Firstly, let me reassure you that Andy Burnham and Larry the cat are both alive and well.

Things at Downing Street are perfectly fine unlike matters across the channel where the number 10 issue is bordering on catastrophic for the French national team.

On this side of le Manche we have a conservative distinction between the scrum-half and fly half roles however, in France there is a much more laissez-faire attitude which is maybe just as well considering the situation France currently find themselves in.

Before Saturday’s win over Fiji Les Bleus were already down to the bare bones at numero dix with Matthieu Jalibert and Anton Hastoy out injured and Thomas Ramos, who can also play fly half, also incapacitated.

Things got even worse in Lyon when Romain Ntamack left the field after thirty-three minutes grimacing and clutching his left arm with what looked like the classic symptoms of a dislocated shoulder.

The injury was confirmed at a Lyon hospital on Saturday night where the shoulder was put back in place.

Ntamack returned home to Toulouse yesterday for further treatment. An operation could make his presence in the 2027 Guinness Six Nations doubtful.

With only five days to go before South Africa arrive at Stade de France the fly half cupboard is bare and France’s options are limited.

Do they play the inexperienced Axel Desperes the Pau fly half or Stade Francais’ Louis Carbonel who has been added to the squad ?

The more favoured option appears to be going with either Maxime Lucu or Antoine Dupont at ten.

As mentioned earlier the French tend to be much less prescriptive when it comes to switching half back positions.

Maxime Lucu seems to be the favourite to start at ten having had experience at Champions Cup level with Bordeaux in the role.

France in effect only have one full training session this week before team selection on Thursday, and with Paul Boudehent also leaving the squad through injury it could well be a case of last man standing.

I have spent much of my working life writing about rugby, a sport I understand and whose characters, controversies and occasional absurdities have provided me with plenty of material. Writing about a thoroughbred racehorse was never part of the plan.

Yet here I am, writing a book about Shergar.

When I began researching his life, my knowledge of racing was embarrassingly limited. I barely knew the difference between a fetlock and a furlong. But I could recognise a magnificent horse when I saw one, although the finer points of breeding, training and the turf were largely a mystery to me. That has changed considerably, although I would hesitate to describe myself as an authority.

What has not changed is my affection for one extraordinary animal. I can trace it back to Wednesday 3 June 1981, when Shergar produced one of the most remarkable performances in the history of the Derby. I watched a handsome bay colt, his distinctive white blaze unmistakable, sweep clear of his rivals with an ease that seemed almost impossible. Walter Swinburn, barely nineteen, sat aboard him with the composure of a man who knew he had something exceptional beneath him. I had watched countless sporting contests, celebrated great performances and admired athletes at the peak of their powers. But there was something different about Shergar.

His brilliance was breathtaking, certainly, yet it was the apparent joy of his running that stayed with me.

Perhaps I was guilty of attributing human emotions to a horse. Perhaps that impression existed entirely in my imagination. All I know is that, watching him gallop towards the winning post, I found myself smiling.

More than four decades later, the feeling still remains.

For many people, Shergar’s name is inseparable from the extraordinary events of February 1983, when armed men took him from his stud in County Kildare. His disappearance became an international preoccupation, spawning investigations, speculation and theories that have endured for decades.

It is a story that has to be told, but I do not believe it should define him.

Before the headlines, the ransom demands and the enduring uncertainty, there was a remarkable racehorse with a personality that could be as entertaining as his talent was formidable. He could be mischievous with his riders, unexpectedly gentle when accepting a treat and occasionally rather undignified when galloping with his tongue hanging from the side of his mouth.

Those details fascinate me almost as much as his achievements on the racecourse. They offer glimpses of the individual behind the famous name.

This book is my attempt to bring that individual back into focus: to explore his breeding, his development, his spectacular racing career and the people whose skill and devotion helped him fulfil his extraordinary potential. Inevitably, it must also confront the cruelty of his disappearance and the questions that even after all these years remain unanswered.

I have approached the task as a labour of love but also as a journalist, conscious of the need to distinguish established fact from recollection, speculation and the irresistible temptation to romanticise a much-loved subject.

