Spain reign, Argentina fight back, Germany pay the penalty - and England come home, but not football: The World Cup that was

Spain won the World Cup after beating Argentina in the finalTeam of the tournamentArguably I could/ should simply type ‘Spain’. Even so, they have five in my selection, with three from France, and one each from Argentina, England, and Norway. Before this year that was known as ‘qualifying for a World Cup’. Better still, he didn’t take the late penalty kick which could have made him England’s record scorer at a World Cup. Best GAA/ soccer comparisonMostly to tease a hurling-loving friend who’d been dissing this World Cup, I labelled the All-Ireland SHC Final ‘Dull, one-sided fare…’That description also applied mostly to the World Cup Final, although in the soccer it was the losers who brought the physicality.