Gareth Anscombe has paid heartfelt thanks to those who have helped his recovery after coming through his first rugby match for just over two years. The Wales international played 37 minutes for the Ospreys in their pre-season friendly at Northampton on Friday night before he was withdrawn as the region said they had always planned. Afterwards, the 30-year-old outside-half – who many feared would not resume a top level career – paid tribute to those who have assisted his recovery from a serious knee injury, that has involved overcoming several setbacks.

By Alex Bywater  Gareth Anscombe is set to end 761 days of injury troubles when he makes his Ospreys debut against Northampton Saints on Friday. Wales fly-half Anscombe hasn’t played since August 2019 when he suffered a serious knee injury facing England in a Rugby World Cup warm-up clash at Twickenham. Anscombe, 30, missed that year’s tournament as a result and has spent more than two years on the sidelines while recovering.

By Rob Carbon  Oh brother, have Wales got a few problems to solve when the All Blacks arrive in the Welsh capital to kick-off the autumn series at the end of next month. As if it wasn’t tough enough contending with the Barretts – Beauden, Scott and Jordi – in the recent past, now Wayne Pivac’s men will have to find a way to stop the Ioanes. A 38-21 win over Australia at the weekend made it a clean-sweep for New Zealand in the three-match Bledisloe Cup series and took them a point clear of reigning world champions South Africa two games into the Rugby Championship.

By Steffan Thomas Last March Ethan Lewis found himself surplus to requirements at Cardiff Rugby with his future as a professional rugby player in doubt.  But fortune favours the brave and after a successful loan spell at Saracens the 27-year-old hooker finds himself as a key cog in the English club’s shot at redemption. Having starred for Wales at under 20s level the Treorchy product didn’t get the opportunities he deserved in the Welsh capital, but he is relishing his second opportunity at Saracens. 

David Moffett has slammed the current state of World Rugby labelling the game “as boring as bat shit,” a “dog’s dinner” and believes private equity will seize control of the global game from the national unions. Moffett was one of world rugby’s most experienced administrators having been chief executive at the WRU, NZRU, the NRL and head of Sport England. He was the man who cobbled together the regional structure in Wales in 2003, left in 2005, came back briefly in 2014, and then co-wrote a new set of rules for the game last year.

Gold medal-winning Welshman Jim Roberts insists he holds no grudges against those who cut funding for wheelchair rugby. Roberts, from Welshpool, top scored with 24 tries to seal a memorable 54-49 victory over the USA at the Paralympic final in Tokyo on Sunday It was the first gold medal won by team GB in a Paralympic team sport since the Olympics and Paralympics became aligned under one organising committee 20 years ago.

Dafydd Lockyer has finally decided to hang up his boots, bringing to an end one of the great semi-professional careers in Welsh rugby. The long-term Pontypridd skipper  let the Sardis Road faithful know of his decision in a Captain’s Blog on the official club website and the game in Wales will be all the poorer without him. “It has been a tough decision, one that I’ve taken some time to consider, but one that I’ve now made. I’ve discussed the situation with my family, with the Ponty coaches and the decision has been made – it’s time to take a step back from the Ponty squad,” he wrote.

Sean Fitzpatrick is confident the Scarlets can turn their fortunes around under new head coach Dwayne Peel but has warned it won’t be a quick fix. The west Walians endured a difficult time last season with former coach Glenn Delaney parting ways with the club after failing to get results, despite having a strong squad at his disposal. The appointment of a new look coaching team headed up by Dwayne Peel, with Irish defence coach Hugh Hogan, and highly rated head of performance Nigel Ashley-Jones the other new additions excites All Blacks legend Fitzpatrick – now on the region’s board – but he urges Scarlets fans to be patient.

Shane Lewis-Hughes has admitted he is almost back to square one when it comes to convincing Wayne Pivac he is the back rower for Wales. Lewis-Hughes, 23, was plucked from relative regional rugby obscurity to make his international debut against Scotland in the rearranged Guinness Six Nations game in October last year. The Cardifff Rugby forward went on to feature in the Autumn Nations Cup against Ireland and England, impressing head coach Pivac and the Wales management not only with his talent, but also his incredible dedication.

