Issue 325 | October 4 2013
war games Two decades on from Benn v Eubank, we recall the bitterest rivalries in sport
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Contents
20
Issue 325, October 4 2013 Radar 05 NBA2K14
The popular basketball franchise is back, and it’s sending LeBron James down an alternative New York alley
06 Mountain to climb A new film charts the fight back to fitness of seriously injured snowboarder Kevin Pearce
08 Diamond whiskers The best five beards currently lighting up Major League Baseball
1 1 Dennis the Menace Bergkamp, that is. He has a book out, which gives us the perfect excuse to relive his greatest goals oFeatures this coming week
20 The Dark Side We look back at the bitterest feuds in sport, starting with one of the nastiest of the lot: Benn v Eubank
29 Simon Mignolet The Liverpool goalkeeper on his impressive start to life at Anfield, and a new wave of Belgian talent
34 Super League Grand Final
Cover image: Chris Smith/Getty Images. This page: Holly Stein/Allsport, Michael Steele/Getty Images, Chris Brunskill/Getty Images, Hulton Archive/Getty Images
05
29
Warriors meet Wolves in a clash of the Rugby League superpowers. We chat to Wigan star Matty Smith
38 Derrick Rose The Chicago Bulls star point guard on his imminent return from injury – and why he had to take so long away
34
Extra Time
60
52 Gadgets The resilient new smartphone that we reckon has about nine lives
56 Grooming Take your chance with an intensely new fragrance from Davidoff
60 Entertainment A weighty new Beatles biography – perfect reading for an extended stay on a yellow submarine | October 4 2013 | 03
Radar
p06 – Snowboarder Kevin Pearce recovers from serious brain injury in The Crash Reel
p11 – Dennis Bergkamp’s new book: an excuse to relive his best goals
LeBron wrong U
tterly predictable though Paolo Di Canio’s departure from Sunderland was, no one really knows how the future will pan out. From basket case to basketball, and NBA2K14 builds on that idea in a new game mode. In the past, the series has let you play as former greats. This year, you can follow the future career of cover star LeBron James along two paths from the present to retirement. In one, he stays at Miami Heat and builds a dynasty. In the other, he moves to the Knicks and embarks on a more varied path scripted by the developers. A fascinating take on the standard career mode – although, as Di Canio demonstrated, sometimes fiction can’t beat crazy reality. NBA2K14, out now on Xbox360 and PS3 | October 4 2013 | 05
Radar
On thin ice K
evin Pearce was preparing for the 2010 Winter Olympics when he suffered a serious traumatic brain injury in a snowboarding crash. Told by his doctor that another slight blow to the head could kill him, he was nonetheless determined to complete rehab despite his injury, and try to return to competition. The Crash Reel, from Oscar-nominated director Lucy Walker, tells the story of his recovery from the crash onwards. It’s a harrowing, inspiring, beautiful documentary, showing a side of extreme sports that you don’t often get to witness. The Crash Reel, in cinemas now, and on Sky Atlantic in November
Football’s favourite fonts Y
06 | October 4 2013 |
Find out more and buy your own at footballtype.co.uk, from £35 Cole Barash Photography 2008
ou wouldn’t think it looking at some of this season’s offerings, but an incredible amount of thought goes into designing football kits. Even Liverpool’s Bakerloo Line seat cushion-inspired away strip has a bespoke font crafted to accompany it. You won’t see it in the Premier League, which demands clubs use the standardised font you will recognise in the image bottom right here. It can, however, be used in Euro... well, maybe we’ll see it next season, eh? Football and typography have a rich history – from the iconic font England used for their shirt numbers in the 1980s (above, right), to Real Madrid opting to use Comic Sans on the back of their shirts this season. Now Football Type, a new limited-edition book, is celebrating that relationship to support UK charity Football Foundation. Just 1,000 copies will be produced, each numbered with official Premier League lettering. Many of the good numbers are gone – but, like Inter’s former number 18 Ivan Zamorano putting a + between 1 and 8 because he wanted to be number 9, we’re sure you can work something out.
Radar
driving past O
nly the staunchest energy drink fan would argue that it’s currently a golden age for Formula 1, so we welcomed the opportunity to take a step back to a more exciting time with the latest edition of Codemasters’ official video game, F1 2013. We found the new classic cars and tracks from the 1980s and 1990s very enjoyable, once we’d got over our initial disappointment that you don’t access them by accelerating to 88mph with a flux capacitor on board. You can take over vehicles that were driven by the likes of Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell and
Faces loaded
08 | October 4 2013 |
The modern bit of the game has also been improved, with tweaks to the online multiplayer system and the intelligence of computer controlled drivers, who battle harder when you try to overtake them – perhaps a dangerous development with the likes of Prost and Schumacher back in the game. F1 2013 out now on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. Classic edition, £44.99 includes 1980s and 1990s tracks, cars and drivers. Standard edition, £38, ‘80s only
1. 4.
I
3. 5. 2.
All pictures Getty Images
s there another sport whose practitioners look more like truck drivers than baseball? The Red Sox have enhanced that look this year by growing beards, and the team have even offered cheap tickets to fans with facial fuzz on ‘Dollar Beard Nights’. It’s worked – after finishing last in their division in 2012, they now have the joint-best record in baseball. In their honour, we’ve picked the best five beards in the Majors this year: 1. Brian Wilson (LA Dodgers, rock star); 2. Carlos Villanueva (Chicago Cubs, city gent); 3. Josh Reddick (Oakland As, redneck); 4. Josh Collmenter (Arizona Diamondbacks, bear); and 5. Jayson Werth (Washington Nationals, vagrant). Must be itchy.
Niki Lauda, and take them through scenarios inspired by real-life events, or simply race against other legends of the sport. Some classic circuits have been resurrected to accompany the cars as well, including Estoril, Imola, and the awesome Brands Hatch – a nine-corner, hammer-down rollercoaster still sorely missed by Formula 1 fans. The classic game modes get a different graphical treatment as well – a hint of sepia sometimes makes it look like you’re driving through someone’s Instagram library, but it’s tastefully done and adds to the experience.
Radar
The Iceman scoreth D
id you mean it? That’s the question that follows Dennis Bergkamp around, referring of course to his famous flick, reverse turn and finish against Newcastle in 2002. The Arsenal forward reveals the fascinating thought process
behind that goal, and plenty more, in new autobiography Stillness and Speed. Of course the Dutchman meant it, along with many more stunning goals besides – and here we’ve picked our top three. Out now (Simon & Schuster), £20
Holland 2-1 Argentina, 1998
Argentina keeper Carlos Roa took a year-long break from football the season after France ‘98, convinced the world was going to end. Not that you can blame him for thinking he’d glimpsed heaven – already beaten by Michael Owen’s wonder goal for
Georges Gobet/AFP/Getty Images, David Cannon/Getty Images, Mark Thompson/Allsport
Arsenal 4-1 Bayer Leverkusen, 2002
England in the last 16, he was a spectator again in the last minute of the quarter final days later. Bergkamp expertly trapped a long crossfield ball, stepped inside Roberto Ayala with his second touch, and poked the ball past Roa for a glorious winner. A distant cousin of Eric Cantona’s floaty chip against Sunderland in 1996, Bergkamp’s was arguably even better. It came in the Champions League second group stage (thankfully now extinct), the icing on the cake of a thumping win over Leverkusen. Receiving a pass on the edge of the area, the Iceman was as cool as ever; he twisted and turned to find space and, while slipping, unleashed a deft chip over Hans-Jorg Butt, who had made the mistake of being a whole yard off his line.
Leicester 3-3 Arsenal, 1997
Bergkamp has called this his best goal, and it certainly capped one of his best performances – a hat-trick against Leicester, dubbed one of the finest ever. After curling in from
outside the box, and lifting one over Kasey Keller in goal, he controlled a long pass and turned the defender without letting the ball drop, before supplying a typically composed finish.
| October 4 2013 | 11
Radar Editor’s letter He’s done enough to convince Roberto Martinez, but what www.sport-magazine.co.uk @sportmaguk facebook.com/sportmagazine
about Roy Hodgson?
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Bank on Barkley Everton’s bright young talent shouldn’t just be in the England squad – he should start, too
Acting editor Tony Hodson @tonyhodson1
Hodgson names his all-important England squad for next week’s crucial World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland, he would do well to consider the former well before he even contemplates the latter. International football is more about form than the club game could ever be. Coaches have so little time with their squads that time cannot be wasted on trying to coax flickers of form from players woefully out of it. It is for this reason that, despite the absence of Theo Walcott, Hodgson should not be considering the desperately out-of-touch Ashley Young. Andros Townsend, currently deputising admirably for the injured Aaron Lennon at Tottenham, would seem a far more progressive selection on that score. Further forward, the gods would seem to be smiling on Hodgson. Ricky Lambert continues to enjoy himself at Southampton (less so when asked to do a job out wide) and should be included, while Wayne Rooney and his protective headband have hit a very welcome hot streak. Lingering niggles permitting, Daniel Sturridge should get a chance to
reproduce his form for Liverpool in an England kit; while both Jermain Defoe (banging them in for Spurs in Europe) and the returning Danny Welbeck offer options. It is behind the strikers that most interests me, however, and this is where I am desperate for Hodgson to be bold and select Ross Barkley. And not just in the squad, so he can build his ‘experience’ by watching others huff and puff from the bench; the 19-year-old has been dynamite for Roberto Martinez in the early weeks of the season, and needs to be given a starting berth for England right now. Forget talk of a young Rooney – Barkley’s trickery, pace and strength on the ball reminds me more of a young Paul Gascoigne, although it’s probably best not to go too far down that route at this stage. Rather, let’s judge him on his own merits and for his potential to do the job that Hodgson requires in two vital games against opposition that will come to Wembley to defend deep and play on the break. Hodgson needs to find two home wins, and to do that he needs players who can inject pace; players who can find gaps in the face of stubborn and well-organised defences; and, most importantly, players who are in form. Regardless of age or experience, Barkley ticks every box. Get the lad in.
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12 | October 4 2013 |
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W
e all know the regularly trotted-out phrase that form is temporary, class permanent. There is undoubtedly some truth in it, too. But when Roy
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Flats on Friday
David Lyttleton
Radar Opinion
If X Factor can move on...
