The Importance of Sport (NEW CONCEPTS)

[Mick Harper]

Elsewhere in the NFL firmament, we have the Seattle Seahawks. They are in the process of being bought by a passing billionaire so are on their best behaviour. The Screaming Sea Eagles won the Super Bowl which never does your selling price any harm but billionaires are not overly concerned with money, they buy football teams for the cachet. Hence the 'best behaviour'.

So one has to ask whether it was wise of the Seahawks to sign up Terrion Arnold after the Detroit Lions had released their 2024 first round pick. Why was he released? It may have something to do with Arnold being charged with kidnapping and armed robbery in Florida last February.

But there may be nothing for Seattle to worry about. Since the Miami heat have a plethora of evidence in the form of phone conversations showing Terrion was the moving spirit in the affair (though not personally involved in the pistol-whipping part), I doubt he will appear on the artificial turf of Lumen Field, Seattle in the next ninety-nine years without the possibility of parole.

Although, one has to say, the NFL is considered so central to American life that more than one player has been allowed to serve his sentence and fulfill his contractual responsibilities to his footballing masters. It's called 'the separation of powers' over there.

[Mick Harper]

The Athletic ranked all the away kits, one to twenty. I can't remember who came top--it's just one person's opinion and who cares about away kits anyway--but it may have been Arsenal.

[Mick Harper]

Arsenal 3 Coventry 0

I can't remember who came top last year but it may have been Arsenal. The best bit in this match was when the camera was trained on Frank Lampard and the Sky commentator said, "The last manager to get Coventry into the top tier was Jimmy Hill."

I came over all warm with a mixture of nostalgia and contempt. On this showing they'll soon be back down. But then again on this showing every other team in the Premier League will be relegated too. It's not very well known but there's a 'mercy rule' -- you are relegated when you fall fifty points behind the leaders.

Yes, we're Arsenal and we don't care so get used to it.

[Mick Harper]

First Test England vs Pakistan

I'm not complaining or anything but from time immemorial test matches always had the same pattern, viz

* Whoever wins the toss bats first
* Both sides put in solid scores for their first innings
* Fast bowlers get the ball to move around a bit for the first ten overs
* Slow bowlers get a bit of turn on Days Four & Five
* The most likely result is a win for whoever won the toss
* The second most likely result is a draw.

'Good show' wasn't descriptive of the entertainment on offer, it was what you said if the other chaps won. Has anyone seen a test match like that recently?

[Mick Harper]

All-Time Transfer Records Quiz (by age, midfielders)

[Wile E. Coyote]

[Mick Harper]

And what about the other ten test-playing countries? It's just I'm writing to the MCC so I need to know.

[Wile E. Coyote]

Indians and Pakistanis normally opt to bat first in tests. This normally works well for them as well. A famous counter example is Bengaluru 2024, India were playing New Zealand, the first day was rained off, and the second morning overcast. India won the toss and of course opted to bat, if they had reached lunch, with a specialist batsman left, they would probably have gone on to win, but as it was they opted to hit their way out, and were bowled out for 46. Not even scoring 462 in their second innings, could save them.

[Mick Harper]

46X must be Nelson in India. (I am testing Pete on his knowledge of cricketing idioms. He thought 'square leg' was a medical condition.)

[Mick Harper]

Little Known Facts (No 375)

When Hull play in the Champions' League next season they will be the only team in the competition without a regular train service to its nation's capital.

[Mick Harper]

The Athletic has made its prediction for this season based on panel soundings of all their experts:

[Mick Harper]

West Ham 1 Charlton 2

For the first fifty years of my life I was a deep-dyed Charlton fan, then I turned my coat Arsenal red. My best mate is a West Ham fan who kept the faith. Yesterday he emailed me cryptically and, such is my interest in lower league football, I had to google the above to find out what he was griping about.

He also said some stuff about the loss of the use of his right arm but I told him to buck up, I always thought I was his right arm. He hasn't responded though.

[Mick Harper]

Man City 2 Bournemouth 1

Did you clock Haaland, Foden and Grealish? New season, new look! City's grooming coach (I would imagine) has been doing some smart work. And with those gentlemen it certainly needed doing.

Mums in the Greater Manchester area should lock up their daughters while they go out on the razzle with any one of this toothsome threesome. Or, ladies, what about, you know, 'a party', if you get my drift.

PS Don't forget your ex-Mayor is banning teenagers from using 'computers' so leave them some videotapes for the household VCR, a technology that has, I understand, reached the north in appreciable numbers.

[Wile E. Coyote]

Its going to be a difficult few years for Manchester United.

The problem is the stadium. When West Ham left Upton Park, fans were promised that this would get them to the next level. It has. Moving stadiums is not easy.

Manchester United are for now a £ 4-5 Billion club, with debts of £1.3 Billion (thats manageable) wanted to build a new stadium that will cost £2 Billion (if they are lucky). Only 1 in a 1000 £1 billion + projects come in on time and on budget. So it will be delayed and over budget likley by 50%, worst case scenario by 200 %.

Thats a red light. They cannot allow a situation , where they are technically bankrupt worth £5 Billion with debts £ 6 Billion.

Sir Jim, has made a huge blunder, by backing Farage, he really needs Burnhams (sorry the governments) help to part fund this project. Investors might still give the club the money, but they will want a share of the assett, ie the New Stadium, (not the club) and the extra revenue it generates.

The fans are still demanding more top quality signings, at the present time these are being funded by debt, ie selling clubs are promised they will receive future payments, over the next couple of years. (when the new stadium is being built). This has enabled Mancheseter United, not to sell to buy, of course that has left them with a massive wage bill, which they now try to solve with creative loan deals.

There is very little that Wiley can see, that the Glazers, Sir Jim, the fans, the legion of ex players, are willing to make the sort of sacrifices needed to finance a new stadium as Arsenal did to get the Emirates.

TV rights are not going to be worth more, they have reached peak revenue.

So Sir Jim is going round and sacking the old cleaner. That will do it. Not.

Losing one game to Hull is the least of The Devils worries....

[Wile E. Coyote]

America football have these meaningless pre-season practice friendlies, so, for example the Eagles have just lost to Patriots.

In the UK, we would call this the Charity Shield, and pretend it matters....