Ellis Park...“A little dodgy”

Before the June 15th match there was the dreaded surplus ticket to unload. It was decided to go to McDonalds which seemed to be buzzing with World Cup folk. As fate would have it we encountered eager Japanese fans with a small sign requesting tickets. Reselling tickets was as difficult as selling ice cream during the match while the temperature outside hovered around 25-30 degrees. I really hope the vendors were not working on commission. They made us an offer we initially refused about $500 rand for a $1050 rand ticket. About 5 minutes later we reconvened $500 and 3 diet cokes for our Cuba libres. The deal was sealed under the Argentine and Japanese flag hanging from the banister and that’s no joke. It was meant to be.

We were not looking for a night out in the ghetto, but thanks to FIFA that’s what we got when we attended the Brasil v North Korea by night. Ellis Park Stadium the venue also known because of the movie Invictus, which hosted the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup, which was won by the South Africa’s national team. We theorize this was the true reason for this venue choice because let’s be honest it was the most outdated stadium to host a WC ever even with the modest upgrades for the hosting of the WC. Safety was definitely a concern. After all, FIFA’s repeated excuse was that it was political. Bryan confronted every representative he ran into at FIFA headquarters (Michelangelo) which was the pirates home base.

Before entering the match there was a power failure that nearly led to a stampede as thousands of fans were denied entry as kick off was to commence. We were grateful this was not a repeat of the 2001 stampede disaster that occurred during a futbol match at the same venue where 43 people lost their lives. (To date the biggest disaster of its kind in South Africa). Not a fun fact you want to know while in the midst of an angry crowd of Brasilians. There was definitely some pushing and shoving, but once the Police realized the situation at hand they allowed entry to all and figured it would be for the best. I think Kev has video to be posted soon.

Nothing against Guateng Province in the city of Joburg, but lets say the pirate consensus was we should not be wandering these streets after sun down. Swords were on alert. We are all well traveled and I suppose it doesn’t help when the locals repeatedly advice you to remain indoors after dark. Fortunately nothing happened, but we were the fortunate few with luxury of an arranged driver for easy exit. That being said, our driver was forced down what he termed “dodgy” streets due to road closures that rerouted traffic.

Pirates concentration was off that night as we left a treasure chest of goods (2 flasks a Colombian jersey and a Barcelona team bag) behind. Little consolation knowing it went to one of our South American neighbor nemesis. Worst of all we would be Rum-less and limited to Budweiser from here on out.

On the positive side North Korea did score a goal and we made sure to snap a picture with the Chinese actors posing as North Koreans. In case you were wondering how all those North Korean fans were able to attend the game given dictator Kim Jong Il's strict prohibitions on leaving the country. North Korea provided 1,000 tickets to a group of Chinese fans to fly to South Africa for first round matches. As luck would have it we encountered them again in Cape Town and yet again on our flight home where they promptly were instructed to relinquish their new found national pride.

More pics to be posted.

Plan B…Le Clue:

Opting to watch the Argentina match vs. S. Korea before departing North to Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve, we had no one to blame, but ourselves for plan B. At about 10 minutes into the match Kevin mentioned the National park doors closed and hence we would not be able to access our Hilltop Country Lodge (reserved, prepaid and non refundable) accommodation.

Bry & I conveniently ignored this kernel of knowledge knowing we had at the very minimum a 4 hour drive ahead of us. We decided to split after the second goal and we heard the 3rd goal on our way to the car, but it was well after 3:00 and the countdown was on to be there by 6. Time wise it was not going to work no matter how you sliced it. Rain and sleet on the way did not help our cause. Anyhow, I recalled there was a South entrance to the park which was much closer so we figured it was our best bet.

Needless to say we arrived at 6:08…gates closed at 6:00. In retrospect it was all for the best as it was already pitch black and later we experienced the national park is teeming with wild animals after sundown. Probably best the pirates were not wandering aimless in the midst of the roaming elephants, rhinos, giraffes, lions, etc.

We adopted a plan B after speaking to some locals at the the garage (petrol station) restuarant. Kev's slab of ribs could have fed a samll village. We pulled into the first 5 star hotel where the pirates promptly worked their magic. We ended up with a room for pennies on the dollar and a subzero safari with Le Clue.

Our theory is that Le Clue was the back up safari guide who was likely flipping omelets the day before. you know the one they send out when none of the experienced guides want to make the trek. He was dressed like a Disney safari guide on the jungle cruise at Disneyland. Le Clue introduced himself and asked what game animal we were interested in. The big 5? We had a pair of Japanese hunters that requested the coveted Lions, only 125 of them in the vast savannah covering more than 1000km² in Zululand. We basically drove around doing figure eights freezing our asses off while searching for the wild game that were everywhere we were not. Now we know why he was coined Le Clue... he didn't have one.

