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Barcelona are a disgrace

The front of their shirt (for now) is emblazoned with the letters spelling out UNICEF. And honestly speaking, that is the last thing I like about Barca.

They are famed for playing passing football, but recently against Real Madrid, of the 600 passes 300 were sideways or backwards. They are capable of playing extravagant football, but more and more they seem to avoid it. Cruyff's Barcelona played total football, they were widely respected and seen as the best team on the planet. This Barcelona might when more trophies, but they have not one my respect with a few others too. Read here for Jon Nicholson's post on F365.

Lets start with the three reasons I dislike Barcelona.

1. They dive
Yes I know, lots of teams dive, but Barcelona are disgraceful at it. In Pedro, Sergio Biscuits and Dani Alves (Not the name I use to describe him normally) Barca have a trio that would give most Olympic diving teams a run for their money. They go down at the slightest touch and most of the time they don't even need the slightest touch. Recently watching Barca play a la liga game led to watching Alves roll over 7 times after being fpuled in a desperate attempt to get his opponent red carded. For a team who are supposed to be the greatest team on the planet, for a team who have children all over the world admiring them, Barca really are not an example for others to follow

2. They abuse referees
Someone wrote the other day that if Arsenal are going to win trophies again they will have to start abusing the referees. This will result in them being given better decisions! SERIOUSY? Well watch Barca. They abuse referees in every game and in every game get decisions going there way. I may not like Mourinho that much, but he makes great sense in saying Barca have made it to the final with a lot of help. In every close game their opposition get a ludicrous red card. Against Arsenal they strangled van Persie (see above) but nothing. Van Persie kicks a ball a mere second after the whistle and is red carded. I wouldn't be surprised if United had a man sent off on Saturday. But what really bugs me about Barca is the complete disrespect they have for the officials. If there is a foul they surround him. They send 9 players over all the time. Once again showing the world that they are just not good examples. Adebayor (Who is someone that i dislike a lot) said it best: "They are little babies"

3. The Club respects no other
In Barcelona's shameful attempt to lure Cesc Fabregas to the Nou Camp, Barca employed every single player to publicly say something about Fabregas. They had Laporta and co say that Arsenal are keeping Cesc as a slave. Xavi said over and over again that we were keeping Cesc against his will. If you want a player, pay for him. Barca over Arsenal less than they paid for reserve team player Mascherano. Another player that they publicly tapped up. What bugs me is that they are protected about this and not reprimanded by Fifa. They moan about Arsenal signing youth players completely legally when they have publicly tapped up Henry, Hleb, Cesc and Petit back in the day.

Don't get me wrong, when they do turn it on, it is the beautiful game and in Lionel Messi they have the best player on the planet. He alone is worth watching, but the culture of Barcelona is one that I can not support.

So come Saturday night, for the first time in a very long time, will I shout for Man United. Lets hope they do it with a ridiculous penalty and an offside goal. Alongside Vidic punching Biscuits in the face for no one to see. Well you can always wish cant you.

JABU

The Greatest Chokers

I took some time off from writing after the passing of my father. I am now back and All Things Jabu is poised for some great changes in the year ahead. Thank you to all those who read!

In my time away I watched South Africa stumble out of the World Cup, watched Arsenal throw away a four goal lead and watched Rory McIllroy completely fall apart at Augusta. With this in mind I have decided to bring you the Jabu list of the greatest chokes in sporting history. To be included in this list the team or person must have choked. Choking quite simply is snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. I have tried to not include moments when the opposition have been outstanding and rather when the team / player has lost due to their own inability rather than outstanding performances by the opposition. So here it goes in reverse order:

10. Rory McIllroy - 2011 US Masters

Rory lead the field by 4 shots at the end of the third round and had played some scintillating golf in the process. He started the day badly and got to the turn with a share of the lead. Then came the 10th hole. Rory shanked a drive into the houses on the side of the Augusta golf course, he then hit a decent recovery shot and it seemed that his luck might turn as he could scramble a bogey and get away without much fuss. It was here that Rory hooked his shot and eventually settled for a triple bogey and a loss of lead and confidence. His game fell apart and McIllroy would go on to set the worst fourth round masters score at Augusta not even finishing in the top 10. His time will come, but next time maybe he should wear a looser collar...

9. Bayern Munich - 1999 Uefa Champions League Final

No discredit to Manchester United in their historic treble season, however they really should never have achieved it. Bayern Munich led in the Camp Nou through a 6th minute free kick from man of the match Mario Basler. Missing both Paul Scholes and Roy Keane through suspension Man United were struggling to make possession count. And for all their possession, it was not United, but rather Bayern that looked more likely to score the second. Late into the second half Bayern missed a great chance when they struck the crossbar and would be duly made to pay for that miss. In the 91st minute Thorsten Flink failed to clear a corner in the routine way and a poor Giggs shot was prodded home by Teddy Sherringham. 1-1, extra time! But cometh the hour cometh the choke. 1:35 after the goal, Bayern preparing for extra time forgot to finish the game and the baby faced assasin made them pay.

8. Jana Novotna - 1993 Wimbledon final

Jana Novotna will forever be remembered for the 1993 Wimbledon final against Steffi Graf. Having lost the first set 7-6 she fought back playing some of the greatest tennis of her career and stormed the second set 6-1. She then went on a rampage leading the deciding set 4-1 and serving was up 40-30, at that point however, the wheels came off. She served a very unlikely double fault and started missing shots that she had been hitting pin point correctly just 5 minutes before. She last that game and the next four to lose the final. Steffi Graf hadn't won the final as much as Jana Novotna had lost it!

7. Arsenal - 2011 4-4 vs Newcastle

The joys of supporting Arsenal. The Gunners became the first team in premiership history to surrender a 4 goal lead through their own inabilities and a little help from Phil Dowd. Arsenal started the game playing some of the most sublime football ever seen in the premiership. 4-0 up at 26 minutes and even with a leaky defence that should be that. It wasn't. About 10 minutes into the second half Abou Diaby saw red in his eyes and then in the card produced by Phil Dowd (The last correct decision he made in his career) and Arsenal would need to hold on to a four goal lead with ten men. Still not a scary idea. Koscielny was adjudged to bring down Leon Best, but bad decisions happen all the time, Arsenal fell asleep after the penalty and conceded again to Best. They were inviting pressure and the Newcastle fan Dowd accepted Arsenals offer to have the game played in their box by awarding a penalty despite a metre gap between the fouled player and anyone else. Newcastle believed, Arsenal didn't and it was only a matter of time before Newcastle equalised with a blinding good goal from Cheke Tiote. Arsenal almost lost it at the end and the habit of failing to win from a winning position is becoming a problem for the men from North London!

6. Jean van de Velde - 1999 Open Championship

1999 was a remarkable year for chokers, obviously too many were worried about the Y2k bug. But Jean de Velde set the standards in choking. In the final round of the Open championship he held a 3 shot lead as he teed off on the 18th knowing that even a double bogey would give him the title. Alas, chokers know the exact time to pull of the feat. He triple bogeyed the final hole and went on to lose the playoff.

