Bleacher Report - Articles by Nick Howson

Chelsea Finds the Finishing Touch as United's Big Game Temperament Fades

Nick Howson — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 16:22:23 -0500

John Terry’s 75th minute header at Stamford Bridge on Sunday evening proved that even in the pressure filled cauldron of the Premiership, grasping football’s basics can be the biggest weapon of them all.

It was a lesson that Manchester United ultimately failed to understand meaning that League leaders Chelsea could come away with all three points in a tight game at Stamford Bridge.

The visitors dictated play for long periods but failed to turn a dominance of possession into clear-cut chances as Chelsea pounced on United’s lack of creativity and concentration.

The Champions will surely be questioning the judgement of the officials for Chelsea’s winning goal, which saw a free kick given for a foul by Darren Fletcher in which he seemed convinced that he’d won the ball and then from the resulting free-kick which saw Didier Drogba waft at the ball while in an offside position.

In truth both queries don’t diminish the fact that Terry, arguably The Blues’ finest header of a ball --was left unmarked from the free kick and had the simple task of guiding the ball into the far corner of the net.

United’s fans and players were quick to blame the officials for their defeat at Anfield last month, but just like that fateful day on Merseyside they should have a long look at their own performance before crucifying the decisions of the men in the middle.

In addition, it’s now becoming a common theme of United’s form on the road that they can’t raise their game sufficiently against their ‘top four’ rivals.

Yes, they endured this type form while still claiming a third successive League Title last season, but given the current form of both Arsenal and leaders Chelsea, United might need to buck up their ideas.

Carlo Ancelotti alternatively will be delighted that in two home games against their title rivals they’ve claimed maximum points while rarely breaking a sweat.

It’s difficult to see much of a weakness in a Chelsea side that could rely on Terry to produce the goods as their attacking gems were marked out of the game.

Drogba and Nicolas Anelka were particularly frustrated as a makeshift United back-four got the better of Chelsea’s attacking threat.

Their squad size also makes for impressive reading, with the likes of Florent Malouda,Yuri Zhirkov, and Jon Obi Mikel not even called upon on Sunday evening.

I’m not sure the temporary suspension of the clubs transfer ban will make a host of difference to their title chances, it will be more down to the size of lead they can take into the African Cup of Nations, where they’ll lose four of their star turns.

Maybe Ancelotti had thought ahead and demanded a fast start ahead of next year’s African competition so that in the close season run-in the club would still be in the running for the title-- it’s a move that already looks shrewd.

Their rivals from North London are also setting the League alight with their all action performances, but unlike previous years Arsenal seem to have a final product to their ultra precise passing game, and the spread of goals is something to feared by both United and today’s victors from the Kings Road.

Of course Liverpool should not be discounted, especially at this early stage of the season but it seems like they look devoid of ideas and drive without Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres-- the return to fitness of the duo appears to be crucial to their chances.

As for Chelsea they just continue to turn up when it matters, but we’re yet to see how their Italian manager can cope over the course of a whole season, remember you win nothing in November.

Superb Steve Harper Kicks Newcastle's New Era into Top Gear

Nick Howson — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 06:47:07 -0500

An inspired performance from goalkeeper Steve Harper ensured Newcastle United celebrated their new backroom stability by going to the top of the Coca Cola Championship after prevailing in a 1-0 win over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

The 34-year-old seemed intent on impressing his onlooking former teammate Shay Given, with a number of first class reaction saves to deny the Blades a point.

His stop of Darius Henderson’s late header particularly caught the eye, and his showing was yet again the cornerstone of another impressive away win for the Magpies.

The win took Newcastle two points clear at the top of the Championship, news that is sure to excite plenty of fans in the North East—but maybe last weeks announcement about the clubs immediate future should make more of an impact at St James'.

Just a week ago it was announced that Chris Hughton would be appointed full-time manager of the Geordie's, and more importantly that owner Mike Ashley had taken the club off the market and promised to invest in its future.

Ashley had originally put the club up for sale 14 months ago, but a number of failed takeovers by local and foreign investors has led to Ashley taking a new interest in taking the club forward himself, and it’s this sort of stability that the clubs supporters have been craving.

Confusion over the destiny of the club had been widespread since Ashley’s admission that he could no longer run the club, but last weeks announcement means the club can finally move forward off the pitch and concentrate fully on regaining their place in the Premiership.

Newcastle’s performances and results have in fact been a far cry from the chaos that’s been going on behind the scenes, and last night’s triumph was their ninth win in 15 league games.

Given the physiological scar that relegation left on the players, this season’s effort has been truly astonishing especially with a painfully thin squad to work with.

The trio of Marlon Harewood, Danny Simpson, and Zurab Khizanishvili have arrived on short-term deals to bolster the squad, but despite the impressive start the squad still needs more work if promotion is to be assured.

Hughton has to be hugely praised for getting on with his job with limited resources, and with the confusion surrounding his and the clubs future his commitment to the cause means he’s deserved his chance.

Fortunately for the manager, finances may well be available in the near future after Ashley announced that he plans to sell the St James’ Park name to gain further revenue.

In keeping with their frustration during Ashley’s tenure at the club, the supporters have reacted angrily to the move, with the supporters trust starting a petition in a vain attempt to ensure the stadium’s original name is retained.

It seems that no matter what Ashley does at the club, the fans simply won’t back him, and now that Hughton has been appointed as manager full time, it should now delay, if not extinguish, the possibility of Alan Shearer undertaking his second spell in charge of his hometown club—despite the supporters own wishes.

The former England captain displayed huge tactical naivety as manager last season as he took Newcastle down to the Championship and it’s feasible that had Shearer taken over last week, all of the momentum and success created by Hughton would have been lost.

While the North East faithful may never warm up to the ‘cockney mafia’ at St James’, it’s surely results on the pitch that they should be concentrating on—and although we're only in November, it’s doubtful that they’ll be complaining just yet.

Liverpool's EPL Title Challenge Far from Over

Nick Howson — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:47:10 -0400

It’s 45 years since a team from England’s top flight lost four of its opening nine league games and then went on to win the league title.

This stat might be disappointing reading for any other side in this year's Premiership title race, but for Liverpool, who have been turned over no more than four times already this season, history is on their side.

They were the side that endured those four defeats in their first nine games, and the same side that turned around that difficult start by winning the league title by four points from Manchester United.

Yes, the league seasons have shortened since those days in the '60s, and the margin for error then was greater, but it's proof that, even with a terrible start like that of the 1963-64 Liverpool title-winning team, no team should be simultaneously written off as possible title winners.

But, by the same token, maybe there’s a good a reason why it’s been so long.

Liverpool, believe it or not, are only six points off the pace in the league despite those four defeats; as a result, they’re already been all but written off as possible champions this time next May.

In truth, the fixture list has not been kind to the Reds, with three of their defeats coming against teams that finished in the top eight last season.

The fourth came on Saturday, against Steve Bruce’s reinvigorated Sunderland, who are another club feeling the benefit of a generous American owner and an ambitious new manager.

Managerial frailties of both Roy Keane and Ricky Sbragia meant the Black Cats finished just two points above the relegation zone last season, but now, after taking four points off last season's top two, they can firmly set their sights on joining that top eight.

Rafael Benitez could argue his side have now endured the worst of all their away league games and that now their season can properly start.

The thing that for me sets Liverpool above their other title contenders is that they seem to be able to dig out results without their star players—something that is well documented as nothing more than a fallacy.

Last season Chelsea struggled to keep up with the pacesetters after constant injuries and loss of form to Didier Drogba, and then latterly to Joe Cole, who made his first league appearance since January on Saturday at Villa Park.

Manchester United constantly needed to rely on both Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo to win matches last season; in fact, not a single player apart from the pair reached double figures for goals in the league last season.

The reigning champions have already shown a great deal of vulnerability in defence this season and without the host of goals the Portuguese International consistently provided the champions purely rely on Rooney for goals, and it was no coincidence that without him United only stumbled past Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.

Only winger Ryan Giggs looks like creating a spark in Sir Alex Ferguson’s team, and the Scot can’t reply on the 35-year-old to play every game this season let alone to keeping digging his side out of a hole every week.

Liverpool, however, seem to be able to call upon the rest of their squad, albeit thin on the ground, to chip in with goals while their big stars sit on the sidelines.

Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard started just 13 league games together last season, and while it’s perceived that the duo are relied on entirely for Liverpool’s success the reality is far different.

Together they contributed 30 (38 percent) of Liverpool’s goals as they finished second behind United.

However Ronaldo and Rooney, United’s alternative superstars, scored the same amount of goals, but that amounted to 44 percent of the team’s overall effort, while in terms of total starts between them they made just six more than their rivals from Anfield.

The extent of Liverpool’s goal threat was summed up by Dirk Kuyt’s goal effort, as the Dutchman, Liverpool’s third top goal scorer last season with 12, was equal with United’s second top goal scorer, Rooney.

I think it’s a slight myth that Liverpool only perform with Torres and Gerrard in the side; yes, Saturday’s defeat highlighted how much they miss the duo, but I’d debate the defeat was more down to a bizarre change of tactics and bad luck.

In addition, with the amount of defeats last season’s top four have already endured, it’s unlikely we’ll see a team win the title with less than five defeats to their name—the gap between the "top four" and the rest of the league seems to be shrinking with an increasing number of foreign investments littering the league.

Next weekend sees a pivotal game for the Red’s title hopes as they host Manchester United in a match they won last season without their two much talked about stars.

A defeat would see a nine-point gap open up in late October, but writing Benitez’s team out of the title race would still be foolish, to say the least.

England Fail to Stamp Authority As Australia Chase Unlikely Win

Nick Howson — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 17:56:46 -0400

In any form of sport tightening the screw upon your opponents when they’re on their knees is essential if you’re to achieve a positive result, and Andrew Strauss will be ruing this evening how his side wilted in the field when their Ashes opponents Australia looked all but beaten.

Chasing an unlikely 522 to win England allowed the tourists back into a contest they had no right to even partake in, as Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin’s unbeaten 185-run partnership left Australia just 209 runs short of their target, with five wickets remaining.

The failure of Strauss’ side to twist the knife, even when Australia were 128-5 is in stark contrast to the way they punished any Australian slacking in the corresponding series in 2005.

The hosts declared early this morning, refusing to build upon the seemingly unassailable lead they had built on the previous day.

The decision seemed vindicated with the early removal of openers Simon Katich and Phil Hughes, and with a hint of movement in the air England did seem keen to rid of the remainder of the Australian batting line-up, hoping to leave Monday’s fifth day superfluous.

After the terrific dismissal of Marcus North by Graeme Swann the Ashes holders looked forlorn in their mammoth run-chase.

But Clarke scored his first ever Ashes century in this country, and wicket-keeper Brad Haddin continued his awesome form with the bat with an unbeaten 80.

Haddin came into the series with big boots to fill, and while questions will be forever be raised about his ability to fully replace Adam Gilchrist, maybe the 31-year old should start to be appreciated as a player in his own right, rather than live in the shadow of the former great.

Gilchrist infamously struggled on tour in 2005, but the Cowra-born keeper has thrived on these batting friendly wickets while Clarke, who had had a similar fate to that of Gilchrist four years ago, played an innings of class and panache; one that could turn out to be a match winning one.

England’s bowlers, albeit toiling on a perfect surface for batting seemed to lose heart mid-way through the evening session, and it will be up to Andy Flower and Ottis Gibson to lift the side ahead of a series defining day tomorrow.

Not that the team need to motivation for tomorrow's climax, but maybe they need to the belief that these two can be prized from the crease, and with that the match will swung back their way.

Given the skipper’s decision not to enforce the follow-on yesterday the England team will be focused on not letting this opportunity slip through their fingers, but breaking the hold of Haddin and Clarke will be first on the agenda before there’s any thought of ducking and diving the media’s painful words.

Claire Taylor Has the Personality To Win Over Sporting Hearts

Nick Howson — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 13:43:44 -0400

Just three years ago, Claire Connor—at the time the biggest name in women’s Cricket—retired from the sport after an ongoing ankle injury.

Connor had just led England to an Ashes victory in 2005, breaking a 42-year record without a win over Australia.

The all-rounder brought cricket to the forefront of the minds of the nation, but were soon eclipsed later that summer by the men’s team, who regained their own version of the Ashes after a baron 18-year period.

Far too many women sports live in the shadow of their male counterparts, but Connor did her best to increase the popularity of the sport, while her media profile endeared herself to all cricket lovers.

When Connor retired, there was a fear that women’s cricket would again be on the slide, but just like before her there’s a new girl on the block, and her talent alone is already taking the cricket world by storm.

Her name is Claire Taylor and to date she is the only player in women’s cricket history to be named one of Wisden’s five cricketer’s of the year, and it doesn’t end there.

In 2006, after a difficult start in international cricket, she eclipsed Sir Viv Richards’ record one-day score at Lords by scoring 156 and for the next three years preceding that score she was nominated for ICC Women’s World Player of the Year.

Last year she became the joint highest century maker in women’s one-day cricket and in the same year she was ranked No. 1 batsman in the world, a title she still holds today.

This year has been the crowning achievement for Taylor, however, as she was named player of the tournament at a victorious women’s world cup after top scoring in the tournament, averaging just under 65.

At the 20/20 world cup she was again influential in another England win, averaging 46 throughout the tournament.

And finally, she was part of the same team that regained the Ashes on Monday, to complete a third major win of the year for this record-breaking women’s side.

Taylor has been intrinsic to the side’s constant improvement, and her quality with the bat in particular has seen the attentions surrounding her swell.

Her talent was fully on display in the semi-final of the 20/20 world cup as she hit a match winning 76 not out against Australia, a pressure filled innings on the biggest stage of them all.

After winning back the Ashes in 2006 Connor received an OBE for her achievements, while the rest of the side went unnoticed.

The male side however all received MBE’s after their Ashes victory, including Paul Collingwood who appeared in just a single test at The Oval.

Now there’s no doubt that the team wouldn’t have kicked up a fuss about the whole debacle, but many in the media and cricketing world saw it as an unwarranted snub to women’s cricket and women’s sport.

Taylor will be setting her sights, however, on another award however, the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

It’s the time of the year where the contenders start to stake their claim, and even with the men’s side fighting for their own Ashes surely Taylor’s achievements can’t be eclipsed.

Now I’m not here to predict how the rest of our British athletes will get on this year, but to not see Taylor in the final 10 would be yet another deliberate snub to women’s cricket.

I mean, what else does she have to do?

Connor did extremely well to boost the appeal of women’s cricket while she was captain and now three years on support from the ECB is even more extensive, maybe now the coverage and recognition given to their biggest stars will finally be replicated.

Ferguson Forging United a Good Deal

Nick Howson — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 17:45:52 -0400

So with Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo gone, the chasm left in Manchester United’s triple winning Premiership squad is a vast one to say the least.

With the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester City pricing most clubs out of this current transfer market, United have gone about there business in a slightly reserved manner, while still attracting some of Europe’s biggest names.

Antonio Valencia, a player who has been much coveted by Sir Alex Ferguson has been acquired for an estimated £16 million.

Gabriel Obertan has been purchased from Bordeaux for around £4 million.

The most high profile signing however was that of England striker Michael Owen, who joined the club on a free transfer after a four-year spell with Newcastle United.

Despite this triple signing, many United fans and football fanatics across the world would have been expecting United to invest some more of the £80 million from the sale of Ronaldo on new players to replace the Portuguese winger and his Argentine counterpart.

But according to Ferguson; United’s spending spree may well be over, something that has raised eyebrows across the football world.

Filling the void left by Ronaldo and Tevez is a difficulty in itself, and it would have been unrealistic to expect Ferguson to replace them both and still keep the coherent classy team we saw last season.

But in terms of what Ferguson has brought in, it doesn’t seem to come close to what has gone before and with the constant improvement of Liverpool, United fans have a reason to be worried.

The Scotsman admitted himself that United had been priced out of the market for a number of players included Lyon’s Karim Benzema, a player who I personally feel would not have fit into the United set-up anyway.

Maybe Ferguson didn’t want to spend money just for the sake of boosting the squad, especially with the Old Trafford club’s crippling debt.

As a United fan I would appreciate a little bit more honesty from the owners, who put their backing behind Ferguson to spend almost all the money gathered from Ronaldo’s transfer, something I was against from day one.

Maybe keeping back some of the money and easing some of the debt, albeit only slightly, is the logical thing to do especially with prices rocketing in the transfer market, something that for years United has been guilty of doing.

The club is now paying the price for their escapades in previous years, and the result is the signing of three players that are unlikely to strike fear into their Premiership title challengers.

Valencia, after a three-year spell at Wigan, has moved to United after over a year of being tracked by United scouts and on the face of it looks like a direct positional replacement for Ronaldo, but in truth the Ecuadorian is far from the finished product that United fans would want to replace last season’s top scorer.

The Frenchman Obertan is ever further from a potential Premiership star, as a littered career in France meant his transfer was seen as something of a surprise in his home country and his appearances this season are expected to be limited to cup competitions.

And while these two talented midfielders may have been expected to join United, the signing of Owen is at the other end of the scale.

The former Liverpool striker had seen constant injury concerns and a lack of form engulf his attraction in world football, but Ferguson has taken the punt on the England striker.

His recent injury history is a huge concern to every United fan, and with no other players set to join the club along with Owen the workload the he might have to undertake might be a case of too much too soon.

With the sale of Frazier Campbell as well, United is short on strikers, with Danny Welbeck set to play a greater role this season after breaking through to the first team last term.

Don’t think I’ve forgotten Owen’s underlying quality, and despite his injuries when fit he is a quality goal-scorer, and with the like of Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick around him chances will be aplenty.

The move is obviously partly motivated by next summer, and the World Cup in South Africa which Owen will aim to be a part of, and he’s given himself a great chance after joining the Premiership champions.

The free transfer means the risk for United is very little, and given that, it’s a no lose situation, but without another striker on board maybe United are a little short on the ground.

I’ve never been one to question the decisions of Ferguson given his impeccable record in the transfer market and I have faith that he’s called this correctly, and that United won’t be staring down the face of a trophy-less season, and even worse a club on the brink of liquidation.

You only have to look up the M62 to Elland Road to see the results of what misguided transfer money and ongoing debt can do to a club, and United aren’t a far cry from their rivals from Yorkshire.

And at the end of the day isn’t that the most important thing.

Forget the constant success and league titles. The club’s future is the big picture.

With savings and the relative cutbacks United have made in the transfer market this summer, our future can be secured.

Another Ferguson masterstroke? Not half!

How They Play at the Augusta National: Day Four: Holes 5, 6 and 7

Nick Howson — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 15:18:08 -0400

With the 73rd Annual Masters Championship going into it’s final day and with Angel Cabrera and Kenny Perry heading it out in the final pairing we are assured a thrilling final day at Augusta.

This trio of holes is sure to prove pivotal in the leaders plight to win this years title.

As a result on this final day you can expect up to the minute coverage on how the leaders get on, as well as the rest of surge up the leader-board.

Fifth: Magnolia

Par Four- 455 yards

How it plays:

One of the toughest holes on the course comes after a killer fourth, and just when the players thought they could rest they are confronted with a long par four.

This par four 455-yard hole has some abnormally placed bunkers, and unless the players are confident enough to take them on, playing the ball down the left hand side is most favourable.

However the rewards are there for those who are daring enough, with a sure birdie chance to accompany making the green within two.

With the hole consistently changed and lengthened, players have had little time to adapt to the new conditions, and the super quick greens means players had to be weary when trying long puts.

Finding the green however is difficult enough, with deep bunkers all around, not to be found if you’re to get out with less than a four.

Sunday:

Phil Mickelson finds the fairway with his drive, but not the same luck for Tiger Woods, whose driver clearly isn't as straight as his rivals as he finds the ruff stuff.

The lie isn't as bad as first thought for Woods, and rips into the ball but with little reward as he finds the front of the green, and it slips back to the mouth of the putting surface.

Mickelson's lie is excellent, and he plays a stunner, another birdie chance for the former champion as he hits within six feet.

Woods' put look a toughie up hill and a huge right to left but he doesn't strike it leaving 15 feet between the ball and the pin.

Woods' put is inch perfect, but an once too much pace sees it hit the cup and rebound away, but he's able to save his par, Mickelson completes his birdie.

Sixth: Juniper

Par Three-180 yards

How it plays:

The second shortest hole on the course is sure to tempt many into a birdie chance, but with the difficult green it may teach some players to play for an all so important par.

The par three produced is sure to produce some casualties this weekend, but with a make-able green from the tee expect plenty of pars from this short hole.

The sloping green can give players a tough two-putt on some occasions, something we saw plenty of in the early going.

With a bunker running in-front of the green, it tempts players to go long with their tee-shot, but with enough spin and draw on the ball it can leave you with a gimme two.

A hole not to be underestimated, but one that played well can produce a welcome birdie.

Sunday :

Vijay Singh hits a terrific tee shot and that's a gimmie for birdie for the Fijian, that will see him move to four under.

Mickelson finds himself in birdie territory again, and he moved closer to the leaders at -8.

Tiger pars the hole, after overshooting his original putt.

Seventh: Pampas

Par Four- 450 yards

How it plays:

This straight of holes can sometimes be described as the end of the back nine on the entry to Amen corner, due to the difficulty its sure to present to the groups heading out this weekend.

This hole has like the 5th been tinkered with by the organisers and made longer to entice the longer drivers in the field into taking on a narrow fairway.

In-fact the ease at which the hole once used to present actually forced the hand of the course directors, at which Woods and Garcia could be on the edge of the green straight from the tee, with little risk attached.

Now the very narrow fairway makes a front to back tee shot almost impossible, however a few players have attempted the feat.

Like the previous two holes, the stats read that the players are weary of the bunkers, located at the front of the green in this instance, and the short green.

This hole is sure to stop plenty in their stride, and shouldn’t be underestimated, I would go as far to say it’s what the players consider to be one of the toughest on the course, and birdies will be in a minority this week.

I’d say if we see more than 40 this week then the players have done well, , but will conditions be favourable through the rest of the week? Weather forecasts suggest otherwise.

Sunday Latest:

Vijay Singh follows up his birdie at the sixth with one at the seventh, the front pin position could help plenty of the players today, and it's not different for the former World No. 1.

Mickelson is riding on the crest of a wave at the moment, can he do anything wrong? Another birdie and he moves to -9, just two off the lead.

Tiger comes out of these three with another par, he's not keeping pace with his playing partner, but there's plenty of time to go.

Chad Campbell finds the middle of the green with his second shot, hardly reaching the heights of the previous two days.

His birdie putt clips the edge of the hole, and thats a par for the American.

Kenny Perry now leads on his own, and he isn't far behind finding the fairway with a well driven tee shot.

Cabrera is next, and he replicates his playing-partner but a poor bounce finds some difficult ruff.

Perry then plays one of the shots of the day, and it's a certain birdie for the overal leader.

Cabrera, with a difficult lie doesn't quiet have the same luck, finding the edge of the green and seeing the ball trickle back down, it's a tough shot for the Argentine.

Perry unspeakably misses his birdie chance, his lead is still one, elsewhere cabrera looks to have saved par with a testing chip from the head of the green.

Stats After Three Days:

Fifth: Eagles: 0; Birdies: 20; Pars: 170; Bogeys: 48

Sixth: Eagles: 0; Birdies: 23; Pars: 175: Bogeys: 44

Seventh: Eagles: 0 Birdies: 27; Pars: 158 Bogeys: 53

Seven Players to Light Up the Masters: Tiger Woods

Nick Howson — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 08:37:11 -0400

This is the final in the series of seven where I preview the players who could make a massive impact in this years Masters Championship.

As this is the final piece I thought it was only right that I finished with Tiger Woods, a man who has defied belief at Augusta before, and who is of course making his return to Major Competition after an eight-month layoff.

Woods’ return to Augusta will of course bring back memories of how he burst onto the scene of Golf with his record breaking victory in 1997, Woods’ first major title, and his most comprehensive to date.

In Twelve years since that stunning victory Tiger has picked up 13 further major titles, while breaking numerous records along the way including becoming the youngster player to record a career Grand Slam, all before the age of 34, which he turns at the back end of the year.

In terms of Woods’ record at Augusta, he’ll be looking for his fifth title, the his first since 2005, where he overcame Chris DiMarco in a two-way play-off.

Although Woods has failed to pick up a title at Auguta since 2005, he has failed to finish outside the top three on each occasion, with being tied for 22nd his worst performance at this championship since the turn of the Millennium.

So his form in previous years in unquestionable, and his pedigree as the longest holder of the World No. 1 is unmatched, so why is maybe not the clear favourite for this championship?

Well the knee injury he picked up, and played through during the US Open put the player out for the rest of the year, and having only returned this year he has hardly had plenty of time on the course.

But like he so often does, he defied logic by winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational, by one-stroke from Sean O’Hair.

To make the win even more incredible, Woods had a five shot deficit to make up at the beginning of the day, something he completed on the final hold with a mammoth 16-foot putt

In all honestly Tiger is looking as unbeatable as ever, and as his first win of the season showed it doesn’t take long for his form to start to shine, but a victory on Sunday afternoon might end up being his greatest on tour.

Others pieces in this series are:

Seven Players To Light Up The Masters: Padraig Harrington

Nick Howson — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 19:09:07 -0400

This is the sixth of seven pieces about players who are in contention to take away this weeks Master Title, and this edition focuses on the No. 1 player of 2008.

That was three-time major winner Padraig Harrington, who collected two of those majors during last year, with wins at the Open Championship and the PGA Championship.

He goes into the tournament as the form player in the world having collected those two titles at the end of the last year, and is looking in good shape to collect a third Major in a row.

Harrington is a prime example of a player who needed to win his major to start producing his best golf, something the likes of Colin Montgomerie and Sergio Garcia can certainly aspire to.

His Open win in 2007 was by a little bit of luck, after he saw Garcia miss a putt for the Championship, before beating the Spaniard in a four-hole play-off.

His form continued into the following years championship, as he held off competition from Ian Poulter to become the first European in over 100 years to retain the Claret Jug.

These Major wins go alongside what is a gradually improving record at Augusta, with a joint fifth finish following on from his joint seventh finish from the year before, so not only has the Irishman got titles to his name, but he has gradual improvement in other competitions as well.

It’s the first time that we’ll see both him and Tiger Woods battling it out properly since his major win, and for me it couldn’t be closer between the two.

Will Harrington be feeling the pressure?

Well now he’s a three time Major winner certainly not as much, but with Woods in close company he’ll be keen to prove a point.

He’s in an elite band of players who are clear favourites for this title and after what was a disappointing Ryder Cup he has a reputation to re-build with the American audience as well.

Harrington’s improvement has almost been in keeping with what it takes to win at Augusta; a very tight short game, a weapon he can use to his advantage this weekend.

Like with every major tournament you need a bit of luck, but with this Irishman there is plenty of ability to overcome any obstacle, Tiger beware.

Others pieces in this series are:

Liverpool Fail to Put Benitez's Words into Practice

Nick Howson — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 17:41:32 -0400

Football is after all a results business.

At the end of every season, teams are judged how they have done bearing on the results they achieved that year.

However, while most sides and managers alike understand this simple logic, the theory is largely lost upon Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez.

The former Valencia manager, while proving his Liverpool side are a match for Manchester United in the title race has become rather outspoken in the second-half of this season.

This mind-game culture that has largely been introduced by Sir Alex Ferguson was used to unsettle opponents with little spiteful comments, while the team on the pitch put his words into practise with thrilling performances.

Unfortunately, Benitez has yet to grasp that either, as his Liverpool side fail to live up to their manager’s words as they were humbled by Chelsea 3-1 on Wednesday evening, to all but end their interest in the Champions League.

Benitez said in a pre-match press conference that the Manchester United manager was scared of his Liverpool side, and that he would be supporting them in the tie, as he knew they were a bigger threat.

Well it’s unlikely Ferguson would have been quivering in his boots on Wednesday evening, as the Spaniard’s side were overcome by a solid Chelsea side, keen on killing the tie in the first leg.

The same could be said for Benitez the previous evening however as United drew 2-2 with a very forward thinking FC Porto.

The difference between the two however?

Benitez put unnecessary pressure on his side by what he said on Tuesday, meaning his side had to produce to back up their manager's comments, yet they couldn’t quiet pull through.

The manager has an uncanny knack of triggering poor Liverpool performances with his unholy words, as he proved earlier in the year as his side produced a drab performance in a 0-0 draw with Stoke City.

He accused Ferguson, maybe correctly so, that he went unpunished for verbally lambasting referees during matches, as well accusing United of being nervous at the top of the league.

These words, despite some of them being true piled further pressure on his side to perform, and while his team drew with relegation threatened Stoke, United comfortably beat Chelsea 3-0 at Old Trafford.

Now Ferguson as I mentioned before has always delved into mind games with other league managers, most famously with Arsene Wenger, but while the duo would answer each other back with fierce words and equally stunning performances by the respective sides, Benitez can’t bring boast the same resources.

He may never be everyone’s favourite but Ferguson has consistently backed up his controversial words up with titles season after season, and while it’s left to be seen whether Benitez can do the same this season, having already contributed to his side’s exit from Europe he might think twice before his next media eruption.

His side have twice let him down when he’s mouthed off to the media, and maybe this latest outburst and disappointing defeat will make Benitez learn when to keep his mouth closed.

Seven Players To Light Up The Masters: Adam Scott

Nick Howson — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:56:11 -0400

This is the fifth in a series of seven previewing players who could grab this year's Masters by the scruff of the neck and take control this coming weekend.

Today is the turn of Australian Adam Scott, whose rise up the rankings has seen comparisons with the great Aussie players of yesteryear, but the youngster is attempting to make his own name in the game stick out.

Scott's rise came in 2002, when he won the Scottish PGA Championship by a record-breaking 10 shots, just two years after turning pro.

In 2007, however, he secured his best ranking position of third with victory at the Mercedes-Benz Championship.

The man from down-under has in fact secured 15 titles in the last eight years with consistent performances on the PGA Tour.

This week will be a chance to show the golfing world what he can do after a string of disappointing performances at Major Tournaments.

Scott started last year in good form capturing the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters going into the Masters, but finished tied for 25th on Sunday.

Another title followed after the Augusta Tournament but he yet again endured a torrid time at the US Open and then the Open Championship.

The end to his Major season was caped off with a failure to make the cut at the PGA Championship, not the climax to the season Scott had hoped for or deserved.

His best finish at Augusta actually arrived as far back as 2002, when he finish tied for ninth.

