Football League Play Offs review

Now everyone, I know that today is Wednesday and the football league play off finals took place over the Bank Holiday weekend, so forgive me for posting about it later. I’ve had a strenuous few days of posting on other topics, and preparing an assignment due for this Friday before Uni disappears until September. Well, that’s my token argument anyway.

But, as usual, the play offs didn’t disappoint as six teams battled it out for promotion. Normally, the League Two play off is on the Saturday, with League One on Sunday and the Championship on Bank Holiday Monday. But this year the Football League switched the League Two and Championship finals because of Euro 2008 and the fact some of the home nations may be involved. Alas, none made it and we’ll all be picking a European side to follow from our armchairs.

But the match for a place in the Premier League still went ahead on Saturday between Bristol City and Hull City at Wembley. Earlier on this blog, I have lauded the Championship as one of the most exciting and unpredictable leagues around, and I also applauded the achievements of Bristol in reaching the play off final in their first Championship season after promotion.

Hull also deserve immense credit as former Derby County boss Phil Brown has turned them from relegation battlers into a side brimming with confidence and challenging at the top end. They went to London in search of a top flight place for the first time in their entire history, with 40,000 fans backing them.

The West Country side’s fans didn’t disappoint the Robins either, with similar numbers turning out to create a terrific atmosphere under the arc. It doesn’t sound as sexy as the Twin Towers does it? Oh well, never mind.

The two sides were seperated by just a point in the league table, with Hull 3rd and Bristol 4th, and it was a tight match as you would expect, with nerves on both teams and chances at a premium. But it was a moment of genius which saw Hull go in front after 38 minutes.

Dean Windass, the former Aberdeen and Bradford City striker, is remarkably still turning out at the age of 39 for his hometown club. Not for sentimental reasons, but because his undoubted ability has never waned and he marked his first appearance at Wembley with the goal which sent Hull to the promised land.

His strike partner Frazier Campbell, on loan from Manchester United, crossed to the edge of the area and Windass struck with a superb volley 18 yards out to give Bristol keeper Adriano Basso no chance.

Gary Johnson’s team fought back in the second half and Lee Trundle went agonisingly close to an equaliser, but it was not enough and Hull celebrated top flight promotion. At this point, credit has to go to the two managers for leading their clubs to wonderful seasons and I believe Bristol City will bounce back next year.

But Phil Brown deserves immense credit. To be the man who leads the Tigers into the top league for the first time is tremendous and his team have had a consistently good season. And when I saw goal hero Windass play for Aberdeen against Dunfermline many a time in the mid to late 1990’s, I never imagined that in 2008 he’d be heading to Old Trafford and the Emirates to go up against the likes of Rio Ferdinand and Kolo Toure. Remarkable.

So as East Yorkshire celebrated, a great deal of the south of the county headed to Wembley on Sunday as Doncaster Rovers took on fallen giants Leeds United in the League One final. Donny had been outwith the second tier of English football for over 50 years and were in the non league doldrums just five years previous, while Leeds had never been as low as League One until this season. And, amazingly, just 7 years ago, they were taking on Valencia in the semi final of the Champions League.

But that was then and former Scotland and Leeds skipper Gary McAllister aimed to take them back to the second tier after replacing Dennis Wise in January. Its been a controversial season, with Leeds docked 15 points at the start of the season for financial mismanagement but they prodcued stunning form to overcome that defecit. Indeed, their record of 27 wins, 10 draws and just 9 defeats would’ve seen them win promotion behind champions Swansea if they had not been given the deduction.

But Sean O’Driscoll’s Rovers side were superior on the day and James Hayter’s header in the second half from a corner kick proved enough to win the match. Rovers passed the ball around the slick Wembley surface with ease and dominated the opening exchanges, with United failing to get any sort of foothold on the game, with Doncaster creating chance after chance.

Hayter’s goal 2 minutes into the second period was just reward and while McAllister’s men poured forward in the final 10 minutes, they failed to trouble former United keeper Neil Sullivan to any real degree and it is Doncaster who join Swansea and Nottingham Forest in next season’s Championship.

For Leeds, it was more final heartbreak. In 2006 they lost out to Watford in the Championship play off in Cardiff, while on their last trip to Wembley in 1996, they were beaten 3-0 by Aston Villa in the Coca Cola Cup. However, you’d think they will be strong favourites to win promotion next term.

Onto the final match on Monday now and, living in the shadow of Manchester United and Manchester City, Rochdale and Stockport County don’t get much limelight. But Monday was their day in the sun and I confess to knowing little about either team (apologies to fans of both sides!) However, I do remember Stockport from the 1990s when they were in the Championship and, oddly, a Coca Cola Cup game with Middlesbrough which was live on ITV. I remember nothing about it apart from Stockport playing in Adidas, Robinson’s juice sponsored strips at Edgeley Park.