For starters he stopped at the entrance to the park for the only chickens that were not picked up by KFC. We knew it was going to be an interesting safari thereafter. A few hours into the safari he switched his focus from animal game to the "hot breakfast" that was only served until 9:30. We ourselves spotted the few animals we did see. Well he did locate the giraffes which our tallest land animals and average heights of up to 19 or more feet. And let’s not forget the warm elephant dung where the elephants had passed before. Why he took us to where the elephants had been is still a mystery. Kev spotted Le Clue with his binonculars hoping to locate the variety of wildlife such as leopard, cheetah, lion, black-backed jackal, reedbuck, nyala, eland, white and black rhinos, giraffe, zebra, kudu, waterbuck and blue wildebeest the park boasts. We came back with a luandry list that read nil, but we did arrive just before 9:30 so all could enjoy the 5 star breakfast buffet with le Clue's buddies.

We ended up driving ourseleves on a BMW safaria checking off the list above and including zebras, baboons and some others so it was not a wash. We actually ventured out at sundown and experienced a safari by night that was quite impressive. We steaked out a local watering hole and waited for the game to show. More pics to follow!

Germans: Argentina shows no respect

Looks like Auraujo is being taken down by the Aleman to me. You should expect much of this come Saturday with Messi being on the receiving end as they have no other means to stop him. Talk you shit Schweinsteiger...it seems like a distration to me. Messi will show the Aleman's respect come Saturday!

ERASMIA, South Africa -- Germany midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger accuses World Cup quarterfinals rival Argentina of showing no respect for opponents and referees, and urges his teammates not to be provoked.

Germany eliminated Argentina on penalty kicks four years ago at the same stage and there were chaotic scenes after the shootout, with both sides exchanging punches and kicks in a fracas that included team officials from both benches.

"The shootout is still in our memory, but what really weighs heavily on our minds is what happened after that match," Schweinsteiger said Wednesday. "We have to remain calm and not get provoked and I hope the referee will be very alert.

"You could see their behavior at halftime of the game against Mexico. When you look at their body language and gesticulations, the way they try to influence the referees, they have no respect. It's their mentality and character and we'll have to adjust."

Mexico and Argentina players had to be separated as they headed for the tunnel at halftime of the teams' second-round game, with the Mexicans furious over Argentina's first goal that came when scorer Carlos Tevez clearly was offside. Argentina won 3-1.

Schweinsteiger also accused Argentine fans of taking the places of others in the stadiums and refusing to move. It was not clear where he got his evidence from.But the midfielder praised Argentina as a team, saying the squad coached by Diego Maradona was better in "every sector" than the team Germany beat four years ago.

Germany's team page

Schweinsteiger singled out veteran Juan Sebastian Veron. "He has played very strongly here. I have been impressed," Schweinsteiger said. Schweinsteiger repeated that stopping Argentina star Lionel Messi will need a strong "collective effort." "Other teams also have done it. He hasn't scored yet and we want to keep it that way," said Schweinsteiger, who has played 78 games for Germany although he is still just 25.

"We'll find the right game plan to hurt Argentina, although we know how strong Argentina is. At this level, you can't make mistakes, it's the details that decide the match."Thomas Mueller, who scored twice against England, could be the deciding factor in the match, which might be embarrassing to Maradona.

By now, he should have heard of Mueller. The last time Argentina played Germany in a friendly in March, Maradona felt so slighted when Mueller sat on the podium with him at the postmatch news conference that he stormed off and refused to return until Mueller left the stage to the coach alone.Mueller had just made his debut for Germany then. Now, he leads his team at the World Cup with three goals.

Argentina's team page

Coach Joachim Loew said forward Cacau is unlikely to recover from a right thigh injury in time for the match. Argentina beat Germany 1-0 with relative ease in that March friendly in Munich. Schweinsteiger said that result meant little. "One, it was a friendly. Two, they did not create many chances either. Three, we have gained a lot of confidence by beating England and the good tactics we used in that game," Schweinsteiger said. Germany advanced to the quarterfinal with a 4-1 win. Schweinsteiger said he expected the upcoming match to be a tactical affair, "just as it was in 2006." Argentina has only one win over Germany at the World Cup, in the 1986 final when Maradona was still playing. Overall in the World Cup, they have met five times and twice in the final.

Maradona led Argentina to that 3-2 win in Mexico, while in Italy in 1990, Germany won 1-0 on a penalty kick. Those were also the last times either team won the World Cup. Germany won a group match 3-1 in 1958 and the two teams drew 0-0 in another group match in 1966.

Driving on the opposite side to Durban

We picked up our ride a BMW 3 series at Jburg airport bright and early. There was much acclimating and driving confusion while making the switch of the right-hand drive to that of left-hand drive. Much like the Pikey Kingdom traffic drives on the left-hand side of the road in South Africa. In the interests of safety, one is advised to practice this in the country of origin for a week or two before driving. Pirates practice plan was sink or swim. Bry took the plunge first.

