2012 - Page 20 of 114 - Last Word On Sports

San Francisco Giants: 2012 World Series Champs?

Posted on October 26, 2012March 17, 2021 by Mark Modeski

San Francisco looked to be all but eliminated from the NLCS. Odds makers around the world were already preparing numbers, statistics and spreads for a “Detroit vs. St. Louis” match-up; and with the lead the Cardinals had over the Giants, they were right to do so.

However, when all was said and done, the Giants would fight back and claim NLCS championship for their own. Going into game 3 of the World Series at Comcerica Park tonight, the San Francisco Gaints finds themselves with a 2-0 lead, and many are already calling the Giants to beat the heavily favoured Detroit Tigers. Are we being persumptuous making this call so early? The Giants have gotten off to a good start, but can they really be expected to hold onto it?

Let’s look at the regular season first. The Tigers were in the top ten across most key batting statistics for regular season play, in terms of batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and overall runs. While Giants sported some the NL’s highest team batting averages (.269) and one of the highest on-base percentages (.327), they definitely didn’t have the same caliber of heavy hitters on their team as the Tigers. This said, the Giants did have one of the lowest team ERAs in the league (3.68) and lowest BAA (.248). While Detroit has a strong pitching contingent with an overall team ERA of (3.75) for the regular season, they have not necessarily been able to limit their opponent’s ability to make contact with the ball with the same efficiency as the San Francisco rotation, with a BAA (.256) and a WHIP of (1.29). San Francisco also had the better regular-season record at 94-68 versus the Tigers 88-74.

One thing I have learned in professional sports, however, is that the regular season statistics mean absolutely nothing once the post-season starts – any team can come to life at any time.

The pitching of the Tigers has really been one of the keys to their success thus far in the post-season. All regular-season numbers aside, the Tigers have been amazing to watch this post-season, relying heaving on the brilliance of their pitching – which boasts 1.02 ERA (versus that of a 3.28 for the Giants), and 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings. In fact, the Tigers starting rotation has an average only 4.4 pitches per batter this post-season! This said, knowing the potent Tigers regular-season offense coupled with their re-vitalized starting pitching how could you not pick the Tigers to win? The Giants will surely fall apart, no?

The answer is in fact: No.

This is where we see advantage Giants come into play. Very rarely do you see a defined gameplan come out so evidently in the game of baseball as you have with the Giants in this World Series match-up. San Francisco has been doing one thing no other team has against Detroit – they’ve been working the starting rotation. San Francisco has been working to get more pitches and wear down the starting pitchers of Detroit (Verlander, Sanchez) to move into the Detroit bullpen – which has been far less impressive than the starting rotation. So, far it has worked. Verlander only managed four innings in Game 1.

The Giants have also had some success from its hitting rotation that has also played well into the mix. I can’t write this without mentioning Pablo Sandoval’s three-home run game 1 (only Babe Ruth, Reggie Jackson and Albert Pujols have managed the same feat in the World Series). Hunter Pence was a star in game 2 scoring the winning run, and locking down the victory with a sac fly.

The last factor to take into account is the home-field advantage factor. The Giants have had the advantage of playing at home at AT&T Park – and it seems like the baseball gods have been favouring them at home, as they have had a number of lucky “bounces” that have played in their favour. Moving back to Detroit for tonight’s game there is a possibility that we could see a re-energized Detroit Tigers squad, but they will have a lot to overcome.

My prediction? The Giants are going to bring home the championship. As long as San Francisco sticks to the gameplan they have to-date, they won’t be easily beaten. It’s much easier for a hitter to work down a pitcher than the opposite. A pitcher only has so much real estate with which he can throw the ball, a hitter just needs to make contact and keep hitting the ball back. If the Giants can keep working down the Tigers’ starting rotation, and the Tigers’ offense continues to be dormant, then I think we will see the sixth World Series in San Francisco. Any team coming back from a 2-0 deficit is a challenge, and Detroit will really need to get their act together if they want to get past this.

Then again, if we see guys like Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera come alive for Detroit… watch-out!

