Podcasts about theballbag

Mikey, Mark and James are back after the international break, answering all your fantasy football related questions. Not to mention whether Ireland will qualify for the World Cup, if the Texans will win the Super Bowl and if QPR will get promoted.  Send in your questions throughout the week with #TheBallBag

This week Mark and James are joined by Mikey via the wonder of Skype to discuss how their first week went in both the standard and draft Fantasy Premier League games. The lads also list their top waiver wire picks, bargain bucket and captain choices. Got a question for the show? Tweet us with #TheBallBag.

On today's show we play Irish football's greatest game: Six Degrees of Ian Harte. Can you find a player who cannot be mapped back to Ian Harte? Let us know: tweet #TheBallBag or email thegaffer@balls.ie. Also, we look at slick Berba and Carragher v Neville in pundit watch, and celebrate Ireland's glorious 7-0 defeat to Germany at the U-17 Euros. 

This week we speak to Tom Hurley, the man behind a fascinating new documentary on Paddy McCarthy, the Irishman who became the first coach of Boca Juniors. We also hear from Keith Andrews, who picks his ultimate Irish 5-a-side team, and English football leads the charge on Gibraltar, beginning with Tony Adams.  Get in touch: email thegaffer@balls.ie or tweet #TheBallBag. 

On this week's edition we speak exclusively to Gudmumndr Benediktsson, known to you as the Icelandic football commentator who became a global superstar during Euro 2016.  He speaks of dealing with his new found fame, his playing career, what it was like to be sacked from his coaching job during the Euros.  Elsewhere, we debate the brass band on show at the Aviva, and reflect on Ireland/Iceland.  We also have a Chinese Super League update, and we have our ladbrokes bet of the week.  Get in touch: tweet using #TheBallBag, or email thegaffer@balls.ie. 

Cracking episode for you this week: Mikey caught up with David Meyler to talk FIFA, Roy Keane, and Ireland.  We look ahead to Ireland/Wales, hear from John Hartson on said game, and Gavan Casey is back with news of how he woke up on a New York City porch.  Get in touch: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, @GavanCasey, @gcooney93, @Mikeyt086. Or email thegaffer@balls.ie. 

This week we are joined by West Brom's Irish kitman, Aidan 'Jacko' Smyth to get an insight into what his job is like. He tells us of how Darren Fletcher's a big Mayo fan, and we unveil the mystery of Tony Pulis' Baseball Cap.  We also debate the Pogba condundrum, and pay homage to Graeme Souness' unfiltered punditry.  Get in touch: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, @gcooney93, @Mikeyt086 or email thegaffer@balls.ie. 

Episode 30 of the football podcast laments the fate of poor Arsene Wenger, and ponders whether this truly is the end. We also have your suggestions on how to improve the Premier League, in the Ball Bag Live.  Get in touch: tweet #TheBallBag to @GavanCasey, @gcooney93 or @ballsdotie. Email thegaffer@balls.ie. 

On this week's podcast, we are going through some of the most Irish clubs in England: the predecessors to Preston North End.  On that theme, we are joined by Stephen Hunt to reflect on what that was like at Reading and Wolves, before we ended up asking him throwing the names of random former teammates at him.  And on that theme, we hosted The BallBag Live on Facebook, which can be enjoyed here, along with our Ladbrokes Bet of the Week.  If you want to get involved, tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, @Mikeyt086, @GavanCasey,@gcooney93. Or email us, thegaffer@balls.ie. We're on Instagram and Snapchat too: ballsdotie.  (This is the Simon Cox story that's mentioned on the pod by the way. 

It's a Chris Kamara special on this week's show: he was with us in the Old Storehouse in Dublin last night, and we recorded the full on-stage chat.  Listen to Kammy tell some cracking stories of how Jeff Stelling was almost the first England fan arrested and deported from Japan in 2002, how he chased down a thief in Rio, and how he accidentally pissed off Alex Ferguson.  We also have Pundit Watch, ft Garth Crooks talking through his hoop and Roy Keane dropping truths, and our Ladbrokes Bet Of The Week.  Get in touch: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, @Mikeyt086, @gcooney93, @GavanCasey. Or email us: thegaffer@balls.ie.

Episode 26 features a studio interview with Richie Sadlier, who talks to us about Brian Kerr, being faced down by an angry Steve Staunton in Coppers, that infamous masturbation game in Nigeria, and why football is full of idiots.  We also talk about pundits' mishandling of Hector Bellerin being knocked out cold, and we have our Ladbrokes Bet of the Week.  Get in touch: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, or whatever the hell you want to @Mikeyt086, @GavanCasey or @gcooney93. The outro song, by the way, is by an Arsenal fan called Uncle Ed, and he's titled it "A DISS TRACK TO THE WHOLE OF ARSENAL" 

Taking centre-stage this week is a feature-length chat with Irish international Darren O'Dea. We chat about one of the most remarkable Irish football careers ever, which has included breaking through at Celtic, playing under Roy Keane, becoming Toronto's highest-paid player, being held at gunpoint during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and being managed by Nicolas Anelka in India.  We also chat to James Harkin of the QI spin-off podcast No Such Thing As A Fish, who tells us some of his favourite football facts.  We also have our Ladbrokes Bet of the Week and we ask: which sports star, if they lived up to their name, would be the greatest menace to society? Get in touch on us: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, or tweet anything to @GavanCasey and @gcooney93. We're on Snapchat and Instagram (ballsdotie) and email thegaffer@balls.ie

Episode 24 of the Football Show from Balls.ie with Ladbrokes: we discuss our favourite ever Pundit moments, and in Weird Shit from the Internet we look at some of the real-life football stories that could make storylines in Dream Team, including the weird love triangle between Thibault Courtouis and Kevin De Bruyne.  Get in touch: @ballsdotie on Instagram and Snapchat, tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie. 

