This weekend I only managed to catch the Tottenham V Chelsea and Newcastle V Man United games. Both ended in 2nil wins for the away teams and I predicted both scorelines correctly! Too bad I don't bet. But then again, I am beginning to feel disgusted with people who bet on football matches. The fact that EPL is so well received here is probably due to Singapore Pool! Maybe the peoples at the FA can demand some royalties from Singapore Pool! Let's not stir up the topic of gambling here, just not worth it!

Back to the games... Chelsea seem to ride on their luck again when Tottenham's Mido was, to me, incorrectly sent off by the ref, and when Duff 's shot's lucky bounce found the back of the net. Without Mido, Tottenham lost any shape in their attack. They were clueless on breaking down Chelsea' defence. In fact, I thought their defence held the Chelsea's attackers well. Aaron Lennon looks energetic when he came on in the second half for Spurs. A promising prospect to look out for indeed! But I can't say Chelsea's victory was due sorely on luck. Their midfield was again in top form. Poor Spurs, they were looking to Davids to inspire them in the middle, but one Edgar was just not enough to do that. So there we go again, Chelsea- 4 wins out of 4, 8 goals scored and not even one goal conceded...

If you are a North-eastern club in UK, it seems everything are just going against you at the moment. I'm refering to Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Newcastle. Sunderland went down 1-0 to fellow EPL newcomer Wigan at the JJB. A 2nd minute Roberts' penalty was enough to give Wigan their 1st victory in the EPL. Keep up the good work, Paul Jewell! In midweek, Boro crushed Birmingham 3-0 but was brought down to earth in their own yard as Charlton sent them packing with a 3-0 thrashing. Danny Murphy was again the inspiration for the Addicks and to me, should be called up by England for their next 2 games.

Murphy, in inspiring form for Charlton.
Are you watching, Mr Eriksson?

Newcastle goal scored reads- 0, goals let in-6. Again, their lack of firepower in front of goal showed again as they went down 2-0 to The Red Devils. The knives are out and it won't be long before the vote of confidence will be given to Souness, the Newcastle boss.

End of happy times for Mr Souness soon?

So there we go again... 2 week without any EPL actions as we turn our eyes to the World Cup Qualifiers! Will try to write more things here that has nothing to do with soccer in these 2 weeks!! Ha Ha...

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 1:46 AM

Yes!! Liverpool has added another prize to their trophy cabinet - The UEFA SUPER CUP 2005!

It was a frustrating night for me actually, firstly...especially as I watched Luis Garcia trying to dribble with the ball aimlessly, running into endless walls of Mos"COW"(They work like cows tonight!) players, poor anticipation, shooting with 0% of accuracy! Really mad with him, just don't understand why Rafa still kept him on the field.

Secondly...Liverpool has no one who can open up the Moscow's defence. Not even Xabi can find that elusive through ball to our frontmen! We keep pumping high ball to the heads of those tall Moscovites! Poor Morientes.... he must be feeling frustrated, having to jump with at least 2 "lampost" in the penalty area. Riise and Zenden were playing the ball up and down the flank, didn't penetrate the Moscow's right flank at all. They seems happy just to exchange their positions and running up and down on the left flank throughout the match! Warnock could have done a better job- defending, dribbling and crossing!

Thirdly, Pepe really shoot my blood pressure up with those "school boy" clearances and passes to his defenders. And the goal that we conceded...C'mon, Mr Reina, just admit that you really don't have to come rushing out to close down that Brazilian, don't you? (Thank your lucky stars though when your long pump up to Didi, led to Ciise's 2nd goal!)

Last but not least, Liverpool seems to be unable to shackle Brazilians! Remember Rivaldo, how we had a torrid time shackling him when we played Olympiakos last season and during the recent pre-season friendly. Enter D.Carvalho... his twist and turn must have left the whole Liverpool's defence feeling the effect of vertigo when the match ended! No more "Brazilianed" opponents anymore! Shoo.. Real Madrid!

Well, you must be thinking, why am I so critical with my beloved Liverpool... But I must admit, despite all those frustrations mentioned above, I didn't lose hope with my team. I knew, with all our possessions and passings, we can somehow create something that will level the score. 82min- How IRONIC can it be?! Luis Garcia, of all people, chested the ball so well into Ciise's path that Ignasevich's attempted clearance, hit Ciise's chest, then arm, before Djibril cooly slotted that D**m ball into the net... 109 min-Redemption time for Luis Garcia...Ciise's pace took him all the way to the byline, sent in the cross, Garcia's there, he's gonna miss, right? (remember 0% shooting accuracy!) , Goal! His brain finally made the right choice - he uses his HEAD to put the ball into the back of the net. 3-1. So I should forgive him right? Sigh... 82 mins of Garcia's frustration, 22 seconds of joy and forgiveness...(22 secs - derived from the time when Garcia chested the ball down to Ciise to score and the time his head headed the ball into the net!! He was non-existence for the rest of the 37mins 38secs of the game!) Luis Luis... you won't get the same luck and outcome everytime leh...

