FUN TIME FOR FRANKIE

Gavin eases to dominant win

Exciting Birmingham southpaw Frankie Gavin produced an impressive display tonight as he dispatched Michael Lomax in a one-sided welterweight contest at the York Hall.
The former amateur world champion had too much class for his opponent and the end finally came with a seventh round stoppage after Gavin and dominated the fight.
Lomax had been a last-minute replacement when Gavin’s original opponent Jason Cook failed to make the weight, but the change did little to disrupt the Birmingham fighter as he boxed supremely to enhance his growing reputation.
Gavin went on the offensive from the opening bell and worked well behind a sharp jab that caught Lomax with alarming regularity throughout the fight.
The Birmingham prospect was tight in defence and landed a number of crunching body shots which wore Lomax down as the fight progressed.
Lomax fought bravely but had no answer as he was caught from a range of angles by Gavin who even switched to orthodox to connect with a quick combination.
By the six there was blood coming from Gavin’s nose and this seemed to give Lomax some brief encouragement but he was caught on the counter by his opponent every time he went on the offensive himself.
Gavin finally finished the fight off in the seventh when some good combination backed Lomax onto the ropes and his corner jumped in to save their fighter any more punishment.
Gavin can now look further afield after this impressive outing as he recorded his ninth straight victory since turning pro in 2009.

CAPTAIN'S ORDERS

Caldwell calls for focus during league run-in

Latics skipper Gary Caldwell was philosophical following Wednesday’s FA Cup defeat and now wants the side to focus their attention on the climax of the Barclays Premier League, starting with the visit of leaders Manchester United next week.
 The Scot was disappointed to exit the tournament at the fourth round stage but believes it now allows Latics to concentrate on the relegation battle: “Obviously it’s a blow as we wanted to go as far as we could in the cup,” he said, “ but we’ve got to take it on the chin, re-group and concentrate on eleven huge games for the football club.”
 “We’ve got a week off now and some good training where we can work hard as a group and get ready mentally and physically for the league leaders coming here, which will be a big test.
 “We’ve got to concentrate on our own job and, come the 22^nd May, we’ll hopefully have enough points to stay in this league.”

Caldwell played alongside his brother Steve at the heart of Latics’ defence against Bolton and the Scottish international  was impressed by his older sibling’s performance: “He played excellent, I thought he attacked the ball well and defended well,” he said, “ but it’s disappointing to lose. We didn’t pass as well as we can on a poor pitch. We didn’t play the conditions well and it cost us in the end.”

Suggestions that nine changes to the starting line-up had contributes to defeat were quickly rebuffed by Caldwell as he said: “The manager has done that all through the FA Cup and we’ve done really well. We played great at the Reebok with the same team so I don’t think that has got any bearing on the result or the performance.”
 The match also saw the defender sport a protective mask as he still recovers from the fractured cheekbone sustained against West Bromwich Albion earlier this month, and he said: “It’s something the doctor says I’ve got to wear because of the injury but hopefully I can get rid of it as soon as possible, but if it gets me on the park then I’ll wear it.
 “I wore it in training and it was ok but in games it does affect your peripheral vision slightly but like I said, if it gets me on the pitch to contribute then I’ll do anything I can for the team.”

Wednesday’s defeat now gives Latics a week off to prepare for the Manchester United game and Caldwell says the team are ready for the challenge: “The manager will show us what United are good at, give us options on how to deal with those things and what we’re going to do as a team.
 “I think we’ve shown enough this season that anyone coming here won’t fancy it and hopefully we can produce a good display, get the fans behind us and get a big win.
 “We’ve got talent all over the park to deal with them but they are a real threat when they’re on form.”

The skipper is pensive about the chances of survival and says all the side can do is concentrate on their own game and leave the talking to others: “Everyone on the outside world tells us who is going down and how many points are going to keep you up, but as a footballer you need to take it one game at a time. It’s an old cliché but that’s all you can do as you never know how many points it’s going to be.
 “All we can do is focus on our own performance and hopefully, with the talent we have got at this game, we will make sure we are safe at the end of the campaign.”


http://www.wiganlatics.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10429~2297717,00.html

POLLY PENSIVE AFTER LOSS

Keeper takes positives after night of cup heartbreak

Mike Pollitt was in reflective mood last night after Latics FA Cup run ended with a disappointing 1-0 fourth round loss to Bolton Wanderers at the DW Stadium.
 The defeat was frustrating for Pollitt but the keeper believes there were many positives to be gleaned from a game that otherwise gave little cheer for Latics faithful, especially the opportunity afforded the younger players to show the gaffer what they can do.
 “We’re obviously disappointed with the result,” he said, “but it gave everyone a chance to show the manager what we can do.
 “For lads like myself it gives us game time and a good opportunity to get into the gaffer’s reckoning, but it wasn’t to be tonight.”

