SPORTS MOST MISUNDERSTOOD MAN TELLS ALL

SAYS

We wave goodbye
to one of!

The lonely soul

sports most loved/hated

Theres no doubt that slinging

will be lonelier place without
Luke William Tapp.
Once
coined the Peter Doherty of the
slinging world, Tapp often led
the sport a merry dance with
his extensive pre-tournament
preparations and game time
mind games. His on/off love
affair with Philip Cartwright
(dubbed Tappwright by critics)
enthralled fans for years.
You cant help but feel that
we never really did see the best
of Tapp and that in the same
sense his success never really
matched his ambition.
Of
course, Tappislava will remain
forever the legacy hes carved
out for himself and hell be
reminded of the minute he
steps back on English soil.
Nevertheless, hes maintained a
degree of professionalism
around what is becoming a
declining industry and has
never failed to surprise of put a
smile on the face of
competitors and fans alike

A void to fill
Tapp leaves, but who !
becomes the new court
jester?
Its a title he wouldnt openly
embrace but one he wont want
to see passed on to someone
else.
Tapps relocation to
Dubai means another must step
up to fulfill his duties as
ringmaster extraordinaire.
Current favourites include
former apprentice and shortterm PR man Gavin Thomas,
who was taken under Tapps
arm and nurtured into the
sport.
Failure to deliver on
even a Paralympic level have
though cast doubt over rise to
succession.
Other names
include Adam QGame
Antoszkiw a colourful
character with real promise and
more likely than most to cause
an upset.
Some critics have
heralded the return of John
Phillips, how walked away from
the sport in spectacular fashion
some years ago over a dispute
involving a game of two ball
and a man-sized soiled nappy.
Tapp was unavailable for
comment

Almost,
but not
quite

Tapp: the real me

myview

Philip Cartwright
World Champion

Sure, I respect the lad hes

definitely a trier. But I went on
the record 7 or 8 years ago and
said that this kid didnt have
what it takes to go all the way.
Tapps is a safe pair of hands on
the middle legs of a boatrace but
you have to question his
temperament to be able to excel
on the opening of finale leg.
Hes won bits and pieces along
the way, of course he has but
is he going to Dubai with a box
full of trophies?
Certainly
nothing that wont fit into hand
luggage.
Bratislava was a
disappointment for all of us, and
we all forgive but it is hard to
forget. Ive no doubt its the last
thing he thinks about every
night before he goes to sleep.
Good to see him making a go of
the family thing, he needs
something in his life that he can
excel at maybe this is it.
Cheers for the memories kidda.

Wont
be
missed

RIGATapp just moments after the heroic win

NANTWICHthe winners cup that never was

myview

Andrew Wilkinson
Childhood friend
Tapps has been nothing more
than a thorn in my side since the
day I met him. As a bloke, 5/10
as a drinker probably 3. Ive lent
Luke a good deal of cash over
the years with little return and
have bailed him out of many a
scrap.
Ive shared advice,
women and even my heart at
times for this character.
And
what do I get in return? A text
message telling me hes off for a
few years to dive under the nose
of the Inland Revenue. Yes him
and Cartwright have had their
run ins, but handbags compared
to the ding dongs weve had. Ill
be honest, I dont like the bloke
I just tolerate him. Mostly out
of pity, but more because
without me Im not sure hed
have someone to call a best
friend. Dont get me wrong hes
a character but not my cup of
tea. He wont be missed not
one bit

V FESTan indecent exposure caution for Tapp

UNIhot water over racial stereotyping

DRUNKEN
VILLAIN?
NATIONAL
HERO?

Wearing a pair of chinos, a

Sherman shirt and a pair of
aviators, Tapp looks a million
miles from the desperate,
vilified cheat that The Guardian
and Red Tops have recently
portrayed him to be. Tapp has
agreed to break his silence to
News International, having
refused to engage in any form
media interview following
Nantwich 2010 and the break up
of his former management and
press team, Gavin Thomas.
It has taken three months of
negotiations to get Tapp to
undertake his first media
interview in two years but he has
agreed to deliver an off the
record, uninhibited account of
all things drinking, including his
tempestuous relationship with
Phil Cartwright, his 8 year
drinking career and of course,
Bratislava 2009.
"It's been a while" smiles a
relaxed looking Tapp as he puts
forward that famous and
controversial right hand for a
warm and sincere handshake.
"Time flies when you're having
fun". It's been a busy 12 months
for Tapp, having got married
and recently signed a deal that
will take him to the money
spinning UAE International
Drinking League.
"Yea, I was
pleased to get hitched, I think it
helps with the drinking
profession, it helps to focus you
on the big events as you're
competing for not just yourself,
but your family too. The UAE
will be a huge challenge for me
and obviously the profession is
in its early days over there but
I'm not just moving for the
money. A bit when like David
[Beckham, a close friend of
Tapp] moved to the USA a few
years ago to promote Major
League Soccer, this is a great
opportunity for me and my
family to go and make a
difference to the drinking
profession in the UAE."
And
what of those who have said
Tapp is moving for the money?
"Total nonsense, it's never been
about that.
Don't believe
everything you read".
Tapp
winks as he delivers that final
line, clearly a reference to the
recent expose in the Guardian.
When asked whether Tapp
read the article that was

