The hall (from about where I was sitting on high table)
Waltzing (me and Gemma on the right)
Chris, Georgie, me and Claire in Baby Love.
Monday, March 20, 2006
EoTd Pics
Finally some pics from last week's dinner. Thanks to the people that took them (these are off our GCR website). 
Sunday, March 19, 2006
Newcastle 1-3 Liverpool
Rafa sprung one of his biggest team selection surprises of the season today. My first reaction was wingbacks, but after someone on the 606 messageboards suggested Kromkamp Carra Hyypia Agger – Gerrard Hamann Warnock – Cisse Crouch Kewell I thought it could well be a 4-4-2 with any of Cisse, Gerrard or Kewell at RM, or even Warnock at LB, Carra at RB and Kromkamp RM. Anyway, although the radio commentators thought the latter was what we were doing at first, it turned out we were indeed playing 3-4-3 with wingbacks – not for the first time.
It seemed the system suited the team well. I’ve long thought Finnan and Riise (who can both play midfield) would suit such a system, and here without either of them Warnock and Kromkamp both had fair claims to be man of the match.
Surprisingly given that he managed a rare goal against Fulham, Morientes was left out altogether. This gave Cisse another chance, even if it was on the right side, which made sense given Newcastle’s defence tend to look particularly suspect against pace.
The game went pretty much to plan. Our wingbacks were able to get up well and put in plenty of crosses (making Morientes’ absence all the more surprising), and it took Crouch just ten minutes to open the scoring. By the time he and Cisse combined to set up Gerrard for the second, we looked to be cruising.
Ameobi pulled one back just before half time, to keep the match exciting, but it was over not long into the second half. Boumsong completely missed the ball, then blatantly hauled Crouch down as he ran into the box. It was a red card and penalty, and despite my jitters Cisse struck the ball well – even if he did then pick up a silly booking for his celebration. Incidentally, this means all our strikers have now scored on their last start…
Things got a little ugly for a while after the penalty, but from there on in it was largely a matter of seeing out the remaining time, with the result pretty much settled. Rafa was even able to pull off Crouch and Gerrard to save them for Tuesday’s match against Birmingham.
The result was Cisse did get a chance to play upfront, but didn’t exactly do himself any favours – his poor touch, lack of awareness and selfishness combined to ruin several chances, most notably when he should’ve passed to Kewell. I think the radio commentators were a bit harsh though, suggesting he’d been given exactly the chance he wanted. For a start, he doesn’t strike me as the kind to lead the line alone – I’m sure he’d probably rather have been upfront, off Crouch – and his pace is suited to a different kind of service than Crouch/Morientes’ aerial ability. Still, let’s just say he didn’t do himself any favours, and I’d expect Morientes or Fowler to partner Crouch on Tuesday.
Cisse aside though, it was a good performance from pretty much everyone, giving us a good, comfortable away win. The eight goals in two games look a lot more respectable.
And Chelsea lost to Fulham…
p.s. Glenn Roeder is funny:
"What you won't get me to do is criticise Jean-Alain Boumsong publicly... I will sit down with Boumsong and go through the goals and share my view of where he could have done better" (here)
"I can't speak for Michael [Owen], but I don't see any reason why he would not want to stay next year and be part of the Newcastle team that gets into the Champions League" (here)
It seemed the system suited the team well. I’ve long thought Finnan and Riise (who can both play midfield) would suit such a system, and here without either of them Warnock and Kromkamp both had fair claims to be man of the match.
Surprisingly given that he managed a rare goal against Fulham, Morientes was left out altogether. This gave Cisse another chance, even if it was on the right side, which made sense given Newcastle’s defence tend to look particularly suspect against pace.
The game went pretty much to plan. Our wingbacks were able to get up well and put in plenty of crosses (making Morientes’ absence all the more surprising), and it took Crouch just ten minutes to open the scoring. By the time he and Cisse combined to set up Gerrard for the second, we looked to be cruising.
Ameobi pulled one back just before half time, to keep the match exciting, but it was over not long into the second half. Boumsong completely missed the ball, then blatantly hauled Crouch down as he ran into the box. It was a red card and penalty, and despite my jitters Cisse struck the ball well – even if he did then pick up a silly booking for his celebration. Incidentally, this means all our strikers have now scored on their last start…
Things got a little ugly for a while after the penalty, but from there on in it was largely a matter of seeing out the remaining time, with the result pretty much settled. Rafa was even able to pull off Crouch and Gerrard to save them for Tuesday’s match against Birmingham.
The result was Cisse did get a chance to play upfront, but didn’t exactly do himself any favours – his poor touch, lack of awareness and selfishness combined to ruin several chances, most notably when he should’ve passed to Kewell. I think the radio commentators were a bit harsh though, suggesting he’d been given exactly the chance he wanted. For a start, he doesn’t strike me as the kind to lead the line alone – I’m sure he’d probably rather have been upfront, off Crouch – and his pace is suited to a different kind of service than Crouch/Morientes’ aerial ability. Still, let’s just say he didn’t do himself any favours, and I’d expect Morientes or Fowler to partner Crouch on Tuesday.
