Three fourth-quarter deficits turning into wins and tied for the second-best record in the league seems a bit unsustainable but there’s a sense of confidence around the Vikings that hasn’t been there before. Athlon Sports: #6 (Last Wk: #8)įor all the rough headlines surrounding some rookie head coaches, Kevin O’Connell sure is the lone wolf pressing the right buttons. Although it’s an excellent sign that the Vikings had the confidence and leadership to surge back into the lead in each instance, they’ll need to produce some steadier performances in the second half to ensure they are playing with a lead and not leaving it up to the other team to take advantage. But they’ve needed to overcome a late fourth-quarter deficit in each of their past three games, and that pattern probably isn’t sustainable over time. The Vikings already have an excellent chance to make the playoffs thanks to their hot start. The Bears held a one-point lead but couldn’t stop the Vikings from converting five third downs on a drive that finished with Kirk Cousins sneaking into the end zone and throwing a two-point conversion to Justin Jefferson to steal a 29-22 win.
Mr Smith.The Vikings have won three straight despite trailing with less than five minutes remaining in each game.
WALTR FOOTBALL HOW TO
Excerpts from a relatively recent interview with Smith himself are interspersed throughout the piece and confirm him as a modest, affable but considerable man who knew how to select, organise, man-manage and motivate football teams to a very high level. The programme boldly showed the uncut hilarious video clip of Smith's expletive-filled take-down of the BBC's hapless journalist Chick Young in the Ibrox tunnel which went viral and there was moving testimony from the son of the late Tommy Burns, in his time as much a Celtic man just as Smith was a Rangers man, but who Smith chose as his assistant for the national team and for whom he acted as a pall-bearer at hisfuneral when Burns died at a comparatively young age. Unusually there were no vox-pops from the likes of McCoist or Gascoigne, but I guess you can't include everyone in just a one hour edit. There were many interviewees paying tribute to Smith's integrity, unflappable persona and everyman demeanour, including Ferguson and Souness, his long-time assistant Archie Knox, past star players Brian Laudrup, David Weir and Richard Gough and from his difficult time at Everton, star England player Wayne Rooney. I'd also have appreciated a bit more time being spent on his relationships with the afore-mentioned managers as well as his renowned way of managing complex players like Andy Goram, Ally McCoist and of course, the enigmatic Paul Gascoigne. I appreciate that's the name of the programme but still felt a little light could have been shone on his family life. Condensing such a long and successful career into an hour-long programme couldn't have been easy and could I thought have been extended a little more to perhaps show a little more of the life, never mind the career of the man, as we learn nothing of his life outside football. Besides managing his boyhood team to great success, Smith had a distinguished if not exceptional playing career at Dundee United, served as assistant manager to three other remarkable Scottish managers, Jim McLean at Dundee United, Graeme Souness at Rangers and briefly Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, he also had a spell as manager of the Scotland national team, reviving the nation's fortunes after a disastrous spell under German manager Bertie Vogts.
I grew up a Glasgow Rangers fan although I'm what you'd call a lapsed supporter nowadays, but nevertheless was keen to watch this BBC tribute to the recently deceased manager of the club Walter Smith.
0 kommentar(er)
