Spizz was injured with a hamstring problem and was unable to come on to the pitch last Friday to match up an incredible ten versus eleven. This was a Bank Holiday weekend!! Have'nt these 7.45pmers guys got better things to do? I can understand eight versus eight but ten versus eleven. Yours truly was one of the valiant ten and we had rush keeper but it was a bit hectic. I did not realise (until Spizz explained it to me) that the opponents were wearing bright orange coloured bibs or wore some kind of red. This was VERY CONFUSING.
So out of the 7pmers it was just me and Big Ian and we were playing against each other. Ian curled in a nice goal while I had to face a reality check since passing game was not really up to scratch. However, I did get a few interceptions in. This is despite the fact my supporters know that I favour the "Bobby Charlton" style tackle.
We lost 10-3 and I did three stints in goal and did not really cotton onto the fact
that we could play rush. It was claimed that I gave away a penalty but it was not
awarded. When not in goal I stayed mostly in defence. Quite a few of our team seemed to have positional problems to put it mildly although our star player was Cliff. In addition, Tom was a very strong player but suffered from an inability to pass, which was sarcastically commented on by his fellow player Steve.
Unfortunately, I will miss next week's start of the new season for the 7pmers, who will have to get use to the fact that the beer garden of their local has been sold off and is just a hole in the ground prior to some foundations being put in.
Spizz will also be absent since he is got some promotion in Milan. He explained it to me last Friday but I did not really understand what it was about.
Sunday, 29 August 2010
Thursday, 26 August 2010
To continue my pre-season training I might sneak another game.
This Friday to continue my pre-season training I might sneak another game with
the 7.45pmers organised by Cliff and Kevin. This is despite the fact that Cliff warned some players would come back. However, I know Mick K. and Geoff are away for the weekend, which would leave space for me and for Spizz.Last week the indie star was unavailable for selection after a series of injuries incurred during his Tuesday game. This included a hamstring strain, which might take time to heal. These are really annoying injuries when you get older.
We don't help ourselves with few players doing a proper work-out before the game. I just run around a bit and kick the ball hopefully. I get a feeling that this Friday will not repeat the previous week's solid performance, which included a goal from a
single shot at goal.
I have talked to Gashead Simon this afternoon and he was a bit gloomy about his beloved Bristol Rovers. The young man was on altitude training in Austria to prepare for the new season and also made a visit to Trieste, which is now in Italy but was part of the Austro-Hungarian empire
and a city I would love to visit. I hope Gashead Simon has not picked up the dark arts of Italian defending as performed by Big Dave A.
the 7.45pmers organised by Cliff and Kevin. This is despite the fact that Cliff warned some players would come back. However, I know Mick K. and Geoff are away for the weekend, which would leave space for me and for Spizz.Last week the indie star was unavailable for selection after a series of injuries incurred during his Tuesday game. This included a hamstring strain, which might take time to heal. These are really annoying injuries when you get older.
We don't help ourselves with few players doing a proper work-out before the game. I just run around a bit and kick the ball hopefully. I get a feeling that this Friday will not repeat the previous week's solid performance, which included a goal from a
single shot at goal.
I have talked to Gashead Simon this afternoon and he was a bit gloomy about his beloved Bristol Rovers. The young man was on altitude training in Austria to prepare for the new season and also made a visit to Trieste, which is now in Italy but was part of the Austro-Hungarian empire
and a city I would love to visit. I hope Gashead Simon has not picked up the dark arts of Italian defending as performed by Big Dave A.
Saturday, 21 August 2010
Pre-season training with Cliff's game was a great success!!
Dear Reader, I joined the 7.45 game last night to get some important pre-season training. This game is organised by the brothers Cliff and Kevin, although last night Kev was not there. They support West Ham and Arsenal
respectively so they both have a cross to bear. Cliff picked the sides, which were quite well balanced, and did a long stint in goal. He was a cut above some of the players with his ball skills.
During our summer break, Spizz, Geoff, Big Dave.A and Mick K. have been keeping their football skills honed by playing the 7.45pm game. Spizz could not make it last night
but Dave and Mick warned me that the guys played a higher standard than the 7pm organised by Gashead Simon, which can be, I regret to say, a bit of a shambles.
Dave and Mick were right on the money!! Both line-ups played one-touch football at a fast and furious pace. There was tracking back and marking, which are virtually absent in the 7pm game. It is often true that you play better when you have better-quality players around you. Geoff was a lot more effective last night while yours truly ploughed a channel down the right as usual. What was most unusual was that I got on the score sheet when I passed the ball into the net with my left foot from a quickly taken free kick. I did not got much of a celebration from my team so I gave Mick K. a hug to express my emotion. This was even though he was on the opposite
side and it was possibly his mistake in not picking me up. Mick K. looked pretty perplexed.
The 7pmers did perform well last night. The four of us contributed four goals to a 5-3 thriller in a game, which was eight-a-side and which had limited space. Dave A. got a sweet goal to wrap up the match for them while Mick A. scored two goals, one a "David Villa" effort, which hits both posts and then goes in.
I was the goalie and I could not get near the shot, which was slightly deflected.
In the changing rooms afterwards, Mick K. said he remembered the assists more rather than the goals!! Mick K. was man of the match.
Dave A. was playing through the pain barrier but still managed to hit the steelwork twice before scoring his neat goal. In football terms his first love is Scottish club
Ayr United www.ayrunitedfc.co.uk Dave's English Club is Man Utd.
respectively so they both have a cross to bear. Cliff picked the sides, which were quite well balanced, and did a long stint in goal. He was a cut above some of the players with his ball skills.
During our summer break, Spizz, Geoff, Big Dave.A and Mick K. have been keeping their football skills honed by playing the 7.45pm game. Spizz could not make it last night
but Dave and Mick warned me that the guys played a higher standard than the 7pm organised by Gashead Simon, which can be, I regret to say, a bit of a shambles.
Dave and Mick were right on the money!! Both line-ups played one-touch football at a fast and furious pace. There was tracking back and marking, which are virtually absent in the 7pm game. It is often true that you play better when you have better-quality players around you. Geoff was a lot more effective last night while yours truly ploughed a channel down the right as usual. What was most unusual was that I got on the score sheet when I passed the ball into the net with my left foot from a quickly taken free kick. I did not got much of a celebration from my team so I gave Mick K. a hug to express my emotion. This was even though he was on the opposite
side and it was possibly his mistake in not picking me up. Mick K. looked pretty perplexed.
The 7pmers did perform well last night. The four of us contributed four goals to a 5-3 thriller in a game, which was eight-a-side and which had limited space. Dave A. got a sweet goal to wrap up the match for them while Mick A. scored two goals, one a "David Villa" effort, which hits both posts and then goes in.
I was the goalie and I could not get near the shot, which was slightly deflected.
In the changing rooms afterwards, Mick K. said he remembered the assists more rather than the goals!! Mick K. was man of the match.
Dave A. was playing through the pain barrier but still managed to hit the steelwork twice before scoring his neat goal. In football terms his first love is Scottish club
Ayr United www.ayrunitedfc.co.uk Dave's English Club is Man Utd.
Wednesday, 18 August 2010
Football makes me laugh!! Fergies buys player unseen.
You just have to laugh at our national game. Man Utd manager Sir Alex Ferguson buys a player he has never seen before on the say-so of friend and former colleague Carlos Queiroz. Then,
Fergie makes a general criticism on how transfer deals are so out of touch with
reality.
I know Stephen Ireland is an above-average midfield player and he is moving from Man City to Aston Villa but I don't really understand why Ireland is trousering £1.5m plus. (I suppose it is the old sign-up fee?) Man City has just gone plain loco shipping out Ireland and Craig Bellamy then getting Mario Balotelli and James Milner in return. I have seen some highlights of Balotelli and he does look an exceptional talent but the trouble with the Premier League is that all the games are competitive unlike Serie A, when there are easy clubs to play and where games in Italy are occasionally fixed. (Look at Wikipedia under Italian football corruption).
Hands up if you think James Milner is worth £27.5m.
At Manchester City, there seems to be an absolute whirlwind of deals, which must make the mouths of player agents drool. Besides Ireland, Craig Bellamy is going to Cardiff FC on a season-long where the Mancunian club is picking up half of the wages (sheer insanity!!).
Gawd knows where Robinho will go. Roque Santa Cruz (Rock Holy Cross?) is also on the way out.
Bellamy might be difficult (apparently Mancini has not spoken to him since February. But as far as the Premier League games are concerned, Bellamy would be in my team every time. I also remember when Robinho ripped apart Everton at the fortress (?) of Goodison Park.
You don't get into a Brazilian World Cup team if you are not a good player.
All of these crazy transfer fees are not going to change the expected outcome of the Premiership this season, which is a two horse race between holders Chelsea and runners-up
Man Utd. I think Chelsea has the better tactical manager in Carlo Ancelotti, who is very tough and disciplined. He seems to have made it clear to the players that when they are on the club's time then high standards of discipline are required.
However, their private lives are their own. Looking back Ancelotti gave a lot of support to John Terry (JT) with the scandal of the French bint saying basically "Private lives".
The Blues have even enlisted the help of Dolce & Gabbana. Ancelotti worked with the Italian fashion designer group when he was at AC Milan. The Italian manager said in an interview with the Times magazine last Saturday (highlighting the new Dolce & Gabanna range for the West London team) that it was important to show a disciplined, uniformed approach especially when the club travel.
I must admit even the Drog and Lamps looked pretty good in the suits. Getting rid of Joe Cole, who has got himself sent off and missed a penalty at Liverpool, looks a stroke of genius by Anclelotti.
On the Spizzenergi front, I will be having a hospital procedure on the first day of the new season on September 3rd. It will probably take me three weeks to recover. Hopefully,
Bristol Rovers (the Gas!) will have won some games by then. Otherwise, Gashead Simon will need
some TLC. My goals this season are to score more goals (if the b*st**ds pass to me!!) and to get a discount on the match fee to reflect all of my ailments. One of them is my vet status at being 52 and a quarter years old.
Fergie makes a general criticism on how transfer deals are so out of touch with
reality.
I know Stephen Ireland is an above-average midfield player and he is moving from Man City to Aston Villa but I don't really understand why Ireland is trousering £1.5m plus. (I suppose it is the old sign-up fee?) Man City has just gone plain loco shipping out Ireland and Craig Bellamy then getting Mario Balotelli and James Milner in return. I have seen some highlights of Balotelli and he does look an exceptional talent but the trouble with the Premier League is that all the games are competitive unlike Serie A, when there are easy clubs to play and where games in Italy are occasionally fixed. (Look at Wikipedia under Italian football corruption).
Hands up if you think James Milner is worth £27.5m.
At Manchester City, there seems to be an absolute whirlwind of deals, which must make the mouths of player agents drool. Besides Ireland, Craig Bellamy is going to Cardiff FC on a season-long where the Mancunian club is picking up half of the wages (sheer insanity!!).
Gawd knows where Robinho will go. Roque Santa Cruz (Rock Holy Cross?) is also on the way out.
Bellamy might be difficult (apparently Mancini has not spoken to him since February. But as far as the Premier League games are concerned, Bellamy would be in my team every time. I also remember when Robinho ripped apart Everton at the fortress (?) of Goodison Park.
You don't get into a Brazilian World Cup team if you are not a good player.
All of these crazy transfer fees are not going to change the expected outcome of the Premiership this season, which is a two horse race between holders Chelsea and runners-up
Man Utd. I think Chelsea has the better tactical manager in Carlo Ancelotti, who is very tough and disciplined. He seems to have made it clear to the players that when they are on the club's time then high standards of discipline are required.
However, their private lives are their own. Looking back Ancelotti gave a lot of support to John Terry (JT) with the scandal of the French bint saying basically "Private lives".
The Blues have even enlisted the help of Dolce & Gabbana. Ancelotti worked with the Italian fashion designer group when he was at AC Milan. The Italian manager said in an interview with the Times magazine last Saturday (highlighting the new Dolce & Gabanna range for the West London team) that it was important to show a disciplined, uniformed approach especially when the club travel.
I must admit even the Drog and Lamps looked pretty good in the suits. Getting rid of Joe Cole, who has got himself sent off and missed a penalty at Liverpool, looks a stroke of genius by Anclelotti.
On the Spizzenergi front, I will be having a hospital procedure on the first day of the new season on September 3rd. It will probably take me three weeks to recover. Hopefully,
Bristol Rovers (the Gas!) will have won some games by then. Otherwise, Gashead Simon will need
some TLC. My goals this season are to score more goals (if the b*st**ds pass to me!!) and to get a discount on the match fee to reflect all of my ailments. One of them is my vet status at being 52 and a quarter years old.
Friday, 13 August 2010
I am cracking under the strain of no footie!! (part two)
Dear Reader,
I thought I would be gracing the six-a-side astro pitch tonight with the guys,
who play after our slot at 7.45. However, disaster has struck. I had to powder my nose last night during the night and somehow stubbed my toe. It is not too bad but if someone steppted on it in the game I probably would be crying like a baby.
On a more serious note I will be counselling to Gashead Simon with his beloved team losing eight games on the trot if you include the last games of the last season. The 6-1 rollover to Oxford was diabolical. The expert summariser
on the BBC TV channel said the Gas's defence was all over the place.
My aims for the forthcoming season is to get more players doing their shift in goal and for Spizz to pass more rather than doing angled shots, which get you nowwhere!! Most goals come from shots made from the centre. If these aims are not fulfilled I will be giving a reduced match
fee to Gashead Simon.
I thought I would be gracing the six-a-side astro pitch tonight with the guys,
who play after our slot at 7.45. However, disaster has struck. I had to powder my nose last night during the night and somehow stubbed my toe. It is not too bad but if someone steppted on it in the game I probably would be crying like a baby.
On a more serious note I will be counselling to Gashead Simon with his beloved team losing eight games on the trot if you include the last games of the last season. The 6-1 rollover to Oxford was diabolical. The expert summariser
on the BBC TV channel said the Gas's defence was all over the place.
My aims for the forthcoming season is to get more players doing their shift in goal and for Spizz to pass more rather than doing angled shots, which get you nowwhere!! Most goals come from shots made from the centre. If these aims are not fulfilled I will be giving a reduced match
fee to Gashead Simon.
Monday, 9 August 2010
I am cracking under the strain of not playing footie!!
Dear Reader, I am sorry to report that I am cracking up under the strain of not playing footie on a Friday night. I have even sent a despairing email to Spizz asking if they need players this Friday. This is for the game, which normally follows us when we are not having our mid-summer break.
A couple of years ago I made myself available to their skipper and it was pretty embarrassing when he said they did not need anybody.
Is Milner really worth £30m and commisserations dear Spizz and Mick K. over the departure of
O'Neill. Perhaps his days were numbered when he invested in Heskey. Maybe, Aston Villa should start rebuilding again but I suppose it is no fun running a selling club.
A couple of years ago I made myself available to their skipper and it was pretty embarrassing when he said they did not need anybody.
Is Milner really worth £30m and commisserations dear Spizz and Mick K. over the departure of
O'Neill. Perhaps his days were numbered when he invested in Heskey. Maybe, Aston Villa should start rebuilding again but I suppose it is no fun running a selling club.
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