These are the rugby stories making headlines on the morning of Tuesday, September 16.
These are your rugby headlines on the morning of Tuesday, September 16.
Berthoumieu gets huge ban
France Rugby World Cup star Axelle Berthoumieu has been handed a huge 12-game ban for biting Irish opponent Aoife Wafer in Sunday’s quarter-final.
The back-row accepted the charge. Ireland led 13-0 at the point of the incident at Exeter’s Sandy Park but ended up losing 18-13.
Despite Wafer’s complaints, Berthoumieu wasn’t sent off at the time, with the television match official saying he did not have enough evidence to send the Frenchwoman off.
But she was cited on review and the Independent Foul Play Review Committee (FPRC) studied footage and Berthoumieu was hit with an 18-game suspension.
That has been reduced to 12 games and she is also appealing the length of her suspension. The matter will be heard by a disciplinary committee today.
The full statement from World Rugby read: “In determining the proposed sanction for Berthoumieu, the FPRC noted the player accepted that foul play occurred and that a citing was warranted. The committee reviewed the matter including written, evidence obtained post-match, as well as all broadcast angles, and determined that Berthoumieu’s actions were contrary to Law 9.12 (physical abuse, biting) and upheld the citing.
“In reviewing the matter live, the TMO was unable to determine clear and obvious foul play and did not have the benefit of additional evidential submissions to corroborate.
“On the basis of all the evidence before them, the committee decided that the offending warranted the mandatory mid-range entry point of 18 matches. The committee awarded a deduction of six matches resulting in a final sanction of 12 matches. Although the player acknowledged the foul play and was remorseful full mitigation was not given due to the seriousness of the player’s actions, and that the player had the opportunity not to continue with the action.
“It was therefore proposed that Berthoumieu is suspended for the remainder of France’s Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 matches, their upcoming semi-final against England and either the Bronze or Final match on 27 September, and a further 10 matches in her domestic championship. She will be free to play after 1 March 2026.”
North: Something has to change
Wales great George North has voiced his frustration over the “absolute mess” Welsh rugby is in, claiming that the same issues the national game faced at the start of his career are still proving a problem today.
The 121-cap international became a legend in Wales as he starred for Scarlets and the Ospreys as well as the national side, but he called time on his Test career at the end of last year’s Six Nations before moving to France to join Provence.
Since his move, North says it has been “really tough” to watch his former team-mates struggle, with Wales only putting an end to their dismal losing run of 18 successive Test matches against Japan in the summer.
With the Welsh Rugby Union recently announcing proposed plans that threaten a cut to two professional sides, there is even more uncertainty surrounding the elite game in Wales, but North believes that talk of such a reduction cannot be dismissed outright, adding that “something has to change”. Join WalesOnline Rugby’s WhatsApp Channel here to get the breaking news sent straight to your phone for free
“It’s an absolute mess, isn’t it?” the 33-year-old told The Rugby Paper. “The same problems when I was 18 are still there now. Winning used to cover the cracks, but that’s not the case anymore. Something has to change.
“Whether it’s two or three regions, it’s about what’s sustainable. My fear is the same as when we went from the old club sides to regions – that loss of identity.
“But what drives Welsh rugby is bums on seats,” he added. “If cutting to two meant keeping the best players together and selling out grounds, maybe that’s what’s needed.
“We’re a small playing pool like Ireland. Fewer teams, stronger squads, top players training together week in, week out – that raises standards. It also gives young players a clearer pathway and keeps senior boys honest. The current system isn’t sustainable, but this is a chance to reset and build a future.”
Looking ahead to watching Wales under new head coach Steve Tandy, however, North said he believes there could now be a bright future for the next generation of internationals.
“It’s a young squad, but this is when they learn,” he added. “Test rugby tests every part of you – that’s why it’s called a Test.
“With Steve stamping his DNA on the side and Jac (Morgan) leading, it’s a great opportunity for the boys to shape what the jersey looks like in the next era.”
