The Socially Distant Sports Bar

Another week at The Socially Distant Sports Bar, where Mike Bubbins, Elis James and Steff Garrero once again tackle the big sporting issues of the day. Or at least watch some clips and see where the conversation takes them.

This week we're heading across the Atlantic for a bit of ice hockey, digging out some tennis rackets that should probably have stayed in the garage, and bringing together two of football's greats.

Mike takes us to NHL opening night, where the Americans once again demonstrate that nobody does sporting spectacle quite like them.

Steff has found Andy and Jamie Murray attempting to play tennis with some decidedly old-fashioned rackets, proving just how much technology has changed the game — and how difficult it is to look like a world-class tennis player when your equipment belongs in a museum.

And Elis brings us Roy Keane and Zinedine Zidane. Two footballing legends.

Clips
Mike: NHL Opening Night
https://x.com/Buccigross/status/2105017215724798320
Steff: Andy and Jamie Murray Hitting With Old Rackets
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/hVnyflisJN8
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/oJdm7PL-GcI
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/bd-bTgqOPHs
Elis: Keane and Zidane
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DeJ9KWQsF7T/?hl=en-gb
Ice hockey. Wooden rackets. Roy Keane. Zinedine Zidane.
Blood and guts. And probably quite a lot of nonsense.
Thanks for listening.

For even more from The Socially Distant Sports Bar, including extra episodes, bonus content and everything else from the Distant Pod universe, join us on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/distantpod

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If you fancy supporting the pod that way, head here 👇
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Welcome to Pint-Sized Distant Pod.
We've been back through our archive of episodes and we've selected our favourite stories, anecdotes and funny bits.
If you're new to the pod, then feel free to use these as a jump off point to find your way around our earlier episodes.
This clip is taken from "Episode 293: George Lewis"

🛍️ NEW MERCH ALERT
We’ve launched a brand new merch store — mugs, hoodies, prints and more!
If you fancy supporting the pod that way, head here 👇
🛒 sdsb2025.myshopify.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to this week's Socially Distant Sports Bar with Mike Bubbins, Elis James and Steff Garrero.
This week we're taking a trip back to the golden age of television game shows, before heading into the tactical revolution that has changed football from the Champions League to the lowest reaches of the non-league pyramid.

Two very different approaches to sport. One involving meticulous tactical planning. The other involving Jimmy Tarbuck and a set of rules nobody appears to understand.
Documentary of the Week (Sort Of)
Steff: Full Swing
In place of the usual documentary, Steff has unearthed an absolute gem from the golden age of British television: Jimmy Tarbuck's Full Swing.
It's a glorious car crash of a golf-based, general knowledge-adjacent game show, featuring celebrity contestants, questionable production decisions and a format whose rules the audience are apparently expected to work out for themselves as the programme unfolds.
If the idea of Jimmy Tarbuck presiding over a golf quiz that appears to have been designed during a particularly long lunch doesn't make you want to watch it immediately, we're not sure this is the podcast for you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6svRbCgDm8w&t=45s
Book of the Week
Elis: The Spectre of Pep — How Guardiola Haunts Modern Football by Jon Mackenzie
Elis brings in Jon Mackenzie's fascinating examination of Pep Guardiola's influence on modern football.
From his tactical philosophy and obsession with controlling space to the way teams across Europe's biggest leagues have adopted versions of his approach, the book explores how one manager's ideas have fundamentally changed the way the game is played.
And it's not just the elite. From Manchester City to the lower reaches of non-league football, everybody now seems determined to play out from the back, regardless of whether the centre-half is entirely comfortable with the idea.
Has Guardiola made football better? Or has he simply made everyone believe there's only one correct way to play it?
Plenty for Elis, Mike and Steff to get stuck into.
https://link.amazon/B0aGXHEoU

Jimmy Tarbuck and Pep Guardiola. Two men who have approached the organisation of sport in very different ways.

Thanks for listening.
And if you want more from The Socially Distant Sports Bar, including exclusive episodes and extra content, join us on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/distantpod

🛍️ NEW MERCH ALERT
We’ve launched a brand new merch store — mugs, hoodies, prints and more!
If you fancy supporting the pod that way, head here 👇
🛒 sdsb2025.myshopify.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Another week at The Socially Distant Sports Bar, where Mike Bubbins, Elis James and Steff Garrero once again prove that talking about sport is entirely optional on a sports podcast.
This week, Mike reveals how his habit of leaving his audio recorder running might eventually prove to be his downfall, the boys uncover some deeply unpleasant Roman bathroom techniques that will put you off your dinner, and Mike explains just how far he'd be prepared to go if someone offered him a bit of land.
And it's quite a length.

There's also the small matter of ham radio enthusiasts. Those bloody hams.

Eventually, sport manages to force its way into the conversation.

Mike brings us the extraordinary photographic memory of LA Rams head coach Sean McVay, Steff provides further evidence that Tony Pulis knows absolutely everyone in football, and Elis revisits Tony Sibson's wonderfully honest assessment of his defeat to Marvin Hagler in 1983.

Clips
Mike: Sean McVay
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdINQ3SSp9w/?stkn=MW1mNXplaTQyNHNzdQ==
Steff: Tony Pulis Knows Everyone
https://x.com/nozza_/status/2102743956207370391?s=61
Elis: Tony Sibson After Losing to Marvin Hagler
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/18PhbK458m/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Roman toilets. Ham radio. A suspiciously ambitious land deal. And Tony Pulis knowing everyone.
Sport. Eventually.
Thanks for listening.

And remember, if you want even more from Elis, Mike and Steff, including extra episodes and Bonus content, you can join us at:
https://www.patreon.com/distantpod

🛍️ NEW MERCH ALERT
We’ve launched a brand new merch store — mugs, hoodies, prints and more!
If you fancy supporting the pod that way, head here 👇
🛒 sdsb2025.myshopify.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Pint-Sized Distant Pod.

We've been back through our archive of episodes and we've selected our favourite stories, anecdotes and funny bits.

If you're new to the pod, then feel free to use these as a jump off point to find your way around our earlier episodes.

This clip is taken from "Episode 160: Parking The Bus"

🛍️ NEW MERCH ALERT
We’ve launched a brand new merch store — mugs, hoodies, prints and more!
If you fancy supporting the pod that way, head here 👇
🛒 sdsb2025.myshopify.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.