Italy 1-1- Romania
Netherlands 4-1 France
Sweden 1-2 Spain
Greece 0-1 Russia
Switzerland 2-0 Portugal
Turkey 3-2 Czech Republic

If it wasn’t for the two unanswered goals glowing on the scoreboard, Czech Republic must have thought it wasn’t going to be their day. Hit the post, stonewall penalty (according to Alan Green), what more did they have to do? Well Koller did get the keeper sent off which was a stroke of luck, but of course by that time it was apparent that it wasn’t their day, as Turkey had lit up three unanswered goals. Heartbreak for their fans but as ever not undeserved as I’m sure they had been taunting their Turkish counterparts for 87 minutes of this enthralling match. It will be interesting in the coming days to find out just what Koller said to Demirel, but it would be an act of hypocrisy if it had anything to do with strength or masculinity, such was the ease with which the tall lad toppled – I’ve seen stronger coffee in Macdonalds. This match also allowed the tabloid-chewing ITV commentator (and this time it was Jon Champion who, coming from the beeb originally, sould have know better) to trot out the Corny Cliché of the Match that surely they must spend months beforehand in meetings coming up with, “bouncing Czechs” when they moved 2 clear.

So Turkey prevailed and will face Germany or Austria, with a win or a draw good enough for the former but a loss good enough for the latter. But let’s face it that can’t happen can it?
Of course it can’t, but then who would have thought that the lads from the land of clogs and coffee shops (and very friendly girls in the capital) would do what they did to the French (entirely different shops and girls in my experience)?
Not only did this result see the Dutch through as group-winners, it also, sadly or humorously depending on how the win takes you) allows the Dutch, pretty much to dictate who is pulled along with them into the quarter-finals; a win for them would open the door for the winner of the France V Italy game, but losing would eliminate both. As coach of Coggeshall’s under-9’s I would tell them, if they asked “would you play your strongest team and go for the win?”, that of course I would play my strongest team and go for the win because that is the right-thing to do; if I was coach of the under-13 I would say “Nooo, winning the tournament is my job”; if I was coach of the Under-18’s I would say “F%*K NO!” But would you do and what do you think MVB will do? France were my tip to win but even so there is a great deal of me that wants the stitch up. Imagine our press if England were in the same boat!!
Italy were indebted to Buffon to spare their blushes, but come 10pm tomorrow night, that save might have been enough only to allow them the Dutch Conspiracy excuse rather than the Italy Really Played Some Crap You Know excuse.
Spain’s Squeaky-Bum match came early in the tournament, when by tradition it should have come in the knockout rounds, so some may read into this that it really is their time. But they didn’t lose so maybe there’s still time.
Greece predictably and thankfully were eliminated early and paid the price for their tactics which had the “ah bless” factor four years ago but the “aw bugger-off” this time around.
Oh and the Swiss beat Portugal Reserves 2-0 to give them false hope for the World Cup qualifiers, though as they only have to beat Greece and Israel in that group maybe there is hope after all.

So on to the Predict-A-Score and there was a five-point-haul, a few four-pointers and a few three pointers but this a rum do when there were 18 points on offer, however I guess there were three matches which you would have had no right to predict. Only Liam, Les and Butch thought that Italy would draw with Romania, and while a few more of you Foresaw Holland beating France none had them scoring four in the process. It won’t surprise you that nobody with any footy knowledge thought that Switzerland would beat Portugal; only Butch saw that coming.
As a result of the weekend’s action Colin now joins Jayne atop the league while Butch’s point allowed him to keep pace with Janet, just a point clear of Golfer MikeD, randomly generated results Norm and Football Club Secretary SteveD at the bottom.