arab_joe

Division B, Round 1 Arabjoe wins by resignation. After about 50 moves I offered a draw in hope more than expectation (it was rightly rejected) - then @gkneil had my King dancing around like a bear in the back streets of Tbilisi, but somehow I managed to survive long enough that @gkneil made a couple of uncharacteristic errors (if you'd moved the other pawn on move 63 then I would have resigned) and I had just enough for the win. A season's worth of luck in one game for me. Thankfully I only have one game this weekend, as I need a rest after that!

Hope nobody had too much invested in Luna... Been bad enough watching ETFs fall through the floor this year!

I'm in. Thanks @Frank Grimes!

My mistake, I thought you were talking about McNulty - but, as you say, the point stands for both of them. They're decent players at this level, but nothing more - and as our wage bill is already utterly ridiculous, we simply are not in a position to pay big wages to buys that are not exceptional (for what its worth, at the start of this season I thought Harkes was tremendous - and well worthy of his player of the month award when it came - but after that he has faded quite badly and looks a bit lost without Fuchs sitting in next to him). I think that's quite harsh on Clark - he's managed a lot of goals from not a lot of chances. I don't think he'll start many games next season, but has already shown that he is a very effective substitute and I would definitely keep him around. I honestly can't even picture N'Koyi - maybe some sort of PTSD response where I have just blanked it from my mind... I'll not hear a bad word said of Roy O'Donovan after his goal against St Mirren for the late Eddie Thompson! Huge deflection, right enough, but absolute scenes when it dropped in...

I agree with this (although it appears to be a rather unpopular opinion amongst Arabs) but, as you say, we see it very rarely and the formation/style that we play really does not suit him. If he was playing up-front in a two with a Jon Daly type number 9 I'm sure he would have scored a lot more goals for us. As we have Watt signed up for the next couple of years, there is just no room for McNulty (unless he is willing to take a squad player wage...). If we can't find a player that is an improvement on McNulty then we need to sack our scouts. Talking of which, I miss the days of our scouts digging up proper random players that I had never heard of - bring on the next Prince Buaben or Fran Sandaza... I'd be disappointed if Harkes left - when Levitt goes back to Man U (and let's not kid ourselves - he is going to have offers from a host of teams that can pay a lot more than us) our midfield is going to be very, very light in terms of creativity - especially with Pawlett out long-term. The first sentence is absolutely correct - he is the current scapegoat (it moves quarter by quarter) and is almost certainly not as bad as some of us Arabs make out. We were far more patient with the likes of Sporle, who produced even less even more infrequently. The second sentence may well be correct - but we have never seen him playing full of confidence. The closest I can think of was at home to Killie late last season - he was our best player that night, and that is likely the reason we brought him back this season. The third sentence may well also be correct - but if we can't, that's more of an indictment on our dreadful scouting network than it is confirmation that McNulty is good... Nicky Clark gets far too much stick on here, in my eyes - the guy has 40 goals for us. At 30 he certainly isn't getting any quicker, but he has been a very consistent performer for us and is more than good enough for our squad. If he goes in the summer it will cost a lot to replace him. We are an odd bunch, us Arabs, what else can I say? We hate Pawlett and Harkes - then we love them - then we hate them etc. And, in relation to McNulty, we have very short memories - not so long ago we had the likes of Craig Curran up top...

I was in Rome, Siena and Florence a few weeks ago - Italy was as brilliant as always! Only tip for Rome is that the ticket booths for Collosseum and the Forum are now closed - tickets are online only; and there is very patchy 3G anywhere near that area so tricky to book on the go. If it is your first time in the city then I would suggest that the Collosseum and the Forum are absolutely essential - as is the Vatican (the queue for St Peter's Basilica gets looong, so aim to get there early) and the Spanish steps, Circus Maximus, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona etc. Lots of these places are very touristy, but still definitely worth a visit. Avoid the people offering tours, and definitely avoid the (mainly African) guys trying to "give" you a bracelet or some other rubbish - they'll corner you and demand cash. Definitely take a print-out of your vaccination record as I was asked for it a few times. The food is off the scale - take a baggy pair of trousers for flying home...

Have a great trip - was in NYC before Christmas and it is definitely the best city in the world (if you've not been before or are looking for ideas, the thread in the Travel Forum is pretty good)! Very jealous that you're going to Yankees v Red Sox, will be amazing. Only tip is to savour every last drop of your lukewarm Bud Light - not many places you'll be charged 12 dollars for that delight! As others have said, don't get up during an inning - but in all honesty there are so many breaks in play there is no need. Kris Bryant has left the Giants for the Rockies, signing a 7 year deal for $182 m. In my eyes, he did not show nearly enough last year to justify either of those figures...

