Magic of the Cup Still Middle-Earth Strong

January 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Leigh Sanders

Over the weekend acclaimed movie director Peter Jackson announced that both Sir Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis had agreed to reprise their roles as Gandalf and Gollum in his much beleaguered two-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s ‘The Hobbit.’

On football pitches up and down the country magic of a very different nature was occurring. It was FA Cup third round weekend; one of the most exciting three days of the English footballing calendar.

It is a time and place where non-league, part-time clubs can lock horns with their multi-million corporation counterparts from the Premier League. A level playing field which could pitch a milkman, a maths teacher and a window cleaner against the pampered egos of top flight football. It is very much David vs. Goliath.

Recent years have seen the competition’s stature dwindle somewhat among the country’s leading clubs. Many see Premier League survival or Champions League qualification (or rather the financial benefits of each scenario) as more important than the every-man-for-himself glory of progressing through the draw to Wembley and a chance to lift one of the world’s most famous trophies.

Following their unprecedented domestic treble in 1999 Manchester United opted out of defending the FA Cup in the 99/2000 season in order to take their place in FIFA’s new World Club Championships which got underway place on third round weekend.

Since that decision many have questioned the modern value of the FA Cup as more and more top sides field weaker teams against “lesser” opposition from lower divisions. The Football Association (FA) have recently talked about renovating the competition by eliminating aspects such as the reply to help ease fixture congestion and keep larger clubs interested.

Yet the FA Cup replay is what keeps most of the smaller clubs hooked. Take, for example, Blue Square Premier side York City who travelled to Premier League Bolton Wanderers this weekend for their third round tie. Defending expertly and earning a draw would mean not only plaudits and your name up in bright lights but also a chance to get at your more illustrious opposition in your own back yard, where they will be less comfortable, and perhaps snatch an unlikely victory. The said reply will also be a high earner for York with a sell-out crowd guaranteed and an extra mound of income should Sky Sports choose to televise the tie.

At a time of such financial uncertainty for most football clubs why rob teams like York of a wad of extra cash which could help keep staff employed? With relations between the FA and the Premier League as strained as ever the governing body of English football should be defending the smaller sides, not making life harder for them in order to appease the financial giants.

But while the higher echelons of the English game were having their loyalties questioned the action on the pitch once again laughed off any possibility of disinterest in the FA Cup from players and supporters alike.

At Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium nearly 9,000 Leeds United fans travelled south to cheer their team on hoping for a repeat of last year’s third round where they made the short trip over The Pennines to face fierce rivals Manchester United and came away with a shock 1-0 victory. It was Sir Alex Ferguson’s first defeat at this hurdle of the competition in his entire tenure at Old Trafford. They almost dished out the same treatment to Arsene Wenger. Leading 1-0 through a Robert Snodgrass stonewall penalty it took a last minute questionable pen from Cesc Fabregas, after Theo Walcott seemed to tumble a little too easily inside the area, to level things up and earn Arsenal a second chance up at Leeds’ Elland Road where a partisan Yorkshire crowd will make life extremely difficult for the Londoners.

Reading overcame Premier League West Bromwich Albion thanks to a well taken goal from Ireland international Shane Long while Notts County pulled off a much deserved if sparsely predicted 2-1 win at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light. There were also victories over higher division opposition for Burton Albion, Brighton & Hove Albion, Sheffield Wednesday, Leyton Orient, Southampton, Crawley Town and Torquay United. Sven Goran Eriksson’s Leicester City earned a replay with the world’s richest club Manchester City after a hard fought and vastly entertaining 2-2 draw at the Walkers Stadium, Cardiff City will replay with Stoke City after a 1-1 draw at The Britannia Stadium and Doncaster Rovers will get a replay at Wolves’ Molineux stadium after a 2-2 draw at their own Keepmoat home.

Yet the greatest story of the weekend came from Broadway Hall where League Two Stevenage Borough ran out 3-1 victors over Premier League Newcastle United to avenge their feisty and somewhat unfortunate defeat to the Magpies in the fourth round back in 1998.

Goals, bookings, a sending off and even Stevenage left back Scott Laird getting punched and knocked out by his own fan over an ex-girlfriend. This match had everything!

