Sporting Sensations

[prayfordaylight]

For those who may be curious about how the Dolan/Jackson situation is going with the Knicks, since our very own Glenn was involved in the deal...it's not going well.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/new-york-knicks-james-dolan-phil-jackson-staff-firings-042314

Shocker :rolleyes:

Either you let Jackson fix the team you screwed up or you shouldn't have hired him.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

That's how I feel about it, too PFD. Of course, it's possible that this story is a bit sensationalized. You know how the media can be when they're looking for dirt, and teams in NYC are more susceptible to it.

[Houston Baby]

These Rockets are going to give me a stroke! :censored:
Or maybe I should say ALL the Houston sports teams! :brickwall:

[Houston Baby]

ROCKETS WIN!!in OT - 121-116. FINALLY!
Time for bed :yawn:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Good for you, HB!! Yes, I can understand frustration at our professional sports teams. The Pens were supposed to blow by the Columbus Blue Jackets and it's tied 2-2. Each team that won has come back from two goals behind and won 4-3 in all four games. I think three of them went into overtime. We won't even discuss the Pirates...

[Houston Baby]

Yes as a fellow huge sports fan, I know you can empathize with me VA. Why do we put ourselves thru this? :hilarious:

[Houston Baby]

Well, the Rockets' season is over! One and done - out in the first round. We lost tonight 99-98. A 1 point loss is so cruel! :-(

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Bummer, HB! It would be nice to see some different teams in the final mix.

[sodascouts]

Well, the Rockets' season is over! One and done - out in the first round. We lost tonight 99-98. A 1 point loss is so cruel! :-(

That's a shame! I don't follow sports much, but I still root for the home team.

[EagleLady]

Amy You must be on cloud nine, Elliott Won!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Either James Dolan is paying these refs or they are giving the Rangers the game for free. Either way... I've not seen such poor calls the entire season, let alone all in the first 9 minutes of the game.

[zeldabjr]

Either James Dolan is paying these refs or they are giving the Rangers the game for free. Either way... I've not seen such poor calls the entire season, let alone all in the first 9 minutes of the game.

oh come now VA...you don't think James would do something like paying to get his way do?...:wink:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

It got better as the period went on, and the second period was nearly OK. At least in the second period the lousy calls went both ways.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

OK, baseball fans, what do you all think of the instant replay?? This incredible footage from the Bucs game tonight (from two different Pittsburgh broadcasts) shows how it can very definitely affect the outcome of a game.

http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/28898650/v32663717/sfpit-video-review-awards-pirates-wild-walkoff-win/?partnerId=as_mlb_20140507_23395964

[Houston Baby]

Well I am more of a traditionalist when it comes to baseball VA so I am not much of a fan of instant replay. But I can see where it worked for you tonight! :hilarious: That was an awesome exciting win for the Bucs fans! :thumbsup:

Hunter Pence sure looked good! I miss him!

[Brooke]

Wow, that was a tough call! I'm still not really sure if he was safe or out! What did you think VA?

I think overall I like the replay because they then, most of the time, get it right. But I don't like it when it doesn't go my way! :lol:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Well, of course I thought it was obvious that he was safe!! Just a little biased, though!

[prayfordaylight]

I'm all for replay but it takes forever. I've been to one MLB game this year and the replay took 15 minutes to declare a guy safe (which I could see all the way from right center!). Hopefully they'll get the kinks worked out quickly.

[Grey Sadler]

Amy You must be on cloud nine, Elliott Won!

Heck yeah!! :partytime:
Can't wait to see him pull off another one SOON :thumbsup:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Ask just about any Steeler fan what their weakness is and they will say "secondary and offensive line." So we draft a linebacker and a defensive end? I have no doubt they'll be great players, but this is frustrating.

[Houston Baby]

Well, I sure wish Andrew Luck would have been in this NFL draft cause the Texans really need a quarterback! However I am very happy with Clowney. If he lives up to his potential, JJ Watt & him will be a dynamic defensive duo!!!
NOW if we can only score some TDs! :hilarious:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Cleveland got Johnny Football Manziel. It was questionable whether or not he'd be successful in the NFL, but with Cleveland he hasn't a prayer. Although THE LACK OF SECONDARY ON THE STEELERS should help him out. Sorry, I had to shout...

[Houston Baby]

I hope I am wrong about Manziel for his sake but I feel he may take the Vince Young/David Carr route in the NFL. I am so glad the Texans resisted Johnny Football. The NFL defensive lines should wake/mature him up pretty fast!

[Freypower]

Well, the English Premier League finally ended with Liverpool finishing second behind Manchester City. They came very close to winning the title but it wasn't to be, but they will be in the Champions League next year. I am proud of their achievements this year. YNWA.

http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/162732-reds-fight-back-to-seal-second-spot

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Refs just made the same horrid call against the Rangers that they made against the Pens a few games ago, and of course the NY fans are crying and shouting at the injustice of it all...

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Damn Penguins. :machinegun::cuss: :censored:

Still love 'em, still a fan of course. Just not a happy fan.

[Brooke]

I can't even mention my baseball team's name these days. They mustered a win last night, but......:headscratch: :worried: :sad:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Brooke, I was being nice and not mentioning this past weekend! I'd surely like to know how Milwaukee got to be so good this year.

[Brooke]

Thanks, VA. Yeah, what happened to those Brewers?! :fear:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

We beat them last night, but they came from behind this afternoon and beat us. :(

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I'm not, never was, and never will be a Yankees fan, but I have to say that MLB baseball will lose a lot when Derek Jeter retires at the end of the season.

[Houston Baby]

ITA Va!
I'm still thinking about going to a Yankees game when I am in NYC.

[Brooke]

VA, I agree, Jeter is a class act! (And I'm not a Yankees fan either.)

[VAisForEagleLovers]

My big dilemma for the evening... watch the Steelers play a meaningless game against the Giants, where most of the time it'll be a bunch of guys who will end up getting cut from the team anyway? Or watch the Pirates play the San Diego Padres in a game that means something? Decisions, decisions. The Pirates are my first love, but the Steelers, well, they're the best sports team on the entire planet. Hmmm.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Thursday night football!!! My Steelers play the hated Ratbirds (Ravens)! Watching the Pirates at the moment, but I'm ready for some football, especially since I missed Sunday's game.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Raise the Jolly Roger!! My Buccos have made the playoffs for the second season in a row! WooHoo!! I'm so happy I can hardly stand it!! After 20 losing seasons, we're in the playoffs two years in a row.

[Houston Baby]

CONGRATULATIONS VA !!!!

[Brooke]

VA, :hand:

My Cards needed that win last night! :fear:

[The Disco Strangler]

Anybody watch the European Tour on the Golf Channel? I'm a golf junkie. Am watching the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship this weekend. Go Joost! :rockon:

[ktdids]

For those Kansas City people out there, Good Luck to the Royals in the playoffs, that was QUITE a game to get them in!

[Brooke]

Well, what can I say? It's a tradition around here in

Cardinals Country!

:partytime: is underway!

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y63/desperado74/Extras/Cards2014_zps45504d0b.jpg (http://s3.photobucket.com/user/desperado74/media/Extras/Cards2014_zps45504d0b.jpg.html)
I need this shirt!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Congrats Brooke!!!

Me, I'm looking forward to hockey season starting tomorrow!!!!

[Brooke]

Thanks, VA! Your Pirates were tough this year and gave us a run for the money!

[Houston Baby]

Congratulations Brooke & Cardinals!!
I am glad we (Astros) are out of your division. :hilarious:

[zeldabjr]

Congratulations to you and your Cards Brooke...that is a very cool Tshirt...and yes I think you need it too!!! will be rooting for the Cards to go all the way!!!

[Brooke]

Awww, thanks guys!

[Glennsallnighter]

Congrats Brooke

[The Disco Strangler]

The World Match Play is this weekend. Gooo Henrik Stenson! :thumbsup:

[Houston Baby]

Just noticed my TEXANS are playing VA's STEELERS this Monday!
It's ON! :hilarious:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I was wondering when you'd notice that, HB!!!

[Houston Baby]

I don't want to talk about it! :nope:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Giving up 24 points in 2:54 at the end of the first half kind of decided it...

[VAisForEagleLovers]

There were a lot of VERY happy Pens fans tonight in Nashville, and especially me! Not only did we win, but it was a 3-0 shutout. The guy to my right was rather...large. He took up all of his seat and part of mine, and so I had to cling to the front left corner of my seat all night. Still, it all worked out and I had a great time. It was definitely worth the trip down and back. I was very close to the Pens bench, and had a fantastic view the entire night. I definitely can't afford to move back to Pittsburgh, I'd go to every game...

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I have to brag a little! My Steelers were AWESOME today!! Especially Big Ben. The only quarterback to have two games of 500+ throwing yards, in his 100th win, scoring 6 throwing touchdowns and no interceptions! What a great sports weekend for me!

Zelda, your Bills put a nice hurting on the Jets...congrats!

[prayfordaylight]

I have to brag a little! My Steelers were AWESOME today!! Especially Big Ben. The only quarterback to have two games of 500+ throwing yards, in his 100th win, scoring 6 throwing touchdowns and no interceptions! What a great sports weekend for me!

Zelda, your Bills put a nice hurting on the Jets...congrats!

My only regret was not playing Ben yesterday. What a game!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I can see why you didn't. Going into the game, all the talk was about the Indy defense and how they don't allow third down conversions, and how they don't allow scoring. So who knew Ben would have a career day? I just hope that whatever he ate for breakfast yesterday, he eats again next Sunday!

[Brooke]

It's a very sad day in Cardinals Nation. We lost a soon to be superstar in outfielder Oscar Tavares yesterday. Signed by the Cardinals organization at 16! Now, dead at 22 from a car accident.

RIP Oscar.

http://m.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article/99707820/st-louis-cardinals-rookie-outfielder-oscar-taveras-killed-in-car-accident-in-dominican-republic

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I'm sorry to hear this, Brooke. It's always so sad when this kind of thing happens.

[Glennsallnighter]

I am so sorry for your community and for the Cardinals to have lost such a promising young player Brooke. May he Rest in Peace. What a waste of such a promising young life. I always feel so sad when I hear of peoples lives being snuffed out in a road accident. In many ways they are so avoidable. I have been in a few but thankfully walked away from my damaged car in all.

[Houston Baby]

My deepest sympathy for his family and Cardinals fans. So tragic for such a young and promising man of his baseball talent. He will be missed by baseball.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Anyone who follows football and hockey would know I'm the happiest fan in the world right now!!

[Houston Baby]

An early birthday present! :birthday:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

HB, you know I'm cheering for your boys today!

[Houston Baby]

We came thru for y'all VA!!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I saw that, HB! WooHoo! Now we need to beat Cincy next Sunday, and we'll win the division. If we don't win and stay 5th seed, I might have to make a trip to Indy to watch that game. We'll see how it goes.

[Houston Baby]

And the Texans still have a chance to be in the playoffs! I'm keeping my fingers crossed! It would be a great way to start 2015!!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

My sister bought excellent tickets to the Steeler/Cincy game this evening and offered me one... Because I have to be at work tomorrow, I had to decline. Even with the rain, it would be a great game to attend.... Kinda bummed.

[Jonny Come Lately]

The two main sports I follow are football and Formula One.

My main football teams are Liverpool and Tranmere Rovers. I went to see Tranmere play Northampton Town yesterday, they've been struggling a bit in League Two (the bottom division of the Football League) this season and have spent much of the campaign in the relegation zone and are in danger of dropping out of the league altogether. Results and performances have improved lately though under new boss Micky Adams and they played well, winning 2-1. I am hopeful that the team will be able to stay up.

As for Liverpool, well to call this season so far a disappointment is an understatement. I did not expect another title challenge but did not think we would struggle as badly as we have, few of the summer signings have impressed and the sale of Luis Suarez has been compounded by continuous injuries to Daniel Sturridge, leaving the team short of firepower. Mario Balotelli has mostly been a waste of time so far but my biggest concern is at the opposite end of the pitch - goalkeeper Simon Mignolet has looked nervous all season and the reserve Brad Jones just isn't good enough. I think we have to sign a better goalkeeper in January. I hope for a win this evening at home against Swansea, they are decent though so we will have to play better than we did against Burnley to beat them. At least Sturridge should hopefully return next month.

In F1 my favourite current driver is Lewis Hamilton - I was very pleased to see him take the title this year, with 11 wins to his name he earned it. I like Jenson Button as well, but I do not think he is as talented as Hamilton. Having said this I was very glad when it was announced he would be retaining his McLaren seat for 2015. My favourite team is probably Williams, who I admire for remaining competitive as an independent team with no support from a major car manufacturer or energy drinks giant.

[thelastresort]

My main football teams are Liverpool

My personal favourite Liverpool moment :partytime:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBuOEI2Kk5o

[Freypower]

The two main sports I follow are football and Formula One.

My main football teams are Liverpool and Tranmere Rovers. I went to see Tranmere play Northampton Town yesterday, they've been struggling a bit in League Two (the bottom division of the Football League) this season and have spent much of the campaign in the relegation zone and are in danger of dropping out of the league altogether. Results and performances have improved lately though under new boss Micky Adams and they played well, winning 2-1. I am hopeful that the team will be able to stay up.

