What did this tell us about Scotland? It screamed that, physically, they can be ferocious. Not in the scrum and certainly not when the bench has to be called upon, but around the field. Scotland have major problems in front-row back-up, but that’s hardly news.
The game showed the excellent Tom Jordan is a massive addition to the mix in any number of positions and that Max Williamson is made for Test rugby.
Williamson is the hulking lock that Scotland need. He can hit and play. He turned over Siya Kolisi at one point. He drove into the guts of the Boks a number of times. He has power and youth. At 22, he’s excitement on legs.
He was injured for this one, but Gregor Brown is another of Scotland’s coming force. By the end of the autumn, head coach Gregor Townsend is going to have more live contenders for a Six Nations 23 than he had going into the autumn.
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Jamie Dobie is another. Kyle Steyn, Kyle Rowe and Darcy Graham will be back. Euan Ferrie is one to watch. There are positives in lots of places. The autumn will be a success if they can go experimental in a victory over Portugal next weekend and then see off an apparently resurgent Australia the week after.
The problem here was one of execution. The Boks were ruthless and Scotland were not. Strip away everything else and that was it in a nutshell.
There’s a wider theme around the Scottish attack. Think of the kind of tries they tend to score. In the first match of the Six Nations, Pierre Schoeman blasted over for the opening try after Scotland stressed the Welsh defence for 13 phases. That type of try is not all that common for Townsend’s team.
Usually, it’s a one or two-phase wonder score, like Duhan van der Merwe’s second in Cardiff, like Ben White’s try against France and like Van der Merwe’s hat-trick against England. When they come off, inspired by the excellence of Finn Russell or Huw Jones, they are stunning. Against the best defences in the world, those incredible scores are harder to come by. You need more weapons.
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Townsend and his coaches need to have a serious look at the way they play in the opposition red zone against the elite. Sensational work putting them in position, but why did so many outstanding opportunities go begging against the Boks?
Great defence, sure. Cynical defence, very possibly. But what else? What can they learn about the way they attack when they have an opponent in trouble close to their own line? How do they turn the screw through dynamic phase play rather than banking on individual moments of brilliance? As good as much of Sunday was, their inability to convert was painful.
That’s no tries in two Tests against the Boks. In the Six Nations they got one against France and one against Ireland and failed to score a point against Ireland in Paris in the World Cup until the game was long done at 36-0.
Scotland play a brand of attacking rugby that can warm the heart, but cold-bloodedness is required, too. They are the great entertainers when they really need to be the great executioners.
But rather than schedule a unification title bout, Jones was rebooked against 42-year-old Miocic.
Jones said he will not fight Aspinall because “it does nothing for my legacy”, before using an expletive to describe him.
Aspinall, the back-up fighter to the main event, has poked fun at Jones in an attempt to lure him into an undisputed fight, buying his dog a toy rubber duck after fans claimed Jones was “ducking” him.
Aspinall then shared a post on social media of him wearing a T-shirt which says “Hello Jon”, and “I have nothing against you personally, I just think I’m better than ya”.
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While Jones smiled on stage and joked with a vocal crowd, the endless talk of Aspinall has irked the two-weight UFC champion.
He walked out of an interview with TNT Sports before it began, concerned he would have to field more questions about Aspinall with the British broadcaster.
Jones, the youngest UFC champion in the company’s history, was hailed on stage as the greatest ever by White.
He has just one loss on his record, a 2009 disqualification defeat by Matt Hamill.
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“As long as this guy is active he’s the best,” White said.
Miocic, meanwhile, mostly kept his answers short.
The Ohio fighter is a two-time heavyweight champion, widely regarded as the greatest heavyweight in UFC history, but is a big underdog in his contest with Jones.
He has not fought since defeat by Francis Ngannou in 2021, but victory over Jones would mean he becomes the promotion’s first three-time heavyweight champion.
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After Jones took issue with language he used in an interview, saying “respect was out of the window”, Miocic dismissed his opponent’s complaints.
“[Jones] was calling me out saying he was going to beat my ass in front of a whole arena. Sorry for defending myself,” Miocic said.
The face-off passed without major incident, although Jones refused the offer of a handshake from Miocic.
