Â鶹Éç

Ketchup with Bacon sarnies --- surely not
My mat went to an a boro away game with his late father many years ago and in a greasy spoon cafe asked his dad to pass the red sauce to which the reply was " whats the matter, you a {word we cant say without getting modded but relates to the other meaning of gay - as in not the happy meaning}son - true story
Sausages anbd brown sauce - has to be!!!
Glad to see Southgate in there tho

Hurrah for ketchup on bacon! I thought I was the only one.

Evening Dan.
Cheers for the mention, in what again was another cracking blog, gives me something to brag about over here in the Lowlands. ;)
Was lucky enough to see MOTD last week and I agree Matt Holland did well on his "debut", although to be honest I was not that surprised he came over as a nice guy, because that's the way he's always seemed to carry himself, unlike Robbie Savage who had a bit of a bad boy rep, but greatly surprised me by comming over as a well spoken, honest and modest guy on a previous show.

If there's one negative I have to comment on, its the fact that this gem of a blog seems to be a bit hidden on the main page, and it seemed to be up a little later than usual. (that's no critisism of you.) So Beeb sort it out so that this blog gets the recognition it deserves.

Finally, sausages, white bread and tomato ketchup for me, luckily there's still some goodies you can get almost worldwide, unlike some biscuits.

p.s cheers to followingborohurts for the heads up.

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

5 sausagearms, no sauce for you than sir?
And ironicaly I think the word you were looking for was PHILISTINES. ;-p

Re 7, and ironically I misspelt it ironicaly. Doh.

If any of the nominations for serial club abandoner Steve Bruce came from, say, Huddersfield or South Norwood, I'd suggest they are of the sarcastic variety.

Roger Federer does come across well most of the time. Although that high-pitched whine you hear after he loses to Rafa Nadal at a(nother) Open isn't just from his private jet. I think Rafa comes across as a nicer guy.

Chris Waddle may be a lovely bloke but I'm not sure you should be commentating on football when you can't actually say the words associated with the game. Someone want to tell me what a "pelanty" is? Sorry Chris...

Where is Sir Chris Powell in this list? Chairman of the PFA, footballing gentleman and all round hero!

5. At 10:41pm on 17 Nov 2009, sausagearms wrote:

If you want a bit of moisture on your bacon or sausage, what's wrong with a beautifully-cooked fried egg?

Here here Sausage, fried egg with a runny yolk beautiful!!!
&

7. At 11:19pm on 17 Nov 2009, Holloway2Holland wrote:
5 sausagearms, no sauce for you than sir?
And ironicaly I think the word you were looking for was PHILISTINES. ;-p

Ha ha that was quality!!

7. At 11:19pm on 17 Nov 2009, Holloway2Holland wrote:

Re 7, and ironically I misspelt it ironicaly. Doh.

--

Your grasp of irony is almost as strong as your grasp of spelling...

*tuts* PALESTINES ;-P

While we're still broadly on the subject of meat-based nutrition, could we throw the discussion open to the components of the perfect fry-up? Dan, I'm sure that although you seem to get a worrying amount of your daily calorific intake from biscuit-based food groups, you are partial to a good Full English now and again?

For me, there can be only one winning combination:

Fried Egg (2)
Sausage (2)
Bacon (2)
Black Pudding (1)
Mushrooms (button, fried)
Tomatoes (grilled, 2)
Hash Browns (3)

Toast (white, buttered, 2 slices)
Tea (strong, milk, 3 sugars)
Orange juice (ice cold)

I have toyed with fried bread in my time, but feel that it tips the ratio of taste:imminent death slightly too far. And of course it goes without saying that baked beans are suitable only for vegetarians and cretins.

sausagearms.... I find it ironic that in a sausage and bacon debate you use a mostly Muslim country for referrence.. Doh!

Dan... where is big Johnny Hartson in there..?? and its never a ketchup on any breakfast material.. always a brown.. Im digging the mayo and mustard on the cold one.

Wahey I made the list, Linvoy for England!!

Mayonnaise mixed with any other sauce (mustard, ketchup and brown in particular... the 'big three', if you will) is the reserve of true culinary heroes and I have no doubt that Dan's sausage sandwich this morning was nothing short of heavenly.

