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The Guardian
6 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
From the Pocket: It's tempting to declare Collingwood too old but age isn't their problem
'An old man's dream ended, a young man's vision of the future opened wide,' the American sportswriter Red Smith wrote when 37-year-old Joe Louis was knocked out by Rocky Marciano. 'Young men have visions, old men have dreams. But the place for old men to dream is beside the fire.' It's tempting to analogise this current Collingwood side, to pension them off, to declare them too old and too slow. When they lost to GWS in the opening game, the Age's Jake Niall said they were shuffling around like Joe Biden. It's tempting, when they field 11 players who are 30 or older, when a 35-year-old is knocked senseless in the opening seconds and when they're run ragged by a comparatively young and superbly conditioned team, to say that the team is out of time. Certainly that was the impression in the immediate aftermath of last Thursday night's game. Craig McRae's folksiness can sometimes seem a bit put on, a bit of comms strategy. But he's always good value, especially after bad losses. He doesn't deflect, doesn't pick fights with journalists, doesn't reel off well thumbed lines designed to buy time. It's something that Simon Goodwin always struggled with – to speak a language the fans can relate to. McRae's optimism is constitutional, and is reflected in his team, who for the entirety of his tenure have believed they can win from any position. But Thursday night was different. We all saw what happened, and he didn't shy away from it. This wasn't about age. The Pies are a system-based team, and the system broke down. He used the word glue several times. This was a team that had come unglued. From the moment he arrived, the key to this Collingwood system has been the way they defend. At their very best, their defenders would swallow space. They had excellent footwork, anticipation and synergy. They were so good at playing to their individual and collective strengths and mitigating their weaknesses. They'd give the opposition just enough temptation to attack, and they'd cover it in twos and threes. They had a great sense of risk and reward – of when to apply a vice like grip and when to launch one of their cavalry attacks off half back. It's almost entirely absent now. So much of it was disrupted when Nathan Murphy retired. He did all the unglamorous defending – the blocks, the dragging of players to dead space. Scott Pendlebury told Niall how important he was to their system, how he 'picks up the pieces', allowing Darcy Moore and Jeremy Howe to roam. But looking at this season in isolation, and the last month in particular, the backline has been scrambling and unmoored. There's no doubt that the injury to Howe rattled them emotionally and unglued them structurally. I was unglued just watching it. And with a key cog in the system having his brain scanned, his fellow defenders stood revealed. Moore has been a magnificent footballer for Collingwood. But in recent weeks he's been taken to places he's not entirely comfortable with. Patrick Voss is one of many examples of opponents having a specific plan for him, of dragging him deep, of making him defend one on one. Billy Frampton is the ultimate system-based magnet. His role in the 2023 grand final was pivotal. But they need a hell of lot more from him than dragging a gun key defender out of the game. Opposition coaches are targeting him, and as honest as he is, he's being exposed. Isaac Quaynor has been better this year, but he's heavily reliant on Howe, and seems a bit loose and lost without him. Dan Houston is another concern. From the moment he ironed out Izak Rankine, he's been a tentative footballer. He and his new teammates seem unsure of his role in the system. He gave away too many free kicks against Brisbane and butchered the ball against Hawthorn. At Port Adelaide he was one of the best kicks in the country. But his kicking at Collingwood has been poky and increasingly costly. On Saturday, they play the top team Adelaide in hostile territory. If they lose, it won't be because of their age profile. It won't be because of Pendlebury, who was actually one of their better players on Thursday. It will be because of their defence, the majority of whom are in the career sweet spot in terms of age. Collingwood are good travellers, they play at the Adelaide Oval exceptionally well and their system has often held up when all have written them off. But when the defence is exposed, the system collapses. And there's no bigger test than the Adelaide forward six – a mix of the brutish, the canny, the flashy, the freakish, the unobtrusive and the selfless – a mix that the Collingwood system no longer seems equipped to handle. The Magpies' undefeated streak against the Crows started with a draw in 2017 and has since been followed by 10 consecutive victories. Collingwood's 2009 season was chronicled in a fantastic book by journalist Peter Ryan. He captured a team on the verge of greatness, as encapsulated by a typically restrained Eddie McGuire: 'We are single-minded in our approach. Make no mistake, single-minded. We will do everything possible to win a fucking premiership.'' That all seemed like windy rhetoric when the Goodwin-led Adelaide skipped out to a six-goal lead in the first semi-final. But as Collingwood launched their comeback, the coach's