European Round-Up

Champions League

Inter Milan 4 – 3 Tottenham Hotspur

Spurs’ comeback wasn’t quite enough in the end, and Gareth Bale will probably never be more unhappy after scoring a hat-trick. Inter scored in the first minute, and in the seventh minute goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes was sent off. Samuel Eto’o converted the subsequent penalty, and when a third goal was added a matter of minutes later the game really looked dead and buried. Eto’o grabbed a second before half-time, meaning that Spurs were four goals down at the break. Bale scored a sublime goal to begin reducing the deficit, scored an identikit second with only a few minutes to go, before completing his hat-trick with an accomplished finish from the edge of the area. There really was not enough time left to even think about grabbing the unlikeliest of equalisers, though, and Inter completed a deserved win.

The scoreline flattered Spurs in the end. For almost all of the first half, Inter were untouchable, the Spurs defence looking scared and making error after error. This will have been an important learning experience for the team and Harry Redknapp, and the fact that mistakes of any kind will be ruthlessly punished at this level has surely been hammered home. Spurs welcome the Italian and European champions back to White Hart Lane next, and Bale’s late hat-trick might just give them the belief they need to take something from that game.

Manchester United 1 – 0 Bursaspor

A very drab game by all accounts, lit up by a sumptuous early strike from Nani. Wayne Rooney was nowhere to be seen, still recovering from his ankle injury, and his presence was missed. United fans must be beginning to fear the worst. This really was a laboured victory against a side that Sir Alex Ferguson’s team would normally swat away at Old Trafford without breaking a sweat. Javier Hernandez, whilst good, does not yet have the breadth of skills to replace Rooney completely if the United talisman does indeed leave in January. Federico Macheda is still far too green, and perhaps may never mature into a truly Premier League-quality striker. We all know that Berbatov is extremely talented; but he is a very different player to Rooney, and one who does not seem the type to carry a team to a trophy on his own. If Rooney leaves, games like this will become much more commonplace at Old Trafford, and worse may yet be to come.

Rangers 1 – 1 Valencia

A fantastic point for Rangers here, and it really should have been more. After going ahead before the break through a towering header from Edu, Rangers missed a whole host of clear-cut chances (including a couple of open goals) before Edu was unfortunate enough to put the goal into his own net just after half-time to level the scores. Rangers seem to have ditched their habit of losing European games at Ibrox, and if they can scrape a draw away at Valencia they will have a very decent chance of qualifying for the knockout stages.

Spartak Moscow 0 – 2 Chelsea

Not much to note in this game. The result went entirely as expected, Yuri Zhirkov scoring his first Chelsea goal upon his return to his native Russia. Nicolas Anelka added the second, picking up the slack from Didier Drogba’s absence. John Terry will probably have relished the opportunity to return to the scene of his infamous penalty miss in the 2008 Champions League final, but nobody except him really cared all that much.

Arsenal 5 – 1 Shakhtar Donetsk

Similar to the Chelsea game in that the result went as expected, although credit must be given to Arsenal for playing some wonderful football and winning more comfortably than many might have expected. Jack Wilshere started alongside Cesc Fabregas in the Arsenal midfield, playing well once again and grabbing a nice goal as his development into Fabregas’ natural replacement continues apace. Shakhtar are a very good footballing side, and were probably Fulham’s toughest opponents during their run to last year’s Europa League final, a fact overlooked by many. It was nice to see Eduardo score on his return to the Emirates too; the Arsenal fans were more than willing to accommodate him and celebrate the goal as their team were 5-0 up at the time. If that had been the go-ahead goal, I’d wager they might not be quite so pleased.

 

Europa League

Napoli 0 – 0 Liverpool

This was a very good result for Liverpool. Roy Hodgson decided to rest many key players and give some of his reserves a chance to shine, and the gamble paid off. Napoli are a solid side, and can be an intimidating place to visit (as evidenced by their fans’ “hunting” of Liverpool supporters before the game). By choosing to prioritise the Premier League at the weekend, Hodgson took a gamble that paid off. His second-string players rewarded him by putting in a performance well worthy of a point. A 0-0 draw away from home in Europe without Steven Gerrard or Fernando Torres in your starting XI is not to be sniffed at.

Manchester City 3 – 1 Lech Poznan

City claimed all three points in comfortable enough fashion here, Emmanuel Adebayor grabbing a hat-trick in the process. Lech Poznan did make the score 2-1, which would have given City fans a few nervous moments, but in the end the result was never in too much doubt. City are now in a very strong position in their group and will almost certainly qualify for the knockout stages.

England 0 – 0 Montenegro

A strange one, this, and it really has to be seen as 2 points dropped for England. Having said that, it shouldn’t matter in the grand scheme of qualifying for Euro 2012. Montenegro are a decent side, and despite being drawn into this group as the bottom seed they have now taken 10 points out of a possible 12 – a remarkable achievement. They look in good position to come second in the group, assuming England do manage to see the rest of the campaign out as they should and finish top.

England dominated possession in this game, but had very few clear sights of goal. A few half-chances fell to the striking duo of Wayne Rooney and Peter Crouch, but they were feeding on scraps. Rooney did have two decent opportunities, one from a sumptuously weighted through-pass from Steven Gerrard, the other a rebound after a shot had been blocked inside the area. Both times Mladen Bozovic in the Montenegro goal pulled off smart saves.

In fact, it could have been a whole lot worse. In the 82nd minute, left-back Milan Jovanovic found himself presented with a bouncing ball on the edge of the England penalty area, and duly struck it with venom. The natural angle of the strike meant that it would dip, and it did so, leaving Joe Hart stranded and rebounding off the England crossbar. Hart stood no chance, and if the shot had dropped a few centimetres lower England would have lost this game.

As it was though, a draw was reasonably fair. Despite a clear penalty appeal in the 76th minute when Jovanovic handled inside the box, England never really did anything to state that they fully deserved to win. After all, they should not have to rely on a penalty to beat a side like Montenegro.

