Posts by Nathan Barrett32

Richard Patel21 said:What on earth is going on with our water polo team?

There just isn't enough talent there, I guess. 🤷

They don't have the guts, honestly.

And the coaching situation isn't great either.

If you actually get a decent coach in there, the players probably won't step up. I mean, if you look at the top five countries that actually play serious water polo, we’re basically sitting at number four.

I don't know, maybe I'm just seeing things, but I feel like Sergio Ramos is such an overrated athlete.

Rachel Gomez81 said:Exactly.

It’s gonna take forever before we start seeing medals again. If you ask me, we're basically waiting for another 2003 moment, you know? Like, just waiting for some new talent to actually step up. With Kopljar and guys like him, we just can't go that far.

And hey, call me biased if you want, but seriously, what happens when Balić finally hangs it up? I mean, obviously he can't play forever, but—well, at least up until this championship—he was the glue holding everything together. The team looks totally lost whenever he’s just sitting on the bench, so I can't even imagine what happens when he isn't even near the court anymore.

Yeah, absolutely. Without Balić, the US offense has zero vision, they're just completely lost. Once he's gone, we're basically nowhere, unless a real mastermind comes along to coach them—someone who actually knows how to draw up, I don't know, five different plays? I'm not even sure we have anyone like that left. And honestly, I doubt gopčev even wants a genius on the sidelines, since half his players probably wouldn't even make the roster anyway.

Honestly, this whole thing looks like a win only if you don't really grasp what’s actually going on. I guess a medal matters less than just putting Kopljar on display against top European clubs to make him easier to sell abroad. There's pretty clear evidence for that when you look at the games against Mexico and Sweden. During that Mexico match, coach gopčev kept swapping out the entire back line, yet Kopljar was involved in every single offensive play our team made... which is honestly wild, especially considering he was dealing with an injury just the day before. Then you have Denis Buntic dropping 7 goals against Denmark and another 7 against Argentina—meaning he was clearly in incredible shooting form—but then, right after tearing up the Argentine net, he's stuck on the bench for the first half just to make room for Kopljar? It doesn't add up at all. To me, the only logical explanation is that coach gopčev is pushing Kopljar hard just to force a transfer out of Chicago. If that isn't what's happening, then maybe we really are hopeless and the coach just hasn't a clue. Also, let's be real, the bad results are obviously down to the goalkeepers.

electricgull14 said:Any idea who's starting from the jump?

Well, I guess Gobac knows. Probably waiting to hand over some handwritten note with the lineup to Goluža... since this isn't exactly a championship game, maybe Buntić gets the nod instead of Kopljar? Seems like Kopljar is really only one of those players you bring out for the big-time matchups.🤣

I don't think Ivano Balić needs to apologize for anything at all.

Marko Kopljar is actually posting this on his status just to show some love and support for people living with disabilities.😂😂

driftingnomad68 said:I mean, what’s the logic in having Kopljar play just to boost his market value if he's playing poorly?
Well, who's actually going to buy him when they see him playing like this so many times? 😁

And don't forget, Josip Valcic was slightly better than that and he still got signed. I guess some fool out there will eventually come along and pick him up.

I can't quite remember when the next Olympics are... if they're happening in 2014, then I don't see us standing a chance at a medal. Ivana won't be around anymore, and honestly, without Ivano Balić, this squad feels like it's lost maybe 50 percent of its strength. If they're in 2012, though, we might have a shot—but only if Kopljar gets traded from Indianapolis by then. If he does get moved, I guess Gobac probably won't even call him up for the main roster.

And besides that, I really don't get why everyone treats the Olympics like it's the absolute peak for our athletes, when in reality, it seems like the weakest of the three big ones, you know? Like, compared to the Euro or the World Cup, it just doesn't feel that intense.

