Steve Hansen applauds the Rugby Football Union’s decision to raise the pride flag above Twickenham on Sunday after acknowledging his selection of Israel Folau for the World XV is controversial.

Folau, a Christian fundamentalist, will face Eddie Jones’ Barbarians on Sunday four years after he was sacked by Rugby Australia for publishing a series of anti-gay posts on social media.

The 34-year-old has switched national allegiance and will represent Tonga at the World Cup this autumn having returned to rugby union following an aborted spell in league, the code that launched his career.

The RFU has signalled it will respond to the presence of Folau at Twickenham with a show of support for the LGBTQ+ community by flying the rainbow flag.Hansen, the mastermind of New Zealand’s 2015 World Cup triumph, welcomes the move but insists Folau deserves to be involved in the invitational fixture on the strength of his ability as a player.

“I think it’s great. It’s a consequence of Folau’s selection and I think it’s a good thing. It’s an opportunity to show support to that flag. I don’t have a problem with it,” Hansen said.

“There wouldn’t be one there if Israel wasn’t playing so whenever we can bring attention to people who are suffering in a positive way, that’s good.

“They deserve to be loved and cared for as much as anybody else. If we all did that it’d be a happy place, wouldn’t it.

“Israel Folau is a very good rugby player. He’s world class. And I know by picking him that there will be some people hurt. And I get that.

“However, I want those people to understand that Israel’s belief and views are not ours. And we don’t agree with them.

“But he’s a rugby player first and foremost and he’s been sanctioned. Those sanctions have finished, he’s playing rugby, he’s probably going to go to the World Cup so my job is to pick the best team I can pick and that’s what I’ve done.”

Hansen will attempt to lift some of the gloom surrounding rugby union by ordering his star-studded World XV side to “put on a show” against the Barbarians.

But the 64-year-old Kiwi still retains misgivings about the drive to stamp out dangerous play that he believes is counter-productive and has brought a “dourness” to the game.

“We see a lot of red cards and while I understand that I just don’t understand why we ruin the game with them,” Hansen said.

“Fans want to see a contest – one of the biggest principles of the game is a fair contest – and we’re giving people red cards for unintentional accidents and calling it foul play.

“If you keep giving red cards out people will think the game’s dirty so it’s imploding upon itself.

“It’s easy for me to sit here and have all the answers, but somehow we’ve got to bring a more common-sense approach to finding a solution rather than just a penalty.

“I wonder if we do this because we want to be able to say ‘well at least we’ve done that’ if we then go to a court hearing?

“That’s pretty cynical of me to think like that, but I can’t help it because sending players off is not fixing the problem.

“Is the data saying we are getting less head knocks by doing what we are doing at the moment? I don’t think so.”

A Group One gap on James Tate’s training CV could be filled this year by Royal Aclaim, who is set to return to action in Saturday’s Betfred Temple Stakes at Haydock.

The filly was sent off 5-2 favourite to provide Tate with a breakthrough success in the Nunthorpe last season, but finished sixth behind Highfield Princess.

On her only outing afterwards she was third in a French Group Three – but, as the Nunthorpe winner showed, sprinters tend to improve with racing and with just five runs under her belt, Royal Aclaim has plenty of scope for improvement.

“The sprinting division is often open at this stage of the year and we don’t know what will turn out to be best. Stars always emerge in the sprinting division and we are hoping she will be one of them,” said Tate.

“She is a bit bigger and a bit stronger, but she is really well in herself at the moment and is moving really well.

“We are really hopeful she can pick up where she left off and improve a little bit. She has only had five races in her life so surely she is going to improve.”

Tate has trained other Group-winning sprinters, like Invincible Army and Far Above, but feels Royal Aclaim could be the one to take him to the next level.

“In natural talent at home she is right at the top, but it is about what they can do on the track and she needs to just be a little bit more streetwise and get those sprinting muscles,” he said.

