News Round Up

by Patrick O'Connor

I don't believe it! According to the BBC, a new Christmas shop has been opened in Truro, Cornwall, in the middle of the biggest heatwave to hit Britain for several years.

The shop will sell nativity sets, decorations and advent calendars.

Football Diary
by Patrick O’Connor

WITH parts of the country still smouldering from the wreckage of the havoc caused by rioters and looters, it was sad to witness the opening day of the Premier League spoilt by a nasty squabble between two footballers whose priority should have been to set a example of good behaviour to the watching millions.

The actions of these over-pampered prima donnas impacts on impressionable youth but instead of inspiration we got Newcastle’s Joey Barton and Arsenal’s Gervinho in an ugly spat during the 0-0 draw.

Football Diary
by Patrick O’Connor

THE BBC football website regularly includes a very funny satirical spoof TV programme called Special 1 TV featuring puppet caricatures of top football personalities.  It is ‘hosted’ by the Special One himself, the Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho. Apparently it was Mourinho who came up with the nickname Special One  but the British media adopted it with relish during his trophy-winning spell with Chelsea.

IT could be described as The Good, the Bad and the Ugly!

I’m referring of course to the Champions League semi-final first leg between those two Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona.

THE mouth-watering attraction of the Real Madrid versus Barcelona Champions League semi-final first leg will ensure that the normal parochial English football fans will be glued to their television screens this week.

For some, it will be an even greater attraction than Manchester United’s game at Schalke.

THE British have a reputation for being efficient and well-organised but don’t be fooled – we can cock it up as well as the rest of the world.

Take the idiots who run our football, for the past few years they’ve been doing their best to devalue the FA Cup, once the most prestigious knock-out tournament in the world.