What sports teams do you support?

[Arneb]

I should mention that Union Berlin won 3 - 1 against a blood- and lifeless Borussia Dortmund. That's a sensational victory, David vs. Goliath style. Hertha may be about to lose my useless support...

[Heid the Ba]

That is a great result for Union.

[Heid the Ba]

Fuck.

Played 31, won 18, drawn 5, lost 8

[Arneb]

It must be a really, really bad weekend if a Fürth draw in Bielefeld ist the one joy to cling to.

[Heid the Ba]

We must take our joy where we can.

[Arneb]

Germany 2 - 4 Netherlands

It's never as bad as at home to the Kaasköppe

Played 32, won 18, drawn 5, lost 9

[Lianachan]

Ooft, a sore one there Arneb.

Meanwhile:

Scotland 1 - 2 Russia

Played 33, won 18, drawn 5, lost 10.

[Arneb]

Norn Iron 0 - 2 Germany , in a European qualifier

The tough opposition we had to expect, and the sometimes figety play by a German team still reeling from Friday's humiliation. In the end, it was the better individual players and a certain reluctance to give in.

Played 34, won 19, drawn 5, lost 10

[Heid the Ba]

Scotland 0 - 4 Cloggies' Neighbours

We were lucky to get nil.

Played 35, won 19, drawn 5, lost 11.

[MM_Dandy]

FIBA 1/4 finals results:
France 89 - 79 USA. Despite not fielding an optimal team, this is still a significant upset for team USA. France really has one very good player, Rudy Gobert, another NBA starter in Evan Fournier, and a handful of current and former NBA journeymen. While these aren't the best players that USA basketball might have put on the court, they were still either NBA starters or the first players off of their benches. Precisely at the time that they should have been able to exert dominance, they withered, getting outscored 22-5 over the last eight minutes of the game.

USA goes on to play for 5th against a pretty good Serbia team. Spain, France, Argentina, and Australia advance to the semis.

[MM_Dandy]

FIBA consolation bracket results - Serbia hands the US another upset loss: 94-88.

Serbia hit everything early on, and lead 32-7 at one point, even though the talent on Serbia isn't even as good as France's. Bogdan Bogdanavich is a bordeline NBA all-star, but after that, the talent drops off much more steeply. Again, where the US should have been able to recover and close out the game with fresher or superior legs, they came up short.

Note: I thought this was the 5th place game, but it turns out that it was a consolation semi-final, and now the US will play either Poland or Czech Republic for 7th.

[Arneb]

.Gosh, USA not winning at Basketball always takes some getting used to.

[MM_Dandy]

They've missed medaling several times at the FIBA tournament before, most recently in 2002, but this is their worst outing.

In the meantime, Argentina took care of France, and Spain outlasted Australia in a close contest.

[Arneb]

SpVgg Greuther Fürth 2 - 1 SV Wehen Wiesbaden

Played 36, won 20, drawn 5, lost 11.

That should set the example.

ETA: And with a penalty at 90+1! Onward, llama soldiers

[Arneb]

One - nil down at the 40th - away to the one team that's even worse than us...

[Arneb]

Equalized ten minutes from time, got the headshot in extra.

FSV Mainz 05 2 - 1 Hertha BSC

Last of the table, with the single point from the away game against Bayern
Played 37, won 20, drawn 5, lost 12.

[Heid the Ba]

Sheesh. Fuerth score late, you lose one late. We left it late against a team we should have beaten easily.

Rangers 3 - 1 Livingston

Played 38, won 21, drawn 5 lost 12.

[Lianachan]

Didn’t leave it as late as us, with an injury time winner. Still, winners is as winners does, right?

Ross County 2 - 1 St Mirren

Played 39, won 22, drawn 5, lost 12.

[Heid the Ba]

Right.

[Arneb]

Totally. 3 up, one down isn't too bad. And when Hertha play Zweite Bundesliga again, we can expect even more wins , too.

[Arneb]

Something for the footie junkies

R. I. P., Rudi Gutendorf

Died at 93, at home in Koblenz. A forward of moderate success in the 50s, he turned to coaching/managing at a young age to become the coach with the most professional teams on his roster, ever: 55 teams in 30 countries, among them several national teams. He was not notable for his great successes (second place in the first ever Bundesliga season with MSV Duisburg was his biggest success), but for his groundbraking work with teams he somtimes had to build from scratch. Most notable was his "Miracle of Kigali" when he built a Rwandan nationanal team out of Tutsi and Hutu players, a mere year or so after the massacre of the Tutsis that killed close to a million people in '94.

Well done, well lived, man. Have a safe journey and may you always find a way around a thight defense.

[Heid the Ba]

Indeed, well played that man.

[Arneb]

Another nice one, although with a bit of an eye-roll.

I told you of Hertha's coach Pál Dárdai, right - the one who had more than 300 caps for Hertha and was their coach for four years before separating amicably this summer. the plan is he will take over Hertha's top youth team next year.

Now it turns Hertha and he haven't even separated: He has gone back to collecting caps, playing for Hertha's Senior team. In the first round of the Berlin FA Senior's Cup, they beat Wittenauer SC Concordia (you surely have heard of that club!), 3 - 1. Except thay haven't, because Pál Dárdai forgot to upload his photo for his digital Player's Pass. Of course it is totally immateriel here that EVERYONE who has got ANYTHING to do with football in Berlin knows Pál Dárdai and can testify as to his identity. Instead, Hertha fielded a player without a licence, and were duly given a defeat "at the green table", crahsing out of the Berlin FA Senior's Cup in the first round, love-six.

Now if that isn't Hertha fuckuppery, then what is?

[Heid the Ba]

That is so very Hertha.

[Heid the Ba]

Talking of ways to fuck up: the Chase the Egg World Cup starts this weekend, Scotland should get through the group stages but Japan will beat someone they shouldn’t and if it us then we’re out since we’ll lose our opener against the Pig Fuckers, beat Russia and then face Japan. Canada and the US are making up the numbers and Tubesistan may well win the whole thing. Again. Germany and Singapore did not qualify.