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The world of hurling celebrated Kilkenny’s demise last summer as the end of an era – so why are they favourites for this year’s All-Ireland title? Their 1 point defeat to Clare in the opening round of the league gave us some indication of where they are for 2014. England tight-head prop Dan Cole has been ruled out through injury – former England out-half Paul Grayson surveys the damage that could cause. And Shane Horgan tells us about the newly humble English rugby player. All this plus a possible new tactical role for Mike Ross, Irish Dallaglio, Neil Francis, Sexton book, and Murph’s history as a specialist in failure.
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Ireland are the reigning Women's Six Nations Grand Slam champions, and they realise the time is now if they want to grow the popularity of their sport. Their most capped player, Lynne Cantwell talks to us about success on and off the field of play. US Murph on the first gay player to declare himself for the NFL draft, and Malachy Clerkin is in Sochi, for the warmest Winter Olympics in history. Ken asks if it's ever a good idea to beat up your dad (it's not), grits, Arsenal fans and packing out Donnybrook.
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On Second Captains this week – Gerry Thornley, Malcolm O’Kelly and Liam Toland on Ireland’s 26-3 win over Wales and managing expectations before Twickenham in 2 weeks time. Colin Jackson held a world record for 13 years but never won Olympic gold – he tells us about the pressure of delivering at an Olympics, winter or summer. And we have the solid work of Peter O’Mahony’s PR entourage, the second-row’s understanding of beauty on a rugby field, and Rene Meulensteen’s towering intellect.
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The Welsh players have been told by Gatland this week to strut around Europe like the champions they are. We ask Welsh legend Jonathan Davies if this suits the Welsh psyche, and we talk to former Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan about the D'arcy O'Driscoll axis, and the departure of Rob Penney.The Irish Times' Malachy Clerkin is in Sochi for the Winter Olympics so we talk to our journalistic comrade about the long list of political and social issues associated with Putin's Games.We also have US Murph on American sports stars choosing success over wealth, George Plimpton, stray dogs, an Austrian-Mexican prince, whiney journalists and airplane toilets.
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After assessing whether we're tougher than Paul O'Connell we launch straight into Six Nations chat with Shane Horgan and Denis Hickie, asking them if the Scottish game was any sort of a barometer for the Wales game.Paul Galvin has retired from inter-county football, and with him goes another link to the great Kerry team of the last decade. Darragh O Se tells us about his former team-mate, and passenger on countless trips to training. And we closely evaluate the singing talents of Peter O’Mahony, the Denver Broncos Superbowl disintegration, sleep deprivation and why it suits the Welsh to be cocky.
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On the eve of the Six Nations, we speak to Ronan O'Gara, the top points-scorer in the tournament's history about documentaries, life in Paris, and a first Spring without international rugby. The Superbowl is a ridiculous affair, but we love it. US Murph is covering it from the madness of 'Radio Row' in NYC, while Jerry Izenberg, 14-time Pulitzer Prize nominee and a giant in American sportswriting, is yet to miss a Superbowl, one of only 2 writers with that unblemished record. B-Hop gets the musical tribute an alien of his stature deserves plus there's celebrity frauds, Snoop Dogg impressions, pastor Darryl Strawberry and Christy Ring.
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The week before the 6 Nations might be the most enjoyable week of the entire tournament – before your team starts losing, and before you remember that for all the pageantry, and all the brilliant occasions, the rugby can sometimes be pretty soporific. Shane Horgan and Gerry Thornley are optimistic about Ireland’s chances of sustaining our interest right to the end, and injured lock Donnacha Ryan talks to us about getting back in time to take part in the drama this year.Bernard Hopkins is 49 years old, a world champion, and still one of the most entertaining boxers in the game. We speak to him about defying medical logic, unifying the belts in time for his 50th birthday next year, and being an alien. The interminable Gatland-O’Driscoll ‘feud’, Copernicus, and national anthems all in the mixer too...
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Manchester United fans have had to experience some pretty low moments this season – we discuss where Phil Jones' purposeful stride towards the penalty spot ranks in the pantheon. After two biting incidents in a year, have Dublin now got an image problem, and with their big sponsorship deals, is there now more pressure on them to keep high standards.Another fan-base discovering that sport can be a cruel and unforgiving mistress this week were US Murph and his fellow San Francisco 49ers fans – we try and apply balm to his poor, wounded heart. And with the Australian Open being re-energised by coaches who are figures from our childhoods, why are we talking about Andre Agassi’s toupee obsession?
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Cheating in real life really pays off – so why are we so hard on golfers who step on the wrong side of a totally pointless white line? Rory McIlroy saw red last weekend, fouling foul of one of the sport’s more technical rules – Malachy Clerkin of the Irish Times joins us. It could be argued that the relative strengths of Munster, Ulster and Leinster have never been more closely matched – and the impact of their director of rugby David Humphreys is a major factor in Ulster’s recent renaissance. We speak to Humphreys about the challenges for them on and off the field. We'll also speak about the brilliantly-named Jerome Champagne, who could be the next FIFA president. All that plus the first PBESO of 2014, what Richard Krajicek is up to these days, and the next link in the Gorgeous George-Muhammad Ali-Zlatan Ibrahimovic chain.
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A very cosmopolitan edition of Second Captains today – as we traverse the globe from San Francisco, to Sydney and back to New York in search of sporting drama. Is the Australian Open, at the height of the Antipodean summer, now almost an unplayable event? Tennis players have been suffering in the Melbourne heat, our man in Oz Matt Williams tells us how extreme temperatures are a part of Aussie life. There is trouble in the house of US Murph – he is the West Coast’s most avowed San Francisco 49ers fan, who has married into a family of Seattle Seahawks fans. We look ahead to the match this Sunday that could be the cause of some domestic strife. And we tell the story of Jesse Owens, the most famous man in the history of the Olympics. He once said – "Hitler didn't snub me – it was FDR who snubbed me. The president didn't even send me a telegram." We talk about the struggles in his life on his return to the US after the Berlin Olympics in 1936. Dictators in sport, Murph’s in-laws and other undesirables, all available to download now.
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