2011: A YEAR IN THE LIFE
By Sportinglife.com staff
FOOTBALL - WHY WORST WAS BEST
"It was our worst ever day. It's the worst result in my history, ever."
Sir Alex Ferguson may not have enjoyed our moment of the year from the world of football but there is no doubting the impact Manchester City's 6-1 derby humiliation of rivals Manchester United made.
The 'noisy neighbours' well and truly turned up the volume as they secured this memorable victory, throwing down the gauntlet for this season's Premier League title race in which City are now the favourites to secure top spot.
Mario Balotelli, with 'Why Always Me?' T-shirt in tow, made the headlines for the right reasons with a double strike and David Silva once again showed why he is vying with Robin van Persie for the player of the season award.
The Spaniard has added a touch of class to City's play and the plethora of attacking talent at Roberto Mancini's disposal sparkled as they gave the fans from the blue half of Manchester a day they will never forget.
The Red Devils can't be written off yet - history has already proved that - but certainly in the short-term there is every chance we could look back on this win as a major turning point in the English football cycle.
Nick Hext
RACING - HISTORY IN THE MAKING
It wasn't just the moment of 2011 - it was one of the most striking I've ever seen on a racecourse. It wasn't at the end of a race, nor at the beginning, but mid-contest. It was Frankel's 2000 Guineas.
We went to Newmarket to crown the king; after all he'd been a brilliant, unbeaten champion two-year-old.
A routine win over Excelebration in the Greenham at Newbury confirmed his wellbeing but it was all about the Guineas. The question mark going into the race was what tactics that would be employed?
The one potential Achilles' heel with Frankel was his keenness to get the job done. He took a fierce hold in a race, and on more than one occasion Tom Queally seemed to be a hair's breadth from losing the battle with his partner.
It must have been on connections' minds when they decided to employ Rerouted as a pacemaker, but in terms of jobs in racing that was second only to being BHA communications director during the whip debate in terms of poisoned chalices.
You see Frankel wasn't going to have a pacemaker. When the stalls opened, for the first and only time in his career, they let him roll.
It made for a quite spectacular sight. After a furlong, half the field were in trouble, and it just got better and better.
"Heading down to the half mile and it's Frankel and Tom Queally by five or six lengths," was the measured commentary of Ian Bartlett from high up the Newmarket stands. Moments later even he couldn't contain his excitement.
"At halfway Frankel is almost 10 lengths clear," he roared - and the crowd joined in. "At the Bushes and Frankel is 15 lengths clear," a stunned Bartlett continued. Never before has the final two furlongs of a Newmarket Classic been a lap of honour.
Magnificent.
Dave Ord
CRICKET - SIX IS THE BEST
By any measure 2011 was a stunning year for cricket, which makes selecting one moment above all others a challenge.
England completing their historic Ashes victory in Sydney with yet another innings drubbing of the Aussies; the World Cup when England and India played out a logic-defying, boundary-bothering tie, a pink-haired Kevin O'Brien helped Ireland embarrass both England and the ICC with their short-sighted, money-fixated desire to exclude the non-Test nations from the event, before the final got the conclusion the script called for as MS Dhoni nervelessly shouldered the burdens of a billion to lead India to a memorable victory; Sri Lanka's astonishing final-day collapse at Cardiff that ultimately handed England a series victory; England building on that success by crushing India 4-0 to take top spot in the ICC Test rankings for the first time; India and West Indies drawing a Test match with the scores level; Australia dismissing South Africa for 96 and then being bowled out themselves for 47 on one crazy day in Cape Town; Virender Sehwag's outrageous 219 in the fourth ODI against West Indies; New Zealand's thrilling seven-run victory over Australia in the second Test at Hobart; Sachin Tendulkar's continued pursuit of an unprecedented yet infuriatingly elusive 100th international century.
Yes, 2011 has had its share of memorable moments. But if we're to be strict about selecting a moment, there can be but one winner.
It will surely go down in history as the most replayed shot in cricket history.
It was the six hit by Dhoni to secure India's first World Cup victory since 1983.
The pre-tournament favourites had not been entirely convincing in their run to the final and appeared in trouble when they slumped to 31-2, losing both Sehwag and Tendulkar early as they replied to Sri Lanka's Mahela Jayawardene-inspired 274-6 in Mumbai.
When the third wicket fell at 114 after a consolidating stand between Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli, the Cup was up for grabs.
Enter Dhoni, promoting himself in the batting order above the in-form Yuvraj Singh. It was a bold move, a brave move, and one that could have gone wrong.
But 128 minutes of one-day batting masterclass later, Dhoni provided the ultimate coup de grace, muscling Nuwan Kulasekara high into the Mumbai sky and over the long-on boundary to win the match in epic, never-to-be-forgotten style and send the host nation into delirium.
