Sharpening a Rusty Blade - Book II

[Amaroq]

Not a single punter had left Bramall Lane, and yet you could hear a pin drop as Darren Purse started procedings for the Baggies. He converted easily enough, putting the pressure on us: 0-1.

Noel Hunt stepped confidently up as our first taker. Hoult guessed correctly, but Hunt's shot was too powerful, drilling just past his outstretched fingers to a roar from the crowd: 1-1.

Andy Gray took next for the visitors, but he missed wide of the post! Incredible luck gave us our first opportunity to take the lead, and the supporters were delirious!

Hayden Foxe had had a great game, and the Australian took our second penalty. The captain nailed his to the keeper's left, a solid if unspectacular shot, but it drew raucous shot as we went up 2-1.

Lee Clark atoned for his extra time miss, drawing WBA level with his effort, and it was 2-2.

Left-footed Sean Dillon was the weakest of my first five takers, which was why I had him in the middle of the lineup: not first, not last, just a comfortable spot. It looked like the pressure got to him, however, as he sliced his wide right - I've seen him make plenty on the training pitch, but there's not a lot riding on it there.

David Johnson's run-up was flawless, but he slipped on the wet turf as he swung, and scuffed his shot over the top of the ball. It went well wide, gifting us another chance to take the lead.

Our number nine, sharpshooter Peter Weatherson, could put WBA up against the ropes. He was exhausted, having played the full 120 minutes, and he got too tricky. He tried putting the shot straight down the middle, relying on Hoult guessing and diving out of the way - which the veteran keeper just did not do.

It was still 2-2 as the fifth takers stepped to the line, so from here on it was a sudden-death affair. James Fowler took for the visitors, putting a little change-up which looped into the net, McGregor having guessed correctly but winding up below the shot. It was 2-3.

I had saved my best taker for last, just in case the fifth shot was this sort of pressure cooker. Marc Bridge-Wilkinson stepped up, and hit a perfect shot to the lower-left corner ..

Yes!! He'd kept us alive! It made no difference that Hoult had guessed correctly: I doubt Oliver Kahn or Iker Casillas could have saved that shot! 3-3.

We were into the ranks of players that managers hoped never wind up taking penalties - the bottom half of the lineup. Defender Joleon Lescott was next up for Paul Jewell, but the pressure was obviously too much for him: wide left. It was the third outright miss in six takes for West Brom; McGregor had yet to make a save.

That sent John Melligan to the spot with a chance to win it for us. He was the last player on the pitch for us who actually practices taking penalties, and we couldn't afford a mistake. Silence reigned as he struck it..

GOAL!! YES!!! No mistake: a powerful shot, nothing fancy, just straight on target, and Hoult guessed wrong, leaping the other way!! We were in the finals, by a 4-3 margin on penalties!!

Sheffield United 2, West Bromwich Albion 1

Weatherson 6, Keenan 82; Dobie 41

(Sheffield United win on penalties, 4-3)

MoM: Foxe

The on-field celebration with our supporters must have lasted twenty minutes - it was an incredible sensation to come back from the dead as many times as we had. Still, it was an exhausted, worn side who trudged back to the happy locker room, and we still had another match yet to go.

Australian international Hayden Foxe was the Man of the Match: without his solid defending, we might have lost on the pitch several times over, and he'd capped the performance with a penalty made to boot.

[Dixie Flatline]

Congratulations on clearing the first hurdle of promotion!

I think I picked up earlier that Martin O'Neill was in charge of the Socceroos? Am I correct?

It's interesting that Hayden Foxe is still an international. From memory, he hasn't played for the Socceroos for at least a couple of years and I don't think he's ever likely to pull on the jersey for Australia in the future, IRL.

What's happened to Lancaster and York?

[aaberdeenn]

Absolutely brilliant write up there Roqy.

Edge of the seat stuff , well done on getting to the final and good luck.

Any plans to start up an '08 based story?

p.s. What did happen to Lancaster?

[Wegason]

Rocking! Congrats Roqy!

[Panpardus]

Good stuff as always Roqy, can't believe its 14 pages and you haven't completed your first full season!

[Amaroq]

Thank you all!

aaberdeenn - yeah, it literally tired me out just posting the write-up, even now; as I'm sure you can imagine I was over the moon at the time.

Regarding Australia, yes Martin O'Neill is in charge of the Socceroos.

In this game, he played internationally through 2006, but stopped earning selection when Crewe were relegated to League One at the end of the 05/06 season.

O'Neill took over in July of '07, the same summer we promoted to the Championship, and brought Foxe back into the lineup, where he's featured ever since.

Regarding York, they narrowly avoided relegation from League One this year, as detailed last page.

As for Lancaster .. we'll check in on them in a moment.

Aaberdeenn, I've certainly got some story ideas for an '08 story or three .. I'm not going to make any promises; I'm debating directing my story-writing energies on an intent-to-publish venue.

Pan, thanks - and lest we get taken to the fifteenth page, let's get to that final now.

[Amaroq]

Monday, 19th May, 2008.

What an exhausting match!

I got tired again just writing about it - I can't imagine the fatigure in my players' legs.

Luckily, we would have ten days of rest before the Playoff Final at Wembley, against Coventry on the 25th of May. We would need all of it, and I gave the players the entire weekend off, to resume practice on Monday for the Final.

I needed some time to recuperate, myself, but there were some other things to think about - next season's pre-season schedule, for example. Liverpool and Charlton Athletic had both agreed to friendlies with us as part of transfer deals earlier in the season, so I booked them for Sunday matches on the 20th and 13th of July, respectively. I also invited Everton to come to Bramall Lane on Saturday the 26th. All three sides accepted, which gave me at least a reasonable starting point for a schedule. I'd need a few other matches for players not in the senior side, but those three would do well for my starting lineup.

The Team of the Week was announced today - Noel Hunt and Darren Wrack were named, and honestly I was both surprised that there was even a team named, with only four teams having played, and disappointed that Hayden Foxe wasn't on it.

I said as much at a press conference. I can hardly believe we have a pre-match press conference almost a week before the match, but there it is: interest in this match is high, and not just in Yorkshire.

I was caught out a bit by a question about Lancaster. I had to confess I hadn't checked in on them all season .. and so I found myself filled in by the press corps rather than the other way around.

After consecutive seasons placing 19th in the Conference North, the 2006/07 season had started without much anticipation .. but the youth I'd left in place saw Phil Bartholomew and Shane Tolley lead the Dolly Blues to 6th in the Conference North, just missing out on a playoff berth.

This season, with the pair setting club highs for goals and assists, respectively, they'd gone one better: third, reaching the playoffs, where they beat Southport 2-1 over the two-legged first tie. That set them up against Stalybridge Celtic in the Conference North Final, but my former club lost heartbreakingly on penalties. Stalybridge went on to drop the Final to Hendon Town, 2-1.

I told the gathered media to send my congratulations down to Micky Engwell - only to learn that he was no longer the manager, having moved to Aldershot Town and giving way to Robert Howells.

[Amaroq]

Saturday, 24th May, 2008.

I watched the Champions League Final on Wednesday with interest. Ghana defensive midfielder Stephan Appiah scored a wonderful goal for Juventus in the 11th minute, a screaming 34 yarder that stunned the crowd, and then Gianluigi Buffon put on a wonderful display of goalkeeping, facing 19 shots from A.C. Milan, ten of which were on target. All ten were saved - and several of the saves were true highlight reel material. He was deservedly the Man of the Match in the 1-0 Juventus victory.

