"B*llocksed.....Peter Reid put him to bed"

This week Dylan talks about how his moves to Hibs and Sunderland came about as the lads discuss their careers and highlights. 

The eternal football discussion of which players would be classed as 'World Class' and which would be 'Elite' is covered with a few disagreements along the way and the lads answer questions from listeners, including recalling the non playing characters they loved at clubs, including Sunderland's renowned 'Harvey Micks' the masseuse that loved a wind up and Carlisle's infamous 'Bus-head'

As always a great mix of football opinions and good banter including the greyhound that never finished, passport control at Canvey Island and find out which manager Peter Reid had to put to bed. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Right. Hello lads. How are we doing? For anyone who's listening and not watching, we are have been fortunate enough to to be what we doing it? Providing uh what we're providing the podcast from No Limits today, based in Carlisle, Kingmore Park. Thank you to Josh, Dan, and Tyler. And if you haven't been at No Limits, it's a coaching business. Inside, great facilities. We've had a little bit of two-touch, we've had a little bit of crossbar challenge with them. The standard was horrific from us. You mean yourself? Myself, myself was bad. But thank you so much to the lads for letting us come in. So, as I said, Dan, Josh, Tyler, top lads, very much appreciative.

SPEAKER_01 0:46

Yeah, class. Brilliant said, First time I've been up, Miss Browning. Um, advice for them, although is maybe them three boys need the coaching instead of coaching the young lads.

SPEAKER_02 0:58

Make sure you follow them on uh Instagram and check out the coaching facilities, they're coaching offers and Easter camps and stuff like that. And they've got another base in Whitehaven as well.

SPEAKER_00 1:09

Yeah, first first time I've been in. I've seen it online plenty of times, and it's impressive. Yeah, great lads, and uh good luck to them. And we're wonder up now. Yeah, we beat them, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:39

That's all. For anyone who doesn't know, skip your assistant manager, Carlisle City.

SPEAKER_00 1:45

How did the weekend go? Um it was good for 88 minutes. We were gonna uh we thought we were gonna get a good point just seeing a nil-nil through, very professional performance, and uh last couple of minutes they got a goal. Um a little bit of an error, won't go soon go too far into, but I can't fault the lads' effort. I thought the lads were brilliant all all game, and and you could see how dejected they were after the game uh myself and Kirky were as well. We we've had a bad run of form lately. Um so yeah, we we we needed that point, it would have kicked us on to a home game against Marsk at the weekend coming, which is very winnable. But listen, we'll pick them up, we'll train on Thursday and uh and we'll go again. But can't fault the effort, and and the performance was really good just the last couple of minutes. It's uh it's not when our way. Dylan, yeah, we won each at home.

SPEAKER_01 2:29

Um kind of probably an even result, to be fair. On the balance of the game, we had a couple of chances, they did as well. Um, they got a penalty in the last five minutes, looked like they were going to get the win, and then we get our equaliser in the 92nd minute. So I know a draw, kind of we were disappointed to be a draw, but I think when you you look at the game in context, it's to get a last-minute equaliser to save us a little bit. So um, but yeah, another 90 minutes in the legs for me, so I was um a bit rusted in this one. Pulled us.

SPEAKER_02 2:57

Good result for Lanino United, and I went to Carl United. Oh, yes, another freebie. How many plates this week? No, I was alright.

SPEAKER_00 3:04

Was it you and Carl Hawley, guess? Carl Hawley, guess what?

SPEAKER_02 3:07

Great crack, good lad, Carl. The hitman, proper player, proper centre forward. And it was nice for him to come up. And I think sometimes Carl thinks the supporters turned against him a little bit, but they haven't. You know, he left, he had to go and better his career and go a bit higher. But the fans absolutely love him. So he's very well thought of, yeah. It was great to see him interacting with everyone, and then yeah, we watched the game and we had a good crack. Uh the game goes into it a little bit, but we'll yeah, not too much. I was just going to pass over Carl this week, and then something that the game we've got to address it a little bit, but we'll get on. So, should we do it? Episode six. Let's go.

SPEAKER_01 3:47

Episode six, let's go, boys.

SPEAKER_02 3:49

So, hello, and welcome to episode six of Three in the Middle, a podcast brought to you by two former professional midfielders, Chris Lumston and Mark Skip Boyd, whose former clubs include Newcastle, Sunderland, Barnsley, Port Vale, Carlisle, Celtic Nation, all of ours combined. Celtic Nation, we'll go into that one week, Skip, because that is a story in itself. It certainly is. Uh, you wait till you hear the stories about this, Dylan. I can believe it with a crap. Um, well, you can do Gretner and Celtic Nation one time. Very similar, very similar. You could write a book about it, and I could write a book about Darlington's Darlton Christ. And our current player in our three in the middle podcast laneup is former Celtic Hibbs Aberdeen, Sundlin, and Carlell Playmaker. Great CV, that isn't it?

SPEAKER_00 4:30

I just want to say that.

SPEAKER_02 4:30

Good CV. Who is still playing, as we just said, in Northern Ireland for Bellamina United. Sponsor, a big, big thank you to Lloyd Kia of Carl, the best selling brand in the area and European dealer of the year. Had to get that in.

SPEAKER_00 4:46

Very good.

SPEAKER_02 4:46

So European champions right on our doorstep, eh lads? Electric cars and vans, also available with seven years' warranty. So thank you very much to Kia Carl for sponsoring this episode. Again, Europe's number one dealer. Get down there, check it out. They've got new EVs and PBVs, and they're ready to go. I test drive the new sport ours, which I did last week. Top draw. Nice, yeah. Tell them that three in the middle sent you, and I'm sure there'll be a deal to be had. Personally, I've had about five cars from there, and my dad got involved too, so get looked after. Good. So thank you to Roy Holiday and the team who are top draw, always look after you, and it's got a great waiting area. But like we've had today, pastries and everything, fruit kinds of coke. Aye, Roy Hot Roy Holiday, ex Harraby Catholic Club. Do you know what could nick a goal Roy, you know?

SPEAKER_00 5:32

Yeah. Loves a fag.

SPEAKER_02 5:34

He lives off 2006 when they played Carl L in the Cumberland Cup. Did he score? So we didn't have a game, so Simmo played the first team and he he tested Kieran Westwood with a shot and he dines out on it.

SPEAKER_00 5:44

Aye, uh he was uh it wasn't bad centre forward, Roy. Remember, he wore a full pink outfit Christmas Eve. We played six aside a few years ago on Christmas Eve, and he just turned up head to toe, bright pink. Yeah. And he was awful.

SPEAKER_02 5:56

House keeping joking, Roy. Insta, three in the middle eight, and email at three in the middle at yahoo.com. So this week, as I've said, we'll again touch on Collar United at the weekend. Check out what's happening in the world of football regarding title races, relegation battles, semi-finals. We'll hear a bit about managers, um, a little bit more about Dylan, it's Celtic and Hibs, and of course, attack our new quick question section, What's the Crack? Where we've had so many questions over the next few weeks, we'll get them all answered. But first, I'm gonna go rogue question ads from Matt straight in because I'm interested to hear your answers. So, from Matt, loving the show, great football content. As footballers, we all assume it's a dream, everything about it is amazing, etc. Were there parts of being a footballer on or off the pitch that you hated doing even though you were good at it? Or the other way around, were there things you loved doing even though you were crap at it? Keep it up, lads, Matt.

SPEAKER_01 6:51

Um first thing that comes to me is probably the fitness side of things. Like, I think as footballers obviously um try to be as fit as possible, but when pre-season comes round, it's a nightmare, isn't it? I still dream about pre-season, you know. Oh missing it.

SPEAKER_02 7:05

I or like the dream. I'm going back in and I'm overweight and unfit when you hadn't done enough. Imagine me.

SPEAKER_01 7:12

It's like the fault now the night before you go back to school, innit?

SPEAKER_00 7:14

You can't sleep in the head. Yeah, you couldn't sleep, you couldn't sleep. I was just I got to know the keepers really well through preseason. Uh because there's me and the cook and a couple of keepers at the back of the runner.

SPEAKER_02 7:23

No, honestly. You just used to wait on the big test for the keeper to drop out once and first when you first play out the domino effect and met everybody's.

SPEAKER_00 7:31

When you've seen that what if it was ghetto blaster coming out when you heard that that noise and another one, oh, it was awful.

SPEAKER_02 7:36

Do you remember Jeff Half? You know Jeff and Jeff. Yeah, I've seen Jeff a bit, yeah. No, so Jeff worked as a bit of a fitness coach under Simon. Oh, yeah, Jeff, yeah, we Jeff's my first session at Carlisle, my first ever session. So you go in and meet the lads, you want to keep ball, you want to show them what you're about. Aerobics. I he does he does things on a Monday. He was doing company sessions in the fan zone for me and Carl, it was funny. I so that was my first ever. I didn't kick a ball for about three days. Like spinning, fitness with Jeff. I didn't like phase of play. So that's when you set up, walk through, you shape. Do you hear Steve Howie's story? Yeah, when they went one-nil down against 11, Newcastle 11, playing against no one, they pass it back, bob bubbles over the keepers. Keep one nil down, keepers putting his gloves on the one-nil down against nobody. Oh bro, and another one for me um scrambled egg, beans, toast, chicken for 10 months of the year. Yeah, appreciate it. By the end of the season, you're sick of it. You're absolutely sick of it.