County had been beaten in four previous visits to Wembley in play off games, Rochdale manager Keith Hill had transformed them from relegation battlers to promotion chasers but the gods were not with his team- they had won promotion just once in their entire history and had played in England’s bottom league for 34 years.

In a terrific game, Rochdale took the lead early on through a Rory McArdle header but a Nathan Stanton own goal, an Anthony Pilkington header and Liam Dickinson sealed it for Jim Gannon’s County before Adam Rundle’s volley gave Rochdale a consolation.

So more misery for Rochdale who will enter their 35th year as a bottom tier club, while County are aiming for eventual promotion to the Championship. And why not- football without ambition, hopes and dreams is nothing. Stockport have played there before, so why not again?

So there we have it, Hull City, Doncaster Rovers and Stockport County earned Wembley glory. Congratulations to them and best wishes for next season as they each take a step up, but commiserations to Bristol City, Leeds United and Rochdale. There’s no reason why those clubs can’t bounce back next season and become heroes next season.

 

Young joins Dundee as Bamba shines in Toulon

As anticipated in a previous post, Darren Young has officially left Dunfermline and has agreed a 2 year deal with First Division rivals Dundee. Young’s rejection of a new contract with the club signals the end of his five year association with the Pars and he will look to help the Dees to First Division glory next term. Having struggled with fitness in the past season, this is a move I feel suits all parties. Manager Jim McIntyre now has more room for manouver within the transfer market with more wages freed up, while Young himself will no doubt relish a new challenge at Dens Park.

He alluded to this himself, by saying ” There are a lot of positive things happening here.

“It makes you want to come here and play for them and do well.”

I wish him well up there, but hopefully not too well as we can but hope the Athletic will be chasing the title.

However, Alex Rae has been busy in the transfer market as well as signing Young. He is rumoured to be on the verge of bringing former Scotland goalkeeper Rab Douglas back to Dens. The 36 year old played for the Dee in the 1990s and his form won him a move to Celtic. Since leaving the Hoops for Leicester in 2005, his career has stalled. Loan spells with Millwall, Wycombe Wanderers and Plymouth Argyle have been unsuccessful and Douglas was released by Leicester following their relegation to League One.

Rae is clearly looking for experience and if he adds him, along with another rumoured target, former Kilmarnock and Nottingham Forest midfielder Gary Holt, then the Dark Blues could well be in a strong position to challenge at the top next season. A challenge which both Dunfermline and St Johnstone will look to match before the season kicks off.

But back to Dunfermline and defender Sol Bamba, who seemed to fall out of favour towards the end of the season, has been busy making a name for himself in the Toulon International tournament over the past fortnight or so. As captain of the Ivory Coast side, he has starred as they have marched all the way to the semi finals, where they narrowly lost to Chile. Bamba’s side will take on Japan in the third place play off and commentators on Eurosport, who have been showing the tournament live, have been impressed with Bamba’s play overall. During one match, and forgive me for paraphrasing, but a commentator suggested something along the lines of ‘you’d have a very hard time getting around him’.

It is good to see Sol doing well while representing his country’s under 21 side in France. Rumours have suggested that the Pars are looking to offload the big man, but if he can regain his confidence and given the right kind of coaching, he could become a good player. He has pace, is very strong both on the ground and in the air and can tackle but at times erratic play creeps into his game, leading to him giving away possession cheaply. If he works on his passing and composure on the ball, then he’ll do a very good job for Dunfermline.

But, thats for the future. Well done to Sol on having what appears to be a successful tournament and he is all set to represent the Pars in this summer’s Beijing Olympics by playing for the Ivory Coast in the football tournement. Could la Bamba have a gold medal in his pocket by September? Stranger things have happened……

To read more about Dunfermline Athletic, why not visit my Pars page? Click here to find out the history and fascinating facts about my great club.

Grant ousted at Chelsea- An Opinion

So, the predictable has happened as Avram Grant paid for a trophyless campaign with his job as manager of Chelsea. The Blues sacked their boss on Saturday after just eight months in charge of the club, and only three days after their penalty shoot-out heartbreak against Manchester United in the Champions League.

Grant arrived at Chelsea last summer from Premier League rivals Portsmouth as director of football, a move which did not please then Blues boss Jose Mourinho. After an indifferent start to the season, the popular and media pleasing Mourinho was axed after a 1-1 home draw with Rosenborg in the Champions League, and the Stamford Bridge hierarchy placed Grant in charge.

It was a decision which didn’t go down well with the fans as, not only did they adore Mourinho, the self styled “special one” who brought the club 2 league titles, they were rightly concerned at Grant’s limited managerial experience.

