Claret & Light Blue v Lawro of the B.B.C.

Results: March 21st  – 22nd , 2009
Lawro managed to get five correct results this week and was spot-on with his 1-1 scoreline in the West Brom v Bolton game…C % LB was correct with four results…
After 235 games the overall scores are:
Claret & Light Blue 107 correct results / 18 correct scores
Lawro of the BBC   101  correct results / 20 correct scores

Claret & Light Blue v Lawro of the B.B.C.

Predictions : Marcch 21st/22nd , 2009

Pompey v Everton            Lawro: 0-0         C & LB: 1-2

Blackburn v West Ham        Lawro: 2-0         C & LB: 1-0

Fulham v Man U            Lawro: 1-1         C & LB: 0-2

Stoke v  M’bro                Lawro: 1-2         C & LB: 1-1

Spurs v Chelsea            Lawro: 0-2         C & LB: 0-1

WBA v Bolton                Lawro: 1-1         C & LB: 1-0

Newcastle v Arsenal        Lawro: 0-2            C & LB: 0-1

Wigan v Hull                Lawro: 2-1        C & LB: 2-0

Man C v  Sunderland        Lawro: 2-0        C & LB: 2-1

Liverpool v Villa            Lawro: 2-0        C & LB: 2-0

After 225 games the overall scores are:
Claret & Light Blue 103 correct results / 18 correct scores
Lawro of the BBC   96  correct results / 19 correct scores

The Great Villa Euro Debate – Feb 2009

Bren obviously makes some good points but fails to address Tom’s remarks about the fans who have attended the two games and, with regards to some of the players having had time off recently and then having no match next weekend, he has appeared to swallow O’Neill’s strange decision to rest the ‘leggy’ ones. We will have just two games between March 4th and April 5th!! Two!! We could be out of Europe by tomorrow evening so what’s the point of saving the players for that period of time?…Professional footballers who have played 40 games or so at the most at this point is not too burdensome surely… Meanwhile, I think you try to win every game – hence my extreme annoyance with our League Cup performances of late…
Bren also talks about the team qualifying for the C.L. whilst at the same time indicating that we would struggle in the next round of this far lesser competition if we played a team like Donetzk – a decent team I suppose but no last 32 of the C.L. club. How far does he expect us top go if we qualify for the C.L. if he is concerned about such teams in the UEFA Cup? He appears to base this opinion on being able to sign ‘big’ names before next season. This may not happen to any significant degree and we could be out of the C.L. in the early stages – which answers MJFC’s comment of support for Brendan’s point about a “year in the C.L. transforming the club” – we won’t be in it for a year. If we qualify, we may be out of it within a couple of months, possibly back to the UEFA – then what would we do if we get in the same position again?
I must also disagree with Bren’s comments about finishing 2nd being “not unrealistic” and qualification for the C.L. being “more important to us at this stage of the club’s development.” I cannot see us finishing 2nd and think it is unrealistic. I have watched virtually every game and we are not as good as so many seem to think. We have battled hard for every point but have been quite fortunate to gain as many as we have. We are the fourth or fifth best team and over the 38 games this is normally borne out by the final table so I will not be shocked if we struggle a little in the closing stages and 4th is as optimistic as I can be. That would be a marvelous achievement of course and Villa fans should be overjoyed, and yet even coming fifth, and a Euro spot by doing so, should be viewed as “important at this stage of the club’s development” given the short period of time over which this excellent progress has been made.
Perhaps my guarded optimism, some would say outright negativity, is as a result of being somewhat removed from “ground zero’ in and around Villa Park/Erdo. I accept that (and hope I am wrong to be so negative), but this view from way, way beyond B6 is all I can offer – watching the games sitting in my living room at 7am with a bucket of strong coffee, nervously pacing up and down and alternatively stroking/kicking the confused dogs around me, is perhaps not the best way to come to these opinions but I have often been left disappointed by our performances, even in victory.
I hope that if we do fail to qualify for the C.L. the fans are not too down-hearted and critical. It is where we are at this stage of our development. Unlike in years past, pre-’Premiership’, teams do not change things around over night unless ridiculous amounts of money has been made available. We have made great progress and fifth is very good; disappointing of course, certainly a bit of a let down at this point, however significant strides forward have been made. Fourth would be very impressive indeed if you remember where we stood at the season’s beginning. We have not played a lot of great football this season. Great results, not great football. Sure, in many matches we have been very good for lengthy periods but apart from Arsenal away I cannot think of a completely satisfying performance. Too often we give the ball away easily, too often we have had too few attacking options, and too often the squad’s lack of depth in terms of “Top Four Quality” has been exposed. We are not as good as the Top Three; Arsenal are another matter – to be decided in the next couple of months…
This is a classic Villa discussion – equally valid points on two sides; one dominated by admirable but frequently false optimism, the other by traditional, oft-proven, but perhaps out-dated pessimism. The ‘proud history; bright future’ of the Lerner/O’Neill Revolution is a wonderful credo, yet it’s merits can be discussed ad finitem by those who really know the club – as we do. ‘Fascinating and proud history; hopeful of a bright future’ is perhaps a more accurate and reserved motto from a personal point of view…Meanwhile, bless us all.
So sure, “three cheers for Mr Dunne”…and Mr Mannion…and Mr C Jr too…To one and all – Claret & Light Blue 4 Ever!!!
“Happy to beeeee a Villa fan, until my dying day”…and hoping to be proven wrong by Mick’s 2-1 prediction for tomorrow’s match…

