You can now follow me and all my social media platforms to find out who my latest guest will be and don't forget to click the subscribe button and the notifications button so you are notified for when my next podcast goes live. So there were six of us, originally my mum died when I was four. So then my dad remarried and there was two more after that. So there's eight of us in total. Yeah, probably not so much, it's probably more because it was there such a long time and even now, since I've left as well, the Newcastle fans, they haven't wanted trophy from since, I don't know, 50 or 60 years, you know, it's a frustrating thing because your job as a player is to win the trophy, because that's all they want.  Beat Holland, actually, yeah, I remember that. That was like a mad game, but that was for that day was probably the best that lands down I've ever experienced. You know, we got a man sent at Gary Kelly, it sent off half an hour ago and Jason McAteer scored, we had 10 men and then van Gaal was sticking every centre forward in the Holland on the pitch. Like, I don't know, the Jimmy Floyd Hasselbank was on, I think van Hoidonk was on, Bird Camp, all these over-mars, all these players, it was like the next time I looked over there, the kitchen sink was coming on, like, you know, like a 50-50 with maybe more 60-40 in my favour. And it was a wet day. Remember, I come sliding out and I could see him coming, sliding in with his two feet. Like, I was like, this is not going to end well, but the most important thing I was was getting the football, like, you know, but to be fair to Marlin, I think what happened, he knew you had the ball and he tried to pull out of it, so he pulled his, pulled his studs away, basically, to be, I suppose, try and protect me a little bit. What he did do is two knees can crash into me ribs at full pace, like, you know, and obviously puncture my boils, rushed to hospital, and, yeah, woke up in a hospital London the next day with tubes coming out my nose and every part of my body. And the next time we hear, like, shouting and commotion upstairs, and then the gun went off, like, guys pelted, like, into the roof with a double-barrel shotgun or something, or like that.  Position, especially as a goalkeeper, so it's not a good place to be, you know, so I seeked a bit of help after that game, you know, I went and spoke to the physio, Derek Wright at Newcastle is still there, actually, and he, you know, on the QT, because then I was seeing, maybe seen as a weakness back then, that he's going to see a psychologist, he's going to get help, you know, is he alright, like, type of thing, because it was a wee bit, you know, it was a wee bit, I don't know, maybe a little bit old-fashioned at the time, that, you know, everyone should be mentally strong, everyone should...  Boom, we're on, and today's guest, we've got goalkeeping legends, shea giving, how are you, brother? All good, all good, thanks for having me. Thanks for having me as well, in your house, man, I appreciate that. No problem. I'm sitting here sweating, mate, trying to set everything up. Just saying I thought you had a full team behind me, setting up, and you just turned off in lights, camera action. Easy work, mate, you know what I mean? It's absolute honour, like I say, goalkeeping legend, Irish legend, Newcastle, over 600 appearances, over 100 appearances for Ireland, like, phenomenal career, very well known, very well respected as well, everyone, who I've spoke to in the football industry, speak very highly of you. Oh, yeah, now I'm sweating. Ha, ha, ha! The pressure's on you! How have you been? Yeah, good, yeah, just keeping busy with family, life, and I got a dog a couple of days ago, so it's like a new baby in the house now, but yeah, just keeping busy playing a bit of golf and just enjoying a bit of life, really, yeah. Enjoying retirement? Yeah, yeah, I mean, I was obviously retired when I was 41, which is what's that, four or five years ago, and then I was in the media for about a year or so, and then I was at Derby for the last three years there, and I left just in the summer, just gone, so... What next, I don't know, so if you need an assistant, maybe to help set up the cameras now, a lightsman or a soundman, a good being. I'm always hired, brother. I always go back to the start of them, I guess, yeah. Where you grew up and how it all began? Yeah, yeah, I mean, it's four brothers growing up, obviously three sisters as well, but, you know, we just played football in the front garden, and I was probably, you've heard this story probably lots of times from other people, like, but it was as basic as that, sort of jumper for goal post, and my dad used to play in goals as well, actually, so he used to have all these trophies in the cabinet, and I think he bought half of them, like, but he says he was star man, but we used to play for them just in mini tournaments in the front garden, basically, and normally I would sort of put in goal, and the lads would be lashing shots at me from all angles, and I'd be diving around in the commentary, pretending I was, I don't know, Pachy Bonner or whoever else was in flavour at the time, but yeah, I mean, just great memories growing up, and I don't know if people know Donegal, but it's like the northwest of Ireland, it's, you know, it's pretty much in the middle of nowhere, but at the same time, it's got a lot of beauty, and a lot of nice people as well, I mean, I think that's the biggest thing but Ireland in general is the people that are really welcoming, really friendly, and if you ever get a chance to go to Donegal, you should, you know, there's beautiful beaches up there, I don't know if you play golf, lovely golf courses and good people. How many was in the family? So there were six of us raising my mum die when I was four, so then my dad remarried, and there was two more after that, so there's eight of us in total, yeah. Yeah, sorry if you're lost. I know your dad speaks about that quite frequently, including yourself, when your mum passed it, before that kind of made the family born, because I know your auntie's about trying to...  Yeah, that's a good thing, a good strong family bond, do you think that's what helped you through your career? I think so, and I think kept me grounded as well, like, you know, because you hear some players going away and, you know, signing for whatever Celtic or Newcastle or whoever and Man City or whatever, but you hear them going away and then once they've signed the forms, it goes, right, I've made it now, you know, and I think that's when the work starts is when you actually get across from Dummy Gull, get across the water, I went to Celtic, of course, and that's when the hard work really starts in, you know, it's one thing getting there, but it's actually making a career for yourself then. But the good thing with family to do is kept me grounded, I never got too far carried away, my friends as well, my mates would go like, look at this big-time shot now with an English accent or whatever, and who does he think is, but my accent never changed, so it just winded me over, like, you know what I mean? But I think all them things helped me through your career.  Yeah, Michelle, he was Michelle-engineered, actually. The two sisters, they were raging, like, I suppose my dad was just, like, cut it short, and it was easier to fix before he'd gone to school, like, we were all lined up to get her hair combed in the same style, you know? So, looking back, the girls weren't too happy with that, you know, but I suppose it was tough times, I suppose, with my dad, especially, you know, but no, a great bond growing up with my brothers and sisters, definitely with my dad as well. Because I know a lot of people in the Premiership get, like, anybody, any footballer that's doing well was kind of, oh, they've had a silver spoon in that, but you never had the ease of you, what, for a very, from a very young age, out in your farm, was it a farm, and a lot of shop as well? Well, we had a market garden in business, yeah, so we used to grow the vegetables, and then we used to sell them in the weekend, so after school or even some days my dad would keep me off school to sort of work, you know, getting the vegetables ready for the weekend, what have you, and then me and my brothers would go around the shops, sorry, around the houses on a Friday, just literally knocking the doors and all day Saturday as well, so people looked forward to the weekend, we were kind of dreading it a bit, because we knew we had a hard shift to put in, and that was just, we didn't even get paid or nothing, it was just basically to put food on the table, you know, so people always say, you know, you said there before, but footballers they don't know what a hard day's work is, but I genuinely do know what a hard day's work is, you know, because you're sort of on your hands and knees waiting vegetables all day, and then you're selling them in the nighttime, but I suppose, looking back now, feel blessed and lucky to play football for a living, you know, I had played football for a living, and had the career that I had, I remember my bedroom wall growing up, and it was, I think it was Liam Brady, actually it was obviously Liam Brady's a legend in Ireland, you know, and just, I think at the event, the top one, and it was just underneath, it was just, you know, thanks to football, I've seen the world or something, something like a comment like that, you know, and I was just sort of thinking, when I'm finished now, I was just kind of looking back as well, I've seen so much of the world, you know, purely with a size five football, you know, it gives you so many, I don't know, so many journeys and so many different parts of the world that I would never have seen, have had enough in football, you know, and I met so many great people as well, so I've been lucky, yeah. Because you were a striker at one point in your younger age, were you a good striker? Top goal scorer for my school. Yeah. Top goal scorer for St. Columbus College, you're calling it St. Order. Yeah, I enjoyed, I loved, even when I was playing professionals, we loved playing the odd five beside out the field and stuff, and, you know, bagging a goal or whatever, I was, I just, I think there's no better feeling when you score a goal, is it, that sensation? And to be fair, my dad, I think it was about 14 or 15, he said you need to focus on, he felt goalkeeping was my sort of pathway, and he felt that, you know, I was really good at goalkeeping, and then he had this, he was a goalkeeper as well, so maybe that's where he was a bit skewed, and that's what he said with that, but he was kind of saying that, you know, it's a very specialised position, and you know, there's only one goalkeeper, and if you can really sort of zone in and focus on your talents and work hard at being that, then, you know, you've got a great chance of doing something, and as a young kid, you go, I hope that's true, you know, because you, what do you want to be? And you go, I'd love to be a footballer, like, but from Donegal, I think it's not going to happen, but I'll make them dreams anyway, and you just never know. What was the best feeling, scoring a goal while saving a penalty? Probably the closest you'll get, actually, in a goalkeeper is when you do save a penalty, it's a similar to saving, to scoring a goal, I think, you know, but I remember, I think it was at Celtic at the time, or it might have been early days at Blackburn, I went back to Donegal on the plate, and it was called the convoy cup, just from a local team, only came off of that, so I must have scored a screamer from 25 yards, like, and took me top over my head and running around the field, like, you know what I mean? Felt like I scored in a World Cup final, like, you know, there's two men in the dog watching as well, but it was just, I think the feeling of hitting the back of the net special would be fair. What age did you move to Celtic? 16, so I moved home at 16, and that was a big shock, if I'm being honest, because as I said, Donegal, we live in the country, like, you know, nowhere near a city or anything like that, so to move into a big city, you know, Glasgow, better than most I'd say, so to move into a city like Glasgow, then it was pretty scary, I didn't do much homework, or, and it wasn't much, I suppose, at that time's a long time ago now, but you know, even the webs, you know, the Google and Safari and all, that wasn't on the go, you know, so I was going into the unknown, really, and first year, 18 months was tough to be fair, settling into a big city like Glasgow and living away from home and from all my friends and my family, you know, so first year especially was tough, you know, times I wanted to go back and just say, ah, this is not for me, this is, this is too much, because, you know, at that age of 16, as I say, 70, you're very young, and you think, you know, all my friends and family are at home, and why, why are you living in a different country?   