Day: 17 November 2011

A tense atmosphere was palpable at the Armitage gymnasium for the evening clash in the unofficial varsity match between Manchester and Manchester Met. Both teams had everything to play for after indifferent starts to the season have left them fighting it out at the bottom of the BUCS 1A Northern Division. Tom Smith the vice president of the Manchester team sadly had to sit this game out however he encouraged a large crowd to come down and cheer on their sides and made sure the supporters were chanting from the off.
The first quarter saw Man Met take an early lead, encouraged on by their extremely vocal coach. Manchester levelled things up not long after though and created an established lead with excellent 3-pointers from Ibrahim and Onifade. Joe Levy Adams began to control the game from the back of the court for the home team and linked up well when in offence. Man Met had chances to level things up but were sloppy in front of the net and missed two free throws in a row. Adam Sims soon made Man Met pay for their mistakes with two fantastic long-range shots in the space of a minute. Man Met were making numerous unforced errors and were thankful when the hooter was sounded for the end of the first quarter, which saw them trailing 17-9.
A jubilant party atmosphere was developing as more and more people began to fill the balconies above the gym bringing numerous burgers, songs and fancy dress outfits with them. Man Met were really getting into the spirit of things and clearly wanted a better second quarter, however their fans were were quietened immediately with a stunning 3 pointer from Captain Jamie Hagan. Man Met began to take encouragement from their noisy band of followers however and were soon catching up with a quick succession of 2-point goals, which led to a time out being called by Manchester. Coach Tamas Okros led a lively team talk and his passionate words had immediate effect on his players who quickly passed it up the pitch to set up Beaumont for a delicate 3-pointer way outside the D. Man Met continued to dominate however and with only a minute or so left of the quarter found themselves 30-28 down which led to a crisis timeout being called once again by coach Okros for another lively exchange with his players. This technique once again did the trick as Manchester ended the second quarter with a 32-29 lead.
The crowd continued to grow and grow with chants of “D-fence, D-fence” reverberating round the court. Adam Sims (4) scored an excellent 3-pointer for Manchester early on and they began to look comfortable on the court keeping possession well however Man Met battled their way back into the game and the match began to become a lot more physical and aggressive. Man Met utilised their number 5 who was having an excellent game and he sunk several 2-pointers with ease. The travelling supporters were now in full voice and were delighted to see them end the quarter level on 45- 45.
An unnatural hush ran through the Manchester supporters, with such a nail biting finish to the game and the players cut a similarly dejected look, with heads lowered and angry words from coach Okros ringing in their ears. However they did not need fear not as Lars Sandved- Smith, Heshan El- Shiny and Joe Levy- Adams stepped up to the plate and put in their best quarters of the season. Lars sunk two excellent 2-pointers earlier on to calm the nerves and both Hisham and Adams stayed cool in front of the basket when taking free-throws. The final whistle saw a fantastic 70-62 win for Manchester, with ecstatic celebrations shown from players who truly deserved their excellent victory. Captain Jamie Hagan was wowed with his team’s performance, “I’m so happy with our all round performance and the lads deserved the victory today, congratulations to them!”
So a fantastic 70-62 victory for the Manchester Men 1st team, hopefully they can gain confidence from their brilliant performance and move up the table. Tough games lie ahead as both Sheffield Hallam 1st and Newcastle 1st are in their league but if they put in performances like this one every week then they will be tough to beat. An amazing atmosphere really helped the game and I would recommend anyone who is a sports fan to get down to the next home game as a fantastic level of basketball was played with the men showing brilliant team spirit.

The University of Manchester’s Ultimate Frisbee club, known as Halcyon , has recently continued its dominance of the North by defending two of its regional titles over the space of two weekends. For those unaware, Ultimate Frisbee is a sport in which two teams compete to score points by catching the disc in an endzone, much like American Football. Players are not allowed to run with the disc and if a pass hits the floor, the opposing team gets possession.

The University season begins with a number of warm-up and Beginners tournaments, but Northern University Indoor Regionals in both the open and mixed divisions are the first truly competitive tournaments of the year.

In the Open division (so-called as it is open to both genders), Halcyon travelled to the Wirral to take on their Northern rivals. They started the tournament with convincing victories against both Hull and Lancaster, the two sternest tests of Saturday’s group stage. Winning their group without too much stress, Halcyon were then drawn against a much-improved Sheffield in the semi-final. A tense, closely-fought game ensued and in the end it could only be decided in sudden death. With the pressure on, both sides had opportunities to score the winner, but it was Manchester who had the composure to do so.

