Eh...'Cum' Again?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.