SPEAKER_00 8:30

What about early kickoffs when you've got to get it down as well? Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:33

Yeah, what about night games as well when you can't sleep? Yeah, adrenaline, yeah, you can't. You get back maybe half ten, eleven o'clock, whatever it is, even later if you're getting away game. Yeah, getting it up, and then you're up to like three and four in the morning, like can't sleep. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:46

So, yeah, good one. That so pre-season doesn't look like last feet.

SPEAKER_01 8:50

Ah, that's not true. It's pre-season, the long runs killed me. Have you seen the ones recently, the last year or two? I've been doing them obviously, like myself, for trying to get back fit and that. The 1k runs that I think Brentford were doing. Yeah, I did say that. I've seen that on Top. And it's and everybody's just went mad for it now. So everything that's a that's a base now. Remember in Covid, it was 5k. Oh, yeah. That's brutal. But now it's like a 1k is that kind of 5k? I feel like you can pace yourself a little bit. Yeah, the 1k is like there's boys honestly like sprinting up and down the pitch, and you're thinking they're gonna blow up and then they're not, and you're trying to catch up, and oh, it's it's no easy.

SPEAKER_02 9:25

So we'll quickly go on to Carlisle. A few failed attempts during the winter for the Morecambe midfielder. Should we be failing in attempts to get the midfielder?

SPEAKER_00 9:33

Isn't his contract up in the summer? Think he's got something else. Something else landing? We might just have something else land up.

SPEAKER_01 9:39

I don't know, you don't know that's an update, but I think just obviously what you see on Twitter and that, and you said a few failed attempts. Do you think it's kind of two parts? So I feel like the owners have probably set out a stall of like we're not paying over the odds for players, we're not gonna throw big wages at players because we've maybe done that the last couple of years and it's not worked as well. Yeah. So they've probably drew a line in the sand and went, well, we're gonna do it the same as everybody else. Yeah. And the players know Carlisle have paid decent the last couple of years, so it's almost like, well, if you want me to come, I want X amount. And so it's probably a kind of yeah, it's a hard one, innit? But as you said, a team like Carleo with the fans and everything and the aims of getting promoted, a couple of failed attempts. I I think we need a midfielder then, personally.

SPEAKER_02 10:25

I think the midfielders lacking a bit of guile. I think when we teams get the equalisers, we're a little bit nervous. We need uh we need someone with a bit of guile. I think he's got some legs.

SPEAKER_00 10:36

Yeah, so what happened at 2-0 then?

SPEAKER_02 10:38

What yeah? Well, the first goal, the first goal that Calhoun got went, was a gift, obviously. Yeah, and then the second one, fantastic, good finish, as your boy going past people, committing people, good goal, and you think it's you know, then he gets his goal, you think that's it, game's gone, you should shut up, not shut up, shop, but you should go for the jugular. Yeah, you think they went up two-nil at all, when you were back in it, and it's a it's uh it's it's did they have a bit of a bit of play though in the game? Were they were they kind of again playing it not really hurting you, but then when they get one back, it just gets nervy, doesn't it? Yeah, you just still got to turn the screw. Yeah, but yeah, that's Martin Tinan asks actually, with Carlisle reporting record spends on agents phase recently, and Skip mentioning his dad got him a better deal when Marie came knocking. Um well, he didn't get your knocked deal, he just played them, didn't you? Charlie played them. They never wanted me. Do players really need agents, or could deals be done with people who have the players' best interests heart rather than looking at the pound signs? So could your dad do it, could someone you know do it, or agents needed? I used to think they weren't really needed, but I think even young boys now the games change so much, you can like they can be signed up at 15, 14, and you can get basically if you just secured for eight years. If you thought the highway, so I think agents are probably needed, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:55

I mean, I got mine at I think I was 17. We played pre-season friendly against Durham City, and I was in midfield with Caden Dyer, and obviously played really well. And he said if you got an agent afterwards, and I met um Dave Manasseh and Jonathan Barnett, yeah, yeah. Um got like him and Gareth Bale, and to name a few, and they got me my next contract, and obviously they're gonna get me a better contract than I could ever get myself or or my dad. So um at that time I thought it was a good thing, but obviously when the career sort of spiral downhill a bit, it's a lot harder to get hold of them. Um and they sort of distanced themselves from me, and it just fizzled out and then nothing, it wasn't officially ended, it just wasn't anymore. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:34

See that skip like so see when you were kind of maybe a bit past the honeymoon period and you weren't really like getting to the heights. Was he involved at that point on like what can we do? Why are you not why you're not at the levels? What yeah, we used to have a guidance and now go speak to the club. Like, what's what what do you think's the problem with Mark? Do you know? At the start, yeah, we sort of just like get the deal done that's why he looked after, and we'll hopefully.

SPEAKER_00 12:59

No, they showed a bit of interest for a while, and then it was over like a a year a 12 month period, and then as I say, it sort of fizzled out, and he was like asking you've got to go and ask the question, where do you stand? Is it best if you move on? And then I went to Port Vale and he done that deal, um and I got another good deal there, which I was which I was very happy with. So he sorted that. But when I went to Carlisle after that, obviously we got relegated out of the football league, and he basically said, Look, I don't know what else I can do for you. Um which which which is which is honest, isn't it? I mean, I I appreciate his honesty. He said, I don't know where you can go from here, and then obviously Gretner popped up, and after that, I just didn't have any contact with him.

SPEAKER_01 13:33

You can kind of do your own at a certain age. I think when you drop to like no disrespect, but when you drop to them sort of there's no real point in paying agent fees, no no. Maybe some of you just don't even take fees at that kind of level, but like as you said, you you're probably a bit more mature, you know people around, and you can do your own talking and stuff like that, can't you?

SPEAKER_02 13:51

So I think the I think the agents need I think a good agent is is is patient with you and can articulate a balance between what you need and what's best for your career, and not just seeing the pound signs, as you see.

SPEAKER_00 14:02

Yeah, I will say one thing about my agent though. I when I signed with him, the bag full of Adidas Gares I got my dad was head to toying tracking players. He was walking around Carlisle thinking, look at me.

SPEAKER_02 14:13

Hey man, I I raided uh Busshead's I raided Busshead's uh office. Bushead's so Bushead Andy Horn, the kit man at Carlisle United. And he got we got new again. I raided it and no one knew. But then Busshead came into theater at nine one night, and there's a lad I've given Buscar to he couldn't remote it. Busshead's coming to the mine and the kids walking past my estate in the brand new. He's going, What's going on? Yeah, or the young team and the new release. So, yeah, as I say, I think it's a good one. I think a great question, and agents, as we've said, there's a balance, isn't there? I think someone here definitely I think um some agents can I remember the PFA done my first ever deal. Vince O'Keefe was called. Remember him, yeah. Vince O'Feefe. Yeah, I remember it. Terrible, terrible. That's for another day. That's a good so yeah, Carl, not have to go into it. Well, you know what? It's just waiting for third place. Are they though? They're looking over the shoulder now.

SPEAKER_01 15:09

Yeah, they'll get fourth place, but uh, just it's getting a run again, like teams put a bit of pressure, a couple of passes again, and get a good spell in the game. You know, like even 2-0 down, how can you away for home to Kalloyle 2-0 down with a good crowd and you get back into the game? Do you know what I mean? Like, mentality, and I seen um one in I think one of the players after the game done an interview saying about it's a mentality thing. Yeah. So as players, as staff, like how do you manage that? Do you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_02 15:36

Like, I think what's frustrating as well. Hughes likes to bring on a defender for a winger quite a bit. Doesn't go down well, does it doesn't go down well? No, so it looks defending.

SPEAKER_01 15:45

And all like you've all been this because you're on that pitch and you start bringing an arsenal halfway and you start and you've you look round and you've got six basic defenders and two sitting midfield, you're thinking we've seen this out, yeah. Rather than now you're bringing on a bit of energy up top or some wingers that can go, carries up the pitch. Exactly. Yeah, so that that's how you've seen the game. Do you mean if he got if he's seen it out, it's a good point, uh good one, but it never worked out in the end.

SPEAKER_02 16:09

Yeah, but they've got a lot to do for me. Got a lot to do.

SPEAKER_00 16:12

I agree, isn't it? All the shot away, uh Borham would have walking. I looked before. Um I mean, Borham have got a great win against York, didn't they? So they're there, the the snapping at the heel. So it's not going to be as straightforward as we maybe thought, and you you really need to finish in that third spot, do you not? Yeah, you need to do, don't you? I think you do.

SPEAKER_02 16:29

So, anyway, Dylan, I want to talk to you a little bit more about when you've turned pro at Celtic, getting your debut. Well, we've spoken about your debut, but how it was in that dressing room and how the move to Hibbs had to happen and why it happened.

SPEAKER_01 16:43

Yeah, I think obviously touched on it how I ended up at Celtic and my debut and all this kind of thing, and I kind of was there for a few years, rode the the wave a little bit. Who who were the big hitters in the dressing room at that time? Oh we had we had some big hatters, like obviously uh Scott Brown was a captain, Scotland captain at the time, Charlemagne grew. Char Charlie's great left foot. Oh unbelievable. Charlie.

