Ahead of the 2019 World Cup JOE launches its new rugby show, hosted by rugby legends Barry Murphy and Andrew Trimble, together with GUINNESS.
Ahead of the Autumn rugby internationals and next year’s Rugby World Cup, the Maximum Media-owned website JOE.ie has launched a new rugby show in Ireland called ‘Baz & Andrew’s House of Rugby.
The new show will be sponsored by Guinness, a partnership which was brokered by Dentsu Aegis Ireland’s The Story Lab and Carat.
The show is hosted by former Munster rugby player Barry Murphy and Andrew Trimble, who was capped 70 times for Ireland and retired from rugby at the end of the 2017/2018 season.
In addition, the website’s UK counterpart, JOE.co.uk will also launch its own edition of ‘House of Rugby’, hosted by James Haskell, rugby royalty Mike Tindall and Sky Sports presenter Alex Payne.
Baz & Andrew’s House of Rugby is produced in a purpose-built studio in JOE’s Dublin HQ and will focus on some of the biggest talking points in the world of rugby. and aims to take the audience behind the curtain to reveal what it’s really like to be in the dressing room.
Episode one, which premiered has already been broadcast, features Murphy interviewing his former Munster teammate Ronan O’Gara and over the coming weeks, Murphy and Trimble will be joined by a wealth of household names like Garry Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw and James Ryan. SportsJOE rugby correspondent and rugby author, Pat McCarry will also be a regular commentator on the show.
Each episode will go live on Monday afternoons, with rugby fans being able to listen on all major podcast platforms and watch the full episode on YouTube. Show highlights will also go out across JOE’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram channels. The show will be accompanied by written features on each episode.
In addition, Baz & Andrew’s House of Rugby will be taken on the road with a number of live audience events planned over the course of the season, the first of which taking place in November ahead of Ireland V New Zealand in the Guinness Autumn series.
According to content director at JOE, Paddy McKenna: “We have assembled our dream team for Baz & Andrew’s House of Rugby. We know how passionate Irish rugby fans are about the game and with two pros who have been there and done it at the highest level, Barry Murphy and Andrew Trimble, we know we are going to give fans something special, not to mention unique. This show builds on the success we have had with ‘The Hard Yards’, which was the number one rugby show in the country, and we’re confident this will be an even bigger hit.”
Daragh Byrne, CEO at Maximum Media, adds: “Maximum Media has a fantastic track-record for breaking new ground in the industry, and Baz & Andrew’s House of Rugby is that in action. Not only is the multi-format nature of what we are doing unique, but creating companion shows for Ireland and UK audiences makes this truly original and hugely ambitious. We are very proud to be doing this with a brand like GUINNESS who trust us implicitly and share a heritage in rugby as well as a passion for quality and authenticity.”
According to Colum Campbell, senior brand manager at Guinness: “It’s great to be teaming up with JOE on Baz & Andrew’s House of Rugby. GUINNESS has a long and deep association with rugby and we’re constantly looking for new and innovative ways that we can connect with rugby fans across Ireland and the UK and celebrate the bonds that makes rugby so special.”
Dee Levison, client director at Carat adds: “We are excited to be working with JOE on this partnership with Guinness. We see this as a great opportunity to leverage Guinness’ heritage in rugby and the JOE audience across both UK and Ireland.”
