Rugby Union Threequarter Play is a technical playing guide that examines the demands of each of the positions in the threequarters, and analyses the specific positional roles and responsibilities. The book will help coaches to place the right player in the right position.

This is the first detailed and original historical study of rugby union at a local level in Wales. The book draws upon previously unused sources to provide fresh insights into the origins and early years of the game in Wales. 'This Rugby Spellbound People' explores the origins of rugby in Cardiff, from being a fringe activity of the middle class to being a mass-participation sport by the turn of the 20th Century. It examines the extent and nature of the club game, how it was organized, who played and administered it, and the impact which rugby had on the town and its popular culture. At the grass roots, the game was dominated by neighborhood clubs, largely involving working-class and lower middle-class players and administrators, rather than by institutional teams organized by social improvers. At the highest level of competition, an emphasis on civic pride meant that success on the field was more important than social exclusivity. The game was played and supported, therefore, by representatives of all classes within the town, which led to rugby becoming the dominant sporting force in what was to become the capital city of Wales.

As player, manager, and pundit, Donal Lenihan has seen it all in the world of rugby - and done much of it too. A victorious captain of Munster Junior and Senior Schools, he went on to skipper the Ireland team at the inaugural Rugby World Cup in New Zealand in 1987 and was a fixture in the second row for over a decade, winning two Triple Crowns and three Five Nations championships. Selected for three British & Irish Lions tours, he was famous for skippering the unbeaten side nicknamed 'Donal's Doughnuts', before taking charge of both Ireland and the Lions as manager. From such a stellar position at the heart of the rugby world, Donal Lenihan has a wealth of stories to tell from both on and off the pitch, from raucous antics on tour to the sometimes difficult fellowship of players in a time of Troubles. He delves deeply into Cork and Munster culture and the influence on his career of his family. And as a much-respected analyst, Donal is also not short on voicing his opinion on the rights and wrongs of the modern game, and how the transition from the amateur to the professional era has affected the heart and soul of rugby. Full of wit, insight and emotional sincerity, this is a rugby book for the ages by a sporting great.

Forty years ago, a South African rugby tour in the United States became a crucial turning point for the nation's burgeoning protests against apartheid and a test of American foreign policy. In Flashpoint: How a Little-Known Sporting Event Fueled America's Anti-Apartheid Movement, Derek Charles Catsam tells the fascinating story of the Springbok's 1981 US tour and its impact on the country's anti-apartheid struggle. The US lagged well behind the rest of the Western world when it came to addressing the vexing question of South Africa's racial policies, but the rugby tour changed all that. Those who had been a part of the country's tiny anti-apartheid struggle for decades used the visit from one of white South Africa's most cherished institutions to mobilize against both apartheid sport and the South African regime more broadly. Protestors met the South African team at airports, chanted outside their hotels, and courted arrests at matches, which ranged from the bizarre to the laughable, with organizers going to incredible lengths to keep their locations secret. In telling the story of how a sport little appreciated in the United States nonetheless became ground zero for the nation's growing anti-apartheid movement, Flashpoint serves as a poignant reminder that sports and politics have always been closely intertwined.

'He's one of the best players I've ever played with. As a forward, I'd say he's the best.' Johnny Sexton Sean O'Brien does not come from a traditional rugby background. He grew up on a farm in Tullow, far from the rugby hotbeds of Limerick and Cork or the fee-paying schools of Dublin. But as he made his way up through the ranks, it soon became clear that he was a very special player and a very special personality. Now, Sean O'Brien tells the remarkable and unlikely story of his rise to the highest levels of world rugby, and of a decade of success with Leinster, Ireland and the British and Irish Lions.

"Voices from the Back of the Bus" provides a rare behind-the-scenes look at international rugby at the height of a golden period. Recounted with genuine warmth and much humor, over a hundred players recall the scrapes, the games, the laughs, the glory, and the gritty reality of the pre-professional game. Packed with true rugby tales from the days when men played purely for the love of the game and of their nation, and multimillion-pound contracts and sponsorship deals were unheard of, this refreshing, revealing, and often hilarious collection will inspire sports fans of all generations.

