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To Crewe ... and beyond
Topic Started: Friday, 30. June 2017, 21:53 (2,112 Views)
Jim Carr Fan Club
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The draws for the early rounds of the European competitions has not been kind this year, offering few practicable options, but an overnight stay in Crewe made it possible to travel on to Rhyl which was playing host to

Thursday 29th June
Europa League 1st Qualifying Round, 1st Leg
Bala Town 1 v 2 FC Vaduz
Alain Durieux (Luxembourg); Claude Ries, Joaquim Da Silva. 4thers: Frank Bourgnon.

A chance meeting on Chester station with an old friend - BPA's famous Old Yard Dog - meant that JCFC was led astray, involving a visit to something apparently called a pub for a little light refreshment, followed by a call at a chippy for steak pudding and chips, but made for an enjoyable evening.

Welsh fans' hopes were briefly raised after four minutes when a home attacker went down when challenged in the box, but Mr Durieux ruled that there had been no foul, probably rightly, just as he did not allow himself to be influenced by some early Vaduz histrionics. Vaduz were a little quicker in both thought and execution and did more of the attacking. As Bala broke out of defence on 7 minutes a Vaduz player intercepted with a blatant handball that was possibly cynical enough to merit a yellow card. Mr Durieux called a player over for a lecture, though it was not certain that the right man was picked. Things remained fairly dull until the 20th minute when Bala had a good shot pushed away by the keeper. Vaduz instantly retaliated, breaking quickly and beating the keeper with a strong angled shot. Their second goal came eight minutes later with a well-timed run in behind the right back followed by an unselfish ball inside .

With the wind behind them in the second half Bala were more lively. A bad foul by their number 11 saw Mr Durieux immediately bring out his yellow card, but before he could show it the Vaduz number 10 lost his cool and sought to mete out punishment himself, leading to a spell of skirmishing. When peace broke out, both leading dramatis personae were shown the yellow card. Home fans felt that number 10 should have seen red, but Mr Durieux assessed matters correctly. Just after the hour Bala reduced the deficit from the rebound after the Vaduz keeper had parried a strong shot and had another chance minutes later only to put it just wide. As a squally shower arrived the game subsided into mediocrity until stoppage time was reached. A foul at the corner of the box earned the visiting number 4 a softish-looking yellow card, the free-kick being lifted over to number 11, free at the far post, but he put his header wide. A little timewasting drew a caution for the Vaduz keeper before a little jostling between two men with the ball out of play led to another minor outbreak of handbags. Mr Durieux let it fizzle out with a rather resigned air, restarted play and immediately blew the final whistle.

Born in 1985 Mr Durieux is the youngest of his country's three FIFA Referees and was accompanied by two even younger assistants. His positioning occasionally left a little to be desired, despite a good reverse gear, but generally he did little wrong and emerged with some credit. On the other hand his manner appeared somewhat bland and lacked a little presence. There was little to suggest that he might progress like his compatriot Alain Hamer did. If only he could acquire some of the charisma of the lively and confident fourth official!
Edited by Jim Carr Fan Club, Friday, 30. June 2017, 22:05.
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Acme Thunderer
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In days gone by in Crewe, you would have needed to stay at the Crewe Arms Hotel which overlooks the station and enables rail enthusiasts to view the 'sleepers' to and from Scotland at midnight and 5.30am. Now however, there are a plethora of hotels to stay at including the chains such as Premier Inn, all within a short walk from the station. And of course the Alex stadium at Gresty Road is just round the corner from the station, although it seems unlikely that we will be featuring in any European competitions any time soon. ;-) :hug:
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Jim Carr Fan Club
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The reason for staying in Crewe was that I need to boost my number of nights (currently 35/60) to maintain my platinum status with accor, so my stay was at the ibis styles - pleasant enough, though I could not get the wifi to cooperate, and within comfortable walking distance of the station. As a consequence, never have I encountered a hotel with so many virgins - and counterintuitively there were more at breakfast than the night before!
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Acme Thunderer
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Ah, the vestal virgins of Crewe! I have heard a lot about them and have been told that they can sometimes be seen in the scantiest of clothing staggering down the Nantwich Road at 2am on the coldest of winter's mornings and uttering the weirdest of chants. But then Mrs AT and I would never be seen there at that time of night, so thanks for the report JCFC ;-)
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Jim Carr Fan Club
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It was surprising to find this page sent upstairs - it is likely to prove very short. As noted above, the draw was not kind this year, so I have not been able to attend a match this week - perhaps somebody else could contribute a report - and have had to settle for following progress on teletext. One of today's results, however, was particularly pleasing and may reward a gamble taken with a double header. The astute reader could probably hazard a guess at which one, but then the astute reader will not have persevered this far with my piffle!
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Scotland's ailing coefficient sickened still further in the 1st Qualifying Round of the Europa League, St Johnstone losing to a team from Lithuania, while Rangers succumbed to the might of a team from a village in Luxembourg. One club did make it to Round 2, courtesy of a bye, so Crewe was spurned, a right turn in Preston leading to

