For the Socceroos’ three World Cup matches I made my way down to Birrarung Marr with my fellow fans to show my support for our national team. Here are some of the sights and sounds of my experiences in the wee small hours, including this bit of audio.
Whilst everyone has been sinking their collective boots into the Socceroos and Pim Verbeek (myself included) after their poor performance against Germany maybe we should put some perspective on things. We should spare a thought for the fans of Chile, a football mad nation (unlike ourselves) who have had to wait 48 years between wins at the World Cup. For us it has only been four years since our one and only World Cup win, that’s right four years. For what’s it worth, I was pretty impressed with the performance of my second team in the World Cup and it is the subject of my latest blog for 442. Also one must spare a thought for the fans of Greece, a country and football nation that has contributed much to the Australian footballing landscape, have had to wait until 2010 to see their team pick up their first ever point and win and score their first ever goal at a World Cup. Certainly, puts thing into perspective doesn’t it.
I must have been living under a rock since I first got interested in football and the World Cup back in 1986 because I never knew the Panini World Cup Sticker Album existing until this year.
You may think it’s a bit weird for 31 year old to be collecting stickers and it’s true that I do get some odd looks from those behind the counter of the various newsagents from which I purchase my packets of stickers. Not to mention that my girlfriend also thinks that I should find better things on which to waste my money. In light of this I asked my twitter followers if it was a little weird for a person of my age to be collecting Panini stickers. I got the following responses:
No, but it might be weird for a 31-year-old to be tweeting about collecting stickers
No. It just proves your passion for football. Which, obviously is a good thing.
I’m a 32y.o. doing the same
To be honest though I’m not the greatest of collectors as at most I will only purchase about ten packets a week and never have had the inclination to buy one of those blister packs. In fact it was only today that I completed my first swap (not being a big purchaser means I don’t have too many doubles). And to be brutally honest I don’t even think I will get round to completing the whole set.
One of the anomalies in the whole collecting of the Panini stickers is the prevalence or lack there of of certain stickers. In this article by Guardian writer John Crace he notes that:
Would Panini load the packs so some stickers appear more often, ensuring you fork out for more packets? Yes, says almost everyone who has ever collected them.
Chris Taylor, from Manchester, collects with five or six of his mates. “My album is now about two-thirds full and I’ve already ended up with a whole load of Lee Young-Pyos, Hameur Bouazzas and Vince Grellas,” he says.
“Definitely,” says Sarah. “Four years ago it was all Gary Nevilles and Marco Materazzis. This year I’ve got loads of Didier Drogbas and Wilson Palacios.” Meanwhile @benjilanyado tweets, “Panini seem to be flooding the packs with Javier Mascheranos and Blaise Nkufos”. In my collection, John Terry was an early front runner in the doubles stakes but then went awol; perhaps he’s hidden himself in the Panini Wag stickers.
Amongst collectors here in Australia there has been talk of a severe lack of Chilean players appearing in their packets of stickers and I myself am yet to get one myself which is a bit of shame as they are my second team for this World Cup behind Australia.
For those who are interested in swapping I have the following doubles available (list will be updated as I get more). Feel free to drop me a line if you are interested in doing a deal.
2, 23, 24(x2), 25, 92, 106, 155(x3), 161(x2), 163(x2), 171, 180, 185(x2),235, 250(x3), 251, 258, 279, 302, 343, 353, 388, 399, 440(x2), 452(x2), 502, 533, 589, 614, 617
updated: 26 June 2010 @ 11:45pm
Qualifying for a tournament is one thing, but actually performing in a tournament is a completely different thing. And that’s what we learned last night as the Socceroos crashed to a 4-0 defeat in Durban at the hands of Germany.
In a similar situation four years ago against an opponent of a similar stature to Germany (namely Brazil) the Socceroos probably played their best game of the tournament despite going down 2-0. The reason why we did so well is because we took the game to our opposition on the day and didn’t take a backward step.
Contrast that to the game against Germany earlier this morning where Pim Verbeek telegraphed his intention from the time he announced that the Socceroos would be starting their match without a recognised striker. He may have called it a 4-4-2 but in all reality it was a 4-6-0 with both Garcia and Cahill playing as advanced midfielders/strikers.
So without a ball being kicked we had already handed the advantage to our opposition. If you are playing the best team in the group shouldn’t you be playing your best team in response and the decision not to give either Kewell or Kennedy a run was truly mindboggling.