Newcastle fielded a strong side containing many Premier League regulars and experienced internationals which makes the result even better for Graham Westley’s Stevenage, who he had told to go and win this one 5-0. If there is anybody still questioning the “magic” of the FA Cup then they should just be handed a DVD of this match to shut them up.

I hope the bigwigs at the Football Association thinking of altering this excellent format were taking note too. It is one of the remaining bastions of old-worldy football where money has no bearing and you are only as good as your performance on the pitch.

To chop and change this around would kill off the hopes of every “little man” in the sport and would completely engulf football in a blanket made of cash. It would be the death of our favourite pastime as we know it. And then we might as well pack it all in and find ourselves a new hobby. Knitting anyone?


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Mullin’N Musin’ Over The Mavs

January 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Alex Curtis-Slep

The Dallas Mavericks have steamrolled through their last stretch of games. They’ve beaten the Celtics, Heat and Spurs over this time. So, can this team legitimately compete for a title?

While their execution has been brilliant of late, this team still isn’t equipped to win four straight playoff series. First, the weak points of their hot streak: the last month (November 27th to December 27th) of games featured only five road games. Secondly, stretches of this run have featured multiple games against below .500 teams (Minnesota, Sacramento, New Jersey). The month also threw only two back-to-backs at Dallas.
The Mavericks have only performed a wee bit better than expected during the easiest part of their schedule. As more road games and back-to-backs pile up, the likelihood of them maintaining their pace is slim. Every team, no matter how good they can be, inevitably has let down games. The latter end of a back-to-back, a few hard games in a row and traveling can make a team look awful. Despite the Mavs strong play to date, let down games will happen, guaranteed. The best teams go on their three or four game losing streaks. Even NBA players are human.
Back to the playoffs, the season that actually matters.
Dallas has solid depth, but one place they are weak is skilled centers. This is largely the lost luxury for teams on the cusp of being elite (the teams that have skilled centers are the Lakers, Magic and Celtics). Tyson Chandler and Brendan Haywood get the minutes at center and while they’re solid, long defenders, they mostly pick up scraps offensively.
While Dirk can post up and fade away for a jumper, the Mavs have no traditional post presence.
This is why I can’t give the Mavs the seal of approval. When the jumpers aren’t falling and drives aren’t effective due to strong D, what will the Mavs do? They don’t really have an answer, they don’t have a player who can post and toast
(Clyde Fraizer voice).
Adding to the big man woes is poor Brendan Haywood, who has looked atrocious on the free throw line this season. He’s shooting about 28% and his form looks dopey. In the playoffs, couldn’t a hack-a-Haywood be a great strategy? YES! Even though he plays only 18 minutes a game, teams could force him off the floor, or capitalize on his awful performance at the strike. This would limit the Mavs depth and/or scoring.
Also, let’s not forget injuries, which are causing the Mavs trouble right now. Injuries to Dirk and Caron Butler are hurting during a more difficult part of their season. If injuries pile up like the have for Boston recently, their team could lose their edge. Stars aren’t usually replaced. Hopefully Dallas is at full health when it matters most.
Dallas has earned some praise for their recent performance. They’ve shown strong play on both ends, played a team game and beat some decent competition over the last month. Winning in November and December means nothing if you’re not “the,” winner in June, though.

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Swede Opens Door To Idiocy

January 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Beaker

This is just me, but if it were me, and remember it’s just me, I toss this Niklas Svedberg’s sorry ass out of the league – if proven to be premeditaded. THAT, can result in a broken back or neck. Better yet, have him go through it and see how he feels.

Dude seriously has issues to pull such a stunt. Punk.


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Beckham Loves Media Attention

January 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Leigh Sanders

Not content with his Lifetime Achievement Award from the BBC at their recent Sports Personality of the Year Awards Ceremony, David Beckham decided that his name should further be plastered across the back pages as he angled for yet another loan move to Europe in order to “save his England career.”

As with previous seasons “Sir” David has decided not to rest his ageing and increasingly injured body during the MLS off-season and opt for another blast at a top European league in the hope of playing his way back in to England manager Fabio Capello’s side.

The previous two seasons Italian giants AC Milan have been his destination of choice but last season’s stint ended in tragedy as a ruptured Achilles tendon put paid to any further play for LA Galaxy and ended his chances of representing England at the 2010 World Cup, the reason he supposedly went in the first place.

