What sports teams do you support?

[Heid the Ba]

Big day at the TdF, our lads are leading the three big competitions and Wout Van Aert nearly pulled off the outrageous points/mountains double. Three days to go and barring disaster we should see it out. Of course the last time we had a Dane in yellow and looking home and hosed it all went tits up. And two years ago come to think of it.

[Heid the Ba]

Hmm, double post.

[Heid the Ba]

Göal!

[Arneb]

Tough opposition, but I am halfway confident we'll see it through.

[Richard A]

I think so too. Like last night, the match is improving as it goes on.

[Arneb]

So 2 - 0 in the end, after another run provoking the goalie into am error.

France or Oranje, I am afraid, will be a different story altogether See you all for that next Wednesday.

[Arneb]

Ouch.

1. FC Nürnberg 2 - 0 SpVgg Greuther Fürth

We'll be visiting the in-laws on the way home from our summer vacation. This will not go unmentioned, I'm afraid
And Greuther are already struggling even in League Two...

Played 5 Won 2, Drawn 2, Lost 1

[Lianachan]

On the other hand, we have

Ross County 7 - 0 East Fife

Played 6, Won 3, Drawn 2, Lost 1

[Arneb]

7-0 seems a bit generous, doesn't it? You could buy seven wins on that budget

[Lianachan]

Well, they are semi-professional and are in the 4th highest league (we're in the top, natch) so 7-0 apparently at a canter is probably about right.

[Richard A]

England 1-0 up against Sweden, Watching the Sweden - Belgium game, I was hopeful the Lionesses could beat them. Hopefully we can. But either way, firmly behind Germany tomorrow.

[Richard A]

England 1-0 up against Sweden, Watching the Sweden - Belgium game, I was hopeful the Lionesses could beat them. Hopefully we can. But either way, firmly behind Germany tomorrow.

[Richard A]

Come on, Lionesses! Grill those meatballs!

[Arneb]

And grill them they did...

Limeys 4 - 0 Meatballs

Krauts v. Frogs tomorrow, certainly a tough game ahead. After their two respective quarterfinals, I am more optimistic our Krautlasses can pull it off than I was at the beginning of the tournament.

[Richard A]

Well, the Sun shares Arneb's optimism. Its front page headline: "Now Bring On Germany At Wembley!" No mention of France.

But whatever happens tonight and on Sunday - and despite my normal contempt for the Sun, only exceeded by my contempt for the Daily Mail (and possibly Daily Express) - there is one undeniable positive aspect. The Sun has seen fit to have a women's football result as its front page headline. And that is big! As the banner around the stadia has said, "Women play football - not women's football."

[Richard A]

1-1 at half time. Should make for a good 2nd half.

[Arneb]

Arretez les Bleus!

Germany 2 - 1 France

Fuck, that was one great game. See y'all at Wembley!

[Heid the Ba]

And so a new league season begins:
Livingstone 1 - 2 Rangers
We lost a soft goal after five minutes and scored twice late to win.

Played 7, won 4, drawn 2, lost 1

[Arneb]

Meanwhile, Greuther have performed a perfect non-start into the new season, crashing out of the Cup at the first opportunity. To a Fourth Leaguer:

Stuttgarter Kickers 2 - 0 SpVgg Greuther Fürth

Played 8, Won 4, Drawn 2, Lost 2

[Heid the Ba]

It’s going to be a long season.

[Richard A]

My guess is that after Wednesday's result, Arneb decided not to venture into Alsace!

Looking forward to this evening's game. Both teams have been lacklustre at times but have produced the goods when it matters. So it should be a good game whatever the outcome.

[Lianachan]

First league game.

Hearts 2 - 1 Ross County

Played 9, Won 4, Drawn 2, Lost 3.

[Richard A]

Well, a really good 1st half. And if Arneb felt that England got favours from the referee in early games, we're certainly not in this one!

It looks like we'll get a game worthy of the final.

[Arneb]

And a worthy final it was! I was sad we lost, and it was certainly a match between almost equal teams. In the end, they headed out all of our corners and free kicks, while there was always danger after an English standard. So, not undeserved.

In other news, Hertha out-hertha themselves in the first round of the Cup, pissing a way a two nil half-time lead and losing on penalties in the end. I'll count it as a draw, cuz fuck it.

Eintracht Braunschweig 6 - 5 Hertha BSC after penalties (2 - 2 after regular time, 4 -4 (!) after extra time)

As Heid aid, this is going to be a very long season of tears and suffering.

Played 10, Won 4, Drawn 3, Lost 3.

[Richard A]

I was obviously pleased. In many ways it was a replay of the England-Spain game, although I suspect many Germans would say that had Alexandra Popp's injury not come back, it would have been a different story. And maybe it would.

But there's an additional reason for England to celebrate, which commentator and former Lioness Alex Scott made clear in her comments after the game. This really changes things. Until now, in England, women's football has not been taken seriously. OK, Lianachan's comment when I first posted about the Euro 22 on here, "I didn't know it was happening", was from a Scottish perspective, but at that stage, it would have been echoed by many south of the border as well. You heard it in the comments in the lead-up to game, preparing us for a possible defeat (because Germany ALWAYS win the women's Euros), "well, in Germany, women's football is professional, they have long had professional teams, while the English women's footballers have had to buy their own kit" and several references to our new stars training in the park alongside people walking their dogs. (The slogan "Women Play Football - Not Women's Football" advertised a German company, not a British one.) But Scott really hammered it home after the win. I'd noticed that until we got to the late stages, most of the games were in venues that are hardly big-time. Brighton & Hove, Brentford, Rotherham, Wigan. The two Manchester venues being the glorious exception. I'd assumed it was a capacity thing: women's football attracts smaller crowds. But it turned out it was worse than that. Scott had gone cap in hand round the big clubs begging (her word) them to host Euro 22 games and club after club had said, "Nah!" That will now change: women playing football is now on the map here.