The time has now arrived. I am in the final furlong of my life as a student, and the time will soon be upon me to go into the big, wide world and actually go work.
The thought of it terrifies me.
But it's a challenge I'm looking forward to, and I know I will be leaving Southampton Solent University with the best possible knowledge of everything I need to give me a helping hand. I've learnt various different skills and lessons over the last two and a half years - I'm no longer the same person as the 19-year old who walked into halls, lacking in self-confidence. Now, I am a better and wiser person. Uni has made me far more confident in not only myself, but around other people. I now love to meet new people so instead of shying away in a corner and hiding, I'm more than happy to stick my hand out and say "nice to meet you!". I hated calling anyone but now, I have no qualms in picking up my phone.
I've learnt a lot and I believe becoming editor of our course website is a valuable experience. I can say to future employers that I was in charge of a website, deciding which content to publish and try make better. I learnt about teamwork, and how working closely with your fellow colleagues is the best way to go forward. It was very hard work, with trying to organise which reporters produce which stories and making sure they are the best they can be. It was stressful to organise even between the editorial team who was sub-editing which story. But out in the big, wide world, we are expected to deal with these pressures from the off and being editor on two occasions I believe will definitely help me cope a lot better than before. The use of social media to promote our stories was a great way of getting our content out there, and one which we did improve after our first news-day outing. Things such as the simple use of a whiteboard to organise our stories was a key part of making our team succeed as well as it did, and I am proud of what we did. With communication and teamwork, it will help you massively.
I'm closing one door of my life and leaving a city which I've called home for nearly three years, but with that new challenges and other doors will open. It's scary and there'll be times I'll yearn to be a student once more but you know what... It's time to start a new chapter.
Thursday 1 May 2014
Wednesday 5 March 2014
Second outing as an editor
The day came that once again, I was the editor of our course website: www.solentjournalism.co.uk. The last time out as an editor, I had been relatively pleased with how the day had gone so was hoping that it would be the same once again.
Or maybe not.
These last two weeks have been stressful and a lot more demanding than last time, but it all makes for good experience. Despite the last news-day being a lot busier in terms of stories being received, my fellow editors and I found this time a lot harder with attempting to get people to submit stories.
The prep day on the 26th of February proven to be the start of some issues; first of all, there was a distinct lack of three-years, but this is completely understandable - we after all have final major projects to complete, along with other big assessment before the end of our University careers. However, this was the case for the second-years, with hardly turning up. The only year for the majority to appear were the first-years and they were indeed the ones to show the most enthusiasm in wanting to write news stories. That is something that seems to be lacking, particularly in the second-year. A couple of our lecturers even had to get sarcastic with the second-years just to get a couple to volunteer to help with a story - they shouldn't have to be doing that.
One first-year came up with a brilliant story - after Team GB's success in the Sochi Winter Olympics, the dry ski slope in Southampton has received a lot more business since, particularly with snowboarder and Olympian Billy Morgan hailing from Southampton. It made way for potential for not only a cracking piece of copy, but also great multimedia content. We came up with the idea of perhaps getting someone who has never snowboarded before to give it a go, have a GoPro strapped to them and get good interviews. At first, us editors only wanted two second-years to give our first-year a hand - only for some to whine childishly at not being assigned the story. We relented, and ended up giving four second-years the story, giving them great ideas and expecting this to turn out to be one cracking news story.
Alas, how wrong were we? We turned up on the news-day (5th of March) and found not one second-year (despite four of them on the case) had done any multimedia content. We weren't surprised, but it was hugely frustrating and disappointing; the first-year had done her part but sadly, the more experienced second-years weren't willing to do their's.
It was very much the story of the news-day, with a lack of stories and people turning up, we as editors could only do what we could do. Admittedly, some second-years did go and get good audio vox-bops but the lack of those turning up was concerning.
As an editorial team, I feel we all worked well as a team, with four of us working together beforehand. We all communicated well once again and I can go away happy with our efforts to create good content for the website. One hiccup was the lack of one of our team on the prep news-day, only turning up two hours after we had been due in University for an editorial meeting. Nevertheless, this was one small blip on what was overall a good effort from all of us.
My advice to the next team? Work hard and communicate well as a team - it'll pay off.
Or maybe not.
These last two weeks have been stressful and a lot more demanding than last time, but it all makes for good experience. Despite the last news-day being a lot busier in terms of stories being received, my fellow editors and I found this time a lot harder with attempting to get people to submit stories.
