:00:19. > :00:27.Good evening. No, that's not the Severn Bridge behind me. We've come
:00:27. > :00:31.up North to Humberside where this weekend Cardiff City will hope to
:00:32. > :00:37.continue their promising start to life in the Premier League against
:00:37. > :00:46.Hull City Tigers. That and so much more. Stay with us for Sport Wales.
:00:46. > :00:55.Cardiff City striker, Peter Odemwingie, on winning over the
:00:55. > :01:07.fans. Matthew Maynard on life after the tragic loss of his son. Talk
:01:07. > :01:11.about Tom, that's still too raw. Wales midfielder Joe Allen backs
:01:11. > :01:15.manager Chris Coleman. The players are happy with the management. That
:01:15. > :01:19.is not the problem at all. We are faithful that he will bring us
:01:19. > :01:24.success. Let's hear now from a man Wales could have done with over the
:01:24. > :01:29.last seven days, another member of the so-called Golden Generation. Joe
:01:29. > :01:33.Allen missed Macedonia and Serbia through injury, but Sport Wales
:01:33. > :01:37.caught up with him to get his thoughts on Wales, on life at
:01:37. > :01:52.Liverpool and the prospect of facing his former club, Swansea City.
:01:52. > :01:58.Chris Coleman, there is a contract on the table for him. Should he be
:01:58. > :02:02.allowed to carry on the other hand manage Wales into the next European
:02:02. > :02:05.campaign? Yes of course. All the play remembers happy with the
:02:05. > :02:10.management, that is not the problem at all. We are fateful he will bring
:02:10. > :02:14.us success. We want to see him sign the contract and take us into the
:02:14. > :02:18.next campaign. You know very very very very well, he has had harsh
:02:18. > :02:22.ways to say in the wake of those two defeats. Is there anything you can
:02:22. > :02:27.put your finger on, the way things used to work, under Gary Speed
:02:27. > :02:31.speed, to how things now work under Chris Coleman? Raymond is outspoken
:02:31. > :02:35.anyway. He is entitled to his opinion. From the players' point of
:02:35. > :02:39.view who see it from the inside and the way we are trying to play,
:02:39. > :02:43.tactically the way we are set up and the way we prepare for games is
:02:43. > :02:47.almost identical. That is unfair criticism. We are doing everything
:02:47. > :02:54.right except when the whistle goes out on the pitch, it hasn't quite
:02:54. > :03:02.clicked. COMMENTATOR: Bale. Shot. Oh, almost
:03:02. > :03:07.through. It's important you don't become a one man team. We can't make
:03:07. > :03:11.a secret about the fact he is our key man. He is the most expensive
:03:11. > :03:14.player in the world now. That represents how important he is to
:03:14. > :03:18.us. When he is not out there on the pitch it has an affect on us. We
:03:18. > :03:21.have to minimise that as much as we can.
:03:21. > :03:29.COMMENTATOR: Back to Allen. Still not cleared. Until reconveniently --
:03:29. > :03:38.recently you were the most expensive Welshman in history a move from
:03:38. > :03:44.Liverpool -- Swansea to Liverpool? Just the 70 million difference now!
:03:44. > :03:48.Extraordinary. If Gareth Bale walked down in the high street in Cardiff
:03:48. > :03:52.where he came from, he would be mobbed. Could you walk down your
:03:52. > :03:57.high street in Pembrokeshire, would people come up to you? I wouldn't
:03:57. > :04:02.get mobbed, that is for sure. Not at all. When they meet me they see me
:04:02. > :04:07.as a normal person. Yeah, nothing has really changed since I was a kid
:04:07. > :04:12.growing up there. I wanted to ask you how it has been being a
:04:12. > :04:17.Liverpool player, being at this club and the history? Everybody knows the
:04:17. > :04:23.stature of the club from the outside and the history to a degree. When
:04:23. > :04:26.you get here you realise how fanatical the support is and how
:04:26. > :04:31.global it is as well. COMMENTATOR: Liverpool have the
:04:31. > :04:36.breakthrough. There is a massive media focus on the club. Whether it
:04:36. > :04:40.is good or bad. There has been a lot of negativity this summer. Transfer
:04:40. > :04:46.window has closed. You are glad about that? Yeah. I think a lot of
:04:46. > :04:51.people breathe a shy of relief. We all know someone like Luis Suarez is
:04:51. > :04:58.a player that can make a difference in our campaign. On Monday, the
:04:58. > :05:02.Swans face Liverpool, minus the suspend suspended Suarez at the
:05:02. > :05:07.Liberty. Liverpool are the current league winners. Swansea stunned the
:05:07. > :05:12.last time the sides met. A 5-0 thrashing at Anfield in February.
