Winning The Away Game

Ping Productions
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Biweekly

Winning the Away Game launches on 20 November, just before the Ireland Test. This new podcast brings together successful South Africans who have conquered the world and pairs them with Springbok legends, including our co-host Flip van der Merwe. In every episode we look at resilience, legacy and the mindset needed to win when the odds are stacked against you. Whether you love Springbok rugby, business strategy or stories of South African grit going global, this is your new home for insight and inspiration.

  1. 3d ago

    Lazola Tutani on Leaving the Eastern Cape and Leading 245 Americans

    Lazola Tutani grew up in the Eastern Cape raised by his mother, worked weekend night shifts at a petrol station to pay for the half of his engineering degree his bursary didn't cover, and now runs a 245-person business unit for Continental in Sumter, South Carolina — where he is the only African and the only foreigner in the building. In this episode he tells Justinus Adriaanse and Flip van der Merwe what it actually takes to earn authority over people whose culture isn't yours, why he deliberately studied American college football and joined a local church before he tried to drive change, and what two years in Hanover taught him about the difference between people who seem cold and people who are only warm on the surface. This is for operators leading teams abroad, South Africans weighing up a move, and anyone who has had to rebuild credibility from zero in a new country. He is also unusually direct about growing up without a father, and about what he is deliberately doing differently with his own son and daughter. And when asked how you fix a country, his answer is smaller and harder than you expect. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 04:17 The Coach Who Straightened Him Up 08:17 Breaking the Academic Barrier 11:41 Growing Up Without a Father 14:08 Night Shifts to Fund the Degree 16:08 Brotherhood and the Eastern Cape 17:38 From the Factory Floor to Hanover 19:03 Adapting to Germany 21:41 Germany vs America 24:18 Leading 245 Americans 26:50 Sport and Church as the Way In 32:16 Bafana Bafana in Los Angeles 35:24 Ironman as Practice for Work 41:04 Building a Country That Works for Everyone 47:58 The Weight of 2027 Winning The Away Game is brought to you by The Lekker Network. The Lekker Network brings together South Africa's top entrepreneurs, executives, innovators, and everyday people from all over the world to connect, engage, support, do business with each other, and create lasting impact. Find out more at https://thelekkernetwork.com/ Listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/26fB2unP9Ih6IA3QkjnGQF?si=4b4380f24a144716 Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/winning-the-away-game/id1853818584 Connect with Justinus:https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinusadriaanse/ Connect with Flip:https://www.linkedin.com/in/flipvandermerwe/ Check out our other channels: Website: https://wtagpodcast.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/winning-the-away-game-podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wtag_podcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wtag_podcast Winning The Away Game is produced by Jonathan Warncke Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E%99-jonathan-warncke-45b2095/ Ping Productions: https://www.pingproductions.net/

    Lazola Tutani on Leaving the Eastern Cape and Leading 245 Americans

  2. Sep 3

    Jason English on Getting Shot, Getting Out and Building a 5,500 Person Company

    Jason English was 21, wearing a vest, and standing between a light and a silhouette when the bullet hit him — and that was still not the closest he came to dying in uniform. Thirty years later he runs an ecosystem of more than 5,500 people across the Middle East and the United States, built through acquisition, a forensic investigation that made his hair fall out, and a run of yeses he had no idea how to deliver on. In this episode he tells Justinus and Flip what policing, paramedic work and a helicopter licence taught him about running companies, and why he believes no procedure in his business should ever run longer than a single page. This is for operators and founders who are trying to scale people rather than headcount, and for South Africans abroad who are still working out what they owe home. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 03:04 A Policeman Who Ended Up in Dubai 04:19 The Day He Got Shot 07:31 What Policing Taught Him About Business 12:22 Richards Bay to the Global Corporate Ladder 14:19 The 3AM Call That Changed His Trajectory 16:03 Cashing In Everything to Buy a Company 22:25 The Fraud Claim and the Forensic Audit 25:36 The Mentor Nobody Would Choose 28:34 The Helicopter Lesson 32:53 Scaling Across Countries and Cultures 36:59 The Oros Effect and the 51 Percent Rule 39:10 What Dubai Taught Him He Didn't Know 44:17 Building a Studio for Tom Cruise 47:06 The Most Nerve-Wracking Moment of His Life 51:36 Building a South Africa That Works for Everyone Winning The Away Game is brought to you by The Lekker Network. The Lekker Network brings together South Africa's top entrepreneurs, executives, innovators, and everyday people from all over the world to connect, engage, support, do business with each other, and create lasting impact. Find out more at https://thelekkernetwork.com/ Listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/26fB2unP9Ih6IA3QkjnGQF?si=4b4380f24a144716 Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/winning-the-away-game/id1853818584 Connect with Justinus:https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinusadriaanse/ Connect with Flip:https://www.linkedin.com/in/flipvandermerwe/ Check out our other channels: Website: https://wtagpodcast.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/winning-the-away-game-podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wtag_podcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wtag_podcast Winning The Away Game is produced by Jonathan Warncke Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E%99-jonathan-warncke-45b2095/ Ping Productions: https://www.pingproductions.net/

