Almost Daily Sports Blog

Joe Frazier RIP

2011-11-08T13:35:00.000Z

With today’s untimely death of Smokin’ Joe Frazier, sport itself has lost a true warrior, and one of the most fearsome competitors of all-time. The 67-year-old has passed away after succumbing to liver cancer overnight.

As a fighter, Frazier had it all. An Olympic Champion in 1964, he could box as well as brawl, a quality which would define much of his later career. Frazier’s professional record would be impressive with wins over Muhammad Ali, Jerry Quarry, Oscar Bonavera and Buster Mathis. His only defeats came twice each to George Foreman and Ali.

Frazier’s battles with ‘The Greatest’ define his career, even though that is something he himself would not be pleased with. He often spoke of their ongoing animosity, long after their in-ring battles concluded. Famously, in 1996, after Ali lit the Olympic Torch in Atlanta, Frazier remarked that he wanted to push his rival into the flame.

They first clashed in New York in 1971. With both men undefeated World Champions at this point, it was the ‘Fight of the Century’ and Frazier would inflict upon Ali the most notable loss of his life, knocking him down in the 15thround en route to a points win. Ali would win their second contest three years later before the final contest in their trilogy.

The ‘Thrilla in Manila’ is simply 14 rounds of drama. While Joe Frazier would end up the loser on that balmy morning, above all others this contest would highlight his strongest quality, that enduring spirit. Even when his eyes were swollen shut, and when his opponent’s jabs would have crushed the will of a weaker man, Frazier kept coming forward and kept fighting on in a brutal war. Make no mistake; but for the intervention of his trainer Eddie Futch, Frazier would have fought that 15^th round, if given the chance, despite the likely disastrous consequences. It was the event that would shape his very existence for the next 36 years, and in many ways he came across as bitter as a result, but one must remember the disgusting insults levied at him by his opponent in the previous five years.

Ironically, Muhammad Ali has led the tributes to Frazier today, saying “the world has lost a great champion” and that he will “always remember Joe with respect and admiration.” All boxing fans will do the same – he may have been the third best heavyweight of his era, but he would have been the very best of most decades, and is likely in the top-ten heavyweights of all-time.

Today’s tributes do not match the outpouring of grief which will likely come when his great rival passes away. However, that love and respect for Ali might just be due to Frazier. The Greatest only has that title because he was tested and because he had to overcome so many obstacles, none tougher than the man from Philadelphia.

If Muhammad Ali is “King of the World”, then Joe Frazier did more than anyone else to put that crown upon his head. It’s not the legacy he wanted, or even one he deserved, but it’s enough to cement his place in boxing folklore forever.

More Glum Than Glee-ful After Irish Jibes

2011-11-03T22:01:00.009Z

We may be well into the 21st Century, but this week Ireland is being served an hour of television which appears to have come from the Dark Ages. Glee is generally regarded as enlightened, hip and forward-thinking, but I’ve found the way it portrays my native land in its latest episode to be either negligent insensitivity or wilful stereotyping.

The latest example of Oirishness, entitled Pot O’Gold aired on Sky One tonight (Thursday) and will appear on TV3 this coming Saturday. It’s likely going to resonate in this part of the world as it marks the series debut of Damian McGinty, a Derry native who won his spot in the series on a reality TV show. He plays Rory Flanagan, a newly-arrived exchange student whose brogue is a step removed from Darby O’Gill and has a dress sense taken straight from Emerald City.

Feel free to check off the expected Oirish labels as I go – Rory’s accent, to begin with, was last heard when Cork featured in that episode of Heroes. The dim Brittany believes he is a leprechaun, and offers her ‘pot of gold’ in exchange for three wishes, one of which involves Lucky Charms cereal. He’s forced to defend U2, he’s called a potato-eater and even sings Kermit’s Bein’ Green because, guess what, that’s the colour he wears throughout the episode (until the final scene, which features somewhat of a redemption, signified by a new red ensamble). Watch out for a re-appearance of Seamus McFly’s hat early on as well, among a host of other damning props, insults, jibes and digs all aimed at the Irish nation. There were no 'tops of the morning' but make no mistake, subversion and irony were not at work here. This hour of television can be classed as either laziness or casual racism, and was as subtle as a kick in the balls.

Glee is not the only television show to denigrate Ireland in this way in recent times. Oirishness did not die with The Quiet Man as alcoholics showed in Family Guy, while The Simpsons tried and failed to show a more modern Ireland in In The Name of the Grandfather. Obama became O’Bama when he visited Moneygall, but it’s not just the Americans who are guilty – Eastenders caused plenty of offence with a trio of Irish-based episodes in 1997 and from personal experience, sweeping generalisations are a regular feature of sports punditry here too.

Having said all this, I genuinely have great time for some aspects of Glee, especially the inclusiveness that it has often shown. The show has won Gay Media awards for the way in which it portrays homosexuals, and for the way straight characters engage with gay ones. I’ve also been impressed with the way in which those with physical and (especially) intellectual disabilities are central and equal at McKinley High. The crude representation of Irish people in this episode belies this, but is not excused as a result.

Great strides have been made in American race-relations in recent years but there is room for further improvement. Washington DC is home to an African American President, but also a team called the Redskins. Across the land, sport teams are referred to as Chiefs and Braves and Indians and Seminoles and the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame's logo is even of a leprechaun in a fist-fight. Casual racism can become more than that - there is still a lack of black Quarterbacks and coaches, and it’s only eight years since Rush Limbaugh claimed NFL Quarterback Donovan McNabb got an easy ride because of the colour of his skin. This episode of Glee has provoked little discussion stateside, at least in these terms, so I expect little rancour to emerge there, but in its own way this silence is just as troubling.

I don’t know why it is, but while racism is unacceptable in the Western world, mild forms of it exist in our media to this day. Sometimes, in Crash or Confederate States of America a spotlight is shone on the problem, but more often than not viewers are served tripe such as Pot O’Gold. I hope it does not represent the true thinking of those who tune in, but when such stereotyping is so regular, one must wonder why nothing is done. Are people blind to racism because a colour is not involved? Is it really acceptable to call an Irishman a potato-eater on television in 2011, 160 years after the Great Famine? Does society truly tolerate this, because I know that I do not. In the words of Santana Lopez, in this very show: “It’s mean, it’s bullying and I won’t accept it.”

I look forward to seeing what Irish critics and viewers make of it all. Tune in to one of it’s many airings in the coming days and form your own opinion. Tweet me on @gavingrace or leave a comment below.

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Thanks to Gerard Cunningham for urging me to write this post, and giving me a couple of ideas for it as well.

Presidential Election Shows TV Still Key In Internet Age

2011-10-29T12:13:00.000+01:00

The modern-day world may be one of interconnectivity, of social media and of instant communication, but the 2011 Presidential election has shown that old-style television is still king.

Our case study today is Sean Gallagher, the man who nearly was. His performance, finishing second in this election, is remarkable in and of itself. While not necessarily independent, he lacked a party machine for canvassing etc. He had no posters (at least not on lamp posts) and still was able to get his name out there, thanks primarily to his involvement in the likes of Dragons Den. He entered the race as a personality, and people warmed to the familiar face. For a while, at least.

As much as television gave Gallagher a boost, it also took him down. Monday’s dramatic television debate saw his debate unravel before the nation. He panicked, froze and showed the people that he is not Presidential, not according to the people of Ireland who left him in droves. 28% of the electorate changedtheir first preference this week, and of those 58% deserted Sean Gallagher. That is 16.2% of those who voted –he lost out by 11.1%.

Twitter, in particular, is a fantastic way to experience news events, elections chief among them. Those who followed #aras11 took part in critical discussion, humorous conversation and shared links to some of the most informative (and sometimes ridiculous) columns. Voters engaged with candidates and their teams in a way that happens on the ground, but not in such an obvious or easy fashion.

However, while twitter is the internet’s brightest point, the reality is it does not have the mass reach of other media. As of 5:30 on count day, 3800 people had tweeted using the #aras11 hashtag, taking part in this national conversation. But on Monday night, 900,000 watched the campaign’s most infamous moment in the Frontline studio. That’s half the amount of total voters.

There are few bigger advocates of twitter than myself, and this is not intended to take anything away from the medium. However, despite the modern world in which we live, television has again shown it’s hold and power in Ireland. More than anything else, it can capture, retain and influence the general public. Ireland is now multi-cultural, modern and the internet is at the fore of our future, but our people remain entrapped by the old reliable television. This may be 2011, but the story of this Presidential election is an old-style tale.

In one foul swoop a dragon was slayed and a President crowned, while we all tuned in.

Dan Wheldon RIP

2011-10-17T00:51:00.000+01:00

In May of this year, Dan Wheldon was the beneficiary of one of motorsport's most dramatic finishes.

Today, the 33-year-old father of two died in a crash while competing in Las Vegas.

Motorsport. You never know what's around the corner.

Welsh Loss Set To Haunt Ireland's Greatest Ever Players

2011-10-08T23:48:00.000+01:00

Losing’s a bitch. Losing out on what is probably your last chance must be ten times worse.

As fans of the Irish rugby team, today we hurt. This morning was a crushing disappointment that we feel even more because it was unexpected, and because of the euphoric highs that preceded it. Yet as fans, we will have another day, many more in fact. The Irish people will cheer for us in World Cups in 2015, 2019, 2023 and so on. Four years is a long time, but time does pass.

But when that happens, things change. Players get old, some of them too old. 2015 will probably be a bridge to far for the likes of Paul O’Connell, Rory Best, Donnacha O’Callaghan, David Wallace, Gordon D’Arcy and Brian O’Driscoll who by then could be mere fans like the rest of us. That list is not exhaustive – there may be more, but it may also be the case that some of those men hang on. I imagine the manner of today’s defeat, and the way it robbed Ireland’s stars of a swansong on the global stage will perhaps induce second thoughts and a drive to continue.

Some will go however, perhaps not straight away, but they will. The Ireland team of the 2012 and 2013 Six Nations will look very different to the all-too-familiar squad of recent times. It’s still too soon for a post-mortem, when we don’t even know who is leaving, but when change is most certainly coming, one thing has to be said – today is the most disappointing day any one of them will have experienced in an Irish jersey.

We have lost Grand Slam deciders, blown chances to beat Southern Hemisphere giants, even lost Quarter Finals before today. However on virtually all of those occasions Ireland were underdogs, valiant battlers who attempted to stave off defeat. Today, that was not the case. We were a team poised to deliver the sport’s finest hour. Take into account the brilliance of the win over Australia, and the economic circumstances in which this country finds itself, and today’s defeat is even more heartbreaking. More so than on virtually any other occasion, today we knew that victory was tangible and realistic. We could taste success, we could dream of a final, and yet it never came.

Perhaps it was nerves. Perhaps it was a poor tactical performace. Perhaps it was plain bad luck. No matter really, because it was most certainly the most gut-wrenching defeat for an Ireland rugby team in many a year. Look at Brian O’Driscoll’s face in the post-match press conference. In a word, it is grey. He knows it as much as anyone. After the win over Australia, I wrote that the victory was an opportunity that had to be grasped. Today was the chance to do that and it was not taken. I don’t say that as a criticism – no one man could have tried harder – but as a fact. That’s what hurts most of all.

An opportunity like today might not come for another twenty or thirty years. Then again, it could come in four, but even then that will too far away for some of the golden generation. We laud then. We thank them. We appreciate their efforts, toast their successes and today, of all days, we share the pain of their defeats.

Some of these players tasted victory in places that Irishmendo not win.

More of them spoiled the homecoming of World champions and slayed the old enemy all in the one day.

Many of these players made what once seemed unobtainable the norm. They came to the cusp of success, before falling short and trying once more.

Yet more were humiliated on the biggest stage of all, and still returned.

They showed the best of a 21^st Century Ireland – our maturity, our facilities, our tenacity and the pride we have of this nation – in one of the greatest sporting days of recent years.

They gave us a day the likes of which comes once in every 61 years.

Virtually all of them did the unthinkable just three weeks ago against Australia - in a very different way, what happened today was equally unthinkable.

This is not a post-mortem, but they are the achievements of the Irish national rugby team 2000-2011.

Today marks the end of an era.

Modest Kidney A Man Worth Hailing

2011-10-07T01:39:00.001+01:00

It’s a landmark that means little, but last week marked the fourth anniversary of one of my bigger breaks in radio. I joined a national station, as a stringer, and for around a year I attended sporting events from Sligo to Cork, doing interviews and vox pops and compiling reports.

My first assignment came at an unremarkable Magners League game between Munster and the Scarlets at Musgrave Park in September 2007. As is custom, I interviewed the winning coach after the match, and as well as getting his views on another Munster win, I decided to ask him about the story du jour in Irish rugby; the then-ongoing failure of Ireland at the Rugby World Cup in France.

The reply, in a word, was unremarkable.

“You’d have sympathy for all of them. They’ve all burst their traps to put everything in place and, you know, it’s very disappointing the way it’s working out for them.”

“There’ll be no one more disappointed than the players and the management themselves.”

What makes those remarks relevant today, is that the man who uttered those words is the individual most responsible for the turnaround in the national team’s fortunes in the intervening four years.

I wonder when he spoke those words in the Dolphin Clubhouse in Musgrave Park, whether Declan Kidney thought for a moment that he could be best-suited to benefit from Ireland’s misfortune. Would he have wished for it to happen? No, I’m sure, but the Heineken Cup winning coach would have known that he would be a strong contender to take over the position in the event of Eddie O’Sullivan’s departure. He could have stoked the fire, told me what he would have done differently, why things were going wrong. He could have increased the pressure on O’Sullivan but he didn’t. He spoke in generalities, in platitudes. There was no criticism. No headline. Kidney kept his true feelings to himself. That is how he operates.

Declan Kidney is humble and modest to the point of satire, but his ways do not change. In his greatest hour, in Cardiff in March of 2009, he declined an invitation to stand with his players as they lifted the Six Nations Trophy. He is not meek however. Make no mistake, Declan Kidney is driven, focussed and determined. This is a man who inspires those around him and without a doubt, has the full respect of those he leads. Men are not as committed as Ireland were in the win over Australia, unless the fully believe in their cause. Remember too, when Ireland’s preparations were in crisis after four losses in August, belief was never lost. Just as there was no catastrophe, there was no delirium when Australia was dispatched. The result was an opportunity, not an achievement in and of itself.

There’s no doubting, mind you, that Declan Kidney has been lucky. There’s no Grand Slam if Jones’ penalty travels three yards longer, or if O’Gara doesn’t connect with a late drop goal. And if Ireland’s defence were to relent late on at Eden Park, then it would be Australia who would have celebrated that night, and South Africa who we would be focussing on now. But if he is fortunate now then he was fortunate in leading Munster to their success for so long too. At some stage luck gives way to something more tangible than that, something more permanent. Class, perhaps.

There’s no man I would rather entrust the hopes of a nation in at this moment in time. That he is one of our own, that he is modest and self-assured in equal measure; both of these are vital. Unlike Lefty Gomez, he’s lucky and good in equal measure. There are question marks about some of his decisions – I’ve raised some myself – but for the first time in our history Ireland have a proven track record of form, an opportunity to shine and a management team to be confident in as we head into a World Cup Quarter Final.

We dare to dream, as fans and as a nation, but our charges are grounded. If Saturday goes wrong, we’ll all hurt, but “there’ll be no one more disappointed than the players and the management themselves.”

Always Remember...

2011-10-03T23:12:00.000+01:00

An important lesson for all journalists, not least yours truly. Being first is not always that important.

Podcast - No. 3

2011-09-29T19:21:00.002+01:00

I do these sometimes, albeit not enough.

Still, for your ears, here are my thoughts on Ireland v. Italy this Sunday, why Ronan O'Gara is the right man to start...but only for now.

Ireland Must Keep Cool After Oz Wizardry

2011-09-19T23:48:00.000+01:00

There’s no doubting that Ireland’s Rugby World Cup win over Australia on Saturday was a monumental event in Irish sporting history. The first victory over a Southern Hemisphere side in the global competition is the latest in about 6 matches which shower our ‘wonder generation’ of stars in the glory they deserve, and it also has fantastic consequences for the remainder of the competition.

However, is there a danger that Ireland’s sporting media over-stating the win? Today’s Irish Independent, to cite one example, ranked it at the top of a ‘Top-Five Ireland Rugby Wins of All-Time’ list. Our grand slam clinching wins of 2009 and 1948 were second and third, ahead of a win over Australia in Dublin in 2006 and the Five Nations win at Twickenham in 1994. However, in my opinion it doesn’t belong there.

To look at another sport, as an example, the Republic of Ireland’s greatest soccer win, in a World Cup at least, was against Italy at Giants Stadium in 1994. The 1-0 win in our opening group game could have set up a fantastic odyssey in the USA, but it did not, and now that World Cup is a failure. If our rugby stars do not capitalise on the win in Auckland Saturday, then the 2011 Rugby World Cup will also be a failure.

