Among the scattered audience in the Seoul World Cup Stadium, David Spendley searches for the positives whilst watching North Korea play in the Republic for the first time in eight years.
As South Korea and North Korea go through their pre-game warm ups, Oasis can be heard blaring out of the stadium speakers. The animosity between the warring Gallagher brothers, however, pales in comparison to the governments of these girls.
The Women’s East Asian Cup 2013 may not come with the sparkle to fill the Seoul World Cup stadium on July 21st, not even close, but when these two sides meet, even if it were to be a game of tiddlywinks, losing must be avoided.
There have been problems in the past, on two occasions in 2008 the fixture had to be moved from Pyongyang to Shanghai when authorities in the North refused the South Korean national anthem to be played. In 2009 there were cries of food poisoning from the North Korean football association after a 1-0 defeat in Seoul and a 2012 Olympic game between the North Korean and Colombian women was delayed by an hour after the Republic flag was embarrassingly displayed on the giant screen.
The North Koreans were not initially expected to participate in the event as the team are known to be cautious of international matches after five of their players failed doping tests in the 2011 Germany World Cup and duly banned from the next World Cup in 2015 in Canada. Head coach Kwang-min blamed traditional medicine that contained musk deer glands to treat the five players as he claimed they had been struck by lightning while training before a match with USA.
They are number nine in the world rankings for a reason though, and prior to the doping scandal their strength was shown with four consecutive World Cup qualifications and three championships in the AFC Asian Cup (2001, 2003, 2008). Moving forward, Coach Kim, his tenth year in charge, is looking towards brighter times.
It’s hardly been shining for the Taeguki Ladies either with inconsistency and an inability to beat superior sides prompting head coach Yoon Duk-yeo to deny a crisis but admitting to a need of finding new strategies before the 2015 World Cup.
The North Korean ladies are warmly received on their appearance from the tunnel and exchange wide smiles and enthusiastic waves with the host supporters. The National Anthem was immaculately respected and then applauded.
The first-half is packed with action and it’s the South Koreans who take the initiative. Kim Soo-yun nets for the hosts in the twenty-sixth minute after Jein Ga-eul showed fancier footwork than Psy in full gallop during a rendition of Gangnam Style.
Two goals in two minutes after the half-hour mark from defender Ho Un-byol turns the game on its head; the first scrambled home from close range and the second a brilliantly executed diving header to send a small group of North Korean supporters from Japan into raptures.
The South Korean ladies push hard for an equaliser but were unfortunate to find opposition keeper Hong Myong-hui in such fine form, and they ultimately fell 2-1.
Without a caution in sight and backslaps aplenty it was an absorbing encounter of fair play and good spirit, and watching the few witnesses in the stadium applaud the North Koreans off the field was a touching moment. Over the last few months, the World has watched the Inter-Korean tension rise to possibly its highest point since the Korean War in the 1950’s. It was pleasing to see something positive, even if it was on a small scale.
Yang Moo-jin, professor of politics at University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, thought the game did little to ease the tension. “This is the harsh reality of where North-South relations stand at the moment,” said Yang. “We used to greet them with open arms because Koreans are one nation even if relations were bad. But this time, both the public and the South Korean government are all in the ‘let’s isolate them more, they deserve it’ mood.”
The score, in the grand scheme of things was ultimately unimportant. The points inconsequential. The lasting memory, even if only witnessed by a small number of eyes, was the triumph of football at its best, when it transcends the competitive nature. For those who did attend, it was a small victory, not for the North or South, but for all of Korea.
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