The Scrum Down with Alex Corbisiero

As this season of the Scrum Down comes to the close, we are sadly marking it with the historic event of London Irish entering administration. In a season which has seen a fantastic Rugby product on the field and lots of success across different formats of the game, it has been blighted by the situations of Wasps, Worcester Warriors and sadly now, London Irish. Alex Corbisiero is joined by BBC Rugby Correspondent Chris Jones, to chat through news of the administration, what can be done to protect other clubs in the league and how the league can be restructured and what may be next for London Irish

The Gallagher Premiership season may be over, but there is still a lot of confusion and questions over the future of London Irish. Corbs is joined by the BBC's Chris Jones, to discuss the latest stories, following on from a conditional extension from the RFU possibly being broken, and how that may affect the fate of the club in the near future.

This week on the Scrum Down we continue to cover the developing ownership situation at London Irish, with only a matter of days remaining before the RFU's deadline for Irish to play in the league next year hits. To cover this, Alex Lowe joins again, fresh from a trip to Dublin where he watched the Champions Cup, and then we focus on Twickenham and the forthcoming Premiership Final between Saracens and Sale, and to preview the match we'll be joined by Performance Analyst Ross Hamilton.

Ross Hamilton is back on the Scrum Down to review the semi-final games in the Premiership over the weekend with Saracens and Northampton Saints facing off as well as Sale Sharks and Leicester Tigers. And Alex Lowe is back as we keep on the pulse of the London Irish story, with more clarity on the ownership situation as well as the league preparing contingencies and setting deadliness for the situation to be resolved.

On this weeks Scrum Down we look at both the exciting and worrying sides of the Premiership, with Alex Lowe joining to talk about the concerns that are still causing problems at London Irish as well as the latest developments with Worcester Warriors and Wasps. And then Ross Hamilton joins to go through the Premiership semi-finals by the numbers as we anticipating an exciting set of matches with Saracens taking on Northampton and Sale Sharks facing off against Leicester Tigers.

Alex Lowe joins Corbs to discuss what's happening at London Irish where the players have not been paid their wages for April. As we've had in previous episodes of the Scrum Down, Alex Lowe is the man in the know in the UK to bring us the inside info at the troubled clubs - as he has done with Worcester Warriors and Wasps so far this season. They discuss the status of the takeover deal, the best and worst case scenarios for the club and players, whether the match will go ahead against Exeter this weekend and also the current situation at another troubled club - Worcester Warriors.

On this weeks Scrum Down, Chris Jones and Alex Lowe both join to discuss the big rugby news topics in the UK. They carry on the discussion from last week following Jack Nowell's tweet and subsequent disciplinary action, before looking ahead to the upcoming semi-finals and discussing if anyone can stop Saracens, they then discuss the RFU's changes to the tackle height law in the community game following last years poorly handled announcement.

This week's Scrum Down sees the return of Alex Lowe to the podcast, to discuss the state of Premiership Rugby in the UK. From the playoff race to sending-offs and possible bans for Twitter comments, to the future of the league itself with a possible drop to 10 teams including an update on Worcester and Wasps as well as future collaboration with the RFU to strengthen the state of the game in England.

On this weeks Scrum Down, Corbs runs through the past weeks action in the Heineken Champions Cup, discussing travel issues and wage disparities in the teams before touching on his thoughts on what English rugby needs to change and integrate between league and national team to benefit the sport. And then we are joined by USA 7s Eagle Kristi Kirshe to react to USA securing Olympic qualification, their growth as team this year on and off the field and her own journey into Rugby, having not picked up a Rugby ball until just 5 years ago.

London Irish' Chunya Munga joins Corbs on The Scrum Down fresh off his 50th appearance for the club, the two react to Irish's big win over Northampton, back to back Premiership Cup Final defeats, the success of the London Irish Academy, the run in to the playoffs ahead for London Irish with two big games remaining and much much more.

For the final time in 2023, The Scrum Down focusses on the Six Nations which has been won by Ireland, who also won a Grand Slam. Corbs is joined again by Ross Hamilton to break down the numbers from the final round, evaluate the teams and see their progress throughout the tournament as well as look at some of the key stats that have determined the outcome of the competition.

We continue our series of ‘Six Nations by The Numbers' joined by analyst Ross Hamilton to look at a huge 4th round of the Competition where England got a huge wake-up call, Wales finally found winning form and Ireland continued on their way towards a grand slam. Ross and Corbs disect the weekends matches before looking ahead to the next round of the competition.

Round 4 of the Six Nations take place this coming weekend - so continue our run of ‘six nations by the numbers' podcasts, analyst Ross Hamilton is back with Corbs to look ahead to the key statistics that could make the difference between the teams in the tournament this weekend.

