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Jon's Blog
September 2007 Archive
Sun 30th Sep
Wales : Garbage Fiji : Wonderful
The Welsh rugby team could make a nation proud. Of course that would not be a serious rugby playing nation. Maybe a small island in the Atlantic? Certainly not the magnificent Fijians, Samoans and Tonga from the Pacific. Yes they have their cheap shot merchants but Wales have Gareth Thomas a man who in the parlance of SAF on Gordon Strachan is not a man you'd turn your back on.
Of course Thomas can walk tall with his 100 caps. The process he and the so called senior players started when deciding that Mike Ruddock and trying to win consistently were not part of the plan. they have since picked their own coaches to devastating effect. Given I like Australia with their mentality it is instructive a few months ago a ounce more mental strength and Wales would have beaten them. Craven is not a strong enough word for Alfie's [Gareth Thomas] team.
I rushed to the computer when they went so far behind to Fiji but the punters would not offer better than 9/5 and that as it turned out was an over reaction. it was apparent early in the 2nd half the Fijians were far slower to rucks and mauls. Yet somehow becoming favourites again caused the little brains to explode - oh the pressure of being expected to win when you are just little ole Wales against a smaller nation. I bet the odds were somewhat longer on Fiji once Wales went ahead and of course Wales then choked.
Good teams against inferior opposition go out and build a lead and just do enough after that. They don't need to be under dogs against nations like Fiji and Canada to put them away in a feverish burst. Sure sometimes as South Africa found these things can swing but it is easier to lose a game when you are behind constantly.
There are some who may see comebacks as somehow glorious and they probably buy that on the displays against Samoa and Tonga Wilkinson would make the All Black, South African and Australian bench - he would not. Frankly our whole debate and attitude is simplistic and based on an assumption of inferiority and static play (Wales excepted) in the North of the world. Wales confirmed that they are truly under dogs...
Either way the world cup will not start till the semis when the home nation chaff is out of the way. One hopes that at least Fiji will play some running rugby and at least give the 'Boks a scare - after all they are under dogs and no one fancies them to win!
Personally I fancy South Africa and Australia now as I feel the All Blacks insecurities rising - arguably the 'Boks just copped a big break. In some ways New Zealand are the opposite weak mind of Wales feeling the need to run up massive scores against opponents. If it comes down to mentality Australia have the aces. Game on is still 2 weeks away unless France can push the New Zealanders but I doubt it.
Spurs 2 5th places seem to have Martin Jol all pumped about how Spurs would go backwards without him and Jose could not do any better. Well I beg to differ..... I could improve Spurs 5 to 10 points just by picking a plank of wood in goal instead of Paul Robinson. To continue to pick a player as poor as Robinson whilst spending 25 million on a reserve striker and left wing back (Bent 'n Bale) sort of prospect makes no sense. It staggers me that this is not more widely commented on but most people with any acquaintance with keeping and a judgemental bone in their body would agree a keeper who can not cover even the middle of his goal consistently is a poor'un.
Thu 27th Sep
Gareth Thomas Will Soil Centurians List
Barring an act of a benevolent god the list of people who have achieved a 100 caps in international rugby union will soon have the man who sums up Welsh under dogism on it. Gareth Thomas who has been let off his cheap and nasty shot against Australia, clearly rugby patronises the small little nations like the Pacific Islanders and the Welsh when it comes to foul play it seems, and has unfortunately recovered from his injuries.
This is the 'man' whose denied that he stabbed the last Welsh coach to win anything in the back but under the trivial pressure that followed Thomas was hospitalised - diddums. Since then Welsh rugby has embarked on a glorious run of failure unmatched in even its recent poor history.
With the players de facto picking coach and team since then Wales have become a mentally weak nation only capable of playing when massive under dogs with no expectation or after performing so abysmally they have 'something to prove' to those eponymous critics. Whilst this appears true of most British sports people Wales, rugby, take it to its less than exquisite conclusion. Indeed despite the most talent of any home nation their 6 nations haul amounted to a final pointless game triumph over England.
I am happy to accept that nobody sums up and embodies recent Welsh rugby like its talisman Gareth Thomas.
Wed 26th Sep
Ashton Drop Captain : Tell McClaren
It is even dawning on those who find thinking hard that our boy John Terry, affectionately called JT, is not the centre half he was. You know this because Chelspivs just made him the best paid player in the league! OK OK enough cheap cracks at the 'spivs. Nonetheless Bryan Ashton has finally broken with the mantra of experience and backing his captain. Maybe Boring Steve should as well if he wants to maintain that recent clown smile that he has got away with it for another month.
Wed 26th Sep
India : Show England The Way
I am not a great fan of just giving young players a chance. A lot who are count their geese swans as the careers of Defoe, Jenas, Robinson, Pennant et al shows. Nonetheless losing older players who are still seemingly just about justifying a place may be its own reward. As said about French Rugby it is youth that has the intangibles and progressions not experience. India without their 3 biggest name batters (in England at least) and their best bowler (Zaheer) just won the inaugural twenty20 world cup. They did not bring in experienced old mates, good egg chaps, like Snapey, Solanki, Maddy etc. Sure England tried some youth and without the injured Flintoff it might have been worse. Nonetheless England advance piecemeal with no plan or ethos. With a damaging respect for yesterday's heroes - even when most of their career is replete with failure.
