By Chris Kirwan
June 22 2003

Only Twenty20 Cricket is keeping me amused in the football lull. To make matters worse the Confederations Cup is tedious and Wimbledon's starting...

There’s only two weeks until July where me might actually see some action on the transfer front. Moyes stated on www.evertonfc.com a week back: “There isn’t likely to be much happening until July”. Nonetheless rumours of the ilk of "my mate’s uncle works at Bellefield and just saw Koumas in an Everton tracksuit" pop up.

But for now we have to endure a fortnight of Wimbledon; my most hated sporting event of the year. Quite simply it is a dire excuse for entertainment….

1. Any totty involved is actually crap and goes home early, and Kournikova isn’t even there this year.
2. It is for middle-aged women with hairy faces to wave their union jacks, which are usually saved for a Royal event.
3. They refer to players as "Tim", "Greg", "Martina", "Tarquin". They have surnames....use them.
4. Henman is rubbish, yet he's always praised and in the running for sports personality of the year..... that's like putting Tottenham Hotspur forward for team of the year.
5. The crowd always laugh like they have never seen it before when some 'card' gives a ballboy his racket and lets them play. That is how easy it is to be a 'character' in tennis.
6. Sue Barker has a leather face, with more folds in it that an origami evening class.
7. Ribbing is considered a 'faux pas'. What's wrong with shouting abuse as the player is about to serve?
8. They do 3 minutes work then have a sit down and a banana and a glass of Robinsons.

Back on the football front I think we can safely assume that there will be a couple of new arrivals in the midfield department. The midfield problems of last season have even let to some debating the role of Nyarko when he returns. The Blues will not be able to sell the Ghanaian international, but I cannot see the worth of putting him anywhere near the first team squad. The Blues would be better off writing off the £4.5 million and just letting some other club pick up his wages while on loan until his contract expires.

It seems that McLeod is off, and that Clarke may follow in the near future. Understandably fans are disappointed when home-grown talent leaves, and many have been highlighting the age of Weir and Stubbs as reason to hang on to Clarke, but the Blues cannot afford to have 21/22 year-olds clogging up the squad.

The Blues have plenty of average players, and Moyes has clearly decided that some of those who have come up through the ranks are not going to make it. Sometimes younger players need to drop down to realise their full potential, but the people at the club are paid to make a decision when they realise that Grant/Branch/Cadamarteri/Jevons just won’t make it. Some would have Clarke playing a more important role in the first team squad, and whether or not this will happen will be determined in the next 8 weeks, but from what I saw under Smith I wouldn’t be prepared to make that move. Although Smith played him out of position at full-back he lacked the poise and determination, and failed to take his chance like Hibbert.

The only good thing is that once Henmania has passed the Intertoto Cup will be in full swing, and the preseason friendlies will be upon us. And at 5 p.m. on Tuesday Sky will be announcing their lives games for the new season, with the pay-per-view games announced on the Thursday.