Yep....As much as we'd love to think differently the winners of this " Great Game" will be those balancing transition tech with abundant supply of fossil fuels — keeping costs low, industries competitive, and geopolitics in check..... Restricting domestic production while this global demand...

That's a great deep dive into your tactical history, but I think calling it pure "nihilism" might be a touch hard.... While the final was a painful watch and Spain thoroughly deserved their victory, you're a fan viewing this through the immediate grief of a devastating loss? Let's not forget...

RIP KK 😭😭😭

I'm over international football now for a while... Roll on the Australia Cup this week and the "Winter Festival of Footbal" thing that takes plac starting next weekend....⚽️

With Didier Deschamps' era as France's manager now over, on Le Foot this week we look beyond the medals and results and tell the story of the man who quietly became the face of modern French football. https://footballuslife.blogspot.com/2026/07/au-revoir-dede.html?m=1

With Didier Deschamps' era as France's manager now over, on Le Foot this week we look beyond the medals and results and tell the story of the man who quietly became the face of modern French football. https://footballuslife.blogspot.com/2026/07/au-revoir-dede.html?m=1

It reminds me of the Ali G sketch....with a little improvisation! Ali G:"Respect to da environment, yeah? Me is here wiv Professor Proper Brainbox from da Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Safe, professor! So, tell me... dis global warming ting.... Is it true dat by 2030, England...

Yep....I think that initially it fits his broader agenda of tackling the cost-of-living crisis, delivering "tangible change" quickly, rebalancing power away from Westminster, and rebuilding northern/industrial economies. Things which are kind of grounded in the British working class pysche...

Paramount (via Network 10) has a direct equity stake in the A-League. This gives them a dual role.... Broadcaster + part-owner, which creates a clear financial incentive to support and promote the competition. Whereas Nine Entertainment owns major mastheads like The Sydney Morning Herald, The...

Middlesbrough's new homw kit by Castore..... Worn for the first time in Saturday's 1-1 draw at Celtic

English poltical party the " Liberal Democrats" urge the English FA and UEFA to quit FIFA.... https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7454082/2026/07/18/ed-davey-liberal-democrats-fifa-uefa-fa-infantino/ lol....Good luck with that!! The article....

Yep....This is classic broadcaster feed management. They often switch between world feeds, local commentary, and player interviews. Mbappe frequently speaks French in mixed zones/post-match (he's done several this tournament) which I've seen on L'Équipe TV.... The commentator referencing "Saka...

Could never understand why Manchester United sold him....

Hahaha... It is a melancholy object to any thoughtful traveller who hath occasion to sail those southern seas, to see the Falkland Islands (called by some the Malvinas) lying there like two forgotten pebbles in a vast ocean, inhabited by scarce three thousand souls, a multitude of sheep, and a...

Yep....I think that Portugal’s ability to compete at such an elite level is a testament to the structure of their domestic academies and their deeply ingrained footballing culture. Successful production of players which is generally attributed to its own highly effective, long-standing academy...

We shouldn't be talking about AFL but unfortunately it's the "elephant in the room" for the A-League..... Far more than the two rugby codes. The A-League's struggle for visibility in an Australian media landscape is fundamentally built around the AFL’s dominance, which is not just a reflection...

All this media criticism I've been reading about Thomas Tuchal and from a French perspective Didier Deschamps over the last 2 or 3 days has got me thinking about a very famous political speech by Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States from 1901 to 1909 called "Man in the Arena"...

Of course policies should be the main event – housing, devolution, cost of living, reindustrialisation, "No 10 North," etc. No argument there. And most normal people outside the Westminster/media churn will judge Burnham on delivery, not his cagoule or trainers.... But let's not pretend...

On the subject of UK politics... I wonder what the hipsterati in the London Labour Left will think when Andy ' Oasis Dad' Burnham turns up at the House of Commons in his very northern get up of Adidas cagoule and Gazelle trainers? Certainly not the middle class "Hackney Market look" of...

Yep..... Newsflash from the Sun-Herald The opening game of the 2156/57 English AFL season between Wandsworth Demons and Birmingham Buzzcocks was played at fprmer test cricket ground Kennington Oval in London in front of 63, 000 spectators.... And because the English soccer team still haven't...

