PFF Goes East - EAFF Cup 2013 Part III

Well the third and (thank goodness! ha-ha) final installment of the East Asian Cup 2013 has come and gone. The Australian experiment was exactly that, an experiment and showed we do NOT have the depth like we used to enjoy and poke fun of in the late 1990's and early 2000's. As the saying goes, you don't realise till its gone. However the Punctual Football Fan has been having a great time on his Korean adventure.

The third match was splayed at the Jamsil Olympic Stadium. The venue of the 1988 summer olympic games in Seoul. This was also the last olympics to host men's football as full internationals in which the Australians did very well in till they lost to the Soviet Union.

The game was the first match of the evening and the weather was good yet grey until about 30 minutes into the game in which it then proceeded to rain in typical Korean summer fashion I was told. Australia were playing China and I have seen China a few times in Qatar back in 2011 and thought we would struggle but could and should beat them. what I forgot to remember is that China fielded a full strength side and Australia a fourth or even fifth string side and this was the key issue for the other two games. In farcical fashion Australia lost 3-4 with Australia grabbing two late goals. A Draw would have had us in 3rd, a win would have made us 2nd; we got neither so we finished 4th (and last).

Now the whole point (I keep saying it ha-ha) of this blog; the food and the drinks. Drinks are again insanely cheap at 2 dollars for 500mL of beer (Cass) but again if you buy a four pack you must smash down the first 2 in record time to have to fight through the barrier of warmth of the latter 2 in the pack. Although if i posed this offer to someone back home i'm sure they would happily pay 8 dollars for 2 litres of beer!

Food was typical of grounds I was finding in Korea; crisps, dagwoods, soft drinks, chocolates and an assortments or noodles and squid snacks were at the food stall. The most ridiculous thing I realised was that they only had 3 of these in the whole stadium open so when the Korean and Japanese fans started to trickle in for their match as our match progressed was looking like market day in a very busy New Delhi market street! (trust me I have photos to prove that ordeal! ha-ha)

While it felt like we were in the trenches with the bottom of the dug-outs filling with water and our feet feeling rather water-logged due to the poorly planned drainage; (which for 1988 levels would have been woeful) we all had a great time being happily hydrated and fed.

The Anyang Challenge - K-League Style

Well in between watching some East Asian Cup in Korea i decided to head down on the number 1 line train to Anyang to watch some K-League Challenge football. What is K-League Challenge you ask? Well the Korean Football Association launched a new second tier of professional football this season called the Challenge League and the top flight is called the Classic League. I agree they are ridiculous names unlike the sensibly named leagues in Japan (J-league 1, J-League 2) ha-ha!

Despite leaving some 3 hours before the game the Seoul Metro is generally slow with problematic opening and closing door issues and just so many trains to change to get there. However we did get there eventually although were 12 minutes into the first half.

We were watching Anyang FC against Police FC, which is a team consisting of players who are actual employed by the police force so they aren't the most loved team you would imagine.

The game was much akin to A-League standard really. Patchy in places, few moments of sheer brilliance and then some perplexing moments where you had questions that were never really answered or could understand their motives. Anyang must have had the spirit of Perth Glory as they were flat in the first have to level the score at the 70th minute mark and then failing after a counter attack 2 minutes into stoppage time.

Now down to business; the food was again similar to most grounds. You had you assortment of noodles where you then go to the boiling water tank to pour yourself. Flavours were seafood or kimchee style which was rather nice. They varied in levels of spiciness and i like my food with a bit of pep so i went for a moderately spicy noodle cup.

Chocolates and biscuits were on offer too as well as crisps but they weren't very nice. Noodles were 3 dollars, chocolates, biscuits and crisps were 2 dollars. Beers, coffee, tea and cool drinks were on sale too. Beers being 3 dollars for 500mL cans and 2 dollars for non alcoholic beverages.

all in all going to football matches in Korea, be it K-League 1 and K-League 2 matches are very cheap and surprised that people don't go to the games in their area more often. Perhaps it is someone from Perth who is used to expensive stadiums around the country and then to come to venues that are one tenth of the cost is a dream come true for someone from the west. If you are in this part of the footballing world you must get down to watch some football, it will barely make a dent in your pocket.

PFF Goes East - EAFF Cup 2013 Part II

Well the Punctual Football Fan goes east for another installment of the East Asian Cup. This time was the easy to get to city of Hwaseong which is about 2 hours south of Seoul.

There are no buses or reliable trains out to this place. It could be argued that it was as if I was going up to Two Rocks or another remote place on the outskirts of the metropolis. The guys decided to keep drinking against my suggestion to leave a little early and when the taxi drivers were initially against the idea of driving there (as they are zone based), the idea of them heading home with an empty cab annoyed them.

