Canada Win Gold and United Triumph
Group hug!
Well I was intending to write this post yesterday but Monday’s for me are ridiculously busy. After work I play 5-a-side and then with no more than ten minutes back at home I’m off out to play darts and don’t get home till go 11pm. So less to say I wasn’t really up to blogging.
Anyway as most people know that last couple of weeks have been taken up, sport wise, by the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Canada, the host nation, had never won any golds when they’ve previously held the event but this year they’ve made up for lost time. With winning the gold on Sunday for Mens Ice Hockey, they set a new record for the total number of golds won in a Winter Olympics (14). Now this has to be quantified by saying that in today’s Winter Olympics there are more events than there used to be but either way it’s an impressive achievement. I haven’t watched that much of the Olympics in all honesty though I have caught the odd event here and there but being a hockey fan I was always going to watch Sunday’s game and the fact that it was Canada vs USA just made it that much more interesting. The game didn’t disappoint as I was entertained for the full 60 minutes and the at-the-death equalizer by Zach Parise with twenty-four seconds to go was just almost too exciting. I was supporting Canada purely on the basis that my NHL team’s captain, Sidney Crosby, is Canadian. So it was fitting, then, that it was he who scored the winning goal in OT despite being quiet for most of the game. It was a thrilling end to an awesome game of hockey and I really wish I could’ve been there in Vancouver to celebrate the win as, having visited, I know the love of hockey runs deep there.
Earlier in the day also saw United play Aston Villa for the first piece of silverware this season, the League Cup. I can’t say I was entertained in this match as was to be for the hockey final but to see United lift the cup at the end was very satisfying. It must be said, however, United were lucky still to have 11 men on the pitch come the final whistle as, despite bringing down Agbonlahor and being final man, Vidic was not sent off nor carded. At the end of the day though I’d say United deserved the victory whether we’d have won with ten men though would be doubtful as I really rate Villa. They may have lost out on Sunday but I can definitely see them lifting some silverware soon make no mistake. What made United’s win bittersweet in some ways though was the unfortunate injury to Michael Owen. After scoring United’s equalizer with a glorious finish he had to go off with an hamstring injury but I guess what hurt more for Villa fans was his replacement; Rooney. It was probably fitting then that it was Rooney who scored United’s winner especially considering the rich vein of form he’s currently in. Right now I’d go as far to say Rooney is one of the most lethal strikers in the World game as he just cannot stop scoring; his header on Sunday was just superb. It wasn’t a great final but nor was it one-way traffic as Villa really pushed United and as I’ve already said they’ll win a trophy soon. As for United, with the League Cup now out-of-the-way, we can concentrate on pushing for the league title.