Thursday 28 February 2013

Premier League Predictions - 2nd, 3rd & 4th March 2013



This weekend’s Premier League fixtures include Chelsea vs West Brom, Southampton vs QPR, Swansea vs Newcastle and Wigan vs Liverpool on Saturday, Tottenham vs Arsenal in the North London derby on Sunday and Aston Villa vs Man City on Monday night. Here are my predictions for this weekend’s action (all kick-offs at 3pm unless stated).

Saturday

Chelsea 3-1 West Brom
Everton 2-1 Reading
Man Utd 3-0 Norwich
Southampton 2-1 QPR
Stoke 2-2 West Ham
Sunderland 1-1 Fulham
Swansea 3-2 Newcastle
Wigan 1-2 Liverpool (K.O. 5:30pm)

Sunday

Tottenham 2-3 Arsenal (K.O. 4pm)

Monday

Aston Villa 0-3 Man City (K.O. 8pm)

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Thursday 21 February 2013

Premier League Predictions - 23rd, 24th & 25th February 2013


Back to normal business this weekend with Premier League fixtures including, Fulham vs Stoke, Man City vs Chelsea and West Ham vs Tottenham.

Last time out, Southampton pulled out a surprise 3-1 win against Man City, Arsenal only managed a 1-0 win away at Sunderland and West Brom defeated Liverpool 2-0 at Anfield. Liverpool also played an additional fixture a week later against Swansea, which they won 5-0.

This Saturday, Fulham host Stoke in the early kick-off, Reading play against fellow strugglers Wigan and QPR host Premier League leaders, Man Utd. On Sunday, Man City will play against Chelsea and Southampton will travel to St James Park to play Newcastle. One Monday fixture concludes this week’s Premier League, as West Ham will play Tottenham at Upton Park.

Here are my predictions for this weekend (All kick-offs at 3pm unless stated).

Saturday

Fulham 1-0 Stoke (K.O. 12:45pm)
Arsenal 3-2 Aston Villa
Norwich 1-2 Everton
QPR 1-3 Man Utd
Reading 3-3 Wigan
West Brom 2-1 Sunderland

Sunday

Man City 2-2 Chelsea (K.O. 1:30pm)
Newcastle 1-2 Southampton (K.O. 1:30pm)

Monday

West Ham 1-2 Tottenham (K.O. 8pm)

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Tuesday 19 February 2013

Arsenal 1-3 Bayern Munich - Match Report

Thomas Muller scores the second
goal for Bayern Munich - Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images

Thomas Muller helps Bayern Munich defeated Arsenal 3-1 at the Emirates giving them a two-goal advantage in the second leg at the Allianz Arena.

After a disappointing loss to Blackburn in the FA Cup at the weekend, this wasn’t the result that Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was hoping for.

It only took seven minutes for Bayern Munich to break the dead-lock, after a shot driven into the ground by Toni Kroos from the edge of the area found its way to the back of the net.

And by 20 minutes, they were 2-0 up thanks to a Thomas Muller goal from a Daniel Van Buyten corner.

Throughout the first half, Arsenal had many chances to test Bayern Munich’s goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.

But holding up the ball from the likes of Theo Walcott and Mikel Arteta before shooting gave Bayern Munich’s defence enough time to come back and clear any opportunities.

With hardly any clear goal-scoring chances for Arsenal, the half time score was 2-0 to Bayern Munich.

Ten minutes into the second half though, Arsenal got their first and only goal of the game. Lukas Podolski managed to header in a Jack Wilshere corner, which for some reason was allowed to bounce in the box beforehand. It wasn’t attacked by any other players as it passed through the box either.

When subs Oliver Giroud and Tomas Rosicky came on for Podolski and Aaron Ramsey, they had an instant impact and produced another chance for Arsenal.

A good long ball by Rosicky to Walcott, whose cross found Giroud in the box, forced Neuer to produce a save to stop Giroud’s shot.

Bayern Munich restored their two-goal lead not long after though. A Phillip Lahm cross was able to find Mario Mandzukic who miss hit the ball, but it bounced its way across the goal line.