Comparisons have already been made with Greg Norman, who has provided his own advice to this talented individual, who typically picks Norman as his all-time golfing hero.

His chances at Augusta rely on his superb natural swing, which seems to mimic the previous technique used by Tiger Woods, as seen here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZecViQxUwss

He certainly wouldn’t be a shock winner, due to the respect he has on the tour, but does he have the technical game to survive all four days? I think he does.

For me he’s the dark horse of the championship, and even thought plenty of focus will be on the American players, Scott has the talent and most importantly the wherewithal to keep up with the home favourites.

Others pieces in this series are:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/149636-seven-players-to-light-up-the-masters-phil-mickelson

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/150374-seven-players-to-light-up-the-masters-ian-poulter

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/150811-seven-players-to-light-up-the-masters-vijay-singh

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/151571-seven-players-to-light-up-the-masters-sergio-garcia

Burton Feel the Pressure as Torquay Close In

Nick Howson — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:04:17 -0400

With the Premiership, Champions League, and International scene sure to dominate the football arena for the next few months, there are sure to be some stories that go under the radar.

None more so than in the Blue Square Premier, which after looking like a forgone conclusion is set to climax with a fascinating race for the single automatic promotion spot, with the prize of the Football League awaiting the winner.

With just five games remaining for the majority of teams, things have started to get interesting after the seeming collapse of runaway leaders Burton Albion.

Ever since the Brewers 1-0 victory over Northwich Victoria at the beginning of November, the club have sat proudly at the top of the Blue Square Premier, and have since extended their lead to as much as 18 points at one stage.

As if things couldn’t get better for the club, the fortunes of their fixtures within the difficult weather conditions were favourable, as they rarely had games postponed, leaving no backlog of matches to play.

Burton’s form did continue until a surprising draw with struggling Woking was the catalyst for just three wins in the clubs next 10 games.

That dreadful run included Monday nights dismal defeat to Torquay United, as Roy McFarland’s men showed that both late season nerves and loss of form can equal a string of dreadful performances.

While Burton have been enduring a loss of form it’s been the emergence of Paul Buckle’s men that have given the runaway leaders the biggest fright.

Unbeaten in their last 10, Buckle has pulled together a squad every bit as strong as last years side that missed out on promotion.

But while they lost the all-so important promotion showdown with Aldershot Town at almost the same stage last season, they have given themselves a chance of catching the table-toppers this time around.

Monday evening’s win leaves an eight-point gap between the two, but with a game in hand for Torquay and the two still meet on the final day, Burton have at best a two-point cushion.

And that cushion is hardly the most stable, with some tough games still in the offing before the showdown on the final day.

A trip to improving Kidderminster Harriers is sandwiched between hosting both Histon, who are deep in the playoff fight, and improving Oxford United, who are set to miss out on a top five place but will still pose a worthy opponent.

The fixture list couldn’t be more difficult for Burton, who will find the going tough without top scorer Greg Pearson who saw a straight red on Monday night for a lunge at Tim Sills.

To rub salt in the wound Shaun Harrad has been on the sidelines for a few games now, and his return hasn’t been pinpointed yet, so goal getting could be an issue for McFarland, whose own job hasn’t been made easy by the quick start made by his predecessor this season.

Although it might be an easy accusation to make, the departure of Nigel Clough to Derby County in early January could well be a factor in Burton’s inability to cross the finishing line.

Clough had built his Burton side over a number of years, and for many football fans around it was disappointing not to see him complete the job he started 11 years ago.

Torquay of course have it all to do to pile the pressure on Burton, with all four of their upcoming games before the match with Burton must wins for the South Devon club.

Their own games to play are far easier than their rivals, with the trip to Stevenage Borough the most difficult game for the Yellows to endure.

Can the comeback be completed though? Well I believe it can.

While Torquay just keep getting better and better, Burton are really feeling the nerves, and I expect the title to still be up for grabs when the two tussle in the final game of the season.

After writing off Torquay for almost the entire year, I feel this is their big chance to grasp promotion back to the Football League, while Burton will be left thinking what if, after the departure of Clough earlier in the season.

So as Manchester United attempt to throw Liverpool off the title scent in the Premiership, there's a title battle that’s proving just as exciting at the other end of the football pyramid.

Manchester United's Youth Policy Coming to Fruition Once Again

Nick Howson — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 11:42:32 -0400

A hallmark of many successful sides under the management of Sir Alex Ferguson is the injection of talented youngsters with a mix of some of the Scot’s classic signings from overseas.

It’s been a constant theme of his title winning sides, and while the memory of the likes of David Beckham and Nicky Butt is starting wear thin, a new breed of youngsters are starting to make the grade in this current trophy chasing side.

Even if the level of ability from that famous 1992 Youth Cup winning side will probably never be matched, this new crop of players are starting to make there own mark on the first team this season, with their emergence in the side quicker than anyone at Old Trafford could have dreamed of.

In terms of players coming through the youth system, the transition of players had largely dried up for the current European Champions.

In recent years it’s been the likes of John O’Shea and Wes Brown who have broken through from the youth ranks as plenty of United fringe youth players venture off to pastures new.

This season however has seen more players given a chance from the youth ranks, and Ferguson begins yet another process of bringing through his gifted youngsters.

Jonny Evans has been one of the players of the season not only for United but in the Premiership, and is sure to be included in the shortlist for Young Football of the Year.

Evans only made his United debut in 2007, and less than two years later he is an ever present in a record breaking United defence.

The Northern Irishman’s impact in the side was capped off with a superb performance at the San Siro as the Champions drew with Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan.

He hasn’t been the only one however.

We’ve seen striker Danny Welbeck’s hard work in the Academy and Reserve sides rewarded this season with his first team debut against Middlesbrough, and a starting place in United’s successful Carling Cup side.

It’s been quiet a season for the England Under-21 International, who attracted the attention of Stuart Pearce in February as he made his debut against Ecuador.

Welbeck has been part of every England side right from the Under 16’s youth team, and is sure to be involved in the full squad in the coming years.

Darron Gibson has finally made his break into the United side having made his debut for the first team in 2005, but his patience in the reserves saw the midfielder start in United midfield for the Carling Cup final.

Danny Simpson had made a credible impact for the team last season, but was dispatched on loan to Blackburn Rovers, something probably down to the return to fitness of club captain Gary Neville.

As for the players that have been brought into the youth set up from abroad and then gone on to the first team, you needn’t look further that the Brazilian twins of Rafael and Fabio Da Silva.

The duo have really made there mark in the first team this season, especially Rafael who when fit is first choice right-back for the Old Trafford club.

His goal against Arsenal in a 2-1 United defeat showed the full-backs flair and attacking process, not unlike similar Brazilian full backs, while Fabio usually billed as a left back, is even more adventurous on the club and international stage.

Fabio captained and top scored for Brazil at the Under-17 World Cup in 2007 and followed up his numerous first team appearances with a hat trick for the reserve side against Rochdale this season.

The Brazilian pair are joined by fellow countryman Rodrigo Possebon, whose impact has been decreased in the second half of the season, but his calming influence on the ball is sure to result in further starts for the central midfielder.

And yesterday we saw the emergence of yet another United youngster, Federico Macheda as he made his first appearance for the club and capped it with a stoppage time winner for United in a 3-2 win over Aston Villa.

This goal is sure to increase the focus on Macheda, who going into the game was a relative unknown after scoring a hat trick for the reserves in mid-week.

But while the focus may well be shifted to the Italian alone, the entire youth set-up at United should be praised, and as critics rave over United’s strength in depth it’s down to that same set up for providing players who could be the difference for the club this season.

When any club is trying to chase the amount of trophies United are, the need of the back up of the reserves and youth squad is vital, and maybe this could be the difference between them and their envious rivals.

Seven Players To Light Up The Masters: Sergio Garcia

Nick Howson — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 07:46:56 -0400

This is the forth in a series of seven players that could dominate the Masters this week at Augusta, and my next player is one of the most feared on the tour, even if he has never picked up a major victory.

I am of course talking about Sergio Garcia, a player some say to be the best on the tour without a major title to his name.

Garcia came closest to breaking that duck in 2007, when he led the Open Championship for so long, and even had a put to win the title, before being beaten in a two-way playoff with Padraig Harrington.

That frustrating finish for Garcia did nothing to halt his confidence, as a joint second place finish, again behind Harrington, showed that he could still perform despite his inability to secure major titles.

However, his records in the majors are truly brilliant, especially for a man with limited success.

In 40 majors, he’s achieved 14 top 10 finishes.

Now maybe that isn’t as good as some of the world’s best, but for a player who endures constant disappointment in these competitions, it’s an excellent return.

Garcia has been part of the World’s top 10 for almost nine straight years, and is constantly one of the star attractions on the European Tour.

He is an ever-present in Europe’s Ryder Cup side, having been selected for the last five tournaments, including in all three of their recent victories

Garcia’s immense drive makes him a feared opponent all over the world, so at Augusta this week, it will be no different.

He's proved he can mix with the world's top players at majors before, and even if his nerves do sometimes get the better of him, you know sooner or later he will fulfil his potential, like Harrington did in 2007 and ever since.

Is he a serious contender this week?

Well his record would suggest it’s the major the Spaniard prefers the least, with a best finish of joint forth, achieved in 2004.

But maybe the European being slightly off the radar might be a good thing.

With most of the attention elsewhere, Garcia might be able to make his strongest challenge yet, and win his first Major title.

Others pieces in this series are:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/149636-seven-players-to-light-up-the-masters-phil-mickelson

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/150374-seven-players-to-light-up-the-masters-ian-poulter

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/150811-seven-players-to-light-up-the-masters-vijay-singh

Brawn Again: Jenson Button Secures Second Win As Malaysia Goes Under

Nick Howson — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 07:14:01 -0400

Jenson Button has won his second Grand Prix in Malaysia after the race was halted after 31 laps due to a massive downpour.

The Brit led when the race was suspended, with the Germans Nick Heidfeld of BMW and Timo Glock of Toyota in second and third.

Due to the early finish of the race, points gained will be halved, but that won’t take anything away from Button who is really laying down a marker during this year's championship.

Even after the race was suspended, there was some confusion over whether it would be re-started, until the time permitted for the race to be concluded was surpassed meant there was no-way the race could continue.

