Second Captains @ The Irish Times

Connacht are now the great entertainers of European rugby, but against Wasps they won without playing their best rugby. We ask former Connacht star Gavin Duffy how significant this win was with Pat Lam having announced his retirement two weeks ago. Liam Toland and Gerry Thornley discuss Munster's late loss to Leicester and Northampton's strange approach to the competition.Plus we analyse the latest episode in the Mayo drama, and Ken the Tv reviewer makes his first ever appearance on the show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran discuss Ronaldo's four-ball, midweek MOTD, Lallana's fresh polish, and one pundit's irritable reaction to being disresPepted.David Stubbs joins us to talk about his book: 1996 and the End of History.Plus there's Oasis V Blur, Gazza's yard of pace, and hatin' on Chris Evans. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Its time for one of our favourite shows of the year - its the Second Captains Sports Book Special!! We welcome the most learned man we know, Malachy Clerkin, to the studio, to discuss the best books of the year. Warning: things get a little heated.We examine weighty themes such as the search for darkness in a sportsman's soul, making lemons from lemonade, and Paul O'Connell's smoking habits. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Champions Cup was back this week, and the Irish provinces scored a ton of tries and are all still very much in contention - Gerry Thornley is in studio. Andy Lee runs the rule over Anthony Joshua and Andy's old gym buddy Wladimir Klitschko, plus there's Fionnuala McCormack's comments on the 'European' cross-county championships, obese wildlife, and Klopp taking aim at the Neville brothers. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin and Ken talk about how some top football men have teamed up to beat down on Liverpool's new goalkeeper, dismiss Jose Mourinho's claims that Spurs are the most complete team in the league, and reflect on the liberating quality of absolute submission to charismatic authorityJohn Brewin was at the King Power stadium to see Vardy humble GuardiolaAnd Miguel Delaney analyses how likely Chelsea are to break the Premier League record for wins in a row See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin and Ciaran bully Ken after he was slammed by Ireland's greatest football man, John Giles. Broken hearted Ken makes a feeble effort to explain how actually Giles agrees with him on a lot of stuff.Sports lawyer Ian Lynam joins us in studio to talk about how contracts are done in modern football. It's not just clubs who are trying to use data to gain an edge.Plus there's Pep's plan, rating Raheem and Arsenal's brain drain. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Thomas Barr was one of the stars of Irish sport in 2016, finishing a whisker outside of a medal place in a 400m hurdles Olympic final that seemed a long way away when he was crippled by injury just 12 weeks before Rio - he joins us in studio. Gerry Thornley has literally written the book on Pat Lam's Connacht, he's with us to talk about his shock departure for Bristol, and his own book "Front Up, Rise Up: The Official Story of Connacht Rugby". Plus there's the scourge of 'everyone gets a medal day', Whiddy Island tourism, and drinking bags of popcorn See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We continue our celebrations of our 750th podcast with Jonathan Wilson and Richie Sadlier in conversation with the lads at the Liberty Hall Theatre in Dublin.They discuss how the Premier League went X-rated this weekend with Sergio Aguero, Marcos Rojo, and Zlatan kicking our poor Seamus Coleman in the head.And just to re-affirm there's goodness in the world... there's Richie's new dog Bobbi. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Welcome to a very special recording of the show from the historic Liberty Hall Theatre, featuring our superstar guests, US Murph, and Richie Sadlier's loveable pooch, Bobbi.Ireland's favourite rugby player Tadhg Furlong joins us on stage to talk NZ roadkill, wrestler nicknames, and his Wexford roots.Plus Oisin McConville, Sinead O'Carroll and Richie discuss 2016, and Ken's Fair View gets a celeb scrub up . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran discuss Jose's new Armenian gem, Klopp's kids and how managers have been using the EFL Cup to mine for talent in the outer regions of their squads. Ewan MacKenna joins us from Brazil to discuss the tragic air crash involving Copa Sudamericana finalists, Chapocoense. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The return of Tiger Woods to competitive golf looked less and less likely as 2016 went on - but as the year comes to a close, he's back at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas. Christine Brennan of USA Today joins us. 8% of the revenue of a sport to go to the competitors in that sport? Doesn't seem like a great deal to us, but a number of UFC fighters have set up a union looking for just that. Petesy Carroll is in studio to discuss. Plus there's TEAM USA, Pat Kenny fending off cheap shots, Eoin's Poems, and confirmation that US Murph has indeed arrived on Irish soil. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran talk about water bottles, Man United Versus God goalies, and the visible and invisible tightropes managers have to tread, and the need for them to balance stick and carrot when motivating their players.Sid Lowe joins us to talk about Barcelona losing their fizz a week ahead of the showdown with Real Madrid. And John Brewin analyses Chelsea's victory over Spurs as Antonio Conte's team continue their impressive title charge. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ireland's final game of the November series saw them grind out a win against Australia which seemed distinctly unlikely with 20 minutes to go. Gerry Thornley and Shane Horgan reflect on a momentous month. Katie Taylor made her professional debut on Saturday night, and it seemed like she embraced all the bells and whistles - Andy Lee joins us in studio. Plus there's Planet Earth II, song choices, and good news for our American-based listeners. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin and Ken talk about Steve Gerrard, the Euro 2020 launch in Dublin, and the week's Champions League action. Are our eyes deceiving us or are Barcelona slowing down a bit?Richie Sadlier joins us in studio to discuss the belated emergence of the child abuse scandal in English football. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Paul O’Connell joins us in studio to talk about his new book, The Battle. Ken and Paul share old swimming gala stories, and reveal contrasting attitudes to the sweet allure of the humble cigarette.Katie Taylor makes her professional debut this weekend so we invited Monaghan fighter Christina McMahon in to discuss the hard road that is a career in women's pro boxing.Plus there’s podcast polygamy, Paul O’Connell’s guinea pig putting greens, Ireland V Australia chat and the mask that eats into the face. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran argue about whether Wayne Rooney deserves to be singled out for doing what every other drinker does.We talk to cartoonist David Squires about turning football into comic strips and his brilliant new book "The Illustrated History of Football".And Philip O'Connor reports from Sweden where Helsingborgs fans are in no mood to respect their club legends. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

New Zealand scored three tries, and we scored none, and that should be the end of the matter. But in a brutal second test against the All-Blacks, did the world’s number 1 side go over the line? Gerry Thornley and Matt Williams on Saturday’s 21-9 defeat. Barney Ronay talks to us about the very un-British rise of Andy Murray to world number 1, plus we discuss Planet Earth II, and contemplate unleashing Bono on the New Zealanders. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran talk about the open season on Wayne Rooney and Jurgen Klopp's effort to persuade Philippe Coutinho that his future lies at LiverpoolJohn Brewin joins us to discuss Rooney's problemsAnd Marcela Mora Y Araujo tells us why Lionel Messi is leading Argentina's players in a press boycott. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ireland face New Zealand for the second time in 14 days, and this time the All Blacks are trying to install themselves as the underdogs. Shane Horgan is on hand to preview the game. Live from Hawaii US Murph tells us about the NBA coaches expressing their disgust at recent events in America, and there's our latest email scumbag, McGregor fallout, and Ireland's bid for the Rugby World Cup in 2023. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ken and Ciaran discuss plans for their Russian vacation in 2018, smart Ireland, the San Marino press officer's dubious retort to Thomas Müller, and the world's highest-paid sports teams. Dion Fanning joins us in studio to look back on James McClean's glory night.Plus there's Andre Rieu atmosphere, the Viennese buffet, and Frau Early. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.