Straight Talk with Mark Bouris

Cooper Cronk is one of rugby league's most cerebral players and a three-time premiership winner who transformed from a modest rugby union schoolboy into one of the game's greatest halfbacks.

In this conversation, Cronk reveals the mental frameworks that drove his success, from Craig Bellamy's obsession with fundamentals at Melbourne Storm to his legendary 2018 grand final performance with a broken scapula. He discusses the coffee test that Bellamy uses for recruitment, how the spine positions require high football IQ, and why great players have time others don't. Cronk also opens up about his worst career moment in the 2016 grand final and how it taught him the lesson that secured his next three premierships.

• Craig Bellamy's leadership philosophy and the coffee test for recruitment
• Playing the 2018 grand final with a broken shoulder blade
• The 2016 grand final disaster that changed his entire approach
• Why Melbourne Storm's spine trio dominated for over a decade
• Cameron Smith's unparalleled football intelligence
• The fundamentals that separate elite performers from the rest
• His transition into financial services and property investment

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Chris Richardson is one of Australia’s most quoted economists and the founder of Rich Insight, bringing decades of expertise from his time at Deloitte Access Economics to decode complex fiscal policy.
Chris and I might not agree on every aspect of this budget, but that is what makes this conversation worth having.
In this analysis of Australia’s latest budget, Richardson reveals why our living standards have barely grown over the past decade while other OECD nations have surged ahead by 17%. He dissects the real economic effects of the budget on inflation, interest rates, and the Reserve Bank’s delicate balancing act. Richardson also exposes the “off-budget” spending that keeps billions in government expenditure hidden from public scrutiny and explains why housing affordability will not be solved by capital gains tax changes alone.
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Ellyse Perry is arguably Australia's greatest dual-sport athlete, the only person to have represented Australia in both cricket and football at an international level.
In this conversation, she reveals the mental framework behind scoring a Test double century, why she finds deeper meaning in team sport than individual achievement, and how a competitive childhood on Sydney's North Shore set the foundation for everything that followed.
Perry also discusses the evolution of her training across two decades at the top, the growth of women's cricket, and the almost meditative headspace she finds batting in the nets - a window into how one of Australia's most enduring athletes thinks about performance, longevity, and what the game gives back.
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In this conversation, political strategist and pollster Kos Samaras explains how Australia’s political landscape is fragmenting beyond recognition.
He reveals why traditional Liberal and Labor voters are abandoning both major parties, how disillusioned Australians are turning to One Nation and the Greens, and why the country is heading toward a more divided political future.
From the collapse of manufacturing in regional Australia to the psychological impact of Melbourne’s lockdowns, Samaras breaks down the economic, cultural and generational forces reshaping Australian democracy. He also explores why younger Australians are losing faith in the system, why many no longer believe they can afford children or home ownership, and how social media algorithms are accelerating political polarisation across the country.
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Dr Katherine Bennell-Pegg is the first astronaut to be trained under the Australian flag and a critical voice in the nation's emerging space ambitions.
From her headquarters at the Australian Space Agency in Adelaide, Katherine reveals how Australia is playing an essential role in the Artemis moon programme and why space exploration delivers genuine economic returns.
She discusses the rigorous process of becoming an astronaut, the real risks involved in space travel, and how her engineering background shaped her journey from designing space stations to potentially living in them. The conversation explores everything from toilet malfunctions on Artemis missions to the radiation challenges facing future Mars explorers.
We also talk about...
Australia's $7 return for every $1 invested in space programmes
The five major hazards astronauts face in space
How Australian technology supported Artemis 2's critical moon mission
The reality of radiation exposure and medical risks for astronauts
Why the International Space Station has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize
Australia's role in the global space race versus international collaboration
The technological hurdles preventing humans from reaching Mars
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