The visitors had been fortunate to take the tie into the replay after Latics had performed magnificently at the Reebok Stadium two weeks ago, but Pollitt believes they probably deserved the victory last night: “We managed to do well in the first tie but it was always going to be tough tonight,” he said, “and all credit to Bolton as I think they deserved it.”
 “If you look at the two sides Bolton were all premier league players who play week in, week out but the lads who came in for us have done well as some of us haven’t played for a while.
 “It was difficult and looking back over the game then Bolton probably deserved it. They had two goals disallowed, hit the post, had a few shots I’ve saved, so if you’re looking at chances then the best side probably won on the night.”

Latics almost grabbed an equaliser when Jordi Gomez smashed a shot onto the Bolton crossbar mid-way through the second-half and Pollitt said: “We managed a little a counter-attack, I saw Franco running off and I managed to get it forward and into the box where it fell for Jordi, it would have been a good goal for us but it wasn’t to be.

“It would have given us a chance in the fifth round if we had won but it would have been difficult going down to Fulham but you never know, there’s always the chance to progress in the competition.”

Despite the disappointing cup exit Pollitt believes the team will re-group and can now focus on the fight for Barclays Premier League survival: “The other players came in tonight and have shown the manager what they have,” he said, “there is still eleven games left in the league campaign and we’ve got to give it everything we’ve got.
“We’re going to need all the bodies we have between now and the end of the season and hopefully we can work hard as a team and get the points to push us up the table and on to safety.”


http://www.wiganlatics.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10429~2295501,00.html

THE POLITICAL ACT OF REMEMBRANCE?

Why the nation selectively remembers it's War Dead.

It was the renowned satirist and American politician Benjamin Franklin who once so eloquently said: “Of two things in life you can be certain, death and taxes.”

To this list he could also have added a third certainty – war, for it seems, wherever man has tread, war has never been far behind.

 There are few places on earth that conflict has not touched at some moment in history and the world we live in today is shaped by conflict and continues to be so.

 Wars have begun for many different reasons throughout history whether it be religious, territorial, political or even, in the case of the infamous four day conflict between El Salvador and Honduras, over a football match.

 For whatever reasons there have been and where ever conflict has arisen there is also more certainty – there will be victims and lives will change forever.

 The traditional act of remembrance in this country has assumed more relevance in recent times as the casualty list grows from Afghanistan, with many people tiring of Britain’s involvement in a war that, in all honesty, surely cannot be won.

 Far off places such as Helmand and Sangin have become familiar names to a war-weary public – as has the small Wiltshire market town of Wooton Bassett, which its steady flow of returning flag-draped coffins.

The annual November parade of old soldiers, clad in an array of medals, first comes to mind when we think of Remembrance Day, as these men march in unison to pay respect to fallen comrades.

 But what of those victims who go largely forgotten at this time of year? Those veterans with unseen wounds as in the case of Gulf War soldier Andy P? What of those soldiers executed over 90 ninety years ago in such controversial circumstances? And how many wreaths are placed at the cenotaph for the volunteers who defied the British government and fought against fascism in Spain?

Those who have been killed or had their lives touched by war whilst outside the parameter of what is militarily acceptable seem less likely to be remembered.

 That is not to say those remembered every year are not deserving of the tributes they receive – these men and women warrant the upmost respect for their sacrifice and I challenge anyone to remain unmoved if they walk among the graves of a British war cemetery in France or Belgium, but what is undeniable is that many veterans do not receive the same focus.

When Andy P came back from the gulf in 1991 his life had changed more than he realised and instead of taking his place as a proud veteran among his comrades, he was kicked out of the army for drug taking.

 The fact that he was suffering from the experience of combat was not taken into account and he was left unsupported until finally securing a pension 15 years later with the help of the charity Combat Stress.

 Andy’s story is probably not an isolated case – and it would be interesting to see how the army’s treatment for combat veterans has evolved over the past 20 years.

 Despite this, there can be no doubt that those suffering from combat related psychological injuries today are better understood than those shellshock victims of the First World War.

 It is clear that a large number of the men executed by firing squad during that war were suffering from varying degrees of combat stress and the manner in which they were tried by courts martial was wholly inadequate.

 These soldiers were victims of circumstance in a period when the psychological effects of battle were not fully appreciated. They were also governed by army regulations that seem archaic by modern standards.

 The treatment these men received from the army was shocking and their deaths brought great shame and hardship to their families for many years after.

 The pardon granted to them in 2006 was, although welcome, little comfort as it came almost 90 years after the shameful events and the majority of those family members most affected have long since died.

It was a politically uncomfortable situation for both the government and the army following the war, and the victims went largely forgotten until the pardons were granted.

