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One of the best things for me about these major competitions is supporting the underdog.

In recent finals we have had Senegal for example, and famously Greece winning the entire thing in 2004. In Japan/Korea the US got to the quarters and as far back as 1990 you had the Cameroonians.


This time round, with the honourable exception of the Trinis getting a point off the Swedes...nothing

and we are 22 matches in

Why is this?

In part isn't it due to the strange mix of African teams we have qualifying this time...no Cameroon, Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa, Senegal?

Consequently are the underdogs in this competition worse than in previous competitions?

Or are the big boys simply powering way ahead due to advances in training, techniques, nutrition etc


What are your thoughts?

Ecuador are a surprise aren't they?  They are to me anyway. 

Saudi's got a point against Tunisia the other day.

Ecuador are the 3rd best team in South America.

And expected to beat Poland and possibly win the group?  I don't think so.  There aren't any other choice of good teams in South America - Uruguay  are possibly the only one but they haven't done anything since about 1930.

Personally I don't see Ecuador as a surprise to be 2nd in their group...Poland are no great shakes after all, lost 7 on the bounce in the lead up to this competition

If they beat the Germans or top the group then yes, a surprise


Chile, Peru and Uruguay have had their moments in past world cups too....


If Angola get a point...cancel the thread!!!

thread cancelled!

 ::) ;scarymoment; ;hide;

And thank the lord they did!

A pal of mine had £600 on Mexico, doh!!

One of the reasons I think there have been so few upsets is the fact that the larger nations have all been very solid defensively...i'e they are not conceding goals.  However that may be as much to do with the smaller nations being weak offensively as much as anything else.

Ghana ........


And with that bang goes my £100 treble!

Ic ouldn't see past the Czechs, Italy and Portugal today.

I could. They rely on Koller to much.

Likewise, I really did think that one was nailed on.

18/22 favs. in the World Cup up until today and I finally find a "banker" bet  ::)

Well Bart Bryant can get me well out of it in the golf should he go close, here's hoping  ;karabiner;

the aussies, at 11/1 with coral, 13/1 on bf look huge for an upset tomorrow. ok they'll need a bit of luck but if the brazillians insist on playing ronaldo upfront, who knows.
 get your £10 on, head to your nearest aussie bar, get a few vbs in and cheer the mighty socceroos on to a famous victory! yey

Agreed with this, as much as it is fun for some of these nations to try to scrape a 0-0 I must admit I haven't enjoyed watching them until today, good to see a team like Ghana go for it and a well deserved win.

Ghana, about time we had a proper one


Africa needs a team to get to the QFs to guarantee a sixth team for SA 2010 from FIFA


GO ON THE GHANA...Big lads huh?!

The smaller nations keepers are dire to say the least (Ghana's keeper had a good game though today.) Also, their federations don't have the same amount of money to hire training camps and facilities, like the stronger nations. The smaller nations also don't have the strength in-dept of squad like the bigger nations. The smaller nations like Ivory Coast have some great individuals, but once Drogba gets injured/ suspended, who comes in and replaces him?

If you look at it historically, smaller teams from the 80's onwards learned how to frustrate the larger sides by being very organised.

Now the larger sides have firgured this out and adjusted in these games accordingly the tactics aren't working so well. Long run 11 men behind the ball doesn't work. It might in a game, or even a competition over a month but not forever. Greece - European Champions - did NOT qualify.

Very similar to this is Premiership sides who come up and stay up. It used to be small sides put 11 behind the ball to scrape survival week in week out but now it is attacking sides who have a chance at staying up, like Wigan and West Ham.

From what i hear the bookmakers have been absoloutly doing thier peices so far,  great stuff, i'm never happier than when the bookmakers are doing their dough.

If their are any bookmakers here then   rotflmfao rotflmfao rotflmfao :volin: :volin: