Fowler finds form for City

Cardiff City v Preston North End
22 September 2007 - 12.45pm

Robbie Fowler fired his first two goals for Cardiff City yesterday against Preston North End. But the Bluebirds could only draw after Callum Davidson added a second of his own in injury time rounding off another madcap week at Ninian Park.

As Jose Morinho rocked English football with his departure from Chelsea, Cardiff City Chairman Peter Ridsdale caused similar shockwaves across the border in the Welsh capital this week, tendering his resignation.

Ridsdale had been receiving abuse from fans following a poor start to the season and reports of financial troubles off the pitch. “I am getting more stick for saving Cardiff City than I did when things went wrong at Leeds," he said.

Unlike Mourinho at Chelsea, Ridsdale retained the backing of the rest of the board and his resignation was rejected. And come the 38th minute of City’s encounter with fellow strugglers Preston the fans were singing his name following Fowler’s opening salvo, the first of his Ninian Park tenure, which brought promises of a first home league win of the season. His second, after a long range equaliser from Davidson, brought delirium.

But full-back Davidson spoilt the party in the dying moments leaving a frustrated Dave Jones with just the solitary point and a prone Roger Johnson who was later carried tentatively off the pitch by a number of concerned paramedics. A neck injury was feared but it was later confirmed that he is unharmed.

Cardiff’s season began with the fanfare signings of Fowler and Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink, amidst focus on an impotent attack. City’s other strikers having since found their shooting boots away from home, and Hasselbaink opening his account with a fine long range strike on Wednesday night against Watford, it is the defence to whom the focus had shifted.

With the continued absence of Darren Purse and Glenn Loovens, Dave Jones sought attack as the best form of defence to avoid the prospect of City’s fourth consecutive home defeat in the Championship. The up and coming Chris Gunter was dropped in favour of Welsh international winger Joe Ledley, with Trevor Sinclair slotting into the right-back position.

It was a tactical change that provided City with more options, Ledley and Paul Parry switching flanks and Sinclair pushing on to whip in crosses from the right and free kicks from the left.

Preston are a side also short on form, to the extent that this fixture was cheekily referred to as a relegation dogfight. Both Preston and the Bluebirds have Premiership aspirations so it is foolish to attach such a label just six games into the season but it reflects the feelings of the fans.

Gunter’s replacement, Ledley, almost opened the scoring, forcing an acrobatic save from Andy Lonergan at the far left post from a pin-point cross by Parry.

It was a carbon-copy cross from Ledley onto the head of Fowler in the 28th minute after good work from Sinclair that simultaneously broke the deadlock on the day and lifted the burden of expectation on Fowler and Dave Jones’ decision to include him after a flat-footed display against Watford.

Unlike Fowler, Cardiff’s on-loan keeper, Ross Turnbull, paid the price of flapping at Adam Johnson’s free-kick on Wednesday night as Michael Oakes replaced him between the sticks. Oakes had little to do but watch Paul Gallagher’s tenth minute shot fly narrowly over his bar and make an important interception in the 33rd minute as the City defence were once more caught napping, allowing Preston to fire in a dangerous cross.

With a one-nil lead and his side playing with the majority of the possession, Dave Jones pulled Parry at half time, restoring Gunter to the field and Sinclair to his natural berth on the right wing. Jones revealed after the game that this was enforced by a slight injury to Parry rather than a desire to tinker tactically.

Preston put a spanner in the works ten minutes later, Davidson equalising with a stinging, low drive that escaped Oakes’ outstretched right hand and found the bottom corner of the net to the predictable dismay of the Cardiff faithful who had a first home win in their sights.

Fowler restored the lead and convinced any doubters of his calibre in the 64th minute, heading home from Ledley’s in-swinging corner. He received a standing ovation when replaced by Steve Thompson in the final five minutes.

But Davidson was not to be outdone by the former Liverpool legend. In injury time, as the Cardiff fans congratulated themselves on a job well done, a final free kick was laid square to Davidson. He let loose another rocket, this time into the bottom left corner of the net, to leave Cardiff them still seeking a first elusive home win.

“At least we’ve stopped the rot” was Jones’s optimistic post-match summary.

Cardiff 4-4-2: Oakes, McNaughton, Capaldi, Rae, Fowler (Thompson 84’), McPhail, Parry (Gunter 46’), Johnson, Ledley, Sinclair (Whittingham 78’), Hasselbaink. Subs not used: Turnbull, Blake.

Preston North End 4-4-2: Lonergan, Davidson, Mawene, Sedgwick, Agyemang (Hawley 60’), Gallagher (Mellor 71’), Carter, Chilvers, Hill, Jones, Nicholls. Subs: Hawley, St Ledger, L. Neal, C.Neal.

Referee: A R Hall

Yellows: Davidson (21’), Chilvers (39’)

Attendance: 11,772

Championship Review (18/19 Sept)

Round-up for the Cardiff City FC match program:

It’s not unusual by Andy Sloan

Tom Jones has probably played in more stadiums than Ryan Giggs and therefore the fruits of his labours deserve to be the theme for this round-up of mid-week action in the Championship and my, my, my are we now sick of writing about Darius Henderson.

Beattie burning down the house
James Beattie continued his sensational scoring streak with two strikes against Blackpool to salvage an unlikely point for his latest employers, Sheffield United. In fact, Beattie opened and closed the show, heading the opener on 13 minutes and then seeing a speculative 35 yard effort creep under Blackpool keeper Paul Rachubka two minutes from time and just seconds after Ben Burgess thought he had won the match for Blackpool. Stephen Crainey had equalised for the home side with a free kick moments before half-time and when his team-mate, Burgess, added the second the Blackpool fans could be forgiven for celebrating three well earned points but hadn’t counted on a Beattie’s sensational winner that must have had his former manager, David Moyes, shaking his head in exasperation.

The Robins run while others walk
Playing a day before Watford, Bristol City took the chance to temporarily reacquaint themselves with the top spot, but had to rely on a late equalizer from Bradley Orr and superior goal difference than the Hornets. They failed to take all three points against West Bromwich Albion yet were happy to salvage a point after coming perilously close to ending their unbeaten run. Manager Gary Johnson said afterwards, "the boys never say die and that's the attitude they've got at the moment.” His counterpart, Tony Mowbray, was understandably upset having seen his side take the lead halfway through the second half courtesy of Robert Koren. Despite missing a host of chances to put the game beyond doubt, the Baggies were seemingly heading for the win until Orr latched onto a Lee Johnson cross in the 89th minute. "When you get two minutes from the end of the game, 1-0 up, looking comfortable, we're disappointed,” said Mowbray. “Credit to Bristol City, they kept going. You've got to give respect for where they are in the league. They're not there by accident. They're there by hard work, endeavour and organisation."

Reid spot on in unusual climax
Christmas came early for Charlton skipper Andy Reid who converted two penalties in the final five minutes against Norwich City to send the Addicks third in the table. Super-sub Izale McLeod put in a sparkling cameo for Alan Pardew’s team, coming on in the 80th minute with the brief to break the deadlock and being felled twice to win his third and fourth penalties of the season. To compound the Canaries’ misery veteran striker Dion Dublin was sent off in the 90th minute for what Peter Grant deemed to be a dubious head-butt on Danny Mills. “It's important to finish with 11 men,” he said, “but unfortunately we couldn't because somebody cheated."

Dowie and Jordan remain without love
It is fair to say that Crystal Palace Chairman Simon Jordan is not Iain Dowie’s biggest fan following the former Palace manager’s acrimonious departure to Charlton in 2006. After Palace blew three points in the 87th minute on Dowie’s return to his former club, Jordan may not be current manager, Peter Taylor’s, biggest fan either. Last week Jordan stated his desire for a top six finish and after seeing Coventry’s substitute striker Leon Best connect with Jay Tabb’s cross to steal a dramatic late equaliser, Taylor said, “I am not confident [of keeping my job] but I just don't know because I have not spoken to Simon [Jordan]. If I'm honest, it's not nice when you read that he has been having regular contact with Neil Warnock.” Dowie didn’t help Taylor’s situation, pointing out that Palace made a lot of money on the players he left them and the fact that they had spent £8m last season yet failed to reach the play-offs. It was an old hand at Selhurst Park, Dougie Freedman, whose work enabled Stuart Green to give the Eagles a first-half lead but Coventry saved the Best till last, or the 87th minute at least to share the points.