“Sadly I haven’t got a Group One on the CV yet. She has definitely got the talent, but she has obviously only got five runs to her belt. We are hoping she can add the other weapons to her armoury and do it for us.”

Royal Scotsman has been supplemented for the Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh on Saturday.

Trained by Paul and Oliver Cole, the Gleneagles colt had a busy time at two, winning the Richmond Stakes and finishing second in the Dewhurst to Chaldean.

He once again found Andrew Balding’s charge too good in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket when a fine third after racing keenly in the early stages.

Alex Cole, racing manager for Fitri Hay, who owns Royal Scotsman, confirmed: “We have supplemented him, so fingers crossed.

“He seems in good form so we thought we’d roll the dice again.”

One place in front of Royal Scotsman at Newmarket was Kevin Ryan’s 125-1 outsider Hi Royal and the two are on course to clash again.

The fourth, Galeron, is also on target, with Knight (seventh) and Charyn (eighth) others to meet again.

Aidan O’Brien has three contenders, headed by Paddington, who could be joined by Cairo and Age Of Kings.

Donnacha O’Brien’s Group One-winning two-year-old Proud And Regal is also among the 12 contenders.

In the Greenlands Stakes, Charlie Hill’s Garrus could aim to follow up his Abernant win at Newmarket, with potential rivals including Michael O’Callaghan’s Twilight Jet in a field of nine.

In the Tattersalls Irish 1,000 Guineas on Sunday, Dermot Weld holds a very strong hand in his attempt to follow up the victory of Homeless Songs last year.

He fields Tahiyra, a narrow second at Newmarket, and Tarawa, second in a Group Three on her return to action.

Aidan O’Brien has four of the 11, headed by Breeders’ Cup winner Meditate. She could be joined by Dower House, Never Ending Story and the supplemented Jackie Oh.

Fozzy Stack also has a couple of options in Aspen Grove and You Send Me, while John Quinn’s Breege is a possible British raider.

Jean-Claude Rouget has supplemented Vadeni for the Tattersalls Gold Cup, in which he could face Irish Champion Stakes winner Luxembourg, who is looking to bounce back from a disappointing seasonal return.

Point Lonsdale is another Coolmore possible while Bay Bridge has been left in by Sir Michael Stoute and Anmaat is another UK-based contender.

Connections were left frustrated following Marshman’s appearance in York’s 1895 Duke of York Clipper Stakes last week and will now make a late decision on whether he will line up in the King’s Stand Stakes or Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot.

The Karl Burke-trained three-year-old had finished second in the Gimcrack on his previous visit to the Knavesmire and headed into the Group Two contest having won three of his five career outings following a comeback win at Chantilly in the Group Three Prix Sigy.

However, a tardy start meant Clifford Lee was unable to get the son of Harry Angel to challenge in the ideal spot from his draw of stall two and although travelling with some menace out wide on the flank, his pursuit of glory petered out in the closing stages to be beaten three lengths in fifth.

“Everything kind of went wrong,” said Nick Bradley, managing director of owners Nick Bradley Racing.

“I haven’t watched it many times because when you don’t enjoy what you see, you don’t tend to go back and watch it that much.

“He bunny hopped at the start and lost one or two lengths. Cliff wasn’t able to come down the centre of the track because he had horses on his right and ended up definitely challenging on the wrong side of the track.

“He came there and loomed up at the two pole, as did the winner and Highfield Princess, but he just didn’t see it out. I’m putting that down to him losing a few lengths at the start and having to challenge on the worst part of the track.

“I think if he was drawn 10 and bunny hopped the start, he’s definitely in the first three – where I don’t know. If he’s drawn 10 and doesn’t bunny hop the start, I think he could have been in the first two.”

Having travelled powerfully it is easy to envisage Marshman dropping back to the stiff five furlongs of the King’s Stand at the Royal meeting, but Bradley is keen to bide his time and see how the fields are shaping up before making a decision.

“It’s very easy to say that because of the way he ran, but there are legitimate excuses,” said Bradley of the prospect of running over five furlongs. “You are walking away from York frustrated because a big day hasn’t gone your way.