The international season was starting - domestic leagues are supposed to be over at this point - and Joe Newell was called up to the England U-19 team for the European Under-19 Championship qualifiers. In his first match, at Ireland U-19s on Wednesday, he came in as a substitute, playing well without truly impressing in 35 minutes of action. Though pleased for the lad, I was disappointed not to have him for the Coventry City match.

Keith McCormack was called up to Ireland's Under-21 side for the Under-21 Championship, which started on Thursday. England lost their first game, 0-1 to Italy, with Ireland's match to follow on Friday. McCormack started and played very well throughout, impressing mightily and leading the team in headers won and passes intercepted en route to a 2-0 victory over Georgia U-21s, which put Ireland first in their group, at least for a little while.

The F.A. Cup Final was on Saturday, and Aston Villa defeated Manchester United. The side from Birmingham showed that their third place in the Premier League was warranted, and shut the mouths of those pundits who claimed that United deserved the third and final Champions League berth, not the UEFA Cup slot that they'd drawn with their fourth place finish. Yes, England had lost a Champions League berth after the 2006/07 campaign. Luke Moore scored his 26th goal of the season for Villa, giving them a 1-0 lead, which was well earned thanks to the fine performance of goalkeeper Morgan De Sanctis, who made nine saves to keep the clean sheet.

Then it was our turn:

Wembley.

The Playoffs.

And a once-in-a-lifetime shot at the Premiership.

No, I couldn't sleep.

[Amaroq]

Sunday, 25th May, 2008. Championship Playoffs - Final, vs Coventry City.

The big day dawned bright and clear. We'd traveled to London Friday night, to give the lads a day's light work on Saturday. Coventry City had placed fifth in the Championship for the second year in a row, and defeated Derby County, but nothing could take away the sting of our 3-0 victory in April. They had playoff experience, but there was a bit of an edge to the match - they would want revenge, but if we could get an early lead, the previous win might get in their heads.

Allan McGregor was feeling very despondent: he's a reticent fellow, and didn't want to talk about it, but I got the feeling he'd gotten some bad news in the week between matches. Nonetheless, I named him in goal for his 49th match of the season. His defense was Sean Dillon, Hayden Foxe, Chris Morgan and Jordan Holmes - Foster had injured his shoulder against W.B.A. and wasn't ready. Joe Keenan would clean things up from the defensive midfield role, and I had Jonathan Forte and Graham Allen on the wings. Leading scorer Marc Bridge-Wilkinson was of course one of my starting attacking midfielders, and though we'd sorely miss Newell on international duty, Souleymane Mamam had scored two goals against Coventry in April. Hunt, who'd scored the other goal, was too tired to start, but would be available off the bench, and so it was up to Peter Weatherson to handle the striker role.

It was a beautiful day at Wembley Stadium, perfect weather for football, and you could hear the buzz of the crowd of 89,968 from the locker room. Nothing prepared me for the noise as we walked out the tunnel, however - it was like walking into a wall of sound.

Coventry City came out motivated and energetic, and nearly caught us sleeping 48 seconds into the match. Gary McSheffrey sent an aerial ball into our box, which Stern John tapped on goal from close range. Allan McGregor bravely collected it down low - at least one of us was awake!

In the 7th minute, right back Andrew Whing sent a ball into the area on the right side. Daniel Nardiello turned with it, and Jonathan Forte's late tackle brought him down. It was out wide, but in the area, and that meant a penalty.

I was cursing our luck as Salvatore Gambino stepped up to take - it was an early disaster, one we could little afford. But no! The German placed it low to McGregor's left, but too close to the center of the frame. McGregor, falling that direction, got a knee on it, knocking it away, then scrambled out to collect the rebound!!

We'd dodged a bullet, and just six minutes later, Coventry would rue the missed chance. Marc Bridge-Wilkinson's beautiful pass from the center circle picked out space for Peter Weatherson: one of the central defenders, Stephen Munn, had been coming forward to challenge Marc, and Weatherson was in the space he'd vacated. He ran onto it to the left of goal, and fired as he reached the eighteen. It was a long range effort - 20, perhaps 22 yards due to the angle - but it curled perfectly, and nestled in the far corner of the net. We were up, 1-0!

Coventry had started the match attacking, and they continued to press forwards, leaving openings at the back. I was pleased, as that was perfect for our counter-attacking strategy. In the 26th minute, however, Hayden Foxe received a yellow card for bringing Nardiello down in the arc. It set up a dangerous 20-yard free kick for fullback Stuart Giddings. He curled it up and over the wall, a perfect shot that dropped four feet at the last moment to catch the top right corner, beyond McGregor's reach as he'd trusted the wall to guard that post. It was back to square one, level at 1-1.

In many games, a goal like that would energize a team, but Coventry had been doing a lot of closing down, and with the score level, they relaxed the pace a bit, giving us more space to work with. That suited our attack just fine, and in the 32nd minute, Bridge-Wilkinson launched a wicked shot from the arc, only to see it saved by Luke McCormick. In the 37th minute, Souleymane Mamam got open at the 18 during a corner kick. He closed to 14 yards before firing into traffic, but McCormick kept his eye on it and made the save.

Mamam had another chance in the 40th minute as Joe Keenan's fine long pass sprang him on a breakaway, but the 24-year-old Englishman was in phenomenal form, and denied the Togo international again, tipping it around the far post. That set up a corner kick, and this time Bridge-Wilkinson was unmarked. He didn't get everything on his shot, and McCormick saved that was well. Forte collected the rebound wide left, and played it back to Keenan. With the keeper still on his knees, Keenan had an open net, but whistled his half-volley just wide of the far post.

We were getting plenty of chances, but halftime was quickly approaching, and I hoped we could find a way to get one past the tiring Coventry defense before they had a chance to regroup. In the last minute of the half, Keenan launched another long ball. It seemed exactly the opportunity we'd needed, sending Peter Weatherson clear of the last defender.. but his shot, too, went wide, and at halftime it remained 1-1.

I told the lads that they were in complete control, and to just keep doing what they were doing. The goal would come. I didn't expect it to come in the 47th minute, but Graham Allen's curling cross from deep on the right side snuck past the marked Mamam and Weatherson, falling to Bridge-Wilkinson at the 18 in the center of the pitch. He took one touch towards the near post, stepping neatly past the wrong-footed Stephen Munn, then shot from 14 yards back to the far post. There was nothing McCormick could do about that shot, and we were ahead 2-1.

It was nearly three to one moments later, but Bridge-Wilkinson hit side netting. In the 54th minute, Nardiello's 18 yard effort beat McGregor - who looked surprised that he'd gotten a shot off despite the attentions of two defenders - but streaked inches wide of the far post. Sometimes a manager must suppress their instinct to tamper in big games, and though Nardiello's dangerous outlook screamed 'fall back! defend!' to me, I stuck with the original game plan.

It paid off shortly before the hour, when Bridge-Wilkinson again drew Stephen Munn to him in midfield action. The creative midfielder put the pass behind the hapless defender to Weatherson, who slipped past Michael Walsh with a great move at the arc. With both central defenders out of the way, it was just Weatherson and McCormick. From 17 yards away, the striker placed it to the keeper's right, and it was 3-1.

