'I thought I had my hands full with Souness and Dunphy!' - the words of floor manager Tadgh de Bruin on Monday night during the first ad break on the programme, after Damien Richardson and Tony McDonnell's head-to-head about whether it was more important to play beautiful attacking football all the time, or whether winning matches was priority number one for managers in the League of Ireland.
The debate that started during part one of the show continued during the break, with Tony raising the question about whether Chelsea fans would prefer to have the sterile but winning tactics of Jose Mourinho back, or the slightly more cavalier but less successful days of Avram Grant and Big Phil Scolari? Damien was sticking to his guns that managers here are obligated to play attacking football to bring the goals-to-games ratio up.
He claims the ratio here is one of the lowest in Europe and one of the reasons why people don't come to games. I thought his choice of target was strange, however. Cork City were 3-0 up away from home and if any City fans had been offered that on the road up to Dublin I'm sure they would have bitten your hand off.
The good news is that Damien and Tony Mac were still on talking terms when we adjourned to the pub after the programme but the argument raged on for a couple more hours.
Trappatoni's name was brought into the debate. Results versus style, which would the Irish supporters prefer? Our editor Brummie Steve asked if the great Brazilian team of the 1970s were strutting their stuff in the league here today would that be enough to get people off their bums and out to the grounds around the country?
To be honest, there is definitely some merit in Damien's argument I feel. When I think back to the best days I've seen in the league here, I immediately think of the Shamrock Rovers four-in-a-row team of the 80s that played wonderful football and won trophies galore in the process.
Would I have had equally fond memories of them if they had plodded their way to success? Who knows, but certainly managers nowadays are judged by results, ask Jeff Kenna at the moment. Would he prefer a scrappy 1-0 win next weekend or a beautiful 4-3 defeat. Which answer would you expect to get?
Roddy, for once, didn't get involved in the argument, although he has been quite adamant from early this season that the league leaders Bohemians are not playing the most attractive football in the division and that's being reflected in attendances at Dalymount.
But again I ask, next Saturday night when Bohs play Rovers in Tallaght, will either set of supporters care what style of football their team plays if they emerge victorious in the end. Ditto the Louth derby, or the big one between Cork and Derry.
I'd be very interested to get your views on this issue, and we will certainly be revisiting it later in the season, so don't hesitate to e-mail the show if you feel strongly about this one way or the other. mns@rte.ie is the e-mail address that will find us. You can also vote in our MNS Poll.
There's no doubt that there is a huge onus on managers and players to try to provide value for money for the paying customer, especially in the face of so many other counter attractions, with the GAA Championship about to kick into gear, and with huge interest surrounding the exploits of the Leinster and Munster rugby teams, not to mention the international sides.
In the current financial climate, people's funds for attending sports events are finite, and punters need a reason to go to matches. And one thing they love to see is goals and goalmouth action, and teams who shut up shop after going 1-0 ahead in games will not attract too many people back.
Now I'm really confused. Do I support Damien's contention, or would I go with Tony's point?
Maybe, if I could do a classic piece of fence sitting, they're both right in some ways. Yes, winning is the bottom line, but in order to get people excited, there is a need to see teams winning with style and having a freedom to play attacking football. If only Pat Fenlon could sign Pele, Jairzinho and Rivelino, he'd be away in a hack!
I received one e-mail after the programme from an irate viewer who thought it was a disgrace that I would take the liberty of advertising my clothes shop in Cork and its sale at the moment. So just to be completely transparent, I don't have any connection with Con Murphy's shop in Cork and I merely mentioned it in jest. Hopefully the knickers of the man who took the time to e-mail his annoyance will become untwisted with that clarification.
The April Goal of the Month competition is one of those ones where there's no standout goal in my opinion, with at least four of the eight selected genuine contenders. If push came to shove I would probably go for either Declan O'Brien's or Darren Mansaram's just for the cheekiness of the finishes, but I don't have a vote and despite doing my best to sway the panel on the March Goal of the Month contest, didn't get my way.
I'd like to wish Paul Hegarty good luck following his departure from the Finn Harps managerial hot seat. Paul has always been totally professional in his dealings with the MNS programme over the last year, even when Harps were slipping towards relegation, he never shirked an interview, and always gave an honest assessment of where he, and his team, stood. Hopefully he'll have happy days to look forward to into the future.
Finally, I'll be working at Baltray for the four days of the 3 Irish Open golf this week which means that without a helicopter my chances of seeing Shamrock Rovers and Bohemians on Saturday night will be somewhere between slim and hopeless, but I'm really looking forward to seeing the footage, and likewise I think the Cork City versus Derry City game has real potential, not to mention the Louth derby in Drogheda.
All in all, it should be a cracking weekend of games ahead. Whichever game you're going to see, enjoy.
