January 4, 2012 · 6:05 pm

#Oneaday 56: New Year’s resolutions?

This is a blog I wrote late on New Year’s Day. THis year, we are 5 trying to do ‘one a day’ as a team….that is 73 blogs each this year…

Is there any point? I mean each and every year for as long as I can remember I have been suckered into making New Year Resolutions. Mostly they last a few weeks, occasionally they last longer, but I never keep them. Ok I did once, 1st Jan 1983 I gave up smoking.

But why do we do this? Last year my resolution was to blog once a day. Enticed by the #oneaday blogging movement, I resolved to write every day even though plenty of people told me to do #oneaweek. Nope, I thought one a day would be doable. What was I thinking? I managed to finish the year on 54 blogs, just over one a week. It started poorly and I never ever caught up with the daily average. Yet until about May, I thought I could pull things back. I didn’t, clearly.

So this year, instead of learning my lessons, I resolved to blog once a week with my fellow Fab Four Amigos. Together we are calling ourselves the Five Hombres, and it already feels much better. We are together, we will support each other and make sure that we deliver one blog per working day ie five days a week. Yep, I am confident we can do this, so confident that I actually volunteered to be first up. And here it is and here am I, at 11.37 on Jan 1st 2012 writing a few hundred words to get the ball rolling. So much happened last year on a micro sort of personal, as well as on a global level, that sometimes it was hard to keep up. Exciting and uplifting at all times and it was actually cool to glance back at some of the things I wrote about during 2011.

Here’s to my fellow Hombres! Together we are stronger, of that I am confident. 2012 is going to be a brilliant year.

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November 10, 2011 · 9:20 am

#oneaday55: Progress through conversation

So FIFA backed down over the Poppy row? Not exactly what actually happened was a diplomatic agreement was made after some protest and subsequent discussion. FIFA’s rules are not actually broken and the FA supported by its chairman the Duke of Cambridge, got acknowledgement that their voice was heard. Poppies will be present on the black armbands that they England players will wear and Spain will also respect our position. Poppies will be everywhere else in the stadium and on the tracksuits and everyone is now calm and happy.

The FA have even agreed to give 500 tickets for the match to members of HM Forces and a further 1000 for the game against Sweden. Not wishing to be picky, but that really does not seem to be much. It’s a gesture.The FA and the players could make a sizeable donation to The Poppy Appeal, match fees and ticket income, or food , programme, sponsor receipts and there is still time to reconnect with the people by doing something radical. I fully appreciate the FA is all but skint, and yes future precedents could be set, but so would vital examples and those are what we need in these testing and troubled times. We all need to see beyond ‘the money’ and reset so many ‘games’ and this would be a fantastic step in the right direction. If one of the many lasting legacies of
the fallen from all wars is to ‘nudge’ those lucky enough to earn and live well  to think about the wider society they live in, then the spirit of togetherness can be rekindled and progress will be made.

It is also a lesson that we all have the right to protest if we feel that we are being wronged, individually and as a community. That protest should always be peaceful but it should be listened to. Our Prime Minister felt it right to protest to FIFA and I hope our Government will always listen to those who make their disaffection heard, all be it in a peaceful manner. Real progress can only ever be made through a proper conversation in my experience.

 

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November 9, 2011 · 9:21 am

#oneaday 54: A corner of some field that will forever be England?

When asked by a good friend last week  in the pub on Bonfire Night [a celebration of the execution of those involved in a Papist plot to assassinate the King of England some 400 years ago], about my views on
FIFA’s decision to ban the Poppy from the England football team’s shirts at this weekend’s friendly, at Wembley against Spain,  I said I felt it was probably the right decision. I based this on the simple logic that national kits should be free from any advertising commercial or otherwise, and free from all political symbols. That is not to say that I regard the Poppy as a political symbol or indeed advertising. It is a tradition in Britain and one which I am personally very proud of.

However, I have thought further on this issue and have come up with two ideas – one radical and one not so radical.

The national football team have, I believe, become toxic. The attitude of some players on and off the pitch has often not been a good example of sporting endeavour and gentlemanly behaviour. The Football Association have
become increasingly marginalised as a result of self induced incompetence and a vicious and sustained attack on the part of the Premier League in order to further increase the power of the latter within the game. Both team and Association have lost the respect of the fans and the nation in general, I would argue.

