Good morning, good afternoon and good evening, and welcome to the penultimate Friday’s Rugby News for 2025. Once more unto the breech we all head, games to be played, history to be made and World Cup futures on the line. What’s not to like?
We start our rugby odyssey today with ‘Grand Sham?’ Then look at the challenges to ‘Make Australian Rugby Great Again’, before taking stock with what we have for ‘It could always be worse’. Dive headfirst into a complex and conflicted history between two nations in ‘Remember the Falklands’. Preview the weekend’s other main rugby fixture at ‘The Rest’. And then bid farewell to the rugby test year with ‘Friday’s Goss with Hoss’, now offering to host COP27 at The Ponderosa in the heart of the coalfields.
Grand Sham?
Sigh. So here we are facing another hiding. A different #10, (our 9th over 15 tests) all the while staring down the barrel of our most losing-est year ever in Wallaby history (never lost 10 tests in a season before). Facing a Northern Nudie Run for the first time since 1958. And quite frankly, I can’t point to one positive thing about the Wallabies since the great escape against Argentina in FNQ, can you? And from a glass half empty stand point, that was one of two great escapes in 2025 (Fiji the other). But for the grace of the rugby gods we hypothetically could be staring down the barrel of a 2W/13L season. Yikes.
Am I emotionally drained by our team? You betcha! Am I rugby-fatigued after a season of hope morphing into a season of steaming excrement, served up to me as a delicacy or rugby progress? Abso-flogging-lutely. But shouldn’t we as fans, expect more from the Wallabies than we’re currently being offered?
For the record, I don’t believe we should summarily execute Joe. We’ve been down that path before, and I’ve never found any organisation that can ‘sack its way to success’, well, apart from a brothel that is. But nor can I accept that improvement ‘isn’t linear’, or that we’re ‘building depth’, because from my perspective all we’re doing is building depth in PTSD levels. How is such a woeful style of play and such appalling results good for this group going forward? And. if it is truly ‘character building’, WTF haven’t we seen any sign of said character in the performance? I mean, park the horrific results for a minute, why have the performances been just so very, very shite?
I pontificated a couple of weeks back that perhaps the only focus this year, outside of the FUKIRs, was to deepen the pool of test experienced players available to Les Kiss for the ’27 big show. Certainly Hoops has said a number of times on Stan that it effectively takes ‘two teams of 15’ in a squad to win the RWC.
Maybe this Grand Sham is the rugby recession we had to have?
Make Australian Rugby Great Again.
France v Australia. Stade de France, Sunday, 23 November 6.30am AEDT on Stan.
Perhaps this weekend’s test can be a small step towards MARGA? This fan would be prepared to ‘park’ the final result of the match if we deliver a cohesive, disciplined and controlled 80 minute performance against a side who is clearly the second best team in world rugby (by some margin) in Les Bleus. With no JOC (released from squad), no Skelton (blown his flux capacitor and misses his 114th Wallaby test due to injury) and a new #10 (likely to be Flash Gordon), is it realistic to expect a win this match? No chance. No chance at all.
So if that be the case, what would a pass mark be? For a start, avoiding a scoreboard blowout would be the minimum requirement. Then a coherent and disciplined attacking game that at least stretched and challenges the Frogs’ D (connection in our own D is a must). Such connection must also lower our offending rate and see us return to early season ways of only yielding 8-10 penalties for the match. For me, all of that would be a pass mark. Fingers crossed.
France (1-15): Gros, Marchand, Montagne, Flament, Meafou, Jelonch, Ollivon, Alldritt, Lucu, Ntamack, Bielle-Biarrey, Fickou, Depoortere, Penaud, Ramos
Replacements: Lamothe, Neti, Laclayat, Taofofenua, Auradou, Jegou, Jauneau, Gourgues
Wallabies (1-15): Bell, Pollard, Tupou, Williams, Frost, Hooper, McReight, Wilson, J. Gordon, C. Gordon, Pietsch, Ikitau, Suaalii, Potter, Jorgensen
Replacements: Faessler, Ross, Alaalatoa, Veletini, Tizzano, Thomas, Edmed, Daugunu
Fearless Prediction: Wallabies to get a ‘pass mark’. That’ll do me nicely.
Match Officials: Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU) Assistant Referee 1: Andrew Brace (IRFU) Assistant Referee 2: Craig Evans (WRU) TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (SARU) FPRO: Mike Adamson (SRU)
It could always be worse.
Wales v NZ. Cardiff Stadium: Sunday, 23 November 1:30am AEDT on Stan.
I must admit that my anxiety as a Wallaby fan is some what assuaged by just how completely snot the NZ side has become under their current coach and seat warmer, Razor Robbo, has become. I mean the Poms (unfortunately) regularly beat us, but to beat the Kiwis? Well, that’s gotta sting, don’t it!
But so it was last week when the Nearlies Grund Slum umbishuns went up in smoke. Racing out to an early lead and looking like they could smell blood in the water, the Cuzzy Brews than fluffed their lines and handed victory to the side who are less popular than a coalition leader, the Poms.
Truth be told, I will always cheer for the Darkness when not playing our lot, but this side seems to have an identity crisis as well; they’re just not sure what style they should be, could be, or would like to be playing. As a result it’s at times venomous and sumptuous rugby. But at other times, well, not so much. And the game against the uppity colonisers was in the ‘not so much’ category.
They get one last chance to nail their rugby DNA to the mast this week when they take on The Welsh Miners Choir & Rugby XV in Cardiff. And we all know how the Brews react after a loss. Look out Wales.
Fearless Prediction: Cuzzy Brews by 26.
Remember the Falklands.
Imperialists v FISMs. Monday, 24 November 3:00am AEDT on Stan.
There’s always something spicy, out of the norm and a tad controversial when these two sides square off in any sport. Think Maradona and ‘the hand of god’ controversy in 1986. Or Sir David Moisturiser and ‘that’ red card in 1998. No doubt there’ll be something from this fixture as well. The Smugness in white are on a 10 match winning bender. The Falkland Island Silver Medallists are on the precipice of their (and first ever) Norther Grand Slam. Something’s just gotta give. What’s not to like?
Fearless Prediction: Los Pumas by 1.
The rest.
Ireland v South Africa. Aviva Stadium Sunday, 23 November 4:30am AEDT on Stan.
I’ll never repeat this so, take a screenshot: South Africa are just simply too good for the rest of the rugby world at the moment, and by some distance. Supremely well coached, massive humans up front complemented by electric pace and skills in the fairies. Indeed Sacha Cohan-Montezuma is fast becoming my favourite player in world rugby (does he have an Australian grandparent and/or, does he want one?). The kid is electric in everything he does. 65m kicks? No problem. Can accelerate from 0 to 1000mph quicker than Mrs Hoss can go from happy in general to disgusted with my behaviour (last time I went to Blockbuster Video I forgot my glasses and accidentally picked up ‘Saving Ryan’s Privates’ instead of that Tom Hanks movie. Her grandfather seemed to enjoy it). Outrageous vision and the daring of youth as well? Yessssirrrreee Bob. Quiet simply, the kid’s got game.
Oirland on the other hand, well they’re the great pretenders. Or perhaps more like the oversized 11 year old who push people around in 4th class (the 6N), then get found out against the big boys later on. Well, the Saffas are those big boys, real big.
Fearless Prediction: Saffas by 35.
Friday’s Goss with Hoss.
G&GR last drinks for ’25.
Next week will be our last full Rugby News week for 2025 as the team and you fans can pause, take a breather and enjoy some down time. We’ll be back on deck Monday, 1 February 2026. In the interim, if any budding writers feel the urge, submit a story to us and we’ll be happy to run it on these esteemed (???) pages.
Red Card Wonderland
What’s happening with the vinos lately? Gus Gardner’s straight red to the Saffas was possibly, maybe, the right call but, surely still warranted further examination by the TMO. The one to Mostert last week was simply Ponderous. The guy is 9 foot tall, was bent over and other dynamics in the tackle influenced the collision. Instant red card issued by the ref only to be reversed by the judiciary a week later. Something’s gotta give here. stuff.co.nz has more
Some country for old men
Stodgy Steve Borthwick has recalled 33yo Elliot Daly as one of six changes for his team to lose to Argentina this weekend. rugby.com.au has the team news
Lies, damn lies, and statistics.
Interesting (depressing?) read from Professor Payten in the SMH.
Swing low haka blow?
Every side and their fans should respond as they see fit I reckon. Not so much Justin Marshall on planetrugby.com
Until next week, go you gold things.
Hoss – out.
