Every year I watch the BBC Sports Personality of the Year (SPOTY).  In fact I have been watching it all the way back to when Gazza won it in 1990.  Watching last night edition was all the more memorable as it was won by someone that really deserved it – Ryan Giggs.

Before I continue I would like to just say that I am in no way a Manchester United fan or indeed a fan of any club.  I have my favourites I suppose like anyone watching football matches but a true fan of any club I am not.

Watching the BBC Sports Personality of Year really does bring back childhood memories each year that it is on the TV.  I always remember as a youngster looking forward, to looking back at the sporting year, and I would always watch SPOTY in the lounge with my dad.  Strangely I also have the recollection that it was always the same night that SPOTY was on which was when my mum would erect the family Christmas  tree in the corner of the room.  Whilst she was doing this the cat (and then cats!) would be wrestling with the decorations that mum was trying to put on while me and dad were watching the TV.  What my brother was doing at this time I can’t really remember.

Anyway enough family history and back to the point of this post.  Sports men and women are paid phenomenal amounts of money these days.  High salaries maybe but that high?  Well that is probably another post for this blog, but my point being is that it seems the more a lot (not all I might add) of these young stars get paid then the more that we will see them on the back (and more often these days the front) cover of Britain’s newspapers indulging in some yobbish behaviour.  It seems there is always something about someone in the papers doing something that shouldn’t be.  In fact the behaviour of some is terrible.

Ryan Giggs however is the opposite.  How many times do we see him falling out of a club at 0300 in the morning drunk and causing a scene?  How many times do we see his Mrs plastered all over the pages of the papers in little clothing?  Never is the answer.  Giggsy is a thoroughly decent, family bloke that deserves all the credit that he receives.  Not only he is a nice chap but an outstanding footballer and a great ambassador for the game in terms of his skill, the way in which he goes about his professional career and his loyalty to his employer, Manchester United.  Well done Ryan, you deserve every bit of the limelight that you received last night.  It is just such as shame that the rest of the premier league stars are not like you.

On Christmas Day this year as I have already mentioned we were playing snooker with my nephews new (small) snooker table.  In the end the winner came down to a fluked black.

While trying to play safe after a terrible positional shot on the pink, dad managed to fluke the black into the middle pocket!  See below:

The Olympics are now over for another 4 years, but what a fantastic Olympic Games it has been in terms of Team GB. 19 golds, 13 silver and 15 bronze medals. Our best performance for 100 years. Not only that but we are 4th in the medal table, only behind the huge countries of China, USA and Russia. A fantastic acheivement.

It all started with cycling Nicole Cooke winning gold in the womens road race. In fact cycling was one of the sports that Team GB completely dominated. A total of seven gold medals in the Laoshan velodrome which was 6 better than any other country. We have complained for a long time now about how poor we can be at times in the Olympics (perhaps not recently) but I think that our cycling success is no fluke. You invest money in building quality facilities, such as the Manchester Velodrome and you reap the rewards in terms of sporting (or in this case Olympic) success.

Then it was the turn of the female swimmers. In particular Rebecca Adlington. The first gold was an extremely close race and she just manage to come home first with Britain also getting the bronze. But her next gold was something special. She smashed a long standing world record to demolish the rest of the field in style. That was special. Watching the race and following her progress with the world record ‘green’ line embedded on our TV screens (great idea that by the way!) constantly about 4 metres behind was great to see. Everyone in the living room was on their feet cheering her on to the victory.

We then turned to the water again, this time not it but on it. Rowing was the sport and we once again proved that team GB has still got what it takes to win gold medals. I think the part I enjoyed most about this was the BBC commentators. They are so enthusiastic and commented like you or I would, cheering on the rowers to the line. Maybe they were sat in their living room back in the UK – who knows, but it created a fantastic atmosphere. With sailing also topping the medal tables team GB did wonderfully well on the waters in and around Beijing.

Then came the athletics in week two. I suppose everyone really feels like it is getting going when the athletics start. The venue was a fantastic looking and rather well named ‘Birds Nest’ stadium, that really built up the adrenalin and exitement just by seeing the stadium, never mind watching the events. There were world records shattered everywhere, unfortunately this time not from Team GB although there were notable successes on the track.

So 4 years down the line and it is the turn of London to host all this. Can we do it any better than the Chinese? Well I am not sure, I think we have the potential but will we pull it off? We have a lot to learn but I am confident that whatever type of games we stage, they will be a success. We need them to be a success and show off Great Britain in all its best colours.

As for team GB their successes in Beijing 2008 were truley remarkable. Every athlete that competed in that team deserves recognition for the part they played. To finish 4th in the medal table (which was for a long time third), ahead of countries like Germany and Australia is a terrific acheivement and one that should be celebrated in whatever way we can. It seems as though it is not often that we get to say things like this, but well done Team GB – you did the nation proud.

