England vs Montenegro – WC 2014 Qualifier

After an unbeaten qualifying campaign and littered with too many draws, Roy Hodgson’s England need to win their remaining two games to secure qualification to next years World Cup. Both are at home, and the right results are possible, but first up were Montenegro, who England have had four previous tussles, all ending in a point a piece.

The weather was shocking and travel was not much better with an hour delay at Ebbsfleet. The tube trip went a little old skool when a north south divide looked to kick off on a packed train.

So a lot later than expected we took our seats and i was quite pleased to see Hodgson had picked a remarkably attacking formation with Rooney, Wellbeck and Sturridge all starting. Also starting was Tottenham’s current flavour of the month, Andros Townsend in front of his team mate Kyle Walker. Joe hart was in goal following the worst run of his career, cementing the manager’s faith in his no.1.

The initial play was pretty cagey with England getting the odd chance and as usual at Wembley this set the tone for the rest of the half. Just before half time, England had their best chance when Wellbeck tried his usual reverse back heel to no effect. He needs to cut that out of his game.

The second half started better with Rooney getting on the end of a Wellbeck shot that deflected into his path. England pushed on post this and got their second when a Wellbeck shot was deflected towards goal from its initial route by a defender to register an OG. OG is actually the 3rd highest scorer for England these days, just 2 goals behind Gary Lineker! England looked comfortable and the subs started with Lamps coming off for Carrick. Then the away team scored and you could feel the tension. We knew the Ukraine had already beaten Poland, and so another draw would not be enough. The clouds dispersed when debutant Townsend smashed in a cracking low 20 yarder to open his account. This ended the game as a contest and the icing on the cake was when Sturridge won and scored a penalty just after the 90.

The scoreline did not reflect the game, and England will need to step up in the middle of the park next year in Brazil if present. However the bold attacking formation was a massive positive as was the selection of Townsend (if only because Walcott and Lennon are injured). Let keep that up for Poland, and moving forwards as a more pressing team. This should not remove Ricky Lambert and Andy Carroll from the frame though, as sometime you really do need just to lump it.

MOTM : Townsend. Looked completely comfortable on this stage. Tore up the wing like he did last week against WHU (thought i wouldn’t mention it? LOL).

Rooney flashes one past the post.

England 4 Montenegro 1

The view from Tier 2

Las Vegas Sep 2013

This was our first trip to Vegas this year and was long awaited as our first trip away since Easter. As usual we were flying Virgin, and they have reconfigured their planes a little. Due to their ultra expensive pricing for Upper Class, I imagine there has been a downturn in uptake, so they have taken Upper Class out of the top deck and replaced it with Prem Econ and Econ. However the Econ has more space than downstairs which is much appreciated by me !

So we settled down for our 10 hour flight, and it was noticeable we were being flanked by some Weekend Millionaires. This was borne out as the flight went on, as they got pissed, started arguing and if not for some very direct words from a stewardess might of got the flight prematurely landed. That aside, flight was great and we landed on time, and due to our position on the plane, were whisked through security in record time. Bags collected it was off to our usual haunt, The Excalibur, where once again we are graciously looked after by our host. We had a nice hamper of choccies etc in the room as we arrived ,which were just as graciously devoured!

Part of our deal was $100 in freeplay. Between the two of use we spun this around to nearly $200 cash, so good start to the week. Unlike previous trips, night one was a quiet one, and early bed. This is an unusual tactic for us but seem to handle the jet lag, so will be tried again.

Saturday was upon us in the morning. Quick trip to the pool for Mrs mrben09, quick trip to the poker table for me. 77 doesn’t beat jj, so that was me early doors. We retired to Tacos and Tequilas in the Luxor for lunch, and had some great Mexican grub which kept me going for the rest of the day. That afternoon , my wife’s cousin was coming in from Seattle, so we decided for evening we should go upstrip, as Floyd Mayweather was doing his thing across the road, and it was going to be crazy down our end of the strip. So for the evening we met in Javier’s for cocktails and then went to the Mandarin Oriental Sky bar just outside for some more cocktails. This bar is on the 23rd floor and has floor to ceiling windows covering the whole strip as a view. Post drinks we hit the ever favourite Lemongrass in the Aria for dinner. Fantastic as always and remarkably cheap considering the surroundings. We left just as telecasts for the fight were finishing and the casino floor was packed to the gills. I had already paid for my Poker Tournament the next day so we retreated to the Bellagio and the YellowTail restaurant for a few drinks and a catch up. Suitably refreshed we headed across the road and a bit of a gamble up in Harrahs. We have never spent a lot of time here, but will be doing in the future. It may not match Aria and Bellagio for swank but the staff more than made up for it. Quick waitress service and friendly dealers made for a top night (and winning a few quid always helps). We also took a quick trip through the Quad (previously the Imperial Palace). This is still a work in progress but definitely an improvement on the old dark IP.

