All Whites V UAE Tuesday 10 Sept 6:15am

hightlights?

wtf was siggy doing?!?!

There are players there who with players currently out can put up a challenge.

Really like James.
UAE were good.

There was clear players who will be likely in the squad for the World Cup qualifying games and the others.

Yeah I do think weemac and rojas will sure up that midfield. 

The thing that concerns me is that it appears ricki still has no idea how to line up our defence. 

Think Smith dissapointed me today - well the CB pairing. Reid doesn't keep everyone organised, doesn't seem to talk much - hard to know if this is why we look all over the place?

I think Durante is not worth converting to a DM. He should be used at CB. Even if we push Smith to LB and play Dura at CB with Reid. May actually have a bit more organisation there - although Smith isn't quick enough to press forward.

Think Howieson was decent but not as good as when he comes off the bench against tired defenders. Good angled deliveries but corners weren't great.

Kosta gave the ball away a bit, still only one really trying to beat his man which is something we need more of in my opinion. 

For me Howieson & James both boosted their chances

Guys like Sigmund, Lochhead & Butler didn't take the chances imo.

probably Siggy jumping on a guy for having the termerity to fall to the ground after he had been fouled.

um.....so how bout those Mets, huh?

(sorry - had a div moment where I quoted a previous post instead of editing it)

Siggy slips.
http://www.3news.co.nz/VIDEO-Ben-Sigmund-stamps-on-player-shown-red-card-V-UAE-OSN-Cup-final-2013/tabid/415/articleID/312557/Default.aspx

watching this was the worst 1.50min of my year. 

http://www.3news.co.nz/VIDEO-All-goals-0-2-All-Whites-V-UAE-OSN-Cup-2013/tabid/415/articleID/312556/Default.aspx

Someone please give me a Chris James review? Is he the goods, worth sticking with?

James needed to play along ivan

James could play the elliott role well

Please let all this be some master cunning plan of deception like the false sites for the D-Day landings in WW2 - cardboard tanks and planes, empty rail wagons, false radio traffic, pretend troops with wooden rifles etc etc... Please don't let this be real !!!!!

Tactically fouling someone is one thing but stomping someone and possibly causing a serious injury is on a whole new level.

Well well well. Wasn't that last game a clusterfuck

Thoughts:

I think this is a typical Herbert team. You see a performance and go 'that was ok' and then the next is a nightmare. His teams do not play with any consistency.

Some questions that I think have been answered (and I have also changed my tune on):

Lochhead and Bertos are not starters. Smith and Reid are, but don't play like they are. Winston Reid, for all his calibre was the most disappointing of all of them. How can you consistently perform in the EPL but be so woeful at this level? Yes his team mates were no better but then he should be able to carry his own load and I am afraid he did not. It seems harsh to rag on Reid when others were worst but then we probably expected Lochhead and Bertos to be average considering they have not played in how long. Who was Winston Reid marking last week in the EPL???

Durante as a DM should be now be well and truly shelved. I suspect Ricki will keep going with it but its inherently obvious that's its shoehorning a size 22 foot into a size 6 boot - it just does not fit. The reality is, Ivan came on and looked settled and did EXACTLY what a DM should do. He has to be one starter. In some respects, I think the only way this experiment gets killed is by Dura being declared ineligible.

Wood was starved of ball so hard to get up his ass about his performance and while I am not a fan of Bright, you can't give him any shit for his 20 mins in a deep lying striker off of Wood either. Strikers just did not see enough ball and its took a wonderstrike from Killen to get us to the final.

Brockie: What did he do in Toronto that has them wanting him back because I saw more of the same as he produced at the Phoenix. I thought he was invisible for the 2 games he played.

James: I have to be honest in that I have a bias for him but being objective, I think he is in a 3 headed race for that other DM spot alongside Ivan in a 4-2-3-1 with Payne and Keat. He did not do his chances any harm but does the position need a deep lying ball player when you think there would be Wee Mac, Kosta, Rojas in front of him or someone that can transition, from back to front at back, can play the ball and defend (a young Ross Aloisi?). I think all 3 of them have those qualities but none more so than the other.

Amateurs: I thought Clapham did himself no harm. Butler is not the answer but having watched the 2nd game, you have to say he was no worse than others and probably better than Durante in that role. Ivan is still the consummate professional even at 37 and in his 30 mins he got, shit got done.

Howieson: I think he has the goods but where do you fit him in? I think at the moment, the one that would possible miss out is Kosta out on the left attacking spot if you felt this kid has to be included. I'm not so sure Ricki has really used him in his best position (hes an AM right?) to see the best of him. He has the talent no doubt.

Sigmund...... I'm waiting for tomorrows article where Ricki will do the classic 'I didn't see it so I can't comment' line. International yellows are worth $5k. I wonder what reds are worth and I hope NZF are making him pay considering the U17s have to find $2k from their own pocket each just to put on a white shirt now. There is no way he can claim that as a team red. Either way, he is not playing in the October windows and would not be surprised if FIFA get a bit banny with that one. Either way, as someone else said, how can you pick him when he is a ticking time bomb liability. 1-0 against Honduras in the last leg and he gets sent off in the 78th and we lose 2-1, he'd need to move to Australia because he would be a hated hated man. I think if Ricki was honest, there would be a red line through his name and just move onto Boxall (even for development)

Going forward we have not much of a clue of what our best formation and best team is. We know what does not work but that's not the same as knowing as what DOES work.

Smith to LB, Durante beside him, Reid at right CB and a RB needs to be found or you play Dura at RB and find another CB,

Ivan with one other player beside him (Payne/Keat/James)

Rojas and Wee Mac with either Kosta or Howieson beside him

Wood or Smeltz up front

These are not solid any more because more questions have been created by what could be deemed in some respects, a failure of a tournament.

As someone else said, I hope Emblen is learning and does not repeat the same mistakes as Ricki does (Emblen needs to get his quals as well)

This forum needs an "ignore user" button. 

Just saw the clip and it wasnt as bad of a stomp from Siggy as everyones made out i dont think. I say this having seen a lot worse. Yes its a red, but he didnt exactly stomp, just landed on him and was quick to get off. We went to apologise to the player.

Dude he loaded up and put both boots in. He could have easily gone over him without too much hassle at all.

It was definitely an intentional two footed stop.

When you watch the way he moves, he definitely adjusts his body to land on the player. Pretty horible. 

Are you gonna call ONU for this incident?  It's just plain football, he got frustated, he saw his teammates getting waltzed he went for a "souvenir" ,

Its obvious from your broken English, that you are not a Kiwi (or a native Kiwi) but here is a tip for you. One thing Kiwis can tolerate is mistakes. Had he kicked him as part of the game, well fair enough, thats a foul and it happens. One thing they cannot tolerate is dirty play. That kind of thing may well be common place where you come from but in NZ, we put in our fair effort and expect others to play hard and do the same. We NEVER condone dirty play or cheating. That was DIRTY and not how Kiwis play or represent themselves in any arena. Respect and credibility are everything, even if we lose because we chose to take the high ground. No one like a dirty cunt or a cheat.

If the above is your attitude, go find another forum.

It wasn't the most dangerous foul ever (wearing mouldies he was never going to do any real damage to the opposition player) but it was certainly one of the more deliberate and stupid.