I think that this is a reasonable correction of what was definitely an overheated property market.... A soft landing rather than a crash! When prices are showing signs of stalling or declining in major capital cities like Sydney and Melbourne, it means that buyers have shifted toward a more...

One of the great African football stories....especially when you consider the severe humanitarian and security crisis DR Congo is going through.

No you're 100% right, I don't and to be honest I don't listen that much. I prefer the Athletic stable of football podcasts to be honest, also The Game from the Times and the Jonathon Wilson one "Libero" which is by far the best English language football podcast Ive listened too.

To be honest if I was the big boss at the BBC I would probably asked him to tone down the political rhetoric stuff because he was a very good football presenter who had as a football player been there and done it....

As.a high level football presenter, commentator or podcaster he's great! As a poltical advocate he's lacking a bit of expertise and he's definitely not media trained in that respect.... No biggie!

If you take England into isolation then yes, we have fairly good sized cricket grounds which could easily host a national AFL competition. But you can’t use those grounds all year round because the grass surfaces wouldn't permit it.... It’s not just about the footprint of the land, it’s about...

There's a couple of nice little bars down the road from me which I sometimes go to and ive noticed that they have started to introduce 'happy hours'... One is doing $7 schooners between 3 and 5pm on all tap beers and the one across the way is doing $12 pints of Stone and Wood and Guinness...

Yep...And as good a sport as many Australians would attest too, Australian "rules" Football will continue to be an international irrelevance.... The sport’s specific requirement of large, specialised oval grounds and complex rules do create a high barrier to entry that prevents it from...

I respect your point of view but Gary Lineker does have previous form.... He once talked about the UK government's "Stop the Boats" asylum policy as "immeasurably cruel" and compared the language used to promote it to that of 1930s Nazi's in Germany.... Britain has given political asylum to...

I've been having a read of some of the French football boards and a lot of people are now "tripping out" over Didier Deschamps after their elimination.... Some have been quite aggressively critical while some just argue that France relied too heavily on individual brilliance rather than a...

And a perfect example of how the line between light hearted "bantering humour" and something much more grating gets blurred. When comedy or commentary leans too heavily into one-note bashing, it stops being a clever observation and starts feeling like a personal grievance.... You'd likely hear...

Valentino Barco? I think that sometimes the emotional roller-coaster ride of a football match can make players do things like that.... Same as Enzo Fernandez cupping his ears to the English supporters. I get why this behaviour is generally categorised by football authorities as provocation...

Yep....these attempts of mixing football with a touch of comedic cultural gatekeeping can sometimes come across as being a little bit lame.... I mean to be fair, it's not easy....When you try to layer funnies onto something as emotionally charged as football fandom, the margin for error is...

."but can't write off Argentina....' The overriding story if the 2026 World Cup!

Lineker’s actual exit from the Beeb followed a controversy regarding a social media post he shared that criticised Zionism and included a rat emoji, which is historically associated with antisemitic tropes.... He quickly deleted the post and apologised, stating he did not realise the historical...

Why did the country decide it was time for a branding update on it's name? Because it was tired of being invited to Thanksgiving dinner and realising it was the main course!

While the discourse around bias and historical weight makes for a fascinating conversation, I'm one of these easily pleased football fans.... As one game fades out of the 24 hour news cycle I tend to move on pretty quickly! Spain v Argentina should be a absolute cracker..... This is the...

I think that many of us football fans hold a deep-seated belief that the game operates on a moral meritocracy, with the "best" (most skillful/organised) team should win. When a team like Argentina wins by using picardía (the artful manipulation of rules and grey areas), it creates cognitive...

Fair point... It’s interesting to see how our perspectives shift based on who is speaking and why. While we may disagree on the place for politics in football coverage, it makes total sense that you would listen to figures like Lineker, Foster, and Francis Awaritefe when you find their...

I think your perspective offers a sophisticated bridge between all this "conspiracy" talk that has dominated social media and the actual, lived history of the game in Argentina. By moving the conversation away from binary "cheating vs. fair play" arguments and toward the concept of picardía as...