The prep day on the 26th of February proven to be the start of some issues; first of all, there was a distinct lack of three-years, but this is completely understandable - we after all have final major projects to complete, along with other big assessment before the end of our University careers. However, this was the case for the second-years, with hardly turning up. The only year for the majority to appear were the first-years and they were indeed the ones to show the most enthusiasm in wanting to write news stories. That is something that seems to be lacking, particularly in the second-year. A couple of our lecturers even had to get sarcastic with the second-years just to get a couple to volunteer to help with a story - they shouldn't have to be doing that.
One first-year came up with a brilliant story - after Team GB's success in the Sochi Winter Olympics, the dry ski slope in Southampton has received a lot more business since, particularly with snowboarder and Olympian Billy Morgan hailing from Southampton. It made way for potential for not only a cracking piece of copy, but also great multimedia content. We came up with the idea of perhaps getting someone who has never snowboarded before to give it a go, have a GoPro strapped to them and get good interviews. At first, us editors only wanted two second-years to give our first-year a hand - only for some to whine childishly at not being assigned the story. We relented, and ended up giving four second-years the story, giving them great ideas and expecting this to turn out to be one cracking news story.
Alas, how wrong were we? We turned up on the news-day (5th of March) and found not one second-year (despite four of them on the case) had done any multimedia content. We weren't surprised, but it was hugely frustrating and disappointing; the first-year had done her part but sadly, the more experienced second-years weren't willing to do their's.
It was very much the story of the news-day, with a lack of stories and people turning up, we as editors could only do what we could do. Admittedly, some second-years did go and get good audio vox-bops but the lack of those turning up was concerning.
As an editorial team, I feel we all worked well as a team, with four of us working together beforehand. We all communicated well once again and I can go away happy with our efforts to create good content for the website. One hiccup was the lack of one of our team on the prep news-day, only turning up two hours after we had been due in University for an editorial meeting. Nevertheless, this was one small blip on what was overall a good effort from all of us.
My advice to the next team? Work hard and communicate well as a team - it'll pay off.
Tuesday 28 January 2014
Record signing? No Mata...
Six minutes was all it took for Juan Mata to make an impact with his new club, a cross-field pass perfectly picking out Patrice Evra and a matter of seconds later, the net was rippling. If this is a sign of things to come, then United fans better get excited.
Sealed with club record £37.1m from rivals Chelsea, Mata has arrived with arguably a massive weight on his shoulders and the hopes of Manchester United fans across the globe that he can turn their fortunes around. But no pressure was evident, as Mata would float around the pitch, popping up everywhere. Within minutes he was pinging passes across the field, much back to the days when he was a regular in the Chelsea XI. I still find it astonishing that Chelsea and Mourinho were willing to leave Mata out of the starting line-up and then go on to sell him, but it has worked fantastically in United's favour.
Not one player can turn a club's season around and for Moyes and his players, there is plenty of work to do. But United can make a good stab of it, particularly if strikers Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie stay fit; the latter getting on the score-sheet after only six minutes into his return tonight. At times against a plucky Cardiff side, led by former United legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, they would concede possession easily and were chasing the game. I am yet to be really convince by Tom Cleverley, Phil Jones and Chris Smalling - are they really the future of the English side? Manchester United did play okay - comfortable more than anything - but if they lose possession against a better side in the future, they will be punished. They certainly need to improve.
But for now, Mata's arrival has injected a much-needed buzz to Old Trafford. It's a big signal of intent from David Moyes, to say to their rivals 'listen, don't forget about us.' Mata will go on to be a Manchester United great, his creativity and vision is what they need in what is a side this campaign that is lacking any real conviction. It may be too late to save their season and a Champions League spot now, but the potential is there for beyond - and all that remains to be seen is whether Chelsea have made a big mistake letting their two-time Player of the Year slip from their grasp.
Sealed with club record £37.1m from rivals Chelsea, Mata has arrived with arguably a massive weight on his shoulders and the hopes of Manchester United fans across the globe that he can turn their fortunes around. But no pressure was evident, as Mata would float around the pitch, popping up everywhere. Within minutes he was pinging passes across the field, much back to the days when he was a regular in the Chelsea XI. I still find it astonishing that Chelsea and Mourinho were willing to leave Mata out of the starting line-up and then go on to sell him, but it has worked fantastically in United's favour.
