A Golden Time for Gymnastics

Credit: Western Daily Press

This week I have been blown away with the fantastic performances from inside the SSE Hydro Arena from the Gymnastics during the Commonwealth Games. After the Olympics had taken place I was slightly concerned for the sport as we had done exceptionally well and then two of our main gymnasts; Beth Tweddle and Louis Smith were to retire. Little did we all know that in the background we had some impeccable talent waiting to shine through onto the senior level and the Commonwealth Games would be their time to prove to the nation what they have got under their belt.

With the likes of 21 year old Max Whitlock achieving 3 gold medals in the Men's Floor Final, Men's All-around Final and Men's Team Final, silver in the Pommel Horse Final and a bronze in the Parallel Bar's Final for England. But, the star of the competition has to be 16 year old Claudia Fragapane who on her first time competing at senior level is the first female since 1982 to get four gold medals in one Commonwealth Games and definitely one to watch out for in the future. 

Not forgetting Dan Keatings taking gold for Scotland on the Pommel Horse, Frank Baines achieving Silver in Men's All- round final for Scotland and Daniel Purvis.

These individuals are very strong, feisty and powerful athlete, it is amazing how much time, effort and dedication they put into their training. It is not all about prancing around on the floor, every move is complex and precision and concentration is key, there is no room for mistakes. If they fall off an apparatus they get back up, no rolling around on the floor and continue with their routine to fight for their place on the podium.

From the second the gymnasts walked out into the arena on the first days of competitions right until the final gold medal was given out I was hooked. It really is amazing to see, learn and cheer on a sport which is not always in the spotlight and can be forgotten about once the major events like the Nationals, Olympics and Commonwealth Games are over.

I am very proud of our gymnasts from our home nation, they have done us proud with 26 out of the 39 medals being won by England, Scotland and Wales which is fantastic when the athletes join together to make Great Britain at the Nationals and then the 2016 Olympics in Rio. I hope that this sport will find some dominance amongst the likes of Football, Rugby, Cricket and Tennis. Certainly, myself will be keeping a closer eye on gymnastics more often.

A massive congratulations to all the gymnasts in the games!!

Twitter: @alice_stoker 

Who really has the final say in the Transfer Market?

 Transfer and Loan Market. Credit: The Offside - Catania

Twice a year the Transfer Window opens and every time there seems to be a new record signing, but how much of an input do players actually have in a move to clubs?

A lot of these deals are an on-going process which seem to go on for some time, if you look at the Gareth Bale move to Real Madrid it took over three month with negotiations between both clubs before Bale had a chance to go over his personal terms with Madrid. 

It is becoming a regular occurrence now that deals are done last minute and out of the blue. How have these players been able to express their views? They need to feel 100% happy and comfortable with the club they are moving to, will they be but into the starting 11 every game and not being placed on the bench. Unfortunately for those players who have stepped up to the Premiership from the lower leagues do sometimes find themselves sat on the side-lines watching the game from the dugout; one of those being Luciano Becchio who moved to Norwich from Leeds United in January this year. Since then, a further two new strikers have been signed by the Premiership side which has pushed Becchio out of contention to being picked for the squad.

It does put into perspective that there is a huge amount to discuss between both clubs before they can strike the deal. But who are the ones that are lengthening the process? The manager? The players? The Chairman? Or is it the players' agents?!

The player will always sets his sights high and at some point will want to move on somewhere new for another challenge in their career or have somewhere in mind as their 'dream move'. But I believe that their agents might have heard that various clubs are interested in his client and he stirs this information with the press which could put pressure on the player. It gets everyone talking!

This could have been something which influenced Wayne Rooney when he put a transfer request in at Manchester United, was it really in his heart that he wanted to move from the league winners to another club in the Premiership?! He might have had a few issues with Sir Alex Ferguson and coaching staff at United but this did not come across during training and games.

I am not saying that players should not have agents, but for every positive there is always a negative and they seem to cause numerous problems. Do they really have the player’s best interest at heart, or is it all about the money? The players will benefit from the move there is no doubt about that with the substantial increase in wages and a luxury lifestyle they can achieve from this. But how much are the agents actually pocketing and once they have their hands on that money, do they ever think about how happy their client is once the move is complete.

From a fans perspective the transfer window is something that is exciting to watch but also brings frustration when it involves their club and players. Nobody really thinks about the affect on the club, it is just a business and greed. The more money the better, and I think it is going to spiral in years to come.  

Twitter:  @alice_stoker