I've thought about this notion that FIFA and it's referee's have been favouring Argentina but I honestly don't buy it..... The debate certainly highlights the deep-seated mistrust many fans have for institutional power in sports and particularly FIFA, but there is no real evidence to suggest a...

While some view Lineker's approach as an attempt to foster a broader, more inclusive international perspective, I would argue that these injections of political discourse into his football podcasts are a little too performative and create unnecessary conflict.... And particularly if he...

Yes but Gary does try a bit too hard to get those views out there.... Whether one views Lineker’s as a helpful bridge or an unwelcome politicisation of sport often depends on where they stand on the subject.

Just on Gary 'I'm really rich woke everybody' Lineker.... It is fair to say that his approach can often come across as a bit forced. When a football podcsster, commentator or analyst introduces a highly charged geopolitical dispute into a sporting event, it often feels like an unnatural...

If it was up to me then Britain would "give up" it's current governance status of the Falkland Islands.... Despite the Falkland Islanders right to "self-determination" I think that it would be for the best in the long run and improve our overall relations with the Greater Latin American...

Cro's seem to be the worst.... And they're not even a proper country. Just a little bit of a state in former Yugoslavia.... A young Croatian-Aussie bloke is getting ready for a huge family dinner in Brisbane. He’s wearing a full, authentic, 2018 World Cup jersey, a checkered scarf, and he’s...

I know this lovely Italian Aussie guy. Runs a trattorria in Brisbane and absolutely disdainfully sneers at English football.... Yet him and his wife went and seen Robbie Williams, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Adele, fucken Ed Sheeran.... Sometimes paying $300+ for a ticket!! I always say he's...

What's also interesting is the Australian of European descent undying hatred of England and English football culture.... And why they harbour a distinct "Anyone But England" sentiment. It's not as if there's an actual bone fide rivalry between England and rhe Socceroos. They've played each...

I'm a big fan of HK too and always stay at a particular hotel on Mody Rd in Tsim Sha Tsuion on Kowloon side now called "Hotel Nikko" although it's had several different names over the years. Mody Road is the ultimate paradox where paupers and billionaires meet and it captures that classic Hong...

What are you fucken talking about?? We don't cry....

I'd probably give England a 40/60 chance. While both teams have some very good players in this World Cup, the tournament winning mentality that Argentina have in spades means they aren't a team that is chasing history but a team that actually writes it..... This allows them to approach...

The report you referenced is an analysis piece, not a factual claim about the tournament's outcome. While you may find its tone reductive, it is a common style of pre-match tactical scouting specifically one tailored for an English audience ahead of a high-stakes semi-final. It's reporting on...

I think that you're looking at the more second tier "tabloidy" media.... A bit of "cultural gatekeeping" there perhaps... This morning I've read pieces from The Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Athletic and the BBC and none if them are "writing Argentina off"! Of course some pundits...

Well said. Participation numbers and grassroots passion do set football apart and it’s genuinely the biggest “play” sport. The WC ratings prove that there's a dedicated core that’s willing to sacrifice sleep, something few other codes demand at that scale. The 2023 Matildas effect showed...

It's going to be interesting to see how Marco Silva goes at Benfica..... From what I've read he apparently turned down a 3 year £11m pa contract from Fulham to go to Benfica for a much smaller wage packet. I really like this decision to leave Fulham for Benfica, it’s a rare commitment to...

The Scottish football season has startrd in earnest this weekend with the early league based round of the League Cup..... So I thought I'd catch up with one ofvthe opening games between Stirling Albion and Dundee United... . And to my surprise I see Sottish League 2 side Stirling Albion have...

Theres VPN's but.... Many European streaming services (including the Portuguese broadcaster Sport TV I'd assume) strictly geo-block foreign credit cards or require a local billing address, even if you're VPN'd in for viewing. It kills a lot of "just use a VPN" setups. I was using a VPN with a...

What we do need is dedicated coverage of this league in Australia because since Triller TV stopped broadcasting it nobody else has picked it up. Like Ligue Un/Deux, the Primeira Liga often feels like the forgotten middle children in the Australian sports broadcasting landscape. The amount of...

