After the conservative line-up he sent out in Oslo, this was a bolder selection from Hodgson, especially against an expansive Belgium team. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was given his first start on the left of midfield and Welbeck was brought in to bring pace to the attack. It certainly put a sold-out Wembley in a positive frame of mind, hoping to see the team off in style before they left for Poland and Ukraine.
The Belgians fans contributed to a festive atmosphere – even convincing a normally recalcitrant Wembley crowd to join a Mexican wave – and it was reflected with a fairly open approach from both sides. Any sense that this was going to live up to the name friendly was soon spoiled, though.
Dries Mertens, the PSV winger, went chasing after a ball in behind the England defence. Gary Cahill had the run on him but was expecting Joe Hart to sweep up. The moment’s hesitation might have given Mertens a chance to exploit a mistake but instead he cynically pushed Cahill in the back, sending him crashing at speed into Hart. The referee, Peter Rasmussen, booked him for what was a cowardly and dangerous act.
Cahill had his jaw and cheekbones examined before being withdrawn, Joleon Lescott coming on. It was hard to feel sympathy for Mertens when Glen Johnson went in hard on him minutes later. Luckily it seemed Cahill was not seriously hurt.
The pattern of the game was begin to emerge. England were, creditably, trying to build from the back but the Belgian defence, led by Thomas Vermaelen after Vincent Kompany was injured in the warm-up, was holding a very high line. England were reduced to optimistic balls over the top and efforts on the counter.
Oxlade-Chamberlain had two decent chances when England did get in behind. He slipped as he tried to strike the first, a pull-back from James Milner on the right and then watched his shot fade away from the far post from the second, set up by Welbeck.
England’s defence, by contrast, was almost standing on Hart’s toes, crowding the area with bodies and challenging Eden Hazard to unpick them. While it invited pressure, there were few clear openings early on and Alex Witsel’s long ranger was the only effort struck in anger. Otherwise, they sought to use Marouane Fellaini’s size and power to cause problems, looking to hit him direct when necessary.
Just when things were going a bit flat, England took the lead. Welbeck started and finished it. He closed down Moussa Dembele, allowing Gerrard to make a good tackle and then set off for goal after Ashley Young had picked up the ball. The United forward passed it into his club-mate’s stride but there was still plenty for Welbeck to do. His finish was outstanding, lifting the ball delicately up and over Simon Mignolet with his left foot, for his first England goal.
Gerrard almost made it a second before the break. When Young had prodded the ball into his path he tried to pass it into the bottom corner only for Timmy Simons to block. The rebound came straight back to the England captain whose second effort was stopped by Guillaume Gillet.
The second half was still young when Hodgson decided to take off Welbeck. The United striker went straight down the tunnel for the dressing room, presumably for some treatment on the ankle injury he has been struggling with. That meant Wayne Rooney coming on but even he striker struggled to bring more balance to England’s attacking play. Young, while he made the assist, does not have an instinctive understanding of the second striker’s role and would be better out wide.
With an hour played Belgium had two good chances as England grew sloppy. Hazard tried to beat Hart from range but the goalkeeper had a good read on the flight of the ball. Then the new Chelsea player fed the ball into Fellaini but he could not get enough power on his shot.
There was concern when John Terry was withdrawn, Phil Jagielka coming on. The substitution of the controversial Chelsea captain was met with a mixtures of boos and clapping and he went straight down the tunnel, presumably to receive treatment. He might not enjoy unequivocal support, but Hodgson can ill-afford to lose him.
As the game drew to a close it became stretched – and with it more entertaining. Gillet, the Belgium right-back, hit a superb shot from range that Hart could only watch as it hit the top of the post. England responded in kind, Jermain Defoe, on for Young, jinking to his right in the box and sending a shot against the far post. Defoe then hit the side-netting after a crisp England counter to show effective he might be off the bench in the coming weeks. Hodgson will need every tactical weapon he can lay his hands on.
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Over the line! Wembley clash is final test for goal-line technology - Daily Mail
By Nick Harris
|
Football finally embraced 21st century technology on Saturday when FIFA used the England-Belgium friendly at Wembley as the latest test run for Hawk-Eye’s goal-line technology.
