TRF Front Page Archive August 2001

These items have appeared on the TRF homepage and we wouldn't want to deprive you of anything that we have posted, so browse away.

17th October - Jack McConnell's decision to refer the AFC plans for a new stadium to a public inquiry confirms suspicions long held at TRF Towers that he had no intention of EURO 2008 coming to Scotland or at least to the Northeast. The "Scottish" Executive have absolutely no interest in anything outside of the central belt as demonstrated by their continuing failure to assist Aberdeen in setting up the long needed outer ring road to relieve growing traffic congestion whilst at the same time pouring vast sums of cash into providing additional motorways in the central area of Scotland. There is also an unseemly stampede by an assortment of Northeast politicians to distance themselves from the projected stadium even though it is far from being a dead duck and despite the screaming need for such a development to keep Aberdeen and its surrounds at the forefront of sport.

McConnell had already engineered the potential downfall of the Euro 2008 bid by involving Ireland in the proceedings in the full knowledge that it would be exceptionally difficult for the Irish to come up with the two requisite stadia. But at least he'd be unlikely to get the blame for it when another government were available to carry the can. Now he has put Aberdeen's interest in the tournament in jeopardy by, after a month's procrastination, referring the stadium to an inquiry. Hardly a sign that the Executive are keen for the Northeast to participate in the Euro event.

Of course it might be possible to continue with the bid by bringing in Easter Road or Rugby Park and bodging up some temporary seating, but then again there is a question mark over whether these two grounds can meet UEFA requirements over the distance between the playing area and spectators. And if people think that there would be traffic issues around Bellfield, just wait till you try and get to Easter Road! In other words the bid is on the verge of going to hell in a basket. What credibility can a Scottish tender for a major tournament have when it will be concentrated in such a small portion of a geographically much larger country? Where is the credibility in excluding such a significant part of a nation's population? Does McConnell care? Of course not - Northeast votes won't keep him in power in the Scottish Parliament and they won't kick him out of it either.

Merkie's Berlin Diary, Part III: All That Way Just To Lose In The Last Minute

No turning back indeed. The Olympic Stadium is a peculiar old place, and the second you turn right off the train and up the stairs the only way out, despite the fact that you are still the best part of a mile from the ground itself, is to hack through the trees to who-knows-where. This is not recommended; Britain's Stuart Hogg-coached entry in the 1936 marathon is believed to have taken the arboreal escape route in an effort to avoid the embarrassment of entering the stadium last, and has not been accounted for since. Somewhere inside, Dandies may have spotted a very very old man still sitting in the stadium, clutching a stopwatch, for if our lonely long-distance runner should reappear before April next year he will set a new UK record. [He was not the only British sportsman to be stranded in Germany during World War II - champion jockey Gordon Richards, because of his affiliation with animals and despite his lack of formal training, was seconded to the Army circus to entertain the front line troops, and was subsequently knighted for spending the entire war behind enemy lions.]

More...

Merkie's Berlin Diary, Part II: To See Wirsels As Ithers See Us

Tegel Airport was to give the TRF delegation an early moment of extraspection in the shape of what was to become a depressingly common feature of the Scotsman's time in Germany.
Having spent the best part of the previous month dredging the memory banks to come up with as much of the schoolbook German that a temporary football immigrant may require, I was disappointed to find this effort obviated by Berlin's effortless bilingualism, all the airport signs, for example, being in both German and English. A-Grade though my ersatz higher Deutsch may have been in der Bundesrepublik Mintlaw Academy, it proved to be little better than smoke signals in comparison with the locals' familiarity with my tongue (figuratively as opposed to physically, sadly). The Germans we encountered were amazingly subservient about it all too, feeling that it was some sort of duty to speak to their British and American counterparts on their own terms, but the bottom line is that so many non-native speakers have this impressive command of English because the Brits and Yanks can't be arsed learning anyone else's language. It was notable that, despite the national proximity, Tegel's translating did not extend to French, though this may have been less because they didn't feel it necessary than a spot of mischief-making.

More....

Merkie's Berlin Diary, Part I: Trains, Planes and Aiberdeen Feels

Fortune can be so cruel at times; then again at others it can be outrageously generous, especially if you happen to be a Dundonian shop assistant (as an aside, don't you just hate these lottery winners who only bought a ticket "because it was a rollover" - what, four million not enough for you then? You could buy Dundee for that).

