Having won two Premier League titles, two Fizzy Cups and represented the Republic of Ireland more than 100 times, you could be forgiven for presuming that leading Shelbourne to the Irish title would rank somewhere between winning the Community Shield and getting relegated with Fulham among Damien Duff’s list of footballing achievements. Famously described as “the problem child” of the FAI by former chief suit John Delaney, who was far more problematic and childish than the tournament he was belittling, the League of Ireland Premier Division is endearingly tinpot through no great fault of its own. It has long been the subject of extreme financial neglect by both the organisation that runs it and a government who make little or no effort to help it thrive, although in recent years and due in no small part to the arrival of “Duffer”, its popularity continues to grow in the face of fierce competition for Irish eyeballs from assorted other, better funded sports.

League of Ireland stadiums tend towards the ramshackle. Crowds are often low. The clubs who participate are heavily reliant on volunteers to put on games featuring players who enjoy all the trappings of English top-flight counterparts, who many Irish fans travel across the water to cheer on each weekend … except the high profiles, even higher wages and acclaim. But for those loyal diehards who click through the turnstiles each week to support teams like Shamrock Rovers, Derry City, Dundalk and Bohs, winning the league title or FAI Cup is the be-all and end-all. And on Friday night, under the stewardship of Duff, Shelbourne finally finished in top spot for the first time in 18 years.

Before their final game of a season which runs from March to November, Duff had said winning would “torpedo” all his previous achievements out of the water and when his side duly beat Derry away to pip Dublin rivals Shamrock Rovers to the title by two points, the 45-year-old described their triumph as “absolutely Hollywood”. He also revealed that in order to help players he felt might be getting sick of listening to him, he’d employed a few motivational tricks that were a little off the wall. Famous for his quietly powerful dressing-room rhetoric, the Lions rugby coach Ian McGeechan volunteered to give a team talk. On another day, Colin Hawkins, a bona fide League of Ireland legend and former teammate of Duff’s, who is recovering from cancer, delivered a dose of inspirational perspective.

For his ace in the hole, however, the former Chelsea winger called on another manager whose siege mentality he has made no secret of trying to ape in a bid to galvanise his players over the past three years. And so it came to pass that on the day of their win over Derry, they were treated to a personal video message of support from … José Mourinho. “Then in the team meeting there was a private video message from José speaking about what it takes to win a title as a team, as an individual,” revealed Duff. “It blew the guys away. A video that was shown in the Everglades [Hotel, in Derry] two hours before the game.” Following his side’s nervy 1-0 win courtesy of a goal that may or may not have been offside, Duff told his players he’d FaceTime the Special One in Turkey and personally add €500 to the post-match beer fund if his old gaffer didn’t take the call. “I’ll put a monkey on the drinking tab tomorrow,” he told reporters, when his attempt at post-match contact went commendably ignored.

The Premier League weekend wraps up at 8pm GMT: join Michael Butler for hot MBM coverage of Fulham 1-1 Brentford.

“Just sit and talk, or just sit” – the message on Brentford sports psychologist Michael Caulfield’s training-ground bench, where players and staff air their thoughts and anxieties. Come for more of an illuminating chat with Ben Fisher; stay for his very good dog Paisley.

Michael Keegan, to whom I am not related as far as I know, recently mentioned pinning a Kevin Keegan-related headline to his desk (Football Daily letters passim). I wonder if he experienced what happened to my younger brother during a school football match in the 1970s. My sibling fouled someone and the referee, a teacher from the other school, decided to book him and asked him his name. At that time, teachers always referred to us, particularly boys, with surnames, so my brother answered ‘Keegan’, upon which the referee sent him off for being cheeky” – Phil Keegan [any more tales of particularly harsh red cards? Let us know – Football Daily Ed].

No mention of West Brom in your sparse summing up of the Championship (Friday’s Football Daily)? Don’t lose any sleep, we are used to it” – Phil Aston.

Send letters to [email protected]. Today’s letter o’ the day winner is … Phil Keegan, who lands a Football Weekly scarf. Terms and conditions for our competitions can be viewed here.

The magic of the FA Cup – diluted by those denied a lucrative replay (for needs of the elite) and then dumped out either in extra time or penalties (Weston-super-Mare, Guiseley and Southend, among others) – was still on display over first-round weekend. There was Kettering making the short trip to Northampton and doing for the Cobblers, Wealdstone venturing to Grimsby and winning, and AFC Wimbledon continuing to stick it to Milton Keynes. But our journey will continue with the lowest-ranked team to advance: Gainsborough. Trinity, 20th in the seventh-tier Northern Premier League, trailed hosts Hednesford 3-0 with 25 minutes to play before a stirring fightback forced the game to extra-time. They fell behind again but Javelle Clarke’s goal made it 4-4, sending the tie to a remarkable 18-penalty shootout … from which they prevailed 5-4. Next up is another away-day, this time at Harrogate, who took out Wrexham 1-0. “I think when you’ve waited 72 years to get into round two you take anything, but it’s not too far for the fans to travel,” declared boss Russ Wilcox. “The fans were amazing yesterday, they stuck with us, so it’s a great tie. Hopefully we can reward them again and get in with the big boys.”

