ODEMWINGIE STARTS IN PERFECT STYLE
 Peter Odemwingie made sure that his unusual name will be well known around the Black Country, as he scored a late winner for the Baggies in front of a large Irish contingent in the Birmingham Road End. The front man had only received clearance late on Friday evening but showed his potential within the opening few minutes as he sliced open the Sunderland defence with a clever run. While his shot went well wide, he received a similar opportunity late on and made no mistake to earn a vital three points. Read an Ode to Peter Odemwingie.
BAGGIES LEFT SHATTERED WITH THE BLUES ON PREMIER RETURN
It wasn't the nicest of returns back to the top flight for Roberto di Matteo's men, with his old club Chelsea not looking to show any sympathy to one of their former heroes. A strange game indeed, with some nice flourishes by the Baggies but a series of soft goals and a lack of firepower up front put paid to any hopes of a competitive game. It does sound awfully familiar to the Mowbray era but di Matteo has shown to be a quick learner and he couldn't legislate for a couple of howlers by Carson and the defensive wall. A loyal Ballinhassig supporter, who had to cope with the horrid rain to go with the wretched result was dismayed with the goalkeeper situation and unless things change there may be a view to give Myhill his chance. Anyway, everyone will be hoping for better with a sizable Irish contingent getting back to the Shrine to take on Sunderland where a performance and resut akin to our Annual Trip two years ago against the same side would be most warmly welcome.
IRISH BAGGIE REID CALLS HALT ON INTERNATIONAL CAREER
 West Brom star and Irish International has called a halt to his International career with the blessing of Irish manager Giovanni Trapatonni. The versatile Baggies star who has suffered several serious injuries throughout his career now wishes to concentrate on establishing a sustained career at club level. The Irish player made a big impact having been on load at the Baggies last season, filling in at right back with great effect and scoring a crucial goal at home to Coventry. Despite offers from Celtic, he opted to stay at the Shrine over the summer and should be a key player in the Baggies upcoming season. While he will be a loss to the national side, having been the star player in many games, his prolonged absence would have made it difficult for him to re-establish a place in Trap's team.
BAGGIES START ON ESPN WITH CAPITAL TRIP TO CHAMPIONS
It could have barely been a more difficult start for Baggies on their return to the top flight, as they face an away trip to Champions Chelsea in the season opener, which will be shown live on ESPN at 5.30pm. This is the only scheduled game for Satelite TV until November when a trip to Blackpool will be live on a Monday and the trip to Upton Park will also be picked up by Sky's cameras. This is the first of four successive away games against the so called Big Four - a nice relaxing start indeed. The first home match occurs on August 21st as the Black Cats of Sunderland make the trip to the Shrine and such is the apetite for football following the World Cup that a large Irish contingent is set to travel to the Shrine for this clash.
BIG DAVE RECEIVES STANDING OVATION AS DORRANS CAPS OFF SEASON IN STYLE
The season's official trip proved a big hit with a large contingent of Irish supporters from all across the generation spectrum enjoying the long weekend in Birmingham and the Black Country. The only dampener (besides the dull weather) was the actual game itself which petered out into an insipid end of season affair. Big Dave Darren Moore in what is likely to be his last appearance at the Hawthorns received a standing ovation when he was replaced late on, with his side clinging onto a goal lead. His departure probably led to the Baggies proving more thretaning in attack and fittingly it was player of the season Graham Dorrans who snatched a last second equaliser with a clinical finish. Cue pitch invasions before the players could finally receive their promotion medals and show their appreciation to the crowd. Click here for more.
BAGGIES DELIVER ON A VERY GOOD FRIDAY
A Good Friday with a chance to see the Baggies on telly but unfortunatley for many stuck in Ireland - not in a pub. Some enterprising people took the opportunity to make a full weekend of it and take in a multitude of games in the West Midlands and they were certainly not disappointed on Good Friday as a clinicla Baggies display saw them edge ever closer to securing a place back in the Premier League. Read more here.
STEPHEN REID DELIVERS VITAL BLOW AGAINST COVENTRY
It wasn't the prettiest of games, but at this vital stage of the season, three points is the most important thing and a first half strike from Irish International Stephen Reid. Another Irish star; Kieran Westwood made some decent saves for the visitors but as the final whistle drew nearer, nerves grew and chewed fingers became shorter but the Baggies showed strong character to hold out for a crucial win. Read more here.
NEW PUB GUIDE ADDED
 A new section to the website has been added with a guide to pubs that one may like to frequent on a matchday. Thsis will hopefully give visitors an idea where they can go to further enhance the matchday experience. This is no way near a comprehensive list yet and we will be looking to continually add to this. Members who have any comments or recommendations for those pubs who are listed are not should send an e-mail to Eolan Allen on eolan@irishbaggies.com. Click here to go the new Pub guide or click the link at the top of the page.
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