Yeah, that was a struggle, yeah, but again, you didn't want to be a failure either, so you didn't want to go home and go, well, you know, speaking now, saying, well, I went to Celtic when I was 16, but you know, I could have been this and I could have been that, you have to go and show it, you have to go and prove it, you know, and even at that young age, I was determined to make a career and go to people, well, I'm good enough, you know, I will show people that I can, you know, make it to, hopefully, to the highest level and show them what I can do from Donegal, and I think the damn roots always helped as well, you know, you wanted to, as well as represent Donegal, represent Ireland, and represent, you know, your family and friends, and you know, when they're watching a game of football and you're playing and being the work of finals or Champions League game or whatever it is in the Premier League or whatever game you're in, like, they've got a really strong connection to that game, I'm sure, probably for them, it's even more nerve-y than me playing the game, you know, because they want you to do well and, you know, they've got work the next day or whatever and people will be talking, you've done well yesterday or whatever that goal you should have done better, do you know what I mean? It's all that kind of stuff, you know, so, but the family have been brilliant to be fair. Because it was a decision between Celtic and Manchester United, I know Sir Alex has not let you live that down, I know he's changing for that a couple of times, but why was it to move to Celtic instead of Manjou? Yeah, well, a couple of reasons, I think Liam Brady was the manager, he'd obviously been Irish and leaving home, Packie Bonner, as you know, was the goalkeeper, who's a big legend in Ireland, of course, from Donegal as well. And the other big reason was, Peter Schmeichel was at Man United, I think he'd only just joined not that long ago and, I mean, that was of the opinion, once you leave, we want to get you in the first team as quick as we can. And he felt that, I think, Packie might have been, quote me from wrong here, about 33, 34 at the time or something, so he felt like Packie's not got long left. You know, not in a bad way, just, you know, his career naturally would be coming to an end and being more of an opportunity to get himself to his first team and that was, that's what it came down to, you know, because I think a lot of people would have been sidetracked with Man United, like one of the biggest clubs in the world and all that kind of stuff, and Sir Alex Ferguson obviously is an absolute legend, you know, so it was like, why wouldn't you go there? You know, but I think Medaille with a clear sort of vision of, you know, this is your career, this is your pathway, and this is where we want you to go. So he was a big influence on it, to be fair. Would it fair to say to you, many years later that we were playing a charity match or something? Nicky Bodd asked me to play in this game, I said, it's all for the opening of the new stand, it's all for it, it was like a, it's all for versus, I don't know, a legend select or something like that, whatever the team was called, and I forget, and he was our manager, I think, or he was in there representing us that day and he came in and he goes, can't believe you turned me down in 15. And I was like, I think 30 years ago or something, or 25 years ago, and I was like, I just even remember that, you know, but I think that's what he says, the biggest thing is he doesn't forget anything, like you know, but what a legend he was, is obviously Sir Alex Ferguson, I was lucky last week to play in Loch Lomond, he was up there at the charity thing, and you know, he's still going strong, Sir Alex for sure. Yeah, legend, probably one of the greatest, probably the greatest managers in the Premier League with the trophies that he's won. How, were you putting the bench, you were on the bench for an old film game, you know? Yeah, actually, you know, we talked about home sickness and I got home, I think it was Christmas new year, I was 17 and only for like a week or two, because the school boys with underage teams shut down over Christmas new year, but obviously the first team there, it's the busiest period, and I think Gordon Marshall got injured or something and I think Stuart Kerr must have been out as well, so you know, it was Packie Bonner's only fit keeper they had, so they had to call me back from my short stay and done it all, and it was on the bench for the old film game at 17, like so, it was a nervy one, like, what was that, experience, like, what was that like? Well, obviously it was one of the biggest games in club football, I think, Celtic Rangers, and it was like full house at Parkhead, and I was on 100 pound a week, I just remember the time, you know, my wife's 100 pound a week, and if we had to beat Rangers, it was like a grand, and it was like, pfft, I'm gonna buy this, and I'm gonna buy that, and I'm gonna, we lost 4-2, and I marked Headley scored 2 or 3 that day, and I was like, pfft, devastated, I'm not gonna buy that, and I'm not gonna buy that, but just the whole thing, you know, it was kind of giving me a taste of, you know, what it could be, to be a first team player and stuff, and you know, as I said, the Celtic guys were brilliant for me at a young age, you know, but the atmosphere that day, and I've been to games since, of course, I've loved Celtic, and I've been up there quite a few times, and the stadium at the time actually was really run down, I thought, if you remember, it was like, I had this game with the old jungle, and 17 or 18,000, the club's been transformed since them days, but you know, still, you know, the history of Celtic is massive, you know, and to be on the bench, I know it didn't play, but it was a big experience for me. So how hard was it for you? Did you choose to leave Celtic, or were you released? Well, it was a funny one, Lou McCarrie then came on the second year, so he was the manager then, and at the end of that year, I think it was four or five of us who were offered professional contracts, you know, and it was just like, not very good, it wasn't quite disrespectful really, you were there for two years, and you know, you dedicate your life, and you know yourself, you've got a chance of making it, I think you've done well on the youth team and all that kind of stuff, and anyway, he offered as a contract, and my dad's like, there's no way you're signing out, because you're really influencing my dad at that young age, you know, since you've worked the last two years, you've been away from home, you get more in the League of Ireland, like you get better paid in the League of Ireland, you know, so we thought like any sort of negotiations would be like, you know, that's just their opening thing, they'll obviously offer you a more serious contract whenever you say no, and he said, no, that's it, you can take that or leave it, so when dad goes, all right, we're leaving it then, we're not signing that, you know, so it was as simple, and as black and white as that, so we went back to Ireland, and then whatever, can remember, long go after that then was, you know, Kenny DeGlees was in touch, and he brought me to Blackburn, he sent the goalkeeping, we had a tournament actually in Holland for the youth team and the Celtic youth team, and he sent these goalkeeping coach out, Terry Gano, out to watch me in this tournament, I didn't even know he was there to be honest, so Kenny must have got worried about me from his Glasgow connections, and he signed me from Blackburn. Were you nervous leaving Celtic? And well, it would have been a dream to play for the first team, I would have loved to have played leaving one game, and I would have said it was on the bench like, but actually to play in the first team would have been special, because obviously growing up a Celtic fan, that would have been special, you know, but at the same time, you know, we sort of spoke off camera, you know, I think there's, your life sort of mapped out for you, there's a bit of a path, and I think for whatever reason it wasn't meant to be there, and obviously it took me to Blackburn, and then it took me to Swindon alone, and Sunderland alone, and then, you know, you get that experience of, actually first year at Blackburn, I was on the bench a few times, Tim Fleurs was the keeper, and if you remember, he was a fantastic goalkeeper, he was brilliant, and they won the league that year. Yeah, sat Sutton and Sheetha. Yeah, I've come down from Scotland thinking, it's the Premier League, not all that. Yeah. Of course, in the first year, Blackburn just won the league, you know, and I thought, obviously Blackburn won the league every year, you know, but I was there one off, you know, but it was even that for me, the experience of the one in the league and being part of the training with the squad and stuff, and bench a few times was a brilliant experience for me, at a young age, 18-os, you know. How was that team? Sheetha and Sutton was at SES, they called him. How was that when they won that league, Blackburn? What was that experience for you at 18-19? Yeah, it was brilliant.  Who was it, the Scottish guy up front? Kevin Gallagher. Kevin Gallagher. Yeah, so he'd Gallagher, Sutton Sheer, Billy McKinley was in the midfield. I caught up with the team at that time. No, I was after that. It was later. Yeah, but the two wingers, I remember, were Ripley and Wilcox, and actually they just got out of their feet and crossed it, and obviously you said Sheer and Sutton in the middle, and I mean, that goals, that year, Allen was 30-something plus goals, he was just everything he touched on the goals, you know, and yeah, it was a nervy last day, when I remember they lost to Liverpool away from home, but I think it was a man United, they didn't get the job done at West Ham, I think. Yeah, I throw off, I think. Yeah, the goalkeeper was on fire for West Ham, so yeah, it was just nice to be part of that, and to see the celebrations after and stuff, it was class, you know.  Yeah. And then you were just in the first team at Newcastle. Yeah, I mean, again, similar to the, I went out alone at Swindon, and then I went to Sunderland alone, and the last year, a year left me contract, and Blackburn offered me a new contract, and I said, well, I want to play, again, when I left home at 16, I wanted to be playing in the first team as soon as I could, and I knew if I signed for Blackburn and extended the contract, I would have just been back up to Tim Flowers and not get it broken into the team, really, because, to say, playing for England and stuff, he was a brilliant goalkeeper, and I thought, no, that's not my pathway, I want to go somewhere where I'm going to get a better chance of playing, and let my contract run down. Obviously, Kenny became the Newcastle manager and brought me there and gave me the number one shirt at 21, and you know, the shack of his luck was there, Pavel Cernich, Steve Harper, there was big competitions, but to give that sort of role, whatever, give you that responsibility, that young age in the Premier League was a big one, and that was one of the proof that I was good enough, obviously. Youngkeepers didn't really get a chance back then, did they? So, at 21, especially with the names behind you, that Kenny Douglas must have seen something that... Yeah, yeah. Especially getting into the Blackburn team, which won the league, Newcastle team, were they not second in the league the year before? Was that with Keegan? Was that when he was shouting, I would love it if we beat him? Yeah, I think it was out of the year before and the year before that was close. Second place, wasn't it? Yeah, I think it was maybe in the year before, but yeah, I mean, it was a fantastic team, they called the entertainers and stuff, and Kenny came in, and Kenny got a bit of a stick from the fans, actually, because he was trying to change it a little bit, because obviously Keegan was great manager as well, don't get me wrong, but he was more about attacking and attacking and not really worrying about the defending side of things, so I think Kenny was just trying to get the balance right, you know, but yeah, finish second, and then obviously a sign from Newcastle, then playing in Champions League football, remember the first game, he was Barcelona at home, you know, and it was like, we've arrived a bit here now, because that was an unbelievable night, probably the best night of St James's I've ever experienced, because we beat him and the roof felt like it was coming. Is that one now? No, we beat him three, two. He's not beat him in the NewCamp one now as well. Yeah, don't know, maybe? I don't know. Is it three, two at home? Yeah, so we've seen some. He's had some team there, know who I always remember from Newcastle, remember it was a nutcase, he might have been a year or two years before you signed, is that a Spreel, yeah? Do you know who I am? The Colombian guy, was he there? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. What was he like? Why is he nuts? I think he spoke better English than he let on, but he was like, he gave and he just got a given, Bastardo, I was like, I must know more English than that, do you know what I mean? But he scored a hat-trick that night, so I don't know if you remember, he scored three goals in his parcel, we were three nil up, we went at home. Keith Gillespie was absolutely brilliant that night as well, he ragged the fullback over the shop, but they got back second after three, two, so we were hanging on a bit at the end, but the atmosphere at St James that night was just, you couldn't hear me shout to you from this close, it was unbelievable. When did Shira sign for you? Newcastle signed, he was there a year before me. So he signed $15 million before you? Yeah, the year before, yeah. So you've been connected to kind of Gilles Shira, kind of your whole career? Yeah. Two legends on the road, right though? For me, he's the best striker in the Premier League, Shira, like his goals, his presence, like everything about him and that is what I would say, and a striker, like, how good was Shira?  Like, you know, he was just, I don't know, he's just a phenomenal striker, and he always asked the question, well, nine times out of 10, one asked the question from the keeper, like, you know, he'd always hit the target with ferocity and pace and power, like, you know, and I don't know, he's just a fantastic striker and great guy as well.  What was Big Duncan Ferguson like? He was a legend, Duncan.  