7/28 USWNT vs Colombia (Olys Group G)

Discussion in 'USA Women: News and Analysis' started by kool-aide, Jul 26, 2012.

  1. DCUPopeAndLillyFan

    Apr 20, 2000
    Colorado
    The US won the World Cup 2 of the 3 times Chastain was on the squad. They finished 3rd in 2003 (Chastain only played 45 minutes). Chastain was not on the 1995 squad that finished 3rd in Sweden.

    Same in the Olympics - US won gold in 2 of the 3 Oly's Chastain was on the squad for, settling for silver in 2000.

    Sadly, probably no one called her or any other US or WUSA players of her era out for much of anything - women's soccer players were treated with such kid gloves at the time by the media.
     
  2. Jamooky

    Jamooky Member+

    Mar 24, 2006
    Cleveland, OH USA
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    She said Beuhler needs to improve. How is that not acceptable commentary from someone who's paid to critique and has nearly 200 caps? I get that Brandi is annoying, but today's comments were garden variety.
     
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  3. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006

    We went over this Chastain was on the bench against Norway in 1991. She was a nice tiki.


    She also has two third place finishes she deserves full credit for. She was on the 2003 squad, wasn't she?
    I saw her on the bench there too. If you claim 1991, you have to accept 2003.

    Hope was an alternate in the 2004 Olympics, so I guess she needs credit for that as well.

    The whole argument is stupid. No Commentator ever called her out, and she was far from perfect. Check out the old posts saying she was washed up. ( not mine:) )
     
  4. Pass-n-Go

    Pass-n-Go Member+

    Jul 5, 2008
    I wonder if the current team feels the same as Hope. Hope is vocal. She might be saying what the others are thinking.

    I guess Foudy and Brandi keep bringing up the 99ers and has gotten to a point that the current team wants to say shut up about it..
     
  5. Lloyd Heilbrunn

    Lloyd Heilbrunn Member+

    Feb 11, 2002
    Jupiter, Fl.
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I find it amusing that it's pretty unanimous on this board that Beuhler and LePeilbet are weak points, but Brandi says one needs improvement, and people here go bonkers.
     
  6. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006

    If she thought Beuhler needed to improve, she should have written a nice article somewhere ( during frienDlies, maybe) and see if it held up. I can't see where she did that, or proposed another player.

    Doing it in the middle of a world cup or Olympic bid is asking for it. It is destructive. Leave that to the German commentators....oh wait.

    That was a lesson Faudy should have learned in 2007.
     
  7. sturf

    sturf Member

    Sep 14, 2007
    The significant issue is not whether or not Brandi can make a isolated negative comment about Buehler. That's focusing on a tree and ignoring the forest, which is the other 89.5 minutes of negative commentary.

    The average viewer is not looking for a 90 minute lecture out of their color commentator. Somehow I suspect Solo saw plenty of complaints about Chastain's commentary in her twitter feed from fans before she ever watched a TV replay and heard them herself.
     
  8. Jamooky

    Jamooky Member+

    Mar 24, 2006
    Cleveland, OH USA
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Well, Angela Hucles is doing matches for NBC. Maybe she should move into the booth w/ Arlo. She'll need to be careful, though. Won't wanna upset anyone with actual analysis. :p
     
  9. FawcettFan14

    FawcettFan14 Member+

    Mar 19, 2004
    Colorado
    Were you referring to me, Brooklyn? I don't have an issue with critiquing players. Too often in the women's game commentators treat the players with kid gloves. If anything, Chastain goes a bit too far the other direction. I dislike Hope getting all defensive about Chastain's comments, because as a professional athlete you and your teammates will inevitably receive some criticism. This isn't a U-8 rec team. But from a viewing perspective, Chastain's negativity can be grating when you're trying to enjoy an Olympic match.

    That's why I said a coaching role might serve her well. She's obviously a soccer nut who cares passionately about fundamentals, so it pains her to see preventable tactical breakdowns and technical mistakes happening. If she were a coach, she could DO something about it. Right now all she can do is talk, and it makes her sound harping.

    Digression: this whole discussion is another example of how humans are instinctively drawn to conflict. Here we have a whole 90 minute game to pick apart and discuss, and yet we get sidetracked with several pages of comments about a stupid Twitter feud. Who's right, who's wrong, who's an idiot, etc. :rolleyes:

    The whole concept of a Twitter argument bothers me. Since it takes place in cyberspace and the participants are removed from one another, it's conducive to passive aggressive pettiness. And the 140-character limit makes the "barbs" or "jabs" sound shallow and immature. If you have a problem with somebody, freaking call them up. If Hope has a beef with Chastain, call her and have a rational discussion. I'm sure Christie Rampone has Brandi's number...she's a fellow '99er after all.
     
