Not exactly abrim with the Christmas spirit

You would think, what with Forest and the Phoenix both winning at the weekend, and an interesting holiday in the offing, that I would be way up for it. Nope.
Got informed that the gift being sent to my sister is out of stock. Nice one, Amazon. How exactly do you suppose I resolve that little hitch now?
In addition I am still at work on one of the loveliest days of late spring/early summer. Inconsistent formatting coupled with my own procrastination have left me with an unenviable task. But with Nessie working all hours with her commitments, I feel it is the least I can do to try to keep up. I did have the weekend off after all.
The Friday night Phoenix game was an annoyance. Didn't really deserve to win (especially since I arrived after the only goal - dumbarse), but nor did the opposition. Ferrante still has a special place in my heart, even though he did actually nearly contribute a few times. His passing can be good, but so painfully limited in invention that it is a waste. Dodd and Moss must simply not be allowed to kick the ball. It makes me wince consistently.
Forest's second goal was a treat - a 30 yard chip from "ugly ginger" (Calderwood's words!) Joe (not Joel) Garner. And the celebration was positively cute. Probably not a word they wanted bandied around football, but I rather liked it.
Anyway, my stupidly complex query appears to have run, so I must away.

Wellington Phoenix 2-1 (Kevin Muscat's) Melbourne Victory

That was so good. The best I have seen the Phoenix play, after a somewhat rum opening 20, when I was surprised we were still in it (we scored with our first attack!). Same formation as Sunday with the excellent, but less strong in the air Durante replacing the suspended Dodd.
Manny Muscat lived up to his pre-season promise, Lochhead was effective and dangerous, Durante was excellent and Sigmund continues to be our best all-round defender, despite looking like a short, podgy marine.
Ferrante was irrelevant (an improvement), Fred lightweight, Brown muscular (and scoring a top goal) and McKain magnificent - the difference between the teams for my money.
Bertos was okay, with some wonderful moments and Smeltz was Smeltz. Battered to pieces, strong as an ox, and scorer of a goal that was, frankly, Collymore-esque. There is no higher praise.

It just felt marvellous.

And I forgot to mention the superb work by keeper Paston. I get many, many things wrong about football( although I am not yet wrong about Ferrante) but I feel vindicated about this one. Paston isn't a shot-stopper to the standard of Moss, but gives such confidence to the ack four that even the varied line-ups of this season have seemed stronger in front of him. And the saves he made last night were actually rather classy. And when the ball was there to be held, he held it, rather than spilling it across the box.

I called this match as a 0-4 before the game, expecting Allsopp to continue his rampage and Archie Thompson to thrive. Happily wrong.

Phoenix 2-0 Newcastle Jets

Closer than it should have been. The Jets' keeper was good, but should still have been made to worker harder by a Phoenix team with an advantage of one man, at first, and then two men later on. I missed the first incident and was getting all self-righteously worked up about the ref blowing up for what looked a good tackle by Dodd. But there is no doubt it was a good decision. The second sending-off was just as clear: a horrible attempt at assault that, thankfully, the Phoenix player saw coming and evaded.
Not too much of a contest after that. The Phoenix were relatively patient, but of limited creativity: Fred looked rusty and a bit out of alignment with his team-mates, but the talent is clearly there in abundance. Daniel came off the bench and stayed relatively central. And (this hurts) Ferrante was impressive given time and space. His nous was welcome when panic could have set in. Smeltz scored a cracker of a goal in an otherwise relatively quiet game for him. But Bertos, unfamiliar in a central role, and Hearfield, off the bench, were excellent. Direct, aggressive and (in Hearfield's case) good shooting.
I should write more, if only to comment on the box in which I was happily residing, but work beckons.

Air NZ having fun

Maybe they should fix their planes first

For Movember, Nick and Prince Barin!

I don't get it. Nick professes that he would rather look like Freddie Mercury than Prince Barin from Flash Gordon (aka Timothy Dalton, one-time Bond). Weird.

A Magnificent Wellington Day

Stick them together and you get...

Dang, I'm busy

Last night, a brief social (despite the agony - now thankfully receded - in my knees thanks to bowls), this morning voted (huzzah!) , this afternoon the wonderful ballet of Don Quixote, and then the landlady's party this evening.

Unless I hide and sleep, which is sorely tempting...

