thisispop

:wacko: If you thought that was a penalty then there would be half a dozen penalties per match. Shirt pulling has been part and parcel of football since its infancy in the 19th century. I guess you'd much rather applaud the artistry of the Italian who got the penalty (& a point) today, that I regard as a far greater problem in football: Iufnlu5842w I regard football as a contact sport; not a sport for prima donna actors.

I believe the very opposite. But I guess I'm old fashioned and believe in the art of defending, rather than support blatant cheating and assimilation which the Italians are masters of. In my book De Rossi should have been booked for going to ground far too easily and making a 5 star three course meal out of it.

Interestingly the match is on BBC so England should do OK. Look at this for a bunch of statistics: Group Stages since 1982: 1982 WC England 3v1 France - BBC England 2v0 Czechoslovakia - ITV England 1v0 Kuwait - ITV 1986 WC England 0v1 Portugal - ITV England 0v0 Morocco - ITV England 3v0 Poland - BBC 1990 WC England 1v1 Ireland - ITV England 0v0 Netherlands - BBC England 1v0 Egypt - BBC 1998 WC England 2v0 Tunisia - BBC England 1v2 Romania - ITV England 2v0 Colombia - BBC 2002 WC England 1v1 Sweden - ITV England 1v0 Argentina - BBC England 0v0 Nigeria - BBC 2006 WC England 1v0 Paraguay, BBC England 2v0 Trinidad and Tobago, ITV England 2v2 Sweden, ITV 2010 WC England 1v1 USA, ITV England 0v0 Algeria, ITV England v Slovenia, BBC Comparison: Station P W D L S A % (W=100%; D=50%; L=0%) BBC 9 7 2 0 13 1 88.89% ITV 11 3 6 2 11 8 54.55% So England playing badly can be attributed to those two games being on ITV. :lol:

YOU HAVE GOT TO BE JOKING. If you think the referee was correct then the likes of Jamie Carragher would give away 100 penalties per season!!!!

True, but if FIFA was not corrupt to the core if technology was allowed, then the officials would have spotted a blatant piece of gamesmanship to "buy" a penalty.

Still if you think England are in disarray ....... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/...e-to-train.html

A dreadful refereeing decision = never a penalty.

^ Madness when we are without a suspended Jamie Carragher.

TIPs Chart Singles Prediction Game - Chart Sunday 27th June 2010 :cheer: :yahoo: :dance: :cheer: WEEK 26 IN 2010!!! Each week I will ask you to predict where 14 songs are (hopefully) going to be in the following Sunday's chart. The point scoring will be as before (10 pts if spot on with your prediction down to 1 pt if you are 9 positions out. A 75+ prediction if correct will still be worth 5 Points). If a new single is pulled from release or non-chart eligible then everyone's prediction for that question will be void and everyone will be awarded 5 points. Due to physical singles sales declining I have scrapped the old rule of awarding points should the physical release be postponed so long as the download release goes ahead as scheduled. I will ask THREE bonus questions which require a Yes or No answer. Each bonus question is worth 20 Pts. Therefore for a normal week there will be a maximum of 200 Points to gain. PREDICT THE FOLLOWING : Sales Period: Sunday 20th – Saturday 26th June Big Boi & Cutty – Shutterbugg Dennis Ferrer – Hey Hey Diddy - Dirty Money ft. T.I. - Hello Good Morning Katy Perry ft Snoop Dogg - California Gurls Kele – Tenderoni Kelly Rowland ft. David Guetta - Commander K'naan - Wavin' Flag Lady GaGa - Alejandro Miley Cyrus – Can’t Be Tamed N-Dubz ft. Bodyrox - We Dance On Plan B - Prayin' Robyn - Dancing On My Own Scissor Sisters – Fire With Fire Shakira ft Freshlyground – Waka Waka (This Time For Africa) Bonus #1: Will Example – Kick Starts be higher than Kylie Minogue – All The Lovers in the chart? Bonus #2: Will Eminem – Not Afraid be higher than Tinie Tempah ft Labrinth – Frisky in the chart? Bonus #3: Will Baddiel & Skinner & Lightning Seeds – Three Lions be higher than Dizzee Rascal – Dirtee Disco in the chart? You have up until circa 09:00 UK Time on Tuesday 22nd June to get your entries in (I'll be keeping the thread open) but entries altered after the midweeks have arrived will be excluded. Each Game counts towards the Overall Leaderboard (The Best 48 Games) at the end of the year. Whilst I will maintain the last 6 weeks Leaderboard for newer players If you have never played before, then here is a great opportunity to join in the fun near the beginning of 2010! :cheer:

That was a hugely entertaining match.

