LFC Vancouver Newsletter

You'll Never Walk Alone | Volume #2 - 25| 08 March 2007

For the last edition of the newsletter check here. For last year's archives, check here.

Comments/feedback/anything is always welcome. The email for the newsletter is Andy [at] lfcvancouver.com.

News and Notes

Aston Villa Match 7PM Tape Delay - At 'The G Sport'

LFC Vancouver will be meeting on Sunday 18 March to watch the Aston Villa v Liverpool match at The G Sport at 7:00PM Tape Delay.

The G Sport is located at 1208 Granville Street (corner of Granville and Davie). You can find directions, on their web site, or on this map (with nearest parking lots), or on Google Maps. For those SkyTrain users, you can get off at the Granville Station and walk 5 blocks south to reach the G Sport.


18 New Members!

A big welcome to new LFC Vancouver Members Mike Speakman, Brady Cameron, Rick Verma, Jack Hutchinson, Janet Dee, Michael Dee, Andrew McFee, Scott Wareing, Gary Wareing, Denis Thomas, David Harris, Ken McEwan, Raj Davda, Alastair Hughes, Angela Huxtable, Mark Cannon, Joe Sinnott, David Doherty!!


Liverpool v Barcelona - Pictures

Out very own Ste took these photos of LFC Vancouver during the Liverpool v Barcelona on 6 March 2007.


Liverpool v Barcelona - Pictures from Anfield

LFC Vancouver Member Chris Cole has contributed these photos from Anfield during the special European night. His friend Andy Hamilton took them during the match.


The Run Inn and LFC Vancouver Sponsorship

The Run Inn has reached an sponsorship deal with LFC Vancouver. The sponsorship deal allows all LFC Vancouver Members a 10% discount on all Run Inn merchandise. LFC Vancouver Member Chris Cole runs The Run Inn

The Run Inn has an account with Adidas and can order numerous LFC licenced goods. You can find the LFC Catalog here. NOTE: 635196 - Originals track top, 635197 - Retro Jersey, 635189 - Retro Tee, as well as the current 053327 - Home short sleeve Jersey are all available now. Everything else is available july 2007. Pre-orders are stronly encouraged by Chris.

You can see the samples now, contact Chris for more details.

You can place an order with Chris Cole in person at LFC Vancouver matches, or by email at info [at] runinn.com.


Liverpool FC YouTube.com Video of the Week

The Kop v Barcelona 6th March 2007

You can send comments or LFC videos to the following email address.

YNWA/JFT 96,

Andy Neumann
Andy [at] lfcvancouver.com

Member's Corner

VHS Copy of Liverpool v Barcelona?

LFC Vancouver Member Ian Hutchinson will gladly supply a beer to anyone who can lend him a VHS tape of the Liverpool v Barcelona match from 6 March 2007.

If you can help him out let me know: Andy [at] lfcvancouver.com

Who's Next?

Last Results

Liverpool 0 - Barcelona 1
(Attendance: 42,579)

Liverpool 0 - Man Utd 1
(Attendance: 44,403)

YNWA/JFT 96,

Andy Neumann
Andy [at] lfcvancouver.com

UPCOMING GAMES & EVENTS

Sunday 18 March - Aston Villa v Liverpool (Premiership),
TV Setanta, 6:35AM. LFC Vancouver venue The G Sport 7:00PM Tape Delay.

Saturday 31 March - Liverpool v Arsenal (Premiership),
TV tbd, 4:45AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Tuesday 03 April - PSV v Liverpool (Champions League - 1/4 Final),
TV tbd, 11:45AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Saturday 07 April - Reading v Liverpool (Premiership),
TV tbd, 7:00AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Monday 09 April - Liverpool v Middlesbrough (Premiership),
TV tbd, 7:00AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Wednesday 11 April - Liverpool v PSV (Champions League - 1/4 Final),
TV tbd, 11:45AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Saturday 14 April - Man City v Liverpool (Premiership),
TV tbd, 7:00AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Saturday 21 April - Liverpool v Wigan (Premiership),
TV tbd, 7:00AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Saturday 28 April - Portsmouth v Liverpool (Premiership),
TV tbd, 7:00AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Saturday 05 May - Fulham v Liverpool (Premiership),
TV tbd, 7:00AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

Sunday 13 April - Liverpool v Charlton (Premiership),
TV tbd, 7:00AM. LFC Vancouver venue tbd.

When any of the match information above is updated, an email will be sent to notify all of you.


If you want to help in any way we'd appreciate it. We could use writers (weekly or occasional, anything is welcome) and sponsors as well. Also, just let us know what you'd like us to do as a supporter's club, what you'd expect. If you can commit a couple of hours a week we could always use the help.

If you can help out with the club in any way, let us know as we're happy to have helping hands.

Article - Two Defeats, Two Different Results

By LFC Vancouver member Ste Speed, 08 March 07.

This time last week I predicted that we wouldn’t lose to Man Utd, I was wrong. I should have known something bad would happen when I saw the players emerge from the tunnel wearing blue shirts, shorts and socks. No I wasn’t watching Everton or Chelsea or gone colour blind it was just the DVD player at the G Spot with the leads the wrong way round. Unfortunately I didn’t discover this until hours after the game ended so the small group of us that gathered for the tape delay had to endure watching Liverpool play in blue and Man Utd play in pink. That last part got a few laughs in the pub. Sadly they were the last laughs to be heard for the next two hours as we suffered the frustrations of the game.

It was absolutely heartbreaking to see us lose right at the very end of a game we dominated. Even Sir Alex Ferguson and Gary Neville admitted afterwards that we were the better team. Speaking of Fergie, I’m not usually one to come out and praise him but he impressed me a great deal after the game ended. He walked onto the pitch, towards the Kop, began applauding the crowd and could be seen saying the words “you’re the best”.

My uncle Marty made a good comment to me this week when he said; “we did enough to win but should have come away with a point so I am only looking at it as a point lost. That makes it easier to stomach”. When I think about it that way it definitely doesn’t seem as bad as it did at the time. I was so angry when the goal went in that I actually almost walked out of the pub. I jumped out of my seat in anger, muttered a few expletives and started heading for the door. It was only a few words of comfort from the landlord that led me to stay in the room.

We didn’t have a lot of proper goal scoring chances to win the game but the few we did have looked pretty easy. Peter Crouch missed a sitter right before they scored. It looked as if he was worried about his broken nose because he tried to control the ball rather than heading it. However to be honest Crouch tends to do this with or without a broken nose so it probably didn’t make a blind bit of notice. I like Crouch but this is just one reason why he isn’t world class and will probably be sold in the summer.

I feel that our midfield and defence are pretty strong at the moment. Two players in particular were immense in both games this week, Jamie Carragher and Steve Finnan. Carragher continues to prove that he’s the best defender in the country week in week out with important tackles, clearances and chasing lost causes and now there can no doubt that he compares favourably with all the greats of the past such as Hansen, Yeats, Smith and Lawrenson. Steve Finnan, in my opinion has been our best player by far this season. He is guaranteed to start every game and that’s not just because he rarely gets injured and there’s no threat to his position at right back. His game has really improved over the last two seasons, his tackling is superb and he gets forward intelligently and puts in the sort of crosses that should make the likes of Pennant ashamed of themselves.

It was another incredible European night at Anfield on Tuesday for the second leg against Barcelona. The final score on the night may have read one – nil to Barcelona but that doesn’t come close to telling the real story of the match. We had eighteen shots on goal, and still didn’t score. Riise and Sissoko both hit the bar, Riise had a header cleared off the line, Bellamy screwed up an almost open goal, Crouch missed from six yards and Gerrard had a few shots saved. This is something we need to sort out before the quarter final because at this level teams will punish you for not putting away chances. Both games this week just made it obvious that a goal scoring predator is needed in the summer if we are going to progress and go from a good team to an amazing team.

