bears beyond the gate by Bears Beyond The Gate
A Bristol Bears podcast made by fans for fans. Each week your hosts Pete, Lee and Miles will take a light-hearted look at developments from Ashton Gate and beyond.
We look back on the excellent victory vs TFDTR on Friday night a the Gate which was a fitting way to say good bye to the leavers as well as purge some of the Franklin’s Garden horror from the previous round.
It's a sombre pod and many things have already been said about Friday's chastening and record-breaking defeat against Saints across various platforms. There are lots of interrelated reasons why teams lose matches both contextual and in the heat of battle, but ultimately shipping that many points to a rival is almost impossible to comprehend let alone accept.
In this week's episode, Pete, Lee and Miles discuss Bristol's dominant victory away at Newcastle.
In this special preview episode Pete is joined by Rob from the Rosbifs Rugby pod.
In a slight diversion from the norm Pete, Lee and Miles record live from The Philarmonic on St Mary's Street, Cardiff, both before and straight after the game.
We're back from our Six Nations hiatus with a round up of news from in and around the club as well turning our attention to the relatively happy hunting gound that is Welford Road as we re-start our quest to reach the Prem summit on Sunday.
The main event is the Jake Heenan interview where we chat to him about his rugby career which of course included seven years and over 100 appearances for Bristol Bears. We also discuss his relationship with Pat from his time as a youngster in the Auckland Blues Academy through to the title winning Connacht side of 2016 and finally his successful stint in Bristol. He provides great insight into the ups and downs of a pro rugby player but also demands recognition for the selfless way that he gave up his contract here in order to free up cap space for Tom Jordan and Louis Rees-Zamitt!
The band is back together again as the boys chat over the gritty, but not particularly pretty new year win over Sale.
It's a rough and ready one-take Zoom episode on account of one pod member sweating profusely half way round the world, and with no music intro, but the lads talk over the 'stuttery' win against Newcastle Red Bulls and briefly reminisce on the glory of Big Game 17 in London.
Just like the BBC, the pod is here to inform, educate and entertain so we were delighted to chat with Rob Graham from the Rosbifs Rugby pod about all things Pau.
In this episode we review the game against Scarlets. It looked like we were cruising at 12-0 up with more points to come but the home side had other ideas and put in a proper shift to take us to the wire.
SORRY - for some unspecified reason the sound quality isn't as crisp us usual but there isn't much I can do about it 😭.
The lads jump on Zoom to speculate on the team for Saints this coming Saturday now that the Autumn International break is over.
It was a derby day to remember and although it didn't go our way for us, the effort was there.
This week we go over Friday night’s 7-try, 49-point dismantling of Gloucester under the lights and in front of the baying crowd at Kingsholm. We regained the Rifles Cup with another warrior-like performance of grit and graft but also sprinkled some fantastic handling and offloading. Despite our injury woes if felt a bit like the Bears Way in its full glory.
Pete, Miles and Lee pick through the narrow win against the Chiefs as well as previewing the upcoming fixture against Gloucester with help from Ed Price from the Cherry Jam fan pod.
The five key takeaways from the pod this week after a few cheeky beers and bit of rugby banter…
We chew over the opening day bonus point victory from the Media Conference Room at Ashton Gate. We were the only ones in it mind but it was still quite exciting nonetheless.
Pod friend James Dun makes his second appearance live from the BBF Taproom to tell us how pre-season has gone, talk us through how the boys will prep for the game during the week and even make some of his own suggestions for ramping up the atmosphere at the Gate, in particular searching for George Kloska look-a-likies in the crowd...
Having reached a double ton at the end of last season wth the help of emerging club and Instagram legend James Dun, the boys road-test their brand new crowd funded recording equipment at the BBF Taproom Studio Bar for the season seven opener with Bears CEO Tom Tainton, who, lets be honest, was well impressed with the set up and admtted that he had never done a pod in a lock-in before.
Running order:
After being 'super-excited' for the game on Friday and reaching high peaks of excitement at half time we talk about the glorious defeat to them down the road in the play off semi final at the Rec.
