Random Sports Babbling Post 2

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There is a cellphone ad in New Zealand where someone uses their videophone to make a movie of some clown injuring himself kicking a rugby ball. It's supposed to be spoof of Jonny Wilkinson but it's probably getting beyond a joke now, given just how injured this guy is.

Jonny is going to end up being out of rugby longer than Jonah Lomu was.

Talking of Jonah, he now plays for my team, North Harbour (!), and last week played his first full 80 minutes of first class rugby in New Zealand since about 2002. Good on the big fella for getting back into after his illness. He's not a patch on his former self, but first class rugby is no walk in the park and is more than any of us will ever do. Go Jonah!

 

Jonah was unstoppable in his pomp. When he got the ball and a little bit of space to run into, it was goodnight sweetheart, no-one was stopping him.

Ashes squad announced. Ashley Giles, James Anderson and Liam Plunkett in, not to mention Mahmood. WHY?! Gilo will not have played one game of cricket in months and months and Anderson and Plunkett have always been ****. Oh and one semi-good ODI seems to be reason enough to include Mahmood. Predictable, boring stuff from that idiot Graveney and his board off fogey flids. Our bowling attack is not good enough to take 20 Aussie wickets per test, it's as simple as that. It will be meat and drink to Ponting, Hayden, Langer and company.

I predicted a close win last time and that's how it happaned. I'm not confident at all this time.

[ September 12, 2006, 21:20: Message edited by: Barmy Army ]

 

A hockey player just signed a 15 year contract. Wow.. given all the player movement between teams, 15 years is a long time to stay with one team.

 

Yeah there was some pretty zany hockey contract news yesterday.

Signing a young goalie to what is pretty much a lifetime contract is a pretty gutsy move - if DiPietro develops into a top rank goalie and stays that way over his career then it is a great move - but if he slacks off, has a break down due to lack of confidence, has a disagreement with team management or anything like that then it is an absolute nightmare.

Still, it seems like a fairly rational move compared to Philly putting in a 1.9 Million/year offer sheet for Ryan Kesler. Kesler scored a whopping 10 goals last year and was well on his way to signing for around $800,000 and then Philly has to go in and try to single handedly kick off a massive salary inflation cycle. They had to know that Vancouver wouldn't let them steal a restricted free agent that way so I don't know what Philly thought they were going to accomplish. How Kesler will have the gall to walk into the Vancouver locker room making $1.9 million when Trevor Linden is earning only $600,000 is beyond me. Personally I say that Vancouver should let Philly take Kesler instead of matching the offersheet but they won't do that.

 

@ Blog

Not to mention, who knows if the player will even last 15 years.

 

Oooh, the Ashes are coming around again already. Seems like only yesterday I was eating my words on the last one. Although at least I had heard of the English players last time.

 

It's been a wild summer on Long Island. First they fire the GM and head coach. Install Neil Smith as GM and Ted Nolan as heac coach. Then a month later, they fire Smith and replace him with backup goalie Garth Snow (who's salary that he would have received as a player still counts against the salary cap for the remainder of his contract). To top it off they give out an insane contract (which for a few seasons will be a bargain mind you).

Meanwhile in Florida, Mike Keenan was forced out of his GM job with the panthers. Elston, the cartoonist for The Hockey News, had some fun with both situations. They showed Ed Belfour trying to hand a Resume to the Panther's owner...

 

Hmm, yet another NHL rule change aimed at increasing scoring. They increased the maximum allowable curve of the stick by 50%. It will probably just result in a lot more broken sticks and not all that much of an increase in scoring but I guess we will see how it goes.

 

They gave more stick curve, but also gave stiffer penalties for those that violate the rule.

I can't wait to see reports on Training camp for my Leafs...

 

Auckland down 19-0 to Waikato at half time only to come back to draw 22 all.

 

Junior Witter new WBC light-welterweight champion of the world . Guwon Junior! Maybe he'll get it on with the Hitman now

 

My son has a football game tomorrow (American football). His team is currently 1-1.

Edit: new information

Well he lost 0-6. He is the quarterback and is taking it real hard. He did well but won't believe me when I tell him so.

[ September 17, 2006, 21:43: Message edited by: Wiley One ]

 

Hey, he only lost by six points - two field goals (or three safeties, in which case, I would worry for him ). He has next week to toss a Hail Mary.

 

Thanks Saber I'll give him the pep-talk.

 

Yay. The New Zealand Black Ferns win the Rugby World Cup, beating England in the final 25 - 17.

If only the men can repeat that feat next year.......

 

The Toronto Maple Leafs didn't look too good in their Pre-season opener against the Buffalo Sabres. They still took too many penalties and they weere burned for four power play goals.

If this is an indicator of what to expect, then Ferguson ought to get his Resume polished up...

 

Yeah it was ugly all right but not exactly unexpected. A questionable goalie and a lack of good offensive forwards will tend to produce results like this. I think this is very much a sign of things to come and I expect that the Leafs will be playing golf when the playoffs come around.

 

Me and one of my firends went nuts with a golf buggy on a crappy course. Driving at full speed weaving in and out dense scrub is FUN. Also driving through a small bunker is rather painful when you get are coming out the other side. Jars your back like you wouldn't believe. Suprisingly, not much golf was played.

 

JSBB: Fergusson is directly to blame for that situation. J. S. Aubin has shown that he can be a number 1 goalie in the NHL, then why did they need to trade Tukka Rask for a Goalie that sucked last year and would cost 4 times as much? that also meant that he didn't have cap space to sign Anson Carter, who wanted to play in Toronto. This would have given them a player that could play on a top line with Sundin...

 

My Chesterfield beat Premiershp side Man City tonight in the Carling Cup. What a result!