One Man and his Football: Tales of the global game

"We're not really a soccer nation". Er, yes you are...

2010-07-27T11:28:00.001+02:00

Even on a non-football related trip to the Kruger National Park for a few days away from the chaos of Johannesburg, I couldn't escape the aftermath of the World Cup. Aside from seeing large plastic footballs adorning signposts, even as we entered the Orpen Gate into Kruger and seeing the majestic Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit stand empty, one man struck a nerve.

Stopping off in the tourist town of Dullstrom (apparently it's the place to go fly fishing), my fellow road tripper Dan and I were having a quiet drink and a well deserved break when an Afrikaans man came up to chat to us. Unsurprisingly, we got onto the topic of the World Cup. Much had been made before the World Cup over whether Afrikaners would support the tournament and the team but in this instance, such fears seemed unfounded. Having gone to his first football match, the pre-tournament warm up between Portugal and Mozambique in Jo'burg, he was enthusiastic about watching more when he suggested that he might start to follow Manchester United. I didn't have the energy to question why he would choose an English team over a South African one. I had just driven 300 km at that point. Didn't Afrikaners hate the English? They have good reason (after all the Brits invented concentration camps). But then Man Utd is not just an English team but a global brand. Why not choose a local team, although I'm not sure he would have known who his local team was (Mpumalanga Black Aces of the PSL for those who were wondering).

It was when he said "We're not really a soccer nation" that I had to bite my tongue. If he was referring to an Afrikaner nation, then I could understand although even within this group of South Africans there is a footballing history. However I got the impression that he was referring to South Africa as whole. Instead of jumping headfirst into an argument and pointing out to him that soccer (as it is called here) is actually the most popular sport in the country by far, historically and currently, I just smiled and nodded. It was far easier.

Grassroots football without the grass

2010-07-19T12:50:00.000+02:00

I've discovered that the end of the World Cup does not have to be a bad thing in the world of football. After hanging out yesterday afternoon with a couple of friends in one of the shebeens in my area, we came across a local game in Malvern between two sides playing for money, something that I've come across many times before and have even participated in it (I gave up though when a striker kicked my face in - it was a 50/50 ball and as goalkeeper, I managed to pounce on it a second before he got there. OUCH!). While the pitch had goalposts and nets, there was little in the way of grass. It was a dusty, bumpy pitch with grooves in the earth to mark out the boundaries. Not something that the likes of Rooney, Ronaldo and Messi would fancy playing on!

Give me my beer!!

Relaxing in the shebeen

Dan was wearing his Kaizer Chiefs shirt and people thought that he might be from the club; maybe a scout ready to unearth the next Pienaar? The sight of two white Englishmen armed with their cameras confused the row of people that lined the street to watch the game. Maybe we were professional photographers or journalists? The great thing about being in the shebeen and at the football match is that people are genuinely pleased to see you. Throughout the course of my time in South Africa, I have been welcomed by people everywhere. Sometimes I've felt guilty about owning a big camera when I've been with people that have had a lot less than me but it's also proved to be a great ice breaker. So many times, I've struck up conversations with various people after taking photos of them or with them.

Faking injury isn't just an elite football problem. Apparently a bottle of water can cure an ankle injury. Who'd have thought?

Keeper completely misses the ball. Rob Green must be his role model...

As Peter Alegi blogs, getting back to grassroots football is a welcome relief for many of us after the commercialism of the World Cup.

The pitch was of a similar quality to Wembley

Tiverton Town don't get many more spectators

Fly the Flag Fridays: clinging to the past

2010-07-16T10:43:00.000+02:00

With my cynical hat now firmly back on after the euphoria of the World Cup, the latest attempts to retain some semblance of national unity post-tournament has had me rolling my eyes, shaking my head and muttering in disbelief. In the build-up to the World Cup, South Africa had "Football Fridays" where every Friday South Africans were encouraged to wear their Bafana shirts to work and/ or other national colours. In the aftermath of the tournament, Football Fridays have become "Fly the Flag Fridays" in which South Africans are encouraged to continue wearing the shirts of the various national sports teams. Apparently, Football Fridays were a success as they were "a meaningful collective experience of a lifetime". I know I moan on about this but how meaningful is it to wear a football shirt and wave a flag (today that would make me an English Kiwi)?

I first heard this on the radio one morning recently as I was driving to work. I couldn't believe this. I fail to see any substance behind this call for continued flag waving. There is no more excitement to fuel this simplistic nationalist exercise. Maybe a fraction of the populace might get excited about the Tri-Nations rugby but few are going to go out buy Springbok shirts in the same manner as Bafana shirts. Our bank balances are smarting after the World Cup. Fly the Flag Fridays seems a dismal failure anyway. Bafana shirts are difficult to spot now, the vuvuzela is silent and some of the flags adorning the highways are in a questionable state. We are reaching the death knells of hyper-nationalism, the denial stage. Clinging to the highs many got from the World Cup, many want to relive that feeling but not all good things last. Reality (whatever that is) tends to get in the way. Time to get back on with the daily grind of Jo'burg life.

And to make matters more farcical, President Jacob Zuma wants one of the SA cities to host the 2020 Olympics. Unifying the nation through fencing, archery and synchronised diving?! Or maybe as I'm not South African, I just don't get it?

Conspiracy theory of a car guard

2010-07-13T09:47:00.000+02:00

As I pulled out of the parking space, wound down the window and tipped the car guard, he saw the England flag over on my wing mirror.

"Yoh! You boys did badly baba!", he exclaimed.

"I know. We were useless. It's been a great World Cup though".

"It was good but the referees stopped some teams who deserved it from going through. They were racist!"

"What do you mean?"

"The European referees stopped African teams from going through".

"What? Like Bafana and Ghana?" (Olegario Benquerenca of Portugal officiated at the Uruguay - Ghana match when Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez handled THAT ball off the line and Asamoah Gyan missed the subsequent penalty. I've lost count how many people claim that Swiss referee Massimo Busacca had no right to send off Bafana keeper Itumeleng Khune against Uruguay)

"Yeah, the racist referees wanted to keep Africans out. They [Europeans] want to keep football for themselves".

I wasn't in the mood to argue so I just smiled, nodded and drove off. This was supposed to be "Africa's turn" but the Europeans seem to have done a smash and grab.

Time to catch up on a month of lost sleep

2010-07-12T13:40:00.000+02:00

It is over. Jo'burg life seems to be reverting to normal as the traffic chaos in the city centre resumes. Vuvuzelas are absent from the landscape while Bafana shirts get put back into the cupboard (perhaps never to see the light of day again?). The nationwide hangover is beginning. What can we talk about now? Conversations become awkward as people struggle to think of things to discuss. SABC told us to "Feel it. It is here!", but it no longer is. The PSL season is too far away and pre-season friendlies seem a hollow, empty replacement. Kaizer Chiefs v Eleven Arrows from Namibia just doesn't inspire me the way Ghana v Uruguay did. Manchester United v Philadelphia Union is not a patch on Germany v Argentina and I really cannot get excited about Tiverton Town v Royal Marines. Having waited years for this, I am left stumbling around trying to work out where the past month has gone.

South Africa should give itself the proverbial pat on the back for such an exciting tournament. Of course there have been a few blips but then no tournament is without problems. It has been a month-long party feeling, desperately trying to fit in work around the football. The hospitality has been so warm and friendly that it will be difficult to match in future World Cups. Jo'burg has been transformed, if only temporarily

Reading the papers yesterday morning, it was striking that so many companies had taken out full page adverts congratulating the country for hosting the tournament. It's a shameless attempt by these companies to capitalise on the success of the tournament but it's everywhere in the city; billboards, radio stations and TV. The self-congratulatory tone will continue for a while but even that will eventually disappear.

Adverts from yesterday's Sunday Times

The initial plan for yesterday was to head to Melrose Arch at lunchtime to make sure we got parking and to soak up the pre-match atmosphere. Melrose Arch is a fascinating place in Johannesburg. Set behind huge walls and numerous electric fences, it aims to create the feeling of a cosmopolitan town centre with numerous shops and restaurants lining the streets. It is in essence a city within a city. The marketing describes it as "Open spaces replace the cage and cocoon. Life pulsates on the streets once again". Yet the cage is still there, just not so readily apparent. Its fortifications prevents the surrounding city from encroaching; its street life accessible only to the socially mobile middle classes with plenty of disposable income. Gijsbert and I thought we'd try something different after being at the fan parks for other games, but after a couple of R30 beers (which is a lot in Jo'burg), our bank balances were screaming for us to leave, that and our friends were going elsewhere! In one sense it was a shame. Within the two hours that we spent there, crowds of Spanish and Dutch supporters were filling the bars and lining the streets, a mixture of tourists and locals. The exclusivity of the place created a vastly different ambiance than the experiences I've had elsewhere. Apparently, over 10,000 people were there to watch the final. But by that time, we weren't.

In the end, we ended up back at the fan park in the centre of Jo'burg, that tried and tested place. Beer was half the price of Melrose Arch and the food was cheap. It was just as packed for the final as it was for the Bafana v France match that we watched there. Regardless of it being the final, there were still stalls that were closed, an indication that the fan parks have not been as successful as it has been claimed. There must have been more Spanish fans than Dutch ones and when Andres Iniesta scored the winning goal deep into extra time, those in red began singing, dancing and blowing their vuvuzela while the Dutch fans just stood there motionless. Seeing as I was with a group of the latter (I even had a bright orange wig on), we left soon after the final whistle but I can imagine there was a big party afterwards.

The World Cup is gone for another four years but I might need most of that time to recover. I'm sitting at my desk a sleep-deprived man and finding it difficult to construct a coherent sentence together. I've had the time of my life.

Obsession with legacy

2010-07-09T10:56:00.000+02:00

As we approach the end of the first World Cup on African soil, attention is turning to what legacy the tournament leaves for South Africa. I find myself constantly wrestling between my hopes and my cynicism. SA now has world class stadiums but who is going to use them? Many roads have been improved but are the majority who don't drive going to feel the benefits? Broadband internet capacity has increased but what good is that if you don't have access to a computer? Tourists have flocked to the country and spent their money but if you're not involved in the tourist industry, do you really benefit? The Gautrain has begun operating but this only serves a small section of Jo'burg society and the money spent could have been used upgrading the national rail network. It has been a month-long party but has it been much of a party if you still don't have access to basic sanitation and power? Every time I see a positive, negatives appear.

The issue of legacy is dominating the media at the moment. This morning, I came across this opinion piece in the Mail & Guardian by Richard Calland regarding the social legacy left by the tournament. Calland makes some salient points, especially when he says, "Apartheid schooled this country in organising things for the benefit and enjoyment of the few, at the expense of the many. The World Cup was no different from that; a First World show superimposed upon a putrid, demeaning Third World squalor". The juxtaposition of football stadium and informal settlement reminds us that very little has fundamentally changed. The search for a social cohesion in the World Cup is very a much a middle class agenda, a feel-good device that allows these people behind their "higher (electrified) walls" to wave their flags and 'be' proudly South African. Are people in the townships really as desperate to find this paper-thin unity or are there more pressing concerns? Do they feel as if they are the same as those middle class suburbanites? If anything, my experiences in the World Cup suggest class and economic divides have been reinforced.

Countering my cynical side and agreeing with Calland, I've seen people walking the streets of Jo'burg that I never thought I would see. The middle class are re-engaging with Johannesburg in a way that would have been virtually unheard of only a few months ago; taking Metrorail trains, minibus taxis and buses to the stadiums. But as my brief optimism ebbs away, I realise that we are living in a World Cup bubble that will soon be cruelly popped. I hope I'm proved wrong.

Oranje, boerewors and xenophobia

2010-07-07T13:09:00.001+02:00

A two day football hiatus ended with the first of the semi-finals last night between the Netherlands and Uruguay. I had decided to return to the fan park in Mary Fitzgerald Square, the scene for my roller coaster ride that was Bafana's win over France. I arrived at the park with a couple of friends early to soak up the atmosphere but the only soaking up was that of alcohol. It was dead. It seemed that there were more police than fans, although this did improve just before kick-off. Over half the stalls selling food and crafts were closed, as if they knew that it wasn't going to be worth their while opening up and braving the Jo'burg winter. Looking around at kick-off, I would estimate that only a quarter of the fans at that France game were there last night.

Great costumes but these were few in the fan park

Still, 95% of those there were supporting the Dutch, probably for a variety of reasons including Dutch heritage, their attacking style of play and the fact that Uruguay knocked Ghana out/ cheated Ghana out of a semi-final place. If Ghana had played last night, I'm certain that it would have been a different atmosphere. The small crowd cheered and jumped about when Van Bronckhorst scored the opener for the Dutch but were stunned as Diego Forlan was allowed time on the ball to blast home a shot from outside the box. The full time whistle was met with a spontaneous outburst of singing and dancing to the Coca-Cola song Wavin' Flag as the few news crews there were rushing around trying to get footage of the fans deliriously jumping around. It's strange how after football games total strangers come up and hug you in celebration and work their way into your photos. There's been a lot of that this tournament for me.

