The Man Who Stabbed Errol Flynn
Bob Anderson has just died and his obituary is in The Times today. He had been an Olympic fencer and fencing coach until he started coaching actors in films.
Reading his credits, you get the impression that he was involved in organising the sword fights in every film that had one in the last few decades. He was also a double for Darth Vader in the Star Wars films.
In one incident he actually stabbed Errol Flynn. However, they remained good friends.
Are Goalkeepers Loners?
After the amazing goal scored by Tim Howard and the wind last night at Goodison, BBC Radio 5 has been talking about goalkeepers who’ve scored.
The first I remember being scored was by George Farm for Blackpool against Preston. He had injured a shoulder and was playing up front and scored a headed goal.
In later life he had a spell as a lighthouse keeper.
It’s always said that goalkeepers are a bit mad, but are they loners as well?
Vinny Jones Shows He’s All Heart
Vinny Jones has got involved in publicity for the British Heart Foundation. The details and a video are here.
It should be remembered that his wife, Tanya, has had a heart transplant and I think he’s done work for the BHF before.
I actually think the whole concept of the video is rather good, as it’s very simply put together and you remember his message.
How to Do a Football Shuttle Bus
The Madejski Stadium isn’t close to Reading town centre or the station, but getting there on Saturday couldn’t have been easier.
At the station there was a signpost that couldn’t have been clearer.
Signpost at Reading Station
The walk wasn’t far too and I think it will be shorter and easier, once they finish the works at the station.
A Smart Football Shuttle Bus
The bus was a rather smart Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 and I think it was a hybrid too. It was also free to those with a bus pass.
Many other clubs could do well to look at how Reading organise the transport for fans.
It was a pity Ipswich went and lost.
The Greatest Steeplechaser
After Kauto Star ‘s epic victory yesterday, to give him a fifth King George VI Chase, there has been a lot of discussion about who was the greatest steeplechaser.
My late father saw Golden Miller win at Cheltenham in the 1930s a couple of times, just as he saw Arkle win on the television as I did in the 1960s. Unquestionably, to my father, Golden Miller was the greatest and having seen all of those so called greatest since Arkle, like Desert Orchid and Kauto Star, I won’t change my father’s view.
Golden Miller too had a very big handicap and rose above it all. His owner Dorothy Paget was a complete nutcase and insisted he run in the Grand National every year, which he hated. Although he did win the National in record time in 1934, when the fences were a lot bigger, in the midst of his five Cheltenham Gold Cup triumphs.
Trains on Boxing Day
There is a good article by the columnist Alan Williams in this month’s Modern Railways, where he decries the lack of trains on Boxing Day.
Apparently, if you want to go from London to Brighton, you’re OK, but for all other journeys, it’s car, bike or walk.
I would have liked to go and see Ipswich play at Leicester, but they might just as well be playing on Ascension Island.
It strikes me that Boxing Day might be a day, when the train companies with a bit of co-operation from the FA could make a bit of money on a day, when many will be hungover and not fancy driving at all. In fact, many might not be able to do it legally.
So how practical would it be to go to your team’s away game on Boxing Day, if the trains were running?
Here are the matches in the Premier League.
Arsenal v. Wolverhampton
This would have been very practical, but Arsenal have postponed it to the 27th because of a strike on the London Underground.
All Wolves fans would need to do, is take the Virgin train from Wolverhampton to Euston and two stops on the Victoria line.
Chelsea v. Fulham
This is going on despite the Underground strike, which won’t inconvenience the majority of fans who can either drive, walk or take a bus.
Bolton v. Newcastle
As Bolton has a station at the ground, this is a very easy journey for Newcastle fans. On Sundays, there is a convenient train with just one change at Manchester Piccadilly.
Liverpool v. Blackburn
This is another simple one, with just a change at Preston.
Man Utd v. Wigan
This is a direct train and a tram.
Sunderland v. Everton
This involves three changes of train at a minimum of over four hours.
West Brom v. Man. City
This one involves a couple of changes and two and a half hours.
