Former Leeds defender Gaetano Berardi has announced his retirement aged 34.

Berardi, who made over 150 appearances for Leeds in all competitions during a seven-year spell with the club until his departure in 2021, posted his farewell message on Instagram.

He said: “A word can contain many emotions, many feelings, many memories and most of all many people. I choose one to close the chapter: THANK YOU!”

Berardi’s committed playing style made him a fans’ favourite at Elland Road, where he was a key member of the side which won promotion to the Premier League under Marcelo Bielsa in 2020.

The Swiss right-back, who made one senior appearance for his country, joined Leeds from Sampdoria in 2014 and recovered from a serious knee injury to make two top-flight appearances in 2020-21.

He joined Swiss club Sion and closed out his playing career at Bellinzona.

England captain Ben Stokes has no concerns over his ability to bowl in this summer’s Ashes.

Stokes’ long-standing left knee issue caused him problems during February’s tour of New Zealand and his recent time at the Indian Premier League proved fruitless.

All-rounder Stokes played only twice for Chennai Super Kings and sent down just one over for 18 runs during his IPL stint but ahead of this week’s one-off Test with Ireland at Lord’s, the 31-year-old is confident he can have an impact when the Ashes begins on June 16.

He said: “Yeah, look the knee is in much better place than it was in Wellington.

“I’ve been over in India for the IPL and these last eight or nine weeks I know I have got myself in a position where I can’t say I regret anything.

“I have got myself into a place where I feel like in a 2019, 2020 space in terms of my own body and fitness. I have definitely given myself the best opportunity (to bowl this summer).

“We know what it is (the problem) and now it is about managing it.”

Charlie Johnston was always destined to take over from his record-breaking father Mark at their Middleham base. But to have a realistic Betfred Derby contender through Dubai Mile in his first year with just his name on the licence has certainly exceeded his expectations.

While Johnston senior went close at Epsom with Dee Ex Bee in 2018, finishing second to Masar, the blue riband event was one of only a handful of major races to elude him during a stellar career.

Charlie initially shared the licence with his father last season before Mark took his name off completely, sooner than many thought but done partly through paternal pride so that his son would get the credit he felt he deserved.

Now, with Dubai Mile having won a Group One over 10 furlongs at two in France and run perfectly well in the 2000 Guineas when fifth, Charlie has a real shot at putting the Johnston name on the illustrious Epsom roll of honour.

“I wouldn’t be singing from the roof if he wins having done so in my name, in fact I’d be a bit embarrassed after dad had been trying for 30 years and we won it for the first time without his name on the licence!” said Johnston.

“There’s still no greater race for a trainer to win, I think.

“There’s no race I can win this year that would give me greater assurances that when I go to the yearling sales, people will want to fill this barn again next year and try to find the next one.

“This game is a cycle and you always want people to invest in you, by winning the Derby there is no greater advertisement.”

Dubai Mile is owned by Ahmad Al Shaikh, who himself has had two of his horses finish second at huge prices in recent years – Khalifa Sat at 50-1 behind Serpentine in 2020 and Hoo Ya Mal at 150-1 to Desert Crown last year.

Johnston said: “He’s gone close twice in the Derby at huge prices, so I’m sure he’s going there with huge expectations and he’s great fun to train for.

“He flew a team from his favourite restaurant in London up here and we had a huge lunch with all the staff while watching the (Saint-Cloud) race and he gave prizes out and I don’t think the team has ever felt closer or more involved than he made them.”

Having only cost €20,000 at the Goffs Orby Sale, despite being by Roaring Lion and out of Beach Bunny, who was beaten just a short head by Dar Re Mi in the 2009 Pretty Polly, Johnston has shown he can look beyond the obvious – and feels others may have been put off by Dubai Mile’s big white face.

“We thought we’d got a bargain at £20,000. To us he’s a very good looking horse, but bizarrely a lot of people would be put off by his markings for a start. He’s got so much white about him and he must have had a fight with a fence at some point as a foal as when you take the saddle off, he’s got white marks all over his withers,” said Johnston.

