Saints 2 Stockport County 0

Well, it wasn't pretty but it was effective. We won and are up to 11th - still 13 points off the play-offs. We had two of our new defenders making a debut playing alongside another new one and Fish Mills making up the back four. I have to say Mills was atrocious for the first 20 minutes or so. he miss-kicked, he gave the ball away, he missed tackles, his corners were poor. Thankfully he improved. The whole team seemed to be stuck in reverse gear. Back pass after back pass and Kelvin Davis looked less than confident kicking out.

Over the whole game, possession was recorded as 50/50 but we had 14 shots on goal compared to their 4. Most of ours were so weak that had the goalkeeper not gathered them, they probably wouldn't have crossed the line! Rickie Lambert looked tired, although he did score his 22nd goal of the season - off his back in a goal-moth scramble. It wasn't until Papa Waigo came on as a sub that the game sparked to life. He forced a corner from his first involvement and it was from that that Rickie Lambert scored. He then went on to bring down a cross with good control and score. A good substitution.

Well done the 300 or so Stockport faithful who travelled down. Over 18,000 for such a low-key game was a good gate.

COYR

Hell - well worth the watch

We watched Kystof Kieslwoski's Hell last night. Wow!

An intense and complex tale of three sisters and their disconnected lives. A story about relationships, unfulfilment, regret revenge and whole raft of other emotions - all portrayed with negative energy. A film devoid of any concept of forgiveness. Is that a vision of how Krieslowski sees Hell? This is not a feel-good film.

There are strong performances from the three actresses playing the sisters. The story is complex and stems from a event the girl's Father was caught up in when they were younger. It is a hard-hitting film which tells its story in an extremely realistic way. There are no silver-linings here.

I won't say any more in case I spoil it for you. Hard work, but well worth the investment.

I'll give it 7/10

Short memories and a lack of charity

A little over 6 months ago Southampton Football Club were in Administration and facing the prospect of liquidation. This was after 6 years of decline, financial mis-management and a Board at odds with the fans. There was nowhere to go, but we kept sinking deeper. It felt wretched, awful, terrible.

Now our situation has been transformed. We are now in lowly League 1 and had to cope with a 10 point deduction. We now have a new owner with generously deep pockets, a new CEO who not only is able to articulate a vision for improving our situation but is delivering it more quickly than anyone thought possible. We have an excellent manager who speaks the truth and is building a very good team. We sit mid-table, with an excellent run of recent results and a chance of making the play-offs for promotion. The feel good factor has returned to St Mary's.

Our bitterest rivals - Portsmouth - are in as dark a place now as we were in 6 months ago. We should be able to understand what it might feel like for them. When sympathy is able to use its energy to develop into empathy, the power of transformation becomes unleashed to enable new things to be done. I was delighted when a fellow fan began a thread on the Saints Forum with this post:

Bucket collection for the Skates?

---

In times of need i think we should ignore what's happened previously, bury the hatchet so to speak and offer the hand of friendship to our less well off fishy-friends down the road. I suggest a bucket collection before, during and after the match to scrape together some much needed funds for the blue few, hell we might raise enough to pay for the teams bus fare to and yes indeed from St.Mary's. Any other fund raising ideas?

But unfortunately my fellow fans have done nothing but deride this laudable suggestion. There have been all kinds of suggestions about what we could put in the buckets - from the inane to the creative.

I think this is sad and unfortunate and shows two things:

• How hatred is able to diminish humanity
• How short some people's memories are.

Bring on the Skates!

I smell fish! As hoped for in my entry yesterday, Saints have drawn Pompey in the 5th round of the FA Cup (sponsored by e-on).

It is a home tie which means 50% more people can be at the game than if it was at their place - cool.

Game to be played on the weekend of 13/14 February.

BRING IT ON.

COYR

Screen Actors Guild Honors 2010

Christoph Waltz picked up another award for his performance in Inglorious Basterds yesterday and the cast also picked up an award for Best Ensemble. Well done Tarantino.

Pompey chimes ring out at St Mary's!

FA Cup 4th Round

Saints 2 Ipswich 1

It was an exhilarating game - with plenty of end-to-end stuff. Ipswich were by far the best team we've had at home this season and for the first 25 minutes we struggled to keep up with them. Wayne Thomas scored a wonderful strike that seemed to settle things down a little. In the second half, Rickie Lambert struck another brilliant free kick which the keeper couldn't hold and Michel Antonio was on hand to score from the rebound. Then we conceded on 91 minutes and had to play out a nail-biting 5 minutes of further added time. Well done Saints!