Celebrating after the Dutch win - Gijsbert's not a random drunk fan!

Buying a boerewors roll at half time, a Mexican news crew came up to the vendor and started interviewing him about what he was cooking. All of a sudden, they turned around to Ben and I and began asking questions about what we thought about SA food. We kept repeating the word "delicious" as our extended vocabularies eluded our (slightly) drunken selves.

"And what do you think of South African beer?" as they turned to me.

"It's better than English beer!" I blurted out, unable to think of anything more profound. Then they took close-up footage of me eating my roll. It couldn't have been a pleasant sight for those viewers of Estrella Television in Mexico. My apologies...

Yet for all the fun of yesterday, the dominant story in yesterday's newspaper about the threat of xenophobic violence reminded me of all the potential social problems that are bubbling under the facade of the World Cup. Zimbabwean immigrants have allegedly been threatened by South Africans to leave before the end of the World Cup otherwise they face violence and even death. Two years ago, the xenophobic violence in Johannesburg kicked off in the area where I'm currently staying and areas nearby. Seeing the images of one man burning to death on TV and in the newspapers is something I hope isn't repeated again. South Africa is better than this.

Trademarking Africa's Humanity

2010-07-06T13:08:00.000+02:00

Having had a great time at the Ghana v Uruguay game, the following day's match at Ellis Park between Spain and Paraguay would have a tough task matching the exhilaration.

Walking through Braamfontein on the way down to the stadium, we discovered a new bar in the area with small televisions on every table plus a big screen. Sitting down for the Argentina v Germany game that afternoon, it was obvious that the vast majority of the bar was supporting Argentina. When Argentina went close, the patrons would be on the edge of their bar stools; when Germany scored, they were visibly upset. Why would so many South Africans support a national team that a.) wasn't theirs and b.) wasn't an African team? There are a number of possible explanations:

They are attracted by the global names: Messi, Tevez and of course Maradona
They are attracted by the attacking brand of football that they play
They want to keep the World Cup in the southern hemisphere
It's an anti-European/ colonial reaction

Points one and two were pretty obvious. People would know generally know more about Messi & co than Schweinsteiger and Podolski. Point three was a bit of a surprise. On the train on the way back from the Ghana game, one woman was saying that now all the African teams had been knocked out, she wanted the cup at least to stay in the southern hemisphere. Desperate sounding but this view was repeated in the bar. Maybe I should want to Spain, Germany or the Netherlands to win to keep it in the north? I base the final point on a halftime conversation in the toilets.

"You don't want an all-European final do you?"

"Er, I don't mind, but I'm European."

"You don't know what it means to us. We don't want Europe to keep the World Cup. Europe is too strong. It needs teaching a lesson."

"Oh, ok..."

And as he left, he exclaimed, "F**k the Europeans!" Nice. Unfortunately for him, he didn't get his wish as the Germans thrashed the Argentinians 4-0.

Being lazy, we decided to get a private taxi from the bar to Ellis Park - I was a little uncomfortable about walking the streets of Hillbrow and Joubert Park in the dark. In a wonderful example of tourist exploitation, the taxi driver wanted to charge twice as much as normal. Eloquently, I replied "f**k off!" and took another taxi, this time for the 'normal' price. We still had to walk the streets of Doornfontein to get to the stadium as the roads had been closed off. This was a World Cup quarter final but you couldn't tell. No crowds of people making their way to the stadium, no build-up of anticipation. This is life in Johannesburg, where the streets empty in the darkness, people afraid of leaving the 'safety' of their homes. The park and ride buses take fans close to the stadium, bypassing the inner city. The park and walk locations even worse still. But then we entered another perimeter and suddenly it burst into life. Fans poured out of the buses. Vendors were selling vuvuzelas , flags and anything else that could be branded with a national flag. Stalls selling a variety of food lined the streets. This atmosphere was unlike the sterile experience outside Soccer City. I could could get my pap and steak/ chicken/ boerewors. Introducing Ben to the delights of South African football food, we sat down and stuffed our faces as we watched the world go by. The vendors were selling their goods through the perimeter fence but the police didn't seem to care.

Enjoying the atmosphere outside the game

Attempting to cook pap

Meat!!!

We were a bit short-changed during the game. The most expensive knockout ticket that we had and Spain had the audacity to win it in 90 minutes (all my other knockout games at least went to extra time)! This could have been my third penalty shootout in a row but it wasn't to be. At least the three second half penalties in quick succession (should have been four) added some spice to the fixture. Spain fans dominated the crowd but unlike the Ghana - Uruguay game, the atmosphere seemed muted in comparison. With Ghana as the last African team, South African fans had a lot more emotionally invested in the game. This time, I thought that people were supporting Spain because of the big names such as Torres and Villa, who they had been watching for years on TV. Pockets of (actual) Spanish fans dotted around the stadium were singing, dancing and waving their scarves but few else knew any of the words so a return to the vuvuzela was in order.

As my mind wandered, my eyes met with one of the FIFA logos - KE NAKO. Celebrate Africa's Humanity™. I thought that it was a bit strange that FIFA were telling us to celebrate Africa's humanity as if it was something that had just been discovered. I can't imagine a World Cup in Europe with the slogan Celebrate Europe's Humanity. Why is Africa treated differently in an "actually-they're-just-like-us" way? Then Ben pointed out that why have FIFA trademarked Africa's humanity?! So if any African does something humane, they have to get permission from FIFA? Can FIFA have intellectual property rights on humanity? That's a scary proposition...

Two Englishmen wearing South African and Japanese football shirts at Spain v Paraguay...

Reminiscent of last years chaos at Ellis Park during the Confederations Cup, the park and ride queue was much less a queue, more of a mob. They had clearly learned some lessons from last year such as improved signing but it took a fair while to get back to the car. Sitting in the bus, I realised that my World Cup adventure was coming to an end. That was my last game and with the final on Sunday, it'll be business as usual next week. I'm already thinking about Brazil 2014!

Football Japan Minutecast interview

2010-07-05T13:23:00.000+02:00

Here's the link to my interview for Football Japan: http://minutecast.footballjapan.jp/article/155237437.html

I almost sound as if I know what I'm talking about!

Expert? Moi?

2010-07-05T13:17:00.000+02:00

Here's the link to the Edinburgh University article on my research and time in SA: http://www.ed.ac.uk/about/edinburgh-global/news-events/news/southafrica-300610

Again, I had no say in the title of the piece!

The drama of Ghana v Uruguay

2010-07-03T14:37:00.093+02:00

Yesterday was supposed to be an anti-climax, or so I thought. Last night’s quarter final between Uruguay and Ghana was perhaps the least attractive fixture in the last eight. Worse still, this could have been an England match but the dismal showing of Rooney et al had robbed me of the dream of seeing the Three Lions in action at the business end of the World Cup. I was not happy. But I was so, so wrong.

After watching the Netherlands – Brazil game in a bar (many South Africans have adopted other teams since Bafana fell at the first hurdle), we hurtled down to Park Station to catch the Metrorail to Soccer City, a service free for ticket holders. Jo’burg City Council have been encouraging fans to use public transport to ease match day traffic congestion so we obliged. The problem was that there was insufficient parking for the demand, forcing many to park outside on the streets. This prospect would usually be met with apprehension and in some cases outright refusal but the World Cup has created this temporary cocoon of safety over Johannesburg. Watching throngs of people of all race, class and gender walk the streets of Johannesburg at night just does not happen normally but this time people were happy enough to leave their cars on the pavements while the car guards made a tidy profit. Crammed onto the train, the unusual kept coming. Admittedly a big generalisation, it was bizarre to see the middle classes use the form of transport usually used by the black working class to commute to work. As with last year’s Confederations Cup when I regularly heard comments about how they’d never been in a minibus taxi before, many had clearly never used the train system before. At one level, the World Cup is bringing groups of people together in unusual situations but such is the temporary nature of such an event. The Metrorail network does not serve the need of the middle class northern suburbs and so I cannot see these people continuing to use public transport after the tournament.

Crowds pouring out of the train station

I was a very confused man last night. As an Englishman, I wore my New Zealand football shirt and had my face painted with the Ghanaian flag!

Am I English, Kiwi or Ghanaian?

Reaching Soccer City, the crowds slowly wandered towards the gate. The almost deafening blasts from the vuvuzelas combined with the songs of fans created an exhilarating backdrop to the spectacular calabash stadium.

Approaching Soccer City

Sat down in our seats just before the national anthems (this time I didn’t miss the first twenty minutes of a Ghana game). What was glaringly obvious was that virtually all the fans inside were supporting Ghana. Out of the 84,000 people there, there could not have been more than 2,000 Uruguay fans. As Ben and I discussed throughout the game, we’ve never witnessed such a partisan crowd for a non-host game. Even Bafana v Mexico in the opening game had a sizable number of Mexican supporters. Ghana maybe thousands of miles away but last night was a home game for them. One flag opposite us claimed that "we Kenyans support Ghana". With few supporters coming from either country, the South African spectators got fully behind the African team. The vuvuzelas were back in full force, after a slight lull in previous knockout games. I put this down to the fact that few South Africans would know the words to Ghanaian or Uruguayan songs – the vuvuzela is the lowest common denominator.

The teams line up

The game itself didn’t start too brightly, especially for the Ghanaians. However, they sparked into life towards the end of the half and Sulley Muntari’s cracker in injury time sent the crowd into ecstasy. This worked to our advantage as people were still celebrating into the break meaning the beer and food queues were considerably shorter. This was great news as we were so “looking forward” to yet more bland, rubber sausages®, branded sugary drinks© and mediocre beer™.

Is this food?

The crowd were in jubilant mood in the second half until Diego Forlan’s free kick found the back of the net in the 55th minute. The crowd were stunned. Chances came and went at both ends as the game went into extra time. Whenever Ghana threatened the Uruguayans goal, the vuvuzelas surged up, willing the team on to become Africa’s first World Cup semi-finalist.

And then it all went crazy.

At the death in extra time, Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez produced a cynical handball on the line to prevent Dominic Adiyiah’s header from crossing the line. The crowd jumped to their feet, vuvuzelas blasting and flags waving as Suarez was sent off and the penalty awarded. The crowd were already in party mode believing that this was Ghana’s moment but they could not believe their eyes as Asamoah Gyan’s spot kick hit the crossbar. Sharp intakes of breath, heads in hands, slumping back down into the seats; the fairytale ending was shattered. The penalty shootout that followed could have caused any number of heart attacks. All credit to Gyan for stepping up to take the first penalty for Ghana and banishing the failure of a couple of minutes previously as he slotted home his spot-kick. The despair of John Mensah’s saved penalty was quickly supplanted by the euphoria of keeper Richard Kingson saving the next Uruguayan penalty, but this was short lived. Adiyiah missed his and Sebastian Abreu calmly converted to send the South Americans into the last four.

Ghanaian striker Kevin Prince Boateng ran around the pitch in an attempt to get the crowd to cheer for Ghana one last time but the stadium emptied remarkably quickly.

Soccer City emptied in a matter of minutes

However, our night had not finished yet. Taking a wrong turn, we ended up in the middle of the celebrations of the Uruguay fans. Initially annoyed that they had knocked Ghana out, I found that I couldn’t begrudge Uruguay their victory, such was the passion and enthusiasm of the fans. I wasn’t so impressed with the way the South African Police Service handled crowd control. Dressed in their Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle-esque body armour and wanting us to leave the stadium, they pushed us into the crowd with their batons, forcing us out. I thought that the best way to avoid a crush would be not to push people in the crowd, or maybe I’m being naive? The police did partially redeem themselves when they pulled out a drunken fan from our train carriage, who seemed to determined to start a fight.

Uruguay fans celebrate as the police behind us push us into the crowd

Having jumped on the last train to Johannesburg, it took a very long time as it slowly made its way back to the city but this didn’t spoil one of the best footballing experiences that I’ve ever had.

Football withdrawal symptoms

2010-07-02T15:25:00.003+02:00

The two barren, football-free days are finally over. Wimbledon has been a poor substitute, especially as I just cannot get excited about Andy Murray and his ultimately doomed attempt to be the first British male champion since Fred Perry in neolithic times. Fortunately, I had to pick my cousin up from the airport to begin a week crammed full of the beautiful game (although there have been times this tournament when 'beautiful' has been stretched to the limit - NZ v Paraguay anyone?).

