10 weeks of my summer were spent running up hill and down dale in an effort to get ready for today's kick-off only for my best laid plans to go awry in the last 3 weeks as I picked up a calf strain.
I kept losing weight because of my change in diet and starting a new job but my training was on hold. I've managed to lose 26lbs (11.8kg) since the beginning of June. So it was with some trepidation that I stepped out on my opening 11 a side game of the season. I had some nagging doubts as I felt a bit of tiredness in it yesterday when I was working with a group of new referees on their Basic Course. As things turned out I had good reason to be wary as I managed to tweak the calf again in the warm-up and walked for most of the first half. In the second I managed what I thought was a few short jogs but in fact I travelled 4.4km and burned off more than 750 calories.
I enjoyed the game and despite a few mistakes I felt ok about the game afterwards (own biggest critic!). The reports have been done and sent in to the County FA. It's 3 weeks to my next game because of other commitments (football related) so hopefully the calf recovery will continue.
Showing posts with label Injuries. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Injuries. Show all posts
Sunday, 1 September 2013
Tuesday, 31 January 2012
Like falling off a bike
I thought I'd seen everything in last week's game but it seemed that football still had a few old tricks up its sleeve.
The falling temperatures meant that the game was in doubt but the early morning sunshine saw the white coating melting away but the top layer of the field was crusty. I did have to laugh when one of the players told me we could play as it would "take a stud". It was the perfect opportunity to trot out my one liner "... yes mate but when you weigh as much as I do, everything takes a stud ...".
I didn't expect to see sparkling flowing football from the bottom team in the league against the team 4th bottom. I wasn't disappointed in that respect but what I did see was generally honest endeavour from two groups of players who obviously look forward to their weekly run out, who never gave up trying, never gave up running (sometimes slowly) and I thoroughly enjoyed my 90 minutes with them.
The game was just over a minute old when there was a late challenge and I could have let it go, but practising what I preach, I blew the whistle and the players noticeably stiffened. I wondered if I had done something wrong but I overheard a few whispers along the lines of, we can't mess with this bloke. A few minutes later, I had to use my considerable presence to separate two players standing nose to nose, intent on continuing their clash after another late challenge. Two cautions later and no one could underestimate my intentions not to let this game get away from me.
Suddenly there was an injured player on the ground who seemed in a bad way, so I stopped play and ran towards him. I got the trainer to check him out and sent him to the touchline. Now I explained to the defender that I was dropping the ball and told the keeper not to pick the ball up before running upfield to get into position for the drop zone. I looked back over my shoulder to see the goalkeeper shaping to kick the ball from his hands ... PEEEEEEEP! and an indirect free kick for "a passback".
No complaints from the defence when I asked the question of the goalkeeper about whether I had told him not to pick the ball up. He admitted that I had, everything went very quiet and the free kick resulted in nothing. The away team scored a goal, the home team equalised and the away team scored another ... we had only played 15 minutes!
Having spent a fair part of last week making decisions from distance and having to sell them hard. This week I was able to improve my proximity and as a result (with a whistle on the run and keeping on running into the action zone) I was having no problem selling them. This week's problem was getting my angles right. Twice in the 2nd half I got them wrong and found my view (from less than 15 yards) screened by a player.
The result was that I didn't give a free kick for handball by the away team and I also couldn't give the penalty to the away team. I gave the non-decision and sold it with a strong "cutting the grass" signal. It seemed to work with the away manager/trainer when I made a point of talking to him while waiting for a goal kick to be taken.
I had already given a penalty to the away team but they had missed it when their captain virtually passed the ball to the home team goalkeeper. I have to mention the goalkeeper at this point. He wasn't particularly tall but he was athletic and made some fantastic saves, especially the one where he palmed a 25 yard drive up and around the post.
The home team tired, the away team scored a few more goals and then we had a claim for an injured player needing treatment. I had seen him go down but didn't think it looked serious and when I looked to check on him, he was getting back to his feet. The problem was that the home team had played the ball out for a throw-in, the away team didn't give them the ball back and they won a corner after charging upfield on an unopposed counter attack. The players were so incensed I knew it would take something special to put things back on an even keel. The away team captain told his player to pass the ball to the goalkeeper at the corner and suddenly everyone calmed down.
In between times, I managed to get too close to the ball and when it took a deflection after a foul, the ball caught me squarely on the jaw - muddy face time! I had to deal with another couple of late challenges (both cautioned) and a bout of dissent from a centre forward who picked up a caution.
After the game finished I had a young spectator want to know if I had ever refereed in The FA Cup. I had to admit that I hadn't and she asked, "So you're just a FA Referee, not a FA Cup Referee ...?" Put like that I had to agree and she thought it was great that they had a proper referee at their game. That, along with the early intervention on the first challenge, the sporting actions of the away team captain at the corner and the acceptance of my bad line of sight explanation on the denied penalty, all made it a very enjoyable day out on the grass.
The next two weeks were supposed to see me leading on a new referees course but it isn't going ahead, so I've got Sunday off and a promotion assessment on the 12th before a long weekend away ... I hope the hotel room has Sky Sports!
The falling temperatures meant that the game was in doubt but the early morning sunshine saw the white coating melting away but the top layer of the field was crusty. I did have to laugh when one of the players told me we could play as it would "take a stud". It was the perfect opportunity to trot out my one liner "... yes mate but when you weigh as much as I do, everything takes a stud ...".
I didn't expect to see sparkling flowing football from the bottom team in the league against the team 4th bottom. I wasn't disappointed in that respect but what I did see was generally honest endeavour from two groups of players who obviously look forward to their weekly run out, who never gave up trying, never gave up running (sometimes slowly) and I thoroughly enjoyed my 90 minutes with them.
The game was just over a minute old when there was a late challenge and I could have let it go, but practising what I preach, I blew the whistle and the players noticeably stiffened. I wondered if I had done something wrong but I overheard a few whispers along the lines of, we can't mess with this bloke. A few minutes later, I had to use my considerable presence to separate two players standing nose to nose, intent on continuing their clash after another late challenge. Two cautions later and no one could underestimate my intentions not to let this game get away from me.
Suddenly there was an injured player on the ground who seemed in a bad way, so I stopped play and ran towards him. I got the trainer to check him out and sent him to the touchline. Now I explained to the defender that I was dropping the ball and told the keeper not to pick the ball up before running upfield to get into position for the drop zone. I looked back over my shoulder to see the goalkeeper shaping to kick the ball from his hands ... PEEEEEEEP! and an indirect free kick for "a passback".
No complaints from the defence when I asked the question of the goalkeeper about whether I had told him not to pick the ball up. He admitted that I had, everything went very quiet and the free kick resulted in nothing. The away team scored a goal, the home team equalised and the away team scored another ... we had only played 15 minutes!