But that’s enough of the negative talk because there is so much to be positive for this week. We are into the final eight and Arsenal is out of the competition, defeated by PSV Eindhoven. A team we smashed quite easily at Anfield in the group stages.

Over the two games we definitely deserved to go through against Barcelona. We were incredible at the Nou Camp and we were brilliant at Anfield. Rafa deserves a lot of praise for his team selection and tactics. Playing two up front was a masterstroke against a team used to defending against one striker in La Liga. In the first half on Tuesday we attacked and completely dominated and in the second half we defended with passion and never really looked under threat. Barcelona’s only two moments the entire game were the goal and Ronaldhinio hitting the post. Even after the goal we never looked in trouble. It seemed nervous and tense watching it live but looking at it again afterwards Barcelona didn’t threaten at all in the last fifteen minutes.

The crowd were outstanding as usual. On the Radio Merseyside phone in today, fans that went to the game came on raving about the atmosphere. Some said it was better than the Chelsea game in 2005 and others said it was close. The Barcelona fans were wonderful too, singing along with the Liverpool fans and joining in with the whole enjoyable camaraderie around the ground. George Gillett and Tom Hicks were certainly impressed with the evening and what a night for their first live game at Anfield. Hicks was interviewed on the radio after the game and you could hear in his voice how thrilled he was and you can tell that he seems to becoming more of a passionate Liverpool fan more and more with every day he is involved with the club.

The draw is on Friday and the only teams I would prefer to avoid are Man Utd and AC Milan. But whomever we get in the quarter final we have no reason to be afraid. Rafa is a genius when it comes to European football and I’m confidant he will know what to do to beat any of the other seven teams still in the competition.

There is no game for us this weekend due to F.A Cup action, so the lads will get a well earned rest before the trip to Aston Villa next Sunday. It’s been a week of extreme highs and lows (is there anything else with Liverpool?). We have an amazing chance of going all the way in the Champions League because we have the ability and possibly more importantly the guts, heart and desire. Nobody will fancy coming to Anfield now and I cannot wait till the next game.

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

Article - Tom Hicks: In the Business of Winning

By LFC Vancouver member Keith Perkins, 7 March 07.

When I first started researching into the background of Tom Hicks, I was more than a little concerned about the character of the man who was to become co-owner of Liverpool FC with George Gillett. The majority of stories about the man concerned his ownership of the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball. How could a baseball man have any knowledge of running a football club? If that wasn’t bad enough, it gets worse when we learn that his purchase of the baseball club was from a group headed by George W. Bush. Yes, the same Mr. G. W. Bush who also received millions of dollars of Tom Hicks’s money toward his campaign to become US President. That’s two strikes against him, and it’s not looking good. But maybe, just maybe, there could be something positive in the man’s background if we look further.

Liverpool FC were on the verge of a takeover by a group of investors from Dubai, when suddenly a previous bid from George Gillett was once again on the table. The difference between Mr. Gillett’s previous bid and the new one was not just a matter of the valuation of the club and the amount of money that would change hands, it was more to do with a renewed commitment to the future of Liverpool FC; and to reinforce this renewed commitment he had brought in a partner. This proposed new co-owner of our club was Mr. Tom Hicks, another American investor in sports teams and in whom we had plenty of reasons to be suspicious. But, we soon found that George Gillett’s record of non-interference with the Montreal Canadiens, combined with his obvious understanding of their past success and proud traditions, was enough to let us relax and not worry about drastic changes to be made in the running of our club. That was fine for Mr. Gillett, but what about this new partner?

Tom Hicks, the son of a Texas radio station owner, was born in 1946. In his younger days, he was the co-founder of Hicks and Haas, a partnership that concentrated initially in media companies and then later went on to buy companies such as Dr. Pepper and 7 Up. From these beginnings, his investment interests changed to larger companies including life insurance, equity funds, and securities. As the co-founder of Hicks, Muse, Tate, and Furst, he was chairman from 1989 to 2004, after which time he announced his retirement from the firm after a few years of losses in investments in telecommunications.

