Corluka at that... Jesus; the Saviour of Spanish Football
19/06/12 02:55
Footcall 2012 Day 11...
Yet more decisive matches this evening as protagonists of Group C slug it out for qualification. We could only hope for games as good as the Group B deciders but it was somewhat slower to start. Division leaders, Spain took on Croatia whilst the Italians went head to head with the Irish. For those of you who aren't aware Sydssupersoccerstars have predicted a goalless draw for every single game and at the kick off for every match, Simon starts with a perfect 6 and then he would see them whipped from under him. From the start of tonight's matches it looked as if he might have been on the money. However my young brother was thwarted yet again as Italy took the lead from a Cassano header. Back over to the Spanish duel or should we call it a stalemate. Come on teams, don't you know anyone of one you could be going home with Ireland?
Half time came and went leaving us desperately needing a goal to spark it into life. Early in the second half saw Croatia with best chance blown as Rakitic just needed to head a perfect cross down and they would the boys in charge, sadly however it went straight into the keepers outstretched arms. Snr Torres threatened to make a difference but eventually El Nino was subbed for Jesus Navas and in the 88th minute Fabregas chipped the oncoming defence to put Iniesta in on goal and more importantly, onside. Unselfishly he squared the ball to Navas who powered the ball in from a yard out with enough venom to split the net. Bosque looked relieved and Bilic put his head in his hands. The writing was on the wall for the Croats and the 58th showing of the As It Stands league confirmed it!
As the Spaniards celebrated, news came in of another goal from the other match. Was it an equaliser from Ireland? Was this a lifeline for Croatia? The crazy UEFA directive where a division was decided by the result of who played who, if more than one team finished on equal points, seemed unfair from some angles but it kept the viewers bemused as Simon Brotherton tried to explain that level teams might have to come back the following day for another 18 holes with a best of three game of beer pong decider! To avoid all that nonsense, it was Italy who'd scored again... and what a goal it was. A screaming diving volley met with precision fro Balotelli who connected beautifully... schweeeeeet! He clearly had something to say as he gestured provocatively to the Italian bench but was restrained by a well meaning Bonucci and probably preserved Mario's chances of playing again in the tournament. And so it was cast, Spain and Italy qualify which was probably expected but it was by no means a certainty.
And so to the Footcall league...
Yet another good day for Chris and Nick as they join Manoj and Steve Goodwin right at the top. Matt Green and Paul Firmston are right up there as well. Dan Shroeck did well as did Simon Dudson and Oliver Whitfield, Steve (check me out up the top) Cowland and Darren (lol) Alldritt also made big strides. Jamie and Ian, Gary Thorp, James (I'm catching you now Nathaniel) Ridley, Chris Amos, Lyn Rennie and Tat Wah all gathering vital reds. Nick Rowland (where did he come from), Steve Russell, Nick Simmonds and Adam Botting scored well along with Adam (watch me go now lads) Jones, Stephen Hills, Rick Wilkinson and Simon (watch me pass Gavin on the way up) Clark, Emma (I'm on fire) Wakefield, Richard (this is the life) Caine, Nick D'Avanzo and Mark Horner all scoring three pointers.
Special mention should go to Esther Eatwell who has had three red squares in a row and is now in the top 10. Neil Jefferis scored a perfect 6 and so did Grant (face it Sean you know nothing about football) Broad who has done well today. But I'm going to give maximum credit to Paul (Hannah, you owe me a tenner) Wakefield, Clare (I'm still hanging in there) Hawkins and someone called David (insert your own caption here) Jenner all correctly predicted Italy to win 2-0 tonight and picked up their first three points of Footcall 2012, OMG whatever next, page two of the league table? Hmmm, that might be stretching it a bit!
Tomorrow sees the final showdown for the group stages and the boy Rooney has had two games to work on his new quiff and we'll be ready to show the Ukrainians just how it's done!
Until then...
Dj