Rugby Football League

Super League

Friday 21st July 2017

Kick Off 20.00 Actual 20.03

Leigh Centurions 25 Salford Red Devils 0,  attendance 7,002

@ Leigh Sports Village Stadium

Sale Way

Leigh

Greater Manchester

WN7 4GX

£20 Admission

£3 Programme, 84 pages.

Leigh Sports Village Stadium was opened in late 2008 and has a capacity of just over 12,000. I had been here previously to watch football on 21st April 2009 ( Leigh Genesis 2 Bradford Park Avenue 1, attendance 301, Northern Premier League, Premier Division). Genesis played here until they folded in 2011.

I had seen Leigh play at their former home, Hilton Park, back on 18th March 1990, in a Division 1 match versus Widnes, where they drew 20-20 in front of a 4,848 crowd.

Tonights game had a very unexpected result as bottom of the table beat 4th place in the final regular season match before the play offs.  It was 18-0 at halftime and incredibly it took 35 minutes of the second half to add to the scoring when Leigh kicked a drop goal. Shortly afterwards they scored a breakaway try, which was converted, to complete the scoring. More importantly, it lifted them off the bottom of the table, replaced by Widnes Vikings.

Leigh are yet another club who vastly add numbers to make it look like they are well supported, as there looked to be fewer than 5,000 present, despite the total they announced.

The 146th Open Golf Championship

Day 2

Friday 21st July 2017

Tee Off 06.35

@ Royal Birkdale Golf Club

Waterloo Road

Southport

PR8 2LX

£80 Admission

£15 Park & Ride

£10 Programme * (didn’t bother at that price)

*Free guide and tee times available, plus free course maps.

Birkdale Golf Club was founded in 1889 and was awarded ‘Royal’ status in 1951. Birkdale was nominated as the venue for the 1940 Open Championship, but this was cancelled due to the outbreak of WW2 in 1939. The Open Championship was finally staged here in 1954 and this year is the tenth time it has hosted it. The Curtis Cup, Walker Cup, Women’s British Open and the Ryder Cup have also been held here.

The previous Open Championship winners here are Peter Thompson (twice), Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, Johnny Miller, Tom Watson, Ian Baker-Finch, Mark O’Meara and Padraig Harrington. The latter two were playing today.

Today consisted of 52 games, each having 3 players. The first group set off at 06.35, with the last trio heading out at 16.16. We saw parts of 20/52 games. Having arrived on the course at 07.00, expecting to get an absolute soaking, if the totally wrong BBC weather forecast was to believed, we made it through until 1605 before the rain arrived, but we had planned to head off around that time anyway. By the time we were driving away from the course, the rain was absolutely hammering down.

Golf isn’t really the best sport to watch ‘live’ and there is no atmosphere whatsoever out on the course. Rather like Formula 1, it is best watched on television from the comfort of your armchair.

Despite not being a big golf fan, at least of the 60 players we saw in action, I had actually heard of quite a few of them. Recognising any of them in the street however………….

Ernie Els, Martin Kaymer, Zach Zohnson, Jason Day, Sergio Garcia, Rickie Fowler, Adam Scott, Paul Casey, Matt Kuchar, Paul Lawrie, Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Lee Westwood, Phil Mickelson, Francesco Molinari, Marc Leishman, Bubba Watson, Darren Clarke, Padraig Harrington, Henrik Stenson, Jordan Spieth, Louis Oosthuizen and Justin Rose were the ones I knew of in advance.

Rugby Football League

National Championship

Sunday 16th July 2017

Kick Off 15.00 Actual 15.03

Swinton Lions 20 Dewsbury Rams 42,  attendance 1,002

@ Sale R.U.F.C.

Heywood Road

Sale

M33 3WB

£17 Admission

£3 Programme, 32 pages.

Swinton have been playing their home matches here at Sale R.U.F.C. since 2016. The stadium opened in 1905 and following the move of Swinton here, a new General Safety Certificate was required, resulting in the 5,400 capacity being reduced to the current 3,387.

This now takes the number of home venues I have seen Swinton play at to six, having previously seen them at Station Road (12.1.92), Gigg Lane, Bury FC (15.11.92), Edge Hall Road, Orrell RUFC (9.6.00), Moor Lane, Salford City FC (8.9.02) and Park Lane, Sedgley Park RUFC(1.2.04).

The game itself was a relegation battle, as second bottom hosted fourth bottom. Despite getting the first try, Swinton went in at the break 14-24 down. Dewsbury went over to increase their lead to 14-30, before Swinton converted a try of their own to stay in it at 20-30, but the comeback was short lived as Dewsbury added two more converted tries.

Dewsbury are now safe from the drop, and despite this defeat, Swinton could still overhaul third bottom Oldham, who are just one point above them, as they travel to bottom of the table Bradford Bulls in their final match.