“His pedigree, as is always the case, put us on to him. We’ve been fortunate to have horses for Lady O’Reilly (Beach Bunny’s owner), so would always pay close attention to her horses. Another factor was probably the fact that his stallion was sadly dead at the time, which meant he was never going to get the same support as most first-season sires and he was a weak, backward yearling.

“I’m not going to say we knew right away (he was good) as we buy 70 every year in that price bracket, but am I confident that out of 20 every year we’d find one good one? Yes, but was I confident he was the one? Probably not until he ran in the Royal Lodge, if I’m honest.

“The Royal Lodge (second to The Foxes) looked ambitious at the time, because of his price he’d been astutely placed to win two restricted novices, but I think the handicapper would have said he had no chance going into the Royal Lodge, as did the market. But it was a small field and it was a race we always like to target which led us to roll the dice.

“We’ll be taking the winner on again and a lot of water has gone under the bridge for both since the Royal Lodge. I got the impression up until York they thought he (The Foxes) was a 10-furlong horse and there was talk of the French Derby, whereas we’ve always known where we were going.

“Ahmad was always keen to go for the Guineas and, in hindsight, it was clearly the right decision because there’s been a hell of a lot more interest in him since then than before it. People take him a lot more seriously now.

“I said if he finished in the first six and hit the line strong I’d be delighted and that is exactly what he did. He’d have been fourth in another stride which would have been lovely but knowing he wants further, we couldn’t have wished for much more.”

Since the Guineas, John and Thady Gosden’s Arrest has won the Chester Vase on soft ground. His first run since being beaten a head by Dubai Mile in France and yet Dubai Mile is available at a much bigger price.

“A lot has been made of our form with Arrest and interestingly he’s about a quarter of the price we are. It’s probably not surprising given John Gosden’s Derby record and ours, but the weather forecast means it should be a good to firm Derby, whether it is or not we’ll wait and see,” said Johnston.

“I’m sure Arrest’s camp are a lot more worried about that than us. We might have won a Group One on heavy, but we’d rather it was quicker as it might inconvenience a few others.”

Of the others, he said: “I have a lot of respect for the (Jessica) Harrington horse (Sprewell), he looks overlooked in the market simply because Aidan (O’Brien) doesn’t get beaten in that (Leopardstown) trial and if you do beat him, you must have a good one.

“It’s been a bit different this spring as the two trials you’d expect Aidan to win he’s been beaten in, with the (John) Murphy horse (White Birch) winning the other (Ballysax) – and he ran a nice race at York (second to The Foxes).

“It should always be the best test of a three-year-old and all the ones who deserve to be there will be there. Does 14-1 represent our chance? It probably does, it might underestimate him a little.

“There’s no horse in this race that we know is better than ours, on ratings we’re right there with them all. He’s a Group One winner who ran a good trial over an inadequate trip in the Guineas, so in that sense I think we’ve got a rock-solid profile.

“The fact he was a €20,000 yearling and a bit more unfashionable probably explains why he’s 14-1 rather than 4-1. There’s nothing in there that scares me or we have 7lb to find with. If he improves for the trip, which we all expect he will, then he goes there with a good chance.

“I don’t feel it has added any pressure, it’s great to have a horse like this, you need them any time but to have one the first year the licence is in my name is great.”

Rhys Webb has become the latest Wales player to announce his retirement from Test rugby before the World Cup.

Scrum-half Webb, who won 40 caps, follows his Ospreys colleagues Alun Wyn Jones and Justin Tipuric in stepping down.

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All three were members of Wales’ preliminary World Cup training squad ahead of the tournament in France later this year.

Writing on Instagram, 34-year-old Webb said that “present uncertainty and difficulties in Welsh rugby” and “an opportunity to play abroad” had influenced his decision.

David Menuisier is confident a step up in trip can help Heartache Tonight hit the big time when she races in the UK for the first time in the Betfred Oaks on Friday.

A €160,000 purchase as a yearling, she is a half-sister to two-time Group One-winner Wonderful Tonight, Menuisier’s former stable star.

