OT: Association Football

[Poupou Escobar]

Why does Vidosic start on the bench?

 

[The Phelan Folly]

I do feel for the poor old BBB, oops - sorry, RBB....

 

[phantom eel]

Match report: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-05-...-beating-wanderers-3-1-in-a-league-gf/7374190

Both sides had lost their previous two grand finals - for the Wanderers it makes three losses in four years.

 

[Gary Gutful]

I wondered what Brian Smith was up to these days.

 

[Gronk]

Heard today that some RBB merkins took 18hr bus down to Adelaide.

Keen. Fly would be better option methinks.

 

[phantom eel]

But they might not have got their pyro/flares/detonators past airport security... :?

Merkins can't help themselves, might start next season on -3 points if the FFA have any balls?

http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/article/2016/05/01/flare-lit-wanderers-bay-league-grand-final

Flare lit in Wanderers bay at A-League grand final

A flare has been lit in the Western Sydney Wanderers travelling section just before Sunday's grand final start at Adelaide Oval on Sunday.

The device was let off amid the throng of about 10,000 travelling Wanderers supporters moments before kick-off at Adelaide Oval, though nearby police did not appear to respond.

The Wanderers were handed a suspended three-point deduction by Football Federation Australia in February after ongoing violence problems with their fan group, including one incident in which 19 flares were lit simultaneously in the crowd.

 

[phantom eel]

Guardian also reporting Wanderers fans set a second flare off, after the final Adelaide goal was scored... :roll:

http://www.theguardian.com/football...ction-after-flare-lit-at-a-league-grand-final

Another flare was set off late in the game after Adelaide United scored their third, and what proved to be the decisive, goal in the Reds’ 3-1 victory that saw them crowned champions.

Wanderers have a suspended points deduction hanging over them after a previous incident earlier in the season.


In February, FFA found the club guilty of bringing the game into disrepute after supporters let off several flares during a match against Melbourne Victory at Etihad Stadium.


Wanderers were fined $50,000 and handed a three-point deduction, suspended for 12 months.

They now face the possibility of starting the 2016-17 campaign on minus-three points.

 

[phantom eel]

Some scary, potentially flare-related reports from the Wanderer's own forum :?

http://www.westsydneyfootball.com/topic/6681-another-grand-final-defeat-in-adelaide/page-2

Captain Jess : Posted Today, 07:19 PM
Hope the girl that got carried out of Bay 148 at the end of the match is alright. Really scary there for a moment. Looked like she couldn't breathe and was in a really bad way. She eventually got wheeled out by the paramedics and was conscious but didn't look good.

wendybr : Posted Today, 07:24 PM
How did that come about Jess??

Captain Jess : Posted Today, 07:48 PM
I don't know. I only saw her being carried out limp by four guys and her friends screaming at the cops for help. Somebody I spoke to suggested it may have been the flare let off towards the end. Hope she's okay!

 

[Avenger]

I hear the Wanderers are now going to be relocated to Buffalo. That's the big news here in the US.

 

[Ron Jeremy]

I hear the Wanderers are now going to be relocated to Buffalo. That's the big news here in the US.

Haha, hey we lost 4 in a row. But we lost to teams that were considered some of the greatest teams ever assembled.

 

[phantom eel]

Having a city like Adelaide as the A-League champions is a good result for the code.

 

[Gronk]

ABC Grandstand ‏@abcgrandstand 1m1 minute ago
Aus goalkeeper Stefan Petrovski, 18, dies after lightning strike during training in Malaysia http://ab.co/1W1BOfW

Australian goalkeeper Stefan Petrovski has died in hospital after being struck by lightning during training in Malaysia.

Petrovski, 18, was training with Malaysian club Melaka United on April 5 when lighting struck the goalposts he and a team-mate were standing near.

He had been in a coma in intensive care since then, but the club confirmed Petrovski's death on Sunday at 4:40pm local time.

"Melaka United have lost one of their valuable gem as their reserve goalkeeper Marko Stefan Petrovski, 18 passed away later this evening," the club said in a statement on Facebook.

"His parents Marjan Petrovski and Marie Lupang was in Malacca for almost a month while the deceased was in the hospital receiving treatment.

"Melaka United truly felt saddened and lost with his passing."

The Football Federation of Australia said it was saddened by Petrovski's death.

"On behalf of the Australian football community, FFA sends their deepest condolences to the Petrovski family, friends and team mates," the FFA said in a statement.