Ross Hamilton is back on the pod to go breakdown the key numbers and stats from each game from the 3rd round of the Six Nations with Alex reacting and adding his insight. And then to talk Six Nations news story's Alex is joined by the returning Chris Jones of the BBC, they discuss the Welsh player strike drama from last week, the state of the Welsh Team and rugby in Wales, Marcus Smith being dropped and assess Borthwick's rebuild of the England Team.

This weeks Scrum Down looks ahead to the third round of the Six Nations with analyst Ross Hamilton. We study the Six Nations match ups by the numbers to see where teams are performing best, how they're styles match up and what will be the key statistics that could decide the games. And then Joe Schroeder from the Men's USA Sevens joins for a look ahead to the LA Sevens at the weekend as well as talking about the release of ‘The Pioneers part 3' documentary from HSBC which will be released on the NBC Sports YouTube page on Friday

Following the 2nd round of matches at the Six Nations over the weekend, former Ireland international Luke Fitzgerald joins us on the Scrum Down to discuss Ireland - the standout team of the competition so far. After that, Rugby statistician and performance analyst Ross Hamilton is on the show to break down all of the key numbers across the weekend and to analyze the performance of each team in the six nations from a data point of view.

The Six Nations began in dramatic fashion with Scotland keeping hold of the Calcutta cup following victory over England. To react to this and gloat, Corbs is joined again by former Scotland International, Blair Cowan - who earns the podcasts bragging rights after a correct prediction last episode. And then Chris Jones of the BBC joins to summarize the rest of the opening weekend, talk England coach changes and selection for Italy, as well as looking ahead to this weekends matches and the road ahead for the winners and losers in round 1.

This weeks pod features 3 guests as Alex Lowe joins us to revisit the ongoing saga regarding tackle height and the RFU in the UK, before we transition into the 6 nations. Alex talks about the current situation with England's team and their chances heading into the tournament, and we also get a Scottish and Irish perspective with former Scottish international Blair Cowan and former Ireland international Luke Fitzgerald joining to talk about their teams and how they're looking going into this years tournament.

2:00 Alex Lowe2:47 - Tackle Height changes and Upraor6:33 - why is the RFU doing this now?10:31 - Double Tackle Laws13:00 - Will the rules reduce concussion?14:22 - When will this filter into the professional game?18:08 - Law Changes overshadowing the Six Nations24:00 - Sam Sullivan & Cheta Emba24:20 - Looking ahead to Sydney25:13 - Looking back at Hamilton Silver27:31 - Changes from last season31:11 - Perfect time for possible Olympic Qualification 35:28 - Aaron Cummings & David Still25:47 - Planning for tournament in Sydney36:30 - The intensity of the 7s schedule37:14 - Hamilton Tournament Review39;41 - year on year differences in performance47:00 - 7s or 15s?

01:47 - Eddie Jones News06:46 - Should the RFU have prevented Eddie Jones' switch?12:40 - A Strong Australia squad going forward17:20 - Will Eddie Jones and Warren Gatland both fulfil their 5 year plans?24:00 - Sinfield and Borthwick announcing 6 nations team30:40 - England Squad Selections38:42 - England's captaincy and Owen Farell

1:55 - Chris Robshaws' life after retirement.05:50 - Steve Evans appointment as England's new attack coach12:00 - Kevin Sinfield, England and the Six Nations17:00 - Getting the Twickenham crowd back onside19:45 - Chris and Corbs's combined England 1531:10 - English Rugby now has options33:55 - Will England appoint a new captain?41:00 - Team selection summary42:50 - Getting behind Steve Borthwick43:45 - Six Nations predictions

01:30 Joe Taufete'e Intro01:55 - Joe's Injury Recovery04:00 - MLR vs Premiership4:49 - Departure of Steve Borthwick from Leicester Tigers6:36 - Joe on Kevin Sinfield7:36 - Should Leicester be worried with changes?9:38 - Joe on new Head Coach Richard Wigglesworth11:33 - Joe on Eagles missing on the World Cup15:15  - Looking Forwards with the Eagles16:53 - The departure of Gary Gold20:19 - Alex Lowe20:35 - Kevin Sinfield joining the England Setup27:53 - Kevin's contribution to England's reboot.29:17 - Further England coaching team changes34:00 - England team selection40:30 - England's number 8 options

01:00 Corbs view on England and Steve Borthwick08:33 - London Irish win against Saracens13:55 - The ambition of London Irish16:10 - Toms career and Journey21:40 - Tom playing under Eddie Jones24:00 - Has Tom spoken to Steve Borthwick?25:00 - Tom's aims for his career29:30 - Tom using Breath Coach33:00 - Similarities with Jonathan Fisher

