Football and life

Saw Posh draw 0-0 with the Smoggies on Tuesday night. Two things struck me. Firstly it cost me £27 for a ticket, no student discount, so in total it cost me £54 for me and my son. Add train tickets of £18:40 and a two cups of tea and a two pints and two bags of crisps, I didn't get much change out £100.

At £27 a pop it was no fucking wonder the Riverside was less than half full. Credit to the couple hundred Posh fans who made it. The game was intriguing, Middlesbrough being positively crap in front of goal ( Sammy Ameobi was the brightest star on their team) and Posh failing to finish them off in the second half. So following our win against league leaders Cardiff I have now given up trying to figure out whether or not we will get relegated. It will probably go down to the last match away at Crystal Palace in early May.

Secondly the last direct train back from Middlesbrough to Newcastle leaves before 9 o'clock.  It was a 19:45 kick off and we ended up not getting home until just before 1am having to travel via Darlington and pick up an East Coast train. No fucking wonder Teeside languishes with public transport links that positively discourage travelling between the urban centres of the North East. Northern Rail trains reminded me of the old diesel commuter trains into London I used to get 30 years ago i.e. shit.  I have done that journey three times now and the desolation of that coastal route never fails to depress me.

I did note one interesting fashion point. In Thornaby, at least, the 80's are back in fashion.

Half a dozen or so lads got on the train on their way to Riverside dressed in tight light  blue jeans rolled up at bottom, with Doc Marten type boots, white t shirts, sweatshirt and Harrington type jackets with the hood of the sweatshirt hanging over the back. They all had rather impressive Morrisey type quiffs ( sides shaved to approximately number three length). I was fascinated, I've not seen the like since  1986. I felt like Peter York discovering a lost youth cult. I thought at first they must be in a band. If they aren't they should be. Maybe its a fashion revival or maybe the 80's fashions have just arrived in Thornaby. Who knows.

This week in the North East you can't write about football without mentioning Paolo Di Cannio's appointment at Sunderland as their new manager following O'Neill's sacking.  What to say that hasn't already been said?  I am going to say very little.
All local comment has strictly followed partisan lines even when the writers have been desperately trying not to follow that path. His views haven't been an issue for over 5 years.Managing Swindon IS the same as managing any Premiership team  So I say judge the man by his actions, rather than what you think he means by being a fascist.

-My team's manager is a convicted wife beater(it seems to have been a one off  he pleaded guilty and has shown some remorse is all I can say in his defence ).  Is a Nazi style salute ( this and some comments in his auto biography being Di Cannio's only crimes) as bad as this?

Bloodsports- Suede

The new comeback album by Suede is out. If you read this Blog you will already know that I am a big fan of Suede. 

Bands reforming and making new material have become a commonplace thing  over the last few years. Not very rock n roll, but then again bands ( e.g. The Wedding Present, The Fall etc.) hanging around for 25 plus years isn't very rock n roll either. I mean in my younger Punk days I used to mock bands like  Status Quo because they were old and had been around for years doing the same thing.

Times and perspectives have changed now that I  am 52.

Anyway this new Suede album is everything you would want from the band. Great sound, slightly surreal and sleazy lyrics and Brett's Bowie- like vocals. It Starts and Ends With You is my favourite song but there is some really good stuff on this album.

If they tour I am going this time- definitely.

It's Spring!

Yes it is now Spring and the days are flying by in a blur. The weather is still cold and snowy and depressing. But today the sun has come out and is shining. There is a proper warmth to it as well. Spring is on its way, really. Almost time to to plant my potatoes out and get the tomato plants started in my mini greenhouse.

Running has been going well although I have a slight hamstring twinge so am taking it easy this week and walking not running until my long run on Sunday. I don’t need any problems six weeks away from the Half Marathon in Sunderland.

The welfare reform changes start in less than two weeks and we are  planning changes to deal with the predicted 100% + increase in workload for housing officers dealing with rent and rehousing enquiries and related work in collecting the rent. The rent notifications have dropped through the doors and we are busy telling people that they have to pay rent now..

Worst case scenario is that we will lose £4m in revenue as people struggle to pay their bills. That’s  a lot of jobs. The "bedroom tax" ( or "spare room subsidy" depending on your political view) has featured in the national and local news. Worst case scenarios are being touted as fact and Housing pundits ( yes there are some) are  mostly against it.

Its a one size fits all approach to dealing with the soaring Housing Benefit bill  and will have some unintended consequences which could lead to an actual increase in the benefit bill as people move out to (smaller) private rented properties as private rents tend to be higher. But the principle is right, its the detail that's wrong.

Posh Update and Cloud Cult

I went to see Posh last week. Another 2-2 draw this time against Charlton. Another draw (0-0  on Saturday against Ipswich and again on Tuesday against Leeds (1-1) means we' re running out of time and games to turn this round. The Leeds game was our game in hand.

We are almost certainly down, unless that is Wolves really do completely lose the plot as they look like doing.

Cloud Cult have released a new album. It is as always rather good. Here is a link to their website where you can learn more about this excellent band. I have written about them before and how I discovered them via another music blog.

Reg Presley R.I.P.

I know this is about 1 month late but four Reg Presley songs have been part of the soundtrack of my life for as long as I can remember. The four songs being Wild Thing, Love Is All Around . With A Girl Like You and I Can't Control Myself.

The Teenbeats' 1979 version of the latter song is a particular favourite of mine and reminds me of London Pubs and clubs I saw them performing it in at the time. 

RIP, Reg.