Another fine morning

Scary things

Cold, wet and glorious

Women's World Cup: Ghana 1-0 Costa Rica and New Zealand 3-1 Colombia
The Ghana game was splendid, even if it was a case of women against girls - Ghana were simply bigger and stronger, and the dominance in 50/50s was a boon. But they won this with good football. In fact, they should have won by more.
Then there was the NZ match. Hopefully this will put an end to the ridiculous and repetitive observations that this is so different from the likes of the Phoenix or the Premier League. The NZ team was physical and aggressive, and the Colombian team was cynical and professional. But a big thanks to Brendan for the access to the box or the second half. I'd had enough of the cold. And what a game!

Found a wallet today

Does anyone know Jacobus Andries Bester? He's a student at Vic and a customer at Westpac and Dick Smiths. I guess his wallet will be heading for the police station or bank tomorrow...

Phoenix 0 -1 Queensland

Frustrating, but okay. Queensland had a good penalty shout turned down and scored a good, if predicted, goal, but generally the Phoenix matched them and really should have stolen it at the end, but first Bertos, and then Smeltz missed good chances.

I really couldn't say why it didn't work. I like the selection, the structure was sound, no-one played badly, but we still lost. Along with Wellington, Newcastle and Forest. Sod it.

Dave and Karin get married

A long day (not assisted by a long night just before... ahem) that was also simply wonderful. I oly took a couple of pictures as the official photographer took all the best positions and we can hopefully share those. Instead you lust settle at this stage for these images of the dashing groom and his bouncer/best man. The ceremony itself, after the fashionably late arrival of the beautiful bride, was intended to be short to suit the number of children in attendance. It was resonant, emotional and utterly charming. And when their two children (Rebecca and Cameron, flower girl and page boy respectively), exhausted after performing their roles impeccably, had a big long hug during the exchange of vows... well, it was perfect.
The meal, at Island Bay's Cheeky Pipi, was also excellent, although the chocolate pudding seemed almost too much. Almost. Heh.
I finally met David's sister Jen, who is very much like him, and Dave's parents didn't recognise me with my flowing locks (or short Michael Bolton hairdo, depending on whom one asks).
It was exhausting just for me, so I dread to think how the guys will be. But I cannot express my gratitude enough for letting me attend, now how much I simply enjoyed it.
And I suppose I should apologise to Leanne and Chris for making them the butt of a couple of jokes, but I meant no harm, and surely a brief mention on a blog, the existence of which they don't even know about, will surely suffice.

Pictures

One of the Argentinian training ship in the harbour, and one for general interest, back from Langkawi.




Jackfruit

So peaceful...

Phoenix 2 - 1 Sydney FC

Sydney were flying and the Phoenix struggling to play with any fluency or style. Surely this would be an utterly predictable game?
Well, no. It started that way. Pretty even, but the Phoenix a little fragile. It was an odd line-up. 4-4-2 (which was nice) and no Ferrante (even nicer) but different keeper, Dodd returned to his rightful centre back slot (harsh on the better ball-player Durante and McKain, but they were injured/ill). Moss replaced by Paston (a better dominator of the area, but weaker on shots). Brown (finally!) and Johnson in the middle with Gao and Kwasnick on the flanks.
Sydney took the lead fairly early on, but didn't really look any better than our lot. Paston is strong in the air, and Dodd is so powerful and good at judging headers. Ben Sigmund was a surprise selection at centre-back, being a short and muscular midfielder by trade, but he put in a very effective performance. But I can't help feeling this reflects badly on Sydeny. They were niggly and poor, assisted by an inept referee. But their goal was pretty good, a looping header over the tall but non-jumping Paston.
But the Phoenix stayed strong. Sydney had a bit of swagger about them (helped by the referee's tolerance of their antics), but didn't really threaten again. Gao was easily the stand-out player of the half, showing self-belief and no little skill to constantly probe, but Brown and Johnson were failing to get up there. The equaliser was more of a surprise because we have scored so few, rather than because it wasn't deserved. Kwasnick getting good mileage out of the full back and crossing for Smeltz to glance a fine header home.
I don't recall Sydney getting much of a sniff after that. There was a worrying sign that the Phoenix might be settling for a draw when the ordinary Coveny was withdrawn to be replaced by Christie and Gao (either marked out of the game or not supported by his teammates) by Ferrante. Christie's lack of pace was more than made up for by his superb first touches today, and Ferrante showed glimpses of quality in his gaining of possession. Both were instrumental in the attacks that, eventually, led to the winner. Brown had had a good game. Nothing spectacular, but doing the job imagined of him. Uncompromising and old-fashioned, he thundered around without showing any great flair, but an indomitable attitude. He then picks up the ball just outside the box and, seeing the typical lackof movement, has a go. It wasn't hit the cleanest, but it was aimed right in the corner and the keeper must have been unsighted by the defender and it rolled into the corner. That felt soooooo gooooooood.
MoM was Leilei Gao for me: he played with heart and skill through the first half, when there was precious little to cheer about. But Brown and the centre backs deserve much credit as well.

