The Premier League

Yes, let's take a moment to reflect on this. I'm posting on football. This has been prompted by the season kicking off yesterday, and my general disinterest, verging on hatred, of it.

I'm not against football, indeed I follow the Bundesliga and try to watch as much of the World Cup as I can. Facts which seem to surprise work colleagues who are well aware of my dedicated passion for rugby, any rugby, well ok, any rugby that's not the dire English game.
So why the dislike for the Premier League? I used to watch it religiously on Sunday lunchtime, so what's changed? I think it's all tied to the money and the stupidity of the performers.

Unlike most sports who are desperate to get punters through the gates to fund the team, the Premier League doesn't need punters. Their money is made through TV sponsorship and related merchandising sales. Sure having a strong fan base is probably good for image, but with the astronomical sums paid for TV rights, whatever gate takings make they are still effectively loose change. Therefore the clubs don't need to care, and so can charge whatever they want knowing their prodcut will sell - and if it doesn't, meh, who cares. Still got the monies coming in.

Therefore the clubs can afford to buy in the best talent (I'd prefer the word, twats, but eh), to ensure success. This is an approach that i think causes the biggest problems for the English game. There's no shared experience for the game as they spend all their time playing with bought in players. This differs from the German, Dutch, Belgian etc experience who play with national team members more often. A situation very similar to rugby (especially NZ) selection policies where foreign based players are ineligible for national selection. That creates more value for the product (All Blacks) and ensures a strong local game. But with the greater money on offer for English football, that becomes irrelevant. Yeah ok, chicken and egg, TV or bought in players, but the end result is the same. The most marketed football league in the world.

Then the players themselves. It seems to me that the Premier league suffers from celebrity-itis. A bunch of overpaid people who kick a small ball around, held up as the pinnacle of sporting achievement in a culture which apparently values that.
Sure rugby players are recognised, idolised even, but they've grown up in the communities (or at least the same country) and so have some level of shared value system - and currently are not paid the astronomical amounts that footballers are, so appear to be more grounded. That might also be a reflection of having the crap kicked out of you in rucks/scrums makes it very hard to maintain a lofty position...

It seems that paying your players that much, takes the power from the team/manager and down to the individual. Which maybe socialist (except with the amount they're paid), but doesn't make much business sense as the bargaining position is too skewed.

I can't see it happening but the following could help:

• reduce pay to players
• focus on club, not individual
• reduce numbers of foreign players - cap? 

All seems quite similar to how southern hemisphere rugby works, whereas the English game seems to follow the football, without the astronomical pay. Meaning the players dictate to the national organisation, which is not in the national teams best interest.

Which leads me back to the Bundesliga, the game play appears quicker, there's more focus on the football - less on appearance and dives - and although there are international stars there, they don't have the name recognition (or at least don't to me), as the premier league eejits.

And, apparently tickets are much cheaper.

But back to rugby for me.

Winter biking

At what point do you call it quits, admit winter has struck, and stop biking to work?
It's not that I'm cold during the bike ride, these puppies have seen to that (photos will incur a charge), and the ice has melted from the snow last weekend.

no, I believe the time to question one's sanity is when snow is smacking you in the face as you decide that hey, what's required is more speed. Ok, I defended that as the beer was at home, and I wasn't at home.
But still, odd feeling and a wee bit chilly.

Oh, and I think I should be the English football coach. I even participated in a conversation about it with people who follow football.
I've mastered the basics, forwards should put the ball in the net, not near the net, and backs should stop the opposition forwards from getting near the net. Midfielders should do everything. Goalie's should stop balls going into the goal. See, I'm a natural and have isolated where the English team have gone wrong.

I can also cope with the £6m that Capello was getting. I'll buy some of you a bottle of whisky as a reward...

Love, Coach B.

Dear England

Dear England,

I think you need to realise that the last two games do accurately reflect your teams ability.
Rather than getting hurt anymore, I'd like to offer a solution - in the spirit of our shared commonwealth past.

Come join us and support New Zealand.

We celebrate everything, team turning up, team running out, team having the ball, and in the more unlikely events, team scoring, team drawing, and the soon to be revealed, team winning.

Here's a guide to NZ football/soccer support:

1. We don't care. Football is a game for penguins and thalidomide babies who can't play rugby.
2. Our hair gel requirements are lower, so team can move faster.
3. Yell loudly, and if anyone harasses you, say you're Australian
4. The objective of the game is to not pick up the ball. Everything else we achieve is a win.
5. Rewards will be great (2500:1 odds).
6. Knowing more than two players is an anathema.
7. Dan Carter could win the WC2010 on his own.
8. Girls play soccer. So our players deny even being at training.
9. Try not to chant 'Hurricanes, mooloo, Can-terr-bree', it's not the done thing.
10. In this case, it is kick it to pass it. Please ignore Air NZ NPC ads.
11. We don't care. Football is a game for penguins and thalidomide babies who can't play rugby.

Love and hugs to the deluded English,
B.

I'm trying to fit in

I'm watching the England v Brazil match (football / soccer).

Sadly for the 22 men on the pitch, they failed to hold my attention as much as Steve Hackett's new album "Out of the Tunnel's Mouth". Which is a little unfair to Steve, as it is a brilliant album. A goal in the football happened about 50mins into the game. That's been about it.
I can see why you'd drink while watching it, there's very little else to do.

I'll keep trying, but I think my football watching days are few and far between - FA Cup finals, and World Cup's is about it I suspect. The Brazilian fans are good to look at, although the camera men aren't as good as the cricket ones. They seem to think the viewers want to watch the match. Pah.

I've moved onto Pendragon's Concerto Maximo (disk 1), which is fun and rocky - and a good reminder of how much fun they were live at Summer's End. But the football has a better chance against them.
This match appears to be a friendly as there's an absence of too many hollywood's. Hmmm maybe I should investigate dinner instead.

Me