Button’s teammate Rubens Barrichello came in fifth behind Jarno Trulli, as the Brawn GP cars showed that their outstanding pace was yet again the difference, as with the previous race in Australia.

Ferrari yet again endured a difficult weekend, as tyre changes before it started to rain gave neither driver a chance to head up the leader-board, with Felipe Massa finishing at high as ninth.

Two successive races without a single point on the board is sure to worry the Ferrari team, during a race that they were expected to dominate.

Lewis Hamilton will be content with his weekends work, with a seventh place finish in what is still a struggling McLaren car, something which Hekki Kovalainen, who crashed out within the first lap, found out.

The World Champion has made no secret about his feelings about a makeshift car, but two points finishes in a row will bring some optimism, after a week full of controversy.

The Toyota team will be delighted with their weekend with a second podium finish in two races.

But it’s sure to be Button’s victory that will grab the headlines, after Niko Rosberg overtook the Brit before the first corner.

It wasn’t until just soon before the race was stopped that Button re-took the lead surpassing Timo Glock.

Rosberg will be disappointed that he couldn’t lead till the end of the race, but numerous tyre changes re-vamped the entire field producing confusion even when the race had ended as to what were the eventual finishing positions.

Seven Players To Light Up The Masters: Vijay Singh

Nick Howson — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 19:10:35 -0400

In the third part of a seven part series concerning players who could end up winning the elusive Masters Championship next week at Augusta, I'll look at a player who, despite his high profile in the world of golf, is a huge outsider for the tournament.

This player has been out of the spotlight for sometime when it comes to Majors, but the world knows that when he brings his A-game to the course, he can be a threat to the rest of the field.

That player is former World No.1 Vijay Singh, who after a baron spell at Major Championships, could be ready to mount a charge at the first major of this season.

The Fijian has three majors to his name, most recently in 2004 when he won the PGA title from Tiger Woods; one of nine tour titles collected that year by the new world No.1.

Ever since hitting the dizzy heights of No. 1, Singh hasn’t quiet been able to challenge regularly at Major Championships. Although it was nip and tuck between him and Woods for the best part of a year, it was Woods’ victory at the 2005 Masters that eventually set the two apart.

In 2007, Singh missed finishing in the top ten of each major that year. Ever since, his form in the big competitions has subsided.

Why have I considered him a contender?

Well, since a variation to his swing was introduced into his play, Singh has found the winning habit; winning three titles last year, including a crushing five-shot victory at the Deutsche Bank Championship.

Even though the new year has started with a few injuries, he is well on the road to recovery, and is set to take part at Augusta.

A crucial stat to consider is that Singh is a former winner of the Green Jacket this decade, as his win in 2000 came at the expense of Ernie Els, an experience that is sure to be valuable for the Fijian.

Although he must be valued as a rank outsider, due to his recent futility at Majors, it would be naïve to completely write off the three-time major winner.

In a tournament where the world’s best are sometimes left wondering "what if", sometimes it takes a rank outsider to take that title.

With the pressure off Singh, this could be his perfect time to strike.

Seven Players to Light Up the Masters: Ian Poulter

Nick Howson — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 19:43:28 -0400

This is the second in a series of seven players who should be keenly watched during next week's Master Championship, and who could even be wearing the Green jacket by late Sunday afternoon.

Today I take a look at one of the main European contenders in Britain’s Ian Poulter, who if his ability on the course can match his self-confidence off it, he can definitely mix it with the best in the world.

Poulter’s infamous words at the beginning of 2008 have followed him all around the tour, quotes that included comparing himself to the World No. 1 Tiger Woods when the duo are at there best.

The American, of course, went on to win at the US Open last year, and while missing out at both the Open Championship and the USPGA Poulter wasn’t on hand to put his words into practise.

Now maybe I’m being slightly harsh on Poulter here, at the end of the day he one of Europe’s top players, something he proved at last year's Ryder Cup, when as a wild card entry he top scored for Europe with four points.

He also acted as a huge motivator for the visiting team, and someone who really could get up the noses of the American’s, and similar acts of emotion could see him as one of the main forerunners for this year’s title.

Poulter’s pedigree at a competition like this isn’t brilliant with his highest Masters finish being tied for 25th at last years event.

However, it’s his performance at last year's Open Championship that for me adds him to the list of contenders.

He lay down a very credible score and was the clubhouse leader until Padraig Harrington overhauled the Englishman, and completed successive victories at the event.

Poulter’s display last year was one of a player who could perform in a pressure situation, and at the best of times with some of the finest in the world.

Although his comments at the start of the year might have been slightly premature, Poulter has shown he isn’t far off some of the world’s elite.

His Ryder Cup performance showed that he could perform even when the crowd was on his back, skills he will need if he is to succeed next week.

The Augusta galleries are sure never to forget Poulter’s own personal comparison with the great Tiger, but with the World No. 1 returning it could be his chance to prove all the doubters wrong.

Previous Articles in this series include:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/149636-seven-players-to-light-up-the-masters-phil-mickelson

Andy Murray in Danger of Being Undercooked as Sony Semi Final Approaches

Nick Howson — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 08:08:23 -0400

Andy Murray's straight sets victory over Fernando Verdasco on Thursday showed us all how the British No. 1 has come on as a player in such a short space of time, since he last took on the Spaniard at the Australian Open in January.

On that occasion Murray saw a rampaging Verdasco never give up, and come-back from two-sets to one down to win the match and progress to the quarter-finals.

Murray had high hopes for that tournament, after his US Open runner up finish he endured the previous year he was keen to build on his relative success.

Verdasco had hoped to do the same to Murray at this weeks Sony Ericsson Open, where the Brit had plans of leapfrogging Novak Djokovic into third in the ATP World Rankings, by winning this weeks competition in Miami.

Murray however showed his progression as a player, and disposed of an 'injured' Verdasco, dropping just three games en-route to sealing his semi-final birth with Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro.

I say "injured" with inverted commas, because in the last twelve months eight players have withdrawn from a match with Murray due to injury.

This stat does make interesting reading, and for me is tribute to the fear-factor Murray has instil in players all over the tour.

Now Verdasco did continue with the match until the end, but for me he was well beaten before the injury occurred late in the first set.

Now in a tournament taking place over a week, momentum is important and being able to turn up day after day and put in a performance is vital, being underdone can being your undoing, while being too tired can see your performance drop considerably.

My concern is Murray’s time on court has been far shorter than most of his rivals, to the extend he hasn’t had enough match practise to get him through the tournament now we enter the business end.

The longest the Brit has spent on court was in his opening match against another Argentine Juan Monaco.

However 58 minutes were taken up beating Viktor Troicki, dropping just a single game in the fourth round.

Yesterday’s match against his first world class opponent, was expected to go the distance, something we didn’t even see a sniff of as Verdasco pulled off numerous unforced errors to gift Murray the win.

His previous two matches have hardly strained the world number four, and when he goes into his semi-final encounter with Del Potro he could find himself low on match time this week.

Should this pose a real problem against De Potro this evening though? Well Maybe not.

Game time is almost at the other end of the spectrum when you think about Del Potro, who was on court nearly two hours longer than Murray was on Thursday.

Del Potro of course took on Rafael Nadal, and as the final set went into a deciding tie-breaker the new world number five is sure to be feeling it after one of the biggest victories in his career.

Nadal made Del Potro fight for every point and the physical nature of the match is sure to have taken plenty out of Murray’s opponent.

Will he be able to rise again in the semi-final? Or will Murray he halted by the express train that is Del Potro, who is sure to be riding one crest of a wave after his win over the world number one, momentum could be the Brit’s undoing.

With Murray having little court time, maybe this is Del Potro’s chance to seize the moment and reach his first Masters Series final.

Plenty At Stake For England As One Day Series Comes To a Close

Nick Howson — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 21:01:06 -0400

England will go into the one-day international series decider knowing that, even after a strenuous tour of the Caribbean, they can take away with them a glimmer of hope for the future by winning this five match one-day series.

With the series evenly poised at two games each, tomorrows fifth and final match is vital, if England are to take any positives from this most arduous of tours.

Losing the test-series 1-0 has drawn plenty of criticism at home, but the side know that victory tomorrow will shield them from some of those words when they return, just like they were in 2007 after beating Australia in the Commonwealth Bank series, after that humiliating 5-0 white wash in the test series.

In what was a disappointing and controversial series, Andrew Strauss will want his side to do the talking on the pitch, and Friday’s match gives the side a chance to gather some positives for the new coach in waiting, Andy Flower.

Flower has seen his tenure, as temporary England coach, start pretty poorly, but the one day matches have shown England’s progress, in the shorter form of the game has improved over the last 12 months.

There was a time where England couldn’t win a 50-over match , and a radical overhaul of how the side was chosen was called for after a 5-0 demolition by Sri Lanka in 2006.

The side now has a more familiar look to it, with more of the players involved in the test matches incorporate into the shorter version of the game.

The likes of Kevin Pietersen, Andrew Flintoff, Matt Prior, Paul Collingwood, James Anderson and Strauss have consolidated themselves in both test and one-day teams, and this core of players can only help the chemistry of the team.

Areas of improvement for the side include the sometimes naïve batting make-up which at times is forced into uncertain shot selection, as was shown in the third one-day international.

The levelling up of the series seemed to be more down to the embarrassment that came from that defeat more than the poor Cricket from the hosts, Strauss’ personal knock was one of the player who was keen to set the record straight.

The West Indies, while England will be searching for a much needed positive from the tour, have very little to loose as they attempt to complete a test and one-day double to continue what is a thrilling resurgence in international Cricket.

It’s been said Cricket in this part of the world has been turned on it's head due to the test series win and the two wins in this current one day series, with success pleaded for by the home support, who were close to loosing complete faith with the side before this current tour kicked off.

Tomorrow’s match has far more on the line than just the win in the series; it’s what the series win will do for each side as a whole.

For England instilling some belief in a dressing room that has seen little plus points on what Pietersen has called an laborious tour, and one that the entire squad want to end sooner rather than later.

Let’s not forget, while Pietersen has come across very outspoken in the press, he comes with a credible point, being away for up to eleven weeks is one hell of shift for an international sportsman, something that might be worth looking into by the ECB.

With so much at stake, both sides will obviously be keen to win and with Pietersen’s recent comments about the tour and certain members of his opponents, England could be in for an uphill struggle as there painful tour comes to a close.

