Tony Ward: Being a top sportsman himself Pat Spillane should know better after cheap shot on Johnny Sexton

A batch of acquainted faces returned to the United Rugby Championship implicit the play to herald the unofficial commencement of the regular home rugby season.

It follows connected from what was undoubtedly a gripping World Cup. From an Irish perspective, it ended successful disappointment, peculiarly successful presumption of that disfigured elephantine gorilla inactive gripping our backmost truthful tightly. Ten planetary tournaments and we’re inactive to marque it beyond the last eight, which is simply a mediocre reflection of our lasting successful the satellite game.