Wayne Rooney, Emmanuel Adebayor, Carlos Tevez, John Terry, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Rio Ferdinand, Kolo Toure, Didier Drogba, Ashley Cole, Fernando Torres, Gareth Barry, Wayne Bridge, Dimitar Berbatov, Andre Arshavin, Nicolas Anelka, Ryan Giggs.
According to this somewhat out of date list of the 50 highest paid football players, the blokes above earn a combined £98 million per year for kicking a football about, falling over and whinging a lot, and generally acting the arse. Mr Rooney's earnings in the list have been amended to reflect the alleged £250K per week he now receives since throwing his toys out of the pram a few months back. No doubt Tevez' salary is under reported too after his copycat tantrum recently was settled "amicably". In addition you could probably increase the rest listed by at least 10% to make it more accurate, so we're probably talking over £110 million a year in total. Note this is what these overpaid excuses for sportsmen are paid by their clubs. You could probably double the figures if you add in sponsorship deals.
The figure of £110 million is significant because this is the figure Manchester City Council are looking to save by axing 2000 (!) jobs, as announced today. Doubly ironic is that 9 of the 17 players listed play for the Manchester clubs. Perhaps they should reflect on this when they next drive their ludicrous motors through the city.
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That first T20 game against the beleaguered Aussies was a bit squeaky bum time was it not? As much as we tried we still couldn't quite manage to throw the game away, rescued on the last ball by Warwickshire bowler Chris Woakes, who I freely admit I'd never heard of before this game. The problem is by being a Northants follower (fan is far too strong a term) I've rather lost interest in the county game, as, to be frank, throughout most of my 45 years in the county Northants have been shite. They were once bowled out for 12 by Gloucestershire in 1907, about 58 years before my time in the Rose of the Shires I hasten to add, but prescient nonetheless. Are they the only major county never to have won the County Championship? Probably!
My fondest memory of Northants is during their all too brief period of ascendancy in the late 70s and early 80s, when I got to see their three one day finals at Lords, winning two. Sarfraz Nawaz! Allan Lamb! David Steele! Jim Griffiths the Irthlingborough Paceman! Some other blokes! During one of these beanos at some point after lunch, by which time us lads were somewhat inebriated, my mate Martin found that using his legs to move about was becoming a tad problematic, so he resulted to crawling about on all fours. In this state he found himself staring at a pair of immaculately shined size twelve hobnail boots. Looking up and grinning sheepishly at PC Plod he uttered the immortal words "My, you have got big feet haven't you"! Luckily for him the copper saw the funny side, hoisted Martin up by one ear, and, grinning replied "Yes I have, and if I see you doing that again I will shove one right up yer scrawny pathetic arse". Hysterics ensued.
Digression is the thief of time as my Grandad used to say, or was it procrastination? Anyway, the marvellous bunch of Saffers that wear the three lions at the moment has made me think that I should take more interest in the county game in the coming season. Expect some barely formed sentences on the subject later in the year.
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At least the Aussies haven't lost their sense of humour. This is from the Australian ABC commentary during the fifth test:
Aussie commentator Kerry O'Keefe: What was for lunch today Aggers?
Aggers: I had a nice meat pie for lunch thanks Kerry. And I have to say, you Australians certainly know how to make a good pie.
O'Keefe: We know how to bowl them too! Poor ball from Mitchell Johnson there..
...and...
Aggers: Can you guess who they've arranged to present the Ashes trophy to the victorious England team?
O'Keefe: Nelson Mandela?
Chortle!
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