Lampard?

Lampard in his prime

It may have escaped your notice that the winner of the Terrier group at Crufts this year was a Skye Terrier (of quite extraordinary appearance) who goes by the faintly improbable name of 'Lampard'.

UK based readers will immediately and correctly have guessed that 'Lampard' is so named out of admiration for the well known Chelsea and England footballer Frank Lampard.

It set me to wondering. If you were to be called after a sporting hero, whom would you chose?

Berti Vogts in his prime...

I would like to take this opportunity to make it quite clear, most emphatically, that there is no connection between my name and that of Berti Vogts, the World Cup winning 1970s German football player who later had an unsuccessful stint as the Scotland team manager.

Gail has still, over two years later, not quite recovered from being stopped in the park by a local ned who, on learning my name, said "Bearrrr-tie? Yer didnae name him efta tha' sh*t Sco'land manager did Yer?"