The Norweigan Bjorn Heidenstrom cycled and hitchhiked from Oslo to Johannesburg and collecting football shirts from various clubs along the way. These have been made into a giant shirt, which is currently on display in Randburg, Johannesburg. The shirts range from the big global brands such as Manchester United and Chelsea to smaller provincial clubs in the Spanish lower leagues (and Coventry City!).

Try and find a wardrobe big enough for this...

In between cruising the roads of Johannesburg and taking photos of the football stadiums in the city, we stopped for a couple of beers in Soweto in the afternoon winter sun. Across the road, a stall sold football scarves, hats and flags. The waning support for Bafana was evident as the Bafana scarves were cheaper than the Ghana ones. Ghana has become Africa's football darling. This morning, my local pub was flying the Ghanaian flag in a show of African solidarity. This area was also witness to some of the xenophobic violence unleashed on African immigrants that hit Johannesburg a couple of years ago but now they're supporting the foreigners. One minute they're different, the next they're "one of us".

Displaying a Ghana flag doesn't necessarily mean that attitudes towards African immigrants are going to change

If Ghana beat Uruguay tonight, there'll be a lot of sore heads tomorrow! Which, incidentally, is where I'm off to now, via the pub to watch the Brazil v Netherlands game.

Football designs on the Soweto cooling towers

Yet for all the fun and laughter of the the World Cup, just remember that not all is rosy in South Africa...

The World Cup is unlikely to have touched the inhabitants of these homes...

Falling on their swords

2010-06-30T11:57:00.001+02:00

After I made a few wrong turns and missed the turn on the highway (I blame my navigator!), we eventually made it to Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria for the second round clash between Paraguay and Japan. The security checks at these games have become increasingly laughable. The sight of police officers in body armour are in contrast to the apathetic body searches conducted at the gates. I've walked straight through before without anybody questioning me. This time, they made a cursory check of my pockets but seriously, considering the amount of things I've seen smuggled in to PSL games in peoples' socks, you'd have thought that security would have cottoned on by now. But they haven't. If the metal detectors went off, the stewards didn't seem too interested. FIFA also told us that we would need our ID along with our match tickets but I've not needed it once.

The giant Japan shirt in the stands just before kick off

This time I managed to avoid eating rubber sausage as they still had some pies. Much better than the last pie I had at a football match (Cowdenbeath v Clyde - Scotch Pies have a lesser meat content than the rubber hot dogs!).

If the game was dull, the Japanese fans were in full voice. In the stand below me, one of the hardcore Japanese supporters was constantly on his feet, megaphone in hand (does FIFA really allow them in the ground?) and leading the supporters in chants of "NIPPON! NIPPON!" A fixture featuring two "smaller" teams was unlikely to have many travelling supporters but South African fans came out in force, most of whom were supporting Japan as the underdogs.

Leading the Japanese support

I clutched my Japan scarf tight as I watched the penalty shootout unfold. Agonizingly, Yuichi Komano's spot-kick cannoned off the crossbar and the Japanese fans around me collapsed in their seats in despair. With Paraguay coming out on top 5-3, the first thing these fans did was to stand up and applaud their team as the players walked over and reciprocated the sentiment. Tears were welling up in their eyes as they struggled to come to terms with the end of their World Cup journey. With my sparse knowledge of a few Japanese words, I shook their hands in commiseration, stopping to hug one fans for whom defeat was clearly too much. They cheered up enough for some photos but stayed behind, shell shocked. Strangely enough, I was more cut up about this defeat than Bafana or England getting knocked out. I hope I get the opportunity to watch Japan live again.

Celebrating despite defeat

So all my teams are now out: Bafana and NZ in the group stage with England and Japan falling at the second round. I'm supporting Ghana now, although I fear that may just be the kiss of death.

My lucky shirt didn't work. Need a new one.

2010-06-28T17:56:00.000+02:00

My weekend of football continued yesterday with the eagerly anticipated England v Germany clash followed by my trip to Soccer City for Argentina v Mexico. While at times I've been self-analytical over my wavering support for England, it only took Three Lions pumping from my car radio yesterday morning to get worked up; that and the wearing of my lucky England shirt. Clearly it's not lucky anymore...

Together with my friend Chris, we drove down to Soccer City extremely early in the hope of watching the first game on the big screen. You would have hoped that the organisers would have had a little foresight and erected big screens showing the first game and attracting a captive audience to sell their overpriced junk. But no. I jumped out of the car at the gate (we went straight through security without being questioned) and asked if they were letting people in. Other fans had the same idea but had to wait outside for thirty minutes until the gates opened. I jumped back in the car and we zoomed back into the city to a bar in the city. The national anthem came on and I stood up and sang. A few odd looks but not as many as when I was surrounded by Australians earlier in the week! Unfortunately, Chris was supporting Germany and as the goals flooded in, my heart sank. Staring into my beer, I conceded defeat (graciously I thought). Luckily Chris was a good winner.

Zooming back to Soccer City, we bought some food in the car park. Not the suspect hotdog that I've come to loathe but pap and steak, food synonymous with the local game. It was great to sink my teeth into that once more but having to pay R40 was a little too much (it usually costs R25-30 on a regular match day). It turned out that the FIFA police have told all the informal traders what they must charge, although why, nobody knew. As with other traders that I've spoken to, business has not been what they expected with some struggling to break even. The positioning of stalls has not helped as some are hidden around corners in the dark. Asking the women who served me whether she had many foreign customers, she shook her head. Chris kept asking if they had any beer but no-one did. They have been forbidden to sell beer, probably because it wouldn't be that watery American beer that is served in the ground. The local flavour of a football match can be experienced on match day but you have to search for it. The traders have to register with the city council and have had to go on training courses on food hygiene. Almost as bad as homeowners having to learn how to make cappuccinos if they want to accommodate foreign tourists... Even one Mexican trader selling Mexican wrestling masks had to have accreditation. Yet the ticket touts still operated unhindered.

Reaching my seat (three rows from the front, middle tier, behind the goal), the atmosphere felt incredible. Arguably one of the best that I've experienced as I was sitting just above the mass of Argentinian fans singing and dancing in such an impressive stadium. It was such an exhilarating rush. The vuvuzelas were still there but there were being incorporated into the songs. I may not have much love for the Argentinian team but the fans were brilliant. If Argentina lose to Germany in the quarter finals, the tournament will be poorer for it.

Argentina fans celebrating in front of the camera

Curiously, I happened to look down in the stand below during the first half to see the police escort the "number 1 fan" of the SA club side Bloemfontein Celtic out of the stand. He'd clearly not been in the correct seat but did not take kindly to being told that he was in the wrong place. I think that this encapsulates a key problem that faces the Premier Soccer League and the Football Association here should they wish to capitalise on the current popularity of the sport in SA. All the PSL games have unreserved seating, which puts off many people from going but when reserved seating is introduced, many local fans often ignore it while the stewards seem unable to do anything about it. There's a balance that needs to be achieved to attract new fans while keeping the current ones.

Soccer City before kickoff

I'm over England's defeat now. It might help that I have three more games to go to!

Ghana progress as I make slow progress in the traffic

2010-06-28T15:23:00.001+02:00

The African dream lives on in Ghana after the Black Stars beat USA 2-1 after extra time thanks to Asamoah Gyan's 93rd minute strike. Ghanaian supporters dominated the stadium as many South Africans chose to support the one remaining African team in the tournament. Wearing Bafana shirts but waving Ghanaian flags, this was the most colourful World Cup environment that I have been in so far. The stadium was buzzing after the final whistle and I was glad to see the look of disappointment on Landon Donovan's face. If he's going to mess up my World Cup plans, they're going to get knocked out of the tournament. It's karma!

Landon Donovan equalising from the penalty spot

However, as with much of my work, the game was secondary to what was happening around it. We left Johannesburg just after 4:15pm, giving us just over four hours before kickoff. We thought that would be enough time to get to our seats seeing as Rustenburg is only 120km away. We were wrong. Getting trapped on the N4 toll road, we trundled along in the queue but, as always in this country, there were idiots who chose to zoom down in the emergency lane, which cause chaos on the way up to the England v USA game a couple of weeks back. This time round, there was a chunky Afrikaans guy in a Toyota Hilux driving slowly up this lane to prevent this from happening. We drove alongside and infuriated the impatient South African drivers but most of them gave up and fell back into line. There were one or two idiots who thought that for the sake of making up a few places in the queue they would drive into oncoming traffic and almost cause horrific accidents. It was satisfying to see them pulled over by the traffic cops! We spent the hours stuck in traffic thinking up ways to get back at these drivers; the best was buying a tray of eggs and throwing them at the windscreens but we didn't pass anywhere that sold eggs.

Ghanaian fans celebrating during extra time

The park and ride was fine we got onto our bus easily. Problem was that the bus got stuck in traffic itself. Sat in my seat as the match clock ticked over 20 minutes. Not happy. We missed the first goal. Fortunately we saw two more and got extra time.

The media circus makes a beeline for the Ghanaian fans after the game

If there were a few issues getting to the stadium, it was dramatically worse coming back. The game finished at about 11pm and we got to the pick up point 20 minutes later. That was the last thing that went right. There were no queues, just piles of people pushing and shoving to make up a couple of yards of ground. As time went by, people got more irritated and annoyed. The Englishmen in front of me were complaining that this was the side of the World Cup that the TV cameras never picked up on.

"This system is s**t!", one of them eloquently stated. And it was. Rustenburg park and ride was efficient during the 2009 Confederations Cup but something has gone wrong since.

One of the Americans behind me decided to "blame it on all the Canadians who are here. All two of them!" Some tried to joke but those Englishmen got increasingly grumpy. Some aspect of this World Cup have been incredible, but this was a farce. They should have had this all ironed out last year. Clearly not.

Eventually (sometime past 1am) we made it onto the bus. If that was bad, the traffic on the highway stumbled along. I got home at 5am, six hours after the game had finished.

Got a spare ticket?

2010-06-26T12:25:00.000+02:00

I'm heading up to Rustenburg this afternoon to see Ghana v USA. It's an easy choice to decide which team to support; the last African team in the competition or the team that finished above England and messed up all my plans (it's Ghana just in case you're still wondering).

I went to Sandton yesterday to pick up today's match ticket to find masses of fans outside the ticket office and across the road. Thanks to Landon Donovan's goal after 91 minutes against Algeria, England have ended up facing Germany in Bloemfontein tomorrow rather than Ghana in Rustenburg today. England fans were left with tickets that they no longer wanted and were trying to offload them, through official means or otherwise. With few tickets available for England v Germany, these fans had to resort to offering excessive sums of money to those lucky few gripping these golden tickets as they walked out. No-one was prepared to part with them however. I hope Landon Donovan realises what trouble he's caused.

While all this was happening, the Dutch national team walked by. Shame I didn't have my camera on me.

The black market for tickets is rife. Even though FIFA have directed fans to return tickets to them for a refund minus a 10% fee, many are choosing to ignore this. I have been offered tickets for numerous games although I haven't accepted them due to lack of money and there's only so much football I can go to!!! Ticket touts operate under the noses of the police who rarely act on this. A few have been charged, put on trial in one of the World Cup courts, and imprisoned but most operate freely. With group game tickets sometimes selling for a lot less than face value, part of me wishes that I hadn't bought mine through FIFA. Could have saved myself a lot of money.

Got a great weekend of football ahead - Ghana v USA tonight, England v Germany on the big screen before Argentina v Mexico at Soccer City. I wonder how the Argentinian fans are going to react to me wearing my England shirt...?

Inflatable kangaroos, cheese dogs and metal giraffes

2010-06-24T17:42:00.003+02:00

In the car on the way to Nelspruit for the Australia v Serbia game yesterday morning, there was an Englishman, a South African supporting England, a South African who had lived in England and a South African who would rather watch paint dry than watch an England game. At one point in the journey, we became concerned that England manager Fabio Capello might have gone AWOL:

Capello travelling in the wrong direction

Forced to open the emergency beer supply when we reached our log cabin 40km outside Nelspruit, we were soon back on the road into the city to watch the England v Slovenia game before going to the stadium. Walking into the pub, we realised that were in a tiny minority; the place was swarming with Australians. None of us had envisaged that football/ soccer was so popular in Oz and were surprised to see so many Socceroos fans.

Spot the England fan (who then put on an Australia jacket...)

Instead of following the masses, we were adopted by the small number of Serbian fans; my friend's knowledge of some Serbian swearwords and his Nemanja Vidic t-shirt only endeared us to them. Once we got talking to them, we became confused by their Australian accents. Some of them were Serbs living in Australia, supporting their country of birth against their country of residence although they had absolutely no problems with this.