Petrovski's 21-year-old team-mate Muhd Afiq Azuan, the other player admitted to hospital, eventually regained consciousness and was stabilised.

Petrovski, of Serbian and Malaysian descent, was signed to the Malaysian Premier League club on a three-year deal after receiving Malaysian citizenship, but was yet to make his debut for the club.

 

[phantom eel]

That's a terrible and sad way to go.

 

[Gronk]

7th_Tackle ‏@7th_Tackle 3m3 minutes ago
BIG WIN @nrl over @ALeague in ratings from last night's combined viewership FTA & Pay TV: #NRLSharksBroncos 633K smashed #ALeagueGF 506K

 

[phantom eel]

Yeah, I was talking to a lot of people at work today who are normally fairly solid A-League fans... but they were flicking between the codes and ended up staying with the Sharks v Broncos match, because it was such a gripping contest.

#atmosphere

 

[Eelementary]

I reckon the fact Adelaide dominated us (and well done to them) played a role in the ratings

Had it been a closer contest...

But congratulations to the Reds. Well deserved.

 

[Gronk]

Merkins giving Ch9 heaps about their "work experience" news room fail tweets re: EPL

https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=9NewsAUS leicester&src=typd

 

[phantom eel]

Sydney FC top their ACL group , and now face FC Seoul in the group of 16.

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/...-to-guangzhou-evergrande-20160503-golhvj.html

Sydney FC top Asian Champions League group despite suffering defeat to Guangzhou Evergrande

UANGZHOU: Sydney FC clinched top spot in their Asian Champions League group on Tuesday despite suffering a 1-0 defeat to last year's winners, Guangzhou Evergrande, in their final match of the first stage. While stumbling at the final hurdle, other results in Sydney's favour ensure the Sky Blues finish Group H as the winners and will avoid a round of 16 match against the high-flying FC Seoul.

"If you said to me before we started in this group of death that we would top the group and be ahead of Guangzhou Evergrande, Urawa Reds and Pohang Steelers, I wouldn't have believed it," Sydney FC coach Graham Arnold said. "But, we've worked really hard and our performances have been excellent."

It was a question of which makeshift side would struggle amid the hot, humid and loud atmosphere at Tianhe Stadium.

Already assured of a place in the knock-out stages, Graham Arnold opted to rest many of those walking suspension tightropes while Brazilian Ricardo Goulart was the only high-profile foreigner starting for Luis Felipe Scolari's team, in the absence of Paulinho and Jackson Martinez.

Despite having nothing to play for and a lack of firepower for the big spending Chinese club, it was the Sky Blues who stumbled first. After just two minutes, Sydney FC showed signs of lack of familiarity and perhaps match fitness when they conceded to Gao Lin who latched on to a superb cross from the left flank.

Midfielder Huang Bowen almost doubled Evergrande's lead soon after when his free piece rattled the upright and the nerves of the Sky Blues, who were desperate to clinch top spot.

The Sky Blues bounced back in the second half with a more calm performance. They managed to keep Guangzhou pegged in their own half for considerable spells and when the hosts broke free, Sydney showed more composure to defend. They learned quickly to drop deep and contain Guangzhou's fast-men out wide and the lack of international Gao Lin should have doubled his tally with 20 minutes to go from a set piece. The striker rose highest to claim a free header in front of goal though dashed his effort narrowly wide.

The home crowd thought the match was sealed when Yu Hanchao broke through Sydney's backline. Squeezing in between Aaron Calver and Zach Anderson, the winger moved one-on-one with Vedran Janjetovic and showed no signs of nerves as he fired the ball into the net.

However, his celebrations were cut short by the linesman's flag.

Sydney came close to making him pay for his eagerness when George Blackwood's header was tipped over the bar by Liu Dianzou late in the match. A slick passing move involving Blackwood and Brandon O'Neill lead to another opening Sydney failed to finish.

It mattered little in the end as a draw between Pohang and Urawa ensured the Sky Blues topped Asia's group of death while the boisterous crowd ended their otherwise miserable campaign with a night to enjoy.

World Cup winner, Scolari, was impressed by Sydney FC and wouldn't be surprised if they progress past Shandong in the second round.

"We know that [Sydney FC] are actually quite strong and they have unified tactics and strategy," Scolari said. "We have to say that Shandong are a little bit different to the style of Guangzhou Evergrande but they are also quite a capable team so it's very difficult to say who will win in the round of 16 and enter in the further stage."

