Mosconi Cup Musings
- Thread starter lfigueroa
- Start date
Michaela use to post on the Matchroom Sports Forums (now defunct) and she pretty much ate up all the compliments on her looks, some of which were fairly lecherous.
You know, there are ways to express appreciation and even a bit of lust for a classy woman. This, and at least one other further back up the thread, are not one of them.
Please start your own thread if this how you want to express yourself.
Lou Figueroa
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All this talk about the coach's jacket is a bit like people watching the presidential debates and obsessing over the tie color. There are much more important things worth discussing than non-issues like flags and jackets. Not to mention all this "HURR PRETTY GIRL! ME WANT!!!!!!" talk about Michaela Tabb.
How about some discussion on... I dunno...
Who is this Europe coach and did he do a good job? Was he instrumental in this win?
Why did CJ/the team put the weakest players last? Do we want the newcomers at bat when it's down to the wire? Or someone seasoned?
Is Melling this sick all the time? How many years has he played on the Mosconi cup? I know he was there last year.
How did the Americans get treated outside the arena? Do they get jeers or do the fans turn it off as soon as the buzzer sounds?
Is it just coincidence that the third at-bat for both teams was the strongest, and it ended up being Darren vs. Shane? Or does the third slot hold some significance when choosing lineups?
How is it Johnny never gets an MVP? Did he miss even one ball?
Should players try to coach each other at all during doubles or is the assumption that they're all pros and should know the percentages by now?
...any takers?
How about some discussion on... I dunno...
Who is this Europe coach and did he do a good job? Was he instrumental in this win?
Why did CJ/the team put the weakest players last? Do we want the newcomers at bat when it's down to the wire? Or someone seasoned?
Is Melling this sick all the time? How many years has he played on the Mosconi cup? I know he was there last year.
How did the Americans get treated outside the arena? Do they get jeers or do the fans turn it off as soon as the buzzer sounds?
Is it just coincidence that the third at-bat for both teams was the strongest, and it ended up being Darren vs. Shane? Or does the third slot hold some significance when choosing lineups?
How is it Johnny never gets an MVP? Did he miss even one ball?
Should players try to coach each other at all during doubles or is the assumption that they're all pros and should know the percentages by now?
...any takers?
Being the team captain is, in many ways, all about symbolism. The Euro coach seems to have understood that and early on the last day took his coat off so that whenever on-camera the fans in the stands and those watching on-screen could see he was part of the team. If the team uniforms are unimportant, they might as well issue Mosconi Cup thongs for the teams to wear ;-)
And, there's nothing wrong with commenting on a pretty referee.
To your other points:
I think the European coach did do a better job -- or at least looked like he was proud to be a member of his team and could be repeatedly seen encouraging and coaching his players ringside. JA and DH seemed to do most of that for the American team.
I'm guessing CJ, or more likely the entire team with strong input from the more experienced players, decided the line up they needed to take their best shot at getting close to tying the score first, so they had to put their stronger guys up first to get a fighting chance. I think DH even mentioned this during his post-match interview.
I don't know much about Melling.
IME, Londoners love Americans and I'm guessing the US players were treated well post match. Perhaps someone that was there could comment.
I think the score at the start of the first day determined the line-up.
JA was not on the winning team (again), ergo no MVP.
Having played doubles myself, I think the back-and-forth is just a preference of the players involved. Some guys want to talk things over, others don't want to hear it or have their rhythm disturbed.
Happy?
Lou Figueroa
On the last day, he had to put the strongest players first. If not they would not have even played on day 4.
Melling is a beast- I saw him run a 4 or 5 pack in the ten ball tourny in Vegas in about 15 minutes one year. I didnt even see a 2 pack from anyone else. He is only playing nine ball a few years but damn he has some knowledge.
The MVP is selected from the winning team im fairly certain.
Melling is a beast- I saw him run a 4 or 5 pack in the ten ball tourny in Vegas in about 15 minutes one year. I didnt even see a 2 pack from anyone else. He is only playing nine ball a few years but damn he has some knowledge.
The MVP is selected from the winning team im fairly certain.
I think the coaches influence maybe more to do with just keeping the players in the right place mentally. The order may be somewhat of a factor but over four days not so much.
Putting the better players up front when your behind maybe has a better chance of at least getting you back in it.
Melling is what is possible if a very good snooker player that genuinely loves pool seriously takes up the game, unlike a lot of the pretenders of the past Mosconi teams that were really only there for a lark and a piss-up.
From what I read over at pro9uk.com the Americans had a pretty nice greeting outside the venue afterwards, after all you need two great teams to make a great event.
not sure about third spot.
MVP seems to always be from the winning team.
Double is tough but I suppose some players have a preference and are more comfortable on some shots over others, so it's good to be left on your favorable side. And often even a seasoned player can miss a trick.
Oh okay, I didn't know you were the authority on what sports we can compare to. Thanks.
Yeah we know, you said this a few times already
Cutie as always..
Michaela is indeed a fine woman and a lady...Look at how cute she is in this one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKJSMtR1BtM
Michaela is indeed a fine woman and a lady...Look at how cute she is in this one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKJSMtR1BtM
Somehow I missed that the MVP is only on the winning team. They never made an exception to this, for a guy who took a team from no-chance to neck-and-neck?