Game of the Week: New Orleans Saints at Denver Broncos

Posted on October 26, 2012November 5, 2021 by Anto Dowsett

Two of the league’s most powerful offenses face off in the Mile High city on Sunday night in a prime-time matchup. The popularity of each of these teams makes this game “The Game of Week”, although neither of these teams currently possesses a winning record (Denver 3-3, New Orleans 2-4).

Denver Offense
Slowly but surely this Denver offense has made it’s way into becoming one of the league’s best passing attacks. At the helm, you have one of the best quarterbacks of all-time, Peyton Manning, who with a new offense and new weapons around him, has found it difficult to have a good start during games. The Bronco offense has only scored one touchdown total in the first quarter of their first six games. Due to this, they are normally put into a hole that they have to dig themselves out of. Will their bye-week help them find their offensive ways early in games and help keep themselves toe-to-toe with the Saints offense?

Denver Defense
Entering this matchup, the Denver D ranks tenth in pass defense, allowing only 215.3 yards per game, but they rank a porous 18th in run defense, and it showed as they got run over by both Arian Foster and Steven Ridely, with both rushers running for over 105 yards. Only bonus here is that the Saints rank last in the league as they have the worst run game in the NFL. Linebacker Von Miller leads the Broncos with six sacks, which ranks him eighth in the league for that category. Can he and the rest of the Denver defense disrupt Drew Brees and they did Phillip Rivers two weeks ago and help lead the Broncos to a victory?

New Orleans Offense
Even without their Pro Bowl tight end, the Saints offense didn’t sputter once whilst scoring five touchdowns against Tampa Bay last week. Drew Brees, their quarterback, was on his A-game as he threw for four touchdowns two of which went for 20+ yards. With Jimmy Graham back at practice this week, Drew Brees should have all his weapons at his disposal. With 21 total touchdowns, the New Orleans offense is clicking and although their running game is dreadful, their passing game makes up for it.

New Orleans Defense
Let’s be blunt, this defense can’t stop the run. They allow an average of 161 rushing yards per game, and by allowing 304.5 passing yards per game, their pass defense is not much better. This is their fatal flaw. Their offense is superior to many in the league, but since their defense is so terribly bad, this prime-time matchup will end up being high scoring. With Peyton getting back to his old-self, the 400+ passing yards they allowed last week may end up repeating itself this Sunday night.

Prediction: This game could easily go either way, especially since both of these offenses can score points at will. But since Denver is playing at home, and the Saints defense is horrendous, I give the edge to the Broncos, 31-28.

CHLPA makes big threat to OHL, similar threats expected in WHL, QMJHL

Posted on October 26, 2012November 5, 2021 by Ben Kerr

This summer, representatives of an organization calling themselves the CHLPA came out and announced that they were starting a Union for Major Junior Hockey Players in Canada ( and some US Cities). Since that time we have seen the Union name a director in Georges Laraque as well as partner with several high profile labour law firms in Canada.

The Union has been actively recruiting members, through the use of CHL alumni and trying to get players to buy into organizing and joining this union.

The Union’s original stated goals were to improve the quality of the CHL education package, which currently means that a player gets 1 year of post-secondary education paid for, for every year they play in the CHL. However this scholarship expires if the player does not start school within 18 months of finishing his eligibility in the CHL.

The Union was looking for these teams (who only pay small stipends to their players) to expand the education program. However this week a new development has occurred.

Derek Clarke, a spokesman for the CHLPA says that several players have been disciplined or intimidated by their clubs for joining the union or speaking positively about it. As a result the CHLPA has taken things to the next level.

In a letter addressed to Hockey Canada, the OHL, and to all of its member clubs the CHLPA has threatened legal action in Ontario claiming that the League is in violation of the Employment Standards Act as the players are not paid minimum wage and that they will file a class action suit on behalf of the players should the league continue to ignore their rights to organize as a union.

At this point, I’m sure the fans don’t want to hear about more labour unrest, as all the NHL issues are certainly weighing on all hockey fans, but this is a situation to monitor going forward.

It would appear the entire issue here will centre on defining whether or not OHL players are employees as governed by the Ontario Employment Standards Act. I’m sure the two sides will each have differing opinions if we got that far, however I’m not sure we ever will get there.

