Darryl Brohman OAM is back on Chiming In just over a year since his last appearance — and in that time he's fought off non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, his second cancer battle after prostate cancer a few years earlier.

The Queensland Origin forward turned radio institution talks candidly about six rounds of chemo, losing his hair "everywhere," and the perspective he found sitting in a ward full of people going through the same thing — all delivered with the self-deprecating humour that's made him one of the game's most loved characters for the best part of 50 years.

Brohman also looks back on winning the 1984 grand final with Canterbury after a move from Penrith, coaching reserve grade for Phil Gould at the Bulldogs, receiving his OAM for services to rugby league, and the racehorse syndicate he ran with Laurie Daley and Ricky Stuart that paid off in Melbourne on Oaks Day.

In this episode of Chiming In, the Big Marn opens up on health, humour, and half a century in the game he loves — proving why he's still one of the best gets in the business.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Intro

01:32 - Welcome back: Darryl Brohman returns to Chiming In

01:45 - Health update: beating cancer for a second time

03:25 - How the diagnosis came about

04:50 - Chemo, and finding perspective in the ward

06:22 - Does a football career prepare you for something like this?

09:54 - The line between commentator, expert and comic

12:02 - Was he always the funny kid?

13:06 - Prostate cancer, sleep apnea, and losing his sense of taste

17:26 - Meeting Bev, and coaching reserve grade for Gus at the Bulldogs

28:31 - Punting, and the racehorse he owned with Laurie Daley and Ricky Stuart

31:14 - Winning the 1984 grand final with the Bulldogs

35:04 - Receiving his OAM for services to rugby league

36:08 - Giving back through the Starlight Foundation

39:17 - Copping a spray from Tim Sheens, and getting dropped

42:00 - Backing Laurie Daley through the Origin scrutiny

1:00:15 - Life after footy: the media career and finances

1:01:20 - Wrap-up

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Dean "Bulldog" Ritchie has covered rugby league for the Daily Telegraph for 37 years, breaking some of the game's biggest stories along the way — from a teenage cadet's first back-page scoop to the Bulldogs' secretly-photographed meeting with Jonathan Thurston.

Ritchie takes us through how a chance work-experience placement turned into a career, the mentors who shaped him — including the legendary Peter "Chippy" Frilingos, whose sudden death at work in 2004 Ritchie still finds hard to talk about — and 37 years' worth of scoops, near-misses and colourful nights out, including the taxi door that put him in hospital.

He also opens up on his 37-year friendship with Laurie Daley, the on-air Origin III prediction that turned out to be spot on, and life inside NRL 360 alongside some of the game's biggest personalities.

In this episode of Chiming In, Bulldog shares stories from a career spent chasing the game he's loved since he was a kid waving a Roosters flag from the outer.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Start

01:27 - Welcome: Dean "Bulldog" Ritchie joins Chiming In

02:11 - His schoolboy footy days and a near-miss at a Wallabies jumper

06:00 - Breaking into journalism through Bill Mordy

08:18 - Cutting his teeth at the Cumberland papers

09:40 - Landing the Daily Telegraph job on 1989 Grand Final day

11:06 - His mentors: "Chippy" Frilingos and "Buzz" Rothfield

15:38 - Chippy's sudden death, and being a pallbearer

18:25 - His first scoop: "Saints Sack Craig Young"

22:09 - The Bulldogs-Thurston scoop, and other big stories

24:23 - Friends and foes in rugby league

25:53 - Building a 37-year friendship with Laurie Daley

36:52 - The night a taxi door put him in hospital

38:41 - Covering rugby league around the world

39:52 - The Perth Bears trip that cost Mal Meninga $20K

45:38 - Backing Laurie Daley, and the Origin III prediction that came true

47:58 - Inside NRL 360, and copping a spray on air

48:33 - Sunday mornings on the Big Sports Breakfast

53:28 - 37 years at the Daily Telegraph

54:51 - Social media, and whether the nastiness is new

57:49 - Expansion: Christchurch vs Brisbane for team 20

59:56 - Should the NRL buy English Super League?

01:01:18 - Wrap-up

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Peter Sharp is one of rugby league's most respected and longest-serving coaching minds — over 40 years in the game, and the man widely credited with discovering and shaping a young Andrew and Matthew Johns at the Newcastle Knights.

From playing days at Maitland in the 1970s and a colourful path through Central Charlestown, England and Newcastle's junior system, Sharp went on to become an NRL head coach at Manly, an assistant to Craig Bellamy at Melbourne, and later took Hull FC on a 13-game winning streak in England before switching codes entirely to coach Ulster in rugby union.

These days he's back in the NRL working alongside Phil Gould at the Canterbury Bulldogs.

