Israel Folau: Australian Christian lobby hosts new fundraising effort

ACL steps in after GoFundMe pulls plug on former Wallabies star’s online appeal

The Australian Christian Lobby is hosting a fundraising effort on its website for the former Wallabies star Israel Folau after his GoFundMe page was shut down.

As at 7am Tuesday, almost $50,000 had been donated via the link on the ACL site, with the group also committing to tip in $100,000 to Folau’s legal challenge. By 8.30am, $250,000 had been raised.

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Rugby World Cup committee warns Japan not to run out of beer

Issue was raised as part of briefing sessions in cities tipped to deal with the largest influx of international visitors

It’s the stuff of nightmares for rugby fans: organisers of the upcoming World Cup in Japan have raised fears that bars and restaurants in host cities could run out of beer during the tournament.

As part of the planning for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, the organising committee has urged business operators to order in sufficient quantities of beer to avoid upsetting travelling fans, Japan’s Jiji Press agency reported.

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Ireland’s calling: a journey to the heart of a rugby powerhouse | Donald McRae

Ireland are favourites for the Six Nations and are serious contenders for the World Cup this year, with a spirit that transcends national boundaries. How have they done it?

“It just wouldn’t happen today,” Willie John McBride says on a rainy morning at home in Ballyclare as he explains the vast differences between the gleaming powerhouse of Irish rugby today and a ramshackle sport which he only began playing at the age of 17. Four years later, in 1962, as McBride remembers, “I was in the Lions Test team. Remarkably, I survived.”

McBride not only survived. At 78 he remains the godfather of Irish rugby and a lock forward who won 63 caps for Ireland and played a record 17 Lions Tests. He also provides a perfect starting point for a journey through Irish rugby as McBride’s story shows how much Ireland and the game have changed. Despite past sectarian conflicts and multiple identities, there is a new cohesion among the four rugby provinces and the national team.

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