Back in black, in a doggy style.

The long and the shirt of it.

The shirthawks are for changing.

We're back in black.


How the late great Johnny Cash would have looked, in a customised version of the new shirt.

Doggy style [by Stan Collymore]



Albeit slightly disrespectful, it was fairly amusing when the 'Dogs of War' label first appeared a few years back. Some may view the current outpouring with the same mixed feelings. OK it smacks of good, battling attitude, but it also suggests that the players are shyte and must make up for their apparent failings and limitations by fighting harder. If you were a player, I don't think you'd be too enthusiastic with the title being tossed in your direction.

Blog power #3: A very important achievement by Toffee Blog [aka 'irate Everton Fan' !!!].

Look at this post. In particular, read about Nixon with unbridled glee. Wonderful.

Rising to the top.

Last season, watching him try to [unsuccessfully] live up to his earlier promise, and try and forge a link with Grav., some felt that the dour Hibbo [have your kids ever tried to speak to him outside Bellefield?] had lost all but his tackle. It is great to see him re-emerging as a very good player. Besides walking the walk, he's talking the talk too.

News making or news breaking?

This this was a little confusing, coming shortly before this piece. Perhaps, sometimes, in order to be 'first with a story,' you've got to use a bit of guesswork...

Boxing day [er, a night with a boxing legend to be exact].

Thomas 'Hit Man' Hearns [the man of a hundred weights] is coming to town. His epic battles with 'Marvelous' Marvin Hagler, a long time ago, still live large in the memory.

Ebay watch: a torched 'Rooney' Manchester United shirt, in an Everton FA Cup winners '95 mug.

A burnt Man U 'Rooney' shirt, in a 'presentation mug' commemorating Everton's '95 victory over the Red Devils in the FA Cup Final.

Ebay continues to demonstrate that it's a very strange world beyond your front door. The latest issue of Everton Blog's 'Ebay watch' offers the following little trinket for your perusal:


Click here to view the Ebay listing.




No mention of any male Manc. ear-rings nor voucher towards a fairground-worker-like tattoo included, so you'll have to remember to keep your bids correspondingly lower...

Deranged, but an undeniable knee slapper.

'Van Go?'

Van Man

Could the Van Bommel move be back on?

Fixture lists for visually impaired people.

Everton have got several copies of the 'English Football Fixtures 2004/2005' in braille for blind or partially-sighted people. The guide includes complete fixtures for all of the teams in the Premiership, League and Conference and has been produced in conjunction with the RNIB. If you know of anybody who would benefit from having a copy, then e-mail Everton: communications@evertonfc.com and they will try to send a copy to you.

More pre-Boro blurb.

The always useful BBC match preview page has been uploaded.

Cometh the hour.

His season started with a wonder goal v Arse and he's played every minute of every match since. Moyes has said what we all feel, that Lee Carsley is having a very good season.

Three bedtime stories.

And finally, I found these recent Toffeeweb articles [here, here and here].

Yobo story: volte-face, Rooney's looking much better since joining Man U. and the 'Death of the big match?'

The Yobo story has taken a change in direction, thank goodness for that. Cleverly, Moyes has decided to act quickly and test Yobo's assertions, by talking of a renewed contract.

See the latest two-faced Rooney picture here. Note how he's already looking a much better player, since joining Man U.

Death of the big match? Some of this article is plainly nonsense, but he does make one or two points which make it worth a read.

Finally, the site search feature, see the box labelled 'Search' at the top of this page, is, at last, operative. Simply key in your selected word[s], i.e. 'kopites are gobshites' into the box and then click on the word 'Search' Then sit back, relax and see what the Google robot can find [on this site alone] for your delectation.

If you know YOU ARE history... Yobo set to leave, after this contract.

Unfortunately, Yobo, went on to reveal that he will be leaving when his current contract expires [c.June 2007?].

I missed that delightful footnote upon the first reading of his interview. Could this mean that we sell him in Jan. or the summer of '05? It wouldn't surprise me.

Drat.

Ethics in football: A tale of Proactive [Formation], Schmeichel, BBC TV and the Rooney business.

Without prejudice.

I recently received an email from a site viewer with a real thirst for information and more than enough intelligence to investigate and satisfy that thirst, Colin Wilkes. Recently, he has been 'hammering' the BBC, regarding Schmeichel, who we all know, has stated to the media, that Rooney should move. Many, besides Colin, have perceived that there is a clear issue to consider, regarding Schmeichel's [c.300,000] shares in Rooney's agent, Proactive [aka Formation]. At the moment, all Colin has had in return from his correspondence to the BBC is an autogenerated response.

