www.red11.org DAILY NEWS
Date: Thu Jul 22 10:15:40 GMT+00:00 1999
Mail: barry@www.red11.org
This Issue:
1. SCHOLES KO'S ALTRINCHAM
2. Today's Result + Quick Fire TV Report
3. CHINA BROKEN BY REDS
4. United master Chinese puzzle
5. A weekend in Sydney. by "David Marshall, Brisbane, Australia"
6. Taking over Sydney Harbour Personal Report by Ken Simpson
7. UNITED TRIUMPH IN SHANGHAI
8. Shanghai Shenhua 0 Manchester United 2
9. Australian club keeps pressure on United - The Times
10. Big guns wheeled in for Cole battle
11. Edwards on selling shares and Keano contract
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
Daily MANCHESTER UNITED NEWS Thurs 22nd July 1999:
Barry Daily Comment:
Another victory another clean sheet.
Seems like "REDS are taking over" as we did in "Barcelona"
A MASTERFAN *REMINDER*
Chance to Join "Masterfan" On MUTV this season
http://www.red11.org/mufc/statman/MasterfanPoster.htm
Against which of his former clubs did Brian McClair have his testimonial?
Do you fancy yourself as a bit of a Manchester United know-all?
Would you be willing to go onto television to compete on a quiz show, that
may win you the respect of the legions of Man United fans?
If so, and you can answer the above question then give MUTV LIFESTYLE a
ring and you could soon be a contestant on MASTERFAN.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED THEN WRITE TO:
MASTERFAN,
GRANADA TELEVISION,
QUAY ST, MANCHESTER,
M60 9EA.
OR
PHONE MICK CHANNON ON 0161 934 5601
*** NEW *** Listen to Andy Cole's New recording "Outstanding"
Streaming http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/outstanding.ram
or file to download http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/outstanding.rm
Pic at http://www.red11.org/mufc/images/player/cole/outstanding.jpg
Mark Bosnich's Personal Details
http://www.red11.org/mufc/bosnich.htm
Its the presentation of the European Cup at Nou Camp
Video including sound 57secs 1.5 meg Real Video Use Real Player Plus G2
Free at www.real.com
http://www.real.com/R/HPplay-1R/www.real.com/products/playerplus/index.html?src=990611home_5
Latest MUFC Squad song is now available in stereo at www.red11.org
Stereo Sound: REAL AUDIO: 607k 4mins "stereo"
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/lift_it_high.rm
MP3 4.6meg 4mins "stereo"
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/mp3/lift_it_high.mp3
RED sky at night BARCE' delight
More fun here: http://www.red11.org/mufc/barcedance.htm
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
MANCHESTER UNITED STATS v ALL teams on the Web
http://www.red11.org/mufc/stats.htm
Previous News:
BSKYB Takeover news/pics at http://www.red11.org/mufc/bskyb.htm
Brian Kidd Press conference, pic, real audio
http://www.iol.ie/~redcafe/kidd.htm
Peter Schmeichel's last Season at United!
http://www.red11.org/mufc/news/schmeichel.htm
---------------------------------------------------------------
NEXT MATCHES
---------------------------------------------------------------
01-AUG-1999 [15:00] Manchester Utd. vs Arsenal (FA Charity Shield, AWAY)
08-AUG-1999 [16:00] Manchester Utd. vs Everton (FA Premier League, AWAY)
11-AUG-1999 [20:00] Manchester Utd. vs Sheffield W (FA Premier League, HOME)
14-AUG-1999 [15:00] Manchester Utd. vs Leeds U (FA Premier League, HOME)
22-AUG-1999 [16:00] Manchester Utd. vs Arsenal (FA Premier League, AWAY)
Friendlies:
**** Friendly at Salford City
Salford City, the North Western Trains League club, are to play a friendly
against a side from their "big brother" neighbours Manchester United, at
their Moor Lane ground (in Kersal) on Saturday July 17th at 3pm.
August 3rd Omagh Town, St Julian's Road ground
August 4th Wigan Athletic
****Pre season tour details JULY 1999 ***
TODAY 21/7 12.15 uk Shangai first time ever!!!
This match will be watched by 80,000 fans
The game has sold out with the Shanghai Star reporting the home side's
chairman Yu Zhifei as saying: ''It is unprecedented that the tickets
should sell out for a match five weeks in advance."
Sat 24/7 Hong Kong Repeat of the 1997 game
"ALL matches will be shown "the same day" om MUTV.
UNITED Stats v All teams:
http://www.red11.org/mufc/stats/
*** FINAL PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE AS AT 16/05/99 ***
Pos Team P W D L F A W D L F A GD Pts
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Manchester United 38 14 4 1 45 18 8 9 2 35 19 43 79
2 Arsenal 38 14 5 0 34 5 8 7 4 25 12 42 78
3 Chelsea 38 12 6 1 29 13 8 9 2 28 17 27 75
4 Leeds United 38 12 5 2 32 9 6 8 5 30 25 28 67
Here are all the matches for the coming season 1999/2000:
ALL FIXTURES at: http://www.red11.org/mufc/fix9899.htm
Subject: First Team Fixtures 1999/2000 [All dates/times subject to change]
Dates of possible cup ties also shown
Date Opposition Score Pos. Attend.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
15/07/99 Melbourne Australia 11.00 pre-season 2-0 60,000
18/07/99 Sydney Australia 06.00 pre-season 1-0 78,000
21/07/99 Shanghai Shenhua 12.30 pre-season 2-0 80,000
24/07/99 Hong Kong South China 08.30 pre-season -
1/08/99 Arsenal Wembley Charity Shield -
3/08/99 Omagh Town friendly in aid of Omagh Bomb Fund
4/08/99 Wigan Athletic friendly at JJB Stadium.
