Qualification!
Updated: The Khaleej Times article on the match...
3rd Group Match:
Modern: 1
Anish - 35'
SIS, Sharjah: 2
No. 6 Red Boots - 44'
Random Dude - 47'
Today, we lost, again. We were leading 1-0, again, and the SIS came back to win 2-1 by scoring a couple of goals late in the second half, again. Unlucky? Well luck was hypocritical today, like it always is. Due to a bizarre state of circumstances, we still made it into the quarterfinals as the second team from our group, even when we lost 2 of our 3 matches. Brilliantly lucky!
Today's match wasn't as entertaining as the one against Al Warqaa. Both teams started slow, and we did not really get to dominate SIS, even though their defense was really week. Half way into the second half, I shot us into the lead. Big Neil (i.e. of Grade 12) gave me a pass on the edge of the area, and the ball found its way in the back of the net. We had a good lead, partly deserved and should have kept it. But then things did not go our way. In the last 5 minutes SIS scored 2 quick goals. The first goal was quite brilliant. Their best player, known to us as 'No. 6 Red Boots', dribbled his way past the defense from the corner area, and slotted in a neat left foot shot past our goalkeeper. Their next goal was a little haphazard, and it somehow found its way in the back of the net. The linesman flagged for an offside, but as soon as the referee looked at him, he put his flag down, very cheekily. Anyway, those things happen, but sometimes it's so annoying. What was more annoying was that in the last minute of injury time, I was through on goal, only to slip and miskick the ball. The rebound fell to Romit, but his shot was blocked, and then before Aaron could slot home a last-minute-Drogba-vs-Barcelona-type equalizer, the defense cleared. Immediately after that, the final whistle resonated in our ears.
Our coach was understandably annoyed, and we were all disappointed in ourselves. Twice in two days - that's not good. We lacked aggression, and that 'no-fear' attitude. Skill-wise, we are good, but fitness and aggression wise, we are pretty poor. Our coach drilled that into us today in a long and intense after-match talk. I felt we were too defensive, and the after-match talk saw us all voicing our opinion and get everything cleared. It will only serve us good. There is nothing like talking everything out.
Anyway, Fate seemed to be teasing us. For us to qualify, Our Own Warqaa had to beat NIMS, Dubai, and they did, and we were through. We are through. Now the Warqaa team are like our brothers, but the fraternal love we share will all change if we end up facing them in the knock-out stages. Our principal spoke to us today and said that he wanted us to lose in the finals. Basically the goal is set - finals. Expectations are a little too high, and that's never good, but we will give it our all. Let's hope luck loses the hypocrisy and takes our side.
P.S. Hypocritical 'luck' or hypocritical 'fate' is an obvious example of how 'luck' and 'fate' don't really affect people, they just affect our mindset.
Football Update...
UPDATED: The Khaleej Times article on the match...
2nd Group Match:
Modern: 2
Aaron - 6'
Anish - 18'
Our Own English High School, Al Warqaa: 3
Isaq - 11'
Isaq - 27'
Naveed - 30'
Today, we lost. With a 2-1 lead at half time, we failed to hold on. Our 1st goal was a good finish from Aaron. I threaded a through ball, and Aaron took the goal quite brilliantly, like a true striker. They hit back with a typical cross-in-from-right-then-tap-in. We were then lucky to go up 2-1. I shot, frankly what was a shit shot, and it bounced off a rough patch in the goal area, and defied the goalkeeper. Then, we thought God had indeed blessed us.
But things changed in the second half. 2 quick goals in the from Al Warqaa settled the fray. However we went down fighting. While we were 3-2 down, we had numerous chances to equalize, however we lacked composure and luck when it came to the finishing. I missed 2 chances that I could have, should have taken. In one of the chances I was clean through, but I didn't completely realize that, and I shot feebly. But the best chance to equalize came in the last few seconds when I ran down the right flank, past a couple of defenders, and floated a ball into the center. Aaron came running forward, and jumped up for a header. His technique was perfect. He was 2 feet up in the air, in full momentum, ready to slot his header home. His head connected sweetly with the ball. The ball flew towards the goal, half of us thought it was in, and were on the brink of celebration, but it flew agonizingly off the bar. Damn. That was our story all morning. Our coach said we played poorly and lacked toughness. He said that we needed to make hard tackles, and prevent ourselves from making first-time tackles, for which I was personally to blame.