5. Newcastle United - 1996 English premier league

Newcastle had taken the premiership by storm, playing some great football and building up a 10 point lead. Newcastle started to buckle under the pressure of leading the premiership and landed up surrendering the league to Manchester United with barely a whimper. Of course that campaign will always be remembered for the hysterical tirade by Kevin Keegan in laying down the challenge to Manchester United in a way not even Wenger could do!

4. New York Yankees - 2004 World Series

Playing their arch rivals, the Yankees won the first 3 games of the series comfortably and had just one more innings in the 4th game to secure the World series and leave the Red Sox waiting longer to finally break the drought. Yet the Yankees choked dramatically, losing the game and then the following three to hand the Boston Red Sox the title and to leave them wondering how?

3. Greg Norman - 1996 Masters

Unbelievable. This was one probably the biggest choker in golf history. In the 1996 masters Norman held a 6 shot lead going into the last round. He had smashed a 63 in round 1 and looked invincible for the week, until Sunday. He shot a ridiculous 78 and ended up losing by 4 shots to Nick Faldo. At the end of the round, Faldo walked up to Norman and simply said I'm sorry and they shed a tear together!

2. New Zealand Rugby - 1991, 95, 99, 2003, 07

New Zealand were awarded the tag of greatest chokers in sport history in August 2010, but I believe they have been surpassed. Of course should they manage to find a defeat at home in the World Cup in October then sure they will regain this title, but for now lets focus on why they are second. 1991 they lost to David Campese and forgot to tackle him, 1995 they underestimated South Africa, 1999 they threw away a 24-10 lead with 24 minutes on teh clock to lose 40-31, in 2003 they were again defeated by a team they regularly beat (Aus) and in 2007 they blamed Wayne Barnes for the inability to score points when it mattered. We may mock New Zealand for being the best team between World cups and then failing, but of course we all know who is no 1 . .

1. South Africa Cricket 1996, 99, 2003, 07, 11

South Africa (excluding T20 chokes) have regained the title as the greatest chokers in World sport. 96 and 2011 saw South Africa win their pool and lose to the 4th team in the other pool. 1999 still hurts more than anything as South Africa remarkably handed Australia the title with a semi final balls up. 2003 we forgot how to do maths and in 2007 South Africa forgot to defend the straight ball. Remarkably South Africa have played 5 knock out games at the World Cup and lost all 5. And here we were thinking we got it out of our system against India

Until next time

JABU

lil_vale: Grant Orbell Interview

Grant Orbell is one of the most humble racing drivers you will meet and the quickest I have ever met. When you consider where he has been and

how good he really is, it is wonderful knowing a man like Grant.

I am lucky enough to know him well and when he agreed to be my first interviewee I knew it would be special and so it is.

Grant started karting at age 11 and by the time he

was 20 he was a multiple champion and racing in Europe. When he won the Formula Ford Championship in 1997 he beat the likes of Tomas Scheckter and Johan Fourie to the title. In the year he raced the Le Mans 24 hour race for Kremer Racing the team were the top privateer team for the first 10 hours of the race.

Grant now races the occasional local race and runs the Legend Cars Motorsport team. He is a true legend of South African racing.

……….

You are one of South Africa’s great drivers and your years in Europe proved your mettle as a driver, what was it like going across and racing in Europe? –

What a kind compliment! Racing overseas was such a life changer. For one thing, I was 20 years old, living abroad, traveling around Europe, seeing the sights and tracks I had always dreamed about! It was such an experience, and yet very intimidating. The second year, I spent in Germany, which was even tougher. The language barrier was tough to overcome, as well as finding things to entertain myself with, as I was at a loose end between races. I eventually bought a BMX, and just missioned day in and day out, seeing the sights… In terms of the racing though, it was everything I’d dreamed about and more. Competing against drivers that I’d watched on TV, competing in F1, Le Mans, Single Seaters, Etc, was epic! Then, of course, the challenge, of getting into a top level of motorsport, and trying to be competitive on tracks I’d never driven before was also very challenging!!

It all seems to have started with a very successful outing at the Formula Ford World Finals; tell me more about this weekend and for you, was it a moment when you felt you could make it overseas?

That’s a super question – It was a series of fortunate happenings that put “the right people, at the right place, at the right time” – I was awarded an all expenses paid drive at the Formula Ford World Finals (originally called the F/Ford Festival) – as a prize for winning the South African Championship. It was my 2^nd experience in the UK, and I was at least fairly familiar with Brands Hatch now. I was also given plenty of test time, which helped too. I eventually made it to the final, all be it in on the last row, and made my way to the top 10, before falling back to 16^th with an electrical glitch.

In the mean time, Vodacom were busy putting into play a local series of sports cars, now called Shelby Can Ams. This dovetailed with their vision of a South African racing at Le Mans. One or two representatives of Vodacom were in the UK on business, and came to watch the World Finals, they were impressed enough with my showing to offer me the Sports Car drive.

Do you think that Formula Ford and the world Championship race in the Formula Ford series still holds the same opportunities for a young South African driver nowdays?

That’s a tough question to answer. I think all categories of motorsport follow a parabolic line in terms of their success on the world scale. In the 90’s in particular, it was a massively large series, world wide. Every first world country had a formula ford series, and it attracted the creme-de-la-creme of their local drivers. A number of current Formula 1 drivers came off the back of a season in Formula Ford, somewhere in the world. Drivers like Mark Webber, Jenson Button etc were Formula Ford champions during their rise. These days, international Formula Ford is experiencing a bit of a lull again, as drivers are opting to fast track their careers, and go straight from Karting to “slicks and wings” type formulae.

What was it like driving now legendary cars like the Palmer Audi and the Kremer Porsche?

You know, each car I’ve ever raced has been unique and special in its own way. There have been some cars that have stood out head and shoulders above the others though.

The Kremer Lola Rousch was one of those, just a beast in every sense of the word. At the time, it was the latest and greatest from the world of “customer” type sports cars. In full “Le Mans” trim, with carbon brakes, full aero etc, and 650bhp on tap, it was epic to drive. It’s the sort of thing where, the first time you hit 350kph, you take a deep breath and think, if something goes wrong now, I’m done for. After 11 hours of laps, hitting 350kph each lap, you start wishing for just 10kph more…

Another favorite was the Kremer Porsche K8. This was my first proper go at World Sports cars, and that was a beast. Somewhat older than the Lola, and based on a composite open top version of the Porsche 956/962. Because it was dated in terms of technology, the only way to make it go was to boost the hell out of the turbos. The motor was a 3L flat 6, pushing like a million bars boost. So out of the tight stuff, the car had like, 50bhp on tap. The turbos would eventually spool, and it would go from 50bhp to 550 bhp, and ALL HELL WOULD BREAK LOOSE! I’ll never forget, driving that car at Kyalami, in 1998, getting it sideways with wheel spin, out of WesBank, and still be wheel spinning. Shifting gears, and sideways on the straight down the hill towards the mineshaft!

