quick thoughts on the past week in sports

my quick thoughts on the past week in sports: David Beckham, Hockey Suspensions, and Ben Roethlisberger.

David Beckham

This past weekend, David Beckham tore his Achilles while paying for AC Milan. This injury will keep him out of the World Cup in South Africa this coming summer.

I really feel badly for Beckham. At this stage of his career, he knows that his place on the English team isnt a guarantee anymore. After coming to the USA to play, he realized that he wouldn’t be able to impress Fabio Capello, the English manager, by playing in the MLS. He then requested to get loaned to AC Milan, where he could play at the top level and impress Capello. Beckham’s had a couple amazing loan periods at AC Milan, and I really felt that he was going to be able to get a spot on the roster. Even though he wouldn’t be a starter for England, he would be a powerful and important weapon coming off the bench at the end of the game. While he doesnt have the same pace that he used to have in his younger years, he makes up for this “deficiency” with leadership and an experienced knowledge of the game. The guidance he would have given to the younger English players would have been invaluable. With all the drama going on within the English squad between John Terry and Wayne Bridge, Beckham could have been that experienced voice in the locker room.

Plus, his free kicks are still deadly as ever.

It’s a shame that he can’t play for England. Here’s top hoping that he’ll be fit to play in the 2010 European Championships.

Embarrasment in Hockey

Two incidents happened in hockey this past week that got the entire hockey world in a big debate.

A week ago, Matt Cooke violently, and deliberately, elbowed Marc Savard in the head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fvlw_WSf1xI

This past Sunday, Alexander Ovechkin boarded Brian Campbell into the boards.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MozYKCapvWs

Both Marc Savard and Brian Campbell are gone for the season. Savard has a concussion that isn’t improving, and Campbell has a broken clavicle and bruised ribs.

Alexander Ovechkin was suspended for two games, while Matt Cooke wasn’t.

The disciplinary system in the NHL needs to be looked at immediately. It baffles me how Cooke didn’t get a suspension. I’m ok with Ovechkin getting a suspension. While his hit wasn’t dirty and he didn’t want to cause Campbell bodily harm, it was still a careless hit, and it caused a player to miss the rest of the season. Cooke on the other hand purposefully and violently elbowed Savard head. Im pretty sure he knew what he was doing, and that it wasnt a “heat of the moment” hit.

In my eyes, the NHL lost a lot of credibility this past week in the way they discipline their players. They really need to look at their rule book this offseason, and come up with a system that fairly punishes players for their infractions.

The Embarrassment that is Ben Roethlisberger

Ben Roethlisberger is my favorite football player. He was the reason why I first started following the Pittsburgh Steelers. His rookie season was during my junior at Carnegie Mellon, and in his rookie season, he started his career 15-1 and only lost to the Patriots in the AFC Championship game. In his 2nd season, he won the Superbowl, and again won it only two years ago. I love his style of style of play and his toughness. When he’s healthy, he is so much fun to watch on the field.

However, off the field, he’s a completely different story. After he won the Superbowl in Jan 2006, he proceeded to get into a motorcycle accident. He wasn’t wearing a helmet, and was almost near death. His reasoning for not wearing a helmet, “ You’re just more free when you’re out there and there’s no helmet on.” Really...no comment there.

Last year in the summer of 2009, he was accused of sexual assault of a hotel worked in Lake Tahoe. This wasn’t a criminal complaint, but rather a civil complaint. Through the unfolding of events in this case, I came to believe that while Ben was being a guy, no criminal activity took place, and that the woman was trying to extort him for his fame and money.

This past month, Ben was again accused of sexual assault in Georgia. He was out partying with a group of friends, and happened to visit a college bar. A woman again accused Ben of sexually assaulting in her in a bathroom.

Now all the details haven’t been released in this latest case, but all I can say is that Ben Roethlisberger is a fricking idiot. Unlike Kobe Bryant and Tiger Woods, Ben Roethlisberger is not married, so he doesn’t have to deal with any infidelity accusations. Im not going to even comment on his personal life actions with woman on a moral grounds either.

But I’m really surprised that Roethislerger hasn’t learned his lessons after the Lake Tahoe incident. Why does he keep on putting himself into these situations? Why doesnt his entourage protect him from incidents like these. Supposedly, two friends who accompanied him are off duty cops from Pittsburgh, and another one is the agent of another player on the Steelers. How did these three people not keep Ben accountable and keep him wary of the environment he was in?!

This can only spell trouble for the entire Steeler’s season. Every single where Ben’s had some offseason drama, the Steelers have failed to make the playoffs.

The Rooney family signed him to a 8-year, $102 million contract back in 2004, essentially making him the face and the future of the franchise. Ben has even stated that he wants to retire a Steeler. Its time for Roethlisberger to grow up and act like the future of the franchise. He needs to stop bringing distractions to the team every single offseason.