Andy Holmes Dies of Suspected Weil’s Disease
He was just 51 and the cause of his death is normally fairly rare. But Weil’s Disease does claim the animals and birds, when you don’t keep the rats down and the hygiene good
But it is so sad that effectively one of his his major passions, may have led to the cause of his death.
Horseracing in Crisis
The long running dispute about the size of the Levy seems to have hit the stops again as horse racing and the bookmakers can’t agree how much should be paid. According to this article on the BBC, the decision will go for the last time to the Government.
I love my racing, but I know that this can’t go on!
In the first place, horse racing needs bookmakers and bookmakers don’t need horse racing, as mugs will bet on anything from horse racing videos to the X-Factor. I bet rarely, but I still have one running on Strictly Come Dancing. Any unbiased analysis of bookmakers income shows that their profits come from areas other than horse racing.
One of the troubles with racing is that it is perceived in the wrong way by much of the public and racing sees the public in the wrong way too. For instance, few know that most race meetings outside of the really major ones, let those under 16 in free with an adult. I’ve always found that children enjoy racing as it’s something so different to what they encounter in normal life. Many race courses do try to encourage families in the summer, but others just don’t bother. They just don’t realise that by changing the product on offer slightly they can reach a whole new audience.
Another problem, that exists locally is that big meetings at Newmarket often clash with football at Ipswich. And I suspect Norwich too! I suspect these aren’t the only clashes either. Planning of meetings must be better!
But racing real problem is that it continues to make really bad decisions at the top.
One thing that I can’t understand is why racing has split its television coverage between two separate channels, one of which is free and the other is so much a month. If ever there was a decision that smacks of corporate suicide it is this one.
The trouble with the quality of the decisions, is that it allows those, who perhaps should be funding the sport, like bookmakers, to find ways out of paying for the product.
Racing only powerful card is that it is a large employer, but so were the coal mines and look what happened to the miners. It was just an industry whose time had come. Not because of politics as many on the left would believe, but because of the carbon dioxide burning it produces.
So has horse racing’s time come?
Perhaps in its present form, Yes!
I wouldn’t dream of telling the racing industry what to do, but I know they must change, or at least be perceived to have changed.
Can the Government do anything to help?
I believe one trhing that would help is to move the clocks to European time, as this would give us extra opportunities for evening meetings, which do seem to attract crowds. But even here, some people in racing aren’t as pro this, as I am. But I suspect, it is something that will finally happen.
Racing often has a big asset and that is land, which sometimes is not used to its full potential because of planning restrictions. The Government is giving more power to local people, but would this be for or against racing’s interest?
I would hate to see racing fade out of the rich pageant of Britain’s sporting scene, but unless we think long and hard, it might just happen.
I hope not!
Possibly!
Not a Good Match
Ipswich lost two-nil and they really didn’t deserve more than that! They got a few good chances, but somehow they squandered them and they seemed to have the stuffing knocked out of them by Forest’s second goal on the stroke of half-time.
One of the biggest pieces of excitement in the second half, was some idiot who wanted to get on the pitch. He was duly arrested and quite rightly got slung out of the ground.
I have been watching Ipswich away for many years and this season they seem to be attracting a few mindless fans. I don’t know whether this is happening with other clubs, who used to have good records, but I don’t like it!
Mel Hopkins
The Independent also had the obituary of Mel Hopkins. He was not a lucky footballer, as he suffered a broken jaw in a rather freak accident which kept him out of the Spurs double side of 1960-61.
He was incidentally one of my father’s favourite footballers and I can remember seeing him battle with Stanley Matthews, when Stoke were the visitors at White Hart Lane. I think this match must have been between 1962 and 1964, as Stoke weren’t in the First Division until 1962 and Hopkins left Spurs in October 1964.
With Pele turning seventy today, it is interesting to note this from Stanley Matthews entry in Wikipedia.
He played his final competitive match in Brazil in 1985 at the age of 70. He damaged his cartilage during the match. “A promising career cut tragically short,” he wrote in his autobiography. During his career he gained respect not only as a great player but also as a gentleman. This is exemplified by the fact that despite playing in nearly seven hundred league games, he was never booked or sent off.
Is there a player currently playing in the Premiership, who hasn’t been booked? Let alone in say a hundred games!
Happy Seventieth Birthday to Pele
Pele is seventy today. I hope this inspires some of today’s crop of footballers to not only play better, but be better sportsmen and people as well.
I’m sure all of my generation remember the iconic photo of Pele and Bobby Moore
Off to Nottingham Today
Ipswich are at Forest today and I’m going.
It will be a train from Dullingham to Cambridge and then I change at Leicester for Nottingham getting there just after three hours on the train.
Coming back is again about three hours with changes at Ely and Cambridge from where I’ll get a taxi if I’m tired. Or I might go to Carluccio’s for supper and then get a taxi home.
It all depends on how I feel after the match!
Portsmouth on the Brink
I’m glad that I visited Fratton Park earlier in the season, as it looks like the club may not come out of administration according to this report on the BBC.
Wayne’s Crazy World!
Why is it that when we get a home-grown football superstar, in many cases it all ends in tears?
It’s not just the Paul Gascoignes and George Bests of this world, but every decade has had its fair share of footballers with drink, drugs, gambling, marriage or other personal problems. But there are many others, whose indeiscretions and problems are just those that effect us all. I remember talking to one ex-footballer, who said that he’d kept his nose clean, saved a lot of his money wisely and been able to get a good life after he retired. He felt that life had been good to him.
So why when Wayne has it all at his feet, does he throw a big wobbly at Manchester United. If I were Sir Alex, I’d seriously give consideration to letting him go to another club. But then, that club might just be Manchester City, who let’s face it could afford any player, who thought money was more important than playing football.
But Rooney has often struck me as a bit of an idiot. I seem to remember that he recently took up smoking. If that is true, my case is proven!
So perhaps, Sir Alex should sell Wayne Rooney to Manchester City and let them have all the problems! Unfortunately, there is a sell-on clause in Rooney’s contract, that would mean that Everton would get quite a bit of any transfer fee!
Can FIFA be Trusted?
Yet again we’re seeing allegations abut the voting for a major sports event. In this case it’s the 2018 World Cup, with delegates from Nigeria and Tahiti being accused of being prepared to sell their votes.
FIFA seem to be taking control, but I do wonder if their voting structure makes it very difficult to get everything squeaky clean.
Sometimes I Wonder Why I Bother!
Ipswich weren’t very good today and justifiably lost to Coventry. They just never seemed to get going and when they did nothing seemed to come of it.
At one point I thought I’d had a bit of luck in that I’d drawn Coventry to win 1-0 on the bus. But even that didn’t work out, as the referee gave a dodgy penalty to make it 2-0.
The Anonymous Widower 