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PY O C E FRE A SWEEP FOR BATMAN PAGE 4

XPRESS

DAILY

Friday, January 9, 2009 VOL 2, NO 254 dailyxpress.net

WEEKEND TRAVEL

GOTCHA! Some 30,000 motorists will soon find traffic tickets in their letterboxes because there’s proof of them jumping red lights thanks to cameras installed at Bangkok’s major intersections >PAGE 2

Seeking Buddhist enlightenment in south India with THE FUN

CATCH A SHOW PAI GETS A FILLING OF REGGAE IN TWO WEEKS WITH THE ‘WE BE JAMMIN’ FEST PAGE 9

2 TODAY

Friday, January 9, 2009

THE CITY

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2,300

WEBSITES have recently been blocked by the government for allegedly insulting the monarchy.

A match made on TV Danupon ‘Brook’ Punnakan and Suvanarn ‘Kob’ Kongying to tie the knot

A

fter countless rumours, actorturned-politician Danupon “Brook” Punnakan and actress Suvanarn “Kob” Kongying are finally tying the knot, at a ceremony today at the Grand Centara.

Presided over by Pol Gen Pramarn Adireksarn, the wedding will be a traditional Thai affair: engagement ceremony followed by full nuptials and a water blessing.

Brook says the couple decided against a fancy party in deference to the seniors invited, his 95-year-old grandfather among them.

DAILY XPRESS/WATCHARACHAI KLAIPONG

DAILY XPRESS

Deputy city police chief Pol Maj-General Pharnu Kerdlarpphon shows a ticket that will be mailed to an offender, who’s actions were captured by a camera at one of Bangkok’s intersections.

YOUR NUMBER’S UP! Almost 30,000 Bangkok red-light-runners shot by new traffic cameras in the very first week

Soap-opera plot

By Mayuree Sukyingcharoenwong

Hitting the brakes

A 19-year-old Kob first met Brook over a decade ago when both had roles in Channel 7’s soap opera. She’s been open about the relationship ever since, and the rumour mill has been almost silent on her love life. Brook, 37, is now a member of the Phue Thai Party.

There were whispers that Brook’s mom Darika didn’t approve the marriage but harmony seems to have been restored. “My mum will be in charge of the ring,” says Brook.

Kob says that all has been ironed out and that she and her future mother-in-law are on good terms.

“It was a misunderstanding. I apologised, and she gave me tips on how to behave.”

With Kob, 30, still a popular actress, the wedding is bound to make headlines. The news hounds haven’t been invited, but the couple will hold a press conference.

DAILY XPRESS

“Since the cameras have been installed, more people are hitting the brakes when they spot yellow lights at intersections, rather than accelerating straight through.

I think that the number of road accidents will go down as a result,” Pharnu said.

The cameras snap details of a car’s speed and location, which are sent to the Central Control Centre’s hard disk along with the time and date.

A motorist failing to pay the fine within seven days of receiving it will have his vehicle licence number suspended until he settles the bill plus a Bt200-Bt300 latepayment penalty.

Pharnu said police would also be getting tough on motorists who altered their number plates, slapping them with Bt1,000 fines.

DAILY

XPRESS

I

n the eight days that traffic cameras have been operating at 30 Bangkok intersections, a whopping 28,866 motorists have been snapped running red lights, the majority at Ban Ma, Ratchada-Rama IV and Urupong intersections.

Fines in the post Besides the Bt500 fine, each motorist caught will be hit by a 40-point deduction to their driver’s licence, and repeat offence will result in licence suspension.

Police have so far sent out sent 20,000 traffic tickets, said deputy city police chief Pol Maj-General Pharnu Kerdlarpphon.

He expects the numbers caught to drop after this first phase as motorists’ awareness of the cameras grows.

Most of the violations occurred between 10pm and 1am and taxis were major perpetrators, he said.

Motorists’ reactions Not surprisingly, the reaction of motorists has been mixed, though there has been support for this new technology.

One driver who asked not to be named

XTRA POINTS ON DEDUCTION >> First-time offenders lose 40 points. >> Offend again within a year and your deduction will double to 80 points. Anyone with 60 or more points deducted will have his driver’s licence seized by police and have to attend three hours of training followed by an exam in which he must score more than 50 per cent. >> Re-offenders will have their licences suspended for up to 90 days, or even revoked entirely in extreme cases. Driving while one’s licence is suspended is punishable by Bt1,000 in fines and/or a one-month jail term; drive while it’s been seized and you face a Bt2,000 fine.

said that if police could put cameras at all intersections it would make motorists more cautious which was bound to save lives.

He added that it should also help stop the jams that build up when motorists have to brake at green lights because of vehicles running red lights across the intersection.

Editor: Tulsathit Taptim / Managing Editor: Thanong Khanthong / Deputy Managing Editors: Kumar Krishnan, Jintana Panyaarvudh / Design Editor: Leroy A Sylk Web Co-editors: Marisa Chimprabha, Paisal Chuenprasaeng / The City Editor: Chularat Saengpassa / The Fun Editor: Veena Thoopkrajae / Sport Editor: Preechachan Wiriyanupappong / Group Editor in Chief: Suthichai Yoon

>>DAILY XPRESS is edited by Tulsathit Taptim and published by NMG News Co Ltd, at 1854, Bang Na-Trat Road, Bangkok 10260, and printed by FOR DISPLAY ADVERTISING,PLEASE CALL (02) 338 3000 # 1 WPS (Thailand) Co Ltd, Tel (02) 338 3000, Fax (02) 338 3334. EDITORIAL: Tel (02) 338 3333. ON THE WEB: DAILYXPRESS.NET >>DAILY XPRESS is a supplement to subscriber copies of THE NATION with bonus distribution in selected areas of Bangkok and its environs every Monday to Saturday. The Sunday edition of DAILY XPRESS incorporates THE NATION. Subscription rates: one year Bt4,900 within regular delivery areas; please contact Customer Service on (02) 338 3000. For bulk copy subscription rates please call (02) 338 3532.

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NEWS

Friday, January 9, 2009

THE WORLD

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The number of wives boasted Nigerian preacher Mohammed Bello, who in defiance of the courts has vowed to marry more

Lighting the

AP

way to peace Members of the LA Jews for Peace hold a silent peace vigil protesting the Israeli-Hamas conflict in Gaza, outside the Israeli consulate in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

P O LY G A M Y

LETTER FIASCO

‘BOUNTIFUL BISHOP’ IN JAIL Sect leaders charged with having too many wives; face five years in prison AP, Vancouver

T

wo leaders of a polygamous community in western Canada have been arrested and charged with practising polygamy, British Columbia’s attorney general said on Wednesday.

Attorney General Wally Oppal said Winston Blackmore is charged with marrying 20 women, while James Oler is accused of marrying two women.

Oppal said it is the first test of Canada’s polygamy laws.

“This has been a very complex issue,” said Oppal, who has been weighing a case since he became attorney general in 2005. “It’s been with us for well over 20 years. The problem has always been the defence of religion has always been raised.”

Bounty in numbers Blackmore, long known as “the Bishop of Bountiful”, runs an independent sect of about 400 members in the town of Bountiful. He once ran the

Canadian arm of the Utahbased Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but was ejected in 2003 by that group’s leader, Warren Jeffs. Oler is the bishop of Bountiful’s FLDS community loyal to Jeffs.

The men could get five years in prison if convicted, Oppal said.

FLDS members practice polygamy in arranged marriages, a tradition tied to the early theology of the Mormon church. Mormons renounced polygamy in 1890 as a condition of Utah’s statehood.

One John Doe too many A F P , Washington

T

he US Army apologised Wednesday for mistakenly sending letters to 7,000 families of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan with the salutation “Dear John Doe”.

The letter, which was mailed on December 20, contained information about private organisations offering assistance to families who lost a soldier, but omitted specific names and addresses.

Where’s the name?

“The salutation says ‘Dear John Doe’, which was basically sort of a placeholder where the name of the individual or the recipient was supposed to be,” said Paul Boyce, an army spokesman.

Boyce said the error was not caught when the 7,000 let-

ters were printed, sorted and sent out to family members.

Glitches galore It learned about it from recipients who wrote back to say “the information was absolutely wonderful, but what you need to know, though, is that my particular letter had a glitch”, Boyce said.

“When we looked we noticed that all of them had that particular problem,” he said.

General George Casey, the army chief of staff, is sending a personal letter of apology to each of the families, he said.

“There are no words to adequately apologise for this mistake or for the hurt it may have caused,” Brigadier General Reuben Jones, the army’s chief administrative officer, said in a statement.

Friday, January 9, 2009

NEWS

DAILY XPRESS

BRAD PITT dismissed allegations that he cheated on his ex-wife Jennifer Aniston, saying: ‘We [Pitt and Angelina Jolie] were still filming [Mr and Mrs Smith] after Jen and I split up... it doesn’t mean that there was some kind of dastardly affair.”

Pakistan’s turned off by rap on Bhutto

LAURA BUSH ON NEW WHITE HOUSE CHINA

“I know they will be happy to have these two sets, as well, to be able to entertain heads of state that come in, as well as for their closest friends and family.”

briefly ‘Dark Knight’sweeps People’s Choice Awards

DPA, Islamabad

A

rap number written by the daughter of Pakistan’s slain former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, in which she pours out her grief, is making waves on the video-sharing website YouTube and in the international media, but hardly impresses anyone at home.

“I Would Take the Pain Away” is the chorus Bakhtawar, 18, raps in English – a language understood only

by Pakistan’s elite class.

For the vast rural population steeped in Islamic religion, rap is something completely foreign.

“Anguish filled everyone’s heart following Benazir’s assassination, but a rap song to commemorate the tragedy is something unforeseen,” said Abdul Majeed, as he scooped gravy at a roadside eatery.

The song was later posted on the video-sharing website YouTube and also repeatedly played on state-run Pakistan Television (PTV).

The fact that Bakhtawar’s father, Asif Ali Zardari, is now the country’s president aroused controversy over the song’s airtime on PTV. “Using state media to air a personal tribute is utterly disreputable,” said Mohammad Farooq, a shopkeeper.

5

Debutantes wait in line during the 54th International Debutante Ball at New York’s Waldorf-Astoria hotel on December 29.

COMI NG OF AGE

Debutantes bow to modern world AP, New York

F

orty-seven young women donned white gowns and greeted guests at the International Debutante Ball, a holdover from an era when daughters of the upper crust were presented to society as a preface to meeting husbands.

