Featuring evolving team-talks, Super Bowl aggression, Brian O'Driscoll, computer games, cheerleaders and Juan Mata
Thanks for all your comments and suggestions on our last blog.
*1) Where are these giants of the game now?*
Brian O'Driscoll made his Ireland debut against Australia in 1999, when Warren Gatland picked the young centre for a match in Brisbane. Fifteen years later *John O'Sullivan* of the *Irish Times* has profiled the 14 other Irish players on the field that day. Most of them stayed in the game in one way or another, but special mention must go to Peter Clohessy, who "owns and runs arguably the most famous hostelry in Limerick, Clohessy's Bar, Gandelow restaurant and the Sin Bin nightclub on Howley's Quay and Croker's Bar and Restaurant in Murroe".
*2) To all those who call me a thug or worse*
*Richard Sherman* made all sorts of headlines when he gave his now-infamous post-match interview to Erin Andrews (which has now been parodied by Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog). He has written this article in *Sports Illustrated* to apologise (a little) and defend himself (a lot). "Andrews interviewed me after the game and I yelled what was obvious: If you put a subpar player across from a great one, most of the time you're going to get one result... It was loud, it was in the moment, and it was just a small part of the person I am. I don't want to be a villain, because I'm not a villainous person," said Mr Modesty.
*3) California Love*
When *Sean McIndoe* of *Grantland* set off to watch ice hockey in the heat of LA, he felt ill at ease: "I am a Canadian, and I had been sent to California to watch an outdoor hockey game. This was not right. This was a mockery of what outdoor hockey should be. There would be no softly falling snowflakes, though a smog advisory was possible. There would be no hot cocoa. There would probably be toques, but they would be worn ironically." He is not used to watching hockey outside, never mind outside in baking heat. But, by the end of his Californian adventure, he was more than a little seduced.
*4) NFL cheerleading is a scam*
It might not come as a huge surprise to hear that the world of cheerleading is seedy, but the way NFL franchises analyse, rate and test their staff is a bit sick. Cheerleaders are dropped if they pick up a little weight and they are told at the start of the season what their hair and make-up will look like that year. They must have "a warm skin colour tone for every gameday" and tell their bosses about their social networking accounts – all for a meagre wage. *Billy Haisley* and *Deadspin* deserve credit for publishing this exposé.
*5) Transfer records, adjusted for inflation*
In 1977 Kevin Keegan cost Hamburg £500,000, which sounds like nothing today's money. But the figure is pulled back into perspective when we remember that, while Keegan was packing his bags for Germany, the US TV series The Six Million Dollar Man reckoned a man could be rebuilt with bionic powers for what sounds like a modest sum in 2014. That kind of money would buy you Liam Bridcutt in today's money. Basically, to understand the true cost of transfer fees we have to allow for inflation. That's exactly what *Paul Tomkins* has done in this blog. The results are fascinating – and will provide little comfort for Roman Abramovich, whose purchase of Andriy Shevchenko looks even more prodigal now than it did at the time.
*6) What video games can teach us about sports and ourselves*
*WM Akers* explains everything to the geeks in *The Classical*.
*7) Fame and money: the great destroyers*
*The Secret Footballer*'s cautionary tale about getting too much too soon takes in Diana Barrymore, Michael Johnson and a lovely story about how a friend of his who was in the Manchester United youth team kept his head on his shoulders: "'I never thought about earning money at United until the day I signed my first professional contract,' my friend recalled. 'Fergie called me in and said that the club had offered me £2,000 a week. He told me to take 10 minutes outside and then come in and let him know. I signed it there and then because I had to get back to clean Eric Cantona's boots.' I love that story." Us too.
*8) 30 for 30: Judging Jewell*
In the early hours of 27 July 1996, a bomb exploded into a crowd at the Atlanta Olympics, killing two people and injuring 111. The death toll would have been far higher if not for security guard Richard Jewell, who discovered the bag holding the bomb and helped clear the area. Yet within hours of the explosion, Jewell was being called a murderer and hounded by the government and media. The actual bomber was convicted later, but when Jewell died in 2007 he was still widely remembered as a victim at best and a killer at worst. *ESPN* have told his story in their latest *30 for 30* film.
*9) The evolution of the half-time team talk*
*Gary Curneen*, a US-based football coach with a Uefa A licence, has charted the history of the half-time team talk for *These Football Times*. Those 15 minutes between halves are something of a mystery to football fans; we know that tea cups are thrown, oranges are eaten and hairdryers are blown, but what do managers really say to their players? Curneen believes that coaches should maintain emotional control and impart a clear message to their players. As he puts it: "José Mourinho places so much significance on half-time that he spends 45 minutes preparing for it."
*10) Athletes are more likely to finish high school than non-athletes*
Fyodor Dostoyevsky once wrote: "The secret of man's being is not only to live but to have something to live for." Well, it turns out that the secret to keeping kids in school is to give them something to be there for – and sport can be that thing. Whatever works. Reported by guardian.co.uk 11 hours ago.
