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Friday, June 18, 2010
Subversion
After Wednesday's Swiss conquest of Spain and yesterday's thrilling Mexican upset over the feeble France, I didn't think that the competition could get much more brilliantly subversive.
But today's subversion was even more delicious. First Serbia beat Germany in an upset that nobody - not even the plucky Serbs themselves - could ever have imagined. Given Germany's annihilation of Australia and Serbia's lame defeat at the hands of Ghana, this was the most unexpected result of the tournament. What it does, of course, is radically democratize Group D with even Australia now back in contention if they can beat Ghana tomorrow. And it's also a reminder to the Germans about the curse of being too good in your opening game. In the last World Cup, both Argentina and Holland suffered from this curse. And it may be that the Germans will rue peaking so early in a tournament where the winners usually begin slowly and peak in the knock-out stage.
England's failure to beat Algeria, while less surprising that either the Serbian or Swiss results, is particularly delicious for Brits like myself who savor our regular national sporting humiliation. There is nothing more hilariously entertaining than English World Cup flagellation - a spectacle that occurs, like clockwork, every four years. But this one - given the boorishness of overpaid players like John Terry, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole - is particularly enjoyable.
So what kind of subversion can we expect over the next few days? A Japanese victory over a still Robben-less Holland in the early game tomorrow would be a suitably subversive beginning to the weekend. While on Sunday, the lively and confident New Zealanders have nothing to lose against an Italian side that lacks innovation or sparkle. And then on Monday we might well see the spunky North Koreans shock Ronaldo and ten other very ordinary Portugueses.
The first week of the World Cup has been a marvellously subversive spectacle. If the next three weeks continue in this vein, then it's going to be a thrillingly unpredictable tournament.
| Jun 18 at 11:10 PM
From Our Man in South Africa - Chris Zeimer
US game an emotional roller coaster...
I watched most of the game at the beachfront Fan Park with approximately 75-100 Americans mixed into a crowd of roughly 500, many of which had American flags, uniforms and their faces painted. I joined the Renkin family from Sonoma County and four boys from my hometown of Sebastopol. It was great to experience the game with familiar faces.
I had a meeting and arrived late and the score was 1-0. Immediately after I arrived, Slovenia scored again much to the dismay of the US crowd which had gathered at the front of the Fan Park. Everyone was depressed at the half...the Cup is over for the US. England fans nearby were rubbing it in. It really didn't look promising. But, as we Americans tend to do, we started trying to rally the energy and talking about getting an early goal to get back in the game.
Donovan's early goal was just what we needed to believe again. The crowd absolutely erupted, jumping up and down in the sand, rushing the massive TV screen and chanting and hollering U-S-A. People who never met were hugging and high fiving, and the US squad was back in the game.
After we scored the tying goal, it was even more jubilation. YES WE CAN erupted from the crowd, over and over. USA - USA! I personally ran a little loop in front of the English fans, giving them a little taste of their own medicine. For the remainder of the game, every American there was cheering with great intensity, almost as if we were in the stadium and our efforts were going to make the difference. When we scored the go ahead goal, which was a thing of beauty, we celebrated like we had won the World Cup. You could tell that everyone in the crowd who wasn't from the US, was secretly wishing for a moment like this with their country. Down 0-2, we suddenly led 3-2...or so we thought.
After the goal was called back, we all stared in disbelief as we watched the replay, which only solidified in our minds was an amazing goal it was. We were robbed and had we not felt good about coming back from 2 goals down, we may have ripped up the TV screen and thrown it into the Indian Ocean.
The game ended and we hung out with mixed emotions. Happy that we battled back to tie the game. Frustrated that the goal was called back. And, optimistic that we still had a fighting chance to advance.
Netherlands vs Japan next... I will have a chance to attend the game, and as a big Dutch fan, I am super excited. Today, I spent about an hour with Babak Milani, who is a top reporter for the German Bild Newspaper, which is the equivalent of a USA TODAY - a national daily paper. Speaking of Germany, it is amazing how quickly they went from the talk of the tournament to being in a must win situation...it can be a cruel tournament. Anyway, Babak's job is to cover the Dutch team, and spent the morning at their training. It was interesting to speak with him about soccer in the US as well as covering the Dutch team. He will follow them through the entire World Cup and knows many of the players as he also is a reporter for HSV, which is Hamburg's top club team and features many Dutch players. It is these experiences, whether it be speaking with a South African taxi driver or one of Germany's top soccer reporters, that I enjoy about the World Cup. And, of course the games.