Other favorites would include my Chevron B16, a historic car from the 70’s, that is very nearly the perfect balance of grip and power, with the heart of a lion, that NEVER GIVES UP. With her spirit, we have beaten a Lola T10, a 1000bhp Mclaren, a Ferrari 312… A Real David / Goliath car…

In terms of fun, nothing comes close to my Lotus 7, with 250bhp, 6 speed sequential, LS diffs, old technology etc, it’s just the most fun you can have on 4 wheels…

I know you raced at Le Mans; from a driver’s point of view, what makes this race so special? And what was it like racing at such a legendary event?

You know, its not one thing, its EVERYTHING. The weekend starts 6 weeks before with pre-qualifying. If you make the grade, you return a week before, to start setting up shop. You have so much to do, and slowly, while you’re meeting guests, testing, having endless drivers briefings, technical briefings, etc, the whole event is gaining momentum. The next thing you realize, the tented areas are full, ALL OF THEM, there are just hundreds of thousands of people, everywhere, wanting autographs, etc. The grandstands are full, and there is no testing scheduled for hours, if at all on the day. They close the roads off the day before testing starts, and I would go for a jog, every day around the track. You pass monuments, to drivers that have perished over the years, scattered around the track.

There’s the scrutineering of the car, which is an event in itself. There is the driver’s parade, during registration day, where they put you on the back of classic cars, and drive you round the town. There’s the drivers’ parade on the day of the race. And everything is watched by THOUSANDS of people! There were so many people, that eventually, on race day, my co-driver and I got a police escort into the track, from miles away, because the roads where choca-block full of people coming to watch.

I know you recently did the 24hour Beetle race at Spa; it sounds like it was a really fun event. What was that experience like for you?

It was a 25-hour race, actually, “the longest race in the world” – it starts with 160 competitors, and you thrash around SPA for 25 Hours! We started 80^th, and after the 2nd hour, were in the top 30. That gives you an idea of what it was like – TOTAL CHAOS. It marked a number for firsts for me in my racing career, the most memorable was getting the giggles, in the middle of a 2-hour long, non stop dice, because my opponent had more speed, but I had bigger balls! We had be passing one another, 2 or three times a lap, every lap, for 2 hours! Just Biblical! As races go, it was infinitely more fun than anything else I have ever done! And to think they only lost around 10 cars in 25 hours…

You grew up with a racing father; Gavin raced actually a lot with my father. What was that like? Did it help you when you started racing at a young age?

Gav has just been an amazing mentor to me. It began as a competition between him and my mom, as to whether I’d follow dad and compete on 4 wheels, or mom and compete on horse back. It was decided one Christmas day, when I was bucked off a DONKEY’S back (Thanks mom) – and we went motor racing. Gav was the perfect tutor – he really put no pressure on me to perform, and gave me all the best equipment, and support to succeed, but enforced the discipline required to maintain a healthy level of humility too. What I learned from him was the right mental approach, to understand my equipment, to understand why I was going better / faster, and when I’d get a bit big for my boots, he’d give me the required “klap” to bring me back to earth. He forced me, from day 1, to work on my own cars, prep my own equipment, keep fit, and understand all aspects of racing. He was a demanding mentor – I’ll never forget Gav standing in the middle of the track, with a lead up of coke tins, ahead and behind him, teaching me the right racing lines!

Any and all success I have ever attained in motorsport is all due to those early days of karting, with Gav, at the track at 6am, every Sunday, summer through winter, the track to ourselves, just doing hundreds and hundreds of laps. Eventually, as I got quicker and showed more promise, Gav gave up his racing, to support me in mine.

As racing memories go, my favorite is by far and away, having the opportunity in 1999, to take Gav for a drive in the Kremer Lola around Kyalami. It felt like it had been as much his journey as mine…

You raced with some special drivers; for you who was the most memorable?

It’s a very tough question that… I’ve taken so much from so many people… In terms of support I received, it was probably John Nielsen, my co-driver for the 1999 sports car season. He was a previous winner of the Le Mans 24-Hour, and gave me so much guidance in what was a tough season. Just a fantastic gentleman.

Another memorable moment, was sitting at one of the Le Mans driver’s briefings, and who sits next to me, but Martin Brundle. The next thing, he leans over, and asks, “are you the South African driver?” After I’d finished spitting teeth at him, we had a wonderful chat.

You know, it’s impossible to single out one person, I’ll just keep adding drivers to this list, and it will end up with a list of everyone I have ever competed against – I have learned from everyone!

I know you’ve had some rivals over the years racing in South Africa and overseas. For you which was the one you enjoyed racing against the most?

Impossible question to answer… Just so many rivals over so many years, all of whom I’ve enjoyed…

Drivers I’ve spoken to all say that what makes you a great driver is your “car understanding”. Your ability to develop a car, that priceless feedback, how did you develop this and how did it help you over the years?

Easy – It was all Gavin, and those early days in Karting. He would wake me up at 5am, and by 6am, we’d be at the old Zwartkops kart track, doing laps, winter or summer, rain or shine! By 11am, the track would be getting busy, so we’d pack up and head home, where I’d have to wash the kart, make a list of any issues, repair them myself (where possible) and prep the kart for the next practice session. This format continued right through my racing career, where I’d work on my own equipment. So, eventually, I got an intimate understanding of how the car / kart worked mechanically. With this knowledge base, it became easier to take the sensations the car was giving me, and put them with the technical understanding I had on how the car worked, and be able to predict what to do to improve the car. Eventually it got to the point, where instead of talking issues over with the team engineer, I’d just tell them what I wanted done to the car, and I could go out and get more out of the car.

I’ve heard that you tested for Eddie Jordan. What was this experience like? How close were you to a Formula 1 test?

Wow, you are connected!! During my two years in local Formula Ford racing, I was invited to go over and meet Eddie Jordan, test a single seater, and possibly test one of his cars. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity.

Gavin and I flew over to the UK, and spent a day at Jordan F1. We met Eddie, had a meeting, and stared to project what it would take to get me into a F1 car. The second day there, I was asked to test a Formula Vauxhall Junior, for Martin Donnelly, a close friend of Eddie Jordan. Martin would assess my ability, feedback, “drive” etc, and report back to Eddie Jordan. The test was my first time on Snetterton, and I was pitched against their top driver, in a back to back test against one another. We spent most of the day in the car, and they threw many curve balls at me, including telling me they had done one change, but done the opposite.