The daughter of Recorder now has the chance to step out of her sibling’s shadow and she heads to Epsom with an encouraging book of form in France to her name, placing in the Prix Cleopatre and beaten less than two lengths when a close-up fourth in the Prix Saint-Alary last time out.

Despite bringing that Group One form to the table, Heartache Tonight is still available for the Oaks at odds as big as 33-1.

But her handler is not fussed by her outsider status, with Cristian Demuro set to continue his association with the filly having ridden her in all three starts so far.

“I don’t mind being overlooked, that is the story of my life, but it won’t stop her from running well,” said Menuisier.

“It was a great effort in the Prix Saint-Alary and she has been craving the step up to a mile and a half. We decided to keep her at one-mile-two to try to gain more experience and more tactical speed and we are delighted so far.

“Cristian Demuro will come and ride. We get on well and he’s our go-to man when we go to France. He absolutely loves the filly and the schedule wasn’t too busy for him, so he’s really delighted to keep the ride on her.”

So far, all of Heartache Tonight’s appearances have come on ground described as soft or slower, but Menuisier is hopeful she might not be as ground dependant as her illustrious mud-loving half-sister ahead of her bid for Classic honours.

“We’re just hoping the ground isn’t too quick, we’re hoping for genuine good ground,” continued Menuisier.

“She seems different to the half-sister – she was really designed for soft ground and had a very high knee action.

“Heartache tonight is a bit more elegant, she moves much better, so we like to believe she might not need it as soft. Obviously she will handle soft/heavy conditions later in the year probably better than most, but if she could handle quicker ground then that is a definite plus.”

The handler also feels her performance in the Prix Saint-Alary shows she has the potential to match Wonderful Tonight’s achievements on track.

Menuisier added: “At the moment she is showing the right signs and is a little bit above Wonderful Tonight as she would have been unable to perform good over one-mile-two at Group One level in the spring.

“So whether the finished article will be ahead of the sister, it would be lovely to think so, but she has a serious challenge ahead of her, so we will see.”

London Irish must pay all staff for May in full today or be withdrawn from the Gallagher Premiership.

The Rugby Football Union said it is giving owner Mick Crossan the chance to meet payroll as scheduled today or the offer of a deadline extension to complete a takeover will be withdrawn.

An American consortium is in discussions to take control of the club but has yet provide proof of funds to the RFU, as well as other documentation needed for the purchase to be approved.

“The RFU club financial viability group met yesterday evening. It noted the conditions set by the RFU had not been met and considered the application for an extension to the deadline,” an RFU statement on Wednesday morning read.

“It was agreed to defer the decision for 24 hours to establish if the club is able to honour the commitment it has made to staff that they will be paid for the month of May. The group will meet again this evening.”

Savethelastdance heads a field of 11 declared for the Betfred Oaks on Friday when she will bid to give Aidan O’Brien his fourth straight victory in the Epsom Classic.

The daughter of Galileo has been favourite for the fillies’ showpiece ever since decimating the opposition in the Cheshire Oaks earlier this month and heads to Epsoms in anticipation of faring much better in the 12 furlong event than her dam Daddys Lil Darling who bolted to post during a thunderstorm, unshipped Olivier Peslier and was subsequently withdrawn in 2017.

As well as Savethelastdance, O’Brien will also saddle Be Happy and Red Riding Hood in his attempt to secure Oaks win number 11 and continue his domination of the Friday feature.

John and Thady Gosden are responsible for what the bookmakers feel will be Savethelastdance’s biggest challenge saddling both Pretty Polly winner Roaring Lion and Musidora scorer Soul Sister, the latter the mount of Frankie Dettori in his final Oaks outing before retirement.

Supplementary entry and Lingfield trial winner Eternal Hope is entrusted with trying to provide Charlie Appleby with his first Oaks success, while Heartache Tonight is an interesting contender for David Menuisier having finished a close-up fourth in the Prix Saint-Alary.

