Second Captains

This week on the Second Captains World Service we spoke about the departure of Souness, Steph's shithousing, Big Sam's return, Klopp's manners, Keys and Gray on Messi, Dublin bias, Frank LLLLLampard and lots more.

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Limerick were beaten by Clare this weekend....but the game wasn't on terrestrial TV? Murph defends GAA Go, and wonders if this might be the year when a very good Munster county gets knocked out of the championship. Waterford are gone, but could the All Ireland champs also be in trouble?  

Leinster once again outplayed and outsmarted Toulouse in the European Cup, and once again face La Rochelle in the final. Leinster have improved this season, but Shane Horgan explains why he thinks ROG's team will be favourites.

Gerry Thornley also joins us in studio to discuss Jack Conan's form and fitness, Josh Van Der Flier's role in Neti's yellow card, the dangers of a 6-2 bench split, why it wasn't a sellout and if the IRFU need to rethink their strategy on separating the 7s and 15s women's teams.

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Seeing her brother Nhat walk out for the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics as Ireland’s number 1 badminton player inspired Thammy Nguyễn to revive her own olympic weightlifting dream, which she’d left on the back burner to run her business and start a family. Now, after winning bronze at the European Championships, Thammy has taken a giant leap forward in her hopes to join her brother in Paris next year. 

We welcomed both Nhat and Thammy onto the World Service this week to chat about their background, how sport helped them assimilate into Irish life and how a certain Stephen Cluxton played a role in Nhat’s early badminton career.

Plus, we get into whether the Limerick hurlers have done much to rehab their reputation since last week and how this current Man City team matches up against the great treble winning United squad of 1999.

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We start today's show with a life-changing email for Murph who realises he's been getting it all wrong, all along.

The All-Ireland senior football championship went all-out this weekend with ten games in four provinces - Paul Flynn and Michael Murphy talk us through the highlights including Damien Comer’s tour de force, Donegal’s limp exit, the shambles in Meath, and Armagh rediscovering their mojo (for 1 half, at least).

And we discover just what Ken gets up to when the shackles are off.

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With Arsenal chasing the title on Friday and FA Cup semi-finals on Saturday and Sunday, this weekend was never going to be about Spurs. And yet here we are.

We look back at a very special performance by both sides at St James Park.

We also talk about whether de Zerbi is standing on the shoulders of giants (or Graham Potter) at Brighton and why proper football people don't use Google.

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Ken has been beating the Trent Alexander-Arnold to central midfield drum for quite some time, to a mixed response from listeners and pundits alike. However, with Liverpool struggling for form Jurgen Klopp saw fit to test this theory against Leeds United, leading to a good display from Trent. Our man saw fit to bask in the glow of vindication.

Plus there’s Mal and Jamie Wall on whether Limerick push the rulebook too far while asserting their dominance on the rest, and why everyone loves Todd Boehly.

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Monaghan weren't many people's idea of a likely winner in their Ulster championship quarter-final against Tyrone in Omagh yesterday, but in a manner befitting the best, most ignorant traditions of their proud county, they did the business, winning a thriller 2-17 to 1-18. 

One of the people who did believe they could do it though was Colin Walshe, former All-star and Monaghan team captain, and he joins us in studio to talk to us about the ageless, irrepressible Conor McManus, the tactical tweaks that made it such an entertaining game, and fly-keepers. 

Eoin salutes the mad-cap number 1s making the Ulster championship such a thrilling watch, and we discuss why Ulster has been the hotbed from which most of the new tactical evolutions in the game have sprung. 

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Unai Emery could have been a local hero in a city somewhat further to the north, but the Fate that watches over Eddie Howe decreed otherwise. Now the Aston Villa Express is functioning perfectly - except for the brakes - while poor Dan Burn discovers that the revolution devours its children.

We discuss Arsenal's latest collapse, Man City's menacing new vibe and some of the initial remarks from Joan Laporta's big Negreira press conference.

Jack Pitt-Brooke and Miguel Delaney join us to talk more about the weekend's football. Have Arsenal blown it? How can we explain Brighton's increasing success despite the talent drain they've had to deal with? And how does a club go from smart to stupid? 

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Call it ‘cosmic consciousness’ or ‘capturing the zeitgeist', but it just so happened to have been a very American week on the World Service. We hear Ken’s scorching takes on The Masters and rev up the campaign to get him over in Augusta as soon as possible. We also take a look at the green shoots for the Ireland Women’s team, even after a couple of losses against the US in our World Cup warm-up series. 

Plus, there’s Todd Boehly’s brash over-optimism around Chelsea, as well President Joe Biden’s gaff-ridden visit to our fair city. 

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A great match at Anfield ended in a Pyrrhic non-victory for both sides, and a return, oh yes, of the eternal Trent Alexander-Arnold discourse. Maybe we will never agree on what the solution is for Trent - move to midfield? several years national service? - but we can agree that with Man City now on a run of eight wins in a row, while Guardiola gives a masterclass in how to stop a top team going stale, it's looking ominous for Arsenal's title chances.

What an afternoon for Roberto de Zerbi at Tottenham: a defeat, four huge calls going against his team, a red card that might ban him from the touchline for the FA Cup semi-final, and an official apology from the referees' company. Brighton have had three apologies in 2023 from PGMOL - is it time for some accountability?

Andrew Mangan and Richard Jolly join us to talk more about the game at Anfield. Did Arteta overestimate the Anfield factor? Why do Liverpool need to be disrespected before they wake up? And is it really OK for officials to elbow players now? 

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