What to watch this weekend

Here’s a quick guide to what I’ll be paying attention to this weekend in between children’s parties, yoga classes, and a dinner date with my husband!

Friday

Rangers vs. Capitals (NHL) – This is a really important Eastern Conference match-up, especially for the Rangers as they’re struggling to secure a playoff spot. Plus, Ovechkin is bar none (with all due respect to the concussed Sidney Crosby) the most exciting player in the NHL right now.

Photo courtesy of the Washington Capitals website

Saturday

England vs. France (Rugby) – The 6 Nations game that everyone has been gearing up for.  France has talked alot of trash this week saying how much they dislike the English (shocker!) so I’m looking for a tense atmosphere at Twickenham. It will be tough for England without their injured captain Lewis Moody but I’ll be pulling for them!

St. John’s at Villanova (College Basketball) – Another important Big East test for the Johnnies as they’re up against a highly-ranked opponent in what has become a regular occurrence. This time though the Red Storm are finally included in the Top 25 for what seems like ages so I hope they continue in this direction.

Sunday

Indiana at Ohio State (College Basketball) – This is also a key conference match-up. Ohio State lost its Number 1 ranking recently but that doesn’t make them any less dangerous. In my opinion, they’re the best team in the country regardless of the polls. Indiana is a compelling story though as that program may be on the upswing again. Do I smell an upset? Nah but it should be entertaining nonetheless.

Happy viewing!

Rugby 6 Nations

I’m in London, baby, so my first post will be about – what else? – rugby. For those of you not familiar with the game, I won’t bore you with all the rules except to say that it is NOT like American football. When I first started getting into rugby, my problem was that I related everything to the NFL. Not only can you not pass the ball forward in rugby but the points awarded are totally different and there’s something called a scrum (which has its own specific rules) and a position called a “hooker” (really). What I do like about the game is that its physical play is similar to football and hockey with much fewer breaks: two 40-minute halves with a 15 minute intermission and few commercial time-outs.

My first live game was a doozy – a test match between New Zealand and England at Twickenham Stadium where all of England’s national games are played. The atmosphere is amazing – the stadium seats about 80,000 but there are only 3 tiers so spectators are really close to the action. There was so much chanting that the All Blacks famous pre-game Haka dance was completely drowned out! While England lost, the crowd applauded their side’s hard-fought effort which would never happen in the results-driven arena of American sports.

In any event, I was hooked! Realizing this, my lovely husband Antonio decided to give me the best Valentine’s Day present – tickets for yesterday’s 6 Nations match between England and Italy. The 6 Nations is an annual tournament amongst the 6 best European Rugby-playing countries: England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, France and Italy. Of these, Italy is the newest entrant and while they’ve improved a great deal, are still not up to par with the other teams. This was certainly the case yesterday as England crushed them 59-13, with Chris Ashton scoring a record 4 tries (the equivalent to a touchdown). Even Antonio, who was in theory rooting for Italy, had a good time as we watched legendary “sir” Jonny Wilkinson get into the game late.

I’d highly recommend taking in a rugby match, even if it’s a premiership game rather than the national team, as you’ll be swept away by the atmosphere. In the meantime, here are some photos I took:

Members of the Royal Marines hitched a ride on the English flag!

Kick-off