This island union made up of its component nations fought the evil of fascism in order to preserve its independence and freedom. That was the Second World War. Ironically the Poppy was introduced after the Great War (latterly known as the First World War) which was far from a struggle against the evil of fascism and far more about the nations of Europe fighting over territory as they had done for a thousand years previously. Colloquially, it was a fuck up of enormous proportions by the ruling elite of Europe, but  let’s not go there! The tradition of wearing a red Poppy to commemorate Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday is established and it is the democratic right of anyone to have the choice as top whether they wear one or not.

Back to football. If the FA had any gumption, it would offer each member of the England football team the choice as to whether they wanted to wear a Poppy or not, no matter what FIFA say. Indeed, in 1936 to the eternal shame of the FA the England football team were ordered to salute Mr Hitler with the now infamous right arm raised at 45 degrees towards the Nazi leader when England played a friendly against Germany in Berlin. At the time, this was considered polite but with 20/20 hindsight it was perhaps not
exactly right and proper. If the match had been played at Wembley, would the German FA have ordered the German team to wave politely at Mr Hitler issued ‘three cheers for a jolly good fellow’? I think not.

If the referee at Wembley refused to referee the match,  then provided the Spanish agreed to play the game, it could go ahead without match officials. This would be a significant and  seismic gesture and would directly challenge the authority of FIFA, an organisation that has consistently made its own rules up and pursued rampant commercial ideals ‘for the good of the game’. FIFA are self appointed and self regulated. They answer to no one and thus behave as a Totalitarian organisation. They are also headquartered in Switzerland, a nation that stayed neutral in all wars whilst acting as bankers to all regimes, including the Nazis. If the players and FA defied this rule, and if Spain stood shoulder to shoulder alongside them would send a message into the heart of FIFA that even Sepp Blatter could not ignore. All the paying fans in the stadium plus all those watching on TV and via the Internet would react in a positive way and it would be history in the making. We already know that the German FA have sent messages of support to the English FA such is their despair at the power of FIFA.

Alternatively and perhaps realistically, the FA have to ‘play the game’ and tread a diplomatic course. So they should continue to negotiate and lobby for the right to wear the Poppy. They should also diplomatically defy FIFA,  perhaps insist
FIFA officials wear poppies, and should appeal to the players to donate theirmatch fee to the Poppy Appeal and all the match ticket proceeds also. This would be a step in the process of repairing the faith and the connection between the
exponents and custodians of our national game with those who support it. New Wembley needs a hand in the tradition stakes, how better than to be the site of 21st century peaceful defiance in the face of a totalitarian regime, indeed it could be the corner of some [foreign] field that will forever be England.

Either way, we all need to stand up to FIFA. After all when Mr Blatter eventually slips his mortal coil, I am sure FIFA will order the wearing of black armbands as a mark of respect to him at every international match on or around that day.

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November 3, 2011 · 7:31 pm

#oneaday53: Democracy know your [place in] history

According to Wikipedia, ‘Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all the people have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal (and more or less direct) participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law. It can also encompass social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the free and equal practice of political participation. ‘

The term itself comes from the Greek  word δημοκρατία – (dēmokratía) “rule of the people”,which was coined from δῆμος (dêmos) “people” and κράτος (Kratos) “power”, in the middle of the 5th-4th century BC to denote the political systems then existing in some Greek city-states, notably Athens following a popular uprising 508BC – again all according to Wikipedia.

Thus when the Western world heaved a collective sigh of relief a week ago when it was announced that a ‘deal’ had been done to ‘help’ Greece out with their debts. The deal was done by a few, behind closed doors and without agreat deal of democracy seemingly in play. Immediately ‘the markets’ cheered, bought and sold stock and overall bought more than they sold. Markets went up and everyone hailed salvation. No doubt some stock market dealers made a tidy sum that day.

Seven days on and the reluctant Prime Minister of Greece, Mr George Papandreou  who was elected on the back of a previous, highly corrupt regime incidentally, decided to call a time out on this EU move. Far from unilateral agreement on the part of the Greek
government on behalf of its people, George decided to get the ultimate buy in or buy out from his citizens and call a referendum.

This may or may not get through the Greek Parliament of course, and today it seems like it may not, but it feels like the first move of solidarity between the Greek people and their elected leaders for some time. It feels well overdue. Despite the fact that Greece has by all accounts been living the life of Riley on the back off corruption, back handers, inflated pay for all and very little economic infrastructure to support it all, this does feel right, despite what ‘the markets’ feel about it. Indeed the fact that politicians around the world are hostage to these financial markets highlights the complete and utter lack of democracy nowadays. No one voted for the people who run these markets, but seemingly they are the true masters of the universe, above law and free of any moral dignity other than to worship at the altar of Mammon.

