RugbyBits

Kooks and Sharky dive into a review of the weekends Champions and Challenge Cup Semi Finals. We get underway with the controversies of the UBB v Bath game with Sharky not fully subscribing to all the footage being hidden and asks how a business as big as the EPCR will allow a random TV Director influence their product. Kooks also weighs in and provides insights from a production point of view and we debate whether the social media fall out between SquidgeRugby and Andy Goode was necessay.We then take a look as to why UBB were triumphant and it was off the back of some exceptional defence which kept Bath snatching at opportunities all game. Equally so, Leinster were sublime on defence to get their win over RC Toulon despite nearly losing it and we look at the Challenge Cup games and how Ulster advancing will impact the URC.With the Dragons' loss, Kooks had to put his Dragons Rugby merch order on hold for another year.Finally we discuss the Luke Littler and Mo Farah half marathon debate. Who wins...?

Shaun and Thala look back on the weekend’s rugby, as the URC’s Race for 8 heats up.There are still 11 teams in the race for playoff spots and all 4 South African teams can still qualify. We looked at Week 15’s results and the remaining fixtures for the contenders.The Bulls took care of business in Wales against the Dragons with a bonus point win and have fixtures against 3 of the bottom 4 sides remaining putting them in a great position for earning a home knockout game, but will be sweating over the fitness of Canan Moodie this week.The Stormers shock loss to Connacht comes in a week after the passing away of longtime Stormers manager Chippie Solomon and some interesting quotes in the media by John Dobson. We try look at what is wrong and what can be fixed urgently as they go into a top of the table clash against Glasgow this weekend and have a tough run in.Speaking of Glasgow, they were spanked by the marauding Lions at Ellis Park who blitzed them in attack and on defence. This places the Lions at 4th and on path to earn their first URC playoff berth, but they have probably the toughest fixtures remaining and will need to get maximum points against Connacht this weekend.Finally the Sharks loss against Ospreys means their playoff hopes are still hanging by a thread. We discuss the injury Ethan Hooker suffered after scoring and at least they’re doing better this weekend than the Sale Sharks!Stuck around as we also discuss the Top 14 games that featured on ESPN Africa this weekend, Saracens destroying Sale Sharks, the Black Ferns getting revenge on Canada in the PAC4, the Chiefs beating the Hurricanes with a golden point in Super Rugby Pacific and the Blitzboks winning their first Hong Kong Sevens.

Shaun and Thala look back on the weekend's rugby, including the quarterfinals of the Champions Cup.We start with Bath's comeback win over Northampton which saw Bath come back from 21 points down after fantastic games from Finn Russell and Alfie Barberry. We also debate the pivotal penalty and yellow card to Henry Pollock.In Glasgow, Toulon outlast Glasgow, who will be kicking themselves for missing out on making a Champions Cup run. Toulon were spearheaded by Nacho Brex and Charles Ollivon, and we are impressed by young Georgian Mikheil Shioshvili.Leinster ease past Sale and we discuss the loosehead prop injury crisis at Leinster and we are SHOCKED that Rieko Ioane plays well on the wing (sarcasm).Finally, the big match of the weekend was Bordeaux v Toulouse and we debate if Bordeaux finally have Toulouse's number, rave about the impact of Ben Tameifuna and Maxine Lucu leading the defence. We debate whether any of the remaining teams can stop Bordeaux.We also look at the Challenge Cup quarterfinals, which saw a thriller won by Kooks' Dragons over Zebre and Exeter beating Benetton in a try fest. We also look at the international womens rugby that started this weekend with the Women's Six Nations and the Pac4 Championship.#Leinster #RiekoIoane #BathRugby #FinnRussell

Kooks, Shaun (and Top 14 SuperSub Thala, Ben Tameifuna, Msutu) chat about the dire weekend as all the South African sides made an exit from Europe.We unpack the way forward for the Bulls, Sharks, Stormers and Lions if they are to make a stand in the competitions moving forward. We take a brief look at the next few rounds of the URC and how each side will approach it along with why we think the Lions have a chance to beat Glasgow Warriors next week.Our main focus is the weekends Champions Cup Quarter Finals and we look at the blockbuster games that bookend the tournament with Bath v Northampton on Friday and UBB v Toulouse on Sunday. We pick our winners and how things will play out.We pick our Challenge Cup winners (it is Ulster) and Kooks and Shaun make a bet on the Dragons.We touch on Super Rugby, the fantastic SA School Rugby results from the lats few weeks as well as what is coming up this weekend.#ChampionsCup #FinnRussell #LouisBielleBiarrey #UBB #Toulouse #AntoineDupont #StuartMcCloskey #ChallengeCup #BathRugby #Ulster #Leinster #HenryPollock

Thala is joined by YouTube rugby content creator Riaan Louw to break down a dramatic Six Nations Super Saturday and to look forward to the final third of the URC league season.After discussing Ireland keeping Scotland at arm's length, Wales finally winning their first Six Nations game in 3 years and Thomas Ramos winning the Six Nations at the death against England, we discuss who the winners and losers of this year's Six Nations were.There is a lot of love for Stu McCloskey (and Ulster) and Andy Farrell, we discuss the impact of Joe Heyes and Kyle Steyn, we debate if Mathieu Jalibert has made the 10 jersey his own, but we raise some eyebrows on what England's tactical plan is, whether each coach has done enough to keep their jobs and is rugby and its tactics all looking very cookie cutter and samey right now.We get the Lions' biggest fan to discuss whether his team can finally break into the top 8 and discuss their tough run in. We look back at the Bulls faltering in the second half against the Stormers and what each South African side needs to do to qualify for the playoffs.

