Toulouse Diary: Day Four

Monday 27th July. Hometime.

The last day of any sort of holiday is always depressing, regardless of whether you want to come home (as in this case) or not. Mainly because it means work in the morning. But also because it takes ages to get back.

We said bye to our hippodrome setting with a bizarre breakfast selection of lasagne and pasta, which was meant to set us up for the day. It didn't. But anyway.

France decided it would acclimatise us to the British weather by itself being dull and cloudy, and so as we left Toulouse, it was as if we were back in Nottingham already. We made the final walk to Arenes metro station (aren't they a band?) and found our way to Toulouse train station.

We waited for our ridiculously long train at the correct spot on the platform, and hopped on. We were sat there for at least half an hour wondering what the hell was going on, as we weren't moving, and by admittance, my French isn't what it used to be. Eventually, we set off, and got to Carcassonne just in time.

On the way to the bus, we met a girl from Newcastle, who was hoping she wasn't going to miss the bus we thought we might miss. She had been to stay at her friends chateaux in Toulouse having been to the benicasim festival a few weeks earlier. Not bad.

We got to the airport (I use the term airport loosely, it might as well have been a shed), and passed some time by chucking about the ridiculously addictive mini-Widnes rugby ball I have (a snip at £2.99 in the Widnes club shop, by the way).

Time passed and we joined a long queue to board our delayed flight back to East Midlands. Some middle-aged man was moaning his arse off because four people pushed in, yet he didn't have the balls to confront them. Instead he said it out loud just soft enough so they couldn't here, and then insisted his wife tried to barge past them with their buggy. Nice one mate. You'd think the plane would take off without him.

Much of the plane journey involved me worrying that our away game with Barrow is going to be re-arranged for a Thursday night, which would mean me missing it (as it clashes with my 21st birthday party). That would really annoy me, considering I've not missed a minute of Widnes action this season!

So at 5.30, some 87 hours after I left my house for the journey, I returned.

That's one hell of a trip for one away game.

Bring on next year!

Toulouse Diary: Day Three

Sunday 26th July.

Well today pretty much confirmed that Toulouse is not a tourist destination. Surely there are better places for a future Super League franchise?!

A late start saw us up in time for lunch and we headed to the tried and tested McDonald's to fill our boots for the day. And what a day. Scorching hot and not a cloud in the sky. 35 degrees apparently. But after lunch was eaten, we were challenged for something to do.

In France, they haven't quite grasped the concept of working on a Sunday, so everywhere was shut. We contemplated the pool at our hotel, but we didn't fancy it, despite the weather, and so settled in to watch the Hungarian Grand Prix at our hotel. Stunning stuff. It is perhaps a reflection of my life - as I portray in this blog - that we ended up watching sport instead of sunning ourselves. Lewis Hamilton won, in case you missed it.

Eventually we headed to the city centre, but it appeared that the Viking invasion was long over. We didn't come across a single Vikings fan - they probably headed home today on the Liverpool flight, while we're flying home to East Midlands tomorrow. We settled in both the George and Dragon and the Melting Pot for a drink or two, with a second pizza from Pizzeria Vecchio sandwiched in between.

We wandered around the city on the hunt for something to do, and we found a quite impressive art gallery. It was related somehow to Jean Jaures, a former French political figure, but we weren't quite sure just what it had to do with him.

But as we ambled back to our hotel, we considered realistically how different is Toulouse to your typical northern English city. Weather aside, not a lot. There's sod all to do.

But do I care? No. I came for the rugby. And we won. And that's all that matters.

See you tomorrow!

Toulouse Diary: Day Two

Saturday 25th July. Matchday.

Many Widnes fans over for the weekend were probably looking to have a good time and a nice break away from their hectic lifestyles. But to me, only one thing matters, and that's the result. If Widnes win, it's a good weekend. If Widnes lose, it's not. Simples.

Unfortunately, the shutters on our hotel window don't give much estimation of the time, so after a post-midday arisal, we set off in to Toulouse city centre. We'd nailed the metro by this time and so as we got off at Jean Jaures, we hunted for food. And right to the left of the metro exit, we found Pizzeria Vecchio, and unlike the place we went last night, it served pizza! So a pizza each later, we head off to explore Toulouse.

It's quite a nice little place, the main part has a massive square which is overlooked by restaurants. As we were walking through there were horns going off everywhere - evidently, when there's a wedding on, it gives you the licence to beep your car horn as often as you like.

We even managed to fit a bit of culture in - with a visit to Saint Sernin.

Speaking of different cultures, the roads in France are something else. There are zebra crossings at every junction, but they mean diddly squat. As does the green man. After a while, we established that when the green man is on the cars are supposed to stop at the zebras, but don't hold your breath. We saw a few hairy skirmishes, with a woman giving a hairy old man on a quad bike the Vs after a near miss. The message is, if you see a green man in France, don't automatically assume you can go!

We then went on the hunt for some memorabilia of the trip, and found a few sport shops that were kitted out mainly with the new Marseille football kit, while they also had Lyon, Bordeaux, St Etienne and more. For some reason, they didn't have the lovely purple and white striped Toulouse shirt anywhere, which was a blow. There were also a collection of ridiculous Stade Francais rugby union shirts, which you really have to see to believe.

After that, we made our way to the Stade Toulousain Rugby store. Toulouse's rugby union team are one of the best in Europe. It an amazing store, with everything you could think of related to the club, from shirts to scarves, dummies to dressing gowns. The home shirt was soon earmarked as a decent item of memorabilia, and we'd visit back.

I tend to get a football shirt as a momento wherever I go on holiday, so was determined to get something Toulouse related.

With our needs to quency our thirst increasing, we headed to the Melting Pot for a few drinks, and chilled out in front of the TV. Here we came across a group of Reg Reagan's from Widnes, all kitted out in black wigs, black moustaches, black shirts with a different message on and green Australian rugby league shorts. Amazingly, they all spoke with an Australian accent across the weekend. They provided a fair few laughs, and continued to do so.

At around 5pm, we headed to the game and found Toulouse's own ground, which looked average. But we weren't playing there, and we got the free bus up to Blagnac RU. On the way, we passed the Toulouse Rugby Union ground which looked quite impressive, and somehow navigated some very narrow streets to reach Blagnac.