The debutantes at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel on December 29 included European aristocrats and scions of American families. That any perceived the affair as a stepping-stone to marriage was improbable.

,,

IT USED TO BE THAT IF YOU WEREN’T AT LEAST ENGAGED WITHIN A YEAR AFTER DEBUT YOU WERE EMBARRASSED

Networking party Maria Irini Rizos, of Corfu, Greece, a descendant of Venetian nobility, said she joined the ball because “I want to meet international friends.”

However, debutante balls were once seen as an introduction to society and marriage.

But Judith Martin, the syndicated columnist known as Miss Manners, said debutantes today “are not meeting local society but a collection of strangers, and they are probably not looking for husbands while they are in, or barely out of, their teens”.

Today’s debutante is more likely to be looking for friends

Letitia Baldrige Etiquette expert on social networking websites.

The International Debutante Ball was founded in 1954 by Beatrice Dinsmore Joyce, and is now run by her niece Margaret Stewart Hedberg.

“They’re all so smart and they’re in school and they’re planning great careers,” she said of the debutantes.

A debutante’s family pays $14,000 (Bt490,000) for a table as well as thousands of dollars for couture gowns, hairdressers and related expenses.

“The Dark Knight” soared away with every trophy it was nominated for on Wednesday at the 35th annual fan-favourite ceremony. The caped crusader flick won five awards, including favourite cast, superhero, action movie and on-screen match-up for Christian Bale’s Batman and the late Heath Ledger’s Joker.

“On behalf of all of the cast from the movie, thank you very much to the fans,” said Bale. “Here’s to Heath.”

The event was hosted by Queen Latifah and returned to the Shrine Auditorium for its typical star-studded live show format, following last year’s writer’s strike-friendly, pre-taped programme. – A P

Porn industry seeks financial ‘viagra’ Two porn moguls, including Hustler magazine founder Larry Flynt, are seeking a $5-billion (Bt174-billion) bailout from Washington, arguing that the limp US economy has thrown cold water on the adult entertainment industry.

Flynt and “Girls Gone Wild” video series creator Joe Francis asked the newly convened 111th Congress “to rejuvenate the sexual appetite of America” in a bailout move similar to the one set aside for US auto manufacturers.

“Congress seems willing to help shore up our nation’s most important businesses, [and] we feel we deserve the same consideration,” Francis said.

The pair were quick to admit that “the $13-billion industry is in no fear of collapse, but why take chances?”

Paired for new year Two giant pandas presented to Taiwan by China are expected to go on public display for the Lunar New Year holiday later this

month, officials said yesterday.

Visitors will see Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan in their new home at Taipei Zoo on January 26, a Taipei city government spokesman said.

“Tuanyuan” – a combination of the Chinese characters of the two pandas’ names – means “reunion” or “unity”.

Jailed for being gay Nine gay men were each jailed for eight years by a court in Senegal, the highest such sentence in a country where homosexuality is outlawed, their lawyer and gay rights groups said yesterday.

The nine, all aged under 30, appeared in court on Tuesday charged with “indecent conduct and unnatural acts and membership of a criminal organisation”.

They were arrested in December in the Dakar suburb of Mbao.

“This is the first time that the Senegalese legal system hands down such a harsh sentence against gays,” said Issa Diop, one of four defence lawyers.

Homosexual acts are punishable with a maximum sentence of five years in Senegal, where 95 per cent of the population is Muslim. However, the judge in the case raised the sentence to eight years after taking into account their “membership of a criminal organisation”.

Most of the men were members of an association set up to fight HIV/Aids.

– AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

6 THE FUN

Friday, January 9, 2009

THE FUN.

TRAVEL

NEXT STOP

FA R A N D W I D E

Peace in

exile A weekend up North Get to know Kamphaeng Pet and Tak on a fun weekend with the Siam Society February 27 to March 1. It’s a guided tour of the northern provinces, with the Bt8,450 fee covering transportation, meals, entrance frees and accommodation. Call the Siam Society at (02) 661 6470-7 or head to www.Siam-Society.org.

Buddhist pilgrims discover 800 years of Tibetan spirituality transplanted at a monastery in southern India

By Jamie Khoo THE STAR, Mundgod, India

High flights, low prices Fly cheaper with Air Asia by booking a seat now through January 18 for trips between February 9 and June 30.

Domestic flight tickets cost from Bt799 to Bt999 and beyond the borders it’s no more than Bt1,499, taxes not included.

You can get a one-way hop to Singapore for Bt799. Visit ww.AirAsia.com.

Bubbly and cuddly in Trang Love is in the air, as well as underwater. Get romantic and wet on Valentine’s weekend next month at the annual underwater wedding at Pakmeng Beach in Trang. You don’t have to get hitched – just go and watch. You can also help nurse endangered sea creatures and gets some crabs and turtles back into the sea where they belong. Call (02) 863 3288.

Mosey over to Saraburi It’s time to saddle up and feast on dairy yummies in Saraburi.

From January 16 to 25, all the cow farms in Muak Lek district, just 90 minutes’ drive from Bangkok, are putting on their annual Dairy and Cowboy Festival.

Spend the weekend or make it a day trip for horse riding, camping, extreme sports, cowboy shows and lots of food! Visit www.TourSaraburi.com.

T

he young and the old work together to contribute to the upkeep and growth of the beautiful monastery.

Enlightenment does exist. And its temporary heaven on earth, under a scorching sun, is in a tiny village called Mundgod, in southern India.

One of 24 settlements given by the Indian government to Tibetan refugees when they escaped the Communist invasion in the 1950s, Mundgod now flourishes with a profusion of maroon robes and the warm energy of monks.

A group of 60 pilgrims from Kechara House in Malaysia recently visited the Mundgod’s new Gaden Monastery under the guidance of their spiritual director, Tsem Tulku Rinpoche.

Having lived in Gaden himself, studying for many years under Tibetan lamas like Kyabje Zong Rinpoche and Gashar Kensur Jetsun Jampa Yeshe, Tsem Rinpoche was making his first trip back in five years to present offerings to the 3,000 monks there.

The largest of a trio of monasteries in Mungold, Gaden traces its roots to Tibet where Lama Tsongkapa first established the original Gaden monastery in the 14th Century.

Tsongkhapa is especially famous for a seven-year retreat, in which he completed 3.5 million prostrations (as a practice to purify karma) and over one million mandala offerings.

Taking inspiration from teachings of the three existing

DAILY XPRESS

Friday, January 9, 2009

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THE FUN 7

DAILY XPRESS

MUSICAL MIRTH

THE NUMBER of sects in Tibetan Buddhism – the Kagyu, the Sakya and the Nyingma.

Gilbert and Sullivan’s ‘Mikado’ gets the rock ’n’ roll treatment. >Page 8

Good deal Seaside romance awaits

A pilgrim is welcomed by a monk at Mongud’s Gaden Monastery. schools of Tibetan Buddhism – Kagyu, Sakya and Nyingma – Tsongkhapa revived the Buddha’s teachings after they entered a period of degeneration, combining the best of the three schools and the teachings of Indian masters into the Gelug school.

This school and its teachings has become increasingly widespread in recent years, touching cities all over the world, from Beijing to Los Angeles. Its emphasis on logic rather than mysticism, and the balance it strikes between meditation and study resonates strongly with spiritual seekers.

The Buddhist way, with its emphasis on transforming the self, rather than others, does not particularly encourage people to go out and preach, and as such, Gaden’s profile continues to remain relatively low.

When the lamas escaped from Tibet, fleeing persecution during the Cultural Revolution, they left with just the clothes on their back. The Gaden of today had to be built from scratch. Though there’s still a long way to go in building it up to its former glory, the monks are unfazed.

Ken Rinpoche explained, “Due to our own negative karma, we’ve lost our land.

But we’ve managed to establish ourselves here – not just physically but also in essence, since the studies and learning are still the same.

“I guess in the long term, it’s kind of good we ended up here!”

This perspective that it is “due to our own negative” karma is refreshing and almost surprising.

How much more difficult it must be to blame ourselves than to point fingers. And yet, this is what allows the monks to cultivate such serenity in the face of adversity.

In Gaden, you sense this collective determination to get out of suffering, no matter how subtle. At the same time, its very walls are imbued with the stillness of being in the moment, of delighting in everything just as it is.

Kechara House has just released the firstever documentary about Gaden Monastery – its history, lineage, and the recent pilgrimage that was made. For more information, contact Kechara House by e-mailing kh_info@kechara.com.

Let’s Sea Celebrates Valentine’s Day with a “Romance Designed for Two” package. Guests at the al fresco resort in Hua Hin will enjoy a 22per-cent discount on a romantic dinner with champagne at its beachfront restaurant, and anyone who pops in for the occasion pays just Bt2,222+.

Visit www.LetsSea.com.

Perfect time to holiday The festive season and Valentine’s Day are great times to stay at the Anantara Hua Hin, with rates ranging from Bt7,500 to Bt17,000 until April 18. And you pay for only three nights if you stay for four.

Guests also enjoy the breakfast buffet for two, an hour’s complimentary drinking at the bar and a spa session at the Sala in the garden. See the details at www.Anantara.com.

Discount delights Right in Bangkok’s shopping zone, the Arnoma Hotel is tempting guests with its “Super Festive Seasons” package.

Until March 31, a superior room costs Bt2,800+ and a deluxe Bt3,000, with a Bt200 coupon for food and beverages and daily American breakfast for two. Check out www.Arnoma.com.

Linger longer at Amari The Amari Atrium Hotel on Petchaburi Road has a “Stay Longer@Amari” deal through the end of April with room rates starting at Bt3,500 net.

That includes breakfast for two, discounts on massages and other spa treatments and late checkout until 3pm.

Extend your stay and get food and drinks credits of up to Bt1,500.

8 THE FUN

Friday, January 9, 2009

WKND.EVENTS 33%

DAILY XPRESS

THE INCREASE in sales of music downloads in 2008 in the United Kingdom.

XTRA M I N S T R E L S A N D YO U >> “The Mikado” will be performed dinner-theatre style at the British Club at 7.30pm daily from January 23 to 31 (2pm matinee only on January 25; no show January 27). >> Tickets are Bt1,200 (threecourse dinner buffet included) except for the January 25 matinee, which is Bt700 (no lunch). >> Call (089) 006 5259 or (081) 869 1104 for reservations.

