Second Captains @ The Irish Times

Neymar will take no further part in WC2014, but could his injury be their way to escape the pressure against Germany? Ken joins us from Rio to discuss the fallout.Argentina have stuttered their way through the tournament but Ken thinks they're favourites and explains why Louis Van Gaal's genius tactics may not be quite as brilliant as everyone suspects.All this plus Argentina the daddy, Eoin's letter to Sepp, Brazil's ugly truth, Scolari's defiant nonsense, the penalty shoot out curse and James Young on Neymar's cultural significance. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin and Murph discuss likeable Kerry, fulfilling your sporting talent, Roger Federer the hustler, Nicky English the hurling soothsayer and McDeviit's scorn for talented fullbacks. The road back to the All-Ireland hurling final for Clare looks increasingly difficult after their draw with Wexford - the struggles of the defending champions, helmet pulls, wexford youth and Tipp style are all on the agenda for Malachy Clerkin and former Dublin and Limerick hurler Maurice O'Brien. Roger Federer shed a single tear yesterday - we ask Jonny Watterson if that was the last chance at an 18th Grand Slam, and whether the Swiss genius will carry on for much longer. And Oisin McConville explains why Cork football annoys him so much. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

4 quarter-finals will be played in the World Cup this weekend, each one of them a tantalising prospect. After his long walk home from Sao Paulo, Ken Early is heading to the Maracana for France / Germany on Friday night. Before that he got a chance to check out Angel Di Maria's eggs, and Tim Vickery talks to us about Brazil and how they've shrunk into the tournament with every passing week. Ken gets called a flame-haired flame-thrower of truth, we salute the return of passive-aggressive Roy Keane, and we talk about the club who aren't allowed to buy anyone buying the player who isn't allowed to play (Suarez to Barca). See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Derval O'Rourke is one of Cork and Ireland's greatest ever athletes - she gives us an exclusive interview after her decision to retire. Cork and Kerry do battle for the final time in Pairc Ui Chaoimh - Micheal Quirke tells us which Kerry team-mate of his nearly came acropper before he'd even reached the field in the old place. And we have US Murph on his boys in white and their traumatic World Cup exit. Plus we have 9 year old Murph being carried shoulder-high into a Munster final, Andy Murray's ill-timed argument, Barack Obama's phone manner and who is Kerry's Scottie Pippen this weekend. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

All 8 group winners have won their round of 16 game in the World Cup, which would suggest that the cream is rising to the top. But given the struggles of so many of the top teams, are we any closer to finding out who's actually going to win the thing?Emmet Malone joins us from Rio de Janeiro to discuss the European challenge, specifically France and Germany who meet in the Maracana on Friday, and Dion Fanning tells us if Messi and ten others can do the business for Argentina.Plus there's this week's unlikely American folk hero, cocky Marc Wilmots, and Germany's fly-keeper. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ken floated on a dream into Sao Paulo to watch Messi at work and finds that the Argentinian is not the dynamic go getter he once was.South and Central Americans are thriving at this tournament. Ken talks to Tem Hennigan about the fusion of nationalism, politics and football in the region.All this plus Roy Keane to Villa, Suarez the precious, qualified apologies, fossilised Germans, Chris Kamara's big catch and the return of the angry post match interviewer See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

One of Ireland's greatest ever athletes, David Gillick, has retired - he gives his first interview to Second Captains. A 2-time European champion, Gillick looks back on his career on the track, nerves for life, his regrets... and his new sporting pastime. Dublin and Meath have qualified for the Leinster football final - Anthony Moyles and Malachy Clerkin talk to us about what Meath can do to stop the Dublin juggernaut, this morning's qualifier draw, new body types, and why Armagh is one place where no grudge will go un-nursed. Plus we discuss keeping up your tea intake during a World Cup, Costa Rican players re-enacting 'The Crawl', innate athleticism and Ronnie Delaney - Irish sprint king. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There were four extraordinary games over the weekend, but still the world's appetitite is not sated. We talk Holland's high hopes, Van Gaal's self proclaimed genius, the Neymar pressure cooker and Colombiaaaa.Journalist and author Simon Kuper joins us from Brazil to talk about the path to the final for the Netherlands, and how the limited gameplan is a good way of limiting over confidence. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ken is in the jungle, and unfortunately he is the hunted not the hunter. Yes, he had his bag stolen and is grateful to mother nature for teaching him the laws of the jungle.Richie Sadlier joins us in studio to discuss RTE pundit passion, Luis Suarez's options and what the long term reality is for the Uruguayan. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin and Murph discuss runaway labradoodles, American cheer, drinking cans on the Great Wall of China and silver backs.Brian Murphy is driving the US soccer bandwagon, it has its own mini bar and he wants us all to hop aboard. Yes, the Luis Suarez bite has gone 'caost to coast'. Andy Murray has gone from being coached by ice man Ivan Lendl to the famously nervy Amelie Mauresmo. We talk to Jonny Watterson at Wimbledon about women coaching men, good listeners and relaxed Andy. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ken was at the Italy Uruguay game to observe one of the strangest moments in World Cup history, and one of the most complex characters in sport, Luis Suarez.We get reaction from the Uruguayan media and analyse what the consequences might be for Suarez, for the team, and for FIFA. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran talk about Andrea Pirlo and the Two World Cups, Luis Suarez strangeness, and Louis van Gaal's fatal flaw.Dion Fanning joins us from Rio to analyse Brazil's improvement against Cameroon.All this plus Murph's elbow in the face, Maradona's kitchen, honest Italy and rest day depression. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