Shaun and Thala preview the final weekend of the Six Nations with France, Scotland and Ireland gunning for the championship.We preview each match and ask if Scotland can finally end their drought to Ireland and who will get the upper hand in the ruck battle. The Wales v Italy has a lot more significance, with Italy chasing their best Six Nations performance and Wales building their confidence from two previous games. Finally we discuss if the pressure will get to France and if there’s any way for England to give a good account for themselves.We finally preview the catch up of URC games this weekend, including a massive Bulls/Stormers clash with big implications for the winners.

Kooks, Shaun and Thala are back all together to break down a dramatic weekend in the Six Nations.We start in Murrayfield for Scotland’s 50-40 win over France in one of the most impressive Scotland performances we’ve ever seen. Shaun gets a chance to rave about Kyle Steyn and Kooks is feeling smug about Finn Russell, while we wonder what happened for France to lose their heads after halftime of a crazy game.In Rome Italy finally beat England for the first time. While Italy and Tomasso Menoncello deserve the plaudits, we debate whether Steve Borthwick should continue and why can’t he get his game plan, tactics and substitutions all correct at the same time.Finally the main thing we can about for Ireland v Wales is the amazing Rhys Carré try and Ireland get a bonus point win without much drama.We also have a rant from Kooks about all time Super Rugby teams, we celebrate the Blitzboks victory in Vancouver and debate which Australian WWE wrestlers would help their rugby teams.

Shaun and Thala look back on Round 12 of the URC and preview Round 4 of the Six Nations.We start with the breaking news that Dave Rennie has been appointed as the All Blacks head coach. We debate whether Jamie Joseph should have got the job instead, what Rennie brings and what he learned from his time at the Wallabies.Next we preview the Six Nations where Steve Borthwick made some confusing selections in the backline including Seb Atkinson and Tommy Freeman in the midfield. We wonder if this is Italy's best chance to finally beat England. Ireland have rotated their squad for their clash against Wales on Friday, who will be looking to continue from their performance against Scotland. We also debate what Scotland's chances are against France and whether they can suck them into a joue joue contest.Finally we look at a big weekend for the inland SA URC teams with big wins for the Lions over the Stormers, who extend their losing streak to three in a row, with Morne van den Berg in fantastic form. The Bulls continue in their good run and the Sharks drop their second consecutive game since JP Pietersen was appointed as a permanent head coach. We discuss the landscape for the South African teams in the URC as we enter the home stretch.

Kooks and Thala review the weekends rugby, including Round 3 of the Six Nations and the Lions beating the Sharks in the URC.We start in Twickenham where Ireland shock England 21-42. While Jamison Gibson-Park, Stu McCloskey and Rob Baloucoune impressed, we discuss the selection and game plan issues England suddenly have, McCloskey chasing down Marcus Smith and how did Fin Baxter do in the royal box with Kate Middleton.We look at Finn Russell and Scotland stealing a win in Cardiff against a much improved Wales, France in 3rd gear crushing to a bonus point win over Italy where Thomas Ramos did the brilliant and the daft and Emmanuel Meafou was impressive.We also react to the first Springbok alignment camp squad for the year with surprise inclusions including Frans Malherbe and some talented Baby Bok players, and finally where the Lions victory and Morne van den Berg’s performance leave both them and the Sharks in the hunt for URC playoff places.

Kooks and Thala chat through a busy time in world rugby right now.We start with the South African derbies in the URC, with the Sharks and Bulls bagging vital wins. We discuss how the Stormers have fallen off the top of the log, what has changed for the Sharks, are the Bulls back or were the Lions horrible and Willie le Roux clap backs on Twitter.We then preview the upcoming Six Nations by discussion our one question or take for every team (except Scotland), look at the upcoming France v Ireland clash on THURSDAY and make our predictions for who will win it all.Finally, we react to the Rugby World Cup fixture release, which sees Australia open the World Cup against Hong Kong China, South Africa face Italy and no midweek matches.We also rant about Super Rugby Pacific’s new law variations and react to the unfortunate retirement for Uini Atonio.

Shaun and Thala look back on the last round of European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup games, but they start with the big news of New Zealand removing their head coach, Scott Robertson.Shaun and Thala debate whether this was the right call, the influence of the players in removing Razor and who are the likely candidates to replace Robertson and will Tony Brown possibly leave the Springboks to join the All Blacks (in spite of Rassie saying Brown will stay).Then we go through the Champions Cup results, which include the Bulls first win in 8 games, the Stormers and Sharks getting big wins at home, shocking home losses for Munster and La Rochelle knocking them out and impressive campaigns from Glasgow and Bordeaux. We look at the knockout bracket and see who we think will make the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup finals.

Kooks and Sharky get stuck into the Razor and All Black troubled relationship (We recorded this before the big news of him stepping down)We look into the most exciting Champions Cup Pool stages since the new format and again discuss how the South African teams can capitalize on this opportunity moving forward but are under no illusions that the URC is the number one focus.

Kooks, Shaun and Thala look back on the weekend’s matches, which includes the Springboks record win in Cardiff over Wales.We talk about impressive performances from Andre Esterhuizen and Damian de Allende, but the big controversy is Eben Etzebeth’s red card for eye gouging and we discuss why there’s so much noise surrounding this incident.We then quickly review the weekend’s URC games, which include the Stormers comeback win over Munster and the Lions surprising the Bulls in Loftus. We talk about the crazy red cards from the Top 14, as Antoine Dupont comes back to rugby.We do a pool by pool preview of the Champions Cup, trying to predict which teams will make the knockouts, how difficult the Sharks will find it playing in Toulouse in the first week and the Bulls hosting the defending champs Bordeaux.Kooks tells us about his experience in Cardiff and making a new friend in a former Wales international player, we rant about apology letters in citing processes and Kooks has a massive rant about the Sharks.