For a change I would have to say that the Referee, Mr. A. Hall (W. Midlands), was for once very good. He was always in a good place and played the advantage well whilst not being afraid to bring things back if no advantage accrued. He even had the courage and common sense to overrule his Assistant when necessary - obviously he was watching a different game to the 20,000 in the stadium.

I see our rivals to the East also won - well done them - maybe we will be drawn against them in the 5th round - hopefully at home and then more people can watch the game! At one point everyone broke into the Pompey chimes - well, let's face it, they need all the encouragement they can get!

COYR

Winchester appoints new Suffragan Bishops

Amid the recent budget cut-backs in the diocese, an innovative and frugal solution was employed to recruit our two new bishops. After weeks of prayer for heavy snow, the back lawn of Old Alresford Place produced a cracking brace of bishops.This model comes preformed in cope and mitre profile to allow easy identification. To maintain the tradition of Winchester Episcopoi, they are both well over 6 feet tall.

Sadly, after a very warm welcome from Diocesan Office staff they have now disappeared. If you know where they are, please send them back to us for the completion of their induction programme.

JPT (S) First Leg MKD 0 Saints 1

A strong and determined display saw Saints beat Southern Final opponents MK Dons 0-1. This is really an outstanding result and sets the team up well for the second leg on 9th February. If Saints win, the final for this is at Wembley. It's 34 years since we played at Wembley - the feel-good factor is certainly returning.

Today we face Ipswich at home in the 4th round of the FA - more of the feel-good factor. Saints have a realistic chance to win - perhaps another trip to Wembley beckons.

COYR

Golden Globes - this blog's winners

The Golden Globes ceremony threw up some interesting winners and spread the awards around.

As predicted in previous posts, it is good to see Meryl Streep as winner of best Actor [sic] for Comedy/Musical - Julie & Julia and Christopher Waltz won best Supporting Actor as Hans Landa in Inglorious Basterds.

Interestingly, Oscar predicitions are saying that it will be a very open field and they have opened nominations for Best Picture to 10 films instead of the usual 5. Nominations to be announced in 02 February.

The cruel game Millwall 1 Saints 1

Well there I was, watching the text updates on-line and I couldn't believe that we broke the stalemate 2 minutes into injury time and took the lead. That is usually when we concede. This game was unusual in that we conceded three minutes later with almost the last kick of the game! Well, talk about a roller-coaster of emotion.

With three new defensive signings all making their début, it seemed that we should solid enough at the back - I think we need some extra fire-power up front as we are being limited to Rickie Lambert free kicks for goals!

COYR

What would you have done?

I Watched The Reader again last night - wonderful. Intense, believable, evocative - certainly doesn't leave you sitting on the fence, but are you happy with the feelings it evokes? The story is both simple and yet so multi-layered it is at the same time extremely complex.

If you are ever looking for an example of teacher who faciltitates learning, check out Bruno Ganz who brilliantly plays a Professor of Law.

The whole film pivots on the question posed by Hannah to the Judge "What would you have done?". I didn't think of this, but it is helpful to view the film as a metaphor of the German people and how as a nation they dealt with (deal with) the Holocaust. Of course it is easy 65 years on to make such statements. However, I was born in the 1950's in the Rhineland as my father was stationed there as part of the BAOR, so I do have a direct link to the story - and the flashback to Neustadt we are told was set in 1958 - the year I was born.

If you've not already done so - do watch The Reader soon.

I'll give this 8.5/10

Inglorious Tarantino

I'll come out right upfront and admit that I am fan of Tarantino. For me, there is no better story-teller making films today - the Coen Brothers come a close second. You know there will be lakes of blood and untold acts of random and brutal violence. But you have to look through these to see a film maker perfecting the art form.

This film is more fantasy than anything else. The characters are too alive and in-your-face to be taken seriously. It is a curious contradictory blend of evil, violence and comedy.

It is a pastiche of motifs from Westerns, Robin Hood and the Dirty Dozen. The soundtrack is again amazing. Brad Pitt's Tennessee hick drawl is so thick - in whatever language he attempts to speak - that his character transcends into farce. Christoph Waltz gives a powerful performance as the cunning SS Colonel Hans Landa know as The Jew Hunter.

The story is completely unbelievable yet it draws you in and offers an revision of history which is in many ways preferable to reality.