This weekend sees perhaps what many consider to be the spectacle of the formula 1 season with the Monaco Grand Prix. The location is spectacular seeing these magnificent machines flying round the streets on Monte Carlo at tremendous speeds. But I can’t help thinking that the circuit needs changing just a little, to provide an even better race.

Above is the circuit as it stands today. It has seen some minor alterations over the years but essentially it is the same circuit that has been raced on year after year from the 1950s through to the present day. It has provided fans of Formula 1 and other motor sport with many thrilling races over the years. However it lacks perhaps the one thing that we all want to see in Formula 1 and that is overtaking. The narrow streets and twister circuit provide an excellent back drop for a terrific race, but what they do not give is overtaking opportunities. It is for this reason that getting on the front row of the grid (pole position is best) is absolutely crucial for victory. Take a look at this video clip below of Mansell and Senna back in 1992.

Mansell was leading the race from the start and had a 30 second lead over Senna. Then he picked up a puncture about 5 laps from the end which brought him out just behind Ayrton. He has 4 laps to overtake in an immensely faster car with fresh rubber giving him all the grip that he needed, but he just couldn’t get past. All Senna had to do was put his car in the right place and he could have drive 10 seconds a lap slower than normal and Mansell would not have got past.

So then, my proposal. Below is a diagram of how I think that the circuit could be changed in order to improve the overtaking opportunities on the circuit. Changes are in red.

I have been to Monaco and therefore know that there is room for these changes. The change that is needed is to lengthen the straight after the cars come out of the tunnel and create a high breaking zone where the faster Tabac corner is now. This corner would be turned into a chicane to slow the cars down before they get into the swimming pool complex. Having a longer straight would enable more passing to take place. They should also widen the track at this point to prevent drivers just putting their car in the middle of the track and stopping others passing even if they are slower. This could be done here because the Nouvelle Chicane escape road could be used as well as the existing track, providing a wider track for overtaking.

I think would still keep the Monte Carlo circuit character and at the same time hopefully make the race less of a precession with very little overtaking occurring at the moment. What do you think?

For Christmas my wife decided to get me something a little different. I have been a fan of motor racing, in particularly formula one for some time and I have always wanted to have a go in a single seater racing car. Well my wife bought me a single seater racing experience gift for Christmas and having booked the event back in February, today was finally when I got out on the track.

Setting off to the Three Sisters Racing Circuit near Ashton, Wigan I was a little apprehensive as the weather was just a little inclement. In fact it was snowing, not the kind of weather that you want to test out your first single seater car in really! As we arrived at the circuit however the rain and snow had stopped and the sun was out, albeit it was still rather cold. After registering at reception we had a short wait before my ‘briefing’ with one of the instructors and so I took the time to assess the track conditions and take a look at some of the other cars out their on the track. I could tell straight away that this was going to be really good fun.

So about 15 minutes later I went in for my briefing session where the instructor tells you about what to do and what not to do, overtaking, different coloured flags etc. That lasted about 20 minutes and what actually very informative and worth while. Then it was down to the car garage to start your session.

The first thing was to take a few laps around with an instructor in a saloon car. The car of choice for this racing school was a rather nice looking Mini Cooper in gun metal grey. It was a 1600cc engine and it was fun. Before I had even got going I had a cut on my thumb (I love picking scabs!) that we had to get sorted. So it was radioed down to the ambulance that came zooming up the the circuit to get me a plaster. With everyone watching it made me a little nervous and my wife a little embarrassed. The paramedic opened his boot with all of the equipment in and there they were a set of paddles for shocking the patient. Not the reassurance you need before getting out on the track at around 110mph.

Was I was patched up it was out in the mini with the instructor who showed you the racing lines. He concentrated on telling you where to brake, where to turn in and accelerate again through the corners. This again was invaluable tuition and made a great difference when out on track. However at the end of the first lap in the mini we were ordered to come back to the pits as the snow was pelting down again and there had been two spinners on the track. One a turn three and someone off along the back straight into the tyre wall, but nothing serious. The instructor was happy that I had had enough in the mini and then it was into the single seater formula ford car itself.

The single seater’s are quite small with 1600cc engine, which doesn’t sound an awful lot, but when you think about their weight you get an awful lot of power underneath your right foot. They are around 400 kilo’s lighter than the mini even though that had the same engine in. Getting into the car is harder than you think. You have to sort of slide down and the actual sitting position in the car is almost as though you are led down. It was quite uncomfortable but better than I had imagined. When you are sat in the car you cannot see your feet and therefore you have to feel for the peddles which took quite sometime. The brake was the hardest to find as it didn’t really press an awful lot at all, but once I had found them they strapped me in. And strap you in they do, to the point where you can’t actually move once you are belted up.

With the snow coming down hard the track was going to be greasy and slippery but I was confident that I could handle the pace! Coming out of the garage into the put straight it dawned on me how much power I had as just touching the throttle to get the thing moving I nearly slammed into the car in front. Then we were away in front of the pace car. The first few laps the pace car takes it steady and then he started pick up the pace and I was doing really well, keeping up as the lap time started to get faster. In fact I was really starting to get the hang on this and the guy in front of me received the board telling him that car 8 (my number) was to overtake him, which I duly did into the first corner. I then followed the pace car around for what must have been about 7 laps at a pretty good speed it the front of the queue. The guy at the front had left the track on the back straight!.

On my third to last lap I entered the tricky first and second corner, which is a right left with the left be a sharp hairpin type of bend. I had a little to much acceleration going through turn two and the back stepped out. I managed to bring it back with a handful of opposite lock and continued on my way. I didn’t learn from this though as the next time round the same thing happened again only this time the back swapped ends with the front and I had spun round. The engine stalled however I manged to restart and after going across the grass in order to get back on the circuit all was well. I was gutted though as I was going so well.

One lap later that was it, the chequered flag came out and it was back to the pit garage and off the debrief where they gave us all a certificate and feedback questionnaire. It was a thoroughly brilliant experience and I would love to go again. I can imagine that it could get quite addictive!

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Three Sisters Racing Circuit
Racing School
Photo Gallery

With the sacking on Steve McClaren after the appalling display against Croatia the other week, which resulted in us failing to qualify for Euro 2008, the search for a manager is now on.  But who are the candidates and who should get the job?  Should he be British or does it not matter?

Well there are lots of names that are being thrown into the limelight that are candidates to get the new job, but one thing is for sure – the FA better get the job right, because this could be the last chance for a long time before we can have the possibility of winning a major championship.

Lets start with the English candidates and then move on from there.  I suppose that high up the list would be Sam Allardyce.  He was in contention when the job was available last time however was never really considered in the end by the FA.  At the time he was manager of Bolton, and doing very well, with Bolton in the top 8 in the Premier League and also getting them into Europe.  He is now managing Newcastle and languishing at the lower end of the table and therefore I think that this will rule him out.  Next on the English would probably be Stuart Pearce.  Former player and manager of Manchester City, he is currently the coach of the Under 21 side.  Talk has been that he could co-manage the national side with Alan Shearer.  The final, and perhaps best English candidate would be Harry Redknap (sorry mum!).  Currently the manager of a successful Portsmouth side Harry has been around the English game for a long time.  He knows the players and seems to be a very good man-manager, a quality that is surely wise to have when you are the England boss.

Then there are the over-seas candidates.  One name that has come up in discussion is Fabio Capello.  He is a proven winner with some great sides like Milan and Real Madrid and perhaps more recently with Roma.  He would be a sound choice, but he has no experience of the English game and has never managed an English Premier League side.  This could be a problem and I don’t think he would come across well with the press.  Martin O’ Neil is another option, although he has said that he is not interested.  The Irishman made his name as manager of Leicester in the ‘90s and he also took charge of a good Celtic team.  Now managing Aston Villa, he wouldn’t be my choice.

So that leaves just one candidate.  He managed at Chelsea until the start of the season and I have to say that I have never liked him from day one.  However Jose Mourinho has the right qualities to be the England manager.  He is arrogant, to take the media attention away from the players, he is not frightened of making tough decisions and he is a proven winner.  He has one the Champions league with Porto, two Premier League titles with Chelsea and two domestic cup competitions with the same club.  As he has managed in England he knows the English game and many of the players and therefore this would be a benefit.  So although it pains me to say it I think that he would be the best candidate for the job at this time.

But what is the rush.  We have nothing to play for until the world cup qualifiers start in later 2008.  So why rush to get someone in the job straight away.  I say wait until the right man comes along and if he is English then great, but if he isn’t then it doesn’t matter.  In my opinion England don’t need a football coach.  Let’s face it if you are playing for England do you need coaching?  I don’t think so as you are good enough to play for your country.  Therefore what we need is someone who can pick the players that they want and that will work, preferably without changing them too much and then get a system that works.  They need to be able to deal with the press well and have good man management skills.  All of these are qualities that Jose Mourinho has.  Harry Redknap also has these however he is not a proven winner.

Oh, and by the way for a stab in the dark, what about asking Sir Alex Ferguson to leave United and come and manage the English national side?  That would be interesting.

