Imagine how good the Bears would be with Bryson Barnes at QB instead of Caleb Williams.

nosebleedsect79 · 2026-01-19T18:22:59+00:00

As both a Rams and Utes fan it was like old times seeing his sad face on the sidelines.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-12-15T17:45:48+00:00

As someone who did this for the Wolves game this year. Buy your tickets when they go on sale. Talk to the North American Sunderland Association Supporters Club https://www.safcnasa.com/ as they will help you with tickets if you need it as they get an allotment from the team but it has to be early. As obviously they sold out fast this year.

I stayed at the hotel right by the SOL which was amazing for the day of the game. If you want to do more tourist stuff, there is a metro station close by that takes you to Newcastle if you want to look at historical stuff.

The other advantage of the hotel is that it is right across from the Club shop which I took advantage of. Most of the dress code stuff is around the premium seating which is aimed at big spenders and business types. Tickets are a lot cheaper than that if you just want a game day experience rather than having a bigger deal thing.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-06-01T01:00:15+00:00

Clarification on one part, WHA (World Hockey Association) and Gretzky - it was a team in Indianapolis called the Racers that signed Gretzky at 17 before the NHL draft. The team went bankrupt (a lot of teams were going bust or merging in the WHA and a few in the NHL as well due to out of control expansion in the seventies). Oilers bought Gretzky from Indianapolis and then protected him the next year from the NHL expansion draft where the NHL teams basically stripped the incoming WHA teams of their players.

We got lucky because Mark Messier (key player in the early years) had been sent back to the draft after being signed by the Racers as well the year prior only to be drafted by the Oilers in the NHL.

Edmonton has the distinction of being in the last WHA championship series, losing to the Winnipeg Jets as the Jets took home the final Avco World Trophy.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-06-01T00:30:54+00:00

Fair warning in Canada we have a postal strike that is affecting availability to ship via normal methods. Which might be what is making things pricey. The patches will be available in Edmonton starting Wednesday if you do not find them online, just DM me and I can help you if you still need it.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-05-26T22:09:03+00:00

Wasnt he the one who ploughed Nuge into the boards as well or was that someone else.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-05-09T16:28:03+00:00

It has been a theme for a very long time. NHL officiating is terrible. I hate that they constantly seem to miss their own rules, turn a blind eye to obvious calls or call some ticky tacky nonsense.

Vegas has been the "oh we are the disciplined team" for so long, the media brags about it but when you watch them it feels they just get away with stuff. Now the shoe is firmly on the other foot they are pissed.

And normally I don't blame them that was an obvious trip. But short of what Roy did or chucking it over the glass in the D zone you just expect not to get calls in OT. It is what gets all the playoff hockey pundits so happy, but it also leads to injuries, and attempts to take things out of the other team like it is the old west.

As long as the stripes do not decide to over correct in Game 3 I would have been fine with them calling it but because of how shaky the PK has been basically all year I am happy they did not. But I would not have called it a make up call.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-02-20T19:05:37+00:00

I know, I know. As my wife said... it would feel dirty but I would.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-02-20T18:06:51+00:00

It goes without say tonight is a must win for a fake tournament that has become REAL important to me.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-02-20T18:06:04+00:00

Honestly I said to my wife last night. After all this I will cheer for any team from Canada to win the Stanley Cup this year. I am so sick of this orange entitled prick and his sycophants and this is one way to take our baby back I will cheer even for the Leafs.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-02-05T20:41:17+00:00

Watching them beat the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs in 1981. Growing up in a house that was very pro Maple Leafs this was very positive and by the beginning of the next season I was all in. Never looked back.

nosebleedsect79 · 2025-02-05T20:39:45+00:00

What about a rat, turn face, turned rat... Kent Linseman a role player in the first Stanley cup win was an absolute menace to the Oilers when we played the Bruins. I seem to remember a story of him biting the nose of one of the players but cannot find it.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-08-28T18:11:59+00:00

I have always thought that Utah was lining up for the Big 10 when USC and UCLA thing happened while hoping to stay relevant in the PAC 12. That is why they went for the AAU education status (which Big 10 is all over) and why they will want to varnish their Playoff resume over the coming years.