This inside story of the Lions in South Africa will preserve the memories of the millions of fans who follow the tour in the press, on Sky and at the games themselves. A Lions tour is the pinnacle in the career of any rugby player from the four Home Unions. It is also increasingly a highlight in the life of the vast number of travelling supporters and indeed of any rugby follower. The "Complete Book of the Lions Tour to South Africa 2009" will be an enduring record of what is bound to be an outstanding, sometimes controversial and always absorbing six weeks of rugby history, from the first match on 30th May to the third, and final, Test against the Springboks on 4th July. "The Complete Book of the Lions Tour to South Africa 2009" will recall every aspect of the tour from selection and preparation, through the early bruising encounters in the warm-up games, the high points and the low, the constant battle against injuries, the mind games and the man management, the individual successes and disappointments, gruelling training sessions and lighter moments off the field but most of all the Test series itself. The BBC's voice of rugby Ian Robertson masterminds the book as its editor and will provide comments and interviews with all the key figures on both sides. Mick Cleary's perceptive writing will throw much light on the atmosphere within the South African and Lions camps throughout the tour, examining tactics, game plans in practice on the field, individual players within the squads, including Ronan O'Gara, Brian O'Driscoll and Phil Vickery, and the leadership of Lions captain Paul O'Connell.

Michael's talent became apparent early on and, having given up on studying for a degree to play for Pontypridd, he was soon playing at international level as an under-19 and an under-21. He followed his try-scoring Man of the Match debut against Canada with an impressive first Heineken Cup campaign. The highlight of his Pontypridd career was in 2001-2 season which saw this promising young team deliver by winning the Principality Cup and reaching the final of the European Challenge Cup. As well as the triumph that goes hand-in-hand with great sporting achievement, Michael has also been through his fair share of lows. Following his first cap, his first child was born seriously ill and the new father was forced to choose between his career and his family. Not long after this trauma, the national side were dubbed the worst Welsh team in history. This fascinating sporting biography takes an in-depth look at these peaks and troughs, as well as giving the lowdown on the tumultuous Lions tour of New Zealand, the rifts within the Welsh rugby camp and how Michael coped with having his dream career brought to an end by injury. This book is a must-read for any rugby or sports fan.

Bristol Football Club (RFU), to give it its original title, is one of the most famous Rugby Union teams in England. The club's heritage and traditions are an important aspect of one of Britain's leading cities. This is the first of two volumes illustrating the history of the club with over 200 images, including action shots, team groups, programme covers, cartoons and other items of memorabilia. Compiled by Dave Fox and Mark Hoskins, rugby historians and memorabilia enthusiasts of note, this book traces the evolution from the rabble that the merged Carlton and Redland Park teams produced in 1888 to a side brimming with international players and sporting celebrities fifty years later. The names of Sam Tucker and Len Corbett are etched in the history of this great sport not only in Bristol and England but around the world. Tucker, the tough hooker known affectionately as 'Our Sam', and the elegant Corbett played for Bristol at the same time and both captained England between the wars. The selection covers the time when the club were tenants of Gloucestershire County Cricket Club and includes the move to their spiritual home on Buffalo Bill's field, later christened the Memorial Ground and dedicated to the rugby players of Bristol who fell in the First World War. This fascinating book is an essential read for those interested in the trials and tribulations of sport, its heroes, the ethos of rugby and the city of Bristol.

The story of the Springboks 2019 Rugby World Cup victory is one of the most inspiring in South African sporting history.

It is about how two men – coach Rassie Erasmus and captain Siya Kolisi – led a team of warriors into battle and conquered the world when inequality and division are still undeniable realities in South African society. When the Boks won the 2007 World Cup final, they did so with 20 white players in their match-day squad of 22.

In 2019, there were five black Africans in their starting line-up for the Yokohama final and the images of Kolisi lifting the Webb Ellis Cup will be replayed forever.

None of this seemed possible just two years ago when the Boks had reached an all-time low. They had slipped to No 7 in the world and had lost the faith of the rugby-loving public. Erasmus came in with just 18 months to prepare for the competition.

Sports writer Lloyd Burnard takes the reader on a thrilling journey from the time when no-one gave the Boks a chance of winning, to the delirious victory tour. He covers the key roles played by Erasmus and Kolisi, and their special relationship. There are ups and downs en route to victory: the first signs of self-belief when they beat the All Blacks in Wellington, Kolisi’s injury, the fall of Aphiwe Dyantyi when he was caught with banned substances in his system, and the Langebaan incident involving Eben Etzebeth that threatened to derail the team.