Norwich - Weeks 1 & 2 Review

The 2015/16 season began with a match that will leave Canary fans with a bitter taste lingering in their mouths. A few contentious decisions saw the game run away from them in a 3-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace. Having gone 2-0 down, Norwich responded well as substitute Nathan Redmond pulled one back after 69 minutes. Striker Cameron Jerome then scored what would probably be the greatest goal of his career, expertly hooking the ball over his head, only for it to be taken away for a “high boot”. Although the foot was high, it seemed to have no impact on surrounding players, suggesting the goal should have stood. A potential turning point in the game got away from the Canaries and they went on to concede another, beginning their Premier League return with a defeat.

2015/2016 English Premier League Team Previews

Arsenal:

Arsenal need to continue the great form shown at the end of last season, and build on their second FA Cup win in a row. The fantastic signing of word-class Petr Cech is a weight off of Arsene Wenger's mind, and all he has to do now is concentrate on allowing his other brilliant players to flourish; Mesut Ozil needs to prove that he is one of the best players in the world after a poor showing last season, Alexis Sanchez simply needs to do exactly what he did all season whilst Olivier Giroud needs to avoid injury and keep up the form that earned him 14 goals in an injury-hit season. He could definitely pass 20 this year if he can stay on the pitch. Arsenal are set for a great season, and in the predicted table I have them finishing 2nd, which would be a great platform for them in their title quest the season after. This year is just too soon for them though.

2015/2016 Preview - Leicester

Nigel Pearson led Leicester through an incredible season, looking bereft of confidence at bottom of the table, somehow Pearson got his boys to finish 14th in the table. However, with him out of the picture now, when you look at the squad you have to say it looks weak, even compared to the newly promoted teams. It is with a heavy heart then that I say Leicester will go down, finishing in 18th, and it will be a shame to see the team that so famously toppled Manchester United leave the Premier League, but it will take another mini-miracle to keep this side in the league.

Four Balls Blog Predicts The 2015/2016 English Premier League Table

1	Chelsea
2	Arsenal
3	Manchester City
4	Manchester United
5	Liverpool
6	Tottenham Hotspur
7	Newcastle
8	Everton
9	Stoke
10	Southampton
11	Aston Villa
12	Crystal Palace
13	West Ham
14	Swansea
15	West Brom
16	Sunderland
17	Bournemouth
18	Leicester
19	Watford
20	Norwich

Chelsea are our predicted winners of the 2015/2016 Premier League!

What do you agree/disagree with in this table?

Who Will Win The Men's Singles At Wimbledon 2015?

It's Wimbledon time, and after Stan the Man shocked the tennis world by beating Novak Djokovic to claim the French Open title, everyone is eagerly anticipating another tense tournament. A tournament that has everyone asking questions; can Djokovic put his disappointing French Open display behind him and retain the title at Wimbledon? Can Nadal come back into form and stake a claim for the trophy? Can Federer prove once again why he dominated Wimbledon for so long? And can Britain see Andy Murray lift the trophy on Centre Court for the second time? 

We will provide our mystic insight and discover what the world's greatest tennis tournament has in store for us in its 129th edition by analysing some of the lead candidates for the trophy, starting with the fourth seed and French Open champion, Stanislas Wawrinka.

5 Things England Learned From The Barbarians Game

1) Lee Dickson should never play for England again

He's boring. So, so boring. His boringness adds nothing to the England side, especially not compared to options such as Youngs, Care and Simpson (although Simpson's injury seems to have ruled him out of contention). Wigglesworth is a better option for a boring scrum half, and despite being the captain of this side that won 73-12 against the Barbarians, he should never wear the white shirt of England for the rest of his professional rugby career.

RWC 2015 - Possible England Extended Squad

Back three: M Brown, A Goode, J Nowell, A Watson, J May, M Yarde.

Centres: J Joseph, B Barritt, H Slade, L Burrell, B Twelvetrees, K Eastmond, S Burgess, E Daly.

Fly-halves: G Ford, O Farrell, D Cipriani, S Myler.

Scrum-halves: B Youngs, R Wigglesworth, D Care, L Dickson, J Simpson.

Props: A Corbisiero, J Marler, M Vunipola, D Wilson, D Cole, K Brookes, M Mullan.

Hookers: D Hartley, T Youngs, R Webber, L Cowan-Dickie.

Locks: J Launchbury, C Lawes, G Parling, D Attwood, G Kruis, M Itoje, E Slater.

Back row: C Robshaw, B Vunipola, B Morgan, T Wood, J Haskell, N Easter, M Kvesic, C Clark

Rumour has it that this is the England training squad for the Rugby World Cup this year, according to the often reliable Steve James of the Telegraph, and it has to be said that it looks a pretty strong one. Having called for the inclusion of Joe Simpson, Elliot Daly, Henry Slade and Kyle Eastmond in this article here, and Tuilagi's exclusion may have played a part in this, but it's safe to say we are pretty happy with Lancaster's selection in the backs. One omission from that article, if this squad proves to be correct, would be the electrifying Christian Wade, who has once again lit up the Premiership with his shocking pace and lightning-quick feet.

25/04/2015 - Football Predictions

1-1

The return of Mauricio Pochettino to St.Mary's will certainly excite the home crowd, but I fear we will be in for a very lacklustre game. Having seen Southampton labour to 3 wins in their last 9 league matches, and Spurs to 4 wins in their last 12 games, this game promises very little in terms of excitement, even with both teams striving to pip Liverpool to 5th. One of the best defences in the laegue comes up against one of the best goalscorers in the league, as 15 clean sheet Southampton will look to cancel out Harry Kane, and I don't think the young Englishman will prevail. I'm going for 1 goal each, a Christian Eriksen free kick saving a point for Pochettino's men.