box, Ryan writes, 'was like a fizzed-up glass of lemonade.' In the dying seconds, with McGuire in an apoplectic state in the stands, the ball was in the hands of Jack Anthony. He hadn't had much of a night, with just three touches, and two of those were points. The free kick was dubious, and many Crows fans still haven't come to terms with it. But the set shot was perfect. In a sight that'd become familiar for a decade and a half to come, a very young Patrick Dangerfield exploded out of the centre, but the siren beat him. The Pies were dismantled by a Geelong side at the peak of its powers the next week. But within a year, they had matured, bolstered their list and were the best team in the country. The Blues' incoming chief executive has dismissed suggestions that the club might consider trading Patrick Cripps, Charlie Curnow, Jacob Weitering, Sam Walsh or Harry McKay. 'We're like every team,' Wright added. 'We want more good players, I suppose, or elite players, and those guys are in that category.' Sign up to From the Pocket: AFL Weekly Jonathan Horn brings expert analysis on the week's biggest AFL stories after newsletter promotion 'I'm really keen to see our best players on the ground at the same time. The [Indigenous] All-Stars game at the start of the year showed that there's a real appetite for seeing that. Hopefully there will be an announcement soon.' The AFL chief executive, Andrew Dillon, hints that State of Origin could return to the football calendar in 2026. Victoria defeated South Australia in the last State of Origin game played at the MCG in 1999. Any thoughts you want to share? Reply to this email or send your views to fromthepocket@ Which club has finished with the most wins – and draws – in a season but missed the top eight? Bonus point if you know which year. a) Carlton b) Collingwood c) Richmond d) Western Bulldogs Answers in next week's newsletter, but if you think you know it, hit reply and let me know. Last week's answer: Which club has lost the fewest games this season against sides currently sitting in the top half of the ladder? Fremantle has lost twice in eight matches against top-half teams. Congratulations to Greg McClurg, who was first to reply with the right answer. Nat Fyfe is in 'a really peaceful place' as he announces his retirement, while Brendan Foster remembers that the Fremantle great was simply unstoppable during his prime. 'D-O-double G' is coming to the MCG with Snoop Dogg to perform at this year's AFL grand final. Individual brilliance gets Western Bulldogs over line against Melbourne in a typical Luke Beveridge-era clash. Jayden Nguyen's Bombers debut could herald a new era, Jack Snape reports, as the AFL tackles cultural diversity. The AFLW season kicks off this week as inaugural No 1 pick Nicola Barr writes that the league is not a side project for players who thrive on consistency, and Sarah Guiney adds that older clubs still benefit from being able to adapt to change better. Reply to this email and drop me a line, or email fromthepocket@ Have a friend who might? Forward this to them, or tell them how to get it.
Boston Globe
22-06-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Today in History: June 22, Joe Louis knocks out Max Schmeling
In 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte abdicated for a second time as Emperor of the French. In 1938, in a rematch that bore the weight of both geopolitical symbolism and African American representation, American Joe Louis knocked out German Max Schmeling in just two minutes and four seconds to retain his heavyweight boxing title in front of 70,000 spectators at New York's Yankee Stadium. 1941, Nazi Germany launched Operation Barbarossa, a massive and ultimately ill-fated invasion of the Soviet Union that would prove pivotal to the Allied victory over the Axis Powers. In 1944, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, more popularly known as the 'GI Bill of Rights,' which provided tuition coverage, unemployment support, and low-interest home and business loans to returning veterans. Advertisement In 1945, the World War II Battle of Okinawa ended with an Allied victory. In 1970, President Richard Nixon signed an extension of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that lowered the minimum voting age to 18. In 1977, John N. Mitchell became the first former US Attorney General to go to prison as he began serving a sentence for his role in the Watergate cover-up. In 1981, Mark David Chapman pleaded guilty to killing rock star and former Beatle John Lennon. In 1986, Argentine soccer player Diego Maradona scored the infamous 'Hand of God' goal in the quarterfinals of the FIFA World Cup against England, giving Argentina a 1-0 lead. (Maradona would follow minutes later with a remarkable individual effort that become known as the 'Goal of the Century,' and Argentina won 2-1.) In 1992, the US Supreme Court, in R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul, unanimously ruled that 'hate crime' laws that banned cross burning and similar expressions of racial bias violated free-speech rights. In 2011, after evading arrest for 16 years, mob boss James 'Whitey' Bulger was captured in Santa Monica, Calif. In 2012, former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky was convicted by a jury in Bellefonte, Pa., on 45 counts of sexually assaulting 10 boys over 15 years. (Sandusky would later be sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison.)
