The Beautiful Game?: Dowie’s short reign is over

Riz Taylor
I’d wondered how long it would take. On Tuesday Iain Dowie became the first managerial casualty of the Premiership season when he was sacked by Charlton Athletic. Sorry, “sacked” is no longer the correct terminology for these matters, instead I should bring things into the 21st century and say that he and the club have “parted company”.
It’s all the same thing at the end of the day, of course. Dowie has struggled to inject life into Charlton, and the side sit at the bottom of the Premiership, amazingly even finding themselves below Newcastle United. Charlton brought his short reign to an end after the ‘Addicks’ took just eight points from a maximum of 36 in their opening 12 games.
But is twelve games really long enough time to give a manager time to make an impact and assert his own influence on his new club? Well of course it’s not, though whilst his departure comes as no surprise in the current climate of Premiership hiring and firing what does raise eyebrows is that it comes from Charlton, a club who previously had allowed Alan Curbishley ample time to go through thick and thin in his near 15-year reign as boss. Ultimately this trust in the manager paid off, so why the dismissal of Dowie after such a short stay?
Behind the scenes, what will worry the club more than anything is the horrifying thought of leaving the Premiership. Bad enough already, of course, a new deal which comes into effect next season means that teams will pick up an extra 50% more cash from TV rights, making the prospect of relegation unthinkable. You might think it’s a myth that the Championship is hard to get out of, but the stats show that less than 25% of relegated teams have come back via automatic promotion the following year. Perhaps it could be worth gambling the family silver.
He’s linked with just about every job vacancy in Britain these days, so it came as no surprise to see Alan Curbishley’s name pop up again, this time with a possible shock return to the club he managed for all those years before taking a break from the game. But Curbishley was quick to quash these rumours, saying “Going back would not be good for me or for the club.”
Instead Charlton might now look to the shortlist they compiled at the end of last season before plumping for Dowie, meaning that Derby’s Billy Davies and Cardiff’s Dave Jones will be back in the frame. Worryingly for all you Charlton fans, a certain Mr. G. Hoddle is also currently loitering around Hayes Job Centre looking for work, and will be amongst the early favourites to take over.
Despite taking his former manager to court over his acrimonious move to the Valley in the summer, Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan poured scorn on Charlton’s leadership when asked his thoughts of Dowie’s departure by Sky Sports News.
“I think Charlton haven’t really given him a chance,” he said. “It’s a shame because Iain is a bright young coach and he’s a strong character. One of the things Iain brings to a football team is strong leadership.
“I don’t wish anybody the sack. Gutless, faceless people take those decisions, don’t they? You don’t get people after 12 games pulling the trigger because something hasn’t gone right. You get behind the guy if he is doing things the right way.”
Charlton chief executive Peter Varney is the man behind the trigger. It will either go down as a stroke of genius on his part, or, on the other hand, a last chance throw of the dice to keep his club in the big time that ultimately won’t pay off. Much is made of Charlton being run by a “supporters’ trust,” but have any fans had a say in all this? Like everyone else they’ll just have to wait and see if Dowie’s dismissal really is a good thing for their club in the long term. But, there again, does the long term matter anymore?
English food is “truly catastrophic”
French full-back Patrice Evra has told everyone what they already knew when asked to comment on his time at Manchester United since his arrival in January from French Ligue 1 side Monaco.
“The first six months in Manchester were really difficult,” he told reporters. “I never expected that. It was hard for my family, my wife. I was in a hotel for half a year, I didn’t speak the language. The food is truly catastrophic and it rains all the time. For my wife and my kids it’s not easy. When there’s no training, when there’s no match, it’s a DVD under the quilt to keep warm.”
Finally sensing the hole he was beginning to dig for himself, Evra quickly changed tack. “Life here is so fantastic,” he back-peddled. “Each day I thank God to be playing for a club like this. How many people would dream of being in my place?”
He went on to discuss the differences between Premiership and Ligue 1 football. “Physically if you’re not tough you can’t play in England. I hadn’t understood that when I first arrived. I turned up with my skill but here you have to be first tough, then you learn to play the ball. In France I had time to lift my head. Here, as soon as you get the ball you’re being attacked at full pelt by the midfielder or striker.”
hing Ching Charoo
Well hot-diggety dang! The Houston Dynamos clinched the MLS Cup in America last week by beating New England Revolution 4-3 in a penalty shootout after extra time couldn’t separate the two sides. Yee-haw!
Backed by the vast majority of the 22,000 crowd in Frisco, Texas, The Dynamos equalized in “overtime” through Brian Ching’s headed effort only seconds after Taylor Twellman had given Steve Nicol’s New England side what looked to be the winner in the 113th minute.
In the penalty shootout it was Ching again who slotted the winner home from twelve yards. Incidentally he was partnered up front by former Newcastle legend Paul Dalglish.
League Cup last eight
Southend’s reward for knocking out holders Manchester United in the Carling Cup last week is a trip to Tottenham in the quarter-finals. The tie will be played in the week beginning 18 December, and Southend’s manager Steve Tilson was delighted. “That is a good draw for us,” he said. ‘We’ve got a couple of players who played for Tottenham, Kevin Maher and Mark Gower, so I’m sure they will be pleased to go back to Spurs. Funnily enough, I spoke to Chris Hughton [Tottenham’s assistant manager] yesterday and he said that we would be playing them.”
League Two side Wycombe Wanderers will travel to Charlton, whilst there are two all-Premiership ties. Newcastle will host Chelsea and Liverpool will have the chance to redeem last week’s 3-0 spanking by Arsenal as they ‘welcome’ the Gunners to Anfield.

