A Sporting View returns

Not so injured after all

Rugby; One of the most sensational scandals ever to emerge from Rugby Union has been played out before our eyes over the past few weeks. The surreal episode, now popularly known as “Bloodgate,” has more than likely ended the coaching career of former Harelquins coach Dean Richards for good. It also threatens to have the same effect on many others higher up in the Harlequins command structure, including the club Chief Executive Mark Evans. Even the player involved at the heart of the matter, Tom Williams, has received a four month playing ban, though it now seems that poor chap was as good as bullied into firstly going along with the farce and then attempting to cover it up.

New football season preview – Part 2

1 – Are Manchester City a real force to be reckoned with after their summer spending spree?

A force to be reckoned with?

I’ve given this a lot of thought over the past few weeks and the more I think about it the more I believe they’re going to be a genuine challengers for some of the top prizes. Leaving aside the ridiculous amount of money City has spent on transfer fees and wages since coming under the control of the Abu Dhabi United Group, Mark Hughes now has a formidable squad to go to war with.

New football season preview – Part 1

Heading back home

As the new football season approaches I thought it time to start taking a look at some of the stories that have grabbed the headlines over the summer break. I intend on this being a rolling series so I’m going to deal with a number of issues over the coming days. By the time everything kicks off I’ll hopefully have most items covered and I’ll also focus on a different team at the end of each blog in the series. It’s an open forum so drop me a line if there’s anything in particular you’d like covered.