GENERAL: Where are all the local, non-football news?

Is it just me, or is football fast becoming the ONLY sport that people care to read about these days? Everyday, there are countless stories on football, football, football, but hardly any stories on other sports. Even badminton is taking a back seat in the papers' sports pages.

Here's a breakdown of the Sports pages in The Star today (Friday, October 29 2004):

• 11 Sports pages
• 6 pages dedicated to football (7 if you count the one on LOCAL football)
• 28 stories overall
• 9 non-football stories
• 7 stories on English football
• 12 stories on football in other countries, including two Malaysian ones, and one from the CHINESE league.

And the most damning one:

• a grand total of FIVE stories on local sports. FIVE out of TWENTY-EIGHT.

So much football, so little other sports. and this is not even counting the 16-page special weekly pullout solely dedicated to football. No wonder most Malaysians didn't bother with the Olympics. They may not even know what sports are in it!

So much foreign sports news, so little local news. No wonder local sports (or any other sports besides football, for that matter) are not generating much interest. Look at how little is reported about them! Even local football is limited to a measly TWO stories. And FAM wonders why the stadiums are half empty. After all, why bother paying to go watch a game between Kedah and Perak when the EPL is on at the same time, right?

Funny thing is, I remember a time when huge crowds would turn up for local football matches, when the start of the Malaysia Cup or the Liga Perdana would feature a daily profile in The Star on each and every team. These days, a visit from NORWICH CITY probably generates more excitement than the Malaysia Cup final.

It's pathetic that Malaysians can be so passionate about an English team, and yet care so little about sports in their own country. I'm also guilty of being more passionate about Liverpool than the Malaysian national football team. But I also think it's a Catch-22 situation. The fans don't care about Malaysian sports, because frankly, Malaysian sport is pathetic. And the state of Malaysian sports can hardly improve if there is no interest or support from the fans.

Football: Man U vs Arsenal: The Aftermath

Here are some news stories that have popped up in the aftermath of that encounter at Old Trafford:

FA charge Ruud, summon Wenger

An excerpt from the Soccernet story:

Holland international van Nistelrooy has been charged with serious foul play following a challenge on Arsenal full-back Ashley Cole during the match which United won 2-0.
A statement from the FA read: 'The FA has today charged Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy with a breach of FA Rule E3 - for serious foul play.
'The charge relates to an incident involving Ashley Cole during the match between Manchester Untied and Arsenal on Sunday, October 24.

Ah... this was what I was hoping for. I hope the cheat gets what he deserves.

In the same story, Arsene Wenger was also called up to explain his comments about Riley's performance and calling Van Nistelrooy a 'cheat' (which, IMHO, he IS). Looks like the repurcussions of this match could last for quite some time, just like the same fixture last season.

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Ref chief defends Riley

An excerpt from the Soccernet story:

Referees chief Keith Hackett had no complaints about the way Riley controlled the match.
He added: 'We know this is one of the tough encounters of the season. Mike clearly had a gameplan to try and not suppress the match.
'He wanted it to breathe and perhaps went in with the intention of getting through the game without having to dismiss any players.

My question is: HOW can a referee go into a match with the intention of NOT giving red cards? If a player commits a foul during the course of the game that deserves a red card (which happened on TWO occasions duringthe game), surely the referee HAS to give the marching orders?

Ferdinand deserved a red card for his professional foul on Ljundberg, and Van Nistelrooy should have been sent off for his malicious tackle on Cole. That Mike Riley DID NOT do so makes the referee look more inept than bias, to tell the truth.

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Police could land Arsenal in the soup

An excerpt from the Guardian Football story:

Arsenal may yet face charges over the "Soup-gate" scandal after it emerged that police officers were in the tunnel and witnessed a visiting player showering Sir Alex Ferguson in pea soup and pizza in the wake of his Manchester United team's 2-0 win at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Imagine all the headlines if it turned out that Sol Campbell threw that soup at Ferguson. As it is, Guardian is already having fun with 'soupy' headlines like:

• Winning recipe wasted in food fight
• Arsenal could land in the soup

Football: Man U 2-0 Arsenal: Pah. Ptuui!

Let it be known loud and clear that I am utterly disgusted at the way Man U won their match last night.

