Sunday, June 25, 2006

Hmm...Wow...Yawn...Wow

Bugger me......25 fouls but 16 yellows (including 4 second yellows). That was some refereeing display. The Dutch and Portugese decided to play out a war of attrition with player after player flying in or exaggerating fouls to get other players booked. In the end Portugal came out on top but it was a surreal match...you can’t help but feel that the Netherlands played into Portugal’s hands.



At the end of the day all the bad-tempers were great for England fans as the depleted winners, or should that be the survivors, of that game were due to meet the all conquering name-on-the-trophy super-fantastic Ingerland! Yep! The super stupifiers have yet again progressed. People seemed to assume Ecuador would be push-overs patently ignoring the fact that England, apart from a few fleeting spells have basically been rubbish so far. In the end it was yet more of the same, it’s just not happening. The team has yet to click and yet here we are in the last 8. This time a 4-1-4-1 was employed with Carrick as the holder employed to allow Gerrard and Lampard freedom to do their thing. Hargreaves was brought in to support Beckham because Carragher is just no good as a full-back when his winger can’t beat his man.

Rooney leading the line on his own looked isolated, Joe Cole did well but he seldom had anyone ahead of him. Another frustrating afternoon. We could have conceded early but for great work from Ashley Cole



but ultimately the game was decided by a perfectly placed Beckham freekick.



The only problem was that after the previous day’s football I didn’t think it had gone in at all. Yesterday in the Germany Sweden game a shot had ruffled the side netting and rebounded behind the goal so 90% of the stadium had the illusion it was nestling in the back of the net. Sweden just didn’t turn up to their game and Germany strolled past them. The game was notable for a shameful incident when some Germany players almost demanded the ref give a Sweden player a second yellow for next to nothing.

Game of the weekend was undoubtedly Mexico v Argentina. Two teams going at each other hammer and tongs from the first minute...quick, pacey football with skill and balance throughout the teams. Both trying to beat each other at all costs. In the end the game was settled by a breath-taking strike from Maxi Rodriguez (who I’d been saying was the weak link that their side, D’oh!). Sublime chest and volley into the far corner but with his back to goal and the full-back in attendance...sorry Joe but it was better than yours mate.



We’ve got lots of other stuff going on in our lives but at present the World Cup is taking up our time...lots of wedding stuff that we should be doing. Anne has hopefully solved the Fiendish Sudoku puzzle that is the seating plan and we are striving towards planning the mass and typing up the order of service (in fact what am I doing wasting time writing a blog!). A few things to sort out but hopefully we are on top of it.........hopefully. It’s very easy to make yourself hyper-ventilate about this. Lots of things to organise that you just cannot be arsed about. It will be worth it in the end but we just need to avoid drowning in logistics.

Especially when there’s a world cup on.

No comments: