There's a concept called roaming goalie when playing small sided games. The idea is that being goalkeeper is boring and if you're playing 3 or 4 a side then relegating such a large part of your team to the crappy job that being goalkeeper is is really rather mean. The way around this is to say any of the players who happen to be in the goal area can be the goalie. Obviously you can only have one nominated and often you have nobody because you're too busy making the other team decide who should nominate.
I say all this by way of suggesting that the Colombian player Moreno maybe never got told that once you have 11 players and one of them is dressed up like a clown except instead of giant clown shoes he has giant clown gloves that roaming goalie doesn't apply. Otherwise what could have possessed him to stick out an arm to stop Japan's goal bound shot in the 3rd minute of play? Even Suarez had the decency to wait until the last minutes before taking such drastic action. Still. Japan duly scored the penalty and with a 10v11 scenario for the remaining 80-odd minutes you would have thought Japan would close it out fairly routinely.
Still, you have to admit that Colombia, who went to the quarter finals last time around, are a decent side. If a much changed one. So somehow Japan managed to make it look like it was still an 11v11 game as Colombia searched for the redemption goal. Then closing in on half time a questionable free kick "earned" by Colombia resulted in a goalbound shot by Quintero. Here's where a good video research team pays off. Japan, as a team, are not very tall. In free kick situations that can be somewhat mitigated by members of the wall jumping at the crucial moment. Of course if the other team knows that that's what you're going to do you can take advantage by ensuring you keep your free kick along the ground and use angles that the goalkeeper thought he had covered.
Quintero shot low, under the jumping wall and despite the protestations of keeper Kawashima it crossed the line before he got to it. 1-1.
Japan made a better fist of things in the second half and although it was a long time coming they eventually scored, from a headed corner of all things, to ensure that all those who thought that a South American side will always beat an Asian side came away upset.
In the final game before we go into the second phase where teams play for the second time it was Poland and Senegal facing off. As the European side the pundits were heavily favouring a Polish win and with a player like Robert Lewandowski who scores goals at a prodigious rate. There are other players whose names are even harder to spell who strengthen Poland's case for the win.
Alas the title of this post gives away the ultimate result but Poland can take heart that their players scored more goals than the Senegalese. It was a tight game and there was a lot of skill on display... just not where the goalscoring was concerned.
Senegal's first goal was a very ambitious long shot from Gueye which was deflected twice before coming to rest in the Polish goal. It just goes to show that sometimes having a go pays off.
Senegal, for their part, succeeded where the Saudis and Nigerians had failed in taking advantage of their green camouflage outfits. Pretty much on the hour a moment of confusion between Polish defender and goalkeeper, roughly 15 kilometres from goal, was made so much more painful when seemingly out of nowhere Niang sprang up between them, got a foot to the ball and took it to goal unopposed to extend the lead to 2-0.
Krychowiak made the scoreline a little more respectable when he headed a beautifully placed free kick from quite far out across goal and beyond the reach of the keeper. The free kick itself was questionable but the goal from it was beautiful if, ultimately, pointless.
Group H, the last of the groups, is one of only 2 groups
among those of this world cup that does not include 2 European sides.
The other is Russia's group A. It was Russia who faced Egypt for the first of the next round of games. Russia as unexpectedly handsome winners of the first match (though not handsome players) were in the box seat to be the first team to guarantee a spot in the next round and thereby extinguish the hopes of the Egyptians.
Before the goals came the match was open and though littered with mistakes it did make you think that either team would eventually take advantage. It was Russia who finally came away with the opening goal when a hopeful second phase long shot with very little going for it was catastrophically turned into his own net by Fathi. After that the Egyptians lost a bit of belief and buoyed by their home crowd Russia started to believe and put in 2 more goals in quick succession.
Later Egypt pulled a goal back after one of their players was pulled back. Initially the referee signalled for a free kick outside the box but the VAR upgraded it to a penalty that Mohammed Salah dispatched but nothing more would come and Egypt now face a dead rubber against Saudi Arabia. On the evidence here they should be coming away with a win there.
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Monday, June 18, 2018
Episode 6 - This page is intentionally left blank
... or at least almost blank. I had some kidney stones to take care of... still recovering.
Episode 5 - Streaming is not hard to do right...
... but I imagine it's expensive.
When I discovered that the World Cup was only partially available on free to air TV and the full schedule being streamed by a telecommunications company I wasn't happy.
I was even less happy that although being a customer of this company and that almost all of their customers were eligible for that package for free I was not. Eventually, although being told I had to subscribe to a phone plan by their staff, I just bought the app and it seemed to work. Sadly in between rubbing themselves with all the money they're making they forgot to invest on the kind of infrastructure required to service a World Cup audience. I mean it's not as if this is an unknown tournament.. anyway the upshot is that the Serbia - Costa Rica game was initially unavailable and then unwatchable.
So I watched Masterchef instead. From what I understand I the loss wasn't too great this time, but surely someone can fix this, preferably by allowing FTA broadcast of all the games.