Seven Players To Light Up The Masters: Phil Mickelson

Nick Howson — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 18:54:59 -0400

With the 73rd annual Master Tournament set to get underway in a weeks time, it seems like the ideal period to look at the contenders for this years title, with the finish guaranteed to be one of the tightest in recent memory.

Over the next seven days leading up to the competition I will be evaluating the main competitors, and who could be wearing the famous Green Jacket come Easter Sunday.

The first player that I’ll be looking at is Phil Mickelson, who is looking for his third Masters title of the decade, and his forth career major.

Mickelson is currently the World No. 2, but now the return of Tiger Woods is threatening to undo all the good work of the left-handed player, whose two titles this year already sees him as one of the form players going into the Championship.

Mickelson’s victories came a full ten months after his previous win in May of last year, and this return to form is part of the reason to take him very seriously in this year's Masters.

Now why is the American worthy of being one of the favourites for the title?

Well his pedigree is one of the best in the field comes from his two previous wins at Augusta and his experience of nearly 16 years on the PGA tour.

The left-handed style is almost unique to the tour, but it could well be his rivalry with Tiger Woods that lights up this years tournament.

Maybe the biggest prize for Mickelson could be him claiming the world No. 1, something that could happen if he assures victory at Augusta.

Woods has held the No. 1 ranking for a record 264 weeks, after last being usurped by Vijay Singh in 2005, preceding the Fijian’s USPGA victory the previous year.

So going into one of the most famous weeks in golf, Mickelson has plenty to fight for, we all know his temperament can take the pressure, but can his status as one of the men to beat be his stepping stone to greatness in 2009.

World Cup Qualifying Progress Report

Nick Howson — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 19:03:28 -0400

With qualification for next summers 2010 World Cup at the half way stage it seems to be the appropriate time to access how qualifying is going, and who is set to grace the tournament in South Africa next year.

Starting with Group One and one of the more tighter looking groups on paper has seen two runaway leaders in Denmark and Hungary extend their lead after Wednesday night matches.

Both sides lead the group with 13 points each, while both Portugal and Sweden lie off the pace with six points along with surprise package Albania who are keeping pace with the European heavyweights.

Portugal and Sweden endured a goalless draw at the weekend to allow the two leaders to extend their lead both converting 3-0 home wins over Albania and strugglers Malta respectively.

Sweden having played just four games are far from out of it, but former Real Madrid boss Carlos Quiroz will have a task on his hands to turn around the fortunes of Portugal in there final five group games.

Group Two sees the top four separated by just four points at the top of the group, something that should produce a thrilling finale to qualifying.

Both Greece and Switzerland find themselves at the top of the group with 13 points while Latvia follow with 10 and Israel with nine.

The top three were all-victorious on Wednesday evening, with Israel going down 2-1 to Greece, Georgios Samaras was the savour for the home team with a late penalty, after the two sides had drawn 1-1 all the previous weekend in Tel Aviv.

Northern Ireland find themselves top of Group Three after picking up six points in there two group games over the last four days, but will wary of both there victors Slovakia and Poland with games in hand for the duo.

The Irish have played seven out of ten groups games already and only lead by a single point from Slovakia, whom they beat on Wednesday evening, and three from Poland who they beat on Saturday.

Slovenia showed they are no push overs either by beating fourth placed Czech Republic in Prague to move to within two points of third placed Poland.

With matches in hand for the chasing teams it will be vital for them to take advantage, with the big match sure to be when the Irish travel to Poland when qualifying gets back underway in September.

Germany are the overwhelming favourites in Group Four after a comfortable victory over Wales in Cardiff.

Michael Ballack gave the away side the early lead before defender Ashley Williams scored an own goal to assure victory in the first half.

Russia will have cause for optimism that they could catch the run away leaders, after grinding out another win, this time over Lichtenstein.

With a game in hand and the two still to meet in the group, Guus Hiddink’s side will live in hope of catching their German counterparts before the end of the qualifying campaign.

Back-to-back wins over Turkey have further strengthened Spain’s position at the top of Group Five, as they continue their 100% record in qualifying after a last gasp Albert Reina goal on Wednesday evening.

The 2-1 win has all but assured Spain a place in South Africa as the European Champions continue on from there success of last summer with six wins in a row in the group.

Bosnia find themselves as the surprise chasing side, and with a four point gap from Turkey they will feel confident they can join Spain in next year’s World Cup, especially after their win over group rivals Belgium on Wednesday.

Another side with a 100 percent record in qualifying is England, who beat Ukraine at Wembley to retain their five-point gap over Croatia, who were 2-0 winners over Andorra.

Croatia’s meeting with Ukraine later in the year is sure to decide who finishes second in the group, as England look to run away with Group Six.

France have bounced right into contention in Group Seven with the help of two goals from Frank Ribery to win both games against Lithuania in the space of four days.

The French has trailed Lithuania by five points going into the double header, but successive wins leave them just two point behind Serbia whose victory at Romania on Saturday looks all the more important.

Giovanni Trapattoni came away from his home country Italy with a credible 1-1 draw for his Republic of Ireland side in the fixture of the week in Group Eight.

Giampaolo Pazzini’s sending off in the opening minutes had left the hosts with an uphill task, before Juventus forward Vincenzo Iaquinta gave the Azure the lead.

Robbie Keane equalized with just a minute remaining, to leave the team separated by just two points, with the sides still to meet at Croke Park before the end of qualifying.

The Republic are sure to be kicking themselves however, after letting a goal slip late on against Bulgaria on Saturday, a result that could have seen the two sides level on points at this stage.

Finally in Group Nine Holland are running away with qualifying with five wins out of five after a crushing 4-0 win over Macedonia.

Scotland are now clear in second after beating Iceland 2-1 at Hampden Park, but as things stand are the weakest of the second placed sides in qualifying, and need to pick up maximum points from there remaining three games if they are to stand any chance of making the play-offs.

So there we have it, a brief run down of how each group is shaping up, and as nothing has been decided yet the coming months are sure to be intriguing as the road to South Africa continues.

Alan Shearer Becomes Newcastle United Manager

Nick Howson — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 19:25:43 -0400

The fairytale story that had at one point looked like a distant dream became reality for Newcastle United fans on Tuesday night, as Alan Shearer was confirmed as the new manager of the North East club.

After constantly furthering himself from the job, the former England captain has finally wilted to the wishes of both Mike Ashley and the ardent Geordie supporters, as "the prodigal son" returns to St James' Park.

Shearer will take charge of the side up until the end of the season at least, as he attempts to guide his team away from a relegation zone they have occupied since their last league defeat at home to Arsenal.

Under the reigns of Chris Hughton, the Magpies had struggled to pick up any sort of points as they edged further toward the bottom three with the former Spurs coach picking up just one win since taking over from the ill Joe Kinnear.

Kinnear had hoped to return as soon as next week, but with Shearer now taking over the team on the pitch, the former Wimbledon manager is expected to become a director at the club in the near future, due to his unpredictable health.

With the club in such a desperate situation, Shearer's introduction will come as a welcome relief for the fans and a boost to a squad that was starting to contemplate next season in the Championship.

Shearer's success with the club is by no means a given, and with his first task being one of the toughest he'll experience as Newcastle manager, we're sure to find out the managerial credentials of the club's record goal-scorer.

In terms of qualifications, Shearer doesn't quite match up with many of his Premiership counterparts, but don't expect that to be an issue in the short term as Gareth Southgate found out when he became manager of Middlesbrough in the summer of 2006.

Boro argued that the defender hadn't had time to complete the sufficient qualifications due to his playing commitments having gone straight into management following his retirement—a situation that Shearer can’t relate to, having retired in the same summer as Southgate nearly three years ago.

With the end of the season in sight, the Premier League Board are expected to allow Shearer the time to get the necessary qualifications while the board will need assurance that by the new season he abides by the rules fully.

Shearer staying on till next season is no given either, with his future sure to be subject to the club's survival.

With Shearer’s nonexistent experience, apart from a short stint as assistant to Glen Roeder at the back end of his time at St James’ Park, is this appointment a crazy one?

My belief is that it will turn the club's fortunes around, in the short term at least.

Shearer’s profile with the club and in football generally is so big that he’s bound to get plenty of support, but considering where the club are, and the pressure on his shoulders, it’s a daunting task.

Newcastle certainly weren’t going to stay up with Hughton at the helm, but with Shearer on board maybe there is a slight glimmer of hope that dreams of surviving relegation can become true.

Jenson Button Gives Ross Brawn His Greatest Victory Yet

Nick Howson — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 05:09:09 -0400

Jenson Button has won the Australian Grand Prix after completing a Brawn GP 1-2 in the opening race of the season.

It was only Button’s second career victory, his first for three years after a long-overdue win in Hungary in 2006.

However, it’s the team headed by Ross Brawn that will get most of the attention, as they completed an amazing 1-2 finish, with Rubens Barrichello finishing behind the Brit. This caps a story that is sure to overshadow the current protests over the diffuser system, used by Brawn car amongst others.

Jarno Trulli finished third after starting from the pit lane, but might could see his podium place taken away from him after surpassing Lewis Hamilton during the final safety car lap at the end of the race.

Hamilton himself drove nobly throughout the race, despite starting at the back of the grid as he saw his attacking strategy pay off, something that could result in an unforeseen six-point reward.

In truth, grid positions were slightly disjointed after the safety car was deployed twice, once when Kazuki Nakajima went off on lap 16, and again three laps from the end when both Sebastian Vettel and Robert Kubica crashed out after striking each other in contention for a podium place.

Both teams seemed to be devastated at the crash, with vital points missed out on, and what BMW claim to be a winning position for Kubica with just three laps to go.

It was a bad day for Ferrari however, who saw both Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa retire early on, to compound a miserable weekend for the team, and a repeat performance of last year's Grand Prix, where both men again failed to finish the race.

Button began the race on pole position and after a solid start to the race he started to open a gap on Vettel, who along with many others had surpassed Barrichello.

The Brazilian’s start left a lot to be desired, but he was soon moving up the field, and he was one of a number of drivers who took advantage later in the race.

The superiority of the Brawn car was obvious to see even at this early stage of the season, and if their main competitors, especially the loaner of the car’s engine McLaren don’t change the fortunes of there own car a different Brit could be topping the podium for the rest of this season.