Mr Papandreou has decided that his last hurrah will be an ironic nod to that ancient Greek principle of democracy. Ask the people simply ‘do you want to say yes to the loan accord from the EU, yes or no to Europe and yes or no to the Euro’.  Meanwhile the likes of Goldman Sachs, very much the puppet masters in this Greek tragedy will no doubt move on to their next deal, their next commission rake off and even bigger profits. The ‘Occupy’ movement will not go away until the elected leaders of democracies around the world take control of the financiers and their markets and ensure power is shared and not monopolised by the relatively few investment bankers and hedge funders who have fiddled and stolen from the many.

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August 27, 2011 · 12:27 am

oneaday#52: The day I asked the Prime Minister for computer science

I should have written this up at the time, I drafted it, half finished, half dusty.

Having just read Eric Schmidt’s MacTaggart lecture from the Edinburgh Festival today, it took me back to a brisk winter morning in Oxfordshire. It was Thursday 1oth March 2011. It turned out that this was a very special day for Kirsty and I. We had been invited to the opening of the UK’s first National Accessible Games Centre in Charlbury, and I was to address the Prime Minister, Mr David Cameron no less. On the way to the opening, our hearts sank, when we heard on Radio 4 that ‘Prime Minister Cameron was on his way to Brussels to meet feillow European leaders to discuss the escalations of civil unrest in Libya’.

‘That’s us done for then Kirst’ I said, ‘the PM won’t be coming to Charlbury today to open the centre’

‘Yes, what a shame’ said Kirsty, ‘still let’s make the best of it after all Matt Hampson is guest of honour and it is a big day for SpecialEffect (the charity that had built the centre)‘

So we carried on and I was less nervous about my speech, given I knew Matt and the SpecialEffect team.

However, when we got to the National Accessible Games Centre, it was crawling with all sorts of men in black, complete with ear pieces and military style gaits. The word from our hosts was that Mr Cameron was coming after all. He duly arrived and I made the following speech in a small room pretty much one to one, we were literally 3 feet from each other.

I am extremely proud and honoured to be asked to say a few words on this momentous occasion on behalf of the UK video games industry. I am thrilled that SpecialEffect are opening the National Accessible Games Centre here in Charlbury and is a tribute to the hard work put in by the whole of the SpecialEffect team.

This Centre is the first of it’s kind in the UK and we believe in the world and it is a real landmark not only for this wonderful charity, but for the video games industry in general.

The video games industry prides itself on providing true interactive entertainment. But it was only when this very special charity reached out to our industry, the multinational corporations and the smaller businesses, when they nudged us if you like, that we realised that that we could do so much more and make our games truly accessible to those
people with disabilities.

We feel that video games and interactive entertainment products offer a unique opportunity to level the playing field so to speak, to allow all people with or without disabilities to compete, play and enjoy games with each another. We are in an unique position as an entertainment industry and through interaction with initiatives such as SpecialEffect we can
truly start to ensure that we make games that are inclusive.

Our industry charity, GamesAid of which I am chairman, has been massively impressed by their work. So much so that for two years running the members of GamesAid have voted to support SpecialEffect.

Indeed the highlight of the UK’s premier consumer games show, the Eurogamer Expo last September in London was not Assassins Creed Brotherhood, Dance Central or Gears of War 3, it was the work that SpecialEffect showed wowing media and gamers alike. SpecialEffect certainly left a massive impression with their amazing Eye Control technology allowing everyone to play Need for Speed with nothing more than their eyes.

I would also like to say a few words about the synergies between the UK games development industry and SpecialEffect as these
are important to us all.

Driven by a technical expertise, fuelled by passion and commitment and often against all the odds and without a book of rules to follow, the UK has produced some of the greatest video games ever produced. From Elite to Grand Theft Auto to Fable to Little Big Planet, the UK has shown a propensity for technical innovation and awesome gameplay. In short we have punched above our weight on the world wide stage and our UK games developers have contributed and will continue to contribute significantly to the creative industries sector.

In the same way, SpecialEffect led by Dr Mick Donegan and his wonderful team have showed exactly the same approach to their cause. They are doing amazing work, writing the rules as they go, innovating and pioneering along the way. They have showed true leadership and are a massive asset to UKPLC.

Today is the day that SpecialEffect have taken an important step on the road to building this very special place – it really is a little big accessible games centre, built for games and above all open to everyone.

The Prime Minister gave his response, which was straight off the bat, without notes and highly impressive. There were some pictures and then we were instructed to move outside for more pictures. At this point Mr Cameron asked if the industry was getting behind SpecialEffect, and ‘are there any stragglers that I need to help along?’. I said that the industry had got behind the initiative and support was forthcoming and from multiple sources.

