Well done Gents

Really cool insight 👍🏼 I think the SCR was defo a step in the right direction to improving pathways

good to have coverage of the SRC. Thanks

Good job boys. Great first pod Zach 👍🏽

Max douglas has been great. Seems to be going under the radar abit. Wins line outs, steals line outs and punches above his weight in the contact

Great pod. Only just started watching them a couple of weeks ago but never miss them now

Yes, Bulls a bit 'meh' in December, but some perspective in terms of urc table: 5 of their 7 matches were away games and they still 4th on the log, with 2 matches in hand.

Re: the season structure/reform of European rugby structure. There's an obvious solution. Basically, the problems in club rugby at the moment are that: The euro group stages have lost much of their competitive nature and are much shorter. This has decreased interest in the competition and decreased broadcasting revenues. Nobody wants to travel to SA, particularly in the grp stages of European competition. The Premiership and URC teams (possibly excepting the SA sides) want more European games because they have shorter league seasons. But the French don't want any extra games, because their league season is very long. The Welsh clubs would love to have more anglo welsh fixtures, despite an anglo welsh league not being possible. The English would also like this, but don't want to alter their league too accommodate the welsh. There's a solution to this; a way of increasing fixtures for the URC and prem teams, limiting travel costs and increasing interest in the European group stages: Both European competitions should become knock out only competitions played in the second half of the season. However, there should be qualification groups for these in the first half of the season. Critically, qualification groups should be regional in nature, (not entirely country specific, but made up of teams in a particular geographical area). So for instance 2 groups comprised of Wales and West Country teams, 1 comprised of Scottish and N English teams, 1 only with SA teams, 3 of the Irish, Italian and remaining English sides etc. Qualification groups would have 4 teams. Top 2 go into Champions Cup knock outs, bottom 2 into challenge cup knock outs; with group position dictating home advantage in the first round. The French could dictate their own qualification rules and have either smaller groups, or simply do it purely on the basis of the previous season's league positions. This would guarantee 1) the teams that want more games get them (every URC or prem team would be guaranteed 7 European games, 3 at home with decent travelling support) 2) there will be more local derbies, 3) this is the closest you'll get to an anglo welsh league, 4) Nobody will have to travel to SA for a European fixture until the 2nd half of the season, 5) the qualification rounds will be meaningful and competitive, 6) tv interest and revenues should grow as a result.

I like Huw and his work. However, Mr G we have had a huge number of second rows and back row players out until these December fixtures. 2025 you are almost correct it is now only Dewi, Beard, Deaves and Huw Sutton injured . Ospreys will win more than we will lose for the rest of the season.

Good stuff lads.

Cheers lads! Leinster, while a bit shit, have moved away from the Team A / Team B in terms of personnel using more of a blend of both. I don't think they'll drop the saffer games this year. The new defensive system is working for them now, averaging 12 pts conceded per game. They just need to remember how to get the attack going again. I think Glasgow will be able to retain it though. I have to say I really enjoyed the post match meltdowns on telly by the Toulon lads the other week. They expected to walk it.

Munster are nailed on for fraud watch

Meow

Leinster are on track... where they are expected to be. Munster continuing to bluff remember last year they had their best season in years (fluking the URC from 24 points behind the leaders was just that) Connacht should be way up there. They have the 2nd best starting XV in ireland so bluffing. Ulster meh.

Blue Bulls Meh is correct

The hospitality at Hampden was shocking. You has to wait 20 mins for food or drink.

The non Irish guys don’t seem to understand the absolute sh*tsh*w that ulster were. To describe the Connacht performance as poor without the context of the average age and experience of the team is wrong. That said the rugby isn’t great to watch but everyone knows soper and bell should have gone in the summer

How can you put dragons in meh and put ospreys below them. Look at the table Huw. Plus ospreys beat scarlets

😂😂😂 did my fav make the cut ….. Bounty

Fans deserve more, need some wins

How can welsh regions compete at the highest level on 4.5m wage salary at the professional end. Also development, coaching and level of young players coming through just not good enough physically and mentally to play at elite level. Huge problems.

Dragons are not that good are they. Welsh rugby eh? Sad days indeed .

Is this is joke?

Meow

Are in the shop, or elsewhere?

Is the title Leinster’s to lose?

Watching in preparation for today. Really optimistic for the Dragons after their win in Newcastle and don't want to see them lose 20 on the bounce. Sorry to say guys but I'll be rooting against you today but god knows I'll be backing you against the Ospreys in a week's time

Booth leaving and now James!!! This is all too much. Hope we see him back here guesting ASAP as his insight and ability to convey a unique opinion is second to none. Nick, well done on filling the void though. You're doing well. Agree with Jamie there, a hugely important win for Dragons away, da iawn, and yes, Wainwright was not at his best in the Autumn internationals, which was totally understandable. If only Gatland picked on form eh!

Well done Nic #LlangollenRugbyLegend, agree and a shame. Time to now look forward not back. 🙏

Carwyns bollocks perfectly fine as it was scarlet bollocks that got snipped. For all Lee's sensible politics he is a panhead.

When can we expect your quick review of the Osprey and Scarlets game Huw?

Happy days, I taught it was just me, get rid of Cullen and his side kick from south African,, Lancaster sadly missed, a great coach,,leinster were brilliant with him, leinster looks like the ireland team at the moment, and that's not good, leinster are going to be the bride maid again,, even if they make it that far this year, Irish rugby is gone down hill,, six nations will be a disaster this year, there hunger and heart is gone from Irish rugby,

You mentioned the good the scaz......., they actually did a vlog, from Cardiff Met specifically about welsh rugby and the coaching situation. kzbin.info/www/bejne/faSWgHxrmKZja7c The impression I have of Sean Lynn is that he isn't a hand on coach, he's the guy who puts the process and systems in place, lights the touch paper and stands back. He empowers players to lead and then trusts them to do it. He might lead the discussion and the feedback, but then stands back and trusts Mo and Zoe to lead the on-field sessions. He'll throw in ideas and point them where he wants them to go, but they are his trusted lieutenants . I suspect the way he would empower the players might frighten the WRU.

I think I could have been as uselss as him

Abbi and gatland need to go aswell. Disgraceful.

😂 too many English? Exeter have finished 7th in the Prem 3 yrs running yet beat Glasgow last season and URC champions Stormers the year before. Saints are currently 8th and won in Pretoria last week 😂 If any league underperforms it's URC, least winners in history and bar Leinster don't look dangerous in Europe again

Prediction ospreys 25 scarlets 23. Dragons 19 blues 20.

Scarlets 26 Dragons 13

Agreed, the 3 daily posts of clickbait on WOL are pwp rehashing of non-news, the worst are in the Summer when it's stories about players Weddings, their holidays and the 'where are they now' ....but they must work or they wouldn't be appearing. Weird. But yep, bigging up young guns is something I really really hate and I wish they'd stop publishing them even more than the summer silly season stuff!

Well done Nick for stepping in, really good job done there 👏 Completely agree, Toby Booth is a bloody good man, a hugely popular coach and will be sorely missed and feel bad for him and his family that he's basically lost his job just before Christmas. I hope we see Toby go on to huge successes in his next role, albeit not against us! Go well Toby Booth

THE GOAT

Cardiff fan but top effort Scarlets💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽

Who’s James? Why would anyone listening here want to know the ins and outs of a dying club/region Mid-table at best with boring rugby Cant win a CC quarter even when you had the most stacked squad in Europe Stuck a middle finger up to your strongest base club Attendances through the floor Moving to an amateur ground If you cant see the writing get to specsavers

We want james back. Very knowledgeable and knows the ins and outs especially at the ospreys.

First like. 😁. Love the podcast .

I'm maybe going to disagree with you a little bit, so want to start by saying how much I enjoy hearing you all discuss rugby: - I think the format isn't actually to blame right now (at least not to much). There where always weekend sides in the euro championship, but normally the non-french teams went full bore at the start but then once they were pretty much out played weakened teams. and there were a lot of dead rubbers in the final groups stages. What's happened is that the 'pointless' matches have been evened out over the group stages, and that the tourny still only really kicks into gear from the last 16. - what is an issue is how far apart the top french clubs and Leinster are away from everyone else. They have mammoth squads that prem teams and other urc teams just can't compete with. This makes any game they are in a forgone conclusion, even when the other team is playing their best side. When you add this on top of other teams sending weakened teams. - weakened sides in group stages has always been a thing. As long as strong teams are sent for the knockouts (definitely qfs onwards) I'm okay with it. What I do find odd about the SA teams is, why do they have to rest all their best players at once? English teams (bath aside) tend to rotate more evenly. On your point about 8 being too many prem teams. True, but adding in teams from the urc instead wouldn't help. You would have to lose some from the urc to make it more competitive too. Also, saying 'look at bristol and Bath' to see where the English game is a bit odd. Bath lost to LR in a storm and lost, in the last minute, to Benneton while playing their D team. Bristol are in an injury crisis and have played Leinster and LR.

❤

You can't be more wrong about Toulouse fielding a second string team in Durban: it's Champions cup with only 4 pool games to get one of the top two seeds so they WILL DEFINITELY SEND THEIR BEST SQUAD in SA. And even more so when most of the Toulouse squad beginning by DuPont have an issue to fix with SA after the last RWCCand guess what? Sharks are the SA team with the most Boks (Etzebeth, Kolisi, Oxhe, Mbonambi, G.Williams, Am, etc...)

With hardly any support at home.. shocking and another reason why regional rugby is financially struggling

Such a painful game to watch. It looked like he'd never reffed a game before 😂