CO M I C- O P E R A P R E V I E W

NANKI-POO MEETS ELVIS A new adaptation of Gilbert and Sullivan’s ‘Mikado’ aims to get us rocking with laughter this month

By Pawit Mahasarinand S P E C I A L T O D A I LY X P R E S S

“W

e’ve had lots of requests to do more, so ‘The Mikado’, as one of the most popular Gilbert and Sullivan shows, seemed the obvious choice,” says director Angela Daniel.

Those requests came from people who caught Daniel’s last two G&S operettas, TheatreWorks and Bangkok Community Theatre’s “Pirates of Penzance” (2007) and “Trial by Jury” (2008).

This time out, great tunes like “Three Little Maids from School”, “Tit Willow”, “Here’s a Howdy Do” and “A Wandering Minstrel I” have been souped up with a sprinkling of Elvis.

In the original operetta, NankiPoo, the son of the Mikado of

Japan, has fled his father’s imperial court to escape an arranged marriage. Disguised as a minstrel, he meet and falls in love with Yum-Yum, the young ward and bride-to-be of Ko-Ko, an executioner in the town of Titipu.

Thinly veiled “Anyone expecting a traditional evening of G&S will be surprised by the changes,” explains Daniel.

“Gilbert and Sullivan set the operetta in ancient Japan, but that was only a thin disguise for the real target – British Victorian society. And their humour is as funny today as it was over a hundred years ago.

“Our version is much more of a fantasy although we do give an

,,

ANYONE EXPECTING A TRADITIONAL EVENING OF G&S WILL BE SURPRISED BY THE CHANGES. Angela Daniel, director affectionate nod to the diverse and fascinating Japanese culture of today — the businessmen of the Ginza, the leather-clad Rockabillies, the punk fashion of Hurajuku Station and Yoyogi Park as well as anime and manga characters.”

Friday, January 9, 2009

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THE FUN 9

DAILY XPRESS

NOMINATIONS have been received by singer Jennifer Hudson for the 40th NAACP Image Awards.

WKND.EVENTS Gamers,

Kids can see ‘Kati’for free

you’re up!

The 2009 Thailand Game Show is at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre today through Sunday – 10 to 9 every day and completely free. There’ll be cosplay and lots of hi-tech adventures, with experts in “Tekken”, “Rockman”, “FaceBreaker” and “Kunio Dodgeball” queuing for bouts. You can shop for the latest releases for your PS3, Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DSI. Providing the soundtrack will be Japanese singer Hironobu Kageyama, whose voice you know from “Dragon Ball Z” and “Jetman”.

Take the little ones to Century Movie Plaza on Phaya Thai Road for free movies 10.30am until 10.30pm tomorrow for Children’s Day. If they’re under 130 centimetres there’s no admission charge for “The Happiness of Kati”, “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” and “Bal Ganesh”.

Adults and taller kids get a deal on ice cream: Buy one for Bt25 and get an extra free scoop.

The cinema is near the Victory Monument Skytrain station. Call (02) 247 1111 or visit www.CenturyTheMovie

Diabolical rock with O-Larn

EASY SKANKIN’

Plaza.com.

MIGHTY GUITARIST O-Larn Phromjai leads the O-Larn Project through a rousing heavy-rock set tomorrow night at Overtone on RCA. Chatchai “Rhang Rockestra” Sukawadee will meld his falsetto screech to O-Larn’s guitar thunder to try and bring down the house.

The show starts at 10.30. The Bt300 charge buys you two drinks. Call (02) 203 0423 or click to www.Overtone.tv.

Get up, stand up!

Wanderlust at Galerie N

The revenge of Bollywood “GHAJINI”, India’s biggest blockbuster of 2008, comes to SF World at CentralWorld at 8 tonight and tomorrow and at 4 and 7 on Sunday.

Aamir Khan stars as a man who loses his short-term memory after his girlfriend is murdered. Polaroid snapshots and tattoos guide him on his path of revenge. The movie is in Hindi with English subtitles. Call (089) 488 2620 or check out www.BollywoodThai.com.

Chaiyanandha Cha-Umngarm

I and I be gone to Pai, mon, seen? It’s the annual We Be Jammin’ Pai Reggae Music Festival

By Manta Klangboonkrong

XTRA

D A I LY X P R E S S

C

loset Rastafarians and other smoky-voiced fans of Bob Marley have got their annual fix at the We Be Jammin’ Pai Reggae Music Festival for three consecutive years.

This time around, on January 24 and 25, there’s going to be even more bands.

Seventeen acts, all f r o m T h a i l a n d , T-Bone will be getting rock steady – except for the ones that play ska and bounce all over the place.

Some of them are better known for their records than their live appearances and some are known only to hardcore devotees.

The ones everybody knows include T-Bone, Job2Do (remember last year’s “Doo Ther Tam”?), the Teddy Ska Band, the Kai-Jo Brothers and Skaranger.

Joining the festival this year will be the ethnic-music-inspired Woo Doo Band and a few of Pai’s best.

D O N ’ T B E WA I T I N G >> The fourth annual We Be Jammin’ Festival is on January 24 and 25. >> Pai is a small town, so book your accommodations now. >> Reserve your tickets.

Thaiticketmajor won’t be selling tickets at the festival, so give them a call at (02) 262 3456 before January 17. >> Admission for one day and your first drink will cost you Bt390, or make that Bt700 for two days. >> Contact the Pai Arts Club, at (081) 493 1246, and the Pai Tourist Office at (053) 699 935. Check more details at www.PaiReggaeFest.com.

The outdoor stage is, once again, at the sultry Pai Tree House Resort just outside town, with grooves kicking in daily at 6pm. There’ll be free shuttle buses from town to the resort, right through until 4am, an hour after the last act allegedly leaves the stage.

explores dynamic pathways in the exhibition “Way of Life 2” at Galerie N from Thursday through February 22.

Elements from nature hide in the details of his pieces, exuding a sense of harmony and yet reflecting the obstacles of life.

The gallery is on Wireless Road and is open from 10 to 7 Tuesday through Sunday. Call (02) 251 5098 or check out www.GalerieNBangkok.com.

Delicious chemistry at Bed Australian chef Paul Hutt is

using liquid nitrogen to make his new dishes and desserts at Bed Supperclub. Turkducken terrines are pressed together by the magic liquid, with no fat involved. Other yummies include smoked salmon, Aurora lamb shank, seared kingfish with Thai-style salad and chilled chocolate fondue, all prepared in liquid nitrogen.

Bed Supperclub is on Sukhumvit Soi 11. Call (02) 651 3537 or see www.Bed Supperclub.com.

10

ALTERNATIVE / SOHO

so-ho-t Ministry of silence To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a statement was read on December 18 in the UN General Assembly to affirm the universality of human rights regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity.

It was supported by 66 countries, but Thailand was not among them, Why did our country choose to turn its back on LGBTI rights, despite the petition of local activists to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?

Read more on page 9A of today’s The Nation.

Sean Penn and “Milk,” Gus Van Sant’s film about the assassinated US gay rights leader Harvey Milk, continue to garner awards as the January 22 announcement of the Academy Awards nominations draws bear.

The New York Film Critics Circle picked “Milk” for Best film and Sean Penn for Best Actor. Penn has also received the Best Actor nomination in the Golden Globes. which will be handed out this Sunday. “Milk” is scheduled to screen in Thailand early February.

Troy’s boyz It’s Children’s Day tomorrow and those of us who are young at heart may want to indulge in some comics that aren’t totally innocent. Check out Michael Derry’s comics strip “Troy” at www.TroyComics.com. Subtitled "Love, Sex, Politics, Religion, and Killer Abs”, the series explores the life of Troy and his West Hollywood gay friends. Who wants to be a kid again, when adults have so much fun?

DAILY XPRESS

Why oh ‘Y’ Thai girls blur the meaning of the Japanese ‘Y’ definition

By Pimann SPECIAL TO D A I LY X P R E S S

W

e’ve all heard of “Y girls” but how many of us really know who they are? I thought I had it down pat but it turns out that my knowledge was only partly correct.

The Y in “Y girl” originally comes from yaoi, a Japanese term for male-male romantic relationships as portrayed in fiction and manga comics (and which is also known as Boys’ Love or BL). In Thailand, a Y girl generally refers to a female

Y CAN ALSO BE USED TO DESCRIBE AFFECTIONATE BEHAVIOUR BETWEEN GUYS. Accolades for ‘Milk’

Friday, January 9, 2009

fan of manga and fiction with male-homosexual themes, although some Y girls take it further by imagining romantic relationships between males where none is intended by the author (for example, between the male characters in Tolkein’s “Lord of The Rings”) or between real-life male celebrities.

Y can also be used to describe affectionate behaviour between guys. For example, when a Y girl’s fantasies are fed by two guys cuddling up together, she may say, “They’re so Y.” However, there is another side to Y that’s not widely known. Yuri, a popular Japanese name for girls, is also used in the context of manga and other media, to refer to romantic relationships between females (also known as Girls’ Love or GL). So a Y girl, in this case, can be a female who enjoys same-sex love in manga and fiction and is attracted to other women in real life.

In Japan, yaoi and yuri are used in different contexts with separate meanings. Here in Thailand, they are become blurred and are interchangeable, turning the Y girl into a

unique Thai urban phenomenon.

So next time, a friend identifies herself as a Y girl, it may be better to ask her what rocks her world – fictional boy-onboy action or real-world girlon-girl love?

Friday, January 9, 2009

ENTERTAINMENT

DAILY XPRESS

Dug Dans

Nontuk

Noijaiya

STUDENT PERFORMANCE

Onstage with honours Chula grads and undergrads show their smarts in a varied string of dance and theatre shows

By Pawit Mahasarinand SPECIAL TO D A I LY X P R E S S

T

he graduate program in dramatic arts that Chulalongkorn University launched a year and a half ago – the country’s first – is ready to bear fruit, with a dance-and-theatre thesis showcase.

Starting off the monthlong festival called Kornjob – which means “before graduating” – is Chertsak Pratumseesakhon’s “Same Same”.

A smash hit at the Bangkok Theatre Festival, it’s a comedy that can also produce a few sentimental tears.

The same weekend Wariya Khattiphibun combines Western acting theories with northern Thai folk dancing in “Noijaiya”.

The following week their classmate Wanasak Padungsestakit psychoanalyses the title character in his solo work “Another Side of Phra Lor”, and Ponlarit Samutkalin borrows the deceived demon of the Ramakien for a new play, “Nontuk”.