Today's podcast features an interview with Tubes of Soccer AM, who hangs up on Robbie Keane to talk to us of how he got started on the show, rapping in front of 50 Cent, being called a wanker by Steve Coogan, and being mates with Denzel Washington.  Elsewhere, we pick the Chinese Super League team we are going to support, and remember Giovanni Trapattoni and Xabi Alonso, who announced their retirements today.  Get in touch: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, or find us on Snapchat and Instagram @ballsdotie. Email thegaffer@balls.ie. 

Today we talk to Ronan Kavanagh, an Irish sports scientist working with Burnley and the Welsh national team. We talk to him about his job, life at Turf Moor, Gareth Bale and what it feels like to be plotting the defeat of Ireland.  We have our own ideas of how to improve the World Cup, and deconstruct Paul Merson's utter nonsense on Soccer Saturday.  We also have your Ladbrokes Bet of the Week, and we dip into the BallBag.  Get in touch: tweet @ballsdote, @Mikeyt086, @gcooney93 using #TheBallBag, or we're on Snapchat and Instagram @ballsdotie. Email thegaffer@balls.ie. 

It's a new year, but it's the same old story for Gavin Cooney as internet commenters find fault with his writing. His story on the Irish county with the best 5 A Side team (link below) claimed Waterford would be the weakest, and former Irish international Stephen Hunt tweeted his displeasure. Stephen was happy to argue his cause on air, so we were delighted to have him on.  He also spoke about referee Mike Dean, whom he calls the most arrogant man he has ever met on a football pitch.  Elsewhere, we cast our eye over the Congested Punditry Period, with Chris Sutton playing a starring role.  We have our Ladbrokes Bet of the Week, and we answer your questions, including the Worst Bald Manager in the Premier League and the best/worst Christmas Cracker jokes we saw over Christmas.  Get in touch: Twitter: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, @Mikeyt086, @GavanCasey and @gcooney93.  Or send us a snap/comment on Snapchat and Instagram: both are @ballsdotie Email: thegaffer@balls.ie.  https://www.balls.ie/football/irish-internationals-from-each-county/355744

To celebrate our surviving the bloodbath that was 2016, we look back at our favourite moments, which we pretty much all agreed on was Robbie Brady's winner against Italy. We remember where we were, but where were you? Let us know using #TheBallBag on twitter or Instagram, snapping us @ ballsdotie or by emailing thegaffer@balls.ie.  Elsewhere, we interview broadcaster Colin Murray, who talks of why he left Match of the Day 2, how he didn't fit sports TV, and how he angered Kenny Dalglish by talking about his daughter on air.  Plus we have your Bet of the Week and we answer your questions.  Get in touch, tweet #TheBallBag to @Mikeyt086, @gcooney93, @GavanCasey, @MarkFarrelly131. We're also on Instagram and Snapchat, both ballsdotie.  We'll be back on January 4th, so happy Christmas to you all, and thanks for listening! 

Episode 19 of the football pod features an exclusive chat with Big Ron Atkinson, on his career in football, his love of Paul McGrath, and the incident that cost him his punditry career. Pundit Watch gets top billing on a week of anarchy, and we try our best to put on a *slightly* less farcical quiz than we put on last week.  Get in touch: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, @Mikeyt086, @GavanCasey. @gcooney93 

It's Cork Week on Balls.ie, so episode 18 of the football show has indulged Cork's own Gavan Casey. He speaks with fellow Corkman Tony O'Donoghue about his career in Irish football, his relationship with Martin O'Neill, and what it was like managing a band.  Gavan also selects his greatest ever Cork XI.  Along with all of that, we have potentially the strangest ever Premier League quiz ever, in which we ponder which manager is most likely to be a prison security guard whose violent side is tempered by a love for watercolours.  Plus we have your Bet of the Week with Ladbrokes, after making you rich last week. Get in touch: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, or tweet anything to @Mikeyt086, @GavanCasey and @gcooney93. 

We're delighted to be joined by former Irish international Graham Barrett, who has a few choice words on the future of Irish football.  We also discuss the Return of Randolph to the Premier League, and mourn a sad, ladder-falling departure from Sky Sports News.  Get in touch with us by tweeting #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, @Mikeyt086, @GavanCasey, @gcooney93. 

Brought to you by Ladbrokes, this week's episode has it out with Paul Abbandonato of Wales Online over their Welsh-centric combined Irish/Welsh XI.  We also have an exclusive team-talk from Sean Dyche (kind of) and hear of how Phil Babb forearm chopped Cristiano Ronaldo.  We also reflect on Ireland/Austria, look ahead to the Premier League this weekend and have the usual bad fantasy advice.  Get in contact: tweet #TheBallBag to @ballsdotie, @GavanCasey, @Mikeyt086 or @gcooney93.