So it has finally come to pass, after a handful of ritual hammerings and humiliations over the last two decades England have stood up to the Aussies and retained the Ashes in Melbourne.
This is a considerable achievement considering the recent past and especially the last tour which ended in a whitewash of such epic proportions that it was surprising that Russell Crowe wasn't considered for selection as trouncing followed annihilation. England weren't just beaten they were pulverised, with nothing more painful than the Adelaide test when Flintoff (remember him) declared and we still lost by 6 wickets. This current side are not necessarily world beaters but there is no way that they would have allowed such a dominant position to slip away.
The crucial issue is whether the balance has swung England's way because of their excellence or is it down to Australian weakness. It is surely more the latter as most Australian batsmen have failed, with captain and vice-captain most culpable. Only Hussey has really made a positive contribution and his failure at Melbourne paved the way for England's big victory. The bowlers have hardly covered themselves in glory with only Siddle showing anything approaching consistency and he is not exactly Glenn McGrath.
England are a solid unit and their strength in depth showed when Broad was injured but his replacement, Tremlett was amongst the wickets and continued to make inroads into the soft underbelly of Australian batting. Also Bresnan proved to be more than up to the job when replacing the dangerous yet profligate Finn and taking crucial wickets in the fourth test.
So is this the dawning of a new era or just a temporary switch in fortune? Somehow I cannot see there being another quarter century before Australia start to dominate again, so we might as well revel in the glory before the phoenix rises from the Ashes.
Wednesday, 29 December 2010
Sunday, 4 July 2010
England's dismal, but inevitable, failure
Of course, we have all been here so many times before that it should not be a shock or a surprise. The England team enter a major football tournament with hopes of reaching the latter stages and we even dare to think that it could be 1966 again but deep down we know that is unrealistic and we will settle for a heroic failure in the Quarter-Finals.
But 2010 episode of this long-running saga was a horror show. England left at the last sixteen stage after one of the limpest concessions ever see. Forget Lampard's "phantom" goal, which could well have swung the balance in England's favour for a while but can you really imagine this team managing to seize control of a game, especially against a German side who showed how togetherness and skill can be natural bedfellows, whereas England seem to think that these two attributes are mutually exclusive. Mind you, one in isolation would have been good. Capello's team in South Africa were disjointed, untogether (there are a variety of stories circulating about friction in the camp but regardless of true cause, they never showed any unity or sense of purpose) and prone to costly mistakes.
The little Englanders will point to the foreign coach and nod sagely that this will never work until we get an Englishman, preferably with St. George tattooed on his chest, back at the helm. It has to be admitted that Capello made some errors, (he was in good company) but the root of our problems lie far deeper than the nationality of the coach. The coaching system in this country is a shambles - there are plenty of people going through various FA Coaching levels but they are being taught the same old system by the same old coaches. Having been through Level 1 and known a few who have progressed further it is abundantly clear that the English coaching system is flawed as it is one dimensional, unimaginative and ultimately not likely to produce good enough coaches at the top.
We need to take a root and branch approach to the whole area of coaching. Be brave, be bold. Rip it up and start again. But this will not happen as there are too many vested interests involved. The FA has never been a forward-looking organisation and one cannot imagine they are going to start now. To rid ourselves of all the conservative traditions and staid people who are holding English football back, will require a strong person who has the requisite vision and tenacity. A figure such as Henry V or Churchill. At least they were English.
But 2010 episode of this long-running saga was a horror show. England left at the last sixteen stage after one of the limpest concessions ever see. Forget Lampard's "phantom" goal, which could well have swung the balance in England's favour for a while but can you really imagine this team managing to seize control of a game, especially against a German side who showed how togetherness and skill can be natural bedfellows, whereas England seem to think that these two attributes are mutually exclusive. Mind you, one in isolation would have been good. Capello's team in South Africa were disjointed, untogether (there are a variety of stories circulating about friction in the camp but regardless of true cause, they never showed any unity or sense of purpose) and prone to costly mistakes.
The little Englanders will point to the foreign coach and nod sagely that this will never work until we get an Englishman, preferably with St. George tattooed on his chest, back at the helm. It has to be admitted that Capello made some errors, (he was in good company) but the root of our problems lie far deeper than the nationality of the coach. The coaching system in this country is a shambles - there are plenty of people going through various FA Coaching levels but they are being taught the same old system by the same old coaches. Having been through Level 1 and known a few who have progressed further it is abundantly clear that the English coaching system is flawed as it is one dimensional, unimaginative and ultimately not likely to produce good enough coaches at the top.
