Wednesday, June 21, 2006

England win the Group - Bring on Ecuador on Sunday

England take the lead through Joe Cole's superb 35-yard shot that gives the keeper no chance

We drew 2-2 with Sweden. Not a brilliant England performance but we are through as group winners. We now play Ecuador on Sunday. English supporters here at home are a fickle lot.
  • We have just won 8 straight games and drawn one.
  • We have just topped our group in the World Cup
  • We have just seen Joe Cole score the best goal of the tournament so far.
And yet many English fans are moaning we are not good enough and the manager has to go! July 9th is the final and I guess if we win it those same English fans will be saying 'I knew all along we would win it.' That is the nature of the beast. Real English soccer fans are wonderful. Apparently our fans have turned Germany into little England. Who says the English have no passion!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Trevor -- Thought you might be interested in my mourning thoughts on the departure of the US team, back across the pond, as posted in our local paper . . .

Perhaps when the American public (beyond Sam's Army) starts to view soccer as the rest of the world's peoples do, the team we field will be carried forward on that emotion and passion to do greater things with more consistent results. We have much to be proud of, and the rest of the world knows that - but when it comes to sport, we are ingrown. Here's to the day soccer really emerges with a visceral hunger on the world pitch.

Anonymous said...

Okay, I have come out of my funk about the US team and have decided I will now root for . . .

This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England

With a name like Field, it seems natural enough.

Trevor Gay said...

Great decision Dick - Welcome to life as a member of England's soccer fans - often called the 'barmy army!'

I really hoped to see the USA team progress and I was disappointed they did not. I hope soccer takes off in a big way over there.

The late Bill Shankly who was manager of Liverpool Football Club once said

'Football is not a matter of life and death - it is far more important than that!'