The British and Irish Lions will be strong in New Zealand

The British and Irish Lions will be strong in New Zealand next year, with Eddie Jones English stars leading the way, says Fran Cotton. Former England captain, Cotton, went on three Lions tours as a player, and was tour manager in South Africa in 1997.He spent nine years working in a number of roles with the Rugby Football Union, and has just been made chairman of Sale Sharks, who he expects to provide several players to England. Cotton says he has been hugely impressed by England since Jones took over - the Aussie has won his first nine matches in charge, incorporating a Six Nations Grand Slam, a friendly win over Wales and a 3-0 series sweep in Australia. Fran Cotton has been appointed the new chairman of Sale It was absolutely fantastic to win the Six Nations, Cotton told Sky Sports News HQ. It is even more impressive to go to Australia and win three Tests. Its easy to go there and win one - but to win three? That is some achievement.England are in a good place. We won in Australia, the U20s won the World Cup. The Saxons beat their counterparts in South Africa. English rugby is in a good place at the moment.Where Eddie has been good is his selection has been spot on and consistent. Hes not afraid of making major decisions, in selection and in games. He exudes confidence all the time and that translates to the players. Dan Lydiate of the Lions runs with the ball in the second Test against Australia in 2013 And some talented players are coming through - look at Maro Itoje, at 21, how good is he going to be in four, five years time? We are still some way to go if we are going to for fulfil ambitions of winning the World Cup. But we have made one hell of a start under Eddie Jones.A strong England should mean a strong Lions squad in New Zealand next year. The Lions beat Australia three years ago but taking on the world champions will be a significantly tougher prospect.Next year Im sure every player will be excited. Its a tough tour, looking at the itinerary, said Cotton. I think we have a good chance. We have got a very strong England team. Scotland have improved, Ireland are coming through. We have a good squad - and we will need it. The Lions celebrate a famous series win The midweek games look just as tough. Its a big challenge - but I think we will do well.Will there be any Sharks in the Lions squad?We are certainly hoping so, Cotton added. They have to get into the England squad first and they have to play for Sale - and play well for Sale - first. We have some exciting young players and we will be helping them to do as well as they can. Also See: Jones declines Lions tour Sale target top-four finish Rugby on Sky Follow @SkySportsRugby Luis Muriel Jersey . 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He signed with the Braves in June 2013 out of Arizona Christian, an NAIA school, and is on the roster of the rookie-level Gulf Coast League Braves.The most under-rated team in the FBS resides in the great state of Michigan. To the surprise of many, it isnt the Wolverines but their in-state rivals the Michigan State Spartans. Head Coach Mark Dantonio leads a capable offence, and one of the best defences the Big 10 has ever seen. Outside of a loss to Notre Dame back in September, the Spartans have been perfect, working their way up the BCS rankings where they currently sit 16th. With Nebraska, Northwestern, Minnesota and potentially Ohio State in the Big 10 Championship game still on the schedule, Michigan State has a chance to crack the Top 10 and wind up in the Rose Bowl. For a team you have heard very little about, the upside for the Spartans is incredibly high. And its well deserved. In their nine games, eight wins and one loss, the Spartans have given up more than 17 points just once. In their last three games theyve combined to give up just nine points total. They have allowed 11.6 points per game which is third-best in the FBS. Now paired with their daunting defence is an offence that has provided capable of keeping pace. Sophomore Connor Cook has taken over as the starting quarterback and has tossed 13 touchdowns and only three interceptions. Jeremy Langford has done a respectable job replacing Leveon Bell with 11 total touchdowns out of the backfield. The fact of the matter is the Spartans have been dismissed because of all the talk that the Big 10 is "down" and the conference is well behind the likes of the SEC, Pac-12, ACC and Big 12. The truth is while the depth in the conference is down; the top end could compete with all of those other conferences. The three-headed monster of Ohio State, Michigan State and Wisconsin is capable of hanging with the other powers. Currently Michigan State sits behind Northern Illinois, Fresno State, and two-loss teams in UCLA and South Carolina in the BCS standings. On a neutral field the Spartans would win gamess against all four of those teams - a few of them handily.dddddddddddd Depending on how they perform the rest of the season, it may take until the bowl season for Michigan State to prove that their ranking has been a sham all along, and the Spartans should have been considered elite long ago. Teams dont need to score 60 points to be exciting or successful, and the Spartans are the number one team at proving that point. They have work left to be done, starting with the Cornhuskers this weekend, but keep an eye out for Michigan State as they take a run at the Big 10 Title and a berth in a BCS bowl game. Other notes from around the NCAA: -Michigan lost their first game at home under Brady Hoke, falling to Nebraska. Theyve combined for minus-69 rushing yards the last two games. -Tyler Gaffney ran the ball 45 times in Stanfords upset win over Oregon, good for the new Cardinal school record. -Auburn scored 55 points against Tennessee despite attempting only seven passes. Theyve won two straight games without attempting 10 passes in either contest. -92 points and 1,092 yards in the Texas A&M win over Mississippi State. In likely his last game at Kyle Field Johnny Manziel tossed five touchdowns and three interceptions. -Tyler Cameron completed five passes and threw three interceptions against FSU. Amazingly, he wasnt even the teams worst QB on the day – that title goes to Tanner Price who had three picks and only one completion. The six INTs by Florida State were a school record. -Pitt upset Notre Dame 28-21. In the fourth quarter Ray Vinopal had interceptions on back-to-back passes by Fighting Irish QB Tommy Rees. -The 38 points Alabama scored against LSU were the most since they put up 41 back in 1947. -UCF RB Storm Johnson had his third 100-yard rushing game of the year and the Knights are tops in the American Conference. The stat may not be that impressive, but the name Storm Johnson sure is. Cheap Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale Jerseys China Wholesale Black NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Store Disocunt Football Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Throwback ' ' '