It was a hugely successful test, and I was quicker than their #1 the whole way through. Based on this, Eddie Jordan offered me a test in the F1 Car. After heavy consideration, we felt that I would not do myself any favours, getting out of a 150bhp Formula Ford, and getting into a 700+bhp F1, and so I declined the test. Less than two years later, I was in a 650bhp world sports car, managing fine… I suppose hindsight really is 20-20…

………………

Published in conjunction with and thanks to www.runridedive.com

Ode to my father

Andre Gerrit Barnard

1959-2011

My father was the reason that I am sports mad. From an early age growing up I would wake up in the morning and creep into the lounge to see the South African cricket match going on. I would watch with wide eyed anticipation, but not understand what was going on. My father saw from a young age that I was sport crazy and encouraged me to take part in any thing.

My father passed away this week and he was the reason that I am sport mad. So this blog will be dedicated to him. One of my earliest memories is being a 6 year football (soccer) player who was fortunate enough to be pretty talented. My dad would take me every Sunday morning to practise and every Saturday to the games. When I failed to perform he would say better luck next time. When I played well he was the first to congratulate me. He was my motivational speaker and my personal coach.

I also remember lying on my parents bed watching Paul Merson score a goal against Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup Final in 1993. From that day onwards I was hooked on the Arsenal. You see, my dad was my inspiration for which teams I supported and gave rise to why I support the Cheetahs, Arsenal, The Proteas, the Springboks and at the time the Eagles cricket (Which I subsequently changed from going to watch Easterns go and play a lot).

My dad also had an immense love for stats and kept cricket stats of all of South African International Cricket stats in all forms of the game. This translated into my life where I kept stats for Arsenal, Pro 20 and even computer games. I used to sit and watch him doing the stats for hours at a time with no worry about anything else in the world.

We also used to play championship manager when I was younger and we would compare our teams and tactics. My dad of course kept stats for his teams and I was truly proud when I got to see how awesome these stats were.

When I got to Standard 2 (Grade 4), I started playing cricket. My dad was very encouraging of my endeavours and even used to play occasionally in the garden with me. When I got to high school my father enrolled me into the Eastern Gauteng cricket academy and would take me every Saturday morning to my training sessions. At the end of games weeks i could not wait for him to fetch me so we could digest my performance in the week. I also will never forget the day I travelled with my High School team to Rhodesfield in Kempton Park to play a game. My dad left work early so that he could come and support me. It was my worst ever performance, but my dad simply said I am proud of you and the comeback is more important. I had much better performances in the season, but my dad was there for that game and that meant the world to me.

As I got better at hockey my dad supported that too. He would chat to me about my performances and come and watch me play at the Aitken tournament. More importantly when I started coaching he was a sound board for my tactics and my approach to the game.

Our sporting evolution continued and alongside each other we clocked over 500km in race walking each (he ended up clocking close on 1000km) in 2004. We would spend a lot of time driving to Pretoria, Johannesburg or even Heidelberg for races. We even had a friendly competition going on where he taught me many a lesson in how to walk ten km races. I also will never forget the pride of finishing the 702 walk the talk 21 km in 2005 and having my dad finish mere minutes behind me.

He was fortunate enough to have seen sporting highlights of two rugby world cup wins, the epic Cheetahs Currie cup wins and countless Eagles wins. Together we watched the highs of the Springboks, the lows of the Proteas and the mixed emotions of Bafana. A sporting highlight for him was when he got to have breakfast with the Springboks in 2004 after the Tri Nations victory. He got me a signed cap that I still keep to this day. He was the first person on the phone to calm me down after the 1999 World Cup draw when I kicked a heater and the first person to console me when Arsenal lost the 2006 Champions league final. We shed a tear together over Hansie gate and a beer together over the 438 game.

I could talk to my dad about any sport, like I talk to all of you now, but it didn't matter if it was golf or tennis, cricket or rugby, hockey or chess, I could talk to him about it all. From verbal communication to email to our most recent Blackberry Messenger epics. I am not sure if I will ever have a relationship so multi sport faceted again in my life, but i will value the memories that I am blessed enough to have. My dad was my friend and I will miss him dearly.

Rest in peace dad. Till we meet again.

JABU

Meet the new addition to All things Jabu: Lil Vale!

Hi to all my readers. It is with great joy that I announce a partnership agreement for All Things Jabu. Lil Vale has agreed to come on board and write blog entries for All Things Jabu as well as for his own site http://dirkvale.worpress.com/. A short note from me, Lil Vale is a goalkeeper for my soccer side the Cannons and a media relation man of note. He is the son of All Things Jabu favourite Clare Vale and has grown up around motor vehicles. He might be wrong in supporting Man City, Sundowns and Alonso, but he has valuable insight and will no doubt add great value to the All Things Jabu site.

So here it is from the man himself, The Lil Vale Profile

I am lucky enough to have two racing driver parents. My father is an ex off road racer, THE Don Vale, infamous for a lot of things but in a car he had no fear and would go flat out through dust storms. No slowing down or checking anything. He is THE Don, it’s the way he is. He’s raced the hardest off road rallies in the world the South African rally – The Roof of Africa 13 - times, not the new one but the old even more hardcore one. He did the Roof in everything from bikes to an Austin Marina car. He raced alongside the likes of Geoff Mortimer and Richard Leeke. He has since retired from racing.

My mother is The First Lady, Mrs Fast, she is Clare Vale. She was the first, and so far only, lady racer to race in Production Cars Class A in a Subaru which unfortunately ended as quickly as it began. It lead to her racing in the WesBank V8 Supercar series in a 600hp Mustang. She was the first lady to race in this series and went on to have a pole position, lead a race and recently at the East London circuit finish on the podium. At East London the V8s reach speeds of 300kmph. She raced alongside the likes of Hennie Groenewald and Willie Hepburn. There is also a drift car being built and she’s currently racing a Porsche 917 in the Zwartkops International. We also work closely with the Anne van Dyk Cheetah Trust and the Road Safety Foundation. No matter who you are, it is important to give back. You only keep what you have by giving it away.

I’ve grown up with cars and in cars. I’m admittedly better behind the wheel than under the bonnet, but I was brought up by racing drivers and not mechanics! I may be racing myself this year but this is TBA. I have raced in 12 hour endurance karting races, where in the last two years my team has managed to beat my Mom’s!

My great uncle was Captain “Jack” Duff; he in his time set multiple speed records and was one of the original Bentley Boys. He raced in the first ever Le Mans finishing 3rd and won the second Le Mans famously in a Bentley. He raced all around world and competed in races such as the Indianapolis 500.

Through racing I have also made some wonderful friends in other sports. I work closely with Brian Baloyi these days, particularly with his Foundation, which is an amazing cause. He has converted me into a Mamelodi Sundowns fan and you’ll find me at most of their home games at the magnificent Super Stadium in Atteridgeville. I am also a massive Manchester City fan and also support Barcelona, but more so I am a fan of football. I am lucky to be able to call guys like Josta Dladla and Robert Marawa friends, which means you will be getting some nice interviews from them at some point.

