The Armchair Refs

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Take a seat on the Armchair and join us as we debate the latest rugby and sporting events. Full of bad takes and laughter, this easygoing podcast hosted by Mike Abrahamse and Ben Hall is almost guaranteed to be the best hour of your week. With reviews like this, why would you want to miss out? "10/10 would recommend to anyone" - Ben's Mum "5* full of quality and great sporting takes" - Mike's dad

Ben and Big Mike


    • Mar 30, 2024 LATEST EPISODE
    • infrequent NEW EPISODES
    • 50m AVG DURATION
    • 23 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from The Armchair Refs

    6 Nations - Sad it's over but Glad it happened

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 30, 2024 66:13


    Listen in to relive the finale of the six nations, with the best matched Super Saturday ever going in how did they fair? In this episode we talk about: The Anglo-French Rivalry in Le Crunch Battle of the chokers Scotland vs Ireland A real wooden spoon contest Mike vs Ben drafting a Team of the six nations Are back rows overrated?

    Greatest Six Nations Weekend Ever

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 14, 2024 61:04


    In this episode Ben and I discuss the three great matchups we saw this weekend: - Italy beating Scotland, getting their first home win since 2013 - England getting the upset over the favourites Ireland - France finally getting back on track against Wales And much more!

    Should rolling subs be allowed?

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 7, 2024 57:49


    In this wonderful episode, Ben and I dive into Round 3 of the 6 nations and dissect each match. Plus the debut of our new debate segment where we talk about whether rolling subs should be allowed in rugby union We hope you enjoy the episode!

    6 Nations round-up

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 23, 2024 46:47


    It's been a while but We are back and raring to go. Join us on the sofa as we look at the first 2 rounds of the 6 Nations and some of our slightly left field predictions for this weekend. It's been a great couple of weeks so far with: England and Ireland winning 2/2 France and Scotland struggling to showcase their awesome potential Wales and Italy pushing hard for a win After all the hype from the 6N documentary, we thought we would throw in our opinions of the rugby so far.

    Bonus Episode 2

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 24, 2023 20:25


    Just two handsome blokes having some fun talking sports Stay tuned for the Sports Articulate at the end!

    Episode 102: 7s is the future of Rugby

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 24, 2023 30:22


    A Thanksgiving treat! Back from some time off, we talk about: - Premiership Derby Weekend - HSBC SVNS - 7s is the future of Rugby And so much more! We hope you enjoy listening :)

    Bonus Episode 1

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 10, 2023 23:08


    A shorter, new episode! These bonus episodes focus on every other sport besides rugby. This week we talk about: - NFL - Feel good sport stories - Steroid Olympics We are just having some fun with this one, stayed tuned in till the end for our Sports Articulate game!

    Episode 101: Choose Your Fighter - URC vs Premiership

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 8, 2023 34:10


    We are all experiencing the post Rugby World Cup blues, but fear not! There is still amazing rugby going on across the world and we want to give you an insight into two of the competitions! In this episode we discuss the recent history of both the URC and English Premiership along with some basic information that if you were new to the leagues, you are all caught up now! We delve into why we think one is better than the other, but safe to say you'll have to figure it out for yourselves! We hope you enjoy

    011 They didn't come for the Croissants - Rugby World Cup Final and Awards roundup

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 31, 2023 55:23


    Join us on the Armchair as we discuss the HUGE World Cup Final, 3rd place playoffs and Rugby Awards. This episode includes: Are the 2023 Boks the best team ever? Sam Cane's red card Are England the 3rd best team in the world? Who got snubbed for Rugby Award And so much more

    010 Salads don't win scrums

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 24, 2023 65:43


    In this wonderful episode we dissect: - NZ demolishing Argentina - South Africa scraping by England - England off to good start in WXV - Preview of the RWC 23 Final And so much more...! We hope you like the episode. Get in touch with us if you want us to talk about your sports!

    salad nz rwc scrums england england
    009 Goodbye Ireland, Hello Semis - the curse continues

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 19, 2023 69:43


    What a weekend of rugby! Here we get straight into dissecting arguably the best round of quarter finals at a Rugby World Cup ever and look towards two huge semi-finals. In this episode we discuss: The quarter final curse plaguing Ireland again The return of the All Blacks Argentina's experienced finishers England marching on Are the boks going to repeat?

    008 Tier 2 rugby > Tier 1, change our minds

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 10, 2023 95:02


    Look, we know it's a longer episode. But when the juices get flowing, we can't stop! We hope that you liked our ramble. In this episode we talked about: - RWC catch-up + review of our pool predictions - Players on fraud watch?! - Simone Biles making history - MOTM awards for NFL? And much more!

    007 Rugby World Cup: The Spy who Rucked me

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 3, 2023 67:49


    Take a seat and join us as we debate the latest round-up of Rugby and Wider sports including: Why we (don't) think Scotland will qualify What happened to Italy? Our new French Doctor The Ryder Cup The new WXV league And much more! All done with a good splash of terrible jokes and laughter.

    006 Two Kens talking sports

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 28, 2023 61:23


    Another great episode fresh off the press! We talk about a variety of different sports with an extra focus on the Rugby World Cup. We also try and convince you that we can provide an expert analysis with a dash of humour. Topics included: - Ben's impersonation of Eddie Jones - England looking hot before the QFs - Panthers on the brink of another NRL championship - Europe retaining the Solheim Cup And many more! We hope you like the episode :)

    005 It's a sport world and we love living in it

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 22, 2023 76:09


    A brand new episode arriving just before the weekend! We treat you guys so well In this episode we attempt to cover as much sport as we can whilst providing you with our excellent in-depth armchair analysis. We cover: - Deion Sander's impact on College Football - Carlos Sainz ending Red Bull's dominance - Ryder + Solheim Cup - Rugby World Cup drama And much more! We hope you love this episode. Remember to keep up with us on Instagram and Twitter @TheArmchairRefs

    004 Allez le World Cup!

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 14, 2023 77:07


    It's finally here! The World Cup has kicked off in style and the Armchair Refs are looking into the best tries, worst cards and wildest skills on show from the weekends games! Take a seat and join us.

    003 Rugby - How to fit in with the crowd? (And what are the rules)

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 8, 2023 45:07


    On the eve of the Rugby World Cup, we talk about the general rules, useful phrases and lots of rubbish! Take a seat and join us!

    World Cup Miniseries - Pool D

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 6, 2023 19:10


    Can sleepy England wake up and smell the Roses? We look at the final pool in our miniseries and see who can challenge for the final spaces in the group.

    World Cup Miniseries - Pool C

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 6, 2023 21:55


    The real pool of death! We discuss who are the contenders and pretenders in the tightest looking pool in the whole world cup. Can 'tier 2' nations Fiji & Georgia stand up to the financial might of Australia and Wales? Will Portugal bag a win?

    World Cup Miniseries - Pool B

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 5, 2023 23:47


    In this episode of the World Cup Miniseries, we take a look at the most popular pool, Group B. It consists of Ireland, South Africa, Scotland, Tonga and Romania and only two can escape the group... Some big household names in this group. This spicy episode contains: - Will Leinster's failure in the Champions Cup haunt the Irish players? - Can South Africa silence the pasty wonderkid that is Finn Russell? - Could Tonga and Romania cause upset if other teams rest their starters? And much more!

    002 We Think We Know What We Are Talking About

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 3, 2023 62:56


    The Armchair Refs are back at it trying to convince you wonderful listeners that we know what we are talking about! In this delightful episode we cover topics such as: - Our live reactions from Twickenham watching South Africa vs New Zealand - England Rugby getting worse and worse before the World Cup - Spanish Women's Football Drama And many more!

    World Cup Miniseries - Pool A

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 30, 2023 12:31


    In this Miniseries, we're looking at diving into the Rugby World Cup pools so you can know what games to watch and what players to watch out for. Join us in Pool A where: Two titans of the sport, France and the All Blacks, vie to win the pool. Italy look to cause an upset Namibia hunt their first world cup win

    001 Humble Beginnings

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 25, 2023 63:11


    Mike and Ben take on the big world of podcasting. In this episode we explore why SA were so good, why England were so bad and well as looking at the Women's world cup final and NFL preseason.

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