Ha..

Clearly the citing commissioner reads my blog ;)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/my_club/leicester/8000437.stm

Moaning. Part 1

Professional sports. Fine, I’ve defended the concept on many an occasion. But I find myself frequently hating the idea and those who force feed money into teams, or franchises as they’re now called.

Virtually every sport is now professional – football, rugby, tennis, even things like darts and Crown Green Bowls, which, let’s be honest, aren’t even sports. I have always thought that it’s an overall good idea.
Talented sportspeople who love their chosen sport are paid to do an even better job. They are trained, conditioned and coached to become the best players physically and mentally. This is good for them firstly. Let’s face it – some of these people aren’t the brightest sparks, and they may not be making much of a living anywhere else. Lest we forget, there’s a recession on, everywhere apart from Stamford Bridge and Stade Ernest-Wallon. This is also good news for us sporting fans. Much as I love watching my beloved semi-professional Rhyl FC on a Saturday afternoon, it doesn’t compare to watching Liverpool on Sky Sports. Professional sports have led to a rise in the standard of the sports, therefore meaning generally more enjoyment for the fans.
The only other advantage I can think of is that there are also now a much bigger variety of merchandise available – rant on that later.

But surely we can all agree that on some level, professionalism in sports has taken the soul out of it, just a bit? Let’s look at my personal area of expertise – rugby. I mean, these are guys who spend day after day hitting people, and pumping iron. Now don’t get me wrong – this is not a rant aimed at the players; if I had half the talent players the like of Martyn Williams, Butch James and Yannick Jauzion have, I’d be getting paid for it too. But at the same time, these people weigh upwards of 15, 16 stone, and much of that is muscle they acquire through thoroughly un-holy methods. It’s not natural! Now while a lot of people will agree, it can be aesthetically pleasing – let’s just take a step back. In later life, aren’t these people going to pay for their frolics around the park with arthritis, joint problems and just general ailments?
And while there are players with substantial natural flair and skill – take the aforementioned three, for examples - there are presumably those who through day-in, day-out training and conditioning and analysing have acquired a certain technical nouse which allows them to play alongside these players. That is not the spirit of rugby, nor how it used to be played. The players who are good enough; who understand the game, who have progressed through second teams, who have flair, skill and courage; should be the ones who play, surely?
Let’s look at the Gavin Henson problem. Well, one of the many. I’m not saying he’s not a great player – on his day he can cut defences like a knife and who can forget the Mathew Tait thing? However, I can’t help but think that sometimes he is played and selected because he endorses things, and is a talking point and sells tabloids.
And sponsorship. I mean, seriously? Is there any need to plaster every inch of these skin tight ‘shirts’ with slogans and logos and badges? It’s vulgar, to be honest. But then again, I suppose it could be a ploy, like football goalkeepers do to distract the strikers. I mean, if I’m there on the field and I see the McDonald’s M dancing in front of me I may be kind of distracted too.
But still, that is no reason to lose credibility. Some sporting ‘franchises’ are ridiculous – take Basketball. When I first went to the British League Finals there was a team called the Scottish Rocks. The next year they were there again – the Scottish Record Rocks now. Then the third year I saw them they were the Scottish Phoenix Honda Record Rocks. And then I stopped going. The fans that used to chant were suffocating halfway through the team name.
And the stadiums. For me, it gets no better than a rousing stadium name for your team. Stadium of Light. Anfield. Stradey Park. The Millennium Stadium. But The Emirates Stadium? The famous Landsdowne Road will become The Aviva Stadium. It’s grotesque. Never heard of Coca-Cola Park? You may know it as Ellis Park, that’s why.
I think I may have mentioned merchandise before. Now, I am a bit of a hypocrite here. I own over 20 rugby shirts and have various flags, jackets and pieces of stationery equipment myself. But, I think that producing underwear, bed clothes, Christmas tree decorations and kitchen utensils en masse is a bit excessive and a tad silly.