00:15 Corbs Reacts to 7s and Gary Gold News06:45 - Steve Borthwick should become the next England Coach14:00 - Steve Borthwick Tactics17:00 - England Needing Defensive Improvements19:30 - Leicester looking for Steve's replacement23:00 - Premiership Relaunch30:10 - Will the restructure fix fundamental league issues?32:00 - Latest on Wasps and Worcester bids and P Shares35:55 - Differences between Premiership 1 and 2 

1:31 - Eddie Jones Dismissed1:48 - Chris Jones initial thoughts2:47 - Alex Lowe initial thoughts4:11 - Corbs initial thoughts6:22 - Eddie's Coaching Staff8:39 - Eddie's Failures to rebuild13:02 - What's gone wrong since 2019?16:12 - England ‘botching' their succession plan19:26 - Why was Eddie backed until now?20:40 - Eddie Jones' Successor22:23 - Steve Borthwick35:01 - USA 7s36:15 - Womens 7s Results in Dubai37:00 - Mens Results38:25 - Areas for Improvement41:18 - representation and leadership in Rugby43:00 - Dishing the dirt on team mates  

00:30 - England Chat03:55 - England Fans booing05:10 - Ross Young P1 Recap09:15 - Player development pathways13:37 - Should USA Rugby take more control of the pathways?16:20 - Collectivising the Collegiate System19:25 - Could World Rugby help finance the collegiate system?24:27 - Is Dan Payne an unlikely fit?26:30 - Should the USA share the Players between 7s and 15s?30:30 - USA and World Rugby's relationship36:34 - Does Ross feel under pressure?38:50 - Eddie Jones41:00 - Foreign or American Coaches?43:30 - Wrap up and final thoughts

4:50 - USA World Cup Reaction8:29 - How big a blow to USA's upward trajectory is not qualifying?11:05 - Where does accountability lie?13:03 - Ideas for moving forward19:22 - A possible USA team in SLAR?23:07 - Would SLAR create conflicts with MLR?26:31 - Calendars and commercial strategies combining29:25 - Will the USA completely Re-Draw their commercial model?33:33 - Challenges faced with broadcasting deals39:02 - Eddie Jones Teaser

On this weeks Scrum Down, we start by talking through the past weekends Rugby World Cup Final. Alex talks with Black Ferns Forwards coach Mike Cron about their transformation to world champions in 6 months and then he chats to former England international Kat Merchant about the final and the aftermath for both teams as well as the future of the woman's game. And then, from Dubai - USA Head coach Gary Gold joins Alex ahead of their big world cup qualification decider with Portugal.

1:33 - The Buzz Around the World Cup in New Zealand2:18 - A sold out World Cup Final5:06 - England vs Canada10:01 - New Zealand Vs France13:21 - The World Cup Final15:55 - Englands Strengths22:00 - Chris Jones Intro22:25 - Autumn Internatioanls23:39 - Wales vs New Zealand24:27 - England vs Argentina31:34 - Is Englands focus too much on the World Cup?40:47- England need to ‘Bring It' against Japan44:04 - Ireland vs South Africa46:40 - France vs Australia

1:17 - Intro to Abby Gustaitis3:00 - The Semi Finals Top 44:14 - USA Vs Canada8:11 - The USA Falling Short10:27 - Where can the US improve?15:54 - England vs Canada Selfie18:46 - New Zealand vs France23:14 - Corbs and Abby's vote for the win26:00 Bryce Intro26:24 - Preparation in the US Squad27:18 -The mood of the Eagles30:45 - Coaching time with the Eagles31:34 International players joining the camp32:19 - The Passion representing the USA

01:14 Rob Cain Intro01:35 Rob's World Cup Experience02:09 The USA's World Cup Journey03:40 USA vs Canada08:26 Rob's job so far09:54 Professionalism growing in the Women's game11:48 What does Rob enjoy the most?12:51 Intro to Chris Jones16:00 The Womens game and World Cup17:36 Can the Red Roses generate revenue in the UK?21:27 France vs Italy25:23 USA vs Canada27:00 Understanding Rugby's stature in the US36:16 Discussing the Gallagher Premiership37:19 Wasps Chat42:11 Premiership Expanding or Contracting45:47 CVC's Investment into the Premiership48:35 Are other teams in trouble?51:30 Outro

