The newer, brighter & shinier Random Thoughts Thread [R]

The euro-vision song contest is utter tripe and garbage...... such a zonked out fantasy of nonsense....

 

a) it's much more complicated than telling people where they can and cannot spend money.

b) the issue with China is made problematical in that there are US business concerns that have financial interests in China, mainly using China as a manufacturing resource. i am generally opposed to buying products that are made in China, but, to be fair, i don't always know where merchandise i purchase is made.

c) the Middle East is a nightmare. Saudi Arabia seems to be a political necessity which has been tolerated by every administration i can think of, so it isn't a matter of one group good, the other group bad as far as Republicans and Democrats are concerned. doing something to make the Middle East less stable would be highly precipitous.

 

I see... well the last time I watched it was when Germany won it with a girl faking a British accent and thats when I stopped taking it seriously

 

So what you're saying is: We don't make any money on Cuba. Therefore they're badder people than the Saudis who are chummy with the American Royal Family and who provide billions in loans to bail their business deals out. When they're not murdering journos that is?

 

Brilliant. I remember every one.
Good find.

 

no. i'm saying that the situation in the Middle East is so fraught with madness that trying to take a stand against the Saudis will have consequences that are almost impossible to calculate and will probably be beyond catastrophic, unless you think a less stable Middle East is desirable.

 

And now for something completely different ..........

 

and now for something even more different ....

https://www.theguardian.com/fashion...beard-and-moustache-championships-in-pictures

Hirsute heroes: the World Beard and Moustache Championships

 

A while back when I was coaching my co coach Mike and I were driving to a game and he was telling me a story about his time in Swaziland.
He and his family started a farm there and he played footie with the local team.

The club ran two fun mixed race teams with real competition to be in the number one squad. The games were played under the hot African sun.

They only had one set of uniforms and the first team played first. Then right after the first game they'd strip the jersies off and hand those smelly, sweaty, sticky things to the second team for their game.

The funny part was they didn't have a changing room so they gathered in the goalmouth with the net for cover. It was nice that they always had plenty of family support.

 

The IFAB (International Football Association Board) have now approved several changes to the Laws of the Game ahead of next season. With any luck these should tighten up the games grey areas to leave us nodding in agreement more so than crying in disbelief. Here's what will change for the start of the 2019-20 campaign...

Handballs
From next season, if the ball hits an attackers arm in the build-up to a goal - be it accidental or otherwise - the goal will be disallowed.
Hardly rocket science, but it should help avoid any Fernando Llorente-style discussions going forward.
In addition, defending teams will be awarded a free-kick if an inadvertent handball creates an advantage for the opposing team.

Drop balls
Old fashioned drop balls are a thing of the past, with the process of sending the ball back to the last team in possession now the due procedure.
However IFAB have a gripe about their current 'manufactured' nature.
"The current dropped ball procedure often leads to a ‘manufactured’ restart which is ‘exploited’ unfairly or an aggressive confrontation," the IFAB explained. "Returning the ball to the team that last played it restores what was ‘lost’ when play was stopped, except in the penalty area where it is simpler to return the ball to the goalkeeper.

"To prevent that team gaining an unfair advantage, all players of both teams, except the player receiving the ball, must be at least 4m (4.5 yds) away."

Substitutions
This is an interesting one.
From next season onwards, whenever a player is substituted, they no longer have to leave the field near to the dugouts.
Instead they must leave the field at the nearest point, thus avoiding any pesky time-wasters who stroll off nonchalantly late on.

How long will it be until someone doesn't pay attention and passes the ball to their teammate walking round the pitch perimeter though is another question.

Free kicks
Attackers are no longer allowed in the wall at free kicks.
The wall does have to contain at least three players however, at which point all attackers must be at least a metre away.

IFAB hold pretty strong views on this one.
"There is no legitimate tactical justification for attackers to be in the ‘wall’ and their presence is against the ‘spirit of the game’ and often damages the image of the game," an IFAB statement explained.

Penalty kicks
The goalkeepers staying on the line at penalties rule is one that very rarely seems to be enforced fully.
However IFAB are now stating that from next season keepers must have one foot on the line.

Not only that, but they are also forbidden from touching the posts before the kick.

In other words - less of the mind games.

Cards for coaches
And finally a welcome addition to the rule changes will now see coaches dealt the same punishment as players, with referees allowed to brandish yellow and red cards to managers and backroom staff.

Perhaps we will see fewer coaches sent to the stands. Or an increase in cards dished out.

 

Why? This seems odd. Part of GKs getting a PK advantage is mind games.

 

it is a bit weird. what if he reaches up and touches the bar? is that allowed? and if he does touch the posts .... what happens? immediate yellow?

goalies can play mind games without touching the posts ... Oh, my laces need tightening! Oh, I need water! Oh, I need to take my gloves off and put them on again! Oh, I need treatment!

the thing they should have said is - he can't stroll over and touch the ball.

 

Utterly ridiculous.............. who cares if he touches the posts or not....

goalie mind games are good - they have won us probably two european cups!!

 

exactly - but then again, that would be seeing the obvious, as opposed to seeing one's own power trip accentuated....

 

Rather an odd viewpoint to hold when one is at the same time in favour of the idiot leader breaking the Iran nuclear deal for reasons which have nothing (stated) to do with Iran being a threat because of the deal actually working. But for nebulous, not to be stated reasons which only instead state that it was a "bad deal for the US". Really bad, bad, bad, blah, blah....
Iran, (quite obviously) to anyone with half a brain, was more of a threat (even if in terms of generating nothing more than US bellicosity) before the deal and after the broken deal than at any point during the working deal.

 

One of my fav F1 characters died this week, Niki Lauda 70. Survived his horrific fiery crash from 43 years back. He finally replaced his lungs last year but obviously they weren't as good as his original.

His good friend and another fav of mine, James Hunt died from fun and excess in 1993 aged 43.

 

On PKs I used to pick up the ball and go hand it to the kicker standing right up and in his space. I was usually a lot bigger.

Intimidation that prolly didn't work but made me feel good and pissed off the ref.

 

I used to love music. Played and sang with some Liverpool back room groups and did some recording when I was in NZ.
Now I have a couple of hearing aids everything sounds like it's sung or played in a 50 gallon drum.
When I'm home alone I'll sometimes pick up my guitar and knock out a couple of oldies for myself.

 

A guy did that to me in a game in Zurich. I proceeded to rocket the ball into the side netting. Penalties are really about one thing. Practice......
Of course, the more that is riding on it, the more nervy it gets, I suppose.....
Taking penalties in Indoor soccer play-off situations required nerves of steel, because you don't have alot of goal to aim at, so it has to be rocketed accurately. And a lot of those keepers who play indoor have great reactions....

 

Continuing in our series of where to aim your Bazooka!

 

This will brighten your day:

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/world-news/nigel-farage-milkshake-shower-internet-twitter

#milkshake

 

I saw that ....

normally I wouldn't condone that kind of behaviour, but .....

 

I did, and long arms.

It's always in the shooters favour. As long as like you say. Nerve and practice.

When coaching I always finished up with PK practice. Split the defence and attack evenly wiith a goalie each. I always added a yard and that makes a massive difference.
At first sometimes there was no score. Then they started find the side net.
When we went back to 12 yards, goals came easier.