Nico Rosberg has followed in his dad's footsteps to become the first father-son combination to both win a Monaco Grand Prix, Keke's coming 30 years previously. After a rather pedestrian start, continuing the trend of this season, the 2013 Formula One campaign finally got going with three Safety Cars and even a red flag. It the first of which that cost Lewis Hamilton a podium place as both of the Red Bulls managed to leap frog him to claim second and third, Sebastian Vettel extending his lead in the standings.
There was no real drama at the beginning, although Jules Bianchi had to start from the pit lane after failing to get off the grid for the Formation Lap. Pastor Maldonado and Giedo Van Der Garde had a coming together in which both drivers lost their front wings. Adrian Sutil and Kimi Raikkonen also had contact, leaving Sutil with front wing damage, but it didn't really harm the Force India's final outcome in the race.
The race went on as a cruise around Monaco for the next eight laps until Charles Pic was forced to retire due to an engine fire caused by a gear seizure. Sergio Perez looked in a fighting mood throughout and a couple of moves and missing of chicanes left his team mate Jenson Button rather angry on the radio.
The first leader to pit was Mark Webber from fourth on lap-26 and he came out 11th with a decent gap to stretch his legs in. Raikkonen pitted from fifth a lap later and remained behind Webber before Fernando Alonso pitted on lap-29 from fourth and also rejoined behind both Webber and Raikkonen, meaning that nothing had really changed.
The first Safety Car was deployed on lap-30 after Felipe Massa had a pretty much carbon copy of his crash in practice. His brakes somehow locked up going in to the first corner and the Ferrari hit the barrier head on before also moving and crashing in to the second barrier, side on. Fortunately, Massa was able to get out of the car but was put in to a neck brace and taken to hospital for a once over.
Vettel pitted just before the Safety Car was deployed and the two Mercedes' came in just after. This hurt Hamilton because the Safety Car ushered the Red Bulls through so it could catch up to Rosberg and begin slowing everyone down. The Red Bulls had managed to get around and rejoin Rosberg before Hamilton emerged from the pits and he therefore lost two places. The Safety Car finally came in on lap-38.
Button and Alonso had a slight coming together on lap-42 but this allowed Perez to pounce on his team mate and steal seventh place on the chicane. The race had to be stopped on lap-46 due to a severe collision; Max Chilton didn't seem to realise Maldonado was near him and the Marussia caused the Williams to lose its front wing before sending it slightly in the air and in to the air fence. The impact was so fierce that the air fence buckled around Maldonado and protruded in to the middle of the track. Bianchi was an unfortunate victim too as he lost his front wing due to the oncoming barrier. Fortunately, Maldonado got out of his cockpit with only a few scrapes and bruises and Bianchi also managed to get back in to the pits to continue the race.
Before that collision, Alonso had prevented Perez from claiming sixth by going over the chicane. It was agreed while everyone was on the grid that Alonso would give the place up during the restart under the Safety Car. The race was restarted 25-minutes later and by lap-48, the Safety Car was back in. Chilton was also unsurprisingly given a drive through penalty for causing a collision.
Perez continued to be aggressive on lap-53 and it resulted in both drivers missing the apex. Sutil was able to secure an overtake on Alonso on lap-57 to gain seventh. Bianchi's awful weekend came to an end on lap-60 when he collided with a barrier, locking up like Massa but managing to miss the initial barrier before crashing side on down the slip road.
The Safety Car was deployed once again on lap-63 when Romain Grosjean had a lapse of concentration and drove straight up the back of Daniel Ricciardo. Ricciardo suffered a lot of rear damage which forced him out. Grosjean lost his front wing but did manage to get back in to the pits. The Frenchman was then retired two laps later either for unforeseen damage to the car or to keep Grosjean away from the stewards' wrath. For the final time, the Safety Car came in on lap-66.
Raikkonen and Perez were again getting up close and personal coming out of the tunnel when Raikkonen seemed to force Perez in to the barrier. The Mexican suffered damage to his front wing and steering column which ended up forcing the McLaren to retire later on lap-74. Raikkonen did suffer a puncture which meant he would have to pit and looked likely to end his record of 23 consecutive races with points scored. But the Finn managed to to find seven seconds in six laps to catch up to Nico Hulkenberg and scrape tenth, keeping the record alive. Button was the last to mug Alonso on lap-71 to steal sixth for the McLaren. Race result:
1. Rosberg (Mercedes), 2. Vettel (Red Bull), 3. Webber (Red Bull), 4. Hamilton (Mercedes), 5. Sutil (Force India), 6. Button (McLaren), 7. Alonso (Ferrari), 8. Vergne (Toro Rosso), 9. Di Resta (Force India), 10. Raikkonen (Lotus), 11. Hulkenberg (Sauber), 12. Bottas (Williams), 13. Gutierrez (Sauber), 14. Chilton (Marussia), 15. Van Der Garde (Caterham) DNF: Pic (Caterham), Massa (Ferrari), Maldonado (Williams), Bianchi (Marussia), Ricciardo (Toro Rosso), Grosjean (Lotus), Perez (Sauber)
Sunday 26 May 2013
Robbed It
Bayern Munich put last year's final defeat against Chelsea behind them by coming out of a tight fought contest to lift the 2012/2013 UEFA Champions League. After a goalless first half, Munich took the lead through Mario Mandzukic, only for that to be cancelled out by Ilkay Gundogan's penalty. Arjen Robben, who missed a penalty in extra time against Chelsea, was on hand though to win the game for Munich in the final minutes of normal time.
After a first half that Dortmund probably edged on points, especially in the opening exchanges, the sides went in goalless at the break. Keepers Manuel Neuer and Roman Weidenfeller were both called in to action during the half and did extremely well closing the angle down and blocking the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Arjen Robben. Neuer's best save came when Jakub Blaszczykowski swivelled and shot from short range, but Neuer managed to just tip it over. Weidenfeller's best effort came when he somehow managed to get fingertips to a Mario Mandzukic header which just turned it on to the crossbar and over. Weidenfeller was also called in to action late on in the half when Robben tried to lift the ball over the German in their latest one-on-one, but Robben could only find Weidenfeller's face and it remained 0-0.
The final then truly came alive on the hour mark when Bayern took the lead; Franck Ribery played Robben through once again and the Dutchman made it to the touchline before pulling the ball back for Mandzukic to roll the ball home in to the empty net.
But Munich's lead only lasted seven minutes courtesy of one of Dortmund's most effective players, Marco Reus. Reus managed to out-fox Dante as he ran in to the box and the Brazilian clumsily fouled the German. Gundogan stepped up and sent Neuer the wrong way to restore parity.
With extra time looming, Munich managed to break Dortmund hearts with just minutes to spare. Dortmund failed to get out from a free-kick and the ball would get floated back in. Ribery managed to take the ball down before threading it through a group of defenders with a back heel. Robben managed to poke his way through before ending up reverse rolling the ball past Weidenfeller to squeeze it home and give Bayern the trophy they so desperately wanted.
After a first half that Dortmund probably edged on points, especially in the opening exchanges, the sides went in goalless at the break. Keepers Manuel Neuer and Roman Weidenfeller were both called in to action during the half and did extremely well closing the angle down and blocking the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Arjen Robben. Neuer's best save came when Jakub Blaszczykowski swivelled and shot from short range, but Neuer managed to just tip it over. Weidenfeller's best effort came when he somehow managed to get fingertips to a Mario Mandzukic header which just turned it on to the crossbar and over. Weidenfeller was also called in to action late on in the half when Robben tried to lift the ball over the German in their latest one-on-one, but Robben could only find Weidenfeller's face and it remained 0-0.
The final then truly came alive on the hour mark when Bayern took the lead; Franck Ribery played Robben through once again and the Dutchman made it to the touchline before pulling the ball back for Mandzukic to roll the ball home in to the empty net.
But Munich's lead only lasted seven minutes courtesy of one of Dortmund's most effective players, Marco Reus. Reus managed to out-fox Dante as he ran in to the box and the Brazilian clumsily fouled the German. Gundogan stepped up and sent Neuer the wrong way to restore parity.
With extra time looming, Munich managed to break Dortmund hearts with just minutes to spare. Dortmund failed to get out from a free-kick and the ball would get floated back in. Ribery managed to take the ball down before threading it through a group of defenders with a back heel. Robben managed to poke his way through before ending up reverse rolling the ball past Weidenfeller to squeeze it home and give Bayern the trophy they so desperately wanted.
Saturday 25 May 2013
Nico's Hat-Trick
Nico Rosberg has managed to make it a hat-trick of Pole positions, Mercedes' fourth in row, in their latest bid to win a second race this season. For the second race in a row, it will be a Mercedes front row lockout as Lewis Hamilton was also on hand to show off the Mercedes' one lap pace.
It was a changeable qualifying session but it did end with the top ten all on the super soft tyres, after originally starting with the intermediates on the wet Monaco track. Sebastian Vettel was fastest in Q2 but he could only manage third alongside his Red Bull team mate, Mark Webber. Kimi Raikkonen will start fifth with Fernando Alonso sixth after saying the Ferraris will soon be dominating the Red Bulls earlier in the week.
It turned out to be a fantastic session for McLaren as Sergio Perez managed to get himself up to seventh with Jenson Button ninth. Adrian Sutil sits in between the McLarens to end Force India's day on a happier note than they started off with. Jean-Eric Vergne manages to round up the top ten in the Toro Rosso.
The first man in Q2 to change from intermediates to super-softs was Giedo Van Der Garde with five minutes and ten seconds remaining of the session. Not many people thought that they would be following from a Caterham, but after Van Der Garde emerged with the slick tyres, so did everyone else. It was enough for the Caterham to go 15th in their first appearance in Q2 this season. After being quickest in Q1, Pastor Maldonado couldn't find any pace and he will now start 16th.
Nico Hulkenberg was the one to miss out on Q3 and he will now start in a Toro Rosso sandwich with Vergne ahead of him and Daniel Ricciardo, in 12th, behind him. After a nightmare and very short Q1, Romain Grosjean couldn't find any real pace in Q2 and will start 13th ahead of Valtteri Bottas in the other Williams.
The reason for Grosjean having a nightmare Q1 was because the Lotus garage was hard at work trying to fix the Frenchman's car after his collision in practice. Lotus just about managed to get Grosjean out with three minutes and 30-seconds left to spare. Unfortunately, Felipe Massa wasn't so fortunate as Ferrari were trying to build his new car from scratch. They couldn't get the Brazilian out and, if allowed which he should be, he will start at the back of the grid.
As the track was wet for Q1, there were many yellow flags for people missing corners and going down the escape holes. The first yellow flag came just two minutes in to the session and it was because Jules Bianchi had suffered an air box fire. Unfortunately, the Marussia was unable to continue and he will now start 21st tomorrow. This meant that, for the first time this season, Max Chilton was able to out-qualify Bianchi, albeit to start 20th. Esteban Gutierrez continues his miserable debut season and will start 19th with Charles Pic in the second Caterham 18th.
The biggest shock in Q1 saw Force India lose Paul Di Resta. There was a clear tactical error made by the team and it was one that Di Resta is less than impressed with. The Scot will now start 17th tomorrow.
It was a changeable qualifying session but it did end with the top ten all on the super soft tyres, after originally starting with the intermediates on the wet Monaco track. Sebastian Vettel was fastest in Q2 but he could only manage third alongside his Red Bull team mate, Mark Webber. Kimi Raikkonen will start fifth with Fernando Alonso sixth after saying the Ferraris will soon be dominating the Red Bulls earlier in the week.
It turned out to be a fantastic session for McLaren as Sergio Perez managed to get himself up to seventh with Jenson Button ninth. Adrian Sutil sits in between the McLarens to end Force India's day on a happier note than they started off with. Jean-Eric Vergne manages to round up the top ten in the Toro Rosso.
The first man in Q2 to change from intermediates to super-softs was Giedo Van Der Garde with five minutes and ten seconds remaining of the session. Not many people thought that they would be following from a Caterham, but after Van Der Garde emerged with the slick tyres, so did everyone else. It was enough for the Caterham to go 15th in their first appearance in Q2 this season. After being quickest in Q1, Pastor Maldonado couldn't find any pace and he will now start 16th.
Nico Hulkenberg was the one to miss out on Q3 and he will now start in a Toro Rosso sandwich with Vergne ahead of him and Daniel Ricciardo, in 12th, behind him. After a nightmare and very short Q1, Romain Grosjean couldn't find any real pace in Q2 and will start 13th ahead of Valtteri Bottas in the other Williams.
The reason for Grosjean having a nightmare Q1 was because the Lotus garage was hard at work trying to fix the Frenchman's car after his collision in practice. Lotus just about managed to get Grosjean out with three minutes and 30-seconds left to spare. Unfortunately, Felipe Massa wasn't so fortunate as Ferrari were trying to build his new car from scratch. They couldn't get the Brazilian out and, if allowed which he should be, he will start at the back of the grid.
As the track was wet for Q1, there were many yellow flags for people missing corners and going down the escape holes. The first yellow flag came just two minutes in to the session and it was because Jules Bianchi had suffered an air box fire. Unfortunately, the Marussia was unable to continue and he will now start 21st tomorrow. This meant that, for the first time this season, Max Chilton was able to out-qualify Bianchi, albeit to start 20th. Esteban Gutierrez continues his miserable debut season and will start 19th with Charles Pic in the second Caterham 18th.
The biggest shock in Q1 saw Force India lose Paul Di Resta. There was a clear tactical error made by the team and it was one that Di Resta is less than impressed with. The Scot will now start 17th tomorrow.
Sunday 19 May 2013
Final 2012/2013 Barclay's Premier League Table
1. Manchester United 89 +43
2. Manchester City 78 +32
3. Chelsea 75 +36
4. Arsenal 73 +35
5. Tottenham Hotspur 72 +20
6. Everton 63 +15
7. Liverpool 61 +28
8. West Bromwich Albion 49 -4
9. Swansea City 46 -4
10. West Ham United 46 -8
11. Norwich City 44 -17
12. Fulham 43 -10
13. Stoke City 42 -11
14. Southampton 41 -11
15. Aston Villa 41 -22
16. Newcastle United 41 -23
17. Sunderland 39 -13
18. Wigan Athletic 36 -29
19. Reading 28 -30
20. Queens Park Rangers 25 -30
2. Manchester City 78 +32
3. Chelsea 75 +36
4. Arsenal 73 +35
5. Tottenham Hotspur 72 +20
6. Everton 63 +15
7. Liverpool 61 +28
8. West Bromwich Albion 49 -4
9. Swansea City 46 -4
10. West Ham United 46 -8
11. Norwich City 44 -17
12. Fulham 43 -10
13. Stoke City 42 -11
14. Southampton 41 -11
15. Aston Villa 41 -22
16. Newcastle United 41 -23
17. Sunderland 39 -13
18. Wigan Athletic 36 -29
19. Reading 28 -30
20. Queens Park Rangers 25 -30
Arsenal Hold On To Fourth, Premier League Ends On Highs & With Goodbyes
Newcastle 0-1 Arsenal: Arsenal managed to hold on to fourth place after an extremely tight match against Newcastle. The Champions League earning goal came seven minutes in to the second half when a free-kick was headed forward for Laurent Koscielny to swivel and volley on to the forehead of Steve Harper before it glanced in from four yards. The game was an extremely nervy one, but one Arsenal managed to see out. Theo Walcott did have a chance to put the game to bed but he ended up hitting the post and Arsenal had to continue to hold on. Newcastle end the season by saying goodbye to Harper who will be leaving the club after 20-years of service for The Toon.
Tottenham 1-0 Sunderland: Tottenham did what they could to try and steal fourth from Arsenal. Spurs were livid in the first half when Sebastian Larsson pushed Gareth Bale in the box, but Andre Marriner booked the Welshman for diving, meaning that Spurs would end the season without winning a league penalty. After blocking countless shots off the line and even having their post hit, Sunderland eventually tried to help Tottenham on 75-minutes when David Vaughan was given a second yellow card. Spurs did put Arsenal to the test late on when Bale scored another fantastic goal from outside the box, with a wicked curling shot, in injury time, but it just wasn't enough for them to take fourth.
West Brom 5-5 Manchester United: It's 1500 and out for Sir Alex Ferguson and his last game will be one that won't be forgotten in a hurry. It started brilliantly after just six minutes when Javier Hernandez's cross was headed home by Shinji Kagawa. It was 2-0 after nine minutes when Antonio Valencia's cross was diverted home by Jonas Olsson in to his own net. United grabbed a sensational third on the half hour mark when Tom Cleverley fed Alexander Buttner who smashed it in to the bottom corner from just inside the box. West Brom managed to pull one back five minutes before half time when Graham Dorrans' low cross was sent home by James Morrison. It became 3-2 five minutes in to the second half when substitute Romelu Lukaku guided a shot from outside the box in to the bottom corner despite Anders Lindegaard getting a hand to it. Robin Van Persie made it 4-2 three minutes later with his 30th goal of the season after Valencia pulled the ball back to him. Javier Hernandez re-established United's three goal lead on 63-minutes when substitute Ryan Giggs played a low ball in for the Mexican to tap home from two yards. Paul Scholes would also make his final appearance as a footballer late on in the second half and he managed to earn his 97th yellow card of his career. There were two goals in the space of a minute when Lukaku first broke through to score his second of the game. That was followed by Youssouf Mulumbu scoring from a pull back to make the score 5-4. Unbelievably, West Brom managed to to find an equaliser four minutes from the end when Mulumbu's shot back across goal was tapped home by Lukaku at the second attempt to become only the third player to score a Premier League hat-trick against Manchester United. Lukaku leaves West Brom on an extreme high while the footballing world say goodbye to Sir Alex Ferguson and Paul Scholes.