But I have also approached it as someone who admired a horse he never had the good fortune to meet.

And perhaps that is the greatest tribute I can pay Shergar. His racing career was brief, his life tragically shorter than it should have been, yet the impression he made has endured across generations.

I hope that, by the final page, you will understand why.

Shergar- Ten Lengths To Immortality is Available in paperback from Amazon via the link below for just £4.99

https://amzn.eu/d/07FRAREq

The attritional and seemingly endless Top 14 season has appeared to have taken its toll as the French national team prepare for the upcoming Rugby Nations Championship

To call Les Bleus injury list extensive would be a massive understatement.

Fabien Galthié is already describing his squad as a team of “survivors”, and Captain Antoine Dupont is adding his considerable voice to emphasise the “burden on the bodies” and having so little downtime has inflicted.

The roll call of unavailability resembles an NHS waiting list.

Eleven players are out of the entire November campaign:

Gaëtan Barlot

Fabien Brau-Boirie

Gaël Drèan

Thibaud Flament

Marko Gazzotti

Matthieu Jalibert

Emmanuel Meafou

Noah Néné

Karl Sorin

Gabin Villlière

Thomas Ramos

Whilst eight are in rehabilitation with their return to play dates uncertain.

Dorian Aldegheri

Demba Bamba

Pierre-Louis Barassi

Julien Marchand

Régis Montagne

Lenni Nouchi

Florian Verhaeghe

Antoine Hastoy

France open their campaign on Saturday against Fiji in Lyon before facing South Africa six days later on Friday 13 November in Paris.

Their final pool match takes place in Paris on Saturday 21 November against Argentina.

It could well be a case of last man standing by then.

The actual land border between England and Wales is an unmarked irregular 160 mile boundary that runs from the Dee Estuary in the north down to the Severn Estuary in the south.

If you are travelling west from the city of Gloucester you will hit the border at the Wye Valley and the town of Chepstow.

That border has seen a fair bit of sporting footfall crossing its demarcation zone in recent times as Gloucester is starting to become something of a Welsh rugby enclave.

Wales captain Dewi Lake joined from Ospreys whist national co-Captain Jac Morgan accompanied him.

Fellow Welshmen Max Llewellyn, Josh Hathaway, Freddie Thomas and Deian Gwynne were already at Gloucester setting up base camp.

The Cymric contingent would have been even larger had Wales and Lions scrum-half Tomos Williams not left the club for Saracens in the summer.

Last night the Cherry and whites were sampling some Bordeaux vintage sadly it was not the grape variety. The only claret on show came from the cuts and bruises in an epic to and from contest that ended in a 36-36,

Whilst the rugby world has spent the last few years trying to stop Louis Bielle-Biarrrey Border Force officials managed it at Bristol Airport all that was needed apparently was some immigration governmental red tape even Rassie Erasmus hadn’t come up with that one.

The contest at Kingsholm was enthralling. Bordeaux scored a try through Page-Relo after just four minutes, but Gloucester responded with two of their own via Arthur Clark and Max Llewellyn.

Gloucester’s dominant scrum gave them the platform to get to half-time with a 24-17 lead much to the delight of the donkey impressionists in the shed.

Two Bordeaux tries in the opening ten minutes of the second half from Uberti and Bielle-Biarrey allowed the visitors to take a 29-14 lead.

Enter super sub Will Trenholm for Gloucester entering the fray in the 55th minutes he scored two tries in four minutes to regain the lead 36-29.

But Bielle-Biarrey playing in his 100th game for Bordeaux, and having side stepped Border Force at Bristol,had the final say scoring a try in the 62nd minute converted by Maxime Lucu to bring the scores level at 36-36.

In the remaining seventeen minutes both teams searched desperately for the winning score but it was not to be, and a fantastic opening to the 2027/27 Investec Champions Cup competition ended with honours even.

Good luck getting home Monsieur Bielle-Biarrey.

Photo courtesy Gloucester Rugby

The Top 14 is a tournament where the end appears to be the beginning and the beginning is the end.

Starting in the first week of September and finishing in the last few days of June the following pre-season begins almost before the previous season has ended.

