Records are made to be broken or in this case winless runs (10 years infact). Manchester United are faced with positive and negative problems, the negatives are self evidant in them concededing first in 8 of 12 games this season and the positive problem is which striker/s to use. The latter is something Sir Alex would much rather have sleepless nights on because "I cant understand our defending" he said. Roberto di Matteo (RDM) undoubtedly would love to have the strikers lined up as United do. Last season when United visited Stamford Bridge they did so knowing that captain John Terrry will be missing in the Chelsea back four and this time around he sits out again.  RDM will hope history does not repeat itself as last season a Andre Villas-Boas Chelsea squandered a 3-0 lead to draw 3-3 with United.  The number 10 is quite prominent in this fixture, besides the 10 years, it has now been 10 games since United  last ...

The most successful team in Currie Cup History face up to the seven times winners in Durban this Saturday. Yes Western Province (WP) have won the Currie Cup on 31 occassions(four draws),that is 24 more titles than the Sharks but the Sharks can boast at winning two of the last four tournaments (appearing in three finals)and WP won their 31st Currie Cup way back in 2001. Allister Coetzee's men have the arduous task of defeating the table topping Sharks in the Shark Tank. A venue the Sharks have not lost at in the 2012 Currie Cup and they have done the double over WP this season a Shark Tank drubbing(43-27) in round 1 and a close encounter at Newlands (25-23) in Round 2. So I agree with Coetzee's claim that the Sharks are overwhelming favourites, rightfully so. Coach John Plumtree's men deserve the plaudits they recieving I mean this is the Sharks third consecutive final(granted they lost both the Currie Cup 2011 & Super Rugby 2012 finals). They will be despera...

I just loved reading this: Is there anything less satisfying than a drawn test match? The All Blacks latest attempt at beating the world record for consecutive test match victories has been halted in most frustrating style by a stalemate in Brisbane. They were in many ways lucky to escape without defeat and owe that, more than anything, to Australia’s lack of self-belief and in particular Kurtley Beale's abject unwillingness to take a dropped goal when it was on offer in the final stages. The one admirable thing about the All Blacks' otherwise flatline performance was their refusal to give away a penalty as the Wallabies went 24 phases in possession inside the New Zealand half. It was an incredible display of determination and discipline, attributes that had taken an untimely holiday earlier in the game, when they were rattled into mistakes and repeatedly penalised. In the end you got the distinct impression the Wallabies wanted Craig Joubert to win the game for them, ...

Coach Meyer wishes he had a PVR on Saturday against the  All Blacks  . Dear Heyneke, . So, back to earth with a horrible thud then. That was painful. First, let's pay tribute to the best team playing rugby on the planet today. The All Blacks were all pace, power and ruthlessness Saturday. I have to confess, once I realised we were simply being outclassed, I sat back and marvelled at how brilliant they truly are. . It eased the pain slightly, but I imagine not for you Heyneke. Once you threw everything at them in the first half, it was awesome to watch how they simply absorbed and when handed the smallest of opportunities, simply executed clinically. . What went wrong besides having to play the "chosen ones"? I'd like to offer an opinion. Your "pressing" defensive system is very risky. It can put your opponent under heavy pressure, but if even one man misses his mark, gaps will open up. Against a team such as NZ, you were always going to be u...

This might not be the biggest derby match on my calendar but come Sunday it will be undoubtably be the biggest match in the world... on Sunday that is. “No. Not at all”. That’s what coach Jose Mourinho said when CNN World Sport Anchor, Pedro Pinto asked him if Sunday’s El Clasico was a must-win match for the champions, even if Real are currently eight points behind Barcelona. That sly old fox Mourinho knows that going ELEVEN points behind Barcelona at any stage of the season is a tall order to recover from. So what he is doing is taking the pressure off his squad and easing the backlash if infact they do come short Sunday. What I'm pleased about is that for a change the home side are not overwhelming favorites for this weekend’s clash at the Camp Nou. Yes they have 100% record in the League this season but the Catalans for me haven’t really hit their straps, and more significantly they have serious problems at the back. It is a distinct possibility Barca coach Tito Vila...