Soccer

[MissBarbara]

Okay, this is scary:

When I wrote, above, "I've long had a thing for athletic women," she was precisely the woman I had in mind.

She makes my heart melt (and she's also the heart and soul of the USWNT).

[watcher1]

To get back on track, Harry Kane and the Spurs won their match yesterday 1-0 when he scored on a first half penalty kick to beat Chelsea in the first leg of its League Cup semifinal.

[psiberzerker]

When I wrote, above, "I've long had a thing for athletic women," she was precisely the woman I had in mind.

Yeah, she's usually the one they're talking about.

[ObiDongKenobi]

........Regardless, I appreciate your adding your comments to this thread. It's great to have an actual Englishman comment on English football, and not just some Janey-Come-Lately Yank like me..............

Always pleased to help out even a Spurs fan. 

Need any help with cricket?

[ObiDongKenobi]

a) Historically, the word "football" had nothing to do with kicking the ball. Association Football and Rugby Football (and, from them, American Football), are called "football" because they are played on foot, and not on horseback. Similarly, calling Association Football simply "Football" is technically incorrect, since removing the modifier removes the distinction between it and several other similarly-named sports.

b) That's true. But the word "soccer" is of English origin, a shortening of the term "Association Football." So it's your fault we use this term.

c) Every sport is "boring" if you don't understand it, or can't appreciate it. When I was an undergrad I went to a Cubs game (baseball) with a friend from India, and she was bored out of her skull. (And when she asked why the fan in the bleachers who caught the home run ball hit by the opposing team instantly threw it back onto the field, I gave up trying to explain it to her.) And I had that exact discussion about soccer/football vs. basketball a couple of days ago. Currently, in an NBA game, an average of 227 points are scored. In a Premier League match, an average of 2.84 goals are scored. The average American sports fan would argue that that's proof that soccer/football is boring. I would argue that the relatively low number of goals shows that each goal has incomparably higher value than an NBA basket, where so many points are scored that basket become relatively meaningless.

a) why isn't polo called horseball then? 

c) Your words on the football v basketball scoring encapsulate my thoughts very succinctly.  Back in the 60s our World Cup winning manager Alf Ramsey (who also managed Ipswich) had a reputation for telling fans that they had seen some very good 0-0 draws.  He was right, sometimes!

[Jed_]

Okay, this is scary:

When I wrote, above, "I've long had a thing for athletic women," she was precisely the woman I had in mind.

She makes my heart melt (and she's also the heart and soul of the USWNT).

Not exactly who first comes to mind with me. . . .

[ObiDongKenobi]

^^^^  ^^^^

[psiberzerker]

I apologize ahead of time for derailing, but when I hear the phrase "Athletic women," my first thought is always Lisa Lyon:



She's not a football player (WNBA) but I'l add Brittney Griner:



She's also 6'9" tall.

[MissBarbara]

To get back on track, Harry Kane and the Spurs won their match yesterday 1-0 when he scored on a first half penalty kick to beat Chelsea in the first leg of its League Cup semifinal.

Okay, @Obidong, I'm taking you up on your offer of help:

I know what the FA Cup is (and, in passing, the Spurs are still very much alive there), but what is this League Cup, a.k.a. Carabao Cup? How does it differ from the FA Cup? Is it simply that the FA Cup goes down more levels than the League Cup?

[MintJulie]

Took me a few seconds, but... that's funny.

[Jed_]

Took me a few seconds, but... that's funny.

When we were watching the women’s World Cup a few years back, we were drooling a bit over Hope Solo.  One of my friends talked incessantly about her.

[MissBarbara]

a) why isn't polo called horseball then? 

c) Your words on the football v basketball scoring encapsulate my thoughts very succinctly.  Back in the 60s our World Cup winning manager Alf Ramsey (who also managed Ipswich) had a reputation for telling fans that they had seen some very good 0-0 draws.  He was right, sometimes!

a) Good question! I just googled it, and the name of the sport derives from an Indian (or perhaps Tibetan) word for "brave wanderer." Or maybe it's the English derivation of the Manipurese word for "ball." It originated in Iran, or maybe Turkey, or perhaps China, India, Iran, Mongolia, or Pakistan.

c) To be fair, I'm not much of a sports fan, other than watching my favorite teams play (Cubs, Bears, and Bulls in the Jordan years). And even then, I'm far from an expert. But what captivates me about football/soccer is the flow and movement, the different skills needed for each position, and the beauty of a series of well-made passes leading to a shot on goal. Quantity of scoring isn't a top priority, and I have watch 0-0 ties/draws that I found exhilarating. The typical American response to soccer/football is that it's boring because there's so little scoring. Well, if you're looking for quantity of scoring, watch an NBA game.

P.S. I haven't the slightest idea what "Manipurese" means, or where Manipur is.

[watcher1]

The great Brazilian footballer, Pele, once described football as a chess game. A player has to to see at least two or three moves ahead.

[ObiDongKenobi]

To get back on track, Harry Kane and the Spurs won their match yesterday 1-0 when he scored on a first half penalty kick to beat Chelsea in the first leg of its League Cup semifinal.

Okay, @Obidong, I'm taking you up on your offer of help:

I know what the FA Cup is (and, in passing, the Spurs are still very much alive there), but what is this League Cup, a.k.a. Carabao Cup? How does it differ from the FA Cup? Is it simply that the FA Cup goes down more levels than the League Cup?

FA Cup v League Cup (aka Carabao Cup but has had different sponsors in the past, even the Milk Marketing Board)

The short answer is that you have hit the nail on the head.  But I do love to hear the sound of my own typing, so now for the long answer.

