"...I decree today is simply taking and not giving,England is mine.It owes me a living..."
Joey Barton loves to quote The Smiths on his Twitter account.As yet i don't think he's posted this particular missive on his page.However it seems appropriate to his philosophy...Talking of which he also likes to quote Nietzsche and Sartre too.He also professes a love of art aswell.I have no idea how much of this is genuine or just affectation to fool the World he's one of the game's thinkers...
As it is he's been courted by the quality newspapers and even copped a gig on on BBC's Newsnight being grilled by the cerebral Jeremy Paxman.There does seem to be a certain amount of patronising going on here,the age old Middle Class conceit of latching on to a supposedly Working Class phenomenon till they grow bored of their pet monkey and discard it like yesterdays Guardian...
I remember when Pat Nevin was given the same treatment and was even a guest editor of the (Then) Hipsters Bible, The NME.But Nevin was a well liked and well respected Footballer who has since become a well liked and respected broadcaster.He also had the self awareness and humility when he played to realise this courtship by the Middle Class media was a passing fad,one to be taken in his stride and not taken too seriously.Barton is a very different animal indeed...
For one thing Barton can't escape his violent and thuggish past,not that he appears to be making much of an attempt too though.No matter how much he protests that he's changed, his actions contradict his words.Witness his assault on three(Three!) players in the recent game V Man City which earned him a twelve match ban.This barely a week after a gushing article appeared in The Observer proclaiming him to be a new man...
Barton's nefarious past includes stubbing a cigar out in the eye of a teamate,attacking a young rival fan in the far East and a vicious attack on a man in the street for which he spent a time in jail.This final assault showed a level of violence that borders on the psychopathic.Barton kept on reigning down kicks and punches on his victim despite him clearly being unconscious.This is not the behaviour of a man in control,nor of one who can be trusted if riled...I can well imagine anyone who knows him well is constantly on guard in his company lest they say the wrong thing which would provoke an attack.Walking on eggshells whenever he's around...
Everything bad that's happened to him both on and off the pitch has been met with a refusal to admit any wrongdoing on his part,he's the master of self justification despite all the evidence pointing otherwise.He also does'nt take criticism well---be it constructive or otherwise---Which is where his Twitter account comes into play...
It's a fact of life that any celebrity will become the victim of abuse from certain members of the public---it's the price of fame i'm afraid---Much of it unwarranted of course.Many rightly laugh it off and take the plaudits they receive from their fans as proof of their worth.They have to grow a very thick skin,footballers usually even more so in many respects.However when someone as clearly unhinged as Barton gets abuse it festers to boiling point.Is it coincidence that in the week before his explosion in the City game he came back on Twitter after a few months sabbatical and received his usual amount of abuse? I don't think so...
So what does the future hold for Barton? There's talk of his club,QPR, wanting to offload him and that would'nt surprise me.However before we congratulate them on taking a moral stand i believe this action would have more to do with practicalities than any moral outrage at his increasingly unstable behaviour.
Barton had a terrible season on the field.The stats say he made the most mis-placed passes in the Premiership.Reason enough to offload him.The ban allows the club to appear to take a stand but the truth is that were he an effective player he'd be retained no matter what he'd done.If you dis-agree and think football does take a moral stand then ask yourself why Terry,Suarez,Pennent,Hughes & King are still employed by their clubs? It's because they still do a good job for their respective clubs.If they did'nt they'd be binned...
I don't imagine Barton is much good for the spirit of a dressing room either.Another reason to get rid, as Pardew recognised when he took over at Newcastle...
When he does become available for transfer i hope my club don't buy him and i imagine many fans of many other clubs feel the same.The Future for Barton does'nt look very bright.Or to quote Nietzsche;
"When you stare into the abyss the abyss stares back at you"
Saturday 26 May 2012
Tuesday 22 May 2012
Cricket Lovely Cricket...
Groucho Marx was once a guest at Lords Cricket ground for a days play of an England test.After an hours' play he turned to his companion and asked "Has it started yet?"
Many people feel this way about England's Summer game.The title of this post should point you to which camp i belong...The 20/20 and one day stuff is all fine and dandy but give me a five day Test match any day.I love the nuances,the individual games within the game.Primarily a team game where each individual can take centre stage to help his team win the Test.To my mind any game where the teams two worst batsmen can hold out for an hour against the worlds No 1 team to earn a draw after 5 days flow and ebb is to be cherished.Many would see that as a waste of 5 days play,but that drawn game was the catalyst to England becoming World No1 themselves...
