EA Sports FIFA 08 - Game Launch

Couldn't make it down to see the FAI Ford Cup 1/4 Final replay, between Cork City FC & Waterford last night, so I amused myself at the launch party for FIFA 08, at Krystle Nightclub, in Dublin. It's the first year that the FAI eircom League of Ireland has featured in the game, so there was a bit of excitement in some quarters.

All 12 Premier Division teams were included & some of them were represented at the event last night. The majority of guests were fans from the various clubs though, with clubs like UCD actually managing to get a credible result in Europe. Hey, it's a computer game, anything is possible!

There were some good battles between local rivals too, with Bohs & St. Pat's managing to pass the ball around on the deck. A very realistic feature in the game, was St. Pat's still struggling to get a win.
I'm not a gamer, but the feedback seemed to be positive & the game play looked good. The Nintendo Wii version certainly looked like a lot of fun, once you got used to the controls. Everything is fun on the Wii though, isn't it!?

The complimentary Bud Lite probably added to the mood for some, but my mood was enhanced by the news from Turners Cross. Denis "Behanator" Behan had put Cork City in front & it looked like we'd emerge victorious from this vital Cup tie. The news got even better, with a flood of text messages, informing me that Behan had added a second. With that, I collected up my gear & headed for the exit. I had struggled with the lighting & my shots weren't as sharp as I'd have liked. It was my first attempt at photography in such a setting & I certainly learned a few things.

As I made my way home, I heard that Liam Kearney had put us 3-0 ahead & essentially sealed the victory. We could begin to look forward to the FAI Ford Cup 1/2 Final. Before I had settled on my preferred opponent, word filtered through that Behan had scored his hat-trick & rounded off a wonderful personal performance. Even on FIFA 08, I wouldn't have had us win this tie so comfortably. The gulf in talent was exposed & the most worthy team progressed. Another cup tie for City & another photo opportunity for me.

Clumsy Climax...

The mother of all mishaps rounded off my week. I'll get to that in a moment though, because first I need to set the scene.

I made the 3 hour trip to Waterford, to watch Cork City FC take on the local side in the FAI Ford Senior Challenge Cup. It started off being a nice day, with bright sunshine, little or no wind. There was a fairly decent away crowd & they made their presence felt, with a boisterous visual & vocal display.

Unfortunately, they were quietened inside 10 minutes, when former Cork City player, Dave Warren, scored for the home side. It was a lead they scarcely deserved & was their excuse to begin time wasting.

As the light faded, the photographic conditions deteriorated, in what is regarded as one of the most soul less eircom League grounds. I desperately tried to adjust the White Balance & upped the ISO, in a bid to salvage something from the arduous trip.



Goal chances were at a premium & the dark clouds moved in to pile more misery on a dismal night. As the second half started, the rain began to fall & the strong wind drove it into the faces of the home side. They're clearly used to the inhospitable conditions, as they made better use of the wind, repeatedly using it to hang long balls up in the air. It seemed to be their only tactic, as they conspired to kill the game. It's hard to blame them, since they're one of the worst teams in the league, playing one of the best. Knockout competitions, more often than not, lead to ugly football & this contest was no exception.



The persistence of the visitors was rewarded just after the restart, when Leon McSweeney played Denis Behan in & when the Waterford defence seemed to hesitate, he composed himself & slotted coolly past the Waterford keeper.

The relief of the visitors was evident from the celebrations, as they saw their cup challenge revived. City haven't won this competition in 9 years, having lost the final in 2005. The cup is important to every club, but after a poor league campaign, City are desperate for success.

As the game wore on, City piled on the pressure & created some decent chances, but the winner didn't come & we had to settle for a draw.


Our minds turned to the replay, scheduled for Tuesday September 25th, I began to gather my rain soaked gear & headed for the car. Conditions were truly awful & I was under pressure to get everything into the boot, without getting too much more rain on it. As I stripped out of my waterproof clothing, I accidentally dropped the car keys into the boot. Distracted by the weather, without thinking, I slammed the boot shut & inadvertently locked myself out of my car.

There I was, in the middle of a storm, with no waterproof clothing on, staring in disbelief at my secured car. I was almost reduced to tears! I called the RAC but they weren't positive about being able to rescue me from my predicament. Standing alone, in the pitch dark car park, I waited for the patrol to arrive. The RAC called me twice in that period, to reassure me & ask if I was ok. The severity of the weather was evident from the disruption to our phone calls & they gave me confidence that they would do everything they could to help.

After what seemed like an eternity, the patrol vehicle arrived. He was well within the promised response time, but every minute seems like a lifetime, when you're soaked through to the skin, in driving wind & rain.

After no little effort, the patients of the patrol man finally paid off. He managed to open one of the rear windows, allowing access to the boot, from inside the car. The drama was over & I was back in business. I had to prepare for the trip back to Dublin, almost 2 hours later than planned.

I think I need to put this week behind me & try to be a bit more alert in future.
For anyone who's interested, there are some football pictures up on my flickr...

Clumsy Week!

Been a bit of a strange week for me.
On Monday, I spilled hot chocolate on my tie.
On Tuesday, I got mayonaise on my tie.
On Wednesday, a biro leaked in my suit jacket pocket & I got blue ink all over my white shirt.
Today, my suit jacket got squashed between the back of my chair & a pillar in the office. It now has a white line along the back, where paint/plaster has been pressed into it.
I wonder what will happen tomorrow!

By the way, Vanish Oxi Action got the shirt spotless. All the ink out after a short soak & a bit of scrubbing. Incredible stuff!

Gear Update

I forgot to tell you that I've got a 40D.
It's the mutt's nuts!
An absolute beaut!

The 6.5fps gives me much greater ability at football games &
the bigger, heavier body is a better partner for my 300mm f/2.8
than the 400D is. There are so many more options & functions than the 400D that it's taking me a while to get to grips with the beast, but I've already seen a marked improvement in my shots.

It didn't take me long to justify the spending to myself & after using this camera, I have come to the conclusion that it's the second best bit of gear I've ever bought. Second only to my 300mm f/2.8