Thankfully Germany and Mexico were on proper TV, not this streaming rubbish. However I would gladly have missed parts of that game too. Mexico clearly had done their homework and concluded that Germany were susceptible to a speedy counter, most teams are I guess, and ensured they always left a man or three in an advanced role to take advantage when the opportunity presented itself. While both sides had ample opportunities to score it was Mexico who took the full toll of one of their chances.
Germany, who are keenly aware of this, face a team from group E in the next round if they make it through. It's safe to assume Brazil will win that group so a second placing will be a tough gig. So the determination to claw back the goal in the second half by Germany was entirely understandable. As was Mexico's determination not to relinquish it.
In the end that lone goal was enough to settle it, Germany succumbing to the holders curse. It remains to be seen if there is to be greater pain to be endured the way Spain did in 2014, Italy in 2010... Brazil in 2006 didn't do too badly but France in 2002... well there's a pattern. It was amusing to see the keeper up for the corner in the final seconds. Would have been cool if he'd scored. Unless you're a Mexican fan.
You never know, maybe Brazil want to avoid Germany too and will adjust their game accordingly.
So they drew Switzerland 1-1.
When I discovered that the World Cup was only partially available on free to air TV and the full schedule being streamed by a telecommunications company I wasn't happy.
I was even less happy that although being a customer of this company and that almost all of their customers were eligible for that package for free I was not. Eventually, although being told I had to subscribe to a phone plan by their staff, I just bought the app and it seemed to work. Sadly in between rubbing themselves with all the money they're making they forgot to invest on the kind of infrastructure required to service a World Cup audience. I mean it's not as if this is an unknown tournament.. anyway the upshot is that the Serbia - Costa Rica game was initially unavailable and then unwatchable.
So I watched Masterchef instead. From what I understand I the loss wasn't too great this time, but surely someone can fix this, preferably by allowing FTA broadcast of all the games.
Thankfully Germany and Mexico were on proper TV, not this streaming rubbish. However I would gladly have missed parts of that game too. Mexico clearly had done their homework and concluded that Germany were susceptible to a speedy counter, most teams are I guess, and ensured they always left a man or three in an advanced role to take advantage when the opportunity presented itself. While both sides had ample opportunities to score it was Mexico who took the full toll of one of their chances.
Germany, who are keenly aware of this, face a team from group E in the next round if they make it through. It's safe to assume Brazil will win that group so a second placing will be a tough gig. So the determination to claw back the goal in the second half by Germany was entirely understandable. As was Mexico's determination not to relinquish it.
In the end that lone goal was enough to settle it, Germany succumbing to the holders curse. It remains to be seen if there is to be greater pain to be endured the way Spain did in 2014, Italy in 2010... Brazil in 2006 didn't do too badly but France in 2002... well there's a pattern. It was amusing to see the keeper up for the corner in the final seconds. Would have been cool if he'd scored. Unless you're a Mexican fan.
You never know, maybe Brazil want to avoid Germany too and will adjust their game accordingly.
So they drew Switzerland 1-1.
Saturday, June 16, 2018
Episode 4 - Heroic failures really are Australia's thing
France starting playing the game against Australia a few days before the match took place insofar that they were quoted in articles saying they expected Australia to be physical and they were braced for a rough night. This plays into the overall impression of Australia as a fit, physical side but lacking in technical skill and creativity. To some extent that's true but the French weren't saying these things because they believed them, these comments are aimed at the referee and intended to ensure that the calls all go their way.
Early in the game it seemed that this is exactly what would happen. The French were falling about at the slightest of touches and acting in pretty much the way that the casual sports fan utterly despises. Leckie was yellow carded early in one of those early exchanges and was justifiably upset.
Much had been made of the chasm in "value" of the respective squads of players based on their most recent transfer fees and while that's an amusing way to decide a game this match was going to be settled the old-fashioned way.
While France had their first shot at goal about 90 seconds into the game and looked like they might score early they oddly decided that they would stop pressing and just let Australia knock the ball around a bit and sweat on a mistake. If it were Spain we were playing I would accuse them of taking a Siesta. Still it gave Australia a bit more possession and you started to believe that the longer it stayed at 0-0 the more likely it would be Australia could get something out of this.
Mind you Australia's best shot at goal came from a French foot that, in clearing a free kick, almost resulted in an own goal to give Australia an unlikely lead. You can't seriously argue Australia would be deserving winners but as they filed off for the halftime break with the scores locked at 0-0 you could make a case for them being good value for a draw.
There were few panicked moments and there was a mature approach to their patience but France has a formidable set of players with speed, skill and a fortunate propensity to be rewarded for falling over. So when Joshua Risdon slid across Griezmann and looked to have kicked the ball into his shins and the referee waved playon you felt that it was the right decision. Sadly for Australia the VAR intervened and the referee halted play, reviewed the incident and awarded the penalty and a yellow card which led to Griezmann scoring and putting France up 1-0.
Luckily Australia are not so easily dissuaded and got some help when Umtiti inexplicably lashed his hand an an incoming cross for Australia and the referee had little choice but to award another penalty a mere 4 minutes after the scoring had opened at the other end. Mile Jedinak, the captain, scored the penalty getting lucky in the direction Hugo Lloris chose to dive.