Improving Anglo-Serb relations

God Save the Queen played out over the speakers as the players lined up. Standing in front of the TV, I was belting the anthem out only for me to realise that few people were singing along with me. I looked up to see a pub full of Aussies staring at me in amusement. I was equally amused to see a couple of them joining in with me. The Serbs explained to us that they wouldn't usually support someone who has bombed them (!!) such as the US but seeing as were going to support Serbia that evening, they were willing to return the favour and make an exception for us. Relief at the final whistle turned to frustration as news that Landon Donovan had scored deep in injury time for the US to beat Algeria 1-0. It was wasn't so much that this meant that the US had finished top of the group (although that was annoying) but that it meant that England would not be featuring in the quarter final at Soccer City for which I have tickets. I was not a happy man.

Taking the park and ride bus to the stadium, the four of us sat at the back. Admittedly with a few beers inside us, we started out with chants of "SER-BI-A! SER-BI-A! SER-BI-A!" From this, we thought it would be a 'good' idea to pretend to be Serbian, having conversations in a pretend language while pretending to understand this nonsense! Our attempts at a Serbian accent was less Serbian and more Borat but we were still fooling the locals. Bursting into a rousing rendition of Shosholoza was met with incredulity by the other passengers with the man in front in shock, exclaiming: "They know Shosholoza!" As far as he was concerned, the Serbians had made the effort to learn some of their culture, oblivious to the truth. We continued in our broken Serb-lish with Borat accents to chant anything to do with South Africa: "BA-FA-NA! BA-FA-NA! PI-EN-AAR! PI-EN-AAR! MO-KOEN-A MO-KOEN-A!" The passengers were loving our enthusiasm. We were clearly a hit!

Leaving our alter egos at the stadium gate, we sampled the culinary delights on offer in the stadium. Our choice was between hot dogs, cheese dogs and chili dogs. Whether these had ever seen an animal before was dubious and combined with the cheap white bread, it made us feel sick rather than satisfied. We did find a stall selling boerewors rolls at an inflated price but it was too late. We also refused to queue for 30 minutes for a well-known watery American beer. It really does destroy the South African identity of match day.

Mmmmmmm! Tasty...

Mbombela Stadium from the outside is very impressive with the support struts made to look like giraffes while the seats inside are arranged in a zebra print. I only hope that the tourists realise that there's more to South Africa than animals.

Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit

The Aussie fans heavily outnumbered the Serb fans. Most just had scarves and flags but inflatable kangaroos were also popular. Not conforming to stereotypes now, aren't they?! If only there had been an Aussie fan in a prison jumpsuit...

Skippy the inflatable kangaroo

The game itself was secondary to everything around it. In the first half, stewards had to get the police in to calm down the hardcore Serbian fans who refused to sit in the correct seats. The stewards were helpless and just flapped around until the police came. It was a shame as it killed a little of the atmosphere where I was sitting. Was great to be sitting on the front row though.

Serb fans before kick off

How Serbia lost that game I don't know, although a goal incorrectly ruled offside and an Australian handball in their area that was missed might have had something to do with it. A couple of Serb fans really did not like the outcome of the match and started shouting abuse at their players. One player had clearly had enough of this and came over with the intent of starting a fight although nothing came of it. Both teams were knocked out of the tournament, with Ghana and Germany progressing from the group. While Serb fans were despondent...

A solitary, depressed Serbian fan

... the Aussies were in more jubiliant mood as the players did a lap of the pitch, thanking their supporters for making the long journey.

Aussie fans staying behind to cheer their team

Cheers to the guys who I travelled with for an awesome road trip!

For a moment we all believed

2010-06-22T22:28:00.000+02:00

So Bafana are out of the 2010 World Cup. It wasn't that surprising considering the task they'd left themselves after the 3-0 defeat to Uruguay last week. Beating the French by a handful of goals always seemed unlikely but Bafana surprised most people by actually BEATING THE FRENCH!!! Looking back now, there's a lot of "ifs". If only Katlego Mphela had scored rather than hitting the woodwork against Mexico. If only he'd done the same against France. If only they hadn't capitulated against Uruguay. But this is now in the past. Bafana are out and have the unfortunate honour of being the first host country knocked out in the first round. When the draw was made towards the end of last year, I was glued to my computer screen in my office, wearing my Bafana shirt, makarapa and had my vuvuzela close by. When the names were drawn, I was gutted. In a group with France, Uruguay and Mexico, surely Bafana would get no more than a couple of points. In the end they got 4 points and lost out on goal difference. Maybe some South Africans will be disappointed but they ended the campaign admirably. Ranked 83rd in the world, a draw versus Mexico and a win against former world champions France is a superb return.

Walking across Nelson Mandela Bridge

Walking down to the public viewing area in Newtown, central Jo'burg, the vuvuzelas were going, Bafana shirts were seemingly worn by every other person and flags were flying. Nelson Mandela Bridge was impressive with the massive banners portraying Madiba. As we were nearing Mary Fitzgerald Square, the sound of the vuvuzelas grew ever greater. After getting through security (again they didn't check the socks - another valuable chance to smuggle in alcohol wasted!), the area was busy but by no means full. What was great about this venue as opposed to the Soweto fan park was that it was not an official FIFA fan park but run by the city, therefore it was not bound by the same restrictions. I've moaned before about the sanitisation of the World Cup but here was a venue that embraced a cross-section of South Africa. Local beer, local food and local crafts, the many stalls that displayed such goods created a vibrant ambiance. Pap and vleis, boerewors rolls, makarapas, flags, football shirts and a giant figure made from Coca-Cola crates all added to a South African experience of which I have not had during this tournament.

Stalls at the viewing area

Looking at the Johannesburg CBD in the distance

If Bongani Khumalo's headed goal in the 20th minute was met by a cheering crowd, Yoann Gourcuff's red card for elbowing Bafana midfielder MacBeth Sibaya in the face and Katlego Mphela's bundled effort in the 37th was cause for jubilation. The improbable had become all too possible. The news came in that Uruguay were leading Mexico 1-0. More cheers. More vuvuzelas. More beer. The halftime run to the bar was chaotic as fans were singing, dancing and blowing their vuvuzelas. No longer was there just a forlorn hope but a belief that Bafana would defy the odds.

Intensely following the game

The crowd and the Coke man

But it wasn't to be. Mphela hit the crossbar, the side netting and forced a save from the French goalie but the goals Bafana needed were not forthcoming. The French had the audacity to kill the dream with Florent Malouda's 70th minute strike. The atmosphere temporarily flattened but once people had realised that beating the French was an achievement in itself, the party started.

Walking back across the now illuminated Nelson Mandela Bridge, it struck me just how much the tournament is going to miss these crazy Bafana fans. It's just so difficult to explain what it feels like to be in the middle of all this. It's incredible!

Back across the bridge

The World Cup will miss Bafana, but they're not out yet

2010-06-22T11:10:00.001+02:00

Time to abandon all attempts at rationality again as Bafana take on France this afternoon in Bloemfontein. Even if Bafana do managed to stuff the hapless French by a load of goals, they still need Mexico and Uruguay not to draw. It's a tough ask. Unlike in the build-up to the opening game, there is no longer an atmosphere of belief but one of desperate hope. The vuvuzelas are back but with a whimper, not a bang. No-one dares utter what they are secretly thinking, that Bafana have scant chance to progress. It's splashed all over the front of the papers; The Star begs Bafana to "Storm the Bastille". Archbishop Desmond Tutu is praying for a "Bafana miracle". TV and radio are telling us to get behind the team once more. Actually, there is one group that has dissented. The ANC's Youth League has criticised the performances of captain Aaron Mokoena, stating, "We believe captain Aaron Mokoena sometimes makes costly mistakes, which the team and the country cannot afford in a do-or-die soccer encounter". It may well be true but they're not doing themselves any favours by saying this before the game.

If, and it's an enormous if, it all goes to plan, there will be partying in the streets of Jo'burg tonight! If not... well, I'm just not going to think about that possibility. I will be in the thick of it once again at the fan park in Johannesburg CBD with my Bafana shirt and vuvuzela, screaming myself hoarse until the end. For an Englishman, I'm doing a good impression of being South African...

I wouldn't support Italy just because they're European. Actually I wouldn't support Italy.

2010-06-21T22:36:00.001+02:00

This is Africa's World Cup or so we're told. Ever since South Africa won the bid to host the World Cup, various sporting and political elites have said that this tournament is for all Africa. This idea of a continental identity elsewhere would seem bizarre at best. Imagine the absurdity if England won the rights to host the 2018 edition and declare that it was a tournament for all Europe! Brazil haven't claimed that 2014 is South America's turn, Asia is too vast for any coherent idea of what it is to be "Asian" and if Australia hosted 2022, I doubt there would be much trans-Tasman bonhomie.

If this really is Africa's World Cup, the African teams seem to have missed this. Cameroon are out, South Africa need to score a bucket-full of goals, Cote d'Ivoire would have to score even more, Nigeria and Algeria are rooted to the bottom of their respective groups and Ghana failed to punish 10-man Australia. Yet, more significantly, many South Africans supporting the other African teams because they are African. As the only non-African in the room watching the Cameroon - Denmark game, I deliberately cheered for the Danes to annoy everyone else. They were jubilant when Eto'o put Cameroon ahead but clearly irritated with my chants of "Denmark! Denmark! Denmark!" and the two Danish goals. TV and radio commentators argue that fans are being let down by the African teams. As an Englishman, it's a strange concept. I wouldn't feel let down if Italy or France got eliminated. I'd positively revel in it! Maybe people on other continents have different views on this? It was the same during my MSc research in Ghana and Togo in 2006. Supporters that I spoke to in the respective capitals wanted Angola, Cote d'Ivoire and Tunisia to win if their teams couldn't.

At the Egypt - Italy Confederations Cup at Ellis Park last year, I was cheering for the Egyptians and they duly won. The vast majority of the crowd at that game were South Africans. While this is admittedly a massive generalisation, almost all the white South Africans were supporting Italy while non-white South Africans generally chose Egypt. Catching up with some of the hardcore Bafana fans after the game, they assumed that I was supporting Italy. They were shocked when they found out that we were supporting the same team. "But you're from Europe!" This brings up questions of what it means to be African and who identifies themselves as such. However, this is a blog not an essay...

My World Cup matches

2010-06-21T11:42:00.000+02:00

Recently acquiring quarter final tickets for Ellis Park bring my World Cup matches to a respectable five:

England v USA, Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace, Rustenburg
Australia v Serbia, Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit
Round of 16, Soccer City, Johannesburg - looks like Argentina v Mexico
Quarter Final, Soccer City - possibly England v Uruguay
Quarter Final, Ellis Park, Johannesburg - perhaps Japan v Portugal

Happy days...

Learn to love the vuvuzela

2010-06-19T13:52:00.000+02:00

Here's the link to my opinion piece on vuvuzelas in Friday's Edinburgh Evening News but the cheesy title was nothing to do with me!

Had numerous beers last night in an attempt to make England v Algeria more interesting but failed. An afternoon of food and football awaits...

No pap?? But this is South Africa!

2010-06-18T12:30:00.002+02:00

Mexico's 2-0 win over France last meant that while it is mathematically still possible for Bafana to qualify for the knockout stages, it would require Bafana to score a glut of goals and hope that Mexico and Uruguay do not play for a draw (click here for the permutations). While President Jacob Zuma has said that he will be wearing his Bafana shirt today in support of the boys, the cracks are not only showing but gaping. Few people now believe that Bafana can still progress but they are clinging to a tattered hope.

Scouring the papers this morning, I came across a great, if somewhat cynical opinion piece in the Mail & Guardian by the South African film director Zola Maseko dispelling the myth that the World Cup (and the 1995 Rugby World Cup) has unified the Rainbow Nation. Of the 95 cup win, he writes: "That World Cup victory peddled the mischievous lie that centuries of racial hatred, economic exploitation and racial discrimination had been miraculously wiped away, in one fell swoop." He wants to see something more substantial than some simple flag-waving patriotism, arguing that "Wouldn't it be something to see 80,000 white South Africans go into the township and plant some trees? Or just sit and drink with their countrymen. No rugby. Just sharing, listening and understanding." I'm not sure how tree-planting would help nation-building but this dream will remain just that. There'll be a lot more of this kind of commentary in the months to come.

Last night while watching the the above game, my host asked me how much vendors were selling pap (a staple food for many black South Africans made from ground maize) for in the stadiums. Pap and steak or chicken is a common sight at South Africa domestic football matches cooked and sold by a plethora of vendors around the stadium. It is also one of my highlights of the football experience here. I replied that there wasn't any pap in the World Cup stadiums.

"But this is South Africa! They must have pap there! Why is there no pap?"

"Because only sponsors' products are allowed. There's just the American beer Budweiser, no South African beer, not even Castle. All the soft drinks are Coca-Cola products. Even the coffee. They serve bland hotdogs and burgers. No pap, not even boerewors."