As one might gather the pirates had their opinions and philosophical discussion. We concluded the story of left or right hand side driving was more than just a derivative of British Imperialism. We all had our own theories. Prevailing theory was better vision of oncoming traffic which had to do with 2 lane highways in the days of horse carriages. Jury's out so feel free to comment.

Apparently the main promulgators of driving on the right was revolutionary France, at that time Britain’s arch-enemy, thus lending a ‘political’ subtext to this purely practical question. France spread the practice to most of the countries it conquered at the turn of the 19th century and hence our driving on the right.

Let’s hope they don’t spread their refusal to train/compete which culminated in the off the field antics that resulted in Anelka’s expulsion from the squad for verbally abusing Domenech which lead to The French Football Federation's managing director subsequently quitting. Culminating with the involvement of Sarkozy sending the French sports minister who was calling for dignity and responsibility before the surrender flag went up.

Dios mio and we thought we had our problems with Maradona.

What’s KNVB?

Netherlands Vs. Denmark Our fist game at Soccer City Stadium in Jburg. We departed 4 hours before game time and it was a wise decision as the traffic was reminiscent, well actually worse, than that of LA traffic at rush hour on a Friday. We had arranged for a driver so we were not on a meter, but for those unfortunate fans to take a taxi in well many resorted to existing their cabs and walking from the highway to the stadium.

Pirates educated their driver on Pikey 101. He mentioned that he had been treated badly by a group of Englishman the night before. We had to assist! A running joke form the last WC in Germany. In short the Pikey's speech is virtually unintelligible and very insulting to a Englishman.

Upon arriving while in line for a pre game meal I (Rich) was singled out by female Dutch supporter who asked “Do you even know what KNVB means?” I replied total futbol she was not impressed. Wow not much love for the supporting the Orange jersey. Anyhow, the Dutch orange was everywhere and the supporters were numerous. Again we started our day by having to unload an extra ticket.

Bry had the best negotiating skills so he unwillingly took on the task. Not fun selling tickets that were yielding rand prices while we paid in dollars. The exchange was not in our favor and to boot no one was interested in category 1 tickets everyone was after the lowly category 3.

While Bry worked his magic Kev missed his opportunity to take his picture with the 30 dutch winches (pic above) in orange minidresses who were apparently paid for by brewing company Bavaria. The women were later prosecuted under the Contravention of Merchandise Marks Act which covers ambush marketing. South African police arrested the women at their hotel in the Johannesburg district of Roodepoort. The women appeared at Johannesburg Magistrates Court and were released on bail of 10,000 rand ($1300) each, with their next court appearance to be set. Men were lining up to pay their fines.

For those interested it stands for...Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbal Bond (Royal Dutch Soccer Association)

Pirates take the plunge in shark alley

First things first. A group of Mexicanos were completing the contract when they were stumped. What is next of kin? We all had a good laugh before signing our lives away.

We survived the cage diving experience with great white sharks in the aptly named "shark alley", near the fishing village of Gansbaai, off the Cape of South Africa. We plunged for about 40 minutes, 5 persons to a cage while great whites swam face to face (INCHES) from the cage. In fact, they intentionally slow down and make eye contact with you. Awesome adrenaline rush! Definitely top of the food chain! They provide the “I can and would consume you” look each time they swim by if you were not in that metal cage.

Same group of Mexicanos were fiercely rattled when a shark rammed their cage head on after Bry supplied eco-chum in their direction. It was awesome to see the attack not the retching. I am sure if the wetsuits were not so tight they would have shit themselves on the spot. Not to single out Bry almost everyone (80%) were providing eco-chum (breakfast) throughout the dive while sharks constantly circled our vessel. Kevin and Ricardo's sea legs saved them from joining the heaving brigade, which seemed to be very contagious.

Let’s be honest the seas were rough, and the swells large, but sharks close up was undeniably worth it. Oh my lord ridiculous!

Pirates anchored in Cape town

For those of you that had little faith and thought the pirates were lost at sea or had sunk off the Indian Ocean. Not the case...the journey was a long one and modern ameneties such as Wifi were nowhere to be found deep in the bushlands and the off the coast of Sotuh Africa. Road trip (5 days) from Bush to the Cape was amazing. Much to see and take in.

We arrived to a rain soaked Cape just in time for the Portugal thrashing of communist Korea. Green Point Stadium was nice and fortunately our seats were in the covered section so we viewed the wet match in the confort of our dry seats. Wow! 7-0. Cry baby was in typical form, but I must admit the shot that struck the woodwork was nice! The goals rained in all second half...more goals today than all games we attended combined.

We are again connected so I hope to update blog with photos and details of journey. Wishing you all the best from Cape town!