Jack Channon’s 1000 Guineas fourth Caernarfon steps up in trip from a mile for her first start since Newmarket, while Maman Joon (Richard Hannon), Sea Of Roses (Andrew Balding) and Bright Diamond (Karl Burke) are the others heading to the mile-and-a-half start on Friday afternoon.

The other Group One on the card is the Dahlbury Coronation Cup where Westover will look to erase the demons of his troubled run in last year’s Derby.

Ralph Beckett’s Frankel colt was a somewhat unlucky loser behind Desert Crown 12 months ago, but gained compensation in the Irish equivalent and arrives on the back of a fine run to finish second in the Dubai Sheema Classic in March.

Emily Upjohn was another to be narrowly denied in her quest for Classic success in 2022 and reappears having opened her Group One account in the autumn, while Hurricane Lane is Godolphin’s chosen representative having bounced back to his best in the Jockey Club Stakes.

Ballydoyle’s Point Lonsdale is unbeaten in two starts this term and races over 12 furlongs for the first time, with Tunnes an interesting raider from Germany rounding off a select field of five.

Ireland all-rounder Curtis Campher will see his dream become a reality when he steps out to play in this week’s Test at Lord’s.

Campher has already played three Tests for Ireland this year and made a century against Sri Lanka in April but is desperate to feature at the ‘Home of Cricket’ against England.

The prestige of the four-day fixture has been scrutinised since it was revealed the visitors’ star bowler Josh Little would not be involved, while Cricket Ireland’s high performance director Richard Holdsworth labelled the second red-ball meeting between the nations as “a special occasion” but not a “pinnacle event”.

But Campher told the PA news agency: “Anyone that has played cricket would be lying if they say they don’t dream of playing at Lord’s.

“It will be an amazing thing to play England in a Test match at Lord’s. It is massive and a real historic venue, with all the history behind it.

“To be a part of that is really, really cool and just to be a Test-playing cricketer is a massive thing. To be part of history, no-one can take that away from you.

“Everyone is buzzing for the week of Test cricket.”

The journey of Johannesburg-born Campher to this point has been recounted many times with an exchange with his now agent Niall O’Brien during a match in 2018 able to speed up the process of the 24-year-old going on to represent Ireland.

Campher always held an Irish passport, due to his grandmother being from Northern Ireland, and had ambitions to play club cricket during the South African winter months once his studies stopped.

Yet in the summer of 2020, at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, he found himself fast-tracked into the senior international set-up and handed his debut in an ODI series against England.

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“I was happy to just carry water but before I knew it I was playing the first game versus England, so it has been an amazing three years,” Campher said.

Back-to-back fifties in losing causes provided a glimpse of what was to come from the all-rounder before Ireland ended the three-match series with victory over the world champions after Kevin O’Brien hit the winning runs.

O’Brien has since followed brother Niall into retirement after a stellar career and, while Campher is too modest to acknowledge any type of passing of the baton, he has taken plenty from one of Ireland’s all-time greats.

Campher added: “It was nice to rub shoulders with Kev for the few years I played with him.

“He has done so much for Irish cricket, the contributions he made were immense so if you can have half the career Kev has had, you’ve had a flipping good career!

“Kev is very calm, very relaxed and tries to simplify things. I have tried to take on that approach myself.”

O’Brien memorably crunched a remarkable 63-ball innings of 113 against England at the 2011 World Cup that propelled Ireland to a first ever victory over their rivals.

While Campher may be in the infancy of his own international career, he already appears to have the same panache as the previous all-rounder in the XI.

After arriving on the scene with scores of 59 not out and 68 against England, he has continued to save his best for the big occasion with four wickets in four balls during a T20 clash with Netherlands at the 2021 World Cup and last year’s tournament saw an unbeaten 72 down Scotland.

Campher also followed in O’Brien’s footsteps by scoring a Test century for Ireland earlier this year and knows what any notable achievements this week would mean.

“England are a class act but if I can contribute and help the team in any way, that would be a bonus,” he said.

“Everyone does look to want to be up on the honours board but that is too far to look.