I often hear the now familiar adage about how ‘in my day’ players playing even international rugby were doctors, lawyers, bricklayers - they had another trade to fall back on. Supposing, God forbid, one of the lesser known members of a professional squad suffered an horrific injury. Not bad enough to kill them, but bad enough for them to have to hang up the ol’ boots. This guy has played professional rugby since he was 16 – he came fresh out of school, and has always been a rugby player. He has to presumably learn a new trade, or else take a low wage at something simple, unless he is lucky enough to be picked up for a media job or coaching.

The injection of cash into the boardrooms and executive suites has had a direct effect on the lowly fan, too.
Ticket prices. Tickets for derbies and finals can go for astronomical prices – families are going hungry so Dad can go see the Liverpool derby or see Bath in the Premiership final. Is this really ethical? It takes a lot out of the atmosphere at matches. In the ‘good old days’ there would be the upper classes, sure, in the seats and the boxes. But the middle-lower classes would make up a large portion of the crowd. These are the people who sing the anthems and wave the flags. And, most importantly, heckle the referee.
And the current storm that’s brewing – terrestrial vs satellite television. Lots of people don’t have Sky TV. Let alone those who pay the additional fee for Sky Sports. The Heineken Cup and some Internationals are already shown almost exclusively on Sky Sports (some Heineken games can be found on Welsh language station S4C), taking the Six Nations away from BBC would exclude a huge amount of rugby fans from watching rugby – in the comfort of their own homes anyway.

And finally, for the pièce de résistance. My pet peeve. The worst thing about professional sports with all this money. The bribery, the unfair advantages and the general flash of cash.
Now, for those who are not familiar with the intimate workings of Welsh rugby, I will explain. The Scarlets’ relationship with the Ospreys (The Hairspreys) is one of great hatred. Well, hate’s a strong word maybe. It’s like Liverpool-Man United. Wales-England. Almost. Basically, they’re age old rivals and bitter enemies. And as a primarily Scarlets girl, I am genetically designed to dislike the Hairspreys. But I dislike them for more than just thos honourable reasons. I dislike them for the same reason I dislike Chelsea. They use the resources available to buy up all the players they want. Some may call them the best players, but hey, I’m not here to argue about that today.
They lured Mike Phillips away from the Blues. Personally, I think that’s a decision he’s going to live to regret. The Blues are on the up. And since Lyn Jones was unceremoniously outed the Hairspreys have been on a slippery slope. They buy superstar after superstar – Justin Marshall left after a short stint, as did Stefan Terblanche, and if the rumours of Phil Waugh coming over to the Liberty are true I don’t suppose he’ll last long either. The reason is this – the attitude. I can’t imagine it’s fun being in a ‘team’ with a bunch of prima donnas in Swansea. That’s my theory as to why they seem to implode during pressure games. Too many stars trying to prove themselves, eroding at the solid platform the excellent forwards create. And the fact that a team like that doesn’t win all the time is tragic and a travesty. If you’re going to steal all the players, at least do something with them.
Leicester Tigers are the same. Obviously, I’m not one to point the finger. But one could suspect that the numerous dubious calls that went the way of the affluent wealthy East Country team were not given by chance. For example – I find it hard to believe that not one, not two, but three referees on the field failed to spot that Nick Abendanon’s shoulder injury that caused him to leave the field and probably contributed to Bath’s eventual loss was caused by an off-the-ball hit from the massive Alesana Tuilagi. Let’s face it, he would be difficult to miss 17 stone of Samoan does catch the eye somewhat. The question has to be raised – what are the ‘assistant referees’ (touch judges, to you and me) there for, if not to spot infringements like that, along with knock ons, off-sides and technical fouls. Which, by the way, were abundant in the match, and almost perpetually went unspotted. And I believe there was something fishy about the way the final restart (or lack of final restart actually) was handled.
Not to take anything undeserved away from the Tigers – they know how to win big games, they are rugby royalty, you could say.
But I think it is something to be looked into – long has it been in sporting folklore that the wealthiest teams usually win. And the decisions seem to go their way. I’m not in a position to suggest a reason for that, I mean what use is imagination if you cannot use it eh?