Chelsea 2-1 Everton: A fixture that, next season, will see both teams with a different manager at either helm. Chelsea managed to confirm third without the possibility of a play-off match and it began after seven minutes when Juan Mata tapped home a parried shot. Everton equalised on 14-minutes with Steven Naismith getting a rare goal after being put through by Victor Anichebe. The winner came on 76-minutes when Victor Moses chested the ball down for Fernando Torres to score his first Premier League goal in over nine hours. Rafa Benitez leaves Chelsea with a victory and a Europa League trophy, David Moyes leaves Everton with his head held extremely high.
Manchester City 2-3 Norwich: Managerless Manchester City end their season with defeat in Mark Halsey's last game as a referee. Norwich took the lead on 26-minutes when Wes Hoolahan's tenacity saw the ball the fall to Anthony Pilkington who finished neatly past Joe Hart. Their lead lasted just three minutes when a good interchange between Samir Nasri and Edin Dzeko saw the ball go to Jack Rodwell for the Englishman to score his first goal for the club. Norwich managed to retake the lead nine minutes in to the second half when Robert Snodgrass' ball across the box was tapped home by Grant Holt. This time their lead lasted for five minutes as City broke and Rodwell scored his second after Yaya Toure fed a long ball through for him. But Norwich weren't to be denied and it was third time lucky on 65-minutes when Jonny Howson stole the ball on the halfway line and ran all the way through the City team before finishing well past Hart.
West Ham 4-2 Reading: Reading's final match in the Premiership for now saw another typical comeback, but this time without any points. The deadlock was broken after 23-minutes when Alex McCarthy's clearance was straight at Andy Carroll, the loose ball was pounced upon by Kevin Nolan to roll it home. It was 2-0 on 34-minutes when Carroll controlled a cross before pulling the ball back for Ricardo Vaz Te to smash in to the corner. Reading pulled one back eight minutes in to the second half when Garath McCleary's deflected shot found the net. It was 2-2 two minutes later when Nick Blackman's cross was tapped home by Adam Le Fondre, perhaps Reading's best player this season. Nolan managed to make it 3-2 11-minutes before half time when Carroll played the ball over the top for Nolan to score his second. Nolan would end up getting his hat-trick three minutes from time by heading home from Modibo Maiga's cross. Despite not scoring, Carroll put in a great performance to end his loan spell at The Hammers.
Swansea 0-3 Fulham: Swansea end up holding the record of scoring this season's first goal and conceding this season's last. Way before that, Alex Kacaniklic had put Fulham ahead after 22-minutes. Dimitar Berbatov was on hand to add to his great tally this season by rounding Michel Vorm to make it 2-0 on 77-minutes, his 15th of the season. The final goal of the season came form the on loan Urby Emanuelson who tapped home after a parried shot.
Liverpool 1-0 QPR: Liverpool said goodbye to Jamie Carragher who bid a tearful farewell to the only club he's ever loved and played for. The only goal of the game came on 23-minutes when Philippe Coutinho drilled a shot in to the bottom corner from long range. It would have been extremely fitting for Carragher to end his career with a rare goal but he came extremely close when he smashed the post from a 35-yard shot. But Carragher has had a great career and he will be a big miss for Liverpool.
Wigan 2-2 Aston Villa: Wigan's last match in the Premiership comes with a draw against Aston Villa in what could have been a proper basement battle had results been different. The forgotten man, Darren Bent, had put Villa ahead after just five minutes after Gabriel Agbonlahor played him through. Emerson Boyce equalised for Wigan on 21-minutes, heading powerfully home from Roger Espinoza's cross. Wigan took the lead just before half-time when Ben Watson's shot was blocked on the line before it hit Nathan Baker and and went in. But Villa earned a point just after the hour mark when Ron Vlaar controlled a free-kick before sublimely half-volleying the ball home. It was a poignant final match of the season for Villa as Stilian Petrov had announced his full retirement from football earlier in the week.
Southampton 1-1 Stoke: Michael Owen says goodbye to his playing career after coming off the bench at St. Mary's. Stoke took the lead just two minutes in to the second half when Peter Crouch headed home from a cross against his former employers. Southampton equalised ten minutes later when Rickie Lambert tapped home from a parried shot. Unfortunately, Owen couldn't sign off with a goal but it is the end of a fantastic career.
Tottenham 1-0 Sunderland: Tottenham did what they could to try and steal fourth from Arsenal. Spurs were livid in the first half when Sebastian Larsson pushed Gareth Bale in the box, but Andre Marriner booked the Welshman for diving, meaning that Spurs would end the season without winning a league penalty. After blocking countless shots off the line and even having their post hit, Sunderland eventually tried to help Tottenham on 75-minutes when David Vaughan was given a second yellow card. Spurs did put Arsenal to the test late on when Bale scored another fantastic goal from outside the box, with a wicked curling shot, in injury time, but it just wasn't enough for them to take fourth.
West Brom 5-5 Manchester United: It's 1500 and out for Sir Alex Ferguson and his last game will be one that won't be forgotten in a hurry. It started brilliantly after just six minutes when Javier Hernandez's cross was headed home by Shinji Kagawa. It was 2-0 after nine minutes when Antonio Valencia's cross was diverted home by Jonas Olsson in to his own net. United grabbed a sensational third on the half hour mark when Tom Cleverley fed Alexander Buttner who smashed it in to the bottom corner from just inside the box. West Brom managed to pull one back five minutes before half time when Graham Dorrans' low cross was sent home by James Morrison. It became 3-2 five minutes in to the second half when substitute Romelu Lukaku guided a shot from outside the box in to the bottom corner despite Anders Lindegaard getting a hand to it. Robin Van Persie made it 4-2 three minutes later with his 30th goal of the season after Valencia pulled the ball back to him. Javier Hernandez re-established United's three goal lead on 63-minutes when substitute Ryan Giggs played a low ball in for the Mexican to tap home from two yards. Paul Scholes would also make his final appearance as a footballer late on in the second half and he managed to earn his 97th yellow card of his career. There were two goals in the space of a minute when Lukaku first broke through to score his second of the game. That was followed by Youssouf Mulumbu scoring from a pull back to make the score 5-4. Unbelievably, West Brom managed to to find an equaliser four minutes from the end when Mulumbu's shot back across goal was tapped home by Lukaku at the second attempt to become only the third player to score a Premier League hat-trick against Manchester United. Lukaku leaves West Brom on an extreme high while the footballing world say goodbye to Sir Alex Ferguson and Paul Scholes.
Chelsea 2-1 Everton: A fixture that, next season, will see both teams with a different manager at either helm. Chelsea managed to confirm third without the possibility of a play-off match and it began after seven minutes when Juan Mata tapped home a parried shot. Everton equalised on 14-minutes with Steven Naismith getting a rare goal after being put through by Victor Anichebe. The winner came on 76-minutes when Victor Moses chested the ball down for Fernando Torres to score his first Premier League goal in over nine hours. Rafa Benitez leaves Chelsea with a victory and a Europa League trophy, David Moyes leaves Everton with his head held extremely high.
Manchester City 2-3 Norwich: Managerless Manchester City end their season with defeat in Mark Halsey's last game as a referee. Norwich took the lead on 26-minutes when Wes Hoolahan's tenacity saw the ball the fall to Anthony Pilkington who finished neatly past Joe Hart. Their lead lasted just three minutes when a good interchange between Samir Nasri and Edin Dzeko saw the ball go to Jack Rodwell for the Englishman to score his first goal for the club. Norwich managed to retake the lead nine minutes in to the second half when Robert Snodgrass' ball across the box was tapped home by Grant Holt. This time their lead lasted for five minutes as City broke and Rodwell scored his second after Yaya Toure fed a long ball through for him. But Norwich weren't to be denied and it was third time lucky on 65-minutes when Jonny Howson stole the ball on the halfway line and ran all the way through the City team before finishing well past Hart.
West Ham 4-2 Reading: Reading's final match in the Premiership for now saw another typical comeback, but this time without any points. The deadlock was broken after 23-minutes when Alex McCarthy's clearance was straight at Andy Carroll, the loose ball was pounced upon by Kevin Nolan to roll it home. It was 2-0 on 34-minutes when Carroll controlled a cross before pulling the ball back for Ricardo Vaz Te to smash in to the corner. Reading pulled one back eight minutes in to the second half when Garath McCleary's deflected shot found the net. It was 2-2 two minutes later when Nick Blackman's cross was tapped home by Adam Le Fondre, perhaps Reading's best player this season. Nolan managed to make it 3-2 11-minutes before half time when Carroll played the ball over the top for Nolan to score his second. Nolan would end up getting his hat-trick three minutes from time by heading home from Modibo Maiga's cross. Despite not scoring, Carroll put in a great performance to end his loan spell at The Hammers.
Swansea 0-3 Fulham: Swansea end up holding the record of scoring this season's first goal and conceding this season's last. Way before that, Alex Kacaniklic had put Fulham ahead after 22-minutes. Dimitar Berbatov was on hand to add to his great tally this season by rounding Michel Vorm to make it 2-0 on 77-minutes, his 15th of the season. The final goal of the season came form the on loan Urby Emanuelson who tapped home after a parried shot.
Liverpool 1-0 QPR: Liverpool said goodbye to Jamie Carragher who bid a tearful farewell to the only club he's ever loved and played for. The only goal of the game came on 23-minutes when Philippe Coutinho drilled a shot in to the bottom corner from long range. It would have been extremely fitting for Carragher to end his career with a rare goal but he came extremely close when he smashed the post from a 35-yard shot. But Carragher has had a great career and he will be a big miss for Liverpool.
Wigan 2-2 Aston Villa: Wigan's last match in the Premiership comes with a draw against Aston Villa in what could have been a proper basement battle had results been different. The forgotten man, Darren Bent, had put Villa ahead after just five minutes after Gabriel Agbonlahor played him through. Emerson Boyce equalised for Wigan on 21-minutes, heading powerfully home from Roger Espinoza's cross. Wigan took the lead just before half-time when Ben Watson's shot was blocked on the line before it hit Nathan Baker and and went in. But Villa earned a point just after the hour mark when Ron Vlaar controlled a free-kick before sublimely half-volleying the ball home. It was a poignant final match of the season for Villa as Stilian Petrov had announced his full retirement from football earlier in the week.
Southampton 1-1 Stoke: Michael Owen says goodbye to his playing career after coming off the bench at St. Mary's. Stoke took the lead just two minutes in to the second half when Peter Crouch headed home from a cross against his former employers. Southampton equalised ten minutes later when Rickie Lambert tapped home from a parried shot. Unfortunately, Owen couldn't sign off with a goal but it is the end of a fantastic career.
Woffy Is A Champ Six Years In The Making
After claiming the British Championship earlier in the week, Tai Woffinden has managed to cap off a wonderful start to his second Grand Prix campaign with a GP win in Prague. It means that Woffinden has become the first British winner of a GP in six years. There was an even rarer moment when Woffinden temporarily went top of the standings after his second heat, but now currently sits second.
The Championship leader before Prague, Tomasz Gollob, had a nightmare of a meeting. He only managed to gain three points and that means he's now fifth in the standings. After his two victories, Emil Sayfutdinov managed to make it to his third consecutive final and now leads the standings in honour of his late dad.
The final was possibly the most eventful heat of the night as the Prague track didn't really allow for some top drawer Speedway action. Woffinden and Sayfutdinov were joined by Nicki Pedersen, who managed to get through the night despite having broken his arm in the last meeting, and Krzysztof Kasprzak, who managed to put in his first real good performance of this season.
The tapes may have been a little longer in going up and Sayfutdinov went off the line too quickly. The Russian unfortunately touched the tapes and he immediately knew that he would be excluded from the restart, preventing him from potentially winning three consecutive GP events. Woffinden managed to take full advantage of the largely unstoppable inside gate to control the final. Pedersen would miss the first corner of the last lap and the Dane hit the deck, the last thing he needed with his broken arm. But as the final was in its last lap, Woffinden and Kasprzak were allowed to continue to the chequered flag where Woffy was crowned champion.
Kasprzak managed to get to the final despite having all the odds against him. Sayfutdinov managed to win the first semi-final from gate two. Before this, only two people had managed to get second from the unforgiving fourth gate, but Kasprzak managed to make that three, leaving Freddie Lindgren third from gate one and Andreas Jonsson fourth from the also unenviable gate three.
Matej Zagar made a huge tactical error in the second semi-final. After Woffinden picked gate two, which he won from, the Slovenian picked gate three over gate one. This proved fatal as Zagar finished fourth with Pedersen gleefully taking second from gate one and Jaroslaw Hampel finished third from gate four.
Zagar had a great meeting and that began with the opening heat victory from the inside gate. Gollob was second at the start of the final lap, but somehow he allowed Niels-Kristian Iversen and Ales Dryml, who replaced the injured Darcy Ward for this meeting, to overtake him. Many feared Kasprzak's poor start to the GP series was going to continue when he could only finish third from the inside gate in heat two, Pedersen opened his night with a win with Sayfutdinov taking second from gate four and the wildcard Josef Franc was left at the back. Woffinden won his first heat from gate one but Hampel also started badly with fourth place from gate two, Lindgren took second with Jonsson third. The fourth heat was taken by Chris Holder with Greg Hancock second from gate one, Martin Vaculik was third with Antonio Lindback continuing his poor form with a fourth place.
Lindback made that back to back fourth places in heat five, but this time from gate one as opposed to gate four, as Zagar made it back to back wins, with Kasprzak second and Lindgren third. Woffinden also made it two wins from two with Holder second. Heat seven was taken by Hampel from the inside gate with Hancock second, Pedersen third and Gollob again coming last, coming in order of their gates. Vaculik wasn't going to have an easy time from gate four in heat eight, but he wouldn't even finish as his chain came off from the start and the Slovakian was left marooned. Sayfutdinov took his first heat of the night with Jonsson looking much better in second and Dryml third from the inside gate.
Franc false started in heat nine, but he didn't touch the tapes so all four riders were back for the restart. But the Czech failed to take advantage of the inside gate and ended up fourth behind Vaculik, Zagar and Hampel. Kasprzak managed to win heat ten with Hancock third behind Jonsson but ahead of Iversen. Lindgren was two laps away from winning his first heat of the season in heat-11, but Sayfutdinov overtook him on the second lap to claim his second win, Gollob took his point of the night with Holder fourth from gate four. Woffinden would be one of only three riders to win from gate three all night and he managed to do it twice, it first came in heat-12 with Lindback finishing second to score his first points of the night, Pedersen came fourth from gate four behind Dryml.
Pedersen recovered though to take heat-13 from the inside gate, Holder finished fourth from gate two with Zagar claiming second from gate four and Jonsson took third. Sayfutdinov made it three wins in a row in heat-14 and he managed it from gate three, Lindgren took second with Iversen third and Hampel fourth. Woffinden managed to top that by making it four wins out of four in heat-15, also from gate three, with Gollob again finishing fourth, from gate two, Vaculik took second with Kasprzak third. Heat-16 saw Lindgren finally win his first heat of the season, from gate one.
Heat-17 was the battle between the two most in form riders, Woffinden from gate four and Sayfutdinov from gate two. If the meeting wasn't about the gates, this could have been an amazing heat but Sayfutdinov took it to make it four wins in a row, stopping Woffinden's perfect night. Woffinden took third behind Hancock with Zagar finishing fourth from gate one. Heat-18 was taken by Iversen ahead of Lindgren, Pedersen and Vaculik. Gollob's best result came in heat-19 where he finished second from gate one, behind Jonsson. The final heat was taken by Hampel from gate three with Holder second, Kasprzak third and Dryml fourth.
After three fantastic meetings, Sayfutdinov deservedly leads the Championship standings after four events. But it's only by a point as Woffinden now sits second on 54. There's a eight point gap between the Brit and Hampel with Pedersen fourth on 44 and Gollob now fifth on 43. Champion Holder is sixth on 40 with Zagar having an impressive season, seventh on 38. Hancock completes the top eight with 34 points.
The Championship leader before Prague, Tomasz Gollob, had a nightmare of a meeting. He only managed to gain three points and that means he's now fifth in the standings. After his two victories, Emil Sayfutdinov managed to make it to his third consecutive final and now leads the standings in honour of his late dad.
The final was possibly the most eventful heat of the night as the Prague track didn't really allow for some top drawer Speedway action. Woffinden and Sayfutdinov were joined by Nicki Pedersen, who managed to get through the night despite having broken his arm in the last meeting, and Krzysztof Kasprzak, who managed to put in his first real good performance of this season.
The tapes may have been a little longer in going up and Sayfutdinov went off the line too quickly. The Russian unfortunately touched the tapes and he immediately knew that he would be excluded from the restart, preventing him from potentially winning three consecutive GP events. Woffinden managed to take full advantage of the largely unstoppable inside gate to control the final. Pedersen would miss the first corner of the last lap and the Dane hit the deck, the last thing he needed with his broken arm. But as the final was in its last lap, Woffinden and Kasprzak were allowed to continue to the chequered flag where Woffy was crowned champion.
Kasprzak managed to get to the final despite having all the odds against him. Sayfutdinov managed to win the first semi-final from gate two. Before this, only two people had managed to get second from the unforgiving fourth gate, but Kasprzak managed to make that three, leaving Freddie Lindgren third from gate one and Andreas Jonsson fourth from the also unenviable gate three.
Matej Zagar made a huge tactical error in the second semi-final. After Woffinden picked gate two, which he won from, the Slovenian picked gate three over gate one. This proved fatal as Zagar finished fourth with Pedersen gleefully taking second from gate one and Jaroslaw Hampel finished third from gate four.
Zagar had a great meeting and that began with the opening heat victory from the inside gate. Gollob was second at the start of the final lap, but somehow he allowed Niels-Kristian Iversen and Ales Dryml, who replaced the injured Darcy Ward for this meeting, to overtake him. Many feared Kasprzak's poor start to the GP series was going to continue when he could only finish third from the inside gate in heat two, Pedersen opened his night with a win with Sayfutdinov taking second from gate four and the wildcard Josef Franc was left at the back. Woffinden won his first heat from gate one but Hampel also started badly with fourth place from gate two, Lindgren took second with Jonsson third. The fourth heat was taken by Chris Holder with Greg Hancock second from gate one, Martin Vaculik was third with Antonio Lindback continuing his poor form with a fourth place.
Lindback made that back to back fourth places in heat five, but this time from gate one as opposed to gate four, as Zagar made it back to back wins, with Kasprzak second and Lindgren third. Woffinden also made it two wins from two with Holder second. Heat seven was taken by Hampel from the inside gate with Hancock second, Pedersen third and Gollob again coming last, coming in order of their gates. Vaculik wasn't going to have an easy time from gate four in heat eight, but he wouldn't even finish as his chain came off from the start and the Slovakian was left marooned. Sayfutdinov took his first heat of the night with Jonsson looking much better in second and Dryml third from the inside gate.
Franc false started in heat nine, but he didn't touch the tapes so all four riders were back for the restart. But the Czech failed to take advantage of the inside gate and ended up fourth behind Vaculik, Zagar and Hampel. Kasprzak managed to win heat ten with Hancock third behind Jonsson but ahead of Iversen. Lindgren was two laps away from winning his first heat of the season in heat-11, but Sayfutdinov overtook him on the second lap to claim his second win, Gollob took his point of the night with Holder fourth from gate four. Woffinden would be one of only three riders to win from gate three all night and he managed to do it twice, it first came in heat-12 with Lindback finishing second to score his first points of the night, Pedersen came fourth from gate four behind Dryml.
Pedersen recovered though to take heat-13 from the inside gate, Holder finished fourth from gate two with Zagar claiming second from gate four and Jonsson took third. Sayfutdinov made it three wins in a row in heat-14 and he managed it from gate three, Lindgren took second with Iversen third and Hampel fourth. Woffinden managed to top that by making it four wins out of four in heat-15, also from gate three, with Gollob again finishing fourth, from gate two, Vaculik took second with Kasprzak third. Heat-16 saw Lindgren finally win his first heat of the season, from gate one.
Heat-17 was the battle between the two most in form riders, Woffinden from gate four and Sayfutdinov from gate two. If the meeting wasn't about the gates, this could have been an amazing heat but Sayfutdinov took it to make it four wins in a row, stopping Woffinden's perfect night. Woffinden took third behind Hancock with Zagar finishing fourth from gate one. Heat-18 was taken by Iversen ahead of Lindgren, Pedersen and Vaculik. Gollob's best result came in heat-19 where he finished second from gate one, behind Jonsson. The final heat was taken by Hampel from gate three with Holder second, Kasprzak third and Dryml fourth.
After three fantastic meetings, Sayfutdinov deservedly leads the Championship standings after four events. But it's only by a point as Woffinden now sits second on 54. There's a eight point gap between the Brit and Hampel with Pedersen fourth on 44 and Gollob now fifth on 43. Champion Holder is sixth on 40 with Zagar having an impressive season, seventh on 38. Hancock completes the top eight with 34 points.
Thursday 16 May 2013
Premier Michael Van Gerwen
Michael Van Gerwen continues his unbelievable 2012/2013 by adding the Premier League to his Grand Prix title. The 24-year old Dutchman created history by succumbing Phil Taylor to his first ever defeat in a Premier League final. The two finalists saw off their opponents by beating them 8-4 before locking horns for what was the second, of what will be many, major finals between Taylor and Van Gerwen.
The final was literally a match of two halves as Taylor dominated the first part of the final before Van Gerwen battled back after the break to seize his opportunity and take the crown, 10-8. The Dutchman did win the opening leg of the final and missed double seven to take out-134, which would have given him a 2-0 lead. Nerves may have played a part for Van Gerwen in the early going and three missed darts at the double in the third leg allowed Taylor to find an early break.
The Power looked imperious and would the Van Gerwen once again in the seventh leg to lead 5-2. This time, Taylor failed to hold to his own throw in order to extend his lead further. This meant that Van Gerwen only went in at the break 5-3 down, in the race to ten.
As their has been no break in any of this season's Premier League matches, the interval may have stopped both of the players' rhythm in the ninth leg. Both players missed two darts to win the leg before Van Gerwen crucially took out-20 to hold his throw and move to within a leg of Taylor. That leg immediately came as Taylor missed two darts to hold his two leg advantage and Van Gerwen wasn't going to waste this opportunity to level the match.
The 11th leg was the first time Van Gerwen took the lead since the very start and when Taylor missed a further dart to win leg-12, the Dutchman soon found himself in a promising position at 7-5. Then it was Van Gerwen's turn to miss darts to go 8-5 in front, allowing Taylor to close the gap back to one. The 16th leg saw a little bit of inexperience come from Van Gerwen as he threw the gauntlet down to Taylor. The Power was waiting on-160 and Van Gerwen was naive enough to think that he could ignore at shot at the bull in favour of setting himself up for double-16, believing that Taylor wouldn't hit the three figure checkout. But how wrong was the Dutchman, Taylor hit treble-20, treble-20 and then double top to take the 160-out and level the match.
Most other players would have fazed by that tenacious finish, but not Van Gerwen. The Dutchman started the 15th leg with a 180 before finishing on-40 to retake the lead. Taylor then missed two more doubles in the next leg to allow Van Gerwen to go one away from victory. The victory was very in his own hands in leg-17 but he blew two Premier League winning darts to allow Taylor force another leg. But again Van Gerwen wasn't fazed and the Dutchman would win the match in sublime style; with his first dart he hit the-25, that was followed by treble-19 before a fantastic bulls-eye to take out-132 and claim the Premier League in his debut year.
The final was literally a match of two halves as Taylor dominated the first part of the final before Van Gerwen battled back after the break to seize his opportunity and take the crown, 10-8. The Dutchman did win the opening leg of the final and missed double seven to take out-134, which would have given him a 2-0 lead. Nerves may have played a part for Van Gerwen in the early going and three missed darts at the double in the third leg allowed Taylor to find an early break.
The Power looked imperious and would the Van Gerwen once again in the seventh leg to lead 5-2. This time, Taylor failed to hold to his own throw in order to extend his lead further. This meant that Van Gerwen only went in at the break 5-3 down, in the race to ten.
As their has been no break in any of this season's Premier League matches, the interval may have stopped both of the players' rhythm in the ninth leg. Both players missed two darts to win the leg before Van Gerwen crucially took out-20 to hold his throw and move to within a leg of Taylor. That leg immediately came as Taylor missed two darts to hold his two leg advantage and Van Gerwen wasn't going to waste this opportunity to level the match.
The 11th leg was the first time Van Gerwen took the lead since the very start and when Taylor missed a further dart to win leg-12, the Dutchman soon found himself in a promising position at 7-5. Then it was Van Gerwen's turn to miss darts to go 8-5 in front, allowing Taylor to close the gap back to one. The 16th leg saw a little bit of inexperience come from Van Gerwen as he threw the gauntlet down to Taylor. The Power was waiting on-160 and Van Gerwen was naive enough to think that he could ignore at shot at the bull in favour of setting himself up for double-16, believing that Taylor wouldn't hit the three figure checkout. But how wrong was the Dutchman, Taylor hit treble-20, treble-20 and then double top to take the 160-out and level the match.
Most other players would have fazed by that tenacious finish, but not Van Gerwen. The Dutchman started the 15th leg with a 180 before finishing on-40 to retake the lead. Taylor then missed two more doubles in the next leg to allow Van Gerwen to go one away from victory. The victory was very in his own hands in leg-17 but he blew two Premier League winning darts to allow Taylor force another leg. But again Van Gerwen wasn't fazed and the Dutchman would win the match in sublime style; with his first dart he hit the-25, that was followed by treble-19 before a fantastic bulls-eye to take out-132 and claim the Premier League in his debut year.
2013 Premier League Darts Semi-Finals and World Youth Championship Final
Raymond Van Barneveld's Premier League semi-final and Phil Taylor hoodoo continued in the first semi-final in the O2. Before today, the Dutchman had lost five Premier League semi-finals and this would become his sixth. In all fairness to Barney, he didn't do a lot wrong, it was all about Taylor hitting the Dutchman at the right time.
Taylor held in the second leg with an 84-checkout on the bull. Barney would win the fifth leg with a great 116-checkout to make it 3-2, maintaining all legs going with throw. But the crucial leg turned out to be leg seven when Barney missed a dart to hold for the fourth time, this allowed Taylor to break and go 4-3 in front. Van Barneveld then looked set to make it 5-4 as he was sitting pretty, but Taylor stabbed Barney in the heart with an incredible 164-checkout, making the score 6-3 and completely shattering the Dutchman's spirit. Taylor then made it five in legs in a row to go 7-3 in front before managing to see of Van Barneveld with a 46-checkout to win 8-4.
It wasn't a great night for James Wade in the second semi-final. The Machine wasn't running at his most efficient and against Michael Van Gerwen, you're always going to struggle. Wade missed a dart in the opening leg to allow the Dutchman to instantly break. Wade then missed another three darts in the second leg to go 2-0 behind. Van Gerwen would break again to make it three legs on the spin but this time Wade was able to fire in a 116-checkout to this time break back.
Wade's first hold of throw didn't come until the seventh leg where he found himself 5-2 behind. The pair would then break each other again in legs nine and ten to make it 7-3. Van Gerwen then seemed to slow down as he was on the verge of winning and he missed three darts to win it 8-3. Wade stuck in there but then he missed three darts of his own in the 12th leg to allow Van Gerwen his place against Taylor in the final.
Between the semi-finals and the final, there was the small matter of the World Youth Championship Final between Ricky Evans and Michael Smith. Smith was the heavily backed favourite after having featured in a few major tournaments already. But it was Evans who got off to a great start, winning the opening leg with a great 106-checkout. But that would be the only leg Evans was to win as Smith showed his class and Evans couldn't continue his first leg form. Two checkouts of four saw Smith make it six straight legs to claim the World Championship with a 6-1 victory.
Taylor held in the second leg with an 84-checkout on the bull. Barney would win the fifth leg with a great 116-checkout to make it 3-2, maintaining all legs going with throw. But the crucial leg turned out to be leg seven when Barney missed a dart to hold for the fourth time, this allowed Taylor to break and go 4-3 in front. Van Barneveld then looked set to make it 5-4 as he was sitting pretty, but Taylor stabbed Barney in the heart with an incredible 164-checkout, making the score 6-3 and completely shattering the Dutchman's spirit. Taylor then made it five in legs in a row to go 7-3 in front before managing to see of Van Barneveld with a 46-checkout to win 8-4.
It wasn't a great night for James Wade in the second semi-final. The Machine wasn't running at his most efficient and against Michael Van Gerwen, you're always going to struggle. Wade missed a dart in the opening leg to allow the Dutchman to instantly break. Wade then missed another three darts in the second leg to go 2-0 behind. Van Gerwen would break again to make it three legs on the spin but this time Wade was able to fire in a 116-checkout to this time break back.
Wade's first hold of throw didn't come until the seventh leg where he found himself 5-2 behind. The pair would then break each other again in legs nine and ten to make it 7-3. Van Gerwen then seemed to slow down as he was on the verge of winning and he missed three darts to win it 8-3. Wade stuck in there but then he missed three darts of his own in the 12th leg to allow Van Gerwen his place against Taylor in the final.
Between the semi-finals and the final, there was the small matter of the World Youth Championship Final between Ricky Evans and Michael Smith. Smith was the heavily backed favourite after having featured in a few major tournaments already. But it was Evans who got off to a great start, winning the opening leg with a great 106-checkout. But that would be the only leg Evans was to win as Smith showed his class and Evans couldn't continue his first leg form. Two checkouts of four saw Smith make it six straight legs to claim the World Championship with a 6-1 victory.
Tuesday 14 May 2013
Arsenal Fource Wigan Down, Managerless City Win
There will be no final day drama at the foot of the Barclay's Premier League as Wigan have now been confirmed as the final team to be relegated. Wigan, who previously had been the only team to make it to the top flight of English football and never be relegated, have now become the first side to win the FA Cup and get relegated in the same season.
Wigan knew that had to beat Arsenal at The Emirates to have any chance of surviving, but the win for Arsenal means that they have leapfrogged Tottenham back in to fourth place and now know that have to equal or better Spurs' result on Sunday to seal Champions League football.
It took just 11-minutes for Arsenal to take the lead when Lukas Podolski easily finished off a poorly defended corner. But, just like in recent games, Arsenal have started like a train but petered out and Wigan started slow but grew in to the match. By half-time Wigan were deservedly level with a great goal just before the whistle. Shaun Maloney went down a little easily under a Mikel Arteta challenge and the referee perhaps harshly awarded Wigan a free-kick. It was Maloney who stood over the kick and smashed the ball in at the front post despite Wojiech Szczesny somehow getting a hand to it.
But Wigan's defensive frailty was put to the sword once again in the second half and this time, it has finally been one defeat too many. Arsenal retook the lead when Santi Cazorla was played in down the wing. The Spaniard then lay a ball across the Wigan box where Theo Walcott was on hand to slide it home. The game was then virtually over five minutes later when a huge whole at the back saw Podolski again get played through before the German chipped the oncoming Joel Robles to make it 3-1.
The final nail in the coffin came on 71-minutes when Aaron Ramsey again found himself in acres of space down the wing. The Welshman then cut inside as he bore his way down on goal and finished with a powerful shot off Joel to make it 4-1, scoring his first Premiership goal in over a year. Wigan's eight years in the Premier League will come to an end against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Managerless Manchester City were also in action tonight against Reading. After the debacle of sacking Roberto Mancini yesterday, the City players had to regroup despite David Platt also announcing that he'd following Mancini out of the door.
It was a very 'nothing to play for' type of match at The Madejski but City did take the lead five minutes before half-time when a corner routine between Gareth Barry, David Silva and James Milner ended up seeing the ball laid across the goal fro Sergio Aguero to roll home. The points were wrapped up two minutes from time when poor play from Reading saw Silva nick the ball before feeding substitute Edin Dzeko through for the Bosnian to stroke home.
Wigan knew that had to beat Arsenal at The Emirates to have any chance of surviving, but the win for Arsenal means that they have leapfrogged Tottenham back in to fourth place and now know that have to equal or better Spurs' result on Sunday to seal Champions League football.
It took just 11-minutes for Arsenal to take the lead when Lukas Podolski easily finished off a poorly defended corner. But, just like in recent games, Arsenal have started like a train but petered out and Wigan started slow but grew in to the match. By half-time Wigan were deservedly level with a great goal just before the whistle. Shaun Maloney went down a little easily under a Mikel Arteta challenge and the referee perhaps harshly awarded Wigan a free-kick. It was Maloney who stood over the kick and smashed the ball in at the front post despite Wojiech Szczesny somehow getting a hand to it.
But Wigan's defensive frailty was put to the sword once again in the second half and this time, it has finally been one defeat too many. Arsenal retook the lead when Santi Cazorla was played in down the wing. The Spaniard then lay a ball across the Wigan box where Theo Walcott was on hand to slide it home. The game was then virtually over five minutes later when a huge whole at the back saw Podolski again get played through before the German chipped the oncoming Joel Robles to make it 3-1.
The final nail in the coffin came on 71-minutes when Aaron Ramsey again found himself in acres of space down the wing. The Welshman then cut inside as he bore his way down on goal and finished with a powerful shot off Joel to make it 4-1, scoring his first Premiership goal in over a year. Wigan's eight years in the Premier League will come to an end against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Managerless Manchester City were also in action tonight against Reading. After the debacle of sacking Roberto Mancini yesterday, the City players had to regroup despite David Platt also announcing that he'd following Mancini out of the door.
