I feel a bit better about things now

[stillwaddler]

I've been feeling really slow and sort of achey for the last few weeks, any sort of speed seems to have deserted me entirely, thought about pulling out of the Great Manchester Run on Sunday - (not that you can speed through the hoards of people anyway!) but I have just come across the Age grading targets on The Running for Fitness website

http://www.runningforfitness.org/calc/agtimes.php

and suddenly I feel loads better, I am at least equalling the targets and occasionally exceeding them - yippee - "Bring It On"

Now, if we win the cup on Saturday I shall wear my MU shirt to run in on Sunday and pay homage when I run past Old Trafford - might just wear it anyway:-) Look out for me on the telly, I'll be the one sporting a red shirt and (hopefully) a very large hangover.

[Sweder]

Good luck SW.
I'll be hiding behind the sofa cheering on the boys this afternoon.
Good news is Haden Christansen, in a horribly show-biz 'my British Mates support them so therefore I do to' stylee, is a United 'fan', so we already have Darth Vader on our side. Let's hope it's the Arse that get to feel the force today.

This could be my last day as a United Red. If Glazer takes them down (financially as well as in terms of league position) I'm considering a lobotomy (statuatory requirement) before joining Nigel in the ranks of the Hammers.

Enjoy the GMR - looking forward to hearing all about it.

[El Gordo]

Bad luck, ManU fans. A shocker of a performance from Arsenal that really didn't deserve to win the cup. I was hoping for a feast of attacking football from both sides, and was determined to sit on the fence. But as the game went on, it was hard not to side with Man Utd. I really couldn't work out why Arsenal had been instructed to play like that.

I can only commiserate. Football is a very cruel game sometimes - on and off the pitch.

[Sweder]

I have no problem accepting the result - you can only win a game if you score, and United singularly failed to get the ball (legitimately) into the onion bag.

What does irritate me is the absurd way in which the Arsenal players and management celebrated - as if they had won the match, rather than lifted the trophy on the back of a fortunate assumption by their 'keeper in the lottery of a penatly shoot-out. Just as United failed to convert their superiority on the field, so Arsenal failed to positively contest the match, let alone earn the win.
The match was not won, it was lost.

Celebration of mediocrity is becoming all too prevailant in sport, and today it was mildly embarrasing to observe the over-rated, underperforming Arsenal players cavorting on the pitch. I take my hat off to Thierry Henri, a true sportsman, who acknowledged the reality of his team-mates good fortune and the contribution of the United players. Without their attempts to make a game of it this could have been the dullest final in years instead of one of the most gripping.

Good luck to the Hammers and the Scousers next week.
I only hope that should the football Gods smile upon them, they will have done something positive to earn the spoils.

At least, like the Murphy's, I'm not bitter

[stillwaddler]

I admit to feeling abosolutely gutted - particularlty as I knew if it came to penalties we would loose...we did everything except get it legally in the back of the net.

However, I shall wear my United shirt with pride tomorrow even though we have been taken over by some Yank who thinks he came make money on the back of a United shirt.

I am considerably wors for wear after umpteen Hoegartens ( you have no idea how long it tool me to spell cheeekk thissss) I ran 3 miles in 25 minutes yesterday but expect it will take me at least 1 hour and 5 to finish the 10 k tomorrow.

I leave you Bowed but not completely Beaten ( yet!) with probably a fairish hangover tomorrow.

(Have just edited this to add my best wishes for the Hammers, I used to be engaged (in a former life) to an ardent Hammers supporter from Upminster.

[Sweder]

I feel I should publicly take myself to task following my earlier whinge about the Arsenal celebrations today.

After supper with my family, conducted in respectful silence for my self-indulgent wallowing, I repaired to my local for a pint of Harveys and some quiet reflection. Self-righteous outrage, it seems, shortens memories. As I sat silently in the smoke-filled public bar, surrounded by murmured conversations and softly clinking glasses, I cast my mind back to a balmy, barmy night 6 years ago in Spain.

On that occasion Lady Luck wore my teams' colours, and it was the supporters of Bayern Munich who left the Camp Nou shaking their heads at the impossible unfairness of a victory snatched at the death by an undeserving, under-performing Manchester United team. No-one cavorted with more unbridled glee than I that night, dismissive of the remarkable luck that kept the Germans out and brought European glory, and a magnificent Treble, back to Old Trafford.

Kiplings' twin imposters were far from my thoughts as I reveled in a most improbable victory. I laughed heartlessly as Sammy Kufour pounded the Barcelona turf and Lothar Matteaus stared unbelieving into the Catalan night, bereft at the loss of a game they had held in their hands for 90 minutes.

My jingoistic reticence to accept the Highbury Hi-jacking today takes no account of the bravery of Lehman, the stoicism of Viera or the nerveless despatch of five perfect spot-kicks under incredible pressure.

Good luck to the Gooners.
As Fergie said afterwards (at least, to paraphrase), what doesn't kill us makes us stronger. We'll be back, and woe betide the teams we meet in September.

[Nigel]

Hey, SW, hope you had a great run. Having spent almost five years of my life in Upminster, I knew I'd seen you around somewhere - I was the one in the Hammers scarf and pushchair.

As a (theoretical) neutral as far as yesterday's Cup Final was concerned, I can only say that in time-honoured tradition, naturally I was rooting for Arsenal every bit as fervently as all the other West Ham fans who always like to see the Gooners shine.

Yeah, right....

