If the 2025 British & Irish Lions Tour is to follow the 2001 and 2013 scripts, the Wallabies simply must win in Melbourne this weekend to send the series to a decider. The great Jim Tucker joined Brett McKay & Harry Jones on The 8/9 Combo Rugby Podcast to contemplate everything the Second Test needs this weekend.

The Gods of rugby timings blessed this week’s episode with both the Wallabies and Lions team lists mid-recordings, allowing the guys to got through the changes on both sides of the contest and determine what either side needs to do in order to win at the MCG on Saturday night. And for the Wallabies, it’s not now a matter of ‘if’, but ‘how’. Because they just have to.

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Brett McKay and Harry Jones rip into the First Lions Test Post-Mortem for The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast, in which the British & Irish Lions have beaten the Wallabies 27-19 in front of more than 52,000 at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.

The Lions will be annoyed to have been ascendant all game, yet only winning by eight, while the Australian can take plenty of positives out of the First Test, knowing there’s some key big bodies to come back into the side. Get Harry’s take on the game from afar, while Brett bring the incredible stadium noise into your ears so soon after full time.

Plus, some quick thoughts on New Zealand’s clean sweep series win over France that was far closer than the history books will show.

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #WeekendPostMortem #InternationalRugby #LionsTour #Wallabies #AllBlacks #France #BritishIrishLions

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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We’re just days away from the Wallabies v British & Irish Lions Test Match, but why haven’t the protagonists on each side emerged yet? Lee Calvert from the Blood & Mud podcast joined Brett McKay & Harry Jones on The 8/9 Combo Rugby Podcast to ponder what the series has so far missed.

Tidbits about the teams are starting to filter out. The Coach may not pick the Son. Storylines of heartbreak and triumph are emerging, and Exclusives will be claimed. Some will even be actually exclusive. But there is still a treading-water feel about this build-up. Maybe that changes when the teams are announced on Thursday.

Games of the Week:

• New Zealand v France, Hamilton SAT

• Australia v British & Irish Lions, Brisbane

• South Africa v Georgia, Mbombela (Nelspruit)

• Argentina v Uruguay, Salta

• U20s World Championship finals, Italy

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #British&IrishLions #Lions2025 #internationalrugby #Wallabies #AllBlacks #Springboks #LosPumas #U20sWorldChampionship

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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Big scores and statement wins were all the rage, as Brett McKay and Harry Jones pull apart another big weekend of July Internationals on the Weekend Post-Mortem for The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

The AUNZ XV offered throwback jerseys but not much else to the British & Irish Lions in Adelaide, the All Blacks delivered the obsessive, emphatic result over France the pundits so desperately wanted a week earlier to prove their point, the Springboks were at the innovative best in dispatching Italy, and England completed the two-game sweep of Argentina.

Plus, Wales have won a Test Match!

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #WeekendPostMortem #InternationalRugby #LionsTour #Wallabies #AllBlacks #Springboks #Argentina #England #Italy #France #Wales #BritishIrishLions

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 ACT Brumbies gave the British & Irish Lions their sternest test on tour, but how many questions have they answered for Joe Schmidt? Irish Sportswriter, Producer and Playwright Pat McCarry joined Brett McKay & Harry Jones on The 8/9 Combo Rugby Podcast this week for the pulse check on the Lions, little more than a week from the First Test in Brisbane.

Which Lions enhanced their chances in the 36-24 win? How close was that Lions side to the First Test team? And role will the AUNZ Invitational XV game in Adelaide this weekend play, almost certainly pitting the Lions’ non-Test players up against an intriguing collection of Australian and New Zealand players – the first time a combined trans-Tasman team has played since 1989.

Games of the Week – it’s all International from here!

• New Zealand v France, Wellington

• AUNZ Invitational XV v British & Irish Lions, Adelaide

• South Africa v Italy, Gqberha

• Argentina v England, San Juan

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #British&IrishLions #Lions2025 #internationalrugby #Wallabies #AllBlacks #Springboks #LosPumas

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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‘Twas a weekend of just scraping through, as Brett McKay and Harry Jones pull apart the first full weekend of July Internationals on the Weekend Post-Mortem for The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

The Wallabies needed 79 minutes to beat Fiji, the Lions saved their worst performance on Tour for a Waratahs Harry and most other writers has written off, a French 3rd XV described as ‘disrespectful’ pushed the All Blacks way further than the narrative suggested, and even South Africa were left to lament a mostly “frustrating” performance in beating Italy.