Sunday was my day. I have been a member of AllVegasPoker.com for some time but due to living some distance away, I’ve never been in any of their sponsored tournaments. Today changed that and I entered into AVP XIX at the Aria Poker room. Post registration and picking up my freebie t-shirt and other goodies I met some people that i have conversed with online for some time. There are photos of me at their facebook page from here, but i wont be linking them. As usual with the Aria the tournie was well run, and I got to the first break without to many dramas. I shared my table with 2 AVP employees, and was quite amused to watch the CTO completely suck out on the Marketing Manager to much abuse and incredulity. The first price for just over 8k, so i needed to get some hands and post break the antes were biting and I needed to make a move. The move turned out to be a disaster. I was dealt 10 10 in mid position. I called a raise, and two of us saw the flop. the flop was 9 jq so i shoved with the chance of a open ended straight. My opponent tabled a jq and won the hand. So out in about 2 hours but a decent time non the less. Before i met the girls (who were in the middle of a 4hr (!) buffet in the Cosmopolitan, I hit the Blackjack table for a quick $200 win. Although everyone at the table was nice, i noticed they thought i was a little odd. Why was confirmed once I left the table and realised i still had my AVP name badge on while playing. Oops.

We ended up the evening at Harrahs again and won a few quid.

Monday was a 9.00 start at the Excal crap shoot poker tournie with Michael from Australia who i had met the day before at the Aria. He bombed early just before leaving to start his 2 day trip home and I held on, to finished 3rd and triple+ my buy in . Good start to the day. We then did our usual pilgramage ti the North Outlet stores and hit the shops. Some good golf gear was picked up a new suit amongst other things. In a non holiday move we had a Genius appointment with Apple in the Fashion show mall early evening . Using the usual “it’s only up the street” approach we set off on our walk. 1 hr 20 minutes later in 99 deg heat we were at our destination and knackered! But we got a replacement Iphone 5, so all good. Dinner was in ZoozaCrackers in the Wynn. I didn’t have the burger but it look amazing, but the nachos did well enough for me.

Tuesday we cashed in the first of our myvegas (facebook promotion) and had a free brekkie at the MGM buffet. Not as big a selection as I thought the worlds biggest hotel would have, but all good nonetheless. Being in the MGM meant I had to play the 11.00 am tournament at the MGM poker room. The current location for the room is shocking and no wonder takings are down. However the staff are professional as ever. Unlike my poker, I was out quite early, having got no hands or worth, and losing a straight on straight (10 vs J) pushed me passed caring and I shoved until i could leave ! We had a late lunch in our secret hideaway off the strip, Kapit Bahay. This simple Filipino restaurant never fails and once again the beef steak and pancit were tasty as ever. So much so we went Friday as well.

Wednesday was a long day. Lunch was in Buca di Beppo in the Excalibur. The large portions kept us going until the evening, where we used another voucher for a large saving in Plant Dailies in Plant Hollywood. This is just by the escalators up to some other restaurants and the nightclubs. This meant we were delayed by about a million people trying to get photos of Justin Timberlake and Ben Affleck who were there promoting their new film Runner Runner. From there we went to see Vegas the Show . This is a variety show charting the history of Vegas as a resort destination from the mobsters up to current day featuring hits from Sinatra, Tom jones, Elvis and Elton John. Well worth the price.

Post show we headed home and hit the tables. We lost a few quid but that was on the cards as we had hardly spend anything in the previous 4 days. Thats when we met Betty, Rita and Biscuit (false names, as you may of guessed). 2 50’s style ladies and one completely normal lad, all hailing from Essex. They were great fun, and we stayed at the roulette table until 6 in the morning. Everyone won and the crack was great. Biscuit could not lose and ended the evening with a $25 drop on the 00. This comes in to great cheers and $875 to Biscuit. During this early morning gambling session we also met Alan from the Hangover (maybe). I say maybe as he hardly said 2 words for the hour or two he was with us but the photos show he could of been.