“If it does happen, it happens, but if not life will still go on.”

A key feature of Campher’s strong form over the past 12 months has been enjoyment being at the forefront of his mind, but that should not take away from his determination.

So high is the belief of the Munster Reds player that he had privately targeted reaching three figures for Ireland long before he reached the milestone.

He is also acutely aware he has won two of his four meetings with England, most recently at the T20 World Cup in October.

Campher said: “A few of the lads have joked about how, since some of us made our debuts (in 2020), we’ve played England four times and won two and lost two.

“They said if we can keep that record going, we’ll have a pretty good careers!”

Tee Ritson admits he has “loved every minute” of playing with St Helens as he continues to embrace the challenge of playing in Super League.

The winger joined Saints on a season-long loan in November from Championship side Barrow after scoring 33 tries in 31 appearances with Raiders in 2022.

Ritson marked his debut in style for the defending Super League champions with a try against Castleford in the opening round of league fixtures and has continued to impress.

His performances have seen him start their last four Super League games and he feels he has adapted well to the league’s standards.

“I’ve loved every minute of it,” the 27-year-old told the PA news agency. “Obviously it’s been a massive step up for me, the training and everything, I think I’ve adapted really well.

“I’ve just kept my head down, focused on this year, focused on my training, the team and stuff like that then I’m getting a good run of games now so hopefully I can continue that form.

“The team itself, they’re a great set of lads, the club’s really good, all the staff have helped me out – I couldn’t ask for anything more to be honest, I’ve loved my time here.

“This time last year I was playing in the Championship and now I’m playing for the World Club Champions in Super League.

“It’s a massive step up, the training, the intensity and stuff like that. The first couple of weeks I was pretty sore so I wasn’t used to all the training every single day!

“But I’ve adapted to it, there’s a lot of new systems and tactics, things that you need to know within the team that I’ve had to get used to.

“I feel I’ve really settled in now and feel at home at this team.”

Ritson was speaking ahead of the eagerly-anticipated Magic Weekend which takes place in Newcastle at St James’ Park with St Helens facing Huddersfield on Sunday.

The winger has previously played in the Summer Bash, a similar event where a round of Championship fixtures take place over the course of a weekend, but Ritson admits Magic Weekend is on a “different level”.

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He said: “Obviously the stadium that we’re going to be playing in this weekend is massive compared to the stadium we’ve been in at the Bash before!

“I’ve been involved in a few Summer Bashes and they’ve been great, they’re really good for the fans.

“You get a good mixture of fans there, fans who don’t usually watch you play so you can showcase what you can do.

“Obviously this is a different level, a huge stadium, a massive following from all the teams, I’m expecting the place is going to be bouncing so I’m really looking forward to it.

“This is the first time I’ve been in the stadium today, just looking at it now it’s quite impressive, it’s really something.

“I can’t wait to see what it’s like once it’s packed with loads of fans, I’m looking forward to experiencing it.”

Aiden McGeady has left Hibernian at the end of an injury-disrupted season.

The 37-year-old winger moved to Easter Road last summer on a one-year deal but two long lay-offs restricted him to just 14 appearances, the majority of which came between December and February.

Hibs announced on Wednesday that McGeady, who said in January that he had contemplated retirement when he was sidelined in the first half of the season with a knee problem, would not be staying at the club.

“I’ve enjoyed my time at Hibs and wish the lads, supporters and the staff all the best for next season,” he told the Hibs website as news of his departure was confirmed.

The former Celtic, Sunderland and Republic of Ireland winger, who is currently recovering from a torn hamstring, will leave Easter Road along with defender Mikey Devlin – who has already agreed a move to Livingston – and goalkeeper Kevin Dabrowski.

Hibernian director of football Brian McDermott told the club’s website: “I would like to thank Aiden, Kevin and Mikey for their commitment and effort during their time with us. I wish them all the best for the future.”

On-loan quartet CJ Egan-Riley, Will Fish, Matthew Hoppe and Mykola Kuharevich are due to return to their parent clubs for the time being, although Hibs “are exploring the options to retain some of the loans”.