A few minutes later, Bayern Munich had two chances to increase their lead further. Luiz Gustavo’s shot from outside the box was saved by Wojciech Szczesny, and Mario Gomez’s shot on the rebound went over the crossbar.

As no more goals were scored, the final score was Arsenal 1-3 Bayern Munich.

Although Arsenal fans will be disappointed, they should be able to recover quickly as not a lot of people predicted them to beat Bayern Munich.

The teams will meet again on Wednesday 13th March at the Allianz Arena in Germany for the second leg.

Stats

Arsenal

Goals: Podolski – 55’

Line-up: Szczesny, Sagna, Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Koscielny, Arteta, Wilshere, Walcott, Ramsey (Rosicky - 71'), Cazorla, Podolski (Giroud - 71’).

Unused subs: Mannone, Jenkinson, Diaby, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Coquelin

Booked: Sagna, Vermaelen, Arteta, Ramsey, Podolski

Bayern Munich

Goals: Kroos – 7’, Muller – 21’, Mandzukic – 77’

Line-up: Neuer, Dante, Van Buyten, Lahm, Ribery (Robben - 63’), Martinez, Muller, Alaba, Schweinsteiger, Kroos (Gustavo - 73’), Mandzukic (Gomez - 78’)

Unused subs: Tom Starke, Rafinha, Shaqiri, Tymoschuk

Booked: Lahm, Muller, Schweinsteiger

Ref: Oddvar Moen

Attendance: 59,974

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Friday 15 February 2013

NFL Combine workout drills explained



NFL action is back with the NFL Combine is just around the corner, taking place on the 23rd-26th February 2013.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with it, the NFL Combine is when the best college prospects are invited to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis to take part in a series of physical and mental test which they will be assessed on by NFL coaches, scouts and general managers from all 32 teams. The NFL Combine is a key event in the NFL as in the past, it has ultimately decide a players’ future as it can determine where they go in the draft, their salary and the perception a player receives.

Here is a summary of all of the main workout will drills which take place at the NFL Combine.

40-yard dash

In this drill, players will be timed to see how quickly they can run 40 yards. This event is all about speed and reaction times. Scouts will be looking at not only what time the player can run the drill in, but also the explosion a player can achieve from a static start which ultimately shows a good reaction time. Players’ times are taken at 10 yards, 20 yards and at 40 yards from the start line.

Bench Press

This drill is all about the strength and endurance of a player. The player must rep 225 pounds as many times as they can in one minute.

Vertical Jump

This drill simulates the situation of a player having to jump in the air to reach the ball, so it’s a good demonstration of a player’s leg power and explosion. The measurement is from where the player can reach standing flat-footed, to where the player reaches to when he jumps in the air.

Broad Jump

In this drill, players will start in a stance and then they jump as far as he can forward and land without losing balance. This test is therefore measuring a player’s balance, explosion from a stance and their lower-body explosion and strength.

3 cone drill

This drill tests a players ability to change directions quickly whilst still maintain a high speed. The drill is set out with three cones in the shape of the letter ‘L’. From the start line, the player must run five yards to the first cone and back. He then turns, runs around the second cone, runs a weave around the inside of the third cone, comes back to the second and then back to the start which is the finish point. A player who runs this drill quickly will show good agility.

Shuttle Run

The player starts the drill in a 3 point stance. He then sprints five yards to the right, touches the line, sprints ten yards to the left, touches the line, then sprints five yards to the right to the start and finishes. This tests a player’s speed and explosion.

Below is a video of Tim Tebow at the 2010 NFL Combine performing all of the drills mentioned above except for the Bench Press.


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Thursday 14 February 2013

FA Cup and Premier League Predictions - 16th, 17th & 18th February 2013

Special edition of predictions for you guys and gals this weekend as it includes FA Cup 5th round, FA Cup 4th round replays and Premier League predictions. Aren’t you all very lucky! Here are my predictions for this weekend (All kick-offs at 3pm unless stated).

