Second Captains @ The Irish Times

Katie Taylor had a routine defence of her world title in Boston on Saturday night against a fighter who was woefully unable to offer anything on the front foot. Rather more dramatic is a new documentary, "Katie", which gets a cinema release this week and which offers deep insight into Katie the person. Director Ross Whitaker (who has made "When Ali Came To Ireland" and "Axel" among a string of great Irish sports documentaries), is in studio along with Katie to talk to us about her relationship with her father, heartbreak in Rio and living a new life in the middle of nowhere in Connecticut. We also look back at the weekend's rugby with Mattie Williams and Gerry Thornley, as Leinster's mask of invincibility fell in dramatic fashion in Toulouse, Munster defeated Gloucester, Cipriani went high and Simon Zebo annoyed some Ulstermen. Plus there's the fog of GAA war, the art of small talk with promoters (and UFC stars), and showboating. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Nations League may be gone for the next few weeks but the aftershocks continue to shake up the Irish punditry scene as Seamus Coleman takes clinical aim at Keith Andrews for criticising the team. Meanwhile the Premier League title race looks exceptionally tight with the top five potentially separated by two points if Arsenal manage to beat Leicester tonight. But does the table belie the real story - which is that Manchester City's form is looking increasingly ominous for everybody else?Dermot Corrigan was at Real Madrid's press conference to see Julen Lopetegui confirm that he would continue as coach at least for another few days. And we speak to Deutsche Welle's Felix Tamsut about an extraordinary press conference at Bayern Munich, where the club main power-brokers called the media in for no other reason than to give them a damn good thrashing. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

European Rugby is back, and it was an excellent week for the Irish provinces, as Leinster and Ulster both won against English opposition, and Munster came out of Exeter with a doughty draw.Gerry Thornley and former Munster back-rower James Coughlan join us to talk about Leinster's thrilling style, Ulster's young fullback, Tadhg Beirne's best game so far for Munster, and Freddie Burns' horror-show. Joe Brolly has called for the UFC to be banned, and Ken can't believe that he's talking about the Ultimate Fighting Championship and not the Ulster Football Championship. Plus there's Gabriel Batistuta, Rui Costa, li'l US Murph's photographic memory, and Django Unchained. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ep 1291: Good Ship Ireland, McCarthy Charm Offensive, Natural Goalscorer Worship - 15/10/18 by Second Captains See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So it turns out if you insult Khabib Nurmagomedov's family, religion, and country... he's not going to like it very much. Conor McGregor's pre-fight posturing might have just seemed like good PR, and even a good laugh, but Khabib was deadly serious when it came to seeking retribution in the ring, and against Mcgregor's team, in the immediate aftermath of the UFC lightweight world title fight. Petesy Carroll and Joe Callaghan are on hand to talk us through a fight in which McGregor was comprehensively outclassed, and to discuss who was best served by the crazy, chaotic scenes afterwards - was it Conor, the fans, the sport of MMA or Dana White and the UFC?Leinster and Munster served up a brilliant game on Saturday evening, a game where strangely enough pretty much everyone had something positive to take from it. Gerry Thornley and Denis Hickie look at Munster's new attacking formation, King James Lowe, and the Joey Carbery Ross Byrne battle. Plus there's Galway's new rugby party HQ, making your own reality, a

It turns out Pep Guardiola can do pragmatism with the best of them, and the much-hyped clash of Liverpool and Manchester City fizzled out in mild disappointment for an uncharacteristically conservative City and mild relief for misfiring Liverpool.Instead we had to satisfy ourselves with an astonishing game at Old Trafford, in which Jose Mourinho defied the implacable forces bent on his destruction with a masterclass in rabble-rousing.John Brewin joins us to discuss that match and how things are likely to play out from here.But with some of Europe's biggest clubs also checking out the managerial market for replacements, is now the right time for United to act? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

**NOTE: This was initially a World Service members-only show broadcasted first on 2nd of October 2018. We have decided to re-publish the podcast today, the 4th of October, with the support of our members. For independent, member-led journalism like this in the future, please join the Second Captains World Service. Enjoy the show and thanks to all our members as always.**On the World Service today we have one of the most impactful interviews we've ever done. It's the story of former professional footballer Brian Lenihan who played with Cork City before getting a move to Hull City and winning a call-up to the Republic of Ireland senior squad in 2014.In April of this year, aged just 23, Brian was forced to retire from football for his own wellbeing. And in the latest episode of The Player’s Chair, he opens up to Richie about the mental health issues that lay behind that decision to step away from the sport.Brian reveals the difficulties he had in coming to terms with his injury, the suicidal thoughts he experien

