Friday 14th August 2009

Parliament may be in the middle of its summer recess, but that hasn't stopped the breaking of a big political story this week, after Conservative MEP Daniel Hannan has said some strong words about the NHS. The contraversy comes after President Barack Obama faces opposition from the right wing over plans to implement a National Health Service in America.
In the wake of the comments by Hannan, I think Health Secretary Andy Burnham was right to label him unpatriotic today. The introduction of the NHS in 1948 was one of the great achievements of the twentieth century that British peope should be proud of. It may have a few problems and has been reformed over the years, most notably by Thatcher in the 1980s, but the core principles of providing a free, universal health care system for everyone remains today.
In my view I think Daniel Hannan has a huge ego and will open his mouth without thinking properly in order to get some media attention. Refer back to my blog from March 26th this year for details on his extreme attack on Gordon Brown.

I write this from the office of the Newbury Weekly News, as I complete my last day of work experience here. I have thoroughly enjoyed the week, its been great working at a local newspaper at "the heart of the community", as their slogan says. Its been good to get some work published both online and in print and this week has given me a good indication of what I want to do when I graduate next year. I've also found out that I must definately learn shorthand!

More updates to come on Saints' start to the season when I'm back in Southampton next week.

Saturday 8th August 2009

Saints kicked off their League One campaign earlier today with a 1-1 draw at home to Millwall in front of Sky cameras.
The atmosphere at St Marys was electric, with both sets of supporters doing their bit to cheer their teams to three points to start the season. Of course, Millwall fans have a reputation for trouble and this was reflected by the strong police presence around Southampton this afternoon. Apparently there were a few arrests outside The Square in the town centre after the game, but apart from that I believe there weren't too many problems.
On the game now. Saints dominated the first half, continuing to pile the pressure on Millwall in the second half and were rewarded when Matt Patterson scored his first competitive goal at St Marys five minutes after the restart. However, the home side sat back after going 1-0 up, so it was no surprise that Millwall equalised 16 minutes after going behind. Before that, Kelvin Davis saved a penalty, but Southampton's defence was exposed from a corner and failed to deal with the danger to watch Abdou head home.
After scoring, Millwall seemed to rally and both sides had opportunities to grab a winner, but at the final whistle 1-1 seemed a fair result based on the second half. Perhaps if Saints had made their chances and possession count in the first half they may have picked up three points.

I've given each Southampton player a mark out of 10-

Kelvin Davis - 8 - Saved well from the penalty, dealt with most Millwall threw at him.

Greame Murty - 7 - Composed at right back on Saints debut, his long throws in the Millwall penalty area constantly threatened and led to Patterson's goal.

Wayne Thomas - 7 - Very strong in the air, remained solid when Millwall attacked late in the game.

Dan Harding - 8 - MAN OF THE MATCH - The debutant read the game well, restricted opprtunities for Millwall down their left flank and made some great passes out of defence.

Lloyd James - 7 - Looked comfortable in the right midfield role which he rarely plays, could be used there again.

Morgan Schneiderlin - 7 - Recovered well from an early knock, nearly scored twice from long range efforts.

Paul Wotton - 6 - Didn't boss the game in the middle of the park as much as he should have.

Adam Lallana - 6 - Had little influence on the game, but perhaps too much is expected of him.

Matt Patterson - 7 - Good close range finish for his goal, but needs to improve in the air.

Marek Saganowki - 6 - Unlucky to have a first half goal ruled out for a foul on the Millwall 'keeper, he was a constant aerial threat, but didn't do enough running for the team.

Subs-

Oscar Gobern (on for Patterson) - 6 - Should've done better with a goal scoring opportunity late in the game.

Simon Gillett (on for James) - 4 - Gave the ball away too much in dangerous areas.

Jake Thomson (on for Schnedierlin) - 6 - Made little impact when brought on for the last few minutes.

So the point puts Saints on -9 now, with a Carling Cup game at home to Northampton coming up, then trips to Huddersfield and Swindon.