Bangkok Bob shoots round of the day at Burapha

PSC golf from the Bunker

Monday, November 6, Burapha, Medal
Monday and it was off to Burapha for a Medal comp where we found Aussie brothers Scott and Beach Eaton in fine form winning a share of first place in the A Flight along with William Macey, all three players carding a net 76.
In the B Flight Peter Hapgood found himself in third place to his surprise with a modest net 78, in second place came Geoff Parker with an equally modest net 76 but both were nowhere near Bob Turner, visiting from Bangkok (again!), who turned in the best score of the day to win with a one under par net 71.
Near pin prizes were shared between Tony Scambler, P.J. Redmond, Charlie Gooch and Tom Jones (no, not THE Tom Jones!)
Wednesday, November 8, Sri Racha, Stableford
Wednesday saw The Bunker Boy’s play Sri Racha for the last time before the course closes for renovation. The format was Stableford and the cut was handicap 14 and under.
In the A Flight there was a three-way tie for first place between William Macey, Tony Scambler and Stuart Tinkler who all scored 35 points.
In the B Flight there was a four-way tie for runner up spot where Jim Wooler, Mick Ramshaw, Lawrence Harding and John King scored 36 points, one point behind the winner Jim Payne.
Brian Maddox, Gary Macara, Geoff Williams and Neil Jones won the near pin prizes.
Friday, Plutaluang
A 2-man scramble was held at the Thai Royal Navy Golf Course, Plutaluang on Friday and playing the South and East Courses some interesting players were drawn as pairs.
As things transpired, it was that man John McDonald who stole the show again, winning first prize with playing partner Ray Bloom. John was driving his tee shots a mile and Ray was straight down the middle every time making a successful formula that garnered them 41 points.
Runners-up were Rab McDonald, playing with Jim Wooler on 40 points and third place was shared between Alan Campbell playing with fellow Scot Graeme Preston and Paul Davies who was partnered with Geoff Hart, both pairs scoring 39 points apiece.
Only three par 3 greens were hit, one prize went to Charlie Gooch and two went to John McDonald who seems to be making a determined effort to leave a lasting impression before his imminent departure for Australia!
NB: The Bunker will be holding a golf tournament on Wednesday 22nd November 2006 in memory of John Preddy who sadly died recently. To find out more information check your local press for details or contact Mick at The Bunker 038 429292.