Any club in the land, professional or amateur, from the lowest pub football team upwards can apply to join the Football Association and abide by its rules and regulations.  They can all enter the FA cup and there are many more preliminary knock out rounds than you probably have heard of in the American press.  At what we call the first round proper the teams in the third and fourth level (currently called Leagues 1 & 2) join in.  At the third round, played in early January, teams in the first and second professional level (currently called Premier League & Championship) join in.  So theoretically anyone can win and you get some great matches which on paper are completely one sided but deliver a real upset and some of these happened last weekend.

You can probably tell that the FA cup is a great favourite of mine and when I was young it had as much prestige, if not more, as winning the league.  I dislike anyone disrespecting it and unfortunately some of its traditions are being gradually eroded away by the demands of commercialism.

The League cup was only founded in the 60s and is restricted to teams in the first four levels of professional football and begins soon after the start of the season with the final in February.  Teams that are also involved in European games do not join in until the third knock out round.  It has been referred to as the Tin Cup or Mickey Mouse Cup by supporters of teams that win more prestigious trophies, until they win it themselves of course.  The manager of Chelsea  has just said that it is more difficult to win, meaning you can get lucky with the draw (which are done randomly in both) in the FA cup and get an easy path to the final.  I will be at Stamford Bridge for the second leg of the semi-final.

UEFA Cup now called Europa League

[ObiDongKenobi]

a) why isn't polo called horseball then? 

c) Your words on the football v basketball scoring encapsulate my thoughts very succinctly.  Back in the 60s our World Cup winning manager Alf Ramsey (who also managed Ipswich) had a reputation for telling fans that they had seen some very good 0-0 draws.  He was right, sometimes!

a) Good question! I just googled it, and the name of the sport derives from an Indian (or perhaps Tibetan) word for "brave wanderer." Or maybe it's the English derivation of the Manipurese word for "ball." It originated in Iran, or maybe Turkey, or perhaps China, India, Iran, Mongolia, or Pakistan.

c) To be fair, I'm not much of a sports fan, other than watching my favorite teams play (Cubs, Bears, and Bulls in the Jordan years). And even then, I'm far from an expert. But what captivates me about football/soccer is the flow and movement, the different skills needed for each position, and the beauty of a series of well-made passes leading to a shot on goal. Quantity of scoring isn't a top priority, and I have watch 0-0 ties/draws that I found exhilarating. The typical American response to soccer/football is that it's boring because there's so little scoring. Well, if you're looking for quantity of scoring, watch an NBA game.

P.S. I haven't the slightest idea what "Manipurese" means, or where Manipur is.

Manipur is a a state in India https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manipur

[watcher1]

MissB -  Evil won Sunday.    ManU's goalkeeper made some great saves.

[ObiDongKenobi]

I spent money to pay-per-view two teams I don't support, but have an interest in.  It was a good game and proves MissB's assertion about the value of a single goal.

[MissBarbara]

I spent money to pay-per-view two teams I don't support, but have an interest in.  It was a good game and proves MissB's assertion about the value of a single goal.

You may have already mentioned it, but which side(s) do you support?

Also, how do people in the U.K. who aren't supporters view Man U?

P.S. I spent yesterday afternoon watching, back-to-back, Barcelona vs. Eibar and Real Betis vs. Real Madrid. I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

[watcher1]

ManU probably can be compared to our major league baseball team, the Yankees or even Notre Dame University.  You either love them or you hate them. They have had winning seasons for a long time and seem to be able to bring in young, talented players as older, more established players leave.  Personally, I thought the Spurs outplayed ManU and had way more attempts to score but for the great goalkeeping of ManU. Harry Kane was the best player on the field.

Spain and Germany are fielding teams now that can play and beat the best of EPL.

[ObiDongKenobi]

I spent money to pay-per-view two teams I don't support, but have an interest in.  It was a good game and proves MissB's assertion about the value of a single goal.

You may have already mentioned it, but which side(s) do you support?

Also, how do people in the U.K. who aren't supporters view Man U?

P.S. I spent yesterday afternoon watching, back-to-back, Barcelona vs. Eibar and Real Betis vs. Real Madrid. I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

I'm the wrong side of 60 years being a Chelsea supporter!  If I had left my choice another year I would have been a Spurs supporter.  Most non-Man U supporters resent them for their collection of silverware (how irrational is that?), and because of their widespread support throughout the world (although commercialism means other clubs are catching up).  I started watching and playing football before the upsurge in violence in the late 60s which continued into the 70s and 80s.  Therefore I was brought up to have a hierarchy, i.e. your team first, then London teams over northern ones (providing the result didn't affect the standing of your team), then British ones over European.  The residual effect of the past violence is that there is a great deal of tribalism in the UK related to who you support and its difficult to express admiration for another team unless you know who you are speaking too.  Most clubs will have a lunatic fringe unfortunately.

I take an interest in lots of other teams for various reasons.  I am told to hate Spurs by the lunatic fringe at Chelsea.  I don't know why, possibly for the defeat in the 1967 FA cup final.  We had a good record agains them at one stage and used to refer to the ground as 'Three Point Lane'.

You didn't see Spurs v Manure (sic  ) ?

I have a question which maybe relates more to American sport in general.  How do fans feel when a franchise rips their team away from them and deposits it thousands of miles away?  Do they pick another team or just watch from afar, or do they not have the allegiance to a specific team?  It happened in the UK once a few years ago and caused outrage even though it was only a move of less than 100 miles.  The loophole that allowed the new team to remain in the same league position has now been closed by the authorities.  I much despise the team that moved and much admire the team the fans built in its place.