Kansas clinch AFC West; Tigers go close in Arizona

If the round ball game holds little in the way of good news for this footie fan, there's better news for the Kansas City Chiefs who defeated the Tennessee Titans then saw other results go their way to confirm their place in the play-offs.  A season ago the Chiefs were bottom of AFC West so 2010 has been a big turnaround for Chiefs fans.  Their last regular season match is against Oakland at Arrowhead. There is no prospect for KC of a wildcard bye, but they may be hoping for a win to avoid the New England Patriots in the Divisional Playoffs.

Sadly for Tigers Fans they lost a close contest 24-27 against Iowa in the Insight Bowl at Arizona.

Liverpool back in action...of a sort

After snow and ice called a halt to proceedings at Anfield vs Fulham, and then stopped the third home match in a row at Blomfield Road when Blackpool were due to host the Reds, it was something of a relief when Liverpool finally returned to action at home against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

If action is the word.  Liverpool were tepid in attack, despite the return of Steven Gerrard, and posed little threat to Wolves.  A moment of defensive discord created an opening for Stephen Ward to put the Wolves in front, where they remained.  Liverpool now lie 12th.  A bleak result for Reds fans who will be asking serious questions of Roy Hodgson.











Roy Hodgson looks a worried man... as well he might.

Chiefs on the Warpath; Tigers in Arizona

This is my first post on the Kansas City Chiefs.  We visited Arrowhead while we were in MO but the Chiefs were on the road while we were around.  The Chiefs have had a useful season and with two weekends to go have a decent shot at the play-offs.  After 14 matches their record is 9-5, which is their best effort in recent years.  They last made the play-offs in 2006 with a 9-7 record that gave them second place in AFC West and a wildcard entry, before they lost to the Indianapolis Colts.  In 2005 their record was 10-6, which again saw them second in AFC West but did not secure a wildcard.

This season they still sit top of AFC West and have two home games still to play.  They last won AFC West in 2003 with a 13-3 record and last progressed beyond the wildcard round that same year with direct qualification for the Divisional Play-Off, where they fell - again - to the Colts.

This season the Chiefs are 6-0 at Arrowhead and 3-5 away from home.  With that home record, and fixtures at Arrowhead to come against the Tennesee Titans (3rd AFC South; 6-8 for the season & 3-3 on the road) and the Oakland Raiders (3rd AFC West, 7-7 for the season & 2-5 on the road) the Chiefs have their destiny firmly in their own hands.

Meanwhile the Mizzou Tigers are headed for Arizona and an Insight Bowl contest against Iowa Hawkeyes.  Mizzou finished 2nd in the Big 12 with a 10-2 record for the season.  The Tigers rank 6th overall for defense and the Hawkeyes rank 7th so it looks like a tight contest is in the offing.

Liverpool on Ice

No game today.  Ice all around Anfield saw the game postponed.

I'm dreaming of a Red Christmas

Well its eight sleeps till the big guy comes down the chimney, and here's hoping that Liverpool supporters can enjoy what's left of December 2010 and New Year 2011.

December results to date have been only middling...

• A useful 1-1 draw at Steaua Bucharest with a second-string line-up to confirm a place in the last 32 of the Europa League
• A comfortable 3-0 home win in the Premiership against Aston Villa on Houllier's return to Anfield
• A disappointing 1-3 premiership capitulation against Newcastle on Alan Pardew's managerial debut at St James' Park
• A tame scoreless draw at home to Utrecht in a dead-rubber Europa league tie - with the second string again.

Ahead of the Reds are the following matches....(league placings as at 17 December)

• 18 December - home to Fulham (17th) in the Prem.  Hodgson's former charges visit.  Three points mandatory here.
• 26 December - away to Blackpool (10th) in the Prem.  A revenge three points would be a great result here but this is no foregone conclusion.
• 29 December - home to Wolves (19th) in the Prem. Another mandatory three points.
• New Year's Day - home to Owen Coyle's Bolton (6th) in the Prem.  This would be a really good scalp, but a draw is probably more likely.
• 5 January - away to managerless Blackburn (13th) in the Prem.  Depending on how quickly and how well Blackburn respond to the sudden sacking of Sam Allardyce, Liverpool can hold out some prospect of a positive result - probably a draw is the likeliest outcome.

Two steps forward, one step back?

Since my last blog Liverpool have played away at Steaua Bucharest in the Europa League, securing a 1-1 away draw with a reshuffled team of emerging young players and fringe first-teamers.  There was no place in the starting line-up for Carragher, Gerrard, Torres, Kuyt, Maxi, Johnson, Lucas Leiva, Raul Mereiles and Ngog. The performance was "workmanlike rather than inspiring" but the away point cemented Liverpool's place in the round of 32.  Achieving that result away from home - with a weakened side - is definitely a step forwards for the Reds.



Milan Jovanovic put Liverpool ahead in Bucharest.

Liverpool enjoyed a strong result at Anfield in their next outing, when they hosted Aston Villa, now managed by a former Anfield favourite, Gerard Houllier. .  It was the closest line-up to a full-strength side that Hodgson could field given the current injury list - with Carragher, Gerrard, Spearing and Agger still recovering - and Torres excused due to his wife going into labour.  The team produced a convincing win, with first-half goals from David Ngog and Ryan Babel and a third from Maxi Rodriguez.  Pepe Reina kept a clean sheet, breaking the legendary Ray Clemence's record for 100 clean sheets in the fewest starts.



David Ngog - diving, lower right of picture - puts Liverpool ahead against Aston Villa.

So that was two steps forward in a week.  The question was whether the advance would continue or whether the trip to Newcastle would signal a return to the disappointing away form that has hobbled this Premiership campaign.  It had been a turbulent week at Newcastle, with the sudden sacking of Chris Hughton and his replacement by Alan Pardew.  How would Newcastle's players respond to the arrival of a new Gaffer?

Well its locked up at 1-1 midway through the second-half.  Kevin Nolan put Newcastle ahead on 15 minutes and they held that lead at the interval.  Liverpool's luck turned on 49 mins when Dirk Kuyt potted his fourth goal in six outings against the Toons.  The Toons may feel a little unlucky...

A hoisted through-ball hits a back-pedalling Sol Campbell and drops into the path of Dirk Kuyt, who surges into the area before letting fly with a shot that takes a huge deflection off Steven Taylor and rolls agonisingly past Tim Krul and into the opposite corner of the net.

So no contender for goal of the season there, but they all count.  Since the equaliser, Torres and Ngog have both failed to capitalise on good chances.  Newcastle have brought on substitute Nile Ranger who appears to have sparked them back into life.  Game on...

15 minutes plus stoppage time to play and Newcastle have the upper hand.  Babel comeson for Ngog - can this substitution swing things back to the Reds?  The next 15 minutes could significantly affect the Reds standing in the premiership table.  A win would take them to 6th.  A draw sees them remain 8th.  A loss would see Newcastle overtake them and Liverpool slip back to 9th.  Come on you Reds!!!!!!!!

10 minutes to play - a Newcastle goal to Joey Barton and maybe its 9th for us this week.  Come on you Reds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Into stoppage time and its game over at St James Park.  Andy Carroll smacks in a net-buster from 25 yards - that's 3-1 to Newcastle, a great start for Alan Pardew, and - yes, a step back for Liverpool.

Coincidentally, Newcastle had the worst home record in the Prem going into this match, but even there, we can't get a result.  Come ON you Reds, sort it out!!!