T
he reformatting of X Factor has thrown me in a big way. Thrown me, because I now actually watch it – and knowing that some blue-sky thinker’s ploy has sucked me in causes me pain. We all like to think we’re too wise to be tucked up in this manner, but I must now concede that I am not. What never changed was that, while watching Gary Barlow and company, the viewer got to hear some incredible voices singing beautiful songs. Even the most ardent non-conformist likes music, and some bloke from Dagenham wandering out and mastering an Etta James number is great to see. What Simon Cowell’s minions have not done is alter the product, for that was always strong. Instead, they have shifted the viewing experience, and the gamble seems to have paid off. This risk remains massive – just look at the viewing figures – but ITV have been bold when they needed to be, and this is significant. Rugby has recently begun using far more technology in order to make as many decisions as possible as accurate as possible – and, put simply, it has achieved this. Of course, there will always be calls that go unchecked which, when analysed post-match, prove incorrect – but that number is vastly reduced. There will always be room for referee’s interpretation, too, and this is key to sport remaining a human experience. What has
14 | October 4 2013 |
been affected, though, is the viewing experience. Yes, the viewers feel more included in the action when they at home see the same angles as the referee and commentators, and are privy to the chats involved – but they also see the action interrupted more often as officials eliminate risk of error by checking incidents that would once have been woven into the fabric of the afternoon and debated by blokes with make-up on in the studio. Rugby was bold. It embraced technology in order to maintain both relevance and integrity in a world where transparency is demanded. As a result, foul play is just not part of the game any more. It still happens, but it is seen and publicly punished. I love football, but it needs to address one issue with the same bravery as rugby addressed its blinding complexity, by allowing a separate referee to rewind back through the phases to check all was well. Football needs to hammer players for diving. It needs to allow referees to check alleged foul play or penalty claims, and it needs to properly punish players for cheating. But it’s not only cheating (elite sport will always see players pushing beyond agreed boundaries) – it’s the reputation of The Beautiful Game that’s at stake. If football wants to move on, it cannot be made to look antiquated and ominously protective by minority sports and TV talent shows. @davidflatman
It’s like this… Bill Borrows
I
have a budget airline in mind. I’ve just travelled on it to and from Spain, and it was everything it unashamedly stands for. The term ‘budget’ is open to debate, and customer service an oxymoron. The staff do their best, but would probably job-swap with a corpse of mortuary assistants if the chance arose, and the whole experience is entirely dispiriting. Fortunately, those who run it are not rich enough to take over my club, but it did get me thinking about how the ‘budget airline’ business model would translate to a mid-table Premier League club or lower. First, ticket prices. The adverts would hook you in: “Premier League Football: Tickets from 35p!” they would scream. “That seems almost to good to be true,” you would be excused for thinking. Predictably, it would be. You would only be able to book online, of course, so give yourself a couple of weeks to negotiate the traps devised to part you from your hard-earned. Want a scarf? Make sure you check the ‘no’ box. A hat? No. A comedy wig in your team’s colours? No. A lift to the game? No. A hire car to get there with our proud sponsors? No. A coffee? Buy it now and we’ll reheat it when you get here? No. No, no, no, no, no. There is a surcharge for wearing clothes at the game (£25 for underwear, £100 for outerwear) and another for sitting in the ‘talking’ part of the ground (£75). But don’t worry, it should be a bumper crowd – chiefly because they’ve thrown out all the old seats and managed to get in another five on every row. Double amputees get charged double for not using the allocated foot space. And finally, you’ve printed out your own ticket. You haven’t? You forgot to opt out of buying the insurance that guarantees your team will not lose, inadvertently bought a haversack (remember them? I’ve still no idea what they are or were) and signed up to the club’s intrusive 10-times-a-day stalking newsletter? Tsk tsk. Well, once all that’s sorted, at least you’ll be able to watch the game. That said, getting to your seat will be like Total Wipeout but with the added inconvenience of a fat family from Burnley squabbling in the aisle – but, apart from all that, you’re there. Relax. Hang on. There’s a manic depressive with a rictus grin dragging a trolley up the steps and trying to sell you scratchcards and Kerry Katona’s new fragrance? But it’s alright, because the Tannoy just announced that the game will finish five minutes earlier than other matches, and they look forward to seeing you again next time. @billborrows
Plank of the week Brendan Rodgers, Liverpool Don’t get me wrong, I like him – but Sturridge and Suarez the best strike pairing in the Premier League? Sturridge put one in with his arm and Drac knocked in two against the worst team in the league from a combined distance of seven yards. I don’t know who’s writing your material, Bren, but you may want to think about giving him a rise.
Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
He’s behind you! Detroit Lions safety Louis Delmas’ knee may put him in the Ledley King/Paul McGrath category, but his two interceptions proved crucial last week as his team beat the Chicago Bears 40-32. And, as he celebrated, a real lion did exactly the same thing right behind him. The bloke on the right didn’t seem too impressed, mind. Seen it all before, mate. 16 | October 4 2013 |
Frozen in time
| 17
the dar 22 | September 20 2013 |
rk side Violent groin kiCks, liVe radio rows and two grandads sCrapping in a Car park. when riValries turn ugly, it Can Bring out the worst in sportsmen, But offers terrifiC entertainment. sport reCalls the Bitterest sporting feuds – starting in the ring, with two of Britain's greatest Boxers Boxing: nigel Benn v Chris euBank
Holly Stein/Allsport
In an edited extract from his new book, The Hate Game: Benn vs Eubank – Boxing’s Bitterest Rivalry, Ben Dirs recounts the minutes leading up to the Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank fight in 1990, a clash that gripped the British public. Chris Eubank arrived at his dressing room at 6.30pm and set about making sure everything was in its correct place. Which was more difficult than it might have been. “Ambrose Mendy [Benn’s manager] and his team pulled all sorts of strokes,” says Eubank’s manager Barry Hearn. “They knew Eubank liked nice, white towels and they gave us sh**ty, horrible towels; we liked to warm up properly, but they gave us the smallest dressing room we had ever seen.” As Eubank went about his business, seemingly oblivious to Mendy’s machinations, his trainer Ronnie Davies soothed him by singing Irish rebel songs. Meanwhile, down the corridor, Mendy was wrestling with Nigel Benn’s demonic fury. “Right before a fight, I’d always get everybody out of the dressing room and we’d usually have a hug and say some really personal things,” says Mendy. “About his well-being, about what would happen if he was hurt. And he’d morph from someone who was uncertain into a frightening, frightening character. “It was incredible to witness, this brooding intensity. But this time the intensity is so great that Nigel is not listening to anything I’m saying. He’s already in the fight. There are no words, just a glare. I looked into his eyes and I could almost see inside him. When he looked at you, it was almost as if he paralysed you – you couldn’t move.” Mendy’s application for a second’s licence had been rejected by the British Boxing Board of Control, meaning he was unable to be in Benn’s corner for the fight. However, this snub allowed Mendy to concentrate his
efforts elsewhere, namely in attempting to cause as much unrest in the Eubank camp as possible. “I knew that I had to unhinge Eubank, somehow, some way,” says Mendy. “And I knew I had one more chance to get to him, and that was the witnessing of his hands being wrapped. I went into Eubank’s changing room, he went absolutely nuts and attacked me. It was chaos. He’s trying to choke me up against a wall and I’m trying to knee him in the bollocks and right-hook him. If I’d got close enough, I would have bitten him. The guy from the WBO jumped in, Barry Hearn was involved, and Chris is screaming: ‘Get him out of my f***ing changing room, I don’t want him here.’ “Meanwhile, Barry’s trying to reason with him, saying: ‘Calm down, Chris, he has to be in here. He’s got to witness your hands being wrapped and sign your gloves.’ In hindsight, I should have left it at that, walked out and said no one from our camp is going in there, until we got him at the point where he was demoralised. Instead, he calmed down immediately – as if someone had flicked a switch – smiled at me and said: ‘Thmart move. Thmart move. Okay, fine.’ I picked up the pen, calmly wrote on his gloves ‘Dopey c***’, and walked out of the changing room.”
simply the worst
Mendy had one last trick up his sleeve. “Chris is strolling out to Simply the Best and when he gets 10 yards inside the arena, my mate, who was the DJ for the night, ripped the music off,” he says. “And Eubank stretches out his arms and says: ‘Barry – what the f***?!’” “That was Ambrose who cut off Chris’s entrance music,” says Benn. “I wouldn’t have done it and it wasn’t my idea. Ambrose was into all that psychological warfare, but I didn’t have time for any of that.” Hearn recalls now: “I said to Eubank: ‘Right, back to the dressing room.’ And I went upstairs and had a row with the geezer in the DJ booth.” > | 21
The Dark Side “Barry’s gone upstairs, but I’ve had two gorillas stationed outside the DJ booth,” says Mendy. “And they said to Barry: ‘Not tonight, go away.’ So Barry had to go back down and say: ‘Chris, we ain’t got no music.’” Hearn says: “I came back down after this steaming row, with foam coming out of my mouth, and I’ve got ITV saying to me: ‘We’re live!’ And I went: ‘Chris, dressing room, now!’ But Eubank just looked at me and said: ‘Bazza – they gave me shitty towels, they gave me a shitty dressing room, they’ve f***ed up my music. Just keep calm and let me punish this man.’ And suddenly I felt like a little child standing next to him. Before that, I wanted to chin everyone. Now I was like: ‘Okay Chris, I trust you. Off you go...’”
More than two minutes after his entrance had been sabotaged, Eubank reappeared; the cacophony of boos and catcalls no longer masked by Tina Turner’s incongruous moans and groans, the lack of music lending the occasion a stark, old-school air. Eubank climbed the ringside steps and stopped for a moment on the apron. He looked halfway over his shoulder – a tacit acknowledgement of the hatred of the crowd. From men who smelt of cigarettes and pubs, men who thought they were hard but had never laced up gloves. Eubank negotiated the ring post, tested the tension of the top rope and vaulted into the ring, before turning on his heels and back-pedalling across the canvas. “I stood in the ring and sucked in the hate,” said Eubank. “I redirected it towards Nigel Benn. I was like a prism.” When Benn finally made it into the ring, TV pundit and Eubank’s stablemate Jim McDonnell thought he resembled “a wild tiger”. But to many, he looked like a man on the verge of a nervous breakdown. “He put everything on the line that night,” says Mendy. “When he got into that ring he was ready to kill Eubank. No fighter was more aptly named: he was dark and his sole intention was to destroy.
