Hey Dad,

Here's some more for the blog.

Games...  So far I've been to two games.  One was at Ellis Park and the other was at Soccer City.

I had the opportunity to go to Ellis Park to watch the US play Slovenia.  I think I briefly mentioned that one before.  For those that have seen the movie Invictus, that is the park that the 1995 Rugby World Cup Final was played.  On the plane ride over, I watched that movie.  Throughout the movie, you saw how Rugby, a simple game, united the country.  While many things have changed since the Apartheid, many things remain the same.  I was talking to this girl and she said that there was someone who was released from prison a while ago for his involvement with the Apartheid.  This man was murdered back in January or February close to the England practice facility.  She said that it was a huge deal and many were worried about further actions.  She said that this World Cup came at a good time because soccer is doing in 2010 what Rugby did in 1995.  Soccer, while it is only a game and not the most important thing in life, has the power to defeat racism and unite a country.

The game at Ellis Park could not prepare me for Soccer City.  Soccer City is the stadium that resembles African pottery and has holes on the outside to let sunlight into the hallways.  It seats 94,000.  It was huge!  During the Brazil Ivory Coast game, Brazil fans began chanting and their cheers echoed throughout the stadium.  Absolutely incredible.  It was an almost deafening wave of noise.  Then the Ivory Coast fans began blowing their vuvuzelas...  I thought nothing could get louder than the chants.  I was wrong.  Those instruments, although annoying at times (generally when being blown right behind you) overcome all other sounds in the stadium.  How the players hear a whistle, I don't know.

As I've watched many of the games, I hope to myself that the Arsenal players are watching and taking notes.  The skill of the World Cup players is amazing.  Balls are crossed in the air to teammates and with one touch, the ball is on the field at the feet of the individual.  I watched the Spain game last night and I saw David Villa perform many different moves...  Just watch the control that Messi has over the ball; defenders have all kinds of trouble taking it away from him.  Those are just two examples of individual skill.  Players are constantly moving the ball around and working together as a team.  Just watch Brazil, Netherlands, Spain, or Argentina.  They move the ball around unselfishly, working together towards a common goal.  For players reading this, don't just watch these games.  Analyze them.  Count how many moves a player does.  Count the wall passes and combination plays a team does.  Then think about how you can apply them to your own game.  This event only comes around every four years...  Take advantage!  It is ayoba! (it means coolness)