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Luke Edwards is Chief Sports Writer of The Journal and uses his blog to give a unique and entertaining insight into events at Newcastle United and Sunderland.

As well as football, Luke also regularly takes a wry look at the biggest sports stories from across the North-East and beyond. From cricket to rugby and basketball to boxing, some are criticised and some are praised.

Sometimes provocative, sometimes laugh-aloud funny, but always interesting Luke Who's Talking also gives you the chance to interact with Luke and have your say on all the major sporting issues.

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July 2008 Archives


Spiderman Swings Into Toon

Posted by Luke on July 2, 2008 11:51 AM

A thousand and one names have been linked with a move to Newcastle United this summer, but not once has Kevin Keegan’s first signing Jonas Gutierrez appeared among them. Then again, given his habit of wearing a Spiderman mask when he scores a goal, he could have been on Tyneside in all sorts of different guises these last few weeks!

But what a welcome surprise his arrival is for those who had begun to fret about whether the Magpies would manage to land anyone of note before the start of the season.

An Argentina international, the 25-year-old is precisely the sort of attacking wideman Keegan loves and if he is the sort of player Keegan loves, it’s pretty safe to assume he will also be the sort of player the fans love watching.

Continue reading "Spiderman Swings Into Toon" »

Why Don't You Have Anything To Say Kev?

Posted by Luke on July 3, 2008 5:54 PM

Kevin Keegan has had a plane named after him by the airline Flybe.com. I’d like to tell you more, but Newcastle’s manager appears to have taken a rather strange vow of silence this summer.

Despite making his first public appearance since his final press conference of last season following the 3-1 defeat at Everton in May Keegan did not want to talk about football issues as it would be, in his words, “pointless.� Erm, okay then Kev, whatever you say, or rather don’t say!

So I’m afraid we do not know anymore about his first new signing Jonas Gutierrez, we don’t know if he was signed by the manager or Executive Director Dennis Wise, we don’t know what he will bring to the team.

Continue reading "Why Don't You Have Anything To Say Kev?" »

Takeover Talk

Posted by Luke on July 4, 2008 10:31 AM

The end of another working week and another round of stories suggesting Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley is looking to sell the club. Now where have we heard this one before?

I don't claim to be an expert in the world of business. If I was I would either have won The Apprentice and be working for Alan Sugar by now, or I would be a billionaire like Big Mike. Actually there is probably some middle ground, but rest assured I'm better at writing than I am at managing my finances!

However, I do know that everything has a price and this is particularly true of Premier League football clubs.

Continue reading "Takeover Talk" »

Do You Really Care About Tennis?

Posted by Luke on July 8, 2008 12:27 PM

Thank goodness for that, Wimbledon has finished for another year, we can finally stop pretending to care about tennis and we can stop banging on about why Britain fails to produce enough world class players.

Let’s face it, tennis isn’t really a popular sport in this country, it’s isn’t played in state schools, it isn’t generally played in inner-cities and, apart from the month of June, it rarely gets widespread media attention.

Sure, it has a sizeable following, but the only time the masses get involved is in June when Wimbledon forces its way on to prime time television like an unwanted squatter on a farmer’s field.

Continue reading "Do You Really Care About Tennis?" »

Newcastle Are Not For Sale

Posted by Luke on July 10, 2008 5:17 PM

You see Mike, that's all we've been asking for, just once second of your time to clarify your intentions for Newcastle United. It wasn't that hard now was it?

For those of you who do not already know United's owner Mike Ashley has, for the first time, publicly denied he is looking to sell the club, but he is looking to attract additional investment.

Continue reading "Newcastle Are Not For Sale" »

Give Him A Chance Before You Moan

Posted by Luke on July 14, 2008 4:32 PM

Danny Guthrie. Not exactly a new name to send a shiver down your spine, but from what I've been told by a Bolton supporting friend of mine, he isn't the mediocre Premier League midfielder some have written him off as.

According to my man in the know, Guthrie was a rare source of pleasure in an otherwise dismal season while on loan at the Reebok Stadium and Wanderers were desperate to sign him on a permanent basis.

Alright, granted, his arrival is exactly a bold statement about the club's ambition and it isn't the sort of big name signing which is going to sprinkle some stardust on Kevin Keegan's squad, but that doesn't necessarily mean he isn't going to be a success at St James's Park.

Continue reading "Give Him A Chance Before You Moan" »

Worries On Wearside

Posted by Luke on July 15, 2008 6:26 PM

It is still a little too soon for the alarm bells to start ringing or for panic buttons to be frantically pressed by fans still trying to pay for their season tickets, but I'm starting to worry about Sunderland ahead of the new season.

Having just about avoided yet another immediate return to the Championship last season, Roy Keane spoke confidently of developing the club over the summer, trimming the dead or dying wood from his squad and investing in players who would be able to take the team on to the next level - in other words keep them clear of the bottom three and, possibly, just possibly, give them an outside chance of a top eight finish.

It was always a bold plan in keeping with their young and ambitious manager, but it looks like a ludicrous one at the moment as Sunderland supporters continue to wait for news of the first new signing.

Continue reading "Worries On Wearside" »

England's Loss Is Durham's Gain

Posted by Luke on July 18, 2008 1:56 PM

As is so often the case, one man's loss is another man's gain and while Paul Collingwood is a dejected figure after he was dropped by England on Friday, Durham's coach Geoff Cook will be - quietly at least - a happy man.

Not since an innings defeat to Sri Lanka in December 2003 have Durham failed to have a player in the England Test team and it is not something anyone at Chester-le-Street will be happy about.

But clouds, silver linings and all that jazz mean that, purely from a Durham perspective, Collingwood's demise and Steve Harmison's continued absence from the Test arena mean their county has never been in a stronger position.

Continue reading "England's Loss Is Durham's Gain" »

Sunbathing With Roy Keane

Posted by Luke on July 20, 2008 6:19 PM

My first day on the Algarve for Sunderland's pre-season friendlies has already thrown up a surprise or two. A maverick taxi driver who almost brought my trip to a premature end by ploughing into the back of a coach and the sight of Roy Keane sunbathing at my hotel.

I was still recovering from my near death experience - okay so I probably wouldn't have died, just suffered a bit of whiplash but still - when I arrived at my four star hotel in Albufeira and discovered I was not alone.

Continue reading "Sunbathing With Roy Keane" »

The Hustler

Posted by Luke on July 22, 2008 2:38 PM

Roy Keane isn't exactly short of a few bob, but Sunderland's manager still turned into debt collector at the team's hotel in Portugal today after hustling some of his players out of their hard earned wedge.

Having sat on the sidelines as his players sweated in the sunshine during their morning training session on Tuesday, Keane challenged his players to a little bet.

Score past him with a shot from the edge of the area and he would pay them, miss the target, or he saved, they lose and cough up to him over lunch.

Continue reading "The Hustler" »

Tying The Knot

Posted by Luke on July 30, 2008 5:46 PM

There haven't been many times in recent years that Newcastle United fans have had reason to look on enviously at the events unfolding at the Stadium of Light but now could be one such occasion.

As the Magpies labour ineffectively in the transfer market and Kevin Keegan attempts to put a brave face on whenever talking about the lack of depth to his squad, Roy Keane has done a pretty good job of strengthening his options with players who, if not world beaters, have proven themselves in the Premier League over a number of years.

The Magpies may be trying to sign a better class of player, but it is still annoying when your bitter rivals are welcoming a steady stream of new arrivals and you're stuck in limbo waiting for an Argentinean defender with a curly mullet to sign from Deportivo La Coruna.

Continue reading "Tying The Knot" »