It was a very 'nothing to play for' type of match at The Madejski but City did take the lead five minutes before half-time when a corner routine between Gareth Barry, David Silva and James Milner ended up seeing the ball laid across the goal fro Sergio Aguero to roll home. The points were wrapped up two minutes from time when poor play from Reading saw Silva nick the ball before feeding substitute Edin Dzeko through for the Bosnian to stroke home.
Sunday 12 May 2013
Fergie & Scholes' OT Farewell, Moyes and Neville's Goodison Farewell, Norwich & Newcastle Safe, Super Frank Makes History
Manchester United 2-1 Swansea: This match was never about the result. 26 and a half years, 13 Premier League trophies and, what will be, 1500 games, Sir Alex Ferguson bode farewell to the Old Trafford faithful. There was a goodbye also to Paul Scholes who also played his final match at The Theatre of Dreams. A dream final home victory almost started in the opening when Javier Hernandez's effort smashed the bar and stayed out. United did take the lead six minutes before half time when a poorly defended free-kick saw Hernandez pounce and slot the ball past Gerhard Tremmel. Swansea hadn't arrived as party guests and Michu was ready to spoil the party four minutes in to the second half when the Spaniard beat Phil Jones to the ball to volley past David De Gea from a Nathan Dyer cross. Perhaps in United fashion, the winner had to come late and although it wasn't quite in Fergie time, it was Rio Ferdinand who smashed a half volley from a corner in to the next from seven yards with just three minutes remaining.
Scholes' final match ended with 25-minutes left to play and the maestro left the pitch to a more than deserved standing ovation. Wayne Rooney's notable absence from the squad raised a lot of eyebrows but those debates will come in the future headlines. Today, it's all about one man and one team. Manchester United lifted the trophy and everyone around the world was witness to Ferguson's final ever addressing of the Old Trafford crowd. He isn't leaving the football club entirely as he will still be there as a director but the bombshell that he knew he was going retire way back at Christmas, it's a shock as to how it was kept a secret for so long. Football has lost the best domestic manager the world has ever seen and the longevity is something that will never be surpassed again. Thank you Sir Alex Ferguson.
Everton 2-0 West Ham: This was another match where the result wasn't important. It was about another Scot leaving another top team. David Moyes sat in the dug out of Goodison Park for the last time after a brilliant 11-years at the club. Alongside Moyes, Phil Neville, was in attendance for his final Everton match but injury meant he couldn't take part. Everton got off to the best start when Kevin Mirallas finished off a fantastic team move after just six minutes. It was 2-0 on the hour mark when Mirallas' shot took a huge deflection off James Collins to beat Jaaskelainen for a second time.
With Bill Kenwright visibly and unsurprisingly upset, Moyes came to a guard of honour at the end of the game and another momentous standing ovation. Moyes leaves to try and fill the biggest void in English football. As Everton's search for a new manager now begins and luck must be given to both Moyes and Everton for their futures.
Stoke 1-2 Tottenham: With Arsenal playing the FA Cup winners on Tuesday, Spurs managed to move in to fourth place by two points after this close fought victory. Stoke actually took the lead after just three minutes when Steven N'Zonzi was unmarked at the front post to head home a free-kick. Tottenham managed to level on 20-minutes when Clint Dempsey hit the loose ball from 35-yards in to an unguarded net after the initial ball over the top had been cut out by a defender as Asmir Begovic also came out, leaving his goal open. Stoke were reduced to ten men just two minutes in to the second half when Charlie Adam received a second yellow card for an unnecessary foul from behind when he was never going to get the ball. But it took Spurs until the last seven minutes before they finally took advantage; Dempsey's pull back being tapped home by Emmanuel Adebayor from all of four yards. All eyes are now on Arsenal as they play their penultimate card in the race for Champions League, a card that could see Wigan get relegated.
Norwich 4-0 West Brom: Norwich have guaranteed their survival after this rout over West Brom. There was a return to the side for John Ruddy and he'll be extremely happy to come away with a clean sheet. The deadlock was broken on 25-minutes when Robert Snodgrass fired in to the roof of the net after Wes Hoolahan's first attempt was closed down by Ben Foster. Norwich were given their second goal on 62-minutes when Ben Foster managed to slice a clearance and allow Grant Holt to take the ball and roll it home. It was 3-0 three minutes later when a free-kick was diverted in to his own net by Gareth McAuley. The game was rounded up in injury time Jonny Howson linked up with Luciano Becchio before curling a magnificent shot in to the corner from outside the box.
QPR 1-2 Newcastle: Newcastle have also confirmed their place in next season's Premier League. It didn't start very well for the visitors as QPR were awarded a penalty after just 11-minutes when Junior Hoilett was brought down by the returning Mathieu Debuchy. Loic Remy stepped up and sent Rob Elliott the wrong way to give the relegated hosts the lead. The roles were reversed just seven minutes later though when Hatem Ben Arfa earned a penalty after Jose Bosingwa was pulling at the Frenchman's shirt. Ben Arfa ended up taking the penalty and smashed in to the top corner just off the underneath of the crossbar. Yoan Gouffran made it 2-1 ten minutes before half time when a poor back pass from Bosingwa saw Rob Green's clearance charged down before the ball fell to Gouffran who rolled the ball in to the empty net. Elliott will miss Newcastle's final game of the season against Arsenal after being sent off nine minutes before half time when he received a second yellow card for handling the ball outside the area. It's a pretty stupid sending off as the first yellow card was brandished for kicking the ball away.
Sunderland 1-1 Southampton: If Wigan fail to win on Tuesday, Sunderland will stay up based on the fact Wigan will be down. For now though, the point means that Sunderland are now four points ahead of the bottom three. Sunderland took the lead on 68-minutes when Phil Bardsley scored a fantastic deflected goal, his first in over a year, which beat Artur Boruc in to the corner. But Sunderland's safety celebrations were cut short with 14-minutes remaining when substitute Jason Puncheon stabbed the ball home at the second attempt whilst on the floor from three yards after Simon Mignolet parried his initial shot. Whilst not entirely mathematically safe, Southampton have assured their place in next season's league due to Wigan's woeful goal difference.
Fulham 1-3 Liverpool: Daniel Sturridge will grab the headlines in this game after a great hat-trick. Dimitar Berbatov actually got the first goal on 33-minutes with a good header from a Sascha Riether cross to give Fulham the lead. Parity was restored three minutes later when Sturridge used magnificent footwork to fire home after Andre Wisdom cleared the ball from his own box. Fulham should have had a penalty in the second half when Lucas handled in the box but nothing was given on the hour mark. The visitors then took the lead two minutes past the hour when Philippe Coutinho's slipped shot ended up feeding Sturridge fantastically to give the striker his second goal. The hat-trick was completed five minutes before half-time when Sturridge lofted the ball over the oncoming Mark Schwarzer after Coutinho had once again picked out the striker with another delightful ball.
Aston Villa 1-2 Chelsea: Aston Villa will have also escaped if Wigan don't win on Tuesday, they remain five points clear of The Latics after Frank Lampard broke the all time scoring record. Safety was looking assured on 14-minutes when Christian Benteke linked up with Yacouba Sylla before firing in yet another goal for the Midlands side. Chelsea's job looked to have been made even harder when Ramires was sent off just before half time for a high challenge on Gabriel Agbonlahor. But Villa would also be reduced to ten 13-minutes in to the second half when Benteke was shown a second yellow for a high challenge on John Terry, his first came in the first half for elbowing Cesar Azpilicueta and that could have been a red all on its own. Chelsea levelled just after the hour mark when Eden Hazard played the ball to Lampard to fire home on the edge of the box to level Bobby Tambling's goalscoring record. The record was then finally broken with two minutes remaining after Lampard linked up with Ashley Cole before finishing off the defender's low cross.
Scholes' final match ended with 25-minutes left to play and the maestro left the pitch to a more than deserved standing ovation. Wayne Rooney's notable absence from the squad raised a lot of eyebrows but those debates will come in the future headlines. Today, it's all about one man and one team. Manchester United lifted the trophy and everyone around the world was witness to Ferguson's final ever addressing of the Old Trafford crowd. He isn't leaving the football club entirely as he will still be there as a director but the bombshell that he knew he was going retire way back at Christmas, it's a shock as to how it was kept a secret for so long. Football has lost the best domestic manager the world has ever seen and the longevity is something that will never be surpassed again. Thank you Sir Alex Ferguson.
Everton 2-0 West Ham: This was another match where the result wasn't important. It was about another Scot leaving another top team. David Moyes sat in the dug out of Goodison Park for the last time after a brilliant 11-years at the club. Alongside Moyes, Phil Neville, was in attendance for his final Everton match but injury meant he couldn't take part. Everton got off to the best start when Kevin Mirallas finished off a fantastic team move after just six minutes. It was 2-0 on the hour mark when Mirallas' shot took a huge deflection off James Collins to beat Jaaskelainen for a second time.
With Bill Kenwright visibly and unsurprisingly upset, Moyes came to a guard of honour at the end of the game and another momentous standing ovation. Moyes leaves to try and fill the biggest void in English football. As Everton's search for a new manager now begins and luck must be given to both Moyes and Everton for their futures.
Stoke 1-2 Tottenham: With Arsenal playing the FA Cup winners on Tuesday, Spurs managed to move in to fourth place by two points after this close fought victory. Stoke actually took the lead after just three minutes when Steven N'Zonzi was unmarked at the front post to head home a free-kick. Tottenham managed to level on 20-minutes when Clint Dempsey hit the loose ball from 35-yards in to an unguarded net after the initial ball over the top had been cut out by a defender as Asmir Begovic also came out, leaving his goal open. Stoke were reduced to ten men just two minutes in to the second half when Charlie Adam received a second yellow card for an unnecessary foul from behind when he was never going to get the ball. But it took Spurs until the last seven minutes before they finally took advantage; Dempsey's pull back being tapped home by Emmanuel Adebayor from all of four yards. All eyes are now on Arsenal as they play their penultimate card in the race for Champions League, a card that could see Wigan get relegated.
Norwich 4-0 West Brom: Norwich have guaranteed their survival after this rout over West Brom. There was a return to the side for John Ruddy and he'll be extremely happy to come away with a clean sheet. The deadlock was broken on 25-minutes when Robert Snodgrass fired in to the roof of the net after Wes Hoolahan's first attempt was closed down by Ben Foster. Norwich were given their second goal on 62-minutes when Ben Foster managed to slice a clearance and allow Grant Holt to take the ball and roll it home. It was 3-0 three minutes later when a free-kick was diverted in to his own net by Gareth McAuley. The game was rounded up in injury time Jonny Howson linked up with Luciano Becchio before curling a magnificent shot in to the corner from outside the box.
QPR 1-2 Newcastle: Newcastle have also confirmed their place in next season's Premier League. It didn't start very well for the visitors as QPR were awarded a penalty after just 11-minutes when Junior Hoilett was brought down by the returning Mathieu Debuchy. Loic Remy stepped up and sent Rob Elliott the wrong way to give the relegated hosts the lead. The roles were reversed just seven minutes later though when Hatem Ben Arfa earned a penalty after Jose Bosingwa was pulling at the Frenchman's shirt. Ben Arfa ended up taking the penalty and smashed in to the top corner just off the underneath of the crossbar. Yoan Gouffran made it 2-1 ten minutes before half time when a poor back pass from Bosingwa saw Rob Green's clearance charged down before the ball fell to Gouffran who rolled the ball in to the empty net. Elliott will miss Newcastle's final game of the season against Arsenal after being sent off nine minutes before half time when he received a second yellow card for handling the ball outside the area. It's a pretty stupid sending off as the first yellow card was brandished for kicking the ball away.
Sunderland 1-1 Southampton: If Wigan fail to win on Tuesday, Sunderland will stay up based on the fact Wigan will be down. For now though, the point means that Sunderland are now four points ahead of the bottom three. Sunderland took the lead on 68-minutes when Phil Bardsley scored a fantastic deflected goal, his first in over a year, which beat Artur Boruc in to the corner. But Sunderland's safety celebrations were cut short with 14-minutes remaining when substitute Jason Puncheon stabbed the ball home at the second attempt whilst on the floor from three yards after Simon Mignolet parried his initial shot. Whilst not entirely mathematically safe, Southampton have assured their place in next season's league due to Wigan's woeful goal difference.
Fulham 1-3 Liverpool: Daniel Sturridge will grab the headlines in this game after a great hat-trick. Dimitar Berbatov actually got the first goal on 33-minutes with a good header from a Sascha Riether cross to give Fulham the lead. Parity was restored three minutes later when Sturridge used magnificent footwork to fire home after Andre Wisdom cleared the ball from his own box. Fulham should have had a penalty in the second half when Lucas handled in the box but nothing was given on the hour mark. The visitors then took the lead two minutes past the hour when Philippe Coutinho's slipped shot ended up feeding Sturridge fantastically to give the striker his second goal. The hat-trick was completed five minutes before half-time when Sturridge lofted the ball over the oncoming Mark Schwarzer after Coutinho had once again picked out the striker with another delightful ball.
Aston Villa 1-2 Chelsea: Aston Villa will have also escaped if Wigan don't win on Tuesday, they remain five points clear of The Latics after Frank Lampard broke the all time scoring record. Safety was looking assured on 14-minutes when Christian Benteke linked up with Yacouba Sylla before firing in yet another goal for the Midlands side. Chelsea's job looked to have been made even harder when Ramires was sent off just before half time for a high challenge on Gabriel Agbonlahor. But Villa would also be reduced to ten 13-minutes in to the second half when Benteke was shown a second yellow for a high challenge on John Terry, his first came in the first half for elbowing Cesar Azpilicueta and that could have been a red all on its own. Chelsea levelled just after the hour mark when Eden Hazard played the ball to Lampard to fire home on the edge of the box to level Bobby Tambling's goalscoring record. The record was then finally broken with two minutes remaining after Lampard linked up with Ashley Cole before finishing off the defender's low cross.
Alonso Wins At Home
Fernando Alonso takes the chequered flag in front of his home fans in Barcelona. It was a race that Alonso had in his hands for the large majority of it with Kimi Raikkonen closing the gap to Sebastian Vettel to four points after second with the Red Bull in fourth. It was a superb day for Ferrari as, despite starting from ninth, Felipe Massa claimed the other podium and tells the world he's back to his best.
The Spanish Grand Prix has always been known more for its strategy rather than its overtaking and today was no different. Although this might have been a different story if Mercedes had any pace instead of finishing sixth, Nico Rosberg, and 12th, Lewis Hamilton. It was also a good day for McLaren as both drivers made it in to the points with Jenson Button eighth and Sergio Perez ninth.
As usual, the Ferraris made a fantastic start off the line; Alonso got himself up to third with Massa sixth. Mark Webber again failed to make the start which saw him fall to 11th from eighth. Vettel quickly moved ahead of Hamilton in to second and began to hunt Rosberg down. Perez was also a winner from the start, moving up to sixth.
Raikkonen's hunt came in to fruition on lap seven when he overtook Hamilton to take fourth. The difference in strategies was between a three and a four stop race but it was Webber who came in first on lap eight, presumably to find some cleaner air from 13th place.
Massa was the next to overtake Hamilton on lap nine to take fifth but then immediately came in to the pits. The first retirement came on that lap when Romain Grosjean came in to the pits with a broken suspension and had no choice but to go in to the garage. Adrian Sutil's race was also hampered on that lap when his rear was smoking during the stop, but he was able to continue.
Both Alonso and Hamilton pitted on lap ten before the top three, Vettel, Rosberg and Raikkonen, came in a lap later. The strategy paid off for Alonso as he ended up ahead of Vettel to go second. Massa also gained from the pit stops as he was now ahead of Raikkonen. It was probably a pit stop to forget for Pastor Maldonado as the only real action he partook in, in this race, was to serve a drive through penalty for speeding in the pit lane.
Alonso took the lead of the race on lap-13 when he overtook Rosberg. Vettel and Massa quickly followed to see the Mercedes drop to fourth within a few corners. That became fifth two laps later when Raikkonen past the slow German. At this point in the race, Webber had managed to get himself up to sixth and Perez was seventh.
Lap-21 saw Massa come in first with Alonso pitting a lap later for the second round of stops. By lap-23, Alonso was able to overtake Rosberg once again without the Mercedes having its second pit stop. Lap-24 saw the second retirement of the race as Giedo Van Der Garde lost a wheel during his out lap, he did manage to get the Caterham back in to the pits but the damage to the chassis was too much to continue.
Massa also managed to re-overtake Rosberg on lap-24 before Vettel came in a lap later, giving Raikkonen the lead of the race. That only lasted for two laps though as the Lotus came in and ended up coming back out behind Vettel. At this point there was a Ferrari one-two.
Raikkonen finally managed to overtake the below par Red Bull on lap-33 to gain third. There was more drama in the pit lane on lap-36 when Nico Hulkenberg was unsafely released in to the path of the pitting Jean-Eric Vergne. But instead of getting off the throttle, Hulkenberg continued and drove in to the back of the Toro Rosso, causing front wing damage and would later receive a ten second stop/go penalty for the unsafe release.