We agreed to pay a little extra for them leaving their zone and well in punctual fashion was late by 20 minutes. However only missed the first Japanese goal. The game was again something very ordinary and nothing really to write home about but the drink and food was.

Beer was again cheap, in fact at a dollar fifty for a cup was pretty good. You have to again drink them fast as they get warm very quickly. Food were in the offerings of hamburgers but cold, you buy them for 2 dollars and then you warm them up in the microwaves provided.

Is this worth such a hassle to head down for a game of football? Well for an international match, yes it would be but for any other game not even close. The pain in getting there is just too much to endure 90 minutes of football washed with beer and food.

PFF Goes East - EAFF Cup 2013

As some would know the Punctual Football Fan was in Korea (you should know by now ha-ha!) to watch the East Asian Football Federation Cup 2013 which was held in Seoul and one in Hwaseong. This match against the Republic of Korea was held at the 2002 Seoul World Cup Stadium (Yes, it really is called that).

Getting to the ground wasn't too hard as it is very conveniently located on the Seoul Metro line 6 with a dedicated station. The Station is very good and very open and was working well to move fans easily to and from the ground.

Although I was running to try and get in to sing the national anthem I dropped my camera on the zoom switch and it is a bit stiff and stuck at times. The stadium while very nice sight to behold is absolutely terrible to go to any block around the ground. I was told in the past this was to keep potential football hooligans separated and unable to interact with other large masses of people. While very good in theory in practise however you get trapped in pockets of access and staff are incredibly rigid and unable to comprehend that the Australian supporters want to group together in an away bay of sorts. This frustration lead to me missing out to sing the anthem.

Despite that drawback which is rather considerable given that it is at every ground in Korea as I was finding out the food and drinks were what I am writing this blog about!

They have hot-dogs for 3 dollars, you also have sausages on a skewer cooked and a dagwood-dog style sausage deep-fried and on a skewer. Three of your choice was and now wait for it; three dollars for three. The drawback was you could only order maximum of three at a time so once you bought them and ate them that was it you had to wait at the back of the line. This wouldn't be a problem for non Korean matches but I wasn't going to wait 15 minutes for some tasty hot-dogs and sausages.

Beer was cheep too but be warned as the (I have an RSA so this is hilariously contradictory) beer warms up VERY fast as it is very much in the style of an American beer so if you aren't a fan then you might be in trouble. Beers sold were CASS, D and D-Lite but they were all very cheap at 2,000 Korean won so that is about 2 dollars for a big plastic US style cup of it.

The game was very very forgettable as Australia had 2 shots on goal and virtually bunkered down for the match. Korea should have walked away 4-0 winners but a draw was decent for a side that was hopelessly out-gunned in this competition it was being said during the game.

No problem here with food and drink but the wait and the manner of how local beers are made here were the only draw-backs.

Struck Out II - Punctual Football Fan Goes To The Baseball Korean Style

Well there was no K-League being played as they were all games outside of Seoul and I didnt have enough time to go out that way to watch a game and come back. Some trips were a 4 hour journey one way so not possible to work on such short notice.

However another sport was able to come to my rescue again and what a way to beat the miserable rainy days in Seoul than to see a baseball game?

The match was between the Doosan Seoul Bears and the NC Dinos. Doosan is a major Korean company so they are naming rights sponsors. Although don't ask me about what NC means or is it Dino as in dinosaur as they have no mascot I could see! The NC Dinos are a new side in the Korean Baseball League and like in the Western Australian Football League the total amount of teams are now to 9 and from what I heard this has caused a few problematic issues with fixturing.

The home ground of the Bears is the now somewhat archaic and dated 1988 Olympic baseball stadium which is now known as the Jamsil Baseball Stadium. Interesting to note the layout of the 1988 olympic venues as the main Olympic stadium and baseball stadium are in Jamsil where the Swimming, Boxing, Gymnastics, Handball, Wrestling and other minor events are in Olympic Park some 8-10 kilometres away where the athletes village is. This was the case because the city also held the Asian games in 1986 and the location met the requirements.

The game was a stock standard affair to be honest with the Bears one of the strongest sides in the league had the game in control from the top of the first to the bottom of the 9th. Why they had to go to the 9th innings was a bit of a mystery to me when the score was 5-0 by that stage. The game did finish however 5-1 though so not bad for the Dinos.

