Archive November 7, 2025

Autumn Nations Series: Wales v Argentina

Venue: Principality Stadium, Cardiff Date: Sunday, 9 November Kick-off: 15:10 GMT

International life is set to begin at 31 for Olly Cracknell after the back row was rewarded for his perseverance – and physicality – with a place on Wales’ bench for Sunday’s autumn opener against Argentina.

Cracknell initially missed out on Steve Tandy’s squad for the four November Tests but then Taulupe Faletau suffered a knee injury playing for Cardiff.

Impressive Prem form earned the Leicester man a call-up and Cracknell is poised to make an impact off the bench against the Pumas in Cardiff.

There have been 30 older Welshmen on Test debut, with the oldest being 34-year-old William Radford, of Newport RFC, in 1923.

Legendary Pontypool prop Tony Faulkner was also 34 when he finally made his Wales debut against France in Paris in 1975, going on to win 19 caps.

The oldest male debutant in the professional era is Dragons stalwart Jason Forster, who was 33 when winning his solitary cap against Argentina in 2004.

Oldest Wales debutants in the professional era (since 1996)

*If appears as a replacement

The back-rower’s reward for plugging away will come on Sunday when he becomes the 1,216th player to represent his country.

Cracknell edged out 20-year-old Morgan Morse to face the Pumas and will be keen to make an impression in the countdown to the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

“When we named the team on Monday and Olly was announced you see the emotion,” said Tandy, who coached Cracknell at Ospreys.

Cracknell, who made six appearances for Wales Under-20s, came close to a cap when at Ospreys in 2017.

Warren Gatland called up the forward, born in Leeds with a Welsh grandfather, for the Six Nations, but Sam Warburton, Justin Tipuric, Taulupe Faletau, Ross Moriarty and James King featured.

Cracknell left Ospreys for London Irish in 2021 and their demise led to a move to Leicester the following summer.

It was at Welford Road that Wales assistant coach Danny Wilson got a first real taste of his attributes.

“It was only from working with him that I saw what he is capable of,” said the former Dragons, Scarlets, Cardiff, Bristol and Glasgow coach.

“He is very quiet, gets on with his work and is very professional but is tough and physical.

The presence of Jasper Wiese meant that Cracknell initially appeared plenty of times at flanker and off the bench, but the strong-running South Africa number eight left Welford Road in 2024.

Cracknell stepped up and started 23 times last season when helping Tigers to the Prem final, while he has started at number eight in four of five rounds in 2025-25 with one outing as a replacement.

He is tasked with being the destructive force in an uncompromising league for a club that prides itself on pack power.

“He is knocking people back with his ball-carrying and tackling,” said Wales loose-head prop and club team-mate Nicky Smith.

“It’s great to have him around and I have no doubt that he will show what he has been doing for Leicester.”

Tandy earned his chance as Wales boss with his exploits as a defence coach and against a notoriously physical Argentina team, has opted for a man that relishes collisions.

Pumas hooker Julian Montoya could find himself on the receiving end of a hit from a man who made a big impression on him at Welford Road.

“I love ‘Crackers’. He is an amazing man and I am really happy for him,” said the 32-year-old, who left for Pau at the end of last season.

“He has been outstanding in Leicester with the way that he has played and carried himself as a man.

“I have massive respect for him and I am not surprised at all that he has been picked.

“He carries the ball hard every game, tackles and is relentless with his physicality. He is a tough player.”

World champion Luke Littler says he was left “shaking with nerves” when he was “followed” on the motorway by a photographer two days after passing his driving test.

The 18-year-old posted a picture on social media on Monday after passing his test first time with no minors.

“On Wednesday, I was driving up to [girlfriend] Faith’s and I was getting followed,” said Littler, who became the youngest PDC World Championship winner when he claimed the title aged 17 in January.

“I made, like, the latest exit that you could possibly do on a motorway.

“I came off so late and then so did he. And I think I did about three U-turns, he did the same, but I was just shaking with nerves.”