As for Liverpool, well to call this season so far a disappointment is an understatement. I did not expect another title challenge but did not think we would struggle as badly as we have, few of the summer signings have impressed and the sale of Luis Suarez has been compounded by continuous injuries to Daniel Sturridge, leaving the team short of firepower. Mario Balotelli has mostly been a waste of time so far but my biggest concern is at the opposite end of the pitch - goalkeeper Simon Mignolet has looked nervous all season and the reserve Brad Jones just isn't good enough. I think we have to sign a better goalkeeper in January. I hope for a win this evening at home against Swansea, they are decent though so we will have to play better than we did against Burnley to beat them. At least Sturridge should hopefully return next month.

In F1 my favourite current driver is Lewis Hamilton - I was very pleased to see him take the title this year, with 11 wins to his name he earned it. I like Jenson Button as well, but I do not think he is as talented as Hamilton. Having said this I was very glad when it was announced he would be retaining his McLaren seat for 2015. My favourite team is probably Williams, who I admire for remaining competitive as an independent team with no support from a major car manufacturer or energy drinks giant.

Well, hello, JCL. Not only do you like Dire Straits but you support Liverpool. What a great summary of this awful season. And yet they beat Swansea 4-1.

I'm also a huge Lewis Hamilton fan & was delighted that he won the title. What about the Sports Personality of the Year conntroversy? When you hear this argument about drivers not needing any skill the reply would be to ask if Rory McIlroy could just cliimb into the car & drive it. The answer is no. Keep an eye out for Aussie Daniel Ricciardo next year though - definitely the new kid in town.

I have to say I was a Ferrari/Schumacher fan though my husband regards him as a cheat.

[Jonny Come Lately]

The Swansea game last night was great, easily the best I've seen Liverpool play at home all season. It reminded a lot more of the performances from last season although I was most impressed by Lallana - his first goal was clearly a fluke but the second was an excellent finish. The team selection seemed right too, the front three were fluid and dynamic but I also think having two defenders (Manquillo and Moreno) as wing-backs helped rather than Markovic, who is a more attacking player, and Henderson who plays better when deployed centrally. We usually seem to do well against them, a couple of years ago when Swansea were above us in the table we beat them 5-0 at Anfield.

Good suggestion about Rory McIlroy, I think I'll use that response next time. I must admit I did expect McIlroy to win the award and thought that Lewis seemed quite surprised himself when the winner was announced. I was happy to see him the award myself, one argument I've heard against him was that he'd already won it, which isn't true (he was runner up in 2007 and 2008). Also, I thought Button was unlucky not to win the award in 2009, he was beaten by Ryan Giggs :-x who had a weak case based on his achievements that year and seemingly the main award became a second Lifetime Achievement Award for one year only. (Giggs' former team-mate David Beckham - 18 months younger - won the Lifetime Achievement Award the following year).

I was very impressed by Ricciardo this season, I certainly did not expect him to beat Vettel who looked surprisingly ordinary much of the time. I can understand Vettel's move to Ferrari from an emotional viewpoint think this will be another disappointing season for them. One guy I feel sympathetic for is Jean-Eric Vergne, who doesn't have a race drive even though he compared well with Ricciardo and Kvyat, the two current Red Bull drivers and scored more points than the latter in 2014. I'll be watching the progress of McLaren with interest - they are a bit of a wildcard with the Honda engine and Alonso has shown that he can get close to the maximum from average cars - the 2012 Ferrari was not my idea of a championship winning machine, yet it nearly was.

When it comes to Schumacher, I started watching F1 regularly in 2007 so just about missed him first time around. Overall I would say I'm an admirer if not an outright fan although there were definitely times when he took it too far (I think stopping on track during qualifying at Monaco was his lowest point). He was clearly the best driver on the grid for many years, for instance although his 1997 season was marred by his collision with Villeneuve at the final race it was impressive that he was in contention for the title against the superior Williams. Had Schumacher been in the 1994-97 Williams cars they'd have been absolutely unstoppable I reckon. I have James Allen's The Edge Of Greatness book on Schumacher which I enjoyed reading immensely. However, I think Senna was best driver of the 'modern' era if this is counted as being from the introduction of front and rear wings in the late 1960s (I've read that, aerodynamically, 1950s F1 cars have more in common with Moto GP bikes than modern F1 cars as they had far less downforce). He had greater competition than Schumacher from Prost and Mansell and shared his ability to wring results from inferior cars (see his hugely impressive 1993 season, where he took on the mighty Williams Renault in an underpowered McLaren Ford), although I admit he also shared Schumacher's propensity for controversy and collisions at crucial moments.

tlr, I think this moment is far better (yes, I'm taking the mick out of my own team):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8DDdQ8PJms

[VAisForEagleLovers]

:censored: :cuss: :enraged: :sad: :weep: :weep:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

One week until Opening Day!!! WooHoo, my Buccos are back in action and it means spring is finally here.

[Houston Baby]

I am right there with you VA!!
First time in years and years that I will miss the Astros opening day. I will be entering Florida just as they are leaving! :sad:
Oh well, I think I will catch the first game of the Lakeland Tigers next Thursday and think of Glenn. :hilarious: Lakeland Tigers are the Class A team of the Detroit Tigers.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

We open up against the Reds, and you have no idea how tempting it is to drive up there to catch one of the games. After driving 15+ hours this weekend, I'm not sure I'm up to driving 4 additional hours with two of them late at night.

[Brooke]

Can't wait and we open with the Cubs! My Cards are ready and waiting! :yay:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I think I mentioned this on Facebook a month ago or so, there's a large contingent of Cubs fans who think they'll win the World Series just because the movie Back To The Future said they'd win in 2015. I guess they need to pin their hopes on something... I can get away with saying that since TBF no longer posts on here...

[Brooke]

Va, they can dream, I guess! :lol:

[ktdids]

Opening Day! It's nice weather, Spring may finally be here! Let's go Mets!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Opening Day! It's nice weather, Spring may finally be here! Let's go Mets!

Yes, right at the moment my Buccos are in Cincinnati and it's a rain delay. Way better than a snow delay! Let's go Bucs! :D

[VAisForEagleLovers]

My Pens squeaked into the playoffs after a downward spiral the last month like I've never seen before. Good grief. Now, though, it's a clean slate, and bring on the Rangers!

[Jonny Come Lately]

Today I went to see Tranmere Rovers play Oxford United in a crucial game at the bottom of the Football League. Heading into the game Tranmere were in last place in the league and at risk of relegation to the Conference (the highest level of non-league football) although a win could have taken them out of the relegation zone. Oxford were safe in mid-table with little to play for so there was some hope despite Tranmere suffering defeats in the previous three games.

The first half was actually fairly decent, we had our share of chances and although none of these opportunities were especially outstanding there were some encouraging signs. Unfortunately, after half time Oxford soon grabbed a goal. This alone wasn't terminal, but I watched in disbelief as they scored a second within a minute, which unsettled our team who played increasingly ragged football and there was no sense of surprise when the opponents scored again to take a 3-0 lead in no way representative of the balance of play.

There was no way back from this, with the manager's changes proving ineffective and we never really looked like scoring. Sadly, by the end of the game most of the fans in Prenton Park gave up supporting the team and began to ironically cheer every Oxford United pass. At the final whistle the fans booed the majority of the players and after the game there was a protest outside the Prenton Park ground, with the defeat leaving the team staring relegation in the face. We will now need to beat at least one of Plymouth Argyle (away against the team 7th in the table) or against Bury (4th in the table and firmly in the hunt for promotion).

It is hard to believe that on 1st January 2013 Tranmere Rovers, managed by the experience Ronnie Moore, were on top of League One and in the race for promotion to the second tier of English football, where they would have faced substantially big teams like Leeds United, Nottingham Forest and Derby County. The team fell away to mid-table that season and was relegated last season (Moore was sacked due to non-footballing matters) with a second relegation looking likely, with the constant turnover of players being brought in on short-term contracts and loans not helping matters. Most of these players are IMO mercenaries who are primarily worried about their next contract and have no loyalty to the club - at this level you need to have players who care. I was initially impressed by current boss Micky Adams after he joined in October as we started to improve and move out of the danger zone but results have been poor for over two months now, and in the games I have attended we have conceded several sloppy and costly goals. His recruitment of numerous unwanted players from his old club Port Vale hasn't helped, we seemed better before he brought his own players in.

In a bizarre twist, the team occupying 22nd place in League Two, guaranteeing Football League safety, is Hartlepool United managed by our former boss Ronnie Moore. Tranmere are only two points behind them so still have some chance of survival but if we play like we did in the second half today we deserve to go down.

This is all pretty negative stuff but Tranmere have never dropped out of the Football League in their history and their decline has been shockingly fast and sad - this normally happens to clubs in financial crisis, yet there have been no major issues on this front at Prenton Park. I can only hope for better from my other team Liverpool in the FA Cup semi against Aston Villa tomorrow. :pray:

[Freypower]

I feel for you. My rugby league team has lost three games in a row, but we don't have promotion & relegation in this game. At least Chelsea beat Man Utd.

I have no idea how Liverpool will go but I am wearing my jersey today.

http://freeemoticonsandsmileys.com/3D%20Smileys/3D%20Sport%20Smileys/soccer%20girl.gif

[DivineDon]

Yep, I was delighted Chelsea won yesterday - big blues fans in our house so I'll be shouting for Villa today...sorry:)

[thelastresort]

Well, that went well...

[Freypower]

Well, that went well...

Yeah.

:brickwall::censored: :tonguewag: :puke:

[Jonny Come Lately]

Well, that went well...

If you have a fondness for low-scoring teams (only 24 league goals all season) who play in claret and blue, think avoiding relegation is a major achievement and think Tim Sherwood is the bestest manager since Harry Redknapp, then yes.

However as far as I'm concerned :brickwall::brickwall::brickwall:

No fairytale ending for Steven Gerrard then, I hate to say it but I think he is definitely past his best now and he just can't play like he used to. Most of his set pieces were saved with relative ease and Villa had control of the midfield battle for the most part. It happens to all of them but I actually think we've tended to play better without him this season, our record is pretty poor with him playing but very good without IIRC.

One thing I will say was that Mario Balotelli looked to be onside when he put the ball in the net with about 3 minutes. However, we didn't deserve to win, it was disappointing to see the lack of desire from our players compared to Villa - Benteke always causes us problems and Delph had a good game. Shay Given (39 today!) also looked comfortable in goal for them. It was also disappointing that we actually took the lead, so it wasn't like the league game at Anfield (which Villa won 1-0) where they took an early lead and defended it.

I really didn't get bringing on Rickie Lambert right at the start of injury time, it was too late for the change to make any significant difference. And as for Lovren's long shot at the end - what was he thinking? :doh: Tried to be a hero but it was never going to work and it just meant we lost possession and any chance of scoring an equaliser.

Overall then Liverpool's season has to go down as a bit of a failure unless we can somehow finish 4th (Manchester City's recent form has provided some hope, but it's unlikely), with Brendan Rodgers becoming the first manager since the pre-Shankly era to fail to win a trophy in his first three seasons, unless you count Roy Hodgson, whose dire six month tenure I'd rather forget. Next season is a big one for him now, it's unlikely that he will be sacked but if another summer of poor recruitment and underwhelming performances follows this year you have to wonder whether the board will look elsewhere.

On a brighter note, at least Lewis Hamilton won the Bahrain GP - pretty decent race overall, it was quite exciting at the end when Kimi Raikkonen was catching the Mercedes cars (he managed to pass Nico Rosberg on the penultimate lap). Not so good for Jenson Button though, failed to start the race after numerous issues with the troublesome McLaren Honda.

[DivineDon]

Congrats TLR, hope you go all the way now :thumbsup:

I think Brendan Rodgers is a legend 'in his own mind' as the saying goes...

Sorry, JCL, but for me motor racing is not a sport - rather watch paint drying (preferably one of my own paintings :hilarious:)

[thelastresort]

Congrats TLR, hope you go all the way now :thumbsup:


:I was more being sarcastic about Liverpool's expectations, I'm a (Glasgow) Rangers fan personally ;) It was odd yesterday because both Liverpool and Villa are my two least favoruite teams so in a way I wanted neither to win :hilarious:

[DivineDon]

:I was more being sarcastic about Liverpool's expectations, I'm a (Glasgow) Rangers fan personally ;) It was odd yesterday because both Liverpool and Villa are my two least favoruite teams so in a way I wanted neither to win :hilarious:

Then I'm sure you were happy with Inverness as well! I remember they beat Celtic before a few years back in a shock win and I read one of the best headlines ever: 'Super Cally Go Ballistic, Celtic Are Atrotious' :hilarious:

[Freypower]

Congrats TLR, hope you go all the way now :thumbsup:

I think Brendan Rodgers is a legend 'in his own mind' as the saying goes...

Sorry, JCL, but for me motor racing is not a sport - rather watch paint drying (preferably one of my own paintings :hilarious:)
Rodgers got Liverpool to second & so close to winning the title last year that this seems unfair to me. This season hasn't been as good. That doesn't wipe out last season.