In this week's episode we re-live a fantastic day down the Gate when the Bears secured their first play off berth in four years with a resounding 52-26 victory over Quins. The Bears Way was on display in its full roller-coaster splendour although to be fair they weathered a small storm in the second half and then powered to the finish line, much to the frenzied delight of the majority of the 20,000 fans in the stadium (minus the Quins supporters who, to be fair, seemed very gracious in defeat).
Join Pete and Lee as they review the Friday night loss at Sale and how Saints' win against Sarries has provided us with a play off lifeline.
It's been a long time coming and it has divided opinion, but Saturday saw 51,000 spectators descend on Cardiff for the Big Day out at the World's premier rugby stadium. We review both the pre-match atmosphere, the game itself and what we can take forward to the tough away game at Sale. It is customary to mention Enya at this juncture but we need to put lazy puns aside and focus on the task ahead.
You’re listening to Bears Beyond The Gate episode 196. Yes 196.
Only a couple of hours after the end of the disappointing defeat against Tigers we knock out a pod.
Miles and Pete break down the humbling defeat at Gloucester by piecing together what they can remember from an excellent away day in the Shed.
We run through the key moments of the 52-38 victory at a pulsating Ashton Gate as the Bears saw off the Chiefs with a disciplined second half display after losing Santi Grondona to a red after 30 minutes.
We look forward to the return of the Premiership after the long Six Nations hiatus with a little help from Sports Reporter Elgan Alderman from The Times who was the ONLY journalist to tip Bristol for glory at the start of the season. We ask him why he went against the tide of peer opinion and whether he thinks we've still go it in us to go all the way.
This week we focus on the Bears Women's upcoming semi-final play off with Gloucester-Hartpury on Sunday 2nd March at 3pm.
The boys are back at the Bristol Beer Factory for yor favourite Bristol rugby lock-in.
As we head towards the Six Nations break we are sitting pretty in second place in the Prem table on 40 points.
You’re listening to Bears Beyond The Gate, a Bristol Bears podcast made by fans for fans. We three regulars at Ashton Gate who love the club, the game and all things Bears.
The boys come together at the Bristol Beer Factory after a couple of cheeky pints to review the narrow victory at the Gate aganst Benetton. It was an inconsistent win but with plenty to be postive about despite almost losing at the end.
So, after the Christmas comedown, a visit to Saracens was always going to be a tough assignment given their team and our track record in North London.
In this week's episode Miles is off sick so we bring in a heavyweight replacement to provide laser sharp analysis of where it all went wrong.
We are back after a two week break and dive straight into a quick review of the tough European campaign. A great effort from the lads away at La Rochelle but ultimately we are sitting at the bottom of the table. We briefly discuss what this might mean for the ‘Andy Uren derby’ when Benetton come to town in January and then swiftly move on to more pressing matters…
In a very short late Sunday night post-match pod Pete and Miles reflect on the defeat to Leinster at a very windy Ashton Gate.
To mark the European heavyweights from Dublin's visit to Ashton gate on Sunday, former Bristol Bear and Leinster player Ian Madigan joins us for an episode packed with insights and nostalgia.
Ever wondered how professional rugby players navigate the transition from one team to another while maintaining their game and sanity?
What happens when you mix a makeshift dining room studio with lively rugby banter?
In this week’s episode we discuss the extent to which Ashton Gate is on its first steps to becoming a fortress after the first home win of the season against Saints despite our general lack of historical knowledge and the fact that the boys had to dig deep from 15-0 down.
In this week's episode we re-live the agonising defeat against Sarries, who are now well established as our Ashton Gate bogey team.
This week the boys break down yet another away win for the Bears down at Sandy Park.
We can bearly contain ourselves this week as the Boys went to the Rec on Saturday as underdogs but left it with a wholehearted Blackbird ringing in their ears. It was a game of passion, purpose and no little skill on both sides but for the 145th time in the history of this fixture the Bears were triumphant.