“We’re not going to make any quick decisions. We will watch the Sandy Lane this weekend and see how the races pan out and see nearer the time.

“I think I would rather run him over five than six at Ascot, but we will see how the races look like.”

Jack Nowell has ruled himself out of England’s plans ahead of the World Cup in France later this year.

Nowell, who is currently recovering from a knee injury, looks set to join European champions La Rochelle ahead of next season.

And 30-year-old Nowell has decided to take himself out of the selection frame, effectively signalling an end to his 46-cap England career.

England’s current selection policy dictates that players plying their trade overseas are not considered for Test duty.

“I am not doing the World Cup, no World Cup. I am just going to chill and get my knee sorted,” Nowell told the RugbyPass Offload podcast.

“It was a hard decision not to put myself in for selection for the World Cup, but I thought it was probably one that I had to make for myself and my family as well.

“We are going to make the most of being back home in Cornwall, probably spend the next few weeks there and we have got our testimonial tournament at Sandy Park on June 3.

“I was in contact with (England head coach Steve Borthwick) ‘Borthers’ and he let me know I wasn’t going to be involved in the Six Nations, which was completely fair enough. New coach, new ideas.

“I was happy with that, it was my last year at the club (Exeter), so I got to really focus on doing my best for the club and try and focus on getting us into the big games at the end of the season.

“When you do sign abroad, you have an option of signing pre-World Cup or post-World Cup. For me, I made the decision that it was probably best for me and my family to sign a pre-World Cup contract.”

Borthwick turned to the likes of Anthony Watson, Ollie Hassell-Collins and Henry Arundell during the Six Nations, with wing a hugely-competitive area.

Nowell added: “I am sure it would be a bit different if I was talking to Steve all the time and I have spoken to him since then to tell him my decision.

“I think I was in his World Cup plans, especially for the first get-togethers as a big squad, but I decided not to do that and make sure my family get settled in France and make sure I get settled in France.

“As much as I would like to have done this one (World Cup) and given it a good crack, sometimes you have got to read between the lines and understand you are probably not in the coach’s favour.

“Don’t get me wrong, I would love to have fought for my position and got myself back into playing, but family comes first for me.”

A laid-back temperament is sure to help Sprewell as he bids to give Jessica Harrington a maiden Derby victory.

That is the message from the County Kildare handler, whose three-year-old son of Churchill is charting a course to the Epsom Classic on Saturday week.

Sprewell has blossomed this term, winning both starts, including an impressive three-length victory in the Group Three Derby Trial Stakes at Leopardstown.

“I’ve been delighted with him,” said Harrington. “We knew he would come on over the winter and he has run two good, solid races since.

“He came out of Leopardstown very well. He definitely stepped forward from there again and we are looking forward to Saturday week.

“I think the step up to a mile and a half will definitely suit him. He ran through the line very strong and he’s a very nice, relaxed horse, which is the main thing.

“Nothing seems to faze him and I think going the mile and a half will suit him, because I think he will settle well, which he has done in both of his races this year.”

Harrington has previously been better known for training jumping stars such as Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Sizing John, Champion Hurdler Jezki and Champion Chaser Moscow Flyer.

Yet in recent times she has acquired more Flat horses – and quality ones at that.

She has won the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot with Alpine Star and Alpha Centauri, who also took top-class success in the Falmouth, Irish 1,000 Guineas and the Prix Jacques le Marois, while Millisle landed the Cheveley Park and Albigna the Prix Marcel Boussac.

She is no stranger to Classic glory, annexing the Irish Oaks last season with Magical Lagoon before a tough period in her personal life following a breast cancer diagnosis in October.

On a conference call to promote the Betfred-sponsored blue riband, Harrington added: “Things are great and I’m lucky enough.

“I’ve finished the worst part of it probably now, the chemotherapy, and we are just going onto the next stage now. It will take a bit longer, but I’ll be out and about very shortly.

