Sandwich tales, a great Australia start to Super Rugby Pacific, and the return of the Six Nations has Stan Sport commentator Sean Maloney excited, joining Brett McKay & Harry Jones in this week’s milestone episode of The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

In the 8-9 Combo’s 50th guest episode and 100th overall, the guys compare Harry’s sandwich in a pub in Limerick with Seanny’s extraordinary SuperBowl smoked meat fare, and make everyone hungry, before celebrating the Australian teams start to 2025 to appropriate levels, contemplate Round 3 of the Six Nations and ponder which coach is under pressure now, should a few results go astray, and got through the latest scientific measure that is The Harry Index.

Games of the Week:

• Six Nations Rd.3: England v Scotland, Twickenham SAT

• SRP Rd.2: Chiefs v Crusaders, Hamilton FRI

• URC Rd.9 leftover: Bulls v Lions, Pretoria SAT

• Top 14 Rd.17: Toulouse v Bayonne SAT

• JRLO Wk.9: Kubota Spears v Shizuoka Blue Revs, Tokyo SAT

• MLR Rd.1: Chicago Hounds v Utah Warriors, Chicago SAT

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SixNations #SuperRugbyPacific #UnitedRugbyChampionship #Top14 #JapanRugbyLeagueOne #MajorLeagueRugby

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-8-9-combo-rugby-podcast/id1729575866

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena (via YouTube Creator Studio)

Voiceovers by Chookman + Sean Maloney

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Last minute wins and a Grand Final get-square headlined the first weekend of Super Rugby Pacific, while successive Zebre upsets is the talk of the URC, as Brett McKay & Harry Jones launch into another Weekend Post-Mortem for The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

The ACT Brumbies took a team laden with debutants to Fiji and did what no Australian team had done before, Munster was most comfortable at home for Harry’s very poetic Irish long weekend, and the Sharks overcame being down to 12 at one point to take a BP win over the Bulls away from Loftus

Plus: what caught our eye from the Top 14 in France, Japan Rugby League One, and the opening round of Mahor League Rugby in the States

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SuperRugbyPacific #URC #Top14 #JapanRugbyLeagueOne #MLR

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-8-9-combo-rugby-podcast/id1729575866

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

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Curious selections for the opening weekend of Super Rugby Pacific, the French Six Nations fallout, and it’s a second attempt at life post-Warren Gatland in Wales, as Geoff Parkes joined Brett McKay & Harry Jones in this week’s episode of The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

An already accomplished rugby columnist, Geoff Parkes provides some wonderful perceptions into Super Rugby for 2025, as well as delving into his writing processes that delivered two books over the Australian summer: 'A Year in the Life and Death of the Melbourne Rebels', the fantastic behind-the-scenes look at the 2024 demise of the Rebels, and his debut crime novel 'When the Deep Dark Bush Swallows You Whole', set in rural New Zealand. It’s a fascinating insight into the writer’s mind, and how major writing works come together.

Games of the Week:

• SRP Rd.1: Waratahs v Highlanders, Sydney FRI

• URC Rd.11: Munster v Scarlets, Limerick SAT

• Top 14 Rd.16: Clermont v Toulouse SUN

• JRLO Wk.9: Black Rams Ricoh v Urayasu D-Rocks, Tokyo SAT

• MLR Rd.1: Houston v Chicago, Houston SAT

NOTE & APOLOGIES: Brett suffered a connectivity glitch early on in the epsode, and Harry had to board a plane at the end. But we got there!

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-8-9-combo-rugby-podcast/id1729575866

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena (via YouTube Creator Studio)

Voiceovers by Chookman + Sean Maloney

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Undefeated and ominous-looking Ireland now lead the Six Nations Championship after two rounds in 2025, but England’s late win over France will remain a talking about for a while yet, as Brett McKay & Harry Jones launch into another Weekend Post-Mortem for The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

Scotland showed some but not enough grit before going down to Ireland at Murrayfield, England’s 80th minute winner to beat France by 1 will keep Twickenham Man happy for weeks, and Italy were just way too good for a Wales who still might not have hit rock bottom.

Also: a make-up weekend in the United Rugby Championship, plus Japan Rugby League One Rd.8.