A-League fans, this one's unanswerable right now.... Whatever the real numbers, the game is caught between a rock and a hard place here. Clubs are screaming they can't pay more without going broke. The tight margins, modest crowds, and broadcast deals that aren't exploding the pie. They need a...

Should have said in the eye's of the mainstreamTV industry..... Soz!!

I'm not sure there's much competition within the current crop of Australian sports broadcasters. Or at least who'd wanna get into a crowded bidding war for something as expensive as full EPL rights.... P+ probably the only realistic competitor here. DAZN/ Kayo would likely have it for buttons...

This is the A-League's Eternal Struggle.... Despite these really good World Cup audience spikes, the A-League will always battle for eyes. As much as we'd like to think otherwise Australia's sporting heart belongs to AFL and NRL, cultural behemoths with deep tribal roots. 'Soccer'remains a...

This article appeared on yesterday's UK Sunday Times..... I reckon that the reporter has been reading my blog....🤭

Yep....Your point about the Constitution is the fundamental hurdle. While there is no explicit "right to enter" written in the Constitution, the High Court has consistently upheld the common law principle that Australian citizens have a right to return to their country. As you noted...

On the subject of Argentinean defensive midfielders and getting sent off I noticed the great Boca and seleccion midfielder Antonio Rattin passed away the other day.... For anyone who might not know Rattin was infamously sent off in the 1966 World Cup Q- F against England while captaining...

There is an interesting dynamic occurring here...... Whay you have is different media outlets hold conflicting views. Security-focused media emphasise risks to public safety, while human rights advocates prioritise legal obligations toward citizens. The government faces backlash due to a...

One of the unsung heroes of England's World Cup has been Djed Spence who has been brilliant whenever he has been asked to come on and "do a job".... So for that I'm gonna say.... Thanks Big Ange! 👍

Yep....but to be fair to the World Cup nothing is safe from enshittification these days....

. Yep....And a France-Argentina final would be absolute footballing cinema..... French collective discipline and firepower versus Argentine heart, experience, and that refusal to die. One side trying to control the game like a chess grandmaster, the other turning it into a street fight...

Yep....That's a sharp observation and a great angle for a future 'deep-dive' blog post....

As we enter the 2026 FIFA World Cup's end game, on Le Foot this week we look at the life and times of the Frenchman who basically invented sport's greatest tournament..... https://footballuslife.blogspot.com/2026/07/le-pere-de-la-coupe-du-monde.html?m=1 Jules Rimet, who's dream of...

As we enter the 2026 FIFA World Cup's end game, on Le Foot this week we look at the life and times of the Frenchman who basically invented sport's greatest tournament..... https://footballuslife.blogspot.com/2026/07/le-pere-de-la-coupe-du-monde.html?m=1 Jules Rimet, who's dream of...

I'm not buying this conspiracy theory fuelled by losing countries that FIFA are "rigging" the comp so that Argentina/Messi get to the final.... They were pushed to the absolute limit and forced into extra time in two consecutive knockout games against lower-ranked opponents.... That's not the...

Switzerland, Belguim and the Erling Haaland rowers? Well I wouldn't write them off completely. Switzerland, Belgium and Norway have all earned their places in the quarter-finals, and knockout football has a habit of producing surprises.That said, I'd still have the pecking order as..... 1...

France? Creating a World Cup-winning side is all about balance. And as a disciplined "water-carrier" defensive midfielder who won the tournament in 1998, and as a cautious manager who won it again in 2018, Didier Deschamps knows this better than most. This world cup his France team feel more...

Yeah, it's a bit amateur hour but French football is my guilty pleasure!!! It's a league that often gets dismissed because of Paris Saint-Germain's dominance, but beneath that there's so much character... Olympique de Marseille, Olympique Lyonnais, AS Saint-Étienne, RC Lens, Stade Brest and...

Yep....Your observation about the outlawing of the tackle from behind is a masterclass in tactical history..... For years, that rule change forced a period of existential crisis for Argentine defenders. They had to transition from "hunters" to "systems-based obstructors." The fact that...

I'm on a weekend winery and food tour around Queenslan's Italian-esque Granite Belt region.. Our mate LFC would no doubt approve!!

A great book on Argentinean football is Jonathon Wilson's ' Angels With Dirty Faces' in which he explains the country’s street football culture or 'potrero' where gritty, improvised, and that irreverent street-born creativity shapes the nation’s defiant and brilliant football identity.

Yep, it's a fairly big rugby league town. The Leeds Rhinos average around 15,000 per game. That's very good in Super League terms But for some perspective Leeds United average around 36,000 in the Premier League.

I really do like watching them play together.... They are the antithesis of fragile. While some pundits point to the gaps left by their aggressive positioning, I reckon this is a calculated risk that Scaloni both demands and needs in his team. And you could easily say that it's a "high-wire...

The BIG fella is gonski.... https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-07-09/neil-the-seal-possible-return-to-sea-tasmania/106895946

Interesting article from FourFourTwo Magazine on the return of The New York Cosmos....

Yep.....I actually think that's the direction they'll have to go. The next appointment needs to be someone who can improve players, work within PSR constraints and maximise every resource available. The days of simply buying your way into the elite are gone. If Newcastle are going to compete...

The last "full-scale military invasion" conducted by the United States was the 2003 invasion of Iraq!

That's probably the reality. PSR has forced them into a position where they may have to operate more like Brighton where they identify, develop and sell talent until commercial revenues catch up. The problem is Newcastle sold supporters a project built around accelerating into the elite, not...

Carrick's a good example because his ideas are much more continental than traditionally English. At Middlesbrough he built a possession-based side that played through the thirds, encouraged rotations, and looked to manipulate the opposition rather than just simply outwork them. He's also showed...

Yep....I think that's a fair point when it comes to the FA they've clearly preferred English managers at times. But Newcastle's ownership is a different proposition. They're trying, or perhaps were trying to build a club capable of winning the biggest trophies. If they conclude Howe isn't the...

Yep.....and it's the classic case of "we’ve heard it all before." Every few years, the same article gets written, the same stats get cited, and the same scarves get hung back in the closet while the goalposts stay rusted. It’s a recurring loop of indignation on forums like this where posters all...

I'm not convinced it's media driven. If Newcastle stick with Howe, it'll be because the ownership believes he can navigate the financial constraints and rebuild the squad, not because pundits want an English success story. Ultimately, results decide managers' futures, and sentiment in the media...

Lets be brutally honest here.... Australian football suffers from a crippling identity crisis. While it possesses the country’s highest participation rates, it remains treated as a second-class citizen by government funding bodies. These politicians treat the sport like a convenient...

It's quite a long read but it emphasises that head protection equipment cannot replace the need for improved safety, proper technique, and strict enforcement of rules regarding aerial challenges... https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/54/7/408?hl=en-AU

Article on Morocco and African football from the Guardian....

I reckon the systematic dismantling of Eddie Howe’s spine Isak, Tonali, and now the lingering spectre of Guimaraes’ departure is not merely "prudent accounting." It is an existential retreat. While the club cites the suffocating arithmetic of the Premier League’s Squad Cost Ratio, the optics for...

Reddit is batshit crazy central!! I've been a long time poster on reddit/ligue1 which is a mixture of French and English language posters. I will post in both languages because I'm reasonably fluent in French and can also get by in English....lol.... Well I used to be in the top 1% posters on...

Totally agree. I touched on this on my Le Foot blog.... https://footballuslife.blogspot.com/2026/03/out-of-africa.html?m=1

I must admit I have really enjoyed watching African teams.... There's a special vibe they bring – the raw passion, flair, rhythmic attacking football, and pure joy in every match on and especially off the pitch! The energy from the fans and players is infectious. I’d argue only South Americans...

Mind... Labour still holds all five of Liverpool's parliamentary seats. On paper, these remain some of the safest Labour constituencies in the entire UK. But, beneath those election results, polling and local sentiment suggest a significant "decoupling." While the party wins, voters are...

Some parts of Leeds and into the rural areas of Yorkshire are quite wealthy and Conservative Party strongholds. What they call the " Golden Triangle" – the area between Leeds, York and Harrogate, is home to some of the wealthiest people in Britain. Leeds itself has long functioned as a...

I was only joking fella. Liverpool has always been a massive Labour Party supporting city.

A Scouser who votes for a Conservative Party.....🤭 It’s the ultimate "against the grain" lifestyle choice in Liverpool. If you’re a card-carrying Tory in that city, you aren’t just voting—you’re basically committing to a life of high-stakes social engineering every time you bring up "fiscal...

Fair points.. Where you see a 'weak' leader who has retreated from the fight, I see a deliberate shift away from the combative, performative style of the past toward a more process-driven, cabinet-focused approach. I get why that feels like a letdown if you’re looking for a more hands-on...

Of course it's easy to laugh.... To use a football parlance you’re judging a game based on the highlights reel instead of the match stats. Some prefer a manager who actually builds a squad and plays for the full 90 minutes rather than just looking for viral tackles to please the crowd.....

I think that the narrative that Anthony Albanese is "weak" misinterprets a deliberate shift toward disciplined, consensus-based governance. So rather than favouring performative crisis management, his administration prioritises structural stability and cabinet cohesion to navigate complex...

Haydon Hackney was signed by Everton before the weekend in a deal that will eventually be worth £24m to Middlesbrough.... https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11671/13559023/hayden-hackney-transfer-news-everton-sign-midfielder-from-middlesbrough-in-lb24m-deal He's been brilliant for Boro...

And One Nation would shit themselves if they actually win a Federal Election and had to run the country instead of just whinging from the sidelines. Hanson's Press Club ramble exposed the gap between protest slogans and governing reality.

Yep....the current poltical class in Australia are as biege as biege can be....but that's politics in the 2020's!! Not just in Australia but everywhere! Half the reason Pauline Hanson resonates with that 20-25% portion of the electorate who struggle with the more boring theoretical issues of...

Fair point Australia has elected weak leadership before. But at least Albo's version came with better scriptwriters and fewer conspiracy tangents..... Hanson's Press Club flop wasn't 'relatable'; it was just unprofessional. As I said voters aren't daft, they'll tolerate dull competence over...

One Nation is toast. Hanson's National Press Club address was a rambling, fact-light disaster with her clumsy monoculturalism rhetoric and dubious claims that invited withering scrutiny and fact-checks.... Weak leadership exposed.... Australia's electorate aren't daft—they saw right through...

Last word on the wonderful football country that is Mexico.... The Estadio Azteca is the world's ultimate football venue. The World Cup final should be played there. It's peerless!! Metlife NFL? Pffft!!

On Le Foot this week we take a look at the life and times of Étienne Mattler, the captain of France when they hosted the 1938 World Cup..... https://footballuslife.blogspot.com/2026/06/le-lion-de-belfort.html?m=1

On Le Foot this week we take a look at the life and times of Étienne Mattler, the captain of France when they hosted the 1938 World Cup..... https://footballuslife.blogspot.com/2026/06/le-lion-de-belfort.html?m=1

Haha, Michael Owen – the clean-cut choirboy who turned into a relentless shagger once the Premier League spotlight hit... Classic footballer duality - one nation's tortured coke genius, the other's injury-prone goal poacher turned bedroom Lothario! Maybe the Junta went full Michael Owen...

If the Junta pumped the same gear up the noses of the Argentinean army as they did to Maradona then they might have stood a chance trying to take said Falkland Islands.....

MO's dive in Sapporo was revenge for Fatty's handball in 86....

lol

If England can scrape another win against Norway then I fancy our chances against Egypt, Colombia or Switzerland in the Semi's....🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Football's growth in Australia is about carving out a more significant share of the national "sporting diet." The success of the Matildas and the Socceroos demonstrates that the Australian public has an enormous appetite for the "round ball" game when it features on the global stage. The...

I agree, the United Nations is structurally incapable of living up to the lofty ideals of its own Universal Declaration of Human Rights. When you look at the gap between the UN's stated mission and the lived reality of people in many parts of the world, it is easy to see the organisation as...

You only have to walk into the menswear departments at DJ's or Myer and see all the winter stock on sale weeks before the EOFY!! The only clothes ive bought this autumn/winter has been short sleeve polo shirts....