Having spent a fair part of last week making decisions from distance and having to sell them hard. This week I was able to improve my proximity and as a result (with a whistle on the run and keeping on running into the action zone) I was having no problem selling them. This week's problem was getting my angles right. Twice in the 2nd half I got them wrong and found my view (from less than 15 yards) screened by a player.
The result was that I didn't give a free kick for handball by the away team and I also couldn't give the penalty to the away team. I gave the non-decision and sold it with a strong "cutting the grass" signal. It seemed to work with the away manager/trainer when I made a point of talking to him while waiting for a goal kick to be taken.
I had already given a penalty to the away team but they had missed it when their captain virtually passed the ball to the home team goalkeeper. I have to mention the goalkeeper at this point. He wasn't particularly tall but he was athletic and made some fantastic saves, especially the one where he palmed a 25 yard drive up and around the post.
The home team tired, the away team scored a few more goals and then we had a claim for an injured player needing treatment. I had seen him go down but didn't think it looked serious and when I looked to check on him, he was getting back to his feet. The problem was that the home team had played the ball out for a throw-in, the away team didn't give them the ball back and they won a corner after charging upfield on an unopposed counter attack. The players were so incensed I knew it would take something special to put things back on an even keel. The away team captain told his player to pass the ball to the goalkeeper at the corner and suddenly everyone calmed down.
In between times, I managed to get too close to the ball and when it took a deflection after a foul, the ball caught me squarely on the jaw - muddy face time! I had to deal with another couple of late challenges (both cautioned) and a bout of dissent from a centre forward who picked up a caution.
After the game finished I had a young spectator want to know if I had ever refereed in The FA Cup. I had to admit that I hadn't and she asked, "So you're just a FA Referee, not a FA Cup Referee ...?" Put like that I had to agree and she thought it was great that they had a proper referee at their game. That, along with the early intervention on the first challenge, the sporting actions of the away team captain at the corner and the acceptance of my bad line of sight explanation on the denied penalty, all made it a very enjoyable day out on the grass.
The next two weeks were supposed to see me leading on a new referees course but it isn't going ahead, so I've got Sunday off and a promotion assessment on the 12th before a long weekend away ... I hope the hotel room has Sky Sports!
Tuesday, 28 June 2011
Argghhh!
Could try harder ...
Not really something that could have been said about my efforts last night on the field as I really put in a hard shift. It seems unfortunately that it was a little too much for my frail (ha ha) 113Kg frame and I've strained my Achilles. It means it's painful to walk and it seems likely that tomorrow's training will have to consist of me watching other people train.
It has improved as the day has progressed so may loosen up enough for me to be able to do some light jogging but it seems that high impact work is out for a few days.
Not really something that could have been said about my efforts last night on the field as I really put in a hard shift. It seems unfortunately that it was a little too much for my frail (ha ha) 113Kg frame and I've strained my Achilles. It means it's painful to walk and it seems likely that tomorrow's training will have to consist of me watching other people train.
It has improved as the day has progressed so may loosen up enough for me to be able to do some light jogging but it seems that high impact work is out for a few days.
Sunday, 26 September 2010
Brrrr!!!
The winter's chill is beginning to set in and this weekend's assessments were both conducted wearing my big padded jacket.
It wasn't too bad out at Otley as the sunshine came out at half time but it was a bitter wind blowing around Throstle Nest as I assessed the referee on the FA Women's Premier League game taking place there today.
The game was settled by a hat trick from the away team's centre forward who displayed some fantastic speed to outpace the home defence. Although the home team had equalised after her first goal, her second came within a few seconds of the equaliser and it was a long and busy afternoon for both defences.
The trainers of both teams were also kept busy particularly after a nasty clash of heads late in the game. One player was unable to staunch the bleeding and had to be replaced. The other lay motionless for a few seconds before being able to continue after receiving brief treatment.
With the reports written up, that's it until Saturday ... well apart from attending the Referee's Association meeting tomorrow and the Sunday League meeting on Tuesday. Tuesday will be interesting as the committee considers the first infringements of the Respect Code of Conduct by players in our league, since the code was adopted at the start of this season. As Respect Officer, focus will fall on my guidance to the committee ... pressure!!!
It wasn't too bad out at Otley as the sunshine came out at half time but it was a bitter wind blowing around Throstle Nest as I assessed the referee on the FA Women's Premier League game taking place there today.
The game was settled by a hat trick from the away team's centre forward who displayed some fantastic speed to outpace the home defence. Although the home team had equalised after her first goal, her second came within a few seconds of the equaliser and it was a long and busy afternoon for both defences.
The trainers of both teams were also kept busy particularly after a nasty clash of heads late in the game. One player was unable to staunch the bleeding and had to be replaced. The other lay motionless for a few seconds before being able to continue after receiving brief treatment.
With the reports written up, that's it until Saturday ... well apart from attending the Referee's Association meeting tomorrow and the Sunday League meeting on Tuesday. Tuesday will be interesting as the committee considers the first infringements of the Respect Code of Conduct by players in our league, since the code was adopted at the start of this season. As Respect Officer, focus will fall on my guidance to the committee ... pressure!!!
Saturday, 24 July 2010
Training 3.5
I had to nip into work this morning and having persuaded my wife that she should finish work early, I took advantage of her early arrival home to get out for another training session.
I had a phone call yesterday from Andy who said my training session graphs looked great except I was working too hard in my warm up and cool down. I therefore made a determined effort not to let my heart rate get above 75% and stay there while warming up. It certainly seemed to work as I felt ok as I started the main exercise.
Today's torture was the one I call the "envelope". I started at the left hand side of one goal line, ran to the centre mark, then back to the right hand side of the same goal line. On arrival I did 5 sit ups before running back to the centre mark and then on to the other end of the touchline from where I did the sit ups.
On arrival I did 5 press up before running back to the centre mark and then back to the other end of the goal line on which I did the press ups. Here I did 5 star jumps before running back to the centre mark and on to my start point where I did 5 squats.
This took 3 minutes and a couple of seconds to complete so I took a 1m30s rest before doing another circuit and then repeated it again after another rest. My first intention was to do 4 circuits, rest for 5 minutes, then do another 4 circuits. I decided to rest after 3 circuits, do another 3 circuits, then rest again before a final set of 3 circuits.
I wasn't prepared for the sharp pain in my ankle as I started circuit 8 and it wouldn't go away, so I decided to call it a day which is which the graph below ends suddenly. I was also being constantly berated by my five year old son who wanted me to come and play football. I couldn't manage to run so I went in goals!
