Wurzel

I included the proviso that the full 10% may not be required in which case the home club can sell the unwanted ones. Fair would mean equal for all i.e. my suggested 90/10 split at all grounds. Logical would mean based on logic. The current system is based on no logic whatsoever i.e it does not take into account demand for either home or away tickets, nor the suitably/ability of ground layout to segregate h&a. It's a totally arbitrary figure. So your statement is wrong on both counts.

You're looking at it the wrong way round. Small clubs - i.e. clubs with 96% home fans. If all grounds have 90%home / 10% away available THAT is a level playing field. (Whether the 10% is always required is another matter0

#GoodLuckTim now UK trending on twitter. The media might be trying to overlook us in 4th but they won't be able to ignore THIS story ;-)

Does anyone really think that the Special One really believes there is a campaign against them? He just seized an opportunity to a) make sure none of the media are discussing how his world class team could only gain a single point from lowly Southampton; and b) has already put subliminal pressure on the ref in their next game(s) to give them the benefit when in any doubt over a decision. Speaking generally diving needs stamping out but is not easy to spot in real time. Sometimes only the slightest touch when running at speed is enough to genuinely make a player to stumble, if not go right over. The harder one's to decide on are the ones like Fabregas/Targett. He's not really moving at any speed, there was contact but was it enough to make him fall unintentionally? Then there's those really hard (sarcasm) pushes which look like they wouldn't move a balloon but "cause" a brick-****house-sized player to fall over. Pundits will say "he laid a hand on him" but the amount of force (or lack of) behind it is rarely mentioned if ever. Then there's that grey area of stumbling after jumping to avoid a scything tackle that would definitely have been a foul if you had stayed on your feet. Diving needs stamping out but I wouldn't want to be making decisions as to what is and isn't.

Made same mistake based on the badge.

:-( One of football's genuine good guys.

Good quiz. 8/10. Kicking myself for one of the 2 I got wrong. Anyone know why I had to view it in IE? Firefox just showed first picture with no options. Adblocker or suchlike possibly?

Agree, best drama on TV for god knows how long, if not ever. Did you misunderstand? Yes and No. IMO this was so cleverly written that how one interpret the ending says as much about the viewer as it does the characters . For me it was the contrast between Emily accepting Ollie's death, although still feeling that he is always with her, whilst picturing him as he was when she last saw him. Tony, without seeing a body, can not accept he is gone, and is searching the world for every potential sighting, in his mind he's looking for a child that matches the how-he'd-look-now e-fit shown on the front page of the newspaper. For me the Russian wasn't Ollie, he was old enough when he died/disappeared to speak fluent English and remember his Dad (although maybe not with the Roy Keane beard). The Russian just represented the forlorn hopes of a desperate man who can't achieve closure. But then I could be wrong. Great series.

This. I used to know a guy who worked for Barr at the time. He described it back then as "in layman's terms, unbolt and remove the roof, bolt on some more uprights, drop in and bolt on a new level , conduits for existing electric and water extend upwards, drop roof back in and bolt on" Simples. He reckoned it could be done in a close season if necessary .

If all else fails you could get yourself a parrot.

if he's trading it in for a bungalow that'll mean his knee is buggered for good.

Aim of the game is to get a batsman out. If it was just to hit the wicket - by which you actually mean the stumps - all the batsman would have to do is plant his bat upright in front of said stumps and spend 5 days batting out a draw without playing a shot. No bowler - or at least a very vast majority - ever set out to hurt a player, but bowling a ball that makes the batsman uncomfortable and needing to fend off as opposed to play the stoke that he would like to is all part of the game. Having seen the albeit jerky video of the incident there was nothing wrong with the bowlers actions. This was just one of those freak accidents where the ball happened to hit a precise spot in such a way a to cause maximum internal damage. A mm either way or slightly different angle of contact and he'd have probably suffered nothing more than a bad headache. Unfortunately accidents happen in sport just as they do in all walks of life. I have cracked a colleagues rib when bowling at him in a practise with nothing more than medium pace, and broken my own wicketkeepers nose bowling spin with a ball that unexpectedly reared up, neither in any way intentional or against any rules. As a now ex-cricketer myself I really feel for the Hughes family, but also the bowler Sean Abbott. Without wishing to trivialise the incident I hope he can put it behind him and carry on with his own career.

Damn, just about to post the same. Clearly a generation thing.

It's not in-house though, they have to travel to their Horton Heath "physio department" for those

It is an excellent series so far. 4 episodes in and I've already changed my mind 3 times about where it's heading. Ooops, didn't spot that, though to be fair my point was more about the physical resemblance than the storyline itself. Surprised the BBC got the likenesses past the McCann lawyers !

Is anyone else watching the current series of The missing on BBC1? Two parents dealing with the aftermath of a child (boy) going missing abroad (France). Ring any bells.? IMO the appearance of the parents bears more than a coincidental resemblance to Kate and Gerry. Wonder if it was deliberate?

Some good memories there, in some ways a perfect example of less being better. Solent was great if you were at home/work but if you were at the game it just wasn't cool to be seen clutching a transistor radio to your ear to check on other scores. (Smartphones with internet access? Not even a dot on the imagination horizon, we'd only recently got rid of B&W tv). So on the walk from the ground after the match the trick was to try and position yourself within hearing distance of one of the "uncool" with his radio tuned to Solent, as they would always be guaranteed to pass on the scores as they came in to loudly all around them (whilst strangely always seeming to be walking on their own). Failing that it was a race to get to the Radio Rentals shop, somewhere between where Cafe Parfait is now and the old Tyrell & Green, to watch the teleprinter and Final Score on the tvs in the window.

No, It's not just you.

And there it is

Thanks for taking the time to post that. Informative and well written. I've now added your blog to my subscription feed service so plenty more like that please.

Amended it a bit for you, although it may need changing again after the next international. Woke up this morning feeling fine Knowing our right back is Nathan Clyne Doesn't play for England, we all know that he should Someone tell them Clyney is bloody good..

The "Northam" remix [video=youtube_share;4NORgkNsgO8]

One of my favourite books is Simon Inglis' The Football grounds of Great Britain. He uses a real passion when describing each ground. Amazing how many have disappeared in the 30 years since it was written, including many I had been to. Makes me wonder how he would describe some of the soulless kit form stadia of today.