The World Cup kicked off in style last Friday night as South Africa opened the 1st ever African World Cup. The African nation put on a fine show to open the biggest sporting event in the World before kicking-off, themselves, in the opening game. They got off to the best possible start, scoring the first goal of the 2010 World Cup in the second half however couldn't hold onto the lead as Mexico didn't read the script and levelled with 10 minutes remaining. The draw was still better then a defeat for South Africa who are still in with a big chance of going through to the 2nd round which would be their best ever World Cup achievement.
In the other game in Group A, France and Uruguay played out an entertaining 0-0 draw. Both teams had plenty of chances with Forlan going close for Uruguay and Anelka and Henry both having numerous chances. The draw puts all 4 teams in group A on 1 point and means there is all to play for in the remaining 2 group games.
Group B, saw South Korea make easy work of a disappointing Greece outfit. South Korea looked very convincing in a 2-0 victory that all but ended Greece's chances of 2nd in the group. Argentina started their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Nigeria. Messi was irresistible as the South Americans looked very strong as they aim to take home the World Cup in a month's time.
England were disappointing on Saturday night as they kicked off Group C. They went ahead of the USA 1-0 in the 4th minute as Captain Gerrard fired home, However a horrible mistake from the England keeper Green saw USA level before the half time interval. In the second period England created many chances however couldn't find the back of the net. USA also had chances and hit the post as they also looked to try and get all 3 points. In the end a draw puts both teams in contention to make the 2nd round. In the other group C match, Slovenia won their first ever World Cup match with a 1-0 win over Algeria.
Australia's Time Cahill was the 4th player to receive a red card at this World Cup as the Aussies were embarrassed 4-0 to the hands of Germany. Germany were simply too good for the Aussies as they scored 2 goals either side of half time. Australia now must win both their remaining games if they are to progress to the latter stages of the tournament. Germany however will only gain in confidence from a fine performance as they look to finish 1st in the group and go as far as possible in the tournament. In the other game of Group D, Ghana won a late penalty and converted to win 1-0 over Serbia. Ghana are now favourites to take out 2nd place in the group as they are the first African team to win at the World Cup.
In group E, the Netherlands stole the show over rivals Denmark with a convincing 2-0 win. Denmark had their chances however the Dutch showed their class and went to the top of group E. In the other group E game Japan had a 1-0 win over Cameroon. Japan played well and now have a fantastic chance of going through to the 2nd round after taking the 3 points on offer.
Group F also got under way last night with defending champions Italy taking on South Americans Paraguay. Paraguay got off to a fantastic start and looked like they would go on to win the game however Italy got some luck and equalised late on to ensure the points were shared.
A Well-Being Australia theologian noting 'a point to ponder' says that there many be enormous crowds watching this World Cup (attending and on television), so just imagine what it will be like when, in the words of the Bible, that 'great crowd of witnesses' from the present and the past testify Jesus as Lord and Saviour! Now that is a crowd to talk about!