South Africans continue to make a positive impression... My first impression was very positive, but they continue to impress me at every turn. I find the South Africans I have interacted with (taxi drivers, hotel staff, shop owners, waiters, business colleagues, etc) all to be very welcoming and helpful. Durban reminds me a lot of the Bay Area, where for the most part, people have a positive outlook on life...must have something to do with the coast and sun. I'm not saying there aren't problems, and today for the first time I found myself in an area which made me uneasy, just a few blocks from where all of the journalists and fans are staying. However, everyone involved in the World Cup is working hard to make their guests stay as enjoyable as possible, which is much appreciated.
| Jun 18 at 10:59 PM
The Beauty of Donovan's Goal
Bruce Jenkins on today's U.S.-Slovenia game (full critique of that awful call in Saturday's Sporting Green):
The Americans were dead and gone as the second half began. Once again -- and this will eventually bring them down -- they came out totally unprepared, and this time fell behind 2-0. That's when Landon Donovan saw an opening, coming in hard on goalkeeper Samir Handanovic (one of the best) from the right side. It was a murderous angle, but Donovan increased his chances by just bearing in on the net, to the point where Handanovic actually backed off for fear of being drilled. Donovan crushed it high and tight, the perfect strike, and it totally changed the momentum of the game.
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Classy post-match reaction by the Americans, right away. Donovan, as furious as he was to see Maurice Edu's goal disallowed, tried to give the ref some credit. He didn't really mean it, I'm guessing, but he allowed for the fact that Koman Coulibaly (from the French-speaking African nation of Mali) couldn't understand what he was saying.
This occasion called for wailing cries of outrage, but the Americans kept their cool, right down to coach Bob Bradley, who was solidly even-tempered in his interview with ESPN. He really didn't need to say much about the ref, in truth. The fire in his eyes explained everything.
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Nothing tops the Germany-Serbia game for totally ill-advised yellow cards, but the latest joke came at the expense of Robbie Findley today, drawing that penalty for an alleged handball when he was trying to avoid a ball that hit him in the face. And you know what that means: If he draws another yellow card against Algeria, he's suspended for the next game (if there is one). Easily one of the dumbest rules in all of sports. There should be no overly-stiff penalty whatsoever for calls of this nature. To get kicked out of an ensuing game is just unconscionable.
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Not that you could hear much above the drone, but the English fans booed the hell out of their team as the game drew to a close. Wayne Rooney was steaming, after playing so scant a role in the game, and he turned to a television camera and sarcastically yelled, "It's nice to see the home fans boo ya!"
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Can't imagine England throwing up a stinker against Slovenia, with so much on the line, but I'm not so sure any more. I watch these players all year on the televised Premier League games and highlight shows, and you can't take your eyes off people like Rooney, Frank Lampard or Steven Gerrard, to name a few. Their performances shine like beacons. Gerrard was simply pathetic today; only way to describe it. Tentative and weak. Rooney was far too often removed from the attack. Lampard lined up one of his signature shots -- radically hooking an across-the-body bullet with his left foot -- but the keeper made an excellent save. One that just might keep the U.S. alive in this thing.
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Final note, something I caught on the wire: A bunch of Cincinnati Reds were watching the World Cup in their clubhouse before their game Sunday morning, but pitcher Homer Bailey was disgusted and turned to the only set NOT showing the game. "No way, he said. "Soccer is a communist sport."
Bright guy, that Homer.
| Jun 18 at 04:40 PM
Grand theft soccer
Amazing game, shocking call that cost the U.S. the game. This is the only decent video we've been able to find so far, we'll update it if we can get the ESPN site to work, looks like they're getting hammered right now.
Here's Univision's scoring summary with plenty of good slow motion close ups of the call, just forward to 1:55 to see the relevant sequence but you may want to linger on Landon Donovan's goal a bit.
| Jun 18 at 09:51 AM
More: "What's going on!?!"
The blog post began by asking "What's going on" with the U.S. defense. After the game (recap here), coach Bob Bradley was asking what went on with the disallowed goal. He said he still didn't know why the whistle blew. On the radio, the ESPN postgame show included a question that maybe the whistle had blown well before the ball was kicked into the goal.