The mood the shifts completely when Sangsan Santimaneeratana presents his/her solo queer performance “Taro, the little poodle”.

Despite the title, which refers to his/her neighbour’s dog, the story is more about the playwright-performer.

After the graduate students strut their stuff, the senior undergraduates will take the stage.

In the intriguingly titled

“Dug Da:ns”, Jasmine Baker uses ballet as a case study to investigate a prejudice toward conventions that is partly responsible for the limited growth in Thailand’s performance scene.

Then Montakarn Suvanatap presents a staged reading with multimedia of her play “Lunatic”, reflecting on urbanites who are chronically upwardly mobile.

If these two names look familiar, it’s because they occasionally write for The Nation and Daily Xpress.

Closing off the festival is a full-scale production – a Thai translation of the American tragicomedy “Crimes of the Heart”.

This 1981 Pulitzer winner, with a dysfunctional family at its core, will be staged by Parida Nobthai, a major in directing.

XTRA STRAIGHT A’S >> “Kornjob” runs from next Wednesday through February 15 on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 6.30pm. It’s at the Style by Toyota, behind Lido in Siam Square. >>There’s no admission charge, but book a seat at (02) 218 4802 e-mail KornJob @gmail.com. Hang around for the discussions after every performance. >> See also http://KornJob. Multiply.com.

Lunatic Taro the little poodle

11

12

AFTER DARK

Friday, January 9, 2009

DAILY XPRESS

clubscene Come My Life: First Anniversary Tonight Glow Sukhumvit Soi 23 (BTS: Asoke) (02) 261 4446 www.GlowBkk.com It’s been a year, and they’re still rocking! French DJs Serge and Momo continue to bring you cool house, tech house and funky minimal. The party starts at 8 and you pay Bt200 to get in including a drink.

DJ Craze & DJ Klever Tonight 808 RCA, Zone C (02) 203 1043 www.808Bangkok.com

,, Kanye West’s official tour DJ Craze touches down Bangkok for the very first time with fellow Allies member DJ Klever. With four decks, two mixers and two mics – go figure the fun! Entry is Bt500 with a drink.

Code 3: Deep House Brotherhood Tonight Club Culture Sri Ayutthaya Road (BTS: Phya Thai) (02) 642 5499 www.Club-Culture-Bkk.com Dress code; ID The monthly underground session of deep house and beyond by DJs Mafsai and Masa, brought to you by Deep House Brotherhood. Tickets are Bt250 with a drink.

DJ Magic Muffin Thursday Glow Home grown DJ Magic Muffin pumps her best house and minimal electro beats at Glow’s ladies night party ‘Foxy Foxy Night’. From 8, girls get free entry and two drinks.

Breaking

with the beat

By Manta Klangboonkrong D A I LY X P R E S S

O

n Thursday, clubbers and fans of electronic music will experience great vibes and a variety of grooves at Bangkok’s latest theme party “Champion Sound”. Kicking off the series at Bed are the Freestylers, a prolific breakbeat outfit from London.

The group, which formed in 1996 and has undergone several personnel changes, currently features Matt Cantor and Aston Harvey. Dubbed the Kings of Breakbeat, the duo embraces elements of hip-hop, funk, roots reggae, electro and soul.

They’ve remixed tracks by Audioweb, Afrika Bambaataa and the Jungle Brothers and headlined festivals alongside

the likes of the Prodigy and Fatboy Slim.

Last January, Cantor touched down at 808 and wowed the crowd with an eclectic set of dancehall, hip-hop, breakbeats and even reggae. This time around, thanks to the spacious venue, Cantor will be playing in the White Room while drum and bass diva DJ B Traits from Canada does her trippy thing in the Bar Room.

We caught up with Cantor before he left chilly London town.

What are you guys up to now?

We’re currently working on our fifth album and hope to have it out for the summer.

Hopefully there’ll be a single before!

What will it be like?

Basically good tunes whatever the genre.

I LISTEN TO A LOT OF HIP-HOP AND OLD SOUL. I’M INTO THE NEW KANYE ALBUM AND BELIEVE IT OR NOT,I’M A BIG COLDPLAY FAN!

What kind of music you listen to?

I love all music.

I listen to a lot of hip-hop and old soul. I’m into the new Kanye album and believe it or not, I’m a big Coldplay fan!

Who’s your dream collaborator?

Marvin Gaye, if only he were still alive.

What will the show in Bangkok be like this time?

Like last time but with much more drinking!

XTRA BETWEEN THE SHEETS >> Matt Cantor from the

Freestylers performs at Bed Supperclub next Thursday.

Entry with a drink is Bt800. >> Bed Supperclub is Sukhumvit Soi 11 (BTS: Nana), call (02) 651 3537; www.BedSupperclub.com

Friday, January 9, 2009

ENTERTAINMENT

DAILY XPRESS

13

All in the family Jack Black discovers his country-music DNA on his father-in-law’s album

By Charles J Gans A S S O C I AT E D P R E S S New York

J

,,

ack Black may have been schooled in rock, but now he’d like to sing at the Grand Ole Opry with his wife’s family – who recently turned him on to bluegrass music.

The actor-musician sings the traditional tune “Old Joe Clark” with his father-inlaw Charlie Haden on Haden’s Grammy-nominated CD “Rambling Boy”.

“I wasn’t sure what to expect because I haven’t recorded or really sung any old songs like that before, bluegrass style, but it came very naturally and I cranked it out in two

takes,” says Black, who grew up in the Los Angeles area.

“There was something in the music that I think struck a chord in my DNA. I think I’ve got some hillbilly in my roots...

I’m already practising my square dancing if we play the ‘Grand Ole Opry’.”

Black, who recently starred in “Tropic Thunder” and the animated “Kung Fu Panda”, landed the last-minute supporting role when his fatherin-law brought the nearly finished mix to their home so he could hear his daughter, Tanya, sing on her own and as part of the Haden Triplets, with sisters Rachel and Petra.

Haden brought his current family together to perform some of the old-style country songs he once sang with his parents and siblings in the popular Haden Family band in the 1930s and ’40s.

“Rambling Boy” also includes an excerpt from a 1939 Haden Family radio show

with 22-month-old Little Cowboy Charlie yodelling on a gospel tune. Black and Haden say the oldest of their two sons, two-year-old Sam, is already showing he’s inherited the family musical DNA. “Our son already yodels better than my father,'' says Tanya Haden. “And he has his own taste in music. He’ll hear something and do his own rendition and we'll try to sing along with him and he’ll tell us to shut up.”

THERE WAS SOMETHING IN THE MUSIC THAT I THINK STRUCK A CHORD IN MY DNA. I THINK I’VE GOT SOME HILLBILLY IN MY ROOTS.

AP

Jack Black Actor - musician

14

THE SCREEN

Friday, January 9, 2009

TO SEE

DAILY XPRESS

‘MARLEY AND ME’ was the No 1 movie in North America last week for the second consecutive week, earning US$24.2 million.

on tv

Happy Feet A young penguin is blamed for the poor fishing season and cast out of his community. He finds new friends and sets out to find the true cause of the famine. The voice cast includes Elijah Wood.

Khwamsu k Khong Ka ti The beloved SeaW

rite Award Ngarmphan Vejjajiva com -winning youth novel by es to the big about a ninescreen. It’s year-old girl who lives an along a rura l ca idyllic life changes wh nal with her grandpare nts. Her life en she’s take n to the sea terminally ill side to visit mother. Wit her h English some cin emas.

subtitles a t

Yes Man Jim Carrey stars as a negative guy whose boring life is turned around after he meets a cult leader (Terence Stamp) who convinces him to say yes to everything. Zoey Deschanel also stars. ★★★

HBO (TrueVisions), 8pm

The Shipping News An emotionally beaten man and his young daughter move to his ancestral home in Newfoundland to start over.

Stars Kevin Spacey and Julianne Moore.

True Movie Hits (TrueVisions), 7pm

48 Hours A jailbird and a detective forge an unlikely alliance to catch the convict’s escaped partner.

Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy star.

Cinemax (TrueVisions), 8pm

Brainchild Dr Chit Laowattana, Panudet Wattanasuchat and Wichai Chongprasitporn show off their inventions.

Channel 3, 4pm

Channel links www.NationChannel.com Channel 3 – www.ThaiTV3.com Channel 5 – www.TV5.co.th Channel 7 – www.CH7.com Modernine – www.MCOT.net NBT – NBTTV.prd.go.th Thai PBS – www.ThaiPBS.or.th True – www.TrueVisionsTV.com

don’t miss!

Young Dek Short films by 12 directors at GMM Tai Hub are fea-

tured in “Young Dek”, which will be shown at 7 tomorrow night at SF World at CentralWorld in celebration of National Children’s Day. It’s a reel of student films by such directors as Jira Maligool (“The Tin Mine”), Songyos Sukmakanan (“Dek Hor”), Banjong Pisanthanakun and Parkpoom Wongpoom (“Shutter”), Paween Purijitpanya (“Body 19”), Witthaya Thongyooyong (“The Possible”) and Adisorn Trisirikasem (“Lucky Loser”).

The filmmakers hope the movies will inspire another generation of artists behind the lens.

The shorts will include Jira’s “Nang San Mano Sa-re” (1981), Adisorn’s “Wan Pak Ti Rak Wun” (1996), Paween’s “Antiseptic” (1998), Songyos’ “Dor Dek Chor Chang” (2002) and Wittaya’s “Raan Nai Wattana” (1996).

Students get in free, but admission is Bt500 for everyone else, with proceeds going to help assistant director Ake Panyasri, who’s taking a year’s medical leave.

Call (086) 314 5527. – DAILY XPRESS

Soi Cowboy

Bal Ganesh

Avant-garde British director Thomas Clay offers an enigmatic look at Thailand, featuring the humdrum, monochromatic life of a mismatched farang-Thai couple and fratricide in the colourful countryside. At Paragon

This Indian animated feature focuses on the childhood of the Hindu elephant god.

Cineplex. ★★★★★

‘Soi Cowboy’ stars Pimwalee Thampanyasan.

