World Cup Update, Day....Nine?

Hey folks.

Well, when the work week started I quickly realized that keeping up with every World Cup game pretty much meant that I was going to need to cut out some time somewhere, and that meant blogging time!

Rest assured, I have still been watching three matches a day for the last week. waking up at 4:30 and then in the shower at 5:15 and then back on the sofa for the second half of the early game. Then off to the office where there has been ABSOLUTELY NO interest in the World Cup, so it has been a pretty safe haven from learning scores in advance of coming home for my nightly double-header. Portland really is a Soccer city though and wandering around downtown at lunchtime can be a bit risky, as even Laundromats appear to have a game on their 19 inch television.

I have taken the time to go into the sidebar and update everybody's points up through yesterday (Friday). I will kick in the updated points for Group B today and should have group C up as well after the Ghana-Australia game.

While I won't dip in to details on each team, I have to say that at this point I would say Argentina, and Germany have been the most impressive, although Germany fell asleep at the wheel Friday morning.

One team that I am absolutely convinced is still a contender even though they lost their first match is Spain. In their first match they had a ton of great shots on goal as seem to be excellent at controlling their passing and keeping possession. Head to Vegas now and put yer money on Spain, says JD's Daddy.

The USA? Yeah, they certainly WAZ robbed, however, what the heck are they doing digging themselves such a deep whole to begin with? Now they have to most likely beat an apparently difficult Algeria to advance. Good for ratings I guess.

My darkhorse? Well, when I say darkhorse, I don't mean to win it all because the soccer gods will only allow for a super power to win it all...but I like Ghana, and I like Mexico to make some noise.

Next week gets interesting. Because the World Cup makes the entire group play at the same time to avoid sandbagging, I am forced to decide WHICH game to watch during each time slot. A choose-your-own-adventure of sorts. Though after Monday I should be armed with the knowledge of which game means the most and set the DVR. Hard to imagine that the round of 16 is only a week away. ENJOY!

Let's hear it for the boys!

While I have been wasting away in World Cup Land, it appears that the Rays and Yankees have fallen of a ledge and as of this morning, the left-for-dead Boston Red Sox are.....one game back! Not bad for written off by the media just over one month ago. Not only that but they nearly have the best record in baseball? It has now become apparent that their success has been a direct result of my lack of viewership. Apparently I am bad moogoo.

Well, back to the games, go Ghana!

World Cup Recap: Day 4 Match 1

Another early start this morning, this time being a work day. So up at 4:30 and then in the shower by 5:15 and back in front of the TV by 5:30. The first 20 minutes each day are absolutely brutal and I always question why oh why am I doing this? After a shower and a cup of Kona though, the world seems to regulate a little bit and I am now at work and ready to go home this afternoon and continue where I left off after the first match.

This morning was all about... Otherwise known as the Netherlands. These people certainly do keep to tradition with their colors. You may remember them with their bright orange ski suits in Vancouver that make them look like a ball of fire shooting down the mountains. Before the morning highlights though, a few noteworthy...ummm...notes.

Zinedine Zidane spotted at yet another world cup venue!

This marks (I believe) the third match and third city that I have seen Frenchman Zidane standing ominously in the shadows of the club level, looking along disapprovingly at the action on the field. It's starting to become like a game of Where's Waldo. All of these veteran players, Maradona, Beckham, and Zidane all stand around glaring and thinking " If you subbed me in now, I could tear up these kids". Proud bunch.

Speaking of France...

Apparently the vuvuzelas have begun to take their toll at the World Cup, and it appears that there is a movement in place to ban them some time soon. The president has conceded that he will ban them "if necessary" which most likely means unless there is vuvuzela violence, it ain't gunna happen. Really though, the only one's that I have heard complaining are A) the american media, and B) France. France has been essentially the only squad to off-handedly suggest that the vuvuzelas aided in a communication difficulty, thus causing the French to play like buffoons.

I will say that, surprisingly, the vuvuzelas have grown on me, and it would actually feel really weird NOT to hear them during the match. I say keep am and blow them with pride!