Maybe the U.S. will get a miracle in the upcoming Algeria-England game -- a draw. But otherwise, I guess American fans will be rooting hard for England against Slovenia in the third leg of this group round (assuming, too, a U.S. victory over Algeria).
Getty Images
Somewhere here, a U.S. transgression led the ref to blow his whistle, and disallow Edu's goal.
A wild game, indeed.
This ref isn't going to work another World Cup. Terrible job all game.
UPDATE: It's 2-2 now -- a remarkable comeback. Slovenia looks stiff, stuck. And that second goal was one of the best of the tournament. Amazing. I'm glad to be so wrong about how I thought this second half would go.
Posted at the half (how wrong we were at the end!):
Great crowd reaction shot after Slovenia second goal showed a U.S. fan yelling, "What's going on!?!"
Associated Press
Birsa, in the clear, shoots for Slovenia's first goal.
Was he wondering if the ref was conspiring against the U.S.?
I think he was wondering why the U.S. wasn't playing defense? Is there some scheme in which you allow the opponents wide berth around the edge of the box? Onyewu seems to be playing under such a scheme.
On the first goal, Onyewu needed to be a hockey player and block the darn shot, no matter how much it would've hurt.
Instead, he seemed to get his head out of the way just in time. He also seemed to give Birsa room to shoot, perhaps for fear that charging at him would allow Birsa to dribble in?
But we ask Onyewu: "What's going on?"
And on the second goal, well, Onyewu was stuck. Unless he could have impeded the goal-scorer from running to open space while simultaneously preventing the passer from carrying the ball straight into the box. The breakdown there came earlier.
Findley got ripped off by the ref on the yellow card; the U.S. had a couple decent chances in the last 10 minutes of the half. But really it was an awful half for the U.S. offense, too.
The Americans didn't seem to possess the ball as confidently as they did against England. Maybe they decided to make more runs and make fewer perimeter passes (an 0-1 deficit can do that), but the result was Slovenia seemed to be in charge.
I would bet more on a 3-0 Slovenia victory than a 2-2 draw.
| Jun 18 at 09:28 AM
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Diego - The Hero
El Diego
In every World Cup wend, there comes a moment when belief crystallizes into momentum, and the siren of destiny begins to call - Argentina, with blue and white sails are heading for a return to glory. And on deck is soccer's Odysseus, Diego Maradona, for decades battered and buffed at all points on the soccer compass, blown mercilessly close to self destruction, now leading his men through the sea of doubters and envious suitors to the golden chalice of victors.
Diego has been kicked and lambasted throughout Argentina's rocky ride to the Finals. But he knows how to spit back. This week, he told his arch critic Pele to "return to the museum" while adding his old charmless insinuation that Pele "was in love with him." And he kicked the French coq sportif, Michel Platini, in the balls, responding to the Gallic criticism of his coaching skills by stating the obvious - "the French think they are better than everyone" but apparently not better than Mexico.
In Argentina's 4-1 victory over South Korea, something special began. Maradona's broad embrace of his players, the players' embrace of each other, and the coaching staff hugging in ecstasy as each goal drove home the message - Argentina is united. Diego, incandescent with happiness was rubbing the lamp, and setting free his genies - Messi and Higuain. It was a joy to watch the spell. And to see the great man, sporting style in beard and ball, very much looking like a hero.
The odyssey of World Cup 2010 may be remembered for wayward balls, the discovery that the world's lost bumble bees are alive and living inside plastic vuvuzelas, and that Maradona became the Zeus of our soccer gods.
| Jun 17 at 10:10 PM
Mexico v France: 1st Half 0-0
Javier Aguirre made one change to Mexico's starting lineup. He opted for AZ Alkmaar defender Hector Moreno who gives the Mexicans more height in the central defense. The game thus far has been back and forth with the clearest goal opportunities for Mexico. Carlos vela blew an early volley and later seemed to pull his hamstring which forced an early substitution. It seems like same old story for Vela, missed chances and injury problems.
Guillermo Franco has played better today as a forward post player, however; a silly play cost him a very early yellow card. He needs to stop with the constant fouling if he wants to stay on the pitch. Carlos Salcido has been in my opinion the best player of the first half. His long range shot missed just wide of the post and his constant runs down the left side have proved to be the best of the Mexican attack. The French have been trying to start their attack through Franck Ribery, thus far he has been able to facilitate some plays that have led to corner kicks.