“I’ve been very lucky enough to have a great support team. My daughter Kate and my son-in-law and my other daughter Emma, they’ve been around all winter, keeping things going.

“I did my best to get out every single day I could to look at the horses, because that was the best therapy I reckoned I had, because it was just lovely looking at the horses every day.

“I went racing last Friday at Leopardstown, but I go when it is nice and near when I can.

“I will most likely be watching the Derby at home, but I just don’t know. I’ll see how I get on.”

Harrington has only had one runner in the Derby before, with 150-1 chance Gold Maze finishing ninth to Serpentine, a renewal run during the Covid pandemic in July 2020.

Sprewell goes to Epsom with a greater degree of confidence behind him as a general 12-1 chance and the 76-year-old feels his rapid progress this year, after two runs as a juvenile, will stand him in good stead.

“He’s done everything we hoped he would do,” said Harrington. “We were fairly confident going to Naas for the conditions race, rather than going for a maiden. He did that well and he learned a bit that day.

“He made a big step forward when we sent him to Leopardstown and he hit the line very strong that day, having come round the outside.”

“I think he will improve for racing,” she added. “He’s a fine, big horse.

“We are very happy with the temperament he’s got so far. He’s a laid-back horse and he’s very straightforward, and each time he’s run, he’s walked round the parade ring in a very relaxed manner.

“I know there will be much more hype and buzz in Epsom, but so far he has been very good.”

Physically and mentally, the difference between last year and this has been startling.

She added: “We always thought he would be a better three-year-old than a two-year-old. He never looked like a two-year-old. He was big and backward-looking all the way through last summer.

“He had to grow into himself and then seemed to get organised mentally. He had to grow up mentally more than anything else, he was very babyish last year.”

Those looking to pick holes in his form will point to the ground conditions. All four previous runs have some with plenty of ease and not once has the word ‘good’ entered the going description.

However, Sprewell’s conditioner feels this is something of an outlier and should they race on quick ground at Epsom, she believes it will not be a major factor.

Harrington said: “I think they will all go on it once. He is a low-moving horse, he is a very good-moving horse and I see no reason why he won’t run very well on it.

“It is just out of circumstances he’s run on soft ground, because it was a wet autumn in Ireland last year and it has been a wet spring.”

The Mohamed Khalid Mohamed Abdulrahim-owned colt has ticked every box thus far. Shane Foley’s mount will, of course, have to overcome Epsom’s idiosyncrasies of cambers and undulations, but Sprewell has plenty of the right attributes.

“He is a very well-balanced horse, so I’m hoping he will cope with it fine,” said Harrington.

“It would be very special to win the Derby. It’s on the bucket list. It is great to go there with a horse that’s got a chance. It’s very exciting.”

David Probert is set for a swift return to action having escaped serious injury when kicked at Windsor on Monday night.

The incident occurred in the parade ring before the 5.35 race where Probert was due to ride Bits And Bobs for Andrew Balding and having been kicked by his intended mount, green screens were put in place while he was attended to before being taken to the nearby Slough hospital.

However, there appears to be no lasting damage, with Probert tweeting on Monday night that his X-rays had come back all clear and that he was simply sore and bruised.

He intends to return to the saddle on Wednesday where he has a full book of rides at Kempton’s evening all-weather meeting.

“I’ve spoken to David this morning and he is just bruised. All being well he will be back tomorrow,” said Neil Allan, the jockey’s agent.

“He won’t be riding today because he is bruised, but he was in good spirits when I spoke to him this morning.”

LeBron James paid tribute to the Denver Nuggets after the Los Angeles Lakers were swept in the Western Conference finals.

The 38-year-old said he and teammate Anthony Davis are in agreement that Denver was the best team they had faced while playing together with the Lakers.

Despite 40 points from James, 31 of which came before halftime for his highest scoring total in a half in a playoff game in his illustrious career, the Lakers lost a close Game 4 contest.

Denver prevailed 113-111 with Nikola Jokic having 30 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists and Jamal Murray adding 25 points as they clinched an historic 4-0 series win.

