 Unlike the Americans who would always prefer to be a Goliath (provided he wins) rather than a David, we Brits have a certain affinity with the underdog. That is until the underdog bites us.
One of the biggest chunks ever taken out of our backside was against the USA ironically, on 29 June 1950 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
It was there that Haiti-born Joe Gaetjens scored the only goal of the game between England and the States to consign the Three Lions to an ignominious World Cup defeat and send shockwaves round the footballing world.
At the end of his playing career Joe returned to the Caribbean island in a bid to bring down the regime of the hated dictator Papa Doc Duvalier.
Sadly, his activities were noticed by Papa Doc’s brutal militia, the Tonton Macoutes, and he was thrown in jail where he died after being starved and tortured.
Fortunately the scorer of yesterday’s goal for the Yanks is unlikely to befall a similar fate – what with him being Italian defender Cristian Zaccardo, who was unfortunate enough to put through his own net.
It was a good day for the underdogs and a good one for the bookies too incidentally. Like the Americans, punters love a favourite and most of them had backed the Italians to thump Bruce Arena’s men. Most of them had been on Czech Republic to see off Ghana earlier in the day. And they got that one wrong too.
Famous until now for being home of the world’s biggest reservoir (Lake Volta, which clocks in at an impressive 8,500 square kilometres) Ghana can now boast their first victory at a World Cup finals. And what a victory it was too.
The Black Stars, as they’re known, were head and shoulders above their Czech counterparts, including Patrick Swayze look-a-like Pavel Nedved, and could have had five or six if their finishing had been better. I can only hope that their victory is given the attention it deserves in the papers in Accra.
The United States’ triumph in 1950 certainly wasn’t, as it was watched by only one journalist: The St Louis Dispatch’s Dent McSkimming, who happened to be on holiday in Brazil when the match was taking place.
Back home in Blighty the story had to play second fiddle to the England cricket team’s first ever defeat against the West Indies. Good to see that some things don’t change…
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