Roy Keane and Denis Irwin were reunited on this week's episode of Stick to Football, with Keane's former Manchester United and Ireland teammate the special guest with the 'Overlap' crew.
The pair of Corkonians are among the most successful players in United's history, and one would guess that many football fans would have both men in their all-time greatest Premier League XI.
Keane and Irwin were also vital players during the most successful era in Irish football history, playing together at the 1994 World Cup as Ireland took a famous victory over Italy.
By the time Ireland next qualified for a tournament, neither Keane nor Irwin were on the pitch for Ireland's opening game. Irwin had at this stage stepped aside from international football and...well, if you're not familiar with the reasons for Keane's absence, we think you'll enjoy Googling the Pacific Island of Saipan.
Watching on from afar, Irwin served as a pundit for spells of that 2002 World Cup. On his Overlap appearance, Irwin had a sharp jab at Keane for the fallout which led to him missing the tournament in Japan.
READ HERE: New Signing Reveals 'Surprise' Method Damien Duff Used To Lure Him To Shels
READ HERE: Solution To Manchester United's LWB Problem Is Staring Them In The Face
Roy Keane and Denis Irwin share hilarious Saipan moment
While Roy Keane and his dog Triggs were being tracked by every British journalist under the sun, Denis Irwin and the Irish football public were following their team in the World Cup on the far side of the globe.
Irwin was soon to depart for Wolves but, at the time of Saipan, he and Keane were still teammates at Manchester United.
At the time, Irwin came out to bat for his fellow Corkman, as he offered comment on the World Cup for Irish media outlets.
Irwin was asked about his media duties on this week's episode of Stick to Football with Sky Bet, and immediately jumped to covering the 2002 World Cup for RTÉ.
He turned to Keane beside him and landed a jab that the incident in Saipan had made his job a whole lot harder.
I was doing media work for RTÉ well before I left United. You [Keane] made my job harder in 2002 at the World Cup! [You] didn’t make it easy for me.
Having played with Ireland, you knew what an amateur association they were. I don’t know the ins and outs of it because I’ve not really spoken to you about that. It was an amateur association in the 1990s and it still was 10 years later. You got out there and it should have been the right training ground and all that.
Keane remained silent throughout Irwin's rant, before the guest said, "It split the country!"
"I don't care," was Keane's quiet response, drawing laughter from the rest of the panel around the table, including Irwin and Keane's former United teammate Gary Neville.
It's rare enough that Saipan is raised as a topic in Stick to Football circles. If there was one man who would be able to get away with it, it was always going to be Denis Irwin.
The affection between Irwin and Roy Keane was plain to see on 'The Overlap,' with the pair sharing a natural affinity even though they admitted they have not made any particularly resolute efforts to stay in touch since retirement.
SEE ALSO: 'I Don't Care, That's My Goal': Adam Idah Relishes Role In Late Celtic Winner
