Illuminati-R-Us

The talk before the game was about Lehmann's recent errors and then Robinson was worse. They now want Calamity James back. :D

I like to be predictable in my posting.

Texas Rangers did something the other day that hasn't been done in 110 years. Scored 30 runs in one game. Beat the Orioles 30-3.

As a teen, Chuck Norris had sex with every nun in a convent tucked away in the hills of Tuscany. Nine months later the nuns gave birth to the 1972 Miami Dolphins, the only undefeated and untied team in professional football history.

Oh dearie me, Champions League group phase draw:

Barcelona (one of the top 5 sides in the world)
Lyon (defending French champs)
Stuttgart (defending German champs)
Rangers

Ah well, tadgerings await as we play those three home and away.

Ah well, tomorrow we have Ukraine at home and Georgia (the country, not the state) away on wednesday. Both pretty much must win games.

Arneb, you must fancy your lot against the Oirish and Czech?

Despite my pessimism Rangers are doing ok in the Champions League; as are Celtic, the only good thing about that is it helps the co-efficient.

At the moment, the German national football team is a source of great delight. They need one point from these two matches to nail their participation in the Finals. I think it should be doable. However, it will also be a character test: How do you do - from the position of the favourite - against a high-class opposition that has very much to lose.

Interesting games.

Yeah, Rangers are doing well. You see, don't you, that I am not entirely happy with it this particular season...?

Hey, Hertha were top of the table briefly but you seem to be on the slide. The insidious force for evil that is Bayern are on top as usual. When did Eintracht get back in the top division? They were really struggling the last time I noticed them.

It is always difficult when you "only" need a point, sometimes going for the win is easier.

I just fear that we have given ourselves hope and it will all come crashing down about our ears.

Oh, please don't torment me with Hertha. I mean, you donÄT support a sprots team to foster you ulcer, do you?

Frankfurt got back in 2005 and look set to stay. Much more stable performance than in the years before, when they oscillated between leagues.

Go, Bravehearts!

Braveheart?


FRAYDOM!!!

Ireland 0 - 0 Germany.

Not a great match, but they held out against some fierce and skillful attack. Character test, and passed. With a reduced B-grade. Lehmann was impeccable (except fot receiving a yellow card for playing the ball outside the sidelines . He'll miss next Wednesday's top match against the Czeck Republic).

Scotland 3 - 1 Ukraine.

They seem to be the surprise team of the qualification. They do not have to play Italy or France any more, do they? Have a gooooood time, Heid. If you go to Austria, drop by Aachen. Should be about halfway from Edinburgh to Vienna.

England 3 - 0 Ukraine

Well, I somehow didn't dare dream of England actually missing the qualification...

In other news,

France 9 - 14 England in the Rugby World Cup.
Don't worry, Heid. Wasn't their probable oppposition in the Final, South Africa, the team that gutted them 36 - 0 in the first round? :D

Heid the Ba' wrote:Georgia (the country, not the state)

Got that part, thanks :)

Yeah, we're doing ok, trouble is we will probably need a draw or win against Italy in the final game, a game they also need to win. should be interesting. Of course if Ukriane beat France . . .

The english rugby team have inproved dramtically since the last RSA game, and the knockout style suits them. shame about France, I had 10 Euros on them to win the whole thing.

90 minutes to kickoff in Tiblisi, they are playing a 17 yo keeper and a 16 yo midfielder, we can't lose to children can we? Can we?

No, Scotland are theam that couldn't possibly ever crash, aren't they?

I have a comfortable evening ahead of me, with the qualification already secured. However, I would love if we spanked the Czechs, because they humiliated us so deeply in '04. Which in turn might open the door for Ireland, whuich would be nice in itself.

I have to go do something all afternoon, so I will be unable to monitor events in Tiblisi until they are over :(

Russia 2 - 1 England!

Wayne Rooney causing a penalty that gives Russia the equalizer.