Holly Stein, Adrian Murrell/Allsport
A prism of hAtred
“Eubank had his head slanted to one side and his gloves held together; Nigel was snarling, his hands down by his side. I remember the intensity of his stare across the ring: it was like Superman’s X-ray vision – you could almost see the rays coming out of his eyes.” Eubank had vowed not to meet Benn’s gaze until they came face to face in the ring. And he had carried out meticulous mental planning for when the moment came. “In the lead-up to the fight, myself and my fiancée Karron always referred to him as ‘Benjamin’,” said Eubank. “To think of actually fighting Nigel Benn would have been too awesome. In the ring, I looked at him and saw a relentless savage. But I also saw a man with a slight doubt on his mind. When he looked into my eyes he needed
reassurance. I thought: ‘It’s too late for that, mate. You’re mine.’” In a brutal bout, Eubank was knocked down in the eighth round, but stopped Benn in the ninth. Their dislike fuelled a rematch 20 years ago this month (pictured above), which ended in a draw. The Hate Game (Simon & Schuster) is out later this month. Ben Dirs will be talking about his book at the London Sports Writing Festival at Lord’s on October 19 (http://tickets.lords.org) and the Sports Book Festival at the University of Liverpool on November 16 (sportsbookfestival.com)
A kiCk in the bAlls snooker: Alex higgins v Cliff thorburn
Alex Higgins had good reason to hate them all: Steve Davis was a remorseless machine who crushed his dreams (“I hate him”); Dennis Taylor was Irish, world champion and therefore defiantly on his turf (“I’ll have you shot”); and, perhaps most dispiritingly, Stephen Hendry signalled the end of everything – there was somebody younger in the driving seat, and Higgins was powerless to resist. But it was another star for whom Higgins reserved a visceral hatred. Cliff Thorburn: his tight-trousered, ’tache-flaunting rival for the affections of Britain’s bored housewives. That was one competition Higgins thought he would never lose. But when The Grinder’s fans turned up in T-shirts proclaiming their devotion, it hurt. The seeds of the rivalry, however, had been sown back in 1973. Having borrowed £50 from Thorburn for a poker game and providing his wedding ring as surety, Higgins (sans cash, naturally) turned up with his first wife, Cara, to reclaim the ring. Understandably, Thorburn refused. Higgins pretended to faint and then, when Thorburn 24 | September 20 2013 |
turned his back, picked up a bottle with which to hit the Canadian. As Thorburn recalled later: “I grabbed him… and just pounded his head until my hand got sore.” Nine years later, they met in the Benson and Hedges Masters. After Higgins’ victory, Thorburn made the mistake of sitting next to one of Higgins’ female companions. “You’re a Canadian c***,” Higgins declared. “And you can’t f***ing play either.” A fight ensued, but was broken up. As they went to shake hands, Thorburn booted him square in the balls. The scene was set for Higgins to announce after the final of the Langs Scottish Masters in 1986 (a match he had just lost) that Thorburn was “lucky”. “Why is that?” the winner asked. “You know, the bags of white powder,” came Higgins’ reply. The accusation made Thorburn’s life misery: death threats, vandalisation of his house and emergency board meetings for his sponsors ensued. Unusually, Higgins helped his old foe only a few weeks later, by head-butting a match official and drawing all the available opprobrium. > The Hurricane: The Turbulent Life & Times of Alex Higgins by Bill Borrows is out now (Atlantic Books) Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
The Dark Side
Clash oF the titans
Football: brian Clough v Don revie
“This is the big daddy of all the rivalries. They loathed each other. The irony is that they came from very similar working-class backgrounds. They were both born in the same area of Middlesborough, just a long goal-kick apart. You would think they might have things in common. But, of course, they were fantastically different personalities. “The loathing started with Clough, and there are various theories as to why. Ultimately, he didn’t like the way Don Revie’s Leeds team played football: the hard men who were niggly and physical and tried to con referees. That shaped his utter dislike of Revie. Clough had a very pure idea of how football should be played: on the ground, that players should behave themselves on the pitch and so on. He thought Revie’s tactics were a betrayal of football. “Also, according to [Clough biographer] Duncan Hamilton, Clough once saw the referee talking to Revie before a match and reckoned that he was trying to turn the referee. Duncan thought all things sprung from that, and he knew Clough quite well. Now, it may have been that Clough was mistaken in what he saw – and I have to say that I could never pin down a particular incident of this.
But I do know that, up until about 1968-69, Clough almost revered Revie – so something definitely changed.
tv showDown
“Famously, on the day Clough was sacked from Leeds in 1974, Calendar, the local TV programme, managed to get the two of them to debate on air. If you watch it, you can sense the hostility between them. Particularly from Revie, actually. Because as Clough arrived at the studio that night, he’d been sacked and he was very disappointed – but also a bit relieved, and he’d had a few drinks. Revie, on the other hand – an England manager who was preparing for the next match against Czechoslovakia – was resentful. He felt that Clough had taken a club that he’d moulded into one of the best in Europe and ruined it in 44 days. “Revie will have heard all the stories about how Clough had told all the players: ’You can chuck all your medals in the bin, because you won them by cheating.’ He was dismayed. If, up to then, it had been Clough resentful of Revie, that interview showed that it was now about Revie’s anger at Clough. It was the lowest ebb in their relationship. And, after that, they just avoided each other. They had different outlooks on life, different personalities. They wanted nothing to do with each other after that day in 1974.”
at bloCkerheaDs
F1: nigel Mansell v nelson Piquet Nelson Piquet was a motor-mouthed playboy who sneeringly referred to fellow Brazilian Ayrton Senna as “the São Paulo taxi driver”. Yet there was something about his dislike of 1986-87 teammate Nigel Mansell that raised his language to the Shakespearean. “An uneducated blockhead,” was his public opinion of his fellow Williams driver, before falling into the gutter and referring to Mansell’s “stupid and ugly wife”. 24 | October 4 2013 |
tough luCk, olD boy
To the bullish Mansell, this was like a red rag to, well, a bull. The pair were so focused on their own battles throughout 1986 that Alain Prost snuck in to claim the World Championship. In 1987, Mansell won twice as many races as Piquet (six to three), yet the latter was rarely off the podium and won his third world title. It was their last season as teammates, but their feud has cooled since. They appeared on TV together earlier this year, Piquet conceding that, in terms of titles: “I should have won ’86; he should have won ’87.”
golF: niCk FalDo v Paul azinger The depth of the rancour between Nick Faldo and Paul Azinger is perhaps best illustrated by the bitter half-point they shared at the 1993 Ryder Cup, before the American had been diagnosed with lymphoma. “Look at that,” said Azinger dismissively on TV later. “I had cancer and he still couldn't beat me.” But the friction had begun when Faldo did just that six years previously at the Open Championship. Azinger led all the way, only to bogey the final two holes to let Faldo in for victory. “Tough luck, old boy,” smiled Faldo to his foe. The gesture rankled Azinger for 20 years. As recently as 2008, when they were opposing Ryder Cup captains (Azinger winning that particular battle), the feud rumbled on. “If you’re going to be a prick and everyone hates you, why do you think that just because you’re trying to be cute and funny on air that people are all going to start to like you?” asked Azinger. “The bottom line is that the players from his generation and mine really don’t want to have anything to do with him.” > Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Graham Wood/Getty Images, Dominique Faget/AFP/Getty Images, David Cannon/Getty Images
Roger Hermiston, author of Clough and Revie: The Rivals Who Changed the Face of English Football (Mainstream Publishing) tells us about football’s greatest feud.
The Dark Side
AntisociAl mediA
You know a rivalry is serious when the partners start chipping in. In 2012, Team Sky riders Sir Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome finished first and second in the Tour de France. However, stories persisted that Froome wasn’t happy about having to play second fiddle to support team leader Wiggins. Witness Stage 17, when Froome pulled away on the Col de Peyresourde and gestured at Wiggins to keep up – a move many interpreted as Froome demonstrating his superiority in the mountains. The two kept up appearances, but their partners weren’t so shy.
“Teamwork is also about giving the people around you, that support you, a chance to shine in their own right,” tweeted Froome’s fiancée Michelle Cound in 2012. Sir Mod’s other half, Cath Wiggins, shot back with: “See [Sky riders] Mick Rogers and Richie Porte for examples of genuine, selfless effort and true professionalism.” It was all building nicely to a head-to-head showdown at the 2013 Tour, but injury and a chest infection meant Wiggins pulled out and Froome won at a canter. Not that it ended matters, with Cound saying this summer that the Wiggins camp should have “been a bit more classy and sent a message of congratulations”. Status: still simmering.
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cycling: sir brAdley wiggins v chris froome
cAr pArk showdown
A running feud Athletics: linford christie v sebAstiAn coe
British athletics has had its share of intense, on-track rivalries – Seb Coe and polar opposite Steve Ovett jog into view. But there was something disappointingly sporting about most of them. Not so the fierce dispute between Olympic gold-medallists Linford Christie and Coe. In 2001, Coe insinuated Christie had been “lucky” to avoid a drugs ban from the 1988 Seoul Olympics, and called him boorish. “I sat in one team meeting when he made himself deliberately unintelligible to all but those who had a passing knowledge of jive,” said Coe. Christie fired back, telling the BBC: “I took that as a racial connotation... maybe Seb feels he’s more upper class than I am.” In 2002, “Linford from London” even called a radio show Coe was guesting on in order to obtain an apology. He did not succeed, but listeners were treated to a heated 11-minute debate on air. The resentment simmers today, with Christie feeling that Coe was instrumental in snubbing his chance to carry the Olympic torch before London 2012. 26 | October 4 2013 |
cricket: iAn bothAm v iAn chAppell They vehemently disagree on what occurred in their bar brawl in Melbourne in 1977 – when the 21-year-old Botham got into an altercation with former Australian Test skipper Ian Chappell (above) – but they’ve agreed to despise one another since. Beefy’s version is him nobly chin-checking Chappell to end his vile pommie-bashing. Chappell’s is that a hysterical young Botham lost the plot and pushed him off a chair. They later clashed on the cricket pitch – sledging, bouncers and threats of bat-to-flesh violence – but it’s away from the sporting arena where their rage has taken hold. More than 30 years of trading insults and accusations of lying came to a physical head during the 2010 Ashes down under. Unable to walk past each other in a car park without some sly verbals, the two grandpas – with a combined age of 127 – went for each other and had to be physically prised apart by their media colleagues. Magnificent. Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
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Simon Mignolet
Thinking inside the box He may have been a latecomer to his position but, as he told Sport, Liverpool and Belgium goalkeeper Simon Mignolet is making up for lost time
S
imon Mignolet is reminiscing about the 1994 World Cup, and we think we know why. We have asked the impressive new Liverpool goalkeeper who his heroes were growing up as a child in his native Belgium; no surprise, then, that he is recalling a tournament at which the iconic Belgian stopper Michel Preud’homme was named in the all-star team. ”It’s a bit of a particular one,” he corrects us. ”I only turned into a goalie when I was 15 years old, so when I was younger I looked up more to outfield players. Those I remember most are Romario and Bebeto at the World Cup in the USA, and then Zinedine Zidane for France in 1998. They were the big ones for me.” So, we have to ask, what happened? How did a 10-year-old mesmerised by the skills of one of world football’s greatest ever talents grow into a 25-year-old charged with keeping those of the modern era at bay? Mignolet is refreshingly honest. ”I used to play outfield at my hometown club, but when I turned 14 they released me because they didn’t think I was good enough to succeed as an outfield player,” he says. ”My dad had been a goalie when he was younger, so he suggested I make the change. I did, and it was the best decision I ever made in my life.”
