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Fired upTheo Walcott on yet another
rollercoaster season at Arsenal
Bringing you closer to the
UEFA Champions League
Photos featured are from the UEFA Champions League Trophy Handover
captured by competition winner Andy Roberts on the new HTC One.
HTC_Sport_CoverWrap_v5.indd 1 23/04/2013 17:42
Your gallery brought to life
htc.com
HTC_Sport_CoverWrap_v5.indd 2 23/04/2013 17:42
08
Issue 302, April 26 2013
Radar
05 Picture perfect The best sporting snaps from the
Sony World Photography Awards
06 The day of reckoning... ... is on the way for Football League
clubs up and down the country. We
tell you who’s up and who’s down
08 Flashback
Martin Keown recalls giving it big
ones in Ruud van Nistelrooy’s face
o this coming weekFeatures
18 Theo Walcott
Arsenal’s flying winger on Wenger,
responsibility and his desire for
success with the Gunners
27 German football
Fairly priced tickets, an electric
atmosphere on the terraces and
European progress. We ask how the
Bundesliga has got it so right
33 Ghosts of the Crucible
With the World Championship well
under way, we revisit some defining
moments from the home of snooker
37 The British and Irish Lions Warren Gatland has some big
decisions to make come Tuesday
– we run through his options
Extra Time
52 Kit
We wrap our head around Nike’s
Free 5.0 flexible barefoot shoe – it
can wrap around almost anything
54 Gadgets Samsung’s heroic NX300 camera
has our speedy sense tingling
56 Grooming A pretty freaky collection of which
the Thin White Duke would approve
60 Games Prowl Moscow maiming mutants in
Metro: Last Light, or use your own
spine as a sword in Soul Sacrifice
18
Co
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e: J
on
En
oc
h, w
ww
.jon
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oc
h.c
om
. Th
is p
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ha
un
Bo
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/Ge
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Ima
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s, J
oe
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oll
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/Bo
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art
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, SS
PL
/Ge
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Ima
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Contents
27
52
33
| April 26 2013 | 03
THE TASTE OF crAnbErry, limE Or bluEbErry.
THE EFFEcT OF rEd bull.
WingS FOr All TASTES.
RB_Special Editions_Sport_300x232_UK_AW 4 25/02/2013 16:06
Chasing the perfect picture
| April 26 2013 | 05
Radarp06 – Who’s on the up, who’s going down – our Football League cheat sheet
p08 – Martin Keown recalls the Battle of Old Trafford
Ad
am
Pre
tty
/Ge
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Im
ag
es
, Ry
an
Pie
rse
/Ge
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Im
ag
es
, Fe
rna
nd
o B
org
es
ver wondered what it would be like
to take part in an Olympic 100m
final? The picture above, from
London 2012, is an accurate depiction of how
it would go for most of us – the world’s top
sprinters racing away while you struggle out
of the blocks. Taken by Australian snapper
Adam Pretty, it is one of several shortlisted
in the sport category at the Sony World
Photography Awards, the winners of which
were announced last night. All entries –
including our pick of three other shortlisted
snaps, to your right – will be on display at
Somerset House until May 12.
p06 – Lions DNA: we pick apart previous squads by nationality
E
extra iPad content
Download the free
Sport iPad app for
more shortlisted
images from last
night’s awards
ll eyes will be on Lions head coach
Warren Gatland this Tuesday, as he
announces the band of merry men
he’s set to take to Australia in the summer.
And, with Wales having won the Six Nations,
the boys from across the Severn are set
to dominate the final teamsheet (for our
thoughts on who’s going to make the squad,
turn to page 37).
Not that it should be any surprise.
We’ve taken a look at the make-up of the
four Lions squads since the game went
professional in 1995*, and it’s clear that the
Celtic influence is growing by the tour – with
12 Welsh and Irish players in 1997 rising to
a dominating 27 in 2009. Will the Irish and
Welsh boys dominate again? All will be
revealed on Tuesday.
Radar
06 | April 26 2013 |
A
1997
(total players / 35)
2001
(total players / 37)
2005
(total players / 44)
2009
(total players / 37)
England - 52% (18)England – 49% (18) England – 47% (21)
England – 22% (8)
Wales - 23% (8)Wales – 27% (10) Wales – 22% (10)
Wales – 35% (13)
Ireland - 11% (4)Ireland – 16% (6)
Ireland – 24% (11) Ireland – 38% (14)
Scotland – 14% (5) Scotland – 8% (3) Scotland – 7% (3) Scotland – 5% (2)
Look of the Lions
*S
tats
are
fro
m t
he in
itia
l squad, not
accounti
ng
for
inju
ries a
nd w
ithdra
wals
UP
DOWN
Cardiff (1st, 85 points) were confirmed
as champions last weekend, and Hull
will join them (2nd, 78) if they can match
Watford’s result this weekend. Brighton
(4th, 69) can secure their place in the
playoffs this weekend with a win, as
can Crystal Palace (5th, 67) and Bolton
(6th, 66) if results go their way – and
Palace have a game in hand on Tuesday.
Leicester (7th, 65) and Nottingham
Forest (8th, 64) are waiting to pounce
if any of that trio slip up (and play each
other next weekend).
Bristol City (24th, 41 points) are down,
but any two from 10 teams could join
them. Peterborough, Wolves and
Barnsley (21st, 22nd and 23rd, all on
(51) are the trio in the most imminent
danger, and all face must-win home
games this weekend. But anyone up to
Ipswich (14th, 57 points) can still be
dragged in to the mire. In fact, with two
games to go, only three sides in the
Championship are not – in theory – in
the running to go either up or down.
Bournemouth (1st, 82 points) are
already up and will seal the title with
a win at Tranmere, or if Doncaster
(2nd, 81) fail to win their automatic-
promotion/playoffs decider away at
Brentford (3rd, 79) – a game that will
decide the fate of the other automatic
spot. The loser of that game will join
Yeovil, Swindon and Sheffield United in
the playoffs, with only the order to be
determined on the last day.
Of the bottom four, only Scunthorpe
(21st, 45) can escape the drop – they
need to win against fifth-placed
Swindon and hope Carlisle beat
Colchester (20th, 48), with a
three-goal swing to make up as well.
Bury and Hartlepool are already down,
along with Portsmouth – whose 10
point deduction will be applied now,
leaving them bottom of the table but
with a fresh start next year.
It’s don’t-lose-or-bust, as six of the
seven relegation candidates control
their own destiny. Torquay and
Plymouth just need to avoid heavy
defeats, while York (20th, 52) are in
more peril because of their goal
difference (-11). A draw with Dagenham
(21st, 51) will secure safety. That
fixture means AFC Wimbledon (23rd,
50) and Barnet (22nd, 51) will be safe if
they win at home to Fleetwood and
away at Northampton respectively.
Aldershot (24th, 48) need a miracle.
Gillingham (1st, 83 points) were
confirmed as champions last weekend,
and barring a 28-goal swing, Port Vale
(2nd, 77) have joined them – which
leaves Rotherham (3rd, 76) and
Cheltenham (4th, 74) to battle it out for
the third automatic promotion spot. In
the playoffs, meanwhile, eighth-placed
Chesterfield are out of the running, so
the losing ‘-ham’ will join Burton Albion
(5th, 73), Northampton (6th, 70) and
Bradford (7th, 68).
Championship League One League Two
hings come to a head in the Football League this weekend,
with the final (okay, in the Championship, penultimate) round
of fixtures. With much to be decided. Here’s our cheat sheet...T
Win or bust
All
pic
ture
s G
ett
y Im
ag
es
Radar
08 | April 26 2013 |
Sh
au
n B
ott
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Arsenal play Manchester United this
weekend, almost 10 years on from the
infamous ‘Battle of Old Trafford’ – a 0-0 draw
that descended into ugly scenes after Ruud
van Nistelrooy crashed a last-minute penalty
against the bar. The miss particularly
delighted Arsenal stalwart Martin Keown, who
memorably screamed in the Dutchman’s face
like an irate baboon. After the game, five
Arsenal and two United players were fined.
Cautiously, we asked Keown to reminisce...
“Looking back, you do wonder... it was such a
long time ago and it does seem like someone
else reacting in that way. We obviously got
carried away with the situation. Patrick
Vieira, our catalyst and leader, had been sent
off – and van Nistelrooy was linked to that,
which I think created a hostility toward him.
I’m not saying that was acceptable, but it was
why we reacted in the way that we did.
“There had been a few previous bits and
pieces. Van Nistelrooy wasn’t a shrinking
violet in any way. He was difficult to read; at
times very strong and very physical, yet at
others he would collapse like a pack of cards.
So it was hard to get the balance right when
you were playing against him.
“It was a defining moment, because we
went unbeaten for the whole season. I think
you know the gravity of the situation – it
was even being discussed in the House of
Commons; I’m on every TV newsreel, so you
start to realise the impact that it’s had. All we
were trying to do was win a football match.
We were a very good team and it’s a shame,
really, that people still want to talk about that.
“On a football pitch, I think there is a
chemical change that takes place. With
testosterone, you’re fired up – sometimes
you can cross the line. But you know you’ve
got to be fired up to win football matches.
Around that period, if you bumped into a Man
Utd fan, you got a very silly reaction. It did
seem to change me in the eyes of their fans,
as much as it did in the eyes of Arsenal fans.
“The next time I saw him [van Nistelrooy],
I just simply shook hands with him and got on
with it. I didn’t hold any bitterness towards
anybody, and I didn’t expect anybody to
have a problem with me. I saw it in a sort
of professional manner, and I wasn’t holding
any grudges.
“I don’t regret it, I don’t think we can regret
anything. People might have been looking for
me to be the senior statesman I was at that
point. Maybe it troubled one or two of the
directors, but they certainly knew one thing:
I had Arsenal pumping through my veins.”
ESPN has live and exclusive coverage of Newcastle
United v Liverpool on Saturday April 27 from 4.30pm.
For details, visit www.espn.co.uk/tv
SEPTEMBER 21 2003
Martin Keown goes ape
As remembered by Martin Keown
<<FLASHBACK << Manchester United 0-0 Arsenal
10 | April 26 2013 |
Radar Editor’s letter
Editor-in-chief
Simon Caney
@simoncaney
Sport magazinePart of UTV Media plc 18 Hatfields, London SE1 8DJTelephone: 020 7959 7800 Fax: 020 7959 7942
Email: [email protected]
EditorialEditor-in-chief: Simon Caney (7951)Deputy editor: Tony Hodson (7954) Art editor: John Mahood (7860)Subeditor: Graham Willgoss (7431)Senior writers: Sarah Shephard (7958), Alex Reid (7915)Staff writers: Mark Coughlan (7901), Amit Katwala (7914)Picture editor: Julian Wait (7961)Designer: Matthew Samson (7861)Digital designer: Chris Firth (7952)Production manager: Tara Dixon (7963) Contributors: David Lawrenson, Martin Potter
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Don’t forget: Help keep public transport clean and tidy for everyone by taking your copy of Sport away with you when you leave the bus or train.