Not one player can turn a club's season around and for Moyes and his players, there is plenty of work to do. But United can make a good stab of it, particularly if strikers Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie stay fit; the latter getting on the score-sheet after only six minutes into his return tonight. At times against a plucky Cardiff side, led by former United legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, they would concede possession easily and were chasing the game. I am yet to be really convince by Tom Cleverley, Phil Jones and Chris Smalling - are they really the future of the English side? Manchester United did play okay - comfortable more than anything - but if they lose possession against a better side in the future, they will be punished. They certainly need to improve.
But for now, Mata's arrival has injected a much-needed buzz to Old Trafford. It's a big signal of intent from David Moyes, to say to their rivals 'listen, don't forget about us.' Mata will go on to be a Manchester United great, his creativity and vision is what they need in what is a side this campaign that is lacking any real conviction. It may be too late to save their season and a Champions League spot now, but the potential is there for beyond - and all that remains to be seen is whether Chelsea have made a big mistake letting their two-time Player of the Year slip from their grasp.
Friday 15 November 2013
Day being an Editor - my experience
Earlier this week, I was the editor of a news website for a day, and I'll tell you one thing - it is rather stressful!
I'm in my final year of study at Southampton Solent University, studying for a degree in Multimedia Journalism. It has challenges, rewards and a LOT of work, but I have enjoyed my time there very much. One of the unique elements of my course is 'news-days' - a day dedicated to us, the students, finding stories and reporting on them, through the use of a multimedia package. This includes various different media platforms, mainly video, audio and photography, as well as a copy. Over the past three years, we have learnt this skills and our lecturers have let us loose on rather expensive camera equipment - but it is worth it.
Everyone in my year on my course has two weeks of being on the editoral team; there's five of us, working together to gather content from the third and second years, which will then be published on our course website. I'll admit, I was nervous at first, walking into our 'newsroom' early Wednesday morning but really, I shouldn't have worried.
My fellow editors and I had spent the week before talking to the different years and our lecturers to keep them up to date with stories we were expecting - which was a lot. Both third and second years were expected to submit a full multimedia news package, as for both it was part of our assessment. The week before the actual news-day is what we call a 'prep' news-day - it's just us organising ourselves and our colleagues for the following week. We would give those who were struggling stories, ideas on what to film and what angle to take.
The day of the news-day arrived and to everyone's joy, it was a big success. My team and I worked incredibly well together - it's an amazing thing, team-work. We communicated well between ourselves and our lecturers, as well as our friends and colleagues who were working feverishly hard at their stories. Nearly 30 stories were submitted in that one day, but thanks to our organisation, we pulled it off well. We tweeted various snippets of information through our Twitter account, we overtook a whiteboard to note the stories we were expecting and whose were completed, and we worked simultaneously together to sub news stories. Our course leader was very happy with how it all went when we held our meetings throughout the day - so much so, that my team will be the one that will be helping out on a very important news-day in the upcoming months!
It is incredibly stressful being an editor, I discovered that. Running around like a headless chicken (not literally) is not my idea of fun, but if you communicate, it will work. Every news-day, we film bulletins, small snippets of the local, national and sport news throughout the day. Having told those we were meant to be on this bulletin team the week before and reminding them of this fact, it was hugely frustrating for them not to turn up, bar one. A couple of them did appear later in the day but to start with, we had problems with getting our bulletins online by the deadline. It's annoying when you rely on people and they don't bother, but hopefully we have suggested a few ideas to rectify this in the future; some very kind course-mates of mine oversaw the bulletins section and when they were recorded and published, it was very successful. We also could have used our Twitter a lot more to publish stories, but having nearly 30 pieces to sub, we lost track of time - another idea we'll do in the future is to designate one of the team solely on Twitter.
Overall, despite the stresses, we pulled it off well - aided with a large can of energy drink - and really, communication is the key to success. If you work as a team, altogether, you can achieve good work from hard work.
If you'd like to look at the stories we do, please go to www.solentjournalism.co.uk
I'm in my final year of study at Southampton Solent University, studying for a degree in Multimedia Journalism. It has challenges, rewards and a LOT of work, but I have enjoyed my time there very much. One of the unique elements of my course is 'news-days' - a day dedicated to us, the students, finding stories and reporting on them, through the use of a multimedia package. This includes various different media platforms, mainly video, audio and photography, as well as a copy. Over the past three years, we have learnt this skills and our lecturers have let us loose on rather expensive camera equipment - but it is worth it.
