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LOI Central

LOI Centralsoundcloud.com
#LOICentral is a podcast with opinion, analysis and interviews on all the latest happenings in the League of Ireland, hosted by Johnny Ward & Dan McDonnell
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Episodes

S09E21 LOI in Europe, Nationwide Mailbag & Destructive Derry

European football is here, a chance to learn about new teams, unknown players and exotic places. And then there’s Shelbourne v Linfield. The first section of this show is taken up by discussion of Wednesday night with a bit of Mark Coyle, Joey O’Brien and David Healy audio thrown in. Have Linfield staff attended more FAI Cup finals than your average Irish tourist in Cambrils? This week’s show might just provide the answer. We also discuss St Pat’s, the Streisand effect and the goal return in Inc...

Jul 09, 20251 hr 30 min

S09E20 Oasis, Keane, James-Taylor, Moses and Duff

Won’t somebody think of the football? After a day dominated by the latest Bohs jersey launch and another famous face performing an acting masterclass at the Cross, Dan and Johnny try to merge Tuesday’s box office activity with the oft forgotten events on the pitch. This wide-ranging session brings us from Oasis to Odubeko, and from Keane to Keena while there’s also enough there for the obsessives – be they journalists or non-Shels fans – who can still hear the sound of Duff. We hear from Joey O’...

Jul 02, 20251 hr 28 min

S09E19 Duff Love, Bohs Brilliance, Pat's Pressure and Chaos in Cork

We've had a double header in both divisions since our last show but there's only discussion point on the agenda today; what about those goalscoring Lomboto brothers? They have their own God but our main talking point, naturally enough, is how the League of Ireland will cope without its sometime messiah Damien Duff, who interrupted the regular Sunday service to make a shocking exit to a Simply Red tune. We'll hear bits from his last press conference before pondering the chain of events that few s...

Jun 24, 20251 hr 32 min

S09E18 Disappointed Drogs, Euro Draws & Ruaidhri Higgins Chat

We are back in Oliver’s offices to discuss a week that delivered an unwelcome twist for Drogheda United with the excitement of the European draws leaving the Boynesiders with a bitter aftertaste. Dan gives the lowdown on the story in a crowded mailbag that also features the content king that always delivers - an outraged Damien Duff. We talk dressing room songs, tinfoil hats, relentless Rovers and much more before we dial up our old pal Ruaidhri Higgins who discusses life in Coleraine, scotches ...

Jun 18, 20251 hr 8 min

S09E17 - Mid-Season Musings, Transfer Targets & Crowded Houses

AS most of the League of Ireland heads for the departure lounge, our co-hosts are back via arrivals to take their regular perch in Oliver Ireland for our mid-season review. We make it there with the help of a stopover on the turbulence of media relations in a small world, before ascending to broader discussions around Josh Honohan’s public feedback, the beauty of Galway’s defensive formations and Seani Maguire speculating on how far Cathal O’Sullivan can go. This is interspersed with general mus...

Jun 03, 20251 hr 23 min

S09E16 avec Graham Gartland, Johnny Kenny and Conan Noonan

Episode 16 took all the patience of Collar & Cuff, Future Ticketing, Sports Cosanta and Rascals Brewery to make it to the finish line. Recorded over two nights due to rural broadband shenanigans we eventually got Conan Noonan, on loan at Waterford from Shamrock Rovers, and Johnny Kenny, who was on loan at Shamrock Rovers from Celtic last season, into a virtual room to meander upon girlie haircuts, the Kennedy Cup, and their bullish future ambitions. They go back nearly a decade in terms of i...

May 29, 20251 hr 10 min

S09E15 with Garry Doyle and Colin Hawkins

There’s a faint whiff of chaos (and maybe vomit) in the air at Oliver this week, as the usual anchor is missing and the reins are handed over to Johnny and special guest Garry Doyle — manager of the SFAI Under-14 Cup champions. Together, the lads in hats stumble cheerfully through a maze of partitionist football nostalgia, Stephen Kenny-induced anxiety, grassy knolls, lawnmowers, the Rovers revival, and the age-old question: is the league actually done and dusted? The mailbag is in fine form too...

