions, his relationship with Eddie Jones and of course that volleyball moment in Edinburgh during the Calcutta Cup. Max and Ryan give their thoughts on the weekend battles in Cardiff, Paris and Rome, pick their team of the week and look forward to the rest of the tournament.

Sam Skinner, who was fit to take his place in the Exeter back row at Kingston Park, now becomes a secondrow option for Townsend who will keenly aware of the power of the French pack. Skinner played blindside flanker in the loss to Wales but could end up at lock against France along Grant Gilchrist who won his 50th cap in Cardiff. Gray is a significant loss as the 6ft 6ins former Glasgow forward has won 64 caps.

Meanwhile, France coach Fabien Galthie has named three new players in his expanded 42-player squad for the Six Nations Championship clash with Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday.

Lock Florent Vanverberghe, loose-forward Swan Rebbadj and flyhalf Antoine Hastoy were all injured playing for their Top 14 clubs this weekend, and are replaced by Pierre-Henri Azagoh, Jordan Joseph and Anthony Bouthier respectively.

Galthie had already recalled centre Jonathan Danty after the latter missed the 30-24 win over Ireland on Feb. 12 with an ankle injury. He replaced uncapped Tani Vili.

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Jon 8 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 11 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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