We need to take a root and branch approach to the whole area of coaching. Be brave, be bold. Rip it up and start again. But this will not happen as there are too many vested interests involved. The FA has never been a forward-looking organisation and one cannot imagine they are going to start now. To rid ourselves of all the conservative traditions and staid people who are holding English football back, will require a strong person who has the requisite vision and tenacity. A figure such as Henry V or Churchill. At least they were English.
Friday, 14 May 2010
Welcome to the Well Hung Parliament
So after all the shenanigans and horse trading since the inconclusive election result lo and behold we have a coalition government, the first working coalition for seven decades. So what are our hopes? The doom mongers will bleat about the impracticalities of such an arrangement and it is quite impressive that they can remember what happened just before the Second World War.
It will fall apart in days, the mainstream media gloat and having already had their hatchets sharpened for months they are now ready for some serious damage. But wait should we not give this idea a chance? The majority of the population have become disillusioned by the grubby nature of politics. The expenses scandal was the tip of the iceberg and revealed an arrogant, money-grabbing attitude that prevails at Westminster. Respect for politicians and the political machine was at an all time low and the young generation seemed to have turned their back on the whole farrago. Apathy and antipathy were rife.
However, this election galvanised the nation, inspired by the TV debates people got more involved and the turnout increased which is a clear sign that more people have become engaged. The disaster of voters being turned away from the polls at least showed that they cared and however frustrating, those incidents highlighted a shift in public opinion to want to exercise their vote.
And now we have the Cameron-Clegg coalition and I hold out some hope that this may be the new way that we were all demanding for our democracy. The Conservatives have had to listen to the Liberal Democrats, include them in the cabinet and surely the balance between the two parties might actually lead to better, more considered policies rather than having an agenda forced upon us by a clear majority.
Politics is a dirty game and will not become clean overnight but there is at least a change of the old guard and we can all hope that the new model brings a fresh approach, rekindles our faith in Westminster and keeps the MPs on their toes.
It will fall apart in days, the mainstream media gloat and having already had their hatchets sharpened for months they are now ready for some serious damage. But wait should we not give this idea a chance? The majority of the population have become disillusioned by the grubby nature of politics. The expenses scandal was the tip of the iceberg and revealed an arrogant, money-grabbing attitude that prevails at Westminster. Respect for politicians and the political machine was at an all time low and the young generation seemed to have turned their back on the whole farrago. Apathy and antipathy were rife.
However, this election galvanised the nation, inspired by the TV debates people got more involved and the turnout increased which is a clear sign that more people have become engaged. The disaster of voters being turned away from the polls at least showed that they cared and however frustrating, those incidents highlighted a shift in public opinion to want to exercise their vote.
And now we have the Cameron-Clegg coalition and I hold out some hope that this may be the new way that we were all demanding for our democracy. The Conservatives have had to listen to the Liberal Democrats, include them in the cabinet and surely the balance between the two parties might actually lead to better, more considered policies rather than having an agenda forced upon us by a clear majority.
Politics is a dirty game and will not become clean overnight but there is at least a change of the old guard and we can all hope that the new model brings a fresh approach, rekindles our faith in Westminster and keeps the MPs on their toes.
Tuesday, 2 February 2010
Media hypocrites round on John Terry
The level of hypocrisy that surrounds the moral storm swirling over John Terry’s head has reached an all time high. When the minister for sport Gerry Sutcliffe called for Terry’s removal as England captain one had to blink twice at the sheer audacity of an MP lecturing a footballer about morality.
It has got nothing to do with his ability to lead England at the World Cup in South Africa but according to Sutcliffe he needs to lead by example. MPs show everyone how to behave by acting with such impropriety, it makes your eyes water. The expenses scandal of last year which exposed a huge swathe of ridiculous and unjustifiable claims is not exactly a model of how to run a clean and fair democratic system.
Then of course we have those fine upholders of truth and decency the newspapers who have hounded Terry over his obligation to resign after this dastardly and despicable act. It is a truth universally acknowledged that not one brave reporter or fine, upstanding newspaper executive has ever cheated on his wife. And then there was Gary Lineker making snide comments on Match of The Day about Terry “playing away” when his own fidelity record is not exactly pure as the driven snow.