As far as putting the strongest players firs to get the score tied up early'... do you guys figure this pumps up the younger players and makes them feel like there's a chance when before they were demoralized? Or does it just double the pressure on them because now they're playing a really close match and it's 100% on them to win the whole thing, and they have to live up to the performance their teammates already put up?
Seems to me like if you're going to flip a coin on the performance of the younger players, gamble on them getting the score close to tied. Then use your veterans to do the 'heavy lifting', carrying us over the finish line. But I can see the case for using your heavy hitters to shift the momentum.
If you can win three matches in a row on Europe, they can get that doomed 'dogging it' feeling and maybe get demoralized enough to shoot worse.
Here's another question... a lot of people say race to 5 9b is way too short. But so many players dog it under pressure at this event. Playing relaxed, they can actually run out a race to 5 in a single inning. But at mosconi cup, there's alternating breaks and some games taking 3 innings to wrap up. So could we argue that maybe this race is long enough since almost everyone is getting multiple chances?
As far as putting the strongest players firs to get the score tied up early'... do you guys figure this pumps up the younger players and makes them feel like there's a chance when before they were demoralized? Or does it just double the pressure on them because now they're playing a really close match and it's 100% on them to win the whole thing, and they have to live up to the performance their teammates already put up?
Seems to me like if you're going to flip a coin on the performance of the younger players, gamble on them getting the score close to tied. Then use your veterans to do the 'heavy lifting', carrying us over the finish line. But I can see the case for using your heavy hitters to shift the momentum.
If you can win three matches in a row on Europe, they can get that doomed 'dogging it' feeling and maybe get demoralized enough to shoot worse.
Here's another question... a lot of people say race to 5 9b is way too short. But so many players dog it under pressure at this event. Playing relaxed, they can actually run out a race to 5 in a single inning. But at mosconi cup, there's alternating breaks and some games taking 3 innings to wrap up. So could we argue that maybe this race is long enough since almost everyone is getting multiple chances?
If we'd left Johnny for last (or even Shane), and the Euro's had just notched their 11th point on the match before, imagine how much b1tching would be going on here. CJ was painted into a corner IMO.
Oh okay, I didn't know you were the authority on what sports we can compare to. Thanks.
Yeah we know, you said this a few times already
No authority -- I said I "wasn't sure" it was a valid comparison.
And, I've repeated my point in response to other posts. Besides, it's my thread ;-)
Lou Figueroa
Personally, I don't have a problem with the MVP being selected from the winning team. It's just the way it is.
I feel like it really was a no win scenario for the US given the composition of the team this year. You have to get your foot in the door or you have zero shot (and the score would have been lop-sided). So no matter what, sooner or later, you have to rely on your rookies to play well and catch a few breaks. No doubt, after the team hauled itself within striking distance, the pressure increased on the last players exponentially.
I don't play enough 9ball anymore to have a solid opinion on the race length. But I do know that at 1pocket, a short race to three as many tournaments are nowadays, opens the door for the weaker player just a bit. It magnifies the effect of any mistake or bad roll the better player gets as well as anything good the weaker player does or gets.
Lou Figueroa
Agreed. It was a no win situation for the USA.
Lou Figueroa
oops, lol, there I go
repeating a point again
ChrisBanks
Banned
You may be likely to see Brandon and Mike on the Mosconi Cup team for the next 20 years. And I am betting it won't take long before they begin to play their best during it!
I agree and one very easy place for the mods to start "cleaning up" would be with some of the avatars and loutish comments thrown about lately.
It's kind of like former Mayor Koch's "Broken Windows" theory, which I think wasn't so bad for NYC. Just my 2cents.
Lou Figueroa
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Old_York88
Registered
Johan, the Europe Captain isn't exactly a secret. He's been in multiple MCs now and is still unbeaten. Great guy and always remains calm but is there to support the players at all times. He always seems to get his players to pull out an important win when needed (e.g playing Feijen in singles at Match 3 inb '11 and '12 which he won 6-0 and 5-0).
As far as last day order for USA - pretty much agree with above; he had no choice. You have to give your best players a game, and then hope that your 'lesser' players will have more of a chance with the opposition guys under much more pressure. Getting it to 9-9 as least got Shuff and DeChaine on to the table.
Chris Melling is the best Cuesport player I've ever seen in the flesh. The way the guy cues with such ease is amazing. Watched him at English 8 ball and 9 ball and what he can do on the table is incredible. If he knuckles down and doesn't get complacent with his ability then he's got multiple titles to be won.
American guys were all great off the table. Mr Hatch and Archer particularly who I got to speak to and always had time for photos or to shake your hand. Very much an on-table rivalry but lots of respect after the matches are finished.
The 3rd at bat slot worked importantly on the last day as I think Europe aimed to win 1 of the first 2 games (at least) and then hand it over to Appleton to close out. They may have figured also that SVB would be in the first 2 positions and so it may have been Hatch or Shuff he would be matched up with. I think CJ worked it out perfectly to get to 9-9 and gives the other guys a chance.
As said - MVP very very rarely goes to the losing team.
I think with 30 second shot clock you can let the doubles-pair discuss shots. Any longer or without the clock and it can became very slow.