Image via Wikipedia

Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren announced the dissolution of there marriage today some nine months after revelations of Tiger’s infidelity. The announcement was made on Tiger’s official website by McGuireWoods LLP, counsel for Elin Nordegren and Sasser, Cestero and Sasser P.A., counsel for Tiger Woods.

Mr. Woods and Ms. Nordegren also issued a joint statement on the number one golfers website www.tigerwoods.com.

“We are sad that our marriage is over and we wish each other the very best for the future. While we are no longer married, we are the parents of two wonderful children and their happiness has been, and will always be, of paramount importance to both of us.”

” Once we came to the decision that our marriage was at an end, the primary focus of our amicable discussions has been to ensure their future well-being. The weeks and months ahead will not be easy for them as we adjust to a new family situation, which is why our privacy must be a principal concern.”

The Judgement was heard in Bay County Circuit Court and provides for shared parenting of their children.

Speculation over the past few months has reported settlement figures as High as $750 million and as low as $100 million these details have as yet not been confirmed.

HSBC look to aquire 70% share in Old Mutuals Nedbank Group

In a press release earlier today Old Mutual Plc, announced that majority owned South African banking Subsidiary, Nedbank Group Limited, has received a proposal from HSBC Holdings Plc to acquire a 70% controlling interest in the South African banking Group.

An initial assessment from the Nedbank Group (NED)reveals that they consider HSBC to be an excellent international banking partner that would enhance the groups ability to strengthen their position in South Africa and other African Markets.

Old Mutual have granted HSBC Holdings a period of exclusivity in order that the company may carry out due diligence and inter alia of Nedbank Group as well as a few other regulatory approval processes.

Nedbank Group have advised share holders to proceed with caution when dealing with group securities whilst this process continues, this is due to the likelihood of the announcement having a material effect on the value of NED securities.

If the proposal proceeds with approval from the South African Reserve Bank (SARB), the registrar of Banks and the Finance Minister, then the transaction and specifically the transfer of £1.5 billion to Old Mutual would be managed in such a manner as not to effect the South African Currency markets.

Intel Buys Software Security Company McAfee for $7.68 Billion

In a move to bring together the need for online security in hardware Intel, the silicon chip company, have aquired Internet security software specialists McAfee for a total sum of $7.68 Billion in cash.

The software security technology company was founded in 1987 and is the worlds largest. McAfee had revenues of around $2 Billion in 2009 and is growing in strength and is the perfect software partner for Intel in their effort to marry security technologies into their hardware.

“With the rapid expansion of growth across a vast array of Internet-connected devices, more and more of the elements of our lives have moved online,” said Paul Otellini, Intel president and CEO “In the past, energy-efficient performance and connectivity have defined computing requirements. Looking forward, security will join those as a third pillar of what people demand from all computing experiences.”

Intels acquisition of McAfee has been approved by both boards of directors and is awaiting agreement from the shareholders and regulators. Intel will buy McAfee’s (MFE) holding share stock at a rate of $48 per share which was around a 55% markup on the listed share price when the deal was announced on Wednesday, McAfee (MFE)  shares have now risen to near the value of the deal price at around $47 per share.

This latest acquisition by Intel follows the companies purchase of Wind River last year for a reported $884 million adding to the company a software company with a presence in the consumer electronics markets.

There has been a huge amount of talk about Starcraft 2 since it has been launched and this is not surprising as it has been in the pipeline for so long! In fact since the first Starcraft this has been 10 years in the making and the result is a very polished game experience that is making a lot of people very happy.

However there has also been a lot of buzz around Starcraft 2 cheat codes and strategy guides and it seems that Blizzard’s latest offering is too much to handle for some!

Well the first thing that you should know before you start looking up cheat codes to try and beat the game is simply that you will not be able to beat the game like this.

Blizzard have put some code into the game that can detect when you are using cheats and that means that you will not be able unlock any of the achievements like this or beat the game!

Well it seems in the midst of this there is a gamer that has gotten around this issue, not so much with cheat codes but by releasing a Starcraft 2 Strategy guide.

Now looking at the website you can see that this is obviously a player that has been through the beta and if the picture on his profile is anything to go by he has done very well!

Of course there are 3 factions that you can play as in Starcraft 2 and that is Terran, Protoss or Zerg and it seems that the guide covers each of these, giving you a handy get started guide and also has a few handy things that you can do with the macro commands of the game.

The thing that most interested us was the fact that the guy claims to show you how to get to rank 1 Diamond which is the highest rank!

Well this is quite a bold claim but the good thing is that the guide has videos fo him actually playing the game so you know that this is not some guide that has just been researched and put together by a non-player.

At least he does actually play the game!

So that leaves us with the question?

So do you need a Starcraft 2 Strategy guide?

Well, no you don’t but if you want to get as high up in the rankings and go for that diamond rank it sure might help.

You can see Shokz Starcraft 2 Strategy Guide HERE

The Last Password You'll Ever Need To Remember

That’s the promise from the folks at LastPass.com about their free password manager software, because it stores all your passwords behind one master password.

After garnering a string of awards and high recommendations over recent years, LastPass was selected for the 2010 Best Privacy/Security Add-On in the Reader’s Choice Awards at About.com.

LastPass is designed to securely store all your login information so that includes usernames and passwords for all the sites you visit. In addition, there is a Secure Notes facility for keeping other confidential notes under password protection.

Remembering long passwords is such a problem for most people that they resort to passwords that are easy to remember, which means they are also easy to guess, which means they are not all that secure.

As LastPass.com says, “We go online to connect with people, explore, shop and learn. We certainly don’t go online to fuss with passwords or risk our privacy, personal or financial information. Designed by web enthusiasts and skilled application developers, LastPass was created to make the online experience easier and safer for everyone.”

It does this by creating random, non-guessable passwords which users can accept, or they can create their own. Either way, you no longer need to remember your passwords. Just login and let LastPass do all the heavy lifting.

The software is free, coming from a dedicated bunch of programmers who do not charge for the use of their skills. They are part of a strong and growing open source movement. Source here refers to source code. And code is what makes websites in particular and the internet in general work as well as it does.

So technically, what is LastPass?

It’s a multi-platform password manager, meaning it works on all computers — Macs, Windows and Linux.

It is web based, so you can use it on any computer you’re sitting at. You just login with your LastPass master password. That’s the last password you’ll ever have to remember, according to their slogan. Because it is web-based, any password changes you make on your work computer, for example, will be synced up on your home computer.

LastPass encrypts all of your individual passwords then stores them behind one master password. When you type in that master password, LastPass can automatically log you in to any web site you visit with your saved login credentials.

For more information and to grab their free download, visit www.lastpass.com

Mortgage-Loans

Home sales are not in a steady state in the US, leading to struggles in order to bring it up. The Federal Reserve recently purchased $1.25 trillion in mortgage-backed bonds in order to sustain the market and to provide a steady amount of income passing through it. Mortgage Loans may start to be on the rise soon though, as mortgage rates fell to a record low this week, from 4.54% all the way down to 4.49%.

The drop in the mortgage rates was of an all time low, exceeding previous rates from up to the 1970s. More and more people are moving towards the refinancing aspect, and Dana Johnson, Comerica Inc’s Chief Economist had this to say about the trend, “It’s a great opportunity for people to refinance if they have the equity to reduce monthly payments.”

The declining rates are indeed an attractive proposition for people who seek to refinance or purchase a home for themselves. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, refinanced loan applications have increased by 1.3%, while applications to purchase homes have increased by 1.5%. Still, the trend in the economy with high unemployment and tight credit will prove to cause difficulty for many who seek to buy their own homes.

iPhone-4

In recent days, the jailbreaking of phones has just been given the “OK” sign by the US Library of Congress, meaning that it is now legal. Shortly after that, the first iPhone 4 jailbreak was introduced by a well-known hacker and made available online.

According to further reports, the jailbreak can be initiated without the need for another computer, and this particular program can be downloaded online as of now. The jailbreak allows iPhone users to purchase apps from other online stores, and not to have their activities limited to just applications from the Apple App store.

It was further reported that the provided hack was extremely popular, resulting in the difficulty of keeping up with the high number of demanding users. Though the use of a jailbreak has been legalized, jailbreaking your iPhone could lead to a potential endangerment of one’s warranty from Apple.

The jailbreak also was reported to currently have other problems, such as disabling video chat on the iPhone 4, and causing problems with regards to multimedia messaging.

Foreclosure-Bread

With the dramatic rise in the number of foreclosures this year, it was shown that the main cause was due to the loss of jobs. However, losing a job isn’t making Beverly Davis lose hope for her three-bedroom, two-bathroom house.

The Georgia woman lost her full-time job and got her part-time job scaled back as well, resulting in an urgent need for financial situations. However, the threat of foreclosure didn’t stop Davis a bit, as she continued to push the tide, and make cornbread.

Making various cornbread related pastries, such as cornbread souffle, chicken potpie with a cornbread crust, and more delicious items, the 48 year-old Ms. Davis is going to raise enough money to buy back her house and get it out of danger of foreclosure.

As mentioned by Ms. Davis on her website, “Investors who buy foreclosed homes or anybody else looking for a bargain WILL NOT get this house. I’m smarter and wiser now.” And indeed, it is so as there are others who have previously followed the same path. In previous news, a lady from New Jersey managed to sell enough $40 apple cakes to be able to qualify for a loan modification.

Windows-Patch

A vulnerability that was found to affect all versions of Windows, has forced the company to play its hand and release a patch on Monday, August 2nd. The emergency patch will help to address the issues of zero-day vulnerabilities in shortcuts.

According to the Microsoft Malware Protection Center (MMPC), attempts to exploit the vulnerability are on the rise, and the patch couldn’t come at a better time. The most prominent virus to take advantage of the “shortcut hole” was a virus known as Sality.AT.

A post on the MMPC blog stated that, “Although there have been multiple families that have picked up this vector, one in particular caught our attention this week–a family named Sality, and specifically Sality.AT. Sality is a highly virulent strain. It is known to infect other files (making full removal after infection challenging), copy itself to removable media, disable security, and then download other malware. It is also a very large family–one of the most prevalent families this year.”

Foreclosures

With the coming of the recession between this year and the previous, the country has been hit hard with a loss of jobs and many other incidences. In the same news, the US economy is seemingly at risk with the rate of foreclosures going up by a very shocking rate.

Although in previous years, the foreclosures were said by experts to be due to people taking on mortgages that they could not really afford in the first place, the rising rate of foreclosures in recent times seems to be the result of another trend.

According to real estate data company RealtyTrac, the reason for the increase in foreclosures this year is due to the incidence of unemployment as a result of the economic downturn. Thus, the resulting loss of jobs is giving way to a substantial loss of homes.

Senior vice president of RealtyTrack, Rick Sharga, had this to say about the alarming increase in foreclosure rates, “We’re not going to see meaningful, sustainable home price appreciation while we’re seeing 75 percent of the markets have increases in foreclosures.”

Furthermore, foreclosure increases were found to be affecting three quarters of the largest US metro areas.

Toyota-Avalon

Following the hot news on Toyota recalls earlier this year, the announcement of recalls for more Toyota automobiles has come about. The recall this time focused on the 373,000 Aavlon sedans that were created for 2000 to 2004 model years. The problem was in the steering lock system of the cars. The complaints were from six reports of the problem, though there were three accidents, there were no injuries.

Another model that was being recalled was the older Lexus LX 470s. The reason for this was due to problems that could lead to loss of control in the steering, and 39,000 vehicles were recalled, being from the model years of 2003 to 2007.

Steve St. Angelo, chief quality officer of Toyota North America said, “Toyota is continuing to work diligently to address safety issues wherever they arise and to strengthen our global quality assurance operations so that Toyota owners can be confident in the safety of their vehicles.”

iPad

A lot of suing and complaints from customers and Apple have led to a strange twist in developments. A lot of customers who have been using the iPads have been experiencing that their devices get overheated rather easily when in direct contact with sunlight, and shut themselves down.

Complaints filed by customers at a federal court in California have revealed that they could only use the iPad for a few minutes in the outdoor, sparking complaints that surround the issues of deceptive advertising strategies to breaches in business law.

After reaching a certain level of temperature, the iPad will automatically display a warning message for users to turn off the device and allow it to cool before continued use, sparking the debate that it doesn’t work like a book, as stated by Apple in their advertising complaints. The class action status being sought by lawyers means that the action will be taken on behalf of all affected users of Apple’s iPad.

On the other side of the spectrum, Apple is suing companies that are producing unauthorized accessories for its iPad, as well as for the iPod and iPhone. “Many are of inferior quality and reliability, raising significant concerns over compatibility with and damage to Apple’s products,” Apple was quoted as mentioning.

YouTube

Previously, users of the popular video-sharing site, YouTube, have been held down by the limit of ten minutes in length. Indeed, no video can be uploaded by users that are more than ten minutes, unless they are in one of the special partner programs held by YouTube.

However, users will be glad as the max limit has now been lifted to fifteen minutes, giving video uploaders more time to display their fame. The reason for the restriction is to help cut down on piracy. However, YouTube was able to loosen the restriction due to more powerful copyright monitoring tools.

The change marked not only an increase in capacity, but also in the further development of their tools for protecting copyright holders. The increased time will also help to assist the introduction of the GoogleTV and Google YouTube Leanback products coming in the Fall.

According to product manager for upload and video management at YouTube, Joshua Siegel, “Now, all of the major U.S. movie studios, music labels and over 1,000 other global partners use Content ID to manage their content on YouTube. Because of the success of these ongoing technological efforts, we are able to increase the upload limit today.”

Apple Inc shares took a 3% tumble as Consumer Reports revealed it could not recommend the iPhone4 with it’s current problems. Many consumers have reported reception problems with the new unit and Apple have put the cause down to a software issue.

The software issue is reported to return erroneous signal strength bars on the units and as a result users seeing a 4 bar reception may actually only be in an area that has a 2 bar signal strength, this was addressed in an open letter to consumers on July 2.

In a seemingly low key launch a week after the European launch of the iPad Apple pulled off a marketing coop with over 1.7 million units sold in the US in 3 days.

With increasing consumer disatisfaction with the iPhone4 and in light of Consumer Reports announcement Apple have called a press conference, to be held at their California Head Office, this will take place tomorrow and the subject has not been released yet.

In the open letter of July 2 Apple promised a software update to fix what they see as the main problem of reception for the iPhone4.

'© BP p.l.c

Testing on the new cap to seal the leak on the MC252 well, in the Gulf of Mexico were delayed yesterday whilst a leak in a pipe on the side of the new cap was investigated.

Amid fears that the new cap, BPs best hope to date of stopping the Oil leak, may not be able to with stand the pressure of the Oil leak. The company comes under attack from another front with allegations that they lobbied the British government for the release of the Lockerbie bomber, Al-Megrahi with drilling rights off the coast of Libya in mind.

US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, has pledged to consider congressional pressure to launch a full investigation into the matter.

BP have increased efforts to control and manage the Oil flow into the Gulf of Mexico including increasing Q4000 operations to reclaiming 20,000-25,000 barrels of oil per day and the drilling of 2 relief wells.

Internet Marketing has been shown to be one of two main marketing media to see a rise in recent times, the other being direct marketing, whilst at the same time overall marketing budgets have shrunk.

In recent reports it has been shown that online marketing spending has overall increased compared to a decrease in all other media by 2% to $55.2 billion during 2009. Whilst the global economy took a severe downturn during 2009 Internet Marketing spending resisted the overall downturn and economy measures effecting traditional marketing budgets.

Many key market indicating reports are predicting further growth with annual online marketing expenditure to reach $97 billion by 2014 and see a global growth of 12.4% in 2010.

The fastest global growth in Internet Marketing will be in Asian and far east markets whilst established online marketing audiences in North America and Europe will still see growth building on the base and maturity of their customer base.

Credit Report

All three credit reference agencies in the UK have now conformed with a Labour government initiative to make statutory credit reports available to consumers online.

Previously this industry standard credit report was only available in a paper format for a nominal £2 fee often taking upto a week or more to arrive by post. In a move to make access to credit information easier and faster the Government ordered the big three, Equifax, Experian and Call Credit to make the reports available online for the statutory fee of £2.

Equifax made the statutory report, which allows consumers a snapshot view of their credit payment history, available online back in March of this year whilst Experian made theirs available 2 weeks ago and Call Credit conformed 2 days ago.

Major industry experts agree that this is a big step forward and recommend that everyone should check their credit history before applying for any major credit deals and there is no excuse now.

The Match

Netherlands – Spain, Soccer City, Johannesburg, 20:30 Local Time

Tonight the final of FIFA World Cup 2010 takes place at soccer city in Johannesburg where Netherlands and Spain meet in what is set to be an exciting final match. Many eyes from around the world will be watching this event some choosing live streaming online coverage but the vast majority will watch it on local live coverage on the likes of The BBC and ESPN.

Neither team has ever won this prestigious title with the Netherlands being denied the chance in the final on 2 previous occasions having been beaten in 1974 by Germany and 1978 by Argentina. Spain meanwhile have never reached this stage in FIFA World Cup history and it is fitting that in a year when they have also won the European Championship and will be looking to consolidate their success.

The two teams have met on 9 previous occassions and of those meetings they have an equal number of wins at 4 each with the 9th being a draw. This leaves the match as a close call for anyone to try and predict.

“I don’t see David Villa as Spain’s most dangerous player. The ones you really have to watch are Xavi [Hernandez] and [Andres] Iniesta. They’re the players who set the tempo and make sure the ball gets to Villa. We have to stop them from playing and getting free. We need to mark them very tightly because if we give them the slightest space we’ll have problems,” Arjen Robben, Netherlands forward.

“I don’t think they’ll sit back and defend. They’ve got some quick players who are in terrific form right now. They’ll do what we do and stick to their style. I know Robben. He’s quick powerful and strong, and his shooting from outside the area is a concern for me. What we need to do is cut him off, although there’s more to the Netherlands than just Robben. They are powerful in defence and midfield, and [Wesley] Sneijder and [Dirk] Kuyt are just as dangerous,” Iker Casillas, Spain goalkeeper and captain.

Sony has ordered for the recall of several of its popular Sony VAIO brand of computer laptops due to the risk of overheating that could potentially burn the laptop users.

The recall comes after a recall in May by the HP company for its laptop batteries due to possible fire outbreaks due to overheating.

As reports came in that the overheating laptops were causing damage to parts such as casing, the number of recalls in the US reached over 200,000 the previous week . Fortunately, no injuries were reported with the occurences.

The recall was ordered by the American Consumer Product Safety Commission due to the complaints on the product.

“Recently, we became aware of a potential issue affecting certain units within the VPCF11 and VPCCW2 series of notebook PCs,” mentioned Mike Lucas, senior vice president of Vaio for Sony.

Readers who have the above mentioned series of notebook PCs are advised to refer to the Sony website for more information.

The Result

Uraguay 1-1 Ghana

1-1 after extra time

4-2 Penalty Shoot Out

Uraguay send Ghana, the last African Nation team left in the tournament, home after a tense match lasting the full 120 minutes of playing time allowed and decided on a penalty shoot out in Uraguay’s favour.

The first half started with Uraguay taking command of the pace and narrowly missing a few early chances to take the first goal. Richard Kingson was well tested in the first 20 minutes. Then Ghana settled to the pace of the match and developed some opportunity’s of their own and indeed took the lead on the stroke of half time when Sulley Muntari powered in a curling 35 yard shot that fooled the Uraguay keeper and left Ghana 1-0 up at the end of 45 minutes.

The second half didn’t see Ghana capitalize on the high of leading into the break when Diego Forlan netted a swerving free kick from the edge of the box to even the score and revive Uraguay’s chance. As the match progressed with both teams looking for the winner to take them through to meet the Netherlands.

The score remained at 1-1 when 90 minutes where finished and ushered in an extra period of play during which several opportunities were missed by both sides but most notable Ghana’s chance to end it with a win when Gyan missed a last minute penalty.

Gyan redeemed himself in the penalty shoot out by converting the first penalty unfortunately it would not be enough when the Uraguay keeper saved two shots in a row leaving Abreu to put the final ball in the net and seal Ghana’s fate in this tournament.

Uraguay now face The Netherlands on 6th July in the semi final.

Uraguay - Ghana

The Match

Uraguay – Ghana

The second FIFA World Cup 2010 quarter final match takes place today at 20:30 local time at Johannesburg (Soccer City), this will be a new experience for Ghana who failed to advance this far on their FIFA World Cup debut 4 years ago. It has been 40 years since Uraguay reached the final 4 and they will surely be looking to do the same this year.

Uraguay struggled to qualify but have shown great form after a moderate start in their opening goaless draw with France winning the next 3 match’s in a row and will be looking to increase that to 4 and meet either Brazil or the Netherlands in the semi finals. Ghana are the only remaining African nation in the tournament and will be relying on the crowds to lift them and help them through to unknown teritory this evening.

“They are fast, strong, and they have done well in other games, even against Germany,” Diego Forlan, Uruguay forward.

“They have a great team, especially in attack. This is what we have to watch out for because they have players like Forlan and Suarez,” Asamoah Gyan, Ghana striker.

Brazil V Netherlands

The Match

Brazil – Netherlands

The first of the FIFA World Cup 2010 quarter finals start’s this afternooon at 16:00 Local time at Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth and it is set to be a great game with 2 of the tournament favourite’s meeting and one will go home today.

The Netherlands come on the wave of a 23 match unbeaten streak whilst a reformed Brazil are now 10 match’s unbeaten. Both teams also came through top of their respective groups and whilst Brazil breezed through a knockout round 3-0 against Chile, Netherlands had a bit more of a tough time against a competant Slovakia but came through 2-1.

So the stage is set to decide who goes on to face either Uraguay or Ghana depending on who wins in that other match of the day this evening.

“Taking on Brazil is a tremendous challenge for us, but we’re staying focused on achieving our objective, which is the world title. The Brazilians have a mature and solid team, who give off a positive type of arrogance: an air of invincibility. For the first time, the Netherlands are going into a game as underdogs,” Bert van Marwijk, Netherlands coach.

“It’s hard for Brazil or the Netherlands to sit back. They play a similar game to us: they like to take the initiative. Quarter-final games are always very cagey and sometimes get bogged down. We’ll be trying to score a goal in the first half so we can play with a bit more freedom,” Juan, Brazil defender.

With mortgage rates at a 50 year low figures indicate that Mortgage refinance business made up 77% of last weeks mortgage business up 3% from the previous week.

A lack of invester confidence saw money moved into Treasury Bonds causing their yeilds to fall and with it interest rates. The lack of invester confidence is a result of speculation on the european debt crisis.

“Mortgage rates for all but traditional 1-year ARMs hit all-time record lows this week in our survey while activity in the housing market slowed in May following the expiration of the homebuyer tax credit,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist

Mortgage refinance for bad credit borrower’s could also benefit with HAMP helping stop foreclosures lower rates could make it advantageous to refinance under mortgage loan modification criteria.

Of course other factors need to be considered before commiting to a mortgage refinance such as arrangement fees which can often be the deciding factor because that sum needs to be recouped quickly from any savings of a lower interest rate to justify the mortgage refinance.

The Results

Paraguay 0-0 Japan FT
Paraguay 0-0 Japan ET
Paraguay 5-3 Japan Penalties

Spain 1-0 Portugal

This afternoons match became the first to run to a penalty shoot out between Paraguay and Japan. With both teams fighting for a first time place in a FIFA World Cup quarter finals which is perhaps why much of the first 90 minutes lacked the passion and inspiration we have seen from both teams in previous match’s. With a few brief moments from each side to test the keepers no goals materialized and full time came with no score on the card.

There was a little more action in the extra period of play but still no goals despite several attempts by both teams. This left the match to be decided by penalty’s of which only 1 of nine taken was missed in Paraguay’s favour.

“It was a very tight game, though I think we had a slight edge on our opponents. We showed more heart than football and, in a game like this, that’s enough. Other teams need to play more football to win. That said, we’re not going to understate the value of being among the top eight teams in the world. Why did I shout? I was just blowing off steam. There’s a lot of tension and anxiety and you suffer because the players are putting in so much effort. The Japanese also worked really hard but luck was on our side. We’ve taken another step forward, but we’ve not achieved our goals yet. Let’s hope we can recover quickly and keep making history.” Gerardo Martino, Paraguay coach

The second match of the day saw Spain overcome their neighbours Portugal in a test of European football giants. Both defending record match runs Spain with 29 wins from 31 and Portugal without a defeat for 19 match’s. The match started with a flurry of action from end to end. After 20 minute’s it calmed down to a more controlled pace. In the 63rd minute of the match the only goal of the game was given by David Villa when he hooked a rebound in the 6 yard box into the net. This is how the match ended and now Spain go on to face Paraguay in the quarter finals.

The Quarter Final Line Up

July 2

Uraguay – Ghana
Netherlands – Brazil

July 3

Argentina – Germany
Paraguay – Spain

Stop Foreclosure

In a few days time on 1st July the US Treasury’s next directive under their HAMP (Home Affordable Modification Program) program will come into effect and is aimed at helping unemployed people stop foreclosure.

The Home Affordable Unemployment Program (UP) announced in March will help those who have found themselves unemployed re negotiate or even stop their mortgage loan payment’s. Under this forbearance initiative eligible borrowers will be able to have their mortgage payment’s reduced to 31% of their monthly household income, and in some cases suspended, for a period of 3 months or until reemployment occurs whichever is shortest.

In order to be eligible for a forbearance UP borrowers need to meet HAMP criteria and be without a job and receiving unemployment benefits during the month of the forbearance plan initiation.

Borrowers in a forbearance UP who gain reemployment will immediately be evaluated for HAMP modification or 30 days before the UP plan expires whichever happens soonest.

This new initiative is aimed at help those who become unemployed to stop foreclosure action. This will be the latest addition to the Obama administration’s actions and efforts to help stabilize the economy. The mortgage modification program announced last year in March has so far come under a lot of fire from critics.

The Match’s

Paraguay-Japan, Tshwane/Pretoria, 16.00 (local time)
Spain-Portugal, Cape Town, 20.30 (local time)

Today see’s the last 4 teams playing for a place in the quarter final’s and a mixed bag it is but none that don’t deserve to be here.

The first match see’s Paraguay and Japan meet and this match will provide a first occasion which ever nation wins since neither team have ever made it to the quarter finals of a FIFA World Cup in the past. Paraguay were instrumental in usurping Italy from the copmpetition in their group and Japan performed well in an equally tough group.

“With their pace and agility, Japan are a team hard to play against. They have players who can change the direction of a game so we have to come out very focused and keep running throughout the game,” Roque Santa Cruz, Paraguay forward.

‘Paraguay’s defence is compactly organised. They have physical strength but are also good on the ball. I think they will be difficult opponents,” Yuki Abe, Japan midfielder.

The second match of the day see’s neighbour nations Spain and Portugal fight it out for a place in the quarter finals. With both teams sporting near fully fit squads and holding 2nd and 3rd place FIFA/Coca Cola world ranking status between them this looks set to be an explosive match.

After an initial glitch against the Swiss Spain prevailed and topped their group to be here thus avoiding meeting Brazil one of the other favorites to win the tournament. Portugal battled through a tough group surviving a meeting with Brazil and pulling of an impressive 7-0 defeat against Korea.
With 33 previous international and european meeting’s Spain hold the lead in winning match’s with 15 to Portugals 5, this will be the first time the teams have met in a FIFA World Cup tournament.

“Portugal are a great team and they’re about more than just Cristiano Ronaldo. Yes it’s true that Cristiano is one of their best players, but we mustn’t forget that the Portuguese are the only team that still haven’t conceded a goal at this World Cup. That proves that they’re a solid unit and not just a collection of individuals. Their game is based around defensive solidity, pace and counter-attacking, as well as having very skilful players. I foresee a very difficult game, like they all will be for the rest of the competition. Only the best teams are left in it now,” Vicente del Bosque, Spain coach.

“We’re ready to take on anybody. We’ve already played in critical games during qualifying and now we have another all-or-nothing match at a World Cup. That’s why we’re ready to give everything we’ve got on the pitch with only one aim in mind: staying in the World Cup. Portugal’s best is still to come,” Carlos Queiroz, Portugal coach.

The Match

Netherlands – Slovakia

Netherlands meet Slovakia in this the fifth of the eight knock match’s in FIFA World Cup 2010. Both teams are on form in this tournament with the Netherlands not breaking a stride in their convicing three match win to take the top position in their group. Slovakia on the other hand took a match or two to reach there tournament pace and in the process knocked out the reigning champions Italy.

This will be the first time, since their declared independence, that the Slovakia have played The Netherlands and it will be an interesting pairing. The Netherlands did however play Czechoslovakia way back in 1938 in a FIFA World Cup that saw The Netherlands lose 3-0.

“We expect a difficult game against Slovakia. They showed a lot of character against the Italians and were rewarded with a famous victory. Everything’s fine from our point of view, but there are a just a few things here and there that we need to put right,” Robin van Persie, Netherlands forward.

“I hope we’re capable of producing another performance like the one against Italy. I believe we can give any team something to think about. But obviously the Dutch are favourites, not just for this game but for the whole tournament,” Robert Vittek, Slovakia forward..

The Result

Argentina 3-1 Mexico

In a match that Argentina continued their clinical campaign in this tournament tonight by beating Mexico 3-1 and moving on to the quarter final’s to face Germany on 3rd July.

Carlos Tevez opened Argentina’s book in this match in the 26th minute, despite some valiant early efforts by Mexico, when Messi return the ball to him after the Mexican keeper blocked his first attempt and this time he didn’t miss.

This seemed to be the straw that broke the Mexican’s back as mistakes and chinks in their defence developed, one such mistake by Ricardo Osorio passing directly to Gonzalo Higuain allowing him to score past an already commited keeper in the 33rd minute.

After the restart Carlos Tevez netted his second goal of the match in the 52nd minute when he benefited from another mistake 25 yards from the goal and blasted a shot past the keeper for one of the most memorable goals of the tournament. Mexico seemed unable to pull themselves together even a well taken goal by Javier Hernandez in the 71st minute could not stop them from snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Argentina now move on to face old enemy’s in the quarter finals and with the form both teams are showing at the moment it looks set to be one of the match’s of the tournament.

The Match

Argentina-Mexico, Johannesburg (Soccer City)

In the other match today we see two more FIFA World Cup Giants battle it out for a place in the next round. Argentina qualified for the final 16 in glorious style winning all 3 of their group match’s despite difficulties in the early stages of qualification to the tournament. Mexico made it to the final 16 as second place to Uraguay and having helped in providing France with an early dispatch from the tournament.

