He may be the rugby union specialist but Sam also regularly turns his hand to cricket, athletics, and pretty much anything covered in the Olympics - and he's no slouch when it comes to football either.

1pm Welcome to this week's live web chat with Sam Wheeler. First up is a question on a subject close to your heart: Why has the English Rugby Union team, with the largest player base in the world and umpteen specialist coaches still struggled to live up to the standards set by Wales?

Sam: They haven't. England reached the World Cup final, Wales were knocked out by Fiji in the group stages. England also finished above Wales in the Six Nations last year - I think the Welsh only won one game.

England have been poor in the Six Nations. However, they are still operating at a disadvantage, in terms of preparation time. This disadvantage will be removed in the summer, when the agreement between the RFU and the clubs kicks in.

Key English players are off-form and they are horribly weak in key areas (hooker, scrum-half, full-back). But there are decent players coming through and I feel they will generally be better than Wales over time.

1.07pm The Sam Wheeler on Rugby column often includes some forthright comments. In hindsight have you ever been proved wrong or wished you'd not written what you did?

Sam: Er, there have been a few daft things.

Probably the one I would change is a column rather than a match report: when Leeds beat Harlequins in what was effectively a relegation decider in 2005, I failed to recognise the importance of the win under such pressure and was unduly critical of their play.

Maybe predicting that Rotherham would avoid relegation in 2003-04 was a mistake - they lost every game. And I thought the All Blacks would win the World Cup easily. And that England would be humbled in the quarter-final.

I once wrote a story that Harrogate RUFC were moving to Killingbeck (an inner-city part of Leeds, and an unlikely destination for what a colleague once described as Harrogate's Barbour-and-brogue brigade)) when I meant the leafy, affluent suburb of Killinghall.

If there's any particular opinion anyone reckons I got horribly wrong, please remind me. It would give my colleagues a laugh.

1.17pm Hardcore fans of rugby union in Leeds feel the club has lost a lot of what the Tykes name stood for since the takeover by Carnegie. Do you feel the takeover by Leeds Met Carnegie and the name change have been beneficial for the club?

Sam: Well, crowds have certainly improved since the Met took over - Leeds are averaging almost double what they were two years ago.

I don't like the name and I like the mascot even less. However, there was not a huge amount of history to besmirch - the club is only 15-odd years old, and the Tykes name was in place for barely a decade.

On the playing side, the values do not seem to have changed much.

The extent of the Met's financial commitment to the club has yet to be tested. One can complain that Leeds did not sign the calibre of players required to beat Premiership teams on a regular basis, but recruitment was difficult for this season. By the time Leeds won National One, in April all the best players were signed up to other clubs. The Met's commitment will become apparent if, as looks probable, Leeds are
relegated.

1.26pm Which do you prefer out of rugby union and rugby league and why??

Sam: Having grown up in Ireland and in the south of England, I had little contact with rugby league - in Ireland, people talk of rugby, not rugby union. If you mention 'union and league', they say 'which one do we play?'

My background means that I missed out on the antipathy and prejudice between the codes. I started watching league with an open mind and find it entertaining. The skill levels are generally higher.

I am a bit spoilt because the majority of league games I have seen involve the top handful of clubs at sold-out stadia. Maybe if I watched the equivalent of National Two, with a smattering of spectators watching part-timers, I would be less impressed.

Overall, I still prefer union, probably because I have a better understanding of the tactical requirements, and because I usually know the individuals involved in matches I watch.

1.34pm: I would like to hear Sam's view on drugs use in sport. Should there be an "open use" policy for athletes, after all it's their body they are abusing, or should we impose a lifetime ban on those people caught using performance enhancing drugs?

Sam: The "open use" policy is an interesting argument but I feel it would be a disaster for sport at all levels.

Many banned drugs are severely harmful and can lead to death - see the case of cyclist Tom Simpson.

Dying sportsmen would put people off sport, especially young people.

I don't want to see contests between laboratories ("and in the cocaine corner, taking on the anabolic steroid champion . . . ") or between athletes turned into automatons by drugs, and I don't think many people would.

However, drug-testing is not an exact science. Many of the chemicals the authorities test for are produced naturally by the body. There are too many grey areas for lifetime bans to be imposed - unless there is conclusive proof that an athlete knowingly took a substance he/she knew was prohibited.