Cisse aside though, it was a good performance from pretty much everyone, giving us a good, comfortable away win. The eight goals in two games look a lot more respectable.
And Chelsea lost to Fulham…
p.s. Glenn Roeder is funny:
"What you won't get me to do is criticise Jean-Alain Boumsong publicly... I will sit down with Boumsong and go through the goals and share my view of where he could have done better" (here)
"I can't speak for Michael [Owen], but I don't see any reason why he would not want to stay next year and be part of the Newcastle team that gets into the Champions League" (here)
Friday, March 17, 2006
End of Term dinner (HT 06)
Last night was our traditional End of Term dinner. It’s usually Friday of 9th week (i.e. tonight) but this year we couldn’t have the hall on St Patrick’s night – even though that’s what we did last year.
Nick truly surpassed himself with a Venetian masked ball theme. I was surprised how many people had really gone for very fancy, impressive masks (embarrassing those few of us like me who hadn’t bothered). The food included some truly unusual choices, such as ciabatta and salad too start, though I wasn’t particularly impressed with the main course – essentially a spaghetti in sauce type combination, that was a nightmare to not get down one’s shirt, and nothing special without the king prawns (plus some of us veggies had to wait a good while to get a non-prawn version – despite the fact all they really had to do was take the prawns off the top!)
Afterwards, the tables were cleared and the long-awaited waltzing took place. Perhaps the actual quality of dancing could’ve been higher, but I think we all had fun. Despite being stood up by Leigh (my partner from the first lesson) I danced with at least Becca, Sarah (our instructor), Nataliya, Emily and Gemma, with varying degrees of success.
The hall was often rather congested, so it had something of a ‘dodgems’ character to it, but the secret – I think – was to just keep going. No one was really watching too carefully, and as long as you have the pose right no one will be able to tell from the photos… Speaking of which I’ll post/link to some when they’re on the GCR website (afraid I don’t have my own digital camera)
The party in the hall had to stop around midnight, but we moved on to Baby Love. It was £5 to get in, apparently because they had a big name drum n bass DJ (Storm). DnB isn’t really my thing at all – so it was very much a continuation of the tragic dancing theme, to the point where some random girl pulled me aside and tried to show me how to dance to DnB (it’s all about pushing apparently. Must work for some, as I later saw her get chucked out after trying to share a toilet cubicle with a guy…)
After that, those of us with a bit of stamina – and no need to be up the next morning – ended up back in the bunker where Claire and Emily had proven what a great pair of soc secs they’d make by stashing some wine, juice and crisps. I finally left around 4am (by far the last of the Barts people to leave).
And the good news is though I lost half a cufflink last night, I found it today in the bike shed.
Nick truly surpassed himself with a Venetian masked ball theme. I was surprised how many people had really gone for very fancy, impressive masks (embarrassing those few of us like me who hadn’t bothered). The food included some truly unusual choices, such as ciabatta and salad too start, though I wasn’t particularly impressed with the main course – essentially a spaghetti in sauce type combination, that was a nightmare to not get down one’s shirt, and nothing special without the king prawns (plus some of us veggies had to wait a good while to get a non-prawn version – despite the fact all they really had to do was take the prawns off the top!)
Afterwards, the tables were cleared and the long-awaited waltzing took place. Perhaps the actual quality of dancing could’ve been higher, but I think we all had fun. Despite being stood up by Leigh (my partner from the first lesson) I danced with at least Becca, Sarah (our instructor), Nataliya, Emily and Gemma, with varying degrees of success.
The hall was often rather congested, so it had something of a ‘dodgems’ character to it, but the secret – I think – was to just keep going. No one was really watching too carefully, and as long as you have the pose right no one will be able to tell from the photos… Speaking of which I’ll post/link to some when they’re on the GCR website (afraid I don’t have my own digital camera)
The party in the hall had to stop around midnight, but we moved on to Baby Love. It was £5 to get in, apparently because they had a big name drum n bass DJ (Storm). DnB isn’t really my thing at all – so it was very much a continuation of the tragic dancing theme, to the point where some random girl pulled me aside and tried to show me how to dance to DnB (it’s all about pushing apparently. Must work for some, as I later saw her get chucked out after trying to share a toilet cubicle with a guy…)
After that, those of us with a bit of stamina – and no need to be up the next morning – ended up back in the bunker where Claire and Emily had proven what a great pair of soc secs they’d make by stashing some wine, juice and crisps. I finally left around 4am (by far the last of the Barts people to leave).
And the good news is though I lost half a cufflink last night, I found it today in the bike shed.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Liverpool 5-1 Fulham
Despite all the talk surrounding the lack of goals from Liverpool’s forwards – none of whom had scored in the league in 2006 until tonight – the number of chances we’d been creating in recent matches always suggested a good thumping could be on the cards for someone as soon as we got a bit of luck and the goals did start going in.
I sure wasn’t expecting it to happen against Fulham. With Tony Warner being a former Liverpool reserves goalkeeper, it had all the hallmarks of the classic fairytale – Reds reject comes back to Anfield and puts in inspired performance to frustrate us. It wasn’t to be, however. Fulham’s woeful away record saw them concede three against Everton recently, and tonight it was five.
Indeed, it could’ve been more – Garcia had one ruled out for offside after just two minutes. At the time, that looked another indication it might not be our night, but then Fowler – who’s already had three ruled out himself since returning – struck the opener. When he first broke into our team, he scored five himself in a match against Fulham. Tonight it was to be his only one, but it was enough to start us on route to scoring five collectively (which I’d far prefer), and to bring his personal Reds tally level with Dalglish.
The good news was that the goals got spread around. Even Morientes – though he wasted a couple of chances – got his name on the scoresheet, as did late substitutes Crouch and Warnock – while Cisse had a hand in setting up two of them, even if he was the only striker not to score.
The relation between (not) scoring and confidence has been emphasised lately, so hopefully this good result will give all our strikers a bit more belief, and lift a bit of weight off their shoulders. With luck, more goals will follow.
I sure wasn’t expecting it to happen against Fulham. With Tony Warner being a former Liverpool reserves goalkeeper, it had all the hallmarks of the classic fairytale – Reds reject comes back to Anfield and puts in inspired performance to frustrate us. It wasn’t to be, however. Fulham’s woeful away record saw them concede three against Everton recently, and tonight it was five.
Indeed, it could’ve been more – Garcia had one ruled out for offside after just two minutes. At the time, that looked another indication it might not be our night, but then Fowler – who’s already had three ruled out himself since returning – struck the opener. When he first broke into our team, he scored five himself in a match against Fulham. Tonight it was to be his only one, but it was enough to start us on route to scoring five collectively (which I’d far prefer), and to bring his personal Reds tally level with Dalglish.
The good news was that the goals got spread around. Even Morientes – though he wasted a couple of chances – got his name on the scoresheet, as did late substitutes Crouch and Warnock – while Cisse had a hand in setting up two of them, even if he was the only striker not to score.
The relation between (not) scoring and confidence has been emphasised lately, so hopefully this good result will give all our strikers a bit more belief, and lift a bit of weight off their shoulders. With luck, more goals will follow.
Monday, March 13, 2006
DPhil Supervision
Today I went to a seminar run by the Learning Institute (formerly IAUL) in Oxford with the intention of finding out more about DPhil (PhD) supervision in the Social Sciences. Since comments on student-supervisor relationships are naturally rather personal, everything said by individual participants was ‘off the record’, but I’m sure I can give some general thoughts on the day.
It was interesting to note that when supervisors thought back to their own experiences of being doctoral students, they reported much the same good and bad points as current students – freedom to direct research, but a total reliance on the supervisor, worries about guidance and so on.
Indeed, it was good just to be reassured that everyone experiences many of these problems, the second year ‘plateau’ (loss of motivation when the thesis becomes a slog) and so on. I was the only student from Politics unfortunately (and probably not a very representative one, at that), but others shared some similar experiences – or, if not, at least other problems.
On the other hand, it was also interesting to see things from the supervisor’s perspective. We discussed a number of case studies, all written from such a viewpoint – concerning awkward, argumentative students, or ones who didn’t seem to be making sufficient progress with a final draft (for example).
What we generally found was that the supervisor only has one side of the story. Why isn’t the hypothetical Paul submitting more final drafts, for example? Is it because he hasn’t written them? He’s too busy teaching? Or on the other hand is he still in touch with his old supervisor? He’s not planning on finishing this year, but using a JRF to do so?
I suppose what was really underscored was the importance of communication. Both students and supervisors have a responsibility to make sure they don’t go AWOL and lose communication. Sometimes work may progress smoothly without the constant threat of supervision, and deadlines for submitting chapters/drafts, but I think it’s good practice to at least keep others informed as to how the project is progressing. I’m lucky that I get a chance to see my supervisor most weeks in term – so we can always exchange a brief word if necessary, or are at least reminded of each other’s existence – which is better than ‘falling off the radar’, which then makes re-establishing contact difficult.
Another key feature of communication is that it allows one (or rather, both of you) to clearly set the parameters of your relationship. It seems people differ on exactly how they approach things – e.g. whether the relationship is ‘strictly professional’ or somewhat personal. As Nigel cleverly put it, it must therefore be an ‘iterative and interactive’ relationship, what the student and supervisor and their dynamics make it.
It was interesting to note, in the results of our admittedly small survey that while students and supervisors agreed in some areas of expectations (e.g. that the supervisor shouldn’t be actually writing the thesis – or so heavily involved s/he might as well be, presumably), they disagreed markedly in others (e.g. supervisors seemed to expect absolutely no responsibility for the final presentation, whereas students seemed to feel supervisors should at least be offering pointers on written style/presentation).
