Rugby union

• Left to right: Duhan van der Merwe of Scotland, Ireland's Jack Crowley, Louis Bielle-Biarrey of France and England's Maro Itoje

  Six Nations judgment day has enough riding on it to be an all-time classic

• Marcus Smith runs clear to score a try for England during the Six Nations match against Italy.

  Six Nations to remain on free-to-air TV until 2029 after new ITV and BBC deal

• England players attend the captain’s run in Cardiff.

  England’s potential bus trip for Six Nations trophy is not only fork in road

• Rocky Elsom, pictured in 2011, left Ireland in August 2024 and his whereabouts are currently unknown.

  Former Wallabies captain Rocky Elsom handed two-year jail sentence in France

• England must be ruthless against Wales – and that is the blueprint for the future

  Ugo Monye

• Sports quiz of the week

  Sports quiz of the week: Six Nations, stadiums, shootouts and a shutout

• Matt Sherratt during a Wales coaching session

  Wales will combine ‘heart and brain’ as Sherratt aims to sign off with a win

  The Wales head coach is hoping to avoid a 17th successive Test defeat and said beating England ‘would give everyone a massive lift’
• Simon Easterby

  ‘A rugby incident’: Ireland’s Simon Easterby defends Beirne and Porter

  Simon Easterby, Ireland’s coach, has said the injury to France’s Antoine Dupont was a ‘rugby incident’
• England's Ben Earl runs at an Italian defender in the Six Nations match at Twickenham

  ‘It is not too dissimilar’: England’s Earl happy to make central switch if needed

  England back-rower Ben Earl has said "half the stuff I do is as a 12 anyway’ at the prospect of moving to centre against Wales

• Tommy Freeman scores a try for England against Italy.

  Borthwick deserves credit after bold selection for England’s Wales test

  Head coach wants his players to stamp their authority on Saturday’s encounter in the Cardiff cauldron
• Fin Smith (left) and Marcus Smith (right) during the win against France.

  Steve Borthwick may use three fly-halves for Six Nations finale in Wales

  The England head coach Steve Borthwick is prepared to unleash his triple threat of fly-halves simultaneously against Wales in Cardiff on Saturday
• France's Antoine Dupont leaves the pitch

  ‘I’ve done nothing wrong’: Ireland’s Porter hits back over Dupont injury

  The Ireland prop Andrew Porter hit back at France head coach Fabien Galthié amid the fallout over Antoine Dupont’s season-ending knee injury

• Ollie Chessum carries the ball against Italy

  Chessum claims hostility from fans will ‘rev up’ England for Wales showdown

  Ollie Chessum has not forgotten some of the abuse directed at England’s players by Welsh fans two years ago and says it will "rev up" the team
• Wales captain Hannah Jones

  Wales women’s rugby captain slams ‘disgraceful’ WRU contract wrangle

  Wales captain Hannah Jones says what the squad went through last year was "disgraceful" and made her contemplate international retirement
• France prevent an Ireland try

  The Breakdown newsletter

  France buy-in to monster pack blueprint threatens reimagined future

  Oscar Jégou’s fine Dublin performance brings into focus the potential impact of forwards who can play anywhere

• Fin Smith lines up the conversion during the Six Nations match between England and Italy

  Fin Smith reveals tough love from Wales coach Sherratt that drove him to success

  Fin Smith feels a debt of gratitude towards the Wales head coach Matt Sherratt for motivating him to go the extra mile as a teenager at Worcester Warriors
• Damian Penaud leaves Sam Prendergast in his wake

  Shaun Edwards and his French marauders show how big a reset Ireland will need

  Brendan Fanning

  Even with talisman Dupont forced out by injury, Les Bleus exposed Irish pretensions and brought a brutal end to the green party in Dublin
• Jackson Garden-Bachop of Moana Pasifika celebrates their round-four win over the Hurricanes in Auckland.

  Power shift with Pasifika edge brings Super Rugby back to life

  After three years of meandering and New Zealand domination, there are signs the championship is once again a genuine competition

• Marcus Smith comforts Ollie Lawrence after his early injury against Italy

  ‘Devastated’ England wait for test results after Ollie Lawrence injury

• Marcus Smith breaks through the Italy defence during England’s 47-24 win.

  Marcus Smith, square peg in round hole, still provides spark Borthwick needs