Growing up in Staffordshire--as it was before my Town became part of The West Midlands---we never had a county team and the names Worcestershire & Warwickshire meant nothing to me.To be honest i have never really taken much notice of the County Championship,more interested in the International scene.This will no doubt piss off the purists among you but that's the way it's always been and the way it will remain.
I was never much of a player.At school i made the team but frankly it was to make up the numbers.Whenever they did actually make up the numbers with decent players i was relegated to the archaic ritual of "scorer".I enjoyed it all though and had no illusions about my talent--or lack of it--You can only get so many first ballers or be smacked through mid wicket by a myopic acne ridden schoolboy so many times before it's obvious that you were never destined to play for England...
When i was growing up all the Test matches in England were on the BBC---Yes it was that long ago when the Beeb cared about sport---So even if you could never get to one live you could see the world greats in your living room...The names trip off the tongue from that era in the 70's/early 80's.Gavaskar,Bedi,Lillie,Thompson,Haynes,Greenidge,Holding,Richards,Kallicharran,Lloyd,Engineer,Zaheer Abbas,Boycott,Snow,Underwood,Botham etc...A mind boggling array of great players all of whom i have had the pleasure of watching live...
This is the Theme Tune that greeted us at 10-50am every match day on the Beeb.
There's also the wonderful TMS--Test Match Special--to listen to if you can't get to watch the game.Indeed so ingrained into the English Cricket fans psych is TMS that many watch on mute with TMS on the radio or even go to the game with specially designed headgear with headphones to pick up the programme.
If you have no interest in the game and stumble upon TMS you'd be forgiven for thinking it's just seven hours of old men chatting about cake,pigeons and buses and you'd not be far off.On occasions they even discuss the Cricket...
I suppose it harks back to an era that never really existed,a pre war amble through a picture perfect English village with the verger and his wife where a Cricket match is taking place on the village green.There's even a break at Noon for the Shipping Forecast.Every avid listener can probably namecheck all the shipping area's that surround the British Isles...
The Duckworth Lewis Method can sum it up better than i ever could...
I still manage to go to at least one day of Test cricket in any given summer but to be honest a paucity of tickets and prohibitive pricing means that's my lot...Still in love with the game though.If nothing else it's the perfect antidote to the hullabaloo of the Football season.
Here's some of my photos...
England V West Indies Lords 2012
Swanny Bowling...
A Somerset Batsman get's castled...
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A spectacular attempt at a catch.Lucky to get this picture...
Ah yes the village green...Middlesex V Somerset at Southgate.
...And finally is'nt this what's it's all really about?
Many people feel this way about England's Summer game.The title of this post should point you to which camp i belong...The 20/20 and one day stuff is all fine and dandy but give me a five day Test match any day.I love the nuances,the individual games within the game.Primarily a team game where each individual can take centre stage to help his team win the Test.To my mind any game where the teams two worst batsmen can hold out for an hour against the worlds No 1 team to earn a draw after 5 days flow and ebb is to be cherished.Many would see that as a waste of 5 days play,but that drawn game was the catalyst to England becoming World No1 themselves...
Growing up in Staffordshire--as it was before my Town became part of The West Midlands---we never had a county team and the names Worcestershire & Warwickshire meant nothing to me.To be honest i have never really taken much notice of the County Championship,more interested in the International scene.This will no doubt piss off the purists among you but that's the way it's always been and the way it will remain.
I was never much of a player.At school i made the team but frankly it was to make up the numbers.Whenever they did actually make up the numbers with decent players i was relegated to the archaic ritual of "scorer".I enjoyed it all though and had no illusions about my talent--or lack of it--You can only get so many first ballers or be smacked through mid wicket by a myopic acne ridden schoolboy so many times before it's obvious that you were never destined to play for England...
When i was growing up all the Test matches in England were on the BBC---Yes it was that long ago when the Beeb cared about sport---So even if you could never get to one live you could see the world greats in your living room...The names trip off the tongue from that era in the 70's/early 80's.Gavaskar,Bedi,Lillie,Thompson,Haynes,Greenidge,Holding,Richards,Kallicharran,Lloyd,Engineer,Zaheer Abbas,Boycott,Snow,Underwood,Botham etc...A mind boggling array of great players all of whom i have had the pleasure of watching live...