Comments on supervision experiences welcome…
It was interesting to note that when supervisors thought back to their own experiences of being doctoral students, they reported much the same good and bad points as current students – freedom to direct research, but a total reliance on the supervisor, worries about guidance and so on.
Indeed, it was good just to be reassured that everyone experiences many of these problems, the second year ‘plateau’ (loss of motivation when the thesis becomes a slog) and so on. I was the only student from Politics unfortunately (and probably not a very representative one, at that), but others shared some similar experiences – or, if not, at least other problems.
On the other hand, it was also interesting to see things from the supervisor’s perspective. We discussed a number of case studies, all written from such a viewpoint – concerning awkward, argumentative students, or ones who didn’t seem to be making sufficient progress with a final draft (for example).
What we generally found was that the supervisor only has one side of the story. Why isn’t the hypothetical Paul submitting more final drafts, for example? Is it because he hasn’t written them? He’s too busy teaching? Or on the other hand is he still in touch with his old supervisor? He’s not planning on finishing this year, but using a JRF to do so?
I suppose what was really underscored was the importance of communication. Both students and supervisors have a responsibility to make sure they don’t go AWOL and lose communication. Sometimes work may progress smoothly without the constant threat of supervision, and deadlines for submitting chapters/drafts, but I think it’s good practice to at least keep others informed as to how the project is progressing. I’m lucky that I get a chance to see my supervisor most weeks in term – so we can always exchange a brief word if necessary, or are at least reminded of each other’s existence – which is better than ‘falling off the radar’, which then makes re-establishing contact difficult.
Another key feature of communication is that it allows one (or rather, both of you) to clearly set the parameters of your relationship. It seems people differ on exactly how they approach things – e.g. whether the relationship is ‘strictly professional’ or somewhat personal. As Nigel cleverly put it, it must therefore be an ‘iterative and interactive’ relationship, what the student and supervisor and their dynamics make it.
It was interesting to note, in the results of our admittedly small survey that while students and supervisors agreed in some areas of expectations (e.g. that the supervisor shouldn’t be actually writing the thesis – or so heavily involved s/he might as well be, presumably), they disagreed markedly in others (e.g. supervisors seemed to expect absolutely no responsibility for the final presentation, whereas students seemed to feel supervisors should at least be offering pointers on written style/presentation).
Comments on supervision experiences welcome…
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Arsenal 2-1 Liverpool
Liverpool’s form on the road has improved this season, but the capital is still not a good place to go it seems… though Luis Garcia did score our first London goal of the season.
In fairness, Arsenal probably had the balance of play, and certainly created far more chances. Maybe if we’d have drawn it would indeed have been a case of ‘nicking’ a point. On the other hand, one could argue that having ridden the storm and then come back to score an equaliser, maybe there’s a sense in which we deserved a point.
Certainly having pulled ourselves back into the game – Garcia proving why he’s always a threat, and notching another headed goal – we could have gone on to get a draw – and who knows, maybe undeservedly snatch a win.
Unfortunately Alonso’s dismissal soon after the goal proved to curtail our revival. There was no way he deserved a second yellow, for basically falling over near the ball. The referee obviously didn’t see the incident, and thought Alonso had made a clumsy sliding challenge…
Admittedly, the talking point will be Gerrard’s terrible back pass – straight through to Henry, just like Euro 2004 – mistakes happen to the best of us, but his desire to waste a bit of time was (I think) a direct consequence of us just being reduced to ten men. What’s even worse, of course, is we’ll now lose Alonso to suspension as well (which we can't appeal)... I have to say, I thought some people were getting a little carried away raving over Sissoko, whose distribution and tackling were often ‘raw’, but we’ve missed his energy in midfield.
Still, defeat to Arsenal is no big shame – and provided we can re-capture a bit of form we still have a healthy lead over them in the table. I’d certainly have settled for this back in August.
In fairness, Arsenal probably had the balance of play, and certainly created far more chances. Maybe if we’d have drawn it would indeed have been a case of ‘nicking’ a point. On the other hand, one could argue that having ridden the storm and then come back to score an equaliser, maybe there’s a sense in which we deserved a point.
Certainly having pulled ourselves back into the game – Garcia proving why he’s always a threat, and notching another headed goal – we could have gone on to get a draw – and who knows, maybe undeservedly snatch a win.
Unfortunately Alonso’s dismissal soon after the goal proved to curtail our revival. There was no way he deserved a second yellow, for basically falling over near the ball. The referee obviously didn’t see the incident, and thought Alonso had made a clumsy sliding challenge…
Admittedly, the talking point will be Gerrard’s terrible back pass – straight through to Henry, just like Euro 2004 – mistakes happen to the best of us, but his desire to waste a bit of time was (I think) a direct consequence of us just being reduced to ten men. What’s even worse, of course, is we’ll now lose Alonso to suspension as well (which we can't appeal)... I have to say, I thought some people were getting a little carried away raving over Sissoko, whose distribution and tackling were often ‘raw’, but we’ve missed his energy in midfield.
