Sport

They may not yet hold a candle to the legendary centre partnership of old but Gordon D’Arcy believes Robbie Henshaw and Jared Payne have earned their stripes in an Ireland shirt.

National Grid is expecting the UK’s demand for electricity to escalate substantially in the coming weeks due to the Rugby World Cup, which gets underway tonight at Twickenham.

Manchester pupils from select schools will be able to design their team’s rugby shirt in conjunction with the All Schools programme and kit suppliers Canterbury.

For one Rochdale rugby player, tonight’s World Cup opener between England and Fiji carries a level of significance that goes beyond the mere eighty minutes, owing to an association that backdates half a century.

Manchester United have been given a huge boost ahead of the Southampton clash with the news Wayne Rooney will return after missing the last two matches with a hamstring injury.

Rochdale manager Keith Hill is in no doubt that his team will bounce back tomorrow when they entertain Scunthorpe United at Spotland.

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany has been ruled out of the Premier League leaders’ clash with West Ham with a calf injury sustained in the Champions League against Juventus on Tuesday night.

Brian Barry-Murphy says the key to Rochdale’s success over the past two seasons is that their players are required to learn and progress every day.

Manchester Phoenix could be without two key players for the second weekend of the English Premier League, leaving owner Neil Morris fearful of a painful bump down to earth.

Wigan will dedicate the home match against Fleetwood this weekend to left back Juan Carlos Garcia as they look for a much needed win back on home turf.

Oldham’s George Ford has held off Owen Farrell to start at 10 for England in tonight’s World Cup opener against Fiji, but this is far from the first time the two have competed head-to-head.