In fact, if you're looking to take any dish to the next level, a splattering of mayo is the thing that will really elevate it to the realms of the gods. Try it with spag bol, chili con carne, curry, bbq chops... oh my. Don't get me started on the chops.

Have you tried a sausage and black pudding with a dollop of tinned tomato,s with an oxo sprinkled into the tinned toms,One of the nicest guys in sport is Phill Thompson.

This had me laughing out loud several times... Got some funny looks on the train.

Great stuff...

I discovered a caravan on a beach in wales that sold black pudding burgers. So simple but I'd never thought of it. Well worth a try if you can find big enough black pudding.

Sausage arms - you missed beans. You have to have the beanage otherwise the meal can get a bit dry. Cheapest can possible too. Heinz are just too sweet.

And for fried bread, try it with ghee. Twice as bad for you I think, but well worth the heart seizures.

Good blog as usual Dan. Always an entertaining read. I think yours and Jake Humphrey's are the best blogs on the site.

The list of nice guys in sport is quite a tough one to compile! It's like when you name your top 10 women of all time - you complete the list then always think of 2 or 3 more who really should be on there.

I'd like to throw a few names into the hat though....

Graeme Hick - The nicest guy in sport without a shadow of doubt.
Alec Stewart - All-round decent bloke.
Jimmy Bullard - Comedy and kindness - a winning combo.
Clarke Carlisle - Seemed like a thoroughly nice guy when on MOTD2.

Oh, and i've met Mark Cueto and his dad before, and his dad is probably an even nicer guy!

Could you compile a list of the top 10 ex/current sportsmen who you'd like to go on a heavy night out with? I reckon Botham will be in that list somewhere.....haha

Steve Bruce?

Is this the same Steve Bruce that follows the cash, leaving clubs as quickly as he can, as soon as he gets offered more £££££££?

Or maybe it's the same Steve Bruce that decided to award man of the match to David Beckham after he played about 15 minutes in an England game, purely because he didn't want to award it to a player who spurned him and Sunderland in the transfer window.

my friend was with his kid at jo'burg international airport when he bumped into Samuel Eto'o. He said he was really friendly and was happy to pose for pictures and autographs even after a long haul flight. Not bad.

A stark contrast to the Guardian small talk interview when he came across like a moody kid. Shows how it depends on the moment and mood I guess...

..or maybe he'd just had a bacon sarnie and was still on a pork high.

Sorry to spoil the love-in but this irrelevant discussion about fry-ups rather exposes the irrelevance of Mr. Walker. Perhaps such irreverent discussions are the reason that his blog is somewhat discreet on the site, just as well I say.

What 20 nice guys and no mention of Bobby Charlton!
Really nice guys dominated by footballers? I don't think so you need to get out in the world a bit and come across some exceptional people who don't just kick a round ball about for extortionate wages.
Gerald Davies the Wales & Lions great is one who I would have put on the list. Bill Beaumont maybe, Chris Hoy, Steve Redgrave, Jonny Wilkinson, Willie John McBride (yes I am an ex rugby player), Steve Cram ....

Sausagearms

Yes, yes, yes to all, except for the tomatoes. Grilled tomatoes are practically sun dried, which is a Mediterranean concept which has no place in a full English. Beans all the way. Brown sauce, no debate.

Well made fried bread is a delight, but difficult to achieve. Often glassy fragile, often oozing with fat, somewhere between is delicate, crunchy, fried starch nirvana.

Aren't there any nice ladies in sport? Tempting as it may be to believe, I wasn't necessarily thinking of Sharapova, Pendleton or Lewis. But Denise Lewis must be one of the nicest in every way

My

13. At 08:27am on 18 Nov 2009, Mikey wrote:

'Dan... where is big Johnny Hartson in there..??'

Is this the same john hartson who did this......

#22 So discreet and irrelevant that you found it and commented..

The only time I choose not to read this blog is when I am hungry..

Standardly good blog, always a decent read for it's mixture of sporting chit chat and gastronomical banter.

Question for Dan, a mate of mine sometimes works on MOTD as a camera man, his name is Andy Powell, just wondered if you had worked with him before?

Apparently Phil Brown calls Tomato Ketchup 'red sauce' and puts it on his roast dinner!!

