This weekend was a quiet one for Irish rugby, with no provincial involvement in the Champions Cup final. Still, plenty of intriguing storylines emerged; Noel McNamara’s triumph, Henry Pollock’s return back to Earth plus the curious level of antipathy towards this game in Ireland.

Gordon D’Arcy joins Nathan Johns to discuss rugby’s place in the sporting calendar, how important it is that Leinster win the URC this year, the mentality of winning and losing as well as the newly announced Club World Cup set for 2028.

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Produced by John Casey.

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

Bordeaux seem to represent a rare enough phenomenon; a domestic rugby team growing in both on-field and commercial success. They are the best attended club in France, to the extent they can boast to be more popular than the local football team.

We all know of their on-field talent, the likes of Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Damian Penaud and Mathieu Jalibert playing a brand of rugby which is easy on the eye.

Of course, with Joey Carbery and Noel McNamara involved, there is Irish interest in the French side as they prepare for Saturday’s Champions Cup final. But how has the on-field product built into their off-field success? Is their rise an indication of France’s domestic success, as rugby’s television rights continues to dwarf those of football’s Ligue 1? To what extent can this story be repeated elsewhere?

Host Nathan Johns is joined on the podcast by France-based rugby journalist James Harrington.

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Produced by John Casey.

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Nearly a week on from the IRFU’s decision to cut the men’s Sevens programme, Gordon D’Arcy and John O’Sullivan join Nathan Johns to debate the merits of the decision.

Gordon, as a former Sevens player, is well placed to offer insight on the merits of Sevens for players moving into 15s. John has covered the Sevens team as extensively as anyone in recent years and he offers his experience as he dwells on the decision.

Do rugby’s financials leave the IRFU with any other choice? Is Sevens simply a luxury which cannot be afforded? Why cut the men’s team but not the women’s?

Does this move place too much faith in Ireland’s academy structures, narrowing an already small talent pool? Was this decision handled in the best way possible?

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Produced by John Casey.

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

Inevitably, plenty of public commentary in the last few weeks has focused on Leinster’s inability to get over the line in big games. Clearly, they have the talent. Is the problem instead to be found in the top two inches?

Enda McNulty, a former All-Ireland winner with Armagh, worked with both Leinster and Ireland as a sports psychologist.

He joins Gordon D’Arcy - with whom he worked during his playing days - to look at the importance of sports psychology in winning environments. Does sport psychology work? How do you get players to buy in? Why did Leinster and Ireland under Joe Schmidt embrace training the mind so readily? To what extent can previous success be attributed to training the mind? 

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Produced by John Casey.

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

This weekend was a crucial round of URC action, with Munster and Ulster squaring off for playoff places, Connacht looking to stay in the hunt and Leinster aiming to wrap up the league’s top seed. Not to mention the occasion it was for the likes of Peter O’Mahony and Conor Murray playing their final game in Limerick.

Yet the crowds were on the low side, despite what was on the line. Does the public simply have a case of rugby fatigue? Perhaps the season stretches on too long, with emotional energy being preserved for the URC knockouts, Ireland’s summer tour and of course the Lions’ trip to Australia.

Gordon D’Arcy and John O’Sullivan join Nathan Johns to figure out how to capture the public imagination with the URC, drawing comparison to France where club rugby still seems to be top dog. Plus, D’Arcy gives a masterclass of international centre play, explaining why the job is more difficult than you think and why some Irish players are struggling with the nuances of the role.

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Produced by John Casey.

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Andy Farrell has picked his long-awaited Lions squad ahead of this summer’s tour to Australia. 15 Irishmen have been named, a record for the touring side, just about pipping the 14 originally named in 2009.

A man who was belatedly called up to that squad 16 years ago, Gordon D’Arcy, casts his eye alongside the latest crop. Alongside John O’Sullivan and Nathan Johns, who attended the launch bash in London, this episode delves into the runners and riders, along with those who may have been unfortunate to miss out.

Do Ireland deserve to have so many tourists? Would Caelan Doris have been captain if fit? Why does this squad have the lowest Welsh representation since the war? Are any Irish players, such as Robbie Henshaw or Sam Prendergast, unlucky to have missed out?

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Produced by John Casey.

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Prior to Saturday, Leinster hadn’t conceded a point in European knockout action this year. No team had run in five tries against them in this competition since 2016. Northampton changed all that, leaving Leinster’s latest European escapade in tatters, scoring 37 points on route to a thrilling victory at the Aviva Stadium.

How did they do what no other team has done since 2016, let alone this year? Is Leinster’s galactico bubble burst? Why did they not start Jordie Barrett?

If Leinster aren’t going to win in Europe this year with this squad at their disposal, when will they?

Gordon D’Arcy and John O’Sullivan join Nathan Johns to pick through the latest defeat, the extent of the damage and work out where the province can go from here.

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Produced by John Casey.

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Just one Irish province is in action this weekend, with Leinster taking on Northampton in the Champions Cup semi-finals.

Joining Gordon D’Arcy and Nathan Johns on today’s episode is a man who played for both sides in his career, James Downey. A centre back in his day, Downey lined up directly opposite D’Arcy in the infamous comeback final in 2011, Leinster overturning a 22-6 half-time deficit to win their second Heineken Cup.

The story of Leinster’s turnaround has been well told at this stage, but Downey gives a unique perspective from the Northampton side. Where did it all go wrong? As a player who left Leinster early in his career in search of opportunities, not to mention his current role as an agent, Downey also provides a unique perspective on a current hot topic in Irish rugby; player movement and the talent backlog at Leinster.

Produced by John Casey.

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

For the first time since 2015, all four Irish provinces lost on a single weekend of domestic action. Add this to Ireland women’s defeat to Scotland to wrap up the Six Nations and it was an unusually glum 48 hours for rugby in this country. Panic stations or just a blip?

The playoff picture currently being painted leaves just one province, Leinster, playing knockout rugby in the coming weeks. There are also Champions Cup permutations. As it stands, Munster, Connacht and Ulster won’t be playing top tier European rugby next season, a result which would be borderline disastrous - for Munster particularly given they have an incoming new head coach.

Gordon D’Arcy and John O’Sullivan join Nathan Johns to pick through the weekend. Where did it all go wrong, and will any Irish side improve over the final few weeks of the season?

Produced by John Casey.

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The now infamous 7-1 forward split on the bench hit the headlines once again recently when World Rugby announced they would not be outlawing the practice. The innovation, first used by South Africa and made more prominent by France in the recent Six Nations, is controversial in some quarters

.

While not quite at culture war levels, the use of extra forwards has prompted a strong rebuke, as either dangerous, against the spirit of the game, or both, from plenty of those involved in the game.

One of those is Owen Doyle. A former international referee and current Irish Times columnist, he joins Nathan Johns to talk through World Rugby’s latest law development. Should the 7-1 split be outlawed, or is it simply a case of clever innovation, leaving the rest of the world to catch up?

Produced by John Casey.

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