Money, money, money

After a weekend of FA Cup magic with some brilliant stories coming out as always, it has come to that time when every team panics that they've had the whole of January to boost their squad in numbers and quality but the 31st is the best time to buy.
First looking back to the weekend and the stand out result and story is Crawley town, the club which is just 20 minutes from my hometown of Brighton (also flying high in the league and cup).

The goal that bought more money to the 'Manchester City of the Conference'

After the solid 1-0 win over Torquay they then had the excitement of being drawn against their fellow and more famous Red Devils- Manchester United. But this fairy-tale story has a bit of a twist, unlike most smaller clubs Crawley have had substantial financial support from wealthy owners which has made them the villains of non-league with other clubs going bust or close to it. This is a nice change seeing as they have two separate points' deductions for money irregularities in the past two seasons. Whether they get the support of the neutral fan against Manchester United will be simple, yes they will. But most Conference fans will perhaps show a major sign of jealousy when they walk out at Old Trafford and perhaps even more when the possible £2 million cash boost after TV and other revenue outlets come into the already 'Conference rich' club.
Now one day after the dream money draw for the southern red devils against the northern red devils comes Money Madness Monday.
OK the pun not be the best but the drama unfolding has been fascinating, the defining move of the whole day is that of Fernando Torres moving to Chelsea from Liverpool(Chelsea v Liverpool, Sunday could be interesting). This deal has once again been fuelled by the inevitable pay rise that comes with a move as well as the lure of Champions league football. Which also influences why Chelsea have broken the bank to pay for him, to finally win it this season at Wembley and to make sure they qualify for next seasons competition. Financial risk maybe, if Torres' current form continues as well as Chelsea's, but it shows the renewed ambition of Roman Abramovich. Or perhaps its desperation to suddenly be shelling out up to £70 million if including all potential January signings. One transfer deadline day deal sets a whole wheel in motion with Liverpool acting fast to replace Torres with Newcastle's young hero Andy Carroll. But why would Carroll want to leave his boyhood club to a club who aren't exactly the force that they once were. Even so Liverpool are still Liverpool, a brand who are known worldwide and what comes with this is once again a pay rise for the incoming player. The image of playing for Liverpool also brings more fame for the player as well as a higher reputation when it comes to international selection. Bad form may not even stop Andy Carroll being part of the England picture for years to come now he has the Liverpool crest on his chest. Being an England international is also why this inflated price has occurred, not including the impending Torres deal, Carroll's move to Liverpool would be a record paid by a British club. More paid than for better players and higher achievers such as the Carlos Tevez, Rio Ferdinand and Ruud Van Nistelrooy.
But like everything in football these days it all comes down to money, whether it's how much a new signing costs or whether it inspires a lower league team to outperform better opponents to gain new riches.

So much and so little can change in a year

31st January 2010-
After spending 2 brilliant weeks in Melbourne I unfortunately have to continue on my travels and arrive in the capital of Australia- Canberra.

My travel buddy on the way to Canberra, why did i leave Melbourne?

As i settle down for the night after a day of sightseeing I start to watch the Men's Australian Open final hoping for history to be created. However as Andy Murray loses his second Grand Slam final of his career the British media once again start asking the question 'How long will the wait go on?'

A year on and still no British grand slam winner for 75 years, but once again Murray has reached the Australian open final with a chance of once again creating history. Whereas Murray's performance has been repeated from last year other things in the world of tennis have changed quite a lot. As i write Li Na is one set away from being the first Chinese grand slam winner, which in itself could inspire a new shift in future players from the world’s biggest country. In contrast to last year’s women's final, Serena Williams and Justine Henin aren't even in playing condition at this time. Serena Willliams has not been able to compete in the Australian Open due to injury and Henin has had to retire from tennis altogether for a second time after her third round exit this year. The men's game has had some shifts from last year too, with once again the world’s best player succumbing to injury. These Melbourne injuries have bookended possible the greatest run of results ever seen as Rafael Nadal faltered in holding all four grand slams at once but has proven that against arguably the greatest player of all time he has achieved so much in trying to emulate him.