Shaun and Thala review the week's Autumn Nations Series matches which include victories for England, Ireland, Wales, France and Argentina.We start in Twickenham where England passed their big test against the All Blacks, coming back from 12-0 behind. We break down George Ford's masterful performance and big games for some newer faces like Fraser Dingwall and how the All Blacks did not adjust to England's 2nd half.Then we move to Dublin where Ireland had a record victory over Ireland where they found their attacking and kicking game and Mack Hansen impressed at fullback. In Paris, Fiji comes back from 21-0 down to tie 21-21, but France pull through at the end with big performances from Charles Ollivon and Nicolas Depoortere. Wales have their first win in Cardiff in two years with Jarrod Evans last minute penalty against an impressive attacking Japan. Finally Shaun and Thala unleash on Scotland who lost to Argentina after establishing a 21-0 lead and conceding 33 points in 27 minutes. We wonder if Gregor Townsend is failing with using his bench, why Scotland falter in the last quarter and whether it is finally time for him to go.We finally react to breaking news of the matches for next year's Rugby Nations Championship being announced and we debate whether this competition is a good idea.

Shaun and Thala review South Africa's 14-man victory over Italy in Turin.Shaun and Thala are once again in awe of this special Springbok team and try to figure out how they are so good at playing with 14 men. We discuss Damian Willemse's masterful performance at fullback, Rassie Erasmus' proactive substitutions and tactical changes and Johan Grobbelaar finally earning his stripes with the Boks.We then debate on whether Franco Mostert's red card was deserved and Shaun is tired of all this talk about conspiracies against the Springboks. We also discuss whether Italy panicked with the man advantage, whether Tomasso Allan should've started instead and Italy's general play attack faltering.

Shaun and Thala preview the rest of the slate of international fixtures for the upcoming weekend.The match of the weekend is at Twickenham where England and New Zealand play for the right to be seen as the second best team in the world. We discuss why do both teams still confuse us even if they win regularly, whether England can outrun the All Blacks and whether the All Blacks need to keep it tight.We then move to Dublin for a must-win game between Ireland and Australia. While both teams have made some confusing selections, we focus on their halfbacks with Sam Prendergast starting for Ireland and inexperienced Ryan Lonegran and Tane Edmed coming off the bench for the Wallabies.We then preview the other internationals this weekend, including discussing why Maxine Lucu will be important for France to get back to winning ways against a dangerous Fiji side, Wales loading their side with experience for their big clash with Japan with massive RWC27 implications, Scotland and Argentina clashing to be the 6th best team in the world and discuss Belgium and Samoa setting up a massive winner-takes-all clash for Rugby World Cup qualification.

Shaun and Thala react to the South Africa and Italy squads selected for the test in Turin. The Springbok Hooker/hookers are the main story - with Johan Grobbelaar getting a rare chance to impress, Marco van Staden as the back up hooker and Ethan Hooker getting a chance to start at 12.On the Italian side, after a massive win against Australia, they will be feeling confident playing against a second string Springbok side with many of their key players that did not make the July tour to South Africa returning.Find out why Shaun has worries about the Springbok halfbacks, why this is a free hit for Boan Venter and Zachary Porthen, why a fast start is important for Italy and why David Odiase should be a name that Springbok fans should remember.

Kooks takes the helm as we unpack the weekends action. We start off as Kooks tells us about his week in Paris and how the forwards things, we're joined by Thala on his train back home from France via Brussels and Shaun rants about toxic fans.We start off with the incredible game between the Springboks and France and laugh off the notion that France 'weren't ready'. We highlight the performances of Malcolm Marx and Jasper Wiese along with the other players after securing an impressive result with 14 men, we dive into the red card and other incidents too.The sad in Scotland must be real after their loss to the All Blacks and we look at why, Joe Schmidt is killing his reputation in Australia but don't discount how good Italy were.No England v South Africa in 2025 could be a master marketing stroke of genius and Steve Tandy under immense pressure already despite showing some glimpses of a turn around but the Welsh ran into a confident and ruthless Los Pumas

Shaun and Thala review the first weekend of November test matches, which include a big Springbok win over Japan in Wembley.We rave about the performances of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Kurt-Lee Arendse and Cheslin Kolbe. We debate how the Boks replace Ox Nche who is out for the rest of the November tour and how Thomas du Toit could be an important player for the Springboks next clash against France.We then move to New Zealand’s defeat of Ireland in the United States. We discuss impressive performances from Fabian Holland, Quinn Tupaea and Leicester Fainga’anuku, whether Razor Robertson has stumbled upon his best backline and how do the All Blacks replace Scott and Jordie Barrett. We debate if the end of Ireland’s run near the top of international rugby is near, is the squad aging out or is the team just rusty.Then we move to Twickenham for England beating Australia. We debate Tommy Freeman’s move to centre and why England are looking scary two years from a World Cup.We finally finish on Scotland thrashing the USA, Antoine Dupont extending his contract with Toulouse with 2031 and Shaun and Thala debate whether the experiment of bringing rugby to the USA will ever work and Shaun comes up with a crazy plan to save rugby there!

Kooks and Thala try to divide the 16 URC teams into four tiers to determine who are the contenders from the pretenders.We debate whether the Stormers are championship contenders after their unbeaten start and nilling the Scarlets. Does Johan Ackerman have cause for concern about the Bulls defence? How to even analyze the unpredictable Sharks and how much cause for concern should Lions fans have. We also discuss other teams tough to rank - like Glasgow, Ulster, Benetton and which of the Welsh sides will make a challenge.We then look at other news around the rugby world, including Bath looking unbeatable, Carter Gordon returning to the Wallabies, the All Blacks upcoming Grand Slam tour and the major rugby unions refusing to support R360.