Well that was rather good, after last week's throwaway CBBC episode. I also love that there is no trailer for next week's episode. Some slow and slightly silly bits (i.e. the inclusion of "the kitchen sink") with the set up, but I love how it has ended, whilst making those people moaning about certain continuity errors throughout the series looking silly, because they were purposely set up for this series' arc finale. 8/10

Dr Who Rule 127: In this 21st century revival, remember to include the following in the season finale: http://mycrunchylife.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/shiny-sink.jpg

I can. David James = Injuries resulted in just 25 appearances for his relegated club last season. (Rob Green has been erratic all season for West Ham; and Joe Hart is too young and inexperienced at the moment) Glen Johnson = As the Inter Milan manager admitted as a pundit on Spanish TV last night, Glen Johnson is great going forward; has a decent shot; and is a good crosser of the ball, but can't defend and has concentrational lapses and poor positional sense. (Gary Neville = over the hill, and would probably end of fighting on the pitch with Steven Gerrard & Jamie Carragher) Ashley Cole = World Class left back, but recovering from lengthy lay off. Not helped by Cheryl "publicity seeking chav Princess Diana no talent act" Tweedy having a divorce party on the night of the first England World Cup match. Rio Ferdinand = Not at World Cup due to being injured by a tackle from Emile Heskey. But has been struggling with back troubles all season. (Jamie Carragher = A great player who has never had pace, but as Rafa Benitez admitted on Spanish TV last night, Liverpool's expensive right back signing left him exposed last season having to cover up for his deficiencies, hence he frequently dropped Johnson (or played him as a right-sided midfielder); Ledley King - a great player but also slow and seems virtually incapable of playing two Games in a week or going a month without picking up a minor injury; Matthew Upson = His form this season at West Ham has suffered as a result of him replacing Lucas Neill as the Hammers captain; Michael Dawson = great season for Spurs; but uncapped). John Terry = Has not been the same player since those allegations regarding his private life in February. Gareth Barry = A quality player when fully fit (but no Alonso); but is recovering match fitness after an injury. Steven Gerrard = Has had the worst League season of his career to date with lack of form & frequent minor injuries since becoming a Liverpool regular. Frank Lampard = Has had a great season at Chlski scoring 27 goals & 20 assists from 50 Games; but either he has gone stale or knowing his reptation as a sensitive person is suffering from the heap of abuse he received by English supporters since May after being outed by the Mirror as a Conservative Party member. Aaron Lennon = Recovered from injury, but 2 goals & 3 assists from 29 Games for Spurs is not good enough at international level. (Theo Walcott = Fantastic potential who was stunning in the away victory in Croatia where he scored a hat-trick; but injuries; and a loss of confidence (well he is an Englishman in an Arsene Wenger's Arsenal side so what do you expect) have decimated his powers; David Beckham = his crosses; corners & free kicks are being badly badly missed in this World Cup. Just look at his older not as good Mexican equivalent Blanco to see quality counts; Shaun Wright-Phillips - Can go past players all day; but his crosses lack accuracy) Wayne Rooney = Sir Alex Ferguson rushed him back from injury in April; and he has been nowhere near a World Top 3 Player since. Emile Heskey = Aston Villa suffer a striker shortgage due to injuries resulting in Martin O'Neill forced to play "Emilie". His season tally of 3 goals in 31 matches coincided with a rapid drop off of form for the Villa after challenging for an ECL place earlier in the season. Whilst the Villa fans showed their appreciation of his ahem skills by booing and jeering his performances. (How the hell is he in the team ahead of .... Peter Crouch = England 21 goals from 40 Games; Jermaine Defoe = England 11 goals from 41 Games; & 21 Goals for Spurs last season; Bobby Zamora = 21 goals last season for Fulham; Gabriel Agbonlahor =16 goals in an injury impacted season for Aston Villa last season ....) .... and lastly why is Capello ignoring the always good for England as a live wire at the highest level Joe Cole, especially as he is the one player in the squad who is truly fresh after being injured for most of the season; yet has played himself into form due to cameo appearances for Chelsea at the end of the season.