Sunday 2nd August 2009

Over the past couple of days football has been mourning the loss of one of it's most loyal servents, Sir Bobby Robson.
The great man will always be remembered as England's most successful manager since World Cup winner Sir Alf Ramsey and tributes have been pouring in from every big name in football, stating what a gentleman he was. So why was Sir Bobby Robson regarded as one of the illustrious individuals in football?
After a notable career as a player with Fulham and West Bromich Albion with included representing England 20 times, Robson guided Ipswich Town to a UEFA Cup, an FA Cup and two 2nd place finishes in the First Division. This led to his appointment as England manager in 1982 and his team fell at the Quarter Final stage of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico thanks to the cheating and brilliance of Diego Maradona's Argentina.
The World Cup 1990 campaign in Italy is England's most successful since the triumphs of 1966 and saw Robson's side lose on penalties to eventual winners West Germany at the semi final stage. This achievement is even more special given the fact that, with the exception of Gary Linekar and Paul Gascoigne, the England team wasn't full of world class players like it is today. More recently, the likes of Glenn Hoddle, Kevin Keegan and Sven Goran-Eriksson have had far more talented players at thier disposal than Robson did yet they have all failed to reach the semi finals of a major tournament.
After managing the national team, Sir Bobby became one of only a handful of English managers to do well on the continent, with success at Barcelona, PSV Eindhoven, Porto and Barcelona in the 1990s.
In 1999, a glittering career was coming to an end, but there was still time for Robson to make a further impact in football, when at the age of 66 he was appointed manager of the club he supported as a boy, Newcastle United. He quickly changed Newcastle from a medicore mid table side to genuine title contenders. In my opinion, the day Robson was sacked in 2004 was the day things started to go downhill for the North East club.
Robson's service to the game and achievements were recognised in 2002 when he was knighted.
He has fought bravely with lung cancer and his death on Friday at the age of 76 was a sad day for football. Tributes from top names in football such as Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho portray Sir Bobby as not only a great manager, but as the nicest bloke in football who always had time for his fellow professionals.
Yesterday there was a minute silence at football grounds across the country, including QPR vs Southampton, the game I was at and the sadness of fans upon hearing of his death is a true testament to how much Sir Bobby Robson was loved and respected. May the great man rest in peace.

Wednesday 29th July 2009

Whatever happened to loyalty in football? Gone are the days when players would ply their trade at the same club no matter the circumstances surrounding the club.
With Saint's relegation to League One, all the big names, with the exception of Kelvin Davis and Adam Lallana, seem to to be queuing at the door to leave. Stern John today turned down a very generous offer to stay at St Marys and will look to move to a Championship club, most likely Crystal Palace, on a free transfer. In addition to this, Polish duo Marek Saganowski and Gregorz Rasiak are expected to move on within the next few weeks and it seems such a shame that the three outfield players most adored by the fans are willing to pack their bags and move to a club in a higher division without giving a moment's thought.
Of course, its all about money now and I'm pretty sure 99% of all professional footballers would rather have the big fat pay packet than be classed as a club legend by thousands of fans. Premiership footballers such as Ashley Cole are the worse offenders, but they've set the standards for others in the lower divisions.
Another sad state of affairs from a Saints perspective is the news today that ex 'keeper Antti Niemi is in talks to come out of retirement to play for Portsmouth. The former Finland number one is regarded by many Southampton fans as the best goalkeeper to play for the club in the Premiership era and it will be a side sight to see Niemi line up for our bitter rivals. However it does make me laugh that despite this apparently revolutionary takeover at Pompey, they still have to bring a 37 year old injury plagued 'keeper way past his best out of retirement. It doesn't look like we'll be seeing the likes of Iker Casilla or Gianluigi Buffon between the sticks at Fratton Park any time soon!
On the subject of player loyalty to their club, Matt Le Tissier's highly anticipated autobiography is scheduled to be released on August 20th. It will be a must read for every Saints fan.
More updates coming soon as we prepare for the new football season, including my reflections on our trip to Loftus Road on Saturday to watch Southampton take on Queens Park Rangers in a friendly.

Saturday 25th July 2009

This afternoon, for the first time since April 13th, Southampton FC won a game of football, albeit in a friendly against a very average Hearts side. Having just got back from the 3-0 win at St Marys, I was pleased with the result and the performance to go with it.
Goals from Adam Lallana and two from substitute Gregorz Rasiak ensured Saints won their first game under new manager Alan Pardew and hopefully the winning mentality can continue into the new season. The results in pre season are usually relatively unimportant, but after losing 5-4 to non league Salisbury on Tuesday and 4-1 to Ajax last Saturday, three goals and a clean sheet will have boosted the team's confidence, two weeks before kicking off the League One season at home to Millwall.
Triallist Greame Murty looked solid at right back, new signing Dan Harding played well at left back and it was great to see striker Stern John back in a Saints shirt after spending most of last season on loan at Bristol City. A few first team players may leave before the season starts, but I'm confident that adequate replacements will be brought in, with Saint facing the challenge of starting the campaign on minus ten points.
After a disappointing pre season results wise, I think the difference today was the presence of Pardew on the touchline and hopefully he can drive the team forward throughout the season.

