Episodes
If, like me, you're still coming to terms with the end of Luke Marshall's playing days with Ulster, then you'll find comfort listening to this episode in which the legendary centre reflects on his time with the province. Luke has been a massive fan favourite over the years for good reason: he has always given his all and, despite injuries getting in the way at times, has had an unbelievable career with Ulster and Ireland. Dan and I really enjoyed chatting to Luke who, as well as being a...
Published 07/24/24
Published 07/24/24
What an honour to be joined by Ulster's most successful coach of the professional era, Harry Williams. Harry is the legendary coach of Ulster's 1999 European Cup winning squad who celebrated their achievement 25 years on this year. Loved speaking to Harry who is a brilliant leader, man manager and inspirational coach who will go down in history as the man who steered Ulster to their greatest day in the province's history.
Published 07/18/24
Former Ulster and Wallabies second row Sam Carter reflects on his career, his time with Ulster and what he's up to now.
Published 07/11/24
Loved chatting to former Ulster and Ireland scrumhalf Kieran Campbell. Few people have made a bigger contribution to Ulster Rugby. Indeed, Kieran brought through quite a few of the current Ulster senior team in his days in charge of the academy. After a spell coaching in England, Kieran is back to NI where he has taken up a new role with Coleraine Grammar School as their head of rugby. Enjoy.
Published 07/05/24
The dust has settled on another season and it's time to look back, hand out the awards and look into the middle-distance to try and work out what lies ahead for Ulster.
Published 06/19/24
With the rugby season now over, it’s time to pause and reflect on the season just past and look forward to a building project at Ulster Rugby. To help me and Dan do this, we’re joined by a former prop who started off his career with Ulster before going on to play for Connacht and premiership teams such as Worcester and Northampton, Conor Carey, and rugby coach, analyst and expert Nathan Moore.
Published 06/12/24
It’s a big week for Ulster rugby. After a spirited performance in defeat against Munster at Thomond Park, Ulster now face a formidable task of heading down the road to face a fully-stacked Leinster team in the quarter finals. Can we complete the hat-trick over Leo Cullen’s side OR is next week’s Red Hand podcast going to be the end of season special? To discuss all things Ulster rugby, I’m joined by Dan and special guests to the pod, rugby commentator Graham Jewhurst and Jonny McCormick...
Published 06/05/24
Plenty to chat about as always! Ulster’s whipping boys Leinster fall at the final hurdle in the Champions Cup Final once again  - what does this mean for Irish Rugby - does it create room for another province to rise like a phoenix from the flames to take their place? I’m maybe being a bit tongue in cheek about Leinster, but we will be talking about the ways in which the IRFU may seek to change things to level the playing field with the other provinces In other news, Ulster have secured the...
Published 05/29/24
The Red Hand pod panel is joined by an unbelievable panel this week - former Leinster, Connacht, Sales Sharks and Ireland hooker and now one of the top pundits in the country, Bernard Jackman, and former Connacht, Leinster, Zebre and Ulster second-row and pundit Mick Kearney. We discuss all things Ulster Rugby including questions such as: how will the season finish up? What comes next for Richie Murphy’s young and streamlined squad? Indeed, what hopes and expectations can we hold for the...
Published 05/22/24
Life’s never boring as an Ulster fan. Big news this week as Richie Murphy is now permanently at the wheel after successfully getting his feet under the table during his temporary time in charge. Now, the question is whether he’ll be able to turn this ship around in choppy waters. Richie’s at the helm but a number of his crew have jumped or been pushed overboard - nine of them in fact. It will certainly lighten the load financially, but  where does that leave the squad? There’s also the small...
Published 05/16/24
In this special bonus episode Dan and I are joined by legendary Exeter Chiefs out-half and Ulsterman, Gareth Steenson. Gareth chats about how rejection from Ulster spurred him on to better things. The European Cup winner also discusses why he is coming back to his native Norn Iron. One of rugby's most inspirational and interesting stories. Enjoy.
Published 05/08/24
The gang are joined by top rugby journalist Brendan Fanning as we attempt to tackle some of the big issues facing Ulster Rugby.
Published 05/01/24
The lads chat about the win over Ulster, who might be joining us from our feeder club in Dublin and what we need to do to salvage the season. To help us in our quest to answer all the big Ulster rugby related questions, rugby analyst and expert Jason Lear joins us.
Published 04/24/24
Welcome to the Red Hand Podcast It’s been another tough week to be an Ulster fan as our Challenge Cup hopes were crushed by Clermont. Richie Murphy’s men were demolished in the second half after a pretty decent first half showing leaving fans and players feeling a bit shell shocked. Richie’s still at the wheel though and he needs time. He’s been parachuted in to a difficult situation and our new head coach and his squad need the backing of supporters. Depending on who you listen to in the...
Published 04/17/24
A different and somewhat special episode this week as we zoom out and consider the bigger picture at Ulster Rugby. Don’t worry, we will discuss the weekend’s action as well of course! Ulster secured a 40-17 point win over Montpellier to book their place in the quarter finals of the Challenge Cup in a game that perfectly demonstrated the old adage ‘it’s a game of two halves’. More on that in a second. The usual panel have been given a break this week in line with rugby podcasters rest...
Published 04/10/24
Have Ulster successfully weathered the storm? Everything seems better and brighter around Ulster Rugby at the minute. The coaching team look happier, fans are more positive, the team are battling for 80 minutes. I’m keen not to get carried away and talk of a transformation is certainly premature, but I think anyone who has been paying attention to ulster has noticed green shoots of progress in the most recent performances. It’s difficult to explain but even though we lost, everyone – myself...
Published 04/03/24
The lads bid farewell to Jonny Petrie and consider what's next for Ulster Rugby...
Published 03/27/24
I’m joined this week by a very special guest and a name that will be familiar to all Ulster Rugby fans. A combative and abrasive second-row who played 34 times for the Wallabies, Justin’s connection to Ulster came when he joined the province in 2005 and captained the side to the Celtic league - their last piece of silverware. Justin was a key player for Australia for several seasons, famously playing in memorable fixtures such as the third Lions test in 2001 and the Rugby World Cup final in...
Published 03/15/24
The Ulster Rugby Soap opera continues. As we all know, following a recent plot-twist, one of the main characters was written out and the show has been revamped. New characters include understudy Dan Soper moving into the role of interim head coach and SPOILER ALERT he’s about to be reduced to a background character when Richie Murphy takes over the reins in the coming weeks. In Ulster, the script never seems to allow for a straightforward narrative, preferring to shake things up every few...
Published 03/07/24
Slow news day for Ulster Rugby... After the most dramatic 24 hours this season for fans of Ulster which saw head coach Dan depart the province, ending his tenure as the longest serving Ulster coach of the professional era, the panel have plenty to talk about. Where do we go from here? Who's next? Was there a game at the weekend? Sit back, enjoy the chat and don't forget to like and subscribe!
Published 02/21/24
Where to begin? The Red Hand is back to discuss Ulster crashing out of the Champions Cup and where we go from here. Consider it group therapy for Ulster fans. We will always back the players on the pitch but is it time for some new ideas to inspire this talented squad to fulfil their full potential?
Published 01/24/24
Everything was in place for a famous home win… A packed Ravenhill on its 100 year anniversary, the 99 squad were watching on 25 years on from their famous European Cup win and momentum from a couple of big wins… In the end, we got absolutely minced by a team who looked to be on another level. Du Pont magic together with the quality of the players around him overwhelmed Ulster who were second best in every area of the game. On a more positive note, we finally got to see some fabulous...
Published 01/17/24
This episode is from a while back - before Humphs was appointed head honcho of Irish Rugby. Where to even start with David Humphreys? Childhood hero, Ulster legend and one of the most significant figures in the history of Ulster Rugby. This one is from the archive and I thought I would put it out there given the fact we are 25 years on from when Humphs helped Ulster get crowned Kings of Europe in '99. What a legend. Enjoy.
Published 01/12/24
It's good to be back after a short Christmas break - hope you had a good one! Ulster have enjoyed an unbeaten run so far in 2024 and in the process of beating our provincial rivals, Ulster are now the number one province in Ireland. What a difference a few weeks makes. Ulster fans - is there anything better than beating Leinster at their place? The win was far from perfect but we still got the result. It was a heroic effort from the lads and it begs the question: what has galvanised the...
Published 01/03/24