Episode 78 - Not quite a moral victory

I'm joined again by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to discuss the Republic of Ireland's two Nations League games in October. What did we make of the changes to the side and how the players reacted to going behind, and what does it mean for the final two League B games in November?

Going into their final two qualifiers for the 2025 UEFA U21 Championship, the Under 21 side knew what was needed, but still fell short of qualification. What players from the squad can look forward to promotion to the senior side, and what does another campaign that finished in disappointment mean for coach Jim Crawford?

Also, Sideshow Bob's rakes and I do a live countdown math problem!

Episode 77 - Heimir Hallgrímsson's first games(effectively)

On the new podcast episode, I'm joined by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick to discuss the Republic of Ireland's upcoming UEFA Nations League games against Finland and Greece, and the U21s final two qualifiers for the 2025 UEFA Under 21 Championship

Episode 70 - Meet the interim boss

I'm joined by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to discuss the Republic of Ireland's friendlies against Belgium and Switzerland, under interim manager John O'Shea. Did the rookie boss do enough to convince the FAI, and the fans, that he's a genuine candidate for full time manager of the senior men's team?

While the U21s got their European Championship campaign back on track against San Marino, the more important result came in Italy, where a last minute goal earned a draw for Turkey. What do these do results mean for the team's chances of qualification for next year's tournament in Slovakia?

And finally, we discuss the women's team's opening fixtures in their European Championship qualifying campaign. We've earned the right to face the top teams in the world, what do we need to do to continue facing them?

Episode 61 - Two Top Ten Teams

I'm joined by Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to discuss the senior mens squad announced by Stephen Kenny to face France and the Netherlands, both ranked in the top ten in the world by FIFA, and the U21 squad announced by Jim Crawford to face Turkiye and San Marino

And we haven't forgotten what James Carew said when he joined us in June...

Episode 53 - Transfers, qualifiers, and the World Cup build up begins

I'm joined by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to review the notable transfers and loans for Irish players in the January 2023 transfer window, following the group draw, we look ahead to the 2025 UEFA Under 21 Championship qualifying campaign, and after Vera Pauw names her first squad in the World Cup year, we wonder who, of the new call ups, is most likely to make the final squad in July?

(Note this episode was recorded before Deborah Ann De La Harpe was added to the women's squad)

2025 UEFA Under 21 Championship

Earlier this morning, the draw for the 2025 UEFA Under 21 Championship took place, with the Republic of Ireland in the second seeds for the first time. The Boys in Green were drawn against Italy, who we also faced in the qualifying campaign for the 2023 tournament, Norway, Turkiye, Latvia, and San Marino.

The tournament itself is open to all players born on, or after, Tuesday, 1st January 2002. For the U21 manager Jim Crawford, this means the following players are available for selection

