leicsmac

Ronnie is to snooker as Federer is to tennis. He makes the game look easier and more artful than any other.

Agreed. The advances in training regimen and overall fitness are largely responsible for this, IMO.

Rose tinted thinking affects a lot of what goes on today, football and otherwise.

It's been a while since I read it too, but now rereading it myself. As you say, magnificent.

Lots of rainfall and temperature records being set so far this year.

You would think so considering they are pretty much the antithesis of the values talked about in the New Testament. But that being said, they do both state their faith pretty explicitly and have enough numbers and command enough policymaking power to imprint the values they think it represents on others, so...

A500 was the first computer I ever had. Amazing.

Exhibit A: Marjorie Taylor Greene and almost all of the people who back her.

Disney+.

Yep, hot toddy works miracles for this one.

As repeated above, all words seem hollow in the face of such sudden and terrible loss, so all I can give is my deepest sympathy and hopes of strength and love for the future, @FoxesDeb.

A Six Nations decider between Wales and France a few years back ran to a little over 100 minutes, so it's not unheard of. Very difficult to get that far without some decisive mistake, infringement or score though.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-68692195 Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has delivered a blunt warning that Europe has entered a "pre-war era" and if Ukraine is defeated by Russia, nobody in Europe will be able to feel safe. "I don't want to scare anyone, but war is no longer a concept from the past," he told European media. "It's real and it started over two years ago." More rhetoric designed for more "defence" spending, then. Does get a bit tiresome when the outcome of Russia attacking a NATO country is and remains so patently obvious to everyone involved.

Surely that isn't true and they didn't get someone important to sign off on it. For goodness sake, I know we're going to be (hopefully) putting a space station out there but Apollo really didn't seem to have nearly as much mess as this and that was sixty damn years ago.

Shogun continues to impress. Superb stuff.

I'll have a look ASAP, that does sound rather dispiriting. It's all taking too long, far too long.

Opinion being expressed as a matter of fact. Fact being expressed as a matter of opinion. Not only does it boil my piss, it can also be hugely damaging when extended to decision-making in important areas.

I think there is at least room for debate on the topic and seeing as the talent pool in international is rather limited I'm interested in thinking about who could be proven to do a better job. But it's perfectly plausible that you and others here are exactly right and a great deal better could be done.

Nah man, I reckon our thoughts on burden of proof about something being objective differ a bit, and that's fair enough. The points about there being a dearth of talented managers at international level I'd absolutely go with, though.

Yeah, it's a fair argument to make. I guess it just sticks in my craw when folks state (or imply) that Southgate is the only (or biggest) issue with the England team and state that as if it's a fact on the level of the Earth being an oblate spheroid or flipping a coin will result in heads, tails or edge, and that contrary opinions are somehow contradictions of fact on that level, rather than actually being legit opinions subject to debate.

And the "Golden Generation" should have been competing and winning more than it did.That kind of discussion is always so subjective and there's no quantifiable right answer. Agree about the mentality aspect. See above re. subjectivity.

Purely out of interest, I wonder how this record compares to recent past England managers. I'd bet our overall record against top 10 teams isn’t all that good, seems to be a running theme.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-asia-68662740 South Korea: Escaped ostrich runs loose on roads Not exactly what you'd expect in downtown Seongnam. NFP would have a field day.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68636451 Climate change threatens to "call time" on the great British pint. But scientists are working with the brewing industry to help save it. Hops give bitter its taste but the plant doesn't like the hotter, drier conditions we've experienced in recent decades and production has plummeted. Researchers in Kent are isolating hop genes in the hope of producing more climate-change resilient varieties. They also want to produce more intense flavours that are now becoming popular. The wonders of modern genetic engineering.

But apparently we're capable of knowing to a certainty that at least half of those managers would have won at least one of the last three major tournaments with the England squad available at that time. Apparently.