We watched the final game between the US and Japan here in Iceland. It was a match for the ages. The US team played very well but wasted their chances and became over confident both times they got the lead. The Japanese were able to capitalize on US mistakes and come from behind twice. The US performance in the penalty shoot out was horrible. We were surprised that Boxx took the first kick since she had not done well previously from the penalty spot in the tournament. The Japanese victory was a soccer cinderella story and of course a wonderful moment for the Japanese nation that has suffered through a disastrous 2011.
Amazingly, my brother predicted on this blog a few weeks ago that the US and Japan would meet in the finals and that the finals would go into a penalty shoot out though he did think that the US would prevail. Nobody thought that Japan would get this far.
A historic and exciting 2011 Women's World Cup is now over.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Historic Semi Finals
The Semi Finals match ups are intriguing because very few people expected that three out of the four teams would ever make it that far. The Japanese, Swedes, and the French were known to have good teams before the tournament but nobody really expected them to make it this far. These nations have never won the cup so they are in unchartered waters.
We have seen the Swedish team twice in the tournament and they impressed us very much. They have excellent forwards (notice the speed of #14 Josefine Oqvist), two very good midfielders in Sjogran #15 and Seger #5 and a solid defense. We think they will give the excellent Japanese team a difficult time. Psychologically the Japanese will be spent after their difficult win over Germany so we think the Swedish will win this one.
The momentum is all on the American side. The French team, though, is very good. They have skilled players especially in the midfield and speedy forwards. Their defense is a bit shaky however so we hope the American team plays an attacking game.
We predict that the US and Swedish teams will prevail and meet in the Finals on Sunday.
We have seen the Swedish team twice in the tournament and they impressed us very much. They have excellent forwards (notice the speed of #14 Josefine Oqvist), two very good midfielders in Sjogran #15 and Seger #5 and a solid defense. We think they will give the excellent Japanese team a difficult time. Psychologically the Japanese will be spent after their difficult win over Germany so we think the Swedish will win this one.
The momentum is all on the American side. The French team, though, is very good. They have skilled players especially in the midfield and speedy forwards. Their defense is a bit shaky however so we hope the American team plays an attacking game.
We predict that the US and Swedish teams will prevail and meet in the Finals on Sunday.
4500 km - 2800 miles
Well our time in Germany is coming to an end. We leave Frankfurt tomorrow and fly to Iceland. We will watch the semifinals there on Wednesday.
During our stay here we have logged 4500 kilometers in our car which is about 2800 miles which is the equivalent of traveling from Williamstown to Los Angeles.
We will continue blogging until the final game.
Next stop Brazil 2014 and Canada 2015??
During our stay here we have logged 4500 kilometers in our car which is about 2800 miles which is the equivalent of traveling from Williamstown to Los Angeles.
We will continue blogging until the final game.
Next stop Brazil 2014 and Canada 2015??
Monday, July 11, 2011
Ada and Karen Reflect II: Mean Marta
Marta is an awesome player and is probably the best player in the world today. Very fun to watch. However, we started calling her "Mean Marta" during yesterday's game. Even the fans during the game started booing her and the neutral ones started supporting the US.
Karen thinks that Marta is the second best player after the American player Megan Rapinoe (her favorite player) whereas Ada still thinks Marta is the best. For Karen, there is Rapinoe. Then there is everybody else.
Karen thinks that Marta is the second best player after the American player Megan Rapinoe (her favorite player) whereas Ada still thinks Marta is the best. For Karen, there is Rapinoe. Then there is everybody else.
Pictures from our three country tour
The girls having chocolate in Belgium and shopping and dining in France.
Interesting stat of this trip which should give the fathers a bronze medal. We have been to at least 8 H&M stores in three different countries. And guess what - the clothes are everywhere the same!
120+2!!!
The quarterfinals featured two matches for the ages.
The first was the Japanese victory over Germany. We were biting our nails as we watched that one. It is an incredible accomplishment by the Japanese women to beat the reigning world champions who were playing in front of their home crowd. After a shaky start, the Japanese women started to play very well. They kept their cool and were able to limit the effectiveness of the German forwards. They played systematic and clean, good football. A great victory in overtime!
The second was of course the US victory over Brazil. Wambach's winning goal came in injury time in the second half of overtime or in the 120th minute + 2. You do not see that very often. It was also poetic justice since a little bit earlier one of the Brazilian defender went tumbling down. She seemed to be faking an injury and was carried out on a stretcher. But as soon as she was on the stretcher it was as if divine intervention occurred. She jumped off and came running back onto the pitch as if nothing had happened. Fortunately, the ref did give her the yellow card. But that "injury" was what contributed to the injury time that resulted in Wambach's goal. So in this case, cheating did not pay off!
The first was the Japanese victory over Germany. We were biting our nails as we watched that one. It is an incredible accomplishment by the Japanese women to beat the reigning world champions who were playing in front of their home crowd. After a shaky start, the Japanese women started to play very well. They kept their cool and were able to limit the effectiveness of the German forwards. They played systematic and clean, good football. A great victory in overtime!
The second was of course the US victory over Brazil. Wambach's winning goal came in injury time in the second half of overtime or in the 120th minute + 2. You do not see that very often. It was also poetic justice since a little bit earlier one of the Brazilian defender went tumbling down. She seemed to be faking an injury and was carried out on a stretcher. But as soon as she was on the stretcher it was as if divine intervention occurred. She jumped off and came running back onto the pitch as if nothing had happened. Fortunately, the ref did give her the yellow card. But that "injury" was what contributed to the injury time that resulted in Wambach's goal. So in this case, cheating did not pay off!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
We had Hope!
An incredible US victory over Brazil!!
We drove down to Augsburg, where Oma, Karen's great grandmother is from and watch Sweden Australia. It was actually a good game with lots of goals. The Swedish team impressed us once again. They have fast talented players and are well organized. Their matchup against Japan should be a good one.
But the story of the day is of course the magnificent US victory! We watched the game in a bar in Stuttgart. The US players played much better than against Sweden. We didn't understand why Brazil was allowed to retake the penalty. Further, giving Buehler the red card was a harsh call. So the ref put her mark on this game.
The Americans were resilient and showed great spirit. They were a person down for more than hour and still won. They keep things exciting. We were confident going into the penalty shoot out because the Brazilians were dejected having just conceded a goal. And we had Hope - Hope Solo that is!
We drove down to Augsburg, where Oma, Karen's great grandmother is from and watch Sweden Australia. It was actually a good game with lots of goals. The Swedish team impressed us once again. They have fast talented players and are well organized. Their matchup against Japan should be a good one.
But the story of the day is of course the magnificent US victory! We watched the game in a bar in Stuttgart. The US players played much better than against Sweden. We didn't understand why Brazil was allowed to retake the penalty. Further, giving Buehler the red card was a harsh call. So the ref put her mark on this game.
The Americans were resilient and showed great spirit. They were a person down for more than hour and still won. They keep things exciting. We were confident going into the penalty shoot out because the Brazilians were dejected having just conceded a goal. And we had Hope - Hope Solo that is!
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