FA Cup 5th round

Saturday
Luton 1-2 Millwall (K.O. 12:45pm)
Arsenal 3-1 Blackburn
MK Dons 2-1 Barnsley
Oldham 2-3 Everton (K.O. 6pm)

Sunday

Man City 2-1 Leeds Utd (K.O. 2pm)
Huddersfield 2-1 Wigan (K.O. 3:55pm (Don’t ask me why!))

Monday

Man Utd 4-2 Reading (K.O. 8pm)

FA Cup 4th round replay

The winners of Chelsea vs Brentford will travel to the Riverside to play against Middlesbrough on the Wednesday 27th February

Sunday

Chelsea 4-2 Brentford

Premier League

Sunday

Liverpool 2-1 Swansea 

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Wednesday 13 February 2013

Premier League title could be decided before or on Manchester Derby day

They think it’s all over. It could be now! Manchester United is currently 12 points clear at the top of the Premier League and ahead of their rivals, Manchester City. I believe that United will win the title if City fails to decrease this lead by half in the five games running up to and including the Manchester Derby on 6th April.

This Derby game will be at Old Trafford so have no doubt the United fans will be rubbing the points difference in the City fans faces, just like City did when they defeated United 6-1 back in October 2011.

This time last season, City was sitting on the top of the table, five points clear of United but United had a game in hand.

City’s home record was impeccable too having won all 14 league home games at this point of the season, scoring 42 goals and only conceding six.

This season has been a different story though as they won nine, drawn three and lost one game at home, scoring 29 and conceding 11.

Their away form has taken a slight hit when compared to last season too. City’s current away record of winning six, drawing five and losing two games is a marginal decrease from last season’s record at this point of winning seven, drawing three and losing three.

However, a lot of fans of the Premier League will say the main reason for the separation between the two clubs is one man, United’s summer signing of Robin Van Persie, but I don’t believe this is the case.

United’s home and away record this season is more-or-less the same as what it was at this point last season.

So if you removed £22.5m Van Persie from the United squad, would the likes of Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez and Danny Welbeck be able to step up to fill his place?

The answer is clearly yes as shown from how United performed last season when they didn’t have RVP at all.

Granted, City would definitely be performing better this season if they were able to persuade RVP to come to them last season.

But they don’t have him and most of their strikers have failed to match or improve on their goal scoring records from last season.

Sergio Aguero has only scored nine goals this season in the Premier League. He has a lot of goals to find if he is to match his 23 goals he scored last season.

Carlos Tevez has scored seven goals this season, improving on his last season Premier League goal scoring record of four. However, I still don’t think this is good enough for a striker of Manchester City.

Edin Dzeko is City’s top goal scorer this season with 11 goals, three shy of his tally last season of 14. But it’s a similar situation as Tevez as I still don’t believe this is good enough.

City’s defence has been better than United’s defence this season, having only conceded 24 goals compared to United who have conceded 31 goals.

But without a striking force getting the goals, this means a lot of draws have occurred this season for City, eight in total.

With five games to go before the Manchester Derby on the 6th April, in my eyes, City need to half the points difference between them and United if they still want to be in title contention.

It won’t be easy for City, as they have tough games against Chelsea, Everton and a newly reformed Newcastle side.

United’s run of games before the Manchester Derby seems to come cross a lot easier, with ties against QPR, Norwich and Reading.

With all this taken into consideration though, United seem to have the upper hand so I think United will win the title if they stay on their current form and not allow their point lead ahead of City to decrease.

City’s manager Roberto Mancini recently admitted he feels his side now has a 10% chance of winning the Premier League and he must make changes to his squad if he is to make this 10% achievable.

But United’s manager Sir Alex Ferguson is not the type of manager to admit that the job is done until the final whistle on the last day of the season.

And he’s right to think so as any City fans will tell you too, thanks to Aguero’s 95th minute goal on the last day of last season, anything is possible and nothing should be written off early.

twitter - @ConorJPorter

Monday 11 February 2013

Premier League Round-Up - 9th, 10th & 11th February 2013


What a weekend of Premier League action which has provided us with some unexpected score-lines. Here is a round-up of all the Premier League results from this weekend.