It was tempting to wish for the full time whistle there and then, a draw likely to be viewed as a loss by France and a win by Australia. Alas there was more cruelty to come. Australia had worked hard and substitute Juric was almost away with Australia on a potential 3v3 but was tripped, on purpose, by Tolisso. Who's playing rough now? He was yellow carded and substituted and minutes later it was a scrappy, probably deflected, lob by Pogba that brushed the underside of the crossbar and bounced just far enough over the line before being reclaimed by Mat Ryan for it to be declared a goal by the goal line technology. A sliding doors moment I think.
So essentially the French scored both goals thanks to new technology that, had they been playing this game 4 years ago, they would never have received previously.
We're now left hoping that France goes on to score big wins against Denmark and Peru and, hopefully they draw each other to maximise Australia's hope of progression.
In the other opening group game it was a similar David v Goliath story with Argentina, led by Lionel Messi, up against Iceland who are at their first ever World Cup tournament representing a country with a population smaller than that of Canberra. Imagine Canberra at the World Cup. Actually let's not I start getting uncomfortable pictures of Malcolm Turnbull in shorts.
Iceland famously knocked England out of the European Championships which made them insanely popular around the world but surely not Argentina. To be fair Argentina are not as good as everyone says they are. Their entire gameplan is captured in 4 words. Pass it to Messi. Now this is a fine tactic because Messi is a player so good he actually makes the rest of the side look ordinary. However that comes at a cost to the team dynamic. Iceland are exactly the kind of side to take advantage.
So when Bjarnasson found himself at the far post with the ball coming towards him I can only assume it was shock that made him put it wide because by rights Iceland should have gone into the lead after a goalkeeping error resulted in that chance.
Slowly though Argentina took better control and after Messi's shot at goal was punched to safety by the Icelandic keeper a short time later Argentina took the lead on about 20 minutes when Aguero controlled the ball in the box, turned and scored in what seemed a flash.
Sometimes concentrating all your efforts on one player gives a chance to the others.
However Iceland aren't so easily unsettled. While it might have been unexpected it wasn't exactly surprising when Finnbogason scored an equaliser about 4 minutes later. A very similar gap as it was between the two penalties of the earlier game. Finnbogason looks nothing like Malcolm Turnbull. Both he and I are grateful for that.
Just before halftime Iceland even threatened to take the lead. Twice. Sure Argentina had the bulk of the ball, and a number of shots and half chances to lead again too, but somehow those moments don't feel exciting. Deep down inside (and for many of us in Brazil and England for starters right there on the surface) want Iceland to pull off this fairytale.
Iceland were playing to a plan that suited their skills. They were doing it well. They were disciplined. It was a shame that they should concede a clumsy penalty for Messi to step up and take. However it adds to their mystique that they, specifically Halldórsson, should save the penalty to keep the scores level.
Messi had another go from a bit further out from a free kick with about 18 minutes left in the game and this time the wall did their job. Argentina were getting frustrated and their game plan just wasn't yielding the kind of dividends that you might expect. Halldórsson was certainly earning his pickled herring and slowly the clock ran down until there were only the 5 minutes of added time left. One minute... seconds... a final Messi free kick meets the wall and the whistle goes.
Iceland managed to not concede a late goal, something that every other team to have played so far has, get their point against the favourites of the group and rightly celebrate a point. Against Argentina. In their first ever World Cup finals match.
Now for the other half of each of those groups to play...
Of most interest is the Denmark v Peru game which showcases the 2 other teams Australia is guaranteed to play. Given that Peru had to qualify via a continental playoff against New Zealand I wasn't really expecting them to be terribly special. They weren't. However they were desperately unlucky not to at least draw against Denmark, if not win outright. Had it not been for some determined defending from Denmark the Peruvians had several chances to score in the first half alone.
Denmark were by no means hapless, they were a solid side and much as you'd expect from a Scandinavian team. However clear chances at goal were rare for them. Mostly it was Peru fashioning opportunities and while some were whatever comes after "ambitious" it was the kind of game where you sensed eventually the pressure would pay off.
In the end it took a VAR decision on a penalty box foul that the referee had initially waved away to grant Peru the clearest chance at the goal they had promised so long. With the half time whistle seconds away a Perivian player (Farfan?) had his standing leg clipped as he changed direction and fell theatrically to the ground. It took the VAR to conclude that indeed there was contact and the resulting penalty was taken by Cueva. He then proceeded to kick the ball high over the crossbar that had the goal been twice as high it probably still would have missed. Derp.
From that moment on you kind of thought that perhaps Peru with its massive army of supporters in the stands would come away empty handed in terms of goals. Just on the hour mark Denmark made it even worse for them by scoring from a quick counter where Eriksen fed the ball to Poulsen who put the ball inside the near post to lead 1-0.
To Peru's credit they redoubled their efforts and Kaspar Schmeichel, luck and desperate defending all contrived to frustrate any attempts to regain parity.
