West Bromwich Albion shake the perennial loser tag

Today starts a new chapter in The Black Country Prophet. Every Tuesday will feature the #WBAFC blog and here's the first foray. 

Flashback – it suddenly feels like the Megson Premier League era again.

Valiant, courageous performances, pressing teams, creating chances – not taking them – and eventually losing to a shot deflected in off some inadvertently placed arse.

St James’ Park marked a second successive last minute loss for West Bromwich Albion and the only saving-grace is that the Baggies’ form up to this point has been, generally, so sensational that these losses can be soaked up by previous performances.

The warning signs are there, however. The hallmark of a good side is that they win when they’re playing badly and, equally, a bad team picks up zero points when they should be accumulating them.

From 30 minutes onwards at the home of the Magpies, West Brom looked a great, great side. After stand-in-skipper Jonas Olsson and Gareth McAuley’s failings for Demba Ba’s opener, they were imposing and a pillar of strength. In Claudio Yacob’s absence, the midfield, and in particular Yousuf Mulumbu, dominated their counterparts who were sidelined to a few Hatem Ben Arfa mercurial runs.

And then up-front, Romelu Lukaku and Shane Long ran the Newcastle back line into submission at times and the midfield’s good play created a great array of chances for the largely profligate forwards.

The week previous, against 10-man Manchester City, the Baggies had taken the champions to the wire. At 1-1 the Midlands side were on-top and pushing for the win; but, inevitably, to a last minute counter attack, conceded to Super Sub who doesn’t want to be called Super Sub, Edin Dzeko’s late strike.

Inevitable. Well it was. It was an inevitability in the Megson and Mowbra eras – where the Albion were the plucky losers – the relegation fodder who trumped up to the established Premier League sides’ grounds, put in a great account of themselves but go back to The Hawthorns empty handed.

That, now and hopefully for the foreseeable future – under the former stewardship of technical director Dan Ashworth and a succession of good managers and good managerial planning – is Albion’s past.

The West Bromwich side have shaken the tag of perennial yo-yo team which has dogged them in both psychology and points since Gary Megson took the forlorn side and made them hard-to-beat. And now, as a proven, solid Premier League side WBA can absorb these hard to take defeats because, not only are the points in the bag already, but there is promise of good results in the future.

The Baggies are a good Premier League side. They’ve taken the better sides of the Barclays Premier League, taken points from them, and made them anxious and aware of the hardship posed when playing the Midlands’ finest team.

And that’s the difference. That’s why I still wanted to punch the laptop screen when Papiss Cisse’s backside took the plaudits from the encounter but I knew it wasn’t the end of the world. And that’s why, as Steve Clarke said in his post-match interview, we’ll win more games than we’ll lose if we play like that.

iPhone hype, innit.

People camping outside Apple stores across the globe to get their iPhone milliseconds before someone else is pretty sad.

It's not the desire to own the latest bit of technology but the need to camp out, ensuring  your place as 15th person to get your hands on one from the Birmingham area or wherever your local Apple store is, but the lengths to get it which is deplored.

It's a phone, ultimately.

But then again, you look at what you get in an iPhone or smartphone these days and its pretty impressive.

Rewind the clocks back ten or so years and, to have the same amount of gadgets on one item, measuring 4.87 inches (123.8 mm); the width is 2.31 inches (58.6 mm); the depth is 0.30 inches (7.6 mm); and the weight is 3.95 ounces (112 grams) you would need:

A laptop,

an Mp3 player,

a radio (if your Mp3 player didn't have one,)

an internet connection,

a newspaper,

a book,

a Gameboy

a DVD player and DVDs, if your ten-year-old laptop didn't have a DVD drive and

oh, a phone, which to play Snake, phone and text on would have probably been thicker than the iPhone.

That's one big rugsack you'd have to carry around to have all that gear accessible.

So, is it so bad?

Imagine if ten years ago, someone had said to you "If you camp out for a day or two I'm going to give you all this stuff for £529, and it's going to be palm-sized.