He then asked me if there was one thing he could take back to his Government to make a difference to the computer and video games industry. I paused, thought about it, and then said ‘yes, as a matter of fact there is one crucial message you could take back to your Government. Please ask Mr Gove to consider putting computer science back on the National Curriculum’. I referenced the recently published Livingstone Hope Report on skills for the computer and video games and VFX industries, commissioned by Ed Vaizey at the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and that it had called for 20 recommendations, the
first of which was to put computer science back on the map. Mr Cameron asked why we should do this. I couched it in simple terms.

‘Prime Minister, we are very creative nation and the creative industries are an example of where we are winners. We have an amazing music, TV, film, and games industries and are
respected the world over. One of the many reasons for this is that we own the English language and it gives us and other English speaking peoples a unique advantage. It is almost a code which allowed us to create art and entertainment relevant to the 20th century. But now in the 21st century, we are all touched and influenced by technology beyond our wildest expectations. Technology requires a different language – the language of computer code if you will. If we do not equip our children to both read and write code, then they will only
ever be consumers of that technology, not inventors. Our culture and economy will be threatened and we will lose.’

‘But we teach IT in schools’ said the PM.

‘Yes, but that teaches children how to use Word, Excel and Powerpoint. It does not teach them how to design, develop and build those products. Think of it as the equivalent of being only
able to read and not be able to write. Communication is one way and we have no ability to express ourselves culturally and thus economically’.

‘I see, that is interesting. In fact it reminds me of the Baltic Conference I attended recently. There was much talk of the big technology companies eyeing Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia as possible sites for expansion. I was told all of these countries have skilled technicians and education standards in the science , technology, engineering and maths (STEM) are high. ‘ said the PM.

‘Yes Prime Minister, they all have a greater command of the new languages, the code, than we do.’

Our conversation ended and we had a series of pictures for the media and guests , before the Prime Minister left in a car, headed for an aircraft to take him to the important European summit on Libya. But before he left, I shook his hand, tapped my nose and said ‘Prime Minister, don’t forget it’s all about the code’.

Mr Cameron looked me in the eye, tapped his nose and said ‘yes, it is all about the code’.

And so to today, Eric Schmidt chairman of one of the world’s greatest technology companies, Google, spoke at the Edinburgh Festival about many things – but the line that did it for me was that the country that
invented the computer was “throwing away your great computer heritage” by failing to teach programming in schools. “I was flabbergasted to learn that today computer science isn’t even
taught as standard in UK schools,” Schmidt said. “Your IT curriculum focuses on teaching how to use software, but gives no insight into how it’s made.”

Let’s hope our leaders listen up and take some action. If we don’t, then Britain may not have talent for too much longer.

Full articles on Eric Schmidt’s speech can be found at www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/aug/26/eric-schmidt-chairman-google-education#start-of-comments

and

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14683133

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August 9, 2011 · 2:46 pm

#Oneaday 51: To be someone is just a wonderful thing

I have been silent on the #oneaday  project for too
long and yet we are living in the most extraordinary times. Since I last wrote
we have seen the unravelling of the Murdoch empire and for most of us that must
be a good thing for our democracy. More on that another day though, right now
that is a long way away from my thoughts.

 

Ever since Friday last week I have been increasingly worried
that our democracy would be seriously threatened. The shooting of Mark Duggan
in Tottenham by the Police went largely unnoticed by our media and certainly
unanswered or commented on by the Metropolitan Police. That was until Saturday
night which saw an unleashing of protestation, anger and destruction in
Tottenham manifested by a conflagration of epic proportions. Watching the news
on Sunday morning told me that this was really serious stuff and people were
not only disaffected but incandescent with rage and anger. More protesting
morphed into rioting on Sunday night, spreading north to Enfield, political
leaders were still absent and those that muttered, muttered unconvincingly.

 

Then all hell broke loose last night all over London and the
white heat of technology did its own bit to keep the rioters, thugs, looters
and hooligans connected and focused. Protest was no more, this was rebellion
against the Police and the other people who lived in the same geographical
location as the protagonists. An army of so called ‘kids’ ran amok. Once the
Police strength had been assessed, their ‘guns counted’ if you will, the hoards
knew that the streets had no name and they could do exactly what they liked,
when they liked, to who they liked. And then, predictably, the chaos spread to
Birmingham, Bristol and Liverpool.