    Jason English on Getting Shot, Getting Out and Building a 5,500 Person Company

  3. Aug 27

    There Are No Away Games - Brett Belinsky on Winning Anywhere

    When colleagues in London asked Brett Belinsky whether he was going home for Christmas, his answer was immediate: 'I am home.' That response became a personal philosophy - there are no away games, only home games. Brett's career has crossed Johannesburg, Melbourne, Sydney, Hong Kong, London and Los Angeles, taking him from telecommunications entrepreneurship to senior roles across global media and entertainment. Today, he advises venture capital, private equity, family offices and media and telecoms businesses. He has also built Tongg, a fresh-to-order biltong company shipping across 48 US states. In this episode, Brett speaks candidly about the tragedy that accelerated his decision to leave South Africa, the loneliness of living abroad, the discipline of staying connected and the mental shift required to start again. He also shares his views on leadership, AI disruption, the future of personalised media and why South Africans are unusually equipped to adapt. This is a conversation about belonging without denial, reinvention without self-deception and learning to win wherever life puts you. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 01:56 The Springbok Moment That Made Him Cry 05:27 Building a Biltong Brand in America 10:41 Never B******t Yourself 11:41 There Are No Away Games, Only Home Games 14:06 The Army Lesson: There Is No Plan B 17:23 The Tragedy That Forced the Move 21:35 UK vs US: What Actually Changes 27:29 The Loneliest Part of Leaving 31:17 Keeping Networks Alive From Abroad 36:36 Taking Emotion Out of the Deal 38:03 AI Is Already Rewriting Media 44:38 Building a Country That Works for Everyone 47:42 The Weight of 2027 53:51 Brighton, Japan and a 1,200 Pound Bet Listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/26fB2unP9Ih6IA3QkjnGQF?si=4b4380f24a144716 Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/winning-the-away-game/id1853818584 Connect with Justinus:https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinusadriaanse/ Connect with Flip:https://www.linkedin.com/in/flipvandermerwe/ Check out our other channels: Website: https://wtagpodcast.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/winning-the-away-game-podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wtag_podcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wtag_podcast Winning The Away Game is produced by Jonathan Warncke Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E%99-jonathan-warncke-45b2095/ Ping Productions: https://www.pingproductions.net/

    There Are No Away Games - Brett Belinsky on Winning Anywhere

  4. Aug 20

    Jason Zehmke on Building a Rugby Empire in a Country That Doesn't Play It

    Jason Zehmke left Uitenhage for Charlotte, North Carolina on a six-month rugby stint and never came back — twenty-six years, a law degree turned banking career, and one of America's largest youth rugby clubs later. This episode is for anyone building something from scratch in a place that has no reason to want it: the operators, the emigrants, the coaches and the parents. Jason breaks down how the Charlotte Cardinals recruit kids who have never watched a rugby match, why he refuses to call his teams A, B and C, and what South Africa's historic schools are quietly losing to money. It is also an honest look at what it costs to build a life abroad, and what pulls you back to the people who put you on the field in the first place. 00:00 Down 8-0 in the Final 00:18 Welcome to Winning the Away Game 01:55 Favourite Springbok Memory 03:00 Growing Up in Uitenhage 07:11 The Talent Drain from South Africa's Oldest Schools 09:20 Three Tiers of Schoolboy Rugby 12:22 Building the Charlotte Cardinals 15:46 Why Kids Are Leaving Football 18:26 Colour Teams, Not A, B and C 19:26 Six Months in Charlotte, Twenty-Six Years Later 24:55 Homesickness and the South African Network 32:31 Why He Wears the Grey Armband 40:51 AI Risk at Wells Fargo 47:35 A Country That Works for Everyone 53:18 Looking Ahead to the World Cup Winning The Away Game is brought to you by The Lekker Network. The Lekker Network brings together South Africa's top entrepreneurs, executives, innovators, and everyday people from all over the world to connect, engage, support, do business with each other, and create lasting impact. Find out more at https://thelekkernetwork.com/ Listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/26fB2unP9Ih6IA3QkjnGQF?si=4b4380f24a144716 Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/winning-the-away-game/id1853818584 Connect with Justinus:https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinusadriaanse/ Connect with Flip:https://www.linkedin.com/in/flipvandermerwe/ Check out our other channels: Website: https://wtagpodcast.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/winning-the-away-game-podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wtag_podcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wtag_podcast Winning The Away Game is produced by Jonathan Warncke Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E%99-jonathan-warncke-45b2095/ Ping Productions: https://www.pingproductions.net/