I think the only reason that it's now laughed at, a joke, and the iPhone queues' inhabitants are the joke is because they're the people who have to have the latest updates. It's only a joke because the advancements are so slim compared to the last version.

But if we look at it over a ten-year period, it's pretty impressive.

Now here's Samsung's attempt to mock Apple queuers. Seems a bit bitter to me. I don't remember anyone queuing up for the Galaxy SIII?

Viva iPhone!

Joe Hart's post Real Madrid interview great for game

It's only a month or so since the Olympics have ended and everyone had enjoyed the frank, emotional and refreshingly open interviews from the athletes.

Gone were the emotionally open as a piece of wood interviews from the top, PRed up to their eye balls, players who speak in cliches and semantically null dross, quite often.

Fans have been ready for a new impetus in interviews; a changing of the ethos from players, whose comments are awaited, analysed and analysed again.

Then Manchester City throw away a lead against Real Madrid, who deserved to win handsomely, incidentally.

Real had 28 shots on goal with 16 on target to City's respective 8 and 5.

It would have been a smash and grab, but, not to belittle the win it would have been: it would have been a fantastic result for Manchester City and would have vindicated their style on the night.

Immediately after the match Hart is pulled in for a post-match interview. Joe's a refreshing character. He's to the point, honest and open. And what he actually said in the interview was quite expected stuff. He was disappointed.

Whether a side has been outclassed or not, leading with five minutes remaining should at least garner a point and, if you're Manchester City, leading with five minutes to go should mean a victory.

But, no. A Kompany, Hart misdemeanour meant Ronaldo settled the tie during injury time, bringing all three points back to the Bernebeau.

Kompany ducked out the way of the shot. And, with personal experience in those sort of split-second head retractions, I know it can leave you no time to react at all.

The City skipper was too deep firstly, and then ducked his head as Ronaldo's so-so shot went towards the middle of the goal. But, retracting that head, leaving the keeper unsighted gives him the seven yards from it whistling past Kompany to react.

Not enough.

Then when asked his opinion in the interview he said what he thought - it wasn't good enough. If City want to win competitions such as the Champions League, they have to close out games.

They didn't, he said so and he didn't say much more. He said he couldn't take a positive and there was little positivity to take from the game in the end.

If they had smash-and-grabbed a point, or maybe the three then the defensive resilience and Hart's own performance would have earned praise. But losing in that fashion means there is little positivity and City have now probably surrendered top-spot to Real in the group already.

Maybe it's the media just searching for a story out of nothing, but I'm sure Roberto Mancini's remark of 'Joe should leave the criticising to me' was again a first-time response from the Italian and he bears no real grudge.

After all, Hart only said what we've all said after losing to the Dog and Duck in the last minute on a sunday. Although our gripes could likely be from a bobble on the pitch or a dodgy linesman.

Fair play, Joe Hart. More of that please.

Paralympics day 10 review - the interviews

Eleanor 'Ellie' Simmonds once again raised the bar and the roof yesterday (September 8) in the Aquatics centre. 

The Aldridge born swimmer, who swims in the SB6 class, took to the pool again for the final leg of her 4 main events.

Having taken a bronze in the 50m Freestyle, the pressure was on Ellie, as it's widely thought that she's better over longer events.


She broke the Paralympic Record in the heats, but, as has happened many times before in these games, that's was immediately re-broken; this time by Ellie's American rival, and the favourite, Victoria Arlen.

Arlen won and again broke the World Record in doing so. That gave Simmonds little chance of ever winning but she took silver, making sure that for the fourth time she's standing on that podium. Maybe not atop it, but her medals won't be just clinking together when hanging around her neck but creating a full blown orchestral sound.

The Olympics and Paralympics have together provided some fantastic, honest interviews which have bore all the conventions of a drama.


So many fans are now all too familiar with wooden football interviews where it's plainly obvious that a press officer is standing feet away censoring their words with frowns and hand gestures.