My opposite number, Ronnie Moore did not suppress the instinct to tamper, and he responded to the goal by bringing off Daniel Nardiello, who was honestly the only one who'd looked dangerous. A mere four minutes had passed when Weatherson knocked down an aerial ball for Bridge-Wilkinson near the center circle. He raced upfield on a long dribble, but nobody could catch him, and he shot from the arc. McCormick got his fingers to it, but couldn't divert it enough to keep it out, and the rout was well and truly on at 4-1: we were going to the Premier League!

Coventry looked utterly defeated, and though they continued to position people forward, their hearts really weren't in it. At the 70th minute, I brought in all three of my substitutes, trusting fresh legs to hold the three-goal lead. In the Wembley crowd, Coventry fans were filing for the exits, while our supporters were singing and dancing in the aisles.

The Blades are going up,

The Blades are going up,

The Blades are going up,

And now you're gonna believe us,

The Blades are going UP!

Despite their enthusiasm, it looked like the 4-1 scoreline would be the final margin, but in the 85th minute, John Melligan made his mark. Utterly denied space by some three defenders, and without much support from our lads, he somehow got off a shot from 25 yards. It was a spectacular curler, a stellar goal truly worthy of the venue, and that made our final 5-1.

Sheffield United 5, Coventry 1

Weatherson 13, 59, Bridge-Wilkinson 47, 63, Melligan 85; Giddings 27

MoM: Marc Bridge-Wilkinson

When the referee blew full time, I raced onto the pitch with my bench to celebrate with the lads. Even older men such as Stuart McCall and Dennis Pettitt were out there, capering like children. Derek Dooley embraced me in a hug like we were family, and I saw Terry Robinson out on the pitch - as well as several handfuls of ambitious supporters who broke through the police cordon!

Hugs, champagne, the adulation of the crowd .. I'd say "I could get used to this," but there really isn't a moment that can compare!

[owl83]

Congrats!! Now for the challenge of the prem!

Pretty much the first thing i did when i got to work was log in to see how the final went, i really should do some work......

[Wegason]

Hoorah! Fantastic! Congratulations on the promotion to the Premiership! I think it will be more of a struggle next season after promotion than it was for the Blades this season after promotion from League One! Best of luck next season.

[Spurs rule the world]

What a great story, loving every sentence of it

keep it up Blades!!!

[aaberdeenn]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">aberdeenn, I've certainly got some story ideas for an '08 story or three .. I'm not going to make any promises; I'm debating directing my story-writing energies on an intent-to-publish venue. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Well whatever you decide to do, anything football related I'd be delighted to read.

Back to the story, another super write up. All that hard work and a place in the Premiership is the least you deserve. Good luck for the new season.

'Mon the Blades. \o/

[Amaroq]

Thanks, guys! The pace will drop off a bit here, as we go into holiday, but I think we could all use a breather after that run-in. Like I said, the story practically wrote itself here!

owl, aren't you supposed to save it for a break, and at least pretend to get some work done first?

[Amaroq]

Monday, 26th May, 2008.

I woke up the next morning with a hang-over, the phone ringing, and a sobering thought: victory meant I was now faced with the daunting task of staying up.

The phone turned out to be Joe Newell, my 18-year-old attacking midfielder, who had called to say "Congratulations," and to share his joy with his manager. I might have been more appreciative with more coffee and less hangover, but at least this year I recognized the woman in bed with me.

Newell did have some good news of his own to share: he'd been the lone goalscorer in England Under-19s' 1-0 victory over Slovakia U-19s, playing all ninety minutes and earning the top rating for an English player. I was very glad for him, but he did express some disappointment that it hadn't been enough. The team had finished with 7 points, level with Norway but behind on goal difference, and so they had failed to quality for the European U-19 Championship finals.

Still, the goal and the news that he'd be playing in the Premier League next year seemed to have the lad in buoyant spirits - and I was pleased to know he was concerned more with the team than with his own glory. That speaks volumes about the youngster, I think.

Ironically, Keith McCormack's Ireland Under-21 side had also been facing Slovakia, this in the Under-21 European Championship finals. The fullback played ninety minutes of a match in which both defenses did well, a scoreless draw. That left them tied with Holland for the group lead on four points each, but facing each other in the final match.

Monday night was the Championship awards banquet, and I was surprised at how well we did.

Marc Bridge-Wilkinson won the Goalscorer of the Year, having led the league with 23 goals, and also earned appointment to the Championship Select XI. His goal against Nottingham Forest back in August was third best in the Goal of the Year voting.

I had come a close second to Ipswich Town gaffer Dave Jones for the Manager of the Year. All told, an excellent season for Sheffield United: not bad for a club expected to battle relegation at the season's start!

[Amaroq]

Tuesday, 27th May, 2008.

I bid the players farewell and good summer, instructing them to return on the 7th of July. There was still joy and jubilation as they cleared out their lockers, even from those whose contracts were expiring, and whose time at Bramall Lane had come to a close.

However, for a manager, especially a just-promoted manager, the off-season was just beginning, and I was all too aware of the shortness of the six weeks I had before the team reassembled for our Premiership campaign.

The tabloid speculation Tuesday morning was that Noel Hunt was on the bidding block, with Norwich and West Brom both interested in the on-form striker. He'd netted 14 times in 35 appearances, but almost as important was how much posession he could retain for us, winning aerial duels and knocking balls down for our midfielders. The speculation was that I would be forced to sell him for a bid of around £3.7M, to raise funds for summer transfers.

I couldn't precisely comment - I didn't know what I'd be given as a transfer budget, and both Derek Dooley and Terry Robinson were playing that very close to the vest, so when the press asked about it Tuesday afternoon, I answered that I would only sell him if the price was right.

Meanwhile, I had a wage budget of £7.5M, of which I was using less than £4.7M, and I decided that I would need to play the 'free transfer' game, regardless of the outcome of the transfer budget discussions. I went through the list of transfer targets I'd had in mind, and made offers to some veteran players whose contracts were expiring, including defensive midfielder Mathieu Berson.

In the international arena, Keith McCormack had a fantastic match against Holland Under-21s as Ireland battled to a 0-0 draw. The youngster was dominant, leading the team in tackles, headers, interceptions, and helping run the offense with a strong passing game as well. He was named a deserving Man of the Match.

[Amaroq]

Wednesday, 28th May, 2008.