His first game was a daunting trip to Old Trafford and a 2-0 defeat by Manchester United wasn’t the perfect start, though they weren’t helped by the red card issued to midfielder Jon-Obi Mikel. After that though, Chelsea embarked on a 16 game unbeaten run which saw them through to the last 16 of the Champions League, quarter final of the Carling Cup and back up the Premier League table.

Although his public demeanour was perhaps duller than Mourinho’s was, he set Chelsea out to play in a more attacking sense than Mourinho did, who focused on a solid defence. This was evident in a 6-0 drubbing of Manchester City, who were then flying in 3rd place, and the 3-2 defeat of Liverpool in the second leg of the Champions League semi final. Added to that thrilling 4-4 draws with Aston Villa and Tottenham then the entertainment value was there. Certainly more so for a neutral than what Mourinho’s sides produced.

But, ultimately, Mourinho’s teams won trophies, which is where the Israeli failed. He came in for fierce criticism following the Carling Cup final loss to Tottenham, who dominated Chelsea for long periods. Then his team suffered the embarassment of FA Cup defeat at Barnsley, who had also shocked Liverpool.

Crucial dropped points in draws at home to the likes of Wigan and Everton, where Chelsea lost very late goals, ultimately cost them the title but from a seemingly impossible position which I stated after that Wigan game, they defeated Manchester United and took the title race down to the last day and marched to their first Champions League final. But Chelsea missed out on both, leaving them with nothing to show for their efforts.

Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck said in the aftermath of Grant’s departure: “We have very high expectations at Chelsea and a couple of second place finishes is just not good enough for us.

“So although it was an excellent season, we are still disappointed.”

Now, of course they are entitled to be disappointed. However, this is where football as we know it is going down the swanny in front of us. Chelsea before Roman Abramovich took over were a decent side. Regular qualifiers for Europe, winning the occasional trophy. But since the Russian has invested an obscene amount, they demand instant success. They have had some, but even reaching the final of Europe’s elite tournament and almost snatching the title from the dead isn’t good enough.

I felt its been a great season for Chelsea in the main and they were unlucky to end empty handed, especially in Moscow. Grant was given a near impossible task in trying to emulate the success of Mourinho, and I feel his sacking is premature and harsh after his achievements this season. He at least deserved to put his own stamp on them and take them into next season.

The foreign owners taking over at Premier League clubs and demanding success instantly is a problem. They don’t know too much about the game it seems to me, they’ll just think they can throw money at it and they’ll get what they want. Thaskin Shinawatra at Manchester City, threating to sack Sven-Goran Eriksson after his first season there, where they finished a very creditable 9th, is another case in point. It’s absolutely ridiculous.

I’ve said it before and will do again. Manchester United and Arsenal didn’t achieve the success they have by hiring and firing all the time. Sir Alex Ferguson has been in charge of United since 1986, and Arsene Wenger at Arsenal since 1996. Sure, they have gone through trophyless seasons but the United and Arsenal boardrooms know what great managers they are and always have faith in them.

If the Chelsea board had done that, then perhaps Grant could’ve delivered trophies next term. 8 months is not time enough to judge, and certainly not given he led Chelsea to their first Champions League final, ultimately decided on a lottery. Even axing Mourinho, after the success he’d brought was ridiculous simply because they’d had a sticky start to the season.

I feel he can leave with his head held high. The question for Chelsea is, who next? Frank Rijkaard seems to be the bookies choice, but we shall have to wait and see what happens.

Salute to the super South

The name of my blog was almost what Queen of the South faced at Hampden Park on Saturday afternoon. Replace “It’s half past four and we’re 2-0 down” with “It’s half time and we’re 2-0 down” and you find yourself looking at the predicament Gordon Chisholm’s team faced in the Scottish Cup final against Rangers. There they were, heroes already to the 15,000 fans who’d journeyed from Dumfries to back the First Division outfit in what, on paper anyway, was a David V Goliath game.

And in the first half, what appeared on paper looked to be factual for a change. Queens appeared to be overawed by the occasion as Kris Boyd’s thunderbolt free-kick saw them go 1 down before a defensive mix up between inspirational skipper Jim Thomson, more on whom later, and the excellent Ryan McCann saw the ball fall to DaMarcus Beasley who fired under goalkeeper Jamie McDonald’s legs.

Despite playing 5 games in 10 days since the UEFA Cup final including Saturday, Rangers showed no ill effects as they appeared to be strolling to victory in the Mount Florida sunshine. It would need the mother all of team talks from Chisholm to re-ignite his team and show the form which led them all the way to the final and 4th in the First Division.

