CK is the new PK (7/29)

NOT WATCHING BARBIE AT CERRITOS TOWN CENTER, CA - So, G1-Sweden is really the 3rd ranked team in the world after all.  Thanks to Jonna Andersson's corner kicks, SWE scored on 3 of the first 5 she took as SWE routed G3-Italy, 5-0 to become the 3rd team to advance to the Round of 16.  Comparing to penalty kicks, teams were 4 of the first 8 (technically, 4 of the first 10 if you don't count the retakes) so SWE has the corner kick cross locked down.  SWE has 4 goals from corners (the game-winning one last match was delivered by Kosovare Asllani in the 90').  Finishing has been atrocious at this WWC but SWE scored on 5 of their 7 shots on goal, bringing some great skill to this tourney.

In a preview that all the great matches will be at 3 am PDT, #5 F1-France faced #9 F3-Brazil in a marquee matchup but BRA failed to get revenge from their 2019 Round of 16 loss as FRA showed up, edging BRA 2-1.  After an embarrassing 0-0 tie with #52 F4-Jamaica, FRA is back on top of the standings (on goal differential) even after JAM beat D2-Panama, 1-0, for their first ever WWC win.  It was a rare non-UEFA confederation matchup in the group stage as the two CONCACAF teams faced each other.  PAN becomes the 5th team eliminated, leaving 24 teams battling for the final 13 knockout spots.

While the rest of the family went to see the record-breaking Barbie, I went grocery shopping.  No offense to Barbie, but most movies I just wait for streaming, especially if there are no "spoilers".  The last "movies" I've seen at a movie theater have been "Spirited Away - Live on Stage", "Macross Frontier - The False Songstress", "Macross Frontier - The Wings of Farewell", and a special Raytheon screening of "Top Gun: Maverick".  Non-traditional to say the least.  Wore my 2011 home Panama jersey as I knew they were not long for the game.  Will be visiting Panama in late August and now have 2 jerseys to wear.

So we'll start the final Group A matches in between the two Group H matches that have yet to play their second stage.  Qatar was so much simpler.  There will be an update just for the 32 matches (A-H each playing two games) like there was for the first 16.

14 entries went 3-0 including Hawkeye and Kds911 who are tied for 2nd with 22 points.  Eggman 2 still leads with 23 points.  Four went 0-3 as 33 got SWE, 28 got FRA, and 27 got JAM.  Tiny Destroyer actually went 2-1 but is still in last (11 pts).

Kissing Your Sister (7/28)

HOME, CA - The second half produced exciting soccer as G2-South Africa went up 2-0 in the 66' only to see G4-Argentina score twice in 5 minutes to tie it a 2.  In a match both teams needed to win to significantly improve their chances of advancing to the Round of 16, both teams frustratingly settled for a point, and remain tied for last (though RSA owns GF tiebreaker).  RSA, ranked #54, was trying to continue the African resurgence after B3-Nigeria's comeback win yesterday also missed some great opportunities.  In the end, they both helped G1-Sweden and G3-Italy's chances instead.

D1-England just chugs along one goal at a time beating D3-Denmark, 1-0.  A 6' goal is all that was needed and it's hard to tell if ENG is stable or disappointing.  

A wild match saw D4-China PR produce Group D's fourth 1-0 score line in holding off D2-Haiti.  A VAR intervention turning an initial yellow card into a straight red card put CHN down to 10 players just 28 minutes in.  Unnecessary tackle, and, ouch!  A obvious foul by HAI in the box was negated by an offsides call, except VAR intervened again and the ref determined there was no offsides so the foul counts, and thus a PK for CHN.  CHN converted in the 74' to lead 1-0.  Again, two minutes later HAI fouls CHN in the box but it is not called and VAR confirms it was a foul but outside the box (really?) so no action needed.

Turn about is fair play, right, as CHN jumps over a HAI defender and heads it down while taking the player down for a HAI PK in the 2nd minute of stoppage time.  But VAR, for the 4th time, intervenes and the ref takes another look and declares no foul so no PK, driving the French HAI coach bonkers!  A couple more close calls in the box but CHN survives almost 14 minutes of stoppage time, 1-0.  Despite all this, HAI is still alive but need to beat DEN and have CHN to lose to ENG and win the tiebreaker.

With 6 ENG players playing for Manchester City WFC, wore my 125th anniversary 2019 Manchester City home jersey while admiring that our tangerine tree is sprouting a lot of fruit and should be a good harvest come late Fall.