Washington Post
04-06-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Famed Kronk boxing gym to reopen in Detroit rec center where Joe Louis once trained
DETROIT — The Kronk Gym where Detroit boxing royalty sweated on the road to glory is expected to reopen this summer in a building where Hall of Famer Joe Louis once trained. The Brewster Wheeler Recreation Center will be the gym's new home, city leaders and the team behind the project told reporters Wednesday. The room that housed the gym where Louis trained remains in the building's basement. But the center had become so dilapidated that it faced a wrecking ball about a decade ago, Mayor Mike Duggan said. Duggan said he was urged to pause the demolition order by some who wanted to preserve the building's history and its importance to the community. 'It was days away from being demolished,' he said. 'We ended the demolition contract and said 'let's see what we can do?' Can you imagine a more perfect use for this building than the Kronk gym? This is the city we're building, a city where we honor our history and we keep it alive.' The original Kronk was established in 1971 by trainer Emanuel Steward in a gym on Detroit's southwest side. Boxer Hilmer Kenty was Kronk's first professional champion, winning the WBA title. But Kronk rose to national prominence behind the punishing fists of Thomas 'Hitman' Hearns who pummeled the likes of José 'Pipino' Cuevas, Wilfred Benítez and Roberto Durán on the way to five titles and a career 61-5-1 record as a pro. World champions Lennox Lewis and Wladimir Klitschko later would train at Kronk. The original gym closed in 2006 and was long vacant by 2017 when the building was destroyed by fire. Steward later would rent space at a gym in nearby Dearborn so his young fighters could train. Steward died of colon cancer in 2012 at the age of 68. ___ AP boxing:
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Today in Sports - Week Ahead, March 28
April 1 1930 — American golfer Bobby Jones starts his Grand Slam season by winning the Southeastern Open. 1938 — Joe Louis knocks out Harry Thomas in the fifth round in Chicago to retain his world heavyweight title. 1940 — Governor Herbert Lehman of New York signs the Dunnigal bill, which legalizes pari-mutuel wagering and outlaws bookmakers at the state's racetracks. 1954 — Detroit Red Wings right wing Gordie Howe scores 2 goals and an assist, and sets a Stanley Cup playoff record for fastest goal from the start of a game (:09). Advertisement 1972 — The first collective player's strike in major league history begins at 12:01 a.m. The strike lasts 12 days and cancels 86 games. 1973 — Boston's John Havlicek connects on 24 field goals and finishes with 54 points the Celtics defeat Atlanta, 134-109, in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. 1978 — NY Islanders RW Mike Bossy becomes first NHL rookie to score 50 goals in a season. 1981 — Edmonton C Wayne Gretzky has an assist (his 103rd) to break Bobby Orr's 10-year mark for most assists in a single NHL season. 1984 — Southern Cal beats Tennessee 72-61 for the NCAA women's basketball title. Advertisement 1985 — Villanova shocks Georgetown with a 66-64 victory to win the NCAA basketball title. The Wildcats, led by Dwayne McClain's 17 points, shot 79 percent from the field, making 22 of 28 shots, and added 22 of 27 free throws. 1989 — Jim McAllister of Glassboro State hits four home runs and drives in nine runs in four at-bats in a 21-5 five-inning rout of Delaware State. 1990 — Betsy King holds on for a two-stroke victory over Kathy Postlewait to win the LPGA Dinah Shore tournament. 1991 — Duke ends years of frustration with a 72-65 victory over Kansas for its first national title in five championship game appearances and nine trips to the Final Four. Advertisement 1992 — A week before the Stanley Cup playoffs are set to begin, the NHL players strike for the first time in the league's 75-year history. The strike lasts 10 days. 1996 — Kentucky wins its first national title in 18 years with a 76-67 victory over Syracuse. 1999 — Detroit Pistons G Joe Dumars becomes 10th player in NBA history to play 1,000 games with the same team. 1999 — Philadelphia 76ers head coach Larry Brown wins his 900th pro game. 2000 — Michelle Kwan wins her third World Figure Skating title by pushing through all seven triple jumps. The triple toe-triple toe lifts Kwan above Russians Irina Slutskaya and last year's champion, Maria Butyrskaya. Advertisement 2001 — 20th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: Notre Dame beats Purdue, 68-66. 2002 — With Juan Dixon and Lonny Baxter leading the way, Maryland wins its first national championship with a 64-52 victory over Indiana. 