:05:12. > :05:17.Two men returning to their old base, Brendan Rodgers, the former Swans
:05:17. > :05:21.boss, and Allen back to fitness after shoulder and hamstring
:05:21. > :05:26.problems. It is a strange feeling. There are are great people at that
:05:26. > :05:30.club. I have some great friends, great memories. The fans are always
:05:30. > :05:37.great with me. As a Liverpool player I hope we can go there and get three
:05:37. > :05:44.points. Cameron ends his (inaudible) on the opposite man, Shelvey leaving
:05:44. > :05:50.Liverpool in the summer after being denied regular action at Anfield.
:05:50. > :05:55.I'm not going to try these Hollywood passes. I will play my normal game
:05:55. > :05:59.and get settled into the game. There are a lot of links between the two
:05:59. > :06:04.clubs with Brendan, Joe and myself. It will be a tough game. It will be
:06:04. > :06:08.an enjoyable game as well I think. I think they have added some great
:06:08. > :06:18.players to what is already a strong squad. So I hope they, bar Monday, I
:06:18. > :06:25.hope they have a good season. Are joined by BBC football pundit and
:06:25. > :06:32.form former roirld international, Kevin Kilbane kill. Joe Allen and
:06:32. > :06:37.Brendan Rodgers back at the Liberty. Tough ask for Swansea. How do you
:06:37. > :06:40.see it going on Monday night? The main worry, you are looking at
:06:40. > :06:45.Sturridge, whether he will be fit or not, you have Gerrard, they are
:06:45. > :06:49.quality footballers. They can take encouragement from the West Brom
:06:49. > :06:53.performance. I was at that game, they were good on the counter
:06:53. > :06:58.attack. They looked so good. At times against Manchester United so I
:06:58. > :07:02.think they have a lot of quality. Everybody recognises that. They have
:07:03. > :07:07.their eye on Europe. It will be difficult for Laudrup to get that
:07:07. > :07:10.consistency from Premier League to European football. Do you see
:07:10. > :07:14.Swansea at the end of the season? You said a difficult season for
:07:14. > :07:19.them? If they finish mid-table again, have a decent run in Europe.
:07:19. > :07:23.They have the style of football that can suit European football, the
:07:23. > :07:25.difficulty is the Thursday night European matches and coming back
:07:25. > :07:28.from where they are playing in Europe to get the full squad back
:07:28. > :07:32.together for the Sunday game. Whether or not the squad is big
:07:32. > :07:37.enough to cope with that remains to be seen yet. If they finish
:07:37. > :07:45.mid-table or in and around 12th or 13th that will be a good season for
:07:45. > :07:49.them. Thank you. It's been another difficult and painful week for Welsh
:07:49. > :07:55.football having lost in Macedonia and at home to Serbia. The national
:07:55. > :07:59.side now are at the bottom of their World Cup qualifying Group. The
:07:59. > :08:05.pressure is building on manager Chris Coleman. It's been a tough
:08:05. > :08:11.week for Chris Coleman. COMMENTATOR: That is the final
:08:11. > :08:20.whistle. Wales have been beaten by Macedonia by 2-1.
:08:20. > :08:31.COMMENTATOR: Kolarov, oh, what a goal!
:08:31. > :08:37.The boos will tell you, it's another defeat for Wales. I don't blame the
:08:37. > :08:45.supporters for being this disappointed. I don't blame them if
:08:45. > :08:49.sections are calling for my head. As if to rub salt into the wounds,
:08:49. > :08:53.Scotland's win over Macedonia leaves Wales facing the prospect of
:08:53. > :09:00.finishing bottom of a Group for the first time in almost a quarter of a
:09:00. > :09:05.century. He is isolated there. They need more experience in and around
:09:05. > :09:10.Chris. One experienced manager has already paid the price for a poor
:09:10. > :09:15.campaign with Ireland's Giovanni Trapattoni getting the sack. In
:09:15. > :09:25.comparison, Cole's results are less favourite. His 25% ratio is the
:09:25. > :09:29.worse of Wales' managers. Criticism comes with the territory for all of
:09:29. > :09:37.us. When we lose games, that's going to be the case. We are where we are.