NEW YORK – Jon Jones’ demeanor toward Stipe Miocic has taken a turn during UFC 309 fight week, and with the fight more than 48 hours away, it’s clear things have gotten personal.
Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) returns from a more than 20-month layoff Saturday when he puts his heavyweight title on the line for the first time against former two-time champion Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) in the main event at Madison Square Garden (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPNews, ESPN+)
After initially displaying respect toward Miocic in the months leading up to this week, reigning champ Jones said he got riled up when Miocic called him a “b*tch” – “bring it on, b*tch” were his exact words – on the UFC 309 “Countdown” show. Jones also claims Miocic said he was a poor example for his children given his history of personal missteps, and now Jones’ attitude has changed.
“Everyone likes first responders, and I actually respect men and women in the armed forces and law enforcement, things like that, so I made it a point to try to be very respectful to him,” Jones told MMA Junkie and other reporters at the UFC 309 press conference. “There’s been two scenarios now. First scenario, he said ‘my kids will never look at me like I’m an a**hole.’ That was a direct attack at me and my family and my relationship with my kids. Second attack was him calling me a b*tch. So the respect is a little bit out the window, and we’ll see that on Saturday.”
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When asked outright how things have changed, Jones said, “It’s very personal to me, yes.”
Miocic appeared dumbfounded by Jones’ comments. He said with Jones claiming he would defeat him in front of a sold-out crowd in New York and in front of the world, he told him “bring it on, b*tch.” How that made things so personal is lost on Miocic, but it also doesn’t matter to him.
“I don’t even remember saying that, ‘My kids won’t look at me like an asshole,’” Miocic said. “That was no direct thing to him. And when I said ‘bring it on, b*tch,’ pretty much he was calling me out, telling me he was gonna beat my ass in front of a whole arena of people. So, sorry for defending myself. I apologize. …
“I think every fight is personal no matter what. You’re fighting another man in the octagon. It’s always personal.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
Nick Wright previews the Buffalo Bills-Kansas City Chiefs showdown, in which Nick’s squad is (+2.5) underdogs on the road despite entering Week 11 without a loss since Christmas Day. Watch as he explains why it is “absurd” to bet against Patrick Mahomes in this situation against Josh Allen and Bills Mafia.
A third added: “Lee Carsley is a genius isn’t he? Who needs Thomas Tuchel?”
A fourth joked: “Who needs Tuchel?”
Thomas Tuchel gives his first message to fans as England manager
A fifth quipped: “Enjoying watching England tonight. Tuchel out.”
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A sixth tweeted: “England with good patterns of play and attractive football. Yes defensively not well but if the football is this good who cares? Tuchel will be such a bad appointment.”
A seventh blasted: “FA totally bottled it with Carsley. Taking England in the right direction.”
And a final user simply typed: “Tuchel out!!”
England’s starting XI featured senior heads in Jordan Pickford, Jude Bellingham and stand-in skipper Kyle Walker – with Harry Kane surprisingly benched.
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The remaining eight had just 78 caps between them.
England weathered the Greece storm and got the all-important second goal when Bellingham’s shot came back off the post and bounced in off the hosts’ goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos.
Curtis Jones rounded off his superb debut with a delicious, cheeky flick as England leapfrogged Greece at the top of their Nations League group ahead of the final fixture against the Irish at Wembley on Sunday.
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After his penultimate game in interim charge, Carsley said: “The most pleasing thing was the amount of control we had. We had a lot of possession and created a lot of chances.
“It was brilliant for Ollie to get a goal. It’s important that if we want to put these players in a position to win the World Cup, they need to have as many experiences as they can, so it’s no slight on Harry. He’ll start the next game.
“Harry understands that it’s important that other players experience that kind of experience we had tonight. He’s a great example to the rest of the players. I expect him to start on Sunday and play well.
“Curtis was outstanding, played with quality and a matureness that we saw in the summer (at the Under-21 Euros). He showed he can adapt and he’s intelligent enough to know where the space is.”
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Curtis Jones’ sumptuous flick rounded off the 3-0 winCredit: Getty
ANDY DILLON: Thomas Tuchel has all the ingredients to become a classic England manager – tactical nous, drive and a tangled love life
By Andy Dillon
THOMAS TUCHEL possesses all the ingredients to become a classic England manager.
