Straight Talk with Mark Bouris

NRL Boss Peter V’landys on the Historic $5.3B Broadcast Deal, PNG & the Future of Rugby League

Peter V'landys is the Executive Chairman of the NRL and one of Australia's most decorated sports administrators, having previously led Racing NSW through a comparable transformation. In this episode, he joins me to break down how he turned a financially fragile NRL, two months from insolvency during COVID, into a $500 million asset base backed by a record $5.3 billion broadcast deal. The conversation covers negotiation strategy, rule innovation, the PNG Chiefs expansion, the growth of the women's game, and Peter's personal approach to health and longevity. Subscribe to the Mentored newsletter here: https://the-mentored-platform-pty-ltd.myklpages.com/l/WWJGc5 Join my exclusive Mentored+ community: https://mentored.com.au/become-a-member/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Michael Cheika on the Sydney Roosters, Building Winners & Coaching Culture (round 2)

Most coaches talk about culture. Michael Cheika has actually built it — across five countries, two codes, and some of the hardest turnaround jobs in world rugby. In this live podcast at the Sydney Roosters Business Club, MB sits down with Cheika to unpack what real alignment looks like from the inside, why pressure is an illusion, and what it actually takes to build a team that knows how to win. Subscribe to the Mentored newsletter here: https://the-mentored-platform-pty-ltd.myklpages.com/l/WWJGc5 Join my exclusive Mentored+ community: https://mentored.com.au/become-a-member/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nikki Osborne (Bush Barbie): The Aussie Comedian who broke the internet!

It’s all very serious today, so it was refreshing to have a funny conversation. Nikki Osborne didn’t just get the Prime Minister on her podcast. She DMed him, turned up at the Lodge in Canberra wearing a pith helmet, and got him talking about things you’d never hear in a press conference. In this episode of Straight Talk, I sit down with the comedian behind Bush Barbie to find out how she pulled it off and why her alter ego has tapped into something a lot of Australians are quietly desperate for. It’s a conversation about comedy, character, political correctness, and what it really takes to build a career from nothing over more than twenty years. Subscribe to the Mentored newsletter here: https://the-mentored-platform-pty-ltd.myklpages.com/l/WWJGc5 Join my exclusive Mentored+ community: https://mentored.com.au/become-a-member/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David Pocock on Life before politics, gas, gambling and taking on the major parties

David Pocock is a former Wallabies captain turned independent Senator for the ACT. Born on a farm in Zimbabwe, he arrived in Australia at 14 after his family lost their land in the seizures of the late 1990s, found his feet through sport, and went on to represent the Wallabies before swapping the ruck for the red benches of the Senate. I sat down with David for an honest conversation about where he came from, how sport shaped him, and why he decided to take on the major parties as an independent. We speak about: Growing up on a farm in Zimbabwe and the violence that forced his family out Arriving in Australia at 14 and finding belonging through sport The rugby road from Western Force at 17 to captaining the Wallabies Why he ran as an independent and what shocked him most about Parliament The widow's tax and how his team found the flaw the major parties missed His push to rein in gambling advertising and what it is doing to young Australians A 25% gas export tax and the question of who our natural resources really belong to The squeeze on small business and how government procurement could back Aussie firms Why he thinks Parliament needs a lot more long-term thinking See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ex-Army Soldier & Defence Investor Steve Baxter on how War has changed forever

Steve Baxter is a former Shark Tank investor, ex-Army guided weapons technician, and founder of Beaten Zone Venture Partners, a fund backing Australian defence startups and pushing them into the US market where the real money is. In this conversation, Steve takes us from growing up in outback Queensland and joining the army at 15, through building and selling one of Australia's biggest dial-up internet providers, to why he believes private capital — not government grants — is the key to Australia's sovereign defence capability. We get into cardboard drones that took out Russian aircraft in Kursk, robot dogs armed for the battlefield, a hypersonic aircraft built in Brisbane, and why 83% of Australia's super funds won't touch defence investment because of ESG. Steve also gives his blunt take on the Iran war, why he thinks deterrence beats conflict every time, and what he'd say to anyone about investing in the business of war. Subscribe to the Mentored newsletter here: https://the-mentored-platform-pty-ltd.myklpages.com/l/WWJGc5 Join my exclusive Mentored+ community: https://mentored.com.au/become-a-member/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.