For decades, soccer has also been known as The Beautiful Game. More than that, the players have made the game even more beautiful. Just think David Beckham, David Villa, Michael Owen and more.

However in recent years, soccer has been known for its more than beautiful game play. Last summer’s match-fixing scandal which implicated top Italian Teams like Milan, Juventus, Florentina and other clubs has blackened the integrity of the sport. We have witnessed the brawl at the League Cup final between Arsenal and Chelsea. We have heard the French club Lille defend, as Thailand did last month, the players' right to walk off the pitch if they don't like the referee's decision. In Spain, Sevilla's coach was knocked out by a bottle thrown by a Betis fanatic during the derby

Continue reading "The 'Beautiful' Game" »

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The Winners!
They came in their hundreds - well to be truthful, in their tens- they dribbled around the questions, some answers going wide, some on the mark but thwarted by the keeper (i.e. the question-master) but some scored goals. However, at the end of the day, it was the golden goals that counted.

Oh dear....aren't you tired of all the football metaphors and cliches?
So this is just to say WELL DONE to the lucky winners of the digi.talk Beautiful Game quizzes who bagged the Hewlett Packard goodies from us (Thank you! HP). They look pretty happy - don't you think? The winners were: Quiz I - Mr. Raj Mohan ; Quiz II - Ms Toh Su Fern. Unfortunately for Quiz III there were no completely correct answers so there were no winners. Keep you eyes peeled for the next digi.talk brain-teasing quizzes and you too might join our winners' hall of fame!

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A Beautiful End to the Beautiful Game

Wow… what an exhilarating end to a month long of tension, action and controversy. Please excuse me for posting this review a day too late as I was trying to recover from a World Cup final that was as thrilling as any that I can remember since 1986. And of course, I too like many others was trying to make sense of that red-card expulsion that will forever punctuate the 2006 edition.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee Finale" »

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... for those visiting from another planet

Just in case you are visiting from another planet or have been in a highly remote zone of said planet - this is just to tell you that there is a soccer final happening in one of the European countries this Sunday (well Monday if you are in Singapore). (If this makes you say “so what?” then tune out here...)

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Events" »

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Who's in your Dream World Cup Squad?

Full List:
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Jens Lehmann (Germany), Ricardo (Portugal)

Defenders: Roberto Ayala (Argentina), John Terry (England), Lilian Thuram (France), Philipp Lahm (Germany), Fabio Cannavaro (Italy), Gianluca Zambrotta (Italy), Ricardo Carvalho (Portugal)

Midfielders: Ze Roberto (Brazil), Patrick Vieira (France), Zinedine Zidane (France), Michael Ballack (Germany), Andrea Pirlo (Italy), Gennaro Gattuso (Italy), Luis Figo (Portugal), Maniche (Portugal)

Strikers: Hernan Crespo (Argentina), Thierry Henry (France), Miroslav Klose (Germany), Francesco Totti (Italy), Luca Toni (Italy)

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The Substitute that never was and other sad tales of the last days....

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Croissant 10" »

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Highly Connected: A Techie's Eye View of the World Cup

When I was invited to attend the opening match of the World Cup, my friends were wondering why an IT journalist was covering a football event. What many people do not realise is that behind such a big sporting event like the Fifa World Cup is a huge cast of supporting technologies.
Every single aspect of the event has a technology angle to it. The backbone of it all is the converged Internet protocol (IP) network as mentioned in the story “Converging at the World Cup” (Page 15). Many applications ride on the network to ensure that the biggest football event on earth goes smoothly.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Croissant 9" »

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The Final Countdown: Review of the action so far

I have been in mourning if you were wondering where I went...The shock of seeing first Spain and then Brazil get knocked out by an opportunistic, ageing and quite frankly has-been team is more than I can bear... Oh well, the action resumes tonight so I thought it would be a good time right now to take a look back at what has happened and what is going to happen next...

