Public Address - Field Theory (Home)

A much better strip | Jul 07, 2009 22:45

It's not football season yet but that doesn't mean there's no news. In fact it's the most important news a football team can put out: new uniforms!

The Wellington Phoenix have brand new, very flash home and away strips:

Aren't they nice? Much MUCH better than these.

Let's start at the top:
It's got stripes! For me the new home jersey is much more of a football jersey, the away strip not so much. I'm not sure why there's no alternate strip (which are so much in fashion these days).

When they turn around the home top gets better while the away top gets weird. Why does the midriff band stop before it gets to the back, but not at the middle? The band seems to end just behind the arms. (By the way, sports photographers, please photograph the uniforms when it's a uniform launch, that means front AND back)

But at least that ugly Interislander patch on the shoulder is gone.

If I had a concern about the home jersey it would be that the square seems too small for the player's number. And it also means that the name on the back might have to go on a name plate, which would be a shame. Also the Reebok wordmark is front and centre, but I'll let that go too (even Man U wears sponsors).

But the best thing is no more shoulder-triangles. The new jerseys are winners.

Shorts and socks:
Those away shorts are sex. The home shorts are adequate. Really both of them are fairly dull, but dul is good.

But seriously, what the fuck is going on with those socks?! Vertical wordmark? It really is very ugly. Across the back there is a word I can't figure out, though it looks like "Reebok". But in this shot you can see vertical stripes at the top of the socks. Are they new? I kind of don't understand them.

Overall, a MUCH better strip than the used to have. As always, don't mess with the classics and ignore that they look a lot like Hull, (because it really doesn't).

Of course if the Phoenix decided to look like St Pauli I wouldn't mind.

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Meanwhile Netball Manuwatu has apparently told these nice ladies they can't wear shorts to play netball; they have to wear skirts like everyone else. Perhaps a compromise can be reached: skorts?

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In other news Ben Gracewood has uncovered the awful truth behind the latest Weetbix-All Blacks promotion.

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5-7 7-6 7-6 3-6 16-14 | Jul 06, 2009 10:21

It's the second set tie-break. Andy Roddick is up 5-1 and looks fantastic. He's already won the first set 5-7. Roger Federer has just lost a challenge on a Roddick serve he thought was out, the big-serving American is looking like he's at top speed. Then quickly it's 6-2 to Roddick and he has four set points.

Federer with a deft backhand it's 6-3. Then with two great serves it's 6-4 and then 6-5. Roddick serves and with, what should be a sitter, he hits it out and suddenly it's 6-6.

Roddick prepares to serve, as he bounces the ball it gets away from him and he has to scramble after it on the court. The commentary box can't believe it: "Oh, my God". And perhaps they saw something because Roddick makes another error and it's 6-7 to Federer, and he has the serve.

Before the ball hits the ground you can hear Federer bellow. He wins the second set and stays alive. In the crowd, Pete Sampras grins and wipes the sweat from his brow.

In the match Federer will serve 50 aces. There will be 77 games and five sets in 95 minutes. But if you're going to win the most grand slams ever you want to do it in a grand fashion.

There can be no doubting, no consideration. If you are asked "who is the greatest tennis player of all time?" you have to say, Roger Federer.

Oh sure the Chipmunk in a Singlet is injured, but that's all part of being the greatest. You don't get there by getting hurt. And you definitely don't get there by never recovering from a slump. How long ago was it that Federer's reign was declared as done and dusted, while everyone ran to crown Nadal?

Now the talk will be about Federer going for a "calendar slam" but let's ignore all of that and instead focus on the fact that the man is just really, goddamn, classy.

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Sunday morning I read that one of my favourite football players, Steve McNair, had died. Ever since Michael Jackson died we've had a number of celebrities whose deaths have been greatly exaggerated, so I thought I pop over to nfl.com and just check. This time the rumours were right.

At that time nobody knew anything about the case and so, as you can imagine, everybody "knew" everything. A former NFL quarterback known for being the toughest guy on the field and the nicest guy off it, found shot to death with (then) an unidentified woman, also dead by gunshot, that was not his wife. (It has since been revealed that the woman was McNair's girlfriend, Sahel Kazemi).

The story has gone from murder/suicide (he did it) to murder (her ex did it) to murder/suicide (she did it) and I imagine it will keep evolving. Meanwhile TMZ has pictures of McNair and Kazemi parasailing.

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Shut Up and Skate | Jul 02, 2009 20:17

It's freezing at the indoor karting track. In the waiting area, with the pool table covered in papers, it's merely cold. Past the barrier and out on the concrete track you can see the breath of the skaters as they blast around the newly-created oval track.

"You can get a lot more speed in the straight-aways here" says referee and trainer Danger Danger. "But you gotta watch out for those tyres because you could break a leg on those."

I put it to the back of my mind that a man called Danger Danger is offering safety advice (he would later remind someone that skating while holding a glass bottle is very dangerous) and focus more on the skaters. It's a grading session.

