The Modesto Bee from Modesto, California • 31

The Modesto Bee Friday June 15 1990 C-3 Sports dignity in 1 -0 loss to Italy US regains By MICHAEL JANOFSKY NY Times News Service ROME With abilities in question confidence flagging and expectations fleeting the United States played a courageous soccer match against Italy on Thursday night and lost by only 1-0 when a rout had been widely anticipated Certainly many of the 73000 spectators at the Olympic Stadium were disappointed They jeered their winners as they left the field With the loss the United record in its first World Cup finals in 40 years fell to 0-2 making it virtually impossible to advance to the second round The US has one game remaining Tuesday night against Austria Yet in curtailing the antics of the Italians clearly the better tacticians the American players struck a blow for their pride and dignity after an unsettling 5-1 loss to Czechoslovakia in their opener think we took a giant step said Bob Gansler the American coach preached all along that you be in awe of a team and you be in awe of a situation I think we showed people And yet for one glorious instant it appeared a miracle was within reach Within seconds of the 69th minute Bruce Murray then Peter Vermes had clear shots at the equalizer only to have the goalkeeper Walter Zenga make a diving save on the first shot and deflect the second with his hip The game thus turned on the only major mistake: a breakdown inside the penalty box in the 1 1th minute when Giuseppe Giannini sliced through two defenders Michael Windischmann and John Harkes and sent the ball past goalkeeper Tony Meola From then on it was the game to control Gansler said the Americans had no choice but to let Italy take control make it a 120-yard he said were going to lose the horse race if we In the final analysis each team will likely remember the game for different reasons: the Americans for their fortitude the Italians for their inability to launch the runaway wanted by their fans we have grown and we are psychologically tougher than they By winning the Italians clinched a spot in the second round with a 2-0 record If Czechoslovakia beats Austria tonight in Florence first place in the group will be decided Tuesday in Rome where Italy plays Czechoslovakia In the aftermath of the opening game and the foreboding atmosphere that followed their play against the Italians was nothing less than remarkable Given up for lost among the 24 teams in the tournament and regarded by many critics in even lower esteem than before the American players performed valiantly even if forestalling embarrassment grew to be the paramount issue feel good for my Gansler said they came back from the ashes and have got to feel like the Gansler made three changes in the lineup from the Czechoslovakia game adding steadier defense But it came at a cost and the payback was the total inability to mount any significant scoring threat The Associated Press Giuseppe Giannini prepares to score as John Harkes pursues are no fluke northern TireWheelScrvice YOUR Bmoecsrone headquarters BltlUUESTVIlE P0TENZA HP4 1 High performance all- season radial 2 steel belted Superfiller construction eign travelers have come to Italy for the first round of the monthlong tournament are too many empty seats in the Corona said noting that only two games and the opener between Argentina and Cameroon were near-sellouts Italy spent billions of dollars building new stadiums refurbishing old ones adding new subway lines or expanding old ones hoping the World Cup would act as a magnet for tourists Now Italian tourism officials estimate there may be a 50 percent drop in tourism from a normal June effect of the World Cup has been decidedly said Mario Lippi president of the Italian Association of Tourism in Tuscany expected that almost every hotel room in the city would be booked for the month of June Instead we've experienced a 30 percent drop from ordinaiy REF BASHING Josef Blatter general secretary criticized the refereeing when he told a Swiss newspaper he was and taken by some decisions which should never have He criticized Swiss referee Kurt Roethlisherger for being too harsh" in sending off American Eric Wynalda in the United States' 5-1 loss to Czechoslovakia It forced the Americans to play the final 38 minutes a man short after trailing 3-0 yellow card would have been sufficient" Blatter said THOSE WILD BRITS Eleven English soccer tans some hurling tables and bottles were arrested after a bar fight and a vandalism spree in Alghero From Bee news services ROME Now that the World Cup has taken over this Papal city nothing seems sacred anymore Especially after performance by Cameroon which upset Romania 2-1 to become the first team to qualify for the second round The other afternoon game was won by Yugoslavia 1-0 over Colombia Cameroom showed its 1-0 stunner over defending champion Argentina was no fluke Cameroon has four points and is guaranteed of at least