8/08/99 Everton away 16.00
11/08/99 Sheffield Wednesday home PL 20.00
14/08/99 Leeds United home PL 15.00
22/08/99 Arsenal away PL 16.00
25/08/99 Coventry City away PL 20.00
27/08/99 Monaco - Lazio ESC 19.45
30/08/99 Newcastle United home PL 13.00
11/09/99 Liverpool away PL 11.30
15/09/99 ? EC
18/09/99 Wimbledon home PL 15.00
22/09/99 ? EC
25/09/99 Southampton home PL 15.00
29/09/99 ? EC
3/10/99 Chelsea away PL 16.00
*11/10/99 Sir Alex Ferguson's testimonial OT [Schmeichel]
13/10/99 ? WC 3
16/10/99 Watford home PL 15.00
20/10/99 ? EC
23/10/99 Tottenham Hotspur away PL 15.00
27/10/99 ? EC
30/10/99 Aston Villa home PL 15.00
3/11/99 ? EC
6/11/99 Leicester City home PL 15.00
20/11/99 Derby County away PL 15.00
24/11/99 ? EC
27/11/99 Sheffield Wednesday away PL 15.00
30/11/99 Tokyo Palmeiras WCC 20.00
1/12/99 ? WC 4
4/12/99 Everton home PL 15.00
8/12/99 ? EC
11/12/99 FAC 3 Will not enter ...
15/12/99 ? WC 5
18/12/99 West Ham United away PL 15.00
26/12/99 Bradford City home PL 15.00
28/12/99 Sunderland away PL 20.00
3/01/2000 Middlesborough home PL 20.00
***** 5-14 /01/2000 Brazil WTC ***** [3-4 games]
* 8/01/2000 FAC 4 Will not enter ...
12/01/2000 ? WC sf i
15/01/2000 Leeds United away PL 15.00
22/01/2000 Arsenal home PL 15.00
26/01/2000 ? WC sf ii
* 29/01/2000 FAC 5 Will not enter ...
5/02/2000 Coventry City home PL 15.00
12/02/2000 Newcastle United away PL 15.00
* 19/02/2000 FAC 6 Will not enter ...
26/02/2000 Wimbledon away PL 15.00
27/02/2000 ? Wembley WC f
1/03/2000 ? EC
4/03/2000 Liverpool home PL 15.00
8/03/2000 ? EC
11/03/2000 Derby County home PL 15.00
15/03/2000 ? EC
18/03/2000 Leicester City away PL 15.00
22/03/2000 ? EC
25/03/2000 Bradford City away PL 15.00
1/04/2000 West Ham United home PL 15.00
5/04/2000 ? EC qf i
8/04/2000 Middlesborough away PL 15.00
* 9/04/2000 FAC sf Will not enter ...
15/04/2000 Sunderland home PL 15.00
19/04/2000 ? EC qf ii
22/04/2000 Southampton away PL 15.00
24/04/2000 Chelsea home PL 15.00
29/04/2000 West Ham United away PL 15.00
3/05/2000 ? EC sf i
6/05/2000 Tottenham Hotspur home PL 15.00
10/05/2000 ? EC sf ii
14/05/2000 Aston Villa away PL 15.00
* 20/05/2000 Wembley FAC f Will not enter ...
24/05/2000 ? EC f
http://www.red11.org/mufc/match.htm
-------------------------------------
THE FANTASTIC TRIPLE WAS WON!!
Personal stories here: http://www.red11.org/mufc/barcelona.htm
We went to Barcelona in a fine day in May
And all our supporters sang loudly & gay
And when it was over and all said and done
We beat Bayern Munich by 2 goals to 1
The first one was Teddy's he out foxed the rest
The second was Solskjear's he's simply the best
We could have had 4 or we could have had 9
But we didn't start playing till injury time
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Subject: Today's Result + Quick Fire TV Report
Shenua 0-2 Manchester United
Solskjaer (55) Sheringham(67)
Manchester United Team v Shenua
Van der Gouw, Curtis, Irwin(c), Wilson, Brown, Stam,
Greening, Butt, Cole, Solskjaer, Blomqvist
Bench: NevilleP, Bosnich, Yorke, Sheringham, Berg,
May, Cruyff, Clegg
Comms by Lou Macari "Toughest game on the tour"
Playing in Shangai first time ever!!! 80,000 all seated
Shenua Manager from Brasil.
UNITED wearing normal Red & white today
Shenua white/blue shorts also sporting "SHARP" ads on their strip!
