Rugby
Ruthless France thump Namibia 96-0
France are on the brink of reaching the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals after claiming their biggest-ever win with a 96-0 victory over Namibia in Pool A.
Damian Penaud scored a hat-trick, while Jonathan Danty, Charles Ollivon and Louis Bielle-Biarry all scored twice.
Antoine Dupont, Thibaud Flament, Baptiste Couilloud and Melvyn Jaminet also crossed before a penalty try took their total tally to 14 in Marseille.
The only French cause for concern was the loss of Dupont to injury.
The hosts’ captain was withdrawn during the second half following a head-on-head tackle by Johan Deysel, whose yellow card was upgraded to a red by the bunker-review system.
France head coach Fabien Galthie’s decision to keep his talisman on the field despite his side’s huge 54-point half-time advantage could be scrutinised if Dupont’s injury keeps him on the sidelines with the knockout stages looming.
Les Blues, who are top of Pool A with three wins from their opening three games, surpassed their previous biggest winning margin of 87-10 against Namibia in their last home World Cup in 2007 and will face Italy in their next fixture on 6 October in Lyon.
Namibia are rooted to the bottom of the table after suffering three heavy defeats, and face a final pool game against Uruguay on 27 September.
Ruthless France peaking at the right time
A much-changed France side overcame Uruguay without overly exerting themselves in their last game, but the Namibians felt the full force of their wrath here.
Heavyweights Dupont, Penaud and Flament were back in the side and they were quickly into their stride at Stade Velodrome.
Dupont showed all of his class to fire a cross-field kick with his right boot for the prolific Penaud to extend his try-scoring run to six consecutive Tests.
Centre Danty marked his return to the side after injury with the second following some neat work from Bielle-Biarry close to the touchline before Ollivon rounded off a flowing team move.
Penaud added his second moments later with an inside pass from a line-out move off the training field, before Danty doubled his own tally with a powerful finish from close range.
Simple run-ins for Flament and Dupont followed before the diminutive scrum-half turned provider with a perfectly weighted clip off his left boot for Bielle-Biarry to score without breaking stride.
That try handed France a 54-point lead and their biggest ever half-time advantage, but they were far from finished.
Dupont made way holding his face but it would not affect the outcome on the night as his replacement Couilloud crossed unopposed in the corner.
Penaud secured his hat-trick in the same corner before Namibia, who had been toothless in attack, intercepted a loose French pass and threatened to score their opening try, but Jaminet covered the kick through as France recycled the ball and Bielle-Biarry ran it straight back with interest.
An Ollivon dummy for try number 12 was followed by a neat backs’ move for Jaminet to finish off before a final penalty try ended the rout.
France are among the favourites to lift the Webb Ellis Cup next month and will face tougher challenges than the one posed by Namibia, but their ruthless attack sent a real message to the rest of the runners and riders.
-BBC
Rugby
Edo Sports Boss Bids Farewell to Five Players Invited to Nigeria’s Rugby Camp Ahead of World Series in Canada
Chairman of the Edo State Sports Commission, Amadin Desmond Enabulele, has sent off five female rugby players from Team Edo who have earned national team invitations ahead of the World Rugby League Series scheduled to hold in Canada from October 17 to 27, 2025.
In a statement issued by his Media Officer, Edoko Wilson Edoko, Enabulele congratulated the athletes for their outstanding performances and dedication to the sport, describing their call-up as further evidence of Edo State’s growing influence in Nigerian rugby.
“I wholeheartedly applaud Abba Chinaza, Precious Ukwuoma, Success Iyoha, Becky Okitikpe, and Vera Akhihero of Team Edo for their dedication and determination to the game of rugby,” Enabulele said.
The players were formally presented to the Commission’s Chairman by the Head Coach of Edo State Rugby Team, Obong Ntiense Williams.
Enabulele hailed their achievement as “a monumental milestone for Edo State and for Nigeria,” urging the athletes to be worthy ambassadors of both the state and the nation as they prepare to compete on the world stage.
He also commended Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, for providing the enabling environment that has allowed sports to flourish across the state.
Edo’s women’s rugby team currently holds back-to-back national 7s titles, while the state’s U-15 girls’ side recently clinched gold at the National Youth Games in Asaba, edging Delta State 7–5 in a tense final.
The five Edo players will now join Nigeria’s extended women’s rugby squad, which includes a blend of homegrown stars and international heritage players.
Confirmed among the overseas contingent are Aminah Oluwabunmi (London Broncos, UK), Catherine Akeje (Oran Park Gregory Hills Chargers, Australia), Adeola King (Ottawa Tigers, Canada), Favour Irimagha (Sheffield Eagles, UK), Annique Omodiagbe (Wests Tigers, Australia), and Faustina Akeje, a heritage player currently unattached.
