The Australia vs Bahrain Experience

Tonight I invited myself to some friends' house, Kietch, the Japanese coach of my son Jacob's team, and Tony, the Vietnamese father of a team-mate of Jacob's.

Tony, who owns the local fruit and vege shop, cooked some beautiful food, lamb with lemon grass rice. I brought a bottle of Jamesons Whiskey (my preferred drop), and we settled into watching a most enjoyable game of football indeed.

I've noted before how it seems that teams don't play as beautifully when they're panicked. Well I'm now making the further note that perhaps teams fall apart a bit when they're too cock-sure of themselves. Now it might be a difficult point to make, because there's no doubt Australia dominated, and... well... they won, very convincingly. But from where I sit it should have been 4:nil rather than 2:nil. Am I being too picky? Maybe, but I'll go on.

It's maybe a strange thing that it is when Australia is so unambiguously dominant against a clearly inferior opposition that their key, abiding weakness becomes most clear. There is nobody who can dribble up front for one thing. But at the same time there appears to be a great difficulty in bringing the crosses from the wings to fruition in goal. The opportunities were falling from the sky, apparently every few minutes, but to little avail.

In short, our forward action seems to be wanting. In saying so, I now duck for cover.

The two goals were both just wonderful stuff. No question. Bresciano's in particular was world class. I could watch it again and again and each time my heart leaps. So don't get me wrong. My hat is firmly off for our boys tonight. But the Bahrainies were a bunch of unblooded kids. We knew they were easy meat, and frankly my hat is off to them as well, for their bravery and for their spirited effort to the end. Is it forgivable to suggest the Socceroos really should have done even better?

My Asian mates and I have agreed to get together to watch the Asia Cup games together, with the important exception of the case if Japan and Australia end up in the finals. In that case we shall watch the game in seperate circumstances.

Good night.