LAUNCH OFTHE YEAR
2008
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Luis Suarez is some footballer: absolutely terrific to
watch. He’s also off his rocker: a danger to himself
and damaging for football as a whole. The question
now – not just for Liverpool, but for any of us who love
football – is this: are those two things mutually exclusive?
Few players are in his class: without him this season,
Liverpool would have been in a right mess. A wonderful old
club – whose fans can, on occasion, still generate the best
atmosphere in the Premier League – would have been scrabbling
around hoping for nothing better than mid-table mediocrity.
But it’s precisely because Liverpool are such a famous club, the
world over, that Suarez’s future must be called into question.
Clearly he forgets that he is being watched by millions.
In fact, as the red mist descended, I suspect he forgot he was
even on a football pitch. It was shocking to watch: an assault
taking place in front of our very eyes.
That said, I don’t for one minute buy this idea that thousands
of children started biting their classmates during Monday’s
lunchtime game of headers and volleys. While I do think
footballers need to remember they are role models, all children
over the age of three know that biting people earns a spell on
the naughty step. If any of them are using the Suarez Defence
in front of the head teacher, then that’s more because they
just don’t know right from wrong.
Liverpool acted swiftly, remembering the mistakes they
made the last time Suarez was in the spotlight. Whether or not,
when the dust has settled, they decide it’s worth sticking with
him, only time will tell.
Meanwhile, along the M62, the remarkable Sir Alex Ferguson
notches up yet another Premier League title. I’ve said already
this season that I don’t think this is a vintage Manchester
United team by a long chalk. But, as their rivals went
backwards, they kept on winning games. The acid test comes
in Europe, though, where even die-hard Stretford Enders
knew this year would be a bridge too far. It sounds daft, but
Fergie needs to spend some serious cash this summer.
It’s a shame for Nick Bitel, the new chair of Sport England, that
his appointment is clouded in such controversy. Baroness
Grey-Thompson, a national treasure if ever there was one, said
she was “disappointed” not to get the role, but that appears to
be a very diplomatic understatement. Whatever has happened
behind the scenes, the Government has handled this one badly.
Will he stay or go?He may be one of the best players on the planet, but Luis Suarez is also a liability
Cli
ve
Bru
ns
kil
l/G
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Eats, shoots and leaves: will
Liverpool stick by Suarez?
Reader comments of the week
Nice article on the mercurial
Ronnie O’Sullivan in
@sportmaguk. I was event
manager when he walked
off against Hendry in 2006.
Was mayhem!
@DanielMclaren
@simoncaney With
common sense articles like
the one you wrote in today’s
@Sportmaguk you do
realise you’ll never get a job
at The Sun!
@paulcruse07
A balanced view from
@simoncaney in this
weeks sport mag, he
doesn’t seem like a
bandwagon reporter who
loves an easy headline,
worth a read.
@elbow79
@Sportmaguk really good
insight into the enigma that
is Ronnie. Snooker needs
his class but more his
character to put bums on
seats/sofas.
@glvrmrk
Hope @TheNotoriousMMA
comes to London to sort out
lads from @Sportmaguk,
can’t believe he wasn’t in
#TopFive most exciting
fighters #BASH
@GField17
Free iPad app available on iPad, Kindle and Android devices
Cover of the Year
Front page of
@Sportmaguk. A nod to
Barker, Corbett & the
famous ‘Two Andy
Gorams’ terrace chant.
@AlexStone7
Get in touch @sportmaguk [email protected]
12 | April 26 2013 |
Radar Opinion
This weekend I am presented with a real problem, and I remain unsure how to deal
with it. Approaching my retirement, Mrs F would lie in bed and dream of rugbyless
weekends, of having me back around the place and
– more realistically – of handing over the children
come 6am on Saturday. Instead, what has actually
happened is that I work around 50 weekends of
the year, as well as spending Monday to Friday
pretending I can use the computer on my office
desk. Free time is minimal – and when I do get
some, I am obliged to use it constructively.
This means, sadly, that soldering my backside to
the sofa and watching reruns of Top Gear and
Schwarzenegger movies is not on the menu.
I have no work booked in this weekend, so I am
required to be a good bloke for two whole days.
Actually, in the interests of accuracy, this is a
three-day job. Family Flatman are going away to
a hotel. Now, I have a huge issue with paying stupid
money to stay in a room less than two hours from
my house, in which I also pay to live. At least let’s
go to a different country... but that’s a personal
problem and my therapist says I shouldn’t write
about that; he thinks weeping as I type isn’t
healthy. He’s vegetarian though, so I take all his
advice with a pinch of salt.
Laddishness forgotten, it will be a lovely time.
However, I will be missing two of the most exciting
rugby matches of the season. Saracens will take
on the Toulon galacticos, and that will be mega.
But, in terms of armchair value, Clermont’s clash
with Munster is the one. There are some
wonderful places to play rugby this side of the
Channel – and Munster’s Thomond Park is, in my
opinion, the very best of all. As much as it pains me
to say it, though, the big French clubs are where
it’s at for atmosphere. They just get it. If you
have never seen the pre-match ‘Pilou Pilou’ chant
at Toulon, or heard the drums and seen the
flares at Perpignan, then seriously, find a way.
The aggression is magnificent, and I am certain it
inspires the players to raise their game a notch.
I recall popping down to Agen for a pre-season
friendly, running out to a packed house and being
pelted with coins, batteries and even fruit as we
took the field. The crowd were wild, and it was a
bloody warm-up game! But their passion inspired
the team, and the match turned into what would
have been an 80-minute brawl, had the referee
not called it off after 60. Leaving the field with
a gashed head, a black eye and a badly broken
hand, all I felt was relief. Scrapping is knackering.
But I will never forget that atmosphere.
This match is being played at the wonderful
Stade de la Mosson in Montpellier, and it will be
bouncing. There is no tougher mission in European
rugby right now than beating Clermont, never mind
beating them in France. But if there’s one team that
can do it, it’s Munster. This is a massive, massive
game, and while it’s on I will be changing nappies
and singing nursery rhymes. Somebody help me.
@davidflatman
Da
vid
Ly
ttle
ton
, EM
PIC
S S
po
rt
Flats on Friday
How I miss the joys of a French pelting
I’d like to be the last person to congratulate Manchester United on their Premier League success, and here
are 20 reasons why this lifelong City fan is delighted
they’ve won the title this year:
Sidebottom, Timperley Big Shorts FC
Blimey! There are two films currently
being made about Frank Sidebottom.
One has Michael Fassbender in the
title role (really), while the other
needs some cash to get past the
finish line. Go to beingfrankmovie.com
to make this happen. Fantastic.
It’s like this…Bill Borrows
1. After so much Mancunian
dominance recently, it’s great
to see a team from just
outside the city finally
winning something.
2. The bandwagon jumpers
can go back to Old Trafford
– for 12 months at least.
3. Well done Giggsy. One of
City’s most successful junior
team products.
4. Prawn sandwiches at Old
Trafford now face a 20 per
cent price hike.
5. No more complacency
for City and Chelsea. It’s
chequebook time. Or, in the
case of Arsenal, Sainsbury’s
Active Kids voucher time.
6. The gentlemen of the
press, having been force-fed
humble pie last season, can
now bring it back up all over
Ferguson and United.
7. The £24m and
£200,000-a-week wages
United spent on Robin van
Persie to win the title sets
the bar for future panic buys
at Old Trafford.
8. The urge to win back
the title has left them with a
one-man team built around an
injury-prone 29-year-old.
9. The open-top parade of
the trophy (sets off from
Surbiton at 9am) will bring an
end-of-season boost to the
Manchester tourist industry.
10. The post-match wit and
wisdom of the millionaire
socialist knight of the realm
Sir Alex Ferguson…
11. “This has knocked 10
years off me!” That makes him
61, just a year younger than
Bob Paisley when he won the
European Cup for a third time.
12. “Rafael will end up being
compared to Gary Neville.”
Lucky boy.
13. “David De Gea has
developed fantastically well.”
Fergie’s on a roll now.
14. United can recycle the
‘Champions’ merchandise they
ordered last year. An important
consideration because…
15. Unemployment is a
terrible thing, and this title
win might temporarily keep
the wolf from the door at a
club with enormous debts.
16. Ferguson might change
his mind about retiring in the
summer of 2014.
17. Apparently, van Persie’s
second against Villa was the
‘Goal of the century’.
18. “Phil Jones can become
one of our best ever players.”
You’ve got to hand it to the old
boy, what a punchline!
19. The arrogance United had
to keep buried last year will be
back for all to see and despise.
20. It will be all the sweeter
winning it back next year.
@billborrows
S p o r t _ C a r l i n g _ 1 5 0 4 - 1 2 0 1 3 - 0 4 - 0 4 T 1 2 : 3 3 : 4 8 + 0 1 : 0 0
14 | April 26 2013 |
Frozen in time
| 15
Meet and greetIt’s a sobering thought that several of the Man
Utd fans clamouring to get a sight of Sir Alex
Ferguson in this image were not even born when
the great man took the reins at Old Trafford
(that said, nor were some of the players). He’ll
still be there when they’re drawing their old-age
pensions too, winning titles aged 109. Probably. Jo
hn
Pe
ters
/Ma
n U
td v
ia G
ett
y Im
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es
Theo Walcott
18 | April 26 2013 |
Signed, Sealed, deliveredTheo WalcoTT speaks exclusively To sporT abouT conTracT sagas, The boss and Why he’ll never forgeT his firsT day as an arsenal player
photography by jon enoch
When I fIrst Walked Into the arsenal dressIng room, I Was absolutely...Well, I Was cackIng myself, basIcally.”Theo Walcott smiles as he remembers what
it’s like to be 16 years old and thrust into
a world in which Thierry Henry, Dennis
Bergkamp and Robert Pires are no longer
the players you watch wide-eyed from afar
– but your teammates.
“I looked around and saw guys like Jens
[Lehmann], Thierry, Ljungberg, Pires,
Bergkamp, Sol Campbell and Ashley Cole –
all people who have won things,” he
remembers. “That whole era is a bit
different to the one now.”