2007 — Morgan Pressel becomes the youngest major champion in LPGA Tour history with a game well beyond her 18 years, closing with a 3-under 69 at the Kraft Nabisco Championship. Pressel plays her final 25 holes over Mission Hills without a bogey as Suzann Pettersen blew a four-shot lead with four holes to play. 2007 — American super swimmer Michael Phelps smashes his own world record in the 400m individual medley (4:06.22) to win his record 7th gold medal at the World Championships. Advertisement 2011 — Jarome Iginla scores his second goal of the game with 5:03 left to reach 1,000 points and help Calgary rally to beat St. Louis 3-2. 2016 — Golden State Warriors consecutive home winning streak ends at 54 games. 2018 — Arike Ogunbowale hits a 3-pointer with a tenth of a second left to give Notre Dame a 61-58 win over Mississippi State and its first women's national championship since 2001. Notre Dame, trailing 30-17 at halftime, pulls off the biggest comeback in title game history, rallying from a 15-point deficit in the third quarter and a five-point deficit in the final 1:58. 2020 — All England Lawn Tennis Club cancels Wimbledon for the first time since World War II because of the COVID-19 pandemic; entire grass-court season abandoned. Advertisement _____ April 2 1939 — Ralph Guldahl beats Sam Snead by one stroke to capture the Masters golf tournament. 1969 — Toronto center Forbes Kennedy sets a Stanley Cup playoff record for most penalties in one game with 8. 1978 — Czech tennis star Martina Navratilova wins her first WTA Tour Championship. 1980 — Wayne Gretzky becomes the youngest player to reach 50 goals at 19 years and 2 months of age. 1983 — New York Islander Mike Bossy becomes the first player to score 60 or more goals in three consecutive seasons. 1984 — Georgetown, led by junior center Patrick Ewing and freshman forward Reggie Williams, beats Houston 84-75 to win the NCAA championship in Seattle. Houston becomes the second team to lose in two consecutive finals. Advertisement 1985 — Edmonton C Wayne Gretzky sets an NHL record with his 34th career hat trick. 1986 — The 3-point field goal, at 19 feet, 9 inches, is adopted by the NCAA. 1989 — 8th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: Tennessee beats Auburn, 76-60. 1990 — UNLV pounds Duke 103-73 to win its first NCAA championship and extend the Blue Devils' streak to eight Final Four appearances without a title. The Runnin' Rebels become the first team to score more than 100 points in a championship game and the 30-point margin is the largest ever. 1995 — Connecticut caps an unbeaten season by defeating Tennessee 70-64 for the NCAA women's championship. The Huskies, 35-0, become the winningest basketball team for one season in Division I. Advertisement 2000 — Connecticut wins its second women's national championship with a 71-52 victory over Tennessee. The top-ranked Huskies beat No. 2 Tennessee for the second time in three meetings this season. 2001 — New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens becomes American League all-time strikeout leader. 2001 — Seattle outfielder Ichiro Suzuki has 2 hits and becomes first Japanese position player to play in a regular season MLB game. 2001 — 63rd NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Duke beats Arizona, 82-72. 2003 — At 27 years, 249 days Texas Rangers infielder Alex Rodriguez becomes the youngest MLB player to hit 300 home runs. Advertisement 2005 — Bubba Stewart becomes first African-American to win a major motor sports event when he takes out the Monster Energy AMA Supercross C'ship event in Irving, Texas. 2007 — The Florida Gators keep their stranglehold on the college basketball world with an 84-75 victory over Ohio State for their second straight national championship. The Gators are the first team to repeat since Duke in 1991-92. 2010 — Basketball superstar Kobe Bryant signs a three-year contract extension with the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers worth $87 million. 2011 — The Detroit Red Wings clinch their 20th straight playoff berth with a 4-3 victory over Nashville. The Red Wings extend the longest active playoff streak among North America's four major professional sports and extend their NHL record with 11 straight seasons with 100 points. 2012 — Doron Lamb scores 22 points as Kentucky wins its eighth men's national championship, holding off Kansas for a 67-59 victory. 2013 — Shoni Schimmel scores 24 points and giant-slaying Louisville claims another big upset, beating second-seeded Tennessee 86-78 and earning the school's second trip to the Women's Final Four. 2014 — The Sacramento Kings beat the Los Angeles Lakers 107-102 to give the Lakers their 50th loss of the season. The last time the Lakers had 50 or more losses was 1974-75 (30-52). 2016 — Villanova advances to the national championship game with the biggest margin of victory in Final Four history, overwhelming Oklahoma in a resounding 95-51 victory. The margin topped 34-point Final Four wins by Cincinnati over Oregon State in 1962 and Michigan State over Penn in 1979. 2017 — 36th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: South Carolina defeats Mississippi State, 67-55. 