Six Nations have announced that they are ringing the changes for next year’s tournament. OvallyBalls had an exclusive mole in the decision room.
Six Nations Clown Five: Listen, chaps, I’m awfully sorry we failed to get the Six Nations behind a paywall so that we could destroy the popularity of the only tournament that is broadly watched, but we’ll try again in a couple of years.
SNC2: I’m not a fookin’ chap.
SNC4: Ah, bellissima! Like me, you are wearing a molto clever disguise to our top-secret meeting in this luxury ristorante.
SNC2: Catch yerself on. I’m wearing what the boss told me to wear: blue.
SNC5: Can we just get back to our onions? We have a tournament to ruin here.
SNC6: Onions? Oignons? En France, we return to our moutons.
SNC3: We quite like our lovely sheep as well.
SNC1: Ach, can we knock the tired wee 70s jokes on the heid? We’ve two major things to discuss here: playing matches on a Thursday (a THURS-DEE!), and deep-sixing one rest weekend.
SNC3: Thursday matches! It was bad enough, look you, when the Friday ones started. Working people are not going to be able to get to these matches, or maybe even watch them on the telly.
SNC5: Surely they will just have their servants do anything necessary on those particular evenings?
SNC6: Bah, the British do not know how to live. They eat their dinner – and quelle horreur d’un repas – at a silly time. They are weaklings who cannot stay up to a reasonable hour.
SNC4: Sono d’accordo.
SNC1: I dinna like the Thursday match, but I’m a wee bit more concerned about losing the rest weekend. That’s 5 Test matches in six weeks. Do we not have a small concern about player welfare there?
SNC3: We’ve not got a huge squad to field from the valleys.
SNC4: È vero, this also concerns us.
SNC2: Agh, it’s all right, we’ll just call on Leinster’s academy if half the squad end up in the hospital.
SNC6: Eh ben oui, we have many teams in the Top14, and perhaps we can bend the rules on players being called up.
SNC5: No worries here either, chaps … heh, heh: and chapesses. So is it all settled, then?
SNCs 1, 3 and 4 (simultaneously): Fuck off / vaffanculo.
SNC5: Perhaps I have not yet properly explained the emoluments available to those who agree to these proposals.
[whispers]
All: Crack on!
Ovally Balls 
Scotland score right at the death. Final score 40-8.
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I’ve sobered up, eventually.
To be fair, I did spend yesterday at an open air concert in the warm spring air watching one of my favourite bands playing their 40th Anniversary concert. Mango Groove formed at the height of PW Botha’s odious apartheid regime, amidst the deaths in detention, border wars, township protests, extra-judicial killings in SA and abroad and the almost total isolation of South Africa. They mixed pop-rock with township marabi and kwela (specifically the penny whistle), as well as a healthy dose of Afro-swing to create a sound that was fun, infectious, uplifting, and joyous, with a tinge of pathos and regret for balance. Still gives me goosebumps all these years later.
The backdrop to the concert was the Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens, a piece of paradise on the western edges of Joburg, and they played in the late afternoon, with the sun setting as Special Star belted out in all its glory. Magnificent. It was a very special weekend to be a Saffer. Very, very special.
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@thaum
46-5 at FT. I reckon next week’s match of Canada v Black Ferns will be the real final
I watched this on RTE – gee…. they were in love with Australia – every ruck Oz won was “can this be the start of a comeback?”
Like 31-5 at ht, it’s a long way to get even with in sniff of making Canada uncomfortable. Sure, you don’t want to be saying “this is done and dusted – go away and have a cuppa”, equally, you don’t insult your audience by telling them every 2 mins that Australia were on the verge of turning the tables
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Clear incident of a French player biting an Irish one, but nothing done about it.
TMOs have been pretty scandalous on what I’ve seen – all too often clear and obvious offences (forward passes) ignored and then finding a trillion different angles to try to prove a knock on that even at slowest speeds are weeeell…. maybe
And then a bite….
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I wasn’t imagining it: the French player has now been cited: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/articles/cz081njg0y9o
They even showed a replay, where all the commentators missed it again, and you can clearly see Wafer’s lips saying ‘She bit me!’, and her rubbing her arm.
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Initial ban is until March 2026, but she is appealing.
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Looked pretty unappealing to me.