Sharp opens up on discovering a teenage Joey Johns, the night out that nearly cost the Jersey Flegg side a game, getting sacked and picked straight back up by Craig Bellamy, and the toughest and funniest moments from four decades on the sideline — plus a candid word on mental health and the Black Dog Institute.

In this episode of Chiming In, Peter shares stories from a career that's taken him from suburban rugby league grounds to Belfast, and reflects on what's changed in the game he's given his life to.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Start

01:01 - Rugby league royalty: introducing Peter Sharp

01:35 - Phil Gould's tribute and the Gus friendship

07:29 - The Brian Smith interview and the "beef and pickle sandwich" job

08:35 - Growing up in Maitland, playing on the weight

13:11 - The 1977 grand final and a 30,000-strong crowd

14:06 - Injury, and backpacking to England

17:15 - Meeting Andrew and Matthew Johns at Newcastle

19:28 - The infamous night out before a Balmain game

21:21 - Rising to reserve grade and a premiership

23:39 - Becoming Manly head coach after Bob Fulton's shock resignation

26:22 - The Northern Eagles "messy flop"

28:13 - Forgetting his wife at Gosford

29:03 - Learning under Craig Bellamy at Melbourne

30:34 - Hull FC and a 13-game winning streak in England

31:51 - Switching codes: coaching Ulster rugby union in Belfast

41:19 - Greatest coach debate and rugby league heroes

45:00 - Media scrutiny then vs now

49:40 - Mental health advocacy and the Black Dog Institute

51:02 - Wrap-up: 32 years in rugby league

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Craig Salvatori was a mainstay of the Sydney Roosters front row through the late '80s and early '90s, racking up around 140 first grade games between the Roosters and a final season at South Sydney, three State of Origin appearances for the Blues alongside Laurie Daley, and a Roosters life membership this year that came with the club's Indigenous Round honour.

He was also at the centre of one of Australian sport's most confronting personal stories: in October 2002, Salvatori lost his wife Kathy in the Bali bombings, and became an unlikely go-between for the Australian government's response on the ground, speaking daily with radio host Alan Jones and eventually meeting with then-Prime Minister John Howard. More than two decades on, he talks openly about grief, acceptance, and raising his daughters through it.

It's not all heavy going, though — Salvatori also revisits the infamous headbutt that cost him a five-week suspension, a near-miss at a premiership in 1987, and a colonoscopy story that nearly blew up his marriage. And after 45 years as a builder, he's about to set off on "Salvo's Aussie Pub Crawl" — a year-long lap of the country's pubs with his wife and dog in tow.

In this episode of Chiming In, Craig shares stories from a life that's been as tough as it has been full, and explains why he's chosen to talk about the hardest parts of it rather than look away.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Intro

01:21 - Welcome: Craig Salvatori joins Chiming In

01:47 - Breaking news: retiring after 45 years as a builder

02:32 - The plan: Salvo's Aussie Pub Crawl

05:20 - The colonoscopy story that nearly got him busted

09:02 - Naming the tour and sorting sleeping arrangements

14:35 - Opening up about the Bali bombings and losing Kathy

16:33 - How the group ended up split between the Sari Club and babysitting

18:06 - The night of the bombing and the search for answers

21:34 - Getting the Prime Minister involved

24:25 - Has he been back to Bali since

25:29 - Roosters and Rabbitohs career, and getting signed for $2,000

29:50 - The 1987 preliminary final classic against Canberra

31:12 - Backing Laurie Daley against his critics

32:40 - Falling out with Phil Gould and leaving the Roosters

35:24 - Retiring at 30, and getting two new knees at 53

37:36 - Roosters life member and Indigenous Round honour

41:28 - The hardest front rowers he played against

42:20 - The famous headbutt and five-week suspension

46:15 - Calling games on radio with 2GB

47:16 - Life on the road calling Cowboys games in Townsville

53:01 - Wrap-up and best wishes for the trip

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Fresh off coaching New South Wales to a series win nobody outside the camp gave them a chance of, Laurie Daley sits down for a full debrief on the campaign — the celebrations, the criticism, and everything in between.

Daley takes us inside the moments after the siren: the Gatorade shower, the speech in the sheds, a beer on the SCG turf with the playing group, and the 5:30am walk into a radio station on zero sleep to do an interview live, still buzzing from the win. He also answers his critics head-on — the press conference "grenade," the pile-on over Melbourne's interchange calls, and whether Laurie Daley holds a grudge (his answer: no, but he's keeping receipts).

Along the way he talks through what Stuart Diver's story meant to the playing group, a reunion dinner with the 1996 Blues team, the viral clip of Phil Gould pinching his seat in 2002, and just how far Andrew Johns' influence reached inside the camp this year. There's also a quiet moment about his late father, and the song that reminded Daley he was with him in spirit on the day it mattered most.