I'd think Big Lesley Vainikolo needs a mention. I was at the match at Headingley when Leeds were playing Bradford and Robbie Burrows was knocked out. Les ignored play, rushed to Robbie, pulled his gum shield out and checked he hadn't swallowed his tongue, a true great.

Another one witnessed in person was Keith Senior this season when Chev Walker had a horror leg break. I know he has some bad press does Keith for fronting up in games but he is an absolute gent

Aww im disappointed I never put forward my hero Lucas Radebe for selection :( Surely the nicest guy ever in football

Also @ #22, if you consistently dont like this blog then don't go to all the (apparent) effort of finding it and commenting.

Good job Dan enjoyed reading that, looking forward to those upcoming interviews you mentioned. I am now up for some grub... my bowl of value corn flakes didnt quite do the job this morning!

Met Matt Holland at Keele student's union a few years back when he was getting his coaching badges and I was getting drunk, and apparently studying. He seemed like a top bloke, affable and willing to placate drunken morons going; "You’re that Matt Holland bloke, you scored against the blues last year you bd!" and other such trite. He actually bought my brother and a friend 20 sambuca, so not exactly an exponent of a healthy drinking mentality but a great bloke!

Go on Steve Bruce!

Glad he made the list.

I do think the comments people make about your clothes are funny. I suspect that Mark from Cheshire was being a tad silly when he wrote that letter.

You obviously have limited sporting interest Dan. What about golf or is that not of interest because it was invented by the Jocks? There is no nicer man to grace sport than Arnold Palmer (although Jack Nicholas and Tom Watson ran him close).
Nial Quinn - I like the guy but cannot see him without thinking about the dive in the box when he was with Arsenal. No one else near him as the ball came in. Don't remember Arnold ever diving.
Tim Henman - you are mistaking boring for niceness. Easy mistake to make, if you have nothing contentious to say then you can appear quite nice. How about Borg?

Thanks for the reply Dan. Quite oddly your comment had a great deal more grace than various randoms who it wasn't even aimed at!

what about football funny man jimmy bullard?

My brother was recently invited to Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink's house after a nearby game of golf on a Surrey course. Jimmy welcomed him and the others in with open arms, cracked open a few beers for them and ordered a curry in while they watched the racing on the giant TV. He then gave them a guided tour of the place and they ended up staying for a few hours. I think the fact that the highlight of my brother's day was the great pleasure he took in christening Jimmy's toilet says more about him than anything else.

I usually have 2 bacon sarnies, one with HP and one with ketchup. the world's just one big melting pot, there's room for all colours in my masticatory episodes.

(#38) - Great story, I've always thought ol' Jimmy Floyd seemed like a nice guy....

33. At 10:02am on 18 Nov 2009, Dan Walker wrote:
Right... the cupboards have been replenished.

I am staggered the choice of condiments has sparked off such a debate.
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with all due respect dan, that is the most interesting thing in this blog.

it's reassuring people are more interested in sausages and brown sauce than who your celebrity friends are, perhaps there is hope for mankind after all :-)

I am amazed that Steve Bruce has found his way into this list. I do not think that Wigan, Sheffield United, Huddersfield or Palace fans (like myself) will agree with his inclusion. He has a history of leaving clubs in the lurch having spent a very mimimal period of time in charge, to follow his the dollar elsewhere.

Obviously, I'm most familiar with his exit from Palace, which was nothing short of a disgrace, but I understand that he treated the other clubs I've mentioned pretty badly as well.

Just because he comes accross ok in the occasional interview, he is not necessarily a nice guy. I think a previous comment referred to Robbie Savage - yes, he may come accross as inteligent and likeable human being in interviews, but this is also the same man that turned up to training at Derby, the day after they were relegated from the Premiership, in a brand new Ferrari. Nice!

Dan,

I found interesting your coverage of the suicide of Robert Enke - clearly a very sad situation. But I also think that it would have been useful to touch on the issues of depression and suicide (which is on the rise) in the wider community, particularly in young men and I suppose largely your target audience. Did you not miss an opportunity here ?

Blueleadbiter.. If an act of violence is not to be condoned then there would be no rugby players in there coz Ill guarantee everyone of them has went outside the rules at some point in their career.. Tim Henman melted a tennis ball at a ball boy/girl before he was the darling of English Tennis..

