England

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just now, S8 & Blue said:

Similar story with the men’s team, and many teams at the moment to be honest.

Its trendy I suppose, but you have to have the players to do it or a high press and intercept completely cancels out any benefit.

Yeah, it turns into pass it around until you lose it in dangerous areas with most teams.

[Husky]

Just now, S8 & Blue said:

Similar story with the men’s team, and many teams at the moment to be honest.

Its trendy I suppose, but you have to have the players to do it or a high press and intercept completely cancels out any benefit.

It was a bit strange really. For all that dicking around and giving the ball away at the back The USA only had one chance when the keeper passed it straight to their player and she curled it wide.

[SBlue]

The biggest difference is not whether you are able to play it out, but knowing when to.

Either way, that’s like England men pushing Brazil 1970 in a semi. The yanks are a level above - but we aren’t too far off...

Roll on the Olympics!

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just now, S8 & Blue said:

The biggest difference is not whether you are able to play it out, but knowing when to.

Either way, that’s like England men pushing Brazil 1970 in a semi. The yanks are a level above - but we aren’t too far off...

Roll on the Olympics!

As a real pedant can I just mention that the England v Brazil game in 1970 was in the group stage. I know it felt like a semi final but it wasn't.

Edited July 2, 2019 by Tyrone Shoelaces

[jim mk2]

Yet another tale of heroic English failure. Good but always not quite good enough. I've been watching it for 60 years and it's depressing. No doubt there'll be another screw-up in the cricket tomorrow. 

The US played a high pressing game and forced England into errors - it was like watching Guardiola's City team.  The penalty (which wasn't) was awful.

Worst of all was Pearce's "commentary".  I turned the sound off and it was far more enjoyable

[SBlue]

11 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

As a real pedant can I just mention that the England v Brazil game in 1970 was in the group stage. I know it felt like a semi final but it wasn't.

Haha I meant the current men’s team playing against the best of all time (1970 Brazil just popped in there)

Mixing me metaphors with an industrial blender!

[DeeCee]

Everyone seems to be raving about the WWC, is it just me that thinks it's a bag of shit?

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just now, DeeCee said:

Everyone seems to be raving about the WWC, is it just me that thinks it's a bag of shit?

Looks like it. I take it for what it is-a game of football. Tonight's game had me on the edge of my seat.

[gumboots]

Just now, DeeCee said:

Everyone seems to be raving about the WWC, is it just me that thinks it's a bag of shit?

Whilst I wouldn't use that term I agree with the sentiment. Generally at the start of each game you knew who would win and the overhyping of the England team's chances was ridiculous. If we were honest we'd all admit that unless we played it like a cup tie and got lucky as well we'd lose. Who genuinely thought we'd score the pen? Nobody except the OTT commentators

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just now, jim mk2 said:

Yet another tale of heroic English failure. Good but always not quite good enough. I've been watching it for 60 years and it's depressing. No doubt there'll be another screw-up in the cricket tomorrow. 

The US played a high pressing game and forced England into errors - it was like watching Guardiola's City team.  The penalty (which wasn't) was awful.

Worst of all was Pearce's "commentary".  I turned the sound off and it was far more enjoyable

I don't agree about the pen. Her striking foot was just nudged as it was moving towards the ball.  Good decision via VAR.

[DeeCee]

Just now, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Looks like it. I take it for what it is-a game of football. Tonight's game had me on the edge of my seat.

I turned it over at half time, tbh wouldn't have watched it at all if it wasn't England in a semi final.

[frosty]

It wasn't a penalty for me. There was 'contact' but that's only because her foot hit the defender's leg as she pulled her own leg back to strike the ball. The defender was just running and didn't make any kind of challenge - harsh to be penalised for that.

[Husky]

36 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I don't agree about the pen. Her striking foot was just nudged as it was moving towards the ball.  Good decision via VAR.

Yes. She was about to put the ball in the net from just yards out when her leg was taken. In terms of stopping a goalscoring chance you can't really get more stone-wall than that. More often than not penalties are given when there's little to no immediate danger at all.

Another thing that's nice to see in the women's game is that they in the most part take the officials decisions with very good grace (Cameroon apart, lol) with no chasing and crowding the ref. That's something that for some reason they don't seem to want to stamp out of the men's game. It's going to be seriously weird watching Premier league again with all the spoilt babies crying round the officials for half the game. It's about time they gave immediate yellow cards for dissent or at least set up some kind of 5-10 minute sin bin for whining. That would make the boringly predictable Premier league much more interesting - with Arsenal more than likely in the relegation fight.

