Nelspruit

http://www.travelark.org/travel-blog-entry/tofo…

Today was crunch time for the Australian team.
After gathering a mere one point from their first two fixtures, the Australian team needed nothing less than a win, and a whole heap of good fortune from the Ghana Vs Germany game, in order to progress.
It was again a terrible start to the day, thanks to the Fanatics Tour group. We were informed, the night before our flight, to be up and ready to leave just after 7. After doing this, getting ready to go and heading to the door in the morning, they then informed us we now didnt have to leave til 9.45.
Being a last-group-game, half of the organisation for this day was done through FIFA.
Fanatics were given a lesson on how to organise bus transport, and it was way more efficient

We eventually arrived in Nelspruit around 1.30pm.
I gotta say, iv been to alot of airports, domestic and international around the world, but this one was certainly among the simplest. The airport itself was little more than a thatched roof hut...
From there, we were whisked off to a bar known as 'The Stables' to hang out and watch the England Vs Slovenia match...
I thought it may be a themed bar, but no, this place was ACTUALLY a stable... lol or at least had been very recently.
It wasnt too long before England were through and we were off to the stadium for the Australia match!
The situation was simple... win.. (by as much as possible), and hope either Germany thrashed Ghana.. or Ghana beats Germany by any margin.
The travel with the fanatics was painful as always, before and after the match... obnoxious chants, being loud for the sake of being loud... it wasnt fun. The majority of it is fueled by Aussies being desperate attention seekers, desperate to impress one another, and part of it, drinking as much as possible at all times, just for the sake of it

The stadium itself was quite cool. Its actually the smallest stadium to be used at the world cup with a capacity of 40,000. There are 18 Metal giraffes forming the exterior of the stadium, as giant pillars, with glowing (kinda creepy) red eyes.
Inside, you are close to the pitch, which was in immaculate condition.
The first half saw us well outplayed by the Serbs. Especially in the centre of the park. It remained goalless throughout, though we really should have trailed at the break, given the chances.
The second half saw Australia rise to the challenge, and score two fantastic goals, right under our noses where we were sitting. The first, a remarkable leaping header from Timmy Cahill, and the second an even more incredible long range strike from Brett Holman. 2 up, and a chance at progression.
The hope didnt last too long - news of Germany narrowly leading Ghana by 1-0, and soon thereafter Schwartzer gifting the Serbians a goal from a fumble

Our hopes for progression were over, but not Serbias. They poured forward, knowing a goal would put them through.
It was an intense final 15 minutes.. Serbia pushing everything forward and leaving massive gaps at the back for Australia to exploit. Somehow, niether team managed to score, especially Serbia, who had a last minute effort hashed somehow over the bar from point blank range.
So then, Australias world cup ends. It was a valiant, albeit unsuccessful conclusion to their campaign.
Its frustrating that the damage was done in an abysmal first game, and that we could also have progressed should Wilshire have tucked away his chance against Ghana.
It goes to show that to guarantee yourself qualification in such a tournament, you must play 3 good games. We only managed 2.Read more