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Thread | Brentford 3 - Liverpool 3
at 19:40 25 Sep 2021
Outstandingly entertaining game of the season so far in the Premier League. I’ve been watching the Ryder Cup but keeping an eye on the score, and I swapped over to watch the last 15 minutes. Brentford really took it to the scousers and could have won at the end. I’ll get no plaudits here for bigging up Brentford, but it’s clear to see that they have effortlessly settled in to life in the top tier. They look very impressive. They were the best team in the Championship last season and that is now evident from their 9th position in the league compared to Champions Norwich’s bottom of the table position.
Ivan Toney is a class striker and Thomas Frank is an excellent manager. They’re the best team to go up since…………Swansea in 2011. Well perhaps Leeds United might disagree with that.
[Post edited 25 Sep 2021 19:42]
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Thread | Crushing indictment of this season’s Championship
at 10:10 2 Mar 2021
Here’s an excerpt of the article from yesterday’s Telegraph Sport. Can’t really argue with it.
“Norwich prosper from rare moments of quality in a threadbare league
Farke’s team are a bright spot in a mediocre Championship hit by a punishing schedule, a lack of spending and empty grounds
This season’s Championship has a quality problem. In any sane reimagining of football, the second tier would be to the Premier League what American college football is to the NFL, a looser form of the game which some prefer to watch despite its inferior
This season it has been mostly formless slop; a punishing schedule of games between mediocre teams on eroding pitches played to an audience of plastic seats — watching it has felt like a chore.
The numbers support what your eyes will have told you if you have sat through a handful of games. Before this weekend, the average Championship game featured 22.2 shots, with 7.2 on target. In the four previous seasons, the averages were 25.2 and 8.2 respectively. Goals per game and passing stats are also down.
Norwich City are a rare bright spot in a dreary league. Not the division’s highest scorers (Brentford), nor its meanest defence (Swansea) they are unarguably its best team. An immediate return to the top tier beckons....”
It then continues with a report of Wycombe 0 Norwich 2 [Post edited 2 Mar 2021 10:13]
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Thread | Today is an historic milestone for the game of football
at 11:59 18 Jan 2021
Today is a historic anniversary for football fans and especially for footballers themselves! Today the football profession should toast the diamond anniversary of the day the Professional Footballers’ Association under the stewardship of its leader Jimmy Hill, after a steadfast, shrewdly fought campaign, defeated the Football League and won overdue reform of the terms of its employment. I repeat here bits of an article in Telegraph Sport:
“What Hill achieved was a revolution, but there had been earlier rebellions, ruthlessly suppressed. In 1950, Manchester United’s Charlie Mitten and Stoke City’s George Mountford and Neil Franklin, the England centre-half, went to “El Dorado”, the renegade Colombia league, at the end of their contracts. The federation had left Fifa, which allowed it to operate beyond its grasp, and offered players who had lost their peak years to the war, indentured on £12 a week, five-figure signing-on fees and four times their Football League salaries.
For men who had played through the post-war attendance boom and noted that record gate receipts and increased royalties from the pools companies were not trickling down, their decisions were justifiable. But when Colombia hung them out to dry by rejoining the “Fifa family”, they went home to be shunned, banned and sold.”
Jimmy Hill was an industrious Fulham inside-forward, nicknamed “the Rabbi” by one Craven Cottage wag because of a rare, beatnik beard, (- he’d have fitted in well today!) was elected chairman of the PFA in 1957. Within a couple of months, he outlined his members’ case to the 92 clubs for the abolition of the maximum wage, a League-wide agreement that had been in place since 1901 and a concept that operated only in England.
“He also pressed for reform of the retain-and-transfer shackles that allowed a club to keep hold of a player’s registration indefinitely after the expiration of his contract, with no obligation to pay him should they choose not to sell.
The League strung the players along for three years, thinking it had the upper hand, that it was easier for 92 to remain united than Hill’s 3,000 members.
He pointed out the absurdity of their lot in March 1960 when Denis Law was transferred from Huddersfield to Manchester City for £53,000. The player was limited to a £20 signing-on fee, £20 a week during the season and £17 in the summer.