More & More & More....

6th October - Saturday's win by the Dons was a clear signal that progress is still being made. They overcame any possible hangover from their European expedition (something some of their predecessors couldn't do) and also overcame the man who is becoming one of their great adversaries. Kevin Toner was handling his 8th match involving the Dons and picked up where he left off at Easter Road at the start of the season with a catalogue of blunders and failures to deal with violent play by the opposition. How he managed to see a penalty in Phil McGuire's challenge in the first half will probably remain a mystery, but whatever he's on, perhaps he'd care to share it around. The second half brought us an even more outstanding demonstration of incompetence when he booked the same Motherwell player (Hammell) twice in the space of a minute but failed to send him off. Maybe there's some sort of rational explanation, such as a late and secret change in the rules of the game just before kick-off. Maybe he was booking himself for being an incompetent tosspot. We shall probably never know, but if Dennis Norden ever wants to do a special show about refereeing cock-ups, we all know who should feature most prominently. 2nd October - As the battle weary Red Army return beaten but unbowed to home base, they must be reflecting on what might and perhaps should have been. Hertha made the majority of the chances, but the Dons defended well enough to frustrate them and break their discipline. At that stage, if the Redz had stepped up their game to the levels that they had played in the home tie or even in the second half against Dunfermline at the weekend, they could have won. We were let down by Bisconti and Mike, but it was a team effort that put us out. Work rate alone will seldom win matches at this level. Still, if you compare the levels of experience in this side and that in the team of the eighties, they are probably reaching the stage of playing RWD Molenbeek in 1977 (yes, that may sound a bit Irish, but students of our history will understand).

There's a long way to go to get serious success with the present squad and the next step is to keep them together for as long as possible. AFC need to get on with the job of persuading a lot of the players to extend their contracts and the sooner they start the better. meanwhile, there's a vital game on Saturday against Motherwell. Three points would consolidate the top six position and the squad could breath a little easier during the break for Scotland's matches. Let's hope that there is enough character amongst the Dandies to ensure that there is no European hangover and to show that they mean business in this league of ours. Come on you Redz! Get stuck in!