Tom Pidcock is reluctant to call it a target but the opportunity to take the yellow jersey on the opening weekend of this year’s Tour de France has not escaped his notice.

The 23-year-old will race his second Tour this July, and said his goal is to do better than he did on debut last summer.

That might seem a lofty ambition given how Pidcock stormed to a stunning solo stage victory on the Alpe d’Huez, the descending skills with which he escaped his breakaway companions still talked of with awe.

But it would get even more attention if the Ineos Grenadiers rider enjoyed a spell in yellow, and a lumpy opening stage in the Basque Country offers a rider of Pidcock’s talents a chance.

“I think it is (an opportunity), yeah,” he told the PA news agency. “It’s a possibility and something that I am aware is a possibility. I think the first stage of the Tour is one that can be treated like a one-day classic, it’s going to be a super-hard day.”

When told that sounds non-committal, Pidcock quickly adds: “I’m just playing it down.”

Pidcock, who proved his one-day credentials at Strade Bianche in March, is far from alone in eyeing that opening stage, but he has other goals in July too.

He wants to show greater consistency in the general classification, and also to win a stage from the main bunch rather than a break.

“Last year I was going to the Tour two months after being ill in the spring and then getting Covid, it was not the perfect lead in,” he said. “I think this year I’m stronger and I can do better, basically.”

Pidcock is certainly riding high on the back of his recent spell on the mountain bike.

The Olympic champion took two victories from the World Cup round in Novo Mesto, first storming from last to first to win a short track race he only learned he was riding with a couple of hours’ notice, then recovering from a lap-five crash to win the cross-country race.

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It came after he finished second in Liege-Bastogne-Liege and third in the Amstel Gold Race at the end of April.

The run of form is affirmation for the work Pidcock did in the winter, when he chose not to defend his cyclo-cross world title but instead focus on conditioning.

Although a crash at Tirreno-Adriatico in late March punched a hole in some of his ambitions, the core fitness remains.

“Definitely I feel I’m a bit more robust and certainly at a higher level and I have been for longer and I think that’s partly from the extra time spent building a base preparing,” he said. “I think that’s only going to carry into the rest of the season.”

Throughout his young career to date, the Yorkshireman has juggled the demands of road, mountain bike and cross, but always knew there would come a time when something had to give. This season has shown how that might look.

“I think if I want to achieve the goals I do on the road, certainly there are going to have to be sacrifices in other disciplines,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean they don’t contribute and help with those ambitions.”

There are likely to be sacrifices too at August’s World Championships in Scotland, where the first combined multi-discipline championships is creating dilemmas for several athletes given the schedule clashes.

Pidcock plans to race his mountain bike, so is strongly leading towards skipping the road race which comes first and could come at a cost.

“I don’t want to do both and go home with nothing,” he said. “I’d want to ride the road race because it’s a home race and it will be a super nice experience and I think the worlds is a very special particular race where you never know what will happen.

“It wouldn’t be a bad thing to ride, I want to ride, but would it be the best thing? I don’t know.”

:: Tom Pidcock is a Red Bull athlete. Watch him appear in ‘Race Tapes‘, the new Red Bull series that delves into the lives of the world’s leading riders across all disciplines.

Carl Froch knocked out George Groves in their rematch at Wembley Stadium on this day in 2014 as the Nottingham fighter retained his WBA and IBF super-middleweight titles.

Froch added to his victory in the initial bout in Manchester the previous November, in which he had recovered from a first-round knockdown and terrible start to stop Groves controversially in the ninth.

This time he finished the contest with a breathtaking eighth-round punch which knocked Groves out in front of a crowd of 80,000.

Froch said afterwards: “I showed tonight why I’m a four-time champion of the world, why I’ve defended my world title 13 times on the spin.

“I am amongst the best fighters in the world – that’s who George Groves was in there with tonight.

“The finish of that (fight) showed why I’ve mixed with the elite for many years and how hard it is to get to that level.”

