Archive November 8, 2025

Quilter Nations Series

England (14) 38

Tries Cowan-Dickie, Feyi-Waboso, Genge, George, Arundell, Itoje Cons: F Smith 4

Fiji (13) 18

England scored four second-half tries to see off a tough Fiji side in their second autumn international at Allianz Stadium.

The victory extends Steve Borthwick’s side’s winning run to nine games and backs up their win over Australia last Saturday.

England opened the scoring through Luke Cowan-Dickie before Fiji responded with tries by Tevita Ikanivere and Caleb Muntz.

Fly-half Muntz missed both conversions but nailed a penalty to take the visitors further clear before Immanuel Feyi-Waboso crossed.

Ellis Genge and Ikanivere then traded scores to spark an entertaining second half.

Once again England’s bench delivered in the second half after five forwards were rolled on with the score at 21-18.

Replacements Jamie George and Henry Arundell, who showed his scintillating pace, finished off tries to take the hosts clear.

Those scores came either side of Fiji scrum-half Simi Kuruvoli spilling the ball when attempting to score.

England captain Maro Itoje, who also came off the bench, grabbed the final try.

Prior to this meeting, England had won eight of their nine games with Fiji – most recently winning 30-24 in the quarter-finals of the 2023 World Cup.

That one defeat came at Twickenham two months prior to the tournament in France and was a major turning point under Borthwick.

With Fiji on a five-match winning run – their equal best streak since 1999 – the fixture was always likely to be competitive.

Following slick phase play, number eight Chandler Cunningham-South made good ground before Cowan-Dickie forced his way over for the opening score from close range, with Ikanivere’s try off the back of a maul adding a quick response.

Nicknamed the flying Fijians, that was evident in defence through monstrous first-half midfield hits, with full-back Marcus Smith, deployed as a second playmaker, in particular picked out.

But it was the vintage attacking Fijian flare that was the standout moment in the opening half as offloads cut England’s defence open for Muntz to score.

England pulled away from Australia last Saturday in the final quarter through the power of their bench that contained six British and Irish Lions.

A much-changed starting XV from the win over the Wallabies did grab the next score as Genge crossed following a powerful run by Ollie Lawrence, who was making his international comeback after tearing his Achilles tendon against Italy in March.

However, after a smart line-out move was finished by Ikanivere, Borthwick unloaded five of his bench on the 54th minute – including Lions tourists Henry Pollock and Tom Curry.

With the game still in the balance, Fiji scrum-half Kuruvoli lost control of the ball when stretching for the tryline to cancel out replacement George’s try.

Flanker Ben Earl, a try-scorer against Australia, produced a stunning try-saving tackle to maintain breathing room between the sides.

It capped another all-round impressive performance by Earl, who picked up back-to-back player-of-the-match awards.

Arundell’s pace to race on to a Marcus Smith kick down the left flank showcased exactly why England’s bench is so impactful. The Bath speedster celebrated in style after racing past Bristol centre Kalaveti Ravouvou to touch down.

It is full of stars and quality, which has helped secure victories in the final quarter that were lost against Australia and the All Blacks last autumn.

Given Scotland ran New Zealand close, Borthwick’s side will fancy their chances of making a big statement next week.

England head coach Steve Borthwick told BBC Radio 5 Live: “The players deserve enormous credit for the resilience they show in these games. Having the composure, fitness and the strength off the bench in the final quarter is really important.

“I think the team has developed and grown today. They understand each other a bit more and that is part of the evolution of the team. What we need to do is keep learning.

“Fiji are a talented team that play some incredible rugby. The players were excited about today and you can see the impact Fiji had on us with the talent and physical challenge they bring.

Fiji head coach Mick Byrne, speaking to BBC Sport about the try his side had disallowed when they trailed 26-18 during the second half:

“I think we did good work in the lead-up and it didn’t look like he lost control. It would have been a nice try to score.

“I am not sure if we would have won the game, but it would have kept the momentum going our way. But that is just the way it has gone.

“Full credit to England and Steve [Borthwick] for what they have done in the last 20 minutes.

“We are making the progress that we need to be making, moving forward to the 2027 World Cup.

England: M Smith; Freeman, Lawrence, Dingwall, Feyi-Waboso; F Smith, Mitchell; Genge, Cowan-Dickie, Heyes, Coles, Chessum, Pepper, Earl, Cunningham-South

Replacements: George, Baxter, Opoku-Fordjour, Itoje, T Curry, Pollock, Spencer, Arundell

Fiji: Rayasi; Ravutaumada, Ravouvou, Tuisova, Wainiqolo; Muntz, Kuruvoli; Mawi, Ikanivere, Doge, Nasilasila, Mayanavanua, Sowakula, Canakaivata, Mata

Replacements: Togiatama, Hetet, Tawake, Vocevoce, Murray, Wye, Armstrong-Ravula, Maqala

Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)

Assistant referee: Luc Ramos (France) and Katsuki Furuse (Japan)

Novak Djokovic secured the 101st title of his career with victory at the Hellenic Championships – but then had to withdraw from the ATP Finals because of injury.

