Saturday, January 31, 2009

Gordon Brown avoid humiliation...

...By having a non-embarrassing ringtone. That could have been pretty bad if he had the bidie song or something like that :

Gordon Brown was interrupted by his own mobile phone while addressing political and business leaders in Davos.

The prime minister's mobile rang twice during his speech at the World Economic Forum, leading Mr Brown to note that the caller was "persistent".

But he disappointed his audience by not disclosing the caller's identity.

The incident revealed that Mr Brown uses an old Nokia ringtone on his phone - made famous by comedian Dom Joly on his satirical show Trigger Happy TV.

Shortly into his speech about the global economic crisis in Switzerland, a phone started ringing.

The prime minister admitted: "I am afraid it is my phone."

When asked by a reporter who was calling, he replied: "I am not telling you."

Friday, January 30, 2009

Evertonians : I defy you to watch this and not laugh

This is just genius :



COYB!!!

What's your favourite soap opera?

For me it's got to be Newcastle United.

In this week's exciting episode Charles N'Zogbia has put in a transfer request, Kinnear apparently referred to his as Insomnia several times in a post match interview and now N'Zogbia is on strike.

Oh and then Kinnear then went on to state how the chairman, Mike Ashley, is just about paying the wages after losing £2 billion in the credit crunch.

*Eastenders cliffhanger drumbeat*

In other news I notice Tony Mowbray has spoken out about something we've felt for a while...that top referees are too pally with top players. It's shockingly obvious sometimes. This week Mark Clattenberg was profiled in the papers and we were reminded of one of the most appalling reffing displays I've ever seen. He was like the ref in Escape to Vistory. Seriously I've never been so convinced of a referee's corruption than on that day (Given that Marc had been on holiday with the Liverpool squad just a month or so before only adds fuel to the fire). Kuyt's flying two-footer, Carragher screaming in his face, Gerrard basically instructing him to send Hibbert off (was that that game or another one?) and one of the most blatant penalties I've ever seen as Carragher rugby tackled Lescott.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

The 50 worst things about modern football | Premier League - Times Online

The 50 worst things about modern football | Premier League - Times Online:

Brilliant stuff from The Times...Particularly love number 10 : Goal Celebration Music

"Listen. Very. Carefully. We. Don’t. Want. To. Hear. I. Feel. Good. Chelsea. Dagger. Or. Song. Two. Every. Time. Someone. Scores. A. Goal. Got. That?"

Arrrrrgh!

Arrrrrgghhh!

There is NOTHING more galling than conceding in injury time. Hate it. Sometimes when you it happens you can see it coming but last night it was totally against the run of play. Everton, for me, played Arsenal off the park in the second half last night. They didn't get a sniff but when you've got someone like van Persie you only need half a chance and you are punished.

It was a kick in the knackers but I am pretty philosophical. That's the result the pundit where predicting, but ultimately we are gutted with it, a definite sign of how far we've come with this team and Davie Moyes as manager. COYB! COYB! COYB!

Anyway the goal was finished off with another bit of ariel magic from Tim Cahill but for the 5 minutes leading up to it we'd passed the ball round all over the park and they couldn't get near us. They were still reorganising when we took the throw-in and caught them napping.

All this sounds pretty negative on Arsenal but I am just seeking to underline how classy Everton looked last night.

Tim Cahill

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

"Everton can win the league" Wenger

Interesting stuff today in the papers that Arsene Wenger thinks Everton can win the league this season....well that's not really what he dais, he actually said that anyone out the top 6 could win it 'cause the league's so tight (slight difference).

It's an interesting thought though but I think that unless we get a sugar daddy the likes of Everton will really struggle to establish themselves in the CL places. Villa have a good chance because of Randy Lerner but with Everton's current financial clout we are never going to hold off the challenge from the former G14 teams.

