What Irish sport tells us about our rural/urban divide

Munster’s leadership crisis evident in Randle U-turn

Sinéad O’Carroll is joined by Niall Kelly to discuss the fallout from Munster’s appointment of Roger Randle as attack coach, and the subsequent “mutual agreement” that the deal will not go ahead. Randle was accused of raping a woman in South Africa in 1997 when he was there as a player. Randle denied the allegation and has always maintained his innocence. He was initially charged with the crime, but that charge was later dropped. In today’s episode, Sinéad and Niall consider whether Munster’s hierarchy properly thought through the likely backlash to Randle’s appointment. Committee members and commercial advisors have walked away, relations with the IRFU have been strained, supporters have been left with questions, sponsors were feeling uneasy and players have been put in an impossible position of having to answer media questions on the appointment. And now, head coach Clayton McMillan is disappointed that the coach he wanted and backed will not join him at Munster What will be the lasting consequences for the province - once the biggest brand in Irish sport - both on and off the field? ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Why sports tickets have become a rip-off

Gavin and Sinéad discuss the inflation-busting prices of attending matches and other big sports events. Ryder Cup ticket prices for Adare Manor raised eyebrows, but are such levels now becoming the norm, especially for high-profile events which attract interest from the corporate and influencer world. If so, what does that do to the atmosphere at big occasions, when the committed supporters who have given sports their flavour and colour are excluded? Where will the next generation of fans come from if the price of entry is so high? And in the GAA, does removing cheaper prices for children for stand tickets put unnecessary pressure on parents, or even discourage them from attending games as a family? How has the World Cup become such a price-gouging exercise? What will the competition look and sound like as a result? Also in the pod, Gav tells us he has become a Hurling Man now, and explains why Tipp are Tipp, Cork are Cork, Kilkenny are Kilkenny, but Limerick are not Limerick. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

What Irish sport tells us about our rural/urban divide

In the aftermath of the fuel protests, Leo Varadkar decided it was time for urban Ireland to do some straight talking to rural Ireland, saying that “we are the ones paying the bills and you’re the ones in receipt of a lot of subsidies and tax benefits that other people don’t get.” The comments provoked a huge reaction, with Varadkar eventually apologising. He made the mistake of pressing his thumb on a great cultural fault line of Irish life - the rural/urban divide. On this week’s podcast, Sinéad and Gavin use Varadkar’s comments as a jumping off point to assess the rural/urban divide in Ireland, and how it is articulated in Irish sport. Do we see it in the Split Dublin debate, or in the League of Ireland, or in the GAA’s demographics report sounding the alarm about rural depopulation? In what other ways do we experience the divide in a cultural sense? Meanwhile, what if we do as Varadkar suggests, and follow the money? Do we really see a divide between rural and urban areas where it comes to funding? Or by talking so much about rural versus urban, are we in fact ignoring the real divide? Get in touch - sinead@thejournal.ie [sinead@thejournal.ie] and gavincooney@the42.ie [gavincooney@the42.ie] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Gav rides the Rorycoaster at Augusta

Sinead is joined by Gavin from Augusta National. It is the morning after another epic night for Rory McIlroy. But did it need to be epic? Does it always have to be so fraught, so tortuous? Yes, it seems. “Nobody,” as Gav says, “this good needs to be this interesting.” Some people just can’t help themselves. We discuss the moments it seemed to be slipping away from McIlroy, from his wayward tee shots, his off-key round on Saturday to his slow start on Sunday before a steely recovery that eventually helped him to get over the line - as his rivals could not muster the kind of round Justin Rose produced last year to heap pressure on the Northern Irishman. What next for a man who can now be described as Europe’s greatest ever golfer? And how will Shane Lowry reflect on a week where a final-day 68 would have brought the green jacket back to Offaly? As he tries to make sense of how three good days gave way to a final, poor round, we assess what are heady days for Irish golf. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

An unusual Masters: Tiger absent and Rory back as champion

Gavin Cooney dials in from Augusta to look ahead to the 2026 Masters with Sinéad O'Carroll. Despite finally getting his hands on a green jacket last year, Rory McIlroy is still the talk of the town. How is he embracing his champion status? How will he perform this year with the pressure finally off to complete the Grand Slam? Will journalists ask him about The Daily Mail’s coverage of Alan Shipnuck's new McIlroy biography? Elsewhere, is Shane Lowry in with a chance of success? Is it Scottie Scheffler’s competition to lose? And what are the players and US journalists saying about Tiger Woods, LIV and Donald Trump? Also, Sinéad is slowly converting Irish football fans into figure skating enthusiasts.  ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.