Julian Finney/Getty Images
Rapid rise Mignolet has not looked back since. Having returned to hometown club Sint-Truiden as a goalkeeper, he broke into the first team at 18 and helped them to the Belgian Second Division championship in 2009. Within a season, he had been named Belgian goalkeeper of the year – and attracted the welcome attentions of the Premier League. ”Steve Bruce was manager of Sunderland at the time, and he contacted my agent > | October 4 2013 | 29
Simon Mignolet
[Nico Vaesen], who used to be the goalkeeper for him at Birmingham,” he reveals. ”Steve sent his goalkeeping coach Nigel Spink over to scout me; he watched a few games and was quite pleased with what he saw, so they got me over. Since then, everything has gone really quickly.” Mignolet admits to remembering very little of his Premier League debut for Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, but that he was named man of the match in a 2-2 draw with Birmingham suggests he hit the ground running. ”Coming from Belgium to England was a big move,” he reflects. ”I needed to adapt, and it did take me a couple of months to settle, but I’ve never really been a nervous person – and having got that first game out of the way, I just wanted to crack on and do my best to keep improving. ”Back in the Belgian Second Division, you’re playing sometimes in front of 500 people, and now I get to play at a full Anfield in front of 45,000 – plus all the people watching on TV all over the world. I am really proud of being here.”
Andrew Yates/AFP/Getty Images, Stu Forster/Getty Images
Here and now
After six games of the new Premier League season, the Liverpool fans might be proud to have Mignolet at the club too. Inheriting the gloves from as popular a figure as Pepe Reina was never going to be easy, and the Belgian endured some nervous moments in his debut at home to Stoke – but a late penalty save secured three points for his new team, and an early ascension to hero status on the Kop. ”Your debut is always a bit special, and of course you hope to do well, so to save a penalty gave my confidence a real lift,” he says. ”I was quite pleased with it, and I’m happy with how
things have gone so far – but I don’t think too much about what has been, it’s more about what is happening at the moment. I just want to do well in every single game and with every chance I have to play. It’s not about looking backwards or too far in front of you. Football is all about what’s happening now.” What’s happening now at Liverpool is that the club sit a lofty second in the Premier League, two points behind Arsenal and with a very winnable home fixture against Crystal Palace separating them from what promises to be a satisfying break for the final round of World Cup qualifiers. The early-season momentum gained from three straight league wins may have been threatened by consecutive defeats at home to Southampton and away at Manchester United in the Capital One Cup, but it returned with Sunday’s 3-1 victory at Sunderland – when a certain forward marked his Premier League return with two goals. ”I think everybody sees the amount of talent Luis has got, what he can do and the goals he can score,” says Mignolet of the aforementioned Suarez. ”I have to face him one on one in training nearly every day, so I get to see even more of it than most – but I always think that if you are playing with and against top players like that every single day, it can only improve you as a goalkeeper.”
High standards
Mignolet speaks in composed and excellent English, his confidence in the language mirroring the single-minded approach that sees him turn a question about a teammate into an answer about himself. He is unapologetically
proud of what he has achieved since being rejected as a 14-year-old outfield player – and proud, too, of his role in an explosion of Belgian talent into the Premier League. ”I have always spoken about the arrivals of Marouane Fellaini, Thomas Vermaelen and Vincent Kompany into the Premier League,” he says. ”I think they showed the English public and teams what they were capable of, and since then clubs are more likely to give a chance to Belgian players. Before, maybe they thought the standard in Belgium was below what was needed to play in the Premier League.” Romelu Lukaku, Christian Benteke, Mousa Dembele... the list of Belgian players lighting up the Premier League on a weekly basis is growing ever longer, and goes a large way to explaining why Belgium are on the verge of qualifying for a first World Cup since 2002. ”That’s the job in hand,” says Mignolet, who is contending with the Chelsea-owned Atletico Madrid stopper Thibaut Courtois for the Belgium goalkeeper’s jersey. ”We still need one more point from our last two games, so we want to get ourselves qualified. That would be a great achievement already, but then we can crack on to the World Cup and see what we can do there. We don’t want to get too carried away, though. We need to get there first.” One day at a time, one game at a time, one step at a time: such is the mindset of Mignolet. It has served him well so far. Liverpool and Belgium fans will hope it continues to do so.
Saving the day: and saving a penalty on his debut – Mignolet keeps Jon Walters out from 12 yards
Tony Hodson @tonyhodson1
Simon Mignolet wears Sells Goalkeepers Products, www.sellsgoalkeeperproducts.com | October 4 2013 | 31
Slide To vicTory Tai Woffinden
We speak to Tai Woffinden, the 23-year-old on the verge of becoming Britain’s first speedway world champion in 13 years
jarek.pabijan@wp.pl
T
he man we’re about to speak to has the acronym DILLIGAF tattooed across his knuckles. If you’re not down with the kids, we’ll save you the trouble of looking that up (like we had to): ‘Does it look like I give a f**k?’ It’s a phrase that doesn’t bode well for potential interviewers, so it’s with a degree of trepidation that we punch in the mobile number of Tai Woffinden, who is leading the Speedway World Championship going into the final round in Poland on Saturday. It’s only his second full year of competition at Speedway Grand Prix level, but the rider for Wolverhampton Wolves and Polish side WTS Wroclaw is on the verge of becoming the first Brit to win the Grand Prix series since the year 2000. He will have to do it with a broken collarbone, however, after suffering a recurrence of the injury in last weekend’s Scandinavian Grand Prix. Born in Scunthorpe, Woffinden moved to Australia with his family at a young age, before returning to the UK at 16 to follow his father into a career in speedway racing – which explains his southern-hemisphere twang. Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
You said at the start of the season you were aiming for the top eight, but with one race to go you’re 16 points clear. Has your success been a surprise? “No, I knew that I could do it, you know? It’s just having all the things around you to get it done. Everybody sets goals, and the goal I set I reached pretty quickly, and then adjusted my goals to a medal finish. I’m comfortably in gold, and I’ve just got to keep it going for the last round.” What has been the key to your form this year? “I haven’t really changed that much, to be honest – I’m using the same engines as last year and have the same team behind me. I’ve been training pretty hard this year and all that kind of stuff: making sure everything is organised properly, training right, eating right, surrounding myself with the right people and, yeah, just all that kind of thing.” Your dad was a speedway rider. Did you show an instant aptitude, or has it taken a while to master? “It’s taken ages – I started when I was 12, so it’s been a steady old progress, and then I came over to Europe when I was 16 to race professionally.”
How are you mentally approaching the final round? “I’ve only got to get six points, and that’s if the guy in second [Jaroslaw Hampel] wins every race. So I have to keep my eye on how many points he’s dropping, try and win as many races as I can, and obviously try and make a podium in the last Grand Prix, as well as win the championship.” What would it mean to you to win the title? “It’d be massive, I couldn’t explain it. It’s what everybody goes for; it’s everybody’s goal to be world champion – everyone that loves speedway.” It’s not been an easy season for you on the injury front, breaking your collarbone at the British Grand Prix and then again in the last round in Stockholm. How is it holding up at the moment? “It’s not too bad. It’s a bit sore, but it is what it is. I can’t do anything about it. So, yeah, I’ve just gotta keep working to finish off strong. I’m hoping it will have healed up a bit by the next round at least, but you never really know until you get on the bike. So we just have to wait and see.” Amit Katwala @amitkatwala
The Torun FIM Speedway Grand Prix of Poland: live and exclusive on British Eurosport 2 HD, Saturday October 5 from 6pm | October 4 2013 | 33
Victory over Warrington in Saturday’s Super League Grand Final would earn Wigan Warriors a rare domestic double, and playmaker Matty Smith is heading into the clash in confident mood little over 12 months ago, the defending Super League champions Leeds Rhinos went to the DW Stadium to play a semi final few expected them to win. Wigan Warriors had topped the regular-season table and looked irresistible in a 46-6 drubbing of Catalans Dragons a fortnight earlier – but, inspired by Kevin Sinfield, the Rhinos did what they always seemed to do. A 13-12 victory in a bruising encounter was enough to book their place in yet another Grand Final; it was against Warrington, and they won it. Scrum half Matty Smith was on the Wigan replacements bench for that semi final, but last week he started for the Warriors as they once more faced Leeds in a semi final. An Old Trafford showpiece against Warrington was again the prize on offer, but history didn’t repeat itself. A month after picking up the Lance Todd Trophy for being named man of the match in his side’s Challenge Cup victory over Hull, Smith was the driving force behind a clinical 22-12 victory – and the 26-year-old cannot wait to line up against the Wolves in what will be only Wigan’s second Grand Final appearance in a decade.
