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This week on Talking About A Carpool, hosts ofahelotu (Sydney, Australia) and Semisi Telefoni, aka "The Wine Chief" (Auckland, New Zealand), cover European rugby results across five competitions, review the NRL Grand Final, preview Bledisloe Cup One at Eden Park, and break down the Rugby League World Cup 2026 squad announcements.
Segment 1: Talk Story Starts at (0:12) Semisi shares highlights from a long weekend — Amandine's under-16 Auckland rugby tournament where her side finished runners-up, sparking memories of the hosts' own Auckland representative days and a young Jonah Lomu signing jackets at a tournament. Ofahelotu celebrates his niece's wedding photos and pregnancy announcement, and recounts taking his three daughters to the NRL Grand Final in Sydney.
Segment 2: Da Latest Scoop Starts at (6:39) The hosts run through European rugby results across five competitions — Premiership, URC, Top 14, Pro D2, and Championship Rugby. No Champions Cup or Challenge Cup fixtures this week.
Premiership Rugby — (6:40 to 9:15) Gloucester lead the table after putting 48 points to nil on Harlequins, Leicester edge Newcastle 24-19, and Bristol pump defending champions Northampton 41-26. Bath and Exeter round out the top four, with no relegation confirmed this season.
URC (United Rugby Championship) — (9:15 to 11:10) Glasgow and Ulster play out the first draw of the season at 33-all, Sharks stay undefeated at 2-nil, Edinburgh beat Stormers 17-13, and Munster edge the Bulls 26-22. The hosts flag the growing frustration with refereeing decisions across the game (10:30).
Top 14 — (11:10 to 13:32) Round five sees Bordeaux smash Lyon 51-28, Racing demolish Perpignan 55-25, Pau win 43-40 in Normandy, and Castres fall 7-8 in a tight result. Toulouse sit top with 19 points, Pau second on 18, with Toulon struggling at 13th and Vannes yet to register a win. The hosts note the growing Pacific presence in French rugby.
Pro D2 — (13:32 to 15:40) Pro D2 didn't play last weekend so the table is unchanged. The hosts look ahead to Mont-de-Marsan vs Brive and Angoulême vs Provence. The rugby awards ceremony in Paris is discussed, with Jack Willis from Toulouse named Top 14 Player of the Year.
Championship Rugby — (15:40 to 17:20) Round three sees Coventry smash Nottingham with Seli Naiyalo grabbing a hat-trick in a 10-try rout, Cornish Pirates edge Ealing Trailfinders 35-33, Worcester win at Richmond 45-26, and Blackheath — the world's oldest club — claim their first win back in the second tier. Worcester lead the table after three rounds.
Segment 3: Hot Topics Starts at (18:00) The hosts review the NRL Grand Final — the Roosters' dominant win over the Knights, Kalyn Ponga's brilliance, Daly Cherry-Evans finishing his NRL career with a title, and Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii's remarkable transition from union to league and his upcoming move to Japan. At (24:50) they preview Bledisloe Cup One at Eden Park, where the All Blacks haven't lost since 1994 — covering team news, Dave Rennie's return against his former side, and both hosts' predictions. At (33:10) they turn to the Rugby League World Cup 2026, discussing squad announcements for Tonga, Samoa, and the Kangaroos, and announcing a Sips & Scrubs tour to the Hunter Valley for the Tonga vs Samoa match.
Da Kuleana: We are currently extracting Da Kuleana segments from our past full episodes and releasing them as standalone uploads. Once the back catalogue is complete, Da Kuleana will return to the full episode in a refined and improved format. Keep an eye on the feed for those drops.
Outro Starts at (43:48) The hosts wrap up, share what's on for the week — school holidays, a rowing camp, and ofahelotu flying to Auckland for the Bledisloe. They invite listeners to email questions and tease next week's coverage of the Rugby League World Cup opener.
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