P.S. the only positive of the match : Liverpool 3 CSKA Moscow 1


Don't be so happy Luis Garcia, if not for Ciise! hehehe...

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 5:58 AM

27th Aug 2005, Sat
*********************
West Brom looks a much-improved side despite them going down 4-0 to Chelsea in midweek. But Birmingham has to get their act together fast. So I fancy them to grab a draw at the Hawthorns.
W.B.A. 2-2 Birmingham (3-2 to Birmingham So close to getting it right!)

Milan Baros will be eager to show what Rafael Benitez is missing if he is given the debut by David O'Leary at Villa Park. So I fancy him and Philips to grab winning goals against the suspension plagued Blackburn side.
Aston Villa 2-1 Blackburn (1-0 to Villa. Baros indeed scored the only goal)

Everton continues to look solid at the back. Nigel Martyn continues to impress even at the age of 39. Fulham badly looks a improvement soon. So I will go for a draw. But this game could go either side's way.
Fulham 1-1 Everton (1-0 to Fulham. So in the end it went Fulham's way)

Man City looks a tough nut to cracked under Psycho boss Stuart Pearce. Portsmouth will look to Lua-Lua again to provide the goals. Their highly talented Columbian Viafara is still struggling to cope with the pace of EPL. Joey Barton has returned to the side after that ugly incident in Thailand and has been impressive and leading by example over the last 3 games. I am looking at Andy Cole again to inspire The Blues to another victory.
Man City 2-0 Portsmouth (2-1 to Man City. Cole indeed scored the winning goal to take Man City to second place in the table! Viafara proved me wrong by impressing with his first goal of the season.)

I think both Charlton and Tottenham, who are flying high now, will finally succumbed to the pressure of maintaing those impressive runs of theirs. Chelsea continue to be hitting the kind of form that made them champion last season. Although I hope Chelsea will "CHUI", I don't see even a much-improved Tottenham giving them too many problem. But I hope Tottenham will prove me wrong!
Tottenham 0-2 Chelsea (Yes! I got it right for this one!)

You are looking at 2 teams who are struggling to score goals here. Both are newly promoted teams and will be eagerly looking to out-wit each other at the JJB. I am going for a Henri Camara goal to give Wigan just the edge here.
Wigan 1-0 Sunderland (Yes! I got it right for this too!)

Jaaskelainen of Bolton always seem to concede goals whenever he played. Although he kept a clean sheet in midweek, it was achieved playing against the goal-shy Magpies. With Jaidi injured and Pederson having to play out of position at left back, I therefore predict that West Ham will win, but not before The Wanderers giving them a tough fight. Benayoun will most likely give Pederson a torrid time on West Ham' right midfield. I will like to see Reo-Coker scoring another thunderous shot.

West Ham 3-2 Bolton (1-2 to Bolton)

28th Aug 2005, Sun
*********************
Middlesbrough looked impressive when they crushed Birmingham 3-0 away. Viduka seems to be finding his goal scoring touch again and I fancy he to score goals against the red-hot Addicks. I am also looking forward to Danny Murphy curling another of his spectacular freekick over Schwarzer.

Middlesbrough 2-1 Charlton (3-0 to Charlton. Unbelievable!!)

The Red Devils looks impressive so far and I see them condemning Newcaslte to their third defeat of the season. Van Nistelrooy and Rooney should be among the goal scorers. Newcaslte's barren spell in front of goal sets to continue...Alberto Luque will provide good crosses to Shearer but Newcaslte needs a goal scorer. Sad to see Luque in a Newcaslte's jersey... Just what is Deportivo and Luque thinking? Real Madrid made a bid for Luque earlier in the season and it should actually benefit Luque better and enhance his chances of getting into Spain's World Cup squad (I hope Spain qualify!)

Newcastle 0-2 Man U (All right! The 2nd correct 2-0 scoreline! Me even got the goal scorers right! Haha.. To bad me not a betting person.)

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 1:43 AM

To ALL MY DEAR FRIENDS out there... Thanks for all your prayers that you have said for Cindy's mum. Her operation went about smoothly. She has woke up but she looks in great pain. I can also feel the pain in me everytime I described and think about her operation. On the day of her operation, the fear of receiving any bad news on my handphone was really affecting me throughout my work. But THANK GOD, I finally received the good news from Cindy at 530pm that her mum is out of the operation theatre and that the operation went well. The first stage has just been accomplished. Let us all continue to pray for her that her recovery will be smooth and of minimal pain...

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 12:34 AM

Got all the score prediction wrong this time... Next time better just go for 1, 2 or X. You should know what I mean...

Damn it, Chelsea always seems to ride on their luck. That "Monkey-cum-FrogBar-face" goal was an absolutely awful goal. But I must admit Arsenal played badly, they were contented with just holding Chelsea to a draw, just didn't push enough people up for attack, especially after Freddy went injured.


Besides the game, there was free entertainment
(yet during another Arsenal's game!)
after only about 10 minutes of the game played.


Left: Forssell ponders over
Steve Bruce's men first home game's defeat..
Right: Morten-Gamst Pederson scored a
stunning goal over the weekend. This man is
amazing...he takes all Blackburn's set pieces.
From throw-ins, freekicks to cornerkicks!

