Send us a textDan chats to Jess Hayden, author of The Red Roses: Behind the Scenes with the England Women's Rugby Team.Jess, who was previously a sports journalist at The Times and The Sunday Times, is the editor of Contested, a new social app for sports fans.In writing the book, she was able to get exclusive access to the England Women's team, known at the Red Roses, plus speak to former players and coaches.In the podcast, she talks about:The highs and huge lows of a World Cup campaignProfessionalism in women's rugby and the lessons to be learned from the difficulties in the men's gameWhy the audience for women's rugby is growing, but also, what's holding it backShould England have chosen a woman to be their new head coachThe rise of WXVWhy the Lions touring team isn't the right vehicle to grow women's rugbyThe simple misunderstanding that made the England players so angry Who was the only player to watch the lost final on the plane home from 2021 World CupThe book is out at the start of March. Contested: Because every athlete and team sport deserves recognition.A unique space for fans to join the conversation, debate predictions, and celebrate sports together. It covers lots of sports in the detail you won't get in the mainstream media. To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textIn this episode, Dan chats with Sean Lindersmith. They discuss how he created a coaches’ coffee club, and how he made it a genuine place to learn and support each other.Sean is the Vice President of Operations at Premier Rugby Sevens and Silicon Valley Rugby - defence and forwards coach.His past roles include University of MN Head Coach, US Coast Guard Sevens Head Coach, St Augustine High School Head Coach, MN Youth Rugby Youth and HS Director and USA Eagle’s National Team Manager (Men’s)In the podcast, we coverEstablishing the Coaches’ Coffee ClubMentorship and sharing initiativePractising vulnerability in coachingCoaching, trust, and celebrationCreating supportive team dynamicsEmbracing change in coachingCoffee club vulnerability and connectionKey concepts in coaching communityYou can contact him onLinkedIn: @SeanLindersmithIG/X: @SnackattkTikTok: @CoachSnackattk To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textDr Jocelyn Solomons joins Dan on the podcast to discuss her research on how dance can improve rugby players.Based at the world-renowned Stellenbosch University in South Africa, she is a lecturer in strength and conditioning.She has a PhD in women's rugby development and an MSc in Sport Science focusing on rhythmic movement and rugby.In the podcast we explore:How you persuade rugby players that dance can make a differenceHow it did make a difference in the research projectWhat happens if a player can’t danceHow it can be made position specificJocelyn’s passion to drive forward women and women of colour in all sports and in academic sports researchHow to continue to change the landscape for women in sport What are her biases and how has she overcome themHow to motivate those who are not as motivated as yourselfHere’s a link to her researchThe effect of a rhythmic movement intervention on selected bio-motor skills of academy rugby players in the Western Cape, South Africahttps://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1747954120956909 To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textMike Penistone is a global rugby coach, starting his coaching career in the 80s with Trent Poly and then Cambridge University rugby league as head coach. He went on to GB Student's head coach before moving to Leicester Tigers Academy via Nottingham. He did a stint at NSW Waratahs and then Eastern Suburbs in Australia. He is now a rugby coach consultant.In the podcast, we cover:How to make a great first impression as a coachHow to make your sessions engaging and intenseWhy threes and fives are magic numbersWhat stops great players becoming good coachesAsking the best questions to get the most from your playersManaging talentHelping an expert player become more skilfulMike is available for coaching consultancy and sessions. Drop him a line on mike@globalrugbycoach.com To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textDan Cottrell chats to author and coach, J.P. Nerbun about his latest book, The Sports Parent Solution, Proven Strategies for Transforming Parents from Obstacles to Allies.We explore how coaches can get the most out of their relationships with parents. Sometimes they are super-supportive, and sometimes not!How do you get them onside to start with, speak to them, involve them and make them part of everyone's journey.We talk about the ways to have difficult conversations, how to build your value offering and chances to show leadership.J.P., as always, offers lots of evidence from either his own experience or from experts around this space.He has written three books: Calling Up: Discovering Your Journey to Transformational Leadership The Culture System: A Proven Process for Creating an