The Diary

10 December 2007: The Kids Done Good At Leicester - And So Did Craig Beattie!

I think the one thing that pleased me more than anything about yesterday?s win was, once again, just how well we responded to what was, potentially at least, a pretty serious personnel situation. By way of response, Mogga simply slotted into the side some virtually-untried-and-tested people ? Martis, Hodgkiss, certainly, and, to some extent, Steele and Pele ? and, much to our collective delight, it actually paid off.

Not that we had a lot of alternative options spread out on the table to start with, mind, but to put these people in, then find that not only did they perform superbly, but totally exceeded expectations, must have come as a source of great satisfaction to our manager. That?s the second time in recent weeks he?s gambled that way (Bednar, Plymouth Argyle, was the other), and it speaks well for our leader?s abilities he can do this with confidence. And, taking the wider view, it?s the stuff of which Championship titles are made. Having to cope with no less than nine team changes would have flattened most sides in our division, let alone those dwelling in the top six.

Young Jared?s progress, in particular, has given me much satisfaction. As a supporter, it?s truly rewarding to see a young player make such a successful transition from reserve team football to the first-string. And unlike some clubs, where their young talents are routinely put on public display like some recently-caught rare wild animal, and they suffer because of such premature exposure to public gaze, the process has been a slow but low-key one, and deliberately so. Jared first tasted first-team football via brief late appearances as substitute, then, no sooner he looked comfortable in that role, it became abundantly clear that his real chance to shine wasn?t all that far away.

I never expected his big moment would come because of a ghastly injury crisis befalling the club, but yesterday it most certainly did. And, what?s more, as the ebb and flow of the game progressed, so did Jared?s ability to cope. His ascent of that learning-curve during the 90 minutes was truly astonishing: had he been a space-rocket, the steepness of his trajectory would have taken him completely clear of Earth?s gravitational pull.

The guy he was instructed to mark left so little an imprint upon the game, he was actually taken off during the middle of the second half. As a genuine tribute to an opponent?s professional talents, I cannot think of better. Come the final whistle, Jared was showing all the confidence and ability of a seasoned performer, so at least we now know that should a similar emergency arise later this term, we can slot him in with minimal difficulty. But Mogga, wise bird that he is, will take things as slowly as possible, presumably. Unless there?s a ?next time? of course.

The other delightful aspect of yesterday?s performance was seeing Craig Beattie earn his poond coin, aye, at long last. That 89th minute strike of his was a pretty impressive affair. When he got the ball on the left, then started heading towards goal, my first instincts all ran along the lines of: ?Oh, it?s only Beattie, and there?s nothing at all up there in that box with him ? aw, forget it?.?, and that, more or less, is what I said to The Fart, stood to my right. It just goes to show how completely wrong you can be, sometimes.

When the ball crossed the line, apart from knowing that his strike had virtually won it for us, I was genuinely pleased for the guy. It?s been quite some time since I last took such great delight in being proven totally wrong by the sight of the ball soaring high over a keeper?s flailing arm, then right into the bottom right hand corner of the net. And, as I?ve said before, now he?s broken his duck, finally, will we see, perhaps, the REAL Beattie give of his best?

And, while we remain embattled with the other top-six clubs for pole position, come the festive season, what of the many victims of Albion?s unintentional re-enactment of ?The Battle Of Wounded Knee?? As far as Kevin Phillips is concerned, the news is much more encouraging. He?s now come through the first week of ?proper? training OK, and according to the club website, he now has similarly-recovering Martin Albrechtsen and James Morrison to keep him company out there.

Next week should also see the return of Ishmael Miller and Clem from durance vile,: not only that, but now their respective one-match bans are finally done and dusted, Robbo and Cesar will be well and truly available for selection once more. The return of the aforementioned twosome, plus the other pair from suspension, will certainly create a dilemma all of its own for Mogga. Does he keep faith with the makeshift back four and midfield that did us so proud at Leicester, or will he revert back to players previously tried and tested, when we confront Charlton, next Saturday? No ? I never said it was easy, did I?

As for the Stoke-Watford thrash that took place this afternoon, neither of us was particularly surprised by what happened. When we got back from Sandwell Council?s urban farm, where we?d spent the early part of the afternoon, our first priority was to switch our TV set to the action ? or, should I say, INACTION? My goodness, what a complete and utter bore. So lacking in either passion or atmosphere was the entire affair, I ended up falling asleep on our settee. But my other half remained vigilant.

?Tis true I?d taken some strong pain-killers on my return ? my back still hasn?t recovered from the severe battering it got at The Walkers Stadium yesterday ? but even so, to doze off when watching a game that had enormous implications for our current second-spot, was an achievement in itself. With that in mind, perhaps both clubs should profit from my unfortunate discovery by marketing the DVD of the game as a sure-fire cure for insomnia!

?Methinks the lady doth protest too much?.? Well, not the lady, actually, just the bloke. Harry Redknapp, I mean. According to one of the Sunday tabloids, he was particularly upset by all those nasty Villa supporters getting on his back during yesterday?s 3-1 win for Pompey, our blubbery friends taunting him en masse over recent police raids on his house, in connection with certain serious allegations.

And they?re not the only people to have upset the guy for precisely the same reason, of late. Sky Sports, who erroneously reported his arrest as being in connection with ?match-fixing allegations?, are now getting it in the neck from Messrs. Sue, Grabbite and Runne. After a certain amount of legal snarling from both parties, hoping that honour would be satisfied by taking such a course, Sky tried to run an apology on-air, but Redknapp?s lawyers then told them to remove it.