And, from the restart, they meant business. A determination not to let their big day disappear in a whimper, desperate to give themselves a fighting chance. They succeeded, and suddenly the Ibrox club’s weary legs began to return.

And leading the charge was a self confessed Rangers fan. Steve Tosh, at the veteran stage of his career, showed the way to goal with his second in this season’s competition, following on from his goal in the semi final victory over Aberdeen.

Watching with my Rangers supporting other half, I remarked that Queens needed to get the next goal at 2-0 to make it exciting for the neutral. 5 minutes into the second period, the excellent Sean O’Connor, who gave Gers defenders Carlos Cuellar and Davie Weir much to think about, skinned Cuellar on the right hand side and his low cross was bundled in off Tosh’s chest.

It gave Queens a huge lift. Their fans, magnificent in their backing, rose again to will their team on. The only club to appear in the bible were praying for a miracle at half time. And just 3 minutes later, perhaps not even the man upstairs could have scripted it to such a degree.

The Doonhamers were awarded a free-kick on the right hand side and the outstanding left full back Bob Harris floated an inswinging ball into the box. And leaping like a salmon to meet the delivery was the skipper, 37 year old Thomson, who gleefully bulleted a header past Neil Alexander to draw the Dumfries side level.

It was a joyous moment, as he raced towards Hampden’s main stand celebrating at such a lightening pace Linford Christie in his heydey would’ve been proud of. It was fitting that he should score the glory goal, having served with Queens for 10 years. You felt that the underdogs could go on and claim the glory, giving Rangers yet more misery after losing the UEFA Cup and the league title.

Neutrals, along with the Queens support, dared to dream of the impossible. One more chance, a wee half chance could seal it for them. And they almost had it through star striker Stephen Dobbie, a former Rangers youth. Their top goalscorer with 19 goals, found himself with the ball at his feet, 12 yards out. You thought “go on, knock it past the defender and pick your spot”. Unfortunately, his touch deserted him at the final moment and Rangers cleared their lines.

And, as happens so often in cup finals, the favourites got the break they needed on 72 minutes, as a Beasley corner was met by Boyd to head powerfully home. Boyd had emerged to show his boss why he should’ve perhaps started more matches this season, both domestically and in Europe, as his goalscoring prowess is second to none.

Alas, as hard as they fought, Chisholm’s team couldn’t fashion another chance and it was all over for the First Division side. Rangers’ muted celebrations, and the fact Queens were given a rousing round of applause from around Hampden, indicated how relieved Rangers were to edge to victory.

The Palmerston players will forever rue the first half in which they simply got stage fright. And no wonder. It was their club’s first ever cup final, and for many of their players it will be their one and only. But they roared back in the second half and if they continue the form they showed then and throughout the season, they will be a genuine force in next season’s First Division.

And with the carrot of European football also secured, the team toured Dumfries yesterday as the town paid tribute to what has been a remarkable Scottish Cup adventure. Although they didn’t achieve the impossible, the glory of hitting 2 goals in 3 minutes to allow everyone connected with the club to dream will live with everyone present at the National Stadium forever more as they had Rangers rocking.

It would be easy to sound patronising, but as a fan of a fellow First Division club, I applaud what Queen of the South have achieved. It would’ve been easy to crumble at 2-0 down, as many teams including my own have done against the Old Firm in the past, but they showed great battling qualities, great spirit and also showed what a good football side they are in the second half.

A banner in the Queens end, in a rather ironic slant on Rangers’ fans singing of “God Save the Queen” was to proclaim “God Save the Queens”. What a pity he couldn’t completely finish the job and ensure the cup ended in Dumfries on Saturday night. But they deserve to be saluted on a great achievement. Well done the super South.

Celts crowned Champions

From the moment Lee Miller’s header zoomed behind Neil Alexander to put Aberdeen 1-0 ahead against Rangers, you knew that it was written in the stars. And Jan Venegoor of Hesselink’s header, followed by Darren Mackie netting Aberdeen’s second goal, merely confirmed what fate seemed to be alluding to- Celtic are the champions of Scotland for the third year running.

Their 1-0 victory at Tannadice over Dundee United, coupled with Rangers crashing at Pittodrie ensured that the trophy was heading for Glasgow’s east end yet again. An incredible title race full of twists and turns finally came to its climax in thrilling fashion last night.

Labelled ‘titanic Thursday’, the destination of the title was in the balance. Locked on the same points but with the Hoops having a far superior goal difference, Gordon Strachan’s team knew that bettering or matching Rangers result would hand them the championship, unless the Ibrox club went goal crazy in the Granite City. Rangers were relying on United to do them a favour and therefore bettering Celtic’s result.