These boys know how to conduct themselves alright and that Terry is a cad. Indeed they are so convinced of the moral high ground that they have been waving hundreds of thousands of pounds to get his mistress to tell the unvarnished truth. Thank God for the fearless journalists who are so nobly bringing the truth to a front page near you.
Nobody can defend the central defender’s actions and it must be heart-rending for the victims in this imbroglio, Wayne Bridge and Mrs T. It must be especially hard to accept as this is being splashed across the pages of newspapers up and down the country but the truth must out.
It would seem hard to outdo the cant that so many have been involved with but someone got pretty close on the 5 Live 606 phone-in on Saturday night. A Liverpool fan phoned to register her moral outrage at the actions of the English captain. The very minimum that was required, she argued, was that Terry should not be able to wear the captain’s armband for his country ever again.
So this harpie must have thought that when her beloved club captain Stephen Gerrard was seen on cctv punching a man repeatedly in the face, that this was conduct acceptable in a man of authority. True, Gerrard was acquitted but the evidence of the assault was still there for all to see and the legal niceties of provocation and circumstance do not disguise a cowardly and vicious assault.
Clearly, in this woman’s eyes, it is just fine and dandy compared to a spot of infidelity. The concern is that so many people side with her and the country’s moral compass is spinning wildly out of control. What is worst is the attitude of the media and the establishment.
It has got nothing to do with his ability to lead England at the World Cup in South Africa but according to Sutcliffe he needs to lead by example. MPs show everyone how to behave by acting with such impropriety, it makes your eyes water. The expenses scandal of last year which exposed a huge swathe of ridiculous and unjustifiable claims is not exactly a model of how to run a clean and fair democratic system.
Then of course we have those fine upholders of truth and decency the newspapers who have hounded Terry over his obligation to resign after this dastardly and despicable act. It is a truth universally acknowledged that not one brave reporter or fine, upstanding newspaper executive has ever cheated on his wife. And then there was Gary Lineker making snide comments on Match of The Day about Terry “playing away” when his own fidelity record is not exactly pure as the driven snow.
These boys know how to conduct themselves alright and that Terry is a cad. Indeed they are so convinced of the moral high ground that they have been waving hundreds of thousands of pounds to get his mistress to tell the unvarnished truth. Thank God for the fearless journalists who are so nobly bringing the truth to a front page near you.
Nobody can defend the central defender’s actions and it must be heart-rending for the victims in this imbroglio, Wayne Bridge and Mrs T. It must be especially hard to accept as this is being splashed across the pages of newspapers up and down the country but the truth must out.
It would seem hard to outdo the cant that so many have been involved with but someone got pretty close on the 5 Live 606 phone-in on Saturday night. A Liverpool fan phoned to register her moral outrage at the actions of the English captain. The very minimum that was required, she argued, was that Terry should not be able to wear the captain’s armband for his country ever again.
So this harpie must have thought that when her beloved club captain Stephen Gerrard was seen on cctv punching a man repeatedly in the face, that this was conduct acceptable in a man of authority. True, Gerrard was acquitted but the evidence of the assault was still there for all to see and the legal niceties of provocation and circumstance do not disguise a cowardly and vicious assault.
Clearly, in this woman’s eyes, it is just fine and dandy compared to a spot of infidelity. The concern is that so many people side with her and the country’s moral compass is spinning wildly out of control. What is worst is the attitude of the media and the establishment.
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Eagles' ruffled feathers
It’s at times like these that I really regret our nickname. For subeditors it’s a heaven sent gift to be able to indulge in endless wordplay with Eagles, if it’s not “feathers ruffled” it’s “falls prey” and there’s always the classic “not so golden”. Those subs have been honing their fine art for a few months now as, after a succession of missed or late payments to the players, there was an inevitability over disappearing down the administration plughole.
Indeed the writing has been on the wall for a lot longer, when Simon “Tango skin” Jordan announced he wanted to get out of the club over a year ago, the only place we were heading to was the accountants’ offices, not the Premiership. Being a fan who fears the worst earlier in the season I had taken to deducting 10 points from our total and seeing where it left us in the table. Then I stupidly, naively stopped this practice as 2010 came along, thinking we’ve managed to sail through those choppy waters and now had arrived in a calmer environment.