Lets be honest.. it was Eyal Berkovic and although it should never have happened.. he was a little so and so.. Shearer never got the fallout for doing it to Neil Lennon if you remember..

I think Steve Bruce should be replaced by Martin Jol - he was always dignified in his interviews even when decisions hadn't gone his way (i.e. Pedro Mendes - the goal that never was vs. Man Utd) and he has a genuine love for Spurs and their fans despite the complete mistreatment by the clubs board. He would be top of my list

- And a couple of posthumous ones?

Sir Bobby Robson would have walked onto any list, were he still alive (only just missed out). And 'Sir' Bob Paisley, whose record of success as manager may have eventually have been overtaken by a man who would never make it onto any 'nice guy' list ('Sir' Alex Ferguson) but it's taken a long time.

That Bob Paisley was never knighted is a travesty... It's too late now - they don't give knighthoods posthumously.

What about Henry Cooper and Frank Bruno. Both very likeable blokes. Also you have Tiger Woods, Lewis Hamilton who also seem very pleasant and likeable as well.

If they don't have to still be alive then surely Sir Bobby Robson would be there as well.

On the breakfast front you have to drop the black pudding but put in fried bread and also a few beans but not too many.

just realised someone else also nominated jimmy bullard....whoops

to continue my stupidity how about kevin muskat?

re 47. Great shout - Sir Bobby deserves a place despite his recent demise. Even bereft of life, he brings more intregrity to football than the likes of Steve Bruce.

mikey,

in fairness to tim henman, he didn't hit the ball at the ball girl, he hit the ball in frustration and it unfortunately hit the ball girl. you make it sound like a heinous act of thuggery hehehe.

nobody was more mortified than he was after that episode.

So pleased Peter Beardsley is in this list. Considering his footballing pedigree, he is so unassuming and has time for all of his fans (and there are still lots around begging autographs and photos).
At a schools training session, he coached the kids, moved goalposts around so they could play a match and must be THE most talented ballboy I have ever seen. Top Man!

Someone beat me to the Steve Bruce comments…..££££££££££££££!!!!
Of today’s players Kevin Doyle has to be in there...
I had the great privilege of meeting Sir Stanley Matthews once, what a gent
Mark Webber again I had the privilege of spending an evening with him once…for my ignorance I didn’t know who he was at the time , but what a genuine guy he was as I realised who I was talking to!!!

45. At 11:32am on 18 Nov 2009, Mikey wrote:

Tim Henman melted a tennis ball at a ball boy/girl before he was the darling of English Tennis..


Melted eh?? very impressive!!

To those of you who criticise this blog for being 'irrelevant': do us all a favour and go read a bit of Phil McToffee, Mihir Boring or any article by Jonathan "OMG I'm, like, so in love with football" Stevenson. Dan's blog is funny, insightful and - shock horror - original, which is everything a good blog should be.

If you don't like it, go and eat some Tesco Value cheese crackers (other budget cheese biscuits are available... but none are quite so asphyxiating)

I think one person that deserves to be on the list is 'Big Dave' - Darren Moore! You couldn't meet a nicer man, and he's a cult hero at every club hes played at, and he does endless charity work with his close friend, Linvoy Primus.

I know it isn't a thread on charity but Ulises De La Cruz used to contribute a percentage of his wage to the charity he has set up in Ecuador, and has become an ambassador for UNICEF whilst doing so, surely meaning he is nice in some ways?!

Federer shouldnt be on the list. He is no doubt worthy when he is on a winning streak, but he is one of sports worst losers. I dont think you should get a place in the top 20 if you arent gracious in defeat, which all to often he isnt. To be honest he probably wouldnt be as good a player as he is if he wasnt so hurt when he loses, but the fact is he all to often makes comments that essentially say how much better he is than the other player and they only won because he had a bad day (perhaps losses to Nadal aside).
I also agree that Steve Bruce shouldnt be in the list, mainly for the same reasons as above, but also the way he treated certain clubs early in his managerial career.

With the title of the blog being nicest people in sport it appears that it was originally designed to include women! Female votes from me include Laura Robson, Anastasia Dobromyslova, Lee Mckenzie, Becca Adlington and number 1, Gail Emms.