Keys to the second half:
Substitutions, both coaches need to make the right moves.
Scoring, the team that scores first likely wins.
Mexico should at some point try their luck with Javier Hernandez, while France needs to get Nicolas Anelka involved in the attack, the Chelsea striker can secure the game at any given moment.
| Jun 17 at 12:26 PM
Will England Stick With Green?
Bruce Jenkins with news and notes on the World Cup:
Word out of the England camp today indicates that Robert Green will be back in goal for Friday night's game against Algeria. I like the move, if Fabio Capello follows through. It's not as if the English have a star-in-waiting to replace him. David James, occasionally known as "Calamity James" for previous gaffes, is nearly 40 years old, and Joe Hart is considered too much of a gamble. A win over Algeria, with Green minding the net, would do wonders for England's state of mind -- and let's face it, this is a game they should win.
You can only imagine Green's future in soccer if he were to be benched, for the remainder of the World Cup, and England did not survive the group stage. His career would be ruined, in essence. He'd carry that blown save (on Clint Dempsey's routine-looking shot) with him for the rest of his life. Not that Green's career is Capello's foremost concern, but it speaks to the pride of the English team that Green is given another chance. He'd be a new man if England sneaks into the second round, and no matter who's in goal, it would be a blight on the Three Lions' reputation if they can't beat Algeria, a blundering outfit that has drawn four red cards in its last six games.
Green has been a forthright, stand-up guy in the wake of last Saturday night, and I liked this quote in particular: "This is what you prepare for, mentally. You don't prepare for making great saves and playing the perfect game. You prepare for trauma."
Wayne Rooney doesn't seem to think much of Algeria, saying, "I'm pretty confident about the match. Against Algeria we can not be at our best and still win the game." That didn't sit well in the Algeria camp, where defender Madjid Bougherra indicated that Rooney, in essence, had delivered coach Ragah Saadane's pre-match speech for him. "Rooney can say whatever he wants," said Bougherra. "It's his problem. England have their backs to the wall. They're the ones who claimed they came here to win the World Cup. We have nothing to lose and everything to win."
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When Dempsey scored that goal on Green, he looked to the sky and held up four fingers -- three on one hand, one on the other. That was to honor Victor Rivera, a good friend and high-school teammate who died of an accidental gunshot wound to the head during an informal target practice with friends. Rivera wore No. 13 . . . Ivory Coast star Didier Drogba has made it clear he wants to play the full 90 minutes vs. Brazil on Sunday. "He wants to do everything he can to help the team, even if it means he'll be causing himself pain (from a broken right arm)," said coach Sven-Goran Eriksson. "He knows what he can cope with, and I trust him. This is the man who brings everyone together and helps us to believe." . . . Australia's Tim Cahill learned today that he drew the minimum one-game suspension for his opening-night red card, meaning he'll miss Saturday's game against Ghana but can return to face Serbia. Veteran Aussie Harry Kewell, the former Liverpool star who has battled injuries in recent years, has reportedly been cleared to play after sitting out the opener . . . Is it legal to play World Cup with a cast, as Drogba is doing? England striker Gary Lineker did so in 1986, as did the Netherlands' Rene van der Kerkhof in 1978. Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz lodged a protest with FIFA after Drogba came on in the second half to face his team, but his argument apparently went nowhere . . . Big game for France tonight against Mexico, with beleaguered coach Raymond Domenech under intense scrutiny back home. The team has been bickering and playing ineffectively for months, and just the other day, legendary French star Zinedine Zidane scoffed, "He is not a coach." . . . Most inspirational moment of the event so far: Winston Reid's last-gasp equalizer against Slovakia, without question the greatest moment in New Zealand soccer history . . . Interesting note on Algerian goalkeeper Faouzi Chaouchi, who made a horrible play on Slovenia's only goal: He wasn't supposed to be eligible for that game. He had drawn a two-game suspension in the Africa Cup of Nations, but was granted amnesty by FIFA for the World Cup because Africa was the only confederation to have such competition before the World Cup. Chaouchi, who drew that suspension because he head-butted a referee, will be in goal to face England.
