culduthel

Amazing result! What if this had been a true league decider of a match - do you reckon we would have still have hammered then by seven? With all the pressure off it shows you what players are capable of doing in a game.

Brilliant! The excitement has been building and building to fever pitch over the last few months. Now it is all done and dusted with still two games to go. Well done to all at ICT. Wish I was there!

Help! We're all choking! Help!

Looks like they have all wiped their noses on the front of their shirt. Now that the shirt is rubbish this will match the efforts of the team.

That's the Genoa strip isn't it?? Have the colours in quarters instead of in halves as above and you have the old Crown School strip. That would be just champion for the supporters from up the hill!

Scotland being drawn into this group strenghens the case for a North Atlantic Group instead, consisting of - Scotland, Greenland, Iceland and The Faeroes. Then we might have a slim chance of qualifying.

Man U 3-1 Man City - Aggregate score 4-3 to United. United in the Final. End of story.

I needed a double take this morning when I was reading the sports pages in today's NZ Herald and could not find ICT in Scottish Division One, only Saturday's score against Partick. That is because they have a set of league tables showing ICT in the Premier in ninth place having played 34 games and on 35 points. Celtic are on top on 77 points. St Johnstone are top of division one on 62 points! So all is well with the world for ICT supporters down here in NZ!

Thanks Heilandee. I've been away overseas with work for the last week and just got back. France won 30-1 in the first game i played. Go Henry!

As an ex Forward I can assure you, you were trained to score and play by fair means or foul. I remember as a 16 year old training up at Kingsmills with the Thistle team. Willie Grant had recently joined the side. He showed all us young lads, during training, all his dirty tricks from his days as one of the top scorers in the Highland League. The way he showed you them was very effective, you never forgot them, he perpetrated them on you individually during the course of a game during training and then explained to you after the event what he had done to you as you writhed on the ground in agony. He also helpfully explained at the same time how you could avoid getting that done to you in a senior game when you got older. Invariably it ened up with you being carried from the field and that was the end of you for the night. You soon learnt about the key vulnerable parts of your body on the football field - testicles, knees, shins, ankles, stomach, ribs, nose and many more. You also soon learnt how to give out as well. If you had to use your hand to control the ball then so be it. If you got off with it - "well done son", especially if the ball ended up in the back of the net. Refs were there to be fooled. The whole 90 minutes was about deception. How we could deceive the opposition and the officials - get the goals win the game. It has always been so. Nothing has changed, except now technology can catch and replay the deceptions fair and foul from all angles. Many a striker will be admiring Henry tonight.

Oh dear! I knew it was a mistake to reply to such a tasteless post so I'll say what I have to say and simply ignore you from now on. The sad thing is that not only do you suffer from Schadenfreude, you clearly know you do and take great delight in something which most of us would consider a mental illness. For those who do not know what Schadenfreude is, it is the malicious enjoyment of another's misfortune. The key thing here is that it is malicious. You are owning up to and taking delight in being malicious. That has no place in CTO. You suggest I "get over it and learn to see the funny side of life". I can assure you I rejoice in the funny side of life but I don't get my kicks from a maliciuos enjoyment of the misfortune of others. If you think you are being funny or clever by referring to your Schadenfreude (and you clearly do) let me assure you that you are being neither. I will not waste my time pandering to your misplaced sense of humour again but have written this just to offer a friendly word of advice that you seek help for your sickness. Maybe one day you will "get over it" and learn to see the genuinely funny side of life.

There's nothing funny about it. Regardless of who you might have preferred to win, and whether or not it was deliberate, the fact is it was an obvious handball and the goal should not have stood. Indeed, had the referee or assistant done their job, France would have been down to 10 men. Of course, there was no guarantee that the result would have been different at the end but my money would have been on the Irish. For the Irish players and their supporters this is heartbreaking. They were unbeaten through a tough qualifying group and were then the victims of a rule change which led to seeding in the play-offs where they were unlucky to be drawn against the best side. Having overcome all of that to outplay the French in Paris, only to then be victims of one of the worst refereeing decisions for years is not funny. These lads have given their all to try to get to the World Cup finals - a tournament which is the pinacle of any player's career - and for most, if not all of them there will never be a chance to come so close again. To have it snatched from their grasp in such a cruel way is anything but funny. Anyone with a shread of decency in them will be feeling heartfelt sorry for them and will not be laughing. Gosh - where to start?!? Yes - Schadenfreude is not pretty nor is it decent but boy does it make you laugh at times. I had the same reaction to the Hand of God as I am having to the Hand of Henry. In fact the seriousness and earnestness of your post makes me laugh even louder. By the way I should add that I was supporting France through the whole game so I did have another interest in the outcome of the game. The next biggest irony would be France winning the damn thing in SA. Now that would be hilarious!! Life and sport, especially football, are not fair - get over it and learn to see the funny side of life!