 

Let’s get a few things straight before I get accused of
being preachy. Whilst I was born and lived in London, and still do part of the
time, I had the fortune to be sent to a good school (proves the Catholic Church
can get one thing right), get a decent education and make some great, lifelong
friends. But I did fall into the wrong company let’s , when I was 15 years old.
It resulted in 2 expulsions, from the same school which was unique in our
school’s history and many a ‘brush’ with the law. When I finally got my
marching orders from school, the peer group I hooked up with were not my loyal
school friends, who had all started to find me ‘difficult’ company to say the
least, but my mates from the terraces at Upton Park. Football became my life. I
didn’t work for a couple of years, got up to all sorts of capers around Europe
and actually become a societal outcast. I will add I did cast myself out of
society.  My peer group were the older lads in the ‘firm’, and our
notoriety was our badge of honour. At last, in my 19 year old eyes, I was
someone. Everywhere we went, we knew we were feared, we knew we were respected
by our opposite numbers and above all we thought we were special.

 

Everyone wants to be someone. Everyone wants to belong.
Everyone wants. In 1984, aged 21, I finally woke up having missed prison by a
hair’s breadth. I decided to try and get myself to art college and luckily I
had the wit, the will and the intelligence to get in. Once I was there, I was
impressed by how creative people really were, and how refreshing it was not to
live my life on a knife edge of adrenalin, violence and peer pressure. When
fists turn to knives which then turn to guns and crossbows, you either wake up
and get out or you literally will not wake up. My school friends helped me see
who I really was and art college opened my eyes. I left college, got a job, any
job, and started to pay my way in the world namely I started to give back
rather than take. Soon after I used my ridiculous levels of self confidence and
arrogance to start my own business and channelled all my energy into creating
not destroying. It has been a path of steady redemption ever since, using that
‘never lay down’ attitude to prove that our business could not only ‘stand and
fight’ but win now and again.

 

I still like to think I have a sense of social justice. I
hate excess, and yet I live in a fantastic house, have the most wonderful wife,
an amazing mother, father and brother, amazing friends and work with fantastic
people in a wonderful industry. Life really could not be better. A bit of me
still says this is wrong, wrong given there are young people in Britain who
have little or no hope. People who are so pissed off with their lot, that they
decide to take a risk or two, pursue their version of the ‘free market’ and
reject anything or anyone purporting to be part of their community or indeed in
authority. It is the rule of the street, the survival of the fittest and to the
winner the spoils. No prisoners, no points for second place, no surrender. The
top boys get the top cars, the best drugs, the good looking girls, the most
money and maximum respect. They get all the glory.

 

When these people, indeed anyone, sees the excessive
financial rewards handed to those who work in a broken financial market, the
very same market that has sent our country and other countries to the edge of
financial ruin, and get away with daylight robbery, it is not surprising that
they just think ‘fuck it, what we can’t afford we will take’. But theft is
always wrong, no matter who takes away from others.

 

Where are their parents people ask? What parents? The
propensity of double barrelled names tells a different story, literally the hedging
of your identity. Without proper role models, what chance do these people have?
If your eyes get starry and your head  is turned by rappers, footballers
and other gangstas, the rest is written.  What they need is different role
models, to be involved in building something, making a contribution and taking
decisions, learning how to win and learning how to lose. They need time
invested into them, they need to want to belong and want to conform, they need
to see the benefits of mainstream society, rather than being simply sold the ‘features’
so to speak. In short they need to be someone.  Many of these kids do not
have father figures, for everyone’s sake, we now need the mothers to take to
the streets and appeal to their children to stop. Simultaneously, our society
needs to show these people a way in.

 

A Paul Weller wrote,
‘to be someone is such a wonderful thing’, if ever a phrase cut both ways, this
is it.

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June 23, 2011 · 9:25 am

#oneaday 50: E3 – a kind (of) view

It was my first time back in LA at E3 since 2006 and it was both exciting,  stimulating certainly never boring. Would we see the true dawn of a new platform less frontier where the Cloud was all? Or would we see platforms continuing to plough their own furrow, vying for the top development talent as well as the consumers’ Yen, Pound, Dollar or Euro?

These are inspiring times and we are seeing both structural and seismic changes to the industry as we know it.  Platforms and methods of distribution are certainly key factors that will both disrupt the status quo and drive growth or hasten failure for those who are unable to adapt to market conditions and consumer demand.  Everyone is seeking to be the hub of the entertainment universe both in the home and out and about. From a consumer’s perspective, this does give plenty of choice, but it can also lead to confusion and confusion is never good. That is why technology and content companies need to have very clear offerings and above all deliver seamless, secure, reliable, scalable and inclusive services and products to consumers. It is clear that some consumers want one connected device which they can use in a variety of ways. Between Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, Apple, HTTC, Samsung and others we will see plenty of gadgetry that will edge us all towards that nirvana.