How about the King of Spain / wheelie bin, Ashley Giles? Never met him but always seems like a thoroughly nice chap when interviewed. He was my cricketing idol when I was a kid, too (slow left-armers need idols more than most)

what about tuffers???

56. At 12:19pm on 18 Nov 2009, Dan Walker wrote:

polite & respectful_nffc_no more cheekiness....... unless pushed (#41) re: 'celebrity friends' I assume you are talking about the Bullard story. You're right, I just read it back and even I thought I sounded like an idiot. I have taken it on the chin.
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hehehe, fair do's dan,

for the record i'm a daddies brown sauce man on both bacon and sausage, i struggle to find a place in my life for ketchup :)

Peter Schmeichel - can't believe we missed him! Deserves inclusion for his outstanding achievements in the field of bacon promotion alone.

Here it is, boys and girls. a joy to behold:

For nicest sporting bloke, dare I suggest Stefan Edberg? He was well known in his playing heyday for always winning the award for most sporting player in tennis.

(Hoping all the blokes don't scoff at a woman daring to pop in and comment!)

what about tuffers?

Graeme Swann seems like an absolute class act! Always cracking jokes and keeping a smile on everyones face

On the charity tip, good old Dean Kiely used to donate ALL his win bonuses to charity and got the back four to donate £50 to a local charity everytime they kept a clean sheet (admittedly that wasn't too often but the thought was there).

Well Dan this has got to be the most replies you've ever had eh?

It was a good topic choice, it just as usual, doesn't have an awful lot of topical merit - let's not forget these are meant to be FOOTBALL blogs.

Best blog on here by far is Robbo Robson which is epitomized by the amount of comments he gets EVERY time. Having said that, Steve Claridge and Michael Gray's blogs are just as worthy of a read, though for footballing purposes.

Mihir Bhose is tosh, I agree. Though he now spends his time boring me during my daily commute in the Evening Standard. Phil McNulty doesn't know as much as he thinks he does (Liverpool for the Prem indeed!) and that fella who does the European blogs ditto.

Another thought - who remembers Taribo West? From what I remember, he was comfortably Derby County's best player. He promised to go on and play for other struggling clubs in a bid to make them better. A real footballing philanthropist (or just a madman). Seemed ok though.

Edberg's a good shout, but I completely disagree with 58's comments about Federer - he certainly looks unhappy when he loses, but I've never known him to come accross as ungracious. There's no doubt he's hurting, but he always seems genuine to me.

#22 Buy a thesaurus!

No63, Seeing as you said Peter Schmeichel, I'd like to put Ole Gunnar Solskjaer into the mix

I met Eidur Gudjohnson (hope I spelt it correctly!) at Barcelona airport two years ago.

I was dreadfully hungover, having spent an all expenses paid long weekend there on a work xmas trip, but got chatting to him and he was really friendly and talked very openly about where he saw his future, etc.

A top chap!

On the bacon/sauce/sausage debate, without wanting to play devil's advocate...I'm a huge believer in mixing tomato sauce with brown sauce to make the perfect breakfast sauce. Anyone else do this?

"Having said that, Steve Claridge and Michael Gray's blogs are just as worthy of a read, though for footballing purposes."

That's precisely the point. There are millions of full-on football blogs on this site already. So if that's what you're looking for, you know where to go. What exactly are you doing here?

As Dan himself said earlier, we need some light relief and this blog provides just that. I find Steve Claridge and Michael Gray's stuff rather tedious. Also (and no offence to Michael Gray, for he clearly has other gifts) based on his personal replies to user comments, I'm dubious as to how much of the blog is his own work. By all means interview him once a week or whetever, but don't expect us to believe that he actually wrote it.

Matt Holland, what a bloke! I never knew there was so much to sitting on a couch and talking! Well, there still isn't but for his first time in the show he was very professional! Lescott and Rooney sound like a quality two players to bring in, I guess you'll be adjusting your list to put Rooney at the top then when he's on the show? :D top read, a sarnie with no sauce though, WHEN WILL THE Â鶹Éç LEARN!?

I always thought Gary Mabbutt came across as a genuinely nice chap. Just my opinion so there you go.