No, nothing like that. I can rest assure you I am a long way away from OF type intolerance. My post was just pure Schadenfreude on my part I'm afraid. Not pretty I know but there it is. Tried to salt it with a bit irony to help it go down easier. Some have noticed the salt - others have not. The Hand of Henry type of event occurs countless times every week in football. I just could not help seeing the funny side to it all.

Not even close!

Love the French goal against the Irish to secure France a place in the World Cup Finals - this is what football is all about ( two players offside as the free kick is taken combined with a double hand ball 3 yards out from the goal before a short cross that gets headed in). If the Irish had qualified we would never have heard the end of it. My father used to say the reason that there was so much un-employment in Ireland was that is was a full time job being Irish.

I don't think they do rhyming slang at TW1 2NH !

Hmmm. I wonder how many people will turn up? The last time I was at a Clach vs. ICT game there was, as Billy Nelson announced, an attendance of 357 people, a bike and a dog! Not exactly a turn out that is going to save the club.

Who seriously, with any management talent, would want the job of managing a hasbeen national football team like Scotland. You would have to be desperate to the extreme. So the answer is obvious. We will end up with a hasbeen manager!

Oops, I managed to erase from my mind Berti leading us to a famous 1-1 draw v NZ at Tynecastle in 2003. Scotland team included Brian Kerr and other superstars like Paul Devlin, Maurice Ross and Andy Gray. Given Scotland's performance last night and New Zealand's I think NZ are far the better side nowadays. If they played each other now I think NZ would run out winners by two or three goals. In fact looking at the standard of the Scottish football team I think they would struggle to qualify from the Oceania Region if they did play down here. I think Fiji, New Caledonia and Vanuatu would draw with Scotland comfortably and maybe even beat them. I think Scottish International football died a death last night. The death of interest from the vast majority of Scots.

I heard a rumour that she is a distant relation to Vinnie Jones and that he has been providing her with some coaching.

Had my daughter's 11th birthday party on Sunday. Some of the fathers stayed around for a drink while the party went on around us and it took us about a full half minute to get onto the subject of football. One of them was a die-hard Liverpool supporter (from the Pool no less) and with no prompting or stirring from me or anyone else he declared that his biggest fear and concern at the moment was Gerrard making a move to United. He believed it a real possibility - this was coming from a lot of his Liverpool mates back home as well. Interesting! Gerrard for United now! - you know it makes sense.

Easily could. There was a time when Liverpool fans could not imagine Michael Owen playing for United - and enjoying it !!!

Liverpool have lost 5 out of the last 11 games. One win against United does not a team make. Some people say that Liverpool have been the "bridesmaids" of the Premiership for the last 20 years - I would say they haven't even been invited to the reception. Gerrard for United now!!

It would be very sad to see Gerrard end up like Alan Shearer, playing out his days at a hasbeen club with nothing to show for his greatness, and wishing for the rest of his life that he had made a move to a top club when he was in his prime. I suspect that during this time of injury he will have a good amount time to reflect on his future and see that if he wants to be successful in his career now is the time to move. United would have to be one of the top clubs on his list of desires. Gerrard for United now!!

Well done Fulham for exposing the myth that Liverpool are a top side. They are in fact a one man team - Steve Gerrard - great player I have to admit. But surely he is a player that is suited more to playing for a real top team like Man. United - a least he would get to lift a few trophies in his career, have some medals to show his grandchildren and have stories of interest and triumph to tell in his dotage. Gerrad should push for a move to United now, otherwise he will live to regret all this misguided loyalty to a mediocre Manager and a mediocre club and its supporters. Gerrard, get a life- go to United now - you know it makes sense!