Thursday was a late start as you could imagine, so we cashed in another myvegas token for the Aria Buffet. Way better than the MGM and definitely one to be done again. This led us the relaxing part of the holiday and we stayed pretty local for the rest of the week. I played the Luxor tournie Friday morning to no avail, but got a few decent runs on the craps tables to get the money flowing back my way for the trip home. We ended our trip on Friday evening in Michael Minas pub 1842 in the MGM for a really nice meal with some local beers. I lodged the Dirty Dog (not nice, had it last trip) in favour of the Anchor Steam from Cali. not bad for a American beer, and a vast improvement on the DD.

Our flight was delayed on Saturday but at least Virgin let me know via text, so fair play. We had a very late checkout from the Excal, so it was like another days holiday, and the craps table was good to me again.

All photos taken by me on this trip were with the Nokia 925, and for a mobile they came out well. The others are from a 4S.

Talking tree Bellagio.

With dancers from Vegas the Show

The Hamper in the room. Nice touch.

Taco’s and Tequilas, Luxor

The Wynn waterfall

Where I ended in the AVP Tourament

Talking tree in Bellagio Conservatory

Outside the Mirage

Drunk bloke outside Diablos

Grrrr

The Excal Tower 2 Entrance

Javier’s Aria

Not what you see everyday in Vegas

Down the strip from the Wynn

NYNY in the background

Michael Mina’s Pub 1842

The Deuce Bar – Aria

The oldest working gaming machine in Vegas. The Sigma Derby

Rita, Alan, Mrs Mrben09, Betty

Slots with Guns !

Outside the Aria

Aldershot Town vs Macclesfield Town – 07/09/2013 SKRILL CONFERENCE

Saturday was an international break for me from West Ham, so I had a nice golf weekend lined up with some of the boys. A reasonable round (joint 1st out of our fourball), would be followed in my estimation by a few cheeky homebrews in Ian’s garden and maybe an Indian later.

So while relaxing in the kitchen you could imagine my surprise, when he said “You not getting changed ?” “Why?” says I. “We’re going to the football”. Oh.

I should say at this juncture Ian and Albie his boy are big time Aldershot Town supporters. A club that rose from the ashes of Aldershot FC who went bust in 1992. And have just rose again after similar events last year, which resulted in relegation and needed a supporter bailout. Just before the start of the season they had 6 professionals on the books, administrators everywhere and no cash. The administrators said they had 48 hours to get 50k, else that was that. The supporters dug deep and found 68k, and into the Conference they went with a -10 point start. I always wonder how much the administrators get in these situations, but no matter the Shots are back in business and start this game on -3.

In order the balance the books they now have Chelsea’s BPL U21 team playing their home games at the recreation ground, in a deal which covers all their bills in running the club. This does lead to some odd advertising hoardings for Samsung and Chelseafc.com dotted around the ground.

On getting to the Recreation Ground we negotiate the turnstile. I don’t think my quote of “for 17 quid i expect at least a squad number” went down to well with the locals, but it is steep. If the cash is there, you need to garner the support by making it more accessible to the drive by and armchair fan. £12 would add 50% on the gate and nearly fill the ground.

Anyway, that said we put ourselves into their usual place on the East Stand, and it hits me. A real ground, with real supporters. No premier league rising stands, no binoculars needed to watch the game. And standing in a terrace. STANDING. Still enjoy it, even if my legs don’t any more.

The crowd of just shy of 2000 were “entertained” to a first half of no real chances and no real pattern. The Macc lads were on top early but faded after 15 minutes. The Shots players all have tags which don’t allow them within 10 yards of the touchline. I believe this is called a compact midfield. I called it poor at best. At half time and nil nil we have cheerleaders and a raffle. Real football. Apparently the cheerleaders were Ian’s idea to the board !

The second half was more of the same, but with the Shots now attacking our goal, we saw a little more of them. And their number 9 Brett Williams. This guy made my current slated player, Maiga of West Ham, look like Alan Shearer. He was the biggest guy on the pitch, and couldn’t win anything in the air, and that was all that was supplied. Absolutely shocking.