Lap-37 saw both Ferraris come in for their third stops and Alonso came out second with Massa fourth. Vergne's race deteriorated a little more on lap-38 when he suffered a puncture and went off the track, fortunately the Frenchman made it back in the pits to continue. Alonso regained the lead on lap-39 by overtaking Raikkonen, who was a three stop strategy. Webber was also able to overtake Rosberg to claim fifth.
Vettel pitted again on lap-40 and a lap later Button had overtaken the impressive Esteban Gutierrez to claim seventh. The rookie Mexican just missed out on a point in the race but he did claim the fastest lap. Raikkonen's final pit stop came on lap-46 which saw him third as Alonso pitted for the fourth time on lap-49. Massa's fourth stop came on lap-52 which saw him come out behind Raikkonen in to third as Vettel also pitted in to the uncompetitive fourth spot.
Unfortunately, Vergne had to retire on lap-54 due to the damage seen from his earlier incidents. The rest of the race went on without any real action. It was a shame to see how poor the Mercedes cars were today and how off the pace Vettel was in fourth. It was also remarkable to see the time difference between the top six or so as Button was a minute behind in eighth. Race result:
1. Alonso (Ferrari), 2. Raikkonen (Lotus), 3. Massa (Ferrari), 4. Vettel (Red Bull), 5. Webber (Red Bull), 6. Rosberg (Mercedes), 7. Di Resta (Force India), 8. Button (McLaren), 9. Perez (McLaren), 10. Ricciardo (Toro Rosso), 11. Gutierrez (Sauber), 12. Hamilton (Mercedes), 13. Sutil (Force India), 14. Maldonado (Williams), 15. Hulkenberg (Sauber), 16. Bottas (Williams), 17. Pic (Caterham), 18. Bianchi (Marussia), 19. Chilton (Marussia) DNF: Grosjean (Lotus), Van Der Garde (Caterham), Vergne (Toro Rosso)
The Spanish Grand Prix has always been known more for its strategy rather than its overtaking and today was no different. Although this might have been a different story if Mercedes had any pace instead of finishing sixth, Nico Rosberg, and 12th, Lewis Hamilton. It was also a good day for McLaren as both drivers made it in to the points with Jenson Button eighth and Sergio Perez ninth.
As usual, the Ferraris made a fantastic start off the line; Alonso got himself up to third with Massa sixth. Mark Webber again failed to make the start which saw him fall to 11th from eighth. Vettel quickly moved ahead of Hamilton in to second and began to hunt Rosberg down. Perez was also a winner from the start, moving up to sixth.
Raikkonen's hunt came in to fruition on lap seven when he overtook Hamilton to take fourth. The difference in strategies was between a three and a four stop race but it was Webber who came in first on lap eight, presumably to find some cleaner air from 13th place.
Massa was the next to overtake Hamilton on lap nine to take fifth but then immediately came in to the pits. The first retirement came on that lap when Romain Grosjean came in to the pits with a broken suspension and had no choice but to go in to the garage. Adrian Sutil's race was also hampered on that lap when his rear was smoking during the stop, but he was able to continue.
Both Alonso and Hamilton pitted on lap ten before the top three, Vettel, Rosberg and Raikkonen, came in a lap later. The strategy paid off for Alonso as he ended up ahead of Vettel to go second. Massa also gained from the pit stops as he was now ahead of Raikkonen. It was probably a pit stop to forget for Pastor Maldonado as the only real action he partook in, in this race, was to serve a drive through penalty for speeding in the pit lane.
Alonso took the lead of the race on lap-13 when he overtook Rosberg. Vettel and Massa quickly followed to see the Mercedes drop to fourth within a few corners. That became fifth two laps later when Raikkonen past the slow German. At this point in the race, Webber had managed to get himself up to sixth and Perez was seventh.
Lap-21 saw Massa come in first with Alonso pitting a lap later for the second round of stops. By lap-23, Alonso was able to overtake Rosberg once again without the Mercedes having its second pit stop. Lap-24 saw the second retirement of the race as Giedo Van Der Garde lost a wheel during his out lap, he did manage to get the Caterham back in to the pits but the damage to the chassis was too much to continue.
Massa also managed to re-overtake Rosberg on lap-24 before Vettel came in a lap later, giving Raikkonen the lead of the race. That only lasted for two laps though as the Lotus came in and ended up coming back out behind Vettel. At this point there was a Ferrari one-two.
Raikkonen finally managed to overtake the below par Red Bull on lap-33 to gain third. There was more drama in the pit lane on lap-36 when Nico Hulkenberg was unsafely released in to the path of the pitting Jean-Eric Vergne. But instead of getting off the throttle, Hulkenberg continued and drove in to the back of the Toro Rosso, causing front wing damage and would later receive a ten second stop/go penalty for the unsafe release.
Lap-37 saw both Ferraris come in for their third stops and Alonso came out second with Massa fourth. Vergne's race deteriorated a little more on lap-38 when he suffered a puncture and went off the track, fortunately the Frenchman made it back in the pits to continue. Alonso regained the lead on lap-39 by overtaking Raikkonen, who was a three stop strategy. Webber was also able to overtake Rosberg to claim fifth.
Vettel pitted again on lap-40 and a lap later Button had overtaken the impressive Esteban Gutierrez to claim seventh. The rookie Mexican just missed out on a point in the race but he did claim the fastest lap. Raikkonen's final pit stop came on lap-46 which saw him third as Alonso pitted for the fourth time on lap-49. Massa's fourth stop came on lap-52 which saw him come out behind Raikkonen in to third as Vettel also pitted in to the uncompetitive fourth spot.
Unfortunately, Vergne had to retire on lap-54 due to the damage seen from his earlier incidents. The rest of the race went on without any real action. It was a shame to see how poor the Mercedes cars were today and how off the pace Vettel was in fourth. It was also remarkable to see the time difference between the top six or so as Button was a minute behind in eighth. Race result:
1. Alonso (Ferrari), 2. Raikkonen (Lotus), 3. Massa (Ferrari), 4. Vettel (Red Bull), 5. Webber (Red Bull), 6. Rosberg (Mercedes), 7. Di Resta (Force India), 8. Button (McLaren), 9. Perez (McLaren), 10. Ricciardo (Toro Rosso), 11. Gutierrez (Sauber), 12. Hamilton (Mercedes), 13. Sutil (Force India), 14. Maldonado (Williams), 15. Hulkenberg (Sauber), 16. Bottas (Williams), 17. Pic (Caterham), 18. Bianchi (Marussia), 19. Chilton (Marussia) DNF: Grosjean (Lotus), Van Der Garde (Caterham), Vergne (Toro Rosso)
Saturday 11 May 2013
Watson's Wigan Winner
Against the odds, Wigan Athletic have beaten Manchester City in the FA Cup final. It was a final full of intrigue where both teams punched and counter punched before substitute Ben Watson won the game for Wigan with the only goal in injury time. This came after City were reduced to ten men after Pablo Zabaleta became only the third man to ever be sent off in a FA Cup final.
From the beginning, Manchester City didn't play the match how the script suggested; using their flamboyant talent to rip open the leaky Wigan defence and score numerous goals. In fact, it looked like a very lethargic and almost uncaring Manchester City. It may have been because the press were full of reports that Roberto Mancini will be getting sacked, to which the Italian rubbished after the match. But something wasn't quite there for City.
With the FA Cup sporting sky blue ribbons before a ball was kicked, it looked like it could have been an ominous omen especially when Joel Robles was called in to action early on from a Yaya Tour shot which the Spaniard managed to parry to safety.
Wigan were solid enough during the first period and would being creating chances of their own. Callum McManaman was unbelievable down the wing for Wigan all game and he made Gael Clichy look rather invisible. The Liverpudlian had the opening chance for Wigan in the first half when he ghosted in to the box before cutting back and just not putting enough curl on to his effort as it went wide.
Arouna Kone also had a couple of shots that didn't trouble the goal but Wigan were looking comfortable in possession, even if they went backwards during a lot of the time. City's glittering chance fell to Carlos Tevez who had a go from six yards. Joel was diving to his left and if Tevez had shot in to that corner he probably would have still scored. But the Argentine tried to hit it back across Joel but the Spaniard managed to swing his outstretched leg to deflect the ball over his goal.
Wigan thought that they should have had a penalty late on in the first half when Roger Espinoza dramatically went over under a Pablo Zabaleta challenge. There was contact but the ball looked to have rolled too far for the Honduran and the manner in which he fell to floor may have put doubts in to Andre Marriner's head.
City's attacking fell extremely quiet in the second half as Wigan began to boss it. McManaman was again causing all sorts of problems and drew the two yellow cards in the match. But neither keeper was really tested for much of the second half despite the attacking play.
That was until the last ten minutes when a late free-kick, won by McManaman, was taken by Shaun Maloney and it hit the top of the bar. City's task got harder with six minutes to go as McManaman looked to be breaking through. The winger just clipped the ball past the sliding Argentinian and Zabaleta couldn't avoid smashing in to McManaman. Zabaleta had already been booked and Marriner had no option but to brandish a second yellow and send the defender off.
The winner eventually came in the first minute of injury time from a corner, won by McManaman. Maloney whipped the ball in and substitute Watson managed to beat Jack Rodwell to the front post and sent his header past Joe Hart.
Wigan were going to be in Europe regardless of the result but they've managed to do it by winning the FA Cup for the first time in their history. Sadder history could be made though as Wigan could become the first team to lift the FA Cup yet still get relegated. It's also possibly a happy outcome for David Moyes who will now take charge of his first senior Manchester United match against Wigan in next season's Community Shield.
From the beginning, Manchester City didn't play the match how the script suggested; using their flamboyant talent to rip open the leaky Wigan defence and score numerous goals. In fact, it looked like a very lethargic and almost uncaring Manchester City. It may have been because the press were full of reports that Roberto Mancini will be getting sacked, to which the Italian rubbished after the match. But something wasn't quite there for City.
With the FA Cup sporting sky blue ribbons before a ball was kicked, it looked like it could have been an ominous omen especially when Joel Robles was called in to action early on from a Yaya Tour shot which the Spaniard managed to parry to safety.
Wigan were solid enough during the first period and would being creating chances of their own. Callum McManaman was unbelievable down the wing for Wigan all game and he made Gael Clichy look rather invisible. The Liverpudlian had the opening chance for Wigan in the first half when he ghosted in to the box before cutting back and just not putting enough curl on to his effort as it went wide.
Arouna Kone also had a couple of shots that didn't trouble the goal but Wigan were looking comfortable in possession, even if they went backwards during a lot of the time. City's glittering chance fell to Carlos Tevez who had a go from six yards. Joel was diving to his left and if Tevez had shot in to that corner he probably would have still scored. But the Argentine tried to hit it back across Joel but the Spaniard managed to swing his outstretched leg to deflect the ball over his goal.
Wigan thought that they should have had a penalty late on in the first half when Roger Espinoza dramatically went over under a Pablo Zabaleta challenge. There was contact but the ball looked to have rolled too far for the Honduran and the manner in which he fell to floor may have put doubts in to Andre Marriner's head.
City's attacking fell extremely quiet in the second half as Wigan began to boss it. McManaman was again causing all sorts of problems and drew the two yellow cards in the match. But neither keeper was really tested for much of the second half despite the attacking play.
That was until the last ten minutes when a late free-kick, won by McManaman, was taken by Shaun Maloney and it hit the top of the bar. City's task got harder with six minutes to go as McManaman looked to be breaking through. The winger just clipped the ball past the sliding Argentinian and Zabaleta couldn't avoid smashing in to McManaman. Zabaleta had already been booked and Marriner had no option but to brandish a second yellow and send the defender off.
The winner eventually came in the first minute of injury time from a corner, won by McManaman. Maloney whipped the ball in and substitute Watson managed to beat Jack Rodwell to the front post and sent his header past Joe Hart.
Wigan were going to be in Europe regardless of the result but they've managed to do it by winning the FA Cup for the first time in their history. Sadder history could be made though as Wigan could become the first team to lift the FA Cup yet still get relegated. It's also possibly a happy outcome for David Moyes who will now take charge of his first senior Manchester United match against Wigan in next season's Community Shield.
F1 European Qualifying Result
1. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes)
2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
3. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
4. Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus)
5. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
6. Romain Grosjean (Lotus)
7. Mark Webber (Red Bull)
8. Sergio Perez (McLaren)
9. Felipe Massa (Ferrari) (Received Three Place Grid Penalty For Impeding)
10. Paul Di Resta (Force India)
11. Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso)
12. Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso)
13. Adrian Sutil (Force India)
14. Jenson Button (McLaren)
15. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)
16. Valtteri Bottas (Williams)
17. Pastor Maldonado (Williams)
18. Giedo Van Der Garde (Caterham)
19. Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber) (Received Three Place Grid Penalty For Impeding)
20. Jules Bianchi (Marussia)
21. Max Chilton (Marussia)
22. Charles Pic (Caterham)
2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
3. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
4. Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus)
5. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
6. Romain Grosjean (Lotus)
7. Mark Webber (Red Bull)
8. Sergio Perez (McLaren)
9. Felipe Massa (Ferrari) (Received Three Place Grid Penalty For Impeding)
10. Paul Di Resta (Force India)
11. Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso)
12. Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso)
13. Adrian Sutil (Force India)
14. Jenson Button (McLaren)
15. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)
16. Valtteri Bottas (Williams)
17. Pastor Maldonado (Williams)
18. Giedo Van Der Garde (Caterham)
19. Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber) (Received Three Place Grid Penalty For Impeding)
20. Jules Bianchi (Marussia)
21. Max Chilton (Marussia)
22. Charles Pic (Caterham)
Thursday 9 May 2013
Wade Scrapes Through To Meet MVG, Barney Will Face Taylor Once Again
After 14 fantastic weeks, the league phase of the 2013 Premier League has come to an end and the line-up for next week's semi-finals in the O2 has been confirmed. A convincing victory for Michael Van Gerwen over Robert Thornton was enough for him to win the league in style. Two wins for Raymond Van Barneveld means he finishes second by a point and the veteran Dutchman will face his old nemesis, Phil Taylor, in the play-offs in his bid to make it to his first Premier League final. A draw against Taylor was just enough for James Wade to scrape through and book his place against Van Gerwen in the final four.
The night began with a dead rubber as Andy Hamilton took on Adrian Lewis. Lewis looked to be in his best form of the league and he managed to gain three points from his two matches to make it double figures for the campaign. Lewis had a great chance to break in the third leg but he hit double five instead of double-12 before missing his next two darts at the double. Hamilton weighed in with a fantastic Shanghai 120-checkout before Lewis again missed two darts to take the fourth leg, allowing Hamilton to find the first break of the match. The score soon became 4-1 before Lewis managed to find a bit of fight. Jackpot reeled off the next three legs to level the scores before Hamilton again edged ahead at 5-4. But Lewis would then take the remaining three legs to steal the match 7-5 and ensure that Hamilton's campaign ended with a defeat.
At the start of the night, Robert Thornton had an outside of chance of nicking fourth place from Wade but he knew he had to at least beat Van Barneveld or Van Gerwen in the process while hoping Wade lost to Taylor. As for Van Barneveld, two wins for him and defeat for Van Gerwen would have put him on top of the league. There was obvious nerves at the beginning for Thornton as he missed a dart to take the opening leg. But the Scot replied with a 115-checkout before going 2-1 in front. Thornton then missed two darts to level the match in the sixth leg and a colossal 161-checkout from Barney moved the Dutchman 4-2 ahead. Van Barneveld almost followed that up with a 151-checkout but he missed the double and Thornton managed to take the leg to move to within one of the Dutchman. But the Scot missed his opportunity to level in the eighth leg with another five missed doubles. It was deja vu in the tenth leg when Thornton missed another three darts to make it 5-5. Van Barneveld would then put Thornton out of his misery by winning the 11th leg to win the match 7-5.
Like Thornton, Simon Whitlock also had an outside chance of stealing fourth place but because of his awful leg difference, he knew he really had to beat Lewis. It was a very nervy beginning as Lewis missed three darts to win the first leg before Whitlock missed three darts to take the second. Lewis then had a chance to go 4-2 in front but he missed his dart at the double and Whitlock levelled the score. Lewis missed another dart in the seventh leg and Whitlock pushed on to make it 5-3. But, like against Hamilton, Lewis was in a fighting mood and a fantastic 170-checkout levelled the match for Jackpot before a lowly 25-checkout ensured the point that took him to double figures. A defeat would have ended Whitlock's hopes there and then but the Australian managed to win the final leg to force the draw which, mathematically, just about kept his hopes alive.
A win for Wade over Taylor would have guaranteed The Machine's place in the top four, although a draw put him just one leg away from it. The pair met in week four and the points were also shared on that occasion. Wade looked businesslike as he moved in to a 2-0 lead but a missed dart in the fourth leg allowed Taylor to level the match. The next eight legs all went with throw to mean the pair left the stage with a second draw. The result meant that Whitlock was now out of the running and Thornton had to beat Van Gerwen 7-0 to cause a huge upset.
