OT: World Cup Begins

[jstewismybastardson]

wow...if that was offsides, it was by a hair...

reminds me of the classic british commentator for Italy 1990 ..."if that was offsides, Im a chinaman"

 

[pixburgher66]

exactly ... anyone who is gonna say ... "I hate the Italians now" after watching what happened late in the game is forgetting every nation pulls this shit

yeah...pretty much everyone does...but still, what they did with the goalie is what ticked me off. two italians go crash into him and then he acts like he was mauled???

 

[elocomotive]

Italians are out! Stunning.

 

[dash]

Tough decision...Holland vs. Cameroon or Japan vs. Denmark. The Dutch are already through, so that has me leaning towards the Japan - Denmark game.

 

[mooger_35]

Japan - Denmark determines who goes through so that's the one I'd watch if I had cable at work (cheap bastards!)

 

[puckhead]

Tough decision...Holland vs. Cameroon or Japan vs. Denmark. The Dutch are already through, so that has me leaning towards the Japan - Denmark game.

yeah, gotta pick the playoff game over the exhibition.

 

[mbhhofr]

I haven't read all the responses in this thread and don't know if this has been brought up, but I want to talk about soccer's contribution to hockey, the DIVE!

Prior to the 1980's, when European hockey players started their mass exodus to North America, diving wasn't as prevalent as it is today. There was the odd North American hockey player that dove, but the Europeans turned it into an art.

Watching some of the soccer players go down like a duck shot out of the sky, when contact is made by one player's boot to the opponent's shin, is pathetic. You might say that I speak from a different experience. The only protection that I wore, when I officiated hockey, was a pair of soccer shin pads, 1/4" thick sponge knee pads and a cup. I was hit in the shins by pucks that reached speeds of up to 80-90 mph. Slashed in the shins by sticks, wood not composite and kicked in the shins by the boot and blade of skates. Any pain that I did feel, at the time, was minimal. The soccer shin pads protected me. I'm quite sure that the shin pads worn by soccer players today are more technically advanced than the same pair that I wore for over twenty years. So, the soccer player that writhes on the ground after being kicked in the shin, gets no sympathy from me, just scorn.

 

[dash]

Great free kick by Honda...He Toy-ota-ed with the keeper on that one...

 

[mooger_35]

Honda scores!

and Dash quick on the draw

 

[mooger_35]

Denmark now need 2 to advance to the round of 16.

 

[mooger_35]

2-0 Japan (Endo) on another free kick

Goodbye Denmark

 

[GagneFire12]

JAPAN!

 

[elocomotive]

Watching some of the soccer players go down like a duck shot out of the sky, when contact is made by one player's boot to the opponent's shin, is pathetic. You might say that I speak from a different experience. The only protection that I wore, when I officiated hockey, was a pair of soccer shin pads, 1/4" thick sponge knee pads and a cup. I was hit in the shins by pucks that reached speeds of up to 80-90 mph. Slashed in the shins by sticks, wood not composite and kicked in the shins by the boot and blade of skates. Any pain that I did feel, at the time, was minimal. The soccer shin pads protected me. I'm quite sure that the shin pads worn by soccer players today are more technically advanced than the same pair that I wore for over twenty years. So, the soccer player that writhes on the ground after being kicked in the shin, gets no sympathy from me, just scorn.

I tire of it as well. I played soccer year round for years and never saw any of these types of antics when I played. Guys would get knocked down, get back up, and play on, unless they were ACTUALLY hurt.

And yeah, you're right about shin pads. You can stand in front of someone, kick them as hard as you can in the shin, and unless they get hurt falling over, they aren't going to feel any pain in the shin at all. They have a plastic front and air/foam backing. If anything, the guy kicking might sting his foot on the shin pads.

That said, there are definitely some moments where soccer is a tough sport. I've played hockey and don't have much hesitation about laying down to block a shot, but trying to head a ball that has just been launched 60 yards by a keeper is difficult. If you don't get it right, it hurts like a bitch. And while there is not as much contact as hockey or football, you are largely unprotected and a slide with cleets up, a knee into the body, a well struck ball into the unmentionables, etc can all be very painful. I even remember one game where a player on our team had to be helicoptered off the field because he got kicked in the head and knocked out cold on a corner kick.

I think all the diving, writhing on the ground, grabbing the face, etc. does a disservice to the game. It is physically demanding and tough, but the guys rolling around on the ground when it's not legitimate take away from that toughness. It's a real shame, because it has nothing to do with my memories of the game and as exposure of European league soccer over cable television has grown, I can only imagine kids today often emulate and use these lame tactics when they play.

Be strong kids of America! And when you're setting up to head in a corner, cover your privates - a guy I played with used to give guys a ball tap as the ball was kicked. Nastiness.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

I tire of it as well. I played soccer year round for years and never saw any of these types of antics when I played. Guys would get knocked down, get back up, and play on, unless they were ACTUALLY hurt.

And yeah, you're right about shin pads. You can stand in front of someone, kick them as hard as you can in the shin, and unless they get hurt falling over, they aren't going to feel any pain in the shin at all. They have a plastic front and air/foam backing. If anything, the guy kicking might sting his foot on the shin pads.

That said, there are definitely some moments where soccer is a tough sport. I've played hockey and don't have much hesitation about laying down to block a shot, but trying to head a ball that has just been launched 60 yards by a keeper is difficult. If you don't get it right, it hurts like a bitch. And while there is not as much contact as hockey or football, you are largely unprotected and a slide with cleets up, a knee into the body, a well struck ball into the unmentionables, etc can all be very painful. I even remember one game where a player on our team had to be helicoptered off the field because he got kicked in the head and knocked out cold on a corner kick.

I played soccer a lot of years and ive seen worse stuff - lol

Im not defending diving/simulation. But to say that about shinguards is just wrong. Elano doesnt agree. It was kinda funny that he would get injured this way because just literally moments before this happened he scored the 3 - 0 goal and and pulled his very small and very light shinguards out of his socks and showed the tv he had the names of his daughters written on them ... cant find the video clip

kinda like a boy who cried wolf thing going on here ... probably a case where we see so many taps to the shins that guys go down so easily on that we all dismiss the painful injuries that come with foot to shin contact

soccer injuries can be the most catastrophic looking injuries around (queue the posts containing broken legs flopping around)

 

[puckhead]

ooooh... Norwegian dude gets one teed up on the 6 yard line and trips over the ball.
that won't help.

 

[mooger_35]

There is nothing quite like the crack of a broken leg echoing across the pitch.

 

[mooger_35]

And I've been drilled in the shin guards many times... sometimes it doesn't hurt, other I limp off the field and can see the giant welt forming right away. I had my entire lower leg turn purple once from the bruise. My wife made me go to the doctor twice because it looked so nasty.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

And I've been drilled in the shin guards many times... sometimes it doesn't hurt, other I limp off the field and can see the giant welt forming right away. I had my entire lower leg turn purple once from the bruise.

Ive got the speedbumps too ... all the blood rushes there and it just burns ... and you have to keep running ... argh!

 

[jstewismybastardson]

this ones for you mooger lol

 

[IPostedWhat]

Soccer players are the best at embellishing.