SPEAKER_02 17:05

I tried again South End was against him and he's free kick.

SPEAKER_01 17:08

Oh, he scored free kick against the game. He got the player of the year playing at left, left centre half. Yeah. He played left midfield in the Champions League games, get man in the match and stuff a few games in the Champions League games, like playing left back anyway. Brilliant, great guy as well. He's like top, top both. We'll get him on the pod. He's brilliant, brilliant. Um but yeah, Charlie and then we we had like international, like Victim on Yama, Benham Cayao, uh Joe Ledley, top top player. I seen was it was he quality? Joe was he never really got the appreciation because he never done anything flashy, he wasn't like dribbling by people in big big diags, but just the the older you get, you more you realise like how valuable he was. Like he he was up there 13-14k again, honestly. Like run all day, keep the ball, had a go on him, good about the place, like just an infectious kind of thing.

SPEAKER_02 17:58

He seems with the whales, he was dancing, wasn't he? When the whales did you see Gareth Bale on uh stick to football?

SPEAKER_01 18:02

Yeah, he said that the funniest player he's played with was uh Joe Ledlin.

SPEAKER_02 18:06

Yeah, we give you a shout out, stick to football.

SPEAKER_01 18:12

But yeah, uh Von Yammer and Fraser Foster, like some big hitters. I mean, who ended up going on in playing to the top. So Fraser's from Hexon, just stand there. Yeah, the best keeper I've ever played with. Oh by a male.

SPEAKER_02 18:25

Who else would you other keepers you play? Who else has been up there? Um Bork Boric, was it Boric?

SPEAKER_01 18:31

No, I'm not that old. No, no, I wasn't. But you don't want to give him a very good rep, do you know? He's only 13 miles younger than us. I was a ball boy when Boric was gone. Jesus. Um yeah, we I had a few a big conrad Logan like for the for the brief spell that I had was on performances was up there. But Fraser thought, honestly, see, sometimes you're training, man. Like you couldn't do it, you couldn't beat him. It's not even the first one, it's a second and third. Like now the reaction saves, and see if you had a shitty shot, like some of your shots there. Absolutely not need. Let me honestly see if it was like close to him, he wouldn't he wouldn't just catch it, right? He he was six foot seven, I think, six seven, right? So he's butched down six eight, yeah, yeah. Massive guy, always in the gym. And see if he hit a shot arm, see his four arm, he'd literally just go, fuck off. Ah, go a mile. And it was like honestly, I would go up a mile, like just taking a piss. Um so yeah, some big hitters and then rode the wave a little bit. I was coming on off the bench, and a lot of my time was kind of fighting to get on the bench because we had that much experience, and we were always going for Champions League and trebles and all this kind of stuff. So I was always fighting to try to get on the bench, and then again trying to get on the pitch. And when I was playing, I was kind of playing more wide, which naturally wasn't marking a game.

SPEAKER_02 19:48

Was it like the graveyard shift or was it kind of like getting it?

SPEAKER_01 19:50

No, it was James Forrest. So James A was Lenny's, you know, Lennon's boy, yeah. Like honestly, like he was the James Forest, yeah. So whenever he had a kind of we'd we'd be winning, and it was like 70-75 minutes, he'd take him off and then he'd put me on as a winger. But I'm not the same as James Forest. I mean, I'm not going to drop a shoulder and go to the by-lane. I was coming in the pitch and try to link up. So but there wasn't a lot of space in the middle with the names I've just mentioned. So um, yeah, bit of part player, but a great experience, Jimmy. I mean training with these boys every single day.

SPEAKER_02 20:21

It's it's a weird one, isn't it? Like it's Sunland, I loved it, like being in the Premier League and stuff. And back then it was like three, then it went to five subs. And now you'd be on the bench because be unbelievable. Because seven subs and you've got to have two local. So me and Thurwa would have been on the bench all the time. Yeah, getting the bonuses, but it was kind of we were travelling and we were in the stand, if you get what I mean. So, but we still got bonuses and stuff, but it was crazy. It's good when you're a kid, innit? Just going to yeah, and then it just got to the point, you know, 2021. I I need to play. And once you've had your first loan move and you've tasted it, you can't really go back to reserves, can you?

SPEAKER_01 20:51

Well, that's Calvin Coffee. What happened to me? So Alan Stubbs came in, Hibs just got relegated. Um, I don't know if you remember Jason Cummins' interview, watch it as funny. He they just I think the first the first game they were playing a playoff. That's when they brought the playoff in. Yeah, can't remember Hamilton maybe. They were 2-0 up, he scored like one or two. In his first interview, he's he's a bit of a a Canon Cummins and uh Alex Needle's manager of Hamilton, yes, played relics at yeah, uh Barnsley. Yeah, he was angry man, yeah. I've heard, but um so Cummins like done really well, done an interview on Sky now. He's like, My left foot's a tin of beans after a tin of beans and uh all this kind of like absolute character, and then they go their way leg and get beat. Actually, it used to road and get beat. So they get relegated. Um Stubsy comes in, he had a big clear out, he phoned me up, he's like, We've got about eight players, I want to take you. So I had to go get some games at this point. I was I can't remember. Was it low or on loan? It was on loan for like six months. Yeah. So I went on loan, played, done really well, fans were all loving me, the manager and just that feeling of training to play at the weekend. Do you know? Whereas before I was training just just to train. Yeah. So I got that little taste of it, and then Once I went back to Celtic, it was kinda from both parties, it was like I think the best stage for you is to go play games. Yeah. Um, as I touched on a couple of episodes ago, that boys that I was coming through the youth that I was kind of playing with with Scotland youth days and stuff, they were playing 150, 200 games. I'm sitting at 25, 30, do you know what I mean? So I've kind of had to go and get proper experience. Yeah. Um and then it was the best thing I'd done to be honest. Yeah, of course, yeah. I could have stayed at Celtic another year, yeah and a half, whatever it was, and just enjoyed being there and being part of it. But you know what it's like when you're winning things and you're not on the on the pitch, but it's different in our sub for me. I couldn't really Don't get me wrong, I've still got the pitchers holding the trophies and the medals and all that. I've still got all them, which is brilliant, but like when you go to Hibbs and you get promoted and you won the Scottish Cup and you can talk about it ten years later. Do you mean that's proper like feeling part of it? So yeah, never look back since um since the Hibs days, like went on a couple of years there and done a few things.

SPEAKER_02 23:02

Did they so you done the loan, went back, and then Hibbs just a f were on a free?

SPEAKER_01 23:08

So they kind of well a little kind of backstory with that was I kind of knew in my head that I was gonna go back to Hibs. They all really wanted me, I really wanted to go. There was nothing really in the way. The only thing was was money, like wages. Obviously, they couldn't pay, they've just been at the championship, they couldn't pay as good as what I was on. So I thought me and my agent at the time were like we kind of need to be somewhere close to the case. Um but even then I'd I'd have gone anyway. I was just a bargaining chip. So I was I was supposed to go into training one day and I got a phone call. Um I think it was Chris McCartney, he was like head of the youth at the time. He's like, You have to go to Celtic Park. Uh Peter Lowell wants you. I was like, oh fuck, like the the CEO, do you mean like the chairman wants me here? Like so I'm on the way over and I'm on the phone to my agent, um, who's really calm kind of guy and speaks really softly and thinks about before he speaks. Yeah. Um so I'm on the phone to him and panicking, and I'm like, Liam, yeah. I'm like, what did I do here and all that? And he's like, he's like, I've not been told to come, just go in and just back yourself, like you'll be fine. So anyway, I go in talking away about my experience of being away, and the best thing for me to go forward was to go and play some games and whatever and wish me luck or this. But they were like, I understand that um Rod Petrie was the chairman at Ibs at the time. He's like, I understand there's a stumbling block, like you can't really meet now your demands kind of thing, like you should really just just take it. And I was like, Well, no, like I I what I've kind of asked I've for isn't out uh out the width third kind of budget, so um I was like I'm I'm no I'm no going like un unless they give me it. And he's like, So you won't go if they don't get to that number. I went no, no way. He was like, I'll just phone Rod when you leave. And I was like, Yeah, I was like, phone him now. So it gotta be but of like I had my guard up because I felt like from like Peter's kind of if they were pushing me, yeah, like just get out the door, just go, go, go. But it was like, no, like we both know that what I'm asking for is not life changing money, do you know what I mean? Like um So I was like, Well, phone him, just do it the now. He's like, I'll phone him, and I was like, Yeah, yeah, that's fine. He was like, right, okay, thanks for coming to see me and like we wish you well and all that. Hopefully we can get something sorted. Yeah, he's like, So I phoned Rod and just turned the deals off. I went, tell him the deals off. I'm just staying, I'll just sit here for another year, and just that's it. And then by the time I got in my car and got home, it was about 15 minutes. I got a phone call from my agent. He's like, Head for Easter Rod. Got it. He's like, Rod's gonna give you. Yeah, that's class. And he still speaks about to this day, my agent. So he's like How old were you then? 21, 22. But that's what he's saying, he's like, back yourself. Like you're sitting there with the chairman in the cell taking stuff, and all this, don't forget who you are. Do you know? Don't don't be intimidated. Like, when I'm back the cell, like what Kevin, me.