For me, the solution to all this is simple. I think professional sports should remain, not just for the reasons highlighted, but also because it is an institution now. It is an industry. But I think the distribution of revenue for teams, or franchises, should be more even. If not exactly, fairly even. There should not be clubs that are known as the ‘rich’ clubs. This will make more competition. This will create more rivalry. This will be where great games, and teams, are made. And that is what sport is all about, isn’t it?

Mermaids Tour To Rome!

Rome '09 promised a lot... and it delivered!

The only downsides were that we had to get up at 3 to get the plane from Liverpool, and that we could only stay for 2 1/2 days.

We arrived in Rome to blustery yet sunny conditions, the excitement beginning to brim over. We were met at the airport by Chris, who is possibly the most amazing guy ever.. :) We were then chauffeured to our hotel - The Grand Hotel Beverly Hills, no less. Oh the way we stopped to stock up on booze - most of the girls bought a couple of cans of lager to take to the match. We were checked in, then assigned our rooms. We had 20 minutes to quickly explore, get ready and jump up and down a few times, then we were off again - to the Stadio Flaminio! We had about half an hour to kill before we made our way to the stadium, and we took in the sights of the Piazza Flaminio, and ate the most amazing pizza snacks ever. That was the quietest 10 minutes of the tour!

We then took the walk to the stadium - highlight of this walk would be Loz walking into a pole... bodes well I guess? We arrived at the stadium with our bag of beer swinging from Anna's arm. Then some bad/good news, depending on how you look at it - we couldn't take the cans into the stadium! So there we were with 12 cans of lager and only 3 plastic cups we could take in. Valiantly, Anna, Louis and Kumari stepped up to down more than their fair shares of the stuff, and then we proceeded into the beautiful stadium.

The match atmosphere was brilliant - we had great fun cheering along with the Italian and French fans around us, while Joely, Sarah and Kumari spent the whole match waving flags madly, in an attempt to get on the TV, which apparently we managed. Happy days.
France were simply majestic - they were back to their old ways, which was really annoying - WHY OH WHY did they slip for the England match, of all matches? But anyway, for me one of the best players on the field was the awesome Sergio Parisse - one of, if not the best No. 8 on the planet. There were only 2 scrums in the match, which is unusual, especially for an Italian match. However, this made for an even better spectacle, as the French capitalised on Italian errors, of which there were many, and ended up scoring 7 tries.

After the match we walked into the centre of Rome and went to an Irish bar (ironic, eh?) to watch the end of the England-Scotland match and the Wales-Ireland battle. We stood in a gaggle in the centre of the pub, screaming ourselves hoarse, fighting with the many more Irish supporters. I was heartbroken at the end - not because Wales lost or anything, purely for Stephen Jones' frustration, he is easily the most consistent Wales player and it was unfair that he should have to end Wales' account on that note. However, we were cheered up with the most amazing ice cream ANYONE has ever tasted, like, ever... and then we all had huge amazing pizzas for dinner.
After that it was off to the hotel in various hilarious taxi rides, and by the time we got back to the hotel eveyone was looking a little tired.

The next morning we got up bright and early to go sight-seeing! We were set a challenge, to 'see who could learn the most of the Italian anthem', but we knew we would be given points for execution, innovation and creativity also. One group - Abi, Loz and Kumari wrote their own version of the anthem - more of which later.
THe day was a roaring success, the Mermaids took in some culture, including the Colosseum, the Wedding Cake, the Trevi Fountain and actually ran in the Rome Marathon. Well, we ran across it, to get to an ice cream shop... :) After doing a spot of souvenir shopping, some of us went into a little cafe where we had THE most delicious Hot Chocolate ever.

Then we took the illustrious Metro to a great little restaurant, where we were treated to several courses of delicious Italian fare and a seemingly eternal supply of alcohol :) This was to supply the girls with a lifetime supply of memories, and supplied Kumari with several texts of quotes. Prize of the night would have to go to Loz, or Miguel as she is now known, for several hysterically funny moments, not least a rousing performance of the new Italian Anthem, by Abi, Loz and Kumari:

Today, we saw the Colosseum and the Typewriter,

It's also called the Wedding Cake

And then we went to the Pantheon.