I have been a football fan since about the age of four and in that time I have seen the national team go from pretty good (Mexico ’86), to really good (Italy ’90), to absolutely disastrous (USA ’94 or not!), to pretty good again (Euro ’96) and then slip back to average again from ’98 to 2006.  But what happened last night was just a disaster.  So I thought it was time to ask why?  What has gone wrong?

It was the summer of 1966 when English football hit its peak.  We won the world cup at Wembley beating the then named West Germany by 4 goals to 2, with Geoff Hurst scoring an amazing hatrick.  Unfortunately I was not around when this happened and after the events of yesterday evening I am beginning to wonder whether I will be around if and when the next time this happens.  It would be a great shame if another England team could not repeat what the great England team of the 60s and early 70s produced.  Since 1966 we have only managed to get to the semi-finals of a major tournament twice – the world cup of 1990 when we were beaten by the Germans (who went onto win the world cup that year) on penalties and in Euro 96 when once again we were beaten by the Germans (who also went on to win that tournament to) on penalties.  Maybe if it wasn’t for the Germans we would have won two major tournaments since 1966!

There have been great moments in the times when I have watched England.  A few spring to mind.  Firstly the World Cup of 1986 when we played Argentina in the quarterfinals.  It was the infamous hand of god moment and we only lost the game 2 – 1.  Yet again we were beaten by the eventual winners of the tournament (a pattern developing here!).  Still the game was very exiting to watch and the fact that we were cheated made it easier to take.  Secondly, Italia ’90.  There were a few games that are memorable here.  Firstly the quarter final against Cameroon.  Linker scoring twice from the spot and coming back, and we had just beaten Belgium with a last minute winner from David Platt.  Then there was the semi final against Germany, as I have already mentioned.  Thirdly has to be the goal Michael Own scored against Argentina in France ’98.  That lit up the tournament but once again we went out on penalties.  I supposed the last real exiting good times for England was the 5 – 1 win over Germany in Munich on our way to qualifying for the 2002 world cup in Japan and Korea.  This was a great feeling, but I couldn’t help feeling once we had beaten them that we still hadn’t won anything.  And guess who ended up in the final of that tournament against Brazil? (who incidentally we had been beaten by in the quarter final).  Yes you have guessed it the Germans.  Since then it has mainly been doom and gloom cumulating in the defeat last night meaning that we do not qualify for the 2008 European Championships.

So what is wrong?  Why are we not succeeding in a game we invented and in a game in which we have the best domestic league in the world?  Well here are my thoughts on the reasons why.

First and foremost we have an inept fear of losing.  Watching those players out on the pitch last night it was clear that they were in fear.  A fear of losing the match and not qualifying.  When you are feeling like this, it is clear that you are not going to perform your best.  Any manager that comes in to manage the England team needs to find a way of removing this fear and allowing the players to go and play fear free.

Secondly, changes.  The England team is changed far too much.  How many times is the formation changed for different matched and the personnel that are playing different from the last match?  Too often in my opinion.  You look at the successful teams around the world and they play the same players for most matches, except when injuries arise.  You can look at the Croatians last night.  They had pretty much the same starting line-up as other games playing in the same formation.  Take Italy, the world champions.  They are still playing Paulo Maldini in defence even though he is about 40.  This is probably not because he is the best in that position, but because it gives continuity and that works.  For goodness sake select a team and a formation that works and then stick with it.

Thirdly, playing like a team.  This relates to my last point in that when we play we often look like a team of strangers.  This probably links with the fact that the team is changed all the time.  When playing for the national team you are not playing with the same players week in week out and therefore it is crucial to keep things similar so that team understanding can be developed.  This cannot happen when different players are constantly used and formations and tactics changed.

My final point comes down to the premier league and English players overseas.  There are loads of foreign players in the premier league.  Take Manchester City who have a new manager (funnily enough a former England manager – Eriksson).  They are now up in the top six and how have they done it?  They have brought in about 5 new players that are all from overseas.  There are too many foreigners taking the places of good English players, which means that they do not play week in week out for their clubs.  Take the forwards who finished the game last night.  Peter Crouch, doesn’t play that much for Liverpool because of Dirk Kyut, Fernado Torres and Voronin.  Darren Bent and Jermaine Defoe haven’t really played for Tottenham that much because of Berbatov and Keane.  This needs changing.  The other thing with English players is that no many of them (only Beckham but he doesn’t count as he is in the USA, and Hargreaves who played for Munich before the summer but is now at Manchester United) play abroad in other countries.  This enables them to gain more experience of different styles of play and to monitor how other countries play and gain success.  Look at Brazil.  Not many of their players play in Brazil.

It is clear that there is a lot to think about in order to get the state of the English game back on track.  Do the public want the best domestic league in the world or do they want the best national team in the world?  Maybe we need to make that choice sooner rather than later.