The i Paper has got the crystal ball out to see who and what will make the headlines in 2025.
The amateur rugby clubs 'drowning' while RFU chief trousers £1.1m salary
Read MoreFrom kick-off against the USA in Sunderland on 22 August through to the 27 September final at Twickenham (and, yes, that will be the ground’s title, as naming rights are not recognised in Rugby World Cups), Marlie Packer, Emily Scarratt, Abby Dow and company should have too much for their nearest rivals France, Canada and New Zealand, and in the process they could become household names.
Prediction: Hosts England win.
British & Irish Lions tour to Australia
Owen Farrell still harbours hopes of a Lions call (Photo: Getty)Joe Schmidt has got the Wallabies on the up, but they have scant preparation before the Test series in July and August, and the Lions could simply pick the Ireland pack and Scotland’s backs and win it by 3-0.
As one, er, test case, many pundits believe Farrell will pluck his son Owen from the French league.
As for possible bolters, Farrell senior has no need to look beyond those with double figures in caps, but maybe the new Ireland No 10 Sam Prendergast or an English youngster such as Tom Roebuck, Asher Opoku-Fordjour or Henry Pollock will fly if they have stellar second halves to the season.
Okay, this smacks of a very foggy crystal ball, and the kind of bookmakers’ odds in which “next England head coach” includes Clive Woodward, Eddie Jones, Boris Johnson and Mickey Mouse – and not necessarily in that order.
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Then those cheeky odds lists will be bound to feature Michael Cheika, sitting close at hand as head coach of Leicester Tigers and with a CV to die for. (This scenario also applies to Wales, by the way).
More widely, if Scotland are ever going to win the Six Nations again, they have the fixture list to do it, and going to France in the final match on 15 March with everything riding on it would be fun.
Bath are aiming to go one better than last season (Photo: Getty)
Funny team, Bath – at times they can get bogged down: unconvincing in the breakdown and taking too long to score.
The Premiership’s beaten finalists of last season should earn a home semi-final in the play-offs, and kick on to glory.
But they can still land a first URC crown since 2021 while Toulouse, neatly, will win the Champions Cup final in Cardiff, 30 years on from taking the inaugural title in the Welsh capital.
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Exciting to watch, and a dream to interview, Sale Sharks scrum-half Raffi Quirke could enjoy a resurgence on the back of his pack’s attack.
At their best, the Sharks with the literal twin threat of Tom and Ben Curry can dominate any English opposition.
Prediction: Raffi Quirke comes into his own.
Law changes and tweaks
Antoine Dupont stands to benefit from rugby’s new laws (Photo: Getty)A crooked line-out throw allowed, as long as the opposing team does not contest the throw? Yes, that’s in – although how will the thrower know?
We’re also seeing more kicking to create an aerial contest, which either means an increase in the thrill of unstructured play or more of a mess, depending on the execution.
On the same theme, here is a hope, rather than a prediction: for the Rugby Football Union to rip up their communications strategy and start again, from top to bottom.
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There was already a root-and-branch review of the RFU’s structure, which may eventually come forward with a separation of powers between the pro and amateur ranks.
The point here is less about the pay of the chief executive Bill Sweeney and his closest colleagues – although the decisions made by and around the RFU board are now being picked apart – and more about the degree to which they keep everyone in the know and foster debate.
Prediction: A new era of open government.
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