**********************************************************************

On Feb 25, 2009, at 12:35 PM, michael cusack wrote:

3 cheers for Mr.Dunne

From: BrenDunne@Baratuk.wanadoo.co.uk

Subject: Re: The Great Villa Debate
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2009 19:55:15 +0000

And another thing….

A year in the CL will transform the club, a night in Moscow won’t.
—– Original Message —–
From: Brendan Dunne

Subject: Re: The Great Villa Debate

It’s all about prioritising.

We couldn’t get a good result against CSKA in the home leg, what real chance do the same bunch of players on a plastic pitch in -8 conditions have against a very good Moscow side?  We could lose and come away with injuries and niggles to some of our best players leaving an already ‘legy’ and tired looking side struggling against Stoke and even more tired against an improving Man City 3 days later.

The CL is our priority, finishing 2nd is not unrealistic and probably more possible than going all the way to Istanbul which requires another 8 games should we get a result against CSKA , Shaktar Donetzk in the next round will be no pushovers should we succeed.  It would be great for the club to win the UEFA cup and qualify for the CL but realistically we don’t have the strength in depth to do both.  In any case, CL qualification is more important to us at this stage of the clubs development.  Should we get there we keep Barry and prying eyes away from Young and Gabby and we are also in a position to sign the quality that is required to build the squad with players who don’t mind or at least understand that they will at times have to warm the bench.

We’ve already played 11 games in the UEFA cup starting back in July.  It was important then as no one expected to be in the position we are now with 6 points in front of Arsenal.  This competition has to be considered less important while we are within grasp of the exclusive Sky 4 cartel.

—– Original Message —–
From: TMannion@bca-group.com

Subject: The Great Villa Debate

Back here in Blighty there is a huge debate going on about O’Neill’s decision to send a scratch team to Moscow and leave 8 first choice players at home. In fact one or two folks who live in roads starting with the letter O are banging heads at the moment.
I personally  wish he had taken a chance and tried to win the game and also tried to get in the Champions league as well. I also believe that 38,000 people paid £25 a ticket last week to see us in the competition which surely is evidence that the fans want us to do well in the tournament. Several hundred have shelled out a grand (Eugene is one of them) to go to the return leg too. Some of the players have recently had suspensions so have missed games anyway so have had their rest. We also get a break from league action soon as well. Like everybody else I would like to see us qualify for Champions league football but being as we are into the final stages of the EUFA Cup and it is something we have never won then I would like us to have given it a go. We had an opportunity in January to strengthen the squad too.

