Mosconi Cup - Van den Berg: "They're weaker than last year; we're stronger"

I agree that if Mike can fade the environment, crowd and completely foreign vibe of the Cup then he has ability to really shine. That said I think it will be tough for him. I can see it going one of two ways:

1. He starts out well, gains confidence and plays like a monster.

2. Starts out bad and goes in the tank. Mainly because you dont really get to play yourself out of a slump in the cup. You just dont play that much pool at all really so if a guy is in a down cycle like all players have, in the cup there just isnt time to pull out of it usually.

I think Mike will do well. He has fire in his eyes and wants to show what he can do. When those lights are on, the camera guys are sharking the living shit out of him and a bunch of drunken euro's are yelling like madmen we'll see how he does.
 
JCIN said:
I agree that if Mike can fade the environment, crowd and completely foreign vibe of the Cup then he has ability to really shine. That said I think it will be tough for him. I can see it going one of two ways:

1. He starts out well, gains confidence and plays like a monster.

2. Starts out bad and goes in the tank. Mainly because you dont really get to play yourself out of a slump in the cup. You just dont play that much pool at all really so if a guy is in a down cycle like all players have, in the cup there just isnt time to pull out of it usually.

I think Mike will do well. He has fire in his eyes and wants to show what he can do. When those lights are on, the camera guys are sharking the living shit out of him and a bunch of drunken euro's are yelling like madmen we'll see how he does.
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We sure will Justin, what we lack in numbers we make up for in presence, GO EUROPE!!!!!!
 
Mosconi Cup

With the short race to five, it's a crap shoot. I like our chances, though.
 
Johnnyt said:
The Mosconi Cup use to be fun to watch until CW got involved. Now I'll tune in to see if the fans have the balls to booo him. Johnnyt
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This....

I now have a reason to watch it.

Europe! Europe! Europe!

If you guys on the European team are reading this... I hope you pound the USA at the mosconi cup. Their involvement with politics and corruption has sickened me. The corruption in America is bad enough. Now my favorite sport is being plagued with it.
 
IMO Team Europe is not exactly fielding their top players either.

If Nick really wants to get technical then 2 of the 3 between him, Neils and Chris get punted in place of Mika and Thorsten to get the truly best team Europe could muster.

Ralph
Darren
Mika
Thorsten

Those 4 are the top 4 players in Europe and only 2 of those 4 are on team Europe. What Nick needs to understand is he IS the European equivalent of Mike or Shawn and managed to get on the team because some of the best European players don't play in all of the European events that count towards Mosconi Cup points.

Pot, meet kettle, he lives in the most remarkable glass houses you have ever seen and is a very profficient rock thrower.
 
My opinion is Nick should have kept his mouth shut. Statements like this will only serve to motivate Team USA. If I was Charlie I would post Nick's comments on the wall of the practice room! :wink:

Personally I thing Team USA may be the stronger team. Dechaine has really come into his own this year as a world class player, and may be the "Hatch" of this year's team. I'm not worried about Shawn either. He looks very comfortable with himself and his game this year. It promises to be a another good Mosconi Cup and I look for it to go right down to the wire.

Johnny, Shane, Rodney!!! Who in their right mind wants to get these guys fired up?
 
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Perhaps a guy that wants to make sure this show goes on for many years to come.
 
Celtic said:
IMO Team Europe is not exactly fielding their top players either.

If Nick really wants to get technical then 2 of the 3 between him, Neils and Chris get punted in place of Mika and Thorsten to get the truly best team Europe could muster.

Ralph
Darren
Mika
Thorsten

Those 4 are the top 4 players in Europe and only 2 of those 4 are on team Europe. What Nick needs to understand is he IS the European equivalent of Mike or Shawn and managed to get on the team because some of the best European players don't play in all of the European events that count towards Mosconi Cup points.

Pot, meet kettle, he lives in the most remarkable glass houses you have ever seen and is a very profficient rock thrower.
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Celtic your way off the mark, Chris is European number 1 for a reason, I think you not realize what a class act this kid is, to say he is not top 4 ask the players. You don't win the China open with a super tough field without being a class act.
 
Itsnotme said:
This....

