Old Reliable

Tommy Henrich, the right fielder for the New York Yankees from ( 1937-1942, 1946-1950), earned the nickname of "Old Reliable" for his timely hits. I was born well after he played, but I remember my father always telling me stories of "Old Reliable." I loved the nickname...as it embodies loyalty and dependability. No one these days has that nickname, but after seeing the play of Danny Graham, the striker for Swansea City, I think we now have someone worthy of that moniker.

A good striker has the innate ability to change the complexion of a game simply by stepping on to the field and in the space of a few days, Graham has done this twice for Swansea: first, scoring the game tying goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time (second half) against Aston Villa on January 1st; then he scored the game tying goal with three minutes to go in the game against Arsenal on January 6. Incredible!

Swansea City is a fun club to watch play and I think somewhere up there Tommy Henrich is saluting Danny Graham, a worthy successor to the title of "Old Reliable."