The latest rugby stories making headlines on Friday, March 27.
Owen Lane of Valence(Image: 2026 Icon Sport)
These are your headlines on the morning of Friday, March 27.
Wales internationals set to return
Wales international Jarrod Evans is set to return home next season, with Cardiff Rugby in pole position to sign him when his Harlequins contract expires at the end of the current season.
Evans has been brought back into the Wales fold since Warren Gatland’s exit last year and is keen to nail down a spot in the squad ahead of next year’s Rugby World Cup.
The 29-year-old spent the first eight years of his professional career at the Arms Park before deciding to join Quins in 2023.
He has been used as back-up to England international Marcus Smith at The Stoop.
He would compete for the No 10 shirt with international team-mate Callum Sheedy, who has been in fine form for Cardiff this season, and utility back Ioan Lloyd.
Another man who could be coming back to Wales is Owen Lane, whose CV is doing the rounds, with a couple of Welsh clubs showing interest.
His contract with Valence Romans expires at the end of the current campaign. You can read all the exclusive latest Welsh rugby transfer news here.
Cardiff consider emergency signing
Cardiff are facing a second-row injury crisis and may have to sign a player on loan.
George Nott, Teddy Williams and Ben Donnell are all sidelined with injury meaning backrower Alun Lawrence will provide second-row cover from the bench for this Friday’s clash with the Sharks in Durban.
Former England lock Josh McNally and Rory Thornton start. Cardiff also have an issue at scrum-half with Aled Davies out injured.
“Ben Donnell, Teddy and Tom Cottle are probably still a few weeks off,” said Cardiff coach Corniel van Zyl.
“They will hopefully come back in a few weeks time. George won’t be too bad I believe.
“He just got a knock between his abs and his ribs. It’s a minor injury but it is painful. That needs to be managed well but hopefully that won’t be too long.
“Aled’s (Davies) injury was worse than what we expected. It is obviously a bit of a concern but we will assess him as well. We are fine at the minute for nines but it might be the case that we look to reinforce the second-row position.”
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Van Zyl is confident Lawrence will do a good job at lock when called upon.
“He’s done it in the past a few times in sessions and also a few times this season when we had a yellow card,” he said.
“So, he’s actually very comfortable, his knowledge is great and he can go into any position. Like last season throwing him into the lineout and stuff like that.
“His detail is so good so we don’t really stress him out.
“That shows the character of the players stepping into different roles.”
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Botham signs new deal
James Botham has signed a new deal with Cardiff Rugby.
He follows in the footsteps of back-row partner Alex Mann by committing his future to the Arms Park club.
Botham was outstanding for Wales in the recent Six Nations and he is keen to kick on from the tournament with his club at the business end of the season.
He said: “I’m really pleased to be staying at Cardiff. This is home and it’s always a massive privilege to pull on the Blue & Black, particularly at the Arms Park.
“We have had a good season so far, there is still plenty to play for this season and just generally speaking I am really encouraged by the direction this group of players and coaches is heading.
“There is a huge amount of talent, plenty of competition and a real hunger to keep driving forward.
“On a personal level, I am just happy to have had an injury free run and been able to show what I am capable of both for Cardiff and at international level.
“There is plenty more to come and I am excited by what the future holds.”
Cardiff coach Corniel van Zyl added: “It’s great to keep Jim at Cardiff. He made a big impact during the Six Nations, coming in and putting in some impressive performances on the back of his run of form and fitness for Cardiff.
“He has an exceptional athletic ability and always embraces the physical challenge. He has a massive engine, a very good skillset and is very handy right across the pitch.
“He is really deep rooted in the club and contributes a lot off the pitch. He is someone who always looks out for his mates and people at the club.
“So I’m excited for his future here and he will be a really important figure for us.”
Everton stadium considered for PREM play-offs
By Duncan Bech, Press Association Rugby Union Correspondent
The Gallagher Prem semi-finals are to be staged at neutral venues such as Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium from 2029 as part of a drive to increase the number of bumper crowds.
The plans come as the league gears up for expansion from 10 to 12 teams for the 2029-30 season in a move to a franchise-style model that ends traditional promotion and relegation.
This weekend Villa Park, the Principality Stadium and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium host fixtures in a round being dubbed ‘Big Match Bonanza’, while Allianz Stadium is the ground for two Harlequins games each season.
Amid increased attendances and TV audiences on last season, Prem Rugby chief executive Simon Massie-Taylor is targeting further growth.
“Our ambition is to have 10 big games by 2030 and that includes the final and the potential for neutral play-offs,” Massie-Taylor said.
“We see neutral play-offs adding to the narrative and the general scale of the league. They are big games and you want to make them bigger. France do it. They’ve created a moment there and we want to explore it.
“It allows us to take the game on the road and that’s what we’re seeing with Gloucester hosting a game in Birmingham this weekend – it’s a big undertaking but a big step in building a new market.
“England have a game against Fiji in July at the Hill Dickinson Stadium up in Liverpool, which is a great new 55,000-seater stadium and in an area where there is clearly demand because people are buying tickets for England v Fiji.
“Is that a good example of where we could host a play-off event? Maybe. There are a lot of options. We’re intending to do this in 2029 deliberately because it takes time to secure venues and find the right spot and build demand.”
A salary floor of £5.4million was on Thursday morning approved by Prem Rugby’s board for next season with the intention of adding to the competition’s competitive balance.
Most clubs already spend up to the salary cap limit of £6.4million, with only Newcastle’s player wages publicly known to be below that figure. There is no intention to increase the salary cap level.
“Our vision is to be the best league in the world,” Massie-Taylor said.
“We are on a journey to define exactly what that means, but it doesn’t mean we are going to spend beyond everyone else and create wage inflation around the world, paying so all the ‘Galacticos’ turn up.
“We will only increase our salary cap when we’ve established a salary cap formula as part of our financial control.
“Once distributions from Prem Rugby get to a certain level, then that will allow us to increase that in a sustainable way.”
Teams invited to join the expanded Prem must first complete a season in the Championship in 2028-29 and are likely to be set the target of finishing in the play-offs to fulfil minimum performance criteria.
Rugby Football Union chief executive Bill Sweeney believes it could even grow to as many as 20 clubs by 2024, declaring “it is unlimited in where it can go”.
