Any reader who has more than a passing acquaintance with the game of golf will quite easily tell that the writer of this article knows very little about the sport. Calling golf a sport is likely to cause many of the non-golfers reading this to laugh at such a label. To those who do not play or follow golf, it may seem no more sporty than darts or tiddlywinks (although the writer would like to say that the former of these is definitely a sport of kings while the latter, well, he is unsure if he has even spelled it correctly.)
And with that somewhat bizarre introduction, I would like to put forward the following argument; golf can be one of the most exciting sports on the planet.
The only golf tournament in the calendar which I watch in its entirety, or at least as much as I possibly can, is the Ryder Cup. The Europe vs USA rivalry, with its tactics, choice of pairings and captain's press conferences has me hooked. But when it comes to the other tournaments, even the Majors, as they are called, I only watch a few hours if any. But these few hours are often gripping.
And so, as I sat down in front of the TV on Sunday night, I switched on BBC Two, relatively uninformed as to what had gone on in the first 3 1/2 days of the 4 day Masters from Augusta in the US. The first scene was Tiger Woods, paired with his arch-rival Phil Mickelson, both of whom were making a strong push up the leaderboard. It looked like Chad Campbell, leader for a good portion of the tournament, Angel Cabrera and 48 year old Kenny Perry might be pipped at the post by Tiger or the left-handed Mickelson.
But a couple of dropped shots by both Woods and Mickelson on the final few holes, meant that the race was down to three; Perry, Cabrera and Campbell. And as for me, I was hooked. The demise of Woods may well have had the lukewarm golf fans switching off, but I was in for the long haul. I knew it would be midnight before this contest was sorted out.
Cabrera and Perry were the final pair, meaning they would be the last to finish, so Chad Campbell would be back in the hut by the time the other two were finishing. When Kenny Perry holed his putt for a birdie at the 16th hole, I was ready to go to bed. It was over. Perry had a two shot lead with two holes to play.
But it is not as easy as that as I have discovered on a number of occasions. Golf has the habit of creating Zeros out of Heroes at the swish of a club. Almost unlike any other sport, the man at the top of the leaderboard in a big golf tournament, can, with one bad shot, undo all of his hard work in the previous 15 hours spent on the course (or more like 20 hours the rate some of the golfers saunter around the course these days).
And so, Kenny Perry, with an inevitability that still does not detract from the tension created, proceeded to drop shots at the final two holes, handing his playing partner, Angel Cabrera, who had held his nerve superbly on the last couple of holes, as well as Chad Campbell the chance in a three way play-off. For those unfamiliar with golf, this is a sudden-death penalty shoot-out style finish, where extra holes are played until someone comes out victorious. Cabrera held his nerve, and the Argentinian denied what had been a leaderboard full of Americans on the final day.
Great finishes are possible in all sports, whether it is a team sport or an individual one. But the latter stages of golf tournaments are truly gripping. One can watch the back nine of the final round of the Masters without having seen the previous 63 holes, and it still makes for exciting, edge-of-your-seat stuff. Sometimes in other sports, missing over three-quarters of the action is a serious hindrance. But not here. If you have never watched the final couple of hours of a major golf tournament, then look out for one in the future; you will not regret it.
Monday 13 April 2009
Thursday 9 April 2009
FOOTBALL: Barcelona are brilliant but not unbeatable
As Thierry Henry slotted in Barcelona's fourth goal at Camp Nou on Wednesday night, their opponents, the German champions Bayern Munich, must have thought it could not get any worse. 4-0 down after 43 minutes. But it could have been worse.
As Henry peeled away to celebrate the 51st Champions League goal of his career, his teamate Lionel Messi was lying on the floor just outside the 'D' of the penalty area, face in his hands. In the build-up to the goal, Bayern captain Mark van Bommel had thrust his shoulder at the oncoming Messi, who seemed to connect face-first. It was a red card offence, but English referee Howard Webb, who had called play-on to allow the advantge and the subsequent Henry strike, chose not to take any action.
Had the Dutch international van Bommel seen red, or had Barcelona been given a penalty kick earlier in the half when Christain Lell felled Lionel Messi, it could have been much worse for Bayern. As it was, Bayern goalkeeper Hans-Jorg Butt, who had taken a boot in the face from Henry in the first half, pulled of a couple of good stops in the second and Bayern's heaviest Champions League defeat is only 4-0.