Some major questions remain: How many CHLers have joined the union? What percentage? Will this union become a formal bargaining agent for all CHL players?

Will the CHL recognize the legitimacy of the union and discuss player education and possible compensation?

Should anyone, anywhere take Georges Laraque seriously as a head of a union?

Is this likely to lead to a strike or lockout? The answer here is likely no due to the fact the union doesn’t have everyone on board, and that this would likely go through the legal system before such tactics are used.

We’ll give you more as we hear it.

Don’t forget to catch Ben Kerr on “Puckheads” on Last Word Radio every Wednesday at 10pm, along with columnist, Max Vasilyev. Access archived episodes here or on iTunes by searching for “Last Word Radio” in podcasts.

Follow Ben on Twitter – @LastWordBKerr

Did Zito Revive His Career with his Performance in Game 1 of the World Series?

Posted on October 25, 2012November 5, 2021 by Max Warner

Pablo Sandoval was the story of Game 1 of the World Series, becoming only the fourth player in history to hit three homeruns in a single WS game, as the San Francisco Giants beat the Detroit Tigers 8-3. Barry Zito allowed one earned run in five-plus innings and took the win for San Francisco in Game 1. As great as Game 1 was, I found the pre-game storyline involving Zito to be an interesting sub-plot.

One day before Game 1 of the World Series, the Associated Press wrote an article (later published by TSN) emphasizing the big turnaround in Zito’s career from 2010. Here are some brief excerpts from that article:

“From post-season bystander to starting the World Series opener. That’s how far Barry Zito has come in two years to resurrect his career.

…Manager Bruce Bochy said Tuesday he will go with Zito, who has turned around his career this year…

Left off the post-season roster for all three rounds when the Giants won it all in 2010…Whatever he has done to change his mental approach, it has certainly paid off on the mound.”

There is no doubt that Zito has now pitched two excellent games in the 2012 postseason, and that he is, for the moment, a key contributor on the Giants. And it is hard to question the choice made by Giants’ manager Bruce Bochy to leave him off every Giants’ playoff roster in 2010, because the Giants won the World Series that year without Zito. What I am taking issue with is the story created by the Associated Press prior to Game 1 that Zito’s performance in the last eight weeks represents the rebirth of a career that was lost in 2010.

The real differences between today’s Barry Zito and Zito in 2010 are small, as evidenced by Zito’s regular season numbers in those two years:

	Wins	ERA	K%	Ground Ball %	Line Drive%	Fly Ball%	HR	BABIP	FIP
2010	9	4.15	17.7	36.1 %	18.6 %	45.3 %	20	.279	4.25
2012	15	4.15	14.3	40.4 %	20.0 %	39.6 %	20	.281	4.49

To his credit, Zito is inducing a few more ground balls and is surrendering fewer fly balls in 2012, but he is striking out fewer batters, is giving up a few more line drives, and is having about the same luck on balls in play. According to field independent pitching, which estimates what a pitcher’s ERA should have been assuming that performance on balls in play would have been league average, Zito may have been better in 2010. But the big difference is the number in the win column, which looks great to the folks at TSN, who are too busy pining over the lost NHL season to put any thought into the baseball articles that they publish. Win-loss records are so heavily influenced by factors outside a pitcher’s control, such as run support and the quality of the bullpen behind the pitcher, that most people evenly remotely familiar with baseball do not place much emphasis on these stats.

Another fact cited by the Associated Press in support of their story about the rebirth of the career lost in 2010 is that “the Giants have won Zito’s last 13 starts, dating to August 7”. In August 2012, Zito posted a 2-1 record despite having a horrendous 6.46 ERA and 1.60 WHIP, because the Giants scored 33 runs in his six starts that month. Zito’s ERA ballooned to 4.51 after his first September start in 2012, the highest it had been all season. Despite posting a 1.35 WHIP, Zito won five of his last six regular season starts in 2012. Contrast this with Zito’s August 2010 (0-4, 7.76 ERA) and his last six starts in 2010 (1-4, 4.66 ERA, 1.38 WHIP).

