Missing Brazil (For The First Time Since '94)

I did some working out as I ate breakfast this morning. 

Last night This morning was the first time since 1994 that I missed a Brazil World Cup match.

The 1:30am kick off was too late for me. I was too tired, struggling even to watch Scotland's 0-1 loss to Morocco. 

With that said, I left the muted TV on overnight. I woke up and saw Brazil were one-nil up before closing my eyes again. Then, I caught the score at 3-0 before dropping back off.

The final score was Brazil 3 Haiti 0.

Some might say dropping in and out isn't 'missing' the game, but I would. 

Their next game is against Scotland on Wednesday. It has an 11pm kick off. I can make it. Yes, I can.

A MARVELlous 80s Cast

I saw an AI video doing the rounds on TAFKA Twitter yesterday. I must admit, I loved it.

The video was of, and I'll quote the poster (I don't know if they originated the idea) 'Avengers - if it was made in the 80s'.

Then it has a trailer, with Survivor's Eye of the Tiger as its soundtrack, showing major stars from that period portraying the Marvel Comics characters.

Here's who they had:

Sylvester Stallone as Iron Man/Tony Stark

Kurt Russell as Captain America/Steve Rogers

Michelle Pfeiffer as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow

Clint Eastwood as Nick Fury

Dolph Lundgren as Thor

Pierce Brosnan as Stephen Strange/Dr. Strange

Carl Weathers as T'Challa/Black Panther

Demi Moore as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch

Gary Oldman as Loki

Michael J. Fox as Peter Parker/Spider-Man

After each reveal, I kept thinking 'perfect' or 'yes, that'll work' to myself. To pardon the pun, it would was the best cast ever assembled.

Season Handicap Betting 2025/26: The Results

Even though the 2026 World Cup is in full swing, that hasn't stopped me from reminding myself that the 2026-27 season is on the horizon.

One of the things that means - for me - is it'll soon be time to prepare for the season handicap betting post.

As usual, it'll be out there in the days leading up to the leagues' kick offs. 

For now, I'll share with you how last year's handicapping went.

I believe it would be fair to say it did... 'close to okay'. It wasn't profitable, but two of the four teams placed.

The each-way Lucky 15 had Aston Villa (+22) in the Premier League, Southampton (+6) in the Championship, Cardiff City (+5) for League 1 and Notts County (+10) for League 2.

Cardiff and Notts County were the two teams which placed for my bet.

The Bluebirds finished in third place of the handicap table. Their five points, added to their actual number of 91, gave them 96. It put them behind only Lincoln City (123) and Stevenage (97).

In real world league action, Lincoln topped the table with Cardiff finishing second.

Looking at the final handicap table for League 2, it's clear to see that my Notts County selection benefited from having two teams tied for second. Had that not occurred, I could very well have only had the Cardiff City 'win'.

As you can see, County accumulated a total of 90 points - 80 from their actual league performance as well as the ten-point head start.

Cambridge and Colchester, both tied with 96 points apiece, are sandwiched in-between the table-topping Bromley (109 total points) and third-placed Grimsby Town (94 points).

The other tables saw Millwall and Coventry have a dead-heat for the Championship while Sunderland sat at the peak of the Premier League handicap table with 106 total with 52 points coming from the bookies.

Check back for the 2026-27 season handicap selections in a month or so.

I Try Out Tesco Whoosh

A few weeks ago, Tesco emailed me to say they've given me three free Whoosh deliveries to try out the service.

To be fair, I ignored the mail at first because I didn't envision needing a rapid grocery delivery. Plus, I have a full week Asda delivery pass. 

Anyway, I was sat here yesterday morning and noticed the bread was close to gone. We also needed to top up the milk.

'May as well try Tesco Whoosh,' was the conclusion I reached. I searched for the email, and logged in.

I went over the threshold I needed to spend in order to get the free delivery (usually £2.99). I also realised I was given a fiver off the order as part of the coupon (something I didn't take note of initially!).

To cut a long story short, the order was placed at 9:44am. It arrived at my door fourteen minutes later. Astounding.

The staff must rush around like a Formula One pit crew to get everything picked, packed and delivered in that amount of time. I was very impressed with the service. I still am over a day later.

It's definitely something I would recommend for anyone looking to top up their essentials. Granted I was enticed because I was given a free trial. With that said, I have done top ups like that with Co Op in the past and I paid whatever delivery charges were applied to those orders.

Roger Cook Passes Away

I spent a good part of yesterday's dinner conversation telling my nephew how much of a legend Roger Cook was.

The investigative journalist, who recently passed away, was extremely popular in my household back during his peak years. The Cook Report was ground breaking TV, delving into the underbelly of crime. 

Cook's exposure of shady characters was stuff of legend. That's why, upon learning of his death, I had to share just how great this guy was at what he did.

Lindy's Pro Football 2026 Is Here

Look what just came with today's post.

Yep, the NFL season is on the horizon. This is always the first indicator to me to say 'not long to go'.

I've written it many times over the years, but I'll do so again. I first came across Lindy's Pro Football Previews during the summer of 1995. 

I was at a newsagent preparing to get a coach home and browsed the shelves for something to read on the journey. All the wrestling mags I could have chosen were already piled up at home, so I opted for the American football yearbook.

Thanks to the Internet, and even Lindy's bringing out their own British version of the magazine for a period, I've been able to get these annuals on a.. well, on an annual basis. 

As you can see on the cover, the publication is celebrating its fortieth season. It has been cool to be a small part of that ride. 

You'll also notice the cover is of Seattle's Sam Darnold. We always seem to get the editions with the current Super Bowl Champions gracing the front.

Makes me want to root even more for Indianapolis because I'd like an Colts-themed cover one of these days.

Ultimate Lawn Fighting

I have to be straight up - I am mildly interested in seeing the UFC event from the White House lawn.

Not because I am keen to see any of the fights. I'm purely invested in how the Octagon looks with the White House as the backdrop.

With all that said, I am not THAT invested in staying up to watch it. I'll be happy to see highlights tomorrow.

Or photos. They'll do.

I don't believe the scene will beat the pyramids as the backdrop for Oleksandr Usyk's fight with Rico Verhoeven from a few weeks ago. 

The 'Glory in Giza' was, well.. it was glorious.