The pain gradually subsided over the next 25 minutes as he played a combination of football rugby and Gaelic football. It finished with him repeatedly rugby tackling me and knocking me to the ground after I had tackled his mum to the ground. I can think of worse ways to end a training session :-)
Calories 647, average heart rate 145 bpm. Clicking the image below shows the pattern of my heart rate across the exercise period.
I had a phone call yesterday from Andy who said my training session graphs looked great except I was working too hard in my warm up and cool down. I therefore made a determined effort not to let my heart rate get above 75% and stay there while warming up. It certainly seemed to work as I felt ok as I started the main exercise.
Today's torture was the one I call the "envelope". I started at the left hand side of one goal line, ran to the centre mark, then back to the right hand side of the same goal line. On arrival I did 5 sit ups before running back to the centre mark and then on to the other end of the touchline from where I did the sit ups.
On arrival I did 5 press up before running back to the centre mark and then back to the other end of the goal line on which I did the press ups. Here I did 5 star jumps before running back to the centre mark and on to my start point where I did 5 squats.
This took 3 minutes and a couple of seconds to complete so I took a 1m30s rest before doing another circuit and then repeated it again after another rest. My first intention was to do 4 circuits, rest for 5 minutes, then do another 4 circuits. I decided to rest after 3 circuits, do another 3 circuits, then rest again before a final set of 3 circuits.
I wasn't prepared for the sharp pain in my ankle as I started circuit 8 and it wouldn't go away, so I decided to call it a day which is which the graph below ends suddenly. I was also being constantly berated by my five year old son who wanted me to come and play football. I couldn't manage to run so I went in goals!
The pain gradually subsided over the next 25 minutes as he played a combination of football rugby and Gaelic football. It finished with him repeatedly rugby tackling me and knocking me to the ground after I had tackled his mum to the ground. I can think of worse ways to end a training session :-)
Calories 647, average heart rate 145 bpm. Clicking the image below shows the pattern of my heart rate across the exercise period.
Tuesday, 15 December 2009
Retirement
E-mails sent advising that I'm not available for any further fixtures, backwords given for existing fixtures, not feeling very happy but I know my legs won't take the work needed to get back to full fitness and rather than be unreliable, I'll bow out now.
I'm still hoping to be of some use and start the next stage of my development on Saturday. I've just got to watch my weight as the temptation to eat whatever I want is very strong. Having worked so hard to get down to 15st (96kg) I don't want to pile it all on again and have to train really hard (once my injury recovers) to stop looking like a bloater.
Also the blog is taking a rest for a while until I have something more interesting to post than ... nothing ;-)
I'm still hoping to be of some use and start the next stage of my development on Saturday. I've just got to watch my weight as the temptation to eat whatever I want is very strong. Having worked so hard to get down to 15st (96kg) I don't want to pile it all on again and have to train really hard (once my injury recovers) to stop looking like a bloater.
Also the blog is taking a rest for a while until I have something more interesting to post than ... nothing ;-)
Sunday, 13 December 2009
Game 27 - The End
I was designated driver today and picked up Paul and Fat Lad before heading out for our Minor FA game being played at Farsley Celtic.
The warm up was completed, the game kicked off and within 5 minutes (just after the home team scored their first goal) I suffered what I have decided is the injury that ends my active career. At this same ground 3 years ago, I suffered the same injury. It involved a popping sensation deep inside my calf on my left leg. From the last injury I knew this was a soleus tendon rupture and any running could only make the injury worse.
I told Fat Lad and we found a replacement, the away team's manager and he was supposed to replace me at half time. After a brief discussion at half time, it was decided that I would be strapped up, stay on the same defence who were the stronger, snuffed out attacks higher up the field and consequently would require less movement from me.
I got through to 90 minutes and limped off. I've withdrawn from my District Cup game on Saturday and advised the District FA Secretary that I am retiring. I am now an ex-referee
The warm up was completed, the game kicked off and within 5 minutes (just after the home team scored their first goal) I suffered what I have decided is the injury that ends my active career. At this same ground 3 years ago, I suffered the same injury. It involved a popping sensation deep inside my calf on my left leg. From the last injury I knew this was a soleus tendon rupture and any running could only make the injury worse.
I told Fat Lad and we found a replacement, the away team's manager and he was supposed to replace me at half time. After a brief discussion at half time, it was decided that I would be strapped up, stay on the same defence who were the stronger, snuffed out attacks higher up the field and consequently would require less movement from me.
I got through to 90 minutes and limped off. I've withdrawn from my District Cup game on Saturday and advised the District FA Secretary that I am retiring. I am now an ex-referee
Saturday, 12 December 2009
BBC Sport - Football - West Ham striker Dean Ashton retires because of injury
Tuesday, 1 December 2009
For Sale - one whistle, one notebook ...
Having suffered a re-occurrence of an injury I incurred 3 years ago, which made me virtually lame for 6 weeks, on top of the worry about a re-occurrence of the Achilles injury which has just taken me out of action for 5 weeks, I have had to contemplate the unthinkable ... is it time to hang up the whistle?
I am considering my options at the moment. I've chatted to friends and colleagues about it and I've been comforted by their comments about my desire to stay involved in the game, as an assessor at a higher level than the one I currently operate at. So my current plan is to see out this season as a Supply League Assistant referee but this may have to be curtailed if I don't feel I can meet the demands of the pace of the games to which I am appointed.
When the weather stops being as foul, I intend to start training on the track twice a week to keep my fitness up and protect against further injuries. When the nights get lighter then I will train on a field instead of the track. I certainly will not make myself available for games 5-6 days each week when the midweek fixtures kick off in late March and will restrict myself to a maximum of 3 games and 1 training session or 2 games and 2 training sessions.
If I suffer no further injuries I plan to register as a referee for next season but not as a Supply League Assistant. That will be my last season on the green stuff whatever happens and I will hang up my whistle in May 2011. If I decide that it is too much for me, then I will hang it up at the end of 2010.
If I decide to retire earlier, say at the end of this season, then I will be asking my Supply League if I can shadow an experienced assessor and perhaps offer my services to them for next season. If they agree, I may just retire completely from Saturday football at the end of this season and do one more season refereeing on the occasional Sunday.
The plans are pretty fluid at the moment and depend on appointments received (I'd be daft to reject a cup final if I was appointed to one), injuries incurred/aggravated, the response of my current/former Supply League to my offer of help and finally, the least of my worries, whether I am still enjoying refereeing.
When I went out on Sunday morning I really enjoyed myself and after a 5 week enforced break I savoured every single minute out in the middle, enjoying the fun with the players, admiring their skills and even having to make/sell close calls. I am going to miss that aspect of the game.