SPEAKER_02 25:56

Oh left or less. You don't want to play with free.

SPEAKER_01 26:02

So yeah, yeah, that was a kind of a little we can laugh about it now, do you know what I mean? And um, but yeah, just in them it probably touches on what they talk about the agents and stuff. Yeah, I mean like good advice and back in my cell. And I'm talking maybe high extra hundred quid, 200 pounds. Do you know what I mean? It wasn't like crazy money, but yeah, and then who was uh in midfield with here Hibbs? So it was me, uh Fraser Fivey.

SPEAKER_02 26:27

Um just retired him, hasn't he?

SPEAKER_01 26:28

Yeah, Fivey's just retired, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 26:30

Is he Bolton? Ex-Bolton, Wigan.

SPEAKER_01 26:33

Yeah, good player, very good player. Again, probably didn't get the recognition. Yeah, like well, I think he does to be fair. Hibs fans appreciate him, they do because he was involved with the Scottish Cup and but um his players as well, like see training and stuff like that, he was he was on it. Like he would he would kick your granny, honestly. Like he was yeah, he was on it. Train the way you play, proper player. Um he liked to tell you about his um FA Cup medal that he's oh yeah, he's got yeah. Oh, he was like, I think he was in the squad or whatever. That's enough, isn't he? I've got a funny one actually. We're in the car one day, no mention of the uh FA Cup medals, nothing. Just driving, commuting to Edinburgh. Um and I love it to be fair, and he's like, Dou open that uh glove box up for me. I was like thinking he's looking for a napkin or something or some whatever it is, sugar or something for his coffee. I was like, Yeah, what is it? And he's like, Oh, there's a little box in there, can you grab it for me? I was like, Yeah, yeah, what what was it? FA Cup Medal. I thought fair play, yeah. Fair play. Oh, that's good. Um but yeah, Fraser Fivey, Marvin Bartley, yeah, um, and then a year or two later, Scott Allen and stuff. So yeah, yeah. John McGuinn, actually forgot about John McGinn. Yeah, John John He's no bad.

SPEAKER_02 27:43

Um I almost fancied playing for Hibs, did you? Ah I don't know why. Hibs, just like I went up there, I think, and just see the the stadium and that you think yeah good club that did have a training ground, very good. Yeah, it's good they just built it.

SPEAKER_01 27:55

Yeah, I think they after they got uh they sold Scott Brown and Kevin Thompson to the old firm. I think they built out in Trinet, which is good, they're still still doing really well there, and a lot of young boys coming through the youth and that. So it's a good club. Like both both clubs had some artists.

SPEAKER_02 28:09

Like it's a good city, good clubs, and then just you were a mainstayer then, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:14

From then on, yeah. And don't get me wrong, I had my ups and downs, like probably my well, not my own fault, but I had I had injuries and stuff there, a lot of niggles, and obviously a new Lennon comes in, and I'm kinda in and out of the team and breaking down and can't really get a good a good run of games. But eventually, I think over the the whole period, my Hibbs career that won a few things um and had great memories.

SPEAKER_02 28:38

Did Lennon bring Parker in and that? Harry Parker. Yeah, so you reunited. Yeah, perfect. It was brilliant. Brilliant. No, perfect. We'll uh we'll go into it more again next week. It's good hearing from our careers a little bit, yeah, isn't it? Clown Watch. Here we go again. There's a few clowns this weekend. I'm not happy with Tony Pulis picking on my mate as I ranking. Have you had a pop? I've had a little pop. I thought you would trying to tell a story and saying that Paul Jewell signed as I ranking, it was meant to be 50 grand and end up playing 1.3 and kind of be little in his career, but you don't play 350 games if you're not a great kind of making the story a little bit and single them out for the laugh. I didn't really like that. Yeah, Clown Watch, Aiden, AJ Official 98. I got a photo, I got a photo sent to me during the game on Saturday of me and Laura, and he went, You haven't shook Ramos off.

SPEAKER_03 29:30

Yeah, but she's through that. I told Baby's babysitting videos today.

SPEAKER_02 29:34

Uh yeah, so I couldn't shake Ramos off. But again, thank you, Gaffa, for coming in and seeing us and Millie and look at it. And was like, done very well. We've done it, we've done the speaking this time, though. Me and Carl went through. It was funny that we're off it. Well, first one were quite sensible, and then well, three pints later in the next one. We got a bit learning, and then Carl just went in the fur the last one. If he called like Neil MacDonald a bell or something, and we just went, are we are we at this stage? Are we? Can we just do it? Absolute roast with it. Uh just a quick one, David Gillies charity match Saturday, 2nd of May at Guildford Park. Right. Um, raising money for the Eden Valley Hospice. So I think um we need to promote that and we'll keep reporting it.

SPEAKER_00 30:20

Uh we'll keep promoting it. Isn't that the date of the could be the date of the semi-final? No, or around there, isn't it? Oh, is it? If Carl finished there, I'm I'm I could be wrong, but I think it's definitely around that date, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 30:32

I've got a we've got a question as well. One thing I've always wondered is do players respect and listen better to managers or coaches who have played at a higher level and achieved more things in the game as players, or does it not really matter as long as their training methods and tactics are good? An example being, does Mark Hughes automatically get a head start with getting lads on board, say, over a Chris Beach or John Ward because of playing careers?

SPEAKER_00 30:58

I would say when he walks through the door, probably yeah. Yeah. But then I think he's got to prove himself. Um so obviously, if somebody that like that walks in, you know the career they've had, you know who they are. Yeah. Um, but from then on in, I think if they prove to be what you think they're gonna be when they walk through the door, all well and good. But if not, then I think you maybe lose a little bit of respect for them. You definitely get ahead. But I definitely think it's harder for somebody who isn't someone of a name. Um they've obviously got to prove themselves because they're a bit of the unknown on. Um but at the same time, the other side of the coin if they're coming in and the methods are good and the and the sessions are good and things, then you'll you'll get on board and and you'll go with it. Yeah, yeah, I totally agree.

SPEAKER_01 31:40

I think I think in the end, if you're good enough, you you'll prove to the boys that you're good enough. Do you know what I mean? If you've not played, but I don't get as you said, if you've if you've had a right good career and automatically before you've even met the new manager, you're thinking like you've you've got that respect for what he's done in the game. I think probably Gerard's a great example. Yeah. That I know a few boys that were Rangers, and they're like, Why was he so good? And he was just like, just his presence, his presence. He had great coaches, yeah. Um, Michael Beale, all the boys that done a lot of the training, he's like, but see just him being about the place and his presence and what he's done, you just what you were in awe of him.

SPEAKER_02 32:16

We spoke about it, didn't we? Old school manager used to drop in on a Thursday and suddenly like training goes up 10%, doesn't it? You can imagine Gerard walking over and you think fucking hell.

SPEAKER_00 32:25

Remember, he just put the preads on and that and remember Halladay said he joined in once. Yeah, he says, and the way he kicked it sounded different. I people mentioned that he pinged it that way.

SPEAKER_01 32:36

It sounded different when he was done.

SPEAKER_02 32:38

That crossbars the ball, isn't he? I think the footballs aren't regulation size.

SPEAKER_01 32:42

Well, they were actually size fours. Aye. I don't know. We're we're I mean we used a size five preparation. I'm allowing a poor idea. Uh but um yeah, Gerard supposingly yeah, when he was involved in training, like an unbelievable player.

SPEAKER_02 32:54

Speaking of Gerard, I've got to throw this at you. Come on then. Debate world class. So, a world class player is one of the very best in the world in their position. They don't just show flashes of brilliance, they consistently, consistently decide games, set the standard, and perform at that level for a prolonged period of time. Form matters, but so does proof over time. World class is considered higher than elite. So remember that, representing top 0.1 to 1% globally, while elite represents the top 1%. So Adrian Heath, Peter Reid and Andy Gray. I was 19, remember Peter Reid? Yeah, yeah. Adrian Heath, Andy Gray used to do this guy. I was 19 in Marbella, and I sat with them three and they were just debating this. And I was I was just like, I was like, this is unbelievable. So Alex McCleach was there.

SPEAKER_01 33:45

Bollocked toped. Peter Reed put him to bed. Heath gave me my Scotland debut, Alex McCleach. Did he? Yeah. He was the manager Scotland debut.

SPEAKER_00 33:53

It's not bad, is it? Alex Wanked he was.

SPEAKER_02 33:57

Was he? Oh Wanked. We played for the county. We played for the county, yeah. We must have we were playing at 35. Um, so they were saying, so Peter Reid, Adrian Heath, Andy Gray, Alex McCleish saying that a group is world class at the time. This is their group of world class. Pele, Maradona, Cruyff, Beckenbauer, Lothar Mateus, Platini, and Best. Right? They said Shearer, Henri, Vieira, Brian, Robson were elite, so they're down a level. One level below. And I have to agree, as much as good Shearer was, he doesn't go into that top Palais, Maradona. Does Henri?

SPEAKER_00 34:33

No.

SPEAKER_01 34:33

Oh, it's not where does Ronaldo and Messi go? Oh, they're in that.

SPEAKER_00 34:37

Yeah, Messi and Ronaldo are in that no point, whatever. They're in the lead. Yeah. No, no.