Sieger went 3-0 to move from a tie for 4th into sole position of 2nd place with 20 points.  Eggman 2 still leads with 21 points and 7 are tied for 3rd with 19.  Tiny Destroyer and Kung Fu Master Kai (46th, 12) went 0-3 with the former still last with 9 pts.  Seiger and KevLo 3 (42nd-Tied, 14) were the only two to get ARGvRSA draw correct while 36 got ENG and 44 CHN.

Issue #4.1.3 "Underdogs Roar Back" (After 24 Matches)

 Archive

Thursday, July 27, 2023 
Dailies: July 25-26-27 

PHILIPPINES AND NIGERIA STUN CO-HOSTS; USA DRAWS
Eggman 2 takes the lead with 19 points

EL SEGUNDO, CA (smt) --  After 24 matches, underdogs put on a show with #46 A3-Philippines (two California-born players leading the way) stunning co-host A1-New Zealand 1-0 and #40 B3-Nigeria rallying with three straight goals to beat co-host B1-Australia, 3-2.  B4-Canada had to rally to prevent #22 B2-Rep of Ireland from an upset, winning 2-1.  C4-Japan scored twice in two minutes in the first half but settled for a 2-0 win over C2-Costa Rica which allowed C1-Spain to edge JPN on goal differential when they put up 5 against C3-Zambia.  ESP and JPN both advance to the Round of 16 but ESP holds the GD edge to win the group if they tie in their last match.

In the competitive matches between teams just ranked 8 spots apart, both matches drew with #20 A4-SUI and #12 A2-Norway producing the third nil-nil draw and #9 E3-Netherlands allowing a second-half goal to tie #1 E1-USA, 1-1 (in the first of 3 matches between top 10 teams (upcoming CANvAUS and F1-France vs F3-Brazil)).

USA came out strong in the first 10 minutes and then listed in the first half as NED struck first in the 17', the first time USA has trailed in a WWC match since 2011 (17 matches).  USA uncharacteristically made just one sub the whole match, but Rose Lavelle's halftime entry seemed to spark the team, even picking up a yellow in the 51' and providing the corner kick assist to Lindsey Horan in the 62'.  Horan was just taken out hard by club teammate (Olympique Lyonnais (FRA)) Danielle van de Donk (no foul as Donk got to the ball first) and a shoving match ensued. But on the next play, she scores off the corner (interestingly, Horan is the only USA player to not play for the NWSL). 

Host Hangover (7/27)

THE BURGER DEN (aka, DENNY'S), EL SEGUNDO, CA - Host B1-Australia suffered the same fate as co-host A1-New Zealand, losing to the worst team in the group after winning their first match.  AUS actually scored first against #40 B3-Nigeria but NGR quickly tied it at 1 in the 45'+6 heading into halftime.  Two quick strikes 7 minutes apart stunned AUS and although AUS got a late stoppage time goal (+10), it was too late in falling 3-2.  NGA gave Africa their first win of the tourney (1-4-1) and are 2nd in Group B.  With B2-Rep of Ireland already eliminated, B4-Canada, NGA, and AUS are fighting for the two spots.

E3-Netherlands scored in the 17' against a listless E1-USA team, the first time USA has trailed in a WWC since 2011 (17 matches).  A hard no-call tackle on Lindsey Horan fired her up and seconds later scored a header off a corner kick in the 62' to tie it at 1.  A more inspired USA team, despite making only one sub, nearly netted the game-winner (offsides).  The 1-1 draw snapped USA's WWC record win streak at 13. 

E4-Portugal had reasons to smile getting 28 shots off against E2-Vietnam, but only managed to win 2-0.  VIE, without a shot against USA, got their first shot in the 3' and first shot on goal in the 43' but were the 4th team eliminated in this WWC.  Assuming both USA and NED beat up POR and VIE, USA currently has a +2 goal differential lead to win the group.

Wore my 2016 Vietnam home jersey (after visiting in 2019) and took a peak at the Toyota Center for Innovation in STEM Education on the campus of Cal State Dominguez Hills while walking to the LA Galaxy-Leon Leagues Match, that was postponed from Tuesday.

8 went 2-1 leaving Eggman 2 on top with 19 pts.  Jolly Old England and Tiocfaidh Ár Lá!!! are tied for 2nd with 18 pts.  Four went 0-3 including my 3am Down Under (25th-Tied, 15).  Tiny Destroyer is still last with 9 pts.  40 got POR and 7 got the USA-NED draw.  Two kids in our pool, Kung Fu Master Kai (44th-T, 12) and Pink Penguino (25th-T) were the only two to get NGA's win correct.