But back in the video games world, it was great to hear and see that Microsoft were pushing Kinect out to the core gamers, that Sony launched their new handheld the PS Vita (out this year) and were also focusing on the core gamers and Nintendo unveiled their new console, Wii U (out anytime between April and December 2012). The Wii U will blow most people away as soon as you get your hands on it and it truly offers another dimension (3rd anyone?)  in gaming. It will push and inspire games developers to make games that will in turn inspire and push gamers everywhere.  And Nintendo too are focusing on, you’ve guessed it, core gamers. Selling packaged goods media alongside the hardware will be a much needed fillip to the traditional retailers who are not yet into the digital world.  There are also some Nintendo favourites such as Mario Kart and Luigi’s Mansion coming to the 3DS which will push sales nicely too.

Meanwhile up the road from LA, Apple announced the iCloud which is a way of storing all your music, photos, apps, docs and more, wirelessly as well as pushing them to all your devices automatically.  Cloud computing is finally becoming a practical reality, and another exciting tech on show was OnLive, who have BT and HTTC as investors.  This is a streaming service which brings top notch PC games to your TV or tablet. Using a universal controller you simply play directly from the Cloud. I even saw Flash running on an iPad! OnLive are due to launch in the UK in September so it will be interesting to see if the service is taken up by gamers, core or casual or somewhere in between.

Elsewhere in the digital space, EA have launched Origin which is their digital distribution service set to rival Steam, Amazon, Apple, XBLA, PSN and others. They clearly see the digital race is on and like the chariot race in Ben Hur, it will be fast, furious and pretty brutal.

And finally, it was great to see E3 packed with the key innovators in our industry – the developers, old and new, all hungry for the new tech, some liberated by self-publishing and above all most of them had a smile on their face. I even saw some great augmented reality apps which will revolutionise advertising very soon.  If you see smiles augmented or up there in the clouds, it’s a good sign that the future for interactive entertainment an video games is very bright indeed.

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May 15, 2011 · 10:02 am

#oneaday49: It’s all about leadership

Today is the day that West Ham United will prove that they do not live up to their name. West Ham yes, United no. I written so many times before about the appalling lack of leadership at the club that I am bored by the whole thing and cannot wait for this season horribilis to end. It has been a slow, but inevitable death right from the very first game of the season. Next week, I will go to Upton Park to say goodbye to Scott Parker, one of the few who has risen above the nonsense at the club  and played his heart out week in, week out. If only others had shown the same approach we may have shown a bit of fight.

But before we say goodbye and sign off, I will leave you with Avram Grant’s words of wisdom at his press conference on Friday, the full ‘transcript’ is available at  http://www.whufc.com/articles/20110513/avram-on-friday_2236884_2359537

‘This is a game we need to win. It doesn’t only depend on us, but what depends on us is the need to win. We are also playing against a team who also need to win, so this will be interesting.’

‘We need to do what depends on us, which is to win against a very difficult team in their home. If we don’t do it, we don’t have any chance’

‘In my experience of football it is not over until it is over. It has happened to me in the past. I was not in this situation – a relegation fight – but I was in the top in a situation like this when it didn’t only depend on us. I don’t want us to miss this chance, I want us to do what we need to do. That is all.’

And so the drivel goes on and on. Soon it will stop and I for one hope our leaders learn and then think long and hard before appointing their next manager. Time to put the helicopter back in the garage Mr Gold, close your mouth more often Mr Sullivan and take a tip from SirAlan Ms Brady and say ‘you’re fired’ a little earlier next time.  One thing is for certain, you will no longer get my season ticket money until you have proved there is a vision, after all a fish always rots from the head.

And finally the grand total of  14, yes 14 people pressed their Facebook ‘LIKE’ button on Avram’s reported words on West Ham’s website, proving there are only a few idiots around, despite all the rumours. 

:-

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May 14, 2011 · 9:13 am

#oneaday 48: Christmas in May

I woke up this morning at 6am and just could not get back to sleep, no matter how tired I thought I was.  Nothing unusual in the Spring or Summer months, I am usually so keen to get up and get outside into the garden, I think I just wake up with the sunrise. But today is FA Cup Final day and it used to be a very special day, especially when I was younger. Today could still be a special day given that there are 2 teams in the Final neither of whom have won any silverware since the 1970’s, Stoke City and Manchester City. Stoke have never been in the Final in their 140 odd years of existence, so their fans will be experiencing a mix of emotions, anxiety right now and maybe, just maybe ecstasy at about 5pm tonight. Or their fans and players will feel flatter than a pancake if they lose to their big money rivals, the Chelsea replacements in light blue. To both sets of fans winning will be everything today and losing, well just not worth contemplating. To both sets of supporters, may the best team win.

