About this episode

Chris and Paul Grayson discuss the opening round of the Nations Championship and feature interviews with players ahead of key matches.

Chris and Paul Grayson take you through the opening round of the Nations Championship as the north v south battles begin. Chris heads to Ellis Park and catches up with England’s vice-captain Ollie Chessum ahead of England’s big test against the Boks. We speak to a confident Jo’burg local before catching up with George Furbank, who reflects on a hectic couple of weeks as he prepares for his first England start since 2024. We also discuss the other home nations fixtures this weekend. Can Scotland win in Argentina without Finn Russell? Is Australia v Ireland too close to call? And are Wales deservedly big underdogs against Fiji?

People in this episode

Hosts: Chris, Paul Grayson

Guests: Ollie Chessum, George Furbank

Topics covered

• Nations Championship
• rugby
• international matches
• England rugby
• home nations fixtures
• sports news

Keywords

• Nations Championship
• rugby
• England
• Ollie Chessum
• George Furbank
• Scotland
• Argentina
• Australia
• Ireland
• Wales

Mentioned in this episode

Places: England, Ellis Park, Scotland, Argentina, Australia, Ireland, Wales, Fiji

More episodes of Rugby Union Weekly

• Have we learnt anything from the Nations Championship? · July 20, 2026 · 58 min
• Late TMO drama as 13-man England beat Argentina · July 18, 2026 · 30 min
• The Nations Pod · July 15, 2026 · 53 min
• Nations Championship: Tries and tribulations · July 13, 2026 · 1h 3m
• Pollock hat-trick helps England end losing run · July 11, 2026 · 42 min
• Slade takes centre stage against Fiji · July 9, 2026 · 55 min

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