Still, defeat to Arsenal is no big shame – and provided we can re-capture a bit of form we still have a healthy lead over them in the table. I’d certainly have settled for this back in August.
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Spring
Is it just me, or is it finally feeling like spring? Admittedly, it’s neither as warm nor as sunny as it has been on some previous days, but for the first time in quite a while I quite enjoyed going outside today. There’s a freshness to the air, that feels like the end of winter is finally in sight.
I don’t know if this was what inspired my bout of ‘spring cleaning’. Maybe it’s simply that I now have some more time to do all the bits around the house I’d been meaning to, since term ended. It reminds me of what my old undergrad flatmate told his parents – ‘we clean the flat every vacation, whether it needs it or not’!
Anyway, not only did I do my laundry, but I put the vacuum cleaner round the flat and gave the kitchen surfaces and oven a good going over. One thing I always like about doing laundry is it makes my room feel cleaner and more spacious, as while all my clothes are out the away it’s the only time I don’t have piles/bags of them over the floor!
Anyway, roll on spring and then summer. I think our present flat will be quite nice in the summer…
I don’t know if this was what inspired my bout of ‘spring cleaning’. Maybe it’s simply that I now have some more time to do all the bits around the house I’d been meaning to, since term ended. It reminds me of what my old undergrad flatmate told his parents – ‘we clean the flat every vacation, whether it needs it or not’!
Anyway, not only did I do my laundry, but I put the vacuum cleaner round the flat and gave the kitchen surfaces and oven a good going over. One thing I always like about doing laundry is it makes my room feel cleaner and more spacious, as while all my clothes are out the away it’s the only time I don’t have piles/bags of them over the floor!
Anyway, roll on spring and then summer. I think our present flat will be quite nice in the summer…
Friday, March 10, 2006
Friday of 8th
The end of term (tomorrow officially) doesn’t mean so much to me any more. You notice lots of parents in cars turning up to assist undergrads moving out of college. For me, of course, it’s simply the chance to start some real work…
The two boys I’m teaching, Sam and Jonathan, had been asking if we could go to the pub for our tutorial in 8th week. I’d resisted, but I said I’d go with them after the tute. Perhaps it was a mistake, as I was only expecting to stay for one if I bought the first round – but we ended up staying for three. Damn my inability to resist anyone saying ‘my round’…
Thankfully I hadn’t signed up for Formal Hall (which used to be the traditional way to celebrate any Friday night, particularly the end of term) so dinner was a chance to sober up and chill out a bit.
The evening was our second (and, unfortunately, final) dance lesson. More practice is needed, but I think I’ve improved a bit – so hopefully I won’t embarrass myself on the night. Still need a ‘date’ of course, but Becca said she’d dance with me, since Travis will be away.
I rounded off the night by going to Nick and Rosemary’s anniversary party. Not many from Jesus made it, but I was glad I did to see Nick’s surprise proposal. Congratulations and best wishes to both of you.
The two boys I’m teaching, Sam and Jonathan, had been asking if we could go to the pub for our tutorial in 8th week. I’d resisted, but I said I’d go with them after the tute. Perhaps it was a mistake, as I was only expecting to stay for one if I bought the first round – but we ended up staying for three. Damn my inability to resist anyone saying ‘my round’…
Thankfully I hadn’t signed up for Formal Hall (which used to be the traditional way to celebrate any Friday night, particularly the end of term) so dinner was a chance to sober up and chill out a bit.
The evening was our second (and, unfortunately, final) dance lesson. More practice is needed, but I think I’ve improved a bit – so hopefully I won’t embarrass myself on the night. Still need a ‘date’ of course, but Becca said she’d dance with me, since Travis will be away.
I rounded off the night by going to Nick and Rosemary’s anniversary party. Not many from Jesus made it, but I was glad I did to see Nick’s surprise proposal. Congratulations and best wishes to both of you.
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Bacon
My flatmate Pavel is a strange chap sometimes. He largely lives on a diet of beans, toast, egg and chicken. I just found out tonight he'd branched out into some smoked bacon - except apparently he just sat down and began eating this out the pack (like one might for ham).
Glyn told him he really couldn't/shouldn't eat it raw, so he microwaved a slice (for 33 seconds), but said it didn't taste as nice. Being vegetarian, I'm not an expert on meat preparation, but this still sounded strange to me (as well as Glyn).
We had a look at the packet. 'Ensure product is thoroughly cooked before serving. Not suitable for microwave cooking'.
I'm glad that, compared to Pavel at least, I'm vaguely capable of cooking...
UPDATE: I'd forgotten how much I hate the smell of bacon (especially frying) - I'd personally rather he went back to raw meat!
Glyn told him he really couldn't/shouldn't eat it raw, so he microwaved a slice (for 33 seconds), but said it didn't taste as nice. Being vegetarian, I'm not an expert on meat preparation, but this still sounded strange to me (as well as Glyn).
We had a look at the packet. 'Ensure product is thoroughly cooked before serving. Not suitable for microwave cooking'.