Runaway Su Sparkles At The Emerald

PSC golf from The Oohsa Bar

Tuesday’s winning golfers celebrate at the Oohsa Bar

A large field of potential winners left Oohsa Bar on Tues with high expectations after a good breakfast and with the weather looking good. Things are not always as they seem however as we were soon to discover.
The Emerald was not easy on the day as several golfers were to find to their cost. Dubious lies on the fairways and sanded greens presented a high degree of difficulty and the numerous elevated greens proved a hard target. We thought a reasonable score would win on the day but we had reckoned without Su who streaked ahead of the field to win with 40 points playing off 37. The second placing went to Barry Quirk,(34 points off H/c 14) followed by Mick Healy and Rich Murphy who both returned a score of 32 points off H/c 31 and 21 respectively.
‘Near Pins’ were won by Barry Quirk, Brian Holmes and Colin Cronin and the all important game of killer pool was won by Ken Ord.
An excellent meal followed by a few coldies rounded off the day nicely and nearly all showed their enjoyment of the day by immediately signing up for the next trip out. We will be playing next at Pattaya Country Club and once again the offer is there for you to join us. For more information please call Keith Hodges on 087 916 7171.

Willy turns up the heat

IPGC golf with The Caddy Shack

Tuesday, November 7, Eastern Star, Medal
Eastern Star was chosen as the venue for a Medal competition and although the high season rates have now come into effect, this course is in prime condition and remains good value for money.
The day in question turned out to be very hot and several players suffered in the humid conditions. The cut was made at 18 and under and in Division 2, Keith Fortt again played the bridesmaid, coming in second with a net 79. Just edging Keith out of top spot was Paul Quodomine with a net 78.
Division 1 had some better scores and Steve Nowell and Scott Chisholm fought it out for second and third places, both scoring net 73 with Scott taking the runner-up spot on count back. The winner of the division was Mike Lloyd who recorded a level par net 72, having just returned from England.
There were two 2’s recorded, both by Mark Joshua playing off his 6 H/c. Afterwards he remarked that the four shots were the only decent ones he made all day. Near Pin prizes were donated by the Caddy Shack and picked up by Mike Lloyd, Scott Chisholm and Stephen Shoreman.
Friday, November 10, The Emerald, Stableford
Friday saw a trip to The Emerald and the course was found to be full with no golf carts available. This resulted in 10 of our group deciding to play elsewhere.
The remainder of the field battled it out in the sweltering heat with Alan Bissell and Paul Smith (35 points) taking fourth and third places respectively, Peter Ingram securing second with 36 points and the day’s winner, Willy Wilcox returning to the clubhouse with a remarkable 41 points.
Near Pins were collected by Damian Trant #5, Willy Wilcox #7 & #13 and Steve Nowell on #15. The 2’s were shared between Mark Joshua, Steve Nowell and Willy Wilcox.
Will all golfers please remember that the presentations at the Caddy Shack are conducted at 7pm and you must be present to collect and prizes.