Trystan Bevan has become the first “insider” to back the radical plan to limit substitutions in rugby. Bevan – who is high performance co-ordinator at Cardiff Rugby – believes there must be a curb on the number of replacements allowed on the field to make the sport less dangerous. Four-time Lions head coach Sir Ian McGeechan was part of a group of former coaches and players to sign an open letter this week calling on World Rugby to change its rules.

An injury to Cardiff Demons and Wales captain Shaunni Davies on 75 minutes meant that it was a premature end to this hard-fought Betfred Women’s Super League South semi-final, with the result standing. Davies was injured in a legitimate tackle and unable to be moved, so there was no chance of restarting the game.

Jonathan Davies wants to get back on the big red bus. The Wales and Scarlets star can’t wait to tackle rugby’s southern hemisphere superpowers this autumn, but the biggest thing he is looking forward to is playing in front of a full house at the Principality Stadium once again. The world champion Springboks, New Zealand, Australia and Fiji are all due in the Welsh capital this autumn and Davies, who captained Wales during the summer series against Argentina, says the players are relishing the chance to face the world’s best.

Cardiff Demons take on London Broncos this Saturday in Aldershot (kick-off 3pm) as they look to make history by reaching the inaugural Women’s Super League South Final.

Alun Wyn Jones battled with his emotions after his British and Irish Lions were dramatically beaten 19-16 by South Africa in the deciding Test, with the hosts clinching the series 2-1. “Obviously we are hugely disappointed with the result but I think the endeavour and the turnaround was there from last week,” said Jones. “We were in it until the death. I’m very proud of the bunch, very conscious of what we represent but hugely disappointed. We wanted to come out for the second half with more of the same.

Alun Wyn Jones insists the British and Irish Lions must not allow petty scuffles and poor discipline to further derail hopes of tour success in South Africa. The Springboks set up Saturday evening’s crunch, winner-takes-all clash in Cape Town by grinding the Lions into submission during last weekend’s fragmented second Test. Incessant stoppages aided the world champions after their preparations were affected by an outbreak of coronavirus, while preventing the tourists from injecting any pace into a forgettable contest.

By Paul Jones South Africa coach Jacques Nienaber believes recent World Cup glory could give his players the edge during Saturday’s mouth-watering series decider against the British and Irish Lions.  The Springboks go into the winner-takes-all contest in the ascendency after leaving proceedings tantalisingly poised thanks to last weekend’s resounding 27-9 success.  Lions boss Warren Gatland suggested the hosts spent considerable emotional energy in levelling the series and has responded to his own side’s shortcomings by making six changes for this weekend’s crunch clash in Cape Town. 

Warren Gatland has urged South Africa to get on with it in the decisive third Test on Saturday which will feature seven Welshman bidding for a place in folklore. The Lions coach wants the Springboks to stop time-wasting – or for the officials to clamp down on attempts to stop the clock – after last week’s endless stoppages produced a two-hour long contest. “We definitely want to play more rugby and we just didn’t get that opportunity in the second half,” Gatland said, whose tourists are looking to clinch a series win in South Africa for only the third time in over 100 years.

By Tom Prosser Dai Young is determined to lead Cardiff Rugby into a successful but sustainable new era which includes a rebrand off the field and a focus of long-term success on the field. After making well over 100 appearances for the club as a player and a previous eight year stint as director of rugby, there are very few people around who would be in a better position to lead the Blue and Blacks into a new chapter than Young.

The Scarlets are set to bring Corey Baldwin back to Welsh rugby with the former Wales U20 star returning to Llanelli from Exeter Chiefs. Baldwin left the Scarlets for the Gallagher Premiership last season but the centre struggled for consistent game time at Sandy Park due to the strength of the Exeter squad. Before leaving the Scarlets the Llandeilo product was seen as one of the most promising prospects in the Welsh game, with Wales coach Wayne Pivac a big admirer.

Warren Gatland has told his British and Irish Lions to prepare for a “cup final” after their 27-9 defeat by South Africa in the second Test set up a series decider next Saturday. The Lions entered half-time at Cape Town Stadium 9-6 ahead through three Dan Biggar penalties but the match then turned on its head, with the world champions taking control up-front and in the air. Makazole Mapimpi and Lukhanyo Am crossed in the third quarter while the boot of Handre Pollard did the rest, setting up a winner-takes-all scenario in the climax to the tour next week.