PFA Awards

10:14am Wednesday 23rd April 2008

The end of season PFA awards are to be announced shortly and here at rE-view we are picking our winners of the awards. There are awards for the player of the year, young player of the year and team of the year.

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	African Cup of Nations by Chris Sykes
	2:45pm Mon 25 Feb 08
	The world's most colourful tournament-the African Nations Cup- started in late January. This year's tournament had the potential to be the best ever, with more internationally recognised stars heading to Ghana to take part in Africa's equivalent to the European Championships. Big questions do, however remain over the timing of the tournament. The late January start means that many clubs lose their best players at a critical time in the season. Take Portsmouth for example. They are pushing for qualification into the UEFA Cup, but lost key players like Sulley Muntari, which severely hinders their prospects. But that aside, the African Nations Cup remains one of the most eagerly awaited tournaments in the world. Group A Hosts Ghana kicked the off the tournament against potential outsiders Guinea. In front of an expectant home crowd, a surprise result was on the cards when, with just a couple of minutes to go, Ghana were being held 1-1. Then, a late 25 yard wonder strike from Sulley Muntari secured an important 1st win for the hosts. The other game in the group was between Morocco and shock qualifiers Namibia. But there was to be no shock here as the Moroccans thumped Namibia 5-1. 4 days after the 1st round of fixtures, Guinea bounced from the opening day defeat, recording a stunning 3-2 win over Morocco to put themselves back in contention for qualification to the quarter finals. Ghana boosted their chances of reaching the last 8 beating Namibia 1-0 thanks to a goal from Nottingham Forest's Junior Agogo. Ghana maintained their winning record, beating Morocco 2-0 in the penultimate game of Group A. That result meant that Guinea just needed to avoid defeat against Namibia to reach the quarter final stage. Guinea were far from impressive, but got a 1-1 draw which was enough to put them in the next round. Group B The first match of Group B saw pre tournament favourites Ivory Coast take on fellow contenders Nigeria. With the game heading to a goalless draw, Chelsea's Salomon Kalou beat 4 Nigeria defenders before finishing well to secure a vital win for the Ivorians. The other 2 sides in the group, Mali and Benin met later on the same day. Mali were forced to work hard to grind out a 1-0 win over Benin another surprise qualifier. Ivory Coast showed what they can do, thrashing Benin 4-1 in the next round of fixtures. Nigeria and Mali played out a goalless draw, a result that left Nigeria on the brink of elimination. To avoid that, Nigeria needed to win and hope Ivory Coast could beat Mali. Ivory Coast did their part, steamrolling past Mali 3-0. Nigeria completed a remarkable turnaround in their fortunes, beating Benin 2-0 to put join Ivory Coast in the last 8. Group C The game of the tournament came in the opening match in Group C. Perennial contenders Cameroon took on holders Egypt. 2 goals from Cameroon's Samuel Eto'o weren't enough as Egypt put 4 past Cameroon. Before the tournament, many people tipped Zambia to cause an upset. They started off their campaign with a 3-0 win over Sudan. With Cameroon getting off to a slow start and Zambia looking in form, the meeting between the sides looked like being a classic. However, this encounter was one-sided with Cameroon wrapping up 5-1 win. Egypt continued their good form, inflicting a 2nd successive 3-0 defeat on Sudan. Cameroon rubbed salt into Sudan's wounds, beating them 3-0 to book their place in the knockout stage. Zambia did manage to pull off a surprise result, holding Egypt 1-1. Egypt's place in the last 8 was secured by the draw. Group D was the so-called "Group of death". All 4 teams were capable of reaching the latter stages of the tournament. The 2 slight favourites to advance, Senegal and Tunisia played out a 2-2 draw, whilst the 2 slight outsiders, Angola and South Africa drew1-1. The next round of fixtures proved pivotal to the outcome of the group. Angola showed the form that saw them reach the 2006 World Cup, beating Senegal 3-1. Winners in 2004, Tunisia also upped their game, seeing off 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa 3-1. Senegal and South Africa, both needing a win to stand any chance of qualification, drew1-1. That result put Tunisia and Angola into the Quarter finals. Tunisia and Angola drew 0-0 in the final game of Group D. Quarter Finals In the first game of the last 8, hosts Ghana met Nigeria. Nigeria coach Bertie Vogts, under severe pressure to deliver a tournament win, had some of the pressure lifted when Everton's Yakubu put Nigeria ahead. Chelsea's Michael Essien levelled for Ghana right on half time. The scoreline remained 1-1 until the 82nd minute, when Junior Agoggo scored a late winner to take Ghana into the semi finals.

	Darlington FC in January by Chris Sykes
	10:08am Mon 25 Feb 08
	Darlington fans could’ve been forgiven for thinking here we go again. Consecutive defeats to MK Dons and Rochdale had threatened to undo months of hard work and derail Darlington’s promotion bid.

Darlington FC in December and New Year by Chris Sykes

9:44am Monday 14th January 2008

Throughout the season, Darlington have been well and truly in the promotion hunt.

England Crash out of EURO 2008

10:45pm Wednesday 21st November 2007

England were eliminated from Euro 2008 after a diabolical 3-2 defeat against Croatia. England had fought back from two goals down before Mladen Petric fired home from 20 yards break England’s fans hearts.