Shaun and Thala chat about the final round of the Rugby Championship, which the Springboks won after their victory over Argentina in Twickenham.We conduct a team by team review by giving each team a rating out of 10, discussing who their MVP and breakthrough players were and what they still have to work on. Listen as we discuss why Jasper Wiese might be the Bok MVP, the impacts made by Ethan Hooker, Leroy Carter and Max Jorgensen, why Len Ikitau might be the best back in the Rugby Championship and the stats Santi Carreras and Marcos Kremer topped.We then review Round 2 of the United Rugby Championship, which saw the Stormers keep their impressive form with Wandi Simelane and Vernon Matongo impressing, the Bulls overcoming Leinster and the impact of Willie le Roux, the Sharks being lucky to escape with a draw against the Dragons and the Lions staring into the abyss after their loss to Zebre.We also look at Bath’s impressive victory in the rain against Sale, Bordeaux and Lyon entertaining us in the Top 14, we reflect on the unfortunate diagnosis on Lewis Moody and our First Phase we discuss players we will never sell our stocks on, which includes a discussion on Ruan Pienaar and Howard Mnisi

Shaun and Thala review the weekend's rugby and look forward to the last round of the Rugby Championship.We start by discussing the record-breaking performance of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu against Argentina that earned comparisons to Dan Carter. We discuss how the Springboks have become a more balanced side, the chaotic test in Durban and what to look forward to in the clash in Twickenham this weekend.The All Blacks retain the Bledisloe Cup for another year and we discuss the impact Cam Roigard made to the side and why this weekend's game is a must win for the Wallabies.We celebrate England capping off a historic dominant run with winning the World Cup at a packed Twickenham and how that will inspire improvement in the women's game and Sophie de Goede winning World Rugby Player of the Year.We then wrap up by discussing the first round of the United Rugby Championship, which included the Stormers nilling Leinster, James Slipper retiring from international rugby this weekend, Chile qualifying for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, a chaotic draw between Northampton and Exeter in England and Steve Diamond being sacked by Newcastle Red Bulls with Gregor Townsend coming in as a part-time consultant.

Kooks and Thala preview a gigantic weekend of rugby, including the 2025 Rugby World Cup final, Round 5 of the Rugby Championship, Bledisloe Cup and the start of the United Rugby Championship.We start with the World Cup final by discussing the impressive performance by Canada in knocking out the defending champions, New Zealand and England sweating it out against France. We debate whether England can slow down Canada, can Canada match up front against England and key players such as World Rugby Player of the Year nominees Sophie de Goede and Meg Jones.We then look at a largely unchanged Springbok side ready to host Argentina in Durban. We ponder if this is currently the best 23 that Rassie has and the Bok's continual shift in approach. We consider why Argentina is dangerous, having picked a 6-2 bench and what South Africa should do against a team that does not mind winning away from home.We then look at the Bledisloe Cup match in Eden Park. Kooks finds out the starting time for Saturday's game and we discuss whether the Wallabies can break the streak, in spite of the many injuries.We then congratulate the Griquas for winning the Currie Cup final as the Lions yet again lose it at the death. This leads us to preview URC Weekend 1 with the Stormers hosting a strong Leinster team being the highlight.There is much more in this week's podcast - including multiple rants about World Rugby, the announced system for WXV, the beginning of the PREM competition, and Samoa and Chile's World Cup qualification match up.

Shaun and Thala review the weekend’s rugby, which saw South Africa men inflict a record defeat on New Zealand and the South African women be competitive against the world champion Black Ferns in their World Cup quarterfinal.We start in Wellington where the Springboks ran riot in the last 20 minutes to run in 6 tries against the All Blacks. Jasper Wiese impressed in his comeback from suspension and Damian Willemse roared back to form with a Player of the Match game. We discussed what was different between this game and previous Bok games, why this means for selections and where the All Blacks go from here.At the Rugby Word Cup quarterfinals, the Springbok Women impressed after staying level with the Black Ferns at halftime, but the Black Ferns ran away with the game in the 2nd half. We discussed the innovative game plan that the Boks played, the mauls from scrums and 15 player lineouts and the significance of this performance for the future of rugby in South Africa.In other quarterfinals, we saw a game of the year as France steal the game against Ireland. It was a game that had everything - from worldie tries, big performances from Aofie Wafer and Charlotte Escuerdo and biting allegations. We look forward to the semi finals that see New Zealand play Canada and England face France.Finally, we look at Australia falling short against Argentina, the Lions and Griquas winning the Currie Cup and we reflect on the death of former Springbok Bevan Fortuin.

Shaun and Thala run through the teams and preview a massive weekend in South African rugby with the Springbok men facing the All Blacks and the Springbok Women facing the Black Ferns in the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal.We run through the team and discuss the new lock pairing, how to fix the lineout issues, what we excited about and what we are scared about with the new backline, how Damien Willemse is now the older experienced leader of the backline and the All Blacks dropping Rieko Ioane for speedy Leroy Carter.We then preview the World Cup quarterfinal and debate how the Boks can pull an upset on the Black Ferns, react to Swys de Bruin picking a 7/1 bench and discuss the importance of Zintle Mpupha and Byrhandré Dolf to the team. We pick out some Black Ferns danger players including Stacey Waaka and Jorja Miller.We finish off by previewing the Wallabies and Pumas 2nd test, the Currie Cup semifinals and the update on Asenathi Ntlabakanye’s doping charge.