Oakes & Everingham win inaugural Saturday outing at Eastern Star

PSC golf from the Bowling Green

Thursday golfers: (Back) Dave, Fergus, Joe, Petter; (Front) Mam, Joy

Barry Hooper
Saturday, November 4, Eastern Star, Stableford
A Flight:
Tony Oakes (14) 40 pts
Joe O’Driscoll (17) 38 pts
Bob Rasmussen (16) 37 pts
Fergus Brennan (13) 36 pts
Frank Kelly (18) 35 pts
B Flight
Stan Everingham (22) 35 pts
Patrick Browne (27) 33 pts
Darren Martindale (20) 33 pts
John Morel (36) 33 pts
Mike Wing (21) 32 pts
Closest the pins: Joel Flor, Ian Edwards, Norm Martin and Stan Everingham.
2s: Tony Oakes
Our first Saturday at the Eastern Star was a rousing success with over 40 golfers turning up for a grand day of golf. The course showed its fangs as only 3 golfers from the A Flight managed to break par for the day. The golfers all liked the course and are looking forward to our next day there, this time we hope to get more sub par games.
Tony Oakes was the ‘Big Bear’ with a very nice 40 pts. We are all looking forward to seeing how much Tony cuts himself after this nice round.
In the B Flight Stan Everingham is now on a 2 game winning streak. It’s about time his game came into shape.
The now infamous yellow hat is now passed on to Barry Hooper who I know will wear with the proper attire, hopefully even yellow shorts.
Thursday, November 7, Noble Place, Stableford
A Flight:
Fergus Brennan (13) 38 pts
Dave Arrowsmith (5) 38 pts
Joe O’Driscoll (17) 37 pts
Alan Pearce (20) 36 pts
B Flight:
Petter Anderson (28) 45 pts
Stan Everingham (22) 42 pts
Gordon Everingham (26) 41 pts
John Morel (36) 40 pts
Closest the pins: Dave Arrowsmith, Joe O’Driscoll, Frank Kelly
2s: Petter Anderson, Mam Morel, Frank Kelly, Bob Short
The day was great, with a slight breeze to keep us cool, but beware the short high shots to the green as there were stronger winds higher up. Some good scores were handed in by our regulars, most of which would have garnered a podium finish on any other day: special mention here to Mam Morel and William Chang.
The infamous yellow hat has found its way onto Ray Thirtle’s head for next Tuesdays game.
All the golfers would like to thank Reg and his staff this week for all the great breakfasts and dinners we enjoyed on our return from the golf.
If any one is interested in golfing with the Bowling Green we play every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. We meet at Bowling Green at 7:45am for breakfast and transportation, and new players are always made to feel welcome. Call Reg on 087-136-5681 or Fergus on 086 056 7019 to put your name on the list.

Tony hits a ‘purple patch’ at Bang Pakong

PSC golf from The Peacock Place

Monday, November 6, Eastern Star, Stableford
The day after Loy Kratong our group had booked to play at Eastern Star and shortly before we left, our numbers had swelled to 31 players. There were a number of newcomers in town and very welcome they were too. Barry and Trudy Chadbourne brought their guests Garry and Kathy Doodi along and Brian Maddox brought four of his friends. We headed for the course by various routes, some longer than others; Captain Bob even said his route seemed to go via Bangkok.

Captain Bob (L) congratulates Tony Oaks on his fabulous performance at Bang Pakong

The course, I must say, was in marvelous condition, the greens slick, the fairways not too closely cut and the bunkers evenly raked. Some good golf was played on the day as the scores attest. Tony Oaks won the A flight with a magnificent 40 points off 14 H/C and Mark Joshua came 2nd with 36 points off 6 H/C. The B flight was won by Man Truyung with 39 points of 16 H/C and second was Harvey Samuel with 36 points off 17 H/C. The 2’s pot was shared by Stuart Seymour, Steve Newell, Captain Bob and Kathy Doodi.
Wednesday, November 8, Bang Pakong, Medal
Although our new schedule dictates that we play on Wednesdays now, this week we liaised with another bar, who shall remain nameless, to travel to Bangpakong GC and play a mini tournament. Their golf organizer agreed it would be a nice idea to travel up together in a bus. Captain Bob and Matt Anderson secured a great price and booked the bus. The next day, the other bar called us to say they would be pulling out, leaving us to foot the bill. I guess this is Thailand and nothing surprises us anymore.
In the event, we had a great outing. The course was in marvelous condition and the club treated us like royalty. The bus was a great idea and it only took us 70 minutes to get to the club. We had 32 players both men and ladies and we played a stroke play competition.
Tony Oaks who had already been cut from 14 to 13 following Monday’s meeting, won with an astounding net 67 followed by Marty Allred, who carded a gross one-under par and Lindsay Joshua, who recorded a net 69. Tony oaks will be playing off 11 when he next joins us.
We also had a fun competition by drawing cards randomly from high and low handicaps and adding their totals. 0 to 16 H/C split them evenly. Guess who won this one. Yes you got it, Tony Oaks and the lucky Doug Chalkley with Lindsay Joshua and Vince Smythe coming second.
There were three 2’s recorded and it will come as no surprise that Tony Oaks got two of them and Marty Allred the third. After a couple of beers at the club, we piled back into the coach and arrived back at the Peacock Place for the prize giving and a complimentary meal laid on by the management. All agreed the day had been a resounding success and we will probably do another one soon.
Come and join us if you would like a game of golf with a friendly society. As from November our meetings will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays and our schedule appears in The Pattaya Mail. If you would like further information call David on 087 928 7859 or Bob on 087 941 2474.