The breakthrough came in the 65th minute when according to the BBC Molesley crashed in a shot via the crossbar. Let me tell you my view of proceedings. Molesley gets the ball, takes a touch, miss hits a shot, it spins off his foot and loops to the bar, and drops in. No crashing, no taking a chance, just pure luck after a poor shot.

For the last 20 Aldershot introduced a winger who looked useful, but no one passed to him as he was outside the zone of influence as far as they were concerned.

Macc hit the bar in the last knockings and the Shots held on to a win, with their fans singing “Zero points, we got zero points”.

With their “compact” play, and bustling style (3 yellow cards), Aldershot will stay up which is the only target this season, so fair play.

Do not mistake the Skrill league sponsor as a play on words around skill. I have to say apart from Rowlands for the Shots, none was on display. Another point of order was fair play to the 43 Macc fans who made the journey and didn’t even get a roof on their stand. Once again real football. My journeys into the non league are few and far between these days, and although the game doesn’t compare to what i usually watch, it was still good to get back to the roots of the game.

Gutted i didn’t get a “non league dog” to snap, but I did introduce the team to the full kit w**nkers twitter feed !

Ian’s Cheerleaders

Thanks for coming !

The chaps. Come on the Shots !

Old skool dustup.

The lads (and one lady) from Macc

A Word a Week Challenge – Sea

This week comes courtesy of Brora Scotland, Broadstairs Kent and James Bond Island Thailand.

WHUFC vs Stoke City 31/08/2013 EPL

Weather was nice, game was shit, just about sums up this one. Normally I wouldn’t be so blunt, but sometimes this has to happen.

Stoke under Pulis were sometimes castigated for spoiling the game, and being ultra long ball, etc. Under Mark Hughes this seemed to have stopped for now, with Stoke actually playing well and moving the ball around quickly and accurately.

WHU were rubbish. Let me qualify this. With 2 exceptions we actually played OK. Collins and O’Brien really stood out. Downing was exception no 1. He was soft and ineffective. However he looked like Messi compared to Maiga.

Why we kept this clown over Carlton Cole is beyond me. He has no challenge or presence, cannot hold the ball, can’t pass, and is usually out of position. All of the above can be done from the bench and do not need to be demonstrated on the pitch.

Fans frustrations are nothing new, and fans do have a habit of getting on players backs out of proportion with their performance. BUT, when you see the players getting on his case, and effectively playing around him to stop him having the ball, you have an issue. We beat Cardiff in spite of him, we might of well played with 10 men against Newcastle, and another draw with 10 men was on the cards yesterday, until Jermaine Pennant came of the bench to snatch victory for the potters.

So whats the answer? Not bringing on Elliot Lee too late against a team who have 4 defenders twice his size, thanks Sam. We now have less than 24 hours to get someone in to fill in for Carroll. Sitting on the bench of our visitors was Peter Crouch ? Season loan ? Why not !

Anything has to better than having the new Boogers up top.

MOTM : James Collins.

WHUFC vs Cardiff City 17/08/2013 EPL 2013/14

The new season has finally come round and where better to start than against a recently promoted team? Two years ago we entertained CCFC in our first game in the Championship. This time both teams are in the Premier League, but one has an extra years experience.

This summer Sam had been quietly going about his business. Securing Carroll, picking up Ratz and Downing, reintegrating Morrison back into squad. The net result of this pitchside was exactly the same team from last year with Maiga replacing Carroll / Cole.

BUT…. we looked fit. Joe Cole and Nolan for example had definitely dropped some timber over the summer. Ravel had made the bench, along with Downing. RVT was there as well, but Downing coming in might accelerate his exit (hopefully). I will also mention at this point that i was wearing shorts, the first time in nearly 3 seasons. About time !

West Ham started the game looking assured, and Cardiff started at pace, moving the ball around snappily. But after a while it was apparent where the experience laid. One thing i noticed in our first year back in the prem was the fact that the game, although slightly slower than the Championship, is way more accurate and bad passing is punished. This was happening to Cardiff who made a sequence of bad passes, particularly when in attacking positions. Nolan and Noble seemed to be picking up presents everywhere simply by closing down quickly.