The ground was surrounded by stalls of many western food stalls and very little Korean cuisine which I found surprising to be honest but perhaps I was expecting Korea to be like Japan, influenced by the west but very distinctively themselves though I guess 60 years of the US pushing anti communist garbage down their throat has left the nation in a very weird state.

There were copious amounts of Burger King, KFC, McDonalds and Taco Bells to shake a stick at as well as many coffee stores similar to Starbucks. Yes I wasn't impressed but for meals no more than 8 dollars that is a good deal for baseball goers at Jamsil.

The ground was very open and easy to navigate around of sorts but the concrete steps are rather high and sudden so perhaps I would suggest caution for young or elderly visitors. I was expecting to have the girls run up and down offering drinks, snacks and food but nothing... NOTHING! Though I did see a few very uninterested guys with beer kegs walking around at the very front. In the very expensive members area but from what I saw if I was a member; I would complain.

The ground does have a few food stands in the very top of the stadium evenly spaced so it reminded me of an Australian sports ground actually. Bought a hotdog and a beer which cost me 6 dollars. It was a franchise brand and they sold hot chips cut thinly with all kinds of toppings over them but they ran out and were cooking more.

Towards the end of the game I sat near the active supporters as they had a guy starting songs with dancers. Many of them were K-Pop songs but what made me laugh and reel in shock were some of the lyrics when they sung them in english. Overt sexual and foul words were often mentioned which I assumed they knew perfectly what they meant but at a "family friendly" venue you would think that wouldn't be allowed. Though Australians are a protected bunch and we love being wrapped in our conservative cotton wool.

Was a good evening out although if you want a unique Korean sporting experience this is sadly not the place as it is about as Yankee-doodle as they come.

PFF Abroad - Korean Adventure

Well the Punctual Football Fan is on holidays in Korea. Although here for the East Asian Football Federation Cup I decided to go and have a look at some K-League. (yes like A-League but K is for Korea; Brilliant isnt it?)

Looked at the fixtures and there were too many games outside of Seoul so the easiest and closest to go to was Incheon; some two hours via Seoul Metro away. Incheon United were playing Daegu FC. Turns out that Australian Nathan Burns plays for Incheon but I didnt see him play; sad that this guy was a promising potential star has now but fallen off the edge of the earth into obscurity. Enough of Nathan, let us get back to the game.

The station was straight forward like most of Seoul's metro stations, you get out via tapping the gate and then you deposit you card in the machine to get your money back for the card. Stepped out at the Stadium was right in front of me some 500 metres away across the road next to the station.

The piazza is something that is like back home in Northbridge but much bigger and with a bit more of a focal axis so people dont really have a sense of aimless walking but to go to the ticket booth, get to the gate watch the game or when the 40-50 level towers go up the east side will look great with bars, shops, street vendors, gym and other hubs of activity to entertain the area.

Walked in and sat in the western stand near the VIP section which was 40 dollars Australian. But I was happy to pay 15 dollars for seats equivalent of the New Jack Marks Grandstand at nib stadium in Perth. The view was fantastic and great value so far.

In true PFF fashion i was running late, this time due to the Metro being rather frustrating and I caught the wrong number one train as it went past the station to change to go towards Incheon but went south so lost 30 minutes waiting and travel.

Drinks were very cheap. They were no more than 2 dollars a bottle and they sold noodles, quid jerky and battered squid and anything else squid related. Now I must confess I am not a fan of seafood, let alone squid so I did avoid this rush on the last of the food. I was queuing up for noodles; Traditional Korean beef noodles but they sold out.

I did see for the benefit of the PFF that the food was no more than 4 dollars each. So I simply cannot fault this place for price.

Home support was very loud despite the crowd being roughly 4,000. They played similar chants that I have heard in the A-League and also in the MLS. Incheon were in the lead 30 minutes in until a goal was scored against the run of play a few minutes before half time.

Second half was very much the same painful end to end stuff of hopelessly missed chances and terrible miss-reading of through ball plays rather much like Perth Glory. One occasion in the 71st minute mark a one on one with the keeper happened with the keeper foolishly bringing down the striker to concede a penalty. Incheon's Brazilian 'marquee' slotted home the penalty to give Incheon the lead for a second time 2-1. The game concluded 2-1 with the heavens opening up and the rain fell heavily reminding me that I must make a hasty retreat back to Seoul to grab something to eat.

All in all great way to sample Korean football, similar to the level in Australia but then again I was watching some mid table sides that were playing incredibly poor style that night. A-League still has a long way to go to be any match to this unpredictable brand.

Looks like the PFF has sadly adopted his K-League side as Itaewon United play in vertical black and blue stripes and play in East Perth colours.