Very humid & sticky evening - 4 team changes from Oz
Humidity 90%
01 Curtis foul
03 Shenua attack well covered by Van der Gouw
05 Blomqvist taken out, Sols shot saved
09 Good chance in UNITED pen area, cleared crowd VERY excited!
10 Music blasting in the speakers
12 Irwin cross cleared
13 Wilson shot saved
14 Stam clears at the back
15 Brasilian Marcello shot well saved by VdG
Open fast game both sides in the action
17 Corner RED Blomqvist to Greening good shot deflected, new corner
corner nr2 Stam header wide
20 Cole cross taken out
22 Jaap covering excellent at the back
23 Terrific shot from Mark Wilson well saved by Hu Chu Lam (spelling?)
24 Blomqvist free kick too long
27 Cole flick to Nicky Butt excellent
28 Curtis beaten by a header Fan Chee Hee (Palace player) wide
30 Chin Hee shoots wide good chance
31 Cole cross wide
33 Pace of game starts to drop due to humidity
35 Stam beaten? on the break covered by Curtis
41 Free kick to ShenSi, resulting shot way over
43 Yan Yong centre well taken VdG
44 Shot saved from YuChee deflected
HT 0-0
4 Subs on
Phil Neville(Butt) Cruyff(Greening) May(Stam) Sheringham(Cole)
47 Fast start Wes Brown booked for challenge
48 Good play left wing Irwin cross taken out
50 United pressure slow build up tho'
51 Phil Neville chip outside area just over bar, pass was from Teddy
52 Sols to Teddy shot well saved, 2nd chance over the bar leaning back
54 TREMENDOUS GOAL from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer!!!
Pass from Blomqvist one touch on the chest, finished in the bottom
right corner of the goal. Classic! 1-0
55 Mark Wilson shot saved, goes for corner. UNITED looking good
60 Clegg on for Irwin (May-capt)
61 Sols through again no shot this time
62 A breeze gets up to help the players in this humidty
Plenty of subs being used by the Chinese
67 Sols to Teddy blasted with outside of the right foot 2-0!!
Goalkeeper got a hand to it but went in with the power
68 Bosnich on for Van der Gouw
69 Bosnich saves from close in
70 Blomqvist centre long
72 Bosnich comes way out of goal kicking way up field
73 United complete control, Teddy free kick, bottom left corner going in,
saved!
75 Scramble in United area finally cleared
77 Bosnich yellow carded for wasting time!?
79 Free kick outside area, Sheringham to May who cracks in low hard shot,
but wide
80 Shenua volley just wide left of post, Bosnich beaten
83 Blomqvist shot saved
84 Shenua shot from inside area side netting
89 Yorke on for Wilson
90 Match played out for an excellent commanding win
90 FINAL SCORE 2-0
Men of the match for me Ole Gunnar & Teddy
Cheers from Barry
*** Barry thought of the day
Last season Ole Gunnar 18 goals from 19 starts!
We have to play him evn more this season??
A selection of Chinese player names (spelling?)
WooChinWing LuYing TeHee ChinFung ChenSi PuJayYuk VangBin
barrylee@post3.tele.dk
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Subject: CHINA BROKEN BY REDS
Wednesday, July 21, 1999 14:27
United faced arguably their toughest pre-season test so
far when they kicked off their first ever match in China.
Shanghai Shenhua FC are already halfway through their
season, leading their two-strong league table, and are
domestic treble winners in their own right.
The Reds were also playing on a far better pitch than they
had experienced in Sydney and Melbourne, in the magnificent
Shanghai Sports Stadium packed out with 70 fans. It was thought
the vast Red hordes would be cheering for the English
Champions, but the biggest cheers and roars were raised
whenever Shenhua FC crossed their own 18-yard line.
A Shenhua kung fu kick caused some panic in the United
defence after nine minutes and when Wes Brown failed to
clear, the Chinese went close with a Chow Mein shot towards
Rai van der Gouw's goal, only to be caught offside.
United responded with a shot from Solskjaer that the
Shenhua keeper had to parry, and then a left-foot
noodle-cutter from Mark Wilson which was collected more
comfortably. Wilson kept his place in the side for the third
consecutive game, partnered again by Nicky Butt.
Two Brazilian imports spiced up the Chinese line-up,
defender Nintendo and forward Gungho. The latter forged
a strong run down the left after 15 minutes and fired in a
cross-shot which van der Gouw managed to gather without
getting to his feet. The Dutch goalkeeper was one of a few
players in the side making their first pre-season start, the
others being right-back John Curtis, centre-half Brown and
striker Fred the Red.
United's first corner in the 17th minute was played short by
Jesper Blomqvist to Jonathan Greening, and the youngster
signed from York produced a shot on target which was
deflected wide for a second corner. From the follow-up,
Stam rose well to send a towering header that cleared the
Shenhua’s goalposts and was retrieved from the nearby
rice plantation.
Wilson, fast becoming one of the stars of the tour,
hammered in the best shot of the half in the 25th minute,
after good work by Curtis opened up the Shenhua defence.
A first goal looked almost certain to be chalked up but the
Chinese international keeper, Grasshopper, showed brilliant
reflexes to push the ball aside.
