The Dubious Goals Committee
International
Men of the Match – REPUBLIC OF IRELAND vs Ecuador – 23rd May, 2007.
Giovanni Trapattoni may have chosen the week prior to the Republic of Ireland’s first major tournament in a decade as the moment to deliver a belated slither of unpredictability to the proceedings of his team’s approach. Capriciousness is far from a characteristic that defines Trapattoni and his stringency in formation and team selection, on the … Continue reading
Carl no longer Cort in the ‘£7m club’
We’ve all been there, sat in a pub quiz, when a football question comes up and everyone looks to you for the answer. There are simple questions about stadia or club nicknames, but then there are those that are more difficult – those asking about players that satisfy criteria, playing in five derbies, scoring for … Continue reading
David Beckham: A Fine Case of Overstaying Your Welcome
As David Beckham signalled his intentions to finish his career with the LA Galaxy with a two-year contract extension announced last week, a career seemingly written by screenwriters in his new hometown of Los Angeles is reaching its final pages. The goal from the halfway line at Wimbledon that announced him to the country, burning … Continue reading
African Cup of Nations 2012 – Preview
Gabon and Equatorial Guinea will be the hosts of the 28th edition of the African Cup of Nations. With the champions of the last three tournaments Egypt failing to qualify for the tournament, there will be a new champion this time out. Joining Egypt in failing to qualify are fellow African heavyweights Nigeria, Cameroon and … Continue reading
The Butterfly Effect: What if Phil Neville chose to play international cricket?
Not only is Phil Neville a successful footballer, he was also a child cricket prodigy who broke many batting records set by Michael Atherton. His dad, Neville Neville, played for Greenmount Cricket Club in the Bolton Cricket League during the 1980s and while both of his sons, Phil and older brother Gary, were talented batsmen, … Continue reading
Dubious Goals Committee DECISION: ENGLAND v Sweden 15/11/11
England 1 – 0 Sweden on 15th November 2011, saw an incident which required further clarification. A staggering 48,876 people crammed in to Wembley to see England, recent World Champion matadors, line-up against Sweden for the most eagerly anticipated battled between the respective nations since that Parisian hotel and that couple. Of course, that incident … Continue reading
A strange decision, on so many levels…
So, deciding to take in my first full 90 minutes of the Women’s World Cup this week, I sat down to watch Australia face Equatorial Guinea in their Group D match in Bochum. In the sixteenth minute, having already put Matilda 1-0 up, Australian striker Leena Khamis struck a left-footed shot on to the post, … Continue reading
Why they have done ‘Sweet FA’ for the WSL
A new dawn in Women’s football came on April 14th 2011 although you’d be forgiven if you may have missed it. The launch of The (unnecessarily acronymic) FA WSL was desperately under-whelming given that the new ‘Women’s Super League’ incarnation is the elite domestic ladies competition in England. With The Football Association spending millions (a … Continue reading
It’s a numbers game…
The first advent of players wearing numbered shirts came on 25th August 1928, when Arsenal and Chelsea played in their matches against The Wednesday and Swansea Town, respectively. After several experiments over the course of a number of years, it was decided to make numbers on the back of club shirts a permanent feature. The … Continue reading
Witnessing Wales’ worst performance…
70,715 fans crammed into the Millennium Stadium on 3 September, 2005 to witness a World Cup Qualifier between England and Wales. Unfortunately, I wasn’t one of them. I was resigned to watching the game in a pub in Wales, with nothing more than a vague optimism that Wales may do themselves proud, get a goal, … Continue reading
