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Listed below are comments made by FootieRescueService between Friday, 17th July 2009 and Thursday, 19th November 2009.

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Is Cheating Ever Justified? 08:47am on 19 Nov 2009 Thierry Henry is a professional footballer and professional footballers do their best to influence officials throughout a game. Last night's incident demonstrated results are everything in professional sport. It was very poor sportsmanship by Henry since he handled twice and on the second occasion clearly patted the ball to control it. He cheated and he has to live with that. Was it so bad that he should be banned? Who knows?
Capello can plot World Cup glory 12:05pm on 10 Sep 2009 The "c-word" has always been crucial element of football and it always will be, and it is fascinating that it has taken a "capello" to bring "confidence" in abundance. Players actually knowing and enjoying being on top in a crucial game is always good to see, and, when the opposition pull one back at 4-1, the manager's annoyance told us what we need to know about Capello's credentials for keeping confidence where it needs to be.

Okay, the manager still has to work on the very English habit of giving the ball away too cheaply at times. He still has to sharpen up the cover when England's adventurous attacking style leaves them open. He still has to deliver where it matters in South Africa. But this is a very different England to that seen under McLaren or Eriksson. It is a very different team when "the tried and tested always appear" are short on numbers. It is a very different team that actually plays together instead of as individuals with something to prove.

It is churlish to pull out the star on the night because every player played their part and played it well. Heskey, for example, never gave up when he was caught offside four or five times in the first half hour because every single decision was marginal.

Of course any one of the finalists who go to South Africa can win it; it will be nice to think that England will be one of the teams that everyone will want to avoid and that could be both our strength and our weakness. But with Capello in charge we have a better than even chance.

Well done guys.
Crowd trouble club-by-club 09:03am on 27 Aug 2009 Now let me see where this article is going.

"Violence at football matches of the kind witnessed outside and inside Upton Park at Tuesday's Carling Cup match between West Ham and Millwall has been thankfully rare in recent years."

Fair enough. So why garble together some Home Office statistics to highlight the fact that there was something nasty going on at Upton Park but actually it is quite rare?

The remedy is simple. Both West Ham and Millwall should have points deducted for failing to control their supporters and a hefty fine imposed on each club. This punishment should be automatic in all cases. When the football authorities stop pandering to business interests and start concentrating on the spirit of the game it will come as a blessed relief to us all - except the media ... of course.
Ashes player ratings 00:57am on 25 Aug 2009 Always difficult allocating points in a team sport; as you hint at, how important to team performance was Flintoff on the field and behind the scenes?

Strauss cemented his reputation as a good leader both by example and in his management of team matters. But, is he a little too unadventurous when his bowlers are under pressure or when England have carved out winning positions? Overall he deserved to be man of the series.

I wanted to keep both Bopara and Broad in the Oval side but Trott proved me wrong on the first count. However Broad has a lot of developing to do both as a bowler and a batter. He is not a Flintoff, or a Botham, but he does have immense talent on the field. He is also young. I think he lacks a little discipline in batting and bowling and if he can tighten up both then he could be a much better all rounder than people think, perhaps even world class.

Bell is not the answer to England's batting dilemmas but he is a good fielder and works hard to show he is committed to the team. Collingwood was below par but cricket is a team game and he gave important performances when it mattered most. Of the bowlers Anderson and Swann retained their rights to be in the side. Harmison looked better than he has done for a while, and Onions did nothing that wrong. Rashid deserves a place unless Panesar improves immensely.

It is going to be very tough in South Africa but this England side can only grow in confidence after regaining the Ashes in a very good series. I think England could do better than expected.
Steely Ennis has golden glow 00:03am on 17 Aug 2009 This young woman has it all. She is amazingly talented as an athlete, is technically gifted, and has the perfect attitude to everything that goes on around her. Popular winner with her fellow competitors, natural and determined with herself.

Jess Ennis enjoy these moments for you have earned them. You have the talent to be an all time great. Go for it Jess.
How England can win the Ashes 7:30pm on 10 Aug 2009 Grief. Is this a column on Dad's Army? I haven't see so much panic since Michael Crawford visited the Natural History museum.

England lost because they didn't bat well, the Aussies bowled well when it mattered (just as Flintoff did at Lords), and a few marginal but key decisions went the Aussies' way. It was the reverse of Lords.