Shin Hi was one of the few names in the Shenhua side
recognisable to English suppporters. Formerly a Chip
Shop owner in Croydon, he was back in China for a holiday, but
was asked to guest by the Shenhua management.
Shenhua nearly closed the half with a goal when a
pacy run through by Chu Chu and a mid-range shot by
Tuf Luk took a deflection and threatened to go the
wrong way for van der Gouw. Fortunately for United, the
flying Dutchman adjusted his dive and the scores remained
blank for the interval.
With the 90 per cent humidity sapping the players'
strength, Steve McClaren took the opportunity to make
several substitutions at half-time. Phil Neville, Jordi Cruyff,
David May and Teddy Sheringham were all introduced,
while Stam, Butt, Cole and Greening were withdrawn.
Wes Brown became the first player to be booked, after a
late challenge on Chin Cut required the first appearance of
a physio. It was a rare lapse of discipline by United who,
despite landing in China less than 24 minutes previously,
were generally in control. Shenhua tended to attack on the
break but showed good pace and were very direct when
they did so, hundreds piling into the penalty area in unison.
The tendency for unusual scorers to make their mark in
pre-season nearly rang true again in the 53rd minute when
Phil Neville collected the ball in the Shenhua 'D' and
chipped it first time towards goal. The fullback, playing this
time in midfield, was denied a rare senior goal when his
effort floated just on to the roof of the stand.
Another chip, this time in the form of a crinkle-cut by
Solskjaer, dropped perfectly into the Shenhua box for
Sheringham to shoot. The goalkeeper saved the first strike,
but then fumbled and should have been picking the chip out
of the net seconds later. Instead, Sheringham skied his
second attempt after a slip by Lu Sing with the goal at his
mercy.
Happily, Teddy's blushes were spared in the 56th minute
by his fellow European Cup hero Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
The Norwegian scored his first goal since that incredible
night in Barcelona to give United a deserved 1-0 lead.
Blomqvist's twenty-yard pass bounced once in front of the
Norwegian who took the ball comfortably on the knee and
then volleyed it into the bottom right-hand corner. The
goalkeeper was well beaten and chastised. United were finally
off the mark, with their first-ever goal on the Chinese mainland.
By now, the Reds were firmly in their stride, and Shenhua
made several substitutions in an attempt to keep up.
United made another change themselves when Michael
Clegg replaced Denis Irwin after 64 minutes.
The visitors didn't have it all their own way, though, and van
der Gouw had to get down to his left in the 66th minute to
make another good save from Tee Hee, following a Hai
Karate corner. The Shenhua cheerleader, Soy Sors, roused
his forces into another infiltration onto enemy soil.
United's Scandinavian attackers combined again in the
68th minute to make it 2-0 to United. Blomqvist cheekily
backsided the ball to Solskjaer whose first-time pass into
the area found Teddy Sheringham. Three touches from the
England man was enough for control, while a fourth was
enough to knock the ball in off the goalkeeper. Almost two
months after the European Cup Final, the same
goalscorers looked to have secured a rather less important
trophy for Manchester United…. another Sharp
International Cup.
Rai Van der Gouw's hopes of playing a full ninety minutes
lying down were dashed when Steve McClaren brought on Mark
Bosnich immediately after the goal. The Australian then
had twenty minutes or so to see out a third consecutive
clean sheet for the touring team in front of the good-natured
Bank Holiday crowd.
There was nearly a third goal in the 76th minute when
Sheringham drove a direct free-kick low to the goalkeeper's
right. The Chinese chop-sticks man was sharp enough to save
this for a corner. Another free-kick six minutes later ended in
David May thumping an opponent who was marginally wide.
Ming, who had looked fragile at the heart of the Shenhua defence,
was replaced by Chris Pe Duk.
Shenhua brought on four more goalkeepers for the last seven
minutes, but the effect was negligible. The action was
mainly at the other end as the home side creditably
chased a late, United-style comeback. One Chinese
substitute was close to scoring with a left-foot shot and
Swe Tens Our hit the side netting but Bosnich was otherwise
untroubled, unless you count the yellow card he received
for apparent takeaway-wasting. The referee was obviously
playing it by the book, friendly or not!
UNITED: van der Gouw (Bosnich 68); Curtis, Brown, Stam
(May 45), Irwin (Clegg 64); Greening (Cruyff 45), Wilson
(Yorke 89), Butt (P Neville 45), Blomqvist; Cole
(Sheringham 45), Solskjaer. Subs not used: Berg, Yorke.
Goals: Solskjaer 56, Sheringham 68.
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Subject: United master Chinese puzzle
John Gittings in Shanghai
Thursday July 22, 1999
Manchester United saved face in China last night by coming alive in the second
half to beat the local champions Shanghai Shenhua 2-0.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer opened the scoring from a long pass from Jesper Blomqvist in
the 56th minute, and 10 minutes later he crossed to the substitute Teddy
Sheringham for the second goal.
The 80,000 crowd cheered every Shenhua attack but they were also looking for
"Man-lian" United brilliance. When Dwight Yorke came on in the last moments of the
game they buzzed with enthusiasm at a few deft steps which might have helped
earlier.