I am considering my options at the moment. I've chatted to friends and colleagues about it and I've been comforted by their comments about my desire to stay involved in the game, as an assessor at a higher level than the one I currently operate at. So my current plan is to see out this season as a Supply League Assistant referee but this may have to be curtailed if I don't feel I can meet the demands of the pace of the games to which I am appointed.
When the weather stops being as foul, I intend to start training on the track twice a week to keep my fitness up and protect against further injuries. When the nights get lighter then I will train on a field instead of the track. I certainly will not make myself available for games 5-6 days each week when the midweek fixtures kick off in late March and will restrict myself to a maximum of 3 games and 1 training session or 2 games and 2 training sessions.
If I suffer no further injuries I plan to register as a referee for next season but not as a Supply League Assistant. That will be my last season on the green stuff whatever happens and I will hang up my whistle in May 2011. If I decide that it is too much for me, then I will hang it up at the end of 2010.
If I decide to retire earlier, say at the end of this season, then I will be asking my Supply League if I can shadow an experienced assessor and perhaps offer my services to them for next season. If they agree, I may just retire completely from Saturday football at the end of this season and do one more season refereeing on the occasional Sunday.
The plans are pretty fluid at the moment and depend on appointments received (I'd be daft to reject a cup final if I was appointed to one), injuries incurred/aggravated, the response of my current/former Supply League to my offer of help and finally, the least of my worries, whether I am still enjoying refereeing.
When I went out on Sunday morning I really enjoyed myself and after a 5 week enforced break I savoured every single minute out in the middle, enjoying the fun with the players, admiring their skills and even having to make/sell close calls. I am going to miss that aspect of the game.
Saturday, 28 November 2009
Game 23 ... Return of the Baldy
So it was a tentative return to the green stuff assisting Craig in the middle and Chris on the other line.
We had the bottom club against the club who have been bottom for much of the season and with the heavy rain experienced in the local area for the last two weeks, we knew the field would be soft and cut up easily. The warm up was gentle and I was nervous about pushing myself too hard as I was still having twinges in the Achilles damaged in Game 22. Even so, I felt comfortable, if a little hyped up, after the warm up.
The game kicked off at 3 pm and by 20 minutes past I had managed to tweak my soleus tendon in my left leg. It was nothing too serious, certainly not as bad as when I did it 2 years ago on the line in the FA Youth Cup at Farsley Celtic. I was "crabbing" as much as I could as the assessor was my mentor David who picked me up on being out of line with the second rearmost defender a few weeks ago.
The home team took a lead in the first half, taking advantage of a disastrous goalkeeping error and then they fell asleep letting the away side equalise almost immediately. Just before half time, the home team added a second and a few minutes after half time, they added a third. So with the score at 3-1 they seemed to have stamped their authority on the game and as the temperature dropped, settled into a deeper and deeper defending position, letting the away team push on.
The away team took advantage of a bad goalkeeping error and as the ball was lobbed into the goal from around 25 yards, the tempo of the game began to grind up through the gears. The home team continued to strike on the counter attack and re-established their 2 goal cushion following a close "not offside" call right in front of me. So at 4-2 with less than 20 minutes to go, you might expect the team bottom of the league to collapse or at least just play out the game.
Well this team obviously hadn't read the script and pushed hard for a third goal, which they got and then an equaliser with less than 2 minutes left on the clock. Neither team wanted to concede another goal and we finished at 4-4. Craig had cautioned three players, one for dissent and two for USB. All were justified and the player who got his card for dissent was lucky not to pick up an earlier caution for leaving the away goalkeeper in a crumpled heap after he challenged him late for the ball.
So at 4-4, I suspect the away team will have been happier, twice having been behind by two clear goals. Despite this, if you had offered both teams a point before kick off I think they might just have taken it bearing in mind their relative league positions.
Now the big thing for me, having come back to the green stuff after a 5 week break through injury was how did my fitness hold up. Well to be honest not too well. As mentioned I tweaked the tendon in my left leg and my Achilles certainly wasn't happy in the second half, but I'll cope. I burned 1877 calories (which is a lot!!!), average hr 84% and a max of 98%. I intend to train the week after next before deciding whether I take on my next line on December 12.
I think I might have to retire from the line and concentrate solely on refereeing. This will certainly hinder any chances of promotion next season but it might just prolong my career past the 10 year mark.
I have a lot of other things I can do in the game and I certainly don't want to end up refereeing from the centre circle in the lowest division of the lowest league just so I can stay in the game. I'm not instructing on next week's course but I am ear-marked for the course in February (Happy Valentine's Day my dear wife x) and hopefully I'll get picked up for May's course.
After that I'll re-register for next season but probably not operate as an Assistant on a Supply League so I can assess at that level (if accepted). I'm not looking forward to it as my friends have often said, you're retired a long, long time!
We had the bottom club against the club who have been bottom for much of the season and with the heavy rain experienced in the local area for the last two weeks, we knew the field would be soft and cut up easily. The warm up was gentle and I was nervous about pushing myself too hard as I was still having twinges in the Achilles damaged in Game 22. Even so, I felt comfortable, if a little hyped up, after the warm up.
The game kicked off at 3 pm and by 20 minutes past I had managed to tweak my soleus tendon in my left leg. It was nothing too serious, certainly not as bad as when I did it 2 years ago on the line in the FA Youth Cup at Farsley Celtic. I was "crabbing" as much as I could as the assessor was my mentor David who picked me up on being out of line with the second rearmost defender a few weeks ago.
The home team took a lead in the first half, taking advantage of a disastrous goalkeeping error and then they fell asleep letting the away side equalise almost immediately. Just before half time, the home team added a second and a few minutes after half time, they added a third. So with the score at 3-1 they seemed to have stamped their authority on the game and as the temperature dropped, settled into a deeper and deeper defending position, letting the away team push on.
The away team took advantage of a bad goalkeeping error and as the ball was lobbed into the goal from around 25 yards, the tempo of the game began to grind up through the gears. The home team continued to strike on the counter attack and re-established their 2 goal cushion following a close "not offside" call right in front of me. So at 4-2 with less than 20 minutes to go, you might expect the team bottom of the league to collapse or at least just play out the game.
Well this team obviously hadn't read the script and pushed hard for a third goal, which they got and then an equaliser with less than 2 minutes left on the clock. Neither team wanted to concede another goal and we finished at 4-4. Craig had cautioned three players, one for dissent and two for USB. All were justified and the player who got his card for dissent was lucky not to pick up an earlier caution for leaving the away goalkeeper in a crumpled heap after he challenged him late for the ball.
So at 4-4, I suspect the away team will have been happier, twice having been behind by two clear goals. Despite this, if you had offered both teams a point before kick off I think they might just have taken it bearing in mind their relative league positions.