SPEAKER_02 34:43

So they will collapse and then there's elite of like the Shearers, etc. But Ronaldo and Messi go. This is the sort of debate you could have for hours, though, isn't it? Well, let's have it for a few minutes. Come on, then let's go, let's go. Right. Ronaldo and Messi are in it.

SPEAKER_01 34:56

I would I would say like legendary status, though. They're like legendary. Like, I would say in their prime, Gerard was world class. He would probably play for any club in the world in his prime. Holy horses. But to put them in the same category with Pele, Maradona, and stuff, you're not putting Gerard in there. No. I'm making a new section.

SPEAKER_00 35:19

Wait! Oh, you're going to he's on one thing.

SPEAKER_01 35:22

So I'm putting one. Somebody's hit the crossbar today. I've had about four coffees before we're in here, so I'm not fired to the moon. But um I think Pele and Maradona, Messi, Ronaldo, they're they're legendary status.

SPEAKER_02 35:35

Do you agree, lads? Ronaldo and Messi.

SPEAKER_01 35:39

Legendary. Love that. Yeah. New section. So Pele and Maradona, I'd I'm saying they're all in one category, right? And then so I legendary and then world class as your your Gerard, potentially Henri and the other. So we're going to be an elite as Shears and top.

SPEAKER_02 35:59

Pele top. Yeah. Ronaldo and Messi in that or not. Yeah, yeah. Then we're going the Henries, etc. What's that? World class? I'm losing myself, yeah. Let's just go this then. I'm gonna hit you with a list. Go on then. World class or elite. So world class is your Pele as your Maradona. And then elite's one below. Elite's one below, your Shears, your Henries, right? Go for it. Ronaldo R9, the original world class. World class. Okay. He's got the devil in his eye today. He has, hasn't he? Eniesta.

SPEAKER_01 36:29

World class. Well, so he's Maradona. But I know I'm repeating myself, but Iniesta walks into any team in the world for 10 years straight. Right? So he's world class. So he's a Croy. But he's not in the same category as Pelle, Maradona, Messi, and Ronaldo. He's not in the same category as him.

SPEAKER_00 36:48

I'm having Iniesta as high as you can as high as you can have him, yeah. Bale? Golf or football?

SPEAKER_02 36:57

Yeah, a bit no, not world class. Elite. Elite, yeah, elite, yeah. No, it's mad though.

SPEAKER_01 37:02

Like I know we've downplayed it, right? Saying he's not in the same there, he's won five Champions Leagues.

SPEAKER_02 37:06

That's that's the argument, isn't it?

SPEAKER_01 37:07

But is that because he's part of a class team? An absolute machine of a team that just back to back Champions League won at three in a row or something.

SPEAKER_02 37:15

What about Ronaldinho?

SPEAKER_01 37:18

World class. World class, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 37:20

He was going cry from platini.

SPEAKER_01 37:21

Yeah, he was right.

SPEAKER_00 37:22

He was hella, isn't it?

SPEAKER_01 37:23

They changed the game then. Like people stood up off the seats when they get the ball. See when the top players, the top, top players, are talking about your Ronaldinho's and stuff. That's when you know. Yeah. Your Gerards and that, the way they talk, and Gary Neville's and Roy Keynes, when they talk about Ronaldinho, they're talking like that they were a class above them.

SPEAKER_02 37:41

Yeah, yeah, but Zidane.

SPEAKER_01 37:43

Again, world classes. Elite.

SPEAKER_02 37:46

Well, Zidane put scores as the best player he's played. We run it in the you too, like so. Ronaldinho's in world class, school and Zidane is, and scores just below.

SPEAKER_01 38:00

For me, yeah. I've got one. See the Brian Robson, right? I obviously heard a lot that he's top, top player. You reckon he's drinking. How good was it? But that was probably like your kind of era of watching football, wasn't it? I I don't remember obviously watching.

unknown 38:14

Eh?

SPEAKER_02 38:14

I'm not 55. Yeah, but you're more relevant, like age class. Yeah, he was he was he was the Gerard, he was kind of like the Gerard, he scored goals, he was Roiking Lobson, didn't he? Roykine Lobson. Yeah he was a nightmare because he'd have 13 points, I reckon, and he wouldn't change, and then he'd be the first in the running.

SPEAKER_00 38:31

Oh you're like that's a different type of humour.

SPEAKER_02 38:34

Old man brag and that. What's the most hungover you been at training?

SPEAKER_00 38:39

Um quite a few to be honest. Uh you ever been when the manager knows.

SPEAKER_01 38:44

Have you been sick in drinks?

SPEAKER_00 38:46

Nah, no, never been sick. I've had Jimmy. You ever remember Snake Bite in Black? Yeah. I've had that all round there while I was training. Oh and uh just terrible, felt wrong. Um, but you get through it, don't you? You do you actually get through it and then you go home and you just sleep, just dying.

SPEAKER_01 39:02

Yeah, you just go to bed and just talk about being sick on that idea. There's funny Slaney, Paul Slane talks about it. Um one of the it was like we played in like a Tuesday night or whatever, and he wasn't involved. And now in the hospitality lounges you get pies like you've obviously had a few this year, these plates, right? So one of the boys, um, like Dared Slainey eat like ten pies now the wee mini ones, uh-huh, right? And I think he tells it to sell, it must be he must have been like seven or eight of them down like at half time. See how many he could eat. That's fine. Whatever you've done, next day in training. Now it's the ones that didn't play, you got a tough session, don't they? Like 3v3s, four v4s, like pitch shuttles, standing aside of the pitch, being sick, being sick. But obviously, Gary Park and that they're in about all the boys, they know what's what's been on, right? And then Lenny's funny about it, and they mean absolute mental music. You don't know hospitality, sweet and fucking eight by that night before training.

SPEAKER_00 39:56

What about Salah? Numbers wise, but not right, not top top, no for me. Rooney, I thought he was amazing. Um that's a tough one.

SPEAKER_01 40:11

I don't know. I don't know. I love running it because he can play anywhere, you play right back anywhere.

SPEAKER_02 40:16

He would just dig in and do a job when it's Moderich, elite, elite, not world class, but as in he is world class, but this world class is like the top best of the best.

SPEAKER_01 40:27

Yeah, I would say if we're doing it that way, I would say elite. Gaza. The best ever. Gaza's my hero, I love it.

SPEAKER_02 40:34

Yeah, it's better than them all for me. Gaza, beards Lee, Gerard. Oh, phenomenal. Right, next week. You know what? We're gonna debate next week. Go on. Lampard scores. This argument, man. I'm gonna put a poll up. What about Henriette Larson now?

SPEAKER_01 40:48

You put Andre Larson in there and he's list he only playing part-timers, wasn't he?

SPEAKER_02 40:54

What? And he was getting away. Won the Champions League at like 34. Lux just finished shift and then up against Larson.

SPEAKER_01 41:01

Alex Fellison singed them when he was like basically retired, and then he comes out and wins the league.

SPEAKER_02 41:06

So, yeah, next week scores, Gerard and Lamb. Oh, they're definitely put a poll up, yeah. Right. Straight away, we're going on to this already. I'm gonna go into a question section. What's the crack? Week two or week three?

SPEAKER_00 41:20

Week two, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 41:22

So those who are watching and who are on audio, we've got some nice mugs here. Yeah, and we are delighted to announce that this segment is sponsored by Warwick Road Bed Centre. So thank you so much to Julian and his family. Situated on Warwick Road, and you can find their other store, Warwick New and Used Furniture, on Brook Street. So get along there and again mention three in the middle. I'll be back down there soon. Need some beds.

SPEAKER_00 41:46

Yeah, can I just before you carry on, can I just say the mugs and keyrings were courtesy of Mike, weren't they? And I believe he wasn't too pleased that we didn't mention him because he's gone out of his way and got told. I want to say whoby. But there you go, Mike. Have we upset someone? No, no, Mike's all right.

SPEAKER_01 42:03

Well, I was with Julian Smalling. Yeah, um, he was saying if we can go down and do a little video and um in the shop.

SPEAKER_02 42:10

I think we're better aligned on beds than we are cross-board channels.

SPEAKER_01 42:13

Well, he did mention that we could maybe the challenge we could maybe have a pillow fight.

SPEAKER_02 42:16

Oh Jesus Christ, how was what the fuck is this gunning? Right, Paul Patterson question Patty, Patty, yeah. Louis doing well. Your son's doing very well in Parliament. Really good player. What did a typical week look like for you as a footballer, both on and off the pitch? So, shall I go first? Yeah, go for it. Saturday game, Sunday off, yeah, Monday in.

SPEAKER_01 42:41

What did you do on a Sunday? Go on then. I played on a Saturday, win, lose, a draw. What was your Saturday night food after the game? That's what I want to know. Er, Carlin.

SPEAKER_02 42:56

He's not lying either. Fucking red bull. There's all the brands available. Yeah, there is other bands. Um so we'd win on a Saturday, straight home, dancing gear on, out, Sunday, get up, bit of lunch, a couple of pints, Monday training, usually like a warm down, Tuesday, hard session, because you'd have Wednesday off. Thursday, you get in, you start to think about the weekend, don't you? Thursday, you start to go maybe through some phase of play, think more about the opposition. Friday, five aside, go through your set players, and then the Saturday. Um, Barnsy was a bit different. We had an IX Latinic manager, good John Todison. So we'd come in Sunday morning. Ah, really? And you were done by like 12 o'clock, but you'd have Sunday afternoon and Monday off. All right. So, and then if we played Tuesday night, you'd go in Wednesday and get Thursday off, which was tremendous because Wednesday nights and Barns in the castle were excellent.

