world cup

[Manny Calavera]

Seriously, you guys should fight in PMs.

About the Mexico vs. Iran match: Iran put up quite a fight and after that series of mistakes it all went to hell. Mexico is looking really solid (the reason Iran held on so long was tough play combined with overconfidence on Mexico's part, in my mind). I think that young team is just going to get better. Really excited to see where they finish and how Bravo and Borgetti perform this tourney.

And about the commentators: horrible, horrible nonsense. I don't care that they were talking about politics (and I don't agree with the "brainwashing" comment, as it was mostly generalities and the comment directed towards denying the Holocaust was directed at the Prime Minister, not the nation), I just care that they were talking about everything but soccer. Seriously now, just shut the hell up and call the game. How do the networks expect the American public to grasp the game if the commentator's do not fill them in on the action? Who was involved in that play? What is going on now? Etc.?

Excited to see the US pummel Czech tomorrow.

 

[countdemoney]

I think the announcer was Gary Thorne. He also calls Baseball and Hockey for ESPN. I can't stand him, and I can never find anyone to defend him.

I enjoy Rob Stone when he calls US men's games but I'd much prefer the imagination of an Ian Crocker.

 

[Tokyo Slim]

Originally Posted by countdemoney

I think the announcer was Gary Thorne. He also calls Baseball and Hockey for ESPN. I can't stand him, and I can never find anyone to defend him.

I enjoy Rob Stone when he calls US men's games but I'd much prefer the imagination of an Ian Crocker.

I think it was Marcelo Balboa. Whoever it was, he sucked.

 

[waldo pepper]

Originally Posted by matadorpoeta

c'mon man. you should be rooting for our region, costa rica played okay against germany, trinidad put on a great performance against sweden, and mexico put iran in their place.

i'll be rooting for the u.s. though i don't think they've seen a defence as well organized as the czechs. it will be fun.

as to the comment about the mexican ref: in mexico he is known as "chiquidracula" and he is controversial because he actually enforces the rules! i've seen him give yellow cards to players for cursing at their own teammates. this is unsportsmanlike conduct and merits a booking, but i've never seen another ref call it. i think he's a good ref.

in the world cup in usa '94 fifa supposedly said they were going to crack down on the shirt pulling but the only ref who actually did so was mexican. he gave out something like 6 yellow cards in his first match for shirt pulling, and the media criticized him all over the world. bullocks! he was the best ref there.

also, from what i've seen, england and spain have the best referees. i don't know why you would criticize your refs in england.

the italian referee in the mexico v. iran game was awful. he was calling a foul a every time a player went down, for no reason. the good thing was that his bad calls were spread evenly between both teams.

as for the goal line call in the argentina match. i thought it was a good call. it may have been a goal, but if you're not 100% sure, it's not a goal. i would hate for them to call it a goal because they think the ball probably crossed the line.

I think in England its a national pastime to criticize refereees.

The problem with the big competitions is FIFA gets a bee in its bonnet about one particular rule or another and implement it to the letter.When you have come to a compettition on the back of a 60 game season then all of a sudden the things you have been doing for the last 9 months are getting penalised its hard to accept.
There was one incident in the England-Paraguay game where Ashley Cole had a throw in his own half and took a single step further along the pitch and was penalised.Now to the letter of the law the ref was right but to me some common sense should take over.There would be no advantage gained whatsoever and even the Paraguay players looked incredulous.
I think the best way to sum up the refs so far is over fussy,football is a full contact sport and I think the fans want it to stay that way however I think FIFA have other ideas.

 

[waldo pepper]

Originally Posted by rdawson808

Tommib and Waldo Pepper: shut the hell up and leave our thread alone if you aren't going to participate constructively.

bob

You have my sincerest apologies Bob as does everyone else who I have caused offence.I am really enjoying this thread but if you look back I feel I was only responding to an unprovoked attack in which I was called a troll and a liar.
The matter is closed as far as this thread is concerned.I will save it for the PM's as suggested.

 

[rdawson808]

Originally Posted by matadorpoeta

c'mon man. you should be rooting for our region, costa rica played okay against germany, trinidad put on a great performance against sweden, and mexico put iran in their place.