The year in review - Championship table:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Pts W D L GF GA GD

C 1 Ipswich Town 98 29 11 6 73 33 +40

P 2 Crystal Palace 94 28 10 8 78 40 +38

-------------------------------------------------------

P 3 Sheffield United 92 26 14 6 82 32 +50

4 Derby County 86 26 8 12 74 48 +26

5 Coventry City 82 24 10 12 71 54 +17

6 W.B.A. 81 22 15 9 73 43 +30

-------------------------------------------------------

7 Everton 79 22 13 11 77 48 +29

8 Q.P.R. 74 20 14 12 64 54 +10

9 Millwall 73 19 16 11 63 48 +15

10 Hull 71 19 14 13 59 38 +21

11 Leicester 70 20 10 16 62 49 +13

12 Norwich 64 17 13 16 50 47 + 3

13 Reading 64 18 10 18 54 60 - 6

14 Plymouth 63 18 9 19 55 65 -10

15 Cardiff 57 15 12 19 50 51 - 1

16 Stoke 50 12 14 20 43 59 -16

17 Brighton 50 14 8 24 46 71 -25

18 Leeds United 48 12 12 22 51 61 -10

19 Nottingham Forest 47 13 8 25 53 80 -27

20 Preston North End 43 10 13 23 57 88 -31

21 Oldham Athletic 40 10 10 26 45 74 -29

-------------------------------------------------------

R 22 Crewe Alexandra 38 9 11 26 44 75 -31

R 23 Wigan Athletic 29 5 14 27 36 84 -48

R 24 Doncaster 24 5 9 32 30 88 -58</pre>

[Amaroq]

Thursday, 29th May, 2008:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Sheffield United seem to be paving the way for Noel Hunt to depart Bramall Lane following speculation that Norwich are ready to make a move, </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

wrote Rupert Wormwood.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Newspaper reports alleged that the 25 year old striker could be on the move in the near future, a claim that has not been denied by manager Ian Richards.

The American must surely recognize that less than half his brave promotion-winners will be able to hold their own in the Premiership, and by all reports he will have to sell to raise the cash for new acquisitions. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I could only hope that, wherever he was on vacation, Hunt wasn't reading the Star, though surely his agent would fill him in on the business side of things.

Keith McCormack's European Under-21 Championship adventure came to a close on Thursday with Italy's 2-0 thrashing of the Ireland U-21's. McCormack played well without truly excelling, and only a Man of the Match performance by young Irish keeper Darren Randolph kept things from getting out of hand.

[Amaroq]

Saturday, 31st May, 2008.

The year in review: Sheffield United individual statistics (all competitions):

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Strikers Pos Age GS App Goa Ass MoM Av R

Noel Hunt SC 25 19 35 14 8 2 7.34

Peter Weatherson SC 27 15 24 14 3 0 7.17

James Lloyd SC 19 2 6 4 0 0 7.33 Loan

Billy Sharp SC 22 9 17 3 1 1 6.94

Darren Gibson SC 18 4 7 3 1 1 7.43

Paul Preston SC 18 1 2 2 0 1 7.50

Lewis Guy SC 22 3 5 1 0 0 6.60 Loan

Dean Reid SC 16 0 1 0 0 0 7.00

Att. Midfielders Pos Age GS App Goa Ass MoM Av R

M. Bridge-Wilkinson AMC 29 32 38 23 8 6 7.58 ***

Jack Lester FC 32 12 17 3 7 1 7.41 Expiring

Joe Newell AMRC 18 17 29 4 4 0 6.93

John Melligan AMRC 26 11 28 2 5 1 7.21

Souleymane Mamam AMRC 22 6 8 4 2 1 8.00 Loan

Hugo Viana AMC 25 18 19 4 2 2 7.11 Loan

Gareth Davies AMC 19 1 1 0 0 0 7.00

Robert Cousins AMC 19 0 1 0 0 0 7.00 Injured

Wingers Pos Age GS App Goa Ass MoM Av R

Jonathan Forte AML 21 33 35 1 14 1 7.34

Leandre Griffit AMRL 24 24 34 5 7 1 7.29 Loan

Darren Wrack AMRL 32 8 24 1 3 1 7.04

Andrew Schofield AML 18 14 16 2 1 0 7.13 Loan

Graham Allen AMR 21 25 32 0 3 0 7.13

Carl Motteram AMRL 23 4 14 0 2 0 7.00 Loan

Kyle Reid AMRL 21 4 8 0 1 0 7.13 Loan

Chris Sedgwick AMR 28 4 5 0 0 0 7.00 Injured

Def. Midfielders Pos Age GS App Goa Ass MoM Av R

Mathieu Berson DMC 28 19 19 2 3 0 7.26 Loan

Paul Thirlwell DMC 29 19 20 1 1 1 7.15 Transfer Pending

Gavin Atkinson DMC 18 4 4 1 0 1 7.75

Steven White DMC 16 1 1 0 0 0 8.00

Steve Newton DMC 18 1 1 0 0 0 7.00 Injured

Defenders Pos Age GS App Goa Ass MoM Av R

Sean Dillon DL 23 34 36 0 0 1 7.31

Steve Foster DC 27 35 35 0 1 0 7.26

Joe Keenan DLC 25 26 39 2 3 0 7.10

Chris Morgan DC 30 28 28 0 2 0 7.21

Jordan Holmes DR 20 21 21 0 1 0 7.33 Loan

Hayden Foxe DC 30 20 20 0 0 1 7.35

Keith McCormack DR 19 12 12 0 2 1 7.42

Ben Hammond DC 19 15 15 0 0 0 6.87

Danny Payne DRC 21 12 13 0 0 0 7.15 Injured

Rory Beanes DR 22 5 5 0 0 0 7.60 Transferred £400,000

Eric Deloumeaux DRC 35 4 6 0 1 0 7.17 Injured; Expiring

Kyle McFadzean DC 21 1 1 0 0 0 7.00

Players Pos Age GS App Con Cln MoM Av R

Allan McGregor GK 26 49 49 37 20 8 7.08

Dean Bond GK 18 3 3 1 2 0 7.33

Nick McDonald GK 18 1 1 2 0 0 6.00</pre>

*** - Championship-leading goalscorer

[owl83]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Amaroq:

owl, aren't you supposed to save it for a break, and at least pretend to get some work done first? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Probably!!

You'll just have to keep quiet about it!

[avstwentyone]

\o/ \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/

[avstwentyone]

In case that wasn't clear, well done sir.

[Amaroq]

Thanks, avs!

Owl, your secret is safe with me, but I can't vouch for the rest of these blokes.

[Amaroq]

Sunday, 1st June, 2008.

The board had stunning news for me at the monthly board meeting. There was no surprise that everyone was delighted with our performance from last season, and the first half-hour was spent in congratulations and revelling in our success.

Then, however, matters turned to business, and the first thing that they announced - Derek Dooley nearly bursting with pride - was a plan to enlarge Bramall Lane by 2,100 seats, which they hoped could be completed in time for the season opener.

I was caught completely by surprise: aside from the refusal to solidify my transfer budget, they'd given no hints at plans to expand the stadium, and nothing had leaked in the press. The prospect of more revenue from the Premier League seemed to be the deciding factor, and I was as delighted with their performance as they with mine.

Mister Dooley then announced that we'd signed a new sponsorship deal, a 3-year contract worth £375K per annum - not spectacular, and in fact only a very slight improvement over our previous deal. Still, that meant an extra £1M for our coffers over the three years.

Finally, Terry Robinson announced my transfer budget: a mere £1.3M.

He must have seen my visible wince, for he quickly explained that the stadium expansion was costing £2.5M, and that, further, I'd be allowed to retain 75% of any transfer revenue as future budget. He mentioned the possible sale of Noel Hunt, our highest valued player, or even gifted youngsters Keith McCormack and Darren Gibson, who hadn't contributed much last season but whose values had skyrocketed from the prices I'd acquired them at.

I'm sure I blanched at the prospect of letting go the two young players I felt had the most potential, and I remember what he said.

"Remember, a thousand percent increase on an investment is something any businessman would jump at, if you offered it to him."

The problem was, I hadn't considered those prices investments in our balance book, but rather investments against future on-field success.

