Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Group D permutations

I had initially predicted Germany and Serbia, suggesting Ghana may miss out at a whisker. I also suggested this was a tough group to get out of (twas a toughie to call) and so it would seem before the final round of matches. It could go to any two teams. What do they all need when Germany play Ghana and Serbia play Australia?

Ghana: If Ghana win they will finish top of the group. If they draw they will qualify first if Australia win or Australia and Serbia draw, or second if Serbia win. If Ghana lose by one goal they still have a chance to go through if the other game is a draw - they will have the same goal difference as Serbia but Serbia will need to have scored more goals to go through, thus a Ghana 1-0 loss and a Serbia 1-1 draw will see Ghana through but a Ghana 1-0 loss and a Serbia 2-2 draw will see Serbia through.

Germany: If Germany win they will likely top the group (unless Serbia thrash Australia and overtake the goal difference). If Germany draw they will be knocked out if Serbia win. They will be through in second if the other game is a draw or Australia win (unless there is an 8 goal swing).

Serbia: If Serbia win they will qualify. This will be in first if Germany and Ghana draw, in second if Ghana win and probably in second if Germany win (unless there is a 3 or 4 goal swing). A Serbia draw will also see them qualify if Ghana beat Germany.

Australia: If Australia win they will qualify (in second) if Ghana win. If they win and the Germany Ghana game is a draw they will need to win by 7 goals to qualify. If they win and Germany win they will need a 5 goal swing to qualify ahead of Ghana. Anything other than a win and they are knocked out.

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