Gentlemen, your opinions please.

Ranting from under The Holte End Stand

Before any of you lovable bastards start to rub it in, I have a few thoughts to share…
“Happy to be a Villa Fan until my dying day” are words I have sung so many times…On reflection, perhaps “happy” is not exactly the right word given the roller-coaster ride I’ve been on over the past fifty years. This past couple of months typifies what it means to be someone born under the Holte End Stand back in February 1957…
We began 2009 with league wins over West Brom, Sunderland, Portsmouth, and Blackburn, along with a dismal draw against Wigan. Apart from the fairly convincing win at Blackburn (our last win), I was not impressed by any of these performances and yet had to read and listen to, time and again, how well we were playing, how our exciting youngsters were opening defences up, and how we were closing the gap on the Big Four. I did not agree with some of this. I thought we showed, all too often, weaknesses throughout the team. We were not playing well over ninety minutes, with long periods of mediocrity every week. We were getting increasingly predictable. Sure we were closing the gap on the Big Four but this was because The Four are not as dominant as they were (Man U excepted – until yesterday’s blip). We have improved, they have gone backwards – the gap is therefore obviously closer. We still have very few players who would start for those teams and that is surely as good a measure as any when making comparisons…
On my birthday, (Feb 14th for those who may have forgotten), I spoke with a Chelsea fan and said I felt we were due our comeuppance at Everton the next day in the Cup. We were convincingly beaten 1-3. Then I wrote to a Yankee Liverpool fan and said, “Villa finishing in the top four would be a great achievement and the main goal in most fans eyes. Obviously a good run in the UEFA Cup would be excellent too. Nevertheless, as any Villa fan would tell you, we view the F.A. Cup with great reverence at Villa Park and every year the chat in the pubs of Birmingham (north side of course, not the BlueNosed south side) will contain many references to this being ‘our year’. Therefore this defeat will have been very disappointing.”…I then signed off that e-mail with, “Claret & Light Blue and excited/fearful about this weekend’s games against CSKA Moscow and then against the Pensioners – it could be a defining moment on this remarkable season – or perhaps result in the beginning of a slow slide to the predictable fifth place finish…”
Well, as I should have known, taking the fifty years under review, the latter course is slowly becoming the road we have unfortunately taken to this point. We blew sevaral chances in the home leg against CSKA, then lost to a Chelsea side not even close to their team of a couple of years ago, before being bundled out of Europe without much of a fight and under the controversial circumstances of fielding a team of virtual reserves. A  few days later against Stoke at Villa Park, despite a bright first forty-five minutes,  we then contrived to offer up a very poor second half effort culminating in two late goals for a team that will quite possibly be playing Milton Keys Dons next season. Many players looked jaded, despite that rest in midweek, and we gave up sloppy goals highlighting our defensive frailties (we really miss Martin Larsen). Then came our bogey team Man City…
I wondered if this was going to be one of those Villa efforts that drives me nuts – the ones in which we play quite well for a time, miss two or three decent chances (Agbonlahor certainly one of them), then in the middle of a poor second half display we score a fortunate goal in the 65th minute before proceeding to give the ball away for the final quarter of the game yet just hanging on to get the win. True to form, the media and myopic Villa fans would then offer more plaudits for yet another win; nobody stopping for a moment to really critique yet another performance that papered over the cracks that this team so obviously has…Or would it be worse? It was at Man City after all. I honestly felt we were going to play poorly and lose easily. We did, 0-2, and I watched in anger and despair as the first half exposed us as pretenders to a top four spot. Fortunately, the second half was much better and ultimately perhaps we deserved a point. However, we have had our fair share of good fortune for this season so we must get used to it being in short supply from now on – over the thirty eight games it balances out and the final table will not lie…
So then we get eleven days off, and a trip to Dubai which I hear is nice this time of year, before today’s match – Tottenham at home. Very winnable, one might think. We were poor once again and although my Claret & Light Blue tinted glasses would suggest a draw might have been deserved I’m sure many neutral observers would say Spurs deserved the three points…
Depressing? Too f*cking right it is. We have done very well this season. We are most probably the fifth best team, perhaps even the sixth; almost certainly not the fourth best. The final standings will make this clear. Whatever it shows, I am very pleased with our progress and look forward to it continuing over the next few years and beyond…O’Neill has done a fantastic job. The players have been excellent for the most part although some have been poor of late. Agbonlahor has been poor for ages, and Milner too. Friedel has had a good season, not a great one; the back four has been shaky since Larsen’s latest injury, Young is good but should stop falling over, Carew and Heskey are not the answer against quality central defenders, the midfield is decent – fifth best in the league perhaps? We are about the same as Everton, who may well overtake us to claim fifth if their current form continues…Nevertheless, overall it should be a marvelous time to be a Villan. Well it is and it isn’t – but that is the way it’s meant to be, and the way it’s going to be, and deep down I’m not surprised. That’s what following your team is all about, although Red Scousers, Man U, and Arse fans may not really understand this. That’s not their fault, certainly not their problem, it’s just the way it has been for far too long, I feel…Chelsea fans of some standing surely do understand – they have not been that good for most of their history. The rest of you certainly can relate to varying degrees and probably accept your lot, although Newcastle fans, and of course BlueNoses, should be suicidal at this point…
Aaarrgghh! All this moaning and groaning along with the joy and satisfaction – it’s all part of the ‘up-and-down-like-a-barmaid’s-knickers’ ride that it is to be a Claret and Light Blue fan…but what choice do I have? None – precisely…As another long-suffering Villa lad once said, “when we win it’s steak for the dog in front of the fire; when we lose the dog is outside in the rain with a bowl of water if he’s lucky.”…We have seven border collies – guess where they are?…
Keeping the Faith…Claret & Light Blue 4 Ever and trying to explain my bad mood to my long-suffering wife who doesn’t understand football but loves me and now her relaxing and contented Sunday morning has a large dark cloud over it – she must be a saint…
p.s. I just thought you should know…