Contrasting Fortunes for the Home Nations

Nick Howson — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 04:00:34 -0400

The Home Nations hopes of qualifying for the World Cup were further complicated on Saturday as both Wales and Scotland experienced difficult defeats, while Northern Ireland overcame Poland in Belfast.

Wales knew going into the match with Finland that the winner of the qualifier would be the main challenger to both Russia and Germany at the top of Group Four.

Clearly the enormity of the match affected the Welsh side, as they produced a performance full of nerves, and one that wouldn’t have instilled confidence with Manager John Toshack, whose job after this latest defeat is surely in the balance.

Two players based within the British Isles (Jonatan Johansson, formerly of Charlton Athletic, and Shefki Kuqi currently of Crystal Palace) scored the goals just minutes before the end of each half to condemn Wales to a 2-0 defeat, a result that looks set to end there bid to reach South Africa in 2010.

Wales rarely threatened in the match, and must be fearing the worst when they host Germany on Wednesday.

The mid-week game against the Germans could be the final game in charge for Toshack, whose ambitious aim of reaching next summers finals seem to have petered out halfway through the campaign.

The questionable words of striker Craig Bellamy about the quality of opposition that the home side came up against may be called into question, words he imparted during a hostile post match interview.

Scotland’s fortunes weren’t much better, as they travelled to Group leaders Holland, a result that could have been much different had Kenny Miller converted an early chance.

The Rangers forward found himself clean through in the opening minutes, only for a tight angle and a brilliant tackle by Joris Mathijsen denying him getting a shot away.

It was to be one of the few chances the away side would get, as Holland took a strange hold of the group match before half time.

Headers by Jan Klass Huntelaar and Robin Van Persie gave Holland a two-goal advantage before half time, a lead that reflected their opening period dominance.

Scotland’s hope of getting back into the match was made all the more difficult when Gary Caldwell saw his seemingly legitimate header ruled out for a foul, a decision that bemused the visiting supporters and players.

And in the typical cut and thrust style that is International Football, the Dutch went down the other end and forced a penalty when Christophe Berra tripped Huntelaar.

Dirk Kuyt completed the victory, a defeat that will only take its toil if the Scot’s don’t beat Iceland on Wednesday.

Smiles around the British Isles were therefore left for Northern Ireland, who dodged a plucky Poland side to record a 3-2 victory at Windsor Park.

Warren Feeney opened the scoring from close range, after Polish keeper Arthur Boruc had misjudged a deep cross by Chris Brunt, which was headed back by Damien Johnson for Feeney to tap into an empty net.

The home side’s dominance wasn’t fully pressed home however, as Ireneusz Jelen broke the offside trap to fire past a despairing Maik Taylor.

The home side had to wait till the second half to regain there lead when defender Jonney Evans met a Grant McCann corner, and then Boruc’s evening went from bad to worse as he missed kicked a back-pass from Michal Zewlakow, which had travelled fully 25 yards before meeting the Celtic keeper.

Marek Saganowski pulled a goal back 12 minutes before then end, but the goal did nothing to affect the final result, as Windsor Park enjoyed a victory that puts Northern Ireland top of Group Three.

Before the game, there were plenty of concerns about where the goals would come from for the Irish after injuries to Martin Paterson and Kyle Lafferty, and with David Healy severely lacking form and match fitness.

But an indifferent performance by Boruc all but gifted the win for the home team, as they look set to challenge just as strongly for World Cup qualification, as they did for the European Championships, two years ago.

Maybe a bit more Irish luck will see Nigel Worthington’s men reach South Africa, a major tournament that would be the countries first since 1988.

A quick mention for the fourth home nation side England, who cruised to a friendly victory over Slovakia who after yesterday were usurped at the top of Group Three, with a 4-0 win at Wembley.

Goals by Emile Heskey, two by Wayne Rooney and a Frank Lampard striker ensured the win, ahead of the visit of Ukraine on Wednesday.

Injuries to a host of strikers, including Heskey tarnished the victory, which highlighted Slovakia’s lightweight nature as much as England’s improvement under Italian manager Fabio Capello.

Formula One 2009 Season Preview

Nick Howson — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 09:43:37 -0400

With the drama of last season's drivers championship still very much fresh in the memory, you would fooled into thinking this year's Formula One season could never live up to the previous season.

With various rules changes concentrating on livening up the sport, and the introduction on a new team or two, this new Formula One season could prove to be one of the most exciting in living memory.

It's not like the sport needed this radical overhaul though was it?

With the Championship being decided on the second to last corner of the final Grand Prix the sport was hardly in the need of an influx of excitement.

We've had three different champions in the past three years, and with the emergence of the BMW and Williams teams, who were gradually starting to catch up with their Ferrari and McLaren rivals, we had an exciting drivers championship.

This season sees the competition between every team become slightly more interesting, with several changes to the normal format.

With Bernie Eccleston's cost cutting solutions each team will have slightly smaller resources, which are set to boost reliability.

One of the more interesting changes are that information about tire and fuel changes are set to be shared throughout all teams, so everyone has the same information.

On the technical side plenty has been done to develop the sport with the most important being the introduction of KERS or Kinetic Energy Support System.

Basically the system is in place to store any lost energy built up by breaking and then for it to be used at any given time to give the car a slight boost during a race.

Not every team has gone for the idea, and it's unlikely to be used in every race as the teams get used to the new innovation.

The new look of the cars also changes the performance with overtaking set to become easier, and with slick tyres set to re-introduced it's sure to lead to faster laps and a more exciting season on the track.

A track that will no longer see the name of Honda after the team decided to pull out of racing altogether, only for Ross Brawn to come in with an 11th hour bid to save the team.

Brawn GP will bring a new edge to the season, and with a new car and team Jenson Button is sure to be keen to show what he can do.

Unreliability has hindered the progress of the Brit, who is starting to live in the ever-growing shadow of Lewis Hamilton, maybe this is his season to shine at last?

If there was ever a time to usurp Hamilton as the main man in Formula 1 it would be this season, with his team McLaren already admitting they are well off the pace at the beginning of the new season.

This will bring new vigour to his rivals, but with the new point system changed back to the original system Hamilton has been given time to reignite his title challenge.

Days before the new season was due to start a new system of attaining the winner of the drivers championship was decided, in which the driver with the most wins would take the title, only for it to be scrapped days later.

The change of decision didn't reflect on the Formula 1 too well, as confusion reined as too why the decision was made to change it in the first place, don't change what isn’t broke was the message from the drivers.

Ferrari are sure to want to regain there drivers champions crown, with Felipe Massa agonisingly missing out last year he will be keen to prove a point.

Picking a winner of this season’s drivers championship, is a task not many journalists have warmed to, but unlike any jolly fence sitter I’m going to pick out a few men who might make a break for it this season

The first of which is two-time champion Fernando Alonso, whose form at the back end of last season made plenty sit up and take notice.

His resurgence to form coincided with the car reliability issues, which resolved itself in the final third of the championship, too late for a title serge but enough time to remind the rest of the field he is still a force to be reckoned with.

The second if BMW’s Robert Kubica, who might be short with the media but his effort on the track do much of the talking.

After recording his first win in Canada last year Kubica showed the driving world his natural talent behind the wheel, and plenty of top eight finishes followed.

For me both these guys are contenders for the title, along with Massa of course who undoubtedly has plenty to make up for after last season disappointment.

For me these three have the quality to fight for the title all the way. Now you may ask why am I neglecting the world champion?

Well simply because of the time it may well take for the team to adapt to the new rules, it might be too late in the title race for the Brit to have any impact, but we will see.

It won't always read Hamilton-Massa on the front row, and Nakajima and Barricello on the 10th, things are sure to switch around in 2009.

Excitement and Formula One are terms never far apart, and this season especially things are bound to be close.

Ledley King's Selection Doesn't Fit with Capello's Long-Term Strategy

Nick Howson — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 15:24:52 -0400

Fabio Capello has made the biggest shock of his tenure as England manager by selecting Tottenham Hotspur captain Ledley King in his latest squad for the friendly against Slovakia and World Cup Qualifier against Ukraine.

King has consistently been hampered by injury problems, mainly to a troublesome knee has which has time and time again ruled King out of crucial league and cup games while at Spurs, but King has some how overcome all those troubles to take his place in this current England squad.

King has had his fair share of international experience, replacing an injured John Terry in the side as England were overcome 2-1 in their opening group game against France in Euro 2004.

His performance in that game and in the previous season had established King as one of the country's top defenders ahead of the likes of Jonathan Woodgate and Matthew Upson.

However a crucial injury came in April of 2006 as the centre-back fractured his foot, a setback that kept him out of that year's World Cup tournament. From then on injuries have disrupted the defenders progress, which has seen him slip down the pecking order for the international team.

The last two seasons have seen King in and out of the Tottenham starting eleven, playing barely half of the sides games every season, climaxing in the player being rested for the remainder of last season to rest the persistent injury.

King's plight was confirmed soon after the appointment of Harry Redknapp, when the new manager admitted King couldn't last the pace of an entire Premiership season.

"There's no cure. There's no cartilage, nothing to operate on. It's just bone on bone. So it's just a question of managing it. It swells up after games and it normally takes seven days to recover. He rarely trains, he mostly just goes to the gym to keep himself ticking over. But not running or anything like that.

"But even if he only plays 20 games a season, he's worth having because he's so good we have a much better chance of winning."

And now after continuous injury problems, King has found himself included in Fabio Capello's most recent England squad having played less than half of his team's games this season.

The inclusion has raised eyebrows across the football world, non-more so than King's manager Redknapp, who would have preferred the Spurs skipper could be left to focus on his club career.

Such views that have not been followed by Capello, who has shown that Premiership managers will not sway his personal selection, unlike his predecessors. The defender's inclusion also creates the question of whether the Spurs player could contend with an international tournament.

With so many games in such a short space of time, King in his current state would surely only be able to manage one if any in such a short space of time.

And with the selection of Ben Foster in one of the three goalkeeping positions Capello is clearly looking to the future, which surely King isn't part of if his injury problems continue, something that has seen sign of letting up.

The consistent trend of looking to the future has been commendable by Capello, but this latest inclusion surely defies all of that previous work.

How King can be looked upon as the future of England is pretty far-fetched, and even at the tender age of 28 his inability to play more than a game per week and his problems with contact training doesn't help his cause either.

