Abiezer's profile

Abiezer
15790
Name: Jim Weldon
Location: Beijing
Member since: December 18, 2006
Last visit: July 27, 2008

Abiezer has posted 18 links and 79 comments to SportsFilter and 0 links and 0 comments to the Locker Room.

Sports Bio

Supporter of Crewe Alexandra, the finest football club in the world and church of St Dario Gradi, England's longest-serving manager. Have played at pub and local league level, making up in enthusiasm what I patently lack in skill.
Like a bit of boxing; also cricket, but despite having played at the dizzying heights of scratch village level, not really very well informed about it.

Recent Links

How Soccer Explains China: China is about to bag a sackful of Olympic Golds but that won't be any comfort to Han sporting nationalists, because the country (its men's team anyway) are still crap at the only sport that matters, association football.

posted by Abiezer to football at 04:06 AM on July 25, 2008 - 1 comment

All the goals from the world's major footie leagues, as YouTube-like Flash video highlights. : The interface is in Spanish, but navigation is straightforward. Premiership, La Liga, Calcio, Bundesliga and much, much more. Eat my goal!

posted by Abiezer to soccer at 05:58 AM on February 03, 2008 - 3 comments

Walter Tull: was born into a poor family and orphaned at an early age. Conditions were tough and opinions prejudiced but by the age of nineteen Walter Tull was playing first team football for Spurs – the first black outfield player in history. Then came the Great War. Tull signed up as a private but within three years he had become the first British-born black officer.

posted by Abiezer to soccer at 02:52 PM on November 17, 2007 - 4 comments

Pyramid passion: One man's odyssey around the lower reaches of British non-league football. Lots of quirky reading about such luminaries of the game as Staveley Miners Welfare and Gala Fairydean. Much photography of various ramshackle grounds and the supporters who half-fill them. You can almost smell the Bovril.

posted by Abiezer to soccer at 06:29 AM on November 04, 2007 - 5 comments

Tartan Army takes the high road: Beating Ukraine 3-1 at Hampden to continue their unexpected Euro qualifiers group-topping run was probably more than enough to make Scotland supporters feel good about themselves. But they've gone a bit better; their half-time rendition of Loch Lomond [Amateur video] will be made into a single with uber-folksters Runrig, proceeds to charity Children in Need.

posted by Abiezer to soccer at 11:32 AM on October 14, 2007 - 6 comments

Recent Comments

McClaren sacked for big loss

One the Crewe forums the consensus seemed to be Mourinho, with any objections raised being more against the style of football that would imply than him not being English, but now he's ruling himself out, isn't he? So I don't think there'd be much of a popular backlash against a foreign coach any more. Very much agree that the FA needs a root-and-branch sorting.

posted by Abiezer at 07:32 PM on November 22, 2007

McClaren sacked for big loss

Apparently McLaren is going to use his new-found leisure time to pursue a career in pantomime playing a pumpkin - he's heard it may mean he eventually turns into a coach.

posted by Abiezer at 02:13 PM on November 22, 2007

McLaren drops Robinson and Beckham for final Euro 2008 qualifying group match.

I avoided heartbreak by laughing like a crazy bastard instead. What a shambles.

posted by Abiezer at 06:35 PM on November 21, 2007

McLaren drops Robinson and Beckham for final Euro 2008 qualifying group match.

Ten minutes to kick-off and I believe it'll be live on Chinese free-to-air telly. It's 4 a.m. here, so I hope I haven't sat up for a heartbreak.

posted by Abiezer at 01:53 PM on November 21, 2007

Pyramid passion

the only team named after an agricultural fertilizer That's not true! What about Man Ure? Groan Funnily enough, my few regularish non-league haunts don't make his ground guide; but I see he accepts submissions so I must take the camera next time I'm back.

posted by Abiezer at 12:00 AM on November 05, 2007

Sports Junkies: Go With TriviaFix!!!

Not a patch on me earlier post about abandoned footie grounds in the Scottish Junior leagues and dodgy catering in sheds. Hah!

posted by Abiezer at 05:58 PM on November 04, 2007

England beat France

That being said I really, really don't want England to win. But I don't want SA to win either. Maybe "sport will be the winner." Heh. Fat chance.

posted by Abiezer at 04:46 AM on October 16, 2007

Tartan Army takes the high road

Yeah, that raised a chuckle gspm. Sadly I think it was just a thick native. There was another video with the title spelled right, but the quality was even worse. Filming while joining in enthusiastically it looked like, at the sound was bad too.

posted by Abiezer at 11:14 PM on October 14, 2007

Morality and soccer 1: Thai prosecutors in London to discuss extradition of Thai PM and Man City owner Thaksin

It's time for you to be frank, Shinawatra. Sorry.

posted by Abiezer at 10:24 PM on October 13, 2007

Morality and soccer 2: Catholic church takes over Italian pro team AC Ancona.

Heh. I had excitedly clicked on the linked article only shortly after it was posted, such was my interest. I merely waited until now to comment because digesting the weighty and thrilling matters I read of therein was not a matter to be taken lightly. One can only applaud the church's willingness to commit hard cash to an admirable campaign to restore dignity to the world's game in the troubled home of one of its traditional powerhouses. The old pope was a goalie, you know.

posted by Abiezer at 10:00 PM on October 13, 2007

Women's World Cup 2007.

Shenanigans at the China-Denmark match

posted by Abiezer at 01:01 AM on September 21, 2007

Women's World Cup 2007.

Not been following too closely even though plenty of the games are free-to-air here in the host nation. Can't work out the venues for the later matches. If England play anywhere close (Tianjin is not too far) I think I'll make the effort to turn up and support. Away the lasses. China look like they'll struggle to get out of their group which is not going to help crowds for the later stages.

posted by Abiezer at 06:38 AM on September 18, 2007

Tasker Watkins dies

Then I mourn the great man all the more, owlhouse!

posted by Abiezer at 07:00 PM on September 09, 2007

The ultimate sports theme tune

Booker T and the MGs' Soul Limbo that they (used to?) use for cricket on the Beeb was always a fave for me.

posted by Abiezer at 11:29 AM on September 07, 2007

"Ninety percent of putts that are short don't go in."

UK satirical mag Private Eye has for years run a regular feature of these sort of stupidities, called Colemanballs after a particularly gaffe-prone telly bloke.

posted by Abiezer at 01:04 PM on August 22, 2007