The Left Wing

On this week's episode of The Left Wing in association with Laya Healthcare, Luke Fitzgerald and Will Slattery are joined in studio by Irish Independent rugby correspondent Cian Tracey to recap an exciting final weekend of Champions Cup action.Leinster booked a home quarter-final and possible home semi-final after winning in Montpellier, and the lads discuss the performances of Jordan Larmour and James Lowe on the wing. Munster joined Leinster in the knockout stages after a big victory against Castres, and the lads were in agreement that Keith Earls was the star of the show.For Ulster, it was a disappointing exit at the hands of Wasps while Connacht will play Gloucester in the Challenge Cup quarter-final.Luke, Cian and Will also discuss Leinster vs Saracens in the quarter-final, the Player of the Year nominees and Will's New Year's resolution to take up golf.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's podcast, Luke Fitzgerald and Will Slattery are joined by Leinster and Ireland star Rhys Ruddock.The flanker is currently recovering from a nasty hamstring injury and he tells the lads how his rehab is going - as well as giving Irish fans some positive news on his return.Ruddock's dad Mike is a Grand Slam-winning coach with Wales, and Rhys talks about the influence his father has had on his rugby career, as well as explaining how he came to the decision of playing his rugby in Ireland.Also, Will and Luke discuss the recent debate surrounding Munster second row Gerbrandt Grobler as well as going over the weekend's Champions Cup action.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined in studio by Leinster and Ireland star Jamie Heaslip.The back row is currently on the sidelines with a back injury and the lads try their best to extract as much information as possible on when Heaslip might be back on the field.The 100-cap international has one of the most impressive CVs in world rugby, and gives an insight into the meticulous off-field preparation that has helped him win so many honours.Despite his success, there is a section of fans who have never warmed to Heaslip, and Luke and Will ask him whether it bothers him that he doesn't get the same affection from supporters as some other Irish stars.Heaslip is also involved in a number of businesses away from rugby, and he explains how he is preparing for life away from the game.And finally, Will confronts Jamie about an urban legend regarding a pre-match meal he may have eaten before the 2011 PRO 12 final.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by Ruaidhri O'Connor of the Irish Independent to recap all the festive action.The lads agree that Leinster have pulled substantially ahead of the rest of the provinces, but will Jordan Larmour and James Lowe be able to force their way into the team for the Champions Cup?Luke thinks that the 20-year-old Larmour still has a bit to learn before he makes the step up to Europe, while Ruaidhri analyses whether youngsters Dan Leavy and Josh van der Flier can usurp Sean O'Brien and Peter O'Mahony in the Irish team.As for Munster, indiscipline has become a big problem for them after getting another player sent off against Ulster.Connacht's resurgence, Ulster's comeback win and the top ten rugby players in the world are also up for discussion on the first Left Wing episode of 2018.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by Dublin star Cian O'Sullivan to discuss his All-Ireland-winning inter-county career and how he balances work with top level sport.Luke and Cian are friends from their time in school, and discuss the challenges they faced in working their way to the top of rugby and Gaelic football. Cian reveals that battling back from a serious injury to play in the 2015 All-Ireland final was his proudest moment in a Dublin jersey, and he sheds some light on how Dublin are able to snatch victory from the jaws of the defeat so often.Luke and Will also discuss the weekend's Champions Cup action, whether Ross Byrne is a viable alternative to Johnny Sexton, Leicester's indiscipline, Kyle Sinckler's antics and Ian Keatley's resilience.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by Des Berry of The Herald and Cian Tracey of the Irish Independent to discuss all the Champions Cup action.After Leinster's impressive win in Exeter and Saracens' heavy defeat, Will argues that Leinster are now the Champions Cup favourites. Simon Zebo stood out during Munster's big win against Leicester - but will that be enough to get into Joe Schmidt's Six Nations squad?Luke thinks that one of the reasons for Zebo's departure is that he doesn't enjoy playing in Schmidt's regimented set-up.The panel also discuss Matt O'Connor's outburst after Leicester's defeat, as well as why his dealings with the media led to his Leinster downfall. The lads also discuss Ulster's win in a blizzard, why everyone loves Clermont and why certain players enjoy speaking to the media.