It was a tidy little ground, with two stands on either side and then space behind one end to stand. At 10 euros to get in, it wasn't bad, although you had to pay another 10 euros if you wanted to sit down. There was a stall outside selling Toulouse RL merchandise, so we plumped for a Toulouse home shirt each at a respectable 49 euros. There was a bar in the back of one of the stands, which proved handy later on.

Ahead of the Widnes game, England were playing France in a Women's international. England played some nice stuff, and ended up running away 36-0 winners - despite the fact the scoreboard said 34-0 and they announced at the end it was 34-0, we definitely counted it as 36-0, as did a few others! There were some impressive players on show, and womens rugby league is definitely something to research when we get back. We also weren't convinced they played the full 40 in the second half, but never mind.

And to the main reason we came. Toulouse v Widnes in the Championship. After Featherstone's surprise win at Halifax on Friday it was all the more important that we won this to consolidate our play-off berth. It was a tough opening with both sets of forwards slugging it out, and after a dubious scrum decision, Toulouse opened the scoring.

Widnes hit back, and a superb effort by Kevin Penny saw us hit the front on the interval, with a 16-12 advantage - except the scoreboard said 14-12! Thankfully, during the half time break, it was rectified.

In the second half, Widnes seemed to fall off a bit and despite us expecting them to run away with it, it was Toulouse that hit the front, and led 24-16. At this stage, half way in to the second half, I wasn't convinced. Widnes had no urgency, and didn't look like scoring. But they kept at it, and Jim Gannon forced his way over the line under the sticks to reduce arrears to two.

Widnes had the momentum, and an extraordinary last tackle play saw Toa Kohe-Love go close, Dean Gaskell retrieve the ball and spread it across, and with the defence stretched, Gavin Dodd put in a pinpoint cross-field kick and Kevin Penny touched down in the corner to give us the lead. Dodd tagged on the goal to put us 28-24 in front with about five to play.

Toulouse kept coming at us, but when Lee Doran pulled off an interception and released Richard Varkulis, Varks headed for the corner and touched down for the game winner. Get in! 32-24.

Now, someone told us that Toulouse were expecting 5,000+. There was no where near that many. One of the stands was probably about two thirds full, but the opposite one was almost empty. And you could make the argument that there were nearly as many Widnes fans as home fans. The crowd was eventually announced as 3,209, which certainly was not the case!

It makes you wonder just what the RFL is trying to achieve by giving false attendances such as these. It's ridiculous.

We remained at the ground for probably at least half hour after the game as the players came to chat to the fans. Mark Smith told us he'd been bollocked by boss Paul Cullen for his performance, while one drunkard tried his best to get Smith's shirt from his back, but apparently the players aren't allowed. We also noticed Vikings Sporting Director Terry O'Connor - funny how when we play the likes of Featherstone at home, he can't make it, but when there's a free holiday to Toulouse on the go, he's there!

And there we go, the primary reason for the trip had been a success. Get in!

Toulouse Diary: Day One

At 3.30am on Friday July 24th I set off on the longest trip I've ever made for an away game, some 39 hours before Widnes kick off their league match against Toulouse.

Thanks to the RFL, we now have a French team in the second tier of the "UK" rugby league structure, and my trip to Toulouse means I'll now have watched Widnes play a league game in three different countries (England, France and Wales - versus Celtic Crusaders last season).

In the interest of finance, we (we being me and my Whitehaven supporting pal John, who I dragged along for the trip) flew from East Midlands Airport near Derby to Carcassonne before catching a ludicrously cheap train from the latter to Toulouse, courtesy of the fact John's dad works on the railways back at home.

It really is pain free travel with RyanAir, and owing to John's experience of visiting Toulouse with Whitehaven earlier in the season, we jumped straight on the bus to the centre of Carcassonne - driven by a rather elegant, middle-aged women - well, elegant in comparative terms to the usual bus drivers you get abroad.

We were then greeted by the golden arches of McDonalds upon arrival to the centre and we popped in for a burger, drink and McFlurry to recharge the batteries, as we waited for our 12.22 train to Toulouse. While waiting on the platform, we met our first group of Widnes fans, waiting for the same train and also a nice couple from West Yorkshire, who were over here to watch their daughter play for England Women against France in the curtain raiser to the Toulouse v Widnes game.

While waiting for our train we were treated with some French inner-city violence, as a brawl erupted between six lads in their late-teens. We were nearly caught up in it all as punches were thrown and kicks were landed. One lad ended up with a severely ripped t-shirt for his trouble, and then proceeded to jump on the rail track to escape the five-man tag team that were having a pop at him. Of course, the station manager was doing her best - but her blowing on her whistle was hardly doing much to stop the fight. It died down, the train arrived, and we went to Toulouse.


View Toulouse Map in a larger map
A map of our journey and its stages

Having got to the main station in Toulouse, we were now dealt with the task of finding our hotel. John was convinced that St Cyprien station was the best route to get their, so we hopped on the Metro to their and went on a hunt for it. After walking about a mile, we established that in fact our hotel wasn't near here, and after a few minutes trying to figure out the French road maps, we got on the metro to Arenes. Eventually, we found what we were looking for, well the road at least, and then set off down it. We soon realised we were going the wrong way down it, and turned around. But after one hell of a walk (bearing in mind we had been carrying our luggage about all day) we found our Residshome Aparthotel, located bang opposite the Hippodrome.

It looked nearly brand new, and bloody hell it was. A relative bargain, it's basically the French's way of showing the English how a Travelodge should be. We're overlooking the Hippodrome perfectly, meaning you could watch the whole event from our room. A flat screen TV is situated above a tidy work bench, there's plenty of wardrobe space too. We have a kitchen with a hob, dishwasher and fridge. The bathroom is amazing, complete with bath and shower, and there's even daft little things they've thought of that we keep stumbling across. Well worth the money I'll say.

However, Toulouse isn't the most tourist friendly destination, and we had a battle finding anything worth eating in the supermarket. We grabbed a few bits that will last us, and then we headed out to the centre of Toulouse to take in the Wigan v Leeds Super League match, live on SKY Sports.