Speaking of the ledger, a review of the books showed that we'd lost £0.5M for the month of May, and in addition the board had chosen to recognize the costs of the stadium expansion for the budgetary month of June, but for the 2007-08 fiscal year. That brought our total losses for the season up to £4.3M, which they could justify as being less than their new manager had spent on players - I'd spent £4.9M, from an original transfer budget of £4.4M. We'd had net revenues of £15.3M with expenses of £19.7M, and our current bank budget (after paying for the stadium expansion) was £7.9M. Of course, we still owed £3.5M on a loan to the chairman, which would be repaid in full in September of 2011.

I had good news of my own to announce in return: I was delighted that veteran midfielder Mathieu Berson had signed a contract to make his loan deal permanent - and all the better, on a free transfer. He'd had a fine season, with 19 starts and 2 goals whilst on loan, and I expected even more from him once he'd had time to really gel with the side.

[Amaroq]

For those of you who haven't been through a summer before, we'll spend about ten days in off-season and European Championship. I expect to post the first pre-season friendly Tuesday night PST / Wednesday morning November 21st for you Europeans, with the first match of the Premiership season on Saturday night / Sunday morning the 25th. That will most likely be around the top of page 16 .. so if you need to take a break from the tale, this is the time to do so!

[Amaroq]

Wednesday, 4th June, 2008.

The domestic transfer window opened today, and though we didn't have any big name signings, there were quite a few moves involving United players.

Defensive midfielder Paul Thirlwell was the biggest move, as we had sold the 29-year-old to Oldham Athletic for £500,000. He had been at Bramall Lane for four seasons, including a truly dominant year in the League One promotion campaign, where he'd scored 5 goals and 15 assists and won Supporter's Player of the Year. However, he'd missed a large part of this season due to injury, prompting me to replace him with Mathieu Berson. With a large wage, he'd become surplus to requirements, and I'd arranged his transfer months earlier, thinking I would be able to find better at the Premier League level.

Paul Thirlwell, DMC, 29: July 2004-June 2008: 4 seasons, 38 games, 9 goals, 7 assists, 2 MoM, 7.03

This was also the date that all of our season-long loans completed, and four players left as their loans expired.

Southampton attacking midfielder Leandre Griffit had made the largest impact, providing five goals and seven assists during his time at Bramall Lane. With pace, determination, and agility, he seemed able to dribble around even the strongest fullbacks, though I thought his technical abilities left a bit to be desired. I'd have definitely been interested in bringing him back were I staying in the Championship, but I'm not sure he has the talents to be more than a bit player in the Premier League - apparently the same reservations his club have had about him, as he's gone on loan for serious portions of each of the last three seasons.

Leandre Griffit, AMRLC, 24: August 2007-June 2008: 1 season, 34 games, 5 goals, 7 assists, 1 MoM, 7.29

Right back Jordan Holmes from Liverpool had filled in admirably at the back when the injuries to Danny Payne and Eric Deloumeaux left me only Keith McCormack on the back line. I'd keep him on my short list in case Liverpool ever lost their interest in him, as he seems best in the areas I'm most concerned with: pace, marking, tackling, crossing, positioning, and work rate. I'd also seen a hint of leadership in him - I expect he'll be a Red for years to come.

Jordan Holmes, DR, 20: November 2007-June 2008: 1 season, 21 games, 0 goals, 1 assists, 7.33

Andrew Schofield was only 18, and despite dominating at the League Two level in 2006-07, he hadn't really made much of an impression on loans to York in League One or to Sheffield United in the Championship last season. He's got fine pace and fitness, but other than that looked uninspiring, without any stellar attributes. His utter lack of determination seemed to let him down, and would likely prevent him from ever taking his game to a higher level.

Andrew Schofield, AML, 18: October 2007-June 2008: 1 season, 16 games, 2 goals, 1 assist, 7.13

23-year-old winger Carl Motteram had offered the least to the team, primarily sheer pace, and the stamina to keep running for an extended period. He'd seen the least action, as I'd brought him in primarily for the versatility he would offer if other players were injured. He would return to Birmingham, quickly to be forgotten by Sheffield United fans.

Carl Motteram, AMRLC, 23: October 2007-June 2008: 1 season, 14 games, 0 goals, 2 assists, 7.00

That group was replaced - on the books, if not in quality - with two youth players, cheap investments against the future.

GK Adam Ryan, 17, England, uncapped:

0 professional appearances but 13 clean sheets from 34 Reserve appearances with WBA last year:

Bought from West Bromwich Albion during our playoff battle with them, this youngster cost a mere £30,000. He has all of the physical aspects one could look for in a young keeper, especially agility and strength, and has shown some mental maturity for one so young, proving especially brave and determined. He needs some work on the true goalkeeping attributes, but I'm willing to undertake a developmental project. He looks significantly better than Dean Bond in almost every area, though its more of a toss-up for him with Colin Hatton. I certainly wouldn't expect him to step into the first team any time soon, but he's got plenty of potential.

AM R Andy Lee, 17, England, uncapped:

12 games, 0 goals, 0 assists, 5.92 with Crawley, Conference National:

This young winger wasn't as impressive, but I nicked him from Crawley down in the Conference because we'd been shy of young right wings last year, and I'd rather play a professional in the U-18 matches than an amateur. He has decent pace, teamwork, and bravery, but other than that his only standout is that he has no overt weaknesses. His technique could use some work, and he doesn't take penalties or corners with aplomb, but other than that he feels reasonable in every aspect of the game. Like Ryan, he's a long way from the Premier League, but with hard work he has a chance of developing.

We were also rejoined by central defender Kyle McFadzean, who'd completed a tour of duty at AFC Bournemouth. He'd started 37 games as they took 12th in League One, but his average performance was a mere 6.38.

[Amaroq]

Sunday, 8th June, 2008.

I was getting fairly frustrated with the progress we were making in the offseason, and my wife had learned not to ask how my day was when I came home grumbling about agents.

Most of the players I'd targeted as potential free transfers were turning their noses up at Sheffield United and our expected relegation battle.

I felt like shouting, "If you six would SIGN for me, we wouldn't BE relegation battlers!"

The agents were giving me the thinnest of excuses. One gentleman informed me that his client, obviously surplus to requirements at Manchester United, and with his contract running out, wasn't willing to step away from the chance at UEFA Cup action. I wanted to tell him that United weren't about to renew his client's contract, so he wouldn't have a chance at UEFA Cup action anyways, but bit my tongue.

Worse, my scouts were coming back with entries about players I'd observed in the Under-19 and Under-21 Championships, and telling me things like "He won't develop into a player who would hold down a regular first team place at Sheffield United" - to describe a player who was better than anybody I currently had at that position. I was getting quite frustrated with them, even Spencer.

Stacy, at least, always managed to make me laugh, making a bit of a running joke out of answering my latest complaint with a single word, to describe whomever the villain of the piece was: "B----es!"

Speaking of international competitions, the European Championship kicked off on Sunday with a 0-0 draw between the Czech Republic and Italy. This was good for England, as they'd been drawn to a very difficult group, including those two sides and Portugal.

[Amaroq]

Monday, 9th June, 2008.