Saturday

Tottenham 2-1 Newcastle – Two goals by Gareth Bale was enough to see off Newcastle United at White Hart Lane and keep Tottenham Hotspur on track towards earning a Champions League spot.

Chelsea 4-1 Wigan – Chelsea end their four-match winless streak with a 4-1 thrashing of Wigan at Stamford Bridge with Frank Lampard increasing his goals tally for the club to 198.

Norwich 0-0 Fulham – Norwich and Fulham could only produce a 0-0 draw at Carrow Road, meaning Norwich’s winless streak has extended to nine games.

Stoke 2-1 Reading – Stoke City earned themselves their first win of 2013 with a 2-1 win at the Britannia against an in-form Reading side.

Sunderland 0-1 Arsenal – 10 men Arsenal were able to defeat Sunderland 1-0 at the Stadium of Light thanks to a first half goal by Santi Cazorla.

Swansea 4-1 QPR – QPR’s five-match unbeaten run was ended by Swansea as they managed to defeat them 4-1 at the Liberty Stadium.

Southampton 3-1 Man City – Southampton pull off a surprise win at St Mary’s when they defeated Manchester City 3-1, putting a dent in City’s title hopes.

Sunday

Aston Villa 2-1 West Ham – Aston Villa have moved out of the relegation zone thanks to a 2-1 win against West Ham at Villa Park.

Man Utd 2-0 Everton – Manchester United open a 12-point gap at the top of the Premier League with a 2-0 win against Everton at Old Trafford.

Monday

Liverpool 0–2 West Brom – A headed goal by Gareth McAuley was the catalyst that allowed West Brom to collect all three points at Anfield with a 2-0 win against Liverpool.

twitter - @ConorJPorter

Thursday 7 February 2013

Premier League Predictions - 9th, 10th & 11th February 2013



There were some great games last weekend including Newcastle winning 3-2 against Chelsea from 2-1 down, Reading defeating Sunderland 2-1, Aston Villa drawing 3-3 with Everton, Wigan drawing 2-2 with Southampton and Manchester City drawing 2-2 with Liverpool.

This weekend should provide just as good action including match ups of Tottenham vs Newcastle, Norwich vs Fulham and Stoke hosting an in-form Reading side on Saturday. On Sunday there’s Aston Villa vs West Ham and Manchester United vs Everton. We finally conclude this weekend’s action with a Monday night game of Liverpool vs West Brom (All kick-offs at 3pm unless stated).

Saturday

Tottenham 3-2 Newcastle (K.O. 12:45pm)
Chelsea 3-0 Wigan
Norwich 1-1 Fulham
Stoke 2-2 Reading
Sunderland 1-2 Arsenal
Swansea 3-2 QPR
Southampton 0-2 Man City (K.O. 5:30pm)

Sunday

Aston Villa 2-2 West Ham (K.O. 1:30pm)
Man Utd 3-2 Everton (K.O. 4pm)

Monday

Liverpool 3-1 West Brom (K.O. 8pm)

twitter - @ConorJPorter

Monday 4 February 2013

Baltimore Ravens 34-31 San Francisco 49ers - Superbowl Match Report

Joe Flacco - Superbowl MVP

Baltimore Ravens QB Joe Flacco pulls out a Superbowl MVP winning performance as the Ravens defeat the San Francisco 49ers 34-31 in the Superbowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

This also gave the best possible ending to Ravens LB Ray Lewis, as he was able to retire from the sport as a champion.

The Ravens won the coin toss and decided to allow the 49ers receive the ball first, keeping to their tradition of letting their opposition have possession first.

But they quickly got the ball back after forcing the 49ers three and out, and they started with good field position too, on their own 49 yard line.

And they took advantage of this field position three plays into their drive with a deep right pass from Flacco to WR Torrey Smith for 20 yards.

Then another three plays later, they capped it off with a 14 yard touchdown pass from Flacco to WR Anquan Boldin, the first score of the game.

