One night in Mexico.

It doesn’t matter.

Canada should have won in Toronto against Jamaica.

It doesn’t matter.

Canada should have come out in droves to support the team in Montreal.

It doesn’t matter.

Canada should have beat Honduras at home.

It doesn’t matter.

Dale Mitchell isn’t cut out to coach. Stephen Hart should be coaching the team.

It doesn’t matter.

Canada have never won in Mexico.

It doesn’t matter.

The CONCACAF Refs are terrible.

It doesn’t matter.

What matters now is tonight. Leave everything behind.

90 minutes.

It’s not over.

Anything is possible.

Canada is the only team other than Mexico or the US to win the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Our starting 11 are some of the best, if not the best Canadian players, we’ve ever had on a soccer pitch.

We have guys who believe in each other.

We’re up against the wall.

It doesn’t matter.

It only gets tougher from here.

And if anyone can get Canada there, it’s the boys we’re fielding tonight.

Coaching, refereeing, and history aside — tonight’s the night.

Choose to win.

And make it happen.

They’re killing me.

The men’s national team.

Today they lost 2-1 in Montreal to Honduras. This loss makes making the world cup in 2010 really really difficult. We’re not dead.

Dale Mitchell. What are you doing?

First off – why didn’t you start Jim Brennan? WHy? Why why?
Klukowski? No – you should have gone with Brennan.

For TFC it’s a tale of two bad things.

A) Amado Guevara helps Honduras beat Canada. It’s bad for TFC. Bad for Canada.

B) Jim Brennan sits on the Canadian bench until the 86th minute or so. He also missed playing for TFC — and missed most of the Canada match.

I was crazy mad at the officials.

How is it you let the Hondurans spend most of the second half faking injuries on the pitch – then only add 4 minutes of injury time.

Then — in injury time — let another Honduran fake an injury for over a minute (so much that a stretcher is brought onto the field and he’s carried off) and then end the game 17 seconds after four minutes.

It took a helluva lot longer than 17 seconds to get that guy off the field for his fake injury.

Thus – a guy – in injury time – faked an injury and ensured that the clock would run out and Canada would run out of time to tie this thing. Oh it was horrible.

It was another example of CONCACAF refs making terrible decisions.

Canada should be used to it by  now.

For getting goals called back in the Gold Cup, to routinely getting killed by CONCACAF refs, it’s not surprising.

It still hurts, but it’s not surprising.

I was just dying watching this team. And then my friend Brian gave me perspective.

You have to play above it.

You KNOW you’re gonna get a crap CONCACAF ref when you play CONCACAF games.

You KNOW the Hondurans are going to waste time when they’re ahead, fake injuries. (thanks again Amado Guevera for getting Patrice Bernier kicked out of the game)

You KNOW they’re going to HACK DOWN TO THE GROUND every chance they get when Julian DeGuzman has hte ball.

It made me sick to hear Craig Forrest saying that DeGuzman was having a rough game – you would be too if every time you touched the ball some guy took your legs out from under you.

Kudos to De Guzman for getting up and continuing to play. He didn’t pull a Guevara and fake out and injury.

It was rough to watch this game.

For Canada to make it, they’re going to have to play above all of this. They got screwed by the ref AT HOME in MONTREAL. It’s only going to get worse on the road. And there’s no time to waste — they’re in Mexico on Wednesday.

Canada start World Cup qualifying run

The Canadian Men’s National Team started their 2010 World Cup mission with a 3-0 win yesterday against Saint Vincent & the Grenadines.

While Canada was watching European soccer on Sportsnet, there was no TV coverage of the NATIONAL team’s game.

Come on Canada. More people turn out in England for a friendly against the Faroe Islands than demand to see our national teams games. This is one day after TFC have had another sell-out at the National Soccer Stadium in Toronto.

But the National Soccer Stadium in Toronto isn’t going to see the return match between Canada and Saint Vincent & the Grenadines – that’s going to be this Friday night in Montreal at the Stade Saputo.
While I’d prefer to see the game in Toronto – as a fan – I’m also very pleased that it’s going to be in Monteal because then, perhaps, there’s more of a chance that the stadium will be packed and cheering our Canadian boys onto the next round of World Cup qualifying.