My interest in sport doesn’t stop there, though. I went to a sporting school, I am a Bishops boy, so luckily I grew up feeling that sports were important and I had guys like JJ Gagiano and Francois Louw in the year below me. Being a Cape Town boy means I support the Stormers, Province and the Cobras, of course. Living in Jozi has led to a soft for the locals teams, though. Hardly any bias from me then!

I am of course opinionated but hopefully this will be more interesting than anything else! Expect some unexpected interviews and from a racing perspective I will try and give you a behind the scenes insights and information. It is not as glamorous as it seems. More oil than suits.

Tomorrow I will post Mr Vale's first assignment that I asked him to write... The preview of the 2011 F1 season!

The PSL Half Time JABU Report Cards

As the PSL passed its half way stage last week, I felt it would be a great time to give feedback on the performances on the teams so far. I have taken into account what was expected of them and of course their own ambitions in coming to my rating for the first half of the season, I have also excluded the weekend fixtures as that is not quite halfway yet. Listed in league order here are "The JABU Report Cards":

1. Sundowns (31 Points) B+

Sundowns looked for all means and purposes to be running away with the league title, but a blip on the radar has brought the mean from Chloorkop back within touching distance of Chiefs and Pirates. Sundowns have picked up just 4pts from the last 12 available, but what would hurt the most was losing to Chiefs. I still think they are favourites to win, but having twice gone this year to watch them and both times they've lost, well that just means I'll have to go to Attrigeville more often!

JABU prediction: 3rd

2. Chiefs (29 points) B

Kaizer Chiefs are an exciting team, but infuriating team at the end of the day. I have supported the Amakhosi since I was a lightie that played in the same position as 16-Valve. We have beaten Sundowns, Pirates and Supersport, but suffered losses to Ajax, Vasco, Free State Stars and Santos. I feel coach VV has us best poised to win the league since 2005, but we need to take all the games seriously and not focus all our efforts on the big games. The season so far has also been remarkable for the emergence of Knowledge Musona who leads the goal scoring charts.

JABU Prediction: 1st

3. Pirates (29 points) B+

From 8th in 2008, 2nd in 2009 and 5th in 2010, Pirates have never finished outside the top 8 in the 14 year PSL history. They are always there and thereabouts. They have twice been stung by Kaizer Chiefs (once in the cup final!) but were also very good in beating Sundowns at Sundowns (A game I attended). Their biggest frustration will probably be the loss to Black Aces coupled with the hidings given to them by the Amakhosi, they draw too much. A good team, but never great. They drop from an A to B as a result of that humiliation.

JABU Prediction: 2nd

4. Ajax Cape Town (27 points) - A

Under the guidance of Dutchman Foppe de Haan, Ajax have looked a fine side this season. They finished 7th in each of the last two seasons and were only a very distant outside threat this season. However with victories against Kaizer Chiefs (in the game of the season so far) and getting three points against all the "lesser" teams, Ajax have found themselves right up top of the pile. They are vulnerable in the big games shown in losses to Pirates and Sundowns and a draw to Supersport, but they will push all the way to the end of the season.

JABU Prediction: 6th

5. Santos (25 points) B+

These guys are entertainingly good at times. Twice finishing in the top 4 in the last three seasons I think they are capable of it again. They got a moral boosting away draw in the Cape derby against Ajax and beat Kaizer Chiefs in Joburg as well as beat Supersport. There problem is much the same as Fulham in England (except for being 5th) in that they draw too many games. Draws against Maritzburg, Amazulu and Swallows are games they should have won and would have put them top! The Peoples Team have what it takes to push the bigger teams all the way.

JABU Prediction: 4th

6. Bloem Celtic (25 points) B

Phunya Sele Sele, the team with the greatest supporters in South Africa. I was privileged enough to watch a Confed Cup game there in 2009 and was amazed by the supporters. They are truly great. Bloem Celtic have of course rewarded those supporters by remaining undefeated in their 8 home games so far this season. I like this team and I hate it when Amakhosi have to play them.

JABU Prediction 5th

7. Golden Arrows (22 points) B-

Lamontville Golden Arrows are an interesting team as well. They are currently the highest ranked team from Kwazulu Natal (out of 3, Amazulu and Maritzburg the others!). They have lost 5 games this season, 4 of them to teams above them (Sundowns, Chiefs, Pirates and Santos) nothing shameful in that. They were however thoroughly embarrassed by under performing Wits in a 4-1 annihilation. Apart from that they have got results where they should get results and should be able to get through to finish in the top 8 for only the 4th time in their PSL Stay

JABU Prediction: 8th

8. Platinum Stars (20 points) C

Argh.. Well its an improvement on the past 3 years when they have finished 10th, 13th and 14th respectively. Owen Da Gama is back at a club where he took them to 2nd place and won their first ever major trophy. They definately are a better team now than they have been in ages. They are not greatly entertaining though as 8 of their 15 games have ended in draws 4 of which have been 0-0. Their win against Supersport will be the highlight for them so far.

JABU Prediction: 10th

9. Free State Stars (19 points) C+

They have 7 draws of which 4 have been 0-0. I guess no team with "Stars" in the title really set the stars alight. I do like Steve Khompela but at times feel they are too obsessed with playing to not lose (a la Manchester City) than trying to win. They have shown they are capable this season with victories against Ajax and Kaizer Chiefs. But 4 wins out of 15 is not good enough!

JABU Prediction: 11th

10. Supersport United (17 points) E

The three times defending champions have been woeful this season. They were the team being spoken about to win for an unprecedented 4th time. Unfortunately they have become victims of their own success as their players became under demand and looking for new challenges. They havent replaced Dane Klate yet and dont look like the same force during set pieces. The loss of Bongani Khumalo was huge, but at last Supersport are starting to look better defensively. The brilliant Morgan Gould seems to be a lot happier with experienced former Arminia Bielefield goalkeeper Rowen Fernandez behind him. They might not be expected to win the league, but you can bet they will have a say in where the league title goes.

JABU Prediction: 7th

11. Vasco da Gama (17 points) B

Are they the fairytale side? Simply answered, Yes. They have been a breath of fresh air who play exciting attacking football. They looked for certain to be pushing for top 8 in early December but since then a run of 3 draws and two losses has set them back. I predicted that they would be the whipping boys of the PSL this season, but have been pleasantly surprised by them. Their highlight will definately be the 3-2 victory over Kaizer Chiefs on the 27th Nov.

JABU Prediction: 9th

12. Bidvest Wits (16 points) E

They beat Sundowns, Arrows, Free State Stars and Supersport showing just how good they can be. But the Clever Boys have also lost to Swallows, Maritzburg and Vasco. Roger da Sa recently admitted that morale was at an all time low in the camp. Something needs to come right at Wits and Im not sure what it is. They are really poor right now and could easily be pulled towards the lure of the relegation zone.

