Suarez actions disgraceful

Well as a lifelong Liverpool fan I am at a crossroads with the Suarez fiasco. The way the club continues to try and sweep under the rug the whole situation is disappointing and thats coming from the top down from Ownership to Dalgleish to his teamates.

Suarez’s refusal to shake hands with Evra in todays match was ridiculous and made a bad situation even worse. He obviously has no remorse for what he has done and does not seem to understand the situation. His actions today confirm to me that he is guilty of what he is accused of and he sees no wrong in what he did and would likely repeat his actions.

As a Liverpool fan and hater of Man United, I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he said something that was taken out of context, maybe there was some misinterpretation, maybe he was being accused of something he did not do and being called something he is not? However this is not the case. He has admitted to what was said and the comment he made was racist. He has said something that could only be said to a Black person and it was offensive and to me that is racist and unacceptable.

Its 2011 and racism has not gone away, sure times have improved but you look at the growing amount of Black players playing in the premiership and professional leagues accross Europe and there is a continuing trend of Racism in soccer. FIFA has had to publicize the problem and promote anti-racism campaigns to create awareness but you ask the Black players playing in the Soccer leagues across Europe and they will tell you it has always been there. The alarming thing is that players are also getting caught up in the racial exchanges now! Before it was limited to the fans yelling from the stands.

I can speak from personal experience and my other Black friends will tell you too. I have been the victim of racial comments and seen other Black players get called certain names. I think in any sport where there is some physical contact the chance of racial comments being spit out is there. As passions arise often people in the heat of the moment will say hateful things. However when race is involved if the White guy kicks you well he is most likely the asshole or the fucker, but the Black guy who kicks you well he is the Nigger! However if you are not racist well the Black guy he will be the Asshole too! (I believe in equal opportunity in insults too).

There was an article that came out in the paper shortly after the Suarez incident trying to minimize the situation. I beleive it commented on Suarez’s past and his “positive” relationships with Black people. Back in his country one of the most popular Black soccer players is called “the monkey” and this is considered a term of endearment. Well if his society calls a Black player “the monkey” and does not see that as racially problematic then Suarez is simply a product of his enviroment because in my world this is a racist comment and sums up the problem in general. The Caribbean and the America’s were founded on a history of racism thorugh slavery. These racist ideologies have carried over for centuries and form the social structure of all countries outside of Africa. To a degree these views have been internalized by Black people and Africans themselves as certain views have been implanted by the opressors as a means to control the opressed.

Bottom line is that Racism is a problem within society in general so the fact that it carries over to the sports arena is expected. The problem is greater than Soccer and we all have to do our part to make things better. Suarez is lucky he was playing in the Premiership in a professional league where soccer is a career and not a pastime. If this was a amatuer soccer match there would not have been anyone shaking his hand and he would likely have not made it to the end of the game. However violence is not the answer, never has been. Compassion, empathy and understanding of one anothers history and siutation is what is needed. We now live in a global economy so racial and cultural cohesion is a must. We live in a time now where we are more aware of differences than ever before and we must use this as a postive to improve harmony among one another.

Happy Black history month to my BLACK people take some time to learn YOUR history. Happy Black history month to ALL people and take some time to learn MY history and maybe one day it will be taught in schools together with what is taught now as OUR history!

Time for a Quickie?

Leafs keep it alive, Raps SUCK, Jays look ok’ish…but will never win it all again – EVER, nervous about TFC, could care less about the Uefa Champs league since the Gunners (Arsenal) are out, March Madness is upon us – Go Red Storm and finally, head shots MUST be addressed by ALL sports. It is clearly a problem.

Is this the real Michael Vick

Not a big football fan but I am a sports fan and therefore tend to watch all sports as this is the best reality television. I had to say something about the Monday night football game which saw Mike Vick and the Eagles take on McNab and his new contract and the Redskins. Its always nice to watch games where players take on their former teams. You want to see who comes out on top, the player or the management. Well give this one to the management as Vick came out and blazed McNab and the Redskins. For a team to trade a player is one thing but to trade a player to a team in your division who you will face multiple times during the season is a real slap in the face and a statement to how crap you thing the guy is. Its like sending your wife to your neighbour and coming home each day to see her next door with the dude chilling on the lawn with him.

In any case Michael Vick has made believers out of the football world with his performance thus far. Fortunately for him Kevin Kolb got hurt and he got a chance and the Eagles have not looked back. Kolb is a capable quarterback and Vick would have likely remained the second string QB barring a real bad performance from Kolb over a period of games but other than Kolb getting injured if he remained healthy I don’t think Vick would have got the starting role. Even after the first game when Kolb got injured and Vick came on and played well, Andy Reid stated that Kolb was still his #1 QB.