Wed 26th Sep
Premier League - Sucking Up To The Big Boys
Last week there was an amazing whitewash job on Richard 'Scuuds' Scudamore and the Premier League by Henry Winter in the Tory-graph. The seemingly enthusiastic endorsement of the alleged torture advocate Thaksin as owner of Manchester City was somehow right because he was not part of a military junta (which had what to do with it?) and besides poor Richard Scudamore does not work for Amnesty so he does not have or want to care (So if you don't work for Amnesty you can endorse Amin, Hitler, Stalin, Moa, Saddam, Putin, Himmler, Heydrich and that is OK? Only people who work for Amnesty have to be judgemental about the trash of the earth? Got it? No I have not either).
You wonder what outraged response Scuuds will manage now that it seems Avram Grant has not even bothered to do his UEFA badges. No doubt like Southgate he will be able to say that 20 years ago he did not have time when playing the game. Recently he has been really busy as a totally un-necessary director of football sucking up to Russian spivs at Portsmouth and Chelsea. How could he have found the time? Also even Amnesty have not objected so he must be OK. Scuuds will further add: Oh and Roman Abramovich is rich, really rich. So that is OK then.
Tue 25th Sep
Spurs : Defying Intelligence As Well
The competition for the most stupid London club is closer than it appeared the other day when Jose Bore resigned. Spurs like Jose's former employers at 'Chel-spivs' are hanging on for a replacement or to save sacking money. Like 'spivs of course they still have to pay Jol to leave and keep his mouth shut.
Quite why, hopefully, sane rich people would rather continue this 1 ring circus is beyond me. It gains nothing and as at Chelsea they poisoned last season and this by not just sacking Mourinho - that cost more arguably than the difference in pay off. Worse by sacking him when they did they are now going through the farce of trying to use a manager who will not be given a chance by media and players' agents - sad but true inditement of the "culture" of football (Cuntery as I call it).
Indeed on Chel-spivs it was obvious they could have sacked him [JM] last December and given Grant half a season to grab the job or scout out Ramos or any other bright shiny object in the young manager stakes. Instead to feed a media line they pursued a treble/quad that would have been the most soiled of all time. Indeed so stupid are Chel-spivs that had they won say a treble/quad with CL or PL they would have either been stuck with Mourinho - or worse he would have left and booted them from the popularity mountain he was on.
Spurs should strike now whilst the 'spiv bullshit machine is spitting out total cobblers that they intend to stick with Mr Grant. After all any manager they get will likely be a target for 'spiv and even if he is not he will be waiting on the off chance of a retirement fund for 1 year's work before accepting a 451 team without a regular supply of Drogba and Lampard will win nothing.
At least no one at Spurs feels they have to make big talk and come up with confabulated toss to cover that their boss is not that clever and has no plan beyond who he will shag and where he will eat tonight. Biggest club in the world in 10 years? That'll be Arsenal then.
Mon 24th Sep
Arsenal : Organic Growth Better Than Spivery
Chelsea yesterday deployed 3 central midfielders and a lone predator striker... Half a billion and what do you get? Dysfunction! Arsenal seem to be building if not a great side a great side to watch. Indeed had Arsenal saved the money on Rosicky and Reyes Wenger would look a complete genius. Now they have the 200 Meeellion turnover the moronicity that followed the departure of King Spiv Dein is shown for what it was, pointless.
The question is not would Wenger leave but why would Wenger leave? Why would anyone leave probably the most stable, financially and otherwise, club in the world? Unlike the mad house down the road where only a massive salary and pay off a year down the line is on offer. If Wenger somehow lost the desire there would surely be an orderly queue back to Arsenal tube to apply for what is close to/is the best job in football, surely?
Whilst a look at the point scorers may imply Johnny W was England's hero frankly as he took all the kicks that is of course not surprising. The fact the media have to get out their prayer mat for a performance than by Hodgson, Barkley, Flood or Geraghty would not even be remarked upon and might be damned says all you can for celebrity obsession and the fact few can watch what is happening dispassionately or with more insight than someone who is not a huge rugby tactician like myself.
Leaving aside Johnny W criminally kicking away an advantage twice with the backs wide of him in the most craven gutless play since our footballers relied of Collina's leniency to beat Argentina 1-0 in 2002 (with Butt allowed to make 8 or 9 fouls for no booking late on). Some players committed offences that had the squad not been stuffed with old men would have been droppable offenses. Seriously who taught Tait and Barkley to shuffle sideways effectively taking the drift defence over to the winger meaning it was only when Sackey came inside he got to show his class. Cueto was never given any space as Tait criminally drifted.