Europe were deemed to be the underdogs going into the weekend's Ryder Cup, but it was very much an old-school Ryder Cup in the end - the US had all the stars, Europe had all the team spirit, and it ended with a convincing 7 point win for the home side. Malachy Clerkin had barely set foot back in Ireland before he came in to us, and he's joined by Lawrence Donegan to pick apart another European celebration... and another fractious US aftermath. Leinster and Munster will be feeling good ahead of their meeting in the Aviva this saturday, as they both had confident, assured wins against Connacht and Ulster respectively. Mattie Williams and Gerry Thornley give us their views on Munster's new 9 Alby Mathewson, Joey Carbery's instincts and relentless Leinster. Plus there's Tiger Woods' woeful Ryder Cup record, Moliwood, Europe's lovely and lame stars, and the father of Grunge. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Chelsea and Liverpool used to straight up not like each other. And yet their last two matches, despite being played out in a bizarre atmosphere of mutual respect and admiration, have been remarkably entertaining. Can you get it on even if you also get along?We discuss that match and some of the other weekend highlights, including a searingly honest and yet perplexing analysis of Manchester United's failings from Luke Shaw, and reports of Benjamin Mendy sailing close to the wind.Then we speak to Der Spiegel's sports editor Christoph Winterbach about his magazine's reporting of the Ronaldo story, which has made global headlines over the weekend. Raphael Honigstein joins us to talk about the weekend's Premier League action. If Liverpool's attack is not flowing quite so well as last season, is this because attackers are out of form or because Jurgen Klopp has decided to tweak the style of play? And how much of Chelsea's improved form can be put down to their improved mood? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and op

Last year, Tiger Woods could barely walk. Last night, in chaotic, brilliant circumstances, he won his first PGA Tour championship in 5 years to reaffirm his return to the top of the sport. Not only has he battled back from technical, physical, psychological and emotional setbacks, he's also won a few new friends along the way. Author, podcast host and friend of the show Lawrence Donegan tries to put it all into historical perspective.Gerry Thornley and Mattie Williams join us to talk about Munster and Joey Carbery's awkward initial fumblings as they strive to make this relationship work, Connacht have their groove back under Andy Friend, and Felipe Contepomi is adding even more pizzazz to the Leinster back-room. Plus there's Souness' stove-piping, Ken awaits Eoin McDevitt's return with unbearable anticipation, and we mention Jamie Dornan, Brian O'Driscoll and Condoleezza Rice in the same sentence so it must be Ryder Cup week. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ep 1273: Pogba's Points, The Mendes Derby, Chelsea's Control Freak, Liverpool's Headstart - 24/09/18 by Second Captains See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Dublin have been the best team in ladies football for the last two years, but yesterday they finally got the result they needed to truly frank that form, when they beat their old nemesis Cork in the All-Ireland final in Croke Park. 10-time All-Ireland winning legend Valerie Mulcahy and Malachy Clerkin join us to discuss whether this is a changing of the guard, and if Dublin are about to embark on a period of dominance similar to their men's team - we're not so sure. Sean Cavanagh was in studio with us last Thursday talking about on-field violence, and just two days after that, he suffered horrific facial injuries in a Tyrone senior club championship game. Oisin McConville talks to us about whether Tyrone have a problem, or if its endemic in the GAA nationwide, and if the PSNI is an organisation that GAA players in Northern Ireland are comfortable reporting such incidents to. Plus there's sports mad Shane Ross, Murph finally feels respected, and Ken tells us his bombshell leaving cert results night story w