Arabjoe wins by resignation. Not much in the game at all, until I managed to swap a Knight for a Rook and took the upper hand. Thanks for the game. After 7 losses from past 9, great to get back to winning ways!

Yep, I was rushing to board a flight and totally chucked away that one - had got into a really solid position, but lost concentration and within 3 or 4 moves my 5 point lead was reversed. Well played. A frustrating one for me, I was concentrating on trying to get a checkmate of my own from a pretty strong position and left myself exposed. Clinical from you, well played. A good start to the season has gone up in smoke...

Arabjoe wins by resignation. cols407 blundered his Queen early doors, so chucked in the towel.

Purplekangaroo89 wins at a canter. Two losses in two days - well played @craigkillie and @mathematics! Back to the drawing board for me...

PnBMathematics wins by resignation. In control after 26 moves, then inexplicably I surrendered a well-placed Bishop for nothing and just watched as my position crumbled. Closest I've ever been to rage-quitting.

Arabjoe wins by checkmate. If this chess match was a football game, it would have been Dundee United v Aberdeen on 4 August 2007, when we were down to 10 men for almost an hour (Willo Flood sent off on his debut) and, completely against the run of play, snatched a 90th minute winner...

I've been following United for the best part of 30 years, and if you think this is down to Tam or the current crop of players then you have a very short memory... we, along with every other side in the league (planet?) up our game against the bigger teams, then the next week go out and give Gretna their only ever away in the SPL. It is the Dundee United way! Harsh, but true. / To be fair, the shirt-pull by Graham was an absolute stonewaller and clear red card (or second yellow at the very least). If that had been at the other end we would (rightly) have been apoplectic. Just makes it all the sweeter!

Pleslie999 wins by resignation. A fairly easy win for Pleslie999, after I took a horse out for a spin and got myself in a world of trouble...

Invergowrie wins by resignation. Well played my fellow Arab!

RBWatson wins by checkmate. Pretty one-sided win - 3 blunders from yours truly certainly didn't help me. Well played!

Arabs tend to get carried away, it has to be said - this thread is an incredible mixture of one minute looking out our passports; then the next minute wanting Asghar, Courts and everyone else sacked... Benji has conceded 1 goal in 360 minutes (at Celtic Park) and is still getting criticised for not keeping clean sheets with enough strength!! Only at Tannadice... It would appear that both Peter Grant and John Hughes are pretty dreadful football managers. One has to assume that they only get these gigs because Chairmen listen to the BBC and believe their drivel about what great guys they are!? Truly baffling. The Dode Fox Podcast loan report had me worried that Graham was headed for the Juniors... Levitt is an absolute baller. Definitely not the finished article, but if he can gain a bit of strength and consistency then he will go to the very top.

Pleslie999 wins by resignation. Queen blundered early doors. I'm not very good at 960 Chess.

The Next Call is very good, if slightly less gripping than Someone Knows Something. I thought that White Hot Hate was excellent - as is Boys Like Me, which I finished this morning on the way to work (a look at the incel community and the 2018 Toronto van attack). CBC podcasts are absolutely exceptional - never been so proud to be of Canadian descent! Thanks for bringing this one up - I thought it was really good, and actually provided a bit of balance to try to show why people might be tempted to follow things that are objectively "nuts". Another good listen is NBC's American Radical - short but very interesting look at one of the people who attended the January 6 insurection. S Town is still one of the finest podcasts ever made, in my eyes - can't wait to listen to Trojan Horse.

Arabjoe wins by resignation. I'm still a bit confused as to why Paakman01 resigned, as it was a really tight game that I was only a couple of points ahead in (and I have thrown away leads significantly bigger than that in the past) - but he threw in the towel so there we go. Well played, I look forward to the rematch.

Division B, Round 3 Purplekangaroo89 defeats Arabjoe by resignation. Decent game for about the first 3 moves, then in the space of about 4 moves I managed to throw away my Queen and a Knight - that completely swung the game (as it tends to do...) and I was circling the drain until I inevitably resigned. After 0 blunders in the first two game weeks, I had 2 here - and Purplekangaroo89 won at a canter - well played!

You can cram a lot into 5 days in NYC! Would definitely recommend Prospect Park for a stroll, if you have the time. It is no Central Park, but still a great spot. That's a great shout - amazing view from the cablecar (which is free with a Metrocard); and you also get clear views along the river from the island itself.

Division B, Round 2 Arabjoe defeats Pnbmathematics by checkmate. Tight game that completely swung when I managed to take your Queen by sacrificing my Bishop - after that I should have closed out the win, but made a few mis-moves and almost ending up losing it when I got my King into an awkward corner.

Division B, Round 1 Arabjoe defeats Dandies1983 by resignation. Good game - was very tight throughout, but I got a piece up then managed to swap enough pieces that I was odds-on to get a pawn across; so @Frank Grimesthrew in the towel.