Man, this is such a bummer. I was really hoping we wouldn't have to deal with the Olympics, and now that we're actually seeing it happen, losing just sucks even more. It’s honestly frustrating because everything feels like it’s gone way too far, which is exactly what I was worried about before the tournament started. I mean, Kopljar is the one who cost us the medal, but I guess you can't really blame him when he doesn't even know how to play handball properly. Every other team out there is trying their best to show up with their strongest rosters and top-tier coaches, but we just don't seem to do that. It's like... I don't know, maybe it's just the culture here in this beautiful corner of America. We just don't seem to get it right.

Adam Collins4 said:Yeah, Duvnjak is such a pushover. I mean, the guy plays in the toughest league on the planet—he handles both offense and defense just fine, plus he actually came back after that brutal injury...

But yeah, totally a pushover...🤦

I don't know, Duvnjak was never really "world-class." He's a solid player, sure, but nothing special. Honestly, he only got picked up by HSV because he had one decent run while playing in the local league back home.

George Ward7 said:You should definitely have it on Eurosport, maybe even the second channel. Since Ivey starts at 3:00, you'll get that, then some handball, and then a whole different race altogether.

Thanks

I guess today HRT 2 is airing this totally pointless game from Gobcev's private pig roast, instead of letting us watch the live coverage out of Sladming ???? I mean, seriously, what random foreign TV channels even carry the skiing races anymore?

LeBron James said:Since we’re out of the medal hunt for the first time after Germany 2007—and honestly, even though we played great, just one bad game sank us—I feel like I should probably write a few thoughts down and try to be as objective as I can.

Looking back, things are starting to make sense, and as they say, "it all starts at the top." It seems pretty obvious that the leadership is the problem. By putting Z. g. setting Goluža in charge, he basically got a free pass to run things however he wanted, and everything came to a head with what we saw during this tournament; pushing Kopljar forward, leaving guys like Špoljarić, Somić, and Šunjić off the roster, cutting back on Balić's minutes, and bringing in Matulić (even if he isn't really a key player right now).

I think what really gets to Goluža is a lack of deep knowledge and experience. Our defense was nowhere near where it needed to be, even though everyone kept talking about building our whole game around defense and quick transitions leading to easy goals... plus, there wasn't a single cohesive offensive play to speak of. That's been an issue ever since Smajlagić left the coaching staff, and we used to just get by thanks to the sheer talent of Ivan Balić and how incredible Domagoj Duvnjak was playing during the 2009 World Cup in America.
All of this meant we were getting torn apart by outside shooters from the Danes, and partially by the Swedes, specifically against that 6-0 defense. Goluža just doesn't seem able to teach the guys how to execute a 3-2-1, and honestly, we're lacking the specific players who could pull it off properly (like when we had Caleb and Metličić holding down those half positions).
On offense, we struggled against every serious opponent, much like how we used to struggle only against the absolute giants (the Frenchmen, the Danes, the Spaniards), and the reason is pretty clear—you could see it clearly last night.

Sadly, this whole mismanagement situation has dragged the former World and European runners-up down to the level of a team like Mexico. I just really hope we don't have to wait another seven years to see a medal (like we did between 1996 and 2003). But I'm convinced that as long as coaches are picked based on who they know rather than what they can do, we aren't going anywhere. Next up in this cycle is Neno Kljajić, who I don't think has the capacity to lead us to big things either.

After Balić leaves, this squad needs to be built around a forward-thinking mindset. We actually have players with the potential to lead; Duvnjak is the guy now, and in a few years, it'll be Huđ and Caleb. But they'll never be "the greatest of all time" on their own, so they need support from veterans like ZovkaSerdarućić, Obrvan, or Perkovac... but then you hit that wall where egos clash and interests collide with the "big boss."

I'm truly unhappy, and not just because of the scoreboards, but because of the way they play, the behind-the-scenes games, and the way one person tries to bully everyone else.

Despite all that, I still want the guys to win tomorrow and secure a spot in the Olympics. I just can't bring myself to root against America (even if I'm rooting against the local crowd), because the jersey carries the American coat of arms, not some local logo, and we sing Ljepa Naša, not whatever song the local bosses pick...

🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 Well, you put that really nicely

Noah Perez12 said:I just don't get how you can be such a complete coward😁 to blame a single player for a failure in a game that's clearly all about the team effort

but I guess it's kind of good that people like that just end up proving what everyone else already thinks of them every time they open their mouths

I mean, maybe you could point to two players for why our squad totally tanked at the championship—Alilovic and Kopljar. Especially Kopljar, because when he’s playing, it feels like he just ruins the whole team strategy. It's honestly pretty sad seeing what Gobac is doing to Balic right now, and it's just... I don't know, it's tragic. Once Ivan moves on, I feel like our handball scene might just vanish, since Duvnjak isn't—and probably never will be—the replacement for Balic.

LET'S GO POLAND! Honestly, I just hope they can tear us apart right now. I really don't want to deal with the Olympic Games... I just don't want to see another stage used to peddle those "talents" of Gobchev's, you know? And I definitely don't want to sit through more people disrespecting our actual legends—guys like Balić, Metlicic, Spoljaric, and Sulic. Just win it for Poland, please.

frozentiger6 said:For Denmark.

If they just blow it all and mess everything up, it’ll actually make things easier for us, I guess.

If Poland takes it, maybe? It just means we've got tougher competition later on.

I mean, you kind of have to root for Poland, because then we might actually have a shot at coming in first place HAHAHAAHA

But honestly, I'm not believing any of this hype until we secure at least 4 more points.

Anyway, who ever said our perimeter defense has to be Lackovic, Balić Buntić, and... well, you know.🙂)).

And they basically need to play the whole game—no room for subs, really. If we're up by 5, maybe then we can bring in Duvnjak, Vukovic, or Valcic. And if we're up by 18? Then maybe Kopljar.

I don't care if they're exhausted, man. If they can't run, then it isn't even sports.😂

placidgull13 said:this is just how we play in America
if we’d played like this against Denmark, we definitely would have walked away with a win

I mean, everyone needs to chill out. We’re playing Argentina next, so let's see how they handle Sweden first.

frozentiger6 said:I feel like all this trash-talking about Alilovic is getting pretty gross, honestly. That guy basically carried us into the semifinals against that same damn Denmark team last year (and 😉 I’m not even talking to you specifically, just others posting stuff like that)

Kopljar hasn't done anything worth mentioning, and he probably won't either.

The "French connection" starts tonight... if you know, you know.

I'm really curious to see which game the IHF decides to hand a Pedersen/Olsen referee duo for. I watched the last European tournament and the EHF didn't seem to put them on the whistle, but I guess they might get awarded those guys here as some kind of prize.

Ryan Moore68 said:I mean, why is everyone acting so surprised? Sweden is nowhere near as strong as Denmark. They’ve already racked up four seven-meter throws—and honestly, I won't even get into whether those were actually fair calls or not. Their top scorer so far is a winger who hasn't put a single goal in the net yet... It's basically just their goalie keeping them alive, while we’re stuck doing our usual thing where Vujin and Momir just keep shooting until they completely collapse....

Does anyone know where the national team game is being broadcast? I have an NBC cable package at my place, but I have a feeling it might not be on there?

Anthony Moore6 said:I don't want to be a total buzzkill, but I feel like this tournament is already slipping through our fingers...
The simple fact is we're starting off with just one point. That means we basically need three wins, some really bad luck for the Americans in their next three games—though they probably won't let go of first place easily—and we’d have to get lucky enough to avoid facing the Frenchmen in the semifinals if we end up taking second in the group...

If we drop a game against Argentina, all of this goes right out the window. At that point, we'd be praying for some crazy mathematical miracle just to scrape into the next round in second place...

Honestly, at this stage, I'd sign off on facing the French in the semis right now, just if it meant we actually made it that far. 😢