Post by Taxigirl on Nov 14, 2003 10:59:00 GMT
There are a couple of different stories on Friday's sports pages, with the broadsheets and the tabloids going their different ways.
The broadsheets seem to think that England's forthcoming Rugby World Cup semi-final with France is the biggest story, while their more compact cousins have decided that the Alan Smith affair is the real deal.
The news that Smith had been arrested and then called up to the England squad came in time for all of their first editions but only one paper, the Daily Express, reported that he was going to be axed just a few hours later.
The Daily Mirror and the Daily Mail tend to regard each other with barely-disguised loathing, but this time they are in agreement about one thing - their headlines.
Both papers decided Smith Farce was the only way to report the Leeds striker's hectic Thursday.
The Daily Star and Daily Express may be owned by the same man but they have totally different takes on the David O'Leary/Aston Villa/Leeds managerial saga.
The Star, the lippy younger brother of the two, says O'Leary is prepared to pay £2m to Villa to leave the Midlands outfit.
But the Express says the Irishman is staying at Villa Park despite Leeds offering him a £600,000 "golden hello".
For those who prefer their sport with a bit more thud and blunder England's stuttering Rugby World Cup campaign gets a good airing in the broadsheets.
Most of the stories concern the return of the Catt with more than nine lives, Mike of that ilk, who has actually been dropped by England at least 10 times.
After not being in the initial 43-man squad, Catt replaces bath team-mate Mike Tindall at centre for the France game.
The Times' Simon Barnes has a typically well-written piece recalling that England football manager Sir Alf Ramsey also changed his team at a crucial stage of a World Cup.
Alf of course went on to win the 1966 football World Cup - hence the Sir.
And there are plenty of English rugby fans hoping that "Sir" Clive can pull off a similar trick.
And finally, to the French, who are being typically Gallic about the whole affair.
The Times has some remarkable pictures of the France forwards looking mean and moody.
They were asked what they though of the pictures and some of the responses are, well, a little different to those England players might have offered.
Prop forward Sylvain Marconnet says his picture gives him a "wicked look, yet I have a rather convivial and happy face."
Oh la la! As they do really say in France.