It was good to see Ashley Young and Adam Johnson started on the wings, but neither did anything spectacular. Young was eventually withdrawn for Shaun Wright-Phillips, who also failed to produce anything of note. Kevin Davies even came on for his first England cap, replacing Peter Crouch late on, and duly lived up to his reputation as the player who commits the most fouls in the Premier League by getting booked for an elbow on a Montenegrin defender. Davies almost certainly does not feature in Fabio Capello’s long-term plans, but he deserves his cap after years of effective performances in the Premier League.

This is far from a disastrous result, but it was pretty uninspiring stuff and will have done no favours to Capello in his attempts to restore optimism after the dismal performances at the World Cup last summer. England should still qualify from this group in first place; they will just have to ensure there are not too many more slip-ups like this one.

Scotland 2 – 3 Spain

After the dismal and rather embarrassing 1-0 defeat to the Czech Republic on Friday night, a game in which manager Craig Levein opted to play a 4-6-0 formation and forgo any kind of attacking football whatsoever, the Scots lined up with Kenny Miller as the lone striker tonight. They still didn’t attack an awful lot, but at least there was an attacker on the field this time.

To be fair to the Scots, they put in a resilient display and were rather unlucky not to nick a point against the reigning world and European champions. After it looked like they would make it to half time with the scores level at 0-0, Whittaker blocked a Sergio Ramos shot with his arm and the referee gave a penalty. Allan McGregor almost reached David Villa’s penalty, but the Spaniard squeezed it into the bottom corner to make it 1-0. Soon after the break, Iniesta doubled the advantage and it seemed to be game over.

The Scots fought back, though, much to everyone’s surprise. Stephen Naismith was on hand just 3 minutes after Iniesta’s goal to head in a Kenny Miller cross, and the game was back on. Seven minutes later, Pique put the ball into his own net to tie the scores. Hampden Park was in dreamland. They were rudely awakened by Fernando Llorente soon after, though, who swept in a cross from Capdevilla to secure the points for Spain. Heartbreak for the Scots, but they can be pleased with a promising performance here. They still have a chance of qualifying, and maybe Levein will begin to have a little more confidence in his players to actually play football and score goals from now on.

Other results:

• It’s worth noting that Switzerland beat Wales 4-1 tonight, ending Wales’ hopes of qualifying once and for all. Brian Flynn’s team are in a real mess after John Toshack’s departure, and whilst they are admittedly missing a raft of key players (including Craig Bellamy, Joe Ledley and Robert Earnshaw), this result is a disheartening one. The games against England will be big ones, and Flynn will be hoping his side raise their game due to the opposition, but they should be comfortably beaten both home and away on this evidence and seem almost certain to finish bottom of the group. This will adversely affect their FIFA ranking, and make it even harder to qualify in future.

• Northern Ireland could only manage a 1-1 draw in the Faroe Islands, and this has to go down as a huge missed opportunity for Nigel Worthington’s men. The Northern Irish are really struggling to score goals at the moment, especially away from home, but they need to beat the minnows if they want to have a shot at qualifying. This result does not help their chances, but they’re not out of it yet, still only two points behind the group leaders Italy.

• The Republic of Ireland could also only draw 1-1, but they were away to Slovakia. The Slovaks are a far stronger team than the Faroe Islanders, but the Republic also missed an opportunity to gain three vital points away from home. Robbie Keane missed a penalty when the scores were tied, and with Russia winning 1-0 away to Macedonia they have now fallen two points behind the leaders in Group B.

AFL Grand Final Replay

So to follow up my post from a couple of weeks ago, it was the AFL Grand Final Replay the weekend before last. After Collingwood and St. Kilda played out what was only the third drawn Grand Final in AFL history, tension was high ahead of the replay at the MCG.

After the draw the week before, a debate erupted in the Australian sporting press and amongst fans about whether a replay the following week was the best way forward in the event of a drawn final. Collingwood’s captain had expressed his feelings immediately after the first game, and they were not at all positive. In order to avoid the (admittedly remote) possibility of another replay, the AFL stated that if the game were to end in a draw, an extra time period of 5 minutes each way would be played to decide a winner. The issue will probably go away until the next time a Grand Final is drawn – and on current form, that will be at least 25 years.

The game itself saw Collingwood run out comfortable winners. Things started out in a remarkably similar fashion to the first game, Collingwood sprinting out of the blocks and washing all over the St. Kilda back line. The pressure was not reflected on the scoreboard, however, and it felt like last week all over again.

The turning point probably came as early as the 1st period. St. Kilda’s superstar player, Nick Riewoldt, received the ball less than 10 metres out from goal, turned towards goal and seemed to poise to kick a goal that would have drawn St. Kilda to within touching distance of Collingwood; a goal that would have mimicked the first game in that it would have stopped St. Kilda becoming overwhelmed on the scoreboard even though they were losing the battle on the pitch. Out of nowhere, though, Collingwood’s Heath Shaw pounced, smothering Riewoldt’s shot as it left his boot, ensuring that as the ball passed over the goal line, it would be worth only a solitary point, not the expected six. This moment was massive, lifting both the Collingwood players and supporters alike, and the tone was now set for the rest of the game.

Collingwood continued to press their advantage, and went in at half time with a 27-point lead, 3 points more than at the same stage the week before. If Collingwood were to get the next goal, it felt like they would be unstoppable. They duly got it, and went on to put together five consecutive scores before St. Kilda could respond. The game increasingly felt like it was beyond the Saints, and so it proved, Collingwood running out winners by a score of 16.12 (108) to 7.10 (52) – a comfortable margin.

A Collingwood supporter (the father from the previous post) told me that he felt his team had blown it in the first game, missing a glorious chance to secure victory from a winning position at half-time. As the week before the replay passed, though, his feelings began to change, and he told me that he felt more confident for the replay. His feeling was that St. Kilda had played to their absolute maximum in the first game, and so the best they could hope for was another draw. Also, Collingwood’s young team had now gained some vital Grand Final experience, and could draw on that in the subsequent game.