The top four places were official in the very next leg of play as Thornton missed a dart to win it, allowing Van Gerwen to take it to guarantee Wade's place amongst the elite. Van Gerwen was in a ruthless mood as a victory secured top spot and he reeled off the first six legs in no time. The Dutchman then missed a dart to take the first whitewash of the competition but he was quick to avenge it with seven perfect darts in the eighth leg. Unfortunately Van Gerwen missed the final treble-20 to leave himself a shot at double-12 for the nine darter but the Dutchman made it a 12-darter to win the match 7-1.
With everything all sorted, Whitlock versus Van Barneveld turned out to be an exhibition finish to what has been a brilliant league phase. The first six legs went with throw before Van Barneveld missed a chance to break in the seventh leg. Throw was held by the Dutchman in the eighth leg to make it 4-4 before Van Barneveld managed to take the four legs to win the match 7-4 and really put him in good stead to face his nemesis in the O2 next week. Final table:
1. Michael Van Gerwen 24 +34
2. Raymond Van Barneveld 23 +24
3. Phil Taylor 20 +22
4. James Wade 17 +6
5. Robert Thornton 15 +1
6. Simon Whitlock 15 -6
7. Andy Hamilton 12 -8
8. Adrian Lewis 10 -25
UK Open Draw - Preliminary & Rounds 1 & 2
The draw has been made for the opening rounds of the UK Open which will take place in June: (Numbers in brackets represent PDC Order of Merit Rankings)
Preliminary Round:
(24) Vincent Van der Voort (Ned) v (Sco) Andy Murray (289 BDO)
(65) Gino Vos (Ned) v (Eng) Alan Derrett (132)
(12 BDO) Robbie Green (Eng) v (Eng) James Wade (4)
(Q) Stuart Lowe (Eng) v (Eng) Jake Pennington (Q)
(144) Royden Lam (Hkg) v (Ire) Paddy Meaney (101)
(49) Steve Farmer (Eng) v (Eng) Chris Aubrey (127)
(68) Nick Fullwell (Eng) v (Eng) Wayne Jones (31)
(89) Keegan Brown (Eng) v (Ire) Keith Rooney (125)
(68) Tony West (Eng) v (Wal) Jamie Lewis (73)
(1 BDO) Stephen Bunting (Eng) v (Eng) Vernon Sheppard (144)
(76) Connie Finnan (Ire) v (Nir) Campbell Jackson (126)
(132) Scott Coleman (Eng) v (Eng) Mark McGeeney (233 BDO)
(Q) Michael Musto (Eng) v (Ger) Bernd Roith (83)
(247 BDO) Maik Langendorf (Aut) v (Eng) Tony Martin (45 BDO)
(116) Darren Johnson (Eng) v (Esp) Antonio Alcinas (66)
(30) Colin Osborne (Eng) v (Eng) Steve Hine (120)
(Q) Tam Dymond (Sco) v (Eng) Gavin Baker (Q)
(460 BDO) Terry Dunford (Eng) v (Eng) Dean Stewart (352 BDO)
First Round:
(Q) Michael Burgoine (Eng) v (Eng) Daz Twist (Q)
(122) Dave Weston (Eng) v (Eng) Dean Winstanley (42)
(38 BDO) Gary Stone (Sco) v Langendorf/Martin
(132) Jason Wilson (Eng) v (Ger) Tomas Seyler (98)
(38) Steve Brown (Eng) v (Eng) Adrian Gray (78)
(67) Shaun Griffiths (Eng) v K Brown/Rooney
Finnan/Jackson v Vos/Derrett
Dunford/Stewart v (Sco) Gus Santana (Q)
(Q) Conan Whitehead (Ire) v (Ned) Roland Scholten (51)
Fullwell/W Jones v Lam/Meaney
T West/J Lewis v Lowe/Pennington
(Q) Michael Bushby (Eng) v (Eng) John Mortimer (Q)
(Q) Andrew McNicol (Sco) v (Eng) Steven Mead (Q)
(144) Andy Parsons (Eng) v (Sco) Jamie Hagen (Q)
(Q) Paul Whitworth (Eng) v (Eng) Andy Boulton (187 BDO)
Green/Wade v (Eng) Matt Gallett (Q)
Farmer/Aubrey v (Eng) Gaz Cousins (82)
Dymond/Baker v (Eng) Dave Place (132)
Coleman/McGeeney v (Eng) Scott Marsh (Q)
(Q) Nigel Daniels (Eng) v (Eng) Johnny Haines (62)
Musto/Roith v (Eng) Ted Hankey (75)
(10) Justin Pipe (Eng) v (Eng) Gareth Pass (87)
(115) Leon de Geus (Ned) v (Sco) Scott Robertson (Q)
Osborne/Hine v (Eng) Mark Dudbridge (63)
(Q) Darrell Thorpe (Eng) v Bunting/Sheppard
Van der Voort/Murray v (Eng) Kirk Shepard (144)
(122) Matt Padgett (Eng) v (Eng) David Copley (144)
(48) James Hubbard (Eng) v (Eng) John Scott (95)
(Q) Robbie Singleton (Eng) v (Ire) William O'Connor (59)
(131) Prakash Jiwa (Ind) v Johnson/Alcinas
(144) Matthew Dennant (Eng) v (Eng) Darrell Townsend (Q)
(144) Mark Lawrence (Eng) v (Aut) Mensur Suljovic (54)
Second Round:
Pipe/Pass v (Ned) Jelle Klaasen (47)
(37) Co Stompe (Ned) v (Nir) Micky Mansell (50)
Stone/Langendorf/Martin v (Eng) Dennis Smith (53)
De Geus/Robertson v Whitworth/Boulton
Bushby/Mortimer v (Sco) Jim Walker (74)
(46) Magnus Caris (Swe) v Van der Voort/Murray/Sheppard
(25) Mark Walsh (Eng) v (Eng) Lee Palfreyman (117)
Dymond/Baker/Place v (Sco) John Henderson (40)
Singleton/O'Connor v Daniels/Haines
Dennant/Townsend v Parsons/Hagen
(107) Kevin Dowling (Eng) v (Eng) Phil Taylor (1)
T West/J Lewis/ Lowe/Pennington v (Eng) Steve West (92)
Musto/Roith/Hankey v Weston/Winstanley
Coleman/McGeeney/Marsh v (Ger) Jyhan Artut (94)
(110) Kevin Thomas (Wal) v Whitehead/Scholten
(103) Colin Fowler (Eng) v Padgett/Copley
(57) Peter Hudson (Eng) v Lawrence/Suljovic
(43) Arron Monk (Eng) v Farmer/Aubrey/Cousins
(98) Alex Roy (Eng) v (Eng) Mark Cox (105)
(86) Terry Temple (Eng) v Jiwa/Johnson/Alcinas
Burgoine/Twist v (Eng) Richie Howson (72)
(107) Adam Hunt (Eng) v (Eng) Paul Amos (109)
Finnan/Jackson/Vos/Derrett v Brown/Gray
(79) Matthew Edgar (Eng) v Osborne/Hine/Dudbridge
(117) Joey Palfreyman (Eng) v Griffiths/K Brown/Rooney
Hubbard/Scott v (Eng) Andy Smith (27)
McNicol/Mead v Dunford/Stewart/Santana
Thorpe/Bunting/Sheppard v Wilson/Seyler
(103) Ricky Evans (Eng) v (Eng) Joe Cullen (41)
(113) Ricky Sudale (Eng) v (Wal) Richie Burnett (26)
Green/Wade/Gallett v Fullwell/W Jones/Lam/Meaney
(64) Andy Jenkins (Eng) v (Eng) Nigel Heydon (55)
Preliminary Round:
(24) Vincent Van der Voort (Ned) v (Sco) Andy Murray (289 BDO)
(65) Gino Vos (Ned) v (Eng) Alan Derrett (132)
(12 BDO) Robbie Green (Eng) v (Eng) James Wade (4)
(Q) Stuart Lowe (Eng) v (Eng) Jake Pennington (Q)
(144) Royden Lam (Hkg) v (Ire) Paddy Meaney (101)
(49) Steve Farmer (Eng) v (Eng) Chris Aubrey (127)
(68) Nick Fullwell (Eng) v (Eng) Wayne Jones (31)
(89) Keegan Brown (Eng) v (Ire) Keith Rooney (125)
(68) Tony West (Eng) v (Wal) Jamie Lewis (73)
(1 BDO) Stephen Bunting (Eng) v (Eng) Vernon Sheppard (144)
(76) Connie Finnan (Ire) v (Nir) Campbell Jackson (126)
(132) Scott Coleman (Eng) v (Eng) Mark McGeeney (233 BDO)
(Q) Michael Musto (Eng) v (Ger) Bernd Roith (83)
(247 BDO) Maik Langendorf (Aut) v (Eng) Tony Martin (45 BDO)
(116) Darren Johnson (Eng) v (Esp) Antonio Alcinas (66)
(30) Colin Osborne (Eng) v (Eng) Steve Hine (120)
(Q) Tam Dymond (Sco) v (Eng) Gavin Baker (Q)
(460 BDO) Terry Dunford (Eng) v (Eng) Dean Stewart (352 BDO)
First Round:
(Q) Michael Burgoine (Eng) v (Eng) Daz Twist (Q)
(122) Dave Weston (Eng) v (Eng) Dean Winstanley (42)
(38 BDO) Gary Stone (Sco) v Langendorf/Martin
(132) Jason Wilson (Eng) v (Ger) Tomas Seyler (98)
(38) Steve Brown (Eng) v (Eng) Adrian Gray (78)
(67) Shaun Griffiths (Eng) v K Brown/Rooney
Finnan/Jackson v Vos/Derrett
Dunford/Stewart v (Sco) Gus Santana (Q)
(Q) Conan Whitehead (Ire) v (Ned) Roland Scholten (51)
Fullwell/W Jones v Lam/Meaney
T West/J Lewis v Lowe/Pennington
(Q) Michael Bushby (Eng) v (Eng) John Mortimer (Q)
(Q) Andrew McNicol (Sco) v (Eng) Steven Mead (Q)
(144) Andy Parsons (Eng) v (Sco) Jamie Hagen (Q)
(Q) Paul Whitworth (Eng) v (Eng) Andy Boulton (187 BDO)
Green/Wade v (Eng) Matt Gallett (Q)
Farmer/Aubrey v (Eng) Gaz Cousins (82)
Dymond/Baker v (Eng) Dave Place (132)
Coleman/McGeeney v (Eng) Scott Marsh (Q)
(Q) Nigel Daniels (Eng) v (Eng) Johnny Haines (62)
Musto/Roith v (Eng) Ted Hankey (75)
(10) Justin Pipe (Eng) v (Eng) Gareth Pass (87)
(115) Leon de Geus (Ned) v (Sco) Scott Robertson (Q)
Osborne/Hine v (Eng) Mark Dudbridge (63)
(Q) Darrell Thorpe (Eng) v Bunting/Sheppard
Van der Voort/Murray v (Eng) Kirk Shepard (144)
(122) Matt Padgett (Eng) v (Eng) David Copley (144)
(48) James Hubbard (Eng) v (Eng) John Scott (95)
(Q) Robbie Singleton (Eng) v (Ire) William O'Connor (59)
(131) Prakash Jiwa (Ind) v Johnson/Alcinas
(144) Matthew Dennant (Eng) v (Eng) Darrell Townsend (Q)
(144) Mark Lawrence (Eng) v (Aut) Mensur Suljovic (54)
Second Round:
Pipe/Pass v (Ned) Jelle Klaasen (47)
(37) Co Stompe (Ned) v (Nir) Micky Mansell (50)
Stone/Langendorf/Martin v (Eng) Dennis Smith (53)
De Geus/Robertson v Whitworth/Boulton
Bushby/Mortimer v (Sco) Jim Walker (74)
(46) Magnus Caris (Swe) v Van der Voort/Murray/Sheppard
(25) Mark Walsh (Eng) v (Eng) Lee Palfreyman (117)
Dymond/Baker/Place v (Sco) John Henderson (40)
Singleton/O'Connor v Daniels/Haines
Dennant/Townsend v Parsons/Hagen
(107) Kevin Dowling (Eng) v (Eng) Phil Taylor (1)
T West/J Lewis/ Lowe/Pennington v (Eng) Steve West (92)
Musto/Roith/Hankey v Weston/Winstanley
Coleman/McGeeney/Marsh v (Ger) Jyhan Artut (94)
(110) Kevin Thomas (Wal) v Whitehead/Scholten
(103) Colin Fowler (Eng) v Padgett/Copley
(57) Peter Hudson (Eng) v Lawrence/Suljovic
(43) Arron Monk (Eng) v Farmer/Aubrey/Cousins
(98) Alex Roy (Eng) v (Eng) Mark Cox (105)
(86) Terry Temple (Eng) v Jiwa/Johnson/Alcinas
Burgoine/Twist v (Eng) Richie Howson (72)
(107) Adam Hunt (Eng) v (Eng) Paul Amos (109)
Finnan/Jackson/Vos/Derrett v Brown/Gray
(79) Matthew Edgar (Eng) v Osborne/Hine/Dudbridge
(117) Joey Palfreyman (Eng) v Griffiths/K Brown/Rooney
Hubbard/Scott v (Eng) Andy Smith (27)
McNicol/Mead v Dunford/Stewart/Santana
Thorpe/Bunting/Sheppard v Wilson/Seyler
(103) Ricky Evans (Eng) v (Eng) Joe Cullen (41)
(113) Ricky Sudale (Eng) v (Wal) Richie Burnett (26)
Green/Wade/Gallett v Fullwell/W Jones/Lam/Meaney
(64) Andy Jenkins (Eng) v (Eng) Nigel Heydon (55)
Wednesday 8 May 2013
Chelsea and Spurs End In Stalemate, Defeat For Wigan Keeps Them In Trouble, Point Doesn't Really Help Sunderland
Chelsea 2-2 Tottenham: The Champions League places remain as you were after this draw at Stamford Bridge. The only thing it does do is move Chelsea two points clear of Arsenal and moves Spurs to a point behind The Gunners. Chelsea took the lead after just ten minutes when Oscar headed home from a corner. Tottenham managed to level on 26-minutes when Emmanuel Adebayor produced a great bit of running before smashing the ball in to the top corner. But Chelsea would take the lead again just six minutes before half-time when Ramires managed to break through and toe poke the ball past the unsuspecting Hugo Lloris. Chelsea looked set on taking all three points until Tottenham managed to steal a point with ten minutes remaining; Benoit Assou-Ekotto played the ball up to Adebayor, who was marginally offside, the Togolese then flicked the ball back for substitute Gylfi Sigurdsson to stroke beautifully in to the bottom corner. Chelsea remain very on much course for a Champions League spot whereas Tottenham have to hope that Arsenal slip up against relegation contenders Wigan or Newcastle.
Wigan 2-3 Swansea: Wigan led twice before ultimately losing and finding themselves three points from safety with two games remaining. Wigan took the lead just before half-time when a parried cross fell to Roger Espinoza for the Honduran to volley home. Swansea levelled five minutes in to the second half when Angel Rangel's volley went in off the post after Wayne Routledge had found the defender. But Wigan once again found themselves in front just three minutes later when Gary Caldwell split the Swansea defence to allow James McCarthy to fire past Michel Vorm. However, Swansea would again find themselves level before the hour mark when Caldwell gave the ball away and Itay Schecter finished at the second attempt. Poor defending ended up leading to Wigan's heartbreak when both James McArthur and Shaun Maloney failed to clear a Pablo Hernandez cross and Dwight Tiendalli was on hand to slot home and steal the points 14-minutes from time. Vorm was later stretchered off after clashing with Ben Davies but Wigan are now even closer to the dreaded drop.
Manchester City 1-0 West Brom: With the FA Cup final coming this weekend, City managed to squeeze in a victory over West Brom. The only goal of the game came ten minutes before half time when Carlos Tevez's cross was neatly volleyed home by Edin Dzeko.
Sunderland 1-1 Stoke: Sunderland managed to go three points clear of the drop after securing a point against Stoke, a result that sees them move six points clear of Wigan and now all but safe with two games remaining. Stoke were ahead after just nine minutes when Jonathan Walters scored from a corner. It got worse for Sunderland 11-minutes before half-time when Craig Gardner was sent off for a late challenge on Charlie Adam. But Sunderland somehow managed to dig in and a point was rescued on 63-minutes when John O'Shea was on hand to poke a corner home.
Wigan 2-3 Swansea: Wigan led twice before ultimately losing and finding themselves three points from safety with two games remaining. Wigan took the lead just before half-time when a parried cross fell to Roger Espinoza for the Honduran to volley home. Swansea levelled five minutes in to the second half when Angel Rangel's volley went in off the post after Wayne Routledge had found the defender. But Wigan once again found themselves in front just three minutes later when Gary Caldwell split the Swansea defence to allow James McCarthy to fire past Michel Vorm. However, Swansea would again find themselves level before the hour mark when Caldwell gave the ball away and Itay Schecter finished at the second attempt. Poor defending ended up leading to Wigan's heartbreak when both James McArthur and Shaun Maloney failed to clear a Pablo Hernandez cross and Dwight Tiendalli was on hand to slot home and steal the points 14-minutes from time. Vorm was later stretchered off after clashing with Ben Davies but Wigan are now even closer to the dreaded drop.