JABU Prediction: 13th

13. Maritzburg United (16 points) D

They were my other picks for relegation this season and I think they still are. The men who ply their trade at the Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg have flattered to deceive this season. And rather than their own brilliance I think it is down to their oppositions inability to punish. They have the second worst defensive record in the league. However they also hold the shock of season so far with their 3-0 dismantling of Ajax.

JABU Prediction: 15th

14. Amazulu (15 points) D

If you want entertainment, go to an Amazulu game. There 15 games so far have produced 49 goals so far, at an average of more than 3 goals a game. I was at their stunning last minute victory against Sundowns, and it almost seems with them that there is a goal in the game at any point. They got rid of Neil Tovey but on their day they can back 4 past anyone. The problem they have is they will probably concede four too!

JABU Prediction 12th

15. Moroka Swallows (11 points) F-

The biggest dissappointment in the league is cleverly disguised by two wins in a row. Legendary Gordon Igesund has brought a sense of normality back to preceedings for the 3rd biggest club in Soweto. They should come back from this but will they ever live down the fact that their first win was their 14th game. Its a real pity because its always good having an extra Soweto derby in the calendar.

JABU Prediction 14th

16. Black Aces (5 points) - F

They are one of the worst the premier league has ever seen. On Robert Marawa live on Thursday night the assistant coach said they are putting up to 17 players on transfer. This just 6 months after 15 players were purchased. Its ridiculous and I can only see one way for them. Thats Down. Sorry Black Aces fans. If there are any.

JABU Prediction: 16th only because they cant go lower.

There you have it. The All things Jabu report card. Now as promised I have 4 tickets to Kaizer Chiefs vs Orlando Pirates at soccer city up for grabs. The first person to correctly tell me on my twitter account who is the top league scorer will win the tickets. Of course all other costs are yours and the judges decision is final and any other legal babble that goes with competitions.

Click here for my twitter account

Until next time

JABU

2011: What to Expect

So first off, I would like to wish all of you a very happy new year. I hope that 2011 fills all your sports wishes (unless they are against Arsenal, Cheetahs, Chiefs, Mclaren, Clare Vale, Ernie Els, Andy Roddick, The Titans, Bafana, Proteas or Ryan Sandes!) come true this year.

So as we look towards 2011, it seems only right that we do the All Things Jabu Thing and identify some sport highlights for the year ahead!

Rugby Word Cup 2011

9 September - 23 October (New Zealand)

The Springboks are defending champions and after a very very mediocre 2010 will definately not be favourites for the World Cup. Nobody has ever defended the title and further no one has won the World Cup three times. New Zealand are a different force when they are playing at home and coach Graham Henry has surely learnt that they do not want to play France again! Its going to be brilliant!

Cricket World Cup 2011

19 February - 2 April (India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh)

South Africa are Chokers at World Cricket tournaments, but never before has a World Cup been so up for grabs. Australia are in serious decline, England are World T20 champions but struggle in the sub continent. South Africa have an inability to play spin and lack a talented all rounder which leaves a rather long tail. I'm thinking its all pointing at the Indians. Although do not discredit the Sri Lankans or even dare I say it, the Pakistanis.

Formula One

11 March - 27 November (all over the world)

Last year was the best Formula 1 season in years. There were four drivers in the title race until the last race. Will we see another Brawn / Red Bull emergence this year. Will Ferrari and Mclaren finally deliver a faultless season. Will Massa finally realise he races for a big team? Will Hamilton and Button clash over who is the best brit? It bodes to be an exciting series. Where hopefully Mclaren will win the constructors title!

The Presidents Cup

14 November - 20 November (Melbourne)
The one and only outright win for the International team came in 1998 at Melbourne. 2011 will again take place down under. Greg Norman is the captain of the International side and for South Africans we currently have 5 golfers who would qualify. Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Louis Oosthuizen, Tim Clark and Charl Schwartzel. Trevor Immelman will return to the golf course this year as well and he will definately be someone pushing for a captains pick. As a non European this is as big as it gets in terms of team golf. I really think the Internationals can do us proud this time around!

World Athletics Championships

27 August - 4 September (South Korea)

We all know what happened at the 2009 World Athletics Championships. Insane Bolt blitzed all before him. So much so that he slowed down before the finish and still smashed the world record. Rumours have always amounted that he holds back in the smaller events because he wants to do it when the world is watching. Come August of this year, the most exciting 9.50 seconds of Athletics could very well be seen. You will also remember that the last time the World Athletics Champs were held, was the start of the Caster Semenya saga. Will she run this year? Will she be allowed to?

Super VX Rugby

18 February - 9 July
A brand new format. A brand new Australian team. A confusing conference system. Some sort of Qualifier. Then Semi finals. More home derby games (which makes no sense, super rugby is about testing yourself against the Oceanic sides, Currie cup is for the derby games). Not playing one of the foreign sides. Stopping two months before the World Cup. Can anyone spell Burnout? And this when there have still been rumblings of a champions league for rugby. That all being said, there is no tougher provincial tournament and features players from the best 3 rugby unions in the world.

PSL - 2nd half of the season

January - May

Many people asked what would change in our local football post World Cup. I can answer honestly, the quality. What a first half of the season its been (my next post will be a half way report card). As it stands the top 4 are separated by 3 points. Sundowns started exceptionally well but back to back losses has closed the gap. Kaizer Chiefs are an infuriating team, good enough to beat Sundowns and Pirates (two 3 goal hidings!), they then lose to Vasco da Gama and Free State Stars. Orlando Pirates are plugging away and have a top coach in Ruud Krol and Ajax Cape Town have taken it upon themselves to make sure its not a Gauteng only party. Further to this Vasco da Gama have been a breath of fresh air (much like Blackpool) who I wrote off at the start of the season (much like Blackpool) but continue performing far above expectations (much like Blackpool). Tickets are only R40 to most games and we have some world class stadiums out there. All things jabu will be giving a pair of tickets to a PSL game away with the next blog post so make sure you tune in!

Barcelona vs Arsenal

16 February & 8 March

98% of you will say this is a foregone conclusion. I agree, on paper and current form Arsenal don't have a chance. 3 world players of the year finalists. 7 World Cup winners. Lionel Messi. But there is something about Arsenal that on their day they are one of the few teams in the world who can match Barcelona in the passing game. They will have learnt from last year. And Cesc Fabregas will be itching to go to Barca and show the world why he can be better than Xavi (7 years his senior). It could be the beautiful beautiful game!

All Things Jabu

Yes your favourite sporting blog is also an exciting event this year. We have interviews lined up with Clare Vale, the first lady of racing, Ryan Sandes, the ultra marathon runner and Brian Baloyi the legendary former Bafana keeper. More will surely follow. Stay tuned for the exciting changes including guest posts.

The JABU List: 10 people who will remember 2010 fondly

Firstly I would like to wish all readers of All Things Jabu a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous new year. Thank you to all those that support the site and read regularly. Also special thanks to Brat for his help in getting the blog out there.

