Up and Under is a weekly exclusive on Americas Rugby News. It reviews the best and worst from games involving the Americas teams over the previous week.   UP Bledisloe Cup After months of waiting, international rugby returned with a bang on Sunday. Fans were treated to an absorbing spectacle …

Vern Cotter has named a 32-man Fiji squad for the upcoming Autumn Nations Cup. Included in his first selection as Head Coach are two players signed for Major League Rugby teams in 2021 – Rugby United New York prop Samu Tawake and Dallas Jackals flyhalf Tuidraki Samusamuvodre. Tawake debuted for …

The Toronto Arrows have produced a streamlined chart of their pathway to professional rugby for Canadian players. Included in the chart are routes through both provincial and international rugby, with the pathway starting at junior age-grade and high school level. Two academy systems are incorporated as direct gateways to the …

Biarritz Olympique are now in sole possession of 1st place on the Pro D2 table. Evan Olmstead played a significant role as the forwards dominated Carcassonne en route to a 37-10 victory at Parc d’Aguiléra on Sunday. With 18 points Biarritz move one ahead of Perpignan, Vannes, and Oyonnax, though …

The Shute Shield regular season has ended and the match-ups for next weekend’s Preliminary Finals are set. There are Major League Rugby interests in each contest, with incoming LA coach Darren Coleman leading his Gordon side to a first place finish and favorites heading into the knock-out rounds. Randwick will …

International rugby returned in sensational fashion at the Cake Tin in Wellington on Sunday morning. New Zealand and Australia fought to a 16-all dead heat in the opening match of the Bledisloe Cup. A precursor to the Rugby Championship, the two sides kept the ball alive until the 87th minute …

Lucas Piero has played his last game for Brazil. The venerable forward was one of several notable absentees from the Tupis squad named for the upcoming South American Championship. It has come to light that ‘Bruxinho’ has in fact now retired from international rugby. While Lucas ‘Tanque’ Duque was given …

Two more teams have been confirmed for the upcoming World Tens Series being hosted in Bermuda later this month. Phoenix hails from the Middle East, while the Rhinos are a new team representing Southern California. It brings the total to seven teams confirmed with one still to be revealed. As …

England’s top women’s division – the Premier 15s – is set to kick off this weekend. The semi-professional competition will feature a number of North American players this season, with an impressive six names in Exeter’s lineup to face Gloucester-Hartpury. New Canadian arrivals Emily Tuttosi, McKinley Hunt, and Taylor Black …

Old Glory DC have announced the signing of Danny Thomas for the 2021 Major League Rugby season. He celebrates his 26th birthday later this month and joins from Belmont Shore of the Pacific Rugby Premiership, equally comfortable at both scrumhalf and flyhalf. Thomas is originally from Farnham Common, England, but …