Second Captains @ The Irish Times

We had a great time on the World Service this week including chats about Ireland winning the transfer window, "new" old Brian Cody, the immense pressure on NZ ahead of the third test and the hugely enjoyable new Netflix basketball movie, Hustle, starring Adam Sandler.To hear all our shows from Monday to Friday join for just five euro a month. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

England/Norway could be the game of the group stages of Euro 2022 and Miguel Delaney will be there tonight. He tells us about the host nation’s reaction to the tournament thus far, and we also discuss Chelsea’s first post-Abramovich summer so far, their new-found canniness in the transfer market… and where a kite being flown about buying Ronaldo fits into that. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Another wild weekend of football in Croke Park ends with Galway and Kerry as the last men standing in this year’s All-Ireland championship. The best in the business Oisin McConville and Paul Flynn talk Dublin’s lack of a sweeper, Clifford magic, red cards, penalties and the Damien Comer effect. And as Sean O’Shea’s last-second free takes its place in the pantheon, we give it the full audio-bed treatment.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

All Ireland football semi-finals, Ireland's tour of New Zealand, Euro 2022, the climax of Wimbledon, the All Ireland hurling final... The list of massive sporting events taking place this month goes on and on and we've got it all covered on the Second Captains World Service. Listen to some of the highlights of this week's independent, member-led podcasts and sign up now for just €5 + VAT a month at secondcaptains.com/join See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ronaldo has told Manchester United that he wants out, as he hasn't seen enough ambition in the club this summer to suggest a tilt at the Premier League title next season is likely. Jonathan Wilson joins us to discuss whether Ronaldo coming out and demanding an exit might actually be the perfect solution to Erik ten Hag's biggest problem at Old Trafford.  Plus there's the arrival of Christian Eriksen, and the club almost embracing the 40 hour working week.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Nobody said it was going to be easy, but even against our most pessimistic outlook, this has been a chastening first week on tour for Ireland in New Zealand. Two games down, two dispiriting defeats, and a squad being stretched thin already by injury - Shane Horgan and Jim Kayes from Sky Sports New Zealand are on the show today to sift through the wreckage.  We also had two All-Ireland hurling semi-finals this weekend, and the fallacy of minimising Kilkenny's chances before a big game was revealed once again, while Murph's exquisite pain is mined for the benefit of our audience.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

All the way from the tender green shoots of the grassroots game to the swollen red giant of Neymar's declining career... the extreme fisheye perspective of today's football pod can mean only one thing: it's summertime.That also means TRANSFER TALK, including Jesus to Arsenal, Bale to LA, De Jong to Man Utd and Neymar to nowhere. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

After the goals, the fightback, the fight, the red cards, the penalties and the tears, we had a lot to get through with Oisin Mcconville and Murph today, but we start by asking how the GAA, and Armagh, should deal with the scenes at the end of normal time.Murph prays there will be no appeals process, but what about Galway and their late collapse, their inability to deal with high balls, their brilliant goal in extra time and superb penalty technique?Plus there's Ken TV, meek Mayo, Dublin's stroll in Croker and Derry looking good not just for a final, but maybe an All Ireland title too. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is our weekly reminder about all of the great shows you can access when you become a member of the Second Captains World Service, for just 5 euro a month. Go to secondcaptains.com/join for details. We spent a surprising amount of the week discussing summer camps and John Stockton's mid 90's trips to Ireland, and we had a great chat with Joanna Harper, a competitive runner who transitioned a number of years ago, and since then has become one of the leading voices in this area. She's now a medical physicist and an advisor to many international sports federations and is based at Loughborough University in the UK, where she’s researching transgender athletic performance. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin returns to the football pod and gives his long awaited take on the Nations League and Ireland’s best goal, meanwhile Ken is accused of twisting facts to suit his narrative, which just goes to show the kind of stuff that comes in from scum around the country. We also chat about Richard Arnold’s pub talk with Man United fans, what's happening with Frenkie de Jong and Murph's solution to the FAI's sponsor issues.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin is back in the hot-seat, and to celebrate his return, the All-Ireland hurling championship has been whittled down to its last four - Jamie Wall and 2013 All-Ireland winning captain Pat Donnellan join us to discuss the two quarter-finals this week. Galway beat Cork, but don’t have a rat’s chance against Limerick, while Shane O’Donnell continues to perform miracles for Clare, even when they’re under-performing. And when Plan A works, but has been rumbled, how important it is to adapt - the two teams that did at the weekend, are still alive this morning. Plus there’s Murph’s superpower, Eoin on a farm, Ken's golf power rankings and the butcher of Ballybrack strikes again. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

