RugbyBits: Recent Episodes
RugbyBits
RugbyBits focuses on the Springboks, the United Rugby Championships and #SaffasAbroad, while also looking at the big news and results all over the rugby world.
The podcast is co-hosted by Jared Wright, Kuhle Sonsiki, Shaun Lilford and Thala Msutu.
Visit our webiste at rugbybits.com
We are joined by Charlie Morgan as we preview the big England v South Africa test.
We look into the coaching merry-go-round with Steve Borthwick's assistants, the defensive set up, what Freddie Steward is picked for and a lot more.
Kooks, Thala and Shaun then go through the Springbok squad and pick their pressure points ahead of the big clash
Kooks and Shaun take a deep dive into the Springboks' win over Scotland, we take a look at each player, decide which 9 we want to start against England and Shaun explains how the Scotland minds stopped them from winning
We look at a brilliant All Black win and ask again why Razor failed to use his bench. Have Ireland lost all the players that get the team fired up?
England were next to be upset as the Wallabies secured their best win under Joe Schmidt. We look at the midfield and focus on Joseph Sua'ali'i
We glance over the French and Los Puma's wins and talk up Antoine Dupont ahead of the All Black clash.
Thala, Shaun and Kooks have a look at magnificent Mark and how the All Blacks beat England.
We start off with our first phase of which Scotland player you would start for the Springboks and we pay tribute to Joe Marler who retired from test rugby but not before helping give the fans what they really want when watching the Haka.
With the Autumn Nations Series well underway we look at England and how they got undone by New Zealand, we unpack the bizarre running meters by the Scotland backs and Thala issues a Q&A ahead of Round 2.
Kooks and Thala come again for Part 2 of their Autumn Nations Series preview and they focus more on the players in this round.
Kooks and Thala discuss whether Pieter-Steph du Toit has the World Rugby Player of the Year award in the bag, which Springboks and Ireland players could contest and what the size of meltdown would be if Antoine Dupont wins it without playing a test this year.
We then discuss which best players in a position in a world title fights are happening in November - we look forward to Sione Tuipulotu measuring himself up against Damian de Allende and the triple threat match between Ardie Savea, Caelan Doris and Gregory Alldritt.
We finally look at some of the news from the rugby world, including Munster firing Graham Rowntree, Joe Marler sparking yet another Haka debate and the additions to the Springboks squad.
Kooks and Thala have a two-part preview for the Autumn Nations Series and ask the burning questions for the upcoming games.
We first share memories and discuss why the Autumn Nations Series is the most special part of the international rugby calendar and if rugby played in the southern hemisphere is given that yellow filter like they do for movies set in Mexico.
We first discuss which team has the most to gain this series and why the All Blacks, England and Italy could make big statements with a strong November and what the potential pitfalls are.
We then discuss what would be success for the two top nations, the Springboks and Ireland - do they have to be unbeaten for a successful November? Which newer players might appear for both sides?
We then finish off with the coaches on the chopping block. We look at whether Wales can have their first win of the year and if Gregor Townsend has taken Scotland as far as he can before technical difficulties cut us off for Part 1
Kooks and Thala review week 5 of the URC and the Springbok squad for the Autumn Nations Series.
Kooks and Thala discuss the return of Damian Willemse in the squad and Ruan Nortje, Elrigh Louw and Jan-Hendrik Wessels staying in the squad.
Then we discuss if we might have made a mistake placing Ulster at the bottom of our tiers list last week. We break down impressive wins for the Stormers and the Sharks, a gritty defensive win for the Lions. We discuss why the Bulls can’t play in second halves and why Munster’s lineout is faltering.
We then look at some of the rugby news around the world, including why behind the back passes are apparently bad, whether Japan has any chance to knock over New Zealand and Kooks has a rant for all the different kickoff times for the Autumn Nations Series.
Kooks and Thala rank the URC into tiers after 4 rounds of the URC. We divide the teams into four different tiers: Championship Contenders, Playoff Locks, Dark Horses and Basement Dwellers.
Find out where we rank the South African teams. Why we think it’s the year for the Lions to make some playoff noise, why the Bulls are still championship contenders, why Stormers fans shouldn’t be too concerned (yet) and what exactly are the Sharks cooking.
We also won’t be tricked by Munster, still need to be convinced by the Wales teams, Kooks challenges Benetton and impressed with the defending champions Glasgow.
We also discuss why Squidge Rugby seems to have lost the South African Twitter streets, Siya Kolisi advocating for women’s rugby and which award has Faf de Klerk been nominated for alongside Antoine Dupont and Pieter-Steph du Toit.
Jared and Shaun go over the weekends result that saw the Springboks secure their first 'real' Rugby Championship title since 2009.
We discuss the performances from Saturday and look at the Bledisloe Cup plus how the two sides will fare in the future.
We take a look at the Springbok midfield and how the future looks
Kooks and Sharky chat about how upsetting the Springbok loss was. We look into a brilliant Los Pumas performance and where it went wrong for the Springboks.
We take a look at the new Springbok match day 23 and have a bit of a wobble at the end leaving Sharky to sign off
Thala and Shaun have a look at the Springboks squad that Rassie Erasmus named ahead of the opening Los Pumas test.
We look into each position and highlight the inexperience of the pack and Shaun makes a call on how Manie Libbok will be introduced.
We look at how Scott Robertson is on a razor's edge with his job and talk loose trio's Bledisloe Cup results and more.
Lastly we look at the Currie Cup and make some bold URC predictions
Kooks and Shaun take a look at the second Springbok win over rivals New Zealand in the Rugby Championship.
The Springbok set up a great chance of taking the Rugby Championship title in the 5th round against Argentina away.
We look at which players performed on both sides, dive into the absolute disaster of a second test for the Wallabies and look at which Springboks should tour next week.
We both disagree on the Willie le Roux yellow card and Shaun is unhappy with World Rugby's 'No Stoppages' plan.
We look into how the Rugby Championship could possibly fit into a 2026 when the Springboks host New Zealand in Mnzansi for a mammoth tour. Kooks highlights the importance of a Grand Slam tour in November and he hits Shaun with a 'Pop Quiz'
Jamie Wall joins us again as we look ahead to a very important test in Cape Town.
Both teams have made changes and Jamie explains why it is hard to get used to an All Blacks side being dictated too. We look at the team, the strange but exciting All Black loose trio and the wings on both sides. We try and understand the thoughts behind the Jordan and Sititi positional selections and Jamie looks into the Kolisi/Cane online battle
Jamie predicts and epic midfield battle again with his eyes firmly on Jordie Barrett.
We discuss the beauties of South Africa, brandy and braai's and so much more.
Thala and Shaun walk through the Springbok test and how well the All Blacks started, we talk about the impact the Bomb Squad made and what the All Blacks need to do to win this type of game.
We take a deep dive into all the controversial moments and set the record straight on the Aphelia Fassi yellow card and the Bongi Mbonambi try.
We welcome Jamie Wall who is in South Africa following the All Blacks on their two test tour. Jamie is and Author and Journalist.
He has written four books on the All Blacks including The Hundred Years' War about the Springbok and All Black rivalry. You can order his books here (https://www.jamiewallrugby.com/buy-my-books)
We discuss the funny inclusion of Eben Etzebeth into the squad, look into how Beauden Barrett will become the most capped All Black, where the All Blacks are strong, who are their options at 10 and much much more. Finally we chat about Hadleigh Parkes and his full circle moment on re-signing with Manawatu in the NPC.
Kooks, Thala and Shaun give their thoughts on Rassie Erasmus' Springboks squad he named for the opening All Black test in Johannesburg.
We go through the surprise calls, who will drop out if Eben Etzebeth is passed fit and take a look at the David Nucifora and Felix Jones news.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala break down the Springbok squad selected for the home double against the All Blacks.
We discuss whether how match sharp Jaden Hendrikse has looked since coming back to play for the Sharks. We discuss if Steven Kitshoff has to win his place in the 23 back from Gerhard Steenkamp and whether Elrigh Louw has done enough or will Jasper Wiese come straight back into the Bok 23. We discuss why Nico Janse van Rensburg was recalled after being out of the picture for 3 years. We even try to pick our matchday 23s for the Ellis Park game.
We then react to Leon MacDonald stepping down as the All Blacks assistant coach and speculate if this is also Rieko Ioane’s fault. We also react to the news that the negotiations for Siya Kolisi to rejoin the Sharks have stalled and whether Jacky Lorenzetti will make sure he plays every match from Racing in the future.
Shaun and Thala review week 2 of the Rugby Championship.
We start with the Springboks’ bonus point victory over Australia. We discuss what we learned and saw from the second stringers, the impressive and error free performance of Aphelele Fassi, the workhorse performance from Ruan Nortje and why Jan-Hendrik Wessels reminds Thala of Pierre Spies.
Shaun raves about the calmness of Lukhanyo Am, and whether Pieter-Steph du Toit might be the best blindside flank ever.
Looking at the other Rugby Championship sides, we discuss what the Wallabies are trying to be good at and the value of Nic White and Marika Koroibete, why Argentina can’t back up big wins and the ruthlessness of the All Blacks up front led by Tamaiti Williams and Ethan Blackadder.
Shaun and Thala preview Week 2 of the Rugby Championship by looking forward on Australia hosting South Africa and Argentina looking for their 2nd win in two weeks in New Zealand.
We first look at the experience bought in by Joe Schmidt with the selections of Nic White and Marika Koroibete. We discuss how Angus Bell can change fortunes at the scrum and we look at how Australia could test Lukhanyo Am defending at 12.
For the All Blacks we try to figure out what Scott Robertson is doing with these changes to the backline, Shaun talks about how they need better performances from their locks and flanks and Thala looks forward to more kicking from the All Blacks. We finally talk about some of the surprises in the Pumas selection, including Kremer at lock and the return of Montoya and what a Pumas victory could mean.
Thala, Kooks and Shaun go over the Springbok performance in Australia as the South African's equalled a record held since 1993.
We look at star performers, unpack how poor the Wallabies are, check if John Kirwan has stopped spinning and gasp at the huge changes made by Rassie.
Before we end we look into Cheslin Arendse and have some fun combing players into the Universal Soldier
We are joined by Brett and Harry from the 89 Combo as we look ahead to the opening Rugby Championship clash against Australia in Australia.
We look at the Springbok match day 23 and where the Wallabies will look to target and counter act the Springbok strength's
Kooks and Thala wade into the Antoine Dupont goat debate dominating social media after France won the gold in the Olympic Sevens.
Join us as we try to have a balanced discussion about what do we look for in the GOAT debate, why Dupont stands out, his impact on the Sevens and why both sides of the debate need to calm down. We also warn South African fans that this alliance with New Zealand on this debate may come back to bite us!
We then give our flowers to Fiji as they finally lose an Olympics Sevens game. We talk about the strong defence that led to Blitzboks winning bronze. The superstar Ilona Maher is and why Shelly-Ann Fraser Price is watching Sevens now. We finally discuss whether the success of Cheslin Kolbe and Kwagga Smith might be great for the Springboks but hurts the Blitzboks.
Thala, Kooks and Shaun unpack the Springbok squad that was announced earlier this week.
We look at surprise inclusions, surprise omissions and each pick the one player we want to see play in one or both of the tests vs the Wallabies
Kooks, Shaun and Thala look back on the weekend’s test matches, focusing on South Africa’s victory over Portugal in Bloemfontein.
Shaun as the leader of the Ben Jason Dixon fan club raved about his impressive performance as he filled the big boots of his hyphen brother Pieter-Steph du Toit. We talk about other new Boks that possibly played themselves into the Rugby Championship squad, including Johan Grobelaar and Aphelele Fassi.
Kooks reminds us to get excited and to hype up Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, but Shaun and Thala debate about where this leaves Manie Libbok after another unimpressive outing with the kicking tee. We discuss whether the Boks need Ruan Nortje to run their lineouts, the value of Salmaan Moerat and whether Jan-Hendrik Wessels needs to move to another franchise to get game time.
On the Portugal side, Simao Bento has gained fans for life and we talk about how this young Portuguese side will continue to grow in the years to come.
We then look back on a great weekend of Tier 1 v Tier 2 test matches, with Australia v Georgia and Akaki Tabusadze’s 100 meter try being the pick of the bunch. We question how the All Blacks look after their victory over Fiji, are surprised by big wins for Italy and Argentina and look at Warren Gatland’s most erecent attempt to get fired.
Francisco takes us through what to expect from Portugal and explains how this game is on free to air TV in Portugal. The team and fans are looking forward to facing the World Champions.
Francisco breaks down the Springbok backs and explains what to expect with Lukhanyo Am and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu
Kooks, Shaun and Thala review the second weekend of July internationals. We start with the Springboks’ first loss of the season as Ireland level the 2-match series in Durban. Shaun discusses how Ireland took control of the game, Ciaran Frawley’s amazing drop goals and how Ireland seemed to figure out how to attack the Springboks.
On the Boks side, we investigate whether there is reason to panic for the Springboks, how the Tony Brown inspired attack faltered and we reflect on some positives, like Ox Nche and Thala discusses why Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu might be an industry plant.
We then look at the other internationals this week, including why England look like the best side that’s been whitewashed in a series in a while, whether Damian McKenzie passed the flyhalf audition, how exactly you stop Mark Tele’a. We try to discuss what Wales are good at, how Australia are progressing under Joe Schmidt, France’s weak from hell and big movements in the World Rugby rankings.
Kooks and Judge Rugby take a look at the #RSAvIRE squads ahead of their final test.We discuss tactics, the pressure points and who we are most worried about.The Springboks have the upper hand but IrishRugby won't roll over
Thala, Kooks and Shaun recap the weekends action as England make the All Blacks sweat, Tom Wright does it all himself and Jesse Kriel beats Ireland with Kolisi and du Toit as wingers
K
ooks and Thala preview the July test window, focusing especially on the epic clash between South Africa and Ireland.
