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Similar, but Ikitau's was specifically reported as a 9 month deal with RA still very engaged with him and Exeter in managing him and his availability. There's more to come out on this but the initial reporting doesn't sound like that's the case for Lolesio.

Great breakdown of why this season has been so much better to watch from the QRU's head of data science: https://www.rugbypass.com/news/the-raw-data-that-proves-super-rugby-pacific-is-currently-a-cut-above/

The surprising part for me is it coming out now - I figured we wouldn't hear about a Lolesio departure until at least the new coach, and more likely post Lions. I do wonder if this is a sign we're about to see a few more departures after the recent run of re-signings, As I understand RA did...

yeah, the Highlanders Saturday NZ afternoon/Brisbane lunch time was perfect for this time of year. If they swapped this and the Moana game in the schedule we would've been golden.

Lolesio heading to Japan: https://www.smh.com.au/sport/rugby-union/lolesio-s-japan-move-puts-lions-and-world-cup-hopes-at-risk-20250404-p5lp8j.html

Have to say, it has been great having the Jubilee become the Reds official pub up here. It's a great spot (both fit out and location), the games are guaranteed to be on and there's been a good crowd their to watch them whenever I've been as a result. It's a shit show finding a spot elsewhere for...

That was the way it was originally put, but it sounds like it's a lot more individualized for players - Potter and Robertson are surely as much wallabies as Ryan Lonergan, but while Ryan had a wallaby rest last week (leading into a bye), Robertson and Potter will start for their 8th game in a...

I don't think a solo New Zealand world cup will ever happen again, at least on the Men's side of things - the economics just don't stack up. There's probably a decent chance of a joint Australian/New Zealand bid though, but not for a while given we're about to host. Maybe for 2067 as a throwback...

Yes-ish, but it's a bit more complicated then that. Chiefly it's about housing and the push back is against AirBnBs/Holiday rentals, but that does flow through towards animosity towards tourism. It's still a massive part of the economy and it's not as simple as turning off the tap. It's also...

A much more realistic option for 2025 has emerged - Spain: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/article-14567563/Rugby-World-Cup-Australia-USA-host-Spain.html Strikes a good balance between supporting a growing rugby nation and potential profit, while also bringing the world cup back to...

I expect we'll probably be able to retain Tizzano on a shorter deal, but it'd be hard justify more than 600k right now, and that probably needs to be Twiggy heavy. He seems pretty committed to pushing for the Wallabies spot so it might be enough to retain him through the world cup and push the...

"Life changing": https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/rugby/carlo-tizzanos-wallabies-future-at-risk-following-huge-japanese-offer/news-story/fb5adb8c65709481792e71e3a7a64801?amp

Has there ever been a more hated 9-10 pairing than Christie-Barrett on the @Dismal Pillock hate index? Could there ever be?

That combined salary lands somewhere around $750-800k Australian (or $400k per contract), which is probably the max Petaia would've been looking at if he stayed in Aus rugby (less than Japan/France though). Makes it a pretty good bet when you consider that's on the failing side of things. Hell...

He was listed at 128kg when he re-signed with the Reds in August 2019, https://reds.rugby/news/2019/08/22/taniela-signs-on-with-reds and his wiki had him at 132kg around then (October 2019), citing his Wallabies profile...

Wrong lock and they're only in the hunt, nothing signed yet. Either way that probably says more about the New South if your lot can't beat out someone in the Old North on the player market, given how poorly things are going up their.

Hard to know how the current top ups are distributed, but with most of the locks re-signing and Phillip coming in it's probably safe to assume there's not a lot on the table for him. That said Blyth/Smith are probably on similar contracts with the Reds, losing one likely frees up the money to...

Yeah, there's been no sign of bad blood at any stage, and I think they realize there's plenty to gain (and nothing to lose) from maintaining that relationship whatever happens. If he goes poorly he could be back at the Reds in a year or two, if it goes well then they can at very least piggy back...

To be fair, I thought those fans were wrong then, and while Lynagh has progressed that game management difference was always there. For mine the worry is more the combination of an away came and the Chiefs taking as very bloody seriously this time around. I don't think it's the end of the world...

He made himself part of the process, whether or not he was ever a viable candidate. RA may not feel like they passed him over, but he probably will. Whether or not there's bad blood as a result is not necessarily a give in, but Cheika was not exactly a team player with respect to the broader...