The Nuggets claimed their first Western Conference title in the team’s 47-year existence and will face either the Miami Heat or Boston Celtics for the league championship

"Me and AD were just talking in the locker room and we came to the consensus this is one of the best teams, if not the best team, we’ve played together for all four years," James said about the Nuggets.

"Just well-orchestrated, well put together. They have scoring. They have shooting. They have playmaking. They have smarts. They have length. They have depth. 

"And one thing about their team, when you have a guy like Jokic, who as big as he is but also as cerebral as he is, you can’t really make many mistakes versus a guy like that."

James, who was 15-of-25 shooting, prompted a wave of coverage after Game 4 by suggesting he was considering basketball retirement.

After saying he had a lot to think about in the post-game news conference, he was asked to clarify his comments by ESPN.

Asked what he would be thinking about, James replied: "If I want to continue to play. I got to think about it.

"It was a very challenging season for me, for our ballclub, and obviously we know whatever went on early on [the Lakers started 2-10 start]. It was cool, a pretty cool ride.

"We'll see what happens going forward. I don't know. I don't like to say it's a successful year, because I don't play for anything besides winning championships. I don't get a kick out of making a conference [finals] appearance.

"I've done it a lot, and it's not fun to me to not be able to be a part of getting to the [NBA] Finals."

Davis had 21 points for the Lakers and all five starters reached double figures, but a seemingly comfortable 73-58 halftime lead swiftly evaporated as Denver outscored them 28-10 to start the second half.

Jokic’s eighth triple-double of this year’s playoffs broke a tie he shared with Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain for the most in a single postseason.

Denver will face either Miami or Boston in the Finals. The eighth-seeded Heat own a 3-0 lead in the East finals ahead of Game 4 on Tuesday.

Last year’s Derby hero Desert Crown will make his eagerly-awaited return to action after 355 days on the sidelines in Thursday’s Racehorse Lotto Brigadier Gerard Stakes at Sandown.

Trained by Sir Michael Stoute, the Saeed Suhail-owned colt is unbeaten in three racecourse appearances.

A Nottingham maiden win at two was impressive by any standards, but he stepped up on that to win the Dante at York on his first outing at three and he looked to have the world at his feet when toying with the Derby field at Epsom.

Richard Kingscote was on board that day and maintains the partnership on a horse who has been off the track since due to injury.

Nursed along by Stoute, he is now ready to return in a race which the trainer has traditionally used as a starting point for his best middle distance horses such as Pilsudski, Notnowcato and Workforce.

Stoute also runs Solid Stone, in the same ownership, who will be ridden by Ryan Moore.

Desert Crown faces far from a penalty kick as another long-absent star returns to action in Hukum. Trained by Owen Burrows, he was last seen winning the Coronation Cup at the Derby meeting but in doing so he picked up an injury which has kept him off the track since.

Jane Chapple-Hyam’s Royal Ascot winner Claymore, David Simcock’s Cash and the Keith Dalgleish-trained Chichester returns complete the field.

Frankie Dettori has the ride on Enemy in the Racehorse Lotto Henry II Stakes. Nate The Great, Roberto Escobarr, Sleeping Lion and Princess Anne, trained in France by Hiroo Shimizu, are the other contenders.

Some very highly rated juveniles go to post for the Racehorse Lotto National Stakes, led by James Tate’s Blue Storm.

The Newmarket race he won on debut could hardly have worked out any better, as Tate explained: “Blue Storm was very taking up at Newmarket. He has been very natural at home and has showed up well all winter.

“We gave him one piece of work just before the Craven meeting, which he showed up nicely in before winning at Newmarket.

“Generally speaking my two-year-olds come on a lot from their first run to their second and if he follows that rule, we have every reason to be excited.

“What is even better is that the second, third, fourth and fifth have all won since, so the form looks great.

“There are not too many negatives and lots of reasons to be optimistic.”