Rooting for the Enemy

If you ask me what 3 sports teams I hate the most it goes as follows:
1. Boston University Hockey
2. Any college football program in Florida
3. The Mexican National soccer team

And not in that order. I loathe El Tri. They are the US MNT's biggest rival and there is plenty of hate in the 2 countries history. 2002 WC being the biggest black eye for the Aztecas. On top of that, they can't beat us outside that smog filled garbage heap in the sky they are so proud of (Gold cup final last year just does not count). But today I rooted for El Tri with vigor for the following 3 reasons:
1. They played France
2. They should have been playing Ireland
3. I am in Mexico

As much as I dislike them, being in a country that backs their team with pride fills me with envy and respect. In the US, soccer in most places (especially middle america) is viewed as some sort of immigrant conspiracy like Catholicism or the Metric System. We will root for the US in Badminton at the Olympics but just ignore our national soccer team and in many cases have outright contempt for it.

Mexico deserved to win. They controlled the game and the Frenchies had nothing creative to offer. Gio dos Santos played uncharacteristically unselfish and hard working and Rafa Marquez proved why he wears the armband. If he was only so consistent for Barca. The first goal was nice and Blanco hit that penalty perfectly.

After the way Forlan dismantled Bafana Bafana yesterday, I am looking forward to Uruguay v. Mexico next week.

Flynn

Dutch earn a 2-0

World Cup fever is on. Today was our first match at Soccer City in Joburg and second overall. Fabulous venue Soccer City! Orange crush supporters were everywhere...the total football contingency were expecting a crushing performance against the Danes. They walked off the pitch with a 2-0 win. Had to feel for the Danes especially (#15) who played well but scored an auto goal. Nonetheless the Dutch are off to a good start with the win. Well done and at this stage the result is the most important thing. Wow! Elia (#17) injected life and energy into the game instantly and changed the pace in the second half. Player of the match as far as I 'm concerned.

Tomorrow we have Brasil at Ellis Park which should be a zamba party from start to finish.

Pics

There was a requesst for pictures. Internet connection is very slow and consequently uploading fotos is not an efficient use of time, but here goes a few more pics than the previous posts. My apologies as I just do not have the patience to upload more pics. Approximately 8 minutes per pic. Almost as bad as Joburg traffic which has fans walking to the venue and ditching their cars. We depart 4 hours before kick off to be sure we make it on time.

US thrown a life line

Wow! WC never ceases to amaze. Red Coats hand US a draw. Nothing on that shot but it was nice to see Dempsey trun Gerrad around a few times before passing it back to the keeper who graciously pushed the ball into the net. Landy Cakes had a few good cracks and the English could just not finish.

"If u r a real man let's take this outside"

Latinos from Mexico, Honduras and Gautemala joined the South American pirtaes for night one in Joburg. At our local watering hole it was vintage pirates on the high seas. Always exciting while sailing unchartered waters.

A drunken SA (local) sailor approached the latinos spefically the shortest in stature myself trying to instigate a sword fight. Calmness prevailed because he was so pathetic and drunk to bring out the swords. Besides it was a riot to watch the incident unfold....comedy hour. He challenged each of us individually bringing out the Azteca in the Mexicano and the jedi mind tricks in pirates. After the classic "If you are a real man then let's step outside" comment things got ugly fast. He was prompty escorted to the plank before the 5 star bar could be destroyed. He was forced to walk the plank never to be seen.

Lack luster 1 nil Victory

We'll take the 3 points , but truthfully we need to step up defensively and show up in the midfield. Where was Di Maria? We did not finish our opportunities in the box. Huiguin did not impress in the opener while Messi showed flashes of what might be possible, but overall we looked vulnerable much like the qualifying squad that snuck into the tournament. A set play off the corner aganist Nigeria for a 1-0 score is not going to cut it to raise the cup. Hoping they get the kinks out for Korea. Vamos Argentina!

Argentine contingency is out in force. We arrived with high hopes and emotions high and left realizing there is room for much improvement.

URGENT pikeys need more sauce

k-dawg,
pick up 2 bottles of habana 7 ... we're thirsty and we partied with el tri tribe and they nearly wiped us out --- they had to drown their sorrows after yesterday's performace. horale pues.

WE ARE PREPPING FOR EL PARTIDO ... throwing back cuba libres for breakfast, screaming at everyone in mandela square (me, not richy), and getting warmed up for the big show. TODAY THE WORLD WILL SEE LA PULGA -- VAMOS HACER MIERDA A LOS HIJOS DE MIL PUTAS NIGERIOS. im listo to strap on my eye patch and hit the road ... i have a feeling today will be one of the best days of my life. diego + messi + mundial + los fanaticos = bliss.

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh. party on, wayne.

Extranando La Copa

I have a ton of mixed emotions...i wish i was there with my primos - Germany was amazing! But i know that it's not possible, so why keep dreaming about going? Yes - i looked at flights today and thought about how i could possibly finance the trip. But so far, no ideas. Been listening to "Upside Down" and "Love Generation" over and over. At least SF is doing it right by the Mundial.

Primos - Godspeed and have the time of your lives!!!!!

