Having enjoyed most of the sport on show in 2008 there have been one or two things I look back on with immense frustration.

The first thing is this blind attitude that football managers deserve a nice lengthy stay in charge of a club regardless of their results. Paul Ince, formerly of English Premier League side Blackburn Rovers, was the latest manager to suffer the sack but you would be mistaken to think that I am sympathetic.

Of course there are instances when clubs are far too callous in their treatment of managers, Sven Goran Eriksson at Manchester City last season and the Martin Jol saga at Tottenham serve as fine examples of clubs losing the plot.
However I do not believe in managers receiving lengthy periods of time at a club just for the sake of giving them a fair chance. If a manger is clearly sending a club down the wrong path then they have to be replaced before it’s too late.

Paul Ince was sacked after only 17 league games and admittedly this is a very short amount of time. However he had driven an established, mid table Premier League side that had been challenging for Europe to second bottom of the table with the second worst goal difference in the league and five points away from safety.

Could Ince have turned it round? May be, but the point is this isn’t a risk that a club like Blackburn Rovers can take. The facts speak for themselves- they were stuck in an appalling rut, low on confidence, suffering defeat after defeat and without a win in 12 league games.

Why should a club stick with a manager who has produced such dreadful results just for the sake of longevity? It’s all about collateral damage- do you cut short one man’s reign, even if he has not been given long enough to prove himself or do you risk upsetting a whole club, including supporters, if you continue to stick with him and he fails to turn it around?
You have to stop the rot and Ince had to go. Let’s be honest bringing in a new manger isn’t going to cause much more disruption to a side already languishing near the bottom of the table and at least a fresh face can add impetus and confidence.

Relegation has severe financial implications, particularly for a club like Blackburn, and for a team that has a Premiership title to its name that is not acceptable. I don’t think Paul Ince would have turned it around and I back Blackburn’s decision to find a solution while they still have the time.

Moving on to tennis.

Something that has continually perplexed me all year has been the constant lavishing of praise on British tennis player Andy Murray and in particular his new 'muscular' physique.

Firstly it is infuriating when he is mentioned in the same breath as proven stars like Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal.
You can’t take away the fact Murray has enjoyed a successful year, winning a few masters tournaments that only those who follow tennis really know anything about.

However, when it comes to the grand slam tournaments he has still got a lot to prove. In fairness he did reach the final of the US Open but he was soundly beaten in three sets by an out of form Roger Federer. In fact considering it was the final he was absolutely thrashed.

And is it me or does Andy Murray not actually look any different from when he first started playing. Apparently he has ‘beefed’ up but I can’t say I’ve noticed a difference. It was outrageous that his Wimbledon match up with Nadal was dubbed the ‘battle of the biceps’. Nadal cuts the figure of a man who has worked hard to produce a muscular frame whilst Murray looks like he has been pumping nothing heavier than a bag of sugar.

His potential is undeniable but until he starts regularly performing well in and winning grand slam titles he is not worthy of comparison with Nadal and Federer.

And finally…

I think the most disappointing aspect of 2008 was that the cycling world has been yet again embroiled in a series of drug controversies. It seems there isn’t a cycling tour in the last ten years that hasn’t been dogged by a drug scandal and to be quite honest it’s getting boring.

Part of me resents the weak willed cyclists who keep giving into the temptation of cheating and the other part of me is mystified as to how they keep getting away with it!

New drug testing methods are making sure more cheats are being caught than ever before but I think you’ll agree with me that X number of months after a tour has taken place is just not good enough. Of course some cheats will always slip through the net but it is fair to say that there are far too many cyclists entering and competing in races having taken performance enhancing drugs.

It’s got to the point that when you watch or hear about a cycling tour you end up suspecting anyone and everyone of being a cheat. As a sport that is unacceptable, the regulators have to have control over this and at present they do not.

This lack of progression in catching drugs cheats before they compete is my biggest sporting disappoint of 2008.

	Author:	matt.renton (matt.renton's profile, matt.renton's blog)
	Posted On:	Thursday, 18th December '08, 11:53am
	Tags:	Badminton, Baseball, Basketball, Bodybuilding, Boxing, Cricket, Cycling, Distance Running, Field Events, Football, Golf, Gymnastics, Marathon Training, Rowing, Rugby, Running, Skiing, Soccer Training, Sprinting, Squash, Swimming, Tennis, Triathlon and Volleyball
	Comments:	0 comments, go to comments

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