And this is perhaps the most striking thing about this Collingwood team, and this season as a whole for them. Collingwood’s team is still young overall, and there are still a number of areas where improvements could be made. Veteran coach Mick Malthouse only has one more season before he retires, but he is leaving in place a very promising team for his successor. After the Magpies’ victory in 1990, there was talk that it was the first Premiership title in a new dynasty. That turned out to false, and whilst talk of a dynasty this time is far too premature, it is certainly feasible that this Collingwood team will go on to dominate the AFL for the next few seasons as they continue to improve. They will almost certainly be there or thereabouts for some time to come, and I for one will enjoy watching out to see how they get on.

Premier League: Round 7

A few thoughts on Round 7 of the Premier League:

Hodgson needs to stop decline before it becomes terminal
There comes a point where decline has to be arrested and turned around. If it is not, then it can become almost irreversible, taking years or longer to recover. Liverpool are approaching this point. After being dumped out of the League Cup by lowly Northampton Town, Roy Hodgson’s side were outplayed by Blackpool at Anfield. This was an unthinkable result at the start of the season, and with the first signs that the fans are beginning to run out of patience with Hodgson, the former Fulham manager needs to do something soon to stop the rot. Talk of relegation is surely premature, but missing out on the top half is a very realistic prospect.

Manchester United are far from invincible
Manchester United look extremely fallible for the first time in recent memory. Whilst they are traditionally slow starters in the league, never have they failed to win a succession of away games in the way they have this year, and never have they looked so vulnerable in the process. The draws away to Fulham and Everton demonstrated severe lapses in concentration at the heart of United’s defence, and they were rather fortunate to come away with a point after drawing 0-0 at Sunderland this week. With Rooney’s total loss of form, defensive problems, and a lack of money available to Ferguson to compete at the top end of the transfer market to fix these issues, there is trouble brewing at Old Trafford for seasons to come.

Chelsea continue to dominate Arsenal
The story is the same as it has been for the past two seasons; Chelsea comfortably beat Arsenal. Although the score was only 2-0 and Arsenal dominated possession for much of the game, the Gunners failed to do much with it and squandered all of the good chances they created. Chelsea were happy to absorb the pressure, looking potent on the counter-attack. It paid off in the end, with Didier Drogba scoring his 13th goal in 13 games against Arsenal, a quite remarkable statistic. Alex’s rocket of a free kick towards the end of the game only confirmed the inevitable.

Manchester City learning to grind out results
City won at Newcastle United despite not playing particularly well. As the cliché goes, the sign of a good team is the ability to win when playing badly, not just when playing well. City were the beneficiaries of some questionable refereeing decisions, but when you are able to bring on players of the calibre of Adam Johnson and Emmanuel Adebayor, you should be winning most of the games you play. Right now, they seem best placed to challenge Chelsea for the title this year.

Fulham need a striker
With Bobby Zamora, Andy Johnson and Mousa Dembele all out injured, Fulham looked toothless in attack against West Ham United. Clint Dempsey started as expected, but despite always working hard up front he never quite looks completely comfortable, and he certainly seems to be more effective when attacking from midfield. Eddie Johnson, Dempsey’s US national teammate, was surprisingly called upon to make his first Premier League start in over two years. Unsurprisingly, Johnson had very little impact, and he seems to be a raw talent who has a long way to go before becoming a Premiership-calibre player – he is still yet to score a goal for Fulham. Dembele and Andy Johnson are scheduled to return in a few weeks – perhaps then Mark Hughes will be able to turn draws into wins.

The relegation candidates are yet to present themselves
After I confidently predicted Blackpool and West Bromwich Albion to struggle this year, they have duly defied expectations and are playing quite well so far. Liverpool, Wolves and West Ham currently make up the bottom three, but it is quite easy to imagine teams like Wigan, Birmingham, Blackburn, Bolton, Blackpool and West Brom could all get dragged back into the relegation mix before the end of the year. No team has started off so badly to suggest that they will certainly be relegated, as Derby County, West Brom, and Portsmouth have done in recent seasons. The relegation battle is shaping up nicely to become one of the most exciting in recent memory.

Midweek European Round-up

Here’s a quick look at this week’s midweek European games:

Champions League

No major upsets for the British clubs in the Champions League this week (unless, of course, you consider a Rangers victory to be an upset). Chelsea cruised past Marseille 2-0, putting them firmly in control of Group F.

Arsenal eventually overcame Partizan Belgrade 3-1 after the scores were level for a large part of the game, and Marouane Chamakh missed a penalty at 1-1. The Gunners’ victory also puts them in pole position to qualify at this early stage.

Manchester United faced a tougher task as they faced Valencia at the Mestalla. A drab game livened up after the break, with Javier Hernandez getting the breakthrough in the last ten minutes to give United a very good victory.

Also in United’s group, Rangers overcame Bursaspor 1-0 at Ibrox to put them level on points with the English team at the top of Group C. The win ended a long run without a European win at home for Rangers, and Walter Smith will be glad to have got that monkey off his team’s back.

Finally, Tottenham thrashed Dutch champions FC Twente at White Hart Lane, thanks in no small part to three penalties awarded to them by the referee (although in fairness, one of them was missed and Rafael van der Vaart was eventually sent off).

All in all, it means that all five British teams are in decent positions as we approach the halfway mark of the group stages. Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United will almost certainly sail through to the knockout stages now, whilst Rangers and Spurs are perhaps in better positions than they might have hoped when the competition kicked off. Rangers, certainly, will be ecstatic with 4 points from two games, and Spurs will not be too disappointed with the same total. A draw away to Werder Bremen in their first game was a great result considering Spurs’ relative lack of experience in European competition.

There were some other notable results from around Europe in the Champions League this week. Inter Milan battered Werder Bremen 4-0, Samuel Eto’o grabbing a hat-trick as the Italians made a big statement of intent. In Group D, Barcelona were held at home by Rubin Kazan, both sides scoring a penalty apiece as the game finished 1-1. The result now means that Rubin are unbeaten in their last three games with Barcelona, even winning the game at the Camp Nou last season. A truly remarkable statistic for the Russian team.

