Winnipeg Walkway System

Picture 1: Construction of the first link of the Winnipeg Walkway from Eaton's to the Somerset building

Picture 2: The east bridge of the Portage Place walkway. Source: Winnipeg Free Press

Picture 3: Picture of the plans for the Winnipeg Walkway

The Winnipeg Walkway System is modelled on the Minneapolis Skyway which began in built in 1962 and now encompass 80 city blocks and runs five miles.

Winnipeg's first overhead walkway was constructed in 1969 between Eaton's and the Somerset building where Woolworth's was located.

It has been a slow process linking up Winnipeg buildings. The problem, in short, is that there have often been gaps where there was no building to link. The downtown has a surfeit of parking lots.

The other issue is money. Many of the landowners seem to want the government to pay the bill for the overhead walkways. Mr. Christian has as good synopsis of the development of the walkways.

The plan for the $6 million walkway expansion is described on the city of Winnipeg website.

Walkways are not pretty. Underground ain't pretty either but those are two options for cold climates for people to walk places without donning a coat. I have no problem with linking the downtown. However, I do have a problem when the walkways are as ugly as we have seen.

Linking buildings is no substitute for abandoning the street level. The city needs to make greater efforts in this department.



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Colchester United FC

Colchester United 0 Scunthorpe United 0 - Football League One

Colchester is 56 miles northeast of London and is claimed to be the oldest recorded town in Britain on the grounds that it was mentioned by Pliny the Elder in AD 77. Its Celtic name was Camulodunon, meaning 'the fortress of (the war god) Camulos'. Following the Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43, a Roman legionary fortress was established and the name Camulodunon was modified to the Roman spelling of 'Camulodunum'. Camulodunum served as the first Roman capital of Britain, but was attacked and destroyed during Boudica's rebellion in AD 61. In 1884 the town was struck by the Colchester earthquake, estimated to have been 4.7 on the Richter Scale causing extensive regional damage. Colchester is reputed to be the home of three of the best known English nursery rhymes: 'Old King Cole', 'Humpty Dumpty' and 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star'. Local legend places Colchester as the seat of King Cole (or Coel) of the rhyme Old King Cole, a legendary ancient king of Britain. Colchester is also the most widely credited source of the rhyme Humpty Dumpty. During the siege of Colchester in the Civil War, a Royalist sniper known as One-Eyed Thompson sat in the belfry of the church of St Mary-at-the-Walls (Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall) and was given the nickname Humpty Dumpty, most likely because of his size. The third rhyme to come from Colchester is Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, which was written by Jane Taylor in the town's Dutch Quarter, and published in 1806 with the title "The Star".

All the Kings's horses and all the King's men.......

Colchester United FC formed in 1937 and took over Layer Road from the recently defunct Colchester Town FC. That venue remained their home until 2008. At its closure, the ground had a capacity of 6,340, though it had previously been much higher, with a record attendance of 19,072. In 2000, Colchester United FC announced plans to move to a new 10,000 capacity all-seater community stadium at Cuckoo Farm, which were given the go-ahead by Colchester Borough Council on November 13, 2006. Construction of the stadium, funded by the council, started in June 2007, and the stadium opened at the start of the 2008-09 season.

This Pieman was keen to visit the Colchester Community Stadium (Weston Homes for sponsorship). In the morning I watched Harry Hotspur play in an entertaining 3-3 draw for East Herts Youth (Under 10s). A second match between a different set of seven players per side, ended 4-2 and his team progressed to the next round of the Denis Regan Cup with a 7-5 aggregate victory. After this I caught a direct train from Cheshunt to Stratford. From there another direct serviced sped me to Colchester North station.

I took advantage of the free bus service running from Bruff Close (3 minutes walk from the station) which takes you to the ground in a little over 5 minutes. Many of the home supporters were calling in at ‘The Bricklayers’. This Adnams pub appears to be the last available watering hole between the town and the ground and is opposite Bruff Close.

