Show Notes
Joe and Patrick are reunited the day after Leeds thumped Norwich to make the Championship playoff final. Pat waxes lyrical about the atmosphere at Elland Road as Joe reveals the rather bleak setting where he watched the game and wants to find out if footballers get overtime when their club has a playoff run. Pat describes his injury frustration and his hope of making the trip to Wembley as well as giving some sage advice for his teammates about playing at the home of English football.
More from My Mate's A Footballer
The tables are turned in this special one-off episode where Pat interviews Joe and hears from Ricky Gervais and Katherine Ryan about the worlds of comedy and stand-up. They tell Pat the best and worst parts of the job, Joe reveals whether fellow comedians are supportive for newbies and peers on TV panel shows and Pat learns all about what ‘eating the floor’ means, plus why Joe still feels bad for friend and fellow comedian Russell Howard.
An episode about Tony Pulis and other managers gets sidetracked with chat about the topical art of set pieces after Arsenal and Mikel Arteta’s recent successes. Pat reveals how much managers pay attention to them in training, how routines are devised and what happens when they go badly wrong during a game. Plus there’s another 5-a-side question that Joe poses which causes much hilarity for them both.
Joe discusses the remaining staff roles at a football club to see which one he fancies including: fitness coaches, ball boys, security guards, bus drivers and analysts. Pat reveals what it’s like being a ball boy who’s been given tactical instructions from a manager, how security guards get involved with tunnel bust-ups and stopping fireworks plus there’s a frank admission about the varying levels of fitness in a squad of elite players.
Luke Ayling drops into the pod with Joe and Pat to discuss a storied career that began at Arsenal before ending up under Michael Carrick at Middlesbrough and reveals why he loves playing for the former Manchester United midfielder. Ayling is known as ‘Bill’ so tells Joe why he adopted that nickname, why Pat was known as a ‘Trojan’ after he joined Leeds and how Thierry Henry ‘ended’ his Arsenal career, plus how Pep’s inverted full backs makes the game more complicated for him as a right back.
The power is in the hands of the listeners for this episode - everything is on the table as Pat’s promised to answer any question that Joe selects. Today the pair discuss why the man had a pair of bolt cutters on him when he got caught up in the ‘Spygate’ scandal, who decides how a team travels to an away game and what it’s really like in the dressing room after a teammate has made a high-profile mistake.