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Summer Tours 2025
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Steve@Mose View Drop Down
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    Posted: 25 Jun 2025 at 14:06
A repository for discussions about the other rugby taking place.

First up:


Will the Welsh regain some honour and pride against the Brave Blossoms?
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Raider999 View Drop Down
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Wales will be the strongest of the 4 home nations on their summer tours as they only have 2 Lions
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Paul10 View Drop Down
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Points: 964 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paul10 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Jun 2025 at 17:14
Originally posted by Raider999 Raider999 wrote:

Wales will be the strongest of the 4 home nations on their summer tours as they only have 2 Lions


👏

That is one way of looking at it..
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Raider999 View Drop Down
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Originally posted by Paul10 Paul10 wrote:

Originally posted by Raider999 Raider999 wrote:

Wales will be the strongest of the 4 home nations on their summer tours as they only have 2 Lions



👏

That is one way of looking at it..


By strongest, I meant nearest to full strength
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islander View Drop Down
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Realise the world rankings are skewed by the absence of 35+ Lions, but nevertheless interesting (IMHO) to look at world rankings ahead of summer tours...

Argentina (world ranked 5) & USA (15) v England (6)
Japan (13) v Wales (12)
Fiji (9) & Samoa (14) v Scotland (7)
Georgia (11) and Portugal (18) v Ireland (3)
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Steve@Mose View Drop Down
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Points: 3102 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Steve@Mose Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jun 2025 at 13:18
Originally posted by Raider999 Raider999 wrote:

Originally posted by Paul10 Paul10 wrote:

Originally posted by Raider999 Raider999 wrote:

Wales will be the strongest of the 4 home nations on their summer tours as they only have 2 Lions



👏

That is one way of looking at it..


By strongest, I meant nearest to full strength

According to the article Wales have five in line to make their international debuts, but eleven unavailable/rested/not selected.

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Cardiff captain Liam Belcher, Dragons prop Chris Coleman, Ospreys trio Garyn Phillips, Keelan Giles and Reuben Morgan-Williams and Scarlets back Macs Page are the fresh faces in Japan.

...

Some notable absentees are Dafydd Jenkins, Adam Beard, Will Rowlands, Henry Thomas, Ellis Mee, Gareth Anscombe, Max Llewellyn, Nick Tompkins, James Botham, Evan Lloyd and Morgan Morse, who are missing due to a combination of injuries, being rested and non-selection.
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Paul10 View Drop Down
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And that list doesn't include North, T Francis, Moriarty etc who have said "No thanks" to further involvement.

I'm hopeful but not confident things will get better.
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Raider999 View Drop Down
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Originally posted by Paul10 Paul10 wrote:

And that list doesn't include North, T Francis, Moriarty etc who have said "No thanks" to further involvement.

I'm hopeful but not confident things will get better.


To be fair, they cannot get any worse
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Paul10 View Drop Down
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Points: 964 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Paul10 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jun 2025 at 13:21
Originally posted by Raider999 Raider999 wrote:

Originally posted by Paul10 Paul10 wrote:

And that list doesn't include North, T Francis, Moriarty etc who have said "No thanks" to further involvement.

I'm hopeful but not confident things will get better.


To be fair, they cannot get any worse

I wish
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Steve@Mose View Drop Down
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Wales flankers Mann and Macleod return against Japan

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Japan: Takuro Matsunaga; Kippei Ishida, Dylan Riley, Shogo Nakano, Malo Tuitama; Seungsin Lee, Shinobu Fujiwara; Yota Kamimori, Mamoru Harada, Shuhei Takeuchi, Epineri Uluiviti, Warner Deans, Michael Leitch (capt), Jack Cornelsen, Amato Fakatava.

Replacements: Hayate Era, Sena Kimura, Keijiro Tamefusa, Waisake Raratubua, Ben Gunter, Shuntaro Kitamura, Ichigo Nakakusu, Halatoa Vailea.