Everyone in my year on my course has two weeks of being on the editoral team; there's five of us, working together to gather content from the third and second years, which will then be published on our course website. I'll admit, I was nervous at first, walking into our 'newsroom' early Wednesday morning but really, I shouldn't have worried.
My fellow editors and I had spent the week before talking to the different years and our lecturers to keep them up to date with stories we were expecting - which was a lot. Both third and second years were expected to submit a full multimedia news package, as for both it was part of our assessment. The week before the actual news-day is what we call a 'prep' news-day - it's just us organising ourselves and our colleagues for the following week. We would give those who were struggling stories, ideas on what to film and what angle to take.
The day of the news-day arrived and to everyone's joy, it was a big success. My team and I worked incredibly well together - it's an amazing thing, team-work. We communicated well between ourselves and our lecturers, as well as our friends and colleagues who were working feverishly hard at their stories. Nearly 30 stories were submitted in that one day, but thanks to our organisation, we pulled it off well. We tweeted various snippets of information through our Twitter account, we overtook a whiteboard to note the stories we were expecting and whose were completed, and we worked simultaneously together to sub news stories. Our course leader was very happy with how it all went when we held our meetings throughout the day - so much so, that my team will be the one that will be helping out on a very important news-day in the upcoming months!
It is incredibly stressful being an editor, I discovered that. Running around like a headless chicken (not literally) is not my idea of fun, but if you communicate, it will work. Every news-day, we film bulletins, small snippets of the local, national and sport news throughout the day. Having told those we were meant to be on this bulletin team the week before and reminding them of this fact, it was hugely frustrating for them not to turn up, bar one. A couple of them did appear later in the day but to start with, we had problems with getting our bulletins online by the deadline. It's annoying when you rely on people and they don't bother, but hopefully we have suggested a few ideas to rectify this in the future; some very kind course-mates of mine oversaw the bulletins section and when they were recorded and published, it was very successful. We also could have used our Twitter a lot more to publish stories, but having nearly 30 pieces to sub, we lost track of time - another idea we'll do in the future is to designate one of the team solely on Twitter.
Overall, despite the stresses, we pulled it off well - aided with a large can of energy drink - and really, communication is the key to success. If you work as a team, altogether, you can achieve good work from hard work.
If you'd like to look at the stories we do, please go to www.solentjournalism.co.uk
Tuesday 15 October 2013
Dicing with death; is Motorsport really the safest it can be?
Today, the sad news that British racing driver Sean Edwards had been killed in a crash in Australia filtered through - another tragic and young life lost to Motorsport. May I extend my condolences and prayers onto the Edwards family, and all those who knew Sean. It is a sad, sad loss.
The news comes days after former Formula 1 test driver Maria De Villota was found dead in her hotel room in Seville, little over a year after her crash in straight-line testing for Formula 1 team Marussia. The crash left De Villota without the use in her right eye, and lengthy treatment after sustaining serious head and facial injuries in the crash in June 2012. Her family and doctors have since confirmed that her tragic death was linked to that crash.
Another British driver, Dario Franchitti, was also involved in a heavy crash during the Houston Grand Prix, fracturing his ankle, breaking two vertebrae and two ribs. The IndyCar driver has since had numerous operations since the incident. These stories also tragically coincide with the anniversary of the death of British IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon two years ago, after a horror collision at the IZOD IndyCar World Championship in Las Vegas.
All of these tragic accidents led to the one question - is Motorsport really safe for drivers?
Motorsport is often considered as the most dangerous sport, with drivers regularly putting their lives and their trust in the hands of their cars and mechanics. There is no doubt that safety has much improved as cars and technology has envolved over the years, with the safety of drivers - in Formula 1 in particular - extremely safe. Formula 1 cars now compared to 20 years ago are much different; for example, the drivers sit much further down in the cockpit of the car, so their head is more protected should a crash occur. The cockpit dimensions are also wider, to aid a drivers escape should he/she crash - we often the drivers removing part of the car to help them get out. The FIA have also made a ruling that all Formula One cars must have a fire extinguisher system in place, automatically spreading foam across the chassis should a fire be detected. If we go back to 1980, it was only then that a permanent medical facility was required at all tracks, and it was only six years later that a medevac helicopter became mandatory at races.