A Sad Pirate

OBAMA next door

Apparentntly AF1 arrived and rumor has it that Obama is literally next door in the presidential suite at our hotel. Guards out front support the school of thought. If he shows up to the match tomorrow we shall know the truth. Good night! Cry baby is definitely in the house as his lamborgini is out front.

Stand corrected it was AF2 for VP biden. USA snuck out with a draw.

Jedi Mind tricks at work

So we are officially in SA where the force is strong. Upon arrival we had to convince the FIFA ticket agent that Bry was a irish jedi named flynn. As luck woould have it Flynn's card was the only one that did not spit out tickets at the kiosk. Needless to say, those were NOT the droids they were looking for .... our location is incredible, our balcony overlooks nelson mandela square where espn has their studio set up , somehow we ended up at fifa's headquarters hotel -- where pele and portugal are staying. richy was dreaming of ronnie while we were in teh steam room tonight. cheers. off to watch francia.

pirates taken from the coal room to 1st class ...

We are currently waiting for our flight from dubai to depart ... but it has been eventful, to date.
In LA, we were bumped from pikey-ville to primera class. This is not the first class you are imagining -- 1st class on emirates is made for the sultan. Indeed, we pillaged this cabin appropriately. They ran out of small bottles of Goose so they asked us to just take from teh big bottle where the attendants hang out. After 17 cocktails, and 4 different shifts of employees, and an unlimited supply of hot meals , we stumbled back to our seats -- oh, escuzzi, our beds. Fantastic -- we highly recommend it.

Dubai was worth seeing -- we went to the giant sky-scraper and walked the area nearby ... like disney/vegas meets the muslim world. interesting, but 12 hours will suffice.

Please note that we scored nice booty here at the airport -- 3 giant bottles of havana seven and more goose (goose is now in our dna).

I cant wait to arrive and trade flynn and yoda's tickets for a broken cigarette or a key chain. thanks guys.

Cheers -- bc

Predictions from a Badger

This is a prediction from a good friend, Josh, who is headed to South Africa for the Cup. I plan on posting his observations from SA in addition to the Castro clan.

Flynn

Here is my thoughts on how this plays out over the next month. I think we
are in for a wild tourney.

Group Stage (1st, 2nd)

*Group A (Mexico, Uruguay)* - how is that my least favorite team (Mexico) is
paired in a group with another team I hate (France). France's internal
troubles and terrible coach doom this team in the group stage. No host
nation has ever failed to advance, but I don't think Bafana Bafana has what
it takes (unless we see some South Korean-style shady referring and the
unnerving of their opponents by 50,000 vuvuzelas).
*Group B (Argentina, Nigeria) *- hard to argue with the talent of the
Argentines. Although Maradona is a nut-job, and will probably start five
forwards, they should breeze thru this group. Nigeria doesn't have what it
did 10 years ago, but I don't think SK is any good and I hate watching
Greece play, so I'll take the Super Eagles to advance.
*Group C (England, USA) - *I wanted to talk myself into the USA knocking off
England to win the group, and I think they can, but I'll go with a
USA/England 1-1 tie on Saturday and England winning the group with a better
goal differential. Slovenia could provide challenges as they play a
disciplined, compact game, but the US should advance.
*Group D (Germany, Serbia) - *The loss of Ballack and the non-form this year
of Klose and Podolski has many questioning the Germans this year. But they
are the Germans. They methodically beat you down and show up come tourney
time. Have made it to at least the Quarters in every years since 1954.
Serbia has some fire-power, and this group has depth with Ghana (if only
Essien were playing...) and Australia, but the two Euro's advance.
*Group E (Netherlands, Cameroon) - *on talent alone, the Dutch should be
favored to advance. But they are the Dutch, and they find ways to blow out
in big games (save for Van Basten and Gullit in '88). I'd like to think
Eto'o can get the Indomitable Lions to the next stage, but considering his
blow-up last weeks in regards to comments from Roger Milla, I don't know if
his heads in the game. Denmark is always a tough team in these tourney's, so
could pose a threat (and a surprise), but I'm picking the African side.
Japan sucks.
*Group F (Italy, Paraguay) - *Hate this Italian side. Too old, too boring.
But they have Buffon and Lippi gets them to play. Don't count them out.
Slovakia / Paraguay is a toss-up, but I'm taking Paraguay.
*Group G (Brazil, Ivory Coast) - *Group of Death. Brazil, under Dunga, has
gone away from the Beautiful Game and plays more European than before. But
they are more disciplined and still have loads of talent in Kaka and Maicon.
Lacking the big name forward of years past, but they are still Brazil.
Portugal hasn't been on form, and with Nani now missing the WC, I'm going
Les Elephantes to get thru even if Drogba doesn't play. But I think he comes
out with a cast on and an inspired performance, knocking a few home against
the Kim Jong-Il's. I just hope KJI doesn't start an incident when they get
trounced in every game.
*Group H (Spain, Chile) - *Spain has the most talent of any team in the
world. With Brazil, they have to be the favorite. Chile has some firepower
up front and plays a fun, attacking game. I like them to get thru instead of
the boring Swiss. Honduras sucks.