[El Gordo]

Some interesting, and admirable, points. I'm not as forgiving as you though, Sweder. For me it would be far too soon for such generosity.

[Nigel]

Yes, that was very sporting of Sweder to see the other side of defeat. Much like the late '60s when I went to Upton Park and the home fans would always cheer a fine pass or goal by the opposition. It still happens but it's much rarer than it used to be.

I wonder if it's easier to take defeat for Man U fans, Andy, since they won't be waiting two or three decades to get the chance of winning something again. No - since defeats all hurt, but perhaps they are feeling just a little of our more regular pain....

[Sweder]

I can honestly say that defeat in that way to Arsenal, with Wengers' trite rhetoric about 'Spiwit' and 'Mental stwenkth' (the interview sounded like a clip from Life of Brian - any mention of 'bwavado' or a touch of 'deawing do' would have been too much), hurts more than most could know or understand. But at the end of the day there's only so much whining one can get away with. The record books show Manchester United were defeated by Arsenal in the 2005 FA Cup Final. They will not show that Bergkamp was as effective as a wet lettuce, that Wenger was tactically inept or that United dominated the game from start to finish.

When confronted by gloating Gooners in the coming weeks, classy people like that pinnacle of humanity Rory McGrath, or the even-handed Mr Alan Davies writing in the Times, followers of United will take great solace in reminding them that they were outplayed and outclassed not only in Cardiff, but at Old Trafford and Highbury, too.

Champions' League? They're havin' a laugh . . .

[Nigel]

Hi again SW
Just to say that I saw some of the BBC coverage of the Great Manchester Run yesterday afternoon, and found it completely inspiring. 20 000 runners in a race only 3 years old is quite an achievement.

Naturally, it was excellent to see our old friend Haile Gebreselassie racing well again - having narrowly beaten us all in the Almería Half, he clearly suffered due to the fast pace we set, and it can have been no coincidence that shortly afterwards had to drop out of the London Marathon. It seems he has recovered again now, and with you pushing him from the pack SW, I see that he was inspired by Team RC yet again to set a UK all-comers record for a 10 km race.

There was also plenty of coverage from within the body of the race, of the runners themselves and of the reasons behind each run. Amongst many touching stories, I found the most compelling was of one runner who had completed four half marathons in 24 hours last year for Cancer Research UK in celebration of having received a cancer all-clear. This time, just a few short months later, unfortunately, the same runner was racing in Manchester in defiance of a recurrence and ahead of imminent further cancer treatment. We can but keep running and keep enjoying it when faced with such courage.

How did your race go ?

[stillwaddler]

still smarting about Saturday, but looking forward to next season - Please Please Mr Ferguson, buy us a goal keeper!!

Many thanks for the good wishes for Sunday's run

Well Sunday, yes it was certainly an experience, my third go at this - in fact it's only been going for 3 years- I object to the huge entry fee and to the fact that they seem to mix runners in with charitly walkers at random,
( apparently because they were offering paid charity places this year they couldn't get everyone sorted out according to race times - hhhmmm.) But nevertheless there is definitely a carnival atmosphere about it and everyone is mostly good humoured, mind you I did end up with an elbow up my nose at the rather congested 2nd wave start when a guy to my side decided to adjust his shirt, still, was probably my fault for being short.

The Hoegarten had settled quite nicely so wasn't feeling too delicate. Start was so busy my Garmin wouldn't pick up a gps signal so had to travel just on time.

Was magic to see Haille and the rest of the elite running back as we headed out along the Chester Road to Old Trafford, they got loads of applause from us lesser beings staggering out in the opposite direction.

Weather was fairly perfect and I felt comfortable most of the way, unfortunately miss-timed the finish, I thought the garland of balloons must be the finish - but it was at least another 400 yards further on, damn, and I'd timed my sprint finish to perfection ;-) My United shirt proved to be a very comfortable running shirt too.

Odd thing is my Garmin timed it as 1 hour and 39 seconds, the chip timer had me coming in at 1hour 2 minutes and 4 seconds ??? Any suggestions?

Might enter the "proper" Manchester 10 k, the one that had been run by the YMCA for years before the Great Run people muscled in. The Police refused to close the City Centre twice so the YMCA couldn't run last year, but they are back next month starting from the City Stadium ( where the Commonwealth games were held) should be a nice flat course too.

Good luck for your impending 10k('s?) Andy

[Sweder]

Obviously the Garmin is correct.
At least, I'd always take the shorter time
Might have been the sprint finish that caused the hiccup - sudden bursts of extreme acceleration can affect the GPS reading.

Seriously, congratulations on what sounds like a very good run.
And past the Theatre, too - might have to go for that one next year.

[El Gordo]

Yes, well done SW. I didn't realise that Haille G was running. Inevitably, it brought back vivid memories of the Almeria Half, when I had the very unusual experience of being overtaken by HG in a race. It was an emotional moment.

As for the Garmin time... hmmm. You didn't stop at any point, did you? A couple of times I've stopped for a quick pee, forgetting that (the way I have my Forerunner set) this stops the watch - but not the race clock.

Other than that, I'm not sure. The glitch you mentioned can affect the GPS, and therefore the distance recorded, but not usually the time.

I'll come and do a race in Manchester some time. It's where I went to university, so I should try to get back there.

Thanks for the report.

[stillwaddler]

I didn't stop, or walk, just slowed down a tad to grab a bottle of water, still can't work out why it happened, but have claimed the Garmin time anyway;-)
(Apologies to official photographers, have just ripped this one from their site - oooh strike me down)