With Henry Shefflin starting on the bench yesterday, Joe Canning could have been forgiven for thinking he'd be free of the comparisons for one afternoon. Maurice O'Brien and Nicky English give us their thoughts on what will happen in Shefflin-Canning part 2.Derval O'Rourke is one of our favourite sportspeople, and after her retirement today we're joined by Jerry Kiernan and David Gillick to talk about one of our greatest ever clutch athletes. We have Shane Curran on the weekend's Gaelic football and the future of the minnows in the All-Ireland football championship. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It was a World Cup weekend for the ages, and our man in Brazil Ken Early was there for perhaps the most dramatic 45 minutes so far, as Germany and Ghana played out a thrilling 2-2 draw.Miguel Delaney joins us to talk about the Messi Argentina dynamic and if Belgium's many talents can be unified.And there's the late night habits of the Argentinian sub-goalie in 1986, the mis-firing German charm offensive, and the Jurgen Klinsmann/Jogi Loew love-affair. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, one week in and we've already lost our World Champions. After a week of extraordinary football, Richie Sadlier is in studio to discuss what we should have seen coming, and what we could never have guessed would happen.Ken is overcome with emotion when asked to sum up the first seven days, but recovers his composure to ask Jonathan Wilson about the crush at Maracana and whether its the Spanish system or the players that have come to an end.And we reveal the hitherto unknown link between George Bush at Yale, former Irish physio Mick Byrne and Pepe Reina See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The GAA championship would want to be pretty bloody good to distract from this World Cup... so it's just as well hurling has picked up where it left off last summer. The Irish Times' Malachy Clerkin and Kilkenny legend Michael Kavanagh (they have 8 All-Ireland medals between them) they Shefflin, Canning, Cody, consistency.The USA's World Cup win over Ghana took the nation by storm - US Murph tells us how a country that's usually so relaxed about that whole patriotism business got all swept up in patriotic fervour.Plus we have Bobby Kerr's pants, an extended World Cup #pbeso edition, DiCaprio's party, and a half-hearted message from Barack Obama. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Today's Irish Times Second Captains World Cup Podcast has Ken Early calling out John Hayes and Neymar for their attention-grabbing anthem antics. Brazil stuttered against Mexico last night, and Big Phil Scolari has decisions to make. Does he jettison the men he pledged undying faith to 12 months ago? We speak to the BBC's Tim Vickery about whether there's a major crisis coming for the Scolari family. The Dunphy F-bomb, Kenny Cunningham, Ken scientist, the future of Spanish football and Tiger Woods also feature. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This World Cup is basically a ruse to allow Ken Early to indulge in his favourite waste of time - star-gazing - so just what were Pepe and Ronaldo doing at the airport in Salvador after their humiliating 4-0 defeat to Germany yesterday? Gabriele Marcotti joins us to talk about the USA's brilliant last-gasp win over Ghana, and we look ahead to the arrival on the scene today of the brightest dark horses to ever play in a World Cup (Belgium.All this plus USA's 37%, games on a plane, macho protests, Ken's cankles, Germany automatic. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eoin and Murph discuss 'real' sport, dual players, Maradona on loop, goal line technology and meek Phil Neville.Benny Dunne and John Gardiner assess what happened to All-Ireland hurling champions Clare, and Anthony Moyles talks about whether bogey teams really exist after Monaghan finally beat Tyrone in the Ulster championship.Shane Horgan is in Argentina and talks to us about Schmidt's problems at centre and watching the World Cup in 'football loco'.And we talk about Martin Kaymer’s gift to World Cup TV viewers, Eoin ‘Nostradamus’ McDevitt and Murph's Sinatra phobia. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The first weekend of the World Cup exceeded even the most optimistic of expectations with bucketloads of goals, dodgy refs, meek commentators, fallen idols, Brazil getting a few home-town decisions, Holland shocking the world, and England finding their scapegoat - a sweaty sunburnt Ken Early reports from Brazil.Plus we talk to John Brewin and Dion Fanning about the problem Wayne Rooney is presenting Roy Hodgson, we reflect on the eerie prescience of Ken's World Cup Crystal Ball, and how Robin Van Persie's self imposed 10 month break is good for Holland. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.