John McLoone has a day to remember

Jomtien golf with the I.P.G.C.

Monday, November 6,
Pattaya Country Club, Stableford
Another good turnout showed up for our first visit here for some time. A few regretted it after nine holes however, when arriving at the tenth they found 5 groups waiting to tee off. It was explained later that they were busy on the first so they had moved the players to the tenth.
Ken Foster’s 38 points secured the Division 2 top prize with Glyn Evans’ 35 pts taking second place. It was a lucrative day for our 12 handicapper John McLoone, his 39 points won the Division 1 first prize, he also had the only “two” of the day, and to cap it all off, he won a bottle of something nice for his nearest the pin shot on the 16th. Ted Morris finished second in this group with 33 pts, but there was no second nearest the pin prize on the seventh.
The Division 2 bottle winners were Doug Carysforth andBev Ewens for their shots on the fifth and twelth holes.
Wednesday, November 8,
Eastern Star, Stableford
After increasing our field now to a maximum of 28 players for the high season, we welcomed UK professional John Ronson into our fold for a short period before he joins up with the Asian tour. The divisions were split ideally today at 18 and below.
In Division 1, John Mcloone and Ron Lee tied for third place on 32 points, Ron winning the count back, Mike Lloyd’s 35points gave him second spot whilst out in front, Arthur Hancock’s 38 points secured first place.
Miss Am’s 33 points earned her third prize in the Division 2, surprise visitor Rob Heath took second with 34 points, but returning the best score in the division was Tony Duthie with 37 points.
There was only one “two” today, and you guessed right, John Ronson: - he will now be playing off the black tees. There were no Division 2 winners for nearest the pin, so the bottles rollover, Mikal Anderson won his on the third in the premier flight..
Jomtien Golf meets every Monday and Wednesday at Paweenas on Soi 5 Jomtien Beach Road at around 9.00am for a 10.30 tee off time. Transport and club hire are available, please sign up in the bar or give Glyn a ring on 0868375464.

Bert’s Boys enjoy a treat at Burapha

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s

Tuesday, November 7, Burapha, Stableford
Do you realise it is nearly Christmas? And soon we will know what Santa is going to bring. For the boys of Tropical Bert’s on this day, it brought a great breakfast, and on arriving at Burapha the realisation we had won the course raffle and were going to play the A & B ‘nines’. Now whilst to many this may not seem much, the two nines are a real treat and will do until Santa brings my other presents.

Divisional winners Gareth Weeks (L) with his lady, and Mike Wing (R)

So all set off in fine spirits to be met with a very strong breeze that made the ball do amazing things. The fairways were all in super nick and the greens really fast and decidedly tricky.
Round over and sat in the course restaurant it soon became apparent as the cards came in that we were going to have a number of good scores. Later, back at Tropical Bert’s, the scores were quickly tabulated and the winners worked out and as D.B. was struggling with the illness that seems to be doing the rounds, Vince Smyth stood in and did the presentation. Thanks Vince.
The winner of the A Div was Gareth Weeks with Dick Warberg in second and Thomas Johannson in third, whilst in the B Div the winner was Mike Wing with Bryan Gabe in second and Ian Colvil in the third place.
T.T.F.N.
Near Pin: Lawrence Harding, Derek Brook, Brian Gabe, Mike Wing, Thomas Johannson
Long Put: Alex Kazazis, Ray Spence

