Playback: Micronesia's Got Talent ⚽

The Modern Mann

Matt Hill

Society & Culture, Relationships, Personal Journals

4.8 • 744 Ratings

🗓️ 26 July 2024

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Paul Watson realised he would never play football for England - so attempted, instead, to be recruited by the worst international team in the world. His quest lead him to Pohnpei, Micronesia; and, although he never realised his dream of becoming an international soccer star, he ended up coaching them instead... What's it like training a team 9000 miles away from home, in a country with no football culture? What is the beautiful game's secret at bringing communities together? And how can one recover after a defeat against the Guam Crushers? This interview first aired in 2017 - hear the full episode here - now remastered with new sound design, we've paired with our latest episode, I ₿ought A Football Club. Paul wrote a brilliant book about his adventures, Up Pohnpei, which you can buy here. Thanks to Mannfan Tom Cotton for suggesting Paul as a guest - if you have an idea for a future edition of the show, just get in touch using our Feedback form. Paul's two podcasts are: The Sweeper: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-sweeper-a-world-football-podcast/id1557926870 False Economy: https://shows.acast.com/false-economy PLUS get your free case of wine NOW: https://wine52.com/mann Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	So retrospectors, what historical events are we ticking off on this week's run of today in history?
0:05.0	On Monday, the anniversary of the day, Ozzy Osbourne and a bat came face to face on stage.
0:10.0	On Tuesday, we go back to the future with a potted history of the DeLorean.
0:14.0	On Wednesday, why is the Pope guarded by those guys in floofy hats?
0:19.0	On Thursday, how the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ended up in Cleveland.
0:23.0	And on Friday, was Henry VIII really an asshole, or was it just the result of a jasting accident?
0:28.3	We discussed this and more on today in history with the retrospectors.
0:31.9	10 minutes each weekday, wherever you get your podcasts.
0:37.6	Hello, man fans, Oli Mann here with our monthly playback edition.
0:41.9	On the last Friday of each month, we revisit an interview from the Modern Man archive,
0:46.3	which we think deserves your attention again.
0:49.5	And we try to pair these repeats with our new episode each month. So if you've heard our July edition
0:55.9	already, you'll know that in that I met Peter McCormack, the self-described budget Ryan Reynolds.
1:03.4	He's on a mission to take his lower league local team, Bedford FC, which he's renamed Real Bedford,
1:10.3	all the way to the Premier League,
1:13.0	which reminded me that football underdogs is a story we've covered once before on the show,
1:20.3	but on an international basis rather than a national one, when back in 2017, I met Paul Watson,
1:30.7	whose attempts to be recruited by the worst international team in the world, led him to turning around the fortunes of a team in Micronesia.
1:37.8	What's it like training a football team 9,000 miles away home, in a country with virtually no football culture.
1:48.1	Micronesia's Got Talent. That's your modern man playback for this month, and it all starts next. What kind of weekend are you in the mood for?
2:09.7	Well, with Disney Plus, anything is possible.
2:12.7	Whether that be two days of twists and turns with only murders in the building,
	...

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