Cardiff Blues

The stage is set at Wembley Stadium for the 2012 Carling Cup Final on Sunday, in which Championship club Cardiff City and English Premier League power Liverpool will battle on the pitch for the Football League Cup.

The Bluebirds were dealt a relatively favorable hand on the way to London, needing to overcome but one Premiership side (Blackburn Rovers) in pursuit of their first League Cup.

The Reds, meanwhile, had to outlast the likes of Stoke City, Chelsea and Manchester City on the path to their eighth Carling Cup and what may turn out to be their first new piece of hardware of any kind since 2006.

Where: Wembley Stadium, London, England

When: Sunday, February 26th at 11:00 a.m. EST

Watch: Fox Soccer Channel, BBC One 

Live Stream: FoxSoccer.tv, BBC Online

Player to Watch for Cardiff: Peter Whittingham

Peter Whittingham is the engine that makes Cardiff's attack go.

The 27-year-old English midfielder leads the Bluebirds in goals (10) and assists (12) in 38 matches between the Carling Cup and the Championship.

This will mark Whittingham's third career appearance against Liverpool, though Sunday's match will be far and away the most important such match of his career.

Player to Watch for Liverpool: Luis Suarez

Luis Suarez has been nothing if not a lightning rod of controversy this season.

His ongoing racial row with Manchester United's Patrice Evra has brought shame and humiliation upon one of England's proudest and most historic clubs.

Leading Liverpool to a win at Wembley would go a long way toward restoring Luisito's honor, respect and credibility with the Reds, who last lifted the League Cup in 2003. 

Key Matchup: Suarez vs. Cardiff's Back Line

There's little reason to worry about Liverpool's defence—it's been one of the stingiest in England all season.

The Reds' concerns, rather, have laid with their attack, which has struggled to score with and without Luis Suarez.

Still, Kenny Dalglish will need Luisito, whose he has backed through thick and thin, to reward his unwavering faith with some creativity against Cardiff's back line.

What They're Saying

Sunday's match will be particularly meaningful for Craig Bellamy. The Liverpool striker is a Cardiff native and played for the Bluebirds last season while on loan from Manchester City.

Bellamy will be fit to play at Wembley after suffering from back spasms, though don't expect him to celebrate in excess should he score against Cardiff:

"I certainly won't celebrate. I tried not to against Man City [another former club; in the semi-final], I tried to hold myself back. Really I didn't celebrate that much but in the occasion and the moment you get a little bit carried away. I have no aspirations of celebrating. But I have to be on the pitch first and foremost before I think about scoring.

"It will be a strange situation as it's the first time I've ever played against them. It's not something I've looked forward to doing, to be honest. My father's a big Cardiff fan and it's the club I used to go to when I was very young. I set one ambition in my life to play for them and I was able to do that."

Steven Gerrard is just as excited for the match as Bellamy, if not more so.

The long-time Liverpool midfielder shared his feelings with the Liverpool Echo about Sunday's importance as an opportunity for the Reds to turn over a new leaf after six years without a trophy:

"I'm hoping this is just the beginning for us. It would be stupid to win the Carling Cup and then rest on our laurels," the midfielder said. "This is an important cup for us but there are other big prizes we want to strive for.

"I honestly believe winning this cup will be the catalyst for a successful period for the club. It will certainly give us the belief and confidence to deliver more."

 

Prediction: Liverpool 1, Cardiff 0

It will be a monumental struggle for Liverpool to put the ball in the net, though once they do, they'll clamp down on Cardiff to claim the Carling Cup as their own.

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Cardiff Blues utility back line player, and Wales international superstar Gareth Thomas rocked the rugby world with his recent announcement stating he is a gay.

While some of his teammates and Cardiff Blues head coach Scott Johnson have known this since 2006 when Thomas told them, this is the first time Gareth made his sexuality known to the public. This is a groundbreaking announcement and makes Gareth Thomas the first openly gay rugger who is still playing.

While it is difficult to gauge the reaction to Thomas' announcement, at first glimpse it appears the response has been very positive from the fans that this blogger has been in contact with.

While that is not surprising, it is very comforting to see the general public is that open and accepting. At the end of the day Gareth Thomas is Wales most capped individual and one of their all time great players. This is what fans care about, not what is going on in his personal life.

As an American sports blogger this case brings up another interesting situation. For the past few years there has been the debate of could an American athlete, most specifically a football player, come out of the closet and be accepted by his teammates and friends? The popular argument has been no, it is not possible for an American athlete to come out and be accepted. And for the most part I have always agreed with that line of thought.