So while revising for today’s Information, Communication and Society exam at Uni, I listened in to Radio Scotland and their coverage of the evening. The chosen game for me was Celtic at Tannadice and it was an interesting first half, with both sides going close. Even from around 60 odd miles away, you could feel the tension of the players and supporters involved. Celtic were desperate to claim the honour in memory of the late Tommy Burns while Walter Smith’s team looked to eradicate the memory of Manchester by bagging the flag.

Half time saw both games locked at 0-0, with one goal in either one able to swing the title one way or the other. And on 63 minutes, sudden cheering from the Celtic faithful signalled Miller’s goal for Aberdeen and gave their side on grip on the title. And 10 minutes later, Tannadice erupted as the goal Strachan’s men had longed for arrived. Paul Hartley’s corner was met by Venegoor of Hesselink and his header signalled the end of Rangers’ challenge. Mackie’s goal 13 minutes for time added salt into an already gaping wound, as did Nacho Novo’s red card for an awful challenge on Stuart Duff, meaning he will miss tomorrow’s Scottish Cup final.

So all that was left was for the final whistle to blow on the season’s end and for the helicopter to deliver the trophy to Dundee from nearby Edzell. You couldn’t help but feel the emotion as Celtic’s supporters burst into a rousing song for Tommy Burns and belting out You’ll Never Walk Alone as skipper Stephen McManus hoisted the trophy aloft. The message from him and the rest of the team was simple: We did it for Tommy.

And its hard to argue with that. While you can point to Rangers very heavy schedule in reaching the UEFA Cup final ultimately catching up on them, Celtic deserve immense credit. Their defeat to Motherwell in early April left them 6 points behind with 2 more games played, but 7 wins out of 7 at the end of the season is a remarkable run and Strachan has had the last laugh on some Celtic fans who wanted him out after that defeat.

So it’s congratulations to the champions, and perhaps it is fitting they won the league in honour of a Celtic legend. With three league titles in a row, equalling only Willie Maley and the legendary Jock Stein, will Strachan be considered a Celtic legend in time? Thats a question only Celtic fans can answer, but I’m sure that TB will look down and be more than content with the current boss’ achievements at his beloved club.

Fergie is the King of Europe again

Watching GMTV this morning (well, it’s now yesterday morning) was incredibley nauseating. I have no idea why, but they sent Fiona Phillips out to Moscow to cover the build up to the Champions League final. Now, this is a woman who doesn’t appear to know much about football and her stupendous contribution at Chelsea’s press conference on Tuesday was to tell Frank Lampard that Chelsea had a “better hotel than Manchester United.” Lampard, naturally, realised that was a stupid remark and replied that United would hardly be living in poverty.

And this morning, her only way of describing everything in the Russian capital was “absolutely brilliant”. This is meant to be a journalist to a decent level? I mean, if shrill, annoying laughter and not really adding anything to the coverage is what is passing for journalism these days, we can forget it.

So, why am I bringing this up? Well, she’s a Chelsea fan, going on the cheering she received while talking to their fans and the subsequent booing from the United lot. All good fun, but her annoyance, added to the fact I can’t really stick Chelsea, made me hope Sir Alex Ferguson’s team emerged victorious from the final.

It was a game I feared could go the way of last year’s FA Cup final, with one goal the difference in a dour, tactical struggle. But it was anything but as England’s top two served up a final that thrilled and spilled up until 1.45am Moscow time.

Ferguson went with a bold team selection, going with his three main attackers in Carlos Tevez, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney from the start. For Avram Grant, Didier Drogba started up front with Joe Cole and Florent Malouda deployed on the flanks.

And it was United who made the fastest start, with Ronaldo in particular tormenting auxillery right back Michael Essien early on. And it was the Portugese who fired the Reds in front after 26 minutes. An inswinging cross from Wes Brown was met by him and he flashed a header past Petr Cech for goal number 42 of a remarkable season.

United’s dominance continued, and they could’ve been 3 goals up at half time. A sweeping counter-attacking move saw Rooney feed Ronaldo, whose cross was met by Tevez but as his header was saved, Michael Carrick then saw his effort on the rebound clawed away by Chelsea’s number 1. And four minutes from the interval, Rooney’s low ball across the box was inches away from being poked home by Tevez.

And Chelsea made them pay right on half time, as Lampard stroked home after the ball broke to him after deflecting off Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic after Essien had had a shot. All square at the break and for as good as United were in the first half, Grant’s team were in the second period as they piled the pressure on.

They pushed forward and their midfield of Claude Makalele, Lampard and Michael Ballack exerted the same power and poise that United’s trio of Carrick, Owen Hargreaves and Paul Scholes had in the first half. They poured forward and Drogba came so mighty close when his curling effort from around 25 yards smacked the post and rebounded to safety.