In the end as expected English stamina showed as Samoa faded as they did v South Africa. It would be hard to say this was a step forward even from the pathetic team of Catt and Farrell. Indeed Tait's inability to straighten a line and Barkley's inability to beat a man means we are down to reserve call up Flood to provide a spark. Wilkinson showed once again in a team on top he will kick points but much of his work was abysmal. It was just interesting to note that the media needed one hero, as Harrison and Rosenthal saw fit to nominate Good Ole Johnny over Stuart Barnes expert trashing, such is the way of modern media whoever speaks last speaks longest no matter how poor their opinion (hypocrite? moi).
Fri 21st Sep
I Love You Jose But Don't Come Back
Anyone who has read the totality of what I have written on Jose Mourinho will know how much I respected him. However I would prefer his whining clown act that filled so many newspapers and TV minutes when action could have been shown or discussed is not something I want to see again.
Unlike Henry Winter and other apologists I did not get the great personal charm in private I got the boorish rants and pathetic lies about ambulancemen like everyone else.
I would love to see the man on TV discussing teams and tactics and to read his thoughts on football in a newspaper. However I can do without the pathetic referee destroying, ludicrous accusations and 'me me me me' of it all.
Thu 20th Sep
Mourinho : He Gone
Roman Abramovich was writing his memoirs last night and as he perused "Putin, How I Work With The Vicious Butcher" he realised that he had been too much of a pussy and decided to sack Mourinho.
I think it is about a year since it made no sense to keep him on other than to avoid a payout. As stated in my piece below nothing made sense. Indeed now they are paying him off they wasted a summer re-tooling with Sidwell, Ben Haim, Bizarro and only spent on Malouda (no doubt with Arnesan and Grant taking time from licking Roman's arse to OK that).
Anyway having written so much explaining why he had to go I have to say he would still be my first choice as a manager assuming he is actually still somewhere near sane. As for Chelsea it was an insane summer and now they have a dysfunctional team, 30 million assigned a year to a sacked manager and 3 seemingly declining players (Terry, Sheva, Balls). Lampard and Drogba as we said last year were worn down to shore up the declining edifice and are now missing games. Good luck to the new guy, he'll need it.
Thu 20th Sep
Maureen-o : Eggs is Eggs and Your Team Is Shite
It is hard to know if Mourinho took the super efficient 4321 team and destroyed it. It is hard to know quite how many players are his choices now. It is even hard to know if he is playing a ludicrous 442 with no play maker because he wants to entertain and is under orders or has lost all semblance of tactical nouse. It is hard to know if all the tossers Abramovich has surrounded him with have any say at all and are getting in the way? It just not make sense to have 2 attacking forwards and 2 wingers with Essien and Makelele.
It is a pathetic faux intellectual point for Grauniad writers to extol the artisan virtues of Essien and Makelele. As we know now from baseball the value of a player is their value over replacement.
I hate to bump players for games they do not play but Chelsea does give a good idea as to value at present. It is all very well saying that Ashley Cole is a better left back than Terry a centre half but their value over replacement makes Terry 5 times more valuable even if that is true (BTW this is an example not based on any view I have on the players concerned). Ditto Essien and Makelele they may have cost 40 million and people can point to Hargreaves ludicrously inflated transfer and say see. However the point is that Chelsea show a 10 goal 10 assist passing and tackling back all round player like Lampard or a massive presence in both boxes like the Drog are almost priceless.
An Arsenal fan I know was trying to convince me that Jermaine Pennant who they ['snal] paid a fortune to as a 15 year old should take the right wing slot for England. I argued he was shite but had to concede that I had not really watched him play and was assuming he was still the same poor player who hit 500+ largely pointless crosses to serial clown Heskey for Brum a few years ago in the relegation season.
Despite a few months in prison it seems Jermaine is still a child. His performance of exasperated facial gestures and whining last night was typical of the ridiculous sanctimonious British players. The idea that the other teams are all cheats and that instead of getting on with the game pathetic facial and superior body language followed by rash tackles somehow is warranted.
Memo to players if someone goes down easily get on with the game and spare us the childish reaction like someone got the last donut before you had one. Oh on, Pennant he can barely trap a ball 5 yards and even if he was a good player you'd sooner rely on someone else who is a tad more grown up.
Weds 19th Sep
England Still Can't Hit
Moores' buffoonery continues with England so desperate to achieve something they are playing a palpably unfit Flintoff but all to no end. I can tolerate losing but picking a bunch of old mates and good ole boys over people like Reid, Loye and others who are less social is not the way to winning cricket. Australia tend to show that when push comes to shove some players pretty much detest others yet they win. England aim for team spirit without realising it is a by-product of winning not a cause. Seemingly we'd rather lose with good ole Snapey, Prior-y, Maddy and Flintstone than win with others like Loye and Reid who don't drink as much and patronise the coach, allegedly.
The saddest aspect of the recent twenty20 game with the Proteas was that England's problem appeared to be a lack of players who could hit the ball despite us picking specialists. OK Prior did OK but he is nowhere able to provide the impetus and early hitting one assumes he opens to do. Indeed technically he looks terrible and I really doubt he will make too many runs in any form against top flite bowling. Wright can actually be excused on the grounds you cannot judge someone totally out of form... Flintoff seems to have forgotten how to bat and whilst his eye and natural power can make up for a brief flurry he should not bat 6 in a team with Prior opening. Only KP and Collie would seem genuine cricketing hitters with Flintoff's decline.