After the incident Littler, second in the world rankings, said he decided to post a photo of his car online “so he [photographer] couldn’t sell his pictures”.

It is anniversary month.

Two dates. Two bosses. Two stories, inextricably linked, that have had everything over the past year and look like delivering a blockbuster finish.

The revivals of Stoke City under Mark Robins and Coventry City, under his successor Frank Lampard, have been been the talk of the Championship thus far and on Saturday the top two teams in the division meet.

A win for Lampard’s free-scoring leaders will take them seven points clear of Robins’ Potters.

Victory for Stoke will trim that advantage to one.

But the table after 15 games does not matter.

It is the thought of what it might look like after 46 that gives fans of both clubs such hope.

Because for the first time in a quarter of a century for the Sky Blues and the first time in what feels like one for Stoke, a return to the Premier League looks on.

“Coventry City Football Club has made the difficult decision to terminate the contract of Mark Robins as manager with immediate effect,” the statement read.

“Since 2017, Mark has overseen the resurrection of Coventry City Football Club from the depths of League Two, to champions of League One and to a hair’s breadth away from both the Premier League and a second FA Cup final, whilst competing in the Championship for a fifth consecutive season.”

Coventry’s decision to sack Robins on 7 November last year came after a run of four wins in 14 league games with the club 17th, two points above the relegation zone.

But the departure of a popular manager and, at the time, the longest serving one in the English Football League (EFL) understandably split the fanbase.

It surely was only a matter of time before another club came calling.

One that might just need their season brought back from the dead.

“At Coventry, Mark built something successful with a real identity and longevity.

“He left the club in a significantly better place than he found it. That’s exactly what we want to achieve at Stoke City, and he has all the pedigree and experience to help us do that.”

Sporting director Jon Walters knew Stoke had a problem that needed a Mark Robins-shaped solution.

Robins began work on New Year’s Day with his new side 18th in the table, four points above the bottom three, with their dream of returning to the Premier League after seven years as distant as the moon.

He was Stoke’s third permanent manager of a chaotic 2024-25 campaign that started with Stephen Schumacher, saw Narcis Pelach come and go within 19 games and had three spells of caretaker coaches.

Robins’ impact was steady rather than spectacular.

There were four draws in his first five games. The maiden win came in his sixth at Hull City exactly a month into the job.

Five more victories in the next 15 never fully shook off the shadow of relegation and they needed a final-day draw at Derby County to secure their second-tier status.

Robins described his first four months in charge as “really challenging” and underlined the fact he had “not come here for a relegation battle”.

Those decisions – including a major overhaul of the squad with 11 new signings – have added a sharper edge and more creativity to an already industrious core.

And it has paid off.

“Mark Robins walked into Stoke like a troubleshooting head teacher walks into a school in special measures,” BBC Radio Stoke’s Potters commentator Mark Elliott said.

“He steadied the ship and displayed a decisiveness and relentless competency that is rarely seen in a division where insanity rules.”

Elliott said Robins’ reshaping of the squad created “an identity that prioritises work rate, solidity, character and togetherness”.

“Robins always feels like the adult in the room, leading,” he said.

“His determination to get Stoke back to the top table of English football and prove himself among the game’s elite in the process could not be clearer.”

Eight wins and only three defeats so far. Eight goals in their past two games showed the Potters can bang them in with the best of them.

The defence – the meanest in the EFL – has only conceded nine times.

Robins’ Championship win rate now stands at 40%, the highest of the seven permanent managers that have tried to resuscitate this grand old club back to the Premier League since they were relegated from the top flight under Paul Lambert in 2017-18.

Better than Stephen Schumacher (38%), Michael O’Neill (37%), Gary Rowett (31%), Alex Neil (30%), Pelach (16%), and Nathan Jones (14%).

The restoration of Stoke City will take more than a year.

But Robins will rightly have a strut in his step at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday and will justifiably think his team can quieten the Coventry cacophony.

“Stoke remain a work in progress,” Elliott said. “But the strides they’ve made under Robins have been remarkable.

