Just settled doon to watch Leeds vs Everton on Sky. I really want Leeds to win today to prevent the Toffees opening a gap ahead of us.

However, if they don't win, then Arse are confirmed iin 2nd spot I believe and may be a bit less inclined to turn up on Sunday.

Help - what would you prefer??

-- Anonymous, May 08, 2000

Answers

Thanks for complicating things, Screach! Here I sit with the webcast on, happily cheering for Leeds because I don't want Everton going any further ahead of us on points before Sunday. Then you have to throw in the bit about Arse. bah.

Anyway, aren't Arse swinging the axe on Wednesday on Wednesday?(or is it weds on tues?). Besides, AW will need to try to rest his UEFA cup starters on Sunday, so I think we'll be ok.

GO LEEDS!

-- Anonymous, May 08, 2000

Sounds like the ref had a good game tonight. Not.

-- Anonymous, May 08, 2000

Come on Ciara expand - I can't be bothered to go and turn the TV on.

-- Anonymous, May 08, 2000

Thoroughly entertaining match, spoiled by Andy D'@rsole. He really hadn't a clue what was going on and lost the respect of most of the players (and me). The one correct thing he did was send Scooby Duberry off - about 20 minutes too late. He'd played the same game he did against Shearer at SJP recently and rightly got a yellow. Silly b*gg*r continued with his heavy challenges and it was a surprise to the Sky guys and me that he lasted so long.

Prior to that, he (probably - OK, rightly) sent off Everton fullback for a nasty 2 footed challenge. In total, he brandished 7 (or thereabouts) yellow cards as wel as three reds, the last for Hutchinson for kicking the ball away while on a yellow. OK - he was stupid, but it resulted from a freekick to Leeds which should not have been given, and to add insult, Stephen Hughes was booked for getting the ball. D'@arsole blew late and Hutch saw red (litterally). No, not a good performance from the man in black. Not only did he dish out yellows incorrectly, he missed a challenge my Danny Mills and yellow carded Barmby for objecting to the challenge.

As I tyoe, Mark Hughes is being interviewed and diplomatically said that some of the decisions were mystifying. A whole hearted effort by all players let down dismally by the ref. Not for the first time.

-- Anonymous, May 08, 2000

Screach

Do you rate Duberry - I was talking to a Leeds fan last week and he reckoned he was to blame for the slump - apparently it coincided with him getting into the team ?

-- Anonymous, May 08, 2000

No - I don't like him at all. I have to admit this was influenced by his treatment of Shearer at SJP a few weeks ago and confirmed tonight. If he was that good, why would Chewsee have let him go (apart from being English)?

On this subject, apparently only Kewell and Bakke of the starting 22 were non-Brits. That means Everton had no foreigners. As David Coleman would have said "Quite remarkable".

-- Anonymous, May 08, 2000

Stephen Hughes must feel really good about being booked for having the audacity to win the ball, clean as a whistle, in a near-perfect sliding tackle.

Another demonstration of incompetance by the usually awful Mr Durso - he must surely be relegated to the Nationwide. How come he's in the PL and Terry Hielbron - the best referee I've seen this season - is on the lower League?

Having said that Uriah Rennie looked consistently excellent in the Nationwide - before his head was stuffed full of straw by PL Officials.

BTW: Duberry is a donkey and was deservedly sent off for goodness knows how many fouls.

-- Anonymous, May 08, 2000

Screach, call me 'Mr Picky' but I get pissed off with the way Home players now includes Welsh, Scots and Irish.

They used to count towards the 3 foreigners limit so there is no mileage in making comparisons with 'the good old days' if they insist on changing the selection criteria.

They're going to be on right dodgy ground if they return to the limit on foreigners rule if they insist on viewing us as British for determining numbers of foreigners and as English when we play international competition. This is England. This is the English Football Association. Only English players are Home players, the rest may as well come from Timbuctoo. Humph!

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2000

Dear Mr Picky

I agree 100% with that Softie.....p*sses me off as well!

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2000

My comment about "Home players" was not meant to be xeinophobic (I can't even spell it) but merely a contrast with other PL teams, and particularly, remembering the way things were in my youth (yes, on a good day I can still remember tht far back).

In those days, the natural progression for young Welsh, Irish and Scots lads was into the English League. Even in out own B&W, we had the likes of Wyn "The Leap" Davies, Gordon Marshall, Trevor Hockey, Alf McMichael (?) as well as the likes of Dalglish, Best, Crerand, Law, Bremner etc etc gracing the First Division.

I honestly believe the introduction, for whatever "good" reasons, of so many foreign players is detrimental to the home game. And yes, I am also a fan of International football. I'd like nothing better than to see England win a major international tournament (I can still remember the last time - just!) with a fair representation of Geordies/Toon players in the team. Well, there's one thing I'd like more - as we all would. Toon to win some silverware.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2000

Whaddaya mean "just" - I heard they let you sit with the Chewsea Pensioners!

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2000