It’s a refreshingly candid appraisal of
how things have changed at the club a >
| 19
“
Theo Walcott
20 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Ph
il C
ole
/Ge
tty
Ima
ge
s
self-confessed “tiny, baby-faced” Walcott
joined from Southampton in January 2006.
He, too, is very different from the excitable,
eager-to-please teenager determined his
future lay at Arsenal, despite reported
interest from Chelsea, Manchester United
and Tottenham. The 24-year-old Walcott is
one who speaks with the belief of a man who
has been knocked down numerous times during
his Arsenal career – and always bounced back.
On the day Sport meets him in the pleasant
surrounds of the Grove Hotel in Hertfordshire
– a 20-minute drive from the home he shares
with his fiancée Melanie Slade – Walcott has
spent a tough morning with the Arsenal
fitness coach, preparing his body to bounce
back once more, this time from injury.
“It was probably a wake-up call – maybe I
was getting slightly tired,” he says of the groin
strain that put him out of action for slightly
more than three weeks before returning in
the 3-1 win over Norwich a fortnight ago.
THE DOTTED LINEAs Walcott speaks, he relentlessly stirs sugar
into a frothy cappuccino. “Sorry,” he says,
suddenly aware of the racket he’s making
with the tiny teaspoon. “I stir my sugar a lot.”
It’s the fourth apology Sport has had from
the Arsenal man in the 10 minutes that have
passed since his arrival, following those he’s
already issued for being 15 minutes late, for
wanting 10 minutes with his barber before
our photoshoot, and for only bringing one
choice of jumper.
Young gun: Walcott
makes his debut for
Arsenal as a substitute
for Freddie Ljungberg
in August 2006
“IT DID gET frusTraTINg. I DIDN’T waNT IT TO bE abOuT jusT mE aND THE cONTracT aLL THE TImE – IT’s abOuT THE TEam”
One thing he’s not apologising for,
however, is his form on the pitch so far this
season. “Personally, I’m very happy with
everything I’ve contributed,” he says. “It was
difficult at the start, having to deal with all
the contract stuff that was going on, and I
was obviously on the bench for about 10
games in a row. But once I was given the
chance, I knew I just had to make sure I
played well.
“I think I have 14 assists and 18 goals so
far, which is the best season I’ve had – and
that’s with not starting so many games.
I think I played 50-odd [it was 57] games
last year, and I’m not even close to that this
season [with 42 so far], so overall I’m fairly
pleased with that side of things.”
It was towards the end of last season
when Walcott seemed to be at his very best
– a patch of form that served only to heighten
the lengthy will he/won’t he speculation over
his contract at Arsenal. Although he insists:
“The contract side of it was never really on
my mind until about two or three weeks
before it was actually resolved.”
That didn’t stop Walcott being quizzed about
the contract in every post-match interview
he gave in the weeks leading up to January
18 2013, or ‘signing day’. And in every one,
he gave the same calm, considered response
that essentially amounted to: it’s not done yet.
I want to stay. It’s a complicated process.
“It did get frustrating,” he admits now.
“Because I didn’t want it to be about just me
and the contract all the time – it’s about the
team. If I’d scored, I would get asked
about the contract instead of
reflecting on the actual game.”
fILLINg THE VOIDWhile some players get itchy feet if
they’re at the same club for longer
than a couple of years, Walcott is
someone who clearly prefers
stability in his professional life –
and his home life, too. The Arsenal
forward has been with fiancée
Melanie since he was 15 years old,
with the pair set to marry this
summer. “I’m lucky to have Mel,”
he says when recalling how the
contract saga played heavily upon his mind
earlier this season. “Because I could just go
home and discuss everything with her if I
needed to. She was great through it all.
She keeps me relaxed by helping me to
forget about the football at times, so I can
just be at home with her and the dogs and
switch off – that was what I wanted.
“Don’t get me wrong – she knows her
stuff on football, too. She’s a trained sports
physio, so that side of it is great for me. >
Theo Walcott
22 | April 26 2013 |
And she has her own dream team, so she
knows what she’s doing. Is she beating me?
Nah – she’s probably about mid-table. She did
have me in her team, but when I got injured
she took me out. I hope she’s put me back
in now...”
With his immediate future at Arsenal now
secure, Walcott has been able to fully focus
on the team – and that growing space in the
club’s trophy cabinet. While plenty has
changed at the club since his arrival in 2006
(including the departures of messrs Henry,
Bergkamp, Cole et al), that abyss has not.
Indeed, it speaks volumes that our abiding
memory from Sport’s previous interview
with Walcott in August 2008 is the emphasis
he placed on the players’ determination to
turn Arsenal into a winning club once again.
So, are they getting any closer?
“I think this year we probably had the
chance to win something,” he sighs. “We had
Blackburn at home in the FA Cup and that’s...
that wouldn’t normally happen. I think nine
times out of 10 we’d win that, but Blackburn
just wanted it more and you’ve got to give
credit to them.
“But, for me, we need to be having a bit
more of a go at the league, definitely. We want
to compete, and we can do it. You saw when
everyone was against us we had a great
result like the one at Bayern – winning 2-0
away from home, and then doing the same at
Swansea. So we can do it; it’s in us. We just
haven’t been at that consistent level to do
it at times. We did need a little kick up the
backside to get us back on track. But, lately,
I think we’ve worked harder as a unit. We’ve
kept more clean sheets, everyone is in their
positions and there’s more communication.
I think you can see that the players want it a
bit more because they want to prove people
wrong. We want to show that we’re still a
top-four team. Next year, though, we want
to be right up there.”
The desire is there, as strong as it always
has been. But, as Walcott’s early memories
of the Arsenal dressing room suggest,
the players come and go. The departure
of a certain Dutchman last summer was
something that was widely predicted to have
a devastating impact on the club, and Walcott
is honest in his assessment that “when
you lose someone like Robin [van Persie] >
“you can see the players want it more because they want to prove people wrong. we’re still a top-four team”
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Theo Walcott
24 | April 26 2013 |
Mik
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– one of your best players – it’s obviously
difficult to replace the amount of goals
he scored and what he did for the team.
“But we’ve coped with it quite well.
Everyone is sharing the goal load, and we
haven’t relied on one player all the time.
We’re in a similar situation to last year, really,
when we finished third, only a point ahead of
Tottenham [on 69 points] and with Newcastle
and Chelsea not far behind [on 65 and 64,
respectively]. It has been an up-and-down
season, though. We’ve lost a few games at
home that you wouldn’t have thought we
would, but it’s still in our own hands. And we
do tend to end the season quite well. We’re
not looking at fourth, we’re looking at third
– that’s definitely a realistic aim.
BELIEVING IN THE BOSSWalcott’s spell on the sidelines at the start
of this month meant he was left suffering
with Arsenal’s supporters when the team
threatened to let things slip on the pitch.
“Ah, the West Brom game was horrible,”
he cringes. “I was listening to it on the radio
and now I know just how Mel feels when she’s
watching it at home, because I was biting
my nails with nerves. When we went down
to 10 men and then they got a goal back,
I thought: ‘This is going to be horrible for
the last 20 minutes.’”
“PEOPLE THINk THE BOSS dOESN’T LET LOOSE, BuT HE caN – juST IN a caLm way. wE uNdErSTaNd HOw mucH IT mEaNS”
“He obviously puts his message and
tactics across at training, but if we don’t do
the job on a weekend, it can’t be down to the
manager. We need to step up ourselves and
not always let the manager take the blame.”
Not that Wenger lets his players off the
hook entirely when they underperform.
“He definitely lets us know the following day,
that’s for sure,” nods Walcott seriously.
“There’s been a couple of those this year.
People think he doesn’t let loose, but he can
– just in quite a calm way. We all understand
how much it means to him, as well as to us,
and how much belief he has in us. That should
be enough to spur us on to do it for him.”
Indeed, it was Wenger’s belief in the talents
of a 16-year-old Walcott that led to his first
signature on an Arsenal contract. So how
does the England international compare the
player he is now to the young winger who
‘cacked himself’ walking into the Arsenal
dressing room? “I’d say I definitely take a bit
more responsibility now – for encouraging
the younger players and, if nothing’s
happening in a game, for trying to make
something happen out of nowhere.
“The technical side of my game’s changed,
too. The last three years have been my best
in terms of goals, so I know I can score – I
just want to do it more. I enjoy playing up top.”
While Walcott’s journey has not been
without its bumps and scenic diversions, it is
one from which young arrivals at the club
can take heart. “They can relate to me a bit
easier because I’m younger,” he explains.
“So I just tell them to believe in themselves.
They also need to have a good attitude and
want to work hard to improve.
“But, like my dad always told me, you have
to enjoy it. You don’t want to have too much
pressure on you at that age – and, if you’re
playing for Arsenal as a teenager, you’re
definitely a very good player. Although when
Sol Campbell cleaned me out in my very first
training session, I definitely had a moment
thinking: ‘What have I got myself into here?’”
Walcott now knows exactly what he got
himself into. But he also knows that if he is to
emulate the players he remembers from his
first day at Arsenal – the winners – he has to
keep on bouncing back from those knocks.
Sarah Shephard @sarahsportmag
waLcOTT aNd THE uNdErwEar BaNdITSIt might sound like the name of one
of Walcott’s kids’ books (T.J. and the
Hat-trick, T.J. and the Cup Run, etc) but
the underwear bandits actually played a
big role in Walcott’s early playing career
– at Southampton’s academy. There he
shared a room with Spurs winger
Gareth Bale (“he’s a big
joker”) – the pair of
them would play a game
involving putting a pair
of pants on their head
and running into
someone else’s room to batter them
with pillows. “We’d call ourselves the
underwear bandits,” Walcott explains.
“I have no idea where it came from, but
if you were in your room watching a film
and someone burst in with their boxers
on their head, you knew you were in
trouble. Sometimes it wasn’t even
pillows – it was shoes and stuff like that.
Luckily I was always
quite quick, so I
tended to get
away with it.”
Having been guided by manager Arsène
Wenger for more than seven years, Walcott
knows only too well what the Frenchman’s
reaction would have been had their 2-0 lead
at the Hawthorns been squandered. This has
been the Arsenal manager’s most difficult
campaign so far – one that has looked at
times as though it might be reaching a
gloomy conclusion. But Walcott insists the
players should not hide behind the boss when
it comes to the team’s failings: “He always
puts it back on himself and protects the team,
but us players know that we’re the ones
who go out there and play – we do the job.