My how the game has changed though. This is the first time ever that the FA Cup Final has been played before the end of the Football League season (or indeed the Premier League) has actually finished. Worse than that, a stack of Premiership teams actually play today, all be it at 12.45pm. And even worse than that, the FA Cup Final is no longer on the BBC! Without being dewy eyed. things ain’t what they used to be.

FA Cup Final day was always special. Outside of World Cups and the occasional European Championship ( I say occasional that was because there was only 8 teams who took part, even up to 1992, and the home countries were rarely involved) and the much loved and much missed Home Internationals, which featured England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Island in a round robin tournament played over a week  of 2 Saturdays and a Wednesday nigh match, there was no live football on TV.

I remember watching my first Final in 1970 – Chelsea vs Leeds which went to a replay the following week, which was great becasue it was another match live on TV.  Chelsea won it and also won a legion of new fans, all about 6 or 7 years old.  At  school on the Monday after the Saturday draw, I remember getting punched by some bigger kids because when they asked me ‘who are you for the replay, Chelsea or Leeds’ I simply replied, ‘neither, I amWest Ham’. I think the die was cast even at an early stage in my life that I was never one to follow the crowds and certainly never one to support anyone else bar my beloved Hammers. In 1971 we saw Arsenal do the Double in colour for the first time and Charlie George lay prone after scoring the winner against Liverpool. Then in ’72 it was Arsenal back again, this time against the mighty Leeds, Mick Jones with a bandaged shoulder which looked like it had dislocated as he crossed the ball for Allan Clarke to nail the winner. I remember that year collecting the Esso coin collection celebrating 100 years of the FA Cup, and pleading with Dad to make sure he always bought Esso petrol and thus got more little blue printed paper packets with a precious silver coin inside. In ’73 it was that legendary game, Sunderland of the 2nd Division beating the mighty Leeds! No one could believe it. In 74 Liverpool thumped Newcastle 3-0 and Alec Lindsay scored a scorcher which was ruled out as offside. In ’75 it was West Ham against 2nd Division Fulham. Bobby Moore, the legendary number 6 played, but not for West Ham but for Fulham. In then end all my dreams came true when our FA Cup hero, Alan Taylor scored twice again and Billy Bonds lifted the FA Cup and I was happy as a happy thing for months. The following year, it was Southampton’s turn for a day in the sun and they beat hot favourites Manchester United with a solitary goal by Bobby Stokes. And so every year the memories just built. I have only ever been to 2 FA Cup Finals, 1980  when a 2nd Division West Ham beat 1st Division Arsenal and in 2006 when a 2nd Division (now rebranded Championship) West Ham took Premiership Liverpool to penalties after a 3-3 draw in 120 minutes, not at Wembley but in Cardiff. A great day and all that, one I will never forget, despite us being on the losing side.

Not only was the match live on TV in the old days, but the whole day seemed to be about the Cup. I think the BBC and ITV used to kick off about 9 or 10am and we would have Cup Final themed ‘Swap Shop’  (BBC) and something else on ITV, and the day was about one thing and one thing only. But these were different days. Yes the game meant everything, but it was played by players who earned good money, but not daft money. The gap between the fans and those players was not enormous. We were all working class people, joining together on the big day. We all wanted to win, but we all had a laugh or a cry and above all there was a feeling of a national togetherness. Even the managers were relaxed and full of banter. Nowadays it is all conflict and hype. Take a look at ‘Big’ Ron Atkinson and Jimmy Melia who were interviewed by the legendary David Coleman on the morning of the Cup Final. They are laughing and joking and at complete ease with each other. How refreshing that is when compared with some of the nonsense we see today.

Ok, we were younger and we had more vivid memories, but who could forget the FA Cup finalists, the players, the heroes and the villians. The sea of colours, the banners, the terraces at Wembley stacked with true fans paying fair prices and the perfect pitch, green and cut with what must have been nail scissors. Who also could forget the players, putting absolutely everything into a game, often played in blazing sunshine. Those  same players with rolled down socks, discarded shin pads and fantastic 70’s and 80’s hairstyles, exhausted, many crippled by cramp and all connected to their fans and to the nation as a whole. Above all, the nation would tune in in to 1 of 2 channels and watch the game, ‘Abide with Me’ would bring tears to the eyes of the older ones, and us youngsters would be so excited we were also close to tears.