Again owing to John's experience, we located the Melting Pot - after eating an undercooked burger at an Italian restaurant that didn't serve pizzas... - and took our seats complete with a pitcher of cider. We were joined by a few more Widnes fans and then just before kick off, the whole Widnes squad and coach Paul Cullen entered the fray.

We were treated to a cracking game between Wigan and Leeds, which Wigan won 28-10, and left me wondering why Joel Tomkins didn't look any good when he played for us but now looks like a world beater at Wigan.

The Widnes players all left at half time - bar Gavin Dodd and Lee Doran - but me and eagle-eyed John also spotted a couple of other burly looking blokes in the bar. Turns out they were Toulouse players Antoni Maria and Bruno Ormeno, obviously sent by their coach to check out the Widnes lads.

All in all, it was a decent day. And after finding our way back to the hotel, we hit the sack after what had been a 21 hour day, with barely three hours sleep in the previous 24 to boot.

Stadium five must crack on

A year on from the first announcement of Super League licences, and the RFL this week sent a timely reminder to those clubs at risk of missing out when the new licence process comes around in 2012.

That is of course those clubs that were allowed in on the back of a promise, a promise which none of the famous five seem to be any nearer to completing.

In the 12 months gone by, Salford have continued to release quotes of supposed information that realistically hasn't got them anywhere near to starting their new ground, let alone finishing it, while Celtic have even lost ownership of their ground in that time. They're now talking about moving to Newport while they look to get a ground built in Bridgend.

St Helens appear to be the most advanced, closely followed by Castleford, while Wakefield haven't really progressed from last year when the RFL told them a lack of a Plan B could cost them dearly in the future.

Unless they're building it out of LEGO, a build time anywhere between 6 and 12 months is going to be required for any club to get a new stadium - and that's without any delays. Warrington and Leigh would be two clubs that the famous five could ask for advice - both play in fantastic new grounds that have added greatly to their respective communities.

With Widnes heading the queue of teams waiting in the wings for a Super League place, the five will face a race against time to ensure standards are met.

RFL director of development Gary Tasker said: "Some clubs are at a more advanced stage of the planning process than others so we felt that, a year on from awarding the licences, it was appropriate to remind all the clubs concerned of their commitment to upgrade their current facility or move to a new stadium and the potential implications any failure to do so may have on their next licence application."

And with fans growing increasingly impatient over promises and the fear that their club may not be invited to the Super League party beyond 2012, the clubs issued responses.

Castleford CEO Richard Wright said: “Last week we made a very significant announcement with regard to the support from the local council and the project is now gathering some real momentum. After conformation of that support we have had further meetings with the developers. On Friday there will be a key meeting of all interested parties, and that will be attended by our local Member of Parliament Yvette Cooper.

"We also expect to be able to make further key announcements on the project in the very near future and we remain committed and confident that we will meet our objectives and in turn those of the RFL.”

A statement from Wakefield read: "The club was fully aware that after the last round of licence applications in 2008 that moving to a new stadium was to be an integral part of the next round of applications in 2010.

"The club was delighted to announce in February plans for a 12,000 capacity Community Stadium off junction 30 of the M62 at Stanley in conjunction with Yorkcourt Properties and Wakefield City District Council.

Since that announcement progress on the project has continued to develop, and just last week we welcomed the cabinet decision to put land into a Wakefield District Community Trust as a major step forward."

Castleford and Wakefield's situation is an interesting one. Both clubs are looking for land and funding at the same time in a relatively close region in Yorkshire. As time goes on, it looks unlikely that both will be at the top table come 2012.

But just how viable is a groundshare? Could both clubs and fans agree to playing at the same stadium? Or would it just be the first step towards a merger, which would of course help the RFL in expanding the competition, just as was proposed back in 1995.

Salford's David Tarry said: "Salford City Reds is well aware of commitments made in the Super League application along with all other Super League clubs. While to date none of the five clubs have managed to begin the construction phase, we are confident that Salford City Reds' stadium bid is progressing and we will be in a position to retain our licence in 2012. All five clubs are working hard to fulfil the criteria."

However, Salford appear to be the experts in releasing promising statements with no substance. They have been waiting for a stadium to spring out of the ground for almost a decade. It was promised back in 2003, and nothing. It has been promised for 2009, 2010 and now seemingly 2011. Surely time is running out for Manchester's only club.

But all the talk is wearing thin. Maybe this time the RFL won't accept false promises as they have done in the past.

So for the sake of the fans, it's time to stop talking and get cracking. Otherwise some will be seeing the end of their Super League dream this time in two years.

The injury jinx

What is it that makes English sport stars synonymous with injury?

Go back to 1998. Young English striker Michael Owen announced himself on the world stage with that goal against Argentina in the World Cup, in a game that also saw David Beckham famously red-carded, and Sol Campbell inexplicably have a goal disallowed that cost England a place in the quarter finals (in which we would have probably lost anyway).

A few successful years at Liverpool followed. But as expectations grew on him both at club and England level, the injuries started. And then both teams' dependence on him often saw him rushed back from injury before he was fully fit. The fact England's only other world class strikers in the past decade have been Alan Shearer (who retired from international football after Euro 2000) and Wayne Rooney has meant Owen's had a lot on his shoulders. His record at international level is superb, 40 in 89 games.

His injury "problems" continued at both Real Madrid and Newcastle, and his World Cup dream in 2006 was ended by a horrific knee injury against Sweden. But having started his Manchester United career with a goal, maybe the weight of expectations will be lifted as he gels with a team of world class stars, playing alongside Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov who will no doubt share the goalscoring burden for the Reds.

Maybe, just maybe, Owen can find his peak form in time for the 2010 World Cup.

But it's not just Owen, or indeed football.

This week saw the announcement of Andrew Flintoff's impending retirement from test cricket. Flintoff is one of the best cricketers of his generation and will be most remembered for his part in the 2005 Ashes triumph. His value to England was vast as an all-rounder. He could line up as a top six batsman and still take the new ball for the bowling side. It meant more flexibility with the rest of England's selection, and thus when he was out, both the batting and bowling options were hit, as the England set-up could only name a specialist replacement in one of those areas, not both.