As is often the norm with new stadia, this place is comfortable with good views afforded from all seated areas. However, for me it lacks the character of Layer Road. The Health & Safety bods will declare the new place a triumph though and it is an impressive achievement for the club. Inside the ground spectators can purchase the usual overpriced refreshments.

Sometimes you get a feeling early on during a match that you will be witnessing a stalemate. This was the case today with both Colchester United and visitors Scunthorpe United huffing and puffing but lacking that bit of quality to force the issue. Both sides had decent chances but a combination of good defending, competent goalkeeping and poor finishing determined the outcome of this pre-Christmas fare.

My seat was in the unreserved section of the West Stand, at the corner where it meets the South Stand. Accordingly, I was out of the ground and on a bus within a couple of minutes of the final whistle. As soon as the bus was full it departed. I was back at the station in time to catch the 17.03 service to London Liverpool Street. This service was slightly delayed due to reports of “cows on the line at Diss” – grateful for that. Back in London for 18.00, logistically a good day for travelling if not goals!

Colchester United: Walker, Maybury, Coyne, Baldwin, Tierney, Yeates, Hammond, Izzet (Jackson 65), Perkins (Wordsworth 80), Platt, Vernon (Gillespie 65).
Subs Not Used: Gerken, White.
Booked: Yeates.

Scunthorpe United: Murphy, Wright, Pearce, Byrne, Williams, Thompson (Morris 75), McCann, Togwell, Woolford (Hayes 88), May, Hooper.
Subs Not Used: Lillis, Iriekpen, Lea.
Booked: Wright.

Referee: Graham Horwood (Bedfordshire).





Attendance: 4,606
Admission: £20.00
Programme: £3 (obtained for you Andy, Stan and Glyn, the barman in Phil Butler's local, the Prince Albert in Ely,)
Tea/Coffee : £1.60p
Fare: £12.40 from London Liverpool Street (with Network Gold Card discount)

The Pieman's initial visit to Layer Road

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Ikea

Well, it has finally happened.

Ikea is coming to Winnipeg.

It will be one of the largest stores in Canada at 350,000 square feet. It will anchor as major tenant in an even larger 1.5 million square foot development.

The site is where the former CN Intermodal Terminal once called home. It was the bane of my existence for many years as each time I came home from work, I would face a long line of trains.

We finally have an underpass after the Waverley one was cancelled by Mulroney in the 1980s.

I like Ikea. Unlike some of the snobbery I have heard in some quarters, I think their presence is a good one. They are a tourist attraction and offer unique furniture.

The location is big enough for them and will accelerate much needed work on Kenaston which needs work with the construction of Waverley West moving ahead quickly.

When the Kapyong Barracks gets redeveloped, we are going to see Kenaston is ill equipped to handle the flow. The work is needed now and more will be needed as traffic continues to increase.

Funny, how two of the biggest tourist attractions announce their plans in the same week. Harper will be in Winnipeg on Friday to put shovels in the ground for the Human Rights Museum.



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Tuxedo Park Shopping Centre Part 2

The Tuxedo Safeway became the primary Safeway for River Heights Tuxedo residents when the Safeway at Corydon and Lanark closed in the 1970s.

As mentioned in part 1, the Tuxedo Park Shopping Centre has been around since 1962.

Safeway and the Bank of Montreal have been mainstays of the shopping center from the beginning. In 2008, Safeway just finished renovating its interior to bring it to the standards of stores as seen in Charleswood, Osborne Village and their newest location at Madison Square (the second largest location in the province as announced by managers on their opening December 11).

A number of stores and restaurants have come and over the years but a few have stood the test of time. Rumors Comedy Club has been around since the 1980s. The bar that occupied the place in the early 1980s was called Kappy's. Many of the greatest comedians working in North America have worked at Rumor's. Every so often a comedian guesting on a talk show like Leno or Letterman will list where they are playing and you'll hear Rumor's listed. It is now the only comedy club standing in Winnipeg.

Shopper's Drugmart is another long term tenant. The sit cheek by jowl with Safeway cramped in a corner of the mall.

A Laura Secord store is a major tenant of the mall although I don't know the exact day they moved into the location.

