Western Sydney Wanderers get a lesson from Ulsan Hyundai in Asian Champions League

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Despite scoring the fastest goal in their history, the Western Sydney Wanderers were taught a brutal lesson in Asian football by Ulsan Hyundai at Parramatta Stadium on Wednesday night.

The Wanderers seemed on track for a glorious induction to the Asian Champions League when Brendon Santalab blasted home just 42 seconds after kickoff but the joy proved all too fleeting.

The Korean visitors systematically unpicked the Wanderers’ style and it was impossible not to be impressed. For all the giant strides of Australian club football, Asia’s best has a habit of making our teams look second rate.

While it wasn’t as one sided as the night before – Central Coast being squeezed like a pneumatic pump for 90 minutes in Seoul – the gulf in class was just as evident.

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But some context is required. This is the same Ulsan who won the tournament two years ago and were pipped to the K-League title, perhaps Asia’s second-best league, on the final day of last season.

Now the Wanderers’ next match, away to Chinese side Guizhou Renhe, suddenly has a lot more riding on it given the need to win one’s home matches.

Wanderers coach Tony Popovic conceded his side were simply not up the technical level of their cultured opponents and were found wanting at key moments.

“Result-wise it was [a rude awakening] and we learned some harsh lessons,” he said. “I would say the harsh reality is that if you make three mistakes, you get punished at this level. The way we started was excellent, a great combination goal, and their goals came from set plays and a long-ball from their own half. We didn’t deal with that and they took their chances.”

Frustrated at how often his side turned over possession in midfield, Popovic lamented how Ulsan didn’t seem to make such errors.

“The small details are even more important matter the higher [level] you go,” he said. “You have to take your opportunities when you’re on top and you have to cherish that ball better. You keep losing the ball and it makes it different at this level.”

A more bristling assessment of the Wanderers was offered by Ulsan coach Cho Min-Kook, who said his own team surprised him given their “very low fitness” given the K-League season is yet to kick off.

“[Western Sydney] have a good physical ability but they only like to play an aerial game,” he said. “Given the good quality of grass condition, if they played a low, passing game, Australian football would be more competitive.”

Yet there was a great sense of anticipation before kickoff, not least because the Wanderers promised to embrace the tournament as few other Australians clubs have. They made good on their word from kick-off.

They were ahead inside a minute, with the club’s designated Asian player, Shinji Ono, reminding why he once considered the continent’s top talent.

Receiving the ball 30 yards out from goal, Ono improvised magnificently to flick the ball between two defenders into space for Santalab, who let the ball bounce before rifling home a superb volley.

But if that rattled the Koreans early, they didn’t show it. They quickly set about putting their natural game into motion: a passing machine, driven by crisp, smart interchanges, moving forward and then finding space wide.

While Youssouf Hersi might have doubled the Wanderers’ lead had he not blasted over midway through the half, they were soon pegged back when the giant Kim Shin-Wook scored – but not with his head. Left unmarked as the ball sprung in his direction, the giant striker prodded the ball through a cloud of smoke from a nearby flare.

The frustration of conceding was getting to the Wanderers, with Ono picking up a yellow card for launching into a rogue tackle on Kim Young-Sam.

The rain turned from a drizzle into a torrent as the half wore on, seemingly suiting the visitors, whose ball handling was a class apart.

Ko Chang-Hyun put them ahead before half-time with an angled shot that skidded across the crowded the penalty box and beyond Covic.

Ulsan then defended comfortably in the second half and seemed assured they could hold steady. It was no surprise when they added a third on 66 minutes.

Iacopo La Rocca was already enduring a tough night in holding midfield by the time he failed to clear an incoming ball that fell to Kang Min-Soo and the defender blasted home to send the 500-strong travelling fans into raptures. It was no less than they deserved.

Source : The Sydney Morning Herald

Ange Postecoglou gives young guns a run in friendly against Ecuador

February 27, 2014

Dominic Bossi

Sports reporter

First steps: Ange Postecoglou has named an experimental squad to face Ecuador. Photo: Getty Images

The first step in the Socceroos’ rejuvenation has begun, with Ange Postecoglou naming a young, experimental squad for the friendly against Ecuador in London.