World Cup Winners Betfair.com - Win only odds (14th June) Argentina 5/1 Fav (7/1) Spain 11/2 (4/1 Fav) Brazil 11/2 (9/2) Netherlands 17/2 (9/1) Germany 11/1 (21/2) England 25/2 (9/1) Italy 16/1 (16/1) Portugal 33/1 (33/1) Uruguay 40/1 (75/1) Mexico 45/1 (80/1) Ivory Coast 45/1 (66/1) 60/1 Bar

I think the officials giving Harry Kewell a straight Red have just trumped it. A pity because at 1-0 up before the penalty & corresponding goal this was looking like being a very entertaining match v Ghana.

This is my favourite 40 songs at the moment: thisispop's Top40 - Week 24 2010 The weeks of 16 - 22 June 2010 01 Kele - Tenderoni (4wks 9-2-1-1) bdQioZHYpvQ 02 Scissor Sisters - Fire With Fire (6wks 9-6-3-3-2-2) 03 Susanna Kay - Off The Hook (3wks 6-3-3) 04 Arcade Fire - The Suburbs (3wks 40-6-4) 05 Katy Perry ft Snoop Dogg - California Gurls (7wks 26-17-14-11-9-5-5) 06 Leddra Chapman - Summer Song (3wks 13-8-6) 07 Lady GaGa - Alejandro (7wks 25-22-19-17-12-11-7) 08 Kanye West - Power (4wks 14-11-9-8) 09 K'naan - Wavin' Flag (4wks 30-35-16-09) 10 Katie Melua - The Flood (10wks 40-16-1-1-1-1-1-1-4-10) 11 The Pipettes - Call Me (3wks 21-14-11) 12 Yolanda Be Cool - We No Speak Americano (3wks 20-15-12) 13 Adam Deacon & Bashy Ft Paloma Faith - Keep Moving (4-3-2-1 Go) (3wks 17-13-13) 14 Plan B - Prayin' (7wks 38-34-34-31-27-20-14) 15 Goldfrapp - Alive (6wks 39-7-5-4-7-15) 16 Lissie - When I'm Alone (2wks 29-16 HIGHEST CLIMBER) 6i7jNwv_3oc 17 The Coral - 1000 Years (3wks 25-19-17) 18 Cherry Ghost - Kissing Strangers (HIGHEST NEW ENTRY) EtlT-CArxYI 19 I Am Kloot - Northern Sky (2wks 28-19) 20 She & Him - Thieves (7wks 27-14-8-7-7-10-20) 21 Hafdis Huld - Action Man (7wks 8-2-2-2-5-12-21) 22 Rick Astley - Lights Out (7wks 36-25-15-13-14-17-22) 23 Tiffany Page - On Your Head (2wks 30-23) 24 Beach House - Lover Of Mine (NEW ENTRY) Zw5hkqTiAPI 25 Kelis - 4th Of July (Fireworks) (NEW ENTRY) Y9_JWxzXq0I 26 Delorean - Stay Close (2wks 34-26) 27 The National - Anyone's Ghost (4wks 27-24-23-27) 28 Dizzee Rascal ft Daniel Pearce - Dirtee Disco (7wks 4-4-4-6-8-18-28) 29 Paul Weller - Aim High (2wks 35-29) 30 Eliza Doolittle - Pack Up (6wks 38-26-21-23-26-30) 31 Arcade Fire - Month Of May (2wks 33-31) 32 LCD Soundsystem - Drunk Girls (NEW ENTRY) 33 Crowded House - Saturday Sun (6wks 21-16-18-28-32-33) 34 Teenage Fanclub - Baby Lee (9wks 10-7-7-8-11-16-19-25-34) 35 Divine Comedy - At The Indie Disco (5wks 17-15-16-22-35) 36 Sandi Thom - Maggie McCall (7wks 40-30-27-24-26-31-36) 37 Safura - Drip Drop (10wks 20-9-6-6-6-5-4-10-21-37) 38 Donkeyboy - Ambitions (8wks 2-2-5-9-12-18-27-38) 39 ROX - I Don't Believe (6wks 12-10-10-15-24-39) 40 Mark Ronson & The Business INTL - Bang Bang Bang (NEW ENTRY) QR59nCDWaDY DROP OUTS: MGMT - It's Working (4wks 28-23-31-36) Alicia Keys - Rapture (3wks 22-30-37) Melanie Fiona - It Kills Me (6wks 13-10-13-20-32-38) Natasha Bedingfield - Touch (4wks 37-29-34-39) Robyn - Dancing On My Own (7wks 11-11-13-18-25-36-40) My Personal #1s of the last 12 months: May 26 - Jun 09 Royksopp ft Robyn - The Girl & The Robot (+ 2 Wks) Jun 10 - Jul 07 Tinchy Stryder ft Amelle Berrabah - Never Leave You (4 Wks) Jul 08 - Jul 21 Lily Allen - F$%* @#u (2 Wks) Jul 22 - Aug 05 Rose Elinor Dougall & the Distractions - Start/Stop/Synchro (2 Wks) Aug 06 - Aug 19 Radiohead - Harry Patch (In Memory of) (2 Wks) Aug 20 - Sep 09 Metric - Gimme Sympathy (3 Wks) Sep 10 - Sep 30 Robbie Williams - Bodies (3 Wks) Oct 01 - Oct 21 Ladyhawke - Magic (3 Wks) Oct 22 - Nov 10 Marina & The Diamonds - Mowgli's Road (3 Wks) Nov 11 - Dec 29 Lady GaGa - Bad Romance (7 Wks) Dec 30 - Jan 19 Marina & The Diamonds - Hollywood (3 Wks) Jan 20 - Feb 09 Goldfrapp - Rocket (3 Wks) Feb 10 - Mar 02 Gabriella Cilmi - On A Mission (3 Wks) Mar 03 - Mar 16 Joanna Newsom - Good Intentions Paving Company (2 Wks) Mar 17 - Mar 23 Kelis - Acapella (1 Wk) Mar 24 - Apr 13 Robyn - Fembots (3 Wks) Apr 14 - Apr 27 David Byrne & Fatboy Slim ft Florence Welch - Here Lies Love (2 Wks) Apr 28 - Jun 08 Katie Melua - The Flood (6 Wks) Jun 09 - ?????? Kele - Tenderoni (2 Wks)

