Come inside the world of player agent and Chiming In presenter Steve Gillis as he gives us a bird’s-eye view into the deals, thrills and spills he’s overseen this season.

Having worked in rugby league as a journalist and player agent for almost 45 years, Chimes knows the ins and outs of the game as well as anyone.

In this episode of Chiming In, he gives us an inside look at Sam Walker’s future, how Adam Reynolds’ send-off was bungled, what’s next for Josh Papalii, and why the Dragons’ Couchman twins put their negotiations on hold.

Plus, Chimes unpacks PNG’s recruitment plans, the Perth expansion challenge, player retirement funds, the coach market, and why smart recruitment is the key to sustained NRL success.

It’s raw, revealing and a fascinating insight into how a player agent goes about his business.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

00:00 — Intro

01:49 — Adam Reynolds’ Retirement and Brisbane Exit

06:50 — Sam Walker’s Roosters Future

17:01 — Hugo Savala’s Roosters Loyalty

18:53 — DCE’s Career Crossroads

19:48 — PNG’s Recruitment Plans: Alex Johnston & Zac Lomax

26:41 — Alex Johnston’s South Sydney Exit That Never Happened

28:54 — Perth’s Marquee Player Challenge

31:10 — Can the NRL Sustain a 20th Team?

34:21 — Preparing Players for Retirement

36:07 — How the NRL Retirement Fund Works

40:56 — How Player Agents Find and Sign Talent

42:48 — Dane Gagai’s Move to Brisbane

44:46 — How Clubs Land Marquee Players: Ben Hunt

46:25 — Why the Couchman Twins Paused Negotiations

50:43 — Dean Young’s Coaching Journey

55:28 — Do NRL Coaches Need Agents?

59:56 — Should the NRL Add a Second New Zealand Team?

60:55 — Parramatta’s Recruitment Challenge

62:24 — Scott Drinkwater’s Cowboys Exit

65:35 — Brisbane, Madge McGuire & the Broncos’ Future

68:50 — Newcastle’s Turnaround

69:50 — Justin Holbrook’s Coaching Revival

70:27 — Are the Dolphins the Expansion Blueprint?

71:38 — Titans Recruitment, Roster Management & Penrith’s Dynasty

73:51 — Wrap-Up

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Inside Jai’s Journey.

South Sydney CEO Blake Solly has been front and centre since news of Jai Arrow’s battle with Motor Neurone Disease began.

In this episode of Chiming In, Solly shares insight into Jai’s courage and the way he has inspirationally lifted his teammates this season.

He also reveals how coach Wayne Bennett was instrumental in ensuring Arrow was credited with 100 NRL games for the Bunnies — and how Souths pitched the idea to the NRL.

But there’s more. Solly openly discusses:

- The signing of Payne Haas

- The futures of Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell

- Why the NRL should invest in Super League

- The new CBA

- Wayne Bennett’s use-by date

- Souths legend Nathan Merritt and his battle with cancer

- South Sydney’s premiership chances

It’s a must-watch episode for every rugby league fan — not just

Rabbitohs supporters.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

0:00 - Intro: Inside Jai’s Journey

1:45 - Jai Arrow’s MND Diagnosis & the Rugby League Community’s Response

6:00 - Jai’s 100-Game Milestone & the Emotional Gold Coast Tribute

9:30 - Payne Haas: How Souths Got the Deal Done

14:00 - Why the NRL Should Invest in Super League

17:30 - Wayne Bennett’s Role in Jai Arrow’s 100th NRL Game

20:00 - Souths’ Culture, Facilities & Building a Lasting Club

26:00 - Souths Cares, Nathan Merritt & Supporting Former Players

30:00 - Does Wayne Bennett Have a Use-By Date?

32:00 - Cody Walker & Latrell Mitchell’s Futures

34:00 - NRL Expansion and Funding Club Pathways

38:00 - Can South Sydney Win the Premiership?