It was the six heard round the world, taking Dhoni to 91 not out and India to a famous six-wicket victory. But it was the batsman's initial post-shot reaction that stays with me most as he allowed himself just a brief, almost shy, smile before being embraced by Yuvraj and his delirious team-mates. No showboating, no showmanship. Just the satisfaction of a mission achieved and a journey completed.
Dave Tickner
RUGBY UNION - FULFILLING THE SCRIPT
So it was meant to be after all.
There were plenty who said that after 24 years of hurt, they'd 'bottle it', particularly with the added pressure of being on home turf. There were plenty who said their hopes rested with Dan Carter.
They were wrong.
There can be no other rugby union moment of 2011 than when the great Richie McCaw wrapped his massive hands around the Webb Ellis Trophy and hoisted it into the Auckland sky, sending New Zealand into raptures.
The mighty All Blacks went into the tournament as the 4/6 favourites with the bookmakers but with more than a little 'previous' when it came to not matching up to such expectation.
And when Carter, their main playmaker and dead-eye goalkicker, was ruled out of the tournament before the group stage had even finished, those old doubts began to creep back in.
When his replacement Colin Slade, then his replacement Aaron Cruden, fell victim to injury a huge responsibility fell onto the shoulders of Stephen Donald,who just a fortnight before entering the fray at the World Cup final had been summoned to the national squad while fishing on the Waikato River.
But he held his nerve - admirably under the circumstances - to kick what proved to be the crucial penalty as the All Blacks scrapped past a dogged but ultimately limited France 8-7 in the final.
So, as Ian Chadband wrote in the Daily Telegraph, the World Cup was ultimately won by the No 10 who had replaced the No 10 who had replaced the No 10 who had replaced the No 10.
Quite simply, it was meant to be.
Reece Killworth
RUGBY LEAGUE - BURROW DIGS DEEPEST
For much of 2011 things weren't looking great for the Leeds Rhinos. After winning the Super League Grand Final for three successive seasons from 2007-2009 they had relinquished their crown to Wigan in 2010 and it didn't look a temporary loan.
Brian McDermott's reign at Headingley hadn't got off to the rosiest of starts to say the least, his team failing to win in six of their first 10 league matches of 2011. Not the form of potential champions.
Some said Leeds might not even reach the play-offs. The criticism wasn't confined to those outside Headingley either, with McDermott having to fend off unrest from some of the South Stand faithful.
Yet as Leeds' big players returned from injury - the likes of Jamie Peacock and Danny McGuire - their heartbeat returned and winning momentum began at just the right time.
Wigan deserve a mention, their Grand Final-winning team of the previous year won the Challenge Cup after all, but it was that Wembley final that was the turning point for Leeds. There was almost a great comeback from the Rhinos in that 28-18 defeat and it gave them belief.
They didn't lose a game for the rest of the season.
With St Helens 16-8 in front with 20 minutes to go it looked like they might be making the short journey home from Old Trafford with the Grand Final trophy for the first time in five years.
But then up stepped Rob Burrow. His magnificent solo effort and then equally-important break to set up a try for Ryan Hall winning the match for the Rhinos.
All 37 journalists in the press room voted for Burrow to win the Harry Sunderland Trophy for man of the match and that says it all. Leeds had triumphed despite adversity and Burrow was central to their incredible renaissance.
Ben Linfoot
FORMULA ONE - THE DRIVE OF HIS LIFE
Minutes before the start of the Canadian Grand Prix, Jenson Button told reporters that an exciting race was in store. Relaxed and smiling, it was clear that the rain that had fallen was good news to the former world champion, who had five cars between himself and pole-sitter Sebastian Vettel, the man who had dominated the season thus far.
Button's chance was surely to fly off the grid and get himself in the mix for a podium place. But, as events transpired, the race started behind a safety car, with all teams forced to operate on full wet tyres.
Further trouble was soon found. A collision with team-mate Lewis Hamilton sent Button to the pit and just a lap later he was deemed to have broken the safety-car speed limit. A drive-through penalty was the punishment.
Determined to hit back, Button began to move back up through the field only for the heavens to truly open - back to the pits for a third time to change tyres.
A red flag brought about a two-hour delay and when rcing resumed, there appeared to be no change of fortune - a collision with Fernando Alonso bringing about a return to the pit lane.
Then the fightback truly began. Lap 50 and finally Jenson cracked the top 10. Pass, pass, pass, and five laps later he was up into fifth despite having made six pit-stops.
Another safety car, but not before another Button pass, and he was into fourth. With Michael Schumacher defending second and Mark Webber weaving in behind him, looking for an opening, Button had a chance to get on the podium having been 21st earlier in the race. Surely, he couldn't.
Yes, he could. Using his DRS, Button flew pastWebber and Schumacher and was just two seconds behind Vettel with five laps to go.
