The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion
The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion |
| A Bridge too far for Terry’s antics Posted: 31 Oct 2011 04:59 PM PDT NOV 1 — It is my fervent wish that Fabio Capello does the right thing between now and next May (when he makes his final pick for the England squad to play in Euro2012) and relegates two central defenders, who are definitely past their sell-by date now let alone seven months from today. Last week, I gave my honest assessment of Rio Ferdinand in the humiliating 1-6 defeat that his Manchester United suffered at Old Trafford to local rivals Manchester City. Now, it seems like home grounds are more convenient for some players to face a total collapse rather than away. John Terry had already experienced egg on his face in the past due to his indiscretion with regards to one Bridge (Wayne, the team-mate that is), and on Saturday, falling on the pitch at the other Bridge (Stamford, the stadium), while chasing a back pass from Florent Malouda, was the ultimate embarrassment for a one-time stalwart of the Chelsea and England line-up. If "Go Rio Go" was the clarion call last week, it is even more apt for the Blues captain, sung to the famous chorus by Chuck Berry, "Go John T Go!" It is no small matter that I am talking about here. When the rich and well-stocked Chelsea team can end up letting in five goals at home – something which has not happened in more than a decade – responsibility has to fall on the captain's shoulders. Leading from the back against a rampant Arsenal side, with Robin Van Persie in scintillating form, Terry failed in his duties as an experienced defender, centreback and most especially, captain. The slip-up chasing a poor back pass was just a mirror of his form recently, not to mention his other trouble with the authorities over an alleged racist remark against fellow Englishman, Anton Ferdinand. It was a nothing ball that could and should have been dealt with easily by millionaire professionals, but there was a lack of focus that was easily punished by Van Persie. That lackadaisical attitude also contributed to some of the most horrible defending I have ever seen displayed at Stamford Bridge in the top tier of league football. Chelsea just forgot how to defend. There was little cover, if any, on their right, allowing the Gunner's left back Andre Santos to launch attack after attack from that side of the pitch. Santos, who had a poor first half, was able to move forward with ease (with added support on the left wing from the brilliant Gervinho) and score a crucial equalising goal to bring Arsenal level 2-2 within five minutes of the restart, after going down 2-1 just a minute before half-time. Despite conceding that third goal to Juan Mata's brilliant shot from distance – after Theo Walcott's remarkable goal gave them the lead for the first time in the game – Arsenal smelled blood and persevered, applying the hammer blow with two more brilliant strikes from Van Persie. That third goal for the now-flying Dutchman was also one of many spectacular goal strikes at the weekend. I dare say that goalkeepers had little, if any, chance of stopping those shots. Arsenal is a different team altogether from that which had a very dismal start to the season. Based on what I have seen of them in their past two matches, it's pretty obvious that the Gunners have improved by leaps and bounds. The ball moves quicker from player to player despite there being less "one-touch passing" and there is also more precision in their passes and naturally, in the shots as well. And now on to last week's train wreck, Manchester United. Their recovery was complete early on at Goodison Park against an unlucky Everton but, more importantly, I mark the return of Tom Cleverly as having the most telling impact on Saturday. Cleverly lives up to his name more than many people realise. He shows a lot of maturity with his vision, range of passing, link-up play and mobility. I would go so far as to say that he is the best all-round midfielder in the English Premier League currently. * The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| What next for Occupy Wall Street? Posted: 31 Oct 2011 04:54 PM PDT NOV 1 — A newly-erected watchtower, surveillance cameras, police units huddled in tight discussion and more than a dozen manned NYPD vehicles parked in an orderly yet menacing line overlooking the northern boundary of occupied Zuccotti Park. The scene caught me by surprise; NYPD occupying Occupy Wall Street? Only two weeks earlier, there was but a handful of bemused police officers; some unable to resist a smile at the more flamboyant placard-waving occupiers. Two off-duty NYPD officers were even reported to have joined the movement.  