So having given arguably England’s greatest product of the last quarter of a century a substantial sum to up sticks from Madrid and head over the Atlantic to Los Angeles in 2007, and having seen England’s most-capped player of all time play in roughly half of the matches that have taken place since then through injury and travel you can understand why Beckham’s latest announcement has been met with such derision Stateside.

There have famously been two spats between Beckham and supporters over his perceived lack of commitment and alleged off-field misdemeanours since joining the club. The videos can be viewed all over the internet. Now, once again, the distrust has reared its ugly head as Beckham and London’s Tottenham Hotspur have very publicly been courting each other in the face of the Galaxy fanatics.

“I personally do not go to the HDC [Galaxy stadium The Home Depot Center] for Beckham,” posted barroldinho on BigSoccer.com. “But he’s the reason we pay what we do and if this club is going to charge us for the privelege of having a…[player] who places us behind loans and an England team that has twice declared him finished (and whose “fans” do nothing but whine and boo – I say that as an Englishman), we should either get what we paid for or have the price adjusted accordingly.”

“So…he just keeps on doing this? He freaking promised that he will play a full season for us next year. So ****ing do it,” added crookeddy.

“Annoying,” adds propeller74. “I wish that he would just let the England thing go…I appreciate his desire to play for his country, but unfortunately it comes off as selfish as his country really doesn’t want him to play! He’s doing it for what reason?”

And those are some of the nicer ones.

You also have to look at it from the Spurs perspective. Do they really need DB23? The move has already been derided in some quarters as a marketing ploy by the club, which they have rubbished, but of course that’s one of the reasons they’ll plump for him.

They’ll argue that players like Rafael Van der Vaart already have the marketing department covered and that Champions League football already brings the money in. But the shirt sales alone in England, America and Asia, even for just a short loan stint, would further boost the coffers and help give manager Harry Redknapp even more to splash on new players.

Redknapp himself has rubbished the money side of the move: “We’ve got no-one else to play on the right…I’m sure he can still do a great job at the top level otherwise I wouldn’t bother. He isn’t going to come here and get big money – we aren’t massive payers at this club. But he wants to come over here to the freezing cold and play football. Doesn’t that tell you something about the boy?”

But is this true? Redknapp talks about using Beckham on the right but in the same interview speaks of how he has never been the quickest player. Redknapp is one of the few Premier League managers to still use out-and-out wingers in the relatively dinosaur manner of bursting down the wings and putting the ball on the head of big striker Peter Crouch. Is Beckham still able to do so?

Many see the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star as best suited to a central berth these days where his passing ability can be utilised to full effect. But Spurs have the likes of Tom Huddlestone, Luka Modric and of course Van der Vaart who are all equally adept at creating chances and are younger, quicker and arguably much fitter too.

There is no doubt that Beckham would be fantastic to have around the club in terms of leadership and experience and would no doubt help the younger players enter the knockout stages of The Champions League for the first time with his advice and calm manner. But would it be worth the money they will be paying him and his club to do so?

And what would happen if Beckham again put himself out of action for a long period? The Galaxy fans would quite rightly be miffed at yet another action of apparent un-cooperativeness as they chase glories of their own.

Modern, money-driven football means that Galaxy would undoubtedly accept a European offer to borrow their star asset for a couple of months. But could Beckham, a famed multi-millionaire, ignore the lure of one last big European hurrah and put the needs of his club and supporters, who pay a large proportion of his lucrative wage, before his own in a bid to lead Galaxy to MLS Glory?

Nah, unfortunately I don’t think so either.


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All Is Not Well At The Bridge

December 31, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Leigh Sanders

The body language said it all. Dejected superstars trudged back towards the dressing rooms at the Emirates as the roars of supporters so used to tasting despairing defeat at their hands rung round their heads like the crashing waves of a tempestuous ocean.

Chelsea made it six games without a victory in the league on a run which is as far away as you could possibly be from their explosive start to the season where hitting five or six was the norm.

It is their worst run in the Premier League since 1999 and The Blues now stand with their lowest Christmas points haul under Roman Abramovich’s hugely successful tenure. Jose Mourinho simply would not have stood for such a scenario.