This weekend, 3 teams really let me down. Boro, Birmingham and Bolton. Boro always seem to match Spurs at White Hart Lane, but it was not to be... I thought with Forsell and Pandiani leading the Birmingham's attack and Pennant, finally signing a contract and settling into the side, Birmingham will be heading for their first victory of the season. Everton, Everton... they still seem to be doing what they have done last season, i.e recovering well from their opening season's game lost. I thought Bolton will prove too strong for Everton, especially with their deadly set-pieces and loud home support.



XABI ALONSO!! Oh what a cracker of a goal he scored from the freekick! I always knew he could do it with his freekick! But I don't seem to be able to score a freekick like that using him in my Pro Evo!(Laugh!) I thought with Sunderland a goal down, they will push more men forward in search of a equaliser, thus allowing Liverpool more space in the striking department. But Poor(l), they just can't seem to score these days... Gerrard, Gerrard... Liverpool FC is going to change their name to Gerrard FC. Baros is now gone... How about getting Owen back Rafa? Sigh, he doesn't seems to be interested in Michael at all... Just hope my the other favourite,Morientes will start hitting the back of the net soon...

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 11:50 PM

20 Aug 2005, Sat
******************
Man United 2-0 Aston Villa X (1-0 to Man U)
Blackburn 0-0 Fulham X (2-1 to Blackburn)
Charlton 2-0 Wigan X (1-0 to Charlton)
Liverpoool 2-0 Sunderland X (1-0 to Liverpool)
Newcastle 1-1 West Ham X (0-0)
Tottenham 1-1 Middlesbrough X (2-0 to Tottenham)
WBA 2-0 Portsmouth X (2-1 to WBA)
Birmingham 1-0 Man City X (2-1 to Man City)

21 Aug 2005, Sat
******************
Bolton 2-1 Everton X (1-0 to Everton)
Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal X (1-0 to Chelsea)

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 12:22 PM

Last Sunday, I attended the last Mass that Father Ignatius Yeo will be celebrating at Holy Cross Church. He will be away in Chicago for about 2 years to study liturgy. Just who is this priest whom I want to pay tribute to here?

He was posted to my parish, i.e Holy Cross Church, as soon as he was ordained as a priest a few years ago. His homily was always meaningful, added with a touch of humour and local touch. I could feel the amount of attention the parishioners gave to him whenever it was his turn to give the homily. He never fails to sparkle his homily with his jokes, which were funny, yet so inspiring to all the peoples of faith in the church. There was never a dull moment whenever he opens his mouth to talk. So last Sunday, being his last Mass to be celebrated with the parishioners of Holy Cross Church, again, he shared with us this very meaningful and humorous story about his days at the seminary...

"I wasn't the best student in the seminary and faced a lot of difficulties, just like any human beings... One day, I went to the statue of Mother Mary to ask her to pray for me... As the eyes of Mother Mary were scupltured in a way that they were looking up into the sky, I was thinking...Mother, why don't you just look at me for a second, poor child of God, wanting some help here. Why don't you just look at me!!!... After asking her to pray for me, I realised why her eyes were looking into the sky... She was actually telling me to look up into heaven, where Our Lord is, to pray and seek His guidance! It was then that I realised that in many traumatic times in our lives, we easily forgot to look up to God and seek his strength!"

Wow, it was so enlightening and so true! Whenever we faced problems, we like to throw tantrums, put the blame on others, etc...We seldom turn to God and say..."Lord, please help me!" Father Iggy, as Father Ignatious is commonly known, then went on and shared this song with us..."If we hold on together". It brought tears to my eyes as I pondered the wonderful times I have shared with Father Iggy on Sundays. He stressed on the importance of looking up to peoples, like Mother Mary, who always obey God and Jesus Christ(especially when she said "Yes" to God's using her body to conceive Jesus and other events when she obey totally to her son during their lives in Jerusalem) , to improve our relationship with God and to be true disciple of Our Lord, Jesus Christ.

On Sunday, when it was time for us to go up to the altar to receive communion, I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it was Father Iggy who was going to give me the communion. I told myself at that moment that God has indeed showered me with so much grace that I'm not going to be a bad boy anymore!!(Easier said than done! But I'm trying hard to be one!) It's a pity you cannot be my celebrant at my church wedding. But my thoughts will be with you on that day. With that, I bid goodbye to my most beloved priest while all I had now are those beautiful memories I had with him and a card that was specially given to us by you... Father Ignatius Yeo. Thank you Father, take care wherever you are and I look forward to you serving in our parish once again...


My mum, who had the honoured of being baptised by Fr Iggy.

If We Hold On Together
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Don't lose your way with each passing day
You've come so far don't throw it away
Live believing dreams are for weaving
Wonders are waiting to start
Live your story Faith, Hope & Glory
Hold on to the truth in your heart.

If we hold on together
I know our dreams will never die
Dreams see us through to forever
Where clouds roll by
For you and I.