In other words, the big difference between Zito in 2010 and 2012 was his six final starts this season, where he posted a vastly superior ERA and win-loss record despite surrendering nearly the same percentage of walks and hits. And unlike 2010, Zito was able to cover-up a horrible August and actually post a winning record in that month in 2012 by sheer luck of having excellent run support.

When referring to Zito’s late season success and his two postseason starts in 2012 as evidence that Zito has recovered from his fall from grace in 2010, the phrase “small sample size” comes to mind. Yes, Zito may have taken a different approach to pitching in 2012, and yes the Giants have now won his last 14 starts, but his regular season numbers this year are arguably worse than those he posted in 2010. And Zito has never posted a sub-4.00 ERA, a WHIP below 1.35 or a WAR much higher than 2 during any of his six seasons with the Giants

To his credit, Zito has taken full advantage of his opportunities this postseason, and has regained some of his popularity in the process. He should be respected for his hot September and October this year, but eight good starts do not represent a career revival. These eight starts have been a rare anomaly, and a welcome one for the Giants, in Zito’s mediocre performance since his arrival in San Francisco in 2007. But something tells me that Barry Zito isn’t finished with this late-season “anomaly” just yet.

Follow me on Twitter: @MaxWarnerMLB

Game Of The Week: #5 Notre Dame at #8 Oklahoma

Posted on October 25, 2012November 5, 2021 by Lindsay Higgins

The Irish Offense: Sophomore QB Everett Golson will be the starter. He backed up Tommy Rees last week after suffering a concussion in Week 7 against Stanford. Through 7 games, Golson has thrown just 4 TDs and 3 INTs, with a completion percentage of 58.5%. (In total, the Irish have 6 passing TDs and 4 INTs.) When a team is 7-0 and the QB has numbers like that, you can conclude two things: their run game is good, and their defense is good. Both are very true of the Irish. They have 14 rushing TDs on the season, from six different players. Theo Riddick leads the team in rushing yards, with 451, and George Atkinson III leads in rushing TDs, with 4. Senior Cierre Wood (393 rushing yards, 6 yards per carry, and 2 TDs) would have even better numbers if he wasn’t suspended to start the year and might be the best of the Notre Dame runners. The Irish have a three headed monster at the running back position. In addition to a solid stable of running backs, Golson is a rushing threat himself (81 yards, 2 TDs). Needless to say, the number one task of a defense facing Notre Dame is to stop the run; number 2 is to keep Golson contained in the pocket and force him to throw.

The Irish Defense: When you’re ranked second in the country in points allowed (averaging 9.4 per game), you’re doing a lot of things right. The Irish have allowed only 5 TDs all season, all of them through the air, and have snagged 12 INTs. Interestingly, five of them have come from linebackers Manti Te’o (4) and Danny Spond (1). I don’t expect Te’o to win the Heisman, but at this point, his presence in New York for the ceremony is almost a certainty. Te’o leads a very solid front 7 for the Irish and their ability to stop the run and the pressure they put on quarterbacks are of great help to a secondary that came into the season with serious questions about their quality and experience. They’ve had help but have also answered the call themselves.

The Oklahoma Offense: The Sooners are averaging 44.7 points this season, good for 5th in the nation. QB Landry Jones has an impressive array of receivers at his disposal, notably Kenny Stills (471 yards, 4 TDs), Justin Brown (299 yards, 2TDs), and Sterling Shepard (252 yards, 2TDs). As far as the running game, Dominique Whaley and Damien Williams are more than capable of racking up the rushing yards when called upon. The duo has combined for 793 yards and 8 TDs. FB Trey Millard is a threat to carry or catch the ball, and when he’s not doing either he’s a very capable blocker. The offense, particularly Jones, had a rough outing a few weeks ago against Kansas State in their only loss, but they’ve redeemed themselves in the three games since, outscoring opponents 156-48.

The Oklahoma Defense: First and foremost, the Sooners- ranked 12th nationally in points allowed- need to stop the run. Secondly, they need to keep Golson in the pocket. Finally, they need to get pressure on Golson. He’s not a great passer, but with time in the pocket to set his feet, he’s not terrible either. Forcing a turnover or two would be a big help, and the Sooners have a 9-to-3 turnover ratio in their last three games. DT tackle Stacy McGee, suspended the week before the season started, has been reinstated by coach Bob Stoops and he could be a big difference maker up front.