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee Review 5" »

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When we look at the modern football boot all its streamlined luxurious science-based shape and sculpted art form appeal - it is hard to believe that it is a relative, albeit distant of the boot on the left. The idea was that the boots extended above the ankle, to support and give limited protection. Early forms of the game were ill defined and rough physical contact, including hard tackles, was encouraged. The boot was tightly laced with long laces, which wrapped around the ankle and often across the ball of the foot. To increase ground traction; boots incorporated studs.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : The Boots" »

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Once upon a time they were only worn by the players and only had the number 2-11 embelished on the backs, nowadays they are worn by every self-respecting supporter and are often strikingly extolling the virtues of this sport shoe or that insurance company. The trade in a new season version is the real start to any of the world leagues or tournaments and one of the big merchandising sucesses of this years World Cup Finals is the number of home or away versions sold to the millions of supporters worldwide.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : The Strip" »

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Review and Preview
Wow!!! The pace of developments in the World Cup comes so hard and fast that I can't really catch up with all the action so forgive me for consolidating 4 groups worth of reflection into one article. As a bonus, I shall also let you in on what I think will happen to the teams in the Round of 16.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee Review 4" »

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This is the second session for the "Beautiful Game" programmes where we are offering everyone a chance to test drive our new database Sport Discus. The session will cover access and searching as well as giving you an appreciation of the variety of content which sports enthusiasts - as well as professionals from all aspects of sport - can be accessed through this valuable database.





This 27th June session is at Woodland Regional Library.
Again the session will be conducted by a person experienced in the use and application of SPORTDiscus so come on down to Woodlands and pick up some serious searching skills!! If you want to go it alond why not go to our e-Resources and look for EBSCOHost SPORTDiscus under Sport, Recreation and Travel

Posted by digitalk team at 03:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

"SOCCER SHORTS"
No, not those sort of shorts! The Beautiful Game month asks just how serious are Singaporeans about soccer? Short Films By Emerging Local Filmmakers set out to capture Singaporean's passion for soccer in three vignettes. The films featured are Jacen Tan's "Tak Giu", Eric Lim's "Who Say I Can't Play!" and Matt Lim's "Ball Is Round".

Date/Time : 25 June 2006 , 3.00 pm to 4.30 pm
Venue : Woodlands Regional Library - Programme Zone
Subject : All (English)
Presenter : The Substation Moving Images
Admission : Free admission

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Last Weekend of the Football Film Fiesta
Film - One Day in Europe
Date/Time : 25 June 2006 , 3.00 pm – 5.00 pm
Venue : Lee Kong Chian Reference Library - Level 5 - Possibility
Admission : Free admission

Set amongst the backdrop of the Champions League Final between Deportivo la Coruña and Galatasaray in Moscow, this film presents four stories set in four European countries and all of them involve thievery. The film showcases the different cultures and weaves numerous funny events around that without being stereotypical. An entreating show that exploits the comedic potential of language, this movie proves that football is the one thing that can inspire equal intensity and link the whole of Europe together. Director: Hannes Stohr Country: Germany/Spain Duration: 93mins Year: 2005

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Group D review

1. Portugal 9 pts +4
2. Mexico 5 pts +1
3. Angola 2 pts -1
4. Iran 1 pt -5

Besides Argentina, I must say that Portugal impressed me the most and the amazing thing is that they played their best in their final 2-1 victory without Deco, Ronaldo, Pauleta and some other first-teamers. Tells you something, does it not? Deco has not been the miracle man everyone claims he is... I mean one long shot goal against Iran and suddenly you are world class?

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee Review 3" »

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Group C review

1. Argentina 7 pts +7
2. Holland 7pts +2
3. Ivory Coast 3 pts -1
4. Serbia 0 pts -8

I don't need to talk any more about the group winners. Regular readers of this column know how I feel about the Salsa kings. They are simply sublime and lit up the first round for me. I just want to say: Thank You Argentina

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee Review 2" »

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Group B review:

1. England 7 pts +3
2. Sweden 5 pts +1
3. Paraguay 3 pts 0
4. Trinidad 1 pt -4

Everyone in Singapore is familiar with the Chinese New Year and will know that very often at the Reunion Dinner, your mum or grands will inevitably serve the much treasured Buddha-Jump-Over-the-Wall. I hated this dish; the smell, the rich and cloy taste and the overloading amount of ingredients. In a way, England reminds me of this dish right now. With all the talents at Sven Goran Eriksson's disposal, there should be no way that he can create a side that looks so bad and so prehistoric.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game: Morning Coffee Review" »