As the last entry for 2010, I am taking this chance to point out ten sports people (Strictly South African!) who will never forget 2010. Some may be more obvious than others.

10. Jacques Kallis

The illusive 200 was finally obtained after 14 years of test cricket. He has played a remarkable 143 test matches and score 37 test centuries prior to the big one against India just last week. He will long be remembered as one of the greatest cricketers ever to play for South Africa. And at last the monkey on his back has been sent back to the jungle (Excuse the lame metaphor as the Christmas pudding gets to my head!).

9. AB De Villiers and Hashim Amla

Okay so maybe its cheating a little bit, but the two middle order batsmen for South Africa have been nothing short of immense. The two have dominated in performances against England, India, West Indies, Pakistan and both have made a great start to the Indian series as well.

8. Ryan Sandes

Ryan is an ultra marathon desert runner who dominated his sport this year. He won the 4 Desert Championship and is the only competitor to win every stage of the 4 desert races! Check it out on http://www.4deserts.com/. You can also follow him on twitter.

7. Lee Anne Pace

A full write up of her was included in the last entry on All Things Jabu. The first South African to win the Ladies European Tour order of Merit. 5 tournament wins in the year also propelled her up the world rankings!

6. Pat Lambie

In January 2010 not many people had spoken about Patrick Lambie. By the end of 2010 he would be mentioned in many rugby conversations all over the globe. After almost single handedly at times winning the Currie Cup for the Sharks, the youngster from Natal represented the Springboks in the year end tour. He can play in about four different positions in the back line and as a result his versatility could see him as a definate selection for the 2011 World Cup later next year.

5. Jordy Smith

He has been mentioned countless times by All Things Jabu. He has finished the year as the worlds 2nd best surfer behind Kelly Slater with a massive victory at Jeffreys Bay. What a great year for the youngster.

4. Louis Oosthuizen

Another who has received much coverage from All Things Jabu. The Mossel Bay native won the famous Claret Jug at the home of Golf in the biggest upset in Golf in 2010. Good Times!

3. Chad le Clos

Winning 4 medals at the commonwealth Games he equalled the record held by Roland Schoeman of most medals by a South African at a single games. And all of this at the young age of 18. South African swimming is in good hands as the baton moves from Roland and Ryk to Chad!

2. Natalie du Toit

Once again she shone for South Africa at a major sporting event. She grabbed 3 more gold medals at the Commonwealth Games. She won a total of 7 golds in her commonwealth career and won the David Dixon Award in 2002. This was her last Commonwealth games, but it is a year that she will never forget!

1. Siphiwe Tshabalala

Will the country ever forget THAT goal. I was fortunate to be in the stadium when it happened and I can promise you that I have never felt a more spine tingling moment in my sporting following. When Dikgacoi put the through ball through and Shaba ran through on to it, it was a moment of true beauty that 44 million people in South Africa will never forget. Dankie Shaba became a phrase commonly used around South Africa. A move to Europe cant be far off for my favourite Amakhosi player.

2010 was a big year. The World Cup happened in South Africa and from a personal point of view, All Things Jabu was started and made it to the Top 10 of the Evox Sports Blogs of the Year. Thank you to all who read.

Until next year :)

JABU

The JABU list: top 10 moments of 2010

2010 is nearing its final straight. Its been a year that we will never forget in South Africa, a year when our dreams came true and the World came to our shores. We can surely be proud of the magnificent way we hosted the Fifa World Cup, making us an elite country. We have hosted Cricket, Rugby, Golf and Soccer World Cups, the IPL, the Champions League T20, the All African Games and many international swimming events, alongside The Presidents Cup.

But as the sun sets on 2010, it is only fitting that the next few blog posts will focus on the best of 2010. Sure there is a lot of Worse of 2010 too, but I will choose to focus on the good of 2o10. So without further adieu, here is the Jabu list of the Top 10 sporting moments in 2010:

10. Nadal Domination

In January 2010, Rafael Nadal missed the Australian Open due to another frustrating injury that seems so common in Spanish youngsters (See Cesc Fabregas). Roger Federer went to his 16th Major title and many felt that this will be the year that Nadal falls through. Then came the French Open. Nadal dominated the French Open, then went through to win the Wimbledon title he gave up due to injury in 2009. But his ultimate challenge was left. The US Open. For the firsts time in his career he made the US Open coming up against the brilliant Djokovic a man who had beaten him in their previous three meetings. On this day however, the world of tennis watched the pure brilliance of Nadal in a crushing 6-4 5-7 6-4 6-2 victory that made him the 7th man to win the Grand Slam. His 9th and definately not last!

9. Lee Anne Pace

The 29 year old South African broke onto the season in a truly magnificent fashion in 2010. She won 5 tournaments during the year including her maiden victory at the Swiss Open in June. She went on to win another 4 titles in the next four months. Ultimately she won the Ladies European Tour Order of Merit and in the process became the first South African to do this in ladies golf. She was also voted players player of the season, which to many professionals is the highest honour to receive. But my personal favourite is the comment from Gary Player (the man whom I share birthdays with!) "I wish she was my daughter," said nine-time major winner Gary Player.

8. Jordy Smith

The 23 year old Surfer from Durban had a year to never forget. He has raked in over R1 million in prize money and won the Billabong Pro at Jeffereys Bay. This led the South African to become the first South African in history to attain the World No 1 ranking. He is the heir apparent to legendary Kelly Slater and could be set for a long reign in World Surfing. He is also know being recognised as having some of the best aerial moves in World Surfing currently. Proudly South African too!

7. 278 not out

AB De Villiers is a humble man. He is fast becoming a legendary cricketer with the only blot on his record really being the cd he released. Over the past year De Villiers along with Hashim Amla have been the consistent men for the Proteas. De Villiers has been asked to keep wicket in the Limited overs format of the game and although it is not his preference, he will do it for his team. His focus has however been on improving his batting, which he has done with great success. De Villiers knock against Pakistan was fantastic and may very well have reached 300 had there been more time. He is now the record holder in the truest form of cricket and is only 26. He is also one of only 5 South African to score two double tons!

6. 70-68

Few sporting moments make you sit up and say wow like this one. One may think of the 438 game as one of these, but in terms of tennis, this was as amazing as it gets. On Tuesday afternoon John Isner and Nicolas Mahut took to court no. 18 at the hallowed grass of Wimbledon. Upon taking to the court neither man would ever have thought they would still be playing on Thursday! Yes, Thursday! Play was halted on Tuesday due to bad light with a pretty stock standard situation. 2 sets a piece. However when bad light stopped play again on Wednesday the score was a remarkable 59 all! Top players all stopped to watch at different points and Court 18 became the main attraction. In the end John Isner triumphed 70-68, but the camaraderie shown between the two will never be forgotten. The game broke all sorts of records like longest match, longest set, most games in a set, most aces in a match, consecutive service games held and most points ever scored in a match!