We react to the Springboks selection and what the omission of Evan Roos and the selection of Kwagga Smith and Marco van Staden tells us. We discuss what opportunity some Bok rookies like Gerhard Steenkamp and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu have. We debate whether the Boks will play this like a World Cup knockout game or like how they played against Wales in Twickenham. We also look into the war of words (at least from the South African side) and why this series might be the battle for the custody of the Zombies song.
We look at the other July internationals and discuss why England might have a great chance to cause an upset against the All Blacks, who needs a win more between Australia and Wales, what can be expected between Argentina and France and the opportunity to see Italy, Samoa, Georgia, Fiji and Scotland play too. We talk a bit of Junior World Cup and shout out since retiring legends in Michael Hooper and Portia Woodman-Wickliffe.
Kooks and Thala talk to Irish journalist for the 42 Murray Kinsella to look at the Ireland side touring South Africa for the test series.
We discuss what the opponents are in each country and why there is a lot of back and forth on social media between the two sides.
We talk about the possibility of Jamie Osborne starting at fullback and what he possibly brings, why this is a massive test for Craig Casey, what the inclusion of Kwagga Smith means for the Boks and why Luke Pearce will have his work cut out in reffing the rucks and scrums.
Listen to why South Africans love to hate Joe McCarthy, Murray’s interaction with an enthusiastic Uber driver and Ireland’s time with the School of Hard Knocks.
Glasgow win the URC, Edwill shines at Twickenham and make Bok squad debates toxic again
Kooks, Shaun and Thala look back on a weekend of rugby which included Glasgow’s epic URC final victory in Pretoria over the Bulls.
Shaun and Kooks share what happened in their weekend together watching the final at Loftus (which left Shaun worse for wear). We then break down the URC Final, how Glasgow stuck to their plan after falling 13-0 down, their impressive defence and whether the Bulls attack or Bulls defence was more disappointing. Kooks shares his thoughts about whether the stadium music ruined the atmosphere, Shaun shares on him being snubbed by Kyle Steyn.
We then review the Springboks victory in their first test of the year in Twickenham. We talk about the encouraging signs from the Bok attack and the great performances from Edwill van der Merwe, Aphelele Fassi and Evan Roos.
We then react to the Springbok squad announced for the July test series. We discuss the biggest snubs, the inclusion of Jan-Hendrik Wessels and why we need more toxicity in debating squad selections.
We then do a catch up on the rugby over the weekend around the world, including the Blues winning their first Super Rugby title since 2003 (and whether it’s a bigger achievement than winning the World Cup), Scott Robertson’s first All Blacks squad, Warren Gatland v Sam Parry, England looking great again and Toulouse and Bordeaux qualifying for the Top 14 Final
Kooks, Shaun and Thala preview the United Rugby Championship Final between Bulls and Glasgow.
The lads look at what to expect from the two teams, Thala breaks down his theory about what Franco Smith is cooking, we react to the return of Kurt-Lee Arendse and discuss our most important head to head match ups.
Then we turn our attention to the Springboks v Wales game. We look at why this might be a big game for Jordan Hendrikse and Aphelele Fassi, we debate the flyhalf pecking order and look at what in the world is happening with Wales.
We finish off by rounding up with the Super Rugby Final, the Top 14 semifinals and the other international games happening this weekend. Find out why Kooks says you must NOT watch the Barbarians v Fiji game, why there are too many tribute hakas and Shaun trying to choose between Joe Marchant and Ben Jason Dixon
Kooks, Shaun and Thala break down an exciting weekend of club knockout rugby, focusing on the Bulls beating Leinster at Loftus in the URC semifinal.
Kooks shares what the atmosphere at Loftus was like at the game and how it was similar to the big knockout Super Rugby games of the past. We rave about Cam Hanekom's superb performance against an all international loose trio and how Johan Goosen and Willie le Roux controlled the game tactically. We discuss how Jake White and the Bulls learned from last season by recruiting players like Devon Williams and Sergeal Petersen to add depth. We finally investigate what Leinster can do to get over the hump.
We review the surprising Glasgow victory at Munster, discussing how dangerous the likes of Sione Tuipulotu and Rory Darge are, Munster playing too much rugby in their own half for little profit and how Tom Jordan plays like a flank. We briefly discuss the threats Glasgow could bring to the Bulls in the URC Final and have a rant about people ranting about the final being in South Africa and not being accessible for European supporters.
We then do a roundup of other knockout rugby this weekend, including the Blues and Chiefs winning their Super Rugby Pacific semifinals and setting up the Sotutu v Sititi clash in the final. In the Top 14, La Rochelle and Bordeaux survive and we discuss the Racing 92's comments on Siya Kolisi. Finally Monpellier beat Grenoble in the Top 14 relegation/promotion playoff.
Kooks and Shaun try and filter through the huge amounts of brother's that have played test rugby and try and fit them into a test XV
Jared and Kooks share their thoughts on the rugby this past week. Shaun tries to steer the ship as the team navigate through the URC and Premiership.
We review the weekends action with a look at the URC Semi Final's. What happened to the Stormers and how many of the Leinster players will be getting their very first Republic of South Africa stamp in their passport.
We talk the Springboks, why Leinster need Handre Pollard and much much more
Kooks and Thala are joined by Stormers prop Neethling Fouche as the Stormers prepare for their quarterfinal clash against the Glasgow Warriors.
Neethling reflects on the last few seasons for the Stormers and how they turned things around in 2021 to win it all. He also talks about dealing with heightened expectations after winning the URC in 2021, the ups and downs of this season and why South African teams find winning in Europe tricky.
Neethling also shares how scrumming with Steven Kitshoff and Frans Malherbe grew his game, why he plays rugby with a smile on his face, how he dealt with injuries earlier in his career and his reaction to being called up for the Springbok alignment camp this year.
Listen out for golden nuggets Fouche shares about how he met Kooks the first time, the snore wars he has with his roommate Brok Harris and playing for that legendary 2011 Grey College First Team with Jan Serfontein.
Jared and Thala round up the URC regular season and look forward to the upcoming quarterfinals.
We preview the Bulls hosting Benetton and the Stormers traveling to Glasgow. We discuss what can the Bulls do about the 20 minute periods where they fall away and how the Stormers can overturn their away record. Jared calls Ospreys the Castres of the URC and Thala thinks Ulster might have the best chance at an away win.
We also bid farewell to the Lions and Sharks by reviewing their season, who their best players were and what can they look forward to next season.
We then do a roundup of other rugby news. We discuss Northampton facing Bath in the Premiership final, the upcoming Super Rugby quarterfinals and the Crusaders falling out, the craziness of the Pro D2 and have a rant about the SVNS finals in Madrid.
Thala is back as all but one of the team look back at the brilliant Sharks win and how Toulouse put Leinster down in their third straight loss.
We dive into the Sharks journey and are surprised about the strays they caught celebrating.
The Champions Cup and Challenge Cup is over for this season, time to focus on the domestic competitions with the URC, Premiership and Top 14 wrapping up
Kooks and Shaun welcome Stephan Lewies to the show as he chats about living the dream of becoming a Springbok, winning the Currie Cup and beating the Crusaders. He chats about the incredible leadership of Joe Marler, raucous parties after Springbok wins and winning the Premiership title in a year that had everything
Kooks and Shaun take control of the pod this week discussing how close things were in the Champions Cup Semi Final's as well as the Sharks amazing comeback in the Challenge Cup.
Kooks and Shaun review the fifth and final episode of Chasing the Sun 2, it gets going with the shocking claims by Tom Curry towards Bongi Mbonambi after what he thought was a racial slur.
We carry on with the thoughts around the 7/1 split and go through the #RWC2023 Final
Kooks and Thala come together to do a quick podcast reviewing the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup quarterfinals and look forward to round 14 of the URC.
We discuss Leinster’s great week in exorcising the La Rochelle ghost, signing Jordie Barrett and their social media entering their villain era. We discuss the issues with the South African teams in Europe and the flight issues that hounded the Bulls. We also celebrate the Sharks making the semis of the Challenge Cup.
We then preview a big week in the URC with must-win matches for the Lions against Leinster, the Bulls v Munster and the Stormers v Ospreys. We also look at the key matches this weekend in the URC race to the playoffs.
Finally, Kooks provides us with an injury update and a statement to people criticizing him for complaining about the 6:45 am Springboks v Wallabies kickoff.
Kooks and Sharks are at it again as they focus on the South African sides in the Champions and Challenge Cup.
They look at sides which simply can not lose, Sharky makes a bold prediction and Kooks' hot take will make the South African's happy.
ChampioncCup #ChallengeCup #RugbyUnion #Stormers #Bulls #Sharks #Cheetahs #Lions #Springboks #JasperWiese #HandrePollard #FinnRussell
Kooks and Shaun go through the Chasing the Sun 2 episode rollercoaster as the Springboks prepare for and play Ireland in #RWC2023
Kooks and Shaun talk about the opening episode of Chasing The Sun 2 as all South Africans relive the amazing RWC2023 win with incredible insights from the Springbok camp
Shaun and Thala review round 12 of the URC which saw all 4 South African teams win their matches.
We first look at the Stormers victory over Edinburgh and Shaun (who watched live) raved about how good Damian Willemse looks live and the encouraging signs from Wandi Simelane’s performance.
For the Sharks game, Thala discusses whether the Sharks have finally found the right formula of Boks and youngsters in their team, how impressive Ethan Hooker is and why Makazole Mapimpi is a South African rugby legend.
We rave about the Lions being the first South African team to beat Connacht away in the URC and them doing it after an early red card to Asenathi Ntlabakanye. We talk about impressive performances from JC Pretorius and Erich Cronje. We look forward to the Lions other matches and why they have a good chance of qualifying for the knockouts.
We cannot help but look forward to the Bulls epic upcoming clash with Leinster after the dispatched the Dragons with a bonus point.
The First Phase question today was what players have teams still not replaced and there was a lot of love for Jerome Kaino, Israel Folau and Jacques Kallis??
Shaun and Kooks are joined by a surprise guest as we discuss the 6 Nations and Super Rugby shock results.
This weeks first phase we discuss what song our favorite players would run out too.
In the Six Nations we discuss if England have recipe to beat Ireland, Gregor Townsend is on the chopping block and how incredible the Italian midfield was.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala are joined by SA rugby Twitter bad boy AP Cronje to review the South African derbies in week 11 of the URC.
We first react to the Bulls breaking their seven match losing streak against the Stormers with a convincing win at Loftus. AP breaks down how the Bulls have improved this season, we discuss why Johan Goosen should always wear his Grey College socks and whether the Stormers should start to worry now that they’re outside of the playoffs.
We then move to the Lions victory over the Sharks and talk about how the Lions have stretched their resources to be in URC playoff contention, Kooks has a rant about the Sharks and we debate Bongi Mbonambi’s handling of the referee.
We then finish off discussing the increasing popularity of the SA URC derbies, why Antoine Dupont’s role in winning France their first Sevens series in 19 is slightly overhyped and reports that England are tired of practicing their defence with Felix Jones.
Kooks and Shaun go through the weekends rugby and start the pod with picking 15's players suitable for the 7's game, Ireland and the war machine, Duhan suitable for the Boks and mixed feelings about Italy's final penalty
We welcome back Jared Wright as he returns at the perfect time as we discuss the Springboks and all the rugby going on.
Shaun and Thala review week 2 of the Six Nations.
We start at the controversial no try call at the end of Scotland v France and debate whether the officials got it right. We also discuss why all the Scotland losses against the better teams all feel the same and whether France played a lot better than most give them credit.
Moving onto England v Wales, we look at the positives for the young Wales team for as they fought to a narrow loss in Twickenham and we discuss what are the other ingredients England need to play the pressure game Steve Borthwick and Felix Jones are trying to implement.
Then we move to the Aviva and rave about another impressive Jack Crowley performance, how Ireland’s rotated players stepped up in this game and we remain patient with Italy.
Our First Phase question asked us to predict the World Rugby Player of the Year winners for the next 4 years and we discussed whether Antoine Dupont can still win it in 2024 even if he just plays Sevens.
Francisco Isaac joins us again as Thala and Shaun pick his brain about the 2024 REC after two rounds, red cards and all the South Africans involved
Kooks, Shaun and Thala review the first round of the Six Nations which saw 3 away wins.
We start by discussing the player, try and moment of the round with love being shown for Joe McCarthy’s performance and the Duhan van der Merwe try among others.
We begin by reviewing Ireland’s dominant victory over France. We look at how Ireland shut the French out, the big performance of Jack Crowley, the failures in France’s rucking and kicking, and how much the Paul Willemse red card is to blame.
Then we move to Wales near comeback from 27-0 down against Scotland. Is it same old Scotland? What can Wales implement in their approach in future? We rave about the 2nd half Aaron Wainwright had and discuss whether the Finn-Tuipulotu-Huw Jones 10-12-13 might be the best attacking trio around.
We finally look at England’s victory over Italy. We discuss England’s struggles to adapting to Felix Jones’ rush defence, whether Italy are getting closer to winning consistently and the man of the match performance of Ethan Roots.
Our First Phase question discussed who would be in rugby’s Mount Rushmore and we discussed the rumoured appointment of Duane Vermeulen in the Springbok management structure.
We certainly run out of time but Francisco takes us through a bit of the weekends action, talk about the tournament format and the disruption in teams due to coaching changes along with everyone waiting on World Rugby to confirm RWC2027 qualification. Francisco talks warmly about the retiring Rayner Parkinson from Germany and a look at his career #SaffasAbroad
Kooks, Shaun and Thala come together for a comprehensive preview of the 2024 Six Nations which starts this weekend.
We look through each team and the changes made to the squads since the 2023 Rugby World Cup, we discuss the players we are looking forward to seeing and what a pass mark will be for each team.
Which team do we think will win the Grand Slam and which surprising team do we think Wales will get the wooden spoon from Italy? Who do we think will be the Six Nations Player of the Tournament? How do Ireland and France move on without key players like Jonathan Sexton and Antoine Dupont? Can Scotland finally make the step up? Who will Borthwick pick in his England team?