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Some Grains from the Tittle-Tattle Mill

Under the Influence
It appears that the Ecuador Team need just a little help from the mystical forces - they have engaged a priest who practicies black magic for healing purposes - so I suppose that that is, technically, white magic? The mystic in question has gone around all of the World Cup venues blessing the pitches and goalposts with special attention given to Stuttgart for Sunday's game with England.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Croissant 8" »

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Group A Review
So the results are in and the final standings of Group A has been established. Let us now take a look back at the developments within this group but first here is the standings:

1. Germany 9 pts +6
2. Ecuador 6 pts 0
3. Poland 3 pts - 2
4. Costa Rica 0 pts - 5

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee Review" »

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Back to the Future

The games yesterday were a clear reflection of the saying, "The more things change, the more they stay the same". For once, the football powers flexed their collective muscles and got the victories they were looking for in emphatic fashion. Let us take a look at the results.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee 18" »

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Weekend Review
I guess this is a good a time as any to do a review of all the games that took place over the weekend... Let us just review the results:

Holland 2 - 1 Ivory Coast
Mexico 0 - 0 Angola
Portugal 2 - 0 Iran
Ghana 2 - 0 Czech Rep
Italy 1 - 1 USA

Congratulations to the Yankees and especially to the Africans. They showed just what desire, passion and commitment can achieve and for upsetting the old football hegemony, I salute them. They certainly brought a lot more colour and life back to this rather predictable World Cup so far.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee : Weekend 1" »

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Blunt Samurais
I don't know what to make of the Japanese...I kinda like them and they do have a midfield quartet that can hold their own against any in the world but they just seem to me to lack a little something that can take them over the hump. It almost seems to me that they are afraid of success, afraid of embracing what they have always wanted.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee 17" »

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The Film Fiesta ...second week....

"The Beautiful Game" Film Fiesta courtesy of the Goethe Institut continues on Sunday night 18th June with "Fimpen der Knips" This comedy is about the rise to glory of a six year old Fimpen who get to play with the national team of Sweden in their quest to qualify for the World Cup. Underneath this little charming tale lurks the story of the near-tragedy of a childhood that is sacrificed on the altar of competition.
Date/Time : 18 June 2006 , 3.00 pm – 5.00 pm
Venue : Lee Kong Chian Reference Library - Level 5 - Possibility
Subject : Sports
Admission : Free admission

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Ever wonder why boys should have all the soccer fun? Are you a woman with a hidden desire to be a centre forward or even with the tiniest urge to get your hands (or legs) on a football and have never had the courage to do it?

The SMU Women's Soccer Team will show you how girls can be good at soccer too! There will also be a short sharing session by the team members and a demonstration of some nifty footwork and daring football tricks. ... and maybe you'll inspired and able to join in this event next year!

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Events" »

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Heartbreak Hotel
There are some guys in this world who fall in love with someone they should never have; this woman may be beautiful and she may have stolen your heart but she will hurt you time and again, letting you down and leaving you wrecked like a war victim...yet the guy will still be a sucker and go back to her. Despite the mind saying "no" and despite all advice to the contrary, this guy knows he is trapped as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee 16" »

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Yeah, yeah I fell asleep again....and Daylight Robbery No.2
Yes for you my faithful readers, I missed my deadline last night yesterday... I could tell you I had nothing to write about last night's matches or that the Germany/Poland game was really boring but I won't cos I won't lie... I feel asleep after the Saudi Arabia game and didn't even manage to file that report...

However for what it's worth, I am back energised and I must say that while Tunisia was a great disappointment after all the hype about African teams, the Saudis far surpassed my expectations. I had classified them as the weakest team in the whole tournament but their movement and speed caught the Tunisians and myself by surprise.

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee 15" »

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The Great Pretenders
Regular readers of this column, (if such people even exist) will know that I did not write anything on Brazil or last night's game...and the truth was that after watching all the games and riding on 2 hours of sleep every night, my body finally gave up and said "No Mas".