I'm glad that, compared to Pavel at least, I'm vaguely capable of cooking...
UPDATE: I'd forgotten how much I hate the smell of bacon (especially frying) - I'd personally rather he went back to raw meat!
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Liverpool 0-2 Benfica
So the European defence comes to an end... I did think a few people seemed rather over-confident that we'd pull off another great escape, but the sad fact is Benfica were a relatively easy draw (which we merited by topping our group, of course) and should've been there for the taking.
The sad fact is we were again let down by finishing, but in fairness we hit the woodwork twice and Robbie had a third 'goal' ruled out since his return! Surely if he keeps putting the ball in the net, one will eventually count...
There's not a lot more to say really. Having lost 3-0 aggregate over towl egs I can hardly complain. I know we're well capable of beating Benfica, but the fact is we didn't - and once we had to come back from another down, it was all over.
Good luck to Arsenal flying the British flag.
UPDATE: It's interesting that the BBC reports Rafa blames defenders, while also refering to a Guardian report saying he blames our strikers.
The sad fact is we were again let down by finishing, but in fairness we hit the woodwork twice and Robbie had a third 'goal' ruled out since his return! Surely if he keeps putting the ball in the net, one will eventually count...
There's not a lot more to say really. Having lost 3-0 aggregate over towl egs I can hardly complain. I know we're well capable of beating Benfica, but the fact is we didn't - and once we had to come back from another down, it was all over.
Good luck to Arsenal flying the British flag.
UPDATE: It's interesting that the BBC reports Rafa blames defenders, while also refering to a Guardian report saying he blames our strikers.
Ethical Investment
Tonight Peter Mirfield (Jesus College Estates Bursar) agreed to talk to a group of junior members about college finances. The general aim was to find out how ethically college money was managed, but we learned a great deal more about the general financial management of college affairs - for example, the most of the college's endowment is in property, that they made a small loss last year, and that Mirfield estimates the central college site to be worth £40m, bordering as it does the main shopping street (Cornmarket) in Oxford.
As for what our money's in, he couldn't be too open, but mostly it seems general tracker funds (e.g. FTSE 100), which presumably need not be wholly ethical companies. He did, however, raise questions as to what counts as ethical. Obviously not arms trade, but what about tobacco or alcohol? (We probably couldn't condemn the latter in clear conscience)
Unfortunately prospects for radical change are probably rather limited. He made clear that Jesus' money isn't ours (i.e. the present generation's) to do with as we like; rather, it's held in trust for future generations. We owe them a duty to manage the money well for the future of the college. This in itself is a moral obligation, which of course raises the possibility of moral conflict - e.g. if we could best fulfil our fiduciary duty to the future by making profits from current immoral firms.
Still, Danny (who organised the meeting) said he'd seen reports claiming that ethical investments do no worse financially, and Mirfield suggested the Governing Body would be open to student concerns - including also a previous JCR motion from 2001 - even if they wouldn't necessarily guide policy.
As for what our money's in, he couldn't be too open, but mostly it seems general tracker funds (e.g. FTSE 100), which presumably need not be wholly ethical companies. He did, however, raise questions as to what counts as ethical. Obviously not arms trade, but what about tobacco or alcohol? (We probably couldn't condemn the latter in clear conscience)
Unfortunately prospects for radical change are probably rather limited. He made clear that Jesus' money isn't ours (i.e. the present generation's) to do with as we like; rather, it's held in trust for future generations. We owe them a duty to manage the money well for the future of the college. This in itself is a moral obligation, which of course raises the possibility of moral conflict - e.g. if we could best fulfil our fiduciary duty to the future by making profits from current immoral firms.
Still, Danny (who organised the meeting) said he'd seen reports claiming that ethical investments do no worse financially, and Mirfield suggested the Governing Body would be open to student concerns - including also a previous JCR motion from 2001 - even if they wouldn't necessarily guide policy.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Chelsea
Well, 2-1 down after the home leg, Chelsea were always second favourites to come through against Barca, and so it proved tonight.
I thought the Chelsea line up was a bit surprising. I'd have expected them to play 4-1-4-1 with Makalele behind four attacking midfielders; but it seems they went for 4-2-3-1 with Lampard playing a holding midfield role. Almost needless to say, he was totally anonymous, and this to me just shows up how one-dimensional he is. In Lampard's favoured position (attacking midfield) there may indeed be little to choose between him and Gerrard, but you won't catch Frank playing right wing or even full-back - both positions Stevie has filled well for Liverpool.
Generally, I have to say for two such good teams, it was a poor match, with a lot of silly fouls and broken play. Ronaldinho's backheels and trickery provided a few moments of excitement, but otherwise there was little to catch the eye.
Barca had the edge in what was a fairly even match, but for all their forward play seemed a bit shy of actually shooting. Chelsea, however, offered very little attacking threat - especially when they threw on Huth as a target man in desperation. The injury-time penalty, resulting in an undeserved draw, was doubly harsh on Barca since not only did the tackle appear fair but John Terry was offside anyway.
