England triumph in Paris

By WNOL news and sports editor Nick Bentley

England produced 80 minutes of quality rugby in Paris yesterday to see off a youthful French team by 11 points.

And today’s comments by Marc Lievremont, that Mark Regan is a ‘grotesque clown’, simply highlighted the English success in getting under the skin of the home side.

As well as watching England beat France I also saw Wasps scrape past Bristol at Adams Park thanks to a late late try from replacement scrum-half Mark McMillan.

It was a thrilling game and one of the best live matches I have ever seen. A superb advert for the Premiership, especially during an international period when quality and consistency sometimes drop.

Carrying Passengers

The one thing that was apparent from the day’s rugby was how on earth has Ian Balshaw made it into the England team?

His comical effort at catching a high ball followed by a ridiculous decision to let another high ball bounce before gathering could have easily handed the French easy points and a sniff of victory.

Quite what Brian Ashton thinks Balshaw brings to the team is unclear, and it is easy to name probably half a dozen players who could do better than the Gloucester man.

Lewsey, Tait, Morgan and Abendanon could all do a job.

Even Cipriani would offer more in the 15 shirt, while gaining valuable experience on the international scene for what is expected to be a long and illustrious career.

I just hope Ashton is not too belligerent and complacent to recognise that Balshaw does not deserve his place in the squad.

Picture courtesy of Fabien Dany 

February – cool or just plain freezing?

By WNOL features editor Tory Kingdom

With London Fashion Week just over and The Brits on Wednesday, February is the month of cool. Not long after the celebrities had caught up on their sleep and worked off their champagne hangover, were they back on the red carpet at Earls Court arena.

Everyone from the Klaxons to Editors to Sir Paul McCartney to Girls Aloud to veteran popster Kylie were in attendance.And perhaps because February is also the month of love, the couples were in full force – Emma Griffiths and Matt Willis behind the scenes and Ozzy and Sharon Osborne, with family in tow, up front.

Monkey Business

The Arctic Monkeys stole the entrance spotlight with their country-gent attire, complete with wooden mallard.

But it was Amy Winehouse who received the standing ovation, appearing fresh out of rehab, performing with newly crowned Best British Male, Mark Ronson.

Take That looked thrilled to have one Best Live Act. I’m not sure whether they deserved it above Muse but in true British fashion it’s nice to see the underdog beaming with pride at their award.

Chilling out

And yet with London being the hub of all things cool and hip and with some great upcoming events –Mark Ronson performing again at The Hammersmith Apollo and The London Portrait Gallery’s Vanity Fair Portraits exhibition, both of which WNOL will be reviewing, why is it still tempting to stay in with a DVD?

Because it’s February and it’s not just cool, it’s freezing. Surely I’m not the only one who finds this time of year depressing. Like our Student in the Spotlight, Tom, said this week, the one thing he is excited about right now is the summer.

Everything is better post May.

I may be getting distracted with the weather angle but it’s because I’m cold despite wearing five layers and the heating being on.

It took the four of us attending the scene of the Harrow gas explosion the whole weekend to warm up after standing around in the cold last Friday and one of our fashion week reporters has a cold, although probably from too many aftershow parties.

So bring on the sunny days and balmy evenings. Until then the WNOL reporters will have to don hats and scarves and carry flasks of coffee to bring you the best stories and features from the area. I hope you enjoy all we have to offer!