The decision to play Tim Cahill and Richard Garcia as ’strikers’ smacked of tactical naivety by Verbeek at worst and clutching at straws at best. Both players are ill-suited to the role and Verbeek should have known this from Cahill’s performance in that role against Japan during qualification. Why take your best player and play him out of position?
Two of our better performers were the returning Brett Emerton and the ever dependable Luke Wilkshire who both patrolled the right-hand side of the pitch. However, a lot of their efforts were wasted as when they got into good positions to get the ball into the box there were never enough bodies to really take advantage of their good work.
Credit has been and should be given to the Germans for their performance with Mesut Ozil being outstanding as he ran the show from the midfield. He appeared to have heaps of space in which to display his considerable talent despite the fact that the Socceroos were playing with five in their midfield.
So with that out of the way let’s hope Pim reverts to the formula that provided much success during qualification. There’s that old adage, if it broke . . .
Yesterday I posted up part of the fatwa Soccer is Forbidden Except When Played as Training for Jihad which was issued by Sheikh Abdallah Al-Najdi in 2003. After a bit of searching I found all fifteen prohibitions and here they are courtesy of Progressive Islam.
1. Don’t play soccer with four lines [surrounding the field], since this is the way of the non-believers, and the international soccer rules require drawing [these lines] before playing.
2. One should not use the terminology established by the non-believers and the polytheists, like: ‘foul,’ ‘penalty kick,’ ‘corner kick,’ ‘goal,’ and ‘out of bounds.’ Whoever pronounces these terms should be punished, reprimanded, kicked out of the game, and should even be told in public: ‘You have come to resemble the non-believers and the polytheists, and this has been forbidden.’
3. If one of you falls during the game and breaks his hand or his foot, or if the ball hits his hand, he shall not say ‘foul’ and shall not stop playing because of his injury. The one who caused his injury shall not receive a yellow or a red card, but rather the case shall be judged according to Muslim law in the case of a broken bone or an injury. The injured player shall exercise his rights according to the shari’a, as [is stated] in the Koran, and you must testify together with him that so-and-so tripped him up intentionally.
4. Do not set the number [of players] according to the number of players used by the non-believers, the Jews, the Christians, and especially the vile America. In other words, 11 players shall not play together. Make it a larger or a smaller number.
5. Play in your normal clothing, or in Dishdashas [traditional Arab long garb], or something like that, but not in colorful pants and numbered jerseys. Pants and jerseys are not appropriate clothing for Muslims. They are the clothing of the non-believers and of the West, and therefore you must be careful not to wear them.
6. Once you have fulfilled [these] conditions and rules, you must play the entire game with the intention of improving your physical fitness for the purpose of fighting Jihad for Allah’s sake and preparing for the time when jihad is needed. One should not waste time in celebrating a false victory.
7. Do not play for 45 minutes, as is the practice among the Jews, the Christians, and in all of the countries of non-belief and atheism. This is also the length of time that is accepted in the soccer clubs of those who have strayed from the righteous path. You must be different than the non-believers, depart from their path, and not imitate them in anything.
8. Do not play in two parts [i.e. halves], but rather in one part or in three parts, so as to be different than the sinful and rebellious, the non-believers and the polytheists.
9. If neither side has defeated the other and neither side has inserted the ball between the posts, do not waste further time [in an extension] or in ‘penalty kicks’ until someone has won, but rather leave [the field] immediately, since this kind of victory is precisely an imitation of the non-believers and [adoption] of the international soccer rules.
10. Do not appoint someone who follows the players around and is called ‘a referee’, since, after canceling the international rules such as ‘foul,’ ‘penalty kick,’ ‘corner kick’ and so on, there is no need for his presence. Moreover, his presence is an imitation of non-believers, Jews and Christians, and constitutes adoption of the international [soccer] rules.
11. In the course of the game it is forbidden for groups of youth to gather and watch, since if you are gathering for the sake of sports activity and physical fitness, as you claim, why should they be looking at you? You must make them participate [in order to improve] their physical fitness and prepare for jihad; or else say to them, ‘Go propagate Islam and seek out moral corruption in the marketplaces and in the press [in order to correct it], and leave us to improve our physical fitness.’
12. When you finish playing, be careful not to talk about the game, and not to say ‘we play better than the opponent,’ or ’so-and-so is a good player,’ etc. Moreover, you should speak about your body, its strength and its muscles, and about the fact that you are playing as [a means of] training to run, attack, and retreat in preparation for [waging] jihad for Allah’s sake.