Come lap 70, the driver who'd scarcely seen another rival all season suddenly had pressure - maximum pressure. And then came the mistake.
Less than a minute from the end of the longest grand prix in history, Vettel was forced into an operator error by Button, who made an astonishing 34 passes in a record-breaking race to go from seventh, down to 21st, and drive away with the trophy.
As McLaren's team principal Martin Whitmarsh said: "From Jenson, that's the stuff of champions, that's the stuff of dreams."
Ben Coley
GOLF - THE EMERGENCE OF KEEGAN BADLEY
Luke Donald rightly stole the majority of the headlines in 2011 as he topped both the US Money List and Race To Dubai - an unpredecented feat - but Keegan Bradley's rookie season in the USA was little short of remarkable.
Bradley is bred for the game - his aunt is Hall of Famer Pat Bradley - but few could have predicted the spectacular splash he would make having graduated from the second tier Nationwide Tour.
He hinted at better to come with a top-10 at the Valero Texas Open in April and a month later he was in the winner's enclosure in the same state having beaten Ryan Palmer after a play-off for the Byron Nelson Championship.
The slightly stunned look on his face after a victory had arrived so quickly in his career will live long in the memory but it masked a tremendously resilient performance in tough, windy conditions as he kept his composure beautifully before seeing off the final challenge of Palmer.
A quiet period mid-summer followed but he showed he was not out of place in the big time as he played a prominent role for three rounds at the WGC-NEC Bridgestone Invitational before a disappointing closing 74.
Ample compensation was to follow a week later though thanks to a stunning victory and first major in the PGA Championship.
His chances looked remote in Atlanta after a triple-bogey six on the par-three 15th left him five strokes off the pace but back-to-back birdies forced him into a play-off with the wobbling Jason Dufner and from that point there was only going to be one winner as that now-familiar calmness under intense pressure claimed the day.
Bradley provided an encore with wins at the PGA Grand Slam of Golf and Franklin Templeton Shootout for good measure and at just 25, it is not hard to envisage there being more in the pipeline from the find of 2011.
David John
TENNIS - THE DJOKER GOES FOR BROKE
Anyone who has played tennis down the local club will know there comes a time, usually when in a big hole, when it's time to go for broke.
Swinging from the hip, hit or bust, call it wat you will.
It turns out, the greatest players adopt the same attitude sometimes too.
Novak Djokovic, the outstanding player of the season, did not lose often in 2011. Perhaps that explains why he did what he did when staring only a third defeat of the year in the face at the semi-final stage of the US Open.
One of the best matches of the year was in Roger Federer's hands, serving for a place in the final at 5-3 40-15 in the final set.
The first serve hit the spot but was returned with sensationally by the Djokovic forehand, the ball fizzing cross-court and landing just inside the sideline.
The Serb lifted his hands to the sky to take the plaudits. The crowd responded and his wry smile said it all.
His comebackhad begun. Four games later he was through to the final.
Andy Schooler
BOXING - HOPKINS STOPS THE CLOCK
They say time waits for no man. Whoever coined the phrase obviously wasn't thinking about Bernard Hopkins.
'The Executioner' was aged 46 years and four months when he stepped into the cauldron of the Bell Center in Montreal in May to face hometown favourite Jean Pascal.
At stake, Bernard's bid to become the oldest man ever to win a major world title, against a foe 18 years his junior. The prize, the WBC-light heavyweight title.
The befuddled Pascal had no answer to Hopkins and his ability to work out the perfect way to neutralise an opponent and then punish him. Some people label Bernard boring, but to do so is to fail to appreciate his skills and the very art of boxing, as opposed to fighting.
He was simply sensational, firing punches from all angles at Pascal and rendering futile his attempts to reply. In short he was embarrassing the younger man.
As for the single best moment of the year, it came as Hopkins waited for a weary Pascal to come out for round seven.
Bernard, still in incredible physical shape despite his advancing years, dropped to the floor and began doing press-ups. Not surprisingly the crowd, even die-hard Pascal fans, went wild. It was a moment that summed up the fight, and Hopkins himself. The older man, the better man, emphasising his dominance.
The rest of the bout was a cruise for the superstar from Philly - he coasted to a convincing points victory despite Pascal's increasingly wild attempts to turn the tide.
And once again Hopkins had proved the naysayers wrong. Not for the first time, he'd turned back time.
Graham Shaw
SNOOKER - GENIUS ON THE SMALL STAGE
I'm going to have the stretch the rules a little bit this year as my 'moment' of 2011 actually took just over an hour.
It was the ninth Players Tour Championship final of the season between the mercurial Ronnie O'Sullivan and the recently-crowned UK champion Judd Trump, played in the Belgian city of Antwerp in November.
These newly-introduced PTC events were not welcomed by some players, O'Sullivan being particularly critical saying he felt like he was being "raped" and "blackmailed" into taking part in them, as ranking points are on offer but prize-money is low.