I'm going to score this 7.5/10

Top 10 films seen in 2009

I thought it might be fun to put together a Top Ten of the films I'd seen last year - not necessarily new last year, but seen last year. Ask me tomorrow and I might have a different list, but as of now, here is my list (not in any order):

• Start Trek
• Milk
• Looking for Eric
• The Reader
• As it is in Heaven
• The Road Home
• Slumdog Millionaire
• Frost Nixon
• The Visitor
• The Matrix (has to be on any list)

What would be be on yours?

Grace - Rest

Having moved to Winchester, it is now that little bit further to London and so easier to find economic, ecological and time reasons not to go. I would class myself as an occasional member of Grace - not through choice but because of the accident of geography. If I lived in West London - they'd get fed up with me as I'd always be there! Anyway - I go when I can and yesterday I could.

Firstly because the footie was postponed and secondly because I could go up by train and visit my favourite coffee shop and buy some coffee for my significant other (and me). Fairtrade Costa Rican is the one to go for - amazing. The shop also happens to be opposite our favourite London cinema. (If you go, make sure you're a couple and get in one of the couches at the back - an amazing viewing experience.)

However, because of planned maintenance (no-one asked me when they should plan it) it seemed that half the tube wasn't working this weekend. I like buses in London - when they go where I need to go. I caught a bus from Ladbrook Grove to East Acton. My ultimate destination was south Ealing and as Acton is next to Ealing, it seemed like a good direction in which to head. Well, it was West - but I ended going past Wormwood Scrubs Prison and being turfed out of the bus at the end of its route in an industrial estate where the pavements were like a highly polished ice rink. I slithered my way towards another waiting bus whihc was going to Barnes Wetlands Park - most importantly via Hammersmith. So, back past the prison, along the A40, down through Shepherds Bush and eventually to Hammersmith. From there I caught a tube (thankfully the Picadilly line was working) two stops to South Ealing. The first stop was Acton Town - so my geography wasn't so bad - it's just that they need to move East Acton nearer to the rest of Acton!

The theme of Grace was 'rest' - particularly so in the context of Sabbath. After some introductory thoughts to get us in the right frame of mind, we were invited to visit three different locations within St Mary's:

• Club Grace - holidays, places and people of re-creation
• A 1960's Sunday afternoon lounge with scrabble and Sunday china where we were encouraged to reflect on a time when Sundays were a day of rest.
• Extreme Sports - don't know what happened there - I went back to Club Grace

There followed some more things to reflect on, a chant, a Rap, some feathers and a blessing. All followed by conversation in the cafe afterwards.

Well done Grace - another good event.

The snow held off and I was able to get a lift home with a mate who'd been up there attending a course they'd been running.

A very good day. Maybe see you there sometime? Second Saturday each month at 8pm - St Mary's South Ealing.

Law Abiding Citizen

Well here is an exciting film! Not for the faint-hearted or those with a blood-phobia. I found it a perfect action movie into which I could escape. This is not the real world. Many critics however, slate the film and it hasn't done too well in the box office here. As one reviewer on Rotten Tomatoes puts it "Unnecessarily violent and unflinchingly absurd, Law Abiding Citizen is plagued by subpar acting and a story that defies reason."

The story is quite simple. Gerard Butler and his family experience a violent and random attack in their home where they are left for dead. Butler's character survives and he is understandably keen to see justice done to his attackers. The DA does a deal: one of the crooks testifies against the other and condemns him to execution. in return he gets a light gaol sentence.

Butler's character sees this as no justice at all and spends 10 years planning his atatck on the city's justice community. The way in which he carries out his threats is at times unbelievable, but when we learn what he actually did for the US Government, everything fits into place.

The film raises important questions about the American justice system and in particular the plea bargaining culture which undermines public confidence in the Judiciary.

I'll rate this film 6.5/10.

Julie & Julia

I'm not sure what I was expecting to see when I watched this film - but any film with Amy Adams in gets my vote!

I'm not going to say much about the story as it will spoil it. I think Streep could be up for an Oscar here. The story is based on a true life cookery personality Julia Child and her best selling Mastering the Art of French Cooking which was first published in 1961 and is now in its 40th edition! The book launched a career as a TV cook for Julia and she was a regular feature over the next 35 years. She died in 2004 aged 91.

Julie on the other hand is just about to turn 30, a writer at heart who is stuck in an unfulfilling job and who longs for more. Apart from her marriage, the only other thing that fires her is deciding what to cook for dinner each evening. To break free from the drudgery, she decides to cook all 524 recipes from Julia's book in 365 days and to blog about the experience. The blog becomes a huge hit and so the story grows....

