 |
|
The year in sports sleaze Brawls, busts, bets and BALCO loom big |
|
While there is no doubt that reality programming has taken the place of the formulated sitcom on prime time television, those involved in the sports broadcast industry need not worry. From Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" to St. Louis Blues forward Mike Danton's attempt to hire a hit-man to off his agent, the year in sports has been sleazier than a Serena Williams catsuit. And while a woman dropping her towel in front of a football player is deemed too much for prime time, professional basketball players randomly pounding the crap out of courtside observers is not. Montrealers will remember 2004 for being a lot of things. Mundane will not be one of them. All hail the chief
Things weren't so good for alumni of the bleu-blanc-et-rouge, as Serge Savard got picked up for drunk driving, former GM Irving Grundman was arrested for accepting kickbacks and Michel Therrien's wife Geneviève was charged with assaulting another woman at their son's hockey game in Laval. From failing hands we throw the torch, indeed! Goaaaaaaaaaaaaallll!!! Soccer took centre stage as the Euro Cup produced the most unlikely of winners. Greece beat the Czech Republic, France and Portugal (twice) to win its first-ever international tournament. The screaming sounds you heard emanating from Chomedy to Park Ex after the final were not those of joy, but of local bookies who were now faced with having to pay up to neighbourhood bettors at odds as high as 80-1. Win it and they will come Once again proving that Montreal loves a winner, the Impact became the city's darling by dominating A-League competition and winning its second championship in franchise history. Record crowds at the Claude Robillard Centre left team owner Joey Saputo pondering a move to Major League Soccer and Expos fans pondering why people will travel to Crémazie metro to watch A-League soccer and not to Pie-Nine for Major League Baseball. Who says we are not a distinct society? The sorry Expos saga, so far Thirty-six years and one post-season appearance later, the Expos played their final game in Montreal against a team (Florida Marlins) owned by a man (Jeffrey Loria) whom many believe is as responsible for the franchise's demise as the strike that shut down the 1994 season. Thinking no one would notice, manager Frank Robinson began napping during games in the club's dugout as the Expos made a serious run at 100 losses. Killing any hope of reprisal was the court's ruling against the local consortium ownership's lawsuit against Major League Baseball. Thinking a deal was in place, MLB announced the team would relocate to Washington D.C. and be renamed the Nationals. The deal in Washington fell through after former mayor and city councillor Marion Barry realized his crack fund could be affected by the team's arrival. MLB suspended business operations but not before Bud Selig was given 2004's Stupidest Man of the Year award. Anthony Calvill - noooo!!!
After clinching home field advantage for the Eastern Division final against Toronto, Anthony Calvillo went down with a shoulder injury and any chance of the Alouettes winning a second Grey Cup in three years went with him. The Argonauts went on to win their first championship since the Doug Flutie days as they beat B.C. in the third-most-watched Grey Cup in league history. Unfortunately for Lion fans, the league's most outstanding player (Casey Printers) never got on the field, as Wally Buono went with Dave Dickinson instead. Just days after the loss, Buono checked into a Vancouver hospital for emergency heart surgery, despite pleas from Lion faithful that it was his head that needed to be operated on, not his heart. Do you believe in miracles?
Inspired by the Pistons' bad boy image, the Indiana Pacers decided that if they can't beat their opponent on the floor, why not beat down fans who pay large amounts of money to fund their pampered, lavish lifestyle? You know the rest of the story. Not to be outdone, Latrell Sprewell tells a female fan to "suck his dick." NBA basketball, I love it! Curses!
Grand jury testimony from the BALCO case later proved why the Yankees were larger than life, as Jason Giambi and Gary Sheffield both admitted to using illegal substances given to them by Barry Bonds' personal trainer. Bonds, under oath, also admitted using the "cream." If things weren't bad enough for Sheffield, he was also the victim of attempted extortion by a self-styled Chicago reverend and community activist, as his wife was caught on film doing the nasty with R&B singer R. Kelly 10 years ago. And you thought your year was bad! Hockey out, poker in!
And while the Stanley Cup may not be up for grabs anytime soon, the highly coveted World Series of Poker championship bracelet will be. As Greg Raymor and David Chui become household names, poker parties become a cool way of spending a Saturday night. The next time you sit down at the table, remember, if you can't spot the fish, you are the fish! Happy Holidays! May the winners be yours! Pigskin Prognosticator Thursday, Dec. 23 Sports Rage returns Jan. 20, 2005 |
Bob Gainey returned to Montreal and exceeded expectations as the Canadiens knocked off the hated Bruins before being swept in the second round to eventual Cup winner Tampa Bay. 
The Alouettes' success story continued as the club once again sold out every game played at Percival Molson Stadium and twice attracted more than 50,000 fans to the East End's Olympic Stadium. 
The Greek national soccer team was not the only team to shock odds makers with a dramatic championship victory. Coming out of a weak Eastern Conference, the Detroit Pistons easily beat the 9-1 favourite Los Angeles Lakers in five games, ending the Western Conference's run that has produced every NBA final winner since Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls won in 1997-98. 
Proving that nothing lasts forever, the Boston Red Sox broke the curse of the Bambino and won it all for the first time since 1918! Not only did they break the curse, but they became the first team in MLB history to rally back from a 3-0 series deficit, against none other than the larger-than-life New York Yankees. 
As much as we saw this past year, what we didn't see was the start of the 2004-05 National Hockey League season. Despite the players' association's offer to rollback nearly a quarter of their salaries, owners remain committed to implementing a salary cap.  |
|
|
| MIRROR ARCHIVES » Dec 23.04-Jan 5.05: INSIDE - COVER | ARCHIVES INDEX | CURRENT ISSUE SITEMAP | STAFF | WEBMASTER |
|
| © Communications Gratte-Ciel Ltée 2004 |