Thala and Shaun review the weekends Champions Cup action. They talk about the Sharks...AGAIN and have a look at the Round of 16 fixtures.
We pick our winners to go through to the Quarter Finals try and unpack what is going on with the Sharks, Owen Farrell and how the Bulls and Stormers nearly slipped up.
Enjoy
Kooks and Shaun get 2024 underway as they take a look at the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup action from the weekend. We talk Finn, Antoine, Damian, Hacjivah and much more.
We then dive into what 2024 will bring and a look at contenders for the Springbok jersey as well as what this year will bring for France, New Zealand, Australia, Ireland, England and more.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala record their last pod of 2023, mainly looking back at the second weekend of Champions and Challenge Cup and wrapping up a massive year for rugby.
We start with the Stormers smash and grab win over the champs La Rochelle. Kooks talks about almost taking a photo with Jonathan Danty. Shaun has questions about the balance of the loose trio. Thala talks about the experience of watching Levani Botia and Will Skelton live.
We then look at the narrow Bulls loss at Lyon and how well they’re set up to make a run at both the URC and the Champions Cup. We rave about Sergeal Petersen and Devon Williams and start to preview the big upcoming derby between the Stormers and Bulls.
We run through the other Champions Cup results. We worry about Toulon and Munster’s narrowing chances of qualifying for the knockouts. We rave about the form Bordeaux is showing and we sense an opportunity for the rest of the competition to capitalize on La Rochelle, Leinster and Toulouse not yet hitting top form.
We then shift focus to the Challenge Cup and Kooks and Shaun lament yet another bad Sharks loss, this time to the Cheetahs. We rave about the great job being done in Bloemfontein, while trying to diagnose why the Sharks look so pitiful. We also look at the Lions big win over Newcastle and shout out Georgia’s Black Lion for their first Challenge Cup win ever.
We finish by looking back at 2023 and some of the big storylines - the Springboks finding a way, the disaster of the Eddie Jones era in Australia, the success of the Tier 2 nations.
We will be back for the 3rd round of the Champions Cup!
Shaun and Thala review the first round of Champions Cup and Challenge Cup games - a weekend of mostly positive results and performances for the South African teams.
We start with the Bulls dominant win over Saracens at Loftus. We discuss Cameron Hanekom’s rise as the next big thing in South Africa rugby and the dangerous Bulls back 3.
We then go to Welford Road where a mostly second string Stormers outfit nearly shocked Leicester at home. There were encouraging performances from three likes of Keke Morabe, Jurie Matthee and Sti Sithole, but Handré Pollard and Jasper Wiese led Leicester to the bonus point win.
We go through each of the other Champions Cup games. We note Leinster using the Jacques Nienaber rush defence to finally get a win over the champions, La Rochelle. We talk about some of the surprise results from the weekend, including Exeter beating Toulon and Bayonne getting a draw with Munster and finally talk about the entertaining game of the weekend - the Siya Kolisi-led Racing being beaten by Harlequins.
We also review victories from the Sharks, Lions and Cheetahs in the Challenge Cup. We finish off by talking about the Cape Town SVNS, the dominance of the Australian women’s team, the Argentines breaking the pool and what reforms may be needed for the South African women’s team.
We're back baby and we get this new season off with Thala, Shaun and Kooks chatting about what's going on.
Shaun and Kooks avoid the Sharks problems, Thala is basking in the Bulls victories.
We take a hard look at fans and why the likes of Owen Farrell are putting their international career on pause.
We take a look at the Champions Cup Round 1 fixtures and wonder where Wandi Simelane should go
Kooks, Shaun and Thala deal with their Rugby World Cup hangovers by looking at each of the top RWC teams to discuss where do they go from here.
Listen as we discuss the Springboks coaching situation, what the All Blacks will do at flyhalf, what France can do to be less Dupont-dependent, who England should build around in the next four-year cycle, what the Proteas could possibly teach Ireland and why Rugby Australia should call Ronan O'Gara.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala break down South Africa retaining the Rugby World Cup after their 12-11 victory against New Zealand.
The gents start by marveling at Pieter-Steph du Toit’s man of the match performance and Kooks talks about his attempt to commemorate his performance.
We then break down the Springbok defensive performance, the impact of Kwagga Smith, where the All Blacks went wrong, the key moments in the game and how Wayne Barnes and the officiating team handled big decisions such as the Sam Cane red card.
We then reflect on the Rassnaber era, Thala explains what he got wrong with the Boks, we discuss which player have possibly become the best players of all time after winning the legacy and why this victory and this Springbok team has achieved far more off the field than on.
We then finish by reacting to Eddie Jones stepping down from the Wallabies job.
The full squad are all here to preview the biggest Rugby World Cup Final ever.
Jared, Kooks, Shaun and Thala react to the match day 23s selected by the two teams, the impact of the 7:1 Springbok bench will seek to have, how the All Blacks will counter Ox Nche and Trevor Nyakane, the importance of starts and the kicking game and the most important players on both sides.
We also discuss the significance of this Final, how crappy the 3rd/4th place playoff game is, what crime Luke Pearce must have committed in France to not get a knockout game and we pay tribute to Jacques Nienaber in his last game as Springbok coach.
Shaun and Thala are joined by Distracted Sports' Tony O'Sullivan to debate selections and to get a Kiwi take on Saturday's Rugby World Cup Final between South Africa and New Zealand.
Tony shares the stress he has thinking about Ox Nche, why Dane Coles and Willie le Roux have similar roles in the team, the luxury of rotating between Sam Whitelock and Brodie Retallick and why Fletcher Newell might be the star of the final. Listen also for Tony's unexpected review of the RugbyBits intro music too!
Shaun and Thala are joined by Jamie Wall of Radio New Zealand to preview the All Blacks for the Rugby World Cup final.
Jamie discusses why some of the changes in selection for the All Blacks in 2022 happened more through chance than by design. The influence of Joe Schmidt and Jason (not James, Thala) Ryan as coaches. Why Rieko Ioane gets a bad wrap for his defence at 13. The influence of rugby league in how the All Blacks attack and what the All Blacks will try to do against the Springboks.
Jamie also tells us about his book "The Hundred Years' War" on the All Blacks and Springboks rivalry, which you can get at jamiewallrugby.com
Thala leads the team along with Kooks and Shaun as they unpack just how the Springboks wangled their way into the RWC2023 Final.
We look at how brilliant England were but were just not able to hold on. Clutch Handre and other great substitutes that lifted the Springbok game.
A look at the All Blacks and their big in over Argentina plus we already are looking ahead to the Final and pick some key players and head to heads to watch
Shaun and and Kooks welcome back Charlie Morgan to the RugbyBits Podcast as we take a look through the Match Day 23's announced.
We deep dive the plan needed for sides to win and a look at key players and what to expect from England
We take a look at the scintillating rugby on display this weekend as RWC2023 puts on a show in the best Quarter Final display in the tournaments history.
We go over each game and touch on the Fiji comeback, Argentina cook as Nico Sanchez seals the game. the All Blacks fending off Ireland after what felt like a lifetime and the Springboks beating France as Cheslin Kobe, Eben etzebeth, Bongi Mbonambi, Damian de Allende and Jesse Kriel shine
Jared, Shaun and Thala preview the weekend's Rugby World Cup quarterfinals now that all the teams have been announced.
We start with Wales v Argentina by asking who is the bigger loss between Taulupe Faletau and Pablo Matera. Jared ponders how Argentina's high possession game plan will go against Wales being happy to defend. We pick out players to watch including Jac Morgan, Juan Martin Gonzalez and Tommy Reffell.
We then look at Ireland v New Zealand and discuss how much can be taken from the last 3 All Blacks games and what weaknesses Ireland can exploit. Jared thinks the All Blacks have one more big game in them. Thala is looking forward to the battle of chirps between the War God and Sam Cane.
We then preview England v Fiji and lament Fiji missing Teti Tela at flyhalf and try to figure out why Marcus Smith is playing at fullback. Jared talks about how England can stumble through the kncokout games into a final. Shaun hypes up Joe Marchant. We all ponder if Levani Botia can win this game by himself.
Finally, Shaun and Thala break down the France v South Africa game now that the teams are out. We try to work out what the Boks approach will be with Reinach and Libbok starting. We look forward to more rolling mauls with Duane Vermeulen starting. We talk about the importance of a good start and scoreboard pressure, as both teams don't want to be chasing this game.
Listen to this pod as we look forward to a massive quarterfinal weekend!
Shaun and Thala are joined by the Roar Rugby Podcast's Harry Jones to look at the Springboks before their Rugby World Cup quarterfinal clash with France in our RugbyBits n Pieces episode.
We first discuss some of the selection dilemmas that the Springbok coaches might still be pondering - does Libbok or Pollard start, what is the composition of the bench, Vermeulen or Wiese, is there a role for Lukhanyo Am in this group and might Cobus Reinach start.
We then go into depth where the Boks could target the French. Harry ponders which Boks remind him of fruit, why the French may be aroused but not hard and his confidence why the Bok have enough for France on Sunday.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala were joined by Actu Rugby journalist - and two timed failed guest of our podcast :( - Thomas Corbet to preview the Springbok opponents in the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal, France.
Thomas revealed why there is less concern in France about Antoine Dupont's injury and whether he will start in the quarterfinal. We discussed what could be learned from the 2022 France v South Africa match, what weaknesses each team can expose in their player opponents, why Damian Penaud is an 'over-excited golden retriever', possible changes to the French 23, how the French have become consistent and predictable and the Boks have become the unpredictable team and the individual match ups each of us were looking for.
Join for an in-depth preview on the French team that will face the Springboks in the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala wrap up an exciting final round of group stage games of the Rugby World Cup.
There was no other place to start but Portugal’s victory over Fiji. We talk about the impressive Nicolas Martins, how Mike Tadjer’s kick stole the show and whether Fiji can bounce back from this loss for their quarterfinals.
We then review the other Week 5 match ups. We welcome Pool D to the World Cup party after Argentina defeat Japan in an entertaining game and Samoa run England close. Shaun explains why the disallowed Samoa try wasn’t controversial and Kooks reminds us all that he picked England coming out of the group stages unbeaten.
We then look at how Ireland destroyed Scotland and how many of the Scotland team should be put on Fraud Watch, how France, New Zealand and Wales dealt with Italy, Uruguay and Georgia respectively. Shaun complains about how we only saw one game of George Moala in Tonga’s victory over Romania.
We then look back at the group stages and pick out moments and games that stood out and teams and players that disappointed. There’s a lot of love for forwards that kick, the impressive performances of Tier 2 nations. Thala tells the story of watching the great Namibian prop Casper Viviers live. We then save up some slander, mostly for Scotland and Australia.
Shaun and Jared take the first half of the RugbyBits Pod as they review the Springbok win over Tonga. Jared discusses Deon Fourie and the rest of the team while Shaun gives an unpopular opinion on Luke Pearce.
We talk injuries and what's to come in the Quarter Final's.
Thala joins Shaun in the second half as we look at all of the results from the last week of RWC2023. We discuss the All Blacks and how they destroyed Italy as well as Fiji Georgia.
A look into the final week with some predictions.
Jared and Shaun take a dive into how the Springboks will get their 5 points on Sunday as they take on Tonga.
The Springboks will be looking to avoid the 2007 scare and seemingly have named a team to do so.
We look at key points for each player and talk about Siya Kolisi in his 50th test captaining the Boks.
We look at the bench and take a deep dive into Canan Moodie, Grant Esterhuizen and Handre Pollard.
Kooks and Thala review the 3rd week of the Rugby World Cup, focusing on a breathless encounter between Ireland and South Africa.
We dissect the Irish victory over the Springboks. We discuss how Ireland won the breakdown battle and the brutal defence shown by both sides. We then get to the Manie Libbok and Handré Pollard debate and we discuss what each could bring to the Boks, how to accommodate both and what consequences that would have on the Springbok bench.
We turn our attention to impressive Ireland and how they beat the Springboks in the gutters, the impressive Bundee Aki and when Ireland will get respect as the world number one.
We then look at the Wallabies who are hanging by a thread in the World Cup after the Wallabies loss to Wales. We discuss how Wales are executing Warrenball, why Eddie Jones is rugby Doc Rivers and why Kooks has no sympathy for Rugby Australia (clue: it has to do with playing test rugby on Thursdays).
We then review the other stories from Week 3, including the Antoine Dupont injury and whether France can still win without him, the epic Georgia v Portugal game, the Felipe Etcheverry fan club, what in the world Argentina are doing, how unlucky Italy and Scotland are and why the Boks should allow Steven and Aimee Kitshoff to have the week in Cannes.
Shaun and Thala record a special RugbyBits n Pieces preview for week 3 of the Rugby World Cup which has a lot of tasty clashes in store.
We start with looking back at Italy's comeback win against Uruguay with Tomasso Allan and Lorenzo Cannone impressing the most. We also gush about Manuel Ardao and the 4 turnovers he made for Uruguay.
We look at the other games to come up this weekend. We are worried that France may get a bonus point in record time in their game against Namibia. We are stuck firmly on the fence in trying to decide who wins Samoa v Argentina. Thala has a sneaking suspicion that Portugal will run Georgia close. We are looking forward to see if England continues their run against Chile. Shaun stresses the importance of Scotland having a good performance against Tonga.
We end by previewing Australia v Wales by looking at the news that Eddie Jones might drop Carter Gordon for Ben Donaldson, Australia calling up and then not calling up Dylan Pietsch, the mess up with the Will Skelton injury and if the end is near for Eddie Jones.
Shaun and Thala record a special Rugby Bits n Pieces pod to preview the biggest Rugby World Cup pool game (ever?) between the world champions and the world number 1s.
The boys admit that they do not know anything about rugby, since Nienaber and Erasmus have flipped the script on everyone with the 7:1 bench. We talk about how the bench will be used, the 3 fetchers on the bench and the importance of slowing down Irish ruck ball and how rugby may change if the 7:1 split works for the Boks.