ooks and Thala review Round 2 of the Rugby Championship and the last round of group games from the women's Rugby World Cup.We start in Eden Park where the All Blacks extended the streak after an impressive performance on Ardie Savea's 100th test. Kooks and Thala debate on what is currently ailing the Boks, including lineout and defensive issues, the surprising team picked for the upcoming test in Wellington and where does this leave the Boks in the middle of the World Cup cycle. We also discuss Australia's last-gasp victory against Argentina.We then look at the Springbok women's loss against France in the last group stage game of the Rugby World Cup. We discuss wheter Swys de Bruin was right in resting some of his first choice players, how impressive France looked and what do the Boks need to do to beat New Zealand in the quarterfinals. We debate whether Nadine Roos should play fullback or scrumhalf and who the danger women for the Black Ferns are. We also quickly preview the other quarterfinal matches and whether upsets are likely.Finally, we look forward to the Currie Cup semi-finals, Kooks finds out about the Super Rugby competition in Australia, Thomas Ramos doing Thomas Ramos things in the Top 14 and Fiji's surprise victory over Wales in the World Cup (again).

ooks, Shaun and Thala preview the Rugby Championship Round 3 matches, focusing on South Africa attempting to break the Eden Park curse against New Zealand.We have more questions than answers about the Springbok team selected as we debate on why a 5-3 bench was selected, what Willie le Roux brings to the team, how unlucky Jean-Luc du Preez is and whether the Boks will go back to their more traditional game plan.On the All Blacks side we discuss whether this is a must-win for the All Blacks, how they fix their high ball issues, what Simon Parker and Emoni Narawa add to the side and the impact of Ardie Savea on his 100th test cap.We then also preview the Australia v Argentina game, look forward to the final week of the Currie Cup, a Ranfurly Shield clash, SA Rugby becoming shareholders in the URC and how is the Top 14 already starting?

We discuss the significance of this victory and the road the Springbok women have taken over the last few years, the influence of Swys de Bruin on the team's attack, the Player of the Match performance from Libbie Janse van Rensburg, Nadine Roos' versatile role, the powerful carrying from Aseza Hele and Chumisa Qawe and the leadership of Babalwa Latsha. While the Boks had some issues closing the game out and letting in some soft tries, we dream a little about our chances against France and whether we could compete against either New Zealand or Ireland in the quarterfinals.We also look back on some cracking fixtures over the 2nd round of the Rugby World Cup, including the USA drawing to Australia after a double from 18 year old Wallaroo Caitlyn Halse, Fiji giving Scotland a scare and Evie Gallagher's monster 35-tackle performance, and celebrating Samoa and Brazil scoring their first points of the Rugby World Cup, with Bianca Silva scoring Brazil's try in style.We then switch over to the Rugby Championship where the All Blacks have an injury crisis, the Boks have recalled Faf de Klerk to bring most of the 2019 band back together and why Kooks calls the early kickoff times for Australia and New Zealand "utter woke nonsense".

Kooks, Shaun and Thala break down Week 2 of the Rugby Championship and the first weekend of the women’s Rugby World Cup.We go long on the Springbok men’s 30-22 victory over Australia, a win that left us with more questions than answers. While Handré Pollard brought his trustworthy kicking and Cheslin Kolbe was excellent in the air - the boys debate what should the team’s approach be going forward, why does this team remind Kooks of the 2017 All Blacks and who should play against the All Blacks in Eden Park next week. Looking at the Wallabies, Shaun thinks they’re in the perfect place to build a strong team from here after another impressive performance in South Africa, we discuss Will Skelton’s shithousery and excellence from Rob Valetini and Corey Toole.We then move to Buenos Aires where Argentina defeated New Zealand in Argentina for the first time. Pablo Matera and Santi Chocobares especially impressed as Argentina dominated the game and probably should’ve scored more points. Kooks and Thala wonder what’s happened to the All Black backline factory and wonder about some of the problems Razor Robertson needs to solve before the Boks come to town.Finally we review the opening weekend of the Rugby World Cup where the Springbok Women beat Brazil 66-6 for their first World Cup win since 2010. We discuss the destructive carrying of Aseza Hele and Nadine Roos’ transformation at scrumhalf and whether they have what it takes to beat Italy next week. We go crazy about Ellie Kildunne’s performance against the USA, Fran McGhie’s hat trick against Wales and review the other results from the weekend.

Kooks and Thala review week 1 of the Rugby Championship where the Wallabies got their first victory in Ellis Park in 62 years and the All Blacks staved off a Puma comeback in Cordoba.We first marvel at the Wallabies comeback from 22-0 down to score 38 unanswered points. We discuss how Joe Schmidt is improving this side, the great performances from Fraser McReight and Max Jorgensen, and how the senior citizens at halfback Nic White and James O'Connor helped to control the game.On the other side of the pitch, Kooks questions the Boks game management, which leads to a discussion about how much Manie Libbok was to blame and Thala looks at whether the Boks should continue with the Tony Brown-inspired attacking game plan at the cost of some of the Bok traditional strengths. With injuries to Siya Kolisi and Pieter-Steph du Toit, we discuss the importance of this weekend's test match as well.We then look at the Argentina v New Zealand game and discuss yet another fantastic performance from the All Blacks pack and Kooks discusses the importance of James Ryan as a coach for the team. Tupou Va'ai and Fabian Holland are impressing Thala. We wonder what is Argentina's issue with playing at home and why they are not able to play consistently.We finish off by quickly previewing the first weekend's matches in the Rugby World Cup and why South Africa has a must-win match against Brazil and Kooks gives us a Currie Cup update and why the Sharks and Western Province are at the bottom of the log.