He has, I think it was people, every time something breaks out of his house, he just battles them. The funny story was that, so when they did remember, there was a picture in the front page of one of the newspapers the next day, do not break into this man's house, we pictured Duncan staring down the camera like this. No, I mean, when he was fit, like, he was some player as well, so he was cheering and Ferguson up front at one point, like, and they were phenomenal, like, you know, so it was, yeah, great guy as well, great guy.  Like, what a player, man, he just left, he's continually, rightly so, for what they did, man, he ended up getting the jail, but I always remember having Jamie Billard.  But what a player, big dunk, man, he's fit ever and I knew a castle like the same with Sheeran, but it was less fair than I'd like. I didn't play, actually, with Les, the summer I joined was the summer Les left, yeah, yeah, so I've obviously met him in loads of games and stuff and since then, he was actually playing like Loma last week as well, actually funny guy, like, really, quite relaxed, fun, good temperament, like, you know, but yeah, I mean, I've been lucky to play with some great players over the years, you know, and definitely Sheeran's up there with one of the best, yeah. Because you were at Newcastle for 12 years, obviously through so many managers there, it was over 10, 12 or 13 managers you went with there, that's a long time, so you can kind of do Greece managers to see potential and see and give you the chance for your career, see when these guys leave, is that hard to adapt to new managers and new styles? Well, it's hard and it's not easy because the guys brought you in, so he's like, he doesn't have to play, but you know, he'd be under a little bit of pressure while you bought this guy and, you know, so there's a good chance that he wants to back you and support you and get you in the team or whatever, but when he goes, then it's kind of a clean slate for everyone then because a new manager comes in and that's normally what a new manager says as well. I'm here, you know, I don't care what's happened with the previous manager, it's a clean slate for everyone, you know, I watch you in training, whoever trains the best will play in the team, you know, so I think that gets everyone going, here we go, like, so we're sort of back to square, no matter what you've done for the previous guy, you know, yeah, yeah, have like, people like Sheeran and stuff, maybe Gary Speed at the time, you know, people will definitely be starters, you know, but at the same time, there's players who are maybe on the verge of maybe not playing, you know, so it gives everyone a kick up the backside. What was it until it like?  I just didn't follow him, like, but I wasn't overly happy with it, I played in the FA Cup final and then the follow-up season, he didn't play me, you know, and I played in all the games up to it and he didn't even tell me, like, he got the goalkeeping coach to tell me, which I felt was cowardly. Cowardly, at least.  Yeah, because you've played every game up to the Cup final and you've dropped to the FA Cup final. Is that still Sting with you just now? Yeah, yeah, I mean, I played in the previous Cup final of the year before as well, we lost to Arsenal and then I played in every game up to the semi-final against Man United the next season, you know, and I think I didn't play in the league game before or two league games before, and then obviously there was a decision to make for the final, you know, and he stuck with Steve Harper and that's his choice, to say it's more just the frustrating thing when you play all the games you do well in the semi-final, you feel that you're one of the reasons they're in the final, you know what I mean, and then you don't play, you know, so that's, yeah, it's not a nice feeling as a... Is that, looking back, like, that must be the difficult thing, because all you want to do is, I care, there's one trophies that we then, it plays in your mind thinking back, if I played, we could have won. Is that... Yeah, probably not so much, it's probably more because it was there such a long time, and even now, since I've left as well, Newcastle fans, they haven't won a trophy for, I don't know, 50 or 60 years, you know, it's, it's a frustrating thing because your job as a player is to win them a trophy, because that's all they want, that's all they want is a trophy, you know what I mean, so it was more a disappointment of letting them down, and of course not doing that, but you know, we got close in the league a couple of times, we got to, you know, semi-final away for Cup and two finals of the FA Cup, you know, we're just, just nearly there, you know, and it just, that was a frustrating thing for me that we didn't actually have something to show for. Yeah, who was after Rotula? Was it Soonus? When did Soonus come in? I don't know. How was Soonus... I think Soonus is the manager. I think Soonus came in after Bobby Robson, I think. How was, I think Soonus was after Robson, because Robson came in, because you were with Robson for six years, he fought the world of you. Yeah, he was a good guy, yeah. I mean, his man management skills was probably the best one of the best I've seen. You know, getting the best out of people, you know.  Yeah, because you probably had one of your best spells under Bobby, I think he finished third, fourth, and then fifth or second, three seasons. I think it was second, third, fourth, and fifth or something like that, or so third, fourth, and fifth or whatever, and he was like, he got sacked when he finished fifth, you know, so I'm sure if you asked a Newcastle fan now, if he finished fifth, would you take that, you know, they would probably snap your hand off, you know, but yeah, I think Bobby's age and stuff, and then there was talk about, you know, he's losing the dressing room and some of the players are sort of running a bit of a muck, you know, and that's how soon it's brought on, they try and straighten a few people out, you know, but again, it's a fine line between, you know, getting the man-managing right and getting it wrong, and I don't think he got it wrong, if I'm being honest, I think he had it right, and we just, I think we missed out by a point or something, it wasn't like we missed out by 10 points or whatever, it was close to finish fifth, you know, so he was really guarded about that, and rightly so, because he felt he deserved the Norse season. Soon as again, another Scotsman, another nutcase, like what was he like to work under? He was going to say, he's brought on a wee bit, sort of James, to try and, because there's younger players like Bellamy and Dyer, and maybe players like that who were, maybe people at the club felt were getting ahead of themselves, you know, but I think he offered Bellamy out one day in a minute, so he tried to drag him out of the seat in the meeting, to take him into the office or something, you know, but to be fair to Bellamy, he wasn't for backing down, like, you know, so he was up for it as well, but I think his staff stepped in and sort of broke it up, you know, but yeah, I wouldn't want to fight him either, he's obviously, you know, what he's like as a player, and I think, you know, as a manager, he's very strong-minded, but at the same time, I think he was fair as well, I think he was a fair manager, and, you know, he just wanted the best for the club, and he felt that maybe some fellas need ruffling, and he was going to ruffle them. Yeah, that's what he's good at, is him. How was Bellamy?  Yeah, I've got a lot of time for Craig, actually, you know, and people maybe read again, media and stuff, and papers, and think, oh, he's this, and he's that, you know, but he's probably one of the most dedicated players I've played with, from a professional point of view, and from like, he's always last in the gym, he's always first in training, and he's always in the afternoon, doing sessions on his own and stuff, and, you know, he is really dedicated, you know, but going back to Bobby, he was the man who got the best out of him, you know, because, you see him going over, because Bellamy and Sher didn't get on that well, I don't think, and he was like, if you're doing all his run, he's an old man, he's just sort of standing in there, and blah, blah, blah, and keep doing it, you're the key man on the team, and all this kind of stuff, and then they go to Sher, oh, don't mind him, he's a wee mouthpiece, like, just get you in the middle of goals, you get the goals, and then on Saturday, they just click together, and got lots of goals together, you know, and again, that's down to Bobby Robson, and to get the best out of both individual people, who are probably totally different in mindsets, really. What was it like making your first appearance for Ireland? Yeah, I was only 19, I was alone in the sun at the time, and I think the keepers, Pacquie got injured, and Alan Kelly got injured, the other goalkeepers, and I think there was other goalkeepers that Mick McCarthy could have called up, but I was doing well at Sunderland, and you know, I have to thank him a lot for actually going right, we'll put this guy in, we'll get him over, and we'll give him his opportunity, so it was just a special feeling, you know, all my family was up from Donegal, my cousins and aunties and uncles, I think they took about 50 tickets that night, but you know, when you're 19, it's kind of like, you know, this could be your only cap, you see, hey, loads of people have made one cap for their country, so they weren't gonna miss it, you know, but it was just a special feeling, they walk out of the old Lansdowne Road now, I know it's the Aviva now, and the stadium's changed a lot since then, but walk out of the old Lansdowne Road, I used to go there as a family self, and sort of watch the Jack Charlton there, and then, now they walk out there as the number one goalkeeper in Ireland, it was just, it was a bit surreal, if I'm being honest, you know, the stuff of dreams, and that's probably a little bit corny as well, but it genuinely was, because I used to look up to some of the guys that were looking along the line, some of the guys that were my heroes, and now we're, you know, likes getting changed, and they're changing me, Paul McGrath on one side, and Roy Keenan on the other side, and I'm in the middle, sort of keeping my head down from the boots on, thinking, oh, I took a wrong turn here or something, do you know what I mean, but it's, you know, some great players in there, and just some special feeling to play for your country. Yeah, that must have been proud. Yeah. He must have been buzzing. Yeah. To see your potential, and I've watched a few of your interviews, and your dad speaks very highly of you, but the decisions, and he kind of guided you the right way, and you seem to listen to everything your dad says, but when you walked out and got that Irish jersey on, that must have been a different feeling from anything. Yeah, hey, my dad's always been a big Irish fan, even before, like obviously I played, and it's something that always used to go to all the games, and, you know, he'd take me out of school when I was a kid, and bring me a, you know, normally a Wednesday, midweek games, whatever, and we'd go up together, and you'd miss half a day at school, and you'd be, but like just genuine Irish supporters, like, you know, so I've been brought up that way, and I remember when I signed for Blackburn, I actually had a busy day, it was like a medical and blah, blah, blah, and we had a game that night, just a friendly preseason, friend of his actually from Stanley, you know, local team in Blackburn, and I think we lost three, two out of beast for two of the goals, nightmare, like, and I signed the contract that day, and it was just, one of them days, it was just hectic, like, you know, getting everything done, and then straight onto the pitch, and the first person I met the next morning was Kenny Douglas, and he was like, good job, you signed that contract yesterday, yeah?  Yeah, that's the only thing, if people have got their back in and believe in you, like, that currency is better than anything in the world, like, you start believing in yourself, almost, start to start believing something, then those things definitely manifest into happening, like, Newcastle's well, they've never been short of controversy, like, the scrapping on the pitch with Lee Boyer, and was it Dyer? Lee Boyer was a firecracker on his self, and he's a little nutcase, he came from Leeds, did he not? Yeah, he's... And what you're thinking then, when you see, I think you were already a man sent off, you know what? I think now we ended up an Orman after that sent off, so... You had three players sent off that game? Yeah, ended up with eight players, yeah, and we lost, I think it was 3-0 in the end, but...  But I was with the opposition players, not with your own teammates, like, you know, so it just, it was a bit surreal, but the ball was over there, and the next thing, the sort of ring stopped, and it looked over to my right, and it was just, there was haymakers flying in from all angles, and I think I remember it was Gareth Barrichide, they split them up from the opposition team, like, you know, and I remember Boyer's Top was down there somewhere, one of them, it was like ripped his shreds and stuff, and obviously the ref took out two red cars, and like, it was just like...   You know, you wouldn't see that now, it's not clean cut, but the still, tempers aren't as crazy and ruthless as they bought back in the day, like, what I remember as a Premiership, in the 90s, early 2000, when it was, like, your Bear Camps, and your Vierras, you know, Roy Keans, and everything was firing, there was more passion, everything's kind of getting cut out, that knows.  