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Soccer sorcery
KOREAN CRAVE: Some South Korean fans enjoying themselves at 10 Downing Street.
SOCCER MANIA storms 10 Downing Street. And it does in style. As the World Cup entered the crucial stage, the popular pub turned a beehive for soccer fans.
The huge screen in a corner came alive with live action straight from the South Korean capital, Seoul. It was hosts South Korea taking on the might of Germany. Tension kept mounting. Players raced towards the goal post and the packed pub erupted. Some rooted for Germany and others, including a group of South Koreans who assembled for the event, clearly favoured the host team.
Pitcher after pitcher... the beer vanished. Smoke was everywhere as nervous soccer fans lit cigarette after cigarette. Every pass and tackle was cheered and every attack at the goal post brought the pub crawlers onto their feet.
Henson Park and his friends, all hailing from Sung-Kong-Hoe University in south Seoul and pursuing a computer course at Aptech in the city, were there. Gunning for their heroes, they were all charged up. And whenever the German goal post came under attack, the Korean brigade brought the house down. Literally.
In the end when South Korea eventually lost the battle, Park and his friends were crestfallen, but still upbeat and the celebration continued. The defeat was taken in the stride and the South Korean march to glory was what they chose to celebrate. "Victory and defeat are a part of the game. It's sad our team was defeated. But, we made a mark in world football which was hitherto dominated by European and South American nations. Ours is the only Asian country to have reached semi-finals,'' says Park.
Another student, Jillianne Choi, says the major achievement for her country was hosting the cup and also making it to the semis. "Our players did their best,'' she said with satisfaction. For Cindy Hyun, it was the spirit of the game that mattered more. "Despite Germany being a strong team, they could score a goal only towards the end of the match. That speaks volumes about the South Korean sojourn,'' she maintained.
And the spirit of the game was there everywhere at 10 Downing Street which was decked up for the Smirnoff Soccer Mania. A lifesize reproduction of the coveted cup was there at the entrance. For those in love with real action, there was a goal post complete with a goal keeper! Yeah, put your best foot forward and take a shot at the post. Know what, those scoring a goal get a peg of vodka. Free of cost. Keep scoring and keep sipping!
More prizes at the pub. Guess the new world champions and fly to Malaysia apart from taking home more goodies, be it a television set or washing machine. Action at the 10 Downing Street continues on Wednesday as Brazil takes on Turkey before culminating in the final on Sunday evening.
Surely, it pays to play `n' party. Both at a time.
By T. Lalith Singh
Photos: P.V. Sivakumar
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Bangalore
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