Shenhua's Fan Zhiyi, who plays for Crystal Palace, was often dangerous and
the team also showed the benefit of their growing links with Brazilian football, with
attacking play from Julio Cesar and Marcelo. They head the league table
under the former Brazilian national coach Sebastiao Lazaroni.
United's acting captain Denis Irwin said it had been hard work in the humidity. He
complimented Shenhua for "attacking us hard on the break" but said his team
deserved to win.
The assistant manager Steve McLaren said Shenhua would "maybe make the
First Division in England and definitely the Second."
The wider significance of the game for Shanghai lies in the boost to self-esteem
as more foreign clubs take Chinese football seriously. United are also seeking
to show that their interest in China is not only commercial, and they plan to send
coaches from Britain to teach basic skills.
United leave Shanghai today for Hong Kong, where they will play South China on Saturday.
The Australian club Carlton have appointed a leading law firm to seek
possible compensation from United over Andy Cole's tackle on Simon Colosimo
which left the 20-year-old defender with damaged knee ligaments.
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Subject: A weekend in Sydney. by "David Marshall, Brisbane, Australia"
Hi Folks,
Just a few notes about my trip to see the Reds (or whites as it turned
out) in the flesh.
The alarm woke me at 4.30AM and by 4.45 I was in the cab to the
Brisbane airport for an international flight as all domestic seats
were booked. A long wait and short flight had me arriving at about
eight thirty to be picked up by my cousin whom I had not seen for 20
years. He's and a Blackpool supporter, and both remember the 1948 final!
It was a cracker of an Oz winter morning - clear blue skies and not
too cold. From there to St Joseph's college where the team was to start a
training session at 9.30AM. We were to be privilaged spectators as
only members of the NSWMUSC were to be admitted. United were imposing
a security screen in Sydney (God knows why) and you had to show both
your match ticket and member's card to be allowed in. We had been
warned in a letter that if there was a leak and any press turned up
we would all be given the big A. By the scheduled starting time there
were about 500 Reds in attendance and the team coach arrived late
complete with police escort. I suspect there were probably snipers on
the roof too. We gave them a cheer and watched with interest as they
were split up basically into forwards and attackers after some very
gentle stretching exercises. We had some discussion on which one was
Wilson who, BTW was very impressive in the game the next day.
The defenders played a lot of 2 on 2 stuff and at the other end there were
drills involving crossing and shooting, but all quite gentle and leisurely.
McLaren has the voice and attitude of a sergeant major and I was surprised
in the way he treated these knowledgeable footballers, most worth
millions and nearly all much longer at the club than he as if they were novices
and sometimes fools. There was in particular a very strenuous exercise
which involved players, in turn, standing between two markers about 5
yards apart. They were to move to the right or left when McLaren
bellowed "Right!" or "Left" and sprint 5 yards forward on "Go!". He
gradually sped it up until and then changed the meaning of the
commands from the players' right and left to his own which made it
much more difficult. Poor Wesley Brown was the most confused by this.
I thought the most nimble were Ole and, despite his size, Japp.
At the end there was a drill where a player would set the ball up
outside the box and another would shoot with Bosnich in goal. They
were trying to score three to end the session and from when I started
counting it took 47 shots to beat him three times. He looked
absolutely great, got down very quickly and held a lot of powerful
shots without losing control of the ball. I suspect he may do.
At the end we gave them another cheer and were very sorry that, not
only did they not come over to us, but only Solks, Giggs and Neville
bothered to even give us a wave before leaving.
Afternoon free for farnarcling around Sydney.
On the match day we walked down to the Orient pub where a meet had
been arranged and spent a couple of top Red hours meeting people from
this list such as Nick and Rob and lots of others. I had acquired a
lifesized cardboard cut out of George Cole in a United strip as used
in an advertising campaign for an electrical good chain here and
backed him with plywood and hinged him to make him transportable on the
plane. He quickly became very popular and known as Arfur Cole (a sort
of hybrid name from Minder) and was considered by some to be Andy's
dad! The pub was crammed with Reds and Boddington's was on tap,
though we drank them dry of it just before leaving for the game. All
the United songs were sung including "The 12 days of Cantana", the
Calypso and a "Yip Yap Stam", just to show we are up to date here.
At one point some AFL came on the TV screen in the bar and nice
rendition of "You can stick you AFL up your a*se" resulted. Football
singing and chanting is not part of the Australian tradition and the
pub attracted a lot of attention from the passing throng in this very
touristy part of the city. Several Japanese folk came in just to take
photos and probably to warn the friends at home what to expect in
November. At one point a lad arrived wearing a Scouse strip with
"Owen" on the back. He was made very welcome and given the full
anti-scouse repertoire before he left.
For me the best part of the whole weekend was the trip from the pub
through the streets of startled locals to firstly Wynyard then
Central stations and on the train to the ground. There were a couple
of hundred Red yards all singing particularly "Oh Manchester is
wonderful" and simply "United! United!" I felt I was home spiritually
at any rate.