Bell strikes a winning note

IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at the OK Corral

Thirteen nations yet again represented the Pattaya Golf Society in its weekly medal competition, this time at Emerald Ban Chang on Tuesday, 2nd November, and fate would decide that five countries would feature on the podium at the end of the day.
The large field was cut at fifteen and under as the event began under overcast skies on a course currently being prepared for Thailand’s first Asian Tour Qualifying School event, being held there next month. The course played long off the extended white tees and initially slow greens became faster as the day progressed.
In Division One, IPGC’s newest scratch golfer, Swiss Mike Allidi, set the standard for the day with a level par 72 to tie for runner-up place with in-form Yorkshireman Bill Hewitt. The flight was headed by Swedish golf “addict” Mikael Andersson, his net 71 showing his power and potential on a course he loves.
In the Second Division, Englishman Carl Lovatt struggled on the greens but still managed to post a score of net 77 for third place, two behind Belgian Leo van der Haeghen and his net 75. Topping the flight however, and posting the day’s best score of net 70, was Aussie Jim Bell.
The “twos” pot was shared by John Cunningham and Ali Dukony for their efforts on holes five and fifteen respectively, whilst the return of a number of notable candidates meant the Booby Bevy would have to be considered at length. Eventually the claim of Roy Mann’s net 111 was discarded, as he will certainly win the amber liquid soon, and similarly ignored was Stuart Soloman’s gaff on the first when he picked up thinking the event was Stableford. The prize was eventually awarded to Ray Underwood for an amazing performance on the sixteenth where he had four unsuccessful attempts to tap-in from six inches, eventually picking up the ball and throwing it into the hole. His blunder was compounded when the ball bounced out and almost took off his nose!
It had been a day of smiles all round and none were broader that those of Mikael Andersson and Jim Bell.
All ahead slow at Plutaluang
A last minute fixture adjustment saw the Pattaya Golf Society visit Plutaluang on Thursday, 9th November, to play a Stableford event and found the North and West courses full. A six-ball was pushed in front of us at the start and this was to lead to a horrendous five-and-a-half hour round which tested the patience of the large field.
The cut was made at 19 and under and in the top flight Kris Kritsnajootha and Liam Horgan were joined by Barry Horman on 29 points to share third place. Streets ahead of them were Ben Findon and Yasuo Suzuki, their scores of 35 points being the pick of the flight.
In the Second Division Jim Bell completed a successful week by collecting 32 points for third place, three behind Les Hall’s second placed 35 points. The best score of the day was recorded by Ian Kidd, his 36 points being the day’s only level par round.
The “twos” pot was shared by Les Hall, Ben Findon, Liam Horgan and Mikael Andersson and the Booby Bevy went to a bemused Mr. Denis after a day of horrors. Taking only his second shot he struck a caddy who was foolishly standing a full 120 yards ahead. A medical bill was already being prepared by the time the head came off his seven iron on the eleventh and lodged in the water hazard. Incredibly he managed to repeat the trick with his eight iron on the final hole! Beware of cheap Chinese copies, foolhardy caddies and local six balls and you may then enjoy a round at Plutaluang.

House of the Golden Coin closing on first place

Pattaya Sports Club Friday Bowling League

200 Bowlers - La, Sven, Somrak and Wade.

House of the Golden Coin has been moving up the standings and is now only two points out of first place after taking all four points in their match with Domicil. Mio bowled a 556 series for Golden Coin and Aht had a 500 series for Domicil.
VFW Post 9876 remains in first place but they lost three points to Diamond Shop with no bowler having much luck on lanes 9 & 10. Café Kronborg remains in third place after playing to a two-two point split with Montana.
Mai’s Thai Restaurant took all four points from Jack & Tar with Wade bowling a 203 game, 546 series and Lada a 225 game, 551. Three Sisters was led by La, (who had a 213 game and 542 series), to a three point win over Café Ole. Shenanigans won all four points from Brother D with Somrak leading the way with games of 199, 171, 222 for a 592 series and Sven added a 513 pin total.