That's the football, I know. Yeah, and we're doing this, why should you pick people up by the shoulder, and hip them and stuff, and... Vinny Jones, because you do not make your debut against Vinny Jones Wimbledon. Yeah, I was, I think it was Tim got injured, or I was sick the morning of the game, and I was due to be on the bench, I was 19 again, and he was, yeah, I think he, I don't know if he had an injury coming from now, or he was sick, so basically I'm playing, and I make my Premier League debut, away at Selhurst Park, against the Crazy Gang, like, you know, so, a bit of a baptism of fire, like, but I don't know if you've been down there to change them, it's not really changed that much over the years, but the Crazy Gang was the first sort of teams to have the ghetto blaster blasting, when I mean blasting, like the walls, and the way team was vibrating, like, you know, and you can hear them shouting and screaming, and coming out the tunnel, and Tim Sherrow was the captain, and Vinny Jones, and fashioning all these, like massive guys were shouting this game to this young keeper, he's shitting himself, he's this, he's that, and Tim was sort of laughing because he'd been around the block, and he was saying, oh, don't mind, they're just trying to wind you up, like, but at the same time, it can be intimidating, because the tunnel's about this width as well, Selhurst Park, so they're right next to you, like, you know.  You know what I mean, like, looking back then, like, that's what I remember, I was still only 10, maybe 12 back then, in the 90s of the football, but that's what I remember, as it's been a tough sport, people getting in the studs, and people not really caring, but even, I think, Sunnis, I don't know if it was against Aberdeen, I was at Liverpool against somebody, it went right through in Dunnum, high tackle right through there, and he only got a booking. Yeah, yeah.  Something to get a talk on, do you go get on when that's the next one, you get a booking?  Yeah, I said, yeah, you do miss that, because everybody loves combat, sports, everybody loves boxing, or anything like that, they love about a nitty gritty, but it's kind of like it took out the game, the game's not boring, but it's more, I don't know, man, things have changed a lot, I think this year, to be fair, the refs had a bit of a sort of get-together in the summer, and they said, like, last year, like, there's people falling over, and it was, they were giving files for everything, I think this year, they've actually made a conscious decision to try and give less files and let play go on, and even stuff in the box, you can see people getting pulled over and falling down, and they were giving maybe penalties last year for that, and maybe letting them get all made a bit more, which I think is better, you know? Definitely, 2002, the Japan, the Japan and Korea World Cup, used by flying, they used things, finished the group stages undefeated? Yeah, well, I think we beat, I think to get there, we beat Holland, actually, yeah, but I remember that, that was like a mad game, but that was for that day, it was probably the best Atlanta I've ever experienced, you know, we got a man sent at Gary Kelly, it sent off half an hour to go, and we were chasing McIntyre's score, we had 10 men, and then Van Gaal was sticking every centre forward in Holland on the pitch, like, I don't know, the Jimmy Floyd Hasselbank was on, I think Van Hoidonk was on, Bird Camp, all these over-Mars, all these players, it was like, next time I looked over there, the kitchen sink was coming on, like, you know, we might as well hang on, like, and we knocked them out that day, they couldn't qualify after that, they had to beat us, and obviously we beat them, and we were into a playoff then with Iran, which was a mad game as well, we're homing away against Iran, you know, and out there, it was a crazy place, with 100,000 fans there, it was just nuts, man, yeah, there wasn't five hours before the game, and there was just no women allowed, all this kind of stuff, and just remember getting warmed up before the game, is these like mad, you know, them like firecracker things going off, like, but they were like, when they hit the ground, they were the noisiest thing you've ever heard, and I was like, one was like about 10 yards out of that, I was finding one landed next to me, the dirt hit me in the face, and I was like, I was about too close for comfort, I'd like, you know, but we managed to get through, we actually lost, we scored in the last kick of the game, but we managed to get through two, one, and I agree with it, and I think just the realisation that we're going to the finals, the World Cup finals was just, wow, because I said to you before with the Jack Charlton era, we were, I was a fan growing up and watching them, and then the realisation that, wow, you're going to be going now, and there's going to be kids growing up in Ireland thinking, wow, I'm the next Shea given or commentating, because I used to do the next pack of boner in the front garden, you know, and it's mad how life of the full circle, it was kind of like now is my time to go and represent Ireland, and just the, you know, it's the best stage, the biggest stage you can be on. Yeah, the World Cup was that the first time Ireland since 1994? Yeah, there was a gap, obviously, yeah, and that, you know, I mean, to be fair to Jack Charlton and his team, they were absolutely brilliant, and maybe a little bit lucky as well, because the crop of players they had, you know, we're all playing at, Aussie Pack, he was at Celtic, one in trophies, you know, there was all these players in the Premier League, and not just at smaller clubs, they're Liverpool, Man United, and all the big clubs, and you know, there's less players, now you look at the squad, now there's a lot less players, even in the Premier League, never mind the big clubs in the Premier League, you know, so Jack was lucky in that sense, but again, he's a hero, Jack Charlton in Ireland as well, you know, what he'd done with that team, and qualified for Euro's World Cup finals and stuff, and yeah, it was great memories. The way we were kids, obviously, we'll fall in them and support them, it was fantastic.  Because I watched a few interviews, and a lot of people said that it was you who's came to the forefront to kind of put it back together, when you were doing the huddling stuff. Yeah, well, you know, such big news, obviously Roy Keane leaving, he's not just a brilliant player, he's your captain, you know, he's on week or two before the World Cup final start, you know, he's probably one of the main reasons he got down in the first place, was performances against, like, the likes of Holland, I think it would be a great result against Portugal as well in the qualifying, and he was probably one of the matches in both of them games, you know, so to lose someone of that stature and that calibre, then it was a big blow, but the only thing we did sort of say as a group together, we've gone, well, we have to be, we have to come together, and you say the huddle or whatever, the group together is that we've got the upper game even more now because we've lost one of our best players, you know, and we've got to show the people it's not just the Roy Keane team, it's Ireland, but us as a group of players, and we've got to go out and represent the rest of the country, and we want to do them proud. Yeah, because Ireland is a small nation, they're passionate, the Irish, they're like, you don't talk about the Irish, man, especially when it comes to the sport, they love their football, you know yourself, their rugby, everything that they get behind their team or anybody who's from there and they're in or any event that they're in, they're always back 100%. So when you're going through there and you've got Spain, was it the last 16, do you save a couple of penalties? No, I went to penalties in the end, I didn't actually save any in the end, but the game, we had two penalties in the game, Ian Hart, who's probably got the best, one of the best left thoughts in football or anything, when he whips the ball to the, so he does a full whip, he's left foot, there's no keeper in the world saving it and he got a penalty in the game and he was a penalty, I could never miss the penalty for Ireland before. And for whatever reason, like the pressure of the World Cup, I don't know what, he changed his mind running up to the thingy and he went to the keeper's right and Cassius saved it, you know? We got another penalty in the game in Robbie Keane stepped up when he scored it, like, but you know, had we scored the first one as well, we would have beat Spain and people might, looking back at Ireland, beating Spain after that, then they went on to win the World Cup in the European Championship, like we were that close and the last 10 minutes, I think they got a guy who was injured, so they finished with a man left, so they were actually knocking the clock down to get the penalties, you know? The first thing for me is I didn't save a penalty and that was the thing, because going back to support in Ireland and Paki, of course, from Donegal, he saved the penalty against Romania and it was like he was a hero still, is a hero and on the back of that, you know, so it was my time to shine and I didn't save one, you know? So that was the bit that wrangled with me, albeit we missed our first three penalties, had a save one, it wouldn't have made a big difference but, you know, still psychological, had a save one of their penalties and it might have changed things and it just didn't, that was a good thing for me, really. How does that affect footballers coming back from big tournaments like that and then getting put out so narrowly that it could have went either way? It's a flip of a coin, like, how does it come back? Do you got to pick your spud? It's up straight away after that, because I know you had the conversation with Kenny Douglasian, he says, look, take the highs and the lows, like don't get yourself so low that it's over, but how did that affect you? Because you seem to bounce back quite fast than the usual player. Yeah, I think, when away for a break, whatever, after that, and obviously it's a shortened break because of the World Cup so on, it takes up your summer holidays a lot, but I think the good thing about football and any sport, you know, you just get back on the biking, don't you? You've got to prepare then for the Premier League campaign, the next one coming along and whatever it was, Champions League, League Cups, all that. So the fixtures come thick and fast, you know, and you can't really dwell of what could have been or what might have been after the World Cup for a few weeks if you're thinking about it and looking back now, well, these years ago, 20 years later, you're still thinking about it now, but at the time, when you're actually in the zone of playing week in, week out, then you have to really focus on each game, so you've got to get on with the next game, really. How did the players react to Roy Keen leaving as well? Was everybody fine with him after that? Was he kind of disappointed that your captain kind of left? Yeah, I think it was probably a mixed bag, really. Yeah, I think probably disappointed me, personally, I can only speak for myself. I mean, it was disappointing to lose him, yeah. I mean, he was a brilliant player and there's no getting away from that.  And it would have been interesting to see, even against, we talk about losing to Spain, you know, had Roy Keane be playing that night, you know, could have been so more different and then you can dream on about what next, because the run up to the final was, I know you might think, oh, you dream land of the final, but if you beat Spain, then the belief you get off the back of that, going into the next one, you know, the quarterfinal, whatever, then it's a snowball effect. And it just would have been interesting to see what we would have been like with him in the team. He's a phenomenal player, the best player in the midfield. If I was the manager team, that's the kind of guy I would want in the centre of midfield, the intimidation, just looking at him. Even now he's interviews the internet, there's people on the TV, he seemed to have relaxed now that he's got older, but he started to smile a bit more, but even in it, because I think in 1994, World Cup, was he not Voted Island's best player? Yeah, we'd known that as well, but... Then when he was young... Yeah, I mean, he set standards and training and stuff, he was just... I don't know, just obviously being at Man United, one of the trophies, we all looked up to him in a sense, because he was such a great player and our captain and leader. And it's just a shame, like, there's no way of sitting here now and saying he was right, he was wrong, blah, blah, you know, the sort of cold night of day, then we wish it hadn't happened, nobody wished it had to happen, we wish we had had him and we wish we could have maybe went further in the World Cup. Yes, can you imagine the way you're feeling with him? Doing that, can you imagine the way he feels? Like, that was the last major tournament that he would have played in, and he never got to do that, so he would need to rubberax his island through and flow out of his blood. Yeah, as I'm saying, it'd be interesting to see if he... Maybe off-camera, if you see what he really said, deep down, you know, but... Yeah, you say he's got to live with it, it's his decision, and I'm sure there's this part of him definitely sort of regrets leaving for sure, I'm sure. How was Big McCarthy? Yeah, I liked Mick a lot, yeah. And so he gave me my debut, and... When he could have played with other people, there's older keepers who he could have picked, you know, but Mick's dead honest, he's honest as the days long, he sort of tells you how it is, and he's still over a thousand games now in club management and stuff, he's absolutely... You know, he's a fantastic manager, and I've got a lot of time for him. You know, him and Roy did clash event even when there were players and stuff, and I think Roy's man for holding a bit of grudges and stuff, so I think he never really let that go, really, but I can only speak for myself. Mick had a lot of time for me, and I've got a lot of time for him, he's a good manager. I don't want to get... You would never want to get this bad side of Roy Keaneven. I had Andy Gorham on his wear, and he was saying when Andy Gorham obviously played for Rangers, and he was saying that for Man U, when Man U are going through their troubles with goalkeeper injuries, and Andy was getting introduced to all the players, and then everybody was shaking his hand, and then it came to Roy Keane, Roy Keane doesn't shake his hand, and he's like, is that the way it's going to be? He's like, yeah, there's no really any pointers, he's shaking hands, and Andy's laughing just for three months, Andy was like, you're not ones to ever speak? Wow.  