Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, Archbishop of Westminster and Spiritual Leader of the Roman Catholic Church in England, has today sent a message of support to the England Rugby team as they prepare for the World Cup Final against Australia tomorrow.

Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor, who played rugby at a senior level in England and Italy, said:

“ As a life long rugby fan, I have followed the home nations' performances in this World Cup very closely and, like millions of others across the country, will be following every kick and tackle live on television tomorrow morning.

' We have seen some tremendous performances from the England team in this competition already and as we approach the climax of the tournament in Sydney, I know they will continue to do us all proud.'