"But this could be Brazil or Germany or anywhere!"

And he's spot on. The sterile corporatisation imposed by football's governing body to satisfy their sponsors is robbing the match day experience of its South African flavour. Informal food vendors are not allowed within a certain radius of the stadium, which restricts the tourists' opportunity to sample this food and the vendors' ability to sell as my host had found out to his detriment. Thankfully the vuvuzela is not to be banned otherwise the World Cup really could be anywhere.

Bafana fever is contagious but I think there's a cure

2010-06-17T17:39:00.002+02:00

When England played South Africa in the group stage of the 2007 Rugby World Cup and lost 36-0, I was the only one in the bar with an England shirt on. I got some abuse, a lot of banter and some free drinks in sympathy. A year later, I was back in the same bar with the same shirt on as England lost 6-42 to the Springboks. Cue more abuse and banter (not sure if I had drinks bought for me that time). In both cases, the bar was packed and the atmosphere was raucous. The vast majority of the clientelle in both cases were white, middle class South Africans. In between these games, Bafana embarked on their disasterous 2008 African Nations campaign, getting knocked out in the first round. I watched a couple of these at the same bar but both times it was virtually empty. Only myself, a couple of waiters and a car guard sat and watched the games. Fiercely patriotic for the rugby, ambivelent at best when it came to the football. This neatly fitted into the stereotypes of sport in the country; rugby for white, middle class men (predominantly Afrikaans) and football for the black working class.

Although I had initially planned to watch the Uruguay game at the fan park in the centre of Jo'burg, I chickened out due to the sub-zero temperatures so I decided to return to this bar to see if Bafana fever had infected even the most rugby-hardened areas. It had. It wasn't packed like for the rugby but it was still a lot busier than those January evenings two years ago. More of a mixed crowd than I found for the rugby, nobody sang the national anthem but there were a couple of guys blowing vuvuzelas inside, which grated on me. It was a more low-key affair than what I experienced in Soweto but the fans still got behind their team. Howls of disbelief met the penalty decision but once the game was over, the atmosphere was flat. Whether people will be back for the Bafana v France game remains to be seen but when the Tri Nations rugby returns next month, that place will be packed once more with Springbok fans. Business as usual.

The vuvuzelas have all but stopped, as if in mourning. The hype of Bafana has been shown to be just that. Many are bitter towards the referee but there is much feeling that Bafana have let people down considering that they promised so much. If the talk yesterday was that of Bafana uniting the nation, the drubbing has disappointed a nation. Bafana fever will disappear as quickly as it emerged.

The front and back pages of The Star and the Sowetan this morning describing the disappointment of the night before

Bafana v Uruguay - an armchair critic's perspective

2010-06-17T11:08:00.000+02:00

Bafana promised much this World Cup. From claims of making the nation proud to declaring that they could win the tournament, the squad carried an air of confidence and belief and many South Africans duly followed. Last night's 3-0 drubbing at the hands of an above average Uruguay restored some perspective as to where South Africa really are in the echelons of world football. A bright enough start by Bafana was cancelled out by Diego Forlan's vicious strike from outside the 18-yard area. Goalkeeper Khune was partly to blame as the ball sailed above his head. Maybe he was briefly unsighted by his defence, who allowed Forlan so much time and space to line up the shot. The confidence and enthusiasm shown by Bafana in the opening match was sadly lacking in the second game. Even at 1-0, Uruguay looked assured in possession as Bafana showed little attacking intent and an inability to string a row of passes together. The goal-scoring hero from the last game, Siphiwe Tshabalala, offered little apart from a few wild shots and Modise on the right had another ineffective performance. Worryingly still, playmaker Steven Pienaar looked a shadow of his former self and captain Aaron Mokoena continued his run of defensive mistakes. While there were legitimate claims for offside (decide for yourself) , there can be few complaints about the referee's decision to award the penalty and send Khune off. Despite the Uruguayan number 9 looking more at home in a swimming pool than on the football pitch such was his inclination to dive around for the entire game, Khune did get the man not the ball and denied a clear goal-scoring opportunity. His defence however had left him high and dry. A third for Uruguay at the end was just the final hammer blow in an inept Bafana performance.

With Dikagcoi now suspended for the France game, maybe now Mokoena will get moved into his preferred defensive midfield role with Matthew Booth in at centre back? Doubt it though.

Let's hope that France and Mexico play to a draw tonight and then Bafana to beat France while Uruguay beat Mexico in the last group games. On last night's perfomance, that is just cloud cuckoo land.

Uruguay, Youth Day and sub-zero temperatures

2010-06-16T10:30:00.000+02:00

Tonight Bafana Bafana take on Uruguay in their second Group A clash. With all the teams in the group on one point and me being unable to resist football cliches, there will be all to play for. Coach Parreira has said that he will take risks in the team selection and tactics in order to progress into the second round but has not specified what.

What is more significant is the day that this match is being played on. June 16th is Youth Day, one of the biggest public holidays in South Africa. It commemorates the Soweto Uprising on the same day in 1976 when over 20,000 students in the now-famous township protested against the use of Afrikaans (seen as the language of the oppressor) as the medium of instruction in schools. Clashes with police and the ensuing violence during the following few weeks saw approximately 700 hundred people killed. The image of a mortally wounded young boy named Hector Pietersen being carried in the arms of another man. became internationally recognisable as the world woke up to the horrors of apartheid. The uprising is often heralded as the catalyst for change that set South Africa on the road to democracy. Star player Steven Pienaar has said that Bafana squad feel "the weight of responsibility resting on them". If Bafana, who are ranked 83rd in the world can beat 16th-ranked Uruguay, there will be massive celebrations nationwide, even with temperatures expected to hit -3C!

It can't be a coincidence that Bafana are playing today. As hosts, they were automatically team A1 in the draw. Perhaps it was set up like this by the organising committee in an attempt to foster national pride? Or maybe I'm just being cynical.

I had planned on heading down to the public viewing area in central Johannesburg this evening for the game but with such temperatures, I'm not sure that I'm willing to freeze for the sake of football and I doubt many South Africans who think that 15C is cold will think differently!

Drunken mutterings on talkSPORT

2010-06-14T11:19:00.002+02:00

I woke up on Saturday morning to a text message from a friend of mine seemingly discussing England's team selection for the USA match. Imagine my surprise when I found out that he had a spare ticket and was giving it to me!!

My first England ticket

On the approach to Rustenburg, traffic ground to a virtual standstill still with many miles to go to the stadium. Contending with idiots who were driving up the emergency lane in a stupid attempt to get their car a couple of hundred metres further, progress was extremely slow. We had left hours before kickoff but as the clock ticked past the minutes and then the hours, the horrifying thought that we would miss some of the game dawned on us. Groups of traffic cops talking to each other in the middle of the road and then directing us in a different direction to what the signs said didn't help matters. So many people had parked on the roadside up to the stadium rather than find their car park in a desperate bid to get inside on time. We managed to find a car park (not ours though) and dashed inside, dodging already drunken fans. Sat in my seat with 10 minutes to spare!

The legend who gave me my ticket!!!

This was my first England football game and I was stunned to see the Royal Bafokeng Stadium covered in England flags. The media here has constantly told us that the US has the largest contingent of supporters that have come over for the World Cup but this really wasn't evident that night. As the national anthem struck up I was expecting a massive swell of song but it didn't materialise. I then realised that many of the England fans here must have been South Africans, who didn't know the words. Throughout the game, I could hear the section of hardcore England supporters singing and chanting. Amusing at first, hearing Come on England! on a loop for 5 minutes became more annoying than having a vuvuzela blown in your ear.

Spot the American fans...

The stadium/ I went crazy when Steven Gerrard scored the opener. England had the ascendancy for much of the first half, although the usual defensive frailties were exposed by the pace of the American attack. The Americans created some chances and Jozy Altidore really should have scored but thankfully he chose to head wide. And then came the howler. My seat was perfectly placed to witness this calamity in all its glory; on the goal line, front row of the second tier. It was as if it was in slow motion, Rob Green's arms scrambling to get hold of the ball. B@!!ocks! The silver lining was that a friend had bought 12 beers for four of us; I had five in quick succession. England had the best of the second half but failed to convert chances, Emile Heskey the major culprit.

My personal beer supply

In hindsight, the result was nothing more than a minor setback and by this point there were plenty of drunken England fans who just wanted to party. As we were leaving the stand, a talkSPORT journo came up to my very confused friend (he wore and USA jacket with an England scarf). I walked up and declared:

"You do know he's not American?"

"Of course I do" and he turned his big fluffy microphone to me.

"So are you just here for the World Cup?"

Instead of just answering yes, I rambled on about how I used to live in Johannesburg. He eventually got me to just say yes. I don't remember exactly what he asked me now; it all disappeared in a drunken haze. Something about how I felt about the result (it's not the end of the world) and the turning point in the game (Green's howler). I also muttered something about Emile Heskey playing like a donkey. Through all this, I was fascinated how this guy seemed to be engrossed in what I was saying, vigorously nodding his head like a dog wags his tail.

Drunk and delusional England fans on holiday

If the traffic was bad getting in, it was a disaster trying to get out. As a host venue in last year's Confederations Cup, the park and ride system ran fairly smoothly and was much better than Johannesburg. Maybe they rested on their laurels as chaos ensued. Limited/ conflicting signage, police telling us to head off in the wrong direction only for us to get stuck in traffic for ages. Crowds of people lined the streets as they searched for their buses. The tourists were completely clueless as to what was going on, getting in queues in the hope that they would eventually lead to their bus. They're going to have to realise soon that not everyone around the world has the same predilection towards queuing that the English have! The priceless moment was when one England fan said that he was "waiting for the white van" to take him back where he came from. He had no clue where that was and clearly did not grasp that all the minibus taxis looked the same. I guess that he was one of the fans that were still stuck at the stadium at 2am...

I ran down the stand to get a picture with Captain America!

Paul - you are a legend for giving me that ticket!! I know that you claimed you were neutral but I saw how you reacted when Heskey shot straight at Howard!

BBC Radio Scotland interview

2010-06-12T12:53:00.000+02:00

Here's my brief interview on BBC Radio Scotland yesterday morning about the 2010 World Cup in South Africa:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b00sn977

1 hour, 45 minutes and 42 seconds in. Thanks to my cousin Ben Mabley for finding it for me.

An experience like no other

2010-06-12T12:02:00.001+02:00

The morning after, when things have quietened down a little, I look back on what I experienced with feelings of amazement and excitement. It started in central Jo'burg at the Noord Street taxi rank. Not the safest/ nicest of areas but a bustling hub of commuters, market stalls and shoppers. Flags and Bafana shirts were everywhere with the sound of vuvuzelas piercing the commotion of everyday life. The locals seemed confused to see 2 abelungu (white guys) walking around there, even more so when they saw my Booth shirt combined with my new Booth hairstyle (i.e. completely shaved). Meeting up with one of my Kaizer Chiefs supporter friends, Dan, Mzolo and myself used the new bus system to head to Soweto. Akin to the London Underground at rush hour, we were packed into the bus along with a mixture of daily commuters and football tourists. There was even a Mexican fan wearing a kilt! The atmosphere in the bus came alive when a few of us at the back started to sing Shosholoza and soon half the bus burst into song!

The crowd at the Soweto Fan Fest just before the game

Walking from the bus stop to the fan park, we saw the side of Soweto that many forget or are unaware of. It's not just shacks and poverty but in places, a suburban lifestyle. After arriving at the fan park early to avoid the traffic, we joined in a game of football but without goals. Soweto has rarely seen so many white people there, although the first bunch in Bafana shirts that we met were actually American! The park really came alive after the opening ceremony when K'naan came on stage and sang Wavin' Flag, one of the World Cup songs. Thousands of people singing along to this raised the party to fever pitch, everyone waving their flags and vuvuzelas in unison.

Getting into the party mood

The performance of Bafana in the first half dented the enthusiasm of the crowd. Thwala had a nightmare at left-back, his lack of pace brutally exposed. The central midfield pairing of Dikagcoi and Letsholonyane were clearly nervous while Teko Modise on the right side of midfield was having a howler (yet again) as he constantly lost possession. Towards the end of the first half, Bafana clawed themselves back into it, creating a couple of half-chances but had to thank a combination of Mexican profligacy in front of goal and a string of fine saves from Itemelung Khune for going into the break at 0-0.

