It's Life Jim, But Not As You Know It

Wednesday night saw the latest series of Celebrity Big Brother come to an end and with it, the crowning of comedian Jim Davidson as its winner.

There’s no doubt that many eyebrows will be raised around the country at the viewing public’s decision to vote such a previously controversial figure as their champion, especially given the demographic that we are led to believe vote in such shows, namely young women. This was a point not lost on fellow contestant Luisa Zissman, who was amazed when he survived every public eviction vote. Not only that, but Davidson has reality TV previous, having walked out of ITV’s Hell’s Kitchen in 2007 after accusations of homophobia and bullying towards Brian Dowling (himself a previous Big Brother winner). So what was it that inspired people to keep picking up their phones and voting for him?

The beauty of a show like Big Brother for a famous person with a contentious past is that viewers tend to respond to what they see during those 3 to 4 weeks, judging people by the actions they take while they are locked in that house. You could say that everyone is given the benefit of the doubt, until they do or say something controversial in front of the cameras of the Channel 5 show. This was proved early on in the series when former heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield became the first evictee after making derogatory comments about gay people, suggesting that homosexuality was “not normal” and “should be fixed”. He was actually evicted by 2 fellow housemates, but he had been put in that position by the voting public, who had decided not to save him. The fact is that BB voters won’t stand for such nonsense and will use their democratic right to send the characters that come out with it back to celebrity oblivion at the first opportunity. Never was this proved more than in 2007 (the same year that Davidson caused the furore on Hell’s Kitchen), when the late Jade Goody found herself on the wrong end of a racism row. The public exercised their right to not only evict Goody, but then at the end of the series made Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, the victim in the row, that year’s winner. Jade, having made her name on the regular series of Big Brother 4 and a half years previously, was sent back to relative obscurity, not before being vilified by the media, until her battle with cervical cancer, which she lost in March 2009, propelled her back into the spotlight.

So BB fans would soon have had Jim out on his ear if he had done or said something they weren’t happy with, they certainly had enough chances with him facing the public vote after being nominated by his fellow housemates at every opportunity. But the feelings of those inside the house were not being shared by those on the outside looking in, as they kept him there right to the very end.

It may be that old reality TV staple ‘the 'journey’ that helped Jim to win the show. He was supposed to be involved last year, until he was arrested just hours before launch night went live, following allegations of sexual offences. It was eventually announced later on in 2013 that no further action would be taken, due to insufficient evidence. Having been granted his place in TV’s most well known house a year later than originally planned, he was candid in describing how he had had the “year from hell” and admitted that winning the show may help to provide “closure”. This coupled with the adoption of a patriarchal status towards the end of the show’s run, being the oldest contestant left by some distance and being seen to offer counsel to some of the younger housemates, may well be what won him his place in the hearts of the Big Brother viewers. How long he stays there is now up to him.

Whether it was one of his initial intentions for doing the show or not, Davidson has now earned himself another shot in the limelight. He’s also secured himself a potential new fan base, a generation of people that weren’t really aware of him up until now. But they won’t tolerate the sort of humour that gave him his initial fame back in the 70s and they will soon turn their back if they hear something they don’t like.

It may be that Jim will turn his back on them and carry on putting on shows aimed at the same demographic that have found him entertaining for 40 years, just being able to charge a bit more for a ticket.

It remains to be seen what his next move will be and whether he will still be receiving the sort of adulation that accompanied his exit from the Big Brother house in 6 months time, or whether it will be a distant memory and he’ll be back telling distasteful jokes at the end of a pier to his loyal fans, possibly ruing what might have been. Right now the power is all his and, I personally will be fascinated to see what he does with it.

Sporting Review of the Year 2010

It's somewhat belated I know, but back in December someone asked me to write a sporting review of 2010 for a feature. I don't think it was used, so I thought, waste not want not, I may as well post it here, even if just to bump up my number of posts. Enjoy...

January:
Andy Murray reaches his second grand slam tennis final, but loses out to Roger Federer in straight sets (6-3, 6-4, 7-6), at the Australian Open.

Leeds United pull off an FA Cup shock, as the League 1 side beat old rivals Manchester United, of the Premier League, at Old Trafford in the third round.

Tragedy hits the Africa Cup of Nations before it even gets underway, as the bus of the Togo national team is attacked by gunmen, as it makes its way to the tournament in Angola, leaving three people dead. After much deliberation the team is withdrawn from the tournament by the Togo government, but the competition goes ahead with 15 teams. Egypt eventually lift the trophy, for the third consecutive time, after beating Ghana in the final. It’s their seventh tournament win overall.

February:
Vancouver hosts the Winter Olympics, where Amy Williams brings home Great Britain’s first individual gold medal since Robin Cousins in 1980, by winning the skeleton bob event.

Manchester United defeat Aston Villa at Wembley to win the League Cup.

March:
France win rugby union’s Six Nations, beating all their opponents to take the grand slam.

Rangers beat St Mirren 1-0 to win the Scottish League Cup.

Imperial Commander wins the Cheltenham Gold Cup, ridden by Paddy Brennan and trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies.

April:
A. P. McCoy wins his first ever Grand National, at the 15th attempt, on Don’t Push It, trained by Jonjo O’Neill.

Phil Mickelson wins golf’s US Masters in Augusta, finishing 3 shots clear of Britain’s Lee Westwood.

David Haye successfully defends his WBA world heavyweight title by beating American John Ruiz at Manchester’s MEN Arena.

May:
Chelsea are crowned English Premier League champions. They complete the double a few days later by beating Portsmouth at Wembley to lift the FA Cup.

In Scotland, Rangers take the Premier League title, while Dundee United beat Ross County to win the Scottish Cup.

A month of football finals sees Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan win the Champions League by beating Bayern Munich and Fulham lose out to Athletico Madrid in the Europa League. Domestically, Blackpool win the Championship playoff final, beating Cardiff City, to join football’s top flight for the first time since 1971.

England win the World Twenty20 cricket championship in the West Indies, by beating old adversaries Australia in the final by a convincing 7 wicket margin.

Neil Robertson becomes the first Australian to win the World Snooker Championship, when he beats Graeme Dott in the final at the Crucible. He is also the first player from outside the UK and Ireland to win the title since Canadian Cliff Thorburn in 1980.

June:
The England football team underperforms spectacularly at the FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Finishing second in their group, with just 5 points, they lose 4-1 to Germany in the second round. Elsewhere in the competition, France fail to make it out of their group, along with the host nation. Also returning home early are the 2006 winners, Italy, who finish below Paraguay and Slovakia in their group.

Wimbledon plays host to the longest tennis match of all time, where John Isner eventually defeats Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 70-68. The match lasts for 11 hours 5 minutes, over 3 days; the fifth set alone is longer than the longest complete match, at 8 hours 11 minutes.

Workforce wins the Epsom Derby, ridden by Ryan Moore. Trainer Sir Michael Stoute was also responsible for Shergar’s victory in the race in 1981.

Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell wins the US Open golf championship at Pebble Beach. He is the first European to win the tournament for 40 years.

July:
Both Wimbledon and the World Cup reach their conclusions this month. Firstly, Andy Murray is beaten in the semi-final at the All England Club, by Rafael Nadal, who goes on to beat Tomás Berdych in a straight sets final win. Berdych himself had beaten defending champion Roger Federer and number 3 seed Novak Djokovic on his way to reaching the final.

A week later, Spain beat the Netherlands 1 - 0 after extra time to win the World Cup final. They are world champions in football for the first time ever.

South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen wins The Open golf Championship at St Andrews.

Jessica Ennis and Mo Farah shine for Great Britain at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona. Ennis wins heptathlon gold, while Farah takes first place in both the 10,000 and 5,000 metres. Britain enjoys its best performance at the tournament, bringing home 19 medals, 6 of them gold.

Ferrari cause controversy in Formula 1, when they issue team orders to Felipe Massa to let his team mate Fernando Alonso pass him, to win the German Grand Prix.

Spain’s Alberto Contador wins the Tour De France for the second consecutive year, his third title overall, having also won in 2007. Britain’s Mark Cavendish wins 5 stages, taking his overall total to 15 in the competition.

August:
The IBSA World Blind Football Championships are held on British soil for the first time, when they are hosted by the Royal National College for the Blind in Hereford. The tournament is hailed as a big success, with over 2,000 spectators in total watching the action, including near capacity crowds for all of England’s matches. On the pitch, England have to eventually settle for 4th place, after being well beaten by Brazil in the semi-final and narrowly losing out to China in the 3rd/4th place playoff match. Brazil beat Spain in the final to lift the trophy.

Hampshire win the domestic Twenty20 cricket title on their own ground, The Rose Bowl, by losing fewer wickets than Somerset after their scores are tied in a thrilling final.

The test series between England and Pakistan is overshadowed by allegations of corruption. 3 Pakistan players are alleged to have deliberately bowled no-balls at certain points in the match, in exchange for money. England go on to win the series, but the cricket world is shocked by the revelations.

Germany’s Martin Kaymer wins the final golf major of the year, by beating American Bubba Watson in a 3 hole playoff to take the US PGA title at Whistling Straits.

September:
Nottinghamshire win cricket’s County Championship on the final day of the season. They pick up enough bowling bonus points against Lancashire to steel the title from Somerset.
Warwickshire win the CB40 competition by beating Somerset In the final at Lords.

There are major worries about the Commonwealth Games in Delhi as they draw closer. Firstly with the collapse of a footbridge at the compound, then pictures emerge of the athletes’ accommodation, which looks less than sanitary. Officials assure the watching world that everything will be ready in time.

October:
Europe claim victory in a rain affected Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor. US Open champion Graeme McDowell seals the victory for Colin Montgomerie’s team as the final day’s play has to be rescheduled to Monday for the first time in the competition’s history.

The Commonwealth Games get underway in Delhi, but the criticism continues about standards at the event. Despite all the concerns, the games are eventually haled as a success.
Stand-out performances for the home nations include:
2 gold medals for England’s Tom Daley, as he wins the men’s 10 metre platform diving competition along with the 10 metre synchronised competition with diving partner Max Brick.
Swimming gold for Scotland’s Hannah Miley, as she wins the 400 metres women’s individual medley.
2 gold medals for Wales, Dai Greene winning the 400 metres hurdles and Robert Weale winning the lawn bowls competition.

Wigan beat St Helen’s to win rugby league’s Super League grand final at Old Trafford.

November:
After weeks of build-up, David Haye defeats Audley Harrison in the 3rd round to retain his WBA world heavyweight title in a disappointing fight at Manchester’s MEN Arena

Sebastian Vettel becomes the youngest ever Formula 1 world champion, taking the accolade from Lewis Hamilton, by winning the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. His Red Bull team also win the constructors championship. He is one of 4 drivers still in with a chance of winning the title at the final Grand Prix of an exciting season.

In rugby union’s autumn internationals, England equal their biggest margin of victory over Australia, with an impressive 35 – 18 win at Twickenham. Scotland beat world champions South Africa at Murrayfield, by 21 points to 17.
Meanwhile in the other code, New Zealand complete a shock 16 – 12 victory over Australia to win rugby league’s 4 Nations Tournament in Brisbane.

Great Britain bring home 5 gold medals, across all disciplines, from the World Rowing Championships in New Zealand.

The Ashes get underway down under with the first test match between Australia and England in Brisbane.

December:
The Ashes series continues with the test matches at Adelaide, Perth and Melbourne, before the final match in Sydney at the turn of the year.

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Additional research: Wikipedia.org, BBC Sport, BBC News, guardian.co.uk,

Never A Dull Moment

It’s been over 18 months since I last did any blogging, I’m not sure what happened there, writer’s block or crisis of confidence or whatever, I don’t know, but one thing’s for sure, a lot has gone on at my favourite football club in the meantime.

When I last posted, Hereford United were still mixing with the (relatively) big boys in league 1 (that’s division 3 in real terms). Unfortunately, it was a short lived stay and the club was relegated back to the basement at the first time of asking. Due to the team’s disappointing performance at the higher level, manager Graham Turner decided to fall on his sword and resign from his position with immediate effect, so immediate in fact, that there were still a few games left to play before the end of the season. The chairman accepted Turner’s resignation, the chairman being one Mr G Turner. In 1998, Graham Turner bought the club from it’s previous owners, when it was on the brink of financial ruin, taking on the unenviable task or tasks, of both managing the club and running it, trying to balance the books.
Following his resignation, from his manager’s job, Turner’s number 2, John Trewick was installed as the club’s new manager and promptly did no better at all, which was of course no great surprise, as he had the same squad of very average players to work with, a squad who already knew that the club would be in the division below next season.

A summer of speculation and signings ensued before we were all set to go again, back in the 4th tier with Mr Trewick at the helm. Expectations were relatively high, not least because Trewick had been touted as the man to take Hereford straight back up to league 1 (division 3… remember), all be it by the man who had installed him as manager. You can imagine the disappointment then, when, by early March, the bulls found themselves very much in a battle at the wrong end of the table. Following some head-scratchingly odd tactical decisions, which led to some dreadful results, relegation was a terrifyingly real possibility. A 2-0 home defeat to Macclesfield was the final straw and, on the following Monday, John ‘Tucker’ Trewick was relieved of his managerial duties. So who did the chairman (Graham Turner… remember) turn to, to make sure the club didn’t fall back into the conference? He turned to 1 Mr G Turner. That’s right, the chairman was the manager again, whilst still also the chairman. After little sign of improvement, results did start to pick up and the club moved away from the dreaded relegation spots and into the far less nail-biting territory of mid-table obscurity.

But the twists and turns don’t end there. Having made sure that Hereford United would be a football league club again the following season, the chairman and manager decided he wanted to stop doing both jobs and put his majority shareholding up for sale. On the last day of the season, Turner ended his 15 year stay with the club, 12 of them as chairman, with a home win and the speculation started as to who would buy the club.

After a couple of weeks it became apparent that there were no Arab sheikhs or Russian oil tycoons about to come in and purchase a small 4th division football club. Then, finally, after what felt like a lifetime, on June 4th, the bulls’ new chairman was named as David Keyte. Keyte, a local businessman and one time player for Hereford’s reserve side, revealed that he would be assisted by new vice chairman Tim Russon, best known in the area as a reporter on ITV’s Central News, regularly covering the on and off field exploits of Hereford United. The pair wasted no time in stamping their mark on the club. Their first task was to appoint a new manager. 18 days after they were revealed as the new owners, Keyte and Russon appointed Simon Davey as the new manager of the club. Davey had pedigree, having managed Barnsley in the championship (2nd division). His most notable achievement while he was with the ‘tykes’ was reaching the FA cup semi-final, knocking out first Liverpool at Anfield, then Chelsea at Oakwell, in front of their own fans. There was however, a bit of a cloud over Davey’s appointment. Just 2 months earlier, he had taken the job as manager of Darlington, a position which he allegedly resigned from via email, while he was in the USA at the end of the season. The Darlington chairman certainly had plenty to say on the matter, none of it complimentary towards either Hereford or Davey.

Nevertheless, Davey got on with the job in hand, namely assembling a squad of players, having inherited just 7 from the previous season. Things moved on a pace and before we knew it, hundreds of us were on our way to Crewe for the first match of the new season. More than 900 bulls fans assembled at Gresty Road, home of Crewe Alexandra, to witness what was to be a fairytale start for the new regime. A 1-0 win, thanks to a goal from new signing and new captain, Janos Kovacs, gave Davey his first 3 points as Hereford United manager. But the honeymoon was to be
short-lived…

By the beginning of October, after 10 league games, that opening day win at Crewe was still the only one the bulls had achieved. Added to it was 1 home draw against Gillingham, to give the club a grand total of 4 points, enough to see them sitting rock bottom of the league. Action needed to be taken and, to the credit of the new owners, it was. Simon Davey was sacked as manager of Hereford United the Monday after a 2-0 defeat at Barnet. But what now? Who would be trusted with the job of overseeing team matters? Of course… the physio.

Jamie Pitman has a long standing relationship with Hereford United, going back around 15 years. He first joined the club as a player in 1996 and was part of the team that dropped out of the football league in 1997, before joining Yeovil the following year. In 2002 he re-joined the club for another 4 seasons, culminating with victory in the conference playoff final, which saw the club return to the football league. He didn’t get chance to play for the club in the league again, as he was released after the promotion season. However after just 2 years away, playing for Gloucestershire side Forest Green Rovers, where he was also assistant manager for a short time, he returned to Hereford once more, this time as the club’s physiotherapist. Pitman then, seemed the obvious choice to take temporary charge of team affairs while the club searched for a new permanent manager. Form took an almost immediate turn for the better under Pitman, with a creditable home draw against league leaders Port Vale, which saw a vastly improved team performance. Then came a quite remarkable game at Northampton. By half time at Sixfields, home of Northampton Town, it looked as though normal service had been resumed, with United already 3-0 down. But Jamie Pitman wasn’t going to have that and, an incredible turnaround, the likes of which I’ve certainly never seen before, saw Hereford score 4 goals in 19 second half minutes without reply to win the game. Whatever was to happen for the rest of the season, Pitman and his Hereford side had cemented their place in the history books, in fact, they had written a new page.

The upturn in form continued under Pitman and the team went 7 games without losing, securing their first home win of the season, all be it against much lower graded opposition in the form of Kent league side Hythe Town in the FA cup. They also finally managed to climb out of the dreaded relegation zone at the beginning of November, although by the end of the month, they were back in it again as the unbeaten run gave way to a losing one. The run up to Christmas saw league defeats at Lincoln, Shrewsbury (that hurt) and Bradford, before a run of postponements due to bitterly cold weather meant they didn’t play again until boxing day, where they lost once more away at Wycombe.

However, the turn of the year brought about another change in fortune for Pitman’s men, as they went on another unbeaten run, winning 4 and drawing 1 of their first 5 games of the year, booking an FA cup tie at Sheffield Wednesday in the process, more of which in another post to come. Even after being swept aside by the higher ranked Wednesday side, Hereford won their next league game, the following Tuesday, away at Torquay, to keep the great run in the league going.

Unfortunately, this latest run came to an end just yesterday (Saturday 5th Feb), with a 1-0 home defeat to Lincoln City. But that should have brought you bang up to date with the roller coaster ride that has been the last 18 months supporting Hereford United. Jamie Pitman has been given the manager’s job until the end of the season. He was assisted for a short time by veteran coach Lenny Lawrence, before he was lured away by Crystal Palace. So what will the last 3 months of the season bring? Well, quite frankly, your guess is as good as mine, but I’m fairly sure, there will never be a dull moment.

Early Dart

The other night, Tuesday to be precise, I did something I have never done before in my life. I left a football match early!
I have been attending football matches now for over 6 years and my basic maths tells me that I must have notched up at least 150. But this was the first time that I have left early.
There were a few reasons for my premature departure, the most prominent being that I had had enough. Hereford were 3-0 down to a very good Bristol Rovers side, with absolutely no likelihood of getting back into the game. Add to that the fact that my friend, who was with me, had a train to catch and also the fact that we were cold and downright fed up. So with around 5 minutes of normal time to go, with a stoppage in play, we made our move towards the exit. I would like to point out that we were certainly not the first. People had started leaving with 15 minutes to go and, the next day, I heard of a gentleman who left at half time, when the score was only 2-0.
I have to say though, despite the woeful performance from my team, despite the fact that we were cold, and despite the fact that my friend had a train to catch, it was still a very odd experience, and one I wouldn't like to do on a regular basis. Week in, week out, up and down the country, you will see people leaving matches early, whatever the scoreline, however exciting the game is. How on earth do they do it? For me, the feeling of walking away from a game while it is still in progress, was an awful one. What if we missed something? A goal, a red card, an injury. Predictably, we didn't miss anything. But still, walking out into a relatively empty street, whilst behind you, the game is still going on and, to their credit, our fans were still singing, is an experience I found it difficult to get my head round.
So it looks like I am a final whistle kind of person. There to the bitter end, whatever the score, whatever the weather, and to all those people who leave early every week, you don't know what you're missing!

Good Game!

Yesturday (Saturday) I had a brand new experience. I went to a live rugby match for the first time in my life. Not just any rugby match though, arguably one of the biggest matches in the sport. I went along to watch the contest between Wales and England in the 6 Nations, at Cardiff's Millenium Stadium, and what a match it was!
My uncle had managed to get hold of a pair of tickets, perfectly legitimately, I hasten to add and, very kindly invited me along. Now I consider myself to be English, having been born in England, to English parents. My uncle though, having a very proud Welsh father, was brought up supporting Wales, something which he continues to do. Needless to say then that our tickets were for one of the many areas of the stadium, in which the Welsh fans were situated. Being used to football crowds, I had 1 or 2 slight reservations about this, but came to the conclusion that if I just kept quiet, things would be fine. A tactic, incidentally, that I tend to employ rather a lot, with varying degrees of success.
We decided to go by train, as it goes direct to Cardiff from where we live and Cardiff station is a very short walk from the stadium. So at around 2:30, we boarded the train and our journey began, full of excitement and anticipation. We whiled away the hour and a half or so, with discussion of both teams chances and what the game would be like.
At around 4, we stepped off the train and followed the hauds of people towards the Millenium Stadium, the excitement growing with every step closer to the turnstyles. Before we knew it we were inside, looking for our seats.
This was my first visit to Cardiff's showcase sporting arena and all I can say is... WOW! What a venue it is. It's huge, as you can probably imagine, it would have to be to house around 75000 people, but somehow, it doesn't feel like it. It still manages to capture that close, almost intimate feeling that so many stadiums lack these days. Despite this, you still know that you are at a big venue, for a big event. It is also impeckably run, amazingly clean, with a team of extremely helpful stewards to help you find your seat. This is just my opinion of course, but I really don't know why they bothered building a new Wembley Stadium, when this place seemed to serve the football world incredibly well whenever it was needed. I may well be biassed, as I live around 75 miles closer to central Cardiff than I do to north London. But that's a debate that could rage on and on.
Anyway, we spent the next hour just taking in our magnificent surroundings until, before we knew it, it was time for the teams to take the field. I quietly sang God Save The Queen, and stood in awe as the people around me belted out Land Of My Fathers. Then it was time for the match to kick off.
For the first 15-20 minutes, it looked as though both teams were picking up where they had left off the previous weed, Wales looking far superior while England gave away penalty after penalty. Before you knew it, Wales were 9-0 in front. Then, from nowhere, with 14 men on the field, England scored a try! I was as surprised as those sat all around me. Then we scored a drop goal, bringing the score to 9-8, which is how it stayed for the rest of the half. The second half started as the first had, with England giving away yet more penalties and having another player sin binned. Wales took advantage and racked up more points, their class was showing now. They broke through and scored a try of their own, taking their total to 20. I started to wonder how many more points they would score against us when, England scored another try, converting it, to take them to within 5 points, it was 20-15, game on! The next few minutes were frantic, with both sides desperate for more points. Eventually, England's indiscipline let them down, giving away another penalty, gifting Wales 3 points in the process. That was pretty much the last meaningful act, except for England to miss a penalty of their own, ending the chance of a nail-biting finish in the process. The final whistle sounded, with Wales winning the game 23 points to 15. We made our way back through the crowds and onto the train to go home. We spent the journey home analysing the game we had just watched, both of us happy with our own team's performance. What a great day it had been!

Revenge Is So Very Very Sweet!

I hope you'll forgive me for being a little self-indulgent and talking, once again, about my team. I do apologise, but I haven't had many opportunities to wax lyrical about them this season!
Unfortunately life has proved quite tough in the old 3rd division this season and although we have played some very good football for the most part, things just haven't gone our way. However, those of us who kept the faith, knowing that someone was due a thumping from us at some point, were greatly rewarded yesturday (Saturday).
Everything just clicked, it was magnificent. Every time we went forward, we looked like scoring! In the end, a first half hat-trick from Steve Guinan and a brace from Lionel Ainsworth, meant that we came away 5-0 winners, but it could easily have been 7 or8! All this, against a team who were sitting in 3rd place at the start of the day, pushing hard for an automatic promotion place. I'm sure it made a few teams sit up and take notice.
The reason that this win was extra special is that back in October, Hereford travelled up to Boundary Park, home of Oldham Athletic, and were soundly beaten 4-0. I think it's fair to say then, that we paid them back, with a bit of interest!
Now you can say all you like about swallows and summers, believe me, I already have. But for the time being, let's just enjoy what was an amazing result to a fantastic game of football! I know I certainly will!

