Recalled Ireland lock Devin Toner fears an English backlash on Sunday at Twickenham after the hosts' stuttering Six Nations start.

SIR CLIVE WOODWARD: England have taken Ireland to the cleaners twice in the past 12 months, but only one of those victories counted for a bean and that was in Dublin 12 months ago.

As the third weekend of Six Nations action draws to a close, Sportsmail's Chris Foy digests the best of the offerings around the grounds...

SIR CLIVE WOODWARD: I was expecting a torrid dogfight against an Ireland team with their tails up and nothing to lose. But what transpired was a strong and disciplined England performance.

The Six Nations is in danger of being disrupted by the coronavirus outbreak, with England's last-day match against Italy in Rome now the subject of hasty contingency planning.

With the virus continuing to spread across the continent, threatening a host of major sporting events, UEFA have accepted that 'football must follow the orders of the individual countries'.

Sam Underhill has lived and played on both sides of the Anglo-Welsh rugby divide and the England flanker believes it is vital to shut out the emotion as the neighbours prepare to renew their rivalry.

The match, to be staged in Rome's Stadio Olimpico, was thought to be under serious threat after the rapid spreading of the virus. But Six Nations chiefs say they expect the fixture to go ahead.

EXCLUSIVE BY NIK SIMON: England's World Cup winning captain Johnson shoots down the prospect of Sky Sports taking over the Six Nations broadcast rights in an instant.

Mako Vunipola has been cleared to train with Saracens despite being stood down by England due to fears surrounding the coronavirus. 

EXCLUSIVE BY CHRIS FOY: Coronavirus fears have prompted ITV to abandon plans to send commentators and pundits out to Rome for England's game against Italy on March 14.

Ross Moriarty needs no second invitation to rip into a Six Nations contest and despite England versus Wales becoming a friendlier he is always out to settle scores.

It has been officially confirmed by the Six Nations that Italy's home match against England next Saturday has been postponed due to the coronavirus crisis.

Mako Vunipola has been named in the Saracens starting side to face Leicester Tigers this weekend despite being stood down from England duty over coronavirus fears.

WILL KELLEHER: Bristol have pulled off another transfer coup by signing young Saracens duo Ben Earl and Max Malins on loan for a year from next season.

England flanker Ben Earl has extended his Saracens stay until 2023 but will spend next season on loan at Bristol.

The Six Nations hierarchy have been ordered to provide urgent assurances about plans for its next TV rights deal, amid 'great concern' at Westminster that the tournament will go behind a paywall.

SIR CLIVE WOODWARD: It has been a disjointed Six Nations full of bad weather and postponed matches. England have spluttered a little but, I'm hoping and expecting to see an all-court performance,

EXCLUSIVE BY CHRIS FOY: England are likely to face a seven-month wait to finish their Six Nations campaign - with plans taking shape for the postponed match against Italy in Rome.

Player's union chief executive Damian Hopley has urged rugby authorities to apply 'common sense' to the process of re-scheduling matches postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Fans have flocked in their droves to the few sporting events on show this Saturday as punters head to Uttoxeter racing while football fans go to non-League games amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Whittingham died as a result of the head injuries he suffered after falling down the stairs at a pub in Barry on March 7 having watched Wales' Six Nations clash with England.

Without the state-of-the-art medical equipment he is used to at Leicester Tigers and the England camp, Jonny May has installed a hyperbaric chamber at his home to help him bounce back from injury.

DEREK LAWRENSON AT PEBBLE BEACH: With eight top five finishes in the majors but no victories, it's hardly surprising that Rickie Fowler is considered the best player under the age of 40.

Tyrrell Hatton is hoping to rekindle an old flame in the 148th Open Championship after admitting he has struggled for motivation since his successful Ryder Cup debut.

Free agent striker Nicky Ajose is weighing up a number of offers after attracting interest from Blackpool, Exeter City and Lincoln City following his release by Charlton.

Rob Cross held off a stirring fightback from Michael Smith to win the Betfred World Matchplay title at Blackpool's Winter Gardens on Sunday night.

ON THE ROAD: The joke wasn't lost on the home fans as they gathered at the Happy Abode. Supping on pre-match lager from plastic pint pots and surrounded by the wrong shade of blue.

Michael Appleton is in talks to become the new manager of Lincoln City. The West Brom U23s coach has held initial discussions and has emerged as favourite to succeed Danny Cowley.

The former Celtic and Aston Villa striker had been talking to Southend United about becoming part of their management team with Henrik Larsson and Johan Mjallby until Johnson pulled out.

Tommy Johnson has joined Blackpool's recruitment staff in a move which led to the collapse last week of Southend's bid to appoint Henrik Larsson as manager at Roots Hall.

Wycombe have paid tribute to supporter Mark Bird, who has died after suffering a heart attack before Tuesday's home game against Blackpool.

Legendary Blackburn Rovers coach Tony Parkes broke down in tears during a revealing interview with his daughter about his struggles with Alzheimers.   

The 41-year-old spent six-and-a-half years at Liverpool's academy and oversaw two of the Reds' first-team games this campaign but will now take charge of the League One side.

JACK GAUGHAN AT THE HIGHBURY STADIUM: Neil Critchley started coaching at Crewe's academy in his teens but taking charge of his first Blackpool fixture did not figure in the grand plan.

MATT BARLOW: When football last ground to a halt back in 1939, Cyril Lawrence was a teenager on the verge of a breakthrough into the Blackpool first team.

The musician, 37, discussed her daughter's reaction to her moment in the spotlight during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Tuesday.

The 2018 MTV Video Music Awards haven’t taken place yet but they are already in the news after Adam Levine mistakenly thought that Childish Gambino's This is America was snubbed.

According to The Sun , the Your Song hitmaker, 27, will belt out the pair's hit single Lonely Together on August 20, which served as the Swedish musician's last song before he passed away.

Karrueche and Victor have been linked since December 2017. The couple recently returned from a getaway to the Bahamas.

The 27-year-old R&B belter introduced rapper Logic's performance with Ryan Tedder onstage Radio City Music Hall

The 35-year-old Barbie Dreams rapper was caught on camera saying 'I am the new Harriet Tubman' just hours after tweeting about her in the run up to the awards on Monday night.

The star caused a stir when she hit the stage at the MTV Video Music Awards — held at New York City's Radio Music Hall — carrying a wrapped-up bundle on Monday night.

Teyana Taylor and Dreamdoll BOTH wore the same trousers to the 2018 VMA Awards on Monday night.

Bebe Rexha channeled her inner Moonman Award in a risque silver set at the 2018 MTV VMAs on Monday night.

One of the controversies to come out from the MTV VMAs 2018 was the amount of stars who did not attend. The likes of Drake, Childish Gambino and Beyonce didn't go. And Twitter noticed.

Hart has previously refused to speak about Trump during interviews and his stand-up routines, but broke with that stance in New York on Monday night as he told the President to 'suck it'.

Camila Cabello shared a hilarious old 2012 tweet wishing she could attend the VMA Awards on Tuesday following her Video Of The Year and Artist Of The Year win at the 2018 ceremony.

After dying her hair platinum blonde for her 21st birthday bash, Kylie Jenner's stylist needed to take proper precautions when creating the star's VMA look to protect her fragile locks.

Social media has erupted in response to Madonna's tribute to Aretha Franklin at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards on Monday night after the singer spent most of the speech talking about herself.