  10. RUfan

    RUfan Member

    Dec 11, 2004
    NJ
    Club:
    Sky Blue FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    It appears to me the timeline of game and her tweets would support that view; whatever emails, etc. she recieved, before she watch the replay, were likely so general in nature about whatever Chastain said.

    I find the first part of the following tweet from Hope interesting.
    "Its 2 bad we cant have commentators who better represents the team&knows more about the game Brandi Chastain (@brandichastain)!"

    Chastain is not being paid to represent the team or to be a cheerleader, it's to comment on the game even if some of us don't like it. She has Aaron to be a cheerleader. ;)
     
  11. DCUPopeAndLillyFan

    Apr 20, 2000
    Colorado
    2003 was the only 3rd place squad she was on the roster for. She was not on the 1995 or 2007 rosters.
     
  12. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006
    I take it all back. The commentators were brutal with Brandi when she scored for Germany. Here is what they said in 1999:


    :)
     
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  13. Chastaen

    Chastaen Member+

    Alavés
    Jul 9, 2004
    Winnipeg
    Club:
    Aston Villa FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I have no problem with either person's comments. Brandi was saying what she felt, Hope was saying what she felt. One was on air, the other on Twitter.

    In fact I like that the woman is standing up for one of her teammates. Because Brandi's comment was sort of generic...it isn't as if Beuhler is a terrible defender. Brandi added a generic filler comment, Hope added generic replies. Non Story.
     
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  14. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006
    On another note, what happens now with this:

    http://gif.mocksession.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/WAMBACHPUNCH1.gif

    (Sorry, long download or I would embed it.)


    Ironically delivered by somebody named Lady.


    My understanding is that this is an IOC decision, not FIFA. We don't just get Sepp saying this should be settled on the pitch with a handshake.



    Though Rogge could say it.
     
  15. htide

    htide Member

    Jul 28, 2007
    She should be sent home. Hitting someone in the face while you are both running takes effort. there is no question it was intentional.
     
  16. sitruc

    sitruc Member+

    Jul 25, 2006
    Virginia
    I've never had a great problem with Chastain in the booth. Female former tennis players...:eek: Wow. They're horribly. They're catty. They tear women down and pick at every non-tennis part of their life. The worst events to watch are those involving the Williams' sisters. Yikes! It will start with them doing things the wrong way to get where they are and not going the traditional amateur route and will climax with comments about their fashion line. Women's tennis is impossible to listen to when called by women were pros.
    I said this at the start of all of the twitter discussion. Some are damned if they do and damned if they dont. If you are critical at all, you're sexist or have no right to criticize because of ___. Chastain didn't say anything that was out of line today. She wasn't being edgy or controversial. She wasn't wrong, but her background and resume are being questioned because of a brief moment. Arlo's job is to provide play-by-play while Brandi's job is to add commentary. Perhaps understanding roles would have prevented all of this.

    Solo: A Memoir of Hope can be pre-ordered now for only $16.49. It will be released on August 14. There is also a shorter, Young Readers' Edition appropriate for readers 8 and up that is only $11.46. If you order both you can qualify for free Super Saving Shipping.

    FWIW, Drea Avent is not going to ask any questions about Brandi and Hope's personal issues.
     
  17. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006
    Well, the team is closing ranks.

    No, I have no info on this USWNT.

    I am talking about the '91 ers, AKA team Harpy. Here is Julie Foudy's take on the dustup.

    I don't think Foudy gets it either. If you are former teammates or part of a big, larger family, shouldn't you keep you trap shut or find a better way to deal with adversity than what Chastain did to Beuhler when she makes a mistake? Doesn't the "unwritten rule" work both ways?

    You can't have it both ways.

    If you want to criticize in public, then you aren't part of that family anymore. Julie made up that rule. Remember, that was Foudy's criticism of Hope in 2007. She and every '91er wanted Hope canned-- and succeeded for a while. Chastain, Lilly, Foudy, the whole lot.

    If, on the other hand, you feel it is imperative that your job is more important than that relationship, expect that the family will consider you an outsider and be prepared to take your lumps. That too, is part of the job of a commentator.

    Frankly, I'd be pretty disappointed if Hope and the rest didn't get behind Beuhler. What would have made it better is if she were cleverer about how to put Brandi down. The team could have helped there.

    That goes for you, too, Julie. You cant "Speak as a commentator" and still be a team mate. Stop and think how much "Family" you are being to your former team mates.

    A little family counseling might be in order.
     
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  18. taosjohn

    taosjohn Member+

    Dec 23, 2004
    taos,nm
    You know, looking at that over and over-- I'm not sure that was really a punch. I think she used her thumb, not her fist.