So it's great to hear interviews where emotions are laid on the line - and non more so than the emotional powerhouse Will Bayley, who was inconsolable after his final defeat to Wollmert of Germany.


Bayley said afterwards: “ I've trained six hours a day for the last six years for this moment and I’m sorry I let everyone down who’s come to support me today. But I’ll never give up. I’ll win the individual gold one day."


To have an athlete apologize for grabbing a silver medal is something which really tweaks at the nation's heart-strings and Bayley, along with some other heart-felt, disconsolate interviews from despairing athletes, have made the games.


Then we can go back to Ellie, who seems to have been 'chuffed' with most of the goings-on in these games.

Her interviews have exuded emotion. We've experienced the smiles, tears, laughs and all had the chance to live through her emotions and really get in touch wit the events.

And, as much as Swansea want to claim Ellie with their gold post box - they don't say 'chuffed' in Swansea. That's the hallmark of a Walsall girl.

And then, if there was any need to re-affirm that, she followed that with: "I treated myself to a full-blown McDonald's [after the race] and now I'm going to eat these pancakes."


That's Walsall all over.

Paralympics day 9 review - Channel 4's 'live' broadcasts

The sport has been fantastic and we've all had our eyes opened, to some level, to the great platform that is the Paralympics.

And I've resisted the British temptation to find something to whinge about for so long, but today I'm going to unleash.

Channel 4's coverage: fine when the events are in the Olympic Stadium, Aquatics Centre or the velodrome, but virtually anywhere else and getting picture within four hours of the event is an achievement, never mind live picture.

Boccia, a sport which Jon Snow championed in his eponymous 'Jon Snow's Paralympic Show', has been virtually invisible.

Then at Brands Hatch where some of the most anticipated events have been occurring, with Alex Zinardi and Sarah Storey being just two of the much sought after athletes, there has been little but Ned Boulting reporting on events.

As much as I like Ned Boulting, ( :/ ) I want to see some picture. As the Paralympic broadcaster, it would be nice of they broadcast the events of, I don't know, the Paralmpics, maybe?

Moaning aside...

If you love sport for drama, exhilaration, feats of brilliance, then find the Women's 4x100m Medley final from last night.

The race again, like most disabled team sports, works on combining the abilities of the players into a pre-determined points total, to ensure fairness. Stronger swimmers obviously constituting a higher proportion of the points allowed.

But the tactics involved - namely who goes when - is up to the team.

So the race's lead changes hands multiple times. The final straight where Louise Watkin closed in on the three teams ahead of her, USA, Australia and Russia, claiming the silver was sensational TV.

And it's worth finding for Bob Ballard's commentary. His emotions pour out and his enjoyment transcends the medium and permeates its way into your viewing. Brilliant, brilliant stuff.

Paralympic Thriller Thursday day 8 review

Working for ITN - logging the events and getting to watch some top-notch sport in the process.

Dubbed as #ThrillerThursday, and, boy, did it live up to that billing.

If the Olympics delivered its promise on Super Saturday, with Jessic Ennis, Greg Rutherford and Mo Farah all taking gold, Jonnie Peacock, Hannah Cockroft and David Weir delivered and refused the tip.

The Olympic Stadium in all its glory

It was that much of an unparalleled Paralymic achievement for Great Britain - on home soil.

Cockroft and Weir, as brilliant as they were in taking gold, were expected to take the top-spot.

But Jonnie Peacock, who was the fastest qualifier - still had the 'inexperience' tag being hung around his neck before he had the chance to get a medal around there.

Cockroft had destroyed the field once more, taking a Paralympic Record with her in claiming the golden athletic achievement of the sprint double.

Weir, some time later, followed and built the Olympic Stadium's crowd into a frenzy with his patented tactical hanging back and pouncing with a sprint finish, overhauling his friend Marcel Hug in the final 100m to claim his third gold.

