Well not just Dukla Prague but also many other teams from Europe in my youth,I remember my team Wolves and others playing such sides as the aforementioned Dukla Prague buit also the likes of Carl Zeiss Jena,Academica Coimbra,ADO Den Hague etc etc.
So what is the point of the reminiice well it's just that every year in the current Champions league even in the group stages it's pretty much the same teams year after year,I mean back in the 80's we had Forest v Malmo in a European Cup Final we had Red Star Belgrade winning the dammeed thing but now its the same old crew time after time.
Now i know that the money feeds the same clubs year after year and the Champions League is dominant but I do feel sorry for fans today who because of ther lack of the interest in the Europa League and the demise of the Cup Winners Cup see only the "Big" names of Europe and see them year in and out rather than the variety of foreign opposition that was around in my youth
Sunday 22 January 2012
Thursday 19 January 2012
Photographic Names From The Past
There was an article on BBC Breakfast yesterday about the demise of many high street stores that those of us of a certain age remember ,names such as Rumbleows,C&A and of course Woolworths are long gone,then today comes the news that Kodak are staring at the abyss and may be gone from our conciousness in the not to distant future.
So the combination of those 2 got me thinking about the names from the photographic industry around when I first dipped my toe in the water some 36 years ago,its just a list but those of you with an interest in this hobby may find it brings back a few memories
Chinon-My first ever SLR was a Chinon CE-4 and was a Dixons (remember them) own brand strangely enouugh Kodak bought them out in 1997 so they are on the way out as well
Minolta-Yes we all know that Minolta or Konica Minolta asa they were at the time were taken over by the mighty Sony corporation but Sony on a camera jusr doesn''t cut it like Minolta used to
Soligor- One of those numerous manufacturers or maybe just labellers of lenses that abounded in the 1960's & 70's and the reason I remember them is that I still have one of their lenses that with a cheap adapter I fit on my modern DSLR and still use
Kiev,Zorki,Fed & Zenith- The wonderful machines of the former soviet union that many of us cut our teeth on in the world of SLR's and rangefinders,god they were industrial and primitive and quality control was often in short supply in the soviet camera industry but if you got a good one well they were cheap and cheerfull and gave pretty good results.
So 30 years from now what will we be reminiscing about in the photographic world,Nikon,Pentax well you never know.
So the combination of those 2 got me thinking about the names from the photographic industry around when I first dipped my toe in the water some 36 years ago,its just a list but those of you with an interest in this hobby may find it brings back a few memories
Chinon-My first ever SLR was a Chinon CE-4 and was a Dixons (remember them) own brand strangely enouugh Kodak bought them out in 1997 so they are on the way out as well
Minolta-Yes we all know that Minolta or Konica Minolta asa they were at the time were taken over by the mighty Sony corporation but Sony on a camera jusr doesn''t cut it like Minolta used to
Soligor- One of those numerous manufacturers or maybe just labellers of lenses that abounded in the 1960's & 70's and the reason I remember them is that I still have one of their lenses that with a cheap adapter I fit on my modern DSLR and still use
Kiev,Zorki,Fed & Zenith- The wonderful machines of the former soviet union that many of us cut our teeth on in the world of SLR's and rangefinders,god they were industrial and primitive and quality control was often in short supply in the soviet camera industry but if you got a good one well they were cheap and cheerfull and gave pretty good results.
So 30 years from now what will we be reminiscing about in the photographic world,Nikon,Pentax well you never know.
Sunday 15 January 2012
A Live Premiership match
Yesterday I was invited to go to the Hawthorns to go and watch the WBA v Norwich City match from the pleasant surroundings of corporate hospitality and a very pleasamnt experience it was with good food and company
The match however was a totally different kettle of fish,this was the first time in probably 6 years that I had experienced a live Premiership match and I was obviously going to compare it with the West Midlands League fare that I watch every week.Well what a dissapointmernt,if this is the top level of English football I am glad that I dont waste my hard earned cash on it every week,the standard of passing was atrocious from both sides there aws a total lack of passion and committment and unlike the WML the EPL appears to be a non physical contact league.
Now you may accuse me of bias as a Wolves fan at the home of our greatest rivals but my critisisms apply to Norwich just as much as to Albion,this was not something I would want to watch every week and i am so glad that I became associated with AFC Wulfrunians so that I am able to watch proper football each Saturday.
Two other points when Albion went 2-1 down with 15 minutes still left I was amased at the mass exodus of home fans,surely they should stay to encourage their team to get an equaliser and maybe go on to win the game,and secondly can somebody buy Alan Shearer a watch because on Match Of The day he said the Norwich winner was 3-4 minutes from the end,well as i stated earlier it was 15 minutes,11 minutes normal time and 4 miinutes injury time,now that's just sloppy broadcasting
The match however was a totally different kettle of fish,this was the first time in probably 6 years that I had experienced a live Premiership match and I was obviously going to compare it with the West Midlands League fare that I watch every week.Well what a dissapointmernt,if this is the top level of English football I am glad that I dont waste my hard earned cash on it every week,the standard of passing was atrocious from both sides there aws a total lack of passion and committment and unlike the WML the EPL appears to be a non physical contact league.
