I've had a few weeks off from writing my sport diary, and not a lot has happened in that period. Well, there has been the ball tampering affair, Man City losing a few notable matches, the first golf major of the year, and the start of the Commonwealth Games. But, as I say, not much has taken place.
I have to start with the Australian ball tampering saga. The guilty men demonstrated a level of stupidity that had to be seen to be believed. And it was seen; by millions of television viewers. Going into work on the Monday morning and telling colleagues that I'd spent most of my weekend watching footage of an Australian man putting his hand down his pants got a few strange looks. I had to explain that I wasn't watching Neighbours Uncut, and I think they accepted my story.
In the aftermath you were never more than five minutes away from watching an Australian man crying at a desk, as if the enormity of Bouncer's death had just reached members of the national cricket team. I wasn't really buying the crocodile tears of Smith, Bancroft, and Warner. Why such talented players would want to jeopardise their careers and reputations is beyond me. But they did achieve one thing: they made an extremely unlikeable Australian team one of the most entertaining things in sport this year. And it distracted me from England losing in New Zealand.
It really is squeaky bum time in the National League. My son and I saw Boreham Wood draw 0-0 with Barrow, a result that looked like an opportunity missed as the jostling for play-off places continues. But a win at Wrexham lifted spirits, before defeat at Halifax brought us back down to earth again.
A match on Tuesday against leaders Macclesfield looked less than appealing, and so it proved. A 2-0 win for the champions elect did see Boreham Wood show signs of hope for the remaining matches. It would be gutting to miss out on a play-off spot after all the fine work the team have put in this season.
The recent Liverpool-Man City Champions League match was a stunning night. I'm no Liverpool fan, but the atmosphere created took me back a few years, and the performance of Jurgen Klopp's team was relentless. Maybe the Man City players were intimidated as their bus tried to park outside the stadium? Maybe they should have tried to park the bus when the match got under way? But that isn't Guardiola's style, and you have to admire him for that. But his team were taught a bit of a lesson in the first leg, and they looked completely shellshocked.
One man who has been accused of parking the bus in the past is Jose Mourinho. He must have taken particular delight in pooping City's party at the Etihad recently. Even with the home team winning 2-0, and Raheem Sterling missing 78 chances, I was a little surprised at the olés I could hear from the City fans. It never pays to be cocky before the deal is sealed.
There must have been plenty of City fans of a certain age in that stadium who were shuddering at the premature gloating. After all, they must have been fully aware that even with the petro-dollars and their cool manager, theirs is a club that can still cock things up, as they proved against their neighbours. They'll obviously still win the league, but that defeat against United will still hurt for years to come.
I'm really not a big fan of Patrick Reed, but his win at the Masters at least saw me win £50 from my massive £1 bet. Even with potential winnings for a Reed win, I was desperate for Rory McIlroy to win the Masters and complete his personal grand slam. He really couldn't get going, though, and I spent most of Sunday moaning at the television as he made mistake after mistake. Hopefully his time will come.
There were a couple of other talking points. Tony Finau celebrating his hole in one during the par three competition was interesting viewing. Dislocating his ankle and simply popping it back in, you could only wince at and admire his actions. It was probably less painful than watching Sergio Garcia repeatedly finding the water at the 15th on the opening day. I would dearly love to play a round at Augusta, but if a reigning champion can take 13 shots on one hole, then I reckon I would need a separate suitcase for spare balls.
Whilst in the toilets at Boreham Wood on Tuesday night, I heard someone tell his mate that Roma were 3-0 up against Barcelona, and going through on the away goals rule. "Uefa will keep playing that game until Barcelona score," came the reply, which made me chuckle.
Not even a dodgy refereeing decision for the darlings of Uefa could help Messi and co, though, on a stirring night. I thought Juventus were about to do the same on the following night, but Ronaldo put an end to that. Juventus progressing would have been a huge shock; but it would have been more surprising if Ronaldo had kept his shirt on after his last minute penalty.
A few other things I've spotted:
I used to love the Commonwealth Games in my younger days, but the latest edition in the Gold Coast caught me completely by surprise. With wall-to-wall sports coverage nowadays, the event doesn't seem as special anymore, and I wasn't even aware it was on until I stumbled upon the opening ceremony on the BBC website.
Harry Kane and Tottenham appealing to the Premier League for a goal to be taken off of one their own players was a new level of bellendery. I was left open-mouthed by it, to be honest. As was Harry.
An exciting arrival in our house in the past few weeks. Yes, we purchased a Panini World Cup sticker album, and already have multiple Antoine Griezmanns. Completing the album is near to impossible. The road to bankruptcy begins here.
Arsenal have made it through to the semi-finals of Europe's finest club competition. I can feel a tricky conversation brewing with my wife about a potential trip to Lyon in May. We might need to avoid Atletico Madrid in the draw today for that chat to occur, though.
Previous entries:
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12
No comments:
Post a Comment