2018 — Pernilla Lindberg makes a 30-foot birdie putt on the eighth extra hole to win the ANA Inspiration for her first professional victory. Lindberg finishes off Inbee Park on the par-4 10th, the fourth playoff hole at Mission Hills. 2018 — Villanova wins its second men's national championship in three years after a 79-62 victory over Michigan. Donte DiVincenzo comes off the bench to score 31 points for the Wildcats. Villanova wins all six games by double digits over this tournament run, joining Michigan State (2000), Duke (2001) and North Carolina (2009) in that company. 2019 — OKC guard Russell Westbrook becomes 2nd player in NBA history to have 20+ points, rebounds and assists in a game; records 20-20-21 in 119-103 win over LA Lakers. 2023 — Caitlin Clark scores 41 points in the Final Four for Iowa against South Carolina. _____ April 3 1923 — 'Black Sox' sue White Sox (unsuccessfully) for back salary. 1930 — The Montreal Canadiens win the NHL Stanley Cup with a two-game sweep of the Boston Bruins. 1933 — Ken Doraty's overtime goal gives the Toronto Maple Leafs and 1-0 victory over the Boston Bruins in semifinals of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The goal comes at one hour, 44 minutes and 46 seconds of the overtime beyond the one-hour regulation game. 1966 — P Tom Seaver signs with the NY Mets. 1975 — Bobby Fischer stripped of world chess title for refusing to defend it, title awarded to Russian Anatoly Karpov. 1977 — Jean Ratelle of the Boston Bruins scores his 1,000th point with an assist in a 7-4 triumph over the Toronto Maple Leafs. 1982 — Buffalo's Gil Perrault scores his 1,000th point with an assist in a 5-4 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. 1983 — 2nd NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: USC beats Louisiana Tech, 69-67. 1987 — Chicago Cubs trade Dennis Eckersley to Oakland A's. 1988 — Louisiana Tech wins the NCAA women's basketball championship with a 56-54 come-from-behind victory over Auburn. 1988 — Amy Alcott shoots a 1-under 71 to win the Dinah Shore by two shots over Colleen Walker. 1988 — Mario Lemieux wins NHL scoring title, stopping Gretzky's 7 year streak. 1989 — Michigan beats Seton Hall 80-79 in overtime to win the NCAA basketball championship. Rumeal Robinson hits two free throws with three seconds left for the Wolverines. It's the first time that a first-year coach, Steve Fisher, wins the national title. 1991 — Bo Jackson signs 1-year contract with Chicago White Sox. 1993 — For the first time in its 157-year history, the Grand National steeplechase is declared void because of a false start. Esha Ness crosses the line first, but most of the jockeys are unaware a false start is called and the majority of the 39-horse field continue the 4½-mile race around the Aintree course even though nine stay behind at the start line. 1994 — Charlotte Smith's 3-pointer at the buzzer gives North Carolina a 60-59 victory over Louisiana Tech in the NCAA women's basketball championship game. 1995 — UCLA wins its first national basketball championship in 20 years and record 11th NCAA title, keeping Arkansas from repeating with an 89-78 victory. 1996 — St Francis Fighting Saints scores college baseball run record with 71. 2000 — 62nd NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Michigan State beats Florida, 89-76. 2004 — St. Louis clinches its 25th consecutive NHL playoff berth, the longest in major league sports, with a 4-1 win over Nashville. 2006 — Joakim Noah dominates UCLA with 16 points, nine rebounds and a record seven blocks to key a 73-57 blowout for Florida's first national title in men's basketball. 2006 — Steve Yzerman scores his final NHL goal (#692). 2007 — After a nine-year title drought, Tennessee and coach Pat Summitt are NCAA champions. The Lady Vols capture an elusive seventh national title, beating Rutgers 59-46. 2010 — Bernard Hopkins wins a brutal unanimous decision over Roy Jones Jr. in their long-delayed rematch, emphatically avenging his loss in the famed champions' first fight nearly 17 years earlier. 2012 — Brittney Griner scores 26 points and grabs 13 rebounds to help Baylor finish off an undefeated season with an 80-61 win over Notre Dame in the women's national championship game. Baylor becomes the first team in NCAA history to win 40 games. 2017 — Justin Jackson delivers the go-ahead three-point play and North Carolina scores the last eight points for a 71-65 win over Gonzaga and an NCAA title that heartbreakingly eluded the Tar Heels last year. It's an ugly game, filled with 44 fouls and 52 free throws. Carolina was down 2 with 1:40 left when Jackson took a pass under the bucket from Theo Pinson, made a layup and got fouled. The free throw made it 66-65, and after a Gonzaga miss on the other end, Isaiah Hicks made a shot to help North Carolina start pulling away to the school's sixth title. 2019 — San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich is ejected after an NBA record low 63 seconds in the Spurs 113-85 loss in Denver; receives 2 technical fouls in a verbal confrontation with a referee. _____
