Jeff McTainsh is quickly becoming one of the leading voices in New Zealand rugby. From growing up in Dunedin dreaming of the All Blacks, to commentating games off the TV as a kid, Jeff has built an incredible career through persistence, passion and years of hard work behind the scenes.

After working through radio, journalism, TV news and sports reporting, Jeff slowly carved his way into the commentary world — eventually earning the opportunity to call All Blacks test matches on Sky Sport. Along the way he’s covered Olympic Games, NPC rugby, Super Rugby, international rugby and become one of the most respected commentators in the country.

Some parts that stood out for me in this episode were…

- The story behind sending a commentary clip to Sky Sport in hopes of getting an opportunity

- Getting the call to commentate college rugby and how that changed everything

- The surreal moment he got called in to commentate the All Blacks at Eden Park

- How commentators prepare for games, player pronunciations and big moments

- His hilarious impressions of Dave Rennie, Ray Warren, Hamish McKay and more

- Why balance, fitness and routine completely changed his life over the last few years

- His thoughts on the future of rugby, commentary and the All Blacks

Jeff is one of those genuine good blokes who clearly loves rugby and loves storytelling. This episode is full of awesome insight into sports broadcasting, plenty of laughs, some elite impressions and a seriously cool story about chasing a passion and slowly building your way to the top.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.