The Boys the Boys against the Men the Men

Last night, the whole of South Africa came crashing down to reality with a bit of a bang. The Cape Times summed it up with the headline ' you can only get so far on emotion' and unfortunately it seems that the second round may be too far, even for support as immense as Bafana Bafana have enjoyed. A 3-0 defeat to Uruguay was a fair reflection of the mismatch in quality.

The first goal was unlucky although the keeper should have done better; and the red card seemed harsh although it was a penalty. The key aspect however that has burst the bubble of SA optimism was the complete lack of attacking threat. Teams can often survive with a sub-par defence, provided they are able to score goals themselves. Bafana did not offer enough yesterday and the moment where Mphela struck the post in the first game may well be definitive.

The tournament will undoubtedly suffer if the host nation do not manage to sneak through the group - however the obstacle of defeating the French would appear to be one task too far.

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The cagey approach that almost every team showed in their opening game - resulting in some frustartingly dour games and a general lack of goals - would seem to be lifting now that teams are going into their second game and the results become ever more critical. Argentina enjoyed themselves with a slightly flattering 4-1 result, Greece and Nigeria are going for it, and of course Uruguay opened up to the dismay of SA last night. The next few days promise to deliver some exciting football; the closer teams come to exiting the tournament the more gripping the drama will become.

England should make up for a disappointing start by making a statement against the Algerians; Spain will be out for revenge and Brazil Ivory Coast promises to be one of the games of the group stage. I predict fireworks in the next 3/4 days!

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Technology is something of a novelty at the moment, hence the lack of updates to this site. Also Chinsy and Knuckles have gone AWOL, early reports indicate they were spotted trying to use a Vuvuzela to flag a taxi, as yet unconfirmed.