[DivineDon]

Yeah, but they blew it...close but not close enough

Like I said before, we're Chelsea fans in our house mainly because my brother has supported them all his life. Personally, I'm a big Barcelona fan - I adore Lionel Messi :)

[Jonny Come Lately]

:I was more being sarcastic about Liverpool's expectations, I'm a (Glasgow) Rangers fan personally ;) It was odd yesterday because both Liverpool and Villa are my two least favoruite teams so in a way I wanted neither to win :hilarious:

For what it's worth, I felt the same way about Chelsea vs Manchester United on Saturday night (although Man Utd will always be 'the enemy' as far as I'm concerned). Is it just me or has Jose Mourinho been worse than ever this season? Extremely negative men behind the ball tactics (even against struggling teams), leading citing conspiracies when they've been top of the league all season and bizarre rants like his 'minute 30, 33, 43, 69' interview after drawing at home to Burnley. I hope Arsenal beat them next weekend, although I fully expect yet another 1-0 win.

tlr, do you pay much attention to Birmingham City or West Bromwich Albion? Just noticing that your location is in Birmingham and you say you dislike Villa. As for Rangers, I must admit I warmed to Celtic when I was a child - one of the first games I remember was Liverpool vs Celtic in the UEFA Cup (around March 2003) and I liked players such as Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton and Stiliyan Petrov, although nowadays I'd rather anyone else won the SPL. Just gets boring seeing the same team walk to the title every year. After your woes in the last few years I think you were unlucky to come up to the Championship at the same time as Hearts who were relegated by their own financial troubles which left them with a points deduction and a skeleton team of youngsters in last year's SPL (Hibs by contrast were rubbish and nothing to be afraid of when they came down, they've done better than I though TBH).

I actually didn't mind Chelsea much during the Carlo Ancelotti era (I like his managerial style) and actively wanted Rafa Benitez to succeed when he took the job as I feel that the UK press tried made him look like a joke while praising significantly inferior managers, but Mourinho has made the team dislikeable to me again as he did in his first spell.

Having said that DivineDon, I may not be much of a fan of Chelsea but I do like Lionel Messi a lot more than his chief rival Cristiano Ronaldo. You don't see Messi ripping off his shirt to show off his muscles after scoring in a Champions League final!

At Liverpool, similar to the Inverness CT headline we once had a player called Igor Biscan who was a liability as a defender under Gerard Houllier but improved substantially when played as a midfielder by Rafa Benitez, and he had a song which went 'Super Croat Igor Biscan Used To Be Atrocious'. :)

I have my reservations about Brendan Rodgers although he has enough credit from last season to deserve another year, if we fail next year though I think that it will be it for him though. One of my main concerns is about transfer targets, our transfers are decided by a committee (which includes Rodgers but he does not have the final word, so if others want a player he doesn't he may well join anyway) but some of the players I believe were earmarked by Rodgers have not been up to scratch. I believe he wanted to sign Joe Allen and Adam Lallana, who have been okay, but the likes Fabio Borini and Dejan Lovren have been disappointing. Our single biggest need in the summer is a reliable striker as Sturridge is by far our best right now but is too injury prone. One positive is that the goalkeeping situation is not as a bad now it was a few months ago due to Mignolet's upturn in form.

[Freypower]

Yeah, but they blew it...close but not close enough

Like I said before, we're Chelsea fans in our house mainly because my brother has supported them all his life. Personally, I'm a big Barcelona fan - I adore Lionel Messi :)

Well, let's agree on that, then.

[DivineDon]

Well, let's agree on that, then.

Fair enough - since we seem to be diametrically opposed to one another on everything else, liking Messi is a good compromise :thumbsup:

...and JCL I know where you're coming from regarding Chelsea's negative tactics at least. My brother (the Chelsea expert) bemoans their defensive attitude particularly when 1 up against the so-called minnow teams. He reckons a lot of it is to do with the lack of cover for the striker but they do push more forward when playing the bigger names...and please, our house will be miserable if Arsenal beat them Sunday but I don't think they will. Mourinho is too shrewd and savvy - remember last year and Liverpool??? He totally psyched them out and Gerrard's mistake sealed their title ambitions.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I need to interject some very sad American sports news. My Penguins just lost to the NY Rangers in the playoffs, and have now been eliminated. I know we have been decimated by serious injuries, but the last month and a half have been purely awful. I really hope they can regroup and come back better than ever next year. I guess now I can give my full attention to baseball!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Wainwright out for the season? Brooke, that's a major loss the Cards! Ouch.

[Brooke]

Wainwright out for the season? Brooke, that's a major loss the Cards! Ouch.

It's devestating. We should find out after his mri today. :sad:

[Glennsallnighter]

I hope it turns out well for him Brooke - regardless of ones sport and the impact on injury the first priority is the guy himself and his health.

We aren't really English football fans here, preferring GAA, but when I was in school I supported Man U. Our school prefects brother was playing for Man United at the time, so the whole class were fans. So I guess even now I would support them nominally, though I don't get to watch them much.

Most of the boys I teach are Liverpool fans though so I have to at least seem impartial when they are discussing Liverpool!

[Brooke]

I hope it turns out well for him Brooke - regardless of ones sport and the impact on injury the first priority is the guy himself and his health.


Thanks, Ga! Not well, he's out for the whole season. His surgery went well though and we have high hopes for a full recovery and hope to see him back and pitching next year. Hopefully, the Cardinals will find a suitable replacement for this year. It's up in the air so far, but the team is doing great and have an 8 game winning streak going! :yay: And are 20 and 6 for the year! Best start in recent history!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

My Buccos are going to turn it around just any time now!! I can feel it! Perhaps this weekend... :D

[Brooke]

My Buccos are going to turn it around just any time now!! I can feel it! Perhaps this weekend... :D

:wink: :hilarious:

[Houston Baby]

WOO HOO! ROCKETS are going to the Western Conference Finals. First game is tomorrow night so I have a decision to make - EAGLES or Rockets. :hilarious:

I LOVE my Rockets but this decision is NOT even close!

GO RED NATION!!!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

This is good news for you, HB!!! Congrats!! I hope they win!

[thelastresort]

For what it's worth, I felt the same way about Chelsea vs Manchester United on Saturday night (although Man Utd will always be 'the enemy' as far as I'm concerned). Is it just me or has Jose Mourinho been worse than ever this season? Extremely negative men behind the ball tactics (even against struggling teams), leading citing conspiracies when they've been top of the league all season and bizarre rants like his 'minute 30, 33, 43, 69' interview after drawing at home to Burnley. I hope Arsenal beat them next weekend, although I fully expect yet another 1-0 win.

tlr, do you pay much attention to Birmingham City or West Bromwich Albion? Just noticing that your location is in Birmingham and you say you dislike Villa. As for Rangers, I must admit I warmed to Celtic when I was a child - one of the first games I remember was Liverpool vs Celtic in the UEFA Cup (around March 2003) and I liked players such as Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton and Stiliyan Petrov, although nowadays I'd rather anyone else won the SPL. Just gets boring seeing the same team walk to the title every year. After your woes in the last few years I think you were unlucky to come up to the Championship at the same time as Hearts who were relegated by their own financial troubles which left them with a points deduction and a skeleton team of youngsters in last year's SPL (Hibs by contrast were rubbish and nothing to be afraid of when they came down, they've done better than I though TBH).


I am quite fond of Mourinho, what a lot of people forget is that as dull as he is he legitimately wins football matches, their 2-0 win at Anfield last year being a testament to that, you'd have thought by the way people went on that they'd performed some kind of illegal witchcraft or something. The amount of effort they put in before Christmas is what has allowed them to clear up this year, again that's something else Jose does well, when he's within touching distance of the winning line he can afford to go for 1-0 jobs, knowing that their exuberance in the early months has given them such a boost. As Claude the ArsenalTV legend says, it's better than doing what Arsenal do: play very sexy football but get absolutely **** all as a result.

As for the second bit, I don't so much as follow City or West Brom in as much as that I detest Villa (rather ironically I attend the uni that bears their name :lol:). I will probably get a Birmingham City season ticket next year to give me something to do on weekends (and the odd Tuesday), which will be odd because I also double up as a Blackburn fan (my hometown team, I went to Cardiff to watch them lift 2002 League Cup and everything), and everyone knows the unwritten rule of football is you support two teams in the same league.

[thelastresort]

I will add it shows how much I know about American sport when I don't even know what sport the Rockets play! :lol: I'll guess baseball?

[Jonny Come Lately]

I am quite fond of Mourinho, what a lot of people forget is that as dull as he is he legitimately wins football matches, their 2-0 win at Anfield last year being a testament to that, you'd have thought by the way people went on that they'd performed some kind of illegal witchcraft or something. The amount of effort they put in before Christmas is what has allowed them to clear up this year, again that's something else Jose does well, when he's within touching distance of the winning line he can afford to go for 1-0 jobs, knowing that their exuberance in the early months has given them such a boost. As Claude the ArsenalTV legend says, it's better than doing what Arsenal do: play very sexy football but get absolutely **** all as a result.

As for the second bit, I don't so much as follow City or West Brom in as much as that I detest Villa (rather ironically I attend the uni that bears their name :lol:). I will probably get a Birmingham City season ticket next year to give me something to do on weekends (and the odd Tuesday), which will be odd because I also double up as a Blackburn fan (my hometown team, I went to Cardiff to watch them lift 2002 League Cup and everything), and everyone knows the unwritten rule of football is you support two teams in the same league.

I will begrudgingly admit you are right about Mourinho. Another good example of him getting the end result was in the 2010 Champions League when he masterminded Inter Milan's triumph over the all-conquering Barcelona team in the semi-final, en route to winning trophy. His Real Madrid tenure has to be considered a mild disappointment though, he really needed to win the Champions League there to be considered a success I think.

I had to laugh though last night when I watched the Chelsea game when I saw that Cesc Fabregas was sent off for deliberately kicking the ball at an opposing player - what made it so funny was that he perfectly placed the ball on Chris Brunt's ear! I suspect that Mario Balotelli/Rickie Lambert/Raheem Sterling would have missed by miles...

Birmingham aren't a team I've paid all that much attention to in the last couple of years but their new manager seems to know what he's doing, Gary Rowett took them from being in seemingly deep relegation trouble when he took over to comfortable mid-table. It's only four years since they won the League Cup, but last season they only a last minute equaliser preserved their status in the second tier.

Blackburn have fallen from grace in recent years but I think they managed to punch above their weight for a good few years, the League Cup triumph and a number of top-half finishes in the Premier League being clear evidence of that. They used to have some real quality in their ranks come to think of it - when I first got into football around 2003 or so, their side included the likes of Andy Cole, Damien Duff and Brad Friedel, and the 2005-2008 Mark Hughes teams were pretty decent. It all went wrong IMO when Sam Allardyce was sacked, I certainly don't think they'd have been relegated under his management. From the current team Jordan Rhodes and Rudy Gestede are good strikers but I think at least one of them will leave this summer, probably Gestede.

[thelastresort]

Blackburn have fallen from grace in recent years but I think they managed to punch above their weight for a good few years, the League Cup triumph and a number of top-half finishes in the Premier League being clear evidence of that. They used to have some real quality in their ranks come to think of it - when I first got into football around 2003 or so, their side included the likes of Andy Cole, Damien Duff and Brad Friedel, and the 2005-2008 Mark Hughes teams were pretty decent. It all went wrong IMO when Sam Allardyce was sacked, I certainly don't think they'd have been relegated under his management. From the current team Jordan Rhodes and Rudy Gestede are good strikers but I think at least one of them will leave this summer, probably Gestede.

I wouldn't say as much punch above their weight: they had the structure and the players to comfortably be a mid-table Premier League team, it did help that Ewood Park was a bit of a fortress and on many an occasion the likes of Arsenal and Man United would leave with just a point (or none), and nothing ever really rocked the boat, I'd probably say much in the same way that Everton or, of late, Swansea and Stoke are.

The turning point was indeed Allardyce's sacking (or more generally the chicken enthusiasts taking over), he doesn't play pretty football but he comes with a 100% guarantee not to get you relegated; however I think the more pressing matter was the inept moron who replaced him, we were absolutely dead certs to go down as soon as Kean arrived.

2003-2006 really was Rovers's zenith (this century at least): Duff, Neill, Nelson, Dunn, Pedersen, Emerton, first season Santa Cruz and McCarthy, and Todd are all players I'd love to have back now. The real key to any of that though were Brad Friedel and Tugay, easily the best two players I've ever seen in a Rovers shirt. They never found replacements for them. That is crucial in what happened.

[Freypower]

I will add it shows how much I know about American sport when I don't even know what sport the Rockets play! :lol: I'll guess baseball?

The Houston Rockets are basketball, I think. The Astros are baseball unless I'm horribly out of date.

http://www.nba.com/rockets/?hp=1

As well as Liverpool I have a soft spot for Crystal Palace because they were my 'local' team in 1972-73 (we lived in Penge). I am also very happy that Watford will be in the Premier League next season as they are Elton John's team.

My husband supports Newcastle but I get the impression that many people from South Shields, including his mother & brother, support Sunderland. Somehow Sunderland got passed on to my daughter.

TLR, what did you think of David Cameron's alleged support of Villa & the fact that he 'forgot' them when asked?!

[thelastresort]

The Houston Rockets are basketball, I think. The Astros are baseball unless I'm horribly out of date.

http://www.nba.com/rockets/?hp=1

As well as Liverpool I have a soft spot for Crystal Palace because they were my 'local' team in 1972-73 (we lived in Penge). I am also very happy that Watford will be in the Premier League next season as they are Elton John's team.

My husband supports Newcastle but I get the impression that many people from South Shields, including his mother & brother, support Sunderland. Somehow Sunderland got passed on to my daughter.

TLR, what did you think of David Cameron's alleged support of Villa & the fact that he 'forgot' them when asked?!

And of course Crystal Palace are nicknamed after some bird, I forget which :thumbsup:

Mr. Cameron is one of the few things I have less regard for than Aston Villa. I'll let you draw the conclusions from that ;)

Edit - Also, I'm pretty sure you're the only Liverpool fan with any love left for Palace, what with them providing the downfall last season, and ruining Gerrard's send off at the weekend!