But that's the man you would want in your scent and midlife. That's what it's all about, for me the passion, the thrive, the amount of trophies the guy's won, I think he's won 19 or 20 trophies, unbelievable. As you say, he's in the middle of the park, like is there your engine room? Yeah. He bossed it from there. You've got a bad injury, is it Herwood? Who was it coming through you? Yeah, I had a fair few injuries in my time, but the worst would have been the Herwood one, yeah. He's a big unit as well? Yeah, yeah, it was a way west Ham and the old Upton Park, and I think it was like five months ago, we were at Newcastle time, we were leading 2-1, and it was like a 50-50 with maybe more 60-40, my favourite, and it was a wet day, remember I could come sliding out, and I could see him coming sliding in with his two feet, like, and I was like, this is not going to end well, but the most important thing I was getting the football, like you know, but to be fair to Marlin, I think what happened, he knew you had the ball, and he tried to pull out of it, so he pulled his studs away, basically to be, I suppose, try and protect me a little bit.  Yeah, I mean, that's part of sport, isn't it?  I was lucky, the specialist was actually a West Amphan, he was at the ground that day, and he brought me straight to the hospital, and it's our night operate on me, like. Could you have died? Could have died, yeah, we're duty flight back, it was a stranger, because we were duty flight back that night, it's the Newcastle, obviously, we flew up and down to London, and had I got on the plane, had I, because what happened was I was really badly wounded, three minutes to go, and I couldn't continue, and the doctor and the team brought me off the pitch, and it wasn't punctured at that point, whatever, or maybe it was late leaking into my system, so basically when your boil punctures is like acid pouring into your stomach, so I said to the doctor, I'll get my breath back, I think I just might have maybe broke a rib or something, didn't know what it was, obviously, she says, I'll just have a shower and get you dressed, we'll see how you're after, and then after the shower I just go, this is not good, this is not good, I just felt like somebody was stabbing me in the stomach, yeah, it literally collapsed on the bed, the medical bed, and passed out like totally white doubt, like you know, so obviously the lads told me after what happened, there was people running for ambulances and doctors and whatever else, it was like a, you know, the players saying that would have been bad, as well, because I was out of it, like you know, so yeah, it was pretty scary, but had that not sort of busting into my system, I was up in the air in the plane, and it could have been, could have been scary. Because you've had a few moments, life threatening moments, because we're not in a hotel or a restaurant, and some days come in with a shotgun and fire the one off in the ceiling. Yeah, where we stayed in Port Marek, we were eating underneath for the reception, and the stairs down underneath in the restaurant where we had was down here, the players in there, and next time we hear like shouting and commotion upstairs, and then the gun went off, like, guys pelted like into the roof with a double bra of shotgun or something, we're like, what the hell, what's that like? So then we're thinking, if he comes down here, now we need to, so we all scamper down, there's a back way out to the rooms and stuff, you know, scamper away in case he's, but he just came in, they robbed the hotel basically, you know, but we weren't sure if he's doing the hotel, and coming down to try and rob us or whatever, I don't know, you just don't know what he's going to do, like, you know, but yeah, there's a few worried faces in there.   Oh yeah, and then he's shouting and get down and all that kind of stuff and blah, blah, blah, you're thinking, he could come round this corner down there, it's like, what are we doing then? How was it when, yeah, because Newcastle, you had most, one of the most appearances in Newcastle history, I think, second or third, look, you've only 20 or 30 behind the leading. How was that to leave instead of kicking on and being the number one? Yeah, that was a big thing. You know, I could have stayed and broke the record, I think it was, you said, 20 or 30, I remember the exact figure, James, but it was 20 or 30, not that load of appearance behind the all-time record appearance holder for Newcastle, so that would have been especially to get that, of course, and I was supposed to tell the grandchildren or whatever, but at the same time it was, I've always said this, even in the book, I've done a book and it was like, I think about Newcastle when I joined, we finished second, you know, the previous season, second in the championship football, like that's a club we joined in, you know, when Mike Ashley took over, it was all about, I don't know, there was no ambition for the club to challenge for anything, really, I think his remit and still is to this day is to keep the club in the Premier League and just keep it afloat and not really have a go for anything, you know, and at the time when I was there, they've spent a wee bit in the last couple of years, but when I was there, I was selling all the best players and bringing free transfers in, and I'm thinking, this is not the club I joined, like, you know, all them years ago, and I felt I'd done my time, and I felt that, you know, when Man City came calling, it was like, it was good to get an opportunity, they were a club, you know, going places and one of the challenges, obviously, you know, they were just at the start of the sort of, the journey they're on from where they were, you know, Kelton and Sheik Mansour just came in, I think, the year before, the previous one, they signed Rubinho, now they want to sign me, you know, I'm thinking, this is a club with huge ambitions, you know, and I always felt that they could sign any goalkeeper in the world because they could, they had the finances to do that, and then they wanted me, so I was like, I cannot turn that down, and yeah, I wish I had a broke-the-appearance record, but at the same time, these opportunities and life sometimes don't come along, they might never come along again. They might have signed someone else the following summer, so, you know, I wanted to go and follow that opportunity, really.  Yeah, that was a frustrating thing, you know, because he didn't actually say we really wanted you to keep you, it was kind of like, don't worry, just leave then, it's fine, no problem. That was probably more Lou McCarrie than the club, I'd say, but anyway, yeah, I mean, Newcastle had some great memories up there, you know, some, you know, sometimes I even YouTube myself, because I think, you know what I mean, because I must have made a save at some point in my career, because every time I watched Sky Sports, I was Ronaldo just coming back to the Premier League, and they just showed goals scoring past me, and I don't know whoever else's broken record, and I know Rooney when he scores that volley against me, and I keep saying to people, like, sure I made a save once, like, but I have to Google it myself to actually admit it, because obviously people just want to show goals and stuff, and see me hooking the ball in the net, you know, but yeah, it's some great times, Newcastle has great memories, of course, and I made one or two saves as well, yeah. Yeah, and Newcastle fans are solid as well, it's a shame that they've not had much silverware, because they're a bit of a turmoil, they know Newcastle, they're really struggling, the good chance they'll get relegated this season, that massive club, phenomenal club. Yeah, I don't think they will, I think they'll have enough to be safe, but at the same time, Newcastle fans want to be challenging for the Premier League, and I know that might sound a bit, because you're talking about relegation, but at the same time, the ambitions of the club, and they should be up-challenging, had they got the right follow, the right backing, sorry, financially, then they would be up-challenging, because, you know, that stadium, and that, you know, it's a special place to play football, it's in the heart of the city, you know, you walk across, and the pubs, and the clubs, and the lads, are, you know, walking from the pub, straight into St James's Park, and, you know, it's a special place to play football. Who was it, saying if a man said, if a six-movings, that was a big prize tag for any goalkeeper. It was at 10, 11 years ago, that over 10 years ago, how was that, and especially being from a club you spent 12 years with, to then basically having another debut for a, another club, is that a weird feeling? They're still nervous, still nervous.  There's a new set of supporters.  Yeah, how was it when Man City came in? Because I know he doesn't see eye-to-eye. Yeah, it was a strange one. I still don't know to this day what had done wrong, but I think at the end of the day, he was a person and how he managed was on the edge of it. He fell out with everyone, like, you know, and be that, not just players, it was like the medical team, the chefs, the bus driver, I don't know, it was just a strange way to manage it. If you ask me, we talked about Bobby Robson in the past, how brilliant he was with people, you know, man-management skills was phenomenal, and I would say Mancini was probably the opposite to that, you know?  It was just a, you know, at the time, I'd just get him his shoulder, I think it'd be three or four games to go in the season, Joe Hart was on loan, and that summary brought Joe back, and I was fit to start the season, but I didn't get a look in, literally league cup games, every cup games, normally you play the second choice keeper in the early rounds, you know? You played Oxford or something that didn't play me, I was like, what's good on here? And he was just, he just wanted me out, you know? I don't know if he was thinking I was a big personality in the change room, or negative in the change room, I don't think I've ever been negative anywhere, I've been, you know, but, you know, people get things in their head, and that was the end of the road, really, for me at Mancini, you know, I was, and again, going back to, I could have sat there and get two or three years left in the contract, whatever it was, and took the money, but going back to when I left home, I wanted to go play many games as I could, and took a massive wedge cut to go to Villa, and to get playing again, I wanted to show the people that still plenty they offer, and that was key for me, I didn't want to finish my days on the bench, you know, at Mancini. Because he's flying at Lidl just now. Yeah, people will say, watch this and go, he's a brilliant manager, because he's just won the Euros for Lidl, you know, and that's ready to happen, I can only give you my personal, what happened with me at Manchester, and I think a lot of the other players I speak to as well, it was similar, and I could fill out with everyone at the end, you know, and... Do you think that's that Italian nature, though, maybe arrogant, like... Yeah, I don't really understand that, because if you think about it, we're all working for the same cause, you're working for the same badge, and you're working for the same people, you know, you'd think you'd want, you know, going to have a few people along the way, but not, you know, the people, the amount of people you do, but yeah, it could be an Italian thing, and the blood or whatever, and all that kind of stuff, you know, but I've worked with some great Italian people, the Trappatonian people, the Gatton, Marco Tarvelli, you know, with Ireland and stuff, and they were great guys, you know, so I suppose everyone's different, that's life, you know. He was seeming to set in fires instead of putting them out. Yeah, yeah, it's mad, innit?   How is it coming to rendia, Korea? Because goalkeepers can now play into the late 30s, early 40s now, with the nutrition and kind of things can play, but the Korea that you've had, and how was it, like, you're starting to come to the end, coming to international retirement as well? Because you retired and then came back? Yeah, well, it was actually Roy got me back playing. Roy was a coach at Vila at the time, and he was assistant coach, we were at Martin and he was at Ireland as well, and, you know, I'd retired, and he would watch him every day in training, he goes, you know, I think he can still do stuff for us for Ireland, and I would like to come back, and blah, blah, blah, you know, so... I did miss it when I did sort of walk away from it, you know, because you kind of think, oh, this has spent time with the family now, and focus on my club football, and I'll be able to play longer if I do that, you know, but I played for Ireland for 20 years, like, so when you walk away from it, you only miss sort of meeting up with the lads, and it's all you've ever known, isn't it, and playing for Ireland and having the crack, and you just, you only miss that, and that's normal, you know, so Roy asked me to come back, and obviously, I met up with Martin and Lillian, went back for a couple of years, and, but at the towards the end, obviously it was more a sort of understudy with Darren Randolph was first choice towards the end, you know, and I didn't mind that we went to the Euros and stuff, and it was sort of, it was different for me, because it was more a supporting act than previously I was obviously the number one. Yeah, because you're the longest serving Irish player, then, over 20 years. That must be a good feeling, though, from a kill from Donnie Gold today, and showing what can be done for him. Yeah, definitely, yeah.  