Thursday 13th July 2017
Europa League 2nd Qualifying Round
Aberdeen 1 v 1 Široki Brijeg
Erik Lambrechts; Karel de Rocker, Jo de Weirdt. 4thers: Frederik Geldhof

In their native Flanders, the assistants' names are doubtless quite ordinary, though English speakers might have wondered what to expect. AR1 was quickly in business with an accurate offside flag in the second minute, despite Aberdeen's efforts to muddy the waters. They continued to press, winning the ball and putting in some promising crosses, but the Bosnian central defenders repeatedly cleared the danger. On 1I minutes a quick ball from the keeper released the Dons' attack and a long shot gave them the lead. Brijeg had a couple of chances, while a home attack ended with the shooter leaning back and sending his shot into the stand. There was a further clear chance for each side, but half time was reached with Aberdeen still ahead.

Again they started impressively, but with nothing to show for their pressure. After a caution for each side, Brijeg worked their way back into the game and by the hour mark there was a feeling that poor Bosnian finishing was letting the home side get away with some slack defending. On 66 minutes an excellent Aberdeen header was thwarted by an even better save by the keeper. Two minutes later the ball was played back and across to the Brijeg number 33, who had not been picked up and he equalised from long range. Aberdeen had the better chances in the closing stages, but could not find the target, while home fans' claims for a penalty for handball left Mr Lambrechts unmoved. A late curling Aberdeen shot did not curl quite enough to find the top corner. Brijeg players had begun to suffer an inordinate number of head injuries. Mr Lambrechts finally tired of these, immediately summoning the trainer, before the player rose from the dead ( unwisely "helped" by an opponent) so he was made to leave the field, even though no treatment was required. Perhaps not wholly by the book, but a commendably pragmatic reaction. A third yellow was shown in time added, the visiting keeper taking too long over a goal-kick, and the result was a draw. The ailing coefficient looks to be in further decline.

Mr Lambrechts ( b 1984) is by no means the youngest of Belgium's FIFA officials, in what is something of a changeover period and is still in the 3rd Group. He did not please all of the players all of the time, but to the unbiased observer his decisions were accurate, with a clear line - challenges from impossible angles were a no-no. His movement was highly impressive, his rapid turn of speed allowing him to be instantly on the spot when possible trouble was imminent. It is to be hoped that Edgar Steinborn took a similarly positive view, though it is perhaps doubtful whether Mr Lambrechts will be the one to emerge as successor to the unfortunate FdB or to join the ranks of Belgian greats like Michel Piraux, Paul Allaerts, Marcel van Langenhoven, Vital Loraux or two JCFC favourites, Alexis Ponnet and Alfred Delcourt.
Edited by Jim Carr Fan Club, Friday, 14. July 2017, 07:01.
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Whistleblower
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Never mind five, in his last paragraph JCFC has managed to name SIX famous Belgians as well as referring to another by his initials :rec:
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Nowhere near Crewe this time and unsurprisingly no friendly face on the platform when changing trains at Bettembourg. Famous Belgians abound, but for famous Montenegrans the only names I can offer are

Wednesday 19th July 2017
Champions League 2nd Qualifying Round 2nd Leg
F91 Dudelange 0 v 1 APOEL Nicosia
Nikola Dabanović; Jovica Tatar, Dragan Vujović. 4thers: Miloš Bošković.

A very early arrival secured one of the three remaining seats in the covered stand with a view of the goal - and also of a giant pocket watch suspended nearby, the work of a local watchmaker who shared his name with Whistleblower's Teutonic vice. It must be admitted, though, that the electronic timing on the scoreboard was welcome. The attendance was given as 1458.