Holloway enjoys the green green grass of home
Plymouth secured their first league win since the start of the season thanks to two unanswered goals against QPR from Peter Halmosi and David Norris. QPR’s Daniel Nardiello hit the woodwork in the first half and Ben Sahar had a fine effort saved late on but otherwise it was an enjoyable night for Ian Holloway on his return to Loftus Road.

Scunthorpe keep on smiling
Preston returned to their losing ways as Scunthorpe maintained a remarkable home record, Paul Hayes netting a second half winner in an entertaining 2-1 victory. Andy Crosby put the Irons in front on 24 minutes, but North End equalised just before the break through Youl Mawene. Preston had reason to feel rueful after Hayes’ shot squirmed under Andy Lonergan three minutes into the second half. They missed a penalty and Andy Carroll was sent off for retaliation, effectively ending any hope of a comeback. Scunthorpe boss, Nigel Adkins, was suitably delighted: "It was a super game, high tempo, loads of goalmouth action and thoroughly enjoyable. On any one given day, anybody can beat anybody. And that's what our philosophy is."

Why, why, why, ask Wednesday after sixth defeat
D:Ream, the band responsible for Labour’s 1997 campaign anthem ‘Things Can Only Get Better’ clearly aren’t Sheffield Wednesday fans. With a club record five defeats in their first five matches this season things seemingly couldn’t get any worse. They could. Wednesday slumped to their sixth successive defeat, this time to Burnley, thanks to goals from Robbie Blake and Chris McCann. "In previous defeats I've said we did not deserve it,” said boss Brian Laws, “but tonight we did, we looked like rabbits in headlights.”

Stoke happy with their situation
In a classic tale of mid-table mediocrity, Stoke and Barnsley played out a goalless draw to share the points at the Britannia Stadium. While Stoke were happy to continue a run of unbeaten results they are concerned about the number of draws but the visitors were delighted with a clean sheet and having failed to learn anything from watching the trials and tribulations of Martin Jol this season, Barnsley boss, Simon Davey said, “I'd be more worried if we weren't creating. I know that this team will score goals.”


Veteran Windass rediscovers that funny familiar forgotten feeling
Dean Windass, aged 392, fired home from the penalty spot to give Hull their first away win of the season although the sheer proflicacy of the Wolverhampton strike force should be noted as the primary factor behind this result. Freddy Eastwood at least managed to find the woodwork but his striking partner Andy Keogh was guilty of some wayward finishing. Jay Jay Okocha made his full debut, enabling Hull manager Phil Brown to wax lyrical about his star signing once again, although he stopped short of the overused chestnut that he’s so good they named him twice.

My, my, my Mr. Henderson
Watford established a three point lead in the Championship after sinking Cardiff City on a rain soaked evening at Ninian Park. Man of the moment, Darius Henderson, challenged his manager, Aidy Boothroyd, before the Hornets victory over Southampton, saying “When will you learn? When I play, we win.” Sadly he remained good to his word, scoring a brace against an improving Cardiff side prone to lapses in concentration. His second goal cancelled out the fervour generated in the ground by Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s stunning strike, his first for the Bluebirds. The stadium had risen as one as his 25 yard effort curled effortlessly round Mart Poom and into the top corner but Henderson’s pace, power and passion for football at present were too much for the city defence and a side still looking for its first home league win of the season.

Saints move closer
St John’s Ambulance men were on hand to race to the rescue of Ian Wright during Southampton’s one-all clash with Colchester for fear of over excitement. The former Arsenal and England legend has had an exciting few weeks watching Shaun Wright-Phillips shine for both Chelsea and England, his over-exuberance beamed to the whole of Britain from the Match of the day studios. Now it’s his other son’s turn in the lime-light. Bradley Wright-Phillips sent Southampton into the lead on 52 minutes, a lead that should have been capitalised on and added to, not least by Grzegorz Rasiak. Instead an own goal by Rudi Skacel six minutes later robbed the Saints of three points and the Wright-Phillips family of another headline as all concerned had to settle for a draw.

Henderson steals show from Hasselbaink

Cardiff City v Watford
19 September 2007 - 19.45pm

On a night fit for ducks the Bluebirds sought their first home league win of the season against a Watford side who topped the table for the first time last Saturday and a man in form, Darius Henderson. It was always going to be monumental task and Henderson showed no sympathy, silencing a sodden crowd with two goals in an entertaining 2-1 victory for the visitors.

Robbie Fowler and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink started for Cardiff and there was only room on the bench for fit again Steve Thompson who scored the late equaliser against Plymouth. But the presence of the two aging marksmen failed to quell the fears inside the Cardiff faithful.

Hasserlbaink had an early shot on target but it was not until the 12th minute that Chris Gunter got the crowd on their feet with a cross-come shot that drifted clear of Mart Poom and narrowly over the cross bar.

Paul Parry warmed Poom up further just a minute later as he jinxed into the box and fired a searing shot straight at the Watford keeper. But the Robbie and Jimmy show failed to materialise and, against the run of play, it was Watford’s man of the moment who found the net first.

Darius Henderson started up front after his cheeky remark to manager Aidy Boothroyd that “when I play, we win.” He was good to his word, bundling the ball home after Ross Turnbull failed to clear a cross from Adam Johnson and then deal with the resulting shot from Jay Demerit that hit the post and seemed to rebound straight through his open arms along the goal-line and into the path of a goal-hungry Henderson. Having only scored three last season, and taking six months to find his first, Henderson is clearly relishing life back in the Championship.

Cardiff had a run of chances in response as the half progressed, the most notable being Jimmy Floyd’s interception of Demerit’s back pass. With just the keeper to beat Hasselbaink took an age to round Poom, enabling the Hornets keeper to recover and block the subsequent shot. The Watford fans’ chant of “you’re just a Fat Eddie Murphy” appeared less off the mark. Although, sung so early in a match, to a player of Hasselbaink’s calibre, it was bold indeed.

And so it was proved. Short on pace Hasselbaink may be, but when you can beat the goal keeper from 25 yards and turn a game with an inch perfect right foot curler, then who needs pace? The veteran striker proved just so in the 59th minute, answering his critics in the best way possible. If there had been a roof on Ninian Park it would have been blown off with the resultant roar.

Having stirred the Hornet’s nest Cardiff had to soak up the resulting ten minutes of pressure but Dave Jones will have been encouraged by his side’s defending in this respect and their propensity to break and harry the visitors.

Fowler may not have strayed far from a central line down the attacking end of the park but his deft and clever touches released those around him to cover the ground his aging legs long since surrendered. Cardiff began to look good for a punt and Jimmy-Floyd could have given them the lead with another right-foot flyer.

But Henderson had made a deal with his manager: if he plays, they win. Jordan Stewart forced Turnbull to palm the ball over his bar for a corner as the game reached its climax and Henderson was the beneficiary as Cardiff again failed to clear their lines.

The Bluebirds made a spirited yet fruitless attempt to equalise once more but Watford are sturdier opponents than Argyle and the introduction of Thompson couldn’t provide the finish required, although not for want of trying.

Watford would have regained top spot with a draw, but Henderson had a point to prove and as the rain continued to lash down he inspired Watford to raise their game and seize all three points, a sign of champions in the making. Perhaps now it is time for Cardiff’s own champion, Robbie Fowler, to follow in the footsteps of Hasselbaink and Henderson and prove a point of his own.

CARDIFF 4-4-2: Turnbull, McNaughton, Capaldi, Rae, Fowler (Whittingham 84’), McPhail, Parry, Johnson, Sinclair, Hasselbaink, Gunter (Thompson 82’). Unused Subs: Oakes, Ledley, Blake.

WATFORD 4-4-2: Poom, Stewart, Shittu, Demerit, Mahoon, Henderson, Doyley, Ellington (King 59’), Smith, Mariappa (O’Toole 73’), Johnson (McAnuff 78’). Unused Subs: Lee, Priskin.

Yellow – Hasselbaink 56’

Championship Review (15/16 Sept)

Themed piece for the Cardiff City FC match day program.

What have the Romans ever done for us? By Andy Sloan

Roman Abramovich’s millions have propelled the Premiership to new heights, augmenting the growing financial chasm that separates it from its poor neighbour, the Championship. But whilst Roman’s eye-watering transfer fees and pay-packets fail in any way to aid Championship teams’ hopes of holding onto their talented youngsters, or of them affording the loan services of top flight squad members, the financial prosperity of the Premiership provides an unrivalled carrot for Championship contenders to aim for. And this week, five games into their campaign to return to the land of milk and honey, Watford displaced Coventry at the front of the queue.

Darius Henderson proved he may still have a future with Watford after turning down a move to Preston North End and scoring a 90th minute winner to send his side to the top of the table. George Burley must have been suffering from déjà vu, Henderson having scored against him in his first game in charge for Southampton two years ago when Watford last swept up to the Premiership. Henderson will hope he can go on to emulate the form he showed that season when his 15 goals were a vital part of Watford’s successful push for promotion. Danny Shittu was first off the mark on Saturday not long before the break but long enough to allow Grzegorz Rasiak equalise before the break finally came. Nathan Dyer then fired Southampton in front in the 69th minute invoking the wrath of Aidy Boothroyd, who declared that he wanted to tear strips off his players for losing the lead. Henderson had entered the fray minutes earlier after telling Boothroyd he had erred in omitting him. “When will you learn?” he told his manager. “When I play we win.” Good to his word his two goals saw Watford to an important win and Boothroyd on track for a return to the big time.

Charlton’s bouncebackability suffers merely a flesh wound
Ten-man Colchester couldn’t hold on to a first-half two-nil lead as Charlton pegged them back courtesy of Svetoslav Todorov and Zheng. Teddy Sheringham set up Mark Yeates for the opener then Charlton old boy Kevin Lisbie doubled United’s lead as they chased their first home win of the season. In a reversal of fortunes, Colchester old boy Chris Iwelumo headed the ball down to Todorov in the 45th minute and he gave Charlton hope going into the interval, but it was referee Mike Russell’s controversial decision to send off United youngster Matt Connolly that proved the decisive moment in Charlton’s comeback. Colchester, despite continuing to create chances of their own, could only repel Charlton’s advances until the 73rd minute when Zheng Zhi found the equaliser. These sides have very different ambitions but both had to settle for a point a-piece. Charlton though quietly crept up a place into fifth.

Dowie didn’t expect the Bristol Inquisition
If Ian Dowie had been asked at the start of the season which side would inflict Coventry City’s first defeat, he would probably not have highlighted his team’s home clash with newly promoted Bristol City. It was Gary Johnson’s men though who posed the questions to which Coventry had no reply and swept to an impressive 3-0 victory courtesy of strikes from new signings Michale McIndoe and Darren Byfield and an own goal from the Coventry goalkeeper, Dimi Konstantopoulos. “I am not surprised and the boys are not surprised” said Johnson, clearly surprised. Dowie, though gracious in defeat, was not quite so ready for such a result. “I thought we dominated the game for long periods,” he said. “Soft goals are killing us.” Bristol City are now the only unbeaten side in the Championship and relieved Coventry of the top spot for a few hours before Watford took to the field.

Megson manages Mandaric’s sanity for the meantime
“There are some people who, through no fault of their own, are sane. Some were born sane, some became sane later in their lives. It is up to people like you and me who are out of our tiny little minds to help these people overcome their sanity.” This Monty Python quote could well have come from Leicester Chairman Milan Mandaric who parted company with Martin Allen after just three league games which included a 4-1 rout of new table toppers Watford. Gary Megson opened his managerial account under Mandaric with a one-all draw against QPR, Ian Hume drove home a 63rd minute penalty after Damion Stewart was deemed to have unfairly sent DJ Campbell spinning in the box. Asked whether he was appointed until the end of the season or on a longer term basis, Megson replied, “it’s a long term contract, I think it’s about six weeks,” as he looked across at his new boss and laughed. “Seven” interjected Mandaric as both men shared some humour in front of the cameras. Draws such as this one will need to be converted into results if the humour is to remain.

Taylor’s not the messiah, he’s a very naughty boy
“Being seventeenth in the league is not getting the best out of your squad” reflected Palace Chairman Simon Jordan after watching his side lose away from home at Norwich City courtesy of a solitary strike from David Strihavka. “We should be in the top six. I want Peter Taylor to be successful, but if I feel he is not, he will be the first person to know.” He’ll be delighted to see Palace are now 21st following the rest of the weeks results.

Laws tries to look on the bright side of life
Sheffield Wednesday plunged to a one nil loss at the hands of fellow strugglers Preston. The result constitutes their fifth defeat, the worst start to a season in the club’s history. Paul Gallagher’s goal gave Preston their first win of the season and insured that Wednesday remain rooted to the bottom of the table. Their manager, Brian Laws, called for calm despite the distressing statistic. “I don’t believe we deserve the position we are in – we just need that little bit of luck, a bit of patience and not to panic.” Wednesday fans may not entirely share that opinion.

Beattie’s no lumberjack
James Beattie continued to repay the faith Bryan Robson has put in him with a further two goals as Sheffield United came from behind to beat Wolves. Stephen Elliot opened the scoring for the visitors but Beattie put his body on the line to equalise before winning a penalty seven minutes from time. Jon Stead came off the bench to score a third in the dying moments. The Wolves manager, Mick McCarthy, said he felt “mugged”. Perhaps he should speak to Jim Magilton.

Ipswich wish they could just call it a draw
Ipswich manager Jim Magilton and his opposite number at West Bromwich Albion, Tony Mowbray, used to play together in the Ipswich side that sealed promotion to the Premiership. Any comradeship was forgotten at the Hawthorns though as West Brom romped to a 4-0 win. Despite the emphatic score-line, the Baggies did not have it all their own way. Ishmael Miller opened the scoring in the 23rd minute but the home side then rode their luck as, in Mowbray’s own words, “Ipswich had a real go.” Three late goals in the final three minutes, two from the boot of Kevin Phillips, sealed the win in dramatic fashion. Ipswich may have felt unlucky but need to turn chances into goals if they are to compete for a play-off place this season; West Brom, up to 4th and with a 100% home record still intact, are on course to aim even higher.

And now for some completely different games…

An own goal from Marcus Williams and a cool finish from new signing Kayode Odejayi secured three points for Barnsley as Scunthorpe’s early season form stuttered and they fell from fourth spot out of the top ten.

Ade Akinbye thought he had won Burnley’s clash with Blackpool with his 86th minute finish to put Burnley 2-1 up, but Andy Morrell earned a priceless point for the visitors as the home side failed to clear their lines in the final minute. Burnley manager Steve Cotterill was frank in his appraisal: “What happens leaves a bitter taste but I don’t think we deserved to win the game. We weren’t good enough and that is why we didn’t win.”

Stoke had only lost once in Hull since 1960, and maintained that record. Rory Delap gave them the lead just before half-time but summer signing Jay Jay Okocha, who according to reports was led to Hull by the Lord, inspired Phil Brown’s side to snatch a late draw. David Livermore provided the finishing touch but it was Okocha who drew the manager’s praise on the final whistle.

In one of his less exciting match summaries, Plymouth Argylle manager and Gareth Thomas look-a-like Ian Holloway declared that his side’s 2-2 draw with Cardiff City was, “probably a fair result on the balance of play,” despite his disgust at dropping two points. Cardiff clawed their way back from a two-goal deficit through Gavin Rae and a late, late strike from fit-again Steve Thompson.

Bellamy inspires final fling from Wales

Craig Bellamy kept Wales’ slim hopes of qualification for Euro 2008 alive with an out-standing display in an impressive 5-2 win over Slovakia in Trnava.

Bellamy set up three and bagged a brace to move ahead of John Toshack in the all-time Welsh goal-scorers list and level with the legendary John Charles on 15 goals.

As well as a victory in Eastern Europe Welsh dreams hinged on their Celtic cousins the Republic of Ireland defeating the Czech Republic but Toshack’s young side did all that they could, three first-half counter attacks providing three goals against the side who humiliated Wales 5-1 in Cardiff last year, before an own goal and an 89th minute finish from Simon Davies completed the rout.

The Welsh players could have been forgiven for checking their watches as they walked onto the pitch for their crunch Euro 2008 qualifier.

Last Saturday’s crowd of 25,000 at the Millennium Stadium was adjudged a poor turnout, particularly given the quality of Wales’ opposition, but the Antona Malatinskeho stadium in Trnava was virtually bare by comparison. 500 Welsh fans made the journey to Slovakia and the home support did not number many more in the 18,000 capacity stadium.

Both Wales and Slovakia retained an outside chance of qualification at the outset of the evening, yet this glimmer of hope seemed not to galvanise the Slovak public. It was Slovakia’s 7th attempt to reach the final of a major tournament in the 14 years since the countries conception and the absence of a clean sheet in their last dozen internationals gives a clue as to why.

However, the Slovakian’s defied their supporters’ indifference, opening the scoring in the 11th minute after Cardiff City’s Joe Ledley made a complete hash of a simple clearance in his own box and gifted the Slovak skipper, Marek Mintal, the opportunity to volley past Wayne Hennessey from eight yards.