Stand-in host Ciaran Murphy, like many Manchester United supporters, is angry with the double standards employed by the fake news media. Is it not time to HAMMER TOTTENHAM? Why should they always get off easy? We discuss a Premier League Sunday that was dominated by unhappy shamrock Declan Rice and bench shamrock Matt Doherty, while on Saturday, victorious coaches Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola were angry with their players for different reasons.Then Rory Smith and Jonathan Wilson join us to dissect Spurs' performance and Harry Kane's malaise. We also talk about the benefits of the ever-expanding army of ancillary coaches that can be found at many football clubs, and we ponder what Ketchup symbolises. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ep 1262: Serena's Outrage, Why She Is A Nuance-Free Zone, Dominic Ryan Retires With Concussion, Solos In Slaughtneil - 10/09/2018 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Nations League turns out to be not bad, eh. We discuss the opening weekend of UEFA's new tournament, why it seems to be working despite the dull and convoluted format, and the latest reports on the strife in the Ireland camp. Then we talk to Peter Crouch about his new book, How To Be A Footballer, and look at some of the Jon Walters related highlights in the book. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Harry Arter has become the latest Ireland international to decide that he'd rather not join up with the squad right now. Martin O'Neill has admitted that his decision may have been influenced by an altercation with Roy Keane during a previous Ireland camp.We discuss the reasons why players play international football: do you have to be a super-patriot like James McClean, or does careerism have its place? Meanwhile Denmark have sacked off their entire squad because of a commercial dispute between the DBU and the players. Jacob Staehelin of Danish podcast Mediano Fodbold joins us to explain the chaos. And Kieran Canning was at Celtic Park to see Brendan Rodgers' Celtic beat Steven Gerrard's Rangers in the first Old Firm clash of the season. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Dublin are now utterly dominant, that dominance franked by a convincing fourth All-Ireland final win in a row against a valiant but outclassed Tyrone team. Oisin McConville thinks Tyrone missed an opportunity, and Mike Quirke tries to put this Dublin era into a historical context. From the moment the season began, it was clear that Dublin were heavy favourites to end the summer as champions. Is that level of superiority good for the game, should the Dubs care, and did Tyrone offer anything yesterday that other teams can replicate in the future? At the moment the Dubs have too many options, too much patience, are too well coached, and have a number of stratospherically good players. So can anyone challenge them next year, or the year after?Ken says ignore the begrudgery and the spreadsheets, lets talks to the children of the nation about this Dublin team. And he tells us some tall tales of his adventures on the Portuguese high seas. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Oh Declan. The news that Declan Rice is "deliberating" over an offer to play his international football with England has sent Irish football into a tailspin, as many of us had already mentally installed Rice as the bedrock of the team for the next 15 years. We discuss possible solutions for Jose Mourinho as he wanders in an existential vacuum and Eoin describes how he dealt with getting Poped out on Sunday early afternoon.Richie Sadlier joins us in studio to discuss the news about Declan Rice. How should we feel about this latest lost sheep?Then we are joined from Cairo by Mustafa Omar to hear more about the continuing dispute between Mo Salah and the Egyptian FA. Plus Rodgers gets rattled, Keyes has a pop, Owen talks about his groin and Ozil has some phlegm. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The All-Ireland Football Final is next Sunday, a game in which few people, if anyone, give Tyrone much of a chance of discommoding Dublin. So just how do you get under their skin, and bring them to places they don't want to go? The only team capable of doing that in the last couple of years is Mayo, and we talk to their midfielder Seamus O'Shea about how to go toe-to-toe with Dublin, what Mayo bring to the table that Jim Gavin's team don't like, and why Tyrone's build-up couldn't be going much better. We also talk about recovering from injury, Stephen Rochford's proposed new backroom team, and being pinned down in Clonmel general hospital as they tried to pop his shoulder back in place... we salute the bravery of south Tipperary's first responders. Plus there's Tipp's u-21s, Ken's chicken wings, and we solve the future of Gaelic football. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Even in a bad game, in this extraordinary year hurling found a way to be exceptional, as Limerick dominated the All-Ireland champions Galway for 70 minutes, and still nearly got caught in injury time. Thus ends a 45-year wait for an All-Ireland title for Limerick, and they celebrated in style. We try and celebrate the year in review with two All-Ireland winners of our own, Eoin Kelly and Michael Duignan, and we discuss Limerick's winning blend of aggression and style which won the hardest-earned All-Ireland of them all. Ken smugly reminds us of his confident pre-match prediction of a crushing Limerick victory, Murph convinces himself that in fact Galway wuz robbed, and we hail the stunning co-commentary stylings of Anthony Daly. Plus Shane Dowling is having a party and everyone's invited, Ken ponders a trip to Limerick to hang out with his celebrity pal, and Limerick face down their demons and win anyway. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.