[twoNeurons]

Mildly surprised no one has posted anything about the World Cup here.

Anyway, just wanted to weigh in with a few thoughts...

Argentina... wonderful to watch... played the whole game and didn't shut it down defensively at the end.

African teams... doing well, but not as well as they would hope.

Cameroon's offense failed to spark anything against Japan, Cote d'Ivoire has a tough road to ride, Ghana and South Africa are the best chances at the moment.

Great job New Zealand, great piece of retribution after an offside goal against ( saying that, it was barely offside, mind you... so I'm glad it stood ). That round is dead even, with one goal per team per game, so it will be interesting to watch.

South Korea is doing well as expected. Japan controls its own destiny as well, but Denmark will be tough to beat.

England, well they're England... the Maple Leafs of the World cup. They have talent, just need to pull it together. Green's mistake is easily the biggest of the tournament as of yet.

Brazil rested on their laurels and just let North Korea walk through their defense. They make up for defensive lapses with their offensive firepower, though.

[WarrenC12]

North Korea is best Korea! :D

[PaperTiger]

North Korea is best Korea! :D

They must have some crazy top secret soccer training facility a la Dolph Lumgren in Rocky 4.

They looked really good for a team that doesn't have any players in any of the major interanational leagues.

[Overground]

I agree with above comments. I'll add some of my thoughts -


I jumped out of my seat when NZ scored this morning in stoppage. Fabulous! It's going to be almost impossible for them to get out of the group as Paraguay are looking pretty good. But that group is dead even right now!

It's obviously a low scoring tournament so far. I think it's 10 goals down from this point in Germany last. Opening games can have midfielders not pushing forward enough and full backs sit back so there isn't any additional attacking up front hence less goals.

Early days but....Argentina looked great but I think they can give teams some chances at the back.

Germany look awesome even though it was only against Oz.

Italy was flat with no creativity.

Holland were convincing but it was more down to a very poor Denmark.

France looked crap.

As for my England....well I'm still very optimistic. The US fluked out with that Green mistake and England had majority possession, out shot them two-fold, more corners, just the better side. Barry is back from injury to shore up midfield against Algeria on Friday and although King is out at the back, we have plenty of quality centre backs to replace him. No worries.

IMO, vuluzevas need to be banned from matches. Or they need to sell the new ones only that have had them altered to bring the volume down 20 decibels. When you can't hear the referee's whistle or your teammates then it affects the game.

NY Post trying to be funny but fail miserably. Idiots.

http://i47.tinypic.com/104kpci.jpg

[twoNeurons]

Lol. That's actually kind of funny.

Well, I DO feel that what's good for US Soccer is good for Canadian soccer.

Watching the Hondurans play today, I couldn't help but think Canada could be in a similar position.

[mrjauk]

NY Post trying to be funny but fail miserably. Idiots.

http://i47.tinypic.com/104kpci.jpg

I'd be more cautious about calling people idiots if I were you. If you were a little bit more informed, you would have immediately realized that the caption pays clever homage to the famous headline in the Harvard Crimson student newspaper following the "most famous Ivy League college football game ever played."

For the first time since 1909, the football teams of Harvard and Yale were each undefeated with 6-0 records in their conference (8-0 overall) when they met for their season's final game on November 23, 1968[1] at Harvard Stadium.[8] Led by their quarterback captain Brian Dowling, Yale was heavily favored to win and they quickly led the game 22–0.[9] With two minutes remaining on the clock they still led 29–13.[1] As the last seconds ticked down, Harvard, coached by John Yovicsin, tied the game, scoring 16 points in the final 42 seconds to tie Yale.[9][1] The Harvard Crimson declared victory with a famous headline, "Harvard Beats Yale 29-29",[1][9] providing the title for Rafferty’s documentary.[2][3][10][4][5]

Those of who have are fans of Gary Trudeau's Doonesbury will know that Yale's quarterback that day, Brian Dowling, was the original inspiration for the character B.D.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvard_Beats_Yale_29-29

[Overground]

I guess it is kind of funny:D Cheeky beggars. I still want the US to lose badly.
I somehow have a feeling Canada won't qualify until 2018. The game will have a better hold in Canada by then with MLS expansion and academy prospects coming out of Cdn clubs, especially VWFC, could be very promising.