Did you miss me?

I've been working. And I mean properly. This is annoying, now that I no longer get paid by the hour, but it has to get done. Realising that it doesn't matter how much I work, it still ain't gonna get done is not going to help.
So you've missed out on the Marist tournament and the Homeric journey to return for the Phoenix match.

Phoenix 2-4 Melbourne

Well, that was annoying. A promising start, a decent 4-4-2 formation (although Kwasnik was dropping a little deeper than I like), Daniel looking keen and Johnson getting a start. The same back 4 retained should have been a good thing, as consistency of selection should lead to consistency of form.
But Allsopp for Melbourne is really good. Far too strong and experienced for poor Manny Muscat, and so was Ney Fabiano. With the referee seeming to miss much of the action, they physically dominated the Phoenix defence. Johnson started sharp but faded quickly (although, interestingly, he re-asserted himself impressively in the late stages). Daniel stopped playing wide and did his usual, nearly useful, tricks. Hearfield looked excellent with good pace and sharp skills. But they did us proper, like. Defensive muddles and stupid decisions left us vulnerable to the savvy of the forwards, and they made us pay in spades. The opening goal was soft, with Manny poorly positioned, allowing Allsopp to attack and then cut inside with Moss failing to make the save. Blame the slippery surface if you like. I don't. Crikey - that might even have been the second! I can't remember.
We got back into it with a Smeltz goal - he looks so sharp and motivated. But he always looks unhappy later, as his efforts look to have been wasted by other players.
The Victory went ahead again (possibly with the goal described earlier) and the Phoenix were awarded a penalty which wasn't especially controversial from my angle. But then the same thing happened for Victory.
I have no idea where it went wrong (although Ricki's tactics and Ferrante's presence rather swing my blame allocation) but this was not good enough. So many encouraging signs, wasted by the fact that the Victory strikers got so much joy out of our defenders. Maybe we just don't play niggly enough? The ref doesn't give the fouls, so they pay off.
Hearfield, Smeltz, Coveny and even Christie come out okay, but the others need seriously to look at what happened today.

Well, that was no fun

A draw in a football game against decent opposition is not really disappointing, but my role in it is of immense frustration. I have many failings, but a lack of honesty is not there. The second half of the game I refereed. It was all fine until there was a controversial offside decision. I called it as I saw it and there followed a lot of abuse and confrontation. No fun at all. And I didn't play the second half at all, even though my first half performance was just fine.

Horrible game in a poor day.

Spot the difference

Can you guess which one of these medal counts is taken from Fox News, and which from the BBC? As a clue, the BBC is in Britain, and Fox News in the US...




But, to give balance (and to my surprise) here's the ABC in Australia...

The draw that feels like a loss

Wellington Phoenix 1-1 Queensland Roar
The names have been changed (largely) but the performance was so similar to early last season that it was again immensely frustrating. McKain and Durante had less understanding than Dodd and McKain last week; Muscat looked less assured at right back than left; Leilei Gao was replaced by Daniel whose every stupid, wasteful decision was cheered by the crowd; Smeltz was offside; Kwasnik played deep and lacked influence; Dodd in midfield was ponderous (taking over the 'lummox' role from Aloisi). And then there is Ferrante. Appropriately-initialled MF, he offers little going forward, his sideways play blocks his partner at defensive midfield, his limited control drops him in trouble and his unambitious decision-making perpetually frustrates.
Maybe more blame needs to attach to the coach. The lack of width must come as a strategic instruction and the pairing of poor distributors must be a selection he makes (with Wriggler's hero Richard Johnson on the bench).
But. We didn't lose, and Smeltz scored with a superb finish (after a lovely pass from Daniel).