The main reason I'm seething is not because I'm an Arsenal fan, but because of the way the referee made some pretty bias decisions. Like the sending off of Vieira and Van Nistelrooy's penalty in the same fixture last season, it was as though Riley WANTED MAn U to win. EIGHT bloody penalties given TO Man U by Riley in EIGHT games at Old Trafford says a lot, doesn't it?

Some sites have waved of the controversial decisions by saying 'He did not want to show any red cards', but how can you not give a red card for a deliberate barge by a last man on a player through on goal? That's a professional foul, that is! But was it really a surprise that after three or four really bad tackles by MAn U players, the first player to be booked was Ashley Cole?

Anyway, here are some 'controversial' decisions referee Mike Riley gave:

• Waving away the professional foul by Ferdinand on Ljundberg that should have resulted in a red card for Ferdinand
• Nothing given a blatant stud-showing kick by Van Nistelrooy on Ashley Cole's knee. Even the commentators said that was a 'disgraceful tackle'.
• No card for Gary Neville's tackle from behind on Reyes' ankle (retaliating after Reyes had nutmeg him)
• The Penalty. The Penalty. Rooney was BOUND to go to ground at the slightest of contacts, and Riley didn't even HESITATE when giving the penalty. Even BEFORE Rooney had fallen down, Riley had pointed to the spot. (Granted, Campbell shouldn't have stuck his leg out, but he did, and in that time honoured Man United tradition, the striker bit dust, and Riley got his excuse to give a penalty)

Granted, Arsenal got some decisions THEIR way as well, but I think it's safe to say that Arsenal fans will have more choice curses for Riley.

Football wise, the game was entertaining enough for the neutral (though I wanted badly for Man U to LOSE, and that's not just because I'm a Liverpool fan), with a few decent shots. But it was was a very scrappy game, and had more bad tackles than good passes. Cole stifled Christiano Ronaldo, Ferdinand kept Henry quiet. With their main creative forces shackled, Man U could do very little, while Reyes was giving Neville a bad time.

Man U's second goal was well-worked, but only because Toure and co. had gone upfield in search of an equaliser.

So, Arsenal lose the unbeaten record. But on this evidence, even Man U fans are saying that they still WON'T win the league this season.

PS: With all the hype focusing on the Man U - Arsenal game, Liverpool quietly won 2-0 against Charlton and now have the ONLY 100% home record in the entire league, won their first away game last week, sit 6th in the table on 16 points (Man U are fifth with 17), AND have a game in hand. Looks good, looks good. :-)

PSS: Valencia lost to Real Madrid 1-0, the only goal coming courtesy of MICHAEL OWEN. How very ironic...

Football: A woeful mid-week

What a week to forget it's been for Valencia. Not only did they lose 2-1 to Seville over the weekend to fall five points behind Barcelona in La Liga, but last night they lost 1-5 to Inter Milan at HOME. Lets hope Ranieri's men can pick themselves up again after that thrashing. Sigh...

Liverpool didn't have a good mid-week either, only managing a 0-0 draw against Deportivo at home. I have a feeling that Benitez NEEDS another striker. Cisse is having trouble adapting to the side, while Baros has gone back to his pre-Euro-Golden-Boot inconsistency for the club. I'm now hoping that all those rumors of Morientes wanting to join Liverpool in January will come through...

Football: Fulham 2 - 4 Liverpool: YAY!

A bit hard to update the blog, because I'm on holiday for a week, but Saturday's result was just too good NOT to blog about. :-D

Sure, Liverpool had a lot of luck, with Zat Knight's own goal, and Xabi Alonso's deflected kick, but then, we WERE down to ten men when Alonso scored. Also, to come back from 2-0 down, and win our FIRST away game of teh season is jsut great. Oh, and Biscan's goal was just a superb team goal.

On to Deportivo!

PS: Am a bit pissed that Valencia lost to Seville that same day, but oh well. Can't win them all, I guess.

GENERAL: The Gym Germ

Currently, it seems as though every other person I know either:

i) is a member of a gym
ii) is applying for membership at a gym
iii) is looking for a gym to join as a member
iv) got suckered by a salesman into getting a gym membership

It's as though no one ever goes for REAL sports activities anymore. Everyone just wants to go to a gym, run on threadmills, pump some iron, and chat up girls.