Barcelona's front three- Samuel Eto'o, Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi- were sublime. They carved open Bayern's defence, even if it was a makeshift one lacking Lucio, Phillip Lahm and Daniel van Buyten and consisting of a Brazilian named Breno who has played only a few games all season. The Barcelona trio are capable of slicing open any defence; should Terry, Ferdinand or Carragher, to name a few, face Messi and co. later in the competition, it is likely to be how few goals they concede rather than keeping a clean sheet.
However, Barcelona are not unbeatable. Their midfield (Xavi, Iniesta etc.) and their forwards are among the best, but their defence is not in the same league as those of the English sides (although William Gallas' injury, that puts him out for the rest of the season, seriously weakens an Arsenal defence that is certainly the weaker of the four). Carlos Puyol, Barca's experienced centre-half, was forced to play at full-back and the Mexican Rafael Marquez played in the centre. Marquez is not a naturally defensive player and his forward wanderings leave holes in Barcelona's backline.
Barcelona are surely favourites to win the competition. When they are on form, it is difficult to see how they can be beaten. Nevertheless, if one of the English sides is organised in defence, particularly not allowing Henry or Messi to cut inside as they flow forward, keeps close tabs on the string-pullers Xavi and Iniesta as well as poking holes in Barcelona's less-than-secure defence, then Josep Guardiola's men will be denied.
As Henry peeled away to celebrate the 51st Champions League goal of his career, his teamate Lionel Messi was lying on the floor just outside the 'D' of the penalty area, face in his hands. In the build-up to the goal, Bayern captain Mark van Bommel had thrust his shoulder at the oncoming Messi, who seemed to connect face-first. It was a red card offence, but English referee Howard Webb, who had called play-on to allow the advantge and the subsequent Henry strike, chose not to take any action.
Had the Dutch international van Bommel seen red, or had Barcelona been given a penalty kick earlier in the half when Christain Lell felled Lionel Messi, it could have been much worse for Bayern. As it was, Bayern goalkeeper Hans-Jorg Butt, who had taken a boot in the face from Henry in the first half, pulled of a couple of good stops in the second and Bayern's heaviest Champions League defeat is only 4-0.
Barcelona's front three- Samuel Eto'o, Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi- were sublime. They carved open Bayern's defence, even if it was a makeshift one lacking Lucio, Phillip Lahm and Daniel van Buyten and consisting of a Brazilian named Breno who has played only a few games all season. The Barcelona trio are capable of slicing open any defence; should Terry, Ferdinand or Carragher, to name a few, face Messi and co. later in the competition, it is likely to be how few goals they concede rather than keeping a clean sheet.
However, Barcelona are not unbeatable. Their midfield (Xavi, Iniesta etc.) and their forwards are among the best, but their defence is not in the same league as those of the English sides (although William Gallas' injury, that puts him out for the rest of the season, seriously weakens an Arsenal defence that is certainly the weaker of the four). Carlos Puyol, Barca's experienced centre-half, was forced to play at full-back and the Mexican Rafael Marquez played in the centre. Marquez is not a naturally defensive player and his forward wanderings leave holes in Barcelona's backline.
Barcelona are surely favourites to win the competition. When they are on form, it is difficult to see how they can be beaten. Nevertheless, if one of the English sides is organised in defence, particularly not allowing Henry or Messi to cut inside as they flow forward, keeps close tabs on the string-pullers Xavi and Iniesta as well as poking holes in Barcelona's less-than-secure defence, then Josep Guardiola's men will be denied.
Monday 6 April 2009
CRICKET: Strauss' Twenty20 exclusion may hinder England's overall progress
The omission of captain Andrew Strauss from England's provisional 30-man squad for the ICC World Twenty20 tournament in June was not a surprise. National selector Geoff Miller has said that Strauss accepts he is "not comfortable" in the super-short format of the game.
Like it or not though, Twenty20 cricket now makes up a substantial part of the cricket calendar, both in the form of internationals and in domestic competitions like the Indian Premier League. Is there any place in the game these days for an England captain who is "not comfortable" with the twenty-over game?
Twenty20 cricket is taking over. All the big money is in the IPL, and the ICC seems intent on fitting as many Twenty20 matches and tournaments into the calendar. The argument that having a different captain in the 50-over game to the Test arena causes problems, as neither can truly stamp his authority on the team, may well become increasingly relevant to the 20-over format as well.
