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© MW Welman and Harry Jones
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Blending North with South, Pretoria with Cape Town, data-driven MW Welman spars each week with globetrotting Harry Jones on Saffa-related themes to understand the whole world of rugby as it is and will become: making a plan but being ready to throw it all out the window.
182 Episodes
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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.
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.
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.
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.
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?
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?
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.
England lost control at Murrayfield. At Twickenham, the same pattern returned.Poor exits from their own half. Forced passes when patience was required. Kicks that handed momentum straight back. Under pressure, the decisions did not match the moment.Ireland did not need magic. They needed clarity. Their breakdown work was sharp, their shape was connected, and when chances came they were clinical. It felt like the Ireland of old. Calm, composed and ruthless.One side played with a clear identity. The other looked unsure of what it was trying to be.Is this inconsistency, or is something deeper unresolved in this England side?We break down where the control slipped, how Ireland dictated terms, and what this result really says about both teams.
England and Ireland have both been punched in the face. Now they meet at Twickenham with pride bruised and pressure rising.Harry Jones welcomes Charlie Morgan of The Times and Ireland’s Pat McCarry into the bar for a lively, sharp-edged Six Nations preview. Expect press-conference temperature checks, Emo Andy analysis, Henry Pollock hype, fly-half debates, scrum anxiety and plenty of Irish wit along the way. This is less about predicting a scoreline and more about reading the room before kick
Scotland rose to the moment. England looked rattled. Italy pushed Ireland harder than expected. Questions are starting to surface.In this episode, MW Welman and Harry Jones sit down with Tim Cocker of EggChasers Rugby for a proper Six Nations temperature check. Together, we unpack England’s recurring Scotland problem, the tactical decisions that defined the Calcutta Cup, Ireland’s scrum vulnerability, the Sam Prendergast debate, and why Italy now look like a legitimate Tier One force.This isn’t a hot take reaction. It’s three rugby minds stepping back to assess trajectory. Where does each contender truly stand? Who’s handling pressure? And what does this weekend tell us about where the tournament is heading?If you care about structure, psychology, and long-term direction in international rugby, this conversation is for you.
Franco Smith has coached Italy in the Six Nations and now leads Glasgow in the URC. In this episode he explains what has changed in Italy’s structure, why Scotland enter the Calcutta Cup under pressure, and how coaches analyse games beyond surface reaction.We go into tight-five development, lineout mechanics, aerial contest adjustments, kick-chase organisation and the difference between club preparation and Test-week execution. This is a detailed look at how elite rugby is built, how small margins shape outcomes, and how scoreboard pressure forces tactical decisions at the top level.
Is Jacques Nienaber really at the heart of Ireland’s problems, or is that a lazy conclusion?Rugby writer Charlie Morgan joins the Lekker Rugby Pod to unpack how the Six Nations is already shifting after round one, and why the debate around Jacques Nienaber, Ireland, and Leinster has become unavoidable.We step back from the scorelines to look at the deeper trends shaping the tournament, including Ireland’s struggle for clarity, France’s growing comfort in the modern kicking and transition game, and England’s increasingly coherent identity. The conversation focuses on systems, player profiles, preparation time, and how international rugby is being reshaped in real time.This is not a blame exercise and it is not a hot take. It’s analysis for people who want to understand what actually changed in round one, and what it means for the rest of the Six Nations.
Ireland went to Paris with trepidation. They left overwhelmed. In this instant reaction, Harry Jones and Pat McCarry unpack a night where Ireland walked into a ruthless French trap and never found a way out. From collisions and tempo to selection and control, this is a raw first response to a performance that turned quiet fears into loud questions.