The retirement was extremely short as he started up Hicks Holdings in January of 2005. Under this company, he expanded his billion dollar sports and real-estate interests, and began buying up and investing in diverse companies including DirecTV, and others involved in pet food, electronics, landscaping materials, etc.

That’s the official story of Tom Hicks the successful business man, but what we want to know is what about Tom Hicks the owner of sports teams? Nobody can predict the future, but we can look to the recent past to get a good idea of how Tom Hicks’s co-ownership of Liverpool FC will affect us.

Once upon a time (1967 to 1993) there was a hockey team called the Minnesota North Stars. They were a moderately successful club, with a Stanley Cup final appearance in 1981, losing to the New York Islanders who won their second of four consecutive championships. After a decade of seasons, with the club in decline, they made it to the finals once again in 1991. Success eluded them for the second time, losing to Pittsburgh Penguins who went on to take their first of two consecutive Stanley Cups. That was not so much the beginning of the end for the Minnesota club, but more of a last hurrah before the franchise collapsed. However, under threat of bankruptcy, the club asked for a better deal with the local authorities, and when this was refused the club moved to Dallas, Texas, in 1993. Two years later, in December 1995, the club was purchased by Tom Hicks. This was the beginning of a new chapter in the club’s history.

The Dallas Stars were first in their division from 1997 to 2001. They were Conference Champions in 1999 and 2000. From the conference championships they went on to win their first Stanley Cup in 1999, and finish as runners up in 2000. Since then, they have been Division Champions twice. They have also won two Presidents’ Trophies as the team with the best regular season record. That’s an amazing turnaround in fortunes in the eleven years since Tom Hicks took over the club.

As the new owner, he was not content to sit back and watch the club continue in mediocrity. He went after and signed a number of big-name players as free agents, and traded for several more, including Joe Nieuwendyk who won the Most Valuable Player award during the Stanley Cup win in 1999. In 2001, the club moved into the newly built American Airlines Center which was built at a cost of $325 million. The naming rights for the new arena were purchased by American Airlines for $195 million. The new arena is part of a revitalisation program for the area, encompassing 70 acres with 6 million square feet of entertainment, retail, residential, and office space. The center won a long list of awards from “Engineering Excellence” to “Best Sports Venue”, “Best New Major Concert Venue”, and “2003 Employer of the Year.”

At the first press conference after the completion of the transfer of majority ownership, George Gillett and Tom Hicks answered a lot of questions and calmed the fears of many of us. These are two men who intend to be involved with Liverpool FC for a long time, and are showing their commitment to the club by putting forward the money for the new stadium. Tom Hicks has been through the building of a new venue recently, and I’m sure his experience in that will be extremely valuable. It’s a strange coincidence that both Dallas and Liverpool are combining the building of a new venue with local revitalisation. Messrs. Gillett and Hicks have also said that there will be adequate funds available for transfer market dealings this coming summer. Again, this should not be a surprise seeing the way that Tom Hicks opened up the accounts for the Dallas Stars to bring in the necessary players to win their first Stanley Cup.

A successful business man such as Mr. Hicks is a very competitive individual who wants to win in any of his business interests, including his sports teams. His attitude is definitely long-term as evidenced from a couple of quotes. When asked why he would allow one of his (highly paid) star players to leave, his answer was, “What you don’t want to do is to hang on to the aging superstar past his prime and take resources away you can otherwise use to build a better team.” As to how you build that better team, the answer is, “The best thing we can do is develop our own.” That is fully in agreement with Rafa’s policy, whereby he is bringing in talented young players and allowing them to develop slowly for the future.

Tom Hicks loves to win. He talked about the sheer joy of success in a recent interview: “The reason any businessman goes into sport is because they have a passion for winning. Despite all the success I’ve had in life, nothing has given me more satisfaction on an emotional level than winning the Stanley Cup in 1999 and being able to get my hands on the trophy. At that moment, my smile touched both ears.” He’s also known for his modesty in success and how he expects it in others. “We work real hard not to get an attitude of arrogance or haughtiness, which you see in this business all the time.” I wonder if he was thinking of anyone in particular.

Naturally, we were all apprehensive over how the new owners might come into the club and try to make changes. We have seen that George Gillett has not interfered with the running of the Montreal Canadiens, but what about Tom Hicks? He has answered this question before when he took over the Texas Rangers and the Dallas Stars, with the simple explanation, “My style is to keep folks in place who are good managers and want to win.” He made it clear that he is happy to keep all of the current management at Anfield, especially after talking to some of the players such as Steven Gerrard who insisted that Rafa must stay as manager. That’s exactly what we want as well, so there’s no disagreement there.

It very quickly becomes crystal clear that Tom Hicks is not just concerned about making money; he’s equally concerned with winning trophies and providing excellence for the players and the fans. If the past eleven years with the Dallas Stars are a fair representation of Tom Hicks’s attitudes to his sports enterprises, then we have nothing to worry about. This is a man who wants what’s best for Liverpool FC, which is simply to put us back at the top where we belong.

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

Article - Ex Red of the Week – Volume 5:
Le Boss et Moi - Gerard Houllier

By LFC Vancouver Member Chris Cole, 3 March 07.

It was back in October 2003, when my girlfriend Karin and I had hammered our way up the M6 and made the left turn onto the M62, for the final stretch of the 5 or so hours drive into Liverpool. This was for a three week trip to ol’ Blighty, with tickets to Leeds United at Anfield, as well as Manchester United a fortnight later, also at Anfield, but with no place to stay yet.

As we get into town, I go into the Holiday Inn, not a chance...sorry all rooms sold out. Next, I drop into the Marriott hotel, but the tart behind the desk gives us the same answer: sorry no rooms, but if you pop around the corner there is a Travel Inn and you should be fine there.

As I turn to exit the Lobby I see Gerard Houllier coming through the doors of the Marriott Hotel. Yep, it’s "Le Boss". As he gets closer I approach him and request his autograph. He says, “Give me a minute to check in and I will give you an autograph.” As he is checking in I run out to our illegally parked rental car, grab Karin, the camera, and a pen, and head back to the lobby.

As Mr. Houllier is signing, I mention to him that we are here for 3 weeks holiday and he says to me, “Would you like to come to Melwood to watch the team train on Thursday?” After I ask myself, “Did I just hear that right?” I quickly respond with a capital Y-E-S, as he is writing down Sheila's (his personal assistant) phone number, and then he also asks if I need any tickets for the other two matches that are upcoming: first one away vs. Blackburn at Ewood Park (Carling Cup) and the other vs. Fulham at Loftus Rd (Premiership fixture), again it’s a Capital Y-E-S.

As we went on to actually get a room at the Travel Inn, I asked Karin twice if what had just happened was true or was I drunk , on drugs, or dreaming? She confirmed it and I was double checking I had Sheila's phone number on me.

The next day at Anfield we lay the boots to Leeds 3-1, and then on Monday I get on the blower to Sheila. I get through to her direct line, and she says, “Mr. Houllier has put aside two tickets each for the Blackburn Fixture and the Fulham Fixture next week and you can pick them up on Wednesday afternoon at the Preston Marriott hotel. Please call ahead and they will be at the front desk of the Hotel. So, 3pm Wednesday, I show up at the Preston Marriott Hotel, and the team is there and they are in a meeting, and I pick up the tickets from the concierge. That night at Ewood park Heskey gets a hat trick and we win 4-3 after Blackburn gets 2 late goals.