Now the big thing for me, having come back to the green stuff after a 5 week break through injury was how did my fitness hold up. Well to be honest not too well. As mentioned I tweaked the tendon in my left leg and my Achilles certainly wasn't happy in the second half, but I'll cope. I burned 1877 calories (which is a lot!!!), average hr 84% and a max of 98%. I intend to train the week after next before deciding whether I take on my next line on December 12.
I think I might have to retire from the line and concentrate solely on refereeing. This will certainly hinder any chances of promotion next season but it might just prolong my career past the 10 year mark.
I have a lot of other things I can do in the game and I certainly don't want to end up refereeing from the centre circle in the lowest division of the lowest league just so I can stay in the game. I'm not instructing on next week's course but I am ear-marked for the course in February (Happy Valentine's Day my dear wife x) and hopefully I'll get picked up for May's course.
After that I'll re-register for next season but probably not operate as an Assistant on a Supply League so I can assess at that level (if accepted). I'm not looking forward to it as my friends have often said, you're retired a long, long time!
Monday, 16 November 2009
The Road to Recovery
Since having been unable to complete my District FA Sunday Cup game on October 25 my mood has swung between despair and hope over the last week. I had to give up another Supply League line on Saturday but was asked to hang on as long as possible before giving back the forthcoming weekend's District FA Cup game, I decided it was time to give the ankle a try out.
The only problem was that last Tuesday I developed some horrible symptoms which resembled those publicised by Health Professionals as being linked to H1N1 - Swine Flu! I had aches and pains in all four limbs, in my back as well as a splitting head ache with flashes of light and pain in my vision - I thought I was on my way out at around 3:18 a.m. on Thursday morning.
Having struggled to work all week and faced with an all system failure on Friday, I took remedial action, shut down my department and headed home. It all sounds amazingly assertive but in truth I had consulted my doctor, discussed the situation with my Regional Manager and Divisional Director and agreed a recovery plan for today, so things were under control.
The doctor diagnosed me as having a nasty virus and an ulcer in my throat, at the place where my right tonsil has been situated until it was removed in 1969. With the two conditions combined my immune system felt overwhelmed and his treatment was simple ... rest, painkillers and plenty of fluids. I was only too happy to oblige and slept most of the time between 2 p.m. on Friday through until 7 a.m. on Saturday.
And so to this evening ... as I pulled on my extra pair of socks for support, tied up my trainers and shoved my arms into the sleeves of my waterproof jacket I was a little nervous to say the least. If this went well I had my first game in 4 weeks lined up for Saturday; if it went badly then I was looking at being out at least until Christmas when I had a self imposed 2 weekend break through plans to spend time with my family.
As I stepped out, the rain began to fall, the wind seemed to sharpen up and the temperature felt like it dropped a couple of degrees. It was all my imagination as it had been like that most of the day. I walked past my wife's car and set off at a slow jog. I immediately felt a sharp tearing pain inside my right knee. All the inactivity has obviously given a few old war wounds the chance to come back to the surface, so I just gritted my teeth and upped the pace as I turned the corner at the end of the road.
The footpath slopes away gradually then taking a sharp dip before levelling out and then upwards, turning into a 1:10 hill. The sharp pain in my knee was easing (would have been a lot less if I had taken my own advice earlier and had some painkillers before setting off!), my feet seemed to be picking themselves up/setting themselves down and everything was good with the world. As I hit the base of the steep hill, I found I was wheezing and the damp leaves under my feet were making me slip (my trainers were still coated with mud from yesterday's assessing of another promotion candidate).
I decided to stop and stretch out my legs and was surprised to find that I had no niggly pains or aches, in fact despite this being the first time I had run in 3 weeks, I felt ok ... except for the wheezing! After a couple of lung clearing coughs (suffering from virus after effects) I turned around and started the run back home. As the path flattened out I lifted the pace, expecting something to go ping but nothing happened except I got out of breath and decided to walk the last 75m home.
So a short run, probably equivalent to a lap around a field and a bit more (certainly a lot hillier) and then the same distance home was enough to prove to me that I could manage Saturday's game. As I sit here typing, I have decided that it will be support bandage and double strength pain killers for Saturday as well as some decongestant to keep my lungs clear ... but I can already smell the turf, hear the player shouts, feel the whistle at my lips ... football!
The only problem was that last Tuesday I developed some horrible symptoms which resembled those publicised by Health Professionals as being linked to H1N1 - Swine Flu! I had aches and pains in all four limbs, in my back as well as a splitting head ache with flashes of light and pain in my vision - I thought I was on my way out at around 3:18 a.m. on Thursday morning.
Having struggled to work all week and faced with an all system failure on Friday, I took remedial action, shut down my department and headed home. It all sounds amazingly assertive but in truth I had consulted my doctor, discussed the situation with my Regional Manager and Divisional Director and agreed a recovery plan for today, so things were under control.
The doctor diagnosed me as having a nasty virus and an ulcer in my throat, at the place where my right tonsil has been situated until it was removed in 1969. With the two conditions combined my immune system felt overwhelmed and his treatment was simple ... rest, painkillers and plenty of fluids. I was only too happy to oblige and slept most of the time between 2 p.m. on Friday through until 7 a.m. on Saturday.
And so to this evening ... as I pulled on my extra pair of socks for support, tied up my trainers and shoved my arms into the sleeves of my waterproof jacket I was a little nervous to say the least. If this went well I had my first game in 4 weeks lined up for Saturday; if it went badly then I was looking at being out at least until Christmas when I had a self imposed 2 weekend break through plans to spend time with my family.
As I stepped out, the rain began to fall, the wind seemed to sharpen up and the temperature felt like it dropped a couple of degrees. It was all my imagination as it had been like that most of the day. I walked past my wife's car and set off at a slow jog. I immediately felt a sharp tearing pain inside my right knee. All the inactivity has obviously given a few old war wounds the chance to come back to the surface, so I just gritted my teeth and upped the pace as I turned the corner at the end of the road.
The footpath slopes away gradually then taking a sharp dip before levelling out and then upwards, turning into a 1:10 hill. The sharp pain in my knee was easing (would have been a lot less if I had taken my own advice earlier and had some painkillers before setting off!), my feet seemed to be picking themselves up/setting themselves down and everything was good with the world. As I hit the base of the steep hill, I found I was wheezing and the damp leaves under my feet were making me slip (my trainers were still coated with mud from yesterday's assessing of another promotion candidate).
I decided to stop and stretch out my legs and was surprised to find that I had no niggly pains or aches, in fact despite this being the first time I had run in 3 weeks, I felt ok ... except for the wheezing! After a couple of lung clearing coughs (suffering from virus after effects) I turned around and started the run back home. As the path flattened out I lifted the pace, expecting something to go ping but nothing happened except I got out of breath and decided to walk the last 75m home.