The Serb came through a gruelling encounter against Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti in Saturday’s final in Athens, fighting back from a set down to win 4-6 6-3 7-5.

But the 24-time Grand Slam champion’s victory came at a price, with Djokovic exacerbating an “ongoing” shoulder injury that will keep him out of the ATP Finals in Turin, which begin on 9 November.

“I was really looking forward to competing in Turin and giving my best but after today’s final in Athens, I’m sad to share that I need to withdraw due to an ongoing injury,” Djokovic wrote on social media.

“I’m truly sorry to the fans who were hoping to see me play – your support means so much. I wish all the players an amazing tournament, and I can’t wait to be back on the court with you all soon.”

Djokovic, 38, will be replaced in the finals by Musetti – who thought his chance of featuring in Turin had gone following his defeat.

On a day of thrilling tennis on the ATP tour, Great Britain’s Cameron Norrie missed out on a sixth career title as American teenager Learner Tien roared back to claim his first via a deciding set tie-break at the Moselle Open in France.

Norrie, 30, who was aiming for his first title in more than two years, produced a gutsy display to battle from a set down, then a break down in the deciding set.

Djokovic is one of just three men to have racked up a century of titles.

The Serb still needs two to equal Roger Federer’s 103, while Jimmy Connors heads the list with 109.

It looked unlikely he would add to his tally as 23-year-old Musetti’s tireless running and accurate serving helped him to the opening set.

But after recovering to force a decider, Djokovic toughed out the victory, trading service breaks in the 10th and 11th games of the final set before closing it out with a love hold.

“It was an incredible battle – I don’t know [how I won it],” said the top seed who, at 38 years and five months, became the oldest tournament winner since Australia’s Ken Rosewall won in Hong Kong in 1977 aged 43.

“Three hours. [It was] a gruelling match physically, super demanding. Lorenzo played really well.

“It could have been anybody’s match so congrats to him for an amazing performance and I just feel very proud of myself to get through this one.”

It was Djokovic’s second title of 2025, having won on the clay of Geneva in May, while Musetti continues his wait for a maiden title after losing in six finals over the past two seasons.

Britain’s Lucy Charles-Barclay claimed her second world Ironman 70.3 title after coming through an “incredibly tough period” with injury and a family bereavement.

The win in Marbella came just four weeks after she was unable to finish the Ironman World Championship race in Kona, Hawaii.

“It was definitely an incredibly tough period, we had a lot going on, we had some family things happening and unfortunately we lost someone really special to us so I think that kind of changed my perspective quite a lot,” the 32-year-old said following her win.

“OK, Kona’s behind me, I’m healthy, I’m here, I guess life is short and you have to try and enjoy it.

“Thankfully it came together and put a lot of positivity into the family in what’s been a really, really tough time, so I’m so glad I could do that and honour the person we lost.”

Runner-up, American Taylor Knibb – who won the past three editions following Charles-Barclay’s 2021 success – similarly failed to finish in Kona and was only cleared to race on Friday, but the pair led from the front in the finale in Spain.

Charles-Barclay was first out of the water with a 47-second lead over Knibb and compatriot Jess Learmonth before Knibb took some time off the leader during the punishing bike stage, which included 5.8km of climbing.

Knibb then moved to the front of the run before Charles-Barclay reeled her back in, then pulled away to finish in four hours, 14mins 54 secs, three minutes ahead of Knibb.

McLaren’s Lando Norris took pole position for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix hours after extending his championship lead with victory in the sprint.

The Briton shrugged off an error on his first lap that left him down in 10th place going into the final runs to secure pole position by 0.174 seconds from Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli.

Norris’ team-mate and title rival Oscar Piastri, fastest on the first laps in the top 10 shootout, could manage only fourth behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

Norris had it all to do after locking his front brakes going into the first corner on his first run in the shootout.

Piastri crashed out of third place in the sprint earlier in the day to fall nine points behind Norris in the championship but he nailed his first lap to go fastest from Leclerc.

But Norris has looked the man to beat all weekend and he delivered an impressive lap on his final run, under intense pressure, to beat his team-mate by 0.375secs.

“I felt good. I was under a bit of pressure because I locked up on my first lap so a little bit more stressful than I would have liked but stayed cool and very happy,” said Norris.

“Locking up into Turn One puts unnecessary pressure on myself but when I’m in a good rhythm, when I can out it all together, I’ll be on top.”

