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 
Honestly … who has covered the ball in olive oil?
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Well, Deebee, that was a fun few minutes! Think Hume might have hurt himself, though.
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TRY Ulster! Doak? Not sure how he got through all the ogres.
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Timoney and Izuchukwu are like a second centre partnership when they click. They’ve done that a few times.
But then there’s the inevitable fuck-up.
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Oh actually, it wasn’t a fuck-up; it was a deliberate knock-on and it’s TRY Herring!
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Through a long rolling maul, a maul of beauty.
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And a beautiful BP TRY finished by Izuchukwu! Me heart overflows!
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He’s hurt his ankle doing it, mind.
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And 28-7 is the final score!
I am very chuffed with that. The first half was, as Deebee said, not great, but the second had a lot of good rugby. We have traditionally been good at defence and mauling, which were both utter crap last year, but which worked well today, with the added pastry of throwing the ball around a bit and being creative.
We even won most of the second-half scrums, which I really didn’t expect.
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We have also traditionally been the team – or one of them – to give away the fewest penalties, and that aspect needs a bit of work.
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Apologies for the radio silence in the 2nd half there, Thauma, I may have nodded off. Much like the Bulls, although full credit to Ulster for sticking it to them. Horrific sporting weekend, with 3 of the SA URC teams taking a pasting, the Proteas under the cosh in Pakistan and Bafana Bafana on the verge of not qualifying for the World Cup. Having done all the hard yards, they were docked three points and had their 2-0 win over giants Lesotho reversed to a 3-0 defeat for fielding a player who had two yellow cards and was ineligible. Then drew on Friday with Zimbabwe, to need results to go their way. Complete cock-up, and as usual, nobody is taking responsibility. Eish!
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I thought you were just hiding behind the sofa.
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May have nodded off behind the sofa.
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Ireland squad for the autumn internationals:
Ireland Squad – November 2025:
Forwards (19):
Thomas Ahern (Shannon/Munster)(2)
Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(29)
Finlay Bealham (Corinthians/Connacht)(51)
Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster)(61)
Jack Boyle (UCD/Leinster)(4)
Thomas Clarkson (Dublin University/Leinster)(8)
Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)(51)
Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster)(51)(captain)
Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster)(79)
Iain Henderson (Academy/Ulster)(85)
Rónan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)(39)
Gus McCarthy (UCD/Leinster)(6)
Paddy McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)*
Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster)(75)
Cian Prendergast (UCD/Connacht)(5)
James Ryan (UCD/Leinster)(72)
Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(32)
Nick Timoney (Banbridge/Ulster)(4)
Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster)(73)
Backs (15):
Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht)(65)
Caolin Blade (Galwegians/Connacht)(3)
Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster)(20)
Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(26)
Ciaran Frawley (UCD/Leinster)(9)
Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(43)
Mack Hansen (Corinthians/Connacht)(28)
Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster)(82)
James Lowe (Leinster)(40)
Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/Ulster)(21)
Tommy O’Brien (UCD/Leinster)(2)
Jamie Osborne (Naas/Leinster)(8)
Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne/Leinster)(9)
Garry Ringrose (UCD/Leinster)(67)
Jacob Stockdale (Lurgan/Ulster)(39).
Four Ulstermen (walk into a bar?). Think Izuchukwu and McCann can feel slightly aggrieved.
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I’d forgotten that Ahern was capped in the summer.
Izuchukwu is unlucky – McCann probably won’t see a squad until van der Flier is gone.
Connacht (5) have more players than Ulster (4) or Munster (also 4)
No chance of any rotation – these Leinster lads will have to keep going to they drop……
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What do you think Farrell wil do if Ireland have an ‘underwhelming’ Autumn? Double down on Leinster reserves and blame the other regions, or actually travel outside Dublin and start looking for proper alternatives?
(Of course, they may win all their games so it will be (Leinster) business as usual).
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Leinster are looking pretty ropey at the moment. Let’s see how it goes!
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Leinster are looking pretty ropey at the moment
They were better vs Sharks – with Lions back but even then no great shakes (Sharks were fairly disinterested)
They’ll probably lift themselves vs Munster (to show the uppity neighbours who’s boss)
Double down on Leinster reserves and blame the other regions
The problem seems to be that Leinster players train closer to the way that Farrell wants/likes – so when they come in – they “get it” quicker than Munster or Ulster players, there’s no learning period.
This is the Prendergast issue – looks great in training under no physical pressure, good long pass, good delayed pass, accurate/long out-of-hand kicker, everything goes smoothly In the heat of a match – the issues are plain to see
How you play in actual matches (for province) in URC or “Heino” isn’t relevant
The squad has 8 out of 9 Leinster FRs – all 3 LHs, 2THs, all 3 hookers. But Paddy McCarthy (brother of Joe) – while a good Porter copy in open play was turned into a pretzel down in SA. by Stormers scrum And scrums don’t matter until they do…..
NZ will probably be gunning for us – thery accept the losses to SA as part of the great rivalry – getting beat multiple times by Ireland needles them – they will want to follow up the win in RWC23
SA – seem to take wins/losses as part of the development cycle – they may decide that rotation/depth is more in their long term interest
Australia – on the up, and came very close last autumn, and overall had the better of 4 of the 6 halves vs Lions….
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Farrell does have a real geography issue – and not just Dubs vs the rest: he’s apparently excited to be taking on four southern hemisphere sides, which includes Japan. Am I looking at the map wrong?
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four southern hemisphere
Yeah, Japan – despite what map projections say – does seem to be bundled with the southern hemisphere rugby nations in a strange way.
It’s not even a “European/non-European” division in that even now the RC teams are still mainly (just) descendants of European migrants
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Toulouse have just absolutely stuffed Bordeaux, surprisingly.
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Bristol v Glaws. I wonder if we can get through a whole match without any major injuries or red cards?
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Poor Sam Worsley. Starting for Bristol, and even his shirt has given up before the game starts with letters coming off already.
Keeping in eye out for Refit among the Bears subs…
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Nope! Unless Refit can blog while on the bench.
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2 minutes in, Saints get their first try vs Newcastle.
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It’s not Bristol with the injury. Thorley tries to put in a big hit and knocks himself out. Bristol take advantage of the extra space and our baby-10, Worsley, scores & converts.
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Full medic team & stretcher for Thorley.
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7 minutes, Saints get try number 2.
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I thought Bristol had it bad, even before Thorley’s injury, Glaws are missing 10 first team picks.
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I think the Bristol kit man’s going to be spoken to, everyone’s names are falling off.
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Cardiff are up 7-12 at Rodney Parade.
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Newcastle score a try!
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Newcastle score another!
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Saints “Big South African*” off to a yellow, then Newcastle get another try! Only down by 2 points.
*Van Mescht – basically a mobile wardrobe.
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Cool, another Bristol play limps off – winger Max Pepper is replaced.
Glaws look to have scored another, it looks like there were 2 knock-ons in the build up, but the ref thinks it’s fine.
Hang on, TMO is reviewing.
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McDuhan and Wee Darcy trading tries for Edinburgh. 21-0 against Benetton. Wonder how they’ll lose it from here?
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7-17 at HT.
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Hell of a tackle by Liam Williams, to prevent Saints winger from scoring.
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Van Der Mescht off for Saints! High tackle, second yellow, means a red! They lose a lot of weight in the scrum with that. Chance for Newcastle?
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Second yellow for Van Mescht – shoulder to the Newcastle 9’s head – and he’s gone.
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Well they score from the next scrum!
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Newcastle in again, just after a great Saints try.
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Big Bill Mata scores! After van Rensberg punches a big hole. 27-35
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Cardiff have their BPT.
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McGuigan in trouble for Newcastle, tipping a Saints player through 90 at a ruck. Lucky it’s only a pen.
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Although might be disallowed after Newcastle 2 takes a player’s legs over the level.
It has been. Still 19-26.
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Another Glaws try that looked like it was dropped over the line. 34-35
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Bill Mata just did a step and then an offload to Ravouvo, who breaks a tackle and scores. 34-42
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Edinburgh absolutely battering Benetton, 38-0 so far. Why can’t they do this all the time?
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Edinburgh win 43-0.
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