Barca’s great rivals Real Madrid laboured to a win away at Auxerre, winning 1-0 thanks to a second-half strike from Angel di Maria. Jose Mourinho’s shaky start to his tenure at the Bernabeu continued in this visit to France, with the goals failing to come as freely as might be expected. Many Madrid fans are beginning to grow restless with Mourinho’s pragmatic tactics, and although Real are having far more shots than any of their opponents so far, most of them are pointless long-range efforts. Something is not quite right, and Mourinho will need to fix it quick.

Also in Real’s group, Ajax and AC Milan played out a 1-1 draw, Zlatan Ibrahimovich scoring the equaliser upon his return to his old club. Second spot in this group is wide open (assuming that Real sort their problems out and win the group as they should), and this result doesn’t make things any clearer.

All in all, then, an intriguing if not overly exciting round of Champions League games. The group stage is bloated in this format, leading to many relatively meaningless games. A streamlining of the competition’s format would make it far more interesting in the early stages, but as it is now, the real interest doesn’t begin until the knockout phase begins next year.

Europa League

A quick look at the Europa League, then, with Liverpool once again struggling to find form and goals as they were held to a goalless draw at Utrecht. Roy Hodgson seems to be finding it hard to get his team playing to their potential, and the Reds couldn’t find a way through the Utrecht defence even though Fernando Torres was back from injury and supposedly 100% fit again. Dirk Kuyt was also poor in his first game back after injury. Things just do not look like getting better at Liverpool, and this season may have to be one of consolidation whilst the ownership situation is sorted out.

Manchester City were more impressive in a 1-1 draw with Juventus, and might even feel disappointed not to have taken all three points. A long-distance strike from Vincenzo Iaquinta opened the scoring (with Joe Hart perhaps at fault), and Adam Johnson levelled things up after finishing off Yaya Touré’s exquisite through-ball. Alessandro Del Piero almost won the game with a late free kick that cannoned off the crossbar, but City also had their chances to claim victory. It says a lot about how far City have come when they can feel disappointed not to have beaten Juventus.

A British Perspective on Aussie Rules

Australian football (or Aussie Rules as it sometimes more commonly known) can seem like a rather bizarre sport to those who have never witnessed it before. As a British sports fan and an avid follower of the round-ball game, I was intrigued to see an AFL (Australian Football League) game when I was in Australia for three months earlier this year.

I recently completed a year abroad in Montréal, Canada, as part of my university studies, and became good friends with a number of Australians whilst I was over there. One of them was from Melbourne, and she was a huge fan of the Collingwood Magpies. She quickly set about indoctrinating me into all things Collingwood, and I decided that they would have to become my adopted team. She even offered me the chance of attending a game with her father when I was visiting Melbourne for a week in June.

One thing she had failed to tell me, though, is that all Australians either love or hate Collingwood – and unfortunately, most of them hate them. I suppose they are the equivalent of Manchester United or Liverpool from the English Premier League, in the sense that they have by far the biggest support of any Australian sports team, and have appeared in the most Grand Finals (40 of them) of any AFL team. In fact, they are probably a better comparison with Liverpool, as they have only won 14 of the 40 Grand Finals they have played in, and have not won one since 1990. Before that victory, you have to look back to 1958 to see their most recent Premiership title.

All in all, Collingwood are a team with a lot of history, and even though supporting the big team doesn’t always sit easily with me (being a Fulham supporter after all), I decided to stick with the Magpies and go to a game in Melbourne. After all, my friend’s offer of a free ticket to a game was one I could hardly turn down.

So I arrived in Melbourne on the Queen’s Birthday weekend, a bank holiday in Australia. Every year, a game is played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) between Collingwood and the Melbourne Demons on the day of the Queen’s Birthday, and so it has become quite a big game. We got on the train to travel to the MCG, and got to see Victoria Park on the way. Victoria Park was Collingwood’s old home before they moved to the MCG, and is one of the famous suburban grounds of the AFL. All of the teams used to play in their own stadiums in their own respective suburbs before all the league was consolidated, meaning that all Melbourne teams now play their home games at the MCG or at Etihad Stadium (a 55,000-seater stadium in Melbourne’s Docklands). Most suburban grounds are still used by their respective teams for reserve games and training sessions.

The 'G'.

We arrived at Jolimont Station and disembarked to take the short walk across Yarra Park to the MCG. For those who have never seen it, the MCG is a magnificent sight. A truly enormous stadium with a capacity of over 100,000, seeing it really gave me goosebumps and got me excited for the match I was about to see. The inside was just as good. My friend had Collingwood memberships so I would be sitting in amongst the hardcore fans – the members even had their own private bars to drink in.

We took our seats and the match soon got under way. As a complete AFL novice, I was pretty bewildered at times, but my friend’s Dad was extremely helpful in explaining the rules as best he could. I was surprised at how quickly I became engrossed in the game. It turned out to be very fast and athletic, and of course extremely physical. Collingwood were in the middle of a good run of form at the time and were near the top of the table (or the ‘ladder’ as the Aussies call it), whereas Melbourne were having a relatively poor season. On paper, the Pies should have won comfortably – in the end it finished 76-76, the first draw of the 2010 AFL season.

Collingwood banner before the game.

The players before kick-off.

The reaction at the end was very odd. In soccer, a draw is often not something to be disappointed with, and one team at least is usually pretty pleased with the result. In the AFL, because draws are so rare, both teams and both sets of fans were hugely disappointed at not getting the victory. For those who don’t know, a goal is worth six points in Aussie Rules, with a behind worth one point (a behind being when the ball is kicked between a large goalpost and one of the smaller ones either side of the goal, essentially giving a point if the ball only misses wide by a small margin). Collingwood had kicked 9 goals and 22 behinds; their accuracy in front of goal had cost them victory. Still, a draw was surely better than a loss and Collingwood were able to keep in touch with the top of the AFL ladder.

Before I returned to Sydney (where I was staying for most of my time in Australia), I was able to take a guided tour of the MCG and visit the National Sports Museum which is located underneath the stadium. The tour really revealed the true scale of the stadium, particularly the extent of its facilities. It really is a quite magical site when you see it rising out of the distance as you walk towards it from the centre of Melbourne.

