Rugby World Cup: Expect more of the Good, the Bad and the UglyMatt Williams: Whether you’re Clint Eastwood or a rugby fan with no name, there has been plenty to enjoy and ponder in the first acts of the Rugby World CupFri Sept 15 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Future of rugby at stake unless we learn from past scrum horrorsRugby World Cup: South Africa have legally exploited a safety-law loophole, but we should be concerned about their seven replacement forwardsFri Sept 08 2023 - 12:09
Matt Williams: The Rugby World Cup festival is about to begin - let us rejoice in diversityThe first Rugby World Cup was the sport’s version of Woodstock, changing the cultural landscape forever. We must nurture a tournament that reminds us that no one owns this gameFri Sept 01 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: the brilliance of Antoine Dupont may determine who will lift the World CupTo win the World Cup it may well require a talented disrupter, someone brave enough to break with the current fashion of negative tactics that has dominated recent editionsFri Aug 25 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Ireland’s World Cup future looks significantly brighter than some of their rivalsEvery national team is completely reliant upon the quality of the high performance system below themFri Aug 18 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: When you are choosing a sport for your kids, stick to rugby and steer clear of chess Youth sport allows us to learn how to handle the emotional mouses and cauliflower ears that every life has to endureFri Aug 11 2023 - 14:30
Matt Williams: Warm-up games can help Ireland prepare for two different selection scenarios against South AfricaFarrell’s men will likely face the rock and hard place options of who they want to face in a World Cup quarter-final – New Zealand or FranceFri Aug 04 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Until talent production is co-ordinated, US rugby will keep waiting on its sunny day The United States would already be a mighty rugby force if not for presidential interventionFri Jul 28 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: It’s clear high-tempo attack wins and the World Cup will be no differentSince November 2022 the Springboks’ monolithic game plan has lost to France, Ireland and New ZealandFri Jul 21 2023 - 13:00
Matt Williams: Passing of Roly Meates robs Irish rugby of one of its greatest figures He was a wise pioneer whose coaching of superior scrum technique contributed in a huge way to the development of Irish rugbyFri Jul 14 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Australian rugby was dead in the water – now Eddie Jones is trying to bring it backAustralians hope Saturday’s match against South Africa is the first step on a long journey back to the topFri Jul 07 2023 - 12:50
Matt Williams: Don’t write off the southern hemisphere teams in a wide open Rugby World CupTalk of a two-horse race between northern giants France and Ireland doesn’t take into account New Zealand’s superb form or South Africa’s doggednessFri Jun 30 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Children need to be taught how to handle winning and losingBanning competitive sport does not teach kids how to cope with the worldFri Jun 23 2023 - 12:32
Matt Williams: ‘Nouveau riche’ La Rochelle eye symbol of French rugby supremacy — The PlankBouclier de Brennus trophy at stake when Ronan O’Gara’s side take on Toulouse in Saturday’s Top 14 finalFri Jun 16 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Want rugby to be more exciting? Decrease points for penalties and increase them for triesIn addition to strategic rule changes, our rugby legislature must work to create an average time of 60 minutes for us all to enjoyFri Jun 09 2023 - 15:18
Matt Williams: Munster’s URC triumph reignites Ireland’s provincial rivalries Cape Town win ‘tossed a giant log on the fire that fuels the white-hot competition between the Irish provinces’Fri Jun 02 2023 - 12:24
Matt Williams: Leinster’s plight reveals the double-edged sword facing all elite rugby playersMatt Williams: Athletes stare into the eyes of the monster that is defeat and search deep within themselves to find the courage to overcome their fear of failureFri May 26 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Ronan O’Gara has created a La Rochelle team with virtually no weaknessesLa Rochelle more complete than last season, having replaced Ihaia West at outhalf with the more reliable Antoine HastoyFri May 19 2023 - 12:00
Outrageous scheduling means Leinster URC and Champions Cup double is near impossibleSeries of season-defining games for province with, potentially, URC final to follow an outrageously tough five weeksFri May 12 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Cullen’s massive contribution to Leinster deserves recognition As a former player, captain and now head coach, he has been one of the prime drivers of a strikingly successful club model based on locally-produced talentFri May 05 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: How Toulouse can win against Leinster in DublinToulouse coach Ugo Mola will want to avoid the tactical mistakes France made in the high-tempo Six Nations clash which suited a Leinster-inspired Ireland down to the groundFri Apr 28 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Young men prosper under Bennett’s type of tough loveThe revered Australian Rugby League coach believes in preparing his players for life’s challenges and Redcliffe Dolphins are just the latest club to benefit from his holistic philosophyFri Apr 21 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Gaining parity at the breakdown an essential requirement for LeinsterGiven the calibre of Toulouse and La Rochelle, Champions Cup success may come down to O’Brien’s influence in coaching Leinster’s breakdown workFri Apr 14 2023 - 11:15