Paul Thomas/Getty Images
A
The Rhinos have had an aura about them in recent seasons. How satisfying was it to see them off last week? “Leeds have come here year in, year out and won it, and they take some beating in the playoffs. So it was a massive boost for us to beat them, and two weeks before that we beat a Huddersfield team that had finished top of the league. The big games are there to win, and we’ve not beat Warrington yet this season – but then we hadn’t beaten Huddersfield or Leeds either, so there’s no reason we can’t go to Old Trafford and turn the tables on Saturday. We’ll arrive with 34 | October 4 2013 |
confidence that we can do a job. If everyone in the team carries out their own jobs to the best of their ability, we’ll take some beating.” It seems a long time since the team lost five of its last six regular-season fixtures... “I don’t think any team can go a full season without a few blips along the way, but we’ve always been positive and in every knockout game this year we’ve performed. Looking at last year, we didn’t do that, but winning the Challenge Cup already this season can only give us confidence. We’ve talked about playing well in the big games, and we’ve done that so far this season. There’s one more big game to come on Saturday, which is probably the biggest of the lot. We need to perform against a great Warrington side.” You drew at home with Warrington this season, then lost away. What have you learned from those two games? “The first time we played them was early on, I think it was our second game, and to be fair we probably had that game won. We just let ourselves down a little bit in the last stages of the game, and got that late drop-goal. But I think in the game at the Halliwell Jones we matched them for the majority of it. I think we had a few missing – [stand-off] Blake Green was out that day – but the way both teams are, it can go either way on the day. I think that’s why people want to see this final; we’re two of the best sides in Super League, and we both like to chuck the ball around. It should be a great game.” Despite being champions in 2010, this is only Wigan’s second Grand Final appearance in a decade. For a team with such a proud history, is the pressure on to do better? "Yeah, there’s always pressure at Wigan. I knew that as soon as I signed; you just >
Magic Matty: Smith takes on Leeds Rhinos during their Magic Weekend win in May – an outcome his side repeated with their 22-12 Super League qualifying semi final victory last week
Credit
Matty Smith
| 35
Matty Smith have to look at the players who have worn that number seven jersey before me – Adrian Lam, Shaun Edwards, Andy Gregory. They’re all legends of the club and the game, aren’t they? There is always pressure, but I enjoy it, and I think it makes me play better. It doesn’t get much bigger than running out in front of more than 70,000 people at a packed Old Trafford, but I can’t wait to get going.” On a personal note, how good is it to be back in a Grand Final? You were in the St Helens team beaten by Wigan three years ago. “When I came here with Saints, I was rushed back from Salford, where I’d been on loan for the season. I came back for the playoffs and we got through to the final, but I think the day passed me by a little bit. It went from being one of the best moments of my career, walking out at Old Trafford for a Grand Final, to one of the worst when we got beat. I don”t want that feeling again.” As a former St Helens player and boyhood Saints fan, how do you feel heading into a Grand Final as a Wigan player? “I’m still a Saints fan, and my childhood heroes were Sean Long and Keiron Cunningham – fantastic players who I really looked up to when I was a kid. But I’ve never enjoyed my rugby as much as I have done this year at Wigan. As soon as I met Shaun Wane
last year, he sold the club to me. He told me I’d win trophies if I came here, and we’ve done that. It’s been the biggest opportunity of my career to play for Wigan, and I’m really grateful for that.” Finally, much has been made of the fact that this game is a Wigan farewell for Sam Tomkins and Pat Richards – how important have these guys been to the team in recent years, would you say? “Mate, Paddy [Richards] has been an absolute legend. He has won everything there is to be won in the game, and his goal-kicking is second to none. He’s going to be truly missed next year – and then there’s Sam, who’s probably one of the best talents not just to come out of Wigan, but to come out of the game over here full stop. The future is bright here at Wigan, though – the club is producing kids through the system every year, and this is a young squad that is only going to get better with time. It’s obviously a sad moment for the club that they’re leaving, but that creates an exciting opportunity for the boys who will come in and get a chance next year.” Tony Hodson @tonyhodson1
The Super League Grand Final is live on Sky Sports 2 and Sky 3D from 5pm on Saturday. Watch on TV, online and on the move on mobile and tablet devices with Sky Go
Saturday Super League grand FinaL | Warrington WoLveS v Wigan WarriorS | oLd traFFord | Sky SportS 2 6pm
Case for the defence The meeting of Challenge Cup winners
Huddersfield was clinical; their form going
Wigan and a Warrington side seeking their
into the game was not great, yet they turned
first Grand Final win represents the Super
it around at the league leaders. That game
League climax that many people wanted to
told me what a champion side they are.
see. But, as Sky Sports pundit Brian Carney
more capable of closing out a tight game.
meanest defences in Super League.
Wigan have shown they can do it; Warrington
“Wigan have missed the fewest tackles in Julian Finney/Getty Images, Gareth Copley/Getty Images
“The big question will be which side is
points out, it also brings together the two
are less consistent, and I think Tony Smith
Super League this season, and Warrington
(pictured) referenced that after the win
the second fewest,” he tells Sport. “We look
over Huddersfield last Thursday. He was
at the attacks and wonder whose forwards
disappointed with the way they tried to
will get on top, but I expect a close game
close it out, but they’ll have learned their
and think it will be won in defence.
lesson. Should they go into the dying
“The Warriors weren’t at their best before the playoffs, and lost some inspirational players at key times [club captain Sean
minutes in front, they will finish much smarter than they did against Huddersfield. “I could make a strong case for either
O’Loughlin remains an injury doubt ahead
– but I think that if they both play at their
of the Grand Final], but they’ve been
very, very best on how they’ve performed
hugely impressive in the playoffs. The win at
this season, Warrington will win.”
36 | October 4 2013 |
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Derrick Rose
Ro
38 | October 4 2013 |
ose returns And then came the moment that changed everything for Chicago’s favourite son. Rose, in possession of the ball, attacked the basket in typically aggressive style. But, as he jumped to make the shot, a blinding pain tore through his left knee. “Uh oh, uh oh, Rose came down bad on his left foot,” said commentator Kevin Harlan, in no doubt as to the severity of the injury. “You see him holding on to his knee? Holding on to his knee and... down. He was flying and he came down wrong on the left foot.” Neither was there any doubt among Rose’s teammates, who gathered around him as he lay flat out on the court, his body writhing in agony, his face screwed up with pain. “We had the game won,” he recalls of that agonising moment when Sport meets him ahead of the 2013-14 NBA season. “We were up by 12 and, at that time, I’m just thinking about the next game. And then... that happened and it takes everything away. It crushes you.” The interview location – the gym of a London university – is his choice. Rose is travelling with a trainer who has a series of drills laid out for him to complete after we’ve spoken. Some 17 months have passed since Rose tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee, yet the memories of it are still painfully fresh. That is partly because the 25-year-old has not played a single game since the
injury, missing the entirety of the 2012-13 season. His refusal to set a date for his return saw him fend off criticism from a section of the Bulls’ fan base, but he stood firm, telling USA Today in February: “I’m not coming back until I’m 110 per cent.” Team doctors cleared Rose to play late last season, however. And, with the Bulls edging towards the playoffs, the pressure on him to return intensified with every game that he missed. “People are gonna say whatever they’re gonna say and the media are gonna talk about whatever they want to talk about,” he says quietly, his words emerging in a slow, mid-west drawl. “I was just worrying about myself, you know? But you gotta understand that it’s a business. And I understood that part, so it didn’t get to me at all – I couldn’t care less what people say about me. My biggest concern was getting my body right.”
PLAYING THE LONG GAME Rose played it safe in a situation where most athletes throw caution to the wind in a bid to get back in the game as soon as they possibly can. Some called him a coward for it, but others realised the guts it took for him to ignore the pleas from his home city. With a new season now on the horizon, Rose says he has no regrets: “I’m happy I took the whole year off. I mean, I love the game, and having it taken away from me for a year was tough. But now I’m at the end of it and looking back at my rehab and how I’m training, I see it was a blessing in disguise. “I know I’m coming back a better player because it gave me the opportunity to change my body – I gained 10 pounds of muscle since the injury. I still don’t know how I’m gonna put all that into my game. My jump shot is much better and I’m way stronger than I was. But, in terms of going to the hole, I don’t know how explosive I’m gonna be just yet.” “Anxious” is the word Rose uses to describe his feelings about what is one of the most hyped comebacks his sport has seen. And it’s not hard to understand why: in his first year of professional basketball, Rose was named Rookie of the Year; in his second, he became an NBA All-Star; in his third, he received one of the sport’s highest accolades – being named the league’s Most Valuable Player. At the time of his injury, he was in the first 12 months of a five-year, $94m contract extension. Those are some standards to live up to after 18 months on the sidelines. “This is the strongest I’ve ever been mentally, though,” he insists. “I always had talent, but having
the mental part of the game is gonna make me a different player. I should be on a whole other level. For me, patience was the key to getting through an injury like that. When you have a brace on your leg for four months and you can’t sleep right, it’s hard. All you want is to be out there on the floor, but you can’t. You have to wait. You have to deal with reality and with the present.”
NO HIDING PLACE We’re familiar with Premier League stars disappearing after suffering a major injury, leaving us awaiting vague updates on their condition from cagey managers at press conferences. But Rose’s rehab period was recorded and televised over five short episodes in a series called #TheReturn (you can watch the whole thing by searching ‘Derrick Rose – #The Return’ on YouTube). In the series, Rose is shown heading to Los Angeles after surgery, where his rehab takes place at the Home Depot Center in Carson. “It’s where a lot of football, soccer and tennis players go to train,” he explains. “It was a great environment and LA itself was a great place to clear my mind, get a change of scenery and see some palm trees. It’s totally different from Chicago.” As he’s filmed gritting his teeth through a gruelling sequence of painful-looking exercises designed to rebuild his muscles, Rose offers insights into the mindset of the injured athlete: “My biggest fight right now? Staying focused and being patient, because I’m impatient – this is the only time in my life when I actually stopped playing basketball. If I can pass this, I can pass anything. “When I’m working out, I always say: ‘If it’s painful, then see how long you can go through it, because a normal person would stop right when they feel pain.’ I try to see how long I can go through it, because I try to make myself different to other people.” We ask Rose to expand on his apparently masochistic tendencies. “It’s true,” he says. “You could ask a regular person – someone not used to taking pain or playing basketball – and tell them to do a suicide [a lung-bursting drill involving a series of shuttle runs up and down the basketball court] and the effect on them would be totally different than on someone that plays the game. “For me, I know that I’m a professional. Usually, if you’re a professional in sports, you have gone through some type of adversity in your life to get to that level. So I have to push harder now – I have to make everything that’s hard to them look easy.” > | 39
Rafael Astorga
It’s April 28 2012, and the Chicago Bulls are leading the Philadelphia 76ers by 12 points with one minute and 22 seconds of their opening playoff game remaining. For Derrick Rose, the Bulls’ star point guard and 2011 league MVP, the game is won. His mind is already looking ahead to Game 2, set to take place in three days’ time.
Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Derrick Rose
War of D Rose: the star point guard after tearing his ACL in April 2012 (bottom, left), and in action for the Chicago Bulls (above)
BULL ON THE BENCH Talk of Rose’s return intensified when, on March 3, he appeared on the bench as Chicago Bulls took on the Indiana Pacers. With his team locked in a bad run of form – losing nine from 15 games – the presence of their star point guard on the sidelines gave them a much-needed boost (although they lost that game). It also helped Rose start to get his head back in the game after spending so long away from it. “When I first got injured, I watched the rest of our playoff series, but after we lost I stopped watching basketball,” he says. “I really didn’t start to watch it again for a long time, probably until the next season started. Even then, I wasn’t able to be out there watching every game throughout the regular season, because I love the game too much. I was gonna get too involved. I was gonna react. “So I waited until the playoffs [to be at every game]. Tibs [Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau] is a cool coach and he thought it was cool that I came out every game. We were on the same page with that. I was just out there talking to the team, giving them advice about what I see. I think it helped us out in certain ways.” Those playoffs saw Chicago reach the Eastern Conference semi finals, where Miami Heat – NBA champions for two years running – lay in wait. 40 | October 4 2013 |
No one gave the underdogs a hope in hell, so when the Bulls won Game 1 by seven points, it was considered something of a giantkilling. Unlike the FA Cup, however, the NBA Playoffs follow a best-of-seven formula, and Chicago would not win another match. They lost the series 4-1.
