Blades Blunted
‘THE domestic football season came to an end yesterday when Wolverhampton Wanderers returned to the top flight after 19 years and 13 days in the lower divisions.
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| Happy like the Wolves |
Thanks to a 3-0 win over Sheffield United, the Old Golds have hit the Jackpot, as the Guardian says.
The other story of the day is that United’s bellicose boss, Neil Warnock, was banished to the stands after a frank and free exchange of views with the game’s referee, Steve Bennett.
While we and the Guardian celebrate with Wolves’ Paul Ince, who is pictured ”doing” the Paul Merson (swigging back an imaginary drink) and then raising his fingers around an imaginary smoke, we cannot help but feel that Warnock would have been a welcome character in the Premier League stable.
But the play-offs are a hard business, as the season’s work is decided over 90 minutes. Of course, you can give your team an edge by waking up their opponents in the middle of the night.
The Times reports that Neil McNamara, 39, who was once employed as a minder for Cardiff City’s chairman, Sam Hammam, has been arrested following an incident at the hotel Queens Park Rangers
footballers were staying in on the eve of their Division Two play-off decider with, er, Cardiff.
It is said that the Cardiff City fan allegedly set off a fire alarm at 3am, thus causing the visiting team distress.
”The incident disturbed the sleep of our players,” says Nick Blackburn, the QPR chairman. ”If the person responsible did have anything to do with Cardiff City I would be very disappointed.”
It is, though, an intriguing story, worthy of the South Americans and Italians at their most poetic.
But when it comes to true poetry there is only sport that hits the heights – boxing.
And when we think of boxing, minds instantly turn to Herbie Hide, the former British and World Boxing Organisation heavyweight champion.
Tonight Herbie’s back in the ring for a bout with Zambia’s Joseph Chingangu. Last time out the African decked Hide in two rounds. But this time it will be different. Won’t it?
”Chingangu is a bum,” says Hide, who knows all about those, having been put on his last time the pair met. ”He won’t last a round this time.”
Hide then pays tribute to his own ”smooth face” and how the road to riches is open wide for him. We wish him well.
And if you want to know more, the Telegraph’s story includes a shot of the would-be champ’s T-shirt. ”WARNING,” says the message, ”I’m not crazy, but the voices in my head are driving me nuts.”
That’ll be Mike Tyson, then. And the bellsÂ…
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Posted: 27th, May 2003 | In: Back pages Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