From an Australian point of view if France beat all comers and Australia manage to beat Denmark then a draw against Peru would suffice. Beating Denmark is, I think, within the realms of possibility but Australia will have to be on guard against Peru because they can certainly trouble most defences though tonight none of that trouble escalated.
The final match of the night was Croatia v Nigeria which, on paper, seemed like a promising match. On paper many things look true but turn out less so. Like mission statements, and tradesmens quotes. Like so many of those this match also disappointed. It started off amusing me because it looks like Nigeria has taken up where the Saudi's left off and gone into camouflage mode with their kit. I idly started wondering if we could engineer a meeting between the teams to make it look like the ball was moving around the pitch of its own accord. The earliest such meeting would be in the quarter finals which is going to be beyond either side.
It's not like it was a match full of errors or bad play, even if both goals came from errors, it was just dull. Writing about it would be dull too. So let's just not.
Early in the game it seemed that this is exactly what would happen. The French were falling about at the slightest of touches and acting in pretty much the way that the casual sports fan utterly despises. Leckie was yellow carded early in one of those early exchanges and was justifiably upset.
Much had been made of the chasm in "value" of the respective squads of players based on their most recent transfer fees and while that's an amusing way to decide a game this match was going to be settled the old-fashioned way.
While France had their first shot at goal about 90 seconds into the game and looked like they might score early they oddly decided that they would stop pressing and just let Australia knock the ball around a bit and sweat on a mistake. If it were Spain we were playing I would accuse them of taking a Siesta. Still it gave Australia a bit more possession and you started to believe that the longer it stayed at 0-0 the more likely it would be Australia could get something out of this.
Mind you Australia's best shot at goal came from a French foot that, in clearing a free kick, almost resulted in an own goal to give Australia an unlikely lead. You can't seriously argue Australia would be deserving winners but as they filed off for the halftime break with the scores locked at 0-0 you could make a case for them being good value for a draw.
There were few panicked moments and there was a mature approach to their patience but France has a formidable set of players with speed, skill and a fortunate propensity to be rewarded for falling over. So when Joshua Risdon slid across Griezmann and looked to have kicked the ball into his shins and the referee waved playon you felt that it was the right decision. Sadly for Australia the VAR intervened and the referee halted play, reviewed the incident and awarded the penalty and a yellow card which led to Griezmann scoring and putting France up 1-0.
Luckily Australia are not so easily dissuaded and got some help when Umtiti inexplicably lashed his hand an an incoming cross for Australia and the referee had little choice but to award another penalty a mere 4 minutes after the scoring had opened at the other end. Mile Jedinak, the captain, scored the penalty getting lucky in the direction Hugo Lloris chose to dive.
It was tempting to wish for the full time whistle there and then, a draw likely to be viewed as a loss by France and a win by Australia. Alas there was more cruelty to come. Australia had worked hard and substitute Juric was almost away with Australia on a potential 3v3 but was tripped, on purpose, by Tolisso. Who's playing rough now? He was yellow carded and substituted and minutes later it was a scrappy, probably deflected, lob by Pogba that brushed the underside of the crossbar and bounced just far enough over the line before being reclaimed by Mat Ryan for it to be declared a goal by the goal line technology. A sliding doors moment I think.
So essentially the French scored both goals thanks to new technology that, had they been playing this game 4 years ago, they would never have received previously.
We're now left hoping that France goes on to score big wins against Denmark and Peru and, hopefully they draw each other to maximise Australia's hope of progression.
In the other opening group game it was a similar David v Goliath story with Argentina, led by Lionel Messi, up against Iceland who are at their first ever World Cup tournament representing a country with a population smaller than that of Canberra. Imagine Canberra at the World Cup. Actually let's not I start getting uncomfortable pictures of Malcolm Turnbull in shorts.
Iceland famously knocked England out of the European Championships which made them insanely popular around the world but surely not Argentina. To be fair Argentina are not as good as everyone says they are. Their entire gameplan is captured in 4 words. Pass it to Messi. Now this is a fine tactic because Messi is a player so good he actually makes the rest of the side look ordinary. However that comes at a cost to the team dynamic. Iceland are exactly the kind of side to take advantage.
So when Bjarnasson found himself at the far post with the ball coming towards him I can only assume it was shock that made him put it wide because by rights Iceland should have gone into the lead after a goalkeeping error resulted in that chance.
Slowly though Argentina took better control and after Messi's shot at goal was punched to safety by the Icelandic keeper a short time later Argentina took the lead on about 20 minutes when Aguero controlled the ball in the box, turned and scored in what seemed a flash.
Sometimes concentrating all your efforts on one player gives a chance to the others.
However Iceland aren't so easily unsettled. While it might have been unexpected it wasn't exactly surprising when Finnbogason scored an equaliser about 4 minutes later. A very similar gap as it was between the two penalties of the earlier game. Finnbogason looks nothing like Malcolm Turnbull. Both he and I are grateful for that.