Thanks for all your comments and suggestions on our last blog.
*1) Where are these giants of the game now?*
Brian O'Driscoll made his Ireland debut against Australia in 1999, when Warren Gatland picked the young centre for a match in Brisbane. Fifteen years later *John O'Sullivan* of the *Irish Times* has profiled the 14 other Irish players on the field that day. Most of them stayed in the game in one way or another, but special mention must go to Peter Clohessy, who "owns and runs arguably the most famous hostelry in Limerick, Clohessy's Bar, Gandelow restaurant and the Sin Bin nightclub on Howley's Quay and Croker's Bar and Restaurant in Murroe".
*2) To all those who call me a thug or worse*
*Richard Sherman* made all sorts of headlines when he gave his now-infamous post-match interview to Erin Andrews (which has now been parodied by Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog). He has written this article in *Sports Illustrated* to apologise (a little) and defend himself (a lot). "Andrews interviewed me after the game and I yelled what was obvious: If you put a subpar player across from a great one, most of the time you're going to get one result... It was loud, it was in the moment, and it was just a small part of the person I am. I don't want to be a villain, because I'm not a villainous person," said Mr Modesty.
*3) California Love*
When *Sean McIndoe* of *Grantland* set off to watch ice hockey in the heat of LA, he felt ill at ease: "I am a Canadian, and I had been sent to California to watch an outdoor hockey game. This was not right. This was a mockery of what outdoor hockey should be. There would be no softly falling snowflakes, though a smog advisory was possible. There would be no hot cocoa. There would probably be toques, but they would be worn ironically." He is not used to watching hockey outside, never mind outside in baking heat. But, by the end of his Californian adventure, he was more than a little seduced.
*4) NFL cheerleading is a scam*
It might not come as a huge surprise to hear that the world of cheerleading is seedy, but the way NFL franchises analyse, rate and test their staff is a bit sick. Cheerleaders are dropped if they pick up a little weight and they are told at the start of the season what their hair and make-up will look like that year. They must have "a warm skin colour tone for every gameday" and tell their bosses about their social networking accounts – all for a meagre wage. *Billy Haisley* and *Deadspin* deserve credit for publishing this exposé.
*5) Transfer records, adjusted for inflation*
In 1977 Kevin Keegan cost Hamburg £500,000, which sounds like nothing today's money. But the figure is pulled back into perspective when we remember that, while Keegan was packing his bags for Germany, the US TV series The Six Million Dollar Man reckoned a man could be rebuilt with bionic powers for what sounds like a modest sum in 2014. That kind of money would buy you Liam Bridcutt in today's money. Basically, to understand the true cost of transfer fees we have to allow for inflation. That's exactly what *Paul Tomkins* has done in this blog. The results are fascinating – and will provide little comfort for Roman Abramovich, whose purchase of Andriy Shevchenko looks even more prodigal now than it did at the time.
*6) What video games can teach us about sports and ourselves*
*WM Akers* explains everything to the geeks in *The Classical*.
*7) Fame and money: the great destroyers*
*The Secret Footballer*'s cautionary tale about getting too much too soon takes in Diana Barrymore, Michael Johnson and a lovely story about how a friend of his who was in the Manchester United youth team kept his head on his shoulders: "'I never thought about earning money at United until the day I signed my first professional contract,' my friend recalled. 'Fergie called me in and said that the club had offered me £2,000 a week. He told me to take 10 minutes outside and then come in and let him know. I signed it there and then because I had to get back to clean Eric Cantona's boots.' I love that story." Us too.
*8) 30 for 30: Judging Jewell*
In the early hours of 27 July 1996, a bomb exploded into a crowd at the Atlanta Olympics, killing two people and injuring 111. The death toll would have been far higher if not for security guard Richard Jewell, who discovered the bag holding the bomb and helped clear the area. Yet within hours of the explosion, Jewell was being called a murderer and hounded by the government and media. The actual bomber was convicted later, but when Jewell died in 2007 he was still widely remembered as a victim at best and a killer at worst. *ESPN* have told his story in their latest *30 for 30* film.
*9) The evolution of the half-time team talk*
*Gary Curneen*, a US-based football coach with a Uefa A licence, has charted the history of the half-time team talk for *These Football Times*. Those 15 minutes between halves are something of a mystery to football fans; we know that tea cups are thrown, oranges are eaten and hairdryers are blown, but what do managers really say to their players? Curneen believes that coaches should maintain emotional control and impart a clear message to their players. As he puts it: "José Mourinho places so much significance on half-time that he spends 45 minutes preparing for it."
*10) Athletes are more likely to finish high school than non-athletes*
Fyodor Dostoyevsky once wrote: "The secret of man's being is not only to live but to have something to live for." Well, it turns out that the secret to keeping kids in school is to give them something to be there for – and sport can be that thing. Whatever works. Reported by guardian.co.uk 11 hours ago.