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The Rugby Ramble Podcast - Episode 2

After an epic set of midyear tours between Northern and Southern Hemisphere teams there are huge number of talking points. Rich and Zak cover some of rugby's biggest issues. Discussion points below:

1) Who caught your eye in the midyear tours? 

Which teams stood out? Which teams disappointed? Do these performances have any bearing on the Rugby World Cup? All Blacks vs Ireland. Springboks vs Wales. Wallabies vs England. Pumas vs Scotland. 

2) The Rugby World Cup draw - the winners and losers!

We review the process used to draw the pools (which favors previous world cup performance) and how this may result in continued Southern Hemisphere dominance. What should be done to improve the process of drawing pools and teams? 

3) Seeing Red over cards in Rugby!

The 20-minute Red card rule will be applied in the Rugby Championship. Are Red cards ruining rugby? Does the 20-minute rule do enough to protect players? What alternatives (if any) should be explored?

With the midyear tours kicking off Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere teams were on full display. Rich and Zak discuss the key talking points from the big games over the weekend.

Wallabies vs England Rugby

- Is there a place in the game for 'baiting' following the Johnny Hill and Darcy Swain incident?

- Have the Wallabies turned the corner under Dave Rennie? A review of recent results may suggest so. 

- What is Eddie Jones' plan? What specific strategies is he trying to implement and does he have the personnel to implement it effectively?

All Blacks vs Ireland Rugby

- Did the Scott Barrett's selection pay off? 

- How far off were Ireland? Review of the match stats and key conclusions. 

- How does the series end? 

Springboks vs Wales

- Depth at 10 - Is Jantjies a suitable backup option to Pollard?

- What did you make of Dan Biggars play on the ball to win the game for the Springboks?