Jalen Matney (right), 19, recently left his job at Disney World Orlando to participate in the Occupy Wall Street movement. He was arrested last week during a march and sports cuts around his wrists where the plastic cuffs had been fastened too tightly. — Picture by Helen Hickey In Panini Cafe, on the park's perimeter, he introduced me to Peter Harris, 40, an IT whiz and photojournalist from Boston. Together they have been covering Occupy Wall Street since it started on September 17. Sporting a rugged crop of stubble and an "Occupy London Stock Exchange" T-shirt, Clarke explained: "You can't put a finger on it until you come down to Liberty Plaza (Zuccotti Park). I saw my first march through Wall Street to Union Square on Day 2 of the movement and I was fascinated by it." "It is the spark that America needed...," Clarke enthused. He firmly believes we are witnessing history unfold. Given more than 43 per cent of Americans are supportive of the movement (according to a recent New York Times poll) and the ignition of anti-austerity occupations in more than 80 countries (from Occupy Antarctica to the recent Occupy Brighton, UK) I wouldn't be at all surprised if he's right. And what did they think of the NYPD's involvement to date? "Peter and I were privy to some terrible police behaviour in the early days." Day 3 was the worst. Harris, who had spent the night working on live streaming video coverage of all anti-austerity movements across the world (check out GlobalRevolution.TV), explained how police tried to remove tarps erected in the park to cover protestors' personal effects from the rain, arguing they constituted an "illegal structure."  Zuccotti Park's battlefront of manned NYPD vehicles and security cameras complete with a four-metre high police watchtower erected on its north-west perimeter. – Picture by Helen Hickey "Protestors were shouting questions at the police who were in turn pulling on the tarps they were standing on, and then Captain Winski — commanding officer of the 1st precinct which covers the park — seemed to just lose it and grabbed the closest protestor to hand, a kid half his size, and smashed his head down on the ground," Harris said. The boy had done nothing wrong. "All they were interested in was getting people into the back of the wagon," Clarke added. The seemingly provocative "strutting of police" during the otherwise peaceful Wall Street marches concerned Clarke too: it led to a pervading sense of "them and us". A far cry from the camaraderie displayed between the police and protestors he noticed in London. More restraint has been shown since — no doubt helped along by NYPD officer Anthony Bologna's rap on the knuckles for his infamous pepper spray incident. The police do walk an onerous line between keeping public order and allowing freedom of speech and peaceful assembly as enshrined in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. But is finding the right balance that difficult? Only days after our meeting, scenes from Oakland, California made international headlines. Tuesday's police clashes with Occupy Oakland protestors resulted in more than 100 arrests and left a 24-year old protestor with a fractured skull after being hit in the head by a police projectile. Scott Olsen, an Iraq war veteran, was participating in a march to demonstrate against the closure of the two Oakland camps.  One of the protestors arrested by the NY police... such arrests have become increasingly frequent. – Picture by Giles Clarke He was anxious for me to know that "the protestors' intention is not to incite the police but to continue to peacefully occupy." Harris and Clarke — who has lived in the States for 16 years (six in NYC) — are doing their best to avoid being arrested. More than 2,500 occupiers have been arrested across America since the movement's inception. Wrapped in tarps like burritos, protestors survived nights of heavy rain last week. The movement's organisers New York City General Assembly handed out thermals and warm blankets in anticipation of the snow forecast for this past weekend. Nightly general assemblies plan more marches for Halloween and to Central Park on 11.11.11. Clarke believes the NYPD will attempt to evacuate Occupy Wall Street — the nucleus of all global movements — but they won't want the stink of another Oakland in NYC. There are rumours of attempts to change the bylaws governing the use of privately-owned Zuccotti Park which would jeopardise the occupation. The police involvement is bound "to get worse" in the days ahead Harris suspects. I learnt of his arrest Thursday morning, his camera and memory cards confiscated — handed to the FBI — pending a court appearance in December. * The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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