England defeated Italy 19-15 Saturday in the first Six Nations match to be played at Rome's Stadio Olimpico. England next face Wales at Twickenham on Feb. 25 while winless Italy travel to Dublin to face Ireland.
Welshman Leigh Halfpenny kicked a last-minute penalty to help Wales secure a dramatic 23-21 victory over Ireland in the opening round of the Six Nations on Sunday.
Title favourites France opened their Six Nations campaign with a 30-12 victory over a gallant Italian side on Saturday, avenging their shock defeat to the same opponents in Rome last year.
Rugby's Six Nations tournament kicks off Saturday, with France set to play Italy at the Stade de France. France made it through to the last World Cup finals, but Italy beat Les Bleus in last year's Six Nations.
The New Zealand Rugby Union appointed Steve Hansen (pictured) as the new head coach of the world champion All Blacks on Friday, replacing Graham Henry who stepped down after winning the World Cup.
English rugby star Johnny Wilkinson announced his retirement from international rugby on Monday. The 32-year-old will continue to play club-level rugby for French club Toulon.
Australia sent defending Rugby World Cup champions South Africa home Sunday after beating them 11–9 to secure a place in next week's second semi-final matchup against New Zealand, who crushed Argentina 33-10 on Sunday.
New Zealand's All Blacks face rivals France at Eden Park early on Saturday, kicking off a weekend of matches in which the quarter-final lineup of the Rugby World Cup is likely to start shaping up.
Australia’s Wallabies beat the United States 67-5 in the Rugby World Cup Friday, six days after losing to Ireland, but its victory was tainted by a heavy injury toll.
France coach Marc Lievremont has sprung a major surprise by picking Clermont scrum-half Morgan Parra (pictured right) has his No. 10 for the pivotal game against New Zealand's All Blacks on Saturday.