8)

Georgia 2 - 0 Scotland



Heid', you can't do this to me, can you? I was expecting you here on stopover to Austria and Switzerland

Arneb wrote:Georgia 2 - 0 Scotland



Heid', you can't do this to me, can you? I was expecting you here on stopover to Austria and Switzerland

As long as we beat Italy, or France lose to Ukraine we are still ok. Not sure either will happen though.

Mrs B has a new job which will take her to Utrecht, Brussels and Ratingen so you may see me yet. :D

Heid the Ba' wrote:Mrs B has a new job which will take her to Utrecht, Brussels and Ratingen so you may see me yet. :D

That is at least a good prospect. However,

Germany 0 - 3 Czech Republic

isn't. It was a dark day for us Illuminati; especially since Ireland is now out. I would have expected some guts from the German team, but apparently they thought they would just breeze past any and every opposition. Some players probably pondered their chances in the Final against whomever - Italy, Netherlands, France, some such. Not like this, folks.

I hadn't checked the Germany result.

You always look bad and then do ok in the finals.

England are hanging on by their fingernails, according to their media they were already there and Russia were no threat.

[rant mode] Did you see the penalty claim we had turned down? Trip in the box, right in front of the ref who didn't give it. Had we scored it would have been 1-1 with an hour to play. Though the way we played last night we'd probably have missed. [/rant mode]

Trying to follow this thread is almost as bad as Mornington Crescent.

Lance wrote:Trying to follow this thread is almost as bad as Mornington Crescent.

What! You simply have to be au fait with:
1. 8 seven team qualifying groups,
2. every previous tournament,
3. qualifyication for every previous tournament,
4. 60 years of petty slights,
5. 150 years of imagined grievances,
6. the importance of the national co-efficients in seeding for qualification,
7. why most countries dislike german football, but hire german coaches,
8. why Scotland, the Faroes and Lithuania always end up in the same group of seven,
9. the fact that Italy and Germany nearly go out in every qualification but do well in the finals,
10. why Spain always qualify comfortably but will never, ever, win any competition.

and others as I remember them.

I mean, really, Lance. You have to get away from your "aw, shucks, Ah dohn' give a wet fart about ROW" mentality.

It isn't that complicated, after all. Especially if you keep in mind that

11. The Netherlands are always favourites, but never win. Anything. Well except the Euro '88 (1988, that is) in Germany when they beat us in the semis and Ronald Koeman wiped his ass with the shirt he had exchanged with Olaf Thon. In turn, when they didn't make it to the 2002 World Cup, we... O.K., never mind.

12. Germany always draw the easiest group - in every tournament -, and everybody else complains.

13. England never. never. NEVER win a penalty shootout (look that up, you American chauvinist)

14. Germany always play Albania during qualification, or San Marino, but preferably both (see 12).

Arneb wrote:I mean, really, Lance. You have to get away from your "aw, shucks, Ah dohn' give a wet fart about ROW" mentality.

ROW?

15. The obvious is rarely correct. The Faroe Islands best performance is not beating Scotland, it is going 1-0 up against Denmark in Copenhagen, a game then then lost. Denmark are the colonial oppressors to them. Yes those Danes, the easy going, happy, shag anything Danes.

16a. Current boundaries mean little in Central Europe. Which is why two of Germany's strikers were born in what is now Poland, why some Poles are Ukranian etc. Generally everyone dislikes their nearest large neighbour.

16b. No Western European country will do a neighbour a favour to help them qualify, see Denmark -v- Sweden in 2004. It ended a draw but Denmark were celebrating putting Sweden out until an 88th minute equaliser.

16c. Germany and Austria once contrived a draw that suited them both, but we don't talk about that.

17. Germany and Netherlands have a history, including the shirt incident, Frank Rijkaard spitting in Rudi Voeller's ear, and other hilarity.

18. The offside rule is largely unworkable, but FIFA won't change it.

19. Draws can be exciting.

20. In any tournament an England player will be sent off for petulance, and it is always funny.