Wales: Blair Murray; Tom Rogers, Johnny Williams, Ben Thomas, Josh Adams; Sam Costelow, Kieran Hardy; Nicky Smith, Dewi Lake (capt), Keiron Assiratti, Ben Carter, Teddy Williams, Alex Mann, Josh Macleod, Taulupe Faletau.

Replacements: Liam Belcher, Gareth Thomas, Archie Griffin, James Ratti, Aaron Wainwright, Tommy Reffell, Rhodri Williams, Joe Roberts.
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Ireland debuts for O'Brien and Murray in Georgia

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Ireland: J O'Brien; T'OBrien; J Osborne, S McCloskey; J Stockdale; S Prendergast, C Casey (capt); J Boyle, G McCarthy, T Clarkson; C Izuchukwu, D Murray; R Baird, N Timoney, G Coombes.

Replacements: T Stewart, M Milne, J Aungier, T Ahern, C Prendergast, B Murphy, J Crowley, C Nash.
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Points: 3102 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Steve@Mose Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 hours 45 minutes ago at 10:38
McDowall to lead Scotland against Maori All Blacks

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Scotland XV: Smith, Paterson, Hutchinson, McDowall (c), Reed, Hastings, Horne; McBeth, Harrison, Richardson, Sykes, Henderson, Bayliss, Onyeama-Christie, Muncaster.

Replacements: Turner, Hepburn, Hurd, Williamson, Brown, Masibaka, Burke, Dobie.


Edited by Steve@Mose - 15 hours 15 minutes ago at 18:08
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Points: 3102 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Steve@Mose Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 hours 11 minutes ago at 18:12
Ford to make 100th England appearance in Argentina opener

 
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George Ford will become the seventh man to make 100 Test appearances for England when he starts at fly-half in the first Test against Argentina on Saturday.

Ford, 32, made his England debut against Wales in the 2014 Six Nations and was a key part of the side that reached the Rugby World Cup final in 2019.

Centre Seb Atkinson and wing Will Muir both win their first England caps, with uncapped Bath back row Guy Pepper on the bench.

Ford shares the captaincy with hooker Jamie George, with Northampton's Alex Coles partnering Charlie Ewels in the second row and flanker Sam Underhill making his Test comeback after missing the Six Nations with an ankle injury.

Ben Spencer is preferred to Jack van Poortvliet at scrum-half, while full-back Freddie Steward comes in for his first England appearance since February.

With 13 first-choice players missing on Lions duty, there is an inexperienced look to England's team - nine of the starting XV have fewer than 15 caps.

"It is not something you think about at the start of your career," Ford told BBC Sport of his milestone.

"You dream of playing for England, and when you get to do it once it is an unbelievably special moment - to achieve that was the proudest memory of my career.

"Then I suppose you get your head down to work as hard as you can and improve so you might gather a few caps together - that is all I have tried to do really, take each year and campaign as it comes, try to improve, develop and do the right thing for the team.

"I have the opportunity to hit quite a big milestone and it is something I will be very proud of."

Scrum-half Ben Youngs, who retired from international rugby at the end of the 2023 Rugby World Cup, won 127 caps for his country, the most of any man.

Dan Cole, Jason Leonard, Owen Farrell, Courtney Lawes and Danny Care have also passed the 100-Test mark for England.

Sarah Hunter retired in March 2023 having won 141 caps for England's women's team.

"George has been a standout player for over a decade," said head coach Steve Borthwick.

"Reaching 100 caps is a remarkable achievement, and it speaks volumes about both the professional and the person he is.

"Everyone in the squad is incredibly proud to share this moment with him."

Borthwick has said that Argentina will be favourites across the two-Test series after the Pumas' victory over the British and Irish Lions in Dublin last month continued their fine run of form.

Argentina are ranked fifth in the world, one place above England.

The second meeting between the two teams takes place in San Juan on 12 July.

England: Steward; Roebuck, Slade, S Atkinson, Muir; Ford, Spencer; Baxter, George, Heyes, Ewels, Coles, B Curry, Underhill, Willis.

Replacements: Dan, Rodd, Opoku-Fordjour, Cunningham-South, Pepper, Dombrandt, Van Poortvliet, Murley
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