Halcyon then faced Leeds in a repeat of the 2010 final. The Manchester team improved considerably upon their semi-final performance, with their offense in particular looking much more effective. After trading a few points, it was Manchester’s defensive pressure that finally made the breakthrough. Halcyon went on to win the game 8-4 and confirm qualification for BUCS Nationals in late November. This was the third consecutive year that Manchester had triumphed in this competition and, having been placed in the top 3 at the last two National tournaments, they will be hoping to keep up the good results this year. BUCS Open Indoor Nationals takes place at the Alan Higgins Centre in Coventry on the weekend of the 26th and 27th November.

In the Mixed division (so-called as teams are required to have a specific mix of male and female players), for the second consecutive weekend, Halcyon travelled to Merseyside to defend their title. After two straight-forward victories, it was the home side, Liverpool, who posed the first real threat of the tournament. They showed dogged determination, but it was Manchester who held strong to win the group and qualify for a semi-final against Lancaster. Halcyon started the semi-final in great form, taking an early lead. Lancaster, however, brought out an effective zonal marking defence and slowly worked their way back to within touching distance. The fight-back was just too late though. As the full time hooter went, it was Manchester who led 7-5 and progressed to the final.

The final was, yet again, a repeat of last year’s tournament. Newcastle were the opponents this time and although they were well drilled their squad was short in number. Manchester took advantage of this fact and proceeded to run them into the ground. Thanks in particular to some great defence from the female half of the squad, Manchester prevailed yet again, with 9-7 the final result. This too was the third consecutive year that Halcyon had won this regional tournament. Last year, however, saw them finish a disappointing 9th place at Nationals. They will certainly be looking to better that result this time around. University Mixed Indoor Nationals takes place at the Aldersley Leisure Village in Wolverhampton on the weekend of the 3rd and 4th December.

While the focus moves to National tournaments in Open and Mixed, Manchester will have to wait until the new year to see whether it can complete the treble by also winning the regional tournament in the Women’s division (so-called as it is exclusively for Women!). Regardless of the outcome, winning both Mixed and Open Regionals for three years running is a huge achievement.

As the crowd at the MGM Grand roared in anger and disbelief, American boxing supremo Floyd Mayweather must have been rubbing his hands with glee. A controversial points decision in Las Vegas last Saturday saw Manny Pacquiao retain his WBO Welterweight title at the expense of Jan Manuel Marquez, setting up a potential showdown with Mayweather which is likely to see the two fighters bag an astonishing £ 47 million each, although Mayweather may have to wait until Pacquiao has fought Marquez again after this controversial victory.
Pacquiao, known as ‘Pac-man’ due to his all action style is widely regarded as the best pound for pound fighter in the world having been champion across eight different weight divisions. On the basis of his performance however this mantle is now in doubt. The fight was exceptionally close with Compubox statistics showing that the reigning champion landed 176 punches to Marquez’s 138. Many however still felt that Marquez had the edge as was seen by his reaction at the fights end which was one of celebration as Pacquiao slunk back to his corner with his head bowed. It was therefore a surprise when the judge’s scores were divided, with two going to Pacquiao and one for a draw. Marquez, for whom this was a third defeat against Pacquiao was in a state of disbelief claiming “he was robbed”. Numerous boxing experts were certainly bemused by the result. Even Amir Khan, Pacquiao’s friend and sparring partner was in shock, stating “I thought Marquez had won maybe by one or two rounds”. The consternation over the result has led to preliminary talks being held for a fourth bout between the two with even the victor himself seemingly willing to fight the Mexican such was his disappointment at his performance.
For the Mayweather team this will be a blow as they felt that their time has finally come to try and stage what could be the most lucrative fight in boxing history. Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum stated the showdown with Mayweather was still on the cards. The potential fight date is set to be sometime next summer.
The WBC Welterweight champion certainly seems to think he has the fight coming and has already begun the usual trash talk. His joke in the after math of Pacquiao’s win was that the Filipino was “slowly changing”, a sly reference to his tight victory over Marquez being a product of not having taken performance enhancing drugs. This dig is undoubtedly borne out of the controversial circumstances that saw a breakdown in negotiation between the two fighters representatives two years ago, when disagreements over random blood and urine tests prevented a successful deal being struck.
This gritty display against Marquez perhaps illustrates that the wonderful career of ‘Pac-man’ is on the wane, his almost god-like status in his homeland which has seen numerous political and business commitments having affected his performance in the ring. Mayweather will certainly fancy his chances. The fighter, who burst onto the boxing scene by winning a bronze medal at the Atlanta Olympics employs a similar counter punch style to the one which Marquez thought had secured him victory, however he is a different beast, quite simply bigger stronger and faster than Marquez as he showed in a comprehensive points victory over the Mexican back in 2008. His victory in September over Victor Ortiz was a typically controversial win for the Mayweather. Yet it highlighted the killer instincts that have made him one of the most successful fighters in the last ten years. Pacquiao will certainly need to up his game if he is to match him.