But it meant that when Flintoff suffered injury set backs, he was rushed back, owing to his sheer value to the side. The same as Owen. And it has resulted in him having a sporadic few years. Here's hoping he can at least salvage the remainder his career in the one-day or Twenty20 game, rather than carrying the repuation of an injury plagued star.

But it's not just Owen and Flintoff, football and cricket.

Jonny Wilkinson has rarely enjoyed a sustained run of rugby since kicking that drop goal in the 2003 Rugby World Cup final. He sealed his position as the best player in the world with the drop goal that brought England's most glorious day since 1966. But after that, he suffered with injury, and both Newcastle and England kept rushing him back, only for him to suffer further setbacks, yet again owing to his value to their respective sides.

He's now moved on to French side Toulon. Perhaps he can kick-start his career again. He will go down in the record books courtesy of that drop goals, but had he played consistently over the years, he could have been remembered for being one of the greatest rugby players of all time. After 2003, he was one of the most recognisable sportsmen in the country, probably only below David Beckham. And a fit Jonny Wilkinson probably would have boosted English rugby in terms of attendance. But it wasn't to be.

And again, it doesn't stop there. Rugby league star Paul Sculthorpe was another player who was at the top of his profession. The former Great Britain and St Helens captain retired last year after being plagued with injuries for a number of years. His importance to the Saints side gradually reduced over the years as they got used to not having him in their side, but still there was a lot of pressure on him when he did return.

So probably the four greatest Englishmen in their respective sports in this generation have been left frustrated by injury plagued careers, mainly down to the pressure put on them by fans and clubs, who ultimately are trying to appease the fans. It's this pressure that sees us disappointed everytime the footballers hit the World Cup or whenever Tim Henman used to turn up at Wimbledon.

But, will it ever change?

Welsh rugby union stars a must for Celtic

Everyone thought that perhaps Celtic Crusaders had done the hard part in actually getting their place in the top flight, but their Super League dream has been far from easy in their debut season.

The last few weeks have been particularly turbulent, although last weekend's win over Salford will have gone somewhere in erasing the recent stories of financial problems and visa irregularities.

However, they are still struggling to get people through the door, even in their first season, where you would expect more fans coming in to experience the novelty of top flight rugby league in Wales, and of course extra travelling fans keen to experience a new venue to watch the greatest game.

But where Celtic really missed the boat was with marquee signings, and by marquee signings, I mean Welsh rugby union stars.

The Welsh rugby union team, ironically with a sizeable rugby league contingent on its coaching staff, has been successful in the past few years, winning two Six Nations Grand Slams and pulling off some notable test scalps.

There is no denying that rugby union is the sport of choice in the south of Wales, but had Celtic managed to sign a relatively big name from the other code, it would have all but guaranteed them bums on seats, something they are desperately in need of.

I was surprised that they didn't move for Iestyn Harris, the dual code Welsh international, and while he was far from a huge success in the 15-man game, he would at least be recognisable to the Welsh public.

That's in stark contrast to the vast number of Australians on Celtic's books, with Jace Van Dijk, Damien Quinn and Adam Peek hardly househould names to fans in the rugby league heartlands, let alone Wales.

And considering they have only managed three wins - against Bradford, Wigan and Salford - the Crusaders may have been better served fielding as many Welsh rugby league rookies instead. Fans would be more inclined to cheer on a team of local boys than under-achievers flown in from Down Under.

But now Celtic must look to the future, and perhaps they can now lure a Welsh star to their ranks.

Gavin Henson or Shane Williams.

What a coup that would be. Henson is probably the most famous Welshman in the UK thanks to his relationship with Charlotte Church, and coverage of him would give massive media attention to Celtic.

Williams was the best rugby player in the world not so long ago, and he too would add significant profile to the Crusaders. At the age of 31, he still has a lot to offer, and following the recent Lions tour, he appears to be winding down in rugby union, and surely would fancy the undoubted challenge that Celtic would bring.

In a recent interview with the BBC, Williams was pressed about converting to rugby league.

He said: "I don't know if I'm big enough for rugby league. Hopefully I would (put bums on seats). I enjoy rugby league and I enjoy watching it, I always have.

"I really don't know (about switching codes), it's a question I don't get asked that often! I do enjoy it. Whether I can play it and do a job I don't know, I'll have to see.

"It's something I've not really had time to think about."

Williams, or Henson for that matter, would certainly give rugby league a major shot in the arm in south Wales. As a rugby league fan, it would be fantastic to see two players of their talents switch codes, and follow in the footsteps of past greats such as Jonathan Davies, a former president of the Celtic club.

Next season will be even bigger for the club as they look to improve on this season's disappointment, and if they can progress over three years as Catalans Dragons have done, then owner Leighton Samuel will surely be pleased.

They have a three year licence in place but they need to do enough to convince the RFL that they are worthy of a further licence when the next application process comes around in 2011, in time for the 2012 season.

Uncertainty over the location of the franchise is another problem - with rumours of a temporary move to Newport while a new purpose built stadium is developed in Bridgend, where the Crusaders are currently based.

As much as there was opposition to their inclusion to Super League in the first place, the Crusaders have certainly caused a stir in recent weeks, and maybe, just maybe, they could target a coup in the mould of Henson or Williams in the not-so-distant future.

A cricketing tradition

I see England somehow salvaged a draw in the first Ashes test against Australia.

I say see, I didn't, thanks to the fact that Sky Sports has the rights to all the cricket these days, and they have done ever since that fantastic Ashes triumph in 2005 that gripped the nation and apparently meant cricket was threatening football as the national sport (what happened to that by the way?).

Despite it not being on terrestrial, it's good to see the BBC wasting plenty of taxpayers money on fancy interactive scorecards via Freeview that no one actually cares about - or rather they can get it online or via teletext. It meant we were denied some half-interesting coverage of the German Grand Prix (which incidently, I watched on the internet anyway).

But what grinds me is the fact we are losing tradition.

The first Ashes test in Cardiff?! What's all that about?! I know it's the England and Wales Cricket Board and therefore it's the England and Wales cricket team, but the first Ashes test (and in my opinion, every other first test of a five match home series) should be played at Lords.

Imagine England playing a quarter final in the 2018 World Cup at Leicester. It wouldn't happen. That's no disrespect to Leicester, but it would be at Wembley, no questions asked.