The following morning, as arranged, we drive to Melwood. As you can imagine the security is tight; you have to pass by a security guard as well as your name is put on a list. We are greeted by a gentleman who says, Mr. Houllier is expecting you Mr. Cole, go right ahead. We park the rental car amongst the Ferraris and Porches, go through the front doors and are asked to sign in. Then Sheila says Mr. Houllier would like to speak to you, he is on the phone. I get on the phone and he says, “I have decided to give the boys the day off, they are tired, however Michael Owen, Jerzy Dudek, Steve Finnan and a few others are out the back. Ask Sheila to take you out there and you can watch them train.

As we go through the doors to the Playing fields we are greeted by Phil Thompson. I take a picture, and then we are taken up to the balcony with a cup of tea and we watch Joe Corrigan train Jerzy Dudek, as well as the others, who are working their way back to fitness. We then proceed downstairs and wait for Michael Owen to finish his training and we are allowed a Picture. All in all, it was an incredible experience.

I do not give a toss about what anyone says about Houllier while he was in charge of the club. He took a lot of criticism towards the end of his tenure; but we would not be the club we are today without him. He brought us to a modern day club in the sense of the Academy, and the training facilities, not to mention the 2000-2001 season. He had a five year plan, made it to six years, literally almost gave his life to the club after heart surgery, and is living proof to me there is reward for being a LOYAL Supporter.

The next week when we are in London at Loftus Rd away to Fulham, sitting in the Travelling Kop next to me is Glen Roeder and his son, and on the other side it just happens to be Sheila's husband, and I am still pinching myself.

Walk On!

What do you think? Give Chris your comments at info [at] runinn.com.

Offer - A Partnership Offer From the Vancouver Whitecaps

It’s often been said that, “there’s no free lunch.” Some of you would respond, “Oh yeah? Well I’ve had a few free lunches courtesy of The Whitecaps, so that’s not true.” But, in fact those “free” lunches do come with a cost, and that is that they are hoping that all of us will become members of the KickStarters program.

But what does that involve? Well, to put it simply, KickStarters is a group of interested parties, all with the common aim of promoting the sport of soccer in Vancouver and throughout British Columbia. Part of that is naturally The Vancouver Whitecaps, and other parts include the efforts to build a new stadium, and to develop the sport from youth level all the way up to the professional ranks. There are several special events for KickStarters members during the season, which can include the lunches that we have so far enjoyed, meeting visiting players, and promotional events with Whitecaps sponsors.

Becoming a member of KickStarters is quite easy. Anybody who buys a season ticket to the Whitecaps can be a member, but LFC Vancouver members have been given a special offer from the Whitecaps. Normally, the season ticket requirement would be the “Gold” ($349) or “Platinum” ($449) level season tickets, each of which would automatically include a KickStarters membership. Our offer is that we can receive two memberships for each “Bronze” ($199) season ticket that is purchased through LFC Vancouver.

Information is included here to give more details about the bronze section for seating at Swangard Stadium. We can be allocated a block of seats in the bronze zone, so that we make up a Red section of LFC Vancouver members. Note that season ticket holders also have priority for special events which may include the visit of the LA Galaxy later this season, and also priority for seats at the new stadium once it is completed. Past events have included Real Madrid vs. DC United, and Whitecaps vs. Sunderland. One international friendly is included with the season ticket, with this year’s visiting team yet to be determined. Season tickets can be purchased between any number of members, with the individual game tickets divided up in any way that you please, but each season ticket will have no more than two KickStarter memberships included.

The Whitecaps season starts on April 21st, so if any members are interested in taking advantage of this offer then please let me know as soon as possible. If we don’t have enough members interested then we cannot take advantage of the special KickStarters offer, or the Red section in the seating area.

Contact Keith Perkins at keith [at] lfcvancouver.com.

Update - Whitecaps Stadium

As you may know, the City of Vancouver is conducting a 16 month planning process to create an Urban Design and Transportation Plan for the Central Waterfront Hub area around Waterfront Station. Early stages of this planning process will also involve a review of the revised proposed Whitecaps Waterfront Stadium. The review will focus primarily on demonstrating the ability to the resolve five key requirements raised by Vancouver City Council last July, including a revised site situated slightly west of the previously proposed site, just north of the CP Rail tracks and near the SeaBus hub. The results of the review will be presented to Council this summer, at which time Council will decide whether the proposed stadium will proceed to a rezoning process.

