Sometimes you just have to win ugly. Do whatever it takes and just get the job done. In what was our worst performance of the regular season we ran out 2-0 winners away from home to qualify for Play Offs with 2 games remaining.

This was a tough game for us. We were playing on the worst field in the league, rock hard, bumpy, bone dry, uneven.

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Photo credit: P.A. Hudson

Stoke City this week completed the double-signing of Robert Huth and Tuncay Sanli from Middlesbrough.� As a Boro fan, I thought I'd run the rule over what these additions will mean to the Potters.� I can see ups and downs in both signings.

First to Robert Huth.

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Wigan. Not a club you would generally associate with elegance, beauty, and silky smooth Football. They're a club you'd put in the physical, route one, bullying bracket, without being unfair or critical. Over the years their style of Football has remained pretty much the same the 'Northern' way if you like. Click to continue reading...

"The Kop comes to Asia" pre-season extravaganza resulted in a 1-1 draw with Thailand and a 5-0 thumping of Singapore. There were mostly positives to come from it all, but what one fears is injuries... and we picked up a few (Skrtel and El Zhar, both out for 3-4 weeks). That said, our players we NEED fit and that don't have suitable replacements did not come away with knocks.

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J Hutcherson of USSoccerPlayers.com wrote an interesting response to Ericksson's move to Notts County, wondering why more US coaches haven't been given the opportunity in the lower levels of professional soccer in England.
-- Let's take former England and Mexico manager Sven-Goran Ericksson's move to Notts County in England's League 2 at face value. Click to continue reading...

Group A: South Africa 0 Iraq 0
As far as the South Africans are concerned, the Confederations Cup provides the ideal opportunity to fine tune their preparations for next year's World Cup Finals. Following yesterday's 0-0 draw that opened this year's competition, you can't fail to be impressed by their attention to detail given the number of goalless draws that have opened World Cups in the past. Click to continue reading...

Rory Delap: One reason why the Euro champs wouldn't reign in England

One further debate that has emerged since Manchester United "didn't turn up" in the Stadio Olimpico, and the vertically challenged Spaniards, Iniesta and Xavi, stole the show in Rome, has been to question just how good this treble-winning Barcelona side really are.

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Quoth Ice T: Pimpin' ain't easy, but somebody's gotta do it...Let's begin with the MLS Goal of the Week nominees. I love Rocha's, but it would have to be Eddinho or Tino, wouldn't it?Boro's Tuncay Şanlı connects with a bit of desperation creativity in the box.Caen's Steve Savidian shows that Route One football still works. Click to continue reading...

I know I promised I wouldn't watch or care about the women's nation team of the US till the team was cleared of the punks.
I was watching the Brasilian women's team, they just happened to be outplaying the US team once again. Hope Solo, remember her, kicked off of the team for talking, she won gold this week for the women's national team. Click to continue reading...

Thanks to Brian Barwick and the FA anyone who was even mildly interested in the England v Czech Republic friendly had to find somewhere or someone who has Setanta Sports - the backwater satellite broadcaster who has won the rights to show England's friendly and World Cup qualifying games.
Sad to report, that I was among the suffers who'd tuned in to witness the demise of Barwick. Click to continue reading...

For the second consecutive home game Arema Malang fired blanks at home. Last week they were defeated by Pelita Jaya. Today they went one better but a 0-0 left the fans and players unhappy and questions must be asked about their tactics.
PSIS had a torrid time last time out as they were roundly thrashed 4-0 by Persik but today they appeared to have learnt their lesson as they comfortably handled a one dimensional Arema content to pump aimless long ball after aimless long ball forward. Click to continue reading...

Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 on the Nintendo Wii is the best football video game ever. There, I've said it. Its gameplay is a quantum leap in the genre moving the game away from two decades of pass, run and kick towards a true flowing, tactical experience.
Modern football sims, essentially, began in 1989 (19 years ago! Click to continue reading...

Just a few quick hits in and around this one, once again viewed with my one-eyed pirate's glare.

• Holy crap on that sitter "Brian" Boswell! That couldn't have been Bobby cause I heard him saying that he got his groove back, right? Oh well, must have been "Brian" cause I heard the announcer say his name three times. To be fair, the announcer did drop the ball on quite a few occasions (Moreno hasn't played since the Copa?

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