So a short run, probably equivalent to a lap around a field and a bit more (certainly a lot hillier) and then the same distance home was enough to prove to me that I could manage Saturday's game. As I sit here typing, I have decided that it will be support bandage and double strength pain killers for Saturday as well as some decongestant to keep my lungs clear ... but I can already smell the turf, hear the player shouts, feel the whistle at my lips ... football!
Wednesday, 4 November 2009
R'n'R
No, not rock 'n' roll, but Respect and Re-occurrence.
The Respect part comes from last night's Sunday League meeting where the County RDO was persuaded to brave the motorway traffic and appalling weather conditions to deliver a presentation on the Respect programme to an All Clubs Meeting. The intention was for a vote to be held immediately after the presentation, deciding whether the League should join the Respect programme.
There was some dissenting voices, some asking for more information and others offering support. In the end, the League decided that we would provide more information to all the clubs, so they could go away and consult their club officials, managers/coaches and players before holding the binding vote at the next All Clubs Meeting in early January. It's a sensible course of action and while it gives the interested parties time to consider the implications, I can't help feeling it also gives more time for doubt to creep in. I hope to be proved wrong.
The re-occurrence part of the post also comes from last night's meeting. I was disappointed to be told by James that he could see me still limping from the injury incurred 10 days ago, as thought I'd stopped limping a couple of days ago. What made matters worst was my deciding to skip down a couple of steps after carrying the Respect programme documentation to my car. The skipping wasn't bad (it was more of a hop and skid) but when I got out of bed this morning I had a stabbing pain up the inside of my Achilles.
This is on the opposite side of the tendon from the original pain source. It's probably an indication, now the swelling has virtually faded away, that the injury goes deeper than I first suspected. I believe I am now going to have it properly assessed so I'll be booking a doctor's appointment in the morning. I mentioned to Fat Lad last night about my lingering doubt whether I can come back from this injury and that this might be the one that finally forces me to hang up my whistle.
On the subject of Fat lad, his game last night nearly made it to the end, but the floodlights failed with around 20 seconds of time left on the watch. It could only happen to him!
The Respect part comes from last night's Sunday League meeting where the County RDO was persuaded to brave the motorway traffic and appalling weather conditions to deliver a presentation on the Respect programme to an All Clubs Meeting. The intention was for a vote to be held immediately after the presentation, deciding whether the League should join the Respect programme.
There was some dissenting voices, some asking for more information and others offering support. In the end, the League decided that we would provide more information to all the clubs, so they could go away and consult their club officials, managers/coaches and players before holding the binding vote at the next All Clubs Meeting in early January. It's a sensible course of action and while it gives the interested parties time to consider the implications, I can't help feeling it also gives more time for doubt to creep in. I hope to be proved wrong.
The re-occurrence part of the post also comes from last night's meeting. I was disappointed to be told by James that he could see me still limping from the injury incurred 10 days ago, as thought I'd stopped limping a couple of days ago. What made matters worst was my deciding to skip down a couple of steps after carrying the Respect programme documentation to my car. The skipping wasn't bad (it was more of a hop and skid) but when I got out of bed this morning I had a stabbing pain up the inside of my Achilles.
This is on the opposite side of the tendon from the original pain source. It's probably an indication, now the swelling has virtually faded away, that the injury goes deeper than I first suspected. I believe I am now going to have it properly assessed so I'll be booking a doctor's appointment in the morning. I mentioned to Fat Lad last night about my lingering doubt whether I can come back from this injury and that this might be the one that finally forces me to hang up my whistle.
On the subject of Fat lad, his game last night nearly made it to the end, but the floodlights failed with around 20 seconds of time left on the watch. It could only happen to him!
Monday, 26 October 2009
And the laughs just keep on coming ...
The guest speaker pulled out at the eleventh hour leaving a packed audience receiving an ad hoc presentation by 3 of our newest level 4 referees. So I never had the chance to pick his brains on working my way back to fitness.
To say the lads had been thrown in at the last minute, they conducted themselves well. They conveyed a good sense of the higher level of expectation at their new level of football. This is something I have experienced with a change of Supply League and a determination to get my correspondence sharper.
One of the things I've had to do after my injury is send out a blanket e-mail to advise that I am unavailable. Not something I liked to do and the follow up phone calls (even though they both went to voicemail) were even less enjoyable.
I must admit that the gentle telling off from colleagues for doing too many games, which has obviously contributed to my injury, was quite funny. Less funny was hearing about one of my friend's recent health scare which has led to him closing dates all the way through to Christmas. Get well soon Stephen!
To say the lads had been thrown in at the last minute, they conducted themselves well. They conveyed a good sense of the higher level of expectation at their new level of football. This is something I have experienced with a change of Supply League and a determination to get my correspondence sharper.
One of the things I've had to do after my injury is send out a blanket e-mail to advise that I am unavailable. Not something I liked to do and the follow up phone calls (even though they both went to voicemail) were even less enjoyable.
I must admit that the gentle telling off from colleagues for doing too many games, which has obviously contributed to my injury, was quite funny. Less funny was hearing about one of my friend's recent health scare which has led to him closing dates all the way through to Christmas. Get well soon Stephen!
Sunday, 25 October 2009
Game 22
Timing is everything in comedy and it certainly seems that way with today's events.
I arrived early for a District Cup game which had been postponed from last week because the home team were involved in the Carlsberg FA Sunday Cup. The last time I refereed at this ground I had 11 cautions (maybe 10), 1 dismissal and a misconduct charge for spectator comments. It may have been the lowest point of my refereeing career.
Today I stepped out and spoke to both captains at the coin toss, letting them know that if I called them in to talk to a player, then I expected 100% support from them. Anything less would mean that I wouldn't call them in again. The game got underway and I exerted my authority in full letting things go, calling lost advantages back and thoroughly enjoying the contest between the 2nd place team in the Premier Division (home) against the leaders of Division One (away).
I only had a problem with one player and having spoken to him twice, he tried charging down a free kick awarded against him. Not surprisingly, I had no voices protesting his caution. We reached half time at 0-0 and I was pleased with my level of intervention.
The second half kicked off and I noticed that I had an ache in my right ankle. It was something that I had felt a few times in the last couple of months but I have always managed to run off. This time I noticed a definite change in the symptoms as the pain intensified when I tried to push off on a run, rather than maintain a pace.
After 10 minutes I chased a long ball into the away team penalty area and signalled the resulting corner kick. When the ball was played across the goal, the goalkeeper was impeded (with contact) and I awarded a free kick to the defending team. As I turned to run out to my wide position to observe the drop zone something clicked in my ankle and I couldn't put any weight at all on my foot.
