Amateur Rugby Podcast

My guest this week is current Minchinhampton RFC player Andy Burfoot. Andy is still playing at 48 years of age and has had the privilege of playing alongside both of his sons. We chatted about all the great things going on at Minch, including the rapid growth of the Women's section, their remarkable and truly unique clubhouse and the influence of their famous royal member. This is an awesome episo...

My guest this week is a rugby coach of many teams and England Police RUFC front-rower - Dave Pattimore. We talked about being a front-row forward, the joy and challenges of playing for England Police, and the differences between coaching kids in the afternoon and experienced adults in the evening. And we finished by chatting through the England Police tour of South Africa and the rich experiences...

My guest this week is Strathmore RFC part-time business consultant - Nicol Welsh We talked about Nick's playing career, the challenges around running the Scottish National Prison Service team with no training time, some brilliant stories from Vets tours, generating a player pathway from minis and juniors to the First XV and loads of incredible insight about how to become a true Community Club, not...

My guest this week is Laws Co-ordinator at World Rugby and Founder of RugbyReferee.net , Keith Lewis. We talked about the days when we shared a pitch back in the early 2000's when I played at Old Colfeians, how Keith got into refereeing and his early influences at Preston Grasshoppers. We then discussed how referees are assessed and coached, how positioning is vital and the differences when moving...

My guest this week is Leicestershire Society referee, Matt Groves. We talked about Matt's journey to becoming a rugby referee, the opportunities and challenges that it provides and some of the common myths and misconceptions around volunteer referees in the community game. There are plenty of tips for aspiring referees and useful information for players and coaches too. I'm hugely passionate about...

Get 20% OFF @manscaped + Free Shipping with promo code TARP20 at MANSCAPED.com ! #ad #manscapedpod The Premiership Final was a game full of drama, jeopardy and fierce competition. And it went all the way to the final whistle. Join me as I talk through all the major incidents and pay tribute to some Premiership legends. This is my review of Northampton Saints vs Bath Rugby. #rugby #premiership #pre...

My guest this week is a rugby-nut and world traveller - Nick Dance Dancer is now settled in Cambridge and trying to bring the game of rugby to new audiences whilst supporting the local community and rugby clubs at the same time. Could you do this with your club? This is an incredible episode - I hope you enjoy. LINKS Rugby & Travel - Nick Dance - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1Ul_jkt44Y Cambrid...

My guest this week is former Oxford University and Wasps player Ellaine Gelman. This interview was recorded in May of 2024 and we talked about Ellaine discovering rugby whilst at college in the US, pursuing further honours and achievements at Oxford Uni and Wasps before diving headlong into the World of 7's. Ellaine runs Find Rugby Now - a service to help people find rugby clubs - and Lit 7's an i...

My guest this week is former Cheltenham Colts captain - Leroy Hughes. This interview was recorded in April of 2024 and we talked about playing for and captaining the legendary Cheltenham Colts, being able to switch between hooker and openside, and the realities of pushing for higher honours with Moseley. There are some cracking tour stories, lessons about leadership, and Leroy shares some excellen...

My guest this week is USA 7's Head Coach - Mike Friday. This interview was recorded in April of 2024 and we talked about the development of young, elite players in England. We talk about how the demands have changed over the years, the pros and cons of different pathway systems, and why English players don't seem to get enough game-time. Mike has a huge amount of experience of coaching young elite...

My guest this week is former rugby player, now rugby promoter - Dan Tanner. This interview was recorded in April of 2024 and we talked about the remarkable tale of how Dan got into rugby, and what it was like to be a rugby nomad. We talked about playing in Canada, the incredible end-of-season tournaments and the challenges facing Rugby Canada from the grassroots to the National Team, before finish...

My guest this week is Rugby Union player and Rugby League fan - Andrew Foster. This interview was recorded in March of 2024 and we talked about Foz growing up in League country, what it's like to take a bunch of southern softies to the Challenge Cup Final, thoughts on player recruitment and retention in lower teams and what it's like as a teacher to play alongside one your students. We also spoke...

My guest this week is former Harelquins and Worcester winger - Sam Smith. This interview was recorded in March of 2024 and we talked about Sam's rapid rise into the pro ranks, the perilous spiral he routinely found himself in when his form dipped, dealing with harsh criticism and living with Joe Marler! We discussed the trials of retiring young and losing your identity, post-rugby entrepreneurship...