I now have a reason to watch it.

Europe! Europe! Europe!

If you guys on the European team are reading this... I hope you pound the USA at the mosconi cup. Their involvement with politics and corruption has sickened me. The corruption in America is bad enough. Now my favorite sport is being plagued with it.
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Perhaps you could elaborate on your corruption theory before blackening the game with unsubstantiated allegations.
 
I wish one of the USA players would talk some trash! Though I agree with Jay that throwing stones may not be good for the thrower, but.....to stay silent seems weak to me. This thing needs all the press it can get.

Take a cue from the American chopper/Jesse James episode and send the Euro team a "customized" cake in the shape of a mans body part....of course with well wishes and a nice card :)

Get the teams reaction and put it on the news! The world of pool needs a marketing guru to get us some attention. Being quiet/nice guy, playing good pool, and shaking hands is BORING!!!!!! you want exposure......take a lesson from the idiotic shows on TV and apply it to The Mosconi Cup.

I want to turn on the TV and watch great pool like I could 15 years ago. If that means getting bad attention so be it. It is NOT about great pool to the masses like it is for us here on AZB. One well thought out funny as hell action that gets mainstream attention could get the world to realize the Mosconin cup is happening very soon. Whatever marketing or the lack there of up to this point has done nothing to ignite anything here in USA......sad

I'm really bummed Corey and Earl are'nt playing. I think that is a really big mistake

G.
 
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Gerry said:
I wish one of the USA players would talk some trash! Though I agree with Jay that throwing stones may not be good for the thrower, but.....to stay silent seems weak to me. This thing needs all the press it can get.

Take a cue from the American chopper/Jesse James episode and send the Euro team a "customized" cake in the shape of a mans body part....of course with well wishes and a nice card :)

Get the teams reaction and put it on the news! The world of pool needs a marketing guru to get us some attention. Being quiet/nice guy, playing good pool, and shaking hands is BORING!!!!!! you want exposure......take a lesson from the idiotic shows on TV and apply it to The Mosconi Cup.

I want to turn on the TV and watch great pool like I could 15 years ago. If that means getting bad attention so be it. It is NOT about great pool to the masses like it is for us here on AZB. One well thought out funny as hell action that gets mainstream attention could get the world to realize the Mosconin cup is happening very soon. Whatever marketing or the lack there of up to this point has done nothing to ignite anything here in USA......sad

I'm really bummed Corey and Earl are'nt playing. I think that is a really big mistake

G.
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Pool is becoming less attractive for me when politics raises its ugly head.

The leagues and social aspect of pool is what makes it shine the brightest for me. The competitive spirit, whether in a tournament or an action match, is also fun.

I frequent this forum less than I used to. The activity on AzBilliards Discussion Forum has diminished in recent times. When I wake up in the morning and look at the amount of posts, especially those which might catch my interest, I am not hanging out here quite as much as I used to. There's more action in football than pool if you take a look at the action subforum.

I am trying to refrain from writing anything ugly about my thoughts on the selection of this year's Mosconi Cup Team USA members. I would rather celebrate that fact that we have a Mosconi Cup to enjoy. Matchroom Sport in the past has taken action to improve future exhibitions from constructive feedback. If there are those who are disgruntled with the selection of Team USA, then the way to tackle that issue is to write to Matchroom Sport. Any grumbling on this thread is just forum fodder. :grin-square:

That said, Dennis Hatch and Earl Strickland both are very spirited American players. It would have been fun having either one of them on Team USA. :cool:

It seems like today the sponsored players are the ones who are afforded the most opportunities in the pool world. There's not too many who pay their own way. Some who have to pay their own way are sometimes not able to attend every event available for that precious so-called "ranking system." ;)

In today's pool world, it's not how strong you play but who you know that gets you opportunities, sad to say but true. :)
 
JAM said:
Pool is becoming less attractive for me when politics raises its ugly head.

The leagues and social aspect of pool is what makes it shine the brightest for me. The competitive spirit, whether in a tournament or an action match, is also fun.

