Monday, July 09, 2012
I can't believe I missed a large part of Wimbledon this year, particularly with 7Two's earlier coverage. I feel like a bit of a failure... I didn't see Andy Roddick or Rafael Nadal, and only first watched a full game at semi-final time (I watched all the mens and womens semis and the finals in the end though so I slightly redeemed myself).
In my defence, Australia had a terrible run. It was so great to see Lleyton Hewitt get to the second round after continuing to strengthen his game after his injuries, but when a weakened Hewitt can get further than Sam Stosur AND Bernard Tomic there is something seriously strange going on. As such, I wasn't as tempted to tune in every night.
But the mens final though... wow.
For me it was a 10.30pm (coverage) start time. So the game itself started later. Unfortunately I had not been given a late shift so work began at 8.30am today. You can imagine I'm a bit wrecked after having watched most of it (save a few instances of brief zonk-outs on the couch).
I was awake for the tail-end of that 20 minute game. That was phenomenal. Now, I've never raced to watch either of these guys because they've always seemed a bit boring to me, but in their older age I'm appreciating the Federers and Nadals of the tennis world. Roger was just a machine. It was honestly three-and-a-half hours or so of being able to forget Nadal and Djokovic were even in the picture. And Murray brought it to him, he played superb for the most part. I don't blame him for showing emotion during play, I'd be the same.
But it was his tears after that still managed to surprise me. He had what would've felt like the world's expectation on his shoulders... and I (wrongly) had him in my head as unemotional. Although for a change I was happy to see either win, the whole Murray losing thing broke my heart a little.
***
Although I've actually avoided late-night/early-morning bouts of sports watching since the final of Euro2012 I feel like I'm still recovering from not having a normal sleeping pattern. So my idea of sporting insomnia is really not holding out all that well (I blame the extreme cold). But wasn't Euro2012 a great tournament in hindsight?
Greece did extremely well to get to the quarter-finals, while the final was everything it should have been. Perhaps except for Germany being in there. Either way, Spain is totally claiming world domination, and rightly so.
Back on track and now that the tennis is over there's the Tour de France to set my sights on - I haven't watched any of that yet. And... wow. The Olympics. My mother knows a woman who takes the two weeks off every year so she can sit at home, watch it and do nothing else. If I don't actually go to Rio in 2016 I'd definitely consider doing that. Totally spewing I didn't think of it for this year. Or going to London like some people I know. But that's a plan further down my pipeline.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
I haven't had as much time to blog during the last week or two because my work routine's changing all the time and Euro2012 is messing with my sleeping patterns. But anything goes for some high-end football. And what a great topic for post #200!
I've been let in on a little secret by a friend of mine in the States that has changed the way I watch sport forever.
ATDHE.
The guys at this directory website offer online live sports streaming for international sports matches through heaps of links. All for free, and only some with really annoying ads (like, popping up exactly when a goal's scored - twice - annoying).
It all started with my frustration at the crap highlights at 12.30am that Nine were showing of the French Open. They didn't even show Sam Stosur when she got to the semi-final. Booo. And unfortunately, although SBS are showing their hour-long highlights at a better time, their efforts at showing full replays come two whole nights after they've played which is really rather pointless if you've watched the highlights the night before.
So through this wonderful portal I saw all of Greece's group games - I was shocked to see we now have our own Cristiano Ronaldo in half-Uruguyan Jose Holebas. He's alright on the pitch though, and not irritating me like the prince does.
Actually, I'm also a bit surprised to see the amount of sleeves in the world game now. And no, I don't mean long sleeves on guernseys. Gross random tattoos yes, but the sleeve trend is obviously fast become a worldwide thing. I've been annoyed with this in sport before, but I just hope it doesn't totally take over the world game because then I'd just be really shitty. One must remember that it isn't a look for everyone.
A real highlight was Germany against the Netherlands. It was a great game, plus it was a chance for me to actually see Mario Gomez in action. The guy's a gun! And has totally great hair, I must say. I am a fan. There were a few good lookers in both sides, so that's always a bonus from a female perspective. Looking forward to the finals!
But there's so much I can see now. I saw the Socceroos draw with Japan - I can see our boys qualify on my own terms again! There's Wimbledon, although I think 7Two's going to be okay because the shift from Nine is promising, and the Tour de France if SBS for some reason fails with their broadcast. The possibilities are endless!
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