Maradona, the Argentine coach, has the luxury of a fully fit squad with no suspensions. The team is playing well and seem to have shaken off any memories of the trouble’s they had in qualifying.

Mexico, with the memory of a great victory over France after a shaky start when drawing against the host nation, will be looking to recreate the same form and will certainly have to in order to compete with a seemingly unstoppable Argentina.

“We’re going to give Mexico the respect they deserve because, in spite of losing against Uruguay, they know exactly what they’re doing. We will try to get at them and look for their weaknesses. They will have to respect my players as well because we’re putting together a very good tournament and we’ll give everything for the shirt,” Diego Maradona, Argentina coach.

“It’s Argentina, but so what? There is always a lot of pessimism in Mexico. Unfortunately sometimes we don’t believe in ourselves and we don’t have that extra self-belief that other teams have. We need to change that mindset. Argentina can be beaten and that’s the way we need to approach the game,” Rafael Marquez, Mexico captain.

The Match

, Mangaung/Bloemfontein, 16.00 (local time)

Probably one of the oldest and most talked about fixtures in the world will happen again today Germany v England is almost synonomous with FIFA World Cup history and yet England have only ever won the tournament once and Germany only 3 times.

With both teams of old providing some of the timeless legends of the game to name but two, Bobby Moore and Franz Beckenbauer, and there have been many more over the decades. This is a match that many would have liked to see as the final however group draws and even the team performance’s mean that this to age old adversaries meet now and only one will advance to the quarter finals.

Both teams are bouyed with confidence and anticipation to be playing this match so early in the tournament having both beaten the odds in their group match’s taking their advancement hopes to the wire in each of their groups.
Of the 27 official FIFA World Cup full international meetings over the years England have won 12 outright and Germany have won 10 outright.

Both teams have their problems coming into this match with key players injured or simply just not playing on form, making the jobs of Low and Capello, coach’s for Germany and England respectively, that much more difficult when it comes to team selection for this match.

“It would be a terrible mistake to underestimate them just because they had a few problems in their group. They may well raise their game for the knockout matches. We have no need to be in awe, and we certainly have no reason to fear them. We respect them of course, but we’re not afraid,” Lukas Podolski, Germany striker.

“I think we can go all the way this time. I’ve never felt it like this before in other tournaments. I thought it was an excellent performance against Slovenia and we can’t wait to get to grips with Germany,” Joe Cole, England midfielder.

The Result

USA 1-1 Ghana (Full Time)

USA 1-2 Ghana After Extra Time

It might have taken them 120 minutes but Ghana ended USA’s 2010 FIFA World Cup Tournament hopes tonight moving on to meet Uraguay in the Quarter Finals on the 2nd of July.

Ghana enter the FIFA World Cup annuls by becoming only the third African nation to enter the final 8 following Cameroon in 1990 and Senegal in 2002. They made a stunning start courtesy of Ricardo Clark who gave away possession and after a stunning run at the American defence Kevin Prince Boateng wrong footed the American keeper and put the ball past him at his near post from the edge of the box.

With the Americans unsettled Ghana had the run of play for the rest of the first half but were unable to consolidate their lead before the break.

On the restart the Americans seemed to have regained their control and began to threaten the West African’s goal in the 65th minute an act of desperation by Johnathan Mensah collided with Mark Dempsey in the box and gave away a penalty, Landon Donovan cooly struck the ball in off the post.

With the Americans back on pace and threatening Ghana’s goal their keeper was the only thing to keep out the goals as time in the second half wore on. There it ended at 90 minutes and the players took a short break as they contemplated another 30 minutes of extra time play.

Barely 3 minutes into extra time Ghana repeated their match opening enthusiasm and Asamoah Gyan beat the USA defence after picking up a great pass from Ayew and smashed the ball past the American keeper. This was to be the nail in the coffin for the USA despite several attempts on the Ghana goal they failed to pull back level and time ran out.

Ghana move into the final 8 and the USA go home.

The Result

Uraguay 2-1 Korea Republic

The pressure is on now we are in the quarter finals it’s win or go home and that is exactly what Uraguay set out to do and achieved. Korea set out in a blaze of action to try and take an early lead Park Ji-Sung was cut off in an early break by Diego Lugano. Then Park Chu-Young hit the post with a curling 20yd free kick.

Luis Suarez drew first blood for Uraguay in the 8th minute when he found himself unmarked on the edge of the Korean box and picked of a pass from Diego Forlan and scored the first goal. The first half ended with Uraguay holding the lead.

The second half saw pouring rain join the match and add to the challenges Korea now faced being a goal behind. They rose to the challenge and in the 68th minute Lee Chung-Yong picked up a failed clearance by Lugano after Ki Sung-Yueng took a free kick for Korea and headed it home to level the score.

Uraguay were unphased and in the 80th minute regained their 1 goal lead when Luis Suarez struck again converting a corner by Forlan after sidestepping a defender and curling the ball in off the far post.

This was how the game ended despite substitution’s from the Korean coach bringing more attacking players on in attempt to redress the balance and win the match. However nothing came of their efforts and Korea are now resigned to a trip home and Uraguay advance to face the winners of tonight’s match between USA and Ghana.

The Match

USA Vs Ghana

The Location and Time

Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg, 20.30 (Local Time)

The second match of today and the second of the final 16 knockout match’s see’s The USA and Ghana meet in what should be a very exciting match. Both teams have exhibited their ability and willingness to play an attacking game and this should lead to an exciting game.

The last time these two teams met in a FIFA World Cup tournament Ghana sent the USA home in the group rounds after a 2-1 trouncing. This may serve as a minor psycological advantage but with both teams having fought there way through difficult group match’s to be here it will not be enough to intimidate the on form Americans.

“The USA are a very good side, solid, full of running and they play well as a team. Still, we know we have the quality to beat them,” Asamoah Gyan, Ghana forward.

“We’d be delighted with two more wins but why stop there? Nothing is impossible. Winning the World Cup is what we’re here for,” Jozy Altidore, USA forward.

The Match

Uraguay Vs Korea Republic

The Location and Time

Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth, 16:00 (local time)

As winners of Group A Uraguay now have the task of facing Group B runners up Korea Republic in the knockout round. From now on there will be no second chances every match will be played until there is a winner. This will mean extra time and the penalty’s if need be.

This match may look like a foregone conclusion for Uraguay but by no account should Korea be discounted so easily. The Koreans have shown their ability to win match’s and despite a 4-1 loss against Argentina here they are in the final 16. Uraguay will need to watch out for their devastating and accurate free kick routines since this has been the source of nearly all their goals so far.

“Although we haven’t had good results against the teams from South America, the group stage match against Argentina has given us some good lessons on how to deal with Latin American sides. We all know how to defend and attack against them, and we’ll show a different side of ourselves than in the group stage,” Park Ji-Sung, Korea Republic captain

A well known Halloween marketing expert called Brian Johnson has today announced the opening of his training course Halloween Super Affiliate. A 90 day training regime he claims can teach anyone to capitalize on the $7 billion a year opportunity.

Brian’s new course is a timely reminder that even in these tough economic times it is still possible to create business opportunities out of annual events. It seems no matter how hard times are people will always find spare cash to uphold family holiday traditions.

The Halloween Super Affiliate Course is borne from a smaller training course Brian ran last year in which he claims some of his trainees made life changing incomes.

“Since 2003, this has been my market and I will continue to work the profit pulling Halloween Super Affiliate system (as I always do) while mentoring members during the summer.” said Brian.

Brian’s course is a 90 day interactive course with live bi weekly webinars that provides all the tools necessary to make a good income from the $7 Billion Halloween industry.

Corin Zander, another established marketing expert Say’s ” Brian’s course’s are great and I am sure this will be no different, he even twisted my arm to publish a Halloween Super Affiliate Review. The things people can learn from his course can help kick start a new online business for anyone even in these tough economic times,”

The Match’s

Group B
Greece-Argentina, Polokwane
Nigeria-Korea Republic, Durban

This evening see’s the final match’s of Group B and Maradona’a Argentina seem set to advance to the knockout phase there is still the chance they could be dropped if Greece beat them and Korea Republic win their match then it would leave three teams on 6 points and goal difference would decide who advances. In a fight for second spot Korea Republic will only need a draw to advance assuming Argentina beat Greece, having already gained 3 points from defeating Greece earlier. Nigeria will no doubt put up a great battle but their chance’s after 2 defeats are slim to none on advancing and only a win with a big goal difference will see them through again assuming Argentina best Greece. As with all the final match’s in all groups they will be played simultainiously to avoid contention.

“We have a lot of players on European teams who have accumulated experience playing with and against African players. They tend to be very flexible, strong and speedy, in very good physical condition,”  Park Ji-Sung, Korea Republic midfielder

“Argentina are world-class, they’re clearly better than us. We still have a chance, but it’ll be very hard. We’re the underdogs against Argentina, that’s for sure, but we’ll give it our best shot. For now, we’ll just enjoy the fact we’ve beaten Nigeria,” Otto Rehhagel, Greece coach.

The matches
Group A
France-South Africa, Mangaung/Bloemfontein
Mexico-Uruguay, Rustenburg

Today see’s the first of the final Group match’s begin so both games will be held at the same time in each group to avoid any waiting to see the group results. In group A we have France vs South Africa and Mexico vs Uraguay. With Mexico and Uraguay both leading the Group a draw will see both advance to the final 16 however this would leave Uraguay at the top and in all likelyhood facing an on form Argentine team in the knockout round so both will be looking for a win. Both France and South Africa will be looking for a win and hoping for a none draw result in the other match.

“Mexico won’t play for a draw. I love winning and so do my team-mates because that’s our mentality. I’m not really interested in whether Uruguay, France or South Africa qualify. I want to win this game, no two ways about it,” Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Mexico forward.

“I always said that it would all come down to the final match. I don’t think we can hope to defend, wait for a mistake and hit them on the counter-attack. If we are serious about wanting to make it to the next round, we’ll need to take some risks,” Carlos Alberto Parreira, South Africa coach.

The matches

Portugal 7-0 Korea DPR
Chile 1-0 Switzerland
Spain 2-0 Honduras

The first match of the day left Korea DPR out in the cold as they crashed out of FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010 in spectacular style suffering a 7-0 loss at the hands of Portugal. This was in no way a repeat of their last meeting in 1966 when Portugal had to fight their way back from 3 goals behind. The first half only yeilded a single goal for Portugal Raul Meireles provided the lead in the 29th minute after a perfectly timed run into the Korean box to convert a pass from Tiago. This must have been a relief for coach Carlos Queiroz as the Koreans had threatened Portugal’s goal on a few occassions already and didn’t look in any intimidated. The second half was a different story within ten minutes Simao doubled their lead and 3 minutes ater in the 56th minute Hugo Almeida added another. A mere 4 minutes later on the hour Tiago provided the fourth as Portugal ripped apart the Korean defence. As the onsaught continued Meireles and Coentrao both missed the target and Ronaldo also fired a shot off the crossbar. Then in a late rush of action Portugal added a further 3 to the tally in the closing ten minutes. Rounding up the biggest scoreline so far in FIFA World Cup 2010.

“Our tactical plan didn’t work for us today. We were too attack-minded and conceded a lot of goals. And once we started playing even more openly, we ended up letting the Portuguese score seven times. The rain didn’t affect us. Our problem was that we set our stall out to attack too much and that weakened us. We’ve now got time to prepare for our next match and try and give it our best shot.” An Yong Hak, Korea DPR midfielder

With both teams in the second match of the day looking to secure their place in the final 16 having both won their opening match’s in the group this was going to be a well fought out battle and the Swiss held out until the 75th minute despite losing a player in the 31st minute. Mark Gonzalez scored for Chile securing their place at the top of the group and leaving the Swiss with more work to do and failing to capitalize on their win over Spain.

“We were completely thrown by the red card. Overall, we let ourselves be pressed too far back at the start, although we went out there intending to attack. It was very hard work with ten men. We’re angry at the moment, but we’re still in with a great chance, provided we beat Honduras.” Steve Von Bergen, Switzerland defender

Spain got their FIFA World Cup™ campaign back on track with a win against Honduras that was far more comprehensive than the 2-0 scoreline indicated. The Central Americans were the unlucky victims as the European champions returned to the kind of form which placed them among the pre-tournament favourites. David Villa scored both goals in the 17th and 51st minutes and Spain always threatened to score a third showing a convincing return to form.

The matches

Portugal-Korea DPR, Group G, Cape Town, 13.30
Chile-Switzerland, Group H, Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth, 16.00
Spain-Honduras, Group H, Johannesburg (Ellis Park), 20.30

Group G brings a meeting of two teams that have not played against each other in a FIFA World Cup Final since 1966 when Portugal won 5-3. In this next meeting of the two teams both need to win to have any chance of advancing to the final 16.

”We’ll have to play higher up the pitch against the North Koreans and take more risks because we need a victory. Obviously we can’t afford to play the way we did in our last match. We got a point against a very strong team and now we’ll approach the next game with a clear goal: to win,” Carlos Queiroz, Portugal coach.

In the second match of the day Switzerland riding high on their win over Spain they will have no time to relax against Chile, also on the back of a win over Honduras. Both teams will be looking for a win to secure themselves a place in the final 16. Switzerlands strong will be tested by a young skilled Chile.

“We know we have to focus on playing well against Chile because it’s no good beating Spain and then playing badly in the next game. We know that we achieved something great and we’re all proud for our country, but we need to play a solid match against Chile because it’ll be another tough game,” Switzerland defender Reto Ziegler.

Spain find themselves in a position many never expected to see them in fighting for a place in the final 16 against Honduras who will also be looking to redeem a loss against Chile in their first match of the group. The last time these two team met was in 1982 where Honduras held the host nation to a 1-1 draw in the group match.

“The important thing now is to stay true to our style of play, which is what has made us a winning team. We can’t afford to lose our heads, we need to keep doing what we’re doing and keep believing in what made us favourites. If we do go down, we’ll go down our way, and not because we started doing strange things,” Fernando Torres, Spain striker.

The Results

Slovakia 0-2 Paraguay
Italy 1-1 New Zealand
Brazil 3-1 Côte d’Ivoire

The first match of the day saw Paraguay take control of their match with Slovakia and devastate the europeans chances of advancement even further. The south American team took charge from the outset and made in plain that they were there for one thing only, to win. Paraguay made several early attempts on goal, looking to open their account, the Slovakian keeper was in good form and made some crucial save’s. After a relentless opening 25 minutes Paraguay were rewarded for their efforts when Enrique Vera took advantage of a pass from Da Silva, after a defensive giveaway by the Slovakians and in the 27th minute scored. The South Americans persisted for the remainder of the first half and most of the second with only some great goal keeping holding the scoreline at 1-0 until in the 86th minute Cristian Riveros increased the score with a shot from the edge of the box. This leaves the Slovakians with only their game against New Zealand to revive their chances of a final 16 placing.