5. F1: 4 in it

Formula 1 has become a farce over recent years becoming nothing more than a precession. However 2010 was different. The change in points and the emergence of Red Bull Racing as a racing force. Lewis Hamilton (2008 Champion), Fernando Alonso (2005,6 Champion), Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel interchanged the lead all season and when it got to the last race of the season, all 4 could still win the title for the first time in history! Vettel won the last race with only Hamilton giving him a proper push as Ferrari blundered to leave Alonso down the field. With all 4 drivers confirmed for next season, it could be better than ever! F1 is back, at last!

4. Commonwealth Games

For those of you that regularly follow the blog, you will know I am a very big fan of the Commonwealth games. The build up was one clouded in controversy, but once the games began they were nothing short of fantastic. South Africa won 12 gold medals and finished 5th in the medals table, but the arrival of Chad le Clos will be something that sticks out in our minds. The other special mention should surely be to the great Natalie du Toit who bowed out of Commonwealth Games competing with 3 gold medals again. What a champion she is!

3. The Ryder Cup

Once again you will know that I think the Ryder Cup is one of the greatest sports spectacles in World Sport. This year was no different. The Europeans went out into an incredible lead, but the Americans did what only the Americans do so well, they dug deep in a last ditch to write a Hollywood script and fought back with incredible desire and left the entire match down to Graeme McDowell and Hunter Mahan. The European (McDowell), who ironically is the reigning US Open Champion, held his nerve to end an epic encounter. Europe win a nail biter!

2. Louis Oosthuizen

As South Africans we have been blessed with an abundance of Major winning golfers (Ernie Els, Gary Player, Trevor Immelman, Retief Goosen and Bobby Locke). But when the Open Championship took place at the Home of Golf in July this year, few would have expected to add the name of Louis Oosthuizen to that esteemed list. The man from Mossel Bay affectionately known as Shrek surprised all and won his first major championship and became the first South African to hold the Claret jug since Ernie Els, his mentor, in 2002. It was a fairytale story fit for his nickname and a victory that will go down in sporting history as one of the greatest ever!

1. Of course its the World Cup 2010

From even before the kickoff at Soccer City on the 11 June (Which I was fortunate enough to be at!), to long after the World stopped watching in July, South Africa was transformed. Yellow could be seen everywhere and the appreciation this country showed in order to host the World Cup will never be beaten. When Tshaba scored in the 55th minute, we celebrated together. When Khune was sent off, we cried together. When Bafana were knocked out, we embraced Baghana. When Suarez cheated we hated him together. But mostly we stood united not as a country, but as a family united by football. The beautiful game had a beautiful impact on our home. There is no doubt in my mind that when you think of the year 2010, you will think of the World Cup and the pure brilliance of the occasion.

What are your thoughts? Did I leave anything out? Leave your comments below!

2010 is ending, but the memories wont.

JABU

The JABU list: Top Gingers in Sport

This blog arises as a result of the difficulties in Ireland. The Irish are a country famous for many things. Whiskey (with an "e"), Guinness, St. Pa tricks day and of course Gingers! And with all the focus on Ireland, it got me thinking, surely there are some great gingers in sport.

Of course this blog is also dedicated to two team mates for my soccer side (The Cannons), Mr Marcy Marc and Dave the Car Guy, a golfing buddy Marco and to one of my favourite radio personalities Sias du Plessis.

So without further adieu, here are the top Gingers in sport as brought to you by All Things Jabu:

Boris Becker:

The German Maestro was the first German, the first unseeded player and the youngest ever player to win Wimbledon when he triumphed over Kevin Curren in the 1985 (a vintage year in my family, I was born!) final. In total he collected 5 major titles and set the world alight. He of course spent time "Tiger Woodsing" it in broom closets, however his record, much like Tigers, can not be faulted. A definite highlight in his spell at the top was the great duel between him and Stefan Edberg, in a very Nadal-Federer kind of manner. He also helped Germany to win the Davis Cup in 1989. Read a biography of the cupboard bonking German here.

While we are talking tennis, it makes sense that we should bring up South Africa's favourite son, Wayne Ferreira

An Olympic silver medalist and an all round nice guy. Wayne Ferreira is the good guy of South African Tennis. He reached a career high ranking of 6th (1995) and held the record for playing in the most consecutive Grand Slams by competing in 56 between 1991 and 2004. This run was highlighted by twice reaching the semi finals of the Australian Open. He won 15 career titles and is still the most successful South African in the modern era. Remarkably had a P12 W6 L6 head to head record with Pete Sampras, possibly the greatest player of our era (no disrespect to Federer). And a ginger too!

Moving onto a different sport, it is only fair when talking about gingers who have excelled in sport, to bring up the evergreen Paul Scholes

The Manchester United hard man is the classic one-club man. He has been at Manchester United since he was 14 years old and has just surpassed his 36th birthday. He is the 4th highest capped player of Manchester United history behind Giggs, Charlton and Foulkes. He represented England 66 times and scored 14 times for the 3 lions. If ever a ginger has made his mark on European football it is Mr Scholes. He has won the premier league 9 times, the FA Cup 3 times and the Champions League twice.

Further into football we could look at Nicky Butt and Dirk Kuyt, but in the shadow of the man named Mr Scholes, these two are really just boring. So lets move on. After the Springboks managed to salvage some pride on the weekend, I am happy to ponder on rugby. Of course if you are thinking Rugby and Gingers, surely one man comes to mind. That man can only be Welshman Neil Jenkins. He was the first player to score 1000 international rugby points and one wonders if he had been at a team like the Springboks how much better it would have been! He played 87 times for Wales as well as 4 times for the British and Irish Lions. Amassing 1090 points in total. For South Africa we will always remember that his kicking was the difference in the 1997 Lions tour. He also endeared himself to Scots and Aussies worlds over when in the 1999 Five nations he kicked a touchline conversion to beat England 32-31, giving Scotland the title on points difference.

The other notable rugby player being ginger is Clyde Rathbone, but he is a chop. Nuff said.

Moving on to the home of the gingers, cricket. South Africa have been blessed with ginger fast men over the years in namely Mornantu Hayward, David Tebrugge and new boy Rusty Theron. But undoubtedly for me and also earning the "All things Jabu Best Ginger Sportsman" is the ex captain Shaun Pollock.

The son of the legendary Peter Pollock and nephew of the even more legendary Graeme Pollock, some say he was born with a cricket bat in his one hand and a cricket ball in the other. Cricket was always going to be in his blood! Considered by many as one of the greatest all rounders to play the game, he is also South Africa's all time leading wicket taker with 421 scalps. He played for his country a remarkable 108 tests and 303 ODI's. He will always be remembered for the 2003 blunder that led to South Africa being eliminated from the Cricket World Cup. Considered to have bowed out at the top of his game, but he will also be remembered as the only Ginger to unify a nation as opinion is not split on the great man.

Until next time, consider putting a ginger in your team, or don't.

JABU