13. If one of you inserts the ball between the posts and then starts to run so that his companions will run after him and hug him, like the players in America and France do, you should spit in his face, punish him, and reprimand him, for what do joy, hugging, and kissing have to do with sports?
14. You must take the three posts or iron rods which you use to construct [the goal], and into which the ball is kicked, and replace them with just two instead of three. In other words, take out the cross-post or rod… so that [the goal] will not be similar to what is customary among the non-believers, and in order to violate the despotic international soccer rules.
15. Do not do what is known as ’substitution’ — that is, putting in a player in place of a player who has been disqualified — since this the custom of the non-believers in America and elsewhere.
The fatwa forbidding football - except when played as training for Jihad - issued by Sheikh Abdallah Al-Najdi in 2003 lists fifteen prohibitions, including:
Don’t play football with four lines (surrounding the field), since this is the way of the non-believers.
One should not use the terminology established by the non-believers and the polytheists, like: ‘foul’, ‘penalty kick’, ‘corner kick’, ‘goal’ and ‘out of bounds’. Whoever pronounces these terms should be punished, reprimanded, kicked out of the game, and should even be told in public: ‘You have come to resemble the non-believers and the polytheists, and this has been forbidden’.
Do not set the number (of players) according to the number of players used by the non-believers, the Jews, the Christians, and especially the vile America. In other words, eleven players shall not play together. Make it a larger or a smaller number.
Do not play in two parts (i.e. halves), but rather in one part or in three parts, so as to be different than the sinful and rebellious, the non-believers and the polytheists.
When you finish playing, be careful not to talk about the game, and not to say ‘we play better than the opponent’, or ’so-and-so is a good player’. Moreover, you should about your body, its strength and its muscles, and about the fact that you are playing as (a means of ) training to run, attack, and retreat in preparation for jihad for Allah’s sake.
If one of you inserts the ball between the posts and then starts to run so that his companions will run after him and hug him, like the players in America and France do, yo should spit in his face, punish him, and reprimand him, for what do joy, hugging, and kissing have to do with sports?
- Sukhdev Sandhu in Matt Weiland & Sean Wilsey’s The Thinking Fan’s Guide to the World Cup.
As part of my application to be part of The Guardian’s Fans’ Network for the World Cup I had two write two pieces and I thought it would be an opportune time to share them with you. The first piece was a short explanation in 150 words or less of why you would be the right person to be in the Guardian Fans’ Network. My response below took inspiration from Christiano Ronaldo’s efforts in that Castrol advertisement that always cracks me up.
Football takes me many places, hot places, cold places … But I prepare for it all. Those are the words of Cristiano Ronaldo in an advertisement for Castrol. Football also takes me many places but unlike Cristiano it is not through any sort of footballing ability. I have to make do with living vicariously through watching others play the game I love. And that means watching football in many places, from the comfort of large stadiums in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane to the outer suburbs of Melbourne in the death of winter supporting my local team with only a scarf and jacket to keep me warm. There also have been ventures overseas to the rickety stadiums of Santiago and Buenos Aires that were only slightly less dangerous than some of the pubs I have to make do with when I couldn’t be at a game. Football takes me many places.
Here is that ad just for a laugh.
The second piece was a more analytical piece in 300 words or less on how you think your country will do in South Africa. This was slightly more difficult but this is what I had to say.
Whilst Australia qualified for the 2010 World Cup for the first time through Asia by only losing two out of fourteen matches and conceding only four goals it was hardly the stuff that inspired the Australian footballing public and has many worried going into this year’s tournament.
In a group alongside Germany, Ghana and Serbia, the Socceroos may find it very difficult to match the feats of 2006. Under the tutelage of Pim Verbeek, Australia has essentially played a 4-5-1 formation that is meant to be 4-3-3. It’s a style useful for suited for qualifying not so much for progressing through tournaments.
Of most concern is Verbeek’s rigidity to this formation and his inability to change it not matter the situation or opponent and could very well Australia’s undoing in South Africa. Tournaments are all about making that game changing decision and in Verbeek we don’t have someone with that quality.
Another reason for my pessimism is Socceroos’ over reliance on ‘keeper Mark Schwarzer and midfielder Tim Cahill. Throughout the qualifying campaign, Schwarzer was often Australia’s saviour and the fact he had so many clean sheets was mostly down to his own efforts rather than that of the defence in front of him.
With a number of Socceroos’ strikers finding it difficult to find the back of the net, it was the goals of Tim Cahill that played a huge part in Australia’s qualification. If he were to come under any injury cloud in the lead up to the tournament it would have many fans worried.
