I left the SFs last night at full time with a mix of emotions.
Anger, disappointment, frustration and a degree of hopelessness.....
While Mr and Mrs Great Unwashed and the kids stayed behind to cheer the Aussies on a lap of honour, I had to chuckle.
Sure as non regular fitba followers they may have decided to just join in the Olympic Spirit and display a bit of nationalism, but if ever there was a failed campaign, that did NOT deserve a standing ovation, it was this one.
Much hope was placed on a medal showing by the home side, perhaps as a means to attracting more bums on seats at domestic games, but it has all gone pear shaped.
We were quite simply not up to it.
And it was the overage players who mainly I feel, let us down.
Yes, they will be disappointed, yes they tried and all that....but
I have long harboured doubts (it is a matter of public record) about the ability of Mark Viduka, and am still of the firm belief that he is a holder up of the ball rather than a chance creating goalscorer.
Last night was a prime example.
Yes, he may very well be patriotic etc, but he does not put the ball in the net when it matters.
The fact that he was top scorer in Scotland last year perhaps sadly says as much about the game in Scotland as anything else.
Skoko was another failure.
Gee whiz, he couldn;t even get bloody corners across!!!
And this was a man we imported half way across the globe as one of our over age players!!
Out of the 3 overage players, once again only Stan the man did us proud.
I thought we could have played all night and would never have scored.
Thankfully Honduras figured the same, and stuck out a boot to give us something to celebrate.
Simon Colosimo once again gave the ball away which led directly to a goal, and I for one am NOT upset that he didn't;t sign for Marconi.
I'm afraid I'm beginning to put Simon in the same category as some others who 'think' they are a lot better than they actually are.
And perhaps even WE have all became victims of such hype and started to think that we are a lot better than we are...
As the saying goes though, results speak for themselves, and three defeats in three games on home soil should hopefully ensure some deep soul searching.
yes, we played flashes of 'pretty' football at times, but lordy, did I nearly suffer apoplexy a few times when we tried to play 'sexy' football at the back.
Raul Blanco, is not the main villain in my opinion, although I will take him to task for this.
It appeared to me that what we were desperately missing (and was supplied in copious quantities by Honduras number 9) was FLAIR.
Too often our attacks were fairly repetitive forays, and any crosses knocked in were easily dealt with.
What Australia was crying out for was an attacker possessing individual skill and flair...that person was IMHO Archie Thompson.
But he never even got a look as sub.
Who do WE bring on in a late effort to save the game...Clayton Zane!!
No disrespect to him, and I know he had a good header, but if Viduka couldn't;t do much last night, what was Zane( a similar style of player) going to do?
I know it is not the warm fuzzy statement that we have been used to over the last few days, but I felt that this team let football in this country down very badly.
So much was expected of them, and they quite simply failed to deliver.
We certainly won't attract many new followers as a result of their efforts, but I have to be honest and say that I always had doubts that even if we won it that we would.
A fair proportion of the crowd last night had probably never been to a football game before, and probably will only come out for 'big name' games in future.
While there is an argument that we have to convert them to the national side first before we manage to get them to the domestic product, I have long wondered if indeed that is the case.
One Olympic ticket holder I would quite happily not see again is the middle aged woman who sat next to me.
When the Aussie team was called out she turned to me and said, patronisingly, "All good Australian names....."
needless to say my reply meant that she didn't;t speak to me for the rest of the night....
The Hondurans deserved their boos, but there was no way I thought the Olyroos deserved a lap of honour, let's be fair dinkum.
It is now a two horse race between Scotland and Australia to see whose fans can claim the most 'glorious defeats'.
Personally, I've had enough celebrations of glorious defeats.