Kooks, Shaun and Thala look back on the weekend’s rugby, including the British and Irish Lions winning the series against Australia at the MCG.We debate the controversial no-call for the Jac Morgan and Carlo Tizzano incident and the reaction from Australia. We discuss how the Lions came back from 18 points down, the improvements in the Wallabies attack thanks to Rob Valetini and Will Skelton, but the issues the Wallabies had defensively. Kooks also had a warning for the Wallabies for their upcoming tour to South Africa.For the Lions we look at how they came back from 18 points down, the influential role that Finn Russell had, whether Maro Itoje may be the Lions GOAT and the celebrations they had.We then analysed the Springbok squad selected for the Rugby Championship and how they approach the Wallabies games. We debate whether this is Jean-Luc du Preez’s big chance, the opportunity for some of the rookies and the battle for the number five jersey between Lood de Jager, Franco Mostert and Ruan Nortje.We finally look at the Women’s Bok loss to the New Zealand developmental team and the encouraging signs showed by Aseza Hele and Chyna Qawe and Boland keeping the ball for 8 minutes to win their Currie Cup match against the Cheetahs.

Shaun and Thala review the weekend's test matches, which include South Africa putting 50 on Georgia and ending their July matches unbeaten.We first start with the British and Irish Lions victory over Australia in the first test. We debate whether the Wallabies were undercooked and what changes they need to make to save the series and rave about the performances of Tom Curry and Finn Russell for the Lions.Then we take a review of teh Boks July tests and discuss which players haveraised their stocks, how much depth the team has and how will Rassie manage the transition from the experienced players to the younger players. We discuss the great form Grant Williams is in and whether we are concerned about Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.We move to the New Zealand completing the series sweep on France which leaves us with more questions than answers - some players stood up like Fabian Holland, but are the All Blacks improving under Scott Robertson? We discuss which players stood out for France and the future Theo Attisogbe has in the national team.Finally we congratulate Zimbabwe for qualifying for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, with a lot of help from the Cape Town club rugby scene and we look forward to the Women's Boks facing the Black Ferns this weekend.

Sharky, Kooks and Thala (briefly) with one of the best episodes yet as Kooks firmly moves away from Welsh and Italian hate and dumps his rant squarely on anything related to the Los Pumas.We start the show by looking at the many talking points from the South African win as the Springboks and the load South African Italian cook. We talk about Jasper Wiese, Rassie Erasmus, Canan Moodie and the forward and back Andre Esterhuizen.We ask some questions around the midfield and talk at length about Manie Libbok finishing off with a Willie le Roux tribute.This is followed up by looking at the All Blacks, the British & Irish Lions, Ireland, England and our BabyBoks#RugbyUnion #SpringbokRugby #SiyaKolisi #JasperWiese #GrantWilliams #WillieleRoux #ManieLibbok #MakazoleMapimpi #EdwillvdMerwe #RassieErasmus

Sharky, Kooks and Thala (briefly) with one of the best episodes yet as Kooks firmly moves away from Welsh and Italian hate and dumps his rant squarely on anything related to the Los Pumas.We start the show by looking at the many talking points from the South African win as the Springboks and the load South African Italian cook. We talk about Jasper Wiese, Rassie Erasmus, Canan Moodie and the forward and back Andre Esterhuizen.We ask some questions around the midfield and talk at length about Manie Libbok finishing off with a Willie le Roux tribute.This is followed up by looking at the All Blacks, the British & Irish Lions, Ireland, England and our BabyBoks#RugbyUnion #SpringbokRugby #SiyaKolisi #JasperWiese #GrantWilliams #WillieleRoux #ManieLibbok #MakazoleMapimpi #EdwillvdMerwe #RassieErasmus

Shaun and Thala preview the second weekend of the July test window. We first start with the much-changed Springboks facing Italy. We look back at Willie le Roux's career as he gets his 100th test cap, we discuss which Springboks we looking forward to seeing and how much of a chance does Italy have.We catch up with the British and Irish Lions and the addition of Jamie Osborne into the squad. We discuss who still has a chance to break into the test team with a great performance on Saturday against the AUNZ invitational team. We debate which loose forward will be on the bench, the role Tadhg Beirne may have and what role Marcus Smith and Owen Farrell could have. We then look at the Wallabies squad for the series, which includes James O'Connor and if the Noah Lolesio injury might mean Nic White starts at 9.We discuss how the All Blacks can manage without Scott Barrett and the addition of Emoni Narawa, whereas the French make many changes to their team but still include Leo Barre, Nicolas Depoortere and Pierre-Louis Barassi. We then discuss the titanic clash between Josua Tuisova and Tom Jordan for Fiji v Scotland, if Argentina can come back after their loss to England, the return of Sophie de Goede for Canada against the Women Boks and surely, surely Wales will win against Japan this weekend?

Shaun and Thala preview the second weekend of the July test window. We first start with the much-changed Springboks facing Italy. We look back at Willie le Roux's career as he gets his 100th test cap, we discuss which Springboks we looking forward to seeing and how much of a chance does Italy have.We catch up with the British and Irish Lions and the addition of Jamie Osborne into the squad. We discuss who still has a chance to break into the test team with a great performance on Saturday against the AUNZ invitational team. We debate which loose forward will be on the bench, the role Tadhg Beirne may have and what role Marcus Smith and Owen Farrell could have. We then look at the Wallabies squad for the series, which includes James O'Connor and if the Noah Lolesio injury might mean Nic White starts at 9.We discuss how the All Blacks can manage without Scott Barrett and the addition of Emoni Narawa, whereas the French make many changes to their team but still include Leo Barre, Nicolas Depoortere and Pierre-Louis Barassi. We then discuss the titanic clash between Josua Tuisova and Tom Jordan for Fiji v Scotland, if Argentina can come back after their loss to England, the return of Sophie de Goede for Canada against the Women Boks and surely, surely Wales will win against Japan this weekend?