Heureusement que l'APOEL ne joue pas ŕ poil, préférant une tenue bleu foncé. Despite the yellow and red scarves in evidence, Dudelange, or Diddeleng as the locals have it, were in all white. After a defeat by the only goal in Cyprus, they had hopes of a surprise qualification. Though APOEL enjoyed the bulk of possession, the best early chance fell to a home attacker, but he pulled his shot to the left, hitting a defender and rebounding to give him a second go, pulled even further wide. A better effort on 12 minutes was parried by the APOEL keeper, attention then switching to the other end. On 20 minutes a long Cypriot shot hit the post; on 25 an attacker spooned over from 3 yards and on 27 the home keeper brilliantly tipped a header for a corner. In the sweltering heat there were thoughts of a possible drinks break, but when the visitors had a man injured (they seemed to have a low pain threshold) the players all called one themselves, with Mr Dabanović forlornly standing in the middle whistling for them to return. The home keeper was in action once again on 38 minutes, parrying a shot and as defenders scrambled the ball out for a corner, a foot made contact with a leg and Mr Dabanović correctly awarded the penalty - commendably, as he could well have got away with not doing so. The resulting goal for the visitors removed all threat of extra time, but effectively ended hopes that F91 might spring a surprise. At the half-time whistle AR1 was surprisingly stately in his saunter towards his colleague.

Mr Dabanović must have an aversion to the number 77, as each wearer of that number received a yellow card in the second period. The locals' hopes were briefly raised on three quarter time, but two brilliant saves by the APOEL keeper denied them. The visiting number 8 was the third recipient of a yellow card on 90 minutes, before a late Dudelange flourish saw them twice more denied by the keeper.

Mr Dabanović is in his mid thirties (b. 1981) and is a second group referee. He moved well, wisely regulating his running as the heat took its toll, but showing good anticipation and excellent sprinting when required. His online photos gave the impression of a grim individual, a cross between an undertaker and a secret policeman. Appearances can be deceptive, as has been noted elsewhere, so he may be a bundle of fun at parties, but no flicker of a smile was seen to cross his features on this occasion. That said, he handled the game effectively, allowing a measure of bodily contact, and was well enough received at the end of a match that posed few problems. For JCFC, though, stardust was not really apparent- the Observer, whose name is too difficult to spell, may have a different view.
Edited by Jim Carr Fan Club, Thursday, 20. July 2017, 07:15.
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nemesis
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Jim Carr Fan Club
Thursday, 20. July 2017, 07:11
Nowhere near Crewe this time and unsurprisingly no friendly face on the platform when changing trains at Bettembourg. Famous Belgians abound, but for famous Montenegrans the only names I can offer are

Wednesday 19th July 2017
Champions League 2nd Qualifying Round 2nd Leg
F91 Dudelange 0 v 1 APOEL Nicosia
Nikola Dabanović; Jovica Tatar, Dragan Vujović. 4thers: Miloš Bošković.

A very early arrival secured one of the three remaining seats in the covered stand with a view of the goal - and also of a giant pocket watch suspended nearby, the work of a local watchmaker who shared his name with Whistleblower's Teutonic vice. It must be admitted, though, that the electronic timing on the scoreboard was welcome. The attendance was given as 1458.

Heureusement que l'APOEL ne joue pas ŕ poil, préférant une tenue bleu foncé. Despite the yellow and red scarves in evidence, Dudelange, or Diddeleng as the locals have it, were in all white. After a defeat by the only goal in Cyprus, they had hopes of a surprise qualification. Though APOEL enjoyed the bulk of possession, the best early chance fell to a home attacker, but he pulled his shot to the left, hitting a defender and rebounding to give him a second go, pulled even further wide. A better effort on 12 minutes was parried by the APOEL keeper, attention then switching to the other end. On 20 minutes a long Cypriot shot hit the post; on 25 an attacker spooned over from 3 yards and on 27 the home keeper brilliantly tipped a header for a corner. In the sweltering heat there were thoughts of a possible drinks break, but when the visitors had a man injured (they seemed to have a low pain threshold) the players all called one themselves, with Mr Dabanović forlornly standing in the middle whistling for them to return. The home keeper was in action once again on 38 minutes, parrying a shot and as defenders scrambled the ball out for a corner, a foot made contact with a leg and Mr Dabanović correctly awarded the penalty - commendably, as he could well have got away with not doing so. The resulting goal for the visitors removed all threat of extra time, but effectively ended hopes that F91 might spring a surprise. At the half-time whistle AR1 was surprisingly stately in his saunter towards his colleague.

