Carolyn Emmett, Montejaque's correspondent in South Africa sends her last report from South Africa on the Spain v the Netherlands game in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Final on July 11.

MY Dutch girlfriend, Kinie, was embarrassed by the tactics of her team ... nine yellow cards in total (two to the same player, in overtime, which therefore earned him a ‘red’ and a ‘sending off’). How come only three players on the Netherlands team could behave themselves? I think both Spain and Holland were a bit wary of each other at Sunday night’s final, but it seemed the Dutch wanted to bring dirty tactics to the game – and the Spanish team rose above them.

I bought ‘fan park’ tickets for this Final, for husband Kevin and myself. The ‘fan parks’ (several of them around Johannesburg) were where you could go and watch the game on a big-screen TV ... but savour the atmosphere of the ‘live’ game because of all the supporters around you. Interestingly, it cost R190 each for these last tickets that I bought ... which was R50 per ticket more than for all the games we got to see ‘live’! (On the other hand, tickets for the game at Soccer City Stadium for the Final were minimum R2000 ... or about 200 euros. I’m glad I didn’t pay that, because (let’s face it) the game really wasn’t worth it ... unless you had a bet on how many yellow cards the English referee, Howard Webb, would dish out: 13 in total).

We arrived at the fan park at about 6:20 p.m. Parking was easy, and we stood in a very short line to buy ‘tokens’ for beer and hot dogs. (We then, of course, stood in a very LONG line to get the said beer and then the hot dogs ... and don’t get me started on the toilet facilities! For the ladies, it was a minimum of 30 mins. in a queue for the Port-A-Potties!)

More than 70% of the supporters were Spanish. We thoroughly enjoyed watching the ‘closing ceremonies’ on the big-screen TVs (well done, South Africa!), and all settled down on our blankets on the grass to watch the game.

S..t, it was cold! Maybe three degrees Celsius? For these old bones (and those of husband Kevin) it was too much ... so, at half time, we trotted back to the car, drove for 10 mins. back to our house, and enjoyed the rest of the game (including overtime!) from the comfort of our recliners.

¡Viva España! We were absolutely thrilled that the game was won by Spain (without a penalty shoot-out), and I received several congratulatory SMSs from my friends around the world.

Best experience from this World Cup? - probably the Korea DPR vs. Argentina game. see FIFA World Cup Report – Korea DPR v Argentina

Worst experience? Just got an envelope pushed under the front door – a speeding fine (OK, only eight euros) garnered on our trip down to Port Elizabeth! That’s another bit of memorabilia to go into my FIFA World Cup 2010 file ... along with the ticket stubs, vuvuzelas, wing-mirror covers, clip-on flags, England scarf and the Spanish woolly hats, armbands and cap! As they say in South Africa ... ayoba!

www.catchmeifyoucan.ca  

© Carolyn Emmett

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FIFA World Cup Final - Spain v The Netherlands
Monday, 12 July 2010
Carolyn Emmett, Montejaque's correspondent in South Africa sends her last report from South Africa on the Spain v the Netherlands game in...

© 2012 - Secret Andalucia - Guadiaro Valley, near Ronda

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