Whether they beat or lost to the South African team they would've still avoided playing the US in the quarterfinals. However, by keeping the game tied, the Japanese coach risked placing 3rd in the division and having to face the US in the quarterfinals (if Canada rallied for another goal against Sweden, South Africa scored via a fluke goal, and NZ tied Cameroon). I think he was trying to avoid playing the French team more so than the US.
I don't have a problem with it. Were they trying to avoid France? Perhaps. Japan played France in a pre-tournament friendly. They lost, but Sasaki learned a lot about France in the process and it's tough to beat a team twice. Playing for second would have landed them either Britain, who they lost to in the WC, or Brazil. Ended up being Brazil. All tough matchups, and either way they'd have to play France eventually. I think it was all about the location and not the opponent. Just like the badminton situation, this should serve as a wake up call for the tournament organizers instead of being used as a chance to disqualify the athletes/teams. If the event is structured properly, these things shouldn't happen. The games should have been held in and around London to avoid travel conflicts.
It's about sportsmanship. I don't watch women football to see disrespectful play. If people on here would rather talk about Hope Solo and Brandi Chastain's silly issues that don't have anything to do with the games themselves, then maybe I need to realize that these forums do not always contain individuals who care about the game and the way it's being played.
I don't disagree with your second statement about the travel problem in this tournament. I do not understand what you think the badminton organizers should learn. Should they allow only one team per country so that they do not try to cheat to avoid their friends?
I think before the badminton tournament had no group stage so there was no need to worry about this. Correct me if I'm wrong though. Anyway, I don't think losing blatantly (and still doing so even after the refs warned them multiple times) like the badminton players should be compared to getting a point in soccer. For Nadeshiko to equal the badminton performances they'd have to purposely kick the ball in their own goal a few times.
You have to realize that different people have different ideas about sportsmanship and not everything revolves around the USA. Japan is not like the US where they have reached the final just about every tournament. They don't have this overwhelming confidence that they can win no matter what the situation. In fact they have pretty much an underdog mentality not only in soccer but in other sports as well. So in this case getting a draw was a strategic thing to do, to ensure they didn't have to travel 8 hours (plus another 5 if their bus breaks down), lose practice time, and possibly get injured. From my view, Japan didn't cheat, they didn't help any other team advance, they didn't hurt their opponents, and they didn't disrespect anyone. They may have produced a boring match but Japan vs South Africa was always going to be boring to begin with. I am interested to hear your definition of sportsmanship though.
They may have had to travel like some say, but in the end all the teams have to travel. That being said, he made a long-sighted move like Bruno tried to do in the WC, which was to keep the USA out of your half til the finals. I'll say it again, you want the USA, the CLEAR favorite, in a pressure cooker final, not in the early knockout game. That doesn't mean you will not lose to France or Brasil. Japan, Brasil or France's odds just went up a bit to get to the finals. Now, you play the USA bascially for a late tie, and let the "win all" mind game play on them like it did in the WC. Wambach and crew are the ones singing, how they are here to win and avenge the WC, and nothing else will do. I haven't heard that from the other nations. Maybe it is American arrogance. They lost group to GB. Man, as we have seen, that really isn't anything, when these guys start to play the positioning game and who we have to play next, as in the badminton competition. In an earlier knockout round, I'd salivate over a game with GB vs having to deal with the USA. GB has a nice home field advantage and that is driving the club, but they are by no means one of the top five clubs in this tournament. Like I said, Sinclair gets a hot foot and they are gone. Then again, the nation effect and 75000 in a stadium could WILL them a victory over the USA if they forget, as usual, how to dribbling. Well, they don't dribble that well anyway, so it might be a toss up.
They should do what Soccer did after the Germany-Austria scandal in MWC 1982, play all games in the last group rounds at the same time (for the same group anyway), that minimize the possibility to play on results without any danger to oneself (but do not eliminat it). One team/country wouldn't fix it (see Germany-Austria MWC 1982). Even better, don't have a group play. No-one losses a game in a pure elimination round for sporting reasons.
