Twickenham ready to 'sweat'

The RFU has been trying for years to make Twickenham 'sweat' - accountancy-speak for the stadium paying its way. A High Court ruling yesterday will at least save the Union a bit on deodorant.

They are free to promote Luciano Pavarotti and anyone else, except for the heavy rock merchants, in three concerts per year but no more. Justice Ouseley, a rugby enthusiast, rejected the RFU's bid for permission to stage an unlimited number of concerts. A Pavarotti concert would generate seven-figure receipts and make a dent in the RFU's £30m overdraft.

Ian Vass will fill in at scrum half for Northampton following the loss of Matt Dawson and Dominic Malone for tomorrow's home European Cup tie against Montferrand. The French club have a £10,000 fine suspended for the rest of the season after being found guilty of abusing a match official.