http://www.barclaytalkssport.com Author James Barclay on the myriad issues of sport Mon, 30 Jun 2008 22:29:09 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Wimbledon saw a match of true heroic stature today. And, unsually in this circumstance, it was the British player who came out on top. I remember seeing Ian Wright doing a trail for the new series of the utterly pointless and puerile Gladiators in which he claimed it would be the ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/06/30/forget-the-spandex-goons-hail-the-real-gladiators/ The dear old Beeb are doing their best. They're trying desperately to gather interest in Euro 2008 with their 'Who will you support?' campaign. And last Friday there was chatter on Five Live with various people saying things like... 'Actually, it'll be nice. No pressure, no heartache. I'm really looking ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/06/02/come-on-now-be-honest/ So the ludicrous nature of football mangement comes to this. Avram Grant was sacked because John Terry slipped on a muddy piece of turf by a penalty spot. Let's not hide from this truth. Because had Chelsea won the Champs League, Abramovich, running the Thai bloke a close second in ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/05/27/avram-grant-victim-of-a-bit-of-mud/ Yesterday's bad news for Paula Radcliffe is far more long-term than Beijing 2012. It doesn't just represent a risk to one of our key medal hopes. Looking ahead, the real sadness here is that a truly great athlete faces ending her career without an Olympic marathon medal of any kind ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/05/23/radcliffe-faces-ending-her-career-feeling-incomplete/ The Champions League Final was a proper football match. Two teams trying to win, not trying to avoid defeat. It was nerveless English league football at its best. Ebb and flow, chances, petulant players, whining managers and some fabulous skill on display. But never mind that. Like so many big ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/05/22/end-the-penalties-nightmare/ Read this, laugh and then spare a thought for City fans If true there can only be one conclusion, which is that the Thai bloke is a complete twat. http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/05/16/thai-bloke-wants-to-sell-his-squad-his-whole-squad/ No one is going to claim that Rangers played pretty flowing football in their UEFA Cup Semi Final 2nd Leg against Fiorentina. The Italians had all the flair and passing and fleetness of foot you could want. They created many a chance. Trouble is, they didn't stick any of them ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/05/01/proof-that-heart-and-grit-can-be-keys-to-success/ This is, or should be, of deep concern. Sven Goran Erikson's possible departure could easily be the tip of the iceberg. I'm talking about rich owners of football clubs being utterly unable to see the facts in front of their face. The Thai bloke (and I won't quote his name ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/05/01/this-should-worry-every-football-fan/ Look, it's quite simple. So simple, in fact, that even football players could understand it. When a foul is committed, the man who has committed the foul and his team captain are allowed to speak to the referee about it. No one else. That is because it is no one ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/04/28/respect-in-football/ There I've said it. I didn't think the day would ever come but it has, courtesy of the extraordinary arrogance and greed of the Premier League. It's staggering when you sit and think about it. That any country should think their domestic league so important that it should be exported ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/02/15/i-agree-with-sepp-blatter/ Kevin Keegan's return to football management at all is good news for those of us who love the characters of the game. That he has come back to manage Newcastle is the perfect storm made flesh. Whether he succeeds (and I hope he does) or fails, football lovers are in for ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2008/01/18/the-return-of-king-kev-marvellous/ Almost a done deal, we are told. Here's why it is a good appointment: 1 - He has a phenomenal track record in club football. Proven to be able to win championships in extremely tough leagues like Spain and Italy. 2 - Not scared of players. If his reputation is true, we ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/12/14/capello-set-for-england-hot-seat/ Good http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/12/10/no-way-jose-for-england/ Oh, Blimey. Look, everyone. He's a decent coach, blah blah blah and that he has been approached is not at all surprising if it is true. But read further down the piece. The England job, it says, is not his first choice. That's what we want for our national side, ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/12/07/fa-makes-approach-for-mourinho/ There's going to be a whole lot of fall out after England's failure to qualify for Euro 2008. A load of soul searching, star gazing. What I'm fearful of is that everything else other than the obvious will be blamed. The number of foreign players in the Premiership, the pitch, ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/11/22/stop-looking-for-excuses/ England 2, Croatia 3. Actually, you won't get the chance because he'll resign. Or he should. It