Welsh fears of a repeat defeat by the Eastern European outfit were assuaged when Freddy Eastwood levelled in the 21st minute. Craig Bellamy displayed his class threading a clever little ball through the Slovak defence to feed Joe Ledley who made amends for his earlier error by crossing into the path of the encroaching Eastwood who hit the mark for the second time in only his second game for Wales.

If Craig Bellamy needed to stretch his legs after missing the defeat to Germany he was given a golden opportunity to do so in the 34th minute. Receiving the ball on the halfway line he streaked half the length of the pitch before chipping the approaching keeper to find the top right corner and complete a reverse in Wales’ fortunes.

It was almost a carbon copy of his effort minutes earlier when he found the net by the same means, chipping the goalkeeper from a similar position, but incurring a yellow card as the referee had already blown for offside.

Bellamy continued to outline the impact of his absence on Saturday by adding a third in the 41st minute. Joe Ledley, once again the provider, chipped deftly over the Slovakian back line for Bellamy to run on and finish coolly from the left side of the six yard box. Only the woodwork denied him a hat-trick in the second half.

In the 78th minute he completed his torment of the Slovak defence, beating two players down the right and passing across from edge of the six yard box to tee-up Simon Davies for a tap-in, forcing Durica to find his own net whilst attempting an impossible intervention.

Despite the score-line, Slovakia bossed large swathes of the game with inventive and high-tempo passing, but their industry was let down again by a pourous defence which has conceded an average of almost two goals a game in qualification so far.

Moments before half-time a flick-on at the near post fell for Mintal whose shot rocketed goal-ward from the edge of the area only to ricochet off the Welsh bar to the relief of an outstretched Hennessy.

When the Slovak captain then put his side back in the game in the 57th minute with his second goal of the match looked as if Wales could face a tough final third. A reverse pass from Cech on the edge of the box cut out Collins and Gabbidon, leaving Mintal to drive home.

Hennessy fumbled a fierce shot from Petras two minutes later but fortunately the ball fell for a corner rather than an opposition shirt and then Craig Bellamy stretched his legs once more and Davies added a fifth in the final moments. The provider? Craig Bellamy. Qualification or no, John Toshack can but be proud of a performance which may put more bums on seats next time round.

A plus point on a wonderful weekend of sport

There are sporting weekends and there are sporting weekends. The commencement of the Rugby World Cup on Friday evening heralded one of the finest three days of armchair viewing for some time. Rugby, football, cricket, tennis and Formula One all vied for impossible levels of attention, satisfied only by the advent of modern technology. Many a prayer of thanks will have been uttered to the heavens this weekend for the development of Sky Plus.

With the England rugby team's World Cup opener against the USA and their football counterpart's must-win Euro 2008 qualifier against Israel conveniently both scheduled for 5pm on Saturday careful planning was clearly required. The sheer extent of such action was only revealed upon further investigation of the listings.

A few deft selections later and Saturday's viewing comprised the All Blacks demolition of Italy, Australia's rout of Japan and then a crazed Ian Wright extolling the virtues of his son, Shaun Wright-Phillips, who scored the opener in England's 3-0 canter against a somewhat impotent Israeli side.

The Welsh football team failed to follow this fine performance as they succumbed 2-0 to Germany in the Millienium stadium courtesy of a brace from prolific marksman Miroslav Klose and the absence of Craig Bellamy.

Returning to the rugby courtesy of the invaluable red button on my shiny new remote I was then able to round off my day on the couch watching Dallaglio and co. pick apart the American part-timers. Or so I thought. Within the opening seconds it became clear that England's painfully unimpressive form running up to their defence of the Webb Ellis trophy was set to continue.

Fortunately it was only the quality of the victory that was in doubt, never the result; unlike the Welsh match on Sunday afternoon. "If you win you get a pat on the back, if you lose you get shot," commented Sir Clive Woodward in a recent BBC documentary on the rewards or otherwise of managing the Welsh rugby team, widely recognised as the toughest job in Wales.

Gareth Jenkins was on the verge of being hung out to dry as his team conceded a third try granting the Canadian opposition a dream 45th minute scoreline of 17-9. He restored the natural order though via the substitution of misfiring youngster James Hook and the introduction of fit-again former captain Stephen Jones and current captain Gareth Thomas. The resulting five Welsh tries triggered by their arrival prompted the question of why on earth they were absent in the first place.

Wales may have had their biggest scare since Gavin Henson's last tanning session but it was the French who scooped the biggest cock-up of the weekend. Friday night brought a feast of entertainment as France, plucky hosts of the Rugby World cup, choked against Argentina whose star is ever-rising in rugby circles. It was a marvellous victory of determination, bravery and tactical adeptness as the Argentines upset the old order and Bernard Laporte in particular with an opening game victory reminiscent of Cameroon rocking the Argentine football fraternity in the curtain-raiser for the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

On paper, in both instances, there should not really be any suprise but arrogance and tradition die hard and unrealistic expectancy with it. For the neutral, and the English, it made for a delightful start to proceedings.

For those whose eyes hadn't started to glaze from the sheer number of hours in front of a screen, or for whom sleep deprivation was not an issue, there was also England's series clinching one-day triumph over India in the cricket, Justin Henine and Roger Federer retaining their respective US Open crowns (in Federer's case for a remarkable fourth consecutive time) and Lewis Hamilton's 11th podium finish in 13 Formula One outings.

My brain overloaded as I saw Scotland crash over the line for their 6th try against Portugal and I reached for the standby button, content for the moment with what I had witnessed and not expecting Ireland to have any undue difficulties against Nambia, despite their subsequent efforts to try and prove me wrong.

The beauty of it is, that after a brief recharge, there is plenty more to come.

Johnson heads Cardiff through Carling Cup trial

Cardiff City FC v Brighton and Hove Albion FC
15 August 2007 Kick off 7.45pm

Cardiff City eased into the second round of the Carling Cup last night with an uninspiring win over Brighton & Hove Albion. Dave Jones’ men required extra time before Roger Johnson’s header spared their blushes and a penalty shoot-out against League One Albion.

Ninian Park was treated to somewhat of an ornithological feast with the visit of the ‘Seagulls’ although no fowl was on display, the Bluebirds close season coup, Robbie Fowler, not yet match fit.

Despite the heavy pre-match rain abating the players failed to rival the subsequent sunset for creativity, style or end product. While Stephen McPhail and Darren Purse stood out as engines edging their side closer to what should have been a routine 90 minute victory, City could not build on their respective industry.

The first half reflected the attendance; miserly. A mere 3,726 turned out albeit on a wet Tuesday night in peak holiday season against visitors who failed to up their game to Championship standards. Brighton only mustered 87 fans of their own.

Warren Feeny, Paul Parry and McPhail all snatched at long range half-chances early on without troubling Brighton keeper Michel Kuipers. Peter Whittingham engineered a move down Cardiff’s left flank in the 17th minute, firing a low cross into Brighton’s penalty area which was met by McPhail, blocked and the rebound blasted over.

It was Brighton who, against the run of play, came closest in the 33rd minute. Ross Turnbull punched clear from an Albion corner but only as far as the Seagull’s left back, Joel Lynch, who was lurking on the edge of the 18 yard box. The sweetness with which he connected with the ball proved why he was waiting there. Fortunately for Turnbull and the Bluebirds, his effort slammed into the advertising hoardings just wide of its mark.

Turnbull could have seized the headlines himself for a ‘Lehman-esque’ moment shortly before half-time. He tried to deal with a bouncing back-pass via a neat flick with the side of his boot but made far too much contact and only just managed to clear the danger with his second touch in the face of the fast advancing Nicky Forster.

The coming of the second half failed to bring changes to the teams or the tempo. The fans, however, were in much better voice, particularly enjoying baiting the rather rotund Brighton physio who was called into action for several nasty clashes of heads. Tiring of him once the players involved had returned to their feet, they turned their attention on Brighton’s beleaguered support: “We can see you holding hands”.

Dave Jones’ introduction of Matt Green in the 63rd minute did little to stir Cardiff’s attack. Paul Parry had highlighted their problem just three minutes into the second half, breaking beautifully down the right, beating his man and delivering a delightful chipped cross into the penalty area, which was happily dealt with by the Brighton back four.

On this occasion, unlike a wayward delivery from Chris Gunter later in the game which earned ironic cheers from the crowd, it was not the decision-making or execution that was to blame, but City’s lack of a predator to capitalise on a fine move. Fowler’s presence is keenly awaited.

The Bluebirds were refused a penalty in extra-time after Joe Ledley was unceremoniously muscled off the ball in the box. In turn though Cardiff denied Brighton a penalty shoot-out, McPhail providing the perfect corner to tee up Johnson’s decisive header in the 108th minute and seal the win.

The Carling Cup may often be derided as a second-string cup competition, but it is a valuable opportunity for experience against clubs playing in the league where Cardiff want to be, the Premiership. For the moment they are one step closer to drawing such a team, the second round.

Cardiff City:

Ross Turnbull, Tony Capaldi, Roger Johnson, Darren Purse (c), Chris Gunter, Peter Whittingham (76’ Joe Ledley), Stephen McPhail, Gavin Rae, Paul Parry (115’ Aaron Ramsey), Warren Feeney (63’ Matt Green), Steven Maclean.

Shots on target – 7, Shots off target – 9, Corners – 8, Freekicks won – 17, Offsides – 3
Yellow cards – 0.

Brighton & Hove Albion:

Michael Kuipers, Joel Lynch (45’ Sam Rents), Guy Butters, Tommy Elphick, Andrew Whing, Dean Cox, Dean Hammond (c), Adam El-Abd, Tommy Fraser (65’ Paul Reid), Alex Revell (105’ Bas Savage), Nicky Forster.

Shots on target – 1, Shots off target – 5, Corners – 6, Freekicks won – 8, Offsides – 0,
Yellow cards – 3.

A Holiday Hitch

“Remember, you only need one car,” said the Reiki healer as I stuck out my thumb once more. 10 hours, 5 cars and 1 train ride after I set out from Cromer in North Norfolk, I made it to Leeds.

In a fit of pique at the price of travel, and in a bid to lessen my impact on the environment, I decided to resort to the traditional traveller’s favoured mode of transport: hitch-hiking. It had been some time since I had last lingered on a street corner flourishing a card-board sign, but a number of factors had culminated in a well-reasoned desire to test the temperament of the nation once more.

An emailed invitation had arrived in a millisecond proposing a leaving party in Leeds, significantly less than a millisecond’s travelling time away. An old friend was emigrating; to Australia. As such, the request for people to journey to Leeds was put in perspective. It was an awful lot closer up there than down under.

By train there was a selection of extremely cheap tickets, none of which remained available. By bus a cheap option existed, but lacked a direct route and required a painstaking series of changes and lengthy waiting periods in some the nation’s less salubrious bus stations.

Driving was, of course, an option. However, a five hour journey each way, alone, seemed not only highly uneconomical, unproductive and upsetting for the environmentalist lobby, it would also have deprived my better half of transport and open domestic arguments that (in the short term at least) the worst threats of global warming could never compete with.

And so, with summer finally in bloom, the decision was taken not to fall prey to the school holiday price hikes, and instead to put my faith in the people of these fair isles.

Within five minutes of brandishing my carefully drawn plea on the outskirts of Cromer, “Anywhere closer to Leeds”, the first lift was proffered. It was a short hop to Holt, a mere 15 minutes drive, but it was psychologically the most important ride of the day.

The second ride, from Holt to Fakenham took far longer to materialise but by then the journey had begun. Any devils of doubt could be countered by the fact that one lift had already been granted, that a complete stranger had seen fit to stop and offer a ride to his fellow man.

Then it started to rain. The devils became restless. 40 minutes past. The devils reminded me that I was still within calling distance of the aforementioned other half. There was still time to gracefully bow out citing any number of entirely reasonable excuses; the weather, health, general safety, and missing any number of sporting events on the telly. But then, just as the rain drops appeared to be gathering momentum and size, a car slowed to a halt and a cheery couple (teachers, a day into their summer break) took pity and pulled over.

From Fakenham it was 20 miles to Kings Lynn; 20 miles to the edge of Norfolk. “I’m headed to Leeds” I would explain to passing North Norfolk locals. “Leeds!” they responded, as if Holland would have been a far more sensible suggestion. The truth is it is probably closer.

My next saviour was a Reiki healer, headed not just to Kings Lynn but far beyond it to one of middle England’s main arteries, the A1. From there I would be home dry; home dry that is if I hadn’t left my umbrella in his car.

As much as I sought to visualise my next lift, putting into practise my impromptu Reiki teaching, it failed to materialise for a very long time. There were plenty of smiles and the odd honk from the vehicles departing the A1 services at which I had been dropped, but no lift.

Shortly after relinquishing visualisation and relocating to the slightly more precarious, but statistically preferable, slip-road to the north-bound carriageway, I struck gold again. It was another short hop but an immense morale booster. Unfortunately it also underlined an important rule of hitching: Think carefully before trading a good position for an unknown position a few miles further on.

Generally speaking “a good position”, as opposed to “a pickle”, is a place where there are plenty of cars heading in your direction, that can see you early, and have time and space to pull over. “A pickle” includes most slip roads (on which cars accelerate and there is often little room to pull over safely).

When salvation finally came the sun was low in the sky, the clouds were darkening again and the irony of leaving my protective umbrella in the healer’s car was no longer entertaining. “Can drop you in Grantham, at the station,” said the white van man. “It’s not far at all on the train to Leeds if you’re prepared to spend a bit of money; and it’s about to piss it down.”

And so my resolve crumbled. I gave up at Grantham and caught the train to Leeds in time for a curry and copious quantities of Cobra. I had had five lifts and covered many miles. I had tested the water again and found it warm, but I had been on the road for seven hours and my objective was the send-off in Leeds, not a compulsive desire to hitch all the way come hell or high water. Hitching should always remain an additional option as opposed to a stubborn obsession.

My jaunt had saved me a significant amount of money and reduced my impact on the environment to a bottle of Sprite and a Magnum ice cream (Peterborough Services has its highlights). I had enjoyed the company of a number of strangers and learnt about the Montessori method of teaching, discussed the prospect of emigrating (always high on the agenda when the sky appears to be falling in), been schooled in the basics of Reiki healing and met the founder of a new classic-car hire business.

As for the journey home; don’t ask.

Getafe get up and at them

Barcelona are a club of European pedigree of the highest order. Which is why at 10pm on a drizzly Thursday night in England it was almost so easy to flick away from Sky Sports' coverage of their second leg encounter with Getafe in Spain's premier cup competition, the Copa Del Rey. 5-2 up from the first leg, last night's match was a formality for the Catalan visitors.

But Getafe, the minnows of La Liga, taught Barca a lesson in not taking anything for granted. By half-time the home side were 2-0 up, heading into the dressing room 5-4 down on aggregate and with a determined spring in their step. Frank Rijkaard could but watch on and ponder his side's poor performance.

Not long into the second half and the all-important third goal came their way courtesy of Vivar Dorado to desperate looks from Ronaldinho, Barca's buck toothed Brazilian wonder. Getafe were level on aggregate but would proceed to the final on away goals. The commentators could barely contain their excitement and the home crowd had long since let theirs fly. So when Getafe slammed a fourth past the side challenging for the league title, you knew you were witnessing something special.

Barca do not lose games 4-0 very often. If it wasn't for the hour at which this game drew to a conclusion I would have spent some time researching this point but am willing to wager it would take a while. They are, as is so often quoted, "more than a club", a force in European football and beyond, a beacon of footballing brilliance littered with stars the likes of the aforesaid Ronaldinho, the African Player of the Year Samuel Eto'o and Maradona's latest successor, the mercurial Lionel Messi.

Yet Getafe rolled them over and therein lies the beauty of the game. Underdogs can win, can turn things around, can raise their game, can believe and, on occasion, succeed. Whether they can do it two games running to take the trophy is, of course, another matter entirely, but for now their fans are in heaven and on their way to Madrid for their first ever final to give it a damn good try, and I'm glad I didn't change the channel.

AFC Wimbledon win appeal

AFC Wimbledon have won their appeal against an 18-point deduction. The decision of the Ryman League Appeal's Panel has today been reduced from 18 points to three with an increased fine.

The dispute concerned the lack of an international transfer certificate for the transfer of Jermaine Darlington from Cardiff City, who play in the English Championship but are based in Wales. An oversight at best, the volunteer form-filler had deemed such a certificate as not applicable. Yet the league punished the fledgling club severely, deducting points for every game in which the player was involved.

Represented at the tribunal for free by Jim Sturman QC, who advises Chelsea (for a fee), the club's case was clearly reasonable. AC Milan were docked four points for four years of match fixing.