Stoke v. Aston Villa
This involves a single change and takes just over an hour.
And here are the Championship matches.
Watford v. Cardiff
Not the easiest by rail, as it’s a very long way.
Derby v Leeds
Just two hours on a direct train.
Millwall v. Portsmouth
Plenty of trains and they all take around two hours.
Southampton v. Crystal Palace
Plenty of trains and again they take just over two hours.
Barnsley v. Blackpool
Not the easiest and it takes three hours with two or more changes.
Burnley v. Doncaster
Two and a half hours with a change at Leeds.
Coventry v. Bristol City
Two hours with a change at Birmingham.
Leicester v. Ipswich
Three and a half hours with all sorts of changes.
Middlesbrough v. Hull
Over three hours with a change or two.
Nottingham Forest v. Peterborough
Not too bad, if you can get a direct train.
Reading v. Brighton
Between two and three hours via London.
Birmingham v. West Ham
About two hours and a bit, depending on where in London, you’re coming from.
So basically, with the fixtures as they came out this year, it really wouldn’t have been possible, as there are too many long journeys.
But then years ago, Ipswich always used to play Norwich on Boxing Day. The police put a stop to it, but there hasn’t been much trouble over recent years.
I’m certain though, that it would be possible to arrange a better fixture list.
How many grounds aren’t well connected to the rail network? Either directly or by a match-day bus from the station! I think the list includes.
Arsenal – Three rail stations and well connected to London termini.
Aston Villa – Two rail stations connected to Birmingham New Street.
Barnsley – Not too long a walk, but it’s severely uphill to get to the ground.
Birmingham – It has its own station on match days.
Blackburn – It’s a fair walk from the local station or a taxi from the main one.
Blackpool – A fair walk and no shuttle bus.
Bolton – It has its own station at Horwich Parkway.
Brighton – It has its own station.
Bristol City – It’s a long walk.
Burnley – A far walk from the station.
Cardiff City – A fair walk from Grangetown station.
Chelsea – A fair walk from the Underground station.
Coventry – You have to walk across the City Centre to get a bus. Last year on New Year’s Day it didn’t run.
Crystal Palace – Two rail stations and the Overground, although it’s not too easy from some London terminals.
Derby – Walkable from the station.
Doncaster – Taxi or possibly a shuttle bus.
Everton – A match day bus from the train.
Fulham- A fair but pleasant walk from the Underground station.
Hull – Walkable from the rail station
Ipswich – A short walk from the station.
Leeds – A shuttle bus from Leeds station.
Leicester City – A fair walk from the station and no shuttle bus.
Liverpool – A match day bus from the train.
Manchester City – Difficult by bus, but they are building a tram.
Manchester United – A tram.
Millwall – It has its own station.
Middlesbrough – Walkable from the train station.
Newcastle – It has its own Metro station.
Norwich – A short walk from the station.
Nottingham Forest – Walkable from the station.
Peterborough – Walkable from the station.
Portsmouth – Walkable from Fratton station.
QPR – Two Underground stations, but not too well-connected to London termini.
Reading – There is a shuttle bus from the railway station.
Southampton – A fair walk from the railway station.
Stoke – Miles from the station, but there is a match day bus service.
Sunderland – It has its own Metro station.
Swansea – A long walk from the rail station.
Tottenham – Two train stations, but not that well connected to London termini.
Watford – Walkable from the station.
West Bromwich – It has its own rail station and tram stop.
West Ham – A short walk from Upton Park station.
Wigan – A long walk from the rail stations, and there is no match day bus. The club website says use a taxi.
Wolverhampton – A short walk from the rail station and the tram.
So some clubs are fairy ideal places to ave home matches on Boxing Day. Others like Blackburn, Blackpool, Bristol City, Cardiff City, Coventry, Leeds, Leicester, Southampton, Swansea and Wigan are definitely not, unless they break a habit of a lifetime and run a shuttle bus from the station.