So when my wife turned to me in the car and asked gravely whether I had been listening to the news recently, I feared another humanitarian disaster or some terrible terrorist act. Her sombre tones hung menacingly. “It’s Palace and it’s bad...” she tailed off but she did not need to go any further as I knew our fate at once. A ten point deduction was all that revolved around my aching brain and I returned to a mental calculation of the Championship table and saw us hovering just above the Plimsoll line.
It is quite a weird experience living in the post points docking world or PPD as it’s better known. Because suddenly, the teams you were worried about nicking the play-off place from their rightful owners are now over the hill and far away, and the radar has to be reset to the strugglers’ end of the table. So rather than fretting about Blackpool’s surge up the table, overnight that has become irrelevant and now Sheffield Wednesday’s renaissance is in the crosshairs.
But I managed to console myself that at least the timing of this draconian measure was ok. How much better it is to take it on the chin mid-season when you have a) a points tally to deduct from and b) there is time left in the season to repair some of the damage. So rather than face the start of the season playing catch-up or be docked at the end where there is no room for manoeuvre, we now just have a mountain to climb wearing slippers and a flimsy t-shirt. Brilliant.
To make matters worse if that is possible, I have been successfully luring my 8 year-old son into the ways of Selhurst Park. He knows that it’s a rollercoaster ride and there are bad days and then slightly less bad days but when I tried to explain to him the concept of administration and the finer points of the accountancy art (which to be fair is a slightly dark and mysterious one to me) he started to wince. Then when I had finished my meandering drivel on our financial and league position impoverishment, he looked at me wisely and summed it up in a few succinct words. “So we lost then.” I couldn’t have put it better myself and I tried.
Indeed the writing has been on the wall for a lot longer, when Simon “Tango skin” Jordan announced he wanted to get out of the club over a year ago, the only place we were heading to was the accountants’ offices, not the Premiership. Being a fan who fears the worst earlier in the season I had taken to deducting 10 points from our total and seeing where it left us in the table. Then I stupidly, naively stopped this practice as 2010 came along, thinking we’ve managed to sail through those choppy waters and now had arrived in a calmer environment.
So when my wife turned to me in the car and asked gravely whether I had been listening to the news recently, I feared another humanitarian disaster or some terrible terrorist act. Her sombre tones hung menacingly. “It’s Palace and it’s bad...” she tailed off but she did not need to go any further as I knew our fate at once. A ten point deduction was all that revolved around my aching brain and I returned to a mental calculation of the Championship table and saw us hovering just above the Plimsoll line.
It is quite a weird experience living in the post points docking world or PPD as it’s better known. Because suddenly, the teams you were worried about nicking the play-off place from their rightful owners are now over the hill and far away, and the radar has to be reset to the strugglers’ end of the table. So rather than fretting about Blackpool’s surge up the table, overnight that has become irrelevant and now Sheffield Wednesday’s renaissance is in the crosshairs.
But I managed to console myself that at least the timing of this draconian measure was ok. How much better it is to take it on the chin mid-season when you have a) a points tally to deduct from and b) there is time left in the season to repair some of the damage. So rather than face the start of the season playing catch-up or be docked at the end where there is no room for manoeuvre, we now just have a mountain to climb wearing slippers and a flimsy t-shirt. Brilliant.
To make matters worse if that is possible, I have been successfully luring my 8 year-old son into the ways of Selhurst Park. He knows that it’s a rollercoaster ride and there are bad days and then slightly less bad days but when I tried to explain to him the concept of administration and the finer points of the accountancy art (which to be fair is a slightly dark and mysterious one to me) he started to wince. Then when I had finished my meandering drivel on our financial and league position impoverishment, he looked at me wisely and summed it up in a few succinct words. “So we lost then.” I couldn’t have put it better myself and I tried.
Monday, 25 January 2010
Man United top, but for how long?
So after disposing of Hull 4-0, Manchester United stand top of the Premiership as of late January. Plus ca change. Well actually, this may not be the normal order being restored, but more of a false dawn. Cracks are appearing in the edifice that Fergie has built and it would take a myopic fool to ignore the evidence. All the facts suggests that Man United are on the wane and the only way is down.
