Tonight's Off The Ball featured a terrific interview between two former Irish internationals: Mark Kennedy and Kevin Kilbane. Kennedy is now coaching at Manchester City, but has been a virtual recluse over the last few years, and very rarely gives interviews to the media.
He revealed to Kilbane that he doesn't watch Ireland play anymore, following an enormous fall-out with Brian Kerr, that Kilbane did not even know about until this interview. You can read the full story behind that here.
Kennedy also told Kilbane of the full, drunken story behind his infamous arrest with Phil Babb in Dublin, back in 2000, ahead of the World Cup qualifier away to Holland. Both players pleaded guilty to damaging a garda car on Harcourt Street, following a drunken night out. It ended with McCarthy sending both players home ahead of the qualifier against Holland.
Here's how Kennedy recalled it to Kilbane:
MK: For once in my life, I tried to do something positive. We'd gone out, and myself and Babbsy were in this bar just off Grafton Street. Just the two of us, I wasn't sure where everybody was, as you said Kev, everyone was out. And I was drinking a drink that will remain nameless.
KK: Oh go on, what was the drink?
MK: Oh it was a girl's drink...Smirnoff Ice. Babbsy had said that, 'What's that you're drinking? I've never had one'. And he actually said, ' I'll have one of them, what's the worst that can happen!?' Then, about three hours later, I'm cuffed in the back of a car.
But anyway, the night carried on, and as you'll well remember Kev, curfew was 12 o'clock. Now managers aren't stupid, some lads come in at twelve, so if you're going to stay out late, make sure and come back at six, when nobody is up. But I had actually said to Babbsy 'come on, let's go back, and we left everybody in Coppers.
Babbsy used to do this, it was called Death Stuntman. He would roll over the bonnet of a stationary car, but demonstrate a stuntman getting hit at sixty miles an hour. you had to see this to believe it, but it was really good!
But basically, Babb did Death Stuntman, and he damaged the bonnet of the car. Now bizarrely, and stupidly, he did this on Harcourt Street, which is probably the biggest police station in Dublin, and the car that was damaged was the Bangarda's, who was on security.
KK: Of all the cars in Dublin...
MK: So that happened, she came out to see what was all the commotion, and a few lads who knew who we were, said 'oh, these were jumping on your car'. So, in my ignorance, and stubborness, my attitude was, which I'd never do again obviously, 'I haven't done anything wrong, so there's nothing you can do to me'. But before I know it, I'm cuffed in the back of the car again, and Babbsy is outside the car talking to the woman.
I was saying, 'I haven't done anything, what am I doing here'.
Next thing I know, I'm sure they put us in Mountjoy, in a holding cell. But the next day, we are taken to a courthouse, and before hand, we were put in a holding cell, and I remember there was a load of lads saying 'Jaysis lads, Mick isn't going to like this', and 'you're not going to get your game on Saturday when he sees ye'. Then when we walk up through the steps into the courthouse, it was absolutely rammed. And I'm thinking '...oh shit'.
This is big. This is really big. We didn't know, it was on the radio. So we then go back to the hotel after that, and naturally the gaffer wants to speak to us. I said 'Look gaffer, I haven't done anything', and the gaffer said 'you're out of the squad'.
Kennedy later said that he didn't appreciate how big the incident had become, while he pleaded his case to McCarthy, he accepted that being arrested on international duty wasn't good enough.
You can listen back to the interview here, and the final part of the chat will be broadcast on Off The Ball tomorrow.
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