Edited July 2, 2019 by Husky

[SBlue]

49 minutes ago, DeeCee said:

I turned it over at half time, tbh wouldn't have watched it at all if it wasn't England in a semi final.

Thanks for the update.

 

It was a pen for me, but only just. Was a fantastic move prior and I’d have put my house on White to tuck it away, was harder to miss - so the contact surely impeded her.

Edited July 2, 2019 by S8 & Blue

[Exiled_Rover]

They need to seriously revisit VAR before they unleash it on the wider world.

How that White goal was offside is beyond me. Clear and obvious was the remit. That was neither.

[SBlue]

Just now, Exiled_Rover said:

They need to seriously revisit VAR before they unleash it on the wider world.

How that White goal was offside is beyond me. Clear and obvious was the remit. That was neither.

As has been said before, these offside decisions show that the problem is with the rule, and not with VAR.

If anything, it proves that the technology works.

By the book, that was the correct decision.

 

 

Still, absolutely bollocks.

[arbitro]

8 hours ago, Exiled in Toronto said:

Second best throughout, gave the ball away constantly. 

Was the plan for VAR that it would disallow goals and award pens for minuscule infractions invisible to the naked eye? And what happened to daylight between the forward and the last defender?

One of my fears about VAR was that it would sanitise the game. If you take the letter of the law to the n'th degree there was contact but anybody who knows the game understands that it was completely unintentional. I'm just so glad that it won't be in the Championship next season but it won't be long before it is.

[Paul]

8 hours ago, DeeCee said:

Everyone seems to be raving about the WWC, is it just me that thinks it's a bag of shit?

It's just you. 23 million watched the game. The men's game is the one that's shit. Nothing but cheating, whinging, overpaid, over hyped, massively over exposed and so one-sided it's not even worth looking at the PL table.

The WWC has been a breath of fresh air for which every player deserves credit.

The only thing for me worth watching in the men's game is Rovers. The rest is, and has been for a long time, complete bollocks.

[Mattyblue]

23 million? Last night? That’s some increase from the 7 million that watched the quarters...

[Sparks Rover]

12 minutes ago, Paul said:

It's just you. 23 million watched the game. The men's game is the one that's shit. Nothing but whinging, 

23m seems high, is that official.

Did you not see the England v Cameroon.....8 extra minutes because of whingeing and moaning......

I don't buy your argument 

[oldjamfan1]

23 minutes ago, Sparks Rover said:

 

Did you not see the England v Cameroon.....8 extra minutes because of whingeing and moaning......

I don't buy your argument 

I think we can all agree that the example you give is an exceptional one, and most of the added on time in the other games has been as a result of normal stoppages plus VAR. 

The USA defender who was penalised for the ‘penalty’ last night got booked for the ‘foul’. Given the nature of the decision and the state of the game at that point, I defy anyone to simply nod to the referee on receipt of that card, in the way that she did. If I were her captain or manager I would be giving her a pat on the back for that. Could you imagine a male professional footballer reacting to that decision in that way? That’s the sort of example that is more representative of the WWC, not the ridiculous Cameroonian behaviour.

Edited July 3, 2019 by oldjamfan1

[Bigdoggsteel]

I must say, I have noticed far less diving in the womens game. Which is kind of funny. Some of the "men" playing now should be ashamed. 

[philipl]

Netherlands v Sweden tonight. Two well-matched outfits but I would marginally favour the Dutch. Depends if the Swedes knocking out the Germans has taken too much out of them.

If the Dutch do go through they might upset the Americans. USA much the better footballing outfit BUT

The Dutch are a big physical side so won't lose the 50/50s England were losing all over the park last night AND

Unlike England, the Dutch don't make careless mistakes in possession

 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 hour ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

I must say, I have noticed far less diving in the womens game. Which is kind of funny. Some of the "men" playing now should be ashamed. 

Yes the women's game is like how the men's game was played years ago. No diving, no crowding the officials, getting the ball forward rapidly etc.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

9 hours ago, S8 & Blue said:

As has been said before, these offside decisions show that the problem is with the rule, and not with VAR.

If anything, it proves that the technology works.

By the book, that was the correct decision.

 

 

Still, absolutely bollocks.

We were on the right side of two equally narrow VAR decisions in the Cameroon game. You have to take the rough with the smooth. I would like to see the " daylight between players " rule brought back.