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November 2006 Archives

Chops is tops

Posted by Andy Rose on November 29, 2006 2:54 PM

Debate will always rage over who is the best player outside the Premiership on any given day, week, or season.

For my money, it's Michael Chopra of Cardiff City who, up until recently, looked a class apart from any other player he was sharing the park with.

Sadly he seems to have gone off the boil in the past couple of games and he is missing chances he would have taken with his eyes shut not so long ago.

Four games without a goal is hardly a disaster for any striker (just ask Craig Bellamy) but for Chopra it represents a lean spell of famine proportions.

The Bluebirds may not be a one man show but their recent results have mirrored the off colour form of their star man.

So here's hoping player and club make a swift and full recovery.

Don't Bale out Saints

Posted by Andy Rose on November 22, 2006 5:06 PM

The problem I have with managers and chairman who constantly protest that they will not be cashing in on their star player is that invariably that is exactly what they end up doing.

But I sincerely hope that is not the case with Wales and Southampton starlet Gareth Bale.

He may be only just 17 but Bale is destined for the big time, no question.

Which it is why it is more important than ever that he stays put at Southampton for the time being and doesn't follow former roommate Theo Walcott to Arsenal, Liverpool or one of the other Premiership clubs said to be ready to splash the cash.

To a certain extent teams outside the top flight are damned if they do and damned if they don't.

They desperately need the money a player such as Bale can generate but equally they desperately need a player such as Bale to help them mount a credible promotion push.

Bale needs to learn his trade and Saints boss Geirge Burley has one of the best reputations in the game for helping young talent to blossom.

Staying with Burley will help Bale which will also help Wales.

Come on Gareth, your country needs you to stay put.

Atkins diet

Posted by Andy Rose on November 21, 2006 7:13 PM

I've never been a fan of Ian Atkins and his management style, that is until now.

Will it catch on? I doubt it.

Actions speak louder than words

Posted by Andy Rose on November 11, 2006 6:52 PM

What a pity that Saturday's FA Cup tie between Newport County and Swansea City will now only be remembered for the moron that knocked out fourth official Alan Sheffield with a coin.

County manager Peter Beadle didn't want that, or his own sending off moments earlier, to overshadow a decent all Welsh cup tie and his side's stirling second half performance

Sorry Peter but you and the idiot that threw the coin should have thought about that first.

Auntie has spoken

Posted by Andy Rose on November 10, 2006 4:12 PM

For anyone, like me, wondering why Saturday's all Welsh FA Cup tie between Newport County and Swansea City is not being televised it is over to Match of the Day editor Paul Armstrong for an explanation

Newport v Swansea is at 1pm on Saturday on police advice. Neither we nor BBC Wales can show it live in that slot; our agreed 1st and 2nd round slot is Sunday early afternoon. To be honest, we were going to pick Weymouth anyway
.

Apparently Auntie believes Weymouth have a better chance of beating Bury than County have of toppling Swansea.

Hey, don't shoot the messenger!

Suspicious minds

Posted by Andy Rose on November 9, 2006 11:40 AM

If Everton's James McFadden really did call referee Graham Poll a cheat then he clearly deserved his red card against Arsenal.

The player denies it but clearly he said something which in Poll's eyes warranted a sending off.

Too many players get away with berating officials and the drip down effect means verbal and physical assaults on referees are on the rise on public parks across the UK at weekends.

If true, Poll should be applauded for standing up for his fellow men in black.

Mind you, the idea that referees can and do cheat shouldn't be discounted altogther.

We're not hearing you

Posted by Andy Rose on November 7, 2006 5:14 PM

What a pity football's disciplinary procedures cannot be as transparent or practical as those in rugby league.

There, players can be cited for something the referee may or may not have seen during a game while the hearings themselves - at least those in Australia - can be as entertaining as Willie Mason's was this week.

Cardiff City boss Dave Jones pre-empted his appeal over Stephen McPhail's red card at the weekend by moaning that the FAW never seem to cut him or the club any slack when their appeals are heard in private.

Bluff or not, maybe if all hearings were as open as the Aussie version then we could all decide whether or not Jones has a point.


This page contains an archive of all entries posted to Rattling the bar in the November 2006. They are listed from oldest to newest.

October 2006 is the previous archive.December 2006 is the next archive.

Many more can be found on the home page or by looking through the archives.