Scudamore's 39 steps

If the last week has proved anything it's that the English Premier League's greed is only outweighed by one other flaw - its gross incompetence.

On February 7, plans for a 39th round of games to be played in five overseas countries were announced by chief executive Richard Scudamore, provoking outrage from fans.

Despite the protests, Scudamore and his merry band of avarice-stricken club chairmen - with pound signs flashing in their eyes - insisted it was a great idea that they were determined to push through.

What they hadn't taken into account, though, was the simple fact that it wasn't just the fans who would oppose the idea. No. The rest of the civilised footballing world is against it too.

There was a huge assumption on Scudamore's part that the countries he was proposing to take the Premier League to would lie back like a promiscuous teenager and welcome the English invasion.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The US has said 'thanks but no thanks', Australia has said 'no way mate' and the entire continent of Asia said 'get lost you money-grabbing imperialist', though not in so many words.

But the really passionate opposition to the plan has come from the people at the very top of the game: Uefa president Michel Platini and Fifa president Sepp Blatter.

Platini has slammed it as nonsense while Blatter, not normally someone I associate with the concept of speaking sense, went a step further and said Fifa would block it all the way.

"This is abuse. The rich Premier League is trying to get richer and wants to expand the importance of that league. This plan will never happen, at least as long as I am president of Fifa," he said.

And, to make things worse, he insisted the very fact that the Premier League has come up with the idea has jeopardised England's bid for the 2018 World Cup.

Well thanks a lot, Richard. Hope you and your greedy cohorts are happy. Meanwhile, back in England, managers, players, supporters groups, commentators and politicians are all lining up to label the scheme as outrageous.

And the disgust among the average fan keeps growing with threats of protests, petitions and boycotts of sponsors' products among a long list of possible action aimed at scuppering the 39th game.

To top it all off, Scudamore actually gave an interview a day or two ago in which he said he didn't see any reason why fans wouldn't pay thousands to go and watch their team play in a far off land.

What planet is this muppet from?

There are some things in life that are beyond explanation. What Paul McCartney ever saw in Heather Mills is one of them. Michael Jackson's constantly morphing face is another. The fact that Scudamore believed this plan would just sail through and be welcomed by the world has to be added to this list.

At the end of the day, the 39th game is all about money. It isn't about promoting the English game. It isn't about promoting football in far flung corners of the globe. It's about the fact that there is no way of squeezing more cash out of English supporters so they need some new spectators to milk.

I find the whole plan absolutely abhorrent and I am taking great pleasure in watching it fall apart at the seams.

It is a measure of Scudamore's gross incompetence that he didn't have the common sense and decency to consult people like Platini and Blatter before making any announcements.

Hopefully it will cost him his job. Then he can spend more time watching football rather than trying to destroy it. And he won't even need a passport to do so.

Out of Africa

I am all for the development of African football. As a continent it has been Europe's under-privileged sporting cousin for far too long.

And, obviously, one of the best ways of putting the continent's football on the world map is through the Africa Cup of Nations, which Egypt won last week.

This tournament is an ideal showcase for the immense amounts of talent Africa has to offer the football world and it is no coincidence, for example, that 17 Premier League clubs had scouts watching the games in Ghana.

But if FIFA and everybody else are serious about promoting the African game they need to do one thing in particularly - move the tournament to a decent time of year!

It is absolutely ridiculous that such a major tournament is held right bang in the middle of the European season considering that is where most of the best African footballers are based.

Firstly, it is unfair on the club sides who have to do without some of their best players for several weeks at a crucial stage of the season.

Secondly, it is unfair on the players themselves who are literally forced to put country before club.

But, most importantly, the timing of the tournament is actually counter-productive in terms of helping players from Africa 'get discovered'.

As a manager of a top team you are certainly going to think twice about buying a player who will be absent for several weeks every other season. Ask Harry Redknapp who lost no fewer than five first team regulars over the past month. And what about those who come back injured?

So why not move the tournament to the summer in an odd year so it doesn't clash with the European Cup or the World Cup? Surely that won't hurt anybody and it will certainly help improve the tournament's international popularity.

The other thing I believe needs looking at is the frequency. Why is it held every two years instead of every four like other big cups? It's just overkill.

By reducing its frequency and playing it in the summer, the African Cup of Nations could take a huge leap towards becoming a fully fledged part of the international football calendar.

And that, to my mind, is the best way of promoting the African game as a whole.

The ultimate hole in one

As any dedicated golfer will tell you, hitting a hole-in-one is the Holy Grail of the sport.

Just getting from the tee to the green in one shot is no mean feat in itself requiring, as it does, the right club, the right swing, the right strength and the right angle.

To then see the ball which has travelled hundreds of yards find its way into a hole just a few inches in diameter is a rarity of massive proportions.

For that reason many golfers go through their entire careers without notching up a single hole-in-one.

Imagine, then, the surprise on the face of 92-year-old Leo Fiyalko who hit his first ever hole-in-one last week while playing with friends on a course in Florida.

Of course you could say the law of averages means if you play golf to that sort of age, the chances are that, just once, you will hit the perfect shot. And he has been playing for 60 years so you could say he was due a slice of luck.

But what you would be failing to take into consideration is that the odds were stacked against old Leo hitting that shot more than most as he is completely blind.

"I was just trying to put the ball on the green," Leo said, almost apologetically.

His friends at the country club where he enjoyed his finest moment have presented him with a plaque to commemorate the event although, if I were him, I would get someone I trust to read out the exact wording. Just to be sure.

Now that news of Leo's achievement has spread, golfers around the world will probably be adopting an 'eyes closed' approach as they go in search of their own perfect shot.

So be on the look out for low flying golf balls as you drive though Marsa over the next few days...

sportscolumnist@timesofmalta.com