The story is warm, light-hearted, challenging and gentle. It's about creativity, inspiration, shared love and the support a spouse can provide. An excellent film from the Director of Sleepless in Seattle and You've Got Mail but without the slushy sentimentalism. Well worth the investment of time to watch it.

The Bible Society run a subscription only service website call Reel Issues which can be found here. I am an occasional contributor to the studies they feature which cover a wide range of films. For example I have written studies for No Country for Old Men and  Simpsons Movie. So it comes as no surprise that the February movie will be Julie and Julia - and guess who's writing the study?

I'll rate this film 8/10.

The British and the weather

I don't know about you and where you live, but this has been a strange week. It has almost been an existence in a parallel dimension. Outside everything white and crisp - and very slippery. The snow's ability to absorb sound together with a reduction in traffic has meant that at times the outside world has been eerily quiet. A trip anywhere is undertaken only if essential. Being cooped up at home after the holiday period has spawned a lethargy that I am anxious to break free from. Yesterday I took myself off to London (more on this later).

As for many people, it's getting the car out off the drive and down the local street that presents the difficulty. The main A30 London to Penzance road literally runs behind our garden hedge - but there are 200 yards of compacted snow and ice, all of which is on a gradient, to encounter before you reach the relative safety of the main road.

My place of work (featured above) was closed on Wednesday and Thursday - only I arrived there on Thursday before the closure was announced! Friday was left to individual discretion - I made the trek in again. As you can see the car park had 6-8 inches of snow on it and underneath was frozen gravel. Like the start of the journey, it was the last bit that was the biggest problem. I almost got stuck in the car park - had to manoeuvre myself so that I was pointing downhill for an easy get away. I don't know how rear wheel drive cars cope in this weather - except by reversing everywhere!

It looks like the thaw is set for Thursday. No doubt with frozen saturated ground, the next problem will be floods - and then we'll probably get another freeze again!

Oh how the British love to talk about the weather.

It is! It is!

The FA Cup is the most exciting and romantic club competition in the world. I have just had the exhilarating experience of watching Leeds United beat Manchester United in the third round. It was like games from my childhood of the 60's and 70's when these two clubs were regular adversaries and their fans sometimes were too committed!

Two weeks ago Leeds beat Southampton by a late goal they toiled to score - we nearly beat them. Today, they have toppled the mighty Red Devils and it feels good. For me what the game showed was that Man Utd undoubtedly have some superstars with world-class ability. It also showed me that they have some good players who look great when they play with their more skilful colleagues each week. Today they looked a bit ordinary and it's games like this keep the romance of the FA Cup alive - Premier League contenders toppled by League 1 leaders - bring on the next round.

Effective but not pretty! Saints 1 Luton Town 0

The FA Cup is meant to be the most exciting and romantic club cup competition in football. It was so cold yesterday sitting in the shade, that my feet are only just regaining a sense of feeling.

Saints did what they had to do to progress to the fourth round - they won. At times it looked like Luton would score - but they managed to miss a series of easy chances. We were little better. The only difference being Rickie Lambert's ability to strike the ball from a free-kick. His first effort was clawed away by the keeper from the top left corner. The second effort from at least 25 yards sailed over the wall and screamed into the top right-hand corner of the net. On the ITV Cup highlights programme it was deemed to be the 3rd best goal of the round. You can see it here. I am actually clearly visible in this fottage next to my wife who came to shiver with me.

Well done Saints - hard luck Luton. I wonder who we will draw in the next round?

A day trip to Europe

We made a quick raid on Calais and Boulougne this week - a break from holidays at home. The weather was wet, windy and cold so sight-seeing was not going to be on the agenda. Mercifully the snow and ice of recent days let up an we were allowed a journey unimpeded - even the crossings were relatively smooth.

After a 2 hour drive, the opportunity for re-creation the ferry journey affords was very welcome. Sitting in the lounge looking out over the sea whilst drinking a cup of decent coffee is the way to go. I've only used the tunnel a few times. The journey is quick, but my experience has been of waiting too long in holding areas before loading. I don't think the total package gives you much more of a time saving than the ferry.

I make several day trips to Calais each year with a good friend. We head off in a pre-determined direction, maybe to Dunkerque, inland to Saint Omer, or west to Le Touquet. This time I went with my wife which was a very pleasant change. We went to Boulougne for lunch in the Restaurant Haute Ville, a restaurant I have been visiting for a good 10 years now. Excellent food and service in charming surroundings - right opposite the Notre Dame. Good value for money.

We made the obligatory visit to Auchan to stock up on French essentials and then made our way back to the Ferry Terminal and homeward. A very pleasant day out. Give it a try sometime.