One of these led to Matt Jarvis getting down the wing with 13 mins on the clock. His cross was looking all the world like a normal ball into the air until he cleverly cut back and found Joe Cole with a well placed pass. Cole collected, spun and smashed it past Marshall to open the Hammers account for 2013/14.

The game pattern had pretty much been set. Cardiff attacks breaking down and West Ham keeping Marshall and the Cardiff back four busy. As usual the second half came around and we still hadn’t got the second goal we needed. Cardiff showed signs of reinvigoration through Bellamy and Campbell’s interactions, but with no other assistance, most of this effort came to nothing.

We were also looking stale so Sam mixed things up a bit. He brought on Downing after 70 mins. JC should of made way as despite his goal, Jarvis was tearing Cardiff apart on the left. But BFS being BFS he took off Jarvis (is Sam scared of big name players ?).

For a fella who had reservations about coming to WHU, Downing looked like a man reborn, getting straight into the game. Just four minutes into his hammers career, he shot down the right again, and fed in Mark Noble. Nobes in turn pushed it into Nolan who wasted no time in firing past Marshall to double the score. This left the result in no doubt.

I have it on good authority that Cardiff have not finished spending and on watching this game, this is really needed. Some of those lads need to adjust quickly if they are serious about staying up. Their fans will follow them everywhere though, and this must help. Special mention to Craig Bellamy. A firm favourite of mine in his short spell at WHU, he still makes those lung bursting runs, and still looks a class act. He also got warm applause from the West Ham fans when he was substituted.

On the subject of fit for premier league. Maiga? Please. He was getting shoved off the ball all the time. If he has been kept in favour of Carlton Cole, then someone really needs to have a word with BFS.

In short a great start for the Hammers and a 3 point lead on a team we could be struggling against come the end of season. Will Cardiff stay up ? Judging on one game is harsh, so i’ll just say investment is required.

MOTM: On the first half performance, JC by a mile. But over 90 minutes, it has to go to the new trim Kevin Nolan. A goal, loads of blocks, tackling and running back, he gave the Hammers a real captain’s performance.

My view of the new season.

Can I leave you with this. You really need to take a look at yourself if you are wearing a shirt with the name of a player on the back who is younger than you.

Oldie with Moore 6. Acceptable. 30 years old with Greaves 9. Fine. 40 years old with Wilsher 10 (saw 3 on the way home). Sad and unacceptable. You are not 12.

A Word A Week Challenge – Curve

As title. Back into the word a week challenge, as posted here. This week was Curve, so i’ve got 2 from the local BMX track and one from my Friends garden. Enjoy !

The Who, Wembley Arena July 8 2013

The last time I saw The Who was 1985 at some football ground near my venue for tonight at an event called Live Aid (does anyone remember this !).

So we have all moved on and The Who have become one of those bands that they can do an entire tour where they just play one album. The album in question was the second “Rock Opera” written by Pete Townsend, the legend that has spawned a film and influenced more than one generation (including me !), Quadrophenia. The story of a young man and his passage through his late teens where he learns that Monday to Friday are still an arse no matter how good the weekends are. Anywhere !

We open and close as you would expect with Love Reign Over Me. Both are elongated versions to take into account the well put together visual trail of news events from WW2 to 1963 and ending with 1963 up to now. The real band these days only number two but with some serious players in the extended band (including Pete’s brother, Simon Townsend) the original West London band, fire through the set like teenagers. The main highlight for me was always going to be 5:15. They didn’t let me down even including a bass solo from John “The Ox” Entwhistle. Using some clever tech they managed to have a solo from John on on of the huge screens, and fed the sound perfectly. Crowd goes wild ! A bit of digging found the solo here. Keith Moon wasn’t left out as he had plenty of footage on the big screen (which was a Vespa headlight and indicators).

Post the refrain of LROM, we get the classics, Baba, Pinball Wizard, and Who Are You et al. No My Generation though, maybe dying before you get old isn’t as bold a statement when you are 70 !

All in all, exactly what you would expect from a band who have been playing these tracks for over 40 years. The energy in Roger Daltrey alone has puts me to shame. Great tracks , great night.

4/5 MrBens.

Hard Rock Calling 2013

This years Hard Rock “festival” has moved to the new venue of the Queen Elizabeth Park, Stratford, or to give it its casual name, The Olympic Park. This event is part of the reopening events for the park.