    Jason Zehmke on Building a Rugby Empire in a Country That Doesn't Play It

  5. Aug 13

    Greg Martin on the Cold LinkedIn Message That Changed His Entire Career

    In 2011 a stranger messaged Greg Martin on LinkedIn asking if he would cover an IOC session. He had to Google what the IOC was, quoted for the job anyway, and has covered every Winter, Summer and Youth Olympic Games since London. This episode is for anyone building a career out of chances they are not yet qualified for — and for every South African abroad who is trying to work out how much of home to carry with them. Winning The Away Game is brought to you by The Lekker Network. The Lekker Network brings together South Africa’s top entrepreneurs, executives, innovators, and everyday people from all over the world to connect, engage, support, do business with each other, and create lasting impact. Find out more at https://thelekkernetwork.com/   Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/26fB2unP9Ih6IA3QkjnGQF?si=4b4380f24a144716 Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/winning-the-away-game/id1853818584   Connect with Justinus:https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinusadriaanse/ Connect with Flip:https://www.linkedin.com/in/flipvandermerwe/   Check out our other channels: Website: https://wtagpodcast.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/winning-the-away-game-podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wtag_podcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wtag_podcast Winning The Away Game is produced by Jonathan Warncke Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E%99-jonathan-warncke-45b2095/ Ping Productions: https://www.pingproductions.net/

    Greg Martin on the Cold LinkedIn Message That Changed His Entire Career

  6. Aug 6

    Wayne Hendricks on Protecting Mandela and Unlearning What He Was Taught

    Wayne Hendricks was the most junior member of Nelson Mandela’s protection team when he walked into the President’s office wearing a novelty lapel pin he had not read properly. Thirty years later he runs global security for MetLife, has worked across Goldman Sachs and Macquarie, and has landed in more countries than most people can name — and the lesson from that first exchange still sets how he hires, leads and argues. This episode is for operators who have moved countries, changed industries, or rebuilt an identity from scratch, and for anyone who suspects that technical skill is a shrinking advantage. The core tension is a hard one: Wayne argues South Africans have to stop reasoning from what was done to them and start reasoning from what happens next — while agreeing, without hedging, that apartheid still shapes how millions grow up. He holds both at once, and explains why most people can’t. Along the way: the geography lottery, a girl called Rebecca who wanted to be a pilot, and the day decisiveness locked the President of South Africa inside a stadium. Winning The Away Game is brought to you by The Lekker Network. The Lekker Network brings together South Africa’s top entrepreneurs, executives, innovators, and everyday people from all over the world to connect, engage, support, do business with each other, and create lasting impact. Find out more at https://thelekkernetwork.com/ Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/26fB2unP9Ih6IA3QkjnGQF?si=4b4380f24a144716 Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/winning-the-away-game/id1853818584 Connect with Justinus:https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinusadriaanse/ Connect with Flip:https://www.linkedin.com/in/flipvandermerwe/ Check out our other channels: Website: https://wtagpodcast.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/winning-the-away-game-podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wtag_podcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wtag_podcast Winning The Away Game is produced by Jonathan Warncke Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E%99-jonathan-warncke-45b2095/ Ping Productions: https://www.pingproductions.net/