The Premier League want to introduce the technology into the English domestic game as soon as the world governing body approve its use.
Well over the line: Danny Welbeck dinks the ball over the keeper and into the net
Net minder: Joe Hart in front of the specially-adapted goal
At Wembley the goals were fitted with the necessary calibration equipment, inserted into three holes on the lower outer edges of each goalpost.
Together with data picked up by a battery of cameras around the stadium, these allow Hawk-Eye operators to see whether or not the ball crossed the line in any given incident.
Close up: A detailed view of the Hawk-Eye camera-based system
No information from the test was passed to the referee Peter Rasmussen during the game. The information was used only for private assessment of how Hawk-Eye’s football application is shaping up.
England manager Roy Hodgson gave the test his seal of approval in the run-up to the game, saying: ‘It is another advance technologically and one which I hope will prove successful and will at least banish some of the ghosts of the past.
‘I don’t think there are too many people in football who have too many objections to goal-line technology because there is nothing worse than losing a game because a goal you scored has been disallowed when everybody can see afterwards that it was a goal.’
More cameras: Wembley was also filmed for Google Maps
The International Football Association Board, in charge of the game’s rules globally, will decide on July 2 whether or not to allow the use of Hawk-Eye or rival system GoalRef, a Danish-German project which works through sensors placed within the ball.
The Premier League provided some of the initial funding for testing Hawk-Eye’s use in football and are anxious for the system’s early introduction.
A FIFA spokesman said: ‘We would like to place on record our thanks to the Football Association for their willingness to support the live match tests.’
Source: www.dailymail.co.uk
Hodgson's walking wounded! Calls for Rio after Cahill and Terry are injured at Wembley - Daily Mail
By Nick Harris
|
England's Euro 2012 plans have been hit by another worrying injury to a key player. And speculation is growing that manager Roy Hodgson may be forced to ask Rio Ferdinand - left out of his original squad - to step into the breach.
Chelsea defender Gary Cahill went straight to hospital from Wembley on Saturday night for a scan to determine whether or not he has a broken jaw after he was hurt in a 17th-minute collision with goalkeeper Joe Hart.
Ouch! England's Gary Cahill, centre, collides with goalkeeper Joe Hart
If Cahill is ruled out of the tournament, which starts on Friday, Hodgson will come under pressure to call up Ferdinand. The Manchester United defender, who has returned home after an end-of-season holiday in Thailand, was left out of the original Euro 2012 squad.
Hodgson cited ‘football reasons’ for his decision, claiming the embarrassment of Ferdinand being in the same squad as John Terry while the Chelsea captain is awaiting trial for racial abuse of Ferdinand’s brother, Anton, was not a factor.
Groggy: Cahill had to go off after collision
Terry, who denies the charge, was also in the wars on Saturday and was substituted during the second half with a hamstring strain. And fellow defender Joleon Lescott finished the game with his head heavily bandaged after a clash of heads.
Cahill collided with his goalkeeper after being pushed in the back by Belgium winger Dries Mertens, who was lucky to escape with just a yellow card from Danish referee Peter Rasmussen.
Butchered: Joleon Lescott also took a nasty knock, but he was patched up and able to continue
Another concern: John Terry was also forced off late on with a hamstring injury
Hodgson said there was a ‘distinct possibility’ Cahill had fractured his jaw and added: ‘We’re desperately hoping that the scan doesn’t show that, and it’s just going to be bruising. That would be hard enough, but it wouldn’t stop him taking part in the tournament.
‘John felt his hamstring a little bit. Again, it wasn’t a major thing when he came off, but we’ll still need to scan it just to be 100 per cent sure.’
Ready for action? Rio Ferdinand could make a shock return to the England set-up
The injuries, on top of those which ruled Frank Lampard and Gareth Barry out of the championship, took the gloss off a hard-fought 1-0 win, clinched by Danny Welbeck’s beautifully executed chip over Simon Mignolet in the 38th minute.
Hodgson, delighted with the performance of a team that included several players inexperienced at international level, said: ‘It’s a very good end to the week. I’ve got to be more than happy that we’ve come out with another win.’
