By LFC Vancouver member Keith Perkins, 04 January 07.

The crowding of the fixture list is always a talking point at this time of year as clubs are expected to compete in four games over the space of about ten days. For some clubs that’s just too much, while for others it’s an opportunity to quickly pick up a few points that could be vital at the end of the season. We’ve come out of it all reasonably well with nine points from a possible twelve, with three clean sheets and six to one in goals over the four games. Meanwhile, other clubs have been having a less successful period which has allowed us to be in third place as the New Year begins. We also managed to close the gap above us a little, giving us some hope for an improved performance overall by the end of this season compared with the last. Second place is not out of the question, but there’s a lot of work to do yet before it’s all over.

Once again the debate is on over whether or not the Premier League should shut down for a few weeks for a winter break. It’s not just the newer managers from other countries that are in favour; some of the clubs that are struggling with injuries would welcome a short period of time to allow their players to fully recover. Another reason for being in favour of a few weeks off is the poor weather and the less than ideal playing conditions that go with that during these coldest and wettest months of the year. But, considering that we’re talking about England here, we should keep in mind that the poor weather can last for several months, not just a couple of weeks. For me, the arguments are lost before they are begun for two simple but extremely valid reasons. First, and perhaps most important, is the tradition of the Boxing Day and New Year’s Day fixtures that are added in on top of the normal Saturday matches that come before and after these “extra” dates. The second reason is that the advances in grounds-keeping that have occurred over the last ten to twenty years are quite simply phenomenal. If you look at some old footage of matches played through the peak winter months, the pitches can often resemble mud baths with players covered in it from head to toe. It’s hard to distinguish even a small clump of green turf amongst the quagmire in front of each goal. Look closely and you’ll see a large white blob of paint on top of the mud where the penalty spot is estimated to be. Now look at the modern pitch from a top club and marvel at how green it is even in the worst of weathers. The advances have come both from new species of turf grass that can withstand the conditions, and improved drainage that allows the heavy rainwater to escape down through the surface rather than build up in puddles to the point where the pitch is waterlogged and no longer playable. As for the odd time when snow and ice can cause concern over the condition of the pitch, the majority of top clubs have had under-soil heating in place for many years. That melts off the snow and ice, and then simply allows the water to drain away. It would be a radical change of philosophy then for the League to consider anything other than the normal crunch of fixtures to end the calendar year.

We managed to come out of the crunch quite well, but there’s still nearly half a season to go in the league and it would be nice to be able to take a short rest now and get ready for the matches to come. But there won’t be any rest for us with a very crowded fixture list to look at over the next couple of months.

This Saturday, only four days after our spectacular win over Bolton, sees us taking on Arse-nil in the third round of the FA Cup (live at LSPH, see you all there). As defending champions we want to put on a good performance and knock the gooners out with some ease. Then we meet the same gooners again three days later in the rescheduled League Cup quarter final match that was postponed from a few weeks ago due to fog over Anfield. Then it’s Watford away the following Saturday, followed by a home match against Chel$ki a week later, and a trip to West Ham to end the month. Somewhere before the end of the month we also have to find a place for a two-leg League Cup semi-final match with Tottenham (assuming that we beat Arsene’s Arse next Tuesday). Not only that, but also assuming we are successful on Saturday, we will be looking at a fourth round FA Cup match to come before the end of the month as well. It seemed like a cruel joke to look at the official website yesterday and see plans in place for a possible replay date if Saturday’s match ends in a draw. The replay would have to be on the 17th of the month, which is about the only feasible date remaining on the calendar.

After all those matches are out of the way we might begin to see some spaces in the schedule, but then again possibly not. Assuming we prevail over Spurs, we will be looking forward to a trip to our second home in Cardiff to play Wycombe in the League Cup final (we can always hope!). With or without that, we have a home match against our good(ison) neighbours, and a trip to Newcastle before we face the task of playing Barcelona in the first leg of the Champions League second round. The second leg comes two weeks later, with home matches against Sheffield United and Man Ure in between. If you think it might ease up a little after all that, think again! We have a visit at Villa and a home match against Arse-nil by the end of March, which could also include yet another FA Cup match somewhere amongst all of those fixtures already scheduled.