He added: “I am feeling unbelievably elated. This is the best moment in the history of my boxing career.”

Groves made a solid start to the contest which began cagily, with neither fighter wanting to give anything away. Froch was patient, waiting for his opening and Groves struggled to keep pace as the fight wore on.

“I knew it was only going to take a couple of big right hands to the chin and I timed it perfectly,” Froch said.

Groves said: “It’s boxing and fair play to Carl, he caught me and I went down. Obviously I felt I was doing very well in the fight, I was in my groove and I was boxing well but it’s boxing.

“I’ll come back bigger, better and stronger. Ultimately I feel like I let myself down but congratulations to Carl, fair play, he got the punch.”

It proved the last fight for Froch – aged 36 at the time – before retirement, with him hanging up his gloves with a professional record of 35 bouts, 33 wins and two defeats, 24 of the victories coming by knockout.

World Rugby chief executive Alan Gilpin says tournament organisers are “well prepared” to deal with any protests or safety threats at the World Cup in France.

More than 600,000 international visitors – a World Cup record and 50 per cent more than for Japan 2019 – are expected to attend the event in September and October.

Ticket sales currently stand at almost 2.5million as the biggest Rugby World Cup tournament in its 36-year history prepares to take centre stage.

Protests across France over pension reforms earlier this month saw almost 300 people arrested and more than 100 police officers injured.

Football’s European governing body UEFA, meanwhile, brought in new measures to improve safeguards for fans attending finals in the wake of last season’s Champions League fiasco.

UEFA drew on recommendations from an independent review panel into chaotic scenes at the Stade de France in Paris which saw Liverpool supporters suffer serious congestion problems and over-zealous policing.

And Just Stop Oil protestors invaded the pitch during Saturday’s Gallagher Premiership final at Twickenham, throwing orange paint powder on to the field.

The World Cup kicks off at the Stade de France on September 8 with a blockbuster opener between France and New Zealand, launching a 48-match schedule involving 20 countries.

“Like every major event, we are planning all the time for such a wide range of different scenarios, and protests of any nature are certainly part of that,” said Gilpin, speaking with 100 days to go before the tournament starts.

“Of course, it is an area of challenging concern, but it is an area we are planning for, and like all of those scenarios we are working incredibly closely with the authorities in the various host cities.

“While I am sure, as there is in every major event and every RWC, there will be incidents we need to deal with, I think we will be well prepared for that.

“There are lessons to learn, clearly, from incidents like at the Stade de France and the Champions League final last year. There has been an enormous amount of debate around that.

“We are confident in those plans, but like any time we are talking about safety, we are not complacent and there is a huge amount of work that has been done and that will continue throughout the next 100 days and the tournament.

“A Rugby World Cup over seven weekends, 48 matches in nine cities is a big undertaking, so we are pretty relentless about the planning from a safety perspective.

“We can reassure rugby fans that are travelling to France, or that will be in France for the tournament, that their safety along with the teams and the players are our top priority. The French government, the cities are all part of that effort.”

Events to mark the 100 days landmark include the Webb Ellis Cup being delivered to France by 2019 South Africa World Cup winner Tendai Mtawarira, an unveiling of tournament medals made from recycled phones donated by fans and community rugby clubs and a spectacular light show set to transform the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

And Gilpin believes the World Cup’s 10th staging promises to be the most open tournament yet.

“We have seen in the (world) rankings, it has never been so competitive,” he added.

“On any given day, there are six or seven teams that can beat each other. We’ve got more uncertainty about our World Cup champions than ever before. That all leads into the excitement we are seeing.

“Our message is that we are in great shape. From our perspective, never has a country been so excited to host a Rugby World Cup – the levels of engagement are fantastic – and never has a country been so ready to host a Rugby World Cup.

“We know from ticket purchasing that more than 600,000 international fans will be welcomed to France, which is a record for any rugby event.

“The organisers have achieved, and will achieve, record ticket sales for RWC, selling out 2.5million tickets. It has been the hottest ticket for any rugby event to date.”