Source: www.dailymail.co.uk
Gareth Berg wickets help Middlesex beat Sussex at Lord's - BBC News
Gareth Berg claimed three dismissals on the final day as Middlesex beat Sussex by 10 wickets at Lord's.
Resuming their second innings on 34-1, 174 runs behind, Ben Brown hit a half-century as Sussex were all out for 225.
Berg ended with 3-53 while Steve Finn, who dismissed Ed Joyce before the close on Friday, also completed a second-innings three-wicket haul.
Middlesex openers Sam Robson and Chris Rodgers needed just 3.5 overs to reach their target of 18 runs.
Finn followed his three first-innings wickets with 3-66 in the second to take his total in the match to six.
Middlesex were looking like they would complete an early victory, with Sussex 101-5 before lunch, still 126 runs behind.
Brown's second half-century of the match delayed the hosts' celebrations, who were set a target of 18, which they reached 40 minutes after tea.
VIEWS FROM THE DRESSING ROOM
Middlesex coach Richard Scott told BBC London 94.9:
"We lost the toss under clear blue skies and bowled them out for 283 and then hit nearly 500 under cloudy skies, it was a pretty complete performance.
"The pitch didn't change too much throughout the match but our attack always put their hand up. There was still work to do when they got 280. Up front with the new ball was dangerous in all innings.
"It's great to have Chris Rogers back in form, he started uncharacteristacally out of form for us. He batted all day at Liverpool to save the game and the one here was just as good, he was unlucky not to get a hundred."
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Hall Green schoolboy to lead out England stars at Wembley - birminghammail.net
Source: www.birminghammail.net
England v Belgium: live - Daily Telegraph
Alas. If you want to take your mind off the sadness and are collecting Panini's Euro 2012 stickers please join Jonathan Liew and myself next Thursday, 7 June at the Cask Pub in London's trendy Pimlico from 5pm. We will be hosting a sticker swap shop and it would be wonderful to see you there.
Thanks for your company, I'll talk to you again soon.
FULL TIME
England 1 Belgium 0
90+3 min One more minute of added time. Fellaini dispossesses Cole, who's looked a touch rusty to me today, and plays it sideways to Lukaku who's away from Lescott. Lukaku is judged to be offside. I'm not so sure he was... A let off.
90+1 min Defoe bravely attempts to run at the entire Belgian back four. He's tackled and it falls for Walcott, who looks good running at pace again (I suppose if he didn't look good doing that he'd have very little to recommend him). Walcott picks his time to pass for Defoe excellently once more but this time Defoe's quick shot is into the side netting.
87 min Vertonghen is allowed a free header in the box from a corner, after Johnson slipped in the box. It's over. You don't want to be presenting that sort of chance to the likes of Yaroslav Rakitskiy in a couple of weeks time... Yaroslav will not need asking twice. Yaroslav loves a header.
85 min England corner cleared. Milner and Rooney combine on the right, and Rooney gets in behind but overhits a cross. Behind for a goal kick. Few nations can do an overhit cross as well as England.
83 min Here comes England's rose Jordan Henderson, replacing Steven Gerrard. Role model Wayne Rooney is now captain. Gawd bless us, every one of us.
82 min Defoe hits the post! Walcott did well to take it forward at speed and feed it into the box on the right at the correct time. Defoe picked his spot Mignolet was beaten, but the ball cracks the inside and bottom of the post.
81 min Chances for both sides. Rooney takes his time on the left and delivers an excellent cross for Parker. Vermaelen just about cuts it out. At the other end Fellaini has a fierce shot from inside the box, it's charged down by Cole. Here's Paul Hayward:
78 min Here's an insight into Gary Neville's coaching techniques, as picked up by the touchline microphone as Lescott receives treatment: "Wazza! Wazza! You play right back, Wazza!" You can't buy that sort of insight. Oooh, here's Gillet, miles out, lovely shot... Hits the post! Hart rooted. Great shot from the Belgian right back. A goal for his team makes this an "oh dear" performance rather than the "well, fair enough, I suppose" that it is at 1-0.
77 min Lescott has sustained a boxer's cut just above his eye and made a terrible mess of his shirt. He's unhurt and receiving treatment over the touchline.