[Freypower]

I take the view that you can't let that sort of thing affect your opinion of a team unless it's a team you already dislike. Of course Palace are the Eagles & of course they play in red & blue similar to Barcelona & close to the Sydney Roosters rugby league team (red, white & blue). So they are hard to dislike even without the tenuous connection I have with them. Liverpool ruined their own season. They didn't need help.:worried: They now have Sterling on the verge of leaving because he wants to win trophies. This attitude annoys me. How can a club besides the usual winners ever win a trophy if all the players felt that way? Some things take time.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY!!!!!!!!! A Triple Crown Winner! What an awesome race he ran. It wasn't even close! Talk about a super horse! :yay: :blueblob:

[AlreadyGone95]

FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY!!!!!!!!! A Triple Crown Winner! What an awesome race he ran. It wasn't even close! Talk about a super horse! :yay: :blueblob:

I turned on the tv just in time to watch it. First time in 37 years and only the 12th time done! :applause::applause::applause:

[Jonny Come Lately]

I enjoyed watching the Champions League final last night - it was very good and competitive match. Barcelona were worthy winners in the end but Juventus pushed them all the way and I thought 3-1 slightly flattered Barca (although nowhere near as much as Real Madrid's 4-1 win over Atletico Madrid in last year's final flattered them). I certainly wouldn't mind if Juventus won next year, they have a quality team and Bayern Munich did win in 2013 after losing the previous year's final. Oddly no club has retained this trophy since AC Milan a quarter of a century, in its previous (unpretentious) guise as the European Cup.

I have to say I was pleased that Luis Suarez got the winning goal (if we are talking only about his football and not his, ahem... 'controversies', as a famous Liverpool FC banner once read, 'form is temporary, class is permanent'). I was also happy to see Xavi win the trophy in his final match for Barcelona although I felt sorry for Andrea Pirlo, the classy Juventus midfielder who is also leaving his club.

[thelastresort]

... although I felt sorry for Andrea Pirlo, the classy Juventus midfielder who is also leaving his club.

I echo this sentiment, however I was more upset for Buffon: at least Pirlo has won it twice previously, whereas for Gigi, arguably the greatest goalkeeper of the last 20 years, last night was pretty much now or never.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

CONGRATS TO AMERICAN PHAROAH!!!

And :yay: - the triple crown drought has ended. And what an impressive way to end it! As you said, VA ... a super horse indeed!!!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I read that at least right now, Zayat plans on racing him again next year. That may change, but it would be pretty cool if it can be done. I also read that the jockey, Espinosa, has donated his winnings to a cancer organization, I forget which one.

[Brooke]

:yay: for American Pharoah! Very cool to finally have another triple crown winner!

VA, I heard that on the Today Show this morning, too! I hope he can, if it doesn't hurt him.

[Houston Baby]

"Report: St. Louis Cardinals investigated for hacking"

Brooke - I just went online to one of the Houston tv stations to find out about TS Bill and the above is the headline.

It goes on to say that the Cardinals reportedly tried to steal Houston's internal information, like scouting reports as well as discussions about player transactions. The FBI's Houston field office is leading the investigation and has served the Cardinals and Major League Baseball with subpoenas seeking electronic correspondence.

Forget about the tropical storm and anticipated flooding, the city of Houston is wanting more info on this. :hilarious:

Is anything being said in the St Louis area?

[Brooke]

HB, I just saw it too! Will have to investigate!

And be safe throughout the storm!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

No fighting, you two!!!

From what I've heard, the Cards were definitely in the wrong, and it goes way beyond stealing signs and the 'traditional' cheating that goes with the game. This is serious stuff with federal consequences.

On the other hand, the man wasn't smart enough to use different passwords and made sure the systems were very similar.

[AlreadyGone95]

Here's an article on the whole ordeal (http://www.sbnation.com/2015/6/16/8789501/cardinals-astros-hacking-stupid-jeff-luhnow-fbi)

Why the heck would you even want to hack into another team's system if it's a team that you don't even play against? I could understand the reasoning behind it if the cards hacked another NL central division team, but not an AL team!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Do you really want an answer? Because I could go on and on and on about this...

[AlreadyGone95]

Do you really want an answer? Because I could go on and on and on about this...

Yes, because I don't get why they did it, unless it was for revenge. Am I missing something here?

I admit that I don't follow the Cards or the Astros much because they are not in my team's(Atlanta Braves) division. (or league for the Astros)

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Well, OK, just remember you asked for it!!

Keeping in mind we don't know exactly what information was in the database or what other documents they may have gotten that would clue them into what the data means, in general the data they got was the analysis the Astros have done on players they may have had an interest in. So even if none were Cardinals, having the data and with the Cardinals own analysis of the players, they could figure out what the Astros 'secret formula' for analysis is. Every team has one. How they scout players and how they grade them, against each other and determine a fit into their organization. So it wasn't exactly data that would help them when they played each other, except the Cards would know what weaknesses and strengths the Astros thought each of their players had (assuming they were in the database).

So, the Cards would know who the Astros may be interested in acquiring, and may now possess information about other players that their scouts didn't give them. If they know who the Astros might want to pick up in a trade, they'd also know who they'd be willing to give up. They'd have the upper hand in a direct trade between the two teams, and for other teams, the Cards could easily become a third party and take advantage of it. While it likely wouldn't hurt the Astros and the other team, it's taking advantage of something the other teams in the league don't have access to. Also, the Cards could find that another team wants to unload a player and have talked to the Astros about a possible trade, and the Cards could jump the gun and get the guy instead. Lastly, they'd have reports from their own scouts as well as the Astros scouts, getting double the analysis and paying for only one.

It was supposedly 10 months worth of data, but depending on the time period that could cover parts of two seasons. That 10 months was reported on last summer, and it's hard to say if more happened after that, but the Astros reportedly fixed their data breach not long afterwards. I guess it took until now to determine who did it. Deadspin (last summer) reported that the breach included internal trade chatter and front office communications regarding trade overtures to and from other teams. Right now, the FBI isn't saying if there's more than that.

At the end of all this, the executive that went from the Cards to the Astros, Luhnow, and his team were known around baseball for building the best farm system in baseball. He left the Cards to help out the Astros, who desperately needed it. Mostly, I imagine certain members of the Cardinals wanted some revenge, perhaps? Some of the information went out to the public, some of it facts from the Astros, and some of it were things that were totally made up to possibly make Luhnow look like he didn't know what he was doing. I've not read all of the Deadspin report from last summer, I'll get around to it sooner or later. The report said players and people. So I'm curious as to what people and what their functions would be. Did they scout other scouts? Coaches? Front office people? Hard to say when we'll know more... I imagine every trade the Cards did (or didn't do) over the last year will be scrutinized.

[AlreadyGone95]

:doh:
I didn't even think of anything along the lines of potential trades, "secret fornula", scouting etc. I was thinking about seeing lineups,stats, practice etc. That's why I couldn't figure out why an NL team would be wanting to do this against an AL team. According to the article I posted above, these 2 teams didn't play each other last year and won't play each other this year.

Yeah, having beforehand knowledge of what the Astros might be doing to strengthen their team would definitely help block them doing so. (Again, complete stupidity on my part for not realizing this). Scouting is a big deal, especially if your team is getting some of the first picks. I remember, about a week ago, watching my Braves play, and one of the announcers doing an interview with one of the team's scouting directors because draft day was coming up. He was discussing what the Braves needed most: pitchers or players. To know that,and even more secret stuff really turns the cards in your favor.

10 months? That seems like an awfully long time for information to be leaking out. If the Cards do a bad job of hiding their hacking, how did no one get suspicious before the FBI? Plus, how could Luhnow not realize that using the same password is not a good idea? That's something I've heard about for years!

I can definitely see the Cards wanting revenge, especially if Luhnow's leaving was bitter. In 2011, the Cards were the Champs, so I'm sure that they weren't happy to have a executive leave them for a deadbeat team.I need to read the Deadspin report as well. This something that wull be talked about for awhile!

I wonder just how much the Cards got ahold of? Only time will tell.

ETA: Does anyone remember what year the Astros changed from a NL to AL team? It was last year, I think or 2013?

[Houston Baby]

Great job VA!

And yes AG it was 2013. I still wish the 'stros were in the NL. I do not like designated hitters nor the fact that we have so many late West Coast games! :-x

My main take on this is REALLY Luhnow? You could not think of NEW passwords, REALLY? Geez Louise - let me help you!

I still love ya Brooke! :)

[AlreadyGone95]

And yes AG it was 2013. I still wish the 'stros were in the NL. I do not like designated hitters nor the fact that we have so many late West Coast games! :-x


I miss watching The Braves play the Astros. The little hill/incline in center field of Minute Maid Park was trouble! (Probably still is). I can't stand DHs. I just don't see the need. That's why I'm not too fond of the inter-league play. (That and the fact that you can't gain any ground in your division).

I was wondering about when the Astros went to the AL because of the time frame of the hacking. Since it was 2013, that probably would've been before that.

[Brooke]

Great job VA!

And yes AG it was 2013. I still wish the 'stros were in the NL. I do not like designated hitters nor the fact that we have so many late West Coast games! :-x

My main take on this is REALLY Luhnow? You could not think of NEW passwords, REALLY? Geez Louise - let me help you!

I still love ya Brooke! :)

Well, I haven't had time to really dig in to this, but at first I thought it was a joke and someone was trying to just cast doubt. I guess it's not. Bummer. I need to read up now.

I really can't believe Mike Matheny would have any of it, but who knows? I don't really know these people. It makes me sad that anyone in the Cardinals organization would stoop to this and I hope they didn't. But really, how could knowing some of this stuff really matter in a game? Unless players were paid to do certain things such as a pitcher intentionally hitting a batter? Really?

We shall see!

And thanks, HB! :lol:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Well, I haven't had time to really dig in to this, but at first I thought it was a joke and someone was trying to just cast doubt. I guess it's not. Bummer. I need to read up now.

I really can't believe Mike Matheny would have any of it, but who knows? I don't really know these people. It makes me sad that anyone in the Cardinals organization would stoop to this and I hope they didn't. But really, how could knowing some of this stuff really matter in a game? Unless players were paid to do certain things such as a pitcher intentionally hitting a batter? Really?

We shall see!

And thanks, HB! :lol:

Perceived weaknesses and strengths would be an advantage in head-to-head competition. Like AG95 said, there's little head-to-head competition between now. Most of the advantage is in the long dissertation I wrote earlier! It's still not much of an advantage, and certainly not enough information to go to prison for... Perhaps they did it just because they could. They tried the password and when it worked, took advantage of it. Apparently, it's not illegal to log in without authorization, what's against the law is taking the next step and accessing data.

[AlreadyGone95]

Yeah, there's definitely no good "baseball" reason for doing the hacking.

I reckon that the FBI is afraid that if they don't take this case seriously, that other teams might try it. Can you imagine if my Braves (god forbid) were able to access the Nationals' database or the Mets'?

[Houston Baby]

The little hill/incline in center field of Minute Maid Park was trouble! (Probably still is).

They are going to remove the hill after this season is over and update the ballpark AG. I'm sure the players are NOT going to miss it! :hilarious:

[AlreadyGone95]

They are going to remove the hill after this season is over and update the ballpark AG. I'm sure the players are NOT going to miss it! :hilarious:


Lol, HB, true. I always thought of it as like a different kind of "Green Monster".

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Congrats to USA women's soccer team for the big win!

Sad to say, this weekend, Thu through Sun, Brooke and I are 'frenemies' (friendly enemies). Her Cards are coming to the Burgh, and it will be knock-down, drag out fight! In the National League, my Buccos have the second best record. Sounds pretty good, right? Except we're still 6 games behind her Cards in the Central Division, who've been walking on water all season so far.

I will say, for the All Star game coming up next week, of the 13 pitchers selected for the National League, 8 are from the Central Division, and 6 of them play for the Cards or Pirates (3 each). No wonder we have the two best teams in the league...

Lastly, I just saw the worst call I've ever seen. We're playing the Padres and AJ picked off a runner, then struck out the batter on the next pitch. It was fantastic, except the ump said the batter foul-tipped the ball. He missed it by a foot, and that's no exaggeration.

[Brooke]

VA, it should be interesting this weekend! I just wish my Holliday would come back soon. We need a power hitter! I hope he at least gets to be in the All Star game and I can't believe my Molina didn't make the starting catcher position. He is such a hard worker. :-x

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I have a horrible feeling there might be a lot of rain in the forecast, so it'll take 6 hours to get one game in. I hope I'm wrong. Last time we played, all three games went to extra innings. If that happens again and add in rain delays, there could be 24 hour baseball!!

I saw an article today that said HB's Astro's were claiming they were second best in baseball. I laugh at that. :laugh:

[Brooke]

Well, after two losses to the Cubs yesterday, I'm in terrible pain! Ugh! We are struggling with all of our injured players out.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Lastly, I just saw the worst call I've ever seen. We're playing the Padres and AJ picked off a runner, then struck out the batter on the next pitch. It was fantastic, except the ump said the batter foul-tipped the ball. He missed it by a foot, and that's no exaggeration.

This just happened AGAIN! I'm so angry I can't keep still. This is so ridiculous. It even happened to the same pitcher, AJ Burnett. Of course, when our catcher and manager point out the obvious, what's evident on any replay, including the ones on the jumbotron at the stadium, they get ejected.

[WKMB55]

It's frustrating that there is no "review" of calls in Major League Baseball especially when the replays and jumbotron clearly showed him swinging through!!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Yes, I don't get why someone getting hit by a pitch is reviewable, but this isn't. I mean, if the camera doesn't catch it, then it can just be inconclusive. These were so far away from the bat there's no doubt.

