Day -445 WorldCup2018
Disappointment is all relative I guess. Relative to your level of expectation or what is important to you as opposed to what matters to the man across the street.
Disappointment for me today was watching Malta play the best football I have seen them play for a very, very long time and still lose. The expectations are never very high, and disillusionment set in right away as Slovakia scored in the second minute. But Malta turned what looked like would be a damage limitation exercise into an opportunity to show that they can fight back, they can play, that 11 players who play for club teams in Malta, non-league or lower league teams in England and Italy can stand up up to players who play for some of the bigger European teams.
Malta drew level after 14 minutes and from then on until the last minute of the first half they more than played their part in a very entertaining match. They harassed and chased the Slovakians and that's what led to the defensive mistake for Malta's goal. And Jan Skrtel's increasing look of anger and frustration, and a yellow card, was testament to how much of a nuisance the Maltese were being to the former Liverpool no-nonsense defender. It was a joy to watch the Maltese. Slovakia barely had a goal-scoring opportunity and while the Slovak 'keeper was not exactly making save after save, the Maltese were quick around the penalty area and creating opportunities that, as I could best describe it, could have led to scoring opportunities. Apart from hitting corners directly into the Slovak penalty area they figured out that they were not going to have any luck on high crosses against the huge Slovak defenders. Maybe it was mental fatigue in the second half but they did start resorting to some long balls up-field.
Just as the match entered the dreaded "please don't concede now" moments just before half-time, Malta's goalkeeper allowed a hopeful shot from distance to slip through his fingers. From the attacking team's perspective it was one of those "shoot at any opportunity from anywhere, you never know what might happen" kind of shots. From the defensive point of view it was a "'keeper's going to save it, let's turn around and get back up the other end again." What a disaster for Andrew Hogg, who has been so magnificent for Malta. All that hard work undone by him. Disappointment? Hogg felt it like nobody else at that moment for letting his team down.
(Many years ago, Malta conceded a terrible goal (against Portugal, maybe?) where the Maltese goalkeeper looked like he was diving in slow motion. I was there, saw it live and held my head in my hands in despair....and then laughed about it with my friend. The next day on Eurosport's highlights of the weekend matches, the commentator called the error a save that a Sunday League goalkeeper would have made. Hogg's was almost that bad. But I still felt very sorry for him. And I did not laugh. Too much disappointment)
In the second half Malta still worked tirelessly to keep the Slovaks at bay, and one opportunity for a second goal and 2-2 final score seemed possible. And then, there it was! "He's round the keeper, empty net. He must. He has!" And the excited shout that left my mouth and broke the silence of a lazy Sunday afternoon in our house, and elicited a look from my kids of "Daddy, are you ok?", was sucked right back into my mouth as I realised the ref had blown his whistle. And it was not good. Jean Farrugia, scorer of the first goal had used his upper arm to take the ball around the keeper. Goal disallowed, second yellow card, red card. No goal and now ten players. Disappointed? Disheartened. But there was still a little bit of a hope. It was still only 1-2.
Not for long. Another Slovak attack and a third goal. And that was that. One of Malta's best performances and another defeat. Disappointment watching Malta recently has meant watching a team desperate not to lose by too many goals, with players who seemed to have little idea as to what to do with the ball. Would it have been better if they had been 3-0 down at half-time today so that all glimmer of hope was extinguished quickly? No. There has to be hope and, in the end, today's disappointment was optimistic. The relativity of the disappointment was a reflection of how well they had played. There were, there are, possibilities.
To talk about relativity, though, and putting things in perspective one only had to watch England taking to the pitch today for their match against Lithuania. The end result was the expected formality. The story was England's returning goal scorer, Jermaine Defoe, walked out with his "best mate', 5 year old Bradley Lowery. Bradley is a Sunderland supporter who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Defoe visited him in hospital last month and has struck up what is reported to be a genuine care for Bradley and his plight. We, including me, deride these football players for their seemingly selfish, greedy, self-centred lifestyles. But here is somebody who is making a difference. And to make it more special, England captain Joe Hart swapped places in the England line with Defoe so that he and Bradley could lead the team out. Disappointment? Not for Bradley. Probably the happiest day of his life, even though it was loud and he covered his ears as he came onto the pitch
Defoe's tweet after the match:
"I hope you had an amazing day @Bradleysfight. It was perfect to walk out at @wembleystadium with you...
