Here are your rugby morning headlines for Monday, April 15.
Cunningham calls for large adjustments
Wales ladies coach Ioan Cunningham has known as for change within the Welsh Rugby Union’s plans for the sport after a chastening defeat to Ireland.
Wales are winless within the Women’s Six Nations, with their 36-5 defeat to Ireland in Cork essentially the most disappointing because the Irish have been winless in seven Six Nations matches earlier than it and have been simply overwhelmed by Cunningham’s facet final yr.
The reverse scoreline not solely exhibits the expansion of different nations after Wales’ personal growth in recent years, however piles the stress on former Scarlets coach Cunningham.
Cunningham insisted he was the “proper person to guide this staff”, earlier than citing the necessity for a significant ladies’s home league in Wales.
That goes in opposition to what the WRU imagine can work, with their imaginative and prescient being the perfect gamers plying their commerce in England – saving money for the WRU to spend on the nationwide facet.
“I feel we’ve reached a degree now the place there’s a lot good expertise coming by way of in Wales and we’ve received nowhere for them to play, and that’s one thing that we’ve received to significantly have a look at,” mentioned Cunningham.
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“Playing at under-20s degree is sensible, however then the place do they play after that?
“The Celtic Challenge is barely a brief window and for us to get into that prime 5 on this planet we have now received to have a home competitors that gives high-quality rugby for our gamers.
“It’s a long-term factor, it’s not going to occur in a single day. There are gamers like Sian Jones, Gwennan Hopkins, Molly Reardon, the place are they going to play?
“A big shift needs to happen for us to have the quality players playing regularly, as well as players that are performing well in the PWR, suddenly everything rises.”
LRZ begins work with Chiefs
Louis Rees-Zammit begins work with Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs at present.
The former Wales wing will hyperlink up with the NFL facet after a quick return again to Wales to kind out his visa.
And as he returns Stateside, the work ramps up for Rees-Zammit as he goals to realize his NFL dream. Being signed by Andy Reid’s Super Bowl champions was step one, however now the intention might be to make an impression with the Chiefs.
Today sees the NFL’s offseason exercise program begin for almost all of groups. Teams with new head coaches, which does not apply to the Chiefs, are allowed a slight head begin on offseason exercises.
There are three phases to the offseason exercises. Phase one begins on opening day and continues for 2 weeks, being made up of staff conferences, energy and conditioning and continued rehabilitation.
Phase two runs for the next three weeks and options walk-through practices, on-field drills and extra from part one. Finally, the ultimate three weeks are for part three and that options 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 practices. No dwell contact is ever allowed at any level in offseason coaching actions.
In recent years, Chiefs quarter-back Patrick Mahomes has hosted receivers for exercises down in Texas. He’s executed comparable this yr, with Rees-Zammit having posted photos with the two-time MVP.
Exeter will study loads from hammering
Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter believes his young facet can study from their heavy Champions Cup quarter-final defeat to Toulouse.
The Chiefs, that includes Wales internationals Dafydd Jenkins and Christ Tshiunza, have been no match for the French giants, with Toulouse working in seven second-half tries on the way in which to a 64-26 victory.
However, within the first season of a rebuild after quite a few departures final yr, Baxter believes the expertise will stand them in good stead in years to return.
“There’s enormous areas of our sport that we have been very aggressive and also you could not say we weren’t within the sport, as a result of at half-time, we definitely have been,” Baxter instructed ITV Sport afterwards.
“I feel we have executed a lot within the sport and the lads have skilled so many issues on this sport, they will solely get higher from it. What they need to do now could be determine to get higher from it and never let it’s a dent or hiccup within the season. The season as a complete has been massively profitable. We’ve simply received to try to keep that momentum.
“That first-half efficiency and the way in which we caught in it within the second half, it confirmed a variety of qualities that are going to be essential to us going ahead as a staff.
“I do not wish to have any participant at this membership who thinks we do not wish to be in knockout and massive video games.
“I would like each participant to return right here desirous to be a world, desirous to play in cup finals and if we take a battering alongside the way in which, so be it. If you wish to have that ambition, we as a membership need to be right here.”
Ireland needed to proper wrongs in opposition to Wales
Ireland back-row Aoife Wafer says her team-mates have been pushed to carry out in opposition to Wales by the need to “show everyone who Ireland is and who we are”.
Wafer crossed for the opening strive within the Women’s Six Nations conflict as Ireland put their earlier defeat to Italy to mattress in convincing trend.
“We spoke all week about what our targets were and what our goals were going into this game,” mentioned participant of the match Wafer.
“We have been fairly upset with our efficiency in opposition to Italy, we knew we had them in a variety of alternatives and we needed to return out and proper these wrongs and present everybody who Ireland is and who we’re.
“There are some actually huge positives from this sport. There can also be some stuff that we will take and actually goal in coaching.
“I’m sure our coaches have some sort of plan for us to go out and target England and for us to do a job. We’ll have our goals and if we hit those we’ll be in a good spot.”