Other major tenants include a Sal's and a Liquor Mart.

A Shell gas station and car wash has occupied the corner where Tuxedo connects with Corydon for decades.

The second floor of the mall has numerous professional offices but the majority seems to be occupied by dentists.

In 2008, renovations of the exterior of the mall began (including a redesign of the Safeway). Some old tenants such as the Mac's departed.

A new addition to Tuxedo was a Starbucks. Only months earlier, a Starbucks was built just down the street in Charleswood.

The Tuxedo Shopping Centre has been an important part of the commercial infrastructure of Tuxedo/River Heights for many years. As more of the local grocery stores, pharmacies and banks closed in River Heights, this area became one of the main spots for residents to come for those services. It continues to serve that need but a building that seems awkward for the space.



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NEC Nijmegen FC

NEC Nijmegan 0 Tottenham Hotspur 1 - UEFA Cup, Group Stage

Nijmegen is a municipality and a city in the east of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is considered to be the oldest city in the Netherlands and celebrated its 2000th year of existence in 2005. The first mention of Nijmegen in history is in the 1st century BC, when the Romans built a military camp on the place where Nijmegen was to appear; the location had great strategic value because of the surrounding hills, which gave (and continue to give) a good view over the Waal and Rhine valley. In the second half of the 19th century, the fortifications around the city became a major problem; there were too many inhabitants inside the walls, but the fortifications could not be demolished because Nijmegen was deemed as being of vital importance to the defence of the Netherlands. When, however, events in the Franco-Prussian war proved that old-fashioned fortifications were no more of use, this policy was changed and the fortifications were dismantled in 1874. The old castle had already been demolished in 1797, so that its bricks could be sold.

N.E.C. (Nijmegen Eendracht Combinatie) is niet de oudste voetbalclub van Nederland. Een stuk of veertig voetbalverenigingen bestaan langer. Maar N.E.C. is toch uniek. Het was voor zover bekend de eerste voetbalvereniging die werd opgericht door ‘gewone’ arbeiders, echte volksjongens. Voetbal was in 1900 al aardig populair, maar het clubvoetbal was nog een echte elitaire bezigheid. Verenigingen als UD (Deventer), Quick (Nijmegen), Sparta, Vitesse en dergelijke waren dan ook allemaal opgericht door de zoons van rijke industrielen, middenstanders en andere notabelen.

We flew from Heathrow to Schiphol, from where we caught a train to Arnhem (changing at Utrecht), where we were staying. From Arnhem it takes little more than 10 minutes on the faster services to reach Nijmegan. There are plenty of trains returning late evening too. However, this was not an issue for this visit as the match had been brought forward to a 19:00 kick off to accommodate television.

Café t Moortgat

Accordingly, we were afforded the opportunity to visit a couple of bars in Arnhem and worthy of special mention is Café t Moortgat on Ruiterstraut. This establishment is one of the best bars that this Pieman has experienced. A dark wooden interior with a superb range of both draught and bottled beers from both the Netherlands and further afield. Something for most people on the beer front and a very good atmosphere.

Following on from this fine refreshment interlude, we made the short journey over to Nijmegan and from the main railway station were able to walk to the 12,500 capacity De Goffert stadium in just 25 minutes. There was very little by way of pubs or restaurants en route and it is a very similar story around the stadium which is situated in a park. However, the social club of the amateur arm of the club was open and welcoming, providing food and the obligatory beers.

This Pieman is not a great fan of the current UEFA Cup Group Stage format, much preferring the straight knockout two leg ties. Effectively this tournament does not get going until February. Spurs controlled the majority of this match and claimed the points courtesy of Jamie O’Hara’s 14th minute strike.

After the match there was a free bus service back to the main railway station which enabled your scribe to catch the 21.28 service back to Arnhem. Within a few minutes he was seated at the bar of Café t Moortgat again and was able to sample a few choice brews in that warm establishment.

NEC Nijmegan: Babos, Dani Fernandez (Tshibamba 81), Wisgerhof, Zomer, El Akchaoui, Radomski (Kivuvu 46), Sibum (Bouaouzan 65), Davids, Schone, Van Beukering, Kabir.
Subs Not Used: Baart, Pothuizen, Otten, Janssen. Booked: Davids.

