Hey, you can't fight nature.

Because of a design peculiarity at Royal Bafokeng stadium, some of the bathrooms were absolutely jammed during half-time, and others were empty.

Unfortunately, all the empty ones on this level were Women's bathrooms.

I stood outside one for a couple of minutes, torn. Then former Fulham manager Chris Coleman came over to stand beside me. We stared at the big stick figure with a skirt. We stared at each other. Then Coleman shrugged and walked in. I followed. Someone leaned over a barricade and took a picture of him, which I expect went viral 60 seconds ago. If I'm in the same shot, that could get all kinds of embarrassing.

Of course, when I come out of the stall, there's a horrified looking woman standing there.

"Sorry," I mumbled as I washed my hands. 

And doubly of course, Coleman was already gone.

C.K.

It gets worse every time you see it

File that amongst the worst goalkeeping bloopers of all time. That wasn't a howler. It was a HOOOOOOWL-er.

With England well in charge of this game, Clint Dempsey launched a more than hopeful shot from about 25 yards from goal. Robert Green, the English keeper, saw it all the way. He got down on his knees like an outfielder waiting for a single to roll toward him.

And then it just flipped over his outstretched hands and into the net. 

England's fans - who are outnumbered by the Americans on hand - went suddenly silent. Then it's all U-S-A! U-S-A! 

Score knotted at 1-1. To make matters worse, U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard is having a wonderful game. And he stayed in after Emile Heskey looked to have remodelled his elbow during a studs-first slide.

Whatever the result, Green is going to be lashed for this, and for years. He's been famous for his blunders. Now he's just famous.

TV just showed a shot of David Beckham on the English bench immediately after the goal. He looked as if he was trying to bore into Robert Green's head with his eyes and rip out his spine.

We've had our first great talking point of the tournament. Or, at least, one doesn't involve vuvuzelas. Which are still here, but not quite as annoying.

C.K.

P.S. - The scoreboards don't work. How perfect is that?

Rustic Rustenberg

 

See? Royal Bafokeng Stadium. That's me in the shadow.

 

The difference between print and TV journalists - better posture and shoes. Well, that. And the salaries.

The British media horde, busy sharpening their knives. And drinking awful, awful coffee.

C.K.

Rustic Rustenberg - England vs. U.S.A.

RUSTENBERG - I'm standing here in the shadow of Royal Bafokeng Stadium, awaiting today's showdown between ...

Well, that's all I got. And I copied from a radio guy who was practising his introduction outside the bathroom. But then he wandered away, so I'm left with nothing.

The stadium is impressive - rising out of the lonely veld (don't steal that, American radio guy, I'll be listening). Got a chance to take a look at the countryside for the first time today on our three hour drive out west. 

Wisely, we hired a local driver. Otherwise, the car would've been swallowed by one of the truly horriffic potholes. Or we could have hit one of the many pedestrians walking - walking, not running, not jogging - across the highways between cars. Or ended up sideswiping the careening mini pick-up that had a pair of matresses strapped to the cab - with two guys lying on top and hanging on for dear life. This is not a driver's paradise.

To get to the stadium, you have drive through the centre of Rustenberg proper. Very few English and/or American fans on hand, it would seem. And those who are here seem unusually subdued. Too many scary stories heard, one imagines. 

Security - which has been a smiling shambles - the usual. Four chattering young women rummaging through your bag to little effect, and then passing you through. At the opener, they were putting people through metal detectors and passing bags around the metal detectors. Curious.

The whole atmosphere is jarring after yesterday's euphoric opener - a little bit downbeat.

Sun going down as I write. Temperature dropping quickly as well. South Africa generally confounds the seasonal dresser - absolutely frigid in the mornings and evenings, and very hot during the day.

For now, enjoying watching Leo Messi run wild against Nigeria - though without a final product to show for it yet. Who's doubting Argentina now?

C.K.

Update @ 6:45 p.m. local time: The Globe's Steve Brunt just arrived at the press centre after a five-hour road odyssey from Jo'burg. He got taken in through the main toll road - and the toll booths were completely swamped. A 10 km back-up on the highway. Thank God for our man beyond the wheel, Fana.

"And not a cop in sight," Brunt says.

It's going to be fun getting out of here.

Predictions: Day 3

Algeria vs. Slovenia, 7:30 a.m. ET

A pair of Cinderella sides here, both having made it into the Finals via surprise win in qualifying. Well, the dream will end today for someone. The Algerians lean heavily on an aerial attack, while Slovenia wins games with defence. Watch for Algerian captain Yazid Mansouri - he's the guy scowling on the bench. He's been sidelined with, ahem, a sudden dip in form. That bodes well, doesn't it?

Prediction: Slovenia 1, Algeria 0

Serbia vs. Ghana, 10 a.m. ET

If football is generally a ballet, call this mixed martial arts. Two muscular sides, heavy on attacking vim and both featuring major stars. At this point, Ghana will be glad to stop talking about missing talisman Michael Essien, who's out with an injury. They will have Sulley Muntari back from the trainer's room - he'll lead the attack. On the Serb side, the biggest star is Man United defender Nemanja Vidic. He missed the first match four years ago, and the Netherlands took advantage. Vidic and his teammates will be hoping to start off far better here.

