This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier discuss Ardie Savea's bombshell Super Rugby switch from the Hurricanes to Moana Pasifika and the implications for him as well as both franchises before we dig into the All Blacks third test of the year against Fiji in San Diego. We also rank the All Blacks halfbacks, discuss the chances of gold medals for the sevens sides at the Olympics and whether the NZ U20s finishing third is a positive result, as well as an assessment of Wallabies...

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier wrap the second test against England and discuss the All Blacks' game plan - or seeming lack thereof, as well as the impact of Beauden Barrett, line-out struggles and how they might line up against Fiji in San Diego. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier assess the first All Blacks' test of the 'new era' and a tight win over England under the roof in Dunedin. We assess who stood out and where the improvements will need to be made for the second test in Auckland on Saturday. We also run the rule over the other test matches around the globe over the weekend and reveal some battle scars of our own from Dunedin. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier put forward their arguments for the first All Blacks team of the year and how the first test against England will be won and lost. We also hear from England coach Steve Borthwick and assess the standouts from the Maori All Blacks first hitout under new coach Ross Filipo. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier are in Christchurch following the All Blacks squad announcement and reflect on the five new names in the squad of 32, as well as the big omissions from the group including Hoskins Sotutu and Ruben Love. We also hear from All Blacks forwards coach Jason Ryan and uncapped prop Pasilio Tosi. We also dig into a dominant Blues performance in the Super Rugby final against the Chiefs, that ended their 24 year drought. See...

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier review the Super Rugby semi-finals as the Blues and Chiefs advance to Saturday night's decider, at the expense of the Brumbies and top-seeded Hurricanes. We also chat with Kevin Malloy, the Super Rugby Pacific board chair to review the season and discuss the future shape of the competition. And with the All Blacks squad days away from being named, we give our respective 32-man squads we think will be named next week. See...

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier assess the four Super Rugby quarter-finals from the weekend and say farewell to the Rebels (for good) and the Highlanders, Drua and Reds for this season. We also look ahead to the semis and assess what Patrick Tuipulotu's injury means for the All Blacks this year, as well as reflect on the departure of Akira Ioane to Japan after this season. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier wrap a big week of rugby, beginning with the final round of the Super Rugby regular season and the quarter-finalists being set and the Crusaders missing the top 8 for the first time since 2015. We also dig deep into the news the Melbourne Rebels will be axed at the conclusion of their current campaign, while NZR's governance has come and gone and there are still a lot of questions left unanswered. See omnystudio.com/listener for...

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier count down to the crunch governance vote that will shape New Zealand Rugby, assess the fortunes of the Black Ferns and wrap up the penultimate round of Super Rugby. We also dive into the new reports around the Springboks-All Blacks tours from 2026 and look back at a wild week for Rob Penney. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Elliott and Liam catch up with legendary All Blacks halfback Aaron Smith on a range of topics after the completion of his first season playing for Japanese club Toyota Verblitz. We reflect on Aaron's All Blacks career, his first season in Japan, the successors to him at halfback for the All Blacks, the continuing eligibility saga in New Zealand Rugby and the special plan he has for some of his jersey collection. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier break down the news around Sam Cane's departure from New Zealand Rugby after this year and who leads the race to be both captain and openside flanker for the All Blacks in 2024. We dig into the weekend that was in Super Rugby, with the Blues taking another step towards top seeding and we analyse a shock Black Ferns defeat to Canada. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier run through the reaction from their interview with Chris Lendrum, specifically the desire to bring Richie Mo'unga back to new Zealand Rugby sooner rather than later. We dig into the Blues going top of the ladder after denying the Hurricanes at Eden Park, as well as more questions on the Crusaders front after the Highlanders taught them a lesson or two under the roof in Dunedin. We also dig into the Black Ferns and New Zealand...