Back in my heyday I once played on the wonderful Portland Road pitch for my youth team Bishops Stortford FC when we played Ipswich in the FA Youth Cup. Matt Holland's brother Joe played for us at the time and before the game not only did Matt come into the changing rooms to wish his brother luck he also took a moment to speak to a few of the lads before the biggest game of our young lives. I'll always remember Matt and that glimpse of fame and the 4-0 drubbing that occurred just after our brief encounter!!

Did I never make it because I like both brown and red sauce in a sausage sandwich?

Clearly never met Chris Powell? The man is the ultimate gent... In my time follwoing club and country I've never met a more genuine person!

Dean Windass has to be on the list. When he played for Oxford a few years back me and my mates used to go and watch tehm train after school (sad, I know) and on more than one occasion he'd get a few of the players to stop and have a kick around and a penalty comp with us. He even gave me a training bib which is still in the garage somewhere

I should point out that theyd stop after training, not during. Dont think the boss would have been happy with his players having a kick about with kids when hes trying to coach

#79 - Wow!! A Dean Windass Oxford training bib!! Start the bidding war please!!

Well if it's mainly about living footballers or ex footballers then what about Sir Trevor Brooking and Mick Channon

#79/80 – Dean Windass???? I’m sorry did I read that wrong, Dean Windass???

One of the dirtiest players of a generation and a deplorable character off it…that Dean Windass?

The same Dean Windass that got a four-game ban for a 4-letter word tirade at a referee in a club car park after a match??

Don’t be fooled by him acting like an angel just because he’s fishing for a managers job!!

Nicky Summerbee (ex Swindon and Man City legend of the mid '90s) was once walking his dog in a local park where the under 15s team I played for were training. He stopped for a kickabout with a few of us when we'd finished.

I hit his Jack Russell with a penalty and he laughed.

That story sounded better in my head...

Great blog by the way Dan! Am loving Football Focus too.

One question for you: Is Garth Crooks like that all the time?

Christiano Ronaldo.



Only joking

Ketchup in a bacon sarnie? How eliteist. So what's wrong with French mustard?

And why is it that it can't just be a bloke thing without the PC feminist brigade sticking an oar in? Yawn!

What about David Beckham???

Crispy bacon and sausage sandwhich, with tomato sauce, and toasted warburtons bread, nothing better!!!

Joey Barton?

Beans are worthless without 3 or 4 thick slices of strong cheddar melted in. Add the contents of the spice cupboard for some real tastebud interest.

George Burley always came across as a nice guy, or perhaps just a bit special.

amon64lfc: Yes, yes and thrice yes. Cheesy beans are something special, but until you've dumped half a pot of curry powder in the mix you're still nowhere near the ultimate bean experience. Just divine.

That said, the potent mix of beans and curry powder is not recommended for the light of bowel.

I'd have to nominate Dennis Irwin and Paul McGrath for the nice guy awards.

McGrath in particular is nothing but a gentleman when you meet him. I've encountered him several times, when he's been at high and low points, and even at his lowest ebb he is one of the nicest people you could have the pleasure of meeting.
His personal problems may distort some people's opinions of him, but even when he's on a bender, he's an absolute pleasure to meet.

Oh yes, meant to add to the breakfast debate.

Sausages, hash browns and ketchup in a white bread sandwich. Only way to go.

For me, there should be a distinction between funny people
Tuffers
His heir apparent Swann
Bullard
Dean Macey
Usain Bolt
Marat Safin

and Geniunely nice people
Beardsley
Chris Powell (my number 1)
Lucas Radebe
Dean Kiely (no i'm not a Charlton fan)
Zola

As much as both are appreciated, they truly good guys & girls are the ones who deserve recognition.

I also feel there needs to be some female representation, so allow me to suggest:
Denise Lewis
Becky Adlington
Steffi Graf
Victoria Pendleton
Jess Ennis
Alyson Felix
Merlene Ottey

Without wanting to belittle people's experiences i think it's hard to judge people on one-off meetings, because as has been mentioned, it can be all about the mood they're in at the time. For example i know not many Liverpool fans would vote for Gudjohnsen, nor Barca fans Eto'o. The people i've chosen are based on years of watching them react to joy & disappointment in a dignified manner.

And please stop talking about fried breakfasts - i'm on a bleeding diet!

Cheese + beans + BBQ sauce = ultimate beans. Fact.

Definitely agree with Paul McGrath.

I think I'll be having fried porridge tomorrow. Fresh out of bacon