Netherlands vs Denmark

Or Dutch vs Danes or the other way around...it gets pretty confusing before sunrise. Anyways, this is way tricky to get you some decent photos without blowing the rest of today's matches currently being played. So I took a few seconds (literally) and produced a depiction of major story to this match...
This is a sorry little Dane (didn't catch his name and can't look online) who, early in the second half accidentally got the ball rolling...the wrong direction, as he headed it into his own goal. Not that it was the decider though, as Netherlands showed some crafty and speedy moves near the net and scored another fancy goal and nearly a third that got by the goalie and was booted off-track by a Dane at the absolute last possible moment. While I don't put a ton of stock in Netherlands, that speed up front is pretty lethal and it could serve them well. A reasonably entertaining start to the day.

More later tonight. I have to go into World Cup hiding now!

World Cup Recap: Day 3

Well, first some good news. The World Cup stickers have been found in reasonably good quantities and I purchased a healthy number of packs to get my book rolling. The bad news is that they are pretty tedious to peel and place squarely on the pages. The good news is that it helps fill time at 5:00 when you are trying to keep your eyes open in a less-than-entertaining matchup. Apparently I should seek out a Shrek SP to fill out the Wayne Rooney slot.

Algeria vs Slovenia

Group C continued this morning. As I eluded to, this matchup crated a potential dangerous scenario for the US team (as well as England, for that matter). Thanks to a "power play" goal later in the game, Slovenia ran out of the Polokwane stadium as the leaders of Group C. The good news is that there is a clear 4th place team in the division, but both the US and England are now going to be required to step up their games if they are to advance.

However, by the looks of things, that should not be too difficult. Watching these two teams play was like watching myself play FIFA on PS3...pass,pass,pass....intercepted....pass,pass,pass...intercepted. Neither team really mounted a serious attack the entire game, and while I don't really feel that the red card for Algeria late in the game really created the scoring change for Slovenia's Robert Koren, it definitely changed the pacing of the final 20 minutes of the game and resulted in a 1-0 Slovenia win.

In a game full of tight bowl-cuts and cranky goalies, this game was mostly rubbish. I am clearly going to need to set the coffee pot on automatic if I am going to be starting my day with games like this.

Ooh, Ghana is taking the field! More later.

Ghana Vs Serbia

Much to say about this match, one that I believe is the best match of the tournament thus far. I sensed something special when they were showing the shots of the crowd that gathered for the match...

A scene like this is what I love about the World Cup. The best players are playing, the fans are partying, and are absolutely crazy-enthusiastic for their teams. The Ghana fans showed up in high spirits and were treated to an absolutely amazing match.

As I settled in to watch match #2 of the day with while sipping a cup of coffee, my wife woke up, came out into the living room, took a look at the game and declared the match...

...the giant grape

VS

...Abba Zabba.

"You just made the blog" I declared as I settled in for the next two hours.

As it turns out, Abba Zabba and the Giant Grape had their work cut out for them as both Serbia and Ghana were just relentless with scoring opportunities. Both teams extended the field, launched great crosses and fought tooth and nail to the finish. Even more interesting, after Serbia went a man down to a red card around the 70th minute, Serbia actually went on the ATTACK and had many, many scoring opportunities turned away by the brilliant Giant Grape. After a few chances of their own, Ghana was rewarded a penalty kick on a ridiculous hand ball in the box and took full advantage as the crowd went nuts. But it was not over yet and right up until the last seconds, and I mean the last seconds, Serbia kept pounding the Giant Grape, but Ghana held on for the huge upset and victory for the continent of Africa. Absolutely great game to watch. Congrats to Ghana!

Germany vs Australia

AKA "Cylons vs Socceroos"

not much really to say about this match. This happens practically every World Cup. You are watching what you think are pretty decent football squads...and then Germany shows up and blows somebody out of the water. In this instance it was the Australians who took it in the keister 4-0. It's always interesting because there are still teams yet to come that are going to be playing at exactly the same level as Germany and it really puts things in perspective on World Cup powerhouses. It's cool though, I will still root for the underdog because it is fun, but the real contenders are just now starting to start their Cup.

The Good: Ghana!

The Bad: Australia!

The...opportunity? I am pretty sure that I don't have fingerprints left from peeling so many stickers, which could render potential evidence invisible in criminal activity....just saying.