We need this win to be a springboard, and not the finished article: a step in the road, and not the destination. A quarter-final loss to Wales, when we have already proven ourselves to be above their level, would be worse than an insipid defeat to Holland in Orlando in 1994 as it would come in a game where we would rightly be favourites. And that’s before we even consider a potential defeat against Italy. Our media need to realise this, and while we rightly celebrate Saturday’s achievement, we must move on, look forward, and dare to dream of more.

The one thing that does please me in all of this, however, is the reaction of the players. There were scenes of joy following the final whistle, but it was not unbridled. It was controlled, and refined, and in the interviews the players struck the right tone. One even called it ‘the start of our World Cup.’ Ronan O’Gara aside (and his situation is unique), emotions were in check. It was a job done, a column ticked, and there are many more to follow, or so we hope. And dream. And pray. And, just a little, expect.

Life Lesson Learned Through Sport - No. 48513

2011-09-15T00:05:00.000+01:00

As is the case in sport, life is full of dilemmas, without having the merest iota as to which road to take. We take risks and gambles, even when the fate of such decisions lies out of our hands, and their ‘correct-ness’ is in the hands of others.

Take two football stars, decades apart, who made similar decisions with opposite results. While not in the same league as players, I would argue that Pele of 1975 and David Beckham of 2007 were stars of equal regard in the USA. They were famous enough to permeate through American society in a market where football is not a leading sport. Both tried to change that; one was moderately successful, the other not so much.

When he joined the Los Angeles Galaxy four years ago, David Beckham was looking to use his stardom to make the MLS a modern-day NASL. The extinguished league of the 1970s and 1980s made soccer big in the US, particularly in New York, because of one team – the Cosmos – and their main man. With Pele starting up front, the Cosmos sold out large stadiums across the country. Their games were live on network television in a time when even the World Cup Final was. Warner Brothers, who owned the team, assembled a plethora of stars but it was Pele, who mattered and who put bums in seats.

Beckham tried to emulate him, but despite their best efforts the Galaxy were not to be a twenty-first century Cosmos. There are many reasons for this – he didn’t score as many goals, he was playing in a time when US fans could easily see that Major League Soccer was not the best league in the world. However, his move could have worked. He took a gamble (in spite of circumstances which perhaps meant he had to) which failed, while Pele’s gamble succeeded. Pele will always be remembered for his success with Santos and Brazil, but unlike David Beckham, his American foray put a pleasant postscript onto his career. I suspect the same will happen to Robbie Keane.

Both decisions could have been successful. Both could have failed. They’re similar gambles, though in different eras. However, Beckham’s career (while never that of an all-time elite player) is now tarnished because his decision was the wrong one, at least in a sporting sense.

These are the decisions we all face, all the time. Some are big, some small, but all have consequences, many of which are out of our control. I can understand why David Beckham’s motives in going L.A. Money aside, he wished to leave a mark and wanted to be remembered as more than just another very good footballer. Would he have been better off staying in Europe? No one will ever know, but that’s the thing about these decisions. We never know. We never know if they are right or wrong. They are what they are. Dilemmas, confusing, frustrating.

When faced with these options, when you have no way of knowing what is the right thing to do and what will ultimately be wrong, it’s tough. It’s difficult, and there are no right answers, at least not now.

That doubt is the worst bit of all. Trust me.

A Moment Of Malaise

2011-09-14T00:39:00.000+01:00

I wish I could write.

That’s a tough admission for someone who writes for a living, and wants to do so for some time to come.

I am a journalist, for radio, and if you want a four-sentence, 100-word summary of a news story then I’m your man. Short, punchy sentences are no problem, but eloquence, verbose paragraphs and general flair are beyond me.

I’m not looking to be Shakespeare, or Norman Mailer or Hunter S. Thompson or even Bill Simmons. I just want to be good enough to do what I want to do, what I want to be, what I always thought I was good enough to do.

I’m lazy – this blog hasn’t been updated since Jesus was in shorts. That’s a bad habit. It’s so long since I visited here that Google Chrome doesn’t know the URL to my own blog. For shame Gavin, for shame. Writers write, they work on their craft, they practice and they improve. They learn from mistakes by making them. I shy away from those errors.

I’m reluctant – I self-disparage. I want myself to be the best and become disheartened by the fact that I know I’m not, and that I’m not close. As a journalist, I don’t ‘get the story’ and as a columnist or someone who adds opinion, I make few points of worth. It also, I imagine, is not a good sign that my first post of note in months (I’ve had a few false starts in the last while) is one in which I slate myself. Nonetheless, I go on.

I’m inarticulate, at times – my command of the English language is not as it should be. Where I wrote ‘disparage’ in the last sentence, I initially wrote defecate which, let’s be frank, is a lot worse than the truth. I know I was looking for another word, I just don’t know what it was.

I’m plain – as a writer I lack humour, or wit. I don’t believe that I provoke discussion. I make good points at time, on twitter for example, or in general conversation, but find it difficult to expand these beyond 140 characters or an initial sentence.

I get distracted – I’m off to play Football Manager now before continuing this article. And in the middle of that I’ll watch a field goal attempt from the NFL in 2008. True story.

I’m a poor manager – I lost 3-1 at home to Wigan. Then again, I am Banbury United, and it is the Championship, so I might give myself a pass there.

I have a horrible attitude – that much is obvious though, huh?

I have other negative qualities, I’m sure, but you get the idea. I also have some strong points. I type quickly. I’m an above-average speller too. I even have a strong knowledge of things I write about (mainly sports, but other things too) and I can spot a story. I also have to acknowledge that unlike a lot of people who get into this business, I’m working in a job so I must have some other qualities I am unaware of.

Despite that, and despite a number of other reasons to be happy like a loving family and relative financial comfort and a woman who loves me and a woman that I love (thankfully they are the same person), recently I find myself at a low. I’m negative. I’m chirpy, but I don’t mean it mostly and I become downbeat far too regularly. Part of my life,the professional side, I would describe as being in a rut, and I see no way out of it. I have a reasonable existence at the moment but I want more, and have no idea of how to make that a reality.

Metaphorically, I have A and B and C, but I want D, E, F and a whole lot more too. That’s not greed, it’s ambition. It’s a drive for more, that I have, yet that drive is something on which I do not act. Or can not act. I’m not sure.

I want to be better. I want to be happy, and to have everything. Everyone does, of course, but I’m at one of those points in my life where I don’t know if it will ever happen, when at the same stage I should believe that anything can happen.

I want to be the writer that I want to be; I want to cover the big events, and make the points that people discuss. I want to express my passion, and get paid for it because I’m damn good at it and because I’m worth listening to. I want that to be true. I don’t know if it ever will be, and while I have something not a million miles away from that now, I don’t know if it’s enough to satisfy me, and I don’t have the confidence to be sure that more will come.

I wish I could write.

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As this is a personal comments, I am disabling the comments section for this post only. It will return.

Nick Charles RIP

2011-06-25T14:22:00.000+01:00

Very sad to hear about the passing of Nick Charles. The 64 year old had been battling cancer for some time, and called off his treatment in January in order to prepare for today. I saw this video of him, created by his old employers CNN recently, and found it both touching and inspiring. I hope you do too.

My Snap

2011-04-17T23:40:00.001+01:00

Khan TV Debacle Bizarre At Best, Commercial Fatalism At Worst

2011-04-12T01:17:00.000+01:00

I normally post my stuff for thescore.ie on this blog but I didn't get a chance to do so this weekend. As a lot of it is out of date now I shall leave it off here, but I'm told it's well written so head on over there to check it out, after you take a nose at this.

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The twists and turns regarding the televising of Saturday's fight between Amir Khan and Paul McCloskey are likely to be more dramatic than the contest itself. And devastating as a loss this Saturday would be professionally, the events that have occurred in boardrooms over the past dew days would likely be more harmful to his career in the long run.

The fight was initially due to be televised on SKY Box Office, with fans paying around €22 for the privilege of tuning in. However, late last week the plug was pulled on the pay-per-offering after a number of blows to the undercard were deemed fatal to the chances of commercial success.

SKY then intended to show the card on a normal SKY Sports channel, showcasing Khan to a wider audience. However, the Olympic medalist baulked at this situation, as it was set to see him take a pay cut of at least £1 million. (Note - it should be pointed out that Amir Khan insists he has not been involved in any of the negotiations outlined here, which for his own sake I hope is correct. However, given that his representatives have negotiated on his behalf, and that one presumes he could have as much say in the talks as he chooses, I will continue to say the decisions outlined here are his, even if his involvement in the decision-making process is not complete.)

Further protracted negotiations continued, and fans of the sport posited theories that an 'unfortunate' injury was set to spell the end of this seemingly doomed card. It is understood that Khan's contract with SKY specifies his fights are carried on PPV, and that he shunned the chance to promote his skills to a broader audience ahead of an expected contest with Timothy Bradley. In the end, it has been decided that the card will now be broadcast on a PPV basis, albeit by Primetime and not SKY.

One need only look at the recent career of Carl Froch to see the potential problems associated with this. The Nottingham super-middleweight has gone from fighting before audiences of 6 million on ITV to barely 100,000 on the fledgling Primetime network. Lacking the commercial clout of SKY, but still maintaining the pay-per-view option, the financial aspect of Froch's deal are presumably adequate, given that his last three fights have been carried by them. However, there's no denying that the public acclaim that should have come from his performances in the Super Six contest has been notably absent.

Now, Amir Khan is not Carl Froch. His Olympic medal and subsequent showcasing on ITV means he is much more of a media darling. He is also a favourite of American network HBO, who will still screen Saturday's contest. However, if he has frustrated SKY with this weekend's shenanigans, then there is the danger that Khan will have effectively cut himself off from the paymasters of British boxing.

Insiders within the sport agree that the decision to shun SKY is not wise. Eddie Hearn of Matchroom has labelled the decision 'commercial suicide'. Few blame SKY for their decision to pull the PPV offering (it has been reported that the show had barely attracted 50 advance sales), and coming six months after the Haye-Harrison debacle, the network has to be seen to be offering value for money to it's boxing fans. It's also unlikely that the terms agreed with Primetime will see Amir receive much more than he would have received under the reduced deal with SKY so the question remains, why do this?

Perhaps Khan's people feel better-than-predicted sales are possible. A few juicy quotes and perhaps even a press conference brawl wouldn't hurt in this regard, but something will have to he done because it's almost certain that marketing for the PPV will be minimal.

Khan has lost this commercial battle in the short term, but whether this amounts to a knockout or merely a body blow in years to come remains to be seen. Personally, I feel it's unlikely that this will be a significant setback as a blockbuster summer bout will likely lead to a mutually beneficial reunion. SKY have seen Lennox Lewis and Ricky Hatton walk out on them in the past, only to return to them for the biggest nights and paydays of their respective careers. Khan's US TV support is also an asset, without which Saturday's fight in Manchester would probably have fallen by the wayside.

However, HBO's support is unlikely to weather any significant storm, such as a win for Paul McCloskey for example. That may be highly unlikely, but if Amir was to be defeated this Saturday then his fallen stock and soured relations would almost certainly make his comeback more difficult than he can imagine, and his Primetime gamble the worst decision of his career.

Irish Cricket Knocked For Six By ICC Buffoonery

2011-04-04T21:29:00.001+01:00

Let’s re-imagine sports history, briefly. It’s July of 1966 and on the back of a successful World Cup, won by the hosts, FIFA is meeting to outline the future of the tournament and has decided to streamline their event, limiting it to ten teams. England is invited –defending champions after all – as are previous winners Uruguay, Italy, West Germany and Brazil. Czechoslovakia, Sweden, Hungary and Argentina have all lost finals – that’s 9 teams - and the tenth team will be Portugal, who have just won the third-fourth place playoff. These countries, say FIFA, will contest the next two World Cups, up to and including 1974.

It seems bizarre. What about Holland, who went onto reach the ’74 Final, or USSR or France or Spain or the USA or any team from Asia or Africa? These teams don’t meet the selection criteria now but maybe they will in time. Well, they’ve been excluded, and won’t be given the chance to qualify for another eight years. The same applies to North Korea, despite being the sport's Cinderella just weeks previously.

Such a move is illogical, yet this is the sort of decision taken today by the International Cricket Council. 36 years after their first World Cup (like in the fictional football example above), cricket officials have decreed that only the sport's ten full member nations will take part in the 2015 World Cup excluding associate teams like Ireland. Ten teams will also participate in the 2019 Tournament, and while Ireland and others will have a chance to qualify on that occasion, the ICC have effectively put the brakes on the sport's development here and in the likes of Canada, Holland and dozens of other nations.

Officials, players and fans here, unsurprisingly, are disgusted at the decision which has been described as a ‘travesty’ and an ‘outrage’. Warren Deutrom, chief executive of Cricket Ireland, says this “as a black day for cricket.” Irish captain William Porterfield said of his team that they “have done everything they asked of us over the last few years in terms of restructuring Irish cricket and I can’t come to terms with how they can just shut us out, do away with the qualification period and then try and call this a World Cup.

“We are currently ranked 10th, ahead of Zimbabwe, and there is no reason we can’t move up another position, if not two, by the next World Cup. Instead, the door has been closed in our face. It is an embarrassment."

Other players have also taken to their twitter pages to give out, even some not playing for Ireland.

What would a World Cup, or any sporting event for that matter, be without minnows? If FIFA had taken the above decision, there would have been no Quarter Final appearance for Peru in 1970. The stagnation in the growth of football elsewhere would have also had disastrous consequences, meaning it less likely for other small nations to experience some of the best days in the history. Football is a very different case to cricket, absolutely, but the difference between the best ten teams in 1966 and the best of 2011 shows how sports evolve and how giants can fall and minnows soar. The ICC’s policies, which have already seen some of Ireland’s best players line out for England, effectively kills our national team and any chance of the sport making further inroads in this country, following wins over Pakistan in 2007 and England just weeks ago.

It smacks of hypocrisy, of protectionism and narrow-mindedness. It is choking a sport, rather than letting it grow. Ireland are not calling for automatic qualification, just the chance to compete, something which our nation has done on every possible occasion at 50- and 20-over World Cups in recent years. The win over England in Bangalore shows the potential of our players, and the media response to the victory demonstrates the genuine appetite for the sport here. There is no rational reason for destroying that, but that is what the ICC have effectively done today.

Shame on them.

SBP Headline FAIL!!!

2011-04-04T20:30:00.002+01:00

Taken from the Huffington Post, perhaps the most unfortunate headline ever.

Quick Jabs 2

2011-04-03T00:51:00.000+01:00

I've written another article for the fine website, thescore.ie this week. You should go there to read the snappy intro they've written for it, and all their other fine stuff. My merely adequate contribution is below.

+++

Despite two Irish fighters losing in fights for World Titles last month, 2011 may yet prove to be a successful year for our own with, it seems, another pair of World Title shots to look forward to.

Paul McCloskey is continuing his preparations for his fight against Amir Khan on April 16th, but one man who won’t be fighting on that card is Matthew Macklin. The Tipperary native was due to take on Khoren Gevor in an Eliminator fight for the WBA Middleweight Title at the MEN Arena that night, but has withdrawn with promoter Ricky Hatton citing ‘contractual issues’ in an interview on RTE Radio.

However, word on the grapevine is that the real reason for this decision is that Macklin is set to get a straight shot at a World Title, probably against WBA ‘Super’ Champion Felix Sturm. The German last fought in February, so a fight in the next two months would not be out of the question. Regular WBA Champion Gennady Golovkin and IBF Champion Sebastian Sylvester are also both regarded as options, but Sturm is the most likely opponent for the Tipperary native.

The fight is fraught with danger however. Macklin was initially due to fight Winky Wright in the US on April 9th, before the American was injured, and now that he has pulled out of the Gevor fight it means his training schedule, presumably aimed at peaking this month, will now have to be changed. Also, Sturm has never lost a decision in his homeland and if a fight is to be made with the German, it’s likely that Macklin will have to travel. He’d best work on his knockout punch...

+++

Speaking of judging decisions, it was interesting this week to read Katie Taylor tell The Score that boxing ‘is a corrupt sport at times.’ The statement is not news in itself, especially coming after Taylor’s recent shocking loss in Bulgaria, but it does serve to underline the difficulties facing Ireland’s amateur boxers ahead of the London Olympics.

For Taylor, there will be only one Qualifying event – the World Championships in China next May. Failure to progress to at least the Quarter Finals there, be it due to an off-day, a lucky punch or questionable judging will end any hopes the Bray woman has of winning an Olympic medal, long before the Games begin.

For Ireland’s men, the Qualifying process begins much sooner than that with this year’s World Championships in Azerbaijan in September. While not their only chance of reaching the London Games, it is one of the best for the Irish boxers who will continue to jockey for places on the team in tournaments in Finland and Poland next week.

+++

Two years ago, Kelly Pavlik was one of the hottest things in boxing. As a middleweight champion who had twice beaten Jermaine Taylor, the Youngstown native was likable, a big ticket seller, and always entertaining.

However, alcoholism and a staph infection almost halted his career, and Pavlik is to make his comeback in his first fight in over a year on the undercard of the Shane Mosley – Manny Pacquiao fight next month. Pavlik has moved up to the 168 pound division, and will take on the unbeaten Alfonso Lopez. The show is set to be a cracker –Humberto Soto is also due to take on Urbano Antillon in a rematch of one of the best fights of 2010.

+++

Congratulations to veteran promoter Bob Arum, who this week celebrates the forty-fifth anniversary of his first show. Arum has put on many of the most famous events in the sport’s history, including over 500 World Title fights. His Top Rank company are also going as strong as ever, and will put on the aforementioned Pacquiao-Mosley card on May 7th.

When asked about his career so far, the 79 year old said “It’s a good start.”

+++

Tributes have been paid to former broadcaster and trainer Gil Clancy. The Hall of Famer passed away at the age of 88 on Thursday. Best known for his work with Emile Griffith, Clancy also trained a host of champions and contenders before beginning a career on US TV in the 1980’s.

+++

This weekend is a fairly quiet one for boxing fans, though Setanta Ireland will have live coverage of Ivan Calderon’s bid to gain revenge over Giovani Segura in their WBO Light Flyweight Title fight from Mexico in the early hours of Sunday morning.

+++

This Week in Boxing History

This past Thursday marked the 21st anniversary of one of the finest nights in one of the most under-rated boxing careers. An all-action fighter, Terry Norris was exciting as anyone in the ring, particularly from 1988-1993. He was elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2005, after a career which saw him win four World Titles and the support of many hardcore fans. ‘Terrible’ Terry’s gung-ho style is best encapsulated in this devastating first round knockout of John Mugabi on March 31st, 1990. It was Ring Magazine’s Knockout of the Year.

Greys Off Key

2011-04-03T00:32:00.002+01:00

My other half has impeccable taste. She goes out with me.

She does, however, watch Greys Anatomy, something I don’t. That said, it does be on over on the other side of the bed from time to time, including tonight.

This is a show which has had it’s moments, good ones I mean, but this week’s one was not.

I won’t say much, as I’m aware that the show is on RTE during the coming week, except to say that the episode Song Beneath The Song reminded me of two moments from TV’s past.

Kids These Days

2011-03-27T23:56:00.000+01:00

This is fantastic.

Picture is not related to the story, unsurprisingly.

Quick Jabs 1

2011-03-27T23:53:00.001+01:00

I'm hoping to begin writing for another website, http://www.thescore.ie on my first love, namely boxing. They published my first article on Saturday (it's a little dated now) but here you go.

+++

There’s no way to disguise that last week was very disappointing for Irish boxing fans. Two of our own fought for World Titles – unfortunately, both were beaten – however, neither was disgraced.

Willie Casey was always going to find it tough going against Guillermo Rigondeaux. Despite the advantage of a partisan Dublin crowd, Casey’s inexperience showed against the two-time Olympic Gold Medallist. Rigondeaux was forced to come to Ireland after his last fight, a snore-fest decision win against Ricardo Cordoba (another man familiar to Irish fans), but in blowing Casey out of the ring in the first round, he is likely to have once again garnered the attention of the US TV Networks. For Casey meanwhile, it is difficult to see where he can go from here but the Limerick man is affable and can sell tickets, so expect him to return, and possibly again fight for a European title.

Good as RIgondeaux was, Belfast’s Brian Magee arguably faced an even tougher fight when he fought Lucian Bute in Montreal. Magee survived until the tenth round, before the referee rightly stopped the fight following a massive uppercut which saw him hit the canvas for the third time. Magee earned a lot of fans with his performance, as he was never expected to trouble the Romanian. He may now be offered further fights against American and Canadian prospects, against whom he would be expected to provide a stern test. It’s up to Magee, who turns 35 in June, if this is a road he wants to travel down.

It hasn’t all been doom and gloom for Irish fans, with our amateur stars again leading the way, recording two wins over a China this week in Dungarvan and New Ross. Of the 24 fights so far, Ireland have won 18 ahead of tonight’s third and final meeting in Dublin. Katie Taylor will look for a third win over former World Championship Final opponent Cheng Dong – the Bray woman won each of their first two fights this week on a 17-2 scoreline – while former Olympic medallist Kenny Egan will be in action at the National Stadium for the first time since his recent loss to Mullingar’s Joe Ward in the National Championships.

Note - Egan was one of four Irish boxers to win on Friday night, but Ireland lost out to the Chinese.

+++

It’s been another good week for Floyd Mayweather. The man they call ‘Money’ hit the jackpot in Las Vegas, with a massive bet on an NBA Basketball game. According to his twitter page, Mayweather cashed in a slip worth over $37,000 following the Chicago Bulls’ win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday.

No doubt, the money will come in very useful. It’s reported this week that, for a third time, talks on a proposed superfight between Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao have fallen by the wayside, this time because of Floyd’s financial demands. It’s claimed he was seeking a ridiculous $100m to take on boxing’s biggest potential fight, making one wonder if he wants it to happen at all.

+++

After last weekend’s plethora of pugilism, this weekend is a much tamer affair though there are some interesting fights ahead. Tomorrow afternoon, Russian middleweight Dmitry Pirog enters the ring for the first time since he captured the vacant WBO title with a stunning knockout win against Daniel Jacobs last July. Pirog faces off against Argentine Javier Francisco Maciel in his homeland in a fight that will be televised here on Setanta Sports 1 on Saturday afternoon.

Also this weekend, the under-rated Yuriorkis Gamboa defends his World Featherwieght titles against Mexican Jorge Solis and Albert Sosnowski has an interesting defence of his European Heavyweight Title against Alexander Dimitrenko in Hamburg. Neither of those fights will be televised in Ireland.

+++

This Week In Boxing History

On March 24^th 1975, Muhammad Ali fought the relative unknown Chuck Wepner for the World Title, a fight which lasted the full 15 rounds despite the perceived gulf in class between the fighters. Wepner was knocked out in the final round, but was deemed to have floored Ali in the ninth, despite the champion’s assertion that his foot had been stood on.

The fight is also notable in that it served as the inspiration for a young Sylvester Stallone, who, after watching it, locked himself in a room to write Rocky.

Nike Probably Not Unhappy Despite Ad Leak

2011-03-22T13:37:00.000Z

You've probably seen the above video already - it was made by Nike ahead of Saturday's win for Ireland over England in the Six Nations. Had the English won, then they would have clinched their first Grand Slam since 2003 and this ad, presumably, would have been all over our televisions like white on rice.

The ad popped up online yesterday, and since then has been tweeted about by about a bazillion people and news stories have been made about it, both in Ireland and the UK. A Google News Search for 'Nike Ad England' brings up over 2,300 results.

Naturally, Irish fans have rejoiced at this while according to The Guardian, the English have been left red-faced.

Somehow though, I don't think Nike will mind too much at all. There's no such thing as bad publicity, or so the saying goes, and nothing better than free publicity so though the Chariot may have been derailed at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, I somehow think the Swoosh are still smiling.

Another Amazing Tale From The World Of Sport

2011-03-22T13:24:00.000Z

Just last week, I wrote about inspiration in life and in sport, and how powerful a force it can be for us all.

As if to serve as a reminder, this weekend just gone has given us one of the most inspiring stories you can imagine.

Anthony Robles is from Mesa, Arizona, where he was born in 1988. He wrestled throughout high school, went undefeated in his final two years (that’s 96 straight wins) and became state and national champion. He then went on to continue wrestling for Arizona State University, winning a scholarship, and three times he has been the best wrestler in his weight division in the PAC-10 division. This past weekend, in his biggest achievement to date, he again won a national title, becoming the best collegiate athlete in the 125lb weight division.

Anthony was born without his right leg, and hasn’t worn prosthetic one since he was 3 years old.

To watch this video and to see his tenacity and inability to acknowledge adversity is phenomenal. It is the definition of inspiration if it ever existed. Even his words following his victory show humility, level-headedness and courage.

"People have been asking me if I want to try out for freestyle (the Olympic style) or anything like that," says Robles.

"But I've had a great run. Started wrestling when I was a freshman in high school. It's been a great ride.

"Wrestling's been my life for nine years now. I don't know what I'm going to do without competition now. But it's been a blessing in my life. It's taught me so much. It's really helped me to become a man. And I'll be forever grateful for that."

"I really don't see missing my leg as a handicap. You know, my parents raised me strong and they didn't give me any special treatment. So, I believe I can do anything I set my mind to and wrestling is something I enjoy, I love it and I'm just trying to be best at it."

I wish Anthony all the best, and thank and congratulate him for giving us this amazing story.

The Coke, The

2011-03-21T22:37:00.000Z

We spotted this somewhere near Kilcullen while on our way to Belfast for the Irish Blog Awards on Saturday. If the night out and Sunday's booze cruise weren't worth the trip, and they were, then this certainly was!

(Note: Blog title refers to this Simpsons joke, in case you were wondering)

Inspiration Is All Around

2011-03-19T00:31:00.000Z

In life, and in sport, perspective is everything.

The majority of posts on this site, sporadic as they are, are of the here and now; of the game/match/fight/story of that day. Current affairs are, after all, the most pressing kind.

However, that does not mean that we should not know from where we come. I enjoy watching sports and fights from before I was born as much as I do those happening live on television. Some query this; my better half lists ESPN Classic and the BBC Red Button’s fantastic Classic Formula 1 feature among her pet hates. I also love watching sports documentaries, often about people and events I know little of, and I do this for one reason above all others.

Inspiration.

Perspective and knowledge are key, but without inspiration sport wouldn’t exist. Sports stars need a hook to draw them into a sport. Bernard Dunne speaks about the importance of Barry McGuigan, Lewis Hamilton idolizes Ayrton Senna and goodness only knows how many 10 year olds have kicked a ball against a wall imagining they are Pele, or Maradona, or Keane, or Rooney or whoever. As much as sport is about community, and our very existence, it is also something that inspires us, fans and competitors alike, and spurs it on.

I watch those historic events to be inspired, to see great fighters and athletes at their best, creating history. I also watch live events to see history as it is created, so in years to come I can say I was there when Dunne knocked out Cordoba, or when Schumacher clinched a World Title, or at the very least I can say I was sat in front of the television rejoicing with millions others when Bolt ran 9.58 in Berlin, or McAteer scored against the Dutch or any one of thousands of other events. I was alone, or in a small group, but I was one of many rejoicing. Together, alone. We were inspired by the things in front of our noses, something that I get to experience every day.

I am inspired by the woman I love, my Hellie. She took up blogging at my behest, twitter too. She know kicks my ass at both. Tomorrow, we heard to Belfast for the Irish Blog Awards 2011 in which her blog, http://www.anseo-a-mhuinteoir.com is nominated in the Best Education/Science Blog Category. Her’s is the only Primary School blog in the final five. She is also very active on twitter, @anseoamuinteoir, and best of all, she does this not for herself but for others. Blogging and interacting allows her to be a better teacher, something she loves, something she was born to do.

It is her passion, and it is her hope to inspire children for years to come. This passion can be see on her site, and in how she has made friends and relationships and earned the respect of others online. She inspires me as well. I intend to work hard over the next twelce months so that when we return to next year’s awards, we do so as a pair of nominees.

Thanks babe x

Mario Bib-o-telli

2011-03-18T23:57:00.002Z

No words can describe how funny this is.

After Midnight Musings

2011-02-18T02:06:00.001Z

It's quite late, and for the first time ever I'm doing this on the phone so this shall be short. Officially, it is now Friday February 18th meaning we are one week away from what will likely be the most important general election of our lives. Even at 25, it's clear that we are living through extraordinary times, the likes of which are thankfully rare. Now I'm not going to endorse anyone here. In part that's be aide of my work. I will cover this election professionally and thus will not endorse any candidate or party, perhaps not even to my nearest and dearest. Also, to be frank, I've no idea what way I will vote. One thing I know for sure though, is I will vote, and so should we all. In 2007, the last General Election, turnout nationally was 66% or thereabouts. This time, I would be amazed if it's not higher and, frankly, it should be 100%. No one has been left untouched by our economic circumstances, we all have a view on how we got here and who has the best ideas to get us out of this mess. For me, the key issue will be emigration not sickens me that so Manu of my friends have left, or are about to do so. It sickens me that at times I've considered doing the same. Other climbs are sunnier, and potentially happier places. Ireland is now too fill with people who are unemployed, and as many more who are underpaid to do work. However, if we all go for better things, who'll stay to improve our home place? I no longer blame or criticise emigrants like I once, briefly, did but I still want everyone who can stay to do just that. I want a better Ireland. I want my generation to be at the fore of this recovery and I'll do all I can to be part of that. However, it's a little soon for that to happen, though we can make a difference in seven days time. For the next week, engage yourself with candidates, issues and policies. Read manifestos, listen to news and watch next Tuesday's debate. Make up your mind. Have a conviction when you cast your vote. Pick the party and/or candidates who you think will do the best for Ireland for the next five years. Vote for the people who you feel will make this a better Ireland, and will give us the best country possible to take over in 10, maybe 15 years, when our generation will have learnt from this mess in which we find ourselves and will make sure it never happens again, and that we will never forget how we got here.

Boxing Fans, Casey Deserve Better Than RTE K.O.

2011-02-03T22:10:00.000Z

For Irish sports fans, few days will ever eclipse Saturday, March 21, 2009. It was a day so good, that I didn’t have to look up the exact date to write about it – it’s literally imprinted upon my memory.

It was the day of O’Gara’s drop goal, of Jones’ penalty miss, and of Ireland’s first Grand Slam for 51 years.

It was also a day of pugilism at its finest, of a titanic battle inside a Dublin ring, and of an Irish World Boxing Champion.

Simply, it was the sort of thing that dreams are made of.

Technically, it had happened before. Rinty Monaghan won his World Flyweight Title on the same night that Jack Kyle and co. won the Grand Slam in 1948 but that was years before I was born, years before most of the people lucky enough to be inside the O2 Arena that night were born. This was a different era, a different generation, and for both (arguably) Ireland’s finest ever rugby team and one of its most tenacious boxers that Saturday was the culmination of years of work and struggle.

Incredibly, it could happen again this year. Disappointingly though, things won’t be the same if it does.
For the record, I’m not overly optimistic about Ireland’s Six Nations chances. Injuries have mounted at precisely the wrong time and for some players, Father Time is catching up. A rejuvenation of the team ahead of the World Cup this year is great to see, but it seems to be that this team isn’t quite where one would like it to be going into rugby’s showcase event.

However, others disagree with me and for once, I hope I am wrong. I would love for Ireland to win their opening four games in the competition, and to welcome England to the Aviva Stadium for a Grand Slam decider. I’d also love them to win, naturally.

That match is slated for March 19 – keep it free – and on that night, Limerick’s Willie Casey will be looking to join Bernard Dunne as a world champion. He fights Cuba’s Guillermo Rigondeaux in Dublin that night, for the same WBA strap that Dunne held aloft two years ago. The odds will be stacked against the inexperienced Casey, but he will battle and brawl and give it everything he has, like Dunne did against Ricardo Cordoba.

Over 700,000 people tuned in to watch Dunne win his title – a sports mad nation, already on the high of highs, cheered him on and were drawn into that most absorbing of contests, because they were given the chance to do by RTE. The national broadcaster screened the fight (and showed a repeat of it the next night) and hundreds of thousands, who had already been celebrating a Grand Slam, were suddenly cheering once again. However, it appears that they won’t do the same for Casey, should he be victorious.

At a pre-fight press conference this week, it was confirmed that RTE have passed on the opportunity to screen the bout. The promoters claim they wouldn’t have even had to pay a rights fee. It’s a disappointing development, and unless things change the fight is now likely to be tucked away on SKY Sports or Eurosport, away from the casual fan. Sure, it will be on the screens of every pub in Limerick and in many households too, but the nation is being done a disservice by RTE in this regard. This is an event of national importance, an event which has proven audience-grabbing potential, and an event that one and all should have the right to see.

I intend to be in the CityWest Arena for the fight. 7,000 people will be there, cheering on Casey, and hopefully reeling from thrilling rugby that afternoon. However, unless things change in the coming weeks, Ireland will be deprived of a potential repeat of one of the greatest days in our proud sporting history.

Home Nations Return Could Spell Ruin For FAI

2011-01-11T02:23:00.001Z

A report that the Home Nations Championship, last contested over 25 years ago, may be set for a return could spell very bad news for the FAI.

The BBC claims that Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland and England are set to renew the competition, last contested in 1984, after the four home nations separately agreed to be sponsored by Vauxhall. The contract with the motoring company, which has yet to be announced but has been mooted for some time now, could be the vehicle through which the tournament, once a mainstay of the football calendar in the British Isles, makes its return.

The English FA is continuing to feel the brunt of the ongoing recession, and the collapse in 2009 of Setanta. The Irish broadcaster had been paying £150m for its portion of the rights for the FA Cup, a figure which has been reduced by around £70m under the new contract. ITV, meanwhile, is reportedly paying £275m for FA Cup and England international rights, and this too is expected to fall when their contract comes up for renewal at the end of next season. Sponsorship revenues have also fallen, while the coffers at Soho Square have also been hit by a poorer-than-anticipated World Cup performance.

Ireland's footballers could be facing further disappointment

Collectively, these factors have brought about what appears to be a change of heart for the bosses of English football. Initially, they declined the opportunity to appear in what is now the Carling Nations Cup but now, they look set to spearhead this renewed Home Nations Championship, one which could leave the FAI and the Republic of Ireland out in the cold.

Today’s report does state that the Republic may be invited to take part, and for financial certainty going forward, that will need to be the case. However, the inclusion of a fifth team means that sides will have to play an extra game each, and while this has financial benefits, it will also mean the requirement of two additional international dates in the already congested football calendar,

Therefore, should this competition make it’s suggested return without the Republic of Ireland, then one of two disastrous outcomes appear to be the most likely. Either the renewed Home Nations competition would exist in tandem with the Carling Nations Cup, or the new tournament between the Celtic nations would be snubbed by Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, who would swap the Aviva for Wembley Stadium and the extra funds this entauks. The former appears unlikely at best, as it would lead to a duplication of fixtures for the three other nations, and the latter would mean that one of the FAIs primary revenue streams for the years ahead would be no more, before it had barely begun.

Coming at a time when its own financial situation has come under scrutiny, and, indeed when it has been forced to take corrective action to balance the books, the FAI cannot afford this headache. Even if it does not transpire, the mere rumblings surrounding this competition have served to undermine the Carling Nations Cup just weeks before it makes its debut. Should the suggestions become something more concrete, then the FAI must do all it can to get the Republic of Ireland added to the ticket, or else the consequences for Irish football will be much worse than the loss of one friendly competition.

Marshawn Lynch - Beast Mode

2011-01-09T02:28:00.000Z

"Get off me!" he says to Tracy Porter...

The NFL Playoffs begun tonight, with a shocking win for the Seattle Seahawks over the New Orleans Saints, the defending Super Bowl champions. It was a win that was capped off by the touchdown run below from Marshawn Lynch. If you watch one NFL play all year, make it this one. Staggering.

Note - I don't know how long the NFL will leave this video on Youtube - should it be taken down, it can be viewed on their site here.

Here's Johnny!!!

2010-12-29T01:51:00.000Z

I notice today that Airplane is among the films that have been enlisted in the National Film Registry in the US today. A worthy honour, coming so soon after the death of star Leslie Neilsen, though I must say that it's a shame it has taken so long.

I'm an Airplane fan - it's the best comedy ever - and it's character Johnny, played by Stephen Stucker, is, for me, it's highlight. Enjoy the compilation below.

Stubborn

2010-12-27T23:57:00.001Z

stub·born

adj. stub·born·er, stub·born·est

a. Unreasonably, often perversely unyielding; bullheaded.

b. Firmly resolved or determined; resolute. See Synonyms at obstinate.

2. Characterized by perseverance; persistent.

3. Difficult to treat or deal with; resistant to treatment or effort: stubborn soil; stubborn stains.

4. A quality which is questionable, at best, and distasteful at it's worst.

[Middle English stuborn.]

stubborn·ly adv.

stubborn·ness n.

Beware of The Danger That Is Christmas

2010-12-27T22:05:00.000Z

It's a good job that Christmas is drawing to a close because, as this video shows, it's dangerous. Until the decorations are taken down, wherever you are, be careful!!

More details on the story available here.

Well I Never...

2010-12-27T20:20:00.000Z

Anyone doubting the increasing global reach of the Premier League need only see this. A screen capture of the frontpage of ESPN.com (the American version) taken in the last few minutes.

I know that ESPN show some Premier League football in the US, and thus have a vested interest in promoting the match, but on a night in which the 'World Wide Leader In Sports' will be showing a key NFL encounter on Monday Night Football, it is Fabregas and Drogba which adorn their home page. Progress such as this makes a development like the so-called '39th game' even more likely in years to come, trust me.

Shame about the heroin-esque headline mind...

Viewers Deserve Better Than Mattie Muck

2010-12-26T19:39:00.000Z

There's always been a routine to Sunday nights in the winter in my house. El Familia watch whatever they want on the TV as I log online on the laptop to watch the Chiefs. So right now, we're doing very well against the Titans while t'others watch Mattie on RTE 1. Awful doesn't cover it.

RTE comedies have generally been poor in recent years. The Panel and Podge and Rodge have had their moments, but I struggle to think of a decent RTE scripted comedy...ever. Mattie is no different. Don't just take my word for it; as a show Mattie is full of idiotic, flat, scarcely believable characters in constructed and unrealistic situations.

As if that wasn't bad enough, RTE are now advertising Mrs. Brown's Boys, made by Brendan O'Carroll. The ad looks awful, though that's hardly surprising given the type of material spewed out by O'Carroll in recent years. In many ways, this is comedy for the populace - Shortt and O'Carroll do well when it comes to drawing in punters, even if their works are largely shunned by the critics.

However, the best comedies of recent years, The Office and Extras, The Royle Family, Alan Partridge, Father Ted and (to a lesser extent) Phoenix Nights are completely different to this and offer a more critical, introspective show which we don't get from RTE. How a station which can give us The Panel and the Rubberbandits on Republic of Telly, can at the same time shove such shite (a term often used in Mattie tonight) I shall never know. Instead, we're set for offerings like this:

Oh look, Winning Streak is on now. Merry Christmas indeed.

Wired Fm – Student & Web Radio Station » Series Info

2010-11-30T22:25:00.001Z

Wired Fm – Student & Web Radio Station » Series Info

Thanks my Gavin's Documentary-I demand you listen in to it on Wired FM tomorrow morning at 9am!

Hours of hard work went into this, blood sweat and tears went into and that was just my input! Gavin worked a little bit too!

We went all over Ireland to get the best interviews for you! And I went along for the road trip...

It's fantastic!!

Please please please listen!!

Wired Fm – Student & Web Radio Station » Series Info

2010-11-30T22:25:00.000Z

Wired Fm – Student & Web Radio Station » Series Info

Thanks my Gavin's Documentary-I demand you listen in to it on Wired FM tomorrow morning at 9am!

Hours of hard work went into this, blood sweat and tears went into and that was just my input! Gavin worked a little bit too!

We went all over Ireland to get the best interviews for you! And I went along for the road trip...

It's fantastic!!

Please please please listen!!

Italia 90 Documentary

2010-11-30T21:50:00.000Z

Wired Fm – Student & Web Radio Station » Series Info

Click on the link above to hear Gavin's Italia 90 documentary at 9am tomorrow morning on Wired FM-Limericks student radio!

It's a great documentary (if I do say so myself....and I do!!) Hours of hard work, labor and love went into this, and thats just what I did never mind Gavin!! We've traveled the length of the country from top to bottom to get some great interviews and some great running commentary (thats all Gavin I just went along for the road trip!!)

Please listen in its FANTASTIC!!

My Choice this year

2010-09-15T16:39:00.000+01:00

Ok so last year at the start of the premiership I spent ages trying to pick a team to follow. Gav and I argued over which team would suit me best and why. I spend hours on google learning about them all. And far too long on Wiki trying to grasp something that would find me the perfect team for the year. If you don't remember the post then shame on you for not reading it well enough. And shame on me for not making it good enough to remember. So if either of those two statements are true I'll leave a link here so you can go back in time and find my post and hear all about my issues with each premier team.
Now that you're all up to date I can safely say that I chose the right team last year. I had Chelsea as my team for the season and I was clearly right as they were the out right winners, which needless to say pissed Gav off totally as he is a staunch Man Utd fan. So for that reason alone I am ruling Man Utd out as my team for this year... There's no fun in us both supporting the same team. Although we did watch the Man Utd v Rangers match together last night and for a change I was half paying attention to it and almost enjoyed it. Especially when there were so many close calls. But there I am again going off point.
The point is I need a new team this year to keep me "with it" in regards to the premier league. So after a week or two of watching and listening to the essentials of the season I've chosen a team.

I've always been about the under dogs really! So with such an impressive start to the season I've bitten the bullet, gone for gold and chosen the new comers.
They were founded in 1887 in the seaside resort of Blackpool. This year sees their first ever trip to the top tier of the Premier League and their 100th season in league football. The nicknames make me smile, the colours make me ill but still I'm backing them to do well this year and be my side for 2010/2011. May 09 saw the currant manager Ian Halloway take over on a one year contract so we hope he does well and stays around! They play their home games in Bloomfield since 1901 which was done up for this years Premier league fixtures, woohoo! And there's even an Irish man playing Forward for the team, Billy Clark. Something I like very much in my choice team! As a supporter I'll be known as Tangerine Army or Seaside Barmy Army!

So thats me. I have a team so support again this year and as much as I hate tangerine as a shade of orange (and orange in general) I shall fly the colours proudly and cheer on the greatest under dogs and the unexpected promoted team of Blackpool FC. Lets just hope I'm right again this year...

A Blog Post...For Your Ears

2010-09-09T02:11:00.002+01:00

I did this once before, but it's going to become more regular. I introduce you to the Almost Daily Sports Blog Podcast. Here's my thoughts on the Republic of Ireland, following wins this week over Armenia and Andorra.

I'll have another one of these on the start of the NFL season tomorrow. Please leave feedback below.

Haye Hits Bum Note

2010-09-08T21:24:00.000+01:00

Just a quick addendum to Hellie's post about the Haye - Harrison fight yesterday. Most pundits reckon that the fight is going to be a fairly easy one for Haye - the bookies have him a 1-3 favourite to win by knockout, and 1-12 to win the fight in any method. It's also odds on to finish inside the distance, and there are no surprises there.

Another person who thinks it is likely to be one-sided is Haye himself, as you can see from the quotes below. Here's another, that didn't really emerge until the publication of the papers today however. Haye said to Audley: 'You're going to get violated... This fight is going to be as one-sided as gang rape.'

Unsurprisingly, the comments have been met with widespread condemnation.

In the heat of the moment, men in particular say a lot of things that aren’t met. While never being in the situation, I can imagine that to be particularly likely in a pre-fight press conference – two men are building themselves up to dislike the opponent, while controversial comments sell tickets, and in turn generate money. Therefore, odd as this may seem, I can understand why Haye said this. I cannot, however, condemn the fact that he has yet to apologise.

Rape of any kind is a heinous crime, and to liken a fight to it is quite frankly disgusting. For a man who sells himself as a genial fellow, and one who the British public in particular should like, his refusal to apologise is surprising. Controversy may generate publicity, but to this extent it is not needed. The fight will still go ahead, it will still cost fans €22 or so to watch it on TV, and I’m sure many will spend that... But I hope Haye sees the error of his ways sooner rather than later.

Another Fight I wanna see!

2010-09-07T17:38:00.010+01:00

David Haye
Born 13 October 1980 in Bermondsey, South London
WBA Heavyweight World Champion
Former Cruiserweight World Champion

Height 191cm or 6ft 3
Reach 198 cm

Total Fights 25
Wins 24
Wins by KO 22
Losses 1

Audley Harrison

Born 26 October 1971
Sydney Olympics 2000-First ever British gold medal in Superheavyweight boxing
Turned professional 2001

Height 1.96m or 6ft 5
Reach 86inchs

Total Fights 31
Wins 27
Wins by KO 20
Losses 4

And the point to this post today??

News out today is that David Haye will defend his WBA World Heavyweight title in a fight against fellow Briton and Olympic Gold Medalist Audley Harrison. (which explains the fact-file type section above!) I loved the press conference from the BBC today so I'll put the link HERE. It's well worth a look but I'll leave some of the quotes that made my day right here for you to nose through at your own time!

"I don't believe Audley deserves a chance but enough people want to see him finally destroyed, that is why this fight is happening," Said Haye

"The fight will be a public execution"

"His resume is not as good as that of the last five people I have fought." Thems fighting words there Haye....

"I'm the most devastating fighter on the planet. This is the time your career gets well and truly finished." You'd never think that these two used to be friends and trained together would you? That is until a falling out some time last year...

Although Harrison had a few choice words to say as well!

He is a guy I groomed,"

"I have tasted his punches and power and he never hurt me in a training session.

"This is my destiny - on 13 November Audley Harrison will be champion of the world and of that there is no doubt.
"If David Haye thinks I've taken this fight strictly for a payday, he is in for a rude awakening."

As I say this is a fight I badly want to see... Bring on November 13th for what should be a great fight from a World Champ and the wannabe Harrison who recently won Prizefighter...Not that he's had a fantastic career but David Haye is decent fighter and I suspect this to be a cracking fight (as Gavin would say)

I've marked it into my diary already...

Mack the Knife

2010-08-25T23:14:00.000+01:00

In just over a month Gav and I are off on our hols. Weird hols I know but we're off to Bermingham to see Macklin fight for a European title fight. I decided before going I should learn some more about Macklin and be more clued in. So where better go to go then the Almost Daily Sports Blog to share my new words of wisdom!

Born in Bermingham Macklin is considered to be an Irish pro boxer. We'll claim anyone with a loose Irish connection! But here I can't blame us for claiming him as our own. He's one hell of a boxer. The Tipperary Tornado is the former Irish, British and European middleweight champion. Hence why we love him so! September 2001 saw Macklin turn pro and leave his amateur days well behind him. Round One saw Mack the Knife Macklin beat the previously unbeaten Ram Singh from Wisbech in Glasgow.
2006, the Jamie Moore fight was considered to be THE FIGHT OF THE YEAR! Everyone was talking about it. And then Macklin was beaten. Summer 06 saw Macklin hand the over the Irish Middleweight title to the Dub-Jim Rock. John Duddys matchmaker Jim Borzell said to Macklin "the European title then maybe you'll have something John wants." Macklin replied that he may have something that Duddy doesn't want right now.
Macklin beat Rafa Sosa Pintos in late 09 on points bringing him even closer to a shot at a world title fight. He's since given up his European title fight to try for the world title. Since so far it hasn't worked out the way he wants he's going back to fight to regain his European title. This is what we're off to see in mis September. WOOHOO!
I've spent a while looking at some of his fights and this one is the one I've decided is one I really enjoyed!! (I must say sorry for only having a link and not the actual video here-I've no idea how to do that trick that Gav does so a link will have to do for now!!)

Macklin is a fighter I am really looking forward to seeing. I really can't wait!!

Fantasy Premier League Results wk1

2010-08-18T21:01:00.000+01:00

A wee reminder!
It's premier league season again and I've had a quick look at the table as it stands in the fantasy league.
Congrats to Paul McDonagh who started off in flying colours with 73 points, followed closely by moi with 68. Our own Gavin is currently sitting in 5th place. If you wanna join in the madness again this year the link to the website is here and the code you need to join is: 725971-165763 and off you go!
We'd love to see you and hear all your opinions...HINT HINT
We're also looking for the goal of the month each month, Gavin has already chosen his. Which one is yours so far? Who scored it, have you a youtube clip? We'd love to see if anyone out there agrees with our own Mr Grace! It would be a first if anyone did :)

Antonio Pettigrew RIP

2010-08-10T23:02:00.001+01:00

It's emerged in the last few hours that the 1991 World 400m Champion Antonio Pettigrew has died. Pettigrew was 42 years old, and leaves behind a wife and child. A drugs overdose is to blame - it's not yet known if that is accidental or otherwise.

Pettigrew was a controversial sprinter, given that he admitted taking performance enhancing drugs. He handed back the gold medals that he won in the relays at the 1997 and 1999 World Championships, and his transgressions meant the USA were stripped of their 4x400m Gold Medals at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

It's too early to speculate what may have happened Pettigrew - I don't intend to do that here. What I will say however, is that his untimely and tragic death is reminiscent of those of Marco Pantani, Florence Griffith Joyner and a host of other athletes who have taken drugs to improve the careers, but ultimately lost their lives at a young age. Performance enhancing drugs, despite distorting competition, are also extremely dangerous to one's health and deaths such as these should be a reminder, as if one were needed, that they must never be tolerated.

I've included a video of Pettigrew in action, the best I can find. May he rest in peace.

A-Rod Reaction Reveals Baseball Ambivalence

2010-08-05T23:30:00.000+01:00

This week, Alex Rodriguez has hit his 600th home run in Major League Baseball. It’s a feat which puts him in 7th position in the all time home run list, and at the age of 35 he still has a good chance to surpass Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds et al and become the leading home run hitter of all time.

To understand the significance that this event would have had in years gone past, one must realise the special place held by baseball in American society. There was a time in which it was more than a sport – it was also a pastime, as intrinsic a part of American society as apple pie and the 4th of July. Also, more so than any sport popular in the States, baseball has historical resonance – A-Rod’s numbers are comparable to those of Babe Ruth, for example, because they played the same largely individual game, even if they did so in different eras. Therefore milestones such as 600 home runs are moments to be celebrated, a time in which heroes are to be revered.

Normally.

The reception to this landmark, which bear in mind had been coming for some time, has at best been muted. Fans, pundits, and even A-Rod himself have acknowledged that this moment is not as special as it once was, and perhaps should have been. That is for one simple reason, steroids.

