Maybe He’ll Get Some Maturity for His Birthday
Liverpool soccer star Robbie Fowler used to be praised for acts of sportsmanship and his empathy for the working man--he was once fined for wearing a T-shirt supporting striking dockers.
But lately, he has been stepping into trouble at every turn, becoming the poster-boy for “The New Laddism,” the British term for all things very, very male--booze, brawling and, of course, watching soccer.
Fowler mocked the sexuality of another player recently, wiggling his rear end at the opponent, an act that prompted a nationwide controversy and, eventually, an apology from Fowler. Then Fowler earned national condemnation with his goal-scoring celebration against Everton on Saturday.
He dropped to the ground and pretended to sniff the white line on the soccer field as if it were cocaine, a flip retort to the fans who had taunted him about being a drug user--unfounded charges.
The Times of London was not amused, running this dismissive headline: “Fowler crosses line from rascal to rogue.”
“People forget I’m only 23,” Fowler said recently.
He turns 24 Friday.
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Trivia time: What was the only World Series matchup in the 1950s that did not involve a New York team?
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Holiday blues: The remote threat of losing his traditional Thanksgiving game in Detroit was enough to irk Lion vice chairman Bill Ford Jr. Never mind that the idea quickly died.
“I’m having trouble with this league,” Ford told Ira Miller of the San Francisco Chronicle. “This league is just incredible. It’s a very mean-spirited league, the lack of good will, the lack of transparency.
“I could look the chairman of General Motors or Toyota in the eye, and if they shake your hand and they give you their word, it’s good. Here, it’s not the case.”
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Sabre blades: Everyone has heard strange reasons behind a trade. The one behind forward Matthew Barnaby’s move from Buffalo to Pittsburgh had to do with equipment, of all things.
“I didn’t have the proper skates for two years,” Barnaby said. “It’s pretty hard to do your job when you don’t have the proper equipment. I got here [to the Penguins] and the first thing they said was, ‘This blade is crooked, let’s get you a new one.’
“This has been a great move for me.”
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Enter at own risk: Quarterback Brett Favre of the Green Bay Packers said former coach Mike Holmgren told him last season that his office was always open.
“Then you’d go in there and get chewed out,” Favre told the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
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Speak for yourself, Jim: Jim Armstrong in the Denver Post: “What’s up with all these sports writers dogging Khalid El-Amin for sporting love handles? Most sports writers I know would kill to have that body.”
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Trivia answer: Chicago White Sox vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1959.
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And finally: Michigan State Coach Tom Izzo, on his introduction to reality when he won his first game: “We kicked Chaminade’s butt by two, and got to play North Carolina next in a preseason tournament. During a pregame interview, the TV network flashed a graphic on the screen as I talked. It said: ‘COACHING COMPARISON: Dean Smith 837 wins, Tom Izzo 1. Good Luck, Tom.’ ”