Anyway, all is not lost. We still have a very good chance of going through if we win tomorrow's match against SIS. NIMS, Dubai, who we beat 2-0, beat SIS 4-2. So technically we still have a very good chance of going through. And even if we fail to win tomorrow, we can move into the quarterfinals on a better goal difference depending on how other matches go. But we don't want to depend on anyone else. Let's hope we win convincingly tomorrow. We just have too.
Ms Dewey...
In the pits of adversity, when man has no hope, when there is absolutely no search engine in the world that will give you the required, relevant result for 'carenthopathiclamonist', it is then that Ms. Dewey will come to our rescue - www.msdewey.com.
Yes, it's a search engine, a search engine with a difference. I'm not saying you will get a required, relevant result for 'carenthopathiclamonist', actually I am sure you won't, but you will surely get entertained. Ms Dewey is this cyber-cleavage-showing babe who keeps knocking on your monitor-screen if you don't type anything in her search-bar. She is more of a man-eating-drool-creating chick who evades being annoying plainly because she is hot, and is a half-decent actor. And Ms Dewey, this new type of searh-engine, is apparently a Microsoft invention, so no illegal, explicit content here. Anyway I have to give this to Microsoft that 'she' is definitely an interesting concept, who has potential, but only in the future. A more user-friendly approach is better but when half the world doesn't have high speed internet, and a quarter of the world doesn't even have internet, this concept is definitely one not for today. Worth a visit though, in times of extreme boredom...
P.S. 'Carenthopathiclamonist' isn't really a word. So Shri, chill, don't panic, it doesn't exist. And also, credit to Deepali for introducing Ms. Dewey to me - visit her blog here.
Football Jerseys!
UPDATED - 4/11/2006
See the Khaleej Times article on the football tournament we are taking part in.
P.S. My middle name is Kishore.
UPDATED - 3/11/2006
1st Group Match:
Modern: 2
Aaron - 6'
Anish - 26
NIMS, Dubai: 0'
A decent start to the campaign, but we played the easiest team in our group. Our coach gave us a 4/10, but we still won. I guess the most we got out of this match is the confidence and morale boost which is highly important and required. Anyway, the next 2 teams we will face (Our Own, Al Warqaa & SIS) are both tough, but hey, we need only one win to go through - and we want this too much.
Thanks guys, for your support.
Cool huh?
If you are a part of the the Dubai Modern High School's Football team for 2006-2007, you are one lucky man, and it's confirmed - at the price of Dhs. 80/- only.
Yes, the school team, for the first time in twenty years, will have a non-Ajax, non-Man-Utd, non-blue, actual school jersey, with the players' names and numbers on the flipside. The front will bear a handsome, but simple school logo, along with the word 'M O D E R N'. It was previously going to be 'DMHS', but our principal put it right - 'DMHS' sounds rubbish. All over the world, it is 'Eton', 'Winchester' - so, we will have 'Modern'. And yes sir, I totally agree. 'Modern' does sound better.
That's what our jersey will look like, but without the logos and 'Nakheel'. It will have the school logo and "MODERN' printed on it instead.We placed in an order for the jerseys today, and they should be ready on the eve of our first match, that is on the 1st of November. We'll look cool, proud and dignified, andthese jerseys will also serve as a piece of memory of the year that was (yeah it's still to get over, but hey...let's hope it's one to remember). So enjoy them. I'm bloody excited to get mine!
Shifting to Indian inter-school football in Dubai - it's pathetic. Every year there is only one, week-long, tournament to ta
ke part in. Only one. It's so sad. The Indian sporting infrastructure is poor, and that poorness is even pervading out to places like Dubai. Anyway we love the game, and it's for this reason that when this tournament does knock on the door, we all come rushing out. The excitement levels are immense. Anticipation and nervousness, along with the hunger to prove the discouraging claims of our school of 'we suck' wrong. However, year after year, we turn out to be the losers. With shameful defeats where goal differences reach double figures, to heart-breaking losses, over the years Modern has seen the worst of the Indian football scene in Dubai.
But there have been moments of pure bliss and amazement, like when the junior team of 2004, against all odds, came back winners of the U-16 Al Diyafah Inter School Football tournament for Indian schools. That junior team is today's senior team. It's our last year in school. This is our last tournament. However shit the Indian football scene in Dubai is, this tournament means a lot to us. We want to do well. We have to do well. Let us hope that we will do well. As captain, I would like to wish the entire team good luck, and remember - we play for the love of the game. So enjoy the football, and the result, whatever it is, will take care of itself. Modern High is not known for football. In fact, majority of our school ridicules it's own school football. Damn, it'll feel good to prove them wrong.