The big screen

It was in the 55th minute that changed everything. Dikagcoi's brilliant long diagonal though-ball release Siphiwe Tshabalala on the left, whose pinpoint top-right corner finish was exquisite. Soweto just could not believe it. Not only had Bafana ahead but they had done it with such style. The crowd simply erupted in jubilation. I jumped in the air, shouting and screaming along with thousands of others. People were hugging strangers in celebration. It's these moments that are difficult to describe. Such a feeling of mass euphoria has to be experienced to understand. It's even more confusing that I felt like this considering that I'm not even South African. I think I've got so much emotionally invested in this World Cup that sometimes I'm not sure whether I would rather England or South Africa to win the tournament. I would be delighted with either.

Watching intensly as Bafana search for the winner

Modise continued to be wasteful as Bafana searched for a second goal. But if the 55th minute was a cause for jubilation, the 79th minute flattened the mood in Soweto. Calamitous defending allowed Rafael Marquez time and space to drill the ball past Khune at the near post. Stunned, silent, horrified that this could happen. This had destroyed the dream start that Bafana had craved. If that wasn't bad enough, Katlego Mphela's effort against the post at the end tormented us; the swell of the crowd as we all thought it was going in turned to agony and disbelief as it rebounded away. Many would have taken 1-1 before the game but we were left feeling that it could have been so much more. There would have been partying on the streets of Soweto if they had won; dancing, a few beers at some taverns and then some more dancing. As it was, the celebrations were muted although fans were encouraged by the second half performance.

Proudly South African

As we were leaving the fan park, someone shouted BOOOOOOTH and before I knew it, I was surrounded by Bafana fans and an Asian news crew (not sure what country they were from but Ben, you might see me on TV in Japan!). A big, fluffy microphone shoved in my face, I was asked how I felt (deflated) and how Bafana would fare in their next two games (I optimistically said four points from those games). The France v Uruguay match offers much hope that Bafana could do just that.

Dancing at half time

But before I lose my senses completely, a comment made to me by a friend as the TV was panning in on the diversity of the crowd at Soccer City restored a certain level of rationality when he said "I wish to see the whole nation AFTER the World Cup". While the feelings of yesterday were incredible, some are under no illusion that the World Cup really changes anything.

I've got a sore throat and cracked lips from too much shouting and vuvuzela playing!

IT IS FINALLY HERE!

2010-06-11T09:17:00.001+02:00

Woken up at 5:45am by the sound of vuvuzelas outside my house, Johannesburg is already abuzz hours before the World Cup opening ceremony. Driving through the city centre this morning, people everywhere were wearing Bafana shirts, waving flags and blowing vuvuzelas. The atmosphere is incredible!

I'm off to Soweto to soak up the atmosphere but I've just enough time to show you the front pages of The Star and Sowetan and also my new BOOOOOOOOOOOOTH shirt!

I've got my vuvuzela ready.

Follow my tweets (if Twitter can actually sort out their issues and let me text my updates) from Soweto throughout the day at http://twitter.com/MarcFletcher1 or http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/series/world-cup-fans-network

A false celebrity...

2010-06-10T15:59:00.000+02:00

Since I've been back in South Africa, not a day goes past without someone pointing out to me that I look like Bafana defender Matthew Booth. I don't think so but you decide...

Me Matthew Booth

I've had people come up to me at work, at home or in the street wanting my autograph or a photo with me. Sometimes they just shout BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTH!! I thought people were just joking at first but now I'm not so sure. Just yesterday lunchtime, two women started screaming (unfortunately I'm not exaggerating) and attracting the attention of passersby when all I wanted to do was eat my lunch. Even though I had showed them my driving license to prove that I wasn't him. they weren't convinced. Fortunately they quietened down once they took a couple of photographs.

Apparently I'm shorter than I appear on TV...

So now I've embraced it and have gotten my Bafana shirt printed with "Booth 14". I shall be wearing it at the fan park in Soweto for the opening game tomorrow. There might be a few confused locals!

IT'S ALMOST HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Waving the flag and the black market

2010-06-10T14:49:00.000+02:00

It seem that all the media in South Africa is currently gushing about yesterday's Bafana bus parade in Sandton. Euphoria, unity/ united and sisonke (Zulu for togetherness I believe) were the words of choice, with my favourite phrase being "basked in the glory of a loving nation". Positively nauseating. It wasn't just in Sandton that the craziness was happening. Driving around Johannesburg between 12 and 2, Bafana fans seemed to be on every street corner (and in the middle of the roads), cheering, dancing and blowing their vuvuzelas in support of the national team. This event showed Johannesburg in a positive light; a place of celebration and carnival rather than the face of crime and poverty. But almost anyone can wear the national colours and wave the national flag. If this is all it takes currently to be a good South African, this national unity is a weak and fragile one. Once the World Cup is over and the flags are put away, what is left? Just a thought.

I never made it to Sandton as I got delayed but this turned out to be a stroke of luck as I gained a window into the black market of replica football shirts. At a stall selling football merchandise, numerous people came up asking for Bafana shirts. It quickly became apparent that they were after the cheap, pirated copies from Thailand rather than the real thing (made in another south-east Asian country no doubt). Charging R400 each for what he had left, this infuriated one Afrikaans women who unleashed a torrent of abuse towards the stallkeeper (none of which I should print!). Afterwards he described to me how he was in fear of being raided by the police for pirated goods so he mostly kept authentic merchandise on display. However he knew how to source the copies, explaining that they had steadily risen in price because of the success of such raids. For all the success, these fakes are everywhere on the streets. Even some companies are buying these in bulk for their clients and many cannot tell the difference. The two policemen that came up to the stall just for a chat with the stallkeeper were oblivious to the fake Bafana shirts on display, even as they picked them up and considered buying them. Or maybe they did know and had come to an "arrangement"? I couldn't find out.

Bafana's public training session and the media circus

2010-06-08T11:21:00.001+02:00

The email accompanying the ticket for the public training session stated that we had to be in our seats by 2:30pm so I got there thirty minutes early to find a queue of only 20 or so people. I thought that it was a poor turnout considering that the whole country seemed to have been hit by Bafana fever but, no worries, the masses will turn up. Just give it time. Fans trickled in but there was no great rush. 2:30 came and went and there was only three hundred or so in the one stand. It wasn't well advertised (I heard about it by chance) and it was during work hours so perhaps Bafana fans can be forgiven. By 3pm, there were a few more fans but people were growing impatient at the non-arrival of the Bafana squad. The corner flags were then put into place. Surely this meant that they were almost here? Nope. They forced us to wait for another hour before they decided to grace us with their presence.

Meanwhile, what did arrive was the media circus. All of a sudden, camera crews and journalists were in the stand, quick as a rash. On the prowl for a story, an interesting story or just any story, their ears pricked up everytime they heard a vuvuzela. Like moths to light, they descended on the individual to capture the 'local flavour' of South African football supporters, cameras and microphones shoved in his face. He lapped it up but there was fan envy. Another vuvuzela was blown and in meerkat-like fashion, the journalists poked their heads up to see where this fascinating sound was coming from. You could see it in their faces; "This person intrigues us. We must interview him".

Out came the run-of-the-mill questions, which were met with the same, tired answers:

"So who do you think will win the World Cup?"

"Bafana Bafana!!" This was followed by repeated blasts on vuvuzelas while the journalist vigorously nodded his head in agreement; a big smile appeared on his face as if he'd just discovered some major news story.

"What does it mean to you as a South African to have the World Cup in your country?"

"It means everything to us and to the whole of Africa (although I wonder if people in north Africa feel the same way)! WE ARE READY!!! And then the cacophony of vuvuzelas kicked back in. What did they expect that he was going to say? "This tournament has taken much needed money away from those who need it most. The World Cup is just a symbol of the greed of the rich man"? Not in that crowd.

Bafana sauntered onto the pitch at 4pm, clearly oblivious that they had kept us waiting. The crowd went briefly went wild, especially when Matthew Booth came on to shouts of BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTH! After a few minutes, the media circus resumed. Cameramen were getting groups of fans organised to sing and dance at exactly the right moment after an interview but were getting visibly frustrated as they found that they could not reign in the celebratory mood of the fans.

I had sat back and just took this all in. A Brazilian journo came up the guy next to me and asked similar facile questions. He then turned to me in the hope of doing the same but decided not to once he realise that I wasn't a local. So my 'dreams' of being on Brazilian television were dashed.

Through all this Bafana were training but it just didn't seem as interesting.

Many, many, many, many, many thanks to Dan Hammett for getting me that ticket!

I've got a golden ticket...

Journalists on the prowl for a 'story'

Midfielder MacBeth Sibaya

Booooooooooooooooth!!!

Bafana pretending to train

Stampedes, pepper spray and hooligans

2010-06-07T10:44:00.002+02:00

Yesterday's stampede at the Nigeria v Korea DPR game in Tembisa, which injured 16 people, was something that could have been avoided. Counterfeit tickets were brandished by people desperate to see Nigeria play (there can't be that many North Koreans in SA and I can't imagine that there would be many desperate to see them play!). The organisation of this game was nothing like what will be encountered at the World Cup fixtures, instead more reminiscent of the haphazard marshaling that I sometimes experienced at local PSL games.

There were some occasions where I got caught up in a crush as fans tried pushing through the narrow entry gates at Olympia Park in Rustsenburg or Germiston Stadium in Jo'burg, with the police occasionally slamming the gate in my face in an attempt to stop the chaos. The worst experience was at the beginning of Jan 2009 at a Mamelodi Sundowns v Kaizer Chiefs fixture at Johannesburg Stadium. It was a case of the wrong place at the wrong time as before I could realise what was going on, my friend Dan and I were surrounded by a crowd of about 200 people trying to charge down the gates between the cheap seats and the grandstand to get better seats for free. There was little we could do as on three seperate occasions the gates were brought down. There was only one policeman and one steward on the other side of the gate trying in vain to keep the mob out. The police officer used his pepper spray but being a row of people away from the fence meant that we didn't get the brunt of it. Eventually mounted police stormed in to disperse the crowd. To add salt to the wound, my camera was stolen that game. This incident was strangely omitted from the press reports the following day. A week later, the papers reported that police had to use rubber bullets to keep ticketless fans at bay as they were trying to get into Ajax Cape Town v Chiefs.

It's the ugly side of South African football, and one that does have to be acknowledged. But it's far from a South African problem. We only have to look in our own backyard to see that we too have some major problems, the incident outside the West Ham v Millwall game last year indicative of such issues. People may argue that was an isolated incident but so is what I have described. I generally felt safer at many of these matches than I did in the northern suburbs of Jo'burg - high walls, electric fences and panic buttons DO NOT make you feel safe. The derby match between Pirates and Chiefs in May 2009 at Ellis Park was the best atmosphere at any game of football that I have been to. Although bitter rivals, there was little attempt at crowd segregation and there did not need to be. While there have been horror stories of clashes between the two sets of fans in the 90s, today sees these two sets of fans generally get on with each other. Can you imagine a Manchester United v Liverpool match without crowd segregation? It just wouldn't happen.

So when you read stories in the papers about yesterday's stampede, your thoughts should be with those who were injured but don't take it as a sign that the World Cup matches will be the same. The organisation is far greater. It's going to be one big party!

An armchair critic's opinion of Bafana's chances

2010-06-06T11:20:00.000+02:00

My first Bafana game was back in 2007 when Zambia beat a struggling South Africa 3-1 at Newlands, Cape Town, in an African Nations qualifier. That was Benni McCarthy's first game back from his self-imposed international wilderness but he seemed powerless to stop the rot. Similarly, the lacklustre 2008 African Nations finals campaign did little to inspire hope that the World Cup host nation were equipped to perform in 2010 and failing to qualify for that year's AFCON was nothing short of disasterous. Last year's Confederations Cup finally offered that glimmer of hope that Bafana fans were craving. On the surface, their tournament record of P5 W1 D1 L3 GF4 GA6 was not encouraging but their performances against Brazil and Spain (the second time around) showed that they could compete far higher than their ranking suggested; the performances of Matthew Booth and Steven Pienaar led the way. The latter half of 2009 seemingly reverted to type as Bafana went on to lose 8 of 9 matches with a 1-0 friendly win over minnows Madagascar the only break in the gloom.

Bafana are now on an 11 game unbeaten streak heading into the World Cup. The stats for this read as P11 W6 D5 L0 GF19 GA3. I'm still concerned about the defensive frailties of captain Aaron Mokoena but only conceding 3 goals is admirable. The nay-sayers would point out that Bafana have been played teams such as Zimbabwe, North Korea and Guatemala. I can't argue with that and the 0-0 draws v Korea DPR (as they apparently like to be known) and Jamaica were unconvincing. Furthermore, although knocking 4 and 5 goals past Thailand and Guatemala respectively was a confidence boost, they are hardly the calibre of opponent that Bafana are going to face in the World Cup.