Bedtime Stories Adam Sandler stars in this family-friendly comedy about a hotel handyman who finds that the fantastic bed-

time stories he tells his niece and nephew are coming true. ★★★

Patiharn Rak Tang Phan A secret agent (Jessadaporn Pholdee) falls in love with a woman (Ploy Jindachot) who is actually a giant snake. With English subtitles at some cinemas. ★★★

Friday, January 9, 2009

THE SCREEN 15

DAILY XPRESS

TO SEE

‘BEDTIME STORIES’ opened at No 2 in North America last week, earning US$20.5 million.

on dvd REGION 3

e Quarantin e Spanish thriller “[REC]”n, afiprea-rtke of th inside a In this rema TV crew are trapped ies. a d rabid zomb fighters an is home to t a th g in ment build

Mutant Chronicles

when they chance upon the dead rising from their graves.

Earth’s resources are exhausted, and four corporations are at war over what remains. Based on a role-playing game.

Fun Waan Aai Joop

Diary of the Dead A film crew making a mummy movie decides to make a documentary

Chukiat Sakveerakul, Prachya Pinkaew, Bhandit Thongdee and Rashane Limtrakul each direct a short love story.

With English subtitles at some cinemas. ★★★

Happy-Go-Lucky Mike Leigh directs this comedy about a 30-year-old Londoner (Sally Hawkins) who has an irrepressibly bright outlook on life. At the Lido and House. ★★★★

In the Land of Women

Australia

Dumped by his girlfriend, a young man (Adam Brody) moves to take care of his sick grandmother in Michigan, where he develops relationships with a housewife (Meg Ryan) and her teenage daughter (Kristen Stewart). Audio languages are English and Thai with subtitles adding only Japanese. It’s selling for Bt339.

– DAILY XPRESS

Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman star in Baz Luhrmann’s sweeping epic set in the Land Down Under at the outbreak of World War II. ★★★

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa Escaped zoo animals make their way to the African mainland, where they encounter species of their own kind for the first time. Also at Krungsri IMAX. ★★★

Toi et Moi Julie Depardieu and Marion Cotillard star in this comedy as sisters trying to deal in various ways with romance. In French with English and Thai subtitles at House.

Happy Birthday A photographer (Ananda Everingham) and a tour guide (Chayanan Manomai-santiphap) fall in love. Then tragedy strikes. With English subtitles at some cinemas. ★★★★

The Orphanage The past haunts a couple after they buy a spooky old orphanage.

In Spanish with English and Thai subtitles at the Lido. ★★★★

Apex

Super Hap The latest hear tthrob (Film Ra ttapoom) is lip-synching, w hile the actual talent (Kiatisak “Sena Hoy” Udomnak) lacks the looks of a supe rstar. With Engl ish

at some cinem as. ★★

subtitles

Lido: (02) 252 6498 Siam: (02) 251 3508 Scala: (02) 251 2861 www.ApexSiam-Square.com

Century – The Movie Plaza (02) 247 9940 www.CenturyTheMoviePlaza.com

House

sneak preview The Elephant King Three years after being made, “The Elephant King” has finally come home, playing this weekend in a special preview at Paragon Cineplex.

Produced by Thailandbased De Warrenne Pictures and written and directed by Seth Grossman, it stars Jonno Roberts and Tate Ellington as brothers partying in Chiang Mai who come to blows over a woman (Florence Faivre). Ellen Burstyn also stars, playing the mother of the two men. The screenings are at 10 tonight and tomorrow. “The Elephant King” will then get a wider release next Thursday at Major Cineplex, Esplanade and Paragon theatres. – DAILY XPRESS

(02) 641 5913-4 www.HouseRama.com

Major Cineplex/EGV Bangkok: (02) 515 5555 www.MajorCineplex.com

Paragon Cineplex (02) 129 4635 IMAX: (02) 129 4631 www.ParagonCineplex.com

SF Cinemas Bangkok: (02) 268 8888 www.SFCinemaCity.com

Vista Chiang Mai: (053) 894 415 www.ChiangMaiVista.com

Critical consensus ★★★★★ = Must see! ★★★★ = Solidly entertaining ★★★ = It’s okay ★★ = Barely watchable

16

Close to Home

By John McPherson

LEISURE

Pooch Cafe

The Buckets

Adam

Calvin and Hobbes

By Brian Basset

By Paul Gilligan

By Scott Stantis

By Bryan Basset

By Bill Watterson

Comics&Games

Red and Rover

Friday, January 9, 2009 DAILY XPRESS

Friday, January 9, 2009

LEISURE

DAILY XPRESS

Games&YourStars SUDOKU

The last word in

ASTROLOGY

By Eugenia Last

Today’s Birthday: You are incredibly creative this year. You can take some of your ideas of the past and turn them into something viable. Keeping things small and simple and building on solid ground will lead to your success. Stick to basics, do your best and you will triumph.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains every digit from 1 to 9 inclusively.

ARIES **** March 21-April 19 Talk about your concerns and you will find solutions. Someone from your past will want your help. Give freely of your time and you will be rewarded in ways you can’t imagine.

TAURUS *** April 20-May 20 If you make an unreasonable promise, it may cost you financially and emotionally. Keep things simple and do the work yourself. Love is on the rise.

Take a romantic break and benefit your relationship.

GEMINI *** May 21-June 20 Keep things in perspective when it comes to personal matters and relationships. If someone is pushing you too hard, back away. Don’t give in to demands but do everything to get ahead.

DIFFICULTY RATING ★★★★★

CANCER *** June 21-July 22 Hold off giving your opinion with personal matters that may leave you in a precarious position. You’ll be emotional and should be putting your deep thought and feelings into passionate matters.

LEO *** July 23-Aug. 22 Address an issue that is bothering you and you will find out exactly where you stand. It may not be what you want to hear but at least it will get you moving in the right direction. Stick to a budget.

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY

VIRGO **** Aug. 23-Sept. 22 Take part in whatever is going on around you if you want to get the true sense of belonging. A passionate encounter with someone special is apparent.

Network, party and have some fun.

LIBRA ** Sept. 23-Oct. 22 You may be opposed by someone you least expect but your ability to think fast and come up with imaginative solutions will help you win in the end. Set up a schedule that allows for special projects.

SCORPIO *** Oct. 23-Nov. 21 Don’t let a potentially risky proposition tempt you.

Someone is probably feeding you false information that will lead to overspending. Listen to someone with experience but make your own decision.

SAGITTARIUS *** Nov. 22-Dec. 21 Don’t be guided by what others do or say. Look at the facts before you dive into something. A love connection may lead to unreasonable thinking.

Justify your actions before you move.

Sergio Garcia

Author Judith Krantz is 81.

Author Wilbur Smith is 76.

Singer Joan Baez is 68.

Actress Susannah York is 67.

Singer Scott Walker is 66.

Musician Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin) is 65.

Singer Crystal Gayle is 58.

Actress Imelda Staunton is 53.

Actress Joely Richardson is 44.

Singer Lara Fabian is 39.

Golfer Sergio Garcia is 29.

CAPRICORN *** Dec. 22-Jan. 19 Don’t let emotional problems interfere with your professionalism. If someone is jeopardising your ability to finish what you start, put an end to it. A love connection looks promising.

AQUARIUS ***** Jan. 20-Feb. 18 Getting together with old friends or finding a new hobby or pastime will enable you to grow. Offer help to an organisation or group you once were a part of. Giving back will be fun.

PISCES ** Feb. 19-March 20 Stick to your game plan and you will accomplish your goals. Someone who wants your attention may tempt you but satisfy your own needs first. Be clear about your agenda.

17

Home Product Center Public Company Limited was founded on June 27, 1995 with the initial registered capital of Baht 150 million. The Company is a joint venture between Land and Houses Group, American International Assurance Co., Ltd. and the Sarasin family. The Company was listed in the Stock Exchange of Thailand on October 30, 2001.

The Company was established with an objective to operate a retail business by selling goods and providing complete services relating to construction, improvement, decoration and renovation of buildings, houses and residence places under the trade name "HomePro".

Management Trainee - District Manager / GM Store Qualifications: • Age 35-45 years old • Bachelor's or Master's Degree in Business Administration or related field • Prior experience in sales team management, sales target management, customer management, inventory management or overall knowledge of retail operation business / department store will be an advantage • Good English communication skill, good personality and good leadership, Able to work upcountry

Management Trainee - Sale / Administration / Customer Service Qualifications: • Age 28-35 years • Bachelor's or Master's Degree in any field • Minimum 3 years experience in logistics management, sales team management, product delivery management areas or customer services • Willing to work on rotating shift schedules • Experience in retails business or department stores will be an advantage • Able to work upcountry

Advertising Division Manager (Head Office) Qualifications: • Age 28-35 years old • Bachelor's Degree in Marketing or Communication Arts • At least 4 years experience in marketing and advertising management • Good English communication skill, good personality and good leadership, Good computer skill

Buyer Division Manager / Buyer (Head Office) Qualifications: • Age 22-35 years old (for the division manager over 27 years old) • Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Management, Economics, Statistics or related field • 3-5 experience in retails business or department stores at least 2 years will be an advantage • Good personality, confident, and good negotiation skill • Good computer skill especially in MS Excel

responsible particularly for international accreditation process and development. The selected applicant will be provided with prestigious position, excellent compensation and overseas development opportunities.

Scope of Responsibilities: ● Teaching in the management or related fields and leading the school’s global pre-accreditation and accreditation processes ● Contacting and working closely with foreign accreditation organization and mentors from overseas institutions. ● Preparing strategic plan, accreditation plans, self-evaluation report and annual report for accreditation process ● Developing processes in order to comply with the standards of international accreditation Qualifications: Thai/Foreign nationality, age over 35 years old ● Master’s degree or above ● Al least 10 years experience preferably in academic or quality assurance or related fields ● Excellent English communication skills ●

Interested candidates please submit your detailed CV, recent photo, together with transcript to Personnel Department,

the Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy, Chulalongkorn University, Phayathai Road, Bangkok 10330 Tel. 02-218-5773

Qualifications: • Age 22-35 years old • Bachelor's Degree in Statistics, Marketing, Business Administration, Economics or related field • At least 2 years experience in sales analysis, inventory, gross profit analysis • Good analytical skill and expertise in MS Excel (such as Pivot table, Macro) • Experience in retail business is a preferable To join our team, please send your resume and recent photograph to:

Home Product Center Public Co., Ltd. Head Office 96/27 M. 9 Bangkhen, Muang, Nonthaburi 11000 (Beside of The Mall Ngamwongwan) Download Map: http://www.homepro.co.th/map/pr.asp Tel. 0-2832-1000 ext. 1364, 1399, 1681 Fax: 0-2832-1299 E-mail: job@homepro.co.th or thanapolw@homepro.co.th Website: www.homepro.co.th

Listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand, Laguna Resorts & Hotels is Thailand’s largest integrated resort operator in Phuket comprising Banyan Tree Phuket, Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket, Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket, Laguna Beach Resort, Laguna Holiday Club Resort and a wide range of resort amenities and services. Our Phuket operations are complimented by Banyan Tree Bangkok hotel, centrally located in Bangkok’s central business district. We are currently seeking candidates for the following positions.

The Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy, Chulalongkorn University as a move toward a “World-Class Innovative Business School” is now seeking a highly sophisticated professional to join our school as a

“Director of International Accreditation”

Data Analyst (Head Office)

SENIOR MANAGER - PROPERTY LEGAL Requirements ❁ Thai, age 35-40 years ❁ Bachelor’s degree or higher in Laws ❁ Strong legal knowledge with experience in laws of property and land development ❁ Good interpersonal skills and the ability to work independently and under time pressure ❁ Proficiency in written English and communication skills ❁ Good computer skills ❁ Based in Phuket

SECRETARY TO ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT - LEGAL Requirements ❁ ❁ ❁ ❁ ❁ ❁ ❁

Thai, female, age 25-35 years Bachelor’s degree in Secretarial, Laws or related field Minimum 3 years working experience in executive secretarial work with international companies Good interpersonal skills and the ability to work independently Good computer skills of Microsoft Office Program Mature with pleasant personality Based in Bangkok

Applicants are invited to submit a detailed resume in English, stating current as well as expected salaries, and a recent photograph. An attractive remuneration package will be offered to the successful candidates. Please mail, fax or email to: Human Resources Department, Laguna Resorts & Hotels Public Company Limited 21/11, 21/12B, 21/13, 21/65B, 21/67, 21/68A, 6th Floor, Thai Wah Tower 1, South Sathorn Road, Bangkok 10120 Tel. 0-2677-4455 ext. 272, 862 Fax: 0-2677-4455 ext. 265 Email: janpen@lrh.co.th

22

THE SPORT

Friday January 9, 2009

THE SPORT

DAILY XPRESS

LOS ANGELES LAKERS vs GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

114-106

Spaniard Pau Gasol scored 14 of his 33 points in th quarter and grabbed a career-best 18 rebounds, ral visiting Lakers to their seventh victory in eight gam Bryant added 21 points, while Andrew Bynum cont with 11 rebounds for the Lakers.

briefly Rockets send Celtics to third defeat The suddenly slumping Boston Celtics have lost their way and some of their swagger.

China’s Yao Ming scored 26 points, Von Wafer drilled the go-ahead three-pointer with 44 seconds left and the Houston Rockets sent the Celtics to their third straight loss, with an 89-85 victory. The stumbling Rockets (22-15) ended a Anthony three-game losing streak and a five-game road slide. “This is a big win for us,” said Yao. – DPA

Motorcyclist dies in Dakar Rally The deadly Dakar Rally was in mourning again on Wednesday with the news that French motorcyclist Pascal Terry had been found dead while competing in this year’s race.

The 49-year-old Terry was found dead overnight after the fourth stage of the gruelling spectacle which is taking place for the first time in South America after terrorist threats forced its cancellation last year.

“Officially the result of the autopsy revealed that the French pilot Terry died of pulmonary edema ... which produced cardio-respiratory failure,” Julio Acosta, chief of the department of operations of the La Pampa province police, said. – AFP

Al-Attiyah the overall leader Qatari driver Nasser Al Attiyah took the overall lead in the Dakar Rally here on Wednesday after South-African Giniel de Villiers won the fifth stage, a 506km special from Neuquen.

Al Attiyah, winner of two stages already in this edition, took over from Spain’s two-time rally world champion Carlos Sainz, who finished over 15 minutes behind de Villiers and 10 minutes in arrears of the Qatari after he lost his bonnet during the stage.

“I drove 200km without power

steering,” said Sainz. “Driving in these conditions is pretty hard at the best of times and when the dunes started, it was even harder and I ended up rolling the car.”

– AFP

Slovakia into final after Kiefer injury Slovakia advanced to a fourth Hopman Cup final in dramatic circumstances yesterday when Germany’s Nicolas Kiefer collapsed on court with an ankle injury and was taken off in a wheelchair.

Both teams were unbeaten going into the tie, but the much-anticipated clash came to a premature end when Kiefer Kiefer crashed down with a twisted ankle in the fifth game of his singles clash with Dominik Hrbaty.

Slovakia won the tie 3-0 after being awarded the mixed doubles on a walkover. – AFP

Venus crushes Jankovic in HK Venus Williams crushed world No 1 Jelena Jankovic 6-2 6-2 as she kept Team Americas on track to qualify for the final of the Hong Kong World Team Challenge yesterday. – AFP

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson is upbeat about the defeat to Derby County in the League Cup semi-final first-leg .

Lucky United still on course for five trophies, says Fergie, after Kris Commons’ screamer downs his team AFP, Derby, England

A

lex Ferguson said Manchester United were lucky to still be on course for five trophies this season after their shock 1-0 League Cup semi-final, first leg defeat against Derby County.

The Manchester United manager was punished by the side languishing 18th in the Championship for fielding a vastly-weakened side, with only Serbian Nemanja Vidic and Paul Scholes beginning the game decided by Kris Commons’ wonderful 30th minute goal.

Ferguson clearly had one eye on Sunday’s crucial Premier League meeting with rivals Chelsea at Old Trafford and that

was part of his team thinking but even the 60th minute double substitution of Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney could not prevent overwhelming favourites United from slipping to their fourth defeat of the season against the side that was relegated from the Premier League eight months ago with 11 points, the worst total ever recorded.

Such was the depressing nature of United’s lethargic performance, Ferguson cannot wait for the return leg on January 20th and is delighted to still be in with a chance of claiming a place in the final on Sunday, March 1. “Only losing 1-0 was a fantastic result for us.

Considering the performance.

We could have lost four goals.

It’s a fantastic result for us and going to Old Trafford now it will be different,” said Ferguson.

“We just did not play well and over-worried about their crossing and set pieces and we were panicky at the back.”

Despite the heavy workload ahead for his side, Ferguson insists he will not be recalling all his big-name players for the second leg and refused to criticise youngsters like Darron Gibson and Danny Wellbeck, who will be given another chance to make amends.

“I think we will persevere with the younger players. I thought they were our better performers. We were lucky only to lose 1-0 and in a semi-final you need that bit of luck.

“Gibson was one of our better performers and Wellbeck did

Friday January 9, 2009

THE SPORT 23

DAILY XPRESS

Harry Redknapp

Duncan Fletcher

TOTTENHAM MANAGER

6

he fourth llying the mes. Kobe ributed 18

FORMER COACH OF ENGLAND CRICKET TEAM

“I didn’t go and rape Portsmouth at all. Portsmouth wanted to sell Jermain Defoe ... It wasn’t a case that I went back there and upset Jermain to get him to join us. It’s a fantastic deal for Portsmouth with the money they’ve earned for him.”

“What a mess. How sad for English cricket that a year containing a home Ashes series has begun in such chaos.

The selectors really should have stepped in before things turned ugly.

Instead, England are in real trouble with the arrival of the Australians only a few months away.”

Messi is a magician, says press

TrueVisions launches 4 football channels

By Kitinan Sanguansak DAILY XPRESS

T

rueVisions underlined its status as the numberone sports broadcaster in the Kingdom by launching four new channels for English Premier League fans.

The giant cable-television operator has four new “Truesport Club” channels that allow fans to follow their favourite club around the clock.

M is for Man U Truesport Club Channel M is for supporters of Manchester United as well as Portsmouth, Newcastle, Bolton and Hull City.

Truesport Club Channel L is set up specifically for Liverpool, Blackburn, Tottenham, Sunderland and Stoke fans.

COMMON

TOUCH

Alex Ferguson

not get the service in the game so it is unfair to judge him,” added Ferguson.

Clough will not even formally meet his new squad until today after agreeing to take charge of

L

Free for Gold packages Members of TrueVisions’ Silver, True Knowledge and True Life FreeView packages can subscribe to the new channels for a small supplementary fee.

Platinum and Gold package members get to choose one of the four channels for free and still enjoy the right to watch a maximum of 10 games per week, including fixturse between the Big Four.

For more information call (02) 725 7000 or visit www.TrueVisionstv.com.

Supporters of Chelsea, Aston Villa, Westham, Wigan and West Bromwich are served by Truesport Club Channel C, while Truesport Club Channel A is for Arsenal, Everton, Manchester City, Middlesbrough and Fulham fans.

Fans can watch a maximum of four live games involving their favourite teams

Ronaldo unhurt in crash Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo escaped injury yesterday after crashing his sports car on the way to training.

The winger’s Ferrari hit a roadside barrier in a tunnel near Manchester Airport at 10.20am (5.20pm Bangkok time), badly damaging the vehicle, police said.

AP

WE COULD HAVE LOST

BY FOUR GOALS.IT IS A FANTASTIC RESULT FOR US.GOING TO OLD TRAFFORD NOW IT WILL BE DIFFERENT.

the club that his father served with such distinction for six years and won the old First Division title in 1972, but he clearly has a touch of the Brian Clough magic.

Ferguson was quick to privately congratulate his opponents and shared a glass of wine with Clough junior after the game, who merely popped his head around the door of the home dressing room prior to kick off.

Reaching the semi-final stage cost Commons almost 1,000 in purchasing tickets for his friends, but the fulminating 25yard shot he guided beyond United’s Polish keeper after 30 minutes was pure gold dust for David Lowe, elevated from youth team coach to temporary Derby manager for the evening said: “Sir Alex congratulated all of us and he stayed for a drink.”

DPA, Madrid

C is for Chelsea

AP

,,

per channel per week (barring games between the “Big Four” teams) as well as other interesting programmes keeping them abreast of club news. The channels will start operating from tomorrow.

Cristiano Ronaldo crashed his sports car on the way to training.

ionel Messi is once again the talk of Spain after his hat-trick and brilliant performance against Atletico Madrid received unanimous praise from the country’s media.

Messi dazzled as Barcelona beat Atletico 3-1 away in the Spanish capital to move close to the quarter-finals of the King’s Cup. The Argentina striker left the pitch at the Vicente Calderon stadium on Tuesday to applause even from rival fans, who surrendered to the charm of an outstanding player in undoubtedly great form.