Tottenham Hotspur: Gomes, Gunter, Dawson, Woodgate, Bale, Bentley (Mason 90), Zokora, Huddlestone, O'Hara, Bent (Lennon 71), Campbell (Obika 83).
Subs Not Used: Cesar, Assou-Ekotto, Bostock, Smith.







Attendance: 12,500
Admission: No price on the match ticket which cost £22 from THFC
Programme: Free A3 single sheet folded twice.

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Portage Avenue Part 3

First picture: The A&B Sound Building back in its heyday.

Second picture: The University of Winnipeg

As mentioned in Portage Avenue Part 2, Portage Avenue is going through major changes. Some of those changes may be affected by a downturn in the economy.

For every step forward, there seems there is a step or two back though. Mountain Equipment Co-Op was a bold step forward. The closure of A&B Sound store was a step back. It remains empty even now. Prior to it being a music and electronics store, it was known as the Portage Village Inn. The building is on the market now but doesn't seem to have any takers.

Beside the old A&B Sound building is the Mitchell-Copp building. Like A&B, it is empty. North Portage Development Corporation has it targeted for redevelopment. Hard to say what could go in the building. It seems unlikely that a retail business would find it suitable. The best bet might be condos or a business looking for a unique office.

Probably one of the better news stories for north Portage is that the Red Apple store, closed for two months will be replaced with a Dollarama. This is a more attractive option for the building. This format store has seen success across Canada.

The Avenue building and the Hample building have new owner with new plans for condos, retail and restaurants. It remains to be seen whether they will follow through.

The only sure bet seems to be Dollarama.

It is tragic that following the construction of the MTS Centre and near completion of the Manitoba Hydro building that redevelopment of a large swath of Portage is taking so long and may end up being put off due to the downturn in the economy.

The only work that seems to be guaranteed work that is going on on the north side of Portage aside from Dollarama is the University of Winnipeg with its new dorms and faculty of science.

It remains to be seen whether other projects proceed.



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Portage Avenue Part 2

First picture of the former Mitchell Copps jewelery building from the Free Press, Second picture from Winnipeg Love and Hate.


The north side of Portage Avenue has been suffering for many years while the south side always benefited from having The Bay and other strong retailers as anchors. Even after Eaton's closed in 1999, the street still had considerable vitality.

North Portage has never had the same attractions as what lay across the street from it. Subsequently, as suburbia grew, the north side started to see some deterioration through the late 1970s and into the 1980s.

As mentioned in my post on Portage Place, many people believed something needed to be done about the proliferation of for lease signs and general seediness the street was acquiring.

In the very early 1980s, the north side appeared blighted with an adult movie theatre and a few video arcades indicating how far things had slipped. Aside from a few gems such as Kennedy Street where some shops and restaurants such as Stage West dinner theatre continued to succeed, the area was crying for something bold.

In 1981, Lloyd Axworthy introduced the Core Area Initiative as an encompassing program to help revitalize the downtown. The debate about what the centerpiece of the program should be was intense. Axworthy thought an arena was the best idea. The Winnipeg Jets even then were angling for a new facility and many people forget that Axworthy was one of the early advocates.

As most know, the arena option found no support and in 1996, the Winnipeg Jets headed for Phoenix. Had they moved downtown in 1987 into a new facility, one wonders if they would still be in the city.

The idea that found widespread support was a downtown mall. And thus Portage Place was born in 1987.

However, this post isn't about Portage Place. It is about the rest of Portage Avenue and what resulted after the mall was built.

I think it is safe to say that Portage Place has been a mixed success. True, it brought some new commercial and residential development to the north side but the area immediately in front of the mall was not people friendly. Essentially, the mall turned its back on the street and access was controlled moreso through portals like a traditional mall. There were few retailers that had doors out to the street. Also, the overpasses that loomed across the street made many people bypass the street below altogether.