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Banned for eating a Wafer? Shirley not!
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but she is appealing
reduced from 12 to 9
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Harrumph on the reduction!
Just managed to catch my first women’s haka. Don’t think they filmed it very well.
Come on Canada!
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Canada score first!
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And again! Canadaaaaaa!
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I also love that a lock takes the kicks. Although she’s missed the second conversion.
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Third try for Canada! Black Ferns still nilled!
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Black Ferns score.
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Canada started superbly! Hope they can keep focused and stay ahead on the scoreboard!
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De Goede: nominative determinism.
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7-24 at HT: fabulous!
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That felt like a very quick half.
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Some stunning handling and continuity from Canada, but eventually coughed up. Still, New Zealand having to run from inside their 22 already. And not being given space. Not sure I’ll make the 2nd half, been driving all day and just finished a boozy dinner!
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Canada score again through their 12, Tessier. Hopefully they can build a big enough lead to put off any chance of a comeback.
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Canada with 83% possession in the second half. Gwan, you loony Canucks!
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Black Ferns score. Keep the heid, Canada.
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Starting to worry a lot now.
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The Irish commentator needs a tracheotomy.
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Stunning from Canada! What a result!
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Canada win 19-34: quite comfortable in the end. Fabulous!
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‘Tracheotomy’ is a bit harsh. I just think they shouldn’t hire her again.
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The Currie Cup Final is a good watch so far Lions 10 – 14 Griquas on the half hour
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Good hands by England, in miserable conditions.
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Can’t see either of these sides beating Canada.
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Ellie Kildunne is quite good at this rugby lark.
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Ooh, that was an impressive pickup, from the ball bouncing off the post.
France definitely could have won this, but it feels like England defended well enough to wear them down and they could take advantage to score.
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Fiji beat Japan to retain the Pacific Cup. No idea how first choice the sides were, but very happy for Fiji. Would be great to see them get better top tier status and matches.
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The Irish commentator needs a tracheotomy.
Who was it ? Presume you were watching the beeb? Anna Caplice did a few games I watched on the BBC.
I preferred the BBC coverage to RTE
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In local news – #1 son has starting playing for our senior team, – started last 2 games at 9.
Much to his digust been subbed at half time for the club veteran 9.
Gearóid has been playing quite conservatively – right now he sees the job as feeding the 10, no snipes or heroics – and in any case gaps tend to come in 2nd half as teams tire.
He came back on on the wing after 15 mins following an injury. We were playing local rivalsCastleisland (of Mick Doyle, Moss Keane, Mick Galwey and JJ Hanrahan) – as you’d guess from those famous names they have built their rep on a forward-oriented approach, tho’ less so these days.
We were leading 10-3, with a few mins left and got a pen close in – we opted for the posts to try top go 2 scores ahead – our 10 pushed it wide but as we’re all watching the trajectory of the ball, a fast-moving figure leaps into the air and grabs the ball and falls across the line.
Gearóid then added insult to injury by drop goalling the conversion, and finished the game playing 10 for about 20 sec
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Play to the whistle, eh?
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Trisk – don’t know who it was, but ‘shrill and overly emotional’ are the adjectives that leap to mind.
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‘shrill and overly emotional’</>
I’m guessing Caplice
I suppose compared to the dour commentary on RTE (Fiona Coughlan, Hannah Tyrell, Lindsey Peet – you’d get more laughs at a funeral) she’s a welcome change – she seems to enjoy the game and gets excited….
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https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/sep/23/david-bowie-aladdin-sane-could-most-expensive-album-art
You bidding on this one, Thauma?
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Might be slightly above the top of my budget.
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Great start to the new PREM!!!! season, ref’s lost coms with his touch judges. You would have though that losing a few letters might have meant they could afford batteries.
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What, on a Thursday? No-one told me! I’m watching the snooker.
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They would have started tomorrow, but there are no PREM!!!! games on Saturday because of the Women’s Rugby World Cup Final. Two games tomorrow and two on Sunday.
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Stormers nilling Leinster at HT! 6-0. Look to be running rings around them, but some dropsies and forward passes preventing any tries.
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Stormers now winning 23-0, and Max Deegan’s in the bin.
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Leinster go down to 13 for a shoulder to heid, and it’s 30-0.
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BP try for the Stormers!
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