Balkans. Serbia Presidential Elections.
Some interesting statistics from the elections. Sorry I can’t link to them, they came in an email.

At 7pm voter turnout was 42.3 per cent across the state. In Kosovo and Metohija specifically(official Serbian name for province of Kosovo), it was 31.6 per cent. I was under the impression Kosovar Albanians had boycotted Serbian elections since at least 1990, if not earlier, so that must only be counting the Kosovar Serb population.

By close of voting the ‘estimated turnout’ was 47.6 per cent, that’s 5 per cent of the population casting their votes in the final hour. So Tomislav Nikolic (30.5 per cent) and Boris Tadic (27.1 per cent) head into the second round in two weeks. Since it’s so close (around 105,000 votes), they expect Tadic to win the second round as he ‘should’ pick up the votes of the first round losing candidates. I hope so. Some more number crunching by b92.

Football-Soccer.
You may remember me commenting on the unhappy plight it is to support England when they play soccer (except against Australia of course). This mainly came about because I like to support someone in the World Cup, and I know the only way Australia is ever going to qualify is when the Oceania winner gets a direct entry. Note: doom merchant though I am, I of course will support them right up until they lose the playoff against the 5th-placed South American side

So I lamented England’s uselessness, but this morning I honestly thought I may have to eat my hat, as it were, and happily so. England were 1-0 up against France in the opening game of their Euro2004 campaign. Sure, they may not have deserved the lead, but they had it, and at 90 minutes, with only 3 minutes of extra time remaining, it looked like they had it in the bag. This despite the fact they should have been 2-0 up, but Beckham missed a penalty in the 72nd minute.

Alas, good English lads gave away a free kick, which Zinedine Zidane sliced wickedly over the wall into the left corner as England ‘keeper David James stood back and watched.

1-1. Alright, so they’ll come away with a draw, right? Steven Gerrard (why, Stevie, why?) backpasses to James, who spectacularly takes Thierry Henry out trying to clear the ball. Penalty. Step up Zidane. 2-1. Game over. Thanks for coming ladies and gentleman.

I don’t actually think England are completely useless. They’re just not finishers. Two goals conceded, in the 91st and 93rd minutes, to lose the game. Fantastic.