I should be working

But I'm not. Procrastination should be my middle name, but I can't be bothered to change it. Strange Days.
I need to get a load of work done (and will try for a while this afternoon) but I don't want to overtax again this week. I have a horrible feeling that I must have looked a right slacker at the tail-end of the week. Tired => Booze => Bad food => Bad sleep => More tired. Thankfully, playing loads of football. However, due to a much-needed training course (there is so much I have to know to do my job properly), I will miss the final match for each of my midweek teams. Diet will need careful watching then...
And if anyone in Wellington is reading this, get to Fumi's Juice franchise under the BNZ centre and try the salads: they are an absolute treat!

Phoenix Update

Season tickets arrived today, which is kind of nice. Except that the rest of the 'welcome pack' has to be collected from the club shop in town after the 16th. i.e. Saturday at the earliest. The first match is Sunday. So they are artificially stimulating demand at the club shop on the day that it should least need it.

I'm mildly peeved that I won't have my new wristband, lanyard and other assorted gubbins, but I'm sure you can sense my relief that I can use last year's. Because surely I can't be bothered to go into town before my own football game on Saturday (unless the weather continues its awful run), and I am plenty busy on Sunday too.

Last year, they sent the whole pack out en masse. This struck me then as nice of them, but a bit wasteful. It would seem reasonable to me that once the decision to send out vouchers for collection was taken, that they could the do this as soon as they liked, rather than waiting until the last moment.

On the bright side (for the fans), Tony Lochhead's trial at Middlesboro (highlighting some hypocrisy from Rocki Herbert) came to nothing. From what I saw last year, the Premier League is at least one step too far. If he'd had a go at a slightly lower level, then I don't think he'd be coming back.

The Phoenix re-arises

A new-look team faced off the Melbourne Victory. It was stuttering, fitful, interesting, exciting, and entertaining. A disappointing result (losing on penalties after a 0-0 draw), but a pretty good game. The Phoenix defence was solid (McKain [edited to correct moron spelling] impressed me, as did Muscat, while Dodd did little wrong) while the midfield and attack were worryingly similar in issues to last year: limited movement, questionable fitness, a lack of pace, some splendid flair and Ferrante.

But good to be back.

Back again

Since last I wrote here, I have been to Koh Samui and Bangkok, and thence returned home. Been a bit of a shock for a few reasons, but anyway...
Bangkok Airways is a superb airline. Short flights, but exemplary service, despite our apparent determination not to be on time.

Clearly I have more pictures and I may upload them in batches. What's already here hasn't been much described, and doesn't reflect much of what was done. I did bad, eh? The jungly, waterfall pictures were at Inthaton national park, the highest point in Thailand, and after the Golden Triangle (where the muddly old rivers separated Myanmar, Laos and Thailand) was followed by trips to the gorgeous White Temple, all up around Chiang Rai. I'll do something about that.





Koh Samui: lots of tourists; very beach-bummy (imagine lots of tedious Jack Johnson music actually sounding okay under those conditions); astonishing rain like I've never seen before; giant statues of the Buddha; stunning beaches; tasteless rocks (Grandfather and Grandmother rocks looking like, well, genitalia (and I don't mean the electricity company from Italy). And beautiful islands.






Bangkok: sweaty; traffic of unbelievable proportions; great food; fascinating puppet show.





Ayuttaya: More of what I thought Thailand was like. Glorious old temples and tales of Burmese invasion horror.





Weird to be back, facing a blank slate and a world of opportunity. Fun, eh?

Wat the...?

Yesterday was temples, national parks and waterfalls, and today was scary borders (Laos and Myanmar, probably the scariest concept since Uzbekistan for me). Fascinating stuff.





By request.... ok I haven't (yet!) seen any R2D2 projectors, so here's me on an elephant.

I'm the one on.... oh I've done that gag before.



Can't go wrong with a fine bit of templage.

PS A "Wat" is a temple, so it isn't a typo... I had a txt message from this peculiar chap who does this occasionally. About a year ago, a young lad is hanging around outside Te Papa looking desperately around for something or someone. So he's asking if anyone will let him borrow the phone to contact a mate. No problems, says I, foolishly underestimating where this would go. So now, every few months, this mate texts me in txtspk to find his mate. Dumbass. Anyway, he sent one yesterday saying "Wat's going on?". How cool is that?