The train trip was agonizingly slow and we only arrived at Homebush
with 15 minutes to go and I remembered to buy the three programmes I
needed. Before leaving Brisbane I had managed to
contact the chief of security at the ground to ask if taking Arfur in
would be a problem. He advised me to leave him at home, so I was a
bit worried he may have been incarcerated. I headed for the most
junior looking female security person I could see and when she
challanged me I mentioned the security chief's name, asked her if she
knew him (she did) and told her he a authorized me to bring Arthur
into the ground. It worked! We made the long climb up the spiral ramp
and ended up very high indeed. We suspended our giant banner off the
balcony (Oz Reds salute Manchester United) and settled down.
Unfortunately, despite the encouraging atmosphere before the game and
allegedly being amidst 1000 or so NSW supporters it was absolutely
impossible to get any significant singing or chanting going, and I
now know how you who complain about OT must feel. What a let down! To
top it off a couple of the security blokes rather sheepishly came to tell us
the the ground authority had contacted them and requested our banner
be removed. Talk about pathetic!
I suppose it was something to be the first to see the new away strip
(I wonder is it the Sportswool one?), but I would much preferred to
have seen them in red. You have seen reports on the game notable for a great
goal, a terrible injury inflicted by Andy Cole and a quite spirited Oz
effort. United hardly broke sweat IMHO despite Dinnis saying the
Socceroos were the better side and McLaren claiming there were a lot
of knackered players after the game.
There was an absolutely crap "compere" - some American basketball
personality I gather. Totally inappropriate, and dead ignorant "Come up
Terry Sherringham". Full of artificial hype and bullshit. Then there was the
awful sponsor of the whole thing, Mr Crass himself, Rene Rivkin, the
epitome of immodesty - and a programme that was horrid and inaccurate
having Becks, the other Neville, Keano and Scholsie in and all the
fledgelings out of it as well as only 5 of the Oz players correct!
After the game and the silly presentation there were 78 000 people on
the railway platform with no signs or announcements to help. Total
chaos, as you may imagine. There was probably more chanting then than
during the game!
I guess the things that stick out for me was the chance to see many of
the treble winners in the flesh and the amazing support United had
in Sydney. I think more than 30 000 at the game were in United kits
and all over town you just kept running into Reds. Not exactly
"Taking over Sydney" but pretty impressive nevertheless.
Cheers,
David Marshall
Brisbane, Australia.
Red 'til I'm dead - treble achieved, I'm ready to go!
See David and Arthur here!
http://www.red11.org/mufc/images/99/oz/dave_&_arthur.jpg
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Subject: Taking over Sydney Harbour Personal Report by Ken Simpson
Hello all,
You've seen some reports already, but I thought I'd add my two cents worth
(reminds me of that old saying - "from what you hear this bozo say, two
cents won't buy that much today"). Apologies for the length of this -
normally I'm a man of few words, but I wanted to get everything down
before I forgot it. Anyway, here's my account of what turned out to be a
magic weekend - as if it wouldn't be!
Dad and I flew over from Adelaide at the ungodly hour of 6 o'clock
Saturday morning. Most of Saturday was spent wandering around Sydney
Harbour doing touristy things, as I hadn't been to Sydney before (I even
went to the opera that evening - in the standing section! - never let it
be said I'm a cultural Philistine). Then Sunday morning it was off to the
Orient Hotel for the big list meeting. As we entered we could hear the
Red Army Choir in full voice. More and more Reds were arriving by the
minute - I don't know how many listees turned up in the end but I bumped
into Paul (NRTF) O'Farrell, Nick Coppack and his dad John, Rob Durie, Matt
Wheeler, Dave Marshall and Mike Dobbin who had come over from Manchester
for the game (and who got a big cheer when this fact was announced).
Dave, sorry I didn't get to chat to you very much - I think we were all
too busy singing! Say hello to Arthur for me.
By about midday the place was absolutely packed with Reds and after not
much more than a couple of hours of drinking we'd drunk them dry ("we've
drunk all your Boddies"). The few Aussie fans present came in for the
full treatment ("you came here on convict ships, us with mobile phones",
"get your sh*t stars off our flag", "Iran, you couldn't beat Iran") but
they were pretty good-natured about it. Rob Durie's misguided Liverpool
supporting son (where did you go wrong, Rob?) turned up in a shirt with
"OWEN 9" on the back and came in for a bit of stick as well - "in your
Liverpool slums", "Fowler is a crack addict/sells drugs to kids", "you can
stick your Michael Owen up your arse - sideways", "10 years since you won
the league", etc. etc. He had a bit of a laugh about it though.
All this time bemused locals and tourists were wondering what the hell was
going on. Quite a few of them were stopping to take photographs - every
time this happened someone would draw attention to the fact by shouting
"photo opportunity" and we would all stop and play to the gallery.
Occasionally we would forget - "waved to the tourists, we should have
waved to the tourists"!
The time came to head to the Stadio Olimpico Del Homebush, so we marched
off to the train station past the gaping hordes, still singing at the tops
of our voices - "Reds are here, Reds are there, Reds are
every-f**king-where", "Oh Manchester is wonderful", "You are my
Solskjaer", "Red Army", "United", "You've only come to see United" were
all belted out with great gusto, to the combined confusion and amusement
of the tourists.
Finally we were on our way to the match, although there was quite a funny
moment when we went to change trains and followed, sheep-like, someone who
obviously had no idea which platform we were supposed to go to.