And what's with these Wednesday starts? What was wrong with Thursday?

Thursday's used to set up a fascinating Monday, because games were often still on a knife edge and it meant cricket was the centre of attention on the final day. It gets lost in the news on Sunday evenings mainly because no ones watching it, but also because it acts as a round-up as to what's happened over the weekend.

Wednesday to Sunday isn't right. Thursday to Monday is. It's better for the punters and the ECB too. The most popular days will be Saturday and Sunday, but by finishing a test on the Sunday, the ECB are in danger of having to refund fans if a test finishes early - likewise, people might not gamble on getting Sunday tickets for that very reason.

So economically and traditionally, Thursday starts beat Wednesday starts.

Don't even get me started on the removal of promotion and relegation from rugby league...

Pic: BBC Sport

Widnes win Northern Rail Cup

I've finally broke my duck.

I finally have a sporting memory worthy of being my best.

Sunday 12th July 2009, Widnes Vikings 34 Barrow Raiders 18.

Before the game, I felt that this had to be it - defeat, and obviously it's me. I had missed the 2007 triumph against Whitehaven in the same competition two years ago because of holiday.

And the two previous finals I had been to had ended in defeat - both Grand Finals for Super League against Hull KR in 2006 and Castleford in 2007.

But today finally I experienced a high. There have been very few highs in being a Widnes fan in recent years, but at least I was there today. I remain an ever-present in 2009 having seen every try, every knock-on and every Lee Doran penalty this year.

And I'll be at Gateshead next weekend and then over in Toulouse the following week.

It's been a very long 18 months since the Grand Final defeat against Castleford, which ended our Super League dream. The 2007 Widnes team was the best I've ever seen, and we had been up there all season, and to lose the big game 42-10 was crushing. I remember taking off my shirt in despair and leaving before the end of the game - something I never do - at Headingley.

The day after, we went in to administration. It meant 2008 saw us with a nine point handicap. 2008 also saw us cruelly robbed of a Super League berth, with the RFL plumping for Salford and Celtic instead.

It's going to take one hell of an excuse for us to be denied in 2012.

It started on work placement...

If someone says to you work placements are pointless, tell them they're wrong.

Essentially, three days work experience has shaped my life.

I was an ambitious 17-year-old A-level student when I first came across 4thegame.com, and spent a thoroughly enjoyable few days working for them. Besides a fortnights placement at my dad's place of work when I was 14, and my Saturday job at the local library, it was the first time I'd experienced the "real world". And I loved it. Football all day long. It was heaven.

Fast forward four years, and I'm working (part-time at present) for the company that owns 4thegame.com, Fast Web Media, while running my own rugby league version, LastTackle.com.

It was of course 4thegame that inspired me to start Last Tackle. I combined the knowledge and innovation I had picked up from that placement and combined it with my own skill sets, enthusiasm and drive to develop Last Tackle. It was my dad that encouraged me to do it - on the drive home from my final day (which, coincidentally, was during England's Ashes success of 2005), I identified the fact there wasn't a rugby league version of that type of site, and my dad said well, why don't you make one.

Why not indeed.

What started off as something of an experiment has turned in to perhaps the love of my life. Last Tackle is thriving after four years of development. It's popular in website terms and sure, it's not a success in terms of business, but it pleases me the way things have turned out.

But why bring this up now?

Well, Last Tackle has enjoyed probably its best week ever in terms of visitor numbers and stats.


Thursday saw a total of 1,137 visits to the site and 2,327 pageviews. It might not seem a lot to you, but it's a sign that we are pushing on and improving. Make that the average and tag a few more hits on, and it's nearing 500,000 visits a year. Not bad for a website that's being run out of my mum and dads house!

The site has of course taken on many different guises over the years, each bringing improvements to the site. The current site is by far the most superior and is the basis for what will hopefully make the site a success. I won't bore you with the details of the improvements it has brought, you can see a bit more about that here.

The big draw this week has been unique content and big stories. The top five:

• Transfer gossip
• Myler set to stay at Salford
  
• Super League clubs chase Whitehaven prop
  
• SL special feature in Mirror newspaper
  
• Celtic face visa investigation
  

There has also been some new ticket competitions on the site, with more to come.

The past week has provided some great news angles and stories, and I've tried to take advantage of that with interesting stories and inviting headlines. We are listed on Google News and NewsNow, and we had a place in the "Top Stories (last 24 hours)" on NewsNow every day last week.

I'm pushing to include more exclusive features, such as my Steve Ferres interview, and the transfer gossip column, which proved extremely popular.

But while the website itself continues to take great leaps, I remain frustrated.

At present, I'm putting in almost £100 a month to the site - £60 a month on the image deal with rlphotos.com, which has been crucial in taking the site to the next level, as it means all stories are an assigned a professional, topical and relevant images; and £35 a month for email marketing software, which gives me the facility to send out a weekly newsletter to a managed list of subscribers.

The opportunities are there for people and businesses to support the site through advertising.

The problem is, I'm not a salesman. Liaising with companies and persuading them to come on board is not something I'd be strong at. There are sides of Last Tackle of which I am not an expert, but I have a strong team behind the scenes that help out, particularly with the technical side. But as for sales/advertising, there is one hole in the project.

As much as it's hard work sometimes, and frustrating, I remain as dedicated and committed as ever to improving Last Tackle.

Maybe one day, it'll make me a living. Maybe one day, someone will see its potential and help me fulfil it.

But the message remains, you make your own opportunities in this world. Last Tackle is mine.

Shrewd Cumbrian deal for Leeds

Leeds aren't daft.

They have completed the signing of Whitehaven prop Kyle Amor and with it comes a new partnership with the Cumbrian side which will no doubt give them first dibs on all the promising youngsters coming from one rugby league heartland that is starved of a top flight side.

It was only a matter of time really. Whitehaven seem to be producing top quality youngsters with ease, with Amor following in the footsteps of exciting young half-back Gregg McNally, who signed for Huddersfield at the end of last season.

So while Cumbria is denied a Super League place, at least they can rest assured their top youngsters have a pathway to the game's elite.

But is that fair?