Walking towards the MCG

The National Sports Museum itself was also fascinating, particularly the exhibition devoted to Aussie Rules. There is a huge amount of history behind the sport, which the likes of me would never normally hear about. It was wonderful to wander in and out of all the exhibits containing old team jerseys and old footballs, and to sit and watch a few of the seminal moments of games gone by on the exhibition’s TV screens. One interesting section was one area where you play each team song. Every AFL team has its own song, and Collingwood’s is called “Good Old Collingwood Forever”. Naturally, I gave it a listen. As it played over the loudspeakers, a couple walked into the room, heard what was playing and said, “Oh God, quick, let’s get out of here”. A perfect illustration of most people’s feelings towards the Magpies.

Outside the National Sports Museum.

After a fantastic few days in Melbourne, I returned to Sydney. Luckily for me, the following Saturday saw Collingwood travel up the coast to play against the Sydney Swans at ANZ Stadium. ANZ Stadium is not quite up to the MCG’s standards (although few grounds are, in fairness), but it can be fondly remembered by England rugby union fans as the ground where Jonny Wilkinson kicked his last-minute drop goal to win the 2003 World Cup against Australia.

This game was quite different from the one I witnessed in Melbourne. Right from the off the result was never really in doubt, Collingwood running out quite comfortable winners, by a score of 13.18 (96) to Sydney’s 10.11 (71). Collingwood moved to the top of the ladder and now looked like one of the favourites to take the minor Premiership (i.e. the team that wins the league before the finals series begins).

ANZ Stadium.

In the end, Collingwood did take the minor Premiership crown, and I’m quite glad to say that I was able to see two of their games during such a successful season. They went on to overcome the Geelong Cats in the 1st Preliminary Final (what we would call a semi-final) in order to reach their first Grand Final since 2003. The Cats were probably the favourites for the Premiership before the season began, so to put in such a convincing performance against them was a huge marker to show how good this Collingwood side could be. My friend’s Dad even got in touch to tell me that the game featured some of the best football he had ever seen Collingwood play (and he’s been going to games for a long time).

St. Kilda was next up, the runners-up in last year’s Grand Final after losing to Geelong. The Saints have only ever won one Premiership title, and that was way back in 1966 (in one of the most famous Grand Finals in history they defeated Collingwood by a solitary point), so whoever won a drought would be broken. The Saints are a very good team too, beating Geelong in a Qualifying Final as well as finishing 3rd in the regular season. The AFL Grand Final is generally considered to be the most important sporting event in Australia, and is certainly the one that is watched by the most people and generates the most interest on a regular basis. Over 100,000 people packed into the MCG to witness a spectacular game.

Remarkably, after an incredibly hard-fought contest during which Collingwood had led for all but the last 6 minutes, the game finished in a draw, St. Kilda equalising with a behind in the last 2 minutes of the game. This was only the third time this has happened in the history of the AFL, and the first time since 1977. The final siren was a signal for both sets of players to collapse to the turf, probably overcome by the tension and the knowledge that they have to do it all again this coming Saturday, October 2. Sport doesn’t get much more tense and dramatic.

The fact that there are no provisions to play extra time in the event of the Grand Final ending in a draw have caused a great deal of controversy, particularly among the players and fans of the teams involved. Collingwood supporters in particular, will feel that they may have missed their chance after their team lead by 24 points at half time. The AFL have since said that extra time will be played if the Grand Final Replay were to end in a draw too.

Aussie Rules is a much-mocked sport here in the UK, but I have to say I have been converted to its charms. Whilst I would never claim to be an avid follower, I will certainly keep an eye on Collingwood’s fortunes in the future, and I will definitely be watching the Grand Final Replay this coming weekend. I recommend all my UK friends to do the same if they have the chance – it’s being shown on ESPN at the admittedly rather unsociable time of 4.30am. If the first Grand Final this past weekend was any indicator, you will not be disappointed if you make the effort to get up.

Premier League: Round 6

A few thoughts on this week’s round of Premier League games:

West Brom might not get relegated after all
You can argue that West Brom met Arsenal on a bad day, but at one point the Baggies were 3-0 up and Chris Brunt had missed a penalty. If Samir Nasri hadn’t scored his second in the dying moments, this could have been the unlikeliest of routs. Arsenal don’t often lose at home, and West Brom don’t often win away in the Premier League, but the planets aligned and the unthinkable happened. Peter Odemwingie got on the scoresheet for West Brom once again, and the Baggies seem to have found the goalscorer that has been the difference between survival and relegation in seasons past. If they can keep putting in performances like this, they should be alright.

Arsenal’s old frailties remain
On the flip side of West Brom’s victory, it has to be said that Arsenal’s numerous weaknesses were exposed. The Gunners were once again exposed at the back, and Manuel Almunia was especially culpable for West Brom’s second goal. At 2-0 down, it was a long way back for Arsenal. Arsene Wenger’s team are maddeningly inconsistent, looking like world-beaters in the Champions League one week and then losing to newly-promoted teams the next. The same old criticisms can be levelled at Arsenal once again. Wenger didn’t buy a world-class goalkeeper. The defence looked frail. There was no enforcer in midfield to break up the opposition’s attacks. They looked lightweight in attack with the absences of Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie, and Theo Walcott. Wenger needs to iron out the kinks, and quick.

Roy Hodgson is showing the strain of managing Liverpool
After unbelievable achievements at Fulham, Hodgson understandably moved onto bigger (and he believed better) things at Liverpool. After the hugely embarrassing defeat in midweek to Northampton Town, Liverpool once again struggled at home against Sunderland. Dirk Kuyt’s opener was extremely fortunate, before Sunderland deservedly took the lead. Only a second half goal from Stephen Gerrard saved the Reds. Before the game, Hodgson had risked alienating many hardcore Liverpool supporters by suggesting that the protests against the club’s ownerships were actually increasing the pressure on the team and hindering performances. Hodgson is taking a big risk in criticising the fans, and will need to turn results around if he wants to get away with comments like that in future. The fact he said it at all shows that the increased pressure of managing a big club like Liverpool is beginning to get to him.