I frequent this forum less than I used to. The activity on AzBilliards Discussion Forum has diminished in recent times. When I wake up in the morning and look at the amount of posts, especially those which might catch my interest, I am not hanging out here quite as much as I used to. There's more action in football than pool if you take a look at the action subforum.

I am trying to refrain from writing anything ugly about my thoughts on the selection of this year's Mosconi Cup Team USA members. I would rather celebrate that fact that we have a Mosconi Cup to enjoy. Matchroom Sport in the past has taken action to improve future exhibitions from constructive feedback. If there are those who are disgruntled with the selection of Team USA, then the way to tackle that issue is to write to Matchroom Sport. Any grumbling on this thread is just forum fodder. :grin-square:

That said, Dennis Hatch and Earl Strickland both are very spirited American players. It would have been fun having either one of them on Team USA. :cool:

It seems like today the sponsored players are the ones who are afforded the most opportunities in the pool world. There's not too many who pay their own way. Some who have to pay their own way are sometimes not able to attend every event available for that precious so-called "ranking system." ;)

In today's pool world, it's not how strong you play but who you know that gets you opportunities, sad to say but true. :)
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I think the CW protagonists will get a pleasant surprise when they see the Dragon's impact on the US Mosconi Cup team. His approach is hands on in stark contrast to Nick Varner's 'laid back and let them get on with it' attitude.
He will be an In Your Face captain, being interviewed, generating interest in the Mosconi Cup. His Jingoism will even be JAM style (sorry Jen)

So put aside all the hearsay and prejudice and judge the whole team on their performance and willingness to get involved. Even if the USA lose (as is likely) it will not be down to Charlie's lack of effort - it is just not easy to stand in the way of The European Steamroller.

The Korean thing is muddying the waters. So what - he lives and spends most of his time in the USA. Even if he didn't, is there a civilised country with a domestic sports program that doesn't employ foreign players/managers/coaches.

Soccer would be a shadow of itself if there was not this freedom for non native persons to seek employment overseas.
 
pro9dg said:
I think the CW protagonists will get a pleasant surprise when they see the Dragon's impact on the US Mosconi Cup team. His approach is hands on in stark contrast to Nick Varner's 'laid back and let them get on with it' attitude.
He will be an In Your Face captain, being interviewed, generating interest in the Mosconi Cup. His Jingoism will even be JAM style (sorry Jen)

So put aside all the hearsay and prejudice and judge the whole team on their performance and willingness to get involved. Even if the USA lose (as is likely) it will not be down to Charlie's lack of effort - it is just not easy to stand in the way of The European Steamroller.

The Korean thing is muddying the waters. So what - he lives and spends most of his time in the USA. Even if he didn't, is there a civilised country with a domestic sports program that doesn't employ foreign players/managers/coaches.

Soccer would be a shadow of itself if there was not this freedom for non native persons to seek employment overseas.
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Okay, you trout tickler! :grin-square:

I think Charlie probably interacts much, much better with people like you than he does with those who don't offer any pool opportunities or financial gain to him. It is nice that there are some folks out there who think highly of him. :)

The sad thing is Charlie doesn't give a hill of beans what anybody thinks of him. If he did, he would make an effort to engage with the mainstream pool public in America. His actions speak louder than words.
 
JAM said:
Okay, you trout tickler! :grin-square:

I think Charlie probably interacts much, much better with people like you than he does with those who don't offer any pool opportunities or financial gain to him. It is nice that there are some folks out there who think highly of him. :)

The sad thing is Charlie doesn't give a hill of beans what anybody thinks of him. If he did, he would make an effort to engage with the mainstream pool public in America. His actions speak louder than words.
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That's one of the things I like about you Jen - you never give an inch:)
 
Luxury said:
Perhaps a guy that wants to make sure this show goes on for many years to come.
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Exactly. IMO, as the CW appointment shows, this has noting to do with national pride -- it's politics and business. Comments designed to incite and inflame the passions of whatever American fan that still gave two cents about this dog and pony show are transparently self serving.

Lou Figueroa
 
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pro9dg said:
That's one of the things I like about you Jen - you never give an inch:)
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"Some men die by shrapnel, and some go down in flames, but some men perish inch by inch by playing the little pool games." ~ RailbirdJAM :p
 
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