McBryde signs new contract
Welsh coach Robin McBryde has signed a contract extension with Leinster.
Head coach Leo Cullen announced a number of changes to his coaching team, with McBryde, Jacques Nienaber and Tyler Bleyendaal all signing contract extensions until the end of the 2026/27 season.
Emmet Farrell, meanwhile, has been appointed in a new role, that of provincial kicking coach, while Brian Colclough has taken over Farrell’s former position as lead performance analyst for the club.
Cullen said: “I think we can all appreciate the work that Robin, Jacques and Tyler have done but also the mark that they have left and are leaving on Leinster in their time here.
“They have all brought tons of relevant experience and a different perspective to how we do things and I think that’s hugely important for the development of our group, that we hear other voices and other ways of operating.
“It’s not just around the senior team as well, you see it with our Academy players and the work that they do visiting the clubs and the schools and giving freely of their time. I’m delighted to have them all on board again.
“I am also delighted for Emmet, someone who has been a key part of the success of this club on and off the field for more than 20 years that he gets an opportunity to continue to grow as a coach and that others will benefit, not just ourselves based here in UCD.
“That consistency and alignment is crucial for us between what we are doing here in UCD and the brilliant work underway in our pathways and at the Ken Wall Centre of Excellence in Energia Park.
“That new role for Emmet offers an opportunity for Brian to move up and also for Juliette Fortune to move up to a more senior role in the analysis team, and I am delighted for them both.
“They both started with us an interns and it’s brilliant to see them continue their professional journey with us at Leinster.”
Evans: Comments were barbaric
Wales star Georgia Evans says the “barbaric” comments she received about her appearance made her step away from social media.
Evans courageously stood up to criticism of her looks and the trademark pink bow she wears in her hair by releasing a statement defiantly telling her detractors she would continue to express herself.
But in an interview Partnership for Male Youth, the Saracens player admitted it had taken its toll on her and her family during Wales’ recent Rugby World Cup campaign.
“Myself and many other athletes from across the world have just come together for what is the biggest World Cup women’s rugby has ever seen,” she said. “In my second week of being in camp, I was going through some of the comments online. I am known for wearing my pink bow – I’ve worn it since my first cap and I will continue to do so – but I came across a number of comments. People said I should concentrate on my playing rather than my appearance.”
She added: “I went through a few and had a little bit of a giggle because some of them were just barbaric, but others hit home a little bit more. It was only when multiple people from my team and my family had seen these comments, and were taking them quite personally for me, that I chose to take a step back from social media.
“I needed time to process it and make sure I was protecting myself as best I could.”
Curry played with no ligament in wrist
Sale Sharks director of rugby Alex Sanderson has revealed that Lions star Tom Curry toured this summer without having a ligament in his wrist.
Curry was superb for Andy Farrell’s men Down Under, helping them to a 2-1 series win with a number of dominant and typically committed displays.
The England star delayed surgery on his wrist this summer so he could face the Wallabies and has since gone under the knife. But it is only now the real extent of his injury has emerged.
“Every time he was going to a tackle, it [the wrist] was, like, dislocating,” Sanderson told The Ruck, The Times’s rugby podcast.
“He was basically playing without a ligament in his wrist.
“You could feel it clicking in and clicking out. Super hard, isn’t he? Superhuman. It defies logic, really, but he’s always been one of those guys that can push himself through pain barriers that most mere mortals can’t. He’s just shown that again.”
Curry himself says the rehab has gone to plan.
“We knew about five or six weeks before the tour that it was there,” he said. “The question was either get it operated on before the tour or crack on. Obviously the competition was so high so we couldn’t really risk the surgery. There was no other choice. In hindsight, I’m glad we did it.
“I had surgery four weeks ago, to repair a ligament which was gone. It was all right to manage. The Saturday was just a local anaesthetic so you actually couldn’t feel it, it was more the Monday to Friday. It got there in the end.”