In this week's show Pete and Miles review the Friday night harem scarum defeat to Gloucester with help from many listener contributions and the Deputy Manager of the Bristol Bear Factory, Lewis.
This week we review the start of the Premiership with the gritty but points-profitable win away at Newcastle.
The boys get Season 6 (yes 6!) off to a solid start from the world famous Bristol Beer Factory and 'talk about' the following things:
The lads finally manage to organise a time to meet up and record their final thoughts on what turned out to be yet another roller coaster season for the Bears.
In this week's pod we re-live our epic journey to SW London on the Supporters Coach where we experienced, quite simply, one of the best rugby away days ever.
In this week's episode, Pete, Miles and Lee review the defeat against Saracens at Ashton Gate. Despite a good start the Bears ultimately lost control of the game in the face of an incredibly experienced, focused and effective opposition who delivered a classic 'been there, seen that and worn the T-shirt' sort of performance led by the mercurial Owen Farrell. Fair play to the them. They did a job, played some decent rugby and got the result they needed. No real complaints from us.
This week we pick over the carcass that was the massacre in BS3 and we’re not talking about the hammering of Falcons at Ashton Gate last weekend.
It's a carnival atmosphere down at the Bristol Beer Factory Taproom this week as having constantly 'talked about' doing a live pod the lads actually execute one straight after the 13-try massacre of Newcastle Falcons at Ashton Gate.
In this week's episode we formally announce our first ever live pod, in the sense that we are inviting an audience to the Bristol Beer Factory Taproom post Falcons at 6.30pm next Sunday.
You’re listening to Bears Beyond the Gate, a Bristol Bears podcast made by fans for fans. We’re two and a half season cardholders at Ashton Gate who love the club, the game and all things Bears.
In this week’s episode Pete and Miles dial in from their respective ski resorts whilst Lee shakes his head at the whole middle classy-ness of it all.
In this weeks's episode we preview the return of the Prem with help from the Telegraph's Charlie Morgan. It's been a long break but there's all to play for and as we're only three points off 6th and six points off 4th can we dare to dream?
In the second of our occasional 'doc-pods' we head towards the end of this long fallow period by hearing from Paul Morgan, who is the Communications Lead of PWR and previously Communications Director at Premier Rugby and before that editor of Rugby World. He talks about the rebranding of the PRW this season, his thoughts about Bears Women team and offer some more general thoughts on where domestic rugby union is going given the challenges that is has faced in recent times.
In this week's slightly delayed pod (technical difficulties) we hear from Bristol legend and current Galway resident Joe Joyce . He gives us some insight into what it's like getting a bit of niggle going with some of your best mates in the European Cup, speaks candidly about why he left his home town for pastures new and 'talks about' his future aspirations as well as revealing a surprising candidate for 'hardest man' in the Bears camp.
It's only Pete and Lee this week down at the Bristol Beer Factory Taproom supping a couple of cheeky beers, as Miles calls in sick at the last minute.
In this week's BUMPER episode we hear from Dave Attwood about:
In the first ever Bears Beyond The Gate 'docu-pod' we hear from Kiera, Kaye and Sophie about the work of the Bears Together Supporters Advisory Committee (SAC) an initiative that was announced at the start of the season as a way of the club being able to gather more direct feedback from fans about off-field matters. They talk about who they, and other members of SAC are, how the first meeting went and their aims of for the future. They are there to represent US so if you have any comments or suggestions for them please complete the Google Form below by clicking the link. Enjoy!
As the Premiership takes a mid season break for the Six Nations, we review the monumental banger at Ashton Gate as Bristol maintain their seven-game home town winning streak against Bath. Basically it was just a mental game of rugby. Multiple line breaks, gorgeous offloads and 14 tries AND virtually no box kicks or scrums. It was rugby played the way it should be!
In this week's episode we welcome work experience fella Reg to deputise for Lee who is still in witness protection after his new year Bristol Post article - or is he just taking the Christmas Tree down?