Meanwhile, it was also round one of the Women’s FA Cup. Asfordby Amateurs came out of our hat [the one from which you usually talk? – Football Daily Ed], but their run was ended by Northern Premier Division leaders Wolves in a 7-1 rout. Jade Poyzer gave the underdog hosts brief hope with a free-kick to reduce their deficit to 2-1, but Tammi George banged in a hat-trick that means we’ll now be on board with them. Elsewhere, it proved a rough day for MK Dons as they went out of their second competition of the day … 12-0 at Ipswich.

You can’t look far past Bearsted FC’s Frankie Leonard when it comes to save of the weekend after a pretty remarkable run of play.

This is your one-month (and a day) warning: the new David Squires book, Chaos in the Box, is out on 5 December. Order now for a 20% discount.

Panic on the streets of (bits of) north London with the news Edu will take leave of his post at Arsenal. Widely hailed as the suit who did most to help Mikel Arteta convert the Gunners to an outfit that’s currently got fans’ hopes high enough to be dashed, the one-time Invincible is fleeing the nest. His next stop after five years in the job? The multi-club ownership group headed by Evangelos Marinakis, who owns Rio Ave, Tin Pot holders Olympiakos and Nottingham Forest, currently in third, two places and a point above Arsenal. The signings of Martin Ødegaard, Ben White, Gabriel Magalhães, Gabriel Jesus and Declan Rice are Edu’s legacy; the lack of a centre-forward and back-up to Ødegaard, perhaps his folly. Though now he gets to work with Chris Wood and Ryan Yates, mind.

Carlo Ancelotti has suggested Spanish football should be called off while the country deals with the effects of the deadly floods in Valencia and beyond. Real Madrid’s game with Valencia was postponed at the weekend. “Football is a party, and you can celebrate and have a party when you’re OK,” said Ancelotti. “When people are not OK, you don’t have to party. Football has to stop. Because it is the most important of the least important things.”

Pep Guardiola has compared Manchester City’s lengthy season – including Fifa’s Club World Cup beano – to playing LeBron James and co. “Seventy games is like the NBA, but the NBA has four-month holidays and we have three weeks, because it’s not this season, it comes from the previous season, the previous season, the previous season,” he wailed after City got beat at Bournemouth.

Bruno Fernandes has played the mea culpa card in the aftermath of Manchester United’s forgettable draw with Chelsea, shouldering blame for Erik ten Hag’s demise. “You have to take some on yourself because it is the team that is not doing so well and it is easier to get rid of a manager than 15 players,” he sobbed. “I spoke to the manager and apologised. We are not scoring goals and I feel responsible. I normally score a lot of goals but I always give 100%.”

José Mourinho has done a José Mourinho, in delivering an unbroken eight-minute monologue on refereeing standards and the status of Turkish football after Fenerbahce’s win over Trabzonspor.

Marcelo’s return to boyhood club Fluminense is at a premature end after the defender’s touchline spat with coach Mano Menezes led to him being mutually consented through the door marked “Faça um”. “The institutional and emotional bonds between Fluminense and Marcelo remain untouched,” droned a club statement.

Wayne Rooney on the brink at Plymouth? His team were well-beaten, 3-0 by Leeds, and next comes a Dockyard derby with Portsmouth, also among the Championship strugglers. “We had one eye on the game on Tuesday,” he cooed.

And West Brom’s winless run is now seven games long after a 1-1 draw at lowly Luton Town.

“You could see people thinking: ‘What’s he doing up here?’” Sunderland legend and Black football pioneer Gary Bennett speaks to Louise Taylor.

In the usual way, here are 10 talking points from the weekend’s Premier League football.

Flying Fox, Parris romance and Taylor Hinds in the goals: it’s this week’s WSL talking points.

Scrapping FA Cup replays looks particularly daft at this time of year, as Nick Ames points out. Still, at least Arsène Wenger is now looking after player welfare. At least he can be relied upon to be sensib … oh.

Manchester United v Chelsea and the new medium of tedium. By Barney Ronay.

Dortmund enjoyed taking the fizz out of Energy Drink Leipzig, reports Andy Brassell.

Who can calm the storm at Roma? Not Ivan Juric, suggests Nicky Bandini.

And Rennes, once the crucible of French talent, are in danger of blowing out, reckons Eric Devin.

Woe is PCSO Steve, the Metropolitan Police’s mascot, following their 2-1 FA Cup first-round defeat to Crawley in November 2012. They had two serving members of the Old Bill, along with their ranks of civilian players, who included Steve Sargeant … and Billy Crook.