Olimpico! (7/26)

THE ORIGINAL RINALDI'S, EL SEGUNDO, CA - C4-Japan coasted, maybe too much, in beating C2-Costa Rica, 2-0, enabling C1-Spain to have time to find its 8th goal of the tourney in routing C3-Zambia, 5-0.  That 8th goal gives ESP the tiebreaker over JPN (7 goals) so all ESP needs is a tie to win Group C and potentially avoid a R16 matchup with E1-USA, if USA wins its group.  So JPN and ESP are in and CRC and ZAM are out.

B2-Rep of Ireland scored an Olimpico in the 4' minute but B4-Canada rallied for a 2-1 win to eliminate the Irish, despite B1-Australia and B3-Nigeria yet to play.  For MLS official stats, despite certain players you know are going for goal off a corner, Opta Stats won't credit it a shot (even if saved) unless it is a goal.

Wore my 2022 NWSL 10th Anniversary NJ/NY Gotham FC jersey since CAN's Evelyn Viens plays for them.  Lots of green oranges but unfortunately, never have turned orange yet (maybe yellow) in all these years.  These are lasting longer than usual, so maybe there's hope.  Otherwise, it's a contest for my kids to who can pick up 100 fallen fruit first.

36 went 3-0 including Eggman 2 and Jolly Old England, who are tied for 1st with 17 points.  The other 11 entries went 2-1.  41 got CAN correct, 45 ESP, and 44 JPN.  Although you won't get the 3 points for JPN and/or ESP until after Group C play is complete, 46 had ESP advancing and 45 had JPN.

Issue #3.1.2 "Favorites Revving Up" (After 16 Matches)

 Archive

Tuesday, July 25, 2023 

Dailies: July 23-24-25 

GERMANY & BRAZIL ROUT BUT FRANCE DRAWS 0-0 TO JAMAICA
Jolly Old England sits alone on top with 14 points

HOME, CA (smt) --  After 16 matches, one for each team, there has only been two clear favorite teams who have lost (A2-Norway) after #26 H3-Colombia scored twice in the first half to beat #17 H4-Korea Rep, 2-0.  D3-Denmark and D4-China PR had about the same ranking (#15 v #13) with DEN winning 1-0 earlier.  Two heavily favorite teams suffered 0-0 draws after #5 F1-France drew with #41 F2-Jamaica (#6 B4-CAN v #42 B3-NGA), and JAM rightly celebrated like it was a win.  E2-Netherlands and G3-Italy squeezed out 1-0 wins while #3 G1-Sweden became the first team to rally beating G2-South Africa, 2-1.  It was also the only match of the 16 where both teams scored (17 teams were shut out).

#2 H1-Germany routed H2-Morocco, 6-0, in a match where MAR were ranked 70 spots behind GER.  F3-Brazil got a hat trick from Ary Borges to beat F4-Panama 4-0.  Outside these two matches, just 24 goals were scored in 14 matches.  After 16 VAR interventions in the first 11 matches, there were none in the last five.  European teams went 8-3-1 this round with Africa still seeking their first win (0-3-1).  The 8 new teams in the tournament lost all 8 and were outscored 23-0.  Only 1 of 16 matches saw a match where both teams scored, resulting in 17 teams who were shut out.

Americans Help Philippines (6/25)

RANCHO SANTA MARGAGRITA, CA - 18 of 23 A3-Philippine players were born in the USA and it was two West Coasters leading PHI to a 1-0 upset of host A1-New Zealand.  Santa Clara-born Sarina Bolden scored in the 24' while Laguna Beach-born Olivia McDaniel (playing for WPSL So Cal Union FC, an amateur league (Division IV)) made four great saves in preventing NZL from almost clinching a spot in the Round of 16 (and would've after A2-Norway and A4-Swiss drew later).   NZL had a lot of pressure and a great equalizing goal was taken away quietly by VAR (the first VAR intervention in 5 matches) in the 69' by a hair of an offsides (seriously, draw a blurry line and if you can't tell, tie goes to the attacker).

European teams SUI and NOR faced off to a caution 0-0 draw, the 3rd of the tournament.  '91 Champs NOR have not scored yet.  Only SUI could lose and still backdoor their way into the R16.  NZL and PHI need help if they draw and NOR needs to win and hope SUI wins as well.

The first match saw the end of the first stage as H3-Colombia upset H4-Korea Rep 2-0.  Wore my inaugural 2022 Angel City FC away jersey as NZL's Ali Riley plays for them (1 of 4 ACFC players).  And our guava tree is finally spouting fruit and it looks like to be lots of them as always (the guava always produces every year).