It's odd that it's Wenger saying that because for me his first league champion side were the last of the old fashioned league winners. When you think of the way teams of the past that came through organically reached their zenith and then declined naturally it doesn't seem to happen nowadays because these top clubs have the financial might to buy their way through their transition periods. Wenger is a manager who likes to build his team slowly rather than using his club's money to make great leaps forward.

The Forest side who retained the European Cup, Then the Villa side after them, Everton's mid 80s team, The flash in the pan Leeds team and then Wenger's original side (Which I think would have wiped the floor with his invincibles). liverpool are a notable exception to this in that they managed to keep the success going by moving a players in each season but keeping the continuity. the Fergie Fledglings represent the tipping point because at the time their team broke though the money flooded in so Ferguson could bolster and augment the side seemlessly and keep the momentum.

Now we have this Everton team, trophyless so far but the only team to have been able to break the top 4 stranglehold. I think the way this team has been built over time without hardly any big name aquisitions, just young potential eager to establish itself is reminiscent of those old style teams, the fact that it's basically impossible for them to win the league is such a shame.

Monday, January 26, 2009

The AlanBall Run (I thought if that!)

Since man first emerged from the forests he has been obsessed with one question : How fast can a person visit 92 English Football Grounds?

FreeKicks 92 Football Grounds in 92 Hours

A mate of mine is gearing up to cover 2000 odd miles over 3 days and go to every single league football ground in the country. They are doing it for a charity that works with sick children organising visit to their favourite football teams (FreeKicks).

So very worthy and more than a bit mad.

Rafael Benitez's latest bout of whingeing

What he said :



For the second time in a week, it is the Red half of Merseyside that appears bitter - this time it was their manager, not their fans, who drenched spiteful vinegar on top of their disappointment. According to Rafa, Liverpool had learnt their lesson from Monday night. It only took a few minutes to prove the Spaniard wrong, a Pienaar corner - a free header from Cahill (for a marked man he was strangely unmarked) - and the finishing touch from our goalscoring centre half Joleon Lescott providing the sweetest of answers.

Everton and Liverpool may just have Stanley Park between them, but they are miles apart in terms of footballing philosophy. Whereas Rafa can toss his managerial dice whenever he wants, Moyes only gets one throw with such a shallow squad. The Spaniard's small club jibe some two years ago was intended to sting Evertonians, and his latest gripes are clearly intended to do the same. The stark truth remains though; after scoring early on, defending was Moyes' only option - and despite having millions on the pitch, more on the bench, and even a £20 million striker in reserve, Liverpool couldn't break down our glavanized defence. Whilst we didn't come for the draw - with Cahill probing and harrying, we had a real goal threat - after they scored defending was the only logical tactic.

Stripped of Fellaini through suspension and Arteta, Yakubu, Saha, and Vaughan through injury - Moyes knew that after scoring, and especially after Gerrard's equalizer, his tiring band of brothers had to dig their heels in and defend. And we did so with great resilience. Everton have a strange strength in their shallowness, and Liverpool have a weakness in the depth of their squad.

Rafa's complaints are hilariously skewed not only because he has so much attacking talent that Robbie Keane didn't even feature on the bench, but because in Europe Rafa is a master of getting that away draw. Although Everton won't be bringing an away goal advantage to Goodison, we hope to have Fellaini and midfield laureate Arteta back for the replay - and Rafa's comments should make sure even more aggression is added to a bubbling Goodison cauldron.

Can you imagine the state of Liverpool football club without some of their key players? Shorn of Torres and Gerrard, they would be ineffective and rudderless. Without a match winner, Rafa has again let out a meaningless belch of a comment, bleating on about Everton and how we play 10 men behind the ball. Jagielka and Lescott both wore their defensive responsibilities like stiff upper lips, and their names will surely be bobbing around the watching Fabio Capello's mind. Rafa just looks like a very forgetful and tetchy hypocrite, whereas Moyes' retort that Everton conduct themselves with dignity was given with all the calm and assurance of a post coital puff of a cigarette.