NATURE NEEDS HEROES
German Football A Study
| April 26 2013 | 27Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Bo
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/Ge
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There are six minutes to go at the AWD-
Arena in Hannover, and the home team
has just scored against Bayern Munich.
Unfortunately for the majority of the
capacity crowd, they’ve also conceded five, and
Claudio Pizarro scores for the Bundesliga champions
straight from the kick-off to put the polish on a 6-1
rout. It’s the kind of frightening Munich display that
has happened so regularly this season that the news
has a special name for it: “another Bayern-Gala”.
Despite the score, there are no signs of any
Hannover 96 fans leaving early, and the thousands of
‘ultras’ packed into the vast ‘safe standing’ terrace
in the North Stand have been drinking beer, waving
flags and singing for the entire game. From afar,
both home and away terraces seem to move as
single entities, bouncing and dancing and drumming
– and directed in the Hannover end by a special
PA system installed for the ultras by the club.
“It’s a different world,” says Hannover defender
Johan Djourou, the focus of upcoming documentary
Djourou in Germany. The Swiss international is on
loan from Arsenal, and thus used to a rather quieter
matchday atmosphere. “The fans here are just
unbelievable – they keep singing the whole way
through, even if they lose. You get that in some
grounds in England, but here it’s everywhere.”
The experience is an eye-opening one for us, too.
The simple pleasure of being able to drink alcohol in
one’s seat, banned in England for 28 years, is vastly
preferable to hastily downing warm lager from
a plastic bottle on the concourse at half time.
It’s a superior fan experience in almost every way,
from the atmosphere to free train travel – and very
different to England, where the clubs’ main motive
for interacting with their fans often seems to be
purely financial. Tickets for the visit of Bayern Munich
started at just €13 (about £12), making it easy to
see why the Bundesliga is the best-attended football
league in the world, with average attendances of
more than 40,000. Hannover’s manager Mirko
Slomka tells us the Bundesliga is a “premium
product”; as we sip cold beer in the German
sunshine, we’re very much inclined to agree.
Fan powerA product it may be, yet clubs don’t treat the fans
like customers. That can be explained by one simple
difference between German and English football,
says Raphael Honigstein, German football
correspondent at The Guardian. “Supporters wield
real power because they control most of the clubs
indirectly in the membership model,” he tells us.
Unlike in England, where fan ownership is used as
a financial defibrillator for teams in trouble, in the
Bundesliga it is mandatory. The 50+1 rule means that
51 per cent of each club must be owned by members
– the exception being if a club has an association of
20 years or more with a particular company, such as
Wolfsburg with Volkswagen. Fan protests go beyond
booing and banners (although there is plenty of that,
too), as Honigstein explains: “You cannot have the
club ignore the fans because they will vote you out
at the next election. You have to listen to them.
“This is very much the German model,” he
continues, on the subject of heavily subsidised ticket
prices. “It’s capitalism, but always with a social
element. The clubs are very careful to try to be
seen as inclusive, and they charge less than the
real market value for fans who need to have that >
Beer at your seat, £12 tickets, and the best fans in EuropeHave we diedand gone tofootball heaven?
As two German teams try to reach the final of the Champions League next week, Sport investigates the rise of the Bundesliga and asks what it can teach the Premier League
German Football A Study
28 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
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kind of protection because they add the noise, and
the real passion.”
Not everyone agrees on the merits of fan power.
Hannover president Martin Kind was the only
dissenting vote when the 36 clubs that comprise the
Bundesliga’s two divisions were asked if they wanted
to retain the 50+1 rule back in 2010. He argued that
it hampers the ability of German teams to compete
on the international stage, because it’s not possible
to get an injection of cash from rich owners such
as those enjoyed by Manchester City or Chelsea.
“This is not a club, it’s a business,” says Dirk Köster,
the club’s communications director. “We’re talking
about big money, and it needs a stable foundation.”
It is tough, says Köster, for clubs to raise the
funds for rapid expansion or improvement. By way of
example, he tells us that when Hannover’s AWD-Arena
was redeveloped ahead of the 2006 World Cup,
everything was built to the minimum specifications
required by FIFA to save money – and the club had to
continue playing at the stadium during construction.
“It takes years to get to the point where you can
compete with teams that can grow overnight, or
have had success internationally,” says Honigstein.
“All the things that make the Bundesliga great for the
local fans don’t always act as a conduit to having
competitive teams in Europe. You have to be very
patient; it takes a long time for the club to be
competitive with other teams in Europe.”
A Spanish situationBorussia Dortmund have broken through in the past
few years, but it’s generally difficult for German clubs
to regularly challenge Munich, the country’s biggest
and most successful club. Because they have the most
fans and regular Champions League cash, Bayern
have been able to secure players (and managers)
that other German clubs can only dream of.
Honigstein tells us that many in Germany fear a
‘Spanish situation’ – a Munich and Dortmund duopoly
akin to that of Barcelona and Real Madrid in La Liga.
“The problem is that the ‘second tier’ don’t even
seem competitive enough to beat these teams,” he
explains. “None of them can really trouble Bayern.”
Certainly, the way Bayern brushed aside Europa
League-chasing Hannover – on their way to what
will surely be a record points haul – suggests the
Bundesliga could be heading that way.
Djourou says it will be very tough for anyone to
challenge Bayern Munich’s domestic dominance when
we speak to him after that defeat. “They are way on
top at the moment,” he admits. “In the German league,
there is a massive difference between them and the
other teams. That wasn’t even a full-strength team.
This team has the potential to rule for a couple more
years – and they are only going to buy more players
because they are so attractive after getting to the
[Champions League] semi finals two years in a row.”
Of course, German clubs have been fan-owned
for years, so why the sudden progress in Europe?
“The quality overall has definitely improved, simply
because there are better players coming through,”
says Honigstein. “That’s really the underlying factor
in all of this. The Bundesliga has so many good
players that it’s easier for teams to play football,
and they don’t have to rely on imports.”
The emergence of bright young talents like Toni
Kroos, Marco Reus and Thomas Müller has a lot to do
with changes implemented by the German FA after
the country’s disastrous performance at Euro 2000.
German clubs have invested more than €650m in
youth development since the overhaul, which focused
on creating a system of youth academies around the
country and demanding clubs that want to play in the
Bundesliga invest in an academy. By the end of the
2010-11 season, more than half of the players in
the league were German academy graduates.
Young guns“We’ve had 12 years of professional and expensive
youth developments, and the kids who were six to
eight at the time are our new generation of players,”
says Honigstein. As in Spain, technical ability is
valued over strength and power, says Norbert Düwel,
assistant coach at Hannover and a former scout for
Manchester United.
“We Germans have always been very fit and had a
good mentality, so in the past few years technique
has had more priority,” he explains. “They’ve brought
in special programmes for youth players, and I think
the technical ability is better now. I watched youth
games in England, and was impressed by their power.
They are strong, but a lot of players have a deficit in
their technical ability.”
Inspired by Germany, the English FA has taken
belated steps to correct this deficit, with the opening
of the St George’s Park National Football Centre and
an overhaul of the academy system. But that won’t
suffice without an attitude change, says Honigstein.
“It’s important you have a culture in which these
players will be played,” he says. “That’s much easier
for a league like the Bundesliga, which is controlled
by Germans, with mostly German managers. That
creates an environment where the promotion of your
homegrown players is considered very important.
Take the Premier League as an example: what is the
motivation of a coach at Chelsea to promote English
players when given the option to bring in a superstar
during the next transfer window?”
What’s more, German prospects are more likely
to fulfil their potential compared with their English
counterparts, says Djourou: “Maybe in other countries,
young players leave too early because they don’t have
the chance to play for their team. You might have
young players who are good prospects, but don’t
always achieve what they hoped. The players Germany
has, it seems, all achieve what is planned for them.”
A new generation of players is emerging, helping
clubs beyond Munich overcome fiscal constraints to
make their mark in Europe. With Pep Guardiola – one
of the game’s most sought after managers – at Munich
from next season, the Bundesliga is “an attractive
proposition” for players and fans, believes Djourou.
The FA is taking stumbling steps towards its own
youth revolution, but the real lesson for the Premier
League comes from the stands. The atmosphere that
so impressed us is normal for German grounds,
Honigstein tells us. He adds, a bit cruelly, that this is
“how it used to be not too long ago in England”.
Somewhere, between the banning of terraces and
the formation of the Premier League, English fans
seem to have lost their power; as a result their
national game is an expensive plaything, while their
protests are ignored. The Premier League attracts
the biggest names and the most attention, but the
electric atmosphere and community feel of the
Bundesliga offers a tantalising glimpse of what we’ve
lost... something to mull over the next time you pay
£50 to sit in relative silence at the Emirates.
Amit Katwala @amitkatwala
Tune into TRACE Sports (Sky channel 442) to watch an
exclusive six-part series, Djourou in Germany, starting on
Friday May 17 at 9.25pm – trace.tv
“By the end of the 2010-11 season, more than half of the players in the Bundesliga were German academy graduates”
Thomas Müller (left) is just
one star graduate of the
German youth system
James, 2
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See how Maximuscle can also help you
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If you think protein is just for professionals, think again.
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them achieve their own individual goals in just 12 weeks.
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To pick up your own 12 week challenge and see how
Maximuscle and exercise can help you achieve your body and
sporting goals simply visit: maximuscle.com/proteinproject
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The late Margaret Thatcher had just sent the
task force to Argentina, but Alex Higgins needed
the limelight – so that was that. It was him
versus the world, as usual, but this time in the
establishment form of Ray Reardon, a veteran
of six finals and six titles. With the game tied at
15-15, Reardon thought: ”I was back in charge
of the operation… but when [Higgins] got back
out on that table, he was sizzling.” At 17-15 up,
Higgins potted a difficult black, the crowd went
wild and the title was his. An emotional Higgins
reached out for his wife and daughter. ”That
moment just had everything,” said TV critic Jim
Shelley later. ”Punk rock meets The Waltons.”
‘Bring me my baby’ 1982
The 150/1 outsider 1986
| April 26 2013 | 33
World Snooker Championship
Ghosts of the CrucibleFor gentleman of a certain age, the World Snooker Championship will always mean late nights in front of the television, unfinished homework, the assured commentary of Ted Lowe and Clive Everton, and the click of the balls as characters from Cliff ‘The Grinder’ Thorburn through to Alex ‘Hurricane’ Higgins chased one of the biggest prizes in sport over 17 days of increasingly intense competition.