Monday 20th July 2009

Now that I have the Internet at my new house it looks like I have no excuse to not update regularly, so after a long time away, here goes..

For the first time in years the dark cloud above St Marys has been lifted and Saints fans can finally be optimistic for the future. After coming within a whisker of going out of business, Swiss billionaire Marcus Liebherr bought Southampton FC a couple of weeks ago, making them the fourth richest club in the country behind Man City, QPR and Chelsea.
As a Saints fan I can tell you that it feels great to be supporting a club that isn't threatened with financial difficulties and ran by people who appear to put the fans first. It might take a few seasons to get back into the Premiership and I'm not expecting any huge multi million pound signings for a while yet, but its good to know the new owners have a long term plan for Southampton.
Saturdays friendly against Ajax at St Marys was a celebration that the club had survived administration and despite the fact the team were clearly outplayed by much superior opposition, as the 4-1 scoreline reflects, there's a sense of relief there is still a club here to support.
Aside from the takeover being completed successfully, perhaps the key moment of the summer for Saints will prove to be signing captain Kelvin Davis to a new three year contract. Davis was in great form against Ajax on Saturday, keeping the score fairly respectable like he did on so many occasions last season. A few fans in the Northam sang his name non stop in the second half when he took his place in goal behind he stand and I would like to think the plaudits he's received from the fans has played a key part in keeping him at St Marys.
Graeme Murty is on trial at Saints and I would love to see the former Reading captain tied down to a full time contract. Murty spent 11 years at Reading and is being rewarded for his commitment with a testimonial at the Madejski stadium tonight. Saints could really do with his experience at right back.
Only time will tell if Alan Pardew will be a success at Southampton, but his record at third tier level with Reading speaks for itself, as he took them to a play off final in 2001, then the following season achieved automatic promotion. His presence in the stands at St Marys on Saturday went down well with the fans and the majority of us have faith in him.

Apologies about the lack of political content in this post, but with summer recess starting in Westminster tomorrow I don't expect much news from Parliament for a while. In the mean time, I'll be focusing on Saints as they complete their remaining pre season friendlies before kicking off League One against Millwall on August 8th.

Thursday 2nd July 2009

Sorry about the lack of updates recently, I was working all last week and this week has been very chaotic with moving into the new house. We haven't yet got Internet sorted in the new house (I'm sitting here in the Solent uni computer room), so I'm afraid I might not be able to update for a while. In the mean time, here's a piece a wrote back in December on the subject of Prime Minister's Questions for a Reporting Government assignment. Enjoy!


