Speaker: KICK IT! Vuvuzelas and Jambulanis
85 Responses
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The key for NZ tonight will be to keep our shape for the full 90 minutes. Not 89 minutes, but the full whack. Realistically to get any sort of result the team will have to perform beyond the sum of its parts and hope that Slovakia don’t come out firing. If we lose an early goal, the danger is we compromise our shape by throwing players forward in search of an equaliser, which may well leave us even more exposed at the back. I think Herbert has done the right thing selecting Vicelich in the holding role because he is a solid experienced pro and cool heads will be required tonight. And the Vicelich option also means minimal disruption to the Brown-less “first-choice” eleven. That said, one problem I think we may have now is a lack of genuine pace in and around the opposition “hole” (oooer missus) – that gap between midfield and attack – so Reid, Nelsen, and Smith will have to be ever diligent should Elliott and Vicelich struggle to plug that gap. Both Bertos and Lochhead have relatively good pace as wing-backs and their workrate will be crucial. Herbert’s teams (incl Phoenix) have a resilience about them but maintaining shape is the key at this level. The tournament format and the WC Finals are notorious for upsets so should we get the basics right you just never know. Go the AWs.
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3410,
I hate those vuvuzelas. They make every game sound like this:
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The danger is the width Slovakia are most likely to play with, having the two speedy young wingers running at our guys with a couple of very proficient forwards waiting in the middle I can't see Lockhead or Bertos getting much joy on attack. 0-0 would be a great result for us but not much use in terms of progressing (see Hadyn's comments in the blog).
A moment of Smeltz brilliance on the break? It's the only way I can see us getting something, and given his record in top internationals it's certainly not something I expect. You never know though...
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By the way, anyone remember when Adidas tried making rugby balls and how long that experiment lasted?
And does anyone remember what country that was in... :)
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Also, re the Jabulani ball. Players seem to be really struggling to get any shape on it at altitude. Hence the amount of poor free kicks heading straight into the wall or skied over the cross bar. Think this will really start to impact on the tournament in later stages.
Maybe they should squirt a bit of water into them, pre-match? :)
And apparently they introduced the ball into the Bundesliga in December so that the German players could get used to using it. Anyone know how that worked out?
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Also, re the Jabulani ball. Players seem to be really struggling to get any shape on it at altitude. Hence the amount of poor free kicks heading straight into the wall or skied over the cross bar. Think this will really start to impact on the tournament in later stages.
Don't they complain about the ball at every World Cup?
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And apparently they introduced the ball into the Bundesliga in December so that the German players could get used to using it. Anyone know how that worked out?
Why does that sound unfair? Would certainly explain some of the skills over Oz ( not that I think it is the only reason)
Don't they complain about the ball at every World Cup?
It does bounce oh so high! Almost comical.
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re: the Jubilani ball
Don't they complain about the ball at every World Cup?
Hush! I'm penning tomorrow's post about that!
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@PD,
The other way we can score is via a set piece.
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The German league did use the official balls, yes - they were offered to all the major leagues I gather, with most refusing because they already had other ball manufacturers' sponsorship and didn't want to lose that.
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Don't they complain about the ball at every World Cup?
Oh absolutely, but I think the issue here is the characteristics of the ball at altitude. Hence the German game at Durban where the ball behaved more as you'd expect, less bounce, shots remaining low etc... The Netherlands-Denmark game this morning was almost comical for shots rising and just continuing on up into the air. Like playing footie on the moon.
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Why does that sound unfair?
Was available for use apparently, it was only the Germans with their quiet efficiency and diabolical cleverness who had the sense to bring it in.
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Watching Italy Paraguay there were times when it looked like either the ball was going all over the place, or the kicker had decided that missing the goal by 20 metres was an acceptable option.
It would seem a little odd if the teams/players were offered a chance to play with these balls before the Cup and didn't. Especially as the problems were telegraphed quite a bit.
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Was available for use apparently, it was only the Germans with their quiet efficiency and diabolical cleverness who had the sense to bring it in.
Presumably the German league uses an Adidas ball anyway? The Premiership uses a Nike one, so I wouldn't have expected much co-operation there.
And absolutely, there's always compaints about the ball early on in the world cup - there were loads in 2002. Usually they settle down after a few games, these guys are professional footballers after all.
For me, the All Whites should try several low key speculative shots from 25 yards out and hope the goal keeper fucks up. Its worked before (!), and I noticed those pragmatic Italians trying it a couple of times this morning.
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On the topic of balls (ooh-er), here's an infographic on the ball used at the world cup, since 1930: NY Times
(and I see that Adidas supplied the balls to every world cup from 1970 to 1998)
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I didn't realise all the All Whites games are live on TV One.
Thank goodness for that.
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The Guardian has England-USA game highlights. In Lego.
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and I noticed those pragmatic Italians trying it a couple of times this morning.
Might have had something to do with not being able to get into the bloody penalty box.
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@Russell that little plastic goalkeeper rolling about on the ground is seriously the most heartbreaking thing I've ever seen.
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On the topic of balls (ooh-er), here's an infographic on the ball used at the world cup, since 1930: NY Times
Well fuck. It seems I'm going to be reposting a lot of this, sorry in advance.
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We'll act surprised, promise.
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Best vuvuzela tweet by @nhlrulebook:
Anyone who brings a vuvuzela to an NHL game will be killed, cryogenically frozen until they can be brought back to life, then killed again.
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Finally, I know the Wellington City Council mean well, by providing a big screen at Queens Wharf so that football fans can gather and watch the games. But have they noticed the temperatures recently?
A show of solidarity is required. Try to survive with the All Whites (or whatever we're called now).
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The Guardian has England-USA game highlights. In Lego.
That's the trouble with having so many threads on similar topics. Yes, yes I'm being a 'na na, I posted it first' cock, but whatev's.
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I hate those vuvuzelas. They make every game sound like this: ...
As best as I am able to tell, the World Cup games sound the same as they have always done.
We're only talking about the vuvuzelas and the Jubilani ball because the football hasn't been particularly exciting so far. When the final round of group matches begin, this stuff will fade into the background as football becomes the focus.
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