The glory days of the 1980s and ́ 90s may have ebbed away, and today’s players might not be front-page news, subject to accusations of cocaine addiction (Kirk Stevens) or cross-dressing (Tony Knowles), but this year Sheffield has seen the return of Ronnie ‘The Rocket’ O’Sullivan and the tournament carries a prize fund of more than £1m. Tickets are reported to have sold out in record time.
Everton believes the intimacy of The Crucible is key to this. “There are only 980 seats and you feel that you can almost touch the players,” he says. “The atmosphere is hard to describe, but it is special and communicates itself to those watching on television. It has changed so little over the years that it’s like you’re in the presence of the ghosts of the past.” Ghosts like these…
More than 18.5 million tuned in to watch Dennis
Taylor (aka ’him with the funny specs’) take on
defending champ Steve Davis in 1985 – still a
post-midnight record for any channel in the UK.
Nobody expected to be up at that time – least of
all Taylor, as Davis raced into an 8-0 lead. The
fightback brought the scores to 11-11, 15-15
and 17-17 without the Northern Irishman ever
leading. He went out for a brandy to steady his
nerves before the final frame, saw Davis
overcut the final black to leave it over the
pocket, and became the world champion with
his next shot. ”It was like winning four world
titles rolled into one,” he has said since. Good
job really, because he never won it again.
Joe Johnson was a top-16 player going into the
1986 championship, but had never won a game
at the Crucible. He was playing the year after
the fire at Bradford City and, as a fan of the
club, wore a T-shirt with the slogan ’Bradford’s
Bouncing Back’. He overcame Terry Griffiths in
a quarter final in which he knocked in four tons,
giving him all the confidence he needed. With
Johnson leading 3-1 in the final against Steve
Davis, Everton intoned: ”People may already be
beginning to think the unthinkable.” They were.
Davis was mentally exhausted and Johnson went
on to win 18-12, the crowd cheering down every
colour of the final frame. ”It was crazy,” he
reflects. ”I’d gone from a nobody to a celebrity
overnight. I was on every TV programme going.
I never got a minute to practise.” >
‘Snooker from the gods’
1999
34 | April 26 2013 |
World Snooker Championship
After his 10-5 first-round defeat to Steve
James in 1990, and an estimated 27 shots of
vodka to the good, Alex Higgins refused to
leave his seat at the Crucible. Then, having
assaulted an official, he attended a rambling,
shambolic press conference – during which
he denounced professional snooker as
corrupt, and quit while referencing former
Tory minister Cecil Parkinson, the stomach
lining of a cow, the iniquities of a two-tier
education system, children from Amsterdam
and a catchphrase associated with comedy
double act Cannon and Ball. It wasn’t the end,
but it was well past the beginning of the end.
The ladies were divided between the rival
charms of Higgins and Cliff Thorburn – some
went for the vulnerable bad boy, others the
dashing antebellum dandy. Fans of the latter
still remember his 147 maximum clearance
in 1983 against Terry Griffiths almost as
fondly as his slightly-too-tight trousers.
It started with a fluke, but from such
unpromising beginnings Thorburn chased
down the reds and colours as the other
game – featuring fellow Canadian Bill
Werbeniuk – stopped play to watch the
unfolding drama. A long pot on the yellow at
120 (a shot worth £18,000 in terms of prize
money in its own right) was the key, and
the rest followed. ”Good luck, mate,” said
commentator Jack Karnehm as Thorburn
eyed up the black. No need.
Plenty more time, Paul 2003Of course, as Higgins demonstrated, some of the most poignant
action takes place away from the table. On this occasion it was
the press conference after Paul Hunter, nicknamed the
‘Beckham of the Baize’, had lost his 2003 semi final to Ken
Doherty despite taking a 15-9 overnight lead. Perhaps best
known for a revitalising sex session with his girlfriend during a
break at the 2001 Masters tournament, the universally popular
Hunter was crestfallen in Sheffield, but putting on a brave face.
”The feeling in the room was that he was on the brink of big
things,” remembers Everton. ”Of course, that wasn’t to be.”
Hunter died of stomach cancer three years later, aged just 27.
That’s how Everton described the 1999 semi
final between Stephen Hendry and Ronnie
O’Sullivan. If this was a fight, it would have
been a heavyweight bloodbath between a
sublimely talented young shaver and a
determined old stager, with haymakers
landing every round (there were eight century
breaks in the 17-13 match, four apiece). As
with the Rumble in the Jungle, experience
won out; Hendry went on to claim his seventh
world title, but O’Sullivan had served notice
that there was a new kid on the block. And,
several years on, like George Foreman but
without the Lean Mean Grilling Machine,
The Rocket made another comeback.
Bill Borrows @billborrows Ad
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CENTRES
The Test combination is the big question mark
here, with a quartet of centres all but guaranteed
a spot on the plane. Jamie Roberts and Jonathan
Davies rediscovered their spark as the Six Nations
went on – “their defensive link-up could be key to
the Lions”, according to Ieuan Evans – while Roberts’
combination with Brian O’Driscoll in 2009 means the
Irishman should have a spot on the plane, albeit
without the captaincy. The fourth spot goes to the
man Dewi Morris calls “our very own Jonah Lomu”
in Manu Tuilagi, whose power and pace also offers
an option out wide if needed. If Gatland plumps for
a fifth centre, the options are less clear, with a
variety of choices to pick from.
James Hook’s versatility is an
option (offering cover at 10),
while Brad Barritt’s solidity
provides decent back-up to
the power of Roberts.
Paul Wallace sums this one up nicely when he
says “the half-backs are the one obvious selection,
as long as [Jonny] Sexton gets some game time.”
Mike Phillips and Sexton are those obvious
selections, with Ben Youngs the all-but-guaranteed
second nine, not least after his barnstorming solo
try against Bath last weekend. The choices for
Gatland come after that, with Danny Care, Greig
Laidlaw and Conor Murray the front runners.
Care offers pace and tenacity to challenge
Australia’s Will Genia, while Laidlaw offers a reliable
boot and control of the pack. Murray is the intriguing
one: he is similar to Phillips, but his understanding
of Sexton from their time with Ireland stands him in
good stead, as does the way he asked questions of
Harlequins in Europe.
At fly half, Gatland has been hinting at a preference
for taking two, which leaves Jonny Wilkinson a likely
no-go. Owen Farrell’s Heineken Cup match-up
against Wilkinson this weekend could go a long way
to making Gatland’s mind up, but Dan Biggar is surely
in the running after leading Wales to Six Nations
victory. For now, Farrell is the more likely. >
You’re probably going to get bored of these words,
but the Welsh boys are nailed on. Leigh Halfpenny
is “fearless under the high ball, fast at the counter
attack and has a siege gun of a boot”, according to
Sky Sports’ Dewi Morris. And it’s hard to argue.
Bar injury, Halfpenny is the Lions full back, leaving
Stuart Hogg and Rob Kearney to fight it out for the
second spot, unless Warren Gatland chooses to
take both and utilise one of them on the wing.
That’s because George North and Alex Cuthbert
– “a one-man wrecking ball and a man who knows
where the line is”, as Morris respectively describes
them – might be guarantees, but elsewhere there
is a shortage of world-class wingers. Sky’s Paul
Wallace thinks Tommy Bowe “might still break in to
the back three” after his timely return from injury,
while Chris Ashton is in fine form for Saracens.
A Lions ’bolter’ is more likely than Ashton, though,
so Christian Wade will be watching Tuesday’s press
conference with interest, while Sky’s Ieuan Evans
thinks Simon Zebo “would bring something different
to the party, with pace and a strong left boot to
match the Australians”.
Rugby Union The British and Irish LionsA
ll p
ictu
res
Ge
tty
Ima
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With the British and Irish Lions squad for Australia named on Tuesday, we look at the nailed-on options and the tough decisions facing coach Warren Gatland – with a little help from Sky Sports’ expert pundits
HERE COMES THE PRIDEBACK THREE HALF BACKS
| April 26 2013 | 37
Roar ambition (clockwise):
Leigh Halfpenny, Stuart
Hogg and Simon Zebo
Half a chance (clockwise):
Mike Phillips, Ben Youngs
and Jonny Sexton
Brian
O’Driscoll
Manu Tuilagi
While our pundits each went with a different
combination for their front rows, the same names
continue to pop up – with Cian Healy, Adam Jones,
Dan Cole and Gethin Jenkins the four definites either
side of hookers Richard Hibbard, Rory Best and Tom
Youngs. Healy offers “a workrate that’s second to
none, and has set the benchmark”, according to
Ieuan Evans, while Dewi Morris believes the call
between Jones and Cole is “too close to call, with
Cole’s extra pace around the field possibly giving
him a slight edge”. The fifth prop, and possibly a
sixth if Gatland so wishes, is likely to come from
north of the border, with Euan Murray the
ever-solid option (when the game is on a Saturday).
Mako Vunipola might be in with a shout as the
unpredictable option, but it’s more likely that
Ryan Grant – or even Andrew Sheridan – would
get the call for the sixth slot.
SECOND ROW
After all the talk of England’s dynamic duo during
the Six Nations, it’s the tried and tested faces of
Paul O’Connell, Ian Evans and Alun Wyn Jones that
look like the second-row guarantees in Gatland’s
squad. As Dewi Morris says: “Would Australia want
O’Connell in their side? Yes! He’s an outstanding
leader and dominates the middle position.” Ieuan
Evans, too, points out that the duo “played together
in the Lions before, and Jones added an edge to
Wales in the Six Nations”. Yet again, it’s the back-up
selections that will have Gatland scratching his
head, with Geoff Parling pushing for inclusion after
his consistency in the Six Nations. Jim Hamilton and
Richie Gray showed what they can add in terms
of the power that could disrupt the Aussie pack,
while there’s also the option of Tom Croft and
Ryan Jones going to cover the second row.