To schedule what matches are played, it is a very simple matter and could even be organised like a cup draw. a list of practical pairs would need to be drawn up, when the teams in the division were finalised after the play-offs. Obviously conditions of distance and police views would prevail. So Arsenal could be paired with say Aston Villa, Fulham, Norwich, QPR, West Bromwich and Wolverhampton. I’ve left out Tottenham and Chelsea, as the police would probably want them on a less high-profile day.
You would start by drawing the home teams from the list of grounds with good transport connections. And then a draw would be made to see who they played.
There are a few problems however you do it, as both Newcastle and Sunderland are difficult to get to and the police would object to the derby on Boxing Day.
But I suspect with a bit of goodwill and co-operation between the rail companies, the FA and the police something could be worked out.
An aside here, and equally important, to those who don’t follow football, is that a lot of major shopping centres, like Meadowhall, the Metro Centre at Gateshead and Westfield and Eastfield in London have rail stations, so a good train service will help a lot more people.
I thought train companies were in business to make a profit. Surely with a bit of radical thinking, they could turn Boxing Day, into a nice little earner.
How About?
- Fans to football, rugby and other sporting events.
- Shoppers to large shopping centres.
- Families to the coast, big cities and other attractions.
- C and I often went on holiday on Boxing Day, as it can be a good day to fly long haul.
It might even help some get back to where they live and work a lot easier. Especially in these days of very complicated family relationships.
Suarez, Terry and Hansen
Luis Suarez has been given an eight match ban and a substantial fine for abusing Patric Evra in a racist manner. The ins and outs of the case are discussed in this article in the Daily Mail.
What annoys me about this case is the way that Liverpool and its fans will not let the matter drop. Suarez has been found guilty by the FA and may not normally be a racist, but it would seem that the evidence showed he said something very inappropriate.
It was very similar last night at Tottenham, with John Terry being cheered by Chelsea fans at every touch, after his well-publicised incident with Anton Ferdinand.
and then Alan Hansen makes a serious gaff on Match of the Day.
You could argue that his problem was less serious, as he was trying to make a serious statement and got the wrong words. Which of course he shouldn’t have done!
In the heat of the moment, we might all made statements appropriate to our feelings. I have several times said or mouthed things like “You stupid bastard”, when I’ve been cut up say, by another driver. But these days few of us would use any racial phrase in that sort of statement, even if they could have done, by virtue of the other person’s race. It doesn’t help either party.
In my view, the Terry case is the most serious of the three as the police have got involved. But then, this is not the first time, that the England captain has been touched by the law or scandal. Just read his Wikipedia entry.
In my view, John Terry’s real problem is that just like Alan Hansen, he has let himself down. He would not be the first footballer to do this and I hope he follows Tony Adams example and rebuilds his life constructively.
In some ways the pity of the Suarez and Terry cases is that the alleged offences were not spotted by the referee at the time. In that case, it would have been an immediate sending off, which would have probably calmed the situation somewhat, as sending off results in an immediate one-match ban, until the case is considered. So perhaps for racist behaviour it should be two or even a three match ban?
After all, if two of my employees had a racist spat, the first thing I’d do would be to send them home to cool off, whilst I discussed with my lawyers, whether I should fire someone.
Arsenal Postpone, Chelsea Don’t
Can I assume that this is because most Chelski fans wouldn’t be seen dead on a train, so the strike makes no difference to their prawn-sandwich eaters?
The Olympic Torch is Going to Dublin
I didn’t realise this, until I read this article in the Irish Times.
But then the Irish always like a good party.
And I’ve always found, that the English often get on better with the Southern Irish, than they do with the Scots and the Northern Irish.
A Small Punch Up At The Olympic Park
I was down the Olympic Park today and a boxing ring had been setup.
Boxing at the Olympic Park
But as you can see it wasn’t a normal fight. The British Olympic hopefuls for 2012, were joined by two of the British team from 1948.
The banter was funny, but the two eighty-year-olds were in superb nick. They were complaining though that they had to train for 1948 in an era of rationing. One was wearing his 1948 team blazer.
The Anonymous Widower 