Salvo Montalbano

It's highly (incredibly so) unlikely but you could play a team 11 times a season (4 x League, Challenge Cup, League Cup Groups, League Cup knock-out rounds, Scottish Cup plus replay, Play-off home and away). We've played Dundee United four times so far this season and still have to play them twice in the league, we're both still in the Scottish Cup and with our recent run we might yet play them in the play-off.

See I love political shows (The West Wing is oneof my favourite shows ever and I loved the original House of Cards with Ian Richardson) so I should like it but while the scandals were a bit far fetched and fun, the political side of it got so ridiculous so quickly (rigging the election, killing the son, the vice President and the Attorney General etc) and with real-life politics in the States being bad enough it kinda put me off.

I used to love Scandal but it kind of lost its way I think. While it was always preposterous, there were nice little problems that they had to fix which kept it interesting but as soon as it went to Olivia moving into the White House I was done.

Put me in the "it was good but not fantastic" camp too.

Seems I'm in the minority but I didn't enjoy it. It's Sherlock not Mary Watson and call me old fashioned but when I watch a show about the greatest detective in the world I expect some detective work. The bit with John and the girl on the bus I presume relates to something to come and/or is a flashforward of some sort but seemed totally out of place, there was no real mystery and you just know they're going to resurrect Mary for the finale despite John being a doctor and knowing when people are dead. For a show that started with some of the best drama we'd seem in years, everything since the Reichenbach Fall has been a monumental let down. None more so than this episode.

If you were made from life, why would you need to chase the cash there? Unless I was a big fan of a rival, if I was a player who was offered the chance to play for Man Utd, Real Madrid or whomever I'd be heading there if I'd already made enough to be comfortably off for the rest of my life.

The Abu Dhabi tournament was classed as an exhibition so they're technically correct.

The first certainly was very good. Watching the second one just now and it doesn't seem as gripping and is a bit silly. Will keep with it and hopefully the third series comes good again.

Thought the Jonathan Creek was decent enough actually, certainly a hell of a lot better than the last few episodes. It doesn't really work too well without Maddy (as annoying as she was) or Adam Klaus providing the comic relief. I'm just catching up on Broadchurch now that Sky have given subscribers free box sets for 3 months. Can't believe I didn't watch it first time round.

I had both too - although the first one may have been "the Football Grounds of England and Wales" (maybe an earlier edition?) - and flogged them and the European edition for about £40 a couple of years back. You can normally pick up "Football Grounds from the Air" for about £5.99 in garden centres for some reason.

Another recommendation for "Engineering Archie", and also for the seminal "Football Grounds of Great Britain" also by Simon Inglis which I used to have at home but sold on ebay after seeing how much I could get for my old dog-eared copy. Some of the detail in that is incredible and there really should be a new edition for all stadium geeks like me. His European Football Grounds book is also fascinating as it was written in an era before a lot of the stadia we know we're redeveloped - Shalke's old ground looked like a Leich design on Steroids.

That stand at Pittodrie looks like the bit in the corner is a separate building? Perhaps like a pavilion than many old grounds had as changing facilities and executive seats? The last one in Scotland was at Broomfield of course and the last in England is at Fulham.

Cheers. I hadn't remembered the stand having such a deep enclosure but as soon as you see the photos it's obvious. Back in the day my old man used to always want to sit in the stand so I've been in there many a time (not the best place for a Pars fan in a derby game!) but didn't appreciate the huge height difference between now and then.

What do you mean about the pitch height? I love it that you can't actually watch the match from the half way line at Stark's Park, but didn't realise there was some technical reason for it, rather than just that those sections are closed?

What did you make of Portland Road, Rab? I went to see Town v Birmingham a few seasons back. It had a nice old-school feel about it I thought, although the seats were a bit short on leg room due to the age of the stand (I was in the same stand as you but in the upper section).

While athleticism and conditioning have improved immeasurably since Maradona's day, to suggest that defenders were poor, we're sinking pints the night before, had no tactical awareness and the like is clearly nonsense. He wasn't playing against cloggers in England, he was playing in Spain and Italy where the level of professionalism and defensive awareness (in Serie A at least) was far beyond anything England had to offer for decades. Maradona was quick, strong, agile, had incredible ball control and dragged two middling teams to Championships they've never managed to win since with both Napoli and Argentina. While Messi is similar he is fortunate enough to play with arguably the best team in the history of football. There's no way he'd be able to drag a mid table side to the title or inspire Argentina to win the World Cup. Not than I'm arguing that Messi isn't the greatest - but to discount Maradona with some of the comments on this thread is just bizarre.

I remember sitting in the wee uncovered seating next to the Main Stand at Love Street when visiting with Dunfermline. Is that the same bit? I'm not sure why we were in there but I think we were there two or three times? My dad used to always go into the stand and I'd go in beside him unless I had mates in the terracing and I remember Love Street as one of the grounds he'd often be able to blag a complimentary for.

Marc Wilmots? Do you have a much of fantastic players and want them to underachieve and have no tactical plan?

Re the Cowshed at Morton - a few seasons back they had us Pars fans in the covered terracing/seats rather than in the Main Stand. It seemed a lot better (despite a typically dreadful performance by us) with the fans being close and with not having to dislocate out knees to see the game. I've often wondered why they didn't do that more often.

So did that used to be the home end? When and why did they make the switch?

Moving back to football for a moment, our game at Easter Road at the end of February has been moved to a 5.15 kick off for broadcasting by BBC Alba.

Unless it's a season ticket seat and the seller knows they can't make it.

There was chat earlier about viagogo. You'll pay more than face value and it might be possible to get tickets through the club anyway. I used them to go to Ajax a few years ago. My first purchase didn't come through in time but I was given a full refund. My second attempt was an e-ticket and it came through within half an hour of buying it. No bother getting in and it was certainly legit.

The Fiornetina v Sassuolo game was pretty decent. Currently in the Olimpico it's Roma 0, Milan 0 but Milan have missed a penalty (Sczesny saved it from Niang). Both sides have had some chances but you get the impression that this will be a one goal in it type of affair.

He either thinks it's the late 1980s or the early 2020s.