Ireland is now playing at the top table in world Rugby, with clubs and country considered among the toughest around. It wasn't always like this, and for decades we propped up the bottom of the tables, with moral victories often the most we could hope for. Ray McManus and his team at Sportsfile have been there throughout, passionately following the boys in green (and blue, red, white and the dark green of Connaught), capturing the essence of this physical, punishing sport and those who play it. With reminiscences from photographers and players alike, this book is a look back over the decades at the legendary players, matches and moments that have contributed to the narrative of our contribution to one of the world's most exciting sports. A must for rugby fans wherever they are. Paperback edition updated to include Ireland's historic home win over New Zealand in September 2018 and the 2019 Six Nations.

EasiCoach Rugby Skills Activities contain ready-made, age-appropriate, safe training activities. This U9 and U10 volume develops handling and evasion skills learned at younger age levels and introduces more contact skills. EasiCoach helps coaches and young players understand the basic concepts, whatever the level of experience of the coach or player, and is part of the EasiCoach Rugby Skills Curriculum. If you are new to coaching and not sure what to coach, or even how to coach, help is at hand, even for "non-rugby" volunteers. They are called EasiCoach activities because they are simple and easy to follow. EasiCoach will help you to quickly understand what it is you're trying to achieve and see what you need to do from just a few words and pictures. You can grasp the key do's and don'ts at a glance. The activity sheets tell you the equipment you need (never more than basics), and allow you to cater for more or fewer players at your session. Using EasiCoach helps you to speak to your players with confidence, and in addition, by following all the materials in each manual, your players will be learning the right skills for the right age group every season, because all the activities are part of a curriculum.

During the six years of a brutal global war - from the battlefields of Europe, to the deserts of North Africa, the jungles of the Asia and even in Prisoner of War camps - rugby union continued to be played wherever and whenever possible by the servicemen of Britain and her Allies from New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, Dedicated to 'all those in rugby who did - and who didn't - make it through those troubled times', War Games is a comprehensive and highly illustrated commemoration, packed with stories and statistics that for the first time chronicles the history of rugby - the men and the matches, from `scratch' to international - during the Second World War. Starting with the short-lived 'infant' season of 1939-40 and ending with the `Victory' series of internationals in 1945-6, and including the hugely successful New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) 'Kiwi' tour of 1946, War Games details all the major rugby contests and the hundreds of players including: Bleddyn Williams, Prince Alex Obolensky, Bill McLaren, Wilf Wooller, Blair Mayne, Sir Tasker Watkins, Ralph Sampson, Gus Risman, Willie Davies, Les Manfield, Charlie Saxton, Fred Allen and Jim Sherratt. Essential and entertaining reading for followers of rugby and military historians alike, respected rugby authors Howard Evans and Phil Atkinson tell the tale - meticulously and with great affection for the game they love - of those men who played for fun but who, on too many occasions, lost more than a rugby game.

My book, or memoir, is mainly a very light hearted look at my rugby union experiences both on and off the field. My stories began in 1958 when I was 10 and a pupil at George Heriot's school in Edinburgh. As I started to recount my early experiences in rugby union lots of other general boyhood, adolescent and later more adult moments came to mind. Some stories have nothing to do with rugby but I thought they might bring a smile to the faces of some people as they may see themselves in similar circumstances. My Rugby stories include my times at Heriot's School, Heriot's Former Pupils Rugby Club, Nottinghamians RFC, Aberdeenshire RFC and Mackie Academy FPRFC in Stonehaven. I was president of Mackie Academy FPRFC twice and in that period I met many famous International players from all of the then Five Nations as they kindly agreed to speak at the club dinners. They include Scottish stars Andy Irvine, Jim Telfer, Jim Aitken, Iain Milne and his brothers Kenny and David. Fran Cotton of England and Gareth Edwards of Wales also graced the Mackie dinners. Jo Maso the famous French Centre also features in the book as I recount an amazing story involving him and Mackie Academy FP's . I was employed as Secretary and General Manager of Heriot's Rugby Club from 1998 to 2004 and in that time I had the privilege of meeting players from all over the world as they trained with their International colleagues at Heriot's school playing fields, Goldenacre. Towards the end of my tenure at Heriot's I was close to much of the turmoil that beset the Scottish Rugby Union and Scottish club rugby. Heriot's were largely responsible for halting a likely meltdown of the Scottish Rugby Union in 2004/2005 and I tell that story at the end of my book. Rugby kicks of the book and closes it too so I have called my memoir Wrapped in Rugby.