Ferguson made his first move, bringing on Ryan Giggs for Scholes and the new record appearance holder for the Old Trafford club was to have an impact on proceedings, but not before the game had moved into extra time and Lampard hit the crossbar with an excellent shot on the turn.

United then went close as a brilliant dart into the box from Patrice Evra saw the ball cut back to Giggs, but his shot was miraculously headed off the line by Blues skipper John Terry.

With tiredness, physically and mentally, proving to be a factor, it boiled over with four minutes of extra time remaining after Chelsea felt Tevez had been unsporting after a break in play for treatment to be given to players for cramp. In the melee, Drogba slapped Vidic and referee Lubos Michel was correct in ordering him off, even though he wanted to argue about it, as he’d done with every other decision.

The game moved onto penalties and it was level at 2-2 when Ronaldo stepped up, but hesitancy in his kick saw his effort saved by Cech. With the score at 4-4 but with Chelsea having the final kick, Terry stepped forward but, agonisingly for him, he slipped as he made contact and sent the ball wide of the post.

The tension by now was unbelievable as sudden death kicks were needed. Anderson and Kalou scored to make it 5-5 before Giggs stepped up to score for United. It was down to Nicolas Anelka to save Chelsea, but instead Edwin Van Der Sar did so for United and they won their 3rd European Cup in the most dramatic of circumstances.

Despite hoping for a United win rather than Chelsea, it was hard not to sympathise with Terry especially, who was heartbroken at the end, his slip proving crucial. Drogba’s stupidity didn’t help them come the shoot-out but it was Ferguson’s night as he cemented his place as Manchester United’s greatest ever manager.

A fantastic achievement by United, and it was fitting that Giggs should net the winning penalty as he broke Bobby Charlton’s appearance record. It was also fitting that United won the cup 50 years after the Munich Air Disaster, which wiped out many of the ‘Busby Babes’ team.

For Fergie, he is the top manager in Europe once again and as he said, United don’t do it the easy way. Ronaldo was so close from going from hero to zero, and his collapse into tears at the end showed he knew it. Chelsea can feel hard done by, but in my opinion United have been better over the tournament.

Undoubtedly, it was a tremendous game and one which actually lived up to its billing for a change. I wonder if Ms Phillips’ will still be banging on about the better hotel for Chelsea this evening, as United parade the European Cup in their “lesser” surroundings.

SPL title……Important, but not that important

So, the Scottish title race all comes down to the final round of games tomorrow night. Who will claim the prize, Celtic or Rangers? After watching Celtic crash 1-0 at home to Motherwell whilst at the BBC in early April, it seemed that nothing would stand in Rangers’ way- they had a big lead, and games in hand. But as the Manchester hysteria took over, Celtic crucially defeated their rivals twice (2-1 and 3-2)at Parkhead and as Rangers have stuttered, struggling with their heavy schedule, Gordon Strachan’s team have moved in and currently head the table, courtesy of a superior goal difference.

This means that if Celtic win at Dundee United, the title is almost certain to be theirs unless Rangers somehow thump a few goals past Aberdeen at Pittodrie. Of course, it is not set in stone that either, or indeed both, will win their games but that hasn’t stopped the conspiracy theorists, who only exist in our country.

The more paranoid Celtic fans seem to think Jimmy Calderwood’s Aberdeen will roll over for Rangers and this train of thought goes back to 2003. Celtic had lost the UEFA Cup final the previous Wednesday, and went into a final day shoot-out with Rangers for the flag. Despite drubbing Kilmarnock 4-0, Rangers’ 6-1 defeat of my Dunfermline (where they got a ridiculous penalty and their keeper made a great save to prevent us taking a 2-1 lead and getting back to 3-2) ensured the Ibrox club won the title by a goal.

This led to Celtic striker Chris Sutton accusing the Pars of “lying down” to Rangers to hand them the title afterwards. Bad feeling rightly ensued from our side as, not only was that idea ridiculous, he also forgets that Celtic missed a penalty in their game, which also had a massive bearing. So the Celtic contingent are worried there, even though Sutton retracted his comments.

Similarly, some Rangers supporters are questioning the committment of United, given they have “a few Celtic fans” in their squad. Again, this is nonsense. Craig Levein’s men have had a superb season and will want to bow out in front of their fans on a high, and certainly will not want to see another team celebrate on their patch. Its sure to be a fascinating evening, and you can be sure Aberdeen and Dundee United will give it their all.

But the sad events of yesterday puts everything into perspective, and should make these conspiracy theorists stop spouting drivel. Celtic legend Tommy Burns was laid to rest, with famous names from throughout football there to pay their respects. Here was a man who bridged the Old Firm divide and the sight of Rangers boss Walter Smith and his assistant Ally McCoist, who was moved to tears, acting as pallbearers showed what a great man he was to both sides of Glasgow, and Scottish football as a whole.