Prediction: I could see this game going either way, but one stat helped me make a decision: under Bob Stoops, the Sooners are 79-4 at home. Oklahoma 27, Notre Dame 21.

Islanders Move to Barclay Center Not All its Cracked-up to Be!

Posted on October 25, 2012November 5, 2021 by Maksim Vasilyev

Hey, are you a hockey fan? Yes? Good. So you must know who the New York Islanders are and how well this franchise has been doing over the past decade. If not, well, you haven’t missed much (still, could be worse). They have been stashed away at the bottom of the Atlantic Division for some time now and have been playing at possibly the worst arena in hockey, the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

The oval-shaped building comes equipped with sixty-seven pairs of existing doors, which can disperse a capacity crowd of 16,000 in seven to eight minutes. The trouble for the Islanders over the last few years, has been trying to get 16,000 people inside the building, not out.

The Islanders’ lease at Nassau Coliseum expires in 2015, thank God. This building was a disaster for everyone involved, except maybe the fans, since the tickets were about 50 bucks on average for the bottom bowl and much, much cheaper, for the higher seats. The oldest building in NHL did not just feel old, it smelled old, and as every old building in America, it also had asbestos problems. Let’s just say this is not a building that NHL superstars want to come and play in 40 games a season, and while I’m not a doctor of anything, I can’t think it would be good for their health. I mean, asbestos?

Charles Wang, owner of the struggling franchise, has long asked for help from the Long Island to build a new arena and super-shopping complex in the area to spurt the growth of the humble area and make his Islanders a bit more attractive to UFA players. Nassau County voters last year rejected a $400 million proposal (original building cost only $30 million) to overhaul the building. The Islanders have a lease to remain in the Coliseum through the 2014-15 season and that’s it folks.

Brooklyn, we go hard? Charles Wang says, “Yes, yes we do.”

The long rumored and long speculated move to the Brooklyn’s Barclay Center has finally come true. The Islanders are breaking away from the Long Island (well, Brooklyn is sort of part of Long Island, but shhh, don’t tell them that) and its dilapidated building to hopefully turn around the losing franchise, but also, and most importantly, to turn a profit.

So, will this move be everything and a side order cheese fries?

The first important thing to take note of here is the seating arrangement, because let’s be honest, bums in seats bring in the coin. There is no doubt that by moving to the Barclay Center, the Islanders increased the capacity that can easily come and watch them play. Even NJ locals can now take two trains and get to see their NJ Devils play the Isles away from Newark in about an hour of travel time.

The old seating arrangement for the Islanders back at the Coliseum:

The proposed seating arrangement for the Islanders at the Barclay Center(2011):

Errrr….Well there seems to be a problem here, no? Some stats first:

Coliseum has capacity for over 18,000 fans, 6,800 parking spots, and 32 luxury suites.

The Barclay Center is only able to seat 14,500 fans in its hockey configuration, 130 suites (not sure how many for hockey), and very poor parking space – MTA is the way to go here.

So essentially, Isles fans can kiss goodbye the $50 lower bowl seats!

The Islanders’ attendance for last year was 13,191, so technically speaking, the Barclay Arena should have no trouble fitting the Islanders faithful inside. The problem is that this is the attendance average of a young, soon to be very good, Islander team. If the team reaches its potential, and many think it will, and starts making the playoffs, the attendance should hover at max capacity every game. Good news for the owners, bad news for the fans. The 25-year deal is sort of frightening as well and even if the complex is rebuilt slightly in the next two years to accommodate the influx of hockey headed its way, I do not see them matching the average capacity of other modern arenas that hover around 18,000 seats.

The ticket prices are always driven by demand (not players’ salary as owners and the NHL will have you believe). My comrades and I have visited multiple Islander games just for the simple fact of how cheap their seats are, and I am sure that we are not alone here. The days of $50 behind the bench seats look to be over by 2015 season and this simply sucks. I know we can’t complain as the Islanders should be a better team at a better location (under brighter lights sort of speak) but gosh darn it, this stinks.

