I can't say I was impressed with the way Australia played against Turkey tonight. Yes, I like a tough game. I want them to go hard, not take the dive, be prepared for a bit of argy-bargy. But tonight was petty. The Australians looked like they were playing to piss off the Turks.
Late challenges, reckless challenges, pushing, shoving, pulling. Yes it's all part of the game...but for a 'fight' to break out in a friendly is a bit much. If it was a tactic to put the turks off their game, it's one we can do without. If it wasn't a friendly, I think Australia could have been playing with ten, or even nine. There was a glut of yellow cards, some unnecessary, but you could tell the referee was frustrated with the way the game was being played as well. He used the card early in the game to try and convince he was going to be tough, but it just meant he had to keep showing it.
The Australians put in a good game. They had some good chances and some slick passing in attack. Looking forward to seeing them again Monday night, hopefully a little more composed. A crowd of 28,236 is not too shabby either.
the earley edition - Posted by Dave @ 5/21/2004 10:03:00 pm || ||