Rose is also clear that he needs to heed the lessons he’s learned about his own body over the past 17 months: “How to run in the correct way, aligning your body the right way, taking care of your body, stretching. I didn’t stretch at all when I was younger. I wish I did. I have a son now, so he’s gonna be doing all of that. I’m throwing him into gymnastics and everything so he can have the basics down.” HEAT IS ON It’s his mind that Rose credits with seeing him Rose was impressed by his teammates’ performances though, and not only in the playoffs. “The whole year through the toughest battle he’s faced in his career, though. “I just tried to make sure I was putting I was pleased,” he says. “Nobody expected us to be everything I had into heading down the right path,” he in the playoffs at all, so for them to achieve that says. “Trying to give myself the best chance to come was great.” back a healthier player. You have some guys out With their star man ready to return, many are looking at Chicago’s displays towards the end of last there who try to keep the same diet or try to cheat the rehab. I just tried to stay on the right path and season and presuming that the addition of a strong not take any shortcuts at all. Not one.” and hungry Rose into the mix makes them realistic Rose gives the nod to his trainer, Nick. It’s work contenders for the 2014 championship. So, does he time. He sets off on some warm-up drills while Nick think they a threat to the Miami Heat domination of looks on, saying quietly: “Derrick’s great to work with. recent years? We’ve travelled all round Europe and he hasn’t missed “Not only to Miami – we’re trying to shock the one session. He refuses to.” No shortcuts indeed. world,” says Rose confidently. “I know everybody’s goal on my team right now is to win the championship Sarah Shephard @sarahsportmag – and, of course, one of the teams we have to go through is Miami. We know they’re a great team and Derrick Rose is an adidas ambassador and wears we know it’s gonna be a hard year. But we just gotta the adizero Rose 4 for next level speed and support. stay together.” Go to adidas.com and join the conversation @adidasUK
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7 Days OUR PICK OF THE ACTION FROM THE SPORTING WEEK AHEAD
OCT 4-OCT 10 HIGHLIGHTS » Football: Premier League » p44 » Boxing: Anthony Joshua v Emanuele Leo » p46 » FAWSL: Arsenal Ladies v Lincoln Ladies » p46 » Horse racing: Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe »p48 » Tennis: Shanghai Rolex Masters » p50
SUNDAY FORMULA 1 | KOREAn GRAnd PRix | KOREA inTERnATiOnAL CiRCUiT | SKy SPORTS F1 7AM
Canada for not slowing down sufficiently for caution
best form in time for the end of season ‘fly-aways’
flags). Alonso escaped censure for his part in what
to Asia – he has now won eight of the previous nine
was arguably the most exciting moment of that race,
races in Singapore, Korea, Japan and India collectively,
but still has his reasons to be disappointed with the
dating back to September 2011. He’s also been on the
sport’s leaders.
top step in each of the past three races this season,
the design of tyres after five races, which effectively
circuit in Korea. The omens, therefore, aren’t good for
ended his title hopes. “That was probably our point in
Fernando Alonso – his closest challenger.
the championship: when they changed the tyres, we
The Spaniard is 60 points behind – but will have one less Red Bull in his way this time after Mark Webber,
said bye-bye,” Alonso told reporters last month. Drivers’ radio communications with their teams
who retired when his engine blew on the final lap, was
during the race can also be revealing, despite being
given a 10-place grid penalty for hitching a ride back
heavily coded because the world can hear, as with
to the pits on Alonso’s Ferrari at the end of the
Vettel’s glee after his Singapore win. “Yes! Yes, boys,”
previous Grand Prix in Singapore (FIA rules state three
he whooped. “That's what I call ‘in control’.”
reprimands in one season will trigger the penalty, with
42 | October 4 2013 |
Foremost among them is the decision to change
and two of the only three at this weekend’s host
If he can maintain control in Korea, and again in
the Australian having had his wrists slapped in Bahrain
Japan a week later, he will be all but certain of a fourth
for a collision with Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg and in
consecutive Drivers’ World Championship. Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Paul Gilham/Getty Images
Border control
Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel has once again hit his
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7 Days
Premier League
saturDaY Manchester city v everton etihad stadiuM | bt sport 12.45pM
David Moyes takes Manchester United to a ground that’s been kind to them in recent years. But then, as he discovered last weekend, history counts for little saturDaY sunderland v Manchester united | stadiuM of light | sky sports 1 5.30pM
Everton have lost only one of their past six trips to Manchester City. And, despite the Toffees’ reputation for being draw specialists, the other five games include only one such result. That tie came last December, and continued City’s unbeaten start to their league season. Such consistency is yet to be found this term – away from home, at least. At the Etihad, however, they’ve been unbeatable. But then, they’ve not yet faced Ross Barkley (pictured).
sunDaY west broM v arsenal | the hawthorns sky sports 1 4pM
David Moyes’ calls for Manchester United fans to remain
a 3-1 loss to Liverpool – did see them have their most
“Did you see that coming?” asked a
patient are becoming increasingly difficult to hear.
shots (23) in a league game since December 2011, though.
reporter of Steve Clarke after West
That’s mostly because they’re being drowned out by the
Under caretaker boss Kevin Ball, they also improved both
Brom’s shock win at Old Trafford.
negative numbers streaming from every media outlet:
possession (46.2 per cent) and passing (347 total passes)
Clarke nodded: “I said we were going
‘United’s worst start for 24 years’; ‘United have never won
compared with their 3-1 home defeat to Arsenal a few
to get something.” His positive
the title in a top-flight season where they’ve lost three or
weeks earlier (30.6 per cent and 273).
mindset rubbed off on his players
more of their opening six games’; and so on. Defeat to West Brom at Old Trafford last weekend
Moyes bemoaned the Red Devils’ attacking display on
and will carry them into Sunday’s
top of their defensive failings last weekend. It’s an area
game against league leaders Arsenal,
sends Moyes’ side to the Stadium of Light under serious
where they have struggled on recent visits to the Stadium
who squeaked past the Baggies in
pressure, then. Fortunately, Sunderland are the only team
of Light, too. Although United haven’t lost a league game
the League Cup last month. The
in the league yet to win a point at home (not to mention
there since 1997, they haven’t scored more than one goal
Gunners’ mindset is equally strong,
the only team left without a win). The Black Cats’ first
in each of their past four visits. As Moyes promised last
however, as they chase a record ninth
Premier League game since Paolo Di Canio was sacked –
weekend, it’s time for United to put it right.
straight away win in the league.
44 | October 4 2013 |
saturdaY fulham v stoke | craven cottage | 3Pm
saturdaY hull v aston villa | kc stadium | 3Pm
saturdaY liverPool v crystal Palace | anfield | 3Pm
Newcastle smashed five past
Stoke are without a league win
Steve Bruce’s side are unbeaten in
“We need to dig in and find
Cardiff the last time these teams
since August. They turned in a
three league games, but in Aston
ourselves,” concluded Ian Holloway
met, in the Championship in 2010.
dismal display against Norwich last
Villa face a side they haven’t scored
after Crystal Palace lost 2-0 to
But the red Bluebirds are proving
time out (in which they had just one
a single goal against since 1987,
Southampton last weekend. He’ll
they’ve left the second tier far
shot on target), and they have left
in the old second division. Andy
have to dig mighty deep, because
behind. Cardiff’s first away win this
Craven Cottage empty-handed for
Weimann’s winner helped Villa see
Palace sit second from bottom and
term came at Fulham last weekend,
the past three seasons. They do,
off Man City last weekend without
have failed to score in four of their
courtesy of another set-piece (they
however, head there at a good time:
Christian Benteke or Gabriel
six games so far this season. He’ll
scored a league-high 33 from them
Fulham have just one point from
Agbonlahor, but they are yet to win
also have to dig fast, as his side faces
last season) and a sensational
their past seven matches at home,
back-to-back games this season –
one of the league’s most dangerous-
25-yarder from Jordan Mutch
and Dimitar Berbatov (pictured) is
and last weekend they reached the
looking forward pairings in Daniel
(pictured). Loic Remy has three
without a league goal this season.
milestone of having conceded 1,000
Sturridge and Luis Suarez (pictured)
goals in four games for Newcastle.
‘Jol out’ is the call from fans.
Premier League goals. Leaky.
this weekend. Dig man, dig!
sundaY norwich v chelsea | carrow road sky sPorts 1 1.30Pm
sundaY southamPton v swansea st mary’s stadium | 1.30Pm
sundaY tottenham v west ham | white hart lane | 4Pm
Premier League tabLe L
F
A
Pts
1
Arsenal
6
5
0
1
13
7
15
2
Liverpool
6
4
1
1
8
4
13
3
Tottenham
6
4
1
1
6
2
13
4
Everton
6
3
3
0
9
6
12
5
Chelsea
6
3
2
1
7
3
11
6
Southampton 6
3
2
1
5
2
11
7
Man City
6
3
1
2
14
7
10
8
Hull
6
3
1
2
6
7
10
9
Aston Villa
6
3
0
3
9
8
9
10 West Brom
6
2
2
2
6
5
8
11 Cardiff City
6
2
2
2
6
7
8
12 Man Utd
6
2
1
3
8
8
7
13 Swansea
6
2
1
3
8
9
7
14 Norwich
6
2
1
3
4
6
7
P
W D
Both sides ended goal droughts last
Swansea have faced the top three
West Ham have hit the road three
15 Stoke
6
2
1
3
4
6
7
weekend: Jonny Howson’s strike at
sides (and Manchester United) in
times this season and returned with
16 Newcastle
6
2
1
3
7
11
7
Stoke ended Norwich’s run of 235
their opening six games. Their best
just two points and no goals. Hardly
17 West Ham
6
1
2
3
4
5
5
league minutes without a goal, and
result from those was a draw with
a fearsome prospect for a Tottenham
18 Fulham
6
1
1
4
4
9
4
a John Terry (pictured) header
Liverpool, which they nearly equalled
side that seems to be improving
19 Crystal Palace 6
1
0
5
4
10
3
0
1
5
4
14
1
at Tottenham drew a line under
against Arsenal on Saturday. The
with every passing game. Three
20 Sunderland
Chelsea’s 247 minutes of goalless
Swans will hope Ashley Williams is
goals in five games – compared to
league football on the road. Juan
back to shore up a defence that let
three in 33 last term – is a promising
Mata’s arrival lifted Chelsea at White
the Gunners to score twice in four
return from Gylfi Sigurdsson
Hart Lane; his goal separated these
minutes. Saints notched a first home
(pictured), but Spurs aren’t yet
sides last time they met. Chelsea have
win of the season last time out,
scoring freely. Then again, it’s a year
11 points from six games – the same
Rickie Lambert banging in a belter
since West Ham scored more than
as when ol’ Jose left the club in 2007.
of a free-kick against Crystal Palace.
once in a top-flight away game.