From calling out Phil Mickelson, to pronouncing the LIV Series dead in the water, to questioning the pursuit of money, Rory McIlroy has been nothing if not outspoken these last few months. He looked like a man with a point to prove as he defended his Canadian Open title this weekend, taking him to 21 PGA Tour wins, one more than.....somebody else. Meanwhile Charl Schwartzel was winning four times as much as Rory over on the LIV tour, but wasn't wrestling with his conscience. And world number 374, GMAC, sees only one set of footprints in the Saudi sand.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Victory this weekend was never, of course, in doubt and that is precisely what Ireland delivered. We chat to Dion Fanning and Miguel Delaney about our over-reaction to every Ireland result, the reality that this group of players, and this manager, will continue to make mistakes and be inconsistent, and a heated debate breaks out over whether long shots, dribbles or passing moves are the best kind of goals.Plus there's the joy of simplicity, the Hendrick debate, and Ken on the beauty of Poland.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Irish football team: a consistent source of disappointment, or a consistently bracing source of perspective on life? Ken and Murph disagree, just as they disagree on many things about the game. One thing they do agree on is that in international football, a superhero isn't necessary, but as Wales and Norway demonstrate, it sure helps. Richie Sadlier and Gavin Cooney join us to analyse what happened in Yerevan. Why can't we create chances? For all the supposed improvement are there any signs of the development of real confidence? Is there anything to be said for another system change? Plus there's wild talk of "creativity", "passing triangles" and the need for "De Bruyne crosses". See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We had four pretty awful provincial Gaelic Football finals this weekend, the undoubted main story of which was Derry outlasting Donegal in a dour, defensive Ulster final during which Donegal played a risk averse, low energy game.Galway keep marching on in Connacht, and then there was the galling sight of Dublin and Kerry once again filleting provincial opposition in their finals on Saturday.Why on earth did Kildare not use a sweeper against Dublin and will Derry get it so easy outside of Ulster? We set the scene for our chat with Oisin McConville and Paul Flynn, coming up on the World Service on Wednesday. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The universe gave Ken all the signs in the world, including an actual, real-life rat infestation on the streets of Paris, but he refused to listen. Real Madrid are champions of Europe.After a chaotic, dangerous and depressing night in Paris for so many Liverpool fans, Ken speaks to Miguel Delaney and Jonathan Wilson about whether they're a great team or not, the mistakes made for the Vinicius goal and just how Madrid keep winning this competition.Liverpool played 3 cup finals this season, failed to score in any of them, and now it looks like Sadio Mané is leaving and Salah will go soon after. How does Jurgen Klopp go about rebuilding from here?Plus there's El Chiringuito on the streets, Liverpool on parade and the behaviour of the French police towards Liverpool fans. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Last month, Waterford were the number 1 contenders for Limerick’s All-Ireland crown. Today, they’re out of the championship. Did expectation and big talk kill them?Ken wants to know why the Dublin hurlers haven't bought the Liam McCarthy Cup, and with the All-Ireland finals no longer in September he accuses the GAA of ripping up the fabric of Irish life. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Manchester City are the Premier League champions, again sealing the title with a 3-2 comeback win at home. We talk about City's win and how in the end the players carried their manager over the line.We are joined by Miguel Delaney and Jonathan Wilson to talk about City's win. The last day provided the drama, but is the competition in a healthy state? Is the billionaire-worship of football fans an ominous sign for wider society? Plus there's Mbappe's staying power and who was right in Saipan, anyway?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It's been a wild week on the Second Captains World Service with Frank's redemption, Everton's fan power, Rangers in Seville and we even take the time to have another pop at Derry football. This is just a taste of what we've been up to, for access to all shows Monday to Friday go to secondcaptains.com/join, its five euro a month with no minimum contract, no sign up fee and you can cancel whenever you want. It's sexy podcasting, with no strings attached.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Cork were mad as hell and they just weren’t gonna take it anymore… and their defeat of Waterford yesterday has blown the entire championship wide open. Waterford are now relying on winless Tipperary to do them a favour next week, otherwise the league champions won’t even qualify out of Munster. And a packed Cusack Park in Ennis was a stark contrast to how spinelessly Meath exited the Leinster football championship – a situation which moved Ken almost to tears. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.