See what you think fellow Blues. I print Colin's email in full, it has been published here with Colin's permission.
-----start------------------
from: colin.wilkes@gmail.com

Now the wake is over the mourning period draws to a close its time to review at least one aspect of the Wayne Rooney saga that I find particularly disconcerting.

Yes for those who don’t know I am an EVERTONIAN and have been for 58 years and will always be

Within the boundaries of the British society a system of laws, checks and balances exists to protect the individual from organisations that may or not inadvertently injure or subjugate any individual or minority group. As an individual and a member of a minority group I have been and feel deeply injured. This injury is not of Wayne Rooney’s doing but it is rather that of the British Broadcasting Corporation.

For the BBC to exist it has at its source of funding the licence fee. I am a licence fee payer (to be precise my wife is).

Most professional bodies are self regulating and as such have their own individual codes of conduct and behaviour to which individual members have to adhere or face the consequences. This is applicable throughout industry and commercial organisations and throughout the public and private sectors of the economy. Those elements that fail in their self regulatory functions have and will continue to have regulations forced upon them by the law of the land

It would be fair to assume that the BBC has such as system of checks and balances in place to avoid any possible conflict of interest arising that may damage the public’s image of the BBC and or the individuals concerned and the mass of the public who are the providers of funding for the BBC and its continued existence.

So why is it that a person who holds 300,000 shares in Proactive Sports Management and therefore has a vested interest in the sale of Wayne Rooney can whilst being a BBC football pundit state that Wayne Rooney should leave Everton football club and sign for another irregardless of who the other club maybe. There is here most certainly a conflict of interest as the said pundit Mr Peter Schmeichel stood to gain a great deal financially from any sale of Wayne Rooney.

So has there been a failure in the mechanisms used by the BBC or has a blind eye been turned to facilitate Mr Schmeichel's greed. Has there been a breach of the BBC checks and balances? Its time for the BBC to give an explanation and as this is the year when funding renewal is being examined I trust it better be a good explanation and that this matter and its like will not be allowed to materialise and manifest in the future

I have on three separate occasions emailed the BBC on this subject and have received only autogenerated responses I have therefore taken this opportunity to enter this debate into the public domain

from: colin.wilkes@gmail.com
-----end--------------------

Will the BBC ever condescend to reply properly to these legitimate and well-reasoned questions from one of their funders?

Two Hooligans jailed

Crimewatch - Merseyside.

A duo of Everton 'fan' thugs have been put behind bars for their part in a scrap in town with Sunderland supporters. Hooligans, Mark Hughes [!] and Alan Welsh are in jail for their part in the set-to.

They were caught on CCTV footage punching Sunderland fans in Great Charlotte Street shortly after the two teams had met at Goodison 3 years ago.

In other crime-related news, remember David Ungi? He was murdered in 1995, allegedly by a pair of black drug-addicts, in a planned 'hit,' on the instruction of their gangmaster overlord [he is now dead too]. It resulted in a summer of gun-related mayhem. Well, police in Holland think that they may have one of the men that they want to speak to about it.

On the subject of local king-pins, do you know much about this fellow? Apparently, he is regarded as a 'true genius' by the authorities.

Don't have nightmares.

Yobo no go ... yet

Ominous words from Yobo, here.

'Lost out' indeed! Does this make Everton like some tolerant wife that turns a blind eye to him 'playing away?'

It is no secret that he is my current favourite Everton player; it is therefore disappointing to read between the lines and conclude that his heart may not fully be 'in it' at Everton. For now, may his love affair with Nigeria long continue.

The Bennett Hell Show: Ep. 1 - 'On the Spot with me, Steve Bennett' [or, 'How I applied the full weight of my powers, with the accuracy of a hippo'].

Go on, off!



Moyes and many Blues, remember this fella very well.

As promised, another Steve Bennett story* for youse lot:

The infamous Paul Bodin incident
Robbie Keane, then of Wolves, was tackled by Gareth Davies [of Readiing] at Elm Park in Dec. '97. Paul Bodin, the Reading defender, was nowhere near the incident. Yet, it was he [Bodin] who was sent off for an early bath when Keane fell dramatically to the ground, after Gareth Davies had playfully ruffled Keane's hair. The referee behind that glorious decision? Steve Bennett.

* From Monday's 'Times' [hard copy].

Duke-Ellington? Football's 'sTony Bennett,' Wigan 'orwell' out, Premiership betting, table, Middlesbrough poll & Liverpool Culture of Capital

Transfer talk: Duke>Ellington?

Before he turned from John Wayne into Jack Palance, some people used to call him The Duke. His possible replacement is called Ellington, and is rated at £12m by Wigan. Without coming over all Steve Bruce [ugh], it really is laughable. How they can get to this figure for a player, that has neither Premiership nor top-class international pedigree, is a genuine cause for amazement.

Nace has been linked with Celtic.



sTony Bennett stands firm over Cahill.

Cahill, who has not had his sending off rescinded by Bennett [more about him later] has been selected in Soccernet's team of the week

Wyness interview.

Very good article.

Table, next match, betting and poll.

The Prediction poll for the next match [Middlesbrough [H] on Sunday 19th @ 15.00] is located on the right hand side of this page.

Tha latest table is here.

P2P betting exchange, Betfair, has the following Everton prices, 'To be relegated:' Back at '8.8,' Lay at '9.4' Middlesbrough are priced at '70' and '190.'

On the 'Premiership Handicap,' Everton is 3rd favourite in the market. 'Everton +46.5 points' is '7.4' to Back and '7.8' to Lay. 'Middlesbrough +33.5' points is '9.6' and '10.'

In the distorted 'To Win the Premiership' market, Everton remains at the maximum 1000 allowable and Middlesbrough is a very mean '180' and '250.' Who really thinks that Middlesbrough is worth a punt at 250, I ask you?

Other news

[1] Regional: The Culture of Capitalism? Are they all on Cloud 9?

Time for an update on Liverpool: Capital of Culture, or should it be renamed to the oft heard 'Culture of Capitalism' ... featuring the big-budget 4th disGrace? I still think we'll end up with a car park on the site of Allsop's abandoned 4th Grace project. The colossal band-wagon keeps right on rolling and Quiggins looks to be the latest doomed element of real culture. The Governments [both local and national] appear to utterly despise the small independent traders and no doubt, are aiming for a world where only the big players such as Tesco, Next etc can survive. Culture indeed! The reatail areas of every UK city centre now look virtually the same and the Paradise St development will literally be more of the same 'clonesville' construction. Read here [including the comments at the bottom of the article] and this very useful piece from the absorbing Indymedia/Liverpool site.

Some articles relating to the profligate, incompetent goings-on associated with the 4th disGrace project [the future car park] are offered for perusal:

Here, here and here.

The Newcastle Culture Bid organisers asked Tessa Jowell for the Culture Capital decision to be changed, when news of the 4th Grace collapse broke. Notwithstanding my love for my home city and my resultant bias, I can hardly blame them.

[2] Global: Blog power

A growing number of voices in high places are concluding that the days of the old, 'controlled and spun, mass media' are numbered. 'The blogosphere' is proving to be a more palatable alternative, for a growing number of readers ... see here and here.

Shirt-lifters of the world, unite.

Put your shirt on the rule changing.

With apologies to Morrissey:
Shirt-lifters of the world
Unite and take over
...
A heartless hand on my shoulder
A push - and it’s over...

Since the news of Cahill's ridiculous sending off for showing his belly during the momentary ecstasy of 'slipping one in,' many voices in high places have chipped in with their 2p worth. Sepp Blatter [and here] and Mick McGuire being a notable duo.



Well known asexual, morbid Manc, Morrissey. He is pictured recently, in a fashionable film-noir-style monochrome publicity shot, after scoring a goal, shirt off his back and in hand.

To the point as ever, apparently he said to the 'Daily SunSkySport' just after this photograph was taken, that he was absolutely gutted for Tim Cahill. Rounding on the mean and meddling power brokers of the beautiful game, he poured forth a wild monologue. He said:
"FIFA and UEFA are vicious ghouls that wear pink frocks [without underwear], to private parties. They, the game's middle-aged pedagogues, walk around their private chambers in groups, to loud renditions of Mozart's 'Clarinet Concerto,' and Verdi's 'Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves,' extremely close to each other and in single file, just like like penguins do..."

More unhappiness?

McFadden's recent comments about first team action, or lack of, are a little worrying. More unrest ahead perhaps?

Blog Power

It's took nearly a month, but the Manchesta Evening News may have decided to borrow my words from my post on 17th August and fashioned them into their latest headline. If so, it's nice to know that they're watching...

Producers for cable news shows now consult the blogs as much as the Times for tips about upcoming stories, often pilfering the upstart websites for new quotes, gaffes or scandals.
[From a good recent piece by a prolific blogger]