Like the aforementioned Barry Bonds, and along with the likes of Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Roger Clemons (and a heck of a lot more), Rodriguez’s career has been tarnished by his use of steroids. He has acknowledged that he has cheated in the past, but such revelations naturally impacted on his popularity. Once the special one, the sport’s future Golden Boy, he is now hated by some, and certainly disliked by many, yours truly included. He is a cheat, and cheats should be castigated and excommunicated, of that there is no doubt.

But let’s look at this a different way, just for a moment. Alex Rodriguez took steroids in a time where other players took steroids too. Drug use, for a long period of time, was rampant. Did he cheat? Yes. But did he gain an unfair advantage? Well, probably, but he did so at a time in which several of his peers were doing the same. Pitchers such as Clemons, who Rodriguez faced throughout his career, were also on steroids so why shouldn’t he? It’s an argument I don’t like, but it’s a reasonably valid one regardless.

The sport itself seems to validate it by not imposing heavy suspensions on the likes of A-Rod when their transgressions emerge. Bonds and McGwire still hold their respective home run records, with not even an asterisk alongside them in the official record books, and the same stands for Rodriguez who has taken performance enhancing drugs while soaring through the rankings. Though they have competed in this tainted era, and though their records are tainted, the sport itself has not acknowledged this in the way that athletics would, stripping cheats of medals and records.

Until baseball does this, until it takes corrective action, until Bud Selig admits that they got it wrong and allowed this to happen and until the integrity of the game is protected, then muted receptions like the one we have seen this week will continue. The ‘meh’ response from fans must act as a wake-up call to those in charge, though why it would happen now and not before I don’t know.

Heroes who should be heralded will be disliked, and innocent players will have unfair doubts cast upon them. The sport as a whole will suffer, and its role as America’s past-time will be consigned to the past.

That Time again!

2010-08-02T21:40:00.000+01:00

Well our Mr Grace is up the walls at work and I'm up the walls with study for pesky exams that start next week. But I very nicely took time outta my busy study night to do this VERY quick post.
Last year we had a wonderful Alost Daily Sports blog Fantasy Premier League and I wanna do it again this year!!
SO........
I went and set one up again! I'm sure Gav is delighted to hear it! It's very easy to join in and you have weeks to join us! All you need is to click here to be directed to the home page. Register your details.....it's very easy and then to join us in our own personal league you need to go to league on the tab to the left as you look at it and type in this code: 725971-165763 It's just that simple! Pick your team and off you go! The rules are there ready for you to read and at the end of it the season I hope to say

HAHAHAHA I won :) Best of luck!
Looking forward to kicking some ass again this year!

Non World Cup News Round Up

2010-06-15T21:01:00.000+01:00

If like me you're well fed up of World Cup stuff and need something different you're in the right place. Have a look below for the weird and wonderful sports round up of bits and bobs that tickled my funny bone this week!

* Boxing in Moscow last weekend saw us take a Gold and Silver medal thanks to our boys Barnes-who nicely took the gold and O Neill-the silver. A great fight from both men however O Neill's opposition out classed him on the night.

* Dong Fangxiao of China was stripped of her Oylmpic medal last week when committee officials discovered she was only 14 at the time of the 2000 Sydney Games.

* The luck of the Irish was with our rowers last week when Queens University Belfast took the eight and quads in the men's top division at Queen's Regatta in the Castlewellan Forrest Park lake in Co Down. Galway RC won the fours, St Michaels RC from Limerick took the double scull and pair and City of Derry BC took the single sculls. UCD were placed first and third respectively in the novice eights. According to rte.ie the womens teams also did well.

*Kerry footballer Paul Galvin has been suspended (yet again) following a clash with Cork's Eoin Cadogan. He'll be quiet for at least 4 weeks while he cools his "unnacceptable" temper.

* Mayo's successful Ladies Football team bolted from the campionship this year due to issues between the players and the management. Since they're no longer insured to train it's unlikely they'll be able to play on June 19th against Sligo.

* Micheal Schumacher the seven times F1 champ won't be punished after tipping Massa's car last Sunday. Massa had to stop with just 6 laps to go for a new front wing. Schumacher's team boss Ross Brawn defended his driver claiming his tyres didn't have enough grain or grip. No malice they say on Micheals behalf.

* London Mayor Boris Johnson wants to take total control of the grounds of the 2012 Oylmpic Games stadium in London. He's torn between letting West Ham have it for their stadium or use it as a venue for "pop concerts". I know which one I like and it's not West Ham....

* 67 caps for Ireland and Geordan Murphy has won the captain armband at long last. He'l be El Capitan against New Zealand's Maori in Rotorua International Stadium on Friday.

* Woods claims to be almost at his best form following his intense preparations for this weeks US Open at Pebble Beach. This is Golf related right Wood?

* Barry Hearn is to take a 51% controlling share of the commercial business end of snooker. Eh I don't know if this makes any difference to a sport I don't believe to be a sport but eh......

* A magnificent century from Shahid Afridi could not prevent Sri Lanka from a 16-run win over Pakistan in the first match of the Asia Cup in Dambulla. Eh yeah what he said....

Enough rambling for now I'm off for a nice glass of wine and some Greys Anatomy...

Some World Cup Quick Hits

2010-06-10T23:50:00.000+01:00

So with only a matter of hours left until the beginning of the World Cup, I’ve put my neck on the line and I’ve predicted the results all the way to the final on July 11th. You can see my predictions here.

The main points in Gavin Grace’s World Cup are as follows – France miss out in the group stage, Mexico reach the Quarter Finals before losing to England, while Brazil are champions with a win over Argentina in the final.

A couple of points about it:

Firstly... ya it’s not the most exciting of predictions. England/Argentina/Spain/Brazil in the semi-finals is far from a shock. However years of filling out similar brackets for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament have taught me that going chalk is the way to go!

France’s early exit is only partly based on my dislike of the French football team. They are a team in decline, and are most people’s selections for a flop in the next two weeks. Reports of revolt in the camp don’t bode well, and I’m not inspired by anything I’ve seen from them in recent times, especially in last week’s loss to China. You’ll also notice that I’ve predicted that South Africa will emerge from Group A. They’re not the strongest team, but the Bafana Bafana are unbeaten in their last 11 matches, and no home team has ever failed to reach the second round of the World Cup. I think they’ll maintain that streak, albeit finishing behind Mexico, but it could be one of the tightest groups of them all.

Some of the groups are pretty easy to pick the top two out of: Group C (England/USA), Group F (Italy/Paraguay) and Group H (Spain/Chile). Others weren’t so easy however, even if the winners are most obvious. Portugal should finish ahead of Ivory Coast in Group H, while I’ve picked Greece to beat Nigeria to second in Group B – I’m not too confident about that, to be frank. I like some of what I saw of Nigeria in the African Nations Cup, but the Greek’s defence is why I went for them. South Korea could cause an upset there too. Germany’s group is also a corker. I’ve gone for the Germans to top it ahead of Australia (in part because of the fact that I think the Aussies will go far-ish). Serbia’s loss to New Zealand was enough for me to write them off, while Michael Essien’s absence means I’m not backing Ghana to do much.

In the knockout stages, there’s some games that I feel could go either way: I went for Brazil over Holland, but the Netherlands can attack, of that there’s no doubt. Germany v USA is a potential upset – the Americans are good, and the Germans are lacking experience. Meanwhile Mexico just might, maybe, perhaps be capable of knocking England out.

How easy is Italy’s run to the Quarter-Finals? Paraguay/New Zealand/Slovakia should pose little threat, and provided Holland win their group then Cameroon/Japan/Denmark should provide fairly easy fodder.

I worry about the impact that the long seasons for players in England and Spain could have, and in part that’s why I have both nations falling short of the final. Mind you, when I’m doing that then I readily admit that I should also perhaps degrade Argentina’s chances as well, given their dependence on Messi and Aguerro.

I’m looking forward to seeing some teams playing, even some that I say won’t exit the group stage. I’ve had a grá for Honduras for several years, and their games against Spain and Chile in particular will be interesting. Nigera can play, and if Drogba can return to fitness then they could trouble anyone in Group H. And speaking of Group H, I honestly fancy North Korea to get a draw with Brazil.

For top scorer, since i have them going to the final, I’m going to go with Luis Fabiano but my outside bet is Lucas Barrios of Paraguay, given their fairly easy group.

They’re no Olympics, but I do love the World Cup. Heroes and villains will be made in the next month, and no matter predicitions from both experts and people like me, things will happen over the next month that none of us can foresee. We will enjoy it, we will love it, and I hope that we also get some phenomenal moments that I’ve been revelling in while watching classic matches in recent weeks.

Let the games begin.

Ten Days To Go....

2010-06-02T01:25:00.000+01:00

June has arrived. More importantly, June 2010 has arrived. It is the month in which most of the World Cup will unfold before us, and come July 1st only 8 of the 32 teams who have qualified for South Africa will be in with a shout.

Therefore, I reckon it’s high time that we start to get excited for all things football here on the Almost Daily Sports Blog, and that’s the plan for next few days. Between now and Friday week I’m going to post a preview of one of the tournament’s pools, A-H as FIFA dictates, followed by a prediction of how the knockout stages will unfold on June 10th, the night before the opening game. More blogging will then be done throughout the tournament, where I hope to bring you some unusual/interesting pictures and videos and more than just simple match analysis.

Speaking of interesting videos, and to get you somewhat into the mood, ESPN have created some short video pieces which you can see here. It’s some of the finest work the station has ever done in my opinion, and contains interviews with several players who have scored goals in World Cup Finals, including Ireland Assistant Manager, Marco Tardelli. It’s wonderfully shot, and well worth checking out. Enjoy it, and come back here soon for our World Cup coverage.

+++

PS Thanks for your votes in the quandry I posted recently. I’m taking your advice on board and some changes will likely be implemented, albeit not until after the World Cup at the earliest.

€400,000 Picture?

2010-05-31T17:02:00.000+01:00

So says the age old adage a picture says a thousand words. The logo committee for the London 2012 Oylmpics are trying to tell us now that this picture tells us 400,000 words. I tend to disagree.
Look at it!! It's essentially a collection of shapes with badly drawn angles in a bad mix of two tone colours. What were they thinking? Now I'm no graphic designer nor am I a world famous artist BUT I know that a junior infant could have drawn this one! It's quite frankly rather rank. It's horrid and thankfully I'm not the only one to think so. The bad taste logo came under fire today from so many sources it's hard to know where to start. But I will say one thing....it's not by any means worth the €400,000 spent on it. In all fairness the senior infants I worked with last week could have designed a better logo than this one and I'd have gladly given it to the Logo Committee for a pair of tickets (admittedly to see one hell of a lot of events) for the art work. It would have been more cost effective and certainly would'a been a lot prettier and not quite as insulting to so many people.

A Penny For 'Em...

2010-05-26T01:13:00.000+01:00

I know that this blog isn't as going as well as it once was. I relaunched it last year with the hope that it would be bigger than Elvis, and more important too. And while I am proud of it, and while I think that some of the content on here is very, very good (not all of that written by me), I do realise that perhaps this never quite went as well as I'd hoped.

I still love it however. This, in a way, is my sanctuary, my online speaking post. I can come here to show you a video, or to rant, or to express an argument. This blog gives me the outlet to do all of that and while I may not do it as often as I should, and while I would love for it to be read by more people, for that reason alone it is here to stay.

Not so long ago there was a prolonged silence here, and things haven't got back up and running properly since. I have a new job, I'm far busier now than I was, but another reason for this is that I started to run out of motivation. My love of sport didn't go, I just found it hard sometimes to write articles that I knew wouldn't get as large an audience as I would have liked, sometimes on topics I'd already covered. I made a promise that I would blog all the time, but I couldn't even keep that.

On a number of occasions recently, I've had some interesting thoughts, some clever ones too, on topics not linked with sport. I'm talking television, movies, politics, music. However I've not been able to express them in a drawn out, calculated and erudite fashion because this is a sports only speaking post. I don't want to start another blog - I barely write enough to maintain this one - but I am conscious of the fact that when a site says Almost Daily Sports Blog above it's online door, then you come to expect sport inside.

Once I've blogged about something that wasn't sport, and even then it was to show a picture, so my question to you now is this. Would it matter if there were discussions here on topics other than sport? Would you read my views on other issues?

I can just stick them in here as it is, or I could slightly re-model the site to indicate what it entails. Rest assured, the likelihood is that the site would be primarily a sports based one - it will always be my passion. But would you have any problem if Michael Schumacher was joined by, say, Michael Jackson, if fights in the boxing ring mixed with bouts in the Dáil but if it was all commented on with the same humour and questionable insight.

Let me know. Comment below, vote in the poll.

World Cup Hype - TV Advert Style

2010-05-21T00:06:00.000+01:00

Not long now until football's greatest showpiece so Nike have released their ad to tie in with events in South Africa. It's epic, even more epic then their Take It To The Next Level ads in 2008, directed by Guy Ritchie. Showing that the World Cup is a truly global event, this ad not only ropes in Nike's plethora of soccer superstars but also the likes of Kobe Bryant, Gael Garcia Bunuel and even Homer Simpson.

I don't like using this blog as an advertising space - Nike won't pay me for the privelege - but it's a cracking ad and you may as well see it here first, before it premieres during coverage of the Champions League final this Saturday. I will make two points about it however.

The use of Ronaldinho was at best unfortunate, given his own omission from the Brazil squad for the tournament and secondly, if there's one footballer in the world that imagines a massive statue of himself being built then it has to be Cristiano Ronaldo!

Andy Lee and Mamadou Limerick

2010-05-17T16:04:00.000+01:00

Andy Lee has defeated former European champion Mamadou Thiam in the Yanjing Fight Night at the University Sports Arena in Limerick. YA YA YA YA we know that RTE but what you may not know is that myself and Gavin were there Saturday night in Limerick and can give you a better idea of the whole night!! First of all I can't say I was all that impressed with UL or the arena. It could be me being a girl and fussy but I couldn't help thinking that if you are gonna go to the trouble of arranging a massive fight like this one perhaps proper toilets would be a start?? A handful of port-a-pots will not do the trick when there are that many people at the arena! For that matter, 3 trailers serving drinks isn't enough either.....People don't wanna queue for 30 mins to get a drink in between fights! But onto the actual fight. Mamadou arrived out in a flurry of blue and red lights, the crowd clapped along nicely. As for Andy Lee, he arrived out in a wave of green and orange lights, wearing his usual trademark crimson and canary yellow robes and trunks. We went wild! The French national anthem was played, there were a few rumbles but over all there were no issues. Gav and I let a small sigh of relief, we were half afraid that there would be issues after the Henry mess back in Nov....thankfully there wasn't. Our own national anthem was sung by a guy from NewcastleWast and Marty Morrassy put on his crowd warming up hat and we were OFF! I'm still not sure how he does it but Marty gets the crows going, surprising since he rambles on a bit.....Sorry Marty!

Round one saw Lee show the strength of the Irish. He had total control of the ring and the Frenchman knew it. Mamadou slipped, once, twice and a third time before round one was over. Andy Lee's supporters were loving it! Round 2 began and again Lee was holding more than his own. After two unbelievably one-sided rounds Lee was clearly "kicking ass" and the Senegalese-born Thiam threw the towel into the ring and claimed a back injury. The fight doc was called in to check out Mamadou as Andy Lee's hand was raised in Victory. RTE's writer Tadhg Peavoy says that Mamadou was clutching his back from round one when he went down....I didn't see it but who am I to question that? Have a look here and see for yourself....As Lee was declared winner the crowds left disgusted that they didn't get the fight that was expected and deserved. There were mutters in the throngs leaving about Mamadou and Henry being of similiar breed, taking away something the whole of Limerick and Ireland was looking forward to, a good fight with a fighter we can look up to. Something we need now that Bernard Dunne has retired but that's a whole different blog!

The interview with Andy Lee was something worth a second look.....

A delighted looking Lee commented: 'I was happy to get the stoppage. I would have liked to see a few more rounds. He was looking dangerous, but I think I was a bit too fast - that was the difference.

We were delighted to hear Andy Lee go on to say......
'I want the European title. I want to fight for it here in Limerick. Brian Peters - organise it.

'I'm in that [European] class. I just need to get the fights.'

We know Andy and we can't wait!! Even as we walked out of the Arena and out of UL Gavin and I couldn't help but ponder over Lee's next move....Could it be Macklin? Doubtful I know but I do like Maklin....Sorry Gav :) We did agree on Darren Barker as a possibility and hopefully we'll be right cause we all want to see Andy Lee do well and give us a FANTASTIC night out!!

On a wee aside note, the pics I've uploaded here today are all ones I took at the fight on Saturday night and are all my own work on a small old camera if you like them I'd love to hear it and enjoy the compliments!!

"The **** Had His Arse Out!"

2010-05-13T11:45:00.000+01:00

If you happen to be easily offended by bad language then the video below isn't you, but if not then it's hilarious. Mark Tapper was the leading Kiwi in last week's Rally New Zealand until he was distracted by a fan on the side of the road, and the subsequently crashed out. Watch the video below, and then laugh.