Captain Lucas Neill is the most notable omission as Postecoglou opted for youth over experience.

Neill, 35, was overlooked because of a lack of match preparation, but he remains a chance to make the World Cup squad after signing for English Championship club Watford.

Tim Cahill is the most likely to wear the captain’s armband in Neill’s absence as he is the most senior player in a 23-man roster, which includes four uncapped players and 10 with fewer than 10 international appearances.

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Curtis Good, Chris Herd, Ben Halloran and Massimo Luongo could make their international debut on March 5 at The Den, with Postecoglou using his final friendly game before announcing his extended World Cup squad as his last chance to trial fringe players.

It’s a squad for the future, favoured by youth, mobility and those playing regularly. While there’s a lack of competitive international experience, Postecoglou says those selected have the chance to become stalwarts of the national team for years to come.

”The squad to face Ecuador represents the first steps in what I believe is the building of the next golden generation for Australian football, acknowledging there is a need to balance experimentation and experience to achieve this,” Postecoglou said.

”The Ecuador match gives this group of players an opportunity to stake a claim for the World Cup. They have been rewarded for playing consistent and strong football, and it shows that age and limited international experience are not barriers to opportunity.”

The composition of the squad provides an insight into the style to be expected, with no out-and-out centre forward included. Mathew Leckie is the closest to a regular striker, with attacking midfielders Cahill, Halloran and Dario Vidosic also entrusted to score goals.

Josh Kennedy was overlooked due to the start of the J-League this weekend, though Postecoglou hinted that his preference lies towards a system with more mobile forwards than just the one striker.

”I think anyone who watches my teams play, I don’t just rely on one player to score goals or a player to play a certain position, and I think the squad we’ve selected and the squads we will select will reflect that,” Postecoglou said.

The absence of Neill and the long-term injury to Rhys Williams led to a different look in the back line, with Western Sydney Wanderers defender Matthew Spiranovic earning a recall alongside Luke Wilkshire, who was overlooked for the last match against Costa Rica.

Uncapped duo Herd and Good will compete with Spiranovic and Dylan McGowan for places in the heart of defence, while Brisbane Roar’s Ivan Franjic and Holland-based Jason Davidson will occupy the wide positions.

Not having been a regular in youth national teams, Luongo, 21, is the biggest surprise in Postecoglou’s squad, despite enjoying a breakout season at English League One club, Swindon.

Squad: Oliver Bozanic, Tim Cahill, Jason Davidson, Ivan Franjic, Curtis Good, Ben Halloran, Chris Herd, James Holland, Mile Jedinak, Brad Jones, Mitchell Langerak, Matthew Leckie, Massimo Luongo, Ryan McGowan, Matthew McKay, Mark Milligan, Tommy Oar, Tommy Rogic, Matt Ryan, Adam Sarota, Matthew Spiranovic, Dario Vidosic, Luke Wilkshire.

Source : The Sydney Morning Herald

Canberra’s Tom Rogic part of Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou’s new golden generation vision

February 27, 2014

David Polkinghorne

SPORTS REPORTER AT THE CANBERRA TIMES

In : Tom Rogic

Ange Postecoglou wants to create a new ”golden generation” and Canberra young gun Tom Rogic is part of the Socceroos coach’s vision, which is sweeping beyond this year’s World Cup in Rio de Janeiro to the next in Russia in 2018.

Fellow Canberran Carl Valeri is among those fighting for a ”limited number” of spots available for veterans at Rio.

Rogic was picked in the 23-man squad to play Ecuador in a friendly in London on Wednesday after his A-League club Melbourne Victory cleared him of serious damage to the ankle he injured last weekend.

Out: Lucas Neill. Photo: AFP

Victory was expecting the attacking midfielder to be fit for Saturday’s derby against Melbourne Heart and Postecoglou said if he was fit enough to play for his club, he was fit enough to play for his country.

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Postecoglou is trying to rebuild the Socceroos as the careers of players such as Tim Cahill near their end.

Rogic, on loan from Scottish giant Celtic, is clearly part of that future and an option in attack given a long-term injury to Robbie Kruse.