Anquan Boldin touchdown -
REUTERS/Jim Young
On the eighth play of their next possession, the 49ers entered the RedZone for the first time in the game thanks to a 24 yard pass from QB Colin Kaepernick to TE Vernon Davis.

But they were reduced to a 36 yard field goal by K David Akers and not a touchdown, as Ravens LB Paul Kruger was able to sack Kaepernick for a loss of 10 yards, the first sack of the game.

The Ravens continued their good start on their next field possession when Flacco and Boldin connected for a 30 yard pass on the sixth play of their drive.

They were unable to capitalize though as three plays later, Flacco was sacked by 49ers DE Ray McDonald for a loss of five yards, forcing them to punt.

The 49ers started with the ball in the second quarter and on their first play, Kaepernick was able to link up with Davis again for 29 yards.

But once again they were unable to capitalize as their RB LaMichael James fumbled the ball on the Ravens 25 yard line.

The ball was then recovered by Ravens DE Arthur Jones, causing the first turnover of the game.

On the sixth play of their drive, Flacco was able to find TE Ed Dickson for 23 yards to the 49ers 29 yard line.

They then concluded the drive four plays later, with a one yard pass from Flacco to TE Dennis Pitta in the right part of the endzone, giving them a two possession lead.

It only took one play from the 49ers on their next drive for the Ravens to get the ball back and cause the second turnover of the game.

Kaepernick’s deep pass intended for WR Randy Moss was intercepted by Ravens FS Ed Reed, the first pick of the game.

This also gave the Ravens good starting field position, as they started their drive on the 49ers 38 yard line.

However, the 49ers defense was able to force the Ravens to go for a field goal after eight plays in their drive.

History was made in the Superbowl on the next play though, as the Ravens attempted a fake field goal. This is the first time it has ever been attempted in the Superbowl.

Sadly though, it wasn’t converted, as Ravens K Justin Tucker was forced out of bounds at the 49ers six yard line, leaving him one yard shy of the first down.

After the Ravens defense forced the 49ers to another three and out, the Ravens started another possession in good field position, from their own 44 yard line.

And once again they took full advantage as on the third play, Flacco found WR Jacoby Jones who was able to weave his way into the endzone for a 56 yard touchdown.

Jacoby Jones - Associated Press
This gave the Ravens a three possession lead with less than two minutes remaining in the second quarter.

The 49ers entered the RedZone for the second time in the game on their four play of their drive, courtesy of a 28 yard pass from Kaepernick to TE Delaine Walker.

But two plays later, Kaepernick was sacked for the second time in the game by Kruger, forcing them to settle for a field goal.

This made the half time score 21-6 to the Ravens.

The Ravens started off the second half in style, as WR J. Jones was able to return a kick-off for 108 yards for a touchdown.

This was the longest ever kick-off return in Superbowl history.

Jacoby Jones scoring on
kick-off return - REUTERS
Kaepernick started off the 49ers next drive well with a 29 yard pass to WR Michael Crabtree.

Two plays later though, Kaepernick was sacked for a loss of six yards by DE A. Jones, Ravens’ third sack of the game.

After this play, there was a power cut in one half of the Superdome, causing the game to be delayed. Action wasn’t resumed again for another half an hour.

Referee stands in the dark - Associated Press
The power outage seemed to work in the 49ers favour as when they regained possession, they started to add points more frequently to the board and play like the team that was favourites to win the Superbowl.

Crabtree gave the 49ers their first touchdown after catching a pass from Kaepernick and running it for 31 yards, breaking two tackles along the way.

The 49ers defense then forced the Ravens three and out as Flacco was sacked by LB Ahmad Brooks for a loss of eight yards.

49ers return specialist Ted Ginn was then able to return the Ravens’ punt for 32 yards, allowing his team to start their drive on the Ravens 20 yard line.

RB Frank Gore reduced the Ravens lead to eight two plays into the 49ers drive, when he scored a six yard touchdown run.

Frank Gore scores a touchdown - REUTERS
Two plays into the Ravens next drive, the second fumble of the game occurred. RB Ray Rice fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Tarell Brown, the third turnover of the game.