It is still only September, and as the rest of the Northern Hemisphere slowly tiptoes into competitive action we have already had four rounds across the channel and as ever the competition has captured the imagination.

On match day one Bordeaux beat Racing 64-5 whilst Toulouse lost 30-27 to La Rochelle.

Week two was headlined by two particular results: Pau’s 70-28 thrashing of Bayonne and Toulouse 48-12 victory against Bordeaux.

That first half performance from Toulouse was something else. Six tries and 36-0 lead at the interval was their reward for forty minutes of sheer rugby sorcery.

There are plenty of old and new faces around the fourteen teams. Gaël Fickou had joined Toulon from Racing and Toulouse have signed Tomasso Menoncello from Benetton. The wonderfully talented Italian centre is already a fan favourite at Stade Ernest-Wallon.

Scottish imports have been in abundance with Huw Jones, Hamish Watson and Adam Hastings joining Toulon, Castres, and Montpellier respectively.

From an English perspective Tom Willis has joined his brother in the republic having signed for Bordeaux. The two brothers faced each other on match day two.

Match day three was notable for Bordeaux’s 40-10 win over Stade Francais but the main talking point of that game was the thigh injury suffered by Matthieu Jalibert which could be a big blow for club and country. 

In the weekend just gone the biggest shock was Perpignan’s 38-25 defeat of Bordeaux, whilst Toulouse’ 40-18 victory over Montpelier takes them to the top of the table.

Newly promoted Vannes are firmly anchored to the foot of the table after losing all four games of the season to date.

It is early days but the Top 14 is up and running.

The Top 14 table at 28/9/26:

Way back in 1971 us Bournemouth supporters thought we were witnessing the best day of our sporting lives.

On 1 May the Cherries beat York City 4-0 to gain promotion to the dizzy heights of League Division Three.

An open-top bus parade by the promoted players followed by drinks at the Neptune Bar near Boscombe Pier made it a night to remember once the hangovers cleared.

The club as far as we were concerned had reached its Everest with star striker Ted MacDougall scoring a remarkable 42 goals in a memorable season.

Later that year on the 20 November 1971 he scored nine goals for Bournemouth, against Margate in an 11-0 FA Cup first round win, which turned the Cherries striker into an overnight celebrity.

That record still stands today. In typical fashion Ted declared that he was disappointed as he thought he should have got all 11,

In our wildest dreams we could never imagine playing in the top flight domestically let alone playing in a European competition.

But last Thursday 55 years on AFC Bournemouth created history on a truly unforgettable night as they stepped onto the European stage for the first time and defeated Real Sociedad 2–1 in San Sebastián. 

For the players and supporters, this was far more than just another football match; it was the reward for years of hard work, sacrifice, and belief. 

The Cherries stunned their Spanish opponents by racing into a two-goal lead inside the opening 20 minutes. Justin Kluivert etched his name into Bournemouth history when he calmly finished Adrien Truffert’s low cross in the 11th minute, becoming the first player ever to score for the club in European competition. 

The celebrations that followed were filled with emotion as players and fans realised they were witnessing a moment that would live forever in the club’s history. 

Just nine minutes later, the dream became even sweeter when Rayan rose brilliantly to head home Alex Scott’s superb pass and send the travelling Bournemouth supporters into absolute delirium. 

Real Sociedad refused to give up and pulled a goal back through Sergio Gómez in the 57th minute, setting up a tense final half-hour. 

Wave after wave of pressure followed, but Bournemouth stood firm, with man of the match goalkeeper Djordje Petrović producing vital saves to keep his team in front. 

When the final whistle arrived, relief and joy swept through the Bournemouth section of the Anoeta Stadium. 

For Bournemouth supporters, the night in San Sebastián was about more than just three points. It was the culmination of years of progress, from the brink of non-league football to competing on the European stage. 

With their first European match ending in victory, The Cherries have given their fans a night they will never forget.

Both the Springboks and the All Blacks have a history of playing matches on US soil. South Africa faced the USA in Houston in 2001 and visited Washington DC in 2018 to face Wales. New Zealand have played numerous games in Chicago in recent years taking on Ireland and USA, as well as in San Diego (v Fiji) and Washington (v USA).