Nevertheless, he put his grievances to one side as he and Trump served up arguably the best seven frames of snooker that the game has ever been witnessed.
The pair went at it from the first break like a pair of boxers slugging it out in the centre of the ring, exchanging fearsome punches with no quarter given and none asked.
Three-time world champion O'Sullivan opened with a break of 63 to take the first frame, but he would then witness a bit of magic from Trump who reeled off three frames in a row with runs of 68 and two breaks of 65 to go 3-1 ahead.
It was then the Rocket's turn to raise the bar even higher as he launched himself to 3-3 with back-to-back centuries of 118 and 132 to force the match into a deciding frame.
But with breaks of 44 and 41 - and with the help of a fluke on match ball - Trump clinched a thrilling 4-3 victory.
I have never known an hour pass by so quickly. Quite simply, it was sheer genius.
Simon Crawford
NFL - MARSHAWN MAKES HIS MARK
The career of running-back Marshawn Lynch had been more miss than hit on the whole until one remarkable touchdown run in the 41-36 play-off victory against New Orleans in early January 2011.
His Seattle side were big underdogs against the defending Super Bowl champions in their wildcard match-up on Janaury 8 but with a 34-30 advantage and a little over three and a half minutes left on the clock, Lynch sealed the victory with possibly the greatest run to the end zone in post-season history.
Number 24's effort from 67 yards out started with him bulldozing over the line of scrimmage and three would-be Saints tacklers were already left trailing in his wake on the turf.
Once in the clear, he eluded despairing grasps from Darren Sharper and Remi Ayodele as a convoy of his Seattle team-mates - including quarterback Matt Hasselbeck - began to accompany him down the field.
An incredible stiff arm left the usually sure-tackling Tracey Porter on the seat of his pants as Lynch's route now took him toward the right sideline and out of the diving grasp of Alex Brown.
Now 20 yards from glory, a final block in front of him gave him the room to cut back inside and a nifty skip over Roman Harper at the goalline saw him hit paydirt before being engulfed by an elated offense.
A dramatic, defining moment which analyst Mike Mayock summed up perfectly - "Are you kiddin' me?"
David John
OTHER SPORTS - GOLDEN MOMENT FOR MAGIC MO
Mo Farah made history in Daegu this year as be became Britain's first-ever male long-distance world champion - but it was the look on his face down the home straight in the 5,000m final which made his achievement such a special moment of the year.
His expression was a picture of desire, dedication and sheer desperation, stemming from all the sacrifices he'd made to get to a point where no other Briton had been before.
Just seven days earlier Farah suffered the agony of being pipped for 10,000m glory by Ethiopa's Ibrahim Jeilan following a dramatic last-lap duel and with former double world champion Bernard Lagat breathing down his neck this time, the 28-year-old could so easily have buckled under the pressure.
Even those spectators unaware of his story could see how much this race meant to him as he displayed the relentless drive, gusto and stunning sprint finish needed to cross that line in first place ahead of Lagat and Imane Merga to win in 13 minutes, 23.36 seconds.
His execution of the race was described by former world record holder Dave Moorcroft as "perfection" and certainly made up for the disappointment of missing out on the longer distance.
The emotion all spilled out as he sank to his knees on the blue track, unable to hold back the tears, before quickly seeking out his wife Tania and daughter Rihanna in the crowd.
The Somalia-born Londoner headed into 2011 as European champion over 5,000m and 10,000m but such was his burning ambition to reach the next level, he moved them both to Portland in the USA so he could be coached by three-time New York Marathon winner Alberto Salazar.
Farah's unrivaled work ethic and grueling training regimes paid off in sensational style and he's now one of Britain's biggest hopes for track-and-field glory in London next year.
Chris Hammer
GREYHOUNDS - SKY IS THE LIMIT FOR LISTER
Some things never change in the world of Greyhound racing and Charlie Lister's ability to churn out Derby winners remains one of the happy constants in the sport.
Horse racing has its patronage among royalty but this Derby was to give a big night to coalminerturned car salesman, Steve Taylor.
Although no runner in trap one had won the Derby since it moved to Plough Lane, the fact did not stop the punters pouring onto Taylors Sky after a scintillating performance in the semi-finals.
As the boxes opened, Black Redcliffe (T2) veered into the path of Westmead Guru (T3), doing enough to halt the progress of Kelly Macari's heavyweight dog and a gap on the inside was there to be taken.
Taylors Sky did so with ease. Holding Barefoot Bullet (T5) into the first bend - the advantage had been gained and there was to be no way back for his rivals.
Posting a four-length victory and breaking the new course record for the third time during the competition - he provided a sixth English Derby for Lister.
As he is still just two years of age, it would be no surprise to see Taylors Sky emulate his father, Westmead Hawk, by securing a second Derby at Wimbledon next year.