Yeah, I guess I should. But here's the conundrum: if Mexico does well, that just means that the Mexicans are good. It will not say to anyone that CONCACAF is good. We (the US) needs the US to win.

Originally Posted by matadorpoeta

as to the comment about the mexican ref: in mexico he is known as "chiquidracula" and he is controversial because he actually enforces the rules!

in the world cup in usa '94 fifa supposedly said they were going to crack down on the shirt pulling but the only ref who actually did so was mexican. he gave out something like 6 yellow cards in his first match for shirt pulling, and the media criticized him all over the world. bullocks! he was the best ref there.


Yes, this has been brought up a number of times. FIFA demands certain fouls be focused on, so the refs do it. Then people get in an uproar and FIFA tells the refs to back off. Sheesh.

b

 

[rdawson808]

Originally Posted by imageWIS

Iran got their asses handed to them by Mexico...

Did they ever! Wow. For a second I thought Iran had a chance, then Mexico picked it up. It was the first really convincing win by any team in this Cup. Well, maybe Ecuador over Poland too.

Portugal was weak looking.

bob

 

[rdawson808]

Originally Posted by matadorpoeta

and one more thing.

i saw mexico v. iran on abc. it was the first time i have seen a world cup match with american commentators. someone at abc needs to be fired.


I told you! It's horrible. That might have been Brent Musberger (sp?). I know he was in the studio with Lalas at least during the breaks.

b

 

[rdawson808]

Originally Posted by waldo pepper

There was one incident in the England-Paraguay game where Ashley Cole had a throw in his own half and took a single step further along the pitch and was penalised.


He actually lifted his back foot. Absolutely tight call and un-needed. Sheesh, let it go ref.

Fussy is a good word for it. There's nothing worse than a ref who won't let the game flow.

b

 

[waldo pepper]

Originally Posted by rdawson808

He actually lifted his back foot. Absolutely tight call and un-needed. Sheesh, let it go ref.

Fussy is a good word for it. There's nothing worse than a ref who won't let the game flow.

b

I wasnt aware of that,maybe your coverage isnt as bad as you think.The BBC keep telling us they have no control over the pictures we are seeing so it didnt show the incident again but the commentator said he thought he had took a forward step.

I will miss Aus-Japan as I will be at work but I am looking forward to USA-CR and Italy-Ghana,I think they have potential to be good games.

 

[rdawson808]

There was a perfect example of both a bad call and bad commentating by these American guys. There was clearly no contact by the Japanese defender (69th min). The American commentators just go on, even as the replay is showing that there was clearly no contact, as if everything was on the up-and-up. Ugh.

bob

 

[romafan]

Originally Posted by countdemoney

When a player "fouls out" he is removed from the match and you play a man down.

The fouls that get you removed are called cards. Yellow is a caution. Red is ejection.

2 yellow cards = 1 red

1 red card = expulsion

You can receive a red card directly for dirty play. Leonardo once delivered a vicious elbow to the head of America's Tab Ramos in the 94 world cup and was expelled on the spot.

The other way you can play a man down is through injury. At the world cup, you are allowed 3 substitutions. If you have a player injured and you have already used all your subs - you play with a man down. It is possible to lose even more players, but you rarely see a team lose more than two men in a match.

Bradford - Just to be clear, you do not foul out as in basketball. A player can commit any number of 'regular' fouls during the course of the game and never be shown a yellow card. A player is cautioned (or "booked", as the referee will note his number in a little notepad he carries) and shown a yellow card for certain infractions (tackle from behind, wreckless play, wasting time, dissent, intentional hand ball, unsportsmanlike conduct, etc.), several of which are rather subjective. A second bookable offense will result in the player being sent off. A player will be shown a straight red card and immediately dismissed for violent conduct (fighting or tackles deemed intended to injure), and in the case where a defender either intentionally uses his hands to stop a ball that is crossing the goal line, or pulls down an attacker with the ball going in on goal (when he is the last defender).

Go U.S. & Forza Italia!

 

[rdawson808]

oh man I may be sick. the US-Czech Rep game is about to begin.


b

 

[Mr. Checks]

I guess I have to root for the "Checks."

Up 1-0 already, like 5 minutes in.

 

[romafan]

Goal, Koller