What about Spain losing 1 nil to the Swiss?! Wow. This could mean that they have a chance of finishing 2nd in the Group now and would have to play the probable winner of Group G - Brazil in the next round.

[mrjauk]

I guess it is kind of funny:D Cheeky beggars. I still want the US to lose badly.
I somehow have a feeling Canada won't qualify until 2018. The game will have a better hold in Canada by then with MLS expansion and academy prospects coming out of Cdn clubs, especially VWFC, could be very promising.

What about Spain losing 1 nil to the Swiss?! Wow. This could mean that they have a chance of finishing 2nd in the Group now and would have to play the probable winner of Group G - Brazil in the next round.

I agree about Canada's WC qualifying chances. I think that 2014 is a pipe-dream, but by 2018 we could have a shot for the reasons you mentioned.

Spain's diving was frustrating (as was Ronaldo's a couple of days ago). I wish that FIFA would put an end to it. It's simple really. If you dive, you're engaging in unsportsmanlike activity, for which a just punishment is a yellow card. Do it again in the same match and you get sent off.

[Tom Bombadil]

I guess it is kind of funny:D Cheeky beggars. I still want the US to lose badly.


Like it or not, the future success of MLS is intimately linked with the success of the US on the international stage. Failure for the US is not good for MLS or Vancouver.

[djmk]

I still want the US to lose badly.



.

I want the US to do well. if the US does well, i'm hoping the domestic league (MLS) will get more attention and thus do better. And then what's good for the yanks is good for canada

[jlousa]

The success/failure of the US team would only affect the Canadian team if we let it though. Our soccer success does not need to become dependant on the Americans. It certainly hasn't been a factor for Mexico. I fully understand the differences, and I'm not arguing that the US being successful would probably help our game. I just don't think we should count on that.

One of our biggest issues is unfortunately we are a country built on immigration and we lose a lot of our best players at a very early age to their original countries. When given the chance to develop with the Canadian team or go and develop with the Italians/Spaniards/Portuguese etc most of these player go back home. I can't fault them for this, but it's a cycle we need to break and hopefully our better players will actually want to stay and play for Canada.

[twoNeurons]

One of our biggest issues is unfortunately we are a country built on immigration and we lose a lot of our best players at a very early age to their original countries. When given the chance to develop with the Canadian team or go and develop with the Italians/Spaniards/Portuguese etc most of these player go back home. I can't fault them for this, but it's a cycle we need to break and hopefully our better players will actually want to stay and play for Canada.

Which is why we really need a quality league that people WANT to play in. If you can get some general overall quality to back up key ( read: star ) players, they might just want to stay and play.

The MLS could shape up to be that quality league. In the 80s, it was the NASL, hopefully, MLS can do better and stay around longer.

[djmk]

more fans = more money
more money = attract better players
attract better players = better development of current players
because canadians and americans play together, what is good for the US is good for canada

besides, one of the core missions of the MLS when it was first started was to develop american players.

[SpikePhanta]

i'm a fan of France but man the coach was stupid, didn't even play henry.

[cjohnny4]

I wonder what the chances are that Canada could be the host country for a near-future World Cup. The infrastructure and stadiums are already nearly adequate, the security is there, organizational abilities (hey..we pulled off three Olympics more or less successfully)...

On the down side is the fan base, but hey, FIFA could use the occasion to spark more interest in soccer in Canada. Most of Canada's major cities are quite international, so the fan base may not be an issue. Distances between cities are in issue, but the US hosted and that didn't seem to be a huge issue. Speaking of the US, I'm sure lots of US fans would come up to see games too.

Any thoughts? I think there's a good case to be made!


Oh yeah, and for the current World Cup, go USA!
(I'm a soon-to-be dual citizen!)

[jlousa]

See I don't see the domestic league being a prerequisite to having a good national team. I'd still love to see a proper league in NA and the MSL will have to do for now.
Most countries home leagues aren't all that impressive and their nation's star players all go and play in the big leagues like the EPL or la liga etc. Their players are still happy to come home and play for the national team, that is something that we need to improve. If we could just get a couple of the better players to stick with Canada on the national level it would improve our team tremendously. A couple of topnotch players would raise the play of the remaining squad and put us in a position of being invited to the big show.
I fully expect Canada to host a World Cup within the next 2 decades, probably even earlier, I would like to see us qualify consistently before that.

