Gary Lemke looks back at this weekend’s action as Liverpool came from a goal down to win against Newcastle, Max Verstappen equalled Sebastian Vettel’s record of nine successive Formula 1 wins and more!
RWC pools largely predictable
The farce of the IRB rankings and the fact that the draw for the Rugby World Cup is made years in advance was again laid bare by results this past weekend. The Springboks’ demolition of the All Blacks was simply one of those games where you wish you could bottle up the Boks’ passion, dominance and execution and pour it out every time they play.
It was simply near-perfect, even if it did come in a game at Twickenham where I initially thought the result would be immaterial to the World Cup. I didn’t foresee the mental scarring that the record 35-7 defeat will leave on the Kiwis.
Esewhwere though, England lost to Fiji for the first time, France overpowered Australia, while Ireland were unconvincing against Samoa. Suddenly, the RWC pools seem predictable and skewed in favour of some teams. In Pool A, Frand and New Zealand should come through against Italy, Namibia and Uruguay.
Pool B is the banana skin with the Boks, Ireland and Scorland fighting it out for two spots. Pool C has Australia, Fiji and Wales (and Georgia and Portugal), while Pool D features Argentina and England alongside Japan, Chile and Samoa. Those pools have thrown lifeline to England and Australia, in particular, ahead of the competition.
A memorable night at Twickenham, always special against the @AllBlacks 🤩
— Springboks (@Springboks) August 25, 2023
📸 Gallo / Getty Images#StrongerTogether #RSAvNZL #Springboks pic.twitter.com/XMMY1a6CRQ
Liverpool rise to the occasion
Usually, we leave the EPL discussions to another weekly blog. But it would be pointless to ignore the drama of this past round, especially where Liverpool came from behind to beat Newcastle 2-1, and did so with 10 men after the sending off of Virgil van Dyk.
Manager Jurgen Klopp called it a better comeback than reversing that 3-0 first leg defeat to Barcelona in the Champions League. It was certainly a helluva effort by Liverpool and the match showed why the EPL is the most watched and most popular League in their world.
The Saudis can have their club dressingrooms filled with pampered millionaires, but no amount of cash can match the history and passion of the EPL, which, against a backdrop of rabid fans, leads to moments like this, which Klopp described as his “best-ever result in over a thousand games as manager”.
Mo Salah assist to Darwin Nunez and Goal!!
— Kapten Kito 🇮🇩 (@Footballers501) August 28, 2023
*Liverpool against Newcastle goal moment#Liverpool #YNWA #NEWLIV
📹: Liverpoolpic.twitter.com/WfOgxDHlr0
Usyk milked moment but won fairly
If it’s boxing, you’re sure to have one party crying foul and this was the case again as WBA heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk retained his title by virtue of a stoppage win over Britain’s Daniel Dubois.
This was the same Dubois who had been saved by the bell at the end of the first round after being dropped three times by Kevin Lerena last December. He’s a big man with a big punch but a fragile chin and ability to take a hit and he looked to have quit when Usyk hit him with a stiff jab in the ninth round.
On to the talking point: Dubois dropped the Ukrainian in the fifth round with a punch around the belt area. Usyk took four minutes to recover after the ref deemed it an illegal blow. So do I, but many keyboard warriors disagree. The actual rule is that no part of the fist must be below the belly button area, no matter how high the fighter’s trousers are pulled.
Make your own conclusion but I don’t see any rematch protests getting anywhere.
Oleksander Usyk Knocks out Daniel Dubois in round 8 but not without some controversies.
— Dami Wealth 🤑 🎶 ⚽ (@damiwealthmusic) August 28, 2023
Usyk was knocked down in round 5 but was judged as a low body shot.
Osimhen Inec Will Smith Esther Pept Red Card Seyi Nigeria pic.twitter.com/vwEqlU3CwP
Is the man a racing machine?
Max Verstappen joined Sebastien Vettel in the record books with a ninth successive F1 win. This time it came from his adoring home fans at the Dutch Grand Prix. At least there was some excitement – even if the race did seem to last all afternoon, with a couple of red flags and chaos around tyre changes and pit stops owing to the rain around Zandvoort.
Thank heavens for the rain. Otherwise, this race would have developed into another snorefest and as much as one appreciates Verstappen’s dominance, we’re reverting to a stage when the outcome is becoming entirely predictable. Perhaps the main talking point continues to be, “How good is Verstappen; is he one of the greats?”
The rightful answer, of course, is: “Statistically, yes. But how would he fare if he drove for Haas?” We will never know. He might well even be the greatest, but the sport remains more machine than man influenced.
Winning 9 races in a row is a truly incredible achievement, which I’m extremely proud to be a part of @redbullracing 🙌 Today was a challenge, but the car was an unbelievable rocket ship, let’s keep this going and keep pushing 👏 pic.twitter.com/lw8q2AWJOE
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) August 27, 2023
Flipping heck! Did you see that?
Not that one wants to see accidents, but did you see the footage of NASCAR driver Ryan Preece’s frightening crash at Daytona at the weekend? The 32-year-old was shaken up but later said he was “ok” after being treated for an accident that makes one wonder how someone can ever walk out of the wreckage with minimal damage.
His crash happened down the back straight with five laps remaining and at full speed. Some reports reckon his car flipped 10 times, but no one is really counting. The main news is that he’s fine to race another day proving that he truly has ice, and not blood, running through his veins.
Ryan Preece flipped 10 times in this violent crash late at Daytona.#NASCAR | @NBC and @Peacock pic.twitter.com/ho1EpXZr3E
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 27, 2023