Extraordinary Team CultureThe Sports Parent Solution, Proven Strategies for Transforming Parents from Obstacles to AlliesHe is host of the The Coaching Culture podcast. To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textWelcome to the Coaching Knife when we cut to the root of the matter. In this episode, we speak to Tom Chaloba, Manager of Get Into Rugby Zambia.Focusing on volunteering we are going to cut to the root on how to build a group of volunteers and retain them.Tom is a coach and match official educator at Zambia Rugby Union, as well as working with the Tag Rugby Trust. He is the founder of Die Hard Rugby academy.His philosophy is aim high but don't miss what is near. This helps him stay grounded and rooted but also gives him the freedom to shoot for the stars.You can contact him on Twitter @TomChaloba1Instagram @TomChaloba1 LinkedIn  Facebook To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textWelcome to the Coaching Knife when we cut to the root of the matter. In this episode, we speak to Professor Kevin Till, Professor of Athletic Development at Leeds Beckett University and Strength and Conditioning Coach at Leeds Rhinos RLFC academy. Focusing on warm-ups, we are going to explore how they are used to prevent injury and give us performance gains.Kev has worked in strength and conditioning with Yorkshire cricket, Yorkshire Carnegie rugby union, football with Leeds United, as well as his roles in rugby league, at Leeds Rhinos and Castleford. He completed his PhD in Sport and Exercise Science over 12 years ago, and  has had seven papers published.  He has helped edit and write two books, The Science of Sport: Rugby, and published last year: The Young Rugby Player: Science and Application His philosophy is about supporting people in the best way possible. Similar to work on 'Talent', everyone has potential, and it is how we can support creating opportunities to support as many to develop as effectively as possible.  You can contact him on Twitter @KTConditioning Email: K.Till@leedsbeckett.ac.uk To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textWelcome to the Coaching Knife when we cut to the root of the matter. In this episode, we speak to Craig Gunn, coach, teacher and motivational educator, and founder of Gunn Engagement. Focusing on why high-performance sport is dangerous for grassroots, we are going to cut to the root on why we need to break the brooms of the All Blacks.Craig is an experienced PE teacher and former head teacher. He has worked across many sports, including Aussie Rules and Rugby League.His philosophy is that kids learn teachers NOT subjects; Sometimes you have to mow the grass before you save the whales.You can contact him on LinkedIn or The Coach Whisperer. To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textWelcome to the Coaching Knife when we cut to the root of the matter. In this episode, we speak to Ian Costello, Head of Rugby Operations at Munster Rugby. Focusing on talent, we are going to focus on how that term might impact the way we approach coaching.Ian has had a busy coaching career, with stints as assistant coach at Munster and Wasps, the Munster Academy manager, as well as head coach at Nottingham and an Elite Development Manager with the Irish RFU. His philosophy:The purpose is to develop and sustain a high-performance strategy for Munster Rugby. Philosophy would be to find and develop the best people, build system capability, always improving, learning faster than the opposition. Quality coaching is key to producing consistent winning performance.You can contact him on Twitter at Iancostello1  To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!

Send us a textWelcome to the Coaching Knife when we cut to the root of the matter. In this episode, we speak to Grant Doorey, performance coach @Mobicoach Australia and passion projects Rugby ATL, Queensland Rugby and Australia Rugby.Focusing on the power of purpose in coaching and life, we are going to cut to the root on how we can turn thoughts into action.Before becoming a consultant high-performance coach, Grant was an assistant coach with Tonga, Italy and Japan national teams, a technical adviser with the IRANZ, plus roles with pro clubs in France, London Irish, and the Blues Super franchise. He started as a teacher and director of school rugby in Australia.His philosophy is the relentless pursuit of short-term goals leading to long-term success. To inspire leaders and teams to develop rigour and discipline, striving for excellence in their daily habits,  he connects, engages and empowers people through coaching. You can contact him on LinkedIn or directly to mobicoachnz@gmail.comHe values human connection. Please reach out for a conversation and explore synergies to collaborate. To find out more about this podcast and many others, go to Rugby Coach WeeklyAlso, tap into the library of 4,000 pages of activities, advice, tactics and tips to help you become the best rugby coach you can be!