[WKMB55]

Getting interesting in the bottom of the 8th at the STL-PIT game......

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Now we need to catch up again in the bottom of the 10th.

On a somewhat related note, Jose Bautista of the Blue Jays started following me on Twitter. No idea why. He used to play for the Pirates, a few years ago.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

I cannot believe it just happened again! In the same game! What is wrong with these umps?

[AlreadyGone95]

Well, I just saw that the Pirates won the game. (I'm have a "may the best team when attitude" with these 2 teams unless they're playing my Braves lol).

As far as the no review thing goes, I agree with ya'll. Umpires definitely do make mistakes. Most of the time, the mistakes are made because the umpires don't have a good view of the play. That's the case for most of the safe/out plays, I think. As for the strike zone, I personally believe that some umpires change their strike zone for a different team or pitcher, making it tighter or looser. They're supposed to be unbiased, but I doubt that most are 100% of the time.

There's one "review" type thing available for managers to use doing a play. Once a game(I believe), a manager can protest a play, and all 4 umps will go review the play to find the correct call. Imo, something like that should be available for every questionable call.

I think that the main problem is time. A major league baseball game lasts anywhere from 2 and a half hours on up. Can you imagine how long games would be if they implemented a review system?

[VAisForEagleLovers]

They do have a review system now! Each team can ask for one review. If they win that review, they get one more. But, foul tipped balls are not reviewable. A batter getting hit by a pitch is. Makes no sense to me.

On Friday night, Molina foul tipped a pitch that ended up close to his hands. He moved out of the batters box and then got back in and began to wait for next pitch. He hadn't even realized that the ump had called it that he'd been hit, because he knew he hadn't. Still, he went to first, of course. So we had to burn a review opportunity to prove he hadn't been hit by the pitch. Honestly, if he had been, he'd have started walking immediately to first. It was close, but a batter knows when he's been hit and that should have given it away.

The review process is like hockey's review process. The review is done elsewhere, in this case in New York. The crew chief and the ump making the original call wear the headsets and get the call from NY. (Hockey's reviews take place in Toronto).

[AlreadyGone95]

I heard about the reviews being made by officials in New York. I thought that it was a joke. Guess I was wrong.

I remember when the system started last year, one of the Braves' announcers said "baby steps". What he meant was, while this is obviously not a great system to use, it's better than what they before: nothing.

Hopefully, over the course of the next few years, they'll get a better review system in place. IIRC, this system is a trial system.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Another game into extra innings for Cards/Bucs, and the Bucs managed to pull it out! What a great way to head into the All Star break!

[Brooke]

Not, VA! :brickwall:

We are struggling with so many injuries. Three of our starters are out and 2 of our best pitchers. Hopefully we will hold on and most of them will be back......soon! :pray:

[VAisForEagleLovers]

True, Brooke, the game we lost to you all, we had Marte out on injury and he came back for the last three, likely too soon, so it's good he has this break to recover. We had Josh Harrison out, which is a huge, huge loss, but it's still only one guy. Others out on injuries are ones I hope stay out and get replaced by someone else. Because Cole and AJ are pitching in the All Star game, and Liriano just pitched last night, after the break we're starting up where we left off, with Morton, and not doing like most teams and starting over again in their rotation. I imagine the Cards are doing the same since they have so many pitchers pitching in the Big Game as well. We'll be going up against the Brewers, and I think that 12 of our next 16 games are away games, so it's not an easy stretch for us.

[AlreadyGone95]

Counting down the hours until the all-star game tonight. Unfortunately, only one Brave made the NL team, pitcher Shelby Miller. However, NL starting catcher Buster Pose(Giants) is a local boy (Leesburg, Ga), so that gives me another reason to pull for the NL team!

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Watching this All Star game and am once again amazed at how much better it is than the all star games that other sports offer up. In the pregame, they presented the Franchise Four for each team, but for the home stadium, they had the actual four for the Reds come out on the field. It was incredible to see Pete Rose back out on a baseball diamond!

[AlreadyGone95]

I loved seeing the franchise four from team, and the living top 4. To see Hank Aaron, Johnny Bench, Sandy Koufax, and Willie Mays on the same field, and watching Koufax throw out the first pitch with Bench catching was amazing! Also glad to see my all-time favorite player, Chipper Jones make the Atlanta Braves franchise 4.

Apparently, my Braves shirt isn't helping tonight. I've almost given up hope for the NL to win 6-3 AL, bottom of the 9th. :headshake:

ETA: make that the final, 6-3 AL.

[Brooke]

I have to say I was completely shocked that they boo'd when my Cardinals players were introduced. Everyone else was cheered for. So, it is the ALL STAR game! The best team in baseball at this point is not supposed to be represented? My guys showed class and laughed it off, but I was very mad about it. Cincinnati should be ashamed.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Brooke, I think they expected it, especially Molina. They got booed because they're so good they annoy people, and they can take some pride in that. Think of it as all the Lebowski's in the world hating on the Eagles because they're a great band. I do agree, though, that in an All Star game, no one should be booed. At least your guys expected it. The KC Royals who got booed were totally surprised and I think hurt. Kansas City isn't a large city, and all fans of every team had the option of banding together and voting their guys in.

I really do wish that since this is an all star game that actually means something they put in people who actually deserve to be there, and not make it a popularity contest. I know when I voted, for the American League, I know nothing about most of their players and had to vote on name recognition, having no idea if they were having good seasons or not.

In the 8th inning, it was just weird to see Melancon pitch with Molina catching, especially after last weekend! As one of my Twitter followers tweeted... #awkward

I was upset at how several of the NL's 'starting' pitchers pitched to show off instead of pitching to win. I can't remember names, but the ones wearing Dodger and Giants uniforms come to mind.

[Brooke]

I didn't even vote for any American League because I just don't know anything about them. And I see what you're saying, but I was still embarrassed for them. My hubby said it was to be expected.

I have to admit that this was the first year that I actually watched most of the game. I've just been a big Cards fan for a few years, so I'm kinda new to how it's all done. I've always been interested, but usually wanted to watch something else. My husband and kids have always been huge fans though, so I was definitely involved somewhat. Now I watch every game if possible! But, I don't know much about players from other teams. Still learning! :crazy:

[AlreadyGone95]

I loved Molina's reaction to being booed. He just turned around and pointed at his name on the back of his jersey. He had fun with it lol. I admit that I almost booed the tv when I saw Bryce Harper. I can't stand the Nats (or Phillies, Mets, or Marlins... all of the NL east teams besides my Braves).

I usually watch most of the game. I wasn't able to watch it much as a kid because church camp was always the same week as the game. (Although I didn't miss it much the last two years of camp. I was a teenager who got to spend 5 days at Daytona Beach Florida!). Anyway, this year, my mom, my uncle and myself watched it together at my uncle's house. My uncle hates commercials, so he'd flipped to other channels. I ended up missing most of innings 5-7 because my mom and uncle decided that they wanted to watch Happy Days. :-x

I enjoyed the parts that I was ableto watch. It amazes me to see guys who are rivals play on the same team together.

[AlreadyGone95]

In honor of the 2015 baseball hall of fame induction ceremony tomorrow, I want to post this article about John Smoltz (http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/page/johnsmoltz/hall-fame-tribute). (Braves pitcher and 2015 inductee :partytime:). I won't be this excited again until Chipper Jones is inducted.

[VAisForEagleLovers]

A little down today. I had planned on going to the Bucs/Reds game today, since Cincy is only two hours from me and it's an afternoon game. In addition, one of my favorite Christian bands, Third Day, is performing after the show. It's amazingly beautiful weather, a perfect baseball day. But, having just been diagnosed with pneumonia, it seems prudent to stay at home and watch on TV. It's just not the same.

[AlreadyGone95]

Well, that stinks, VA. I'm watching my Braves (who have been horrible as of late). Right now, they're in the lead against the Phillies, 6-2.

I want to post that today is the 1st anniversary of beloved Braves announcer Pete Van Wieren's passing. I didn't see him much on tv, but I heard his voice on the radio alot. "The professor" is missed very much here in Braves Country.

As I started typing this, the Braves annoucers (Joe Simpson and Chip Caray), started talking about the Pirates/Reds game. What's this I hear about a standoff?

[VAisForEagleLovers]

Oh yes, a big bench-clearing brawl. The umps no sooner got everyone back in their dugouts and the Reds started cryin' again and starting it up again and it cleared the benches again. The Reds started it, I swear! They threw a pitch so far 'inside' it hit our star player in the back without him turning around, in fact he tried to avoid it by moving over the plate. So when it comes pay-back time the Reds got their panties in a wad. There's a saying, don't start something you can't finish.

[AlreadyGone95]

Oh yes, a big bench-clearing brawl. The umps no sooner got everyone back in their dugouts and the Reds started cryin' again and starting it up again and it cleared the benches again. The Reds started it, I swear! They threw a pitch so far 'inside' it hit our star player in the back without him turning around, in fact he tried to avoid it by moving over the plate. So when it comes pay-back time the Reds got their panties in a wad. There's a saying, don't start something you can't finish.

Well, at least it's an exciting game! (In some ways). I heard something about McCutchun being hit by a pitch. Not a good idea there to try and scare the players from "hugging" the plate. I hope that the Reds don't try to start it again!

[Houston Baby]

Brooke - you need to go check out this week's (August 24) Sports Illustrated. The cover is a Cardinals player, I think Jason Heywood, with the headline "CARDINALS RULE". :)

[AlreadyGone95]

HB, I think that you mean Jason Heyward, better known here in Ga as the "J-Hey kid". He played I think 4 seasons with the Braves, and is a native Georgian. He's very talented, and for some reason unbeknownst to me, the Braves traded him in the offseason. :brickwall: I was upset for weeks! Our lost has been the Cardinals' gain.

[Brooke]

Brooke - you need to go check out this week's (August 24) Sports Illustrated. The cover is a Cardinals player, I think Jason Heywood, with the headline "CARDINALS RULE". :)

Woo hoo hoo! Gotta love it! Must find!

Yes, Hayward has helped us immensely, especially lately since most of our starters are on the disabled list! :roll: But we continue on!

Thanks HB! :partytime:

[Houston Baby]

Sorry about the name, I was at Barnes & Noble trying to type on my phone. I was afraid I would walk out, go to the Container Store and totally forget to tell Brooke. Apparently I am not much of a typist on the phone. :blush:

[Brooke]

I didn't spell it right either, HB, so don't feel bad! And I wasn't even on my phone! :doh: :lol:

You know, I was always a great speller, even with names, but the older I get the more I have begun to doubt myself on spellings. I hate it! :brickwall:

[Houston Baby]

Are you going to be able to find it Brooke?

[AlreadyGone95]

Sorry about the name, I was at Barnes & Noble trying to type on my phone. I was afraid I would walk out, go to the Container Store and totally forget to tell Brooke. Apparently I am not much of a typist on the phone. :blush:

I didn't mean to come across harsh, sorry if I did. I wasn't sure if Heyward was the guy you were talking about. After watching him play for 4 seasons with the Braves, I've learned to spell his name :).

[Houston Baby]

No worries, AG! I totally did not take offense. :)

[Brooke]

Are you going to be able to find it Brooke?

Yes, found it! Thanks for the heads up!

GO CARDS!

[jms18222]

I didn't mean to come across harsh, sorry if I did. I wasn't sure if Heyward was the guy you were talking about. After watching him play for 4 seasons with the Braves, I've learned to spell his name :).


Sweetie, once you hit a certain age, well...it's like you go into a room & forget what you went in there for. It is the same thing with spelling. I swear post-it notes were created for menopausal women. I make notes to remind myself I wrote a shopping list. I even have an app on my phone & I still leave the grocery store $50 poorer and without what I went in for.

The other day my son comes upstairs with this confused look on his face because he forgot why he came upstairs and so it begins. He turns 30 on Saturday.

[AlreadyGone95]

Sweetie, once you hit a certain age, well...it's like you go into a room & forget what you went in there for. It is the same thing with spelling. I swear post-it notes were created for menopausal women. I make notes to remind myself I wrote a shopping list. I even have an app on my phone & I still leave the grocery store $50 poorer and without what I went in for.

The other day my son comes upstairs with this confused look on his face because he forgot why he came upstairs and so it begins. He turns 30 on Saturday.

(Not trying to make anyone feel old here). I have a mom, uncle, and several grandparents like that. I understand the "short term memory" loss. I'm the one in the family who was blessed with a photographic memory. I can remember minute details that I shouldn't.

Since my Braves really don't seem to have a chance anymore, bring on the football! Go UGA Bulldogs and Atlanta Falcons!

[The Disco Strangler]

Jason Day made another birdie. Woot! I'm enjoying the Barclays (first tournament for the PGA's FedEx Cup playoffs). I'm hoping Jason wins the cup. He's one of my fave golfers. :thumbsup:

[jms18222]

Just noticed my Dodgers are the 8:00 game on ESPN...sweet! My oldest son changed username/password on the MLB app I had on my phone so now I have to wait for him to come & make the change on my phone.

I need to spend some time researching the NFL. I have to get ready for my fantasy draft. AG how are those Falcons looking this year. My boy Matty Ryan really messed me up the last 2 drafts.

[Freypower]

Jason Day made another birdie. Woot! I'm enjoying the Barclays (first tournament for the PGA's FedEx Cup playoffs). I'm hoping Jason wins the cup. He's one of my fave golfers. :thumbsup:

It's nice to see someone supporting an Australian golfer!