Look, the old building did suck, but it did not suck that bad, I kind of liked it. It had cheap seats and made it easier on us regular folks to take kids, friends, girlfriends to join us for a hockey game. For comparison, and this will be the likely scenario with the Islanders at the Barclay Center, the NY Rangers attendance last year was 18,191 per game on average. Do you know how much an average ticket to MSG to see the Blue Shirts play was? $66, and that is mostly due to the large amount of seats in the upper bowl. If you wanted the 100’s section you shelled out at least $140. If you calculate the food and beer costs, you are spending $400 on one game for two people for decent seats…and that’s not even including vodka!

Last year, we went to see the Islanders play and paid $45 for 3rd row seats, got to hear players swear, got to see Islanders win, and got free Wendy’s Chili – by the way, thanks Tavares! One of the best hockey nights ever.

Look, there is no doubt in my mind that this move will be a good thing for the franchise, no matter how awkward the seating arrangement is going to be. What concerns me is that having less than 15,000 seats seems OKAY, right now when the team is not exactly winning. The move to an arena that can’t support growth is really saying that you don’t anticipate growth, and if I were an Islanders fan, that would worry me. What worries me as a fan of hockey in general, is that once the Islanders do start winning, the hardcore fans will be pushed aside due to high ticket prices in favor of bandwagon upper-class who fancy them a winning team to watch, and there will be no more free Wendy’s Chili!

Maybe I am being too much of a romantic and being too naive. What are your thoughts?

A message I received recently:

Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter – @LastWordOnNHL and tune in every Wednesday night to “Puckheads” on Last Word Radio.

Why is Mata Not in Spain's Line-up?

Posted on October 25, 2012November 5, 2021 by Mitchell Tierney

If the Premier League season ended today it would be very difficult to avoid selecting Juan Mata as the Player of the Year. The spanish midfielder has been the catalyst for Chelsea’s early dominance of the Premier League, leading the best midfield in the league. Chelsea currently sit 4 points ahead of both Manchester United and City and have barely stumbled since the Premier League season has kicked off. Mata has been central to that consistency with 6 goals and 7 assists in all competitions thus far, including 2 UEFA Champions League goals, a competition which he has dominated thus far.

However, when it comes to the Spanish national team Mata has yet to be given a legitimate opportunity. Mata first broke into the Spanish side in 2008 when he made a substitute appearance in a World Cup Qualifier. Since then he has only played in 19 matches for the national side, although within those matches he has 6 international goals. The majority of these goals have come in Euro and World Cup Qualifying, however with his goal to seal a 4-0 victory against Italy in the Euro 2012 final it seemed like Mata had finally found his place in the Spanish lineup.

That very same summer, after the champagne of the Euro Cup victory ran dry and the Spanish National Team was being called the best National team of all-time, Mata was given another opportunity. As per usual the Spanish U23 side were allowed to call up two players over 23 to bolster there lineup for the Olympic games in London. They did just that adding Juan Mata as well as Adrian Lopez of Athletico Madrid. With notable names like Mata, Lopez, Isco, Javi Martinez, Jordi Alba and David De Gea the Spanish were considered amongst the favorites.

On paper this team would be very good competition for the Brazilian side who were called the most dangerous in the tournament. A lot of anticipation was built up for when these two sides met. Yet they never did – they never even got a chance. The Spanish exited the tournament not only without a win but without a goal. Mata, who could have had his coming out party at this tournament, playing incredibly poorly, especially against players who were exponentially poorer then him. The Olympics are by no means a big deal to most footballers, especially after having won the Euro’s earlier in the summer, but for once it seemed Spain were in this tournament to win.

It is somewhat improbable that Spain base withholding Mata from its roster solely on his relatively poor performance for the national team at the Olympics. But whether that has anything to do with the reason or not, Spain have not been very interested in Mata since. This includes the recent “snubbing” of Mata from their lineup for their most recent set of World Cup Qualifiers. Meanwhile, Mata, as aforementioned, has been churning out class performances for his club side. So why isn’t Mata making it into the Spanish lineup and is there even a spot for him?

