Here are your rugby evening headlines for Tuesday, 22 January.
England coming after Wales
England have vowed to "go after Wales" at Twickenham, insisting the game is like a knockout World Cup fixture.
Both sides need to win to have a chance of lifting the Six Nations title after a defeat and victory in their opening two matches.
And attack coach Martin Gleeson has warned Wales that England will be putting it all on the line with an attacking game plan.
“It’s a massive game for us. We are treating it like a quarter-final," he said.
"It's a knockout stage for us. We are going after Wales this week. If we don’t get the result, we are out.
“We are going out there with an attacking plan."
England confirmed they have no injury worries, with Manu Tuilagi looking likely to be involved.
Dombrandt braced for 'great test' against Faletau
England No. 8 Alex Dombrandt has admitted it would be a 'great test' to go up against Taulupe Faletau in the Six Nations this weekend.
Wales have been boosted by the return of the three-time Lions tourist - although it is unclear whether the 31-year-old will feature after a long injury layoff.
Regardless, Dombrandt is more than aware of the threat posed by Faletau.
“Taulupe Faletau is obviously a great player who has played loads of games for Wales," said the Harlequins star.
"If selected, it would be a great test for me to go up against him, for sure. He is one of those No 8s that’s got a great all-court game.
"He’s good in defence and very good in attack. I have watched him play a lot of games and picked up a few things from him. He is a great player."
Smith 'fantastic kid to be around': Jenkins
Wales assistant coach Neil Jenkins was full of praise for England fly-half Marcus Smith ahead of the two sides meeting this weekend.
Jenkins worked with Smith, along with England's injured captain and usual fly-half Owen Farrell, on the Lions tour of South Africa last year.
And while the former Wales fly-half wouldn't exactly be drawn on comparisons between the two, he was full of praise for the young Harlequins star who will wear the 10 jersey this week.
"They're just different players," said Jenkins.
"Owen's a fantastic player, he's been a world class player for such a long time.
"His defensive efforts are huge, his chat, his communication, his kicking is world class. He brings a lot of experience to England when he's there.
"Marcus is obviously a young talent starting off in Test match rugby. There is a difference in that but Marcus seems like he's been playing the game an awful long time and at the highest level.
"He certainly doesn't lack confidence but he backs that up with talent. He's very grounded. He's a fantastic kid to be around and so is Owen.
"It was a pleasure to be involved with them on the Lions and I look forward to going against him on Saturday."
Ioan Lloyd primed for new position
Ioan Lloyd may be forced into covering yet another position this weekend, with Bristol Bears only boasting one fit scrum-half in their squad.
Theo Strang is their only remaining specialist scrum-half with Toby Venner needing surgery for an ACL and Max Green suffering a fresh injury.
As such, Wales international Lloyd, who has covered a host of positions around the backline, could be called on to do a job at scrum-half against Wasps this weekend.
"He's done his ACL, there's some damage on his knee," Lam said when asked about Venner. "It's a significant injury. We started off after our Scarlets game: first week, Harry Randall goes to England for a couple of months for the Six Nations which is awesome and he's doing really well.
"The second week then was followed by Andy Uren out for 12 weeks. The third week then after that was followed by Tom Whiteley out for the season; the fourth week is now Toby Venner, who we brought in as a replacement.
"Then we have Max Green, who trained really well yesterday, and we were just talking about the quality of the player, but at the end he complained about his wrist so he's gone for a scan and we're waiting news on that.
"You expect injuries but you certainly don't expect them in the same position, but that's just the challenge we have to face.
"We finished the game with Ioan having to go into nine for 12 minutes and he did a reasonable job. The way it looks at the moment with a short turnaround to Friday is that he'll probably have cover nine again this week.
"I'm used to this number of injuries but it's usually spread out over a season and spread out across positions. To get hit in three key positions (scrum-half, full-back and tighthead) at the same time is probably the biggest challenge that we face but that's what challenges are for."
It's unlikely Lloyd would cover the position from the bench, with his presence likely needed at fly-half with Callum Sheedy away with Wales.
Former Wales captain Jones collects MBE
Former Wales captain Ryan Jones has collected his MBE.
Jones, 40, is rewarded for services to rugby union and charitable fundraising in Wales.
"I was overwhelmed and emotional and it has come out of the blue. It is a wonderful accolade and something I hold in such high esteem," said Jones.
Newcastle Falcons boss Richards charged with misconduct
Newcastle Falcons director of rugby Dean Richards has been charged with misconduct after criticising the referee after their loss to Exeter on Sunday.
Newcastle back-row Callum Chick was sent off for a high tackle on full-back Josh Hodge, which saw his shoulder connect with Hodge's head.
The tackle was reviewed by referee Christophe Ridley on-field, in tandem with the TMO.
Afterwards, Richards said the officials had made a "quick decision" rather than a "correct decision".
The RFU felt Richards' behaviour was conduct "prejudicial to the interests of the union and the game" and he must attend an independent disciplinary panel on Wednesday.
In a statement, an RFU spokesperson said the comments "undermined the authority and questioned the integrity of the match official".
To get the latest rugby news and analysis delivered straight to your inbox, you can sign up for our Welsh rugby newsletter.