SPEAKER_00 43:52

Yeah, um pretty similar to be honest. I mean, apart from Portville was different because we had Thursdays off. Um did you come home? That was my problem. I couldn't stay away from Carlisle. Um I mean I've seen me finish playing looting away on a Saturday and still be in the nightclub in Carlisle on the Saturday night. Honestly, junction sixteen on the M six, in the Corsa, just above the speed limit, pull up, close on, I would go. Ridiculous, but that's what I used to do. I if I could get home, I would get home. Um but oh yeah, like you say, finish on a Saturday. Um obviously I would drive back to Carlisle, get ready, go out and meet my mates. Sunday, just not a lot. Um, and then wherever I was playing, would decide what time I set back off on a Monday morning. That's when you get a Monday off. Yeah, um, and then obviously just the same training wise, it wasn't really used to the day before uh a day off, you'd it was the afternoon, wasn't it? You'd the double session. I mean, I know they do double sessions mostly all the time.

SPEAKER_01 44:50

Now don't happen now.

SPEAKER_02 44:52

Doesn't happen. The thing is now these things to monitor them with. No, you don't have to do well, you do the running, but they know to bring you out, like stop.

SPEAKER_01 45:00

Yeah, it's I don't even like sports science, and obviously there's a reason why they do it, but see, apart from pre-season, you you hardly do runs during the year. You hardly do it. Do you know everything's with the even I even I watch Celtics like videos that they put up on YouTube and stuff like that, and I know they don't get like a big big break, but see their pre-season and that a lot of it is with the ball. Yeah, yeah. Like it's not the now the 5K's and the 10 laps of the pit, all that. Everything's all like little um 30-second bust with the ball, like dribbles and dribble tracks, like which is it looks a lot easier, I suppose, doesn't it, than just running for days.

SPEAKER_02 45:35

Do you think you know when we played, you were never 100% where you're really you're rarely in your career 100%. You know, they've got so much technology now that they can tell if people are in the red zone, yeah. But that's what they get that's why there's so many subs made. But I think I know it's the medical advice, but just I would hate coming off, even though I was getting a twinge. I just want to play the full game, and I reckon they probably could get through it and not be injured, but there's so much wrapped up in cotton wool now.

SPEAKER_00 45:59

And do you know what? When we used to go back to pre-season, heavy and not fit. It was to get fit, wasn't it? Yeah, yeah, it was. Everybody lost preseason to get fit, everybody lost a bit of a timber, everybody got a lot fitter, but now they'll go back fit done. Oh no, now they go back fit and definitely.

SPEAKER_02 46:14

I was gonna say with crew, bid 500 grand for us at Simland, got accepted. And crew, I didn't go. Well, I didn't I wasn't gonna go anywhere, but they went in Monday, Wednesday, Fridays through the summer. Nah. During the summer, by any chance. So when everyone got back to do preseason on running, they were playing five or side, so it was kind of that, but you had to go, you couldn't you had to go to ten. There was ten sessions.

SPEAKER_01 46:35

So you could pick and choose which but you had to make ten. Yeah, now it's now that you get a full programme, gym, obviously, grass stuff as well, like fitness stuff, and you you have to send it in, like you they send you away with GPS space and stuff, so there's no hiding. Honestly, there's no hiding from it. Have you ever been hauling on a Sunday?

SPEAKER_00 46:52

Oh, yeah, that's the worst shit. Absolutely heartbreaking, especially if you've got someone organised and you've got spanked at home and it's uh nine o'clock in the morning. And you know you're just running, you're not going through a video of it yet and ran for it. Neil Lennon was at worst for that. Ryan or used to run us up the steps. Right. Oh my god, the stuff we had one big stand-up over there. Ah, we've done the steps. Just had a roll out up, down, up, down. Oh, it was brutal. That's mad.

SPEAKER_01 47:13

Yeah, Neil Lennon was a nightmare for that. Like you couldn't plan anything. Honestly, no matter what it is, like weddings, anything at all. Now you think, oh, Saturday night I've got a wedding, I've got this or that apartment. And you're relying on the result, you're nervous all the week because it probably gives you that week extra, like, because you know, see if we see if we draw or get beat, that that's it that it's done. We can done because you'll be in Sunday, and like you'll make sure it can spell your own, Cardi. You think you're right, you'll make sure it's you'll make sure that you're not out on a Saturday and stuff. You had dies in years everywhere, but yeah, it's um the the running and stuff like that, it's just it's so intense now. So intense.

SPEAKER_02 47:49

So cheers for that, Paul Patterson got one from Minnie, Minnie Mine.

SPEAKER_01 47:55

Mini.

SPEAKER_02 47:55

So he sponsored our first episode, wasn't he? Yeah. So he's put this question for myself and Dylan. Obviously, Skip was honest and said he was a player, he felt he didn't maximize his potential. For the record, we had some top nights out mind. Oh, did we? You and Dylan have good careers, one that most lads would love and aspire for. But looking back, do you both think you should have played at the top, top level for longer after having appearances in the top flight in England and Scotland? And any reasons you didn't play longer in the top flight? P.S. I'm not an Insta or Twitter shite, hence the WhatsApp message.

SPEAKER_00 48:29

That's very many of that. Same one I text message, isn't it?

SPEAKER_02 48:32

So should we have done should we play longer? As I said earlier, I've touched on it. Well, I was talking to Glenn Murray the other day, and I spoke about how Glenn Carl just went too quick for him and he had to drop down. Sullivan were the same. We just kept going in that trajectory up, and I just couldn't get in. If they stayed in the championship longer, I would have played a few more games. As I said, I was in the squads, travelling, etc., making the bench, not making the bench. Um I'd probably should have played in the championship a lot more than I did. Um, but there was there's reasons. Barnsley, I enjoyed the first year, loved it in the championship, found it really easy, and then we got relegated. And mentally, I went so I went from Premier League to League One quite quickly. And mentally I was like, oh yeah, and then with Carlisle, I had the chance to move three or four times, but I just loved it after the Barnsley, which we'll get into in a couple of weeks' time. My Barnsley career down there. Things that happened that made us just want to enjoy my football, and that's why I stayed at Carlisle a lot longer and were winning.

SPEAKER_00 49:30

And I probably could have gone back up a bit earlier, but yeah, because Carlisle for you was just nothing but success, wasn't it? From from when you come to it's hard to walk away for that, though, isn't it? When you're winning things in the National League, I'm not being arrogant, it was easy. Yeah, but the support as well, because when you're winning, yeah, the the this the fans at the stadium's bouncing every home game.

SPEAKER_02 49:48

22 home matches, I got 19 man of the matches. Did you wow? What in your own head or do someone give you? No, I've got them. Oh, did you Peter Jackson's Jules? 22 watches, they've all gone missing. But uh some of it was easy, and then I when I signed for Carlella, actually. I went, I want to get in the league one as quick as possible, take the three or four. Yeah, it took us two back-to-back promotions. I remember I uh some team though, wasn't it? But yeah, not Premier League, but I think I should have stayed in the championship a bit longer. Yeah, it was a nightmare getting rally. I cut deep lack. I've made the move, big move to Barnsley championship players. 28 games, seven, eight, nine goals, yeah, thinking from centre mid, but we just couldn't stay up, and then mentally dropping to league one where could have gone to Barnsley, I could have gone to Preston or Burnley and decided to stay because I thought Barnsley would just jump back up, yeah, but we didn't.

SPEAKER_01 50:39

Yeah. No, I think for me, like obviously as I'm getting a bit older now in football terms, it's you kind of look back sometimes, do you know what I mean? And um you think, oh, if that went a bit differently or whatever. But the main thing for me is probably little niggly injuries that's kind of set me back. Um, and it's probably been the question mark the last couple of years for me, like getting in places and looking for clubs and that in the summer, especially just there, that nobody has ever really questioned my ability. It's always been how fit is he? Do you know what I mean? Where's he at? How fit is he and stuff. So and listen, I'm honest enough to to know that as well. Like I if I was the other side of the table, I'd be I'd be asking them questions as well. So I totally get it. Um and yeah, it's just little moments where I think I went to Sunderland, who'd just been relegated to League One, yeah. Jack Ross had just went in. Um I don't know. Where did you live?

SPEAKER_02 51:30

Where did you live?

SPEAKER_01 51:31

Newcastle. Did you? Yeah, yeah, I stayed in Newcastle. Because me and the Mississippi, like, we never had any kids around at the time.

SPEAKER_02 51:36

Whereabouts in Newcastle?

