Mosconi Cup - Your Prediction Please
- Thread starter sjm
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Europe on a whole is a lot stronger than the US...
I mean, I'm rooting for US but I can't see a way they can win, I haven't really followed the pool scene this year but for me, dominguez and hatch have been liabilities than someone we can rely on. They often make mistakes at crucial times (the one good year hatch had was the only time we won the cup in my memory).
SVB while a strong individual player has never been a team leader role in the mosconi cup, if we have someone older who can release him of the supposed "captain" role I think he'll do much better.
Thorpe/woodward are two young players who can perform well but they need to find their rhythm as soon as possible, the pace of the tournament is too fast and if they fall behind early I don't see them coming back.
If you look at Europe, you got world champions and guys who have solid fundamentals, I absolutely love vandenberg's stroke and game. Soquet is aging but he is a much better in the captain role than SVB. Shaw is shaw, absolutely no fear. Alcaide a rising star. Filler I am not too sure about as I haven't seen him play.
I have pretty low expectations this year tbh, I would say 11-6 europe takes the cup.
I mean, I'm rooting for US but I can't see a way they can win, I haven't really followed the pool scene this year but for me, dominguez and hatch have been liabilities than someone we can rely on. They often make mistakes at crucial times (the one good year hatch had was the only time we won the cup in my memory).
SVB while a strong individual player has never been a team leader role in the mosconi cup, if we have someone older who can release him of the supposed "captain" role I think he'll do much better.
Thorpe/woodward are two young players who can perform well but they need to find their rhythm as soon as possible, the pace of the tournament is too fast and if they fall behind early I don't see them coming back.
If you look at Europe, you got world champions and guys who have solid fundamentals, I absolutely love vandenberg's stroke and game. Soquet is aging but he is a much better in the captain role than SVB. Shaw is shaw, absolutely no fear. Alcaide a rising star. Filler I am not too sure about as I haven't seen him play.
I have pretty low expectations this year tbh, I would say 11-6 europe takes the cup.
I think you guys are letting the last few years get you down!
Europe probably has to be favourite purely because of recent form, but this on paper looks like the closest Cup in recent times.
The one thing Europe always had that the US team hasn't for a long time is the concept of playing as a team, but with Johann switching sides (I don't personally think that should be allowed btw, just to state before the Cup starts, but it is within the rules) and a different look to the European team this year I think the US have a great chance.
Personally I think this will be the closest Cup for years, its a coin toss for me, 11-9 either way!
I still think the US are underdogs by a fair margin. But this team could be much stronger. I don't see how the US are going to be much stronger in the near future, while Europe has a near endless supply of young talent in comparison, not to mention veterans. The US has a decent chance this year, compared to previous ones. That was what I meant by my post.
This is more of an 11-8 team, while Europe could easily field a team that would have the US struggling to get to 5! Heck, we could just send 5 from Poland, and the US would have all they could handle. Even Greece would give them a very good fight, not to speak of Germany, England etc... In fact I think this would be the best way to make the Mosconi cup competitive again. A new European country every year (obviously it would have to be a strong pool country).
On the current team:
Shaw is an obvious choice.
Filler is also good, and a smart investment in the future
Souquet is ok.
The two others, on the other hand....The day I'd pick either of these over Albin Ouschan would be the day I'd give Dr. Sergio Canavero a call. I don't think a simple eye or brain transplant would do the trick, my whole head would have to be replaced.
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I look for Thorpe and Woodward to perform well. I think this will be the Cup where Shane rises to the occasion even though this format doesn't fit for him. Unfortunately, Hatch and Dominguez are not at the level of any of the Euros. Pulling for USA of course but expecting they'll struggle to get 7 points.
While I give the edge to Europe. I think Oscar and Dennis are going to surprise some folks.
Lol, post of the year candidate
We shall soon see, won't we! :thumbup:
IMHO it seems that we need Dennis H to take care of business. Dennis had a good year this year and is a force when he is on. If he is firing on all eight it can take pressure off the other team members, Shane would certainly be able to relax and have fun, this equates to playing better and that will affect the whole team. Not sure if Mr. Hatch can deal with the heat but I am a big fan of his since 2013. In fact I am a big fan of every player that is going to be fighting for their countries....good luck boys, play hard.
I think USA might actually win. Europe could not have picked a worst team imo. NVD is the most over rated player on earth. Souquet is 100 years old. And Alcaide has never won anything, and he's been around a long time. The other two picks are great. I bet on Europe giving 2 games on the wire before the teams were announced. After they were announced, I tried to bet +2 on USA because I thought the EU team was that bad.
Souquet, Filler and Van den Berg qualified via the points system. Shaw had to be a Wildcard pick and Alcaide is perhaps the surprising one, but had a good season so deserved it (my point being that most of the team qualified, rather than being picked by the captain).