What must be most frustrating for the Chelsea faithful is the devastating tidal wave of injuries which has decimated their squad at times this season. In previous years this would not have been a problem due to the size of the playing staff employed by the club. But the new 25-player squad ruling deployed by the Premier League coupled with the intent of Abramovich to reel in the spending in order to make Chelsea more self-sufficient means for the first time in many seasons Carlo Ancelotti doesn’t have a mammoth squad of world-class talent to call upon.

At times this season Chelsea’s bench has looked about as fearsome as a three-legged elderly tiger whose sabres have cracked and staggered. While they have some obvious stars of the future in their ranks these players are being exposed to such high-pressure situations at a tender age merely so Chelsea can enter a match with a full compliment of players.

Gael Kakuta continues to improve with his quick feet and eye for a pass while Josh McEachran is well thought of within the corridors of their Cobham training headquarters.

But these guys are reasonably wet behind the ears when it comes to the cut and thrust of Premier League football and it remains a fact that beyond the first eleven Chelsea lack the consistent firepower of their title rivals Manchester United, Arsenal and now Manchester City. Could it be argued Tottenham Hotspur too?

Manager Ancelotti is a winner. He always has been throughout a vastly successful career most coaches would be envious of. He is not used to situations such as this. Neither, for that matter, is his employer Abramovich.

“Obviously he won’t be happy at this moment,” said the Italian when asked about the safety of his job. “I will take my responsibility but this is a question you have to ask him, not me.

“I’m not afraid about my job. Everyone said I did a fantastic job last year. Now people are asking me about my job. We have to do better, obviously. It’s not usual that Chelsea can’t win for six games.”

The recent sackings of Chris Hughton and Sam Allardyce coupled with the continuing speculation surrounding Roy Hodgson at Liverpool and Mark Hughes at Chelsea’s bitter neighbours Fulham means Ancelotti would be an incredibly naïve man to believe he would never get the boot given his glittering past. Last season’s domestic double would count for nothing if Chelsea fail to snare the Premier League once more or, alternatively, lift the one trophy Abramovich covets more than any other – The Champions League.

The way this season is going Chelsea are by no means in serious trouble despite being six points behind and a game ahead of United. But this is historically the point where The Red Devils really kick in to gear and fans of the blue sectors of Manchester and London as well as the North London Gunners will be well aware of this.

Despite the Russian billionaire’s recent prudence the pressure may now be on him to dig deep to help save a floundering season when the transfer window opens in a few days.

But will he be so willing when Ancelotti’s summer buys haven’t exactly set the Stamford Bridge turf alight? Football pundits the length and breadth of Britain are scratching their heads as to what Brazilian Ramires actually does. Dynamic wing-man Yossi Benayoun has been dogged by injury since his cut-price summer switch from Liverpool and hasn’t been seen in first-team action for some time.

Yet in Petr Cech they have one of the world’s safest keepers as his save from Samir Nasri’s cheeky chip Monday night proved. John Terry remains one of the country’s great defenders while the Serb Branoslav Ivanovic is enjoying his best season yet alongside him. Though injury has curtailed Frank Lampard this term he is now back in the first team picture and is a guaranteed 20-goal-a-season midfielder and Florent Malouda, Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba are as a good front three as you could ask for when on form.

It is certainly not panic stations yet but Chelsea really need to “wake up” as Ancelotti puts it and pull their fingers out before this season passes them by. Whether something has happened in the dressing room that the press have, for once, not picked up on we don’t know.

It may just be another twist in a bizarre Premier League season which rights itself in three weeks’ time and Chelsea go on knocking goals in for fun once more. For their fans’ sake I hope this is so. Or Ancelotti could become the highest Premier League casualty since the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ Mourinho himself.


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Professional Sports Is About Winning

December 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Alex

Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules, and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence; in other words it is war minus the shooting. George Orwell, 1945.

We often forget this brutal fact when we intellectualize about sports. We expect too much from pro athletes sometimes. It’s almost as if we expect them to act like gentleman-amateurs from a time long ago. Too many writers write as if they’re shocked five year-olds whenever they learn about how athletes think and act.