And then came Peacock. He was a little unknown. He'd said himself he wondered if, among the poster-girls and boys, "people knew who he was".

Well, it certainly seemed like it when the PA system was pleading for the crowd to be quiet and mute the 80,000 strong cheering "Peacock, (dum, dum, dum) Peacock."

Then came the silence. Eery silence as the sprint starts got into the blocks, balancing their prostheses, getting into optimum explosive positions.

The gun went off, but pandemonium - Alan Oliviera had wobbled and a 'faulty start' had been called, signified by the green card.

"Peacock, (dum, dum, dum) Peacock."

Jonnie, having darted out the blocks by 10 metres, put his finger to his lips. He needed his focus. He needed to drink-in just one sound at that time - the sound of the gun.

Back in the blocks. "Set," the gun shot lead to a wave of prostheses clattering and, as if in tandem, the expectant crowd's eruption.

He was in front from the drive phase: head down, pushing those knees up.

His head rose, searching for sight of the line. Arms powering the torso through, knees still driving and then came the line. Peacock crossed, not sure whether he had won, dreamt he'd won, or been pipped on the line.

Everyone new but they didn't know. It was a paradox, waiting for the board. Lights would lead the way.

The crowd was in agony. They all knew but it wasn't real. Not yet. Peacock was anxious, too.

A nervous look around. He knew, but he didn't know.

Bu he'd done it. Peacock had won it, taking the premier event in any athletics competition: the 100m sprint.

He clutched his friend, his rival, Oscar Pistorius. He'd beaten the biggest star is disability sport and in the process confirmed himself as "familiar in their mouths as household words", (Shakespeare, Henry V).

"Peacock, (dum, dum, dum) Peacock."

*video to follow

Paralympics day 7 review

Yesterday introduced me to the best that wheelchair sport has to offer.

A lot of wheelchair sports pale in comparison their able-bodied counterparts. Wheelchair basketball, for instance. Although high scoring, multi-talented, fast paced, it's limited.

Once a player is in position for a shot there is no way that a defender can block the attack. No contact rule coupled with the limitations of wheelchair play means when in position, there's nothing a defence can do - and ineptitude in front of the basket is normally why a team loses.

Wheelchair rugby, which is more akin to american football, is totally different. Fast paced, ruthless, a reckless disregard for the fragility of opponents - it has it all.

Thrills, spills, and unbelievable speed.

The mo-hawked warrior, David Anthony, was the stand out performer for me.

Although Phipps and Brown were very, very good at times, Anthony is the kind of athlete that makes you get off your seat and cheer.

In the world of football everyone celebrates Barcelona's 'Catalan carousel' style. And, although most people agree it's the way football should be played, it doesn't quite match up to the excitement that a darting run, pin point pass and rocket goal can bring.

Barcelona's play results in a clap and recognition of fantastically deft play, where a Premier League style gets people off their seats in reverence, excitement.

And that's what wheelchair rugby offers opposed to its rival sports.

The smashes are brutal. Phipps upended an American, illegally I might add, and sent him tumbling across the polished court. He took his punishment - it was an act of frustration - but the American got on with it.

If that behaviour happened in the street it would be deplored, abhorred; rightly so.

But these guys are happy to take the spills to make the thrills even better.

We may have lost to the overwhelming favourites, but we gained another notch in disability sport's widening belt.

Anyone for tennis?

There also needs to be a special mention for Peter Norfolk and Andy Lapthorne - claiming silver in the Men's Quad Doubles.

A lot of the tennis is played from the baseline with lofted returns. But Norfolk, a wizened campaigner, who played tennis before his tragic accident, has the tennis skill and acumen of a able bodied player.

Watching Norfolk charge the net, knowing the exact position is chair would need to be to play his sliced volley winner was fantastic. It was the play of a tennis genius.

To simply get about the court and have a contested, fairly lively game of a tennis is one thing, but to see a leveled game with thrills, spills, lobs, volleys was something else.

Great television, great tennis.