Warren Gatland has backed Andy Farrell to be the next British and Irish Lions head coach after ruling himself out of the running for the 2025 tour of Australia.
New Zealander Gatland, who late last year returned for a second spell as Wales boss, has overseen the last three Lions tours.
Farrell was on Sunday named World Rugby coach of the year after leading Ireland to a Guinness Six Nations Grand Slam amid a 17-match winning run.
“A few weeks ago, I was asked by Nigel Walker, Wales’ director of rugby, if I was interested in putting my name forward to be head coach for the next tour in Australia in 2025,” Gatland wrote in his column for the Telegraph.
“It did not take long to get back to him.
“I told him I was not going to put my name forward. I told Nigel that I would have no problem if any of my support staff were to be asked to be involved as I would see it as a great experience for them.
“But I think it is the opportunity now for someone else to be head coach and Andy Farrell would have my backing for the job.
“You cannot deny what Ireland have achieved as a nation over the last few years. There is no doubt that Andy has done a fantastic job.”
Gatland led the Lions to a 2-1 win in Australia in 2013, a drawn series in New Zealand in 2017 and a 2-1 defeat in South Africa in 2021.
Farrell was part of the 60-year-old’s coaching staff for the first two of those three tours.
The 48-year-old Englishman’s stock has risen significantly over the past couple of years, albeit Ireland suffered a quarter-final exit at the Rugby World Cup in France following a 28-24 defeat to runners-up New Zealand.
Gatland, who also assisted Sir Ian McGeechan on the 2009 Lions tour of South Africa, offered to support his successor in an advisory capacity.
“If the next head coach wants to tap into my experiences from the last four tours, then I would still love to be involved in some way by passing on the knowledge and experience I have gained in trying to create harmony within a group of players from different backgrounds,” he continued.
“For the Lions, it is the least I can do.”
'Job not done' for Springboks after All Blacks triumph, says Kolisi
South Africa captain Siya Kolisi warned his team the job is far from done despite them rallying for a thrilling victory over New Zealand in the Rugby Championship on Saturday.
The Springboks secured a 31-27 win over the All Blacks at Ellis Park, coming from behind with two late tries from Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Grant Williams.
The victory hauled South Africa onto 14 points in the Championship standings as they bid to end New Zealand's four-year stranglehold on the title, but Kolisi says there is still work to be done.
Addressing the capacity crowd in his post-match interview, Kolisi said: "We play for a lot but you people are our number one motivation.
"We appreciate you every single day. Please don't stop. When times are tough, please keep supporting us. We cannot do it without you.
"We respect the All Blacks. No matter what people say about them, when they need to turn up, they turn up. We believed in ourselves, we didn't panic, and we did what we wanted.
"They were catching us on the exit. After the first try in the second half, we picked it up. I'm really proud of the boys but the job is not done."
All Blacks captain Scott Barrett, meanwhile, was proud of his team-mates' efforts but admitted they had just fallen short of putting together a complete performance.
"Well done to the Springboks, it showed the class team they are," he said. "We weren't quite good enough. We were good for 62 minutes and it's an 80-minute game.
"There were two key moments after kick-offs where we couldn't quite get out of our half and they punished us. It was a huge effort, we're certainly proud, but it was just not quite to be.
"We'll regroup pretty quickly. Some guys have played here for the first time. It's intense and we'll have to be better next week."
South Africa host New Zealand again in Cape Town next week, while Australia go to Argentina for their round-three matchup.
Barbados-born Jacob Bethell selected by England for Australia white ball series
Barbados-born Jacob Bethell has received his maiden call up to the England squad for their three T20 Internationals and five One-Day Internationals against Australia in September.
Bethell, 20, a left-handed batter and spin bowler, has been picked for the three-match T20 series and five one-day internationals that follow after scoring 356 runs for Birmingham Bears in the Vitality Blast this season, including a 15-ball fifty against Northamptonshire.
Bethell’s Warwickshire team-mate Dan Mousley, 23, another left-hander who also offers a slow-bowling option, was also included in the T20 squad for the first time after amassing 375 runs in Birmingham's run to the Blast quarter-finals.
Leicestershire left-arm seamer Josh Hull and right-arm Hampshire quick John Turner could also make white-ball debuts after being included in both groups, while a fifth uncapped player, Essex batter Jordan Cox, is in the T20 party.
England white-ball stalwarts Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow and Chris Jordan have been left out and may very well have played their last international matches.
England T20I squad: Jos Buttler (capt), Jofra Archer, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Jordan Cox, Sam Curran, Josh Hull, Will Jacks, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Dan Mousley, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Reece Topley, John Turner
England ODI squad: Jos Buttler (capt), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Josh Hull, Will Jacks, Matthew Potts, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Jamie Smith, Reece Topley, John Turner
Australia to face England in 2027 anniversary Test at MCG
Australia will celebrate the 150th anniversary of their first Test match by welcoming rivals England to the Melbourne Cricket Ground in March 2027.
The MCG played host to Australia's first-ever red-ball contest in March 1877, with the hosts beating England by 45 runs before losing a second Test at the same venue.
Australia celebrated the 100th anniversary of their inaugural Test by beating England at the MCG in 1977, and Cricket Australia has confirmed plans are in place for another celebration to cap the team's 2026-27 season.
"The 150th anniversary Test match at the MCG in March 2027 will be a wonderful celebration of the pinnacle format of the game at one of the world's great sporting arenas and we can't wait to host England on that occasion," said Nick Hockley, chief executive of Cricket Australia.
The plans were announced as Cricket Australia locked in venues for a series of key fixtures until 2030-31, with the MCG continuing to host the traditional Boxing Day Test and the Sydney Cricket Ground staging the New Year's Test.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
