The Mail Bag

The Perfect Excuse?

Comments (18)

Something lighthearted for the festive period, guys.

I've often chuckled at the whinging excuses Wenger, Beneathus and Ferguson in particular roll out for results that didn't go their way, but here is one excuse that really did get me giggling and wondering WTF?

Hugo Sanchez says a freak rainstorm during Almeria's 4-1 home defeat by Athletic Bilbao helped to see him on his way from the Spanish strugglers. The Mexican goalscoring legend was sacked as Almeria coach after Sunday's 2-0 loss at Espanyol in La Liga.

"I had bad luck," Sanchez told sports newspaper Marca. "For example, it never rains here and the day of the Athletic match it was bucketing down. They put three past us from set-pieces and we lost badly."

Former Mexico manager Sanchez may have a point as the average rainfall in the Andalucian city is only 7 inches. The province of Almeria is normally so dry that it has served as the location for numerous spaghetti westerns.

Can you think of any other cracking pearlers that have either pissed you right off, made you gasp, or just made you think "What a freakin' prat"?

Let's have a bit of fun to cheer our miserable season up, you can even invent an excuse....

ps:- I'll take this opportunity of wishing all you Blue fans a great Christmas wherever in the world you are, and a very, very (COYB) prosperous New Year!
Gerry Quinn, Houston, TX, USA     Posted 22/12/2009 at 12:03:57

back Return to the Mail Bag

Comments

Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer


Gavin Ramejkis
1   Posted 22/12/2009 at 22:01:11

Report abuse

The Jock Grinch Fergie mid 90s when Man U got pumped by Southampton at the Dell, it was the grey kit’s fault, the players couldn’t see each other.
Kevin Sparke
2   Posted 22/12/2009 at 23:55:27

Report abuse

Worst excuse I ever heard was from Bob Paisley, circa Xmas 1980 when some knobhead in the Kop chucked a bottle at Joe Corrigan in the Man City goal and floored him... Everton’s away game against West Brom (I think) had been called off through a frozen pitch.

It went something like this...

"It wasn’t a Liverpool supporter who threw that bottle — another club’s supporters were at the game, as their match was called off"

Way to go. Bob...
Stewart Littler
3   Posted 23/12/2009 at 02:52:22

Report abuse

I was gonna mention the grey Utd kit but Gavin beat me to it. So I’ll go with "We only beat them cos they’re shit," which has been applied to every win (OK, not that many!) we’ve had this season by some TWbers. And I’ll even jump in with ’Sunderland and Burnley are shit’ just in case we get the wins we need this weekend.
Stewart Littler
4   Posted 23/12/2009 at 02:55:37

Report abuse

Oh, and in case we don’t, and to save the more miserable amongst us the bother, if we don’t win at Sunderland, it’s cos we didn’t bring a beach ball, and if we don’t beat Burnley, it’ll be cos we actually thought they were the Villa so only played for the draw.
Tony Cheek
5   Posted 23/12/2009 at 05:37:37

Report abuse

Not a famous one, but after letting an easy cross go through his hands, a local keeper said "Shit, I thought we were playing with a size 5 ball, not a size 4!"
Eric Myles
6   Posted 23/12/2009 at 06:50:58

Report abuse

Yeah that ’grey kit’ excuse of United is a classic. But it got me wondering why all the teams playing against them didn’t wear a grey kit? I mean if they can’t see their own players wearing grey then an opposing team all in grey would be like playing a team of invisible men!!
Alan Clarke
7   Posted 23/12/2009 at 08:48:49

Report abuse

INJURIES!!!
Andy Codling
8   Posted 23/12/2009 at 09:49:33

Report abuse

That sounds like the other one Kevin. You know, "I didn't throw the paving slab on his head, I was in bed at the time." I can't remember the fat kid's name...
Ray Burn
9   Posted 23/12/2009 at 12:23:02

Report abuse

I can’t quote him but i’m pretty sure that any and all utterances by Steve McClaren during his time in charge of England were excuses.

Although I have to say that he has redeemed himself in my eyes with his Dutch accent, the man is comedy gold.
Chris Gallagher
10   Posted 23/12/2009 at 13:07:11

Report abuse

How about Steve G’s excuse of ’I was fairly confident that the guy was about to try and hit me, so I smacked him. That, your honour, is self-defence’.

Actually, if memory serves, the same excuse was also employed by Craig Bellamy this season when he ran 20 yards to hit that fan in self defence.
Gerry Quinn
11   Posted 23/12/2009 at 14:45:06

Report abuse

I still have nightmares about that tackle by twat Gerrard on Gary Naysmith…..