Travel was a doddle and although not quite at Olympic levels, stewards were on hand to direct punters across the river to the venue. It was nice to see the place again and brought back great memories for me of my visit last year (see here).

The layout was a bit odd if im honest, stages 2 and 3 were no where near the main stage which made stage hopping a bit of a chore, so we stayed mainly in the main arena. The other key issue was that of queues, the beer queues were longer than the loos, which is a rarity and something i hope the organisers take on board for future events. The afternoon was spent with a couple of ciders and introduced to me Twin Atlantic, who I have to say impressed me, with their semi new wave powerpop, which i always been a sucker for. Next up was Miles Kane. Now, here is a guy who doesn’t read weather reports, as his tight suit in the blistering heat made perfectly obvious ! But his set was spot on with his mix of 60’s style rock, and Artic Monkey moderism made the afternoon end with a bang and a few tunes spinning around my head.

Talking of moderism, next up was the man himself Mr Paul Weller. Despite his ageing years, he rocked it out as usual. nice to see Steve Craddock back on stage as well, (his second show of the day as he did a solo stint in one of the tents as well). Some classics were played and dreams were made for the young lads in front of me when he finished off with Town Called Malice. I didn’t have the heart to tell them the Jam did it better! My favourite of the day, was his cover of Start !. I say cover as it had been rearranged a little, and if I may say so even improved on what was the second number one for The Jam. For those that are interested here’s the highlights of the setlist:

Sunflower

Wake up the Nation

From the Floorboards up

Fast car slow traffic

Sea Spray

Ever changing moods

Kling I Klang

Baby come on

Peacock suit

That’s entertainment

Start

Changing man

Town called Malice

So, that’s three Jam and one TSC and some classic Weller. A whole lot to beat.

Kasabian were up last, and to be fair are a bit of an “OK” band to me. They put on a good show (and came onto the old Grandstand theme tune) but the work had been already been done if you ask me. The set was pretty spectacular though (Weller didn’t even have a backdrop !).

Some piccies:

The new West Ham Stadium (and the wife !)

Main Arena- Note ; Astro Turf makes no mud !

All going off for Kasabian from the back of the arena

Weller and his 2 drummers is the new Adam Ant.

Mrben09 goes professional (ish) !

Just in case you dont reach the end of this slightly self indulgent announcement, check these out

The Summats can be found here. http://www.thesummats.com/ Buy this song. Now available on Itunes. Buy it. At least take a listen.

Fractured Calm can be found here. https://soundcloud.com/fracturedcalm

This blog has been with me for a couple of years now. The main purpose of starting this was twofold. One was to improve my writing and comms skills and two to document some of my (and mrs mrben09) lives for when I’m old and frail !

This has in general taken two forms. Banging on about West Ham and publishing (too strong ?) some of my photos. It has spun out into travel and tech in places (both of which through my job, I’m lucky to experience on a regular basis).

So in short, my writing has got better, my photos have definitely got better and more structured, and this has started to open up new avenues, one of which has moved to a slightly different level this week.

Just before Xmas I did some photos for a friend. One of which now hangs on her wall, pride of place in her house . This got me thinking, that on an amateur level i could maybe pursue this further. It also proved to me that maybe there was a creative side of me that has been hidden for too long, behind tech and science and an inability to draw a straight line.

OK, enough, where is this leading us ? Well, a friend of mine who i covered in one of the music posts, is in a band, and they were getting ready to release a new track to the itunesphere, and for the crack i said, “I’ll do your cover”. He said “why not” and i thought, “uh-oh what have i done”. So my initial idea was a photo, but once i heard the back story of the song and the title I had that all too rare flash of inspiration, and went for a graphic theme instead.

Now, its very minimal, and was relatively quick to do, but it just seemed to fit. I thought it OK (alright, a little bit more than that, but no Sgt Peppers !). I showed Mrs Mrben09, she liked it. I showed Fractured Calm, the producer of said track, and he liked it. I showed 1/4 of The Summats and he loved it. So I handed it over and I believe the reaction has been very good all round.

So there you go, once the track sells millions and The Summats retire to Monserrat , you can say ” Oh that, with the cover by Mrben09, he was the Peter Blake of his generation !”