Resolutions

Well, firstly, a very happy new year from me! I hope that an enjoyable festive period was had. In fact, since I haven't posted anything since last June, I hope an enjoyable second half of 2008 was had!
Carrying on iwth that theme, my main new year's resolution is of course, to blog far more often. I will be aiming to post something once a week, but let's be honest, that could be a bit optimistic on my part! I will certainly do my best though, as I feel I have a lot to write and of course, practice makes perfect, so intheory, the more I blog, the better I will get!
So look forward to reading a lot more from me in 2009!
Matt

What's Wrong With Being Happy?

It seems, these days, that you're not a proper, credible musician, unless you're miserable as sin! You can't help but notice the amount of television and radio airtime that has been devoted to the eternally grumpy Coldplay in the last 2 weeks. So why is it that artists are only taken seriously if they're full of angst?
Bands such as Alphabeat and Scouting for Girls, to name but 2, seem to be laughed at and frowned upon, not only by the so called 'critics', but also by the music buying public for the simple reason (or so it seems to me) that they are in a good mood.
It seems as though people are not willing to take you seriously if you sing with a smile on your face, maybe as they think you're not taking it seriously yourself. I'm sure that nothing could be further from the truth and, these guys take it very seriously indeed. Well, as seriously as you can take it when you are generally living the high life as an internationally renound musician (I bet Chris Martin and his mardy mates even have a bit of a giggle on the tourbus now and again).
So let's show a bit more respect to the more chearful music makers. Surely in these times of financial instability and global terror threats, what we really need is a happy tune to whistle!

That's The Way To Do It!

Around a year ago, I wrote a post about the FA Cup final between Manchester United and Chelsea and how incredibly dull and uninspiring it was.
Well, yesturday, once again, it was cup final time (I know, time really does fly). We all positioned ourselves in front of the telly, as is the custom in our house, to watch the encounter between Premier League Portsmouth and Championship Cardiff City. And I am very pleased to report that I was not disappointed!
This year's final was 100, if not 1000 times better than last year's. In fact, it was possibly the best cup final that I have witnessed in my short time on this earth. I have no doubt that this was because the 2 teams involved were not from the Premier League's so called 'big 4' and, were probably as surprised to see themselves at Wembley as everyone else.
The cup this year has been nothing short of magnificent, to watch Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea get knocked out of the competition has been thoroughley enjoyable and, for about 40 minutes on Saturday, I thought there could be one more shock in store. Sadly for Cardiff, it was not to be and Portsmouth went home worthy winners in the end. But what a special day for all involved. Credit should go to the fans of both clubs, who did themselves proud, and what a wonderful sight to see the Cardiff fans stay behind to applaud the victorious Portsmouth players. It really felt like the spirit of the cup had returned on Saturday, having gone missing for quite some time!
Also, a word on Paul Parry from me. I was incredibly proud to see a player who came up through the ranks at my own club, playing on the biggest stage in English football and not only that, but, not looking at all out of place. I'm sure that all Hereford fans are thrilled to see him doing so well for himself, having watched him progress over the years.
So congratulations to Portsmouth once again. I wonder when we will see a cup final like that again!

Up, Up and Away

Well, it has been an excellent week for British football, with an all English Champions League final and a Scotish team in the UEFA Cup final. But please forgive me for looking slightly closer to home, at my own little football club.
Yes, Hereford United have done it again. Last weekend they secured automatic promotion to Coca-Cola Football League 1, after just their second season back in the football league.
On average gates of 3,200 odd, the Bulls managed to secure the third automatic promotion place in League 2, an achievement comparable to Man United, Chelsea or Rangers.
It cannot be overstated how far this club has come in the 11 years since it dropped out of the league and, it's largely thanks to one person, Graham Turner.
Shortly after that fateful day, when a point against Brighton wasn't enough to keep league football in the city of Hereford, Turner offered his resignation to the then board of directors, who declined it. This would turn out to be a wise decision and, moreover, just over a year later, Turner found himself re-mortgaging his house in order to take over the club. I can't imagine Sir Alex Ferguson doing that, can you?
The rest, as they say, is history and, after a few very difficult seasons, and a few not so difficult seasons in the conference, Hereford's league status was restored, one fine day in Leicester. Now, less than 2 years after that momentous playoff final victory, they are going up again, into the third tier of English football, somewhere they haven't been for around 30 years.
So, as you can probably imagine, it's been a pretty enjoyable few days for me and my fellow Bulls fans. We realise that the hard work is only just beginning, and that staying in League 1 will be no easy task, but, for now, there's a party at Edgar Street on Saturday and what's more, you're all invited!