Just before halftime Iceland even threatened to take the lead. Twice. Sure Argentina had the bulk of the ball, and a number of shots and half chances to lead again too, but somehow those moments don't feel exciting. Deep down inside (and for many of us in Brazil and England for starters right there on the surface) want Iceland to pull off this fairytale.
Iceland were playing to a plan that suited their skills. They were doing it well. They were disciplined. It was a shame that they should concede a clumsy penalty for Messi to step up and take. However it adds to their mystique that they, specifically Halldórsson, should save the penalty to keep the scores level.
Messi had another go from a bit further out from a free kick with about 18 minutes left in the game and this time the wall did their job. Argentina were getting frustrated and their game plan just wasn't yielding the kind of dividends that you might expect. Halldórsson was certainly earning his pickled herring and slowly the clock ran down until there were only the 5 minutes of added time left. One minute... seconds... a final Messi free kick meets the wall and the whistle goes.
Iceland managed to not concede a late goal, something that every other team to have played so far has, get their point against the favourites of the group and rightly celebrate a point. Against Argentina. In their first ever World Cup finals match.
Now for the other half of each of those groups to play...
Of most interest is the Denmark v Peru game which showcases the 2 other teams Australia is guaranteed to play. Given that Peru had to qualify via a continental playoff against New Zealand I wasn't really expecting them to be terribly special. They weren't. However they were desperately unlucky not to at least draw against Denmark, if not win outright. Had it not been for some determined defending from Denmark the Peruvians had several chances to score in the first half alone.
Denmark were by no means hapless, they were a solid side and much as you'd expect from a Scandinavian team. However clear chances at goal were rare for them. Mostly it was Peru fashioning opportunities and while some were whatever comes after "ambitious" it was the kind of game where you sensed eventually the pressure would pay off.
In the end it took a VAR decision on a penalty box foul that the referee had initially waved away to grant Peru the clearest chance at the goal they had promised so long. With the half time whistle seconds away a Perivian player (Farfan?) had his standing leg clipped as he changed direction and fell theatrically to the ground. It took the VAR to conclude that indeed there was contact and the resulting penalty was taken by Cueva. He then proceeded to kick the ball high over the crossbar that had the goal been twice as high it probably still would have missed. Derp.
From that moment on you kind of thought that perhaps Peru with its massive army of supporters in the stands would come away empty handed in terms of goals. Just on the hour mark Denmark made it even worse for them by scoring from a quick counter where Eriksen fed the ball to Poulsen who put the ball inside the near post to lead 1-0.
To Peru's credit they redoubled their efforts and Kaspar Schmeichel, luck and desperate defending all contrived to frustrate any attempts to regain parity.
From an Australian point of view if France beat all comers and Australia manage to beat Denmark then a draw against Peru would suffice. Beating Denmark is, I think, within the realms of possibility but Australia will have to be on guard against Peru because they can certainly trouble most defences though tonight none of that trouble escalated.
The final match of the night was Croatia v Nigeria which, on paper, seemed like a promising match. On paper many things look true but turn out less so. Like mission statements, and tradesmens quotes. Like so many of those this match also disappointed. It started off amusing me because it looks like Nigeria has taken up where the Saudi's left off and gone into camouflage mode with their kit. I idly started wondering if we could engineer a meeting between the teams to make it look like the ball was moving around the pitch of its own accord. The earliest such meeting would be in the quarter finals which is going to be beyond either side.
It's not like it was a match full of errors or bad play, even if both goals came from errors, it was just dull. Writing about it would be dull too. So let's just not.
Friday, June 15, 2018
Episode 3 - Scoring late is an art
So the marathon begins with a 3 match night and as much as the drama of a late winner sounds exciting the Spain - Portugal match had more action in the first 30 minutes than the 2 preceding matches had in their combined 3 hours. More on that in a bit.
I've done this sort of thing before but staying up at night tends to make one peckish and as much as a cup of tea on a cold night with some biscuits tends to work there's a danger in inviting a degree of urinary urgency that can become inconvenient. Watermelon is also not a useful substitute in that regard.
The choice of snack for such a drawn out exercise also has a bearing on your overall calorie intake and even if you're involved enough to sweat on every pass you are not, actually, sweating at all. Carrot and celery sticks with water seem unfitting of this sort of occasion and I'm not big on the idea of chips. For now I'm making do with reducing the stock of whatever is on hand and suppressing guilt by making empty promises to myself about future physical activity to offset weight gain.
Speaking of weight gain, Luis Suarez must enjoy a team buffet. A polarising figure whose antics are the kind that push gamesmanship to the brink of cheating and far too often actual cheating. If he's on your side you marvel at his calculating acumen when he deliberately handballs on the goal line to prevent a loss and celebrates when the opposing team missed the resulting penalty kick. That he might have the audacity to do this at a (previous) world cup speaks to his character even more. He also has been known to bite opposing players.
Australia and Uruguay of course have something of a history stretching far into the past when it comes to World Cups. Not just the qualification playoffs in 2005 and 2001, but also the Continental Cup in 1997 and the infamous friendly in 1974 that was anything but and resulted in Australia's best (certainly one of the better ones) player Ray Baartz missing the World Cup.
So to watch the experienced Suarez and Cavanni leading a rejuvenated lineup and be frustrated by a lack of goals, if not chances, was comforting. Egypt, for their part, looked capable without threatening too much to actually score. Their star forward, Mohammed Salah, remained on the bench throughout the night desperately racing for fitness after being injured in a collision with a play to feature in the final match of the day.
As much fun as it was to derive pleasure from the suffering of a talented biter there wasn't much in the way for the casual observer to be entertained. Uruguay drew a sharp save or two from the oldest player at the World Cup (sorry, it's not Tim Cahill) and even hit the post in their quest for an elusive goal while Egypt managed a few dangerous moments that never really elevated into anything more.
Then deep into the game a set piece gave Giminez the chance to outjump two defender and head the ball beyond the keepers reach for a winning goal with barely a few minutes of the game remaining to play.
Then the sequence repeated itself with Morocco being the more likely of the two sides in the game against Iran to score a goal but instead of finally snatching a winner at the death it was Iran who scored an unexpected late winner from a set piece. To be fair it was scored by a Moroccan, Bouhaddouz, but to the benefit of Iran. They were justifiably happy with the result and in a roundabout way a good performance by Iran helps Australia's cause insofar as both teams represent the Asian Confederation and the better they perform the more likely an increase in the number of available qualification spots in future. The Saudi capitulation in the opening match was therefore also bad for Australia.
With the absence of any villain on either side and a result that kills Morocco's hopes of progressing past the group stage and only keeps Iran's ones alive on paper it was the footballing equivalent of a rice cake.
The Spain - Portugal match on the other hand was a rich chocolate cake even before the match started with the news that on the heels of announcing he was the incoming coach for Real Madrid Julen Lopetegui was immediately sacked as coach for Spain. Only hours before the World Cup kicked off. Ah the Spanish. The two neighbours have a long history of competition starting with their attempts to colonise the planet and finishing with interesting ways to cook chicken.
The match also featured another polarising figure in Cristian Ronaldo whose manner riles many, many people but he's actually a very good player. Some might argue the best at this time. Certainly no Argentinian would agree, but I digress. The match began with the interesting statistic that in all the games against Spain he has played Ronaldo had never scored against them. 5 minutes in that changed when a penalty was awarded for a foul (it might have been milked, but it was there) against Ronaldo and he scored early to settle nerves at least on the western edge of the Iberian peninsula.
An early goal (unlike the late ones) tends to open up a game as the losing side knows it can't hang on to a result it no longer has unless some goalscoring happens. Spain is quite good at making goal scoring happen. Spain made it happen. Specifically Diego Costa who found himself alone in the vicinity of 3 defenders but, crucially, with the ball at his feet jinked one way, then the other and finally dispatched the ball into the net for the equaliser after a pulsating 20 minutes after the opening goal.
Both sides clearly hate each other. Motivation to merely win isn't enough to put on a show like this. You have to passionately want the opponent to lose to make this happen.
Then, shortly before halftime, Ronaldo scored again, this time without the help of the referee, to make for an interesting halftime chat in the Spanish dressing room for interim coach Fernando Hierro.
Sometimes the enforced pause in the match has a dampening effect on the play after the resumption. Not this time. Spain scored again, Diego Costa scored again in what was rapidly becoming a personal duel between the two goal scorers. At 2-2 I was happy too because that was the score I had predicted but with over half an hour left to play I knew I was on thin ice.
There was still half an hour to play when Spain finally hit the lead with an outrageously good long range hit that bounced off both goal posts before rippling the net. José Ignacio Fernández Iglesias, who likes to shorten that to "Nacho", presumably because that's his snack of choice, had every reason to celebrate a goal that was equal parts unexpected, skilful, audacious and important. Advantage Spain.
The match continued at a standard that serves as a showpiece for exciting, positive, skilful football in a way the previous two games did not. Of course the match wasn't done yet. Ronaldo wasn't done yet. Portugal were visibly flagging from the high intensity of the game and Spain looked like they might be happy with their nights work. Then on a rare forward foray Ronaldo convinced the Referee to award a free kick that wasn't there (it is not exactly unheard of that he does this) and then proceeded to measure out his approach, set himself and then thread the kick past the wall, past the goalkeeper and inside the near post for a late goal that was a fitting finale to a match that had so much to offer.
Iran lead the group after the first round of matches. :-)
Next up the Socceroos square off against France. Come on boys!
I've done this sort of thing before but staying up at night tends to make one peckish and as much as a cup of tea on a cold night with some biscuits tends to work there's a danger in inviting a degree of urinary urgency that can become inconvenient. Watermelon is also not a useful substitute in that regard.
The choice of snack for such a drawn out exercise also has a bearing on your overall calorie intake and even if you're involved enough to sweat on every pass you are not, actually, sweating at all. Carrot and celery sticks with water seem unfitting of this sort of occasion and I'm not big on the idea of chips. For now I'm making do with reducing the stock of whatever is on hand and suppressing guilt by making empty promises to myself about future physical activity to offset weight gain.
