Hillsborough At 25: A Town United

((HT: SkySports))

It is the 25th anniversary of one of the most tragic events in the history of sport- the Hillsborough disaster. There was

a memorial service (pictured right, thanks Huffington Post UK) at Anfield to mark the day and there was a sight to see... Everton and Liverpool, blue and red, inside the Liverpool ground remembering as one...

And for someone who has only been blue for a year, Everton manager Roberto Martinez was a passioned man...


Here's the set-up ahead of time...
((HT: BBC))


And from Sky Sports...


To remind us all about how things should have never gotten out of control, here's the BBC's "Panorama" on the cover-up


Never forget... and that just goes to the rest of us who just watch and relate- those who are intimately involved deserve justice on an infinite scale...

OSG Prem: Transfer Window Closes With Flair

((HT: Sky Sports))

The HQ will say, without fail, that the largest event of the end of the Transfer Window in the Premier League was the move of Everton striker Marouane Fellaini to Manchester United- for 27.5-million pounds. The Devils lost out on a joint bid of Fellaini and Leighton Baines for 36-million. There's still talk of Coentrao joining from overseas on loan, but there's nothing official.

Here's the recap


Victor Anichebe’s move to West Bromwich was huge as well as Gareth Barry from Manchester City to Everton.
Everton also adds Romelu Lukaku on loan and James McCarthy from Wigan- a man Roberto Martinez coached last year.

Mesut Ozil broke the bank for Arsenal as an import from Real Madrid and Victor Moses is now on season-long loan to Liverpool from Chelsea.


Swansea gets Getafe's Alvaro Vazquez on loan for the year...

And one that could fly below the radar is Stephane Sessegnon going from Sunderland to West Brom on a three-year deal. It could either make or break Sessegnon in a new environment in the Premier.

Interesting moves in the Championship include Harry Redknapp and QPR getting Benoit Essou-Ekotto as part of a mass loan of Tottenham players (read... three)

Now, let's see how all this money turns up in the positive or negative...

Everton and ManU did the most shaking, so they have the most to lose...

FA Cup: Wigan Knocks Off Man City (VIDEO)

And you can go ahead and start the talk about Roberto Mancini not even getting on the team bus and going back to the Etihad and just leaving now...

A Ben Watson header in extra time gives Wigan their first title in the 81-year history of the club and reinforces that Roberto Martinez is an absolute magician with the resources he's given (about 53-million versus the 300-plus-million Manchester City gets to play with)...


It all started with the sending off of Man City's Pablo Zabaleta- his second yellow...


Now, Wigan faces the first relegation who was an FA Cup champ... they're three points back with two games to play...

And, according to the Guardian newspaper's Jamie Jackson, Mancini is already gone...

Malaga boss Manuel Pellegrini has apparently already told his players he's heading to England and midfielder Isco may be joining him.

As an addendum, here's Gus calling the game winner...
Ian Wright is clearly pleased that Man City took it in the chops...
((HT: Fox Sports))

OSG Prem: Wigan Steals Crucial Point At QPR

((HT: Fox Sports/EPL))

What is it about Wigan and the end of the Premier League season...???

And how does manager Roberto Martinez continue to do that voodoo that he do so well...???

For, what seems like, the 458967340896th year in a row, the Latics can make another run toward saving themelves from relegation...

Bobby Zamora picked up a straight red in the 20th minute for QPR- whoch, doing the math, means that they had to play 70 minutes a man down. And, to their credit, they played very well...

QPR even had the lead with five minutes to go after a stunner from Loic Remy. But, much like everything this time of year with Wigan, they never quit. And Shaun Maloney's free kick equalizer deep into stoppage time for Wigan earned a crucial point on the road.

Here's the equalizer...


And what was Taarabt doing turning his head away from the kick when he was in the wall...???
'arry should deserve some answers...

OSG Prem: Relegation Battle Turns Chicken At Blackburn

((HT: SkySports/youtube))

Blackburn needed a win at home at EWood Park over surging Wigan to keep from being relegated to the Championship league...

Didn't happen...

Alcaraz scored on a header late to give the Latics their 6th win in their last 8 games, but not before Rovers fans made their feelings known about how the season has ended up in the dumper...

Someone released fowl on the pitch that really should have been water fowl...


Fans of Rovers threw their season ticket books and kits (that's what we call "jerseys" here) onto the pitch and fans tried to get a piece of manager Steve Kean- who they feel is a part of the team's implosion- when the game went final. Kean, to his credit, didn't leave his post until he shook hands with as many players as he could before security whisked him away.

OSG Prem: Wigan Screwed, Relegation Zone Stays The Same

((HT: PremierLeague/youtube))

Let's face it... Wigan Athletic, at the very least, should have gotten out of Stamford Bridge with a point. But, starting with Ivanovic's way-the-hell offsides goal, it was all downhill as the Blues came out of the day with a 2-1 win.

Here's how it went down...


With Stoke beating Wolves, Blackburn's loss, and the anticipation of QPR's loss to ManU, the relegation zone didn't shift much. Aston Villa actually escaped a Liverpool game with a 1-1 tie to go six ahead of all of the five teams that are trying to avoid three spots in next year's nPower Championship League.

Here's Wigan manager Roberto Martinez, normally quick with the one-liner, mincing nothing for the zebras and their flags...