Radio Sounders Kicks Off World Cup Coverage with the Inside Story of the “Hand of Gaul”

Not since Diego Maradona eliminate England in 1986 with the now famous ‘Hand of God’ incident, has one incident set worldwide footballing tongues into such  a frenzy.

When William Gallas scored for France in Paris, the planet’s attention fell not on him but on team mate Thierry Henry who had controled the ball with his hand before passing to Gallas.

The furore was immediate, vociferous and laced with an extraordinary amount of political posturing which later descended into farce. The Football Association of Ireland claimed to have the cause of justice on their side when they asked for the game to be replayed. Their politicians became involved. Others while sympathetic to any side on the wrong end of a bad call pointed out that Ireland were not the first, and would not be the last to suffer, and no-one else had ever had a match replayed.

Then inconveniently, former Ireland captain Roy Keane  accused the FAI of hypocrisy when he pointed out a key decision had gone in their favour in an earlier qualifier against Georgia, and they had happily accepted the benefit of injustice. He accused the FAI of both whining and selective moral outrage.

This won him no friends in Ireland but the story was to turn even more farcical. Sepp Blatter mischievously announced to the world at a press conference that the Irish had requested becoming ‘the 33rd team in the World Cup’. It seemed hard to believe that the any football association would suggest something so ludicrous with any seriousness.

And so it proved. However behind all the public posturing from the FAI, the Irish Government, and FIFA, there was an even more unbelievable story actually transpiring below the radar.

Many will not know just how close the Irish came to actually getting a replay and opening the floodgates to a tranche of future such requests, changing the nature of the global game forever. Few will know that just one man stood in the way of that, and that attempts were made to embroil Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger in the affair.

For the first time, we are broadcasting an interview with Irishman Conor Brennan, mostly known for his leadership of the Liverpool Football Club of New York, which we conducted the morning FIFA finally dismissed the matter.

Brennan had sufficient contacts to know the inside story and he told Radio Sounders all on the condition we would allow some time to pass before running it.

Now on the eve of the tournament itself, we are launching our Radio Sounders World Cup coverage with the fascinating full interview.

Brennan tells all about Wenger, the goings-on in the France locker room, and the real story behind the farce of the 33rd team request. He also reveals that the FAI encouraged players to blast FIFA publicly and why he thinks the row might eventually benefit the Republic of Ireland. He also uses the word ‘unctuous’ for the first time ever on Radio Sounders.

Throughout the World Cup, Radio Sounders will be broadcasting unregularly, with special guests including some all the way from South Africa itself.

Please join us on this remarkable footballing journey as we find out which pf the 32 sides are the best in the World.