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 Paul
Ackford
Paul Ackford
is a former English rugby union
international who played lock forward. He
was formerly an Inspector in the
Metropolitan Police and is now a journalist.
Partnering Wade Dooley, Ackford became an
important part of the new side captained by
Will Carling. He went on the 1989 British
Lions
tour to Australia, where he played all three
tests.
He was part of the England side that won a
Five Nations Grand Slam in 1991. He
retired from international rugby after the
1991 World Cup, becoming a journalist
and writing for the Sunday Telegraph.
source: www.wikipedia.org |
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Latest
Articles: |
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Jonny Wilkinson
kicks England into final
14/10/07
England 14 France 9
It was a game to tell your grandchildren
about. A game so close and tense and taut
that it almost went beyond enjoyment. One
man turned it England's way. No prizes for
guessing the name. Jonny Wilkinson kicked
England into another World Cup final. Four
years ago he saw off France with his boot
and last night in a sensational rugby match
he kicked England into a second successive
climax.
England were heroes to a man because for
long periods of this match they had to
defend and dig themselves out of their own
territory. But this is a team with bags of
character and when it mattered, when it
really, really mattered they forged towards
the French line for Wilkinson to deliver two
decisive knockout blows.
...read more |
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England arrive
by accident in World Cup
7/10/07
Could this be England's World Cup again? The
second extraordinary quarter-final on a day
of upset and raw emotion has pitted England
against France in Saturday's semi-final at
the Stade de France. New Zealand, far and
away the best team in the four years between
World Cups, have blown another tournament.
In a sense they have gone backwards. Under
John Mitchell, Graham Henry's predecessor,
the All Blacks reached the semi-finals.
Yesterday they crashed and burned in the
round before.
No one, no one, will have a clue as to what
Saturday's Anglo-French clash will bring.
This World Cup has made a mockery of
pundits, bookies, everyone. Already it is
the most sensational competition in terms of
upsets there has ever been which is why only
a fool would attempt a prediction.
...read more |
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England grind out
win
23/9/07
England 44 Samoa 22
Another worringly nervy and disjointed
performance by England. And all this against
a Samoan side who did not have a line-out to
speak of and could barely absorb the
pressure at the scrummage. But at least
England did grind out a victory, which means
that their continuation in this World Cup
rests on a straight shoot-out against Tonga
at the Parc des Princes on Friday. Only a
victory will do, but if the Tongans play
with anything like the ferocity and
precision they showed against the Springboks
yesterday, England are in for another tough
night.
...read more |
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Jason
Robinson's heroics can't help England 16/9/07
Very occasionally a game comes along which
renders the normal emotional responses
redundant. That match happened on Friday
night at the Stade de France when England
were poleaxed by South Africa. England were
so inept, so woeful that the now customary
reaction of anger or frustration following
their dismal performances to date was
inappropriate. This time the feelings went
beyond rage to a dull ache of recognition
that this World Cup has been calamitous for
England's reputation around the world, that
the players by and large are not of Test
stature and that there have been serious
shortcomings in the squad's selection and
preparation.
...read more |
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