Prediction: Serbia 2, Ghana 1

- C.K.

Germany vs. Australia, 2 p.m. ET

Michael Ballack's World Cup-ending injury a month ago suddenly seems far away - it's given Jogi Low some time to tinker and this Germany is a more flowing, attack-minded and youthful group without him. One thing they might lack with Ballack's absence is snarl. Australia takes a more conservative, defensive approach under Pim Verbeek. Let's see how 21-year-old Mesut Ozil and 23-year-old Sami Khedira fare in the World Cup spotlight - in Germany's last friendly, an impressive 3-1 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina, the left-footed playmaker Ozil looked elegant, and Khedira, paired with Bastian Schweinsteiger to replace Ballack at the back of the midfield, was outstanding.

Prediction: Germany 2, Australia 1

- C.Y.

Predictions: Day 2

South Korea vs Greece, 7:30 a.m. ET

Two sides that have never met in this tournament before kick off the day at Port Elizabeth. Korea has had a pretty good buildup but it all came a-cropper in a loss to Belarus and then, entirely understandably, a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Spain in their final tuner. At least they didn't have to endure being robbed at their team hotel, as three Greek players were this week. The edge may well be Greece's height up front against a smallish but speedy South Korean team.

Prediction: Greece 1, South Korea 0

Argentina vs Nigeria, 10 a.m. ET

Argentina has dented Nigeria twice in the finals, a 2-1 win over the Super Eagles in 1994 and a 1-0 victory eight years ago. They've won five straight matches including a one-sided 5-0 drubbing of Canada last month, and have a big edge in star power. Nigeria were rocked by the injury defection of midfielder Jon Obi Mikel and will bring a more defensive approach with his absence. They have forwards, but distribution is questionable.

Prediction: Argentina 2, Nigeria 0

- C.Y.

England vs. USA, 2:30 pm ET

After some friendly jousting in the press, one of the most anticipated matches of the first round should contain extra fire. The questions here all revolve around England – will they come out firing, or fold back as they have depressingly chosen to do in recent tournaments. The U.S. comes in unfancied and unburdened by pressure. They can absorb or attack – both tactics that they manage well. Highly anticipated first round matches rarely amount to much. Expect this one to be the exception.

Prediction: England 2, USA 1

- C.K.

Forget hot atmo. This is a supernova.

KAI PFAFFENBACH/REUTERS South African fans blow their "vuvuzela" trumpets before the 2010 World Cup opening match between Mexico and South Africa at Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg. (June 11, 2010)

Seats? Check.

Ear plugs? Check.

Big, fat smile? Check.

Forty minutes before kickoff and Soccer City is beyond hopping. It's bedlam. Madness. Vuvuzela inspired chaos. Many feared that getting people in and out of this place could be an organizational disaster. It hasn't been - or maybe everybody just left at dawn. Because the place is jammers.

Impossible to describe the impact of the vuvuzela on this game. It's already deafening. Even to talk to a neighbour, you're forced to press your mouth up against his ear and scream. And then there's still a lot of 'What? WHAT?!!'

Chris Young and I were standing outside for a breather a second ago and he said to me: 'This isn't a game. This is history.'

I wish I could've stuffed you all in my suitcase - it's magic.

C.K.

Click here to view photos from the opening ceremony

Mandela to miss opening game

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Nelson Mandela is seen with his great granddaughter, Zenani, in this 2009 file photo. Zenani was killed in a car accident outside Johannesburg June 11, 2010, just before the kick-off of the World Cup. Also pictured are, from left, Thembela and Mbuso Mandela.

The first storm cloud on South Africa's shining day arrived this morning when it was announced that Nelson Mandela will not attend the opening match against Mexico.

Mandela's 13-year-old great-granddaughter, Zenani, was killed in a car accident following the magnificent World Cup concert held in Soweto on Thursday night. The unidentified driver of the car has been charged with drunk-driving after ploughing into a barricade. 

The Mandela Foundation has denied early reports that the former president's first wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, was in the car at the time. The confusion may have been caused because Madikizela-Mandela was reportedly treated in hospital for shock after learning the news.

While the mood around Soccer City, where the match will kick off at 4 p.m. local time, remains high, Mandela's planned absence will create a pall here. Many South Africans seemed just as excited to see their 91-year-old idol as the match itself. Mandela, who has slowed perceptibly in recent years, rarely appears in public any more.

However, he remains an enormous part of South African life. On our first day here, someone mentioned to us that Mandela lives in the upscale Jo'burg neighbourhood of Houghton, close to our home base.

A day later, as we drove to pick up our credentials, we passed a 'Houghton' sign. I said to our cab driver, "Isn't this where Mandela lives?"