Matt Williams: Integrity of the Champions Cup has been eroded by greedThe competition’s current structure means underperforming in the pool stages is of little consequenceFri Apr 07 2023 - 18:00
Matt Williams: Leinster make it clear that their play does not hinge on Johnny SextonA pivotal play helped earn a heroic draw against Stormers which could well go a long way in deciding the eventual destination of the URC titleFri Mar 31 2023 - 13:33
Ireland are still facing gargantuan task in World Cup despite Six Nations triumphClaiming two Grand Slams in a week is a huge achievement for Irish rugby but advancing from that peak to lifting the World Cup is a gargantuan taskFri Mar 24 2023 - 12:30
A truly exasperating incident in an airline queue reflected travails of the Ireland team‘The young woman immediately in front of me gave the security guard a look of alarm that was close to panic’Fri Mar 17 2023 - 13:00
Six Nations: Blunders hobbled them, but now Scotland are a serious force for Ireland to reckon withThree factors explain how Scottish rugby has recovered from monumental errors made at the start of the professional eraFri Mar 10 2023 - 15:00
Matt Williams: Inspirational Byrne rewarded for his patience and perseveranceDespite considerable adversity over the years, the Leinster man honed his game and never quit on his ambition to once again wear Ireland’s number 10 jerseyFri Mar 03 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Disparage improving Italy at your perilExcellent Italian performances had genesis in 2016 when Conor O’Shea guided team and Irish man Stephen Aboud developed elite player and coach pathwaysFri Feb 24 2023 - 05:00
Ireland-France referee Wayne Barnes has been made scapegoat for a broken systemWayne Barnes did not fail, the officiating system failed us allFri Feb 17 2023 - 12:00
Ireland v France: Whoever wins may well do the other a service in the long runLike the technology on the old Parisian Métro, the route to the Rugby World Cup final in Paris in October is old schoolFri Feb 10 2023 - 10:49
Matt Williams: Warren Gatland factor makes Wales a real threat to IrelandThe players believe in head coach’s game plan and that makes them very dangerous in Six NationsFri Feb 03 2023 - 10:29
Matt Williams: Diminishing Champions Cup makes commercial sense for English and French clubsFarcical format is the fault of administrators, not the clubs benefitingFri Jan 27 2023 - 13:00
Matt Williams: Rugby’s rulers are ruining our beautiful gamePoor governance can be blamed for money problems, low attendances, bad publicity and stupefying playFri Jan 20 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Ross Byrne can grasp opportunity to secure second place in Ireland’s outhalf pecking orderIf Sexton is unavailable for the opening round of the Six Nations, the next best exponent of gain line theory in Ireland is his Leinster colleagueFri Jan 13 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: For those who want to make it to the top, there are no off daysWatching a young Rugby League player diligently pursue his dreams under the hot Australian sun brought to mind some salient truthsFri Jan 06 2023 - 12:00
Matt Williams: World Rugby’s meagre list of law reforms wholly inadequate A few symptoms have been addressed but the disease itself still has hold of rugby’s bodySat Dec 31 2022 - 05:00
Matt Williams: Ghastly scenes on San Francisco’s streets remind us of how lucky we are Matt Williams: The pitiful sight of mass homelessness on San Francisco's streets a long way from the American DreamSat Dec 24 2022 - 09:00
Matt Williams: England’s shoddy treatment of Jones may well come back to haunt themCoach’s knowledge and vast experience could prove crucial to a Wallaby success and an English failure at the next World CupFri Dec 16 2022 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Leinster set to take first step in banishing Champions Cup final demonsNo Munster Cinderella story in the offing while Ulster look to continue good run in EnglandSat Dec 10 2022 - 06:00
Matt Williams: Elite players have failed a moral test by playing in Qatar World CupMatt Williams: World's leading soccer players should have followed the example of anti-apartheid Wallabies by refusing to play in the World Cup in QatarSat Dec 03 2022 - 06:00
Matt Williams: Tactically Ireland still need to evolve and improveMatt Williams: The world’s coaches are availing of a game plan, ironically designed by Ronan O’Gara, to counter Ireland’s potent attacking systemFri Nov 25 2022 - 19:00
Matt Williams: Life continues to be like a box of chocolates for WallabiesA lack of effort, courage and commitment are not the problems for this Australia teamFri Nov 18 2022 - 12:00
Don’t believe the hype, Ireland still need to adapt and evolveMatt Williams: Ireland's win over the Springboks was a significant milestone on a much longer journeyFri Nov 11 2022 - 12:00
Matt Williams: Ireland can find a way to break Springboks’ stranglehold Matt Williams: The Springboks' strategy, which has delivered such astonishing success, has negativity at its heartSat Nov 05 2022 - 06:00
Matt Williams: Time for Ireland fans to find Aviva voice for Springboks challenge Performances in New Zealand have been inspirational; for this game, supporters must play their partSat Oct 29 2022 - 06:00
Matt Williams: Wolfhounds are a team worthy of Irish support The efforts of Ireland’s national team at the Rugby League World Cup have somehow been allowed to go under the sporting radarSat Oct 22 2022 - 06:00
Matt Williams: Winners embrace hard work as key to unlocking successFor teams to be successful it is not just down to coaches and players, those in supporting roles also have a vital part to playSat Oct 15 2022 - 06:00
Matt Williams: Rugby’s grassroots begin a fight back for the game’s soul Queensland games to experiment with the badly needed law changes proposed by united Super Rugby coachesSat Oct 08 2022 - 06:00