I spoke to the goalkeeper to ask him to delay his free kick, signalled to the home team's technical area and limped to the touchline. I called both captains in and explained that I was unable to continue, they needed to agree a replacement referee and the replacement would have the full authority in relation to all aspects of managing the game.
So with a suitable replacement agreed, the game restarted. It was interesting to watch an untrained referee miss late challenges that a trailing eye would have picked up, ignore heavy challenges that should have warranted a free kick and miss completely a number of incidents involving head to head contact!
The away team took the lead shortly after the restart and the home team equalised soon afterwards. Despite a number of chances, neither team could score a winning goal, so the game went to extra time. In extra time, the away team went ahead again but the home team equalised so it was 2-2. Then just after the start of the second period of extra time, the home team scored what turned out to be the deciding goal.
It was, in truth, a cracking cup game with total commitment from both sides. I believe that my softly, softly approach in the period I looked after enhanced the game and the replacement referee, with all his omissions, added to the excitement.
So it looks like I will be out for a few weeks. As for the timing ... at tomorrow evening's RA meeting, our guest speaker is the physio for a local Unibond team and will be speaking on the subject of Sporting Injuries and their management!
I arrived early for a District Cup game which had been postponed from last week because the home team were involved in the Carlsberg FA Sunday Cup. The last time I refereed at this ground I had 11 cautions (maybe 10), 1 dismissal and a misconduct charge for spectator comments. It may have been the lowest point of my refereeing career.
Today I stepped out and spoke to both captains at the coin toss, letting them know that if I called them in to talk to a player, then I expected 100% support from them. Anything less would mean that I wouldn't call them in again. The game got underway and I exerted my authority in full letting things go, calling lost advantages back and thoroughly enjoying the contest between the 2nd place team in the Premier Division (home) against the leaders of Division One (away).
I only had a problem with one player and having spoken to him twice, he tried charging down a free kick awarded against him. Not surprisingly, I had no voices protesting his caution. We reached half time at 0-0 and I was pleased with my level of intervention.
The second half kicked off and I noticed that I had an ache in my right ankle. It was something that I had felt a few times in the last couple of months but I have always managed to run off. This time I noticed a definite change in the symptoms as the pain intensified when I tried to push off on a run, rather than maintain a pace.
After 10 minutes I chased a long ball into the away team penalty area and signalled the resulting corner kick. When the ball was played across the goal, the goalkeeper was impeded (with contact) and I awarded a free kick to the defending team. As I turned to run out to my wide position to observe the drop zone something clicked in my ankle and I couldn't put any weight at all on my foot.
I spoke to the goalkeeper to ask him to delay his free kick, signalled to the home team's technical area and limped to the touchline. I called both captains in and explained that I was unable to continue, they needed to agree a replacement referee and the replacement would have the full authority in relation to all aspects of managing the game.
So with a suitable replacement agreed, the game restarted. It was interesting to watch an untrained referee miss late challenges that a trailing eye would have picked up, ignore heavy challenges that should have warranted a free kick and miss completely a number of incidents involving head to head contact!
The away team took the lead shortly after the restart and the home team equalised soon afterwards. Despite a number of chances, neither team could score a winning goal, so the game went to extra time. In extra time, the away team went ahead again but the home team equalised so it was 2-2. Then just after the start of the second period of extra time, the home team scored what turned out to be the deciding goal.
It was, in truth, a cracking cup game with total commitment from both sides. I believe that my softly, softly approach in the period I looked after enhanced the game and the replacement referee, with all his omissions, added to the excitement.
So it looks like I will be out for a few weeks. As for the timing ... at tomorrow evening's RA meeting, our guest speaker is the physio for a local Unibond team and will be speaking on the subject of Sporting Injuries and their management!
Friday, 7 August 2009
Trip to the doctors
After the incident following Wednesday's training I noticed a pain in my left calf. On looking at my leg I saw a red track, 2 cm wide and 12-15 cm long - it was time to seek medical advice!!!
Dr R saw me virtually straight away and confirmed I had mild blood poisoning. I was put on a course of antibiotics to deal with the infection and antihistamines to combat the swelling.
Dr R saw me virtually straight away and confirmed I had mild blood poisoning. I was put on a course of antibiotics to deal with the infection and antihistamines to combat the swelling.
Friday, 31 July 2009
Last night ...
I had a run out with Gav and Jamie at the County FA.
Jamie asked me if I fancied helping with a trial game for the County's new U18 team. The game was split into thirds each lasting 30 minutes. I was on the line for the first two and then went in the middle for the last period.
I really enjoyed the run out but was nervous about the tweak I picked up last week on my course. I need not have worried as things went ok. Fat Lad was at a meeting at the County HQ and during a break I heard him shouting to keep up with play!
In the first period my hrm wasn't working properly and I hit a max of 115% and an average of 75% (Calories 510). In the second period the hrm settled down and I maxed at 87% with an average of 76& (Calories 425). In the final period, I hit a max of 95% and an average of 86% (Calories 510). So total calories came to 1445.
After the game I bumped into the County Training Officer and was invited to help facilitate one of the groups at Next Tuesday's Supply League Assistants evening - so feeling very valued!
Jamie asked me if I fancied helping with a trial game for the County's new U18 team. The game was split into thirds each lasting 30 minutes. I was on the line for the first two and then went in the middle for the last period.
I really enjoyed the run out but was nervous about the tweak I picked up last week on my course. I need not have worried as things went ok. Fat Lad was at a meeting at the County HQ and during a break I heard him shouting to keep up with play!
In the first period my hrm wasn't working properly and I hit a max of 115% and an average of 75% (Calories 510). In the second period the hrm settled down and I maxed at 87% with an average of 76& (Calories 425). In the final period, I hit a max of 95% and an average of 86% (Calories 510). So total calories came to 1445.
After the game I bumped into the County Training Officer and was invited to help facilitate one of the groups at Next Tuesday's Supply League Assistants evening - so feeling very valued!
Sunday, 26 July 2009
Training 2.17
Not so much a training session as a fitness test.
Having tweaked something around my right knee last Wednesday afternoon I tried a little jogging this morning and some slightly faster running as well. I managed both the Fat Lad's help (and his wife's knee bandage - thanks Lynne) but I couldn't/daren't try any thing above 50% of max. So I have to give up my pre-season game when I was supposed to be Assistant for Jamie. fat Lad has taken the game on instead and I'll go watch.
It gives me a few days rest before the 3 day International Youth Tournament which starts on Friday. Calories 497 average 66%, max 96%.