The foundation of success, not just in cricket but in any sport, is continuity in selection. Since 1985, the very successful Australia have had four permanent captains- Border, Taylor, Waugh and Ponting- and although they have had some periods where the captain of the ODI team has been different to the Test captain, there has always been a sense that the next captain is being groomed.
England's history of captains in the same period is very different and it is commendable that England have now decided to choose Andrew Strauss as captain in both Tests and ODIs, rather than attempting to juggle two captains. It is true that the Twenty20 window in the cricket calendar offers Strauss some respite from the stressful job, and England are not alone in making huge changes to their sides for Twenty20 competitions.
However, Ricky Ponting, captain of Australia, skippers the side in all three forms of the game. There is absolutely no confusion as to who is the leader and when Michael Clarke is forced to deputise, Australia are something of a different team. Conversely, Graeme Smith, captain of South Africa and who captained in his country's first few Twenty20 games, has not skippered the side in the super-short format for the last 15 months and in that period South Africa have nearly knocked Australia off their perch as the number one Test nation.
So is it just a case of Ricky Ponting and MS Dhoni being suited to the Twenty20 game, while other Test and ODI captains are simply "not comfortable"? It is hard to believe that Mike Atherton or even Nasser Hussein would have been good Twenty20 players, so perhaps one should not make a big deal of who is Twenty20 captain.
It has been shown in cricket history that it is not essential for an international side to have the same captain for all forms of the game, but there is a strong case that the same figurehead and leader across the board can improve the chances of success. The question is, should Andrew Strauss, who is "better suited" to longer forms of the game, captain the England Twenty20 side, not necessarily on merit but for the greater good?
Like it or not though, Twenty20 cricket now makes up a substantial part of the cricket calendar, both in the form of internationals and in domestic competitions like the Indian Premier League. Is there any place in the game these days for an England captain who is "not comfortable" with the twenty-over game?
Twenty20 cricket is taking over. All the big money is in the IPL, and the ICC seems intent on fitting as many Twenty20 matches and tournaments into the calendar. The argument that having a different captain in the 50-over game to the Test arena causes problems, as neither can truly stamp his authority on the team, may well become increasingly relevant to the 20-over format as well.
The foundation of success, not just in cricket but in any sport, is continuity in selection. Since 1985, the very successful Australia have had four permanent captains- Border, Taylor, Waugh and Ponting- and although they have had some periods where the captain of the ODI team has been different to the Test captain, there has always been a sense that the next captain is being groomed.
England's history of captains in the same period is very different and it is commendable that England have now decided to choose Andrew Strauss as captain in both Tests and ODIs, rather than attempting to juggle two captains. It is true that the Twenty20 window in the cricket calendar offers Strauss some respite from the stressful job, and England are not alone in making huge changes to their sides for Twenty20 competitions.
However, Ricky Ponting, captain of Australia, skippers the side in all three forms of the game. There is absolutely no confusion as to who is the leader and when Michael Clarke is forced to deputise, Australia are something of a different team. Conversely, Graeme Smith, captain of South Africa and who captained in his country's first few Twenty20 games, has not skippered the side in the super-short format for the last 15 months and in that period South Africa have nearly knocked Australia off their perch as the number one Test nation.
So is it just a case of Ricky Ponting and MS Dhoni being suited to the Twenty20 game, while other Test and ODI captains are simply "not comfortable"? It is hard to believe that Mike Atherton or even Nasser Hussein would have been good Twenty20 players, so perhaps one should not make a big deal of who is Twenty20 captain.
It has been shown in cricket history that it is not essential for an international side to have the same captain for all forms of the game, but there is a strong case that the same figurehead and leader across the board can improve the chances of success. The question is, should Andrew Strauss, who is "better suited" to longer forms of the game, captain the England Twenty20 side, not necessarily on merit but for the greater good?
Friday 13 February 2009
BUNDESLIGA FOOTBALL: Matchday 19
Vfb Stuttgart pulled off the result of Matchday 19 in the Bundesliga with a 4-2 away at Bayer Leverkusen. The game was played at the LTU Arena in Dusseldorf because the Bayer Arena is being extended and Leverkusen were not allowed to settle into their new temporary home as Mario Gomez scored in the second minute. The lead was doubled by former Aston Villa midfielder, Tomas Hitzlsperger, whose free-kick was clocked at 125 km/h. Gomez added his second after halftime, his 37th goal in 43 Budesliga games, and despite a Leverkusen fightback, Stuttgart took all three points back to Baden-Wuerttemberg.