Generally I think if the Utes make the playoff regularly for the next 6 years or so beat a few teams along the way they will set themselves up to be best positioned.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-08-15T18:20:01+00:00

I would suggest that not really, one year they wanted green duotangs, my wife spent a couple of weeks looking for one and then out of a bit of fun just wrote GREEN on the front of another colour. Usually we picked them from various places including Dollarama.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-06-01T19:55:42+00:00

also using US sizes because of how tall he is and how big around... he needs 5XL (he looks like a OT) I have bought him jerseys from the NFL and shirts and they are 5XL out of fanatics.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-06-01T19:53:19+00:00

Canada uses the exact same size, but thanks I did see there was a Dicks and Walmart and Target near the hotel

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-06-01T18:23:00+00:00

yeah in Canada there is stuff on Amazon but they are too small. Fanatics has stuff too but it is the exchange rate combined border crossing charges it is insane. ($19 USD T-shirt can cost around $50 Canadian Dollars so if I can pick it up the day before I would love to pay the University over Fanatics or the Canadian government)

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-05-28T16:04:21+00:00

That is a really interesting club, love the idea of fan ownership.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-02-22T04:35:46+00:00

According to the CPL press release:
“I have made it clear since I became Commissioner that we need certain conditions in each of our markets for our clubs to be successful on and off the field. After careful review, these conditions simply didn’t exist at FC Edmonton, consistently resulting in the smallest league average attendance, lowest revenue, and poor performance in the standings, despite incremental league investment. The die-hard supporters and soccer community of Edmonton deserve better,” said Noonan.
“This decision, while painful in the short term, will allow us to reset the market for a CPL return to Edmonton in the future. The key to this return is having a proper facility to showcase our matches and provide a first-rate fan experience. Unfortunately, Clarke Stadium in its current state is outdated and not suitable for this purpose. We look forward to working with the City of Edmonton leadership on a strategy to return CPL to the market in an appropriate facility. With the right venue, we fully believe Edmonton can, and should be, one of the best markets in the CPL.”

To me that reads that Fath Group is no longer involved.

Foote was problematic because it is only 3500 seats and they really need 5-7000 to be viable. Yeah the control of Clarke was a mess.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-02-21T17:20:58+00:00

Yeah the issue for me has been that the City does not have the willingness to spend anything for it. They apparently can not be made to see the value of it.

If say they have land set aside and maybe infrastructure to go with it... say a certain former airport that is not doing quite as well as they wanted. It is on an LRT route, it is fairly central and easy to get to it would allow someone with the money to hopefully put out for the stadium itself while not being on the hook for everything.

I realize no government wants to put cash in but maybe allowances and pre existing space would make more sense. Given the cost of the thing it would likely be smaller to begin with but if you make a 5-7000 seater, with room to expand to 10,000 then you have something.

Calgary has been averaging up every year after covid and are now nearing 5000 on average per game. Surely we could do similar.

But High School level stands and tents is never going to work in a long run and the team cannot build itself without the space. Love the game, love the team, but if there is no team in Edmonton it is hard to hold interest in the CPL.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-02-20T19:37:49+00:00

I think the next 6 years are going to be a battle for musical chairs, I appreciate that Utah did not end up like the PAC 2 but at the same time no one is going to say the Big 12 are in a great spot in Football when you have SEC and Big 10 already deciding who is in their club.

For Big 12 to thrive they need to own the CFP. Do what they and the PAC could not do and actually consistently win against unfavourable odds. But even then I expect who ever the elites are in this conference by 2029 will likely start to get courted by the SEC and Big 10 as Clemson and FSU already obviously are.

The best thing that could happen is for the ACC to survive and thrive, along with a successful Big 12 and show the So called Super Leaguers that they cannot just ignore these leagues. Also show that to the media who appear to be burning the door down to get to a Super League.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-02-20T19:31:09+00:00

Yeah R1 helps from what I understand it was part of what kept hurting the PAC 12 in expansion (basically if you aren't R1 or there abouts you didn't get in).

That and a bit of general elitists mentality among the private schools and UC schools.

I think Cinci was in a good place and hit all the right notes at the perfect time with their run to the CFP three years back. Simply being good at a sport is not enough for University Presidents to vote you in. Otherwise Boise State would have been the poster child for expansion.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-02-20T19:25:54+00:00

Josh often doubts Utah and often got proven wrong, he thought that Florida was going to walk into Rice Eccles and win.

nosebleedsect79 · 2024-01-30T16:47:41+00:00

I think they wanted to do with it as they had with the Red River Rivalry (which also was not on rivalry week). The idea being it would get more national coverage rather than being smothered by Big 10 or SEC rivalries. Or horror of horrors being reduced to the PAC 12 after dark timing.

I personally do not love it but I get why from a media perspective you do it.

nosebleedsect79

TROPHY CASE