However, after hearing today's news and reading and speaking with people, I am recanting my previous position. While I am sure this was not an easy task for Gareth Thomas, and he will have plenty of hurdles ahead of him, I have no doubt that he did the right thing. He has the right to be proud of who he is. As far as him being a rugby player, anyone who questions that needs only look at his 100 international test appearances.

What I am learning form this situation is perhaps the public is more accepting than I originally anticipated. Could it be that the old cynic is gaining faith in humans? Well I may not go that far just yet, but I will say this could be a small bright spot.

Gareth Thomas is a great rugger, and at the end of the day, that is all that matters. Let's move on.

Well done to Edinburgh for a good result away from home, facing down an admittedly poor Cardiff team and coping with the usual performance from G. Clancy, Esq.

Did I say Edinburgh?  Oh, I meant Glasgow.  Telling the difference between the Scottish pro teams must be getting hard for poor old BBC Wales, which made several references to John Beattie, Firhill, and playing Biarritz next week during the coverage of Edinburgh’s piss-poor display against the Ospreys.

Granted, Beattie (junior, I can only imagine) and Ally Hogg may share a hairdresser, and Edinburgh may have “Aberdeen” on their shirts to confuse matters further, but BBC Wales’s commentary "standards" (never mind the bias) gave me something to get excited about and shout at the telly for (not really the TV’s fault, I suppose), given I was long past the point of shouting at Edinburgh’s general ineptitude.

Roddy Grant looked sharper at the breakdown than pretty much the whole team put together, and Ospreys turned Edinburgh over almost at will.  A few chances went begging, but the inability to (or lack of desire to) keep the ball proved pretty foolish against an international class (and in many places, Lions equal world class) backline, who promptly cut them to shreds.

Good to see Nikki Walker looking sharp, though. Godman kicked perfectly from tee, so Mossy was not missed in that regard, but as one of the chaps pointed out on the BBC boards, his marshalling of the defensive line was sorely absent.  Stand-in fullback and new signing Steve Jones didn’t cover himself in glory, shall we say, but he should not be the scapegoat.

Meanwhile, new Glasgow fullback Peter Horne got one kick of the ball on Saturday and sclaffed it into touch.  As it was to end the match, I can’t really complain.  Still, it’s a good sign for a youngster that he looked thoroughly disappointed in himself even for something that had no bearing on the game.

The match had long since been won by the combined work of Colin Gregor and Thom Evans behind a sturdy pack effort, and this time, Glasgow did not surrender their halftime lead.  Huzzahs all 'round for pseudo-Highlander Moray Low’s boot up field that eventually led to Johnnie Beattie’s try (see Jonathan, he was playing for Glasgow).  With Cusiter undoubtedly the best nine Glasgow have, perhaps they should find somewhere else to bring Gregor’s skills into play on a more regular basis—10 or 15, perhaps?

Big Nathan looks like he would have had fun during the Leinster 30-0 demolition of Munster that brought several tries, a bit of controversy, and no doubt plenty of niggle.  A much better range of highlights from STV this week too; they are learning a game of rugby is not just the penalty offences that lead to points, and I reckon it’s getting better.

Next weekend—Heineken Cup!

A new look Edinburgh team under new coach Rob Moffat will seek a return to winning ways in Cardiff on Friday.

Some of the changes are enforced by injury—Edinburgh still have a long list of injured including Jim Hamilton, Dave Callam, and Ross Rennie—while others like Lions Ross Ford and Mike Blair are rested.

While the bench looks a little youthful/undercooked, look for sevens man Roddy Grant to lay down a marker while Scott Macleod will look to continue his road to redemption in the second row.

We also have Holland’s sole pro rugby player and a new signing from the Newcastle Falcons, Tim Visser, hoping to pin down a wing spot. And let’s not forget the return of Chunk!

Given performances in the preseason it’s difficult to tell if the players will be able to live up to last season's results, but I reckon Cardiff may be too strong for them, especially as they will be smarting after their home defeat to Edinburgh at the end of last season. I hope Moffat’s boys can prove me wrong, though.

Here's the Edinburgh roster set to face the Cardiff Blues: Chris Paterson, Mark Robertson, Ben Cairns, John Houston, Tim Visser, Phil Godman, Greig Laidlaw, Allan Jacobsen, Andrew Kelly, Geoff Cross, Craig Hamilton, Scott MacLeod, Alan MacDonald, Roddy Grant, and Allister Hogg (captain).

Substitutes: Sean Crombie, Kyle Traynor, Steve Turnbull, Fraser McKenzie, Ross Samson, David Blair, and Nick De Luca.

The game will be shown live on BBC2 Wales—see our Scottish Rugby on TV page for details of how to view this (basically have Sky or live in Wales).