“I really don’t know what our problem is. We are making a lot of mistakes, especially at the back. We knew they would be a difficult side to beat but we couldn’t make enough openings.” Miroslav Stoch, Slovakia midfielder

The second match of the day has produced the biggest turn of events so far in this FIFA World Cup when New Zealand held the current holders and one of the favourites to a 1-1 scoreline. It all started when New Zealand didn’t follow what everyone thought they would do and camp in front of their own goal, instead they took the game to the Italians. The result a confused and un coordinated Italian defense and a goal in the 7th minute when Shane Smeltz pushed the ball under a diving Federico Marchetti after Simon Elliot sent a swinging free kick into the box. An awakened Italian side then finally got their act together and after several attempts on goal cruely denied from inaccurate shot’s to misplaced post rebounds. Finally after what must have seemed an eternity, the Italians were awarded a penalty after Tommy Smith brought down Daniele De Rossi in the box.Vincenzo Iaquinta wrong footed Paston with a perfectly placed low shot to the back of the net in the 28th minute. After some seemingly desperate substitions by italian coach Lippi Italy still could not breach the New Zealand defence to take the lead. The match ended with a 1-1 scoreline and New Zealand took away a well earned point from the match keeping their FIFA World Cup 2010 chances alive.

“It perhaps wasn’t the game of the century in terms of spectacle, but we showed an enormous amount of hunger and determination. It leaves me speechless when I think about what we’ve accomplished thanks to everyone’s dedication to the team as a whole. We’ve given ourselves a chance of reaching the next round and that’s an exciting challenge. All we can do now is give everything to seize that chance in the last match.” Ryan Nelsen, New Zealand defender and captain

Brazil booked their place in the final 16 tonight with a convincing performance to win 3-1 against Côte d’Ivoire. In a game that saw Brazil have the run of play, except for a red card issued to Kaka reducing the Brazilians to ten men for the closing moments of the game. The first two goals for Brazil came from Luis Fabiano in the 25th and 50th minutes and Elano followed up in the 62nd minute. Côte d’Ivoire redeemed some face in the 79th minute when Didier Drogba broke free and put himself in position to head home a precise cross from Yaya Toure.

The matches

Slovakia-Paraguay, Group F, Mangaung/Bloemfontein, 13.30
Italy-New Zealand, Group F, Nelspruit, 16.00
Brazil-Côte d’Ivoire, Group G, Johannesburg (Soccer City), 20.30

Today we have two multiple FIFA World Cup winning nations, namely Brazil (5 times previous winners) and Italy (4 times previous winners), looking to stamp their intent on the tournament now that the opening games have been played.

The first game see’s Slovakia and Paraguay both looking for a win here after their first match’s both yeilded 1-1 draws. They are very evenly matched teams with regard to their FIFA/Coca Cola world rankings seperated by only 3 places. Neither team can be discounted with Paraguay holding Italy to a draw and Slovakia being denied a win in the dying seconds when New Zealand equalised in their first match’s

“We’re a little calmer now. The opening game was a very special moment and that’s maybe why we were a little nervous. But this Sunday will be different. Hopefully we’ll be able to play our best football and celebrate at the end,” Marek Cech, Slovakia defender.

The second match of the day from Group F see’s the reigning champions Italy meeting New Zealand. On paper this seems like a david and Goliath pairing but Italy have no reason here to be complacent when they are on even points with all teams in this group. A New Zealand win here would surely be a coup but should not be discounted as evidenced in their opening match against Paraguay proved when they fought to the dying seconds and were rewarded with a draw.

“New Zealand are very physical. We played them in a friendly last year, they’re very dangerous in the air and from set-pieces. But everyone knows that we should win. We have to give away as little as possible and to keep the ball on the ground rather than playing long balls. I don’t even want to think about the possibility of a draw or something else.” Giorgio Chiellini, Italy centre-half

The final match of the day see’s Brazil meet Côte d’Ivoire in a match that will hopefully be very eventful now that they have worn off their debut match nerves. Brazil come on the back of a win and a run of 6 games without loss in the tournament so far their last loss back as far as October 2009. Côte d’Ivoire will be looking to break Brazil’s record of never having lost against a team from outside of South America and Europe in the history of FIFA World Cup tournaments.

“I have a lot of respect for Brazil. They are one of the best teams in the world without question, but I’m not scared of them. I have some top-class players who bear comparison with any team in the world. Discipline and cohesion will be vital. That’s the way to beat Brazil,” Sven-Goran Eriksson, Côte d’Ivoire coach.

The Results

Netherlands 1-0 Japan
Ghana 1-1 Australia
Cameroon 1-2 Denmark

2010 World Cup(R) poll.

The first match of the day saw the Netherlands battle against a tight Jananese defence often with ten men back to keep out the onslaught and it worked for the most part. In the 53rd minute Wesley Sneijder breached the defense to convert a cross from Van Persie on the edge of the box. Only a few more attempts on goal were made and the Japanese almost leveled the score in the dying seconds when Shinji Ozakazi blasted a shot over the bar from close range. This leaves the Netherlands top of group E with 6 points.

“Our players tried everything they could, but we’ve been unable to beat the Netherlands. I’m really sorry for our supporters.” Takeshi Okada, Japan coach

The second match of the day saw Australia score their first goal of the tournament in the shape of a Brett Holman who converted a a deflection from Mark Bresciano’s 11th minute free kick. Ghana struggled to find their pace for a while then in the 25th minute when Kewell was penalised for using his right arm to stop a shot by Mensah and in the process earned himself a red card and a penalty for Ghana. Asamoah Gyan converted the penalty, a few minutes later Prince Tagoe had the chance to take Ghana into the lead but blasted wide of the mark. Australia fielding ten men managed to maintain the draw until the final whistle with no notable chances from either team.

“They took the opportunity early on, and we had to come back and equalise. But we knew we would. We are now looking forward to our last game against Germany. Let’s see what happens. It’s not going to easy but we want to qualify.” Asamoah Gyan, Ghana forward

The final match of the day featured Denmark and Cameroon both looking for a win to maintain a chance of advancing to the last 16. Denmark gifted Cameroon an early goal when Thomas Sorenson attempted to clear the ball but put it right in the path of Pierre Webo who passed it Samuel Eto’o who slotted the ball into the Danish net at the 10 minute mark. Denmark managed to maintain composure and pressed on and were rewarded in the 33rd minute when Nicklas Bendtner converted a cross from Rommedahl. In the 61st minute after a lot of end to end action with attempts on goal by both teams Dennis Rommedahl broke the deadlock and capitalised on a break after a Cameroon attack by curling in a a shot passed a diving Hamidou Souleymanou. The scoreline held until the end and thus decided the fate of Cameroon’s FIFA World Cup 2010 campaign.

]]> http://clicknews.org/fifa-world-cup-2010-super-saturday-results/10566/feed/ 0 http://clicknews.org/fifa-world-cup-2010-super-saturday-line-up/10564/ http://clicknews.org/fifa-world-cup-2010-super-saturday-line-up/10564/#comments Sat, 19 Jun 2010 10:37:49 +0000 Kieran http://clicknews.org/?p=564

The Match’s

Netherlands-Japan, Group E, Durban, 13.30
Ghana-Australia, Group D, Rustenburg, 16.00
Cameroon-Denmark, Group E, Tshwane/Pretoria, 20.30

The first match today See’s the Netherlands fresh off their debut match win against Denmark meet the other Group E winning team Japan. Japan bested Cameroon in their opening match and will surely bring the same fearless approach to their encounter with the Netherlands.

“The Japan game won’t be easy as they play a good style of football, running a lot and combining well. In our last meeting they put us under pressure for an hour but eventually we won. The second match is crucial for both sides and we will go all out to win,” Wesley Sneijder, Netherlands midfielder.

The second match of the day see’s Australia fight for their chance to move on to the next phase after a disappointing loss against Germany. Their chances have been in no small part helped by Serbia beating Germany yesterday. This will be a tense match as the youngest team, Ghana, meet the oldest Team in the FIFA World Cup. On 6 previous meetings Australia have won 4 Ghana 1 and a draw in London 2006. Ghana also have the privilege of being playing the 100th World Cup game that includes and African nation team.

“When you have bad days then it depends on how you bounce back to determine how good we are. I know we’re a good team, we did well to qualify and hopefully we can bounce back,” Scott Chipperfield, Australia defender

The final match of the day see’s Denmark and Cameroon fight for a place in the final 16 as both come to the match with a loss under their belt and the need to win to stay in with a chance in the final. Denmark, hampered by injury problems, have lost their last 3 match’s in FIFA World Cup 2010 but will rally in the fact that they have not lost a match against an African Nation team so far. Cameroon will be hoping to change that, having been beaten by Japan in match 1 of group E they will be looking for some inspiration from their performance in the 1990 tournament.

“We had a lot of chances in the second half but not so many in the first but we dominated. Now we have to work. We can’t make any more errors and now we have to win against Denmark,” Samuel Eto’o, Cameroon captain.

Make your 2010 soccer championship prediction now. Then become eligible for a team jersey and $100 Visa(R) gift card FREE, details apply.

courtesy FIFA

The Results

Germany 0-1 Serbia
Slovenia 2-2 USA
England 0-0 Algeria

In the first game of the day many expected this to be a walk in the park for Germany after their display of form against Australia in their opening match. Germany started well and on form but Serbia had some early breaks which they could not convert into goals Miroslav Klose netted a goal at around the 30th minute but it was disallowed because he was judged offside. His fortune would soon change for the worse as he received a second yellow card resulting in a sending off and reducing Germany to ten men. Serbia capitalised on their numbers advantage less than ten minutes later when Milan Jovanovic converted a cross from Krasic via a nod on from Zigic in the 38th minute. Germany failed to make any use of several excellent attacking chances and also failed to convert a penalty in the second half and the game finished with a loss for the mighty German machine.

“I’m overjoyed, because we desperately needed the win. I had no idea which way Podolski was going to shoot, it was just a guess, but I’m thrilled with the save. We’ll focus completely on our last game now [against Australia], because it won’t be easy.” Vladimir Stojkovic, Serbia keeper and Budweiser Man of the Match.

The second match of the day saw Slovenia get of to an early start with Valter Birsa blasting the first goal in the 13th minute. Zlatan Ljubijankic increased the Slovenian’s lead in the 42nd minute. Shortly after the restart LA Galaxy star Landon Donovan exploited the Slovenian defence and playing into the box slotted a high ball past Handanovic in the 48th minute. The USA evened the score in the 82nd minute when the Slovenian defence cracked after consistent pressure from the Americans and Michael Bradley blasted a nodded pass from Altidore into the top of the net.

“It was a great match but it shouldn’t have happened that we made such dumb mistakes in the second half. It was a really tough match and my team showed they were of high quality. We gained a point today and we are in a very good position. Now we need to recover to prepare for England.” Matjaz Kek, Slovenia coach

The third match of the day saw England met Algeria who had nothing to lose in taking the game to the English. In a game that produced another agonising draw which did nothing to convince the mostly English fans in the crowd that England have what it takes this time round. With both teams failing to take advantage of any chances they had this leaves the group wide open and down to the wire as to who will progress to the final 16 everything rests on the results of the final games in the group now.

“We need to improve, it’s as simple as that. There are no excuses and we know that we now have to go and win the last game. Of course that brings more pressure but to play at this level you’ve got to be able to handle that. You’ve got to be able to play under pressure with England but we just never hit our level today and it’s not good enough. I don’t know why that was, but we weren’t aggressive enough, we didn’t win the ball back early enough and there was no cutting edge in the final third. Of course you have to give credit to Algeria for getting a draw off us but we should be beating them. We have to look at ourselves.” Steven Gerrard, England midfielder and captain

Make your 2010 soccer championship prediction now. Then become eligible for a team jersey and $100 Visa(R) gift card FREE, details apply.

The matches

Germany-Serbia, Group D, Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth, 13.30
Slovenia-USA, Group C, Johannesburg (Ellis Park), 16.00
England-Algeria, Group C, Cape Town, 20.30

The first match of the day Germany will be hoping to match their debut performance against Australia, they meet a determined Serbia looking to gain their first points of the tournament. In a match where Serbia need to take some points for any hope of survival coach Radomir Antic will be bolstering the team. If there is any advantage to be gained by Serbia it is the fact that 4 of there players play their club football in Germany.

“Germany were very impressive against Australia. They have made the biggest impact at the World Cup so far. They are like a machine, they have seven players going forward. If we want to upset them, we will have to show no fear and play the best we can, because we face a better team,” Milan Jovanovic, Serbia winger.

The second match will see an evenly matched game with both sides hungry for the win. Slovenia will be looking to secure their place in the final 16 with a second win in the group. The USA will be looking to capitalize on their draw with England and renew hopes of a a final 16 place.

“I often hear people say we should qualify for the next round and that we were drawn in an easy group, but we know that nothing is guaranteed. We can’t afford to take Slovenia lightly. In the next few days, we’ll need to look back at everything that didn’t work [against England],” Landon Donovan, United States forward.

After a poor performance in their opening match England will today be pushing for a win to try and firm up their hopes of gaining a top 16 position. Algeria will be looking to revive any hope of making the final cut after a loss in their first match, if England succeed in their goal to win today then that will seal the fate of the Algerians. England have a no loss record against African nation  teams in the FIFA World Cup and will be looking to keep that record as it stands.

“We have several talented players who can make things happen. We’re going to pose the England team plenty of problems and we’ll be more ambitious than we were against Slovenia. It’s a role that suits us well.” Anther Yahia, Algeria defender and captain.

The results

Argentina 4-1 Korea Republic
Greece 2-1 Nigeria
France 0-2 Mexico

Argentina put their stamp on the tournament by being the first team to reach 6 points when they rousted Korea with a 4-1 scoreline. The first came from a Messi free kick but attributed to Park Chu-Young as an own goal. Then came the first of a hat trick for Gonzalo Higuain in the 33rd minute. Lee chung Yong managed to claw the score back to 2-1 in a minute of injury time at the end of the first half. Gonzalo Higuain then finished his hat trick off in the 76th and 80th minute’s of the game sealing the fate of korea for this 90 minute session.

“I didn’t expect us to lose by such a large margin, but everything will go down to the final group game.” said Huh Jung Moo, Korea Republic coach

The result of this match was never a forgone conclusion as both teams are evenly matched. Things looked great for the Nigerians when Kalu Uche scored the first goal in the 16th minute. An unreasonable outburst by Nigeria’s Sani Kaita led to a straight red card in the 33rd minute leaving ten to finish the match and hold the lead. Understandably Greece took full advantage of this situation with Dimitrios Salpingidis netting a 44th minute cross from Konstantinos Katsouranis equalising just before half time. The winning goal from Greece came in the 71st minute when Vasileios Torosidis planted an intended shot at goal from Alexandros Tziolis as it passed him. This is the first win in a FIFA World Cup final for the europeans.

“The positive thing is that we still have a chance of qualifying, although we need a helping hand from Argentina.” said Lars Lagerback, Nigeria coach

The final match of the day saw an even battle between France, 2006 finalists, and Mexico the first half had it’s high points but Mexico had the pace and youth to test France’s defense. Coming out for the second half from a goal less first 45 minutes Frances renewed determination saw Mexico on the heel for a while until Javier Aguirre, coach for Mexico changed the gear up by bringing on Javier Hernandez who converted a pass from Marquez in the 64th minute. Mexico sealed the 3 point’s with a converted penalty by Cuauhtemoc Blanco in the 79th minute.