In this episode of Chiming In, Laurie shares what it really took to win the "unwinnable" series — and what's next for him and the Blues.

00:00 - Intro

01:08 - Welcome: the Origin-winning coach in the studio

02:35 - What's next — the contract question and his plans

06:50 - Celebrations: the Gatorade shower and the sneaky phone request

08:52 - On the field when the siren went

10:27 - The team photo, and standing at the back on purpose

12:21 - A beer on the SCG turf and the speech in the sheds

14:59 - 16 weeks without a beer, then the one that mattered

16:10 - The 5:30am walk into the radio station

17:51 - Over a thousand texts, and who reached out

26:51 - The press conference "grenade"

29:09 - Does Laurie Daley hold a grudge?

30:15 - The "putting his players to sleep" story

32:44 - Answering the Melbourne interchange criticism

37:56 - Brian To'o's Origin future

39:44 - Stuart Diver's story and what it meant to the group

42:08 - Reuniting with the 1996 Blues team

44:03 - Phil Gould's "greatest ever" comments

45:44 - The viral Gus seat-pinching clip

47:38 - What he learned about himself this campaign

48:38 - Isiah Yeo's leadership in camp

50:26 - Nathan Cleary and the immortal conversation

52:13 - Mitch Moses' kicking game and his role in the win

56:25 - His late father, and the song that reminded him he was there

58:11 - Wrap-up and what's ahead for the Blues

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Paul Nobby Clarke is one of rugby league’s good guys.

A powerful front rower forward in the 1980s and 90s, Clarke gave as good as he got but always found time to look at the lighter side of life.

Tough, skilful and uncompromising, Clarke played a major role in Penrith’s first ever premiership victory in 1991.

According to team-mate Royce Simmons, Clarke was deserved on the Churchill Medal. Clarke reckons Simmons told him after the game that he was Canberra’s best player in the first half and Penrith’s best performer in the second.

In this episode of Chiming In, Nobby shares the secrets of his success and recalls how his childhood dream of playing in the NRL never left his radar.

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You would think former Manly coach Anthony Seibold would be death riding the Sea Eagles this year. Strangely, that’s not the case.

Dumped by the Club after just three NRL games, Seibold is today back on top of his game and would be more than pleased if his former chargers went on to the win the premiership.

In this episode of Chiming In, Seibold opens up on shock moment he was shown the door at Brookvale and how he has since put his life back together.

His openness and honesty will surprise you. In fact, Seibold hasn’t given up on Coaching NRL again - despite failing to fulfil his last two contracts at Manly and Brisbane.

He also talks candidly about his time at Souths and the enormous pressure he found himself under after joining the Brisbane Broncos.

Often criticised but always up for the challenge, Seibold is one of rugby league’s true survivors. His honesty and frankness will surprise many and his journey from a ball boy to an NRL head coach will amaze you.

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Royce Simmons is one of the most loved people to have ever played the game of rugby league.

Who could forget the 1991 grand final, when Simmons - in his very last game for the Penrith Panthers - scored two tries in a five star performance to overcome the Canberra Raiders.

Sadly, in recent times, the former NSW and Australian hooker has struggled with health issues and is battling dementia.

But it hasn’t stopped Simmons' zest for life and his desire to raise funds and try and find a cure for the debilitating disease.

In this episode of Chiming In, Simmons talks passionately about his health battles, his love for rugby league and those he has shared his journey with.

But it’s his funny life stories which will have you chuckling as Simmons recalls a career well done.

Simmons also reveals the greatest ever forward he’s ever seen - and it will shock you.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Start

00:04 - Highlights

01:46 - Diagnosis Dementia

04:16 - Walking

05:06 - Warning Signs / Finding Out

07:01 - Biggest Killer in the World / Stats

08:41 - Treatment for Dementia

10:06 - Treatment in America

11:36 - Dealing / Living With It

12:46 - People Reaching Out

14:03 - Lightbulb Moment for Starting Charity

15:31 - England & Hull Work

18:46 - Raising Money & Marathons

21:56 - "Worst Thing That Could Happen"

25:36 - Nathan Cleary & Current Penrith

26:56 - Penrith Pride

28:31 - Named in His Honour + Retirement / Aged Living Apartments

34:16 - '91 Grand Final + Last Game

37:36 - Promise to Fans + Grand Final Night

39:01 - Growing Up in the Bush

43:46 - Early Sporting Days

46:59 - Pet Horse + Motorbike

50:16 - Meeting His Wife + Meeting in High School

52:46 - Clubs That Almost Signed

56:16 - Comparing Old vs New Players

58:11 - Isaah Yeo / Best Forward Ever

01:02:16 - Upcoming Walks & Fundraisers

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