Ian Brindle
By Sportinglife.com staff
FOOTBALL - WHY WORST WAS BEST
"It was our worst ever day. It's the worst result in my history, ever."
Sir Alex Ferguson may not have enjoyed our moment of the year from the world of football but there is no doubting the impact Manchester City's 6-1 derby humiliation of rivals Manchester United made.
The 'noisy neighbours' well and truly turned up the volume as they secured this memorable victory, throwing down the gauntlet for this season's Premier League title race in which City are now the favourites to secure top spot.
Mario Balotelli, with 'Why Always Me?' T-shirt in tow, made the headlines for the right reasons with a double strike and David Silva once again showed why he is vying with Robin van Persie for the player of the season award.
The Spaniard has added a touch of class to City's play and the plethora of attacking talent at Roberto Mancini's disposal sparkled as they gave the fans from the blue half of Manchester a day they will never forget.
The Red Devils can't be written off yet - history has already proved that - but certainly in the short-term there is every chance we could look back on this win as a major turning point in the English football cycle.
Nick Hext
RACING - HISTORY IN THE MAKING
It wasn't just the moment of 2011 - it was one of the most striking I've ever seen on a racecourse. It wasn't at the end of a race, nor at the beginning, but mid-contest. It was Frankel's 2000 Guineas.
We went to Newmarket to crown the king; after all he'd been a brilliant, unbeaten champion two-year-old.
A routine win over Excelebration in the Greenham at Newbury confirmed his wellbeing but it was all about the Guineas. The question mark going into the race was what tactics that would be employed?
The one potential Achilles' heel with Frankel was his keenness to get the job done. He took a fierce hold in a race, and on more than one occasion Tom Queally seemed to be a hair's breadth from losing the battle with his partner.
It must have been on connections' minds when they decided to employ Rerouted as a pacemaker, but in terms of jobs in racing that was second only to being BHA communications director during the whip debate in terms of poisoned chalices.
You see Frankel wasn't going to have a pacemaker. When the stalls opened, for the first and only time in his career, they let him roll.
It made for a quite spectacular sight. After a furlong, half the field were in trouble, and it just got better and better.
"Heading down to the half mile and it's Frankel and Tom Queally by five or six lengths," was the measured commentary of Ian Bartlett from high up the Newmarket stands. Moments later even he couldn't contain his excitement.
"At halfway Frankel is almost 10 lengths clear," he roared - and the crowd joined in. "At the Bushes and Frankel is 15 lengths clear," a stunned Bartlett continued. Never before has the final two furlongs of a Newmarket Classic been a lap of honour.
Magnificent.
Dave Ord
CRICKET - SIX IS THE BEST
By any measure 2011 was a stunning year for cricket, which makes selecting one moment above all others a challenge.
England completing their historic Ashes victory in Sydney with yet another innings drubbing of the Aussies; the World Cup when England and India played out a logic-defying, boundary-bothering tie, a pink-haired Kevin O'Brien helped Ireland embarrass both England and the ICC with their short-sighted, money-fixated desire to exclude the non-Test nations from the event, before the final got the conclusion the script called for as MS Dhoni nervelessly shouldered the burdens of a billion to lead India to a memorable victory; Sri Lanka's astonishing final-day collapse at Cardiff that ultimately handed England a series victory; England building on that success by crushing India 4-0 to take top spot in the ICC Test rankings for the first time; India and West Indies drawing a Test match with the scores level; Australia dismissing South Africa for 96 and then being bowled out themselves for 47 on one crazy day in Cape Town; Virender Sehwag's outrageous 219 in the fourth ODI against West Indies; New Zealand's thrilling seven-run victory over Australia in the second Test at Hobart; Sachin Tendulkar's continued pursuit of an unprecedented yet infuriatingly elusive 100th international century.
Yes, 2011 has had its share of memorable moments. But if we're to be strict about selecting a moment, there can be but one winner.
It will surely go down in history as the most replayed shot in cricket history.
It was the six hit by Dhoni to secure India's first World Cup victory since 1983.
The pre-tournament favourites had not been entirely convincing in their run to the final and appeared in trouble when they slumped to 31-2, losing both Sehwag and Tendulkar early as they replied to Sri Lanka's Mahela Jayawardene-inspired 274-6 in Mumbai.
When the third wicket fell at 114 after a consolidating stand between Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli, the Cup was up for grabs.
Enter Dhoni, promoting himself in the batting order above the in-form Yuvraj Singh. It was a bold move, a brave move, and one that could have gone wrong.
But 128 minutes of one-day batting masterclass later, Dhoni provided the ultimate coup de grace, muscling Nuwan Kulasekara high into the Mumbai sky and over the long-on boundary to win the match in epic, never-to-be-forgotten style and send the host nation into delirium.