World Cup Recap: Day 2

Well, this was supposed to have been the first early morning for me with Greece and South Korea starting at 4:30 in the morning here. The alarm was set for 4:20 (wink) and I was all set to go...if not for the fact that I forgot to set the alarm button. That's sorta like doing all the math but forgetting to carry the zero. So at 5:00 my sleepy eyes fluttered awake and I did not join match #3 until the 35th minute. Oh well, consider today "spring training".

Greece vs South Korea

When I DID finally join the early morning game, here is what I saw...

I predicted last night before I went to bed that Korea was going to be full of short, FAST players, and I was pretty much right on the money. Greece looked like it was playing in mud. When I joined this game South Korea was already up 1-0 and running up and down the field with reckless abandon (though mostly keeping it downfield in scoring position). Greece just seemed listless until South Korea scored it's second goal. At that point Greece seemed to move much faster and played with more of a sense of urgency, but by that point it was clearly too late to rally. This game represents the first win in the tournament and three entries and two goals for The Brooklyn Met, who, at this point is the entry leader. I have to say that I am a bit interested to see how South Korea continues from this point forward. Their speed seems pretty endless.

Nigeria vs Argentina

Two words sum up the theme of this match...Diego Maradona

If I could describe Maradona, he is basically the Ozzie Guillen of soccer coaches. There were just endless shots of Maradona chattering, and cheering, and running up and down the sideline, and grabbing the ball and handing it to players...on both teams...for throw-ins. It is clear that Diego still wants to be out on that field, and it is fun to watch.


As for the game itself, watching Argentina was probably the first team that was showing off Harlem Globetrotter-like ball-handling abilities, with multiple head and chest passes, and wicked crossovers. Argentina has a lot of skill and had several great shots. From a casual fan perspective though, I would say that a lot of their near-goal chances seemed a bit disorganized and leaned a lot on Lionel Messi, who took a majority of his team's shots, and was not even the player who scored the amazing header in the opening minutes. IMHP I think that they need to spread the ball around a bit more near the goal.


As for Nigeria, it really is too bad that there was a win from South Korea in the other group matchup, because I think that Nigeria actually looked really good and had some really close shots. It will be interesting to see how they do on their second matchup, as it will be a must-win to advance.


United States vs England


Well bollocks! While I know that the United States is certainly no world soccer powerhouse, you should always pull for the home team, right? And while this 1-1 tie (thank you Robert Green) can be considered a victory of sorts, I would have to say that a win would have made a much smoother ride for the rest of the round-robin. Algeria and Slovenia hit it up early tomorrow and there is a good chance that one of those teams walks away with three points and leads the entire group. I would have to say that if you are a fan of the US, you would most likely hope for a tie tomorrow.


I did not think the US played great, in fact their goalie was under fire for much of the game, especially the second half. While he looked shaky for the beginning of the second half, as the game came to a close he just looked tough as nails. Still though, a lot of close calls and a lot of work needs to be done going into their next game.


What I learned: Al Franken coaches and Flea plays for England?

Who knew?

Summary of the day:

The Good: A very entertaining match between Nigeria and Argentina

The Bad: I found ONE lousy pack of Panini stickers at Target, and forgot to set my alarm, not necessarily in that order.

The unsung heroes of the World Cup: Let's hear it for the dedicated security at the game venues. These guys, who got a chance to host a World Cup in their country, and actually get to be on the pitch at the games...are forced to keep their backs to the action of the game they love for the entire 90 minutes as they scan the crowd for security concerns. Hats off to these guys for keeping everybody safe, if it were me I would be way too tempted to sneak a peak over my shoulder at the action.

While World Cup is clearing a focus for me at this time, I still gotta rip some wax! Yesterday as I settled in for some opening day soccer, I decided that it was finally time to purchase the lonely box of 2007 Turkey Reds from a dusty corner on Cranky's shelves.

I am a huge fan of Turkey Red inserts, and have gathered a few of the 2007 through trades, but have never seen a reasonable cross-section of this product. I am glad I made the purchase. While there are several cards of great quality images, as well as some stinkers as well (have you seen the Chase Utley? He kinda looks like Abe Vigota), I will stick with the hits. I am unclear on whether I made out like a bandit or not, as the box indicates some mixture of two relics or autos. Here are the goods. Let me know if you are interested in any of these...