AFC's appeal was bolstered by the voice of Tony Blair, whose opinion was appealed to in Prime Minister's question time. "It sounds like a daft rule, and someone should change it," said Mr Blair in response to a plea for help from Siobhain McDonagh, the Labour MP for Mitcham and Morden in a motion signed by 84 MPs.

To be docked any points at all for such a minor and unwitting misdemeanour will still rancour the fans. Not least when Liverpool and West Ham appear to have smoothed over concerns as to irregularities over the contract of Javier Mascherano.

Despite the evident inequalities in the football system, the club, founded in 2002 by Wimbledon FC supporters following the South London side's relocation to Milton Keynes and reincarnation as the MK Dons, is now back on track for promotion to the Conference South. The dream of catching their corporate rivals is still alive.

France v Argentina

Live coverage of France v Argentina (International friendly coverage for Eurosport - 7 February 2007)

For my match report click HERE.

For my minute by minute live coverage click HERE.

Saviola Sinks Les Bleus in Paris

Javier Saviola's first-half strike saw Argentina to victory against Les Bleus in the Stade de France, Paris. The diminutive Barcelona striker sealed the friendly with Argentina's only goal in a surprisingly easy 1-0 victory over a strong French side.

Argentina, without Lionel Messi, Carlos Tevez, Juan Pablo Sorin and Pablo Zabaleta, came to France looking for their first win under new boss Alfio Basile and got precisely what they were after.

The new manager's first victory was inspired by an old hand. Javier Zanetti, recalled to the team after his omission at last summer's World Cup, was the man who unlocked the French defence in the 15th minute.

Playing a sumptuous one-two with Saviola, Zanetti reached the French by-line and pulled the ball back into the path of Hernan Crespo who doesn't miss from six yards. He didn't miss, but French keeper, Gregory Coupet, managed to parry his shot. Unfortunately for Coupet the rebound fell for Saviola who, arriving late into the box, drove home his 11th goal for the Seleccion.

The goal seemed to galvanise Raymond Domenech's men. Franck "I am not a robot" Ribery showed duracell-bunny-esque regularity up and down the right flank as he combined with Willy Signol to find a way back for France. But despite Ribery engineering openings in the 20th, 35th and 42nd minutes, the Argentine goalkeeper, Roberto Abbondanzieri, enjoyed a relatively quiet first half.

It could have been very different. In the second minute of the match Thierry Henry played a delightful through ball to his former Arsenal team-mate Patrick Viera who hit the turf in dubious fashion as he charged into the area. The French appealed for a penalty but the Slovenian referee Damir Skomina knew better than to point to the spot.

France pushed hard in the second half for an equaliser with Ribery in particular working through his trick-book in an attempt to find a way past the experienced Roberto Ayala. But, despite the introduction of the in-form journeyman, Nicolas Anelka, the Argentine defence held firm.

Not averse to his fair share of attention, Anelka still managed to steal some of the headlines by sparking a ten man brawl in the closing minutes. Unhappy with the Argentine's desperate tackles in a late goal-mouth scramble the Bolton front man aired his thoughts to his aggressor prompting swift intervention from the officials.

The game degenerated into a scrappy affair as the full time whistle approached encouraging Argentine substitute Jonas Gutierrez to risk the wrath of the Parisians by heading for the corner flag rather than the goal when played through in stoppage time.

Following the decision of Real Madrid wonderkid Gonzalo Higuain's decision to play for Argentina, the place of his upbringing, rather than France, the place of his birth this result was a second blow for Les Bleus.

Domenech, not bitter in the slightest, responded to Higuain's preference for sunshine and samba by saying, "there are many players as good as him in France and we won't have to wait for him." He failed to name them.

Premiership double-team

Match report for Newcastle v Aston Villa and ive minute by minute updates for this and the Bolton v Charlton match (Premiership coverage for Eurosport - 31 January 2007).

Lots of fun juggling all this... hey hum, a good learning experience.

Newcastle v Aston Villa

For my minute by minute coverage please click HERE.

For my match report please click HERE.

Bolton v Charlton

For my minute by minute coverage please click HERE.

Newcastle steal Young's limelight

Newcastle served up two first-half goals in as many minutes as they defeated Aston Villa 3-1 to record their first home win since Christmas.

The hosts began the game in glorious fashion as James Milner produced a rip-snorter of a shot from 25 yards into the far top corner after his cheeky step-over bamboozled the Villa defence.
And after just seven minutes it was 2-0 as the scorer turned provider.

Milner crossed from the right and the mercurial Kieron Dyer beat his marker at the near post to flick the ball into the far corner.

But Villa dominated the remainder of the first half with new signing Ashley Young scoring his first goal for the club and they continued to terrify the notoriously porous Newcastle defence after the break.

But somehow, in the most unconvincing fashion, Newcastle and Steve Harper in particular stood firm. John Carew hit the post and had a goal disallowed while Gareth Barry hit the bar.

As Villa pressed for the equaliser, Newcastle were able to counter and first-half substitute Antoine Sibierski put the game beyond doubt in the 90th minute.

Damien Duff broke free and, stumbling into the Villa penalty area managed to square the ball to the unmarked Sibierski who stroked the ball home to secure a flattering win.

Fulham v Stoke

Live coverage and match report (FA Cup coverage for Eurosport - 27 January 2007):

For the match report click HERE.

For my minute by minute live coverage of the match click HERE.

This was an interesting one, as the "live" coverage and report were done without actually seeing the match. I also learnt that the "short teaser" needs to be repeated in the start of the "long teaser", otherwise it is missing from the match report...

Hey, ho, slightly more glamourous (if that is the right word) tie on wednesday when I'll be covering Newcastle v Aston Villa in the Premiership. Although I suspect, sadly, this will again be without the benefit of any live feed. Bugger.

Polling Chelsea

Post to Football 365 in the aftermath of Graham Poll's retaliatory outburst to the Chelsea starlets:

"I entirely condone whatever Graham Poll said. If it is allowed (tacitly, by the lack of cautions) for him to receive foul and abusive language then he should be allowed to dish it out in return. "An eye for an eye and soon we'll all be blind," said somebody who looked far better in a nappy than me, but a bit of retaliation always feels good and, in certain situations, is justified.

How many of us cheered when Cantona launched himself into the stands, when Juninho told Albert exactly where to go, when the mighty ZZ made the world take notice by flooring his abuser in the World Cup Final?

Professional footballers get away with murder (almost literally in some drink-driving cases) and something needs to be done to clean up the sport. Our refs are now miked up which is a step in the right direction and presumably a prelude to allowing us, the audience, to share in the referee's comments, a la rugby.

But before that will be permissible on live television, beamed to generations of impressionable youths and their even more impressionable parents, the language directed at, and the general attitudes to, the ref need to be improved.

Cards clearly don't work - see the yellow card for post-goal shirt-stripping. So I propose perma-tan. They'll be far more concerned about avoiding "a Dale Winton" than missing the next three games and jetting off to La Manga. Admittedly (and regrettably) this punishment wouldn't work on some who already embrace such horrors (see Cristiano "glow in the dark" Ronaldo) so other means need to be invented, and what better place perhaps than this forum."

Manchester United v Wigan

Live coverage and match report (Premiership coverage for Eurosport - 26 December 2006):

For my minute by minute live coverage of the match click HERE

Ronaldo leads United four points clear

Buoyed by the knowledge that Reading had robbed Chelsea of two points, Cristiano Ronaldo put on a second-half show to help dismantle Wigan 3-1 and send United four points clear at the top of the Barclay’s Premiership.

Second-half substitute Ronaldo struck twice within five minutes of the restart to send Wigan crashing to their fourth successive defeat and enable United to capitalise on Chelsea’s draw with Reading.

The timeless Ole Gunnar Solskaer was on target in the 59th minute to give United a three goal lead. A late penalty for Wigan, converted by young Leighton Baines, was the only downside to what was a sterling performance by Sir Alex Ferguson’s side.

Ronaldo, Louis Saha, Ryan Giggs, Michael Carrick, Rio Ferdinand and Gary Neville were all absent from the starting line up as Sir Alex shuffled his pack once more, safe in the knowledge that, regardless of the result, United would remain top of the Premiership.

With the score 0-0 at half-time though ,Ferguson introduced his trump card to kick start proceedings. He could never have imagined the immediacy of the impact.

Within two minutes of gracing the pitch Ronaldo put United 1-0 up with a thumping header from an early corner. Three minutes later he fed J.S.Park in the Wigan penalty area after fine work down the left. Park was promptly fouled right in front of referee, Mike Riley, for a stonewall penalty. Ronaldo failed to convert from the spot but made sure with the rebound.