Suddenly, we were u-turning down one of the sidestreets. The cabbie could not continue our journey until we'd paid a visit. Going well out of his way - and we'd agreed a flat fare instead of going by the metre - he drove us past the sprawling villa.

You can't see much. Like every upscale house here, the place is surrounded by ten-foot high stucco walls. But it took up the better part of a block. And there was no visible security presence outside.

"This is Madiba's house," the cabbie said proudly, waving his hand out the window. Another u-turn and we were off again. 

Sadly for all of us here today, that's the closest we are likely to get to one of the world's first citizens. Here's hoping that after a period of understandable mourning, Mandela is fit and ready to meet his country again at a game later in the tournament.

C.K. 

A World Cup moment

JOHANNESBURG

Our hosts here, the lovely Megan and Gareth, took us out on a night-time drive through Jo'burg tonight. We looked over the city from Lookout Point, but the chilly wind drove us back to the car after about two minutes. We drove around the Jo'burg CBD, over the Nelson Mandela Bridge dramatically lit up for the occasion. We headed for the heart of town, and the FIFA fan park at Mary Fitzgerald Square – but it was closed up for the night. No one walked the streets, a marked contrast to the scene earlier in the day. It felt and looked like downtown Detroit, to be frank, and we were all a bit bummed by that.

At Melrose Arch, an upscale area of hotels, restaurants and a giant screen the World Cup concert was showing live from Orlando Stadium, home of the NSL's storied Pirates side. We sat and had dinner, Gareth telling us a story of his days as a young under-20 soccer international, of playing alongside Bafana Bafana star Steven Pienaar and scoring a bicycle-kick goal in Malawi that helped put South Africa into the African youth championship. South Africa won 4-1, the pro-Malawi crowd eventually switching their allegiance to the visitors and saluting them. The very surface they played on was bouncing up and down with the noise, he recalled, until it turned into a rolling sea of green underfoot.
“When it was over, I tossed my shoes into the crowd and I'll never forget the face of the kid that caught one,” he recalled. “He started crying and it was like a cartoon, the tears just sprayed off his face.”
On Friday, Gareth will be in the crowd at Soccer City Stadium, watching from a seat instead of down on the field. He retired from pro soccer here four years ago. I asked him how he was feeling.
“Excitement – absolute, absolute excitement,” he said.
I asked him what he was looking forward to the most.
“Singing the national anthem,” he answered quickly.
Megan nodded, then added - “Madiba,” she said simply, for Mandela, making a rare appearance on Friday at age 91.
Up on the big screen, Toronto's K'Naan came on. It was time for Waving Flag. The entire Melrose Arch contingent joined in. The place rolled. A few weeks back, I interviewed K'Naan in the airplane as he arrived with the World Cup Trophy at Pearson International Airport. He was a wonderful fellow, thoughtful and honest and plain-spoken. And there he was, the Somali-born man from Rexdale now. Canada made it to the World Cup.
K'Naan did the most kick-ass, emotional Waving Flag I've ever heard. In tony Melrose Arch, the whole place kicked ass, one exuberant guy jumping up on stage to dance in front of the giant screen, everyone else content to sway to the music and shout along with K'Naan. Amid a sea of South African flags, a Mexican supporter waved his standard and sang along (one of the more vocal sides at any World Cup, they are well supported here but have grown uncharacteristically quiet here, perhaps a bit awed already at the overwhelming support for their opening-night hosts in yellow and green).
The silent downtown, the vibrant scene beaming in from Soweto, the great company of Megan and Gareth - and hanging over it all in the air, a real sense of history. In the cosy, mostly run-of-the-mill world of sports reporting, I don't think I've ever felt history as strong as tonight, and Friday, when Gareth and 88,000 others sing the anthem with Nelson Mandela in the house, it'll be positively spine-chilling. I don't think I'll ever cover anything as globally historic as this again.
I turned to Cathal. “It took us two days, but we've finally had our first World Cup moment.”

Predictions: Opening day matches

We'll be posting these in the blog day before games, and if you want to tell us we're nuts - in polite language, please - the comments will be open. We start off with a pair of upset calls.

South Africa vs Mexico, 10 a.m. ET

It's impossible to simulate the sound of 88,000 home supporters blowing on vuvuzelas, and that may well be the impossible task for a Mexico side that on paper appears the better one. Mexico boasts some pacey, talented players like young Javier Hernandez, headed to Manchester United after this tournament, but they face a healthy, in-form Bafana Bafana team riding a serious wave of support playing an up-tempo game of their own. Tournament openers can be dreary, but this has all the makings of a real cracker.

Prediction: South Africa 3, Mexico 2
-- C.Y.

Uruguay vs. France, 2:30 p.m. ET

Yes, there's another game tomorrow. By the world rankings, France are the class of Group A. Shows how little the world rankings are worth. Since reaching the final of this tournament in Germany, France has stumbled repeatedly. Uruguay - fielding a tough, inexperienced side with a pair of class strikers in Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez - helped torch France's World Cup hopes eight years ago in Korea. They look ripe to do it again.
Prediction: Uruguay 1, France 0
-- C.K.