Now you may accuse me of bias as a Wolves fan at the home of our greatest rivals but my critisisms apply to Norwich just as much as to Albion,this was not something I would want to watch every week and i am so glad that I became associated with AFC Wulfrunians so that I am able to watch proper football each Saturday.
Two other points when Albion went 2-1 down with 15 minutes still left I was amased at the mass exodus of home fans,surely they should stay to encourage their team to get an equaliser and maybe go on to win the game,and secondly can somebody buy Alan Shearer a watch because on Match Of The day he said the Norwich winner was 3-4 minutes from the end,well as i stated earlier it was 15 minutes,11 minutes normal time and 4 miinutes injury time,now that's just sloppy broadcasting
Thursday 12 January 2012
English Football Back To The 70's
No I'm not talking about the tackling I'm on about the sexism and racism that appear to have raised their ugly heads over the past few months.
Firstly we had the Andy Grey scenario and the number of pro's who couldn't see what was wrong with that and now Paul Jewell and his Neanderthal comments after last night's defeat at Blues.
Then of course there is the Suarez,Terry and god knows how many more on Twitter comments that appears to show that the racism that was prevalent throughout the game in the past has never gone away despite the Kick It Out campaign but has just been laying dormant for a while.
So is it that football is a working class game and whilst the intellectual elite have bitten the bullet and abandoned the old attitudes (Although Diane Abbott needs to hold her hands up) whilst it has simmered in the background of the average football fan and the attitudes of Grey and Suarez have given them the chance to resurrect their long dormant prejudices.
Firstly we had the Andy Grey scenario and the number of pro's who couldn't see what was wrong with that and now Paul Jewell and his Neanderthal comments after last night's defeat at Blues.
Then of course there is the Suarez,Terry and god knows how many more on Twitter comments that appears to show that the racism that was prevalent throughout the game in the past has never gone away despite the Kick It Out campaign but has just been laying dormant for a while.
So is it that football is a working class game and whilst the intellectual elite have bitten the bullet and abandoned the old attitudes (Although Diane Abbott needs to hold her hands up) whilst it has simmered in the background of the average football fan and the attitudes of Grey and Suarez have given them the chance to resurrect their long dormant prejudices.
Tuesday 10 January 2012
Scholes & Henry
Much has been made of the return of these 2 icons to their respective teams and no doubt the waves of nostalgia burn brightly in the hearts of Manchester Utd and Arsenal fans,now I am not going down the route of its all hype and they are past it more along the lines of what does it say about the state of the Premier League.
We are given to understand that this is the best league in the world with all the best players (I will just say La Liga) but at least there should be squads awash with quality and yet out of 25 squad members Utd cannot find a decent midfield without resorting to the recall of a retired player and Arsenal's forwards in the absense of RVP need a player who has been playing in a pub league.
Now I may be proven wrong and both players may roll back the years for a final glorious swansong but maybe the managers,and I dont just include Ferguson and Wenger in this,need to be honest about the dross they are buying that forces these drastic actions.
Lets face it Chamaq,ArshavinCarrick and many others either never did or no longer set the world on fire,Premier League teams at full strength may be superb but take a few starters out and even Moneybags City look to be a bit threadbare.
We are given to understand that this is the best league in the world with all the best players (I will just say La Liga) but at least there should be squads awash with quality and yet out of 25 squad members Utd cannot find a decent midfield without resorting to the recall of a retired player and Arsenal's forwards in the absense of RVP need a player who has been playing in a pub league.
Now I may be proven wrong and both players may roll back the years for a final glorious swansong but maybe the managers,and I dont just include Ferguson and Wenger in this,need to be honest about the dross they are buying that forces these drastic actions.
Lets face it Chamaq,ArshavinCarrick and many others either never did or no longer set the world on fire,Premier League teams at full strength may be superb but take a few starters out and even Moneybags City look to be a bit threadbare.
Saturday 7 January 2012
Hate Amongst Football Fans
Listening to Talk Sport on the way home last night I was saddened by some of the comments that were flying around in the wake of the Suarez/Evra affair,Liverpool and Utd fans phoning in and texting confirming that basic rivalry between the 2 clubs is a thing of the past and that its now gone way beyond that to a vile hatred that I have never witnessed in football before.
As a Wolves fan of nearly 50 years I grew up in Dudley equidistent between Molineux and the Hawthorns so that everywhere there were Wolves and Albion fans and although there was major rivalry the hatred that now abounds between Liverpool and Utd never reard it's ugly head,I mean Liverpool and Manchester are miles apart.