Sven-Goran Eriksson had named the usual squad, with only a few surprises - but one of those was between the sticks. Fulham keeper Chris Kirkland was in goal, earning only his second international cap, with Taylor, Terry, Ferdinand, and Hargreaves at the back. He tried Portsmouth winger David Prutton to answer England's perennial problem on the left, with Lampard, Beckham, and Gerrard filling out the midfield. Up front, James Beattie was a suprise selection in preference to Owen, partnering Wayne Rooney.

Portgual looked by far the more dangerous side early on, with Kirkland earning his stripes with a succession of fine saves. However, it all came to pieces late in the half, as he was shamefully let down by his confused defense - the Cottager could do nothing about Hélder Postiga's eight yard half-volley in the 25th minute. Depostivo sweeper Jorge Andrade, of all people, made it 2-0 before the break on a 20-yard screamer, and England had a real mountain to climb.

Undaunted, the Three Lions battled intensely, looking like an entirely different team in the second half. James Beattie clawed one back on individual hustle and effort just past the hour, beating the Portugese keeper to a loose ball and slotting it home. Talk about justifying his selection!

That was just the spark England needed to get back in it, and for fifteen minutes, buoyed by the always-vocal traveling support, they peppered the area, forcing Portugal to defend in the final third - but the goal just wouldn't materialize.

It was left to the magical right foot of David Beckham to do what he does best in the 78th minute, curling one of his trademark free kicks into the top corner of the Portugal net from fully 25 yards out. Brilliant stuff, and it was clear why he's one of the first names on the teamsheet every time out at the Santiago Bernabéu.

He had a chance to do it again, but put a 22-yarder over the bar in the 89th minute, and the match finished out 2-2, leaving all four teams in Group B on a single point.

England 2, Portugal 2

Beattie 61, Beckham 78; Postiga 25, Andrade 39

MoM: Andrade (Portugal DC)

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Pts W D L GF GA GD

1 England 1 0 1 0 2 2 0

1 Portugal 1 0 1 0 2 2 0

3 Czech Rep 1 0 1 0 0 0 0

3 Italy 1 0 1 0 0 0 0</pre>

Germany claimed the early Group D lead with a 2-1 victory over Sweden, with Austria and Norway drawing 1-1.

The international entertainment provided a welcome distraction from my failed attempts to attract Premier-League calibre players to Bramall Lane, and I realized that my loyalties really had shifted.

When I first came to Lancaster, I thought of myself as solidly American, here on a temporary job but still rooting for the U.S. national team, with a soft spot for England. This was the first major tournament where I found myself rooting for England, with a soft spot for America.

[Dixie Flatline]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Amaroq:

For those of you who haven't been through a summer before, we'll spend about ten days in off-season and European Championship. I expect to post the first pre-season friendly Tuesday night PST / Wednesday morning November 21st for you Europeans, with the first match of the Premiership season on Saturday night / Sunday morning the 25th. That will most likely be around the top of page 16 .. so if you need to take a break from the tale, this is the time to do so! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Just get on with it!

[aaberdeenn]

Thanks for the heads up on the timescale Roqy. I'm hoping to get the start of my story posted up on here over the weekend.

[HD]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Amaroq:

if you need to take a break from the tale, this is the time to do so! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

It's ok, I only read the words in bold anyway.

[Panpardus]

This story is overated It went downhill when Tappa left!

[Amaroq]

Yeah, Pan, no idea why anybody reads it.

HD - so you're saying you read more of BobBev's story than of mine?

deen, excellent, I'll be on the lookout for it.

Dixie, alright, just for you, an early update:

[Amaroq]

Tuesday, 10th June, 2008.

"Its not that bad," my wife assured me.

"But its .. grey!"

"I think it looks dignified."

"I'm only thirty-four!"

Predictably, I'd discovered my first grey hair.

I suppose it shouldn't have been a shock - I'd been noticing grey hairs in my beard for about six months now, and it had been a stressful twelve months.

"I think its sexy. Like George Clooney."

There's not much a man can say to argue with that - though with the gut I'm all too conscious of carrying, I think only my wife would compare me to Clooney.

With one last grumble at the offending hair, I promised myself to get to the gym, just as soon as things settled down.

Not that that was likely anytime soon.

I was having no luck in the transfer market, and I didn't expect the squad we had to survive the Premiership for long. When I finally did arrange one transfer, it wasn't one which would have a major impact: Peter Gardner, a young striker, would join our Reserve side from Bangor City for £22,000.

At this rate, I figured that might help the next Sheffield United manager, but wasn't going to mean squat for my future.

I decided to see if there was interest in some of my fringe players, and began offering a few names around to see if anybody was willing to pay big bucks for them: I discreetly made enquiries about Dean Bond, Kyle McFadzean, Billy Sharp, and Chris Gray, but wasn't finding getting any bites.

At the Euros, Switzerland beat Belgium 2-0 to take an early lead in Group A, with France second after a 1-0 win over tough-tackling Turkey.

Group C had no decisive leader after first-match draws all around, Romania and Croatia even 1-1, with Holland and Spain a surprising nil-nil, given the offensive firepower and tradition of those two sides.

[Amaroq]

Wednesday, 11th June, 2008.

For their second group match, England faced the Czech Republic. Sven made only one change to his side from the group opener, returning Paul Robinson in goal in place of the less-than-impressive Chris Kirkland; other than that, Taylor, Ferdinand, Terry, Hargreaves, Prutton, Gerrard, Lampard, Beckham, Beattie, and Rooney all took the pitch in the same flat 4-4-2.

It looked a very different side from the last match however: the vast majority of the first half was spent in the Czech half, and only an inspired performance by the Czech defense and the indomitable Peter Cech kept the English onslaught at bay. The Chelsea keeper made brilliant saves to deny Beattie and Rooney, and added a diving stop of Beckham's long range effort to keep it scoreless at the break.

The second half was more of the same: the Czechs never seemed to threaten, and shot after shot rained down on Cech's goal. He seemed invincible, on truly incredible form. England's best chance might have been in the 61st minute when Rio Ferdinand's shot beat Cech but skimmed over the top of the bar, but as time began to run out, it looked like all of England's hard work might result in a mere 0-0 draw.

In the 73rd, it nearly got worse, as Tomas Hübschman's long pass split the English central defenders for Jeremy Eric Nowak. The speedy substitute was clean through on goal, but Robinson came off his line to make a fabulous one-on-one save. Its easy for a 'keeper's concentration to wander when he hasn't been called on for that long, and I couldn't help but think Kirkland might have conceded - Sven certainly had made the right choice in goal!

Three minutes later, Beckham and Gerrard linked up through the central midfield, with the hardworking Liverpool midfielder playing it on to Wayne Rooney. The stellar 22-year-old drew the last defender to him on the 18, then played it right for James Beattie, who had time and space, and finally beat Peter Cech to put England on top 1-0!

Despite the Czechs sending everybody forward in the final fifteen minutes, there was no equalizer to be found, and England had won by the single goal.

England 1, Czech Republic 0

Rooney 76; ----

MoM: Petr Cech (Czech GK)

With the Italy-Portugal encounter not until tomorrow, England could enjoy at least one night atop the table - and more importantly, they were in pole position to reach the knock-out stages.

[Amaroq]

Friday, 13th June, 2008.