We then look at an Irish team with not many changes, we look at the tasty individual matchups, including Damien de Allende and Bundee Aki for the best 12 in the world right now, the loose trio battle, Dan Sheehan on the bench and Sexton against big South African forwards.
Kooks and Shaun take a deep dive into the Springbok win over Romania, how Deon Fourie and Marco van Staden handled the hooker duties and just how to deal with losing Malcolm Marx and not having an out and out hooker come in.
Shaun looks into how best to unleash Andre Esterhuizen and gets talked down twice by Kooks after going on a rant about the performance this weekend.
We go through the other results and look ahead to Ireland
Thala, Jared and Kooks are joined by Sam Roberts (Gallagher Premiership commentator, contributor to RugbyPass and Mr Rugby Journeys on Twitter) to preview the upcoming Rugby World Cup.
We go pool by pool and predict which teams come out of each pool.
Is this the biggest opening weekend of the Rugby World Cup ever? Can the loser of France v New Zealand still go far? Can Scotland sneak past either the world number 1 or the defending RWC champions? Will Thala’s Georgia and Fiji Pool C predictions materialize? Did Kooks say what we think he just said about England???
Hear from the knowledgeable Sam Roberts and the rest of us and get properly excited for the Rugby World Cup!
In this RugbyBits and Pieces Rugby World Cup prediction episode, Kooks and Thala get their hot takes out as they discuss who should be on Fraud Watch and which games should come with an Upset Alert. Thala discusses why he is watching Eddie Jones and Warren Gatland closely, Kooks has a plot twist for his fraud watch pick and Thala continues his beef with Will Skelton. Join as we also determine if England, Wales or Australia losing is an upset or not.
Kooks and Thala come together to record a RugbyBits and Pieces pod where they make predictions on the upcoming Rugby World Cup. Today they make predictions on the Player of the Tournament, the Top Try Scorer and Top Points Scorer.
Do you take Antoine Dupont or the field for Player of the Tournament? Is it set up for Siya Kolisi to have his crowning moment? What could Player of the Tournament do for Jonny Sexton's legacy? We discuss whether Will Jordan or Damian Penaud is a better bet for Top Try Scorer. We then finish off on why Melvyn Jaminet is jealous of Thomas Ramos, Kooks being the driver of the Manie Libbok Hype Train and is Lima Sopoaga a sneaky bet for Top Points Scorer.
Springboks and Fiji have a historic weekend at Twickenham, De Allende v Esterhuizen and are Samoa World Cup quarterfinals contenders?
Shaun and Thala reflect on the final weekend of Rugby World Cup warm up matches.
We start with the Springboks’ record breaking victory over the All Blacks in Twickenham. We look at what the differences were between this victory and the loss in the Rugby Championship, we split some hairs on what the Boks did not do well in the game and discuss whether the All Blacks loss exposed long standing issues or was it a rare blip.
We spend some time looking at some of the selection dilemmas Jacques Nienaber still has, which include De Allende v Esterhuizen, Mostert v RG Snyman, Faf de Klerk v Jaden Hendrikse and which of the 4 wingers to pick.
We then discuss Fiji’s first win over England and marvel at the discipline in Fiji’s approach, their strong tight five and kicking game, their position as the favourites in Group C of the World Cup and where to from here for England.
We then round up the other weekend’s matches, including Samoa running Ireland very close, the brilliance of 2nd half Scotland against Georgia, Italy thrashing a Japan team that is looking very beatable and whether Australia’s loss to France is all part of Eddie Jones’ plan.
Jared and Shaun wrap up the weekends action as they review the epic win by the Springboks and why, regardless of the opposition, it was so important.
We look ahead to the All Black clash on Friday discussing the selections and specifically Canan Moodie at 13.
Keith Earls gets props from the team and Shaun still feels he would have been a great 13.
We dive into the further demise of England after their loss to Ireland and the Billy Vunipola red card.
Thala and Shaun take the reigns while Kooks is globe trotting trying to find Jared for a pint in the UK.
We take down the polarizing task of picking the best players in the world right now with some hilarious moments.
Both Thala and Shaun struggle through some of the forwards and are in fine form when it is time for the backs with four wild cards being selected to round off the 50.
The full squad is here to react to one of the most shocking Springbok Rugby World Cup squad announcements in a while.
We react to the panic we all experienced seeing Lukhanyo Am, Handré Pollard and Lood de Jager omitted from the squad. We talk about whether Manie Libbok and Jesse Kriel can step up in their place. Shaun discusses the risks of playing Deon Fourie as our 3rd choice hooker. Jared looks at whether Canan Moodie can deputize at 13.
We then break down some of the crazy things happening in the squad announcements - from what do you do with 4 scrumhalves, to making 2m tall giants kneel to be capped, from the reaction to Makazole Mapimpi to the Rassie Erasmus conspiracy theories and John Smit arguing with our boy Kooks.
We try to deliver some copium to Bok fans as we discuss reasons why we can still win the World Cup, but mix in some realism about how the task is now tougher.
We take a deep dive into the test rugby from the weekend along with a look at the Springboks and their win in Argentina.
How Bongi Mbonambi did as captain, Manie Libbok and his desire and drive to always get better and fix his wrongs, Lukhanyo Am injury and Jesse Kriel continues to perform despite many being blind to it.
Thala, Kooks and Shaun tackle episode three in our new RugbyBits & Pieces segment where we look at each and every RWC2023 team and highlight why they will or will not win the tournament.
There are plenty of serious and funny reasons why as we look at strength and weaknesses along with pool opponents.
Enjoy
Kooks, Shaun and Thala come together to review round 3 of the Rugby Championships.
We start with deep analysis on the new addition to the Springboks - the song Sister Bokkina and we talk about other rugby songs in First Phase.
We then move to an underwhelming Springbok victory over Argentina 22-21. We discuss if there’s reason to panic, which Springboks stocks have risen and fallen, including how important Handré Pollard has become and whether he can integrate into the new attacking approach. We also discuss what poor Aimee Kitshoff has to do to see his husband at home again, as he goes to his 4th continent in 3 months to play rugby.
We then move to the Bledisloe Cup victory for the All Blacks at the MCG. We marvel at the form of Scott Barrett and the miracle job Jason Ryan has done.
The podcast then descends into chaos with rants about the afternoon kickoff time for Bledisloe II in Dunedin, slander for Eddie Jones, slander for Will Skelton, slander for Marika Koroibete, slander for tweets from rugby journos, slander for Munster, even Thala catches a bullet from Kooks in a matter involving spaghetti bolognese.
Like Sister Bokkina, the podcast starts well enough and then descends into chaos!
In episode two of the RugbyBits and Pieces segment we turn our attention to the RWC2023 coaches and who is in the hot seat when it comes to results from France later this year.
We have a look into possibly replacements for the Springboks and decide which coaches could literally bomb out of the tournament winless as still have a job come November
Shaun and Thala preview week 3 of the Rugby Championship where South Africa host Argentina and Australia play New Zealand in Bledisloe I.
We discuss the big opportunity for Grant Williams and how he has to make an impression. Which locks and loosies get left home if Marco van Staden fights his way in. The never ending Jesse Kriel debate also starts off a rant from Shaun. On the Pumas side, we see the return of Chocobares, an impending milestone for Augustin Creevy and whether Juan Martin Gonzalez will haunt Willie le Roux (and his ankles) again.
Attention then shifts to the Bledisloe Cup game and hopes aren’t high for Eddie Jones and his Wallabies, even after selecting Carter Gordon for a debut start. We marvel at the surprisingly stable All Blacks, returns for Sam Whitelock and Anton Lienert-Brown and whether the All Blacks can put up a cricket score at the MCG.
We round up with some of the news around the rugby world, including upcoming matches involving Fiji, Japan and Uruguay, what Fiji will do with Peceil Yato withdrawing from the squad and even wade into the topic of which Boks will make money from opening an OnlyFans account.
We launch a new podcast episode series called “RugbyBits and Pieces” which are shorter mini episodes we will release over the next few months in the build up to the Rugby World Cup.
In our first RugbyBits and Pieces episode, Kooks, Shaun and Thala discuss the legacy of Rassie Erasmus as Director of Rugby of the Springboks. We talk about the restoration job from 2017, why the Springboks won the Rugby World Cup earlier than scheduled, why a 60%+ record is somewhat a disappointment and the place this puts the Springboks with succession planning.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala are joined by Angus (@AnalystGus on Twitter) to preview Saturday’s Rugby Championship clash between New Zealand and South Africa.
We discuss questions such as which selections surprised you the most, which players have the most to gain for their World Cup selection hopes with a good game, what the All Blacks have changed since their victory at Ellis Park last season, what things we are watching for from the Springboks and finally some predictions.
Listen as we discuss Thomas du Toit as a swing prop, Lukhanyo Am’s form, Aaron Smith’s passing and the Jordie-Rieko midfield axis. Listen out for our hot takes involving the many Springbok kickers and the importance of the game for the All Blacks and some apologies Thala and Kooks need to make to people.
Jared, Shaun and Thala review the massive South Africa and New Zealand victories in the first weekend of the Rugby Championship.
We discuss which of the second string players impressed the most and we discuss KLA's hat-trick, Orie's impressive performance and Andre Esterhuizen finally arriving into test rugby. We debate how much can be taken by Springbok management given how bad the Wallabies were. Speaking of the Wallabies, Shaun and Thala discuss what Eddie Jones was trying to do and whether they continue on this course or try something different in their next game. We also try not to be smart arses about it too.
We then look at the massive New Zealand victory over Argentina. We investigate what makes Los Pumas so inconsistent and whether it can be fixed. We then look at a five-star performance from the All Blacks and what they have to prove in their upcoming match with the Springboks.
We finally round up with a quick review of the Under 20 World Rugby Championship, the breaking news of Stuart Hogg's retirement, Carter Gordon's swan dive try on day-boo and Sam Cane hacking down a pitch invader.
Jared, Shaun and Thala can finally look forward to a Springbok TEST WEEK and preview South Africa hosting Australia.
The boys break down the 23 selected, discuss which players have the most to prove or gain to get into the Rugby World Cup squad, look forward to how Manie Libbok goes and the debut of Jean Kleyn. We also discuss the injury to Ox Nche and worrying depth and loosehead prop.
We then give our review of the new Springbok home and away jerseys produced by Nike. Hear Thala’s takes on the ventilation panels (#FreeTheNipple) and the debate about yellow versus gold.
We then try to figure out what Eddie Jones might be cooking. We look at likely debuts for Tom Hooper and Carter Gordon and what can we expect from the Aussies.
We then quickly preview the Argentina v New Zealand game, review the Baby Boks qualifying for the U20 World Championship semi finals and the proposed World Rugby Championship starting in 2026 and what it’s implications are for Tier 2 nations.
The First Phase question this week looked at transfers between Rugby World Cup nations and we discussed transfers of Nic White and Damian Willemse, Will Skelton and Hugo Keenan and Jean Kleyn going to Ireland (wait haven’t they done that already?)
Shaun and Thala park up to break down the weekend’s rugby news and matches.
We start with the Crusaders winning their seventh straight Super Rugby title after beating the Chiefs 25-20. We debate the Anton Leinert-Brown yellow card decision, where the Chiefs lost momentum and give ratings to Razor and Richie Mo’unga’s latest breakdance.
We then move to Bloemfontein as the Cheetahs win their seventh Currie Cup final against the Pumas. We ask if Ruan Pienaar has ever been this loved in South Africa.
We break down the Argentina and Australia squads, wonder which Australians didn’t make any of Eddie Jones’ squads, figure out what Jones will do with his ‘utilities’ and look at why Cadeyrn Neville and Tawera Kerr-Barlow have been snubbed.
We also look through the U20 World Championship results for the first round. Find out why Nikoloz Babunashvili, Asher Opoku-Fordjour and Noah Zinzen are RugbyBits favourites.
We wrap up by talking about why Twitter is unhappy with the Baby Blacks haka, Gloucester-Hartpury Women winning the Premier 15s, Sbu Nkosi leaving the Bulls plus Warrick Gelant and Ben Loader joining the Stormers.
Shaun, Kooks and Thala focus on the Super Rugby semi finals and look at rugby news from the past week, which includes the announcement of the first All Blacks squad of the season.
We first review the Crusaders six-try rout of the Blues which showed the strength of the Crusaders and why the problems of the Blues may become the problems of the All Blacks. We also look at the Chiefs edging past the Brumbies on the back of big performances from Damian McKenzie and Samisoni Taukei’aho and we try to figure out what was Tom Wright thinking for most of the match.
We try and fail to make sense of Ian Foster’s Rugby Championship squad and we try to select our own team from it. We discuss Luke Jacobsen v Scott Barrett, Damian McKenzie v Will Jordan v Beauden Barrett and Jordie Barrett v Dallas McLeod(?)
We catch up with the news around the rugby world including Kieran Crowley being fired from Italy for Gonzalo Quesada and the announcement of Samoa and Tonga teams.
Join us as Kooks figures out which Rugby World Cup coaches are on a hot seat, Shaun asks everyone to join his Nic White cult and Thala establishes his Dallas McLeod fan club.
Jared, Kooks and Thala come together in the week’s first pod to look back on a busy weekend of rugby.
We start with Toulouse’s victory over La Rochelle in the French Top 14 final and Romain Ntamack’s magical match winning try. We rave about the performances of Emmanuel Meafou and Brice Dulin and get excited about thinking of the possibilities of France combining the Toulouse and La Rochelle styles together.
We move to look at the Currie Cup semi finals. We start with Ruan Pienaar leading the Cheetahs in thrashing the Bulls in Bloemfontein with Kooks ready to book Pienaar’s accommodation in France for him, and Daniel Kasende and Tapiwa Mafura making fools of Bulls defenders. We also look at the Pumas victory over the Sharks and are glad to see the back of the Bulls and Sharks seasons.