Burns would know that there would be no team not giving anything but 100% in these final games. Perhaps it would be fitting if the Parkhead side could lift the title in tribute to their legendary former player and manager and first team coach. But Tommy knew that while football was a huge part of his life, it came behind his family and his faith.

The destiny of the Scottish Premier League may be important, but it isn’t that important. To sum up in footballing cliches, at the end of the day, it’s only a game.

Young off as Pars set to welcome new boys

Darren Young looks set to have played his last game for Dunfermline after rejecting the club’s offer of a new deal. The midfielder, who has considered the offer for what seems like a millenium, will be off to pastures new in the summer, with rumour rife that he will re-join former club Aberdeen.

Young has had a bit of a stop start career at East End Park. In his first season, he was a mainstay in midfield and helped the club finish 4th in the SPL and reach the Scottish Cup final, scoring in the replay win over Inverness Caley Thistle. He also netted the penalty to take the Pars into the CIS Insurance Cup final in 2006 against Livingston at Easter Road and was man of the match in last year’s Scottish Cup final loss to Celtic.

But he has had his injury problems this season and last, resulting in him missing a lot of games. I feel that he’s a good player but we can’t afford to keep carrying players spending more time in the treatment room than on the pitch, and Young’s dithering over accepting or rejecting a new deal shows he was never going to stick around. Fair enough, no problems and while I wish him well, it frees up a significant wage and allows Jim McIntyre to bring new bodies in.

And to that end pre-contract signings Steven Bell and Austin McCann should formally complete their moves to East End Park today. 23 year old midfielder Bell has signed from Stirling Albion after an impressive campaign for the relegated Binos, scoring 6 times from midfield, including one against ourselves. A neat and tidy player with a good engine, we hope that he can provide creativity and energy in a midfield which has lacked both all season.

McCann arrives from English side Notts County having previously served Hearts and Airdrie. It is his spell in Gorgie that he will be most remembered for, and a screamer of a goal against Celtic to hand Hearts a 2-1 win in a league encounter.

Hopefully, he will bring experience and solidity to the left back spot for the coming season. The defence improved as the season has gone on, so hopefully we can continue working from a solid base and move forward next season.

A 3rd name to sign with the Pars is Airdrie midfielder Graeme Holmes, who played with boss McIntyre at Dundee United. The 24 year old has been heavily rumoured to have already signed on at East End, but director of football Jim Leishman refused to confirm this. He has played 87 games since signing for Airdrie, scoring 5 goals and is highly thought of by the Airdrie support. There is more available on the club’s official website on all 3 new signings. A warm welcome to all.

And the club have announced that the Purvis Group will continue as the club’s shirt sponsor for next season. Exciting stuff eh?

Pompey take the glory

Yesterday’s FA Cup final between Portsmouth and Cardiff City had been dismissed in some quarters as “dull”, or “boring” in the pre-match build up. Clearly, they would have loved another installment of last year’s thriller between Chelsea and Manchester United. A game which, apart from Chelsea and Aston Villa in 2000, is the worst FA Cup final I have ever seen since starting to watch England’s showpiece from Everton’s 1995 win.

Obviously, the lack of a so-called ‘big gun’ in the final meant it didn’t mean as much. Not worthy of an FA Cup final. Well, Portsmouth and Cardiff conspired to rip that opinion to shreds, an opinion I have always said would be nonsense.

As this year’s FA Cup has been one of the most exciting and breathtaking tournaments in its illustrious history. We’ve had stunning stories, like Havant and Waterlooville, glorious shocks in the shape of Barnsley conquering Liverpool and Chelsea, and a final between two teams who had only harboured dreams of making it this far.

In one corner, Premiership Pompey were firm favourites. Harry Redknapp had steered them to 8th in the top flight, and possessed a host of big names. Having seen off Manchester United at Old Trafford in the quarter final, the pressure was on them to deliver.

But in the other corner, Championship Cardiff were not there to make up the numbers. A respectable if failed campaign to make the play offs, the Bluebirds road to Wembley contained only one real shock, the defeat of Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium. But Dave Jones’ team knew they stood a great chance of taking the trophy out of England for the second time.

And they gave as good as they got. They started well, with Paul Parry having the game’s first chance after 12 minutes but his effort was blocked by Pompey’s rejuvenated goalkeeper David James. But Portsmouth then began to assert themselves and Kanu somehow contrived to hit the post after rounding goalkeeper Peter Enckleman with the goal gaping.

But he and his team were not to be denied and a howler from Enckleman gifted them the lead. A cross ball in from John Uktaka could only be palmed by the Fin to the feet of Kanu and he gleefully tapped home.