The matches

Argentina-Korea Republic, Group B, Johannesburg (Soccer City), 13.30
Greece-Nigeria, Group B, Mangaung/Bloemfontein, 16.00
France-Mexico, Group A, Polokwane, 20.30

The highlight game of the day is set to be the first with Maradona’s Argentina meeting Korea Republic in Johannesburg at 13.30. Korea will be looking for some of the magic that put them in the top 4 on home soil in 2002. Argentina look on paper to be the stronger team ranking fully 40 or more places higher than Korea in the FIFA/Coca Cola world rankings.

“To be honest we are a little nervous heading into the match-up with Argentina as they have some of the world’s best players. But we are not intimidated by their qualities and we have unwavering confidence in ourselves. They may boast Messi, but we can count on captain Park Ji-Sung to lead us to a good result,” Kim Nam-Il, Korea Republic midfielder.

The other 2 teams for group B will meet in Mangaung/Bloemfontein at 16.00 (local time). Both Greece and Nigeria come to this match having been beaten in their opening match’s of the tournament and they both need to win here to keep their chances of advancement alive. The nation teams have met twice in the past with even stakes both winning a match each with 2-0 results.

“Nigeria are a good team. We’ll analyse every aspect of our game and do the same with Nigeria, and we’ll see what’s needed to win. We’re not giving up. We all know you frequently suffer poor results in football. We’re not disappointed, because we’re taking a realistic view of our potential and what we can hope to achieve. The job now is to prepare well, play better against Nigeria, and register our first win,” Alexandros Tzorvas, Greece keeper.

The final match of the day brings us back to group a and clash between France and Mexico both coming to the match with a draw under their belts form their debut match’s. From the teams previous encounters France have never been beaton by Mexico at this level but have only won one of their five outings this year so far whilst Mexico look to improve their performance against european teams having only won one game from eight encounters.

“We mustn’t let Mexico control possession. They’ve got a very, very good team. When they click into gear, they up the tempo and hold onto the ball for a long time, which can unsettle any side in the world. But my players are really up for this game, I can sense that vibe coming from them,” Raymond Domenech, France coach.

Super Wednesday’s Results are as follows

Honduras 0-1 Chile
Spain 0-1 Switzerland
South Africa 0-3 Uruguay

The first match saw Chile break a 48 year drought of FIFA World Cup match wins to the day. A stunning offencive performance that had Honduras on the defence for most of the 90 minutes Jean Beausejour scored a 34th minute goal after a nreak from a failed clearance by oger Espinoza for Honduras. There last FIFA World Cup win was in 1962 on home soil for third place against Yogoslavia.

The second match slated as the main event for the day as one of the favourites, Spain, faced the Swiss in Durban and failed as the swiss upset the apple cart by scoring a single goal against the weight of play. Gelson Fernandes picked of a rebound from Eren Derdiyok’s attempt on goal was deflected, in the 52nd minute to bring about what will be seen as one of the early upset’s of the tournament.

The highlight match of the day featuring the host nation ended with a for once silenced crowd. South Africa had fallen foul of Uraguay on their 2 previous match’s and this was to be no different with Diego Forlan hammering home a goal in the 24th minute. Uraguay didn’t let up until, well into the second half a desperate mistake by South Africa’s keeper Khune ended with him being sent off and a penalty awarded. Forlan duly converted the penalty into a goal in the 80th minute and thus summarily subduing the crowd. To cap it off Alvaro Pereira punished them further by tapping in a cross from Suarez in injury time.

With all draws so far in Group A this now leaves Uraguay at the top with 4 points France and Mexico meet tomorrow.

In march 2009 the Obama administration introduced Mortgage Loan Modification in an effort to reduce the number of foreclosures in the US. Since then more than 250,000 homes have been saved from foreclosure under the Mortgage loan modification scheme.

Figures from the Treasury say that an increased number of people fell out of the trial period of the scheme in April this year. Under the scheme more commonly known as HAMP qualifying homeowners are put into a trial period to see if they can keep up with reduced payment’s. The people falling foul are those that either failed to provide the income evidence needed or in fact failed to maintain the reduced payment’s.

“As those decisions get made, it’s certainly expected that there would be some that fall out of HAMP,” said Phyllis Caldwell, chief of Treasury’s Homeownership Preservation Office.

Other figures indicate that 24.6% of trial modifications are now being made permanent which is up from a previous 19.8%.

Under a new rule introduced on June 1 new applicants for Mortgage Loan Modification or HAMP, are now required to submit evidence documentation up front where previously a verbal statement was accepted.

In a few weeks time, July 1 a new program aimed at the unemployed called forbearance will come to fruition. Eligible borrowers will be able to either have their payments suspended totally or have them reduced to less than 31% of the gross household income.

The matches

Honduras-Chile, Group H, Nelspruit, 13.30
Spain-Switzerland, Group H, Durban, 16.00
South Africa-Uruguay, Group A, Tshwane/Pretoria, 20.30

Undoubtedly the match of the day will be the favourites Spain vs Switzerland. The current Spanish team has done nothing but mature and gel into a formidable unit since their win at EURO 2008. They will be facing a team that they have not lost to in the last 15 meeting’s. The Spanish team will be looking to live up to their current form and better their country’s previous best placing of fourth in 1950.

The first match of the day see’s Chile meet Hondura’s, Chile came to the tournament as runners up to Brazil in qualifying. This will be the first time that Hondura’s have been able to compete in a tournament of this calibre since 1982.

Taking prime spot in today’s line up will be the host nation South Africa as they open their campaign against Uruguay. They will be looking to give their avid fans a great show in the stadium at Pretoria.

Quote of The Day

“Our main attribute, and it’s verging on a genetic thing, is our speed. Whereas Honduras are a very compact team it’s tricky to get in behind them, especially on the edge of their box. I can’t reveal anything specific, but we’ve been working with our coach on a way to find a way through the defensive barricade that they tend to put up,” Humberto Suazo, Chile forward.

Todays Results are as follows

New Zealand 1-1 Slovakia
Côte d’Ivoire 0-0 Portugal
Brazil 2-1 Korea DPR

The first match of the day saw New Zealand snatch a draw from the jaws of defeat when Winston Reid headed home a 93rd minute goal to even the score. The european team took the lead in the 50th minute when Robert Vittek headed home the first goal of the game underlining the pressure Slovakia had kept New Zealand under during the first half.

The second match of the day saw Côte d’Ivoire take on Portugal both teams reknowned for their attacking play style also proved today that they have a solid defence. Whilst both teams had opportunities they were left lacking in final accuracy resulting in a goal less draw. Côte d’Ivoire will face Brazil the obvious favourites in their next match.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal forward and Budweiser Man of the Match said “We knew that they wouldn’t pour forward looking to attack from the start. They were afraid of us in the first half and then opened things up a little in the second, but I think we reacted well. If we didn’t win, it’s only because we were unlucky. We haven’t lost our margin for error with this draw; everything remains open in the group. We just need to continue the good work we’ve been doing up until now.”

The third match of the day saw a confident Brazil fresh off the back of 4 pre tournament wins held scoreless until 10 minutes into the second half. The offending team Korea DPR no less coming into the tournament with 8 straight losses and no significant form, ranking 105 in the FIFA/Coca Cola world rankings. Maicon broke the deadlock in the 55th minute followed up by Elano in the 72nd seemingly sealing the game. JI Yun Nam unrested the Brazilians in the 89th bringing them back to earth.

Courtesy FIFA

Todays Results are as follows

Netherlands 2-0 Denmark

Japan 1-0 Cameroon

Italy 1-1 Paraguay

Netherlands opened their book today with a less than convincing 2-0 victory over Denmark. After a shakey start and an own goal that glanced off Daniel Agger that helped unsettle Denmarks stoic defense. Then a further goal in from Dirk Kuyt sealed the by then almost certain victory for The Netherlands.

The second match of the day saw Japan achieve their first win on foreign ground in a FIFA World Cup final. It also saw them join The Netherlands at the top of the group with 3 point’s. The 39th minute saw Keisuke Honda deliver the only and conclusive goal of the match against cameroon.

The tournament holders,Italy, from 2006 made their debut today against Paraguay. In difficult wet conditions Paraguay broke the deadlock in the 39th minute when Antolin Alcaraz scored a shock first goal. Daniele De Rossi scored in the 63rd minute to even the game although it was a goal more in keeping with a keeper misjudgement the like of which we saw in the England v USA match.

Getty Images

Monday Madness FIFA World Cup 2010

Netherlands v Denmark
13:30    Johannesburg – JSC
Japan v Cameroon
16:00    Mangaung/Bloemfontein
Italy v Paraguay
20:30    Cape Town

Day four of 2010 World Cup South Africa™ is upon us and today 2 Titans are unleashed to the tournament. The Netherlands and the defending Champions Italy both debut today.

The Netherlands, with an unbeaten qualifying run up to the tournament meet Denmark who surprised all by winning their qualifying group but may suffer with the likelyhood of Nicklas Bendtner unable to make an appearance.

Italy, being slated as the big game of today meet Paraguay in both teams debut performance in the tournament. Italy have had a troubled pre finals run up but are expected as ever to rise to the competition as it matures. Paraguay bring an aged mature team who have, of late, matured into a force to be reckoned with beating both Argentina and Brazil on their way to a fourth final.

The third match see’s Cameroon attempt to best Japan for the first time having previously been defeated by them twice. With mixed success and failure in their run up games this will be a determined match for both teams and a possible spectacle to outshine the other two games of the day.

Quote of the Day

“If you want to survive in football, the best strategy is to attack. Our coach is always drumming it into us, he wants to see us play offensive football,” Keisuke Honda, Japan playmaker

courtesy FIFA

Todays Results Are as follow’s

Algeria 0-1 Slovenia Full-time
Serbia 0-1 Ghana Full-time
Germany 4-0 Australia Full-time

As Germany put their stamp on the tournament by winning 4-0 against Australia this evening. In a game that saw 5 yellow cards and 1 red for Tim Cahill the keywtone of the Australian attack. The goal scorers for Germany Podolski in the 8th minute, Klose in the 27th, Mueller in the 68th and Cacau in the 70th.

In the second group C match of the weekend Slovenia beat Algeria 1-0 and thus put themselves at the top of the group table after England and USA draw the day before. With 4 yellow cards and one red in the match and Koren scoring in the 79th minute to seal the win for Slovenia.

In the third match of the day Ghana bested Serbia in the 85th minute with a penalty taken by Asamoah Gyan after a deliberate handball. During the game 5 yellow and one red card were issued bringing the Serbian team to ten men in the 75th minute.

courtesy FIFA

The matches

Algeria-Slovenia, Group C, Polokwane 13.30
Germany-Australia, Group D, Durban, 20.30
Serbia-Ghana, Group D, Tshwane/Pretoria, 16.00

The undoubted big game of the day today will be Germany vs Australia with the latter hoping to be giant killers of sorts. Germany have had their run of trouble with injury leading to up to the tournament.
Amongst the injured from the original squad and now not included areCaptain Michael Ballack, goalkeeper Rene Adler, defender Heiko Westermann and midfielder Simon Rolfes. Leaving Joachim Low with a relatively young squad coming into the tournament.

In opposition Australia field a well versed tight knit team that caused a shock 4 years ago when they made the last 16. With Joshua Kennedy leading the attack against the German defence they will be hoping to cause more upset in Durban this evening.

Dejan Stankovic and Sulley Muntari team mates at Inter Milan and fresh from their victory in the UEFA cup and League championships will find themselves directly opposed in Pretoria this afternoon.

Quote of The Day

“This is far and away our most important match and it will set the tone for the first phase. A win will give us confidence, but a defeat will put us under a lot of pressure. It goes without saying that this is ‘the’ game for us,” Karim Matmour, Algeria midfielder.

Prof. David Bellamy has joined campaigners protesting against North British Wind Powers’ (NBWP) scheme for 48 wind turbines at Fallago Rig in the Lammermuir Hills. Say No To Fallago claims it is the “final straw” and will destroy the last “unspoiled section” of the landscape.

NBWP says the turbine project can supply up to 80,000 homes and help meet Scotlands renewable energy goals.

Campaign group spokesman Mark Rowley said: “It is a fact that more people oppose this application than live in our small local community.”

“We have really touched a nerve and we feel that those who cherish the importance of Scotland’s rural landscapes are behind us.”

“The Scottish government must listen to our concerns. We cannot risk the complete saturation of such a beautiful part of the world with wind turbines.”

Mr Bellamy told campaigners “The outcome of the public inquiry into this wind farm application will be a watershed moment. If it is approved, the Scottish government will be declaring open war on Scotland’s countryside – no landscape will be safe from industrialisation by these high rise wind machines.”

And NBWP managing director countered with his own statement, saying “Fallago Rig is located in one of the remotest parts of the Borders, on land which is already degraded by a massive pylon line.”

“The reporter concluded from the first public inquiry that Fallago’s limited visibility was remarkable for a wind farm location in the lowland hills.”

“The nearest village is over 5km (3.1 miles) away and supports the proposals.”

He also criticised Prof. Bellamy as one of a “small minority” who don’t accept that human activity is a contributing factor to climate change.

The outcome of a public inquiry into the development is still awaited.

courtesy FIFA

Tonight in a shock result USA stood their ground against England when their match ended in the 93rd minute with a 1-1 draw.

Gerrard scored for England in the 4th minute and Dempsey scored for USA in the 40th minute. With the yellow card being shown a total of 6 times, 3 each, this was an indication of the games competative nature.

“It was a great team effort to come back and equalise. At half-time we said we had a chance to win and at the end we took a point.” said USA coach Bob Bundle.

“Yes, we created a lot of chances to score goals – we pressed a lot, played a good game – they shot once and scored a goal. We are in a good moment as a team and the next game will be better. Only the result is not good.” said Fabio Capello the England Coach.

Todays other 2 matchs ended with a shock result for Korea beating Greece 2-0 and Argentina’s expected victory over Nigeria ending 1-0.

Todays debut group match’s
Korea Republic-Greece, Group B, Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth, 13.30 (local time)
Argentina-Nigeria, Group B, Johannesburg (Ellis Park), 16.00 (local time)
England-USA, Group C, Rustenburg, 20.30 (local time)

The first two matches of the competition resulted as follows

South Africa 1, Mexico 1

Uraguay 0, France 0

Today see’s Diego Maradona return to the FIFA World Cup™ leading his Argentina side, as a coach, against a Nigeria, who are hoping to make it third time lucky with a home advantage.

The other teams making their debut performance in todays group match’s are Otto Rhhagel’s Greece facing a very keen Korea Republic. Whilst Greece may enter as favourite’s Huh Jung-Moo’s have shown that they are no underlings with a spirited performance against Spain ending in a 1-0 loss and a 2-0 win over Japan in pre tournament match’s.

In group C we see the tournament debut of England against a USA team hoping to reproduce a 60 year old shock result. Englands pre tournament performances have left fans with a lack of confidence and Fabio Capello hopes to dismiss these doubts in the first match of the group this evening.

Remortgage levels in the UK still remain under pressure whilst Bank of England interest rates remain low. The low rates are helping decrease the incidence of arrears but remove the incentive to remortgage because property values are also held lower.

Figures from the council of mortgage lenders show that remortgage business is down 5% month on month and 10% down year on year. This is reflective of the increased activity in the latter part of 2009 in th run up to the end of the stamp duty holiday and the expect slow down in the first quarter of 2010.