“He’s no-nonsense, calm, knowledgeable and engaging and sets standards clearly and simply.

“By and large his squad are meeting those standards and then some and the fans are on board too.

“Something is building in the Potteries, everyone can feel it.

“It’s quite an ambitious appointment and I think there’ll be substantial funds available to strengthen the squad.

“For Doug King’s credibility, he wants to get somewhere near the Premier League, and he sees Frank Lampard as part of that.”

Coventry’s legendary former goalkeeper Steve Ogrizovic captured the feeling among Sky Blues followers perfectly when Lampard stepped into Robins’ imposing shoes on 28 November, 2024.

A lot was on the line for King, but Lampard hit the ground running.

Four wins and only three defeats in his first 10 games generated vital momentum before a stunning run of 10 wins in 12, as part of the club’s best league form for half a century, took them from edge of the relegation zone to the verge of the play-off final, losing to the last kick of extra time in their semi-final against Sunderland.

That disappointment, though acute at the time, was softened by the excitement at what Coventry under Lampard could be.

This season we are getting a riotous, technicolour illustration.

No team has scored more than their 39 league goals in England’s professional divisions.

The best start to a Championship season in 25 years has been equalled.

“You can’t make this stuff up.”

BBC CWR sports editor and Coventry City commentator Rob Gurney has lived through all the highs and lows the club have thrown at fans and says that moment to get rid of Robins seemed full of risk at the time.

“The Sky Blues’ fanbase was deeply fractured and divided about the decision,” he said.

“Having dealt with some genuinely emotional supporters jamming the phone lines at BBC CWR on that day, and then a febrile atmosphere at a subsequent live fans’ forum we hosted with Mr King, it seemed totally inconceivable that 12 months on, Robins v Lampard would have such significance attached to it.”

But it has. And Gurney says the two bosses have shown just how good they are.

“Robins has overhauled and transformed Stoke from scufflers at the wrong end of the Championship, to a side riding the crest of a wave, and certainly judging by the recent 5-1 win over Bristol City, a team playing some scintillating football,” he said.

Gurney highlights the impact of loanee goalkeeper Carl Rushworth and his club clean-sheet record, the impact of “The Metronome” in midfield Matt Grimes and the devasting form of strikers Brandon Thomas-Asante and Haji Wright.

Armed with knowledge of many of Lampard’s players, having signed them for Coventry, Robins will no doubt hope that can help level up the frustration of his first visit back to the Sky Blues with Stoke in March.

“The pain of coming back from 2-0 down only to lose 3-2 to a 97th-minute Bobby Thomas winner, will still rankle with Robins whether he’ll admit it publicly or not,” Gurney said.

“All things considered, this could be another match for the ages, in a campaign that’s been littered with them already. And it’s only November.”

Alpine have retained Franco Colapinto for the 2026 Formula 1 season.

The 22-year-old Argentine’s position was in doubt after failing to impress executive adviser Flavio Briatore earlier in the season, but improved performances have secured Colapinto a new contract.

He will partner Frenchman Pierre Gasly, who signed a new multi-year contract in September.

“Our decision to continue together for 2026 is a clear indication of our commitment and strong support for Franco as he develops as a race driver.

“It has been a tough year for the whole team, and it hasn’t been the easiest scenario to perform in, however both Franco and Pierre have done their best to help put the team in the best possible position for next season.”

Colapinto said: “I am very grateful to Flavio and the entire team for their belief in me to help drive the team forwards in the future.”

He started the season as Alpine reserve but was promoted into a race seat in place of Australian Jack Doohan after six races.

Funding from Latin American sponsors was influential in the decision.

Colapinto has failed to score any points so far, while Gasly has 20.

Alpine, who are last in the constructors’ championship, have been through turmoil in the past few years with several changes of management.

Briatore, who led the team to championship success as Benetton in the 1990s and Renault in the 2000s, was brought in midway through last season in an attempt to turn around their fortunes.

Parent company Renault is abandoning its in-house engine programme next season and the team will use Mercedes customer engines.