40:00 - The New CBA and Player Payments

46:00 - Why Financially Strong Clubs Matter

48:00 - Souths’ Stance on Gambling Sponsorships

50:00 - Making Rugby League More Accessible for Kids

52:00 - John Sutton’s Ongoing Role at Souths

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Tim Gilbert has covered two Olympics, US golf majors, the Commonwealth Games and 11 years producing the Sunday Footy Show — but he started out earning nine grand a year at a tiny radio station in Goulburn, and very nearly lost the job in his first few months.

Gilbert takes us from his early days growing up as one of six kids in Guildford, through a thousand dollars' worth of job applications that finally landed him a start at 2GN, to the night he slept through his alarm and left the Goulburn rural news off the air for nine minutes. He shares stories from three decades in Sydney media — stripping off on the Today Show, playing schoolboy rugby league alongside Greg Alexander, and the chaos of live TV crosses gone wrong.

There are big names throughout too: a Kerry Packer safari-suit blow-up, a first-class seat next to a food-averse Tony Greig on the way home from covering cricket in India, and the story behind Beanies for Brain Cancer, born from the loss of his Channel 9 colleague Matt Calendar. Gilbert also opens up on leaving Nine "in the most public fashion" and why he has no regrets about any of it.

In this episode of Chiming In, Tim Gilbert looks back on a career that took him from a country radio booth to some of the biggest stages in sport and media.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Intro

01:36 - Welcome: Tim Gilbert joins Chiming In

02:04 - A career across the Today Show, Olympics and more

03:06 - Growing up half-Lebanese in Guildford, one of six kids

04:26 - A thousand dollars applying for radio jobs

05:06 - Landing his first gig at 2GN Goulburn

06:25 - The night he slept through the rural news

18:57 - Radio and TV bloopers, and taking his shirt off on the Today Show

20:22 - Playing schoolboy rugby league, and missing "the tackle"

21:54 - Eleven years producing the Sunday Footy Show

23:09 - Reading the news, and the chaos of live crosses

24:48 - Coat and tie above the desk, thongs below

32:08 - Covering cricket in India, and the "cream rises to the top" upgrade

39:19 - Kerry Packer, and the origin of Beanies for Brain Cancer

40:44 - A love of Sound of Music and Willy Wonka

43:03 - Life now: Lead Story, NSWRL and life after Nine

44:37 - Leaving Nine in the most public fashion

45:33 - No regrets along the way

46:13 - Wrap-up

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Dave Trodden runs one of Australian sport's biggest and least understood organisations — the New South Wales Rugby League turns over more than $50 million a year, oversees 126,000 players across 700 clubs, and controls every competition in the state bar the NRL and NRLW.

Trodden takes us inside the business of Origin: why Matt King was the right call to succeed Laurie Daley, whether Ivan Cleary has put his hand up for a future crack at the job, and why he expects Origin player payments to eventually double. He also opens up on protecting referees after a wave of public controversy, why bush footy is in far better shape than people think, and the extraordinary economic value the game's 40,000 volunteers add each year.

It's not all boardroom talk, either — Trodden shares the story of falling in love with rugby league at Balmain's famous 1969 grand final upset, how he ended up on the Wests Tigers board almost by accident during the fractious merger years, and becoming chairman in time for the club's fairytale premiership win in 2005.

In this episode of Chiming In, Dave Trodden gives a rare inside look at how the game is really run, from grassroots to Origin.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Intro

01:25 - Welcome: NSWRL CEO Dave Trodden joins Chiming In

02:14 - What people get wrong about the NSWRL

02:54 - The Blues as one of Australia's biggest sporting brands

03:48 - Matt King's appointment as Origin coach

05:01 - Did Ivan Cleary put his hand up?

10:41 - Why a club coach can't also coach Origin

11:57 - Will Origin players push for a bigger pay packet?

13:39 - A Monday morning inside NSWRL headquarters

19:51 - Protecting referees, and the Tamworth suspension controversy

21:01 - Is bush footy really dying?