Ireland arrive in Paris without the certainty that defined them for the last five years.This episode of the Lekker Rugby Pod uses France vs Ireland as a way into a wider conversation about pressure, transition, and how quickly confidence can thin at Test level. With Irish writer Pat McGarry, MW Welman and Harry Jones unpack Ireland’s current state, shaped by a Six Nations played without Andy Farrell last year as he prepared for the British and Irish Lions, and the knock-on effects that are still being felt.The discussion moves through a young and exposed Irish pack, front-row risk, and the subtle shift from control to apprehension that has crept in since last November.It’s a Six Nations conversation, but not a parochial one. For South African viewers, the tournament functions as a scouting window. Every Six Nations side sits on the Springboks’ schedule in the new Nations Championship, making these games the clearest reference point for who is settled, who is vulnerable, and where transition may already be underway.Paris sharpens all of that. Ireland remain talented and dangerous, but for the first time in years, they look jittery. And that makes this night, and this tournament, worth watching closely.
Who would’ve thought jail could be such an apt analogy for the Bulls?Harry’s back after a slightly mysterious absence and, before we know it, we’re talking about everything from leadership and belief to why some teams survive pressure and others panic. It takes us a while to get there, but that’s kind of the point.There’s a listener letter in this episode that made us stop and sit with it for a bit. Rassie comes up, as he tends to, and so does Johan Ackermann, the Bulls, and what happens when a team finally decides how it wants to behave when things get uncomfortable.We also get into the Stormers, two rough weeks against the Sharks, and why being good on paper doesn’t always help when someone throws the first punch.This isn’t an instant reaction or a neat summary. It wanders, it circles back, and eventually it lands.If you’re listening from somewhere far away, you’ll probably know exactly why.
The Bulls stopped trying to be something else and found their feet again. The Lions refused to fold under pressure. The Sharks forced the Stormers back to fundamentals. Across the weekend, a pattern emerged as teams settled back into what they do best.In this episode of the Lekker Rugby Pod, MW Welman and Harry Jones unpack how identity, systems, and belief shaped the results, why set pieces still decide more than flair, and what this weekend tells us about where these teams are really heading in the URC.
Sharks fans, this is the one you’ve been waiting for. Marco Masotti, controlling owner and majority shareholder of the Sharks, joins us for a proper, open conversation and gives clarity on the coaching situation, including when you can expect to hear more about what the franchise is doing next.We also go deep on the bigger picture: the endless season, Springbok strain, cohesion, URC and Champions Cup ambition, rivalries, and why rugby needs to start thinking like a modern sport, not a museum. Insightful, honest, and properly Lekker Rugby Pod.
NZRU are calling it “mutual consent”… but the speed of this decision feels like something else entirely. MW Welman and Harry Jones are joined by New Zealand’s Martin Devlin (DSPN) to ask the question everyone’s thinking: why move this fast unless the next coach is already lined up?We break down the review, the PR spin, the whispers, and what it tells us about power inside New Zealand Rugby. Razor Robertson, David Kirk, player influence, and the Tony Brown and Jamie Joseph rumours, it’s all on the table.
Seven losses in a row. Record points conceded at Loftus. A squad packed with Springboks looking confused and disconnected. MW Welman and Harry Jones go forensic on what’s really gone wrong at the Bulls, from the “butterfingers” narrative to the brutal reality of short-field defence every week.But the biggest warning sign isn’t the scoreboard. It’s the feeling. The want. The body language. We talk coaching, player responsibility, Springbok influence, and why “acceptance rugby” is the fastest way to lose a dressing room and a fanbase. The Bulls didn’t become a URC powerhouse by being delicate, so what changed… and what does “winning ugly” look like now?
Throughout history, every empire, dynasty, and dominant team has eventually faced the same question: can this last?In Episode 137 of the Lekker Rugby Pod, and the first of 2026, MW Welman and Harry Jones use history as a lens, asking what figures like Napoleon and other fallen powers can teach us about the Springboks today. Through power, paranoia, leadership, and the Rassie Erasmus effect, this conversation goes beyond tactics and results. It is not about predicting a fall. It is about understanding why this Springbok era may be structurally different from everything that came before.
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