The Breakdown | A November to remember: let’s celebrate the good in international rugby
We turn the dial towards whimsy and revisit some of the moments that made the autumn internationals irresistibleSouth Africa and Ireland played out a slugfest for the ages and the discourse has been dominated by yellow cards and flying shoulders to the head.England held off a spirited Argentina to claim their 11th consecutive Test win and it seems all anyone can talk about is some alleged after-the-whistle shoving.Wales and New Zealand traded 11 tries in a ding-dong encounter and yet the narrative is weighed down by caveats concerning fading empires.What, exactly, is the point of Test rugby? Beyond winning World Cups and regional crowns, does this chaotic sport hold any value? A bit of spice elevates almost every dish, sure, but it has felt as if this autumn’s brilliant rugby fare has been smothered in a sauce with a needlessly high Scoville count.So, for all the romantics, for anyone inclined to see their incomplete pint of Guinness as half full, for those who believe that elite rugby has never been more entertaining or more competitive or more interesting, let’s turn the dial towards whimsy and revisit some of the moments that made this autumn irresistible.
An obvious jumping off point is the Springboks’ pack.Even without Ox Nché, the first prop to be nominated for World Rugby’s player of the year award, and Frans Malherbe, arguably the most formidable tighthead of the past six years, that hefty mass in green pulverised the Irish on their own patch.Two Irish front-rowers were yellow-carded as their scrum conceded six penalties and one penalty try.This was rugby reduced to its purest concentrate, its base ingredients on show as coach Rassie Erasmus finally claimed a win on Irish shores.If South African beef is not to everyone’s taste how about a bit of French fizz out wide? After taking a beating by the Boks at the start of the month, Les Bleus found their mojo as the autumn developed.
Against Australia, Louis Bielle-Biarrey added another highlight to his collection with an audacious chip-and-chase finish.Later on, Kalvin Gourgues, with his first touch in Test rugby, scythed through the Wallabies’ midfield, cantered 50 metres before unfurling a precise pass for Bielle-Biarrey on the left wing.The French production line appears to be thrumming along at full throttle.So too is England’s.Max Ojomoh was magnificent against the Pumas, scoring an opportunistic try and setting up two more – one with an inch-perfect cross-field kick from first receiver, the other a delicious little offload as he tumbled to the floor.
Speaking after the game, the 25-year-old was ebullient, offering a juxtaposition to the post-match nastiness that marred the occasion.“I’ve been waiting for the opportunity for so long,” he beamed.Even the most vehement Anglophobe would have felt a pang of goodwill towards him.Not that England would have won over many neutrals across the autumn but that’s primarily because they have become such a threat.The strategy seems simple and relies heavily on the composure George Ford brings at fly-half and the belligerence they’ve shown when contesting high kicks, but it is ruthlessly efficient.
Steve Borthwick turned a faltering Leicester Tigers into a winning machine through cold, meticulous method,Every carry was accounted for, every kick intentional,No need to whisper it, he’s clearly doing the same with England,The three leading teams in the world are the ones stacked with the most depth,The French Top 14 is a factory of talent and seemingly endless cash reserves.
England and South Africa can rely on conveyor belts of their own.As the game becomes even more of an attritional battle, where “Bomb Squads” and “Pom Squads” compete for supremacy in what is now fashionably referred to as Q4 (the final 20 minutes for those not perennially online), there is a looming worry that some teams with less in reserve might struggle.Which is why New Zealand’s Fabian Holland winning breakthrough player of the year came as welcome relief, not just to All Blacks supporters nervously scanning for signs that their halcyon days are truly behind them, but also for the rest of us who enjoy the theatre of rugby sprinkled with its familiar archetypes.The 23-year-old looks like he was chiselled from the rocks of Port Hills for this precise purpose despite not being born in New Zealand, having moved there from the Netherlands to pursue his rugby dream at 16.Nonetheless, oversized mitts, granite features and quietly spoken demeanour seem plucked straight from central casting, like Colin Meads and Brodie Retallick before him.
There is something reassuring in seeing New Zealand bring through yet another lock who appears capable of felling a tree by staring at it,Sign up to The BreakdownThe latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewedafter newsletter promotionOne of rugby’s charms is that certain teams are defined by certain traits but there is also appeal in those who break the mould,The rise of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu has challenged a few stereotypes in South Africa,With a Zulu mother and a Jewish father, he has become an emblem of a new generation,Like England’s Henry Pollock, he is abrasive and cocky, and has put a few conservative noses out of joint.
A sport that has long cried out for personalities that challenge convention is suddenly blessed with two who are eager to lead the way.Next year, all notion of a friendly in Test rugby will disappear.The upcoming Nations Championship will give every game meaning.Every collision will serve log points and standings on a table.But we’ll lose something in the process – that carefree joy that made this autumn such a tonic, if only we’d stopped grumbling long enough to notice.
This is an extract taken from our weekly rugby union email, the Breakdown.To sign up, just visit this page and follow the instructions.