There's also the wonderful TMS--Test Match Special--to listen to if you can't get to watch the game.Indeed so ingrained into the English Cricket fans psych is TMS that many watch on mute with TMS on the radio or even go to the game with specially designed headgear with headphones to pick up the programme.
If you have no interest in the game and stumble upon TMS you'd be forgiven for thinking it's just seven hours of old men chatting about cake,pigeons and buses and you'd not be far off.On occasions they even discuss the Cricket...
I suppose it harks back to an era that never really existed,a pre war amble through a picture perfect English village with the verger and his wife where a Cricket match is taking place on the village green.There's even a break at Noon for the Shipping Forecast.Every avid listener can probably namecheck all the shipping area's that surround the British Isles...
I still manage to go to at least one day of Test cricket in any given summer but to be honest a paucity of tickets and prohibitive pricing means that's my lot...Still in love with the game though.If nothing else it's the perfect antidote to the hullabaloo of the Football season.
Here's some of my photos...
Swanny Bowling...
A Somerset Batsman get's castled...
.jpg)
A spectacular attempt at a catch.Lucky to get this picture...
Ah yes the village green...Middlesex V Somerset at Southgate.
...And finally is'nt this what's it's all really about?
Wednesday 16 May 2012
England Squad:A Thicko's guide...
New England manager Roy Hodgson picked his first England squad today.This is the 23 players that will go to The Euro Championship in a few weeks:
Goalkeepers:
Joe Hart(Man City) No doubt the best English keeper playing at the moment.Will one day probably become one of the best in the world.Needs to improve his kicking
Robert Green(West Ham) England's second choice Goalie.However it's a mighty big drop in talent from Hart.Capable of superb saves and hilarious ineptitude in equal measure.A Championship keeper...
John Ruddy(Norwich) If Ben Foster of WBA had'nt had a hissy fit and chucked his toys out the pram he'd be in the squad now...Ruddy? he's ok.
Defenders:
Leighton Baines(Everton) Very good left back.Bombs forward and takes a mean free kick & Penalty(so may be needed if games go to pens)Permanent understudy to Ashley Cole.
Gary Cahill(Chelsea) Improved since his big money move from Bolton in January.Has partnered John Terry for a number of games now.Well i say Partnered,more like cleaned up Terry's ever increasing mistakes...
Ashley Cole(Chelsea) Cashley really needs some good PR.One of the better left backs' in European Football but a total arse off it...s'pose that does'nt matter while still playing well,all changes once form dips however...
Glen Johnson(Liverpool) Should be a winger cos' he sure as hell can't defend! Great going forward but his frailties in defence will probably be exposed quickly by canny opponents
Phil Jones(Man Utd) A big old unit,as they say.Got a great future but need to cement a permanent position at club level to kick on.Personally i see him as a defensive Midfielder...
Joleon Lescott(Man City) Ask any Wolves fan and they'll tell you Joleon was always destined for greatness.Man City fans did'nt rate him last season but has been a rock for them this time around.Helps playing with the best defender in the English game,Vincent Kompany
John Terry(Chelsea) Fist pumping,beligerent,unapologetic & just plain nasty.Still that's enough of Terry's Mother...As for the man himself.Well as a man he appears to be as loathsome as a very loathsome cockroach but once again it's what he does on the pitch that matters.Sadly he's nowhere near the player he was and over the last two years has become a liability both on and off the pitch...
Midfield:
Gareth Barry(Man City) Remember the 2010 world Cup in South Africa? Barry with a 10 metre start on the German winger and still beaten by 5 metres' over 30...Do you think he's got quicker these last two years? Exactly.
Stewart Downing(Liverpool) £20 Million Downing cost...This is what Liverpool got for their money;0 Goals 0 assists...Actually scratch that,he has got one assist.He's assisted in his club sacking their manager.Terrible player...
Steven Gerrard(Liverpool) Ten years of saving Liverpool from mid table obscurity have taken their toll.Still able to reach the heights occasionally.But occasionally is the operative word...
Frank Lampard(Chelsea) Get's lambasted by all and sundry but has scored 20 + goals a season from midfield for about eight years on the bounce.Still capable of getting into the box late to grab vital goals.
James Milner(Man City) You know what? I have nothing to say about this player.Seems to have gone through his entire career without getting noticed...
