The Second Captains Podcast

So looking back, Sergio, what have you learned from your experiences with Real Madrid? Well, that's a tricky question, Terry. But as I always say, we skipped the light fandango, turned cartwheels cross the floor...Sergio Ramos' Twitter self-interview provides some light relief after a more-than-averagely violent and chaotic weekend of football. It's a problem football hasn't spent much time thinking about lately: how can fans be dissuaded from invading the pitch and attacking the players? Also today, we speak to Rory Smith about his NYT interview with Raheem Sterling and the media's role in fuelling racism and prejudice. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Ciara Mageean sat down to record an episode of The Players Chair with Richie Sadlier last year, she was coping with changing coach, living in England, and trying to put disappointment behind her. We're delighted to catch up with her today to talk about her bronze in the European Indoor Championships in Glasgow last night. Tommy Walsh is experiencing a third coming in the Kerry football team - 11 years after bursting onto the scene as a teenager, and 4 years after failing to make any impact on his return from Australia. It's been one of the stories of the NFL this year, and his club manager Mike Quirke is on the line to tell us what's changed. Plus there's Ken's by-now obligatory near-death experience while abroad, we reveal the exclusive audio of the moment Peter O'Mahony asked Joe Schmidt if he and the boys could have a few beers, and the abomination in Ulster schools Gaelic football that had the country talking. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ken is back from Australia and Eoin is back from Premier Sports to talk about the weekend's football.Jurgen Klopp's tetchy responses after Liverpool's draw at Everton suggest that some of those questions about whether they took enough risk in the game were a bit too close to the bone. Meanwhile City shrugged off more Football Leaks revelations to cruise past Bournemouth and retake the lead. How does this weekend affect the balance of the title race psychodrama? And why would neutrals rather see Liverpool choke than City?Also today, Dermot Corrigan joins us from the Real Madrid training ground to discuss how the European champions are taking a week off being dominated by Barcelona at their own stadium. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Just what is going on with Ireland? It might seem a strange question to ask after a weekend that saw England beaten, Ireland win their second game in a row, and secure their first bonus point of the tournament - but that's where we are. Shane Horgan is starting to get a little worried, and he's on the line to share his concerns. Ireland might just be trying too hard to force the issue. But when the brilliance of the New Zealand performance is still so fresh in the memory, it's hard not to be frustrated at the sheer number of elementary mistakes being made. Wales legend Jonathan Davies is on the line to tell us just how good people in Wales are feeling after their monumental performance in taking down England on Saturday - a game that showcased all the glorious madness of the 6 Nations. And while Congress was for the most part, deathly dull, there was one decision that rankled - Dublin will continue to be allowed play 2 games in Croke Park this year. There's a lot of blame to go around regarding this situation, and Murph doesn't spare any of the guilty parties... Plus there's Peter O'Mahony's pre-France game hangover that we feel needs to happen, tired Italian stereotypes make a social media comeback, and Eoin actually really likes Warren Gatland. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The moment when Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga refused to come off at the end of yesterday's Carabao Cup final might have been sadly indicative of the insanity of Chelsea's dressing-room, but Eoin McDevitt believes it might have more widespread implications for the game as a whole - was yesterday the day the lunatics took over the asylum? Miguel Delaney found himself in the heart of the action yesterday as he interviewed and interpreted for the young Spanish goalkeeper after the game, and we're also joined by Dion Fanning and Jonathan Wilson. And as you'd expect, Jonathan has an example from the dim and distant football past... and the story is peak Jonathan Wilson. Kepa's run-in with his manager overshadowed Jordan Henderson's own mini-strop on the sideline after Jurgen Klopp took him off, but what's going on with Liverpool? They failed to fire again against a severely-understrength Man United. Plus there's Eoin vs Kinger, at least Chelsea's PR unit are a team, and as football tears itself apart over Kepa, the GAA world says 'so what, this happens every week'. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New slots including McTepid, Irish Scapegoats Of Days Gone By and Nesbitt's Lonely planet emerged this week but that hasn't helped Eoin's ego after once again he was made to look a fool by one of our rugby pundits.We had loads of Champions league analysis, Damien Delaney on managers losing the dressingroom, previews for Man Utd v Liverpool, 6N talk, and Pep gets the "where did you get it all SO wrong" treatment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Limerick ended 2018 as All-Ireland champions for the first time in 45 years, and they've started 2019 in menacing fashion - beating Wexford away before hammering Tipperary and Kilkenny in successive games. Malachy Clerkin of the Irish Times, and former Limerick captain Donal O'Grady are on the show trying to figure out if Limerick are going all-out for league glory, or if it's a case of them water-skiing on the good vibes of last August. And we discuss Jackie Tyrrell's assertion that they're not in the top 3 teams in the country - gross blasphemy, or something even worse than that? We had a brilliant chat with Howard Bryant about his book "The Heritage: Black Athletes, a Divided America, and the Politics of Patriotism" late last year, and he's back on the show today to talk to us about the news that Colin Kaepernick has settled his collusion lawsuit against the NFL. Plus Murph reveals that some of his best friends are from Clare, we pay homage to Ken's hurling nous, and Stuart Barnes throwing petrol-bombs. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's shaping up to be a big week for Jurgen Klopp, as his Liverpool team meet the challenge of Bayern Munich, a team Klopp has had reason to be at logger heads with over the years. Simon Hughes of the Independent joins us to talk about why Klopp so angered Bayern during his time with Dortmund, his relationship with Uli Hoeness, the loss of Virgil, and why a draw might not be such a bad result tomorrow night for Liverpool. We also talk to James Montague, author of the brilliant "The Billionaires Club", about the story of Bahrainian footballer Hakeem Al Araibi, who was saved from deportation and possibly death by a global movement led by former Australian Socceroos captains Craig Foster. Plus there's #JadoreInchicore, Ken's Kastaway, Klopp sings, why a German curse can equal Irish good luck, and we launch German indie week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Expect the worst says Eoin, after having his Irish heart crushed by England's Declan Rice. Ken explains this whole sorry saga via a Valentine's message.Pat Kenny has some good clean fun for you all.And we have a teaser for Richie Sadlier's latest Player's Chair interview with Ireland's most decorated and most capped player of all time, the legendary Emma Byrne. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eoin questioned the wisdom of Maurizio Sarri berating his players in public a couple of weeks back - today he informs us that in their last 3 away games since he said those words, they've conceded 1.2% of their entire premier league goals against. Dion Fanning and Jonathan Wilson are on hand to discuss just how doomed Sarri is, and whether the only thing saving him is Roman Abramovich's new-found disinterest in the Chelsea project. They also discuss whether the clamour for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to get the Manchester United job for keeps is now too loud to ignore, or if the games in the next 3 weeks against Paris Saint Germain and Liverpool will give us all a much better idea of his capabilities. Plus there's Brian Clough, Gary Crosby, and apologetic punch-recipients. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ireland picked up their first win of the 2019 Six Nations on Saturday, but it was pretty hard sledding for most of Saturday. Shane Horgan and Gerry Thornley are on hand to adjudicate on where we stand after two games. England's points bonanza against the woeful French means the title might be beyond us already, but does that give us free rein to experiment with the World Cup in mind? What are we learning from our hesitancy and nervousness in recent weeks? And is there any other option for Johnny Sexton but to stand where he stands and take the punishment he got again at the weekend? We salute the rebirth of Gaelic football, the most entertaining sport on the planet, Jimmy Nesbitt makes a welcome return to our hearts and minds, and we have a new French cliché for the world to adopt. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Essence of Second Captains World Service - Noah McDevitt is only three weeks old but he needs a win this weekend. Eoin explains. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ireland had an extraordinary 2018, but in their first game of the 2019 6 Nations, their back-to-back Grand Slam dream came crashing down around them. They were out-fought out-thought, and out-kicked by a brilliant England team. Is it time to press the panic button? No, says Eoin Reddan - and there's a chance we learn quite a bit from this humbling experience. Gerry Thornley of the Irish Times, Simon and Murph all try and make sense of it. Plus there's proud Preston, unreasonable expectations, widespread navel gazing, and looking ahead to Scotland. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Manchester City kept the pressure on Liverpool by beating Arsenal while Manchester United continued their resurgence under The Sunshine Man. Rory Smith was at the Etihad to see Manchester City defeat Arsenal. Is Guardiola overthinking it? What happens when managers want to prove points rather than win them? And why do teams seem to find it so difficult to enjoy the process of winning a title?Andy Hunter joins us to talk about where things have gone so horribly wrong for City's next opponents, Everton. How have they managed to spend £300m on players in less than two years and end up with this? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Have a whiff of the Second Captains musk - from Donnacha Ryan to Mike Tindall to US Murph on the Super Bowl, to Premier League fright nights.... its been a hell of a week. Join the world service for daily shows, Richie Sadlier's Player's Chair, top class interviews and to observe Ken's continuing loyalty to David Luiz - at secondcaptains.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It was a rough start to the GAA season on Saturday night, when it briefly looked as if Castlebar's MacHale Park might be blown away for the opening match of the Allianz National Football League. A hurricane of a different sort ripped through Clones on Sunday however, as Monaghan turned a 6-point deficit into a 3-point win against the reigning league and championship winners Dublin. Their captain Colin Walshe joins us on the line to talk must-win moments, super subs and offensive marks. If the men's final at the Australian Open sounded like a pairing that could have happened in 2009, then the women's final would've sounded impossible even this time last year. Caitlin Thompson of Racquet Magazine joins us to talk about Naomi Osaka's back story, apologies and back to back grand slams, Petra Kvitova's return from getting stabbed in the hand, the great Novak Djokovic mystery and why variety beats dominance.Plus there's the Blair Witch Project, motion sickness, Long Hug Therapy, Eoin McDevitt Junior, and Derek McGrath > Jose Mourinho. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It was another FA Cup weekend, so today's football show is mainly about Luke Kelly. David Sneyd wrote about Kelly's links to Irish football in yesterday's Mail on Sunday and he joins us to discuss it further in studio today. We also talk about the former Ireland coaching dream team reuniting at Nottingham Forest.It was a particularly big weekend for journalism, with Hugh McIlvanney's death reminding us of an old world that is vanishing, and Jesse Lingard's triumphant few days showing us the way ahead. We talk about other pundits including Neil Francis, Ruud Gullit and the email marketing consultant who annoyed Andros Townsend.Plus there's McViolence, village elders, Germans importing English flair, Ole Gunnar Sunshine and Fergie on journalism. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

January is a long, cold month, and sometimes the only thing for it is to wrap up warm, hunker down by the fireside, and download a podcast or two. Ken and Murph talk you through what you missed on this week's Second Captains World Service - as we hear why Kerry are no longer contenders for the All-Ireland football championship, 40 is NOT elderly, and why football is still an integral part of Leave-Voting Britain's identity. And we have US Murph on the Superbowl, Neymar's foot, a sneak and a Player's Chair interview with Steven Reid, as we discover Richie Sadlier was not always the bastion of common-sense he is these days... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It was a very, very satisfying weekend for Irish sports fans, with one of our most beloved sports-people Shane Lowry back in the winner's enclosure after a dramatic one-shot win at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship on Saturday morning. Having led by three going into the final round, he found himself 4 shots back on the 12th tee before making three birdies to win by a shot - and he joins us on the show to discuss how he was determined not to relive the mistakes of the US Open in 2016 when he found himself in a similar position. And we look back at the seamless progression of all 4 provinces into the quarter-finals of the Champions Cup and the Challenge Cup, with Gerry Thornley and Tom English. Leinster face Ulster, Munster must travel to Edinburgh, and Connacht have to play Sale yet again in their quarter-final - but it was another impressive weekend of Irish muscle-flexing on the European stage. Plus there's yet more Eddie Jones updates, Ken's latest impressions, and the world's greatest sports co-commentator. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It seems a little early for the Premier League run-in jitters, but Liverpool were made to sweat for their 4-3 win over Crystal Palace. Mo Salah is the fall-guy, but why has everyone conveniently forgotten about Andy Robertson's handball in the build-up to what turned out to be the winning goal? James Horncastle joins us to discuss Maurizio Sarri, who launched the calmest ever verbal broadside against his own players after their 2-0 defeat to Arsenal on Saturday evening. Of the 3 rats that downed Mourinho's sinking ship, only 1 remains, but there are still plenty of problems for him to contend with, including the plodding Jorginho, who has failed thus far to impress many, including Rio Ferdinand. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer may now be the Man United backstop, but has he done enough to be seen as the favourite for the job full-time now? Thierry Henry might be out of his job soon too at Monaco, while Neymar suffers baby heart-break with PSG. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Your weekly spritz of Second Captains on the (Leeds) World Service Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's been a great weekend for Irish Premier League goalscorers and Brian Clough anecdotes, as Declan Rice, Shane Long and Jeff Hendrick ran riot while Martin O'Neill returned to management with Nottingham Forest.Meanwhile, Frank Lampard is convinced that Marcelo Bielsa has flouted English moral norms, but luckily for the Argentine he appears not to have broken any actual rules. It was not such a good weekend for Rio Ferdinand: when any controversy pits you and Richard Keys against the world, it's time to start worrying.We're joined by Jacob Steinberg and John Brewin to discuss Declan Rice's development, Mesut Özil's exile, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's credentials to be named the next permanent Man United manager. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It was the week that very nearly tore Second Captains apart - but we've made it to this time of the week again, unscathed, which means it's time for us to tell you what you've missed on the Second Captains World Service over the last few days. We debate the achievements of David Silva, and things get heated when Murph is asked to put his money where his mouth is. And we get a taster of what delights lie in wait for us this month as US Murph talks us through the first weekend of the NFL playoffs, which go on for all of January. Plus there's FIFA 19 stats, Eamon Dunphy's greatest ever radio performance, 'fanny merchants', Spurs - Man Utd manager playoff, and reports of a Neymar Coutinho swop deal . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Munster put in their best performance of the season and showed enough quality at the vital moments to keep Connacht at arm's length, and central to that effort were Joey Carbery and the centre pairing of Dan Goggin and Chris Farrell.But Shane Horgan still has some reservations about the Munster midfield - we discuss what Chris Farrell has to do to get to the next level for province and country, and what their best combination should be, when everyone is fit. The GAA announced a series of rule announcements to try and revitalise Gaelic football in October. The National League hasn't started and already there are signs those changes may not see the light of day. Oisin McConville watched the McKenna Cup this weekend (so you wouldn't have to) and reports back from the front lines. Plus there's Andres Iniesta, gold steaks, salt bae and strange salutes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Josh Robinson and Jonathan Clegg's new book "The Club: How the Premier League became the richest, most disruptive business in sport" provides a fascinating account of the business development of the Premier League, from the initial realisations in the 1980s that maybe football was something you could make money out of, to the multibillion-pound global business it is today.We speak to Josh about the story of the Premier League and the people who have shaped it. Where did the founders get the idea? Does the league owe its success to the insights and actions of a few key individuals, or would it have happened anyway? And what is likely to come next?But first up on today's pod, we speak to Newport County hero - and Carlow native - Padraig Amond, whose 85th minute penalty knocked Leicester City out of the FA Cup last night. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Happy New Year! Now go listen to this, our weekly reminder to you of the manifold benefits of being a Second Captains world service member. We will have all the best coverage of the premier league title race - for a race is what we have, after City's 2-1 win over Liverpool last night - and we remind you of what Brian Kerr is looking forward to in 2019. And we explain why Ken told Eoin to f**k off earlier this week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sometimes, after a long, tiring festive period, you might feel your energy levels flagging. So as you prepare for another big night of socialising, what you might need right about now is a solid dose of positive vibes, and feel-good stories. So we present to you two of the best from the sporting year of 2018 for our New Year's Eve show. Recorded live in front of a packed audience at the Liberty Hall Theatre, we speak to Limerick hurlers Kyle Hayes and Tom Morrissey, and Irish hockey heroes Nikki Evans and Chloe Watkins. Limerick ended 45 years of hurt by winning this year's All-Ireland senior hurling championship, and our two young guests reflect on going through life-changing events at 20, playing with no nerves... and being born the day after the 1998 World Cup final. Ireland's women's hockey team weren't chasing past glories, they were creating some history of their own by qualifying for a first ever World Cup final - and Nikki and Chloe tell us why you're allowed have fun at these things too. Plus there's a reminder of how great this year's hurling summer was, Ken's managerial impressions, pre-match haircuts, and chilled out winners. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's Christmas Eve, and maybe you're on your way home for a couple of days of peace and quiet with your family. So to ease you on the road, here's a very special Christmas Eve show containing what might just be our favourite World Service interview of the year. When Paul Kimmage sat down with Richie Sadlier for an episode of the Player's Chair, we were unsure just how it would go. What we got was an emotional roller-coaster as Richie and Paul talked about where the anger and passion that drives Paul's best work comes from, visiting Tom Humphries in jail, and the loss of Paul's father, who he still misses terribly. It's an extraordinary hour of radio, and we're delighted to present it to you now. Plus there's Eoin channelling Kimmage, Roy Keane and dancing fucking leprechauns. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Shot Of Mourinho Gets The Sack, our breaking news podcast on today's world service. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 1346: Munster Take A Beating, Leinster Hum, Ulster Puzzle Taking Shape by Second Captains Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jurgen Klopp knew that the power of narrative was against his team on Sunday evening, if this had been fiction, the writers could probably not have resisted inserting a "Mourinho Masterclass" plot twist. But this was reality not fiction, and Liverpool were too good.With Mourinho's hold on Manchester United visibly unravelling, how long before the club's decision-makers bite the bullet?We also talk a bit about the new Sunderland documentary which is showing on Netflix, and why the stony soil of Wearside is better ground for good documentaries to take root than the glossy surfaces of the City Football Group.John Brewin and Daniel Harris join us to discuss the weekend's big match. Is the gap between Liverpool and Manchester United as wide as they ever remember it? How can the collapse of United's defence be explained? And how do they feel about the speculation surrounding an imminent possible takeover of the club by investors from Saudi Arabia? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's just about that time again, when we remind you what you've been missing on the Second Captains World Service. Our members will be hearing plenty from our live shows over the next couple of weeks, including our interviews with US Murph, Eamon Dunphy and the charismatic world champ Kellie Harrington. We revealed our Second Captains Sports Book Of The Year... and we reveal the barely-believable story behind the Eddie Jones "scummy Irish" clip that we unleashed on the world the week before Ireland's Grand Slam game against England in March. Plus there's a Champions League review, a Man Utd V Liverpool preview and and Dembele's "war on practice". Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Clubs like Mullinalaghta (population: 447) just don't beat clubs like Kilmacud Crokes - it just, shouldn't happen. And yet in Tullamore yesterday, that's exactly what happened. Gary Rogers scored a penalty in the last minute of normal time to put them ahead, and he joins us on the show to talk about what it means for his club, for Longford, and for rural Ireland. Gerry Thornley and Eoin Reddan talk to us about Leinster's ever-rising expectations of themselves, JJ Hanrahan's performance at out-half for Munster and Ulster's joy at their win away to Scarlets.Meanwhile Stuart Lancaster says everything and nothing about his future; We read the tea leaves. Plus there's crannog marsh huts, Judes man to the core Ken Early wraps a consoling arm around the shoulder to his neighbours and friends of a Kilmacud persuasion, and Murph reveals his super-power. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Saturday was a bad night for all the losers and haters out there as David Luiz showed just what kind of footballer and what kind of man he is against Manchester City.We also talk about the controversy ignited by the apparent racist abuse of Raheem Sterling by some Chelsea fans and his Instagram response linking such incidents with racist media coverage.Meanwhile in Scotland, Steven Gerrard is not happy with what he is seeing and he doesn't care who knows it.We also bring you the first section of last night's show at the Liberty Hall Theatre with Jonathan Wilson, Dion Fanning and Jack Pitt-Brooke. They discuss the title race, how Pep works under pressure, and why Liverpool have emerged as the leading contenders this season.Plus there's Mailbag with Ken Early, Hazard diplomacy, Copa Loco, and Matt Doherty goal machine. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Deontay Wilder was the champ, and the favourite going into this weekend's World heavyweight title bout, but Tyson Fury emerged with the plaudits and the praise, if not the victory, after their heavily disputed draw in Los Angeles. Legendary boxing commentator 'Colonel' Bob Sheridan joins Eoin and the42.ie's boxing correspondent Gavan Casey to discuss just how 'disputed' this draw was, Fury's outrageous comeback from drugs, PED busts and humongous weight gain, and what fight they want to see next in the Fury-Wilder-Joshua triumvirate. If it's December then it must be Ulster club football final time, and yesterday we were given a doozy, as Gaoth Dobhair became the first club from Donegal to win their provincial title in over 40 years. The most heartwarming thing in all of club GAA is the old county-man proving he can still kick it at club level, and Eamon McGee tells us just how good being that man is. Plus there's the super-mario-kartification of football, lazy west Clare cattle farmers, and unbelievable comebacks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