Souls and the wind must learn how to bend
Seek out a star hold on to the end
Valley, mountain there is a fountain
Washes our tears all away
Words are swaying
Someone is praying
Please let us come home to stay.

If we hold on together
I know our dreams will never die
Dreams see us through to forever
Where clouds roll by
For you and I.

When we are out there in the dark
We'll dream about the sun
In the dark we'll feel the light
Warm our hearts,Every one.

If we hold on together
I know our dreams will never die
Dreams see us through to forever
As high as souls can fly
The clouds roll by
For you and I.

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 3:09 PM

I went for VBT today. What is VBT?... you may ask. In simple terms, it is a test to check for our body imbalance. VBT actually stands for Vestibular Battery Tests. It was frightening!! I was made to lie on a bed and the rest of the procedures was "life-threatening"! Water was then pushed into my right ear using a "I don't know what it is medical tool". I was told to count numbers. When the numbers reached 15, my head was already spinning. As the counting reaches 30, the dizziness was something undescribeable here and I was already not breathing well and was hyper-ventilating! My hand started to get numb and it took me a lot of time to run the numbness off before the doctor starts gushing water into the other ear. As I already know what was in store, I was more prepared this time. But this time, my condition got worst. I have never had nauseas like this in my whole entire life! My head was spinning like hell!!! You must go through this then you will understand what I mean! My whole hand was in total numbness! I keep clenching my fists and my fingers couldn't open. My head and neck were numbed too. I was not in control of my hands and head then! This is the worst hyper-ventilation attack I ever had since I was sent to Changi Hospital 4 years ago! I didn't complete the whole test as they have to gush warm water into my ears to complete the whole procedure. I surrendered! My mind is willing, but my flesh is weak! What a disappointment! I felt I have let myself down as I couldn't complete the test. But I was in serious hyper-ventilation.

This reminds me of 3 years ago when I went for a neurotic test after suffering from a few hyper-ventilation attack...This attack occurs when we over-panicked till it affects our muscles. I must stress here that the word "hyper-ventilate" has been frequently but lightly used. For e.g, whenever my superiors gave me more workload, they always joked that "don't hyper-ventilate ok?" They think it's funny! But not for me though! To me, hyper-ventilation is a serious illness that can leads to serious complications. So the next time, you use this word or somebody use this word, remember what you have read here! Alright, back to what happened to me after hyper-ventilating...They doctor told me my body has overworked. He said when over mental strength doesn't synchronize with our physical strength, our body will be overworked. The matter about mental strength actually started for me when I was in army. The officers always stressed to us that "IT'S ALL IN THE MIND"! Yes, I agreed that it is true, it was my mental strength that pushed me all the way during my BMT. Without it, I won't have pass out. But here's where the danger lurks...in actual fact, we should always understand our body's strength first before we can start "pyscho-ing" our mind that we can do it. Somehow, I feel I've been victimized into the theory about "It's all in the mind". Ever since I have been diagnosed with hyper-ventilation, the symptoms before any attacks have been good warning signs for me that my body already cannot take any more pressures. I'm thankful I have not had any serious hyper-ventilation attacks during these few years until today. Today's experience with the VBT had once again taught me that the phrase "It's all in the mind" is not totally correct but "The mind is willing, but the flesh is weak" is more true!

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 11:39 PM

A frustrated Steven Gerrard.

Middlesbrough 0-0 Liverpool

In the end, it was just not going to be our day. Count the number of chances Gerrard wanted to single-handledly destroy Boro and lead by example. I felt a tinge of disappointment for Gerrard as the other Liverpool players seem to be waiting for him to score that elusive winning goal. Gerrard was my man of the match. He tried to play the second striker's role as the match progresses and should have been rewarded with a goal or two. Keep it up Stevie G!

Let's talk about how Liverpool performed...

Liverpool backline :
Liverpool defence was hardly troubled by the twin strike force of "Ya Ya Ku Ku" and "Hassle Bank". The protection in front of Hyypia and Carragher was a certainly one of the factor. Carragher looked composed but could do with more accurate passing. Hyypia wasn't really troubled and led the line well. Downing for Boro had a quiet night due to Finnan's closing him down early whenever Downing threatened with his "twist-and-turn" on the left flank. Warnock looks solid and was always in a better position to prevent Mendieta from exposing Liverpool's left flank.
Reina made a mess of the corner in the first half and must be thankful the mistake didn't cost Liverpool a goal. Otherwise, he came out well to punch a few crosses away in the second half.

Center of the Park :
Momo Sissoko had a solid game. He looks compose with his tackles and shielding of the ball. He showed lots of aggressiveness which is essential in English football. Good performance, considering this is his first game in English football. Alonso was faultless but I had expected him to play a few more dangerous passes in between the Boro's defence. I would have liken Zenden to run to the byline more to provide tantilising crosses to feed Morientes. But it seems he played quite deep in this game.
I would have prefer Riise to come on in the 2nd half to give Liverpool's left side more strength and pace. But it was not to be. Luis Garcia was a disappointment! His control of the ball was questionable and lost possession of the ball too easily. Maybe Potter can provide him with some necessary pressure with regards to his first team place.