United dominated proceedings in the first half but had failed to open the scoring. Wayne Rooney, rejuvenated after his rest against Aston Villa on Saturday, could easily have had a hat-tick. Wigan’s Chris Kirkland was forced to make three exceptional saves from close range in the opening twenty minutes and could only watch as efforts from Rooney and Patrice Evra fizzed wide.

J.S Park and Ole Gunnar Solskaer respectively replaced on form Portugese high diver Ronaldo in midfield and club top scorer Louis Saha in attack.

Wes Brown took over from Gary Neville at right back and revelled in the amount of space afforded him. Darren Fletcher, who replaced Carrick, bossed the midfield alongside Paul Scholes and twice released Brown down the right early on but United failed to convert their chances and, despite enjoying 60% of the possession, allowed Wigan to hang on to a clean sheet as Riley blew for half-time.

Fletcher was pulled to make way for Ronaldo at the break. If Ronaldo hadn’t produced such an emphatic impact this decision would have appeared harsh on Fletcher who had been carving open the Wigan back four with intelligent balls to Rooney and an ever-advancing Brown.

But the game was transformed by Ronaldo. He was everywhere and Wigan had no answer to his trickery. Stunned by the two early goals, the coup de grace came from Old Trafford legend Ole Gunnar Solskaer.

John O'shea won the ball in midfield and flicked it on to Rooney who out jumped Emile Heskey to feed Solskaer. With time to compose himself and pick his spot in the far corner, he drove the ball comfortably home from the edge of the area.

Mikael Silvestre blotted his copy book with a late Christmas present for Wigan with an ill timed tackle in the last minute to gift the visitors a penalty. Baines showed the maturity and confidence that has been alerting bigger clubs to the possibility of his signature by converting the spot kick but the result was never in doubt.

Ferguson will be relishing the fact that no team with this many points at Christmas has ever failed to go on and win the Premiership.

If Jose Mourinho wasn’t in need of some christmas consolation after his side's draw with Reading, he will now.

Missing in action – Parting with your Passport

If you haven’t got your word, what have you got? There is a simple answer to this well known maxim: your passport, the single most important part of foreign travel in any way shape or form. You cannot leave home without it, so what happens when it isn’t there?

Some may have experienced this sensation, some may not. It isn’t pleasant. One minute this priceless piece of parchment, emblazoned with Her Majesty’s imprint, her permission to pass and, most importantly, your photo, is where you last left it; the next your identity is gone and your travel plans are in dire straights unless you fancy Butlins as an alternative.

Having established beyond doubt that your passport is nowhere at home, work, parent’s or friends’ houses, having ruled out Butlins as an option, and having traced intricately through its previous use and movements without revelation, there is still the belief that Her Majesty will save her loyal subject.

The Identity and Passport Service as it is now known was established as an Executive Agency of the Home Office on 1 April 2006. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others, a fool learns from his own. The personnel at the passport office have a sense of humour judging from the date of this latest incarnation of their services.

In the advent of broad band internet connections, your first port of call is the “I need a replacement urgently” link on http://www.passport.gov.uk/. The crux of your situation is swiftly revealed by the appearance of the following statement: “If you need to travel in less than two weeks you should make an urgent application for a new passport. Your first step should be to call our Adviceline on 0870 521 0410 and make an appointment at one of our offices.”

Personally, I had a little over four hours, and by the time I had concluded beyond doubt that my passport was indeed lost beyond hope it was 2am. Unsurprisingly the Identity and Passport Agency are unable to offer an appointment at that time within that timescale. Surprisingly, given the time in the morning, they still answer the phone.

A gentle voice greeted me and soothingly yet remorselessly informed me that the fastest possible time for obtaining a new passport is seven days after an appointment. The relevant appointment personnel would not be present to accept a booking, let alone action one, until 10am.

There is an “emergency procedure”. In the case of dire business or life and death need, applications can be fast-tracked. The bar is set high though and even if cleared the minimum time in which a passport can be produced is four hours from the time that said bar has been negotiated and photos supplied.

Exceptionally the rules it seems can be overlooked. English pop singer Dido didn’t miss out when it was discovered that a passport was missing on her whirlwind attempt to play three gigs in an afternoon for the charity spectacular, Live8. Sadly the Easyjet’s of this world have slightly more stringent regulations than their private counterparts.

Not all celebrities are so lucky or so expert in their dealings. This summer Pete Doherty missed a concert in Ibiza after losing his passport and the same reason was quoted for the cancellation of a Sugababes gig in Denmark. Spare a thought though for Naomi Campbell's former personal assistant. Amanda Brack has claimed the supermodel attacked her three times, spat in her face and threw her passport in a swimming pool. At least she knew where it was.

By Andy Sloan, author of ‘23 Sweet FAs’, whose original brief was to cover the derby between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, in Istanbul.

A touching World Cup story

In January 2007 the England Women’s Touch Rugby team head out to South Africa for the Touch Rugby World Cup. After a gruelling selection process over the past month, a squad of 24 will be boarding the plane to Stellenbosch via Johannesburg to fly the flag in one of the UK’s fastest growing sports.

Touch Rugby, the summer cousin of Union and League, has seen a dramatic increase in participation in the past few years. Alongside Softball and Frisbee, the nation’s park-lands are now awash with Touch Rugby.

Almost in line with the influx of Australians in London and elsewhere, leagues have spawned, competitions have grown and, in turn, England’s standing in the game has improved. Whilst the England Men’s Rugby Union team have floundered since their epic 20-17 victory down-under in 2003, the England Women’s Touch team are current European Champions.

Touch Rugby’s appeal lies in its accessibility. It lacks the crunching brutality of its cousins but retains the skills and explosive action of the game. Elite players need to be strong sprinters, capable of changing direction in an instant (to avoid a touch or to wrong-foot an opponent) and have the tactical nouse and lightening reactions to work a break in the opposition’s line and capitalise on the smallest of mistakes.

It is a fast, furious game and those who underestimate it are soon left trailing the heels of others. The rules are simple, the work-out complete, and the competition as tough as you want it to be.

As you might expect in a sport fathered and championed in the rugby-mad nations of Australia and New Zealand, there is a distinct Antipodean touch to the current England squad. Nearly two-thirds of the team hail from beyond England’s green and pleasant lands; naturalised after three years of life on these shores.

Newest recruit to the England setup, Natalie Wanrooy, is just one such example. Born in Papua New Guinea and raised in Brisbane, Australia, she grew up playing rugby on the Gold Coast. “It’s a way of life out there,” she explained, tipping her home nation to win in Stellenbosch.

Wanrooy moved to England eight years ago and has been playing Touch Rugby in London ever since her arrival. “I love it” she said, smiling brightly, her enthusiasm for the sport evident in the passionate way in which she has embraced her new role in the England set up. “I’m absolutely stoked to have made the team” she said. “The girls are all amazing and I’m learning so much with every training session.”

Quizzed on the team’s chances against the tournament favourites, Australia, she struggles to retain the same conviction. “Not a chance,” she laughed. “You’ve got to be realistic; those girls are playing 24/7, their squad has been picked and training together for a year. They’re funded and frightening. We’ll have had 4 months preparation by comparison, do a lot of our training individually after work and have to scrape together our own funds for the trip.”

Wanrooy used to be part of the Australian women’s rugby union side before packing up and moving to England. “I wouldn’t have a chance of making the Australian Touch team” she said, “so it’s awesome to have found a way to make the World Cup with England.” Playing down her past brushes with the likes of Australian Rugby legends John Eals and Michael Lynagh, Wanrooy is confident that England can make an impact given a favourable group in January.

With a range of countries from Scotland to Singapore joining Australia, New Zealand and the hosts, South Africa, the competition is set to sizzle. “We’ve got to fancy ourselves against Scotland” said Wanroy, resident south of the border for long enough to recognise the rivalry, “and, no disrespect, but I didn’t even know Singapore had a team.” The England football team may be firing blanks against European minnows but England’s Touch Rugby women hope to sprint through the early rounds against their sport’s equivalent nations and take a punt at the big boys of Australia and New Zealand.

Looking to build on their European Championship success, it just might be England’s turn to shine. Every tournament brings an upset and whilst the odds may be against our girls returning victorious, an appearance in the final is a distinct possibility. Asked if she would turn down a last minute offer to defect and don the Australian jersey once more, Wanrooy was diplomatic; but a mischievous glint in her eye betrayed fond sentiment for her homeland. “Let’s just see how I get on with the English National Anthem” she replied.