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by former Ulster and Ireland star Stephen Ferris to preview the Champions Cup back-to-back fixtures.Despite a decent set of results so far this season, Ferris paints a gloomy picture of the state of Ulster rugby as they prepare to face Harlequins. It is Les Kiss' third season as Director of Rugby and Ferris thinks that an upturn in performance level is needed for him to get a fourth.It is Ireland vs England in the Champions Cup with all three Irish provinces taking on Premiership sides this weekend. The panel are predicting a successful weekend for the Irish sides, but are wary of an in-form Exeter.And Ferris also gives some insight into Saracens' massively successful Director of Rugby Mark McCall, who gave him his debut at Ulster.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by in studio by Irish Independent rugby correspondents Ruaidhri O'Connor and Cian Tracey to review the November internationals. O'Connor discusses Jacob Stockdale's big contribution to Ireland's three wins while Tracey analyses the team's midfield options heading into the Six Nations. The panel then debate whether Leinster youngster Jordan Larmour could soon be called up to the Ireland squad, while Fitzgerald says that Joe Schmidt has a tendency to make 'odd' selections, but is such a good coach that he can overcome them.Scotland enjoyed a strong November, but are they really a Six Nations threat? The lads discuss Gregor Townsend's Scottish revolution and ask whether or not the All Blacks have come back to the pack after losing two games in a calendar year for the first time since 2011.There is also some provincial discussion as the panel talk about the likelihood of Peter O'Mahony leaving Munster and Ulster's struggle for form.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined in studio by former Leinster centre Eoin O'Malley.Like Fitzgerald, O'Malley was forced into retirement through injury when he was just 25. The talented centre was just emerging as a contender for Brian O'Driscoll's 13 jersey when he was forced to step away, and O'Malley discusses what it was like battling Ireland's greatest player for a place in the Leinster team.O'Malley also talks about how Joe Schmidt managed to keep the whole squad happy while rotating players, while Fitzgerald reveals a nightmare encounter he had against the Scarlets when he was just 18.Fitzgerald and O'Malley also open up on how tough it can be when you are forced to hang up your boots prematurely.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by Leinster wing Fergus McFadden to discuss the province's season so far, Ireland's demolition of the Springboks and their rivalry as team-mates.Fitzgerald and McFadden discuss the performances of Jacob Stockdale and Andrew Conway against South Africa, while McFadden talks about the competition for places in the Leinster back three.The duo had a healthy rivalry during their time with Leinster and Ireland, and the good friends reveal that they were able to help each other on the pitch despite competing for places.Fitzgerald also reveals the time that Joe Schmidt cut Brian O'Driscoll down to size in a training session and McFadden looks ahead to Leinster's upcoming back-to-back Champions Cup fixtures against Exeter.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery is joined by Irish Independent rugby columnist Tony Ward, Irish Independent rugby correspondent Ruaidhri O'Connor and Des Berry of The Herald to preview Ireland's upcoming November series.The panel debate the key selections issues facing Joe Schmidt, including whether centre Bundee Aki will make his debut, and look ahead to the challenge posed by South Africa this Saturday.Tony Ward also weighs in on Sean Cronin's surprise omission from the Ireland squad and the lads look discuss Warren Gatland's poor record with Wales against southern hemisphere opposition.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined in studio by Bristol out-half Ian Madigan.The lads hear what life has been like under Pat Lam in the English championship, and look back at his career with Leinster as well as the crushing 2015 World Cup defeat to Argentina.And as someone directly impacted by the IRFU's stance on players playing abroad, Madigan gives his take on Simon Zebo's recent move and his own international future.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined in studio by Connacht flanker Jake Heenan.In a wide-ranging interview, Heenan opens up on his tough teenage years in New Zealand, how Pat Lam convinced him to go to Connacht and the changes out west under new coach Kieran Keane.Luke and Jake, who is now Irish qualified through the residency rule, also have an interesting discussion on the use of project players.