Little wonder that John Charles, the best player in Britain, had already left for Juventus and £70 a week plus bonuses, an apartment and a car — and Jimmy Greaves was inviting similar approaches from Italy. In November 1960, the Football League offered the bait of an extra £10 a week on the maximum, but Hill argued for the involvement of the government conciliation specialist to arbitrate the dispute and he skilfully held his members “
I particularly like this retort to those who would question player’s earnings — granted they’ve gone a bit excessive since those days:
“… Tommy Banks, the Bolton and England left-back, made a tellingly pithy contribution to the Northern Area meeting when a lower-league player questioned why footballers deserved to earn twice as much as his father, a miner.
“If thi father wants to know why we want more brass,” Banks said, “tell him to come and play against Brother Matthews in front of 30,000 fans. That’s why we want more money.”
The League folded under the threat of strike action, abolished the £20 ceiling and a truce was hammered out at the Ministry of Labour, one that the clubs tried to renege on before and after it was implemented. It took the case of Eastham v Newcastle United in 1964 to award players greater rights at the end of their contracts.
Hill’s victory has been portrayed as a Pandora’s box moment for the game, blamed for the decadence of the past decade. It was nothing of the sort. It was a triumph of fairness over feudalism.”
A real eye-opener!
[Post edited 19 Jan 2021 9:50]
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Thread | Appalling officiating in the Premier League
at 23:17 27 Dec 2020
God knows we suffered from it in our time in the top tier, but it was usually Big Six syndrome - “any 50-50 decision will always be given to the Big Six club”.
But today Burnley were robbed blind by two of the most appalling refereeing decisions you’d ever see. This time though there was no Big Six involvement, it was Leeds United who were the beneficiaries. Bamford’s penalty which ultimately won the match, was bad enough - it was a perfectly valid tackle - but the decision at the other end when despite the Leeds goalkeeper sticking his knee into the Burnley forward, a perfectly good goal is scored by Burnley and is disallowed as the referee rules that it was the goalkeeper who had been fouled. If it wasn’t a goal it was definitely a penalty. What it definitely wasn’t is a Leeds free-kick. Disgraceful decision.
How can decisions like that stand when they can consult a tv replay to check if they’ve made the right decision? There is no excuse for those mistakes in the age of VAR. Dyche had every right to be incandescent which he was. In their position, Burnley do not need such refereeing incompetence. [Post edited 27 Dec 2020 23:23]
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Thread | BBC Sport
at 22:55 21 Mar 2020
I’ve just sent this to the BBC:
“ Just watching the replacement program for Match of the Day. Excruciating.
Can we have ‘Mrs Brown’s Boys’ back?
Is this the best you can do? Really?”
They really are a shambles. |
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Thread | Swans at Fulham
at 20:45 26 Feb 2020
Half time thoughts:
Well I suppose we’re doing all right so far, but it’s horrible to watch - frantic, disjointed kick and rush. Where’s our passing game? We literally cannot string 2 or 3 passes together. Nobody seems able to get the ball down and build an attack along the floor. Desperately poor football. Fulham are only slightly more creative, but there again they are at home.
The SwansTV commentators reckon “Swans have done everything but score.” Eh? I’d just like to see us play some football. |
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Thread | Planet Swans on an iPad
at 09:48 28 Oct 2018
This is not a moan but a request for information. I am finding it impossible to use Planet Swans on my iPad (I'm typing this on my desktop computer). The page constantly refreshes "There was a problem with the page so it was reloaded" and if you happen to be typing a reply or a new post or whatever, you will lose it. When browsing a thread, it just locks after you have browsed so far and refuses to show any more text. I have to close down the website and restart it. Even when it is allowing you to browse it is pitifully slow to page.