Is this the moment we have all been waiting for? Ferguson’s reign of pugilistic pestilence is beginning to unravel. After all we have been waiting for this epoch for many years now. Man United’s bubble is finally, after two decades of success, about to burst. The aura of invincibility has begun to show serious signs of stress. It could hardly be a more opportune moment to revel in the demise of the great leviathan of English club football. It has been a period of unparalleled dominance but one feels it is coming to an end, and coming soon.
Firstly, there are the financial shenanigans, which are plaguing even the biggest club in the world. The Glazers issuing of a £500 million bond looks like papering over some of the cracks but the debts are mounting despite increasing turnover. The major problem is the wage bil, which rose from £92m in 2007 to £123m in 2009, and there are fewer players on the roster so the actual increases are staggering in the harshest economic times. The air is thick with grumbling and dissension as fans express their disillusionment with the way the club is being run (into the ground?).
If the finances are in a mess then the playing side is not exactly rosy. Good players have left and not been adequately replaced. Between them, Ronaldo and Tevez contributed 87 goals in the previous two seasons, one can hardly imagine Valencia and Obertan replicating this and at the midpoint of current season they had amassed 5 goals. Berbatov is a classy forward but is becoming better known for his surliness than his silky skills.
But it’s not just the exits and entries that are causing concern in the corridors of Old Trafford, the squad is looking increasingly old and frangible. Giggs, Neville, Scholes are no spring chickens despite Giggs’ remarkable fitness there is only so much time left on those body clocks. Ferguson is struggling to replace them and more crucially there is no clear successor to Van Der Sar as neither Foster nor Kuszczak are budding Schmeichels.
There is depth to the squad but injuries to key players have undermined the quality – O’Shea, Ferdinand, Hargreaves (remember him) – have played fewer games than would be expected. There is an over-reliance on Rooney who is consistently brilliant as exemplified by his scoring all 4 against Hull. But he is not Atlas and cannot carry the rest of them on his admittedly broad shoulders. He looked exasperated during the Carling Cup semi final defeat at Eastlands and no wonder. Like England there will be a wailing and gnashing of teeth if he sustains any injury.
We have been here before and Ferguson, the master alchemist, usually pulls a string of rabbits out of his bobble hat. But the traditional January surge is not powering up and their sloppy Cup performances are maybe an indication that the good ship Fergie is listing. His recent admission that he is losing patience with some of his players is a rare and perhaps revealing insight into the travails at Old Trafford.
Is this the moment we have all been waiting for? Ferguson’s reign of pugilistic pestilence is beginning to unravel. After all we have been waiting for this epoch for many years now. Man United’s bubble is finally, after two decades of success, about to burst. The aura of invincibility has begun to show serious signs of stress. It could hardly be a more opportune moment to revel in the demise of the great leviathan of English club football. It has been a period of unparalleled dominance but one feels it is coming to an end, and coming soon.
Firstly, there are the financial shenanigans, which are plaguing even the biggest club in the world. The Glazers issuing of a £500 million bond looks like papering over some of the cracks but the debts are mounting despite increasing turnover. The major problem is the wage bil, which rose from £92m in 2007 to £123m in 2009, and there are fewer players on the roster so the actual increases are staggering in the harshest economic times. The air is thick with grumbling and dissension as fans express their disillusionment with the way the club is being run (into the ground?).
If the finances are in a mess then the playing side is not exactly rosy. Good players have left and not been adequately replaced. Between them, Ronaldo and Tevez contributed 87 goals in the previous two seasons, one can hardly imagine Valencia and Obertan replicating this and at the midpoint of current season they had amassed 5 goals. Berbatov is a classy forward but is becoming better known for his surliness than his silky skills.
But it’s not just the exits and entries that are causing concern in the corridors of Old Trafford, the squad is looking increasingly old and frangible. Giggs, Neville, Scholes are no spring chickens despite Giggs’ remarkable fitness there is only so much time left on those body clocks. Ferguson is struggling to replace them and more crucially there is no clear successor to Van Der Sar as neither Foster nor Kuszczak are budding Schmeichels.
