Gus Reveals the Most Gifted Player He Ever Coached Against

Newcastle’s fairytale meets the Roosters’ finals experience as Gus delivers his grand final verdict. He reflects on the Knights’ extraordinary win over Penrith, Phoenix Crossland’s absence and Nathan Cleary’s season, plus shares a classic Andrew Johns story from 2001. There’s also grand final trivia and previews of the NRLW and State Championship deciders. 00:00 Grand final week 00:46 Inside Newcastle’s extraordinary win 03:59 Penrith’s injuries and the Knights’ belief 06:54 Records set to fall 07:28 Silverchair and Newcastle’s groundswell of support 09:32 Phoenix Crossland’s absence and the hip-drop debate 12:06 Newcastle’s depth and Penrith’s painful exit 13:39 Who wins the Clive Churchill Medal? 14:43 Ali Brigginshaw and the NRLW grand final 16:52 Dally M results and Nathan Cleary’s season 19:44 Penrith’s next chapter 20:37 Grand final trivia 22:23 Gus’s Andrew Johns story from 2001 24:30 Clive Churchill winners and the Royce Simmons argument 26:52 Rugby league’s greatest grand final fairytales 28:41 Why Gus is backing the Roosters 32:52 Team news and Daly Cherry-Evans 33:28 Newcastle’s dummy-half options and defensive strength 35:33 Why the first 20 minutes matter 36:48 Gus’s final tips 37:05 State Championship preview 38:05 Grand final entertainment and season farewell See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Paul Gallen steps in for Gus as Mat Thompson previews a huge preliminary final weekend. Can the Dolphins overcome the Roosters, and can Newcastle’s fairytale continue against Penrith? Gal gives his tips, assesses the Sharks’ season and explains why he’s returning to the boxing ring. Plus, a classic Ricky Stuart story and a quiz testing Gal’s knowledge of his own career. 00:00 Six Tackles with Gal: Gallen replaces injured Gus 02:27 Why Gal is returning to boxing 04:03 Boxing heroes and Mike Tyson stories 06:03 Marathons, charity walks and a pie-eating contest 07:29 Graduation celebrations 08:44 Grand final entertainment and Nolsey’s Origin encounter 10:48 Yes or No 11:57 Can the Dolphins handle preliminary final pressure? 12:53 Nathan Cleary’s fitness 15:08 Why the Roosters are hitting their straps 17:47 Who deserves Coach of the Year? 20:46 Latrell Mitchell and the Perth Bears speculation 24:48 What’s missing at the Sharks? 28:48 Ask Gal: preparing for a preliminary final 32:17 Ricky Stuart’s brutal training challenge 36:09 How well does Gal know his own career? 40:02 NRLW preliminary final predictions 41:21 Dolphins v Roosters 43:41 Panthers v Knights 45:35 Gal’s boxing comeback and approach to trash talk 47:46 Farewell

With four preliminary final spots on the line, Gus and Mat Thompson preview Roosters v Sharks and Warriors v Knights. Can the Roosters bounce back from their bruising clash with Penrith, and will Kalyn Ponga inspire Newcastle to an upset in Auckland? Gus reveals the two key inclusions that could swing his Warriors tip, assesses the Dolphins’ premiership chances and discusses Nathan Cleary’s fitness. Plus, a look inside Canterbury’s end-of-season review and another chapter in the infamous skunk story. 00:00 Welcome: finals week two 01:22 Wests Tigers’ NRLW turnaround 02:51 Ranking the opening weekend of finals 04:40 Gus: let the game breathe 13:25 Can the Dolphins win the premiership? 14:34 Herbie Farnworth and the Hammer’s strike power 18:42 Will finals fatigue hurt the Roosters? 20:02 Nathan Cleary’s injury concerns 22:24 The science behind the skunk story 23:39 Yes or No: Millie Elliott and Corban Baxter’s legacy 25:45 Kalyn Ponga’s brilliance and leadership 33:29 Are finals tickets too expensive? 39:03 Ask Gus: which teams will regret their season? 42:22 Inside the Bulldogs’ end-of-season review 52:10 Gus shares his data and graphs 56:13 Six Tackles Trivia 58:45 NRLW finals and NRL preview 59:36 Roosters v Sharks 1:03:22 Warriors v Knights 1:10:07 Potential preliminary final matchups 1:10:23 Weekend coverage and farewell See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gus and Mathew Thompson revisit rugby league’s wild old end-of-season trips before Darrell “The Big Marn” Brohman joins them to tell the unforgettable story of Peter Kelly’s encounter with a skunk. Plus, Gus delivers his verdict on the NRL finals, assesses the strengths and weaknesses of every leading contender and reveals why Penrith remain the team to beat. 00:00 NRL finals have arrived 01:19 Mad Monday then and now 03:47 The Bulldogs’ legendary overseas trips 06:06 Gus’s life lesson - don’t wrestle with a skunk 10:40 Rugby league rallies around Jai Arrow 13:19 Darrell Brohman joins the show 14:10 Darrell tells the full skunk story 18:02 Memories from the Bulldogs’ trip 20:30 One final warning about skunks 21:14 Yes or No - Canberra’s exciting future 24:49 Should finals be played at suburban grounds? 31:03 Isaah Yeo’s remarkable recovery 33:38 Assessing the NRL finals contenders 34:14 Penrith Panthers - strength, weakness and X-factor 42:34 New Zealand Warriors - strength, weakness and X-factor 48:03 Dolphins - strength, weakness and X-factor 56:04 Sydney Roosters - strength, weakness and X-factor 01:01:34 Can a bottom-four team win the premiership? 01:02:02 Six Tackles Trivia 01:05:59 NRLW Round 11 01:06:34 Rabbitohs v Knights 01:09:13 Warriors v Dolphins 01:11:31 Sharks v Cowboys 01:16:28 Panthers v Roosters 01:18:04 Gus predicts the finals 01:19:16 The infamous “Sic ’em, Rex” commercial 01:20:45 Gus’s final life lessons See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Phil Gould and Mathew Thompson break down the final round of the NRL regular season as the Warriors and Panthers battle for the minor premiership. Gus explains why Lachlan Galvin’s rapid rise is unlike anything he has seen from a young half, assesses the legacies of Adam Reynolds, Payne Haas, Josh Papalii and Jarome Luai, and names his team of the year. The pair also revisit their preseason predictions, examine whether Cronulla can recover in time for the finals and preview every Round 27 match. 00:00 Round 27 and the minor premiership race 01:06 Bulldogs finish the season with promise 03:06 Lachlan Galvin’s remarkable season 03:26 Why young halfbacks need development time 07:19 Galvin’s extraordinary leap into the NRL 09:45 When halfbacks reach their prime 10:48 Adam Reynolds’ Brisbane legacy 13:11 Payne Haas prepares to leave Brisbane 17:05 Josh Papalii’s Canberra legacy 19:28 Jarome Luai’s complicated Tigers legacy 22:25 PNG and the changing player market 25:06 Can the Tigers replace Luai? 27:39 Six Tackles team of the year 41:46 Revisiting Gus’ preseason predictions 44:24 Can Cronulla recover before the finals? 48:48 The danger of resting players 51:03 Six Tackles trivia 53:01 NRLW news and Round 27 preview 54:27 Titans v Dolphins 57:21 Rabbitohs v Roosters and Jai Arrow’s milestone 01:00:58 Warriors v Sea Eagles 01:02:51 Cowboys v Raiders 01:03:31 Sharks v Storm 01:05:04 Dragons v Eels 01:06:31 Panthers v Tigers 01:08:24 The selection debate turns to golf 01:09:04 Gus’ Bob Fulton golf-cart story See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.