Yet, the performances against Bulgaria and Columbia, culminating in yesterday's impressive 1-0 win over Denmark have raised expectations. While there are still deficiencies in the squad, they now look a far more accomplished team. Reneilwe Letsholonyane's visionary through-ball carving open the Danish defence was brilliantly finished with Katlego Mphela's near-post strike. Even Teko Modise played fairly well although he missed a sitter of a header in the first. Unmarked and yet he couldn't get it on target. From my seat in the pub, Bafana were the better team and deserved the result.

Two years ago it seemed as if progressing beyond the group was nothing more than a pipe dream. Today, it is a real prospect. France look shaky after their 1-0 defeat to China and while Mexico and Uruguay have fared better, home advantage will be key. Uruguay to win the group with Bafana in second place (meaning that I would be at Bafana's second round match!).

You know you've made it when you see your picture on the back page of a local free newspaper...

2010-06-06T10:48:00.000+02:00

Spot the umlungu...

Picking on Zakumi

2010-06-04T14:11:00.000+02:00

In celebration of picking up my World Cup tickets, I picked a fight with the World Cup mascot...

The social carbon offsetting of the World Cup

2010-06-04T14:06:00.001+02:00

In a recent article in The Star (03/06/10 - 'From dust bowl to delight in only 12 hours'), one of the Johannesburg daily papers, an interview with a local living next to Orlando Stadium ended with the quote, "If we had lights, at least people will be able to see how beautiful it is here". This is the paradox of South Africa's World Cup; the world class stadia, sporting facilities and accommodation alongside houses and shacks sometimes without basic provisions such as electricity and running water. Jo'burg is a city of contrasts; the juxtaposition of the wealthy district of Sandton alongside the impoverished township of Alexandra on the horizon serves as a reminder of the inequality of the apartheid era but more importantly of the economic and social inequality that still remains in the Rainbow Nation.

The planting of trees and shrubs in the Orlando Stadium precinct is like a social carbon offsetting program; it makes people feel better by doing it but it doesn't solve any fundamental problems. Living in a house without electricity next to some pleasant greenery is still living in a house without electricity, no matter what the window dressing. Of course, it's not a simple case of the haves and have nots, white and black, city and township; life in South Africa is far more complex than that. Yet it's hard to escape these dichotomies sometimes.

Listening to the radio this morning as they were excitedly covering the first train to run on the new advanced Gautrain system, which links part of norther Jo'burg with the airport, I lost count how many times they used the phrase "first world" to describe it. This left me wondering where they thought they were living. Do they see South Africa as a 'third world' country? What was so exciting about a new train when this was unlikely to affect the vast majority of the city's residents? For me, the truth is that only a small section of the population is ever going to use it, generally those white-collar workers in the north of the city. This leads to the question who is the World Cup really going to benefit? FIFA for one and certain sporting and political elites but is it anything more than a short-term boost (is it even that)? Granted, certain infrastructure projects (i.e. road upgrades, increased internet capacity) will have benefits unseen day to day but the World Cup is not the only catalyst for such things. The stark reality of mega-sports events is that it costs a lot more than planned and the tangible economic benefits far less than expected. The same will happen in Brazil 2014 and the winning bids for World Cups 2018 and 2022.

Plant trees and make the place look nice by all means. Just don't tell me that it's good for the economy. And that Soweto resident still doesn't have electricity.

Bafana's final 23 announced

2010-06-01T11:12:00.000+02:00

Bafana coach Carlos Alberto Parreira has announced his final 23-man squad for the World Cup. For the squad in full, click here.

The main headline in South Africa right now is that West Ham United striker Benni McCarthy has sensationally been dropped. I say sensationally as few people expected the chunky forward to be left out despite questions surrounding his fitness. This worrying leaves Bafana with three recognised strikers, Bernard Parker of Dutch club FC Twente, the PSL's top goalscorer Katlego Mphela and Moroka Swallows Siyabonga Nomvethe. While Nomvethe is a donkey with a whopping 6 GOALS in the PSL this season, Mphela has yet to convince the public that he can carry his goal-scoring form into the international scene but he did score this peach against Spain last year. Parker has played sporadically this season but his goal v the footballing giants of Guatamala last night shows what he is capable of (it's the last goal on the clip). Midlfielder Surprise Moriri of Mamelodi Sundowns can also play up front but with a massive 2 goals in the league, it's hard to see where the goals will come from. That being said, Benni has not looked anywhere near his best form in the warm-up friendlies. In fact his form has been bordering on woeful in the past two seasons. And why has Parreira completely overlooked Golden Arrows striker Richard Henyekane?

Midfield looks as strong as it could be with the inclusion of defensive midfielders Kagisho Dikagcoi, Macbeth Sibaya and Renilwe Letsholonyane alongside the creativity of Steven Pienaar and Siphiwe Tshabalala. Orlando Pirates' "star" player Teko Modise is unsurprisingly included but yet again, he had a poor match against Guatemala; a poor first touch and a selfish streak meant that he constantly gave the ball away.

In defence, it is hard to see why Parreira has gone for the mediocre Anele Ngcongca, who plays for Racing Genk of Belgium rather than Greece-based Bryce Moon. Moon offers an attacking full back option and can be pushed into midfield whereas Ngcongca offers , well, I don't know what he offers. Not a lot. Maybe it has something to do with the furore surrounding Moon's criminal charges?

Finally, the first two goalkeeping positions were set in stone. The battle for the third spot between Rowan Fernandez of German side Arminia Bielefeld and Maritzburg United's Shu-Aib Walters was little more than a side issue, with Walters the coach's preferred choice. This squad isn't going to win the World Cup but with a bit/ a lot of luck, Bafana could edge into the second round.

A World Cup success story

2010-05-31T15:50:00.000+02:00

I regularly moan about the so-called 'benefits' of hosting a tournament such as the World Cup but I shall briefly put that cynicism aside for this really is a success story.

When I first met Alfred Baloyi, he was living in a shack on the southern outskirts of Johannesburg. Well-known within SA football circles for making makarapas since the 1970s. Developed from the need to protect his head from flying beer bottles at football matches, the makarapas are now ornate works of art. I'm lucky to have two Baloyi originals; personalised Kaizer Chiefs and Bafana Bafana makarapas.

Baloyi in full gear. His 'guitar' has a cd player inside playing Kaizer Chiefs songs

My Kaizer Chiefs makarapa

Today, life is much different. Having gone into partnership with a sports marketing company, Baloyi now has a production line, employing over 20 people. With the World Cup, production has gone into overdrive as the factory churns out makarapas by the hundreds. No longer living in an informal settlement, Baloyi is an accomplished businessman and celebrity. I only hope that he can spare some time to produce one more orignial for me - an England one!

Going up in the world: His image is plastered all over the factory wall and is visible from the highway

Ready-made makarapas

Queues and crashes

2010-05-29T00:10:00.001+02:00

I thought that it would be a good idea to queue up first thing this morning outside the World Cup ticket office in Sandton, northern Johannesburg, after learning that FIFA were releasing 164,000 tickets in the last ticket phase, in the hope of getting one more match. Having only got home from the Bafana v Columbia match at 1am, my alarm went off at 5:30am (groan) and I was at the ticket office an hour later. Problem was that there were some that had been sleeping there overnight and rumours were flying around that some had even been there since Wednesday evening. There seemed to be multiple queues, and as a good Englishman, I decided to join one and see what happened. It turned out to be the queue to get in the queue!

The first 500 people were assigned numbers and when they ran out, a security guard started entering peoples' names and phone numbers. There were multiple pre-queue queues, all competing to get their names on the list first. People were tired and irritable but there was no violence. While standing in one of the numerous queues, I heard some white, middle class South Africans in designer sunglasses complain that this disorganisation was typical of South Africa, that "nothing in the country works" and that "the whole world is laughing at us". If the World Cup has brought South Africans of all backgrounds together, it has also reinforced the perceptions held by some of the country becoming "the next Zimbabwe".

Waiting patiently for tickets. Apparently the patience later wore out

By 9am, the guard entered my name at the back of a rather large pad of names. If this was happening around the country, I stood next to no chance of getting any tickets other than the most expensive ones to a New Zealand game (not what I wanted). My stomach reminded me that I hadn't had breakfast and so I gave up.

I later found out four things.

Feefa lied. There were only 90,000 tickets made available.
The system crashed soon after the ticket office opened, creating even more chaos.
Feefa had promised that the system wouldn't crash.
I wouldn't have been allowed to buy tickets at the ticket office anyway. SA residents only!

Crossing the divide

2010-05-28T22:59:00.000+02:00

Last night, Bafana Bafana defeated Columbia by two penalties to one in Soccer City, Soweto. Penalties from Orlando Pirates' Teko Modise and Mamelodi Sundowns' Katlego Mphela in either half sandwiched Columbia's spot kick reply. The victory masked similar shortcomings to that of last Monday's game; defensive frailties and a lack of ability to penetrate the opposition's back line, although coach Carlos Alberto Parreira claimed that he was happy with the performance. A packed Soccer City filled with vuvuzelas, kuduzelas, flags, banners and a man eating cabbage (not to be confused with a man-eating cabbage) created a cauldron of noise and colour that could, come the World Cup, push Bafana that extra yard needed to progress beyond the group stage. This was the game that local favourites Steven Pienaar and Benni "10 pies and a bucket of KFC per day" McCarthy finally featured for Bafana in the World Cup warm-up and both players received rapturous cheers when they entered the game in the second half. Yet while Pienaar was instrumental in the flowing move that led to Siphiwe Tshabalala being brought down in the box, Benni cut an anonymous figure in the forward line. Doubts remain whether he will be in shape for the World Cup but without any obvious alternatives in the squad, Parreira may well be forced to go with him.

A busy Soccer City at night

Watching the game, my mind went back to a chilly evening in October 2008 when Bafana took on Malawi in a friendly at Germiston Stadium, Johannesburg. It was a depressing sight to see two thirds of the ground virtually empty for the first twenty minutes until a large group of fans were let in for free. Fast forward to last night and the transformation is amazing. People who have rarely been interested in the exploits of their national football team are now buying tickets in the thousands, wearing the shirt and learning to play the vuvuzela. I'm sceptical whether this will continue into September when Bafana face Niger in an African Nations Cup qualifier but for now, World Cup fever is gripping Jo'burg. You can't walk more than a few paces without seeing a SA flag or a Bafana shirt. A Kaizer Chiefs supporting friend of mine summed it up when he said that even Bulls and Stormers fans were supporting Bafana (a reference to the Super 14 rugby final being held in Soweto for the first time ever, an event that has been heralded by the media as "another step on the path to the affirmation" of a unified Rainbow Nation). South Africans are crossing the racial divide in SA sport, more than I had expected when I left South Africa in August last year. However, before I allow myself a warm fuzzy feeling from all this new found cameraderie, this changes very little in reality. While physical barriers have been temporarily lifted, what does someone barely surviving in an informal settlement have in common with someone living a luxurious lifestyle in Jo'burg's northern suburbs other than some abstract notion that they are all South African? The World Cup is not a panacea for the social ills of the country but it is a valuable building block.

Waving the flag but what does it mean to be South African?

Oh, and by eating the cabbage, it represents the ease in which Bafana will "eat up" the opposition. I've seen people use big cakes to make the same point. I know which one I would choose!

I wouldn't put my money on England winning the World Cup (but I'd like them to prove me wrong)

2010-05-27T09:52:00.003+02:00

As I settled into my morning procrastination at my desk, I came across this article about Rio Ferdinand, England and 1966 omens, rolled my eyes and just groaned. I'm getting fed up with so-called experts claiming that it could be England's year (just like 2006 was going to be England's year, and 2002, and 1998, and come to think of it every year). Why do so many Englishmen fall into the trap of believing that we are far better than we actually are? England may have been the birthplace of modern association football and largely responsible for its proliferation around the globe, but the end of English football dominance was marked long ago in 1953 with the 6:3 loss to Hungary and the 7-1 defeat in the reverse fixture six months later. Would England have won the World Cup in 1966 if it had been hosted anywhere else. Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski, authors of "Why England Lose & Other Curious Football Phenomena Explained" don't believe so as playing at home is statistically significantly advantageous. Since 66, England have only managed two semi-finals, one of which was at home in 96 and in 1990 they won only two games in normal time. It's time to realise that while England has arguably the strongest domestic league in the world, the national team is simply a good team with a couple of world class players rather than a world class team. England just aren't in the same class as Brazil or Spain. While I don't necessarily agree with all of Kuper and Szymanski's methods (how can a draw be classed as half a win? A win gets three times as many points), their analysis emphasise that England are consistently good but not great; usually a top ten team. Reaching the quarter finals of the last few major tournaments reflects such a standing and their eighth place in the current world rankings suggest another quarter final exit. I wouldn't say that was a bad result but I guess that there'll be a lot people that won't agree.