There is depth to the squad but injuries to key players have undermined the quality – O’Shea, Ferdinand, Hargreaves (remember him) – have played fewer games than would be expected. There is an over-reliance on Rooney who is consistently brilliant as exemplified by his scoring all 4 against Hull. But he is not Atlas and cannot carry the rest of them on his admittedly broad shoulders. He looked exasperated during the Carling Cup semi final defeat at Eastlands and no wonder. Like England there will be a wailing and gnashing of teeth if he sustains any injury.
We have been here before and Ferguson, the master alchemist, usually pulls a string of rabbits out of his bobble hat. But the traditional January surge is not powering up and their sloppy Cup performances are maybe an indication that the good ship Fergie is listing. His recent admission that he is losing patience with some of his players is a rare and perhaps revealing insight into the travails at Old Trafford.
Saturday, 16 January 2010
Snickgate
In its relatively short life the review system has attracted a fair amount of controversy. With a few “no ball” dismissals missed here and there the pressure on the TV umpire has ratcheted up. And unfortunately, Darryl Harper has proved to be not up to the job. Having being moved out of the firing line after a poor on-field performance in the Third Test, he is now in the cross hairs of England’s ire.
In general I am a supporter of the system as if it works well it irons out any errors. However, it’s a bit more difficult to approve if it then commits further errors. Other major problems are that it firstly can undermine the on-field umpire’s authority and also teams can use it as a measure of desperation.
Hapless Harper has managed to make a right old horlicks of this in the Fourth test. How the ICC had the temerity to defend Harper’s Howler for not picking up the snick of Graeme Smith’s bat is one of those denials of spin that A. Campbell would have been proud. Forget who turned the volume up or down, it is an error and there should be a hand or two held up in acceptance of getting a decision wrong. But no, it was knocked back like a Boycott dead bat.
The irony is that they are rightly using technology to help make the right decisions but do not have the full kit e.g. hot spot, snickometer. The lack of important equipment is justified by the cost but that is pretty feeble. The mistakes made create ill feeling and take away from what has been a wonderfully topsy turvy series.
If as looks likely (at lunch on Day Three), England lose the game they will bemoan their luck and rail against the unfairness of the system rather than reflect on their inept batting performance in the first innings which will be the crucial factor.
The ICC have got themselves into a proper pickle as mistakes are being made with the review system. Someone needs to take responsibility but this is the ICC and that is never going to happen. After all the ICC stands for Incompetent, Clueless Clowns.
In general I am a supporter of the system as if it works well it irons out any errors. However, it’s a bit more difficult to approve if it then commits further errors. Other major problems are that it firstly can undermine the on-field umpire’s authority and also teams can use it as a measure of desperation.
Hapless Harper has managed to make a right old horlicks of this in the Fourth test. How the ICC had the temerity to defend Harper’s Howler for not picking up the snick of Graeme Smith’s bat is one of those denials of spin that A. Campbell would have been proud. Forget who turned the volume up or down, it is an error and there should be a hand or two held up in acceptance of getting a decision wrong. But no, it was knocked back like a Boycott dead bat.
The irony is that they are rightly using technology to help make the right decisions but do not have the full kit e.g. hot spot, snickometer. The lack of important equipment is justified by the cost but that is pretty feeble. The mistakes made create ill feeling and take away from what has been a wonderfully topsy turvy series.
If as looks likely (at lunch on Day Three), England lose the game they will bemoan their luck and rail against the unfairness of the system rather than reflect on their inept batting performance in the first innings which will be the crucial factor.
The ICC have got themselves into a proper pickle as mistakes are being made with the review system. Someone needs to take responsibility but this is the ICC and that is never going to happen. After all the ICC stands for Incompetent, Clueless Clowns.
Bush Fire
I always was under the impression that QPR stood for Queens Park Rangers but now I realise I was misguided, as it really means Quick Personnel Rotation.
One has to wonder what is next up on the Shepherds Bush merry-go-round. A tally of six (nine if you include caretakers) managers in the space of a few years makes Man City look like the model of stability and conservatism.
Chairman Flavio Briatore is not just content to be an arch exponent of revolving door recruitment but he is now bringing in some spectacularly new and exciting ways of jettisoning managers. Take the unique Jim Magilton school of departure. He pioneered the “Beat the living daylights out of one of your better players in the dressing rooms at Vicarage Road” style. An absolute classic.
Paul Hart has mastered the “I haven’t been in charge of the club for five minutes (well to be precise five matches Paul) and they get shot of me” shock to the system farewell. Followed by the original and never to be repeated “I wish I had stayed at Portsmouth” line.