The biggest crowd at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore was 72,026 spectators, set on March 7, 2026, during a Major League Soccer match where D.C. United hosted Lionel Messi and Inter Miami.

Baltimore is no stranger to sporting genius the birthplace of Babe Ruth – the Legendary baseball player was born here in 1895 as was Michael Phelps the Record-breaking Olympic swimmer in 1985.

But yesterday 8,096 miles from their Johannesburg home South Africa entertained New Zealand in the fourth and final instalment of the self proclaimed ‘Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry’ series.

Well, Baltimore certainly got a rugby lesson last night — and unfortunately for the All Blacks, it came with a fairly hefty South African try count.

The Springboks ran out 43–28 winners over New Zealand wrapping up a 3–1 series victory and leaving the All Blacks to contemplate what exactly went wrong. The short answer is probably: South Africa happened.

New Zealand started brightly enough and looked determined to make a contest of it, but the Springboks gradually turned the screw. Six South African tries, some ferocious defence and the sort of physicality that made many locals in the crowd wonder why rugby players don’t wear body armour-eventually proved too much.

Kurt-Lee Arendse produced a cracking long-range try, Cameron Hanekom added another late on, and Morné van den Berg picked up the Player of the Match award. Somewhere in the All Blacks camp, meanwhile, someone was presumably searching Google for “How to stop the Springboks when they have momentum.”

For the 68,000-plus crowd in Baltimore, it was quite an introduction to international rugby. There were big hits and spectacular tries and a Haka.

And what a setting for it. Two of rugby’s greatest rivals going head-to-head in an NFL stadium, with the Springboks eventually turning Baltimore green and gold. The Americans may not yet have all the rules figured out, but after last night they certainly know one thing: South Africans are very large, very determined, and really don’t like losing.

For New Zealand, the series ends 3–1 — which means there will be plenty of soul-searching on the flight home. For South Africa, it’s another statement win and a reminder that when the Boks get rolling, stopping them is rather like trying to stop a freight train with a strongly worded letter.

The series has been captivating and has underlined the stark gulf between the top teams and those other so called Tier one nations who can only dream of performing at the same level of pace and power.

Meanwhile, Baltimore got a night to remember and the Springboks got the win, the series and the bragging rights.

One of the most anticipated features of Saturday third test between South Africa and New Zealand was to find out whether the Springbok team announced by Rassie Erasmus last Monday would bear any resemblance to the starting fifteen.

One definite change from last week’s line-up was the absence of the South African airline Airlink’s planned flypast as the country’s aviation regulator reviews a similar display conducted by the airline last week.

Just before the start of the second Test between South Africa and New Zealand, two Airlink Embraer aircraft flew in formation over the packed stadium, drawing widespread attention on social media. According to the flight-tracking website Flightradar24, the lead aircraft passed less than 50 feet (15m) above the top of the stadium.

Airline commented the flyby “was performed safely” by crews consisting of three senior captains with a combined 75,000 hours of flying experience.

South Africa edged New Zealand 29–24 in an absorbing third Test at FNB Stadium yesterday, taking a 2–1 lead in the four-match series. It was a closely fought contest that kept the result in doubt until the final stages.

South Africa responded with tries from Kurt-Lee Arendse, Jesse Kriel and Malcolm Marx, as well as a penalty try, giving the Springboks the advantage.

New Zealand captain Ardie Savea scored two tries but his departure with a serious looking shoulder injury before half-time was a significant setback. 

Springbok dominance at scrum time helped them control much of the second half, but New Zealand continued to press and scored late through Samisoni Taukei’aho, setting up a tense finish. The Springboks, however, held their composure to secure a valuable five-point victory.

All Black wing Leroy Carter will be having nightmares this week. He missed two crucial tackles on Damian De Allende and Jessie Kriel which resulted in tries for the Springboks, that defensive weakness will give coach Dave Rennie areal cause for concern ahead of next week’s final test.

Fly half Ruben Love also missed a kickable penalty and conversion that would have made the scoreline one of parity.