[AlreadyGone95]

I need to spend some time researching the NFL. I have to get ready for my fantasy draft. AG how are those Falcons looking this year. My boy Matty Ryan really messed me up the last 2 drafts.

Based on the game against the Dolphins last night and the articles I've read (predictions), I'd say that the Falcons have a pretty good team. It's weird not seeing Matt Smith as head coach anymore. They've replaced him with Dan Quinn, whom I'm not familiar with at all. Our defense definitely needs to be tweaked a bit. I think that the defense made them lose last night, 13-9. Plus a lousy call in the 4th quarter. (You could see the Falcons guy's knee on the ground before the ball came loose, but the refs called it a fumble with Miami recovering it. :scowl:. With less than 1:30 left in the game, the Dolphins ran down the clock). Our field goal kicker definitely does his job well. All 9 points were field goals. Last night definitely came down to who had the better defense, and it wasn't the Falcons. Matt Ryan didn't play last night, so I don't know how well he's still doing as QB.

Predections seem to think that the Falcons have an easy schedule this year. Only 4 teams we're playing had a winning record last year. I think that this year will be better than last year.

------------------

Forgive me, but I must say something about the horrible losses my Braves suffered last night and today. Last night's lost was an actual loss of a life. A man fell from the upper deck of Turner Field and was killed. My thoughts are with his family, as are the thoughts and prayers of all of Braves country. :(

Now, on to the game. Today's game was horrible, although the Braves did attempt a comeback only to blow all chances the next inning! The final score: New York Yankees- 20 Braves-6. That's a freaking football score, not a baseball score! As one fan put it, for pre-season football losing by 2 touchdowns ain't too bad, but for baseball? That's an as$ whooping! What the heck happened Braves?! Maybr last night's accident affected them or something.

Not to mention my high school football team lost 53-6 Friday night. Not a good weekend for sports for me.

[LuvTim]

Based on the game against the Dolphins last night and the articles I've read (predictions), I'd say that the Falcons have a pretty good team. It's weird not seeing Matt Smith as head coach anymore. They've replaced him with Dan Quinn, whom I'm not familiar with at all. Our defense definitely needs to be tweaked a bit. I think that the defense made them lose last night, 13-9. Plus a lousy call in the 4th quarter. (You could see the Falcons guy's knee on the ground before the ball came loose, but the refs called it a fumble with Miami recovering it. :scowl:. With less than 1:30 left in the game, the Dolphins ran down the clock). Our field goal kicker definitely does his job well. All 9 points were field goals. Last night definitely came down to who had the better defense, and it wasn't the Falcons. Matt Ryan didn't play last night, so I don't know how well he's still doing as QB.

Predections seem to think that the Falcons have an easy schedule this year. Only 4 teams we're playing had a winning record last year. I think that this year will be better than last year.

------------------

Forgive me, but I must say something about the horrible losses my Braves suffered last night and today. Last night's lost was an actual loss of a life. A man fell from the upper deck of Turner Field and was killed. My thoughts are with his family, as are the thoughts and prayers of all of Braves country. :(

Now, on to the game. Today's game was horrible, although the Braves did attempt a comeback only to blow all chances the next inning! The final score: New York Yankees- 20 Braves-6. That's a freaking football score, not a baseball score! As one fan put it, for pre-season football losing by 2 touchdowns ain't too bad, but for baseball? That's an as$ whooping! What the heck happened Braves?! Maybr last night's accident affected them or something.

Not to mention my high school football team lost 53-6 Friday night. Not a good weekend for sports for me.


So sorry about the tragic death at the game, AG. I read about it in the morning paper.

[AlreadyGone95]

So sorry about the tragic death at the game, AG. I read about it in the morning paper.

Braves country definitely feels the pain. I don't know much about the guy. The radio annoucers talked about him some today, but I was too upset about the score to pay attention.

If there's a bright side to this unfortunate accident, it's that maybe baseball fields will put better railings on the upper deck. I'm not exactly sure what caused the man to fall.

[AlreadyGone95]

If anyone wants to know more about the accident and the guy, here's the NBC News article.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/atlanta-braves-fan-who-fell-turner-field-stands-died-doing-n418496

[WKMB55]

Jason Day, his wife and baby live in central Ohio. He is a favorite here and the family is well liked because they are involved in the community and are very friendly.

[Freypower]

I would like to know if any Borderers who follow NFL are aware of this:

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/us-sports/jarryd-hayne-makes-san-francisco-49ers-75man-roster-20150831-gjc46g.html

or is it a classic example of Australians working themselves into a frenzy about nothing. I fully expect a reaction of 'nah, never heard of him'. So here is some background. Jarryd Hayne was a rugby league player for the Parramatta Eels who I thought was vastly overrated. He is now trying out for the San Francisco 49ers and had a couple of good runs in pre-season games. We were breathlessly informed that he would either 'make the cut' or he wouldn't & now we find he has made the final 75 but not the final 53 yet.

As I say I would be interested to know if any Americans are even aware of this.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

I haven't had time to follow the NFL preseason news so I wasn't aware of it. However, I'm fairly certain that any NFL fan here that does follow the league closely would know about it.

[AlreadyGone95]

I wasn't aware of him. I mostly have been keeping up with college football and the Falcons. None of the sports reports have mentioned him to my knowledge. I haven't seen a 49ners game on the tv yet. (Most stations carry the local NFL team(s).) I wish him the best on making the team or being signed by waivers.

[jms18222]

Forgive me, but I must say something about the horrible losses my Braves suffered last night and today. Last night's lost was an actual loss of a life. A man fell from the upper deck of Turner Field and was killed. My thoughts are with his family, as are the thoughts and prayers of all of Braves country. :(

Now, on to the game. Today's game was horrible, although the Braves did attempt a comeback only to blow all chances the next inning! The final score: New York Yankees- 20 Braves-6. That's a freaking football score, not a baseball score! As one fan put it, for pre-season football losing by 2 touchdowns ain't too bad, but for baseball? That's an as$ whooping! What the heck happened Braves?! Maybr last night's accident affected them or something.

Not to mention my high school football team lost 53-6 Friday night. Not a good weekend for sports for me.


That was really sad about the gentleman who fell from the stands.

As to 20-6, try being no hit 2 times in 10 days with a $300 million payroll.
To be fair the Braves did trade away a good deal of their team. What I wouldn't give to have Kimbrel in my bullpen/

[AlreadyGone95]

That was really sad about the gentleman who fell from the stands.

As to 20-6, try being no hit 2 times in 10 days with a $300 million payroll.
To be fair the Braves did trade away a good deal of their team. What I wouldn't give to have Kimbrel in my bullpen/

Don't even get me started on the trades the Braves have made. Heyward, Kimbrel, Chris Johnson, the Upton brothers (although BJ wasn't that good), Johnny Gomes, Tim Hudson, Evan Gattis (I'm sure that I'm forgetting some). They traded away every great player except Freddie Freeman and Andelton (sp?) Simmons. What was the upper management thinking?!
At this rate, the Braves may have the worst record in baseball for 2015. Over 100 losses predicted. Tonight's score is already Florida (oops Miami) Marlins 3- Braves 0 in the 4th. :headshake:

I've been raised a diehard Braves fan. I've decided to give up watching them this year and hope for better year next year.

[Brooke]

I'm loving having Heyward with us this year! He has really stepped up! Hubby went to last night's game with the Nats and wow, what a game! Win-8-5!

Go Cards!

[WKMB55]

I'm not sure this is the correct forum because this is only sports related and not about anything sensational. Adam Duritz and Counting Crows (opening act Toad The Wet Sprocket) had a concert scheduled in Columbus, OH on Monday, Sept. 7th at 8:00 pm at the Lifestyles Communities Pavilion. A decision has been made to move the concert time to 4:00 pm so it will not "interfere" with The Ohio State University vs Virginia Tech opening football game scheduled for 8:00 pm. The concert venue has also announced that it will remain open after the concert and show the game on a large high-def screen for anyone who purchased concert tickets. This decision has resulted in an increase in ticket sales for the concert. A lot of people are now wondering if a sporting event should be allowed to determine or influence the timing of other events like rock concerts? What do you think?

[jms18222]

Well I was at a Pirates game last month. We bought tickets in December for a 7:05 PM Saturday night game. It was very fortunate that I happened to check the schedule 2 days before because the game was moved to a 4:05 start because there was an OAR concert at the stadium after the game. If I hadn't wanted to see the Dodgers schedule to see who would be pitching we would have missed most of the game. That would have sucked because those tickets were expensive!

Going to a Yankees AAA game tonight.

My Dodgers swept the Giants and have a 6.5 game lead. Their bull pen blew yet another lead which is why I wish we had Kimbrel. New kid Corey Saeger played his first game with the big squad, went 2-4 with 2 rbi & 2 runs scored. I don't see this team getting to the WS. Then perhaps ownership will fire the manager & take his hitting coach with him.

[NOLA]

The Who Dat Nation suffered yet another agonizing defeat yesterday in Philadelphia. Quite a bit of feuding between Sean Payton and the assistant coaches and Drew Brees' dispute with a ref just added to the disastrous loss against the Eagles. (Not a fun band reminder, BTW.) 'Dem Saints' have only a few more chances at redemption before this season turns into another disappointing lost cause. Where's my Schwegmann's bag? :brickwall::weep:

[AlreadyGone95]

Dare I mention that my Falcons are now 5 and 0. (5-0)? After last year's disappointing season, I'm honestly shocked. Our new head coach is doing his job very well, although yesterday's game was a nail bitter. It ended up going into overtime, and the Falcons won it because of an interception that was ran all the way into the end zone.

I'm ready for Thursday night's game against the Saints. If the Saints are doing as bad as you say they are, I expect a Falcons victory. :D

[DivineDon]

Ireland beat France yesterday in the Rugby World Cup!!!!! Yeahhhhhhhhh, c'mon Ireland!!!

[Brooke]

Well, back to baseball! My Cards go for game 3 in the NLDS against the dreaded Cubs tonight...

GO CARDS!

[AlreadyGone95]

I still find it hard to believe that the Cubs are in the playoffs. Maybe one day, they'll break that over century year old Championship drought. I must admit that I'm not keeping up with the playoffs much, since my Braves sucked big time this year.

[Freypower]

Ireland beat France yesterday in the Rugby World Cup!!!!! Yeahhhhhhhhh, c'mon Ireland!!!

Good for them. I hope they go all the way. I really don't care about the Australian team.

[Jonny Come Lately]

Interesting times at Liverpool FC - a few hours after a 1-1 draw in the Merseyside derby with Everton, and after a generally uninspiring if not disastrous start to the season, Brendan Rodgers was sacked. The performance and result were not that bad, but I believe the decision had been taken before the game, in part because the owners knew the international break was coming up giving the new manager more time to get to know the club before his first match.

A number of names were linked to the job before it was announced to that the job would go to the former Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp, who guided his old club to back-to-back German league titles in 2011 and 2012 as well as the 2013 Champions League final. He is also quite a character! This list gives some idea of the sort of things he likes to say...

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/oct/08/jurgen-klopp-liverpool-manager-quotes

Although I think the sacking of Rodgers could have been handled better (as a club, Liverpool traditionally does not sack its managers during the season), I am delighted with the appointment, I think he's easily the best manager we've brought in since Rafa Benitez. Unlike Rodgers, he has a history of winning; unlike Roy Hodgson he has won trophies in a competitive league (the German Bundesliga is vastly superior to the Swedish and Danish competitions Hodgson won titles in) and unlike Kenny Dalglish when he was appointed, he has been active and successful in recent years. On first impressions, he seems to understand the club and how the fans feel. His debut will be away to Tottenham this weekend, I'll be fascinated to see what kind of start we get off to under the new man.

The England national football (soccer) team made it through their group in the European Championship qualifiers with a 100% record, with 10 wins. However, I harbour no hope for them at the tournament proper in 2016 as long as Roy Hodgson is at the helm. I just find his approach to be really negative and cautious, it works in weak leagues or at clubs like Fulham and West Brom who were only expected to avoid relegation, but he set Blackburn on course for relegation, was awful at Liverpool and delivered England's worst World Cup performance in living memory last year (bottom of the group with one point from three games).

[Freypower]

Klopp endeared himself to everyone when he said he was 'the Normal One'. Take that Jose! I wish him success.

[AlreadyGone95]

Well, last night's Atlanta Falcons vs. New Orleans Saints game was a bust for this Falcons fan. The Saints won 31-21.

The Falcons didn't bring their "A" game, and they made some terrible mistakes/blunders that cost them the game. Twice they got within 15 yards of a touchdown, only to fumble the ball with the saints recovering the ball. Matt Ryan(Falcons quarterback) was sacked 4 or 5 times, which cost us dearly. The defense was good, but not good enough. There were a couple of missed calls as well, and penalties that hurt us.

I think that the Falcons thought that the game would be an easy win when for them because of how badly the Saints have played this year. If there's one thing I've learned about the Saints over the years, it'd to never count them out when they're playing at home. The Saints played well and it showed.

I'm calling the game "the butterfingers and penalties game" because that's what it was.

[NOLA]

Agree, AG, the Saints definitely had home field advantage, and it worked like a charm for the team and the Who Dat Nation. Once again, they proved to be the tight unit that I missed seeing in the previous games, and I am very happy with the outcome. We had to win last night in the 'Dome to stay in competition for the season. 'Bless you boys' for a great night of football.
Geaux Saints! :rockon:

[ktdids]

The NLCS starts tonight with the Cubs going up against my NY Mets!