I'll avoid the obvious jokes about being wary of any man distracted by another fella's arse...

Fantasy Results

2010-05-12T16:34:00.000+01:00

So now that the Premier League is well and truly over there's a lot to think about. We know Chelsea won beating Man Utd..... by a single point. Gavin is isn't hugely happy with that especially since I said at the start of this season that Chelsea would win!! Oops sorry Gav! Anyway being the newcomer to this sporting world and in particular to the Premier League I can say I learnt a lot. I can recognize the names now of all these players who prior to this were a mystery to me. I know how exciting a match can really be and how thrilling it is to see your team win. I don't know what the offside rule is so if someone would be willing to explain that better than Gavin did I'd be delighted to hear it!

Anyway the real point of my blog today is the Fantasy league us Almost Daily Sports Bloggers are and were hugely involved in. Since the Premier league is over it also means that our own fantasy league is over too boo
so the results are in and we have a winner. I'll admit I didn't expect it to be me and needless to say it's not hehehe. Our winner is a very deserving Gareth Penrose with second place going to Stephan Kidney and third place is Shane Kelly. Congrats guys I'm well impressed! As our the blog team the big question is how did we do?? Well some of us are very happy.....I for one am delighted that I came 6th, impressive for the clueless Hellie that started out last August! Following me was our Gavin Grace in 8th, with Alan Morrissey in 9th, and Ciaran 10th. We're a clever bunch aren't we??

Congrats again to the boys who came in the top 3 Gareth with his amazingly high score of 2209 was just 11 points ahead of Stephan! It was all so close! I mean my score of 2044 is only 165 off the winner hahaha

Boxing At Its Weirdest And Worst

2010-05-11T23:30:00.000+01:00

I’ve been looking for the following video for the past few days. It is the highlights of a fight which occurred last Saturday night between Paul Williams and Kermit Cintron. This fight had one of the most bizarre endings of any sporting event I have ever witnessed, but I won’t explain it here. Just press play.

So there you have it, a fight ending after a boxer injures himself by falling out of the ring. Only in boxing would something like this happen. I can remember something similar happening once before, in a fight between Nigel Benn and Gerald McClellan in 1993 or so, but on that occasion Benn got up (with the help of ITV’s ringside reporter Gary Newbon), returned to the ring and indeed on the fight (in tragic circumstances).

This fight, thankfully, didn’t have anything like that impact on the health of either participant but nonetheless, it will hurt the reputation of the sport in a different but nonetheless profound way. Now, accidents happen. They cannot be avoided, despite the many steps taken to do just that. However one such step which was not taken by the organisers of Saturday’s event in California was the standard of the ring. The ropes were not properly tied together. Had this simple measure been applied, then there’s no way that Cintron would have hit the floor.

The big farce however is not the fact that Cintron plunged through the ropes, disappointing as that was, but what happened afterwards. The incident occurred in the fourth round of the fight, and had it occurred anywhere but California then the fight would have been declared a no contest. Indeed (though not shown in the above video) referee Lou Moret initially said that would be the resolution. However, for reasons unclear to this particular writer, this decision was changed and it was decided that the thirty-odd seconds seen above constituted a fourth round, and that the result of the fight would be decided by the ringside judges. Their scoring was farcical. One gave all four rounds to Williams while another also scored the fight 40-36, albeit in favour of Cintron. The other judge gave the fight to Williams in a score of 39-37, but even this seemed wrong. Cintron was denied the win through little fault of his own. TV viewers, writers and indeed those in attendance were given the most unsatisfactory of endings, one that leaves boxing tarnished when it’s really not what the sport needs.

I love boxing, more than any other sport in the world. However, there are occasions such as Saturday in which the sport does little to help itself. For a sport which needs to rehabilitate itself in the eyes of the general public, moments like this are unwanted. It should have been a fight which entertained and enthralled one and all. Instead, it’ll end up on ‘What happened next’ sections of TV quiz shows. On a night when it should have been at its best, boxing has again shot itself in the foot.

Six-all!!!

2010-05-06T21:05:00.000+01:00

I was going to write about this last night, but couldn't find the video. However, Youtube has come to the rescue (as it does) and now, for those of us who missed it (i.e. pretty much everyone since it's Scottish football) we can enjoy the highlights of what will probably be remembered as the game of the season. It finished Motherwell 6-6 Hibernian. Gotta love sport.

Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter

2010-05-06T01:45:00.001+01:00

Rubin Carter, the man they call the Hurricane, turns 73 today.

Carter has the unusual distinction of being best known for two, if not three things that he himself did not do. Denzel Washington played him in a film, Bob Dylan wrote a song about him, and perhaps most famously (given that it is the reason for those two artistic acts) he was twice convicted of murders, only for those convictions to be later quashed.

You can read all about his legal escapades at his Wikipedia page (and indeed about aspects of his character which, shall we say, were not the most genial) as that’s not what I’m going to discuss here. Instead, I’m going to dispel one myth perpetrated by both the aforementioned film and song. Dylan may say that ‘he could-a been the Champion of the World’ but that isn’t quite true, at least not at the time of his conviction.

Carter was a fine boxer, of that there is no doubt. He won 27 of 40 fights, while that record was an even more impressive 20-4 when he challenged for the World title held by Joey Giardello. However, Carter was handily beaten in that fight (despite his claims to the contrary) and he would never get a shot at glory again, as he went on to record seven more losses within the next two years.

Despite this, Carter was a decent banger, particularly early in his career. For me, his most impressive win came over Emile Griffith, about a year before the fight with Giardello. Griffith had been welterweight champion at this point (following his memorable and tragic win over Benny Paret) and would later clinch the middleweight crown as well. However, in December of 1963, a month after the assassination of JFK, Rubin Carter knocked him out in the first round of their fight in Pittsburgh.

Carter was no stranger to short nights’ work – indeed this was his eleventh win within three rounds – and the popularity earned through this explosiveness was in part what would earn him a shot at the title. Perhaps more importantly however, it also earned him his greatest asset, the nickname of ‘Hurricane’ as he is best known to this day.

Browns Make Cyber Signing

2010-05-05T00:27:00.001+01:00

As a fan of American football, I’ve always had a lot of respect for Mike Holmgren. He seems intelligent, and a nice man, but most of all he’s also a football brain.

Since leaving the Seattle Seahawks, Holmgren has become the President of the Cleveland Browns and while this story may have nothing to do with him directly, it is his organisation that has made a move which, to say the least.

Despite playing only 8 organised games, the Browns have signed Joel Reinders as an offensive lineman. Will he make the roster for the season? Probably not. So why is his signing notable? Well, the Browns made the offer after seeing clips of him on Youtube, and nothing else.

It’s a brave move, but it’s a cheap one so I hope for Reinders’ sake that it’s more than a headline grabbing one. Savo Milosevic (or Miss-a-lot-evic as he was dubbed) was reportedly signed after Aston Villa manager Brian Little saw a video of him in the mid-nineties, but this is a significantly cheaper move. Nonetheless it will be worth keeping an eye on what happens Reinder in the coming weeks and months.

Sport - A Right For The Masses?

2010-05-04T00:57:00.000+01:00

So as weekends go, this one just gone will rank as a bad one for Irish rugby fans. On Friday night a valiant Connacht were beaten and dumped out of the Amlin Challenge Cup by Toulon in Galway, while on Saturday and Sunday Leinster and Munster respectively were also beaten, ending their involvement in the Heineken Cup. France 3-0 Ireland, if you will.

Yet none of these games were seen live on terrestrial television here in Ireland. Admittedly it’s unlikely that the Challenge Cup would ever end up on RTE or the likes, but the Heineken Cup was a mainstay on our national broadcaster for a number of years before SKY took exclusive Irish rights for the competition in 2006. Back then, these semi-final fixtures (in my opinion) felt like they were a greater part of the national consciousness, nearing and sometimes surpassing the interest held in Six Nations encounters. How much more important did the 2006 semi-final clash between Munster and Leinster seem compared to last year's equivalent? Though we have extensive highlights of the games on RTE now, the lack of live action has simply taken the Heineken Cup away from the television screens of casual sports fans, and is now reserved solely for those willing to pay for the privilege.

That may soon change, however. Communications Minister Eamon Ryan proposes adding all Heineken Cup games involving an Irish side to a list of events which are deemed of ‘major national importance’ and thus must be made available on free-to-air television. The list currently includes the likes of the Summer Olympic Games and the World Cup, and along with European rugby’s showpiece Ryan proposes the addition of other events such as All-Ireland semi-finals and provincial finals, the Cheltenham festival and the Six Nations, events already carried by either RTE or TV3. Ryan, ambitiously, hopes that his plan could become law in time for next season.

However, while opening up the highest echelons of sport to the masses seems like a great idea, Ryan’s proposal could be detrimental for rugby in particular. A piece in this weekend’s Sunday Independent says that the cost of putting the Heineken Cup onto RTE would be €3million annually, or in real terms the annual running costs of Connacht. Forget the points made in that piece about the Six Nations – most of that money comes from the UK and France – but €3m is a hefty potential hit for the IRFU. While some of that revenue could, one imagines, be recouped through increased commercial investment as a result of increased television exposure, money would undoubtedly be lost.

A similar row has occurred in the UK in recent months, regarding their equivalent, the ‘crown jewels’ list. Proposals were in place which would have seen the addition of the home Ashes series and the World and European Championship Qualifiers of each of the home nations taken away from pay television. However, that proposal does now seem dead in the water, as the recommendations were not enacted into law prior to Thursday’s General Election. However, judging by the discourse that occurred there, when sports’ governing bodies were unwilling to simply accept the proposals from David Davies, I would imagine that the likes of the IRFU will vehemently oppose Ryan’s measures and their potential impact on grassroots sport.

We may love the ideal of free-to-air sport on television, but only time will tell whether the Heineken Cup returns to RTE any time soon.

Snooker Left Reeling From Unwanted Body Blow

2010-05-02T22:09:00.001+01:00

Disappointment does not sum up the feelings held by snooker fans today. Disgust and hurt would be closer to the truth.

John Higgins says that his ‘conscience is 100% clear ‘ despite a video released by the News of the World today which appears to show him accepting a €300,000 bribe in return for throwing selected frames at future matches later this year.

Everyone is innocent until proven guilty, and one hopes that for the sheer integrity of the sport that Higgins’ claim that he accepted the offer in Kiev as he and manager Pat Mooney feared for their safety is true.

However as the newspaper promises further revelations next Sunday, it looks like one of snooker's brightest stars has much to answer for, and that the sport itself has been left reeling on the weekend of it's showpiece event.

Do Pool Fans Need To Kop On?

2010-05-02T00:04:00.000+01:00

All I know is that if I was out there and we got a penalty in the 89th minute to make it 1-1, there’s only one place it’s going. Right in the top corner – of the Kop!

- John Aldridge

John Aldridge is a Liverpool legend, and in the above quote he has expressed the sentiment of many a Liverpool fan ahead of tomorrow’s clash with Chelsea. Many – not all – fans of The Reds would rather watch their team lose at Anfield then see them win, and as a likely result, likely see Manchester United win the Premier Division title.

Manchester United are seeking their 19th title, which would overtake the record currently shard with and previously held by Liverpool. The Scousers’ place in football’s record books, a place of which their fans have told me they are extremely proud, would be erased making the Chelsea clash so critical. Nonetheless, surely it is sad at best and disgraceful at worst that Liverpool fans, and former players such as Aldo, are looking for their own team to lose when they are still in the hunt for a fourth place finish and a Champions League spot.

If the roles were reversed, I’m not saying that I would always cheer on my own team when the consequences of a win would be so undesirable. However, it is a shame that Liverpool fans are reduced to this. The real disgrace, simply, is that the ‘Pool find themselves in a position where they’re consigned to cheering for the other team, and not getting a chance (yet again) to see their side aim for the title. That is the product of several years of mismanagement at Anfield, with Rafa Benitez as the main culprit.

Should those fans root for a Chelsea win tomorrow, then the financial losses incurred by missing the Champions League, and the potential need to sell the likes of Torres and Gerrard will cost this club even more dearly in the years ahead.

I hope those fans realise what they are really cheering for.

The War - 25 Years On

2010-04-14T01:20:00.001+01:00

I know things have been quiet around here lately but despite that, I had to break my own silence to share with you the anniversary of one of the greatest sorting occasions of all time.

Today marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the fight between Marvellous Marvin Hagler (as is his legal name) and Thomas Hearns, possibly the greatest boxing match of the 20th century. It’s not an exaggeration to say that the first round, in particular, of this fight is as close as one is likely to see to an all-out war within a boxing ring but the fight as a whole is fantastic. Add in the occasion, and the fact that at the time these were two of the best middleweights in the world, and you come to appreciate why this fight at Caesar’s Palace has gone down in boxing folklore.

If you watch one round of boxing ever, make it this round. And if you have five minutes to spare today, use it wisely and pay homage to these warriors.

Great Friday

2010-03-30T15:11:00.004+01:00

There's a long standing old fashion pointless tradition is this country of closing down for good friday. Something I don't agree with. I never have. And I can promise I never will agree with it. I remember years ago trying to go on what you could call a "date" on Good Friday and not having a clue where to go-everywhere was closed after all. So after work (yes I had to work on Good Friday) I discovered not only are all pubs and clubs closed but our already useless bus service doesn't actually operate either. BACKWARDS I tell you. But now things are looking up....Munster have climbed aboard their horse to be our Knight in shining armour. Rushing in to save the Damsel in distress Munster and Limerick in particular fought to open the bars on Good Friday for the Match against Leinster. Judge Tom O Donnell ruled that pubs in Limerick city can now open on Good Friday from 6pm till 11.30 for health and safety reasons. With 26,000 people leaving the Park we're all sure the Gardaí would be a lot happier if they weren't all hanging around after the match...right? The Judge declared this a valid reason to open the pubs. I don't really care about the why's I'll admit I'm just glad that we're progressing on this the Church rules all notion we have always had. Judge O Donnell noted that Thomand Park's licence (a licence already secured) allows it to serve drinks (with alcohol hehe) from when it opens it's doors until the end of the game. With this in mind Judge Tom O Donnell said it was absurd that pubs could not open for business as Thomand Park does.

The move to open the pubs, 110 altogether, has created a hot debate within the Bishopless and ministerless City. But at least we can have a drink in Limerick. David Hickey of Souths Bar on O Connell ave welcomed the move in a vast contrast to the Franciscan Friars who reside in the Friary in Moyross, in the shadow of Thomand Park. Their answer to this debate? Boycott the match and hold a vigil outside the stadium. Helpful?

Madam, – The sanctity of Good Friday is not dependent on the laws of the State, but rather on the hearts of the faithful who, in the eyes of the church, should abstain from alcohol on this Holy Day, regardless of what is or is not allowed by the State. Subsequently, those who choose not to recognise the day, should be allowed to celebrate their team however they like, or merely enjoy a drink on a typical Friday as they normally would.
The influence or merging of religious customs with secular law impacts the rights of all citizens, regardless of their beliefs, and continues to cause sectarian violence and oppression in numerous countries, particularly in the Middle East. This comparison is overly dramatic in relation to the Republic of Ireland, but a move towards separation of church and State could be viewed as a modernisation of Irish law.
The problem with alcohol abuse and binge drinking in this country is a separate matter, which surely will not be impacted by a ban on public sale of alcohol for one day. Furthermore, can one not enjoy a rugby game without being inebriated? – Yours, etc,
MEGHAN COAKLEY,

Looks like I'm not the only one to agree here though. As this letter points out it should be a choice and I believe that Judge Tom O Donnell has made the right call here. Lets now hope the rest of this backward country can follow suite and we'll perhaps be as progressive as we claim to be.

More Hard Luck For Trap's Men

2010-03-25T14:32:00.000Z

The draw has been made in the last hour for Ireland’s Qualification Group for the European Championships of 2012. We already knew our opponents, yes, but today’s draw dictates our schedule as to when and where we play our games. The draw was necessary after the Armenian delegation vetoed all agreements at the recent fixtures meeting in Russia. The outcome of today’s draw can be seen here.

This will be said later on this afternoon, but allow me to be one of the first to say the following...FUCK. Everything that Giovanni Trapattoni would not have wanted has been granted.

The glamorous opponents for Ireland’s first football international at the Aviva Stadium...Andorra.

We will have to play four different ‘double-headers’ which will involve a game on a Friday night followed by another the next Tuesday evening. All of these involve one game at home and the other away, and on three occasions the squad will have to make long trips between Dublin and countries in Eastern Europe, namely Armenia, Slovakia and Russia.

We have a match in June, traditionally a time when we struggle due to the relatively early finish to the English season, and it will be away to Macedonia, where the heat will be an isse.

The fixtures can be changed, and there are two free dates. However any such change requires the consent of all of our group opponents, something which is believed to be unlikely given the difficulties encountered in the fixtures meeting in Moscow. Therefore we are likely to be stuck with the hands with which we have been dealt.

Disaster is not the word. Our qualification hopes have just taken an almighty blow.

Deeply sorry

2010-03-19T18:06:00.002Z

We're very lazy here lately. Or rather busy! Gavin is up the walls with work stuff and I'm on teaching practice (the joys of student life!) but I'm taking ten minutes out of my busy day to remind you about the 6 Nations this week! It's not like you'd forget about it but while I'm here I want to tease Mr Grace!! Our fantasy league is also onto the final week and there's just 4 points separating the top of the table! Who's on the top of the table? Well Mr Grace is in second place and my marvelous self is ahead by 4! So all thats left to do now is kick ass and win so I can win the league (first time ever) and show Gavin Grace I do know my 6 Nations.

Wish me Luck!!

Eh...'Cum' Again?

2010-02-25T20:52:00.000Z

A real quote from the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, spoken by a cross-country skier from Norway who, it seems, was a little self-critical following a poor leg in one of the relays yesterday.

Again, this IS real.

My name is Odd-Bjoern Hjelmeset. I skied the second lap and I f----- up today. I think I have seen too much porn in the last 14 days. I have the room next to Petter Northhug and every day there is noise in there. So I think that is the reason I f----- up. By the way, Tiger Woods is a really good man.

Bobsleigh Beats Henry

2010-02-10T01:02:00.001Z

Good news.

Irish sport has avoided a “catastrophe.” Seriously. That’s the assessment tonight of the esteemed President of our Olympic Council Pat Hickey.

Ireland are sending a small team to the Winter Olympics, which get underway this weekend, and among our contingent are our first female bobsleighers, Aoife Hoey and Claire Bergin. Their place was under threat as the Australian team argued that they should be entered into the competition instead of them as they were the finest sledders in Oceania (which is, I imagine, akin to being a tall midget) and brought a case to CAS, or the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Thankfully for all involved the case has been decided and now both teams will compete. Crisis averted, common sense prevails. Mainly.

Here’s Hickey’s quote in full:

"It would be outrageous if those girls were stripped of their accreditation and sent back home to Ireland...(all ok so far)...We're already suffering from the football situation of Thierry Henry scoring a goal with his hand and eliminating us from the World Cup finals....(true but what has that got to do with this?)...if something like this happened it would be a catastrophe altogether."

For Pat’s sake, I hope that was said with his tongue firmly in his cheek.

Keith Woods Talks Back

2010-02-02T18:45:00.003Z

It's a very lazy blog post today I'm afraid. I really just wanna direct you to a Keith Woods opinion I found on BCC today. Clink on his name above for an insight into Irelands chances in the 6 Nations this year from the viewpoint of former captain Keith Wood and how he sees this years 6 Nations going for us. Lets face it he was captain for a long time and he knows his stuff. I for one value his opinion so read it and see what you think.

Just a gentle reminder while I'm here. The 6 Nations starts this Saturday and we've set up a Fantasy Rugby League here at the Almost Daily Sports Blog. Like any good league we need teams to join in with us. You'll need the PIN number to join which is 6320. All you need to do is choose your players for your team and join the league using the above pin. There's an option there to introduce yourself to us so feel free to use it, we'd love to see who we're up against! I like knowing who's ass I've gotta kick other than Gavin's of course! There is a prize as I mentioned yesterday so come and show off your rugby knowledge and beat us all!

Fantasy 6 Nations

2010-02-01T17:00:00.005Z

It's that time of year again! But then again you know that cause you read my post from earlier on today. Of course you did.....right? Anyway here at the Almost Daily Sports Blog we are a big fan of sports (obviously!) and we love our fantasy teams. But you know that from Gavin's Fantasy Premier League. But now it's my turn to set up a league and what better sport to have a fantasy league in than my beloved rugby?? Go the link below register a team. Go on you know you wanna.....

http://www.lorealmenfantasyrugby.ie/

Now that you have the rules read and you know the L'Oreal prizes it's time to join OUR league. You need a pin number for this which I've very kindly added in here for you.

PIN: 6320

Now come join me, Gavin and the rest of the Almost Daily Sports Blog team (when they get sorted for the league) to win a great Sports Blog prize and watch Ireland with us. You know you want to........

The more the merrier y'all!

RBS 6 Nations 2010

2010-02-01T15:05:00.005Z

Have a sneaky peak at our fixtures list for the 6 Nations this year.....we can't wait for it to Start!!!

6 Feb 2010	Ireland	14:30	Italy	Croke Park
6 Feb 2010	England	17:00	Wales	Twickenham
7 Feb 2010	Scotland	13:00	France	Murrayfield
13 Feb 2010	Wales	14:00	Scotland	Millennium Stadium
13 Feb 2010	France	17:30	Ireland	Stade de France
14 Feb 2010	Italy	15:30	England	Stade Flamino
26 Feb 2010	Wales	20:00	France	Millennium Stadium
27 Feb 2010	Italy	14:30	Scotland	Stade Flamino
27 Feb 2010	England	16:00	Ireland	Twickenham
13 Mar 2010	Ireland	14:30	Wales	Croke Park
13 Mar 2010	Scotland	17:00	England	Murrayfield
14 Mar 2010	France	15:30	Italy	Stade de France
20 Mar 2010	Wales	14:30	Italy	Millennium Stadium
20 Mar 2010	Ireland	17:00	Scotland	Croke Park
20 Mar 2010	France	20:45	England	Stade de France

All the Ireland matches have been highlighted for your pleasure and ease.

We start off this weekend in Croke Park for a fabulous start to our 6 Nations hopes and dreams. Paul O Connell was seen on the Late Late Show last Friday night and has been quoted as saying this year won't be easy. Not that we think last years Grand Slam win was easy Paul..Ireland will play France and England away this year, with home games against Italy, Wales and Scotland. O'Connell expects that schedule to make a repeat Grand Slam a very difficult proposition.He said:'It's a very tough year for us this year with England and France away. Grand Slam expectations have probably been dampened by that fixture list. But we have a great chance in the Championship and we'll give it a good run again.' We know you will Paul! The big question now is will Rory Best and Marcus Horan be ready for Italy on Saturday? Best has been out of action for almost a year with a neck injury and Horan has been out since early December with a minor heart issue. Can we expect them to play on Saturday? 'It's very important for Irish rugby that both Rory and Marcus are available for Declan Kidney and the upcoming Six Nations. They are not quite there yet and may not be considered for the Italy game next Saturday. But there are four mighty games after that and the more games they get, the better.' We'll cross our fingers for Saturday and all want to see them back on form for this years 6 Nations. Bring it on boys!

The Voice Of Rugby RIP

2010-01-19T21:58:00.000Z

When it comes to sport, it is those that perform on the pitch that largely steal the headlines, naturally. However, there are some contributors who can enhance a sport in a different way, one which is more subtle yet can have equally long-lasting effects.

Bill McLaren, simply, was the voice of rugby. He died today at the age of 85. The amiable Scot lent his voice as the soundtrack to BBC rugby coverage for over 50 years. He was genial, he was likable. He was informed. His research was impeccable and his passionate love for his native Scotland never clouded his work. Each spring, he guided rugby fans through what was then the Five Nations before his retirement in 2002 and his passion for the game never dimmed. He brought his own unique style to his commentary, with Scottish colloquialisms and mildly bizarre metaphors inter-twining with an in-depth knowledge for the sport, and a personable manner with which he relayed his knowledge to the viewer, both knowledgeable and novice.

I don’t remember much about McLaren, but I do remember choosing his commentaries over any other, even at a young age. There was something about his gravelly Scottish voice, his re-assuring timbre that guided the viewer through the game, and enhanced it just by his mere presence. He enhanced rugby as a viewing experience, be it in the Five Nations or the Autumn internationals or even in Jonah Lomu Rugby on the Playstation. Along with the likes of Murray Walker, Peter O’Sullevan, Howard Cosell and Micháel O’Hehir, Bill McLaren will join the pantheon of sports commentary greats, a pantheon which is ever decreasing in size. We’ll never see his likes again.

There is a wonderful video in his honour on the BBC Sport website, and I’ve posted another one of him in action below.

May he rest in peace.

Sorensen's Success

2010-01-19T18:10:00.011Z

When? January 2010

Where? Melbourne

Who? Louk Sorensen

Can you guess what I'm excited about?

Round one of the Austrailian Grand Slam and Irishman Louk Sorensen won when he defeated Yen-Hsun Lu. Sorensen beat a player almost 200 places ahead of him in the ranking. All of us here at The Almost Daily Sports Blog are more than a tad excited.....Ireland had not produced a player that had won a match at a grand slam since the Californian-born Matt Doyle won through to the round of 32 at the 1985 Australian Open. We're positively bouncing we're so happy! Louk is only 25 (I'm feeling a tad bit insignifigant now but sure ah well...) and when his match was postponed on Monday due to the heavy and rotten rain he wasn't phased. Tuesday saw Louk on the least impressive court at the games, court 14, where the trams are louder than the crowds cheers. Oh dear.... Never mind Louk it's a court we'll all remember now thanks to your greatness. Sorensen broke thorugh in the first set with a firing forehand shot. After an hour and a half Lu levlled the game with a set a piece. But Sorensen wasn't to be beaten as he flew through the next two sets to claim a win that the Almost Daily Sports Blog team will be talking (and writing) about for years to come. Hell with it the whole of Ireland will be talking about this!

'It's the biggest achievement of my career so far,' said Sorensen, who grew up in Germany but whose parents live in Dublin.

Next on the cards is American tall man John Isner, he's 6ft 9ins, which frankly scares this 5ft sports girl. Not that I can be blamed, John Isner is a giant to me and even Louk Sorensen finds him a tad frightening.

"Isner is a big server. I have never played anyone that tall. He is huge."

Coachless Sorensen intends on watching YouTube clips of Isner to work out his serving styles and how best to play to his many strengths against the American Giant.

All of us here want to wish Louk the very best of Luck and we look forward to being able to continue to Blog about him ove the coming days!!

The Return of the Schumacher

2010-01-12T17:29:00.005Z

We are very excited here in the Almost Daily Sports Blog. We have a resident F1 expert in our midst-Gavin. But unfortunately for us he's been tied up at work the last few weeks and the blogging and sports have been left to poor ole clueless me. It's a clever way to teach me about sport though so I'm not too worried. Either way when it comes to F1 we really need Gav....I'll try my best if you try not to hate me when I kill this story.

As you may have heard in passing a certain F1 superstar and seven times F1 champ Mr Michael Schumacher has signed a deal to drive for Mercedes in 2010. Woohoo! It's a year long contract and lets face it we all LOVE it! We missed Schumacher the last few seasons since his retirment in 2006 but now He's BACK! Micheal hasn't been doing nothing since his retirment though, he's a busy little Bee don't you know. Schumacher became a consultant for Ferrai to keep him busy and was even rumoured, for a while, to be going back to Ferrai as a driver this season for the injured Massa. Plans change however and Schumacher is going to Mercedes, who recently bought out Brawn. He'll be driving alongside Nico Rosberg.

Now we hear that Schumacher is testing a very fancy looking GP2 car while in Spain in preperation for his F1 comeback. Nice one Michael! He's running up the miles alright. Since calling off his temporary comeback with Ferrari because of a neck injury, Schumacher has been restricted to karting to sharpen his racing instincts. But he's looking real goooood out there on the tracks and his sights are set, as ever, at the very top. Roll around feb 1 and Micheal will get his chance to get his backside into a F1 car again during the testing in Valencia. There are still question marks over both Schumachers head and his team-mate Rosberg as to weather they'll drive in the 4 pre season tests that loom ever closer and closer. Although this GP2 testing is a great start to blowing away the cobwebs of retirment that the 41 year old driver may have picked up over the last few seasons.

"It is an honour and a privilege for us to have Michael Schumacher help us develop our car," said GP2 organiser Bruno Michel.

And as for Michael himself? Well he seems to be more than happy with the work done in Mercedes engine factory in Brixworth!

"I have to say I am very impressed about the high level you see there,"
"The people seem to be highly motivated as well and I find that encouraging as it perfectly fits my personal mood." Schumacher is quoted as saying on his official website.

The Cup of Nations

2010-01-11T14:42:00.007Z

Unless you've been living under a rock lately there is no possible way that you could have missed the headlining news about Africa's Cup of Nations. But in case you missed out somewhere I'm here to give you the basics and educate the masses on this headline!

The 8th of January saw gunmen on the bus carrying the Togo team and wounding team players. Rebels who have been fighting for the region's independence later said they had carried out the attack. All along the organisers said this tournament would be going ahead. The incident has been called an act of Terrorism.

"We were machine-gunned, like dogs," he said. "At the border with Angola - machine-gunned! I don't know why. I thought it was some rebels. We were under the seats of the bus for 20 minutes, trying to get away from the bullets." Thomas Dossevi said to the BBC. By the 9th of the month Togo had pulled out of the Cup and Angola was in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Manchester City striker Emmanuel Adebayor and Aston Villa midfielder Moustapha Salifou - were shot at by a group of gunmen as they travelled by bus from the Republic of Congo into Cabinda as we heard over the weekend and people all over the world looked on in shock. Although Adebayor escaped injury he was clearly shaken by the incident.

Angola have been reported as having spent as much as £1 billion on this biannual Cup with four new stadiums in Luanda, Lubango, Benguela and Cabinda. Along with new airports, roads, hotels and upgraded hospital facilities. Now that the Cup has started and matches have begun Angola are still in the headlines and not for their 4-4 draw against Mali.

State media says two have now been arrested following the attacks on Togo's Team. Angolan media quoted officials saying two Flec fighters were arrested near the site of the attack. Togo's team wanted to play on but their Government ordered them to withdraw from the cup.

"Our decision to withdraw the team is really based on the security consideration and what we believe is a mismanagement of what has happened," Prime Minister Gilbert Houngbo told the BBC's World Today programme.

The match between Togo and Ghana has been called off. Togo's assistant coach and media spokesman were killed in the attack along with the team's bus driver. Several others were injured, including goalkeeper Kodjovi Obilale who was taken to South Africa for treatment.

Mali observing a minute silence ahead of their 4-4 draw against Angola.

Today Togo were to play against Ghana, a game which will not be going ahead. Huongbo admitted there was confusion but said there was no chance of Togo fulfilling Monday's match against Ghana or any other games in the tournament. Togo are now pretty much disqualified, if they do not play against Ghana in todays group match. So it looks like Togo will not be in the Cup of Nations this year.

"It is not my pleasure we withdraw, we don't want to play into the hands of the terrorists, but we have a responsibility to protect our people." Huongbo

Manny's new Man

2010-01-10T14:19:00.005Z

Mayweather may need to find a new contender as Manny Pacquiao has a new man in mind for his MArch fight. Joshua Clottey from Ghana is all set to take on Pacquiao, although a venue is yet to be organised.

"He's a real strong, aggressive and hard punching African and he poses a real test for Manny," says Pacquiao's promotor Bob Arum.

"I wanted Manny in an action fight, and that’s what we got with Clottey," said Roach (Pacquiao's trainer)

Arum insisted that Clottey, who beat Zab Judah for the IBF welterweight title in August 2008, will be a tough opponent for Philippines star Pacquiao.

Clottey is a seasoned pro with a professional record of 35-3, but that tells only part of the story. He's fought the likes of Zab Judah, Miguel Cotto, Diego Corrales, Carlos Baldomir, and Antonio Margarito. And he dominated in those fights, as far as I know he even beat Cotto. Wow. This guy is no small fish in the pond. He ducks nobody and has taken on and beaten some of the best fighters in the world. Clottey is a big, physical fighter who can swat and can take a punch and by all acocunts he's gonna wanna fight for his life. At 32 he has some years left and is looking for some serious pay days ahead.

If Mayweather wants to show Pacquiao he needs to stop throwing random names out there and literally man up to fight. He needs a name to beat Pacquaio v Clottey, now where would he find someone like that? Arum says there's still a chance that Pacquaio could fight Mayweather-
"There's always later in the year and next year, it's up to Mayweather," said the Top Rank impresario. But if he starts this nonsense again with testing or anything then let him take a walk."
Arum insists that urine and blood testing is a job for the commisioners who regulate the sport and by no means is it Mayweathers job to do. Mayweathers job is to fight and fight well not regulate drug control.

Can Manny Man up?

2010-01-08T13:44:00.006Z

Mayweather is reportedly furious that Pacquiao is blaming his side and team for the so called fight of the decade falling apart. Mayweather wanted urine drug tests to be done on a regular basis leading up to the fight. Pacquiao had other ideas. He wanted none of it. Mayweather oringally wanted these tests to take place up to and including the day of the fight. Pacquiao didn't want them at all. So Mayweather in a very fair move offered a comprimise of a 14 day cut off point leading up to the fight. Still Manny couldn't man up to it and insited on a 30 day cut off.

"I am ready to fight and sign the contract. Manny needs to stop making his excuses, step up and fight."

"First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao, I want to whip him.

A mediator was called in to try and find a solution. Judge Daniel Weinstein was brought in again, having had victory as mediator bewteen the two previously there were high hopes. But Even Weinstein couldn't help this time. A statement from Weinstein confirmed "in the end, the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all."

Top Rank promoters can't see this fight happening in March, dispite many commentators being convinced that somehow a New Years miracle will happen. But Weinstein and Arum are seeing eye to eye on this one and have deemed the fight in March to be highly unlikely. But Top Rank have gone a step even further and drastically added this to the fore:

"There is no chance ever of salvaging it for March. There's no chance for it ever to happen."

It's not looking good for fans who are ultimately losing out on what would and should have been one of those unforgettable fights and nights.

Dispute cancelled the Fight

2010-01-07T22:04:00.004Z

Pacquiao and Mayweather would have been the fight to beat all fights this coming March. I, myself, had already marked it on the calendar and was counting the days down to the 21st day of the third month. A little premature I realise but I was a tad excited you see. The 31 year old Pacquiao became a five weight world champ last nov when in the WBO welterweight win over Miguel Cotto. While the unbeaten Mayweather came out of his 21 month long retirment last sep to beat Mexican born Juan Manuel Marquez.

Why was it cancelled? Pacquiao pulled out after Mayweather demanded random drug testing. Is it just me or does this seem like a very sensible demand in this day and age? Both fighters were more than happy to take unlimited urine tests but Manny Pacquiao refused point blank to submit blood tests unless they are on specific dates. Sounds a tad dodgy if you ask me. Perhaps Mayweather is right to demand such a thing? Especially as Pacquiao responded to claims that he used and uses substances to enhance his performance within the ring by taking a lawsuite against Mayweather....the actions of an innocent man? I'm no expert but to me this looks a lil bit fishy.

This was to be the fight to end all fights, they are considered to be the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. And this fight would have had £25 million purse ffor each of the two fighters. Big loses there boys. As for me? This is a fight I would have paid to see, even being a sporting and boxing novice I knew this fight was gonnna be (as we say here in Cork) only massive. I guess we'll never know now.

The Blind Side

2010-01-05T22:49:00.006Z

Happy New Year to all!!

This morning I did something I genuinely thought I would never do, I watched an American Football based film adn really enjoyed it. So I thought I'd share it! In case the title of this post hasn't given it away the film was The Blind Side with Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw. The film is basic really, its the story of Michael Oher, played very well by Quinton Aaron. If like me you live in a American Football free bubble (with Gavin in my life I realise that will never ever happen) and have no idea who this Michael Oher guy is let me explain....

Michael Oher is a 23 year old American Football Offensive Tackle for the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL. He was drafted in for the Ravens in the first round in 2009 from University Of Mississippi college team Ole Miss Rebels. His childhood was anything but perfect, he was one of 12 siblings who didn't get a fantastic education having been to 11 schools in less than 9 years. He was enrolled in a Christian school and soon after Leigh Ann and Sean Tuohy took in him.

I won't go into too much more detail, although if you're in any way into NFL you know the whole story and will enjoy the film for its portrayal of the characters and the sweet realistic way in which the tale is told. I have to admit that I was more than a tad worried about watching it but it was something that Gav wanted to see and so I settled in to watch it and maybe even learn a thing or two. I did. It's a great movie and well worth a night in with a bucket of popcorn and a drink. Just make sure you watch it with a NFL fan who can fill you in on all the film extras, Like I did!! I'll leave you with a wee clip from the film (if I can work out how that is!!)

Enjoy!!

Munster v Connacht-St Stephans Day

2009-12-27T01:21:00.003Z

Gav and I were ment to go together to Limerick to see it but the ice has been awful so we opted for the safer idea of going to the pub to see it. That didn't quite go to plan either-too icey to leave here so I got it online instead. I have to say Munster was beyond brilliant. 35-3 is a great way to finish up. I dont think Gav thought so though. Ronan O Gara was back on form, each kick was spot on and brilliant. He went off and was replaced by Deasy with Warwick taking over kicking duty with a certain amount of flair. Munster leapt onto the scoreboard in the tenth minute and by half time Munster were 20 up to Connachts 3 points from Ian Keatly at the last minute of the first half. We saw Dowling, Varley, Warwick and De Villiers score fantastic tries while Connacht struggled to even stay on the pitch. O Gara did very well as stant in skipper and we in Munster were glad and proud to see him return to his glory. Gavin, I dare say, wasn't too happy with the result but we played exceptionally well and deserved this after a somewhat rough start to the season. This is a more than welcome change and a nice postive note for our Christmas wishes.

Merry Christmas Munster x

Crouching Tiger Hidden Hydrant

2009-12-02T22:24:00.000Z

Tiger Woods has issued a second statement regarding his now infamous car crash last Thursday night/Friday morning. If you haven't heard about this by now, then you've probably been living under a rock for the past week. Woods, for reasons unknown, left his house at 2:30 a.m. or so last Thursday (Thanksgiving) night and then proceeded to crash into a fire hydrant and tree outside for his home, again for reasons unknown.

Woods is unimpressed with the scrutiny he’s been under since the crash – there’s been a mountain of speculation about affairs with at least two women. However, that does come with the territory of being the most famous and wealthiest athlete in the World. This is the first time that he has felt the full force of fame’s dark side, and now he’s not playing ball.

There’s a reason that the speculation won’t go away, and Woods has no one to blame but himself. Website statements don’t mean a damn – we want more. We want him in front of cameras, speaking about the events of the night and explaining what happened. We’ve seen this before – earlier this year, Alex Rodriguez sat down with Peter Gammons of ESPN shortly after it emerged that he was a drugs cheat. The interview showed a contrite A-Rod and this, coupled with a press conference, allowed the speculation to go away quicker than it would have had he hidden in a hole, a la Tiger. His silence gives gossip sites further licence to probe deeper into his private life. The facial lacerations that he has picked up in the crash, may or may not be due to domestic violence and we don’t know the truth because Tiger himself hasn’t interacted with the insatiable media. He can put that confrontation off for as long as he wants, but he has to return to golf at some stage.

Woods, literally, needs to show his face.

***

Here’s a video, presumably from a Chinese news broadcast, which shows (in animated form) what happened and what happened. Gas stuff.

A case of Sour Grapes

2009-11-29T13:56:00.006Z

It's almost two weeks since the Ireland and France match. The night itself can only be described as the stuff nightmares are made of. Ireland sat glued to the television sets in all four corners of the country. I myself sat in the living room, attached to my laptop and blogging away goodo here. I'll admit I was confused at times, and I still need someone to explain the offside rule. But over all I really enjoyed watching the match even if I didn't enjoy the end result.

Not long after the match ended I went to bed to do some lesson planning. Not exactly the highlight but it had to be done. I wasn't there long when I noticed a very popular trend in the online worlds of facebook and twitter. Groups were being set up Henry bashing. Now I agree he was wrong and he knows better then to do the hand ball thing but at the end of the day he did it and got away with it. Given half the chance we would have done the same. I was sent links to various anti Henry sites and pages begging me to join them on twitter or the facebook craze lashing out at Thierry Henry or calling him a cheat (which he is) it goes on and on and on and on.....

It's two weeks later and people are still joining this pointless groups and going on and on and on about the Match. I do understand that it's a big deal. Because of Henry Ireland will not be going to the world cup next year and YES we are all heartbroken but this Hatred of Henry has GONE BEOND A JOKE!!

The rest of the world now sees the Irish as a bunch of sour grapes. And we do not need to be seen like that.

Outside of our little bubble of a island we are seen very differently to how we view ourselves. To look in the mirror we see ourselves as really welcoming and friendly, a lovely nice green country.
Let me assure you the only green thing about Ireland now is the green envy we embody these days. Hating Henry does very little to help our self image.

And as for the replay we spend so long talking about does anyone really believe we deseve it? In all fairness if we had played in anyway well in all the other matches we wouldn't be in this mess. In the group matches yes we did ok but as I stated in a post just hours before the first Ireland and France match, We could have done so much better against Italy. We threw it away. And in the first France match we didn't play half as well as we could have done. And we banked our whole world cup experience on one match in Paris. Yes we played well in that match but it takes more then one match to be good enough to get to the world cup.

So I have a question....

Did we throw away our World Cup chances because we were afraid of actually having to go to Africa and play on the biggest stadium in front of a massive world wide audience? What do you think?

Kidney calls for Sexton appeal

2009-11-24T20:36:00.004Z

Bit of a shock, but Jonathan Sexton gets the nod at Out-half over Ronan O'Gara for Ireland's clash with South Africa at Croke Park on Saturday. In a surprise move by coach Declan Kidney, Sexton has seized the number 10 jersey from O'Gara as reward for his outstanding display in Saturday's 41-6 victory over Fiji.

To be fair, Sexton has been the form fly half in Ireland this season with O'Gara failing to find any real decent run of form since returning from the Lions Tour. It is a bold selection that rewards the 24-year-old's sparkling form since being thrust onto centre stage during the latter rounds of Leinster's march to their first Heineken Cup crown last season.

Elsewhere Keith Earls comes in on the Wing for the injured Luke Fitzgerald. Other than that its the same team that lined out in the drawn match with Austrailia. With Denis Leamy back on the bench after what I thought looked like a seasoned ending injury against Fiji.

The South Africans are the World Cup & Tri Nations champions and are formidable opposition, however they have been hit by a bit of an injury crisis. Fullback Zane Kirchner (knee), centre Adi Jacobs (ankle), scrum-half Fourie du Preez (hand), lock Bakkies Botha (back), hooker Bismarck du Plessis (ribs) and backrow forward Schalk Burger (ribs) are all on the treatment table. This has been a trying tour for the Springboks as they have already been beaten by France and Guinness Premiership opposition in Leicester & London South Africa... oh i mean Saracens. Having said that I still believe it will be a fairly brutal encounter on Saturday & a fine test of this Irish side.

I'll put my head on the line and predict Ireland to win by 3 points.

The Case For A Replay

2009-11-19T21:23:00.000Z

The fallout from last night's game has been astonishing. All around the world, Henry’s handball is the centre of sport attention. Here in Ireland, it is the lead story on front page and back. It’s been spoken about in the Dáil while the BBC have held a live blog about the fall-out, the sort of treatment they usually only give to actual matches.

The demand of the Football Association of Ireland today is simple – a replay. They’ve lodged an official protest over last night’s result, a move I agree with because to accept it without kicking up a fuss would insult the two-million Irish fans who watched the game. FIFA have so far said no to this and (in my opinion) rightly so. Decisions of referees should be sacrosanct, even when they are wrong. Nonetheless, like a lot of Irish fans, I am clinging to the hope that such a replay should be given. It’s what my heart wants, even if my head says that it shouldn’t happen. Like all Irish fans, I have no problem when my side are beaten fairly – I just want to be given the honour of fairness.

FIFA have released a statement on the matter this afternoon, referring to Law Number 5 in their Laws of the Game which can be seen here. It is both long and convoluted but essentially FIFA are standing by it to say that the referee’s decision is final, and cannot be tampered with. However, there is precedent which may work in our favour.

In 2005, Uzbekistan and Bahrain played a World Cup Qualifier in which the referee made an incorrect decision which averted the course of the game. Essentially, a player encroached into the box as a penalty was taken and the referee ordered a free kick for the defending team, rather than allowing the penalty to be re-taken. To me, that’s a less significant mistake than last night’s but it was nonetheless regarded as important enough to render the game null and void. That judgement was made under article 12.4 of the 2006 FIFA World Cup regulations, which essentially gives organising bodies the right to make such decisions. It should also be noted that this decision was made despite Article 14.4 (amended slightly for the 2010 World Cup, under the title Article 13.6) which states that 'no protests may be made about the referee’s decisions regarding facts connected with play. Such decisions are final...'

It would seem that, as they say, would be that. The FAI look likely to have no way of protesting last night. I’ve read through any relevant legislation that I can find and can see only one course of action. Article 5.g says 'all participants...including players...should observe the principles of fair play.' Those principles, under the FIFA Fair Play Code, call on players to ‘play fair’, to ‘observe the laws of the game’, to ‘respect opponents, team-mates, referees, officials and specators’, to ‘honour those who defend football’s good reputation’ and perhaps most crucially, ‘denounce those who attempt to discredit our sport’. Last night, Thierry Henry discredit football by his actions and it is now up to FIFA to take action. I don’t hold my breath.

***

Ireland’s only other hope is that the French FA step in on our behalf. The public in France, I’ve been told by people there, are unhappy with last night’s match. They want to qualify with honour, like the other 30 countries who won their way through to join South Africa in the World Cup. However, given the large financial bonus that comes with playing in a World Cup, I wouldn’t expect this to happen, nor would I believe that the French authorities should go to bat for Ireland. We may just have to walk away from this incident with a very bitter taste in our mouths.

Henry Handball Humour

2009-11-19T21:15:00.000Z

I don't agree with some of the vitriol directed at Thierry Henry today, but here's some of the photoshopping that's happened in the last 24 hours.

My Sporting Memories

2009-11-19T02:34:00.008Z

After the highs and depressing lows of the encounter in Paris and after listening to Gav's great from the heart pod cast i got thinking about my own love & passion for sport. And instead of ranting on about the details of last night's game I've decided to share with you a few of the moments in sport that have moved me & made me jump for joy or given me a lump in my throat.

Moment 1: Robbie Keane Vs Germany - 5th June 2002 World Cup

Most of the Irish soccer moments blogged about in the build up for the game are included. But Robbie Keane's goal against Germany in the dying seconds was a moment that will stay with me forever. Watching with all my family including uncles, aunts & cousins, as soon as we thought hope was lost, up steps Robbie Keane & the nation goes wild! Mick McCarthy's jaw dropping reaction is priceless. After this game and the win against Saudi Arabi, I donned face paint, a green jersey and Tri colour, with a sign that read Korea and took to the streets of Mullingar hitching a lift to the Far East... Honestly!

Moment 2: Injury Time, Manchester United vs Bayern Munich, 1999 Champions League Final
Back in the day I was a huge Man Utd fan. (Now i'm back to my roots as a Watford fan). The 3 minutes of injury time played that night were special. I remember sitting in my front room with my pal William when Teddy Sheringham knocked in Gigg's effort. The two of us jumped up and actually ran around the house, then the garden outside. We were just settling into the idea of extra team, maybe penalties when Beckham's corner is nodded on by Sheringham for Solskjaer to poke home a winner. Cut to - more running around the garden & mad screaming and shouting. Fantastic stuff.

Moment 3: The National Anthems Ireland vs England. Croke Park 24th February 2007
This was the season when the GAA opened up Croke Park to 'foreign sports'. All the talk during the build up was of God Save the Queen being played in Croker, the scene of a massacre by British troops on Irish GAA fans in 1920. It was a tense build up all week and the atmosphere on the day was a curious one, with small protests being held in Dublin.

I was at the game, standing in Hill 16, made it even more special. There was an eerie silence just before the Anthems roared out, a pause as the Irish President took her seat in the ground. Then the English Anthem was played. It passed off well, and when it was finished, it was met with a large round of applause. Then Amhrán na bhFiann began. As tears rolled down my face, I tried to clear the lump in my throat to join in the singing with the rousing rendition I was being treated to by my fellow Irish Rugby followers. Glancing at the players and you saw exactly what it meant. John Hayes, Jerry Flannery & Paul O' Connell were overwhelmed with emotion. It was one of those 'glad I was there moments'. And after all that passion and emotion, we hammered 'em!

Moment 4: The Munster Haka - Thomond Park, Limerick 18th November 2008.
It is a year to the day nearly since the Rugby world was treated to one of the great matches of the modern day. This game marked the beginning of a truly remarkable year for Irish Rugby. The All Blacks, on there tour of Europe, were shown how passionately the emotionally the game is supported in Munster, & in Limerick in particular.As the teams gathered on either side of the halfway line, the four New Zealanders in the Munster side; Rua Tipoki, Doug Howlett, Jeremy Manning & Lifeimi Mafi, stepped out ahead of their teammates and challenged the All Blacks with their own Haka. The Thomond Park crowd went wild. It was another welling up & lump in the throat moment.

So now, there is just four amazing sporting moments that have moved me to tears. There are many many more. Up there includes the first European cup win for Munster in 2006, Munster beating Saracens in Thomond Park with an injury time try by Keith Wood. (In fact most years Munster provide a few of these for me!) When Damon Hill & Ralph Schumacher finished off 1-2 for Jordan in Belgium in 1998. Or Paul McGinley sinking the putt to win the Ryder cup for Europe, God I could go on!
Last night we nearly had another lift the nation result, but Ireland is unrivalled in its sporting achievements in one sense. This small nation produces special athletes who have a unique bond with the people of this island, and I know that just around the corner is a another iconic moment waiting to happen which will capture or imaginations, lift our spirits & let us cheer once more.

Hand Gaul

2009-11-19T01:53:00.000Z

I want to sleep badly but I can't. Too troubled by the match this evening. Instead of a rushed post about the game, here's an audio blog post capturing how I feel about the Irish team, tonight and that goal.

PS Thanks to all who came out for the live blog. After this, and Dunne's KO in September, I'm not sure if I'll ever do another.

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