Manchester United making their traditional slow start – or something more?
Manchester United really are struggling in away games this season. The 2-2 draw against Bolton made it three draws in a row, after the stalemates against both Fulham and Everton. A late Michael Owen goal saved the day this weekend, and worryingly for United fans the Red Devils had to come from behind not once, but twice. A crumb of comfort can be taken in the knowledge that United almost always start slowly in the Premier League, not really getting going until around Christmas time. Defeats for Chelsea and Arsenal mean that United have actually gained ground in the title race this week, so the draw with Bolton wasn’t a complete disaster. It is worthwhile asking whether this really is just another slow start, or whether we are seeing the beginning of a Liverpool-esque terminal decline at Old Trafford. The Guardian’s Rob Smythe has this week written an interesting, if uneccessarily provocative article on the subject.

Spurs still haven’t mastered playing two games per week
Tottenham Hotspur have struggled in games following Champions League excursions, losing 1-0 at home to Wigan and only beating Wolves late in the game after coming back from a goal down. After changing the vast majority of the team for the midweek Carling Cup defeat to Arsenal, Harry Redknapp’s team once again capitulated weakly to a supposedly inferior side. This time, Avram Grant’s West Ham United were the happy opponents, picking up a vital first win of the season in the process. Redknapp will need to improve Spurs’ rhythm so that they peak twice a week, not once, if he wants to challenge the top four again.

Fulham still hard to beat despite losing Hodgson
Many thought that Roy Hodgson’s organisational principles may have departed with him when he left for Anfield, but Fulham are now unbeaten six games into the Premier League season. Admittedly 5 of those games have been draws, but an unbeaten run of six games is not to be sniffed at. If Hughes can maintain the defensive stability whilst improving the Cottagers’ goalscoring record he could be onto a winner.

Blackpool crash down to earth
Blackpool’s honeymoon period may now officially be over. After a surprising rout of Wigan on the opening day of the season, Blackpool drew with Fulham and also defeated Newcastle. Heavy defeats to Arsenal and Chelsea were also incurred, but this was perfectly understandable and acceptable. A home defeat to Blackburn Rovers, though, potential relegation rivals, brings the Seasiders crashing back down to earth. It is defeat in this kind of game that will cause Blackpool to relegated if it keeps on happening.

Houllier getting Aston Villa back on track
Reunited with his old Liverpool signing Emile Heskey, Gerard Houllier seems to have stabilised Aston Villa after Martin O’Neill’s departure. Heskey has been heavily derided for some time now, especially after his performances at the World Cup, but he scored a late winner against Wolves to give Villa all three points. He also scored the winner in the Carling Cup victory in midweek, so perhaps the reunion could work out well for all involved.

Manchester City 1 – 0 Chelsea

Manchester City and Chelsea are two teams who have a lot in common. Chelsea, propelled to the top of the Premier League table by Roman Abramovich’s oil millions, have found success in the league the like of which their fans have never known before (even though that European Cup victory still eludes them). Manchester City are currently being fueled by Sheikh Mansour’s oil billions, and are still in the early phases of an extremely ambitious attempt to surpass Chelsea and conquer the footballing world. This game went a long way in demonstrating how advanced the City project truly is.

The game begin quietly, both sides probing carefully without any real chances presenting themselves. City, despite the enormous resources at their disposal, were forced to play the inexperienced Dedryck Boyata at right-back, a youth team player who usually plays in the centre. The omens did not bode well initially, Boyata’s nerves causing him to tangle off the ball with Didier Drogba on a few occasions. Whilst this did not cause any real problems, one of the incidents did occur inside the City area, and on another day the outcome could have been far worse for the team from Manchester.

Despite this, both sides were defensively very solid for the first 40 minutes. James Milner constantly attacked Chelsea’s right side, running at Branislav Ivanovic and giving the Serbian a few things to think about. Apart from a half-chance for Carlos Tevez after a low Milner cross from the left, goalscoring opportunities were few and far between.

The Londoners came closer in the first half, with Ivanovic involved at the other end. Rising high to meet a cross, the Serb headed against the post, and when the rebound fell to him Joe Hart was in a good position to collect a tame effort. The breakthrough was yet to come, and City were matching Chelsea with an organised defence which was able to launch rapid counter-attacks at a moment’s notice. The fact that they had stopped Chelsea scoring at all for 45 minutes was a feat which no team has achieved so far this season, and it should not be overlooked.

The first half had been all about the desire to avoid defeat, and the second began in a similar vein.

The first shot in anger of the second period came from Nicolas Anelka, who blasted in an effort from outside the area which zipped just wide of Hart’s right post. Michael Essien found himself with a free header from the resultant corner, but could only drive the ball well over the crossbar when he should have done better.

Ten minutes later, Nigel de Jong fed David Silva down the inside-left channel, and the World Cup-winning Spaniard forced a smart save from Petr Cech in the Chelsea goal, the Czech goalkeeper doing well to turn away a quick shot at his near post that he was not expecting.

The breakthrough finally came just before the hour mark. After a Chelsea corner, the ball was cleared upfield by Pablo Zabaleta. Chelsea’s new Brazilian midfielder Ramires dawdled on the ball on the halfway line and was dispossessed by Yaya Touré. He fed the ball straight to Tevez who ran straight at the Chelsea defence. David Silva’s run across the back line pulled the Blues defenders out of position, allowing Tevez to hit a shot through Cole’s legs which travelled back across goal and in off the bottom of the upright. A sensational counter-attacking goal, and Chelsea were behind in a game for the first time this season.

The game came to life following the goal, and two minutes later, Vincent Kompany, once again playing at centre half for Manchester City, was forced to make a crucial last-ditch tackle to deny Ramires a wonderful chance to equalise. Carlo Ancelotti decided that a change had to be made, taking off Jon Obi Mikel (who had just been booked) and bringing on Yuri Zhirkov in his place. This was a clear signal of intent by the Chelsea manager, and the change was designed to counter City’s new-found intensity by putting Chelsea on the front foot themselves.