*Knockout Stage*

Game 1 (1A v 2B) - Mexico v Nigeria. I hate to take Mexico into the
quarters, but I guess I will. Mexico 2-1.
Game 2 (1C v 2D) - England v Serbia. Trendy picks on both teams. After the
group stage, I'll root for the limeys. England 3-1.
Game 3 (1E v 2F) - Netherlands v Paraguay. Paraguay's style could hurt the
Dutch, but I expect a high-scoring game with the Dutch prevailing. Dutch
4-2.
Game 4 (1G v 2H) - Brazil v Chile. Battle of CONMEBOL. Brazil 3-1.
Game 5 (1B v 2A) - Argentina v Uruguay. Another all SA affair. Messi goes
off. Argentina 3-0.
Game 6 (1D v 2C) - Germany v USA. Revenge of '02. Germans can't crack the US
defense and Dempsey knocks in the winner. USA 1-0.
Game 7 (1F v 2E) - Italy v Cameroon. I need an upset. Cameroon takes out the
defending champs 2-1.
Game 8 (1H v 2G) - Spain v Ivory Coast. Leaf and I will be at this game in
Cape Town. Hoping for a high scoring game. Spain 4-2.

*Quarters
*Winner 1 v Winner 2: Mexico v England. I hate the Mexican national team.
Rooney scores a brace and Gerrard puts a ball through Marquez head. England
3-1.
Winner 3 v Winner 4: Netherlands v Brazil. Rematch of the great match in
Dallas in '94. I'm going with a repeat scoreline. Brazil 3-2.
Winner 5 v Winner 6: Argentina v USA. I like the US squad, and Maradona is a
terrible coach, but Messi and company will run circles around our D.
Argentina 3-1.
Winner 7 v Winner 8: Cameroon v Spain. Lions run ends just like in '90.
Torres brace. Spain 2-0.

*Semis
*England v Brazil. While David Seaman won't be in net to let in a 45 yard
shot like in '02, British goalies still suck. Brazil 2-1 on a late David
James gaffe. England mourns and throws pint glasses at the TV's.
Argentina v Spain. Could be the game of the tourney, but the discipline of
Spain shuts down the Argentines. Spain 2-0.

*Final
*Brazil v Spain. I don't want the Brazilians to win another. Spain has too
much talent not to win the Cup this year. Spain 3-2 in OT, with David Villa
connecting to send the red shirts through to glory.

Yes, I should be working, but we are only two days away from the greatest
sporting event in the world. Enjoy the Cup!

Confessions of an Addict

I meant to title this "Chasing the Dragon"

I spoke to Bryan right before he took off from LAX on his way to South Africa. As someone who has been through the looking glass and is currently holder of 20 tickets to 5 games, but chose to not go to the Greatest show on Earth because I couldn't bring myself to leave my daughter of 2 yrs, I am in pain this week. To all you that have never experienced Copa Mundial, there is something that gets inside you that never leaves. Its a longing for that time once every four years where you meet people from all over the world that are so happy and proud of their home nations regardless of their chances (in Germany in 2006, the Croats partied like rock stars because they lost by 1 goal to Brazil).

Its a joy for a game that while more commercialized than even American sports is still somehow pure at the national level. Take England for example. In England, there is no higher honor or aspiration than wearing the armband for the Three Lions. . Beckham is richer than the Queen yet he still sings "God save the Queen" with a tear in his eye.

More to come once I accept I am not in South Africa with the Castro Brothers

GO USA
Vamos ESPAÑA
Vamos ARGENTINA

Government Orders Time Off for WCup

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) -- The Honduran government has approved a work schedule that allows 200,000 public employees time off the job to watch the national team play in the World Cup in South Africa. Now that is government for the people!

The government has urged private enterprises to do the same. Africo Madrid, the government minister in charge of the changes, said Tuesday that employees would not have to begin work until 10 a.m. local time on June 16 when Honduras plays Chile. The match begins early in the morning, Honduran time. Honduras faces Spain on June 21 and Switzerland on June 25. Matches those days begin in the early afternoon, Honduran time. Employees will be released at 11:30 a.m. Honduras is playing in only its second World Cup. In 1982 it failed to win a match.

Awesome! It is something to aspire to in America. In Argentina they may as well pass the same legislation because it’s always an unofficial holiday when the national team steps on the pitch.

Vamos Argentina!

Reincarnation of a Pirate

Matt’s (El Colorado) son sat silently for months unable to speak, but his wheels were turning as the language center of his brain was configured. As World Cup 2010 approached he uttered his first words and they were “messy" which the little dribbler would repeat religiously. Initially it was thought by his parents that it was his way of telling his folks -- "clean me up”.