74 min Gerrard targets Johnson with a free kick from deep on the right. Johnson is close to getting on the end of it with a diving header, but Vermaelen's there with a crucial header. Soon afterwards Defoe is put through by Parker in a similar position to that which brought Welbeck the goal. He steers it across goal towards Gerrard, with Simons making the interception this time. Better from England. This is probably what it will look like when we're losing: Almost making chances.
73 min Lukaku is on for Belgium. He replaces Mertens.
71 min Too late to get this chap on the plane? For his ability to have an amusing haircut if nothing else:
69 min Can we have another goal please? Belgium currently looking more likely, but only on account of all their possession. Phil Jagielka is coming on for John Terry, who earns a mix of cheers and boos from the Wembley crowd.
67 min Here come a pair of England players. Their names are Jermain Defoe and Theo Walcott. Two other England players come off the pitch for a nice sit on a lovely red bench. Their names are Ashley Young and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
65 min So we're back to Belgium passing it around without a whole lot of trouble in deep areas, but also without looking like they're going to do too much with it where it counts. England force it wide and Mertens crosses. Easy catch for Hart. England, I suppose, are defending well.
64 min The damned find their last refuge in another one of the damned. Not the band. It's Richard Keys:
62 min Hazard with another fairly good shot from just outside the area. It's curling, but it's straight into the usually faultless hands of Joe Hart. Soon afterwards Vermaelen intercepts and Belgium attack with intent. Chadli feeds it inside to Fellaini who's less than 10 yards from goal but can only shoot straight at Hart.
60 min Some news from Henry Winter which paves the way for a sensational international return for Gary Pallister:
59 min Mirllais coming on for Chadli for Belgium. I'm reliably informed that's a like for like change.
57 min It's scrappy and the same word as that without the "s". I'd quite like to see Joey Barton introduced to make things more exciting.
54 min Rooney's coming on for England to sustain a heartbreaking metatarsal injury. He replaces Welbeck. In other news, Gary Cahill is having a precautionary X-ray on his jaw after that nasty collision with Hart.
53 min Would you like to hear a deflating statistic? If not, look away now:
51 min Vertonghen with a little bit of space 30 yards from goal. Works it onto his left foot and tries a shot. It is well over. You silly, silly boy Jan Vertonghen.
49 min Poor cross from The Ox, but it causes uncertainty near the far post and is turned behind for an England corner. Young takes, looking for Terry, but he heads over.
47 min Here's Danny Welbeck doing his nifty finish and goal routine:
46 min Here we are then, England kick us off. Delicious prawn sandwiches and complimentary kegs of Carling mean the middle section of Wembley remains mostly empty. Twas ever such.
18.03 I suppose you can't really grumble when you're winning, and when a team that's likely to spend its time on its Eastern European holiday counter-attacking scores a goal against the run of play but... I'll have a little grumble anyway. Such familiar territory from England. Still too fond of the impatient hoof from the back when there's nothing else on. Still a lack of composure and class in telling moments. Still the occasional embarrassing technical failure from players who rarely seem to make similar mistakes for their clubs. Still, well done Welbeck for an excellent finish and Young for a decent pass to find him. Belgium, for all their possession, haven't given Hart much to. Hazard looks a threat. Let's reconvene in 15 and see if it gets any better when all the subs come on and the game loses all meaning. See you then.
HALF TIME
England 1 Belgium 0
45+1 min Climey, things happening in the Belgium box! Simons dallies for an age close to his own goal, and Welbeck is onto him. His tackle deflects towards Milner on the right who does well to reach the ball and picks out Gerrard just inside the area. He tries to steer it into the bottom corner but his shot is blocked. Gets another chance and it's the same result. Falls for The Ox. Blocked again! Better from England. In that they had some shots.
44 min England break after Cole wins the ball in a meaty challenge with Fellaini. Welbeck with it... Takes it wide and towards the left-hand flank. Always looks like he's going to struggle to do anything useful from there and he's duly tackled. If we are going to be such a counter-attacking team I would suggest that more needs to be made from those opportunities.