Goalkeepers	Date of Birth		Defenders	Date of Birth
Jimmy Corcoran	Friday, 1st February 2002		Zak Delaney	Thursday, 10th January 2002
Gavin Bazunu	Wednesday, 20th February 2002		Andrew Quinn	Thursday, 24th January 2002
Harry Halwax	Wednesday, 20th March 2002		Timi Sobowale	Sunday, 27th January 2002
Daniel Rose	Friday, 2nd August 2002		Nico Jones	Sunday, 3th February 2002
Sam Blair	Friday, 27th December 2002		Luke Turner	Monday, 20th May 2002
Joseph O'Shaughnessy	Sunday, 5th January 2003		Jason Decaney	Tuesday, 28th May 2002
Josh Keeley	Saturday, 17th May 2003		James Furlong	Friday, 7th June 2002
Conor Brann	Friday, 27th June 2003		Andrew Omobamidele	Sunday, 23th June 2002
Arlo Doherty	Thursday, 16th October 2003		Mazeed Ogungbo	Sunday, 20th October 2002
Killian Cahill	Monday, 3th November 2003		Oisin Hand	Sunday, 12nd January 2003
Toms Leitis	Saturday, 12nd June 2004		Gavin O'Brien	Thursday, 30th January 2003
			Joshua O'Brien	Saturday, 8th February 2003
Midfielders	Date of Birth		Val Adedokun	Friday, 14th February 2003
Roland Idowu	Monday, 21st January 2002		Anselmo Garcia MacNulty	Wednesday, 19th February 2003
Jaden Charles	Friday, 25th January 2002		Ben Greenwood	Thursday, 20th March 2003
Ciaran Gilligan	Tuesday, 5th February 2002		Jay McGrath	Tuesday, 15th April 2003
Gabriel Adebambo	Wednesday, 27th February 2002		Bosun Lawal	Friday, 30th May 2003
Seamus Keogh	Thursday, 28th February 2002		Osa Solomon	Monday, 1st September 2003
Kian Leavy	Thursday, 21st March 2002		Jevon Mills	Saturday, 27th September 2003
Killian Phillips	Saturday, 30th March 2002		Sean Roughan	Tuesday, 30th September 2003
Matt Healy	Friday, 12nd April 2002		Fionn Mooney	Sunday, 12nd October 2003
Mark Hanratty	Friday, 19th July 2002		Tayo Adaramola	Friday, 14th November 2003
Festy Ebosele	Friday, 2nd August 2002		Sam Knowles	Sunday, 7th December 2003
Joe Hodge	Saturday, 14th September 2002		Leigh Kavanagh	Saturday, 27th December 2003
Tony Springett	Sunday, 22nd September 2002		Aaron O'Reilly	Tuesday, 29th June 2004
Matt Everitt	Thursday, 24th October 2002
Dylan Duffy	Thursday, 28th November 2002		Forwards	Date of Birth
Dara Costelloe	Wednesday, 11th December 2002		Troy Parrott	Monday, 4th February 2002
Oliver O'Neill	Wednesday, 8th January 2003		Deji Sotona	Thursday, 7th February 2002
Dylan Gavin	Thursday, 16th January 2003		Armstrong Oko-Flex	Saturday, 2nd March 2002
Ross Fay	Wednesday, 22nd January 2003		Conor Carty	Thursday, 25th April 2002
Evan Caffrey	Thursday, 27th February 2003		Josh Giurgi	Tuesday, 18th June 2002
Babajide Adeeko	Tuesday, 4th March 2003		Leo Gaxha	Saturday, 27th July 2002
Zak Gilsenan	Saturday, 8th March 2003		Mipo Odubeko	Monday, 21st October 2002
Peter Maguire	Tuesday, 11th March 2003		Tom Cannon	Saturday, 28th December 2002
Colin Conroy	Tuesday, 11th March 2003		Ethon Varian	Wednesday, 1st January 2003
Kyle Conway	Tuesday, 1st April 2003		Cian Kavanagh	Friday, 3th January 2003
Ben McCormack	Thursday, 3th April 2003		Alex Nolan	Thursday, 20th March 2003
Aaron Doran	Friday, 23th May 2003		Lee Harkin	Wednesday, 7th May 2003
Oran Crowe	Monday, 14th July 2003		Robert Mahon	Friday, 6th June 2003
Olamide Ibrahim	Tuesday, 23th September 2003		Johnny Kenny	Friday, 6th June 2003
Jack Henry-Francis	Tuesday, 23th September 2003		Sinclair Armstrong	Sunday, 22nd June 2003
John-Joe Finn	Wednesday, 24th September 2003		Calum Kavanagh	Friday, 5th September 2003
Andrew Moran	Wednesday, 15th October 2003		Cian Hayes	Tuesday, 23th September 2003
Cristiano Fitzgerald	Monday, 10th November 2003		Daniel Okwute	Thursday, 25th September 2003
Trey Turner	Friday, 21st November 2003		Aidomo Emakhu	Sunday, 26th October 2003
Kian Corbally	Wednesday, 31st December 2003		Thomas Lonergan	Friday, 2nd January 2004
			Michael Leddy	Wednesday, 14th January 2004
			Edwin Agbaje	Sunday, 25th January 2004
			Ed McJannet	Sunday, 25th January 2004
			Dara McGuinness	Thursday, 12nd February 2004
			Leslie Adekoya	Sunday, 18th April 2004
			Luke Pearce	Tuesday, 8th June 2004
			Evan Ferguson	Tuesday, 19th October 2004