Its 11:55am on a Wednesday and the majority of Westminster is getting ready for the biggest media event of the week; Prime Minister’s Questions. The news channels are preparing for half an hour of intense debate, millions of people tune into The Daily Politics just for this constitutional occasion and as soon as Andrew Neil says “and now over to The House of Commons” we can expect fireworks.
Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) has been used to hold the Government to account since being permanently introduced by Harold MacMillan in 1961 and after recent reforms by Tony Blair it still remains the most watched Parliamentary event in an average week. In its 47 year history we have seen some classic battles between the Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition, from its early beginnings in the 1960s right through to today, when Gordon Brown steps up to the dispatch box to face questions from leader of the Conservatives David Cameron every Wednesday.
It is sometimes the only time we see the House of Commons full on both sides. MPs make a special effort to be present and viewers at home can watch proceedings on a number of different channels, including three different BBC channels (BBC News 24, BBC Parliament and on The Daily Politics on BBC Two).
So why does this routine event attract so much media attention? Shadow Chancellor George Osborne argues we should be proud of PMQs as no other leader in any other country in the world subjects themselves to a weekly inquisition, where any subject could be brought up by backbench MPs.
However, not everyone is a fan of it. Joe Ashton, MP for Bassetlaw claimed during the 1997 reform process that the “Chamber sounded like animals in a zoo” during PMQs and can it could be said this is true; we often tune into PMQs on a Wednesday afternoon not to see intelligent political debate before us, but elected members of Parliament shouting and jeering at each other across the house.
But perhaps this is what we have to expect from the House of Commons. It is, after all, Speaker John Bercow's job to keep the house in order and he faces his biggest challenge during PMQs.
Before 1997, PMQs took place during two 15 minute slots on Tuesday and Thursdays. Tony Blair changed this almost as soon as he became Prime Minister by allocating half an hour of his time to questions at 12pm on Wednesday. This was part of his grand plan to dominate the national news agenda. Blair was a natural performer and one of his greatest strengths was answering questions spontaneously and the new time slot meant he could release a sound bite which would be reported on the lunch time news.
In fact, the differences between Blair and his successor Gordon Brown become obvious when comparing their performances during PMQs. Whereas Blair excelled in this area and could give a satisfactory response to almost any question asked by an opposition MP, Brown has struggled to make an impact since becoming Prime Minister in June 2007. Perhaps the most cringe worthy moment for Brown during Prime Ministers Questions came recently when he accidentally claimed to have “saved the world”. Of course, he meant to say his Government had saved Britain’s banks from the credit crunch, but this simple slip of the tongue prompted much laughter from the other side of the house and it was replayed an hour later on the lunchtime news.
If Tony Blair had made a similar mistake during his premiership then it would be likely he would recover by making light of the situation, but Brown’s lack of performance skills only enhanced his reputation as a faltering leader. Some critics suggest this may be that defining moment that everyone remembers from Brown’s time as Prime Minister.
Presenter of Channel Four News Jon Snow believes Tony Blair has been the best performer in the history of PMQs. He says:
“Although Blair would have done better to abandon the charade altogether, he was a complete master of PMQs and performs brilliantly, wiping the floor with the opposition most times. But that was because Blair was an ‘actor barrister’, absorbing a brief easily and acting it out with a keen sense of timing.”
It is clear that Tony Blair had the right skills to succeed during Prime Minister’s Questions, but that doesn’t necessarily make him a better Prime Minister, as Snow points out:
“His performance during PMQs hasn’t prevented his reputation withering since his retirement. You never hear anyone calling for the return of Tony Blair.”
The question of whether PMQs is the most effective way of holding the Government to account has split the media, but Jon Snow is one of those who firmly feels there are better alternative methods. He says:
“Individual MPs only get one question each, meaning there is rarely any ‘follow up’, so the Prime Minister neatly avoids the awkward detail.
“PMQs is far more a matter of theatre than of genuine inquiry and suggests the PM is in some way more held to account than he really is.”
But what do the Members of Parliament themselves think about Prime Minister’s Questions? It is true that the House of Commons is more or less at full capacity for that particular half-hour on a Wednesday afternoon and according to one Conservative back bencher PMQs may not be the best way of holding our Government to account, but it still holds some importance.
Richard Benyon was elected as MP for Newbury in 2005 and has been involved in PMQs a number of times, most recently asking Gordon Brown a question about child welfare. He says:
“When I entered Parliament, I thought Prime Minister’s Questions would be the most pointless half-hour of the week. I still hold that opinion to a point, but have slightly tempered my view in light of experience.
“For the leader of a major, developed democracy to have to come to Parliament every week for half an hour to face pertinent questions and a confrontational atmosphere is a good way of reminding the most powerful in the land they are, after all, mortal.
“The problem is the Prime Minister rarely answers any question.”
Benyon has had personal experience of having his question not answered directly by the Prime Minister. On 26th November 2008 he asked Gordon Brown why a report into the death of Baby P wasn’t made available for the public to read. Brown quickly put an end to this matter by saying the report was confidential, but the Opposition Children’s spokesman was allowed to read it. This clearly supports Jon Snow’s view that back bench MPs contributions during PMQs are largely ineffective due to the lack of follow up questions.
So we’ve established that Prime Minister’s Questions doesn’t effectively hold the Government to account, but there is no doubt this Parliamentary event provides great entertainment. From the days of Macmillan right through to today with Brown, the performances of Prime Ministers are critically assessed by the media and there is no doubt that PMQs has provided us with many memorable moments over the years.

Saturday 20th June 2009

Frustration. I think that one word sums up being a Southampton fan at the moment. We've waited three weeks for the Pinnacle consortium takeover to go through, but the deal hit a snag yesterday, on the last day of exclusivity for Pinnacle, over negotiations with the football league. An emergency meeting on Monday concerning the ten points deduction imposed on Saints by the football league looks likely to make or break the deal.
I can't stress how much I want the Pinnacle deal to go through, for the simple reason that Matt Le Tissier looks set to become chairman if negotiations can be completed successfully After having to put up with Rupert Lowe for so long, its important Saints are now looked after by someone who actually cares about the club and its clear Le Tissier loves Southampton FC as much as the fans love him.
A rival consortium is waiting in the wings should the Pinnacle bid fail, fronted by businessman Marc Jackson. I'm wary of this Marc Jackson character, not just because he looks like Newcastle owner Mike Ashley (who has had a disastrous tenure at St James Park), but Jackson was linked with a takeover of AFC Bournemouth less than a year ago, which suggests he just wants the novelty of owning a football club.
Lets hope the Pinnacle bid is triumphant and the ever growing complicated situation can be resolved in the next few days.