City's imperious form puts all the challengers under unbearable pressure. Do Liverpool have the nerves of steel to respond? If they don't have nerves of steel, will luck do? And does there come a point at which repeated doses of luck crystallises into something more durable? Christian Eriksen didn't have his best ever game in the North London derby. Another Dublin date with destiny weighing on his mind or is he simply a little bit scared of mad dogs?Meanwhile as often happens after a disappointing result, the Manchester United bus has hit a few player-shaped speed bumps.Jacob Steinberg was at Southampton to see Mark Hughes' last match in charge of the Saints, as Michael Obafemi contributed with an assist to their 2-2 draw against United.Plus there's Fergie's boneyard, Southgate on Brexit, Victor Hugo, irrelevant Dier, Mick McCarthy filling the space and the "era of the gamesman". Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week's taster menu of the Second Captains world service, we invite you to sample some of our choicest, most delicious bon mots from the week just gone. Angry Richie Sadlier has been replaced by Rock of Sense Richie Sadlier in light of Ireland's managerial appointments, while Fintan O'Toole was in studio to talk to Ken on our latest politics podcast about Brexit, and "Heroic Failure", Fintan's brilliant new book. For the uninitiated, there's chess ARMAGEDDON, and there's also Jordan Henderson's running style. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 1328: Irish Managerial Merry-Go-Round - Schmidt Out, Farrell In, Kenny In (2 Years) - 26/11/2018 by Second Captains Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ken has this unfamiliar feeling....and he thinks it may be optimism?? Seven days ago, Martin O'Neill was preparing his Ireland team to face Denmark in our final Nations League fixture. Since then, he and Roy Keane have left their posts, and the FAI have hired not one but two managers, and a high profile assistant. Mick McCarthy is back in charge for one qualification campaign, and one qualification campaign only - before he hands over the reins to Stephen Kenny, who leaves Dundalk to take over the Ireland u-21s for 2 years. What if Mick is wildly successful, or flames out? What if Stephen Kenny gets headhunted by a big Premier League club? Maybe it was just Mick's refreshing perspective-filled press conference that has Ken feeling this way, or the look in John Delaney's eye!? We have Joe's Dion Fanning in studio to talk about what the FAI and John Delaney have done right, and wrong, what Robbie Keane brings to the table and what's next for Gun For Hire Roy Keane. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's time for our weekly sneak peek at what we've been up to with our brilliant Second Captains world service members, and this week has been pretty bloody dramatic. The reaction to our extraordinary win over the All-Blacks continues with Shane Horgan, and we said goodbye to Irish football team manager Martin O'Neill. We have a debut for our new football pundit - ANGRY Richie Sadlier, a really brilliant interview with Andy Lee about his new book "Fighter", Eoin's Poems made a thoroughly unwanted return, and Ken picks his new man for Irish football... And it's NOT Mick McCarthy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It was a game between the teams ranked 1 and 2 in the world, and for a breathless 80 minutes, that's exactly what it looked like - a game of huge quality between two evenly matched teams. That Ireland were able to win such a match augurs well for the future, but there's enough in the here and now to keep us very satisfied indeed as Ken, Eoin and Murph reflect on a classic Irish sporting occasion, before we are joined by Gerry Thornley and Eoin Reddan to give us the Irish angle. And we hear from Jeff Wilson, The Golden Boy, one-time record New Zealand try-scorer to tell us just how awesome we are, and maybe give us a little hope that we'll be able to hold onto Joe Schmidt for another couple of years yet. Plus there's former Tipp hurling legends assaulting hard-working journalists, re-watching the game in a happy daze on Saturday night and Sunday morning, and late 90's Otago Highlanders' highlights. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is this... rugby country? The very real chance that life may be imitating advertising is the appalling prospect that greets the Irish football team as they prepare to take on old buddies Denmark in Aarhus tonight.Seamus Coleman and Martin O'Neill insisted that they and the squad greatly enjoyed the win over New Zealand but can they really have enjoyed seeing the difference in the way the crowd at the Aviva reacted to the rugby and football versions of Ireland?Jonathan Northcroft joins us to talk about his World Cup diary, Deadlines and Darts with Dele. He was mainly covering England for the Sunday Times, and 2018 has been a transformative year for the English national team. Is there anything in their turnaround from which Ireland can take heart? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's our weekly taster menu of Second Captains fare - and this week things took a turn for the extraterrestrial as Ken wrestled with the news that alien invaders had been spotted along the west coast of Ireland. In light of that devastating bombshell, the build-up to Ireland vs New Zealand seemed almost frivolous, but we had TV3 New Zealand's Ross Karl in studio waxing lyrical about Beauden Barrett, Shane Horgan on the things that have to happen for Ireland to win, and lest we forget - tomorrow we have a football show on all the reaction to Ireland/Northern Ireland tonight. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ireland defeated Argentina on Saturday, the team that has ended our World Cup on 2 of the last 3 occasions lest we forget, but rarely has a win over a bona fide top tier nation been so readily digested and then ignored in the rush to look ahead to next Saturday's clash with New Zealand. Gerry Thornley of the Irish Times and Matt Williams join us to take whatever learnings we can from last Saturday, before the hype begins in earnest. Are New Zealand all that brilliant any more? If they can barely squeak past an England team that couldn't win a line out, what have we to be scared about? Is Rory Best's position in the team under threat? We discuss the loss of Conor Murray and Robbie Henshaw, and the battle for number 1 in the world. We enlist the spirit of Will Greenwood and Scott Quinnell to turn the hype up to 11, Ken and Murph are at daggers drawn already - and it's only Monday, and we salute the return of the trash-talking Eddie Jones... after one moral victory. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Manchester City's crushing dominance in the Manchester derby means Manchester United are roughly back to where they were before the last international break. It feels now as though their recent string of comeback wins have been papering over cracks that haven't gone away, and the outlook for the season heading towards Christmas is bleak. Jack Pitt-Brooke joins us to analyse the Manchester derby. Was there anything United could have done to wrest the match away from City? And will fans ever really care about what many of them see as little more than creative accounting?And Tom Williams talks to us about how France is adjusting to PSG's unprecedented dominance. Tom also explains the reasons behind Thierry Henry's miserable winless start as Monaco coach. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to our spritz of world service goodness. This week we talked about happy Jose, the Manchester derby, Liverpool's mojo, and we made the case for Simone Biles as the most influential and most dominant athlete in the world. Plus there's Ireland V Argentina build up with Shane Horgan and Diego "Mr 99" Albanese tomorrow (next week we will be talking All Blacks)and we had a great show on Wednesday - Ken talked to David McWilliams about liberal Ireland's economic miracle. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the Centenary edition of Poppy Mania hits full throttle, James McClean and Neil Lennon have both complained that they have become the victims of anti-Irish racism in the UK. Meanwhile Nemanja Matic has unexpectedly entered the drama as a striking new character who could have a big future.In this bumper football show, David Sneyd joins us in studio to talk about the FAI Cup Final, the difference between happiness and joy, and whether the future of Irish football is Irish-based.And we speak to Rory Smith about the latest Football Leaks reports from Der Spiegel and its associated publications. Please join us at secondcaptains.com to listen to our daily shows and support independent, member-led, commercial-free broadcasting. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ireland eased their way to an 8 try win over Italy in Chicago on Saturday evening, and the two players many people were looking at to make an impact on their debut starts for their country contributed 5 tries between them - the hard-carrying, turn-over king Tadhg Beirne, and the electric Jordan Larmour. Eoin Reddan and Gerry Thornley join us to talk about Larmour and why, as Eoin points out, he's not just good at the mercurial stuff, but is also doing all of the things Joe Schmidt is asking of him. Will he make the World Cup starting XV? Eoin says yes, but he's not sure in what position. There's also Tadhg Beirne's all-around brilliance, and the form of the back up half backs. We also find time to discuss Ballyea and Ballygunner's epic shoot-out in the Munster club hurling championship, which led to an all-time great outbreak of mutual respect. Plus there's a new slot for World Service members to get excited about, and we find out hurling snobbery is not just for summer-time, it's for life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A little taster of what was on the Second Captains World Service this week: Davy Fitz on whether he set out to settle scores in his new book, Kiwi conspiracy theories, rattled All Blacks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's almost certainly Julen Lopetegui's last day as coach of Real Madrid, after his side were hammered 5-1 at Camp Nou.We talk through the aftermath of the match and conclude that the European champions have problems that a change of coach is not going to solve.Jacob Steinberg was at Leicester this weekend to cover their match against West Ham. He joins us to talk about the helicopter disaster that claimed the lives of five people including the Leicester chairman, Vichai Srivadhannaprabha. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.