Switzerland's 1-0 victory over Spain is being called the World Cup's greatest upset since Senegal beat France in 2002. It comes to light that Ottmar Hitzfeld, Switzerland's highly respected coach, based his game plan on the U.S. team's strategy in a shocking Confederations Cup win over Spain last year. Hitzfeld conducted a detailed breakdown of Bob Bradley's tactics, which focused on a few key areas of the field to make up for the huge disparity in talent. "The USA did not try to do everything," Hitzfeld said. "They accepted the fact that Spain has pace and width and simply made sure they kept the center of defense as tight as they could. It is not a perfect system, but it was a very interesting tactic, and it worked." Add that game to the loss against Switzerland, and you have Spain's only two losses in its last 50 matches . . . As for Switzerland, tossing out a clean sheet despite Spain's pulsating attack, maybe it wasn't that shocking. At the 2006 World Cup in Germany, the Swiss set a record by becoming the only team in history to be eliminated without allowing a goal. It recorded three straight shutouts in group play and was then beaten on penalty kicks by Ukraine in the second round after both teams failed to score in regulation or overtime . . . Sad to see South African fans trudging out of the building after Uruguay's second goal yesterday. It was such a difficult game, goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune received a red card, and despite the fact that South Africa trailed by just one goal at that point, coach Carlos Alberto Parreira removed his most gifted offensive player, Steven Pienaar, when forced to bring in another goalkeeper. Pienaar, like his teammates, hadn't been able to raise his play for the occasion (and what a show by Uruguay's Diego Forlan, who scored two of his team's three goals; quite a compelling figure) . . . It had been reported, by the New York Times, that North Korea hired some 1,000 Chinese -- mostly actors, dancers and musicians -- to act as cheerleaders in South Africa. There were some 300 red-clad fans in attendance for the opener against Brazil, divided into two sections of the stadium, but they were not Chinese. Those interviewed by the L.A. Times said they were from North Korea and had been carefully recruited by the North Korean government to make the trip. According to the Times, "They sang the North Korean national anthem loudly but sat passively, almost expressionless, through most of the game. They mainly reacted to the action on the field only when directed to do so by a man who stood before them like an orchestra conductor." . . . As usual, Brazil has more than 500 traveling journalists on the the World Cup scene. North Korea brought two photographers, two television reporters and one writer.
| Jun 17 at 07:34 AM
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
First Round First Games First...
Where's the goals? Is it the ball to blame? Is Green's English spill karma revenge for the Gulf? Why are the big teams playing poorly?
Think of the World Cup as a car. OK, if you are Germany, you go from 0-60 in 4 seconds in your Porsche but the rest of the world takes time to shift up the gears. The first game of the first round, it's important not to crash in defeat, so playing for a neutral tie keeps a nation's World Cup vehicle on the road, and saves gas for the important two games to come. We have already seen Uruguay hit the pedal against the hosts - adios South Africa, first team to be left on the side of the road.
Expect the goals throttle to open up in the next two games of the group play - this is where the World Cup gets dreadfully exciting - as teams speed up to get into the grid for the final race to the trophy. No need for World Cup rage yet.
As for the ball, yes, it's weird, unsafe at any speed - just ask the mini-Green of England (that's enough auto - ed.)
| Jun 16 at 10:02 PM
Letters From Durban: Say it ain't so Spain
I write this with a heavy heart as I recently returned from Spain's 0-1 loss to Switzerland. Actually, I just finished my paella dinner (which was worth the wait and put a nice end to a day in which one of my favorite teams and the host country both lost). I also watched the South African loss which will most likely eliminate them from the tourney but hopefully not dampen the enthusiasm from the locals.
Where do I start in recapping the game?
I guess you have to hand it to Switzerland for winning the game. In the end, they did what Spain failed to do -- score.
It was actually a very exciting game to watch, with end to end action, especially down the stretch as Spain pushed to equalize and the Swiss held and on tried to counter when the situation allowed.
A quick look at the official game statistics and some of the usual measuring sticks in performance all went Spain’s way, except one.
Shots -- Spain 24 Switzerland 6
Shots on goal -- Spain 8 Switzerland 3
Corner kicks -- Spain 12 Switzerland 3
Fouls -- Spain 8 Switzerland 21
Ball possession -- Spain 63% (not a typo) Switzerland 37%
The only stat which counts -- Spain 0 Switzerland 1
Although Spain wasn't at its best, there were moments when their possession was brilliant. It really was nice to watch. The problem was they weren't sharp in the finishing third. Crosses were off, balls were served at the wrong time and that combined with Switzerland's resilience made it difficult. Spain still created chances to tie and even win the game, but you could almost see it wasn't there day as the game developed. In comparison with the German game, the Spanish possession was much sharper than the German possession until the final third. And, while the Germans created top chances and were clinical with their finishing, the Spanish team created half chances which failed to materialize.
The Swiss on the other hand, defended quite well. They stayed organized and compact and made it difficult for Spain to find the killer goalscoring pass. Spain could have been better with set pieces, especially with 12 corner kicks, few of which caused much damage. Credit the Swiss for defending the set pieces well as well as making Spain work for everything they got in the 1 on 1 duals. Often the Spanish players, especially Iniesta, got past their player only to find another player shifting to cover or the person who got beat recovering.
In the postgame press conference, Hitzfeld, the Swiss coach, was proud of his team, but clearly acknowledged (not apologized) Spain's dominance and his teams good fortune to hang in there. As the game wore on they gained confidence. The player of the game, Gelson Fernandes, who scored the goal, also mentioned Spain's class. I just returned to my hotel and there were 4 or 5 Swiss fans in the bar and they were proud but almost apologetic. They called it a historic win and felt like they might have knocked off the eventual World Champions. If these teams played ten times, you got the feeling in the stadium that Spain would win 8 or 9.
Today was Switzerland's day...
So, Spain has their back against the wall which means we will see their very best. Tonight was a bit strange. I felt like, with the dominance in possession, it was only a matter of time. That time never came.
Everyone in the stadium left scratching there heads. How could Spain lose? That is both the beauty and downfall of the game. The team which dominates doesn't always win, and without shortchanging the Swiss, Spain dominated. The Swiss coach and goalscorer said this and their fans said it in the hotel, too.
The atmosphere was electric...
Both teams brought a large cheering section and the South Africans brought their vuvuzelas. My ears are still ringing. The guy seated next to me said the sound is just a touch below a gunshot. Spain had a few drummers who were trying to get chants going and it was tough competing with the vuvu's.
I had a great seat, thanks to Keith Bruce, the President of SportsMark, a sports marketing firm I'm here working with. We connected before the game and he is making his way around to most of the venues to check in with clients and games. I sat next to a former South African World Cup player, George Koumantarakis, who played in 2002. He also played for FC Basel in Switzerland and many of the players came to acknowledge him before and after the game. He was wearing ear plugs from the vuvu noise. I probably should have been. While I was predicting a Spanish win, he believed it was not their day. Sadly, he was right.
Low scoring...
A few World Cup stats, courtesy of FIFA, which they handed out in the postgame press conference. The goal per game average of the World Cups since 1982:
1982 -- 2.81
1986 -- 2.54
1990 -- 2.21
1994 -- 2.71
1998 -- 2.67
2002 -- 2.52
2006 -- 2.30
2010 thus far -- 1.64
Why the low tally?
Are teams playing more defensively now? Yes, it is easier to negate than create and few teams have the quality to play attractive, attacking soccer (and win). The result, many try to get the defensive side right first and would prefer to win 1-0 than 3-2.
Is the ball harder to control? Spain's passing didn't leave me to believe it was. Their finishing, well...it's worth researching.
Over the next few days, I will try to get some opinions from South Africa and report back to you.
The tournament is heating up!
AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam
Switzerland goalkeeper Diego Benaglio, second left, jumps to reach the ball during the World Cup group H soccer match between Spain and Switzerland at the stadium in Durban, South Africa, Wednesday. Seen in front are Spain's Sergio Ramos, right, Spain's Joan Capdevila, second right, Switzerland's Stephane Grichting, third right, and Spain's Gerard Pique, left back.
| Jun 16 at 05:25 PM
Follow the 2010 World Cup from San Francisco. Special guests Alan Black and Andrew Keen join Chronicle columnist Bruce Jenkins as well as a host of other Chronicle writers and editors in discussing happenings in South Africa. Tune in and speak up.
By Alan Black, Max Garrone, Bruce Jenkins, Andrew Keen, Jesus Romero, Al Saracevic, Mark Smoyer, Chris Ziemer, Read Bios
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