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Tactical nous, drive, energy, experience – a tangled love life.
English football should welcome back the most explosive, dynamic, charismatic and impossibly tall and gangly coach to have lit up the Premier League.
Chelsea’s colourful former boss has been leading a settled life in Munich of late.
Far enough away from ex-wife Sissi but close enough to see his two daughters.
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Walking his dog in the streets in the east of Germany’s most fashionable city, residing in the posh Bogenhausen area. Living relatively quietly with his Brazilian girlfriend.
Tuchel is a vastly different personality to the man who led England quietly but assuredly to the brink of World Cups and European Championships.
An excitable nature can make him hard to handle for those seeking calm and who like to impose their way on a manager they view very much as an underling.
Jon Jones dropped whatever respect he was showing towards Stipe Miocic during an icy faceoff following the UFC 309 pre-fight press conference on Thursday.
As the fighters came together on the stage, Miocic had his hand outstretched but Jones ignored him before they came nose-to-nose with UFC CEO Dana White keeping the peace between them. Jones stared down Miocic and he could be heard saying “don’t mention my kids again.”
Miocic’s response was inaudible, but he didn’t seem all that bothered by the incident as they broke apart and stood forward for a few more seconds before leaving the stage.
The dramatic shift between the main event fighters happened after Jones took offense to a couple of things that he claims Miocic said about him in the days leading up to the fight. After previously taking aim at Miocic for calling him “bitch” during UFC Countdown, Jones then revealed another comment that he believes was a direct shot at him and his family.
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“Everyone likes first responders and I actually respect men and women in the armed forces and law enforcement and things like that so I made it a point to try and be very respectful to him,” Jones said. “There’s been two scenarios now.
“First scenario he said ‘my kids will never look at me like I’m an assh*le.’ That was a direct attack to me and my family and my relationship with my kids. The second attack was him calling me a bitch. So the respect is a little bit out the window and we’ll see that on Saturday.”
When asked if his approach to the fight has changed after what Miocic said, Jones said emphatically “it’s very personal to me, yes.”
In response, Miocic more or less shrugged his shoulders at Jones getting so upset by what he said, especially considering he doesn’t even remember saying it.
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“I don’t even remember saying that ‘my kids will never look at me like I’m an assh*le.’ That was no direct thing to him,” Miocic said.
“When I said bring it on, bitch, he was pretty much calling me out, telling me he was going to beat my ass in front of a whole arena of people. Sorry for defending myself, I apologize.”
Jones and Miocic will face off one final time on Friday at the ceremonial weigh-ins and then meet in the octagon in the UFC 309 main event where they look to settle their beef with the heavyweight title going up for grabs.
Trent Alexander-Arnold continues to reject contract offers from Liverpool, West Ham stand firm on Mohammed Kudus’ £85m release clause, Xabi Alonso set to leave Bayer Leverkusen in the summer.
Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold continues to reject offers to renew his contract at Anfield as Real Madrid press on with negotiations to sign the 26-year-old when his current deal expires next summer. (Relevo – in Spanish), external
West Ham are expected to stand firm on Ghana attacking midfielder Mohammed Kudus’ £85m release clause with Arsenal and Liverpool both monitoring the 24-year-old. (Mail – subscription required), external
Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso will leave the Bundesliga club at the end of the season despite signing a contract until 2026, with Real Madrid set to be his next destination. (Eurosport Spain – in Spanish), external
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Barcelona are interested in Wolves’ Spanish left-back Hugo Bueno, 22, who is currently on loan at Dutch side Feyenoord. (Sport – in Spanish), external
Real Madrid have made a first enquiry into signing Bayer Leverkusen’s German international centre-back Jonathan Tah. Barcelona, Bayern Munich and clubs from the Premier League are all said to be tracking the defender, whose contract with Leverkusen expires at the end of the season. (AS – in Spanish, external)
Nottingham Forest are under no pressure to sell Brazilian 22-year-old centre-back Murillo in January after interest from Real Madrid. The defender is valued at £40m. (Daily Mail, external)
Manchester United and Liverpool are keeping tabs on Fulham left-back Antonee Robinson, 27, after his fine start to the season. The London club are said to be reluctant to let the American leave during the season, ruling out a possible January move. (Football Insider, external)
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