Alex Oxdale Chamberlain(Arsenal) Probably won't get a game.Exciting young player and will gain from the experience.Great name too...
Theo Walcott(Arsenal) Time to deliver the goods.Potential only lasts so long till it becomes wasted talent if not realised.Still lousy at crossing but 100% better than Downing...
Scott Parker(Spurs) With his 40's haircut and robust style is bound to be misunderstood by referee's.Expect at least one suspension.Maybe two...
Ashley Young(Man Utd) His nickname should be U-96,the sub in Das Boot.Whenever he passes that 18yard line it's a case of Dive! Dive! Dive!.Will England fans complain if he wins a game winning penalty? Of course not cos' all football fans are hypocrites.
Forwards:
Andy Carroll(Liverpool) Has had a terrible season,don't let the last half decent four games fool you.Seen better players on Hackney Marshes only not as drunk...
Wayne Rooney(Man Utd) Suspended for the first two games for crass stupidity disguised as "Passion" May only play one game at the Euro's before the team are knocked out.We keep getting told he's world class but has yet to prove it in either World Cups or The Euro's.
Danny Welbrook(Man Utd) Quick...Er,that's it...
Jermaine Defoe(Spurs) Probably the most natural goalscorer in the squad...
For what it's worth i don't think we'll get beyond the quarter finals at best.At worst we could be home after three games...
Goalkeepers:
Joe Hart(Man City) No doubt the best English keeper playing at the moment.Will one day probably become one of the best in the world.Needs to improve his kicking
Robert Green(West Ham) England's second choice Goalie.However it's a mighty big drop in talent from Hart.Capable of superb saves and hilarious ineptitude in equal measure.A Championship keeper...
John Ruddy(Norwich) If Ben Foster of WBA had'nt had a hissy fit and chucked his toys out the pram he'd be in the squad now...Ruddy? he's ok.
Defenders:
Leighton Baines(Everton) Very good left back.Bombs forward and takes a mean free kick & Penalty(so may be needed if games go to pens)Permanent understudy to Ashley Cole.
Gary Cahill(Chelsea) Improved since his big money move from Bolton in January.Has partnered John Terry for a number of games now.Well i say Partnered,more like cleaned up Terry's ever increasing mistakes...
Ashley Cole(Chelsea) Cashley really needs some good PR.One of the better left backs' in European Football but a total arse off it...s'pose that does'nt matter while still playing well,all changes once form dips however...
Glen Johnson(Liverpool) Should be a winger cos' he sure as hell can't defend! Great going forward but his frailties in defence will probably be exposed quickly by canny opponents
Phil Jones(Man Utd) A big old unit,as they say.Got a great future but need to cement a permanent position at club level to kick on.Personally i see him as a defensive Midfielder...
Joleon Lescott(Man City) Ask any Wolves fan and they'll tell you Joleon was always destined for greatness.Man City fans did'nt rate him last season but has been a rock for them this time around.Helps playing with the best defender in the English game,Vincent Kompany
John Terry(Chelsea) Fist pumping,beligerent,unapologetic & just plain nasty.Still that's enough of Terry's Mother...As for the man himself.Well as a man he appears to be as loathsome as a very loathsome cockroach but once again it's what he does on the pitch that matters.Sadly he's nowhere near the player he was and over the last two years has become a liability both on and off the pitch...
Midfield:
Gareth Barry(Man City) Remember the 2010 world Cup in South Africa? Barry with a 10 metre start on the German winger and still beaten by 5 metres' over 30...Do you think he's got quicker these last two years? Exactly.
Stewart Downing(Liverpool) £20 Million Downing cost...This is what Liverpool got for their money;0 Goals 0 assists...Actually scratch that,he has got one assist.He's assisted in his club sacking their manager.Terrible player...
Steven Gerrard(Liverpool) Ten years of saving Liverpool from mid table obscurity have taken their toll.Still able to reach the heights occasionally.But occasionally is the operative word...
Frank Lampard(Chelsea) Get's lambasted by all and sundry but has scored 20 + goals a season from midfield for about eight years on the bounce.Still capable of getting into the box late to grab vital goals.
James Milner(Man City) You know what? I have nothing to say about this player.Seems to have gone through his entire career without getting noticed...
Alex Oxdale Chamberlain(Arsenal) Probably won't get a game.Exciting young player and will gain from the experience.Great name too...
