The 42FM

Niall ran his third Dublin Marathon on Sunday and when asked to describe it in a word, he said: slog.

He tells Sinéad about the privilege of being one of nearly 20,000 runners to toe the start line on a special day when Dublin city is truly its best self; the pain of feeling his best-laid plans for the race quickly unravel; and the pride of getting to the finish line.

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Sinéad and Niall welcome Mark Horgan of the Second Captains/BBC podcast 'Where is George Gibney?' to reflect on the paedophile's criminal conviction and sentencing 33 years after he was first charged in a Dublin court.

The trio talk about where journalism fits into the decades-long story and why the global nature of podcasting was a key feature in bringing it to a conclusion that previously looked impossible to the swimming coach's victims.

They delve into what sports journalism should be, including why and how smaller impacts are just as motivating.

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Paul Howard joins Sinéad O’Carroll and Niall Kelly to talk about how sport would work in a united Ireland.

This is a subject Paul has spent a lot of time thinking about during the research and writing for his new novel, A Nation Once Again.

The book centres on a secretive civil service department tasked with preparing for a unified country.

As sports fans know, the union of the Republic and North and IFA and FAI could be among the most tricky diplomatic challenges for a fledgling state.

What would be an acceptable flag, anthem and home ground for such a team? What happens to the collective memories of both fanbases? Would it even matter to the younger generation, who would quickly replace what’s been with their own, new reality.

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Sinead O’Carroll and Niall Kelly are joined by the much-admired sportswriter for a far-reaching chat.

Vincent talks about the privilege and pressure of covering the Olympic games across the decades for the Irish Independent.

And he explains how the GAA has changed - from being an organisation where a journalist such as himself could sit in a dug out for an All-Ireland final, to one where access is tightly controlled by cautious managers.

Vincent explains what has been lost by the culture of secrecy, how it became harder to do the job to the desired standard, and why the reader and supporter of Gaelic games has suffered in that they do not know the players, in all of their colour and contradictions, like previous generations.

Yet he remains an optimist, and says the best sports writers are at work today - and given just a little access, can turn around work which stands the test of time.

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Sinéad O’Carroll is joined by David Sneyd, who has returned from a tumultuous few days in Debrecen with the Ireland football team.

There is much to discuss, including the curious suggestion of this being a ‘media-created’ story.

How will the team and Gavin Bazunu be received on Thursday night at the Aviva Stadium?

Is there a chance that this Sunday’s game, Ireland’s ‘home’ tie with Israel in Serbia, could be boycotted by Ireland players? Or is the appetite for more tension-filled days and nights in the meantime not there?

Also, did agents lean on players to fulfill the fixture last Sunday? Why was the game refereed so leniently? And was the football unimportant, or did it matter in the end?

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Ireland will play Israel twice in the coming weeks, despite widely articulated concern and protest over the fixtures. Niall Kelly and Sinead O’Carroll discuss the background to these games, how they came about, and why they will go ahead despite the misgivings of many supporters.

The pair discuss previous stories that have been at the intersection of sport and news and politics and explain why this is by far the most contentious in recent decades.

With Uefa, the FAI and Irish government opting against making a stand or ruling on the fixtures, the responsibility for protest has cascaded down to the players. We ask if it is fair or realistic for a professional footballer to become the face of dissent against these games going ahead and, as a consequence, the highest profile sporting opponent of Israel.

We detail how the media has decided to cover the games, and the policy of The 42 and The Journal.

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Niall Kelly is back from Doonbeg to tell Sinéad O’Carroll about a golf tournament like few others.

It was a bizarre weekend in Co Clare, which juxtaposed The US president and all of the associated security hardware and personnel with a run of four extraordinary rounds of golf from Shane Lowry.

The Offaly man did not just defeat the field, he demolished it, 11 shots clear of second place.

What will we think about in years to come when looking back on this Irish Open, the extraordinary entrance and presence of Donald Trump, or the immaculate links play from Lowry?

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Declan Bogue joins Sinéad O’Carroll and Niall Kelly as the lure of Australia proves strong for many young footballers.

The GAA, says Sinead, have been ‘getting their knickers in a twist’ about the prospect of yet more talented players swapping Ireland for a life of sunshine, flat whites and professionalism in Melbourne and other Australian cities. But should they?

With Kobe McDonald signed up with St Kilda, and combines in Ireland attracting top talent, while AFL clubs continue to target successful U20 sides, what can be done? Not very much, suggest our panel, adding that a more pertinent question might be why would you even consider ways to prevent professional opportunities to young people?

Are suggestions of limiting the flow of players essentially illegal? And is the idea of compensating clubs or counties antithetical to the GAA’s amateur ethos?

And will the flow of players, in the men’s game at least, always be limited by the demand from Australia, where there are hundreds of thousands of players in the sport’s pyramid, most of them trained in the skills of the game from childhood?

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Gavan Casey joins Sinead O’Carroll and Niall Kelly to discuss how Katie Taylor sold out Croke Park.

At some point during the 20 years the Bray woman has been a public figure, she has gone from being widely respected to loved. But why is this the case for someone who has rarely bared her soul? Gavan makes the point that she has in fact done this time and again - in the ring. And in the process has displayed a purity of spirit that is at once alien to us and inspiring.

He talks about the quiet aura Taylor carries, how people almost stand to attention when she enters a room.

Gavan details the injury that has blighted her for years and explains why she would have been far further ahead of the field than she already is with a clean bill of health. And it was in overcoming that hindrance, while facing formidable opponents, that she became a singular figure that can move 80,000 tickets on a Saturday night at the spiritual home of Irish sport.

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