Title: THE QUDDITCH WORLD CUP RETURNS TO ENGLAND
Description: 7.10.28 | DAILY PROPHET
TAYLOR - July 10, 2010 06:26 AM (GMT)
LONDON-- AMIDST THE POLITICAL FLUX THAT HAS BEEN
CHARACTERISTIC OF LONDON IN RECENT MONTHS, A FAMILIAR AND
BELOVED TRADITION NOW MAKES IT'S RETURN. THE QUIDDITCH
WORLD CUP-- THE LARGEST AND MOST WIDELY POPULAR SPORTING
EVEN IN THE WIZARDING WORLD HAS FINALLY RETURNED AFTER
FOUR YEARS, AND FANS ALL OVER THE WORLD HAVE BEGUN TO
FLOOD INTO ENGLAND TO CATCH QUIDDITCH FEVER.
WHO WILL WIN IT THIS TIME? WILL IT BE THE LAST YEAR'S NORDIC
TEAM RECLAIM VICTORY? OR WILL THEIR RIVAL BULGARIA RECLAIM
THEIR GLORY THAT HAS FADED SINCE THE RETIREMENT OF
LEGENDARY SEEKER VIKTOR KRUM? OR WILL THIS WORLD CUP
BE A CINDER STORY? TO TALK QUIDDITCH, WE'VE BROUGHT IN
QUIDDITCH ANALYST JOSEPH BRIGHTON.
"OF COURSE, THE NORDIC TEAM IS THE FAVORITE TO WIN-- THEY
WON IN THE FINAL IN THE LAST WORLD CUP AND THEIR TEAM
HAS MANAGED TO SURVIVE FOUR YEARS WITHOUT HAVING
MORE THAN A FEW PLAYERS RETIRE," HE SAYS. "HOWEVER,
TRANSYLVANIA, RANKED NUMBER TWO IN THE WORLD AFTER
THEIR DEFEAT OF BULGARIA IN LAST WEEK'S PRELIMINARY
MATCHES, HAS FLOWN UNDER THE RADAR IN PREVIOUS WORLD
CUPS, BUT THEY'RE A STRONG TEAM. THEIR OFFENSE IS THE
ONLY THING THAT COULD SLOW THEM DOWN-- THEY'RE A VERY
DEFENSIVE TEAM, BUT THEY JUST NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO
PUT UP MORE POINTS IF THEY WANT TO WIN IT ALL THIS YEAR."
AND WHAT ABOUT THE LOCAL TEAMS? "ENGLAND IS RANKED
FIFTH IN THE WORLD, AND IRELAND IS RANKED EIGHTH. ENGLAND
HAS HAD PROBLEMS THIS YEAR, AND WITH MILLER BEING OUT
WITH HIS KNEE-- WELL, IT'S GOING TO BE HARD TO REPLACE HIM.
THEY'RE TALENTED, BUT IT MIGHT BE TOO MUCH FOR THEM TO
OVERCOME. AND IRELAND-- THEY'RE GETTING OLD. YEAH, THEY
HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OF KNOWING THE GAME AND BEING LESS
NERVOUS COMING INTO THE BIG GAMES BECAUSE THEY'VE BEEN
THERE BEFORE. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WHEN A GAME IS GOING
INTO IT'S SECOND, OR EVEN THIRD DAY, WHICH ISN'T UNCOMMON,
ESPECIALLY TOWARDS THE LATER ROUNDS, THEY'RE GOING TO
FEEL IT MORE THAN A TEAM LIKE, SAY, BULGARIA, WHO IS NOTED
FOR BEING VERY YOUNG-- KRUM WAS SEVENTEEN IN HIS FIRST
WORLD CUP AFTER ALL."
"FINALLY, KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR WALES, RANKED SEVENTH,
SCOTLAND, RANKED NINTH AND OUR FRIENDS FROM ACROSS THE
POND, AMERICA, RANKED TENTH. ALL THREE TEAMS HAVE BEEN
CONSISTENT, THOUGH NOT NECESSARILY EXPLOSIVE-- BUT IF
LUCK IS IN THEIR FAVOR, IT'S POSSIBLE ANY OF THOSE THEM
COULD FIND THEMSELVES IN SOME OF THE LATER ROUNDS OF THIS
TOURNAMENT.
CONTINUED ON A4