Theo Walcott(Arsenal) Time to deliver the goods.Potential only lasts so long till it becomes wasted talent if not realised.Still lousy at crossing but 100% better than Downing...
Scott Parker(Spurs) With his 40's haircut and robust style is bound to be misunderstood by referee's.Expect at least one suspension.Maybe two...
Ashley Young(Man Utd) His nickname should be U-96,the sub in Das Boot.Whenever he passes that 18yard line it's a case of Dive! Dive! Dive!.Will England fans complain if he wins a game winning penalty? Of course not cos' all football fans are hypocrites.
Forwards:
Andy Carroll(Liverpool) Has had a terrible season,don't let the last half decent four games fool you.Seen better players on Hackney Marshes only not as drunk...
Wayne Rooney(Man Utd) Suspended for the first two games for crass stupidity disguised as "Passion" May only play one game at the Euro's before the team are knocked out.We keep getting told he's world class but has yet to prove it in either World Cups or The Euro's.
Danny Welbrook(Man Utd) Quick...Er,that's it...
Jermaine Defoe(Spurs) Probably the most natural goalscorer in the squad...
For what it's worth i don't think we'll get beyond the quarter finals at best.At worst we could be home after three games...
Monday 14 May 2012
"44 Years of misery" My Arse!
Firstly let me say congratulations to Manchester City on winning the title.Personally where the trophy ended up was of no concern to me,I don't particulary like/dislike either club.I am pleased for Joleon Lescott the City centre back who began his career at Wolves and is probably the best defender i have seen at my club...
But amid all the adulation being heaped on the new Champions there's one thing really starting to stick in my craw and it's this nonsense being pushed by the media that City have now eradicated "44 years of misery".I am particularly pissed off with BBC Radio 5 for perpetuating this insidious claptrap.I listen to this station daily and it's normally intelligent & savvy with a healthy dose of cynicism that i find appealing...But even they have been hoodwinked by the myth that City fans are the flag bearers for all downtrodden fans who can but dream that one day oil money will allow them to challenge other oil rich teams to the ultimate prize...Top of the rich list...
Sorry,i mean the glory of winning trophies...Please excuse my cynical remarks.This is what it's done to me...
Here's the thing; Man City are a decent sized club with a decent fan base,like many others.They have'nt had 44 years of hurt at all.They've had 44 years of experiencing what many other fans of many other clubs go through season by season.Had their team been challenging for the title in,say, half of those years but falling short then the media could possibly get away with this oh-woe-is-me bullshit.But until last season they'd been nowhere near.
There's also another little bit of nonsense being repeated ad nauseam concerning their days spent in the third tier of English football.It's become de rigour to mention this period with something approaching brown nosing toadying awe when talking to any City fans.Ohhhh you supported your team when they were in a lower division? Whoop-de-woo.
Plenty of clubs of City's size have been down there recently.Leeds,Both Sheffield clubs,Southampton etc.What's the big deal? It happens.Why barely a generation ago my team went from the top division to the bottom division in successive seasons ...Yet it seems City fans are being lauded as some sort of cross between Mandela,Ghandi and Martin Luther King for them having to endure the horrors of Div 3(old Skool)
The 44 years thing is also very disrespectful to 99% of fans who support a team that will never come close to winning a Premiership title.It's basically saying that our support is a worthless pit of black nothingness...Yea, cheers for that.
As Einstein probably never said "Success is all relative" I have friends who support lower league clubs,notably Bristol Rovers,Leyton Orient and Queens Park(The only amateur club playing in a pro league in the UK.Scottish Div 3) Try telling them their support consists of nothing more than misery
because they won't win the Premiership title...Their dreams and hopes for their teams may be less fanciful than the oil rich clubs but they're no less relevant...Or even my club Wolves,relegated weeks ago.We have'nt been walking around in sackcloth & ashes practising self flaggelation cos' we no longer dine at the top table.Had you been to any Wolves games you would have witnessed fans making the most of a bad time...44 years of misery? My arse...
I know none of this is actually the fault of the City fans but the lazy media looking for a human angle to the game...After all there's where's the romance in Mega rich meglomanic oil barons waving their dicks at each other?
So many congratulations Man City.Enjoy the limelight for a while.At least till another club gets a richer owner with a bigger dick and buys all your players.Maybe then you'll come and join us again and have another 44 years of being a normal fan...