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17th October - Jack McConnell's decision to refer the AFC plans for a new stadium to a public inquiry confirms suspicions long held at TRF Towers that he had no intention of EURO 2008 coming to Scotland or at least to the Northeast. The "Scottish" Executive have absolutely no interest in anything outside of the central belt as demonstrated by their continuing failure to assist Aberdeen in setting up the long needed outer ring road to relieve growing traffic congestion whilst at the same time pouring vast sums of cash into providing additional motorways in the central area of Scotland. There is also an unseemly stampede by an assortment of Northeast politicians to distance themselves from the projected stadium even though it is far from being a dead duck and despite the screaming need for such a development to keep Aberdeen and its surrounds at the forefront of sport. McConnell had already engineered the potential downfall of the Euro 2008 bid by involving Ireland in the proceedings in the full knowledge that it would be exceptionally difficult for the Irish to come up with the two requisite stadia. But at least he'd be unlikely to get the blame for it when another government were available to carry the can. Now he has put Aberdeen's interest in the tournament in jeopardy by, after a month's procrastination, referring the stadium to an inquiry. Hardly a sign that the Executive are keen for the Northeast to participate in the Euro event. Of course it might be possible to continue with the bid by bringing in Easter Road or Rugby Park and bodging up some temporary seating, but then again there is a question mark over whether these two grounds can meet UEFA requirements over the distance between the playing area and spectators. And if people think that there would be traffic issues around Bellfield, just wait till you try and get to Easter Road! In other words the bid is on the verge of going to hell in a basket. What credibility can a Scottish tender for a major tournament have when it will be concentrated in such a small portion of a geographically much larger country? Where is the credibility in excluding such a significant part of a nation's population? Does McConnell care? Of course not - Northeast votes won't keep him in power in the Scottish Parliament and they won't kick him out of it either.
Merkie's Berlin Diary, Part III: All That Way Just To Lose In The Last Minute No turning back indeed. The Olympic Stadium is a peculiar old place, and the second you turn right off the train and up the stairs the only way out, despite the fact that you are still the best part of a mile from the ground itself, is to hack through the trees to who-knows-where. This is not recommended; Britain's Stuart Hogg-coached entry in the 1936 marathon is believed to have taken the arboreal escape route in an effort to avoid the embarrassment of entering the stadium last, and has not been accounted for since. Somewhere inside, Dandies may have spotted a very very old man still sitting in the stadium, clutching a stopwatch, for if our lonely long-distance runner should reappear before April next year he will set a new UK record. [He was not the only British sportsman to be stranded in Germany during World War II - champion jockey Gordon Richards, because of his affiliation with animals and despite his lack of formal training, was seconded to the Army circus to entertain the front line troops, and was subsequently knighted for spending the entire war behind enemy lions.] *More...*
*Merkie's Berlin Diary, Part II: To See Wirsels As Ithers See Us* Tegel Airport was to give the TRF delegation an early moment of extraspection in the shape of what was to become a depressingly common feature of the Scotsman's time in Germany. Having spent the best part of the previous month dredging the memory banks to come up with as much of the schoolbook German that a temporary football immigrant may require, I was disappointed to find this effort obviated by Berlin's effortless bilingualism, all the airport signs, for example, being in both German and English. A-Grade though my ersatz higher Deutsch may have been in der Bundesrepublik Mintlaw Academy, it proved to be little better than smoke signals in comparison with the locals' familiarity with my tongue (figuratively as opposed to physically, sadly). The Germans we encountered were amazingly subservient about it all too, feeling that it was some sort of duty to speak to their British and American counterparts on their own terms, but the bottom line is that so many non-native speakers have this impressive command of English because the Brits and Yanks can't be arsed learning anyone else's language. It was notable that, despite the national proximity, Tegel's translating did not extend to French, though this may have been less because they didn't feel it necessary than a spot of mischief-making. *More...*.
*Merkie's Berlin Diary, Part I: Trains, Planes and Aiberdeen Feels* Fortune can be so cruel at times; then again at others it can be outrageously generous, especially if you happen to be a Dundonian shop assistant (as an aside, don't you just hate these lottery winners who only bought a ticket "because it was a rollover" - what, four million not enough for you then? You could buy Dundee for that). *More & More & More....*
6th October - Saturday's win by the Dons was a clear signal that progress is still being made. They overcame any possible hangover from their European expedition (something some of their predecessors couldn't do) and also overcame the man who is becoming one of their great adversaries. Kevin Toner was handling his 8th match involving the Dons and picked up where he left off at Easter Road at the start of the season with a catalogue of blunders and failures to deal with violent play by the opposition. How he managed to see a penalty in Phil McGuire's challenge in the first half will probably remain a mystery, but whatever he's on, perhaps he'd care to share it around. The second half brought us an even more outstanding demonstration of incompetence when he booked the same Motherwell player (Hammell) twice in the space of a minute but failed to send him off. Maybe there's some sort of rational explanation, such as a late and secret change in the rules of the game just before kick-off. Maybe he was booking himself for being an incompetent tosspot. We shall probably never know, but if Dennis Norden ever wants to do a special show about refereeing cock-ups, we all know who should feature most prominently.	2nd October - As the battle weary Red Army return beaten but unbowed to home base, they must be reflecting on what might and perhaps should have been. Hertha made the majority of the chances, but the Dons defended well enough to frustrate them and break their discipline. At that stage, if the Redz had stepped up their game to the levels that they had played in the home tie or even in the second half against Dunfermline at the weekend, they could have won. We were let down by Bisconti and Mike, but it was a team effort that put us out. Work rate alone will seldom win matches at this level. Still, if you compare the levels of experience in this side and that in the team of the eighties, they are probably reaching the stage of playing RWD Molenbeek in 1977 (yes, that may sound a bit Irish, but students of our history will understand). There's a long way to go to get serious success with the present squad and the next step is to keep them together for as long as possible. AFC need to get on with the job of persuading a lot of the players to extend their contracts and the sooner they start the better. meanwhile, there's a vital game on Saturday against Motherwell. Three points would consolidate the top six position and the squad could breath a little easier during the break for Scotland's matches. Let's hope that there is enough character amongst the Dandies to ensure that there is no European hangover and to show that they mean business in this league of ours. Come on you Redz! Get stuck in!