    Which would make it more or less an attempt to end Abby's career...
     
  19. taosjohn

    taosjohn Member+

    Dec 23, 2004
    taos,nm
    In re: Hope and twitter.

    Consider this-- in 07 she criticized her coach and her teammate.

    She was sent home, and had to apologize and serve a penance to get back on the team. I think it was even stated in so many words that she was allowed back because she had learned her lesson.

    Now she has risen to the defence of a teammate against criticism from another member of the "family." And she's being told that's wrong also.

    I think it was dumb of her to have said anything at all either time; but the complaint the first time wasn't that it was dumb, it was that it broke the code. So what lesson was she supposed to have learned, anyway?
     
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  20. Beau Dure

    Beau Dure Member+

    May 31, 2000
    Vienna, VA
    Do you really think it's the same thing?

    Chastain is commenting on what she sees, agree or not.

    Solo is taking second-hand info on what she thinks Chastain said, and she's attacking Chastain's knowledge of and promotion of the game.

    That's "both ways"?

    Then you add in Solo's history of doing this sort of thing -- including back in the WPS days when, frankly, she wasn't playing up to her top standards -- and you have some legitimate questions to ask.

    The fact that the US isn't making her available on Sunday should probably tell you something about what the team thinks.
     
  21. newsouth

    newsouth Member

    Nov 20, 2010
    Club:
    Santos FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    :rolleyes:

    actually, if you ever put on a chin strap and played football (the equipment version), you get smack in the face every-time the ref isn't looking, and usually everyone is running.

    I especially like the thumb comment. Looked like a closed hand to me. I don't think the Colombian girl was looking to poke an eye out in motion. It just doesn't play out like that, if you have played competitive sports. Now, someone will poke you in the eye or kick you in the head, when you are down, but we have to ask Elizabeth Lambert of New Mexico about that. ;)

    Just let them play. Everyone made it home safe.

    I have the feeling there aren't a lot of athletes on this board.

     
  22. jackiesdad

    jackiesdad Member

    Apr 13, 2008
    So, you're saying it's ok to punch someone in the face during a soccer game, as long as you don't pull her pony tail?

    BTW, you DO know that Lambert received a 2-game suspension?

    http://www.aolnews.com/2010/08/24/elizabeth-lambert-reinstated-for-new-mexico-womens-soccer/
     
  23. Pablo Chicago

    Pablo Chicago Member+

    Sep 7, 2005
    Sweet Home Chicago
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Definately worth embedding with Andrade's take on the event:

    "Nothing happened," she said through an interpreter. "It was just a normal part of the game. We were both running, she ran across me and we collided. I had my hands in the air. It was an accident."

    [​IMG]
     
  24. jackiesdad

    jackiesdad Member

    Apr 13, 2008
    Sexist comment alert:

    The medication in question was used to treat pre-menstrual symptoms.... Chastain says "I think we could all go without some medication for a short period of time and not suffer too greatly"... Solo comes off the medication, then gets all PMSsy at Chastain... Everybody suffers greatly.

    Kind of ironic?
     
  25. skybolt

    skybolt Member

    Dec 16, 2011
    Club:
    Barcelona Guayaquil
    I really hate watching these games and listening to Brandi Chastain's negative commentary for 90 minutes. I don't mind her voicing her opinion on how each player is performing at the end of the first half or maybe a couple more times before the game ends, but not on every single play for the entire game! Heck, even Lionel Messi will take a bad shot or make the wrong pass here and there, but I don't want to hear from the commentator how his pass needs to be crisp on that specific play! Judge the performance of the player for the entire game or at least the first half.

    Also, when France was up 2-0 and Abby scored her goal, instead of feeling happy and cheering on the U.S. team, her first comment was about the horrible marking, even though 2 players were on her. How about cheering for a great goal and commenting on something like that later in the match! I always hated listening to Balboa commentating on the men's game. It always seemed to me that he was jealous every time someone made a great play, so he had to knock it down. I still remember the 2004 Olympics where one team scored a great scissors kick goal in the 80th minute to take a 1-0 lead. The first thing that came out of his mouth was that it seemed like a dangerous play with the high kick. It completely deflated the entire excitement the viewer felt. Of course, 2 minutes later he retracted and said no it wasn't dangerous since the defender was 10 feet away! Huh, how about checking your facts first before being a spoil sport.

    Going back to Brandi, there's a reason why there's no backlash on Foudy's critical comments during a game. As a viewer I genuinely feel that Foudy wants the team to win and cheers very loudly when they score. However, with Chastain I feel like she's always hoping the US lose to prove a point. It's always all about her and her ego.
     

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