With only three league matches last weekend plus St Pat’s Europa League match against Steaua Bucharest to show, we thought we might be a bit light in terms of content on the show this week.
One item we had intended to broadcast fell down at the last minute, but in fact it gave our discussions with Sean, Richie and Tony a little bit of extra time to breathe, and that in hindsight was no bad thing, as there were several topics for discussion, such as Irish clubs’ performances in European competition, the pay cuts being suffered by many players in the league at the moment and the prospect of an All-Ireland league.
To be honest some of those topics could almost do with a whole programme such are the complexities of the issues involved, however the feeling after the programme was that each area had been given a good airing. If you didn't see the show, you can see it on here and make up your own mind.
I took a trip down memory lane last week when Richie Sadlier asked me if I would man the mic for the public address system at the RDS for Pat’s Europa League match against Steaua.
I used to be the man on the PA when Shamrock Rovers played at the Ballsbridge venue all those years ago, and I thought it would be fun to have another go on a big European night.
What Richie didn't tell me was that unlike in years gone by, when the PA announcer’s position was right above the judges’ box on the halfway line; the new position was in a booth behind one of the corner flags near the stables where the horses would normally come into the RDS main arena.
Not ideal for seeing what's going on at the far end of the pitch. So when Gareth O'Connor scored for the Saints at the ‘wrong’ end of the ground, I had to sprint to the halfway line to get confirmation from the Pat's bench of who the scorer was.
Hence the delay in my slightly over the top announcement that ‘GOAL NUMBER ONE FOR ST PAT’S WAS SCORED BY GARETH O'CONNNNORRRRR.’
What a shame Pat's couldn't hold on to that lead, not only the league’s Uefa coefficient, but also for the headline-grabbing result that it would have been.
There's no doubt that the Romanians were a class above the Saints, but Jeff Kenna’s side did themselves proud at the RDS in what was a very strange atmosphere for any League of Ireland team to have to play in.
The fact that Steaua had almost as many supporters at the match as Pat's says a lot about Irish football fans yet again.
At the risk of sounding like a moaning Minnie, the fact that almost eight thousand people will turn up to watch Bohemians reserves play Liverpool's reserves, and only about three thousand fans will go to see St Pat's play an important European game on a lovely summer evening is actually a bit frightening.
The three thousand Steaua fans brought the overall gate up to about six thousand and created a great atmosphere, but if those Irish-based Romanians had not been involved, the RDS could have been a pretty lonely place last Thursday.
I was interested to hear Ryan Guy speaking on RTÉ Radio's Saturday Sport programme about how much he loves playing here in Ireland with St Pat's, and how he feels that the League of Ireland supporters may not be great in numbers but are very special, and it struck me that he has a point.
I suppose it's a bit like the people in England who live within a few miles of Manchester and still support Bury, or those in London who could support Arsenal but follow Brentford because it's their local club.
Imagine living in Barcelona and supporting Sabadell in Liga 2B (the third division essentially).
Some people would wonder why bother; but those fans of Bury, Brentford, Sabadell and all the other smaller clubs worldwide have a special passion for their club and their community which is something that the Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea fans in Dubai, Delhi, Des Moines and Dublin will probably never feel.
Spare a thought this week for Tony McDonnell, who bravely battled to get through this week’s show having suffered a dislocated knee on Sunday playing for St Kevin’s.
The knee popped out and then back in, but he said it was as painful as any injury he suffered during his playing days with UCD.
Of course both ‘Choons’ Prunty and Richie Sadlier had to retire from the game early for health reasons, and it goes to emphasise how precarious a footballer’s career can be, and how short-lived it can be too.
So when the discussion about players contracts came up, and the fact that wages may have to come down in the short-term, I was also very conscious that for many of the players we were talking about, their years playing at the top level can be very short.
With a full series of matches this weekend, hopefully we'll have lots of great goals and on-field action to discuss on next week’s programme. Whichever game you're going to, enjoy getting out to see live football played by your local team in your local area.