Essentially, have Whitehaven now become a feeder club? What reward will Cumbria, a traditional rugby league stronghold, now get from allowing its top players to simply move on to Leeds, or whoever else, when the time is right?

The dual registration system to be introduced next season also has its dangers. Amor could potentially turn out for Leeds on a Friday and then Haven on a Sunday. But this could well be exploited. What if Haven are struggling, and they can be bailed out of trouble by Brian McClennan, who just happens to send a few top quality players for one week only as Leeds have a week off. It's certainly dangerous territory.

Regarding this, Amor said: "I am looking forward to testing myself in a full time environment at the Rhinos but I also know that with the proposed dual registration rules, I will still be able to gain first team experience back at Whitehaven next season, if I am not involved in the Leeds first team."

And while that is good for Haven in a short term (if he does come back), what does it say for the future of the club and the sport?

However, Amor's move is a massive compliment to Haven - particularly when you consider Leeds have probably the finest academy in the country, and there will be no shortage of promising forwards coming through that pathway - following in the footsteps of the likes of Danny McGuire, Kevin Sinfield and Rob Burrow, who have all won countless medals and become world class stars at Headingley.

Commenting on the agreement, Leeds Chief Executive Gary Hetherington said, “Cumbria and Whitehaven have a proud place in Rugby League history and the area has produced some of the greatest players to play the game. By forming a partnership with Whitehaven, we will give young players the opportunity to develop with their home town club as well as having a pathway to play in Super League and reach their full potential.

“Brian McClennan and Ged Stokes are fellow Kiwis and both are passionate about player development and youth rugby. Barrie McDermott’s role as Head of Youth Performance is to attract and nurture young talent which this season has seen former Barrow junior Brad Singleton and Whitehaven youngster Jared Stewart move to Headingley Carnegie.

“The Board of Directors at Whitehaven have been extremely forward thinking in all their dealings with us and they have ambitions to build a sustainable future for their club. We will also provide support off the field as well with our own business expertise which can only strengthen the bond between the two clubs,” added Hetherington.

But would it not be easier for a Super League franchise to be based out of Cumbria?

It seems like we've been having this debate for years now, with Whitehaven and Workington seemingly never going to come to an agreement in terms of a merger, or combined club.

Workington are hardly knocking down doors at the moment, and there is the distinct possibility that they may well finish bottom of the entire professional set-up after a dismal campaign under coach Dave Rotherham.

So instead of watching home-grown youngsters turn out for their club, Cumbrians face the prospect of enjoying them for one or two years tops in the National Leagues, before watching them trying to make the grade at Leeds - hardly worse-off for youngsters themselves.

It makes you wonder what could be done if the RFL could be bothered to push Cumbria as a viable option - like they have done with Celtic Crusaders.

What will it take for a Cumbrian team to make an impact in SL? Whitehaven's ground is hardly that much worse than Celtic, and their fan base would certainly increase with top flight rugby (I'm told that more than 5000 people are registered with the Haven lottery, which at least suggests they have a presence in the area).

The local people would undoubtedly get excited about the prospect of seeing Amor and McNally return to Cumbria for a stint in Super League with them, but it's just a case of making it possible.

Or is that it. Is Whitehaven, and Cumbria, merely now a feeder club to the big boys?

We've been fighting off the talks of mergers and feeder clubs for years now, but they appear to be rearing their nasty heads once again. With SL a closed-shop and the continuing focus on the development of clubs outside of the traditional heartlands, there is a danger that the heart and lifeblood of the greatest game will be cast aside and will merely be a sideshow to the chosen ones.

Let's not let that happen, eh?

Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (PS3) Review

Original Article

Konami’s Pro Evolution Soccer series may be the undisputed champion of soccer sims on PlayStation 2, but its next-generation incarnation is still very much up for grabs after an underwhelming debut on PS3.

Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 was highly anticipated by the loyal band of fans the series has collected since the first Pro Evolution Soccer was launched on PS One back in 2001, and it was maybe this air of expectancy amongst gamers that has resulted in slight disappointment at the final product.

That’s not to say that this is a bad game, it’s just that it could be better. The gameplay has definitely stepped up from Pro Evolution Soccer 6, the series’ last outing on PS2, and the graphics are very slick and player appearances vastly improved and detailed. But when you play the game, you are often asking yourself “where’s that gone”, “why’s this happening”, or shaking your head in dismay at the blatant incompetency of the goal keepers.

It’s funny though, because despite all this question asking, the game still remains horribly addictive. You may ask the same question 100 times, you may get annoyed that your player wont slide to keep a ball in play, or that the ‘keepers are about as useful as a chocolate fireguard, but you still play it. Why? Because it’s Pro Evo.

The gameplay is much improved, and it is this that has many fans licking their lips. The prospect of PES on PS3 in a few years time is frightening. Once Konami are up to speed with the complexity of the console, they are sure to produce a stunning game. For a first attempt though, this isn’t intrinsically bad by any means. Passing is slicker. You can ping the ball about left, right and centre and actually find the man you are looking for. Gone is the lead-balloon effect of last year where your passes used to take an eternity to reach its target.

Running with the ball feels more realistic too. Send Ronaldo or Wright-Phillips down that wing and the ball will stick to their feet like it’s glued on. It feels as if you have more control of the ball, and manoeuvring around the pitch is as majestic as ever before. Find the gaps for your playmakers to run in to and then release your strikers and wingers with precision. It is the beautiful game. When has Pro never been?

It’s hard to judge the shooting in the game. It feels different, but not in a bad way or a good way. The jury’s still out. The fact that the ‘keepers are the worst in the entire series counteracts this though. If you thought they were bad on PES6, they’ve hit an all time, Paul Robinson-esque low in this one. From time to time, they’ll somehow manage to fumble a timid Gary Neville shot on a goal, or parry what should have been an easy catch to an onrushing goalhunter. Even more bizarrely, they’ll then go on to pull off the save of the season.

So what’s new? Well, for the first time, you can dive on the game. With a quick press of L1+L2+R2 your player will tumble to the ground. It’s quite an art really, as most of the time, you’ll get booked despite the insistence of the commentary team that you were brutally hacked down, even though you fell to the ground with no opponents within 20 yards of you just because you were trying it out…. Figure out how to use it correctly though, and it’ll be something useful to have in your armoury when you’re locked in an extra time battle with your mate.

