Treasures of Rugby Union

The Treasures of Rugby Union is a celebration of one of the world's oldest international team sports (pre-dating international soccer by a year). It covers the development of the game from the moment William Webb Ellis is reputed to have picked up a ball and run with it during a soccer match at Rugby School in 1823 to the ultra professional game of today and all that happened in between. It focuses on the sport's biggest nations, provides a history of some of rugby's quirkier aspects—such as the British and Irish Lions and Barbarians—and includes a section on sevens rugby, as well as a report on every Rugby World Cup. Packed with never-before-published memorabilia, courtesy of the World Rugby Museum at Twickenham—the home of English rugby—this book, fully revised and updated for the 2015 IRB Rugby World Cup, is part of Carlton Books' highly successful of Treasures series and is essential reading for every rugby fan.