23:28 - Visiting Junee with Laurie Daley

24:12 - Getting retired players back into country footy

25:44 - The economic value of 40,000 volunteers

28:08 - How Magic Round in Tamworth came about

39:20 - Falling in love with rugby league at the 1969 grand final

41:38 - Joining the Wests Tigers board almost by accident

44:02 - Becoming chairman during the merger fallout

45:21 - The fairytale run to the 2005 premiership

53:43 - Origin scheduling, PNG games and jersey tweaks

55:33 - Could City vs Country ever come back?

56:31 - Does the job ever feel appreciated?

58:29 - Wrap-up

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Darryl Brohman OAM is back on Chiming In just over a year since his last appearance — and in that time he's fought off non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, his second cancer battle after prostate cancer a few years earlier.

The Queensland Origin forward turned radio institution talks candidly about six rounds of chemo, losing his hair "everywhere," and the perspective he found sitting in a ward full of people going through the same thing — all delivered with the self-deprecating humour that's made him one of the game's most loved characters for the best part of 50 years.

Brohman also looks back on winning the 1984 grand final with Canterbury after a move from Penrith, coaching reserve grade for Phil Gould at the Bulldogs, receiving his OAM for services to rugby league, and the racehorse syndicate he ran with Laurie Daley and Ricky Stuart that paid off in Melbourne on Oaks Day.

In this episode of Chiming In, the Big Marn opens up on health, humour, and half a century in the game he loves — proving why he's still one of the best gets in the business.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Intro

01:32 - Welcome back: Darryl Brohman returns to Chiming In

01:45 - Health update: beating cancer for a second time

03:25 - How the diagnosis came about

04:50 - Chemo, and finding perspective in the ward

06:22 - Does a football career prepare you for something like this?

09:54 - The line between commentator, expert and comic

12:02 - Was he always the funny kid?

13:06 - Prostate cancer, sleep apnea, and losing his sense of taste

17:26 - Meeting Bev, and coaching reserve grade for Gus at the Bulldogs

28:31 - Punting, and the racehorse he owned with Laurie Daley and Ricky Stuart

31:14 - Winning the 1984 grand final with the Bulldogs

35:04 - Receiving his OAM for services to rugby league

36:08 - Giving back through the Starlight Foundation

39:17 - Copping a spray from Tim Sheens, and getting dropped

42:00 - Backing Laurie Daley through the Origin scrutiny

1:00:15 - Life after footy: the media career and finances

1:01:20 - Wrap-up

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Dean "Bulldog" Ritchie has covered rugby league for the Daily Telegraph for 37 years, breaking some of the game's biggest stories along the way — from a teenage cadet's first back-page scoop to the Bulldogs' secretly-photographed meeting with Jonathan Thurston.

Ritchie takes us through how a chance work-experience placement turned into a career, the mentors who shaped him — including the legendary Peter "Chippy" Frilingos, whose sudden death at work in 2004 Ritchie still finds hard to talk about — and 37 years' worth of scoops, near-misses and colourful nights out, including the taxi door that put him in hospital.

He also opens up on his 37-year friendship with Laurie Daley, the on-air Origin III prediction that turned out to be spot on, and life inside NRL 360 alongside some of the game's biggest personalities.

In this episode of Chiming In, Bulldog shares stories from a career spent chasing the game he's loved since he was a kid waving a Roosters flag from the outer.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Start

01:27 - Welcome: Dean "Bulldog" Ritchie joins Chiming In

02:11 - His schoolboy footy days and a near-miss at a Wallabies jumper

06:00 - Breaking into journalism through Bill Mordy

08:18 - Cutting his teeth at the Cumberland papers

09:40 - Landing the Daily Telegraph job on 1989 Grand Final day

11:06 - His mentors: "Chippy" Frilingos and "Buzz" Rothfield

15:38 - Chippy's sudden death, and being a pallbearer

18:25 - His first scoop: "Saints Sack Craig Young"

22:09 - The Bulldogs-Thurston scoop, and other big stories

24:23 - Friends and foes in rugby league

25:53 - Building a 37-year friendship with Laurie Daley

36:52 - The night a taxi door put him in hospital

38:41 - Covering rugby league around the world

39:52 - The Perth Bears trip that cost Mal Meninga $20K

45:38 - Backing Laurie Daley, and the Origin III prediction that came true

47:58 - Inside NRL 360, and copping a spray on air

48:33 - Sunday mornings on the Big Sports Breakfast

53:28 - 37 years at the Daily Telegraph

54:51 - Social media, and whether the nastiness is new

57:49 - Expansion: Christchurch vs Brisbane for team 20

59:56 - Should the NRL buy English Super League?