Having tweaked something around my right knee last Wednesday afternoon I tried a little jogging this morning and some slightly faster running as well. I managed both the Fat Lad's help (and his wife's knee bandage - thanks Lynne) but I couldn't/daren't try any thing above 50% of max. So I have to give up my pre-season game when I was supposed to be Assistant for Jamie. fat Lad has taken the game on instead and I'll go watch.
It gives me a few days rest before the 3 day International Youth Tournament which starts on Friday. Calories 497 average 66%, max 96%.
Friday, 24 July 2009
Training 2.16
The light session was just that as I puddled around in the pool, sauna and steam room.
Unfortunately in an afternoon session, I really did manage to strain something. I have rested it over the last two days and it seems to be better. I'm going to have a little run on Sunday and then decide whether I can do the game I'm scheduled to take part in on Tuesday.
Unfortunately in an afternoon session, I really did manage to strain something. I have rested it over the last two days and it seems to be better. I'm going to have a little run on Sunday and then decide whether I can do the game I'm scheduled to take part in on Tuesday.
Monday, 13 July 2009
Training 2.12
Sometimes I dislike training, other times I enjoy it ... tonight I absolutely detested just about every single second!
We started with the usual lap around the field at a gentle pace. Fat Lad and Chuckle Elder, tired from their recent exertions in passing their respective fitness tests, took things a little slower but trotted in close behind me and Paulie. It was then that Chuckle unleashed his terrifying plan.
We were to run sideways (left leg leading) for 1/4 of the length of the touchline before turning and running sideways (right leg leading) to the half way line. Once there we ran backwards for another 1/4 of the length of the touchline before turning and jogging the remainder of the touchline.
We then walked 6 yards along the goal line before running at 3/4 pace to the opposite goal line. Another 6 yard walk along the goal line was followed by a light jog to the edge of the penalty area, lifting the pace to the halfway line and then lifting it again to the edge of the far penalty area before slowing it down to the goal line.
Again a slow walk 6 yards along the goal line was followed by another 3/4 pace run to the goal line at the opposite end of the field. We had the recovery of walking back to the start point before going through the whole routine again. We completed 4 repetitions before having a 5 minute rest. After the rest we did another 4 repetitions but on the second to last 3/4 paced run I felt a tweak behind my knee and pulled up short by about 8 yards.
I stretched my leg out, did the 3 pace jog/run and then ran in the last 3/4 pace run (but more at 65%) and that was the end. A light jog around the field just to loosen things up again and it was time to go home. Calories 878, average hr 78%, max hr 97%.
No training on Wednesday as we're doing something a little different on Thursday and then it's time for my course on Saturday!
We started with the usual lap around the field at a gentle pace. Fat Lad and Chuckle Elder, tired from their recent exertions in passing their respective fitness tests, took things a little slower but trotted in close behind me and Paulie. It was then that Chuckle unleashed his terrifying plan.
We were to run sideways (left leg leading) for 1/4 of the length of the touchline before turning and running sideways (right leg leading) to the half way line. Once there we ran backwards for another 1/4 of the length of the touchline before turning and jogging the remainder of the touchline.
We then walked 6 yards along the goal line before running at 3/4 pace to the opposite goal line. Another 6 yard walk along the goal line was followed by a light jog to the edge of the penalty area, lifting the pace to the halfway line and then lifting it again to the edge of the far penalty area before slowing it down to the goal line.
Again a slow walk 6 yards along the goal line was followed by another 3/4 pace run to the goal line at the opposite end of the field. We had the recovery of walking back to the start point before going through the whole routine again. We completed 4 repetitions before having a 5 minute rest. After the rest we did another 4 repetitions but on the second to last 3/4 paced run I felt a tweak behind my knee and pulled up short by about 8 yards.
I stretched my leg out, did the 3 pace jog/run and then ran in the last 3/4 pace run (but more at 65%) and that was the end. A light jog around the field just to loosen things up again and it was time to go home. Calories 878, average hr 78%, max hr 97%.
No training on Wednesday as we're doing something a little different on Thursday and then it's time for my course on Saturday!
Monday, 6 July 2009
Training 2.10
A pleasant surprise on stepping on the bathroom scales this morning as they told me that I've lost 3Kg (1/2st) since coming back from my holiday in Crete just 9 days ago. This might not seem remarkable as everyone puts weight on while on holiday and loses it when they come home, but I have been the same weight (or within a couple of pounds) for around 18 months. So I'm going to press on with my no beer/no bread/loads of salad diet, even thought it's becoming more difficult to ignore my rumbling stomach!
Tonight's training had a good turn out with Mr H, Chuckle Elder, recently married Ricky, Fat Lad and Paulie all turning up for a session. The first four mentioned above decided they would do a sprint session and as regular readers will know, my hamstrings are like cheesestrings so I try to avoid sprint training, especially this close to the start of the season.
I asked Chuckle to give me a stamina building session and Paulie wanted to join in. He set us a target of running 30s on/30s off for 30 repetitions. He even set the pace for us on the first run and we did our best to keep to the same pace throughout. We had a 1 minute rest after 10 and 2 minutes rest after 20 and finished almost on our knees when we did the 30th.
On the 12th run, Paulie pointed out a dog "deposit" that we needed to avoid but I managed to trample straight through it three laps later, requiring me to spend 15 minutes trying to clean it when I got home! Our session was a hard one and at the end I was absolutely exhausted. Calories burnt 1076, max hr 108% and average 80% over 1h4m.
No training on Wednesday as I have a meeting at my son's new school where he will be starting in September. I'll be back at it on Friday when it will be just 2 days to Fat Lad's test!!! The Achilles pain has flared up again but not as badly this time and there's no swelling this time, so happy days.
Tonight's training had a good turn out with Mr H, Chuckle Elder, recently married Ricky, Fat Lad and Paulie all turning up for a session. The first four mentioned above decided they would do a sprint session and as regular readers will know, my hamstrings are like cheesestrings so I try to avoid sprint training, especially this close to the start of the season.
I asked Chuckle to give me a stamina building session and Paulie wanted to join in. He set us a target of running 30s on/30s off for 30 repetitions. He even set the pace for us on the first run and we did our best to keep to the same pace throughout. We had a 1 minute rest after 10 and 2 minutes rest after 20 and finished almost on our knees when we did the 30th.
On the 12th run, Paulie pointed out a dog "deposit" that we needed to avoid but I managed to trample straight through it three laps later, requiring me to spend 15 minutes trying to clean it when I got home! Our session was a hard one and at the end I was absolutely exhausted. Calories burnt 1076, max hr 108% and average 80% over 1h4m.
No training on Wednesday as I have a meeting at my son's new school where he will be starting in September. I'll be back at it on Friday when it will be just 2 days to Fat Lad's test!!! The Achilles pain has flared up again but not as badly this time and there's no swelling this time, so happy days.
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