:09:37. > :09:44.The manager has been backed by most fellow professionals and pundits.
:09:44. > :09:49.That is no surprise to Gary Speed's assistant, Raymond Verheijen. It's
:09:49. > :09:55.jobs-for-the-boys. Jobs for their former team-mates. Haven't been the
:09:55. > :09:59.only source of Cole's blurbs. A forgotten passport caused delay and
:09:59. > :10:03.match embarrassment before the trip to Macedonia. James Collins didn't
:10:03. > :10:08.need a passport having not been picked. Was, according to Coleman,
:10:08. > :10:12.was given a call up for Serb yachlt He explained he didn't want to come
:10:12. > :10:18.into the squad after being on stand by, psychologically he was
:10:18. > :10:24.disappointed. OK. -- Serbia. That is not the attitude I'm looking for.
:10:25. > :10:32.I'd rather someone turn up and say, I got it wrong. I should be in the
:10:32. > :10:37.squad. Player and manager with two different accounts of the story.
:10:37. > :10:40.It's as clear as mud or Cole's new contract situation. I should really
:10:40. > :10:44.be signing a contract very soon. We need to get this block of games out
:10:44. > :10:50.of the way. He is still under contract. It two or three months to
:10:50. > :10:55.go, if I'm correct. Whatever was two months ago is still in place. He is
:10:55. > :10:58.still there at least to November. Who know what is happens after that.
:10:58. > :11:03.When he was offered this contract he was in a good position with two wins
:11:03. > :11:09.under his belt. The one fault is that Chris hasn't signed it yet.
:11:09. > :11:12.Kevin Kilbane, 110 caps for the Republic of Ireland. Onto
:11:12. > :11:18.international matters. Would Wales hold any fear for anybody? Losing
:11:18. > :11:22.3-0 at home to Serbia? It can be a mentality thing with the players,
:11:22. > :11:26.perhaps. If you are not playing well enough and not consistent enough you
:11:26. > :11:29.can go into every game with dread and fear and expecting the worse to
:11:29. > :11:32.happen. You give Chris Coleman that bit of time he would want to help
:11:33. > :11:37.that team progress, I'm sure they have the quality within the team.
:11:37. > :11:41.Chris Coleman said after the Serbia game, James Collins had made himself
:11:41. > :11:45.unavailable for that game. Collins himself has since said, that is not
:11:45. > :11:49.true. He always wanted to play for his country. This whole thing leaves
:11:49. > :11:55.a bad taste in the mouth, doesn't it? It does. It puts a negative feel
:11:55. > :12:01.around the next squad when they meet up. There would be questioned asked.
:12:01. > :12:07.That bridge may not be -- cap may not be able to be bridged between
:12:07. > :12:11.them. Should Wales think of foreign managers? I don't think so. Chris
:12:11. > :12:16.Coleman has not been in the job that long. I don't know how many games he
:12:16. > :12:21.has had off the top of my head. He won three from 12. 12 games in
:12:21. > :12:25.charge. Not a lot when you look at it like that. If Chris Coleman is
:12:25. > :12:29.given more of a chance, get to the end of this Group campaign, review
:12:29. > :12:33.it at the end of the Group and see where he is going to. If it is to be
:12:34. > :12:39.a foreign coach you would look for immediate impact. Wales are down the
:12:39. > :12:46.seedings. They are in a lower Group, lower pot when the Groups are drawn.
:12:46. > :12:52.Would want it? There would be a lot. Would there really? I mentioned
:12:52. > :12:56.about the players they have got, even Craig Bellamy and other players
:12:56. > :13:01.within the squad, they have quality. Everybody recognises that. We will
:13:01. > :13:05.talk more shortly. Now then, last weekend one of the toughest long
:13:05. > :13:10.distance triathlons on the European circuit took place in Tenby. The
:13:10. > :13:15.Ironman Wales event attracts athletes from all over the world in
:13:15. > :13:22.which professionals and amateurs can take part. So we sent a Welsh
:13:22. > :13:33.Olympian, Christian Malcolm, to see what the day is all about. It is
:13:33. > :13:42.Saturday night and as you can see it as a little bit quiet here. Athletes
:13:42. > :13:47.will be competing in a three-day gruelling event, like a triathlon
:13:47. > :13:54.but much tougher. What made you want to do it?
