Phew! That was exhilarating
1 April 6 Nations: Ireland 3 France 53; Scotland 22 Wales 34
1 April Super W R2: Reds 29 Western Force 14; Brumbies 13 Waratahs 24; Drua 39 Rebels 12
1 April Spain 20 South Africa 35; Canada 50 USA 17 (both in Madrid)
1 April Japan (JRU) announces launch of Women’s Rugby Mid-to-Long-Term Strategic Plan
2 April 6 Nations: England 68 Italy 5
2 April New Zealand win the men’s and women’s Hong Kong 7s; 1st time women take the stage in 46 years
2 April Marlie Packer is top try-scorer for England forwards (37), overtaking Gill Burns
3 April World rankings: Scotland down to 11th, Japan up to 10th, their highest; Spain drop to 12th; South Africa remain 13th
4 April Over 8,000 tickets sold for Wales v England, way beyond previous record, 4,962 for the previous week’s Ireland game; ‘Sold out’
5 April Annaëlle Deshayes (France) gets 6-week ban for her red card, reduced to 3
5 April With Nigel Walker becoming WRU’s interim chief executive in January 2023, Huw Bevan takes over as interim performance director
5 April NZR announces a 10-year strategy to advance women’s rugby across all sectors
5 April USA 7s qualify for the 2024 Olympics
6 April Sarah Hirini signs for Pearls Rugby, Japan
7 April Italy: 26 players chosen for Round 3 of 6N v ireland
7-15 April Under 18 Six Nations Festival at Wellington College, Berks; 3 match days, 7th, 11th, 15th
7 April SRU publishes reactions to findings of independent review into allegations made against it
8 April England U20 17 France U20 35 (Wellington College)
8-9 April Singapore 7s is men only
10 April Wales win World Deaf Rugby 7s in Argentina
11 April U18 Six Nations Festival 2nd round; wins for England, France, Ireland and Italy
11 April Tickets now on sale for Premier Rugby Sevens in USA; start 6 June
12 April WR officials reported to be considering introduction of orange cards to men’s RWC 2024 to allow borderline decisions to be reviewed by TMOs; outcomes either return to field or red card
12 April Simon Middleton suggests amending conversion-kick laws, to end the inbuilt disadvantages suffered by female players; contrary views expressed
13 April Three men appointed as NZ assistant coaches; no women; Jenelle Strickland allowed to become Team Manager
13 April Scotland to implement new lower tackle height (below sternum) law trial across the community rugby next season
13 April John Jeffrey (Scotland) elected vice chair of World Rugby; to be ratified on 11 May
13 April Spain appoint Ignacio ‘Iggy’ Martín new 7s coach
13 April Fiona Tomas’ piece in the Daily Telegraph alleging sexist remarks from an IRFU board member creates a storm
13 April Greg McWilliams rejects the above claims; the IRFU stays silent
14 April WRU hunts for ‘missing’ 150 ex-internationals (1987-), to present them with caps
15 April France U20 40 England 31 at Tours
15 April Six Nations U18s: France 57 England 10; Ireland 17 Wales 19; Italy 19 Scotland 15; France win Grand Slam
15 April Super W, Round 4; Brumbies v Rebels; Waratahs v Reds; Force v Fijiana Drua
15 April Portugal beat Germany 20-5 to gain promotion to Rugby Europe Championship
15 April 6N: Wales 3 England 59; Italy 24 Ireland 7
15 April Stephen Jones (The Times) calls for a Welsh side to be admitted to the AP 15s in England
16 April France 55 Scotland 0
16 April Women’s club rugby finals in France to be held at the Sainte Germaine du Bouscat Stadium Bordeaux 10 June; at seven different levels
17 April NZR announces names of 34 contracted players
17 April World Rugby to trial new system for yellow cards
17 April Bryony Cleall and Jo Brown elected Chair and Vice-Chair of the WRA Player Board
17 April Wallaoos to play 5 tests between May and July against Canada, Fiji, USA and NZ (twice)
18 April NZR announces Farah Palmer Cup draw, to start 15 July
18 April Tickets for England-France now top 50,000
18 April Rugby Canada organises regional competitions to help define a national and an U23 squad; to take place April-June
19 April Abby Dow is voted TikTok Women’s Six Nations Player of Round 3, repeat of Round 2
19 April Thelma O’Driscoll to be Chief Financial Officer of the IRFU, w.e.f. 1 September 2023
19 April Only one woman applied for a coaching role with the Black Ferns; the selectors went for experience
20-22 April World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series 2023, Stellenbosch; ditto 28-30 April
21 April Slight changes (improvements) to the workings of WXV
22 April World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series semi-finalists: South Africa v China; Belgium v Poland
22 April Super W Round Five
22 April 6N: Ireland 0 England 48; Scotland 29 Italy 21
22 April USA Women’s Premier League – Round 2
22 April South Africa win the World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series
23 April 6N: France 48 Wales 14
23 April England and France quality for WXV Tier 1
25 April World Rugby launches Accelerate to fast-track the development of women’s rugby towards RWC 2025
27 April NZR reports a loss of $47,461,000
27 April Maple Leafs to play Black Ferns in Ottawa on 8 July
27 April RFU decides on sternum as new tackle height in community rugby (see 13 April above)
28 April A brand-new Six Nations Trophy will be presented at Twickenham tomorrow
28 April Gill Burns unveils the first women’s honours board at Twickenham Stadium; 248 names
28 April Over 2 million viewers watched France TV for the match v Wales, a new world record
29 April 6N Super Saturday: England 38 France 33; Italy 10 Wales 36; Scotland 36 Ireland 10
29 April England coaches, Simon Middleton and Scott Bemand, retire after eight years’ service
30 April Super W semi-finals: Waratahs 17 Fijiana Drua 20; Reds 23 Brumbies 20 (Concord Oval, Sydney)
30 April South Africa win the 7s Challenger Series, are promoted to the HSBC World Series
