“Your mum’s a f***ing whore.” Joe Marler has been issued with a ban after video evidence shows that he twice called Jake Heenan’s mother a “whore” during the Harlequins’ game against Bristol Bears. The footage from the rugby match is conclusive and Heenan admits that he “lost his head” upon hearing the remark for a […]

3 years ago

The England loosehead has previous in the ‘banter’ department. Harlequins and England prop Joe Marler has offered Jake Heenan an apology after a comment directed at the Bristol back-row sparked a brawl in Tuesday’s Premiership encounter. Bristol Bears pulled off a superb, gritty win over Harlequins, the 2020/21 Premiership champions, at The Stoop to climb […]

3 years ago

“It’s possible. Difficult, but possible.” During a trip to the Bristol Bears’ High Performance Centre, earlier this month, the Pat Lam effect was clear and present. Everywhere you look around the HPC, there are inspirational comments writ large on walls, in the gym, meeting and analysis rooms, treatment areas, hallways and stairwells. While such phrases […]

3 years ago

“I’ll come back and get him. Wherever I am, I’ll come get him.” Back in 2016, as Connacht were on their way to a memorable PRO12 league triumph, Pat Lam spoke of the promise he made to AJ MacGinty. The Dubliner had made a name for himself, in his early 20s, with New York Athletic […]

3 years ago

“Hello, Bristol Bears! How can I help you?” It is just after 1pm on team photo-shoot day, at Bristol Bears, and the senior squad are in a giddy mood. Callum Sheedy and AJ MacGinty share a joke while Pat Lam directs operations and gets his squad organised far quicker than the photographer could have hoped. […]

3 years ago

“I’m looking forward to getting right in amongst it and intimate in the best kind of way, canny foxes!” We all know how the usual pre-match interviews go in sport. Whereas a post-match chat can feature some real insight and brilliant sound-bites as players and managers react to the previous hour and half, the pre-match […]

5 years ago