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Throw-Ins 'The Cup' scores big time
Posted: Friday January 28, 2000 05:42 PM
"The Cup," an endearing film and a true story about a group of exiled Tibetan monks-in-training who overcome obstacles to watch the 1998 World Cup final, opened on Friday in New York City and Los Angeles. The rest of the country, like it or not, will have to wait until March for the film, which marked the directorial debut of Khyentse Norbu of Bhutan. In fact, Bhutan has nominated the movie for an Academy Award in the foreign film category. The subtitled movie gives insight into the life of the Buddhist monks, the passion they have for the game, how they overcome obstacles to watch the game -- the 1998 World Cup final between France and Brazil -- and how the gap between tradition and modern technology can be bridged. "Growing up in a monastery, I've noticed, somehow, that monks everywhere are obsessed with football," Norbu said. "I guess there's something similar between religion and a football match. Everyone thinks monks are pious and disciplined. But they forget that monks are human, too. The monastic code is an ideal, a goal to be hit." Speaking of goals, if you're thinking of seeing a lot of soccer action in the film, you will be disappointed. You will, however, learn much about life in the monastery and another culture and why and how other cultures have passion for the game. Two scenes stand out in my mind: Early on, the monks are playing "soccer" with a Coca-Cola can as the ball, speaking of bringing tradition and modern commercialism together. And then there was a scene between Abbot and Geko, the two leaders of the monastery, discussing the possibility of the monks watching the World Cup final. Abbot asked Geko about the time of the "fight." "You said it was two nations fighting for a ball," Abbot said. To which Geko replied, "I think it's around one in the morning." Abbot then pours hot water into his cup. "What a strange time for a fight," he said. "What do they get out of all this?" "They get a cup," Geko said. Sipping from his own cup, Abbot smiled: "A cup... Mmmm." And, oh yes, none of the actors were professionals, yet the film flows quite well. CNNSI.com rating: A thumbs up.
Duhaney for Dooley: A curious tradeJust as I was ready to file this column, a late-breaking trade was announced by the MetroStars and Columbus Crew on Friday. The MetroStars sent defender-midfielder Mike Duhaney to the Crew for former U.S. international defender Thomas Dooley. At first glance, it is a rather curious trade. While yours truly was not a personal fan of Duhaney's, he will be 26 on April 5 and still has his career ahead of him. Dooley, by contrast, makes the MetroStars' central defense probably the oldest in the world. German international Lothar Matthaeus turns 39 on March 21, while Dooley is 38, celebrating his 39th birthday on May 12. I have two questions about this deal: Why would the MetroStars want a pair of aging defenders in the middle of their defense? And how much of an influence did Lothar Matthaeus have in this deal, considering Dooley, an American citizen born in Germany, played nearly 10 years in the German Bundesliga? On the surface, it appears the MetroStars are trying to patch things up for this year. Will they be worrying about building for the future? Unfortunately, I did not have time to ask coach Octavio Zambrano or general manager Nick Sakiewicz why they decided to pull the trigger on the deal. According to a press release issued by the team: "The chemistry and professionalism of this team is extremely important to our objective of rebuilding," Sakiewicz said. "Any time we can acquire a player of Dooley's experience and professionalism, we will do it." Added coach Zambrano: "Thomas will provide the leadership and experience to our defense and midfield. His presence will be felt immediately in our locker room, and his work ethic will be something our younger players can emulate as we continue to rebuild our team." I have a big problem with Dooley -- on and off the field. He has lost a step or two or even three on the field. After returning from a rather disappointing World Cup in 1998, Dooley has been a shadow of his former self as several players have run around him. He did not get along famously with Crew coach Tom Fitzgerald last season. In fact, he left the team during the MLS playoffs to pursue his coaching license in Germany. That's not what I would call a role model for younger players. The Lothar Matthaeus scenario, Part 58Memo to the German media: Please learn to get your facts right before you write a story, especially when you quote another media source. In my column of Jan. 14, I had a rather strong -- some people might say sarcastic -- opinion about the latest comments from German international defender and captain Lothar Matthaeus, who was wavering about joining the MetroStars in the wake of a new coach and general manager. The column received a lot of play and headlines in Germany, I am told. But there was one slight problem: Many stories said the column ran in the New York Daily News. It never was published there, only at CNNSI.com. I try not to criticize or lecture other members of the media, but since I was in the middle of the "story," I want to make sure the facts are correct when it comes to the actual source. Curcic situation: A tempest in a teapotThere has been a lot said on message boards about my story on MetroStars midfielder Sasa Curcic being placed on Major League Soccer waivers in the Tuesday, Jan. 25 edition of the New York Daily News. This is how it transpired: The MetroStars claim that Curcic was not placed on waivers. At the team's first official practice of 2000, I noticed that Curcic was a no-show and asked coach Octavio Zambrano about the midfielder's absence. He said that the Curcic would be better addressed by Ivan Gazidis, the league's executive vice president of operations and player relations. Unfortunately, Gazidis was unavailable for comment, although the league's communications department did say Curcic was placed on waivers, although they could not state the exact reasons. I reported it in my Tuesday column without attribution because it was a story open to any other news source who would call the league. Apparently no one else did. The MetroStars claimed it wasn't so, and their communications department issued an e-mail to an inquiring fan that the Daily News story was incorrect. I did check back with the league to make sure there was nothing lost in the translation, which there wasn't. The league stood by their original statement that Curcic was waived. There has been all sorts of speculation by fans and some media people as to why Curcic is not wanted by the MetroStars, much of which we cannot report here without possibly impuning the reputation of Curcic. I have heard about some personal problems related to him being waived -- a tale, I am sure, that will continue to unravel in the next several weeks. Michael Lewis covers soccer for the New York Daily News and is editor of Soccer Magazine. To submit a question or comment to Michael Lewis, click here.
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