42 min Parker beginning to assert himself a little more in midfield, but we're still experiencing longish periods of Belgian possession. Here's Paul Hayward in praise of England's goalscorer:
40 min Belgium force a corner in response. It's cleared but they keep the ball. Hazard tries a shot from 25 yards. Excellently struck, bouncing in a difficult area for Hart, but he holds onto it after a brief semi-spill from his palms.
36 min GOAL!! England 1 Belgium 0 (Welbeck)
Belgium caught out, with Vermaelen guilty of pushing up a little too high, and Young exploits the space as they misplace a pass. Welbeck has it on the left of the area, past the last defender. Still an awful lot to do, but he digs out a shot that loops over the advancing Mignolet and into the net. Excellent finish, and England have a lead that they do not deserve. Still, viva the suckerpunch!
34 min Rotten passage of play for England, who were tricked and passed around by Belgium with Cole falling over and The Ox dismissed as if he wasn't there by Witsel. Belgium still with most of the ball and winning the midfield battle. Gerrard and The Ox threaten to do something useful in midfield, but the Liverpool player and Ashley Young are offisde.
33 min The Camilla Parker-Bowles lookalike in the crowd looks pretty bored. I think Prince Charles is writing a text.
31 min Ashley Cole fouls future team mate Eden Hazard with a late sliding tackle that is presumably part of some ancient Chelsea hazing ritual. Later, Hazard will have to sing a song on the coach and "the lads" will in all likelihood "slaughter him".
29 min Insipid stuff from England. These supporters must feel pretty silly. I reckon a banner of that quality would have cost up to and including £29.99. Not to mention the artists' fee for the unnervingly accurate caricature of Roy Hodgson:
26 min Johnson fouls Mertens wide on the left. Belgium have a free kick. Good delivery, Witsel nearly on the end of it and Fellaini almost gets it under control to shoot from close range but England clear for a corner. This is headed away but a combination of The Ox and Johnson. I'm not that attached to The Ox as a nickname, can someone else suggest one for the Euros?
24 min Oooh, not bad at all from Witsel who ends the most composed passing spell from either side for far with a marvellous shot just shy of the "D". Just over the bar. Beautifully struck.
22 min Glen Johnson and James Milner make a mess of a throw in, gifting another one to Belgium. Wonderful. Can someone get Ian Broudie on the phone and find out if it's coming home? Actually, on this evidence save your money.
21 min It's been a tough 42 years for Andy Dean:
Most disappointing England experience? No contest. Has to be Germany beating us in the 1970 World Cup, still cant get over it.
19 min Looks like Lescott will be coming on for Cahill. Yep, here he is. Cahill's chin hit Hart's shoulder with frightening velocity.
18 min Mertens pushes Cahill right into Hart's shoulder as the Chelsea defender tries to shepherd the ball over the byline. Cahill's stayed down and is looking groggy. Could this mean a call-up for Ledley King? Mertens is booked, but not before he's rolled the loose ball into an empty net from a position almost behind the line that seems highly improbable. Hats off for that.
16 min The crown seem to be having a very nice time making paper planes and attempting to chuck them onto the pitch. I've counted three that have made it so far. Clive Tyldesley says he's been hit by a few. Is there any kind of bants more bantiful than International Friendly bants?
14 min Another shot from range from The Ox. Welbeck's onside and latches onto a dinked ball into the left-hand channel. He lays it back to the Arsenal youngster who attempts a powerful side-foot towards the top corner from five yards outside of the box. It flashes just over.
13 min England on the ball deep in their own half. Pass. Pass. Pass. Pass. NO! HOOF! Towards Ashley Young. Who's offside. International sigh.
12 min Johnson proving the surprise attacking fulcrum for England once again, this time with a more conventional run down the flank. Vertonghen is allowed to tackle him this time. Here's your friend and mine Eoin Butler:
As an Irish fan, I think England's failure to approach Euro 2012 with a deluded over confidence in their own chances of success is a rather large disappointment. Come on, schadenfreude is all we've got.
Didn't you hear, Eoin? You're in this one yourselves!
10 min England gorwing into this now. Johnson comes alive in the Belgium half and briefly looks like running past the entire team but Vermaelen stands him up and dispossesses him. Here's Jonathan Liew:
Thanks Jonathan, I will.
