Very pissed off about the whole thing. Don't think I can add much that hasn't already been said, but just had to vent my displeasure. Is there a sporting governing body or their contracted marketing organisation that is as out of touch with one of the most important ingredient in sport - the supporters - as Soc Aus and IEC appear to be? I thought it was some kind of sick joke when I discovered the ticketing prices for the SFS game (and I imagine the other two games are similar). Do they think we are complete idiots or just plain flush with cash that we can just throw around on a meaningless ( and no disrespect to the dedicated players involved ) 'B' international with little at stake. Don't SA or Galah-ti & Marinara's organisation ever consult with the people they are trying to bring the game to? Within 48 hours we witnessed the extremes in our game. From Friday nights shite to Sunday's classic. Thank God we got the game we did on Sunday.
No doubt the afore mentioned will fail to pick up the ball and run with it after the magnificent spectacle created by Perth Glory, Wollongong Wolves and their respective supporters. A game such as that should be distributed on video along with the season highlights ( I know Spirit won't feature much in that but I'd still buy it! ) as evidence of all that is good in not only Football in general, but in the domestic variety of it. I spent the weekend in Canberra and my girlfriend and I watched the game with the 8 year old daughter of our hosts. Neither of her parents are what you'd call sporting types, so it may ultimately be to their displeasure that she became almost as engrossed in the game as I was, and probably left a lasting impression on her ( hopefully moreso than the unfamiliar animated emotion of a grown man watching a game of football and not even involving his own team! ).
Sounds like many of us were in the same boat ie torn between a devotion to the Socceroos and sheer common sense of not forking out a minimum of $37 for what any experienced Socceroo supporter suspected would be shite and something they'd likely regret. The ~ 9,000 attendance indicates that many made the right decision. I know I've been shelling out valuable $$ on acupuncture & chiropractic to try and get myself back on the pitch, so I was certainly had divided feelings, and I don't even have a family to shell out for as well. As someone else mentioned before, the younger fans were certainly conspicuous by their absence.
Just saw 'the other FF' on Fox and I'm glad he has been able to find something positive to take out of the two games so far 'cause I don't think a lot of us have.
BTW re the GF, did any of you mediawatch types monitor Seven's exposure of the partido classico de Subiaco? I didn't get the opportunity, but was curious to know. What a sobering sight it was to see the Terror leading with a page one photo of celebrating Wollongong players. I have to admit it was enough for me to part with 80c for that rag for the first time in years. What are the odds of there being a weekly one hour highlights type program on Seven next season? I'd say pretty slim, and further strengthening those conspiracy theories! :-)
Enough raving from me