Scrumbag

Six Nations hero Mike Phillips out for the long haul with niggling knee knack...

Ospreys scrumhalf Mike Phillips was piggin' splendid in the Six Nations as he helped both his club and country win the Grand Slam. For my money he was without doubt one of the players of the tournament. Bad news then for Wales and 'spreys fans, as Phillips knee is buggered. He messed it to shreds during Ospreys' EDF Energy Cup mauling of Saracens last weekend.

"After his operation he'll be looking at a six month rehabilitation period, which means that hopefully we'll be seeing him back in action by October," Ospreys physiotherapist Chris Towers told the offical Osprey website.

There's all kinds of damage to the ligaments in his right knee, he's going to need (kneed?) a truck load of surgery and won't be returning for at very very least six months.

Tigers to play Ospreys in Anglo-Welsh final

Saturday's semi-final doubleheader has provided a star-studded EDF Cup finale.  On the English side of things, Leicester Tigers recorded an ultimately comfortable 29-19 win over champions-turned-strugglers Sale, while the all-Welsh semi-final between the Ospreys and Cardiff Blues was won by the Neath-Swansea men.

In both cases, fly-halves made the difference, with a personal haul of 13 points for Andy Goode (on as a replacement) steering Leicester past their vanquisher from last season's Premiership final.  Welsh international James Hook, meanwhile, put 17 points on the board for the Ospreys, thus accounting for the full margin between the sides.  Lee Byrne won the Man of the Match award,  scoring a try to add to that scored earlier by Sonny Parker.

Anglo-Welsh Final For Anglo-Welsh Cup

The semi-final draw for the EDF Energy Anglo-Welsh Cup was made today, with the upshot being one all-Welsh semi-final and one all-English affair.  With the Cardiff Blues and Neath-Swansea Ospreys being paired together, one Welsh team is guaranteed to make the final, and will play against an English team in the shape of either Leicester Tigers or Sale Sharks.

Both semi-finals will be played at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, where Leicester have already beaten Cardiff this season in the Heineken Cup.  It's hard to pick a winner in either game, although in the most recent meetings of the clubs, the Ospreys triumphed 18-16 over the Blues, while Leicester opened this season's Guinness Premiership programme by putting Sale to the sword 35-23.  March 24th is the date for a double-header, which will be covered live on the BBC.

Cardiff Blues vs London Wasps

Goodbye Powergen Cup, hello EDF Energy Cup.  For brevity's sake, it'll be the Anglo-Welsh Cup to me for the season.  And it pits the best of the English against the best of the Welsh, as that title would suggest.  Tomorrow's big game, available even to those without satellite broadband digital caffeine-free low-carb bluetooth technology, pits the holders Wasps against Cardiff.  The teams are much as you would expect, with Josh Lewsey at full-back for Wasps, who are still missing Lawrence Dallaglio, Jonny O'Connor, Phil Vickery and Mark van Gisbergen.  Last weekend's defeat against Bristol was their first of the season, but any hint of complacency could see that lonely defeat with a new brother.

The Blues line up without captain Xavier Rush, but still with a pretty strong XV which includes Tom Shanklin, recovered in time from an ankle knock.  Will Ian McGeechan's men be lifting a second consecutive Anglo-Welsh Cup next spring?  Tomorrow is when we start finding out.

Anglo-Welsh Final For Anglo-Welsh Cup

The semi-final draw for the EDF Energy Anglo-Welsh Cup was made today, with the upshot being one all-Welsh semi-final and one all-English affair.  With the Cardiff Blues and Neath-Swansea Ospreys being paired together, one Welsh team is guaranteed to make the final, and will play against an English team in the shape of either Leicester Tigers or Sale Sharks.

Both semi-finals will be played at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, where Leicester have already beaten Cardiff this season in the Heineken Cup.  It's hard to pick a winner in either game, although in the most recent meetings of the clubs, the Ospreys triumphed 18-16 over the Blues, while Leicester opened this season's Guinness Premiership programme by putting Sale to the sword 35-23.  March 24th is the date for a double-header, which will be covered live on the BBC.

Cardiff Blues vs London Wasps

Goodbye Powergen Cup, hello EDF Energy Cup.  For brevity's sake, it'll be the Anglo-Welsh Cup to me for the season.  And it pits the best of the English against the best of the Welsh, as that title would suggest.  Tomorrow's big game, available even to those without satellite broadband digital caffeine-free low-carb bluetooth technology, pits the holders Wasps against Cardiff.  The teams are much as you would expect, with Josh Lewsey at full-back for Wasps, who are still missing Lawrence Dallaglio, Jonny O'Connor, Phil Vickery and Mark van Gisbergen.  Last weekend's defeat against Bristol was their first of the season, but any hint of complacency could see that lonely defeat with a new brother.

The Blues line up without captain Xavier Rush, but still with a pretty strong XV which includes Tom Shanklin, recovered in time from an ankle knock.  Will Ian McGeechan's men be lifting a second consecutive Anglo-Welsh Cup next spring?  Tomorrow is when we start finding out.