On being extremely critical of a footballer's manager's critically wrong non-decision today

I mean, what was he thinking? Your star centre fullback comes away from the endline holding his crotch, wincing with each step and looking to the sideline for direction. And this after missing most of the previous game with a serious groin injury; and this with only a couple of minutes remaining in the first half.

The camera shifts to the famous manager in the stands who, while glancing down to the sideline, suddenly brandishes a closed fist, to signal to carry on the same for the rest of the half. What is this? Has Vince Lombardi risen from the dead to revive the play while hurt philosophy?

No retroactive hindsight here. At the time I kept admonishing the TV screen to take out the injured player. You are going to take him out at the half anyway. If you don't take him out right now, the underdog team might very well get an opportunity to score due to the defender's inability to run (or even walk properly). A goal here might result in a disastrous effect on the entire season since the favoured team is only one win ahead of its nearest rival.

Alas, the telly did not heed my advice, and lo and behold, the other team did score during (appropriately named) injury time, while our wounded star basically stood in the box as a spectator.

This report from manutd.com is puzzling: "That goal on half-time was an absolute killer for us,” Sir Alex told MUTV. “I think if Rio had been fit they wouldn't have got it. But that's the breaks in football and you have to accept these things."

Am I missing something here? The manager wants our fans to accept that the other team wouldn't have scored the tying goal if he had had a fit defender playing? That all the manager had to do was to withhold his closed fist salute at the start of injury time, and make the obvious needed change then, rather than at the half? Am I missing something here?

I found some solace later on, in the fact that our team was able to salvage a draw, which would leave them still one point ahead of the pursuer. But I still cannot understand why such a great manager would make such a bonehead non-decision in this no-brainer context.

As a hopelessly hooked fan, I will still be watching and cheering next week. Sigh.

Admiration for America by a young Canadian boy; untitled poem written circa 1966, age eleven

The British were awaiting at Boston
They were going to Concord to seize the ammunition
And Paul Revere, who was a patriot, helped find out that plot
So he saddled his horse and waited many a night
And watched the church tower for a light

And on April 18th, he saw a light, shining bright; it was midnight
Then he spread the news to
The minutemen who
Shouldered a gun
And the Revolutionary War had begun

Now Revere was a soldier all during that game
And his midnight ride had brought him fame
And this is the end of my story
So I hope that you will see
How Revere helped bring victory
And start a new country




PS: For other possibly even better poetry on this subject, you can google Paul Revere's Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Note: Illustration found at www.paulreverehouse.org/ride

The Phantom Physician

My wife and I have been blessed to find a terrific family physician (yes, two married people still make a family!) upon our move to Calgary. We have placed our collective trust in Dr. Alex. He always takes lots of time to listen to our multi-problems and to offer his wise remedies. As a bonus, he also tells good jokes (and laughs heartily himself).

Dr. Alex is only available at the Asian Medical Centre on 16th Avenue on Wednesday afternoons and Saturday mornings. That has worked fine for us until this week, when I needed to see him on a Monday. The good doctor had told us that he has a separate clinic on the southside and helps out with the busy clinic on the TransCanada twice a week.

I figured that I could contact Dr. Alex at his regular clinic to see if I could get in there on short notice. The problem was, I could not locate him or the other clinic. In the various diretories in which I searched, I could not find the clinic he mentioned in the location he mentioned. I could not even find his name in any of the various directories of Calgary physicians.

Stymied, I telephoned the Asian Medical Centre to get his phone number. However, the receptionist told me that they don't have his phone number either. Fortunately, I was granted an appointment with another doctor at the centre, on short notice.

What do we make of this doctor, the phantom whose name, number and clinic location are apparently unascertainable from Sunday to Tuesday, and Thursday and Friday. I can vouch that he does exist, but maybe on his non-Asian Medical Centre days and nights he moonlights as a caped crusader somewhere in the city, standing for truth and justice in the Calgarian way.

All I can say is: I appreciate Dr. Alex, the best kept secret in Calgary.

Gator Aid

It wasn't just the big men who won it. It was also those "little" guys on the perimeter who continually sank three footers following Buckeye rallies in the second half that, effectively, sunk Ohio State in the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship game Monday night.

In last year's final, I was so impressed with Joakim Noah's dominance on the court, smashing the record for blocks and intimidating the Bruins throughout. I was even more impressed with Noah and his teammates for coming back this year to try to win back to back. They did not disappoint.

But this year, though the big men, Noah and Horford, still dominated on defence (and Horford on offence, in leading the team in points and rebounds), it was those deadly accurate outside shooters, Green, Brewer and Humphrey who seemed to really put Thee Ohio State University away, in collectively sinking 10 three pointers and scoring 43 points. It was just beautiful to behold.

Equally beautiful for me is the lasting image of Noah winding his way up through the crowd after the final whistle to embrace his mother. They hugged and hugged and hugged. What a moment.

Thank you, Noah and the rest of the Gators, for such a great season, and for dominating the Final Four. And thank you, little guys, for your superb aid in bringing the championship back to Florida.