For those who don’t care much for Panorama

If tonight’s Panorama, promising a gritty investigation into life on a Bristol estate, doesn’t appeal, some even grittier action is available on ESPN this evening. Hull did the double over Fulham last season, so Hodgson’s men will be hoping to take a tentative step on the recovery road back from such shame, by dealing with the Tigers tonight.

Sky Sports 1 at 7:30 is the place to be if you like your Premier League nostalgia, as Leeds host Norwich. Whilst for those curious to see how the younger members of Chelsea squad can defend the dead ball, Chelsea TV at 7 is the place to watch Chelsea Reserves vs West Ham reserves.

Darren Huckerby bows out of professional football

Darren Huckerby has told BBC Radio Norfolk that he will retire due to a hip injury, which seems as good a reason as any to re-post this classic interview.

Just watch the former ‘Norfolk Team’ player’s puzzled expression as he is called a ‘legend’ three times in his introduction.

Bryan Gunn gets support from daughter, interweb community

In the past, people from the world of football have misused Facebook: a silly Crystal palace youngster blew his chances of of a big transfer via his news feed, and an injured Oxford Utd player used the social networking site to spread the word of racism.

17-year-old A-level student Melissa Gunn, however, is using the site to get her dad Bryan a job. She has set up the group “Bryan Gunn for Manager“, and it has over 1,300 members - approximately 1,300 more members than the “Bryan Gunn NOT for Norwich City manager group“.

The legendary Carrow Road goalkeeper has been taking temporary charge of the club since Glenn Roeder lost at home to Charlton (aka the worst team on Earth).

The 45-year-old Scot - the inaugural member of Norwich’s Hall of Fame - hopes to secure the gaffer’s position full-time, in what daughter Melissa describes as “the icing on the cake of an extraordinary career at Norwich City”.

[The Independent]

Just two weeks remain before the transfer window is opened again

January 1 is looming large on the horizon and after the return of the Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid saga yesterday, the Roque Santa Cruz to Manchester City rumour got jealous and has now made a comeback in an attempt to steal back the spotlight. Here all The Spoiler’s favourite pieces of transfer guesswork from today’s papers:

Roque Santa Cruz to Manchester City
While some newspapers are reporting that Sam Allardyce only agreed to take the Blackburn job if he could keep the Paraguay striker, The Times go against the grain and say Big Sam wants to sell him for £20 million to raise transfer funds. They also claim that Manchester City’s highest bid in the summer was £14 million so why the logic in them offering an extra £6 million for someone who has scored less than Roman Bednar this season is flawed.

The Spoiler Truth-o-meter: If they sell, they probably won’t make as much money they could have in the summer

Gary O’Neil to Portsmouth

Handsome model who likes bows, thin cardigans and footballers

Former Norwich and Southampton midfielder Jim Brennan now plies his trade with Toronto FC, where he has secured the services of a wife named Jenn. Before he settled down in Canadialand, however, Brennan stepped out with English model Sarah Maxwell, who once felt the need to tell Nuts TV that her man was “always randy.”

Celtic better watch out tomorrow night

Yesterday, The Spoiler boldly claimed that Darren Bent wouldn’t reach a goal tally in the double digits next season, as we presumed Juande Ramos would find someone to push him out of the regular team. The former Charlton top scorer, however, has managed to net seven goals in friendlies against Norwich (see above) and Leyton Orient this week, and it’s looking likely that he will be getting more of a run out when the season proper begins.

Have we and the mainstream media been too hasty in labelling him a flop? Will Bent silence his critics and stick away 20+ goals in Robbie Keane’s absence in the new term? Or will he still prove expensive and not particularly good in 2008/09?

Let us know what you think with a comment below…

‘English legend’ is responsible for ‘greatest goal ever’, apparently

Darren Huckerby has just signed up for MLS team San Jose Earthquakes, and its safe to say that KRON 4 (a news channel, not a distant alien planet) are quite excited. The 32 year old from the ‘Norfolk team’ may have scored just five Championship goals last season, but that doesn’t stop the interviewer using the term ‘legend’ three times in the first 25 seconds.

Huckerby, clearly embarrassed by this over-stated praise, failed to score in his debut against Toronto last week.

Norwich keeper doesn’t care to fund Shearer’s BBC pay packet

A very conservative estimate of a Championship goalkeeper’s salary would be somewhere in the region of £200,000 to £300,000. This, you will undoubtedly agree, is a sufficient amount to cover the annual £139.50 TV licence required for every household on this island with an idiot box. Norwich City goalkeeper David Marshall would beg to differ:

Former Celtic goalkeeper David Marshall was yesterday fined £800 for not paying his TV licence. Marshall, 23, was handed the fine by magistrates in Norwich. The court was told that the keeper was caught watching TV without a valid licence. He was also ordered to pay court costs of £60 and a £15 victim surcharge.

What a poor example this man is setting. If nobody paid their licence fee, who would give Jonathan Ross the millions he deserves? Who would pay Steve McLaren to go and commentate on tournaments he should have been participating in? Who would broadcast England matches and FA Cup games? We could go on…