We finish off with looking at the latest news about the Springbok squad and talk about why the addition of Elton Jantjies is wise, the role of Jean Kleyn and which players we are looking forward to watching in the 2nd team Australia.
Join as Kooks had another rant about Jonny Sexton, Jared has a rant about Naas Botha and Thala tries to arrange Johan Goosen’s transfer to the Houston Sabercats.
Shaun takes the helm with Thala stuck at work. We touch on the friction between Kooks and Jared plus why Farhaan Behardien isn't on air.
FirstPhase RWC Bolter's was entertaining but mostly because Kooks agree's with Riaan on having Ruan Pienaar make a return. Shaun is still perplexed as to why he is not an international centurion. Calvin Nash, Rieko Ioane and Jean Kleyn staying in France with two kit bags are also discussed.
We touch on the Top 14 Semi Final's and Raymond Rhule's monster hit as the rugby world prepares for Toulon v La Rochelle this weekend as they fight out for the Bouclier de Brennus We talk Currie Cup but mostly on Morne Steyn and Bismarck du Plessis' final season and a look at their careers. *Gary Gold = Gary Botha We take a deep dive into the Springbok Squad for the Rugby Championship, Shaun takes a stab at why Evan Roos is in the squad after Elrigh Louw being the favorite until then and the answer is RG Snyman. We dissect the 5 9's and where things go with 10's and the crazy dazzle the Boks have at their disposal in the back three.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala come together to review the Top 14, Super Rugby and Currie Cup, but mostly to initiate the RugbyBits mailbag.
In the mailbag, Dirt Trackers asked about potential World Cup upsets, the future of Super Rugby, what a Stormers backline with Dillyn Leyds and Warrick Gelant would look like, Stephen Jones' Dream 15 of the last 40 years, socks(?) and Gregory Alldritt(!)
We also cover the week's going-ons in the rugby world, including Madosh Tambwe winning the Top 14 playoff game for Bordeaux with two late tries, Racing overcoming Stade France, the Drua making the Super Rugby playoffs, the permutations of the final rounds of the Currie Cup, the Women Springboks qualifying for the WXV 2nd tier and the new Sharks coaching staff.
Come listen to hear what times you SHOULDN'T talk rugby with Kooks, where Shaun wants to go watch a rugby game and what radical law change Thala would bring to rugby.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala break down a weekend of finals in domestic rugby.
We start with the URC Final where Munster edged past the Stormers 14-19. We talk about how Munster took the Stormers away from their counter-attacking rugby, their superior kick-chase game and how Malakai Fekitoa, John Hodnett and Conor Murray shone as Munster broke their title drought. We also look at the reaction to Manie Libbok's performance and Evan Roos putting up his best performance for the Stormers of the season in a different role. We also discuss how great Munster and their fans were in Cape Town this week and how good it is for the future of the competition.
We then discuss the Springbok training squad announced over the weekend, some of the surprise additions and omissions and who of the overseas contingent will be added to the squad once their seasons finish. We discuss the road forward for the Springboks toward the Rugby World Cup and how the players should be managed. Kooks also rants about New Zealand playing South Africa at the Mount Smart Stadium.
We then jump around the world and the other competitions, we look at an Owen Farrell masterclass as Saracens defeat Sale in the Premiership Final, we look at the Top 14, Super Rugby Pacific and Currie Cup playoffs shaping up - Kooks officially breaks up with Racing and we suspect the Brumbies might be cooking up a surprise for the knockouts.
We hatch a plan to crown the World Champion celebrator as Casey v Dayimani v Goode v Rhule go head to head on a World Tour
Our First Phase looks at club legends that never broke through into test match rugby and we discuss the likes of Jackson Wray, Jacques Botes and Marnitz Boshoff.
Jared and Thala come together to do a preview of the URC Final where the Stormers will defend their crown against Munster.
We talk about Munster being the party poopers of the URC and their amazing run of away wins, how they improved from a slow start and how they’ve developed their game plan.
We talk about the match ups that excite us, which include Evan Roos v Gavin Coombes, Manie Libbok v Jack Crowley and the Cape Town stadium groundsman against the Cape Town rain.
We make our predictions for the game (and for the Premiership Final) and predict what alternative things we expect to see, include a shithousery duel between Peter O’Mahony and Marvin Orie and whether the stadium DJ can resist playing Sweet Caroline for one game.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala review an entertaining weekend of European finals and look ahead to the upcoming URC Final.
We start with La Rochelle’s last-minute victory over Leinster in the European Champions Cup final. We look at how La Rochelle came back from 17-0 down, top performances from Gregory Alldritt, Antoine Hastoy and Josh van der Flier and why La Rochelle seem to always beat Leinster.
We then look at Toulon thrashing Glasgow in the European Challenge Cup final, discussing the Cheslin Kolbe v Kyle Steyn duel and the sensational Baptiste Serin.
We finish off by debating the conversion that didn’t happen at the end of the New Zealand v France Sevens match and look forward to the URC Final. Kooks also tells us what he did to disappoint Steven Kitshoff.
Shaun and Thala review the weekend's European Champions Cup semi-finals and Leinster and La Rochelle's dominating wins.
Starting with Leinster v Toulouse, we discuss the similarities of Leinster's approach to Ireland's for their victory over France in the Six Nations, Ugo Mola's bizarre call to shift Dupont to the midfield and Rodrigue Neti's yellow card (and Josh van der Flier's dive). Jack Conan, Dan Sheehan and Jamison Gibson-Park are singled out for praise for their roles in the victories.
Moving to La Rochelle's 7-try victory over Exeter, we discuss whether Raymond Rhule is the most underrated South African player right now, his connection with Antoine Hastoy and the star performances from Gregory Alldritt and Ulupano Seuteni. We look forward to an epic rematch of last year's Champions Cup final.
We also preview the URC quarterfinals coming up. We ask whether the Bulls can break their losing streak against the Stormers if a near-full strength Bulls team cannot beat a 2nd string Western Province team in the Currie Cup. We ask what chances the Sharks have against Leinster without Eben Etzebeth and Siya Kolisi (very little) and we predict some extra time shenanigans in the Glasgow v Munster game.
Shaun provides us with an update in our Coach Fight bracket, with Johan Ackerman and John Mitchell getting surprising wins.
Jared, Shaun and Thala come together to break down the final week of the URC regular season as the quarterfinalist are confirmed.
Starting in Stellenbosch, Stormers beat a game Benetton side 38-22. We discuss the impressive seasons Dan du Plessis and Marvin Orie are having, the madness of Evan Roos' yellow card and a brilliant try created by prop Thomas Gallo and scored by Alessandro Izekor.
Moving to the Lions 50-35 victory over Zebre, we reflect on some of the Lions best performers this season, including Sanele Nohamba, Marius Louw and Franke Horn. We also bid farewell to Lions legend, Jaco Kriel, in his last match for the union.
The Bulls and the Sharks both confirm their spots in the URC quarterfinals in contrasting fashion. The Bulls give the Leinster C team their largest ever defeat of 62-7. We discuss whether their run of wins against easy opposition is sustainable for their URC quarterfinal against the Stormers, the return of Marcell Coetzee and which of Johan Goosen or Chris Smith should start.
On the other hand, the Sharks went full Sharks by drawing 22-22 to Munster after leading 22-3, meaning that their Champions Cup qualification hopes hang by a thread. We discuss if the Sharks can win the competition from 8th and the unfortunate news of Siya Kolisi's knee injury.
We look forward to the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup semi-finals this weekend. We discuss whether Leinster can handle Toulouse's size, if La Rochelle can stop the Exeter Last Dance. Jared predicts doom for Dublin, while Shaun and Thala foresee a repeat of last year's Champions Cup final.
Our First Phase looked at the video of Pote Human giving a PK (not a penalty kick!) at a Major League Rugby game and we discussed which coaches would win in a fight.
The band is almost back together as this Thala is joined by Jared and Kooks
We start with the breaking news of Jacques Nienaber stepping down as the Springbok coach. We talk about what legacy he will have left behind, who is next in line and what could happen with Rassie Erasmus.
We move to the URC results of last week and we breakdown each South African side’s performances. We wonder if the Sharks will ever find consistency and whether they or the Bulls will join the Stormers in the Champions Cup next season. We try figure out how the Lions lost to the Leinster academy side and Kooks new job and a stadium judge.
Our First phase question this week paid tribute to Chris Ashton’s celebration after he scored his 100th try and we wanted to know what is the best ever try celebration.
Kooks and Thala wrap up the weekend's European Rugby Champions Cup and Challenge Cup quarterfinals, which saw losses to the 3 remaining South African teams.
We start with the Sharks 54-20 loss at Toulouse. While Curwin Bosch, Skhumbuzo Notshe and Grant Williams had impressive performances, the Sharks defensive issues were evident. Kooks gives his take about the French TV producer situation, Emmanuel Meafou and the magic of Dupont, Ntamack and Ramos.
We then move to the Stormers looking flat in the 42-17 loss at Exeter. We discuss if the Stormers miss Deon Fourie, Exeter's Last Dance and what can be done to fix South Africa's traveling issues. We then wrap up the Champions Cup looking at Garry Ringrose leading Leinster thrashing Leicester and Levani Botia turning into Fijian David Pocock in La Rochelle outclassing Saracens.
We move to look at Lions losing to Glasgow 31-21 on the back of impressive Huwipulotu performances and Kyle Steyn jumping at the front of the lineout. We then look at what chances Scarlets, Toulon and Benetton have in the Challenge Cup semifinals.
We then look at URC Rounds 17 and 18 to discuss what the South African teams need to do to qualify for the URC quarterfinals and Leinster's Rhys Ruddock All Stars featuring Teddy Pendergrass.
Our First Phase question was looking at rugby's coach killers. Our rugby shoutouts include looking at the impressive Chiefs in Super Rugby Pacific and the underdog Blue Bulls in the Currie Cup.
We are joined by Dylan Jack as Jared, Thala and Shaun navigate through the Champions Cup round of 16 games as well as an in depth look into the Lions win over French giants, Raicng 92 ;)
We dive into the Champions Cup results and ask the Dirt Trackers about how to determine a winner in a drawn game after Exeter Chiefs overcome 14 man Montpellier. Some of the First Phase answers were entertaining and include, a dance off, a punch up and a boat race.
Our shout out's this week go to the WomenBoks, Brok Harris and a few other top performers.
Enjoy
Shaun and Thala look back at a struggling weekend for the South African sides in Round 16 for the United Rugby Championships.
We start with the Stormers draw to the Rhys Ruddock All Stars at Leinster, discussing how the Stormers battled with the Leinster kicking game and Leinster's ridiculous depth. We then move to the Sharks and the Bulls losses to Scarlets and Ulster respectively, their precarious position at the edge of missing the URC playoffs and Champions Cup qualification. We then look at the real hero of Round 16, Andrea Scialpi and his camerawork in the Lions comeback win over Benneton. We talk the importance of Franke Horn.
We finally make some predictions for the Last 16 round of fixtures in the European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup, which include surprise wins for Munster in Durban, Ulster sneaking past Leinster and Benneton making a Challenge Cup finals run.
Shaun and Thala review the final weekend of the Six Nations, celebrating Ireland's Grand Slam victory. We review each team's campaign, rating them out of 10, discussing who their best player is and what each team needs to work on for the Rugby World Cup.
How do Shaun and Thala feel about Italy? Which of Scotland's #SaffasAbroad was their best player? Should we be more optimistic about England or Wales? And which of France or Ireland's players should be Player of the Tournament.
We also select a Team of the Tournament, discuss Freddie Steward's red card and what Scotland will do with their flyhalves going forward.
The full team joins for this bonus podcast as we look ahead to Super Saturday and who will lift the 2023 Six Nations Trophy (Ireland, the answer Ireland)
Kooks and Thala are joined by our favorite rugby YouTuber, Riaan Louw to break down Round 4 of the Six Nations.
Kooks and Thala start by reacting to France's record win over England in Twickenham. Kooks remarks that France are unbeatable at that form and we discuss what they do so well and impressive performances from Antoine Dupont, Charles Ollivon and Thomas Ramos. We also scratch our heads trying to work out how to fix England, who should play v Ireland and if Jack van Poorvliet has kicked the ball out of the ruck yet.
Riaan joins us as we discuss the Scotland v Ireland game. We try to figure out if Ireland has 25 hour days to practice Josh van der Flier's lineout throwing and how they're the best problem solvers in rugby. Kooks is again let down by Scotland, in spite of the magic of Huwipulotu.
We then discuss whether France and Ireland should cause Bok fans sleepless nights. Does Ireland have aspects of their game that can cause the Boks issues? Are France the perfect mix of the Springboks and the All Blacks? And what about Scotland too?
We also discuss the state of Riaan's favorite team, the Lions. Whether the days of hot dogs on tour are over, Franke Horn being a key player, their chances at qualifying for the URC top 8 and why Scott Robertson has put Riaan in therapy.
Out First Phase looks at which consultant should an international team get in preparation for the Rugby World Cup.
Follow Riaan Louw @Ringo26 on Twitter and on his YouTube page
Kooks, Shaun and Thala come together to discuss a bumper weekend of domestic rugby.
The boys first discuss the Stormers completing a sweep of victories against South African opponents in the United Rugby Championship this season, and the struggles the Sharks have without their Springboks. Can John Plumtree fix them?
Next is Sanele Nohamba kicking the Lions to a shock victory over the Bulls. The Lions win amid controversy about their team environment and we wonder why the Bulls have flattered to deceive this season. We round up the other URC Round 15 games and look forward to some pivotal matches coming up in the last 3 rounds in the race for the playoffs.
The lads then review the Super Weekend in Super Rugby Pacific where they debate Ardie Savea's throat slitting gesture and Kooks has some thoughts about Melbourne hosting the Super round. Then it's a quick look at the form of the overseas based flyhalves for the Springboks in Handre Pollard, Elton Jantjies and Rob du Preez. We finish with some predictions for Six Nations Week 4 and Thala predicting doom and gloom for Wales, Scotland and England.
