Jonesy

Mac Allister spends more time rolling on the pitch than he does touching the ball.

@BILLBUZZ7 I know so little about horse racing that I had to think about what you meant there

@Beechside 4…but I do know that Arkle went over the jumps!

#TheAnswers A better than recent 5: 1/4/6/8/11 Went Tracey Emin for 2 & Stax for 3, Arkle for 5

@SW_PhotoNature Always an achievement to get a good Goldcrest shot given how much they bob about!

Goldcrest, Cairngorms

COME AND HAVE A GO IF YOU THINK YOURE SMART ENOUGH….. #TheQuiz

@WillowJimmy1878 @ExtremeFootbal4 Me too, was in the Paddock as well - they were a very good side. Was that the game where Gary Shaw tried an outrageous curler (ten a penny these days…) & got applauded by everyone ?

@ExtremeFootbal4 Remember it like it was yesterday. 14 years of age standing in the paddock and as blue as they come but loved that Villa side,especially Morley and the late Gary Shaw. When football was better 💙

“Here’s Tony Morley. Good running by him. Oh, what a great goal.” — John Motson Tony Morley (Everton v ASTON VILLA), 1981

There was a time when a European final belonged to the supporters who dragged their club there. Not anymore. When Aston Villa were handed roughly 11,000 tickets for a Europa League final in a 70,000-plus stadium, the number itself told the story. UEFA can package the event however it likes — “festival of football”, “European showpiece”, “global celebration” — but the modern European final is no longer built around supporters. It is built around clients. The supporters fund the journey. The corporates inherit the destination. Villa fans will have spent thousands following the club across Europe. Flights, hotels, time off work, loyalty schemes built over years. Yet when the final arrives, huge sections of the stadium are reserved for sponsors, hospitality guests, executives, delegates and “neutral” allocations that often end up on resale sites within hours. And supporters are expected to accept it. UEFA’s defence is familiar. Sponsors fund competitions. Broadcasters need space. Hospitality drives revenue. All true. But football crossed a line when the event surrounding the final became more important than the supporters inside it. The optics are awful because fans can see it themselves. A finalist gets 11,000 tickets while corporate packages costing thousands remain available. Genuine supporters scramble through ballots with lottery-like odds, while neutral areas fill with tourists taking photos during the warm-up. And UEFA wonders why resentment grows. Supporters are constantly called “the lifeblood of the game” until ticket allocations are discussed. Then they become an inconvenience to work around premium inventory. Football did not become Europe’s dominant sport because sponsors created atmosphere. The noise, colour and emotion UEFA sells globally every season is generated by match-going supporters — the same people increasingly pushed aside at the biggest games. The “neutral fan” concept is perhaps the biggest fiction of all. In theory it promotes access. In reality it fuels resale markets, inflated prices and thousands travelling ticketless out of desperation. UEFA could change it tomorrow. Finalists could receive 70 per cent of the stadium combined. Corporate sections could shrink. Hospitality would still exist. But that would mean sacrificing revenue. And modern football has shown repeatedly which side wins that argument. #AVFC #scfreiburg

@hh_stephen Me too, but sadly never heard of it/too thick

@Beechside 5 - 2, 5, 8, 12, 15. I thought you'd have got 7, being a bird kinda guy.

#TheAnswers 3: 2/9/12 No1, never heard of him/her/they/them/it 4, guessed Toyota 5 gold 7 never heard it called that

@BILLBUZZ7 I’m with you entirely, blaming it all on old age & a lack of toast

@Beechside 2….where are the halcyon days of 6, is the decline reversible?

@Glastomichelle Special time of day Lovely shot 👍🏻

The dawning of a beautiful day here in Avalon. Photo taken today on Glastonbury Tor. The sun is rising almost centrally now through the archway of St Michael's tower. I was lucky enough to have the place to myself this morning too.

We Go Again! It’s #TheQuiz

#TheAnswers A more than pathetic 2 this week: 4&11, albeit 🙋‍♂️I didn’t say Sweden for 4. Said mythical creatures for 11 & knew 14 was days related but said “shortest tenures” (not “44”). Didn’t pay attention to episode names for 15 when I watched🙈

#TheQuiz Roll-up! Roll-up! Ruin your Bank Holiday weekend nice & early without even needing the rain…..

@StanCollymore My big gripe at Everton was that he appeared to be playing for stats: demands the ball from 4-5yds away, & immediately gives it back (successful pass ✅). Demands ball again, passes back again (✅) Player with ball now getting closed down quickly….

I can’t even begin to describe my thoughts on this…. evertonfc.com/bars-restauran…

He should be kicked out of the VAR chair. He is just not good enough. He ignored the grappling and must have missed the deliberate handball. Everton fans let down again by poor officiating. Where is the Asst Referee - sleeping?

VAR checked and deemed Fernandes “accidentally handled the ball while grappling with an opponent.” The knock-on (no pun) of this incredible, atrocious, baffling none decision could actually be the end of @SpursOfficial as we know it. Madness.