If the US comes within 3 games of a win, it may as well be a win since it will have a good start with the new coach and players.
If someone asked me to bet with the US team, I would feel comfortable to take US +5 and may be a bit uneasy at US +4. Seems the US has often come close to winning matches only to end up losing them with a mistake or 2 or some jump cue shot, or just pure luck.
If someone asked me to bet with the US team, I would feel comfortable to take US +5 and may be a bit uneasy at US +4. Seems the US has often come close to winning matches only to end up losing them with a mistake or 2 or some jump cue shot, or just pure luck.
What can a coach do?
(1) improve player fundamentals?
--nonsense.... If you actually futzed with these players's fundamentals in this short period of time--even perhaps making adjustments that are good in the long haul--the likely result now would more likely be lower performance than higher performance.
(2) increase motivation?
--more nonsense....These guys have made the equivalent of the olympic team in this sport. They are preparing for the most watched and celebrated pool event there is. I really get a kick out of people talking about getting players to "want to win" more.
So what is left for coach to do?
There are two things, imo. Two things that at first glance look different but in reality are probably coupled together.
(1) Get players to LOOK LIKE a team. Whatever the results are, look like a team getting those results. This is at first glance more about us, the fans, than it is about the players or the play. Develop some protocol about how players interact during the match and outside the match that fit this theme. Go four-wheeling together. Show some mentorship moments between veterans and newer players. Show some outward signs of support. Keep heads up. Show you care for each other....
(2) Get players to BE a team. This one is harder but has more potential to affect actual performance. Studies cited from Scientific American to the Wall Street Journal show that when people dress better, they actually perform better--all else being equal. I suspect some of that sort of thing carries over here as well--when players ACT LIKE a team, some of the superficial stuff probably rubs off into BEING a team.
The main issue is not somehow making sure only good things happen but rather managing how players react to bad things happening.
Here is something the coach needs to get the players to understand. If we were to clone the universe right now--make 10,000 copies--and let this year's exact matchup play out 10,000 times, we would get many different results. EUR would win thousands of times and USA would win thousands of times. Who knows what the proportion is--doesn't matter. The key point is that for every single player, we can point to a universe where he played flawlessly, was the star of the show, and came through when it mattered most. We can also find a universe where that same player sucked it up badly--missed the straightforward opportunities, and just couldn't get it going. The players need to understand all these universes are out there, and we just don't know which one we're in. And they need to develop ways to deal with and cope with adversity BEFORE knowing who it affects and how.
This is a social contract of sorts, and I think it is best approached with this "veil of ignorance" idea--you don't know which universe you're in, but you know in some of them you're the big kid on the playground and in others you're the little kid. You have this ignorance when making rules of behavior for interacting on the playground... Locke, Hobbes, Jefferson, Rawls... lots of people have thought like this...
When a teammate pats you on the shoulder after a bad shot and says (either in words, facial expression, or just the pat itself) "that's OK buddy--shrug it off," that teammate needs to MEAN IT and you need to believe he means it.
Getting there is harder than it looks. When players drift off to sleep at night now, they probably dream of their team winning and perhaps being recognized as a key contributor. They also probably have the dark thoughts about performing badly and fans saying they were a bad choice for the team and so forth. What you want to avoid is players feeling, "OK we might lose, but please don't let ME be the one they're pointing to..." It is hard for the pat on the shoulder to be truly sincere if this is where the patter's head is at.
Getting this pat on the back to be sincere and getting the recipient to believe it is sincere IS the primary job of the coach. It's hard but it can be done. Building this is what a coach can do.
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AFAIC it's all up to SVB. He's capable of dominating any match, but if he's only half awke like he's been in past years, then there's no way that his teammates will be able to cover for him. He didn't exactly set the world on fire in either the Open or the recent Make It Happen round robin event, but he's still SVB and one of these years he's bound to wake up and help bring the Cup back where it belongs.
If we were all the same, life would be boring:grin-square::grin-square:
Believe me I know how they got on the team. I didn't look at each points event individually, but I wonder if Souquet, NVD, and Alcaide simply played in many more events, and that is how they qualified?
Anyway, a weaker than normal Europe team could lead to a closer competition.
With Team USA being revamped a bit this year... I was excited and leaning a little bit towards calling them to win close (as they are our HOME TEAM)... but logically it is more like a 40% chance they win... and then I heard APA was our new sponsor... now the odds are more like 23%.!!!
( because everyone knows that only about 23% of APA 7s can play even or better than a B level player at any local poolhall)
( because everyone knows that only about 23% of APA 7s can play even or better than a B level player at any local poolhall)
If we were facing Shaw, Filler, Ouschan, Feijen and Kaci - the best 5 European players in my opinion, I would give us no more than a 20% to maybe at the most a 30% chance of winning. However, against the chosen European team that is representing, I give us a 50% chance, factoring in the home advantage!