Here's your round-up of all the latest rugby news for Monday June 22.
Pollock sends message to Springboks
Henry Pollock insists he's not bothered by any 'outside noise', and has invited critics from South Africa to "talk all they want", ahead of England's clash with the Springboks this summer.
Pollock produced a man-of-the-match performance for Northampton, as they triumphed over Exeter Chiefs in the PREM Rugby Grand Final on Saturday, offering up a timely reminder of his talents, having previously attracted headlines for his confrontational antics with opponents.
“People can talk all they want," he said afterwards. "I have always said in my career, I don’t listen to outside noise, I don’t listen to people’s opinion.
"I am very much locked into my role and my team, and what I need to do for the team and the coaches. And you can have all these opinions about me, and everything like that, but I am just trying to focus on what I do.
"At the end of the day, it’s white noise. It doesn’t matter to me, it doesn’t go into my brain. We’ll win trophies, I guess.”
That shutting out of the critics could well be needed when the youngster faces the Springboks, with many South Africans taking a rather dim view towards his personality.
"He’s a TikTok dancer or whatever he is and he plays a bit of rugby on the weekend,” World Cup-winning flanker Schalk Burger said last year.
He would well receive a frosty reception from the locals at Ellis Park when the to sides face each other in the Nations Championship.
“Er, no,” Pollock added when asked if he knew why South Africans seem to have taken a dislike to him. “They can talk all they want. I guess I keep showing up.
“I’m relishing them massively. We’ve got three big, big Test matches. Obviously the Six Nations didn’t go our way and we are still hurting from that a little bit. There is no bigger challenge than going to South Africa and playing away at altitude in one of the biggest stadiums in the world. Those are the things you dream of. [The final] was a dream, and that’ll be another memory to lock in the brain, I guess.”
Springboks jet in to play Wales after Barbarians routed
Wales will face two more Rugby World Cup winners next weekend after the Barbarians confirmed the additions of South Africa stars Faf de Klerk and Vincent Koch to their squad.
The Springbok pair will join the famous invitational side for Saturday's clash against Wales at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, after being overlooked for South Africa's upcoming Nations Championship campaign.
De Klerk and Koch, who both played key roles in South Africa's back-to-back Rugby World Cup triumphs, have been drafted into the Barbarians squad assembled by New Zealand head coach Scott Robertson.
The additions mean Wales will come up against even more international firepower as they continue preparations under head coach Steve Tandy.
Scrum-half De Klerk was in action for the Springboks against the Barbarians in Gqeberha on Saturday, coming off the bench and scoring a try in South Africa's emphatic 80-31 victory.
Speaking after confirming the arrivals, Robertson said: "It's great to add Faf and Vincent for the Wales week.
"They are both great players with heaps of quality and experience, but most importantly, they are good men who will embrace all of the values the Barbarians stand for.
"There are a number of players coming in this week, and we will enjoy each other's company before we have a crack at Wales at Twickenham."
The Barbarians have also strengthened their pack with the addition of Australia international Lukhan Salakaia-Loto.
The second row impressed for Queensland Reds during the recent Super Rugby campaign and will add further experience to a squad already packed with international talent.
Several stars left out of France squad
Fabien Galthié has named a 39-man provisional France squad for the Nations Championship, with several big names left out.
The big news is the return of Damian Penaud, France’s all-time leading try-scorer.
Penaud wasn't part of the Six Nations campaign earlier this year, but returns after an impressive season for Bordeaux, where he scored 11 tries in 29 games.
The most eye-catching absentee is Louis Bielle-Biarrey, who has been rested ahead of the autumn internationals.
Antoine Dupont and Thomas Ramos are similarly set to be rested, and there are no Toulouse players given the club's involvement in the Top 14 final.
The final group will be confirmed on Wednesday.