[AlreadyGone95]

Agree, AG, the Saints definitely had home field advantage, and it worked like a charm for the team and the Who Dat Nation. Once again, they proved to be the tight unit that I missed seeing in the previous games, and I am very happy with the outcome. We had to win last night in the 'Dome to stay in competition for the season. 'Bless you boys' for a great night of football.
Geaux Saints! :rockon:

My Falcons are 5-1, so we definitely have a good shot at the playoffs. (Dare I hope for a superbowl appearance? :pray:) I hope that the Falcons learn from their mistakes, and don't make them again against other teams. We play the Tennessee Titans next week. The Falcons have a pretty easy schedule for the rest of the year. They need to take advantage of that.

As for today, Go UGA Bulldogs! (Uni. Of Georgia). Beat Missouri!

[AlreadyGone95]

Today is a big day for fans of the UGA Bulldogs or the Uni. of Florida Gators. It's time for the annual game against each other. The rivalry is huge between both teams. It's like the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry of college football. It'll probably be a good game as it usually is. I hope that afterwards I get to hear "why did the gator cross the road?... Because he couldn't get into the end zone!". I can't wait to see kickoff at 3:30.

GoUGA BulldogsSic 'em Dawgs

[Jonny Come Lately]

Klopp endeared himself to everyone when he said he was 'the Normal One'. Take that Jose! I wish him success.

The two bosses (and of course, their respective teams!) met in a league match yesterday at Stamford Bridge.

Final score: Special One 1, Normal One 3! :partytime:

Fantastic result, there's few better places for a Liverpool boss to take his first league win. Chelsea have had a shocking start to their season, six defeats from eleven games, the worst start to a title defence in the Premier League era, but they still managed to beat Arsenal so coming away from Stamford Bridge with three points is great.

I went to watch my other team Tranmere Rovers yesterday. Unfortunately, they played poorly and lost 1-0 to Dover, the third home defeat in a row, dropping to tenth in the league table. The team isn't in trouble, but are at risk of falling off the promotion pace in a division where only the champions and the winners of the play-offs contested by the teams in second-fifth places get promoted. The odd thing is that in our last away match they beat league leaders Forest Green Rovers 2-0.

[Freypower]

Could it be the turning point of Liverpool's season?:partytime::cheers:

My husband is pleased this morning too because Everton beat Sunderland 6-2. He was hoping for 7-0 (he supports Newcastle; my daughter supports Sunderland).

Also New Zealand beat Australia in the Rugby World Cup final but it doesn't worry me as I follow league, not union.

[Glennsallnighter]

My brother supports Everton and has done since he was a kid in the mid 80's. The only other Everton supporter I knew was a student of mine 20 years ago. I put him in touch with my brother and continue to call them 'The irish Everton Supporters Club' because as far as I know theres only the two of them!!

[NOLA]

In addition to the festivities for All Saints Day and Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), the Who Dat Nation had another reason to celebrate: the Saints beat the Giants, 52-49, for their third straight win in a row! QB Drew Brees threw 7 TD passes, and Eli Manning (a native son of New Orleans) threw 6 for NY. It made for one helluva game at the 'Dome. "Bless you, boys!" :applause:

[Jonny Come Lately]

Everton Football Club isn't too popular in my household. ;-) In fairness though I definitely don't dislike them anywhere near as much as I dislike Manchester United and this point in time I also dislike Chelsea more than them. I would describe the rivalry between Liverpool and Everton as competitive but relatively friendly. Many families have supporters of both clubs so the rivalry lacks the venom of that shared by Celtic and Rangers in Scotland, or indeed between Liverpool and United. In the mid-1980s, when the two clubs collectively dominated English football, they met in the League Cup final in 1984 and some fans even wore half-Liverpool, half-Everton scarves. Between them, the teams won every title from 1981/82 to 1987/88 (5 for Liverpool, 2 for Everton).

Relations have cooled in more recent times for various reasons - the biggest was the Heysel stadium disaster in the 1985 European Cup final between Liverpool and Juventus, where conflict between Liverpool and Juventus fans over territory led to the tragic death of 39 Italian fans. English football fans had a bad reputation for hooliganism in the 1980s and this was part of a series of incidents in that era. This incident led to a five year ban for English clubs in Europe, which was extremely unfortunate for Everton who had just been crowned league champions and would not get the chance to test their wits against Europe's best teams. They won another title two years later, but by the time the ban was lifted they were out of contention. I have a minor personal connection with the tragedy as a couple of relatives of mine were in the stadium, fortunately they were not involved in the conflict in any way and made it out safely.

Oddly, quite a lot of players have moved directly from Liverpool to Everton over the years - Kevin Sheedy, Gary Ablett and the great Peter Beardsley being among some of the most notable, yet transfers in the opposite direction have proved rare in the modern era. In 2000, the England international Nick Barmby (a boyhood Liverpool fan) became the first player in over 40 years to move directly to Liverpool from Everton, and in doing so infuriated Everton fans who have never forgiven him for the transfer.

FP, your daughter has my sympathies about the result, I'd hate losing at Goodison Park. I hope both north east teams can show some improvement soon, the last few years have been pretty poor for both in truth.

[EasilyTaken]

Gather round and get loud, Bengal's fans!!!

You know who you are.

Time for the impossible under the big-time spotlight.

:rockon:

[EasilyTaken]

Whoo hoo Who DEY!

8-0, Baby!

[jms18222]

Whoo hoo Who DEY!

8-0, Baby!


Congratulations on the awesome start. Andy Dalton still needs to win in the playoffs.
I'm a Raider fan so we are still 2-3 years away.

[AlreadyGone95]

I just saw this on the Atlanta Braves' Facebook page.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2015/11/10/former-major-league-pitcher-tommy-hanson-dies/75499486/

Unless you're an Atlanta Braves fan, you're probably not familiar with Tommy Hanson much. He was one of our best pitchers from 2009-2012. My family nicknamed him "big red" for obvious reasons. I lost track of him when the Braves traded him. The fact that he was only 29 is a bit scary to me. Such a shame and a tradegy.

RIP Tommy. You were one heck of a pitcher there for a few years.

[EasilyTaken]

Congratulations on the awesome start. Andy Dalton still needs to win in the playoffs.
I'm a Raider fan so we are still 2-3 years away.

Thanks for the 'shout out'. Yes, you gotta win the big ones. Bengals fans are an awesome bunch. We stick with this team be it glory or sucky (and some seasons have been sucky). Bengals Nation can be a strange and unforgiving land and we're right around the corner from a Monday night game. Still, we keep the faith!

My first grandchild is due three weeks before Super Bowl L. She shows up just in time for the Big Win (she already has the proper attitre) I'll never view the universe and it's karma the same way again.

Best of luck to your Raiders. Sometimes you just gotta believe.

[EasilyTaken]

One more time!

[EasilyTaken]

Damn.

8-1

Good game Houston.

[Glennsallnighter]

The Irish team have made it to the finals of the FIFA European Cup next summer in France - well done to them, and a great win over Bosnia last night

[Jonny Come Lately]

Congratulations to the Irish national team! (I can say that as many of the players are English anyway ;-)).

They did well to get through as their current group of players I think isn't quite as talented as some of their recent teams - the team is full of solid, reliable pros rather than world class talents like they had with Roy Keane and Shay Given at his peak, and Bosnia-Herzegovina are quite a tough side to get past too. I hope they do well next summer for sure, Euro 2012 apart they've usually given a pretty good showing in major international tournaments when they've qualified in the modern era.

[Freypower]

I'm delighted that Ireland made it & also pleased for Northern Ireland.

[Glennsallnighter]

Thanks FP

[Freypower]

Remarkable result which I'm sure JCL will be as pleased about as I am - Manchester City 1 Liverpool 4.:fainting:

Also congratulations are due to Leicester City who were only promoted recently & are sitting on top of the League. Something for Gary Lineker to be happy about.

[EasilyTaken]

Who Dey!

[EasilyTaken]

8-2

OMG

[Jonny Come Lately]

Remarkable result which I'm sure JCL will be as pleased about as I am - Manchester City 1 Liverpool 4.:fainting:

Also congratulations are due to Leicester City who were only promoted recently & are sitting on top of the League. Something for Gary Lineker to be happy about.



Seconded, it was a terrific display and a great result. :grin: I was stunned to see us go 3-0 up after just over half an hour. City's home record is formidable and we had not won there since 2008, back when Liverpool were clearly the stronger team. It reminded me somewhat of our 5-1 home win over Arsenal a couple of years ago, and definitely remined me of the famous 4-1 victory at Old Trafford in 2009. I thought Klopp's tactics were spot on, starting without a conventional striker much like (until recently) Barcelona and the Spanish national team. Roberto Firmino and Philippe Coutinho were brilliant on the counter attack and City's defence had no answer to them.

It was quite an enjoyable football weekend for me generally as Tranmere finally returned to winning ways with a 2-1 win over Guiseley, they badly needed to get their season back on track after slipping from the top three to twelfth after a poor month where they failed to score a single goal.

Leicester's start to the season has been nothing short of sensational, they ended the last campaign well but what's astonishing is that they needed that great run merely to avoid relegation and that if this season had started back in April, they'd be top of the league by six points. Special mention must go to striker Jamie Vardy, who was playing non-league football just four years ago but is now the Premier League's top scorer with 13 goals so far, and has netted in each of Leicester's last ten games. Their form reminds me of the French side Montpellier, who won the French title in 2012 in just their second year back in the top flight. I think their weaknesses in defence will tell eventually but not even their most avid fans would have dreamed of such a fantastic opening few months.

[EasilyTaken]

9-2

Who Dey!

See 'ya next week, Cleveland!

[AlreadyGone95]

Alot of UGA Dawg nation is in shock at the resigning/firing of coach Mark Richt.
http://espn.go.com/ncf/story/_/id/14249377/mark-richt-fired-coach-georgia-bulldogs

My Falcons sucked against the Vikings today.

Glad to see the Broncos end the Patriots' undefeated streak.

[EasilyTaken]

10-2
Who Dey!

(Sorry for the delay, technical issues)

You're next, Pittsburgh!

[EasilyTaken]

Ok, Quarterback down and not the end result we wanted, but...

In and out of San Fran on the plus side. Make that Who Dey 11-3.

Why make it look easy, huh?

[WalshFan88]

I'm not a sports guy but my dad is a huge Bears fan, really his favorite team of any sport. Lately he's been unhappy about the team not doing so well.

So I naturally as of late have become a huge Packers fan. :lol: Actually, a fan of any team who plays against the Bears.

I use to not even watch, but now it's a game in itself of me making fun of his team and Jay Cutler. lol

[AlreadyGone95]

The Carolina Panthers' undefeated streak came to end today at the hands of my Falcons. :yay::applause:

[AlreadyGone95]

RIP Bobby Dews
http://m.ajc.com/news/sports/report-longtime-atlanta-braves-coach-bobby-dews-de/nprx5/

Anyone who is an Atlanta Braves fan should recognize his name. Mr. Dews spent 37 years working with the Braves before retiring in 2012. For my rural area,though, he was a local hero. He grew up in Edison, Georgia, which is the biggest of the 4 towns in Calhoun County, which is also the county I call home. Though I never met him, I know many people who have. They've described him as a wonderful man. Baseball has lost a legend today.

[Freypower]

Liverpool have literally scraped into the Capital Cup final, beating Stoke 6-5 on penalties.

[Jonny Come Lately]

Just been following the penalty shoot out online while listening to the radio coverage. It sounded like a fairly poor display from us on the night itself, but that doesn't matter now fortunately. I honestly wasn't sure we'd do it when I heard that Lucas was stepping for the crucial fifth penalty (he hasn't scored a goal in open play for over five years!), glad we did it though. Great for Jurgen Klopp to get us to a final in his first season in charge.

It's a big game whoever we face in the Final (this will be decided in the other semi final tomorrow night) - it's either going to be the formidable Manchester City, probably the strongest team in England on paper, or an all-Merseyside final against our local rivals Everton. This would be a repeat of the 1984 final, where we won 1-0 in a replay after a 0-0 draw in the first game.

[Jonny Come Lately]

As you may know when it comes to association football* I am mostly a fan of Liverpool FC and also Tranmere Rovers. However, this weekend I actually went to Goodison Park to watch Liverpool's local rivals Everton play West Bromwich Albion. Quite how I ended up doing this is a long and very personal story, probably a bit too personal to share on here to be honest. It did feel very weird watching a team that I don't actually support although it was quite enjoyable as I wasn't bothered if they didn't win. I had a great view of the pitch as I was near the top of the stand. I didn't exactly prove a lucky charm! :hilarious: Everton dominated the game but managed to lose 1-0 with West Brom scoring with their only decent chance. I felt a bit sorry for them though as West Brom basically grabbed their goal early and defended for dear life for most of the rest of the match. Liverpool did a lot better this weekend - can't complain about 6-0 away win, yes our opponents Aston Villa were utterly atrocious, but for once we put our chances away. :partytime:

I have been to Anfield to watch Liverpool on several occasions, but it is very difficult to get tickets to most games so I watch Tranmere a lot more. Watching Everton v West Brom reminded me of the gulf in class between Premier League football and the fifth tier where Tranmere play, even the better players at their level would really struggle in the top flight.

*Interesting bit of trivia: The word 'soccer' is derived from the full name of association football.

[Freypower]

Great story, JCL. My dream is to see a game at Anfield. All I have done is do a tour of what my husband calls the Stadium of Sh**e.