8
6
Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsey has scored eight goals in nine games from just 10 shots on target this season
Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand | 45
All pictures Getty Images
saturdaY cardiff city v newcastle cardiff city stadium | 3Pm
7 Days SATURDAY BOxINg | ANTHONY JOSHUA V EMANUELE LEO |O2 ARENA, LONDON | SkY SPORTS 2 8PM
Great expectations Anthony Joshua – Olympic gold
despite his medal tally, the 6ft 6in
medallist, World Championship
Londoner wasn’t even particularly
silver medallist and heavy-handed
experienced as an amateur, having
heavyweight – makes his
taken up boxing just five years ago
professional debut at the O2 on
aged 18. He will be matched
Saturday against 32-year-old
carefully, the hope being that
Italian Emanuele Leo, who has won
Joshua can make a better job of
all eight of his own pro fights.
progressing and improving while
However, Leo’s seventh win was
under public scrutiny than Audley
against Hungary’s Sandor Balogh,
Harrison managed a decade ago.
whose record now stands at three
One man who’s at the other end
wins and 32 losses. His eighth
of the pro game is Bury super-
opponent in September was,
bantamweight Scott Quigg,
again, Sandor Balogh.
challenging for a version of
What we can glean from this
the world title against Cuba’s
(apart from the fact that Sandor
Yoandris Salinas on the same bill.
Balogh is not likely to be a future
This battle of two unbeaten boxers
heavyweight great) is that
in their prime (Quigg turns 25 this
promoter Eddie Hearn probably
month, Salinas is 28) is a
hasn’t been so silly as to put the
mouthwatering one. Our tip is that
23-year-old Joshua (pictured) in
the busy swarming of Quigg may
with an opponent who has much
be enough to outwork the classy
of a shot of beating him. After all,
Cuban, but this will be close.
FRIDAY FOOTBALL | FAWSL CONTINENTAL CUP FINAL: ARSENAL LADIES V LINCOLN LADIES | THE HIVE, BARNET FC | BT SPORT 2 7.30PM
Gunning for their reputation With Arsenal’s nine-year dominance of top-flight women’s football in England seemingly at an end (Liverpool having won the Women’s Scott Heavey/Getty Images, Julian Finney/Getty Images
Super League title last weekend), they will view tonight’s Continental Cup final as an opportunity to prove they are still a force with which to be reckoned. It is a cup Arsenal have won for the past two years, but after a disappointing league season (in which they finished third, six points off the pace), they won’t be taking anything for granted on Friday. The Imps might have finished 20 points behind Arsenal in the WSL this season, but they held the Gunners to a goalless draw when the teams met in the league last month. Kim Little (pictured), whose late strike was the difference in last year’s 1-0 victory in the final against Birmingham, will be out to ensure history repeats itself with the final honours of this season at stake. 46 | October 4 2013 |
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Neither should anyone’s son. Or Grandad. No cousins or nephews. Not the boys from the rugby club or the lads from the pub. No boyfriends or husbands or father-in-laws. Not the chap from the chip shop or the noisy lads at the back of the bus. Not your best mate. Not a single stranger. No one whatsoever. No one should face cancer alone. With your support, no one will. Text DAD to 70550 and donate £5 today.
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7 Days Sunday > HORSE RACING | PRIx DE L’ARC DE TRIOMPHE | LONGCHAMP | CHANNEL 4 3.15PM
FRIday > BaSEBaLL | MLB PLAYOFFS GAME 1: OAKLAND ATHLETICS v DETROIT TIGERS | OAKLAND COLISEUM | TBC
Underdog A’s take on Tigers Year after year the Oakland Athletics provide a glimmer of hope to all those fans who don’t follow the biggest and the richest. Proving that clever management, team spirit and determination can carry a team to glory, the A’s won the AL West this year as they did in 2012. It’s long been an open secret, with the book (and subsequent film) Moneyball highlighting the methods of general manager Billy Beane (still in situ) and his use of sabermetrics and quantifiable data to find players overlooked by other teams, which contributed to their success. The A’s of 2013 had a payroll of just over $60m (27th out of the 30 MLB teams), yet their 96-66 win-loss record was better than the $200m New York Yankees. Their postseason journey begins tonight as they take on the Detroit Tigers (payroll $148m). It was the Tigers who ended the Athletics’ postseason in the American League Divisional Series in 2012, and revenge would be sweet. The A’s edged them in the regular season, 4-3 overall in their two series. They will, however, have to overcome a formidable Detroit pitching rotation, including 21-game-winner Max Scherzer. The Athletics’ own pitching standout has been 40-year-old veteran Bartolo Colon (pictured), the big man finishing with a 2.65 ERA (earned run average) – one of the best seasons in his 15-year career in the Majors. At the other end of the payroll scale, the LA Dodgers ($220m) play their second game against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. The Braves dominated the NL East this season, but will need to be at their best to overcome a Dodgers franchise desperate to win their first World Series since 1988.
Frankie back on top? Dettori will have to prove his worth in
the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, takes place at
her saddle, however, because this year’s Arc
the glamorous Longchamp racecourse in
field looks incredibly strong. A formidable
Paris this Sunday – and it affords Frankie
Japanese challenge is led by last year’s
Dettori a glorious opportunity to reassert his
runner-up Orfevre, who looks like starting
position as one of the sport’s biggest names
favourite, and the three-year-old Japanese
after his recent comeback from a drugs ban.
Derby winner Kizuna, who narrowly got the
In his new role as retained rider to Sheikh
better of English Derby hero Ruler of the
Joaan Bin Hamad Al Thani – a member of the
World in another recent trial race. Multiple
Qatar royal family – Dettori is set to ride the
Group 1 winner Al Kazeem flies the flag
highly fancied Treve in a race that traditionally
for Great Britain, while the staggeringly
determines the best middle-distance horse in
impressive King George winner Novellist
the world. The three-year-old filly is unbeaten
represents Germany.
in four career starts, and was mighty impressive
It is possible to make a case for any of the
in winning her trial race at the track last month.
above, but Treve is the most exciting horse in
She may lack experience, but she possesses a
the race – and our money is on her giving her
blistering turn of foot reminiscent of the great
big-time jockey the big-time victory he so
Zarkava, who won this very race in 2008.
desperately craves.
48 | October 4 2013 |
Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images, Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images
The most prestigious horse race in Europe,
Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Competition
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sport-magazine.co.uk/competitions | October 4 2013 | 49
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T
o celebrate the release of Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa, in cinemas October 23 (cert 15), we are offering you the chance to win one of 10 pairs of tickets to an exclusive pre-release screening of the film on October 22, at Paramount’s offices in London. The 86-year-old Irving Zisman is on a journey across America with the most unlikely companion, his eight-year-old grandson Billy, in Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa. This October, the signature Jackass character Zisman (Johnny Knoxville) and Billy (Jackson Nicoll) will take movie audiences along for the most insane hidden camera road trip ever. Along the way Irving will introduce the young and impressionable Billy to people,
7 Days Saturday > Rugby union | AvivA PRemieRshiP: LeicesteR v noRthAmPton | WeLfoRd RoAd | bt sPoRt 1 3.15Pm
Saints v winners Ask any Northampton fan, and the fact Leicester Tigers lifted the Premiership trophy last season will still hurt – that they did so by a 37-17 margin, meanwhile, is almost solely down to Dylan Hartley’s sweary moment of madness. Northampton see themselves as genuine rivals to their East Midlands neighbours. This season’s opening four games have finally proved as much, with the duo level on points after three wins from four – the Saints are ahead having scored four points more. It’s been an impressive start for Jim Mallinder’s men, and with Leicester in town tomorrow, four wins from five would make it all the more so. The power of the pack has always been Northampton’s strength, but there’s something different in the air this season, and it’s the combination of Stephen Myler getting a run at 10, Luther Burrell bringing his power to the fore and, of course, the arrival of George North on the wing. Strength up front, and finishing power behind – the backs have scored nine of their side’s 14 tries this season – makes this Saints side a tough prospect. Especially when Dylan Hartley has an effing point to prove.
MOnday > tennis | shAnghAi RoLeX mAsteRs | Qi Zhong stAdium, shAnghAi | sKy sPoRts 1 7Am
Time ticking for Swiss maestro With Andy Murray still recuperating
taken it by the time the tournament
from back surgery, there will be no
starts, depending on his progress in
repeat of last year’s thrilling
Beijing this week) and has no points
Shanghai Masters final between the
to defend between now and the
Scot and Novak Djokovic.
season-ending ATP World Tour
match points, and thus five chances
That tournament will be at the
to win his third Shanghai title in a
forefront of the mind of Roger
three-hour, 20-minute-long three-set
Federer (pictured) in Shanghai next
epic that eventually went the way of
week. The world number six is
the Serb. The world number one (at
currently seventh in the Race to
time of writing) is returning to try
London Rankings, and with only the
and defend his title next week, but
top eight featuring in the traditional
is likely to find his nemesis Rafael
closing event of the season, he
Nadal standing firmly in his way.
needs to make the most of every
Nadal is eyeing up the number one ranking (indeed, he could have
50 | October 4 2013 |
Finals in November.
tournament he plays between now and then.
Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Mark Thompson/Getty Images, Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
That match saw Murray waste five
© 2012 Rugby Football Union. © Canterbury Limited 2013.
plus many more acts still to be announced
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ExTrA TimE
P60 We Tune In to a chunky tome of Beatles history with mark Lewisohn
Making the most of your time and money
Gadgets
Golden touch CAT B15
Ray Mears could probably fashion a workable smartphone out of twigs, berries and an ocelot’s earlobes. But for the rest of you, there’s a better way of staying in touch with the world when you’re exploring the great outdoors. The CAT B15 is a rugged but full-featured Android smartphone designed to withstand whatever you can throw at it. Its Gorilla Glass touch screen is scratch-resistant, it’s dustproof and also impervious to liquids, so you should be fine – even if Mears gets his filthy hands on it. £272 | amazon.co.uk
Globalgig hotspot
We’re more and more reliant on mobile internet, so going abroad can feel like going back in time as we try and make do without expensive data. Well, no longer. The Globalgig device connects to up to five devices at once, providing data roaming from just 2p per MB in 36 countries. Plans from £20 | uk.globalgig.com 52 | October 4 2013 |
Griffin PowerDock 5
Keep your desk tidy, charge five devices at once and think about how lucky you are with this clever space-saving charging station. Optimised for Apple products, it should work with most other USB-enabled devices too. So don’t worry – you won’t have to rush out and buy three more iPads to fill up the space. £75 | Apple stores
Goo.ey tablet and smartphone cases
Qualcomm Toq
A space-age material lets these cases stick securely to flat, glossy surfaces, but not to your pockets, hands or face. That means you can stick your phone to a window to watch TV, on the kitchen wall to look at a recipe or, if you’re feeling brave, on the ceiling for an ‘extreme selfie’. From £10 | gooeyskins.com
Smart watches are apparently going to be the next big thing, although possibly just as a stop-gap until the bionic eye implant takes off. The Toq is fairly typical of the genre – it’s Android only, connects via Bluetooth, is relatively lightweight and will make you look like a low rent sci-fi villain. £TBC | Coming soon
Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
There’s a coach in every watch. Meet the GPS running watch with coaching features so dialled-in, it might know your abilities better than you do. Forerunner 620 gives you essential running data like distance, pace and heart rate plus a touchscreen, VO2 max estimating and a recovery advisor. And when you pair 620 with HRM-Run you have access to advanced running form coaching data like cadence, vertical oscillation and ground contact time. The 620 is compatible with free training plans from Garmin Connect, which you can send to your watch, for real-time coaching.