It is to early to tell what effect government announcements of drastic measures due to a worse national fiscal situation than expected.

From the Council of Mortgage Lenders “Although we accept the government has limited room for manoeuvre, we urge it to use the forthcoming Budget to prioritise support for home-owners.”

With uncertain times ahead for UK homeowners only time will tell when the housing markets will rally.

No Win No Fee Solicitors and Companies may have their expertise and business practices challenged in the coming months as new rules for personal injury claims came into effect on 30 April 2010 in the UK.

Last September The Ministry of Justice in the UK announced changes to the process that insurance companies must adhere to when dealing with motor injury claims valued between £1000 and £10,000.

Previously the claim period was 2 years and this has now been reduced to 9 months after the accident occurred to settle the claim.
This will put pressure on insurance companies to complete the claim process more quickly and efficiently. This may lead to a loss of business for No Win No Fee companies because insurance companies may be forced to pay out on claims that previously they may have investigated for longer.

Nick Starling, the ABI’s (Association of British Insurers) Director of General Insurance and Health, said:

“These changes will not only mean quicker compensation for many, but will    also reduce the level of legal costs that all motorists ultimately end up paying for through their motor premiums. We expect that these changes will be the start of wider ranging reforms to ensure that more claimants benefit from a simpler and speedier compensation process, and we would like to see this new process extended to cover employers’ liability insurance claims.”

Under the new process legal costs will be fixed resulting in lower legal bills and passing on an estimated 10% saving on motor premiums to customers. The knock on effect of this will surely impact No Win No Fee companies.

Profit Instruments can allegedly be used to build a business to sustain any lifestyle. Many people are truning to the Internet to build a business to replace their current income and live a better lifestyle.

Whilst in years gone by many people have tried and failed in their use of the internet to make a living, it is now evident that as more people to turn to the Internet everyday to buy their goods then the demand to help people find what they are looking for at the best price has increased.

We are not talking about so called “get rich quick schemes” the like of which abound the Interent even today. We are talking about helping people to find what they want as easily as possible. There is no reason why in doing so a person should not be able to levy a fee from the vendor whilst helping them find their goods.

The Author of Profit Instruments, Ritoban Chakrabarti has proven that it is very easy to make a decent living by implementing simple strategy’s designed not to con or trick people out of their money but rather facilitate their search for goods they are already looking for.

“Profit Instruments is created SPECIFICALLY for a complete BEGINNER. You don’t need to buy any traffic – ALL the traffic I get is 100% free (and I get TONS of it). This system can literally start working in just 3 hours. Of course your first few may take a bit longer, but now, I can get an ENTIRE Profit Instrument up in just 3 hours!” said Ritoban Chakrabarti.

For years now webmasters have held the keys to the website and Internet marketing charging huge fees to companies and small business alike. It seems the tables are turning now and it is very easy for any small business to be able to sell their wares or even other peoples ware’s online and become successful with the right training and simple methods.

If you want to read more about Ritoban and Profit Instruments you can do so here.

In co operation with the Swiss National Association for the Blind (SNAB) and the South African National Council for the Blind (SANCB)FIFA have financially supported an initiative to make the 2010 World Cup accessible to all.

“Football is a universal sport and it must be accessible to everyone. We are therefore delighted to be able to make this unique live experience in the stadium also accessible to visually impaired and blind people. This project is another launching pad for South African sports and will create a legacy with services and facilities at football grounds for visually impaired and blind South Africans,” said FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter.

15 seats at 6 stadiums have been equipped with headphones and trained commentators will provide live action reports of the matchs. The 15 seats will also have allocated seats for the blind or visually impaired’s sighted guides. There will also be trained volunteers to provide assistance within the stadiums.

If you are interested in this unique service there are limted seats left and you can enquire at www.sancb.org.za . In all 19 matchs will be covered the stadiums offering this service are listed below.

* Johannesburg – Soccer City Stadium: 8 matches
* Johannesburg – Ellis Park Stadium: 7 matches
* Tshwane/Pretoria – Loftus Versfeld Stadium: 6 matches
* Durban – Durban Stadium: 7 matches
* Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth – Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium: 8 matches
* Cape Town – Green Point Stadium: 8 matches

© BP p.l.c.

BP today announced that they have made the starting payment of $60 million towards the Barrier Islands Project. They have pledged to fund the whole $360 million project and will make the payments directly to Louisiana state.

The payments will be made at certified completion stages of 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and the final payment will be made on full completion.

“We are committed to doing everything we can to protect the coastline and reduce the impact of the oil and gas spill in the Gulf of Mexico. We understand that the United States Coast Guard and the State of Louisiana want this project to proceed with urgency, so we want to ensure that funding is immediately available to begin construction of the berms,” said Bob Dudley, Managing Director.

This announcement is the latest in BP’s ever increasing needs to respond to the current Oil and Gas Spill disaster.

Courtesy of Apple

Following last weekends delayed European release of the iPad Steve Jobs, Apple CEO introduced the next generation of the iPhone. The iPhone 4 introduces “, biggest leap since the original iPhone,” said Steve Jobs.

An Apple employee unfortunately had their test iPhone 4 stolen a few weeks ago and it ended up in the hands of an online tech blog who then preceded to review it in detail.

So we already know much of the new technology that the iPhone 4 has. As expected it has a new display and forward facing camera to enable video conferencing.

Along with all the physical improvements come a whole range of software improvements and another stream of apps from developers.

Pricing and Release Information from Apple.

“iPhone 4 comes in either black or white and will be available in the US for a suggested retail price of $199 (US) for the 16GB model and $299 (US) for the 32GB model in both Apple and AT&T’s retail and online stores, Best Buy and Wal-Mart stores. iPhone 4 will be available in the US, France, Germany, Japan and the UK on June 24 and customers can pre-order their iPhone 4 beginning Tuesday, June 15 from the Apple Online Store or reserve an iPhone 4 to pick up at an Apple Retail Store. iMovie for iPhone will be available on the App Store for just $4.99 (US)”

Work From Home has for the last decade been the goal of a large percentage of the population. So as in any market place many people have been selling work from home systems and methods.

In truth tho the only people who have “made it” are the people selling these systems and methods, many of which are in nature identical. However such is the human ego and dream that many people buy into the myth that working from home in your underwear is as easy as clicking a mouse button.

That is the flashy side of the work from home myth there is however a more professional side to the idea of working from home. The distinction really is work from home for yourself or major business sending their staff home to work.

A rather simplistic view but it does make the distinction, recent studies by leading business’ show that allowing their employees to work from home actually increases their productivity with the average employee willing to work 19 more hours per week.

The key things that make the difference are flexible working hours and the increased feeling of well being from being in a comfortable environment.

Indeed there are more companies being created to outsource this work to certified homeworkers taking on the overheads themselves.

Many exoerts believe that as technologies advance even further then those jobs that can be done from home will be.

A month into administration the new Prime Minister for Great Britain is finding his fiscal feet, in an announcement today he said that the problems were worse than he feared.

Putting things in simple terms he made it clear that the country can not survive when the annual interest payments on government liabilities are more than the cost of essential services and will only continue to rise should the policy’s of the previous government be adhered too.

In a speech in Milton Keynes 50 miles north of London he said,”How we deal with these things will affect our economy, our society — indeed our whole way of life”.

An emergency budget to announce how the government will begin to reduce the current deficit has been scheduled for June 22 with further measures to be announced later in the year.

Many will see this as a repeat of the 1970′s and 80′s when the conservatives came into power after a labour government and immediately blamed all of the problems on the outgoing government.

Mr Cameron also said “I think people understand by now that the debt crisis is the legacy of the last government. But exactly the same applies to the action we will need to take to deal with it. If there are cuts they are part of that legacy”.

I think that an alleged report that the outgoing Secretary For the Treasury left a note for his replacement saying simply “thers no money left” sums up the majority of the country’s feelings on the performance of the last government.

Courtesy ITV.com

Last night saw the final of Britain’s Got Talent aired live on ITV in the UK. The winner’s, decided by a public phone in vote, were Spelbound an acrobatic troupe from Ashford in Kent.

The troupe line is Adam McAssey 20, Adam Buckingham 21, Alex Uttley 24, Jonathan Stranks 15, Douglas Fordyce 19, Edward Upcott 18, Nicholas Illingworth 24, Katie Axten 17, Leighanne Cowler 18, Lauren Kemp 17, Hollianne Wood 13, Abigail Ralph 15, Amy Mackenzie 12 .

A mixed group of atheletes most of whom have been training in gymnastics since the age of four. Astonishingly whilst contending with their rehearsals for BGT they have also been preparing for a world championship competition this summer.

After their final performance during which one of the troupe was launched some 20 feet through the air over a surprised Amanda Holden’s head. after their performance Amanda tipped them to be an opening act for the 2012 Olympics in London.

The other two acts that made up the top three where Twist and Pulse, a quirky dance double act comprising Glen Murphy, 19, and Ashley Glazebrooke, 18, the tow best friends of only 2 years and placed second by the public vote.

The third act by public vote was Kieran Gaffney, a talented 13-year-old drummer from Kent who made it to the final on his second attempt having failed to meet the cut in last years auditions.

Spelbound take home the £100,000 prize money and a booked slot to appear in the Royal Variety Performance later this year.

As more and more people across the world turn to alternative’s to fossil fuel for their energy needs so the demand for solar power componants increases.

Many industry leading companies that supply the solar modules for solar power systems are reporting that they can not keep up with demand.

Currently the biggest demand is in Europe and Germany in particular whilst the government has large subsidies in pace for farmland solar farms.

Stephan Hansen, responsible for business in Europe, the Middle East an Africa for First Solar, told Swiss paper Finanz und Wirtschaft.

“In 2010 we will not be able to produce enough modules to meet demand”

While there is some doubt as to whether demand will continue in Germany because there are strong feelings that the subsidies will be cut in July this year.

There are more and more emerging world markets for solar power which means that the demand for these modules will merely be shifted rather than reduce any.

London 2012

Questions are being raised about whether environmental pledges for the 2012 London Games can be met after the scrapping of plans to build a massive wind turbine on the Olympic Park.

The 120m high turbine was to have been built on the north end of the park, and was to be the symbol for the greenest Olympic Games. It was also a key part of the organisers ambition to produce 20% of the Parks energy needs from renewable sources.

David Higgins, chief executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority, said yesterday that the scheme was “no longer feasible”. He says that new health and safety measures meant that the original design was no longer viable and that not only had the preferred bidder pulled out but no others had come forward. “We have carried out an exhaustive process with the industry and suppliers over the last two years to find a viable way of delivering a wind turbine on the Olympic Park site,” Mr Higgins said. “However, the industry environment has changed and that means the project is no longer feasible.”

The private sector funded scheme was to have met 50% of the ODA’s target for renewable energy on the site, 10% of the total requirements.

A spokesman for ODA said they are currently considering alternatives such as biomass and solar panels but that the business plans have yet to be finalised. He also said that the tax payer may have to contribute towards the cost.

There has, unsurprisingly, been criticism of the decision to scrap the turbine from environmental groups. Mike Childs, head of climate for Friends of the Earth said “The Olympic Delivery Authority must show it’s serious about running a green Olympics by maximising its use of renewable energy. The London Olympics are a chance for the UK to show it can lead the pack in the use of new green technology,”

The environmental aspect of the games has been much touted, but, in all likelihood, will fall far short of claims made, such as it being ‘car free’. Whilst spectators will arrive by public transport, athletes arrival will be facilitated by lane closures across the capital, which is likely to cause resentment among those who have to travel in the capitals legendary traffic snarls every day.

David Moir/Reuters

As the UK recoils from the alledged killing spree of Derrick Bird in the West of the Lake District, Cumbria fresh calls for tighter still gun restrictions.

In answer to these call’srime Minister David Cameron, speaking at a press conference, said the country “should not leap to knee-jerk conclusions”

The UK already has some of the toughest legislation in the world as far as fire arms are concerned. Mr Cameron said “Of course we should look at this issue, but we should not leap to knee-jerk conclusions on what should be done on the regulatory front,” adding “You can’t legislate to stop a switch flicking in someone’s head and this sort of dreadful action taking place.”

This incident has for many in the UK evoked images and memories of two previous incidents.

In 1987 Micheal Ryan ran amoke in the southern town of Hungerford near Newbury killing 16 people then less than 10 years later another incident in the Scottish town of Dunblane 16 children and a teacher were killed. It was following this that UK gun legislation was overhauled and restrictions greatly increased.

In all this incident ended in 12 deaths including the gunman, whilst police would not make any comment as to the motive for this seemingly random killing spree. It is none that the early victims were family and friends and this was followed by a 40 mile drive through villages resulting in further random killings before Mr Bird ended his own life in a woodland spot reported as being a favourite of his.

The days and weeks will see this tragidy unwind as police collect witness statements and build a true picture of the days events.

Golden Girls actress dies at age 76, Rue McClanahan was best know for her role as Blanche Deveraux in the hit US sitcom.

She died of a stroke at 1 am this morning from a massive stroke. She had previously suffered a stroke last November whilst recovering from  bypass surgery.

Golden Girls became an instant hit in 1985 when it was first aired by NBC. The following year the show was honoured by winning best comedy series at the 1986 Emmy Awards that same year Betty White won the award for leading actress.

Rue McClanahan was also a nominee in 1986 but had to wait until the following year to be award best actress at the 1987 Emmy Awards. The trio of Emmy Award winners was completed the following year when Bea Arthur was honoured at the 1989 Awards.

Her death leaves only Betty White, age 88, as a survinving cast member. Bea Arthur passed away in 2009.

After the shows 7 year run ended Rue went on to appear on various TV shows and eventually returned to her stage roots and played Madame Morrible in the hit Broadway musical “Wicked” in 2005.

Today Wednesday 2 June Ford announced that they will discontinue the Mercury Brand in the fourth quarter. This is due to a planned expantion of the Lincoln brand and lineup with 7 new fresh offerings planned over the next 4 years.

The Mercury Brand came to life in 1938 as an intermediate alternative to the High End Lincoln and the economy Ford. Through nearly 72 years of production the Mercury Brand has had many models culminating in their current 2 models the Milan and Mariner.

In 2009 Mercury accounted for 0.8% of Ford’s 16% market share whilst Ford itself enjoyed a 2.2 point increase.

Ford have made it clear that they will still support Mercury owners through their Ford and Lincoln dealers. They have also stated that they don’t anticipate any dealer closures since there are currently no dealerships that deal with only the Mercury Brand.

“We are taking decisive action and moving into the future with the right plan to deliver profitable growth for all stakeholders,” Fields said. “These moves position us to continue building momentum through strong brands, great products and an unwavering focus on the customer.”

Mercury will join a long line of dwindling Detroit originals going down in the annuls of history with the likes of Saab, Saturn, Pontiac and Hummer from GM which followed Chrysler dropping the Plymouth in 2001.

Reports are emerging that a lone gunman has killed several people today in Cumbria.

The first reports are of a fatal shooting on Duke Street in Whitehaven the suspect is then believed to have fled east.

The first reports of shots came at around 10.35 BST from around a taxi rank on Duke Street where it seems that a person was fatally shot and the body still lies there whilst police investigate.

Speaking from Duke Street in Whitehaven, the scene of the first reported shooting, Deputy Chief Constable Stuart Hyde said “I can confirm that we’ve found a body in a wooded area near Boot which we believe to be Mr Bird, together with a firearm.”