Politics also explain why the International Brigade veterans receive little national remembrance. They acted out of personal political conviction on the whole and defied the official government stance of non-intervention.

 The fact that many of these volunteers paid the ultimate sacrifice in a stand against fascism, is overlooked and it becomes more important when we see what happened when fascism brought the world into conflict soon after they had returned from Spain.

Ultimately it seems the national conscience of remembrance has been shaped by what has been politically and military acceptable to the higher echelons of power.

Many veterans are conveniently forgotten during these times of remembrance but they warrant the same respect as their former comrades who march with such pride every November for, after all, they are surely all victims of war. 

SHOT AT DAWN

The British soldiers killed as a deterrent to others during the First World War

 The memorial stands in a quiet corner of the National Arboretum near Lichfield and is a fitting place to contemplate the horror and pity of war.

   Unveiled on 21 June 2001 the white stone monument of a blindfold clad soldier was a pivotal part of the long campaign to grant pardons to the 306 British soldiers executed during the First World War.

   The Shot at Dawn Pardons Campaign began in the wake of controversy caused by the declassification of courts martial papers for the soldiers 20 years ago, which prompted calls for a case review of these young men who were ‘shot as an example to others’.

   There were claims the men may have been wrongfully killed due to a series of botched military trials. 

   Found guilty of cowardice or desertion by military courts martial many of these men were suffering from what was known in the fledgling days of psychiatry as war neurosis or shellshock.

   Eminent historian and author, Julian Putkowski, spent many years scrutinising the records and his book Shot at Dawn, co-written with Julian Sykes, was the first to publish the names of the executed men along with details of the courts martial proceedings.

Putkowski gave his support to the growing call for a pardon and, after a number of refusals by previous governments, the posthumous pardon was finally granted by the government in November 2006.

   The pardon was welcomed by the families and campaigners but Randie Cush, education officer at the NMA, says remembrance was still essential: “It is very important to remember all those lives lost, not forgetting their families,” she said: “pardoned or not, we still remembered them.”

    The families of the executed soldiers did suffer immensely and many drifted in to a life time of poverty as Putkowski explains: “ With insufficient money to pay rent or buy food, emotionally traumatised families were evicted from their homes and in at least one case, the desperate wife of an executed soldier resorted to prostitution to feed their children.”

    A number of cases initially caught the public imagination, including that of 23-year-old Private Harry Farr who was shot for alleged cowardice following the battle of the Somme in 1916.

    Farr had suffered from shellshock during 1915 and was in hospital for five months before returning to the front.  Soon after he began suffering convulsions and again reported sick to a first aid post.

   A medical officer refused to see Farr despite the fact that he was unable to move, even under a barrage of verbal and physical abuse from an NCO in his unit.

   Farr’s medical history of shellshock was overlooked at the subsequent court martial and he was sentenced to death.  He was shot in October 1916.

    A case less publicised is that of 2^nd Lieutenant Eric Skeffington Poole, one of only two officers executed during the war, and a man who had also previously suffered shellshock.

    The case gained more relevance in 2001 when an article, written by historian Lawrence James for the BBC, claimed research had revealed Poole may have been shot for political reasons.

   James alleged there had been growing concern among the high command that courts martial were more lenient to officers accused of desertion or cowardice than to other ranks accused of the same offence.

    James’ article claimed Field Marshall Haig, the commander-in-chief of the British Army, had pressured for an officer to be shot to bring parity to the situation.

    Edward Skeffington Poole had been evacuated from the line during the first week of July 1916 after being knocked unconscious during a heavy German barrage. Poole eventually ended up at the main British hospital in Étaples, home to the notorious ‘bull ring’ training area.

   The medical officers, under intense pressure to get men back to the front, declared him fit for action and he was promptly returned to his unit.

   Two weeks later, Poole again complained of feeling unwell and was sent to a first aid post but disappeared soon after.

  He was found two days later in a state of confusion, and was brought before the commanding officer.  After failing to explain his absence Poole was charged with desertion.

   Poole’s court martial was convened immediately after Haig had issued a directive to press for an officer to be executed and Edward Skeffington Poole, it is claimed, became a victim of circumstances.

 He was sentenced to death and executed in Belgium on 10 December 1916.

 Julian Putkowski suggests that the War Office were all too happy to comply with the family’s wish to omit disclosure of Poole’s death from casualty lists circulated to the press and he agrees with James' claim, saying that the research: “confirmed what had already been stated... that it was deliberate policy to have an officer executed and the unhappy victim was Eric Poole.”

 The 2006 pardon finally gave some closure to the soldier’s families but campaigners deny claims they are trying to re-write history saying they are only looking to honour those forgotten victims of the First World War: “we are righting an injustice not re-writing the past”.