I finished reading Trunk Music by Michael Connelly yesterday. It's his 5th Harry Bosch novel, and although it wasn't quite as good as The Last Coyote (the 4th Harry Bosch novel), it was a great read all the same. I'm going to order Connelly's next novel, Blood Work, (along with a few other items) from Amazon shortly.
The Star Wars Trilogy DVDs I pre-ordered from Amazon a little under five months ago arrived on Monday - right on the day of release. I haven't even started watching them yet, but I know I'm in for a treat! The Trilogy broke UK sales records after one day of release, which just goes to show how popular the movies still are.
My tip to win the A-League Championship, the Seattle Sounders, lost 2-1 in the final to Montreal Impact. So, although they didn't win it as I predicted, they did get all the way to final, beating two hated rivals along the way. Not bad, really. I'll make my predictions for 2005 season around the same time next year.
Villa beat QPR 3-1 on Wednesday night to make their way into the third round of the Carling Cup. Despite a minor scare when QPR pulled one back, a cracking free-kick by Solano secured the victory for Villa. I was disappointed with the 1-1 draw at home to Crystal Palace yesterday, though. Next up for Villa: Blackburn.
D.C. United thumped Chicago 3-1 at home last Saturday thanks to yet another starring performance by Jaime Moreno, who collected three assists to go with the three he got in his previous game against Dallas. United lost 1-0 away to Columbus Crew yesterday, however. Up next for United: the MetroStars away.
Well, hockey fans all across North America were all hoping for a last minute miracle, but sadly it wasn't to be. At midnight on September 15th, NHL owners locked the players out, meaning there will be no 2004-05 season until a new labour agreement is reached. Let's hope they can come to an agreement soon, eh?
I think it's fair to say that Villa fans like myself were disappointed with last Saturday's 0-0 draw away at Norwich. Although a point away from home is better than no points at all I guess. Villa are in action tonight in Carling Cup against QPR. It should be an easy game, but you never know with these lower league teams...
Congratulations to Team Canada on beating Finland 3-2 and winning the Hockey World Cup last night! Give credit to Finland though for a battling performance. Sadly, the euphoria will quickly subside for most Canadians - and hockey fans in general - as it's expected that later on today an NHL lockout will be announced.
At long last my PC is now silent again! After replacing the old noisy fan with a new one (which was the correct model this time!), my PC no longer sounds like a jet engine anymore! I'm really, really pleased with it. It's so quiet that if you were to step into my bedroom you wouldn't be able to tell that my PC was on!
Villa didn't have a game last week due to the Internationals, so they had plenty of time to prepare for Saturday's home game against Chelsea. The game finished 0-0 - both teams having chances to win it - but I was more than happy with a point, and I'm guessing Villa were too. Up next for Villa: Norwich City away.
Over in the MLS-land D.C. United got a much needed home win against Dallas last Saturday. They won 3-0 thanks to great performances from Moreno (three assists) and Eskandarian (two goals). 15-year-old Freddy Adu also got on the score sheet with a well taken goal. Up next for D.C. United: Chicago Fire at home.
My tip to win the A-League Championship, the Seattle Sounders, have made it through to the final on Saturday against Montreal Impact. Seattle beat Portland and Vancouver - both hated rivals - on their way to the final. Montreal beat Rochester and Syracuse. Will Seattle go all the way as I predicted? Stay tuned...
The Poet is by far the best Michael Connelly novel I've read so far. I was up until the early hours of this morning reading the last few gripping chapters. The twist towards the end and the ending itself was mind-blowing. I highly recommend you get yourself a copy, if only to see for yourself what superb writer Connelly is.
D.C. United lost 3-1 to Chicago on Saturday night. United, who have won just once away from home this season, and have the worst away record (1-7-5) in the league, dropped into 4th position with the defeat. Chicago moved into 3rd. United return home to face the worst team in the West, Dallas, next Saturday.
Remember when I predicted which teams in the A-League could win the title? Well, I wasn't too far off. Of the six teams I mentioned, three (Rochester, Minnesota and Seattle) are in the playoffs. My tip, Seattle, lost 2-1 in the first leg of their semi-final to archrivals the Portland Timbers. The second leg is tonight.
I've just finished reading what is probably one of the funniest football books ever written. Stan The Man: A Hard Life In Football is the hilarious, touching and brutally honest life story of current Burnley Football Club Manager Stan Ternent. I was constantly howling with laughter while reading it. Brilliant!
I installed Movable Type v3.11 a few days ago. You won't notice any difference though, as the changes are mainly behind the scenes, so to speak. I have, however, been bitten by the redesign bug, and I'm currently pondering a new site design. I have an idea for v6.0, but don't expect to see it any time soon!
After a disastrous away game last Wednesday, where they got thumped 3-0 by Charlton, it was pleasing to see Villa more than make up for it by thumping Newcastle 4-2 at home last Saturday! Villa play Chelsea at home this Saturday. On a related note, ex-player Dwight Yorke committed a very serious crime today.
Meanwhile, in MLS-land, D.C. United played to a 0-0 draw with New England last Saturday, which was no surprise really when you consider their woeful away record. United travel's to Soldier Field to play Chicago Fire this Saturday. Again, on a related note, there was an immense article about Freddy Adu in the Post yesterday.