Cardiff responded and had a goal disallowed on the stroke of half time for handball from defender Glenn Loovens after James completely missed a cross ball.

The second period saw both teams go at it but lacked a creative spark to pave a way to goal, particularly Jones’ side. In the last 10 minutes though, they charged towards the Portsmouth goal and bombarded their backline with set plays, and Loovens again went close with a header. But with Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin in tremendous form in the middle of defence, Portsmouth held on to win their first FA Cup in 69 long years and Redknapp won his first trophy in a managerial career spanning 25.

It sparked delirious scenes from Pompey at full time, from fans and players, but it was dejection for the heroes of the principality, knowing they may never get a better chance to win the FA Cup. Manager Jones proclaimed that Cardiff had done “everyone proud and made teams think they can achieve the impossible.” They had achieved the impossible by being there in the first place, and while nobody likes to lose finals, Cardiff will look back and reflect on a fabulous run which has done wonders for the city and Wales. The way is up for them, with a new stadium on the horizon. Who knows, they may yet become regulars down Wembley Way.

For the winners, sheer joy and a brilliant moment for Redknapp. Over two spells, he’s transformed Portsmouth from relegation battlers in the Championship to FA Cup winners. He and his team will be revered forevermore on the south coast and Portsmouth have arrived as a major force. Its a day that will live with every Pompey, and I daresay Cardiff, fan forever and it was a day which encapsulated the tournament this year.

The magic of the FA Cup is back. Long may it continue.

UEFA Cup Final- Football forgotten

It wasn’t supposed to end this way. Rangers‘ run to the UEFA Cup final in Manchester had the whole of Britain talking, as well as the rest of Europe watching. Just one step away from their first European triumph in 36 years. A tantalising tactical battle between two of the game’s mature students, Walter Smith and Dick Advocaat.

It promised to be a game that would be talked about for a long time. Sadly, it would not be for the football as much as it was about the fans. Rangers lost the match 2-0 to Zenit St Petersburg, and the Russian champions were able to celebrate their first European trophy. It left the 100,000+ Rangers supporters who had descended on Manchester devastated.

But the attention would be on them and, in the build up, it was good coverage. The fans had been partying in the Manchester sunshine, building up to the game of their lives. A city divided by Red and Blue had been transformed into one which amalgamated red and blue with a bit of white. The specially set up fanzones were full by early afternoon as countdown to the game began.

But, as Rangers’ night of destiny got underway, it all started to go wrong. A screen at the fanzone in Piccadily Gardens lost its signal and failed. Engineers tried to fix the problem but advised fans to head to another fanzone near the stadium to catch the action. Incensed and fuelled with drink consumed all day, Gers fans started throwing bottles at the engineers who quickly gave up. And this started a night of rioting, bringing shame on the whole of Scotland.

The tales and videos of what went on were absolutely frightening. One youtube video shows Rangers fans fighting with the police and each other to the extent one was knocked unconcious, while Rangers fans are seen smashing up a car and in one sickening clip released by Greater Manchester Police, a mob of 200 or so are seen chasing police officers down the street. One of the fans trips one up and a large number start to lay into him with seige of kicks. He suffered a broken arm.

Even outside the stadium, a Russian fan was stabbed in the back. These were scenes which Scotland and British football have worked hard to eradicate. Shops were smashed and looted as fans and police fought running battles for up to five hours during and after the game. I have read tales on the internet of fans running along railway tracks and causing trains to be cancelled due to violence and intimidation towards train staff, as well as vandalising trains.

Rangers moved quickly to suggest that a lot of these people had nothing to do with the club. Now, while I accept this was a minority in a massive Rangers following, it was a large minority and the clips I have seen show a lot of people in Rangers colours involved. There may have been individuals there who don’t normally associate with them, but try telling that to the police, Manchester locals and families who travelled with children and were caught up in the mayhem. They will tar Rangers fans with the same brush and Scotland’s reputation will be damaged.

The scenes I have watched and reports I have read have been nothing short of shameful and was a real throwback to the dark ages. Manchester City Centre looked like a war zone yesterday morning, with thousands of tonnes of rubbish strewn across the streets and buildings smashed up.

As I have said, it was a minority and there was little Rangers FC could do. Fans were quick to blame the police and the council but my view is this. The council have to take some blame for the screen not working and the packed fanzones, but that is no excuse to start fights and cause mayhem. If the police are being attacked, then they have to react. All day drinking undoubtedly played a part, but I believe there were some there itching for some trouble.

I feel really sorry for the many thousands of innocents caught up in this incident. It has ruined what could be a once in a lifetime opportunity for them and completely overshadowed the terrific achievement the Rangers team had of reaching the final.