Rolling Rambling Rave (and a Recovering Roar)

Now after several very critical blogs about the Brisbane Roar my dear son Jacob is insisting that I write a positive one, and there was some real positives from last night so I shall concentrate on them. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your perspective), John over at A Seat At the A-league did a pretty good job of the negatives, so I get to play good cop.

But first an aside about my lad Jacob. His indoor soccer team, 'The West End [censored]', is undefeated after 8 rounds and top of their table. Yesterday they won 21:5 (3 to Jacob). The problem when they're thrashing a team is their game falls apart as each one of them starts taking turns to run at the goal and shoot by themselves, rather than using it as a training game for their real nemesis (The Razor Blades) who they haven't played yet. Their defense fell to bits and they conceded 3 goals in as many minutes (to a team who has only scored 10 in 7 games). I've discovered the strategy of cheering loudly for their opposition to stir them up. Yesterday it seemed to work, and they started slotting their own again, except with decent crossing and maintaining their shape.

I'm also still playing futsal on a Tuesday night, though no longer with the Red Eye Pirates, who are disbanded unfortunately, but with the Ligers. All fun. I might write about this crew some more some time, but yesterday I heard a cool rumour about the futsal centre (at West End Primary School) which I intend to check out tomorrow night. No other than Roar striker Sergio van Dijk plays in goals for a futsal team in that same centre on Monday nights. I'm told his keeping is pretty crap, and I guess it's just a fun way for a bit of extra fitness and sociality for him, but I am very keen to see for myself.

Ok, back to the Brisbane Roar, and the game last night. 0:1 loss to Melbourne, as we know I'm sure. But here are the positives as I see it:

1. It cost Jacob and I $25 to get in. That makes it affordable. It makes it more of a, "Hey, let's go to the football," than a ($65), "Ah, I'll just check my finances to see if we can afford to go to the football." This issue is exacerbated for me as I'm saving my biscuits for the big trip to South Africa in June next year. Much more expensive I know (about $20,000 for Jacob and I for three games), but let's just say I reckon it's worth every penny.

2. The advertising was good. The adds had a parochial (Brisbane) theme (which as I've written before is probably the best angle). I saw one during the final Rove program on Sunday night (the most overrated comedian in Australian television history, but popular all the same). Then I saw one during the shorts before 2012 at the cinema (this movie should be cut to 45 minutes, abolishing all the actors, renamed "The End of the World" and put to a rock n' roll soundtrack, after which it would be quite brilliant viewing). There was some print adds too I spotted, and generally I'd never felt so exposed to a game beforehand as this game. I suspected that this was a big reason for the increased crowd, and it was confirmed anecdotally by a friend I met at half-time who said he saw adds a few times before deciding to go with his girlfriend. He also noted the excellent timeslot, but I know that's more-or-less out of the Roar board's control, especially at this stage of the season.

3. Now, I try not to let my impressions be too educated. That is, I try to reflect what I actually felt at the time, on the assumption that this authentic viewpoint will be shared by many everyday (as contrary to hardcore) punters. So I already know that many people disagree with what I'm about to say, and that perhaps it reflects my hopeless ignorance about the game, but keep in mind that most people are at least as ignorant as me. I thought the lads played as well as I've seen them play. I can not name one player that played badly.

John's comment that we are too slow up front certainly rings true, but all that can be said for sure is that the Melbourne defense beat the Roar's attack. Without an elaborate analysis with high-tech equipment it's really impossible to say whether we were too slow or Melbourne were exceptionally quick to defend. We certainly seemed to dominate and make more convincing attacks, starting from about 90 seconds into the game.

For reasons to do with one of Jacob's mates I was watching Packer's game in particular. I love a wing back who attacks, and his combination with Tiatto attacking up the wing was great to watch. In general there was plenty of combination play. Henrique showed both his speed and inexperience, and missed one good chance in particular, but I still couldn't say he played badly.

But I can't with all integrity get through this without some criticism of the experience. As has been said over and over, the refereeing quality is shocking and inconsistent. Without a replay nobody in the home crowd knew why an apparently clinical goal was disallowed. I had to surf the media to find out. At another point we were sitting precisely behind the linesman, perpendicular to the sideline, when the linesman who was actually looking away incorrectly called Henrique offside. I completely participated in hurling abuse at the stupid bastard, and the crowd around me felt pre-riot. There were other incidents less blatant, and the totality of the experience was... I'm searching for the right words... deeply disturbing. Just left a lump of gunk where your fan's heart is supposed to be. It utterly ruined an otherwise positive experience.