But amid all the adulation being heaped on the new Champions there's one thing really starting to stick in my craw and it's this nonsense being pushed by the media that City have now eradicated "44 years of misery".I am particularly pissed off with BBC Radio 5 for perpetuating this insidious claptrap.I listen to this station daily and it's normally intelligent & savvy with a healthy dose of cynicism that i find appealing...But even they have been hoodwinked by the myth that City fans are the flag bearers for all downtrodden fans who can but dream that one day oil money will allow them to challenge other oil rich teams to the ultimate prize...Top of the rich list...
Sorry,i mean the glory of winning trophies...Please excuse my cynical remarks.This is what it's done to me...
Here's the thing; Man City are a decent sized club with a decent fan base,like many others.They have'nt had 44 years of hurt at all.They've had 44 years of experiencing what many other fans of many other clubs go through season by season.Had their team been challenging for the title in,say, half of those years but falling short then the media could possibly get away with this oh-woe-is-me bullshit.But until last season they'd been nowhere near.
There's also another little bit of nonsense being repeated ad nauseam concerning their days spent in the third tier of English football.It's become de rigour to mention this period with something approaching brown nosing toadying awe when talking to any City fans.Ohhhh you supported your team when they were in a lower division? Whoop-de-woo.
Plenty of clubs of City's size have been down there recently.Leeds,Both Sheffield clubs,Southampton etc.What's the big deal? It happens.Why barely a generation ago my team went from the top division to the bottom division in successive seasons ...Yet it seems City fans are being lauded as some sort of cross between Mandela,Ghandi and Martin Luther King for them having to endure the horrors of Div 3(old Skool)
The 44 years thing is also very disrespectful to 99% of fans who support a team that will never come close to winning a Premiership title.It's basically saying that our support is a worthless pit of black nothingness...Yea, cheers for that.
As Einstein probably never said "Success is all relative" I have friends who support lower league clubs,notably Bristol Rovers,Leyton Orient and Queens Park(The only amateur club playing in a pro league in the UK.Scottish Div 3) Try telling them their support consists of nothing more than misery
because they won't win the Premiership title...Their dreams and hopes for their teams may be less fanciful than the oil rich clubs but they're no less relevant...Or even my club Wolves,relegated weeks ago.We have'nt been walking around in sackcloth & ashes practising self flaggelation cos' we no longer dine at the top table.Had you been to any Wolves games you would have witnessed fans making the most of a bad time...44 years of misery? My arse...
I know none of this is actually the fault of the City fans but the lazy media looking for a human angle to the game...After all there's where's the romance in Mega rich meglomanic oil barons waving their dicks at each other?
So many congratulations Man City.Enjoy the limelight for a while.At least till another club gets a richer owner with a bigger dick and buys all your players.Maybe then you'll come and join us again and have another 44 years of being a normal fan...
Saturday 12 May 2012
Stale Solbakken---Velkommen til Ulvene
It's probably fair to say that the appointment of Norwegian Stale Solbakken took 99.9% of Wolves fans by surprise last week.Whichever way you look at it the installation of the feisty ex Copenhagen & Cologne boss is a bold move by the Wolves owners.Only time will tell if it's an inspired choice or a foolhardy one...
Since the sacking of Mick McCarthy in early February the issue of who should take over at Wolves has been muddled at best,stupidly handled by Owner Morgan and CEO Moxey at worst.The usual suspects were wheeled out.Curbishley & Bruce among the old guard and younger managers like Poyet,Clark and Fergie Jnr.Even,and may the Lord have mercy on my soul for even uttering this on here,Megson.
None really fitted the bill,and the offer of a 13 game initial contract was restrictive,putting off potential managers.So the club stuck with promoting from within by offering the job to club stalwart Terry Connor.TC is a dignified and honourable man and one day may make a good boss but not here,not now.Relegation was virtually assured from the day he was appointed to the post...What was needed was a quick fix.An adrenalin rush if you will, if we were to avoid the drop...
It never came and we bowed out,not with a bang,but a whimper...
At the fans parliament which the club holds with the Wolves fans where grievances can be aired and answered, Morgan & Moxey promised they would soon be acting to install a new boss and that money would be available.Nobody believed it would be so quick and so "Leftfield" .
After retiring from the game he became manager of HamKam.Copenhagen & Cologne.He took HamKam to their highest ever position in their league.With Copenhagen Solbakken enjoyed much success.Taking them to 5 titles and took then to the latter stages of the Champions league where they tweaked the noses of some of the European hierachy.