That's unbelievable. Robbie Keane's number one most cap to your second. Yeah. Are you gutsy that you never beat him? Yeah, I got it, and I think, probably if I hadn't retired, I probably would have been level of them or whatever. But, you know, again, I think you look at the, you sort of go through your career and you look at all the people, what they are, I think I was kind of looking at Brad Friedel at the time, people that got older, a few years older than me, and I think, well, he retired from America, whatever, because it prolonged his Premier League career, and obviously I wanted to play as long as I could in the Premier League as well, so he's trying to take on board from other, what other people do as well, he's trying, but looking back, when I did sort of step away the first time, I did really miss it, if I'm being honest, and I wanted to go back, yeah. What's your proudest moment in Irish, Joseph? I'll obviously walk on out, you know, in that first game for the World Cup, was special. I've probably gone back to the Iran game as well, when the realisation that we've actually qualified, because as you said, it was a big gap from the previous, you know, the previous guys, the Jack Charlton era, to not qualify then for whatever it was, eight or 10 years or whatever it was, so it was like, that sort of pressure was building as well, we were the media, and with the fans back at home, like we haven't qualified again, so that pressure was building, so we got there in old two, and that was like, yeah, that was the ledge, like walking out in that first game, yeah, we had the sort of fiasco and Saipan and stuff, but that was all behind us, now we wanted to go out there, and, you know, when you stand up in the national anthems going and, you know, the whole, you know, the whole countries are a standstill back in Ireland, because I've been there as a fan, and you're just, you know, the hairs in the back of your neck standing up when you hear that nice lantham, and there's no, there's no better feeling than that. How was it in 2009, on reading the handball? How was that then?  How was that then, playing such a good game, tight game, extra time, then he handballs it twice and puts it in the net.  We actually played the first game, we lost 1-0 in Dublin, and we, I don't know if it was a nerves, or we were just a bit cautious, because it was a two-legged thing, and we just, we felt after the game, we were better than what we played, you know, and we didn't sort of show everyone how good a team we actually were at the time, and we went to Paris and was like, right, we're taking the shackles off here, we've got nothing to lose, obviously, it's the second leg of a playoff to get the work off finals, and we all think sort of huddled before the game, like, this is it, let's, you know, shed our bust, fucking go to show the people we were good enough to be in the work off finals again, so he was probably one of the, I know we lost on that controversial goal, but it's probably one of the best performances in an iron shot from the whole team.  It was such a blatant handball, you know, we've not got the work off finals, and we, sort of the last 18 months, it's a long road to get to that stage, you know, home and away, and, you know, traveling around Europe to try and qualify for the work off finals, and it comes down to that one incident, and they're going and we're not, you know, so, it's, you'd rather only done one of these amazing goals and with the top corner, you go, okay, we've got 8-2, a bit of brilliance from Henry, not the way it turned out. Did you hold any grudges when he played against him after that? No, not really, you know, I've always said it was... Did I ever speak to you after that? I've done a couple of things in London, I think it was for Cadbury's or something, and he was part of the, we were ambassadors or something at the time. Did I ever say anything? He kind of, there was like an elephant in the room, there was an elephant behind your shoulder. There was a big elephant in the room, but he never really brought it up or spoke about it.  A little class. And, but to be fair, and his sort of defence a little bit was, you know, it was so blatant, he sort of, sort of done his four, and then pulled it on his left, and it was like a double handball, don't know if you remembered, like, but I was right there, obviously, and I was like, I'm just getting the ball, they take a free kick, because it was, it was so blatant, and I've turned in the refs, run pointing to the centre circle, and the lines was running up as if it's a goal, like, and I'm like, what, that's just happened, you know, and probably the quickest I've ever moved in a football pitch was, I was spreading that for the referee, but yeah, I just could not believe it, like, and then I was, I was a who-ha after, I should be replayed, and it was obviously big news in France and Ireland, but it was actually massive news around the world at the whole, everyone was talking about it, it was such a, you know, I don't know, an injustice we felt was an injustice, that's probably the word that we felt after the game, that, you know, that can't be right, they can't be going to the finals, because of, because of that, you know, and they did. How was that coming back then, when you're trying to play it again? Does that affect you more than, like, getting put out with Spain in there?  Was there any games that set, like, that must floor you, like, the whole nation behind you. That was tough, yeah. I mean, probably more from a sort of sporting thing and a psychology point of view was probably when I was, I think it was 23 years before I played it for Newcastle at Blackburn away, and I dropped the cross, and they scored from it, like, I don't know, they shot, and Nico Stavis, the line handball that sent off 10 men with 80 minutes to play away at Blackburn, we lost 5-0 or something. I think it was a fall for Norgo or something as well.  I was the worst on myself, more than anyone, more than any reporter, or my dad, or any manager, or coach, I was the hardest on me, and that's not a good thing, especially when you're in the position, especially as a goalkeeper, so it's not a good place to be, you know, so I seeked a bit of help after that game, you know, I went and spoke to the physio, Derek Wright at Newcastle, he's still there actually, and he, you know, on the QT, because then I was maybe seen as a weakness back then, that, well, he's going to see a psychologist, he's going to get help, you know, is he alright, like, type of thing, because it was a wee bit, you know, it was a wee bit, I don't know, maybe a little bit old-fashioned at the time, that, you know, everyone should be mentally strong, everyone should be, you know what I mean? So I felt that, not a weakness, I actually felt there's a strength for me to go and go and get some help, and I felt that if that can help me five, 10%, then why wouldn't I do that, you know? Not as a weakness, actually, I thought it was more of a strength to go and speak to someone, you know, and I spoke to a sports psychologist, Richard Mullin, his name was, and Cardiff, and, you know, we built up a relationship for the remainder of my career, really, you know, ways and methods of dealing with mistakes, mistake management, and obviously how to deal with that, in-game situation, you know, and that's gone a bit deep from a sports point of view, but it was more just, you know, I felt I had tools in to deal with it, you know, in years to come then. But I think that shows you your character, like, to then, when we were talking about the 90s, it's a tough place, it's like, growing up as a kid back in the day, it was big boys don't cry, it was like, that's why suicide rates so high in men, because we bottle up our feelings and emotions, we suppress them, and then it comes to our head, we can't handle them anymore, like, men are more sensitive than women, it's like, we've been brought up in that era where it's, you don't cry, like, toughen up, like, man up, like, that's the wrong thing to do, and if you're for a young kid to do that and get any asking for help, take some amount of courage, and that goes for anybody watching, like, take some amount of bottle, because I know you lost one of your good friends, Gary Speed, and who was a massive player for Newcastle, and that was kind of out of the blue, and it was 2011, were you at Aston Villa then? Yeah, just, yeah, yeah, we were at Aston Villa, we remember we were playing Swansea away, and Zalonshire called me, actually, we were just about to go down for the team meeting, you know, before we left the hotel to go and play Swansea, and he obviously made the phone call, he phoned me, I was like, was he ringing me on match day?  I was like, yeah, yeah, it's real, like, it's not nonsense, like, you know, and I just, I couldn't believe it, because I think a couple weeks before, I met him actually in Manchester, and just in the shop, and just one of the shops in town, I just hadn't seen him for a while, we still kept him touching the phone, you know, but he was busy managing Wales, and I was busy playing, and we still, we were still good friends over the phone, but not actually seeing him, and just weird, like, a couple of weeks later then, and he was gone, you know, just weird, and we put the game, we talked about the game getting called off, because he was the Wales manager, we were in Swansea and Wales obviously, and we thought, oh, it's probably the right thing to do, you know, but the powers of the eagles, now the game goes ahead, you know, and I was like, I have to get my head around this now, you know, and sort of prepare for that, and then I just sort of, I don't know if you remember, but the minute silence before the game, like I just broke down, like I just couldn't keep it together, you know, so yeah, I just didn't seem real really, you know, but then I always think, what would Speedo want, what would he want me to do, and he would want me to play, and keep a clean sheet, which I did, and sent me to do it for him, you know, albeit maybe the game shouldn't have been played, but, you know, he was a really strong, wild character, and just a bit in shock, as much as anything, that's how it's happened, even now, you know, I still can't believe, I still stay in touch with Tommy and Eddie, two sons and that, and, you know, that's, you know, they're growing up now, living in America, they're, you know, great lads, and, you know, he's missing out on all that, you know, and Gary's a great dad, you know, and it's just, you know, as you said about the, no one really knows what's going on, and, you know, in people's lives, or in people's heads, I suppose, and it's good to talk, and, you know, wishing that a couple weeks before he did die, that I would have asked him, you know, everything, all right, do you want to talk about anything? You know, you just, but he seemed just the normal Speedo that he always was, like, joking, and having a crack, and having a laugh, and stuff, you know, he didn't seem, as if anything was up, you know, and people say that's the people that you least expected, and that's what happens, you know, and it's, as we're speaking about this now, then, you know, if you say if someone seeks out help, then that's, this interview today is worth it, isn't it? You know, that someone, maybe in a similar situation, that there is people out there that can't help you, and I just wish Speedo had reached out to someone, that's all, really. Yeah, so you tend to say it's the one with the biggest smile, so the one with the most broken, is so people don't see through their pain and misery of their heart. That's why a lot of people then turn to then drink drugs, whatever it is, to fulfill that loneliness, avoid where the pretrader, the self that they're finding, the happiness, the funny men that's brought you to again, that's probably the funny people who they just want to portray themselves as being okay, because like you as a young kid, does that then make you think about that time you went to see a psychologist at 23, 24, that you can potentially go down that route fast, and not expect it to then, seeing someone who then did go down that route, and instead of just reaching out for help, because his men were too proud to ask for help, were too proud to say that we're struggling, were too proud to just be who we can be, like it's because we're all going through this journey where sometimes we just don't know what the fuck is going on, and like you say there, that sometimes it's the ones who think they've got it all together, that are the ones who are struggling the most, sometimes it's just asking that simple question, are you okay? Does that play a lot in your mind that, because there's no telltale signs anyway, but sometimes, because I've lost friends to suicide, and sometimes in my mind thinking, was the signs there? Why didn't I just ask, are you okay today?  