    Wayne Hendricks on Protecting Mandela and Unlearning What He Was Taught

  7. Jul 30

    Gary Boddington and Wayne Fyvie - Building a Second Career From Scratch

    Gary Boddington represented South Africa at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, then built a business intelligence company out of a Durban garage that was eventually acquired by Sage — a journey that landed him in a ski resort in British Columbia. Wayne Fyvie played three tests for South Africa, captained the Sharks, and walked out of a change room in Cardiff knowing his body was finished and his income was about to disappear. This episode is for anyone facing the end of one identity and the blank page of the next: athletes in transition, founders in the grind, and operators trying to work out what they are actually building for. Chapters 00:00 Cold Open 00:41 Welcome: Gary Boddington and Wayne Fyvie 02:56 Favourite Springbok Memories 05:30 The Ticky Box That Changed Wayne’s Life 08:07 First Cap, Injuries and the Press 11:56 Gary’s Road From Ice Hockey to Atlanta 15:37 Walking Into the Stadium at Atlanta 1996 19:10 Retirement and the Salary That Stops 22:32 The Haircut That Cost 200 Rand 27:28 Job First or Play First: Which Is Better? 33:52 Mentors, Relationships and Working the Room 37:54 Eating Glass for 30 Years 41:31 The Two-Year Plan and the Sage Acquisition 47:41 Sales, Cartridges and Solving Problems 50:35 Finding Purpose at 38 54:49 Building a South Africa That Works Winning The Away Game is brought to you by The Lekker Network. The Lekker Network brings together South Africa's top entrepreneurs, executives, innovators, and everyday people from all over the world to connect, engage, support, do business with each other, and create lasting impact. Find out more at https://thelekkernetwork.com/ Listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/26fB2unP9Ih6IA3QkjnGQF?si=4b4380f24a144716 Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/winning-the-away-game/id1853818584 Connect with Justinus:https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinusadriaanse/ Connect with Flip:https://www.linkedin.com/in/flipvandermerwe/ Check out our other channels: Website: https://wtagpodcast.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/winning-the-away-game-podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wtag_podcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wtag_podcast Winning The Away Game is produced by Jonathan Warncke Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E%99-jonathan-warncke-45b2095/ Ping Productions: https://www.pingproductions.net/

    Gary Boddington and Wayne Fyvie - Building a Second Career From Scratch

  8. Jul 23

    Entrepreneurship Isn't Easy, with Deon Gouws and Alistair Hargreaves

    This episode is for founders, operators, and anyone rebuilding an identity after a chapter of life ends. Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo in London, and Alistair Hargreaves, former Springbok and Saracens captain turned Wolf Pack co-founder, sit down with Justinus and Flip to talk about judgement under pressure and reinvention without a script. The core tension: rugby careers and investment careers both come with hard-won instincts, but neither guarantees you'll succeed the moment you step outside the environment that built them. From a stadium beer ban to the 2008 financial crisis to a concussion that ended a professional career, this is a conversation about building good judgement when certainty isn't available. Chapters 00:00 Introduction 01:49 Favourite Springbok Memories 08:29 Family, Fathers and the Game 09:54 Alistair's Springbok Memories 14:04 Growing Up Together in SA Rugby 17:34 The Concussion Decision 20:42 Building a Culture That Puts People First 23:56 From Cambridge to Credo 30:20 How Deon and Alistair Became Friends 34:53 The Myth of Transferable Skills 38:01 Building Wolf Pack From Scratch 47:04 Lessons From 2008 and Covid 51:00 Building a South Africa That Works for Everyone 55:00 World Cup 2027 and Sign Off Winning The Away Game is brought to you by The Lekker Network. The Lekker Network brings together South Africa's top entrepreneurs, executives, innovators, and everyday people from all over the world to connect, engage, support, do business with each other, and create lasting impact. Find out more at https://thelekkernetwork.com/ Listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/26fB2unP9Ih6IA3QkjnGQF?si=4b4380f24a144716 Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/winning-the-away-game/id1853818584 Connect with Justinus:https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinusadriaanse/ Connect with Flip:https://www.linkedin.com/in/flipvandermerwe/ Check out our other channels: Website: https://wtagpodcast.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/winning-the-away-game-podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wtag_podcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wtag_podcast Winning The Away Game is produced by Jonathan Warncke Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E%99-jonathan-warncke-45b2095/ Ping Productions: https://www.pingproductions.net/

    Entrepreneurship Isn't Easy, with Deon Gouws and Alistair Hargreaves
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About

Winning the Away Game launches on 20 November, just before the Ireland Test. This new podcast brings together successful South Africans who have conquered the world and pairs them with Springbok legends, including our co-host Flip van der Merwe. In every episode we look at resilience, legacy and the mindset needed to win when the odds are stacked against you. Whether you love Springbok rugby, business strategy or stories of South African grit going global, this is your new home for insight and inspiration.

Information

  • Creator
    Ping Productions
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    42
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Winning The Away Game

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