Chiang Mai

You may be aware that I should have gone to China. Oh well. We all make these decisions. It doesn't seem especially like I'll be repenting at leisure. So far at least.
Air NZ did their traditional attempt at sabotaging holidays. You might argue that fog in Auckland is beyond their control, but I know of at least one person who wouldn't even believe that. Eh Bob?
I had the Murray Head One Night in Bangkok, although staying at an airport hotel is less than likely to make the tough guy tumble. The next day we (my guide Pat - counterpart makes her sound like R2D2) headed off to Chiang Mai, immediately seeing a few of the sights here.
A temple in the hills above the city:


Not my Mom.

And then today a lot was crammed in: elephant football, ox-cart ride, elephant trek, bamboo raft, monkey show, snake handling and long-necked and big-eared women. Mixed. Monkey show and tribal women left me not knowing what I felt. I could see the point, and also the value, but I'm not that kind of voyeur, maybe. The snake handler was worryingly close to torture, but it was very entertaining. The ox-cart ride was not really my thing and the elephants were fantastic. There were also orchids and butterflies... Too many pictures for words, so if there is anything you fancy then let me know.

Next, please!

So, here I am at work, taking 5 minutes out from my Sunday (not a wise choice, but kind of essential). Two weeks off, and by the time I return there will be two fewer members of staff and another one on her way. I going to be busy. Therefore, while my holiday was unfortunately timed in one regard, it was perfect in others: we'll be understaffed for a little while ahead, and I'm going to be busier than ever.
In the meantime, I am off to Thailand. I don't have any plans while there, beyond the flights to Bangkok then Chiang Mai. Wait and see. It is clear I have neglected this page for a while, but I am disappointed at the lack of financial support you lot mustered for me to go on another vacation. You are just so selfish.
As ever, as expected, I have been lazily failing to prepare, and, as such, I am not yet excited. I think it will hit me along with the heat and the spicy food.
But, back to work for a little longer...

Futurama Film

Not quite as good as it might have been, and not up to the TV show, but stilll

Are you still here

I should probably close this sometime, but I like to have it here and it is a good place to put some of the odd things around.
And, let's face it, you would not want to miss out on these images now, would you?

Cold

I leave Wellington looking beautiful and sunny. On my return, it is winter. We'll still have some sunny weather over the next weeks, but it is clear that the cold days are here for a while. Maybe I am oversensitive because of my recent excursions, but maybe not.

Nottingham Forest got promoted. This is a big deal. It has been a long time since our last promotion and there were 2 humiliating relegations in the meantime. Back into the Championship (one division below the Premier League) where we will play, among others, Derby County. They have been relegated from the top flight, breaking many records for awfulness. Sadly they left one untouched - biggest home defeat: currently held by Forest themselves in one of Ron Atkinson's more wretched moments.

Hot

This is a hot place. I mean this in the very best of ways. I'm ignoring Dr David's advice by even writing this but I feel sufficiently confident, satisfied and (frankly) smug about this that I feel honour-bound to end your week in a green fug of envy. Tell your friends so they can join you as you wallow in a pit of jealousy.

I should put this in perspective: you'd have to like the heat, the sun, the cocktails, the beaches, the occasional glorious downpour, the monkeys climbing telephone wires, the bizarre fruit, the empty, golden beaches, the chorus of frogs (sounding better than Paul frakking McCartney too) and the colourful and friendly birds ( you know what I mean). If not, then this isn't for you.

Saying that, it isn't all love and joy (despite Liverpool getting theirs from the fractionally-less-unlikeable Chelsea). While the Skins (the 11-a-side team for which I play) winning again is a good thing, I read the match report as a fairly clear indictment of my contribution. The match report suggests - in no uncertain terms - that, apart from a lack of pace, inaccurate finishing and panicking in front of goal, I am a valued member. Presumably in terms of reaching 11 players. Gits the lot of them. And there is a better word than 'git'. Nottingham Forest are also perpetuating the misery as long as possible too. It is inevitable that we won't get promoted - we don't deserve it. But come final day, if Doncaster drop points then we have a chance to go up. If not then it is the horror of play-offs again. Where we will lose. Probably to Leed, a club so distasteful I might actually prefer them to lose to Liverpool.


So, I raise a glass to sleep and holidays. I'll need more of one and can't afford the other. Cheers!