Oh ? and he?s also said to be planning similar legal action against the City Of London Police, whose unwelcome dawn attentions led to the blasted thing hitting the headlines in the first place. Our man is saying that so traumatised was his wife by what happened, she?s not eaten properly for ten days, and won?t leave the house.

Sky, at least, are trying their best to kiss and make up, apparently ? their legal team?s master-plan is to placate Harry via a substantial donation to charity, with, no-doubt, a grovelling apology added - but I strongly suspect that the next time we hear about this, legal writs will be flying around like the contents of a litter-bin during a gale-force wind.

And that?s not all. Because a local reporter was tipped off that the raid was going to kick off, and, on the strength of the info received, duly turned up at the time, date and place specified, the publication he works for are getting it in the neck from Harry, as well. He?s now withdrawn the regular column he used to pen for them. Plus, I assume, any remaining semblance of cordial relations with their hacks.

Well, sorry, but I can?t believe for one moment that someone like Harry Redknapp, who has been involved in the game for more years than I can remember, can get so easily worked up because of opposition supporters? taunting chants and songs. After all those years in football management, a ?macho? environment if ever there was one, he must have developed a carapace as thick as an armadillo?s. It?s a bit like the law of the jungle: the thin-skinned simply don?t survive the test. Villa?s followers can sure be obnoxious coves at times, but I don?t regard their behaviour during games as being substantially worse than that of supporters of any other side.

Sure, I can accept that what happened to his wife must have been really alarming ? a bunch of fired-up coppers, exuding testosterone and adrenalin from every single pore, charging into our house at some unearthly hour without warning, then proceeding to turn the place completely upside-down, wouldn?t exactly float my boat, either, especially if I were alone at the time ? but I do find it difficult to believe that since then, his wife has been so affected by what happened, she won?t leave the house, or eat properly. Hell, if I was on the receiving end of that little lot, my first instincts would be to LEAVE the place as quickly as Christ would let me, and not come back until I felt far more mentally-composed.

Personally, I find it quite astonishing he?s felt he?s had to go to such lengths with Sky. Unless he?s proceeding on the principle that, as they?re such a big concern, they can take a hit like this with complete impunity, of course. I?ve never had much truck myself with either the Murdoch-owned press, or Sky TV ? as far as I?m concerned, it?s the latter?s profligate spreading of filthy lucre among the top-flight clubs that has ruined football for all time ? but I don?t half get a strong whiff from this that they?ve accepted they made an honest mistake, have held their hands up to it, and are now trying like stink to make amends.

As for the police proceedings, and any possible civil action that may come from that, we?ll have to just wait and see, won?t we? In criminal law, the standard of proof is defined as being: ?Beyond all reasonable doubt?. The Crown Prosecution Service, however, only take criminal matters to court if they feel they?ve got a 50% chance or better prospect of getting a conviction.

With civil legal action, the standard of proof comes in substantially less. That is defined as being: ?On the balance of probabilities? i.e. if a libel jury (or judge) decides that the scales of justice tip against the person allegedly libelled, even slightly, then the case will go against them. On the other hand, should the evidence presented in court tilt even slightly in favour of Sky having libelled Harry, then he stands to collect the winnings. Mind you, for every libel case that gets as far as that, a substantial number end up getting settled on the day of the start of the trial and, in some cases, literally on the steps of the court building itself!

Will Harry decide it?s worth the candle of going to those sort of lengths to secure satisfaction? In libel law, there?s been much made in recent years about six-figure settlements (plus costs paid by the losing party) obtained for celebrities. The rewards can be huge, sure ? but lose, and it?s you that has to pay damages and costs, which can run into five or six-figure sums quite easily, especially if the other side elects to hire a classy brief to fight their case for them.

And they always work with a back-up team of junior counsel in tow to fetch and carry for them, so not much change from a million, there, I would suspect. Let?s hope, for everyone?s sake, that Harry is sensible, and eventually manages to thrash out an amicable resolution, satisfactory to all parties concerned.

And, as Bugs Bunny used to say, ?That?s All, Folks!? Barring any monumental revelations from Planet Albion, I?ll be back in harness on Friday night, the eve of what could prove to be a crucial encounter with fellow promotion-hopefuls Charlton Athletic. Until then, as John Homer would say: ?Keep Out The ?Oss Road?..?

And Finally?.. Pausing briefly from the production of this piece to go downstairs and grab a cold drink for myself, when I did so, I found my other half rolling around our living-room carpet, hysterical with laughter, and tears cascading right down both cheeks. Ooer. The cause of such alarming behaviour? Not our cats clawing him in an unmentionable part of his anatomy, as I?d first feared, but a Sky TV programme called: ?Football Saved My Life?.

In it, various people with what psychologists would term ?severe social interaction problems? are coached by League-standard people, all trying to use their charges? love of football as a means of overcoming various difficulties, the ultimate goal being to substantially modify challenging behaviour (some of it on the borderline of genuine mental illness), and by so doing, make their pupils decent (and employable) members of the community once more.

So far, so morally-good, then. But what REALLY had my other half rolling around the floor like a good ?un was the sight of one of our very own players, a certain Dean Kiely, taking a session aimed at keepers. The title of his little lecture? Er ? ?Kicking The Ball Long And Straight?, would you believe? Something tells me our keeper is going to be on the wrong end of much mockery from playing colleagues, once word gets back to them! Which it will of course.

 - Glynis Wright

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