8 min Loose ball runs drops for Milner on the right. He picks out The Ox arriving on the edge of the box. He slips, puts the ball onto his standing foot, and it floats off to the side of the goal like a 10p ball from a petrol station. Decent chance.
7 min First touch for Alex-Oxlade-Alex-Chamberlain-Alex. Gets past Witsel with ease but can't beat the right back Gillet.
6 min Corner is worked short and comes to very little of note, but it's still Belgium on the ball.
5 min Belgium corner, after an impressively pacy run forward from Hazard which has Cahill backing off him. He plays it left to Mirallas whose shot is deflected behind off Johnson.
4 min It's Belgium with the best of the early exchanges. Nice backheel from Hazard into Dembele but it's semi-cleared by Cahill. England look to be set up to counter. That's sure to placate the always-tolerant, always-patient, always-progressive Wembley crowd.
2 min Impressive levels of whistling coming from the Belgian fans when England have the ball. They've brought 8,000 fans with them.
1 min Here we go, it's intertational friendly time.
17.12 And now, to sing the national anthem, it's Neil Young and Crazy Horse:
17.07 The teams are in the tunnel. David Beckham's having a chat with Bobby Charlton. Some reasonable lookalikes are having their photograph taken:
17.04 Feel weirdly heartened to see Gary Neville out on the pitch doing some impassioned talking and pointing in Theo Walcott's face. Less heartened after realising Walcott's only on the bench. I suppose Neville's got a lot of experience of how to handle that situation after his last couple of seasons at Manchester United.
17.00 This sounds about right:
16.58 Vincent Kompany is out of the Belgium line-up after injuring himself in the warm-up. Simons replaces him in central defence.
16.55 Here's Roy Hodgson speaking in front of a wall of very tiny adverts:
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is in the squad to play. It's obviously a big ask for him today, and it'll be a test for him. But we've got to see him in a big game and this is a big game today. It will give us a big boost if he goes out today and shows the type of footballer he is and proves we can rely on him. I've not worked out a starting eleven yet, I haven't thought in those terms. At the moment I'm keen to see as many players as possible to confirm what I thought about them and confirm my faith in them. I'm confident the players will work very hard today to show they're ready and to show they're up for it.
16.50 Look! Little dots on the post! Probably involving cameras somehow! Goal-line technology is HERE! What a time to be alive:
16.40 So goal-line technology will be in force for this afternoon's game for the first time ever at Wembley. Some kind of hawk's eye is involved. Suspect us muggles wouldn't understand it. Don't get too excited though, as today is merely a trial of the system. Only the boffins (thanks, red-tops) studying the system will know whether contentious balls have crossed the line or not.
16.30 Finally, we have some Belgian subs. And their excellent names mean they were worth the wait.
16.27 Seriously, where are those Belgian substitutes? I'm kinda worried about them.
16.20 Here are the full teams:
England: Hart, Johnson, Cole, Gerrard (c), Cahill, Terry, Milner, Parker, Welbeck, Young, Chamberlain
Subs: Jones, Green, Baines, Lescott, Jagielka, Henderson, Downing, Defoe, Rooney, Carroll, Walcott, Butland
Belgium: Mignolet, G Gillet, Vertonghen, Kompany (c), Vermaelen, Mertens, Witsel, Mirallas, Hazard, Fellaini, Dembele
Subs: Renard, Simons, De Camargo, Pocognoli, Chadli, Benteke, Vossen, Lukaku, Odoi, De Ceulaer, Defour, Nainggolan
16.18 Some team news then. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, as expected, will start in an England shirt for the first time. Danny Welbeck replaces Andy Carroll in attack.
16.02 Are we in danger of getting a little over-excited by this afternoon's game?
15.46 Would you like to see a picture of a very young Roy Hodgson from today's England programme*? Of course you would. Here he is:
*Available at all good pre-approved stadium vendors for the knock-down price of £27
15.30 Afternoon liveblog fans.
And so we draw near to a Major International Tournament which no-one here seems particularly bothered about and at which England seem to be destined to finish bottom of their group with a goal difference of -37.
Perhaps things aren't quite so bad.