Last season's second and third placed teams, Werder Bremen and Schalke respectively, met in Gelsenkirchen, with both managers under pressure because of their current mid-table predicaments. There were many chances for both sides; Bremen's centre-half Naldo had three good chances but it was Schalke came out on top, winning a tight game 1-0.
At the Borrussia Park in Mönchengladbach, top met bottom as Hoffenheim were the visitors. Mönchengladbach took a first-half lead through Alexander Baumjohann, who will move to Bayern Munich at the end of the season, and looked like they had won the game until Wellington nodded in a free-kick in the dying minutes.
Bayern Munich's first home game since the winter break was against Borussia Dortmund, who took an early lead through Valdez after a defensive slip from Demechelis. Brazillian Ze Roberto equalised but the game looked to be heading for a draw before German international Miroslav Klose found the net twice in the last few minutes to secure a 3-1 win for Bayern.
Elsewhere, second place Hertha Berlin could only manage a 1-1 draw at struggling Arminia Bielefeld with Liverpool's on loan striker Andrej Voronin scoring their goal. The shock of the round was at the Wildparkstadion, where former German international goalkeeper Oliver Kahn watched struggling Karlsruhe secure a 3-2 home win against Martin Jol's Hamburg. Frankfurt and Cologne drew 2-2 at the Commerzbank Arena while Wolfsburg secured a solid 2-0 home win over Vfl Bochum. Finally, Energie Cottbus secured a priceless home win over Hannover which drags them out of the relegation zone. Hannover, who have the worst away record in the Bundesliga lost 3-1 at the Stadion der Freundschaft.
Last season's second and third placed teams, Werder Bremen and Schalke respectively, met in Gelsenkirchen, with both managers under pressure because of their current mid-table predicaments. There were many chances for both sides; Bremen's centre-half Naldo had three good chances but it was Schalke came out on top, winning a tight game 1-0.
At the Borrussia Park in Mönchengladbach, top met bottom as Hoffenheim were the visitors. Mönchengladbach took a first-half lead through Alexander Baumjohann, who will move to Bayern Munich at the end of the season, and looked like they had won the game until Wellington nodded in a free-kick in the dying minutes.
Bayern Munich's first home game since the winter break was against Borussia Dortmund, who took an early lead through Valdez after a defensive slip from Demechelis. Brazillian Ze Roberto equalised but the game looked to be heading for a draw before German international Miroslav Klose found the net twice in the last few minutes to secure a 3-1 win for Bayern.
Elsewhere, second place Hertha Berlin could only manage a 1-1 draw at struggling Arminia Bielefeld with Liverpool's on loan striker Andrej Voronin scoring their goal. The shock of the round was at the Wildparkstadion, where former German international goalkeeper Oliver Kahn watched struggling Karlsruhe secure a 3-2 home win against Martin Jol's Hamburg. Frankfurt and Cologne drew 2-2 at the Commerzbank Arena while Wolfsburg secured a solid 2-0 home win over Vfl Bochum. Finally, Energie Cottbus secured a priceless home win over Hannover which drags them out of the relegation zone. Hannover, who have the worst away record in the Bundesliga lost 3-1 at the Stadion der Freundschaft.
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | W | D | L | F | A | GD | PTS | |
| 1 | TSG Hoffenheim | 19 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 22 | 18 | 21 | 39 |
| 2 | Bayern Munich | 19 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 27 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 15 | 9 | 16 | 38 |
| 3 | Hertha Berlin | 19 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 19 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 8 | 37 |
| 4 | Hamburg | 19 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 21 | 2 | 36 |
| 5 | Bayer Leverkusen | 19 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20 | 14 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 19 | 12 | 13 | 33 |
| 6 | VfB Stuttgart | 19 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 18 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 14 | 16 | 7 | 31 |
| 7 | Wolfsburg | 19 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 20 | 12 | 30 |
| 8 | Schalke 04 | 19 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 12 | 8 | 30 |
| 9 | Borussia Dortmund | 19 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 12 | 14 | 6 | 30 |
| 10 | Werder Bremen | 19 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 28 | 15 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 16 | 9 | 26 |
| 11 | Cologne | 19 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 14 | 16 | -6 | 24 |
| 12 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 19 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 21 | -7 | 20 |
| 13 | Hannover 96 | 19 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 18 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 24 | -13 | 20 |
| 14 | Arminia Bielefeld | 19 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 16 | -11 | 18 |
| 15 | Cottbus | 19 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 16 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 16 | -17 | 16 |
| 16 | Karlsruhe | 19 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 8 | 23 | -18 | 16 |
| 17 | VfL Bochum | 19 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 15 | 16 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 16 | -11 | 14 |
| 18 | Borussia M'gladbach | 19 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 12 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 19 | -19 | 12 |
Friday 6 February 2009
CRICKET: What todays multi-milion auction means...
Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff hit the headlines again this morning, but unfortunately not for their performances in the First Test against the West Indies in Jamaica. Both have fetched approximately £1.1 million each in the second Indian Premier League auction in Goa. But what exactly does this mean?
The India Premier League will run for six weeks in April/May. It is a Twenty20 tournament of 8 franchised teams, which are based in cities like Delhi and Mumbai. Therefore all players remain on contracts at the home clubs, in England or South Africa or Australia for instance, but their services are bought for the duration of the tournament, for a certain number of years. The players are auctioned to the highest bidder, but each franchise has a budget. Most players were auctioned last year, on contracts of more than one year. With a limit of ten foreign (non-Indian) players per squad, most franchises already had seven or eight such players.
Therefore, all the attention was on Freddie and KP, because no franchise was likely to take on a foreign player unless he was a world class player. However, the pair can only play for three weeks of the six-week tournament, so they only earn half of the auction fee: about £550,000. That is still over £180,000 a week; eat your heart out Robinho. However, because the players are released from their central contract with the England Cricket Board for those three weeks, they are technically contracted to their respective counties- Lancashire and Hampshire respectively- for that time. And the counties want compensation.
The compensation was set at 10% of their fee, which for Flintoff and Pietersen is £55,000 each. Not bad for missing one County Championship match. Paul Collingwood, the other centrally contracted England player, was bought for $275,000, so Durham can expect about £15,000. Collingwood was not the third most expensive England player though. All-rounder Ravi Bopara fetched $450,000. These are massive sums, so one can understand the English players scrambling to be part of it.
The IPL was exciting last year, and will undoubtedly be enhanced by Flintoff and Pietersen, as well as South African JP Duminy who has had a superb recent series against Australia and was auctioned for just shy of $1,000,000. What is more in doubt, is the preparedness of England's two best players for the First Test against the West Indies at Lords in May, after bashing the ball around in a Twenty20 tournament for three weeks. Is five days is long enough to get back into Test mode or does it not matter when you bat like Kevin Pietersen or Andrew Flintoff? Only time will tell.
The India Premier League will run for six weeks in April/May. It is a Twenty20 tournament of 8 franchised teams, which are based in cities like Delhi and Mumbai. Therefore all players remain on contracts at the home clubs, in England or South Africa or Australia for instance, but their services are bought for the duration of the tournament, for a certain number of years. The players are auctioned to the highest bidder, but each franchise has a budget. Most players were auctioned last year, on contracts of more than one year. With a limit of ten foreign (non-Indian) players per squad, most franchises already had seven or eight such players.
Therefore, all the attention was on Freddie and KP, because no franchise was likely to take on a foreign player unless he was a world class player. However, the pair can only play for three weeks of the six-week tournament, so they only earn half of the auction fee: about £550,000. That is still over £180,000 a week; eat your heart out Robinho. However, because the players are released from their central contract with the England Cricket Board for those three weeks, they are technically contracted to their respective counties- Lancashire and Hampshire respectively- for that time. And the counties want compensation.
The compensation was set at 10% of their fee, which for Flintoff and Pietersen is £55,000 each. Not bad for missing one County Championship match. Paul Collingwood, the other centrally contracted England player, was bought for $275,000, so Durham can expect about £15,000. Collingwood was not the third most expensive England player though. All-rounder Ravi Bopara fetched $450,000. These are massive sums, so one can understand the English players scrambling to be part of it.
The IPL was exciting last year, and will undoubtedly be enhanced by Flintoff and Pietersen, as well as South African JP Duminy who has had a superb recent series against Australia and was auctioned for just shy of $1,000,000. What is more in doubt, is the preparedness of England's two best players for the First Test against the West Indies at Lords in May, after bashing the ball around in a Twenty20 tournament for three weeks. Is five days is long enough to get back into Test mode or does it not matter when you bat like Kevin Pietersen or Andrew Flintoff? Only time will tell.