Richter City Roller Derby are aligned to the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) and with that comes responsibilities and rules. Skaters must pass a number of skill requirements before they are allowed to skate in bouts, this includes sections on: basic skating; falling (there are four different ways to fall); balance and agility; skating with others (play nice!); and blocking. It's part assessment and part risk management. You don't want to send fresh meat into a racing pack of skaters; they'll get mown down. Training for the skill assessments is drilling the skaters until they have the muscle memory. There's no time to think in Roller Derby.

The skaters congregated in the middle of the track, amongst the stock car parts, go-karts and other racing paraphernalia. Off to the side a mechanic worked on his car, his grinder throwing off impressive showers of sparks. This seemed right. It's like Rocky working in a dingy gym and punching sides of beef hanging in an abattoir.

The coaches are going over the drills while Amy and I stand with Danger Danger and Justicier. I can't help it; I have to ask about uniforms. And I get the best response to a uniform question ever:

I think frilly panties are in at the moment

Stripy socks are too. Later Suffer Jet would let it slip that this training session is more well-dressed than most, possibly because of the cameras.

The two teams are (as you may recall) Brutal Pageant and Smash Malice. Malice were supposed to take the first bout easily but they lost. And since then Pageant has gained in skills and confidence.

"We're gonna go 4 and 0!" exclaims Ruby Deathskates, referring to the upcoming bouts in September and October. "And then we're gonna beat Auckland" she continues with a bravado that I was hoping to hear. But it was harder to get that quote than you'd think.

If the last bout showed anything it was that even a blood sport like Roller Derby can't rip friends apart.

For example, hypothetically, let's say your fiancé watched your first bout and then, after you lost, he said that your opponent was awesome and that you should skate like her and that at the next bout he might wear a t-shirt with her name on it. You can imagine that this could cause some on-rink animosity (as well as some terse discussions at home). But not even this (not actually hypothetical at all) situation could cause a rift or start a rivalry.

In fact when Mike went to get a photo of the two skaters from that story he couldn't get a good shot because they were laughing with each other too much.

In fact my whole "intense rivalry" angle is blown out of the water when I'm talking to Lux Vengence.

H: "So have the skaters in Smash Malice been angry since the bout, are they waiting to get revenge on Brutal Pageant?"
LV: "You really want us to say 'yes', don't you?"
H: "Yes"
LV: (shakes head)

Thank goodness for Ruby and Wax Assassin. If anyone was going to cause a rivalry it's these two. Admittedly they are on the same team but both are out for blood (figuratively) and both really want to win.

But will we ever see them go head-to-head? Maybe. After their humiliation at the hands of Brutal Pageant many of the skaters from Smash Malice couldn't handle it and dropped out (a slight embellishment but let's keep going). The intake of fresh meat (the generic name for new skaters) has meant that there can still be two full teams but that in order to make it a fair fight some of the more experienced skaters might have to switch teams.

"But I really like my dress!" was the first complaint from Wax Assassin. That and she loved winning. "I can't wait for the [Halloween] Derby against Auckland, my girlfriend skates for [the Pirates] and she's pretty good too". Will it be a problem going up against her? "Nah, you get two Derby Girls going against each other and…" she then indicated with a reference to her elbow that there would be violence.

The Richter City Roller Derby's next bout is on September 19 at the Wellington Basketball Association Courts. They run on volunteers so if you want to help out, go to the site and drop them a line. That includes anyone who wants to become fresh meat.

All photos copyright to Michael Roseingrave and Jed Soane. Full photo galleries are here and here

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The last home game | Jun 29, 2009 12:48

You may have heard the news by now but here is the story, as I wrote it during the game

If there was going to be a game the Pulse could win… it was probably against the Tactix a few weeks back. The Swifts may be second to bottom but they won the whole thing last season. This isn't the last gasp. The last gasp was a long time ago.

But maybe there is a change. As the team runs out the stadium crew plays Thriller, so maybe the Pulse are back from the dead. Coach Yvette McCausland-Durie is out with the players during warm ups pacing up and down, and she stands with a stern look during the passing drills, both things she hasn't done before.

And, holy shit, maybe it's working. For the first five minutes it's shot for shot. Then slowly the Swifts eke out a lead that gets to four goals. In any other game this season (except for the one against the Mystics) this lead would just get bigger and bigger. But the Pulse actually fight this time and by the end of the quarter the score is 15-15. I write a very ballsy tweet.

The Pulses' fight-back is created with, frankly, stunning defence. Althea Byfield (recently returned from injury) is seeking the ball and actively placing herself in the way of passes. (Later Swifts captain and GS Catherine Cox would say that Byfield plays "off the body", an unusual style that confuses shooters). Cushla Lichtwark possibly played her best game of the season, getting in the way, knocking players and disrupting the Swifts' rhythm.

