Saturday
The world snooker championship breaks out in Sheffield with Ronnie O’Sullivan appearing through the curtain like someone who’d just been away on a Mr Benn-like sabbatical. It wouldn’t be the same without the defending champion, now would it?
But some would say that the world championship isn’t the same as it once was. Yes, it’s still at The Crucible Theatre, and yes, it’s still a 17-day marathon. And yes, the BBC still turn up in force, even if on the first day, they successfully manage to alienate countless supporters by ditching coverage of a sport made famous during the 70’s by the likes of John Spencer, in favour of one of that decades most famous comedic characters, Frank Spencer.
Still that broadcast balls-up gave the press corps, which has dwindled in numbers over the years, something to write about, and take their minds off more pressing issues like the above sight. The last thing anyone in the press room, sorry, media centre, needed on the opening day, was to see ice cold bottles of beer waving out of a chained refrigerator. An unforgivable act, unthinkable 20 years ago. See what I mean about it not being the same?
Sunday
Luis Suarez
Luis Suarez is talented, near flawless, as a player. The same sadly cannot be said about his character. Last season, he brought shame on Liverpool and his profession after being found guilty of making racist comments to Patrice Evra. Today, his actions bring further shame on his club and trade when he decides to have a bite at Chelsea stopper Branislav Ivanovic.
It was once of the most unbelievable incidents seen on a British football pitch, but nothing new for Suarez who during his Ajax days, munched on PSV’s Otman Bakkal. For that starter, he received a seven-game suspension.
However, if Suarez’s actions were amazing and shocking, so were the comments made in his defence over the coming days. Like the Evra episode, Liverpool fans and club officials appeared to be queuing up to defend what countless saw as being the indefensible, voicing their outrage at the perceived hounding of this habitual felon, and subsequently at the 10-match ban the FA would eventually impose on him.
That’s eighteen games missed in little over a year through suspensions. Yet, it is unthinkable Liverpool would consider getting rid of him, their only player of true class. Which perhaps shows how Liverpool’s standards have slipped, both on and off the pitch.
Monday
New Douglas Park
New Douglas Park hosts a meeting of Scottish Football League Division One clubs – plus Dundee and Queen of the South – to discuss league reconstruction, that non-event which continues to threaten to happen.
Over the next few days, I speak to club representatives who were involved in those discussions, and to a man, each of them mentioned the same thing: a word used by Dundee chief executive Scot Gardiner who said, that under the rejected SPL deal, the top-tier clubs would ‘endow the First Division with cash.’ A strange choice of word and phrase, more likely to be used by Russell Brand. Even stranger that he used it three times in the same gathering. To endow, gives a notion of it coming after death. Probably correct then, in the context of the SPL. Or that it is some form of insurance, which could be correct again, given the SPL and their reconstruction proposals have been nothing but one big car crash.
Tuesday
You can’t have a world snooker championship without some controversy and the subject of slow play is raised again after Graeme Dott and Peter Ebdon take over seven hours – and an additional session – to complete their match. Dott perhaps has felt the effects of slow play – some would call it gamesmanship – more than most, having had his world championship success 2006 labelled the dullest final on record, ironically, when playing Ebdon.
“Is Peter cheating?” asked Dott. ” No, because there isn’t a rule and there should be a rule brought in for slow play.
“I think he’s been playing for 25 years and he knows the shot he’s going to play and I know the shot and the crowd know the shot, and he’ll still take maybe over a minute.”
The thought of a shot clock at The Crucible is one many a traditionalist would cringe at. But snooker supremo Barry Hearn probably wouldn’t be one of them, having introduced the concept into his Premier League event a number of years ago. And, as every clock needs a manufacturer, that would mean another sponsorship opportunity to be exploited, I mean embraced …
Wednesday
After Bayern Munich humbled Barcelona 4-0 the previous evening, Borussia Dortmund thump Real Madrid 4-1 in their Champions League semi-final to make the prospect of an all-German final a very real possibility. Just think, 100,000 Germans in London for the final at Wembley. How long would it take before the towels appeared over the seats some asked. I merely wondered, that in terms of tour plans, if there were any copies of Operation Sealion still kicking around …
Thursday
There appear to be a certain amount of consternation out Parkhead way after the announcement of the nominations for the Scottish PFA Player of the Year. Celtic manager Neil Lennon thought it ‘abysmal’ that none of his players had made the last four, listed as Michael Higdon, Leigh Griffiths, Niall McGinn and Andrew Shinnie, or for some, the big boy at Motherwell, the maddie at Hibs, that guy Celtic didn’t want and the Highlander that’s going to Birmingham.
Parkhead Stadium
But later in the day, SPFA’s chief exec Fraser Wishart revealed that seven Celtic players had received votes, but not enough to get them in to the top four. In other words, they split their vote, and limited their chances. That can happen when a team is full of contributors in a successful season. That can also happen in any democratic vote, a fact totally lost on some.
Of course, as soon as someone moans, others think it’s a good idea to pontificate about it could be better. Some reckoned six nominations would be better. After all, that’s what they do in England. But that’s fine in England, where they have double the players in the top division, and fine if you have some outstanding candidates, as we had this season.
However, those of us who have been around these parts long enough, will recall years where you could have one star turn and several others who just make up the numbers so a we can have an election and not just a coronation. No, leave be at four candidates, but think about printing up a guide to the SPFA’s voting process for the appalled and the apologists …
Friday
With golf being reintroduced back into the Olympics it has thrown up several questions over qualification that just are not covered by any R&A Rules book. Golfers Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy face the dilemma of who they should play – Great Britian or Ireland – for come the 2016 Olympics. Indeed McDowell would like the decision on who he represents at the 2016 Olympics to be made by the IOC. It’s impossible to play golf without balls. Pity McDowell can’t show some by making the call himself.