⚽
❤ #BestMates"
Disappointment is all relative I guess. Relative to your level of expectation or what is important to you as opposed to what matters to the man across the street.
Disappointment for me today was watching Malta play the best football I have seen them play for a very, very long time and still lose. The expectations are never very high, and disillusionment set in right away as Slovakia scored in the second minute. But Malta turned what looked like would be a damage limitation exercise into an opportunity to show that they can fight back, they can play, that 11 players who play for club teams in Malta, non-league or lower league teams in England and Italy can stand up up to players who play for some of the bigger European teams.
Malta drew level after 14 minutes and from then on until the last minute of the first half they more than played their part in a very entertaining match. They harassed and chased the Slovakians and that's what led to the defensive mistake for Malta's goal. And Jan Skrtel's increasing look of anger and frustration, and a yellow card, was testament to how much of a nuisance the Maltese were being to the former Liverpool no-nonsense defender. It was a joy to watch the Maltese. Slovakia barely had a goal-scoring opportunity and while the Slovak 'keeper was not exactly making save after save, the Maltese were quick around the penalty area and creating opportunities that, as I could best describe it, could have led to scoring opportunities. Apart from hitting corners directly into the Slovak penalty area they figured out that they were not going to have any luck on high crosses against the huge Slovak defenders. Maybe it was mental fatigue in the second half but they did start resorting to some long balls up-field.
Just as the match entered the dreaded "please don't concede now" moments just before half-time, Malta's goalkeeper allowed a hopeful shot from distance to slip through his fingers. From the attacking team's perspective it was one of those "shoot at any opportunity from anywhere, you never know what might happen" kind of shots. From the defensive point of view it was a "'keeper's going to save it, let's turn around and get back up the other end again." What a disaster for Andrew Hogg, who has been so magnificent for Malta. All that hard work undone by him. Disappointment? Hogg felt it like nobody else at that moment for letting his team down.
(Many years ago, Malta conceded a terrible goal (against Portugal, maybe?) where the Maltese goalkeeper looked like he was diving in slow motion. I was there, saw it live and held my head in my hands in despair....and then laughed about it with my friend. The next day on Eurosport's highlights of the weekend matches, the commentator called the error a save that a Sunday League goalkeeper would have made. Hogg's was almost that bad. But I still felt very sorry for him. And I did not laugh. Too much disappointment)
In the second half Malta still worked tirelessly to keep the Slovaks at bay, and one opportunity for a second goal and 2-2 final score seemed possible. And then, there it was! "He's round the keeper, empty net. He must. He has!" And the excited shout that left my mouth and broke the silence of a lazy Sunday afternoon in our house, and elicited a look from my kids of "Daddy, are you ok?", was sucked right back into my mouth as I realised the ref had blown his whistle. And it was not good. Jean Farrugia, scorer of the first goal had used his upper arm to take the ball around the keeper. Goal disallowed, second yellow card, red card. No goal and now ten players. Disappointed? Disheartened. But there was still a little bit of a hope. It was still only 1-2.
Not for long. Another Slovak attack and a third goal. And that was that. One of Malta's best performances and another defeat. Disappointment watching Malta recently has meant watching a team desperate not to lose by too many goals, with players who seemed to have little idea as to what to do with the ball. Would it have been better if they had been 3-0 down at half-time today so that all glimmer of hope was extinguished quickly? No. There has to be hope and, in the end, today's disappointment was optimistic. The relativity of the disappointment was a reflection of how well they had played. There were, there are, possibilities.
To talk about relativity, though, and putting things in perspective one only had to watch England taking to the pitch today for their match against Lithuania. The end result was the expected formality. The story was England's returning goal scorer, Jermaine Defoe, walked out with his "best mate', 5 year old Bradley Lowery. Bradley is a Sunderland supporter who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Defoe visited him in hospital last month and has struck up what is reported to be a genuine care for Bradley and his plight. We, including me, deride these football players for their seemingly selfish, greedy, self-centred lifestyles. But here is somebody who is making a difference. And to make it more special, England captain Joe Hart swapped places in the England line with Defoe so that he and Bradley could lead the team out. Disappointment? Not for Bradley. Probably the happiest day of his life, even though it was loud and he covered his ears as he came onto the pitch
Defoe's tweet after the match:
"I hope you had an amazing day @Bradleysfight. It was perfect to walk out at @wembleystadium with you...
⚽❤ #BestMates"
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