Here are the latest rugby headlines on Wednesday, December 28.
Booth shrugs off referee criticism
Ospreys coach Toby Booth says he agreed with referee Craig Evans' decisions during the Boxing Day derby against the Scarlets.
Scarlets lock Tomas Lezana was sent off in the fifth minute of the festive derby for a dangerous tackle on Ospreys lock Rhys Davies, while later in the first half, Ospreys fly-half Owen Williams was shown a yellow card for a challenge on opposite number Sam Costelow. Both tackles saw players make head-on-head contact, although the punishments handed out by Evans were different. As such, Scarlets coach Dwayne Peel called for consistency post-match, but Booth said he agreed with the reasoning behind Evans' two calls.
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"I agree with the referee," said the Ospreys coach. "By the letter of the law it's about force. One has got force in it, one hasn't. We understand that.
"The referee as he talks about mitigation is quite clear. Whether that's the right process to go through is a different conversation, but he follows the process he's been given, he follows that and comes to that outcome. Whether we agree with them or not is actually irrelevant. That's the outcome he's given."
Five Wales players among UK top 30
Five Wales internationals have been named among the UK's top 30 male rugby players, as decided by Telegraph Sport, with Gloucester wing Louis Rees-Zammit nabbing a spot in the top 10.
Based on their performances and achievements this season, Rees-Zammit is the highest-ranking Wales player with Will Rowlands, Nick Tompkins, Jac Morgan and Tommy Reffell all making the shortlist too.
The lightning-quick wing, described as "worth every penny if you buy a ticket to see him," came in at 10th, with "one of the finds of the Pivac era" Will Rowlands at 17th, and Nick Tompkins at 18th. English Premiership winner Reffell, a key cog in Leicester's title bid, is dubbed "the star of Wales' summer", and new back-row option Jac Morgan is backed to start in the Six Nations after breaking through this year.
Baxter unhappy with law tweaks
Exeter Chiefs boss Rob Baxter believes World Rugby's continuous tinkering of its rules is "madness" ahead of new law directives being enforced to speed up the game.
The law applications, including having a shotclock for goalkicking, reduced reliance on the TMO and sanctions for time-wasting during scrums and lineouts, will be in force across the game from January 1, with World Rugby saying they are "designed to support a quicker, more entertaining game while balancing safety and spectacle". You can read about all the changes here.
Baxter, who is preparing Exeter for their grudge match against Saracens on New Year’s Eve (after which the directives come into effect), said: "We’re making it impossible to attract supporters because they don’t know what game they’re going to watch. We’ve got to decide on something and settle on it for longer periods than we do. And we need to spend longer considering any law changes.
“A lot of times we’re having to change law variations back because six months later they realise we should never have done them. Or they try and tinker with something else. A lot more thought and time needs to go into the changes. It’s almost become part of rugby now that things have to change during the season. It just seems madness to me and we’ve got to get out of it.”
Redpath extends deal with Bath
Cameron Redpath will play alongside Scotland team-mate Finn Russell at Bath next season after agreeing a contract extension.
Redpath has put an injury-hit 2021-22 season behind him to become a mainstay of Johann van Graan's backline, forming a centre partnership with Ollie Lawrence. The 23-year-old will be joined at the Recreation Ground by Russell, who has signed a contract with Bath for the 2023-24 campaign.
"After a difficult couple of years with injury, Cam has shown how exciting a talent he is this season," head of rugby Van Graan said. "He is fast establishing himself as an international standard centre with Scotland and is a key part of our midfield at Bath. He is always looking to better himself and we are delighted he will continue his progression with us."
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