Thursday 5 February 2009
BUNDESLIGA FOOTBALL: Matchday 18
The Bundesliga re-started on Friday after a 7 week winter break with champions Bayern Munich travelling to fourth placed Hamburg, coached by former Tottenham Hotspur boss, Martin Jol. Hamburg, who were unbeaten at home going into the game, more than matched the mighty Bayern.
The game was a truly end-to-end affair, with numerous chances for both sides; one of which, a Luca Toni effort in the 28th minute, seemed perfectly legitimate but was ruled out. Hamburg did get on the scoresheet just before halftime when Mladen Petric headed in after a save from Bayern goalkeeper Michael Rensing. Bayern pushed on in the second-half, despite Franck Ribery struggling to get in the game, and created chances but Miroslav Klose and Luca Toni were particularly culpable of squandering chances, and Hamburg held on for a 1-0 win.
League leaders TSG Hoffenheim welcomed Energie Cottbus to the new Rhein-Neckar Arena for the first Bundesliga game at the stadium. Despite the long-term injury of Vedad Ibisevic, who has 18 goals for the season, Hoffenheim won comfortably through goals from Demba Ba and Boubacar Sanogo. New signing Timo Hildebrand, the former Vfb Stuttgart goalkeeper, who was signed from Valencia in Spain, went off injured but it is expected to play next week.
In the capital, Hertha Berlin, after a superb year in 2008, began where they left off with a 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt at the Olympiastadion. Two goals from Marko Pantelic, who continues not to see eye-to-eye with coach Lucien Favre, were enough for Berlin despite sustained second-half pressure from Frankfurt which included Benjamin Köhler's strike.
Hannover 96 welcomed back German international goalkeeper Robert Enke after a four month lay-off, for the game against Schalke. Germany's number one was instrumental in rebuffing a number of efforts from Schalke as Hannover won a very open game by one goal to nil. Sergio Pinto scored the goal and Schalke forward Gerald Asamoah was particularly guilty of missing oppurtunites for the away side.
Elsewhere, Vfb Stuttgart beat bottom side Borussia Mönchengladbach at the Mercedes-Benz Arena with goals through Romanian international Ciprian Marica and German international Mario Gomez. Wolfsburg secured a draw on an absolutley awful pitch in Cologne, while Borrussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen managed the same result at the Signal Iduna Park, the biggest club stadium in Germany. Vfl Bochum had an important win at home to fellow strugglers Karlsruhe with goals through Fuchs and Klimowicz and Arminia Bielefeld cause the shock of the weekend, winning 2-1 against Champions League regulars Werder Bremen. Bremen badly missed the suspended Diego and Claudio Pizarro and find themselves in the bottom half of the league going into matchday 19.
The game was a truly end-to-end affair, with numerous chances for both sides; one of which, a Luca Toni effort in the 28th minute, seemed perfectly legitimate but was ruled out. Hamburg did get on the scoresheet just before halftime when Mladen Petric headed in after a save from Bayern goalkeeper Michael Rensing. Bayern pushed on in the second-half, despite Franck Ribery struggling to get in the game, and created chances but Miroslav Klose and Luca Toni were particularly culpable of squandering chances, and Hamburg held on for a 1-0 win.
League leaders TSG Hoffenheim welcomed Energie Cottbus to the new Rhein-Neckar Arena for the first Bundesliga game at the stadium. Despite the long-term injury of Vedad Ibisevic, who has 18 goals for the season, Hoffenheim won comfortably through goals from Demba Ba and Boubacar Sanogo. New signing Timo Hildebrand, the former Vfb Stuttgart goalkeeper, who was signed from Valencia in Spain, went off injured but it is expected to play next week.
In the capital, Hertha Berlin, after a superb year in 2008, began where they left off with a 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt at the Olympiastadion. Two goals from Marko Pantelic, who continues not to see eye-to-eye with coach Lucien Favre, were enough for Berlin despite sustained second-half pressure from Frankfurt which included Benjamin Köhler's strike.
Hannover 96 welcomed back German international goalkeeper Robert Enke after a four month lay-off, for the game against Schalke. Germany's number one was instrumental in rebuffing a number of efforts from Schalke as Hannover won a very open game by one goal to nil. Sergio Pinto scored the goal and Schalke forward Gerald Asamoah was particularly guilty of missing oppurtunites for the away side.