A Cumbria Police spokesman added: “We can confirm that a number of people have been injured after shots were fired in the Whitehaven, Seascale and Egremont areas this morning.”

Police are asking for patience and co operation whilst they conduct their investigations and identify a number of fatalities.

They have set up a helpline number for enquiries 0800 0960095.

In an address issued on Tuesday 1 June US Attorney General Eric Holder voiced his concerns over the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

He acknowledged that efforts and priority’s should be directed in the first instance towards controlling the leak and managing the spill.

He also said “, we must also ensure that anyone found responsible for this spill is held accountable. That means enforcing the appropriate civil – and if warranted, criminal – authorities to the full extent of the law.”

He has assembled a team of attorneys that were dispatched to New Orleans during the early stages of this now escalating disaster some of the areas that they will be reviewing are

• The Clean Water Act, which carries civil penalties and fines as well as criminal penalties;

• The Oil Pollution Act of 1990, which can be used to hold parties liable for cleanup costs and reimbursement for government efforts;

• The Migratory Bird Treaty Act and Endangered Species Acts, which provide penalties for injury and death to wildlife and bird species; and,

• Other traditional criminal statutes.

In the statement he issued assurances that whilst it was the responsability of the Federal Government to ensure that practical matters pertaining to the spill are attended too.

It is the responsibility of the Department of Justice to ensure that the American Taxpayer does not foot the final bill for what is considered to be a problem or accident that is soley the responsibility of BP.

© BP p.l.c

As BP struggle to control the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico President Obama is set to meet with the members of his probe panel today. They have been tasked with investigating the biggest oil spill since the Exxon Valdez disaster in 1989.

The spill is rapidly closing in on 2 months now as well as reaching the shore lines of Mississippi and Alabama. Meanwhile the Louisiana National Guard are busy carrying out operations to inflate a Tiger Dam to protect the Grand Isle from oil being carried by the high tides.

With the Hurricane season now officially open the urgency with which this disaster must be controlled has heightened. Not only will Hurricanes help to spread the oil slick further up the US Gulf coast, possibly even as far as Florida, they will also hamper any efforts to control the flow of oil from the failed blowout protector.

In a statement released today from BP

“Preparations are ongoing for deployment of the lower marine riser package (LMRP) cap containment system”

“Deployment of the system will involve connecting the containment cap to a riser from the Discoverer Enterprise drillship and then placing it over the LMRP, with the intention of capturing most of the oil and gas flowing from the well and transporting it to the drillship on the surface.”

Meanwhile work continues on the 2 relief wells, an attempt to reduce the flow by extracting the oil and gas from these 2 well’s. Work is expected to take approximately 3 months to complete. The relief wells where started on May 2 and May 16 which means that the soonest they can be expected to be operational will be early to mid August.

There are over 1600 vessels involved in the response to this emergency and some 13.5 million gallons of oily liquid have so far been recovered.

To date the estimated cost of this oil spill is $990 million however it is far to early to begin to estimate the total cost of the incident as it continues to develope.

President Obama has been forced to admit that the US government and military do not have the requisite skills or equipment to deal with this situation and are therefore forced to let BP continue to manage the situation.

The new chief secretary to the Treasury, the UK’s second most senior person in the Treasury, Danny Alexander faces some serious questions with regard to alleged unpaid Capitol Gains Tax from 2007.

Under the Tax Laws applicable no CGT was payable under rules that give a 36 month grace period when the property being sold has been used as a main residence.

Mr Alexander maintains that the London flat was his families only home until the spring of 2006 when he then started to list it as his second residence under parlimentary rules encumbant at the time.

He cites the need to move his main residence because at the time he was spending more time in Scotland. Shortly after the sale of this flat he bought another which would now be subject to CGT if he chose to sell it.

No tax laws have been broken but the allegations are hot on the heels of Mr Laws resignation over rent payments of £40,000 to his landlord with whom he also had a relationship.

It is said that the main complaint is that this property was funded by the tax payers through the second home allowance and therefore as such should be subject to CGT on a matter of principle and morality.

This weekend saw the launch of Apple’s iPads in 9 International Markets around the world including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Eagar fans mobbed Apple’s international stores around the globe reminiscent of New Year Sales crushes.

The iPad was launched in the US on April 3 and sold more than a million unit’s in a month. It was this demand that force the delay of international release so that they could ensure demand would not outstripe their ability to supply.

Apple state that since it’s launch they have sold 2 million iPads and it is estimated that by the end of the year more than 8 million will have been shipped.

The iPad is the long awaited revolutionary device from Apple Inc is more than just an electronic book it also received high praise for videos and games, and general Web browsing.

It seems there seems to be a mania surrounding this the like of which we have not seen in a long while. The total years sales are expected to generate $4 billion of revenue.

Helio Castroneves failed to take advantage of his pole position at today’s 94th Indy 500 race. Thus also failing in his bid to equal the 4 title record.

In the end Dario Franchitti drove independent owner Chip Ganassi’s car to first place under a yellow flag after a last lap crash involving Ryan Hunter-Reay and Mike Conway.

Dan Wheldon for Panther Racing drove to second place and Danica Patrick moved up from a starting position of 23rd to take 5th spot after driving under Mike Conway’s airborne car on the last lap.

Neither Conway nor Hunter-Reay suffered serious injury however Conway was flown to hospital for a pre cationary check up after complaining of a leg injury.

After a race of strategy and cunning Dario finished with only a tenth of a gallon of fuel left, if it hadn’t been a yellow flag finish one has to wonder if he would have finished at all.

The team took a gamble that payed off by skipping a pit stop in favour of track position.

This is Dario’s second Indy victory his first was back in 2007 in a race shortened by rain to 166 laps.

“The milk tastes just as good the second time around here,” Franchitti said. “I just needed to know what the other guys were doing with fuel. There was a gap behind them and a lot of confusion. This means so much after coming back when I went away for a year in 2008 and to come back win a championship and win the Indianapolis 500.”

A well deserved win for Dario Franchitti.

Todays Turkish Grand Prix took a turn away from the seemingly predictable Red Bull Webber, Vettel one two finish in the 40th lap.

Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel collided in the 40th lap which resulted in Vettel retiring from the race and saw Webber relegated to 3rd position on the track.

Hamilton and Button, the Mclaren team mates wasted no time in taking up the slack and charging to a one two finish for the team. This is Hamiltons first win since Singapore last season and a return to form for the defending champion Jenson Button.

The team is convinced that this is the turning point for them in the season marking the way forward.

However a small competitive battle broke out between the two englishmen and team boss Martin Whitmarsh admitted that there were a few worrying moments.

In the end with Hamilton taking the lead the need to conserve fuel and tyres to complete the race reigned common sense and the two drivers brought home 1st and 2nd place.

“McLaren have got potential and a good car in race trim. We owe a lot of credit to the team.”

This puts Mclaren in the lead in the constructors championship by 1 point and gives them a taste and hunger to repeat this performance during the season.

In the run up to a world no tobacco day on Monday May 31 the WHO have launched a campaign to clamp down on advertisers they say are targeting the female world demographic.

In a news briefing Douglas Bettcher (director of WHO’s tobacco free initiative) is quoted as say  “The industry’s market strategy is having its desired impact,” and “More and more girls are starting to light up. This is a serious red flag.”

Specifically refering to targeted marketing campaigns linked to fashion, entertainment and of all things sports events.

For the last 7 years WHO have been trying to actively enforce a complete ban on smoking advertising. In 2003 160 countries agreed to their recommendations and as yet only 26 have done so.

WHO claim that tobacco companies are deliberately targetting female customers in low to middle income countries by associating smoking with beauty and liberation.

Tobacco giants Philip Morris International said that they do not market to children or use any imagery that might appeal to minors. They do however believe that there is a balance to be achieved between limiting tobacco product marketing and the ability of tobacco manufacturers to reach their target adult market.

After all this is a product market that spends almost $13 billion on marketing alone and in many countries whilst their governments actively discourage smoking they are happy to acceppt the massive amounts of duty and taxation that it generates for them.

According to research carried out for the industry, Scotch whisky is worth almost £4bn to the Scottish economy.

The analysis shows the extent of the boom in whisky from 2000 to 2008, when the global recession stopped years of sharp export increases.

Representing major distillers, the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) says the product has as much impact on the Scottish economy as tourism does and that only the oil and gas sectors have more impact and represent higher earnings per worker.

There has been a 12% decline in the number of people who work for the SWA’s members over the last decade, down from 11,100 to 9,800 but it’s claimed that most of the loss has been in other parts of the Uk and the number of ‘whisky jobs’ in Scotland has only fallen 3%. The number working in blending and bottling has declined, but the new success story of the industry has been visitor centres.

There are only about a fifth of the industries jobs in the Highlands and Islands, although the industry has always been seen as being rooted in those areas. The number of jobs supported indirectly through employment in the industry reaches 35,000, it’s claimed.

Confirming that whisky is a cornerstone of the Scottish economy, Gavin Hewitt, CEO of SWA said

“The new UK government wants to support manufacturing and exporters, and build a fairer tax system,” he said.

“It could combine all three objectives by reforming an unfair duty regime which undermines the competitiveness of the Scotch whisky industry.

“The alcohol duty structure is no longer fit for purpose, discriminating against Scotch whisky at home and sending out the wrong message overseas.”

He welcomed the new coalition government’s commitment to reviewing alcohol taxation.

“The aim must be to put in place a fairer and more socially responsible regime where all alcohol is taxed according to content,” he said.

“With the right support, the Scotch whisky industry can deliver even more to communities across Scotland”.

After starring in more than 115 films in a career that spans 5 decades and more. Dennis Hopper died on Saturday at 74 years of age.

He died at his home in Venice of complications from prostate cancer.

It was his role in Easy Rider an iconic film classic made in 1969 that marked the beginning of a long acting career. He starred as Billy a pot smoking biker opposite Peter Fonda’s Wyatt. He also co- wrote, with Peter Fonda and Terry Southern, and directed this Cannes award winning movie.

This performance set the tone for his style of acting for decades to come. A fresh against the grain in your face style that is reflected in every movie he has starred in.

During an era where a large percentage of the population where attending love in’s and experimenting with recreational drug’s yet the mainstream Hollywood film industry where still producing wholesome family films. Hopper and Fonda brought a realism to the screen that some say saved Hollywood from itself.

This iconic movie also introduced us to another rising star called Jack Nicholson who played a drunk small town lawyer. Hopper continued to star in great movies such as Speed, True Romance and of course earlier on the critically acclaimed “Apocalypse Now” directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

All in all the movie world will be a poorer place for the loss of Dennis Hopper 1936-2010

The current world F1 championship leader is in Pole position for tomorrow’s Turkish Grand Prix. This will be the third pole position in a row for Webber.

The Red Bull Team are having a great season with McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton seemingly the only one who can keep them in his sights.

Mark Webber bested Lewis’ initial time of 1m 26.542s with a 1m 26.295s to take pole with his team mate Vettel by his side.

The standings for the season so far are as follows

01      Mark Webber      78
02     Sebastian Vettel     78
03     Fernando Alonso     75
04     Jenson Button     70
05     Felipe Massa     61
06     Robert Kubica     59
07     Lewis Hamilton     59
08     Nico Rosberg     56
09     Michael Schumacher     22
10     Adrian Sutil     20
11     Vitantonio Liuzzi     10
12     Rubens Barrichello     7
13     Vitaly Petrov     6
14     Jaime Alguersuari     3
15     Sebastien Buemi     1
16     Nico Hulkenberg     1

Jenson Button joins his team mate Hamilton on the second row, hopefully Lewis will have more luck this time than he did in Spain where he had a tyre failure on the penultimate lap whilst holding second place.

We are all looking forward to a great battle in Turkey tomorrow.

Gary Coleman the child star of TV comedy series Different Strokes has died aged 42. He was taken to Utah valley regional medical centre on Wednesday and was in a concious state when he was admited but sliped into a coma shortly after. His wife of 3 years Shannon Price was present when the decision was taken to stop medicating him he died shortly thereafter.

Gary Coleman came into the public eye at the age of 10 in 1978 when Different Strokes first came to the television screens. It was a US Sitcom in which Gary played Arnold Jackson and his catch phrase was “Watchou Talkin’ ’bout Willis” when refering to his screen brother. The show ran for 8 years and gained a lot of popularity, indeed I remember making time to always watch the program as a child.

As with a lot of child stars from the 70′s and 80′s Gary his adult life was plagued with trouble and strife. He saw little of his reported $18 million fortune aquired, which was controlled by his adoptive parents until he was 18 and ended up with only $200,000 after a long court battle.

The actors family issued a statement shortly after his announced death .

He had “difficulties not only with health issues, but also with his personal and public life,” they said in a statement. “At times it may not have been apparent, but he always had fond memories of being an entertainer and appreciates his fans for all their support over the years.”

The stage is set and the grid decided tomorrow is shaping up to be a great day at the Indy 500. Around 200,000 people are expected to turn out to watch Helio Castroneves lead off in pole position.

A couple of days ago it was announced that 73 year old actor Jack Nicholson will be waving the green flag to start the race.

In a statement to press track president Jeff Belskus said “We look forward to welcoming him to Indianapolis and watching him wave the green flag”

The field is composed of 33 drivers including four lady drivers namely Danica Patrick,Simona de Silvestro, Sarah Fisher, or Ana Beatriz Caselato Gomes de Figueiredo this will be the largest field of female drivers to compete at Indianapolis Motor Raceway.

The race starts at 10 am PDT and it looks to be a great race..

As the first step in a £15m project to get the supersonic passenger jet Concorde back in the air, the engines will be examined today. The Rolls Royce engines on a former Air France Concorde will have an initial examination to see what needs to be done to start them. The tests will be performed by a French-British team and will take place at an air museum near Paris. The work is being done through a partnership between the British Save Concorde Group, SCG, and a French group, Olympus 593, at the Le Bourget Air and Space Museum.

Vice-chairman of SCG Ben Lord said: “Today marks the most critical date in Concorde’s history since she was retired almost seven years ago.

“Two members of our management team are in France this weekend to observe these amazing developments.

“SCG has always maintained that she could return to flight in a heritage capacity, and the findings of today will hopefully go an awfully long way to proving our point.”

“This is just the beginning, but we are delighted and privileged to be working with a team of skilled Concorde engineers who both worked on the aircraft at British Airways and Air France.”

The first tests are to establish whether the engines can be started safely and whether the aircraft can ground taxi.

Mr Lord said: “After today, we will know exactly what needs to be done with those four engines in order to take this to the next stage of engine test runs with an objective to hopefully perform a ground taxi.”

There are hopes the plane can fly as part of the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics.

A steady decrease in the cost of a gallon of gas could spell a busy summer on the roads the likes of which we haven’t seen since 2005. Usually from memorial day onwards gas prices increase but all indications at the moment are that they will continue to fall.

It is common belief among experts that the financial turmoil in europe is causing a pessimistic outlook on market investment which in turn is causing a fall in crude oil prices. It has dropped by around 15% roughly $13 in the last 3 weeks.

This is in contradiction to a rise in consumption which goes against the grain of traditional supply and demand theory.

Whilst the fall in crude oil prices is fairly substancial it is unlikely that gas prices will follow quite so quickly whilst gas-station owners struggle to manage their profit margins. Or so they will have you believe, in truth there is as always a little profiteering going on here.