This evening (Ballymore 6pm) I'm off to the last Roar women's homegame of the season, and the reffing issue made me consider one of the reasons I love it so much. Clearly it's not that the reffing's better - that would be a foolish claim I think. It's that the quality of refs and officials can keep up with the relatively slow pace and hence get most things right. Poor decisions on the part of officials, especially when you are denied a replay and have no way of knowing why a decision is made, I am increasingly convinced, is an enormous detraction from enjoying the game.

Anyway, I can't wait for tonight, when for $5 I know I'll have a really wonderful time, win or lose. The girls put the lads to shame when it comes to fair play (see Fiona Crawford's blog on this). When one stays down you know she is injured and you immediately feel for the player's pain because you know it's real. (All the best for a speedy recovery Brooke Spence).

Jacob is too much of a man to enjoy the women's game. He prefers boys. :) Truly, I've even explained to him how many chicks there are of his age there watching, and he's still not convinced. He prefers the pace - along with the diving, theatrics, poor reffing and long journeys on public transport. I can see his perspective of course, but it is my job to give him shit. He gives as good as he gets.

Well that was a ramble. To anyone who got this far, my apologies.

Go girls!!!

A Good Week Overall

It's getting late and I'm on my third (and last) whiskey, and I just feel like writing something, so here's the week in review.

Obviously a win would have been great for the Roar, but I remember seeing the Roar beat Wellington at Suncorp Stadium two weekends ago, along with the revelation of Zullo and Kruse, and I remember thinking, "Hell, that was a breakthrough, but the next two games are away against the two top teams Central Coast and Newcastle - if we get through those, ok I'll be happy." A win and a draw was fine and, risking the revenge of hubris, I reckon with Tiatto back we can watch the boys beat Perth at home next week, so overall I'm pretty cool with all that.

And as I blogged earlier in the week, our Futsal team (The Red Eye Pirates) won 4:1 on Tuesday, so this morning topped off a good week when Jacob's Indoor team (The West End Terrors) won 6:1 against 'The Blues'. Why, oh why, do they have to so often concede a goal in the opening minute? It's like they wander on to the pitch still thinking about X-Box or Runescape or something, and then realise where they are only after the other team scores. It was the fate of their outdoor team as well. It's like the way they prepare mentally for the game is to go one down. How can I prepare them mentally before they go on the pitch? I'm sure Newcastle is thinking the same thing at the moment. Anyway, Jacob was in goals for the second half and although he wasn't under too much pressure (the Blues weren't that good) he kept his own clean sheet. Congrats to Stav (2), Max (2), Cal and Declan for the goals. Fun was had for all.

It was a good week. It's an embarrassing thought, but my emotional state at a given time is hugely influenced by the fortunes of these three great football teams, The Queensland Roar, The Red-Eye Pirates and The West End Terrors, in no particular order.

Tipping the Final Curtain

Tony was the only one to get a point last week, which was not enough to put him in contention. Noone can beat Jacob now in fact, though if the cards fall perfectly John may equalise.

Here are our scores:

Jacob: 39
John: 36
Hamish: 35
Tony: 35
Dave: 34
Drsimmo: 33

And now for the final act, which is promising to be a cracker betwen two great teams.

I'm tipping Adelaide to beat Melbourne 3:2.

Jacob's tip:
Melbourne 2:1

Incidentally, The West End Terrorists beat Sickaz last week 2 nil in a tightly fought match of Indoor Soccer. But the winter soccer is all getting organised and the boys start training for that this week. Jacob keeps saying now that he can't wait for 'real soccer' to start. To which I reply, "Me too."

To the ineffable universal, may the Grand Final be a cracker, may the best team win, may there be good sportsmanship on and off the field, and may there be no serious injuries.

Cheers.

Blogging some Bollocks

Yeah, I know I haven't really been on the blog, and I know everyone is still talking about the A-League. I reckon it's cool that Sydney have been knocked out, as they deserve in my view, but I haven't been watching the games, and have been content to read the analysis from Mike, Tony, John, Cecilia and Wayne.

I've also gotten a bit involved in the discussions over at the Queensland Roar Supporter's Forum. I'll do a bit of an analysis of that one day perhaps. Right now suffice to say that when it comes to "Why I hate Sydney?" I just don't relate. I don't even think it's funny.

Increasingly I'm thinking that it is hatred that is the irrational demon in our game. For all its glory, beauty and transcendental spectacle, is is just me who can see that football doesn't mean anything at all? That is, it means EVERYTHING of course, but meanwhile it means nothing at all. That's Football's superiority as a religion: unlike other religions, there is no pretense that some universal incontrovertability is underlying it. Unlike with other religions, there is no claim that football is not an earthy institution completely contrived and constantly corrupted by humans. Unlike with other religions, at the end of the day we can have a beer and a laugh with our most bitter enemies. I don't hate Sydney. I'm just bloody pleased that they're out.

