Sport – Postcards

Murray Walker, “It wasn’t work”

April 16, 2021 No Comments

Wonderful hour-long interview with the late, great Murray Walker from 2013. Any time I think about formula 1 I can hear him, like Clive James said: “Even in moments of tranquility, Murray Walker sounds like a man whose trousers are on fire.” Murray was one of a kind, his excitement was infectious and unintentionally hilarious […]

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F1 History

‘It’s impossible I hit the wall. The wall moved’

April 22, 2020 No Comments

This is a brilliant story from the classic days of F1. I love it because it shows both the incredible precision and relentless consistency that an expert at the top of their game can bring to their chosen profession. In this case, the expert was three-times F1 World Champion Ayrton Senna. Pat Symonds, technical director, […]

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Sport

“And if you lose one game on the trot you’re sacked.”

October 7, 2016 No Comments

More managerial merry-go-rounds, this time over at the English national team, where Sam Allardyce recently resigned. Daniel Taylor has what looks like a fairly even handed overview of the latest manager to go through the turnstile: Sam Allardyce has certainly excelled himself being the man who managed it after one match, one victory and the grand […]

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Sport

The Unloved Soccer Manager

September 6, 2016 No Comments

Brendan Rodgers and the Plight of the English Soccer Manager By accepting help with player recruitment or in data analysis, managers might be able to get back to what Aidy Boothroyd called “the football stuff.” He, like most of the figures interviewed by Calvin throughout Living on the Volcano, seems to strongly echo the words […]

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Europe Sport You Couldn't Make It Up

Ordinary decent men

December 31, 2015 No Comments

A tale of finance, power and bribery in the Times today. Against a background of major clubs paying non-triers up to a million a month, endless hoopla and hype around the aptly-titled transfer market, phoney melodrama on the managerial merry-go-round, venerable clubs used as money-laundering operations by oligarchs bearing stolen billions, and much else along […]

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Sport

Round and round they go…

December 22, 2015December 23, 2015 No Comments

The managerial merry go-round continues! Jose Mourinho to replace Louis Van Gaal at Manchester United?

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Do Not Adjust Your Set History Sport

A Nation held its’ breath…

July 1, 2015 No Comments

Twenty-five years ago, on the 25th of June, 1990, Packie Bonner made that momentous save that brought Ireland to the quarter-finals of the 1990 World Cup. We really did hold our breath for that moment. It was incredible, I’ll never forget watching it. A moment when you thought we could do anything.

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Sport

A Surprise New Candidate!

June 2, 2015 No Comments

"Hello, my name is Mr. Rettalb, and I would like to stand for president of FIFA." pic.twitter.com/oI2cLJ7Tdi — Luke Bailey (@imbadatlife) June 2, 2015 My favourite Sepp Blatter tweet of the evening. “Sepp Blatter to resign” (rte.ie)

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Bernie Ecclestone, Hungaroring 1996 / f1-history.deviantart.com

F1

Perpetually the outsider

November 5, 2014November 5, 2014 No Comments

One of secrets of Bernie Ecclestone's success responding to crises like he's just walked into the room, rather than running F1 for 30 years — Paul Kelso (@pkelso) November 3, 2014 In a nutshell.

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Bits & Bobs Sport

World Cup: Sad Brazilians

July 10, 2014July 10, 2014 No Comments

I’m not a big soccer fan, but I’ve been watching some of the World Cup matches. I didn’t think Brazil were up to much, but I really didn’t expect them to be utterly destroyed by Germany (who had beaten Algeria 2-1 and France 1-0 previously. Algeria really put it up to Germany, I thought). Brazil […]

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Who?

Murf

Murray Walker, “It wasn’t work”

‘It’s impossible I hit the wall. The wall moved’

“And if you lose one game on the trot you’re sacked.”

The Unloved Soccer Manager

Ordinary decent men

Round and round they go…

A Nation held its’ breath…

A Surprise New Candidate!

Perpetually the outsider

World Cup: Sad Brazilians

Category: Sport