00:43 - Premiership Score Breakdown02:12 - Premiership Table03:00 - Wasps Administration06:11 - Introducing Kate and JoJo07:00 - USA vs Japan08:15 - Carrying Momentum into the Canada Game09:10 - USA vs Italy13:40 - the USA Experience at the World Cup 16:25 - The USA team commitment18:50 - What it means to play for your country at the world cup20:25 - Introducing Ilona Maher24:22 - Discussing Pool A26:00 - Discussing Pool B 26:30 - Ilona on USA Vs Japan31:00 - Ilona's watch party for Canada vs USA.31:50 - Pool C35:00 - Who does Ilona think will win the World Cup?36:40 - Closer

00:00 World Cup and Gallagher Premiership Run Down5:16 - Alex Intro and Worcester Discussion9:39 - Worcester's Owners and Myriad of Companies11:01 - Red Flags ignored by RFU14:47 - Could Worcester's troubles have been prevented?23:30 - Could Worcester put a squad together if the club is saved?27:15 - The Latest on Wasps29:50 - Relegation affecting takeover bids31:25 - Lawrence Dallaglio's Wasps Comments34:15 - Treating Worcester and Wasps evenly and fairly37:18 - Could Wasps return to London?39:45 - Could clubs in the league merge?

01:57 - Introducing Jonathan02:55 - Jonathan's step-up to coaching03:40 - How things are going at London Irish05:00 - London Irish's Identity08:20 - London Irish's attacking potential10:30 - Growth going forward for London Irish' squad 14:04 - Does lack of relegation help the clubs in the Premiership?16:20 - London Irish' Academy20:00 - Jonathan's coaching journey.23:50 - Differences between coaching academy players and first teamers27:00 - Premiership Cup and London Irish30:00 - Where should London Irish be aiming this season?34:00 - Possible changes needed to the Premiership Model39:25 - Show Wrap Up

00:10 Intro And Premiership Run down02:21 - Alex Lowe Introduction03:00 - Worcester Warriors06:00 - Worcester defending a winding up order08:10 - Worcester's current owners trying to avoid administration10:10- Could the owners have avoided the ban from Rugby?12:30 - Is this a wake-up call for the RFU and Premiership Rugby?14:50 - The governance of the Premiership18:00 - Solutions for the league & Possible 10 team formats.22:15 - Expansion vs. Contraction for The Premiership.24:00 - Wasps Enter Administration26:30 - What has happened to Wasps?29:00 - Was the pandemic to blame for Wasps?32:20 - Where do the premiership go to fix this?33:30 - Where aren't casual Rugby fans engaged in the premiership?36:30 - Should the RFU take over the development systems of the clubs?

00:50 - Gary Introduction3:15 - World Cup Qualifications4:30 - Losing to Chile7:05 - Fitness in the camp11:10 - Warm up games in South Africa14:15 - Gary's Frustrations17:00 - Lack of year-round Rugby hampering the Eagles19:55 - Passion of the squad22:00 - Struggles of not having regular camp time with the Eagles25:20 - The commitments of Coaching the Eagles29:40 - Episode Wrap

00:10 Intro01:19 Dan Lyle Intro01:40 Fiji RWC 7'S Win04:00 Australia Women's RWC 7'S Win07:00 Landscape of USA Rugby16:00: AJ MacGinty35:00: MacGinty reflects on Eagles 15's RWC Path to Qualification44:00 Outro

00:10 Intro01:30 Alex Lowe Introductions02:04 Developments with Worcester Warriors04:30 How are Worcester warriors in such a bad situation?05:00 MPs calling for Administration06:30 Warriors ownership group responding to administration calls07:30 Other clubs struggling with debt in the league.09:30 Are changes needed for the league?14:10 What Happens if Worcester Warriors go into administration?16:00 Ilona Maher16:40 Excitement before the 7s World Cup18:40 Opening Game in South Africa for the World Cup20:40 Ilona and TikTok and using it to promote the game23:00 How has TikTok helped Ilona?24:16 What would it mean to win the world cup?26:30 Perry Baker Joins27:23 Perry reflecting on the LA 7s and taking it forward28:40 How does Perry use his experience with younger players?30:20 What would it mean to have a successful world cup?31:30 How's the feeling in the camp?33:05 - Outro

1:08 - Dan Lyle Head of AEG Rugby talks the success of the LA 7's through hardships5:25 - USA 7's Captain Abby Gustaitis discusses the Sevens Series Landscape and the future of USA Rugby10:32 - USA 7's Coach Mike Friday relfects on USA Rugby's performance14:34 - Australia 7's Billy Meakes on Australia 7's teams priorities for the Weekend and moving forward16:36 - Ireland 7's Harry McNulty reflects on his experience with 7's rugby18:50 - NFL/USA Rugby player Nate Ebner comments on the importance of the LA 7's and his rugby future22:30 - Maurice Longbottom at LA 7's final

01:45 - Rupert introduction02:35 - Problems at Worcester Warriors05:15 - Worcester's 6 Million Tax Bill06:10 - Worcester's Tax Bill EXCEEDS their salary cap06:45 - Where's Worcester's money gone?08:25 - Worcester's Owners Intentions09:05 - Players Discontent11:00 - Worcester's Assets12:15 - Olly Lawrence's Tweet15:45 - Where will the players go?19:15 - Impact on Warriors Fans21:15 - Can CVC help to protect their investment?23:15 - Other clubs at risk of financial problems25:15 - Distractions from an exciting season26:45 - Are there too many clubs in the league?28:15 - LA Rugby 7s29:15 - World Rugby 7s series so far

Ahmed is back in charge of the hosting duties for this show as Alex and him discuss all the latest news and reaction of the 2021 British & Irish Lions tour of South Africa. The two analyze the loss to South Africa A, what we learned from both sides and where they are on their preparations before the first test match. Alex also picks his starting Lions XV based on the Tour so far and highlights what places he still thinks are up for grabs. The boys then round out the pod by discussing Team USA Men and Women's Rugby Sevens chances at the Tokyo Olympics this summer.

The Scrumdown is back as it's British and Irish Lions Tour time and the only way to watch it in the USA is with NBC Sports! Alex is joined by fellow NBC pundit Dan Lyle to discuss all the latest developments of the tour. The boys talk the current COVID disruptions, what it means for the tour, the performances against the Sigma Lions and Cell C Sharks, the tentatively scheduled repeat fixture this weekend, the selection dilemmas facing the coaches, plus the boys pick their starting Lions Test XV's from what we've seen so far.

Alex and Ahmed react to and break down the European Champions Cup final, which aired on NBC this weekend. They also look at the Premiership run into the playoffs and the latest on the British and Irish Lions tour, which is on NBC Sports this summer.

The 2021 British and Irish Lions squad has been selected for the tour to South Africa and Alex Corbisiero and Dan Lyle are here to break it all down. The two start by reflecting on the roller coaster ride that has been if and where the tour will happen, their excitement to be covering it on NBC Sports and what the coverage will look like with the Olympics taking place this summer.The boys then go through the squad by position, discussing the merits of each selection, who was unlucky to miss out, who will be next in line to be called up and what can we take away from selection relating to the style of play we will see from the Lions. Alex also shares his experience of initial missing out on selection in 2013 and dishes out some advice for those who were unlucky to miss out for this tour.

No Ahmed this week allows Alex to wrestle back control of the hosting duties for this show, where he is joined by Dan Lyle to talk all things Champions Cup on NBC Sports. The two review all the weekend's last 16 knock out action and preview the upcoming quarter final match ups.

Alex and Ahmed are back again talking all things on Rugby on NBC. They reflect on the finale of the Six Nations, look at the Premiership table, preview this weekend's Champions Cup fixtures and Alex picks his current British and Irish Lions XV, plus the first Chuck Norris comparison in show history.

Alex and Ahmed are back with plenty to break down after the "Not so Final" round of Six Nations action. The boys dive deep into the dramatic ending to the Wales vs. France game, talk about their weekend back together at NBC Sports HQ in Stamford, diagnose what is going wrong with England, discuss Eddie Jones' future, preview France vs Scotland, and make their betting predictions.

Alex is back from coaching the LA Giltinis in Hawaii and reveals what he learned being back in a professional environment. Ahmed and Alex also discuss the Wales England referee controversy, the effect of the Scotland France postponement on the tournament, the latest developments with the British and Irish Lions tour, plus the current Premiership Rugby table.

The boys are back again to review the opening round of Six Nations' matches and the fallout, plus look ahead to Round 2. Alex diagnoses where he thinks England are going wrong, makes the case for why Ireland look to have improved despite the loss, confesses his love for France's Antoine Dupont, weighs the prospect of a Six Nations relegation and raves about Ireland adopting Saracens scrum system.

Alex and Ahmed review all the weekend's Premiership Rugby action, discuss the potential of the British and Irish Lions playing their tour in Australia and preview the opening round of the 2021 Six Nations.

No rugby on NBC this weekend but never fear... Alex and Ahmed are here to discuss all of the weeks rugby news! The duo discuss the firing of Harlequins Head of Rugby Paul Gustard, the decision of EPRC to move straight to the knockout rounds of the champions cup, what to do with the Lions tour, Six Nations squad announcements and Alex picks his England team.