finishing second in Group The top two teams in each group move on along with the four third-place teams who have the best records Third World nations have upset the age-old soccer conventions in the first week of the world championships No team has done it more convincingly than Cameroon's The team has only six professionals among the group of amateurs Only goalkeepers Thomas and Joseph-Antoine Bell and striker Roger Milla who scored both second-half goals against Romania have been considered world-class players think I have scored more important said Milla the 38-year-old whose career is in its fourth decade That would have been difficult to believe considering the reaction of his countrymen Hundreds of thousands of ecstatic fans poured into the streets of Yaounde Cameroon following the victory Taxi drivers blared their horns and motorcyclists paraded through the streets to celebrate the victory People on foot cheered and sang the national anthem Cup Notebook a huge local journalist Blaise Evina Nbo said people are happy The bars are full It will go on all night all weekend until Most of the population of 650000 watched the dramatic match on television Cameroon has never lost a World Cup match tying all three first-round games in its only other appearance in 1982 MARADONA'S HAND Diego Maradona admitted he used his hand to knock the ball away from the goal line in 2-0 victory over the Soviet Union saw the ball coming at me very fast and I instinctively put my hand in front of he said the day after Wednesday's win One of the most gifted players with his feet and his head this was not the first time Maradona put his hands to good use In the 1986 World Cup he scored with his left hand against England in a 2-1 quarterfinal victory Afterward Maradona said it was "the hand of that caused the goal and the phrase became synonymous with the incident EMPTY CUP Italian businessmen might be having trouble sleeping Touted as a boon to the Italian economy the World Cup so far has been something of a bust financially for local merchants One week into the world soccer championship many Italian hotel and restaurant owners are asking where the heavy-spending tourists are Marino Corona president of the government tourism department estimates that no more than 100000 for 40000 or 55000 Mile Limited Warranty Against Tire Wearout Bridgestone will replace your lire charging you only the number ot miles used Certain exceptions and restrictions apply Complete details at store amocesrune 207V SuperFiller 2 Steel Belted BW TICKETS FOR StnincEsmnE S371 BLACKWALL ZtMDGESTUnE 212 SuperFiller Whitewall Radial 2 steel belts RCOT SuperFiller construction raised whiteletters or blackwall tor domestic or 'Imported sporty cars 40000 Mile JJmited Warranty Blackwall A's VS Blue July 22nd JET? (Mother's Cookies Card Day) With any purchase of $2500 or more You buy one ticket at regu-lar price and Pro Sportsworld will give you a ticket for Dad Let Pro Sportsworld take Dad to the A's Sr WE ARE THE HOME OF BRAKE SERVICE GUARANTEED MONROE GAS SHOCKS (LIFETIME) 95 Extra control driving FRONT END ALIGNMENT 95 95 all situations idea for cars light trucks Local Digest City golf A field of 105 in the first flight and 91 in the second flight will vie Saturday and Sunday at Drvden Park as the Modesto City Golf Championship continues into its second weekend The tournament sponsored for the first time by PostNewsweek Cable began last week with the women's flights and the men's third flight The championship flight will he held next weekend Mortensen's future TURLOCK Stanislaus State left-handed pitcher Tony Mortensen who signed a free-agent contract with San Diego at the end of the season probably will be assigned to the Class-A team in Spokane Wash The final decision be made until today or Saturday but a Spokane official expected career to start with the Spokane Indians of the Northwest League Mortensen a native of Rexburg Idaho was the ace of the Stanislaus staff this season after transferring from Fresno State He was 7-6 with an earned-run average of 289 including seven complete games and 80 strikeouts in 99 innings In Northern California Athletic Conference plav Mortensen was 6-2 with a 243 ERA and five complete games A two-year standout at College of Southern Idaho JC he appeared in only two earlv-season games at Fresno State in 1988 Sale oood thru 6-17-90 INSTALLATION AVAILABLE MONROE AIR ONLY A PER AXLE Free4-wheel brake inspection Install new guaranteed organic pads Repack wheel bearings Add fluid il necessary Re-adusl brakes Road test Metallic pads slightly higher Additional pans service and labor are often needed at substantial extra cost Most Cars COMPENSATE ALIGNMENT FOR LOWERED CAR OR 01195 TRUCKS SHOCKS MONROE GAS MATIC STRUTS PARTS LABOR 159 95 STOP BY FOR DETAILS SVXBJEtt STARTER FASHION TOPS 12 OFF ALL NFL- NBA V2 OFF Values to $6999 THE FEEL OF ALL TEAM POSTERS Va OFF! 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