Our First Phase this week discussed which players will we never give up on with the likes of Johan Goosen, Pat Lambie and Wesley Fofana mentioned.
Jared and Shaun take the reigns and talk about the Six Nations. We look into how the last 3 rounds have unfolded and more specifically at Round 3 and the big talking points.
Why we think Mohamed Haouas is getting some unwarranted heat and take a detailed look at each game.
Jared turns Shaun into a forward focused thinker as they detail the good and bad from each of the teams.
Talking points around how deep the French loose trio chart goes, is the Huwipulotu pairing the real deal, what gives with all this Farrell hate and breaking down Italy's top down approach to the RWC year.
A look into the baby faced Welsh midfield and what Gatland is up to plus Jared call's Marcus Smith at 15 in the near future.
Thala, Jared and Shaun deliver a two-part podcast for the week reviewing Week 14 of the URC and looking forward to Week 3 of the Six Nations.
In Part 1, Thala and Jared focus on the two South African derbies in the URC. In the Stormers victory over the Bulls, they rave over a mature defensive victory at Loftus with Deon Fourie being a ruck pest, Jake White thinking credit for Manie Libbok should go to Jake White and the return of Sbu Nkosi for the Bulls. In the Sharks victory over the Lions, Thala and Jared talk about the form of Curwin Bosch, the midfield battle between Rohan Janse van Rensburg and Marius Louw and the reports on a contract extension for Ivan van Rooyen.
Part 2 Shaun and Thala previewed the Six Nations. They discuss the Welsh players strike which threatens the clash with England. We discuss whether Scotland can pull off an upset in Paris or whether France will bounce back and if Ireland will rotate for their clash against Italy. We also discuss whether we will take Crusaders or the field for the upcoming Super Rugby Pacific.
In First Phase we discuss the best foreign imports a club names such as Schalk Brits, Freddie Michalak and Leone Nakawara are mentioned
Kooks, Shaun and Thala are back podding about Week 2 of the Six Nations (and a bit of Week 1 as well).
The gents start with Ireland’s win over France and discuss whether Ireland are the undisputed best team in the world, if France should start worrying and how great the first half of the game was. The performances of Caelan Doris, Hugo Keenan and Antoine Dupont stand out in particular.
The conversation moves to Scotland’s comprehensive victory over Wales. Kooks calls out the Finn fans who were not there when times were tough. Shaun wonders if Huwipulotu will work against France and Ireland. Thala focuses on the impact Richie Gray has had on the Scottish pack and whether Wales should fully embrace real Warrenball.
We briefly look at England’s victory over Italy and compare which of the new coaches in Borthwick or Gatland will be the happier of the two and how the Farrell-Lawrence-Slade axis looks like.
Please note that we faced some technical issues which affected the recording of the podcast. Apologies if the final product is disjointed as we had to record in 3 different parts.
Jared and Thala are joined by Squidge Rugby’s Will Owen to do a deep dive discussion on how Wales look prior to the 2023 Six Nations.
We start by hearing Will’s thoughts on the state of the Wales Rugby Union after their CEO, Steve Philips, resigned amid allegations of sexism and racism in the WRU.
We then discuss what led to Wayne Pivac’s sacking and did a quick crash course on what to expect from Warrenball.
Will broke down the players that would benefit from Gatland coming back. We spend time discussing the likes of Tommy Reffell, Joe Hawkins, Christ Tshiunza and Kieran Hardy.
We finish with discussing predictions for the Six Nations, Taulupe Faletau versus Duane Vermeulen, RWC 2023 games we looking to attend, Santi Arata and why Damien Penaud would be a hit on the Six Nations Netflix series.
Follow Will Owen @will_owen9 and look out for his content on the Squidge Rugby channel on YouTube and follow the Owen brothers’ Squidge Rugby World Cup Retrospective podcast which looks back at the 2007 Rugby World Cup.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala review the performance of the South African teams in round 4 of the Champions Cup.
We start with the Bulls loss to Lyon and discuss Jake White’s squad system and whether they have any chance against Toulouse in the last 16.
We move onto the Sharks entertaining loss to Harlequins, where we debate how to deal with caterpillar rucks, discuss Marnus Potgieter’s form and how the Sharks may fare in their last 16 clash against Munster.
We then look at the Stormers victory against Clermont and how unbeatable they are in Cape Town, the boost Evan Roos offers and how will the Stormers manage in the next 2 months without their Springboks.
Kooks and Thala look at the last 16 draw and predict an All-URC Champions Cup final. Kooks is already applying for leave to watch Finn Russell face the Lions in Joburg in the Challenge Cup last 16. And this week’s First Phase was making up a team with club positional combinations.
Jared, Kooks and Shaun take you through the weekends action and get started with our First Phase chat about some of the great teams we and the Dirt Trackers would like to have seen a Netflix Documentary on.
We dive into the Eddie Jones appointment and what it means to all parties plus the general reaction of surprise by the Monday morning news.
We all (mostly) agree that the weekends Red Cards were spot on but go through them in order to try and understand what the issue is and chat about the diabolical article in The Guardian that 'blames' Manie Libbok for the high hit that resulted in Ben Loader's red card.
Shaun slows things down a bit by reading every result from the Champions Cup (a bit too much so skip 10 seconds) but the squad talk about the South African sides, how they are set up for the last 16 and the Champions Cup as a whole especially Racing (12) 92 holding out against Quins with three yellow cards to end the game.
Enjoy
Jared and Thala start off the year discussing the South African teams performances in Week 12 of the United Rugby Championship.
The boys discuss the Bulls victory over the Dragons, Lions being thrashed by Munster, a second-string Sharks side being beaten by Connacht and a last-gasp victory for Glasgow over the Stormers. They also reflect on the season so far for each side, look at how they doing in the URC stats table and what should be their goals for the remainder of the competition.
A preview of Week 3 of the European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup games is also done, which are must-win games for all of the South African teams for different reasons.
Our First Phase topic was best/funniest stories of meeting a rugby player in public, which include meeting Gurthrö Steenkamp at an ATM, Eben Etzebeth at Canal Walk and Butch James’ infamous party trick.
Thala and Shaun wrap up 2022 with a few great memories and plenty of laughs as we tackle this weeks first phase, the Champions Cup and a little more.
We are going to take a break and will be back ahead of Round 3 of the Champions Cup.
Shaun, Jared and Thala make a welcome return after a few challenging weeks of no podcasts.
We kick off with an entertaining FirstPhase as we pick professional rugby players occupations in an alternate universe
We get stuck into the South African teams round one performances as they make their debut in Europe and take a stab at the round 2 predictions while looking at a few mouth watering fixtures.
Jared, Shaun and Thala review Week 3 of the Autumn Nations Series.
The boys start in Genoa with the Springboks’ 63-21 win over Italy. They discuss Willie Le Roux’s attacking impact, what Manie Libbok could add to the backline and how best Nienaber can set up the backline.
We look back to the crazy Scotland and Argentina card featuring 6 cards and over 10 tries and the crazy England and New Zealand draw.
We finally touch on the Irish win against Australia and Shaun has another go on Ireland from not learning from their mistakes in July. Thala sets out why Ireland and France have the stats to back them up as the main contenders for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
Our First Phase was a discussion of fairly rated players which featured mention of Juan Smith, JP Pietersen, Adi Jacobs and Tom Curry.
Kooks and Shaun waxing lyrical about the World Cup Final and how the Black Ferns managed to keep the unbelievable forward dominance and driving from the Red Roses at bay long enough to win the title at Eden Park.
We dive into the Springbok loss in Marseilles. the justified red cards with split opinion on the final try. Kooks talks about the Springboks being able to 'rest kickers' after that phenomenal display by not one, or two but three Springboks this weekend.
We talk about watching rugby seated, standing or throwing things and Kooks misses his chance to mention Finn Russell (what is this world coming to?)
Finally we dissent the Springbok Match Day 23 to face Italy. We talk about the 13 position, Evan Roos and Manie Libbok with mention of a 'hold my beer' moment by Jacques Nienaber as he names what IS actually the biggest hitting 10,12 & 13 ever to play Test Rugby
Jared, Shaun and Thala do a match-by-match review Week 1 (or is it 2?) of the Autumn Nations Series and the Rugby World Cup semifinals.
We discuss about France’s last minute victory thanks to the Damian Penaud try, discuss whether the Australian performance could be a turning point, compare Charles Ollivon and Nic White’s moustache’s and tell you why Nick Mallet has Thomas Ramos wrong.
At the Millennium Stadium, New Zealand thrash Wales, but we don’t refuse the opportunity to slander Codie Taylor and Caleb Clarke as we discuss whether these All Black wins are a false dawn.
We celebrate the Pumas victory in Twickenham over England and discuss if they are getting the respect they deserve and have another conversation about what is this England team missing.
We talk about the shock of Italy’s thrashing of Samoa and Scotland scraping through against Fiji.
Finally, we celebrate two epic semifinals at the Rugby World Cup as the Red Roses and the Black Ferns ensure the dream final takes place - it will certainly be the match of the year. We salute the best amateur rugby team in the world, Canada and how they competed against England and commiserate with France on their narrow loss to New Zealand.
Jared, Shaun and Thala have a deep review of the Springboks’ 19-16 loss to Ireland in Dublin.
We debate the Damian Willemse selection at 10, how he performed, who should play with him and whether we see Manie Libbok in the next test.
We look at Willie Le Roux’s impact on the Bok attack, the struggles for the rolling maul and marvel at Jesse Kriel’s masterful defensive performance.
We also look at what Ireland did well, Jimmy O’Brien’s excellent debut off the bench, the maul-stopping James Ryan and whether the Irish loose trio (led by Johannesburg’s Josh van der Flier) is the best trio in the world.
We also debut a new segment called Quick Taps and discuss what changes we will see for the French game and what will the two teams take from this clash into their Rugby World Cup pool game.
Our First Phase discussed the worst kicks we’ve seen, which included a hilarious drop goal attempt at Hamilton Rugby Club.
Jared, Kooks and Thala preview. The Autumn Nations Series and what to expect from a jam-packed window of test rugby.
We start off by asking which international window is the best and what makes the Autumn Internationals so special.
We preview the Ireland vs Springbok, we ask who are the favorites for this weekend and we find out why Thala is trying to end Willie Le Roux’s test career…
We also preview the other tests happening this weekend and most importantly find out what agendas are driving this window. All this and more on the RugbyBits pod.
Jared, Kooks, Shaun and Thala are (finally!) all back together to review the weekend’s rugby.
We start with the URC and the Stormers comeback victory over the Lions in Johannesburg, lead by Manie Libbok in scintillating form. We also discuss the performance of the Lions loose trio and we recruit more members to the Henco van Wyk hype train.
We review the Bulls dominating win over the Sharks at Loftus. While the Bulls saw strong performances from Johan Goosen and David Kriel, it’s same old same old for the Sharks.
We turn to international rugby and a lackluster win for the All Blacks in Japan and Australia’s last gasp winner Scotland with a smart play from Nic White, leading to a Kinghorn v Hastings v Russell debate about the Scottish flyhalf position.
We finish off by looking at the women’s Rugby World Cup quarterfinals ,Portia Woodman claiming the most tries in Rugby World Cup history and gauge the chances France and Canada could spring upsets against the Black Ferns and the Red Roses.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala are joined by Bulls player and SuperSport broadcaster Layla Arrison to review the group stages of the Rugby World Cup 2021.
We talk about the performance of the Women Boks, the players that impressed us like Aseza Hele, Simamkele Namba, Latsha Babalwa, Nomawethu Mabenge, Nadine Roos and Zintle Mpupha.
We talk about the challenges of playing as an amateur rugby player, the lack of opportunities for women rugby players in South Africa and how far (or close) are we from professionalism in women’s rugby. We also spend time in bidding farewell to a legend in the South African game, Zenay Jordaan.
We look at the rest of the exciting tournament and make our picks for who will win it all in a few weeks.
Kooks, Jared and Shaun fight all the gremlins as they get through the podcast dealing not only with loadshedding but a whole bunch of other bugs.
We dive into FirstPhase and after that a look into the SA Derbies coming this weekend. Due to technical difficulties we can not dive into the Sh1t Storm from Durban but we do end off having a great chat about the SA 'A' side, who we want and we each select our squad bolters.
Enjoy!
Jared and Thala review Week 5’s URC action for the South African sides.
They both laud Manie Libbok’s quality performance in the rain and discuss the decision to go for the drop goal in the last minute, as the Stormers played in the rain on Friday night.
Looking at the Lions loss to Ulster, they look at what is different about the Lions this season, the turning points in the game and massive games from the Lions loosies and Duane Vermeulen.
The Sharks review looks at their tight five being bolstered by Eben Etzebeth and how they can build cohesion in the team, while the discussion of the Bulls loss in Munster examines the battles the Bulls tight five had against Munster’s big boys.
The #FirstPhase question looked at which rugby player would you have a beer with, past or present, and shoutouts were made to Butch James, Schalk Burger, Siya Kolisi and even Rassie Erasmus.
Shaun and Thala let Kooks join the pod after serving his podcast suspension to review the weekend’s rugby.
This week’s First Phase question was about combining different aspects of our favourite rugby players to create a Rugby Frankenstein and the results were terrifying!
We reviewed the opening weekend of the Rugby World Cup, which included a brave performance from the Springboks against France, Ruby Tui and Portia Woodman being unfair against Australia and a last gasp win for Wales.
We then turned our attention to Week 4 of the URC and South African teams’ first losses against overseas opponents. We talk about what the Sharks can learn from the Stormers, the Bulls best backline combination, the Sacha Mngomezulu hype train picking up speed and what Hamish Watson did to make Ruan Venter so mad.
We do a roundup of the weekend’s Premiership, Top 14 and NPC results and we end with some rants from Kooks about Ben Smith bait tweets and Thala about the competitiveness of the URC.