The firing line :
Morientes had a quiet game. Unfortunately, as his game is based more on others providing good services to him, Liverpool's both wingers failed miserably to achieve that. I thought Ciise introduction in the 2nd half was to add more pace in the striking department but Rafa obviously wanted him to run down the right flank. I believe he could have given Ehiogu and Southgate a test of their pace. Baros came on late and showed some nice touches, especially when he sent a great through-ball to Gerrard, who was brought down by Ehiogu. I say... please keep Milan. He really wants to play for Liverpool.

Ratings for Liverpool : Reina (6) Hyypia (6) Carragher (7) Finnan (7) Warnock (7) Alonso (6) Sissoko (7) Garcia (5) Zenden (6) Gerrard (8)Morientes (6) Ciise (5) Baros (6)

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 2:15 AM

13 Aug 2005, Sat
******************
Everton 0-2 Man United
(My one & only correct predication)
Aston Villa 1-1 Bolton
(2-2 Drawn game as I've predicted)
Fulham 1-1 Birmingham
(0-0 Drawn game as I've predicted)
Man City 2-1 WBA (0-0)
Middlesbro 1-3 Liverpool (0-0)
Portsmouth 3-2 Tottenham (0-2)
Sunderland 1-0 Charlton (1-3 to Charlton)
West Ham 1-0 Blackburn (3-1 to West Ham)

14 Aug 2005, Sun
*******************
Arsenal 3-0 Newcastle (2-0)
Wigan 0-3 Chelsea (0-1.How wrong was it to underestimate Wigan!)

90 minutes of Action
*********************
The opening day of the EPL saw 16 goals being scored. The star of today must certainly be West Ham. The Premier League new boy whipped up an impressive victory over Mark Hughes' Blackburn. Reo-Coker scored, for me the goal of the opening game, to set up West Ham with a well-deserved 3-1 victory. Benayoun looks a good buy with his passing skill and technique. But to me, Reo-Coker was the man of the match at Upton Park as he controlled the midfield well.


(from left) A Star to look out for, England U-21 Reo-Coker.
Daren Bent and Wayne Rooney scored full marks
for their clubs' opening matches of the new season.

Darren Bent stole the show at the Stadium of Light with 2 well-taken goals to deny Mick McCarthy's men a welcomed return to top flight football. Look out for him! Aston Villa and Bolton cracked 4goals in the space of the opening 11 minutes. I got a feeling that if you are to ever going to play any website's Fantasy Football League, don't choose Jaaskelainen and Sorenson as the keepers for your team! Personally, I was disappointed with both Man City and Portsmouth.

Sunday's actions... Newcastle impressed with their fast closing down on the Arsenal's players. For me, Scott Parker really pull the strings well in midfield, he was the first shield for the Newcastle's defence. The Magpies defenders blocked almost every shots that Arsenal took. But I'm glad Arsenal managed to break the deadlock but I should say...Well done Magpies & Souness! Wigan could have beaten Chelsea if they have a Hernan Crespo in their team. They showed so much determination and teamwork that this Chelsea's win was totally underserved of! But can Wigan continue that kind of determination consistently? I doubt so...As for Chelsea's other challengers, this game should offer them plenty of hope that Chelsea is not invincible! Every team will be even more determined whenever they face Chelsea, so YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED MOURINHO!!

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 7:36 PM

Feeling blue and suffering from footy-withdrawal syndrome? Well, all these illness will rest in peace once the EPL kicks-off today, 13 Aug 2005. Coffeeshops will be filled up with loud-mouthed fans-cum-bookies lookalike-cum-expert EPL pundits Uncles. People's liver will be overworked as a result of EPL fanatics downing hugh amount of booze in pubs. Husband & boyfriends will be seeking "ball (not balls, get it right! "the other gender's balls watching" will be shove asides as men concentrate on a single one!) watching permit" from their spouse. Football will dominate our lives for the next 11months(including the grand finale,i.e. the 2006 World Cup!!)

Well, you could have read about all these effects of footy in the local press as the EPL 2005-06 season builds up...But pardon me to say a word to a particular press here, football is a game, do not make it into a lucrative gambling tool. Stop inviting pundits to give their tips in your papers! It's totally disgusting! True football fans' concern is only about how well their favourite club performed. You could have invited normal fans to give their view about their clubs and how the rest will perform, and not pundits! Our local "Pool" is the biggest gainer here, laughing their way to the bank! Hmm..maybe they should present this local press a big bank check!

Down to serious business, the coming season. Who will do well? Which player will run the show? Which team will play the "Championship"(What a name to use for the commonly know Division 1, or even Division 2, if you are old enough to have known English footy before EPL even existed!!) next season? Thought I had have enough of predictions already, but what the heck? Where's my own predictions? Hmm.. thus thinking of pending my thoughts for the upcoming season here in my blog.

