(See panel)
including at 12.45* News Summary
Introduced by David Coleman
direct from Twickenham
Today's Timetable:
12.20 Football Focus
12.50 Racing
1.10 Ski-ing
1.20 Racing
1.40 Bobsleigh/Ski-ing
1.50 Racing
2.10 Bobsleigh
2.20 Rugby Union
3.50 Half-time scores
3.55 Rugby Union
4.35 Final Score
Timings subject to alteration
12.20 Football Focus
Bob Wilson previews this afternoon's League programme and looks back at this week's League Cup semi-finals.
12.50; 1.20; 1.50 Racing from Wetherby
1.0 The Philip Cornes Novices' Hurdle Race (Qualifier. 3m)
1.30 The Selby Handicap Steeple-chase (3m 100y)
2.0 The Panama Cigar Hurdle Race (Qualifier. 2m)
1.10; 1.40 World Ski-ing Championships from Haus, Austria: The Ladies' Slalom
The final Ladies' event in this year's Championships. World Cup leader, Erika Hess, from Switzerland, is the favourite.
1.40; 2.10 World Bobsleigh Championships from St Moritz: The Two-Man Bob
At winter sport's most glamorous resort in the world, down a twisting tunnel of ice at 80 mph, come the 'Kamikaze men' of bobsleigh. Tony Gubba reports on the first two runs of this weekend's event, where the East Germans, the World Champions, are favourites.
2.20 International Rugby Union from Twickenham: England v Ireland
With Ireland's triumphant display in beating Wales, and England drawing with Scotland in the Calcutta Cup, all is now set for a thrilling Championship season. Ireland today come to Twickenham where they've won three times in the last decade, though England's recent record will still make them favourites to achieve a hat-trick of wins against the Irish.
3.50 Half-time football scores
3.55 Wales v France from Cardiff Arms Park
For Wales, the immediate task today is to restore self-confidence following a demoralising defeat at Lansdowne Road. They now face reigning Grand Slam Champions France who open their title defence today. Wales will take heart from the fact that their last defeat in Cardiff in the Championship was 14 years ago - the year, incidentally, when France first won the Grand Slam.
Bill McLaren writes: "Ireland are now the only country who can achieve Triple-Crown success, but captain Ciaran Fitzgerald left no one in any doubt after their stirring victory over Wales that the English at Twickenham would be a vastly different proposition. He played in the corresponding game two years ago when Ireland, pre-match favourites, were put to the sword. England's Bill Beaumont is convinced they can still win the Championship but in order to do so they must surmount a formidable Irish challenge that incorporated against the Welsh not only traditional fire in foraging forward, but skill, awareness and cohesion in the creation of three exciting tries.
France and Ireland are the only ones who could now achieve a Grand Slam so there is keen anticipation of the Frenchmen's entry to the fray, and the Welsh valleys are alive with a united appeal to the Almighty to restore to their forwards the aggression, urgency and stamina crucially lacking at Lansdowne Road."
4.35 Final Score
The classified check and pools news, plus match reports.
Rugby scores and reports on Ceefax