Indeed with England stinking there seems little point in allowing a clearly injured Flintoff to continue to play. However as said before rather than make him a continual open sore news story it is about time they made some decisions about his participation. He clearly cannot bat 6 in tests nor bowl enough for a 4 man attack. Any choice to bring him into the test team at the expense of a 6 batsman line up strikes of madness as would picking him in a 4 man attack. His test career is surely dead? He is not and never has been a good enough batter to rest on that alone - 32 average over a long career.
Sun 16th Sep
Sorry Ireland : Crap Northern Hemisphere
Wow don't I feel an idiot for slating Wales after this evening's impotent fumblings from Ireland. One can only assume with France losing the only way they could become the under dogs they so desire was a performance nearly as abject as England's against Eastern Powerhouse Georgia.
Woeful contempt for their own supporters starting with their coach Eddie O' S' who having seen it work so well for Wales, England and France nailed his colours to the old, sorry experienced, player mast - surely the worst excuse for picking friends and people you know on the decline in sports. As said here most older players intangibles are negatives.
Of course the real concern is that all the Northern Hemisphere seem like backward crap rugby teams. All of them play rugby which is like watching wood warp. Honestly I paint a wall to distract myself with something more interesting, the drying process moves at speed compared to Farrell and Catt.
It has to be said the worst team is England. For a country with more players money and back up it is a shockingly inept team. England have not had a backline that excites me possibly ever however given the professional era the current one absolutely stinks. At this stage of the year they cannot make the too many games excuse or the lack of preparation. Nope they stink. Indeed their form with the French prior tends to show that rather than 2 potential group winners quarter finalists we were watching 2 poor teams.
Sun 16th Sep
Frustrating Wales Cheat Fans Again
I know I know Wales are the best of the home nations. However my motherland seem to want to win games from 20 behind. Indeed Australia would rightly argue they let off but in a knock out game it would not happen. Last World Cup Wales tried their tricks against New Zealand and England and nearly pulled off a shock from behind both times. However as a game plan this is not as good as backing yourself and saying you will win and getting in front. Favouritism should be desired not reviled.
The Welsh coach in response to a typical craven performance when favoured to win v Canada brought back the old players and left Hook on the bench. I think this shows a failure to realise that games with nothing to lose are hard for them. It is a common northern hemisphere thing to think of experienced players all the time. As argued yesterday they are mostly in decline not going forward - they also tend not to have the speed, mobility and flair in rugby.
Whilst winning will now be hard for Wales, probably have to beat all Tri Nations maybe they should try... Rather than going for the Headingly 81 and Istanbul 05 style come back triumph. The real problem is I don't think they have the ambition or realisation to do that.
Just a few months ago Wales lost their nerve and the first test v Australia yet now you see Australia have tried to improve and win. Whereas Wales continue to look for the 1 come back triumph. Indeed one can see how despite being probably as good as any 6 nations team they finished at the back of the pack.
This negative weak attitude is not uncommon. Our cricket team when given a great chance to send Australia home showed similar backbone the other day. Ireland have this as well albeit they put themselves in better positions to choke. However it is why these isles tend not to have winning teams very often. How long is it since England were no 1 in cricket? 50 years? Football 70 years? 2 world cups in our 3 main sports is abysmal. Rugby 71 and 74 Lions plus England '03? (and the Lions is 2 countries (4 in Rugby terms)).
Sat 15th Sep
Ashton Feet Of Clay : Team Of Leaden Foot
Half time and whatever the 2nd half brings it is not likely to be England playing good rugby. Maybe the Boks will allow them the ball and a fig leaf but I doubt it.
So Bryan Ashton took his squad to the world cup with 15 players and a reserve for each position to play the same game plan. 10 man rugby with no ambition - or come back when they went behind. Regardless of Wilkinson and Barkley's injuries this is not far off where he wanted to be. You find it hard to believe that someone waits 40 years to coach his country with a reputation as a backs guru and gives up and goes for damage limitation before a ball is kicked.
Anyone who saw the 6 nations would realise that England needed mobility as the Welsh and Irish destroyed England in the loose. The only rays of sunshine were the return of Wilkinson and the performances of his replacements Flood and Geraghty. Yet neither made the squad and we have the leaden footed Farrell and Catt in the team.
Indeed by not blooding young talent all he has done is taken a pile of players who will be not much use for the next 4 years. Well done Bryan, maybe you are an improvement on the clown Andy Robinson but frankly that is faint praise.... very faint.
Generally speaking you begin to wonder if English sport, and baseball GMs, will ever realise youth, energy, pace and desire are the intangibles whereas veteren experience is mostly an intangible negative.
Sat 15th Sep
McLaren : Sport Is Serious
As the seemingly bumbling completely incompetent Portuguese Police are showing if you go looking for things you tend to find things that confirm that view. Maybe that is the case with the FIA and McLaren or maybe they were bang to rights. Regardless their fine of 100 Meeeellion dollars makes even the 10 million West Ham were stung for look small. Indeed both exceed what murderous maintenance and railway companies get fined for corporate manslaughter in the UK.
