Day 15: Australia v Croatia WE GO ON!
A quick posting for anyone who needs a fix on the morning of the game. You all know the result so I won't dwell on that.
It's now 1am in Stuttgart, and I've just returned home after the game. There are still thousands of Australians and Croatians in the centre of the city, although we stayed in the stadium as long as we could. Half an hour after the game, the players came out and did another lap of honour, and they hung around at the end where most of the Australian fans were seated (or standing, as we were for most of the game). They played Australian songs over the loudspeaker, and I must say, it was quite emotional when everyone yelled, "I come from a land Down Under", and belted out AC/DC songs.
The Australian support at the game was fantastic, in full voice even when Croatia went ahead twice. This team has a lot of fighting spirit and the fans can feel it. Kalac received a hammering from the crowd, and Sterjovski is out of his depth, but we love the rest of them. Put in Bresciano and Schwarzer for these two and it's a strong team. What a great game Neill, Moore, Kewell, Cahill and Emerton played.
It was a memorable night, as good as the Uruguay and Japan games, which makes three fantastic football matches in a few months. As in those games, we high-fived with total strangers, and shouted until our voices were gone. The Croatians were friendly and took it in good spirits, and there will be a few Australians who don't go to bed tonight (especially since many of them are living in tents and camper vans, and the streets are just as good on a warm night in Stuttgart).
And so to bed, more tomorrow, hopefully with a few pics.
It's now 1am in Stuttgart, and I've just returned home after the game. There are still thousands of Australians and Croatians in the centre of the city, although we stayed in the stadium as long as we could. Half an hour after the game, the players came out and did another lap of honour, and they hung around at the end where most of the Australian fans were seated (or standing, as we were for most of the game). They played Australian songs over the loudspeaker, and I must say, it was quite emotional when everyone yelled, "I come from a land Down Under", and belted out AC/DC songs.
The Australian support at the game was fantastic, in full voice even when Croatia went ahead twice. This team has a lot of fighting spirit and the fans can feel it. Kalac received a hammering from the crowd, and Sterjovski is out of his depth, but we love the rest of them. Put in Bresciano and Schwarzer for these two and it's a strong team. What a great game Neill, Moore, Kewell, Cahill and Emerton played.
It was a memorable night, as good as the Uruguay and Japan games, which makes three fantastic football matches in a few months. As in those games, we high-fived with total strangers, and shouted until our voices were gone. The Croatians were friendly and took it in good spirits, and there will be a few Australians who don't go to bed tonight (especially since many of them are living in tents and camper vans, and the streets are just as good on a warm night in Stuttgart).
And so to bed, more tomorrow, hopefully with a few pics.
posted by Graham Hand | 4:05 PM
2 Comments:
Beg to differ on Mile. Great photos - full of sheer joy. Long may it continue.
Hi Hans. Now I've seen a full replay, he did do more than I noticed at the match. Still think he lacks something in the top third of the pitch.
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