Here are your rugby evening headlines for Wednesday, June 3.
Welsh rugby player punches committee member unconscious
A Welsh rugby player punched a stalwart committee member unconscious in a clubhouse, a court has heard.
Nathan Davies, 31, carried out the attack on Gareth Jenkins in July last year, causing the victim to fall to the floor and fracture his ankle.
Davies, of Cefn Yr Allt, Aberdualis, Neath Valley, had previously pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm when he appeared at Swansea Crown Court for sentencing. He has no previous convictions.
Davies, who expressed his remorse, was made subject to a 12-month community order with a requirement that he completes 250 hours of unpaid work in the community. The defendant must also pay his victim £2,400 in compensation.
He was allowed to continue playing for the club after the incident but was banned from entering the clubhouse for nine months.
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Cardiff speedster scoops big award
Cardiff wing Tom Bowen has been named as the United Rugby Championships Next-Gen Player of the Season.
The 20-year-old received the award after a vote by members of the media while he also won a number of awards at Cardiff’s end of season awards night where he was named breakthrough player of the season and fans player of the season.
Bowen scored six tries in his 11 appearances for Cardiff during the regular league season, while he crossed ten times in all, including a double against Ireland for Wales U20s in the U20s Six Nations Championship.
“I’m over the moon to be honest,” he said. “It’s been a pretty special season, making the URC play-offs, making history for Cardiff.
“It’s a club I have grown up watching. I’m a local boy and Cardiff is my home club. To break through in the season that we have had is pretty special.
“The season has gone so quickly. It feels like yesterday we were kicking off against the Lions at the start.
“The whole season has just been so enjoyable and I just love playing at the Arms Park.”
Bowen was part of a brave effort from Cardiff in the URC quarter-finals where they pushed the Stormers hard in Cape Town before ultimately going down to a 44-21 defeat.
“It was nice for the group to make the play-offs,” he said.
“It’s what we deserved. We had a very good year, especially at home. We’ve shown some good performances there, only losing one game all season.
“Playing in front of the Arms Park this year has been awesome for all of us. The crowds have been unbelievable. When the fans come out in full force, the boys really love that.
“One game which stands out for me was the Ospreys at home. It was rocking and it’s so good to play in front of that.”
Former Italy star speaks up against racism
Former Italy prop Cherif Traorè has spoken up against the racism he suffered while playing for Benetton.
In an interview with the Times Traorè – who was born in Guinea in west Africa but moved to Italy when he was seven – lifts the lid on the time he received a rotten banana as a secret Santa gift in 2022.
The perpetrator was Argentinian prop Ivan Nemer who was banned for six months.
“We all expect some humour when choosing Secret Santa gifts,” he told The Times. “I myself gave an academy player some lingerie that day. Nobody has any issue with jokes between team-mates but at the same time we must try to give a good example.
“Most people there laughed, which was what hurt me the most. I was angry, and if I didn’t get angry in that situation, these things would happen again.
“What the whole experience showed me is that you should never expect too much from people. Dogs are always loyal, but people are not.
“I see players who have many faces. They are still there because they have always licked the right arses. I have never licked anyone. I have always been myself.”
Traorè is no longer a Benetton player having enjoyed stints at Mont-de-Marsan, Vicenza in Italy and Diok in the Netherlands.
He claims that efforts to undermine his reputation have cost him opportunities at some of the game’s leading clubs.
“Every time we found an agreement, they would send me the papers to sign, and it would all fall through,” he told The Times.
“One, two, three times. After Benetton, I got myself a new French agent who said, ‘Cherif, I don’t understand why every time we find an agreement, the contract falls through.
“There must be someone who is trying to speak badly of you.
“I’m curious to know who this person is, because I’ve never done anything bad to anyone.
“If it happens once, fine, it can be bad luck, but when it happens three times… I feel like I am still being made to suffer for everything that happened to me at Benetton.”
Scott Cummings plays down impact of 2024 as Glasgow face Bulls for spot in final
By Anthony Brown, Press Association
Scott Cummings said Glasgow’s victory over Bulls in the 2024 United Rugby Championship final is largely irrelevant in preparations for this Saturday’s semi-final between the sides at Murrayfield.
Several of the current squad were involved as Warriors enjoyed arguably their greatest ever day by defeating the South African side in Pretoria two years ago.
But when asked if memories of that match could be considered a factor in the lead-up to this weekend’s last-four showdown in Edinburgh, Scotland lock Cummings responded: “Not particularly.
“That was two years ago, we’ve played them probably about four times since then, so you don’t want to just keep harping on about one game two years ago.
“Obviously it was a massive game for us, one of the biggest moments in the club’s history. But we’ve played them since then and we’ve had a lot of really tough matches in that.
“They’ll probably use that as fuel for them, but we’re obviously here to get a win and we know what we’ve got to do for that.”
Cummings is delighted to be back in the mix for the key part of the campaign after returning to the side in Friday’s quarter-final win over Connacht after almost three months sidelined by a calf injury sustained during the Six Nations.
“It was about 12 weeks since I last played and it was a pretty frustrating time so it was great to be back involved with the guys,” he said.
“I was targeting a bit earlier to be honest! I was targeting three or four weeks before, so it was frustrating not to be back as early as I wanted to but you can’t do anything about that. The final run-in is the business end of the season and what you want to be back for.”
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