Mr Dabanović must have an aversion to the number 77, as each wearer of that number received a yellow card in the second period. The locals' hopes were briefly raised on three quarter time, but two brilliant saves by the APOEL keeper denied them. The visiting number 8 was the third recipient of a yellow card on 90 minutes, before a late Dudelange flourish saw them twice more denied by the keeper.

Mr Dabanović is in his mid thirties (b. 1981) and is a second group referee. He moved well, wisely regulating his running as the heat took its toll, but showing good anticipation and excellent sprinting when required. His online photos gave the impression of a grim individual, a cross between an undertaker and a secret policeman. Appearances can be deceptive, as has been noted elsewhere, so he may be a bundle of fun at parties, but no flicker of a smile was seen to cross his features on this occasion. That said, he handled the game effectively, allowing a measure of bodily contact, and was well enough received at the end of a match that posed few problems. For JCFC, though, stardust was not really apparent- the Observer, whose name is too difficult to spell, may have a different view.

Many Happy Returns !!!!
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Jim Carr Fan Club
Thursday, 13. July 2017, 23:22
It is to be hoped that Edgar Steinborn took a similarly positive view
After an Intertoto Cup tie at St. James' Park in the early 2000s, NUFC.com described Herr Steinborn as 'Appearing to have visited planet earth for the day'. One hopes for his sake that Mr Lambrecht's observation was out of this world!
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Thanks to nemesis for the birthday greeting, and to Hadrian for a good chuckle.

Thursday 20th July 2017
Europa League 2nd Qualifying Round 2nd Leg
CS Fola Esch 4 v 1 Inter Baki PIK
Donatas Rumšas; Aleksandr Radiuš, Vladimir Geronimo. 4thers: Robertas Šmitas

Mr Rumšas was having his second outing of the season, having been in charge of Bangor City's home match in the previous round. He is still in his late twenties, but is not the youngest of Lithuania's three FIFA referees.

Inter had won the first leg, with a goal in the 90th minute.Their early approach suggested that they intended to break home attacks by fair means or foul, with two runs by the Fola winger being brought to an abrupt end by unceremoniously chops. The first drew a "no more" gesture for the offender, the second, by a different player resulted merely in a free-kick. In between Fola had put in a good hanging cross, only to foul the keeper. Inter put a half chance wide, while Fola were denied by a good tip away by the Inter keeper. On 17 minutes a chest-high foot inhibited a home player, but Mr Rumšas perhaps surprising, allowed play to continue. Three minutes later some nifty footwork created an opening for Fola who managed to scramble the ball home to make the tie level on aggregate. On 31 minutes a crude barge from behind by the somewhat temperamental Baku number 8 gave Fola a free-kick near the touchline. The ball was floated in and seemed to be missed by both forward and keeper as it continued its path into the net. There were protests to AR1, but Mr Rumšas arrived to send the players away. This did have the effect of stirring Inter, who had been distinctly second best so far, into life. Within a minute of the restart they had an attacker cautioned for dissent, a colleague who tried to continue the argument received the same treatment. The game was now delicately poised, as a goal for Inter would see them ahead, so a superb save by the home keeper shortly before the break was of crucial importance.

At the interval the scoreboard clock counted down from 15.00 - possibly a widespread practice, but a new, and commendable, one to me.

Fola soon had a shot on the turn blocked by the keeper another number 22 received a yellow for arriving second in a challenge. On 58 minutes they had a corner and a powerful header gave them their third and a little more security. Inter, however, had other ideas, rattling the bar on 67 minutes and then pulling a goal back two minutes later. A little bit of nonsense between two players saw the referee race to intervene and administer a dramatic warning to both. Fola wee forced ever deeper - again a goal would see Inter through - and the visitors claimed a penalty when a shot was deflected for a corner. The home defence was now at sixes and sevens, but somehow managed to resist. An 86th minute free-kick was Palmer down by the keeper, a defender managing to get the ball out for yet another corner.In time added there was a yellow for the home number 23 for a spot of founding when penalised. The final action of the game saw Fola find space for a break down their right, the crossfield pass allowing a colleague to score the clinching fourth. It was not quite the final action, though, as substitutes and staff raced on to join the celebrations and when calm was restored Mr Rumšas headed for the bench and showed yellow to a couple of apparently random offenders. The final whistle came immediately on the restart and Inter departed without the usual courtesies to the officials. A Fola?player appeared to be querying ghetto?cards to the bench, but the coaches seemed more gracious.