[djmk]

I fully expect Canada to host a World Cup within the next 2 decades, probably even earlier, I would like to see us qualify consistently before that.

the next time Canada can bid to host is for 2024 and beyond.

Brazil is next and I'll wager Europe is in 2018 (traditionally every 8 years but not this time - (SA and then Brazil).

there are many countries (or regions) that will get the world cup before Canada. Russia, China, The Middle East (Quatar), Oceania (Australia or Indonesia)

also, FIFA looks down at countries with poor national squads and canada sucks. Canada was supposed to have its best team since '86 to qualify for the World Cup and they could barely win a game.

[Overground]

2018 is probably going to Europe with England then Russia the most likely. I think Sepp Blatter said he wants Europe for 2018 as well. The US is bidding too for '18 but it's been hinted they will back England in '18 for their backing of the US for 2022. Either way NA and Asia are next if they stick to "every other continent is in rotation except Europe" idea. Asia/Australia are already bidding so who knows which way that goes.

Canada could host in 2026 with a joint bid with the US even though Blatter said he would reject joint bids, but would allow them if there wasn't another suitable host. Hypothetically if the US did get 2022 then the next time Canada would be likely to host is 2038?



....Wow, Germany loses to Serbia. Crap officiating but ze Germans should have scored that penalty. It's only the 2nd penalty they've missed in WC group play, ever. US currently down 1 nil to Slovenia in the first half! Later on this morning....England v Algeria. C'mon England!!

[twoNeurons]

And the US is down by 2 at the half!!!

I agree that the Germany game was poorly officiated. Frustrating to lose a game that way.

[Overground]

Oh god....Yanks just drew 2 - 2.


Trivia time.

Germany lost their first group match since '86.

England have lost one group match('98 to Romania) since '86.

[twoNeurons]

Excellent effort on the US' part. Slovenia paid the price for going into defensive mode too early. The US team is a very good squad. I like their style of play. Far less diving, really fighting for the ball. Good control.

That 3rd goal was disallowed... uhhh... why?

You know, I'd love to see yellow cards given out for theatrics.

[flight_from_kamakura]

pretty much blew off working today to hit the julia morgan ballroom for the usa and england games. (though with how much i stalk this board, i wonder how much difference it makes.)

anyway, talk about terrible officiating in the usa-slovenia game. i'll grant that a lot of the calls in the 2nd half went the usa's way, but that disallowed goal could well be the difference between taking the group and taking third place in the group - a horrific call to have botched. go usa!

[djmk]

Canada could host in 2026 with a joint bid with the US even though Blatter said he would reject joint bids, but would allow them if there wasn't another suitable host. Hypothetically if the US did get 2022 then the next time Canada would be likely to host is 2038?





i'll shit the bed with excitement if it was a Canadian / US joint host with the matches in Oregon, Washington State, and BC

[twoNeurons]

Cascadia for 2022!

[delboy]

As a Brit after watching the England and Algeria game, I'm embarrassed and dismayed after seeing the worse performance of any country so far and any England game that I can remember, Frankly, Algeria deserved to win. What a total load of bollocks. No left wing, no decent passing, Rooney and Heskey were shit, Dafoe was brought on too late as was crouch.

I've lost complete interest ..... and I took the day off work for this shite.

[cjohnny4]

Excellent effort on the US' part. Slovenia paid the price for going into defensive mode too early. The US team is a very good squad. I like their style of play. Far less diving, really fighting for the ball. Good control.

That 3rd goal was disallowed... uhhh... why?



Yeah...why? The US still has a chance with the way England is playing.
Go USA!!

[twoNeurons]

Fantastic game by the US.

So-so by England.

Poor Slovenia... Tiny nation who did so well, had their hopes dashed in the 90th minute of the US Algeria game.

Saying that, the US, after having two decisive disallowed goals in two games did deserve to go through.

[Overground]

What a result for England and what a stressful morning I had to go thru. I couldn't watch the last 10 mins. This was almost the quality England team we saw in Qualifying back. Like usual we needed the one goal to get some confidence and offence going. They showed signs of brilliance but it's just not quite there yet.

