The Second Captains Podcast

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran look back on a weekend in which Irish goalwizards were rampant throughout English football's top two divisions,Sean Dyche rose above the shade thrown by Antonio Conte, Antonio Conte ignored the shade thrown by Jose Mourinho, and Jordan Henderson's team talk inspired Liverpool to a return to form. They also talk about the increasingly hostile atmosphere in German football, wher...

Ireland got their 6N campaign back on track with a 9-try filleting of a pretty terrible Italy team – Shane Horgan talks to us about the return of Jonny Sexton, and the new France looking a lot like the same old France. Former Welsh legend Martyn Williams was in the Principality Stadium for the game of the weekend between England and Wales. Derek McGrath’s Waterford got some measure of revenge for...

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran discuss the ongoing Arsenal crack-up, DejanLovren's refugee story and the neurological problems suffered by oldplayers who headed a lot of balls. Raphael Honigstein joins us to talk about why Philipp Lahm has decidedto call it quits at the end of this season, aged just 33. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Ireland team has been named for our second Six Nations game against Italy this weekend. We wonder when Ireland are gonna park the bus and Shane Jennings asks why our players are being rested, when our entire club system revolves around giving them enough time off to be fresh for international duty. US Murph tells us - through gritted teeth - about the greatness of the New England Patriots afte...

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran launch the Second Captains World Service, anddiscuss the Arsenal Fan TV revolution which is ruffling establishmentfeathers at the Emirates. Stuart James joins us to analyse where it has all gone wrong forClaudio Ranieri and Leicester. And Jonathan Wilson reports from Gabon on Cameroon's triumph in the African Cup of Nations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more info...

A loss on the opening weekend of the Six Nations is never nice - and a shock loss to Scotland doesn't sweeten the pill. Shane Horgan and Gerry Thornley dissect the 27-22 loss on Saturday. Dublin's winning streak in league and championship is now at 30 games - Seanie Johnston of Cavan got an up-close look at the All-Ireland champions and tells us what makes them so great. And we have exciting news...

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran discuss the Premier League midweek: the inconsistency of Arsenal, the indomitability of Kante and Luiz, the irritability of Jose Mourinho. Miguel Delaney and John Brewin join us to analyse more closely the games at Anfield and the London Olympic stadium. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

February starts with a bang - a large, oval-ball-shaped bang. We have Shane Horgan, Sean Cronin and Scott Hastings to preview the Six Nations, and whether Scotland can keep going for Conor Murray's legs. We're also joined by US Murph to discuss the Atlanta Falcons and their date with destiny against the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl this Sunday night. Plus there's a return to Doug and Lis...

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran pore over the decline of the FA Cup, and hear a former Arsenal right-back's views on what has gone wrong with the world. No, not Lee Dixon. Jack Pitt Brooke joins us to talk about ways to save the competition, and also fills us in on the exciting full debut of Gabriel Jesus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The rest of the tennis season would want to go some to match the Australian Open for drama, as it gave us Serena Williams winning a record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam title, and Roger Federer rolled back the years to beat Rafa Nadal in 5 sets. Sinead O'Carroll of The Journal, and Elaine Buckley of the Fair Game podcast joined us in studio. Dave Hannigan joins us from New York to discuss Trump's lates...

Eoin, Ken and Ciaran discuss Shane Long's conquest of Anfield, Jurgen Klopp's war on doubt, and how wingers, like Tinkerbell, only flourish when you believe in them. Tony Barrett joins us to try to diagnose what has gone wrong at Liverpool. And Jonathan Wilson reports from Gabon where he is covering the Africa Cup of Nations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It has been a life-affirming few days for sports fans and sports stars in their mid-30s. We speak to Luke Jensen of ESPN about Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Venus Williams rolling back the years at the Australian Open. Sam Weinman of Golf Digest talks to us about his new book "Win At Losing: Harnessing the Power of Setbacks to Succeed in Work and Life". Plus there's the unfolding planetary tr...