01:01:18 - Wrap-up

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Peter Sharp is one of rugby league's most respected and longest-serving coaching minds — over 40 years in the game, and the man widely credited with discovering and shaping a young Andrew and Matthew Johns at the Newcastle Knights.

From playing days at Maitland in the 1970s and a colourful path through Central Charlestown, England and Newcastle's junior system, Sharp went on to become an NRL head coach at Manly, an assistant to Craig Bellamy at Melbourne, and later took Hull FC on a 13-game winning streak in England before switching codes entirely to coach Ulster in rugby union.

These days he's back in the NRL working alongside Phil Gould at the Canterbury Bulldogs.

Sharp opens up on discovering a teenage Joey Johns, the night out that nearly cost the Jersey Flegg side a game, getting sacked and picked straight back up by Craig Bellamy, and the toughest and funniest moments from four decades on the sideline — plus a candid word on mental health and the Black Dog Institute.

In this episode of Chiming In, Peter shares stories from a career that's taken him from suburban rugby league grounds to Belfast, and reflects on what's changed in the game he's given his life to.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Start

01:01 - Rugby league royalty: introducing Peter Sharp

01:35 - Phil Gould's tribute and the Gus friendship

07:29 - The Brian Smith interview and the "beef and pickle sandwich" job

08:35 - Growing up in Maitland, playing on the weight

13:11 - The 1977 grand final and a 30,000-strong crowd

14:06 - Injury, and backpacking to England

17:15 - Meeting Andrew and Matthew Johns at Newcastle

19:28 - The infamous night out before a Balmain game

21:21 - Rising to reserve grade and a premiership

23:39 - Becoming Manly head coach after Bob Fulton's shock resignation

26:22 - The Northern Eagles "messy flop"

28:13 - Forgetting his wife at Gosford

29:03 - Learning under Craig Bellamy at Melbourne

30:34 - Hull FC and a 13-game winning streak in England

31:51 - Switching codes: coaching Ulster rugby union in Belfast

41:19 - Greatest coach debate and rugby league heroes

45:00 - Media scrutiny then vs now

49:40 - Mental health advocacy and the Black Dog Institute

51:02 - Wrap-up: 32 years in rugby league

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Craig Salvatori was a mainstay of the Sydney Roosters front row through the late '80s and early '90s, racking up around 140 first grade games between the Roosters and a final season at South Sydney, three State of Origin appearances for the Blues alongside Laurie Daley, and a Roosters life membership this year that came with the club's Indigenous Round honour.

He was also at the centre of one of Australian sport's most confronting personal stories: in October 2002, Salvatori lost his wife Kathy in the Bali bombings, and became an unlikely go-between for the Australian government's response on the ground, speaking daily with radio host Alan Jones and eventually meeting with then-Prime Minister John Howard. More than two decades on, he talks openly about grief, acceptance, and raising his daughters through it.

It's not all heavy going, though — Salvatori also revisits the infamous headbutt that cost him a five-week suspension, a near-miss at a premiership in 1987, and a colonoscopy story that nearly blew up his marriage. And after 45 years as a builder, he's about to set off on "Salvo's Aussie Pub Crawl" — a year-long lap of the country's pubs with his wife and dog in tow.

