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Daily Record
27-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
Gareth Thomas backs Blair Kinghorn to shine on late link up with British and Irish Lions Tour
Scotland full-back Blair Kinghorn, who will run out at the Stade de France on Saturday night for the Top 14 final for club side Toulouse against European champions Bordeaux. Of the 38 players selected by Andy Farrell for the 2025 British & Irish Lions Tour of Australia, 37 are currently Down Under. The exception is Scotland full-back Blair Kinghorn, who will run out at the Stade de France on Saturday night for the Top 14 final for club side Toulouse against European champions Bordeaux. Even after a stellar Six Nations, in which nominated for Player of the Championship, the lack of availability for the first three matches of the Tour, at least, might count against the Scot. But Gareth Thomas believes otherwise. The former Wales skipper went through this exact scenario 20 years ago, remaining with Toulouse for the knockouts of the French domestic league and linking up late with the Lions in New Zealand. Despite that, he was able to get up to speed and ended the tour as captain after Brian O'Driscoll was spear-tackled out of the Test series by Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu. 'It's deemed a little difficult but sometimes joining when the tour is on, is kind of easier than the whole rigmarole and faffing around, doing this and that and getting to know this person or that person,' said Thomas, who has been embarking on the Snowdonia 10 Peak Challenge for Tackle HIV, in a bid to tackle misunderstanding of HIV as well as addressing the stigma around it. 'Sometimes when you are thrown into it and told 'go and play rugby', it's easier. You can't do it as a collective but when you are a small piece of this huge jigsaw, it's nearly complete and allows you to fit in. In a way, for that individual, coming in can be easier because the group is established and all you have to do is establish your little part. 'Even though I captained the team, I captained a team that had gone through the hard work and they allowed me to come in and stand in front and lead them out. The hard work had been done weeks and weeks before.' Thomas and Kinghorn are far from the only examples of players based overseas being called up by the Lions, with Bath fly-half Finn Russell plying his trade at Racing 92 at the time of the last tour. Some have ducked out of their domestic seasons early, notably Leigh Halfpenny in 2017 when he missed the Top 14 final to fly out to New Zealand. Kinghorn has decided otherwise, and Thomas explained just why he took the exact same decision two decades ago. He said: 'I made my commitment. There was no way I was going the whole season playing in Toulouse, potentially reach a final and then not play in the final. That is not to say I had a lack of commitment to the Lions, which is once every four years. 'What it said is that I had a huge commitment to Toulouse, who I played for and where I was living every day of my life. It was important that I showed Toulouse what they as a club had done for me, rather than on the flipside saying to the Lions that I don't care, I did. 'For me, to leave was never an option and I totally get it if people do leave their club. But for me, the players you are with every day, you work every day of your life for so many years, to miss out on the big games almost becomes unthinkable as a rugby player.' Tackle HIV is a campaign led by Gareth Thomas in partnership with ViiV Healthcare, with Terrence Higgins Trust as the charity partner, which aims to tackle the stigma and misunderstanding around HIV. For more information visit and follow @tacklehiv
Straits Times
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Straits Times
Former England fullback Brown to retire
Former England fullback Mike Brown will retire from rugby at the end of this season, his club Leicester Tigers said on Tuesday, and the 39-year-old is bowing out with a call for unity to the game's authorities. Brown made 72 appearances for England between 2007 and 2018, winning three Six Nations titles and being named Player of the Championship in 2014, the only English player to receive the award. "After a great deal of reflection, the time feels right to step away from professional rugby and officially retire from the game that has shaped my life in so many ways," Brown said in a letter posted on Leicester's website. Brown spent 16 years at Harlequins, winning two Premiership titles and a European Challenge Cup, before joining Newcastle Falcons in 2021 for one season and signing for Leicester in 2023. He was excluded from England's training camp before the 2019 World Cup after an altercation with teammate Ben Te'o, and neither player made the tournament squad under coach Eddie Jones. Brown's letter included a plea to club owners, league executives and the sport's governing bodies. "My hope is that you come together, think beyond the short term, and make the bold, unselfish decisions needed to allow rugby to thrive once again," he wrote. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
20-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Rugby-Former England fullback Brown to retire
FILE PHOTO: Rugby Union - Premiership - Leicester Tigers v Saracens - Welford Road Stadium, Leicester, Britain - February 19, 2023 Leicester Tigers' Mike Brown celebrates scoring their third try Action Images/Peter Cziborra (Reuters) -Former England fullback Mike Brown will retire from rugby at the end of this season, his club Leicester Tigers said on Tuesday, and the 39-year-old is bowing out with a call for unity to the game's authorities. Brown made 72 appearances for England between 2007 and 2018, winning three Six Nations titles and being named Player of the Championship in 2014, the only English player to receive the award. "After a great deal of reflection, the time feels right to step away from professional rugby and officially retire from the game that has shaped my life in so many ways," Brown said in a letter posted on Leicester's website. Brown spent 16 years at Harlequins, winning two Premiership titles and a European Challenge Cup, before joining Newcastle Falcons in 2021 for one season and signing for Leicester in 2023. He was excluded from England's training camp before the 2019 World Cup after an altercation with teammate Ben Te'o, and neither player made the tournament squad under coach Eddie Jones. Brown's letter included a plea to club owners, league executives and the sport's governing bodies. "My hope is that you come together, think beyond the short term, and make the bold, unselfish decisions needed to allow rugby to thrive once again," he wrote. (Reporting by Trevor Stynes, editing by Ed Osmond)
Reuters
01-04-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
France's Bielle-Biarrey named Six Nations Player of the Championship
April 1 (Reuters) - France winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey was named Six Nations Player of the Championship on Tuesday after scoring eight tries to help his team win the tournament. The 21-year-old set a record for the most tries scored in a single Championship during the Six Nations era, surpassing the mark of seven held by Ireland's Jacob Stockdale since 2018. Bielle-Biarrey claimed the majority of the fans' vote, from a shortlist that included England back Tommy Freeman, Scotland fullback Blair Kinghorn, and last year's Player of the Championship, Italy centre Tommaso Menoncello. "My parents signed me up for rugby when I was 5 years old. Straight away, I really liked it, it is a childhood dream today to be able to live my passion," Bielle-Biarrey said. France claimed their seventh Six Nations trophy with a 35-16 victory over Scotland on March 16, ending with 21 points, one ahead of England in the standings.
BBC News
19-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Kinghorn's impressive Six Nations in numbers
While Scotland could only muster a fourth-place finish at the Six Nations, Blair Kinghorn's already considerable stock continues to full-back is one of four nominees for the Player of the Championship award after a standout campaign for Gregor Townsend's gained 580 metres, the most of any player in Six Nations history, surpassing the previous record of 543, set by England's Mike Brown in 28-year-old Scot was also top of the 2025 rankings for carries (86), line breaks (nine) and offloads (13), while he was second of all players for defenders beaten (25).Kinghorn, whose two tries came in the win over Wales, was a threat to every defence he faced and looks set for a debut British and Irish Lions call-up for the summer tour of Australia.