May 21, 20251 hr 10 min

S09E14 Frozen Moose, Cork City reflections & Colin Healy/Moses Dyer chats

The boys are back in Oliver, alive and croaking in Dan’s case, to pick through the bones of another dramatic League of Ireland week. It’s Moose’s world and we are all just living in it. Why do people relate to his story? How talented is his bum? And what does this all mean for Jimmy Keohane? Johnny has been battling with his airpods to get on the interview circuit, bringing back a chat with Colin Healy who – like Tim Clancy – is a former manager of Cork City. We discuss Clancy’s departure and wh...

May 14, 20251 hr 6 min

S09E13 The Madness Continues & Mark Connolly Chat

After another double header of what ifs and if onlys, the lads convene to try and make sense of it all. We go from a rear of the year update to allegations of crawling up the backside of a prominent manager as we analyse Damien Duff's woes, the unexpected spat with the omnipresent Stephen Bradley and the aborted Aviva experiment. There's Galway recriminations, another happy week on the Bohsometer, some old and young men to watch and and another unfortunate bout of accidental blasphemy. We then g...

May 06, 20251 hr 23 min

S09E12 Tight at the Top and the Race to the Bottom

It's another socially distanced production this week, and Bohs fans are partying like it's 2021 as they bask in the glory of an unexpected sequence of victories. In a jam packed show brought to you by our friends at Rascals, Collar & Cuff, Sport Cosanta and Future Ticketing, we reflect on a dramatic night in Dalymount, a testy affair in Tallaght and ask what goals from the prophet Moses can do for Galway. Another crowded mailbag brings the lads down a road of Reynolds revisionism, media-mana...

Apr 28, 20251 hr 21 min

S09 E11 - Born Again Bohs, Duff/Caulfield Remix & Canham on the Cross

We almost needed 90 minutes to get through a weekend where every club played 180 minutes in a league that is going the full 360 in terms of storylines. Since our last show, we’ve had several open letters, one managerial departure, two injury time goals for the ages and the death of a pontiff. And that’s before we even get to Marc Canham. We eventually manage to do that after hearing a little bit of John Caulfield and Damien Duff and more about the Galway United old lads Whatsapp group. There’s a...

Apr 22, 20251 hr 21 min

S09E10 - Top Drogs, The Relegation Slog & Firefighting with Alan Keane

There’s a western flavour to this week’s show with the on duty Alan Keane dialling in to discuss the contrasting fortunes of Galway United and Sligo Rovers as the league table begins to take shape. We hear from Tim Clancy about why Cork City’s season has gone south, ruminate what Liam Boyce’s indiscipline says about issues up north before heading across the sea to discuss Dan’s analysis of Packie Bonner. Stephen Bradley hails Jack Byrne’s apparent rebirth before the lads discuss the apparent hea...

Apr 15, 20251 hr 5 min

S09E09 with Paul Doolin and James Keddy

Paul Doolin and James Keddy have shared plenty of long car journeys in their time and, after several false starts, we finally convinced them to reunite in Oliver Marketing. They were team-mates at Derry City and Shelbourne before switching to a player-manager dynamic when James worked under Paul at Drogheda. We mull over whether Paul was ahead of his time, and if he was always angry or just misunderstood while James talks about his future managerial ambitions as he reflects on his time at Wexfor...

Apr 08, 20251 hr 24 min

S09E08 The One With The Double Stitched Mailbag

The sun has returned and the mood has definitely lightened in Oliver Marketing as the lads finally agree on something. No April Fools on this weeks show as we delve into a monster mailbag to dissect the goings on at Dalymount, VAR light versus VAR la carte, and of course for the week that’s in it..The Galway Oul Lads club. There’s a quick interview with John Russell, some commentary gold, WW2 and WWW, Cork City cogging, Coffee Angels and Devils, and isn’t Kevin Doherty terribly nice? This fun-fi...

Apr 01, 20251 hr 12 min

S09E07 - The One With The Late Night Letters

The boys are back in Oliver Marketing for a combination of a discussion of Dan's week on the road and a stranger trip down memory lane. A reflective mailbag brings us back to Plovdiv in addition to spawning memories of a different time, an era of late night love letters on Galway Bay FM long before Johnny was whispering sweet nothings as a co-commentator watching his beloved Bohs and Galway. There's also a bit of chalice work, parental compassion, the hooligan collection box, the AI man makes an...