SPEAKER_01 51:37

Um just over like, well, is it Gateshead? Yeah, yeah. Uh just over the bridge. So just Finland of the North. Yeah, yeah, just along the road. Just along the road. So um Yeah, we stayed there, but I I'd come off the back of a a good season at Hibbs, like flying, got in the SPFL Team of the Year. Oh yeah, won uh players player and player of the year, Hibs uh fans player of the year and stuff like that. So done really well. Just get a caught for Scotland, played two games flying, and then Jack Ross gets a Sunlawn job in the summer, straight on the phone, wants to take me down. So I'm thinking, like, brilliant, I'm gonna be his main man, get Sunlorn back like to the club we know we can be. Um so in your head, you're thinking, like, this is it. Do you know what I mean? Like, we're gonna go championship next, we're gonna win this league, championship, and then who knows what can happen after that. So we're down and then done really well the pre-season games, and then the last pre-season game before the season starts, we played Middlesbrough away 45 minutes, done really well, getting on the ball, feeling really confident. About five minutes before half time, done my calf. Nightmare. Just out. You like a calf at all. Oh, I didn't honestly see calf. I've had a few, I've had a few. So right away, I was out for like three weeks. Night season starts, other boys are in, you leak atamo and max powers, all these boys are all in. And then from there, I was kind of I never really got back from there. I was in, not really doing that great. We weren't winning a lot of games, and we're winning one, losing one, all this kind of stuff. So I was in and out a lot, and then um yeah, never really worked out. And I think that was probably the turning point of where I was got now projectory. Like if I'd if I'd played and stayed fit, which the quality I think would have shown through, and as a club, hopefully I'd have still been there and done really well, but it kind of went the other way where I got injured, couldn't get in, club didn't do that well, and a lot of people left, and I was the one that left, so that was kind of the big one for me.

SPEAKER_00 53:30

Yeah, but yeah, it's yeah.

SPEAKER_01 53:31

Listen, it's I I'd say I would have liked to play the top longer, but I've played for a lot of top clubs, yeah. Um and again, just a little niggle injuries that I never had a good couple of seasons run at at each club. Are you on the documentary? I'm in the second season, but when I say I'm in it, I'm in the background of some like training. Yeah, yeah. They've done they've done a lot of interviews with so I'd done like two or three interviews through the season, I think everybody did, and then they picked and choose depending on results and all this kind of stuff.

SPEAKER_02 54:01

Yeah, yeah. I I think as I said, you can go higher sometimes, but as I said, I was just loving it, Carlisle. And it's winning all the time, it makes a difference when you're winning. Yeah. And then to think the Carlisle team I played in, our first game was against Canby Island, and then two years later we're going and beating Nottingham Forest at sit ground and Brentford and Bournemouth and Brighton, we're beating them all in there.

SPEAKER_01 54:20

It doesn't matter like what level or end. See if you're winning games and part of something. That's it, that's when you're playing your best. You you remember like you still tell stories and still you're talking about.

SPEAKER_00 54:30

That's exactly me at Barrow, yeah. I mean, it was Conference North, but when I signed, remember we lost on my debut. It's the first time we went part-time, and we lost to Staley Bridge Celtic at home. And you know, you're driving home thinking, Oh, I've done here. Then we didn't lose for 23 games and we when we won the playoffs and then went up and went back back full time. And like you say, it's when you're winning, yeah, you love it, don't you?

SPEAKER_02 54:49

Dennis Booth done uh done us and the island away. How you got your passports? I went, huh? I went down with Billy the bar. I haven't got my passport. He went, You daffody London, isn't it?

SPEAKER_01 55:00

Yeah, did you see um talk about passports? There was one on Twitter, I can't remember what club it was, it was a Welsh club. And they went somewhere in a cup or whatever it was, and they're on the bus and they've pulled over at like the checkpoint or whatever it is, but they've told everyone to bring their passports, yeah, and one of the boys said he's not got his passport. Have you seen it now? So they're like, You need to hide, you need to hide. So the guy's videoing it and he's looking down and see between the seats and one of the buses, he's on the floor, right? And I've got like a jacket or something over the top of him, and the guys at the front, like pretending he's like a checkpoint guy or something. He's like, Bring the dogs in, right? Bring the dogs in, and he's woken up and he's going, and then they threw the jacket up, the boys like hide them.

SPEAKER_02 55:39

It's hilarious. I've got a question, Martin Petri. Your pal done some work for us at the weekend of Pet Rebuilding, top man, got me clean for us. When watching various documentaries on football, in successful clubs, there always seems to be a figure on the non-playing staff that is essential for the dressing room spirit, i.e., the Arsenal cameraman. I think he done a speech, didn't he? Yeah. Um, team talk on Man City Kit Man. He's left Man City now, but he's on the he was on the documentary a lot. Right. He always got lashed with Grealish, didn't he? Was there any such characters in the dressing rooms you shared? Well, I've got two. Oh no. So Bess Busshead and Horn. Yeah. So he's coach driver and kit man. So he's been there since the Roddy Collins days, all the way up to Narbonne's functionality. But he's called, but um he got us all at to uh invest in a a greyhound. Did he? So I listen to this. We've got a greyhound, so it's live on the sky. Romps in, he's like, get in, gets it, gets the dog. Goes well done. She went, What are you doing? He went, What do you mean? She went, That's my dog. He went, Hey, where's mine? I broke its leg on the first corner. Came in the next day. I went, but said, Where's the uh says it's only joking that he said this? I goes, Where's the dog? And he went, lead injects. It's a pet now. Like only we could get a grey on it, fell at the first one. Oh, which you know half, man, but that's mad. But uh and he was funny, right? Went to play in the there was a reserve game and no Neil McDermott, Terry McDermott's son. Yeah, no. Neil McDermott's great lad, agent now, but he played a carlisle, but he was out the pitcher and he was sub for the um reserve reserves, and Bus said like giving me his top, and Neil snatched it, and Bushead went, You want to calm yourself down? The only reason you're sub is because I've pulled my hands by the sharp human and uh oh your head with the good. The best one, Sunland, Harvey Mix. I've heard this on the Mickey Holland. So Mickey Holland, he was a monsieur in the dressing room. His his bed was right in the centre, and he just ran the dressing room. He was quality, but uh, and he used to sell all the fake watches and the fake bags, so we called them the boy mix, and he made so much money. Like, and there was just so many stories. But a couple, an agent came in and he goes, Um, I need to see where Peter Reed is. So there was a toilet, but it didn't have any sign on the door. He went, it's just in there, mate. But knock, wait, don't just walk in. He's knocking there for about 10 minutes as a bug. But the best one was we had a groundsman who wasn't the best looking. And every time this groundsman walked through, make a go. But so the groundsman would literally walk through and he'd go and he'd go in the door, do something, then come back in ten seconds and make a go. I said, It's just Dave. It's just Dave. Oh, is it letting him fall out? His headless. You better stop that. Absolutely starting to fall out every time. I'd just be like that. You don't like make the digestion. Not even the gesture, just the environment, isn't it?

SPEAKER_00 58:46

You need them, don't you? You do.

SPEAKER_02 58:47

Jeff Half was good, crack. I think I think that the lads like Christian Dennis and that there loved them. Simul's season they went up.

SPEAKER_00 58:53

I see a bit of Jeff, and he he he always reminisces about like especially the time that you're on about when with the team you had, and he he misses it like she said it was uh like Buss had in the end like got a really good job, but he he still misses it.

SPEAKER_02 59:05

Buss said wasn't we had he'd do the kit and then he'd drive the bus. Mm-hmm. And I asked some at like uh what did he used to go? I used to go, you used to play head tennis. I go, Did you win? He's just like Shell and P's.

SPEAKER_00 59:17

When we played the uh the final at Wembley for Barra, we're on the bench and just look back, is he sat in the back row? I was like, What you what you what are you doing? He's like, I'll just watch from here. Neil MacDo mate. What's the matter with you? Hey, the only reason you're doing it's quality of that. It's sharp as well.

SPEAKER_02 59:35

Anyone? Um Mad Men innit from I it's always a kit men. Ray's a good lad, Newcastle. Yeah, Ray's Mickey Holland's best mate, Ray Thompson. Ray Thompson, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 59:43

Ray Ray, Ray was called it. Ray used to be used to dish out the kit man. He was he was he was generous with boots and stuff. He was quite he was a different class. And then he had his little psychic George, um, who was thick as Steve, so there was them two, but just like no one in particular, just like physios and and kitmen, they were just they're always good crack where wherever you've been. And uh you do need them, don't you? You need them because they do make a a good laugh in the cheer up sometimes.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:05

So the kit the kit man at um God bless him, we Tam Hibbs was phenomenal. That's very similar. Like always, like spent more time in the dressing room, even though the kit room was around the corner. It was a man and wife, Tam and Joyce, um honestly brilliant. He was in Switch Cummins and all them boys, just full of character, yeah, full of carry on. Boys are out to train, he's doing stuff to boys' gear and all that, and telling other boys about it. And like he just loved being part of it. He again, he was like a bus driver, he he would he'd done a bit uh as a groundsman and then worked his way around to being to be the kitman for you.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:37

Yeah, you miss though, don't you? I I can take a leave the football, it's the bus journeys in the nights out in the changing room and that's what you miss.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:45

We'd have a meal in the Italians and we all pay and he go, how are ten of the chef? Like, what? Tenaf for the chef? So we all give him like 300 quid. He's like, Ah, good night for me and Barha tonight.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:55

We used to have that, we we we used to have that in Sligo, you know. Uh, if we wanted a day off, Cookie just used to go the manager like that. Use uh you used to know what you'd have to do, lads. And it was like 10-20 euro each, and he'd be like, still not enough.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:09