The safety within Formula One can be seen by the fact the last fatality of a driver during a race, was the late Ayrton Senna, during the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. Since then, we have seen big accidents; Felipe Massa's crash during qualifying for the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix and Robert Kubica's big crash during the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix just to name a couple. Although serious injuries have been sustained, no fatalities have occured, which is perhaps a testimony to safety in Formula One nowadays. Another example was when Mark Webber completely somersaulted his Red Bull at the European Grand Prix in 2010, yet the Australian walked away from his car relatively unscathed.
Of course, the safety measures are different in other concepts of Motorsport, such as IndyCar, but there is no doubt safety has improved greatly. We should acknowledge that sadly, Motorsport is extremely dangerous and tragedies continue to occur, but we can also acknowledge the lengths manufactuers and governing bodies will go to protect those in the driving seat.
In rememberance of Sean Edwards, Maria De Villota, Dan Wheldon and all those who have tragically lost their lives doing something they love - may they rest in peace.
The news comes days after former Formula 1 test driver Maria De Villota was found dead in her hotel room in Seville, little over a year after her crash in straight-line testing for Formula 1 team Marussia. The crash left De Villota without the use in her right eye, and lengthy treatment after sustaining serious head and facial injuries in the crash in June 2012. Her family and doctors have since confirmed that her tragic death was linked to that crash.
Another British driver, Dario Franchitti, was also involved in a heavy crash during the Houston Grand Prix, fracturing his ankle, breaking two vertebrae and two ribs. The IndyCar driver has since had numerous operations since the incident. These stories also tragically coincide with the anniversary of the death of British IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon two years ago, after a horror collision at the IZOD IndyCar World Championship in Las Vegas.
All of these tragic accidents led to the one question - is Motorsport really safe for drivers?
Motorsport is often considered as the most dangerous sport, with drivers regularly putting their lives and their trust in the hands of their cars and mechanics. There is no doubt that safety has much improved as cars and technology has envolved over the years, with the safety of drivers - in Formula 1 in particular - extremely safe. Formula 1 cars now compared to 20 years ago are much different; for example, the drivers sit much further down in the cockpit of the car, so their head is more protected should a crash occur. The cockpit dimensions are also wider, to aid a drivers escape should he/she crash - we often the drivers removing part of the car to help them get out. The FIA have also made a ruling that all Formula One cars must have a fire extinguisher system in place, automatically spreading foam across the chassis should a fire be detected. If we go back to 1980, it was only then that a permanent medical facility was required at all tracks, and it was only six years later that a medevac helicopter became mandatory at races.
The safety within Formula One can be seen by the fact the last fatality of a driver during a race, was the late Ayrton Senna, during the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. Since then, we have seen big accidents; Felipe Massa's crash during qualifying for the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix and Robert Kubica's big crash during the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix just to name a couple. Although serious injuries have been sustained, no fatalities have occured, which is perhaps a testimony to safety in Formula One nowadays. Another example was when Mark Webber completely somersaulted his Red Bull at the European Grand Prix in 2010, yet the Australian walked away from his car relatively unscathed.
Of course, the safety measures are different in other concepts of Motorsport, such as IndyCar, but there is no doubt safety has improved greatly. We should acknowledge that sadly, Motorsport is extremely dangerous and tragedies continue to occur, but we can also acknowledge the lengths manufactuers and governing bodies will go to protect those in the driving seat.
In rememberance of Sean Edwards, Maria De Villota, Dan Wheldon and all those who have tragically lost their lives doing something they love - may they rest in peace.
Thursday 30 May 2013
Myself and my football ramblings.
Hiya all!
Apologies for not having posted in a little while - for the last month or so, I've pretty much been full speed ahead with a lot of things!
First off, I have finally finished my second year of University! As much as this year went quickly for me, the work seemed to drag on and on, so it's more of a relief than anything that I've finished for the summer. Four months of summer holiday await for me, and I cannot wait.
However, I have actually been fairly busy recently since I left University to come home! The last week, I have been completing work experience at the Independent newspaper, based in Central London. I have found the experience different to my time spent at magazines earlier in the year, but I have found it an enjoyable one! It's given me vital experience and guidance on where I possibly will want to go after University next year - and I'm looking forward to coming back in July for another week. At this moment in time, the big dream is to go to New York and work there - if not full-time then I'd like to do an internship first and go from there. I also have been job-hunting for a summer job, to keep me busy! I successfully got a job working at the South of England show for a few days, as well as a interview on Saturday for working at Gatwick Airport; keep your fingers crossed for me please people!