Speaking of weight gain, Luis Suarez must enjoy a team buffet. A polarising figure whose antics are the kind that push gamesmanship to the brink of cheating and far too often actual cheating. If he's on your side you marvel at his calculating acumen when he deliberately handballs on the goal line to prevent a loss and celebrates when the opposing team missed the resulting penalty kick. That he might have the audacity to do this at a (previous) world cup speaks to his character even more. He also has been known to bite opposing players.
Australia and Uruguay of course have something of a history stretching far into the past when it comes to World Cups. Not just the qualification playoffs in 2005 and 2001, but also the Continental Cup in 1997 and the infamous friendly in 1974 that was anything but and resulted in Australia's best (certainly one of the better ones) player Ray Baartz missing the World Cup.
So to watch the experienced Suarez and Cavanni leading a rejuvenated lineup and be frustrated by a lack of goals, if not chances, was comforting. Egypt, for their part, looked capable without threatening too much to actually score. Their star forward, Mohammed Salah, remained on the bench throughout the night desperately racing for fitness after being injured in a collision with a play to feature in the final match of the day.
As much fun as it was to derive pleasure from the suffering of a talented biter there wasn't much in the way for the casual observer to be entertained. Uruguay drew a sharp save or two from the oldest player at the World Cup (sorry, it's not Tim Cahill) and even hit the post in their quest for an elusive goal while Egypt managed a few dangerous moments that never really elevated into anything more.
Then deep into the game a set piece gave Giminez the chance to outjump two defender and head the ball beyond the keepers reach for a winning goal with barely a few minutes of the game remaining to play.
Then the sequence repeated itself with Morocco being the more likely of the two sides in the game against Iran to score a goal but instead of finally snatching a winner at the death it was Iran who scored an unexpected late winner from a set piece. To be fair it was scored by a Moroccan, Bouhaddouz, but to the benefit of Iran. They were justifiably happy with the result and in a roundabout way a good performance by Iran helps Australia's cause insofar as both teams represent the Asian Confederation and the better they perform the more likely an increase in the number of available qualification spots in future. The Saudi capitulation in the opening match was therefore also bad for Australia.
With the absence of any villain on either side and a result that kills Morocco's hopes of progressing past the group stage and only keeps Iran's ones alive on paper it was the footballing equivalent of a rice cake.
The Spain - Portugal match on the other hand was a rich chocolate cake even before the match started with the news that on the heels of announcing he was the incoming coach for Real Madrid Julen Lopetegui was immediately sacked as coach for Spain. Only hours before the World Cup kicked off. Ah the Spanish. The two neighbours have a long history of competition starting with their attempts to colonise the planet and finishing with interesting ways to cook chicken.
The match also featured another polarising figure in Cristian Ronaldo whose manner riles many, many people but he's actually a very good player. Some might argue the best at this time. Certainly no Argentinian would agree, but I digress. The match began with the interesting statistic that in all the games against Spain he has played Ronaldo had never scored against them. 5 minutes in that changed when a penalty was awarded for a foul (it might have been milked, but it was there) against Ronaldo and he scored early to settle nerves at least on the western edge of the Iberian peninsula.
An early goal (unlike the late ones) tends to open up a game as the losing side knows it can't hang on to a result it no longer has unless some goalscoring happens. Spain is quite good at making goal scoring happen. Spain made it happen. Specifically Diego Costa who found himself alone in the vicinity of 3 defenders but, crucially, with the ball at his feet jinked one way, then the other and finally dispatched the ball into the net for the equaliser after a pulsating 20 minutes after the opening goal.
Both sides clearly hate each other. Motivation to merely win isn't enough to put on a show like this. You have to passionately want the opponent to lose to make this happen.
Then, shortly before halftime, Ronaldo scored again, this time without the help of the referee, to make for an interesting halftime chat in the Spanish dressing room for interim coach Fernando Hierro.
Sometimes the enforced pause in the match has a dampening effect on the play after the resumption. Not this time. Spain scored again, Diego Costa scored again in what was rapidly becoming a personal duel between the two goal scorers. At 2-2 I was happy too because that was the score I had predicted but with over half an hour left to play I knew I was on thin ice.
There was still half an hour to play when Spain finally hit the lead with an outrageously good long range hit that bounced off both goal posts before rippling the net. José Ignacio Fernández Iglesias, who likes to shorten that to "Nacho", presumably because that's his snack of choice, had every reason to celebrate a goal that was equal parts unexpected, skilful, audacious and important. Advantage Spain.
The match continued at a standard that serves as a showpiece for exciting, positive, skilful football in a way the previous two games did not. Of course the match wasn't done yet. Ronaldo wasn't done yet. Portugal were visibly flagging from the high intensity of the game and Spain looked like they might be happy with their nights work. Then on a rare forward foray Ronaldo convinced the Referee to award a free kick that wasn't there (it is not exactly unheard of that he does this) and then proceeded to measure out his approach, set himself and then thread the kick past the wall, past the goalkeeper and inside the near post for a late goal that was a fitting finale to a match that had so much to offer.