As Murray walks on court tomorrow against Novak Djokovic he will have his best chance of joining Nadal and Federer on the Grand Slam winners roster and as they both only know a lot can change in a year. That could mean Murray comes back to Melbourne next year holding possibly more than just one grand slam or none at all and the pressure of the tennis world asking about the 76 year wait.

There's always a little niggle

81 days to go. That is how long until I put myself through the turmoil of the Brighton marathon once again, the knowing of what is come on April 10th makes me a tiny bit nervous. But when i look back on last year and how my training (or lack of it) went and how i managed to complete the 26.2 miles on a sweltering hot day last April, it gives me slightly more confidence going into this years race knowing that I will be preparing and training better.

This situation is quite similar to that of West Ham, after an awful season last year with poor signings and just managing to stay up with a measly 35 points, which would usually relegate most teams in other seasons. But come the summer come preparation for a new campaign, new manager, new proven international signings and a new board. This clean slate of optimism and good preparation would surely mean an improved campaign? Well looking at the league table now and the opinions of supporters around the country and they will tell you that West Ham have not improved and may well have possibly declined from 12 months ago. The laughing stock of the Premier League is only just about keeping some of its credibility with a possible Carling Cup final to come, I say possible as the amount of surprises this season anything could happen.

As I've started my training for my own challenge in the past couple of weeks I've started to feel a pain in both of my ankles as i start off on my runs, now i hope this is just a little odd pain that will go in the weeks to come. However as i increase my mileage over the coming months I hope I won't copy the West Ham blueprint and 'bring down the house from the inside'.


All smiles at the finish after 4 hours 27 minutes of pavement pounding.

You know what they say though; failure to prepare is preparing to fail. That cannot be said with any more truth when training for a marathon, makes you think where West Ham would be now if the slate hadn't have been cleaned prior to the season.

National Pride Being Restored

The national buzz of sporting achievement is once again in the air after England's Ashes success, but is this just an unusual high in the usual amount of disappointment at a national level. Or is it a change from the over excitement whenever a person or team related to British sport wins an internationally known event?

(National heroes, but for how long?)

The pessimists will always say it's the same old England, who will lose the upcoming one day series or test series against India in the summer. 2011 may have only just begun but all athletes and coaches will know that the holy grail of London 2012 is getting ever closer. This doesn't just affect athletes competing in the games, but British sport in general will continually be scrutinised if athletes aren't winning as a nation expects. Of course this has always been the usual expectations for this small island nation, but it seems to be breeding success in a wider range of sports which has always been a major weakness to this Football, Rugby and Cricket loving land.

This was shown with just the lonely Graham Swann representing these sports in the Sports Personality of the Year top ten. If this vote was done this weekend I'm sure a couple more England players would sneak in but it still showed the wide diversity the nation has to offer. One of my favourites in the top ten vote was Mark Cavendish, the sprint king of road cycling, this may not be seen as lucrative as the track cycling champions of the past few Olympics (Cavendish was the only track cycling athlete not to win a medal at the Beijing games). But he is lightyears ahead of anyone else in the peloton and with a bit of luck and even at 60% of his top form it should be him wearing the green jersey come the Champs-Elysees in July.
Along with Cav' in the top ten were Tom Daley, diving's world and commonwealth champion who on the night won his third Young Sports Personality of the year award. Another minority sport which was represented was the Skeleton, Amy Williams won Gold at the Winter Olympics back in February in a sport that doesn't even have a national training centre instead a just a concrete starting area in Bath. Other sports considered minorities were still represented with Horse racing and Darts taking first and second in the main award. But Third place went to Heptathlete Jessica Ennis, bringing back the feeling that the nation is watching athletics closely with the London games just 567 days to go this pressure will continue to grow and grow.

Let's hope it's the English Cricket team's lead they follow and not the Football.