Kooks and Shaun go through the weekends action with a look at what happened to the Bomb Squad, why the Springboks were flat and how much of a concern it is.Kooks wants Siya Kolisi, Makazole Mapimpi and Aphelele Fassi back for the second test and Shaun thinks we should go 5/3 on the bench to give more of the backs a chance to get game time.We look at New Zealand and how France out muscled them, why Kooks thinks there are troubled times ahead for the hosts. We pick their 14 for this weekend and both agree that Will Jordan should play 15.We unpack the British & Irish Lions performance against the Waratahs, look at how wingers always have blockbuster games against them, why they seem to target only one jumper in the line out and discuss their test side.We touch on the Wallabies, Los Pumas and Ireland and take a look at how good our BabyBoks are looking in the u20 Championship#RugbyUnion #Lions2025 #Springboks #SiyaKolisi #CheslinKolbe

Kooks and Shaun go through the weekends action with a look at what happened to the Bomb Squad, why the Springboks were flat and how much of a concern it is.Kooks wants Siya Kolisi, Makazole Mapimpi and Aphelele Fassi back for the second test and Shaun thinks we should go 5/3 on the bench to give more of the backs a chance to get game time.We look at New Zealand and how France out muscled them, why Kooks thinks there are troubled times ahead for the hosts. We pick their 14 for this weekend and both agree that Will Jordan should play 15.We unpack the British & Irish Lions performance against the Waratahs, look at how wingers always have blockbuster games against them, why they seem to target only one jumper in the line out and discuss their test side.We touch on the Wallabies, Los Pumas and Ireland and take a look at how good our BabyBoks are looking in the u20 Championship#RugbyUnion #Lions2025 #Springboks #SiyaKolisi #CheslinKolbe

Shaun, Kooks and Thala preview the weekend’s test rugby, but first discuss the breaking news of Owen Farrell replacing Elliott Daly in the British and Irish Lions team.The boys disagree on whether this is the right call and what Farrell could bring to the Lions squad, whether he plays in the tests and how annoying Farrell and Sexton barking at you would be. We also discuss where the Lions are after their big victory over the Reds.We then look at the Springbok team selected for the Italy test, which looks a lot like a first choice team. We discuss why this is a big test for Damian Willemse, Morné van der Berg and Vincent Tshituka to impress and the return of the 6-2 bench.We spend some time discussing the All Blacks side chosen for the first test against France. We debate whether the Rieko Ioane at 13 experiment is over, the inexperienced bench the All Blacks have chosen and what the French would need to do to complete the upset.We finally round up and do quick previews over the other test matches this weekend, including looking at El Crapico between Japan and Wales, how Argentina v England might be the underrated game of the weekend and what we could see from Joe Schmidt when the Wallabies face Fiji on Sunday.

Kooks, Shaun and Thala look back through the weekend’s rugby, including South Africa destroying the Barbarians 54-7 in Cape Town.We start with what Rassie and the Springboks learned from their victory over the Barbarians. We revel in the performances of Lood de Jager, Cheslin Kolbe and Vincent Tshituka and Kooks talks about his new favourite player, Josh Jacomb.We then discuss the British and Irish Lions putting 50 on the Western Force. We debate which players promoted their claims, including Joe McCarthy, Finn Russell and Elliott Daly and how Dylan Pietsch and Tom Robertson put up their hands in front of Joe Schmidt.Then we discuss an insane Top 14 final, Toulouse beating Bordeaux in extra time. We think that Jack Willis should immediately join the British and Irish Lions, how Maxime Lucu has ice in his veins and another fantastic performance from Thomas Ramos.We finish up by quickly discussing the SA U20’s big victory over Australia in the U20 World Championship, how the All Blacks will be affected losing Tamaiti Williams and injuries to Tomos Williams and Jean Kleyn respectively.

Kooks, Shaun and Thala preview the first Springbok match of the year against the Barbarians.We talk about the four debutants and the props getting extra training in Daan Human’s farm. We discuss which players are primed to take their opportunities to step into the first team. We also look at an exciting BaaBaas team, whether Peter O’Mahony and Sam Cane have buried the hatchet and how will the Cape Town rain affect the match.We also look at the British and Irish Lions loss versus Argentina and whose stocks have risen and fallen in the squad. We discuss what the Pumas need to do to back up their victory against the Lions.Thala then shares how his trip to watch the Top 14 semifinals went and we preview the final between Toulouse and Bordeaux. We also discuss whether New Zealand should have concerns about their upcoming series against France.

Kooks, Shaun and Thala look back on the URC and Premiership finals weekend where Leinster and Bath became league champions.We debate why the Bulls didn’t pitch up at Croke Park, how Leinster outplayed them, Jacques Nienaber’s brilliant defence and why the Clontarf Bulls are our new favourite Bulls story.Kooks then tells us about his trip to London, which included going to Twickenham for the Premiership final. He talks about battling to go from Lord’s to Twickenham, seeing Finn Russell live and that rock and roll rendition of God Save the King. We debate the Dan Cole yellow card and Ben Youngs’ decision to kick the ball at the end of the game.We then quickly wrap up the changes to the Springbok squad, including dropping the Hendrikse brothers, the French Top 14 barrage and Kooks has a rant about Super Rugby again/

Kooks, Shaun and Thala look back on the URC and Premiership finals weekend where Leinster and Bath became league champions.We debate why the Bulls didn’t pitch up at Croke Park, how Leinster outplayed them, Jacques Nienaber’s brilliant defence and why the Clontarf Bulls are our new favourite Bulls story.Kooks then tells us about his trip to London, which included going to Twickenham for the Premiership final. He talks about battling to go from Lord’s to Twickenham, seeing Finn Russell live and that rock and roll rendition of God Save the King. We debate the Dan Cole yellow card and Ben Youngs’ decision to kick the ball at the end of the game.We then quickly wrap up the changes to the Springbok squad, including dropping the Hendrikse brothers, the French Top 14 barrage and Kooks has a rant about Super Rugby again/