The one black spot on his CV is the Cologne job.Some Wolves fans have pointed this out as a reason why the club should'nt have hired him.But how many managers have a CV that does'nt include at least one perceived failure? Even most of the greats have one blot on their copybook...And Cologne are not exactly a stable club,have'nt been for a good number of years now.Imagine a cross between One Flew over the Cukoo's Nest and The Keystone Cops and you'll get Cologne.Even Fergie at his height would struggle there.Solbakken took on the job with the club already in terminal turmoil.A bit like becoming the Captain of The Titanic after the iceberg had been struck...
But cold hard stats only tell some of the story.Solbakken is very passionate,of that there's no doubt.Just take a look at You Tube...He's also said to be innovative.We desperately need some fresh idea's at Wolves...Hopefully he will also have enough money available to bring in some much needed new blood too.He should have some good contacts in mainland Europe.
We're lucky to have him: I don't mean Wolves but all of us.In 2001 he had a Heart Attack and actually "Died" in training.Luckily the training camp was near a top hospital and he was revived.He now wears a pacemaker.Not that it seems to have slowed him down or doused the fire in his belly as this clip will show;
So this is it Wolves fans.The start of a new era.Personally i'm excited by the prospect and hope the majority of my fellow Wolves fans feel the same.
Stale Solbakken---Velkommen til Ulvene.
Tuesday 8 May 2012
the Wolves season in pictures...
Welcome to molineux
No you're wrong Capt,it's twenty lagers,twenty bitters and twenty whiskys...Oh and better get some Bacardi Breezers in there might be some birds there...
Stephen Hunt & Stephen Ward discuss tactics with Roger Johnson.
Dorus De Vries jumps ship...Unfortunately from the lifeboat to the Titanic...
Richard Stearman shows his pedigree...
Gary Megson applies for the Wolves job...
Roger Johnson enjoys a light lunch before the match...
...quickly followed by a ravenous Jez Moxey...
Karl Henry hitch hiking down to London to pay Joey Barton a visit...
TC's tactical genius revealed...
A good centre half needs mobility and pace.Christophe Berra show's how it's done...
Owner Steve Morgan scrubs up well for the waiting press...
Stephen Ward reacts badly to the news that he's not Mick McCarthy's son...
Moxey reveals Wolves policy on buying players...
Milijas relaxes in training
...And finally...
Saturday 5 May 2012
Working for the Yankee Dollar.Football sells it's soul
Saturday early May and it's FA Cup final day.The finale of the greatest club cup competition in the world watched by everyone on earth with an interest in the game.Not only was it the showpiece of the English game but it also drew a line which marked the end of that particular season.
But not anymore.Gone is the traditional 3pm kick off as a sop to the game's sponsors Budweiser---The richer but vastly inferior American version of the original Czech beer Budvar---also gone is the line ending an English season.There are still two games to go in the Premiership.I presume they will still sing "Abide with me" before the game but that's the FA just paying lip service to traditions they claim to respect so much.Until the rich and uncaring sponsors start waving big fat cheques around that is...Expect half time to be extended to half an hour to accommodate some washed up has been with a greatest hits CD to promote, a la Super Bowl, anytime soon...
How has this come to be?
Well it can be traced back to the advent of Sky TV and Premiership football.I'm not blaming Sky.Far from it but i am squarely putting the blame at the feet of the FA who have responded as all whores do.Debasing themselves to ever increasing humiliation in pursuit of ££££. Or in this case $$$$$$.
There does'nt seem to be anything the paymasters suggest that the FA won't agree to for more cold hard cash.A few weeks ago there was one(That's ONE)top flight game kicking off at 3pm on Saturday afternoon owing to Sky commitments and midweek European games---Incidently UEFA and FIFA are even bigger whores than our own FA---They have agreed to noon KO's,evening KO's.Sunday/Monday KO's,Cup replays on every day of the week etc etc all to appease Sky and their armchair fans.What of the actual paying fans who go to games and are--or were--the lifeblood of the game? The prevailing attitude among the FA seems to be Fuck em'. Which is ironic considering what cheap hookers they are...
