This week on Talking About A Carpool, hosts ofahelotu(Sydney, Australia) and Semisi Telefoni, aka "The Wine Chief"(Auckland, New Zealand), break down a massive weekend of rugby. Ofa recaps histrip to Auckland for the Bledisloe Cup at Eden Park, the crew runs through allthe European domestic results and Champions/Challenge Cup draws, and theypreview the Rugby League World Cup kickoff plus the newly named Pacific squadsfor the World Rugby Nations Cup. No Da Kuleana this week — the boys apologizeand confirm it's being prepared as a separate standalone upload.

Segment 1: Talk Story Starts at (0:00) Ofa shares highlightsfrom his Auckland trip — the All Blacks Experience at Sky Tower, the America'sCup sail on Auckland Harbour, a nice bottle of red with new friends, and thelegendary Sally Lunn cream bun from Glendon Bakery. The hosts also discuss thepodcast's direction and their evolving approach to covering European rugbyalongside the domestic competitions they know best.

Segment 2: Da Latest Scoop Starts at (6:52) Full resultsacross all five European competitions: Top 14 (Toulouse stay top with a 45-34win over Bayonne, La Rochelle earn a bonus-point win at Lyon, Vannes collectinglosing bonus points but still searching for a first win, Pau and Toulouse withonly one loss each), Pro D2 (Montauban hand Brive their first loss, Oyonnax andProvence unbeaten, Nevers winless after six rounds, Colomiers surprisingly atthe bottom), Premiership (Northampton smash Bath 71-48, Leicester edgeGloucester 31-30, Sale beat Harlequins, Saracens thump Bristol 30-7, Gloucesterlead the table with Northampton, Sarries and Leicester in the top four, norelegation this year), URC (Glasgow beat Connacht 36-19, Bulls demolish Lions57-15, Stormers beat Sharks 39-22, Ulster and Munster draw 26-all after Munsterled 26-5 at the break), and Championship Rugby (Worcester still unbeaten at49-24 over Nottingham, Ealing bounce back with a 71-7 win over Hartpury,Coventry edge Blackheath 38-36, Doncaster smash Ampthill 56-26). Plus, the fullChampions Cup and Challenge Cup pool draws are broken down — all four ChampionsCup pools and three Challenge Cup pools, with key matchups highlightedincluding Gloucester vs Bordeaux and Saracens vs La Rochelle.

Segment 3: Da Big Wave Starts at (21:02) Bledisloe Cupreview — All Blacks dominate the second half to win 50-19 at Eden Park after atight 17-14 halftime score. Ofa shares his in-stadium experience, thedifference between the Ka Mate and Kapa o Pango haka and what each signifies,Eden Park's atmosphere compared to NRL venues and the gaps in entertainmentrugby could learn from league, and thoughts on the Wallabies under Les Kiss.Then the Rugby League World Cup kicks off — Kangaroos vs Kiwis on Thursday,England vs Tonga in Perth, Jillaroos vs Samoa, Kiwi Ferns vs Fiji in Newcastle,and the Pasifika buzz building around the tournament. Finally, the newly namedWorld Rugby Nations Cup squads for Manu Samoa (featuring new converts includingSean Stevenson, Akira Ioane, and AJ Lam), Ikale Tahi (Sekope Kepu, AdamColeman, Malakai Fekitoa, Patrick Pellegrini, Manu Vunipola), and the FlyingFijians (Nathan Hughes, Sam Vunibaki among a 40-player extended squad), withNovember fixtures against Zimbabwe, Portugal, Spain, Romania, Georgia, HongKong China, France, Ireland, and Italy.

Outro Starts at (46:48) The boys wrap up, apologize for themissing Da Kuleana segment (it's coming as a separate upload), and share theirgoal of reaching 1,000 listens this year. Email your questions and topicsuggestions for next week's episode.

Follow us: IG & TikTok:@talkingabouta.carpool YouTube: @talkingaboutacarpool Email your questions: talkingaboutacarpool@gmail.com

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.

Follow us: IG & TikTok: @talkingabouta.carpool YouTube: @talkingaboutacarpool Email your questions: talkingaboutacarpool@gmail.com

This week on Talking About A Carpool, hosts ofahelotu (Sydney, Australia) and Semisi Telefoni, aka "The Wine Chief" (Auckland, New Zealand), cover the opening rounds of five European club rugby competitions, break down a massive NRL preliminary finals weekend, and unpack the Wallabies' big win over the Springboks.

Segment 1: Talk Story
Starts at (0:00:00)
The AFL grand final comeback by the Brisbane Lions, daylight savings in Auckland, and a look ahead at the NRL prelims and the Wallabies-Springboks test.

Segment 2: Da Latest Scoop
Starts at (0:02:25)

Premiership Rugby — (0:03:00) to (0:08:23)
Sale v Bristol, Northampton v Newcastle, a viral Bath intercept try, and Michael Vunipola's Leicester debut after his move from Vannes.

URC — (0:08:23) to (0:13:50)
All South African sides win round one, Leinster upset by the Lions, and the WRU's plan to cut Welsh pro sides from four to three.

Top 14 — (0:13:50) to (0:16:49)
Toulouse lead the table, Vannes still searching for a win, and La Rochelle's young side at Pau under Ronan O'Gara's philosophy.

Pro D2 — (0:16:49) to (0:22:39)
Oyonnax, Brive, and Provence unbeaten. Nevers winless. War stories from the Oyonnax away trip and a book recommendation from the Wine Chief.

Championship Rugby — (0:22:39) to (0:26:45)
Worcester top, Ealing unbeaten, Bedford Blues bottom. The new promotion model and why financial protection for clubs matters.

Segment 3: Hot Topics
Starts at (0:28:30)
RWC 2031 in the US under threat and 2035 bids from Spain, Italy, Japan, and the Middle East. NRL prelims — Newcastle's stunning 12-man upset of Penrith and the emotion of their first grand final in 25 years. Wallabies' 42-17 win over the Boks overshadowed by referee comms failures. Rugby Australia devaluing the Schoolboys jersey and New Zealand rugby's financial struggles and Super Rugby format review.

Da Kuleana: We are extracting Da Kuleana segments from past full episodes and releasing them as standalone uploads. Once the back catalogue is complete, Da Kuleana returns to the full episode in a refined format. Keep an eye on the feed.

Outro
Starts at (0:57:48)
The Wine Chief's upcoming VIP wine tasting, Sips and Scrubs at Tonga v Samoa in Hunter Valley, and your Q&A invitation.

Follow us:
IG & TikTok: @talkingabouta.carpool
YouTube: @talkingaboutacarpool
Email your questions: talkingaboutacarpool@gmail.com