I'm conscious of the problems with memory and storage on iPads but I do not have these problems with any other website, not even Facebook which is an incredibly busy website - lots of advertising. Anybody out there suffering the same? |
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Thread | Planet Swans on an iPad
at 22:29 23 Oct 2018
Apologies to jack2jack for not getting back to you. I tried to send the following message but Planet Swans is unusable on an iPad - it locks and freezes. I was unable to respond to your question. This what I tried to send:
"I watched a stream on my tv via my android tv box. IFollow streams are an option on my IPTV menus and I don't see a url. Terrible stream though Just look for iFollow Rovers or iFollow EFL06. "
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Thread | The trouble with Harry......and Delli, and Marcus .....and Wayne
at 22:02 8 Sep 2017
"it is late in the evening. You’re in a bar. You’ve had quite a bit to drink but you are conversing with the fragrant young lady you found hanging around in there. You find her quite attractive and are possibly keen for things to proceed. What should you say to her, to speed things along? Wayne Rooney’s contribution is unbeat-able: ‘Are those tits real?’ That’s certainly the gambit I would go with if I ever find myself in a similar situation with, say, Princess Michael of Kent or Shami Chakrabarti. Wayne said it to ‘party girl’ Laura Simpson shortly before he got charged with drink-driving. Now he’s in trouble with the police and his wife, Coleen. I don’t think Coleen is too bothered about the driving charge."
That's Rod Liddle in the Spectator, writing about the problem with English footballers. He makes the point that there was NOT ONE BID for any English player in the recent window - not 'Arry Kane, not Delli Alli, not Marcus Rashford - from any of the European powerhouses: PSG, Barca, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Juventus, the 2 Milan clubs. The Premier League is a rigged market inflating the values of very ordinary players. Here's the full article:
https://www.spectator.co.uk/2017/09/why-english-footballers-are-so-useless/ [Post edited 8 Sep 2017 22:11]
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Thread | We're too nice..
at 21:57 9 Apr 2017
Here's the Sunday Telegraph's take on yesterday's match....
"PREMIER LEAGUE
Relief for Bilic as West Ham find Swansea a soft touch
By Jonathan Liew 
at the London Stadium
West Ham United
(Kouyate 44.) 1
Swansea City 0
Att: 56,973
If Swansea City have a defining quality, it is probably niceness. Just look at their team. Jack Cork. Tom Carroll. Kyle Naughton. Alfie Mawson. All of them: just really lovely guys. Leroy Fer once bought a horse for his girlfriend. Who doesn’t love horses? This is Swansea: nice lads, nice club, nice to watch. And even nicer to play against.
West Ham discovered that here. In glorious east-London sunshine, they drifted to a win that lifts them eight points clear of the relegation zone, a win that may well have saved Slaven Bilic’s job, a win that was less stressful than they had dared to hope. Cheik Kouyaté’s emphatic low shot proved good enough, and even if West Ham were never quite able to relax, the second half simply leaked away, as sunny afternoons tend to do.
This is now five games without a win for Swansea. They dither on the ball just long enough for you to get back into position. They delay the tackle just that extra moment. They let you play.
“I can’t sit here and make excuses, it wasn’t good enough,” manager Paul Clement said afterwards. “When you’re in a battle for survival, you’d expect the basics to be done a lot better than that. They’re clearly anxious.”
Had Lukasz Fabianski not been at his very best, the scoreline might have been embarrassing. Swansea passes went astray, set-pieces went straight out of play. Most gravely of all, shortly before half-time, when the wily Kouyaté bore down on goal after receiving the ball from Robert Snodgrass, no Swansea player ventured near him."
There's more. But I think that says it all.
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Thread | As you were
at 18:08 5 Feb 2017
Gut-wrenching disappointment is hard to take, but there's nothing that can be done to change the situation so it's just a case of adopting the glass-half-full mentality. When all is said and done, the weekend has not been too bad for Swans. We're exactly where we were before the weekend started. Yes things have closed up somewhat - 2 points between position 15 and position 20, but if we're honest, I think we expected to be back under the drop line, in the bottom 3 after this weekend. We're not and as a bonus the team's just above us haven't moved either, so we're still a point away from 14th. Of the bottom 6, only Sunderland and Hull won. Not ideal but not the worse that could have happened. Draw breath and move on. Swans are staying up! |
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Thread | While we're debating who should be manager...
at 20:29 29 Dec 2016
...why don't we give some thought to who should be playing for us? I must admit the Redknapp 'I'll ask Terry to join me' proposition has sold me. The prospect of a dominant force like John Terry in the centre of our defence, backed up by 'Arry pulling strings for additional players and calling in favours at other clubs is a very attractive one that has me drooling uncontrollably!