And then to the game. Everyone, and I mean everyone would be watching the game. It was just like Christmas Day, but without all the presents. Once the game was over, we would all go outside and then play football for hours, until the very last chink of sunshine allowed us to see an old rough ball. I will always remember that Sunderland team, managed by the man in the hat, Bob Stokoe, who really could not believe that they had beaten the best team in the country. These were the best of times and there were simply no ‘worst of times’. Today is a tale of two cities, Manchester and Stoke and let’s hope the best team on the day, the one who wants it most, wins. I have no fear that both sets of fans will be singing their hearts out as it will mean loads to them. Indeed one of my very good friends is an ardent Manchester City fan in his 60’s and he is taking his family and his mother a lifelong fan. Another old school friend will be there, hoping that his beloved City will win something at last. That for me is what football is all about.

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May 10, 2011 · 1:24 pm

#oneaday 47: Internet killed the video star

I must admit I do like to see nature weaving it’s influence in our every day lives. Spring is an amazing time, after months of dullness, we all get a lift when the days get longer, the temperature rises, the sun shines more, the plants start to grow and the dickie birds start to
tweet. You just know that things are changing and the world is literally  growing.

I also like that phenomenon called entropy.  I have always been fascinated by the constant battle between man, and the animal kingdom in general, to create structures only for the elements assisted by the plants to fight back to prove who or what really has the power. We build, but if we do not keep our wits about us, those structures start to unpick and return to dust.

Man has constantly learned about the forces of nature, both constructive and destructive, through adversity. The in built need to
survive drives us not only to seek shelter but to maintain it. We have learned though that design and maintenance without savvy thinking leads to failure and that is what drives us forward and keeps us vital as a race. The survival gene also means we are both fearful and greedy in equal measure, but nevertheless it does mean we are forced to learn. Learning is merely adapting to the power of nature
and using it in a way which allows a better standard of survival. Who really wants to struggle each and every day in their lives merely to survive? Some people in this world, through accident of birth or oppression face that hell daily. Most people in the West don’t face a life and death struggle unless they are badly ill. Our struggles are relative, our pain controllable.

So when the established order, namely that order imposed by man on man, becomes subjected to man’s nature, some call it progress and
others chaos. It is therefore rather amusing that the old order can expend loads of energy trying to push back against ‘progress’, when it should embrace change and use the natural energy to enjoy our very existence more. Teachers of the Martial Arts talk utilise their opponents’ energy to defend themselves. In short they think smart and actually aim to avoid conflict.  But I digress, getting back to building a house, if you build it in a place that just gets flooded all the time, you don’t build flood defences or even pass a law to stop the floods, you move and find somewhere else to live. Or take the risk that one day nature will take it’s course.

So when I read, hear and see that the law makers are getting in a tizzy about so called ‘superinjunctions’ being broken on Twitter
and the old, established media often known as the Fourth Estate, are equally riled because their right to ‘freedom of the press’ is compromised, I do laugh. After all these ‘superinjunctions’ are seemingly  the  vestiges of the rich, allegedly costing £50,000 to implement (son if you want to make a fortune work in money or in the law) and seem to be exclusively
used to keep so called celebrities out of the press, gutter or otherwise,

If our society has learned anything then our politicians and law makers will  learn to embrace these things rather than fight them. The genie came out of the internet bottle years ago. Social networks have allowed us all to chit chat and gossip and exchange information, a bit like we have always done down the pub, but on a globally connected basis. No longer is the dissemination of ‘news’ the divine right of the media. You could argue that newspapers such as The Sun, The News of the World, The Star, The Daily Express and The Daily Mail have blurred the lines between truth and rumour so much in recent years that citizens cannot be blamed for amplifying these stories or indeed making them up for themselves.

As fascinating however, is that the members of the traditional press and media are all calling for these ‘superinjunctions’ to go away, after all some corners of the media relish the power to ‘report freely’. The constant wrangle between what is in the public interest and what is interesting to the public, have blurred the lines. They really don’t want to be held back the poor loves. Equally, their knight in shining armour is not the law makers or law enforcers, but those very same citizen journalists who are held in contempt by some members of the traditional (and regulated) press.

Through the power of Twitter and those who Tweet for fun not money, parts of the Establishment’s legal system has been made to look out of date and completely out of step. Plenty of lawyers are arguing for the right to privacy and plenty are arguing for the right to freedom of information. You just know that if you leave lawyers in charge, you end up with big bills. Meanwhile, it’s Spring time and the birds are tweeting, nature is using entropy to return our man made laws to dust.

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