The Square Ring

by Howie Reed
How big is Sunday’s third fight between Manny “The Pac Man” Pacquiao (42-3-2) and Erik “El Terrible” Morales (48-4)? From the “get-go” it’s a candidate for fight of the year.
The first time they fought was in March of 2005 in Las Vegas. Very seldom do three boxing judges agree on anything but for this bout they did - awarding Morales a 115-113 unanimous win. At the time Pacquiao was moving up from 124lbs to the super-feather weight of 130lbs. The Pacquiao camp thought the added weight may have been a factor. Following a tune up Pacquiao KO’d Morales in 10 stanza’s the following January.
Morales as with most Mexican’s fighters always has a excuse for losing. He needs them as he’s lost three of his last four and been out of the ring since getting KO’d by Pacquiao at the start of the year. “I was tired last time”, said Morales. “I’m bigger, stronger and will win.”
Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach had the best line of all the trash talking crowd: “When they meet Manny is going to put Morales on a steady diet of Reyes leather.”
It’s apparent that Morales is on his way out of boxing while Pacquiao is just about ready to hit his stride. If Mayweather jr. does retire after his next fight, Pacquaio has the opportunity to be the best in the business. Definitely one worth getting up for on Sunday morning.
And now, here’s Jeeves with the news:
“As you wrote some time ago your Lordship, the December 9 WBO featherweight title fight between Scott Harrison and Nicky Cook was called off, but now it maybe back on again. Last Saturday Harrison was due to be released on bail from the “old nick” in Malaga, Spain and head back to Glasgow. The Judge took the day off so Harrision’s release was delayed. ‘It’s fantastic news to hear that Scott is going to be out on bail’, said promoter Frank Warren. ‘He’ll be heading home to Glasgow. The important factor is to first make sure that he is mentally and physically fit to box on December 9 and if that is cleared then I will discuss with the WBO about looking to get his fight against Cook back on the show.’
“My question your Lordship is has Harrison ever been mentally fit? I know your Lordship, like the Johnny Mathis song goes, ‘It’s not for me to say’.
“M’Lord, Alex Arthur the Scottish super feather weight is now at 24-1 after he got a TKO over previously unbeaten Sergio Palomo. Arthur is trained by your friend Wayne McCullough and should be more than ready to fight on the world stage.
“One of the best kept secrets in Thailand is lightweight Prawet Singwangcha who lost a couple of fights early in his career but is now 24 and 0 since 1999. He’s never fought outside his home country but that will probably change soon. He’s been signed by Golden Boy Promotions, which you know is run by Oscar de La Hoya. Oscar said, ‘Singwangcha has truly earned his shot at the title. We are eager to begin negotiations with Team Diaz so we can bring the WBA lightweight title back to where it belongs.’
“IBF featherweight champion Orlando Salido is now on his way to being an ex-champ. He beat Robert ‘The Ghost’ Guerrero on the under card of Mayweather’s fight but has tested positive for steroids. He has 20 days to appeal to the Nevada Commission. If he doesn’t win the appeal he’ll be an ex-champ, get suspended and lose his purse money.
“And finally your Lordship there were ‘chick fights’ from Bangkok on TV last week. Taking your advice I watched them while enjoying a nice lager.”
Jeeves it seems that Mr. Salido is gong to file an appeal as he said the Commission’s statements are not true. His lawyer said: “That statement is incorrect. Yes, the test found levels of Nandrolone higher than normal in his system and that set off rumors of steroid usage. A physician who wishes to be unnamed until the formal hearing takes place has stated that Nandrolone is a substance created by the human body.”
It seems to me Jeeves we have a case of an unnamed physician who will probably disappear when the hearing comes.
