Sacrifice Hong Kong for China’s World Cup Aspirations?

Glutter’s Hong Kong

Tonight is the Hong Kong vs China 2006 World Cup Qualifying match.
It’s huge because China needs at least three more goals over whatever
Kuwait gets with Malaysia to qualify for inclusion. If Kuwait wins only
one goal, then China needs three over Hong Kong, if they score the
minimum of three, which experts predict since Malaysia is a weak team,
China needs six goals to be safe.

I of course secretly want Hong Kong to lose six goals to China,
since we are out of the game already with no possibility of qualifying.
And without China the world cup would be just that little bit less fun
as there is no one to cheer for. Last time, everyone in this city threw
our support to South Korea as it’s the closest place, an Asian team and
not only did the players looks like us, some of them were really cute.
But it’s always more fun if one can metaphorically wave the red flag
around. I mean long before we were handed over, Hong Kong people have
been cheering for the China Olympic Team since they started
participating again.

Thing is, I am not the only person hoping Hong Kong will lose, a lot
of people think that. A newspaper in China even published an article
urging Hong Kong to give in purposely for the sake of the motherland.
Play a fake game in the name of patriotism. This has not impressed the
officials at all, and the AFC has sent down a number of independent
observers to make sure the game is fair. Four years ago, the HK team
was expelled from the competition because of match-fixing, it would not
be a good thing for it to happen again. It’s ugly and raises issues on
the integrity of Hong Kong athletes.

But really, we’re always sacrificing for China. In terms of the
economy, human rights, free speech, why the hell not the world cup? CCP
Officials are threatening DJs, pro-democracy legislators offices are
ransacked, we are told off in general what would be  few calls to the
football players?

I for one believe it’s not a bad thing for once… However, since
we’re already not the most popular segment of the Chinese population,
if we play properly and not allow in as many goals as China needs to
qualify it’s also not the end of the world either.  Of course I always
want Hong Kong to do well in anything… so it’s a hard call. I know
sportsmanship comes in the formula at some point too.

So the players in the Hong Kong team are currently stuck between a
rock and a hard place. Play well because it’s the right thing to do and
for their own personal worth, but risk the hatred of every football fan
in China, along with more than a few in Hong Kong too. Otherwise play
crap, lose, let China win by an embarrassing margin with the risk of
being seen as bad athletes, and soiling the image of Hong Kong football
on the international stage even further. I suppose it’s up to the
individual’s decision. The couch has said, he told them they are
representing Hong Kong and our city rather than the country and don’t
get the alliances mixed up. (For the most part in most things, we
don’t, as you well know.)

I watched the game so far, to be honest it looks like Hong Kong is
playing well and trying their best, but we’re getting our ass kicked
anyway. The score before I left the cable hooked up home, was 3-0 to
China, well before half time, and Kuwait had scored one.

So maybe all the ruminations on how much heart my team has to put
into this is superfluous, coz at the end of the day, the skills of the
players has determined the match regardless. Except, guys, if the score
is like 4-0, maybe run just that little bit slower? Like just don’t
give you absolute all at all times, but don’t play badly either. Fine
line to tread no doubt!!!

Find out tomorrow morning what the score is, as I am off to bed, and
I don’t have cable, so I can’t even watch the game anymore.

Dispite much cultural, poltical, social musings,
China beat Hong Kong by a huge margin but managed still not to qualify
for the 2006 World Cup… sigh. China beat HK 7-0 but Kuwait got 6-1
against Malaysia. So we lagged two points. Look at the headline..

 FIFA World Cup misery for China despite thrashing Hong Kong 7-0

Crap huh?

To cheer myself up, I looked up  Fan Chun Yip, who I noticed while watching the HK-China World Cup Qualifying match…. hmmm.