Chessum back in only England change for Six Nations clash with Scotland
Ollie Chessum will make his first England start for 11 months on Saturday with Steve Borthwick making a solitary change to his side to face Scotland.Chessum comes in at second-row with George Martin, who has been nursing an injury problem, dropping to the bench.Otherwise, Borthwick has stuck with the same side that beat France last time out with Fin Smith continuing at fly-half and Marcus Smith sticking at fullback.Borthwick has stuck with the same back-row, meaning a second start for Tom Willis at No 8, as England seek a first win over Scotland since 2020.Chessum’s return comes after he made appearances off the bench against Ireland and France, impressing against the latter and, significantly, he improves England’s lineout.
Against France England struggled in that regard but Chessum is a more capable lineout jumper and Borthwick will be aware of the need to improve that area of the game.It is unclear how much of part Martin’s knee problem played in the decision but he has been deemed fit enough for a place on the bench.Chessum, who missed the autumn campaign with a knee injury and last summer’s tour of Japan and New Zealand with a shoulder problem, does not possess the same heft as Martin but has proved himself a reliable operator under Borthwick.His more recent England starts have come at blindside flanker but he did start last year’s Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland in the second row.Elsewhere, Borthwick has gone for continuity.
He will have been tempted to reunite the Curry brothers in the back-row but Ben makes do with a place on the bench again with Tom and Ben Earl again named as the flankers,The front row is the same with Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Will Stuart keeping their spots, meaning Jamie George can provide valuable experience from the bench,Sign up to The BreakdownThe latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewedafter newsletter promotionIn the backs, Alex Mitchell stays at scrum-half with Henry Slade and Ollie Lawrence in midfield and Tommy Freeman and Ollie Sleightholme on the wings,On the bench, Fin Baxter, Joe Heyes, Chandler Cunningham-South, Harry Randall and Elliot Daly all keep their places with Borthick again opting for a 6-2 split,
Too long, didn’t remember: NBA stars that time (and the internet) forgot
We look back at seven ex-NBA stars who contributed a great deal to the league, but whose stories also risk being lost to time thanks to vanishing modern attention spansHave you ever opened up a social media page with a clear intention of what you’re doing and then instantly become distracted? You end up fiddling around and then closing the page and realizing you didn’t even do what you’d originally logged on for? Yes, the internet is a place full of distractions. TikTok, Instagram, whatever Twitter (X) is? It’s hard to remember what you had for breakfast some days. The same, of course, goes for NBA history.If you go online today to read about basketball, it can seem like the league or the sport itself was created in the 21st century. That anything before Kobe Bryant never actually existed
AFL fans expected to fork out as Saturday live coverage goes behind paywall in 2025
The head of Foxtel says AFL fans will “run towards the light” this season and subscribe to its pay TV service or sports streaming platform Kayo when they realise much of the season’s live Saturday coverage has gone behind a paywall.A new AFL broadcast agreement with Fox Sports and Channel Seven kicks in this season. Kayo Sports or Foxtel will required to watch live AFL on a Saturday in Victoria and Tasmania for every round of the home-and-away season, and nationally for the first eight rounds.Patrick Delany believes Australians “see as normal paying for content these days” and the new exclusive live Saturday AFL matches on the pay-TV provider will be enough convince them to sign up with a subscription platform.“Sport is nothing unless it’s live
NBA All-Star Kyrie Irving wants to play for Australia but red tape presents obstacle
His basketball skills have embarrassed the world’s best defences, but Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving faces imposing regulation, resistance and red tape before he will be allowed to represent Australia in international competition.The former USA point guard revealed at the NBA All-Star Weekend in San Francisco over the weekend he is exploring how to switch allegiances to the country of his birth.“We’re in the process of that right now, just trying to figure out what’s going to be the best route for me to be eligible,” he said.Irving was born in Melbourne in 1992 when his father Drederick was an import for the Bulleen Bullets in the South East Australian Basketball League. The family stayed until their son was two, before returning to the US
Joseph Parker: ‘This will mean something different. I’m doing it for myself now’
New Zealand fighter has appreciated spending time with his family as he prepares to challenge Daniel Dubois for the IBF world heavyweight titleThere’s nothing quite like watching Joe Parker lip-syncing to Take That to lift the mood in the back of an Uber on a drizzly morning in Dublin. The dangerous threat Parker faces against another big-hitting monster of the ring in Daniel Dubois, in Riyadh on Saturday night, fades with the laughter.Even the depressing reality that boxing will continue to ignore human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia, as Parker’s intriguing bout with Dubois headlines an outstanding bill bankrolled by the country’s General Entertainment Authority, can’t erode the wit and charm of the New Zealand heavyweight channelling his inner Gary Barlow.It’s a long drive from the heart of Dublin to the Ballybrack Boxing Club, where Parker has prepared for Dubois, and so I watch the video the fighter made last April. In December 2023 Parker had outclassed Deontay Wilder, a knockout merchant expected to crush him, and he was looking for a new opponent
England exposed to video nasties in bid to end losing streak in Calcutta Cup
England players have been shown Calcutta Cup video nasties for extra motivation as they bid to end a miserable run against Scotland on Saturday.Steve Borthwick’s side will seek a first win against the auld enemy in five years buoyed by their one-point victory against France last time out. But the head coach is waiting on the second-rower George Martin, who was not part of full training on Monday because of discomfort in his knee.Scotland are the only Six Nations team England have yet to beat under Borthwick after they clinched a 29-23 victory in the head coach’s first match in charge in 2023 before prevailing 30-21 at Murrayfield last year.Tom Curry said there had been an “edginess” to training this week as England seek a win that would keep their Six Nations title hopes alive, and his fellow back‑rower Ben Earl explained how the squad have been shown video clips as they bid to stop Scotland’s four-match winning run
Henderson seeks Cheltenham redemption with star turns after 2024 blank
Forty years on from his first Cheltenham festival success, with See You Then in the 1985 Champion Hurdle, Nicky Henderson is still at the peak of his profession – and still taking nothing for granted.“The only time I’ve ever been confident about anything was Altior’s Supreme [Novice Hurdle in 2016],” Henderson said on Monday. “It didn’t matter what Willie [Mullins] brought over that year, he wasn’t going to beat him.“But we always have said, you’d settle for one [winner at the Cheltenham festival]. If you have one on the first day then you get the bit between your teeth and you can say, OK, let’s kick on
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