Shaun and Thala come together to discuss the weekend’s URC and Premiership action.
The pair do a full review of the weekend’s URC games, including the Bulls players on the edge of breaking into the Springboks, the impressive young Lions backline, Mannie Libbok and Brok Harris leading the Stormers to a bonus point win and a new edition of “what is wrong with the Sharks”.
Thala also shares his experience of being at the StoneX Stadium to watch Saracens and Leicester Tigers live and watching Owen Farrell cook in person. Shaun also talks about the reaction to his, sorry the RugbyBits, tweet about Rob du Preez’s form for Sale.
The weeks First Phase question providing plenty of talking points with Eric Cantona, Serena Williams, Tommy Caldwell and LeBron James making the RugbyBits First Phase XV with thanks to some great suggestions from the Dirt Trackers.
Thala and Shaun round up the Rugby Championship and give their team ratings along with Player of the Tournament for each nation.
They look ahead to the November Tour and discuss Evan Roos at length along with how things may unfold with the SA A game in Europe plus much much more.
Enjoy.
Thala is back in the driving seat and joined by Jared and Shaun as they look back at the Springbok bonus point win over Argentina.
They look into the phenomenal first half and why the lack of accuracy in the second.
They take a look at the players that stood out and ahead to this weekends clash, predicting who will start at 10 and how the bench will be set up.
For this weeks first phase we discuss the most hilarious out of position stories we have heard or played in. From props moving to the wing and Damian de Allende on flank for Milnerton High School.
All three make predictions ahead of the final round of the Rugby Championship and look at what could happen with all four teams in a mathematical position of winning the 2022 tournament.
Jared and Shaun are solo again as we wait for Thala to rejoin us and Racing 92 to win so Kooks comes back.
We take a look at Neil Powell's coaching career, one that is unlikely to be matched by anyone in the near future. He has amassed countless medals but the humble man lists other things as his greatest achievement as a coach, leader and mentor.
Jared speaks of how none of it is possible without Paul Treu and Shaun jokes at how the Springbok succession plan problem was solved way back then by the Blitzbok management.
We look ahead to the Rugby Championship match against Argentina with Jared giving some insights into what team will likely run out and what bench to expect in this must win fixture.
Shaun floats a hypothetical scenario he thought of should Elton Jantjies not return into the Springbok set up and how Damian Willemse is the biggest loser.
Shaun drives today as Kooks and Jared take a deeper look into the Springbok backline, Siya Kolisi and the loose trio.
The podcasts takes an unusual turn with the focus being mainly on the backline who played well against Australia and helped the Springboks to a bonus point win.
We start off with some news from around the world before our weekly segment called First Phase. This week we discuss our favorite Springbok wins, outside of the three RWC final triumphs.
We ask the question about Damian Willemse, where does he fit and how does that impact our squad and team selection as well as how things will be addressed for the final two games of the Rugby Championship with the Boks still very much in contention.
We conclude with a quick look into the upcoming tournaments that are getting back underway and a brief look at the World Cup Sevens being played in Cape Town.
Hot Takes, Truth Bombs and some Unpopular Opinions, enjoy!
We are joined by journalist Dylan Jack as he, Shaun and Jared breakdown the Springbok loss against the Wallabies in Round 3 of the Rugby Championship.
We touch on squad depth, the bench and efficiency of the Bomb Squad. We talk about the elephant in the room from Saturday's game regarding two key moments and we look ahead to this weeks game against Australia.
We have a look at the history made by Michael Cheika and Argentina and how deep in the dwang is Foster now plus a look at the LA 7's results for the Blitzboks and an eye or the World Cup 7's
Jared finally gets back on the airwaves after making a move overseas. He and Shaun have a look at the match day 23's posted by Nienaber and Rennie.
They take a deep dive into some key match up's and where both sides will look to gain ascendancy.
We veer off track by chatting about the Munster fixture added to the November tour and what that means for (we hope) the 42 man squad selected.
We focus on Joseph Dweba, Duane Vermeulen, Elton Jantjies and Frans Steyn.
Kooks drives the show with Thala and Jared away as we are joined by Dave Wessels to discuss the Springbok selections ahead of the Wallaby game in Round 3 of the Rugby Championship.
We all take a trip down memory lane in picking our best Tri-Nations/Rugby Championship memories for this weeks First Phase segment.
Dave dives deeper into player selection and naming teams early vs late as well as some great insight into planning and training as well as using data and effective communication to change player mindsets
Kooks, Shaun and Thala break down the second round of the Rugby Championship, focusing on the Springboks defeat to the All Blacks at Ellis Park.
We debate whether the Bomb Squad and the 6-2 split has run its course, the backline reshuffle after Jesse Kriel’s injury and the fantastic performance of Lukhanyo Am on the wing. Kooks also reveals the true reason the Springboks lost.
On the All Blacks side, Shaun was forced to say nice things about Rieko Ioane at 13 and we discuss what New Zealand changed from last week to now.
We also react to the Nienaber’s 34-man squad for the Australian tour, the omission of Evan Roos, Deon Fourie entrusted as the 3rd choice hooker and whether there is space for both Frans Steyn and Andre Esterhuizen.
Join as we also look forward to which team is in the driving seat to win the Rugby Championship and Kooks has another epic rant about the early morning Adelaide Springbok test and the first Bledisloe Cup game on a Thursday!
Kooks and Thala get together to look at the teams and preview the 2nd round of the Rugby Championships, with a particular focus on South Africa and New Zealand.
They look at the changes made for the second test by both sides, Kooks asks for people to respect Jesse Kriel and looks forward to a more attacking approach from the Springboks.
Kooks and Thala then try to work out what New Zealand is trying to do, why Kooks wants to fight Ian Foster and Thala predicts that the writing is on the wall for the New Zealand head coach.
After a brief look at the Argentina and Australia game, with Kooks offering to play if he can get Australian citizenship, predictions are made for the weekend’s games.
Jared, Shaun and Thala look back on the first game week of the Rugby Championship and South Africa’s 26-10 victory over New Zealand and Australia’s bonus point 41-26 victory in Argentina.
The team discusses whether this is the most impressive Springbok victory over New Zealand in the professional era, rave about Lukhanyo Am and marvel at how some second choice players like Jasper Wiese, Jaden Hendrikse and Damian Willemse have stepped up in their positions. We then look at what’s wrong with the All Blac… sorry, we mean New Zealand (they will have to earn the All Blacks nickname again). And where do they go from here regardless of result at Ellis Park.
We then look at the the big Brumbies influence for the Wallabies, the ill-discipline of Cheika’s Argentina and discuss Marcelo Bosch’s commentary, referee Mike Adamson’s Spanish and Jared’s Afrikaans.
Our First Phase segment discussed what our favourite second international teams are.
Thala is alone with a short preview pod for the Springboks against the All Blacks in Mbombela in the opening round of the Rugby Championship.
He goes through the two teams, the major changes and talking points from the two selections. He sets out some of the areas of the game which will be decisive, tries to predict how the All Blacks will play on Saturday and finally makes a prediction.
Enjoy in the build up to the test match.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala kick off season 2 of the podcast with a big Rugby Championship preview.
We start in the First Phase segment discussing what their go-to imaginary rugby move is, which starts a discussion on the merits of a good sidestep around a shopper against offloading a water bottle out of contact.
Then we get into the meat of the Rugby Championship preview and each of us discusses what our biggest question for each of the teams are.
From questions about who the fullback of the Springboks will be, to whether Roger Tuivasa-Sheck sorts out the All Black midfield, to looking at who will replace Samu Kerevi and asking whether Michael Cheika will make the Pumas more consistent. The squad then predicts who they will win the Rugby Championship.
See why Shaun thinks South Africans are too nice as hosts of the All Blacks and Kooks’ epic rant about the kick off time of the Wallabies v Springbok game in Adelaide and why this should be grounds to kick Australia out of the Rugby Championship.
Apologies in advance to our Australian fans!
Kooks and Thala paired up to review all the deciders during week 3 of the July test period.
In our First Phase segment, we looked at the best players from the July tests all over the word.
We then took a deep dive into the Springboks win in the 3rd test against Wales. We discuss what both sets of coaches learned from the test series, the growth in the Springboks’ attacking game plan, the emergence of Damian Willemse and Jaden Hendrikse, the importance of Willie le Roux and the standard Wales must play at in future.
We then move our focus to Ireland’s historic series victory against New Zealand. We rave about the Irish attack and look at what the All Blacks will do with their coaching staff and their team going forward.
We then look at England’s series win over Australia, Argentina’s last gasp test and series win over Scotland and Chile beating the United States to qualify for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
We then rank the Tier 1 nations into ‘Contenders’, ‘Dark Horses’ and ‘Pretenders’ in preparation for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
In a bonus pod discussing the 2nd week of July tests, Shaun, Thala and Jared (until load shedding intervened) discussed an exciting weekend of international rugby.
We started with Ireland’s first victory against the All Blacks in New Zealand. We talk about Ireland’s impressive attack, Thala and Jared provide advice for Peter O’Mahony’s sledging of Sam Cane. Shaun breaks down all the different cards the All Blacks had, the officials confusion about how many All Blacks should be on the field and why Ireland need to be blamed.
Moving to Suncorp Stadium for England leveling their series against Australia, card talk dominates as we discuss what a deliberate knock on is and we look at what did England change from the first test.
We look at the other storylines from all over the world, including France climbing to 1st in the World Rugby rankings, Scotland completing a home nations clean sweep against the Rugby Championship nations, Georgia’s epic victory in the unofficial Six Nations relegation match and Romania’s victory with 14 men over Uruguay. We finish by looking at Rugby World Cup qualifiers as we congratulate Namibia for winning the Rugby Africa tournament and we look back to the USA’s first leg victory in Chile and the brilliant individual try from Rodorigo Fernandez
Jared, Shaun (with Thala making a post Load shedding appearance) breakdown the Springbok loss to Wales in Bloemfontein.
Players that built up their Springbok stocks and some that lost.
We dive into Nienaber getting criticism and whether it is justified and what we need to win the series on Saturday in Cape Town.
First Phase this week is about our and your favorite Springbok try.
Jared, Shaun and Thala reflect on the first week of the July tests.
The boys break down the Springbok’s last-minute win in the first test against Wales. We look at what went wrong in the first half, Elton Jantjies’ horror show of a first half and then how Jasper Wiese, Damian Willemse and Willie le Roux turned it around.
We react to the team selected for the second test by the Springboks and discuss the players we are most excited to see - spoiler alert: Jared is very excited about Marcel Coetzee.
We also look at the storylines from the other test series - how did 14-man Australia turn it around against England; how the Marcus Smith/Owen Farrell axis is working; the All Blacks’ ruthless beating of Ireland; a second-string French team looking impressive against Japan and Michael Cheika winning his first test coaching Argentina against Scotland.
International season is here!
The boys talk about who some of the impact players will be, like Damian Willemse and Nick Tompkins. We look at what a successful series will be for the Springboks, who are we looking forward to see and also talk about how dangerous Wales can be.
Will Ireland finally win a series in NZ? What does Eddie Jones have planned for Australia? Is Argentina ready to bounce back against Scotland and we talk about exciting the France vs Japan series could be.
Catch this and more in this episode of RugbyBits
Jared and Shaun take an in depth look at the Super Rugby, Premiership and URC Finals.
A virtual fist pump to Hacjivah Dayimani & Freddie Burns who have taken title celebration up a notch and we are all here for it.
Shaun takes a look at a few referee moments in the Stormers v Bulls game highlighting some problems which have been an all too regular occurrence in the game
First Phase has some controversial calls as we swop out test players from one nation to another with some interesting calls from the Dirt Trackers.
Kooks, via a text, gets his 'I told you so' moment after Thala laughed at him about the Blues and Crusaders final.
The full squad is here to break down the squad chosen by Jacques Nienaber for the Springboks’ test series against Wales.
We break down the selections, the surprises and the snubs in each position and how we expect them to figure out during the test series.
Hear why Jared highly rates Rynhardt Elstadt, Shaun and Kooks’ concerns at flyhalf and the debate about Deon Fourie’s inclusion. We also briefly look at the Wales squad and give the Springbok coach a mark out of 10 for his first squad of the year
Kooks, Shaun and Thala break down the weekend of knockout rugby around the world.
In the First Phase, we discuss our favourite finals in which our teams were not involved in and we discussed the Cheetahs v Lions 2007 Currie Cup Final, the Bulls v Chiefs 2009 Super Rugby Final and the Waratahs v Crusaders 2013 Super Rugby Final.
We then break down the Bulls' shock victory over Leinster at the RDS. We look at the success of the Bulls lineout and Sexton trying to wrestle control back for Leinster. Kooks and Thala share their experience watching the Stormers victory after the full time siren and discuss Manie Libbok stepping up in the final moments and Damian Willemse's monumental performance. Kooks then shares what happened to him after he got invited onto the field after the game
We then look at the Super Rugby Pacific, Premiership and Top 14 knockout games - raving about the classy performances from Beauden Barrett and Antoine Dupont to looking at why Owen Farrell is such a winner. We wrap up by making our predictions for the weekend's finals.
The team is joined by Carl Lewis, head of content at Betcoza, our wonderful sponsors as we dive into the weekend’s URC Quarterfinals.
We start in Loftus and credit is give to Jake White’s Bulls team for their consistency throughout the competition and for outlasting the Sharks. We look into why the Sharks season finished below our expectations and what this means for the future of head coach Sean Everitt and incoming director of rugby Neil Powell. We rave about the monster performances from Marcell Coetzee, Canaan Moodie and Phepsi Buthelezi.
We move to Cape Town for the Stormers victory over Edinburgh. We all about the Stormers tight defence, the improvement in Herschel Jantjies’ play and Sacha Mngomezulu standing up strong in his debut and the colossal performance from Evan Roos.
We also spend some time reviewing the brilliant performance from James Hume which puts the final nail in the coffin of the Johan van Graan Munster era. We talk about Leinster putting up a cricket score on Glasgow.