Jeeves you forgot to tell our ‘reader’ that the best flyweight in the world, Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (62-2), is defending his WBC title somewhere on TV today. Shame on you. The fight takes place in Korat and I’ll bet a lager that it’s on a TV near you.
Many had hoped that the heavyweight division would shake itself out before the end of the year. Not going to happen. The first step in that cleansing was supposed to be Shannon Briggs v Sergei Liakhovich for the WBO title. You could say it was a ‘lousy anything’, let alone a so called ‘fight.’ Well now there’s a chance the result will be overturned. The former champ is complaining that the bell should have rung while he was falling out of the ring, thus ending the fight. It’s further charged that referee Bobby Ferrara stopped the fight at the 3:07 mark of the final round. Of course there isn’t a 3:07 mark of any round. The WBO will decide or not. Bet on ‘not’.
Last Friday there were fights in the capital, Bangkok. The two-time world champion and WBC #3 bantam, Veerapol Nakornluang (54-3-2, 39 KOs) knocked out someone named Michael Yombayomba of Tanzania in the 4th. For the record there is no boxer of that name from anywhere. The original opponent was Michael Bayona, who also has no record!
WBC #1 super-bantam, Napapol Kiattisakchokchai (39-2, 35 KOs) had a little trouble when he KO’d Filipino Dondon Lapuz in 5. At least Lapuz had a record. Sure it was 11-24 but still a record. And Thai fighters wonder why like the late Rodney Dangerfield “They get no respect.”
As a post script to the Mayweather jr. fight, neither Oscar de La Hoya nor Mayweather Sr. though much of his win over Carlos Baldomir. “I taught him everything he knows”, said his father. “But I didn’t teach him everything I know. Everyone is saying how great Little Floyd is for what he did, and defensively, I must confess he was excellent. But that’s only part of the package. He has flaws. He makes a lot of mistakes, mistakes he didn’t make when his daddy was training him. I’m a precise trainer. My fighters don’t make the kind of mistakes Little Floyd was making. Ellerbe doesn’t know (anything) about boxing. I’m not afraid to say that Oscar would whip him and it wouldn’t be a close decision.”
Even taking into account that Mayweather jr. injured his hand in the 6th, Oscar wasn’t cutting him any slack either: “To be the pound-for-pound champion of the world, you have to have everything. You need footwork, you need speed, you need power, you have to have it all. He was dominating that guy, but he didn’t finish him off. You need the overall package, and I didn’t see the overall package.” Watch out for a May 6 ‘Super fight’ between Oscar and Jr.
Two heavyweight fights last week were at least a little interesting. Evander Holyfield whose record of 39-8-2 belies the fact that it seems he’s been around forever is still goin’ strong. Well kind of. Fres Oquendo is not the best heavyweight in the world, but then he’s not the ‘joke’ that some of the fighters are who are currently walking round as champions. Last Saturday Holyfield was able to drop Oquendo in the first stanza on the way to a unanimous decision, (116-111, 114-113, 114-113).
Off this performance everyone but Holyfield probably realizes that he’s only a shadow of his old self. If Holyfield wanted to be a real player he had to KO Oquendo. As Pappy used to say, “Ring up ‘No Sale’”.
On Sunday at Madison Square Garden Wladimir Klitschko got a 7th round TKO over Calvin Brock in what was a pretty good heavyweight bout. Most scoring cards had Klitschko slightly ahead before a couple of lefts and a thundering right put Brock down for good. He beat the count but referee Wayne Kelly waved it off at 2:10 of the 7th.
“Jeeves, who do you like in Sunday morning’s fight between Pacquiao-Morales? What’s that? Oh, you were talking to O.R. and he said that Pacquiao will win so you chose Pacquiao too. Well Jeeves I concur. Now could we possibly agree on one more thing? Yes Jeeves that would be it, a nice cold one, a fine cigar and a little Rod Stewart on the music machine. Your are a treasure.”