New Zealand will be frustrated after competing so strongly throughout the match. South Africa, meanwhile, will be pleased with another hard-earned win and the 2–1 series advantage. There were few comfortable moments for either side, which perhaps explains why the supporters looked as though they had played the full 80 minutes too.

The victory was also a milestone for Siya Kolisi, who recorded a record 55th Test win as Springboks captain. With the series still undecided, attention now turns to the final Test next weekend in Baltimore, yes that’s right Baltimore USA with everything still to play for.

The Cape of Good Hope is the legendary home of the ship The Flying Dutchman. According to the legend, crewed by tormented and damned ghostly sailors, it is doomed forever to beat its way through the adjacent waters without ever succeeding in rounding the headland.

The Springboks must have felt a bit like that after last weekends 33-16 pummelling at the hands of the All Blacks.

Yesterday forty odd miles north of those choppy waters a severe ‘Boklash’ was expected at Cape Town Stadium, and it arrived like a gathering storm.

Coach Rassie Erasmus has shuffled more cards this week than a member of the magic circle after announcing the Springbok team last Monday.

Fly-half Handre Pollard was fit and then apparently suffered injury Cheslin Kolbe was not selected due to injury and then named on the wing.

Erasmus then switched around his whole front row just before kick-off, with the starting trio and the bench front row swapping roles.

That South African onslaught came from the kick-off with centre Jesse Kriel crashing over after just two minutes Kolbe added the conversion.

‘D-Mac’- Damian McKenzie was always a threat for the All Blacks, although maybe needed some longer studs in his boots having lost his footing several times in promising positions.

Cam Roigard responded with a try for New Zealand converted by Love before De Allende replied in mind for the men in green.

D-Mac found his feet on the half hour mark to touch down to make the score 17-14 to the Springboks.

The killer blow came in the 38th minute when Captain Kolisi took the ball five metres out to crash over near the posts the immaculate boot of Cheslin Kolbe gave South Africa a 24-14 half-time lead.

New Zealand desperately needed to score the first points of the second half, but they gave away two penalties in the opening 11 minutes to give the Springboks a 16 point cushion 

However, in the final half hour All Blacks backs with the magnificent scrum-half Roigard leading the way battled back scoring two tries through Leroy Carter on the left wing and captain Ardie Savea getting a 77th minute touchdown.

With just two minutes remaining it was a one score game, but the Springboks held on, despite lock Lood de Jager being sent to the sin-bin for a high tackle.

So the series is level at one victory each after two wonderful test matches.

We go again next week when part three at FNB stadium, Johannesburg and I, for one, can’t wait.

Having already calmed the Stormers, avoided being bitten by the Sharks, and evaded a goring from the Bulls, the All Blacks headed to Ellis Park for the first test in a four match series against the Springboks billed as rugby’s greatest rivalry.

When I was young the tales of Boks and Blacks were bordering on the mythical. With no social media-hey we only had black and television !- there was no way of watching these giants of the game until they came on a winter tour of these islands, when it was made crystal clear that the stories we were told by our fathers and grandfathers were not mythical at all. The sheer sight of these players getting off the plane sent shudders down your spine.

But here we are in the twenty-first century and the prospect of any contest between these two teams still sets the pulses racing.

Many global greats have set foot on the hallowed turf of Ellis Park, and with all due respect to Whitney Houston and The Rolling Stones it is probably the wonderful double act of Pienaar and Mandela that stole the world’s hearts, along with the Boeing 747 pilot who stopped a few from beating with a low-level fly over prior to that incredible Rugby World Cup final in 1994.

Despite having had their scrum demolished by the green machine New Zealand went into the sheds at half time just one point behind and somehow ahead in the try stakes by two to one.

The old cliche a game of two halves could never have been more appropriate than at Ellis Park today.

Three second half tries from All Blacks, a change in their scrum fortunes, and a Springbok backline that despite dominating the aerial battle looked clunky and error strewn, resulted in a memorable and convincing win for the men from the land of the long white cloud

Stay tuned for part two of the four match series in Cape Town next Saturday.