Vision: Ange Postecoglou. Photo: Marco Del Grande

”The time for us has come to look to this World Cup and the next World Cup and try and build a new golden generation of footballers,” Postecoglou said.

”The make-up of this squad is what it will look like moving forward. It’s good to see [Rogic] playing again. We’ll have to see how he gets through with his injury on the weekend, but if he’s fit and available then he’s one we can give that [attacking midfield] opportunity to. But beyond that it’s up to the individual players. I’m not going to say it’s one or another, I think there’s a number of them.”

Postecoglou omitted Valeri from the squad. The former Tuggeranong United junior is recovering from a leg injury suffered in late 2012. Valeri, struggling to get game time for Italian Serie A club Sassuolo, switched to Ternana, in Serie B, last month to improve his chances of playing in Rio.

”He’s getting some game time, limited at the moment, at his club, but with him game time is going to be very important this back half of the year,” Postecoglou said.

”The reality of it is we can only take a limited number of players who fit that experienced age bracket to the World Cup.

”If we’re going to rebuild the team, that means giving opportunity to players who will be around for the next World Cup. So there’s a limited number of spots for those experienced players and the No.1 criteria for the ones that fill those spots will be game time and form.

”That’s the challenge to all of them between now and May.”

The Socceroos face a tough first-round draw in Rio, up against Spain, the Netherlands and Chile in June.

Socceroos squad

To play Ecaudor in London next week: Oliver Bozanic, Tim Cahill, Jason Davidson, Ivan Franjic, Curtis Good, Ben Halloran, Chris Herd, James Holland, Mile Jedinak, Brad Jones, Mitchell Langerak, Matthew Leckie, Massimo Luongo, Ryan McGowan, Matthew McKay, Mark Milligan, Tommy Oar, Tom Rogic, Matt Ryan, Adam Sarota, Matthew Spiranovic, Dario Vidosic, Luke Wilkshire

Source:The Canberra Times

Brisbane Roar’s premiership hopes on the line

February 27, 2014 – 10:37PM

Phil Lutton

brisbanetimes.com.au sports editor

Roar coach Mike Mulvey has challenged his players to take care of business at home during the closing rounds of the A-League season as the club’s hold on top of the ladder comes under siege.

Brisbane have five of their remaining seven matches at Suncorp Stadium, beginning with Perth Glory on Friday night before hosting Adelaide United, Melbourne Victory, Melbourne Heart and the Central Coast Mariners.

After a shock home loss to the Jets, followed by a 1-0 defeat at the hands of the suddenly buoyant and solvent Melbourne Heart, Brisbane’s run at winning the league stands on shakier ground.

Brisbane Roar coach Mike Mulvey. Photo: Bradley Kanaris

They stand four points clear of Western Sydney but have a dream run of games on their home turf. Mulvey wants his squad to deliver results and with his squad at full fitness, knows there will be no excuses if the slide continues.

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‘‘That’s the challenge I’ve set to the boys this week. If you have a look at the table, we’ve got seven games in reular season left and five of them are at home. The scenario is probably tailor-made for us. We have to grab it,’’ Mulvey said.

‘‘There can be no excuses. Our destiny is in our own hands, which is what you always want.’’

Mulvey wasn’t impressed with the lack of desire shown by the Roar in Melbourne and wants an immediate turnaround. Training, he says, has been intense, giving him confidence the side has sharpened its focus ahead of the Glory match.

A pair of flat performances may have knocked the confidence of Brisbane, who looked to be coasting towards the league title before the air started hissing out.

Mulvey has been reminding his star-studded side of exactly what sort of football they can play and wants it put into play at Suncorp Stadium.

‘‘Perception is a wonderful thing and we need to deal with our own perception – and that is that we’re a good football team, we’ve played some wonderful football this year and had some breathtaking wins at the death,’’ Mulvey said.

‘‘We need to get back on the bike and start pedalling very, very quickly. That’s the challenge I’ve given the players – we need to respond to that very very quickly. We need to make sure at home, we’re delivering for our fans.’’

Mulvey has a full contingent to choose from but has placed even his biggest names on notice if they fail to step up to the mark as the A-League season reaches the business end.