I truly believe that there is no reason since their supplier prices fluctuate why the end user should not gain the benefit of such dips in raw material cost.

On a recent trip to the UK I couldn’t help but notice that their gas prices were more than 4 times US prices and I was even more surprised to find out that over 75% of that was duty or taxation.

However they seem to suffer the same “rise like a rocket and fall like a feather” phenominon.

At least 70 are dead and around the same amount are wounded in a coordinated attack on mosques of a minority sect during Friday Prayer in Lahore, Islamabad Pakistan. This information was provided by the city coordinating officer.

The almost minute perfect timing of the two attacks took place at two mosques a few miles apart. The mosques are both part of the Ahmadi sect which pakistan does not recognise as part of Islam and is therefore discriminated against by Pakistani Law.

“Geo TV, a leading news channel in Pakistan, reported that members of the Punjab branch of the Pakistani Taliban were claiming responsibility for the attacks. The Punjab branch is composed mainly of formerly state-sponsored sectarian groups, including Lashkar-e-Jangvi and Jaish-e-Mohammed, which have joined forces with the Taliban.”

It took the police more than three hours to gain control of the situation at one point one of the attackers fired on the police from atop the buildings.

It is most probable that the assaults where organised by extremists whom had previously issued threats. This had been going on for the last two years. With nearly 2 million Ahmadis who are forbidden by law to engage in Muslim practices and a government that refuses to acknowledge their sect and this was a melting pot waiting to happen.

Would you really believe that there awards for credit card company’s. You would think that in todays economy they would like to keep a low key and not draw undue attention to themselves.

Well they do and today it was announced that BarclayCard has taken 2 prizes at that most prestigous of events the 2010 Cards International Awards. Sounds like an award for some greetings card company doesn’t it but I assure it isn’t.

Sarah Alspach, Marketing Director for Barclaycard Freedom, said: “These two awards demonstrate our investment in innovation, and our commitment to developing card technology across the board for the benefit of our customers. Barclaycard Freedom is giving customers a simple, modern way to enjoy rewards. At Barclaycard we are committed to improving products and services for businesses and consumers alike, and are thrilled to have been recognised with these awards.”

So Barclaycard were awarded for their innovative loyalty programme and their Visa CodeSure card. Barclaycard Freedom was launch on march 17th this year and immediately became available to over 8 million users. Around 30,000 retailers agreed to participate making it possibly the biggest incentive and loyalty scheme ever.

The scheme is said to bring a new level of simplicity and convenience to the concept of loyalty and rewards.

The second award was for their Commercial Barclaycard which is a card that has additional functionality. It is a standard corporate card that has an LCD screen a keypad and battery embeded into it which allows it to be used as a platform for secure applications, such as extranet.

UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) comes into full force on June 1st 2010. What does this mean for online casino’s.

Well by the letter of UIGEA it means that previously vague laws against US citizens using online casino’s will be tightened. Previous to this law US citizens have been able to use online casinos by using third party payment methods. As a rule online casino’s know fully what is going on and where there customers are located.

The new laws mean that it is illegal for them to knowingly accept deposits from US players. The problem will be tracking payments in order to find out if any laws are being broken because most online casinos cover their tracks very well.

It seems that credit cards will be the easiest to track and therefore we will probably see a swing from online casinos accepting credit card deposits to using other methods such as wire transfers and echeck’s.

It does make one think that all this will just drive online casinos underground and therefore throw the country back to a prohibition mindset. It seems like many things wouldn’t this whole situation be better by legalising it and therefore maintaining more control overall. Plus you could tax it that would certainly help the public coffers.

Michel Barnier, EU Internal Market Commissioner, says that a network of national funds should be put in place so that tax payers don’t have to meet the cost of bank failures. He says that the funds would be part of a larger system to help prevent future financial crises.

Under the scheme, banks would be required to pay a levy into a fund, but it would not be used to bail out failing banks, instead it would be to manage failures in an ‘orderly way’.

Mr Barnier said “”I believe in the ‘polluter pays’ principle. It is not acceptable that taxpayers should continue to bear the heavy cost of rescuing the banking sector. They should not be in the front line,”

He says that future bank failures should be paid for by the financial sector. “That is why I believe that banks should be asked to contribute to a fund designed to manage bank failure, protect financial stability and limit contagion – but which is not a bail-out fund.”

He added: “Europe must take a lead in developing common approaches and providing a model for co-operation which could be applied globally.”

The funds would remain within national borders but there are disagreements about management of the funds. The proposal also states that uninsured creditors and shareholders need to be made aware that the funds would not be used as an insurance policy.

The proposals will be presented to EU Finance Ministers, heads of state and the G20 in June this year and a draft EU law would be proposed early in 2011.

Atlantis landed after a 4.9 million mile journey on Wednesday 8.48 EDT after it’s final planned flight, there is a pending supply flight for Atlantis next year.

There are only 2 more planned flights this year one for each of the other shuttles, Endeavour and Discovery. They will continue with the outfitting and assembly of the international space station. Which is a multi nation project costing $100 Billion. The space station project has been running for 12 years now and there are 16 nations involved.

NASA first began flying the shuttles in 1981 and there is speculation that they are to be retired due increasing maintainance costs with some safety concerns as well. There is also the fact that they are not able to go beyond the orbit of the space station.

Mike Moses a shuttle program manager says :

“The shuttles are not old. They’re in fantastic shape. They fly perfectly and they do exactly what we need them to. We just don’t have the budget to continue to keep doing that, plus more, plus expand beyond low-Earth orbit, so at some point you just have to balance your book and decide what to do next. That’s the reality,”

Controversially President Barack Obama is trying to push a proposal through congress that will see a program to develop capsules and rockets geared towards landing a US astronaut on the moon cancelled in favour of a program to develop technology to travel further.

Afghan insurgents have attacked a key NATO base in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The airfield came under rocket and mortar fire, followed by a ground assault, during which the insurgents tried to breach the perimeter of the base but were repelled by security forces. Several NATO personnel were injured.

This is the second attack on a major base in the last few days. On Wednesday, the US base at Bagram was attacked by militants, during which an American contractor was killed.

Other attacks over the last few days have seen three NATO personnel killed, along with a civilian worker.

The attack has forced a last minute change in plan for three British cabinet ministers, led by Foreign Secretary William Hague, who were due to visit the Kandahar airfield but will no longer do so.

NATO said in a statement that “a number” of military and civilian personnel were wounded, but there were no confirmed fatalities.

On Tuesday, a taliban suicide bomber attacked a NATO convoy in Kabul, killing 18 people, including 6 NATO soldiers.

The taliban has recently declared a spring offensive against NATO and the Afghan government. Earler on Saturday, a cache of hundreds of rockets were found by Afghan police on the outskirts of Kabul.

Saturday 22 may 2010 saw the culmination of the European Champions League Cup with the final at Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

The contenders were Inter Milan and Bayern Munich, this years titans of european football. José Mourinho Inter’s portuguese coach was greeted with much appreciation by the stadium crowd.

Inter Milan finished a remarkable year of european football by finishing 2-0 and lifting the Champions League Cup for the first time in more than 40 years.

Not since the double of ’64 and ’65 have Inter lifted europes most prestigeous trophy. Though it has not been so long since José last felt the glory of Champions League victory, he led Porto to victory in 2004.

The match was predicted by many to be a stale game with dirty tactics. Thankfully this was not the case for the first final to be played on a weekend day and broadcast live to the US.

Bayern had the larger proportion of controlling play but failed to breach Inter’s defensive line. Diego Milito, inters Argentine forward is scored both goals in the 35th and 70th minutes.

Rumours abound with regard to Mourinho’s future and whether he will take up an opportunity to coach Real Madrid.

“If you don’t coach Real Madrid then you always have a gap in your career,” he said.

Congratulations to a hard fought battle by Inter to become this years European Champions League Cup winners.

In yesterdays qualifying Helio averaged 227.970 over the 4 laps leaving the rest of the field to scrap over position 2 on the grid.

The defending champion and 3 time race winner left the watching crowds in no doubt as to his intentions for this years Indianapolis 500.

The full line up is as follows .

Row 1
Helio Castroneves       Will Power        Dario Franchitti

Row 2
Ryan Briscoe        Alex Tagliani    Scott Dixon

Row 3
Graham Rahal        Ed Carpenter    Hideki Mutoch

Row 4
Townsend Bell        Justin Wilson    Rapheal Matos

Row 5
Mario Moraes        Davey Hamilton    Mike Conway

Row 6
Marco Andretti        Ryan Hunter-reay    Dan Wheldon

Row 7
E.J Viso            Tomas Scheckter    Ana Beatriz

Row 8
Simona De Silvestro    Danica Patrick    Bertrand Baguette

For a full rundown and timing visit  http://www.Indycar.com

Danica Patrick, Indycars most popular driver blamed a poor performance on the car setup and as a result experienced a booing from the enthusiastic crowd.

We’ll bring you the race results and report in due course.

Sunday May 30 1pm sees the 94th Indy 500 start and it is set to be another high octane dash.

The British Prime Minister is at the centre of security fears due to his habit of walking to the House of Commons and driving himself, even getting caught in London traffic jams with the rest of the general population.

He has rejected the advice of top security officials, demanding to keep his Blackberry smartphone and refusing motorcycle escorts. Officials are increasingly nervous, believing he is making himself vulnerable to attack. It has also been suggested that those around him are also more vulnerable because of this. Security officials have also expressed fears that his behaviour also undermines the governments message on national security. The threat assessment from MI5 is now at ‘severe’, which means an attack is ‘highly likely’.

A former police protection commander says “He can’t have it both ways. He’s walking around like he’s at a garden party yet the public endures tight security at airports, and the Houses of Parliament are ringed with bollards, barricades and armed police.”

Another source says “With iconic figures, like royalty or the PM, there are also the threats you cannot assess — the fixated and the obsessed.”

President Obama also insisted on hanging onto his own phone last year, but eventually gave in and accepted an ‘encrypted device’. David Cameron is being advised to do the same.

Friends of Mr Cameron say that he is feeling ‘constrained’ by the constant presence of security and wants to be able to step outside the bubble.

The Camerons have not moved into 10 Downing St, the traditional home of British Prime Ministers, and the Osbornes are resisting taking up residence in number 11. Sources say that if they do not move, then millions of pounds will have to be spent to install security in their current homes.

Courtesy of The Hindu

More than 150 people are dead in Indias worst air disaster in 14 years.

The plane came off the ‘tabletop’ runway at Bajpe airport, Mangalore, India, and crashed into a gorge. The airport is located 19 miles (31 kilometers) outside of Mangalore city and sits on top of a plateau surrounded by dense vegetation and hills. It is believed that cloudy conditions, causing reduced visibility, may be a contributing factor in the accident. Rescue workers are still at the scene, but say that the chances of finding any more survivors are ‘low’. The airport is currently closed.

Around 8 survivors are in hospital, with three of those suffering ‘serious injuries’. Witnesses have described the horror of trying to pull charred bodies from the wreckage. One survivor, Umer Farooq, speaking from his hospital bed, said the aircraft had just touched down when “the plane veered off toward some trees on the side and then the cabin filled with smoke. I got caught in some cables but managed to scramble out.” Most of the passengers were Indian nationals and so far, police say around 120 bodies have been recovered.

The accident is the worst in India since a mid-air collision between a Saudi airliner and a Kazakh cargo plane in 1996, which killed 349 people.

This past Friday saw Germany’s chancellor Angela Merkel convince the country’s parliament, by the narrowest of margines, to approve their part in a multi billion euro rescue package to stabilize the continents economy.

This one subject has seen the rats crawl from their holes within the German parliament revealing the underlying problems in an already unstable coalition government. I have to wonder how the newest european coalition in the UK is going tofair over the coming months and years. What will their undoing become!

The current fiscal situation in Europe is perhaps one of great speculation, which is reflected in market reactions. A group of nations each with their own nation fiscal interests that share a common currency has all the ingredients of a recipe for disaster.

What with France organising their finances whilst in fear of deflation and Germany operating in a near paralysing fear of inflation. Then add into the mix Greece’s reckless extravagance and there is no wonder that after a decade and more of single currency the problems are starting to emerge.

Germany’s stake in the euro bailout is likely to be around 183 billion euro’s no small contribution for any european nation state.

The markets closed for the weekend in a state of disarray I wonder what the new week will bring..

First climbed by New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and Nepal’s Tenzing Norgay Sherpa in 1953 Mount Everest is the worlds highest mountain at 29028 ft.
Since then around 4000 people topped the summit and many personal and world records have been achieved and today is no different.

Jordan, from Big Bear California, today reached the summit his climb was made from the Tibetan side whilst at the same time Nepali mountaineer Apa Sherpa broke his own record and climbed Mount Everest for the 20th time. Apa, 50, who lives in the United States, reached the summit on Saturday along the Southeast Ridge route.

The feat was reported on Jordans Blog.

“The team has just called in and confirmed that they are standing on top of Mt. Everest,”

“Their dreams have now come true. Everyone sounded unbelievably happy.”

Previously this record was held by 16-year-old Temba Tsheri Sherpa of Nepal.

Jordan is now 6/7 in his quest to climb the highest peak in each of the seven continents with only Vinson Massif, the highest peak in Antarctica left to collect.

He is taken a popular Scottish pass time called “Monroe Bagging” to the extreme level.

Romero was accompanied by a team including his father Paul, a critical care paramedic, and Sherpa guides.

His next mission is to climb the highest mountains in all 50 states in the United States.

You can read all about his exploits and future challenges at his blog

The first date of the North American leg of the bands so called “360 Degree” world tour has been postponed because Bono has had to have emergency back surgery at Munich Hospital.

Bono ,50 and originally from Ireland had been rehearsing for this next leg of the tour due to start in Salt Lake City on June 3rd

The band confirmed Salt Lake City postponed via their website http://www.u2.com/index/home/.

Any delay is going to cause a major upset for fans not to mention the company contracted to handle the bands merchandising which is Live Nation who handle all their digital and braning rights as well.

There are worries that salt Lake City may not be the only tour date affected, Paul McGuinness the bands manager as much as said this may be the case.

“It’s unfortunate that we’re inconveniencing fans,” he said in an audio message. “We will make plans to reinstate these dates as soon as possible.

“Obviously, it’s been very disruptive to our crew. We have over 400 people converging on Salt Lake City. Some of those have been told to turn around and told to stay at home until we make our new plan.”
as originally reported by reuters.

“Bono will spend the next few days there, before returning home to recuperate,” the spokesperson added. “Once his condition has been assessed further, a statement will be made regarding the impact on forthcoming tour dates.” as stated by a spokesman for the singer.

U2 by no small measure are regarded by many as the most successful band in the world, hits such as “Bloody Sunday” and “where The Streets Have No Name” are just 2 examples of their success. During their long career it has been estimated they have sold over 150 million records.

The so called 360 Degree Tour Aptly named because of the stage format where fans surround the performance stage was and perhaps is set to be one of if not their highest grossing tour in history.

The band have several other dates scheduled in June that may potentially be affected by Bono’s untimely visit to hospital. Namely Anaheim on June 6 & 7 and Denver and Oakland on June 12 & 16 respectively.

We can all take time to extend our best wishes and speedy recovery to The highly regarded lead singer of U2 Bono.