Here are your rugby evening headlines for Tuesday, April 7.
Wales U18s play out thriller in France
Wales U18s were left to rue a narrow defeat in Vichy as France edged a gripping contest 33-31, denying the visitors at the death in a fiercely-fought encounter.
Richie Pugh’s side were excellent for the majority of the game, but five missed conversions from outside-half Madog Evans, along with some scintillating attacking play from the hosts, proved to be the difference.
But Pugh will be hugely encouraged by this performance; the pack more than matched the French, while the set-piece held up well, allowing the backs to shine.
Wales scored five tries in total courtesy of Jac Cloke (twice), Jac Williams (twice) and Tiaan Hall, while Evans kicked six points.
France made a blistering start, with powerful tighthead Wesley powering over from short range after a period of sustained pressure.
The visitors hit straight back; a lovely pass from Evans allowed Williams to walk in the try out wide.
Wales took the lead for the first time in the match with a smart move at the lineout, which resulted in Cloke powering over out wide.
They extended their lead when France made a hash of a kick through by Will Adams, which Williams pounced on for their third try.
France right wing Elijah Elder Lozano then finished off a dazzling counter-attack to bring the score to 15-12 in Wales’ favour.
But a perfectly executed set-piece just before half-time saw Cloke grab his second try to give Wales an encouraging 20-12 lead at the break.
Evans kept the scoreboard ticking over with an easy penalty to give Wales a 23-19 lead after 41 minutes.
No. 8 Bambo Sambou was the architect of France’s fourth try as he burst through a gap and offloaded to supporting scrum-half Valentin Bouju.
Wales levelled the scores through Evans’ boot before replacement hooker Hall put the visitors into the lead when he pounced on a loose throw by his opposite number to score.
But Cleo Bard scored the winning try shortly after to break Welsh hearts.
Top PREM star faces length ban over alleged bite
Sale Sharks hooker Nathan Jibulu is due to face a disciplinary hearing today after allegedly biting Harlequins prop Will Hobson during Saturday night’s Investec Champions Cup win at the Twickenham Stoop.
The alleged incident took place in the 69th minute of Sale’s 26-17 round-of-16 victory over Jibulu’s former club, with the 23-year-old now set to appear via video conference.
Jibulu has been charged with an alleged breach of Law 9.12 – physical abuse, which includes biting, an offence that carries a minimum entry-point sanction of 12 weeks, rising to as much as four years in the most serious cases. He was not punished during the match itself, despite the allegation surfacing late in the contest.
The timing could hardly be worse for Sale. Director of rugby Alex Sanderson revealed after the game that Luke Cowan-Dickie is feared to have suffered a fractured arm, with the England hooker scoring two tries before being forced off.
If Jibulu is banned, Sale could head into Saturday’s quarter-final trip to Leinster without either of their first-choice hookers, further deepening a growing injury crisis.
Any suspension would also cast doubt over Jibulu’s hopes of forcing his way into Steve Borthwick’s England plans for the summer Nations Championship fixtures against South Africa, Fiji and Argentina.
Having already featured for England A this season and with Cowan-Dickie now injured, the young hooker had looked a realistic contender for a senior call-up.
Instead, what had been shaping up as a breakthrough few months for one of English rugby’s brightest young front-row prospects could now hinge on the outcome of Tuesday’s hearing.
JOIN OUR WALES RUGBY FACEBOOK PAGE Latest news, analysis and much more
Dragons star now a qualified lawyer
Dragons prop Rodrigo Martinez has revealed he has completed six years of legal studies while helping the Welsh region mount their European charge.
The Argentina loose-head, 27, has quietly become one of the Dragons’ most reliable performers this season and was part of the side that stunned Stade Francais in Paris to book a Challenge Cup quarter-final trip to Zebre this weekend. Alongside making 15 appearances, Martinez has also juggled life as a new father and finally earned his law degree after studying online.
Martinez admitted the challenge of balancing rugby with study helped him through a difficult spell earlier in the season when he was separated from his family after the birth of son Otto in Argentina.
“I’m now a qualified lawyer after almost six years. It was online and I tried to do at least one hour a day and use my days off — I just built the habit,” he told the BBC.
The front-rower added that missing the first two months of his son’s life was tough, but says having his family now settled in Wales has made a huge difference.
On the pitch, Martinez has become an excellent addition for the Dragons since arriving after the collapses of both Wasps and London Irish derailed his time in England. Now fully settled in Newport, he says he is enjoying the challenge of helping build something at Rodney Parade.
And while a legal career may beckon further down the line, Martinez knows exactly where props earn their money right now.
“For a prop everything starts at the scrum. It doesn’t matter if you carry the ball and make 30 tackles a game if you can’t scrum.”