Reckon Neil Bonett used to go, like, Gap I do have to play in the reserves. He went, of course you don't.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:14

I would definitely pay 20 quid not to play in the reszies. I know. Oh, that's mad.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:19

I was uh it's it's it's as we said, kit men, bus drivers, kit ladies, kit ladies, good crack here. Definitely a colour. I used to walk Ann and Julia where we used to go in, that used to be a nightmare for them, but it makes it, doesn't it? Yeah, I used to torture them, but they still say when I see them, like, what is they were? Dolly was good crack, physio. Dolly Dolly, man. Dolly was great, man. Dolly left look after me because uh let's have a Monday off at times, Dolly.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:45

Just reset. Yeah, top lad Dolly. He understood the boys Dolly. I had them at Aberdeen for a little spell. Oh, Dolly was at the end of the day. Legend, mate. Honestly, the boys absolutely looked on. Devastated when he left. Never seen him smash a boulder's left.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:59

He's a hood. Oh my god, he's got some power in his left. He's a Sunday, 12 till six, no, twelve till four McDonald's after, and he's in bed by eight o'clock.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:08

He likes to get a bit um what's the word? Paralytic drunk, is it? Lately. I've seen him get carried out a few dudes. Like I'm like Dolly, he's like that. He's a MVM. He's got it.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:23

So that concludes what's the crack this week. Thanks to our listeners for the questions. Keep them coming. We've got loads, we've got loads to get through. Thanks again to Julian and Warwick Road Bird Centre for sponsoring this segment. And to finish off, we're gonna go. Should we talk the derby? Ranger Celtic on the city.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:38

Yeah, we kind of miss the derby out, can't we? Do you see it? Lost in the game. It was a classic Martin O'Neill just team. Do you know what I mean? Like just digging in. Rangers dominated for an hour and 20 minutes line. Sorry, 120 minutes, just absolutely dominated. Should have scored a couple, but just that kind of sticking together, and you think unbelievable to go there and get a result after last week as well, bringing it back from 2-0-0 down. But the scenes after the game, it's just actually embarrassed. I'm embarrassed. For both sides. It's just do you know for me, like it's this kind of era of these little ultras, and every club's got them now, but Celtic and Rangers just seems like it's like social media gangsters, do you know what I mean? Like little ultras that they wear ballot lavas at the game and they think I I seen I seen one of the kind of Rangers things on Twitter and people that do podcasts are saying, Yeah, well, Celtic fans were on the pitch, so it's only right that Rangers fans are gonna defend their ground and defend the stadium, and it's like what what are we coming to? Do you mean like don't get me wrong, Celtic fans should not be in the pitch. Like stay off the pitch. Don't gloat fans, all this kind of stuff, but they've won the game. See if see if a couple like well more than a couple of people are on the pitch. Just leave the beach. Do you know? Just leave them. Like just go home. Yeah. Do you know what I mean? Just go home. There's no need to run the full the Rangers fans that have run, well, the the Ultras, that group or whatever it is, have run the full length of the pitch to get close to them, to defend the pitch. So two of them are just as bad as each other. Celtic, obviously, the Green Brigade situation with Celtic is causing an absolute nightmare for the team on the pitch with the the whole situation. And I think Martin Neil's trying to put that to bed as well. He knows how much it's um going against the team.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:28

I was in the Apple Tree, I sent you some videos, didn't I? Rangers and Celtic. It was class, it was good atmosphere between them all as well.

SPEAKER_01 1:04:35

That's the thing with me. Like, I've I've been to Ibrock Drive when I've had that full Brunner stand, Samurai's 2 2-0 Celtic. Not one, not maybe the worst case, one fan runs on the pitch trying to celebrate, right? But that's it. Yeah. The full stands going ballistic, jumping away mad, 2-0 after the game, going mental, best days of your life. Still talk about to this day. No problems, no fights, no nothing. Just that was it. But now it's like every time there's a goal, Rangers scored the going goal, the goal that got um chopped off for handball. There's about 50 fans that ran on the pitch as well to celebrate, and then it got chopped off. And then Celtic won, they run on the pitch, and then it's like this obsession to run on the pitch.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:15

So who's it in the final Celtic St Murr?

SPEAKER_01 1:05:17

No, it's the semi-final. Semi Celtic got Sit Miren and the other semi is Dunfermlin, Falco. So one of them's in the final, yeah. Which is big for them.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:26

The um are we still who are you on? Hearts.

SPEAKER_01 1:05:28

Yeah. Are you hearts? I'm still going hearts.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:31

I'm going to sell it. Are Arsenal gonna change?

SPEAKER_00 1:05:35

I said City didn't have a probably not now. I think it's gonna be tough. Arsenal to league now. Are Tottenham going down? Yeah. Are they going down? Unless they do something this week. Uh they've got Athletic Go Madrid tomorrow and then the Champions League. I think if they lose and lose a bit quite convincingly and play the way that they've been playing, they might actually get rid of this manager so soon because he's just done absolutely nothing since he's come in and they need something.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:00

I think Harry Redknapp wants the job and Tim Sherwood. Every interview.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:03

Chelten's on innit, so he's not going anywhere.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:05

I know. He's not going to have it next one.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:06

The lads are away. Where's the lads?

SPEAKER_00 1:06:07

Ah, there's Bella Medina.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:11

My mate's in Benadon match up for it.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:12

Patty and Dean and them boys there in Benadon. They went this morning, so everyone's here there, aren't they? Really, yeah. Horses. It doesn't appeal to me.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:20

I just I lose on football every week, so I don't need horses. Um Kieran Sewell fighting at the weekend. Oh, yes. Current lad. I've stood next to him, right? He's absolutely ripped, and his fists he'll he'll go big, he'll go up, he'll he'll win. Good luck to him. And he'll crack on. He's got the Carl flag round him. Um Mark Horn as well. He's a boxer from the villa, Currick. Oh, did he win at the weekend? Yeah, seeing that you're on the page. So very good. Um is there anything you want to talk about?

SPEAKER_00 1:06:52

Just want to if you're watching or you're listening, don't forget it's Mother's Day this Sunday coming. Um don't forget. So yeah, I'll be uh spoiling my mother. Good shout. Don't forget that.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:07

Yeah, so the best aren't there. Call our United play tomorrow at London. All the shot away.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:14

Do you know what they take? Wherever they are, they take a big following, and I'd even if it's midweek, you'll see a few hundred there to madness because it's a long way, and especially the time it finishes what time do you get back?

SPEAKER_02 1:07:26

Oh you have to cut three in the morning, four in the morning, aren't you? Yeah, but to the lads, yeah, we need to put it right. Hughes has got a bit of work to do, I think, with the lads, but Hayden Atkinson as well, right back on.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:38

Oh, by the way, he's done great, hasn't he? Like I said, we got we got talked about in the summer, and it's come to come to the fore that he is what they said he is. Well, up to now he is, and he's uh I mean, I mean big crowd for his home debut. Yeah, yeah, and he's always come to us. I think he'll end up. I think he'll end up a centre and a half because he got the physical presence and the yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:56

What does your week look like, Dylan? Um just looking after the kids, spend some time with them, um, and then fly over to Northern Ireland on Thursday. Uh Carrick. Carrick range is called. I think so. I think it is. I'm not sure.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:12

Uh just a quiet week. We've got training Thursday. Um, numbers are down, Cheltenham is on. Um so uh we've got mask at home Saturday, and it's a must-win, really, because we've got are they going well? No, mask are down there, so it's a game that we need to win. Um, but if we can put in the same performances within the weekend, have every confidence we'll get it. Um, and then we've got Penrith in the County Cup semi-final a week tomorrow night at home. So I'll be there. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:35

Looking forward to that one. Um what's your weekend look like? Uh my weekend is going to Kieran's fight in Newcastle, driving a few of the lads over. The minute that fight finishes, I am getting out of that.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:46

I was gonna say that's there'll be some angry men in that be some very angry men to get away from that. Um shadow box in the toilet.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:54

Should I dropped a show with that event? I don't know what to do with that. At least you get a bit of a.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:59

You know, when you get the crunch of the butt, so a huge thank you again to Lloyd Kear Carlisle, the best-selling brand in the area and the European dealer of the air. Get down there and check out the new EVs and P PVVs ready to go. I test drive the new Sport Arge and also check out all their electric cars and vans with seven-year warranty. Make sure you mention us when you go down there. Make sure you go in the bed centre, Julian. Make sure you mention us. You just never know what you might get or get off. And that is episode six. Done. Uh, I've got to say again thank you to the no limit lads, because that was dead draw. Make sure you check them out on um Instagram. They do Easter camps, do holiday camps, do one-on-ones, they do little group sessions. Yeah, do birthday parties. We need to we've look, let's put it right, we've won. We did beat them yet. Anyone want to come in and anyone wanna come and three want to challenge us.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:54

You have to be available though. Yeah, I'll be available, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:57

I'll be available. Crossboard challengers, volleys. I wasn't good today, I've got to admit. But I'll I'll pull it back around.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:04

But we are unbeaten. To be fair, you had about 16 plates and so on, didn't you? I did, correct. Pine top, both.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:10

Right, and that is it. Thank you very much. See ya next week.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:13

All the best, thank you. Thank you. One hour ten. Happy days.