It could be said that we can at least look forward to an easier April and May after all of that excitement, with seven League matches against lower table clubs to finish off the season. But don’t count on it. A lot depends on our success in the FA Cup and the Champions League. The perennial problem of success leading to scheduling headaches is one that we are happy to face. If we continue to have a crowded fixture list by the spring, then it’s because we are still alive in all of the major competitions. I’m definitely looking forward to the coming months, and I’m hoping that we’ll have plenty to be pleased about when it’s all over.

What do you think? Give Keith your comments at Keith [at] lfcvancouver.com.

By LFC Vancouver member Ste Speed, 09 January 07.

Saturday morning when I was walking from my apartment to LSPH I couldn’t have been more positive about what I was about to witness. The performance in the victory against Bolton last Monday on New Years Day was by far our best of the season so far. Coming off the momentum of that game, plus the added revenge factor from the defeat at the Emirates Stadium last November, I thought it was the perfect time to play an Arsenal side that regularly under performs in the North West.

I was a bit upset when I found out that Dudek was starting ahead of Reina but remained positive. We started off well with plenty of possession but after about thirty minutes I began to get a bad feeling about the game when I could loudly and clearly hear our supporters being ridiculously out sung by the Arsenal fans. A couple of dodgy performances on the pitch weren’t helping matters either. Riise has to accept a lot of blame for the first goal and Luis Garcia was an absolute disgrace every second he was on the pitch. Dudek also can be faulted for the first goal at least.

I certainly hadn’t predicted us being two – nil down at half time and was shell shocked when the whistle went. I was hearing other fans in the pub mentioning Istanbul but I wasn’t even going there, I wasn’t too confident of a famous comeback as the crowd didn’t seem to be singing. I’m sorry to say this but we have got to stop living off that now every time we go behind in a game.

Kuyt was absolutely magnificent as usual, he was running and creating constantly and I felt dreadfully sorry for him as he seemed to have no help whatsoever up front. Once he scored it genuinely looked like we could actually come back and draw level. There was a ten minute spell from then on where we absolutely battered Arsenal with constant attacks. Aurelio, a major improvement in this game on Riise, almost scored just two minutes after the goal. The atmosphere in LSPH for those ten minutes was unbelievable and the Anfield crowd were suddenly awake and screaming their lungs out, shame they weren’t there a lot earlier, but I was getting the feeling The Kop was going to suck in the equaliser any second.

Unfortunately I had forgotten about Thierry Henry as he had barely touched the ball for eighty minutes. As soon as he got into the box one on one with Dudek there was only one possible outcome. Completely deflated we sat silently through the remaining few minutes saying our goodbyes to the FA Cup for this season.

If I could speak to Rafa right now I would love to ask him why Craig Bellamy was on the bench instead of Robbie Fowler. Bellamy was a known injury doubt and if Rafa had no intention of bringing him on it was a waste of time for him to be there. In the second half we obviously needed another striker on to push for goals and if Bellamy wasn’t fit, Fowler would have been a perfect addition to the game, his record against Arsenal is immense. I don’t say this out of bias for my support of the Growler but I say that as a Liverpool fan.

I was extremely gutted after the game and during the day yesterday, but on Sunday I didn’t think it was quite that bad and I was so happy that we wouldn’t need to wait very long to get our revenge. I had a feeling Arsenal would play a second string side on Tuesday in the League (Carling) Cup and we would be pumped up to make amends by battering them.

So I settled down at my desk at work on my lunch break, logged in to the Liverpool website E Season ticket & settled back to enjoy the live commentary. I could not believe what I heard as we conceded six goals at Anfield for the first time since 1930.

I immediately started panicking when I saw the team sheet. What the fuck was Rafa doing? He completely changed our back four, no Carragher or Finnan and what on earth was Danny Guthrie doing replacing Xabi Alonso? I am absolutely furious about that starting lineup, we should have played a full strength team & battered Arsenal who were fielding a team filled with a load of reserve players. This was by far our best chance of a trophy this season, we had a great chance of winning the League Cup and we absolutely blew it big time. This is not the first time Rafa can be faulted for taking a trophy lightly, anyone remember Burnley? Funnily enough that was also a game that had to be replayed due to bad weather conditions.

Our only hope of silverware this season now rests on our performances in the Champions League which have suggested that we have decent chance of beating Barcelona next month. If we beat them we will have so much confidence which will hopefully translate into Premiership performances in time to meet the other top four sides at Anfield. I would also fancy us to go all the way in Europe if we claim another famous win against the Spanish giants.

The transfer window is now open for the next few weeks and Liverpool are being linked with a number of players including Lucas Neill from Blackburn Rovers and today I heard a rumour regarding Freddie Ljungberg being transfer listed by Arsenal. If Rafa does decide to bring any new faces in I truly hope we get an injection of pace into our defence. It was painful to see the difference between us and Arsenal on Saturday, we seem to be so slow going forward that by the time the ball gets near the opponent’s area they have plenty of players back defending. It works the other way too as proved by Arsenal counter attacking so fast that our defenders were struggling to get back in time.

We may be out of both domestic cups but there is still plenty to play for this season. We still have the Champions League to play for and it would be great to go on a run of wins in the Premiership and push Man Utd and Chelsea. We will now get breaks during FA Cup weekends and that should be a great help to us in the second half of the season. I am very unhappy at this moment as it’s been less than one hour since the game finished. I will calm down tomorrow and will look forward to seeing us get back to winning ways at Watford on Saturday.

What do you think? Give Ste your comments at steSpeed [at] lfcvancouver.com.

By LFC Vancouver member Lance Litwin, 10 January 07.

A journey into the heart of the Holy Shrine of Anfield. I have waited most of my life for a chance to walk through the Paisley Gates, gaze on the statue of Shanks, and behold the glory that is the field of Anfield Road. Last December, I had fulfilled this desire; Nay, this pilgrimage to pay homage to giants from the Northwest, Liverpool FC.

My stomach twisted and turned, I had to walk to the field a few days before. I just had to experience it that way. I swung too far north following the signs on the roadways and I came face to face with the enemy. The white monstrosity of Goodison! A horrible sight to behold, the blue shield jutting out from the ugly white building. The insulting and disgusting claim of “The People's Club” so arrogantly displayed along the wall. I had to shake my head in disbelief and, as a representative of the people, discharge some spittle in its direction and make my way towards the ultimate goal, the Temple of Anfield.

I chose to walk around the park that separates the blessed from the denizens. My breath caught in my throat as I could see the roof of the main stand on my approach. It was a glorious sight to behold. Through a gate that surrounds the park, over a green pitch, and past a tree line stood Anfield.

I, briskly, finished my approach and paid homage at the Hillsborough Memorial near the away entrance. There were scarves and flowers at the memorial and I added a small gold(coloured) Liver bird pin that I picked up for a pound in town. After a few pictures, and a quick walk around the field it was time to go. I will return on Saturday.

The Saturday came and it was nearly match time. As I neared the Temple of Anfield, I could feel the excitement buzzing in the air. It was electric! All around me people sold Liverpool goods, the masses swarmed the Chinese chippies, the sounds of the crowd could be heard everywhere. I strolled confidently up to the gate, handed my ticket, and began my walk up the stairs of the main stand. The noise of the fans chatting, laughing, and moving towards the seating was around me but muted. Muted because I seemed a man possessed moving towards my seat oblivious to that around me. A few more pictures and I was ready for the match.

The boys in red had taken the field, I held my scarf over my head, and joined my voice to the thousands who likewise honoured the Holiness of Liverpool with “You'll Never Walk Alone”. Absolute bliss.

What do you think? Give us your comments at LFCVancouver [at] gmail.com and we’ll pass your it along to Lance!.

Standings as of 11 January 07. Congratulations to Ste for correctly guessing Rafa's starting XI for the Bolton match!

Rank	Member	Points
1	Lance	20
2	Dennis	18
2	Ste	18
4	Kevin	17
5	Mark Aston	15
6	Andy	14
7	Glenn Whyte	10
7	Keith	10
9	Dave Curtis	9
10	Quentin	5
11	Glenn Whitt.	3
12	Chris Cole	1

To enter the members contest see the rules below.

RULES:

• Only open to paid LFC Vancouver Members.
• You list the names of the players you think will start the next LFC match.
• You must submit your list to lfcvancouver [at] gmail.com at least 12 hours before kick-off.
• This contest will include every match that LFC plays this season. Starting with Blackburn.
• The member(s) that correctly guess the starting XI will be awarded 5 points.
• At the end of the season the player with the most points will win the prize.
• What is the prize? It is a surprise!
• The standings will be included in each week’s newsletter.

Scoring System:

• 11 Correct picks = 5 points.
• 10 Correct picks = 3 points.
• 9 Correct picks = 1 point.
• 0-8 Correct picks = 0 points.

YNWA/JFT 96,

Andy Neumann