Rugby Stories...and other misadventures was incredibly enjoyable. I'm a bit of a history buff and the one area of American rugby history I always wanted to know more about was the period in the 1960s and 70s, when the Eagles were just formulating. The generation of players that came of age during that period is only getting old and some of the stories from that time are getting lost. The greatest triumph of "Rugby Stories" is that it preserves that part of history for future generations. Written by former Eagle, UCLA, and Santa Monica player Dave Stephenson, "Rugby Stories" offers a unique take on a crucial period in U.S. rugby history. Stephenson's writing style is like his play on the field, solid with a touch of bravado. He tells the story of his emergence as a school player in England, to immigrant in Los Angeles where he finds rugby once again. Stephenson has an interesting life that in and of itself is well worth a story and when you throw in rugby, it makes a great combination. The inside knowledge Stephenson provides of the early Eagles is invaluable. It was a different time back then, and while things didn't always run smoothly, the passion that all of those involved had was impressive. If there is one disappointment, it's that Stephenson isn't around for years and years with the team, but that's something you'll have to read about in the book. It's more than just the early history of the Eagles that makes "Rugby Stories" valuable for the American rugby fans, it's the early history of UCLA and Santa Monica as well. Stephenson was part of Dennis Storer's legendary Bruins squads that challenged for the World Cup with Cal and UBC, as well as in the Monterey Tournament, the unofficial national championship at the time. He was also a founding member of Santa Monica Rugby Club. This is a crucial part of American rugby history and that should make "Rugby Stories" a crucial part of your rugby book collection. I can't recommend this book highly enough. I learned so much about American rugby history that I couldn't find anywhere else. ThisisAmericanrugby.com

"Rugby - Backs Moves" is a collection of moves or "plays" which any group of backs in a rugby team can use during a match. The book is intended to be something which anyone who coaches senior or junior rugby, at rugby clubs or in schools, can use to develop their team's back play. The book is an ideal companion for use on the training ground or in team meetings. Each move is described on two adjacent pages, which appear side by side as you open out the book. For each move, the book identifies the area of the opposition's defensive alignment on which the attack is focused and the lines of running for each player involved in the move. The book also identifies from which side of the pitch any move can be used and whether it works from a scrum, a line-out or from other phases of play. Variations on individual moves are explained, with cross-references included to where the variations are described elsewhere in the book. For each move, the book also contains a "Key Points" narrative, with tips on how best to make the move work and points to look out for in running the move. The moves are illustrated with easy to understand diagrams and space is provided for coaches to jot down any thoughts that spring to mind as they try out the moves during practice or match play. The book includes various indexed lists, which enable the reader to find particular types of move, such as moves to run from the left or right side of the pitch, from a scrum or line-out or through a particular channel in the opposition's defence.

Bootsie is back! But now everything in his life has turned upside-down. While exploring his new neighbourhood, a chance meeting with a rugby-mad boy called Robbie, helps Bootsie feel that he might start to belong. Then Bootsie joins a new club and discovers that all his previous good seasons with his beloved Bulldogs count for nothing with the new coach, and starting all over again is harder than he thought. Just as he's about to give up, Bootsie discovers that strength and encouragement can come in many disguises...

Another fantastic adventure featuring Bootsie as he starts a new rugby season with hopes for selection in the regional schoolboys' team. But first the Hornets will need to adjust to the new coach Mr. Butkiss and his outlandish ideas about training.Can Bootsie use his newly learned skills to get himself closer to achieving his dream or will Robbie's arrogant attitude let everyone on the team down?

Brian Moore, or 'Pitbull' as he came to be known during nearly a decade at the heart of the England rugby team's pack, established himself as one of the game's original hard men at a time when rugby was still an amateur sport. Since his retirement, he has earned a reputation as an equally uncompromising commentator, never afraid to tell it as he sees it and lash out at the money men and professionals that have made rugby into such a different beast. Yet, for all his bullishness on and off the pitch, there also appears a more unconventional, complicated side to the man. A solicitor by trade, Moore's love of fine wine, career experience as a manicurist and preference for reading Shakespeare in the dressing room before games, mark him out as anything but the stereotypical rugby player and in Beware of the Dog Moore lays open with astounding frankness the shocking events, both personal and professional, that have gone towards shaping him over the years. Presenting an unparalleled insight into the mind of one of British rugby's greatest players and characters, Beware of the Dogis a uniquely engaging and upfront sporting memoir.

"Rugby - Backs Moves" is a collection of moves or "plays" which any group of backs in a rugby team can use during a match. The book is intended to be something which anyone who coaches senior or junior rugby, at rugby clubs or in schools, can use to develop their team's back play. The book is an ideal companion for use on the training ground or in team meetings. Each move is described on two adjacent pages, which appear side by side as you open out the book. For each move, the book identifies the area of the opposition's defensive alignment on which the attack is focused and the lines of running for each player involved in the move. The book also identifies from which side of the pitch any move can be used and whether it works from a scrum, a line-out or from other phases of play. Variations on individual moves are explained, with cross-references included to where the variations are described elsewhere in the book. For each move, the book also contains a "Key Points" narrative, with tips on how best to make the move work and points to look out for in running the move. The moves are illustrated with easy to understand diagrams and space is provided for coaches to jot down any thoughts that spring to mind as they try out the moves during practice or match play. The book includes various indexed lists, which enable the reader to find particular types of move, such as moves to run from the left or right side of the pitch, from a scrum or line-out or through a particular channel in the opposition's defence.

In 1995 rugby union finally became a professional sport following more than a century as an amateur game. This book offers a critical analysis of the sport in the professional era and assesses the relationship between the local and the global in contemporary rugby union.

No other rugby book to date has been so well designed, so easy to use, and so committed to weight training. This book will have the player increasing strength, quickness, agility, and endurance.