The Telegraph Rugby Podcast

The Lions failed to make history in Sydney after losing the third and final Test against the Wallabies in the pouring rain. Alan and Charlie reflect on the third Test and ask if head coach Andy Farrell got his team selection right after he decided to name most of the same players who featured in the opening two matches. We also discuss the chaos during the game which forced it to be suspended for 30 minutes and if that had a factor in the result. Away from the final Test, we look back on the tour as a whole. We ask what worked and what didn't, and if Farrell is the right man to lead the Lions in New Zealand in four years time. As for Australia, have they shown enough in this series to warrant their status as a future touring country for the Lions? And we answer all your questions as usual too! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Lions have won their series against Australia after producing a sensational comeback in Melbourne on Saturday! Charles and Charlie unpack the game and where it was won for Andy Farrell's side, and where it was possibly lost by the Wallabies. We ask if Jac Morgan was lucky not to be penalised for his clearout in the final minutes of the game and if Dan Sheehan's try was within the rules of the game. As for Australia, we look at where it went wrong for the hosts who were winning 23-5 shortly before the end of the first half. We also take a look at the third and final Test next week and ask if Andy Farrell will give some of his fringe players a chance or if he will stick with what has worked so far And we tackle all your questions as usual too! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Charles Richardson is joined by Charlie Morgan to reflect on the Lions win over the First Nations Pasifika XV in their final midweek match. The match was seen as a final opportunity for some fringe players to stake their claim for Test selection on Saturday morning but few put their hand up in the narrow victory. Owen Farrell impressed playing at inside centre and we ask if his performance was enough to see him break into the 23 for Saturday. We also discuss if his link up with Fin Smith is something we could see with England in the autumn. Elsewhere, Charles gives us his report from England's tour of Argentina and who impressed during their time away. And we tackle your questions as usual too! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Lions are 1-0 in the Test series against Australia! Alan and Charlie reflect on the match in Brisbane where the Lions overpowered the Wallabies. The Telegraph's Chief Rugby Correspondent Gavin Mairs checks in from the Suncorp Stadium and is full of praise for Tom Curry, who was sensational after having his selection doubted. There's also praise for his back row partner Tadhg Beirne, who was named the official man of the match on the night. The all Scottish midfield of Russell-Tuipulotu-Jones also comes in for high praise after an excellent performance, but there are questions to be asked of the back three and if their place is under threat for the second Test next weekend. We also ask if Australia's second half performance will give them confidence of levelling the series next weekend and discuss what kind of team will play the final midweek match on Tuesday. We tackle all your questions as usual, too. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alan and Charlie reflect on the Lions thrashing of the Australia/New Zealand invitational on Saturday morning in Adelaide. The Telegraph's Chief Rugby Correspondent Gavin Mairs checks in after Andy Farrell's post match press conference to deliver news of Garry Ringrose's injury which has ruled him out of the opening test next Saturday. There's praise for Huw Jones who could start at outside centre in Ringrose absence, elsewhere Ben Earl put in a man of the match display and could have forced himself into the test 23 Owen Farrell made his first appearance on tour as well, we ask if his impressive cameo will have been enough to see him feature against the Wallabies. Away from the Lions, we round up the rest of the international including a first win in 18 for Wales! And we tackle your questions as usual too! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alan and Charlie unpack the latest Lions win down under over the Brumbies in Canberra! Andy Farrell picked what many considered to be his strongest side on Wednesday morning but the de facto Test team failed to fully click in a number of areas. The biggest concern came in the first half when full-back Blair Kinghorn was taken off with an injury leaving the Lions looking very light at full-back. Our Chief Rugby Correspondent Gavin Mairs joins the show to discuss what Andy Farrell had to say about the Scotland international. Elsewhere, there were positive performances from Ollie Chessum, Dan Sheehan and Gary Ringrose On the other end of the scale, we ask if Tom Curry has played himself out of the Test side with an underwhelming performance at openside. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alan and Charlie pick the bones out of the latest Lions win down under, their third in a row, but by far their most unconvincing. The Telegraph's chief rugby correspondent Gavin Mairs joins the show from Sydney to offer us his thoughts on the disjointed performance and who in particular played themselves out of the test picture. Despite the performance, there is praise for the set piece, both the scrum and lineout were impressive and Scotland duo Huw Jones and Scott Cummings both put in their best display on tour so far. The biggest story of the week has undoubtedly been the call up of Owen Farrell to replace Elliot Daly, we speak to our man in Argentina, Charles Richardson, to see how the news has been received by the rest of the England camp. We also tackle all your questions as usual too! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Lions are 2/2 down under! Alan and Charlie reflect on another comfortable win for Andy Farrell's side who put 50 points past the Queensland Reds on Wednesday morning. The Telegraph's Chief Rugby Correspondent Gavin Mairs joins the guys from the Suncorp Stadium to reflect on the win and also discuss the impact Elliot Daly's injury could have on the squad and where it leaves their options at full back. There's also high praise for the back row with Jac Morgan and Jack Conan impressing, we assess the first outing for Finn Russell and Jamison Gibson Park as half back partners and if there is a concern at tighthead after a difficult game for Will Stuart. Away from the Lions, we hear from England head coach Steve Borthwick who tells us he has been in contact with the returning Owen Farrell. And we answer all your questions as usual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Lions are up and running down under! Join Alan Dymock and Charlie Morgan for reaction and analysis to the British and Irish Lions emphatic 54-7 win over the Western Force. We check in with the Telegraph's Chief Rugby correspondent Gavin Mairs from the Optus Stadium to get his verdict on the win also. There's praise for Henry Pollock who was involved in almost everything both good and bad, Ireland's Joe McCarthy put his hand up with a man of the match performance and Finn Russell impressed on his first appearance as well. It wasn't all plain sailing, the Lions struggled with restarts all game and there was a worrying hamstring injury for Tomos Williams after he scored his second try of the match. Plus we tackle all of your questions as usual too! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Telegraph Rugby Podcast is back ahead of the 2025 British and Irish Lions Tour to Australia! Alan Dymock, Charlie Morgan and Charles Richardson pick the bones out of an opening game defeat for Andy Farrell's side who were beaten 28-24 by Argentina in Dublin. They take a look at what went wrong on the night, and what positives there were to take out of the game with a number of players putting their hand up for test spot despite the loss. Next up is the first clash on Australian soil against the Western Force, we take a look at the threat posed by the Super Rugby side and what the Lions XV is likely to look like for that one Plus, we look back on England's narrow defeat to France at Twickenham and tackle all your burning questions as usual. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Charles Richardson and Alan Dymock pick through the biggest talking points of the British and Irish Lions squad selections immediately after Andy Farrell named his 38 to tour Australia. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben, Charlie and Charles look back on the final round of the Six Nations which saw France crowned champions following a comfortable home win over Scotland. Elsewhere England produced a stunning display away in Cardiff to end their campaign in style, and heap more misery on Wales, and Ireland laboured to a win away in Rome . We take a closer look at the general health of the England squad following the tournament and who's stock has risen ahead of the Lions tour and England's tour of Argentina. With the dust now settled on the Six Nations, we take a look at who has laid down a marker for the Lions tour this Summer and ask if Maro Itoje is now the front runner to captain the side. Plus we tackle all your questions as usual! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben, Charlie and Charles reflect on a decisive round four of the Six Nations where France dispatched Grand Slam chasing Ireland in Dublin. Charles was in Dublin to witness the scintillating display from the French and in particular their flying winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey. We also discuss how damaging the defeat could be for the Irish who were expected to dominate the Lions tour this Summer, will Andy Farrell have to re think some of his selections if Ireland find themselves finishing third in the Six Nations. Elsewhere we reflect on England's win over Italy, a much more expansive brand of rugby deployed by Steve Borthwick, and Ben gives us his report from Murrayfield as Scotland fight off a spirited Wales comeback. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben, Charlie and Charles build up to the return of the Six Nations this weekend after the final fallow week of the tournament. Next up for England is a home clash with Italy, and we discuss if we will see something different from England's attack at the weekend following a pragmatic approach last time out against Scotland. We kick things off with the standout tie of the round between Ireland and France, a win for either side here should all but guarantee the Six Nations title, and in Ireland's case it will set them on their way towards a Grand Slam and a third Six Nations in a row. Former Ireland assistant coach Les Kiss joins the show to pay tribute to the retiring trio of Cian Healy, Conor Murray and Peter O'Mahony after they have announced that Saturday's clash will be their last on home soil. And we answer your questions as ever including plenty on the Premiership Rugby Cup following the quarter finals at the weekend Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben, Charlie and Charles reflect on round three of the Six Nations where England saw off Scotland by a single point to win the Calcutta Cup! Despite the win, there was a chorus of boo's from the home crowd, who were voicing their discontent at England's style of play and overall performance. We discuss if the criticism of England's win is fair, or if fans should be a little more realistic with their expectations given England's recent form against Scotland. Elsewhere there's praise for Wales who pushed favourites Ireland all the way in Cardiff in Matt Sherratt's first game in charge, and France bounced back from their England defeat by putting eleven tries past a hapless Italy Plus we tackle your questions as always, including England's options at scrum half, Scotland's grievance's with the referee, and an impressive outing for England A against Ireland A. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Former Wales head coach Warren Gatland opens up on his recent exit for the very first time. In this conversation with the Telegraph's Chief Rugby Correspondent Gavin Mairs, Gatland admits he is "hurting", reveals how his exit really happened and opens up on how he would try to fix Welsh rugby. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben, Charlie and Charles look ahead to round three of the Six Nations and in particular the Calcutta Cup clash between England and Scotland. Gregor Townsend's side are chasing a fifth consecutive win in the fixture but need to improve from their last outing against Ireland. England will be hoping to build on their last gasp win over France in round two. Former Scotland fly-half Duncan Hodge was the star of this fixture 25 years ago, he inspired the Scots to one of the unlikeliest wins in Six Nations history and he joins the guys to discuss his memories of that day and his former side's chances this weekend. We also take a look at the rest of the weekend's action, including Wales' first game since the departure of Warren Gatland and we tackle your questions as always! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben, Charlie and Charles reflect on the second round of the 2025 Six Nations where England came from behind to see of favourites France at Twickenham! Fin Smith impressed on his first Six Nations start, the Northampton man was named man of the match and we discuss how his performance will influence Steve Borthwick's selection at fly half for the remainder of the tournament. Elsewhere Scotland's miserable run against Ireland continued, the defending champions left Murrayfield with a comfortable bonus point win and remain the only side capable of winning a Grand Slam after the opening two games The Telegraph's Gareth Davies joins the guys to discuss the idea Wales could be relegated from the Six Nations following their 14th consecutive loss And we tackle all your questions as usual too! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben, Charlie and Charles reflect on the opening round of Six Nations where Ireland came from behind in Dublin to see of England in the standout fixture of the weekend It was a familiar story for Steve Borthwick's side who produced an impressive opening half before fading in the second and ultimately surrendering their lead again. We take a look at what worked, what didn't, and what can be done this weekend against France to give England a much needed win. Speaking of France, they hammered Wales on the opening night thanks to another impressive display from Antoine Dupont, we take a close look at the threat they pose England. As for Wales, we ask if Warren Gatland's side stand any chance of picking up a single win in this years tournament. Plus we take a look at Scotland's win over Italy, we hear from Brian Moore and Sir Ian McGeechan on their wildcard shouts for the Lions tour this summer and we tackle your questions as usual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben, Charlie and Charles are back ahead of the 2025 Six Nations and ahead of kick off we are joined by a very special guest, England head coach Steve Borthwick! He joins us to look ahead to England's campaign, discuss this weekend's opponents Ireland and also his memories of the tournament growing up Elsewhere the guys analyse Borthwick's team selection this weekend and his decision to opt for a 6/2 split on the bench We also get stuck into the best of the rest of the weekend's action and discuss the possibility of the Six Nations coming off free to air TV, with the rights deal up for renewal next year Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.