Continue reading "The Beautiful Game : Morning Coffee 14" »

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The Spanish Armada sets sail
For a team that regularly underperforms at football's biggest stage, Spain made a fantastic start to their campaign by thumping Ukraine 4-0 for an emphatic win. Of all the teams that have any pretensions to the world crown, it has to be said that Spain looks the best on performance alone.

For one they have a brave coach Luis Aragones who had the gall to drop Raul on the bench and started Fernando Torres and David Villa and the duo repaid his faith in them by grabbing three of the four goals. Villa got his from a lucky free-kick and a penalty while Torres who impressed with his speed and movement upfront, scored the best goal of the game, latching on to a headed pass from Sergio Ramos and thumping the shot straight into the net.

Aside from the duo, Xavi Alonso was the one who got things going by heading home the opening goal and on the whole, Spain looked confident, efficient and self-assured. They played well within their abilities and kept the pace consistent, while still managing to send a strong statement out to the rest of the teams with 4 goals.

It was an all-round impressive performance and for once, it looks as if Spain may just be going somewhere.. Care to join me up on the Spanish bandwagon?

Posted by digitalk team at 10:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A French Disaster
Do you know what it felt like to watch France? Well watching the French in this game was like going on a date with Laetitia Casta, having a beautiful meal and a wonderful time and having the opportunity to take her to bed only to realise at the height of your anticipation that she was a cold fish. That was what I felt watching France.

To say the French were a disappointment was an understatement; they were horrible. They had all the smooth passing and flicks and tricks but when it came to the crunch, they crumbled. In fact, it is no exaggeration to say that the Swiss would have felt hard done by with the 0-0 draw after they spurned point blank chances to score.

The French were disjointed especially in midfield and attack. Zidane seemed to be playing by himself, not really combining with anyone or even making the effort to bring his teammates into the game. His argument with Makelele and Lilian Thuram in the second half says it all. Franck Ribery tried his best but could never make the breakthrough. Thierry Henry? He was a pale, pale shadow. Lest we forget, he was wearing blue, not red.

Then again I cannot say that I didn't see this coming... with the spat between the keepers, the talk of a mafia led by Zidane ruling the dressing room and with Raymond Domenech's explosion at a press conference, this French team is on the road to disaster. Are things going to change? I think not...

So what does that mean? It could mean draws with Korea and Togo and an early air ticket home.

Match Verdict:
This confirms my suspicion that the Swiss has a tactically very sound and organised side

Man of the Match:
I don't know actually; no one really stood out... How about referee Valentin Ivanov who kept me entertained with his ridiculous decisions?

Final Verdict:
The dream is over; the sooner Domenech drops Zidane from his team the better France will be

Posted by digitalk team at 02:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A first for Asia, and for Korea

I have to admit something.... when Korea made their miracle run to the semi-finals at the last World Cup, I was more captivated by the korean babe in the stand rather than the action on the pitch. True football fans would know what I mean (for her pics were all over the Internet and recently even appeared in the local rag The New Paper)...

Why did I mention this? Well in today's encounter between Korea and Togo, I think the cameraman was looking for the same thing cos he was panning to the Korean supporters like a stalker but I think I only saw a pretty cute korean girl in an interesting costume but she pales in comparison to her alter-ego four years ago...

What about the Korean team? Are they as good as they were four years ago? Sadly I have to admit that they are not in the same league. This team lines up in the same 4-3-3 manner but by contrast seems to lack the drive and self-belief that characterised the older team. The main attacking drive for this team was to come from Park Ji Sung and Lee Chun Soo but despite their efforts, it was Togo who took a shock lead 31 minutes into the game when a long ball caught the Korean defence napping and Mohamed Kader controlled the ball superbly with his thigh before smacking a shot straight into the bottom right hand corner.

The crowd was stunned into silence but despite their troubles and managerial fiasco, Togo were good value for their money. They seemed to finally prove the quality of the African sides after the rest of the teams so far all suffered defeats to their opponents. They will have a hard time justifying their call for more World Cup places should all 5 get knocked out after the first round.

Things however turned dramatically when 9 minutes after the break, Togo captain Jean-Paul Abalo got sent off after he brought Park down just outside the box. Up stepped the blonde haired Lee Chun Soo who curled a magnificent free-kick into the net for the equaliser.