Positioning and strategy are a part of all sports and events, even the Great Olympics. No one changes the rules when a NFL club tanks 2 or 3 games to get the first overall pick, so why change the format of the Olympics because a couple of Asian countries are looking at the draws? Ok, Japan feels they have a better chance at the finals vs purest football clubs like Brasil and France instead of an athletic track meet with FC USWNT. In the end, they still have to win. Let it die, and let them jokey for positioning. It makes everything interesting.
Except that even if Japan crushed south Africa 5-0 they would have still avoided the u.s. until the finals just like Sweden did. If anything they didn't want to play France.
the point is they adjusted play in a match to pull this off. the second point, this is going on in all sports, so what are people crying about? these women and their coaches pull the same games off as the men. they aren't beyond this kind of stuff that guys and gals on this site lose their minds over.
Nothing in your stamnet have anything at all to do with the situation in badminton I was answering a question regarding.
it was a round about reply. i'm not trying to make a pinpoint response, just covering all and everything in one post. thanks.
Since the World Cup is going to 24 teams in 2015 with 4 third-place teams advancing from the group round, we had better get used to more tactical positioning in the last group games.
They would have still avoided the USA until the final with a win against SA. Same side of the bracket, except they would have played France instead of Brazil.
Well, it's clear the round robin format didn't work. That's all they needed to learn. As for alternatives, I don't really know enough about badminton to suggest one. I'm not sure if any of the final round matches were played simultaneously, that would be the most obvious solution. Or single elimination.
At the time, Japan didn't know whether they would draw Brazil or in-form Britain. If they had played for the win, Japan was also familiar with France having played them recently. I still think it was all down to location and that showed today in Japan's performance.
In both tournaments a double elim tourney solves the problem. The winners bracket is rigid, the losers is fluid, and nobody will risk a loss to have to win two in a row at the end. And it is about te same number of games.
i agree with the announcer that everyone is traveling. nothing special from japan, given brasil's offense didn't show up or jorge decided if you win the possession game than a bunch of scores might happen by mistake. if marta had been working the box instead of playing between the 50 and 20 and they stopped her repeatedly, then i'd say the non travel day worked. the game was more a bad egg by brasil than a worldly japan performance. GB played alot better vs Canada with what they had than Brasil played Japan. anyway, they should be the freshest against france. lets see how the deal with thomis and delie's speed this time since bruno definitely won't be playing that pair in his already studded mid-field , since there will be no excuse for jelly legs by the japanese. but if they happen to lose, there coach has a knack for good excuses. they are my early favorite because france tends to fizzle out after the 60 and japan has less travel over the last 2 games.
For a refreshing appendix to the badminton expulsion scandal / South Africa-Japan draw oddness, the end of women's indoor volleyball group play shows how it should be. - 2 pools of 6, top 4 each qualify and cross-over (A1-B4, etc). - USA had already clinched B1. B2.China and B3.South Korea started the morning tied, but China won in 5. - A3.Japan was already locked in. A4.Dominican Republic won to edge out A5.Great Britain. - A1.Russia and A2.Italy started the day tied. Winner A1 gets B4.probably-Brasil, loser A2 knew they get B3.South Korea. Slight incentive for gamesmanship? Perish the thought: they went hammer and tongs to kick each others' butts, A1.Russia 15-10 in the 5th. - Finish up in B. B1.USA had zero incentive against B4.Turkey, while Turkey needed any win to retain B4, eliminating Brasil. So USA played for the sweep with most of their big dogs, lost starting setter Lindsey Berg to a sprained ankle(?), and swept. - B5.Brasil then swept Serbia to leapfrog Turkey for B4, eliminating Turkey. Hence: - Russia/Italy could have tried to avoid Brasil, but they didn't care. - USA could have conspired to eliminate Brasil, but we didn't bother. Just keep winning. (Corollary: A1.Russia-B4.Brasil in the QF! Wow, that knocks out a contender early. If Brasil wins, then we'll second-guess Russia's strategy ...)
Here's another appendix for you. Japan are in the final They also had the least fouls out of all the semifinal teams by far and should be on track for another fair play award by FIFA rules.
WVB QF#2: A1.Russia 19-21 B4.Brasil in the 5th Sucks to sweep pool A and get a proud old dragon from B. No complaints. 2 line judges blew a Brasil spike call at 12-10 (clearly in for 13-10, instead 12-11). Russia 6 match points from 14 to 19. Never count out a champion.