The latest entry in my sporting diary of 2018, as Alexis plays the piano, and Twitter storms kick off left, right and centre.
Media Manager: So, you've done the walk on the pitch with a smug look on your face?
Alexis: Yes, I've done all that.
Media Manager: And you're going to put something out on Twitter and Instagram about how you've always wanted to play for Manchester United?
Alexis: Yes, I'll do that tonight.
Media Manager: Great. I think we're done then.
Alexis: At last!
Media Manager: Oh, I almost forgot. Put this top on again for us, and make your way to our piano room.
Alexis: WHAT??!
Minutes after his appointment as England's Women's Manager, Phil Neville immediately entered what is popularly known as a Twitter storm; are their different levels of Twitter outrage, based on the Beaufort Scale? A Twitter gale would be piffling in comparison to a Twitter storm, but much worse than a Twitter breeze. Anyway, it appears as if some attempts at sexist humour have landed Neville in trouble. Manning, Davidson, Neville. The list goes on.
Above all, I'm not sure how Neville has landed the job in the first place. To me, this is a bigger problem than his ill-judged Manning tribute in the past. Having done absolutely no research on this whatsoever, isn't there a coach in the Women's Premier League that would have been a better candidate? Still, Alan Brazil thinks Neville's appointment is a good one. But if you're one of the nine people who read my first Sporting Diary entry, then you'll know that if you have the opposite opinion of Mr Brazil then you're usually right.
England's cricketers continue to hammer a disinterested Australian team in the one day international series. I'm not going to complain (I am), but as happy as I am in any win over Australia in sport, my lack of excitement indicates how little I care about one day cricket. There is a feeling of after the Lord Mayor's show about the whole thing. In fact, it's so far after the Lord Mayor's show, that I think he has sadly passed away and been replaced by a new incumbent.
Hats off to Kyle Edmund after his run to the Australian Open semi-finals. I was a bit shocked to hear that if he had reached the final then he would have taken over as British Number One from Andy Murray. I know Murray has been injured a lot recently, but I would have thought his previous performances would have given him a substantial lead in this particular race.
I tried to pretend I wasn't bothered about the League Cup. I kidded myself that I could cope with losing to Chelsea. But come 8pm on Wednesday I was anxiously looking on as Arsenal reached another Wembley final. You have to hand it to Arsene; just when you think the end is nigh, he pulls something out of the bag. It might only be the League Cup. But there are plenty of other supporters who would give their right arms for four Wembley cup finals since 2014.
Good to see Antonio Conte complaining about not being able to compete with Manchester City and United. Coming from a man working at a club that have bought their success since 2003, I'm not sure he'll get much sympathy. It does look like his days are numbered, though. It's a mad club, but sadly you can't argue with Abramovich's revolving door policy, as they have won the odd pot or two.
Wednesday was a fun time on Twitter. First there was the reaction to the new UEFA Nations League, which I have to accept is a admirable attempt by the governing body to give friendlies a bit of context. But it does seem a little complicated, and the fact that Jersey, the Isle of Man, and Cornwall now seem to have a chance of qualifying for Euro 2022 is a bit odd.
And then there was the furore over Leeds United's new badge. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when some agency, paid thousands of pounds, unveiled that hideous design to members of the Leeds board. Staggeringly, the new emblem was given the green light, but even more surprisingly, it appears as if common sense has prevailed and a consultation has been set up to discuss the issue.
I was at Highbury in 2002, and before the Southampton league match our new badge was revealed. Cries of "What a load of rubbish" filled the air, as we expressed our disgust at the changes made to the old crest. Our board didn't listen, though. Nice to see that times have changed, and the dissenting voices have been heard. Sometimes a social media storm can be a good thing.
Previous entries:
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
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