Of course, we now know he really meant "MESSI" on a deeper sub-conscious level; pursuant thereto, Colorado (His Pops) picked up a Messi jersey and the rest is futbol history. This Friday with a loud cry of Messi he will officially kick off the World Cup and hence we welcome the boy revered as a reincarnation of these crazy pirates of the world cup.

2 days and counting! We are in route amigos.

WC Alumnus (and soon to be alumnus)

Dear WC Alumnus (and soon to be alumnus):

Attached hereto please find the inaugural "pirate hall of fame." It looks like the "castro bros" are the common denominator -- nobody else (to date) has had the nuts for a repeat trip. Wussies. Especially yoda and flynn -- they BOOKED their trips to africa, only to succumb to "wife" and/or "kids;" please immediately return your sabers (you can keep the eye-patch, but wear them with some shame). Juan, you can keep your saber because you are a LEGEND -- "the big one" told his wife he was going to el mundial while he was on his way to the airport; pursuant thereto, keep your saber, eye-patch, and we will send you a wooden leg to (beat your family with, of course).

3 days until kick off 1 day until departure

World cup fever is in full swing as I am adrift in all consuming futbol thought. With the first leg of my trip tomorrow the journey commences. So looking forward to meeting like minded fanatics pulling for their nations and embracing the host nation.

As always we will be following every kick of every ball throughout the tournament and if you care to follow here an amazing link that should help you plug into the world’s greatest tournament.

http://www.marca.com/deporte/futbol/mundial/sudafrica-2010/calendario-english.html

World Cup Predictions: Vamos Argentina!

The obvious favorites are basically the same usual suspects - the multiple winners (Uruguay aside) - Argentina, Brasil, Italy, and Germany. I think the winner will definitely come from those four, but as European Champions Spain might make a bid in 2010. The remaining contenders are Netherlands, Portugal, England and France with my dark horses as Mexico, Cameroon and Paraguay.

Brasil- They are the only team to advance to all 19 World Cups and lead the competition with five championships. Ouch! We learned to despise our South American neighbor early on so I will keep it short and sweet. With Cesar in goal along in Kaka in the midfield and Fabiano up front and the absorbent talent they are always a threat. I think they are saving themselves for Rio in 2014 because Dunga left out players like Ronaldinho, Pato and Adriano and is already officially complaining to the FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke about the ball. I love the retort…Valcke suggested Brazil may be preparing to use the ball as an excuse for a poor performance at the World Cup. "its months now since the ball has been put into the market by Adidas," Valcke said, questioning the timing of the complaints.” Better luck in Rio where hosts tend to perform. It will be a good party and plans are already in the works for the next pirate excursion!

Italy- With four titles under their belt and the reigning world champions it is hard to talk shit. Chances of repeating are not in their favor, no team has won consecutive World Cup championships since Brazil did it in 1958 and 1962, but they were the first to repeat back in the day. The team has gained some new faces since 2006, but they are still lacking a scoring striker making them a more predictable and less effective unit. It will be another defensive effort with the hope that keeper Buffon and Cannavaro push it to penalties. They do look vulnerable warm-up defeat to Mexico. Carnnavaro and Lippi claimed it was due to fatigue from the intensive fitness work outs. WC starts next week! Futbol shape is year round for this caliber of players. I am calling bullshit. Without a, striker (10) I don’t see a repeat happening!

Germany- they have won the World Cup three times, behind only Brasil and Italy. They have finished as runners-up four times, two more than any other side. In terms of semi-final appearances, Germany leads with 11, one more than Brazil's 10. With their captain, Ballack, out they appear far less strong than in recent tournaments, but simply cannot be discounted. I love it was a German-born Ghanaian international Kevin-Prince Boateng that took him out. Sabotage! How many non-Germans does it take to win a World Cup?

Spain- Playing great futbol and with depth they have eight straight wins in qualifying and have blown away all-comers including England in friendly matches. Top-to-bottom, they have few weaknesses. Torres and Villa up front , Fabregas, Silva, Xavi at midfield and Puyol and Sergio Ramos anchor the defence with Valdes as third-string behind Casillas & Reina. Spain won all three games in the group stage four years ago and probably wins all of its matches in the opening round this year as well. Spain is in the best position in its history to finally lift the trophy, and leave the Netherlands as the most notable country without a title.

Netherlands- Clearly the best team in their group. Marwijk's has many solid players including Robben and Sneijder, who led their respective club teams, Bayern and Inter, to the Champions League final this season.The duo has made more than 100 combined appearances for the Netherlands, with Sneijder scoring 12 goals and Robben 11. Dutch defense is also much improved with captain Giovanni van Bronckhorst anchoring the unit. They have height and are always dangerous as they come to play arguably the best team to never win the World Cup.

