Walking the Dao

8th October 2010

Soccer Rant I: England National Team

For the purpose of these post (total of 3), I will use soccer to refer to the sport of international football. I am in the US after all.

Even though in the US it’s difficult to find people who are into soccer games, all the true England fans that you’ll meet will share a great deal in common. Being an England fan means that you have to be prepared for heartbreak at any moment; you have to maintain faith in your team based on exactly just that – faith; you have to endure teasing and put downs from fans of other strong teams. It’s tough enough being an England fan. Try being an England fan around majority of people who don’t care one bit about the team.

I’m a fan because of fond memories of helping cover the 2006 World Cup for my radio station. But since then I’ve grown into a respectable fan who would go to a bar alone at 7am in the morning to cheer for my team (while the entire rest of the people there are cheering for another team). I also know a little about the painful history of England, including snide from other people about how bad a team England is. I still had faith…

In the 2010 world cup, they were, as always, labeled as favorites. But once again, the hearts of all England fans broke at the end of Round of 16, when bad luck (some call it the lack of skills, I think of it as a combination of factors) led to the team losing a particularly painful battle to Germany – partly thanks to a bad call by a ref/line man that broke the morale of the team. A friend mentioned “at least they always find a new way to lose every time,” which brought back bitter memories of the 06 world cups, when Beckham had to leave the pitch because of an injury, Rooney got himself thrown off with a red card, and the 9 remaining players labored to finish the entire 90 minutes plus extra time, only to lose in penalty kicks. It was one of the most painful moments for me as a fan.

I can give many reasons why the team lost, but I can’t help but wonder whether or not the English team that I’ve come to love and adore is just not meant to win. My favorite player has always been Steven Gerrard, even before he became a great England captain, despite that everyone else was rooting either Beckham or Rooney. I know that after this world cup, many of the players that I watch the games for may not seek another run at the world cup, which made it doubly hard for me.

Regardless, after this rant, I will continue to support the team. There’s a sort of tragic beauty to the team. Apparently that’s very English. Perhaps that’s why I continue to support them. I am sure if there are any other England fans out there, they will know exactly what I mean…

8th October 2010

Soccer Rant I: England National Team

Sze K. Aka Chan's Posterous

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