38 | April 26 2013 |
Rugby Union The British and Irish Lions
The entire Lions Tour is live on Sky Sports HD,
beginning June 1
ThE PuNDiTS’ TEamS
iEuaN EvaNS Paul WallaCE SCOTT haSTiNgSDEWi mORRiS
01. gethin jenkins
02. RichaRd hibbaRd
03. dan cole
04. paul o’connell
05. ian evans
06. sean o’bRien
07. sam waRbuRton
08. toby faletau
09. mike phillips
10. jonny sexton
11. geoRge noRth
12. bRian o’dRiscoll
13. manu tuilagi
14. alex cuthbeRt
15. leigh halfpenny
01. cian healy
02. RichaRd hibbaRd
03. adam jones
04. alun wyn jones
05. paul o’connell
06. tom cRoft
07. sam waRbuRton
08. sean o’bRien
09. mike phillips
10. jonny sexton
11. simon zebo
12. jamie RobeRts
13. jonathan davies
14. geoRge noRth
15. leigh halfpenny
01. andRew sheRidan
02. RichaRd hibbaRd
03. adam jones
04. nathan hines
05. paul o’connell
06. tom wood
07. sam waRbuRton
08. jamie heaslip
09. mike phillips
10. jonny sexton
11. geoRge noRth
12. jamie RobeRts
13. bRian o’dRiscoll
14. alex cuthbeRt
15. leigh halfpenny
01. cian healy
02. tom youngs
03. adam jones
04. paul o’connell
05. joe launchbuRy
06. sam waRbuRton
07. justin tipuRic
08. jamie heaslip
09. mike phillips
10. jonny sexton
11. geoRge noRth
12. bRian o’dRiscoll
13. jonathan davies
14. alex cuthbeRt
15. leigh halfpenny
The Lions are playing
Australia in the first
Test tomorrow – so
what’s your team?
That’s the question
we put to four of
Sky Sports’ experts
BaCK ROW
This is arguably the toughest selection call across
the squad, and those Welsh boys are – again – the
only ones with a guaranteed spot. The question is:
how many of them do you take? Sam Warburton
roared back into action after a poor opening to the
Six Nations and looks set to take the tour captaincy,
while Toby Faletau and Justin Tipuric are
guaranteed Lions as well. But what about Ryan
Jones? Elsewhere, Dewi Morris tips “the ball
carrier of excellence” that is Sean O’Brien; Paul
Wallace thinks “Jamie Heaslip’s form will improve
once he steps up a level and is free to play without
the captaincy”, and that “Tom Wood is a great
lineout player whose work at the breakdown has
him in the trio”. As for the more leftfield selections,
Tom Croft is surely on the plane after his recent
performances for Leicester. Meanwhile, Kelly
Brown’s Six Nations displays for Scotland were
nothing short of gigantic in a defensive masterclass,
and Peter O’Mahony shone in a poor Ireland team
throughout the tournament. As with Murray, a big
weekend awaits the Munster man down in France.
And we haven’t even mentioned Chris Robshaw!
FRONT ROW
Sam Warburton
Paul O’Connell
Dan Cole
Adam Jones
01.
02.
03.
04.
05.
06.
07.
08.
09.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
No competition throws up magic
moments more regularly than
the UEFA Champions League.
Borussia Dortmund’s amazing
comeback against Malaga in the
quarter finals was just the latest in a long line
of incredible drama – from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
stealing victory from Bayern Munich in 1999
to the cool way Didier Drogba sealed a penalty
shootout victory (also over Bayern Munich)
with his last kick in a Chelsea shirt.
The new HTC One, official smartphone of the
UEFA Champions League, is perfectly designed for
capturing such special scenes. Instead of still
snapshots that just sit stationary in a smartphone
gallery, the HTC One comes with HTC Zoe™, an
innovative way of bringing your pictures to life.
HTC Zoe™ lets you shoot high-res photos that
come to life in three-second snippets – when you
press the shutter button in Zoe mode, the HTC
One will capture up to 20 photos, and a three-
second HD video. The capturing process starts
a second before you’ve even pressed the button,
and you can even share individual frames from
the video. All the pictures you’ve taken are stored
in the brand new Living Gallery, which transforms
the traditional (but quite dull) photo gallery of still
images into a moving memory wall.
More memories will undoubtedly be made at
the UEFA Champions League Final at Wembley
next month, and one lucky fan was selected from
thousands of entries to document the handover
of the coveted trophy using HTC Zoe™.
Competition winner Andy Roberts followed the
cup as it travelled from Stamford Bridge to
Whitehall, where it was officially transferred to
the care of the City of London ahead of the Final.
In his role as HTC photographer for the day, he
captured the emotions of the general public as
they interacted with the trophy, and he’ll be on
hand again at the UEFA Champions League Final,
capturing all the drama and action as it unfolds.
Because it captures three seconds of video and
20 high-resolution photos instead of just one
snap, HTC Zoe™ is the perfect tool for recording
memories and bringing magic moments to life.
After all, a lot can happen in three seconds:
just ask Chelsea or Manchester United.
| 39
Advertising Feature
BriNgiNg yoU CLosEr to thE UEFA ChAmpioNs LEAgUE
Competition winner
Andy Roberts followed
the trophy as it
travelled through the
city (with the women’s
equivalent) and used
HTC Zoe™ to capture
the delight of any
Londoners lucky
enough to glimpse it.
thE UEFA ChAmpioNs LEAgUE trophy hANdovEr, BroUght to LiFE By htC ZoE™
7 DaysAPR 26-MAY 2
HIGHLIGHTS
» Football: Premier League Preview » p42
» UFC: Jon Jones v Chael Sonnen » p44
» Boxing: Amir Khan v Julio Diaz » p46
» Rugby League: Widnes v Wakefield » p48
» County Cricket: Somerset v Warwickshire » p48OUR PICK OF THE ACTION FROM THE SPORTING WEEK AHEAD
Saturday RUgBy Union | HeineKen CUP Semi FinAL: CLeRmont v mUnSteR | StADe De LA moSSon, montPeLLieR | SKy SPoRtS 1 5Pm
Not everything in rugby right now is about the
Lions – but this weekend's Heineken Cup semis
definitely have a Gatland twang to them, with the
New Zealander set to name his squad on Tuesday.
Munster are flying after their quarter-final win over
Harlequins, and head to the all-conquering Clermont
Auvergne (unbeaten at home for 59 games) with
confidence. Conor Murray, Peter O'Mahony and
Simon Zebo are the men looking to make a late
surge into Gatland's thinking, while another huge
performance from Paul O'Connell (winning the
lineout, above) could have those captaincy odds
shortening again. Expect a classic Munster
performance like we saw in west London a few
weeks ago, with power up front and a close
pick-and-drive game to set up Ronan O'Gara's boot.
The French sides, though, have upped their game
in Europe this season, and the men in yellow are
favourites to lift the trophy for a reason. Sitiveni
Sivivatu and Wesley Fofana are the ones to watch
with the ball in hand, but it's Clermont's ability to
stand up to Munster's pack that will decide this game
– something they showed in abundance in their
quarter-final showdown with Montpellier.
In the second semi final on Sunday, Saracens
welcome Toulon to Twickenham (Sky Sports 1, 3pm),
with Owen Farrell, Jonny Wilkinson, Chris Ashton
and Mako Vunipola just four of the names with
Australia on the brain. Sarries play a tight game and
will look to starve the French side of possession, but
in Steffon Armitage and that man Jonny, the visitors
boast one player who can pilfer ball at will and
another who can score points from almost anywhere.
Saracens' recent investment has all been for games
like this. When it comes to investment, though, the
French team still takes some beating. Anything other
than an all-French final will mean someone has done
something spectacular to catch Mr Gatland's eye.
40 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Charge of the Lions brigade
Stu
Fo
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r/G
ett
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Untitled-5 1 23/04/2013 15:37
42 | April 26 2013 |
7 Days
It might be game over at the top of the table, but Arsene
Wenger should surrender his ‘Professor’ moniker if he
thinks that means Alex Ferguson’s team will give Arsenal
an easier ride than usual on Sunday. The Scot was still
wiping celebratory bubbles from his chin after Monday’s
victory when he said: “If we get to 96 points I’d be
delighted... that would be a fantastic season.” Hic.
That record haul would require United to win all four
of their remaining games, starting at the Emirates on
Sunday, where Danny Welbeck scored a late winner in
their 2-1 win last season. But it’s Robin van Persie who is
the man most likely to bring an end to Arsenal’s run of six
league games without defeat. The Dutchman has scored
in the past three meetings between these sides (once for
United) and – as Arsenal fans know all too well – is the
league’s top scorer.
The Gunners will be without one of their main goal
threats this season – Olivier Giroud misses out after he
was sent off against Fulham. His absence might pave the
way for our cover star Theo Walcott to get a taste of the
action up front, unless Wenger feels Lukas Podolski or
Gervinho (somewhat less likely) are more deserving.
Defeat for Arsenal could see them drop behind
Tottenham and Chelsea (if both win) in the race for fourth,
but more painful than that will be the guard of honour
Arsenal might be obliged to give their visitors.
WIgan won five of their last six
games to save their Premier League
lives last season. With matches
against Manchester City and Arsenal
to come after Saturday’s against a
Tottenham side with plenty to play
for, they might struggle to repeat
that – although the Latics have won
their last two at the DW and beaten
Spurs once already this season. The
Londoners have been impressive on
the road, though – only Man Utd
have won more away games.
saturday wigan v tottenham | dw stadium | 3Pm
By the time these teams meet on
Monday, the lie of the land in the
bottom half of the table will be a
little clearer. It’s two wins from three
for new Mackems boss Paolo Di
Canio, so they have the momentum,
but Villa have been pretty solid
when playing teams around them in
the table of late. Wins against Stoke,
Reading and QPR in their previous
six games have given Paul Lambert
belief that he can keep the Villans
in the top flight.
monday aston villa v sunderland | villa Park
sky sPorts 1 8Pm
The title race is over but the Premier League keeps on giving, with the fight for fourth heating up and a decent scrap between sides trying to beat the drop
Premier League
sunday arsenal v manchester united | emirates stadium | sky sPorts 1 4Pm
Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
SATURDAY everton v fulham | goodison park | 3pm
| 43
The respective home and away
form of these teams suggests a
predictable result. Roberto
Mancini’s side has been beaten only
once at home this season, while
West Ham have won only once away
this year. But City’s late collapse
against Tottenham last weekend –
despite going into the match as the
team that had conceded the fewest
second-half goals in the league this
season – suggests that, with their
title gone, so has their mojo.
SATURDAY southampton v west brom | st mary’s | 3pm SATURDAY stoke v norwich | the britannia | 3pm
Assuming Luis Suarez is unlikely to
be available on Saturday, Liverpool
will be without the player who
secured them a point against
Newcastle at Anfield in November.
Beaten 2-0 by the Magpies at St
James’ Park last year, when Alan
Pardew’s side was aiming for
Europe, Liverpool need a win this
time if they’re to keep the pressure
on Everton (who they play next
week). Newcastle, meanwhile, are
now simply aiming for survival.