‘He was just trying to earn a few kopecks’: how newly translated stories reveal Chekhov’s silly side
Few writers are as universally admired as Chekhov. As Booker winner George Saunders puts it, “Chekhov – shall I be blunt? – is the greatest short story writer who ever lived.” Novelists from Ann Patchett to Zadie Smith cite him as an inspiration. His plays The Seagull, Three Sisters, Uncle Vanya and The Cherry Orchard still pack out theatres internationally. In the past year alone, Andrew Scott wowed audiences in his one-man Vanya for London’s National Theatre and Cate Blanchett took on the role of Arkadina in The Seagull at the Barbican
From Wicked: For Good to Stranger Things: your complete entertainment guide to the week ahead
Ariana Grande sparkles in the concluding part of the Wicked Witch tale, and the first batch of final episodes of the retro sci-fi juggernaut are unleashedWicked: For GoodOut nowWas the decision to split this Broadway musical big-screen adaptation into two parts motivated by art or money? Part two is here, so you can judge for yourself. The Wizard of Oz-inspired story picks up with defiant “Wicked Witch” Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) living in exile, while Glinda (Ariana Grande) relishes her own popularity.The Thing With FeathersOut nowMax Porter’s novel Grief Is the Thing With Feathers gets the big-screen treatment, with Benedict Cumberbatch in the lead role as the dad who must raise his two young children alone after his wife dies unexpectedly. With David Thewlis as the voice of the crow who appears to him.The Ice TowerOut nowMarion Cotillard stars as a star: an actor called Cristina, who is playing the beautiful Snow Queen in a 1960s adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen classic that also inspired Frozen
Kristen Bell and Brian Cox among actors shocked they’re attached to Fox News podcast
The Fox News announcement of a new podcast series on Jesus Christ has turned into a bizarre holiday tale in Hollywood, as several actors attached to massive, 52-episode project claim their recordings date back 15 years and are being released without their prior knowledge.The new audiobook titled The Life of Jesus Christ Podcast, announced on Wednesday as part of a splashy rollout for the network’s new Christian vertical called Fox Faith, purports to guide listeners “through the life, teachings, and miracles of Jesus Christ”, with each episode introduced by Fox & Friends co-host Ainsley Earhardt.The announcement boasted that more than 100 actors had signed on to participate in the project, with a voice cast including Kristen Bell as Mary Magdalene, Sean Astin as Matthew, Neal McDonough as Jesus, Brian Cox as the Voice of God, Malcolm McDowell as Caiaphas, John Rhys-Davies as the narrator and Julia Ormond as Mary.But reps for Bell claim that the actor was blindsided by the announcement, as she had recorded the audio 15 years ago. She only learned that Fox planned to release a podcast with her name attached the day before the announcement, when her team received an invitation to appear on Fox & Friends the following day, her reps told Rolling Stone
The Guide #218: For gen Zers like me, YouTube isn’t an app or a website – it’s the backdrop to our waking lives
Barely a month goes by without more news of streaming sites overtaking traditional, terrestrial TV. Predominant among those sits YouTube, with more than 2.5 billion monthly viewers. For people my age – a sprightly 28 – and younger, YouTube is less of an app or website than our answer to radio: the ever-present background hum of modern life. While my mum might leave Radio 4 wittering or BBC News flickering in the corner as she potters about the house, I’ve got a video essay about Japan’s unique approach to urban planning playing on my phone
Stephen Colbert on Trump v Epstein files: ‘Fighting tooth and cankle’
Late-night hosts reacted to Donald Trump signing a bill to release the Epstein files while still trying to distract from them.Stephen Colbert celebrated the impending release of all files related to the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. “After months of Trump fighting tooth and cankle to hold back the Republican party from doing the right thing, he just went ahead and gave up and signed the bill to release the Epstein files,” the Late Show host explained a day after Congress voted near unanimously to compel the justice department to make the files public within 30 days.“Even though Trump told Republicans to all vote for this, he was clearly furious that they did,” Colbert continued. Trump signed the bill after the White House issued a so-called photo lid, which shut down any on-camera opportunities
After 10 years talking to knights, squires and wizards, I understand why ren fairs are booming
“I dunno what to tell ya, mate,” a young knight once told me through his helm’s lifted visor. “Gettin’ shield bashed just feels good.”For the knaves among thee, a “shield bash” is what it sounds like: to bash, or be bashed, with a shield. It’s simple and to the point, like a mace to the face or an arrow to the knee. Witnessing a shield bash, you understand the “haha yesss” that the basher must feel upon bashing, just as you empathetically presume a long “oh noooooo” on behalf of the bashee
NHS directed pregnant women to controversial Free Birth Society via charity
UK charity records original music by people living with dementia
DWP to reassess hundreds of thousands of cases in carer’s allowance scandal
The carer’s allowance scandal – a timeline
More than 100 MPs urge Streeting to approve prostate cancer screening
John Stuart Brown obituary