Episode 318: Springboks' Great Expectations
About this episode
The episode discusses the expectations for the Springboks in the Nations Championship and analyzes the performance and prospects of various teams in the tournament.
The Nations Championship is finally here, and with a brand-new tournament comes one very important question: what actually counts as success? Ant and Phil kick things off by looking at South Africa's campaign. Is three wins the minimum expectation for the Springboks? Which combinations still need answers before the business end of the season? And with Rassie continuing to build depth across the squad, just how much experimentation is too much when silverware is on the line? The boys then work their way around the rest of the tournament, setting realistic expectations for every side. England's lofty ambitions come under scrutiny, France head to New Zealand with a genuine chance of causing problems, there's plenty of sympathy for Fiji, who once again won't get the opportunity to play their home fixtures on home soil, and can the Wallabies take a big scalp from Ireland or France. Attention then turns across the Tasman, where Dave Rennie has some fascinating selection calls to make for his All Blacks side. Should the Hurricanes provide the backbone of the team? Is Ruben Love ready for the biggest stage? And after one particularly spicy internet take, the panel spends far longer than…
More episodes of Elite Rugby Banter
- Episode 320: Petition to get Ant on SuperSport (or Let's Kick Ireland Out of Rugby)
- Episode 319: The Springboks' Potjie is Different Gravy
- Episode 317: Springbok Sowing Season
- Episode 316: Quan Direction
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