Too often, writers write exactly like they’ve never played sports or have a clue what makes up the DNA of an athlete. They spend too energy what ought to be while not accepting what is. Maybe questions are sterile precisely because athletes aren’t all articulate or particularly interested in coming out sounding smart. They just want to talk sports.

Pro athletes are not there to recite poetry and teach us about gamesmanship. The quicker we understand this fact, the  less we’re treated to acts of literary indignation about the degradation of sports.


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Azzurri Legend Bearzot Dies

December 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

13 298x300 Azzurri Legend Bearzot DiesFormer legendary Azzurri coach Enzo Bearzot passed away yesterday at the age of 83.

An excellent tactician as a coach and center back during his playing days with Pro Gorizia (as well as Catania, Inter and Torino), the pipe-smoking Bearzot is best known for leading Italy to an improbable World Cup triumph in 1982. After three meager and pedastrian draws in group play, the Italians asserted themselves with wins over Argentina (2-1), Brazil (3-2) and Germany (3-1) in the later rounds.

In 1978, he led the exciting Azzurri to an impressive fourth place finish in Argentina  as well as a top four finish at the 1980 European championship. However, it is 1982, with all the acrimony that surrounded striker and eventual Golden Boot winner Paolo Rossi and a match fixing scandal, that remains fixed in the minds of soccer fans.

He would also lead Italy to a disappointing campaign at Euro 1984 and the 1986 World Cup. What I remember most about ’86 was the criticism he faced for bringing back the heroes of 1982 much like how Marcello Lippi was questioned for doing the same in 2010.  

Interestingly, Bearzot never coached in Serie A.

Anyway.

The 1982 edition of the Azzurri is one I will always remember.


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An Eagles Come Back For The Ages

December 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Beaker

Talk about a shift in emotions during the Eagles-Giants game this past Sunday. All I’m going to say is I was astonished that Andy Reid didn’t throw the flag to challenge on DeSean Jackson’s fumble – Jackson later more than made up for it with an incredible punt return that won the game for the Eagles. That braincramp led to a NYG score and a G-men 31-10 lead.

Game over, right?

Nope.

Not on this day.

Vick does deserve his name being considered for MVP.

Well, just watch. A comeback for the ages indeed.


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Who Invented Edinson Cavani?

December 20, 2010 By 2 Comments

For a country with only 3 million people, it sure can produce great players. Of course, to the historically literate among you, this is nothing new as Uruguay has been a world class soccer nation for a long time – as their two World Cup triumphs prove.

At the last World Cup, the soccer planet plainly saw what Ajax fans already knew in Luis Suarez, Atletico Madrid supporters knew in Diego Forlan and what Palermo fans knew (and what Napoli fans know) of Edinson Cavani.

Indeed, Napoli (who are in second place in Serie A behind AC Milan) striker Cavani has been on a vicious scoring streak terrorizing defenses in all competitions. Truth is, this is nothing knew to Cavani. Witness this awesome piece of work against Lecce:


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When Coaches Snap

December 17, 2010 By 2 Comments

By Beaker

The Washington Capitals – Extra! Extra! – aren’t playing all that well these days. In case you haven’t been paying attention. Although, I wouldn’t panic just yet. The Caps sit puuurty on top of the Southeast division and 3rd in the conference with 40 points. I suppose the concern would be in the scoring or lackthereof as Washington – who are blessed with some of the most offensive players in the game led by Alex Ovechkin – have scored 99 times in 33 games good for 5th in the conference.Furthermore, Ovechkin, Nick Backstrom and Alexander Semin sit in 7th, 10th and 11th spots in overall scoring. Is it that bad this early in the season? It’s a rut. Let’s call it that. 

On the flip side, the their goals against record is not very good as they sit way down in 11th while Mike Green is 36th among scoring defenseman with five goals and 14 points. A far cry from where he was the last couple of seasons.

Head coach Bruce Boudreau is having none of it. It’s all about effort as the following tirade shows. Somewhere in that speech lies a Nike marketing slogan. Reminds me of former Quebec Nordiques coach Pierre Page during the 1993 Stanley Cup playoffs when he lashed out after a game against Montreal. Or former Pittsburgh coach Michel Terrien’s ‘menz against boyz’ rant.  Or anything John Tortarella does. Love those guys.


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