On a special edition of Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier catch up with New Zealand Rugby's general manager - professional rugby and performance Chris Lendrum, canvassing a range of rugby topics. We delve into how his job has changed over time, sabbaticals and whether contracting is working the right way for New Zealand rugby, whether players will be selected from offshore in the next while, the future of Super Rugby and NPC, the Olympics and plenty more across nearly an hour. See...

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott and Liam discuss the latest in Super Rugby as the Hurricanes bounce back, the Blues find their way late against the Rebels and the Crusaders sink again, this time to the Reds. We also dig into talk of the Qataris investing into rugby's new Nations Cup and ponder the future of the Melbourne Rebels following another twist in the sorry saga. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Rugby Direct this week, Elliott and Liam debate whether the Hurricanes are still the Super Rugby favourites after their loss to the Brumbies, or whether the Blues now have claims to that title. The Crusaders are back... or so Elliott claims, while we dive in-depth to talk about the Highlanders vs Force. Liam also breaks some news around the Melbourne Rebels' future and debate whether an ANZAC Day Bledisloe Cup test would work. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, we review the round that was in Super Rugby as the Hurricanes and Blues continue to soar and the Crusaders and Highlanders flop towards the bottom of the ladder after heavy defeats. Liam and Elliott put their selection hats on and pick 33-man All Blacks squads for the July tests, if they were to be named this week. We also dig a little deeper on the Crusaders' recruitment and future proofing, as well as discussing the union switch of Joey Manu and if he'll find...

On the latest episode, Elliott and Liam ask... can anyone stop the Hurricanes this year? They review their win over the Chiefs as well as the other sometimes confounding results of week eight of Super Rugby Pacific. We also dive into the Super Rugby Aupiki final and ask about the future of the competition, as well as a whip around of the week's other big news including the Club World Cup on the verge of confirmation, coaching movements abound and the news of Blues forward Cameron Suafoa's...

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott and Liam review big wins for the Blues and Chiefs in Super Rugby Pacific, discuss the impending departures of Fergus Burky and possibly Josh Moorby and hail the success of the All Blacks Sevens and Black Ferns Sevens after winning the prestigious Hong Kong Sevens. We also catch up with Black Ferns 15s assistant coach Steve Jackson to talk the Aupiki season to date and what he and the fellow coaches are looking for ahead of their first squad being named...

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott and Liam discuss the big breaking news that former All Blacks scrum doctor Mike Cron is joining Joe Schmidt's Wallabies coach and ask whether NZ Rugby should be worried. We dig into Cam Roigard's likely lengthy sidelining through a knee injury and ask whether the Crusaders are back. And we break down the governance issues plaguing NZR. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier dive into round five of Super Rugby Pacific as the Hurricanes continue to surge, the Chiefs and Blues bank important wins and the Crusaders continue to crumble. All Blacks legend Jeff Wilson also stops by for a chat to review the opening month and a half while we also talk the prospect of Sam Whitelock returning to the All Blacks in 2024 out of France. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier review the fourth round of Super Rugby Pacific, which has seen the Hurricanes continue their unbeaten run and the Crusaders continue their winless streak. We review the Six Nations and cast an eye to the England tour of New Zealand later this year and where their strengths might lie. And we discuss the news of the late Billy Guyton's CTE diagnosis and ask... where to for rugby? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier take a look at the Hurricanes being unbeaten in Super Rugby Pacific and the Crusaders yet to nab a win, Ireland lose in the Six Nations and Italy wins away at home for the first time in a long time. We also stick our oar into the Hurricanes Poua haka saga which has dominated headlines for the past week. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott and Liam review Super Round in Melbourne, with three teams still unbeaten after the opening two weeks of the competition. We ask if the Crusaders decline is anything other than to be expected and also discuss the news the Jaguares may be returning to Super Rugby Pacific after a five-year absence. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Rugby Direct, Elliott Smith and Liam Napier review the opening round of Super Rugby Pacific and discuss the so-called mouth-guard controversy which has become a major talking point from the first weekend. We also take a look at the Six Nations. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.