Whilst West Ham's fine was a sop and not nearly enough this seems a huge fine in the context of formula 1 - whilst fines for blood thirsty greedy railway companies were/are a national disgrace.
It is funny in a way that many normal people who "self medicate" at weekends, pad their resume, put a colleague and friend down to advance, take undeserved praise etc etc but if anyone cheats at sport, certainly in the UK, and woe betide them even with the people described above.
Fri 14th Sep
Scotland : No Patronising Here
Scotland won? Yeah the big news is they beat the French. I don't cry crocodile tears or wear a big smile for Scotland and nor should you. Rip anyone French you know with stuff about cheese eating, the Olympics, French Tank 1 forward gear 9 reverse, losing to Scotland twice, Thierry Henry becoming an ego maniac, Chirac a fraud, Sarko, Le Pen, how much you'd like to pork Sego...... However if someone Scottish wishes to talk about it treat them like a German coming off a big win as that is how they want it "I'm pleased for you...." through clenched teeth as you walk away.
Fri 14th Sep
England Flow : Does McClaren Know Why?
A look at the up and down international results and the failure of many teams to put poor opponents away and the scale of England's last 3 3 goal wins comes into perspective. It is a great feat albeit as puzzling as the prior results. The point is that the players and tactics were not that different except pace and effective height was used instead of size of celebrity (inverse size of wife!).
The gurning fool, McClaren, must feel like he got away with it this morning - given selection of less stars more artisans was forced on him and he inadvertently ended up with a bit more pace and effective height I give him zero credit. Nonetheless it is nice to see England play in a decent watchable game of football. Quite what Russia feel they are paying Guus for is probably best left to their bloggers.
As usual when Mickey Owen does what he is expected to do his fans cannot understand what we critics, Rafa, Maureen, SAF and Wenger don't like about Owen. The point is that we persisted with Rooney and Owen for 4 years despite the complete poverty of boths' play in the face of excuse after excuse (always excuses with Rooney judged on United fans I know). Now surely only one can play? You wanna bet? I guess the other point was that if Owen and Heskey were much more of an answer they'd have shown it before now.
My concern is this that despite it showing that star players and big names are not the best team. That more limited players in terms of pace and passing ability is a killer to teams. Nonetheless as it is clear the manager does not know why England have functioned last 2 games (I did not rate the Estonia win as a fluent performance) I would imagine that if we face better continental teams the old problems of getting the ball from back to front and too deep lying defense will continue to exist.
Indeed it is not like any selection in this side was essentially novel. We have used Cole and Phillips before against Poland (another rare fluent performance). Heskey and Owen have failed before when Heskey was not an over price dolt at a relegation club. John Terry will still sit too deep when the other team press us. Ashley Cole is still a poor footballer. Rio is still well ummh Rio. One can only assume that the team did improve marginally and that Hiddink showed that sometimes gurning fools get results in international football without being great tacticians. Or maybe England made a great subtle leap forward...
In the end the biggest step forward maybe the de facto loss of Hargreaves as a starter and pressure for one of Lampard and Gerrard. Beckham no longer the totem a weak stupid manager might have mistaken him for after Estonia. However don't be surprised to see Rooney and Hargreaves weasel their way in. Nor be surprised to see England return to the plasied bad football. I guess the really news is that the last few 3 nil wins may scare Croatia into committing the same mistake as Russia sitting deep and letting England on to them. Come On England...
Thu 13th Sep
RWC : The Great North South Divide
Already the Rugby World Cup has shown the difference between the Six Nations and Tri-Nations - Attitude. Look at how the New Zealanders, Australia and South Africans set about stuffing the minnows brushing them away before half time. Yet look at Wales and Ireland the two most talented sides from the northern islands crying like babies when made favourite. Wales can be grateful that they faced part timers whose fitness ran out.
Honestly 2 years ago in the 6 Nations Irish players like O'Driscoll lined up to say how much they would prefer it if France had beaten Scotland in their first game prior to the decisive clash in Paris. Then to cement the point with numerous acts of clownery they went 40 behind only to lose narrowly with a gut less chokers come back against a vastly inferior team....
Honestly complaining your opponents stink and got beat must be the most pathetic mental game going. The Australians in particular ram that down your throat if they see such weakness.
Memo to English and Irish sports people better to play your opponent off a loss than a win. Being favourite means you should be more likely to win which is a good thing. There is no glory in isolated come from behind triumphs of inferior sides - they just go down as unjust results and lucky - indeed they are unsatisfactory results all round. Teams who consistently win out of turn (in a good way) expect to win every game. Wanting to be underdog and only playing well when you are is the most gutless form of choking.
Thu 13th Sep
twenty20 World Cup : Great Idea
I think the idea of a twenty20 world cup is great and for nuetrals only 2 things spoiled the opener, the craven display by the West Indian bowlers and the ICC failure to understand the attraction and demand of its own game.
The WIndies went down hill from the opening ball, that may have ended Graeme Smith's tournament, effectively handing the Proteas extra overs and runs to make the 205 look small. With West Indian bowlers chirping at captains and strolling back to their marks their contempt for the game was obvious - as was their refusal to try to win. Can cricket continue when players do not even disguise their lack of responsibility on the field?