Messi himself was exultant following the ovation from Atletico Madrid supporters.

“It is something impossible to explain, very beautiful for any player,” he admitted.

The striker delivered a well-rounded, top-quality performance over 80 minutes: he scored three goals, including one from the penalty spot after being himself fouled in the box, he hit the woodwork once and he drove the Atletico Madrid defence crazy, provoking the sendingoff of Dutch centre-back John Heitinga.

“Messi, Messi, Messi!” said the Madrid sports daily Marca in a headline.

“Messi, king and magician,” said the newspaper As. Messi’s show came on the day that Spanish children traditionally receive gifts from the Three Wise Men, which translates to Spanish as “the magician-kings.”

Both Marca and As are published in Madrid, and the sports press in the capital seldom grant their front pages to a Barcelona player, as happened on Wednesday.

Catalan newspapers also granted a place of honour to the regional idol, of course.

“Alien Messi,” said Sport.

24

THE SPORT

Friday, January 9, 2009

DAILY XPRESS

GOLF

QUESTIONS TO PONDER Six issues for the US golf tour in 2009

since 1934 – but he has gone the last two years without one, and it hasn’t been pretty. Since losing the 2006 US Open with a double bogey on the final hole of Winged Foot, Mickelson has played 10 Majors. He has missed the cut twice, and finished a combined 80 shots out of the lead in the other eight.

AP, Kapalua, Hawaii

E

1. When will Woods return and what can be expected?

His last shot was a tap-in par on June 16 to win the US Open for his 14th career major.

Woods had reconstructive surgery on his left knee eight days later and has been missing in action on the golf course since.

His wife is expecting their second child in February, so he won’t return before then.

Woods began taking full swings with short clubs in December, and assuming there is no swelling or other complications when he resumes a full practice routine, he likely will make his ’09 debut at the Accenture Match Play Championship in the last week of February.

Woods believes he will be stronger than ever, finally able to swing against a stable left knee, and there is no reason to doubt him.

He won his first tournament back after the last two knee surgeries, but if he comes back in Tucson, Arizona, no other tournament requires as many

5. Will Sergio Garcia finally win a Major?

,,

Not since Mickelson has anyone been so clearly defined as the best player without a major. This is his 10th full season as a pro, and he is just hitting his stride. Garcia has gone three straight years playing in the final group of a major. The talent is undeniable. The temperament remains a question.

AFP

rnie Els looked as though he had not shaved since the last time he was at Kapalua for the US PGA Tour’s seasonopening Mercedes-Benz Championship, even though the stubble was more like four days than four years.

Standing atop the steps of the clubhouse, gazing across the Pacific to the island of Molokai, Els soaked up a view he sorely missed. “It’s good to be here,” he said. “Especially here.”

The Mercedes-Benz Championship is for US tour winners only, and while the top four in the world rankings are not here – Tiger Woods, Sergio Garcia, Phil Mickelson and Padraig Harrington – the 33man field shows how unpredictable the tour is becoming.

Thirteen players have never played at Kapalua. Only six players were in the field a year ago. With so much uncertainty about the economy, the return of the world’s No 1 player and who will take him on, here are six questions worth pondering for the 2009 season:

Tiger Woods is likely to make his ’09 debut at the Accenture Championship in the last week of February. breaks and as much good timing to win as match play.

2. How will the global crisis affect the US PGA Tour?

Prize money is slightly up, but only because tournaments had increases built into their contracts. So players won’t see a change in their paycheques or their schedule.

Most tournaments are having to scramble to find courtesy cars, and they might have to cut back on personal services (maybe it’s time players started paying for their own dry cleaning).

Sponsorship trouble comes in the middle tier of the financial structure, such as corporate hospitality, which is vital for operational costs and charitable dollars. The tour said charity was up last year, but the economic meltdown wasn’t felt until the latter part of the season.

The tour has money in reserves for such times, not unlike Augusta National going without TV sponsors for two years. The biggest blow could come later this year when the tour starts renegotiating with a dozen or so title sponsors with contracts that end in 2010.

3. Which will be the toughest Major?

Translation: Will anyone break par at the Masters?

THE BIGGEST BLOW COULD COME LATER THIS YEAR WHEN THE TOUR STARTS RENEGOTIATING WITH A DOZEN OR SO TITLE SPONSORS.

Augusta National is not as impossible as some make it out to be. Trevor Immelman had a chance to finish double digits under par until a meaningless double bogey on the 16th hole last year. Still, the concern is that it has become a course where players protect leads instead of charging from behind.

Woods was the only player to break par at Bethpage Black in the 2002 US Open. The course now is 212 yards longer at 7,426 yards, but Mike Davis has shown restraint in setting up the last three US Open courses.

In other words, players might not have to aim for the walkway on No 10 to reach the fairway.

6. Can the youth movement continue when Woods returns?

Anthony Kim and Camilo

Singh to miss five weeks for knee surgery Vijay Singh, a three-time Major golf champion, will have knee surgery after this week’s season-opening event and miss five weeks, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported yesterday. Singh, who led last year’s US PGA Tour with US$6.6 million and won the season-ending playoff crown, will play in the US$5.6-million Mercedes-Benz Championship, a Maui event for 2008 title winners, before the surgery.

The newspaper reported that Singh told PGA officials after a practice round on Monday at Kapalua that he would withdraw from the Sony Open in Hawaii next week.

Sources said the reason was for surgery to repair a torn meniscus.

Singh, 45, is paired alongside defending champion Daniel Chopra of Sweden in Thursday’s first round. – AFP

The British Open returns to Turnberry for the first time since 1994, and while the course has been strengthened, the difficulty of links golf is all about the wind. As for the US PGA Championship at Hazeltine?

During a visit this summer, club president Tim Rainey showed guests the new tee on the 545yard 12th hole, which is a par 4.

The Minnesota course now can play longer than 7,700 yards depending on how it is set up.

4. Is Phil Mickelson still a Major factor?

Mickelson won a Major in three consecutive seasons – only six others have done that

Villegas both won twice last year and are the poster boys for the dynamic youth movement on the US PGA Tour.

Even so, Kim has never finished higher than Woods in a tour event, and Villegas has done it only twice.

Even so, success is not measured over one year, but successive years. And for all the talented young players, Garcia and Adam Scott are the only players who have been part of the conversation year after year. Kim and Villegas are equipped, but their challenge (beyond Woods) might be coping with celebrity and staying hungry.

Friday, January 9, 2009

THE SPORT 25

DAILY XPRESS

T H E R O YA L T R O P H Y

BADMINTON

EUROPE, WATCH OUT! Asian team brims with confidence ahead of clash AP

onfidence has grown in the Asian team that it can overcome its deficit of matchplay experience and beat Europe in the Royal Trophy starting today.

Europe have won both previous editions of the continental clash and boasts five players in their eight-man team with experience of Ryder Cup play.

South Korea’s Charlie Wi said Asia was confident of staging an upset win at the Amata Springs Country Club in Thailand’s seaside Chonburi province despite the difference in experience “Even the guys who weren’t involved in those first two matches, which is the majority of us, are aware that Asia did not perform as well as we should have, and that is a big motivation for us,” Wi said.

“I have been encouraged by just how positive the mood is in

AP

C

Prayad Marksaeng of Thailand hits out from a bunker during the Royal Trophy Pro-Am event at the Amata Spring Country Club. the team room. The talk is not about how strong or how experienced the Europeans are at match play, but how to make sure we get the best out of our team – which will hopefully be enough for us to shade it.

“We have golfers who have been in tremendous form in the past year, and it has been im-

pressive to see how well the players have come together in practice. That has raised confidence another notch.

“We expect it to be incredibly tight this time, but if I had to put a figure on it I would say the odds going in are probably about 55-45 in our favour.”

Sweden’s Niclas Fasth is one

of the five on the Europe team with Ryder Cup experience and said that could prove decisive over the foursomes today, fourball tomorrow and Sunday’s singles. “The Ryder Cup brings out the best of players and it can make a bit of a difference in a team competition,” Fasth said.

In today’s first foursomes match, 17-year-old Japanese pinup Ryo Ishikawa and compatriot Toru Taniguchi will face Scotland’s Paul Lawrie and Dane Soren Hansen.

That will be followed by the Asia pairing of Wi and China’s Liang Wenchong against Ireland’s Paul McGinley and Pablo Larrazabal of Spain.

The all-English duo of Nick Dougherty and Oliver Wilson will square off against South Korea’s S.K. Ho and Japan’s Hideto Tanihara in the third foursomes, while the final match will pitch the Thai pairing of Thongchai Jaidee and Prayad Marksaeng against Fasth and fellow Swede Johan Edfors.

Lawrie is the only Major winner among the 16 combatants.

Ishikawa, Asia’s secret weapon AFP

AFP

A

Ryo Ishikawa is excited about the prospect of playing for Asia.

sia are ready to unleash their secret weapon on the European team when the Royal Trophy tees off today.

Teenager Ryo Ishikawa, the “Shy Prince” of Japanese golf, will be playing his first big event outside his home country, where he has taken the game by storm with two victories in 18 months. Ishikawa

said he was thrilled to be chosen to play for Asia at such a young age.

“I am very excited about the prospect of playing for Asia,” said Ishikawa, who is ranked 60th in the world.

“I am really looking forward to working together with my team-mates to deliver the best result for Asia. I am also looking forward to learning from

playing side by side with such experienced players.”

Ishikawa’s quiet manner and film-star looks have earned him the nickname “Shy Prince” in Japan, where huge galleries follow him at every tournament he plays.

A small army of Japanese media has descended on to document every move of the 17-year-old.

Sudket Prapakamol keeps the Thai flag flying.

Thai pair march on DAILY XPRESS

S

udket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthongkam yesterday restored some pride for Thailand when they cruised into the quarter-finals of the US$200,000 Malaysia Super Series with a dramatic come-from-behind victory over a Malaysian pair.

The mixed pairing of Sudket and Saralee, fourth seeds and current world No 7s, yesterday struggled hard to beat Mohd Razif Abdul Latif and Khe Wei Woon 1921 21-19 21-19 in a gruelling 60-minute, hard-fought second-round encounter.

Sudket and Saralee have not won a major competition in recent years. Their best performance was in the semi-finals at last year’s Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold. They next take on Hong Kong’s Yohan Hadikusumo Wiratama and Chau Hoi Wah, surprise 1921 21-16 21-19 winners over Thai eighth seeds Songphon Anugritayawon and Kunchala Voravichitchaikul.