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by Irish and Sunday Independent columnist Neil Francis to discuss how the Irish provinces fared in the first weekend of Champions Cup action, and look ahead to this weekend's games.Neil isn't overly pleased with Leinster's performance while Luke thinks that the errors made by Leo Cullen's men can be rectified ahead of Glasgow on Saturday.The lads also discuss JJ Hanrahan's role at Munster, the cynicism on show in their draw against Castres, what Ulster need to do to take the next step, and Warren Gatland's response to Sean O'Brien's Lions criticism.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the latest episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by former Ireland and Leinster scrum-half Eoin Reddan to discuss whether the PRO 14 gets the respect it deserves.The league often comes in for criticism, in particular for the amount of games that the frontline Irish internationals are rested for, but Reddan argues that having played in the Premiership, he knows that the PRO 14 is every bit as good.The former number nine thinks that the standard of the competition comes in for unfair criticism and thinks that fans and the media should study the league a little closer rather than just slagging it off.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald preview the Champions Cup with Irish Independent rugby correspondent Ruaidhri O'Connor.The lads do a pool-by-pool guide, with all three tipping the Irish provinces to make the quarter-finals.They also make their tournament winner prediction, and Luke gives a surprising answer when asked whether the current Saracens team are better than the Leinster side he played on under Joe Schmidt.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by Irish Independent rugby correspondent Ruaidhri O'Connor and Kitman Labs CEO Stephen Smith.Will, Ruaidhri and Luke look ahead to Leinster vs Munster this Saturday and discuss how the provinces are shaping up after five games of the PRO 14 season.The lads then chat to Stephen Smith about the future of technology in sport and how his company work with professional teams from around the world, and across multiple sports, to help them minimise injury risk through the use of innovative software.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the latest episode of The Left Wing, Luke Fitzgerald and Will Slattery are joined by Munster captain Peter O'Mahony.The back row looks back on his eventful summer with the Lions that saw him captain the side in the first test, before he was dropped from the squad for the remaining two tests with the All Blacks.And with Munster currently looking for a replacement for Rassie Erasmus, O'Mahony talks about the state of his team after a strong start to the season.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Luke Fitzgerald and Will Slattery are joined in studio by Sunday Independent columnist Paul Kimmage. Kimmage takes Fitzgerald up on a tweet where the former Ireland international referred to the ex-pro cyclist's use of amphetamines, while Fitzgerald was unhappy with Kimmage characterising Dublin pulling down Mayo players late on in the All-Ireland final as 'cheating'.The trio also tackled the topic of pain-killer use in rugby, and whether players are going over the line in the quest to take the field - with Kimmage and Fitzgerald having different views on the matter.Having played for ten years in the professional game, Fitzgerald was also vehement that he had never seen any doping in rugby.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Will Slattery talked to Jamie Heaslip and Tony Ward at last week's National Ploughing Championships for a special episode of The Left Wing recorded in front of a live audience.Heaslip admits that he still isn't sure when he might return from a back injury while Ward says Irish fans must be patient as the PRO 14 continues to take shape.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of The Left Wing, Will Slattery and Luke Fitzgerald are joined by former Ireland and Leinster second row Mike McCarthy.McCarthy discusses how he came to terms with the end of his career after a move to France was scuppered by an injury - something that Fitzgerald can relate to having been forced out of the game at 28.The former lock also looks back on his career, including his memorable time playing under fiery defence coach Shaun Edwards at Wasps.Also, Irish Independent rugby columnist Ruaidhri O'Connor joins the show from South Africa to discuss Leinster's eventful tour to South Africa.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the first ever Left Wing podcast, Luke Fitzgerald and Will Slattery are joined in studio by Ireland international Sean O'Brien.The Tullow Tank gives plenty of insight into the successful Lions tour to New Zealand, including what they got right - and wrong.He also discusses how he bounced back from his recent injury trouble as well as the influence that Michael Cheika and Joe Schmidt have had on his career.Also, Irish Independent rugby correspondent Ruaidhri O'Connor joins the lads to talk about Leinster PRO 14 trip to South Africa, including the visa issues that saw two of their players forced to return home.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.