Sport – Page 26 – Boadicea's Chariot

Loyal captions, if one might suggest it

Britain's Prince Harry races Usain Bolt at the Usain Bolt Track at the University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica.

The NZ series’

Today is the 1st day of the 3 match test series over in New Zealand. (You can listen to NZ radio commentary here)

Dunedin’s University Oval at 45° South is the most southerly international cricket venue in the world and as one would expect today’s start was delayed by rain, which is rather frustrating considering that I stayed up till 11.30pm to watch the first ball. The morning session was rained out, I passed out to awake with The Proteas at 90/4 and that after being 86/1 at tea!

It’s been a rather nice tour, we’ve called it the 333 tour (3 T20’s, 3 ODI’s and 3 tests) a pleasing format.

Wiki tells me that Dunedin is nicknamed ‘The Edinburgh of the South.’ Dunedin is of course more well known for it’s Carisbrook rugby stadium (The house of pain) a ground which the Springboks had never won at ’till a famous victory back in 2008.

(Play starts 9:30pm GMT)

No it doesn’t! Play will start 30 minutes early on day 2 (9:00pm GMT) to make up for time lost to today’s rain.

SA v NZ live commentary

SABC have done us proud, rather than a bunch of our commentators relaying ball by ball coverage from a TV in a Johannesburg studio we have commentary from what I assume is the New Zealand national broadcaster. If you can understand the accents, it’s very entertaining.

Click here for live radio link

NZ v SA T20

For a change it wasn’t us snatching defeat from the jaws of victory!

In fact ½ way through the Black Caps innings I thought that it was all over and said as much on my ‘England’ post, then with 2 overs to go only 10 runs were needed for not only a New Zealand win but also the series, normally a fairly comfortable proposition.

But, cricket’s a funny ol’ game and just to prove it, what seemed like an apparent convincing loss turned into an improbable victory.

On the left is Marchant de Lange, the final over hero (2 wickets only 3 runs conceded) but that’s not what this post is about!

See the red ribbons on the sleeves? Today marks the first anniversary of that terrible earthquake in Christchurch, in which 189 people lost their lives.

I found it hard to believe that it was ‘only’ 12 months ago, seems so much longer than that, good on the cricketers for reminding me.

NZ Herald article here

England here we come

No, no, I’m not going to the land of the wheel clamper or that place where the supermarkets / banks rule supreme!

I’m not going where black isn’t and white shouldn’t.

In fact England is coming to me!

Perhaps I should say us.

Bought our tickets for the Test Match today (thank you Eastern Province ANC branch for insisting that your comrades here in the Eastern Cape have an opportunity to watch world class rugby [and no, you’ll never get my vote])

Yep, the English are coming (oops, was that Paul Revere?) we’ll be here to welcome them!

Members may recall when I took my daughter to watch England play in the FIFA 2010 world cup, I’ve bought her a ticket for this one but she doesn’t want to come along 😕

I have been saying it for a while..

and now the first shoots of evidence are begining to poke through.

Football is as doomed as epilectic octupus at a gelignite juggling jamboree!

Recently we had the Quakers, (Darlington) go into administration. They had a last minute reprieve courtesy of a 50k bung from fans and local busnisses but they are surely on their way.

Now one half of the Weegies are being advised to seek refuge from it’s creditors.

Just like the banks, these self absorbed ‘sportsmen’ have been riding the wave of their own ridiculous publicity.

Continue reading “I have been saying it for a while..”

Arrows of desire

Luckily for me, St Valentine’s burial in Rome is celebrated on 14th February, which happens to precede my birthday by a couple of days (69, yin yang, nod nod, wink wink, say no more, cheeky!). So every year I get the chance to romance Mrs Janus in good time, to ensure that my birthday will receive the attention it so richly deserves. Yer gotta speculate to accumulate, innit?

But, cherished readers, have you ever wondered what my title is doing in Blake’s famous poem, ‘Jerusalem’?

‘Bring me my Bow of burning gold; Bring me my Arrows of desire……‘ What on earth is the mischievous Eros doing in a hymn? As far as I know, the random or serendipitous demands of lust are not recognised as Christian (or even Roman Catholic) virtues.

Answers, please, on a pink, perfumed blank cheque addressed to yours truly.