Iran lead the group after the first round of matches. :-)
Next up the Socceroos square off against France. Come on boys!
Thursday, June 14, 2018
Episode 2 - Kick off
Just like the best part of the weekend is Friday night after work so too the best part of the World Cup is the moment before the opening match. It's all still ahead of you to look forward to but it's right there. There's no waiting... the weekend starts now
Sadly the weekend started with Friday night drinks with fat Ronaldo, Robbie Williams and Vladimir Putin. Thankfully they had the good grace to only stay for one drink and the party could finally get started.
For a while I wasn't sure if Russia had overplayed their hand and just shipped the Saudis off to Siberia because the all-green uniform of the Saudis made them blend into the pitch and it looked like there was only one team playing. Which made it a little hard to understand why the Russians took so long to score. But score they did inside 15 minutes to allay the nerves of the Russian players and crowd alike. Both still running on the rush of a rousing performance of the national anthem.
Perhaps the camouflage uniform was a ploy by the Saudis but if it was it wasn't helping them as they went into half time 2 goals down after some defensive indecision was punished by the first half substitute who came in for one of the Russians with a hamstring injury barely 22 minutes into the game.
The second half brought another goal to the home side from Dzyuba who looked a lot like you expect Russians to look and you can't help wondering if this was the same Saudi Arabia that pipped Australia in direct qualification for this world cup. Cheryshev rounded out a hattrick of substitute goals around the 90th minute.
You'd think that would have been it but the dubious ref call in the final seconds of the game that I thought would deliver the win to Russia came anyway and Golovin curled a beautiful free kick to put the cherryshev on top for a 5-0 win.
I don't think anyone thinks either side will go terribly far in the tournament but at least one of them might get out of the group.
Sadly the weekend started with Friday night drinks with fat Ronaldo, Robbie Williams and Vladimir Putin. Thankfully they had the good grace to only stay for one drink and the party could finally get started.
For a while I wasn't sure if Russia had overplayed their hand and just shipped the Saudis off to Siberia because the all-green uniform of the Saudis made them blend into the pitch and it looked like there was only one team playing. Which made it a little hard to understand why the Russians took so long to score. But score they did inside 15 minutes to allay the nerves of the Russian players and crowd alike. Both still running on the rush of a rousing performance of the national anthem.
Perhaps the camouflage uniform was a ploy by the Saudis but if it was it wasn't helping them as they went into half time 2 goals down after some defensive indecision was punished by the first half substitute who came in for one of the Russians with a hamstring injury barely 22 minutes into the game.
The second half brought another goal to the home side from Dzyuba who looked a lot like you expect Russians to look and you can't help wondering if this was the same Saudi Arabia that pipped Australia in direct qualification for this world cup. Cheryshev rounded out a hattrick of substitute goals around the 90th minute.
You'd think that would have been it but the dubious ref call in the final seconds of the game that I thought would deliver the win to Russia came anyway and Golovin curled a beautiful free kick to put the cherryshev on top for a 5-0 win.
I don't think anyone thinks either side will go terribly far in the tournament but at least one of them might get out of the group.
Episode 1 - Hungary 1 - Australia 2
Bruce Lee once
said
“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I
fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” and in
choosing their final pre World Cup opponent Australia has opted for a 10000-kicks-once
team in Hungary. The Hungarians were once the greatest team in the world even
beating England at Wembley when that was still a remarkable achievement. Ultimately
though they are best remembered as the greatest team to never win the World Cup
and on the evidence here they will hold that title a lot longer.
That's not to say
Hungary weren't better than Australia, you could certainly argue they were in
the first half. It's just that you would have to look for supporting evidence
someplace other than the scoreline which is usually the ultimate arbiter in
these matters. Australia's fortunes improved in the second half in large part
to the introduction of Mile Jedinak who hasn't quite decided if his beard is
hipster or bushranger. Meanwhile commentators around the world are as grateful
for his prominent look as they are to Aaron Mooy’s for the opposite reason.
It wasn't until the
arrival of Daniel Arzani that things changed on the scoreboard. He received a
pass, ran for a bit and thought “sods to this, let’s just kick it hard towards
goal”. Despite the goalkeeper having a clear view of the action and with enough
time to react he somehow managed to glance the ball with his hand in a way that
made the mistake more glaring as the ball gently rolled into the net.
The rest of the match
would have given heart to many social players of any age.
Having narrowly
missed or botched several opportunities to score Hungary finally scored an
equalising goal that came from an Australian keystone cops moment between Trent
Sainsbury and Brad Jones. The you-take-it-I-got-it-oops-nobody-has-it moment is
played out in suburban grounds all around the world but rarely in an
international match. Nothing will make a fan feel closer to their sporting idol
than a monumental stuff up such as this.
Sensing an
opportunity for greater fan engagement of their own the Hungarians were not to
be outdone and contrived an equally bold mistake made more crafty by virtue it
was left so late that Australia really couldn't top it. How often does the
captain nutmeg his own keeper from a cross to score a winning (aka losing) goal?
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