It is well known by now that the midfield is the reason the Spanish are currently considered the best in the world. The side’s possession-based dominance comes only because their midfield is by far the best in the world. While Mata is played out of this world at the moment, it will take something spectacular to put him ahead of Cesc Fabregas, Xavi, Iniesta, Xavi Alonso or Sergio Busquets. Especially considering the fact that this team are not only winning but are winning every important game that they play in. If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. The Chemistry is spot-on at the moment with Spain, so there is no need to make any adjustments ahead of a major tournament in 2014.

Of course, however, age is now becoming a factor. Mata, to the incredible surprise of most, is only 24 years of age so he certainly has plenty of time. Meanwhile both Iniesta and Xavi are nearing the end of their respective careers, opening the door for the next generation of Spanish midfielders. Mata will most certainly prove to be a solid replacement for either of these two when they move on from the program, but at what stage will the Spanish team get to that point? Will they be a Championship contender anymore or while they be relegated to what the Spanish are traditionally known for: being underachievers at the international level.

It certainly doesn’t help that Mata plays abroad, as domestic club players have always been first in the pecking order – just ask Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Riena when he was in his prime. While few foreign-based Spanish players of quality exist, those who do have the skill necessary have not been picked regularly. Even before his run of poor form, Torres wasn’t getting all that much playing time with Spain post-Euro 2008. If Mata was based domestically with Barcelona, Real Madrid or even Athletico Madrid, there would be a far easier comparison to make between himself and those that he competes against for a position on Spain. Vincent Del Bosque would clearly have a far easier job qualifying picking Mata for the roster.

Mata will eventually make his way into the Spanish 11, if he keeps his play at the current level. Yet until something goes wrong for the Spanish or the current crop of players move on, his chances are far less likely. He should not be in the starting 11, but it is very hard to argue that he should not be on the bench…that’s just silly.

Don’t forget to tune into “World Football Roundtable” on Last Word Radio every Monday and Thursday at 10pm EST.

Hammer Radio: The possibilities for UFC Superfights

Posted on October 24, 2012August 3, 2022 by Ben Kerr

Its Wednesday Night, so the Hammer Radio show is back, and available in Hamilton on 93.3 CMFU FM, and archived on the internet at http://thehammar.libsyn.com

The Boys at the Hammer feature weekly coverage of all things MMA. This week they are back with another new episode and you can listen to the archived podcast by clicking here. Hammer Radio 116.

“With no major MMA cards this week, and with so much recent talk about Anderson Silva vs. Georges St. Pierre and Jon Jones, we decided to see just how super some of these proposed superfights would actually be.

We also run down all the week’s news including the Bellator events, The Score Fighting Series, Anthony Pettis’ injuries, a couple of drug test failures and the unfortunate passing of Jeff Blatnick.”

The Hammer features lastwordonsports’ own writer Greg Persson, long time internet superstar Steve Jeffrey, and is hosted by MMA aficionado Dave Abraham.

The Hammer has had interviews with some of the biggest names in MMA over the years, including BJ Penn, Dan Henderson, Sean Sherk, Mark Coleman, Rory MacDonald, Brendan Schaub, and others. They continue to bring unparallelled, independent coverage of all things MMA to fans of the sport.

They’ll give you the straight goods and the Last Word.

Undefeated and Underwhelming: Manchester United’s 2012-13 Champions League

Posted on October 24, 2012December 23, 2021 by Jack Stone

Manchester United are currently 3-0-0 in Europe after yesterday’s thrilling come-from-behind victory. Seems like they are on a roll, right? Not so fast.

I don’t know about you, but as a fan of the Red Devils, I still feel burning shame from last year’s stinging group stage exit, and am not entirely convinced the ship has been righted. I still feel there is something definitely missing this time around. Thank God we were blessed with an easy group once again, but failing to give dominant performances against much weaker sides has left me perspiring a little more than I’m comfortable with. Let’s take a long look at their form out of England, shall we?