Richard Hannon’s Dapper Valley, Hugo Palmer’s Chester winner Hackman and Charlie Appleby’s On Point all carry tall reputations into the 10-runner contest.

Sergei Bobrovsky made 32 saves for his first career playoff shutout, and the Florida Panthers moved a win away from a surprising spot in the Stanley Cup Final with Monday’s 1-0 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals.

Bobrovsky made Sam Bennett’s power-play goal midway through the second period hold up as Florida took a commanding 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

The Panthers are aiming to become only the fourth No. 8 seed in a conference to reach the Stanley Cup Final since the NHL adopted a 16-team postseason in 1979-80.

Florida, whose lone Final appearance came in 1996, can finish off the series at home on Wednesday. In the history of the NHL playoffs, teams with a 3-0 lead have advanced in 200 of the previous 204 occurrences.

The Panthers won Game 3 despite being outshot by a 32-17 margin and losing captain Alexsander Barkov to a lower-body injury in the first period. Bobrovsky came up with 14 saves in the second period and 11 in the third, in which the Panthers managed only two shots on goal.

Nikola Jokic had 30 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists as the Denver Nuggets advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history with a 113-111 comeback win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday to complete a four-game sweep of the Western Conference finals.

Top-seeded Denver overcame a 15-point halftime deficit to claim its first Western Conference title in its 47-year existence and will face either the Miami Heat or Boston Celtics for the league championship. The eighth-seeded Heat own a 3-0 lead in the East finals.

Jokic made history as well by recording his eighth triple-double of this year’s playoffs to break a tie he shared with Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain for the most in a single postseason. The two-time NBA MVP also hit the eventual game-winning shot when his layup with 52 seconds remaining snapped a 111-111 tie.

The Lakers had built a seemingly comfortable 73-58 halftime lead behind 31 points from LeBron James, his highest scoring total in a half in a playoff game in his illustrious career.

Los Angeles came out cold in the third quarter, however, making just one field goal over the first 4-and-a-half minutes as the Nuggets steadily cut into their deficit. Denver outscored the Lakers 28-10 to start the second half and grabbed an 86-83 lead on Michael Porter’s tiebreaking 3-pointer with 3:34 remaining in the period.

Jokic’s 3-pointer with 2:50 left to play extended Denver’s advantage to 110-104, but the Lakers’ Austin Reaves answered with a triple on the ensuing possession to spark a 7-1 run that tied the game at 111-111 entering the final minute.

After Jokic’s layup put the Nuggets back in front, James missed a 20-footer and had his final attempt blocked by Aaron Gordon right before time expired.

James finished with 40 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists but shot just 4 of 12 from the field in the second half.

James DeGale made history by claiming the vacant IBF super-middleweight title with a thrilling unanimous decision victory over Andre Dirrell in Boston eight years ago.

DeGale became the first person to win Olympic gold and a world crown in the professional ranks for Britain after withstanding a fierce comeback from his American opponent.

The Londoner appeared on course for a sensational early stoppage after dropping Dirrell twice in the second round, with the first knockdown coming from a brutal overhand left.

Dirrell weathered the storm in the early rounds as DeGale, who won middleweight gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, looked for the knockout and even came on strong in the second half of the fight.

But DeGale finished strongly and two judges scored the fight 114-112 in his favour, with the third of 117-109 seemingly a bit harsh on Dirrell.

After improving his record to 21-1 (14KOs), DeGale said: “I’ve finally done it. It’s an unbelievable feeling, I’m world champ. I made history!

“I will take on any super-middleweight in the world, I’m hard to beat when I’m at my best.

“(Dirrell) is a very, very good opponent, he’s very talented, he’s hard to beat, if anything it’s me and him second and third in the rankings. Andre Ward’s there and there’s me and him. There’s no other super-middleweight that would beat me on my day.”

DeGale held the title until 2017 when he lost it to Caleb Truax before regaining it in a rematch with the American the following year.

He retired from professional boxing after a defeat by Chris Eubank Jr in February 2019.