The hero of 2002, Ahn Jung Hwan had come on as a substitute and he was having a major influence on the game. He got his just reward when he spun round a defender and lofted the ball into the net in the 72 minute. It was a goal of a high order and would have done his career prospects no harm at all.

There was no way back for the Togolese who could not overcome being a man short as well as being a goal down. So today it was a day of many firsts - first win for an Asian side at the World Cup, first win for Korea on European soil and first victory for new coach Dick Advocaat.

Now, I wonder where that Korean babe went....

Match Verdict:
Finally a shot in the arm for Asian football as Korea proved its class

Man of the Match:
Though he was a substitute, Ahn Jung Hwan showed just why he should be in the team with a first class performance

Final Verdict:
Let's hope the Koreans can shock the French in their next game...

Posted by digitalk team at 02:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Beyond the "Sneaker Wars"
Now we have things going the way I like ... with Suharto’s daughter hosting the World Cup show in Indonesia. The grapevine being what it is, it wags and waxes lyrical on Titik Hediati’s superbly subtle skills in her reportage of the "Beautiful Game."

So people are talking everywhere about the Global Game, the planet’s grandest arena which transforms itself into a catwalk for the likes of Ronaldhinho strutting his Nike "swoosh" cleats. The pompous swagger is great and yet his fans moan “Just Can’t Do It.” Wonder what that means? "Impossible is nothing" perhaps? Tell me, is this soccer schpeak. And yes, we know that Nike has the most popular video on Internet, Ping Pong has been watched 12million times 2. 2. since its October release.

Meanwhile the extension of the "sneaker war" rages between the two greats – Nike and Adidas. Nike based in Beaverton, Oregon, USA (aka the world’s largest sporting-goods company with annual revenue of $14.7 billion) is said to be kicking German-born Adidas in the shins. But, but, but (and there is always a but)....though Nike leads in every major sport, luck is not on its side where the most important game on the planet is concerned.

The people from Oregon may be obsessed with claiming one last victory in The Beautiful Game, yet, for Adidas, a company that’s a mere 60 years of age, and started by fusball fanatic Adi Dassler, a Swoosh-clad, Nike victory on its home turf is a big no-no.

I am whipping on my Tom Ford sunglasses whilst this is being written so that I can pass off as Angelina Jolie, stay incognito and end this by whispering to you that, to Adidas brand president Erich Stamminger, “Soccer is the lifeblood and the backbone of their brand. It is very emotional to us.” Hail! Let’s toast them all and learn whether the Swoosh-cleated US team knocks off the Adidas-draped Germans in the finals.

DIRECT LINKS
1. Titik Hediati story from "Spotlight on People" Straits Times
2. "Impossible is nothing" Adidas campaign - http://www.adidas-group.com/en/news/archive/2004/2004_02_05.asp
3. "Ping Pong" video - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8925413301368236130
4. Nike vs. Adidas - http://www.time.com/time/globalbusiness/printout/0,8816,1194039,00.html

Posted by digitalk team at 02:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Smooth Operators

This is why they say the cream always rises to the top. Italy stamped their class with a convincing 2-0 win over upstarts Ghana and put paid to the talk that they are going to struggle in this World Cup. They were always in control and seemed not to have any confidence problem as they matched the Ghanians for speed and strength.

There were numerous occassions the Italians could have scored but for the sterling work done by Ghanian goalkeeper Richard Kingston who denied attacking duo Luca Toni and Alberto Gilardino on several occasions.

Having taken the lead in the 40th minute through a thumping shot by Andrea Pirlo, the Italians never looked like relinquishing their lead and they put the game beyond any doubt when substitute Vincenzo Iaquinta got the second.

On current form, the Italians are still a class act and it would be foolish to dismiss their World Cup chances.

Match Verdict:
The Italians were decisive in taking their chances; Ghana had theirs but could not convert

Man of the Match:
World Cup debudant Daniele De Rossi caught the eye with his efficient and tidy work in midfield among more illustrous names

Final Verdict:
How serious is the injury to Totti? Also will the profligacy of the Italian strikers haunt them in the future?

Posted by digitalk team at 07:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)