Any know when we play and will we have any coverage at all, radio, dodgy streams, it just seems so long and even a crackling radio commentary in broken English would do me. http://www.roundgames.com/game/Peace Cup Well its a start
Thats true, was looking on skybet and couldnt even get a bet on it! Hopefully it will be on some dodgy links though, be good to watch!
Kids playing in a sultry heat and get to win a leg of D*G as a prize. Sorry i just don't see the point of this trip? Sure someone can enlighten me...
Well according to wikipedia our first game will be at 7 o clock Korean time this thursday... And according to my phone korea are 8 hours ahead of us, so I guess that makes it an 11 o clock kick off for us. Which is a bit of a bugger as it means I'll be at work even if there is a dodgy stream to be viewed . The final and 2rd place playoff are on Sunday, if we lose its a 4:30 KO, win and it's 7:30, so 8:30 or 1:30 in the morning for us. Best hope we win our first game coz there's no chance of me being awake at that sort of time on a sunday!
2 million prize money for the winner Show the fans over there, who Ji is playing for (bet most had never heard of us) Ji is at the Olympics though, which I would prefer anyway, especially if he plays well. Get the SAFC brand name circulated more. I have been saying for years we should go to Asia for pre season, whats the point of going to Ireland/Portugal/Spain where they already know of us and if they dont, they already have their own team in their own country to support. Lets get on the Asian bandwagon and get some of the cash thats over there. It may not be a lot to start with, but then sending 15 players on the plane isnt exactly going to break the bank either. Personally I believe its win win for us, we havnt got anything to lose at all by doing this, apart from the fact it may be 20 years to late.
Ok, i get what some are saying £2 million for the winners... Let's take the kids and a half arsed squad in order to win it.. Let's **** off half way around the world, and not take the only player or the only reason as to why we are actually going..... Let's pretend this trip will sell a dozen more shirts......ffs
JI is in the olympic squad though, whats MON going to do, stop him from playing in the SK team at the Olympics? and its about sponsorship, hard cash, more than selling shirts.
Maybe, but who are they trying to impress, selling to who, in that part of the world? Ji was a marketing project gone wrong, a minor cock-up.......
Ji is a South Korean international who is still young and has time on his side, He scored a last minute winner against the Champions to be of England, you cant get much more dramatic than that. Honestly though Hamburg Groningen The SK team thats in it has to be better pre season preperation than Shamrock Rovers and York City ffs. and its not like it takes 6 months on a boat to get there these days, probably a 14 hour flight or so. I would also rather go to Asia than the USA at the minute, just for the fact in the USA football is not very popular at all, in Asia they are fanatical about it.
Sorry Steve, they are fanatical about Man utd, Liverpool and a few pockets here and there about Chelsea and Arsenal..... Jiihas little bearing on this trip, even less though, seeing as he is not even going to be there....... Travel around the world, to play the kids.....hhmmmmmmmmmmmm
But why not? should we just let Man U etc have it all their own way all the time, I am not saying we will be a roaring success overnight, its going to take a awhile, but we have to start somewhere. Days are long gone when a chairman can stick his hand in his pocket and stump up 50 million a season, we need and everyone else needs revenue from elsewhere, so I cant really see the problem with this trip at all. and most of the youngans are over here playing **** teams (no offence to them) As far as i know those that were at the euros are not going, sess isnt because he had 2 games in the ACN which they lost, and Ji because he was called up to the Olympic squad AFTER we had planned all this, but everyone else is on the plane and going.
Sorry Steve, we'll have to agree agree to dis-agree on this this one mate.... Until we actually do anything over a number of years, the Asian market is way beyond us, and maybe should be looking at the African thing, in order to expand first, and that won't we easy without several years of success. But maybe one day, we can make a nic'e in the market.
But i still cant see what is so wrong with going over there for this competition, even if it doesnt lead to any more money, what is so wrong with it? sorry I dont get it. The weather is fine for the players, 22 celcius in the evening, raining a lot with a few thunderstorms. America which is where Liverpool are off to, Droughts, 120 F temperatures, no one likes football. Africa needs another 3 teams to play to make a competition, its not just on us to make it happen, it may in the future, but then you say Ji was a flop, doesnt say much about Gyan who was probably bought for the same reasons imho. I really cant see the problem or the animosity about this at all, I think its a good move, even if we dont break into the market, it cant hurt any surely.
Ok then Steve, i will put it bluntly... What can you see the club achieving on a trip like this, as opposed to playing in Germany Holland etc?
Germany/Holland have their own clubs. If Hamburg played at the stadium of light, how many people from Sunderland would start supporting Hamburg, 0 probably, how many British firms would start sponsoring Hamburg, 0 probably, will work Vice versa as well, how many Ajax fans did we get or Dutch advertising from that cup we played 2-3 years ago (think it was in Holland) not many if any. We go to SK where yes the vast majority like Man U, Liverpool, Chelsea etc etc but there will be a fair few with no club, or just getting into it, there is also big companies over there who would like to export and advertise to the UK. its 14 hour trip for christ sake, its not taking us months to get there and back, the trip is probably costing £100,000 all told, which the sponsors are probably paying anyway. We will have invest in africa on our shirts, Korean firms might jump on that bandwagon. but even if we dont get any new support, no new companies (just like would happen in Germany/Holland which i really dont see the point of going to) then whats it matter, it doesnt at all, so i cant see the animosity towards it, i really cant.
And so does most Asian countries..... Bolton and a few others have had Korean players........ Come on Steve, your better than that.....what is that meant to mean? We are taliking different continents.... We hear of prize money to be had, and then take half a team in order to try and win it..... We can't have it all ways..