Correcting our mistake, and mercilessly taking the p*ss out of a lonely
Bitter on the way, we all piled into one carriage and kept up the singing
all the way to the ground, including a rousing rendition of "the 12 days
of Cantona".
Having reached the stadium we all split up and went our separate ways to
find our allocated seats. This was unfortunate really as it prevented us
from creating any atmosphere during the game. When (if?) United tour
again, hopefully sooner rather than later, we (local supporters'
associations, local Reds in general) should try to coordinate things a bit
better so we are all sat together and making as much noise as possible!
I was sat with my Dad behind the goal that United attacked in the
first half, in the midst of the replica kit-wearing muppets. They
seemed more concerned with joining in the Mexican wave (which I think
is basically a load of cr*p - this was while there was a goalscoring
chance being created at one end mind you) or complaining about the
quality of the play than getting behind the team. Then when an Aussie
fan behind us started cheering for his team they laughed at him - what
a pathetic lot they were. There were pockets of genuine United fans
but they were scattered to the nine vectors and couldn't generate much
noise in the vast expanses of the Olympic Stadium. When you consider
there were probably over 20000 United fans in the ground it's pretty
poor that we made less noise than the crowd at the Opera House on
Saturday night. I hate to say it but this could be what Old Trafford
becomes in the next ten years - one giant Megastore. (er, a Gigastore?)
Our view wasn't great - up in the heavens in the "cheap" seats ($55 for
the cheapest ones - more than 20 pounds! No wonder the Reds in the Orient
were singing "Rivkin is a scouser"!). From where we were sat the players
looked a bit like Subbutteo men, only without the round plastic bases.
Homebush is a huge stadium and it doesn't help that the grassed area is
larger than football pitch-sized AND with an athletics track running round
it. The crowd are that much further from the pitch.
The game itself was pretty dire in terms of entertainment, which might
explain (at least in part) the morgue-like ambience in the ground. If
anything the Australians had the better of the play but their poor
finishing and lack of a genuine cutting edge (no Viduka or Aloisi) cost
them the game. The only time we looked like being really threatening was
a ten minute period in the middle of the first half. This period of
pressure led to Yorke's goal. A lovely pass from Giggs, briefly playing
more centrally, cleaved through the Australian defence and it was a simple
matter for Yorkey to finish it off. After that we seemed to lose interest
- Australia's style of play was quite "robust" and we didn't seem to keen
to really go for the 50-50 balls. The only other highlights I can remember
are a storming run through the middle of the park by Wilson and a good
Schmeichel-style "starfish" save by Bosnich. There was also a lowlight
when Australia's Colosimo was injured by a late, high challenge by Cole.
Our best performers were probably Dinnnnis and the Colossus of Manchester,
who contributed to Australia's "nil" if that makes any sense. Bosnich did
well when he was called upon (which was not often). None of the others
were memorable. Jordi seemed to get quite a bit of the ball but didn't
ever seem to do much with it.
So that was the game - a bit of an anticlimax after the pre-match
entertainment. There was a trophy presentation after the game but we
didn't stay to see Dennis Irwin hold the coveted Sharp Challenge Cup
aloft. I had heard murmurings about meeting back at the Orient, so we
started back to the train station, pushing our way through the massed
ranks of spectators leaving the ground. The platform was absolutely
packed with people - quite a sight.
Arriving back at the pub, we found only Matt Wheeler and his girlfriend
Margie, plus a couple of other Reds who I'd seen earlier but not chatted
to. NRTF and Nick and John Coppack turned up a bit later and we posed for
a 'Net Reds photo for Barry (it'll be on the way shortly, Barry). Paul,
Nick and John decided to head off as there was no sign of the other Reds,
but no more than 10 minutes later they all piled into the pub. The
singing started up again and was to continue, literally non-stop, late
into the night. We went through every song in the book and a few more.
Particular favourites were "Oh Manchester is wonderful", "You are my
Solskjaer", "Championes", "we are the Manchester Boys", "Dwight Yorke,
king of pornography", "We all live in a Georgie Best world", "the 12 days
of Cantona", "we'll drink a drink", "Champions of Europe" and "we won the
f**kin' lot". We also had great fun taunting some rival fans - a West
Brom supporter ("who the f**king hell are you?") and a couple of Leeds
fans, who really copped it - "We hate Leeds and Leeds", "sheepshaggers",
"Oh Elland Road, is full of sheep", etc. A rather portly Australian
gentleman spoke up but was quickly silenced with "you fat bastard, you ate
half the crowd!" A brave scouser wandered in and was treated to the
works, and then some. This continued for hours and hours, Reds taking the
p*ss out of everyone and everything - and, it must be said, generally
being received in good spirit by all concerned. We even had a bit of
"Red-alikes" competition - there was one bloke there who looked a bit like
Bryan Robson, and a bald black guy who looked a (tiny) bit like Andy Cole
(well, he was black - and he had no hair - that's about it), so we saluted
them with "there's only one Bryan Robson" and "Oh Andy Cole"!!!