The interconnected second story links from building to building had an effect on the street level retailers below. Some opted to go the mall rather than stand alone by themselves.

Eaton's closed in 1999, the result of mismanagement over many years. The collapse of the store was not isolated to Winnipeg and closures were national. The Winnipeg store closure was notable for the sheer size of the store that closed. For the first time, it took the focus off north side rehabilitation. The idea of this large, hulking empty store was too much for government of business to contemplate.

Voila, the arena idea re-emerged and as you know, the MTS Centre was built in 2004. All things considered, the project from done with remarkable speed and haste. We will touch again on what has been achieved with the MTS Centre.

The areas farther east of the Portage Place Mall continued to deteriorate and many went idle in the 1990s and 2000s. We will touch on this later on as well.

Let's focus on what has happened west of Portage Place:

The area west of the mall faced fewer problems because it had a major office building and a hotel rather than numerous street level retailers. The Investors Group building, the Holiday Inn Express (formally the Relax Inn) and the bus station/Rice Building all stood between the mall and the University of Winnipeg. The Investors Tower and Holiday Inn were built at the same time as Portage Place. The Investors building took over some retail and the old Colony movie theatre. The Holiday Inn took over the scary Mall Hotel.

Of all the things that many appreciated, it was the removal of the Mall Hotel and its fortress-like architecture and violent reputation. The area considerably improved once it was gone.

in 2008, the University of Winnipeg has begun muscling its way into the block now that the bus station has indicated it is moving to the airport.

The plan is for the university to renovate 37,000 square feet for admissions and counselling. The Salisbury House might be turned into the campus' first student pub and the newsstand and east and west surface parking will all be leased out.

It will be interesting to see how the loading area of the bus station will be developed. It is an ugly, dark place at the moment.

The issue of the United Army Surplus building seems to have been resolved. It is too foregone to redevelop and will come down in 2009. I suspect that some developers will approach the university about how to make use of the site for the university and for others.

I don't think I am the only who believes that the site would be ideal for a much expanded university book store. Now that McNally has left the downtown, the area is devoid of a major new bookseller. The downtown could stand to benefit from a bookstore of the quality the University of Manitoba has at its Fort Garry campus.

(to be continued)



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Sherbrook Street

Pictures of the opening Nygard on Broadway and Sherbook on November 17, 2007. Pictures from Nygard's website.

Back in January, I wrote about the changes on Sherbook Street. The Free Press began to take notice themselves in in an article on September 29.

The part of the street the Free Press details is Sherbrook Street between Westminster and Broadway Avenues. On Broadway, as noted in the story, Nygard tore down a number of older buildings that housed their former retail outlet digs as well as some other retail and business operations. At one point in the late 1970s/early 1980s, a massage parlour graced the corner. The retail outlet itself back in the 1970s housed a disco.

Over time, a variety of businesses along Sherbrook succumbed to the deterioration in infrastructure or simply abandoned the area for better options. Salisbury House closed and was replaced by a police substation. That spoke volumes.

Nygard's store signified that something different was happening and although it has a big box look to it, there is no doubt that it has attracted people to its location.

Sherbrook and Maryland are mostly residential with mixed businesses located on the streets between the Assiniboine River and Portage. It has had its ups and downs over the years but the 1990s were years when it looked more down than up. Many of the houses in Winnipeg saw their value drop or remain static for a long time. Some of the streets such as Furby and Spence were in full decline in terms of safety due to crime.

In 2007, a fire burned an apartment/retail complex at Westminster and Sherbrook. The businesses didn't survive the fire. As I recall one of the businesses was a small massage therapy clinic and the other was a gift store on Westminster. I don't remember what faced on to Sherbrook.

The block was not salvaged and it fell to the wrecker in 2008. The Free Press says that Winpark Dorchester is reconstructing a 4,900 foot retail/office/apartment block on the site. A Subway restaurant will open on the spot and the apartments will be loft style affairs.

In April of 2008, Stellas Cafe opened their third location just down the street and opposite the Sherbrook Hotel. By all accounts, it has been a success and they are already building a patio. The building they renovated was a long since closed pharmacy.