Antonelli, who pushed Norris all the way in the sprint, has been the lead Mercedes driver all weekend.

Verstappen was already struggling for pace in the sprint and Red Bull made changes to his car for the grand prix qualifying in the hope of finding more grip.

But they backfired and he was already fearing the worst after his first lap, when he said to his engineer: “The car and ride is a tiny bit better but now sliding even more.”

But he failed to improve on his final run and he suffered his first Q1 elimination since the 2021 Russian Grand Prix.

“It’s not what you want see,” Verstappen said. “The whole weekend has been already quite tough.

When England trudged off the field at Headingley, disappointment hung in the air for several reasons.

Not only because of the 30-8 defeat on the day and the 3-0 series loss to Australia, but for the fact that this might be the last time England play in front of a home crowd until 2027.

England do not have a home Test booked in for 2026, before next year’s World Cup in Australia and Papua New Guinea. They will then play New Zealand in a three-match series, starting 23 months from now.

With Super League expanding to a 14-team competition next term, a mid-season Test fixture, removed from the calendar in 2025, appears unlikely.

It is a shame, given that this Ashes series – the first since 2003 – has proved a huge draw.

A total of 132,418 fans attended the three games, including more than 60,000 at Wembley and 50,000-plus at Hill Dickinson Stadium. One suspects Headingley – the 19,500-seater venue for the final Test – could have sold out at least twice over.

So given its popularity, what chance the Ashes become a regular event?

There is a tour of Australia planned for 2028, and BBC Sport understands it would be an England team who travel rather than Great Britain. The series is likely to happen, but details have not yet been confirmed.

Australia are keen to play England again – and not just because of the glow that comes with a 3-0 series win.

Peter V’landys, chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission, told BBC Sport after the first Test: “It’s a high priority for us to make the international game a higher profile and put the pride back in.

After the final match, Australia coach Kevin Walters and his captain Isaah Yeo said they wanted another Ashes series soon.

“Some of the Australian press have been saying it is walk in the park,” Walters said. “But come over and walk with them. It’s great Test football.

“It’s difficult to win games and be at your best all the time. England didn’t let us. We have to learn from that and get better next time.

“We have great respect for England. They play a different type of football here. The Ashes needs to continue on a regular basis for us to both get better as national teams.”

“Twenty-two years has been too long,” added Yeo. “With all the growth in the international space, you don’t want to lose that. The history around that… it needs to be a regular fixture.”

Certainly, Australia have thrown themselves into the touring spirit. As well as winning on the pitch, they defeated England in the PR battle.

England did not do Captain’s Runs – training sessions led by the captain the day before games, a tradition in rugby series – while Australia did. Their session at Wembley coincided with pop star Jon Bon Jovi visiting to promote his upcoming tour, allowing for a great photo opportunity.

After wrapping up the series at Everton’s ground, the Aussies went for a Halloween night out in Liverpool. They visited Edinburgh and had a dip in the North Sea before the third Test, and trained in Leeds – the venue for the game – while England holed up the other side of the Pennines at a camp in Wigan.

Before and after matches, fans queued for pictures with the Australian stars. Nathan Cleary and Reece Walsh were especially popular.

As galling as it is to lose three games on home soil, this was an experience England needed before the World Cup. You cannot be among the world’s best unless you take on the world’s best.

There are certain factors that England will always struggle to overcome. Rugby league is a minority sport here, with 11 times more people playing it in Australia, where the popularity and exposure means far greater funding is on offer.

But there is also a mental block. Did England, who never led at any point during the three games of the series, ever really believe they could beat Australia?

England had better average completion and made more passes than Australia in the opening two games – but come the final whistle in game three, the Kangaroos had won by an aggregate score of 70-18 and scored 11 tries to two.

They showed their ability in flashes across all three games, and their performances improved as the series went on. But failure to take their chances, a hesitant attacking style – carry the ball to 10 metres out, then hope for the best – and regular individual errors in defence cost them dear.

And structural issues are also at play. Super League teams already play more domestic matches than those in Australia’s National Rugby League, and that is before the English league expands in 2026. And the games played in Australia, through the play-off system and hugely significant State of Origin matches, are generally of much higher quality.

“What happens commercially with Super League is out my hands, but the amount of and intensity of games we get is a problem,” said England coach Shaun Wane. “We will play 10 more games and then are expected to kill it at the World Cup next year.

“I need to have a conversation in the next few weeks about the direction we are going in, how to have these players prepare for World Cup next year.”

Wane, despite chants from the Leeds crowd that he will be “sacked in the morning”, says he is “absolutely” the man to lead England into the World Cup, so therefore is likely to be the man who must figure out how they beat Australia.