With the 49ers starting with the ball on the Ravens 24 yard line, they had another opportunity to add a touchdown to their score.

However, they were forced three and out, and they had to settle for a 34 yard field goal by Akers, reducing the Ravens lead to five points.

Three plays into the Ravens next drive, Flacco was able to connect with Boldin again for 30 yards. This looked like the catalyst that would restart the game for the Ravens.

But as the drive went into the start of the fourth quarter, they had to settle for a 19 yard field goal by Tucker, restoring Ravens’ eight point lead.

Kaepernick was able to find Moss on the second play of their next drive for 32 yards. Then Kaepernick capped off the drive three plays later with a 15 yard run for a touchdown.

Kaepernick's touchdown run past
Ed Reed - AP Photo/Matt Slocum
The 49ers did attempt a two-point conversation after the touchdown, but this failed as Kaepernick’s pass for Moss was overthrown.

With the Ravens leading now by only two points, they surged down the field to try and add more points to the board.

However, after ten plays, they had to settle for a 38 yard field goal by Tucker.

On the 49ers next drive, they looked like they would score another touchdown after two fantastic back-to-back plays by Crabtree and Gore respectively.

The first was on the four play of their drive and it was a deep middle 24 yard pass to Crabtree. It was quickly followed up on the next play by Gore with a 33 yard run to the Ravens seven yard line.

They were unable to complete the drive on the ninth play as a pass intended for Crabtree was incomplete, causing a change in possession.

The Ravens then played very tactically, running down the clock to four seconds and giving the 49ers a safety, but they still gave a chance for the 49ers to win the game on the kick return.

The 49ers though were unable to conjure up anything from this, meaning the Ravens won the game 34-31.

Ray Lewis lifts the
Vince Lombardi trophy - Lucy Nicholson/REUTERS
This was a dream come true for Lewis, as he was able to retire from the game as a champion for only the second time in his career.

This also means that Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh and the Ravens have kept their 100% record at the Superbowl, winning on both occasions they have been there.

But for John’s brother and 49ers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh and the 49ers, their 100% record is over, as they have been to the Superbowl on six occasions but only won five times.

Jim (left) and John Harbaugh (right)
congratulate each other - REUTERS
For his fantastic performance of 287 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions, Joe Flacco earned himself the Superbowl MVP award, meaning the MVP award has gone to a QB for the fourth year in a row.

So, NFL action is now over till the season starts up again in September. Don’t worry though, you can see how future NFL prospects do in the NFL Combine which starts on the 20th February and concludes on the 26th February.

Then you can see where they get drafted in the NFL Draft. This starts on the 25th April and then finishes on the 27th April. 

twitter - @ConorJPorter

Friday 1 February 2013

Premier League Predictions - 2nd & 3rd February 2013



The transfer window is over so now it’s time to focus back on this weekend’s Premier League action. Last time out, Arsenal and Reading came back to draw 2-2 after going 2-0 down to Liverpool and Chelsea respectively, QPR and Sunderland could only manage 0-0 draws against Manchester City and Swansea respectively and Newcastle were able to defeat Aston Villa 2-1 at Villa Park.

This weekend, QPR will play against Norwich in the Saturday early game, Wigan will play against fellow strugglers Southampton and Manchester United will travel to Craven Cottage to play against Fulham in the Saturday evening game. On Sunday, West Brom will host Tottenham and Manchester City will play against Liverpool. Here are my predictions for this weekend (Kick-offs are at 3pm unless stated):

Saturday

QPR 3-2 Norwich (K.O. 12:45pm)
Arsenal 3-1 Stoke
Everton 2-0 Aston Villa
Newcastle 0-2 Chelsea
Reading 2-3 Sunderland
West Ham 1-3 Swansea
Wigan 2-2 Southampton
Fulham 1-3 Man Utd (K.O. 5:30pm)

Sunday

West Brom 1-3 Tottenham (K.O. 1:30pm)
Man City 3-2 Liverpool (K.O. 4pm)

twitter - @ConorJPorter