It was the six heard round the world, taking Dhoni to 91 not out and India to a famous six-wicket victory. But it was the batsman's initial post-shot reaction that stays with me most as he allowed himself just a brief, almost shy, smile before being embraced by Yuvraj and his delirious team-mates. No showboating, no showmanship. Just the satisfaction of a mission achieved and a journey completed.
Dave Tickner
RUGBY UNION - FULFILLING THE SCRIPT
So it was meant to be after all.
There were plenty who said that after 24 years of hurt, they'd 'bottle it', particularly with the added pressure of being on home turf. There were plenty who said their hopes rested with Dan Carter.
They were wrong.
There can be no other rugby union moment of 2011 than when the great Richie McCaw wrapped his massive hands around the Webb Ellis Trophy and hoisted it into the Auckland sky, sending New Zealand into raptures.
The mighty All Blacks went into the tournament as the 4/6 favourites with the bookmakers but with more than a little 'previous' when it came to not matching up to such expectation.
And when Carter, their main playmaker and dead-eye goalkicker, was ruled out of the tournament before the group stage had even finished, those old doubts began to creep back in.
When his replacement Colin Slade, then his replacement Aaron Cruden, fell victim to injury a huge responsibility fell onto the shoulders of Stephen Donald,who just a fortnight before entering the fray at the World Cup final had been summoned to the national squad while fishing on the Waikato River.
But he held his nerve - admirably under the circumstances - to kick what proved to be the crucial penalty as the All Blacks scrapped past a dogged but ultimately limited France 8-7 in the final.
So, as Ian Chadband wrote in the Daily Telegraph, the World Cup was ultimately won by the No 10 who had replaced the No 10 who had replaced the No 10 who had replaced the No 10.
Quite simply, it was meant to be.
Reece Killworth
RUGBY LEAGUE - BURROW DIGS DEEPEST
For much of 2011 things weren't looking great for the Leeds Rhinos. After winning the Super League Grand Final for three successive seasons from 2007-2009 they had relinquished their crown to Wigan in 2010 and it didn't look a temporary loan.
Brian McDermott's reign at Headingley hadn't got off to the rosiest of starts to say the least, his team failing to win in six of their first 10 league matches of 2011. Not the form of potential champions.
Some said Leeds might not even reach the play-offs. The criticism wasn't confined to those outside Headingley either, with McDermott having to fend off unrest from some of the South Stand faithful.
Yet as Leeds' big players returned from injury - the likes of Jamie Peacock and Danny McGuire - their heartbeat returned and winning momentum began at just the right time.
Wigan deserve a mention, their Grand Final-winning team of the previous year won the Challenge Cup after all, but it was that Wembley final that was the turning point for Leeds. There was almost a great comeback from the Rhinos in that 28-18 defeat and it gave them belief.
They didn't lose a game for the rest of the season.
With St Helens 16-8 in front with 20 minutes to go it looked like they might be making the short journey home from Old Trafford with the Grand Final trophy for the first time in five years.
But then up stepped Rob Burrow. His magnificent solo effort and then equally-important break to set up a try for Ryan Hall winning the match for the Rhinos.
All 37 journalists in the press room voted for Burrow to win the Harry Sunderland Trophy for man of the match and that says it all. Leeds had triumphed despite adversity and Burrow was central to their incredible renaissance.
Ben Linfoot
FORMULA ONE - THE DRIVE OF HIS LIFE
Minutes before the start of the Canadian Grand Prix, Jenson Button told reporters that an exciting race was in store. Relaxed and smiling, it was clear that the rain that had fallen was good news to the former world champion, who had five cars between himself and pole-sitter Sebastian Vettel, the man who had dominated the season thus far.
Button's chance was surely to fly off the grid and get himself in the mix for a podium place. But, as events transpired, the race started behind a safety car, with all teams forced to operate on full wet tyres.
Further trouble was soon found. A collision with team-mate Lewis Hamilton sent Button to the pit and just a lap later he was deemed to have broken the safety-car speed limit. A drive-through penalty was the punishment.
Determined to hit back, Button began to move back up through the field only for the heavens to truly open - back to the pits for a third time to change tyres.
A red flag brought about a two-hour delay and when rcing resumed, there appeared to be no change of fortune - a collision with Fernando Alonso bringing about a return to the pit lane.
Then the fightback truly began. Lap 50 and finally Jenson cracked the top 10. Pass, pass, pass, and five laps later he was up into fifth despite having made six pit-stops.
Another safety car, but not before another Button pass, and he was into fourth. With Michael Schumacher defending second and Mark Webber weaving in behind him, looking for an opening, Button had a chance to get on the podium having been 21st earlier in the race. Surely, he couldn't.
Yes, he could. Using his DRS, Button flew pastWebber and Schumacher and was just two seconds behind Vettel with five laps to go.
Come lap 70, the driver who'd scarcely seen another rival all season suddenly had pressure - maximum pressure. And then came the mistake.