barely matters that this was the game that decided our Euro 2008 fate. The fact is that it was so abject and depressing that had it been the first game, we'd have been ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/11/21/but-sack-him-now/ Stuart Pearce among many others is standing in support of Steve Maclaren. And, amazed though I am given my stance earlier in his tenure, I am too. We desperately need long-term continuity in the England set up. We've cast off the dull tired and negative tactics of Sven and have ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/11/15/dont-sack-mac/ It's a little overdue, I know but actually, I'm still coming down from England's fantastic 12-10 win over Australia. Frankly, it's great to beat the Aussies in any sport at any time but here in the Rugby World Cup Quarter Finals, with us as rank outsiders, it was particularly sweet. Our ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/10/09/england-trample-wallabies/ Today brings the announcement that Pakistan's Inzamam-ul-Haq is to retire from test cricket after the Lahore test match versus South Africa next week. Having already quit the one day game, Inzamam's retirement brings to a close, the career of one of the world's best batsmen of all time. He has ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/10/05/a-true-great-calls-time/ Brian Barwick is not always known for smart talking but this is just supreme common sense. The FA are going to pilot a scheme at grass roots level in which only the captain of a side can talk to the referee... just like in Rugby Union. Hallelujah. RU has so ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/10/02/an-outbreak-of-common-sense/ Tim Henman may well have played his last singles match as a professional. His demolition of his replacement Croation opponent, Roko Karanusic, was a fitting reminder of what the tennis-watching public and the British Davis Cup team will be missing from now on. I shan't bang on about his startling ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/09/21/henman-retires-in-style/ The Twenty/20 World Cup has already had plenty of tension, unless you're an England fan, and has spawned a couple of great matches. Pakistan's victory over Australia was one and last night's victory for India over South Africa was the other. The Proteas defeat means their world cup is over ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/09/21/twenty20-world-cup-hots-up/ Jose Mourinho's rather sudden departure from Chelsea probably sould not come as too much of a shock. Clearly unhappy at the end of last season and utterly miserable and given to even more confused press conferences this season, he has looked checked out for some weeks. More of a shock is ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/09/20/bye-bye-jose/ England 6-1 Argentina. Ah, wonderful. Now there is a scoreline to warm the cockles of your heart. And it could have been more. After their 11-0 thumping by Germany in their opening match, Argentina tightened their defence against Japan, losing by the only goal, and that in stoppage time. But ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/09/18/englands-women-in-cruise-control/ England's defeat to New Zealand in their latest 20/20 World Cup game means almost certain elimination from the tournament. Three defeats out of four is a poor return for a team that looked very well balanced on paper. But there's the rub. Packed with 20/20 specialists, England have misfired badly. ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/09/18/england-batting-frailty-exposed-again/ Yes, I know Owen scored another two very good goals and Ferdinand managed a piece of country dancing before scoring the third, but the engine room of our 3-0 victory over Russia was our central midfield. Gerrard and Barry were absolutely outstanding from kick off to final whistle. Indeed, they ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/09/14/gerrard-and-barry-win-it-for-england/ It is a rare day indeed when England win three important games in a single afternoon. But such a day was Saturday 8th September. We won important matches in Rugby, cricket and football... but how to score them in terms of quality? As a fan, wishing to see all three matches ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/09/09/triple-whammy-for-england/ India levelled the One Day series yesterday in a magnificent encounter that saw some extraordinary power hitting in a day dominated by the bat. This is the sort of match that cricket haters should be made to watch and then attached to a lie dectector afterwards when asked if they ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/09/06/further-chirping-not-cheap/ This was an intensely satisfying victory for England. Yes, because we bowled very well yet again after losing the toss on a good batting track. Yes, because after playing ourselves into a huge hole with some very dim batting, our 8th wicket pair of Bopara and Broad demonstrated how it ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/08/30/big-mouths-end-up-eating-dirt/ Tim Henman's victory over Dimitri Tursanov late yesterday evening was like stepping back in time. All the touch, all the fluidity and all the sheer determination, balance and world class skill were there for all to see. Impending retirement certainly seems to suit Henman. Tursanov is a man he's been ... http://www.barclaytalkssport.com/2007/08/30/indian-summer-for-henman/