But then again, I don't know if it's me that would have said anything, because he's being guarded, they probably wouldn't have said anything, but I was like yeah, I'm fine, everything's great, like you know what I mean, because he probably was too proud to say, well do you know what, I think I'm struggling about here, because of X, Y, and Z, I don't know what was going on in his head, but I think as you say, that's the key, like people on the from the outside, the luck, they are okay, but maybe the problem I think in this current life or this current journey we're all in is because we're going too deep in here, but it's like you're sort of sidetracked by your own sort of life, your own kids and your own family, you just got a dog two days ago, and then it's like, you know, the hectic of school runs, school's back on and everyone's life's really busy, you know, but if you actually sit down and slow it all down and ask them simple questions, like, you know, because people do need help at times, and it's not, as I said, not a sign of weakness, I didn't do, I done it from a sporting point of view, if I'm being honest at the time, because I knew this is not right, this can't be right from a sporting point of view, but even just in life in general, if you do need help, there are plenty of good people out there who can help you, and I don't think it's a weakness to seek help, I think it's actually the opposite, I think it's a strength that can make you a better person or a better dad or a better friend or a better brother, whatever it is, then why not, why not ask for help? Yeah, I'm an ambassador for a wonderful place called Chrissie's House, which is women and women lost their son, and she's been doing this the last 10 years, it's a 24-7 suicide centre where people can call up, anonymous, and not just for people who are suiciders, for people who've lost people to suicide, because I've said this many times, but with suicides, you're not really taking away your pen, what you do is really pass it on to the people who are close to you, because then you think, shit, was it me? I could have done more, then other people kind of blame themselves, but I've never, I've had thoughts sometimes when I used to drink, take drugs, and shit, I used to think, would people miss me? And I've never had the bottle to actually go and do it, so you don't know actually people's struggles, how hard it is to then go and leave kids and family behind and put that pressure on them.  Do you think there's enough things in place for professionals to then seek help? Yeah, I don't know, I don't know, that's just a good question. I would say probably not. I know the PFA do work, but again you have to sort of reach out to them, I've been retired four or five years, I've not spoke to anyone from the PFA, do you know what I mean? So it's like, I think there should be something in place when you retire, then go and have a chat with someone from the PFA or have some sort of, not take long to sit down and go through what's next now for Shay, given what do you see the future and we could help you with this, so we could help you with that. I've not spoke to anyone from the PFA, I'm not having to go to the PFA, but I'm just telling you how it is, like you mentioned I played in the Premier League for a long number of years, you'd think there'd be some sort of support network around you for that, which could be better. Premier League players, we talked about social media, I think it's, I was sort of lucky the last couple of years, then it was only coming into it really, so I think the problem that young players have now is they come into change after the game and they're on their phones and they're worried about some guy down on the middle of nowhere who's never kicked the football in their life, do you know what I mean? They could have 99 amazing comments and then one negative and it's like, you know, is he right there by saying that I should have scored or should have saved that shot or, do you know what I mean?  He's got the same thoughts as you have, he's got the, you know, do you know what I mean? Like, it's just like, because there's some of them are superstars, they think, oh, well, he, you know, he's not got feelings or he, do you know what I mean? It's just, it's not a nice way to be when you sit behind a phone or a keyboard and you start hammering some person you've never met before, you probably don't know them, just know them from reading the newspaper or did he score last week or not? Do you know what I mean? It's not, it's not a good place to be. Because we're all under the same sky, well, we're the same, well, we're the same, like, because people see you playing in a Premiership and living a great life and surrounded by great people that they don't, they'll see you as immune to problems and pain, but if anything, the more success becomes and more demons and more problems and more temptations, like, it's hard to then balance everything. There's some players you'll see going down a drink, like, I speak to Paul Gascoigne a lot of good friends with his agent and that, and you see the route, he went down George Abes like snooker players, had Jimmy White on a couple of weeks ago and he was the same, drank drugs and friends with Higgins and who'd end up buying on the drink and that's why a lot of boxers as well when they retire because they miss that buzz. There's something emptiness that's like, you've gave your whole life to something, but then it's a case of, okay, cut and closes, we've used you now, do your thing like, and then they come back and fight in their forties and Van de Holyfield should not be fighting, he was fighting last week and it was just embarrassing that they shouldn't, they should be protecting these people, the people who gave you so much to watch and entertainment over the years, because all it is is entertainment. It's a big circus for us all. But it should be more done for players who leave because you do not use because you've had a lovely life and a lovely career and blah, blah, blah, and you should be, if you've looked after yourself then you should be okay, but at the same time, you still have them, as you say, for whatever 25 years I've been told to be there at that time, do this, do that, eat this, do that, do you know what I mean, literally for my whole best part of my life, and then next day it's just over, it's just stops like no one's telling you anything, you haven't to be anywhere, do you know what I mean? So I do think there should be better things put in place, it's just even a support thing, just to say, well, are you okay and can we help you or support you in your next sort of journey, because most players finish 35, 40, there's still most of their lives ahead of them at the end of their career. Definitely, it's a short-lived career as well. How was it retiring? Yeah, I mean, I was lucky I played the 41 and yeah, the last few years it was more sort of a backup sort of thing and support goalkeeper really, but I knew that the time was coming, issues were my right knee to it in us. Give me a lot of jib, so I had a few operations on that side, it was just my body probably telling me that enough's enough now at this stage, but yeah, you miss the buzz and the excitement of playing and out in front of thousands of people and it's just a special feeling, you can never get that back in you, so it's, but at the same time, you know it's gonna come to an end, you know that's lifetime, it's for nobody, you know, so you just have to get your head around it and move on to other things I suppose and as I said, for me I'd done the media for a bit and then I was at Derby and now I'm a little bit of a crossroads now, what do I do next, do I go back and you know, maybe a coaching management slash role or do I do some media stuff and just have more time with my family and play a bit more golf and enjoy life a bit more because I think people forget as well when you're a coach or a manager, you know, you're working seven days a week like and you're there in the last three years, the half six was leaving here in the morning, home at half six at night, you know, the kids from bed an hour later, you know, so it's not great for family life, yeah, you get, if you do well, you get good rewards like, you know, but at the same time, it's just getting a bath, I think life is about getting balanced right and that's both sort of on the pitch and off the pitch and you know, maybe balance for me, maybe a little bit more dominant to the media thing, but if some opportunity came up then, maybe too good to turn down and think, well, I'll give it a go like you know, but is that just, is that stupid or is that just the drug of football you just love, you know, because you talk about de-miss football and the issue you're going to get to then is be part of a coaching team and still have the ups and downs of winning and losing and whatever, you know, so that's the thing that media doesn't give you, it doesn't give you that buzzer excitement with the matchday experience and you know, the fans or whatever, you know, so you'd always miss that, you know.  But it's just, it's in your blood because when I stop, my thoughts then become vicious, they become crazy, when I'm on a good path, it's because I'm working hard, it's because I've set goals, so when you think that stop, it's okay going your golfing and that and family time, but there's still something that's not quite complete, there's something quite missing, that's your whole life to bow in the garden with two jumpers as goal posts to be out in the fields and that's living, but then it's a straight, I've never been a manager or a coach, but I'd imagine with more pressure and stress doing that than actually playing in goal, like it's for you, it's good to take a wee break, recharge and then something else will pop up and you'll do that because you're not in the soccer game there. I played that a couple of weeks ago, yeah. How was that experience as you were saying, bowling that play? Yeah, I just started knocking over the top and he'd be like, I'm never like that. I think he got cramping because we were half down, him and Mo Farah got cramping, which is funny, but no, I mean, it was obviously, we raised over 13 million, it was unbelievable, for UNICEF, but no, it was nice to meet lots of different people from different backgrounds. It was actors, obviously, who's... A fellow Scotsman, Compton.  Yeah, he's a good player.  Yeah, yeah, Mad Tim. So, no, it was good to meet him, but all these different people you meet that you wouldn't normally meet, obviously, we're in the same team and then, obviously, we won the game, so we had a bit of a sing song and the boss and I backed the whole thing. It was just like, but like old times, we were all these different people and, as I say, it was nice to, nice to, obviously, to raise that money, but also just to good to meet some new people and they're all in different journeys as well.  Young blood, I don't know if you've come across him yet, but he's ripping it up and people like, you know, chunks and...  Yeah, so there's like all these different people, like, you know... All he muzz, Matt Wright. You're saying Bulls are mega-star, like... Yeah, he's a legend. He's a legend, man. Matt, he's a legend, actually. He's from Donegal, would you believe? No way. I know, it's crazy, like... You get everywhere, man. I know. So he was at the game as well, so just chatting with him about back home and stuff and he used to be an athlete, actually. So I was like, how did you get... So I always said, when I finished running, I set up this agency and he's got 50 athletes now or something, but he's made one to the same Bull, which is, he goes everywhere with them, you know, so... Shit, man, that's unbelievable. Does that not make you want to play again when you have that re-experience? It does, it does, I mean, it doesn't.  But it was still, you still get the feeling of playing and the Etihad was full, which was brilliant, you know, and you do, but you know yourself and it's never going to happen, you know, that ship has sailed. It's just what comes along next, that's the next question. Yeah, how was it with Frank? Was it Frank Lapp? Part of it took you to Derby. How was that experience then? Were you tired and then getting into coaching? Yeah, well, I was doing the media for about 18 months, I think, and then just out of the blue, Frank called me and I was like... You know, it's a big opportunity, like, you know, he could have called anybody really, so I didn't know Frank. I played against him a few times, but didn't know him. I thought, oh, this is a chance to be part of his team and be part of the team, and then this is one day we could end up with Chelsea, maybe, because obviously Chelsea legend and a year later he was at Chelsea and I didn't go with him, so that was a tough one. But, again, it was a good experience. I mean, the last three years it was obviously Frank the first year, then Phillip Cockoo, the Dutch manager, the second year, and obviously Wayne Rooney then just gone now, you know, so all different characters, all different managers, all different ideas, you know, but for me personally, it was a good learning curve from a coaching point of view, what you maybe wouldn't do, what you wouldn't do, all that kind of stuff, you know, but... Yeah, I'm sure Frank will be back in managing soon, I would say. Yeah, Wayne Rooney legend, like, from a career as well, my new top goal scorer, England top goal scorer, unbelievable career, hopefully they'll do well with that, but they've played a bit decent this year, but again, they seem about a tonne model as well. Yeah, the financial problems off the pitch is really bad, like, you know, so you feel for them, you feel for the fans especially, and, you know, it's a big club, you know, the training ground and the stadium set for the Premier League, but, you know, the finances is... looks like you're in the administration now, you know, so that's looking really bleak for the future, you know, and it's a real shame because it's a great club. Points deducted, probably relegation then, that's tough, man, because you've got a great wee squad as well, but playing in English Premiership, you've played against so many greats, Ronaldo, Runeys, Henri's, Bear Camps, Lampars, Gerrard's, who's the best player you've ever seen?  