As the night wore on, people started going home and the ranks gradually
thinned out; in the end I think it was mostly Brisbane and New Zealand
Reds left (plus Rob's other son Dylan), and when the Brisbane lads and
lasses left at around 1 o'clock I decided to pack it in, or at least my
voice did - we'd been giving it loads for about 6 or 7 hours straight,
after all! As I write this it's nearly two days later and my voice is
still wrecked!
Sunday was an unforgettable day - the singing and the camaraderie were
something special. I couldn't be in Barcelona, but this goes some way
towards making up for it, and is something to be treasured in its own
right. This is what being a Red is all about.
Cheers,
Ken
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Subject: Big guns wheeled in for Cole battle
By Ken Lawrence
Thursday, July 22, 1999
Andy Cole could face a legal fight with a team of Australia's most
aggressive litigation lawyers following the Manchester United striker's
controversial tackle on Australian Simon Colosimo.
Carlton, the 20-year-old defender's club, appointed the team yesterday as
club chairman Lou Sticca carried out his threat to sue over the injury that
may force a complete reconstruction of Colosimo's knee.
While the multi-million pound legal threat loomed, Cole and his team-mates
were in Shanghai for United's first game in mainland China, a 2-0 victory
over Shanghai Shenhua.
Cole was not among the scorers - he had other things to worry about. Lawyer
Peter Gordon, from the firm Slater and Gordon, said: 'There is no doubt the
law recognises claims like this.
'At the minimum we will be examining the role of Andy Cole and Manchester
United's policy and instructions to their players.'
Cole insisted there was nothing malicious in his tackle and sent a message
of goodwill to Colosimo - who last night claimed he had not received it.
As Cole looked on, the goal-scoring heroes of the Champions League Final,
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Teddy Sheringham, netted in the second half to
defeat Chinese league leaders Shanghai Shenhua.
United had to overcome stifling humidity and a spirited first-half
performance from the home side before recording the third win of their
pre-season tour. Sheringham said later: 'I don't know if they tired or we
got better, but it was easier for us in the second half.'
Sir Alex Ferguson's testimonial committee yesterday received confirmation
from Eric Cantona that he will play for a Rest of the World team against
United on October 11 and spokeswoman Ann-Marie Duffy wants him to manage
the side.
She is also hoping that former United keeper Peter Schmeichel, now at
Sporting Lisbon, will be available to play.
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Subject: Edwards on selling shares and Keano contract
This is from the Independent
The bit about the pact with other players agents would explain a lot!
Mark
FOOTBALL: EDWARDS TO SHED STAKE IN UNITED
MARTIN EDWARDS, Manchester United's chief executive, admitted yesterday that he
would consider selling his shares in the club to help him become the next plc
chairman.
Edwards has aspirations to succeed Sir Roland Smith next year and is prepared to
sell some, if not all, of his 14 per cent of the world's richest club. Sir
Roland does not have any United shares and the position is considered impartial.
"If I were to become chairman of the plc then it would be sensible for my
holding to be reduced," Edwards said. "There is also an argument that says there
is nothing wrong in having a stake but that maybe 14 percent is too high.
"I know that a lot of people will say this is Edwards cashing in again but I
will do what I believe is best for me and what is best for the football club."
Edwards was in line for an pounds 80m windfall last season when BSkyB bid for
the club and he would be well rewarded by prospective buyers now. The football
speculator Joe Louis and other major players will be alerted by the news. Louis
has long been in the market for a stake in a top English club and has the funds
for a major share of United. Edwards has turned down recent approaches,
including one from a betting syndicate.
Meanwhile, Edwards is still negotiating a new contract with the Roy Keane. A
secret pact with the agents of the club's other big names could drive the United
captain out of Old Trafford. Edwards has an agreement with the agents who
negotiated the contracts of the other United players to keep them on "comparable
terms" until 2002.
Some will be on pounds 25,000 a week, mainly the new arrivals, while most are on
pounds 20,000 a week. This has been a practice agreed in a dozen or so cases
recently. The pay scale is in operation until 2002 when it will be reviewed, a
strategy that suits United who have tied up most of their players on deals up to
that date. And it is why Keane's "final offer" from United is in the pounds
28,000 a week range and is as much as Edwards can pay one of the club's existing
players without causing major problems.
Keane is looking for around pounds 40,000 a week which would break the agreement
between Edwards and the agents, sparking a pay revolution. The spiral effect of
that would be rises of around pounds 600,000 a year for every player, spread
throughout the first team squad costing the club a further pounds 10m a season
in wages. One agent confirmed last night: "There has always been a rider from
Martin Edwards in negotiations that the players will be on comparable money
until the year 2002. We all accept it although everyone is watching the Keane
case with interest."
Keane is running out of time to accept United's contract which clearly is
unlikely to increase and come near his demands.
Click On pic - Pat Jennings on a day out with Fergie at Haydock!"
Pic Link today is http://www.red11.org/mufc/listpics/special/haydock99/haydock.htm
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If ever they are playing in your town
You must get to that football ground
Take a lesson come to see
Football taught by Matt Busby
Manchester, Manchester United
A bunch of bouncing Busby Babes
They deserve to be knighted
Barry
J. Leeming Digest Prgram
by 
William
McArthur Canada