Escape The Armchair

This is a rallying call, specifically to Hereford United fans, but also to anyone who's local team is playing tomorrow (Tuesday) night.
Instead of settling down in front of the telly to watch yet another 'tactical battle' between Liverpool and Chelsea, get yourselves along to watch your local team in action. Your team (in my case Hereford United) needs you now, possibly more than any time in the season as those last few vital games come around. Even if they have nothing to play for, why not go along and show them your support at the end of a long, hard season.
You could watch Chelsea and Liverpool pit their tactical wits against each other any time, it's practically a fortnightly occurrence these days anyway. If you are that desperate, the highlights will be on just in time for when you get back and you can settle down and watch them before you go to bed, happy with yourself for going along and doing your bit for your local team.
So please, don't be drawn in by the prospect of European football, a big telly and a warm, comfy armchair. Get out there, brave the elements and shout yourself horse, in the knowledge that you are helping the cause.
Fingers crossed for a good crowd at Edgar Street tomorrow night!
Thank you.

A Long Time In Sport

A week, they say, is a long time in politics. Well, they may well be the case, but the same is true if you a sports fan.
Let me explain what I mean by taking you back to last Saturday. The day was full of promise as I awoke, it was of course, Grand National day, which is one of those special days in the sporting calander. The previous evening, I had read up on every horse running in the race and decided, in my wisdom, that I would quite like to put £10 each way on Comply or Die. Don't ask me why, I just had a feeling about it. Well, what with one thing and another on that busy Saturday morning, i never got round to putting the bet. Never mind, i thought, I was still off to Edgar Street that afternoon, to watch, what would surely be a win for Hereford United, over lowly Chester City.
All was going to plan nicely and the Bulls were 2-0 up at half time. 'Excellent', i thought, and all concerns about the unplaced bet vanished from my mind.
The second half started and Chester, understandably, were pressing for a goal. Unfortunately they scored it, which set the nerves off a little. 'Oh well', I thought, 'no clean sheet this week, but we should hold out for this win'. Time moved on and we were managing to keep Chester at bay. It got to that time of the afternoon and the result of the National was displayed on the scoreboard. 'NOOOOOOOO!' I cried, 'I don't believe it!' Comply or Die had only gone and won the thing! My heart sank. 'Well' I said, 'as long as we can hold out for this win, it won't be such a bad afternoon'. So I hope you can imagine my absolute heartbreak, when, in the 93rd minute, Chester were awarded a penalty, which they duely went and scored. For a short time on Saturday evening, I was utterly inconsolable. What had started as a day of such promise, had turned out to be a disaster.
Now, I know what you're thinking, that's just one day, and believe me, tha was long enough. But what I mean is, when you follow sport, it's never very long before the next match. On Monday morning, I was still livid about what had happened at the weekend. But, as I sit here on Friday, the optimism is there once again, for all to see, about tomorrow's encounter at Darlington. The bet that never was, has been forgotten and another weekend of sport awaits us. Surely it can't be as bad as the last one... can it?

The Most Wonderful Time of the year!

No, not Christmas, or indeed New year, though i do enjoy those occasions very much, but another very special time of the year is upon us once again.
That's right, it's 3rd round weekend! The time that should give all self-respecting football fans an extra tingle of excitement.
We all know that the FA Cup is the best cup competition in the world, but in recent years, the later rounds and on some occasions, the final itself, have become quite boring and lifeless affairs (note my post regarding the 2007 Chelsea v Man United borefest). But still, that first weekend in January makes up for it year upon year with it's potential shocks and dreams becomming reality.
Up to this point, I haven't actually disclosed the identity of my own beloved football team, although the 2 people that read this blog already know who it is, but let's for argument's sake pretend that someone else is reading this.
Well here it is, I'm a Hereford united fan and proud of it! And now of course, it all makes sense, my love for the cup, or more specifically the 3rd round, is because my team are possibly (no doubt about it in my mind) the biggest cup giant killers of all time.
I won't go on about that famous victory over Newcastle, as I'm sure it may be mentionned once or twice over the course of the weekend. I would just like to say good luck to all the lower graded clubs, let's hope for a few more humblings this weekend, including of course Hereford, who are at Tranmere Rovers.
Enjoy the weekend, it's a special time of year!

Still Here!

I know, I know! It's been literally months. I haven't quite got the hang of this yet. The trouble is, whenever I think about something I want to write about, I am never near a computer. Typical I suppose.
Plus of course, there is also the absolutely staggering ammount of live sport on the telly. Tonight could quite possibly be the first night since the middle of August that there is no live football on TV. Just think about that for a moment... quite incredible. How am I supposed to find time to blog with all that going on?
Anyway, I will be doing my utmost to be more regular with my posting, but I wouldn't get your hopes up.