There's too many of them. I was lucky to play with some great guys at Man City as well, like Patrick Vera, what a great player, what a great lad as well. Is he a tough bastard? Is he as tough as you see?   Then I was lucky enough with David Silva, I played with him at City Tevez, Vincent Company, you know, all these quality, like, great Premier League players, you know, but I loved it, maybe said I wanted to do a Premier League 11 that I've played against, or whoof, you know. But again, it's too many players to think of, you know, I've probably forgot loads, as we were talking about here before, Roy Keane, I don't know. I mean, Robbie Keane had been there, I mean, there's so many great players in the, down three of the years.  How good was it, Dan? Yeah, he was all right as well, I mean. How was it? It was easy. We used to call Kevin Kilbamy, we'd call Kevin, we'd call Kevin. Zinedine Kilbamy used to call Kevin, like, you know, but no, I mean, he was, he was, for now, I was lucky, I was actually on the line this morning, just something popped up, I think it was 80s football or 90s football, and it was, how good was it, Dan touching, it was about 15 clips, Zidane just pulling the ball out of the sky and flicking it back over the defender and not me getting him and all that kind of stuff, but he was a phenomenal player, yeah.   Probably the Iran two playoff games were big, both my mind and my career, and I had a big safety make in Dublin as well, because they were leading 2-0 and they broke away last five minutes and made it probably one of the best they had thrown down to my left, you know, we won the game 2-0, but had that one in, you know, the way he go, and then they won the, they won the second game, you know, 1-0, they would have been through, like, you know what I mean, so I think both legs, I mean, for the triple save, I think, in the second leg as well, which was all a bit hectic, but looking back now, like it was, I think, you know, as I say, it's the pinnacle of my career to play in the World Cup Finals, you know, but to come through them two games, you know, and actually really, in both games, have big moments, then I think that was for me to say, you know, I mean, I've played a big part or at least thought I played a big part to get us to the Finals again, the World Cup Finals again, and get the Irish fans, we went to Japan and Korea, thought, oh, there won't be many there, because it's 10, 12 hour flight, whatever, across the world to get there, and obviously, Godley came out in the first game, there was Irish flags everywhere, like, you know, and the funny thing, you hear the stories about people, like, remorgas in their house and selling their cars and stuff, and that's not, you know, that's not pie in the sky, so people genuinely remorgas houses and stuff, and selling up and getting loans from the credit union and all, it's just to go and watch, watch you play football, like, you know, the fans are absolutely phenomenal, the Irish fans, you know. That's made me feel proud. I know you and Wayne are good friends now, they've ever talked, because that's one of the best goals in the Premiership, like, the one to get angry against Newcastle, and then they both just seem to drop, and he's put in a top band, did they ever mention that to you? Yeah, once or twice. Yeah, we travelled, and every day to be fair, the last eight months to Darby, I'm not there anymore now, but yeah, I mean, as I say, anytime there's a record or anytime there's a clip from the Premier League, that goal normally pops up, like, you know, and obviously he's, I think he was arguing the referee, he was arguing the referee for a bit longer, because he wouldn't have scored it, like, you know, but yeah, he mentioned Wayne, he's been a phenomenal player of the Premier League, one of the greats, and he can do some great things with the ball, and that was a fantastic goal there. Who's the best manager you've ever played under? Well, obviously Mick, gave me the chance to make McAfee at Ireland, of course, and then he talked before with Kenny Douglas, with, you know, giving me an opportunity at Blackburn, and then bringing me to Newcastle, and giving me that jersey, and then probably Bobby Robson would be high up there as well, again, for what he achieved, you know, before he came to Newcastle, and even when he came, we were up bottom in the Premier League, and, you know, he transformed us into Champions League football again, you know, so it's not a massive budget either, you know, you look at some of the teams now and the budgets they're spending, they get in Champions League football, we spent a bit, but not like crazy money, like the modern day teams to get in the Champions League, so Bobby Robson was a brilliant manager, you know. Yeah. Just before we finish up, was there not talks of you going back to Celtic? The Man City Kingdom Aston Villa period, or after Aston Villa, was that a big shot? Yeah, it was different. No, probably when I wasn't playing at City or whatever, there might have been some chap, but it was nothing really concrete, to be honest, or not that I heard of or whatever, you know, but yeah, just going back to the start of the start, I mean, I would love to have played a couple of games for the first team, you know, just because it was my club growing up, and you know, a big Celtic fan, but still, it's always a result, you look for it at the weekend and stuff, and try and get to the odd game if it can as well. But yeah, I mean, it's just a shame, obviously, that a lot of the Rangers fans will be laughing now, but like last year, they didn't get the 10 in a row, because I think that's sort of a chance of a lifetime thing that they've missed now, you know? But you know, it's the rivalry up there, you know better than me, I'd say, it's just the whole city comes to a standstill on Derby Day, doesn't it, and the whole firm day, and it's, if you're a fan of football, then you have to take the box, you have to go to another foreign game, but you don't have to be a supporter of either of them, really, do you? But the sample that atmosphere is just unbelievable. It's next level, it's the best derby, I believe, on the planet also.  That's what I don't agree with, because the way fans are not allowed in there or somewhere, is that what?  That's part of the fun, wasn't it? The game, that's part of the culture. Yeah, that's what makes it in as well. Yeah, hopefully they get back in the next year or two, but that's what makes the old firm what it is. They came back a bit boring now, but that's what makes it so beautiful. That is what it is.  He was off the park, but then he's come on and scored. Like, how was that feeling?  Yeah, I mean, that's life, it's part of football. I mean, the thing looking back at that clip, like as people ask me all the time, but it was just the start of the six-second rule, I think the rules have changed again, can't go up the rules, it changed the laws of the football all the time, but the law just came in, you've got six seconds, they kick it, or you've got to drop it down, they played up the pitch, you know? And at the start of any sort of law change, the referee's on it, so literally, like, you know, now he's kept the ball for 15 seconds, not blue or whatever, but it was literally, you can see the ref going, one, two, three, like one of them, they go, I'm going to kick this, and I'm looking up the pitch and share, obviously not moving as per normal, so I'm going to, he's like, I'm going to have to drop this down, like, or whatever, but I made the cardinal sin by not looking behind me, and that didn't even know Deon Dublin was challenging me.  It was just, it was one of the moments that sort of the world stopped, it was kind of like that, is that, has this happened? No, in your head, it's kind of like, it's happened, didn't even know where it came from, it didn't, do you know what I mean? And then obviously the joke after him was, it's the only Irishman not to know where Dublin is, so it was like scandalous, like. That's funny, you can laugh about it now, man. No, I mean, Kenny wasn't laughing at half time.  But yeah, I mean, again, I was a young keeper and yeah, we make mistakes, I suppose, you know? I never do that again, I'm resting my head whatever, 15, 20 years of football, but a few keepers did after that, you'd think you would learn from my mistake, you know? But a couple of other guys done that after me, so. You've worked under a few Scottish managers, though, you had Sunis, Delglish, Moise, Lambert. Didn't have Moise. Do you know what I have Moise at? Did he not come to, I was he not asking for that? Did Moise have a goal to ask them for that? No. Who was it? Who was the other scorer? McLeish. McLeish, I'm thinking of McLeish. Yeah, McLeish. Yeah. Big McLeish, Dermer as well. Yeah. So he did. He signed me at Billy, yeah. Scottish managers do okay. Shitting the field, but all right, managing. All number ones, everyone in the European Cup, yeah. Brush Adortment. What a player. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, there's some great Scottish managers over the years, definitely, yeah. Scotland seem to be doing a bit better, but I like the boy Gilmore. Yeah, he's a good player. Very good player. Yeah, I mean, I've got a nucleus of a good team now, do you know what I'm saying? Do you think he's a good striker? Yeah, obviously qualifying for the last term. It was brilliant for the country, wasn't it?  Do you know how hard that is? Yeah. I mean, David Marshall, he was at Derby, and I was buzzing for him. When he saved the penalty to get them there, you know, it was a big moment for him, so.  Yeah. Great, big goalie. What do you think, looking back on your career show? What do you think, man?  Probably regrets, I'd have regrets that we didn't won enough trophies. I won a couple of, I don't know, if a couple of men said he won the championship, one was at something, but like majors, like in the Premier League, yeah, I was involved with the Blackburn squad, but didn't play games and stuff, so that would be the biggest regret, you know, that it didn't won enough, you know what I mean, because you set out to win trophies, don't you? But at the same time, probably 95% of people playing the Premier League don't won the Premier League, you know what I mean? There's only a small group of players that do that, you know, if you think of all the players you've played in the Premier League, you know? So I've just come back to you, like I feel that I've been lucky, like because I've come from this Lifford, a small village in the northwest of Ireland, you know, and to travel around the world, play, I think, in the best league in the world, in the Premier League, and play against some of the best players in the world. I mean, that's pretty special. And again, just, you know, you just think that football, I know it sounds a bit cliche to me, but a size 5, I think, full way air has given me so much to my life, you know? Or an after pitch and seeing so much to the world, you know, it's just, it's just, I've been blessed, really, yeah? A phenomenal career, like nearly one of Ireland's most cap players that played more Premiership games and more, like, how many players have played in the Premiership? You think you'll talk 20 or 30 most appearances, like it's unbelievable, career, like, yeah, it's the trophy side of things, is the icing on the cake, but then you look at guys like Shearer, you look at so many other world-class players that never really won.  Mum never seen anything like that, you know? So that's the thing that would sort of wrangle with me as well, that wonder what she would have thought, like, wonder what she would have told me, or whatever, you know, because my dad obviously advised me all the way through, like, you know, but, you know, they wouldn't agree on everything, so I wonder what advice she might have given me at certain stages of my career, you know? But I always use it as a strength that she'd be there looking down at me and supporting me and trying to make her proud, all that kind of stuff, you know? So I use that as well as a positive tool to, you know, get me through difficult situations, you know? But it just would have been nice to see, you know, what she would have thought of it all, you know? That's an orphan that I can never change. And again, going back to what we said about people and lives and stuff, you know, everyone's gone through a different journey, everyone's, you know, a lot of people, maybe, to the watchers didn't know that I lost my mum when I was four, you know, that's really tough for people, you know, and tough for me and just not knowing what she would have thought of what sort of my life sort of panned out, you know, that would have loved for her to be here for that. Yeah, but again, you've done everything else for your brothers, your sisters, your dad. And how's the bungee, the postman? How's you? Do you see your best pal? Yeah. He's still a bit friends. Yeah, yeah, yeah.  But yeah, Bornes, he's the local postman and he would definitely take you down a peg or two. If he, if he got ahead of yourself, he's the one who's on a big English accent, like, but still, I'm still not hearing it myself. Listen, brother, for coming on the day and telling your story, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Great career, great guy. You've gave so much inspiration to people, not just from Newcastle, but your hometown, like, even though you've done 12 years in Newcastle, but people from Donegal and the whole of Ireland, like the massive support of you and rightly so, that you're very well supported, very well liked and for letting us come on a day to tell your story, brother, I thoroughly enjoyed it, mate. Thank you, bless you and bless my brother to see what you do for the future. Hopefully, yeah. Cheers, brother. Thanks, James.