Mar 26, 202550 min

S09E06: The Shifting Sands of Irish Football with Jonathan Corbett

With the Premier Division on a hiatus, Dan is in Bulgaria for an international break that is unlikely to live for long in the memory and the first part of this show centres in on the changing dynamics and relationships within Irish football. Where does the balance of power lie? Are we really headed for a civil war? And who is fighting who? Jonathan Corbett is a topical guest in that context, with the long serving Galway United director – who is stepping back from his front line role – speaking w...

Mar 19, 20251 hr 11 min

S09 E05 - The Tightest League in the World & Kerry chat with Conor McCarthy

There’s a few equine analogies this week as Johnny checks in en route to England to talk about the only race that really matters in his mind – the title race. We discuss the exploits of the Drog whisperer Kevin Doherty, working his magic to consistently shock the blue bloods, before paying tribute to the weekend’s mane man Colm Whelan before galloping through a crowded mailbag that includes athletics and attendance trivia and questions around why Shamrock Rovers turned bodies away when there was...

Mar 11, 20251 hr 16 min

S09E04 Reds, Refs, Rovers & Richmond Reflections

After another fantastic Friday, we had a manic Monday and the lads try to rattle through a crowded agenda of talking points. Is Alan Reynolds in bother? Is there a line referees should not cross? Is Derry City's strategy doomed to failure? Is it time for the annual 'are Shamrock Rovers out of the title race' chat? Is Captain Birdseye to blame for the LOITV debacle? There's all that and more in hastily assembled fun brought to you in association with Future Ticketing, Sport Cosanta, Collar & ...

Mar 04, 20251 hr 14 min

S09E03 Conspiracy Theories, Climate Changes and Barry Murphy's Notes

We’ve a busy show this week, with our mailbag more flooded than Tallaght Stadium as we pore over the conspiracy theories, stadium rankings, and all the other events of the past seven days. Barry Murphy, drops by to discuss Ed McGinty’s leaky European efforts and to a cast a broader eye over the main elements fuelling the start of a season where defences have been exposed to pressure from teams attacking on two fronts. The lads also hail Galway for subjecting Stephen Kenny’s Saints to a stormy tr...

Feb 25, 20251 hr 20 min

S09E02 Norway, Aviva and Webster & Doyle

To mark the return of your 90 minute weekly fix, we’ve got a pod of that same length, and the main reason is the leftovers from our live show chat with Eoin Doyle and Dave Webster, a colourful pair of cousins with a few stories to tell. Before all of that, we pick through one of the most interesting weeks in League of Ireland history with the help of a heaving mailbag as we discuss the Bohs-Rovers experiment, young Michael in Molde, the not so bright Friday night lights in Tolka, the pros and co...

Feb 17, 20251 hr 30 min

S09E01: 2025 Season Preview @ Rascals with Ruaidhri Higgins

WE are back. The League of Ireland kicks off this week, but we’ve already got a competitive appearance under our belt after our big season preview at Rascals on Sunday. A packed mailbag was condensed for a studio audience as we discussed the talking points of an eventful winter before welcoming Ruaidhri Higgins to look back on his Derry City lessons before looking forward to the campaign ahead with the benefit of his informed knowledge. There’s title predictions, transfer revelations (the Mousse...

Feb 11, 20251 hr 7 min

S08XMAS with "The Rascals Loft Tapes"

It's Christmas! And before you count down to seeing what Santa has left under the tree, you need to check for free range pork under your car. All of this will make sense if you listen to our special show recorded at Oliver Marketing as the lads convene to discuss the events of the last four weeks and look ahead to the possibilities of the next 12 months. There's Vienna tales and images of idyllic December evenings as the lads talk Rovers in Europe, manager speculation, transfer rumours, senseles...