For the handful of longer-term followers of this particular blogscape, The West End Terrorists are back for their second season, which is just a snappy two months ending with a finals day between the top four on the 31st March, just in time for the winter soccer to begin. For those who have no idea what I'm talking about, the The Terrorists are the indoor soccer team my son is part of, and which I manage.

Last week they began well with a 3:2 win over The Hogz, but unfortunately this week (yesterday - Sat - morning) they were defeated with the same score, by AC Milan. Personally I blame school 'leadership' camp, where after being expected to go to sleep in cabins full of old mates at 8.30pm, the rest of the night is a bitter and exhausting conflict between adults and children, finally resolved by corporal deprivations of enforced standing still and quiet outside for hours. I remember that crap from when I was a kid and I still think it sucks. The kids got back Friday night and needless to say they were all quite stuffed.

Meanwhile the world is full of the beauty of our game and institution. For Brisbane folk, the kick-about continues every Sunday at 4.30pm at South Leagues Club. Last week we got up to 12 a side. The real over-35s competition looms, which will be my first organised competition since I was about 8. But tomorrow, for the sheer hell of it really, I'm also going to a kick about in the morning with the Roar supporters crew, at Tarragindi. Might be an interesting thing. I've learned heaps about watching the game by playing it, and for any football tragic with even a modicum of health and fitness, I think it is compulsory. You've just got to kick one of those balls occasionally.

And there is always, always football games to watch. For the last two Saturdays, cheaper than Fox and more convenient than Suncorp, I've watched games down at the local pitch at El Salvador Soccer Club. 20 or 30 fans, not including the birds, a Corona from the humble little bar run by volunteers, and some wholesome, passionate football. Last week was 'Brazil' vs 'Lebanon'. These were pretty much fully ethnic teams as far as I could tell, screaming at one another out there with their own lingual protocols. Of course I expected the Brazilians to win but they were thrashed by the Mediteraneans. This week was two 'El Salvador' teams, less ethnically based, but with some great individual skill. It was an entertaining 2:2 draw, with a red card and a bit of fire toward the end. Good stuff. You could write volumes about the worse things one could do with a Saturday afternoon.

Football is a religion. It's not just the A-League. It's not for the elite. A part of it will always be a ball of socks on a dusty street in the sun, but it flowers and grows and articulates. It's solace, it's esperanto, it's biophilia, it's love.

A Football Day

G'day. I wasn't going to write anything today, because I missed the game last night anyway and probably won't be watching tonight's either (even though it's on Fox Sport 1, so at least the pubs will have it).

Congratulations to Central Coast though! From the media I've read, it looks like they're back in the Comp. And without wanting to sound unsympathetic to Carbone, we have at least observed the vanity of putting too much hope in a super-striker. Mike Salter over at The Football Tragic is in denial of course, and has chosen to review the fans rather than the game. Forgive me Mike - my ribbing is in good spirit.

But aside from all that A-League nonsense I had a great football day today. I've taken on the mangement of a boys under 12 indoor soccer team, called... um... The West End Terrorists.
They made the name ok, and over some mild protests from the parents, including me, they have had their way. I'm assuming those men in dark suits and sunglasses with funny hearing aids were just interested onlookers.

Anyway, we're a week behind, and some of the kids have never been on an indoor soccer pitch before or kicked one of the oversized tennis balls they use, so they lost 5:1, but they had a hoot. It is really fast and, because they're not allowed to hit it over head height and there's only five to a side on a small court, the ball work and short passing is intense. I was completely impressed, and on a first viewing can only recommend it as an off season game to keep the kids' skills up.

It is at the Brisbane Indoor Sports Centre.

That was this morning, and this evening I went for a run by myself. Look, I'm 38 and haven't tried to keep in shape for about forty years , until becoming addicted to football about a month ago, so when I say 'a run', I mean a bit of running and a bit of walking, down to the river and back.

The route I take takes me through the El Salvador Football Club, and there was a five-a-side game going on. My mate Keitch, who coached Jacob's team the last two seasons, was playing, so I stopped and watched for a bit. Reflecting as I sat, catching my breath and watching these young skilled blokes dance around one another, it occurred to me that football isn't complete without days like today. Kids and locals, kicking about, breathing the air together, with volunteer refs and more pigeons than fans. Call me sentimental. Following the Socceroos and the A-League only enhances this experience for me, just as the local experience brings the quality and professionalism of the former into proper, sharper relief.

I love football. It might have saved my life. In the words of Tim Parks, it has given me "...a new and fiercely ironic way of forming community and engaging with the sacred." (Thanks to commentor Guido for that link.)

Best of luck tonight to the two underdogs New Zealand and Newcastle. Whoever wins, I pray to Saint Johnny Warren that they all play their best football and that there are no injuries.

Cheers.