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SixNations

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-8-9-combo-rugby-podcast/id1729575866

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena (via YouTube Creator Studio)

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Last week was all about the Seven Deadly Sins within the Six Nations, and for the bumper second round of matches it’s Crime & Punishment. Brett McKay & Harry Jones take a look at three individually intriguing games for the latest episode of The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

It is, of course, a round with three really interesting matchups, and three games that could go either way. But punishment looms in all three contests, too. Are Wales at rock-bottom with another loss? Can Italy cope with favouritism? Can France cope with favouritism? What would England have to do next with another loss? How does a traditional Celtic rivalry play out? A great weekend of rugby awaits us.

And are the Wallabies in for more punishment, with the news Joe Schmidt won’t continue as Head Coach after The Rugby Championship later in the year? Who comes in next? Great question…

Games of the Week: Six Nations Rd.2, a South African make-up game in the URC, and the Grand Final replay in Japan all stick out like sore thumbs

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SixNations

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-8-9-combo-rugby-podcast/id1729575866

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena (via YouTube Creator Studio)

Voiceovers by Chookman + Sean Maloney

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The Six Nations Championship has begun for 2025, with France and Ireland laying down statement wins in Round 1, providing Brett McKay & Harry Jones with the perfect platform to kick off the new Weekend Post-Mortem for The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

France were completely dominant in their 43-0 win over hapless Wales in Paris on Friday night, with Scotland’s 31-19 win over Italy in Edinburgh, and Ireland’s patient 27-22 win over England in Dublin completed the opening weekend with bonus points for all three winners.

Also: Japan’s Rugby League One Rd.7 action gets a mention.

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SixNations

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-8-9-combo-rugby-podcast/id1729575866

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena (via YouTube Creator Studio)

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There are many deadly sins on the rugby field, but just which of the Seven Deadly Sins broadly apply to the Six Nations teams was pondered by The Telegraph’s Charlie Morgan, who joined Brett McKay & Harry Jones for the latest episode of second season of The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

Harry, of course, has committed most of those deadly sins on the rugby field, but he was intrigued with the idea of applying the Seven Deadly Sins to each of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France, and Italy and where they currently sit as we enter the 2025 Six Nations Championship. You just will not have ever heard a tournament preview done like this before.

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SixNations

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-8-9-combo-rugby-podcast/id1729575866

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena (via YouTube Creator Studio)

Voiceovers by Chookman + Sean Maloney

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Growing the game globally while at the same time making it sustainable are the big challenges for the new Chair of World Rugby, Brett Robinson, who joined Brett McKay & Harry Jones for the first weekly episode of second season of The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

Following on from his predecessor, Sir Bill Beaumont – who was the first guest at the very start of the 8-9 Combo, back one year ago – Brett Robinson outlines his vision for the game over the next four years, why the tweaks to the Laws of Rugby are crucial to keep the game moving as a product, and why the proposed Nations Championship to start in 2026 is so important for the future of the game across the rugby world.

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-8-9-combo-rugby-podcast/id1729575866

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena (via YouTube Creator Studio)

Voiceovers by Chookman + Sean Maloney

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The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast is back for a massive year of rugby in 2025, and Brett McKay & Harry Jones are here with all the details of what to expect this year. The short summary: more Great Rugby Chats every week!

They’ll cover it all: the Six Nations, a revamped Super Rugby Pacific, the United Rugby Championship, the Premiership in England, the Top 14 in France, the European Champions Cup, Japan Rugby League One, Major League Rugby in the States, and then – the British & Irish Lions Tour of Australia!

Plus, The Rugby Championship + Bledisloe Cup, and all the Internationals in July and November.

Find us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo?sub_confirmation=1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1BcKhb24YOtwQhKc0S3sDm

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena (via YouTube Creator Studio)

Voiceovers by Chookman + Sean Maloney

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Brett McKay and Harry Jones delved into The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast archives one last time for the summer, to pull together some of the best bits from some of their favourite guests from more than forty weekly guest episodes in 2024.

Guest highlights include Matt To’omua, Riaan Louw, Sean Maloney, Tony Johnson, Kevin Foote, Andrew Kellaway, Gareth Whittaker, Brett Cronan, Jamie Wall, James Slipper, and Charlie Morgan.

See you soon for Season 2 in 2025!

Social media: #89Combo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/89combo

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@8-9Combo

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/89combo.bsky.social

Find Brett and Harry on both Twitter and on BlueSky: @BMcSport + @HaribaldiJones

Music: "Stalling" by Topher Mohr & Alex Elena

YouTube Creator Music: https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UCVmjUF49lBFvJruLm0fS2lA/creator_music/track/yDcrlRny5kA

Voiceovers by Chookman + Sean Maloney

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