Akinfenwa knows just how England feel <table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%" border="0"><tbody></tbody></table><table class="headerTable" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td><p class="headtypea">Jul 4 2006 </p></td></tr><tr><td><p class="headtypea"><b /></p></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2"><p class="headtypeb">Ian Hunt, Western Mail</p></td></tr></td /></tr /></tbody></table><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="400" border="0"><tbody><tr><td colspan="3"> </td></tr><tr><td colspan="3"><p class="headtypea" align="left">COMFORTING isn't exactly the right word. Not when you're an Englishman who's just seen his team knocked out of the World Cup on penalties yet again.</p><p class="headtypea" align="left">But at least the failure of Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Jamie Carragher to convert from the spot enabled Swansea City's Adebayo Akinfenwa to gain a little bit of perspective on his own costly penalty miss.</p><p class="headtypea" align="left">Back in May Akinfenwa was inconsolable after he missed his effort during the play-off final shoot-out at the Millennium Stadium and Barnsley went on to win the lottery to earn a place in the Championship at Swansea's expense.</p><p class="headtypea" align="left">But, as he faced more heat yesterday on his return to pre-season training, the 24-year-old striker could at least console himself that he's now in illustrious company in the wake of England's painful (if familiar) World Cup exit.</p><p class="headtypea" align="left">"What happened to those England players doesn't really ease the pain of my penalty miss and the fact Swansea aren't in the Championship," he said.<div class="center" id="mpuad" style="DISPLAY: inline"></div><a name="story_continue"></a><script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript"></script> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"But it does bring things into perspective and shows you we're all human and it does happen.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"Gerrard and Lampard are two of the best midfielders in the world, but they can still go up to the spot and miss a penalty."</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">For Lampard, Gerrard and Carragher in Gelsenkirchen on Saturday, read Akinfenwa in Cardiff on May 27.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"It was painful what happened at the weekend - England are my team, unless they're playing Nigeria (where his family hails from)," Akinfenwa said.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"When they missed those penalties, I said to my brothers that I know what they're feeling.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"And when they were sat down on the turf at the end, it brought back a whole bag of memories.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"The pain I felt after the play-off final, you'd have to multiply that by 100 to know how the England guys feel.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"For me, it was a play-off final, but for them this was the World Cup quarter-final. It's your country and there's so much riding on it.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"And at least we've got an immediate opportunity to try and make up for the play-off final disappointment.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"England have a four-year wait for the next World Cup!"</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">For Gerrard and co, the healing process is only just beginning. Akinfenwa reckons his mental recovery is just about complete.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">Yesterday's welcome-back training session, in which the Swans players surely would have shed any excess weight under the searing sunshine, would have focused his mind on the upcoming campaign.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">The Londoner said he had been through the emotional mangle in recent weeks.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"It's been topsy-turvy for me since the play-off final," Akinfenwa admitted.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"After missing the penalty in Cardiff, initially I was distraught. It was a kind of pain I'd never felt before.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"I switched my phone off because I couldn't talk to anyone. I couldn't face anyone.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"I went back to London to see my family because they're my support system. And religion is my strength as well.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"I also went away to America for two weeks with my brothers and they consoled me.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"It was only when I got back from America that I finally put the hurt to one side and told myself I had to look forward to the new season now.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and I hope I will come back stronger.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"There have to be winners and there have to be losers. Unfortunately we were the losers back in May, but next season we'll hopefully be winners.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"Last season I thought we were by far and away the best team in the division, and I think we can be even more powerful next season and get one of those top-two spaces."</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">Swans fans will pray Akinfenwa is right and play-off agony is avoided this time.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">But if it does come to that, and promotion should again be determined by the dreaded penalty shoot-out, would Akinfenwa put his name forward?</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"Yes, I would take a penalty again," he insists. "Generally I don't like to shy away. I like to put right what I've done wrong.</p> <p class="headtypea" align="left">"I'd have to say a big prayer first, though!"</p></p></td></tr></tbody></table>
Bless. Well, fair do's.</p> He sounds a dedicated religious type, who has searched his soul and got rid of the demons.</p> And he didn't slag us off.</p>
Leave me alone! It was deliberate. I was trying to create the American / religious twang to it, then realised you were about
"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger" Try telling that to Stephen Hawking. "But what about his strength of character etc?". I'd like to see his character shift a washing machine across a kitchen. I think you'll find I'm right, again.
Yup. I've lost 90% of my interest in this board. The other 10% are pictures of semi naked bints. The tickets arrived last neet. Have that. Nice high elbow. Foot to the pitch. Play through the line. Oh aye. Celery. Celery doesn't kill you ... and, allegedly, you use more calories to process it than it contains - so it doesn't make you stronger either. I think Adebayo Akinfenwa needs to stick to what he's best at ... missing penalites & having the best name in the world.
Those sunbeds are dangerous. Don't leave it hanging around too long. Did you not like my "serve dogs to the scrubbers" post? I've taken it a step further. Using a calculation that I just made up - I've worked out that if you took the entire entry pool of Crufts to *insert name of country that is currently starving to death*, then it would feed a small village for exactly 10 months. In fact - world famine would vanish if you took every dog that doesn't have a license from it's "owner" & shipped it off to the hungry, pot bellied darkies. Oh yes.