For all my moaning, come June 12th when England play the US in their first game, I know that I will be wearing my new England shirt, watching the game in a fan park in Johannesburg, suspending all rational thought and succumbing to the belief that maybe, just maybe, it'll be England's year. I can't help it...

My ears are still ringing...

2010-05-26T15:37:00.000+02:00

On Monday night, Bafana Bafana managed a credible 1-1 draw against Bulgaria at Orlando Stadium, Soweto. The same old story yet again prevailed; plenty of possession but generally failing to penetrate the opposition's defence. At one level, a draw against a team 44 places above them in the world rankings is commendable but they will be playing much better teams in the World Cup. Defensive mistakes such as the one that led to Bulgaria's soft equaliser need to be eradicated but there is time for that with the forthcoming friendlies against Columbia, Guatemala and Denmark. Furthermore, the promised inclusion of SA's foreign-based players in the lineup against Columbia should give Bafana a much-needed boost; Everton's Steven Pienaar should feature at some point in the match - an exciting prospect for any Bafana fan.

Unfortunately, traffic chaos yet again marred the experience. Leaving the northern suburbs of Joburg at 5:15pm, I wasn't in the stadium until 7:30pm, a good hour before kick off but that journey should have taken far less time than it did. Having said that, it was a definite improvement on Saturday afternoon at Soccer City (although there were a lot less people this time around).

Inside Orlando Stadium

Once inside, the atmosphere was buzzing. Say what you want about vuvuzelas but when thousands of them are playing in time in a virtually packed stadium, the effect is impressive. On top of periodic Mexican waves, 40,000 fans jumping up and down in unison made the stadium shake! Mexico, France and Uruguay will be forgiven for feeling intimidated when they play Bafana. Flags, robes, masks, makarapas and even one fan eating a raw cabbage throughout the match makes a Bafana matchday a crazy, vibrant experience. Hearing Shosholoza resonate around the stadium was similarly electrifying. Shosholoza is a song traditionally sung by black migrant labourers but now gets sung at many sporting fixtures.

Shosholoza, shosholoza (Moving fast, moving strong)
Ku lezontaba (Through those mountains)
Stimela sphuma eSouth Africa (Train from South Africa)
Wenu yabaleka (You are leaving)
Wenu yabaleka (You are leaving)
Ku lezontaba (Through those mountains)
Stimela siphum' eSouth Africa (Train from South Africa)

Meet Thulani Ngcobo (above). He's arguably the luckiest man on the planet at the moment, winning tickets to 38 (that's THIRTY EIGHT!!) World Cup matches after winning a competition sponsored by mobile phone network MTN. He's going to attempt to break the record for most World Cup matches attended in one tournament so there'll be a lot of flying. Very, very jealous.

The calabash of dreams

2010-05-24T13:40:00.000+02:00

I was fortunate enough to get tickets for the inaugural game at Soccer City in Soweto last Saturday. Designed to resemble a traditional African cooking pot or calabash, the stadium is set to be host to the opening game and the final of the 2010 World Cup. South Africa’s version of the FA Cup, the Nedbank Cup (readers of a Scottish persuasion will find the name amusing) final was contested by two of the smaller teams in the top flight; Bidvest Wits and Amazulu. Over 74,000 fans were there to witness unfancied Wits win their first trophy of coach Roger De Sa’s tenure, winning 3-0 with the last two goals coming in the dying moments of the second half. Yet the game was secondary in many respects. A Wits – Amazulu fixture would usually be lucky to get the attendance of a regular Torquay United home game; the other 72,000 were there to be a part of South African soccer history. As such, there were few Wits and Amazulu shirts on display in the crowd, most preferring to wear the colours of Bafana Bafana, the South African national team.

Outside Soccer City

South African President Jacob Zuma was there to officially open the stadium, which cuts a striking presence on the Sowetan landscape. I was initially sceptical of the design but as I stood in front of it, I couldn’t help but marvel at the unique construction. Two years ago, much of the western media focus was on whether South Africa would be able to finish the stadia in time with Australia and England being touted as possible alternatives but such fears have been proved unfounded. However concerns still remain. As with the organised chaos of the park and ride system implemented during last year’s Confederations Cup, the traffic was gridlocked and the game was delayed for 30 minutes. Some bright spark thought that it was a good idea to hold both the Nedbank Cup final (74,000 people) and the Super 14 rugby semi-final between the Bulls and the Crusaders at Orlando Stadium in Soweto (40,000 people) at the same time on the same day. It was asking for trouble with the traffic cops seemingly unable to prevent drivers driving the wrong way down the roads and causing mayhem. This combined with the usual erratic driving style in this country created a problem that needs urgent attention. Tonight is Bafana v Bulgaria in a World Cup warm up at Orlando Stadium. Hopefully the traffic issue will be better but the evening traffic to Soweto will prove to be another irritating obstacle.

Gridlock outside the stadium

Inside Soccer City

I thought that World Cup adverts in the UK were already at overkill level but this place has gone football loopy. Not only are there the usual adverts calling on South Africans to get behind the team by drinking a certain brand of beer, subscribing to a certain cellphone network or banking with a certain bank, but story lines in TV soaps are dominated by the world cup. In one soap last Friday evening, almost every character was wearing a Bafana shirt and footballs and vuvuzelas were in virtually every shot. In one scene, female characters were discussing which Bafana player they fancied. It would be like Mo Slater in the Queen Vic exclaiming that “she wouldn't mind a piece of John Terry” (urrghh!). Yet while optimism abounds in some quarters, there is also a lot of scepticism over the benefits that the World Cup is alleged to bring.

My dream job?

2010-05-21T09:01:00.000+02:00

My first post from South Africa was going to be about the Nedbank Cup final tomorrow, which will be the first game at Soccer City, the venue for the opening game and the final of the 2010 World Cup. However, in my morning procrastination, I discovered that Martyn Rogers has resigned as manager of Tiverton Town. While I wanted a change at the helm, it is still sad to see a manager who has been in charge for over 1,000 games to leave, even though it is probably in the best interests of the club. There have been many highlights for me during this time: the 1999 FA Vase final, having a few/ a lot of beers on the trip up and singing for 90 minutes in a half-empty Wembley; standing behind the opposition goal with the vocal supporters for every home game; the FA Cup 1st round match v Cardiff City and many more. While I think that the club needs change to get itself out of the stagnation that it has been in for the past few seasons, I want to add my thanks to Martyn for giving us some great games, memorable victories and promotions.

The club website is now inviting people to submit their CVs for the positions of 1st Team Manager and Commercial Manager. I once took Tiverton Town into the Premiership on Football Manager. Does that count as relevant experience?

Relegation isn't simple (apparently)

2010-05-16T00:30:00.001+02:00

So Tiverton Town still do not know what division they will be playing in next season. I'd thought that finishing in a relegation place meant relegation to the division below but in the apparently complex non-league world of parallel divisions and bankruptcy, the Southern League has still yet to decide whether the Yellows will actually drop down a division or gain a reprieve. Not the best preparation for a new season.

The annual pilgrimage to Old Trafford

2010-05-13T12:57:00.002+02:00

Last week I spent a few days with Manchester United supporters from South Africa in Manchester on their annual tour/ pilgrimage to Old Trafford culminating in the last game of the season against Stoke City. I have to confess that ever since I was a small boy at primary school, I've dreamed of going to Old Trafford to watch Manchester United play but we could never afford to get to Manchester, buy the ticket and buy the shirt. I would never describe myself as a United supporter. I don't have any connection with the city; it wasn't until I was 18 that I made it to Manchester. I had posters on my wall; Beckham, Scholes, Jordi Cruyff(!!); a United duvet cover, a couple of videos and the 92/93 FA Cup Final song on cassette but I always consumed them from a distance. Many years on and I finally had the opportunity to do what I always wanted but I realised that while I wanted them to win, I just couldn't get as passionate as the people around me. For me, the game was entertainment; for them it was far more serious. I realised that I am not a United supporter, just a follower of sorts. I want them to win but it really isn't the end of the world if they don't. I'm more concerned about the plight of Tiverton Town...

The Stretford End (obviously)

My shirt!

I've never seen so much money spent on football merchandise

With a group of 20 United fans on a stadium tour of Man City's ground - great banter!

In the Bishops Blaize before the game

View from my seat

The wrong world cup

2010-04-30T05:15:00.001+02:00

For a country that has qualified for the World Cup for only the second time in its history, you would have thought that it would have been a big thing. Well, at least I did and I seem to have been very wrong. Living in Dunedin for the past three months I have periodically been on the hunt for a new New Zealand football shirt (the team is known as the All Whites because of their white kit) and other national footy merchandise as souvenirs of my time here but more often than not, that hunt has proved fruitless. Whenever I did stumble across them, they were often hidden away with Manchester United and Brazil shirts on full display. Now I'm fully aware that this is rugby country and is due to host the next rugby world cup in 2011 and as such there is a tsunami of RWC and All Blacks shirts, scarves and whatever else can be branded but still, the silence is deafening. The occasional mention on the television of the Australia v NZ clash next month and some small stories on the back pages of the papers emphasise the limited impact of the game here. Wellington Phoenix's ability to fill the Westpac Stadium for their A-League preliminary final last month was arguably an errant statistic than the norm, especially considering my experience watching Otago United of the New Zealand Football Championship attract no more than 3 or 4 hundred to a 29,500 capacity Carisbrook Stadium (although the Highlanders Super 14 rugby franchise has also been struggling to fill even a third of the stadium).

Otago Utd v Waikato FC, Carisbrook Stadium, Dunedin, 21/02/10 - Virtually deserted

It's not all bad though. The FIFA World Cup trophy was recently on display in Auckland, which got mass media coverage. However, I do wonder who thought it was a good idea for the trophy to be displayed on the same day that the Rugby World Cup trophy went on display in Wellington...

I'm sure that come kick-off, Kiwis will be avidly following the exploits of the All Whites football team in South Africa but claims that the World Cup playoff win over Bahrain last November is the beginning of a new chapter in NZ football remains to be seen. That night, goalscoring hero Rory Fallon wore a shirt saying "White is the new Black", highlighting the temporary change in national sporting focus from the All Blacks to the All Whites. I only hope that he doesn't wear it in South Africa. It could cause problems.

That sinking feeling...

2010-04-28T04:50:00.001+02:00

Last weekend was possibly the worst weekend of football that I've experienced, and yet I didn't experience it at the same time. For the first time since I can remember, my team got relegated on the last day of the season. Tiverton Town, once of the Southern Premier League (the 7th step on the English football pyramid), lost 2-0 away to Bedford Town in what was apparently a lacklustre performance from the boys in yellow. If I'm honest, I started supporting Tivvy as they were approaching the pinnacle of the club's existence. Three trips to Wembley in the 1990s with a return of two victories. Doesn't sound quite so glamourous when I admit it was the FA Vase and not the FA Cup, but for a semi-pro team from a small town in mid-Devon it was a major success. Reaching the FA Cup 1st round proper on multiple occasions and moving on up the pyramid were rosy days for the club. Talk of reaching the Football Conference grew and even one or two hopelessly optimistic spectators uttered those magical words - 'league football'. We would get crowds larger than numerous teams in divisions above us and for a while the outlook was bright.

Fast forward ten years and the club has hit the proverbial glass ceiling and is now falling again. Spectators are more intersted in getting the latest Premier League scores than what is happening in front of them on the pitch. Attendances have shrunk and the quality of football on show has deteriorated almost to the point that it bears more resemblance to the kick and chase game of the school playing fields than the professional game. Perhaps a tad harsh but I don't recall seeing an entertaining game at Ladysmead for years. Yet seeing as I only make it to a handful of games every season.as I spend a long time overseas, perhaps I've just been been unlucky with the games I've managed to get to. Speaking to some of the regulars though, it doesn't seem likely. Maybe there is a silver lining, that relegation will force the club to take a long hard look at itself and consider who are the right people to take the club forward. This could be Tiverton's Steve McClaren umbrella moment, after which England's fortunes have changed. Or maybe not.

There is apparently still hope. While many Premier League clubs struggle under the ballooning debt that is slowly crippling some teams, spare a thought for Merthyr Tydfil who could still become bankrupt and thus allow Tivvy to remain in the SPL. While the problems surrounding Portsmouth are well documented, teams such as Merthyr collapse without the media batting an eyelid. Survival is survival no matter the means but if they fold, it will feel like cheating.

Much of the world's football fans are more interested in the title run-in between Manchester United and Chelsea, but there's far more to football than just Rooney and Drogba.

I wasn't at that game. I was fast asleep in bed on the other side of the world, in Dunedin, New Zealand. I had to get all my information second hand. It doesn't seem quite so real when you're so far removed from what is going on. No doubt when I'm back for next season and they're playing lower class opposition, it'll sink in then.