Less than a minute from the end of the longest grand prix in history, Vettel was forced into an operator error by Button, who made an astonishing 34 passes in a record-breaking race to go from seventh, down to 21st, and drive away with the trophy.
As McLaren's team principal Martin Whitmarsh said: "From Jenson, that's the stuff of champions, that's the stuff of dreams."
Ben Coley
GOLF - THE EMERGENCE OF KEEGAN BADLEY
Luke Donald rightly stole the majority of the headlines in 2011 as he topped both the US Money List and Race To Dubai - an unpredecented feat - but Keegan Bradley's rookie season in the USA was little short of remarkable.
Bradley is bred for the game - his aunt is Hall of Famer Pat Bradley - but few could have predicted the spectacular splash he would make having graduated from the second tier Nationwide Tour.
He hinted at better to come with a top-10 at the Valero Texas Open in April and a month later he was in the winner's enclosure in the same state having beaten Ryan Palmer after a play-off for the Byron Nelson Championship.
The slightly stunned look on his face after a victory had arrived so quickly in his career will live long in the memory but it masked a tremendously resilient performance in tough, windy conditions as he kept his composure beautifully before seeing off the final challenge of Palmer.
A quiet period mid-summer followed but he showed he was not out of place in the big time as he played a prominent role for three rounds at the WGC-NEC Bridgestone Invitational before a disappointing closing 74.
Ample compensation was to follow a week later though thanks to a stunning victory and first major in the PGA Championship.
His chances looked remote in Atlanta after a triple-bogey six on the par-three 15th left him five strokes off the pace but back-to-back birdies forced him into a play-off with the wobbling Jason Dufner and from that point there was only going to be one winner as that now-familiar calmness under intense pressure claimed the day.
Bradley provided an encore with wins at the PGA Grand Slam of Golf and Franklin Templeton Shootout for good measure and at just 25, it is not hard to envisage there being more in the pipeline from the find of 2011.
David John
TENNIS - THE DJOKER GOES FOR BROKE
Anyone who has played tennis down the local club will know there comes a time, usually when in a big hole, when it's time to go for broke.
Swinging from the hip, hit or bust, call it wat you will.
It turns out, the greatest players adopt the same attitude sometimes too.
Novak Djokovic, the outstanding player of the season, did not lose often in 2011. Perhaps that explains why he did what he did when staring only a third defeat of the year in the face at the semi-final stage of the US Open.
One of the best matches of the year was in Roger Federer's hands, serving for a place in the final at 5-3 40-15 in the final set.
The first serve hit the spot but was returned with sensationally by the Djokovic forehand, the ball fizzing cross-court and landing just inside the sideline.
The Serb lifted his hands to the sky to take the plaudits. The crowd responded and his wry smile said it all.
His comebackhad begun. Four games later he was through to the final.
Andy Schooler
BOXING - HOPKINS STOPS THE CLOCK
They say time waits for no man. Whoever coined the phrase obviously wasn't thinking about Bernard Hopkins.
'The Executioner' was aged 46 years and four months when he stepped into the cauldron of the Bell Center in Montreal in May to face hometown favourite Jean Pascal.
At stake, Bernard's bid to become the oldest man ever to win a major world title, against a foe 18 years his junior. The prize, the WBC-light heavyweight title.
The befuddled Pascal had no answer to Hopkins and his ability to work out the perfect way to neutralise an opponent and then punish him. Some people label Bernard boring, but to do so is to fail to appreciate his skills and the very art of boxing, as opposed to fighting.
He was simply sensational, firing punches from all angles at Pascal and rendering futile his attempts to reply. In short he was embarrassing the younger man.
As for the single best moment of the year, it came as Hopkins waited for a weary Pascal to come out for round seven.
Bernard, still in incredible physical shape despite his advancing years, dropped to the floor and began doing press-ups. Not surprisingly the crowd, even die-hard Pascal fans, went wild. It was a moment that summed up the fight, and Hopkins himself. The older man, the better man, emphasising his dominance.
The rest of the bout was a cruise for the superstar from Philly - he coasted to a convincing points victory despite Pascal's increasingly wild attempts to turn the tide.
And once again Hopkins had proved the naysayers wrong. Not for the first time, he'd turned back time.
Graham Shaw
SNOOKER - GENIUS ON THE SMALL STAGE
I'm going to have the stretch the rules a little bit this year as my 'moment' of 2011 actually took just over an hour.
It was the ninth Players Tour Championship final of the season between the mercurial Ronnie O'Sullivan and the recently-crowned UK champion Judd Trump, played in the Belgian city of Antwerp in November.
These newly-introduced PTC events were not welcomed by some players, O'Sullivan being particularly critical saying he felt like he was being "raped" and "blackmailed" into taking part in them, as ranking points are on offer but prize-money is low.