Italy knocked off Portugal 1-0 on the strength of Matteo Ferrari's first-half goal, which would set up a dramatic England versus Italy finish. The winner would place first in the group, while a draw would guarantee that both sides advance:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Pts W D L GF GA GD

1 England 4 1 1 0 3 2 + 1

2 Italy 4 1 1 0 2 1 + 1

3 Portugal 1 0 1 1 2 3 - 1

4 Czech Rep 1 0 1 1 0 1 - 1</pre>

There was bad news for England, however: Paul Robinson had suffered a dislocated finger on the one-on-one save. The physios had popped it back in, but he was questionable for the decisive match.

Germany continued to play well, knocking off Austria 2-0, which guaranteed them a place in the next round. Norway secured a 1-0 win over Sweden to go second in the group, but they had yet to play the German juggernaut.

Domestically, I had the first offers coming in for one of my players, with several teams bidding for 18-year-old right wing Nick Smith. To my astonishment, over two days, the bidding quickly rose to the order of £1M! The promising winger doesn't really have the pace I'd like to see on the outside, and £1M felt more than generous for him. I accepted offers from the two highest bidders, and told the other three that they'd have to match that price.

[Wegason]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">"Finally, Terry Robinson announced my transfer budget: a mere £1.3M. " </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

That is actually quite shocking, its so paltry.

[Amaroq]

You wouldn't want this story to have gotten easy or anything, would you?

[Amaroq]

Sunday, 15th June, 2008.

In Austria, France defeated Belgium 2-0, giving them six points from two matches, but it wasn't enough to book their berth in the finals, as Turkey defeated hosts Switzerland 2-1, going level with the Swiss on three points with one match remaining to play. Even Belgium, on no points, had an outside chance at the second spot on the group's final day.

Group C had seen draws in the first two matches, so Holland beating Croatia 2-1 was enough to send them top of the group. Spain beat Romania 1-0; as the two victors had already faced each other, they were left needing only a draw to advance to the elimination rounds.

I had the closing training review of the season on the 14th, much later than I would have liked. I wasn't sure that a monthly comparison would be useful, given that we'd been in the playoff battle the entire time, but young defensive midfielder Steven White, back in training after an injury, was showing improvement, and it was interesting to note who was letting theirself go over the summer break, and who was staying fit. Sean Dillon and Keith McCormack were the most egregious of the 'let theirself go' crowd, while Marc Bridge-Wilkinson, Joe Newell, Peter Weatherson, and Graham Allen were notable for staying in shape, and even coming in to the gym at Bramall Lane on a regular basis.

The annual review surprised me, as I discovered that I only had eleven players left from the 1st of June, 2007. I hadn't realized what thorough changes I'd been instituting until that point: almost everyone who had seriously contributed to our playoff drive was a new acquisition. The biggest improvement, in fact the only true shining star out of the eleven, was defender Kyle McFadzean, who'd learned plenty while playing regularly on loan. Up front, Peter Weatherson and Billy Sharp had both shown mild improvement, but nothing to write home about. For the veteran, that was unsurprising, but for Sharp it might well mean that I'd show him the door rather than grant his demand to be included in the first team. Jonathan Forte had posted slight gains, but not as much as I'd have hoped from a young player seeing as much playing time as he was; on the right wing, Chris Sedgwick had suffered a lot from his numerous injury setbacks, and I decided that I would need to let him go.

Veteran players Eric Deloumeaux and Jack Lester had declined dramatically, and I felt quite justified in my decision to allow their contracts to expire. Center back Chris Morgan had experienced a similar drop-off, and I decided to transfer-list him prior to the July window; I'd already been shopping him around a bit to see if there was any interest. Other veterans Darren Wrack and Steve Foster had declined, but not horribly, and they seemed worth keeping around for leadership as we embarked on a trying season.

On the transfer side of things, I'd identified the wings as a real weakness at the Premier League level, and had made a few transfer bids to try and shore that up. I'd also like some dominant attacking players, but they're mostly out of my budget range.

I did note with interest that Crystal Palace had started their battle against relegation by signing our old friend Hugo Viana from Newcastle on a free transfer. He hadn't appeared motivated on his loan to Bramall Lane, especially in the last two months, and I couldn't say I was sad to see him go to Selhurst Park. I'd hate to face his technical brilliance when he's on form and motivated, but the odds of that confluence of events seemed as unlikely as a hot sunny day in Yorkshire mid-January.

[Amaroq]

Monday, 16th June, 2008.

England and Italy were top of their European Championship group going into the finale: the winner would top the group, a draw would see England top with both sides moving on, and the loser could still advance depending on the outcome of the Czech Republic-Portugal match. Sven named the same eleven who had faced the Czechs the previous Wednesday: Paul Robinson apparently recovered from his dislocated finger in goal, with Taylor, Terry, Brown, and Hargreaves across the back, Prutton, Gerrard, Lampard, and Beckham in midfield, and Beattie and Rooney partnered up front.

Both sides came out defensive, with the draw possibility looking very likely for the first ten minutes. Then England mounted a period of pressure, which culminated with an early break: Italian central defender Alessandro Nesta was adjudged to have pushed James Beattie in the area, a penalty! Frank Lampard stepped up to take it, but Gianluigi Buffon, fresh off his stunning performance in the Champions League Final, came up with the save.

Less than seven minutes later, the referee awarded a second penalty, this on a relatively innocuous David Beckham push in the England area. Andrea Pirlo drilled it to Robinson's left, and Italy held a 1-0 lead.

A fantastic 35-yard free kick by fullback Massimo Oddo caught Robinson napping in the 26th minute, and it was 2-0. Sven's side were looking nervous and rattled, and when Massimo Ambrosini's fine through ball in the 38th minute put Antonio Cassano in position to round Robinson and make it 3-0, the English hopes could only rest on a draw in the other match.

Italy 3, England 0

Pirlo pen 17, Oddo 26, Cassano 38; ----

MoM: Alessandro Nesta (Italy DC)

At halftime, that match was still scorless, and England's hopes remained alive until the 74th minute, when Czech striker Jeremy Eric Nowak found the net for his first international goal. All appeared lost - there was no way England could come back from a three goal deficit in that time, and Peter Cech looked unbeatable - but in the 89th minute, Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo found the equalizer for Portgual, putting England through to the next round despite their 3-0 embarassment.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Pts W D L GF GA GD

Q 1 Italy 7 2 1 0 4 0 + 4

Q 2 England 4 1 1 1 3 5 - 2

3 Portugal 2 0 2 1 3 4 - 1

4 Czech Rep 2 0 2 1 1 2 - 1</pre>

[aaberdeenn]

Ronaldo re-paying the English, why oh why would he.

[aaberdeenn]

.. oh and I've decided against starting up a story for just now, expect one at some point in the future but for now I think I'll just stick to 'Blade'.

[Amaroq]

Tuesday, 17th June, 2008, morning.

Needless to say, the England press were up in arms, and it was if nothing else entertaining to see Rupert Wormwood's venom directed at somebody else:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Eriksson's side looked ill-prepared and out of their depth against the clinical Italians, and showed that the Swede has never succeeded in eradicating the mentality that leads to the historical failure of the English nerve in big tournaments - most famously, the extra-time defeat to Spain in 2006.

Despite his reputation as a deep thinker, Eriksson looked caught in the headlights when things went wrong against the composed Azzuri, just as he had against Portugal in '04 and Brazil before that. His inability to change games from the bench seems to belie the need for his tremendous paycheque - surely even Steve McClaren could do as much?