In this episode of Chiming In, Craig shares stories from a life that's been as tough as it has been full, and explains why he's chosen to talk about the hardest parts of it rather than look away.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Intro

01:21 - Welcome: Craig Salvatori joins Chiming In

01:47 - Breaking news: retiring after 45 years as a builder

02:32 - The plan: Salvo's Aussie Pub Crawl

05:20 - The colonoscopy story that nearly got him busted

09:02 - Naming the tour and sorting sleeping arrangements

14:35 - Opening up about the Bali bombings and losing Kathy

16:33 - How the group ended up split between the Sari Club and babysitting

18:06 - The night of the bombing and the search for answers

21:34 - Getting the Prime Minister involved

24:25 - Has he been back to Bali since

25:29 - Roosters and Rabbitohs career, and getting signed for $2,000

29:50 - The 1987 preliminary final classic against Canberra

31:12 - Backing Laurie Daley against his critics

32:40 - Falling out with Phil Gould and leaving the Roosters

35:24 - Retiring at 30, and getting two new knees at 53

37:36 - Roosters life member and Indigenous Round honour

41:28 - The hardest front rowers he played against

42:20 - The famous headbutt and five-week suspension

46:15 - Calling games on radio with 2GB

47:16 - Life on the road calling Cowboys games in Townsville

53:01 - Wrap-up and best wishes for the trip

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Fresh off coaching New South Wales to a series win nobody outside the camp gave them a chance of, Laurie Daley sits down for a full debrief on the campaign — the celebrations, the criticism, and everything in between.

Daley takes us inside the moments after the siren: the Gatorade shower, the speech in the sheds, a beer on the SCG turf with the playing group, and the 5:30am walk into a radio station on zero sleep to do an interview live, still buzzing from the win. He also answers his critics head-on — the press conference "grenade," the pile-on over Melbourne's interchange calls, and whether Laurie Daley holds a grudge (his answer: no, but he's keeping receipts).

Along the way he talks through what Stuart Diver's story meant to the playing group, a reunion dinner with the 1996 Blues team, the viral clip of Phil Gould pinching his seat in 2002, and just how far Andrew Johns' influence reached inside the camp this year. There's also a quiet moment about his late father, and the song that reminded Daley he was with him in spirit on the day it mattered most.

In this episode of Chiming In, Laurie shares what it really took to win the "unwinnable" series — and what's next for him and the Blues.

00:00 - Intro

01:08 - Welcome: the Origin-winning coach in the studio

02:35 - What's next — the contract question and his plans

06:50 - Celebrations: the Gatorade shower and the sneaky phone request

08:52 - On the field when the siren went

10:27 - The team photo, and standing at the back on purpose

12:21 - A beer on the SCG turf and the speech in the sheds

14:59 - 16 weeks without a beer, then the one that mattered

16:10 - The 5:30am walk into the radio station

17:51 - Over a thousand texts, and who reached out

26:51 - The press conference "grenade"

29:09 - Does Laurie Daley hold a grudge?

30:15 - The "putting his players to sleep" story

32:44 - Answering the Melbourne interchange criticism

37:56 - Brian To'o's Origin future

39:44 - Stuart Diver's story and what it meant to the group

42:08 - Reuniting with the 1996 Blues team

44:03 - Phil Gould's "greatest ever" comments

45:44 - The viral Gus seat-pinching clip

47:38 - What he learned about himself this campaign

48:38 - Isiah Yeo's leadership in camp

50:26 - Nathan Cleary and the immortal conversation

52:13 - Mitch Moses' kicking game and his role in the win

56:25 - His late father, and the song that reminded him he was there

58:11 - Wrap-up and what's ahead for the Blues

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Paul Nobby Clarke is one of rugby league’s good guys.

A powerful front rower forward in the 1980s and 90s, Clarke gave as good as he got but always found time to look at the lighter side of life.

Tough, skilful and uncompromising, Clarke played a major role in Penrith’s first ever premiership victory in 1991.

According to team-mate Royce Simmons, Clarke was deserved on the Churchill Medal. Clarke reckons Simmons told him after the game that he was Canberra’s best player in the first half and Penrith’s best performer in the second.

In this episode of Chiming In, Nobby shares the secrets of his success and recalls how his childhood dream of playing in the NRL never left his radar.

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