If Nigeria performs successfully at the Canada series, the team will book a historic qualification for the 2026 Women’s Rugby League World Cup in Australia.
Meanwhile, the Vice Chairman of the Nigeria Rugby League Federation, Ade Adebisi, disclosed that two other Nigerian players are already making strides abroad. Rachel Iliya is currently training with Bradford Bulls in the United Kingdom, while Edo-born Blessing Aladeyelu is finalising travel arrangements to join Wakefield Trinity next month.
Adebisi noted that these international breakthroughs underscore the rapid progress of Nigerian women’s rugby and highlight Edo State’s growing reputation as a breeding ground for world-class talent.
“This is a landmark moment for Edo State and Nigeria,” Enabulele remarked, “and we are confident our girls will make us proud on the global stage.”
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Rugby
Rugby player of Nigerian roots, Itoje, becomes first black to captain British and Irish Lions in 137 years
Maro Itoje, who was born to Nigerian parents in Camden, North London, has been named the captain of the British and Irish Lions that will be on tour in Australia.
He remarked that he was “deeply honoured and humbled” after being appointed captain of the British and Irish Lions.
The 30-year-old Saracens lock becomes the 47th Lions captain since 1888, the first Black player to captain the side, and only the third Englishman in the last 89 years to be appointed tour leader.
“I will do my best to do the role justice. I am very much looking forward to the challenge ahead, it’s going to be a great tour,” he said
“I know the appetite amongst the players is extremely high, everyone is hungry to be a Lion, and I can’t wait to play my role.”
One of the few sure test starters, Itoje will be embarking on his third Lions tour after being selected as the youngest player in New Zealand in 2017 and playing a standout role in South Africa in 2021.
Appointed England captain in place of Jamie George in January, Itoje led his country to second place in this year’s Six Nations Championship with four wins in a row.
The first Englishman to lead the Lions since Martin Johnson 24 years ago, also in Australia, and only the second in the professional era, the London-born son of Nigerian parents was the obvious choice after Ireland captain Caelan Doris suffered a shoulder injury.
Doris was not named in the 38-man squad and is expected to require surgery.
Itoje said he received an unidentified call on his mobile from an Irish number after club training on Tuesday, a bit of a giveaway since Lions head coach Andy Farrell is also the coach of Ireland.
Even though the line was crackling, and he did not have Farrell’s number saved, he recognised the coach’s Wigan accent. Then the line went dead.
“I put the phone down, and then it’s gone, isn’t it? He knows something’s brewing,” laughed Farrell. “So, I rang him back and I went ‘Oh, by the way, would you like to be British and Irish Lions captain?’.
Itoje had dinner in London on Wednesday with some of the past captains, and he said their passion and appreciation shone through.
“It was amazing. It’s a brotherhood, it’s a unique club, and to spend time with them, for them to show the love and care and appreciation that they still have for the Lions. It was absolutely amazing to be a part of that.
“It’s our responsibility now to take it forward and to make sure the Lions continues to be in an elevated position.”
Itoje showed he was captain material from an early age, leading the England Under-20s to Junior World Cup triumph in 2014, even though he became Saracens captain only this season and former coach Eddie Jones had declared him too “inward looking”.
Itoje disagreed with that assessment and has gone on to prove it wrong, while Jones was shown the exit in 2022.
“He has thrived on the England captaincy. He played really well in the Six Nations, but he has played even better for us since then,” Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall told the Guardian this week.
“Maro has absolutely thrived on all of that leadership,” he added. “Maro is very much a leader by what he does and how consistent he is.”
The Lions have a game against Argentina in Dublin on June 20. They will have five tour games before the first test in Brisbane on July 19. The second and third tests are on July 26 and August 2.
-Reuters
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Rugby players are celebrating the return of the sport to the National Sports Festival and will thus be one of the disciplines at the Edo State Sports Festival which is coming up from 22nd to 30th of April 2025 at Benin City.
Rugby is one of the 29 sports approved by the organizing committee of the 4th edition of the Edo State Sports Festival.
The disciplines are: Athletics, Badminton, Basketball, Boxing, Chess, Cycling, Gymnastics, Handball, Hockey, Para Athletics, Taekwondo, Tennis, Abula, Ayo, Volleyball, Beach Volleyball, Weightlifting, Wrestling, Deaf Athletics, Karate, Scrabble, Swimming, Dart, Kung-fu, Kickboxing, Table Tennis, Judo, Football and Rugby.
Rugby was previously excluded but the position has changed to encourage Rugby which is very popular in Edo State.
At the National Sports Festival of 2022 in Edo State, rugby was a scoring event. That was 10 years since its absence after featuring last at the Kada Games in 2009 in Kaduna State.
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