Portugal- They enter as the third-ranked team in the world according to FIFA, but they certainly didn't look like it in qualifying as they finished behind Denmark in their group and needed to beat Bosnia-Herzegovina in a playoff just to reach the World Cup. Much of Portugal's success hinges on the play of Cry-baby Ronaldo, who must drop his step over antics so he can start sharing the scoring load with likes of Nani and Deco. Considered to be this World Cup's "Group of Death," their group features two of the world's three top-ranked teams Brazil and Portugal - as well as a dangerous dark horse in the Ivory Coast. Prior to Drogba's injury, second place in the group appeared to be up for grabs between Portugal and the Ivory Coast. Portugal should have enough to comfortably move into the next round. A second-place finish in the group could mean a second-round matchup with Spain, something that would not bode well for back street boy and Portugal. If Figo was unable to capture that elusive World Cup title for Portugal as part of the country's golden generation I don’t think back Street Ronaldo has it in him, but he is only 25 and at the top of his game. However, his performances for Portugal have been underwhelming as he failed to score in seven qualification games and couldn't guide the team past the quarterfinals of Euro 2008. Portugal won't get past Spain!

England- the odds on winning the World Cup is now an even longer shot after Ferdinand (captain), is out of the tournament. Capello's recent run of bad luck and Rooney’s hot temper although it has been in check lately is always volatile. Let’s not forget the testicle crunching fiasco on Portugal's Carvalho that dashed their hope in 2006. This will not bode well for them. Let’s hope they stick around long enough so the pikeys’ can travel SA. Pikey literally translates to mean 'Filthy rude inbred shit', or "fat, tax averting, robbers who resort to violence and lack of personal hygiene as a way through life". When the Falklands are returned they will have a chance. La malvinas son nuestras!

France- Thierry’s handball goal karma will be too much to overcome. Quote from Henry himself “Naturally, I feel embarrassed at the way that we won and feel extremely sorry for the Irish who definitely deserve to be in South Africa”. That said, we (Argentina) won a cup with the infamous hand of god so anything is possible! I so wish the Irish were in the tournament. You have to love a nation that applauds a goal from the opponent to motivate the equalizer. On a more recent note France was beaten today 1-0 in an upset by non-qualifier China who was missing several starters. This can’t be a confidence builder for the 2006 World Cup finalist who by the way has conceded a goal in each of its last three friendlies while scoring just twice. And there is the sex scandal involving an underage prostitute that centers on Ribery, and has cast some shadows over the team in the build-up to the tournament. Surrender flag is in their future.

Mexico- Mexico's schedule of 12 games in preparation for the World Cup has boosted team morale, particularly a 2-0 victory over defending World Cup champion Italy. It was Mexico's first victory over Italy in any match. 8th win in 12 friendly matches prior to SA. Its only two losses were against England and the Netherlands. They never have gotten past the QF as much as I hate to admit it this team could be one of the big surprises in South Africa. Penalty kicks will be their demise. Who will miss the penalty shot? Blanco! I do like Giovani dos Santos to make his.

Cameroon-2010 will be the first to be staged on African soil and to date no African side has reached the semi final stage, but history has proved that home advantage always plays a part in World Cup. Six of the seven world champions have won on their own turf. The 2010 hosts are the lowest ranked hosts of a World Cup in history currently ranked 88th in FIFA rankings and they are battling Mexico Uruguay & France for two places. I was pulling for the Ivory Coast but with the broken arm to Drogba against Japan it seems I am going with Cameroon. They reached the quarter finals in 1990 and will have something to prove. If they and Eto can gel as a team the have the speed and skills to wear down any contender. They have plenty of experience with many players plying their trade in the top European leagues, but they will need to make it past the first round where they would be up against a side from Italy, Paraguay & Slovakia the likely opponents. They have the best chance and could easily find themselves in the QF. Home cooking will definitely in the works if they make it to the finals!

Paraguay- finished a respectable third in the South American qualifying round for the and holds an edge over New Zealand which picks up only its second appearance in a cup and Slovakia which enters for the first time as an independent national team. They have the great chance to make it out of their group and then all bets are off. Dark horse, but they could make things interesting this world cup.

Argentina- On paper this Argentina squad is an all star cast, but can they play under Diego’s inept direction. We did not impress during qualifiers and posted a 0-6 loss to Bolivia & barley qualified via a Palermo goal against Peru, but fortunately prior world cups will tell you that qualifying form is a poor indicator of the tournament winner. If Diego can solve the defensive issues (our Achilles) scoring should not be too much of a problem for us. On paper this Argentina squad has goal scorers in Messi (47), Tevez (29), Aguero (20), Milito (30) and Higuian (29). (155 goals this season in total). If Messi can overcome the scrutiny of the argentine media who constantly reminds him of his modest six goals during qualifiers as compared to the staggering numbers while at Barcelona he will translate his success into international glory and cement his legacy with the other greats. He is only 22 so hopefully he will not be the focal point for the team so he can do what he does best making teams pay if they let him out of their sight. Even with Maradona prowling the sidelinesI am picking the motherland to win it all! Nationalism aside! Vamos Argentina!