Miracle on the Bosphorus

Posted a lot of old adverts here & quite a few music & movie clips but I've rarely posted Sports videos. That is quite an omission as Sport is crucial in media. Something Murdoch always understood; you can't timeshift Sports.

The headline link leads to the highlights of the greatest night of my life. When Liverpool won their 5th European cup after being 0-3 down at half-time. This fifth victory allowed Anfield to keep the trophy forever.

For me the event was particularly miraculous as several bizarre coincidences led to the moment of triumph. The great English novelist David Lodge noted that coincidences happen all the time in life but are not allowed in fiction. He also observed that fiction is all about sex & less about children; life is the other way around.

In 2004 I had been visiting my great friend & favourite client in Paris where he was terminally ill. I had treated myself to first class on the Eurostar train for the journey. As the train pulled out of Gare du Nord for my return trip the bag of the lady opposite fell down, nearly hitting me. She said "sorry" to which I replied "don't worry... I'm not American.. I won't sue you." She laughed and said in a clear New York accent "yeah, we're really bad now aren't we." First coincidence.

Thus began our brief encounter. I moved to sit next to her as we were getting along so famously. Being first class we had lunch together on the train & then shared a taxi once we arrived in London. It transpired that she was the literary agent of Dennis Lehane, the writer of Mystic River, Gone Baby Gone & Shutter Island.

A year or so later my new American literary friend asked me if I could do her a favour & meet Dennis while he was doing a book tour in Poland. This was like asking me if I could 'do her a favour' & meet Van Morrison, Kenny Dalglish or Sir Sean Connery. We agreed that I would join Dennis for a few jars at the Kempinski hotel in Warsaw on the 2nd April 2005. I took my Ukrainian-American friend Ed Assarabowski along with me in case it turned out that Mr. Lehane was the introverted lonely writer type. I needn't have worried as Dennis was Boston Irish & was blessed with the gift of the gab.

Mr. Lehane wasn't in his room when we arrived at the hotel so we thought we would wander down the street to the main church where the vigil was being held for the dying Polish Pope, Karol Jozef Wojtyla. Within minutes of our arrival the Pope died. Second coincidence.

We returned to the hotel, located Mr. Lehane & spent a marvellous evening discussing the wonderful Pope, working with Clint Eastwood and the Beantown based TV show 'Cheers.'

Three weeks later Liverpool were in the final of the European Cup, a minor miracle in itself. As every football fan knows we were losing 0-3 at half time to Berlusconi's AC Milan. But during the break it was our supporters who were singing the loudest.

Perhaps thanks to the extraordinary rendition of "You'll Never Walk Alone" our team was inspired to score 3 goals in 6 minutes. This forced extra time. In the dying seconds Andriy Shevchenko went clear, one on one, with Jerzy Dudek our Polish keeper. Dudek blocked the first shot but was faced with a second at point-blank range. Somehow he raised a hand & the ball went flying upwards to safety.

In the penalty shoot-out it came down to Shevchenko vs. Dudek for the third time in 10 minutes. Dudek saved again & Liverpool were Champions. Dudek later credited the Pope, who was also a goalkeeper, with the miracle of the double save. Coincidence number three.

I found out later that my friend Stephane had lost his long battle with cancer at around the time of the match. Coincidence number four.

I am not a religious person but 4 major coincidences does suggest a miracle. Or perhaps David Lodge is on the wiser side of statistics.