Ole, ole, ole, ole!

Spain win 1-0 in extra time, and I managed to get up early enough to see it. I'm sure they held off just to let me witness it as there was no way I was getting up at 3:30am to watch from the beginning.

My regular route to work after getting off the tram takes me down Johnston St, Fitzroy, through the heart of Little Spain, and wasn't the joint jumping! Copious amounts of beer still being drunk (this was 8:45am), crowds spilling onto the pavement and being shepherded off the road by police (whose riot van was discreetly tucked around the corner), TV cameras soaking up the atmosphere, flags being waved at worker drones' cars who tooted back good-naturedly! Apparently, If I'd been there earlier, I would have seen the whole stretch between Brunswick and Nicholson Streets blocked off with an impromptu party held with salsa in the street!

What I saw of the game was fairly spiteful, with the Dutch being awarded plenty of yellow cards just in the few minutes of the game I watched; professional fouls and arguing with the ref. It seems to be a sad sign of professional sport of all codes that the more money involved in the sport, the more pressure to perform, the more you need to intimidate the officials to get your way. Petulant whinging IMHO. Put up or shut up.

Anyway, enough of the juego mondial.

There were plenty of campaign games this Saturday past, although because of a late order to withdraw before making contact, the game I was going to stand proxy for was canceled. Instead, my opponent, Andrew B. and I had a little skirmish-type game (owing to the fact there wasn't much room left in the hall for a larger table) where I fielded 4 squadrons of French cavalry and one battery of horse guns against his 6 battalions of Prussian infantry. His objective was to take the village on my side of the board, and mine was to stop him.

I managed to break one of his battalions and force another into a retreat, but in hindsight I should have used my artillery more offensively, as well as my cuirassiers. By the time I charged his line, of which I'd broken the his left hand column which anchored it, the cuirassiers had suffered too many casualties by being left too close to his advancing line, and the charge was stopped with another casualty. That was it for the cuirassiers and they were chased away a couple of moves later. I also experimented with skirmishing my hussars on his right flank, but that didn't pay off at all and allowed him to advance in closed column, where previously he'd been stuck in square.

My cavalry advance on the infantry

Cavalry line from left flank

Hussars flank the rough ground

Infantry form anchored line

Dragoons and Hussars on infantry flanks, while guns play on left column

My first charge, almost succeeded!

Repulsed to starting line with disorders.

Circle the wagons, boys. Them Injuns' got us surrounded!

The guns limbered and fled in response to a charge, but came back next turn

Guns back in play, Hussars skirmishing on flank.

Dragoons charge artillery-weakened column, while Hussars reform in column

Destroys column, but then crashes into square and repulsed with losses!

Curassiers' failed charge left them within range, blown and with 2 disorders. Ouch!

Chasseurs try to rescue cuirassiers, after guns limbered and fled, but get blasted in the flank for their trouble.

The same medicine about to be handed out to the weakened cuirassiers.

The Prussians gain their objective! Victory to the Prussians!

Meanwhile, Tim and Pete played a meat-grinder of a game against Geoff in order to try and retake the town of Spitznak. Tim's Austrian hordes tried again and again to get a foothold in the town but were repulsed again and again only by appallingly bad dice rolling! Pete had better luck and although faced with mounted grenadiers, managed to pulverize them with artillery fire until they broke off for greener pastures, then met Tim's fresh hussar unit which routed them. Porteous holds on to Spitznak, but is severely weakened in the effort. Fresh pickings for next round!

Meanwhile, a coup was declared in our team with me rising to rule Frieldland-Hamsburg! (Just a cunning plan by our team to abrogate all existing treaties and do the dirty on Jim, who didn't do too well in his battles on Saturday). I'll post my declaration in another post anon.