‘‘There are people pushing. We just had a training session and had the team that’s playing verses the team that’s not playing. I’m telling you, if I put the team that’s not playing in the A-League tomorrow night, they’d win a game,’’ Mulvey said.

‘‘They were that competitive. That is the perfect message that I want to send to everyone in the team. There’s competition for places.’’

Source :The Sydney Morning Herald

Western Sydney Wanderers confident Ulsan Hyundai defeat won’t disrupt A-League campaign

February 27, 2014 – 5:50PM

Sebastian Hassett

Football reporter

Despite being humbled by Ulsan Hyundai in their Asian Champions League debut on Wednesday night, Western Sydney Wanderers defender Matthew Spiranovic is confident it won’t derail their A-League campaign.

The Wanderers jumped away to a dream start when Brendon Santalab struck in the opening minute but were then overshadowed by a sublime performance from the 2012 ACL champions, who replied with three unanswered goals.

While victory to the Koreans greatly hampers the Wanderers’ chances of progressing to the round of 16, Spiranovic is adamant the defeat won’t dampen the mood for Sunday’s A-League clash against a struggling Newcastle at Pirtek Stadium.

Tough initiation: Rafinha of Ulsan Hyandai competes with Western Sydney’s Matthew Spiranovic during the Asian Champions League match at Parramatta. Photo: Getty Images

“We’re very focused on what we need to do in both competitions and I don’t think we’ll be thrown off our game at all,” Spiranovic said. “It’s a home game and whenever we’re at home we nearly always perform well in front of our fans. Newcastle probably aren’t at their best, we’re still second and going along nicely. We’re in a good position and I see no reason we can’t win again.”

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The Wanderers will be looking for some revenge on the Jets from their last encounter in Newcastle, when an Adam Taggart goal in injury time clinched a 2-2 draw after the visitors had seemingly done enough for victory. Hopes of a result this weekend were dealt a blow on Thursday afternoon when gun striker Tomi Juric was ruled out of the contest after failing to overcome a groin strain.

While the K-League side was widely acknowledged as vastly superior on the night, Spiranovic isn’t convinced the opposition is invincible.

“The performance wasn’t bad from us. The most frustrating thing is that people will see the 3-1 score line and will think it was an easy victory for Ulsan but it’s not true,” he said. “It was a very disappointed dressing room because we like to think the way play is generally reflected in the final score and perhaps it wasn’t this time.”

Spiranovic, who has tasted plenty of Asian football before during his stints in Japan and Qatar, reckons the Wanderers players and coaches will be wiser for what they endured.

“It was a real learning curve. We made some uncharacteristic errors and, at this level, you get punished for them and with the smaller details, we simply have to get better,” he said. “Their goals came from a few simple balls that we’d normally deal with but for some reason we didn’t. In saying that, we can take a lot of confidence from the game. We had plenty of the ball and created some chances and were just undone with our lapses. I reckon we can definitely get a result against them away.”

Failure to win at home leaves the Wanderers facing heightened pressure for a result in their next ACL match, away to Chinese side Guizhou Renhe on March 12. “The first match of these group stages in very important and because we’ve lost ours, we know we’re going to have to make it up on the road somewhere,” Spiranovic said. “It definitely gets a little bit harder from here but there’s a lot of football to be played and our heads will never drop.”

Spiranovic’s week’s wasn’t all bad with the 25-year old defender recalled to the Socceroos by coach Ange Postecoglou for the friendly against Ecuador in London. “I’m rapt. It’s always an honour to be picked, especially in the final game before the selection for the World Cup,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity for all the boys to impress Ange and I’m really keen to show what I can do.”

While his talent could have landed a contract anywhere in the world – he was even linked with Liverpool last season – Spiranovic says returning to Australia has been entirely vindicated. “For me it was the right decision and I had a lot of confidence coming here in the first place because the club’s structure is excellent, with top coaching staff,” he said. “It’s great to be playing regular football and, most importantly, I’m fully fit now. It’s all going the right way and it would be a dream come true if I can make it on that plane to Rio.”