Claret & Light Blue v Lawro of the B.B.C

Results: March 14th – 16th , 2009
Both punters were correct with four results and each of them had the correct 1-1 score in the Hull/Newcastle game.
After 225 games the overall scores are:
Claret & Light Blue 103 correct results / 18 correct scores
Lawro of the BBC 96 correct results / 19 correct scores

Claret & Light Blue v Lawro of the B.B.C.

Predictions : March 14th – 16th, 2009

Man U v Liverpool Lawro: 0-0 C & LB: 1-0

Arsenal v Blackburn Lawro: 2-0 C & LB: 2-1

Bolton v Fulham Lawro: 2-0 C & LB: 2-1

Everton v Stoke Lawro: 2-1 C & LB: 2-0

Hull v Newcastle Lawro: 1-1 C & LB: 1-1

M’bro v Pompey Lawro: 2-1 C & LB: 2-1

Sunderland v Wigan Lawro: 2-1 C & LB: 1-0

Chelsea v Man City Lawro: 2-0 C & LB: 2-0

Villa v Spurs Lawro: 2-1 C & LB: 2-1

West Ham v WBA Lawro: 2-0 C & LB: 3-1

After 215 games the overall scores are: Claret & Light Blue 99 correct results / 17 correct scores Lawro of the BBC 92 correct results / 18 correct scores

Claret & Light Blue v Lawro of the B.B.C.

Results: Feb 28th – March 1st  , 2009
Both punters were correct on three results out of the eight Premiership games played this weekend. They each had two correct scores.
After 215 games the overall scores are:
Claret & Light Blue 99 correct results / 17 correct scores
Lawro of the BBC   92  correct results / 18 correct scores