In our First Phase segment we talk about teams the streets won’t forget and mention memorable teams such as the 1999 Stormers, 2010 Wallabies, 2012 Sharks and 2013 Cheetahs. Our weekend shoutouts include complimenting the Griquas and Pumas for their Currie Cup campaign and the Ines’s of the final weekend of the Top 14.
The full squad is joined by chief rugby Twitter pot stirrer AP Cronje, as he continues to offend rugby fans throughout the British Isles in our URC quarterfinal previews.
In the Bulls v Sharks game, we debate what the Sharks game plan actually is, their lack of fluency in attack, the importance of Thomas du Toit, the emergence of Johan Grobbelaar and the Bulls ability in the lineout.
For the Stormers v Edinburgh game, we preview the titanic scrum battle between the two, look at Deon Fourie v Hamish Watson and expect to see a flurry of tries from the two best attacking teams in the URC.
In the Ulster v Munster game, we look at the importance of Peter O’Mahony and Nick Timoney and the midfield battle between Damian de Allende and Stuart McCloskey.
Finally we give Glasgow very little chance of upsetting a wounded Leinster team (which probably means Glasgow will now win).
We also discuss some of the lesser known players we think will steal headlines this weekend which include Johan Grobbelaar, Phepsi Buthelezi, James Hume and Canaan Moodie.
In our First Phase segment we discuss players we didn’t rate but have surprised us with how good they are.
The full squad, battling nationwide power cuts, came together to discuss the epic European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup finals.
We join in the celebrations in France, as we rave over the impressive performances for both La Rochelle and Lyon. We rave about the performances of Dillyn Leyds and Raymond Rhule as La Rochelle win their first major trophy. We also cover the Lyon’s first cup win in almost 90 years, as they beat Toulon to win the European Challenge Cup.
Our weekend shout-outs include Gurthrö Steenkamp, Uzair Cassiem, Kwagga Smith, Maritzburg College and the upcoming Allianz 15 Final
The entire team jump on in this weeks episode as we take a deeper dive into the South African sides games in the URC.
We do however start off with each team member selecting who they believe the others would favorite in the UltimateRugby App. Kooks, Thala, Jared and Shaun bring out some funny moments and well thought out answers based on their rugby personalities.
In the European discussion we dive into what Leinster and Toulon must do to lose what looks like dead certain wins and we hail some South African hero's in the Rugby Shout Out's.
Kooks and Shaun are at the helm in this episode as they jump into Leinster's near perfect Champions Cup performance, Toulouse's stuttering season, the Itoje v Etzebeth battle and the upcoming URC.
They both dive into Episode 1 of SuperSport's Springbok and British & Irish Lions documentary, TwoSides
The full squad is joined by Tom Savage (better known as @threeredkings on Twitter) who is nursing a hangover from his weekend in Dublin after watching his beloved Munster in the Champions Cup quarterfinal against Toulouse.
Tom talks about the fight Munster put up against the European champions. We discuss other ways to settled tied knockout games in our First Phase segment. Tom shares some of the Munster youngsters to look forward to, their expectations for the rest of the United Rugby Championship and his assessment of the Johann van Graan era.
We finish off by making our picks for the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup semi finals this weekend, talking some of the amazing tries scored over the last weekend and Paul Roos stealing a win.
Jared, Shaun and Thala get out their notebooks and discuss what each of the South African URC playoff teams need to work on if they want to win the competition.
We look at the Stormers tough win over an impressive young Leinster team and Deon Fourie’s impact. We discuss which of the non-Springbok superstar Sharks players has impressed us the most. We debate where Johan Grobelaar finds himself in the Springbok hooker pecking order.
We then preview and predict the Champions Cup matches for the weekend.
We discuss our First Phase question which was this week “Which Springboks do you think deserve more test caps” and compile a very competitive XV.
This week’s rugby shoutouts include a discussion of Spain’s disqualification from the men’s 2023 Rugby World Cup, celebrating the comeback of Rynhardt Elstadt to Toulouse and celebrating the career of Don Armand.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala huddle up for another classic episode of the RugbyBits podcast.
We start with our new segment, First Phase, and discuss our rugby conspiracy theories. Kooks shares what sorcery Doug Howlett used to keep his All Black try scoring record, Shaun laments the failed opportunity with the EP Kings and we wonder if Jared is actually a closet Bulls fan.
We move on to recap a great weekend of URC action where the fullbacks were the stars. The Stormers are legit title contenders, but the Sharks and Bulls are still finding consistency and the young Lions continue to learn every game. We get our calculators out to figure out playoff permutations and debate which South African team would do best in an away quarterfinal.
We finish off with our weekend shoutouts, which include Shaun finally throwing praise on Rieko Ioane’s play at 13 and the return of the English goat, Owen Farrell, to some of his best rugby.
The full squad is joined in this episode by former Western Force and Melbourne Rebels head coach, Dave Wessels. Get your notepads out, because this podcast is better than an World Rugby coaching course!
We talk Dave’s experiences working under 4 different Springbok head coaches during his time at the Stormers and the Brumbies, his love for Ikeys and consoling Tom Dawson-Squibb.
Dave shares his experiences and what he has learned from his time as a head coach at the Force and Rebels, managing his transition to the Rebels, the value of Marcel Brache and what South Africa can learn from Australian rugby.
We hear his thoughts about which is South Africa’s best URC side and which of the Brumbies and the Reds are better in Australia and we all share our niche loves for the game of rugby.
Powered by Bet.co.za
It's all hands on deck this week as Jared, Kooks, Shaun, and Thala discuss the Springbok alignment camps, and what the purpose of these camps is, the reasonings for certain snubs and inclusions.
Plus, the gents deliver their hot rugby takes that could get us cancelled, review the SA URC results and look ahead to each team's run into the playoffs.
Finally, we take a look at the weekend's Champions Cup results and ponder whether Harlequins can complete the comeback?
Powered by bet.co.za
Jared, Kooks, Shaun and Thala are all here to talk about the full house of South African URC victories in Round 14.
We talk about the progression of the Blitzbok stars in the Sharks and the Stormers like Werner Kok, Seabelo Senatla and Ruhan Nel in their victories over Welsh opposition. We gush over the Bulls loose trio performance against Duane Vermeulen's Ulster. We also debate the two yellow cards from the Bulls v Ulster game and the concerning lack of sanctions for high tackles in Super Rugby Pacific and why that is a threat to the game. We also look back to the Lions win over Edinburgh, discuss the current power rankings of the South African flyhalves and Shaun wants to bring every Lions star to the Sharks.
We also discuss our dream Rugby Wrestlemania match ups, give our predictions for the SA URC derbies and the Champions Cup match ups, Wayne Smith coaching the Black Ferns, Cheslin Kolbe and Nico Janse van Rensburg flying in the Top 14, the return of the unbeaten Blitzbokke and the return of South African schoolboy rugby.
Thala, Shaun and Kooks are joined by SA Rugby magazine writer Dylan Jack as they take a deeper look at the South African URC teams.
As we head into the business end of the competition we look at the state of the SA sides and debate which side is the best in the country, Who are the Sharks going to buy next and who might miss out on a spot in the playoffs.
If you were also wondering what Johnny Sexton does in Italy then you have another reason why you should listen to the pod.
Powered by bet.co.za
The full squad is here to review an entertaining Six Nations competition by looking at each team's performance in detail.
We marvel at France's grand slam campaign, but Kooks starts asking questions about whether they have maybe peaked too early. Jared has to dig deep to defend England and compliment Ireland. Shaun continues his love fest for Joe Marchant. Kooks FINALLY criticizes Finn Russell and Kooks and Thala debate whether Scotland are making progress under Gregor Townsend. We celebrate Italy's first Six Nations win in 7 years and the progress they are making. We are also as confused as Wales seem to be about what their game plan is and how good (or bad) they actually are.
We also spend some time sorting out our Six Nations Team of the Tournament. Ballie or Genge? Cros or Doris? Ntamack or Sexton? Jaminet or Keenan?
We also spend some time remembering the life of Alex Tarr of the Elite Rugby Banter podcast and one of the good men of rugby twitter who has recently passed away. Our condolences to his family and friends.
Thala, Shaun and Kooks are joined by the Raeburn Shield… Chairperson? CEO? Defender? Let’s go with Defender of the Shield, Dave Algie. We discuss how it all came about and the amazing history behind both the Raeburn and Utrecht Shields, tracking the winners in international rugby since the very first Men's test at Raeburn Place.
We look at some of the historical teams that have held it, why the Springboks holding the Raeburn Shield is bad news geopolitically and how the Raeburn Shield could give more meaning to tests in between World Cups.
We then recap Week 4 of the Six Nations results, including Ireland winning the Raeburn Shield off England. This is now the 8th game in a row the Raeburn Shield has changed hands (the first time that’s happened ever!) And we start looking forward to France’s possible coronation as Grand Slam champions.
The RugbyBits team chat to Ottavio about Italian Rugby and their Six Nations run, why he supports Promotion/Relegation in the tournament and when, if ever, Sergio Parisse will play his Test match and will it be for Italy or Argentina.
A great dive and insight into the club scene, feeder systems and a look at the Italian coaches of the past plus we touch on the URC, Premiership Rugby and the Top 14
Thala and Shaun are joined by Charlie Morgan, the Telegraph's senior rugby writer to do a deep dive on Eddie Jones' England.
We look into England's reliance on Manu Tuilagi and whether anyone can step into his shoes. We discuss Eddie Jones experimenting with formation-less attacking structures and position-less backlines. We debate what England's ideal backline would look like, potential 2023 Rugby World Cup bolters and their performance in the Six Nations so far. We also try to understand why it seems like so many English people dislike Eddie Jones - I mean, who can hate any Australian?!
Powered by bet.co.za
Thala is joined by Jared and Shaun to reflect on Six Nations Round 3 where the top teams started separating themselves from the rest.
We discuss France's continued march to the Six Nations title. Thala calls out the British and Irish Lions players in the Scotland team and we ponder why Kooks is always missing pods when Finn Russell has a stinker. While Shaun and Thala go off on another meh England performance, Jared reminds us they have won 2 from 3 and can still win the Six Nations. We also debate the uncontested scrum rules that clouded the Ireland v Italy game.
The lads are also encouraged by the performance of the South African URC teams in Europe this weekend, especially the Stormers and Lions in close losses. We debate how many of the SA URC teams will make the quarterfinals. We finish by discussing the crazy end to the Blues v Hurricanes game and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck's Super Rugby debut.
Kooks, Shaun and Thala are joined by Mitch of the Rugby Fixation Podcast to look at the new Super Rugby Pacific competition.
We discuss the Fijian Drua’s spear and the issues with the Moana Pasifika’s entry into SRP, the issues had in the past with new teams in Super Rugby.
Mitch expertly goes through the different Australian Super Rugby teams, their expectations, the exciting players to watch and how will they match up to the New Zealand sides. We also debate the contenders for the Wallabies 10 and 15 jerseys.
Come listen to a comprehensive preview of Super Rugby Pacific 2022 and go to the Rugby Fixation Podcast for Mitch’s series of previews of the different sides.
Powered by bet.co.za
The full squad discusses the big bombshell rumour about the Springboks replacing Italy in the Six Nations from 2025 onwards and the implications for the game in South Africa, the Six Nations itself, Italy (and other emerging nations in Europe) and the Rugby Championship.
A wide-ranging conversation which considers issues such as the development of the Tier 2 nations in general, Italy starting to get their structures right with their age group teams, how this would affect the Rugby Championship and World Rugby's renewed push for a Nations Championship. We then give each of the lads the power to be World Rugby Chairperson for the day and what they would do to fix international rugby.
We then look at the prospects of the South African URC teams playing their one-off fixtures in Europe this weekend and make predictions for Round 3 of the Six Nations.
Thala and Shaun are joined by freelance French rugby journalist, James Harrington (@Jamesonrugby) to take a deep dive look into the recent success of the French rugby team.
We review France's nail-biting victory over Ireland in Round 2 of the Six Nations, the strengths and weaknesses of the team, whether they can win a Grand Slam, how Fabien Galthie and the FFR have fixed France rugby and even talk about the Top 14 and whether marquee South African players have a future there after the announcement that Eben Etzebeth will leave Toulon at the end of the season.
Powered by bet.co.za
The full squad is here to look back at an entertaining first week of the 2022 Six Nations, the South African URC games and talk about the state of South African rugby.
We discuss impressive Irish and Scottish performances, Jared says some nice things about Josh van der Flier, whether Pivac made a mistake selecting Josh Adams at center, Thala has a scorching take on the Scottish tight five and why England doesn't need to panic and they need to listen to Shaun.
We are also trying to figure out how the Stormers became the top side in the South African conference of the URC. Kooks leads a discussion on the state of South African rugby and whether having so many competitions happening at one time (URC, Currie Cup, age-group competitions, Varsity Cup, etc.) is good for the local game.
Powered by bet.co.za
We take an in-depth look at Wales ahead of the Six Nations with Will Owen of Squidge Rugby fame.
We discuss how Wayne Pivac's term as head coach has gone so far, how Wales will deal with the injuries to many senior players and the youngsters ready to step up, how the Wales team will look for the tournament, his thoughts on Wales' first game with Ireland and a prediction for this year's Six Nations.
Hear Will's thoughts on why he is excited about Ben Carter, what makes Nick Tompkins a 'crazy-fun' player, if playing Josh Adams at 13 is a good idea and Will and Kooks share a moment in their love for Finn Russell.
Jared, Shaun and Thala host a Twitter Space on 31 January 2022 to do a team-by-team preview of the 2022 Six Nations, who they think will win it all and who will be player of the tournament.
The team then praises the Blitzboks and their record-equaling streak of 34 wins in a row. How do they get things right in their structures even though they lose players and coaches to 15s?
We end with a quick review of the Stormers and Sharks draw and the Bulls victory over the Lions in week 11 of the United Rugby Championship.