 

[Gronk]

Either you're an Optus customer or ....

#telco ransom

https://media.optus.com.au/media-re...r-league-from-15-per-month-on-selected-plans/

 

[Gronk]

Foxtel's attempt to claw back some of Optus's EPL deal.

FOXTEL has signed broadcast agreements with six major English Premier League clubs and will add three new 24 hour channels to the Sports Pack for no extra charge.

Deals have been secured to add three 24/7 new channels broadcasting the official TV channels of Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United. These will launch on July 1, raising the number of sports channels from 12 to 15.

In addition Fox Sports will broadcast dedicated programming blocks from Arsenal, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur.

All games from the six clubs in the EPL, FA Cup and Capital One Cup will be shown on delay.

Fans of other clubs will see their teams play at least 12 times, providing subscribers with more than half the games played each EPL season.

In addition, there will be exclusive access to each of the major clubs including pre-season games, player and management interviews, manager’s press conferences, and extended in-depth pre-match build up and post-match analysis.

Games played overnight Saturday night (3pm London time) will be available to views from 1pm AEST on Sundays.

Peter Tonagh, Foxtel Chief Executive said: “The addition of these dedicated new sports channels is a huge win for English football fans who subscribe to Foxtel. These channels, along with the recently announced beIN SPORTS channels, will be compulsory viewing for all fans of international football and will also complement the FOX SPORTS coverage of the local A-League competition.

“Our new EPL Club partners are global brands in their own right and have large groups of dedicated supporters in Australia making up more than 75 per cent of the English football fan base here. Our customers will now have access to commentary, analysis, insight and behind the scenes action they’ve never seen before.

“We know how much Australians love sport and these new channels, all available in HD, will make Foxtel an even more compelling proposition and cementing us as the new home of European football.”

All of the new sports channels will also be available to stream via Foxtel Go and Foxtel Play, giving sports subscribers the flexibility to enjoy the service anytime, anywhere.

The channels join the recently announced beIN SPORTS 1,2,3 which will be available to Foxtel sports subscribers from Saturday May 14, 2016. beIN SPORTS will be the only place to see all 51 games from UEFA EURO 2016 live and in HD.

CLUB BY CLUB DETAILS OF THE NEW CHANNELS AND COVERAGE (from July 1)

Chelsea TV. New channel on 516.

• Every Chelsea FC game from the FA Premier Cup, FA Cup, Capital One Cup, pre-season Tour

matches and extended highlights.

• Unrivalled behind-the-scenes access to coaches and players at Stamford Bridge and the training

ground.

• U21 Premier League, U18 Premier League, FA Youth Cup, UEFA Youth League, Women’s

Champions League games.

• Pitch side reports, latest team news, post-match reaction, audio commentary.

• Daily training ground reports, new signing interviews, manager and player match previews,

manager’s press conferences.

• Original documentaries and specials

LFCTV. New channel on 517.

Every game from Liverpool FC in the FA Premier League, FA Cup, Capital One Cup and

qualifying UEFA Champions League or UEFA Europa League and pre-season matches.

• Live and exclusive pre-season matches, behind-the-scenes access, and live news.

• Exclusive new interviews, features and documentaries.

• Extended in-depth pre-match build up and post-match analysis.

• Exclusive, live coverage of all U18s and U21s home matches and coverage of the Liverpool

Ladies FC season.

• Premier League preview show, Press Box, Thursday Night Show, LFC World.

MUTV. New channel on 518.

• All Manchester United FA Premier League, FA Cup and Capital One Cup matches in full.

• Exclusive interviews with players and staff, live reserve and academy games and “classic”

matches, footballing news and all of the team’s pre-season friendly matches.

• Exclusive documentaries, player interviews, manager’s weekly press conference and match

analysis.

• Live Under 21 and Under 18 matches with full replays of all first team games.

• Match day build-up and analysis, pre and post-match opinions and interviews.

• Breaking news from across the Club every hour, every day.

• Documentaries, historic matches and footage charting over 130 years of Manchester United.

Arsenal TV (FOX SPORTS programming block)

• Arsenal’s exclusive and entertaining club football content block featuring EPL, Emirates FA Cup, UEFA Champions League matches, plus press conferences and magazine programs.

• Full Arsenal matches delivered each week.

• Press conferences, Arsenal 360, classic matches and localised extra content.

http://www.foxsports.com.au/footbal...s/news-story/61fbf9852a969d63e60a5ed9a8f138bc