Still, even the 1-1 draw wasn't enough for Chelsea. Needless to say, Mourinho hardly accepted defeat graciously, still going on about losing a man in the first match - but that's what happens if you commit a red card offence. I think Chelsea were lucky Messi only lasted 30 minutes tonight, or he could have tormented them further...
I thought the Chelsea line up was a bit surprising. I'd have expected them to play 4-1-4-1 with Makalele behind four attacking midfielders; but it seems they went for 4-2-3-1 with Lampard playing a holding midfield role. Almost needless to say, he was totally anonymous, and this to me just shows up how one-dimensional he is. In Lampard's favoured position (attacking midfield) there may indeed be little to choose between him and Gerrard, but you won't catch Frank playing right wing or even full-back - both positions Stevie has filled well for Liverpool.
Generally, I have to say for two such good teams, it was a poor match, with a lot of silly fouls and broken play. Ronaldinho's backheels and trickery provided a few moments of excitement, but otherwise there was little to catch the eye.
Barca had the edge in what was a fairly even match, but for all their forward play seemed a bit shy of actually shooting. Chelsea, however, offered very little attacking threat - especially when they threw on Huth as a target man in desperation. The injury-time penalty, resulting in an undeserved draw, was doubly harsh on Barca since not only did the tackle appear fair but John Terry was offside anyway.
Still, even the 1-1 draw wasn't enough for Chelsea. Needless to say, Mourinho hardly accepted defeat graciously, still going on about losing a man in the first match - but that's what happens if you commit a red card offence. I think Chelsea were lucky Messi only lasted 30 minutes tonight, or he could have tormented them further...
Self-Reference
This is the first sentence of my post. This one is supposed to intrigue the reader. This one isn't really necessary and serves no purpose. This is the one where I say I hate writing like this. This sentence exists only to pad out the body of my post. A self-referential story, along similar lines, can be found here. This sentence tells you it was apparently written by David Moser. This sentence doesn't tell you anything. This sentence is the ninth of my post. This sentence wonders if these self-referntial signposts are what I need more of in my thesis. This sentence is an attempt to get back on topic, which only just succeeds. This sentence thanks David Chalmers' philosophical jokes page for the link. This sentence is the last of my post.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
Varsity
I went to see the Varsity (Oxford vs Cambridge) Women's Rugby match this afternoon, to support Clea (from college) and Zahler (from my department).
To be honest, much of the standard wasn't too high. Long kicks downfield proved quite effective, because they were generally mis-fielded by the other team, thus allowing possession to advance a great deal.
The Oxford dark blues played well though, the numbers 7 and 10 probably most impressive - but Clea did make a couple of good runs.
Five first half tries without reply led to a 30-0 halftime lead (sadly only one had been converted - the efforts were particularly poor, and not helped by us often scoring so far to the right). To their credit, the tabs fought back and narrowly won the second half, to finish 35-7 down.
Despite the quality of rugby on offer, and my limited understanding of the game, I had a good time. There was plenty of atmosphere, and a vocal if not very large crowd.
It's a shame but 'Oxford' is not a chant that rolls off the tongue quite like 'Jesus'. Still, there was some good natured bantering between the two sets of supporters ("you're not singing any more", "I'd rather be a leper than a Tab", and a rendition of 'Final Countdown') that all added to the occasion.
To be honest, much of the standard wasn't too high. Long kicks downfield proved quite effective, because they were generally mis-fielded by the other team, thus allowing possession to advance a great deal.
The Oxford dark blues played well though, the numbers 7 and 10 probably most impressive - but Clea did make a couple of good runs.
Five first half tries without reply led to a 30-0 halftime lead (sadly only one had been converted - the efforts were particularly poor, and not helped by us often scoring so far to the right). To their credit, the tabs fought back and narrowly won the second half, to finish 35-7 down.
Despite the quality of rugby on offer, and my limited understanding of the game, I had a good time. There was plenty of atmosphere, and a vocal if not very large crowd.
It's a shame but 'Oxford' is not a chant that rolls off the tongue quite like 'Jesus'. Still, there was some good natured bantering between the two sets of supporters ("you're not singing any more", "I'd rather be a leper than a Tab", and a rendition of 'Final Countdown') that all added to the occasion.
Pavel
Pavel certainly enjoyed himself last night. How he managed to get home - zig-zgging his bike across the road, with no lights and wearing a sombrero - I have no idea. He even had to ring the bell when he got home, because somehow he'd bent his key (and I had to go and retrieve it from the lock outside, where he'd left it)
It was around 11:30 and he was so drunk he was barely able to stand and kept shouting at us. He stopped only briefly to get some more beer, tell us how nice it was to be with all the girls, and shout at some other people, before going out again.
It was around 11:30 and he was so drunk he was barely able to stand and kept shouting at us. He stopped only briefly to get some more beer, tell us how nice it was to be with all the girls, and shout at some other people, before going out again.