As part of the process that was approved in January, there are now a number of opportunities for the public to provide input through public open houses. The Vancouver Whitecaps encourage you to participate in the public open houses that are being hosted by the City of Vancouver in the following times and places:

Tuesday, March 6, 2007
3:00 - 7:00 p.m., Waterfront Station Concourse (East end)
601 West Cordova St.

Thursday, March 8, 2007
3:00 - 7:00 p.m., Chinese Cultural Centre Auditorium
50 East Pender St.
*Chinese translation available this session

Saturday, March 10, 2007
10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., Central Library Concourse (North end)
350 West Georgia St.

We appreciate your ongoing support throughout this process and look forward to seeing you at an Open House.

John Rocha,
KickStarters Chair

Song of the Week - Fields of Anfield Road

By LFC Vancouver member Ste Speed , 01 February 07.

Fields of Anfield Road is sung to the tune of 'Fields of Athenry', this modern Liverpool song is popular both at Anfield and at away grounds everywhere.

Fields of Anfield Road.mp3

Lyrics:

Outside the Shankly Gates
I heard a Kopite calling :
Shankly they have taken you away
But you left a great eleven
Before you went to heaven
Now it's glory round the Fields of Anfield Road.

All round the Fields of Anfield Road
Where once we watched the King Kenny play (and he could play)
We had Heighway on the wing
We had dreams and songs to sing
Of the glory round the Fields of Anfield Road

Outside the Paisley Gates
I heard a Kopite calling
Paisley they have taken you away..
You led the great 11
Back in Rome in 77
And the redmen they are still playing the same way

All round the Fields of Anfield Road
Where once we watched the King Kenny play (and he could play)
We had Heighway on the wing
We had dreams and songs to sing
Of the glory round the Fields of Anfield Road.

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

Joke - Gillett and Hicks Confused Over Euro Result

By LFC Vancouver member Keith Perkins, 7 March 07.

“Well geez, I just don’t get it. How can we lose and still win?”

“Hey pardner, don’t worry, be happy. It must be a European thing like that metric stuff we’ve been hearing about. Someone was telling me that road goals count twice or something. Make any sense to you?”

“Nope. Let’s make like Riise and Momo.”

“You what?

“Let’s hit the bar.”

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

Song - POOR SCOUSER TOFFEE:

By LFC Toronto member Brian Lewis, 05 March 07.

Let me tell you the story of a poor team,
Who were sent far away from their home,
To play in the sticks out in Knowsley,
Where the sheep & the cattle do roam,
Relegated to a lower division,
Never saw any far foreign lands,
All the fans skulked around in their hundreds,
With their shite tesco bags in their hands.
As they lay in the aisles of the Tesco (Tesco, Tesco)
Fighting over the buns & the bread,
As they lay in the aisles of the Tesco (Tesco, Tesco)
These were the last words they said:

"OH, WE'RE BITTER EVER- TONIANS
AND OUR GROUND IS MADE OF WOOD,
WE'VE NEVER CONQUERED EUROPE
‘CAUSE WE'VE NEVER BEEN THAT GOOD,
WE SUPPORT A TEAM THAT PLAYS IN BLUE,
A TEAM THAT NO-ONE KNOWS,
A TEAM THAT'S SPONSORED BY TESCO’S
‘CAUSE IT'S WHERE WE BUY OUR CLOTHES,
1-2, 1-2-3, 1- 2-3-4, POUNDS OFF"!

What do you think? Give Keith your comments and we'll pass them along to Brian keith [at] lfcvancouver.com.

Headlines - The Week That Was

Manager reaction: Liverpool v Man United - Anfield Road

Alex Ferguson was - surprisingly - willing to admit Liverpool were "unlucky" and his own team were "lucky" as Manchester United snatched an unlikely win against Liverpool.