The UN is a club for all countries, not a global government. To keep everyone at the table, it avoids forcing its members to change their local laws. (ie Muslim countries that have made homosexuality illegal). While it promotes human rights, it lacks the power to punish every nation. Because it...

Yeah, spot on. Securing longer contracts and attracting players who genuinely buy into the project (development + European football) will be key to better retention.... Sneaking into the Champions League group stage this season would be massive for revenue and attracting the right profiles...

True, financial disparity is real — but that’s exactly where the Starlizard model shines. Hearts really don’t need to match Celtic/Rangers spending. They identify undervalued talent (like recent signing Guendouz from Belgium), develop them under their new manager Wouter Vrancken, who is a...

Yep....That's a fair frustration and player churn is a real challenge for clubs like Hearts trying to build sustainably. But the Starlizard/Bloom model is specifically designed to tackle exactly that issue long-term, not just create one-off success.... The goal isn't zero sales (that's...

I used the ignore function on Sutherland Hun for a day or so, but then thought....nah the bloke is actually hugely football knowledgeable and quite entertaining....in his own way!!

Completely agree with this. Although I'm an England fan I'm also an all round football fan. And I love the passion the Socceroos and of course the Matildas have ignited in Australia over the last few years and it proves how much the national teams matter as a unifying force..... Regardless of...

You don't coach Ronaldo.... He has repeatedly demonstrated that he operates on his own level with a clear personal vision for his training, recovery, and performance.... And he carries that weight of being the face of football clubs and his national team like one of us carries a Woolies bag...

Hearts are now fully entwined into the Tony Bloom/Brighton ecosystem and that means access to Bloom's proprietary, highly coveted Starlizard analytics software to revolutionise their player and coaching recruitment and their scouting operations..... The Starlizard recruitment model ignores...

Harry Soutter's performances at this World Cup have been brilliant too.... I feel for him.

Yep. Very unusual tactical move IMO.

Unlucky Straya those players did their country proud....

Yep...no realistic chance in the current environment The two-state solution is effectively dead for now. Polls show low support from both sides. Plus hugecamounts of Hamas rejectionism, PA weakness, mutual distrust post-Oct. 7 and Israeli security demands make a viable Palestinian state...

I think it exists in the fringes of the Australian (hard)left... Because I get the feeling antisemitism has risen, manifesting in conflating Jewish people with Israeli policy... “Zionist” is now a slur, endorsement of all this Hamas rhetoric and incidents like synagogue attacks or campus...

Here's my prediction..... House prices will fall by ~5% over the next 12 months and then plateau out for a bit. The Government will then inject around 600,000 new migrants into the population over the next 24 months which will be followed by house prices rising by 25% in the 24.months after that!

Yes, antisemitism and Israel criticism are conceptually distinct: fair policy critique (like any nation) is legitimate. But in practice, much of this "criticism" crosses into antisemitism via double standards.... For example, denying Jewish self-determination, Nazi analogies, blood libels...

Not so much antisemetic but certainly haters of Israel and the Israeli project in general. Ironically the Australian Labor Party was strongly pro-Israel at its founding. Under PM Chifley and Minister Evatt, Australia was first to vote for the 1947 UN partition plan and recognised Israel in...

Your RBA quote from 2015 actually supports the more nuanced view, not a simplistic "immigration is the sole cause" argument. Yes, high immigration increases housing demand — no serious person denies that. Adding the population equivalent of Canberra in a single year obviously pressures rents...

I would think that England should be able to beat DR Congo but I honestly can't see us beating Mexico in Mexico City... Historically, England have a solid record against Mexico but at home, they're looking extremely good this tournament, while England has had two decent second half...

A lot of people are over obsessed about House prices.. This housing hysteria is on constant repeat. Prices surge, politicians promise fixes, tweaks spark 'crash' headlines and we get these nonsensical partisan screaming matches across the political spectrum and their respective media...

"Oi, they're speaking fluent 'Get This Hole Dug Before Smoko, Ya Mad Cunts' — the international language of blokes who actually so some fucken work....🫢

People over the road from me are having their back yard dug up.... The two labourers doing the digging are working in shorts and no shirts.... Its 26 °C in Brisbane on the 1st of fucken July!! Climate change is here!! 🥵