Personally, I have lost interest in sports that appear to be infested with drugs. I rarely watch sprinting or cycling any more. Or power-lifting.

Testing is imperative, and the testers must have access to the best science, to keep ahead of the dopers.

1.38pm In light of the Dwain Chambers affair, what is the difference between a performance enhancing drug and a supplement? Except, of course, the obvious one that one is illegal and one isn't.

Sam: Good question.

I have been speaking to an anti-doping officer and WADA (theb world anti-doping body that operates across most sports) have three categories. If a substance ticks two of the boxes, it is banned:

1) Is it performance-enhancing?
2) Is it against the spirit of sport?
3) Is it bad for an athlete's health?

Legal supplements apparently do not tick boxes 2 and 3, but I'm sure the banned list is reviewed regularly.

Chambers knowingly took THG, a 'designer' steroid. It definitely ticks boxes 1 and 2 and although I'm not a medical man, I reckon it probably ticks box 3.

As I said in answering the previous question, it is not an exact science and there will always be grey areas.

1.45pm Do you think British athletes should boycott Beijing?

Sam: No.

China's human rights record leaves plenty to be desired - although my knowledge of the situation is a a bit ropy - but having the world's spotlight on the country could do a lot of good for the people of China.

Chinese citizens will have more chance of protesting against the government with billions of people watching.

Certainly athletes should not be gagged, and they should be allowed to wear masks to protect themselves from pollution regardless of whether it offends the host nation.

From an athlete's point of view, the Olympic Games is the highlight of their careers and they should not boycott Beijing unless they have researched the situation thoroughly and are convinced that they have a moral imperative not to travel.

You could make a case for boycotting most countries (UK and USA over Iraq?) but I don't believe that participating at Beijing constitutes an endorsement of the Chinese government.

There's 15 minutes to go to get your question in to Sam... email sportonline@ypn.co.uk NOW.

1.51pm What do you think about the proliferation of former sports stars writing in newspapers? Does it make you livid?

Sam: It makes me mildly depressed, mostly from a selfish point of view because it limits my opportunities.

There is no reason why a former sports star should not be able to write (or broadcast) as well as anyone else, but there is no reason why they should be able to do it better, either.

Some of them are excellent but too many are content to trot out limp platitudes rather than offering genuine insight or constructive criticism.

I don't understand the proliferation of ghost-written columns, especially in the broadsheets. I would rather read a genuine writer. And if that genuine writer happens to be an ex-sportsman, I've no problem.

1.57pm The big question of the week - in more ways than one... Does the suggestion of the '39th game' not seem likely to lead to the eventual creation of G14's European super league. The premiership's big 4 will command attendances wherever they go which can not be said about the other premiership teams.

This will give them the evidence they require to prove that a European League could work. Is the premier league idiotic to provide G14 such an obvious stepping stone to what will be their most lucrative amendment to the current league structure?

Sam: Fans should fight against the 39th Game for many reasons but I don't think there is any move towards a Eurropean Super League - the European Super League already exists in all but name, in the Champions league, for which the same big clubs qualify every year.

Even the greediest clubs would realise that people won't want to see Man U vs Real Madrid eight times a season.

1.59pm One of the Premier Leagues venues for their away day abroad was China in February. Are they aware that it is minus 10 at the moment. Whilst the idea may be a good one has it been thought out?

Sam: That's the best news I've heard in ages. I didn't think I'd pay to watch any of the 39th Games but I would shell out to watch Ronaldo or Frank Lampard freezing his extremities off.

Are there any games scheduled for Siberia in mid-winter? Or maybe the Sahara in high summer? Bangladesh in monsoon season?

2.01pm So last question then... How will Huddersfield do at Chelsea? Can they pull off a shock?

Sam: Short answer: No.

Longer answer: However doughtily Huddersfield perform - and I'm sure they'll put up a good fight - Chelsea have too much quality. Even if they make a few changes, Chelsea are so resilient and hard to break down at home. The best teams in Europe can't beat them at Stamford Bridge and I can't see Huddersfield doing it.

And that's the hour up. Thank you to Sam and to everyone who sent questions in - sorry if we didn't get round to yours but there will be another web chat next week with another expert from the Yorkshire Post sportsdesk.

Click here to see last week's web chat with sports editor Matt Reeder...