:13:54. > :13:59.I'm not too sure really. Just to prove to myself that I can do
:13:59. > :14:04.anything I want to. It is a big accomplishment and everybody is
:14:04. > :14:11.proud of me. I couldn't swim so I had to learn to
:14:11. > :14:15.swim. I've had so much support from family and friends. I want to do it
:14:15. > :14:21.for them and my dad who is not with us any more. And my mum who is not
:14:21. > :14:39.so well at the moment. I want to try and please a lot of people.
:14:39. > :14:47.It is nearly 7am and there is no turning back now. It is looking
:14:47. > :14:54.pretty cold in this they. They were led out by the
:14:54. > :14:59.professional athletes on a two 1/2-mile swim. Each stage of the
:14:59. > :15:02.race a cut-off time and for this when it was two hours and 20
:15:02. > :15:08.minutes. Elite professionals finished the swim in just over 47
:15:08. > :15:13.minutes. They make their way to the first
:15:13. > :15:21.transition and here is the first of the women athletes.
:15:21. > :15:29.I couldn't help worrying how Pat, who couldn't swim until recently,
:15:29. > :15:40.was getting on. Now they move onto the bikes.
:15:40. > :15:47.I was so relieved to see Pat set of on the 102 mile bike ride.
:15:47. > :15:58.The cycle route took them on this journey. There were some punishing
:15:58. > :16:02.climbs. They are approaching the end of the
:16:02. > :16:10.big race and of the leader has a time of just over five hours. The
:16:10. > :16:15.woman's leader is at just over 5.5 hours.
:16:15. > :16:23.I needn't have worried about Pat as he finished in just over 7.5 hours.
:16:23. > :16:30.He was well below the deadline and looking pretty fresh.
:16:30. > :16:34.Whole of the county has engaged with Ironman and throughout the year you
:16:34. > :16:40.see people out cycling. It has a really positive impact on the
:16:40. > :16:50.county. Just the small case of a marathon
:16:50. > :16:59.though. The four lap circuit was as demanding as the bike ride.
:16:59. > :17:15.Here he comes in a final time of nine hours and ten minutes.
:17:15. > :17:22.It is the best feeling in the world. The support was incredible. It is
:17:22. > :17:28.the best race I have ever done. I waited nervously for Jonathan and
:17:28. > :17:36.Pat at the finish line. Jonathan eventually completed the course in
:17:36. > :17:48.just under 13 hours. I did feel that smack how did it feel coming across
:17:48. > :17:56.the finish line? It was great. An outstanding achievement. I wish
:17:56. > :18:04.you all the best. Cheers. As darkness fell, Pat was still out
:18:04. > :18:09.there. With nearly 15 hours on the clock, it was a great site to see
:18:09. > :18:17.him coming through to complete his first Ironman at nearly retirement
:18:17. > :18:28.age. All Mac that is my CV finished now.
:18:28. > :18:41.I can't top that. This is for my dad. I past the church where he is
:18:42. > :18:53.buried several times and said hello. That got me -- that kept me going.
:18:53. > :19:00.These men and women truly deserve to be called Ironman.
:19:00. > :19:04.Back to football and while all eyes were on Gareth Bale on transfer
:19:04. > :19:07.deadline day, a Nigerian international who grew up in Russia
:19:07. > :19:12.was making his way from West Brom to Cardiff City. A reporter caught up
:19:12. > :19:32.with Peter Odemwingie. When Cardiff since Nigerian striker
:19:32. > :19:43.Peter Odemwingie from West Bromwich Albion they knew what the word
:19:44. > :19:49.getting -- what they were getting. My transfer was the last to go
:19:49. > :19:55.through. I wish it was before that but I was happy.
:19:55. > :20:00.They have also signed a player whose transfer deadline day whereabouts
:20:00. > :20:10.had made headlines. The most bizarre sight was Peter
:20:10. > :20:15.Odemwingie. He arrived without any deal agreed.
:20:15. > :20:30.When I got there there was no deal in place but there was a deal and it
:20:30. > :20:42.fell through and my calculation because of problems on the rent. --
:20:42. > :20:59.problems on the end. I found this in you the full city. It is a great
:20:59. > :21:11.group. -- a beautiful city. They have been very helpful with
:21:11. > :21:17.advice. After just one week here, I can see why they were so successful
:21:17. > :21:24.last season and have started the season so well.