Let us not forget, this is the same club that a few years ago pre- Briatore, a director, Gianni Paladini had a falling out with a major shareholder, David Morris. Mr. Morris then took the only sensible option left by getting a gang of “associates” to pull a gun on said director. Although it wasn’t that sensible as he took his action on a matchday when there were approximately 250 policemen in the vicinity.
One wonders who is next in line for the vacant manager’s seat, how long they might last and perhaps most intriguingly what novel twist in leaving Loftus Road Signior Briatore will conjure up this time round. Whatever happens it will be worth watching. QPR aka Quite Pathetic Really.
One has to wonder what is next up on the Shepherds Bush merry-go-round. A tally of six (nine if you include caretakers) managers in the space of a few years makes Man City look like the model of stability and conservatism.
Chairman Flavio Briatore is not just content to be an arch exponent of revolving door recruitment but he is now bringing in some spectacularly new and exciting ways of jettisoning managers. Take the unique Jim Magilton school of departure. He pioneered the “Beat the living daylights out of one of your better players in the dressing rooms at Vicarage Road” style. An absolute classic.
Paul Hart has mastered the “I haven’t been in charge of the club for five minutes (well to be precise five matches Paul) and they get shot of me” shock to the system farewell. Followed by the original and never to be repeated “I wish I had stayed at Portsmouth” line.
Let us not forget, this is the same club that a few years ago pre- Briatore, a director, Gianni Paladini had a falling out with a major shareholder, David Morris. Mr. Morris then took the only sensible option left by getting a gang of “associates” to pull a gun on said director. Although it wasn’t that sensible as he took his action on a matchday when there were approximately 250 policemen in the vicinity.
One wonders who is next in line for the vacant manager’s seat, how long they might last and perhaps most intriguingly what novel twist in leaving Loftus Road Signior Briatore will conjure up this time round. Whatever happens it will be worth watching. QPR aka Quite Pathetic Really.
Wednesday, 13 January 2010
Hicks Tricks Ricks
Hicks Junior was clearly absent when the customer care seminar was held at Anfield. If he had been there he might have picked up a couple of do’s and dont’s. In the latter category calling a supporter fuckface would have been fairly high up the list. He also must have missed the bit about “the customer is always right” and treat everyone with due respect.
The Hicks family were not exactly flavour of the month on Merseyside beforehand and young Hicks has not helped their cause. One can only shiver at the reaction of a Shankly or Paisley to such crass insensitivity, stupidity, idiocy. Such a situation would have been inconceivable a few decades when football club board members were at best anonymous, and only the chairman had any visibility.
So the new world order in English football sees more and more high profile foreign raiders muscling in on a game that used to be the preserve of the working class fans and middle class owners. Only Randy Lerner, the wonderfully named but low key, Aston Villa chairman has managed to make a positive impact compared to the debt-guzzling Glazers or the ham-fisted Hicks.
But in the end does it really matter who owns our club? Of course ownership doesn’t matter per se but as finances play an increasingly bigger part in the running of the clubs, then the liquidity and leverage quotients do begin to creep into pre-match chat in the pubs around Fratton Park and beyond.
So now we have reached the point where balance sheets mean more than clean sheets then maybe it’s time, as Hicks Jnr PR might have put it, to tell football “to go to hell”.
The Hicks family were not exactly flavour of the month on Merseyside beforehand and young Hicks has not helped their cause. One can only shiver at the reaction of a Shankly or Paisley to such crass insensitivity, stupidity, idiocy. Such a situation would have been inconceivable a few decades when football club board members were at best anonymous, and only the chairman had any visibility.
So the new world order in English football sees more and more high profile foreign raiders muscling in on a game that used to be the preserve of the working class fans and middle class owners. Only Randy Lerner, the wonderfully named but low key, Aston Villa chairman has managed to make a positive impact compared to the debt-guzzling Glazers or the ham-fisted Hicks.
But in the end does it really matter who owns our club? Of course ownership doesn’t matter per se but as finances play an increasingly bigger part in the running of the clubs, then the liquidity and leverage quotients do begin to creep into pre-match chat in the pubs around Fratton Park and beyond.
So now we have reached the point where balance sheets mean more than clean sheets then maybe it’s time, as Hicks Jnr PR might have put it, to tell football “to go to hell”.
