RugbyBits

Owen Farrell the GOAT and a full URC review

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.

Wiese ＞ Roos, EOYT plans & TRC Debrief

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.

Kooks saves the day for the Boks - Los Pumas v Springbok Review

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.

Neil Powell Tribute and a look ahead to Argentina

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.

Do you love to hate Jesse Kriel?

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!
 
 

Breaking down the Springbok defeat with Dylan Jack

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

Springboks will be too strong - #AUSvRSA Preview

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.

Dave Wessels: The great thing about sport is the uncertainty-of-outcome

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

Bomb Squad debates, reaction to the Springbok squad and a Bledisloe Cup game on a THURSDAY??

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!

Rugby Championship Week 2 Preview: This was supposed to be a short one

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.