In 2011-12 Champions League play Manchester United drew Benfica, Basel, and Otelul Galati. This should have certainly been an easy group to advance from. Benfica can play, no question, but Basel and Otelul shouldn’t really challenge at all.

Despite an opening match draw at Benfica, Sir Alex Ferguson elected to start a questionable line-up against Basel. They luckily jumped to an early 2-0 lead, but then were criticized for treating Basel as if they were a joke. It showed as Basel netted thrice while United were lucky that Ashley Young equalized in extra time to escape total embarrassment at Old Trafford.

After another draw with Benfica, this time at Old Trafford, United had to go to Basel and collect just a draw to advance. However the un thinkable happened…. Basel had beaten the giants, and the Red Devils would not see the round of 16. Many were criticized, but an overall feeling that Ferguson and the players took teams too lightly seemed the common sentiment.

United decided they weren’t too proud, and took their side to the Europa League Cup, where teams of their stature aren’t supposed to go. Technically they barely did compete, splitting wins with Ajax, but having a one-goal advantage on the aggregate and escaping a late goalpost scare that would have seen them out the door again. Oh, the horror!

The Devils then hosted Athletic Bilbao where they were shocked in a 3-2 defeat at Old Trafford. Now, United fans may complain that Bilbao scored their opening goal offside and their third goal was off a poor free kick call, but still, a second chance was given and they just needed to accept what happened and go to Spain with vengeance and beat the Spanish side by two tallies. Instead they went with a questionable line-up including inexperienced Paul Pogba and Tom Cleverly, eventually losing to Bilbao, and once again were walking away from European football with their tail between their legs.

After this terrible display, which still haunts me I might add, when I saw this year’s 2012-13 Champions League draw, I was happy to see it was another easy group, but obviously wasn’t getting over-confident given last year’s debacle. This year’s draw included Galatasaray, Braga, and CFR Cluj.

This time around Sir Alex says he will not be taking any risks with his combinations, and played his first team in the opening match at home with Galatasaray. However, despite winning the match 1-0, Galatasaray proved they could easily play with the Devils and were also denied a questionable penalty shot early in the match.

Next, United travelled to Romania to take on a club whose entire payroll probably doesn’t even accumulate to Wayne Rooney’s wages. Again Ferguson fielded a strong line-up, although I think there was a couple of names that weren’t exactly the starting XI. Nonetheless, it was Cluj that scored first but that was quickly followed by an RVP double, to give the Devils a 2-1 win.

Again, this was not exactly something to be ecstatic about considering at one point they were losing to a team that really has no business being on the same field with them.

Next, it was yesterday’s battle at home with Portuguese side Braga. Well, it was 2-0 Braga after just 20 minutes. Ferguson had Michael Carrick playing CB. Huh? Why? I was seeing last year’s problems all over again, but sure enough United battled back to win the thriller, 3-2.

Again, this result has left me unconvinced that Manchester United are prepared for Champions League football right now. They are a team who is totally built for the English Premier League, which is a different style of footy. In Europe it seems to be a slower pace where you have to be much more tactical and need to play more of a counter-attacking style with your backs gathering the ball, slowing play down a little and making proper passes to the midfield. The midfield use these “tactics”, to get the ball for a finishing striker.

Whereas in England it is more of a goal scoring battle, with many goals also coming from set pieces. Ferguson likes to use backs like Rafael, and newly acquired Alexander Buttner. He also oftentimes throws Antonio Valencia as a back. These backs are not their to defend at all. I really feel that Ferguson must buy some more stay-at-home defenders that have some size and strength to them for the purpose of CL play. For me a great example of this type would be Arsenal buying German CB Per Mertesacker for only 8m pounds.

There are defenders out their that United can find to build up their defense. They have the goal scoring up front, they need to keep the ball out of their net and play more relaxed in their own area. It seems to me that every time a ball is whipped into United’s box it is a scramble to get it cleared if it’s not already in the back of the net.

Either way, I definitely think their needs to be change somewhere for this team to have a successful Champions League run, because their past 13 matches in Europe have not been against opponents who are anywhere near the best, and they have not shown themselves to be one of the best either!

Sports. Honestly. Since 2011

Year: 2012