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!