Rest In PeaceThe news has of course been dominated by the sad death of Sir Bobby Robson, a man who managed to command universal respect and affection throughout the game and beyond. I will dedicate today’s news roundup to some of the tributes to Sir Bobby.
There’s a nice obituary in The Chronicle. I like Sir Bobby’s quote about Maradona’s goal from the 1986 World Cup: “It wasn’t the hand of God, it was the hand of a rascal.”
The BBC has tributes from many football personalities (and the Prime Minister) but I think Sir Alex Ferguson’s is particularly good:
“I was never too big or proud to ask him for advice which he gave freely and unconditionally. And I’m sure I am speaking for a lot of people when I say that.
“In my 23 years working in England there is not a person I would put an inch above Bobby Robson. I mourn the passing of a great friend, a wonderful individual, a tremendous football man and somebody with passion and knowledge of the game that was unsurpassed.”
Alan Shearer paid his own tribute:
”It’s a very sad day for everyone, especially his family, his close friends and anyone who’s ever worked with him.
”Bobby was a people’s man. He could get on with anybody no matter what age they were and that says a lot about the kind of man he was and why he was so highly thought of. (more…)
The mould was broken with this special manSir Bobby Robson died earlier today after losing his long battle against cancer. Nobody needs me to say much right now, as we all know what he was and what he meant to us, which is just as well because I don’t think I have the words right now. God bless you Sir Bob, thoughts go to your family on this sad day. A true legend in every sense of the word. Some great memories to cherish and never to be forgotten.
Different allegiances but talking the same languageNo one can sympathise more with your current situation than the Leeds United fans that preceded you. It seems unjust for a club with such an impressive fanbase to be totally annihilated and ruined by incompetent ownership and bad management, but the Premier League has gotten into such a crazy situation with money that teams wanting to compete put themselves so heavily into debt in a bid to do so that it can backfire catastrophically. The saddest thing is that the players, owners and pretty much everyone else associated with the club will move on and happily forget their part in causing this destruction whilst the fans are the ones that suffer most.
I am of course a Leeds United fan. I was approached by the sites admin before the match and asked whether I’d be willing to write a review of the night’s events from an outsider’s perspective. I was more than happy to do so as Newcastle is a club I’ve always been fond of. It comes from growing up near the Kellingley Pit (about 15 miles from Leeds) where many of your fellow Geordies moved to work. I became friends with a lot of these people, as did all the people of my hometown and a friendly rivalry between Newcastle and Leeds emerged. (more…)
Smith - Toon enforcer?Predictably, a lot of the chat has been about the suggestion that an Iranian tycoon called Sirous Mahjoob is bidding for Newcastle United and may (re)install Kevin Keegan as manager.
Much doubt has been cast on whether this chap actually exists in the first place, let alone whether or not he’s bidding for the club. In general it’s the red-tops and Sky that seem to have been running with this story, although few of the broadsheets and local papers have touched it.
But let’s see what other news is around.
According to The Chronicle, Alan Smith has been laying down the law to players following the 6-1 defeat by Orient. Yesterday he said:
“Some people have made it public that they want to go, while others have got their head down.
“That is entirely up to the individual.
“We won’t have a go at anybody if they want to go.
“But they must cross that white line and give 100% when they wear a Newcastle shirt.
“We won’t have any qualms if they walk away if they get a better offer elsewhere.
“Every player in the dressing room last night, whether they want to stay or go, gave 100% and we cannot have any complaints.” (more…)
Signpost for S********d (Recently that is….) Just how sneaky and devious can the Makems really be? For instance, could they have infiltrated Iranian media to spread malicious rumours and create a second take-over hoax?
I imagine the search keys ‘Sirous Mahjoob’, ‘Toon takeover’ and the F5 key have been seriously hammered today. And yet we seem to be no further forward on whether this is legit.
The current opinion is the The Sun picked the story up from the Iranian media and ran with it and since other papers and sites have piggy-backed off it. The story isn’t given much credence because for a start, there is no extensive knowledge of this guy despite furious trawling of the internet. Also, the rumour contains the suggestion that they’d want KK back which sounds a bit far-fetched. (more…)