The strength of twenty20 domestically is that it does not drag on as it is over in 3 hours. A perfect length of time for a one day cricket match. The idea being the pace does not slacken and the game stays intense. So of course the ICC dropped the penalty runs and allowed the game to drift on and on.
The sanction for slow over rates comes from the captain's match fee which of course never works. How about banning the captain and a bowler (per over over!) of the opponents choice for the next game as a minimum? Nope, as we know from the kow towing before Prior, Collie and KP sledging and behaving like degenerate 6 year olds and umpire Hair. Only umpires using their powers within the laws of the game should be punished not cricketers soiling the spirit and rules of the game.
Wed 12th Sep
ICC : Mohammad Asif Poster Boy
The ICC, or Musharraf and Mugabe's Mates as they prefer to be called, further buttered up the arse of Pakistan cricket by enthusiastically heralding Mohammad Asif as one of its team of the year. Now in England he would conservatively have got a five year ban but his ban thanks to the tyrannical butcher (Friend of Freedom surely, G W Bush jnr) Musharraf's intervention he got let off with 50 virgins and a bowl of Frosties. Asif showed his gratitude by getting into a fight with fellow low life cheat Ahktar the other day. On the day when the man who cheered the blowing up of a school complete with children last year deported the elected prime minister he ousted this was of course a great day for Musharraf and Pakistan. Bitter moi?
Tue 11th Sep
England Cricket : Jobs For The Boys
England effectively signalled their first team for the next year and boy like last year are there some hostages to fortune. I'll take 5 (of 13) examples of players who: are either droppable now: will not play enough to justify paying them: who are coming off career bad years.
Harm-less-son averaged a truly terrible 44+ a piece over the last year or so even with a perfectly prepared Old Trafford wicket in there for him (6/148). Despite hours and hours of coach's time that could have been spent elsewhere instead of on a bouncy track bully. Some say he is back to his best when he rips a couple of West indian tail enders out on a 5th day pitch ending with match figures of 4/170. Given he is little better than his mate Flintstone at staying fit and a miserable cancer to boot I see no reason to commit to him for a year or even the next test he deigns to be fit for (followed by 9 months of intensive coaching to be below average again?). Over the last 2 years despite a 6/19 at another old Trafford prepared by obviously a close relative he is 36 a piece - about as good as dropped Plunkett and Mahmoud. Take away his 17 @ 13 at Old Trafford last 2 years and you wonder why they pick him on other wickets. This is before adding his disgraceful play and behaviour in Australia. Indeed his extraordinary year came when he was excluded from central contracts and at the last chance saloon. Quite why the current management still continues the molly coddling makes no sense. Tremlett did better in his tests on better batter wickets. 31 @ 42 a piece last two years away from blighty - toilet.
Strauss year was an execrable average of 26. Sure he picked up but any one who saw him bat would not be rushing to take even money he is better again this year even with weaker opposition. Strauss got away with it to an extent is there a bowler alive who does not know how to get him out? If India had used a 3rd man and caught dollies he would have scored next to no runs. Give him no width and he has no strokes. He seems found out. Arguably has to be dropped especially if Flintstone comes back at 6.
Flintstone should concentrate on one day cricket. His 30 bowling average last year is fine and about what one would expect from a 2nd or 3rd seamer. His 30 batting average is: a weakness at 6: a strength at 7: and a real strength at 8. Yet can anyone say he can bowl 75 overs in 2 innings if we go to a 4 man attack? His bowling is decent but not world beating. In ODI he is top class with the ball. He tries hard when fit enough but I tend to agree with those who question how hard he tries to get fit and stay fit. His divisive captaincy this winter contrasts with his teflon popularity - I guess so called fans just showing more evidence that bland people who speak in cliches are preferred over people who might say something. He just about deserves it but at some point the match by match soap opera of his fitness has to end. Added to it all he sets a terrible example. He and Harm-less-son a great example of the need for greater pay to play not guaranteed drinking money.
For all the talk of Jimmy Anderson as a match winner it is easier to say someone who sometimes bowls 1/170 as he did in the decisive 2nd test v India is a match loser. His last year which they are rewarding is even worse than Harm-less-son - 19 @ 47.94. That is terrible and worse than Plunkett and Mahmoud. Indeed even in one dayers where I would play him he can he a liability as his 0/79 in the 6th ODI showed. Again are they saying he is significantly better after a below par year which finished well? Also we are picking him on the basis of a few tests in England? Well lets see what he does when the ball is not seaming like last winter where he was lit up. There is no evidence in the last year he will cope better - 3 tests 5 wickets at 82 a piece abroad - that is terrible.
Hoggard also had a down year and was injury prone to boot taking 18 @ 33+. So are we denying Broad a chance to bowl: Flintoff who cannot take the likely work load (or weakens the batting at 6): to pay 3 below average seamers like Anderson, Hoggard and Harm-Less-Son: all coming off maybe their worst year? Should we not pay more less and use a squad system? (albeit this winter is lighter than past winters). I favour a squad system and the up and down performances and lousy attendence records of our players agrees.