"I want to apologise for the tackle," twat Bambi said at the time. "I did go into the challenge two-footed and with my studs showing, but I tried to pull back.” (I think we all remember the Bluekipper cartoon about “How to pull out of a tackle”!)

Twat Houllier said that he was unhappy with the 3-match ban that twat Bambi was given for “that” tackle on Naysmith. “It was practically an accident. If I had the slightest hint that he was guilty of anything I wouldn’t have come here to try and defend him.”

Wankers, the pair of them, fully understand why they are hated so much.

Franny Porter
12   Posted 23/12/2009 at 14:57:34

Report abuse

Remember Houlier talking about Fowler snorting the touchline;

"He was copying Rigobert Song who pretends to eat the grass in training"

WTF!!! With his nose you stupid twat? Any respect I may have had* for Houlier dissapeared at that point.

(* I didn't have any)
Peter Fearon
13   Posted 23/12/2009 at 15:31:40

Report abuse

Walter Smith used to blame the absence of whoever was injured that week, whether or not he would have played if fit. But the grand daddy of all lamo excuses was the classic from Bill Shankly after the Dark Side was hammered by Ajax ..."SEVEN LUCKY GOALS!!!"
Gerry Quinn
14   Posted 23/12/2009 at 16:07:14

Report abuse

One of the Sky Whore managers once (or a few times) said, ”I did not see it.”
Can you name him, and what was he talking about? (Can’t wait to read some of these classic replies.)
Larry Boner
15   Posted 23/12/2009 at 16:59:26

Report abuse

I was 16 that year Ajax slaughtered Liverpool, 1967 and on TV in black and white, with Johann Cruyff ripping the bastards apart, he was 18 or 19 I think.

After the game, Shanks accused Ajax of being a defensive side, relying on breakaways, Liverpool were hindered by the fog, Ajax's keeper was crap and Liverpool would score at least 5 at home etc etc.

After school the following week a couple of my red mates asked me to go to Anfield to see Liverpool take retribution, I told them that Cruyff would do the same again. Anyway we duly queued up from about 4:30 pm, nearlly got crushed to death, got to the Kop turnstiles and they were closing them, around 6:30 I think.

My mates and me climbed over the turnstiles, as did several thousand others, it was frightening in the Kop, crushing was terrible and I spent the rest of the night trapped against a barrier, but Johann scored both goals for Ajax and the game ended 2-2, I am sure it was foggy that night also.

Next day in school (Cardinal Allen GS) I took a can of the scouring powder Ajax into school, the reason being that the top of the can had 7 holes in it !! It got confiscated by our maths teacher, surely the only time this has ever happened??

There was a little ditti doing the rounds also: "Ajax 7-3, one for you and five for me". A few blues got the strap for singing this in class, but it was well worth it.

Gerry Quinn
16   Posted 23/12/2009 at 19:34:01

Report abuse

Larry,
I was at home in Crosby that night and the TV programme was interrupted to tell us that some fans were injured in the Kop and had been taken to hospital. A short while after, the phone rang and my Dad answered — I joked "That will be the hospital then." I’ve never felt such a prat when my Dad told Mum that my brother was in hospital.

Luckily he was OK - just an extremely sore chest and loads of welts on his chest to prove it. The spectacle case in his pocket had been flattened. Ever felt as though you should have kept your gob shut?

Dick Fearon
17   Posted 23/12/2009 at 19:56:49

Report abuse

Unlike some Twebbers who enjoy heaping ever more misery on fellow blues, I save that kind of stuff for the RS. Currently, there is much pleasure to be had with that diversion.

One of my most memorable moments was many years ago at Goodison. At the end of each home game we would wait for the tannoy to give the RS away score.

After the usual farting sound that always preceded such announcements we were told, Birmingham City 9 Liverpool 1.

A muted kind of puzzled mass muttering broke out. I said to my red mates, ’I could’ve swore he said nine’. Nah, they said, it was NONE and we won 0-1.

The tannoy gave another fart and the announcer very, very, slowly said, that result was, Birmingham 9, N-I-N-E Liverpool 1.

After about 10 seconds of stunned silence there erupted an almighty roar. The red half of town kept a very low profile for a few weeks.

Ste Traverse
18   Posted 24/12/2009 at 00:46:07

Report abuse

What about Kenwrongs shite excuses for his failure to find investment?

December 2007: "The reason I can’t find investment is because we are in the same City as Liverpool FC!"

Fast forward 12 months.

December 2008: " I can’t get us investment because of this credit crunch!"

Add Your Comments

In order to post a comment to the MailBag, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site.

Log in now

Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and MailBag submissions across the site.



© ToffeeWeb