With the Six Nations now complete, I spoke with Simon Elkinson about all the fixtures from the final weekend. The battle for the wooden spoon in Cardiff where Wales tackled Italy. Saturday late afternoon in Dublin as Ireland took on Scotland. And grand finale in Lyon as France took on England. LINKS Simon Elkinson on Twitter - @OnsideRecruiter - https://twitter.com/OnsideRecruiter Simon Elkinson o...

With the middle weekend of the Six Nations now complete, I spoke with Simon Elkinson about all the fixtures. The surprisingly wild encounter in Rome where Italy beat Scotland. Saturday late afternoon at Twickenham as England put and end to Ireland's back-to-back Grand Slam hopes. And finishing up with the crazy, Wales versus France from Cardiff. LINKS Simon Elkinson on Twitter - @OnsideRecruiter -...

Despite it being a rest week, I've still got some awesome Six Nations content for you. Former podcast guest (and coaching partner of mine at Old Colfeians) Phil Greenaway jumped in to lend his expert analysis on what is going on with England's attack. LINKS Phil is available for consultancy services. For anyone interested please visit the website - https://pgreenawayltd.com/ BUY ME A COFFEE Coffee...

With the middle weekend of the Six Nations now complete, I spoke with Simon Elkinson about all the fixtures. The surprisingly close encounter in Dublin where Ireland overpowered Wales. Saturday late afternoon at Murrayfield for Scotland versus England. And finishing up with the epic, France versus Italy from Lille. LINKS Simon Elkinson on Twitter - @OnsideRecruiter - https://twitter.com/OnsideRecr...

Despite it being a rest week, I've still got some awesome Six Nations content for you. Former podcast guest (and coaching partner of mine at Old Colfeians) Phil Greenaway jumped in to lend his expert analysis on why James Lowe's left peg is such a weapon, but we start with the 6 reasons why Wales are so goddamn hard to beat! LINKS Phil is available for consultancy services. For anyone interested p...

With the second weekend of the Six Nations now complete, I spoke with Simon Elkinson about all the fixtures. The tense affair in Edinburgh where Scotland lost to France. Saturday late-afternoon at Twickenham for England versus Wales. And finishing up with Ireland versus Italy from sunny Dublin. LINKS Simon Elkinson on Twitter - @OnsideRecruiter - https://twitter.com/OnsideRecruiter Simon Elkinson...

With the opening weekend of the Six Nations now complete, I spoke with Simon Elkinson about all the fixtures. The incredible opening game in the Orange Velodrome in Marseille where Ireland took on France. Saturday lunchtime in Rome for Italy against a new-look England. And finishing up with Scotland looking to end their Cardiff draught with a win against a youthful Wales. LINKS Simon Elkinson on T...

With the opening match of the Six Nations just hours away I spoke with Simon Elkinson about France vs Ireland. We chatted about selection, psychology, and key match-ups and hang around till the end to hear our score predictions. LINKS  Simon Elkinson on Twitter - @OnsideRecruiter -  https://twitter.com/OnsideRecruiter Simon Elkinson on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonelkinson/ BUY ME A...

My guest this week is former Welsh Universities fly-half and Beach Rugby Wales founder, Ashleigh Walters. This interview was recorded in January of 2024 and we talked about how Ashleigh fell in love with rugby after attending a Wales fixture. How he got started in the game, originally playing hooker, before moving to fly-half. Appearances for Wales Universities and a 3-year stint in France where h...

With the Six Nations on the horizon, I spoke with Simon Elkinson about the squad selections for each nation. How are the teams shaping up, are there many changes and are they likely to change playing styles? LINKS Simon Elkinson on Twitter - @OnsideRecruiter - https://twitter.com/OnsideRecruiter Simon Elkinson on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonelkinson/ PATREON Join The Amateur Rugby...

The rugby-hating Kiwi - Luke Hoben - #140 My guest this week is self-confessed, rugby-hating Kiwi…. Luke Hoben. This interview was recorded in January of 2024 and we talked about what it was like growing up ambivalent to rugby in New Zealand, going to New Zealand's top rugby school, reflections on watching a single All Blacks test and meeting All Blacks whilst running the rugby club bar in Otago U...

My guest this week is Forgeside RFC Chairman, Geraint Reynolds. This interview was recorded in January of 2024 and we talked about Geraint's playing days in the front-row, what it was like to tour South Africa and the challenges of having to retire at a young age. We then discussed Foregeside's incredible idea to create a Community Garden on a spare piece of land that was not being used. It has be...