Plus, hear direct from the Waratahs on how Harry fired them up to face the Lions in Sydney. He definitely hit a nerve!

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #WeekendPostMortem #InternationalRugby #LionsTour #Wallabies #AllBlacks #Springboks #Argentina #England #Italy #France #Fiji #BritishIrishLions

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 British & Irish Lions on tour present the ultimate test of talent v cohesion. Gain Line Analytics know an awful lot about cohesion and how teams benefit from it, and co-founder and former Wallabies prop Ben Darwin joined Brett McKay & Harry Jones on The 8/9 Combo Rugby Podcast this week to get into the nuts and bolts of it.

So how do the Lions build the cohesion they need? And which positions can be most affected by a lack of cohesion? And what is the best way for the Wallabies to overcome the very abundant levels of experience overflowing from whatever XV the Lions name for the Tests? It’s a great chat, we hope you get lots out of it.

Games of the Week – it’s all International from here!

• New Zealand v France, Dunedin

• South Africa v Italy, Pretoria

• Argentina v England, La Plata

• Australia v Fiji, Newcastle

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #British&IrishLions #Lions2025 #internationalrugby #Wallabies #AllBlacks #Springboks #LosPumas

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 British & Irish Lions Tour of Australia in 2025 in finally underway, as Brett McKay and Harry Jones rip into the first Lions Tour edition of the Weekend Post-Mortem for The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

The Western Force asked plenty of questions of the Lions for as long as they could in Perth, before the tourists’ class and experience rose to the top, sealing the 54-7 eight tries to one win to open their Australian tour with a win. Plenty of really good performers amongst then: Dan Sheehan, Joe McCarthy, ‘bellend-issimo’ Henry Pollock, Tomos Williams, and the unflappable Finn Russell. Darcy Swain from the Force did his chances of a Wallabies recall no harm, too.

Plus, the French Top 14 and US Major League Rugby Champions have been crowned as well, and the Springboks raised the bat against the travelling Barbarians in Cape Town.

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SuperRugbyPacific #UnitedRugbyChampionship #Premiership #Top14 #JapanRugbyLeagueOne #MajorLeagueRugby #LionsTour

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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Acclaimed crime and rugby author and notable weekly columnist Geoff Parkes joined Brett McKay & Harry Jones on The 8/9 Combo Rugby Podcast (briefly) to wrap up the Super Rugby Pacific Grand Final, where the Crusaders proved way too strong for the Chiefs in Christchurch.

And Geoff was supposed to join the 8/9 as we slip firmly into Lions Tour mode, too, only for a network outage in New Zealand to rule him out of what still was an interesting discussion, as Brett & Harry turn their attention to the 2025 Briish & Irish Lions Tour of Australia, which begins this weekend in Perth.

Plus, it’s the long awaited Top 14 Finale in France, and it’s the Championship Final in Major League Rugby in the States.

Games of the Week:

Top 14 Finale: Toulouse v Bordeaux; Stade de France, Paris

MLR Final: New England v Houston, Rhode Island

International Rugby!

• Japan XV v Maori All Blacks, Tokyo

• Western Force v British & Irish Lions, Perth

• South Africa v Barbarians, Cape Town

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SuperRugbyPacific #URC #Premiership #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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Already large trophy cabinets in Christchurch are now overflowing and the 2025 Lions Tour is officially underway! Brett McKay and Harry Jones rip into another Grand Final edition of the Weekend Post-Mortem for The 8-9 Combo Rugby Podcast.

The British & Irish Lions got off to a rocky start with a 28-24 loss to an Argentinean team thrown together in the same timeframe, the Crusaders have won yet another bloody Super Rugby Pacific title with a performance more dominant than the scoreboard showed, and the longest season in France has finally delivered the Finale we all had pencilled in from the start

Plus, the Major League Rugby Conference Champions have been crowned in the States.

#rugby #rugbypodcast #89Combo #SuperRugbyPacific #UnitedRugbyChampionship #Premiership #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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