The change did not have any immediate impact, however, and Chelsea’s attacking problems were summed up when Drogba was hauled off after 75 minutes and replaced by Daniel Sturridge, returning to the club where he started his career. It is very rare to see Drogba taken off early, even if he has had a bad day, as his capacity to produce a goal from nothing is almost unrivalled in English football. Ancelotti had obviously decided that desperate times call for desperate measures, and Sturridge was on to give him a chance to prove his worth.

City made an impact sub of their own, taking off the injured Silva and bringing on Adam Johnson, a winger in fantastic form. Milner was switched to the right wing to counter Ashley Cole’s inevitable forward runs, and Johnson was given the task of attacking down the left.

In the end, though, all of the attacking changes came to nothing as defense remained supreme. City were happy to remain organised at the back and hold on to their precious one-goal lead, and Chelsea were unable to break them down. Despite a relative lack of goals so far this season, no one can say that City have been profligate at the back. By keeping a clean sheet against this free-scoring Chelsea team, and nicking a winner themselves on the break, Roberto Mancini revealed a level of tactical maturity that many doubted he possessed and his players carried out the tasks set for them to perfection.

It should not be forgotten that City beat Chelsea both at home and away last season on their way to finishing sixth – but on this evidence, the City title challenge may not be dead just yet.

Europa League Group Stage Draw

So after Liverpool overcame Trabzonspor and Manchester City eased past Timisoara, they find themselves in the group stage of the second ever UEFA Europa League. Here’s how the draw treated them:

Group A

Juventus
Manchester City
Salzburg
Lech Poznan

Manchester City were in Pot 2 so were always to going to draw one of the top seeds, but Juventus is probably the most prestigious team they could have drawn. Juventus v. Manchester City is the tie of the round. And City will feel they have a very good chance of beating them. After thrashing Liverpool 3-0 at Eastlands earlier this week, City laid down a marker for the season ahead. Particularly at home, Roberto Mancini’s men will feel they can beat almost any team put in front of them. Away from home, with Mancini’s defensive tactics and organisation, they will be extremely tough to beat. Juventus, too, have just sold Brazilian playmaker Diego to Steve McLaren’s Wolfsburg after he failed to make any kind of meaningful impact last season. Having said that, it may have been worth giving him a chance to settle in and improve upon last year’s campaign. It should be noted, though, that while Juventus have a great deal of history and should rightly be respected, they are far from the imperious team of old. Defeated 4-1 by Fulham in last year’s Europa League, City should not fear them.

The other two teams in City’s group should pose no great problems either. Red Bull Salzburg are the reigning Austrian champions and in last year’s Europa League they won all 9 of their group games (in a group involving Villarreal, Lazio and Levski Sofia) before losing to Standard Liege in the Round of 32. Whilst this seems impressive on the surface, Lazio were in a relegation battle in Serie A last year, Villarreal finished 7th in La Liga, and Sofia are not a particularly dangerous side. Austria is not a very intimidating away trip, so City should be able to win both games against this opposition.

The same can be said of Lech Poznan. Poznan are the current Polish league champions, but they very rarely make the group stages of the Europa League (or its predecessor, the UEFA Cup). This year, they struggled past Inter Baku on penalties in the first qualifying round for the Champions League before crashing out in the second qualifying round to Sparta Prague. They only just scraped through their Europa League qualifier, too. Most of City’s current squad have experience of playing in European competitions, so Poznan will pose few problems. City should breeze through this group to take their place in the Round of 32.

Group K
Liverpool
Steaua Bucharest
Napoli
Utrecht

Liverpool, on the other hand, have been quite unlucky in their draw. Steaua Bucharest will present an awkward trip to Romania for the Reds, and will put up a solid challenge. Liverpool will still be the favourites against them, especially as they needed penalties to overcome Grasshoppers Zurich in the Play-off Round but Roy Hodgson will probably not be relishing the away game against them.

Napoli are a tougher prospect. They were probably the toughest team in Pot 3, and Liverpool have got the misfortune of drawing them. Napoli are a team on the rise. After switching managers in October of last year, Napoli’s results improved dramatically, with Walter Mazzarri leading them to a 6th-place finish. This is remarkable for a club that were playing in Serie C five years ago. They have signed Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani on loan this summer, a player who scored 34 goals in 109 games for Napoli’s close rivals Palermo. With Argentinian Ezequiel Lavazzi also at their disposal, Napoli have a potent strikeforce and Liverpool will have to tread with caution.

Utrecht should be easier to overcome, but their 4-0 defeat of Celtic to overturn a 0-2 deficit should serve as a warning as to what can happen if concentration levels are allowed to dip in European competition. Whilst Liverpool should certainly have enough quality to defeat the Dutch side, Celtic found out to their peril what can happen when you switch off.

Liverpool should still top this group – in theory. They laboured past Trabzonspor without Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres, and now that Javier Mascherano appears to finally be on his way to Barcelona, they will hope that either Lucas or Christian Poulsen steps up to fill the void left by his departure. As long as Gerrard and Torres. Hodgson worked miracles in taking Fulham to the final of this competition last season, and he will have to start earning his paycheque already if he wants to repeat the feat with Liverpool. They should progress, but with Liverpool’s form at the moment, it won’t be as straightforward as their supporters would have liked.

In the end, at least they qualified. The same cannot be said of Aston Villa, who imploded in style against Rapid Vienna at Villa Park, and Celtic, who crumbled away from home against Utrecht. The only Scottish team left in European competition this season (following the failure of both Dundee United and Motherwell to qualify for the Europa League) is Rangers in the Champions League, and they face an uphill struggle to get through their group. It just goes to show how far Scottish football has fallen since the days when Celtic and Rangers used to be strong contenders for the European Cup.

Champions League Group Stage Draw

A few thoughts on the draw for the group stage of the Champions League:

Group A

Internazionale Milan
Werder Bremen
Tottenham Hotspur
FC Twente

All things considered, this could have been a lot worse for Spurs, although this group is still no walkover. Despite Jose Mourinho leaving Inter Milan, they are still the defending champions and are the overwhelming favourites to win Serie A for a seventh successive season. They should not be taken lightly, and Spurs will do very well to get a point off them in either of the games they play against them.