It is therefore my conclusion that Australia will find it difficult to progress past the group stages in South Africa and if they do I will be pleasantly surprised.
Even though Melbourne Victory are taking a well earned break it doesn’t mean Victory In Melbourne will be taken it easy. In fact, I will be pretty damn busy. As I alluded to earlier this week on both our Facebook and Twitter pages, Victory In Melbourne will be taking on a distinctly Socceroos theme as part of The Guardian’s Fan’s Network for the 2010 World Cup (more details to follow). On top of that, I will be following the fortunes of the teams of Group H for FourFourTwo Australia and you can read my first effort about Chile right here.
Welcome to Victory In Melbourne’s minute by minute coverage of the 2010 World Cup draw in South Africa. We will be covering it all right from the start, keeping you up to date with all that is happening in the lead-up to and including the drawing of the balls themselves. As we count down the minutes, here’s a reminder of who’s in what pot.
Pot 1 (the seeds & South Africa)
Brazil
Spain
Netherlands
Italy
Germany
Argentina
England
South Africa
Pot 2 (Asia, Oceania & Central America)
Australia
Japan
North Korea
South Korea
Honduras
Mexico
USA
New Zealand
Pot 3 (Africa & South America)
Algeria
Cameroon
Ivory Coast
Ghana
Nigeria
Chile
Paraguay
Uruguay
Pot 4 (the rest of the Europeans)
Denmark
France
Greece
Portugal
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Switzerland
3:57am - Currently sitting bleary eyed in front of the TV as Craig Foster and co. go through the teams they would like Australia to have or have not in their group. Word is that in rehearsals, Australia got England in their group three times.
4:06am - The host roll out old favourite, Nelson Mandela early on in the proceedings. I just hope that song isn’t the theme for the World Cup itself.
4:08am - Sepp Blatter and Jacob Zuma now up on stage making small talk with the host.
4:12am - That’s right Italy, give back that trophy and would someone tell Blatter to give it a rest.
4:14am - KRudd obviously make a good impression on Blatter, with him being referred to as Kevin Rude. Doesn’t bode well for our World Cup bid. 
4:16am - Might be a good idea for Blatter to actually remember where the World Cup is actually going to be held. Hopefully he remembers by the time it actually starts next year.
4:26am - Now watching FIFA promotional video telling us how much they are doing in Africa.
4:33am - Thanks very much SBS for not letting us see Angelique Kidjo perform. Now for the real star of the show, Charlize Theron.
4:38am - Was wondering when the mascot was going making an appearance. Cue African animals playing football.
4:56am - Charlize Theron is such a good actress - she is actually feigning proper interest in how the draw actually works
5:04am - The draw has started.
5:05am - The seeds and their groups Group A - South Africa, Group B - Argentina, Group C - England, Group D - Germany, Group E - Netherlands, Group F - Italy Group G - Brazil, Group H - Spain
5:08am - It’s our pot. I’m a bit nervous. Damn, Mexico got South Africa.
5:10am - Australia in Group D with Germany, reminiscent of 1974 as the host reminds us. We get the Germans first up. To quote Montgomery Burns, “Oooh, the Germans!
5:11am - The Kiwis get Group F and Italy.
5:15am - Brazil and Ivory Coast in the same group. We have our potential Group of Death.
5:17am - Ghana is the third team in our group. Damn I was hoping for Chile.
5:19am - Going on the draw so far, I’m tipping Greece to be the last team in our group.
5:21am - My tip was wrong, Greece go into Group B.
5:23am - Serbia is the final team in our group. This is going to be one tough group to get out of but I guess they all are.
5:25am - It’s official, we have our Group of Death. Brazil, Ivory Coast, Portugal and North Korea.
5:26am - My second favourite team, Chile gets a good group with Spain, Honduras and Switzerland. They are definitely good chance to get through that group.
5:30am - Now I am back to bed, to now dream of Germans, Ghananians and Serbians.
5:35am - Sorry Fozzie, but I reckon Group G is tougher than ours. We can’t always be in the Group of Death. Now I am definitely going back to bed.
These are the goals from the Costa Rica vs Honduras World Cup Qualifier in which the Victory’s very own Carlos Hernandez came on as a 52nd minute substitute and was involved in the lead up to the second Costa Rican goal. Costa Rica ran out 2-0 victors and sit in equal top place with the USA in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers.
Not sure if we are going to see any game time for Hernandez tonight considering that he arrived back in Melbourne this morning. I guess it will depend on the game situation.
