Mark Stephens

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[West Bromwich Albion @WBA]

7.11.23. 🗓

Today marks Williams Syndrome Day, with 7q11.23 the area of chromosome deletion that signifies the disorder.

Twins Ashlee & Isabel volunteer at @WBAFoundation, with their father Paul, Head of Wellbeing.

This is their Williams Syndrome story. 💙

[Simon Phillips @siphillipssport]

Get @paulwinstanley9 and @Loz_Stew out this club ASAP.

[Football Tweet ⚽ @Footballtweet]

Nuno Espírito Santo with the most heart-warming press conference of his life. ❤️

What a beautiful gesture from, @NFFC. 👏👏

[Omid Djalili @omid9]

Quick story about Sven-Goran Ericksson (RIP). Such a good man, open and easy to talk to. You needed humility being the first “foreign” England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 manager, but one night we realised just how humble (and witty) he was.

At a charity dinner after the World Cup in 2006, when he was no longer England manager, I was lucky enough to be on his table. Finding my moment, I asked “why did you include a 17 year old Theo Walcott in the World Cup squad when he hadn’t played a single game in the Premier league?”

I didn’t want to upset him because it was a controversial decision at the time - he took an injured Wayne Rooney and a struggling Michael Owen but left out a fit and well Jermaine Defoe. But he replied “no, it’s a good question. Many would like to know. I could not say then, but I can now…” and explained his thinking with a measured response:

“You know, the countries that do well at World Cups always have a ‘secret weapon’. A player unknown to the other teams, to bring on as a substitute to help win a game in the latter stages. This was Theo. And we agreed to use him only in a semi-final or the final.” He and his assistant Tord Grip had seen Walcott in a reserve game at Arsenal and said Theo had “lightening pace” and was “extremely skilful.” Theo was “the perfect unknown quantity to surprise teams and steal a goal and win a championship. That’s why we took him, not Jermaine” he concluded.

I then offered “but Sven, in the quarter final v Portugal we lost on penalties. After Rooney got sent off, surely that was the time to bring on Walcott - not Peter Crouch as you did - to use Theo’s pace and score an extra time winner when we were down to 10 men?”

He looked at me as if it was the first time anyone had ever suggested the idea. He looked ruefully at all of us on the table and said “well now that you say it, yes maybe I should have. In retrospect, this was a mistake.”

The table went silent. We all seemed to be contemplating what could have been, for England and for Theo Walcott. Sven broke the silence with “Omid. Tell us a joke.” I laughed coz it was a delightfully off beat way to deflect, and without thinking, I did. A really inappropriate joke that got absolutely nothing. With a wink and a smile Sven then said “you see, it’s not always easy to think of the right thing to do in the moment, as Mr. Djalili just showed us, and so well.” Cue big laugh.

We understood at that moment, sometimes even the best laid plans can go to cock. And that’s life. It was new information and no one judged him.

Personally I was just thrilled he knew my name.

#SvenGoranEriksson

[MAH @matissearmani]

Wesley Fofana is in the right and Enzo Fernandez is in the wrong. You don’t just call out racism when it’s convenient. When it’s a burner account with 3 followers and a grey avi. You call it out when it’s those around you. Those with influence and reach. Those you considered friend/family. Expecting a disciplinary meeting from Chelsea.

[Restoring Your Faith in Humanity @HumanityChad]

Kiley has a rare genetic disorder called Williams Syndrome, resulting in development delays. Her sister said it’s hard for Kiley to make friends - which is why it was all the more special that 2 friends she met at camp last year drove 3 hours to surprise her on her 15th birthday.

[Jme @JmeBBK]

BANGER

[Wolves @Wolves]

Please don't suffer in silence.

There is 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 somebody that will listen.

[Mark Stephens @markkstephens]

@LondonBluePod Bounce Back Bottled

[Mark Stephens @markkstephens]

@LondonBluePod good luck breaking this one down.

[Goals Side @goalsside]

.@ChelseaFC

[Mark Stephens @markkstephens]

West Coast alarm clock to watch this. Depressing viewing. How do you do it every week? @nickverlaney @bbbusbee @dandormer #CheWol

[Mark Stephens @markkstephens]

@LondonBluePod we've seen both Bob and Robert Sanchez this evening. The emergence of the Bobert?

[Mark Stephens @markkstephens]

@ChelseaFCW absolutely robbed.

[Mark Stephens @markkstephens]

@nickverlaney Barely touched her, definitely not inside the box. Awful refereeing.

[Mark Stephens @markkstephens]

Thinking of @nickverlaney at this time. #Believe

[SPORTbible @sportbible]

Malaga CF have made a special kit for a child undergoing treatment for cancer 🥹🇪🇸

The young fan has a catheter on his left chest, where the club badge is and where he gets chemotherapy 🤕

Aurora, his physiotherapist, asked the club to make a shirt with the badge on the opposite side of his catheter 🙏

The Spanish club got back to Aurora within 24hrs with a special shirt, just for their young fan ❤️

A brilliant gesture from Malaga CF 👏

[BBC Sport @BBCSport]

This is what it's all about 💚

#FIFAWWC #AUS #SamKerr

[Nick Verlaney ⭐️⭐️ @nickverlaney]

Same. 😂