Second Captains

What a monster of a team Unai Emery has put together... using most of the same players the previous coach reckoned weren't up to it. After their demolition job on West Ham, the time is right to hail Villa's accomplishments - and to remember a certain somebody who hasn't been given due credit for the part he has played in their resurgence.

Chelsea 2-2 Arsenal promised much and delivered... another argument over just what exactly a goalkeeper is meant to be these days. 

We also discuss why James Milner's managers seem to enjoy watching him suffer and look at the relationship between Bobby and Jack.

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Welcome to our weekly world service platter. We chat to Kenny apologists Ken and Richie about Irish football’s next step, we had our best ever Grunge Week, Ken Burley comes out fighting after Ireland’s loss to NZ and we look at the Farrell Divide

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As much of a spectacle as this weekend’s quarter finals were, going out in a classic will be of little consolation to Irish players, coaches and supporters. The World Cup hoodoo lives on - and it’s probably the most painful one yet. 

To pick apart this carcass we’re joined by Shane Horgan, The 42’s Murray Kinsella and Scotty Stevenson from TVNZ. Did the NZ coaches outsmart us on the day? What effect did having to chase the game so early have on Ireland? Where do we go from here? And how utterly daft was the France - South Africa game? 

And we check in on Ken Burley who made his grand return to the NZ airwaves.

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A Irish sporting weekend that will echo in eternity began with a dismal 2-0 defeat to Greece on Friday night. New tactics, same old outcome. 

"I'm going to lose the argument whatever I say here. It's not an argument I can win," Stephen Kenny admitted afterwards. The most encouraging words were provided by Greece coach Gus Poyet who was impressed by the amount Irish fans spend on official sportswear. 

We sift through the ashes of defeat, as is tradition, and consider the warped incentives that await Ireland in Amsterdam next month. 

We also discuss the limited scope of Jordan Henderson's off-field work in Saudi Arabia and the latest developments in the Manchester United takeover saga. 

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The World Service is a fairly broad church and this week was no different. Ken got around to watching the David Beckham Netflix documentary and was suitably unimpressed by what he deemed to be a 'tissue of lies'.

Meanwhile, we got word from New Zealand legend Justin Marshall on how he feels his boys are set for their clash with Ireland this weekend. Interestingly for us, it's not all rosy in the garden for the All Blacks.

Plus, US Murph fills us in on the most dramatic news to come out of America in ages.

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At least there was one Scot who turned up on Saturday. We savour the anguish in the voice of our Stretford End correspondent, who sent a message of hopelessness late in the second half when all seemed lost. 

We were (mostly) spared another week of “it’s not incompetence it’s corruption” thanks to Gabriel Martinelli’s late deflected winner at the Emirates. 

Lars Sivertsen and Jonathan Wilson join us to talk about the two big games of the weekend. 

Is it finally really happening for Arsenal? What is the problem with Lars’s boy, Erling Haaland? Why was Brighton-Liverpool one of the most interesting games Jonathan has seen in a long time? And what can Scandinavia teach us about football’s fight for Freedom? 

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Ireland put in one of the best performances of the Farrell era to beat Scotland out the gate by halftime, at which stage everyone's thoughts turned to the mighty, but maybe less mighty than they used to be, All Blacks.

We chat to Shane Horgan, Gerry Thornley and Scotty Stevenson of TVNZ about the level this Irish team are now playing at, the injury issues and what decisions Farrell will have to make over the next few days, whether past World Cups or the series win in NZ are relevant, the Joe Schmidt factor, and who they see as the more likely winner.

Meanwhile, Ken is impressed by Ireland but is worried about the other nations, Murph says "I told you so" to Scotland and Simon caught up with Caelan Doris and Andy Farrell after the match in Paris. 

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This week on the Second Captains World Service we discussed André Onana's transformation into a Just Stop Oil protestor, Shane Horgan pleaded with our Permutations Man to be quiet (!), while Eamon Carr joined us in studio to tell us of his life on the road with the Horslips, which included some run ins with John Law. 

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All we ask of the Ryder Cup is that it be close… and if it’s not close, can we at least make sure that Rory McIlroy is picking fights in the car-park on the Saturday night?  

Malachy Clerkin of the Irish Times and Gavin Cooney from the 42 are back in studio to talk to us about Rory’s fightin’ talk, Patrick Cantlay’s cap, and why these things keep finishing in crushing wins for the home team. 

There’s also a triumphant/boring return for Permutations Man, Marcus Aurelius, and five-team groups in the Rugby World Cup.  

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The fastest current player in the Premier League, De Zerbi De Stroyed at Villa, and the psychology of charity penalties... just some of the things we talk about today before moving on to the main event of Referees and their Video Review helpers.

Miguel Delaney and Dion Fanning join us to pick through the entrails of the post-Spurs v Liverpool carnage. 

Is this the biggest VAR mess yet? Does it have the potential to grow from an embarrassment into a genuine scandal? Are there solutions that can improve the current situation? Or - since VAR clearly doesn't work - is the obvious fix not just to... bin it altogether?

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