Speaking of the commentary team, that’s new too with Jon Champion and Mark Lawrenson have replaced the tiresome Peter Brackley and Trevor Brooking. Champion certainly breathes fresh air in to the game, even if Lawrenson does sound obviously scripted at times. Still, it’s a positive move, and one that’s welcomed by fans.

The in-game music has improved, with the Kaiser Chiefs providing the song for the insanely boring intro movie. As always, after a while, the soundtrack does get a little tedious, but with the addictiveness of the gameplay, you won’t be hanging around in the menus for too long. The menus themselves have also changed, with a billboard effect replacing your bog standard list menu – god knows why. The usual Exhibition, Master League, League, Cup, Gallery, Edit, Network and Settings menus appear.

The gallery menu introduces a new feature, which takes advantage of the PS3’s added technical prowess, namely track record. This monitors every single game you play on Pro Evo, monitoring your wins, draws and losses, games played, goals scored and goals against. Not only that, but it works out averages such as goals to shots ratio, goals per matches and much more. If you’re in to your stats, then this is for you. Even if you’re not, it’s still an intriguing feature. There are also milestones within track record for you to complete such as play 500 games, or score 100 goals, and certain milestones enable you to unlock teams – i.e. win the International Cup with England and you will unlock Classic England.

Despite being regarded by critics as the best football game out there, Pro Evolution Soccer has always struggled to match FIFA in terms of sales. There is obviously EA Sports’ hugely funded marketing campaigns, but there’s also the fact that EA monopolises the licenses, hence why your average Joe might just plump for FIFA, just so they’ve got Van Nistelrooy up front and not Von Mistelroum. But Konami is slowly but surely closing that gap. OK so the English Premier League isn’t fully licensed, and the German Bundesliga isn’t even featured on the game, but there are more licenses than ever before. Newcastle and Tottenham are the two licensed teams from the Premier League, add them to the full leagues of Serie A (Italy), Ligue 1 (France), La Liga (Spain), Eredivise (Holland) as well as 32 other licensed teams and that’s a pretty decent collection.

Unfortunately the game has its downfalls, with lag being one of them. It’s not so noticeable in offline gaming; it happens occasionally but doesn’t have a detrimental effect on your gaming experience. There are frame rate issues in replays too, but replays are irrelevant on the whole. It’s when you venture online that the slow down really hits you. You’ll score a cracking headed goal, only for the screen to seemingly freeze up for 2/3 seconds and next thing you know, your opponent has got the ball on the half way line. The whole online section feels rushed too, with no game lobbys as in previous games. Konami though have already acknowledged the problem, suggesting that a patch may be released to resolve the issues, and frankly, it can’t come soon enough.

So if one doesn’t play online, the game’s perfect? Not quite. Edit mode has taken a turn for the worst too. No longer can you import or pixel-create club logos and sponsors. All you can really do is edit player and team names and player appearances. There is an import feature, which lets you import scans of kits in to the game, but this can only be done via webcam, and there’s no real definitive guide on how to do it (Konami have conveniently left it out of the instruction manual, as well as their official guide).

There are also flaws in the gameplay. Players no longer slide to try and keep balls in play, meaning that cross field pass by Beckham bounces right in front of your man on the other side who does nothing except watch it fly out of play. The advantage rule is maintained, but hack down a player who has just released the ball and you won’t get punished at all, if the ball goes to a player on his team.

Other things that are missing include the ability to select what kits teams where in league modes and the mix and match kit selection that we haven’t seen since PES5. Another disappointment is the fact that Master League has had no improvements whatsoever. In fact the only major noticeable change is that the divisions have increased to 20, meaning you now play more games in the league campaign.

All in all, this game is still worth getting. The positives outweigh the negatives, and as long as you stay away from online and editing, you probably won’t notice the bad points anyway, bar the ‘keepers that is. It’s still more realistic than the sluggishly paced FIFA 08, and the gameplay is more addictive than ever before.

Falling back in love with football

I'll admit, this Michael Owen to Manchester United story has got me excited.

I fell out of love with football some years ago now. I still follow it very closely, but not with the passion I used to.

Until I was 14, I used to eat, sleep and breathe football. I'd play it out the front until it was too dark to see the ball (I maximised playing time by the use of an illuminous ball), I'd talk about it all day in school and the highlight of my week was turning out for my Sunday league team.

My dad brought me up as a Manchester United fan - he had a season ticket in the 1970s and 1980s - and I followed them as best as I could in those pre-internet days. We couldn't really afford to go to matches, so it was a special occasion when we did get to go. The first game I ever went to was against Spurs when United lifted the league title in 2000 I think it was.

Gradually, as I got older, the lure of football weakened, mainly because of a lack of connection with United. Although they were the nearest Premier League to me at the time (Wigan and Bolton are now the nearest PL teams), I couldn't get the connection I've grown to have with my supported rugby league team, Widnes. Perhaps had my hometown had a team, football would have remained my life. As it was, that wasn't the case.

Rugby league started to take over and football became less important. I began to get riled by the abuse Manchester United fans often get, and as I started university, I realised I was doing myself, football and United a disservice by claiming to be a supporter. Instead, I took an impartial view as I listened to stories of fellow students discussing the exploits of their local or hometown teams in the lower leagues.

I don't know whether it's the fact my new job revolves around football or whether it's because I go past Old Trafford on the train every day going in to work, that all of a sudden I want my life to revolve around football again.

Maybe my lack of fondness for United has been as a result of the prima-donna, yet undoubtedly talented, Cristiano Ronaldo, and now he's gone I can resume being a supporter.

Maybe I'm getting increasingly frustrated at the ineptness shown by the governing body of rugby league that prevents my team progressing anywhere fast.

Who knows.

It would be an awful lot easier if my hometown had a team. But as it is, my connection appears to be with United. And Michael Owen has seemingly reminded me of that.

The lucrative Premier League is expensive to watch. But it's the best league in the world. Maybe I'll be able to call myself a football supporter this time next year, rather than an interested onlooker.

For the past four years, I have worked on a Saturday, and thus football has been out of reach. Those days will soon be behind me. So Saturday afternoons may soon become the time for football.

My plan remains to visit as many grounds as I can next season, and Tranmere's Prenton Park is pencilled in for my first visit of the season - it's going to inspire a "Football Traveller" blog somewhere - whether it be on this site or Footy Echo.

Colin McRae Rally DiRT Review (PS3)

Original Article

The beauty and emotion of racing is captured right from the intro movie, to the first time you grab the wheel. But once you put the less important things to one side, you’re stuck in the rough and tumble ride that is rally driving.

Colin McRae Rally DiRT is the latest in Codemasters’ series and breaks away from the traditional route it has followed in the past. No longer are you restricted to event upon event, series upon series; there’s now a wide variety and diverse selection of off track competitions. Previous games in the series have seen you merely plump through a bog standard World Championship, racing through stages across different countries in your quest to become the best. Well DiRT is different. And in a positive way too.

The game has three main modes – Career, Championship and Rally World – as well as an entertaining multiplayer section for online and LAN play. As always, I dived in feet first in to an extensive Career mode. Your aim is to race through 11 tiers of events up to the final “Champion of Champions” section. You need to raise enough points from each tier to progress to the tier above, with each tier getting progressively harder.

Usually, career modes can be a bit bewildering, but the useful voiceover at the opening of career mode gives a useful insight to DiRT, and also provides information and advice to manage your career – it’s the perfect introduction to the game, as opposed to some games where you load up the career mode and haven’t a clue what to do next.

So once you’ve settled in it’s now time to get racing. A good feature of this game is the ability to change difficulty depending on the race. As you select a race, you can choose from the 5 difficulty levels - Rookie, Clubman, Amateur, Pro Am, Pro. The harder the difficulty, the greater the reward. You can then buy different cars and liveries with your hard earned cash.

You’re stuck with a fairly limited selection of vehicles to start with, so a Chevrolet Silverado it was. The race loading up, and there I was alongside 9 other vehicles. This isn’t like the Colin McRae’s of old. It was new. But it certainly wasn’t nice. As I tried to exert my authority on the opening straight, I was shunted to the side and to the back of the field. Welcome to the game.

And once you’re in, it’s bloody hard to get out. Each race is different. Each one brings a new challenge. The beauty of it is, if you ever feel yourself getting a little too good for the opposition, you can always try the next level, and return if you’re not up to it.

Each vehicle has an incredibly in depth history. With this game, you can literally find anything you need or want to know about the vehicles, the tracks and your own personal driving experience. In the pause menu in-race, you can see the damage being done to your vehicle, which is monitored in nine different areas. Do too much damage and you’ll get a “Terminal Damage” message and your race is over.

Together with that, the game compiles interesting statistics about your own personal driving experience, such as total races, time spent on two wheels and miles without damage. You can view them at any time, but cleverly, Codemasters have hid a perhaps slightly longer than usual loading time by flooding you with interesting snippets that grab your attention whilst waiting for the main show to begin.

It all sounds rather cosy, well until you’re hurtling down a fresh track with a pocket sized map at the top of the screen. It’s not the clearest of facilities (the in game map), especially when you are concentrating so hard on avoiding that tree on the inside of the next bend, and it certainly isn’t a patch on the old McRae navigation. But as you become more of an expert, you’ll start to pick up on the Co-Driver terms, and of course get used to the tracks as and when you race them.

Otherwise, during the race, everything’s how you’d want it to be, including realistic collisions, realistic damage and realistic car handling. There’s no more ghosting through bushes on the side of the track – misjudge that one bend and your lap is ruined. The controls are brilliant, and extremely flexible. If you cant find the set up you want from the four configurations provided, you are able to customise which buttons you use for acceleration, brake and more.

My first race ended in a fairly embarrassing 6th place finish, although not so bad having been flipped over the side of the track on my first lap. That first race summed up the beauty of DiRT in one: a variety of vehicles, a different type of racetrack and challenging CPU opponents. It’s the kick up the arse this series needed, and its fresh outlook will certainly have gamers dusting down their steering wheels to entertain this famous series once again.

Something else that will certainly get fans of the series excited is the competitive edge that’s been formed in online mode. Not only do you have the online mode itself, but also every personal best lap you record on each track goes in to an online rankings system, which shows you exactly where your time ranks in comparison to other games around the world.

Not so pleasing when it turns out you’re personal best is actually the 8143rd best on the game, but it’d be quite an achievement to see your name anywhere near the top of one of those rankings. News of records breaking, and particular achievements made by other gamers appears on your screen in a news scroller type style (which you can turn off, by the way).

Online play itself allows you to jump straight in to a race meet, where you simply vote for the track you wish to compete on, and literally race real time with other people and go for the best time. Again, DiRT’s impressive statistics system records your online profile, and tells you how many races you’ve completed, how many you’ve won etc.

If you don’t fancy the Career mode, you can always go down the Championship route, or for quick gameplay, go to Rally World, where you can choose to race a single event, single race or even do a time trial.

DiRT has the edge of its main rival, SEGA Rally Revo, with an overall more realistic driving experience. The career mode on McRae is almost flawless, and even though arcade racers may prefer SEGA’s attempt, there’s no doubting that in terms of replicating rally driving, Codemasters have scored a winner.

My sport love stretches to video games...

As you may have gathered from reading this blog, my life pretty much revolves around sport.

Despite my team, Widnes, not having a game this week, I ended up watching two games on Saturday on TV, as well as listening to two more on Sunday while I did the live scores for Last Tackle.

Even my job revolves around football, and then my part time also involves sport - Last Tackle, of course, plus further web projects with rugby league clubs, ice hockey teams and then a new project, also relating to ice hockey.

Another pastime of mine is video gaming, and pretty much all of the games in my collection are sport or racing games. Each year I await with anticipation the latest release of FIFA, Madden, NHL or whatever it may be.

I just wish they'd bring out a new rugby game!

You've seen Last Tackle as a result of my three main passions - rugby league, journalism and the internet; well writing for the website PlayStation Universe (PSU) combined three similar passions - sport, video gaming and journalism.

The next few posts on this blogs will be game reviews I penned for PSU 12-18 months ago. The plan is to write a few more fresh ones over the next few months when I add some new games to my collection.