This issue mails out from 14th December 2023.

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Inside

EXCLUSIVE ROB BAXTER
The Exeter Chiefs DoR looks back on fifty years at Exeter rugby, how he built a double-winning side, and why he’s determined to do it again.
“The reality is, as every guy came off contract, we had to fit them in the £5m cap, there was no way they could stay on anything like a similar wage under the new cap.”

ENGLAND UNDER-18s
After a tough few years, England’s age grade are back on the rise. We went into camp to find how they’ve turned the corner.
“Conor is not saying to me: ‘John, there has to be two players from your England Under-18s every single year that goes on and wins thirty-plus caps’.”

BRAZIL
From Prince Obolensky and the Lions to Scott Robinson and the Crusaders, many have tried to boost Brazilian rugby, but now it’s on the rise.
“Overseas coaches began to fly in too, including the now All Blacks coach Scott Robertson who arrived to coach Brazil in 2012 as part of a partnership with the confederation.”

DAVID CAMPESE
The Wallaby legend takes us back to his debut and then through an illustrious World Cup-winning career at the expense of England.
“I played the odds and I simply knocked the ball forward deliberately to kill the move. Call it whatever you want, but I call it the difference between a silver medal and a gold medal.”

LEICESTER TIGERS WOMEN
How Lichfield, a famed name in women’s rugby, became a key component of Leicester Tigers arrival at the very top of the English game.
“The big thing for me is hearing Smoke on the Water and then going down those iconic stairs onto the pitch. It just feels crazy to be able to wear that badge.”

MIKE TADJER
Portugal’s French-born hooker Mike Tadjer became an instant hero due to his World Cup heroics. We met with the man himself to look at the impact.
“After we beat Fiji we started to see the stories about our journey – nobody had realised we could win against the bigger teams –  we saw our rugby achievements being published next to the headlines of Cristiano, Pepe and Figo.”

PAULA GEORGE
Suffering brutal racism as a child, Paula George found her way out through rugby, captaining her country, but faced an bigger challenge later – cancer.
“Growing up in Wales, the word nigger was really common. The boys would go around making monkey noises. It was just toxic, why do they think I’m not good enough?”

ROSSLYN PARK
Professionalism took its toll on the former club of Prince Obolensky, and it was only saved when an unknown benefactor walked through the clubhouse doors.
“No one had every heard of him. He just walked in the office one day and said, ‘my grandfather used to play here, I’d like to help you’ ... Simon’s cheque book and Chris Ritchie’s contact book got us out of the shit, really.”

RICH LANE
The Bedford favourite-turned-landscape gardener is now pulling up roots with Bristol, as an unlikely replacement for Charles Piutau.
“I had two days off after finishing my school career, and then I was into Bath: in at Farleigh House, avoiding eye contact with enforcers like David Flatman and Duncan Bell.”

MO HUNT
Now back full-time in the England set-up, it’s been a rollercoaster twelve months for Mo Hunt, as she opens up about being dropped and the route back to the top.
“The first night I found out, I didn’t go to bed because I didn’t want to have to wake up and face it all again, which I know sounds ridiculous”

GRAHAM SMITH
A story that takes in abattoirs, bailiffs, dole queues, and now Estonia, the World Cup-winning coach’s life has been anything but dull.
“How can I put it? In the modern world, it would be seen as a lot of bullying. In my world, it was character building. You’ve got a lot of big men with sharp knives.”