My final standing at the end of the season: (thoughts from my heart!)
1-Liverpool (Of course, who else??!!)
2-Arsenal (Well, I like Henry and their style of play, but of course most importantly, got to have alot to do with my bro!!)
3-Man City (Finally you guys can laugh at your sad neighbours!)
4-West Ham (Well, always have a soft touch for this Pork's leg!)
5-Birmingham
6-Bolton
7-Middlesbrough
8-WBA (Their gutsy performance at the end of last season made me rooting for them all the way to their survival!!)
9-Blackburn
10-Charlton
11-Aston Villa
12-Portsmouth
13-Fulham
14-Wigan (Paul Jewel a former Reds! So hopefully they will stay up!)
15-Newcastle
16-Sunderland
17-Everton (I still want my Reds to whack them in derbies!So they will just survvied!!)
18-Man U (Glazer will ruin them for eternity!)
19-Tottenham (Don't know why, just can't stand this team in EPL!)
20-Chelski (The gaffer n' their oil digger will abandon the club, as are all their stars! Look at Leeds now...)

Alright alright, all bullshit, wasting your time right?? Now for the real actions...thinking with my head now...
1. Liverpool (Stop asking why they will be Champs?!Ha...)
2. Chelsea (Still looks as dangerous as last season, their way of play should stablize this year, making them a more formidable outfit)
3. Arsenal (Still playing attractive footy, but their defence didn't impress me that much during pre-season)
4. Man U (Not enough depth, will suffer once their first 11 get injured)
5. Tottenham (Lots of good signings, hopefully Martin Jol will get it right this time, unlike his predeccessor! )
6. Middlesbrough ("Ya Ya Ku Ku" should gets his fair share of goals together with "Hassle Bank"!)
7. Man City (Count on Cole the Goal to contribute to the bulk of their goals! SWP bro Brad will show the fans City won't be missing SWP!Pearce seems to get it right on the coaching front too!)
8. Birmingham
9. Charlton (What else do they want to achieve? Mid position of course!)
10. Aston Villa (Again...What else do they want to achieve? Another mid position of course!)
11. Bolton
12. Newcaslte (Poor Given, he is gifted, but his defence will let him down again! And unless Owen arrives at Tyneside, Shearer will feel the burden of leading the firing line! Souness to be the 1st to get the boot? Wanna bet??)
13. Blackburn (Continue to be a tough nut to crack under Hughes, but not attractive at all, but can play destroyer role!)
14. Everton (Sorry, 4th place was well-deserved, but not this time! Nobody seems interested to join them, when injuries occured, they will suffer!)
15. Portsmouth (Losing "Ya Ya Ku Ku" was a blow, so they have to rely
on Lua-Lua for the goals, or else they will find themselve in trouble.)
16. WBA (Gera will lead them to another season in the EPL)
17. West Ham (Will survive, they have exciting young player like Harewood who will surprise a few this season)
18. Sunderland (Can't seem to score during Pre-season and their only top striker is Jon Stead?! C'mon!)
19. Fulham (As if losing Van der Sar wasn't already bad, his replacement, another big Czech,Drobny, got injured in pre-season and is ruled out for some time.Unless Collins John gets a decent run in the team, I don't think they can bank their hopes on Radzinki and McBride to provide the ammuniton, can they??)
20. Wigan (Sorry, relegation already knocking at your door with your first game against Chelski!)

Top Scorer : Thierry Henry
Player of the Year : Steven Gerrard


Let the Footy Begins!!!

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 6:01 PM

Thanks for giving me this island to live on, Singapore! Though small in size, You are definitely BIG in character! As You celebrate Your 40th Birthday, I would like to pay tribute to You in 40 ways that You have made my life here a wonderful experience!