P.S. This post is dedicated to Mr. Biswas, our ex-coach, who I want to thank for moulding our football team into one cohesive unit. He coached us to our historic and unexpeceted U-16 Al Diyafah Inter School Football Tourney victory. Thank you sir.
My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade
Everyone has to listen to this album. It's like a fish out of water, but in a very good way. With a Mick-Jagger-ish Gerard Way on vocals accompanied by Mikey Way on bass, Bob Bryar on drums, Frank Lero on rhythm guitar and Ray Toro on the lead guitar.
From start to finish this album does not fail to impress. It just blows you away. The album starts with 'The End' - a short, but brilliant song, very different from what we normally hear today on the radio - good different. But the song that stands out the most, that everyone needs to have, is 'Welcome To The Black Parade'. It's the first single that the band has officially released from their album and it's kick-ass. It's so unique, and it's build up is just fantastic. Personally, I love the intro which is a soft build up, ultimately leading to a bigger bang (no pun intended). It's so beautifully composed, combining heavy rock, choir-like vocals, hair-standing acoustics, voice effects (not the lame-Cher-type ones, but those that actually sound classy), guitar solos, good lyrics, effective breaks, sudden and good-surprising riff changes and an overall excellent arrangement of everything. I can't stop listening to it. Get it! NOW!
The beauty of this album is that My Chemical Romance have dared to be different. They have chucked the verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus formula and mounted on to a more anticipating approach to arranging music. They have combined different aspects, and experimented with a lot of different effects and combinations. They have emerged from among the ordinary, with something unique, just like Queen did when they took the world by storm with their mega-hit 'Bohemian Rhapsody', while everyone else seemed addicted to basic hard-core rock. Almost all songs on the album are worth a mention. 'Cancer', 'Mama', 'Sleep' and 'The Sharpest Lives' are all part of my 'listen-to-me-more-than-once' group.
This album is My Chemical Romance's third album. The first two were moderate hits. A song to listen to from their older album is 'Helena' - their biggest hit before 'Welcome To The Black Parade'. Anyway I am majorly in love with this album, and especially with that hell of a song. If you don't like it the first time, hear it again, give it some time - it'll grow on you, even though it's not a grows-on-song. It's just mind-blowingly brilliant.
Final Verdict: 9/10
It's an absolutely, brilliantly fantastic album, which is a must have for any rocker, or any person who likes the 'rock' genre of music. Enjoy it's uniqueness, and drift away into oblivion...
P.S. The last track is well, a 'hidden track'. It's really short and they have really messed around with it. They have given it a '40s feel to it. It's pretty cool - again brilliant. It's quite funny too. Have a listen... (hope I haven't over-praised the album - but hey, I am really enjoying it)
The 6th 007...
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fl5WHj0bZ2Q]
Well this is somewhat like a preview, in addition to my venting of the anticipation I have to watch Daniel Craig, leaving all homosexual feelings aside. Doesn't it excite everyone to see a heavily battered and initially criticized blonde dude actaully go against all odds and finally end up with the prospect of being of one the best Bonds ever?
Yes, the critics, as in the ones that mainly criticize everything, have actually framed Daniel Craig to be the best Bond since Connery, after intitally writing him off completely. Hypocrites. Quoting ANI, "Craig makes Brosnan look a bit girlie in comparison. " Really? I was quite a fan of Pierce (Brosnan).(Read this ANI article) Apparently, Craig portrays a much more Ian Flemming-envisioned Bond: strong, aggressive, gritty and really really cool. The trailer for Casino Royale is half-impressive - not bad. It leaves you full of anticipation. (watch trailer above)
Daniel's husky voice, good looks, blue eyes, one hell of a built frame and apparently his ability to kiss(don't ask - just read this) should leave all you girls drooling, especially after he kicks some bad-guy ass. There is this one shot, which is also there in the trailer, where he walks out of the sea in his skimpy underwear, exposing his this hunky body (similar to Halle Berry's infamous orange-bikini 'Die Another Day' shot). Dream on girls.
Anyway, keeping all that aside, personally I can't wait for Casino Royale to hit the theaters. For us guys, this year's Bond-Babe is Eva Green. She is pretty hot. See below:
But hey, I am still more excited about Daniel Craig. :P
And for all you people living in Dubai, check this out: Casino Royale is releasing in Dubai before worldwide release. Can you believe that? Brilliant.
Casino Royale Release Date - UAE - 16th November, 2006
Casino Royale Release Date - Worldwide - 17th November, 2006
SOURCE: http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/casinoroyale/international/
P.S. Our school exams start on the 16th of November, 2006. Damn.