Wet Weekend, Something of an understatement!

If I was the religious type, I would swear that it was judgement day, or at least I'd have started building an ark. I have never experienced anything like this. It certainly does make me wonder whether other forces are at hand. Lucky for us, we live at the top of a hill, so if we got flooded then everyone else would be in real trouble. However the damage suffered in other neighbouring towns is incomprehendable. I think we should all take a little time to think about those who have been severely affected by the freak weather. People's houses and businesses have been ruined, their treasured possessions damaged beyond repair. It could be months before normality is restored in some places. You have to feel sorry for the residents of Tenbury Wells, for whom this is the third, and worst, time that this has happened in the space of a month or so. The town is completely under water, cut off from the rest of the county.
It seems tonight that everything is slowly but surely starting to calm down, but there is still a long way to go. The emergancy services have done a fantastic job, at a time when they were at their most stretched. The public have been amazing too, offering refuge to those with nowhere to go, in a typically British mannor.
I would however, just like to mention the person, who decided to move the cones so they could drive down a closed road in Tenbury, promptly getting stranded in the middle. THEY CLOSE THE ROADS FOR A REASON! BECAUSE THEY ARE FLOODED! DO YOU THINK THEY JUST DO IT FOR A GIGGLE? At a time when the emerancy services were desperately needed elsewhere, they had to come and rescue you from a flooded road. You are a moron, and if it was up to me you would still be there now. Hopefully you have learned your lesson, you can't beat nature.
Anyway back to it, 2 by 2 please, no pushing...

My Holiday

I wasn't really going to write anything about my holiday, as there isn't really much to say. However, by special request (Lynsey), I have decided to include a short post. Mind you, as it is already over a week since we landed back on English soil, it is fast becomming a dim and distant memory.
On Friday the 25th May, we dragged ourselves out of our beds very early in the morning, in order to be on the road to Birmingham for about 6:30. We got to the airport in plenty of time, checked in and prepared ourselves for the long wait to get on the plane. The time went by fairly quickly though, and we were soon walking up those metal steps, and finding our seats. After a fairly uneventful flight, we landed in Marseille, with the temperature at around 32 degrees C, very nice too.
Now, a Taylor family holiday just wouldn't be the same if we didn't get lost, it wouldn't feel right. So lucky for us, guess what? Yep that's right, my dad didn't disappoint, and I think it was probably a new record. We had barely left the airport car park when we were already on the road to nowhere and the air was blue. After several frantic phone calls between our car and the car of our friends whom we were travelling with, we eventually pointed ourselves in the right direction, and after a journey which was twice the length it should have been, we eventually ended up at our villa, very tired and very hungry. Thanks to global domination, there was a McDonald's about half a mile down the road, so our eating dilemmas were solved.
The rest of the week went by without a hitch and it was time to come home again far too soon. We managed to get back to the airport with no problems whatsoever, much to my amazement, and were soon on the plane back to Birmingham - or so we thought - because it wasn't til we were sat on the plane, waiting to take off, that they decided to tell us that the flight had been diverted to Nottingham for reasons which I still am none the wiser about. Anyway, they provided busses back to Birmingham for us, and it only added about an hour and a half to our journey home, which in the grand scheme of things was not a big deal.
So that's it, another Taylor family holiday for the scrap book, bring on the next one.

Wake me up, when someone wins the cup

"I'm going to have a snooze, shout if someone scores." The words of my mother this afternoon, and she hadn't even had to sit through the first half.

Yes, this afternoon's FA cup final was probably one of the dullest games of the 2006/07 season and a real let down for what was supposed to be the beginning of a new era in Wembley history.

Last Saturday, we had sat down and watched the FA trophy final (supporting Kidderminster for the day), and what a game that was! Even though the result was disappointing for around 25,000 Kiddy Harriers fans (more than they'll see til their next trip to the capital), it was a storming game and it had it all. So it's fair to say I was quite expectent before today's encounter between the 2 best sides in English football. What a let down.

All I can say is this, aren't you all glad now that those 2 aren't also contesting the Champions League final on Wednesday? Because believe me, after today, they really will have absolutely nothing more left in them this season, and it would have been the biggest waste of air miles ever.

As it is, I shall be a Liverpool fan for the night on Wednesday. You may think that sounds obvious, however I do know people who will be supporting Milan. Not me though, I just can't do it, as far as I'm concerned, it's England v Italy, and it should be a cracker. Well it can't be much worse than today anyway.

Hello, good evening and welcome!

Well, here it is, my first attempt at so called "blogging", and it hasn't got off to the best start. I have already had to edit this post, because I managed to write absolutely nothing apart from the title in the first instance. But attempt number 2 seems to be going a little better (well so far anyway). So hopefully, I will get the hang of this thing and start writing something worth reading soon (although I wouldn't count on it).

That'll do for now then.
Cheers