I recall last year when Simon Jones was bizarrely given one and now is no longer good enough for Glamorgan. Vaughan did come back and better that he has been over the piece but he missed Australia and was dropped from the one day team. Indeed Flintoff was given one and his fitness regime meant he only played half the time. Now I don't like Prior but not to give him a contract when they will definitely play him to pay non performers and the injured seems trite.
Indeed my objections are they are making decisions based on a best 11 approach results do not bear out. Like Chelsea they seem to be paying for decline and rewarding failure. In Anderson's case they are basing it on less than half his year. Put this way would you play a 4 man attack with Anderson, Harmison and Flintoff abroad?
Mon 10th Sep
England ODI Cricket Advancing Or Just Luck
It is tempting to say that the recent series win over fellow world cup dreck India was a step forward and a big one. I think it shows like test cricket we have a lot of players. Thankfully the big decisions, bar one or two, have been made at last (Vaughan dropped).
The positives: decent innings in just about every game: batting without being reliant on KP: the middle over bowling seems to have options to get through 20 with Collie, Panesar and Mascarenhas - maybe Wright one day: a deep batting line up. Essentially England like in the Commonwealth Bank Series showed if they take early wickets they win: Prior kept well enough: Bell played good backbone innings. This means though that if Broad, Anderson and Flintoff fail then it is still ummmhh aaaahhhhh. However I support this tactic when our only really dominant bowler is the seemingly career coming to an end Flintoff and replacements like Anderson and Broad can go for a lot or take wickets (Mahmoud, Plunkett and others).
The negatives: Prior is not the top order answer: Cook and Bell are probably too slow scoring to both play: Flintoff needs to be told not molly coddled that he can still play test and ODI cricket - year round: selection of Flintoff needs to stop being a game by game de-stabiliser.
So the key questions as per world cup and Australian games - the top order and Flintoff's fitness. The saddest aspect of yesterday was the listing of the batters with Shah 7th behind Flintoff. Why do they continue to pander to their biggest name when he is no longer the best or most important player in either form of the game? When he showed complete contempt for himself and the team all winter. Are they just junkies who feed the media Flintoff fitness stories every game? Seriously last year or so has Flintoff played even 1 innings in either form of the game that justifies him at 6 in this? Given a non batter like Prior is 1 that is like batting him 5.5. Indeed there are arguments for him to bat 8 behind Mascarenhas. English sport as the football team showed yesterday seems to only advance when injuries show the way.
Some will want to credit Moores but this is no more impressive or different to the Commonwealth Bank series where new blood re-vitalised an old team where captain and coach could at best say it happened on our watch. In the world cup it counted for nought and unless someone can point out a definable end and strategy one can just hope Moores tinkering will go forward despite his clear limitations in goal and thought. Moores picking some good ole boys and call them specialists selection for the twenty20 world cup showed Moores, like Fletch, picks people he likes and confabulates a story to back it up afterwards.
Sun 9th Sep
England Football - Less Is More With Big Names
Had England had a front 2 who knew how to play for 90 minutes Israel would be going home with a thrashing for the ages. The fact is that Barry is a footballer and Hargreaves is not. Phillips is a winger and mobile and Beckham is clearly no longer. Heskey at least had some height and size which Rooney, Johnson and the rest do not have. Imagine how good a truly comepetitive 90 minutes player like Kevin Davies would have been?
OK the opposition was poor which allowed Terry and Robinson to escape examination and allowed us to compress the field so the wingers starting positions were forward where they can hurt the opposition and their weaknesses nullified. Indeed Joe Cole was amazing like the early world cup rounds creating time and picking the opponents apart. Phillips did well using his pace to cover for the exhuberent Richards. Barry played both sides of the ball.
However if Terry plays against a better side or one with pace his increasing injuries could be a liability. His selection almost demands a sweeper like Hargreaves. Richards may be better paired with Joe Cole as he does go AWOL. Gerrard or Lampard you pays your money but I am sure their club managers would agree they want the other one to play. Owen's habit of ruining good positions to play negative balls will matter more when the ball does not come back. Heskey switching off and drifting out of games is why he should just be an emergency stop gap. Robinson will be probably the poorest keeper whatever happens.
The fact is that if anything this game made the point WE make ad nauseum it is about a team that works not players. Players can mainly be weaknesses who don't fit the plan not strengths in most games you play. What we will not miss given Richards adventures in position is Beckham's palsied slow grinding long balls football.
Dire and un-watchable. Samoa are on alert.
Sat 8th Sep
France Pay the Price Of Experience
Before and at the start of the match we were told that France had only 1 world cup virgin. Yet they played like a team of idiots without a clue or a back bone between them. In baseball expensive veterans a long way below replacement standard are paid lots of money to keep prospects in the minors. Chelsea spend vast sums on Sheva and Balls and would throw more at Ronaldinho. The point is that players are old enough if they are good enough. Older players by and large are not the way forward. As argued here once a player is no longer improving chances are he is going the other way.
