Can someone kindly send in a link to that supposed wonder goal that was scored in the Aussie rules game the other day. I'm struggling to find it and know nothing about the sport

I guess this may not be the audience for this message but wondering if I'm truly alone...

I want to love SC and I do love large parts of it. I've been a paid subscriber for many years now. But I tuned into myself recently and realised that I am getting anxious or angry listening to large parts of it. And am skipping through, even sometimes skipping entire soccer episodes (though maybe I'm not allowed to call it soccer - blame my culchie upbringing if you want). I love soccer and almost all sports and I enjoy the soccer content, with one very significant caveat: when Ken is not there or at least not taking over the whole conversation.

I know he's just part of the deal and very popular with an awful lot of people but I just can't handle him (and Branno to a lesser extent). So pretentious and full of himself and condescending in how he talks to almost everyone. Faux intellectual twaddle to me, most of it. I love someone being able to reference literature, history, philosophy, etc and relate it to sport in a relevant way but it's done in such a self-conscious, "I'm the intellectual one" way. I'd be leaving the pub when that friend turns up and ruins what was a fun, smart conversation upto that point. And his pretty much open contempt for almost every other sport. Soccer is your thing, fine. Then shut up about other stuff and don't get involved. I get that that's his schtick and persona but it's so overbearing on the whole show.

If I could pay for a Ken-free version, I 100% would. The recent episodes after Eoin got back and Ken was out were great. Sadly, it's rare . So I'm out.

Maybe I get massively shat on for this opinion. Or are other people secretly enduring Ken's bullshit and pretending to love it?

I just listened to Monday’s pod and heard Denis Irwin was voted 2nd on the 42’s list of greatest-ever Premier League players. It reopened a question I’ve been chewing on for over 30 years.

I was a United fan in 1994. Irwin was my favourite player, later eclipsed by Keane. My old man was from Cork and my uncle played on the same Gaelic football as Irwin, so I idolised him.

93/94 was a fantastic season for United and for Irwin, a constant as United won the double, scoring in the FA Cup semi-final replay against Oldham and winning a penalty in the final against Chelsea.

At the time, my old man used to lift me over the gate for the US ’94 qualifiers, so I was at every home game bar Northern Ireland. Some involved sneaking out of school early, which felt like an added bonus at the time. I was also a ball boy at the Russia friendly in Lansdowne Road in March ’94, where the “Three Amigos” (Gary Kelly, Phil Babb, Jason McAteer) made their debuts.

In a pre-World Cup friendly that April, Ireland beat the Netherlands 1-0 away. My memory is Kelly played right back or right wing-back that night and put in a solid performance. A month later Ireland beat Germany 2-0 in Germany — Irwin started at right wing-back, was subbed for Kelly, who came on and scored the second and caused havoc with his pace.

Fast forward to the World Cup itself:

Vs Italy (1-0 win): Ireland started with a back four, Irwin played the full 90 and was booked.

Vs Mexico (2-1 loss): Irwin played at right-back, booked again which meant he was suspended for the Norway game.

Vs Norway (0-0): Kelly deputised, played the full match.

Then the one that’s never made sense: Ireland played Netherlands in the last 16 and Irwin was left out entirely. An unused sub.

I’ve never heard Irwin or Charlton give a reason for it, and it remains one of the strangest calls I’ve seen as an Ireland fan. Why bench arguably the best full-back in the Premier League?

I somewhat get the potential argument that Kelly’s pace and his performance in the earlier Dutch friendly might’ve swayed Charlton, and maybe he didn’t want to break up a back line that had just kept a clean sheet. But Irwin could play left-back too, and he was ten times the player Terry Phelan was.

Does anyone know if Charlton or Irwin ever actually explained this? It’s genuinely bugged me for three decades.

Your bags, your desk - oot.

I believe Ken was familiar with this player, he was mentioned on the podcast before was he not?

Feels fairly generic to me apart from deeply voyeuristic view into Pep having what seemed a sort of breakdown in his life, which was interesting but a bit hard to watch.

That interview went off the rails a bit.

Based on Murphs mass comment after he wasn't overly impressed himself. Could have pushed more in the interview, but the sense I got was that he just wanted it to end. It certainly stopped abruptly.

Code: qwqrps

Bonus points for funny team names related to Second Captains

In lieu of Ken missing PL preview pod I'd love an episode where he reviews and compares the new pep and mourhino docs. Do feel in safe hands when Dion Fanning steps in while Ken is away.

Haven’t listened in a while. Where is our flame haired flamethrower??? It’s the PL preview pod!

A very random one as far as this Reddit goes, but I thought this'd be a good spot to try - I'm a recent blow in to Cork City, in my 30s, and making new friends and acquaintances has been a challenge to say the least.

Curious to hear if there's any World Service members or otherwise in a similar boat - and perhaps we can go about changing that. Trying here, because I'm a sports nut, and figured this would be one of my better shots at finding like minded people.

He doesn't seem to be a fully paid up member of the front-of-house team like Ken, Murph, Eoin, although he pipes up pretty frequently.

I'm not sure if he was hired as a presenter or a back office drone, but he seems to do a bit of both.

I guess he doesn't have an ownership stake in Second Captains Ltd, unlike the founding five, but (unless I missed the episode), he was never really properly introduced. He seemed to just drift in unannounced from nowhere and over time has become an associate team member. They have a habit of not properly introducing their new hires. That Cillian chap (is he still around?), also just seemed to appear out of nowhere.

Personally, I think Branno is the best thing to happen to Second Captains since they stormed out of Newstalk in a huff. The Batman-Robin alliance he's formed with the flame-haired one is adorable. If they ever do decide to elect another permanent member he'd get my vote and Gav Cooney would get my second preference.

I feel that there are certain episodes that the whole cast has to be present for, one of those has to be the preview for the new PL season. This time last year Ken made the boldish claim that Arsenal would finally get over the hurdle and win the league.

Unless it’s already been pre-recorded it wouldn’t feel right not having him on it. They normally have a good lineup on for that episode too (Cooney/Wilson/Deleaney etc).

The passion is unmatched, he is a force of nature in general when telling the story of a winning nation, however when an Irish Athlete does the business he just provides magic, I really look forward to hearing that voice ever few years, unmatched.

How much did Barry Andrews learn about corporate governance from watching his first cousin Ryan Tubridy go through the Dáil committees?
And what exactly is so bad about Bosman? Is the argument that players should just be kept trapped in contracts indefinitely?

I’m backing Ken to get Dan on and blow the whole story wide open…

The history daily podcast has an episode on the Vasa today, it sank on 10th August 1628.

The 400 year anniversary is coming up soon, will our man Ken return to Stockholm for the festivities?

Has anyone else noticed whenever US Murph is on, Ken seems to be conspicuously absent. Eoin and Murph will chat to him, but I can't remember the last time Ken was involved in a US Murph slot. US Murphs flair would likely grate on his nerves.

Has anyone else noticed this? Is it just the way they divide up the recordings, or is there some Second Captains lore I've missed?