It had been a pulsating encounter, one of the best in my limited experience. Mr Rumšas is still a 3rd Group referee, but the way he ent about things was very?much to JCFC's liking. He was quick about the field, and used his whistle sparingly, but with a good variation, with a strong tone when needed. Like his counterpart the previous evening, he operated a time-lag when blowing for fouls. He was more concerned to prevent stealing ground and nipped any thoughts of timewasting in the budwhich had not been the case on Wednesday. With the pitch in the centre of a running track, it was not possible to discern whether his facial expression was used as a tool, but he was certainly one it would be pleasing to see in action again.
Edited by Jim Carr Fan Club, Friday, 21. July 2017, 08:02.
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Unless some kind soul takes up the baton (please!) this section is likely to lapse into dormancy, so I hope I may be forgiven for taking it way offtopic with a poser for well-travelled colleagues.

From which two railway stations (in the same country) can passengers only connect to the rest of their national network by means of one change, or more often two (as in the case of travel between them) changes of train in a neighbouring country?
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nemesis
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Tuesday, 22. August 2017, 10:50
Unless some kind soul takes up the baton (please!) this section is likely to lapse into dormancy, so I hope I may be forgiven for taking it way offtopic with a poser for well-travelled colleagues.

From which two railway stations (in the same country) can passengers only connect to the rest of their national network by means of one change, or more often two (as in the case of travel between them) changes of train in a neighbouring country?

Unsurprisingly, no answers as yet. Perhaps I could take an educated guess that it might involve Netherlands/Belgium ?
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microscopist
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.. Or could we be on the Slovenia / Bosnia- Herzegovina border?
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microscopist
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OK, on the map: There is a line running from Belgrade (Serbia) to Sarajevo (Bosnia Herzegovina) and a line going from Belgrade to Bar (Montenegro). There is a single track line running from Bijeljina (also with a station at Velino Selo - both in Bosnia Herzegovina) which joins with the Belgrade - Sarajevo line at Šíd (in Serbia). The Belgrade to Bar line makes a brief (6 miles) excursion into Bosnia Herzegovina and there are images of a station at Štrpci (site of a massacre in 1993) and also a station at Goles. So hypothetically Bijeljina (plus Velino Selo) and Štrpci (plus Goles) would meet JCFC's criteria. However, narratives suggest that trains from Bijeljina no longer run all the way to Šíd (and were only available for local passport holders) and similarly that the Belgrade to Bar trains no longer stop at Štrpci. So my solution may have been historically possible but is perhaps not the one JCFC had in mind.
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nemesis
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microscopist
Friday, 25. August 2017, 17:52
OK, on the map: There is a line running from Belgrade (Serbia) to Sarajevo (Bosnia Herzegovina) and a line going from Belgrade to Bar (Montenegro). There is a single track line running from Bijeljina (also with a station at Velino Selo - both in Bosnia Herzegovina) which joins with the Belgrade - Sarajevo line at Šíd (in Serbia). The Belgrade to Bar line makes a brief (6 miles) excursion into Bosnia Herzegovina and there are images of a station at Štrpci (site of a massacre in 1993) and also a station at Goles. So hypothetically Bijeljina (plus Velino Selo) and Štrpci (plus Goles) would meet JCFC's criteria. However, narratives suggest that trains from Bijeljina no longer run all the way to Šíd (and were only available for local passport holders) and similarly that the Belgrade to Bar trains no longer stop at Štrpci. So my solution may have been historically possible but is perhaps not the one JCFC had in mind.
Surely "historically" would have been all the same country?
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microscopist
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Quote:
 
Surely "historically" would have been all the same country?

Maybe, depends just when the trains stopped running.
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Microscopist's initial answer puzzled me, as I didn't think there was a Slovenian/Bosnian border. The subsequent explanation, however, had him back in form, with an amazing level of detailed research, which is way beyond anything I could have managed, so sadly, though it may be correct, his answer was definitely not what I had in mind. I have been combing the map to identify all these places, with minimal success, but it has been interesting!

Nemesis was a little warmer: there is the odd anomaly on the Belgium/Netherlands border, but no railway is involved. The sizeable clue was the thread in which the question was posted, which visited one of the countries involved.
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microscopist
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How about Audun-le-tiche and Volmerange-les-mines both in France but connected via Luxemburg?
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That's the one! (Or two) Well done again, sir.
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