To learn more, visit Garmin.com/ForerunnerCoach
©2013 Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries
Forerunner ® 620
ET
Kit
ToTally addicTEd To basE [layErs]
It’s getting ruddy cold outside. Time for these bad boys to help you stay warm while you run, jump, cycle and skip your way to fitness
Under armour coldgear infrared crew
Ace thermo-conducive coating inside the top – copied from military planes, no less – ensures that Under Armour’s latest base layer will keep you warmer than ever before. If it’s good enough for New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady here to wear while he’s outrunning a puff of smoke, then it’s good enough for us. £40 | underarmour.com
rohan superfine Merino 150 crew
Merino sheep wool gives you a warm lining, with a natural resistance to the build-up of odour meaning it won’t need a wash as often as you do. £40 | rohan.co.uk 54 | October 4 2013 |
odlo Evolution Warm crew base layer Optimum breathability and antibacterial odour-free materials are good, but it’s the drawn-on muscles that make this top great. £55 | surfdome.com
adidas Hollow Mock Turtleneck
Also available in red, this number boasts mesh inserts for ventilation, thumb holes in the cuffs and Climawarm material to keep you warm. £35 | adidas.com
icebreaker bodyfit oasis crew
Designed for mountain sports, so is versatile enough to cope with widely fluctuating temperatures and activity levels. £36 | ellis-brigham.com
sondico core
Mesh cuffs, mesh panels under both arms and an elasticated hem mean comfort is central to this tight-fit Sondico top – and at this price, you can’t argue with that. £7.50 | sportsdirect.com
Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Rules of
Rules 57-68:
WINTER RULES DO NOT APPLY. NEVER, EVER. A player shall be oblivious at all times to the storms raging outside by playing indoors for the whole winter at Urban Golf.
OUR Y K O BO STMAS CHRI T NOW EVEN Spend the winter playing golf in perfect summer weather on any one of our 60 championship courses on our 18 state-of-the-art aboutGolf™ simulators. Remember no matter how horrible it gets outside, conditions are always perfect at our three London clubs - Royal Smithfield, Soho Golf & Country and Kensington National. And with our new menus and wine list, conditions are even more perfect for your Christmas party. To book a round or an event, call 020 7248 8600 or visit urbangolf.co.uk This winter Urban Golf rules.
ET
Grooming
GamBLInG man
A selection of new releases to help you bring home the bacon – we’re speaking figuratively, and literally
Game on
Davidoff The Game Intense
You swan into a casino, neck a vodka Martini, drop a couple of provocative one-liners and leave shortly afterwards, a few thousand richer and with a swooning female companion on your arm. Who wants to be that guy? Well, we pretty much all do. So we asked Uncle Davidoff what we should be aiming for. “The Game Intense man is strong and determined,” he explains. “He knows how to play the game of life. For him, it is not a matter of chance and luck [which rules Sport out, if we’re honest], but a question of skill and self-control.” A variation on the original The Game fragrance, it retains the same gin fizz top note followed by a heart note of textured orris and a base note of blackwood. A further heart note of black patchouli essence and a leathery base note of labdanum absolute make this game a little more intense, however. And if Uncle Davidoff’s description isn’t quite you, at least you can pretend you’ve won a big ol’ stack of poker chips with the bottle. £53 for 100ml | debenhams.com
Poker face L’Oreal Professional Homme Poker Paste
Okay, so it’s less poker face, more poker hair. If there were such a thing. And if there were, this would be the product keeping your hair firmly in place, with the versatility of a repositionable look and the force of L’Oreal’s highest hold factor ever. Its matte finish can be used to create chunky texture, ruffled looks and slicked-down styles. No bluffing. £12.95 for 75ml | lorealprofessionnel.co.uk 56 | October 4 2013 |
Porker face J&D’s Bacon Shaving Cream
Now this genuinely is a gamble. Work the high-quality cream into a rich lather and “inhale the crisp, porky scent and prepare to be loved, admired and potentially eaten by bears”. Yup, it’s shaving cream infused with the mouthwatering musk of the manliest meat there is – but it is also full of rich moisturisers and essential oils. And, no, it’s not meant for shaving bacon. Still, after you... £12.99 for 150g | thefowndry.com
Stay the course Elemis S.O.S. Survival Cream
If it comes down to a case of survival of the fittest at the table, then Elemis will have you in pretty good shape. This high-performance daily skin moisturiser is, say Elemis, “the optimum solution for sensitivity, irritation, dryness and blemishes”. Its formula of marine extracts, lavender and myrrh soothes problem areas and leaves skin hydrated and comfortable. Bet on it. £42 for 50ml | nivenandjoshua.com
Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand
Losing your hair like your Dad? If you’re losing your hair, you’re looking for facts, not fiction. Fact: for 95% of men, hair loss is hereditary. REGAINE® scientifically proven foam could be the answer. It is proven to help stop and even reverse hereditary hair loss, working deep down at the root. Find out the facts at regaine.co.uk
REGAINE® for Men products and treatments are for male hereditary hair loss. REGAINE® for Men Extra Strength Scalp Foam 5% w/w Cutaneous Foam contains Minoxidil. ALWAYS READ THE LABEL.
Extra time
Thunder buddy W
hen you hear the sound of thunder, don’t you get too scared – it will more than likely be accompanied by a performance from Jada and her colleagues. We speak, of course, of the NBA’s Oklahoma Thunder and their Thunder Girls dance team. Jadakiss (yup, it’s really her nickname) and her own Thunder buddies will be in Manchester next week, for the pre-season game between the Thunder and the Philadelphia 76ers. She admits to being nervous when first selected for the dance squad but, after six years with the team, she’s something of an old pro by now. In the best possible way. And, if you’re still inclined to question her backbone, keep in mind that away from basketball, Jada is also a chiropractic assistant.
58 | October 4 2013 |
Reader offer
Watch the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Philadelphia 76ers at the Phones 4u Arena in Manchester on October 8 – the NBA’s first game in the city – with a special 2-for-1 offer for Sport readers. Select ‘Sport magazine 2-for-1 offer’ when purchasing your tickets at www.eventim.co.uk and enter the code SPORTMAG.
eT
entertainment
hITTINg The rIghT NoTes
Extensive new Beatles biography won’t let you down, while James McAvoy gets dirty as the foul face of the law
Book
Film
Filth
As job titles go, ‘professional Beatles historian’ ranks just below ‘astronautfireman’ in terms of what we’d like to stick on our business cards. The former is how Mark Lewisohn is billed, and he lives up to his title with this: the most ambitious Beatles biography ever. The first of three volumes, Tune In charts the band’s roots and rise up to 1962. However, Lewisohn’s smartest trick is to avoid looking at The Beatles through
Music
Brand New Machine Chase and Status
Dubstep duo have announced their third studio album has a darker undertone, but you can’t fool us, Mr Chase (or Mr Status). Songs such as Lost & Not Found or Count on Me are traditional glorious, dance anthems built on a throbbing, hook-heavy beat and soaring guest vocalists. If it is formulaic, it’s a winning formula. Out Monday 60 | October 4 2013 |
what he calls “the suffocating blanket of celebrity”, but to examine everything from their school days to their time in Hamburg via a fresh perspective. At over 900 pages, it’s a weighty tome, but any fear that this will be a stuffy block of history are dispelled from the start and a tale of how Jim McCartney hated his son Paul hanging out with “that boy” John Lennon, warning him: “He’ll get you into trouble, son.” He did indeed – but a whole lot more besides. Out Thursday
Book
Terminator Vault Ian Nathan
Go behind-the-scenes on a pair of sci-fi action classics as Empire executive editor Ian Nathan examines the making of the first two Terminator films. There are original scripts, concept artwork and up-to-date interviews with the key players involved, including a big-name foreword from Arnold Schwarzenegger. Gets a bonus point for ignoring later sequels. Out now
Film
Camp 14
Music
As harrowing as it is riveting, this documentary (with animated sequences) tells the story of – to date – the only person known to have escaped from one of North Korea’s notorious ‘Total Control Zone’ prison camps. Shin Dong-hyuk recounts the torture and death that surrounded him for 23 years, including the public execution of two of his family. Out today
We Need Medicine The Fratellis
A hit debut, a panned second album and a five-year hiatus – it’s a welcome surprise to hear this Scottish indie trio returning with such raucous energy. Jon Fratelli’s hoarse vocals are put to toe-tapping good use on bluesy, Springsteen-esque Seven Nights, Seven Days. Loving the mockLichtenstein album cover, too. Out Monday
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© Neil Davidson, Engstfeld Film Gmbh
The Beatles – All These Years: Tune In Mark Lewisohn
After a couple of lean years making films unworthy of his talents (Gnomeo & Juliet, anyone?), James McAvoy finally gets his teeth into a role in this Irvine Welsh adaptation. McAvoy plays shady, snorting, sex-mad copper Bruce Robertson with real relish. The plot centres on Robertson being given a brutal murder case to solve as he angles for a promotion, but the action really centres around his web of lies and corruption as he attempts to shaft his police colleagues and, well, anyone else he encounters, really. He’s a character with few redeeming features, but McAvoy makes him darkly, deliciously, hilariously fun to watch – neatly summing up the Filth experience. Out today
Shot taken with the Windows Phone Nokia Lumia 1020.
41 megapixels puts you pitch-side.
Meet the Nokia Lumia 1020. Nothing else comes close.
Apps from the Windows Phone Store. Availability may vary.
Reinvented around you.
“Nokia Lumia 1020 annihilates the competition with its huge 41MP camera.” Nokia Lumia 1020, Stuff.tv, July ’13
Apps from the Windows Phone Store. Availability may vary.
Reinvented around you.