Werder Bremen may have done well in the Bundesliga last year but they have since lost Mesut Ozil to Real Madrid. They were defeated 5-1 by Fulham in a pre-season friendly and were also thrashed 4-1 by Hoffenheim last weekend. FC Twente’s is a similar story. Winners of the Dutch Eredivisie last year, Steve Mclaren has moved on to bigger and better things. The much-maligned Mclaren was probably the biggest part of their success, so expect Twente to be weaker for his departure this year – they seem unlikely to repeat their domestic success.

As such, Spurs would appear to be in a three-way battle for second spot in this group, a battle which they have a very good chance of winning. As long as they keep it tight at the back away from home and make sure they win their home games against Bremen and Twente, they should claim second place. Spurs definitely have enough quality to give these teams a run for their money, and may even be able to test Inter.

Group C

Manchester United
Valencia
Rangers
Bursaspor

United, as with the other established English teams, have picked up a relatively easy draw. Valencia have been a dangerous teams in years gone by, but their extreme financial difficulties have led them to sell their two best players, David Villa and David Silva, to Barcelona and Manchester City, respectively. Without those two, particularly Villa, they are a far weaker team. Villa has consistently scored over 20 goals a season for them, and even with his goals they finished a very distant third to Barcelona and Real Madrid last season. They will find it harder to qualify for the Champions League this year, and injuries permitting, United should have little trouble beating them.

The same can be said of Rangers. Despite being the Scottish Premier League champions, Rangers will not put up much of a stern test. The quality of Scottish football has unfortunately dipped dramatically in recent years as the money in the game has drifted south of the border, and Rangers have made very few additions to a squad that crashed out of the Champions League in embarrassing fashion last season. Kris Boyd, their most potent goalscorer, has left to ply his trade in the Championship with Middlesbrough, and whilst they are usually well organised at the back they shouldn’t trouble United too much, especially at Old Trafford.

Bursaspor are one of the minnows from Pot 4 in the draw, and as such will almost certainly struggle. Whilst a trip to Turkey is never the easiest one to make, United have experience of going to that country in the past and winning, and should repeat the trick here. United will cruise to victory in this group.

Group F

Chelsea
Olympique de Marseille
Spartak Moscow
MSK Zilina

Chelsea’s group should also pose few major problems. Marseille are the current French Ligue 1 champions, and did the double by winning the French Cup as well. Didier Deschamps has brought the club their first silverware for many years and they appear to be in the ascendancy. If they can keep this form going into the new season they will provide Chelsea’s sternest test in this group. Having said that, Chelsea should still beat them at Stamford Bridge, and will expect at least a draw on the away trip.

Spartak Moscow finished second in the Russian league last year, but will not be too tough for Chelsea to beat both home and away. The main factor in their favour is the sheer distance to Moscow from London, so a draw in the away game might not be a terrible result, but again Chelsea will be the favourites.

MSK Zilina, the Slovakian champions, will also struggle in the Champions League and should pose Chelsea absolutely no problems at all. If Chelsea fail to beat them home and away, it will be nobody’s fault but their own. Like United, Chelsea should cruise through the group in first place.

Group H

Arsenal
Shakhtar Donetsk
SC Braga
FK Partizan

Arsenal also have a reasonably straightforward group. Shakhtar Donetsk are a very solid side, and have a large Brazilian contingent in their first team. The Brazilians combined very well in the Europa League during the last two seasons, and the Ukrainian side were very unfortunate not to beat Fulham over two legs in the second round of the competition. As they are primarily a passing team, however, this may play into Arsenal’s hands. They are not the most physical, and although a trip to the Ukraine is not the most attractive for the Gunners, they should be able to impose their own style on Shakhtar and get a result away from home.

Braga impressively overcame Sevilla 5-3 on aggregate in their qualifying play-off, beating them 4-3 in the second leg in Sevilla. This is an impressive result for one of Portugal’s lesser fancied teams, and Braga should not be written off completely as a result. Arsenal should have too much quality for them though, and the Portuguese will struggle both at the Emirates and back home in Portugal.

Partizan’s stadium in Belgrade will also be a very unwelcoming place for the Arsenal players and supporters to visit, but it took a penalty shootout for them to overcome Belgian side Anderlecht over two legs in the play-offs. As with most of the teams drawn from Pot 4, Partizan should pose little threat to the class that Arsenal have at their disposal. Arsenal should win all 3 home games and at least 2 of their away games in this group, meaning that they too should finish top and progress comfortably to the second round.

Second Round:

It is the second round that will be slightly more problematic for the Gunners, however, as they will have to face one from Real Madrid, AC Milan, Ajax, and Auxerre. Auxerre and Ajax will probably struggle here, but facing Madrid or Milan this early is not an appetising prospect for Arsenal fans.

Assuming that Manchester United and Barcelona both finish top of their groups (as they almost certainly will), then United will have to face off against one from Panathinaikos, FC Copenhagen and Rubin Kazan, none of which will fill them with any great fear.

Tottenham, too, will feel reasonably confident if they progress to the second round, as the will likely play one from Benfica, Schalke 04 and Hapoel Tel-Aviv. Whilst none of those three are easy opponents, they are certainly all beatable over two legs.

Chelsea, like Arsenal, will face tougher opposition. They will almost certainly face Bayern Munich or AS Roma, depending on which of those two comes second to the other. Both of those teams would provide a stern test.

The group stages are usually pretty straightforward and not hugely interesting, largely because there are normally two teams that are expected to go through, and they invariably do. This year, Spurs add some extra intrigue for English supporters, and Group G (featuring Real Madrid, AC Milan, Ajax, and Auxerre) in particular will be an interesting one to watch. Group B (featuring OIympique Lyonnais, Benfica, Schalke 04, and Hapoel Tel-Aviv) also appears very open, even if this is because there are no huge names in there.

As always, the competition will begin to get really interesting in the second round, when both Chelsea and Arsenal should be playing against some of the giants of European football. Bring it on.