I watched Spurs demolish Saints last night and was open-mouthed in admiration for Danny Rose. What a full back - fast, incisive, excellent ball control and the eye for a defence-splitting pass. Eh? No of course he wouldn't join us, ....but the man he is keeping out of the side might. A player by the name of Ben Davies. Ben must know that while Rose is fit, he's not going to play. IMHO Pochettino wouldn't sell him, but he may well agree to loan him out to keep him match fit. And where better than Swansea, who would welcome him back like a long lost hero. 'Arry might still be on good terms with the Spurs hierarchy and could make it happen. Oh I know it's all pie in the sky conjecture but what the hell are we supposed to do? We're up shit creek in a barbed wire canoe and no paddle. |
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Thread | Allardyce - would he have come to Swansea?
at 21:58 23 Dec 2016
I think the Allardyce appointment at Palace has brought into focus that it might prove more difficult than we think to replace our current manager, should it come to that. It appears we are not a particularly attractive proposition in our current state - quelle surprise! Take this from the Telegraph today:
"...Allardyce, then, is ultimately interested in what works and will surely be sufficiently astute to recognise the opportunity at Palace.
It is certainly much better than vacancies that might soon emerge at Hull City or Swansea City. Palace have a decent squad and Allardyce will back himself to inspire the likes of Christian Benteke, Andros Townsend, Wilfried Zaha, Yohan Cabaye and Loic Rémy."
Oh Sam, you don't know what you missed!
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Thread | Women eh?
at 21:45 25 Jun 2016
I came back from the pub a bit pissed today after Wales v Norn Iron, to find a note from my wife stuck on the fridge. It read, "It's not working. I've gone to my mother's"
I opened the fridge door - the light came on and the beer was nice and cold.
What the hell is she talking about? |
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Thread | Gareth Bale, the new.....
at 20:00 15 Jun 2016
....Muhammad Ali! Last week we buried the world's greatest and most entertaining bullshitter - unsurpassed in winding up 'the opposition'. Bale has spotted the vacancy and stepped right into it.
His comments 'no England player would get into our team' were delivered with a broad grin on his face - do you think he really believes we wouldn't find room for Harry Kane? Or Kyle Walker at right back, for starters? However the slavering Press desperate for a grudge angle,pounced on it and reported it with due gravity all over the back pages today. Anybody with half a brain can sense a wind-up when they see it, but not the po-faced journos.
It made me laugh anyway. |
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Thread | Euro 2016 Final tickets
at 14:10 14 Jun 2016
This should probably be on the Tickets board but here goes:
My mate has two tickets for the final of Euro 2016 but he is getting married on that day and cannot attend.
If anyone wants to go instead of him, it's at St Andrews Church in Brighton and the bride’s name is Sarah. |
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Thread | Venezuela - a reality checks
at 23:13 21 May 2016
I don't know if you've been keeping an eye on Venezuela? It is a socialist regime much lauded by Mr Corbyn as an example of what we should aspire to. Well yes, if you fancy hyperinflation, a worthless currency and empty shelves in shops and supermarkets - how do fancy queuing for hours to buy toilet rolls? In short, this socialist paradise is a modern day catastrophe.
Venezuela is yet another example of the folly that is socialism. The thing is, it's nothing new. We were used to hearing these stories in the latter half of last century, when half of Europe was living the 'Socialist Dream' under the Soviet boot heel. The only thing that changes is that yet another starry-eyed generation of young people have to see for themselves and suffer the disillusion that comes from experience. TheVenezuelan experience will never be repeated in Britain because for all its faults the British electorate will never vote into power a pair of Trotskyite zealots like Corbyn and McDonnell. Here's a flavour:
"Many Venezuelans have already left the country, including Francisco Flores.....
The NHS therapist, who now lives in London, says the regime is based on a principle of keeping everyone “equal but poor”.
This way, the state becomes a nanny and everyone loses the power to do anything because they are so dependent on it.
Venezuela is now suffering from the effects of a deep recession and hyperinflation as the government prints money to try to plug a gap between revenues and spending that is on course to hit 25pc of gross domestic product (GDP) next year."
Pure Corbynism. [Post edited 21 May 2016 23:18]
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