We then ran through the Marathon,

And then we all had ice cream

Anna's got a new dad, who's also our best friend.

That last part is really a private joke... don't ask.

The night was eternal, a close eye had to be kept on Miguel, as she kicked over a lamp in Joely, Mwsh and Sarah's room, and stole their room key and hid in Kumari's pocket... completely by herself.

She eventually passed out, and there were a few snatched hours of sleep, before the Mermaids were on the move again, sadly this time on the way home.

After taking over the departures lounge, the Mermaids filed onto the plane home, and after Jill assaulted two strangers with Mint Humbugs the flight was relatively normal, aside from an iffy landing which sent most of the girls into peals of laughter, others into screams and a select few an interesting shade of green.

Thanks has to go to Chris, for being unbelievably generous to all of us. Also to Ann, for organising the whole tour. Louis and Jill, for keeping us all in check and amused with your various comments. Also to all the girls, for being amazing as normal :)

Mermaids + Rome = AMAZING :)

Congrats Ireland

Okay.. obviously I'm disappointed with Wales' form and their subsequent loss of the championship and FOURTH place finish :

However, it's about time that Ireland won something, and they played an intelligent game throughout the 6N and they won even when they didn't play well. That's the mark of a good team, and a good coach - Go Declan Kidney! The leadership of Paul O'Connell and Brian O'Driscoll was top notch as well, they are both definite inclusions in the forthcoming Lions Squad announcement.

Okay, seriously?

How many chances is Gavin Henson going to get? Am I the only one who thinks this is getting beyond a joke?

I mean, don't get me wrong; I think he's probably one of the most talented and exciting midfield players around. He's going down in history. Hell, he's going down in the media.

Drunk and Disorderly. This is not the first time. But there we are, I guess 'they' will deal with him as they see fit :)

The only real shame is I wasn't around when he started throwing this money around...

Kick-off

England v Italy
I will never get those hours back. Oh My God. England were appalling. Harry Ellis gave it his all to be fair... Andy Goode had a somewhat shaky game. Probably my favourite England back Cueto had a pretty decent match, particularly in defence, and much as I hate him, Haskell wasn't too bad. Oh, wait, except for that IDIOTIC trip. WHY?
Poor old Mauro. Am I the only one who feels that Nick Mallett is clearly a blundering idiot, and should be (metaphorically, of course) shot? Mauro Bergamasco is one of Italy's finest players, and a damn efficient flanker. But he clearly does not have any scrum-half skills. Or forititude, for that matter. If it was me, and if I was that bad at number nine, I would have said "Look, here, Mr Mallett. What's your game? I can't do this. Put me back at 7." Or whatever that is in Italian. As sick as I am of all the media in the whole wide world harping on about Mauro's Monstrosity, there really isn't much else to say about the Italians. Hope they get better... :S

Ireland v France
Ahhh.. thank God. That's more like it. A truly great match between too truly great teams. Harinorduquy's opening try was well worked, and for a while it seemed that Ireland weren't going to have much of a reply. But then it exploded - the excellent Osprey Tommy Bowe set up No 8 Jamie Heaslip to step his way through the French backline to score in the shadow of the posts. Ireland had the upper hand, but clearly no one told France. Sea-Bass went on a frankly scary rampage, and showed some surprising pace to almost go all the way. Just after half time Brian O'Driscoll took us back in time and showed some of the old form the captain was renowned for - breaking through the French defence, brushing off a weak Beauxis-attempted tackle and diving under the posts. But France soon struck back with Maxime Medard snatching a chip over the defence from his fly half to score for France. Beauxis' second drop goal seemed to signify a trademark France last minute win, but a fabulous forward drive propelled Gordon D'Arcy, back from injury, over the line to score. Ronan O'Gara's third conversion of the night sealed a delicious victory for the men in green, searching for that elusive Grand Slam.

