The Second Captains Podcast

Photographer Billy Stickland is responsible for capturing many of the greatest moments in Irish sport, and he joins us in studio to discuss his career, the story behind the shots and how he gets so many men to take their shirts off.Last weekend Carlow hurling manager John Meyler watched his son David score for Hull, rejoiced in Mount Leinster Rangers' hurling success, and celebrated his wedding anniversary. We ask him to rank the events from 1 to 3.Ireland are the only country in the world's top 20 nations without a men's team competing on the rugby sevens circuit, and we're almost certainly not sending a side to the Rio Olympics. We speak to Alan Quinlan and former sevens international Cian Aherne about why this is the case.All this plus Carlow griping, Rooney McIlroy twitter shame, shin pad celebrations and father son sporting love. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sochi is the one place in Russia where it doesn't snow, so Vladimir Putin thought it would be perfect for the Winter Games. Andrew Roth of the New York Times joins us from Moscow to talk about what will be the most expensive Olympics in history.Friend of the show and Ireland's greatest ever goalkeeper Shane Curran joins us in studio to discuss the Connacht club final, injury, Rene Higuita, and playing into your 40's.You can tell a lot about an American sports fan by whether he/she prefers Tom Brady or Peyton Manning. Brian Murphy explains the difference between stats and trophies. All this plus healing Ireland's pain, a GMAC PBESO, La Cosa Nostra, and the Kanye Rossies remix. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Its a special heartbreak edition of Second Captains this week, as we wade through our nations' tears in search of the most painful moments in history.Gordon Darcy still hasn't recovered from Sunday's game but believes the team can play at that level every week, and believes if New Zealand can be consistently brilliant, then so can Ireland.Eddie O'Sullivan feels its the best performance in our history, Shane Horgan thinks the game will benefit the team, and both men re-live the pain of the Vincent Clerc try in 2007.Paul Kimmage joins us in studio to explain why he thinks Laurent Fignon's loss to Greg Lemond in the 1989 Tour de France is the most cruel defeat he has ever witnessed.All this plus stress dreams, Kearney eyes, weepy little Eoin McDevitt and Murph's top 5 moments of misery. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New Zealand and Ireland have a long and storied rivalry… a rivalry that unfortunately consists of us losing, and most of the time, losing by quite a bit. Denis Hickie and Neil Francis chart the near misses, the humiliations, and the reasons why black is the colour we just can’t seem to handle. Len Bias was the rival Michael Jordan never had – drafted by the Boston Celtics just two years after Jordan, in 1986, he was dead two days later from a cocaine overdose, having never taken a dribble in the NBA. US Murph tells us how it was a generation-defining moment for him. All that plus Willie Anderson, Gary Halpin and the long-overdue return of the local radio GAA commentator. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The learning curve doesn’t get any less steep for Joe Schmidt – after being humbled by Australia, we have the world champions New Zealand coming up this weekend. Shane Horgan, Jerry Flannery and Emmett Byrne tell us where Ireland can make the most improvements, quickest, between last Saturday and this Sunday. We have the latest from Poznan with Ken Early, and we also look at the life and times of Indian cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar, the most beloved Indian person since Mahatma Gandhi. Plus – the Aviva playlist, Lance Armstrong’s meeting with his former masseuse Emma O’Reilly, and what we can learn from the Australian approach to pre-match preparation. Follow the lads on twitter @SecondCaptains and email the show secondcaptains@irishtimes.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Ireland team has been named for this Saturday’s test against Australia – and Joe Schmidt has rolled the dice again. Eddie O’Sullivan and Shane Horgan give us their thoughts, and talk to us about the World Cup game between the sides in 2003 that Ireland so very nearly won. Candlestick Park in San Francisco has held more top-class sport than any other stadium in America, and US Murph has been going there since he was 6 years old. About to be demolished at the end of this year, he gives us his thoughts on a horrible, cold old dump that he’s happy to call home. We have the return of Pierce Brosnan’s Emigrant Shout-Outs, the latest from the Ireland football camp and the English media’s predictable response to Keano’s first press conference.Follow us on twitter @SecondCaptains, facebook.com/SecondCaptains and email us SecondCaptains@irishtimes.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eoin and Ken and Ciaran wonder why images of Roy Keane standing in a field with his hands behind his back are exciting enough to be broadcast live on Sky Sports. And we've got the news from Martin O'Neill's first press conference (in ordinary time) as Ireland manager.We'll also hear from Stephen Ward after his first MONKEANO-operated training session.Sid Lowe joins us from Madrid to talk about Lionel Messi - uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.And Nick Harris of sportingintelligence.com analyses the implications of BT Sport beating Sky to exclusive Champions League rights. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joe Schmidt has come into the Ireland job with an unimpeachable club coaching record – but does that insulate him from criticism, or make him more vulnerable than ever? Matt Williams, Trevor Hogan and the Irish Times’ Gerry Thornley talk about what would be a successful November series for Ireland’s new man as the test with Australia approaches.Tommy Walsh was a Gaelic football ‘outlier’ in 2009 – a boy giant with talent, athleticism and scoring ability. After he left for Australia, Kerry football was left wondering ‘what if?’ But he appears to be on the verge of a comeback. Laois’s Colm Begley has made that journey, in both directions, and tells us about the Irish experience in Aussie Rules.And we have the story of when Martin O’Neill came to speak to Ireland’s best Gaelic footballers, Dirty Dancing with Ryan Lochte, and Lance Armstrong’s crusading charge for justice. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In his first press conference as Ireland manager Martin O'Neill outlined his thought process in taking the job, what role Keane will have, what he thinks of Keane's temperament, and why volatility isn't always a bad thing.Ken and Eoin discuss whether the pair can bring some panache to Ireland's play, if the fans can be convinced to return, and if Delaney would ever let Keane get the main job. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the Joe Schmidt era starting on Saturday, we talk to Shane Horgan and Trevor Hogan about his team selection, how the players are adapting to the new methods, the sense of expectation among fans, and what changes we can expect to see on the pitch in the next few weeks.US Murph gives us some detail on a very strange tale of workplace harassment in the locker-room of the Miami Dolphins, which many in America have been trying to pass off as part of the culture of the NFL, or some gentle hazing... racial taunting and threats against a man's life included. All this plus Connacht coach Pat Lam on Samoan power, the importance of frat parties, Second Captains' Mikey Graham, and Trevor Hogan's 'Frank the tank' merchandise run. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.