Once touted as one of the finest strikers in world football, Faustino ‘Tino’ Asprilla is sadly more likely to be remembered for his wayward off-field behaviour than his remarkable goal-scoring talent.
Known as ‘The Octopus’ (due to his apparently enormous appetite), Asprilla began his career in his native Colombia, where his performances drew the attention of Italian side Parma. After signing in 1992, he enjoyed three-and-a-half memorable years in Italy, helping i Crociati win the European Cup Winners’ Cup for the first time. His goals were enough to attract interest from the likes of Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, but Asprilla instead chose Newcastle United, where he signed for £6.9m in February 1996.
Asprilla immediately made an impression on Tyneside, famously arriving at St. James’ Park amid a snowstorm sporting an eccentric fur coat. At the time, Newcastle were 12 points clear of title-holders Manchester United in 2nd, and there was considerable cause for the optimism surrounding the Columbian’s arrival, not least after an impressive debut at Middlesbrough, where his appearance as a second-half substitute inspired his side to overturn a 1-0 deficit.

However, his performances soon declined amid tales of off-field misbehaviour and on-field controversy (included head-butting Keith Curle in one of his early appearances), and Newcastle again squandered a seemingly unassailable advantage to surrender the title to Manchester United. Although cast as a scapegoat for his team’s decline in form, the Geordie faithful remained in awe of the stocky Colombian, whose cult-hero status was further enhanced by a magnificent hat-trick in the 3-2 home defeat of European giants Barcelona, a night which provided a sadly all-too-brief glimpse of his rare talent.

After leaving Newcastle, he returned for a brief spell at Parma before fading into obscurity, reappearing in 2004 as the subject of an audacious (but failed) bid from Darlington. In 2009, Asprilla received a house arrest for apparent ‘misuse of weapons’ after firing a machine gun at a security base near his home. More recently, he was spotted in the Newcastle end at last season’s Tyne-Wear derby, surely affirming his status as fan’s favourite on Tyneside.

Newcastle United have announced they are to rename their stadium in a bid to generate more revenue for the club. St James’ Park, the home of the Magpies since 1892, will now be known as the Sports Direct Arena – after owner Mike Ashley’s company. The club have insisted that this is a temporary move, in an effort to showcase the Newcastle United brand to further sponsors who will potentially be granted full naming rights. The much maligned Northern Rock have declared that their current sponsorship deal with the north-east club has been terminated early, paving the way for a new company to invest.

This controversial decision is likely to divide fans, who will no doubt be torn between perceived damage to the longstanding tradition of their spiritual home and the financial benefits that can be gained from such a deal. The news provides yet more controversy surrounding owner Mike Ashley, who is far from unanimously popular amongst the Toon. The millionaire has previously generated animosity amongst the Geordie faithful by instilling the so-called ‘Cockney Mafia’, alienating club legend Kevin Keegan and sacking Chris Hughton, not to mention making several very public attempts to sell the outfit.

There are those who have been quick to lambast this latest move, such as ex-chairman Freddy Shepherd who claims that potential suitors will be put off by the fierce pride of the United supporters. ‘Fans in Newcastle, like myself, will always call it St James’ Park anyway,’ Shepherd asserted, ‘so anyone claiming the rights, it’s not going to do them much good.’ Shepherd, at least, is adamant that this move will anger fans and fail to attract the desired sponsorship.

The club however, were quick to respond. Managing director Derek Llambias resolutely said that such a sponsorship deal is vital for the Magpies to continue to compete at the highest level. With seven wins from their first eleven outings this season, Newcastle are sitting pretty at third in the Premier League. Llambias has insisted that ‘to compete we need to go further, we’ve had a fantastic start [but] we need to give ourselves as much of a chance as possible.’ With the club claiming that £8-£10 million can be made from the deal, fans will perhaps treat the idea with more optimism, with particular reference to the transfer market, having seen the likes of Andy Carroll, Kevin Nolan and Joey Barton leaving the club recently in a bid for financial stability.

This choice is becoming an increasingly common one within football, with Newcastle now the seventh team in the Premier League with a sponsored stadium – alongside Arsenal, Bolton, Manchester City, Swansea, Stoke and Wigan. Oil-rich Chelsea also recently announced plans to follow a similar model next season. Premier League followers can count themselves lucky, as fans of the NFL are subjected to sponsor-induced stadium names such as the ‘Heinz Field’ and the ‘Qualcomm Stadium’. In the modern game, perhaps it is inevitable that in order to compete every financial avenue will be explored. After all, the stadium was previously named ‘SportsDirect.com@StJamesPark’ but this was universally ignored by the footballing world in recognition of the supposed passion the ground generates and the history it holds for English football. As Shepherd claims, Newcastle United’s stadium, the heartbeat of the city, will always be St. James’ Park.