Michael Atkinson headlines the New Zealand v Australia call on Nine, with Sky Sport 1 NZ and Sky Sports in the mix

The New Zealand v Australia matchup of the Bledisloe Cup kicks off on Friday 10 October 2026, and the bulk of the commentary is being carried by Michael Atkinson-led teams across a string of Australian and international channels. For fans in Australia, the primary feed is 9Gem, while Stan Sport offers a second Australian channel with its own commentary roster. If you are in the UK, Ireland or further afield, you can follow the action on the NOW channels, Premier Player Canada, Premier Sports Asia or RugbyPass TV, with New Zealand's Sky Sport 1 NZ and a family of Sky Sports feeds also on hand.

The headline channel for the Australians is 9Gem, where Michael Atkinson fronts the call. He has been a fixture of the commentary box for years, and in 2023 Nine's team for the Rugby World Cup was led by Michael Atkinson alongside a roster of rugby union stars and experts. For the Bledisloe Cup, the panel on the microblog brings together Michael Atkinson, Allana Ferguson and Justin Harrison, while in the commentary box Sean Maloney leads the call with Wallabies legends Tim Horan and Morgan Turinui, plus Matt Burke and Michael Hooper on the sidelines at Eden Park.

The Australian channels and their teams

Stan Sport, the other Australian feed, returns with a commentary team built around its former Wallaby captain Michael Hooper, a new recruit, and a pool of Wallabies greats. In the Bledisloe Cup itself, Stan Sport's roster places Michael Atkinson as host and lead caller alongside Sean Maloney, with Matt Burke as co-presenter and Tim Horan, Morgan Turinui and Michael Hooper contributing to the call. Matt Burke has also appeared as part of the "Between Two Posts" crew alongside Sean Maloney, Morgan Turinui and others, while Michael Atkinson and Justin Harrison front a separate "Inside Line" segment.

That brings us to the roles in play on Friday. Michael Atkinson fronts 9Gem and heads the Stan Sport call, with Matt Burke as co-presenter on both. The main call is led by Sean Maloney, supported by co-commentators Tim Horan and Morgan Turinui. The pundits round out the Australian side with Justin Harrison and Allana Ferguson, and Michael Hooper joins the sidelines.

The international and Sky Sports feeds

For those outside Australia, the international coverage is fronted by Laura McGoldrick as presenter and Kirstie Stanway as co-presenter, on the NOW Ireland, NOW UK, Premier Player Canada and Premier Sports Asia channels as well as RugbyPass TV. The main call there is led by Tony Johnson, with co-commentators Justin Marshall and Jeff Wilson, and the pundits are Stephen Donald, Angus Ta'avao and Mils Muliaina.

New Zealand's Sky Sport 1 NZ carries the same Laura McGoldrick-presented, Tony Johnson-led call, with an additional reporter, Joe Wheeler, on the ground. A further Sky Sports family of feeds, including Sky Sports Main Event HD, Sky Sports+ Channel and SuperSport Rugby HD, also runs the Tony Johnson-led box. The same Tony Johnson, Justin Marshall and Jeff Wilson call is mirrored across these feeds, with Stephen Donald, Angus Ta'avao and Mils Muliaina as pundits.

Where to watch on Friday

Australia's two main channels are 9Gem and Stan Sport, both fronted by Michael Atkinson. The international and New Zealand-friendly feeds are the NOW channels, Premier Player Canada, Premier Sports Asia and RugbyPass TV, all presented by Laura McGoldrick with the Tony Johnson-led call, alongside New Zealand's Sky Sport 1 NZ. A further set of Sky Sports feeds rounds out the coverage.

Whether you follow it on 9Gem, Stan Sport, NOW, Premier Player Canada, Premier Sports Asia, RugbyPass TV, Sky Sport 1 NZ or the Sky Sports feeds, Friday's New Zealand v Australia Bledisloe Cup matchup is well covered, with Michael Atkinson and Tony Johnson anchoring the two big teams. For background on the commentary lineup, you can read the Nine for Brands media release for the Bledisloe Cup here.

Article generated: 10 October 2026, 07:10 GMT