Everton & Liverpool are weird. I don't see Everton as the hated local rivals. Liverpool fans remember how supportive Everton were after Hillsborough, so it's hard to hate them (but of course with the derby coming up....) For me the hated rivals are in East Lancashire. :yuck:

[AlreadyGone95]

Soccer doesn't really exist here. I know very little other than the basics. I may have played it in gym class a handful of times over 9 years. (I did prefer it over dodgeball! :lol:). No high schools that I know of have a team. I only know of one college that has a team and no pro teams either. Baseball, Football (hand egg ;)), Basketball, and Track and Field are the most popular sports here.


Today marks the beginning of spring training for my Atlanta Braves. I don't have high hopes for this year, especially after last season, where they had the 2nd worse record in all of baseball. I'll still pull for them because they've been my team since I was toddler.
Plus, this year is their last year playing in Turner Field.

Also, this Sunday is the Daytona 500 (NASCAR), and last weekend was the Winter Nationals (NHRA). I have racing in my blood, since my dad worked at 2 race tracks since before I was born until a few weeks before his death, and my uncle had a 1934 modified Ford truck that he raced alot. I grew up surrounded by it. I ended up loving it, so I always love and enjoy this time of year when the racing season gets started!

[Freypower]

Soccer doesn't really exist here. I know very little other than the basics. I may have played it in gym class a handful of times over 9 years. (I did prefer it over dodgeball! :lol:). No high schools that I know of have a team. I only know of one college that has a team and no pro teams either. Baseball, Football (hand egg ;)), Basketball, and Track and Field are the most popular sports here.


Today marks the beginning of spring training for my Atlanta Braves. I don't have high hopes for this year, especially after last season, where they had the 2nd worse record in all of baseball. I'll still pull for them because they've been my team since I was toddler.
Plus, this year is their last year playing in Turner Field.

Also, this Sunday is the Daytona 500 (NASCAR), and last weekend was the Winter Nationals (NHRA). I have racing in my blood, since my dad worked at 2 race tracks since before I was born until a few weeks before his death, and my uncle had a 1934 modified Ford truck that he raced alot. I grew up surrounded by it. I ended up loving it, so I always love and enjoy this time of year when the racing season gets started!

Well, how about that. Atlanta will have a team next year.

http://atlutd.com

It's funny looking at some of the iconic names adopted by MLS teams - Real Salt Lake, Sporting Kansas City, but Columbus Crew use 'SC' not 'FC'!

[AlreadyGone95]

Well, how about that. Atlanta will have a team next year.

http://atlutd.com

It's funny looking at some of the iconic names adopted by MLS teams - Real Salt Lake, Sporting Kansas City, but Columbus Crew use 'SC' not 'FC'!

Hmm, that's going to be interesting. I haven't heard of that until now. I hope that the team will do well. The guy that owns the Falcons also owns this team.

[Jonny Come Lately]

Great story, JCL. My dream is to see a game at Anfield. All I have done is do a tour of what my husband calls the Stadium of Sh**e.

Everton & Liverpool are weird. I don't see Everton as the hated local rivals. Liverpool fans remember how supportive Everton were after Hillsborough, so it's hard to hate them (but of course with the derby coming up....) For me the hated rivals are in East Lancashire. :yuck:

I'd agree about the rivalry between Liverpool and Everton - I know quite a lot of Everton fans and there is a lot of 'banter' between red and blue factions but it's generally pretty friendly stuff. I remember the Scottish Liverpool and Ipswich midfielder John Wark saying that the atmosphere at Merseyside derbies was much milder than at the Old Firm matches between Celtic and Rangers, and less bitter than the rivalry in East Anglia between Norwich City and Ipswich Town. Basically, as long as we beat them in the Merseyside derby and finish above them in the league, I'm happy. United on the other hand... I have to admit I do actively enjoy watching them lose. I would NOT want to sit in the home stand at Old Trafford. If I was offered tickets, I think I'd prefer to sit in the away end - I'm not sure I'd be able to disguise my delight if the opponents scored.

I did laugh when I saw United's Europa League result in Denmark the other night (a 2-1 defeat against minnows FC Midtjylland) . :lol: Apparently the only two previous teams to have conceded two goals away from home against that side were the Welsh sides Bangor City and TNS (the Welsh league is, frankly, rubbish).

Regarding American soccer, one thing that really stands out is how the US has produced quite a lot of good goalkeepers - shot stoppers such as Brad Friedel, Tim Howard and Kasey Keller have carved out strong careers in English football. They are not quite so good in other areas although there have been some quality players such as Landon Donovan, who unusually played most of his career in the US with only a couple of loan spells in Europe (most top American players spend their peak years in European football and often return home at the end of their careers) and the US team did well in the last World Cup, certainly better than England did. Of the ones who did move to Europe, Clint Dempsey was probably the pick of the recent crop.

Like you AG I am looking forward to the motor racing calendar getting started again although in my case it's the start of the Formula One season that excites me. It's just under four weeks now until the season officially starts with the first practice session for the Australian Grand Prix. There is an all-new team for this season, the American Haas team. They have former Lotus driver Romain Grosjean (who I rate quite highly) and support from the Ferrari works team so it'll be interesting to see how they fare, I think they might surprise a few people.

[jms18222]

I am totally new to soccer but I am a fan of West Hamilton. They had me with the bubbles!

I am a huge fan of F1. It will be interesting to see if Ferrari can compete with Mercedes. I was a bit disappointed to see Alexander Rossi lose his seat at Manor but I hope he finds a ride with an Indy team.

Will be watching Daytona tomorrow. I watch more for the wrecks & the Dale Jr. comments.

[Freypower]

Good result in the Europa League last 16, especially considering who the opponents were. 2 - 0. Preventing them scoring at Anfield will hopefully be enough to see us through. God knows I need something. :sword: (we put you to the sword, you stupid red devil). :twisted:

[Jonny Come Lately]

Agreed! :yay: (FP, I loved your use of smileys there!)

I was a bit nervous before the second goal as after dominating the first half, we seemed to cede control somewhat and there was the danger of them scoring an away goal, so it was great when Firmino scored. I was listening to the radio commentary and I think they had their goalkeeper to thank for keeping the score down. Hopefully we can finish the job off next week.

I noticed Jurgen Klopp's previous club Dortmund comfortably defeated a weakened Tottenham side 3-0 earlier in the evening. I felt that was a good omen.

[The Disco Strangler]

The Arnold Palmer Invitational starts today :headbang: I also recorded the Hero Indian Open. Can't wait to watch some golf tonight.

[Freypower]

Liverpool beat their hated rivals Man Utd 3-1 on aggregate to reach the quarter finals of the Europa League! :rofl::machinegun:

[Jonny Come Lately]

Great result. :yay: The team is starting to show signs of clicking now (the 6-0 thrashing of Aston Villa and last gasp 2-1 victory at Crystal Palace also spring to mind), much like how there was a turning point in Brendan Rodgers' first season after Coutinho and Sturridge joined in January. I think Jurgen Klopp is starting to know which players he can trust and is starting to find a decent system for the team. Klopp's previous side Borussia Dortmund await in the quarter finals - one of the toughest opponents we could have been given, as shown by how easily they brushed aside Tottenham in the last round, although hopefully the manager's knowledge of the club and players will help us no end.

I'm excited for the start of the new Formula One season, have been watching the practice sessions for the Australian Grand Prix this evening. I'm looking forward to the race, although I must admit I think the new qualifying format is baffling and a bit of a dog's dinner - there wasn't anything wrong with the old one IMO! Practice has been wet so no clear picture of the relative pace of the different cars has emerged yet, although I am expecting Mercedes and Ferrari to be the two fastest teams.

[AlreadyGone95]

I don't follow indoor arena football much, but it is popular here and the local team(s) bring revenue back into the community. The local team left a few years ago, but this year, we have a new team, The Georgia Firebirds. They played their game over the weekend, and lost 86-0. I don't know whether to laugh or cry. The head coach was fired this morning because of the lackluster first game.

JCL, I can relate to not understanding qualifying anymore. In NASCAR, it used to be that every car had 2 laps to get the fastest time they could. They would be placed in the order of their fastest lap time. Last year, they changed it ip completely and are now doing "brackets". There'll be 3 or 4 brackets that run for 20 laps, and the top finishers go on to the next bracket. The next bracket will run, and the top finishers move on, and so on. Each round knocks out some drivers from getting the pole position. It varies race by race.

Speaking of NASCAR, Jimmie Johnson won yesterday's race. His win makes him the winningest driver with 77 Sprint cup race wins.

[Jonny Come Lately]

The new qualifying format was an absolute joke, there was very little action and there were no cars on track in the final four minutes of the last qualifying session (which is meant to be the all-out battle for pole position), which was farcical. At the very least, I think major changes need to be made, because it did not work at all - Christian Horner and Toto Wolff, the team bosses of Red Bull and Mercedes respectively, both criticised the new format.

The previous format, introduced in 2006, was split into three sessions as follows:
Q1: All cars on track. Depending on the size of the grid, the slowest 5-7 cars get eliminated from qualifying and line up at the back of the grid.
Q2: Only the cars fast enough to avoid elimination in the previous session. The top ten cars go through to the next session, while the slowest 5-7 are eliminated from qualifying and line up in the middle of the grid.
Q3: Top ten shoot out session to determine the order of cars at the front of the grid. Again, times are fully reset. In practice, most cars would set two lap times, meaning the session would build to a climax with the pole lap usually set near the end.

The timings of the respective sessions changed slightly over the years, but for the most part was more or less as follows: 20 minutes for Q1, 15 minutes for Q2 and 10 minutes for Q3. This made sense as the number of cars decreased, which also had the advantage of preventing slow cars from getting in the way of the fastest cars on their pole laps (especially important on short, tight tracks such as Monaco).

As for the new format, this article explains it about as well as anything else can. There is a lot to explain and I'm not sure I'd be able to cover it all adequately!

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/123208

If I was to make one suggestion for change, I'd suggest scrapping the elimination element

Fortunately the race itself was a lot better, it was quite interesting strategically and there were points where both Rosberg and Vettel looked to be in the strongest position to win the race. It wasn't a great race for Lewis - he was probably the fastest driver this weekend but his poor start proved costly, although second was pretty good considering he was as low as seventh at one point. I didn't see that much of Jenson Button, although the new British debut Jolyon Palmer acquitted himself well on his debut.

I was relieved to see Fernando Alonso get out of his wrecked McLaren after a horrific crash - for those who haven't seen it, he collided with another car he was trying to overtake and flipped into a barrel roll across the gravel trap before coming to rest upside down against the barrier. Mercifully, he seems to have escaped without injury. I also have to say well done to the new American team, Haas, who managed to not only get a car to the finish in their first race but managed a sixth place finish for Romain Grosjean.

I was interested to hear about Jimmie Johnson taking that record. In F1, Michael Schumacher holds the wins record by an absolute mile and I doubt anyone will break his sensational record of 91 wins any time soon. Probably only Hamilton (43 wins) and Vettel (42) of the established drivers have any chance of doing so. Vettel maybe more likely as he is younger and I think he will have a longer career (Lewis has a lot of interests away from motor racing so it wouldn't surprise me if he quits in 3 or 4 years, whereas I wouldn't bet against Sebastian still being around a decade from now). I could see Schumacher's record of seven world titles being matched perhaps - Vettel has four titles and therefore needs 'only' three more championships.

[jms18222]

JCL I want to forget Melbourne happened. Thankfully they already changed qualy back to what it has been. I can't believe I stood up until almost 4 AM to watch that nonsense.

[Freypower]

JCL I want to forget Melbourne happened. Thankfully they already changed qualy back to what it has been. I can't believe I stood up until almost 4 AM to watch that nonsense.

Have they changed it? It certainly didn't work. The only semblance of any competition was when they got to the final eight & the bottom four changed places a couple of times. Before & after that either the cars were eliminated one by one in order of worst qualifying time, and then they all stayed in the garages.

[jms18222]

Have they changed it? It certainly didn't work. The only semblance of any competition was when they got to the final eight & the bottom four changed places a couple of times. Before & after that either the cars were eliminated one by one in order of worst qualifying time, and then they all stayed in the garages.


Yes they voted Sunday morning to scrap new qualy & go back to the previous format. The one thing that actually worked in F1 & they chose to wreck it. It was ridiculous that the final 6.5 minutes of Q3 only the Mercedes were on track. I would have been really angry if I had paid $300 to see FP3 & qualifying. I was mad enough that I stood awake until almost 4:00 AM. At least the April 3rd race is at a decent hour.

[Freypower]

Yes they voted Sunday morning to scrap new qualy & go back to the previous format. The one thing that actually worked in F1 & they chose to wreck it. It was ridiculous that the final 6.5 minutes of Q3 only the Mercedes were on track. I would have been really angry if I had paid $300 to see FP3 & qualifying. I was mad enough that I stood awake until almost 4:00 AM. At least the April 3rd race is at a decent hour.

The time of the Melbourne race was OK for me, of course! One of the few races we can watch live! :jealous:

[jms18222]

The time of the Melbourne race was OK for me, of course! One of the few races we can watch live! :jealous:

Just heard they may be changing qualifying again. Jean Todt wants compromise. I give up!

**EDITED** Just heard they went back to musical chair qualifying. They then wonder why people stop attending & watching races.
I Ted Notebooked the series right after Canada last year. I may be Ted's it from China.

[The Disco Strangler]

This Sunday it was Jason Day for the win at the WGC Dell Matchplay. Jason is now the No. 1 golfer in the world :yay: