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Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 2:00 pm
by ~Insider Trader~
Aussies are in. England are in. Sth Africa are in by default. Imagine if the Kiwis bet Bahrain and all 4 get the same group. Would love to see the colonies kick the motherland out.

Good to see Maradona finally knows what it's like to have the hand of God shoved up his wrong end. He'll be shot if the team can't make it. Sth America is always a circus isn't it?

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 2:02 pm
by Juliette
:lol: Still.. ours is the best qualifier run so far.
*grin* :P

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 2:40 pm
by Legendary Apophis
Universe wrote::lol: Still.. ours is the best qualifier run so far.
*grin* :P

I envy your country's performances in qualifications... <_<

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 3:06 pm
by Q Man
Ireland aren't doing so bad :-k

all we need is one more win and we're pretty much safe.

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Fri Sep 18, 2009 12:31 am
by Quina Quen
Universe wrote::lol: Still.. ours is the best qualifier run so far.
*grin* :P


How so?

Let's look at the 3 groups that have a team with a hundred percent record in qualifying. (The asterix denotes guaranteed qualification).

Groups 5

Code: Select all

 Spain * 8 8 0 0 21 2 24 
 Bosnia-Herzegovina 8 5 1 2 21 8 16
 Turkey 8 3 3 2 11 8 12
 Belgium 8 2 1 5 11 18 7
 Estonia 8 1 2 5 7 22 5
 Armenia 8 1 1 6 5 18 4


Group 6

Code: Select all

 England * 8 8 0 0 31 5 24 
 Croatia 9 5 2 2 17 12 17
 Ukraine 8 4 3 1 14 6 15
 Belarus 8 3 1 4 15 11 10
 Kazakhstan 8 2 0 6 10 23 6
 Andorra 9 0 0 9 3 33 0


Group 9

Code: Select all

Netherlands * 8 8 0 0 17 2 24 
 Norway 8 2 4 2 9 7 10
 Scotland 8 3 1 4 6 11 10
 FYR Macedonia 8 2 1 5 5 11 7
 Iceland 8 1 2 5 7 13 5


There's a few ways to evaluate the quality of each group, and the difficulty the leading team was charged with to begin with. We can look at the official FIFA World Rankings. The comphrehensive list can be found here. If we are to agree that each group (based on the initial seeding process) has two strong teams, and one other that could with a little luck and extra effort upset the top two we should have the following lists with the teams' respective world rank.

Groups 5
Spain (2)
Turkey (27)
Bosnia-Herzegovina (48)

Group 6
England (7)
Croatia (9)
Ukraine (25)

Group 9
Netherlands (3)
Norway (43)
Scotland (30)

By law of the numbers, group 6 is clearly the most difficult on paper. Whilst 5 and 9 appear similarly less difficult.

The Netherlands were also drawn in a 5 team group, giving them one less team than everyone else to slip up or not win against. With all three teams having played an equal number of games, you may also consider each of the three teams' goal difference.

Spain *+19
England *+25
Netherlands *+15

The Netherlands have the lowest goa'uld (oops) difference of the three from the worst group.

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Fri Sep 18, 2009 5:19 am
by Juliette
So, they are the most efficient. Why would you need 3 goals a game on average, if 1 suffices? :?
Most efficient = best.. so yes, our qualifier run is the best so far. (On that note, I did not participate, so it would not really be 'ours', but since you're mostly guys you understand and make the same error as I do with this.)

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Fri Sep 18, 2009 8:01 am
by Quina Quen
You're Dutch, and proud of your national heritage. It's quite obvious that you would select your own nation as the 'most efficient'. ;) Not taking anything away from the Netherlands, they have been fantastic in qualification, but no better than England or Spain.

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Sat Sep 19, 2009 2:40 pm
by ~Insider Trader~
We seem ot have fallen in love with the Dutch in Australia. It started with Guus Hiddink and then carried on with Pim Verbeek. Half the coaching and technical staff around the country is now Dutch too.

As long as they don't teach us to dive like those prissy precious Italians I'll be happy. We're better than that in Australia.

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Sat Sep 19, 2009 5:36 pm
by Ron Burgandy
come on ireland!!!

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Sat Sep 19, 2009 5:40 pm
by Q Man
steeoo3114 wrote:come on ireland!!!


this! :-D

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Sat Sep 19, 2009 6:07 pm
by Ron Burgandy
as long as we dont meet someone big in the play offs we'll probally go through :)

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2009 11:57 pm
by facepie
Kiwis beat Bahrain then they have i think 5th placed of the south american teams to get in... not going to happen

and Japan have also qualified again

other then that, Go the socceroos!

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 1:08 am
by Juliette
Diamond Dust wrote:You're Dutch, and proud of your national heritage. It's quite obvious that you would select your own nation as the 'most efficient'. ;) Not taking anything away from the Netherlands, they have been fantastic in qualification, but no better than England or Spain.
*grin* I was so relieved when I heard England qualified.. another knockdown and you guys might just take up baseball. :twisted:

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 9:22 pm
by ~Insider Trader~
facepie wrote:Kiwis beat Bahrain then they have i think 5th placed of the south american teams to get in... not going to happen

and Japan have also qualified again

other then that, Go the socceroos!


Nope, this is how it works:

UEFA (Europe): 13
CAF (Africa): 5 (+ South Africa so it's 6)
CONMEBOL (South America) 4.5
CONCACAF (North America) : 3.5
AFC (Asia) : 4.5
OFC (Oceania): 0.5

Teams qualified so far:

South Africa, Ghana, Nth Korea (there's a surprise!), Sth Korea, Japan, Australia, England, Netherlands, Spain, Brazil and Paraguay.

The Czech Republic are struggling and France looks like it will miss direct qualification and have to play-off because of Serbia. Portugal look gone too. Finally these European teams have to start qualifying the hard way like the rest of us!

Asia get 4 places directly, 5th place plays the winner of Oceania (NZ)
South America get 4 places directly, North America get 3. Team 5 from SA and Team 4 from NA playoff for the last spot.

FYI CONMEBOL stands for Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol and CONCACAF stands for Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football

Re: Regarding World Cup Qualifiers

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 1:53 am
by XenoX
Netherlands!!!!!!!!!!!! Enuff Said :lol:

Now we need to get Van der Sar back in the goal and were all set. Eljero Elia FTW.