40 Things You have done for me...
1)Given me a place to live in where we are free from natural disasters!
2)Given me a chance to go to schools with superb infrastructures that other countries would be jealous of!
3)Given me hawker centers and coffeeshops everywhere. All of my favourite foods are there, yum yum!!
4)Given me Changi Airport again so that I can even have a cup of coffee or a meaty burger with my friends in the middle of the night!
5)Given me a good government who strive for the best in most areas!
6)Given me the MRT! I can reach almost any part of your land the moment I stepped into the MRT.(Even more convenient than my Ford during peak hours!!)
7)Given me my babe, Cindy! I love you so much!
8)Given me a safe environment such that I could go out at any hour of the day without fear of being robbed or attacked!
9)Given me an opportunity to write this blog here due to your technology advancement!
10)Given me the pleasure of watching my beloved team Liverpool play on your easily accessible cable TV! It makes the world smaller!
11)Given me well-lighted streets when I drive at night!
12)Given me National Day Parade celebrations every year without fail! Something which we shouldn't take for granted given the amount of effort and money spent in organising this once-in-a-year massive event!
13)Given me nice churches with air-conditioned facilities that allow me to pray in peace and comfort!
14)Given me nice Muslim Prata shops(esp. Al-Azhar & Spize!!) where I can savour a hot cup of teh tarik and oily!roti prata late at nights with my love ones!
15)Given me a nice and pleasant house in Faber Crest!
16)Given me a secured and interesting job which allows me earn enough to apply for credit cards and to do what I enjoy doing! (Even though sometimes can become very stressful!!)
17)Given me Sentosa where I can sun tan and do babe-watching! Hee...
18)Given me Changi Airport! I feel at home and safe whenever the plane I am in touched down at your World's Number 1 Airport!
19)Given me a chance to travel to other countries and yet when I come home, I still think you are the best!
20)Given me a chance to become a believer of Jesus Christ!
21)Given me Novena Church! When I'm desperate, I go there to pray! Ha...
22)Given me a clean sea port that don't smell whenever I drive past!(If you have been to HK, you'll know what I mean!)
23)Given me nice dim sums!(Esp. Kam Boat!!)
24)Given me safe and comfortable shopping malls that I don't really have to fear being pickpocketed!
25)Given me Fatman Satay and also the ex-Satay Club where I have enjoyed all the moments spent there with my family, esp. with my PaPa!
26)Given me Boon Tong Kee chicken rice!(I think the East Coast Road branch is still the best!don't go to the River Valley branch!Ha...)
27)Given me Tiong Bahru's Char Siew Fan since I was in kindergarten!(Don't close down ever!!!)
28)Given me a chance to support our own National Soccer Team and Soccer being made the number 1 sport here! (Can you image if I'm in the States or Taiwan where American football & baseball are their number 1 sports?!)
29)Given me rules and regulations that are so strict that crime rates are low and your citizen don't "play play" around!
30)Given me well-constructed & well-planned Town estates that makes buying groceries and other basic necessities such a breeze!(Consider yourself in some countries where people who lives in suburban areas has to travel a few hours just to get their basic needs!)
31)Given me my friend Alvin who should be the first person to read this latest entry in my blog!
32)Given me the sunshine all year round! (Even though I don't really like warmth weathers, but at least I don't have to use heaters to keep myself warmth in winter and my clothes are easily dried!)Given me my friend Alvin who should be the first person to read this latest entry in my blog!
33)Given me FTM! They are the most wonderful bunch of peoples whom I've met in my entire life!
34)Given me a chance to eat food from all around the world! Jap sushi and unagi don, Taiwanese XXL Chicken, Tou Jiang & Yu Tiao, Hakkas Yam Abacus, and many more...(Imagine in some countries, all you eat are "junks"! Get what I mean?!)
35)Given me well-laid and smooth roads to drive on!
36)Given me clean water so that I can even drink from the tap! Remember water parade guys??Ha...
37)Given me my mum, my dad, my sis, my 4 puggies and all my relatives!
38)Given me the Causeway so that I have the chance to travel to JB and buy cheap stuffs like VCD and PS2 games!
39)Given me a secured future that I can look forward to! I don't have to worry if I'll wake up tomorrow to the sounds of war planes and bombs...
40)Last but not least, given me oxygen to breathe, so that I have the life to live everyday to tell you my thoughts and encounters in this blog that you are reading now!!!

Thank you Singapore! I wish whenever people start complaining about You, they will count their blessings first, and that includes me too!!Keep up the good work all of us to make Singapore a better place to live in!


Singapore Bagus!!

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 2:37 AM

This is already the 2nd night of the Chinese Seventh Lunar Month. Suddenly have this urge to write something I feel about the Chinese Seventh Lunar Month, which is commonly known in this part of my world as, The Hungry Ghost Month...

When I was young, my family will always tell me tales about the Hungry Ghost Month. Things like, don't mention the word "Ghost" during this month, don't go near water places, are so common that it has become a norm during the Seventh Month. More exaggerating advices like, "Son, you better don't stay out late or "You better don't wear red, wait 'they' follow you home!", were always on the elders' lips as I grew up.

It was always exciting and fun to fold incense paper with my family when I was young. I remembered folding incense paper into the shape of "yuan bao", which I initially thought really look like folding paper boat! There was another kind of paper folding which look like the shape of a baton which we used during Sports' Day! Some more, they came in so many colours! My mum or dad will always write down the names of our family members on one such incense paper which puzzled me. Upon asking, I realised that was to make sure "Our good brothers" will know that those offerings are from us and not from other people! How ridiculous! but true indeed! We will also prepare a tray of bananas, peanut and coloured candy.After preparing all these stuffs, we will go down to the pavement area which is directly below my unit(So unbelievable! Must be directly below our unit, or else "Our good brothers" will not know the offerings are from us!!!) to burn the papers, light the candles and lay out the food offerings.

The next day when I walked by the place which we set up our offerings, I will noticed that the foods have been messed up. Being a kid and easily conned into what the adults say, I really believed "Our good brothers" have actually came to consume our offerings! It really gave me the fear whenever I passed by others' offerings that were messed up. It was until one day when I saw the stray cats messing up the offerings that my fear was lay to rest! HaHa...

It was not long when our family stop practising the offerings of incense paper and food. I think it was about the years after my Dad passed away. It suddenly hit upon us that what's the point of burning papers away(Environmental Unfriendly!) when we actually don't really believe such rituals serve a purpose. Thus, we stopped doing the offerings practice and much of the fun of folding incense paper and burning 'hell' notes were gone...