The Pulse keep up the attack in the second quarter. There's a few shooting issues and Pulse GS Amaru-Tibble needs to keep her mouth shut to the ref (the Aussies are supposed to be the mouthy ones). And the halftime score is 27-28 to the Swifts.

At the half Broederlow is brought in, giving the Pulse more height in defence. It also means the Pulse have changed to an attacking defence. Defending all the way into the middle third and using the same pattern for a more forward offence rather than their usual side-to-side. It works. There's a fantastic piece of defending by Byfield and suddenly the Pulse have the advantage in the arm wrestle, going up by four points at one stage. But the Swifts aren't going to be pushed around and at the end of the third quarter it's 41-41.

I just want to point out that, SWEET JESUS FUCK this is tense.

The gameplan sticks in the fourth quarter and the Pulse are up by two (or one + centrepass) early. The Swifts' centre Kimberlee Green (no relation) is having a really physical battle with Lichtwark in the middle of the court. Green is getting angry and shovy (she's the angry looking one in the photos). A lot of terse words are exchanged.

But my god it's working, it's actually fucking working. With two and half to go the Pulse have a one goal lead with centre pass. An "injury break" only adds to the tension. Even Don't Stop Till You Get Enough can't ease things (quick note, nearly all the music has been Michael Jackson).

The Swifts draw with in one, one minute left, the Pulse have the centre pass, they look to have lost it in a wild pass but it came of a Swift finger, Pulse retain possession, a pass back to the centre third, surely that's time, I'm banging on the desk, Frankie Stevens is going nuts! And, and … this.

The NSW Swifts will go down history as that team, the ones that lost to the Pulse, and you can see that on their faces.

So what was it tonight? For some reason a win for the Pulse always seemed to be in the cards. There was more energy in the warm up, more enthusiasm. There was more determination in their play. Talking after the match we agreed that the team hadn't seemed this energetic and physical since the Mystics game, and they only lost that in overtime.

Here is the audio from the press conference
Swifts' captain Catherine Cox and Coach Julie Fitzgerald (who is coaching the World 7 against New Zealand later in the year):

Pulse captain Cushla Lichtwark and coach Yvette McCausland-Durie:

For those people who care these were recorded using Voice Memo on my iPhone

And how much do they love the win? Compare this from the close loss to the Mystics:

To this from last night

I asked how much the team would be allowed to celebrate given that there is still a game to play. The answer was in moderation, but my feeling is, let's let them go for it.

All photos copyright to Michael Roseingrave and Jed Soane

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Just a Glitch | Jun 25, 2009 21:43

It could've been the greatest upset of all time. In front of a packed arena an unknown, playing with borrowed equipment, who shouldn't have even been in the match, versus one of the world's best. Yet they held their own for the majority of the shortened match.

I refer of course to the remarkable match between Tommy Haas and 15yr-old ball girl Chloe Chambers. Haas' real opponent (Michael Llondra) had crashed out of court into another ball girl, and had to retire hurt.

Feeling disappointed, perhaps, that his game had come to such an early end, his opponent, Tommy Haas, the German 24th seed, decided to play on with another of the ball girls on court…

The pair knocked up for five minutes in the 11,393 capacity stadium.

Meanwhile in the same time zone an actual massive upset was going on.

USA 2 – Spain 0

Is this one of the seven signs? Or is it more of a glitch? Football is the sport that has the highest probability of an upset (based on historical data). And the Americans have been pretty lucky in this competition.

They needed to beat Egypt by three goals and have Brazil beat Italy by three. And it happened. Side note: the Egyptian team were robbed while celebrating their victory over Italy, they claimed it was the hotel cleaning staff, but it later emerged that the culprits were more likely the prostitutes the players brought back to their rooms. What goes on tour?

But is the American victory of the European champs an indicator of anything? American's have traditionally been very strong in women's football, perhaps the men are stepping up. And despite fighting a losing battle against the other major league sports the MLS seems to have a strong fan base (driven, I imagine, by ex-pats). A large number of the American squad play in England, so will have gained some experience of the European style of play. Or perhaps it was just dumb luck.

The most interesting thing was watching Sportscentre tonight. They covered the game while making all kinds of odd comparisons. "Watch as [American goalkeep] Tim Howard becomes like Tim Thomas, the Bruins goalie and best goaltender in the league". And after the match ESPN showed some great American upsets and streak-ending games. They really don't "get" football over there.

In fact the big news, and really it's pretty big, is that the Phoenix Suns have traded Shaquille O'Neal to the Cleveland Cavaliers (for Ben Wallace, Sasha Pavlovic, a 2nd round draft pick and a pile of cash).

Back home the story of the French player Mathieu Bastareaud being attacked by a group of Pacific Islanders is slowly unravelling (as was insinuated in PAS this week). Does every foreign rugby tour have to end with a police investigation into team antics in a hotel room?

And speaking of rugby Steve Tew is getting it from all angles: they don't like him in Christchurch and we're all just bored with rugby really no matter he says.

By the way, free-to-air Wimbledon! Yay TVNZ!

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