You can't tell from the scan, but above are four chromes/refractors that I really liked. The Uggla and Beckett are refractor versions.

Here are a couple relics of Swisher and Marcus Giles. These are fairly nice looking I guess, for worthless relics :)

Whoa, after the relics I did not expect this at all. A nice "on-sticker" auto of the rabble-rouser himself! A very nice edition.

Then I hit a thick pack that clearly would not take an expert pack-searcher to indicate that something thick was inside. Since Topps is not know for crazy-thick dummy cards, I knew that I had one surprise left...
Nice! A Jimmy Rollins "auto" silk collection! this is my second silk pull since starting collecting. I love the color scheme of this card quite a bit.

So that was a really fun box for sure. There are all sorts of possibilites for 9-spots for the ol' binder.

World Cup Day 1 Recap:

Well, day one of World Cup action has come to a close. I bagged out of work early with a cold a laid around on the sofa for the first 180 minutes (plus penalty) of World Cup action. I am afraid to say that the World Cup already has it's first established villain, and that is...





...the vuvuzela. Yes, gone are the days of chanting, and drumming and clapping and whistling, and arrived are the days of blowing, and blowing, and blowing....for the entire match. It's pretty funny to hear a constant buzz suddenly cease as a shot on goal occurs as the crowd gasps...gathers their wits, and then commences blowing their damn precious vuvuzela.

Here is a brief recap of the day's games.

South Africa vs Mexico

Group A ruled the day. After an opening ceremony filled with technical difficulties and vuvuzela-induced-drowned-out-commencement-speeches, the action got underway. You always gotta feel good for the host country, and South Africa played their hearts out to a 1-1 draw against Mexico, who pushed the pace for the entire match and held a 65%-35% edge on possession. Early in the second half we got to witness this...

A nice little coordinated jig that would have made Glee happy after an early second half runaway goal....and the vuvuzela's played...after the gasp! Mexico kept patient and methodical and found a way to tie the game around the 80th minute. If I understand the stat correctly, no host nation has ever lost it's first match...and that continued here.

Uraguay Vs France

France, how do you say this...is not exactly the Cinderella team of the tournament. Controversy surrounded their qualification for the tourney. Now, I must admit something here. When it comes to watching World Cup, especially in scoreless games, it can take a few games (I venture to say five), to get used to the slower, methodical pace of the sport...so that being the case I have a very foggy recollection of minutes 33-44 of the first half. A little cat nap :). So we have Uraguay who is a little shark in the big Group A bowl, and even as yellow and red cards flew around the field, they held their own for a 1-1 tie with Le France.


So day one is done. For those of you that drew a group a team, your three extra entries are going to have to wait at least until the next match, although a couple of you earned entries for a tie and a goal, which is better than a poke with a stick.

Today in summary:

The Good: The Espn stadium crews. Very blunt, honest, funny, and entertaining stuff. Top-notch. Quote of the day: "He struck the ball well, but his radar was a little wonky".

The Bad: Vuvezelas!

The...hair:

The world watches....

...as I sit at my desk and DVR the opening match between South Africa and Mexico. As I have said before, my goal is to watch the entire world cup, every match, every minute, and soak it all in before it's gone for another four years. I thought it would be kinda fun to journal as I go (thus the italics). For one, I am going stealth with my friends and coworkers that I am interested in soccer, in hopes to avoid the unfortunate slipping of the score. Feel free to comment or ask questions as the weeks go along. I should be pretty well versed in the beautiful game before all is said and done. I will still post regular baseball card blogs as well. They will appear in regular text. See how that works?

Okay, Day 1. As the gods would have it, a cold that I have been fighting off all week is starting to take it's toll and I am pretty much going to take care of some necessities at work and then hit the sofa and rest and catch today's action on a not-so-very delayed basis. The reality has also sunk in that I am pretty much bagging sleeping in on the weekend for the next month. It's not as bad for you East-Coasters, but here in Oregon, game 1 each day starts at a brisk 4:30 am. Woo-hoo! During World Cup South Korea, I was finding myself up at 330 am consuming Totino's party pizzas.

Anyways, not much to report at this point except that Soccer City Stadium looks like an "everything" bagel. mmm, bagel. I am hungry and sick. Gonna bust out some work and then bust out of work. Enjoy!