It will be interesting to see what other developments happen over time. The downturn in the economy might delay further changes.



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Election Aftermath

As I predicted, the Tories won the election. Equally predictable was that Dion announced a week after the election that he would be stepping down.

Harper now has a slightly bigger minority. It must be a bitter pill for him to swallow. He kept saying that he expected a minority but it is doubtful that he believed it. A number of times he made a plea for a minority but to little avail.

Timing is everything in an election and Harper believed calling the election when he did was better than waiting for the economy to be a leading issue. In short, Harper thought calling the election before the fixed date was a good way to bury the Liberals.

It didn't quite work out that way. The smooth Harper campaign of 2006 turned to a gaffe filled affair in 2008. And the narrow focus the Conservatives placed on the Liberals left them vulnerable in Quebec. They badly fell to a resurgent BQ who cast themselves as best suited to represent Quebec's interests in Ottawa. Dion's performance probably helped them capture two BQ seats.

In the end, nothing much has changed and the Liberals now face the prospect of a new leader in the next six months. We'll see if Harper looks to take advantage of this fact as Dion will stand as interim leader till at least May of 2009.

It seems doubtful that an election will wait till the next fixed election.



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Roblin Boulevard Part 3 Charleswood Motor Hotel

Pictures of the present and future location of the Red River Co-Op Gas on the site of the Charleswood Hotel

I have been writing about Roblin Boulevard as it runs through Charleswood in a series of posts.

A week or so ago it was reported that the Charleswood Hotel would be demolished for a Red Rive Co-op Gas bar and carwash. The gasbar would replace a small Co-op kisok father down the street.

The old "downtown" of Charleswood had one major landmark. It was the Charleswood Hotel and anyone who lived in the neighborhood knew about the bar that resided inside it: The Charlie.

I have no idea how many people stayed in the hotel. Not many is my guess. The vendor was a little run down and the laundry/commercial in front and over top it of it had sat empty for many years. The banquet rooms might have done some business but the major cash cow for the hotel had to the the bar simply known as the Charlie.

The Charlie was probably the first place some local Charleswood people bought their first drink. The name Charlie's was ubiquitous with the Charleswood Hotel and most people who lived in the south part of the city in River Heights, Tuxedo and Charleswood had heard of. With the closure of the bar, the nearest hotel pub is out at the perimeter highway in Westdale, across the river on Portage Avenue or far to the east along Pembina Highway or Osborne Village.

The two acre site that the Charles Hotel occupied was too good for some other businesses to pass up. It was a deeper lot than other commercial property on Roblin. It is easy to see to why Red River Co-Op which is expanding in the city was interested. Charleswood Hotel owner Jason Gauthier was unlikely to do better for offers.

In media interviews, Gauthier indicated that he would look for a new hotel to buy. For him it is smart business decision. For the neighborhood, it is the loss of the local watering hole and gathering spot.

Truly for Charleswood, it is the end of an era. With all due respect to Red River Co-op, the addition of a gas station to the neighborhood does nothing to add to the colour of the neighborhood.



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Udinese Calcio FC

Udinese Calcio 2 Tottenham Hotspur 0 - UEFA Cup, Group Stage

Udine is a city in north-eastern Italy, in the middle of Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic Sea and the Alps, less than 40 km from the Slovenian border. Udine is the historical capital of Friuli. The area has been inhabited since the Neolithic age, and was later, most likely, settled by Celts. During World War I, after the defeat in the battle of Caporetto, Udine became the seat of the Italian High Command and was nicknamed "Capitale della Guerra" ("War Capital"). After the war it was made capital of a short-lived province which included the current provinces of Gorizia, Pordenone and Udine. After September 8, 1943, when Italy surrendered to the Allies in World War II, the city was under direct German administration, which ceased in April 1945.