Sometimes teams do buck this but nowhere near as often as they fail - albeit England won the last world cup with an ageing team grafted onto Wilkinson, Woodward would argue they actually were not that old a team as well. It is time selection in all sports was based on merit and it is certainly something England's football and cricket teams could learn.
The exception as in many things was the Australian cricket team last winter. That is a team so competitive that no one rests on their laurels and a team where players like Hussey may be old but they are still hungry as no wealth is available outside the national team.
Fri 7th Sep
Collingwood Falls Short
Whilst one would have to know the dynamics of the dressing room I cannot help feel that Kevin "We can be unbeatable" Pietersen might not have been the better one day captain than Paul "We can hold our heads high" Collingwood. Indeed KP like Ponting may not be the obvious choice but his aggressive positivism is surely preferable to someone who wants to walk away a head held high loser. Whatever happens in the finale surely Collie treating this loss like a) the loss of an important world final b) behaving like trying hard and salvaging honour is the same as competing to win long term.
Whilst it does not matter to me Moores, Fletcher and Vaughan bore on and on about the one liner of consistent selection (like it is a cause not an effect). Yet we have the game by game clowning of whether Flintstone will play. Surely as said here Flintoff the premier one day bowler in the game possibly chooses what cricket to play rather than be a destabilising soap opera before each game? Like the cult of Johnny before the world cup to build team and tactics on perennially injured players makes no sense. It makes a mockery of the consistent bit unless consistent soap opera is the aim.
In a way surely with a twenty20 tour coming up and the world cup 3 years away it is best to rest Flintstone until he is fit? As I say unless his batting defies his long career record he surely cannot bat at 6 when our attack is so weak and cannot bowl the overs of a bowler in test cricket. At 7 or better still 8 in a one day team he could be a late innings hitter or provide great batting depth in one day cricket. Selection and discussion of him by Graveney and co borders on indulgence which worked so well since last year with Harm-Less-son.
It all adds to the view that there is no plan just game by game fine tuning to no defined end bar the faint hope of winning. Indeed that as the twenty20 specialist selections showed they still want the raft of good old boys over people desperate to win. I would not start with any players personally bar KP and Monty - they want it.
Fri 7th Sep
Chelsea Nightmare Coming True
Ballack excluded from the Champions' League and Sheva fit but not playing. Terry showing last season was not a poor year but seemingly his form. That is 20 million a year to players who respectively: are not that good: declining and not trying: declining but trying. Apparently the owner wanted to add fat bad trainer Ronaldinho to the list - that would have been 35 million to 4 players 2 of whom are not even worth a squad place.
Worse these contracts have years to run and Balls and Sheva are already 15 million a year to not play!!!! Never confuse money and intelligence. No wonder Frank considers 135K a week a pittance given his relative value (maybe did a Gerrard and missed last game to increase value - bizarrely this works in England). They cannot lose Lampard but equally a contract that pays him to 34 based on him being a 60+ game a season up and down midfielder? forgetaboutit... To pay their best player they have to sentence themselves to being an even bigger ageing fat cat pension payer.
Thu 6th Sep
Hargreaves Doubt Who Cares
It is a measure of the press's lack of any understanding of the game, not its understanding of celebrity, that Owen Hargreaves became the latest place holder 'Oh No It's All Gone Horribly Wrong' storyline who might have to miss the Israel game (placeholder as in people might say the Owen Hargreaves position). Personally speaking as elaborated before in I don't get our obsession with poor players whose role results from team dysfunction. Indeed with one of Lampard and Gerrard in a 442 (which I would not play but there you go I have to accept it from the PoV of analysis) and no Beckham only the loss of John Terry would please me more. It should be remembered that England's most convincing recent joined up performance occurred when they played Poland with Gerrard and Beckham missing.
Indeed one hoped that given Israel spent 87 minutes defending deep at home that Hargreaves would not be selected. Indeed his refusal to run and make himself available for the ball made him a liability in that game. Indeed one is glad based on the Israel game that Rooney is not available. All one can hope is that having reviewed the game he puts in a physical presence to intimidate Ben Haim. Also that the full backs can play football unlike say Cole, Carragher and Phil Neville.
If Terry misses the game England could hopefully push up and let the wingers loose to get behind the full backs and create chances for the likely small forward line. If he plays we need height and ball holding up front... i.e. not another big name Mickey Owen. Even if JT plays one hopes he can use his technical ability (actually far better than Ferdinand on the ball) to push out as he did in setting up our best chance in Israel.
If these so called big cheeses were really such a loss then you'd expect England to be brilliant but we are not. We need to pick a team and not players who make themselves indispensible by creating dysfunction only they can play in (Beckham, Owen, Hargreaves, Rooney and Terry being top of my list on this score). Look at how well organised teams of 4th team players, if they were English, do. Then consider the rot about the number of foreign players. It is not the players but selection and management at fault.
As said before the last few years since Beckham began his decline, ironically prior to his effort-full, but guile-less performance against Greece in '02, has seen the waste of Scholes, Lampard and Gerrard to accomodate selfish phonies like Owen, Rooney and Beckham in the wrong formation and a paceless heightless attack.
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