Manchester City 1-0 West Brom: With the FA Cup final coming this weekend, City managed to squeeze in a victory over West Brom. The only goal of the game came ten minutes before half time when Carlos Tevez's cross was neatly volleyed home by Edin Dzeko.
Sunderland 1-1 Stoke: Sunderland managed to go three points clear of the drop after securing a point against Stoke, a result that sees them move six points clear of Wigan and now all but safe with two games remaining. Stoke were ahead after just nine minutes when Jonathan Walters scored from a corner. It got worse for Sunderland 11-minutes before half-time when Craig Gardner was sent off for a late challenge on Charlie Adam. But Sunderland somehow managed to dig in and a point was rescued on 63-minutes when John O'Shea was on hand to poke a corner home.
Sunday 5 May 2013
Goalless Merseyside, Third Place Matas For Chelsea
Manchester United 0-1 Chelsea: Chelsea regain third by a point after stealing the victory at Old Trafford. With United not playing for anything, the onus was on Chelsea to bring a spark in to this game. For the large majority, it didn't materialise at either end until the game was won three minutes before the end. Ramires stole the ball off Wayne Rooney just outside the Chelsea box. Chelsea countered and, after several poor attempts at a clearance, the ball found it's way to an unmarked Juan Mata whose guided shot took a slight deflection of Phil Jones before nestling inside the post. Tempers did flare towards the end and Rafael was sent off in the final minute for kicking out at David Luiz who had laid a few well placed elbows in to his fellow countryman. But there was no excuse for Rafael's reaction, nor Luiz's smile on the ground whilst pretending to clutch his leg in front of Sian Massey on the line. Rafael was deservedly sent off and Chelsea go one step closer to guaranteeing Champions League football next season.
Liverpool 0-0 Everton: This goalless draw means that Everton remain five points clear of their Merseyside rivals. For once, there was only really one talking point in the derby, apart from it being Jamie Carragher's last, that being a goal for Sylvain Distin that was ruled out. It came from a corner and Distin headed home, but the Frenchman slightly pushed Carragher in the back and there was enough contact for Michael Oliver to rule the goal out, much to Everton's disappointment.
West Brom 2-3 Wigan: Wigan move three points behind Newcastle and Norwich in the race for safety. Despite remaining in the relegation zone, Wigan do have a game in hand over Newcastle which is against Swansea. They are two points behind Sunderland but they don't play until Monday. West Brom took the lead just before the half hour mark when Markus Rosenberg's low cross was slid home by Shane Long for his second goal in as many games. Wigan were level ten minutes later when an great advantage played by the referee, Lee Probert, saw Jean Beausejour launch a great cross in to the box for Arouna Kone to head home. West Brom were back in front five minutes in to the second half when Gareth McAuley headed home from a Graham Dorrans free-kick, which was far too poorly defended. This time Wigan were level within eight minutes when substitute James McArthur headed from a splendid Shaun Maloney cross, just a minute and nine seconds after coming on. The winner came ten minutes from time, just moments after surviving a penalty scare, when Callum McManaman tapped home another brilliant Maloney run and pull back.
Norwich 1-2 Aston Villa: Two wins and six points later, Villa are now up to 13th on 40-points and now five points clear of the relegation zone. This latest defeat for Norwich means Paul Lambert has left his former side just three points ahead of Wigan, who have a game in hand. Villa took the lead ten minutes in to the second half when Gabriel Agbonlahor took the ball from inside his half before smashing it in to the bottom corner from 30-yards. Norwich were awarded a penalty on 74-minutes when Joe Bennett pulled Robert Snodgrass down in the box. Grant Holt stepped up and sent Brad Guzan the wrong way to equalise. But Villa took all three points in the last minute of normal time when Agbonlahor's pace managed to beat the defenders to latch on to Ashley Westwood's through ball, the striker did fantastically well to coolly finish in to the bottom corner.
Fulham 2-4 Reading: It's a little late, but Reading finally showed some Premiership quality to see of Fulham at Craven Cottage, leaving The Cottagers stuck on the 40-mark. Reading were given a penalty on 12-minutes when Hal Robson-Kanu was fouled by John Arne Riise just inside the box. The Welshman got up to take the penalty and sent Mark Schwarzer the wrong way. The second goal didn't come until the 62nd minute when Robson-Kanu curled a great shot in to the corner from a wide angle inside the box. Bryan Ruiz pulled a goal back on 70-minutes after linking up well with Hugo Rodallega. But Reading restored their two goal lead with 15-minutes remaining when Jem Karacan's ball over the top found substitute Adam Le Fondre. The striker managed to head the ball past the oncoming Schwarzer before tapping home. It was 3-2 just two minutes later when substitute Alex Kacaniklic's cross was met by Ruiz's head. Rodallega ended up smashing the crossbar before Reading ensured themselves of the victory when the ball came out to Karacan to strike in to the bottom corner from outside the box, a nice way to score his first Premier League goal.
Tottenham 1-0 Southampton: Spurs remain three points behind Chelsea and two behind Arsenal in the race for Champions League football. Tottenham hadn't won a three o'clock all season so when the kick-off was delayed by half an hour due to traffic problems on the M25, Spurs must have felt a little better. The only goal of the game came four minutes from time when, who else, Gareth Bale picked the ball up and made his way inside before unleashing a shot in to the bottom corner from 30-yards to score against his former club. It means that he becomes the first Spurs player to score 20 league goals in a season since Jurgen Klinsmann. Defeat for Southampton mean that they are now just four points ahead of Wigan.
QPR 0-1 Arsenal: Arsenal remain fourth, one point behind Chelsea who still have a game in hand against Spurs, by rooting QPR to the bottom of the table. The only goal of the game was the quickest in the Premiership this season. It came on just 21-seconds when a good passing move saw Aaron Ramsey play the ball through for Theo Walcott to net his 20th goal of the season with a little help from the post. For a second time in the match later on in the first half, Robert Green managed to put a Walcott shot on to the post but this time it stayed out.
West Ham 0-0 Newcastle: Newcastle are now just three points from the brink after surviving a goalless draw at Upton Park. Newcastle thought they had scored in the first half but Papiss Cisse's effort was just cleared off the line. West Ham thought they should have had a penalty in the second half when Kevin Nolan was pushed by Fabricio Coloccini, but nothing was given. Newcastle then had to thank Rob Elliott for keeping West Ham out.
Swansea 0-0 Manchester City: A goalless draw in what was really a nothing match at The Liberty. Swansea should have had a penalty in the first half when Michu was kicked down by Matija Nastasic but nothing was given. City's best chance fell to Edin Dzeko but the Bosnian somehow missed his volley from four yards.
Liverpool 0-0 Everton: This goalless draw means that Everton remain five points clear of their Merseyside rivals. For once, there was only really one talking point in the derby, apart from it being Jamie Carragher's last, that being a goal for Sylvain Distin that was ruled out. It came from a corner and Distin headed home, but the Frenchman slightly pushed Carragher in the back and there was enough contact for Michael Oliver to rule the goal out, much to Everton's disappointment.
West Brom 2-3 Wigan: Wigan move three points behind Newcastle and Norwich in the race for safety. Despite remaining in the relegation zone, Wigan do have a game in hand over Newcastle which is against Swansea. They are two points behind Sunderland but they don't play until Monday. West Brom took the lead just before the half hour mark when Markus Rosenberg's low cross was slid home by Shane Long for his second goal in as many games. Wigan were level ten minutes later when an great advantage played by the referee, Lee Probert, saw Jean Beausejour launch a great cross in to the box for Arouna Kone to head home. West Brom were back in front five minutes in to the second half when Gareth McAuley headed home from a Graham Dorrans free-kick, which was far too poorly defended. This time Wigan were level within eight minutes when substitute James McArthur headed from a splendid Shaun Maloney cross, just a minute and nine seconds after coming on. The winner came ten minutes from time, just moments after surviving a penalty scare, when Callum McManaman tapped home another brilliant Maloney run and pull back.
Norwich 1-2 Aston Villa: Two wins and six points later, Villa are now up to 13th on 40-points and now five points clear of the relegation zone. This latest defeat for Norwich means Paul Lambert has left his former side just three points ahead of Wigan, who have a game in hand. Villa took the lead ten minutes in to the second half when Gabriel Agbonlahor took the ball from inside his half before smashing it in to the bottom corner from 30-yards. Norwich were awarded a penalty on 74-minutes when Joe Bennett pulled Robert Snodgrass down in the box. Grant Holt stepped up and sent Brad Guzan the wrong way to equalise. But Villa took all three points in the last minute of normal time when Agbonlahor's pace managed to beat the defenders to latch on to Ashley Westwood's through ball, the striker did fantastically well to coolly finish in to the bottom corner.
Fulham 2-4 Reading: It's a little late, but Reading finally showed some Premiership quality to see of Fulham at Craven Cottage, leaving The Cottagers stuck on the 40-mark. Reading were given a penalty on 12-minutes when Hal Robson-Kanu was fouled by John Arne Riise just inside the box. The Welshman got up to take the penalty and sent Mark Schwarzer the wrong way. The second goal didn't come until the 62nd minute when Robson-Kanu curled a great shot in to the corner from a wide angle inside the box. Bryan Ruiz pulled a goal back on 70-minutes after linking up well with Hugo Rodallega. But Reading restored their two goal lead with 15-minutes remaining when Jem Karacan's ball over the top found substitute Adam Le Fondre. The striker managed to head the ball past the oncoming Schwarzer before tapping home. It was 3-2 just two minutes later when substitute Alex Kacaniklic's cross was met by Ruiz's head. Rodallega ended up smashing the crossbar before Reading ensured themselves of the victory when the ball came out to Karacan to strike in to the bottom corner from outside the box, a nice way to score his first Premier League goal.
Tottenham 1-0 Southampton: Spurs remain three points behind Chelsea and two behind Arsenal in the race for Champions League football. Tottenham hadn't won a three o'clock all season so when the kick-off was delayed by half an hour due to traffic problems on the M25, Spurs must have felt a little better. The only goal of the game came four minutes from time when, who else, Gareth Bale picked the ball up and made his way inside before unleashing a shot in to the bottom corner from 30-yards to score against his former club. It means that he becomes the first Spurs player to score 20 league goals in a season since Jurgen Klinsmann. Defeat for Southampton mean that they are now just four points ahead of Wigan.
QPR 0-1 Arsenal: Arsenal remain fourth, one point behind Chelsea who still have a game in hand against Spurs, by rooting QPR to the bottom of the table. The only goal of the game was the quickest in the Premiership this season. It came on just 21-seconds when a good passing move saw Aaron Ramsey play the ball through for Theo Walcott to net his 20th goal of the season with a little help from the post. For a second time in the match later on in the first half, Robert Green managed to put a Walcott shot on to the post but this time it stayed out.
West Ham 0-0 Newcastle: Newcastle are now just three points from the brink after surviving a goalless draw at Upton Park. Newcastle thought they had scored in the first half but Papiss Cisse's effort was just cleared off the line. West Ham thought they should have had a penalty in the second half when Kevin Nolan was pushed by Fabricio Coloccini, but nothing was given. Newcastle then had to thank Rob Elliott for keeping West Ham out.
Swansea 0-0 Manchester City: A goalless draw in what was really a nothing match at The Liberty. Swansea should have had a penalty in the first half when Michu was kicked down by Matija Nastasic but nothing was given. City's best chance fell to Edin Dzeko but the Bosnian somehow missed his volley from four yards.
Saturday 4 May 2013
Speedy Sayfutdinov Steals Sweden
Emil Sayfutdinov came from nowhere to win the Swedish GP in Gothenburg to claim his second GP victory in two events. The Russian won it for his dad who sadly passed away a few hours after the meeting. For three laps of the final, World Champion Chris Holder was leading the way before the Russian found that extra bit of speed to overtake him off the second corner of the final lap. An injured Nicki Pedersen was able to claim third with Jaroslaw Hampel finishing fourth, both of whom were also in the final of the New Zealand GP.
Hampel ended the heats very impressively and would make it three wins in three races by winning the first semi-final. Holder was the man to take second with Niels-Kristian Iversen ending a great night in third with the championship leader, Tomasz Gollob, coming fourth.
The second semi-final saw Sayfutdinov and Pedersen line up alongside Matej Zagar and Tai Woffinden who were both in the final in Bydgoszcz last time out. But the semi-final came to a spectacular halt when Pedersen and Woffinden contacted before both going in to the fence and suffering a major crash. Fortunately both riders were okay to continue, although Pedersen did suffer damage to his wrist. But, despite the injury and a new bike, Pedersen got the best start in the restart and also led for the first three laps before Sayfutdinov once again found that extra edge to overtake him. After being shut out by Sayfutdinov at the start, Woffinden had to settle for fourth with Zagar at the rear.
The night actually began with Sayfutdinov claiming a third place behind Gollob and Hampel, but ahead of Lindgren. Darcy Ward's 21st birthday didn't go quite as planned and the beginning on the end saw him put him the bike down at the start of the second after being clipped by Iversen. This happened after an initial restart due to movement from the start. So, for the third time of asking, all four riders took to the tapes before Zagar ended up with the chequered flag ahead of Iversen, Krzysztof Kasprzak and Zagar, Kasprzak earning his first point since the New Zealand GP.
World Champion, Holder, won heat three ahead of Woffinden and the wildcard Linus Sundstrom with Greg Hancock disappointingly at the back. After a poor display in Poland, Antonio Lindback began his night with victory in heat four ahead of Pedersen and Martin Vaculik with Andreas Jonsson beginning the meeting in front of his home crowd in last.
It was a victory for Sweden in heat five as Zagar finished behind Lindgren, Sundstrom and Lindback, the latter picking up his second win in two heats. For three laps of heat six, Jonsson was leading with Holder behind but the heat had to be restarted when Ward crashed heavily in to the barrier. Ward was obviously excluded from the restart but unfortunately, the Australian had to be stretchered to hospital with suspected damage to the shoulder. With Ward out, heat six restarted and Holder would win it with Hampel also finishing ahead of the unlucky Jonsson.
Woffinden won heat seven with Gollob only managing to finish third behind Kasprzak. Pedersen would take his first heat of the night in the eighth, ahead of Sayfutdinov, Iversen and Hancock who was still yet to pick up a point.
Woffinden was a bit eager in heat nine and was lucky not to touch the tapes. The heat had to be restarted but all four were allowed to take part. The Brit managed to compose himself and storm the heat to make it two wins in a row with Pedersen coming second. Reserve driver Dennis Andersson woefully finished fourth behind Lindgren. Hancock finally turned things around by winning heat ten ahead of Hampel with Zagar coming fourth. Iversen managed to take heat-11 with Jonsson also finally putting points on the board with second, Sundstrom managed to beat Gollob who didn't even finish the race because he knew he would be last. Sayfutdinov's first victory came in heat-12 ahead of Holder, Kasprzak and Lindback, whose fortunes had suddenly changed again.
Hancock then made it two heats in two with victory in the 13th, Lindgren managed second with Jonsson again coming fourth behind Kasprzak. Hampel had to stave of a last corner fight from Woffinden to take heat-14, his first victory of the night. The Brit passed Lindback on lap three to claim second with Iversen back down in fourth. Zagar won his second heat by surprisingly beating Gollob, Pedersen and Holder in heat-15. Sayfutdinov would also make it two heats in two in a relatively easy heat-16; he coasted past Sundstrom, Vaculik and the second reserve driver, Mathias Thornblom.
Iversen managed to be beat Holder to claim his second heat of the night in heat-17. Hampel booked his place in the semi-finals by making it two heats in a row in heat-18 ahead of Kasprzak, Pedersen and Sundstrom. Gollob ended the heats as he started them, with a victory, in heat-19 with Hancock on the cusp of a semi-final with second. But a third victory from Zagar in the final heat meant he went through at the expense of the veteran American. Sayfutdinov finished second with Woffinden third and Jonsson completing a terrible night in fourth.
After three GP's, Gollob still leads the way on 40-points but the pack is getting very bunched. The second victory fro Sayfutdinov sees him level with Hampel on 38-points in second. Woffinden is only three points further behind with Pedersen on 34. The defending champion, Holder, is on 33 with Zagar a little further back on 28. Hancock sits eighth on 27 with Iversen on 26. After not scoring a point in either of his two rides, Ward drops from second to tenth on a birthday he'd like to forget.
Hampel ended the heats very impressively and would make it three wins in three races by winning the first semi-final. Holder was the man to take second with Niels-Kristian Iversen ending a great night in third with the championship leader, Tomasz Gollob, coming fourth.
The second semi-final saw Sayfutdinov and Pedersen line up alongside Matej Zagar and Tai Woffinden who were both in the final in Bydgoszcz last time out. But the semi-final came to a spectacular halt when Pedersen and Woffinden contacted before both going in to the fence and suffering a major crash. Fortunately both riders were okay to continue, although Pedersen did suffer damage to his wrist. But, despite the injury and a new bike, Pedersen got the best start in the restart and also led for the first three laps before Sayfutdinov once again found that extra edge to overtake him. After being shut out by Sayfutdinov at the start, Woffinden had to settle for fourth with Zagar at the rear.