Scotland v Wales
Dear me. What a dangerous game, this rugby. Firstly, my thoughts are with Simon Webster and Geoff Cross - both of whom were injured in dangerous collisions with Martyn Williams and Lee Byrne, respectively. Byrne also at one stage looked to be rather woozy, after his head slammed into the Murrayfield turf. But he was as solid as ever under the high ball so seems to be fine. Wales showed why they are favourites for the competition with some gorgeous handling moves that resulted in Byrne offloading to Tom Shanklin to score, followed by terrific team play and an outstanding show from Wales' forwards allowing Alun Wyn Jones to power over the Scottish try line. Replacement Chris Paterson (another startling selection this weekend) kicked a penalty and came close to adding a superb solo effort try to the score sheet. But Wales held out, and the half ended with Stephen Jones adding his second penalty. Jamie Roberts played excellently throughout, possibly his best moment coming from his break through the Scottish midfield. The ball found its way to Shane Williams on the right wing, who cleverly ducked under Sean Lamont's tackle to offload a superb ball to Leigh Halfpenny, for the youngster to score in the corner. Wales' fourth try came from the Great Entertainer himself. Shane saw a gap on the try line and dived through, to score his 45th test try. Unfortunately Shane's next act was to allow the electric and amazing Maz Evans to shimmer past him and Lee Byrne to score a great try in the corner for the hosts. a good match, and an acceptable start for the reigning champions.

Six Nations

Okay.. so it's been awhile :)

Firstly, I would like to express my disgust at the lack of Peel. Dwayne Peel, that is, in the Welsh squad. Even if he now plays his club rugby in England for Sale Sharks, he is nonetheless one of the greatest scrum-halves of all time, in my opinion. At least he's now in the squad, even though it was only as injury cover for Gareth Cooper, who, not too long ago was playing understudy to Peel. Curious these things.

Secondly, fair play to England for finally making some tough decisions and choosing wisely. Cipriani, although he has his moments, is completely over-rated. In time, he might well grow to become a Michalak-style fly-half. But at the moment he's a flashy, inexperienced liability. I've often wondered why the former-Leicester linchpin has been somewhat ignored for his country; he is solid, dependable and can produce some real magic moments. He has a huge boot on him, something which on paper should suit the traditionally 'boring' English way down to the ground. At long last Goode has been drafted into the England team to face the Azurri at Twickers.

Thirdly, how amazing is it that the Six Nations is back? And I think this could be one of the most evenly-matched tournaments in a while. Certainly, Wales deservedly go in as favourites, and of course I will be willing them the Grand Slam all the way; but I think

• Scotland's club sides have been playing excellently in their various competitions, and with the Evans brothers and a strong mobile forward pack, maybe Murrayfield can get some of those tries it's been yearning for for the past two years.
• Italy get stronger every year. Sergio Parisse, fresh from being nominated for IRB Player of the Year alongside Shane Williams and Dan Carter, is one of the best forwards in the world, and his lineout skills are renowned, equally his goal-dropping prowess.
• England have a strong squad all round. Despite the untimely loss of Matt Stevens through Cocaine addiction, players like Ben Foden, Danny Care and Steffon Armitage will all be pushing hard for starts, alongside stalwarts Julian White, Mike Tindall and the excellent Mark Cueto.
• Ireland's shining star, out-half Ronan O'Gara has been in typically scintillating form for Munster in the Heineken Cup and Magners League, and will be expected to carry on in this rich vein in the 6N.

I can't think of anyone more deserving of the IRB World Player of the Year gong than Amman man Shane Williams. He will go down in history as one of the most loved sporting characters of the generation. His tries (the ones against France and Ireland spring to mind) in last year's Six Nations were among the best we've seen for a while, and they definitely brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. Complimented, of course, as most 'great' wingers are, by an astounding pack of eight and supported by one of the most talented backlines in world rugby, Williams was on fire particularly in the last season.

This tournament is going to be the best yet :)