Friday, 8 January 2010
England's Great Escape - Part Two
It certainly makes for an exciting and dramatic diversion from the bleak midwinter we are currently enduring, but if I have to listen to any more last wicket heroics from G. Onions & Co. I’m not sure that my heart will be able to withstand the pressure. The euphoria of relief in England’s hairy escapology in the First and Third Tests against South Africa outweighs the pleasure in the convincing innings victory in Durban.
The crucial element in any sporting delight is the joy of the unexpected and when the result is not known until the last possible moment. However laudable and merited the Second Test win proved to be, the game had none of the excruciating tension of the drawn matches when serenity gave way to danger and potential failure with such alacrity that a loss seemed inevitable on both occasions. It is the strange and perverse nature of sport that the pleasure derived from two draws outweighs that of a convincing victory.
But none of the tense heroics of the late order batsmen or the stoic partnership of Bell and Collingwood would have been required if one of the top order batsman had not failed so dismally at Cape Town. Kevin Pietersen is quickly becoming a liability to this England team with his show pony (or should that be stallion) antics; his disregard of the team’s cause is at odds with his teammates. He is undoubtedly one of the most talented players in the world and can dominate any bowling attack when well established.
At the moment he is being picked solely on reputation and certainly not on form nor spirit as his contribution to the team in this series has been negligible. Maybe he is in the side to attract the flak of the South African public for whom he acts as a pantomime villain, and this then allows the other players to hide in relative anonymity behind his huge frame. Looking at the stats for the Cape Town test Pietersen lasted a grand total of 24 balls and amassed 6 runs. When what was required was crease occupation and accumulation he achieved neither.
He was the worst performing of all the top order batsman on either side in terms of number of balls faced (24), runs scored (6) and average (3) over this test. In fact he was the worst performing batsman in all of these categories for the whole England side apart from one area – Onions faced only 20 balls but the big difference was the No.11 was not dismissed in either innings, showing admirable grit and application.
So if the final test match in Johannesburg goes to the wire I know who I would want to be at the crease if the game needs saving and we need the right mixture of character, spirit and determination and his name is not Kevin Pietersen. Would the selectors dare to drop him? It’s highly unlikely but would be justified but that doesn’t mean it will happen. Maybe he is being used as a screen for Broad’s fancy footwork or Anderson’s ham-fisted handiwork.
The crucial element in any sporting delight is the joy of the unexpected and when the result is not known until the last possible moment. However laudable and merited the Second Test win proved to be, the game had none of the excruciating tension of the drawn matches when serenity gave way to danger and potential failure with such alacrity that a loss seemed inevitable on both occasions. It is the strange and perverse nature of sport that the pleasure derived from two draws outweighs that of a convincing victory.
But none of the tense heroics of the late order batsmen or the stoic partnership of Bell and Collingwood would have been required if one of the top order batsman had not failed so dismally at Cape Town. Kevin Pietersen is quickly becoming a liability to this England team with his show pony (or should that be stallion) antics; his disregard of the team’s cause is at odds with his teammates. He is undoubtedly one of the most talented players in the world and can dominate any bowling attack when well established.
At the moment he is being picked solely on reputation and certainly not on form nor spirit as his contribution to the team in this series has been negligible. Maybe he is in the side to attract the flak of the South African public for whom he acts as a pantomime villain, and this then allows the other players to hide in relative anonymity behind his huge frame. Looking at the stats for the Cape Town test Pietersen lasted a grand total of 24 balls and amassed 6 runs. When what was required was crease occupation and accumulation he achieved neither.
He was the worst performing of all the top order batsman on either side in terms of number of balls faced (24), runs scored (6) and average (3) over this test. In fact he was the worst performing batsman in all of these categories for the whole England side apart from one area – Onions faced only 20 balls but the big difference was the No.11 was not dismissed in either innings, showing admirable grit and application.
So if the final test match in Johannesburg goes to the wire I know who I would want to be at the crease if the game needs saving and we need the right mixture of character, spirit and determination and his name is not Kevin Pietersen. Would the selectors dare to drop him? It’s highly unlikely but would be justified but that doesn’t mean it will happen. Maybe he is being used as a screen for Broad’s fancy footwork or Anderson’s ham-fisted handiwork.
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