Yesterday's post game statement from the Anfield manager was simply embarrassing, saying that "I have never played like that here, and never did this while I was at Valencia, maybe at Extremadura a few times,"

Bill Shankly adroitly lifted his men with words after the 1971 FA Cup final defeat against Arsenal, saying "Chairman Mao has never seen a greater show of red strength."

Rafa's statement though, won't lift anyone, and should only serve to redden the cheeks of Liverpool fans and embolden the Blues for the rematch on Wednesday week. Perhaps Rafa should focus on his tongue tied team rather than attempting to restore pride with pidgin insults.

liverpool 1 - 1 Everton. Phew!

Outstanding defensive performance by Everton yesterday. In front of Fabio Capello our all-English back four were magnificent.

Notice that turd Benitez has been moaning about our tactics, another cynical attempt to deflect attention from the fact that's coaching his team to concede exactly the sort of goals we've been scoring this week. Pathetic.

Nice piece by Phil McNulty on the BBC site

"Everton's resurgence in reduced circumstances has gone almost unnoticed amid the switches of fortune in the title race and the managerial spats across Stanley Park - but two displays at Liverpool sum up the renaissance fashioned by manager David Moyes.

Moyes took Everton to Anfield for a Premier League game on Monday stripped of virtually all of his attacking resources and without suspended £15m midfield man Marouane Fellaini.

Everton earned a draw at Anfield courtesy of Tim Cahill's late header, and returned for Sunday's FA Cup fourth round tie still without Fellaini but further depleted by the loss of influential midfield orchestrator Mikel Arteta.

No-one would suggest Everton did anything other than mount a rearguard action to earn a replay at Goodison Park, but equally no-one should diminish the standard of their defensive excellence."

Thursday, January 22, 2009

tweet tweet

This is pretty interesting, we are lucky to have a nice garden that is occasionally full of our fine feathered friends, sometimes however we are plagued by magpies who go round butchering everything they can find.

We have a fairly magpire proof bird-feeder and always shoo them off whenever we can but really sometimes we are under seige with them. Very annoying.

Have a garden full of birdsong is so nice so we do everything possible to get wrens and blackbirds in there but we aren't fussy, as long as they aren't squawking & cackling constantly & killing anything that moves they are welcome.

On this note The RSPB are launching a little campaign to get people to report what they are seeing in the their gardens :

The Guardian are giving to some pretty good coverage.

and the RSPB's official birdwatch site

Jonathon Ross is back, Apollo comedy is gone...hmm

So Jonathon Ross is back, well I suppose it's good that the Daily Mail and their hoard of zombies didn't win and force the BBC's hand but if I'm honest I'm guttedhe's back.

I just don't get him. I was, in truth, enjoying Live at the Apollo much, much more.

The thing that's always annoys me about Ross is that it always has to be about him. It doesn't matter who he's interviewing he just talks over tham about himself.

Guest "....and so Nelson Mandela picks up my nobel prize off the floor and hands it to Muhammad Ali and says..."

Ross "..well you know I used to be a bit of a boxer myself y;know...oh yes blah blah blah"


He's a likable guy and that's why he gets away with it but please, be happy letting someone else have the limlight.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Timmyyyyyyyyy

God, it has to be said I am rubbish at Derbies....Unless I am actually at the game I hate them, hate them, hate them (if I am at the game I just hate them). Anywaylast nights seemed especially important seeing as they were looking to go top of the league whilst we were desperate to keep our momentum going into that all important cup game next Sunday.

As you'd expect it was very tight but the blues held their own despite having Fellaini plus all our recognised strikers out. Was so gutted when Gerrard scored...utterly in raptures when Tim Cahill popped up with e equaliser. What on earth was Skrtel thinking, zonal marking at it's best. He just let Timmy go!

Anyway more than happy with the draw, it did seem to totally knock the stuffing out of the rednoses, they just left en masse. God bless Moysie and the entire Everton team.


Tim Cahill equalises at Anfield with Skrtel nowhere in site

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Possibly great news!!!!!!!!!!!!