circulated last week, Tapp

replies with honesty, "of course,
it's difficult not to read it when
it's all over the news and the
internet.
I read the article.
Listen, people are entitled to
their opinions and the hack who
wrote that article has never met
me, doesn't know anything
about me or my family and
they're creating stories to sell
papers.
It's disappointing to
read for my family but I won't
lose any sleep over it". Although
Tapp is the official Champions
League 2009 winner and is

globally recognised as such,

there have been constant
demonstrations in recent weeks
for an apology from Tapp for
the alleged deliberate use of an
unregulated glass. "I won't be
apologising for that because it
wasn't deliberate. The truth is
that when I was about three
drinks in I realised the whole,
extra large tins were not fitting
in the glass, Phil [Cartwright]
realised too, we measured it out
and it didn't fit. So I changed
glass, beat Phil and a couple of
others with the regulated glass

and the rest is history". Tapp

shrugs his shoulders at this
point, it's clearly a genuinely
held view and it seems like a
relief for him to break the long
held silence. "I will say sorry
though, I'm sorry for any pain
caused by the events that night,
I'm sorry to my colleagues in the
industry and I'm sorry for
bringing the sport into disrepute
but I cannot apologise for my
actions which have been
described as being deliberate as
they were not deliberate and
were not premeditated." When

asked whether Tapp thinks the

recent expose in The Guardian
was fair, Tapp gets agitated for
the first time, "look, this was the
greatest drinking achievement of
my career and a couple of hacks
are trying to take it away from
me three years down the line, do
you think that's fair?
Tapp is of course not the only
person to have caused
controversy over the years.
"What makes me laugh is that
everyone is focusing on this one
night in Bratislava, what about
Peterborough 2007, Nantwich
2010 and what about the Swan?
Drinking from Swanny has
always given Cartwright a 0.5
second advantage over the rest
of the field but it's never been
properly analysed.
And when
you look at the sharp starts, you
have to wonder how many of
those world cup titles are
legitimate. But I'm not getting
into any of that.
How is his tempestuous
relationship with Cartwright
these days? "Look, me and Phil
have had our issues over the
years. For instance, you look at
Prague [where there was a
famous brawl following a failure
to shake hands] but we kissed
and made up and you move on.
I always knew that on my day I
could beat Phil and I have done,
for instance Brat 2009 and at a
recent twilight fixture on a
rooftop terrace where I won on a
technicality due to spillage so I
know I can beat him. I had a big
rivalry with Phil over the years
and I would say he was probably
the most consistent drinker of
our generation and deserves to
be regarded as such.
Aside from Brat, Tapp has
other great memories to take
away with him from the UK
Premier League.
So what will
Tapp's legacy be after he has left
for shores new? "I would like
people to remember the great
things I did for the game.
As
well as Brat 2009, my legacy will
be captaining to victory the most
important Boat Race for a
generation [North v South 2009]
and finishing off a job Biggy T
never could when I smashed the
Yank in Riga 2008.
Whatever the critics say, there
can be no debating that Tapp
has been one of the most
important drinkers of his
generation.
His flamboyant
personality will inevitably attract
controversy and perhaps he
does deserve some of the press
criticism.
Not the most
technically gifted slinger and not
always the easiest to love, but if
you were going into a Boat Race
on foreign shores and you
needed someone on your
shoulder, you could do no better
then turn to Tapp.
Whatever
you think of Tapp, there is no
question that he cared about the
sport and was always there or
thereabouts.

"

"

See Tapp take on the best the

UAE International Drinking
League has to offer this
coming July on Al-Jiraz
Sports TV."
by Craig Brown!
Additional reporting by Adam
Billingham, JJ Phillips & Irish
Rob