L'Udinese sfiorò la promozione in serie B nel campionato 1972-73, al termine del quale aveva diviso con il Parma il primo posto in classifica. Lo spareggio, svoltosi sul campo neutro di Vicenza il 24 giugno 1973, vide il successo degli emiliani che si imposero per 2-0. Quella gara ebbe un prologo curioso. Poiché sia l'Udinese che il Parma indossavano divise bianconere, i friulani, dopo aver perso il sorteggio per la scelta della maglia, avevano deciso di vestire una casacca biancorossa, simile a quella degli olandesi dell'Ajax. Tuttavia, per evitare che i colori biancorossi (che erano gli stessi del Vicenza) potessero dirottare sull'Udinese le simpatie del pubblico di casa, l'arbitro impose ai friulani di indossarne un'altra, che fu trovata quasi per caso negli spogliatoi dello stadio ed era di colore verde pallido. Fu l'unica volta che gli udinesi la portarono.

Stadio Friuli is a multi-use stadium in Udine, Italy. The stadium was built in 1976 and holds 41,652. The stadium also features facilities for fencing, gymnastics, martial arts and athletics, including an indoor gym, located in the grandstand. Friuli hosted three matches at the 1990 FIFA World Cup. The city centre is 5km from the stadium. Public transport did appear to be a bit hit and miss but judging by the amount of No 2 buses we saw on our way to the stadium, this appears a decent option as the nearby residential areas benefit from this service.

We travelled to Italy with British Airways from Gatwick to Verona. Having caught the airport shuttle bus to the main Verona railway station, we set about trying to find our nearby hotel. Unfortunately, the hotel was situated close to the other railway station! Struggling with a map we were assisted by a passing clinical pathologist (absolutely true – Ed) who came to our aid and gave us a lift to our hotel. Ciderman’s twin sister, now living in Australia, is also a clinical pathologist and he orchestrated a superb conversation en route – this Pieman was unable to contribute but listened interestedly!

The following day we set out for Udine. The 3-hour train journey involved changing at Venice. On arrival at Udine, we checked into our hotel, situated to the north of the town. We decided to walk to the stadium. This involved travelling through a couple of villages. In Feletto Umberto, we spent a while at a trattoria where we enjoyed a dish consisting mainly of cheese and potato. This tasty heavy meal was washed down with a few glasses of Zipfer – a pleasant Austrian lager beer.

As for the match, Spurs slumped to defeat against an Udinese side that did little to reflect their second place standing in Serie A. The Londoners (not many of them in the team – Ed), played some good football. However, as has been the case throughout the season so far, there was no cutting edge. A penalty, needlessly conceded by Gomes and a late second, when 10 men Spurs were chasing the game, clinched the points for the Italians.

After the match, Ciderman and I visited a couple of bars in the neighbouring (almost on top of the ground – Ed) Rizzi area. In the first we enjoyed a superb freshly Made pizza. In the second we spoke with a few Udinese supporters. This socialising paid off as they very kindly gave us a lift back to our hotel. The following day Ciderman and I once again became the two gentleman of Verona as we explored the old city. One particular highlight being the opportunity to sample Theresianer, a fine Italian beer brewed at Triest.

Udinese Calcio: Handanovic, Motta, Coda, Domizzi, Lukovic (Pasquale 89), Inler, D'Agostino (Floro Flores 86), Isla, Sanchez (Pepe 79), Quagliarella, Di Natale. Subs Not Used: Koprivec, Sala, Ferronetti, Obodo.

Booked: Lukovic, D'Agostino, Isla.

Goals: Di Natale 24 pen, Pepe 86.

Tottenham Hotspur: Gomes, Hutton, King, Woodgate (Giovani 64), Assou-Ekotto (Modric 46), Lennon, Zokora, Jenas, O'Hara, Bale, Bent. Subs Not Used: Cesar, Dawson, Gilberto, Gunter, Campbell.

Sent Off: O'Hara (57).

Booked: Gomes, O'Hara, Bale.

Referee: Felix Brych (Germany).








Attendance: 22,000
Admission: 15 Euros
Programme: Free 24 pages A5 publication - However, these were not widely available, the majority being left on seats in the VIP area and main stand. This was Numero.02 with the previous issue being that for the visit of Borussia Dortmund in the previous round.

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