Source : The Sydney Morning Herald

Transpower interim profit more than doubles

State-owned Transpower will pay the Government an interim dividend of $60 million after posting a bottom-line half-year profit of $153.6 million.

The profit jump of 117 per cent included one-offs and changes to the fair value of financial instruments.

Stripping those out, the underlying profit was $99.7m, down 8 per cent on the previous half year.

Operating revenue for the national grid operator for the six months to the end of December was up 10 per cent to $493.8m.

The dividend in the half year was down from $92m in the previous half year.

Transpower chairman, Mark Verbiest said that the company had performed well in the first half of the year, with an increase in transmission revenue mainly reflecting the full operation of the North Island grid upgrade and commissioning of the HVDC Pole 3 project.

“The first half of this year has been focused on completing the remainder of our large capital programme,” he said.

“We saw the final piece of the HVDC project completed in December which involved the upgrade of the Pole 2 control system, enabling power transfer of 1200 megawatts between the islands, up from 1000MW.

“The last of the very large projects – the North Auckland and Northland Project – has just been commissioned.

“These projects will ensure a reliable and secure supply of electricity for New Zealand and importantly, also support enhanced competition in the electricity market, which puts downward pressure on end-consumer bills.”

“Our focus going forward will shift from big build projects to optimising our … capital and operating expenditure, to ensure cost-effectiveness for the end consumer while maintaining the integrity of the grid.

“We will continue to develop new technology initiatives that will improve security and reliability of the grid.”

– © Fairfax NZ News

Sydney Rezende recebe prêmio do Império Serrano

O SRZD foi homenageado com o Prêmio Grande Imperiano José Carlos Rego, concedido pela escola de samba Império Serrano, em reconhecimento à importância do trabalho desenvolvido no Carnaval carioca. A colunista Rachel Valença recebeu a placa de menção honrosa na quadra da agremiação pelos trabalhos desenvolvidos em prol do Carnaval e dos sambistas.

O diretor do SRZD, Sidney Rezende, declarou que receber este prêmio é “mais do que uma honra”. “O Império Serrano é uma das instituições mais respeitadas do Carnaval brasileiro. Ser homenageado por essa escola de samba é mais do que uma honra, é o reconhecimento da consideração e do respeito desta agremiação para o nosso dever de informar. Muito obrigado!”, agradeceu o jornalista.

“A equipe do SRZD se prepara todo ano para se superar a cada Carnaval e levar inovações e informações diferentes a cada desfile. A equipe trabalha com amor e muita dedicação. O objetivo é sempre fazer com que o leitor, amante da festa, sinta como se estivesse no local onde estamos, sentindo toda a vibração. Quando este trabalho é reconhecido é motivo de muita alegria para todos nós. Obrigada, Império Serrano!”, afirmou a chefe de redação e editora do Carnaval do SRZD, Luana Freitas.

Sydney Rezende

Rayssa Fernandes posa de biquíni na praia

A modelo Rayssa Ferandes exibiu sua boa forma em fotos de biquíni na praia de Aruba. A beldade, que estava no local para participar de um programa de televisão, demostrou excelente forma, capaz de atrair olhares de qualquer homem.

Sydney Rezende

Saiba o que é a Cápsula Durex

O Aterro do Flamengo, na Zona Sul do Rio de Janeiro, recebe durante o Carnaval a Arena Durex. O evento, que acontece do dia 2 a 4 de março, promete aproximar ainda mais os antigos e novos casais. O local ainda tem uma Cápsula, que será elevada à 15 metros de altura.

A Cápsula Durex é uma espécie de camarote VIP. Para conseguir 30 minutos ali dentro, é necessário passar por uma brincadeira no palco da arena. Do lado de dentro, é possível aproveitar drinks do bar e ainda acompanhar os blocos de Carnaval que passam pelo Aterro do Flamengo, como o do Sargento Pimenta.

Sydney Rezende

Números do TV TOTAL no dia 25/02/2014

País	Visualizações
Brazil	581
Estados Unidos	53
Portugal	24
Austrália	6
United Kingdom	4
Italy	4
Turkey	3
Japan	2
Espanha	2
Republic of Korea	2
France	1
India	1
Germany	1