More here.


Benitez joy at Andriy swoop - Liverpool Echo

ANDRIY VERONIN has been tipped by Rafa Benitez to prove one of the bargains of the summer when he completes his move to Liverpool.

More here.


Owen: It took two months to want out of Real - Anfield Road

Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen has been reflecting on the biggest decision of his career, a decision that saw him miss out on a Champions League winners’ medal, and now sees him playing for a club who seem destined to remain mid-table underachievers.

More here.


Liverpool chase Ross County kid - BBC

Liverpool are understood to be considering a six-figure offer for Ross County 16-year-old Gary Mackay Steven.

More here.


Liverpool's player career ended with 19 leg fractures against Man Utd - LFC History

The footballing career of Ted Spicer ended the day that Liverpool signed a new goalkeeper. That was the tragic and painful truth and the real reason that Eddie (as he was known to fans) never played after a fateful match against Manchester United on Saturday, December 19, 1953.

More here.


Liverpool consider move for U's youngster - ESPN Soccernet

Liverpool are expected to make a decision on Cambridge City defender Danny Blanchett this week.

More here.


Carra’s honest opinion is spot-on once again - Liverpool Echo

JAMIE CARRAGHER offered a blunt, two-word response to his interviewer.

More here.


Gerrard and Carra react to Barca game - Anfield Road

ITV Sport interviewed Liverpool captain and vice-captain Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher straight after tonight’s aggregate victory over Barcelona.

More here.


‘Philistines’ converted in the ancient cathedral of the Kop - Times

The Kop in all its glory has the ability to leave even the most hardened visitor spellbound and, just as Roman Abramovich gawped in admiration when his first match as owner of Chelsea took him to Anfield in August 2003, so were George Gillett Jr and Tom Hicks gobsmacked by their first taste of the passion they have had the good fortune to buy into.

More here.


How Benitez beat Barca - BBC

In the aftermath of Liverpool's Champions League victory over Barcelona, Rafael Benitez preferred not to comment on whether he had won the tactical battle with opposite number Frank Rijkaard.

More here.


Gerrard torn over stadium switch - BBC

Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard admits he feels torn about the prospect of leaving Anfield for a new stadium.

More here.


Realist Benitez outshines Wenger - BBC/6-0-6

Take your mind back to the first week of January - the week when Arsene Wenger was hailed as the great visionary and Rafael Benitez as a bungler who did not know his best team.

More here.

YNWA/JFT 96,
Andy Neumann

If you ever find an LFC article that you think others might find interesting, let me know about it by sending me a note at Andy [at] lfcvancouver.com.

Contest Standings - Guess the Starting XI

Standings as of 08 March 07. Congratulations to Lance for correctly guessing the Barca starting XI!

RankMemberPoints
1 Ste 33
1 Kevin 32
3 Dennis 30
4 Lance 30
4 Mark Aston 29
6 Andy 26
7 Keith 21
8 Glenn Whyte 10
9 Quentin 5
9 Chris Cole 5
11 Glenn Whitt. 3

To enter the members contest see the rules below.

Contest - Guess the Starting XI

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.
You can send comments or questions to the Andy [at] lfcvancouver.com.

YNWA/JFT 96,

Andy Neumann

Liverpool FC Banner of the Week

Liverpool FC fans are famous around the globe for their fierce wit and loyalty to the club. These traits are commonly showcased in the banners that appear at every Liverpool FC match; home or away. Each week the newsletter will showcase one of those banners.



Thanks to LFC Vancouver Member Lance Litwin for this weeks banner!



If you would like to submit a banner for a future edition of the newsletter drop me a line.

Andy Neumann
Andy [at] lfcvancouver.com

LFC Vancouver

LFC Vancouver,
P.O. Box 78045
3295 Coast Meridian Rd.
Port Coquitlam B.C. V3B 3N0