In the women’s singles, world number 34 Salakjit Ponsana played well against top seed and world number 1 Zhou Mi from Hong Kong before going down in three games 13-21 21-17 6-21.

Friday, January 9, 2009

DAILY XPRESS

KP ‘knifed in the back’

CRICKET

THE SPORT 27

PIETERSEN SLAMMED

A F P , London

evin Pietersen’s resignation as England captain was inevitable when it became clear his team-mates were not behind him in his row with coach Peter Moores, the British press said yesterday.

The batsman was riding high after England returned to India following the Mumbai terror attacks and his attempt to remove Moores while staying on as captain himself could have worked – if the team had backed him, according to newspapers here, many of which led with the drama.

“Knifed in the Back” headlined the tabloid Daily Mirror, saying Pietersen quit before he was pushed after a “startling vote of no confidence from his own players” left him with “no room for manoeuvre”.

Some of the papers blamed all-rounder Andrew Flintoff for picking Moores over South Africa-born Pietersen in the row, with the Daily Mail headlining: “Flintoff leads a mutiny.”

Former England skippers criticise batsman and ECB for chaos AFP, London

N

asser Hussain attacked both Kevin Pietersen and cricket chiefs as the star batsman resigned the England captaincy.

Pietersen’s falling out with coach Peter Moores led to both men losing their positions on Wednesday, just weeks before England depart for their tour of the West Indies.

For ex-England captain Hussain the pain of another self-inflicted wound in the body of English cricket was hard to take ahead of this year’s Ashes series.“It’s surprising how English cricket continues to shoot itself in the foot just before an Ashes series,” he said.

Pietersen became England captain in August after Michael Vaughan’s tearful resignation.

RESULTS basketball NBA Yesterday’s results: Toronto 99, Washington 93; Orlando 106, Atlanta 102; Cleveland 111, Charlotte 81; Houston 89, Boston 85; New Jersey 100, Memphis 89; Philadelphia 110, Milwaukee 105; Minnesota 129, Oklahoma City 87; Utah 116, New Orleans 90; Denver 108, Miami 97; Indiana 113, Phoenix 110; Portland 84, Detroit 83; LA Lakers 114, Golden State 106

ice hockey NHL Yesterday’s results: Montreal 6, NY Rangers 3; Vancouver 4, Edmonton 2

rallying Dakar Rally Wednesday’s results after the fifth stage, a 506km special from Neuquen to san Rafael, Argentina: Cars Stage: 1. Giniel De Villiers (RSA/Volkswagen) 5hr 47min 43sec, 2. Dieter Depping (GER/Volkswagen) at 2min 18sec, 3. Robby Gordon (USA/Hummer) 4:12, 4. Nasser

Al-Attiyah (QAT/BMW) 5:23 Overall: 1. Nasser Al-Attiyah (QAT/BMW) 18hr 44min 37sec, 2.

Giniel De Villiers (RSA/Volkswagen) at 2min 24sec, 3. Carlos Sainz (ESP/Mitsubishi) 6:33, 4.

Stephane Peterhansel (FRA/Mitsubishi) 13:44 Motorcycling Stage: 1. Jonah Street (USA/KTM) 6hr 41min 06sec, 2.

Frans Verhoeven (NED/KTM) at 5min 53sec, 3. Francisco Lopez (CHI/KTM) 7:34 Overall: 1. Marc Coma (ESP/KTM) 21hr 38min 12sec, 2. Jonah Street (USA/KTM) at 27min 12sec, 3.

David Fretigne (FRA/Yamaha) 39:09

soccer English League Cup Wednesday’s result: Derby County 1 (Commons 30) Manchester United 0 Second leg on January 20 Spanish Cup Wednesday’s first leg results: Sevilla 2 (Fabiano 30, Kanoute 39) Deportivo La Coruna 1 (Bravo 81), Sporting Gijon 3 (Barral 10, 19, Carmel 36) Valladolid 1 (Canobbio 90+1), Real Union 0 Betis 1 (Damia 11),Racing Santander 1 (Lacen 55) Valencia 1 (Colsa 36-og), Polideportivo Ejido 3 (Molina 52, Juli 59, Chico 76) Espanyol 2 (Hurtado 15, Martinez 72)

AFP

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Kevin Pietersen, second left, is escorted to his car by police officers after arriving at Heathrow Airport.

Hussain said: “The ECB [England and Wales Cricket Board] knew exactly when they gave Kevin Pietersen the job, what sort of guy he is.

“That’s why I thought they gave him the job, because he was abrasive, he was going to be

6-3

in your face and take people on.

They must have known it was eventually going to come to a clash between Pietersen and Moores.”

But Hussain also criticised the conduct of Pietersen, not due back from a holiday in his

native South Africa until Thursday.

“You can’t just sit on safari in South Africa and issue ultimatums to the board about the England cricket captaincy. It is far too important for that.”

Mike Atherton, another exEngland captain, said when Pietersen was appointed it would “all end in tears”.

Now cricket correspondent of The Times, he told the paper’s website: “I was concerned how it would affect his form... as it turned out, his form has not suffered at all as he has continued to score runs.

“But I also wondered how he would get on with the England management as he had a history of clashing with hierarchy and he came into the job not seeing eye to eye with Peter Moores.

“Nobody has come out of this well. The ECB’s judgment in appointing Moores as quickly as they did will be questioned. So will Pietersen’s judgment in how he has dealt with Moores.”

Lang’s hat-trick helps Canadiens melt Rangers Andrei Markov and Robert Lang scored power-play goals to break open a tight game in the third period and lift Montreal over the NY Rangers.

Scottish Premier League Wednesday’s result: Motherwell 1 (Porter 11) Hearts 0

tennis Qatar Open Second round results: Andy Roddick (USA x4) b Arnaud Clement (FRA) 6-3 7-5; Roger Federer (SUI x2) b Andreas Seppi (ITA) 6-3 6-3 ;Gael Monfils (FRA x5) b Nicolas Devilder (FRA) 7-5 7-6 (7/5);Victor Hanescu (ROM) b Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) 6-2 64;;Andy Murray (GBR x3) b Philipp Petzschner (GER) 6-2 64;; Rafael Nadal (ESP x1) b Karol Beck (SVK) 6-1 6-2; Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) b Alexander Peya (AUT) 7-5 6-3; Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER x8) b Kristof Vliegen (BEL) 6-4 6-7 (4/7) 6-4 Brisbane International Yesterday’s results: Men: Quarter-finals: Fernando Verdasco (ESP x3) b Florent Serra (FRA) 4-6 6-0 6-3 Women Quarter-finals: Amelie Mauresmo (FRA x5) b Ana Ivanovic (SRB x1) 6-3 6-2; Sara Errani (ITA) b Olga Govortsova (BLR) 6-3 6-3; Victoria Azarenka (BLR x2) b Lucie Safarova (CZE) 7-6 (7/5) 6-4 ASB Classic Yesterday’s quarter-final results: Aravane Rezai (FRA) b Edina Gallovits (ROU) 6-3 6-2; Elena Dementieva (RUS x1) b Shahar

Peer (ISR x5) 6-3 6-1; Anne Keothavong (GBR) b Ayumi Morita (JPN) 6-0 retired; Elena Vesnina (RUS) b Caroline Wozniacki (DEN x2) 6-3 0-6 6-3 Hopman Cup Yesterday’s results in Perth Australia: Group A: United States b Australia 2-1 Women’s singles: Casey Dellacqua (AUS) b Meghann Shaughnessy (USA) 6-3 6-4 Men’s singles: James Blake (USA) b Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) 6-

2 6-2 Mixed doubles: Shaughnessy/Blake (USA) b Dellacqua/Hewitt 6-3 5-7 10-6 (match tiebreak) Slovak Republic b Germany 3-0 Women’s singles: Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) b Sabine Lisicki (GER) 7-6 (7/3) 6-4 Men’s singles: Dominik Hrbaty (SVK) b Nicolas Kiefer (GER) 1-3 retired.

Mixed doubles: Cibulkova/Hrbaty (SVK) b Lisicki/Kiefer (GER) 6-0 6-0 (walkover)

Nadal, Fed close in A F P , Doha

R

ON TV

afael Nadal and Roger Federer moved to within two wins of their Nadal first re-match since the sensational Wimbledon final six months ago, both hastening into the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open on Wednesday.

Nadal took only 61 minutes to win 6-1 6-2 against Karol Beck, the former top 40 Slovakian, and looked as energetically aggressive as ever. Federer, whose total of 13 Grand Slam titles puts him just one from the all-time record, needed only a little longer, taking 79 minutes in an efficient but not always fluent 6-3 6-3 victory against Andreas Seppi.

Monfils

Basketball NBA NY Knicks v Dallas 8.30am/Star Sports

Golf Royal Trophy 11am/ESPN

Tennis Hopman Cup 4pm/Star Sports Qatar Open 8pm & 10pm /Star Sports

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BANGKOK

THESPORT

Friday, January 9, 2009

DAILY XPRESS

SOMDEVSIZZLES Unheralded Somdev Devvarman upset Carlos Moya 4-6 7-5 6-4 in the Chennai Open.

TENNIS

ANA

DOWN

Amelie Mauresmo showed she was still a force to be reckoned with as she thumped top seed Ana Ivanovic 6-3 6-2 in the quarter-finals of the Brisbane International. Mauresmo, the world No 23, took just 67 minutes to down the fifth-ranked Ivanovic, who looked completely out of touch against the 29-yearold Frenchwoman.

“I’m very proud about the way I played today and how from the first point to the last I was really focused,” Mauresmo, a former world No 1, said.

Ivanovic said: “Amelie’s a great player and she’s a very tough opponent – she’s very experienced as well so all credit to her.”

GOLF

FOOTBALL

‘Shy Prince’ set for Royal show

Commons cracker shocks United

Asia are ready to unleash their secret weapon on the European team when the Royal Trophy tees off today. Teenager Ryo Ishikawa, the “Shy Prince” of Japanese golf, will be playing his first big event outside his home country, where he has taken the game by storm with two victories in 18 months. >PAGE 25

A sublime strike by Derby’s Kris Commons ended Manchester United’s 14-match unbeaten streak in all competitions. In their first major cup semi-final since 1976, the League Championship strugglers dominated the English, European and world champions. >PAGE 22