5 entries went 2-1 today (Kds911-2, Kds911-3, GenX99er, Reggae Vibes, Eggman 2) with Eggman 2 and Tiocfaidh Ár Lá!!! joining Jolly Old England at the top with 14 points (18 matches).  7 are tied for 4th with 13 pts.  Tiny Destroyer is still last with 6 pts.  16 picked COL, 5 picked PHI, and 9 got the SUI-NOR draw in the low scoring day.

Rout (7/24)

EL SEGUNDO, CA - Top teams turned it up today with H1-Germany getting a tourney-high 6 goals against debutant H2-Morocco and F3-Brazil scoring 4 against first-timer F4-Panama.  With MAR and PAN losing, all 8 teams making their WWC debut not only lost, but none of them scored a goal.

G3-Italy got a 87' game-winning header to beat G4-Argentina, 1-0.  BRA's Ary Borges got the tourney's first hat trick and GER's Alexandra Popp scored two goals, just as many as opponent MAR did (2 own goals).  There have been no VAR interventions in four matches.

Wore my 2019 Copa Oro Panama Home jersey while taking Amtrak (poorly managed, especially on the way back) from Fullerton to Solana Beach (and it was drizzling!).  PAN is ranked #52 and MAR #72 (70 spots behind GER!).  The biggest gap will be C1-Spain vs C3-Zambia (#6 v #77 - 71 spots).

Twitter is X?  So confused.

32 went 3-0 keeping the top 3 the same.  Tiny Destroyer went 1-2 to stay in last with 6 points.

Comeback (7/23)

FLETCHER COVE, SOLANA BEACH, CA via AMTRAK - G1-Sweden rallied from a second half deficit with a goal off a CK in the 90' to stun G2-South Africa, 2-1.  This was the first match that both teams scored.  2019 runner-up E3-Netherlands got an early goal that held up for a 1-0 win over E4-Portugal.  F1-France struggled to a 0-0 draw with F2-Jamaica, JAM's first-ever WWC point.  However, a red card (2nd yellow) to their star player dampens their chances.  This was the tourney's 3rd red card, all in 2nd half stoppage time.

For the 4th straight match, no PKs (after 8 in each of the first 8 matches), not that teams would convert anyway (4/8).  In 3 of the past 4 matches, no VAR interventions (only one was overturning an offside that kept NED's goal).  

Wore my 2010 Home South Africa jersey after Wrexham demolished 16/17/18-year olds of LA Galaxy 2, 4-0, in front of a pro-Wrexham crowd.  The second season starts on September 12 and they went all out with part of the concourse dedicated to Wales and Wrexham.  In parallel next door (literally) at the Tennis Stadium, an interesting Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) was going on which bends tennis rules for fan excitement and caught some of the last match between "The Mountain" and "La Monf". Pretty cool concept and apparently Mike Tyson was in the crowd.

Tiocfaidh Ár Lá!!! was the only one to get all 3 games correct to move into a 3-way tie with Jolly Old England and ShrimpOnTheBarbie with 10 points.  Tiny Destroyer was the only one to miss all 3 to sit alone in last with 5 pts.  Just one got the FRA-JAM draw, 37 got NED, and 45 got SWE.

Issue #2.1.1 "USA Sleepwalks to Win" (After USA-VIE)

 Archive

Saturday, July 22, 2023 
Dailies: July 20-21-22

NO ROUT THIS TIME, VIETNAM HOLDS USA TO 3
Our 3rd Women's World Cup pool gets record 47 entries

DIGNITY HEALTH SPORTS PARK, WREXHAM TOUR, CARSON, CA (smt) --  #32 E2-Vietnam, 1 of 8 teams making their WWC debut, was determined not to lose by a lot and came out aggressive, frustrating #1 E1-USA as the ref was letting them play.  USA broke through after a great flick by Alex Morgan found a speedy Sophia Smith who struck the ball under the 5'-5" GK's legs in the 14'.  USA benefited from 2 VARs, the first in the 41' resulting in a PK but Morgan's attempt was saved and the second in the 45'+7 where offsides was taken away, keeping the goal.  USA had 26 shots and great chances but other than the first goal, there wasn't much clever attacking as VIE's defense held firm.  VIE had zero shots and rarely put the ball in the final third.  Hard to say if this was good or bad for USA as they face #9 E3-Netherlands next, in a rematch of the 2019 WWC final.  Win and we'll forget about not building up a big goal differential.  But a 3-0 win is a 3-0 win.