Well now Vick has shown consistency and proved this was not one fluke game and is giving the Eagles a real shot at contending and with the supporting cast on offence that he is this team can definitely score with the best of them. The Monday night performance was a real display of offensive potency and the Eagles looked like they might put up 100 points on the Redskins. 28-0 at the end of the first quarter. Now that’s a beat down but as good as the offence was, they were aided by the offensive ineptitude of the Redskins. I mean these guys could not complete a first down which meant they could not move the ball, which means the Eagles were working with excellent field position each time. However having said that the Eagles made them pay and were scoring at will, I am not talking field goals I am talking touchdowns and they were making big plays and accumulating some serious yardage. Now given the Redskins defence was pretty bad but I think it was more a case of the Eagles making them look bad than the Redskins playing bad. The Redskins offence for the first half at least was definitely much worse than their defence.

But back to Vick, this game was a real coronation for him as this was a Monday night game shown nationwide and he showed that he is a Quarterback that can run and not a Running back that can throw. This was the debate before but he is showing that the debate is over, this dude is for real. He is living up to the hype and this QB like Steve Young said could be something special now that he is learning how to read games better and throw from the pocket. Time will tell if this year we are seeing the real Michael Vick, like Lebron he has something to prove. He was out of the game for almost 2 years as last year he was a guy with good seats to Eagles games. But now he is here and he is telling everyone that this is the real Michael Vick and I for one believe him.

Winning, losing or just playing the game?

All my life I have grown up with the motto of its not whether you win or lose its how you play the game or whether you have fun. Is this the correct message to give to young people or should there be more emphasis actually placed on winning. I mean if you enter a game with this ideology are you not destined to lose? I mean the team that seems  focused on winning with losing not being an option will most likely put in significantly more effort than the team that is just “happy to be there”. The teams that win championships are the teams that determine their success as winning the championship not making it to the championship game. You need to go into the game with this attitude or you have already accepted defeat. In life this passive approach is acceptable as it is more peaceful, less confrontational, but is it right if you really want to be the best you can be. Obviously my child playing house leage soccer versus Rooney playing for England at the world cup are quite different circumstances. But in terms of the approach why should they not be the same if the end result or goal is the same, to win. No one is really playing a game to lose are they? In life the goal is to win and be all you can be. A little competition is good but for it to be a competition you have to be willing to compete!

The Morning After

Results from yesterday:

Toronto FC 3 : 1 DC United

Argo’s 27 Blue Bombers 8

Leafs 2 Flyers 5

If you would have asked me yesterday who I thought would win out of the three Toronto teams in action, I would have told you that the Leafs had the best chance! This proves that I have NO clue when it comes to sport predictions!! The Buds got smoked, The Boatmen smoked and The Reds did what they needed (for a change) to get the victory.

Now I’ve really been enjoying the Leafs success this year but to think they were going to continue winning for the rest of the year would be a little optimistic. Yes they won their first 4 but to me, didn’t look all that good doing it. There were some lapses that fortunately enough did not end up costing them but if they keep up the lapses (and they have) they are going to lose a few more games before the season is over. Captain Phaneuf, who has been extremely ordinary this year, must step his game up and cut out the mental gaffs. I think he was beat on at least two of the goals last night.

The Argo’s have had an up and down type season. They perform well one night and show some real signs of turning the corner. Then the next night they shit the bed! So frustrating!!! Hopefully they can get hot in the playoffs and win a few but a Grey Cup WILL NOT be hoisted by an Argonaut this year – trust me! At least they made the playoffs which is more than I can say about any other team from the T Dot for the past few years! Good on ya Jim Barker and crew!!

So last night marked the end of a soap opera type season for TFC. They beat a team that they lost to when the game actually meant something. DC United was by far the worst team in the league and they came to BMO and left with full  points earlier this year. Absolutely unforgivable. Aside from TFC getting the win, last night was very special for one of the more successful players in MLS history. Jaime Moreno played his last game for DC United after 16 years of service, leaving after scoring an MLS record 133 goals in 277 appearances . Apparently he would like to continue playing but at age 36 I think he needs to think long and hard about it – this aint golf you know!

Saturday Morning

As I sit here in front of the TV watching Sunderland vs Aston Villa (1:0 Sunderland 31st min) I can’t help but to think about “My Team” Toronto FC. Later today they play DC United in DC for what I believe and hope is the last match for the year. The season started pretty badly – a direct result of “Trader Mo” not having a clue! 80+ players in 4 years? You gotta be kidding me! How did he pull of the first 5o without being questioned?  Anyway, I could go on about how the season went but I don’t want to beat a dead horse and that’s why I HOPE this is the last game of the year. I just want to put this season out of my mind and look forward to the next. MLSE claims the priority is to win so we’ll have to see what happens.

This “Better luck next year!” sentiment is actually common between all Toronto teams – not just the usual MLSE teams but the Jays and the Argos too. As long-suffering Toronto sports fan, the sports section of print and online media have not been my favorite destination and that’s not good. I can actually say that this lack of success is turning me away from following. Toronto has a very rich sports history and we are definitely going through a low point in time.

So here’s what’s on tap for today:

Argo’s @ Blue Bombers 3:30 PM ET on TSN
Leafs @ Flyers – 7:00 PM ET on CBC
Toronto FC @ DC United – 7:30 PM ET on GoalTV

Lets hope I’ll have some good stuff to read about and write about after all is said and done. Perhaps it will be one of those rare occasions when all teams get full points!!