Marco Tardelli, Leonardo DaVinci, Pavarotti, Jamie Oliver's Mate, Super Mario...
24/06/10 00:19
...your boys took a hell of a beating!
Well another big pin falls in this extraordinary World Cup. First we saw the French crash and burn and now we see the Italians get their marching orders! This competition gets more and more bizarre by the minute, next you'll be telling me Japan having qualified for the Knockout Stages :-) The Italian opponents, Slovakia, were impressive picking up all the loose balls and managed to forge a two goal advantage in this must win game for the reigning cup holders. Italy looked to be getting back into into with a goal but Slovakia knocked in another then shut up shop and made it a niggly game in the last few minutes. The boys in blue scored again but it wasn't enough and sensationally the Slovaks went through!
The other game going on at the same time saw a rather tepid nil nil between Paraguay and everyone's favourite, New Zealand (unless your Australian!) A lot of defending went on this game mainly in the NZ box and it finished goalless and Paraguay through topping the table, little did they know what was going on in the other group game.
Group E was played out by Netherlands and Cameroon. Van Persie managed to nutmeg (NUTS!) the Cameroon keeper to score the first. Eto'o scored an equaliser but the Dutch sealed the win with an 83rd minute decider from Huntelaar. Holland had already qualified but this just cemented their position on top. The other game in this group was being decided by Denmark and Japan. The result here was crucial and Japan's Honda scored a screamer of a free kick then Endo followed it up with a better strike! Tomasson tucked away a penalty at the second attempt to give the Danes faint hope but soon after Okazaki finished off the pastries with a Japanese third.
And so to the Footcall league...A right royal 7 points today has seen little Jonny Hill move topside yet again and with a three point lead and 9 accretes scores... remarkable! Also Stephen Hills is running up the inside rail and now into a creditable third and Andy Booth is showing some form. Adam Jones has come from nowhere (he was ready to throw the towel in last week) and how Alex Church is on the first page is beyond me :-) David Blakeman and John Trent doing well and James Snowy Parker is pulling miracle after miracle to move into 46th which doesn't sound that good but four days ago he was knocking about around 100th! Even James buddy, Steve Cowland scored another red square. Go Georgy Relf Go! John Dawson doing well and Kate Blake is now starting to close in on Jonny's lead. My big question is there hope for Dave Hope?
Yet another 3 for Sophie the Dog but my player of the day has to be the one and only Lyn Rennie who has had to suffer the ignominy of seeing his daughter rocket up the table whilst he languished in the bottom realms like a Hull City player on loan to Portsmouth. Football Cliche Alert >>> At the end of the day, he dug deep, sprayed on the Ralgex, pulled up his socks, and hung on in for his first 3 pointer making it a game of two halves! Thank the big FIFA god for the 2-1 Dutch win that sees him get off the mark. Come on Lyn... Pornista FC is only 98 places above you if you keep going like this they'll only be 97 places come the final.
That's it for now, look out for the Knockout Stages predictions you will need to do tomorrow, this will be your opportunity get right back up the Footcall league unless of course you are already at the top!
Dj
PS. I'd like to make a small apology for my Wimbledon ramblings yesterday. This is indeed Footcall not blooming Tenniscall so I will draw a line under that little episode, so if you don't want to know who the world's longest tennis match look away now....
John Isner USA
6/4, 3/6, 6/7, 7/6, 70/68
183 Games
11 hours 5 mins
215 Aces