Bears Beyond The Gate

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. 

Bears got the 5 points th...

You’re listening to Bears Beyond The Gate episode 196. Yes 196.

We’re three fans who love the club, the game and all things Bears.

Each episode we talk about the game that’s gone, the game that’s coming up and anything else that takes our fancy as long as it is vaguely Bears related. We try to be as balanced as possible but ultimately we are trying to reflect the views and opinions of paying punters from all ages, backgrounds and dem...

Only a couple of hours after the end of the disappointing defeat against Tigers we knock out a pod.

It's raw and a bit unstructured and involves a long discussion about how many more fortress metaphors we can realistically use before just giving up and accepting that we're never going to win lots of home games in a row.

Supporting Bristol continues to be like riding a roller-coaster but today it felt like we were more at Pe...

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. 

Bristol's defence left a little bit to be desired but fair play to Gloucester as they were on fire and it was an honour to witness once of best no-look offloads in the history of rugby union.

Despite the heavy defeat, the Bears still remain in second place after this mini block of games ...

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.

The first half however...

We also briefly look forward to the away fixture at Kingsholm with a game of 'who is most likely to...?' and finish with a short discussion about the merits or otherwise of the proposed plan to in...

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.

We also review the Bears Woman' semi final loss at Queensholm and ponde...

This week we focus on the Bears Women's upcoming semi-final play off with Gloucester-Hartpury on Sunday 2nd March at 3pm.

Not only do we invite a proper dual season ticket holder onto the pod as a special guest but we also have an exclusive and in-depth interview with Dave Ward and Tom Luke. They give us a behind-the scenes deep dive into the season so far as well as their thoughts on how they will plan and prep for the play-of...

The boys are back at the Bristol Beer Factory for yor favourite Bristol rugby lock-in.

Unashamedly long but to help you out here is the running order:

• 0 - 6m45s: Intros, beer review, riders and the BBF Quiz night details
• 6m45s - 22m0s: Bears Women's win at Quins and qualify for play-offs
• 22m0s - 29m33s: PWR Commentator cliches
• 29m33s - 30m40s: Instagram followers roll of honour
• 30m40s - 36m30s: Bears Men beat Bath again but don&...

As we head towards the Six Nations break we are sitting pretty in second place in the Prem table on 40 points. 

It might have been a bit of a topsy turvey win against Falcons that we appeared to try and win at least three times, but ultimately we scored 8 tries and pulled away in the final 'quarter'.

We break down the game in our somewhat cheery and rambly way as well as going off on a few tangents with ...

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.

This week we look back on two Saturday fixtures with the Women going first with a bonus point victory 43-29 win against Leicester Tigers women at Ashton Gate and the Men managing to snatch defeat from the Jaws of a Draw at the Stade Marcel Michelin in Clermont-Fe...

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. 

Before that though, Miles issues a public apology to the whole Italian nation and we run through a large list of people who we saw at the game.

We then offer our analysis based on...

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 the end a cheeky point was probably about right although we did look a few gift horses in the mouth and on another day we might have left with a few more.

The Bears Women were also in action today with nearly 10K fans at Ashton Gate keen to catch a glimpse of Ilona Maher and equall...

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.

Welcome Mr Dave Attwood for his second appearance on the pod!

Dave breaks down Friday's disappointing result from a recent player's perspective and we jump on his bandwagon to give our view from the stands.

Ultimately we decide that it's a blip ...

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…

You know…

The rugby massacre at Welford Road.

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.

Lets be honest - they were lucky to be 7-7 at the break having lost two men to the bin and struggling to find a way through the Bristol's inspired defence that also had to contend with the loss on AJ MacGinty after 5 mins, and a reshuffle that put BJVR at fly half.

However, they were ...

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. 

He shares treasured memories from his time at Bristol, revealing what it was like to play under Pat Lam's leadership and how it shaped his approach to rugby. We also talk about Ian's transition to life off the field, w...

Ever wondered how professional rugby players navigate the transition from one team to another while maintaining their game and sanity? 

Join us as we chat with Callum Sheedy and Dan Thomas, ex Bears who recently set up shop in Cardiff. They share what it's like to move from familiar territory, the emotional rollercoaster of starting anew, and how commuting together helps them stay connected to their roots. You'll...