A Gooner's World Cup Diary - Part 4

Aussies thrashed in Durban



A Gooner's World Cup Diary - Part 4

On the beach - Durban Fan Park


I think it was after the fourth goal went in, but an Aussie behind us, leaning on an iron stanchion, then headbutted the thing about six times. I was rooting for the Germans on the basis that it is always good to see the Australian sense of superiority punctured. The Aussies now face Ghana in a game that would see them eliminated from the tournament if they lose. Their World Cup could be over before it's a week old. Shame.

Arsenal have been linked with Robert Green and Mark Schwarzer as the answer to their goalkeeping problem. After this weekend, at least both should be a bit cheaper. When I saw the German line-up before the game, I wasn't convinced their squad was particularly strong. Many of the subs' names were ones that I'd only heard fleetingly. Not many with reputations. But they played a quality match both in attack and defence and look very solid. They will probably win the group and If England are second in theirs, the two will meet in Bloemfontein on Sunday June 27th. It's an incentive for England to try and win their remaining two group games by getting better results than the USA and Slovenia.

It was a relaxed morning at Ian's outside of Durban. I got up to catch the sunrise, whilst Adam caught up with his sleep. Around lunchtime we headed into the City and parked up in a Casino car park for a fiver, or 50 rand if you prefer. It was 400 metres from the stadium, which looks like a five star Arabian tent from the outside. The weather was marvellous - shorts and t-shirts stuff, with the waves of the indian Ocean hitting the Durban beach. It was a great feeling to be in the area. There is a large Indian population in the city, and the beachfront area was packed with a lot of young people out to enjoy a unique Sunday afternoon with the game to follow that evening. I'd wax lyrical about the sights that had my eyes on stalks but I'd be in trouble when I got back home. Suffice to say that, remembering this is the pit of winter here, a man could get used to this.

Our interest in the Slovenia v Algeria match was minimal, and we had lunch in an Indian restaurant, before heading for the Fan Park further along the beach to catch the second game of the day between Serbia and Ghana. I'm not normally a big lover of these places, but this one was on the beach and although healthily populated, not so crowded it was a pain. We were able to sit on the sand to watch the game, as most people were happier sitting than standing. The locals were, unsurprisingly, rooting for the African team, and there was great joy when Ghana won and converted their penalty. Overall though, it was a game without much entertainment. The brief glimpses I caught of Slovenia's victory suggested I didn't miss much there either. I was convinced the match we were attending would be an improvement and I was bang on.

The thing about the times the matches are staged is that whereas there is a half hour break between the two afternoon games, there is then a two and a half hour gap until the evening kick off. I think I've mentioned in a previous entry that I think this is geared towards television audiences in Asia, as at previous tournaments the games have been more staggered. Writing this in the passenger seat on the way to Bloemfontein to catch Alex Song's Cameroon play Japan at 4pm, I know we are unlikely to see any of the Holland v Denmark game at 1.30, due to the need to get parked up (almost certainly a park and ride today) and reach the stadium. But on the upside, we will get back to our guest house in good time to see the evening match, featuring Italy.

In Durban, it was dark by the end of the Ghana match, so we headed back up the beach in the direction of the stadium, getting in over an hour before kick off as the security checks were far better organised and much quicker than Cape Town, presumably because there were simply more staff and more entrance gates. The stadium itself looks great with a Wembley-esque arch over the centre. There is also a gap in the upper tiers at one end, a bit like Berlin's Olympic Stadium. However, it has evidently been built for athletics use too, even if the circumference was covered in grass. It is quite evident that after the tournament, this will be ripped up and a track laid. I understand why stadiums are built for multi-purpose, but the world's best are invariably those where the crowd are closer to the field of play.

What struck me as we took our seats was that - over an hour before the game - the vast majority of spectators were already in the stadium and making a hell of a racket. And most of these were neutral fans, blowing their vuvuzelas. A pretty significant proportion of the crowd were obviously from Durban's Indian population - surefire evidence that the tournament is bringing people to the stadiums who would not normally attend football matches. It is very much an event that everyone is getting into, a further argument that the game can be a unifying force in a country where such things are desperately needed if the place is to continue to shake off the legacy of a history that saw it banned from international sport for so long. The great thing about all this buzz is that you feel like you're at someone's party and don't get bored waiting for the game to start. There was a woman in a Liverpool away shirt near us supporting Germany. I've no idea where she was from, but it was ironic that, soon after her arrival, someone blew up about 15 beach balls and a bit of crowd volleyball followed until the game began.

Our seats were low down behind the goal. There were about seven rows in front of us, and never mind the goal-line, the advertising hoardings meant we could not see the line at the edge of the six yard box. I call that restricted view, but fortunately, Germany's first two goals at our end hit the back of the net at head height, so we could enjoy them in their full glory. We spotted a sparely populated section next to the press box on the second tier and moved there at half time, giving us a decent view of the second half German goals. Along with the drama of England's draw with the USA, this was surely the best 90 minutes of the tournament so far, and the World Cup desperately needed a game with a few goals and a team that made a statement.

Driving back to Ian's afterwards was interesting, if only to see how poorly lit some of the main roads are. It is a good argument to find where we are staying in daylight, as trying to look for road signs (many were simply unlit, even on stretches of motorway) when you have not driven a route before could be hazardous. We departed from Ian's this morning, but will return at the end of next week for a couple more nights. Many thanks to him and his better half Annie for their hospitality. A beautiful home in a lovely setting. As we left there were monkeys traversing the phone lines outside their house. On the road to Bloemfontein, we made made contact with our host in Johannesburg, Martin, who suggested a scenic route with some lunch on the way. Looking at the timings and realising that we will need to probably park up by 3 (after having dropped our bags at the guest house a little way out of town), we can see that we won't have time to see some of this beautiful country. If we'd known before, we could have left at 7 instead of 8 this morning, but Adam said he took an age to get to sleep last night (no troubles here at all on that score!), so we expect to reach our digs approx 1.30 this afternoon.

It's a highly predictable aspect of this trip that there is going to be so much that we simply won't have the opportunity to see, as the schedule is quite tight. I knew before I came that I'd probably be coming back for a non-football trip at some point in the not-too-distant future, and all I've seen and experienced so far merely confirms that. Additionally, up to this point, I would say that I've never felt that I am in any danger. Obviously we are not doing anything blatantly stupid, but I was able to pluck out my digital camera in Durban yesterday without feeling someone was likely to rip it out of my hand. I am sure some things will happen to some visitors. Some crime is unavoidable. But overall, I would have to say that the impression I get here is that the visitor is king and people are doing their best to make sure that they have an enjoyable and positive experience of this country. Long may it continue.

Cameroon v Japan this evening. I have a feeling I might not be able to get this online until after I've attended the game, but you'll get the impressions as and when i can get online.


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