The Lekker Rugby Pod!

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The ever-curious MW Welman and globetrotting rugby poet Harry Jones explore the people, ideas and moments shaping South African rugby and the world game.

1D AGO

Episode 155: How Does Scotland Beat France? | Six Nations Round 4

France arrive at Murrayfield looking like the most complete side in the championship. Power, pace, transition attack and a squad full of rangy athletes have pushed them ahead of the field in this Six Nations.But Scotland may be the one team with the tools to disrupt them.Charlie Morgan of The Times joins the Lekker Rugby Pod to unpack the tactical puzzle at the heart of Round 4. We look at how Scotland might target France through the kicking game, why Finn Russell and Ben White will be crucial to controlling territory, and how the Russell, Tuipulotu and Huw Jones midfield combination could challenge the French defensive system.We also dig into the evolving shape of the French side under Fabien Galthié. Their mobile back five, relentless transition threat and ability to create chaos from broken play has made them the most dangerous attacking team in the tournament.

53 min
3D AGO

Episode 154: Dave Rennie Named All Blacks Coach | Martin Devlin Called It Beforehand

Dave Rennie has been named head coach of the All Blacks.This conversation with Martin Devlin was recorded hours before the official announcement. During the episode, Devlin predicted Rennie would get the job and unpacked what the appointment would mean for New Zealand rugby at this moment in the cycle.The discussion moves beyond the name itself into the bigger questions facing the All Blacks, from discipline and aerial execution to belief, depth, and the growing contrast with the Springboks under Rassie Erasmus. With South Africa holding alignment camps and building momentum, the pressure on Rennie begins immediately.This is the state of play before the decision was confirmed, and why it matters now.

1h 3m
3D AGO

Episode 153: All To Play For As URC Leaders Stumble

For weeks, the URC table felt like it was settling into shape. The leaders looked secure, the gaps were forming, and the season appeared to be narrowing toward a familiar conclusion.Then Round 12 unsettled it.Glasgow fall to Connacht. Leinster lose to Cardiff. The log compresses, games in hand suddenly carry weight, and the sense of control at the top evaporates. The dynamic has changed because the teams expected to steady the race instead introduced doubt.In South Africa, that shift lands at the perfect moment. The Bulls look increasingly coherent and direct. The Stormers are searching for control. The Sharks remain difficult to pin down. The Lions continue to disrupt assumptions. With momentum shifting and margins tightening, the competition feels alive again.This is not a recap of results. It is a conversation about what those results mean and why the race now feels genuinely open. With the leaders stumbling, it is all still to play for.

1 hr
5D AGO

Episode 152: Is Rassie Already Three Moves Ahead Of World Rugby?

The London meeting came and went. The status quo held. No sweeping law changes. No dramatic reset of the global game.But that does not mean nothing is happening.Because if you look closely at what Rassie Erasmus has been building, you could argue the real moves are being made elsewhere. The Springbok alignment camp, the quiet cooperation with France, and Rassie’s confirmation through 2031 suggest something more deliberate than short-term squad management. This feels like long-cycle thinking. Prototype players. Succession planning. Optionality.Are the Boks preparing for a faster, more phase-heavy game even if the laws have not yet shifted? Are they constructing a squad that can win whether scrums are emphasised or quietly diluted over time? And if the shape of the game does change, will South Africa resist it, or simply outmanoeuvre it?We also reflect on the tension around SANZAAR, the politics behind global alignment, and the strange obsession with “fan experience” that often ignores where rugby’s real drama actually lives. Because the game’s greatest tension has never been about speed alone. It has always been about jeopardy.Episode 152 of the Lekker Rugby Pod. Just MW Welman and Harry Jones thinking the game through properly.

54 min
6D AGO

Episode 151: I Knew I Had To Be Ten Times Better | Lekker Rugby Pod

Gurthrö Steenkamp won a World Cup. Two years later he was humiliated in public and told he would never wear the Springbok jersey again.Most players would have blamed politics or bad luck. He went back to work.What makes this conversation different is not the medals or the setbacks. It is the way he thinks. Gurthrö decided early that he had to be ten times better to earn his place, and he built his life around that standard. Not for one season. Not for one contract. As a code.We talk about the year he was written off, the uncomfortable self-audit that followed, and the discipline required to reclaim credibility at the highest level. We get into the danger of comfort after success, the reality of the championship hangover, and why dominance in a scrum begins long before match day.This episode moves beyond rugby war stories. It is about identity. About designing your habits instead of drifting through them. About training resilience in the gym, in the video room and in the quiet decisions nobody applauds.You seldom meet someone who has thought this deliberately about how he wants to live, and then done the work to align his actions with it. That is what makes this conversation different.

1h 26m
FEB 25

Episode 150: After Twickenham, Only Three Coaches Truly Matter | Lekker Rugby Pod

Episode 150 begins at Twickenham. Bernard Jackman joins Harry Jones and MW Welman to unpack Ireland’s dominant win and the bigger coaching questions it raises.Ireland did not just win. They controlled the game physically, emotionally and tactically. England did not just lose. Their structure looked rigid under pressure and their in-game adjustments fell short.We examine what changed for Ireland, the contrast between Andy Farrell’s leadership and Steve Borthwick’s approach, and why adaptability inside eighty minutes now separates the very best from the rest. From substitutions to tempo, from squad depth to game management, this performance forces a wider conversation about the current coaching hierarchy in world rugby.At one point in the discussion, a sharper idea emerges. Are there only three top coaches operating at the very highest level right now?

48 min
FEB 24

Episode 149: Should The Springboks Be Concerned? | Lekker Rugby Pod

France have used 66 players in the past year. The Springboks have used 50. They are younger across key positions, rotating more aggressively and beginning to win while developing depth.So should South Africa be concerned?In this episode we unpack what the Six Nations is actually revealing. We examine France’s depth profile, their age balance, tactical evolution and growing collision dominance. We also assess England’s recent cracks, Ireland’s cycle, and what the shift toward an aerial, high-tempo game means for the Springboks.This is not panic. It is a clear-eyed look at where the Northern Hemisphere stands and what it means for South Africa heading into the Nations Championship and the next World Cup cycle.Are France genuinely closing in, or are the Boks still setting the standard?

52 min
FEB 22

Episode 148: What 30 Years in Rugby Teaches You | Lekker Rugby Pod

In this episode of the Lekker Rugby Pod, Brenden Nel joins us to tackle a hard truth: talent is not enough.What actually separates good players from great ones? It is not flair. It is not natural ability. It is standards, habits, preparation, and the uncomfortable details most people never see.From dressing room honesty to daily discipline, we unpack what sustains performance at the highest level of rugby — and why so many gifted players never cross that line into greatness.This is a conversation about the difference between potential and professionalism.

1h 2m

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The ever-curious MW Welman and globetrotting rugby poet Harry Jones explore the people, ideas and moments shaping South African rugby and the world game.