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Rassie hails new maul application
Rassie Erasmus has credited World Rugby’s new maul law application for contributing to an increase in tries and ball-in-play time, reports SIMON BORCHARDT.
The Springbok coach had previously voiced his frustration with the way mauls were being officiated, arguing that teams were increasingly being prevented from building effective driving mauls from lineouts. umafrika.club
World Rugby subsequently introduced new law application guidelines, effective from 1 June, relating to players who end up on the wrong side of a maul.
“The maul has become increasingly difficult to referee, hard to manage, and challenging to explain to viewers and fans,” World Rugby explained at the time.
“Players who find themselves on the ‘wrong’ side of the maul, after initial dominance at set-up, often become ineffective in terms of the contest, and in the way of the ball being played away.”
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According to World Rugby, the key observables are that the contest for the ball is over, and the player gets beyond the ball and/or into a pulling/dragging position. Players are asked to recognise that when they get beyond the ball and out of the contest, they leave the maul, and referees are asked to identify, manage and/or sanction.
Speaking ahead of Saturday’s third Test of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series at FNB Stadium, Erasmus praised the impact of the new application, noting that the All Blacks had also benefited from it.
“For New Zealand also, they’re very hard to stop. They maul really, really well and a lot of times they pretend to maul and break into a vacuum, which is very hard to defend, and then they run on to your flyhalf and kick on others.
“Well done to World Rugby. When eight guys maul here or seven guys maul here, in the past you could stop it with four by going around and dragging the maul back, and then there was no space for the backs to attack.
“But now you have to commit to the maul and now the vacuum is open.”
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Erasmus believes the change has made the maul a more effective attacking weapon even when it does not directly result in a try.
“I really think the maul itself, for all teams, is a strength now because it’s a pushing competition and an in-sync competition and flying in a V-formation competition, where it was dragging and this technical thing which the referees struggled to sort out.
“I think the amount of tries we’re seeing currently is not just from maul tries. It’s actually the vacuum it creates because two loose forwards can’t stand out and the hooker can’t stand out. They must join the maul and now there’s space for the backline again.”
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The Bok coach also rejected the suggestion that increased kicking necessarily results in less action, pointing to the ball-in-play figures from the first two Tests of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry.
“The interesting thing, the ball-in-play time in the previous match [at Ellis Park], where New Zealand scored five tries and won, was 29 minutes. This weekend [in Cape Town] it was again a higher ball-in-play [time], but everybody says there’s more kicking.
“More kicking makes more ball in play.
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“Overall, I think the law at the maul is great and it’s working for all teams. Even if you’re not a team mauling well, you at least commit – it’s like a scrum, you commit to a position – eight guys to stop a maul, and now there’s more space for the backline.
“I think that’s one of the big reasons we get high scores and high amounts of tries.”
Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
The post Rassie hails new maul application appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Manchester City officialise l’arrivée de Allan Elias en provenance de Palmeiras
Manchester City poursuit sa profonde reconstruction et vient d’ajouter une nouvelle pièce à son effectif. Les Skyblues ont officialisé l’arrivée d’Allan Elias en provenance de Palmeiras, pour un montant estimé à environ 40 millions d’euros. À 22 ans, l’ailier brésilien s’est engagé jusqu’en 2031 et devient la septième recrue de l’été mancunien. Encore peu connu du grand public européen, le joueur formé à São Paulo arrive avec une mission claire : apporter de la fraîcheur à un secteur offensif largement remanié et prendre progressivement une place dans le nouveau projet de Manchester City.
Un talent formé à Palmeiras qui franchit un cap
Allan Elias n’arrive pas en Angleterre sans expérience. Formé à Palmeiras, il a déjà accumulé 96 apparitions avec l’équipe première, pour neuf buts et douze passes décisives. Sa polyvalence constitue l’un de ses principaux atouts : gaucher, il évolue principalement sur le côté droit, mais peut également être utilisé comme ailier ou piston. La saison dernière, il a encore franchi un cap avec 42 rencontres disputées, six buts et six passes décisives. Il avait également participé à la Coupe du monde des clubs 2025, au cours de laquelle Palmeiras avait atteint les quarts de finale. Un parcours suffisamment consistant pour convaincre City d’investir lourdement sur son potentiel.