There is talk that Waterloo have found the investment they need

Waterloo Rugby Club handed a survival lifeline

At long last something that isn't doom and gloom. If that is all sorted then it really is great news. I don't care where the team ends up, I am going to support them wherever...as long as there is a bit of security for the club that's all that matters at this stage.

Keep those fingers crossed, get your drinking liver in gear and get down to Blundellsands!

I'm smiling cautiously!

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Arteta sublime free kick against Hull

For those who didn't catch it on Match of the Day

Arteta free kick v Hull

Absolutely sublime, Hull were pretty disappointing it has to be said. All the early confidence, ambition and vigour seemed lost as they reverted to Championship cloggers. Hope they stay up because apart from that rat-wretch Barmby they are a real footballing fairy-tale. I don't begrudge them their success, I just wish they weren't trying to kick our players off the park.

It was SO cold on Saturday...I'm sure at one point I actually tripped over a dog-poo.

Friday, January 09, 2009

Wandering Stars

Liked this story today.

NASA identify wandering stars

Ripples in cosmic gas that resemble speedboat wakes have revealed a new population of young, renegade stars barreling through the universe at more than 112,000 miles (180,250 kilometers) an hour.

The stars appear to be just a few million years old and a few times larger than the sun.

As they careen through the cosmos, the stars' winds slam against nearby gas, creating enormous bow shocks billions or even a trillion miles wide.

So far astronomers have found 14 of these rogue stars using images from the Hubble Space Telescope.

But study leader Raghvendra Sahai, of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, thinks the stellar interlopers will turn out to be common in the universe. 

Beneathus loses the plot once more

Rafael Benitez has apparently went off on one again at one of his press-conferences. Had a prepared list of whinges and gripes about Alex Ferguson.

Beneathus whingeing

"Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has launched an astonishing attack on Sir Alex Ferguson and has accused the Manchester United manager of attempting to start 'early' mind games in the Premier League title race. "

I notice this bit in particular :

"Then he was talking about the fixtures," continued the former Valencia chief. "Two years ago we were playing a lot of early kick-offs away on Saturdays when United were playing on Sundays. And we didn't say anything."

Erm, yes you did you cynical, arrogant liar. It's almost as if this never happened :

Benitez whinges about fixture congestion

"Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez is not happy about the early kick-off fixture on Saturday that follows the internationals, as he feels “it is impossible to prepare the team properly.”

The Reds boss has suggested that with the players out for internationals only returning by Thursday evening, there is little time to prepare for the early kick-off."

Windows 7 beta by xkcd

Now this is funny :

So glad I discovered that site.

Thursday, January 08, 2009

Everton should not be being dragged into spotlight over Steven Gerrard

Brilliant article about Mark O'Brien about the Gerrard situation. Papers like The Independant wcould barely contain themselves and were blaming Evertonians even before Stevie has been charged. Anyway over to Mark O'Brien :

Everton should not be being dragged into spotlight over Steven Gerrard

CAN we just clear something up at the start? Were any Everton staff, players or supporters involved in the incident at the Southport bar that resulted in the Liverpool captain, Steven Gerrard, being arrested and subsequently charged?

Because in the aftermath of the fracas that resulted in a lad going to hospital, the focus somehow seems to have inexplicably shifted towards Evertonians.

Now we don’t know whether Gerrard is guilty or not, and quite frankly it’s nothing to do with anyone at Everton.

In fact it’s not a football matter at all, it’s one that will be dealt with by the police and magistrates, but it’s understandable that Reds take an interest as it’s one of their players involved.

Still though, it’s not clear why that certain sections of the media seem more interested in talking about the behaviour of Evertonians.

In the immediate aftermath of the incident, one newspaper for some reason saw fit to reproduce the sections of Jamie Carragher’s book where he complained about the unsavoury chants during derbies.

How is that at all relevant here?

It did quieten down a bit when it became apparent that whatever did or didn’t happen probably had more to do with Genesis than Goodison, but as soon as the FA Cup fourth round draw was made, and it became clear that Gerrard’s court appearance is scheduled to be sandwiched between two Anfield derbies, the same sort of comments began to appear again, regarding the ‘gauntlets of abuse’ that he will apparently have to run.