Personally, I'm not exactly drawn towards the idea of gyms. Paying a fortune for a gym membership just does not seem logical to me, especially when it's a lot more fun exercising by playing a sport like badminton, futsal or basketball.

Since I have not exactly BEEN to a gym to see what people do there (I will, one of these days, just for the heck of it), by the comments I have gotten about gym-life I have come to the conclusion that people who go to gyms are divided into several types:

a) Those who actually DO make full use of the facilities at the gym
b) Those who only have time to go exercise at night after work
c) Those who DON'T exercise, but go to socialise and check out chicks in tights
d) Those who join as members but never use it

It's like a GERM is going around. EVERYONE wants a gym membership. While it's good that they want to EXERCISE, why is it the very first avenue of exercise they think of is joining a GYM?

Of course, there are still those of us who don't even bother with gym memberships and prefer to either:

I) Stay at home and exercise their finger muscles by pressing the Astro remote
II) Go jogging religiously
III) Play games or sports
IV) Have more sex

Ok, so I made up the fourth option (or did I?), but my point is, there are so many cheaper and more fun alternatives to going to gyms. When I was still in cometitive sports, I remember HATING going to the gym, because it was so boring. Pumping iron or running on threadmills could never compare to the exhiliration of playing a good game of badminton, scoring a goal in futsal, or playing any other game.

But that's just me. And other people's money.

Me, I shall continue asking any salesman who approaches me to sign up for a gym membership this: "Do you have a badminton court in your gym? No? Then why should I sign up?"

Tennis: Ra! Ra! Sharapova!

I'm trying very hard NOT to write about football these days, which explains why the posts have been less frequent lately. The problem is, it is that time of year when most of all the other sports have wound up their seasons. All the major badminton tournaments have ended. The Olympics has gone by in a blink of an eye.

The only thing left to watch other than football is baseball, which I understand quite well (due to a youth wasted on reading Japanese baseball-related manga) but just don't see the point of; American foot-*scoff*-ball; GOLF (see this post for my thoughts on THIS game), and tennis, which has already finished its Grand slams, but has something (or rather, someONE) that the other sports don't - MARIA SHARAPOVA.

Ever since Anna Kournikova burst onto the scene a few years back (or more), women's tennis has been a lot more interesting to watch. Of course, before Kournikova, there was Gabriella Sabatini, but that was about it. Martina Hingis was rather cute (in fact, I loved it when she partnered Kournikova in doubles), and a big loss to the women's game when she retired so early in her career. Kournikova herself has pretty much faded away from the courts (though her face is still everywhere).

Thank god then, for Maria Sharapova.

Sharapova is the hottest thing in women's tennis right now. Although she's just one member of the this year's Russian women's tennis revolution (There are currently five Russians in the Top Ten; plus Elena Dementieva lost TWO all-Russian Grand Slam finals - to Svetlana Kuznetsova at the US Open and Anastasia Myskina at the French), she certainly is the prettiest, in my humble opinion. Hehe.

When she won Wimbledon this year, she proved that she is no Kournikova, who merely looked good, but still can't win a SINGLE tournament. Although Sharapova didn't do that well in the US Open, just recently, she has picked up the pace again, winning the Korean and Japan Opens back to back.

But enough talk, here then is a gratuitous photo of her winning the Japan Open, courtesy of Sharapova fan-site Maria World. Enjoy! :-D

Football: England 2-0 Wales: Whoopiedoo.

So... England beat Wales. Yay.

Forgive me if I'm not exactly overjoyed, but I just don't get as excited over England playing as much as some people who are so passionate about the team that you'd think they (the fan) were English, not Malaysian.

England has got to be one of the most overhyped and yet most underachieving national teams I have ever seen. Granted, they have some pretty good players, but they can never seem to get their act together when it counts. Furthermore, everytime a major tournament comes around, the hype always centres around England, as if it is they, not Argentina, not France, not even Brazil, who are the hot favorites.