Un renfort dans un effectif en pleine transformation
L’arrivée du Brésilien intervient surtout dans un contexte particulier à Manchester. Après une vague importante de départs, les dirigeants mancuniens doivent reconstruire un effectif capable de rester compétitif sur tous les fronts. Savinho et Omar Marmoush ayant notamment pris la direction de Tottenham, Allan Elias vient apporter une solution supplémentaire sur les côtés et pourrait progressivement reprendre une partie du rôle laissé vacant. Son arrivée s’inscrit dans une politique de renouvellement ambitieuse, illustrée également par le recrutement d’Ayyoub Bouaddi. Manchester City ne cherche donc plus seulement à remplacer ses partants : le club prépare déjà la prochaine génération de son effectif.
De Palmeiras à l’Etihad, une nouvelle dimension à conquérir
Pour Allan Elias, ce transfert représente désormais bien plus qu’un changement de championnat. Il découvre l’Europe avec la pression d’un investissement de 40 millions d’euros, mais aussi l’opportunité de travailler dans un environnement où chaque performance sera scrutée. L’international brésilien n’a encore jamais été appelé avec la Seleção, et son passage à Manchester pourrait justement lui offrir une visibilité nouvelle auprès du sélectionneur national. Sous contrat jusqu’en 2031, le jeune ailier dispose du temps nécessaire pour s’adapter et progresser. Manchester City tient son nouveau pari brésilien ; à Allan Elias désormais de transformer cette promesse en certitude.
The post Manchester City officialise l’arrivée de Allan Elias en provenance de Palmeiras appeared first on AfricaFootUnited.
Messi retires from international football
MIAMI, United States, August 31, 2026 – Argentina great Lionel Messi has announced his retirement from international football, saying it was a decision that “hurt” him but “the time has come”.
The 39-year-old, who captained Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar in 2022, has scored 125 goals in 207 appearances, making him the country’s all-time leading scorer and most-capped player.
In a statement on Instagram, Messi said he has given everything to the national side but now has “nothing left to give”.
He added: “Time is running short, chapters come to a close, and this is one that hurts me deeply.
“I love, have loved, and will always love being part of the national team.
“I’ve given it my all, I have nothing left to give, and besides, there are some really great young players coming through behind me who deserve their chance.”
Earlier in August, Messi said he was considering his future in football after the death of his father, Jorge, who died aged 68 following a a long illness.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner said he wrote his retirement message on 21 July, two days after Argentina lost to Spain in this summer’s World Cup final.
Messi, who plays for club side Inter Miami, added: “Today, after what happened with my dad, I’m even more convinced than before.”
More to follow.
At 47, Imran Tahir is still doing the business
Born in Lahore in March 1979, Imran Tahir is now 47, an age at which most bowlers have long retired. Instead, he’s currently captaining Guyana Amazon Warriors at the top of the CPL 2026 table.
Since making his international debut at 31 in 2011, Tahir has been one of the most efficient wicket-takers in world cricket.
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He took 173 ODI wickets in 107 matches at an average of 24.84, becoming the fastest South African to 100 ODI wickets, and remains South Africa’s all-time leading T20I wicket-taker with 63 scalps from 38 matches and briefly held the world No. 1 bowling ranking in both ODIs and T20Is simultaneously in 2017.
His forties have been just as remarkable. Tahir is the first player in T20 history to take three five-wicket hauls after turning 40, and became the oldest player and captain ever to record a T20 five-for, taking 5-21 in CPL 2025 aged 46.
Along the way, Tahir has built an extensive honours list. An IPL Purple Cap with Chennai Super Kings in 2019, a PSL title with Multan Sultans in 2021 (3-33 in the final), a maiden CPL title with Guyana Amazon Warriors in 2023, and back-to-back Global Super League titles with the same franchise in 2025 and 2026. He was also named to the ICC ODI Team of the Year in 2015.
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This season, he has taken 5 wickets in 3 CPL matches at an economy of 6.30, still finding the same googly that has carried him through more than 50 franchise teams worldwide.
Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images
The post At 47, Imran Tahir is still doing the business appeared first on SA Cricket Mag.