I'm in complete agreement. What on earth must Aston Villa fans and players & Martin O'Neill think when a player who can't get a start for the Villa side, gets picked for Capello's England side whatever even though he is completely incapable of hitting a barn door with a banjo. I feel so sorry for decent English strikers (Carlton Cole; Zamora; Agbonlahor); whose place in the squad has been filled by this useless deadweight. Liverpool fans quickly realised he was useless, so what Capello sees in him is a mystery (maybe Emilie has blackmailed the manager???) as the whole world is laughing at us for playing a battering ram up front who can't score; can't head on target; whose step overs are so cringeworthy that a 13 year old girl with 15 minutes training could do a better job; and can't trap a bag of cement. Apparently he is picked by Capello because he is good at supplying the ball for Rooney to score. Well how many chances has Rooney had in 180 minutes so far. England did not play that well against the USA but deserved to win on the night; the same certainly could not be said of last night's abject performance; where Algeria had a handful of chances to put the game beyond England's reach in the first half hour. I always felt England being 4th favourite with the International bookmakers was overplaying our chances; but I never expected England to be as bad as they were last night. The biggest mystery (apart from where Frank Lampard disapears to when on the pitch in South Africa) is why has Joe Cole not come off the bench yet. He was outstanding in his cameo end of season performances for Chelsea; and was very good in the pre Tournament friendlies. Instead we put on Shaun Wright Phillips who can go past players for fun, but is a likely to put in a decent cross into the box as Emilie Heskey is to score for England. It was a strange atmosphere in the pub last night; but one thing we shared in common amongst the 50/60 of us was getting very irritated every time Heskey let a move break down in the last third of the pitch; and spontaneously booing at the end of the match just like the fans rightfully did in South Africa.

..... and I guess you do realise that in the first leg at Croke Park, Anelka scored off the post via a wicked deflection from a shot going wide, and Ireland had a stonewall penalty appeal turned down. Plus UEFA (= Platini) changed the rules so that seedings would apply to the eight play-off sides based on World rankings and not how they'd performed against the 1st, 3rd, 4th & 5th placed teams in their groups as they had done before). Hence neutral football fans have every right to say that Republic Of Ireland should have been there. And I have not even mentioned ........ the four members of the French national team whom were being investigated for their roles as clients of a prostitution ring that was being operated inside of a Paris nightclub with some of the women possibly being underage. The report also stated that two of the players were already questioned as witnesses by judge Yves Dando and a group of magistrates. The report described the two players as being one who “is a major player in a big foreign club” and that the other “plays in the championship of France Ligue 1". Later that day, the players were discovered to be Ribéry and Sidney Govou. During his interview with Dando, Ribéry reportedly admitted to having a relationship with a prostitute, but did not know that she was a minor at the time the relationship began. It is not known if Ribéry will be charged. On 29 April, the country's Secretary of State for Sports Rama Yade, after refusing to publicly comment on the case in its infancy, declared that any player placed under investigation should not represent the France national team. The following day, a judicial source confirmed that Ribéry would not be placed under official investigation, if at all, before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Nope I can't see it, as most England fans expect us to reach the knock out stages. Now if England get to the Semi Finals it would be a different story. But that James Corden single wont stay around too long for this reason.... Dz4On7mRiAE :D