13/04/2015 - Liverpool vs Newcastle - Football Prediction

Liverpool host Newcastle today knowing that a successful season for them now is an FA Cup win and 5th place in the league. The pressure is on them to win every game left in the season, and we see this as a regulation win against a side with the second worst Premiership record in 2015 (just 9 points), a team that have lost four of their last 5 Premier League games. Without Balotelli and Lallana, Liverpool will still be far too strong for The Magpies, and the likes of Henderson, Coutinho and Sterling will help guide Liverpool to a strong victory.

Prediction: 3-1

Should Rugby Union Use NFL-Style Goalposts?

This article is in response to some comments on Aaron Smith's try versus the Stormers yesterday (below). You will see it is an incredibly intelligent try and Aaron Smith, arguably the world's best scrum-half, uses his knowledge of the rules to his advantage and scores a fantastic try.

England's Most Exciting XV - Would Lancaster Ever Dare?

Bare in mind this is just a bit of fun, although these players lack the complete game, there is no doubt that they are very interesting to watch, and are all worth considering for the England XV. This is not the team we want to see Lancaster field, it is purely for a laugh,

3 Things England Have Learned From The 6 Nations

1) England's pack is world class - even with injuries

The strength in depth in the English pack can rival anyone. England’s pack has had a lot of injury troubles over the last few years, and although this is never good to see, it has given a lot of players the chance to lay down a marker and gain some vital experience. With a lot of players having come back from injury (Parling, Wood), and some hoping to make a return before the World Cup (Launchbury, Morgan), it is clear that England have a world class pack, and crucially, a world class set piece heading into this years World Cup. The injury to Morgan allowed Billy Vunipola to lay down a marker, and put in his best performances in an England shirt. Whilst players such as Attwood and Haskell didn't impress as much as many had hoped, failing to bring their club form to the international stage, players like Cole (who would not have been rushed in to the side without injuries), Kruis, Parling and Billy V showed the strength in depth in this pack. It would be a crime not to mention that the strength of this pack is largely down to the exceptional coaching by Graham Rowntree, who has been consistently seen to demand more from his players.

Team of the Tournament (2) - 6 Nations

What an exciting final day to the RBS Six Nations, possibly the best yet.  Each game was better than the previous and after England failed to win by the necessary points, Ireland took home the trophy. Here we have a look at the second opinion on our team of the tournament.

Team of the Tournament (1) - 6 Nations 2015

With Four Balls comes 2 opinions, so we have put together two teams of players that we believe have earned their place in the team of the tournament with some scintillating performance in this year's 6 Nations.

England vs France - Preview

England have the advantage of the highest points difference, and they play last, knowing exactly what is required of them to win the 6 Nations Championship, and they can adapt their game plan to the situation. France of course have the slimmest of chances of winning the Championship as well, if Ireland and Wales lose and they beat the English, but that seems sensationally unlikely. 

England actually started quite strongly last week, which makes a change, as the French played the most dire half of rugby I've ever had the misfortune to watch. We actively decided not to review it, because it was too painful to relive those memories. Last week we predicted Jack Nowell would have a good game against the Scots, and of course he did, marred slightly by handling errors but he looked very dangerous on the ball. He will look to carry that in to this game, and will be seeking the buzz of a Twickenham try once more. Geoff Parling returns to the England side, which will delight the fans as Attwood has looked slightly out of form of late, and the British & Irish Lion is just the man to come back and give the English pack a lift.

Scotland vs Ireland - Preview

The second game on Saturday sees a Scottish side desperate to avoid the wooden spoon host an Ireland side that last week lost for the first time in 11 games. Scotland will give it their all, they gave England a slight scare going in to the break 13-10 up last week, although they were comfortably the worse side throughout the match. They will be riled up, desperate to perform and to cause an upset against an Irish side that don't travel well under Schmidt. If the Irish push for a large points difference, they could come unstuck playing a style they are unfamiliar with so I'm sure Schmidt will send them out with the sole objective of winning and that will be that.

Italy vs Wales - Preview

The Irish and English will be worried that the Welsh could really pile the pressure on them with a big win here against a Parisse-less Italian side that were pitiful in their 29-0 loss to the French. In order to take advantage of a side lacking in confidence, Wales will need to start the game strongly and quell the Italian support and spirit. The crowd were down and out after watching an abysmal performance from their side, and if 15 minutes can go by without an Italian score and a few kicks of Halfpenny's boot then I expect Wales could really kick on and put the Italians to the sword. 

Steve Walsh Retires From Refereeing With Immediate Effect.

Just a quick one on the Steve Walsh saga. The referee with the 3rd most test rugby refereeing appearances (56 tests) has retired with immediate effect to pursue business prospects outside of the sport. We'll miss the man, but we'll miss his hair more.

Seriously though, look at those locks - beautiful.

How Gorgeous Is Steve Walsh's Hair?

Team of Round 4 - 6 Nations

Back 3 - Leigh Halfpenny, Stuart Hogg & Jack Nowell:

Slightly cheating by including Hogg as a winger, but all three players deserve their spot with fantastic performances. Halfpenny and his famous boot helped Wales to a massive victory against the Irish, whilst Stuart Hogg kept Wales and Ireland in the 6 Nations title race by making some sensational try-saving tackles. Jack Nowell looked exciting, and although he fumbled the ball a few times he always looked dangerous, and he could be very influential against France at the weekend. Nakaitaci was unlucky to miss out after a good debut, but these three were pretty awesome this weekend.

2015 6 Nations - Final Weekend Predictions

If you are a regular reader you will know we don't usually predict exact scores, but given the importance of points difference in this year's tournament we thought we'd give it a go.