Soccer

IT may be only a friendly at Lansdowne Road this evening but that won't stop Brian Kerr and his players looking to end 2004 on a high note by dispatching Croatia.

Last February, Ireland showed World Champions Brazil that they don't do friendlies and that attitude has continued right through a year that has seen them play 12 games and lose only once.


Whos your country playing tonight?
 
I used to play soccer about 20 years ago.

Oddly - me and both close friends that played, quit the same summer.

I dislocated by left knee 3 times. One friend crossed ankles with another team player on a hard kick at the same time - he broke his ankle in 4 places. And the other friend, a player making a block dove and snapped his knee joint backward.

But we are not the rule - certainly the exception - many players of all ages do fine for a lifetime.
 
Typo. Sorry And to make it up to you.


Tim Cahill says he feels Australia deserved to win last night's international match with Norway at Craven Cottage.

Norway took the lead through Steffen Iversen shortly before half-time, before Tim Cahill and Josip Skoko both netted to give Australia a deserved lead.

But Blackburn forward Morten Gamst Pedersen scored a bizarre goal 17 minutes from time to earn Norway a 2-2 draw from a match which began with 11 Barclays Premiership players on the pitch.

Everton midfielder Cahill said afterwards: "I felt we did enough to win it but we took our foot off the gas a little bit and they put their's on. It was our loss but we've got to look at the positives. For me, the main thing was to try to get as much out of the match as I could. It was good to be a part of the squad and start tonight - playing for your country means a lot."
 
Israel join group leaders



World Cup/Cyprus - 1 Israel - 2: Israel scored a scrappy victory on a wet night on the Mediterranean island to join the Republic of Ireland and France on eight points at the top of their World Cup qualifying group yesterday.

Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr watched from the stand as a late Avi Nimni goal sealed a first win for Israel in Cyprus.

The previous Group Four match in Tel Aviv between the sides also ended in a 2-1 win for the Israelis in September.

Israel had goalkeeper Nir Davidovich to thank after he made a brilliant save in the 75th minute to keep out a Michael Constantinou penalty awarded after Nimni fouled Marios Ilia.

The match began well for the visitors and the evenly contested first half saw Israel take the lead in the 16th minute through Adoram Keisi. Yiannakis Okkas equalised for Cyprus in the 45th minute.

Ireland, France and Israel all have eight points from four matches, followed by Switzerland on five points from three while Cyprus have one point from five games and the Faroe Islands one from four.

"I am pinching myself," said Israel coach Avraham Grant. "I cannot believe we have eight points. Nobody gave us much of a chance, but we proved we have the determination and the ability to keep up with the teams in the group."

Despondency set in with the Cypriots.

"I don't know what happened. We did everything needed to win but we didn't have the luck. Or perhaps it was psychological. I just don't know," said coach Momcilo Vukotic.

Israel took the lead when defender Keisi was on hand to pounce on the rebound of a Nimni free kick which Cyprus goalkeeper Nikos Panagiotou failed to collect.

Okkas put the home team back on level terms when he was on hand to blast the ball into the roof of the net from close range after a mix-up in the Israeli defence.

A ragged second half played in pouring rain came to life in the 76th minute when Davidovich brilliantly saved Constantinou's penalty by stretching fully to his right to parry the ball away.

Panagiotou also had his moment when he rose high to palm a long-range shot by Yossi Benayoun over the bar, but the killer blow came when Benayoun weaved his way into the area and crossed for Nimni to seal the result.


International friendly/Spain - 1 England - 0: England striker Wayne Rooney stormed off in disgust after being substituted by Sven-Goran Eriksson in the pivotal moment of a bad-tempered clash with Spain which ended in a one-goal defeat for England at the Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid.
Brazil humbled in Ecuador

18/11/2004: World champions Brazil crashed to a shock 1-0 defeat in Ecuador late last night while home wins for Peru, Colombia and Uruguay kept the South American World Cup qualifying group wide open.

Peru beat neighbours Chile 2-1 in a pulsating match, Uruguay captain Paolo Montero escaped a red card and then scored in the 1-0 win over Paraguay and Colombia beat Bolivia by the same score.

Argentina's 3-2 win over Venezuela in Buenos Aires took them top of the 10-nation group with 22 points from 11 games, two more than Brazil who lost their unbeaten record 2,800 metres above sea level in Quito.

Below them, only three points separate third-placed Paraguay and Ecuador, who are both on 16 points, from ninth-placed Venezuela, who have 13.


France 0-0 Poland
 
myeah no offense taken
australia sucks at soccer. that draw is as good as a win, or an olmpic gold. in fact, iv heard rumours that they are trying to declare next monday a public holiday in honor of the draw, its that big!!!!
 
Portsmouth 1-3 Man City
Man utd 2-0 Charlton
Everto 1-0 Fulham
Arsnel 1-1 West Brom
Middlesbrough 2-0 Liverpool
Chelsea 2-2 Bolton
 
ARSENAL, all but invincible in the Premiership for over a year, found themselves five points behind leaders Chelsea yesterday after being beaten 2-1 by Liverpool at Anfield.

And, to make matters worse for Gunners manager Arsene Wenger, skipper Patrick Vieira will be suspended for the Stamford Bridge showdown with their London rivals on December 12 after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season.

Arsenal looked set to earn a point after Vieira scored 12 minutes into the second half to cancel out the wonder-goal scored by Xabi Alonso four minutes before half-time. But there was to be a dramatic twist in the tale and Neil Mellor struck to score a sensational winner just seconds before the final whistle.

A stunned Wenger said: "I am not really too concerned about what Chelsea are doing - I am more concerned with us getting back on track. We have to regroup and find our way back to our best form."

For Arsenal it was only their second defeat in 55 league matches, but their second in their last six in the Premiership. The rot set in when they lost their long unbeaten record at Manchester United and they now have taken just six points from six matches.

Wenger added: "We are not incisive enough. I do not think there is too much wrong but when you lose the errors are highlighted.

"Liverpool played very well. They were very organised, quicker to the ball than us and although their winner was brilliant from their point of view, for us it was a bad goal. We conceded a goal direct from their goalkeeper's kick, from one end to the back of our net. That is not good enough.

"Things are not going our way, but we have to show we are good enough to cope and handle the fact that everything seems to be going against us.

"Maybe we looked fatigued, we had to play with nine men in midweek and maybe it took a lot out of us. Liverpool were sharper.

"When we equalised I felt we were going to go on and win the game, and sometimes it nearly happened. But they were focused, disciplined, very direct and very efficient."

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez insisted victory was a reward for a tremendous, competitive display from his injury-hit team.

He said: "This was a very, very good game and after 90 minutes of running and tackling the players got their reward with a fantastic victory. It makes everyone very proud.

"We saw great goals, but for me the best one was at the end. I was delighted for Neil Mellor. He was up front playing against two very good centre-halves and kept going right to the end.

"Steven (Gerrard) played well behind Mellor and that was a key part of the game. We have lots of good midfield players and it is important to find their best roles; certainly Steven looked good in the role he played.

"Before the game I was sure that we could end the season in the top four and after the match I feel the same.

"We scored two very good goals but the second was very pleasing. For Neil to score his first Premiership goal in front of the Kop was a great moment.

"The win is good for him, for the club, for the supporters and all the squad. It will work wonders for our strength of character and the mentality we take into games from now on."
 
Chelse 4-0 Newcastle
Arsenal 3-0 Birmingham
Aston Villa 1-1 Liverpool
Everton 3-2 Bolton
Manchester Utd 3-0 Southampton

Bit late
 
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