SATURDAY newcastle v liverpool | st james’ park
espn 5.30pm
Nigel Adkins’ reign at Reading
hasn’t gone to plan, with the Royals
having lost three of the four games
under his tenure. Harry Redknapp –
who will likely accompany him on
the drop down to the Championship
– hasn’t fared much better, winning
four of his 21 games in charge of
QPR . Neither man will want to go
down as the Premier League’s
bottom side, so Sunday’s game is
about playing for pride. Although
points are still handy too, obviously.
SUnDAY reading v qpr | madejski stadium |
sky sports 1 1.30pm
Fulham have never won a game
at Goodison Park in the Premier
League – an FA Cup win in 1975 was
the last time they were victorious
there. And, with the Toffees almost
unbeatable at home this term (they
have lost once), it’s a statistic that’s
unlikely to change. Martin Jol is
without Steve Sidwell (again) after
the midfielder’s second red card in
as many games against Arsenal. The
previous one came during Fulham’s
last league win, on April 1.
Unbeaten in their last six matches,
Southampton have also kept three
clean sheets during that time. It’s
a far cry from the start of their
Premier League campaign, when
they conceded 24 goals in their first
eight (winning once). It was in their
10th game that they were beaten
2-0 by a West Brom team with five
wins from their first 10. The Baggies’
form has dipped in the second half
of the season though, leaving Saints
as the form team here.
Norwich have conceded the lowest
proportion of goals from set-
pieces in the league this season
(10 per cent, excluding penalties).
Stoke are at the other end of the
scale, having let in 46 per cent
of their goals from set pieces
(including one from Norwich to give
them a 1-0 win at Carrow Road in
November). On the other hand, 57
per cent of Stoke’s goals have also
come from set-pieces (before they
played QPR last weekend).
P W D L F A Pts
PRemieR LeAgUe TAbLe
Javier Hernandez has the best mins/
goals rate of any player in Premier
League history (minimum 10 goals)
120.7
Man Utd 34 27 3 4 78 35 84
Man City 33 20 8 5 59 30 68
Arsenal 34 18 9 7 65 35 63
Chelsea 33 18 8 7 66 35 62
Tottenham 33 18 7 8 58 41 61
Everton 34 14 14 6 51 38 56
Liverpool 34 13 12 9 61 42 51
West Brom 33 13 6 14 43 44 45
Swansea 33 10 12 11 43 42 42
West Ham 34 11 9 14 40 47 42
Fulham 34 10 10 14 44 52 40
Southampton 34 9 12 13 47 54 39
Norwich 34 8 14 12 33 53 38
Sunderland 34 9 10 15 38 45 37
Stoke 34 8 13 13 30 41 37
Newcastle 34 10 7 17 43 60 37
Aston Villa 34 8 10 16 36 63 34
Wigan 33 8 7 18 37 60 31
QPR 34 4 12 18 29 56 24
Reading 34 5 9 20 37 65 24
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SATURDAY manchester city v west ham
etihad stadium | sky sports 2 12.45pm
Having failed to beat Swansea on
their three previous meetings this
season, Chelsea will be wary of their
visit on Sunday. It will be the Blues’
ninth game in April, and comes
sandwiched in between their Europa
League semi-final ties with Basel,
testing Rafa Benitez’s squad to its
limit. But Swansea are without a win
since March 2; their longest winless
streak since joining the Premier
League last term. For Chelsea, then,
fourth time could be the charm.
SUnDAY chelsea v swansea | stamford bridge | 3pm
44 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
7 Days
Saturday UFC 159 | Jon Jones v Chael sonnen | PrUdential Center, new Jersey | esPn 1aM
On Saturday night, UFC light-
heavyweight champ Jon ‘Bones’
Jones takes on motormouth Chael
‘The American Gangster’ Sonnen.
We talk to Jones about an intriguing
fight and his future goals.
Southpaw glamour
“It’s going to be a great fight
because Chael Sonnen is a really
good fighter. He’s a southpaw,
which is something that I haven’t
fought against too much. That adds
an interesting dynamic. Everything
is different: the angles I’ll have to
use, the shots I’ll have to defend
against, the shots I’ll have to put
on him. It will be interesting for the
fans to see how I stack up against
such an aggressive, wrestling-
based style.”
Sonnen as challenger
“I don’t think he is the next
deserving contender, but I think the
fans appreciate this fight. Chael has
a pretty huge following. He’s top
four when it comes to pay-per-view
draws – and when you get two guys
[who are] top four, when it comes to
PPV sales there is going to be a lot
of fan interest. I think it breaks the
whole martial arts honour code a
little bit – but for the entertainment
factor, it’s going to be a big fight.”
Sonnen as trash talker
“Chael’s a politician, and the job
of a politician is to make people
believe in their product. He’s selling
the Chael Sonnen brand in a great
way – that’s why he has such a huge
following. I’m not surprised that he
has been able to brainwash so
many people. When I talk, I just try
to tell the truth. I try not to waste
my energy yapping on about
foolishness and rubbish. I don’t
have anything terrible to say about
Sonnen. I’m not here to badmouth
him, I’m here to defeat him.”
Pound-for-pound number one
“I’d like to be recognised as the
best fighter in the world one day,
but I also understand that I have a
lot of time to achieve that goal. I’m
25 years old, injury free, positive,
very motivated and determined.
I have a lot of time left to break
records. I would consider myself
top three with Anderson [Silva] and
George [St-Pierre].”
Entertaining fans
“It’s very important. It’s why I tweet
every day and try to stay in contact
and communicate with fans. A lot
of fighters don’t care about social
media, but I’m pretty big on [the
idea of] social media. It’s not for me
– it’s for the people who look up to
me and respect me. It’s my way of
giving something back, by staying
in touch with them. I think that
entertaining the fans is equally as
important as winning fights.”
Becoming a global superstar
“To help play a major role in
bringing the UFC to a mainstream,
gigantic level and become the star
athlete – that’s a great dream of
mine. I think it should be the dream
of every athlete: to not only be a
champion in their field, but to be a
star and something bigger than
they ever thought they could be.
It drives me, motivates me, and I am
seeking to be that guy in the future.
Getting into some acting would be
cool, too. I see Randy Couture and
Rampage [Jackson] getting these
A-level movies. I think I have a
little charisma and am fair-looking.
I think I could do that with the right
opportunity, the right guidance
and the right training.”
Martin Potter @theboxingbrain
UFC 159: Jones v Sonnen on
Saturday April 27, programming
starts from 1am on ESPN
Jim
Ke
mp
er/
Zu
ffa
LL
C
“I’m not here to badmouth him, I’m here to defeat him”
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7 Days
Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
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Saturday Boxing | Amir KhAn v Julio DiAz | motorpoint ArenA, SheffielD | BoxnAtion 7pm
46 | April 26 2013 |
Three British boxers at different stages of
their careers have key fights on Saturday,
with Amir Khan’s homecoming fight against
Julio Diaz topping the bill in Sheffield.
Diaz is a tough Mexican who will look to
test Khan’s suspect mandible, but he’s 33 and
was at his best at lightweight several years
ago. A draw with unbeaten US prospect
Shawn Porter in his last bout shows Diaz isn’t
washed up, but the tide is coming in fast: he’s
lost three of his last eight fights.
Khan boxed with speed and precision
against Carlos Molina in December, but trainer
Virgil Hunter will know it’s defensive lessons
that need drumming into his charge’s head.
Diaz should be a stepping stone to a late 2013
superfight, but we’ve been here before with
Khan – these stepping stones can be slippery.
Audley Harrison is on the undercard, fresh
from his latest Prize Fighter resurrection
and taking on American ‘Bronze Bomber’
Deontay Wilder. The 6ft 7ins Wilder can look
awkward and gangly, and a skilled southpaw
like Harrison could – in theory – give him fits.
That theory collapses like, well, Harrison
himself when you take into account Wilder’s
punching power. The Tuscaloosa banger has
27 knockout wins in 27 fights. You don’t need
us to tell you how this one ends.
We have more reason to be optimistic for
Olympic bronze-medallist Anthony Ogogo,
who makes his pro debut on the card. The
charismatic 24-year-old is understandably
being matched easily in his first bout, but
given his amateur pedigree, he will hope
to progress quickly in the paid ranks.
Three lions
Friday horSe rAcing | rABoBAnK chAmpion hurDle | puncheStown | At the rAceS 5.30pm
The final hurdle
The curtain is close to being drawn on a vintage
season of jumps racing, but today offers one final
chance to see one of the stars of the campaign
in action. Hurricane Fly (above) became only the
second horse in history to reclaim the Champion
Hurdle crown at Cheltenham last month, and will
bid for a fourth consecutive Rabobank Champion
Hurdle at Punchestown this evening (Friday).
The nine-year-old has been beaten only once in
his last 13 starts, in the 2012 Champion Hurdle –
but his conqueror that day, Rock On Ruby, will be
lining up to take him on once more here. The
forecast quicker ground would be in the latter’s
favour, but the Fly has looked at his very best this
season and should prove mighty tough to beat
under regular big-race jockey Ruby Walsh.
On Saturday, meanwhile, Sandown hosts a card
famous for its combination of both flat and jumps
racing. The big race is the bet365 Gold Cup Chase
(Channel 4, 3.50pm), featuring a bunch of Grand
National also-rans bidding for compensation. If
the ground is good, though, keep an eye out for
the Jonjo O’Neill-trained Galaxy Rock – he is
lightly raced this season and stays very well.
48 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
7 Days
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As the Super League approaches its
halfway point, thoughts inevitably turn to
the end-of-season playoffs. And Friday
night’s live game features two sides in the
lower half of the table who retain hopes of
making the hallowed top eight: Widnes
Vikings and Wakefield Wildcats.
Hosts Widnes, currently 10th in the
table, go into this game on the back of an
unconvincing 42-28 Challenge Cup victory
over Championship club Doncaster last
weekend. The Vikings lost at struggling
Castleford on their last Super League
outing, so need to find some form if they are
to move up the table. Speculation continues
to swirl around Gareth Hock (pictured,
making the tackle), who is on a season-long
loan from Wigan – the forward is being
targeted by Australian club Parramatta
Eels, but his loss would be a huge blow.
Sitting one place beneath their hosts,
Wakefield had an altogether easier time in
their own cup tie against Championship
One new boys Hemel Stags, running out
66-6 winners. They have lost three in a row
in the league, but rested most of their back
line last weekend and head for the Stobart
Stadium with a fully fit squad that can
trouble any team. Tim Smith and Paul Sykes
are a great half-back combination, while
wing Ben Cockayne’s form in the early part
of the season earned him a place in the
England squad. The Wildcats have plenty of
talent at their disposal, then, but the artificial
pitch at Widnes could just tip the balance in
favour of the home side.