Thankfully he was back fairly soon, so we nudged him to bed with a glass of water. He didn't emerge properly until almost 2pm today! Here are some of the less incriminating photos we salvaged from his camera: 
There was quite a lot of that blue body paint on him. The two 'smurf' girls are our other flatmate's history students!
Saturday, March 04, 2006
Liverpool 0-0 Charlton
Another frustrating day in front of goal for Liverpool. As at the Valley, we were dominant, but failed to score. This was partly down to the heroics of Myhre, but fingers have to be pointed at some wasteful finishing - even if Cisse and Kewell in particular did force some good saves.
I really wish we'd had Garcia on the bench. Having not been informed who was there on the radio, I spent much of the match hoping he'd come on, in fact. Sure he can be wasteful of possession - something he was particularly guilty of against Benfica - but he has a real eye for dangerous positions and snatching goals - as he demonstrated with a late winner versus Arsenal. Somehow, Morientes just doesn't seem much of an attacking threat when he comes on.
Too bad that for the second time since his return Fowler was denied a winning goal by a linesman's flag. Hopefully his first real goal will come soon.
I really wish we'd had Garcia on the bench. Having not been informed who was there on the radio, I spent much of the match hoping he'd come on, in fact. Sure he can be wasteful of possession - something he was particularly guilty of against Benfica - but he has a real eye for dangerous positions and snatching goals - as he demonstrated with a late winner versus Arsenal. Somehow, Morientes just doesn't seem much of an attacking threat when he comes on.
Too bad that for the second time since his return Fowler was denied a winning goal by a linesman's flag. Hopefully his first real goal will come soon.
Blades
Congratulations to my flatmate Pavel: part of the Jesus men's second eight. They just won blades, by bumping for the fourth successive day in this week's Torpids.
He's the one bottom left as we look at it.
He's the one bottom left as we look at it.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
GCR Election
I'm happy to report that I was elected GCR Secretary - and indeed everyone else was also elected to the committee, with votes for RON pretty rare.
I celebrated by spending an evening in the bar with most of the rest of the committee-to-be, and more playing table football - though sadly no better than yesterday. James and I fought a massive battle against Claire and Emily, in which the scores we 4-6, 5-5, 6-4 and then 5-5 in the first 'decider' (though sadly we lost the second).
I look forward to working with Claire (President), Clea (VP), Nicoletta (Treasurer), Emily (Soc Sec), Lucie (Welfare) and Ed (Computing) next year. I'm sure it will be fun and rewarding.
I celebrated by spending an evening in the bar with most of the rest of the committee-to-be, and more playing table football - though sadly no better than yesterday. James and I fought a massive battle against Claire and Emily, in which the scores we 4-6, 5-5, 6-4 and then 5-5 in the first 'decider' (though sadly we lost the second).
I look forward to working with Claire (President), Clea (VP), Nicoletta (Treasurer), Emily (Soc Sec), Lucie (Welfare) and Ed (Computing) next year. I'm sure it will be fun and rewarding.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
England
I missed the friendly with Uruguay due to being in the pub (playing table football). While it's disappointing England couldn't roll their opposition over, it's heartening from a Liverpool point of view - Crouch scoring his first international goal, and Carragher demonstrating why he has to be in the squad, filling in for an hour at left back (even if that versatility may, ironically, count against him partnering Terry as first choice centre half)
I'm confused by the BBC's comment that "It was a win that told us things we already knew - most specifically that England's real World Cup ambitions rest on Wayne Rooney avoiding injury between now and June."
Even their own report suggests Rooney was over-shadowed by Joe Cole. When Shrek went off, we were 1-0 down - only for Crouch to score an equaliser, as well as setting up a great chance for Cole. Hardly makes us look like a one man team, even without Michael Owen...
I'm confused by the BBC's comment that "It was a win that told us things we already knew - most specifically that England's real World Cup ambitions rest on Wayne Rooney avoiding injury between now and June."
Even their own report suggests Rooney was over-shadowed by Joe Cole. When Shrek went off, we were 1-0 down - only for Crouch to score an equaliser, as well as setting up a great chance for Cole. Hardly makes us look like a one man team, even without Michael Owen...
Weather
After lunch, I was reading in the lounge, so I could bask in the rare winter sun - which through our south-facing, floor-to-ceiling window was quite nice. Within the last half hour or so we've gone from clear and sunny to a mini 'blizzard': the snow's been falling pretty heavily (the actual snow itself looks quite light, but there's a lot of it) and the field outside is already totally white. I hope it clears before I have to go out later.
The Jesus Men's First VIII were supposed to row at 4pm in Torpids. I don't know what became of the race - maybe it would've been cancelled. Thankfully my flatmate Pavel went at 2pm, and secured a technical bump when the crew ahead hit the bank.
The Jesus Men's First VIII were supposed to row at 4pm in Torpids. I don't know what became of the race - maybe it would've been cancelled. Thankfully my flatmate Pavel went at 2pm, and secured a technical bump when the crew ahead hit the bank.
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