Eoin McDevitt is BACK. On today's agenda - Rooney, China, Pep Guardiola's courage, Arsene Wenger's rage, and some terrible corner kicks. Sid Lowe joins us from Madrid to analyse what we've learned about Zinedine Zidane over the course of a successful year in charge at Real Madrid. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eoin McDevitt's triumphant return to the hotseat continues, as we discuss Munster and Leinster's progression to the quarter-finals of the European Cup, Connacht's heartbreak, and the Ireland squad for the 6 Nations, with Shane Horgan and Gerry Thornley. Kevin Cullen of the Boston Globe tells us why everyone is rooting against Donald Trump's favourite NFL team, the New England Patriots, and there's...

Richie Sadlier attempts that 'difficult second podcast', as he sits in for Eoin and chats to his old team-mate Stephen Elliot about their time together under Roy Keane at Sunderland, Dwight Yorke's body fat, and why academies are the root of all ills in football. There's also the day Richie's parents met some Man City ultras, helicopter parents, and what breed of dog Ken would be, if he were to tr...

Ken and Ciaran discuss Mauricio Pochettino's disdain for social media, and why you should never trust a political article that makes a football comparison. Emmet Malone joins us in studio to talk about John Delaney's appearance yesterday before a Dail committee. And Simon Hughes reflects on the career of Xabi Alonso, who announced yesterday that he will retire at the end of the season. Hosted on A...

Ken and Ciaran talk about Merseyside v Manchester, after a great weekend for long-haired bearded English footballers, and a bad weekend for Iberian galactico super-coaches. Miguel Delaney and John Brewin join us to analyse the weekend's action: did Jose blow his big chance? Will Pep lose patience with City before City lose patience with him? Plus there's Andy Carroll's giant leap for mankind, Ever...

One year ago, the Irish provinces were going nowhere fast in Europe - now Munster and Leinster are through with a round to spare, and Connacht still have their destiny in their own hands. Shane Horgan and Gerry Thornley on another good-news weekend for Irish rugby. And we speak to Katie Cooke, an inspirational 19 year old living with epilepsy and not letting it prevent her from finishing the last...

Ken and Ciaran scour history searching for feats to compare with the miracle that Jose Mourinho has performed at Manchester United. Rob Smyth joins us to look ahead to the weekend's match at Old Trafford. And Philippe Auclair explains what's going on between Dmitri Payet and West Ham United. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We invited Richie Sadlier in as guest host and he immediately started bossing us around, demanding in depth interviews on weighty topics..... and that we walk and feed his dog Bobbi. First up is Luke Fitzgerald, who like Richie, had to retire early because of injury. Luke turns the tables and starts asking Richie some searching questions. We also talk to Dion Fanning about the football world's ina...

Ken and Ciaran comb the desolate wilderness of the FA Cup third round weekend like a couple of stray dogs rooting through a rubbish tip for giblets. After Merse and Thommo kicked off on Soccer Saturday, Jonathan Liew joins us to talk about whether English football is giving English football men a fair deal. And Josh Robinson is in Zurich for FIFA's annual gala, which has been renamed The Best. Hos...

Munster utterly dominated Racing Metro of Paris in every facet on Saturday - Liam Toland and Shane Horgan ask if they (and Leinster) have what it takes to go on and win the Champions Cup outright this year. Davy Fitzgerald got off to a flying start as Wexford hurling manager yesterday - we ask Liam Griffin if it's OK to start getting carried away yet. Plus there's the weekend that didn't matter, B...

Spurs blew the title race wide open last night, defeating Chelsea 2-0 to end their 13 match winning streak. Have Spurs shown others how to crack Conte's code? Dion Fanning joins us in studio to talk about another calamitous week for Arsenal, and Murph and Ken discuss whether Jefferson Montero has ever heard of Ronald Reagan. Plus there's Fergie's comfort zone, Sanchez's hissy-fit and Arsenal Fan T...

US Murph joins us for the first time in 2017 to tell his hopes and dreams (not Trump related) for the new year. We talk about Ronda Rousey's precipitous fall from grace in the UFC, plus there's a brand new edition of Kens Friendz, US sports franchises most popular with 1990s teens, and John Giles. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ken and Ciaran talk about a busy New Year's weekend in the Premier League. As the pressure increases, there are signs that managerial heads are beginning to melt. Miguel Delaney was at the Olympic Stadium to see Manchester United extend their winning run to sixAnd Jack Pitt-Brooke looks ahead to Tottenham v Chelsea, a match Spurs need to win to keep people believing the title race is still on... H...