Public Address | Cafe | Field Theory: It has started

Ana Simkiss

Mon, 16 Jun 2014 13:13:20 +1200

whoops clearly :)

In my defence, sports discussions are not usually for me...

Hadyn Green

Mon, 16 Jun 2014 11:43:55 +1200

You missed the first blog :)

Ana Simkiss

Mon, 16 Jun 2014 10:31:55 +1200

This deserves a prominent place in discussion of the World Cup: http://www.vox.com/2014/6/9/5792958/watch-john-oliver-rip-fifa-to-shreds-and-explain-why-hell-still-be

(seriously – worth your eyeballs)

Chris Waugh

Mon, 16 Jun 2014 08:03:03 +1200

This Honduras team seems unnecessarily physical. Wilson Palacios stomping on Pogba, then knocking him over... can't say I'm sad to see him sent off. And the other Hondurans don't seem much better.

Mark Cubey

Sun, 15 Jun 2014 21:28:03 +1200

Pirlo's setup for that Mario goal was just fabulous. England were competitive but no real flair; those young players were good, but Rooney had his chances, flubbed them, and I'm not convinced by their goalie. Will be lucky to progress. Personal highlight was Italy's right/left boot colour disparity combos; nice…

Peter Darlington

Sun, 15 Jun 2014 16:40:06 +1200

That win flattered Italy, I reckon. England were competitive and unlucky not to win, but Italy looked stodgy and one-dimensional. Brazil, Argentina, Netherlands or Germany would've beaten them easily, I reckon.

Not sure about that. England finally look like they have some attacking threat with Sterling and Sturridge, Welbeck wasn't…

kiwicmc

Sun, 15 Jun 2014 16:22:22 +1200

Goals in every game and no draws, it's a great comp so far.

Note that the Socceroos outscored the Wallabies in the first half of their respective matches...

Grant McDougall

Sun, 15 Jun 2014 15:07:34 +1200

Ross Mason

Sat, 14 Jun 2014 13:29:07 +1200

WTF is going on! Two games and they have been cracker!!! Even the Dutch are playing open football. Lets hope the Germans and Italians join the party!!! Oh...and England too.......

Chris Waugh

Sat, 14 Jun 2014 13:21:04 +1200

I only saw the last few minutes of the Spain – Netherlands game, and my thoughts were:

1: Bloody CCTV. Never trust CCTV. The schedule on the website said the Aus game was starting at 5, but now it's 6.
2: Damn, I missed what might've been the day's best,…

Peter Darlington

Sat, 14 Jun 2014 12:50:20 +1200

Is Diego Costa the Quade Cooper for this world cup. Country swapping, niggles off the ball, booed by the crowd every time he touches the ball, plays well for his club, but crap for his adopted country?

Not fit I reckon. Wonder if Spain is paying the price for the…

Mike O'Connell

Sat, 14 Jun 2014 12:48:14 +1200

I dear say he may well be. Took a while before I realised what the boos were about. The Dutch fans know how party – and dress for a party! The Brazillians of Europe?! I loved their faux orange S American General/coup d'état outfits.

kiwicmc

Sat, 14 Jun 2014 12:02:56 +1200

It's a perfect match

George Darroch

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 23:35:41 +1200

This whole shirtgrabbing thing makes me wonder if refs don't give out penalties because they potentially reward so heavily. They need the equivalent of a free kick in rugby, a lighter penalty.

George Darroch

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 23:31:58 +1200

I watched that Beats by Apple ad yesterday, and thought it was just some random Brasilian dude (which is cool, amo os brasilieros). Only after watching the Nike ad did I realise that was Neymar, who is apparently good at sportsball.

Brasil already had a very handy lead according to…

Peter Darlington

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 16:59:21 +1200

The issue is that ref's seem to need the drop and roll before they're willing to give a penalty. Wrapping, grabbing and pulling seem to be increasing in the game precisely because defenders know that if the player doesn't drop, they're likely to get away with it. The odds work…

Euan Mason

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 15:58:24 +1200

I enjoyed the game, and I can see why the Croatian manager is a bit miffed, but his player did hold Fred and although Fred's reaction was very poor and pathetic acting, the hold could have prevented a goal. Without the acting the ref wouldn't have done anything, and players…

Alan Perrott

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 15:37:17 +1200

yeah, bollocks to all that, if that's the standard for penalties at this cup then there's going to be a truckload of them.
also bollocks was the free kick for obstructing the keeper before Croatia's 'equalizer.' also also bollocks was the tackle from behind in the build up Oscar's goal.…

Barry97

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 15:13:31 +1200

You can criticise Fred for diving or the referee for being sucked in, but the fact remains that the Croatian player did hold him back.

In a situation like that you would back Fred to be able to turn and get a shot in. He still had a lot of…

Stephen R

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 13:09:51 +1200

I have suddenly been reminded of the sour taste I got from the last world cup, that I had scoured from my memory. The play acting should be punished, even if you have to do it after the game based on TV replays.

That penalty shouldn't have been a penalty,…

Tom Semmens

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 12:26:39 +1200

Brazil play like crap but cheat like champs. But none of that will matter anyway because the refs have all been told by FIFA that Brazil are going to win the tournament.

But then saying FIFA has fixed the tournament to ensure a hometown win is half believed by everyone…

Public Address

Fri, 13 Jun 2014 12:26:39 +1200

Discussion from blog post.