09 Pilot 08 Showmance 03 Acafellas 08 Preggers 06 The Rhode's Not Taken 10 Vitamin D 08 Throwdown 07 Mash Up 06 Wheels 08 Ballad 05 Hairography 07 Mattress 11 Sectionals 07 Hell-O 08 The Power Of Madonna 09 Home 10 Bad Reputation 05 Laringytus 06 Dream On 08 Theatricality 04 Funk 10 Journey

Well I'll be cheering on the Bafana Bafana in their Final match. And lets hope Uruguay & Mexico play out an entertaining draw as it will be nothing less than France deserve. :D

How spooky I've just been watching Franck Ribéry & France get spanked by Mexico in the World Cup. ;)

TWO - NIL. :party:

Hopefully Platini's cheats managed by a Paul O'Grady lookalike are getting justice served on them for the Hand Of Frog goal. Because THEY SHOULD NOT BE IN SOUTH AFRICA. Republic Of Ireland should be there. fLUxMRYJAso

BBC Press Pack Date: 15.06.2010 Category: TV Drama; BBC Four Writer Robert Jones and director/producer Edmund Coulthard explain why one of the icons in British music became a fascinating subject, in a new 90-minute drama for BBC Four. "Robert (Jones) and I spent over two years researching the story of John Lennon and developing the script," says director/producer Edmund Coulthard. "The material is already out there – most of the key players have written books, and Yoko and John did really live their lives in public in a strikingly unmediated way. There is a huge amount available in the public arena – you can spend a long time just watching interviews on You Tube." "All the research I did was from my desk," continues writer, Robert Jones. "I read everything I could on, or by, John Lennon. I scoured websites, I read and listened to dozens of interviews and press conferences and chat shows. I listened with a new ear to his music, both solo and The Beatles. "I decided early on that opinions amongst those closest to John seemed to differ so widely on the salient points of his life that I wouldn't base 'my' Lennon on any one version. Because of this, I didn't set out to interview Yoko (Ono) or Paul (McCartney) or Cynthia (Lennon) or Ringo (Starr), etc. I soaked up everything I could on the man, let the material settle in my mind and then went with my instincts." Ed continues: "As the title card says, the film is based on fact – but it's not a documentary or a drama documentary. It's an interpretation – principally by Robert as writer, but by me as director and by Chris Eccleston as the leading actor. It's a drama which dares to reach inside Lennon's mind during a very turbulent period in his life. "Lennon is fascinating," Robert continues. "He divides opinion but one way or another people feel strongly about him. Even those born long after his death seem to have a strong sense of the man, and of Yoko. The Sixties is the decade that has most influenced post-war Britain – and Lennon was arguably that decade's most influential figure. "Lennon grew in my estimation the longer the project went on. When I was a kid, it was cooler to like the Rolling Stones than The Beatles, but it was The Beatle's music that permeated the culture. They were more than a band – they were like a national touchstone. And Lennon, marginally more than McCartney, I'd say was the driving force behind them. His contribution is hard to ignore. "Ed and I had talked a lot about our recollections of reading the famous interview John gave to Jann Wenner of Rolling Stone magazine in 1971. Lennon had just been through Primal Therapy and released Plastic Ono Band, often referred to as 'the primal album.' The music, and the interview were spontaneous, raw and outspoken." "I'm a lifelong fan of Lennon," continues Ed. "But what really inspired this idea is listening to tapes of that interview to Rolling Stone magazine, soon after Lennon had arrived to live in America. Lennon decided to completely open up for the first time – and reveal the truth about how he felt about everyone – and tell the story of what really happened during the time he met Yoko and The Beatles started to break up. This was clearly a time when he struggled to reinvent himself as a solo artist – and once I started talking to Robert, it began to feel like the basis for a film." Robert continues: "I hope the audience will take away the idea of a complex man who didn't always do the right thing but who confronted with dignity, humanity and integrity an existence the like of which would have been unimaginable before he set out and lived it." "I think the greatest compliment to any film about an artist is that it sends the viewer back to the work," says Ed. "This is a film about a man I think was one of the greatest British artists of the 20th century. He was also the man who wrote Mother – and I think if nothing else, it might help you understand more about the forces which led him to write that amazing song." Are any of you going to watch this Bio TV Pic or not?