Socceroos tough draw

[matt]

Well....the path of the Socceroos at next year's World Cup was made a little clearer this morning with the draw in South Africa.

We've really been given a tough group: Germany, (African champions) Ghana and Serbia, who topped their European qualifying group over France. A true 'group of death'.

England got a much kinder draw. And there's a juicy match-up with Brazil and Portugal.

Oh well...you don't go to this sort of tournament looking for 'soft' games.

It'll be a challenge getting through to the round of 16....but I reckon we're up to it. It'll be a great test, and that's what we love.

As long as the refereeing doesn't suck........again:rolleyes:

[dpastern]

I'll say what I think - this is deliberate payback from FIFA to make sure we don't make it through. How dare an Australian team do well at the World cup. Many in Australia made a lot of noise about the loss to Italy in the last world cup (imho, very fairly so, it was blatantly deliberate bad refereering to make sure we didn't beat the favourites, Italy), and I'd say that FIFA didn't take this well and this is payback. Call me uninformed or paranoid, I usually have a very good intuition for things, and this is what my intuition is tellng me in this instance. Personally, I think we should tell FIFA to shove the World cup - it's full of corruption and favouritism to the established favourites.

Dave

[strongmanmike]

Ah don't worry the New York Yacht Club got away with it for well over a hundred years and it took an Aussie boat to finally bring them down!...the socceroos can do it, even with the bad odds stacked against them :D

Mike

[dpastern]

You know, you're right Mike. Our Aussie team is damn good. They should have beaten Italy in the last world cup, but due to cheating by the referee. Yes, I'll say it. Cheating. I despise cheats.

I remember the America's cup in 83 - as a young school lad in my 2nd year of high school. Boy was it the talk of the school, and boy were we proud.

Dave

[mental4astro]

"Tough draw"

"Pay back from FIFA"

When are we going to start saying 'Bring it on !! The tougher the better' instead of crying like babies 'oh, this is too hard'.

If we want to conquer the world, guess what, WE NEED TO BEAT IT!!!

We cried when we twice had to play Uruguay, cripes, they come out of 18 matches playing the likes of Brazil and Argentina every single time. No swaping confederatations there.

Gee, we are quick to bring up the Anzac spirit, but forget about it other times.

Go Socceroos- blow them out of the water. There's a nice trophy stand waiting here for you lads!

[matt]

Yep. That's the way I look at it too.

As for it being payback from FIFA? I don't think so. The group teams are drawn at random. We would have had to play a top-ranking (seeded) Euro team like Germany anyway. The other 2 were just unfortunate 'luck of the draw'.

GO AUSSIE!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mithrandir]

He was just ensuring the rules are followed. Only some countries are allowed to win. FIFA couldn't allow an interloper

1930 Uruguay
1934 Italy
1938 Italy
1950 Uruguay
1954 Germany
1958 Brazil
1962 Brazil
1966 England
1970 Brazil
1974 Germany
1978 Argentina
1982 Italy
1986 Argentina
1990 Germany
1994 Brazil
1998 France
2002 Brazil
2006 Italy

[dpastern]

Exactly. France vs Ireland this year? Sorry, but the player in question should have been banned for life, and the team disqualified, or at the very least, the goal disallowed.

Dave

[multiweb]

Banned for life? For a hand play caught on camera? :rofl:That'd be about every professional player that ever played a game in an international competition. What happens on the field stays on the field. The refs don't see everything. It's part of the game. Like diving. :)

[mental4astro]

As I said- :sad::sad::sad:

That's right, let's pull up stumps, grab the ball and go home.

At least we will ALWAYS be at the Rugby world cup and the Cricket where we don't need to qualify.

You can either stay home, or you show up and make a stand. Not everyone plays by the rules, neither have we always! Them the breaks.

Snowy Mountains Scheme, Stump jump plough, cervical cancer vaccine. Some people don't listen to the knockers.

[dpastern]

He admitted post game that he deliberately hand balled the ball into the net. If he had any moral fibre, he'd have told the referee what had happened. It was an INTENTIONAL play by the player in question. And not every professional player does that I might add.

I do not agree that what happens on the field, stays on the field. Referees make mistakes, they miss things. A game like football with no electronic video refereeing is prone to mistakes. Tennis uses video, so does rugby union, rugby league, cricket, swimming, athletics, horse racing, motor racing, shall I go on? Soccer is living in the dark ages, primiarly because FIFA is old fashioned, and run by old fashioned people.

Dave

[matt]

He didn't hand ball the ball into the net. He used his hand to bring the ball under control, and then crossed it to another player who headed it into the net.

[Benno18]

Yeah but i dont think that we can take a double winged keel on to the pitch of a soccer game!!!!!

I remember that night against Italy, we (wife and 6 month old son) were living with my in-laws and we had left the TV on to watch it in bed. We all fell asleep and i woke up and watched the important part. I screamed down the house and everyone knew about it. There was cursing and swearing, things thrown at the TV.
couldnt go back to sleep after that. Chucked a sicky the next day, in commemoration of the socceroos. haha

[mental4astro]

FIFA has worked hard to quicken the game- no back passing to the goal keeper, reducing time wasting, controlling diving, two yellow cards and you're off, etc.

Video referral is the next logical step. However, you can see the game time spinning out of control as a deliberate tactic. Think carefully here. The coach spots something off ball on the monitor-an appeal; handball- deliberate or accidental-appeal; dive-appeal; dive-appeal; dive-appeal. Do you want that responsibility?

You want a fairer system, give the linesmen the same authority as the ref, or use two refs, allow for an original decision to be overturned, which I believe cannot happen now. A linesman cannot challenge a refs call. Even the NRL is toying with the idea of two on field refs- and they already use video.

If you cannot see past the percieved problems within FIFA, you won't see what they have done constructively.

There is no organisation without its problems and self interests. Work the system to change the system. That is the power of the powerless.

[dpastern]

Why do so many other sports then rely on video to help the refs etc? It doesn't cause that many issues in those other sports.

Dave

[Ric]

I was watching the draw last night on SBS

It's a challenging draw but a good one for toughening the team up for the final rounds should we progress and I believe we will.

If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best.

[mithrandir]

When it comes to out of control time spinning, nothing beats American football. Four hours to play a 60 minute game!

I can't see anything other than video review working unless the penalty for deliberate infringements of the rules is severe enough to cost the player's team the game, plus a potential life ban. They will still weigh the odds of being caught against the potential profit.

[mental4astro]

What has made the game so popular is the simplicity of the rules. This is important if you want the game to continue flourishing.

Don't take me wrong. The game at the higher levels is beset with issues. But the video may not be the answer. It will add a level of complication that will detract from the game.

Video does causes issues in those games it is used in. It is a subjective interpretation of what is seen, not objective- subjective because it is one person's interpretation of the rules. Cricket, Ruby League, Union, Grid Iron- they all end up with controversial decisions being made- sometimes.

Can you imagine what would happen if such a decision happens with a crowd that is volatile? I would not like to think about it.

You may scoff at this, but don't kid yourself. This is a real crowd control matter.

[White Rabbit]

But were you aware that the team that beat the yanks were cheats? It was dutchman that designed the keel that won the race, and every member fo the team was supposed to be australian. But dont worry the yanks has been cheating for years before the ozzies started. ;)

[Jabba]

I think we stand a great chance, the socceroos are in strong form and have a bit more experience since the last world cup.

Anyway cant wait to watch it, I may venture into the city to watch it on the big screen.

[Ric]

Looking at our group stats I think it's quite possible that we could achieve 2 wins and a draw which could see us progress through to the second round.

Cheers