Episode 63, and Ireland stay perfect in the Nations Championship — Andy Farrell's much-changed side made it two bonus-point wins from two with a 36-20 victory over Eddie Jones's Japan in Newcastle. Debutant Sean Jansen was player of the match with a try on his first cap, Robbie Henshaw crossed on his return, and Tom Stewart's late score sealed the bonus point on a day the set piece creaked but the squad depth delivered. Round 2 elsewhere brought Will Jordan's record-breaking hat-trick as New Zealand hammered Italy 47-17, France's Aaron Grandidier Nkanang scored twice on debut in a 42-26 comeback win over Australia, England ended their losing run with an 11-try 73-8 rout of Fiji, South Africa held off Scotland 42-28 at Loftus, and Argentina beat Wales 35-21 in San Juan. Here is what I'm hitting on this week's episode:

🌍 Nations Championship Round 2 results; All six fixtures from Saturday — NZ 47-17 Italy, France 42-26 Australia, our game in Newcastle, England 73-8 Fiji, South Africa 42-28 Scotland, and Argentina 35-21 Wales — plus a fun fact: both hemispheres dead level on 33 competition points and perfectly balanced on aggregate points difference (+22 north, -22 south) after two rounds.

📢 Important Podcast Updates; Dynamic Ads are gone from the podcast for good — they will never be re-added.

🔥 Overall opinion of the game; Why Farrell called it relief more than pleasure — Japan competitive for 60 minutes, the lineout a worry, but maximum points and four debutants celebrated.

📋 Analysis of the game events; Taira Main's early try, Timoney and O'Toole responding, Henshaw before the break, Jansen's debut score, Era keeping Japan in it, Byrne's penalty, and Stewart's last-minute bonus point.

🗺️ Nations Championship positioning after this weekend; Ireland on 10 points from two games — top of the Northern Hemisphere group — with Eden Park against the All Blacks next Saturday.

🎙️ Discussion Point; Standout debutantes from the Nations Championship so far — Sean Jansen, Ryunosuke Ito, Aaron Grandidier Nkanang, Noah Caluori, Benhard Janse van Rensburg, and the All Blacks rookies who've broken through in July.

Episode 62, and Ireland's Nations Championship summer rolls on — Andy Farrell makes nine changes and hands four debuts for the Round 2 clash with Japan at McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle on Saturday morning. Tadhg Beirne captains a rotated side, Sean Jansen starts at No 8, and Eddie Jones returns to the Japan dugout after his suspension. The team sheets are in. Here is what I'm hitting on this week's episode:

🌍 Nations Championship Round 2 predictions; All six Saturday fixtures with Irish kick-off times and venues — NZ vs Italy (6:10am, Wellington), Australia vs France (8:40am, Brisbane), our game in Newcastle (11:10am), Fiji vs England (2:10pm, Liverpool), South Africa vs Scotland (4:40pm, Pretoria), and Argentina vs Wales (8:10pm, San Juan).

🏟️ Details of our game; Kick-off, Newcastle weather, McDonald Jones Stadium, Andrea Piardi in the middle with Ben O'Keeffe on the touchline, and where to watch on Virgin Media 1.

📋 Team lineups; Full Ireland and Japan matchday 23s — nine Ireland changes, four debutants for the men in green, Japan's one change with Taira Main on the wing, and the five biggest Japanese names with their clubs.

🎯 Score and MOTM Prediction; Ireland's 11-1 head-to-head record, the 41-10 in Dublin last November, Japan's 27-10 over Italy, how Japan's 'chosoku' attack and contestable kicking could test Ireland's blitz, the 1/6 outright odds, and my scoreline call.

🎙️ Discussion Point; What Rugby League rules I think should be introduced to Rugby Union — the 40/20 kick, shot clock on set pieces, captain's challenge, sin bin for professional fouls, limited interchange, and golden point extra time.

Episode 61, and Ireland are off the mark in the Nations Championship — Andy Farrell's injury-hit side came from 12 points down to beat Joe Schmidt's Wallabies 33-31 in a madcap thriller at a sold-out Allianz Stadium in Sydney. Hugo Keenan was official Man of the Match — try-saving tackle on Suaalii and the bonus-point score — Tom Clarkson's 77th-minute try sealed it, and Ben Donaldson missed two late penalties on a night the Prendergast brothers both crossed too. Round 1 delivered elsewhere too — New Zealand edged France 34-32 in Christchurch and South Africa hammered England 45-21 at Ellis Park in two of the wildest games you'll see all summer. Here is what I'm hitting on this week's episode:

🌍 Nations Championship Round 1 results; All six fixtures from the opening weekend — NZ 34-32 France, Japan 27-10 Italy, our game in Sydney, Fiji 24-39 Wales, South Africa 45-21 England, and Argentina 38-47 Scotland — plus a look at the two wildest games in Christchurch and Johannesburg.

🔥 Overall opinion of the game; Why this was classic Farrell-ball — 24-12 down, defence all over the shop in the first half, belief in the closing stages, and a prop burrowing over with three minutes left.

📋 Analysis of the game events; Pietsch's early try, four Wallaby first-half scores, Keenan's tackle on Suaalii, Gibson-Park before the break, Clarkson's winner, Sheehan's disallowed try, Shaw's yellow, and Donaldson's two missed penalties in the red.

🗺️ Nations Championship positioning after this weekend; Ireland on five points with a bonus-point win, Australia and France on two, England nil — and Round 2 fixtures including Japan vs Ireland in Newcastle next Saturday.