Fair play to Capello, he has diversified with his selection, and everyone has been given a fair go but what has the likes of Phil Jagielka done wrong not to warrant a third cap?

King's performances have never been called into question and when fit he is one of the best players in his position, but that is far too infrequent, and surely too sporadic, to deserve international recognition.

West Indian Cricket Tarnished Once Again

Nick Howson — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 08:26:45 -0400

West Indian Cricket was thrown into turmoil once again last night, as farcical circumstances resulted in them losing the first one-day international against England in Guyana.

Bad light seemed to have cut short the game with just three overs remaining, and with the Duckworth Lewis System set to be introduced because of the postponement of play, John Dyson, the West Indian coach waved the side in, when in fact they were still behind the required par score.

Dyson hadn't taken into account the seventh wicket to fall, taken by Stuart Broad just before the batsman were offered the light, meaning the team were behind the required score and in danger of losing the match.

The coach called the batsman at the crease in, believing his side had won the match, only to discover his awful error moments later.

This is just one in a number of dreadful mistakes that West Indian Cricket have made during England's tour to the country, issues that everyone should have seen coming.

The writing was on the wall for me at the Cricket World Cup staged in 2007 by the West Indies.

The tournament was littered with one-sided matches, albeit not exclusive to that particular tournament, slow pitches and small crowds.

The organisers clearly hadn't taken advantage of what should have been a showpiece event, and circumstances weren't helped by the eventual result of the final, which Australia won after some ridiculous umpiring decisions.

Bad light had halted play, and with Sri Lanka behind the required Duckworth Lewis score, Australia should have been declared the winners.

The umpires then told the players the final three overs must be bowled, cutting short the Australian celebrations.

The final 18 balls were bowled in almost total darkness, while Adam Gilchrist’s brilliant knock of 149 prevailed into insignificance.

An awful ending to what had been a pretty forgettable tournament did nothing to re-vitalise West Indian Cricket, definitely a missed opportunity for the West Indies Cricket Board.

With England touring this summer it was a chance for the team on the pitch to continue the re-building process, but yet again it was off the pitch where the questions were being asked.

The first test produced four days of woeful Cricket, while the fifth day gave us some sort of excitement with England being bowled out for just 51 as the home side won the first test.

The rest of the series produced flat pitches and plenty of run as all four remaining tests ended in a draw, with of course that infamous no-result in the second test.

It was that test that brought the most controversy, as the match at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium was abandoned after 10 balls were bowled.

The debate is still raging on how the match was allowed to be started, and how a host of concerns before the match begun were not considered by the Antiguan Cricket Board.

With the remainder of the series resulting in a draw, the West Indies did win the series, and clearly showed the side had developed on the pitch, while off it, it had been a pretty dreadful period.

With the one-day series starting yesterday, it was a chance for the controversies of the test series to be forgotten, but the first one-day game was jam packed with further problems.

Guyana gave us another painfully slow pitch and another reminder of how the traditional West Indian pitches of yesterday are nothing more than a memory.

The ending was in keeping with the pace of the match, a the West Indian batsman shamefully played for the light, showing very little ambition with the game very much within their reach within the permitted time.

They waited to be offered the light and with the coaching staff beckoning the batsman in, they began the celebrations.

With the way the whole team went about the match, I have very little sympathy for how it all worked out, maybe the whole side might learn from this disappointing defeat.

Hosting England was meant to be another way that the West Indies could re-assert themselves on the world cricket stage, and with all due respect, the team have taken some giant steps forward, but off the pitch, the problems still remain.

We always hear the critical words from the legends of West Indies Cricket, such as Richards and Clive Lloyd, but maybe its time these individuals had more of a say on how Cricket is run in this country.

Serious questions have to be asked about the state of Cricket in this country, and if the events of yesterday are anything to go by, there’s plenty of hard work to do.

The Relegation Battle: The Lowdown and Prediction

Nick Howson — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 15:52:06 -0400

With just 10 games remaining in the Premiership season it seems the perfect time to access the ongoing relegation battle. As Manchester United roar away with the title at the top end of the table this season, team such as Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United, two sides who have has their own battles with United in the past, scrap for survival. Newly promoted sides Stoke City and West Brom are fighting at the wrong end, while Gareth Southgate’s Middlesbrough and Paul Hart’s Portsmouth make up the six fighting in the bottom half. Hull City, Sunderland and Tottenham Hotsphur all look to have survived this season at least, as the bottom six now battle it out for those three relegation spots. Not since the Premiership season of 2004/2005 has a relegation battle looked so intriguing in England's top flight. That particular season West Bromich Albion made the great escape on the final day with victory over Portsmouth, as Southampton, Norwich City and Crystal Palace dropped down to the Championship. Four years on and not much has changed.

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Cheltenham Town on the Brink as Administration Looms Large

Nick Howson — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 16:35:01 -0500

Martin Allen's career as a manager has been littered with success and failure.

While at his first club, Barnet, he took the side to the top of the league within the first year, after bringing together a squad on nothing more than a shoestring budget.

However, Allen's ambition got the better of him. While Barnet lay in a promising position in the Conference, he left for Second Division Brentford.

Now Allen's success at Barnet may well have warranted the move to the football league club, but many Barnet fans would agree the club would surely have completed promotion in the 2003-2004 season had Allen stayed until the end.

Barnet crashed out to Shrewsbury Town in the playoffs that season, as Allen saved the Bees from relegation in the last remaining months of the season.

He did not stop there however. In his next two seasons, Allen turned the relegation candidates into promotion contenders with successive playoff finishes.

Although he was denied by first Sheffield Wednesday and then Swansea City, he had clearly taken Brentford on as a team. A success that climaxed with him knocking Sunderland out of the FA Cup in the fourth round.

Allen's ambition swelled further, and targeted extra funds to finalize that crucial promotion push.

However, his ambition could not be matched by the clubs board, and he tendered his resignation at the end of the 2005-2006 season.

Allen then found a club, whose financial ambition could match his own on the pitch, Pete Winkleman's Milton Keynes Dons.

He reached the playoffs for the third time in his managerial career, but was yet again denied at the semi-final stage after loosing to Shrewsbury Town.

Leicester City soon came calling for the impressive Allen, who despite his inability to produce instant promotion, could guarantee stability to any club.

However, Allen came across trigger-happy Milan Mandaric and started a nightmare at the Walkers Stadium, which lasted just four games.

Arguments over potential transfers involving Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Derek Riordan fueled speculation that Allen was set to leave the Championship Club.

After taking a year out of the game Allen joined League One Cheltenham Town, but unlike at previous clubs he has not been able to turn the clubs fortunes around.

Cheltenham struggled last season, and staved off relegation on the final day of the season.

Allen has not had much luck stemming the flow this season. The club lie twelve points from safety, routed to the bottom of League One.

As if Cheltenham's plight could not get worse, the club have entered huge financial difficulties, and look set to enter administration anytime soon.

The problem is if the club does not concede the inevitable and enter administration before March 10, the standard 10 point deduction that would normally be enforced this season would be in place for next season. This would leave the club with a huge uphill struggle and on the brink of successive relegation.

Now the club have insisted that administration would be the final straw and a point that they do not want to get, without admitting that it is a distinct possibility.

To add to the situation, Allen was told that to cut costs players are free to leave the club.

Lloyd Owusu has already gone to Brighton with a host of players expected to leave before the end of the week.

It is important that the clubs biggest asset, Allen, does not follow suit.

His departure after what is sure to be certain relegation this season would be dreadful for the club, and administration would make their start in league two execrable.

Would the former Barnet manager cling on to Cheltenham and help them challenge in League Two?

Or would the ambition that has followed the eccentric manager continue as he looks to further his football league career?

Allen has not hesitated from leaving clubs whatever extreme the club was in. He would not defer from moving on from Cheltenham.

Allen's up and down career has taken him all around the football pyramid. But would this impending relegation be too much of a step down for 'Mad Dog'?

Dean Saunders Triggering the Wrexham Revival

Nick Howson — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 10:48:03 -0500

It’s 11:30 a.m. on the 27th of September and Wrexham fans are waking up on the eve of the club's vital league game against Torquay United.

The day is filled with hope, expectation, and amongst anything else, nerves.

The club are taking on the Blue Square Premier’s in-form club, and another former football league club side.

The duo’s profile almost suggests they are both lost within the maze that is the football pyramid.

The season hadn’t started ideally for the newly relegated club.

Manager Brian Little had guided the club to four wins in their opening 11 games, but defeats at the likes of York City and Grays Athletic had overshadowed what had been a solid if not spectacular start for the robins.

Today’s home game with Torquay United was another chance for Little’s side to prove themselves against one of the promotion favourites.

The Gulls went into the game off the back of five successive wins, and were in the middle of what turned out to be the club's longest-ever unbeaten run.

With the fans mulling around the famous Racecourse Ground, news filtered through that Little, after 32 games in charge, had been relinquished of his position, by the infamous "mutual consent."

Now no one could doubt Little hadn’t had the best of times at Wrexham, he’d only won just seven games since his arrival.

The fans had started to turn on the former Aston Villa man and his negative style of football, so although the fans got what they wanted with his departure, the timing of just a few hours before a game wasn’t the best way of going about the sacking.

But the club moved on, and after drawing 1-1 with Torquay, the club appointed former Derby and Nottingham Forest Striker Dean Saunders as the new manager.

The fans knew that after last season’s relegation, automatic promotion wasn’t realistic, as the club needed radical rebuilding.

But the non-league specialist squad that Brian Little assembled during his tenure, working in the Welshman’s favour and soon Saunders started to get the best out of his squad.

Saunders’s impact has been immediate, and after three wins in a row, which included a win at fellow relegated Mansfield, they followed it up with a win at Stevenage Borough, a sign that Saunders could perform at this level.

However, after a number of postponed games over the festive period, and a win over runaway leaders Burton Albion, Wrexham have got it all to do in the promotion race.

They lie in fifth in the league, level on points with Torquay and just a point behind the teams who occupy the playoff places, Stevenage and Cambridge United.

Saunders knows he has a huge task to take the robins into the football league, but with plenty of games to go, and games in hand, their fortunes are in their own hands.

With the pressure now on to produce at the other end of the table, will the former Welsh striker come through for Wrexham?