I am not opposed to change.I don't want to go back to the 70's when going to the game was akin to a tour of duty in Iraq or where grounds were nothing more than open sewers.Going to games is a lot safer now and the grounds immeasurably better.But don't be fooled.These improvements are'nt down to Sky TV.They were mostly down to the consequence of the tragedies at Hysel,Bradford and Sheffield which resulted in Govt legistation telling the FA to improve the game or face the consequences...
I would'nt mind either if this was a two way street,if the FA got some concessions that improved the lot of the fan paying through the nose.But this does'nt seem to be the case.It's more a case of "You do as we say cos' we're paying" However Sky need our football as much as the FA needs their money.How many subscribers would Sky lose if they did'nt have the football on their channel? I would suggest they'd lose most of them and then all their advertising revenue.The FA should remember this and front up to them occasionally instead of bending over pre-lubed...
The same applies to the Sponsor money we get from US giants like Budweiser & Nike.We should'nt be cow-towing to their every whim, like later kick offs to accommodate THEIR tv audience in the States.It's our game and every Sponsor should be playing by our rules,not theirs...If they don't like it they can piss off and help ruin another sport...
Football will always be here--i hope---but Sponsors come and go.One day those US bigwigs will be overtaken by Chinese business and fall by the wayside.Will the FA have the balls to stand up to them when they demand we alter the structure of the game to suit their needs? Don't count on it...
When this happens don't be surprised if all our Premiership games Kick Off at midnight and the FA Cup final is held in February...
Whores are whores no matter how well dressed...
But not anymore.Gone is the traditional 3pm kick off as a sop to the game's sponsors Budweiser---The richer but vastly inferior American version of the original Czech beer Budvar---also gone is the line ending an English season.There are still two games to go in the Premiership.I presume they will still sing "Abide with me" before the game but that's the FA just paying lip service to traditions they claim to respect so much.Until the rich and uncaring sponsors start waving big fat cheques around that is...Expect half time to be extended to half an hour to accommodate some washed up has been with a greatest hits CD to promote, a la Super Bowl, anytime soon...
How has this come to be?
Well it can be traced back to the advent of Sky TV and Premiership football.I'm not blaming Sky.Far from it but i am squarely putting the blame at the feet of the FA who have responded as all whores do.Debasing themselves to ever increasing humiliation in pursuit of ££££. Or in this case $$$$$$.
There does'nt seem to be anything the paymasters suggest that the FA won't agree to for more cold hard cash.A few weeks ago there was one(That's ONE)top flight game kicking off at 3pm on Saturday afternoon owing to Sky commitments and midweek European games---Incidently UEFA and FIFA are even bigger whores than our own FA---They have agreed to noon KO's,evening KO's.Sunday/Monday KO's,Cup replays on every day of the week etc etc all to appease Sky and their armchair fans.What of the actual paying fans who go to games and are--or were--the lifeblood of the game? The prevailing attitude among the FA seems to be Fuck em'. Which is ironic considering what cheap hookers they are...
I am not opposed to change.I don't want to go back to the 70's when going to the game was akin to a tour of duty in Iraq or where grounds were nothing more than open sewers.Going to games is a lot safer now and the grounds immeasurably better.But don't be fooled.These improvements are'nt down to Sky TV.They were mostly down to the consequence of the tragedies at Hysel,Bradford and Sheffield which resulted in Govt legistation telling the FA to improve the game or face the consequences...
I would'nt mind either if this was a two way street,if the FA got some concessions that improved the lot of the fan paying through the nose.But this does'nt seem to be the case.It's more a case of "You do as we say cos' we're paying" However Sky need our football as much as the FA needs their money.How many subscribers would Sky lose if they did'nt have the football on their channel? I would suggest they'd lose most of them and then all their advertising revenue.The FA should remember this and front up to them occasionally instead of bending over pre-lubed...
The same applies to the Sponsor money we get from US giants like Budweiser & Nike.We should'nt be cow-towing to their every whim, like later kick offs to accommodate THEIR tv audience in the States.It's our game and every Sponsor should be playing by our rules,not theirs...If they don't like it they can piss off and help ruin another sport...
Football will always be here--i hope---but Sponsors come and go.One day those US bigwigs will be overtaken by Chinese business and fall by the wayside.Will the FA have the balls to stand up to them when they demand we alter the structure of the game to suit their needs? Don't count on it...
When this happens don't be surprised if all our Premiership games Kick Off at midnight and the FA Cup final is held in February...
Whores are whores no matter how well dressed...
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