:21:24. > :21:30.The team has already had a headline-grabbing victory over
:21:30. > :21:50.Manchester city. I was told that the atmosphere was
:21:50. > :22:12.fantastic. Hull city had a great start to the
:22:12. > :22:16.season. They looked really good. I'm not at 100% yet but I have got the
:22:16. > :22:18.confidence. How many goals will you score this
:22:18. > :22:43.season? First of all it is the team. If they
:22:43. > :22:48.get everything they want to achieve I will feel fantastic going on
:22:48. > :22:55.holiday. What have the players showing you?
:22:55. > :23:01.They have shown me this. I am prepared for it. Thanks to people at
:23:01. > :23:09.the club. I will happily join in and have a laugh.
:23:09. > :23:17.Peter Odemwingie, certainly pleasing the Cardiff fans. How do you think
:23:17. > :23:23.you will do? I think he will do well. He is a
:23:23. > :23:29.quality footballer and can score goals.
:23:29. > :23:38.Will Malky Mackay's approach to this weekend's game the difference? I
:23:38. > :23:43.think Hull will be slight favourites with them being at home but the
:23:43. > :23:49.mindset of both teams will be different to that in the previous
:23:49. > :23:54.games. I hate myself for saying this so
:23:54. > :24:03.early in the season but is it a six pointer? You could argue that. I
:24:04. > :24:13.don't think the managers will be telling the players that but they
:24:13. > :24:21.could see it that way. I would probably set on the fence and say it
:24:21. > :24:27.is going to be a draw. It has been a pleasure having you on. Thank you.
:24:27. > :24:33.Cheers. The cricket now and Glamorgan's long
:24:33. > :24:39.wait for silverware could come to an end next weekend as they travel the
:24:39. > :24:43.Lords of the YB40 final. Sport Wales went to meet Matthew Maynard, who
:24:43. > :24:49.won for Torpey is the county to reflect on their chances and to talk
:24:49. > :25:04.about life after the tragic death of his son Tom, the last Welshman to
:25:04. > :25:17.win at Lord's -- 14 trophies for the county.
:25:17. > :25:22.14 months have passed since Wales lost one of its brightest sporting
:25:22. > :25:30.lights. Tom Maynard was just 23 when his life was tragically cut short in
:25:30. > :25:40.June 2012. I can talk about tone but not the
:25:40. > :25:46.event. That is still too raw. There is more of a network of support for
:25:46. > :25:58.us here and it is good to be back. Even though I am going off for
:25:58. > :26:08.little periods the coach. When you think of Tom Watt brings a
:26:08. > :26:21.smile to your face? It is still hard to think about the good times. But
:26:21. > :26:36.just his demeanour. Not so much cricket stuff, just how he was as a
:26:36. > :26:41.guy. I've had to get the players here but
:26:41. > :26:50.the support of them has been terrific. Virtually all of them knew
:26:50. > :26:57.Tom and they've just offered the services which has been incredible.
:26:57. > :27:06.Tom again his career at Glamorgan with Matthew as head coach. Both
:27:06. > :27:12.left under a cloud in the winter of 2011.
:27:12. > :27:22.It is a huge commitment. I just haven't got the time or the
:27:22. > :27:25.inclination or drive to have 12 hours every day involved in the
:27:25. > :27:33.sport. Matthew Maynard lasts the Lord's
:27:33. > :27:40.final but he did when they trophies including the 1993 triumph. Hugh
:27:40. > :27:45.Morris is now looking for a new coach.
:27:45. > :27:53.Does that open the door for the potential return of yourself? Not
:27:53. > :28:02.for the full-time position. I would like to get involved with the team
:28:02. > :28:08.and one day be the health head coach but if I missed that opportunity
:28:08. > :28:15.because I'm not applying this time, I will support the team.
:28:15. > :28:26.They seem to have turned the corner this year. I thought they were
:28:26. > :28:37.absolutely brilliant in the semifinal. I will be going down with
:28:37. > :28:41.a group of friends and enjoying the day.
:28:41. > :28:50.And the last Welshman to win was Tom.
:28:50. > :28:55.Yes, we've got lots of photos and videos from that day and it was a
:28:55. > :29:01.great occasion. We will be with Glamorgan as they
:29:01. > :29:15.travel to Essex for the four dayer for the YB40 final. That is it for
:29:15. > :29:18.tonight. We are back next Thursday at 7pm. Until then, nostalgia. --