If you ask me if I really believe the Hell Gate is open during the Seventh Month...Well... Err... even though I'm a Catholic, I believe spirits are always around us, and not only during the Seventh Month! Scary right?? Haha... Maybe during the Seventh Month, we have more spirits roaming the Earth, that's all! In fact, I have heard many stories of peoples with "Yin Yang" eyes who can see spirits. One actually told me that during the Seventh Month, she sees more of our beloved "Good brothers"! And that's the reason she choose not to go out as often during the Seventh Month.

Well, if saying all these stuffs are giving you goosebumps(I am having them now though! It's 314am now, so it's only natural! Haha...), let me just say this... If our conscience is clear, if we have not done any harm on anyone, if we have been good, why will the spirits want to harm us? One day, I may become one of them too! These spirits used to be human beings(flesh and blood!)too! I always think that the only difference between us and "Our Good Brothers" is that we are in different form. To those of you who still believe what the adults advises us not to do during the Seventh Month, I say... no matter where we go, when we go(be it Seventh Month or the Eighth Month) , we must always take care of ourselves when we are outside enjoying. I must tell you this scary thing though... let me tell the most scariest thing on Earth ok??? Ready??? Ok......it's our human's heart(Ren Xin).

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 2:44 AM

This song can actually describe how you feel when you are at a lost, when you are feeling lonely, especially when you have put in alot of effort to achieve something, but eventually you end up with nothing and have to be alone afterall. This is especially true in a love relationship. But why hold on when you forsee there's no future in this love relationship? I would rather be alone...till the nice person appears in front of me! There are definitely many other things for us to look forward to and to achieve in our life. To name a few important aspects of our life- our family(esp. our parents who gave us a chance to live our lifes on Earth), friendship, our career and for me, very importantly, RELIGION.

The Lyrics
七点十分 清晨时分
雍懒的气氛 睡不着 醒不了 我又失了魂
我空坐着望着日轮 却以为是黄昏
鸟鸣莺声 让我回神
才发现已经过了一生
浮浮沉沉
假假真真
为谁辛苦
为谁认真
为何努力
为何牺牲
拼了再拼
忍了又忍
还是欲望
这种本能
会让人忘了有多心疼
只是不知
无论如何
到了最后还不是一个人......

P.S. I want to pay tribute to the composer of this song, Jacky. This is his last piece of work before he lost his fight against cancer last year. ~RIP~

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 4:25 AM

Papa "Lucky" (Left) & Mama "Pepsi" (Right)

Papa & Mama babies "Angel" & "Happy"

What pets do you own? Well... for me, I got myself 2 small pugs in late 2003. I have always like pugs ever since I was helped my cousin to take care of their pug Wrinkle. I have always like dogs with rounder features and pathetic/ stupid faces! Haa.. Sorry puggies and other dogs with those features...I am disgusted when people label my pugs as the MIB dogs! It's PUG! P-U-G .... Pug!!

My family discussed and finally named our 2 pugs Lucky and Pepsi for some specific and special reasons... After a year with us, Lucky and Pepsi mated and gave birth to 2 small babies! It was a tiresome journey for our poor Pepsi who was actually bearing 4 babies. In fact, Pepsi was lucky to be able to see 2 babies surviving. 2 died in Pepsi tummy.

Glad we were to see our "Parents" bearing the fruits of their labour, but one of them, whom we named her Angel, suffer from illness ocassionally, most probably due to a lack of nutritions when she was in her mummy's tummy. Her brother, Happy, was more lucky. We suspect he looks away Angel's nutrients when they were in mummy's tummy. He has even outgrown his Daddy Lucky!

With 4 puggies roaming our home, it is tiring but they have brought lots of joy to your family.

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 3:31 AM

I've always enjoyed going around Singapore looking for nice food. So I thought maybe I will kick off a new column here in my blog where I will introduce you nice places to go for food, all kinds of food, all kinds of ambience.


Swee Choon Tim Sum

I have always passed by this place whenever I finished my "past midnight shopping" at Mustafa Center but I always thought this is just another place selling poor quality dim sum... So Wrong am I!!!

I finally made the bold idea of bringing my friends there for supper. The place has both outdoor and indoor dining areas. We opted for the indoor as it is air-conditioned. MAN! It was freaking cold in there, but being a person who loves the cold, it was the "Shiokiest" thing to happen at those hours. We ordered nearly everything that are available there!

Char Siew Bao, Small Bao, Lor Mai Gai, Fan Choy, Har Gao, Siew Mai, Chicken Feet, Beancurd Skin wrapped with Prawn, Chee Cheong Fun, just to name a few! The Chrysanthemum Tea served was good! Very rich and just enough sweetness! I like the Char Siew Bao most! Can fight with Tiong Bahru's one, Hoe Kee's one, Clementi Ave 4's one! But overall, of course, you can't compare this place to restaurant styled dim sum house. But at night, this is the best alternative you can find if you crave for dim sum!

Ok, where is this place... It is opposite Jalan Besar Food Center, along Jalan Besar. You can see alot of taxis' parked outside this place.If you have no idea where this place is, let me bring you there and you give me a treat!!

Marcus XA
YNWA @ 3:29 AM