His quixotic team selection - Chris Kirkland as England keeper? - has already been roundly criticised, but it is worth pointing out that, but for Cristiano Ronaldo's late heroics, the two goals conceded by Kirkland against Portugal would have cost England as dearly as their three against Italy.

France are steaming towards an unbeaten, untied, and unscored upon group stage, which would make them England's next opponent, and it seems clear that Eriksson has no answers for the English malaise. Defeat is, perhaps, inevitable, which raises the question: is Sir Alex available? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

[Amaroq]

Wednesday, 18th June, 2008.

On Tuesday, France completed their group without mistake, notching a 2-0 victory over Switzerland to complete the stage without a goal conceded. Turkey advanced with a nil-nil draw against Belgium, relying on brutally hard tackling which saw four players carted off in the second half.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Pts W D L GF GA GD

Q 1 France 9 3 0 0 5 0 + 5

Q 2 Turkey 4 1 1 1 2 2 0

3 Switzerland 3 1 0 2 3 4 - 1

4 Belgium 1 0 1 2 0 4 - 4</pre>

That would set up the predicted France-England Quarter-Final for Thursday night. At least England had one extra day of rest compared to Les Bleus.

Wednesday's group finales saw Holland beat Romania by a solid 2-0 thanks to a brace from the in-form Ruud van Nistelrooy, while Croatia shocked defending World Champions Spain, 2-1, relying on second-half goals by Igor Budan to overcome a halftime deficit and steal the second-place spot away from the Spanish.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Pts W D L GF GA GD

Q 1 Holland 7 2 1 0 4 1 + 3

Q 2 Croatia 4 1 1 1 4 4 0

3 Spain 4 1 1 1 2 2 0

4 Romania 1 0 1 2 1 4 - 3</pre>

In Group D, Germany continued their perfect run with a 1-0 victory of Norway, fielding a controversially strong side despite already having booked their passage to the elimination rounds. That gave Austria a straight fight for second place, but Sweden knocked the co-hosts out with two first half goals and typically tight defending to hold the 2-0 lead through the final 60 minutes. That result allowed Norway to advance despite their troubles with the German side.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Pts W D L GF GA GD

Q 1 Germany 9 3 0 0 5 1 + 4

Q 2 Norway 4 1 1 1 2 2 0

3 Sweden 3 1 0 2 3 3 0

4 Austria 1 0 1 2 1 5 - 4</pre>

Back home, York City fans were delighting at the bargain hunt that manager Chris Kinnear had managed, landing 21-year-old Wigan midfielder Curtis Weston for £170,000. A hard worker with good teamwork, he'd struggled to break into the lineup at the Championship side, but had shown some fine form on loans to the League Two and League One level the previous two seasons.

In other news, Eric Deloumeaux announced that the 2008-09 campaign would be his final season in professional football. At age 35, he had played just six matches last season due to injury and declining skills. With Danny Payne and young gun Keith McCormack well established ahead of him on the depth chart I'd let his contract expire. His ill-timed announcement made it unlikely our ex-captain would find any contract for next season.

[Amaroq]

Sorry to hear it, aaberdeenn.

[Amaroq]

Thursday, 19th June, 2008.

I hung up the phone, and sank back into my chair, quite unable to grasp what I'd heard on my voice mail. It was Niko Kovac, our best coach, who had announced that he was retiring from professional football, effective immediately.

"Its something I've been considering for a long time," he said, "And I wanted to let you know now, so you have time to find a replacement before the season starts."

I was stunned, as he's young, we'd only recently signed him, and I'd thought of him as a staple of my coaching staff at least through 2012.

With a sigh, I picked the phone back up, and asked my assistant to place the adverts for a new coach - or two, since I also had to replace the mediocre Scott Sellars, whose contract was expiring. While she was at it, I asked her to put in ads for a scout to replace the lacklustre Wayne Broughton and the retiring Kevin Randall.

It certainly tempered my joy at the other news of the day: Marc Bridge-Wilkinson was named the Sheffield United Supporter's Player of the Year - no surprise there for a player who had had a phenomenal year, leading the Championship in scoring.

That evening, I tuned in to watch England's Euro Quarter-Final match against France at the Stadion an der Gugl, in Linz. Spencer Field and Stuart McCall had joined me, and my wife had abandoned the house to our entertainment.

Sven made several changes from the side embarassed against Italy, not surprisingly a few changes at the back, where Glen Johnson, Ashley Cole, and Jonathan Woodgate replaced Taylor, Hargreaves, and Ferdinand. Matthew Taylor pushed up to a wing position, leaving the lineup Robinson, Cole, Terry, Woodgate, Johnson, Beckham, Taylor, Gerrard, Lampard, Beattie, Rooney.

Nicolas Anekla got Les Bleus off to a dream start in the 9th minute, working a give-go with Thierry Henry near the centre circle. Splitting the centre of the disorganized English back lin, he flat outran the closest defenders. He finished it off with a slicing shot underneath Robinson, and the French led 1-0. It was clear to all of us watching that it was the price for making sweeping changes at the back before such a crucial match.

With a little bit of luck, Anelka might have had a hat trick on the day, but twice he had breakaways saved by Paul Robinson, and a third shot beat the keeper but clanged off the crossbar. It remained a one-goal game through halftime, but the staunch French defense hadn't given England even a sniff, and it was obvious changes would be needed in the second half to break the French dominance.

Sven had no tricks up his sleeve, and the French pressed forward for a second goal in the second half. The English midfield seemed outclassed, and unable to link up successfully. Beckham, who had played well in a central role in the group play, seemed to be suffering in his natural role wide right, and Taylor was obviously not the answer on the left, eventually giving way to Shaun Wright-Phillips, who took over on the right, moving Beckahm central with Darius Vassell out left.

That combination was little better. It wasn't until the 80th minute that the Three Lions, still trailing by only a single goal, had a clear chance. Vassell lofted a cheeky pass over a clump of French defenders into space in the box for Beckham to run on to. The man with the golden boot tracked it down on the corner of the six, past the last defender, and let loose. I'm sure every England supporter thought it was the equalizer, but it shaved the far post on its way wide.

Despite desperate measures in the final ten minutes, they were unable to find a way to beat Fabien Barthez, and crashed out by the score of 1-0.

France 1, England 0

Anelka 9; ----

MoM: Thierry Henry (France SC)

"Another English collapse," Spencer sighed from my wife's huge purple chair.

"Predictable," I said mournfully - I was just getting my introduction to the life of an England supporter: high expectations followed by inevitable disappointment.

"How many times do I have to say it," Stuart grumbled at his beer. "Fortune favours the bold! Where was the bold?!"

He'd had a few more than we had, but there was no faulting his analysis: there had been no creativity, and it was the right result.

[aaberdeenn]

A sign of the summer to come I hope. \o/

[aaberdeenn]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by aaberdeenn:

A sign of the summer to come I hope. \o/ </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

England can't do what Scotland can.

[Wegason]

Concede a late goal which stops them qualifying? I think you'll find they can!

[aaberdeenn]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Wegason:

Concede a late goal which stops them qualifying? I think you'll find they can! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

No, beat France twice and thoroughly deserve to beat Italy when England and their overpaid superstars can't even beat Macedonia.

--

Let's not hijack the thread as there's no need for discussion, the facts say it all.