Spurs put on a show to squeeze past 'Boro

On a barmy Tuesday night in December, a visitor to London could have done no better than to have entertained themselves at last night’s dubious looking fixture of Spurs v Middlesbrough at White Hart Lane.

It may have been a clash between last season’s UEFA Cup finalists and this season’s potential finalists but it was also a clash of mid-table mediocrity. Gareth Southgate has hardly set the world on fire in his fledgling months as manager of Middlesbrough and Martin Jol’s Spurs have frankly failed to build on the promise of last season, currently languishing 11th in the Premiership, rather lower than their aspirations of the fourth place Champions League spot allow.

Yet this encounter served up a treat of all that is good in English football. Three goals, two red cards and various bouts of fisty-cuffs was content enough to satisfy a television audience but such action on the pitch also had the effect of stirring the various sections of the crowd into a classic contest of their own.

“Stand up if you hate Arsenal” was a swift and unsurprising chant early on in the game by the Tottenham fans to which the Middlesbrough faithful promptly responded with, “3-0 to the Arsenal”, rejoicing in reminding the occupants of the south stand of Tottenham’s miserable defeat to their north London rivals three days prior.

Not to be outdone, the inventive north Londoners retaliated with “You’re just a small town in Scotland” and, on sighting a man in a flat cap and barber jacket who seemed rather quiet, “you only sing when you’re farming”. This verbal jousting must have fascinated any foreigners present, an insight into life on the English terraces. Forget a year in Provence; a year in the south stand at Spurs will provide a cultural education of its own.

The first half wasn’t entirely pretty as both sides managed to convey why they continually fail to trouble the top of the table. Jonathan Woodgate, formerly of Real Madrid, Newcastle and England, belied his pedigree by completely misjudging a simple defensive header for Middlesbrough early on and Jermaine Defoe, having won a rare recent start proved profligate to the extreme, seemingly unable to pull the trigger early and fire home, despite numerous chances.

On 47 minutes Dimitar Berbatov stepped up to the plate and broke the deadlock with his second league goal of the season. Game on. As the fans increased their volume in celebration and renewed taunting of the farmer, so the match spread out, the pace quickened and the challenges stiffened.

The ‘Boro fans were thrown a lifeline on 80 minutes when Steward Downing curled in a corner which, after a short bout of pinball in the Tottenham six yard box, was slammed home by Robert Huth. Their joy was short lived. Robbie Keane joined the fray in place of Steed Malbranque and four minutes later struck home from 25 yards following a quickly taken free quick.

Middlesbrough frustrations boiled over leading to a cynical challenge on Pascal Chimbonda which prompted unnecessary intervention from Didier Zokora and his midfield counterpart George Boateng who, after having exchanged pleasantries in a scuffle against the advertising hoardings, were both given their marching orders by referee Mark Halsey.

The fans were then treated to an inexplicable five minutes of added time before the final whistle granted the Middlesbrough section leave to commence their long trek north and Southgate to mull Keane’s suckerpunch. Martin Jol may well have aged in the process of earning these three points, but they will be three points well received from what was essentially a pantomime of a performance.

The Return of the Hoff

Article for Guardian travel competition (July 2006):

"Crikey" said my little brother, as he turned his head, his eyes staying fixed on the road-sign as our trusty vehicle sped past it. "Ausfahrt must be a big place. That's the fourth exit we've passed for it."

We had not been long across the German border yet he was already proving that the German word for "EXIT" had slipped from his GCSE vocabulary. He had, however, replaced such knowledge with a cunning knack for dreaming up the most important necessity for any World Cup: a World Cup costume.

Having secured tickets for the second round match in Stuttgart, my brother, two friends and myself set out across the continent with high hopes of watching England v Germany but settled for England v Ecuador after a dangerous flirtation with the prospect of Sweden v Ecuador. We were to grace the Fatherland for one week only and therefore World Cup drinking costumes were top of our list of pre-road-trip things to organise. We were English fans after all and had a reputation to live up to.

Suggestion number one from my inspired brother was Darth Vader. Quizzical emails were exchanged between us as to the connection with football and/or England until he revealed what he intended to print on Darth's cape: "the Empire Strikes Back". Amidst much laughter, and with some regret, it was decided that this stroke of genius was probably too close to the bone and another master plan was called for. He obliged.



"The Hoff is an England Fan" read the t-shirt. From under a 70s style, black, curly, wig, behind oversized aviators, sporting short red shorts, flip flops and with a rescue buoy in hand, strategically rested on one shoulder for the cameras, the four of us reintroduced the Hoff to the Germans.

The man who claims to have reunified Germany (his song "Crazy for you" was seized upon as an anthem at the time the Berlin Wall came down) and who graced our screens for years as Michael Knight and Mitch Buchanan in Knight Rider and Baywatch respectively, was back in town.

"Hans Hoff England's Cup" read the back of the t-shirt for any in doubt as to our true origins.
The Germans, to our unjustified surprise, welcomed the English (and the Hoff) into their homeland and organised a cracker of a tournament.

Naturally the efficiency of their organisation was at an optimum, but there was an unprecedented sprinkling of understanding and common sense as to the requirements and desires of the travelling fans that was the making of this World Cup. From extra fan zones with giant screens to accommodate the thousands who travelled without tickets, to requiring deposits for beer glasses, therefore minimalising litter and missiles, the Germans were one step ahead.

And for any locals lacking a sense of humour, or bemoaning the fact that both England and Germany crashed out ahead of their much vaunted meeting in the final, the reply was simple. "Hey, don't hassle the Hoff".

Bond and Beckham - Unwitting bedfellows

Random article surrounding the release of Casino Royale:

Watching Bond is like watching England; it so often fails to deliver after such promise but we, the public, are duty bound to go back for more lapping up the entertainment from the love affair with two of our nation's foremost franchises. This week Ian Fleming's creation returned to our screens as Steve McClaren's charges too returned to action last night against Holland. The similarities were striking.

Bond, an institution, a franchise, knows it has a captive audience. Bond has been bad for years but with each encounter the general public cannot get away from the fact that it is still Bond and, whilst reminiscing about the good old days of Connery and co., turn out in their droves to cheer on 007's increasingly ridiculous adventures.

Likewise England; the reign of Sven-Goran Eriksson delivered nothing other than mediocrity, three quarter-final exits in major championships, a few howlers in the form of encounters with Northern Ireland and Denmark and the odd ray of hope, that special night in Munich on 1 September 2001. It has been a long time since 1966 (its been a long time since 2001 for that matter) but still the fans flock to stadiums in their thousands to sing songs about the Queen and hope that maybe, just maybe, they might be treated to the type of glorious England performance we've all been waiting for.

Recognising rising tensions and keen to stall downward trends, both Bond and England have sought to reinvent themselves. The past year has seen the old adage take hold of "out with the old and in with the new", Daniel Craig swaggering into the limelight as the first blonde Bond and McClaren being handed the managerial reigns, delivering the coup de grace to Sven's regime by axing long-loved skipper David Beckham. Hair today, gone tomorrow, step forward big John Terry to lead the new generation.

Much trumpeting heralded these changes but neither was greeted with much aplomb by the public. Craig was lampooned as lacking the credentials and the charisma to carry off the tuxedoed caricature of Bond, whilst McClaren was clearly the FA's second choice, earning the moniker "Second Choice Steve". His early results hinted at promise but the disappointing defeat to Croatia shattered what honeymoon period the former Middlesbrough manager had been awarded by the media and the fans at large.

How the stars like to prove their critics wrong though. Craig has banished his doubters in the best fashion by keeping schtum and proving his worth on the silver screen in a back to basics bare-knuckle Bond that has had the pundits cooing in his direction.

McClaren sought similar success by culling Beckham, banning the WAGs (or at least frowning on past profligacies) and shying away from the obscure (Eileen Drewery) and the unfortunate (sting meetings with fake sheiks).

However, as proved by last night's draw with the Dutch, McClaren's back to basics treatment has failed to cure England's malaise and the jury is still out on his tenure and tactical tinkering. Admittedly his hand was swayed by a swathe of injuries, real or imagined, but although there are no cries to bring back Beckham, for England to impress, results are required regardless of excuses. Time is on McClaren's side though, he has until March before England's next competitive outing to plan the subsequent steps to re-inventing the England franchise.

Bond and England, two of Britain's great institutions juggernaut onwards and, regardless of the results this time and next, you can guarantee we will be back for more. Theatre it isn't, but entertainment it most definitely is.