Hoping the underdog loses

Isn't it grim the way the current system of distributing UEFA cup places forces you to sit there and lament Derby County taking a one goal lead into the second leg of their Carling Cup Semi-final against Man Utd?

Under ordinary circumstances it'd be great to see the underdog doing well but all I could think was "Damn, that'll make it more difficult for Everton". Selfish I know but that's football.

Last year was a prime example...absolutely brilliant year for cup football and basically it meant that Everton & Villa went into the final day of the season 5th and 6th with neither team assured of a European place. I know that's the way the cookie crumbles but it does take the fun out of the cup when all you can think of is how it's harming your own team.

Wednesday, January 07, 2009

Monitor Lizard

Have just started a new blog over on Wordpress with a few of the chaps I know off Facebook. The Monitor Lizard blog will basically be similar to what I blither on about but with a more collaborative feel so if you want to join the team and have something to say about news, sport, culture, media, travel etc etc then get in touch.

England press self-destruct button

Can ANYONE tell me the point of this :

Pietersen resigns of England captain

Kevin Pietersen has left his position as England captain in the wake of the row between him and coach Peter Moores.

BBC Sport understands Moores will also leave his post, although it is unclear whether they have quit or been sacked.

"Pietersen gave an ultimatum to the ECB saying 'sack the coach or I go'," BBC sports editor Mihir Bose told 5 Live.

"The ECB has said 'we value you as captain but we don't take dictation from you'. So they accepted his ultimatum and he has suffered."

Bose added: "Moores' position has become untenable so he goes.

"The managing director of the ECB, Hugh Morris, had been talking to various people and there was the feeling that Pietersen lost the support of members in the dressing room."

Both their jobs were rumoured to be under threat following an emergency meeting of the England and Wales Cricket Board on Tuesday evening.


This is just ridulous...a completely artificial crisis coming out of absolutely nothing. What is the point of the two of them going now in the lead up to The Ashes?

Monday, January 05, 2009

StatBunker

One of the chaps over on the Rolling Maul National League Rugby Union Forum post this link which gives absolutely superb information on Rugby Union results & stats.

Extremely useful because the information isn't always available for very long....in the case of Waterloo, however, it might be better if the data was just locked in a vault somewhere where no-one can ever find it.

Converting to metric

Love this cartoon from xkcd : Converting to Metric

Sunday, January 04, 2009

Everton draw Liverpool in the cup

FA Cup 4th round draw details: "Liverpool will face Merseyside rivals Everton in the pick of the FA Cup fourth-round matches later this month."

Well isn't that just fantastic?!?!? Away too! Brilliant, we play them at Anfield twice in a week now.

Never easy for the blues is it!

Saturday, January 03, 2009

FA Cup | Macclesfield 0-1 Everton

Macclesfield 0-1 Everton: "Leon Osman's goal on the stroke of half time secured victory for Premier League Everton and sent them into the fourth round of the FA Cup.

Osman sent a half-volley into the top corner of the net off the crossbar from 18-yards out after Paul Morgan had headed clear Mikel Arteta's free-kick."



Glad to see Everton get past a potentially awkward tie, you've got to feel for the Macclesfield fans who stayed up all night working to make sure the pitch was playable. 3rd round day is brilliant, love the country-wide drama unfolding for teams and fans at the various levels. It's definitely one of the best days of the year and I hope it's always the case.

Chuffed for Everton and pretty happy for Posh who earned a replay against West Brom...brought back to earth with a bump when checked the rugby scores. Waterloo shipped an absolute shed-load at Launceston. Utter, utter battering...there is just no end in site for the misery. Feel really sorry for everyone associated with the team. It's hardest on them, we are just along for the craic. The lads there are really suffering, just want the season to end really and for us to try and find a sustainable level.

Friday, January 02, 2009