In other Sport news, the Wimbledon tennis championship begins on Monday, with huge pressure on Scotsman Andy Murray to be the first Brit to win the mens tournament since Fred Perry in 1936. After world number one Rafael Nadal dropped out due to injury yesterday this may be Murray's best chance of winning Wimbledon and he'll be full of confidence winning the Queens tournament last weekend. Ladbrokes have put Murray as second favourite behind Roger Federer, but with Nadal injured this a huge opportunity for Murray to win his first grand slam title.

Thursday 18th June 2009

I've awoken this afternoon to the sensational news that Kevin Keegan may be installed as new Saints manager if this Matt Le Tissier backed takeover is finally completed tomorrow. This would be great news for the club after a dark period. Keegan is a huge name in football, his teams have a reputation for playing attractive, attacking football and older fans will remember his brief, but successful spell has a player on the south coast in the 1980s. Attendances at St Marys have been dwindling recently, but the "Keegan factor" could be just what is needed to get the crowd back watching their team, who this season play third tier football for the first time in 50 years.
One of British football's most decorated players, "King Kev" has had mixed results as a manager. He's fondly remembered at Newcastle, but his time in charge of the England team is probably best forgotten. He has experience at this level of football, having helped Fulham to the old division one championship in 1999, before leaving to takeover the national team.
Keegan's second spell as Newcastle manager last year started poorly, but he was starting to turn things around at St James Park before a disagreement with owner Mike Ashley saw him walk out. I'm confident Newcastle wouldn't have been relegated last month if there had been more stability and Keegan had stayed.
Of course, this is still only speculation, but it could realistically happen. Keegan went to third tier club Fulham in 1998 after managing a Premiership club and he'll be welcomed with open arms by the majority of Saints fans I'm sure. Lets just hope we're not all getting excited for nothing, Saints fans deserve some good news for once after recent events. Tomorrow is judgement day, as the Pinnacle group's 21 day exclusivity period will expire if a deal is not sealed. Talk about leaving things to the very last minute! Lets keep our fingers crossed over this news, I shall most probably update over the weekend.

*Facts in this post were checked on www.soccerbase.com, a great site for football anoraks such as myself!

Saturday 13th June 2009

Looks like David Miliband has been stirring things up again! The Foreign Secretary has claimed in The Guardian that he nearly resigned from the Cabinet along with James Purnell last week. The timing of this has been criticised by John Prescott, who questions Miliband's motives. We all know that David Miliband wants to be Prime Minister, something which became clear last summer when he outlined his vision for Britain in an article in The Guardian without mentioning Gordon Brown. However, Miliband won't stand against Brown any time soon when he knows Labour have very little chance of winning the next general election no matter who leads them.
I predict, as do Labour supporters I have spoken to about this matter, that Miliband will bide his time and attempt to become leader of the Labour party in a few years time when the party are in opposition and Cameron's Conservative government start to become less popular with the electorate.
I'm confused as to why David Miliband has come out and said now that he "nearly" stepped down as Foreign Secretary. The Convention of Collective Responsibility means that all members of the government must agree with the policy of the government and if they don't they must remain silent in public or resign. Miliband seems to be sitting on the fence, making it unclear whether he agrees with government policy and its leader or not. To me it looks as though he's only staying in the post to protect his future leadership ambitions.

There's a worryingly lack of news on the Saints takeover front, but the big football story this week has been Cristiano Ronaldo's likely transfer to Real Madrid, after Manchester United accepted their £80 million bid. I think its about time United and Ronaldo parted company, its obvious the relationship between club and player has been under strain recently and this was made apparent when Ronaldo threw a tantrum after being substituted against Manchester City last month. For me, it looked certain he would be leaving Old Trafford this summer when he criticised Sir Alex Ferguson's tactics after United's Champions League final defeat. Jaap Stam, David Beckham and Ruud van Nistelrooy to name but a few will tell you that when you face up to The Boss then you don't tend to stay at Manchester United much longer!
With the transfer looking inevitable, United are already planning for life without Ronaldo, with reports today claiming they're after Wigan's Antonio Valencia as a replacement. I haven't seen too much of Valencia, but his statistics of just seven goals in 83 appearances suggests they'll need to buy someone else as well as Valencia to replace Ronaldo's ability to score plenty of goals. After all, I imagine £80 million could buy almost any player in the world (with perhaps the exception of Lionel Messi), so watch this space...