Vote for us at the Sports Podcast Awards 2024 and help us bring home some silverware for the Bears! Click on the link below...
In this week's show we prepare, bake and scoff large amounts of humble pie after the surprise Bears' victory away at Sale Sharks. How can we be so bad and so good all in one week? We get the views of regular social media followers and also hear from yet another roving reporter who saw the game live, as well as throwing in our thoughts and opinions for good measure.
Crocodile Dundee returns to chew the Christmas cud with a somewhat unstructured ramble thought the festive period culminating in a long discussion about the impacts of last Friday's hugely disappointing defeat against Exeter 2.0 in front of sell-out crowd. Despite leading 14-12 at the break the Bears were bageled in the second half at the hands of a young, hungry and well drilled outfit leaving many fans wondering were we go from here. You'll have to put in a big oral shift to find out what we think!
In this week's episode we relish the record breaking 51-26 victory over Gloucester and the retention of the Rifles Cup. After five losses on the bounce this was as a cathartic an experience as you are likely to get and the relief flowing around the Gate on the final whistle was palpable. We read and hear the thoughts of our listeners and then briefly discuss what this means for our chances against Lyon and Bordeaux as we head for a brief diversion to the group stage of the Champions Cup before diving back into the Premiership again either side of Christmas. It wasn't all bad for the good people of Gloucester though as their women's team (so good they named it twice) despatched the Bears' women with a clinical 12-0 victory at a very cold Shaftesbury Park on Friday night. The Bears had plenty of possession in the second half but just couldn't make it count against a resolute and extremely well drilled opponent. That said there was plenty of 'learnings' to be had as they continue on their campaign to make it into the top four at the end of the season. All this and more with Pete, Miles and Lee and a couple of cheeky craft ales at the Bristol Beer Factory Taproom.
We slip to a fifth defeat in a row at the Stone X but battle hard for a cheeky try bonus point which was the least we deserved. We may have scored a couple of worldies but we also shipped seven and if Owen Farrell had put his boots on the right way round it could have been a lot worse. We review the game with help from a few listeners and the Chair of the Supporters Club and then look forward to the Rifles Cup on Saturday which really, really, really is now a must, must, must win game. We also hear from Ed from the Cherry Jam pod who gives us his take on Gloucester’s similarly disappointing start to the seasons but also provides us some insight into their Women’s team who take on ours on Friday night. On that note we also review the Bears Women’s’ visit to Sandy Park this afternoon with help from yet another freelance roving fan reporter. We have tentacles everywhere! So strap in and listen to Lee, Miles and Pete as we climb on board the Bristol Bears rollercoaster yet again for a cheeky beer and a bit of rugby banter!
In this week's episode - our 150th - we chew over the agonising last ditch defeat at the Rec with help from our listeners and reflect on how we really need to start getting on the right side of 'fine margins' otherwise the season is going to slip away. That said, there were plenty of positives to take from the game and we pray that they might be somehow converted into points, cheeky or otherwise, at the Stone X stadium on Saturday. On that note we hear from Jez Denton from Saracens' Fezcast pod and spend a lively few minutes picking our team before broadly predicting a defeat. On a happier note we also review the Bristol Bears' Womens' victory over Sale Sharks Women and note what a fantastically family-esque atmosphere it was. With Miles and Pete and various kids in attendance you really do hear it from the horses' mouths.
WARNING - THERE IS THE SOUND OF RAIN FALLING AT VARIOUS POINTS DURING THIS RECORDING BUT WE WERE TRYING SOMETHING NEW SO BE PATIENT WITH US!
So, the brief winning run is over thanks to a last gasp penalty for Quins at the death on Saturday. It was family day at the Gate but unfortunately the Bears were unable to keep all the kids happy with a mixed display that included some very good but also some frustratingly sloppy bad. Ultimately we were the architects of our own downfall and our decision making under pressure and sometimes not under pressure came back to haunt us.
It's the first time in three years that we have won away at Franklin’s Gardens although after going 18-9 down early in the second half it was great to see the boys ‘dig’ themselves out of a hole and ‘sow the seeds’ of a victory with a penalty and a converted try before the break ultimately making Miles ‘soil’ his pants at the death by efficiently managing the game out in the second half.
Well, the waiting was over and after an extended pre-season the Premiership finally returned to Ashton Gate with the visit of Leicester Tigers. With both teams missing international players, it was an opportunity for new signings and squad players to impress, and impress they did, albeit mainly for Bristol. At 25-0 up and cruising some of us were wondering whether we were going to get that magical 80-minute performance in game day one. However, the second half was more of a battle but ultimately it was a very satisfactory win. We chat about the game and those players who made a good impression and introduce a new feature – contributions from some of our listeners - including the brief thoughts of our mate Binnsy.
In this week's episode we round up the Premiership Cup/pre-season campaign and reflect on the shellacking meted out to poor Cambridge who were universally challenged all over the park. It was great to see a tsunami of tries but we ultimately finished second in our group and therefore miss out on two more games and a chance of silverware later on in the season . Should we be disappointed that we didn't manage to progress or should we just be grateful for the various 'hit-outs' that it afforded us as we build to the start of the Premiership?
In this term’s opener we reveal some earth shattering news from the summer break but pull ourselves together and cast an eye over the pre-season so far.
In our final episode of the season we discuss the bonus-point victory against Gloucester which wasn't quite enough to gain a Champions Cup place next year.
Feelings run high in BBTG Towers as the Bears fall to a 22-21 defeat away at Exeter despite playing with an extra man for 60 minutes. A high penalty count and some costly errors mean the Bears lose another winnable game and face a last-day battle for a Champions Cup place for next term.
It was Go Green night at Ashton Gate but fans we're left seeing red and feeling blue after tasting defeat yet again against Sale as the Sharks glided off with a 20-36 victory. Hear our thoughts about the tactics, performances and one or two other things that caught our eye on Friday night.
Welcome to this week's show where we discuss the 26-33 home defeat at the hands of Clermont. A couple of gift-wrapped tries in each half meant Bristol had too much to do to snatch a victory at the end. All in all, a disappointing end to our European campaign.
Our four game winning streak came to an end on the road at Leicester but despite the 46-22 final score this was a game we could have won if we'd taken our chances and looked after our discipline.
It may have been a Sunday service, but there was nothing Godly about the rugby filth on show as Bristol backed up last week's big win with a another try fiesta to beat Harlequins 51-26.
Hell yeah. After a very long wait we finally got to see a full 80-minute performance from the Bears as they dismantled Northampton by nine tries to one.
This week we talk about Bristol's 15-13 win against old rivals Bath at the Rec. In one of the scrappiest games of the season the Bears pulled of the win, despite a stuttering performance.
This week we talk about the long awaited 30-12 league win at home against Newcastle. After a 77-day break since the last home game in the Premiership, Bristol stepped up to grab a bonus-point victory with the last play of the game.
In this week's show Pete and Lee chew over the last minute defeat against Saracens. How on earth did we manage to lose that one and what is it about the Bears and game management?
A first half performance by Bristol which was full of brio warmed the cockles of the Ashton Gate faithful as a home tie in the Challenge Cup round of 16 was secured despite getting five points docked earlier in the week. After conceding an early try the Bears roared back with five unanswered dots over the whitewash with some sparkling back play built on the foundations of much improved discipline.
In this week's show the boys discuss the win against Parma-Zebre in round three of the European Challenge Cup. After a totally forgettable first period the half time team talk seems to work for a change and eventually the Bears pull away with a feast of tries in the final quarter. Seeing both Harry Randall and Siva Nualago back on the park and seemingly firing on all cylinders was a real boost although eventually the pack got their discipline sorted and we started to resemble a proper team again.
In this week's show the boys discuss the hugely dissapointing display that led to the 23-7 loss away at London Irish. Too many penalties, turnovers and mistakes and too little possession and territory was the story of a wet and miserable day in West London for Bears' fans.