England starts slow and then get better as the tournament goes on. Eng also play better against good teams so I say bring 'em on. Not too worried about ze Germans if they go through...and they may not if Serbia wins vs Aus and Ghana draws with them. Should be an entertaining lunch today!

[flight_from_kamakura]

great game by the usa! yeah! cringing and whinging rewarded with an ecstatic (though ugly) strike, to keep the party going! go usa! beat serbia!

[twoNeurons]

Strangely enough, If Ghana beat Germany (not impossible, they're the two best teams in the group, imho) and Australia beat Serbia, US would play Australia and England would play Ghana.

Germany can get through on a draw, but would need a draw or Aussie win to advance.

[Overground]

Good matches so far at the half and can't believe they're both nil-nil. I'd be happy if it finished like this then the yanks can have Germany next. Got a feeling the table isn't going to stay and Serbia will win that match. Should be great second 45!

[twoNeurons]

Good matches so far at the half and can't believe they're both nil-nil. I'd be happy if it finished like this then the yanks can have Germany next. Got a feeling the table isn't going to stay and Serbia will win that match. Should be great second 45!

What a fantastic late-effort goal by the Americans. Looks like England will face Germany!!! That match will be pretty epic.

[twoNeurons]

Anyone heading towards commercial drive today may see a lot of tears.

Italy downed by Slovakia, 3-2.

Slovakia goes on to play Holland(probably) or the winner of Japan/Denmark if there's an upset.

Great showing by the Kiwis. They haven't lost a game.

[twoNeurons]

Wow... a convincing win by Japan... 3-1. And they were still attacking until the last second!

Netherlands takes down Cameroon ( as expected ).

[twoNeurons]

Anyone know a good place to watch the Paraguay - Japan game downtown tomorrow? I'm meeting a friend downtown. I usually watch at Commercial Drive, but my friend's working downtown.

[Overground]

Any of the Donnelly pubs would do....Cinema on Granville or Library Square pub on Georgia. You could also check out the Forum on Granville near Davie. These all have WC football themes going on as well as many others. As for where the best place would be for atmosphere/fans of Japan or Paraguay, I have no idea.

I'm still drowning in my sorrows from England's exit.:(

[twoNeurons]

Any of the Donnelly pubs would do....Cinema on Granville or Library Square pub on Georgia. You could also check out the Forum on Granville near Davie. These all have WC football themes going on as well as many others. As for where the best place would be for atmosphere/fans of Japan or Paraguay, I have no idea.

I'm still drowning in my sorrows from England's exit.:(

Yeah, It was sad to see them go out... but I think Germany will do better than England against Argentina.

I really wanted to see Chile go through against Brazil as well.

I think Chile played a more Brazilian style of footie than Brazil did. They just didn't have the touch to finish it and get past that Brazilian defense.

The Dutch are going to have a tough time getting through it as well.

[Overground]

I knew Holland would beat Brazil, I said this to everyone and no one believed me, LOL.

Super win for the Oranje! Bye bye Brazil!

[Whalleyboy]

I knew Holland would beat Brazil, I said this to everyone and no one believed me, LOL.

Super win for the Oranje! Bye bye Brazil!

I know your feeling of no one listening on this

[twoNeurons]

I bet if Brazil beat Holland though... you wouldn't have said anything... :-)

I was hoping for Holland, but will admit that without that early equalizer and mistake by the brazilian defense... it would've been a whole different game.

Holland's keeper's save on Kaka's shot is what saved the Dutch.

Holland hup! The future is Oranje! Go Ghana! Viva Espagnol...

And yay for Argermantina!

[twoNeurons]

Poor Gyan... Poor poor Gyan... :.(

[twoNeurons]

If this forum represents the interest in soccer from the general population... I fear for MLS...

Could it be that skyscrapers and soccer don't go well together?

[nova9]

nah man. i have my MLS seasons tickets. I can't wait. I want to becom a southsider eventually.

[officedweller]

CBC has a big screen (truck mounted) on Granville between Georgia and Robson - I think it's for the World Cup matches.

[Stingray2004]

Spain vs. Germany: The continuing saga of Paul the Octopus

By now you've all heard that Paul the oracle octopus, who's a perfect 5-0 in picking the winners of Germany's games in this World Cup, has chosen Spain to defeat Germany in today's semifinal.