I've been to a few football matches - one of them seeing my beloved Brighton and Hove Albion losing in the play-offs to our arch rivals Crystal Palace. That was a horrible match - I think most of us Brighton fans were fairly confident going into the play-offs, and how that came back to bite us. It's all gone downhill since, with our management all suspended, players leaving and whatnot... It's not been the toughest time being a Brighton fan to say the least, but it has been very testing. I have full faith in Tony Bloom and the club however - as much as it is frustrating not knowing anything, it's better this way than things being leaked all the time. It's being handled internally for a reason - and it's very professionally done by the club.
If he was to stay, would Gus be welcomed back? Half and half I reckon; on one hand, he's done fantastically with us and taken us to the play-offs within two seasons of being back in the Championship. On the other, he's fast becoming a little unpopular with the fans - has his ego gotten to big for the club? Most likely. It'd be hard to see him stay after all this, but it's not impossible. I hope it is sorted sooner rather than later, so the club can focus on next season and rebuilding to challenge for the play-offs once more - I hope!
I've seen a couple of women's football matches recently - both at Premier League grounds. One was Arsenal Ladies v Liverpool Ladies at the Emirates; although the result was very disappointing from a Arsenal perspective, I found the Emirates very impressive. What would have been better, is a bigger crowd. I believe there was only a crowd of around 2,000 for the game, which me and my football team found rather disappointing. It probably felt a lot less too, due to the size of the Emirates.
The second game me and my football team-mates went to was the women's Champions League at Chelsea's stadium, Stamford Bridge. That was impressive, and the crowd was a staggering 19,258 - impressive for a women's football game in the UK outside of the Olympics. I really hope that the Olympic legacy will help women's football continue to grow - with the women's FA Cup Final shown on the TV and the Euro's due to be shown in the summer, the coverage of the sport is beginning to grow. I'm so pleased - I know women's football may never be as 'big' as the men's game, but it is growing, slowly but steadily.
I believe that is all for now, so I shall end my little ramblings. Any comments on the issues above, just drop one below! Always be glad to hear from you lovely lot.
Adios, and happy reading x
Apologies for not having posted in a little while - for the last month or so, I've pretty much been full speed ahead with a lot of things!
First off, I have finally finished my second year of University! As much as this year went quickly for me, the work seemed to drag on and on, so it's more of a relief than anything that I've finished for the summer. Four months of summer holiday await for me, and I cannot wait.
However, I have actually been fairly busy recently since I left University to come home! The last week, I have been completing work experience at the Independent newspaper, based in Central London. I have found the experience different to my time spent at magazines earlier in the year, but I have found it an enjoyable one! It's given me vital experience and guidance on where I possibly will want to go after University next year - and I'm looking forward to coming back in July for another week. At this moment in time, the big dream is to go to New York and work there - if not full-time then I'd like to do an internship first and go from there. I also have been job-hunting for a summer job, to keep me busy! I successfully got a job working at the South of England show for a few days, as well as a interview on Saturday for working at Gatwick Airport; keep your fingers crossed for me please people!
I've been to a few football matches - one of them seeing my beloved Brighton and Hove Albion losing in the play-offs to our arch rivals Crystal Palace. That was a horrible match - I think most of us Brighton fans were fairly confident going into the play-offs, and how that came back to bite us. It's all gone downhill since, with our management all suspended, players leaving and whatnot... It's not been the toughest time being a Brighton fan to say the least, but it has been very testing. I have full faith in Tony Bloom and the club however - as much as it is frustrating not knowing anything, it's better this way than things being leaked all the time. It's being handled internally for a reason - and it's very professionally done by the club.
If he was to stay, would Gus be welcomed back? Half and half I reckon; on one hand, he's done fantastically with us and taken us to the play-offs within two seasons of being back in the Championship. On the other, he's fast becoming a little unpopular with the fans - has his ego gotten to big for the club? Most likely. It'd be hard to see him stay after all this, but it's not impossible. I hope it is sorted sooner rather than later, so the club can focus on next season and rebuilding to challenge for the play-offs once more - I hope!
I've seen a couple of women's football matches recently - both at Premier League grounds. One was Arsenal Ladies v Liverpool Ladies at the Emirates; although the result was very disappointing from a Arsenal perspective, I found the Emirates very impressive. What would have been better, is a bigger crowd. I believe there was only a crowd of around 2,000 for the game, which me and my football team found rather disappointing. It probably felt a lot less too, due to the size of the Emirates.
The second game me and my football team-mates went to was the women's Champions League at Chelsea's stadium, Stamford Bridge. That was impressive, and the crowd was a staggering 19,258 - impressive for a women's football game in the UK outside of the Olympics. I really hope that the Olympic legacy will help women's football continue to grow - with the women's FA Cup Final shown on the TV and the Euro's due to be shown in the summer, the coverage of the sport is beginning to grow. I'm so pleased - I know women's football may never be as 'big' as the men's game, but it is growing, slowly but steadily.
I believe that is all for now, so I shall end my little ramblings. Any comments on the issues above, just drop one below! Always be glad to hear from you lovely lot.
Adios, and happy reading x
Wednesday 8 May 2013
Gone... But not goodbye
The footballing world was undoubtedly beyond shocked, as Manchester United gave confirmation that long-serving manager Sir Alex Ferguson was to retire at the end of the season; just two weeks after leading the Red Devils to their record 20th title.
No-one saw this coming. At all. It's a major shock - personally, I thought he could have gone a couple more seasons at least, maybe even longer until his health physically wouldn't let him manage anymore. That's one thing we have to remember; no-one is invincible. The man is 71, he cannot go on forever - as much as we may all want him to.
Regardless of whoever you support, you cannot deny the man is a legend. The greatest manager possibly ever, definitely the best manager in the English league. And quite frankly if you don't agree with that, you do not understand football.
In his 26 years at United, Fergie has won 38 trophies - that impressive haul includes 13 league titles, two Champions League crowns, five FA Cups and four League Cups. That record is undisputed - and yet we remember his first two seasons in charge of United were unsuccessful. In fact, United were going to sack him! But they stuck with him, and now, they have knocked Liverpool off their perch to be the most successful club in England.
He may be hypocritical, he may be arrogant but my goodness, he is utterly brilliant. I don't think any manager will eclipse quite what Fergie has done in his wonderful United career, and the respect he has gained throughout the World for this, is enormous. This is clearly evident from the amount of people who today, have said publicly spoke about how brilliant the man is. He's the man who could get his team to turn a game around and do the impossible. He puts his faith in the youth of today, and can make little known teenagers turn into some of the best footballers on the planet. There's just something about Fergie which makes him just pure brilliance.
Whoever his successor may be (I think David Moyes would be perfect for the job), they have certainly massive boots to follow. But I stand up and applaud a brilliant manager, one that has done a lot for the game. He may be going, but this is not goodbye.
So I say,
Farewell Fergie. And thanks for everything.
No-one saw this coming. At all. It's a major shock - personally, I thought he could have gone a couple more seasons at least, maybe even longer until his health physically wouldn't let him manage anymore. That's one thing we have to remember; no-one is invincible. The man is 71, he cannot go on forever - as much as we may all want him to.
Regardless of whoever you support, you cannot deny the man is a legend. The greatest manager possibly ever, definitely the best manager in the English league. And quite frankly if you don't agree with that, you do not understand football.
In his 26 years at United, Fergie has won 38 trophies - that impressive haul includes 13 league titles, two Champions League crowns, five FA Cups and four League Cups. That record is undisputed - and yet we remember his first two seasons in charge of United were unsuccessful. In fact, United were going to sack him! But they stuck with him, and now, they have knocked Liverpool off their perch to be the most successful club in England.
He may be hypocritical, he may be arrogant but my goodness, he is utterly brilliant. I don't think any manager will eclipse quite what Fergie has done in his wonderful United career, and the respect he has gained throughout the World for this, is enormous. This is clearly evident from the amount of people who today, have said publicly spoke about how brilliant the man is. He's the man who could get his team to turn a game around and do the impossible. He puts his faith in the youth of today, and can make little known teenagers turn into some of the best footballers on the planet. There's just something about Fergie which makes him just pure brilliance.
Whoever his successor may be (I think David Moyes would be perfect for the job), they have certainly massive boots to follow. But I stand up and applaud a brilliant manager, one that has done a lot for the game. He may be going, but this is not goodbye.
So I say,
Farewell Fergie. And thanks for everything.
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