Shaun and Thala break down the weekend's rugby, including the URC semi finals.We start with the Bulls beating the Sharks at Loftus where Sebastian de Klerk and Cobus Wiese starred for the Bulls and the Sharks will rue not converting enough chances to win. We look at how the Bulls scrum and defence set the platform to win and try (again) to solve how the Sharks can finally reach their superstar potential.Then we talk through Leinster thrashing Glasgow in the other semi final as Leinster finally found their form. We also look at what advantages the Bulls have for the final and where they can put pressure on Glasgow.With Shaun leaving the pod early, Thala then looks through all the other weekend's rugby, including the insanity of the Super Rugby knockout format and the Blues winning at the death against the Chiefs, the Premiership semi-finals setting up a Bath v Leicester final, Montauban winning the Pro D2 and winning promotion to the Top 14 and the crazy final weekend of Top 14 action.

Shaun and Thala have a reaction podcast to the first Springbok squad of the year, which includes 54 players and 9 uncapped players.We go through and discuss the uncapped players and try to get into Rassie Erasmus’ head as to why they were included. We discuss the biggest snubs, which include Ruan Venter and David Kriel and we even make up a 23 of the least capped players.Come listen to find what Springbok fans can look forward to in the next few weeks.

Shaun and Thala look back at the weekend’s rugby, including the URC quarterfinals.We start with the drama at Kings Park with the Sharks beating Munster via shootout. We debate Jaden Hendrikse’s wink to Jack Crowley, how Mike Adamson could’ve managed things better and why maybe the Sharks are the side of destiny.We then move to the Bulls comeback win over Edinburgh, with Willie le Roux running the show, but concerns about the Bulls goal kicking. The Stormers get knocked out by Glasgow who look back to their best with Sione Tuipulotu and we ponder where the Stormers go from here. Finally we discuss if Leinster’s vibes are down, despite them beating Scarlets in their QF.We then whip around the rugby world to look at Super Rugby and their crazy knockout format, the Premiership semi finals and Pat Lam trying to put pressure on Bath, the goings on in the Top 14 and Pro D2, and news that France can select at least some of their best players for their tour to New Zealand in July.

Kooks, Shaun and Thala break down the big European rugby finals weekend, as Bath and Bordeaux win their finals in Cardiff.We look at why and how Bordeaux were able to beat Northampton. We discuss if Maxine Lucu is one of the best scrumhalves in the world right now, what Jalibert possibly proved to Fabien Galthie by winning this final and how Ben Tameifuna helped to turn the game to Bordeaux in the 2nd half. Then we turn into some of the controversy from the final, including the post match scuffle and digs directed at Henry Pollock. Shaun and Kooks share their thoughts on whether rugby fans really want personalities in the game.Shaun celebrates Bath winning the Challenge Cup over Lyon and discuss if the treble is on. We then wrap up some of the other rugby news, including Moana Pasifika being destroyed by the Chiefs, why rugby pundits must get off Ilona Maher’s back, Great Britain cutting their Sevens program and why Ben Smith remains the best troll in rugby.

Thala, Kooks and Shaun take a deep dive into all of the rugby from this weekend, we look at the URC and come to a final conclusion on the Sharks, we've decided the Bulls are best set for the play off's and admire what Dobbo has done with the Stormers depth.We pay our respects to a man who's story, determination and infectious smile hooked us all, from the Cheetahs to the SA 7's to the biggest stage of it all, how he reinvented himself after another set back. RIP Cornal Hendricks, you will be missed.We let Kooks have a moment as he unpacks the Thursday night kick off of the 6 Nations, he outlines his key focus role if he becomes head of World Rugby.Shaun takes us through the crazy round of Premiership Rugby action with the Saracen's season all but done and Bath marching on.Thala chats Pacific Four and the team unpack who can challenge the Red Roses at RWC2025 with a heap of teams hitting their straps, Shaun wants Aseza Hele to cook and highlights the depth the Women Boks have since the last World Cup.We chat Cheslin Kolbe and Sam Cane in the Japan Rugby League One and look into a crazy Racing 92 win and wonder if Stade Francais Paris can salvage their season

Shaun and Thala look back on Round 17 of the URC, where the Stormers joined the Bulls and Sharks in the URC knockouts.We first start by looking back at the Sharks victory over Ospreys and discuss the form of their backs and we debate Ethan Hooker v Jurenzo Julius.We then look at the Bulls beating Cardiff and the worries about Johan Goosen reinjuring his knee, whether Keegan Johannes can step up, Jake White being frustrated about Kurt-Lee Arendse not coming back and whether Cardiff not receiving a bonus point will cost them at the end.We then reviewed the Stormers beating the Dragons and rave about Seabelo Senatla’s performance and how will John Dobson fit Manie Libbok back into this team.Finally, we look at the Lions who were the only South African losers against Scarlets, who had Sam Lousi and Vaea Fifita impressing for them.We preview and predict the final round of the URC, looking at Munster and Benetton’s effective knockout game, if Cardiff and Scarlets can get results in South Africa and surely Edinburgh can’t mess up against Ulster?Finally we do a round up of the other rugby news, including the race for the Premiership knockouts and the deep trouble Stade Français find themselves in as they face relegation.

Kooks and Thala react to the British and Irish Lions tour squad announced by Andy Farrell.We go position by position to analyse who’s in and out and what does this say about how the Lions will play Down Under.Find out our reaction to Maro Itoje being selected as captain, who the biggest snubs are, who would make our test squad and how they match up to the Wallabies.