England's World Cup rugby team in trouble again

As rugby misdemeanours go, it hardly ranks alongside illegal drug-taking or deliberately kicking opponents in the head. Or, come to that, having England players splashed all over the tabloids for drunken antics in a dwarf-throwing bar.

But on Thursday England's Rugby Football Union was forced to suspend two of its coaching staff after an investigation found they smuggled Jonny Wilkinson's favourite ball on to the pitch during a World Cup match with Romania so he could use it for place-kicks.

Rugby regulations state the ball used to score a try must be used for the subsequent conversion, where the ball is kicked between the posts for an extra two points. But during England's match in Dunedin the team felt one of the eight numbered match balls used during the game was superior to the others for kicking.  Read More

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