Sports Then and Now

Nat Lofthouse scored 255 goals in his career for the Bolton Wanderers.

It was a very sad day for Bolton Wanderers and English football fans with the announcement of the passing away of the great Nat Lofthouse, one of the greatest centre forwards England ever produce. He was 85 years old when he died on January 15th.

Lofthouse spent his entire playing career at Bolton Wanderers and by the time he had played his last game for them in 1960, he had turned made 452 appearances scoring 255 goals. He made his debut in fact for Bolton as a 21 year old in August 1946 and scored twice despite being on the losing side against Chelsea.

These days Nat would be described as an old fashioned Centre Forward who in his day would have the ability to terrify defenders with his physical presence, his shooting instincts and his incredible ability to attack the ball with his head. In those days of course, a football was a far cry from what they are today and players risked head injury and head lacerations when heading the ball. Nat Lofthouse was one of the great headers of the ball however, scoring many of his goals with his and becoming easily one of the best ball attackers in the world.

Whilst a Bolton player, Lofthouse played in two FA Cup finals, losing the first one in the famous 1953 ‘Stanley Matthews’ Blackpool final where he still managed to score the Bolton goal and created a record that year by scoring in every round of the competition. He was also named 1953 footballer of the year. Read the rest of this entry →

Both the United States and England fell short in bids to host the World Cup.

So there we have it. After 18 months of political lobbying, journalist digging, scandal, corruption and a last minute Royal-infused dash to the line, England’s 2018 World Cup bid ended in dismal failure.

For many people normally following the live match score centre who have seen the bid process develop over the past few weeks the choice of Russia is perhaps no surprise. As pointed out in their bid presentation Eastern Europe has never hosted a World Cup and their country harbours a growing passion and, crucially, the financial support for a football tournament of this magnitude.

As an England fan I can perhaps grudgingly accept that. But I don’t think it is the losing that is the galling thing. It’s the fact we had the best technical and commercial bid yet came last out of all four countries. Then the decision to award Qatar the 2022 WC despite also having the weakest bid says it all – it was seen as ‘high risk’ by the FIFA report! It all leaves a bitter taste in the mouth

It is easy to accuse the English of sour grapes. But to put our failure purely down to perceived ‘arrogance’ and FIFA’s whiter than white vision of spreading the game to new boundaries is naïve. Read the rest of this entry →

If you are one of the five or six people who have actually read any of my other irresponsibly chimeric screeds (hi Mom, Aunt Kate), then you no doubt realize I have a peculiar fondness for the bizarre and the off beat.

I also possess a passion for the sport of soccer, which is a fortuitous thing, as the world of association football is literally overflowing with all manner of chiseling crooks, dangerous thugs, craven lunatics and twisted perverts. This means that the well of weirdness that FIFA keeps in the secret attic of a small church in southern France will never run dry, much to the satisfaction of those like myself who take great pleasure to revel in the arcana of the beautiful game.    This is something that many American fans overlook; the petty dramas of the transfer market, the vicious hatred between rivals fans, the wealth of impossible personalities and the far fetched happenings of international soccer.

Take the case of the Togolese national team. I mean, imagine you are a Togolese international, and you awake one morning, switch on your TV and see a match report from a friendly in Riffa, Bahrain that you are pretty sure never happened–at least not with the Togo team you play for. Read the rest of this entry →

Cardiff boss Dave Jones is one candidate for the Fulham manager position.

After an unsuccessful bid to bring Martin Jol from Ajax to Craven Cottage, Fulham continue to look for a new manager. The latest name being banded about is that of Cardiff boss Dave Jones.

Sven Goran Eriksson and USA coach Bob Bradley are still thought to be in the mix though. Eriksson has made it clear he would welcome a move back to the Premier League. The Swede feels he has unfinished business in England after being acrimoniously sacked by Manchester City two years ago.

Those who bet on premier league managerial appointments believe that Fulham are a tempting prospect for any manager. The London club finished the season mid-table in the league but reached the Europa League Final. Owner Mohammed Al Fayed usually backs his manager’s in the transfer market.

The only issue they face when hiring someone is that Jol was clearly the board’s first choice. With the amount of ego’s football, not many managers want to be thought of as a second choice. If Cardiff manager Jones would be keen to move to Craven Cottage. Those who bet on championship football will know that the Welsh club are riddled with debt and are constantly forced to sell their best players.

Jones has performed relative miracles at Cardiff, turning them from a lower mid-table team into a top Championship side. Last season’s play-off final will have hit him hard however and he may feel the time is right to move.

It remains to be seen who Fulham go for, the club aren’t letting on who is on their shortlist.

Emile Heskey has called it quits as an international player.

So after 62 caps and just seven goals, Emile Heskey has decided to retire from international football (soccer).

The Aston Villa man has never been a fan favourite and many Three Lions supporters suggested his poor goal scoring record meant he did not deserve his place in the side.

However, manager after manager kept faith with him and he went to the last World Cup as one of the side’s most experienced players.

For his part, Heskey has no qualms about his England career but, at the age of 32, he has finally decided to call it a day.

He said: “I have enjoyed every moment of my England career and worn the shirt with pride when selected.”

“I would like to thank every manager I have played under, everyone at the FA and the fans for all their support over the years.”

If he’d taken the decision a couple of years ago, he would have saved his Fabio Capello a tough choice. Heskey is very much a footballers’ footballer and Wayne Rooney loved playing with him.

However, the Villa man was never the complete package and although his work as a target man was often first rate, his finishing let him down. Read the rest of this entry →

Didier Dogba is hopeful that his fractured elbow will be not keep him out of the World cup.

When Ivory Coast qualified for their first World Cup in 2006, they were given the shortest of straws by being put in a group with Argentina, Holland and Serbia. They finished with two losses and a win over Serbia, but gained much needed top-class experience.

They are going to need that experience they gained playing in that group this year. In what has been given the token ’group of death’ tag, Group G contains Brazil, Portugal and North Korea. With North Korea looking as though they will be the group whipping boys, World Cup Group G Betting suggests that  Brazil and Portugal will be battling Ivory Coast for the top two places in the group.

Many view the Ivory Coast as a team who has underachieved in the past decade. A squad rich with talent have failed to win the African Cup of Nation since 1992, making the final only once since, in which they lost on penalties to Egypt in the 2006. On paper, few teams at this summers World Cup have better squads. Read the rest of this entry →