The night actually began with Sayfutdinov claiming a third place behind Gollob and Hampel, but ahead of Lindgren. Darcy Ward's 21st birthday didn't go quite as planned and the beginning on the end saw him put him the bike down at the start of the second after being clipped by Iversen. This happened after an initial restart due to movement from the start. So, for the third time of asking, all four riders took to the tapes before Zagar ended up with the chequered flag ahead of Iversen, Krzysztof Kasprzak and Zagar, Kasprzak earning his first point since the New Zealand GP.
World Champion, Holder, won heat three ahead of Woffinden and the wildcard Linus Sundstrom with Greg Hancock disappointingly at the back. After a poor display in Poland, Antonio Lindback began his night with victory in heat four ahead of Pedersen and Martin Vaculik with Andreas Jonsson beginning the meeting in front of his home crowd in last.
It was a victory for Sweden in heat five as Zagar finished behind Lindgren, Sundstrom and Lindback, the latter picking up his second win in two heats. For three laps of heat six, Jonsson was leading with Holder behind but the heat had to be restarted when Ward crashed heavily in to the barrier. Ward was obviously excluded from the restart but unfortunately, the Australian had to be stretchered to hospital with suspected damage to the shoulder. With Ward out, heat six restarted and Holder would win it with Hampel also finishing ahead of the unlucky Jonsson.
Woffinden won heat seven with Gollob only managing to finish third behind Kasprzak. Pedersen would take his first heat of the night in the eighth, ahead of Sayfutdinov, Iversen and Hancock who was still yet to pick up a point.
Woffinden was a bit eager in heat nine and was lucky not to touch the tapes. The heat had to be restarted but all four were allowed to take part. The Brit managed to compose himself and storm the heat to make it two wins in a row with Pedersen coming second. Reserve driver Dennis Andersson woefully finished fourth behind Lindgren. Hancock finally turned things around by winning heat ten ahead of Hampel with Zagar coming fourth. Iversen managed to take heat-11 with Jonsson also finally putting points on the board with second, Sundstrom managed to beat Gollob who didn't even finish the race because he knew he would be last. Sayfutdinov's first victory came in heat-12 ahead of Holder, Kasprzak and Lindback, whose fortunes had suddenly changed again.
Hancock then made it two heats in two with victory in the 13th, Lindgren managed second with Jonsson again coming fourth behind Kasprzak. Hampel had to stave of a last corner fight from Woffinden to take heat-14, his first victory of the night. The Brit passed Lindback on lap three to claim second with Iversen back down in fourth. Zagar won his second heat by surprisingly beating Gollob, Pedersen and Holder in heat-15. Sayfutdinov would also make it two heats in two in a relatively easy heat-16; he coasted past Sundstrom, Vaculik and the second reserve driver, Mathias Thornblom.
Iversen managed to be beat Holder to claim his second heat of the night in heat-17. Hampel booked his place in the semi-finals by making it two heats in a row in heat-18 ahead of Kasprzak, Pedersen and Sundstrom. Gollob ended the heats as he started them, with a victory, in heat-19 with Hancock on the cusp of a semi-final with second. But a third victory from Zagar in the final heat meant he went through at the expense of the veteran American. Sayfutdinov finished second with Woffinden third and Jonsson completing a terrible night in fourth.
After three GP's, Gollob still leads the way on 40-points but the pack is getting very bunched. The second victory fro Sayfutdinov sees him level with Hampel on 38-points in second. Woffinden is only three points further behind with Pedersen on 34. The defending champion, Holder, is on 33 with Zagar a little further back on 28. Hancock sits eighth on 27 with Iversen on 26. After not scoring a point in either of his two rides, Ward drops from second to tenth on a birthday he'd like to forget.
Thursday 2 May 2013
MVG, Taylor and Barney Through, Hamilton Out
Three of the four play-off spaces have been taken in the penultimate round of the Premier League. Michael Van Gerwen only needed a point to take the first place whilst wins for Phil Taylor and Raymond Van Barneveld placed them on the cusp of progression. Andy Hamilton's earlier defeat at the hands of Van Gerwen meant that he can't make the play-offs but he later assured Taylor and Van Barneveld of their places by beating James Wade, who lost twice. This leaves Wade, Robert Thornton and Simon Whitlock battling it out in Newcastle for the final place.
History will be made in the Premier League regardless of which Dutchman tops the table as it will be the first Premier League ever that Taylor has failed to top the standings. Van Gerwen is the most likely to finish top but if he loses next week and Van Barneveld wins both of his games, Barney would leapfrog his younger countryman. A win for Wade next week and he claims the final place in the playoffs whereas Thornton has the unenviable take of trying to beat both Dutchman to guarantee qualification. Although if Wade does lose his final match, Thornton would only need to gain a point to level with The Machine and The Thorn also currently has a four leg advantage in the difference column. Whitlock must hope that Wade and Thornton lose their matches in order for him to steal the final spot in the O2.
The night in Liverpool began with Van Gerwen eliminating Hamilton in order to seal his progression. Van Gerwen quickly took a 2-0 lead after Hamilton missed three darts to take the second leg. But The Hammer responded and after six perfect darts in the fourth leg, he took out-84 to level the match. Van Gerwen managed to find a crucial break in leg eight which gave him a 5-3 lead. The Dutchman then earned the vital point in the next leg after both players had missed two darts to win it earlier. A 106-checkout did keep Hamilton alive for another leg but Van Gerwen wasn't going to throw another lead away, like last week, and he finished the job with a 7-4 victory.
Whitlock knew that a defeat against Wade would also end his chances of a play-off place but the Australian managed to emulate his 7-4 victory when the pair met in week six. Back then, there was six ton plus checkouts between and Whitlock began tonight with a stunning 130-finish on the bull. Whitlock had a dart to make it 3-0 but he recovered with a 126-checkout in the fourth leg to re-establish a two leg lead. Whitlock then missed two darts to make it 4-1, which could have easily been 5-0, but again The Wizard prevented Wade from gaining any momentum by taking out-108 to go 4-2 in front. Whitlock managed to break ahead further and guarantee a point at 6-3. He also had two darts to win 7-3 but had to settle for 7-4 via a 116-checkout, his fourth ton plus finish of the night.
Taylor avenged his earlier defeat against Thornton in week nine by delivering a thrashing to the Scot. Taylor was most definitely in the zone with a place in the play-offs in his grasp and a 164-checkout in the third leg helped him on the way to a 4-0 lead. Taylor looked set to make it five after two 180s left him with a two darter, but Thornton managed to hit a 138-checkout to finally post a leg on the board. Thornton then managed to make it 5-2 before Taylor took the following two legs to win at a canter.
Van Barneveld managed to keep level with Taylor with another good performance and victory over Adrian Lewis. In the beginning, Lewis looked like he had regained some form and kept pace with Barney at 2-2. A 106-checkout from the Dutchman made it 3-2 before he managed to get a crucial after Lewis missed a colossal six darts to restore parity. Barneveld would miss two darts to take a point in the ninth leg but he would take the next two legs to win the match 7-4 and did so with a 102-average.
Wade and Hamilton took to the stage and it was this result which sets up a dramatic night in Newcastle. A win for Wade would place him a step closer to the play-offs whilst a defeat would seal Taylor and Van Barneveld's places. Hamilton managed to find a crucial break in the third leg after Wade missed a dart at tops for a 145-checkout. A 110-checkout from Hamilton made it 3-1 before Wade moved to within a leg, checking out ten after initially hitting six perfect darts. But that would be the last leg he would win as a much more up for it Hamilton took the next four legs to romps home 7-2. Table after week-13:
1. Michael Van Gerwen PL15 22 +28
2. Phil Taylor PL15 19 +22
3. Raymond Van Barneveld PL14 19 +18
4. James Wade PL15 16 +6
5. Robert Thornton PL14 15 +10
6. Simon Whitlock PL14 14 -3
7. Andy Hamilton PL15 12 -10
8. Adrian Lewis PL14 7 -27
History will be made in the Premier League regardless of which Dutchman tops the table as it will be the first Premier League ever that Taylor has failed to top the standings. Van Gerwen is the most likely to finish top but if he loses next week and Van Barneveld wins both of his games, Barney would leapfrog his younger countryman. A win for Wade next week and he claims the final place in the playoffs whereas Thornton has the unenviable take of trying to beat both Dutchman to guarantee qualification. Although if Wade does lose his final match, Thornton would only need to gain a point to level with The Machine and The Thorn also currently has a four leg advantage in the difference column. Whitlock must hope that Wade and Thornton lose their matches in order for him to steal the final spot in the O2.
The night in Liverpool began with Van Gerwen eliminating Hamilton in order to seal his progression. Van Gerwen quickly took a 2-0 lead after Hamilton missed three darts to take the second leg. But The Hammer responded and after six perfect darts in the fourth leg, he took out-84 to level the match. Van Gerwen managed to find a crucial break in leg eight which gave him a 5-3 lead. The Dutchman then earned the vital point in the next leg after both players had missed two darts to win it earlier. A 106-checkout did keep Hamilton alive for another leg but Van Gerwen wasn't going to throw another lead away, like last week, and he finished the job with a 7-4 victory.
Whitlock knew that a defeat against Wade would also end his chances of a play-off place but the Australian managed to emulate his 7-4 victory when the pair met in week six. Back then, there was six ton plus checkouts between and Whitlock began tonight with a stunning 130-finish on the bull. Whitlock had a dart to make it 3-0 but he recovered with a 126-checkout in the fourth leg to re-establish a two leg lead. Whitlock then missed two darts to make it 4-1, which could have easily been 5-0, but again The Wizard prevented Wade from gaining any momentum by taking out-108 to go 4-2 in front. Whitlock managed to break ahead further and guarantee a point at 6-3. He also had two darts to win 7-3 but had to settle for 7-4 via a 116-checkout, his fourth ton plus finish of the night.
Taylor avenged his earlier defeat against Thornton in week nine by delivering a thrashing to the Scot. Taylor was most definitely in the zone with a place in the play-offs in his grasp and a 164-checkout in the third leg helped him on the way to a 4-0 lead. Taylor looked set to make it five after two 180s left him with a two darter, but Thornton managed to hit a 138-checkout to finally post a leg on the board. Thornton then managed to make it 5-2 before Taylor took the following two legs to win at a canter.
Van Barneveld managed to keep level with Taylor with another good performance and victory over Adrian Lewis. In the beginning, Lewis looked like he had regained some form and kept pace with Barney at 2-2. A 106-checkout from the Dutchman made it 3-2 before he managed to get a crucial after Lewis missed a colossal six darts to restore parity. Barneveld would miss two darts to take a point in the ninth leg but he would take the next two legs to win the match 7-4 and did so with a 102-average.
Wade and Hamilton took to the stage and it was this result which sets up a dramatic night in Newcastle. A win for Wade would place him a step closer to the play-offs whilst a defeat would seal Taylor and Van Barneveld's places. Hamilton managed to find a crucial break in the third leg after Wade missed a dart at tops for a 145-checkout. A 110-checkout from Hamilton made it 3-1 before Wade moved to within a leg, checking out ten after initially hitting six perfect darts. But that would be the last leg he would win as a much more up for it Hamilton took the next four legs to romps home 7-2. Table after week-13:
1. Michael Van Gerwen PL15 22 +28
2. Phil Taylor PL15 19 +22
3. Raymond Van Barneveld PL14 19 +18
4. James Wade PL15 16 +6
5. Robert Thornton PL14 15 +10
6. Simon Whitlock PL14 14 -3
7. Andy Hamilton PL15 12 -10
8. Adrian Lewis PL14 7 -27
Wednesday 1 May 2013
First Ever All German Final
It may have been all but known after the first legs, but it's now official; the first ever all German Champions League final will take place in Wembley on May 28th to decide the winner of this season's campaign. Bayern Munich battered another sorry Barcelona to end with a 7-0 aggregate scoreline, the likes of which have never been seen before and it's also the first time Barcelona have lost both legs of a European tie since they did it against Dundee United in 1987. As for Borussia Dortmund, they survived a late onslaught from Real Madrid to win the tie 4-3 on aggregate.
Judging by the team sheet before a ball was kicked in Camp Nou, it looked as if Barcelona had already conceded defeat by leaving Lionel Messi on the bench. For the sixth game running, it was a very ordinary display from the Spanish giants and it has left some people wondering whether it may be the beginning of the end for this Barcelona era.
Neither side could produce any real magic in the first half and the sides went in goalless without either keeper really being tested. This now meant the test for Barcelona was four goals in 45-minutes. But the ante was increased to six just three minutes later when Arjen Robben was allowed to cut inside and curl a beautiful shot in to the far corner.
Barcelona did manage to get themselves on the scoresheet on 72-minutes but it was only to increase Bayern's lead; Franck Ribery crossed the ball in and Gerard Pique met it with a very gung-ho attempt at a clearance, only for the ball to come off his knee and fly past Victor Valdes.
Barcelona's humiliation was finally completed four minutes later when Ribery again caused mischief down the wing before finding another teasing cross where Thomas Muller was on hand to head home at the far post. After his two goals in the first leg, Muller has now actually levelled with Messi for this season. The 7-0 aggregate victory for Bayern also means that they still haven't conceded since Arsenal beat them in the Allianz in the round of 16. It's also likely that Bayern Munich will the be slight favourites to avenge last season's defeat and lift the trophy this season.
The first half between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund was also goalless, but only god knows how that happened. Both teams missed glorious chances and Madrid could have had the three goals they needed to go through in the opening five minutes. Gonzalo Higuain and Angel Di Maria both missed a chance before Cristiano Ronaldo's turn and volley was straight at Roman Weidenfeller from seven yards. At the other end, Robert Lewandowski would like to know how he didn't add to his four goals in the first leg after his effort rattled off the crossbar before bouncing on the line and somehow stayed out.
The second half was much calmer compared to the first and Real Madrid's first half urgency seemed to fade. That was until the substitution of Karim Benzema for Higuain as the Frenchman seemed to give the Spaniards a new lease of life, albeit too little too late.
But Benzema did start the unlikely fight back with eight minutes remaining on the clock; Mesut Ozil's cross being finished off by the Frenchman from close range. With two minutes remaining, Real found a second of their three goals when an undefended corner saw the ball come back in for Benzema to knock down and Sergio Ramos, who would miss the final if they pulled the miracle off, smashed it in to the roof of the net. Ramos had another half-chance in the depths of injury time with a header from a corner that ended up going harmlessly wide. But Dortmund managed to go on and Wembley will now see a fantastic all German final between the two sides that have been the most entertaining in Europe all season.
Judging by the team sheet before a ball was kicked in Camp Nou, it looked as if Barcelona had already conceded defeat by leaving Lionel Messi on the bench. For the sixth game running, it was a very ordinary display from the Spanish giants and it has left some people wondering whether it may be the beginning of the end for this Barcelona era.
Neither side could produce any real magic in the first half and the sides went in goalless without either keeper really being tested. This now meant the test for Barcelona was four goals in 45-minutes. But the ante was increased to six just three minutes later when Arjen Robben was allowed to cut inside and curl a beautiful shot in to the far corner.
Barcelona did manage to get themselves on the scoresheet on 72-minutes but it was only to increase Bayern's lead; Franck Ribery crossed the ball in and Gerard Pique met it with a very gung-ho attempt at a clearance, only for the ball to come off his knee and fly past Victor Valdes.
Barcelona's humiliation was finally completed four minutes later when Ribery again caused mischief down the wing before finding another teasing cross where Thomas Muller was on hand to head home at the far post. After his two goals in the first leg, Muller has now actually levelled with Messi for this season. The 7-0 aggregate victory for Bayern also means that they still haven't conceded since Arsenal beat them in the Allianz in the round of 16. It's also likely that Bayern Munich will the be slight favourites to avenge last season's defeat and lift the trophy this season.
The first half between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund was also goalless, but only god knows how that happened. Both teams missed glorious chances and Madrid could have had the three goals they needed to go through in the opening five minutes. Gonzalo Higuain and Angel Di Maria both missed a chance before Cristiano Ronaldo's turn and volley was straight at Roman Weidenfeller from seven yards. At the other end, Robert Lewandowski would like to know how he didn't add to his four goals in the first leg after his effort rattled off the crossbar before bouncing on the line and somehow stayed out.
The second half was much calmer compared to the first and Real Madrid's first half urgency seemed to fade. That was until the substitution of Karim Benzema for Higuain as the Frenchman seemed to give the Spaniards a new lease of life, albeit too little too late.
But Benzema did start the unlikely fight back with eight minutes remaining on the clock; Mesut Ozil's cross being finished off by the Frenchman from close range. With two minutes remaining, Real found a second of their three goals when an undefended corner saw the ball come back in for Benzema to knock down and Sergio Ramos, who would miss the final if they pulled the miracle off, smashed it in to the roof of the net. Ramos had another half-chance in the depths of injury time with a header from a corner that ended up going harmlessly wide. But Dortmund managed to go on and Wembley will now see a fantastic all German final between the two sides that have been the most entertaining in Europe all season.
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