Sometimes, ordinary
sportspeople and teams deliver extraordinary performances.
World darts champion elect, Michael van Gerwen, last night hit a
magnificent nine-dart finish in his semi final against James Wade. It’s always a special moment when you witness
sporting perfection – a hole-in-one, a 147, a 300-point ten-pin bowling game –
but in van Gerwen’s case, there was something inevitable about his
achievement. His trebling in this
tournament has been nothing short of astonishing; in his previous match against
reigning champ Adrian Lewis, van Gerwen nailed more treble twenties than
singles (170-odd against 140-odd). So,
whilst still a huge thrill to watch, the nine-darter wasn’t the biggest
surprise in the world. Had he completed
a second in the very next leg – eight perfect darts were followed by a
double-twelve attempt that missed by a millimetre – that really would’ve been
something.
This year’s tournament at the Alexandra Palace saw the return to the
world stage of Paul Lim. In 1990, Lim made history by becoming the
first player to take out a nine-dart finish in what was then the Embassy World
Championship. Unlike van Gerwen’s, Lim’s
feat came right out of the blue. He had
never been further than the second round of the Worlds and most of his
tournament success was achieved in less competitive events in Asia. He was, in short, a decent player at world
level but no more than that. If anyone were
going to do it, it would surely be Bristow, Wilson or Lowe (the only man at the
time to have a televised nine-darter to his name). But here he was, this unassuming naturalised
American, demonstrating a steady throwing arm and unerring accuracy, and
prompting some bizarre commentary from Tony Green: “Yes. Yes!!
Yes!!!” (on the second 180); then, after the final dart, the wonderfully
circular: “Is he excited? We are. Is he happy?
We are. And with fifty-two
thousand pound [sic] in the bank, so is he.”
Lim faced a certain Michael van Gerwen in the first round this year. He lost, of course, but not before taking out
a maximum 170 finish. Proof that he
still has the capacity for perfection.
--
David Lloyd 214 not out versus
India
Dear old Bumble. Without doubt
one of the most eccentric, charismatic and amusing commentators there is. One of his stock phrases is “Start the car!”,
indicating that a match is nearing its climax.
A couple of years ago, when the World Cup was held on the Indian
sub-continent, Lloyd adapted this to “Start the tuk tuk!” I almost fell of the sofa laughing. An absolute genius.
But even Lloyd himself might acknowledge that he was less of a superstar
as a player. His first-class batting
average was 33, he bowled decent slow left-armers and he helped Lancashire to
four Gillette Cups in the early-mid 70s.
A good, talented, whole-hearted cricketer, no doubt, but not a world
beater. Nevertheless, he was drafted in
to the Test team in 1974 to replace the self-exiled Geoff Boycott as opener. In just his second match, against India at
Edgbaston, Lloyd made 214 not out as England racked up 459/2 declared.
A Test match double hundred is a rare treasure. By way of illustration, and to take a period
of time not quite at random, it’s worth noting that between June 1930 and
February 1933, only six doubles were scored in all Test cricket. All of them by Don Bradman. For Lloyd to add his name to the ranks of
Test double-centurions, then, was a noteworthy achievement.
Sadly for Lloyd, he had a torrid time at the hands of Lillee and
Thompson on the following winter’s Ashes tour.
He was injured, came home and never played another Test match. His Test career spanned nine matches over
seven months. Years later, the peerless
John Arlott wrote that Lloyd had been ‘effectively shocked and shattered out of
Test cricket.’
--
Coventry City 1987 FA Cup
Coventry were 70/1 with the bookmakers to lift the 1987 FA Cup. I know this because a few years later I met a
chap called Bernard who would have a tenner on them every year. The £700 he trousered that year will, I’m guessing,
just about allow him to break even over his lifetime.
Sorry, Tottenham fans, but everyone apart from you lot was cheering on
the Sky Blues on 16 May 1987. It was
classic FA Cup. The footballing
aristocrats from North London versus the blue-collars from the industrial West
Midlands. How could the Lilywhites,
boasting such talents as Hoddle, Waddle and Ardiles, be upstaged by the likes
of Lloyd McGrath, Greg Downs and Micky Gynn?
[Clearly what swayed it for Coventry was having future Ipswich playmaker
Steve Sedgley on the bench.] This was
Tottenham Hotspur, for God’s sake, bidding for an eighth FA Cup success. The club had never lost in the final.
Having fallen behind to the prolific Clive Allen’s early goal – his 49th
of the season – Coventry twice came from behind to level the score at 2-2 after
90 minutes. Their second equaliser,
Keith Houchen’s flying header, is one of the most famous goals in Wembley
history and earned the player that season’s BBC Goal Of The Season award. In extra time, the footballing gods decreed
that Gary Mabbutt should be the fall guy of the piece and it was his
unfortunate own goal that handed the redoubtable Sky Blues victory. Captain Brian ‘Killer’ Kilcline’s primal roar
as he lifts the trophy is an enduring image.
As for Mabbutt, well, he too is immortalised in the Coventry fanzine GMK
– Gary Mabbutt’s Knee.
The 1987 FA Cup remains Coventry’s only major trophy in their 93-year history.
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