Perhaps it's also because most of the websites I have been reading are pro-English, and that the EPL is probably the league that commands the most support these days. People tend to support something that they're familiar with. After all, most of us can name all the players (and positions) of the English team, but can we even PRONOUNCE the names on the French, Brazilian or even the Swedish teams' teamsheets? So, it makes sense to support the English team, no?

Or maybe because most of us are fervant fans of English clubs, so one is 'naturally' expected to support the English national team as well. As one colleague put it - "How can you support an English club but not support England?"

Well, my friend, maybe that's because I'm Malaysian. And although I'm also not exactly enamoured with Malaysia's standard of football, the point is, I'm not about to declare my loyalty to a nation that is not even my own, even if I DO support a CLUB that happens to be IN that country. And so there!

Football: Fun with Stadiums

So.... Arsenal's new stadium is gonna be called Emirates Stadium, after the Middle Eastern airline agreed to sponsor the stadium.

All together now: AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Anyway, I thought this might be a good time to rename some of the OTHER stadiums around England after some potential sponsors...

1. Stamford Bridge (Chelsea) -> Roman's Place
2. Anfield (Liverpool) -> Estadio rojo de España
3. Old Trafford (Manchester United) -> Old McDonald's (a Big Mac-United, anyone?)
4. Villa Park (Aston Villa) -> Villa Parkmay (Team buses included in the deal)
5. The Riverside stadium (Middlesbrough) -> Harry's Riverside Cruise Stadium
6. Upton Park (West Ham) -> Damansara Uptown Construction Park
7. White Hart Lane (Tottenham Hotspur) -> White Castle Lane (Harold and Kumar not included)
8. Elland Road (Leeds United) -> Melon Road (sponsored by Ah Hong Watermelon Farm, who bought the stadium on E-bay)
9. Carrow Road (Norwich City) -> Kenari Road (Well, Proton sponsors their jerseys, so Perodua can sponsor the stadium...)
10. Wembley (England) -> Support Bush Stadium

Carrom: SHEEEESH....

The Visitor has been pestering me for a post about carrom. So here it is.

Carrom is fun. Carrom is easy to play. Carrom is not an Olympic sport.

That's it for today.

What? Not enough? Sigh....

Ok, to tell the truth, I DID play carrom when I was a kid. I remember my favourite part of playing it was sprinkling the Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder (in white bottle) on the surface so that the carrom pieces/pucks/whatever would glide smoothly. I usually ended up making the board look like the Alps after that, and the puck would occasionally slam into a bunker of sno.. er... powder and send a white cloud flying into our noses.

Anyway, one thing I never got about carrom was the way you flick the puck. Do you use your index finger and the thumb in an 'OK' position, or the finger and the middle one in a more sideways motion? Every time I used the second option, I'd send the puck flying out of the board.

I used to have a carrom board at home, but I lost the pieces when I mixed them with my Lego, and my mom gave them away when they moved to KL. So we rather than buying new set of pieces, we just donated the board to someone.

That's about it. It's been ages since I played Carrom. Although if The Visitor would be so kind as to bring a board and the pieces to the office, I'll gladly have a game... :-D

Football: Chelsea 1- 0 Liverpool: Sigh...

It's gonna be a long season ahead for Liverpool fans. Three wins in seven games, and not a single away win so far. Time may not be running out for Benitez just yet, but if he doesn't start winning away games soon, we're not gonna even qualfy for the Champion's League next season.

Last night, it was a passable defensive performance (with a good game by Carragher), but in attack, Liverpool were neutralised completely.

Benitez dropped Hamaan for Diao (who was useless), and put on Traore for Finnan. The minute I saw Traore on the pitch, I knew that was it. The fella may have potential, but he has the concentration of a pea-brained chicken, and sure enough within five minutes of me turning on the TV, I saw him make TWO mistakes IN FRONT OF GOAL.

To Chelsea's credit, Joe Cole's goal was brilliantly taken, but what was alarming for Liverpool was that they never looked like scoring after going behind. Which is sad. Xabi Alonso had an ok game, but he needs to practise taking free kicks and corners more, because he ballooned at least FOUR balls into the crowd from the EXACT SAME position.

Sigh... I still believe that Benitez needs time to mould his team, but come the transfer window in January, I hope he bloody SELLS Traore and Diao, and GET BETTER PLAYERS.