The second leg of the Nations Championship is underway, and this time the Southern Hemisphere boys have headed north to test their wares against the best the top half of the planet has to offer.

All in pursuit of the prestigious Hemisphere Crown. Yes, that's actually what they're calling it. A trophy awarded to whichever half of the globe is better at rugby. Riveting stuff.

The funny thing is, the two best teams in the world right now appear to be New Zealand and South Africa, but they can't even meet in the final because apparently geography is more important than rugby. Brilliant.

Anyway, some rugby was played, and naturally, we watched it so we could talk absolute shit about it.

🇮🇪 Ireland vs Argentina: Some thought this might be a close contest. Ireland clearly didn't get the memo and gave Los Pumas a proper hiding.

🇿🇦 South Africa vs Italy: The Springboks absolutely demolished the Azzurri 66–7. A massacre of Roman proportions. Not since the Visigoths sacked Rome in 410 AD have the Italians taken a beating quite like it. And even then, the Visigoths probably showed more mercy.

🇳🇿 All Blacks vs Scotland: The All Blacks returned to their northern holiday home, Murrayfield, where they've never lost to the Scots. Scotland showed plenty of fight, but the men in black (and white) eventually got the job done. A particularly emotional victory following the tragic passing of much-loved All Blacks head of security Logan Cadwallader. A massive effort from the boys under incredibly difficult circumstances.

🏴 Wales vs Japan: Possibly the most entertaining game of the weekend! An actual contest, some decent rugby, and Wales managed to get the chocolates. Good on ya, Wales. You needed that.

🇫🇷 France vs Fiji: The French got the job done, but what the hell is happening to Fiji? With Jake White's South African influence, the Flying Fijians are starting to look suspiciously like the Bulls. Structure? Discipline? Tactical rugby? Where's the glorious, chaotic Fijian madness we all fell in love with?!

🏴 England vs Australia: We thought this might be the game of the weekend. We were wrong. Very wrong. The Wallabies were absolute dog's balls, and England barely had to get out of second gear. Spare a thought for the poor Australians who set their alarms for the middle of the night to watch that steaming pile of shit. Although, judging by the performance, most of the Wallabies appeared to have stayed in bed themselves.

So who's actually going to win this thing? Is the Southern Hemisphere still the undisputed king of rugby, or can the northerners pull something out of their arses?

We dissect the games, question the competition, make some questionable predictions, and, as always, get thoroughly distracted talking a whole lot of nonsense.

A massive thanks to our sponsor, MaxLife Batteries, for keeping the beers flowing. Legends!

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Grab a beer and enjoy.

#Rugby #NationsChampionship #AllBlacks #Springboks #SixNations #Wallabies #TwoCentsGetsDistracted

The Calm Before the Rugby Storm (and a Whole Lot of Bullshit)

Not a huge amount of rugby has happened this week, but bloody hell, there's a lot about to happen!

With the second half of the Nations Championship about to kick off, the Northern and Southern Hemispheres are preparing to go head-to-head in what promises to be an absolute feast of international rugby.

This week on Two Cents Gets Distracted, we dissect the big questions. Who's got the best No. 6? Who's got the best of every other kind of six? Which teams are on the rise, which are heading backwards, and what would constitute a pass mark—or an absolute disaster—for each nation?

We look ahead to some mouth-watering matchups, make a few bold predictions, and attempt to sound like we know what we're talking about.

But with bugger-all rugby actually played this week, we also spend a considerable amount of time talking absolute bullshit.

So, if you love rugby, questionable analysis, wild tangents and two blokes getting distracted by their own conversations, you've come to the right place.

Grab a beer AND ENJOY

Well, well, well. Would you look at that? The All Blacks have gone and absolutely PUMPED the Wallabies. AGAIN.

And my word, that first half was a thing of beauty.

Champagne rugby. Free-flowing attack. Forward dominance. And a Wallabies defence that looked like it had collectively forgotten how tackling works.

The All Blacks piled on 36 points in the first half, and just three minutes into the second, they'd reached 43! Arguably the best rugby we've seen from them under Dave Rennie. It was glorious.

And at the heart of it all? BEAUDEN MOTHERFLIPPIN' BARRETT.

The old boy turned back the clock, bagged himself two tries, silenced the doubters, and reminded everyone of a very important lesson: Form is temporary. Class is permanent. And that man is ALL class.

But then... something happened.

The second half arrived, the champagne went flat, the injury stoppages piled up, the TMO decided to get involved, and the Wallabies finally remembered they were allowed to play rugby too. What had looked like a potential cricket score turned into a slightly frustrating second-half slog.

Still, a 43–21 thumping is a 43–21 thumping. We'll take it!

We dissect the good, the bad, and the slightly baffling from another All Blacks demolition job.

And, at long last, WE'RE TALKING WOMEN'S RUGBY!

Ding dong! The Red Roses' extraordinary 41-match unbeaten run is OVER!

Canada have finally knocked England off their perch with a historic 24–21 victory in Toronto, in front of a record-breaking crowd of 18,621 fans. An incredible performance, a dramatic finish, and exactly the sort of result women's rugby needs. We get stuck into what this means for the women's game.

Plus, the usual collection of tangents, absolute nonsense, and questionable rugby opinions.

Oh, and Mark has discovered the sound effects button on our recording software.

God help us all.

Anyway, grab a beer and enjoy