Newcastle 1-2 Manchester United

Another game, another win, and three more points nearer the title. Although United weren't at their best, this was yet another very mightily impressive performance. Most of the big guns came back in after Sunday's carling cup final and United took the field with arguably ther strongest team at the moment. O'Shea stayed at right back, and with the injury front as it is he might well be getting a long rub there. Carrick and Fletcher made up central midfield and Rooney returned to partner Berbatov up front.
It was a bit of a surprise to see the state of the pitch as Newcastle had a taste of snow before the game and there was still some on the ground as the teams kicked off. I thought United had started reasonably well after a couple of minutes stroking it around quite nicely. But soon the barcodes started to get about United fairly aggressively. Added to that they seemed to have a game plan of trying to play on the break counter attacking at speed catching United on the hop as they obviously were not expecting it. Saying that the goal when it came was really the result of a Van Der Sar blunder. After 9 minutes Gutierrez cut in from the left and hit a right foot shot that wasn't that hard but bounced just before it reached Van Der Sar who didn't collect dropping it straight to the feet of Lovenkrands who tapped it home to put the Geordies 1-0 up. There followed an anxious 5 minutes where Newcastle really took the game to us in which Vidic was booked after being completely beaten by Martins, just outside the box fortunately.
At this point United picked the perfect moment to produce a superb move that saw a one two deliver O'Shea into space and he picked out Rooney with a perfectly waited pass which Rooney let go across him and then swivel and hit a left foot shot that took a slight deflection but which the goalie would have had no chance with anyway. Now United started to gain some control of the match, not domination but they started to control the tempo of the game better and Newcastle's counter attacks virtually stopped. Vidic had a difficult chance from a corner but couldn't keep a bouncing ball down with his header. Just before half time Taylor who has been a bit naughty against us before had a go at first Ronaldo and and then Carrick and at least deserved the yellow card that he received.
The second half saw United start to really boss the game and a dangerous pass from Rooney intended for Park on the left was cut out by Taylor only for him to stumble to let in Park who touched it across the face of the goal for Berbatov to slot home the winner. Whilst the reds took a stranglehold of the game they didn't really create that many great chances. The best or most spectacular at any raate that was a sweetly struck shot from Berbatov that was touched over the bar by Harper. So the gap goes back to 7 points and any encouragement our pursuers took from the night before was dashed. Fulham is of course a biggish game but the two after that, well that is the real stuff. Beat Liverpool and that is the end of them for good, what an incentive.

Handbags in the tunnel at half time apparently
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/tempers-flare-as-united-strengthen-grip-on-title-1637852.html

Calls for inquiry into Leeds United
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/mar/04/david-conn-ken-bates-leeds-ownership
Despite detesting Leeds United and not having much time for Ken Bates who is about as near to corrupt as you can get, i don't know if i want this to happen. Let them crawl along in the filth they created for themselves.

Great to see it is still as much of a pantomine off the field as it on the pitch at Loonypool
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/4944524/Liverpool-talks-going-really-badly-say-Kuwaitis.html

Anatole Kaletsky with a column on rethinking how we run the country
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/anatole_kaletsky/article5847630.ece

Vernon Bogdanor on a lib-lab pact
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article5847594.ece
It won't happen and as far as the libreals are concerened i can't really see what they would get out of propping up a discredited new labour government. I have just read a book about the 1929 - 1931 government and i agree with the view shared by many others on the centre left that it was a disaster that the left split into two and left the the 20th century to be the tory century. But the labour party will be getting what it deserves if it is demolished at the next general election. They have had 12 years to reform the voting system but as long as it suited them they wouldn't change it. If it comes back to bite them big time, well some might see that as poetic justice. Of course that doesn't mean i want a Tory government. But 4 years of a weak Tory government that will have to do things that will infuriate its own backbenchers might be fun to watch.