Unless there are enforced changes through injury leave well alone. This team has shown it can bounce back and the Aussie bowling has shown that it can be brittle under attack. England's confidence hinges on a good crowd atmosphere and the Oval will guarantee that. We know the Aussies are beatable and they will not be playing for a draw.
Flintoff - England's gladiator supreme 10:26pm on 21 Jul 2009 I get a little confused with the English sporting attitude as portrayed in #83. Flintoff got a wicket off a no-ball not spotted by the umpire; fair enough but not exactly the first time it has happened. The other deduction about Strauss'"catch" defies belief. The umpires conferred over whether the ball had carried and concluded it had - what's to refer? Oh, but hang on, you mean the TV replay, head on to Strauss and in HD slow-mo. Inconclusive since it was not in 3D. Slowed down did the ball hit the ground? Well you just cannot tell since a) the ground is not flat and b) Strauss' hands were below the lens horizon angle meaning what you see as grass near his hands is actually grass much closer to the camera. Only when he lifts his hands do you see his fingers under the ball. New tech has its strengths but also big weaknesses too.

Did Strauss know the ball had bounced in front of him? That was not his immediate reaction to Ponting's question and Strauss is a proud man.

Not so very long ago all decisions were made by the umpires; now it is no different except for the imperfect 2D camera which is adequate for run outs, stumpings, and some lbw decisions but unsatisfactory on catches. But let's give Flintoff some credit - had those decisions not stuck then he would still have taken five wickets because he was that good.
Flintoff - England's gladiator supreme 09:19am on 21 Jul 2009 Flintoff's intimidating broadsides at speeds consistently in excess of 90 mph were just what England needed. When did we last see Aussie batsman in genuine discomfort from aggressive bowling? But this was a team win with ample support from Anderson, Broad, Onions and especially Swann.

There is not a lot between these sides and it is important that Strauss continues to use Flintoff as his aggressive front line bowler. The Aussies do not look quite so assured against the pace and bounce of Freddie and that may mean Harmison should get another chance too. However I thought all the bowlers played their role on a day where it would have been easy for England to have become frustrated and bogged down especially as Clarke and Haddin had done so well.

Ponting redeem himself as a great captain in his after match interview and, as he promised, the Aussies will try to come back strongly at Edgbaston. If I were Strauss, and injuries permitting, I'd play unchanged. Onions bowled well and has the action that is well suited to consistent line and length over a long session. Broad also bowled much better in the second innings when cutting out the short stuff. Bopara needs one decent innings to show his talent and just needs to concentrate a little more on his own game when under attack.

Well done England. It was a long time coming but well worth the wait.
Aussies collapse to revitalised England 08:31am on 18 Jul 2009 Some great overs of vintage Flintoff matched, in my opinion, by some superb bowling by Anderson, and well supported by Onions and Broad who also took a superb catch. Ponting's ungracious acceptance of losing his wicket was absurd. He must have known that if he hadn't touched the ball he was out plumb LBW because he danced out of the way of the stumps PDQ. Strauss' catch was all the more impressive as he was just joining Anderson's appeal when he saw the ball was coming to him and went down well. Wrong decision, right verdict.

England must not lose momentum however. They should remember that tail enders can enhance scores and finish off the job by not allowing easy runs to be scored - bowl straight and fullish length. Although the Aussies shouldn't bat as badly again, continued cloud cover promises more swing and seam, and it will be a tough ask for them to set a realistic total for England to chase. Strauss must continue to use Flintoff as a presence - he intimidated by bowling very fast and accurately. Let's hope his fitness holds up for the rest of his Test career.
Brilliant Strauss leads from the front 01:14am on 17 Jul 2009 Strauss is playing a great innings, leading by example. It is a pity that only Cook seemed to be paying attention at the lesson on building test innings, and he was unlucky to get the first ball that Johnson bowled straight. The match is pretty well balanced and with England scoring so quickly early on it looked at good track. However much depended on local atmospheric conditions and the heavier, humid afternoon and evening periods got the ball doing a few things. It will interesting to see how Anderson, Flintoff, Onions and Broad bowl on this surface especially in cloud cover with little wind.

I think this could be a very tight match much like those in 2005. Provided England can keep the Aussies from making another big score in their first innings then it could be a rare win at Lords for the home side.

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