So it was sad to learn of the death of Jimmy Greaves today, probably the best natural goal scorer the English game has ever seen. He didn’t score 30 yard screamers and very few headers; his technique was to pass the ball into the net. And he did it for every team he played for – Chelsea, AC Milan, Spurs, West Ham and England. So why am I so interested? Well he was probably the first footballing hero I can remember. Continue reading
So a third posting on football-related maters which is unusual for me. But I couldn’t let today go by without congratulating my home time team Blackpool FC having won promotion to the Championship from the Div 1 play-off final. Wey hey. They beat Lincoln City 2-1 at Wembley after conceding a first minute own goal. Kenny Dougal was the 2 goal hero and a bit of a poster boy. Do you know that Blackpool are the play-off kings having won 6 finals – a record! God knows how they’ll do in the very competitive Championship but that’s all for tomorrow. After the years of mis-management by the detested Oystons it’s a time to celebrate. Let’s have a look at one of the goals being scored…
So the area of the country where I was raised in the NW corner of the UK between the rivers Ribble and the Lune with the river Wyre bisecting the land, is in the news today. It’s the area known as the Fylde and my home town is Poulton-le-Fylde sitting slap bang in the middle of this flat agricultural area. It’s a Doomsday Book-referenced village meaning, I believe, the town by the pool (river) in the field. We ended up with a lovely Norman-based name but it could have been something mundanely Anglo-Saxon like Wyrhampton, which sounds like the place where Sam Allardyce spent his youth. Continue reading
It was a little poignant to watch my humble home town team Blackpool take on the mighty moneybags of Chelsea at the Bridge last Saturday. They strived noblely but came away a little embarrassed by the outcome. A bit like the match I watched between the sides at Bloomfield Rd when the Seasiders coasting 3-0 at half time somehow managed to concede 4 goals in the second half to the Blues. It also made me recall some of my own interesting moments I had at Chelsea in the very early days of the mobile phone business.
Well, it’s been a turbulent couple of days in the football circus. It seems that thanks to BT I can no longer receive Soccer Am, Sky Sports News and, most critically, Soccer Saturday on my regular digital channels. Oh thanks BT – I don’t suppose you could have secured access rights for your bloody pensioners amidst your glee at capturing sign-up rights for Sky’s Sports channels. Nah.
Oh blimey, Blackpool FC only went and did it, didn’t they? Winning promotion to the Premiership when all the pundits were saying it would be an unfortunate outcome for the Premiership (or an embarrassment if you listened to Talksport’s intellectual giants). Well up yours Mike Parry because the Seasiders will be rubbing shoulders with all of England’s footballing top dogs next year so get used to it. Continue reading
It was sad to hear about the deaths of two people this week. Firstly the quite beautiful Natasha Richardson who died at just 45 after a blow to her head in a seemingly innocuous fall on the ski slopes. She was having a short holiday with her two sons. Her death is tragic enough but C pointed out that her family also have to live with the knowledge that her face is sharing front page billing in every newspaper in the western world with that monster Fritzl, who really doesn’t deserve to live.
Groan…why oh why does Sir Alex (Queiroz?) insist on picking sides to try and play tactically? All they needed today was a draw to effectively seal the Premiership title. So, of course, he makes 6 changes from the last match and picks a side designed not to lose. Always fatal. Fergie and Queiroz just can’t do it. Or at least the team can’t. It’s not in Man U’s DNA to play for draws; their instinct is to attack with thrilling pace and to scare the crap out of lesser teams with the quality of their attacking play.
Pasta Paulie 