Nevertheless, he put his grievances to one side as he and Trump served up arguably the best seven frames of snooker that the game has ever been witnessed.
The pair went at it from the first break like a pair of boxers slugging it out in the centre of the ring, exchanging fearsome punches with no quarter given and none asked.
Three-time world champion O'Sullivan opened with a break of 63 to take the first frame, but he would then witness a bit of magic from Trump who reeled off three frames in a row with runs of 68 and two breaks of 65 to go 3-1 ahead.
It was then the Rocket's turn to raise the bar even higher as he launched himself to 3-3 with back-to-back centuries of 118 and 132 to force the match into a deciding frame.
But with breaks of 44 and 41 - and with the help of a fluke on match ball - Trump clinched a thrilling 4-3 victory.
I have never known an hour pass by so quickly. Quite simply, it was sheer genius.
Simon Crawford
NFL - MARSHAWN MAKES HIS MARK
The career of running-back Marshawn Lynch had been more miss than hit on the whole until one remarkable touchdown run in the 41-36 play-off victory against New Orleans in early January 2011.
His Seattle side were big underdogs against the defending Super Bowl champions in their wildcard match-up on Janaury 8 but with a 34-30 advantage and a little over three and a half minutes left on the clock, Lynch sealed the victory with possibly the greatest run to the end zone in post-season history.
Number 24's effort from 67 yards out started with him bulldozing over the line of scrimmage and three would-be Saints tacklers were already left trailing in his wake on the turf.
Once in the clear, he eluded despairing grasps from Darren Sharper and Remi Ayodele as a convoy of his Seattle team-mates - including quarterback Matt Hasselbeck - began to accompany him down the field.
An incredible stiff arm left the usually sure-tackling Tracey Porter on the seat of his pants as Lynch's route now took him toward the right sideline and out of the diving grasp of Alex Brown.
Now 20 yards from glory, a final block in front of him gave him the room to cut back inside and a nifty skip over Roman Harper at the goalline saw him hit paydirt before being engulfed by an elated offense.
A dramatic, defining moment which analyst Mike Mayock summed up perfectly - "Are you kiddin' me?"
David John
OTHER SPORTS - GOLDEN MOMENT FOR MAGIC MO
Mo Farah made history in Daegu this year as be became Britain's first-ever male long-distance world champion - but it was the look on his face down the home straight in the 5,000m final which made his achievement such a special moment of the year.
His expression was a picture of desire, dedication and sheer desperation, stemming from all the sacrifices he'd made to get to a point where no other Briton had been before.
Just seven days earlier Farah suffered the agony of being pipped for 10,000m glory by Ethiopa's Ibrahim Jeilan following a dramatic last-lap duel and with former double world champion Bernard Lagat breathing down his neck this time, the 28-year-old could so easily have buckled under the pressure.
Even those spectators unaware of his story could see how much this race meant to him as he displayed the relentless drive, gusto and stunning sprint finish needed to cross that line in first place ahead of Lagat and Imane Merga to win in 13 minutes, 23.36 seconds.
His execution of the race was described by former world record holder Dave Moorcroft as "perfection" and certainly made up for the disappointment of missing out on the longer distance.
The emotion all spilled out as he sank to his knees on the blue track, unable to hold back the tears, before quickly seeking out his wife Tania and daughter Rihanna in the crowd.
The Somalia-born Londoner headed into 2011 as European champion over 5,000m and 10,000m but such was his burning ambition to reach the next level, he moved them both to Portland in the USA so he could be coached by three-time New York Marathon winner Alberto Salazar.
Farah's unrivaled work ethic and grueling training regimes paid off in sensational style and he's now one of Britain's biggest hopes for track-and-field glory in London next year.
Chris Hammer
GREYHOUNDS - SKY IS THE LIMIT FOR LISTER
Some things never change in the world of Greyhound racing and Charlie Lister's ability to churn out Derby winners remains one of the happy constants in the sport.
Horse racing has its patronage among royalty but this Derby was to give a big night to coalminerturned car salesman, Steve Taylor.
Although no runner in trap one had won the Derby since it moved to Plough Lane, the fact did not stop the punters pouring onto Taylors Sky after a scintillating performance in the semi-finals.
As the boxes opened, Black Redcliffe (T2) veered into the path of Westmead Guru (T3), doing enough to halt the progress of Kelly Macari's heavyweight dog and a gap on the inside was there to be taken.
Taylors Sky did so with ease. Holding Barefoot Bullet (T5) into the first bend - the advantage had been gained and there was to be no way back for his rivals.
Posting a four-length victory and breaking the new course record for the third time during the competition - he provided a sixth English Derby for Lister.
As he is still just two years of age, it would be no surprise to see Taylors Sky emulate his father, Westmead Hawk, by securing a second Derby at Wimbledon next year.
Ian Brindle