Elsewhere, Vfb Stuttgart beat bottom side Borussia Mönchengladbach at the Mercedes-Benz Arena with goals through Romanian international Ciprian Marica and German international Mario Gomez. Wolfsburg secured a draw on an absolutley awful pitch in Cologne, while Borrussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen managed the same result at the Signal Iduna Park, the biggest club stadium in Germany. Vfl Bochum had an important win at home to fellow strugglers Karlsruhe with goals through Fuchs and Klimowicz and Arminia Bielefeld cause the shock of the weekend, winning 2-1 against Champions League regulars Werder Bremen. Bremen badly missed the suspended Diego and Claudio Pizarro and find themselves in the bottom half of the league going into matchday 19.
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | W | D | L | F | A | GD | PTS | |
| 1 | TSG Hoffenheim | 18 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 21 | 17 | 21 | 38 |
| 2 | Hertha Berlin | 18 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 19 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 8 | 36 |
| 3 | Hamburg | 18 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 12 | 18 | 3 | 36 |
| 4 | Bayern Munich | 18 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 24 | 16 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 15 | 9 | 14 | 35 |
| 5 | Bayer Leverkusen | 18 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 18 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 19 | 12 | 15 | 33 |
| 6 | Borussia Dortmund | 18 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 30 |
| 7 | VfB Stuttgart | 18 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 18 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 5 | 28 |
| 8 | Wolfsburg | 18 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 23 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 20 | 10 | 27 |
| 9 | Schalke 04 | 18 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 12 | 7 | 27 |
| 10 | Werder Bremen | 18 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 28 | 15 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 12 | 15 | 10 | 26 |
| 11 | Cologne | 18 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 12 | 14 | -6 | 23 |
| 12 | Hannover 96 | 18 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 18 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 21 | -11 | 20 |
| 13 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 18 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 14 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 21 | -7 | 19 |
| 14 | Arminia Bielefeld | 18 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 16 | -11 | 17 |
| 15 | VfL Bochum | 18 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 15 | 16 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 14 | -9 | 14 |
| 16 | Karlsruhe | 18 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 8 | 23 | -19 | 13 |
| 17 | Cottbus | 18 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 15 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 16 | -19 | 13 |
| 18 | Borussia M'gladbach | 18 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 11 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 19 | -19 | 11 |
Tuesday 3 February 2009
FOOTBALL: Newcastle 1-1 Sunderland (01.02.09): Black Cats feel agrieved after 'terrible' penalty decision
This was a game of two halves if ever there was one. Sunderland dominated the first-half, going ahead through a Djibril Cisse goal just after half an hour. Newcastle equalised in the second half, through a debatable penalty, but neither side showed the class to win the game.
Sunderland started brightly but had to wait until the 20th minute until they really threatened Steve Harper's goal. Kieron Richardson's 25 yard free-kick crashed against the left-hand post and rebounded eventually to Kenwyne Jones, whose shot was cleared off the line by debutant Kevin Nolan. Both players were in the news this week: Jones signing a lucrative new contract at the Stadium of Light, while Nolan was signed from Bolton Wanderers for £4 million.
The Magpies replied moments later, when Andy Carroll's looping header struck the top of the crossbar. Otherwise, the Sunderland midfield was linking up well and they made the pressure count in the 33rd minute, when Kenwyne Jones ducked under a Dean Whithead lob into the box and Djibril Cisse, who was just onside, saw his first shot saved by Steve Harper but steered the rebound into an empty net. Andy Carroll fired a shot just wide 5 minutes before half-time but Sunderland looked comfortable.
However, the Black Cats completely lost their way in the second-half as Newcastle dominated possession . Their poor play was typified by Steed Malbranque and Kieron Richardson's inability to keep the ball in midfield, after looking good before the break. Sunderland were not helped by the injury to goalscorer Djibril Cisse, who hobbled off after mistiming a tackle. Kenwyne Jones looked like he may be following his strike-partner down the tunnel, after a crunching tackle from Sebastien Bassong, who was superb in the Newcastle defence. But Jones stayed on.
Jonas Gutierrez ran his socks off for the Magpies, tormenting Sunderland full-back Phil Bardsley, who had picked up an early booking. Named man-of-the-match at the end, the Argentinian winger's purposeful runs and pressure culminated eventually in a Newcastle goal. Midway through the second-half, local boy Steven Taylor burst into the box shadowed by Steed Malbranque. Taylor appeared to stick out his left leg and cause the Frenchman to stumble, but in the referee Howard Webb's opinion, Malbranque's somewhat clumsy fall which knocked over the Newcastle number 27 was a foul, and the Premier League's top referee pointed to the spot. Shola Ameobi smashed in the penalty.