I'm certainly very excited about the European Championships 2012, but then I'm not someone whose interest in international football begins and ends with my own nation.
If you're in the latter camp you're waking up (admirably late) to the daunting news that James Milner and Stewart Downing might be our "wingers" for the opening match against France in nine days time. Ouch.
It'll be Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain deployed out wide this afternoon, with the rest of England's midfield likely to consist of a very tired Scott Parker, surprise call-up Tony Dorigo and Ryan Giggs on the left disguised as Jordan Henderson.
They're up against Belgium, surely a team more deserving of this week's damning Time cover than our poor chaps:
They've got Fellaini, Kompany, Vermaelen, Dembele, Lukaku and soon-to-be-disappointing Chelsea youngster Eden Hazard.
I don't feel like it's too much of a stretch to say their starting eleven will be roughly as good as England's. And yet they've not qualified for a World Cup or European Championships for 10 years. Where's their Time cover, eh, Time?
I shall bring you team news, straw clutching, imaginary bunting and much, much more in the 105 minutes until kick off. Stay tuned.
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Essex County to enhance Becker Park in Roseland - newjerseyhills.com
Roseland's Becker Park
Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr., second fromright) announced plans to enhance access to Essex County Becker Park in Roseland on Thursday, May 31. With the County Executive are, from left, Becker Park Conservancy member Howard Silverberg, Roseland Councilmen Richard Leonard and David Jacobs, Roseland Police Chief Richard McDonough, Freeholder Vice President Patricia Sebold and Roseland Mayor John Duthie. The project includes the rehabilitation of the Locust Avenue Bridge, which provides primary access into the park, and the installation of a water line,two open-air pavilions, benches and trash receptacles.
Location
Locust Avenue Roseland NJPosted: Saturday, June 2, 2012 9:00 am
ROSELAND - The first improvement project undertaken by the county in Essex County Becker Park, which has been left undeveloped
since it was acquired by the county in 1969, was announced n Thursday, May 31.
The $857,000 project includes the rehabilitation of the Locust Avenue
Bridge, which provides primary access into the park. In addition, a water
line will be installed across the bridge to bring water to the park, two
pavilions will be installed to provide covered seating areas for the public, and benches and trash receptacles will be installed.
Boswell Engineering from South Hackensack was awarded a $142,000
professional contract to design the improvements. Let It Grow from River Edge, was awarded a publicly bid contract for $857,000 to perform the construction work. The Essex County Department of Public Works is working with the contractors to address questions and keep the project on schedule.
The improvement plan is funded with a New Jersey Green Acres grant received by the Becker Park conservancy and a grant from the Essex County Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund. Work is scheduled to be completed by the fall of 2012.
"Essex County currently partners with 33 volunteer conservancy groups that give us input about the individual parks they sponsor. Working with the Becker Park Conservancy, we developed this plan to improve the public's access to the park so more people would be able to enjoy the undeveloped land," Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo, Jr., said. "These relationships have helped the county revitalize our historic park system and make sure our facilities continue to meet the needs of the community."
Essex County Becker Park is 146.73 acres and was once part of the Becker Farm, which used the fields to grow crops and graze dairy cattle. Using county, state and federal funds, Essex County purchased the property in 1969 and the land has been undeveloped since then. The park is contiguous with Essex County Riker Hill Art Park and Essex County West Essex Park.
More about Roseland
- ARTICLE: Freeholders congratulate Joshua Krasner of Roseland for All-State nod
- ARTICLE: Things to do in the Caldwells, Fairfield, Roseland, Essex Fells
- ARTICLE: Roseland Recreation hosts Legends baseball camp
- ARTICLE: Summer basketball camp on agenda in Roseland
Posted in News on Saturday, June 2, 2012 9:00 am. | Tags:
Source: newjerseyhills.com
Why o why did he put Rooney on he is out for the 1st 2 games and if England loose them they will be on there way home.he should be playing those who will be playing the 1st 2 games plonker , thought the game was a bore typical Woy stuff sorry to say it but we are going backwards rather than forwards what is it with the FA and their recruiting policy " Only apply if your over 60 "
- Ossie, Thailand,, 03/6/2012 03:19
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