So what has caused this situation that to my mind has only existed in the UK before in the sectarian divisions of Glasgow,well to be honest my initial reaction was that it's Utd and their arrogance during the Premier League ear especially with the baiting of Liverpool over the 19th league title,a situation that never occurred during the 80's when Liverpool were not only dominant but admired and respected by the majority of neutrals but is that to simplistic? Well at the risk of upsetting many friends who are Utd fans I dont think it is but the Suarez affair and the attitude of Liverpool FC and many of their fans in the wake of that has exasserbated it to the extent that we now have a situation where the next match between the 2 is a powder keg waiting to explode and the authorities have a real problem on their hands in about 5 weeks time.
All I can hope is that these attitudes stay at either end of the East Lancs Road and do not infiltrate the rest of football.
As a Wolves fan of nearly 50 years I grew up in Dudley equidistent between Molineux and the Hawthorns so that everywhere there were Wolves and Albion fans and although there was major rivalry the hatred that now abounds between Liverpool and Utd never reard it's ugly head,I mean Liverpool and Manchester are miles apart.
So what has caused this situation that to my mind has only existed in the UK before in the sectarian divisions of Glasgow,well to be honest my initial reaction was that it's Utd and their arrogance during the Premier League ear especially with the baiting of Liverpool over the 19th league title,a situation that never occurred during the 80's when Liverpool were not only dominant but admired and respected by the majority of neutrals but is that to simplistic? Well at the risk of upsetting many friends who are Utd fans I dont think it is but the Suarez affair and the attitude of Liverpool FC and many of their fans in the wake of that has exasserbated it to the extent that we now have a situation where the next match between the 2 is a powder keg waiting to explode and the authorities have a real problem on their hands in about 5 weeks time.
All I can hope is that these attitudes stay at either end of the East Lancs Road and do not infiltrate the rest of football.
Tuesday 3 January 2012
What Is The Obsession With Rotation
The current obsession with rotating players really reached it's peak (Or Nadir) over the New Year weekend with the performances of the 2 Manchester clubs in playing well below strength sides and suffering the consequences but why oh why do they and so many others do it.
Now the initial reaction will be "Well it's all these foreigners over here init" but is that the case,from what I understand the continental teams don't have thev same obsession,in fact last week Barcelona played 90% of their fist team in the 8 goal win over a 3rd division side in the cup,a fixture that would have had Fergie or Wenger playing the tea lady in central midfield.
So it must be the huge number of games we play over here well tell that to Lionel Messi who has played more than 50 games in each of the last 3 seasons and he didn't look tired at Wembley as he took Man Utd apart in the Champions League final,in comparison Wayne Rooney has played on average 8 games less per season over the same period.
To be honest I think we have to blame 3 men, Arsene Wenger Claudio Ranieri (The Tinkerman) and Rafael Benitez who really popularised the rotation system and seemed to sell it to the rest of the Premier League who used the excuses of fixture congestion tired players etc to embrace it.But has it been of benefit well England's players don't seem any fresher at the end of each season and the weekends results show that it has driven the common sense approach of getting the match won before you give your top players a rest into the bushes.
Back in the "Good old day's" of the 60's, 70's & 80's players turned out week after week on pretty awful pitches and never complained about being tired and yet we won more European trophies and the England team did no worse internationally than today's well rested internationals.
So will a manger be brave enough to start his best side each week because if they did I have a sneaking suspicion that the rotation policy would soon be shown up for the myth that it really is
Now the initial reaction will be "Well it's all these foreigners over here init" but is that the case,from what I understand the continental teams don't have thev same obsession,in fact last week Barcelona played 90% of their fist team in the 8 goal win over a 3rd division side in the cup,a fixture that would have had Fergie or Wenger playing the tea lady in central midfield.
So it must be the huge number of games we play over here well tell that to Lionel Messi who has played more than 50 games in each of the last 3 seasons and he didn't look tired at Wembley as he took Man Utd apart in the Champions League final,in comparison Wayne Rooney has played on average 8 games less per season over the same period.
To be honest I think we have to blame 3 men, Arsene Wenger Claudio Ranieri (The Tinkerman) and Rafael Benitez who really popularised the rotation system and seemed to sell it to the rest of the Premier League who used the excuses of fixture congestion tired players etc to embrace it.But has it been of benefit well England's players don't seem any fresher at the end of each season and the weekends results show that it has driven the common sense approach of getting the match won before you give your top players a rest into the bushes.
Back in the "Good old day's" of the 60's, 70's & 80's players turned out week after week on pretty awful pitches and never complained about being tired and yet we won more European trophies and the England team did no worse internationally than today's well rested internationals.
So will a manger be brave enough to start his best side each week because if they did I have a sneaking suspicion that the rotation policy would soon be shown up for the myth that it really is
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