Despite the perceived injustice, Sunderland did not improve after the goal, continuing to give the ball away cheaply to Joe Kinnear's team. That said, Sunderland did almost snatch the game. In the 84th minute, substitute and former Newcastle man, Michael Chopra, stole the ball from Fabricio Coliccini and ran into the left-hand side of the box; Steve Harper and the goal beckoning. However, the man who scored for Newcastle against Sunderland in a Tyne-Wear derby a few seasons ago, attempted an unlikely cross to Kenwyne Jones and missed his target. The conspiracy theories started.
Sunderland could also have snatched it in the final minute of added time, when a poor Newcastle clearance fell to the feet of Andy Reid, another substitute, who took it down and volleyed just wide. It would have been the first time Sunderland have beaten Newcastle home and away in one season since 1967.
Ricky Sbragia is probably a little happier than Joe Kinnear with this result, especially as the Balck Cats began the game three points ahead of their local rivals in the league. But judging by Danny Collins comments after the game, labelling the penalty decision as "terrible," Sunderland feel that they should have made the short trip home with all three points.
Sunderland started brightly but had to wait until the 20th minute until they really threatened Steve Harper's goal. Kieron Richardson's 25 yard free-kick crashed against the left-hand post and rebounded eventually to Kenwyne Jones, whose shot was cleared off the line by debutant Kevin Nolan. Both players were in the news this week: Jones signing a lucrative new contract at the Stadium of Light, while Nolan was signed from Bolton Wanderers for £4 million.
The Magpies replied moments later, when Andy Carroll's looping header struck the top of the crossbar. Otherwise, the Sunderland midfield was linking up well and they made the pressure count in the 33rd minute, when Kenwyne Jones ducked under a Dean Whithead lob into the box and Djibril Cisse, who was just onside, saw his first shot saved by Steve Harper but steered the rebound into an empty net. Andy Carroll fired a shot just wide 5 minutes before half-time but Sunderland looked comfortable.
However, the Black Cats completely lost their way in the second-half as Newcastle dominated possession . Their poor play was typified by Steed Malbranque and Kieron Richardson's inability to keep the ball in midfield, after looking good before the break. Sunderland were not helped by the injury to goalscorer Djibril Cisse, who hobbled off after mistiming a tackle. Kenwyne Jones looked like he may be following his strike-partner down the tunnel, after a crunching tackle from Sebastien Bassong, who was superb in the Newcastle defence. But Jones stayed on.
Jonas Gutierrez ran his socks off for the Magpies, tormenting Sunderland full-back Phil Bardsley, who had picked up an early booking. Named man-of-the-match at the end, the Argentinian winger's purposeful runs and pressure culminated eventually in a Newcastle goal. Midway through the second-half, local boy Steven Taylor burst into the box shadowed by Steed Malbranque. Taylor appeared to stick out his left leg and cause the Frenchman to stumble, but in the referee Howard Webb's opinion, Malbranque's somewhat clumsy fall which knocked over the Newcastle number 27 was a foul, and the Premier League's top referee pointed to the spot. Shola Ameobi smashed in the penalty.
Despite the perceived injustice, Sunderland did not improve after the goal, continuing to give the ball away cheaply to Joe Kinnear's team. That said, Sunderland did almost snatch the game. In the 84th minute, substitute and former Newcastle man, Michael Chopra, stole the ball from Fabricio Coliccini and ran into the left-hand side of the box; Steve Harper and the goal beckoning. However, the man who scored for Newcastle against Sunderland in a Tyne-Wear derby a few seasons ago, attempted an unlikely cross to Kenwyne Jones and missed his target. The conspiracy theories started.
Sunderland could also have snatched it in the final minute of added time, when a poor Newcastle clearance fell to the feet of Andy Reid, another substitute, who took it down and volleyed just wide. It would have been the first time Sunderland have beaten Newcastle home and away in one season since 1967.
Ricky Sbragia is probably a little happier than Joe Kinnear with this result, especially as the Balck Cats began the game three points ahead of their local rivals in the league. But judging by Danny Collins comments after the game, labelling the penalty decision as "terrible," Sunderland feel that they should have made the short trip home with all three points.
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