Dec 16, 20241 hr 14 min

S08E40 - The Underdrogs 2 The Undertones 0

We are nearing the end of another season in the Oliver Marketing building and start this week’s show with a burning question - have Drogheda United recovered from their cup final hangover quicker than Johnny? We reflect on a final packed with storylines and debate what the result says about the respective protagonists and there’s a bit of Kevin Doherty and Ruaidhri Higgins audio too. Beyond that we’ve a packed mailbag discussing cup final crowds, transfer speculation and budget business as our a...

Nov 12, 20241 hr 7 min

S08E39 Live from Rascals - The Shelebration Tour

It's Episode 39 and it was live. If you missed out on our Monday night in Rascals, this pod will give you a flavour of the best bits. Like the title race, there was twists and turns in putting our show together and Shelbourne's dramatic success in Derry was the catalyst for a weekend of tracing down prospective guests. We left it late but Sean Boyd answered the SOS to join live show staple Keith Ward on stage to tell us about Mourinho messages, Duff magic and much more with the help of some unde...

Nov 06, 20241 hr 17 min

S08E38 It's the Final Countdown....

Here we go! There's touts in Inchicore as the title race, our beloved title race has its Joey Tempest mullet stapled on as it faces the camera in leather pants. Yes, episode 38 is our ‘Final Countdown", as we prepare to rock Friday night with the boys pouring over the angles that could decide the destination. Can Shels hold their nerve? Will Rovers steamroll Waterford? Where are Derry’s heads at? Is this as good as it gets? Paddy Kavanagh drops by to offer his take and we also get predictions fr...

Oct 31, 20241 hr 15 min

S08E37 The PFA Ireland Team of the Year with Stephen McGuinness and Friends

It’s Jerry Maguire time in the League of Ireland and before we run away with ourselves it’s also awards time as the Premier Division team of the season as voted by the players is revealed by Stephen McGuinness on his annual trip into the Oliver studio. He’s brought a happy Mark Coyle in with him and we chat about his journey to recognition before we dust down the phone line to dial up some other team members. Around all of that we jibber jabber about the greatest run in of all time, fights in Or...

Oct 22, 20241 hr 24 min

S08E36 Sliding Doors, Friday Night Fever Pitch and Five Months at Pats with Stephen Kenny

Ahead of the most anticipated night of the year - our live show in Rascals on November 4 of course - Johnny and Dan are in studio to also look ahead to a vintage LOI Friday, which might be overtaken next Friday and overtaken again the Friday after that. The best season ever? Certainly it’s the busiest mailbag ever with Derry angst, Bohs anger, Pat’s excitement and Breslin at 1.5x. Johnny briefly caught up with Alan Reynolds before an extended reunion with Stephen Kenny ahead of the do or die sho...

Oct 16, 20241 hr 10 min

S08E35 with Barry Murphy and David McMillan

After a manic week, we’ve got a Monday show for you as Barry Murphy and Dave McMillan dial in to join Dan to review league, European and FAI Cup matters as most of the league takes a little breather ahead of the final stretch. Once again, it’s a show packed with questions. Who wins the league now? Have Shels actually bottled it? Where now for Bohs? Can Drogheda win the cup? Where’s Johnny? We do have the answer to one of those questions – our co-host is on a working trip to Kerry but he does sen...

Oct 06, 20241 hr 7 min

S08E34 Tolka Thriller & FAI Cup Preview

We are so back. After fears that we were enduring our worst ever season, a Tolka Park game for the ages has filled the glasses to half-full and posed so many questions. Was it the best ever TV game? Are St Patrick's Athletic the best team in the country? Is anyone out there not actually involved in the title race? There's so much to unpack and that's before we get to the mailbag which is full of Shels strife and Saints standards. With all of this excitement, you could be forgiven for forgetting ...

Oct 02, 20241 hr 23 min

S08E33 A full 90 minutes with Dermot Keely, Neil O'Riordan and Romal Palmer

Dermot Keely denies and then agrees that he was better without the ball but we are certain this podcast makes an argument that your life would be better with his new book. Dermot dropped into studio with the Irish Sun’s Neil O’Riordan, his long term partner in prose, to discuss the many strands of his life in the league he loves. It’s hard to summarise them under one heading so, just like a player in his dressing room or a student in his classroom you just need to strap in and see where the jour...

Sep 25, 20241 hr 28 min
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