It's not the first time Paul's pick has drawn heat. When he chose Germany to defeat Argentina in the quarterfinals, Argentina's fans threatened to eat him.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/soccerinsider/2010/07/spain_vs_germany_the_continuin.html

Looks like this oracle octopus is now 6-0 in his predictions. Spain has defeated Germany 1-0 at the semi-final.

As an aside, I'm damn glad that I don't have a last name akin to the German player Schweinsteiger (literal translation: pig climber) :D

[twoNeurons]

One more chance for Klose...

[twoNeurons]

CBC has a big screen (truck mounted) on Granville between Georgia and Robson - I think it's for the World Cup matches.

Can you confirm this? That would be really cool to see. Hey, has anyone else noticed the Toronto-centric reporting CBC has had with the World Cup? It seems that whenever they show the "Pulse of the Nation" they show some pub in Toronto. You would think they would at least have gone to Vancouver for the Korea game.

Also, there's plenty of German strongholds across the nation that aren't in Toronto.

[nova9]

Can you confirm this? That would be really cool to see. Hey, has anyone else noticed the Toronto-centric reporting CBC has had with the World Cup? It seems that whenever they show the "Pulse of the Nation" they show some pub in Toronto. You would think they would at least have gone to Vancouver for the Korea game.

Also, there's plenty of German strongholds across the nation that aren't in Toronto.

From CBCVAncouver (CBC's twitter):
http://cdn.cloudfiles.mosso.com/c54102/x2_1de6906

and

http://cdn.cloudfiles.mosso.com/c54102/x2_1dbb103

I was there yesterday and I'm going to be down there on Saturday and Sunday. It's awesome that turf has been added to Granville, makes it much more friendly for butts when sitting on the street.

[deasine]

That is pretty cool. It's great to see these celebrations in Vancouver finally.

[twoNeurons]

Should be a fun place to be on Saturday! Now... why aren't we seeing this on the TV?

[nova9]

Should be a fun place to be on Saturday! Now... why aren't we seeing this on the TV?

because CBC has only focussed on Toronto.

[jsbertram]

From CBCVAncouver (CBC's twitter):
...

and

...

I was there yesterday and I'm going to be down there on Saturday and Sunday. It's awesome that turf has been added to Granville, makes it much more friendly for butts when sitting on the street.

We're slowly catching up to Times Square in New York.
They closed off several blocks of Broadway traffic & converted it to a pedestrian area complete with lawn chairs:

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nswHPYi_dEw/SibGEpO2FOI/AAAAAAAAHYE/1jJV2pvkPaU/s400/0602092204.jpg
from lostnewyorkcity.blogspot.com


The original chairs didn't last too long, so they upgraded to sturdier chairs while the road renovation was being done.
When the permanent street furniture was installed, an artist was hired to turn some of the lawn chairs into a temporary sculpture:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3519/3827841323_8178f6bf30.jpg

from Flickr - Jason Peters Lawn Chair Sculpture
( http://www.flickr.com/photos/41453468@N04/3827841323/in/set-72157621907181731 )

[twoNeurons]

because CBC has only focussed on Toronto.

Oh... so their "Pulse of the Nation" segment is talking about the "Nation of Toronto"? ;)

[twoNeurons]

Was anyone down there on Saturday or Sunday? I couldn't make it but would love to see some pics if anyone took any. I figured they might show the crowd on CBC, but they only quickly showed Toronto a couple of times.

Were there more Spanish supporters or Dutch?

[nova9]

Was anyone down there on Saturday or Sunday? I couldn't make it but would love to see some pics if anyone took any. I figured they might show the crowd on CBC, but they only quickly showed Toronto a couple of times.

Were there more Spanish supporters or Dutch?

it was pretty 50/50 at first but as more 'neutrals' came in, most took on the spanish side. And the Dutch just couldn't get their cheers going. Haha.

[Prometheus]

Was anyone down there on Saturday or Sunday? I couldn't make it but would love to see some pics if anyone took any. I figured they might show the crowd on CBC, but they only quickly showed Toronto a couple of times.

Were there more Spanish supporters or Dutch?

There is a bunch of photos in the Granville Mall thread.