The weekend’s other live action sees
Salford City Reds host Castleford Tigers
(Saturday 6.45pm, Sky Sports 3) in a
basement battle between the league’s
bottom two teams. Despite Salford owner
Dr Marwan Koukash promising “significant
investment” in his side, this remains one for
the purists only, perhaps.
Vikings seek higher ground
The top two
teams from last
year’s County
Championship
meet at Taunton in
this early-season
clash, but it is
Warwickshire, the
defending champions, who have made the more convincing
start to the new campaign.
The Bears endured a frustrating start to their title defence,
rain washing out their opening fixture against Derbyshire –
but they took out their frustrations on Durham at Edgbaston
last week, England Lions bowler Chris Wright starring with
6/31 in the second innings of his team’s 318-run rout.
Somerset have been less impressive, following up an
opening defeat to Durham with a draw away at Surrey.
Overseas batsman Alviro Petersen (pictured) starred with
258 runs in the latter match, and looks key to his side’s
hopes on his home debut here.
With early pace-setters Middlesex not in
action this weekend, this fixture represents an
opportunity for one of these two to build
momentum towards another title challenge.
It is a match neither side will want to lose.
Bears on the
rampage
Friday > CriCket | County Championship Division 1: somerset v WarWiCkshire | County GrounD,
taunton | sky sports 1 11.05am
Friday ruGby LeaGue | super LeaGue: WiDnes vikinGs v WakefieLD trinity WiLDCats | stobart staDium | sky sports 2 8pm
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52 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Adidas Boost
Adidas’ all-singing, all-dancing
new shoe looks the business,
and offers a whole new running
feel (nb: sadly, it doesn’t sing or
dance). Hundreds of nuggets
of thermoplastic polyurethane
(TPU to its friends) make up a
foam sole, which allows the shoe
to absorb the stress of impact
and instantly return to shape,
meaning less energy lost and a
springy feel that lasts over time.
£110 | adidas.com/boost
Puma Mobium Elite
Continuing the theme of all-new
technology, Puma’s Mobium
expands and contracts, along
with your foot, in all directions.
It has three key components that
change in length, height and
proportion to match your foot’s
movement. Add an open-air
mesh for increased comfort and
breathability, and cushioning
on the forefoot, and you have
a pretty smart shoe.
£85 | puma.co.uk
Nike Free 5.0
You can try to escape it, but barefoot
running is all the rage – and Nike are
here to ease you in. Combining the
flexibility of a barefoot shoe with enough
cushioning to protect your feet, the Free
5.0 is a ‘barefoot for beginners’ trainer.
Its flex groove outsole – made up of deep
cuts along the length and width of the
midsole – enhances your natural range
of motion, encourages a smooth, efficient
stride and helps maintain stability. It also
comes in 32 different colour schemes.
All you have to do now is pick one.
£85 | nike.com
Reebok Sublite Duo Run
The Duo Run boasts two foam
densities to offer a comfortable
feel for your foot (softer foam
on the inner sole) alongside
increased responsiveness and
durability (harder foam closer
to the ground). Add in a padded
ankle collar and you have a
top trainer to rival the Boost.
But which is better? There’s
only one way to find out… Fight?
No. Try them on, you weirdos.
£60 | reebok.co.uk
Under Armour Charge RC II
Built for speed over long
distances (bet we’ve lost a few
of you already), the Charge II
boasts HeatGear technology to
keep your feet dry and cool in
the hottest temperatures, and
an upper that wicks moisture
away from your foot. Tongue and
toe padding, meanwhile, offers
protection and an articulated
flex mimics your foot movement
to reduce your workload.
£110 | underarmour.com
Cool runnings
ExtRA tIMEMaking the most of your time and money
P54
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THE LENGTHS WE GO TO
HAM0404 - The lengths we go to - Sportmag_Layout 1 11/04/2013 11:56 Page 1
54 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Marvel Collector’s Edition Cases
for iPhone 5
Captain America’s shield, fashioned from
indestructible vibranium, would probably
do a much better job of protecting your
phone than Spider-Man’s Lycra onesie. Both
of these are, however, made of plastic – but
that doesn’t make them any less awesome.
£25 | firebox.com
Samsung NX300 Camera
Sprint superstar Usain Bolt is
supporting this camera, so hopefully
he won’t have to borrow them from
trackside photographers any more.
Like the Jamaican, it’s a speedy
number. Hybrid auto-focus makes
zooming in on subjects quick and
easy, and it can shoot almost nine
frames a second. With its 20.3
megapixels, it’s sharp enough to
capture even the world’s fastest man.
£600 | currys.co.uk
ASUS PadFone 2
Not to be confused with the ASUS FonePad,
this is a 2-in-1 smartphone and tablet for
people who want the best of both worlds.
An Android phone slots into the back of a
10.1-inch screen for when you want more
space to work. It even remembers and brings
up what you were last doing on your phone.
£599 | carphonewarehouse.co.uk
oUr SPEEdy SENSE iS tiNgliNg
Et gadgets This week, we drag a super-fast camera, some heroic iPhone cases and a mighty morphin’ phone/tablet from their secret hideout
tomtom runner + Multisport Watches
The sat-nav makers have applied their GPS
knowhow to a new range of watches that help
measure how far you’ve run, swum or cycled
and display the details in real time on an
excellent graphical display. Just make sure
you keep one eye on where you’re going,
or it could be a short outing...
£TBC | Visit sports.tomtom.com for more
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ET Grooming
56 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
The toothpaste
Oral-B 3D White Brilliance
For teeth shinier than one of Ziggy Stardust’s
sequinned space suits, this toothpaste will,
Oral-B tell us, give you visibly whiter teeth in
just two weeks. It gently tackles stains, while
fluoride helps repair damage. We think you’ll
like it. In fact we bet you do, you freaky old
bastard, you. £3.49 for 75ml | boots.com
The soap
Triumph & Disaster Shearer’s Soap
Has nowt to do with the former striker who
ruins Match of the Day every week, and all to
do with being incredibly gentle on your skin,
thanks to a translucent base high in glycerin.
Poppy seeds assist exfoliation, and it smells
triumphantly good – will lend you prestige.
£9.95 for 130g | Exclusive to mensphere.com
The body wash and lotion
Molton Brown Patchouli & Saffron
Like Bowie, Molton Brown has been “blending
with attitude” since 1973. They celebrate their
40th this month by reviving their Patchouli &
Saffron scent in a limited-edition body wash
(£18, 300ml) and body lotion (£25, 300ml).
It’s unisex, too – the ambiguous Thin White
Duke would approve. moltonbrown.co.uk
John VarvatosNot the only JV you’ll be hearing more from in the next fortnight, though this one is arguably
more interesting. John Varvatos’ collection features his eponymous fragrance (a woody, oriental
blend of spices with a hint of sweetness) alongside two ch-ch-ch-changes: the Vintage (warm heart
notes of oak moss and patchouli oils) and Artisan (a citrus fusion with floral heart notes) editions.
£60 each for 125ml | debenhams.co.uk from May
ThAT’S PrETTy fAr OuT, MAnBowie’s taken over the V&A in his own psychedelic way.
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58 | April 26 2013 |
Extra time Jessica Hart
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| 59
Courtesy of Calzedonia (www.calzedonia.com) shot by Raphael Mazzucco
Avert
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60 | April 26 2013 | Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
GRID 2
After five years, GRID finally
gets a sequel. Like the original,
GRID 2 strikes a careful balance
between realism and accessibility,
and the story-driven career
mode makes for a single-player
game that’s more compelling
than most. Throw in LiveRoute
tracks that change every you
time you race on them, and you
have a wheelman’s wet dream.
Released May 28
Resident Evil: Revelations
Originally released to near-
universal critical praise as a 3DS
exclusive last year, Revelations
has been given an HD lick of
paint for home consoles. The
third-person shooter, set on
an abandoned cruise ship,
follows the same survival horror
format of earlier Resident Evil
games, but with an emphasis on
exploration and puzzle-solving.
Released May 24
Metro: Last LightThe sequel to 2010’s Metro 2033 is
set in the ruins of post-apocalyptic
Moscow, where you play as Artyom
– a survivor living in the ruins of the
city’s maze of underground tunnels,
desperately trying to prevent an
imminent civil war.
Last Light stands out because it’s
designed to be a more considered
experience than most shooters,
favouring a focus on exploring its
superbly detailed environment rather
than all-out action. The shift in pace
is supported by clever gameplay
innovations, too, and the struggle
to survive – be it by replacing your
gas mask filters or sticking to the
shadows to sneak past enemies when
ammo is low – is just as pressing as
the urge to tackle fights head-on.
Indeed, ammo is also a much-
needed currency, so think twice
before pumping slugs into mutants
instead of ghosting silently past.
Released May 17
Far Cry 3:
Blood Dragon
Despite its title,
Blood Dragon
has little in
common with
Far Cry 3. Gone
are the natives,
pirates and tropical fauna of last
year’s shooter, replaced by a
neon-tinged wasteland, badass
dinosaurs and a healthy dose
of Reagan-era comic references.
What it does share with Far
Cry 3 is a huge open world
you’re free to explore, and a
dystopian 2007 the publisher
describes as “an 80s VHS vision
of the future” in which you must
“get the girl, kill the baddies,
and save the world”. We can’t
guarantee it’ll be quite as slick as
the original, but it’s certainly the
most outrageous game we’ve
seen in some time.
Released May 1
suRvIvaL InstInCt
Et Games Stalk mutants in the post-apocalyptic Moscow metro system, fight off zombies on a cruise
ship in the Med, or whip out your own spine to slay shiny demons. It’s all in a day’s work
soul sacrifice
Thanks to a combat system
that revolves around sacrificing
body parts to perform certain
abilities, this PlayStation Vita-
exclusive action-RPG will forever
be known as ‘that game where
you pull your spine out through
your mouth and brandish it as a
sword’. But don’t write this off as
wanton violence – at its heart is
a moving tale of unlikely hope.
Released May 1
Persona 4 arena
The beat-’em-up genre was
shaken up a couple of years ago
by quirky 2D fighter BlazBlue:
Continuum Shift. This brawler
from the same people blends
beautiful animé graphics with
an accessible story and unique
combat. If you fancy something
different from the likes of Dead
or Alive, look no further than one
of Japan’s fastest-selling titles.
Released May 10
In association with
Ps3, Xbox, PC Ps3, Xbox
Ps3, Xbox, PC Ps3, Xbox, PC, Wii u Playstation vita Ps3, Xbox