Seriously Canada — get behind this team. They’re good. They’re for real. And they’re making it to the World Cup.

Go Canada.

Canada in trouble

Canada lost 1-0 to Austria last night.

Teams are on to Canada.

What are they doing to stop the red and white? Covering Jaime Peters.

I only saw about 10 minutes of Canada’s game last night – i spent most of the night watching the Portgual – Mexico showdown in Toronto.

I did watch the last ten minutes (well, and injury time) of the Canadian game. By that point they were just hoping to get anything near the Austrian net.

Simeon Jackson had a glorious chance one on one with the Austrian keeper with a bouncing ball,  he made contact with it, tried to angle it around the keeper,  and he kicked it wide.
It was a speedy skilled move, but it didn’t connect. That play sort of summarized Canada’s tournament so far. Nothing has bounced their way, and they have had few chances, and have converted none of them into goals.

There’s one more game to go, against Congo. Canada is a long shot to make it to the second round, but there’s a chance.

Go out and win boys.

Canada

I wrote a long post last night about Canada’s Gold Cup game against the United States and how terrible the officiating was.

Then my computer crashed, and post was lost.

The words are gone, but the feeling remains.

Canada was simply ripped off. I’ve checked a number of sources, and by all accounts of the rules of the game of soccer, Canada’s Atiba Hutchinson was onside, and scored.

But the linesman called him offside.

You can read Jonathan Cubas’ account at grassrootsnorth.ca

Canada played really well.  The power  trio of Hutchinson, Julian De Guzman, and Dwayne Derosario are excellent in midfield.

Patrice Bernier had a good game. Marty Nash didn’t look too bad either.

Give this team a couple of years, when Jaime Peters joins, and we’ll be making World Cup finals as often as Canada is in the Canada Cup of hockey.

Game Day

The Gold Cup starts for Canada tonight and The TFC are playing the NY Red Bulls as well.

Two games in one day. It’s great to have soccer overload. I’m going to have to rush home from BMO Field to catch the second match.
I’ve also just done an interview with Canadian defender Jason DeVos.

DeVos is a player in a class of his own. A consummate professional. Completely dominant at centre-back. He led Canada to win the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2000.

He also gives a ton of insight into the life of a footballer from Canada playing overseas.

You can read it here at grassrootsnorth.ca

Premiersolido!

Just a very quick congratulations goes out to Canadian striker Paul Peschisolido. His team, Derby, have been promoted to the English Premier division.

Paul’s been on a number of good teams that have always seemed to transfer him just before they make it up to the big show (Fulham,  Sheff Utd – [who are being demoted])

Good show Paul.  I hope Derby keep you up there next year.

Brennan born for the middle

Okay, it’s about to be soccer week in Toronto.
In the span of 8 days there is going to be 3 Toronto FC games and 1 under-20 Canada friendly.
It’s time for Mo Johnston to put Jim Brennan in the midfield.

No more of this centre-back stuff. And it is centre, not center.
Give Reda another shot. I’m not buying the line that he’s not in match fitness.
He’s had his rough patches – but a goal is not the fault of defence alone. It takes a number of breakdowns to result in a goal. And when you think about some of the guys who were playing midfield in front of him in the first couple of games (Mulrooney, Nagamura) – well, i’m not sure i can blame him for anything now that it’s clear that both of those jokers didn’t even want to play for Toronto FC.
Reda did have a number of good header clears in the games he played.

Move Brennan into the midfield. Left-side where he can carry the ball, and cross it with authority into the box. Also have Brennan take the spot kicks. (Let’s not rehash how ineffective the team has been thus far on corners and free-kicks. I think having Brennan take these would be a vast improvement.)

Wait, doesn’t this mean that Andy Welsh gets relegated to the bench? Yes.
Welsh is overpaid for what he’s done for Toronto FC. The problem is, as an import no other team is going to want him. Toronto is stuck with him. He’ll have some good moments, but the rightful (or leftful) spot on this team on the left side should be Jim Brennan, not Welsh.

Give it a go, Mo.

Here, I’ve gone through the trouble of filling in your line-up card:

Esky – Dichio

Brennan – Edu – Robinson – O’Brien* *if ready

Goldthwaite – Reda – Boyens – Wynne
Sutton

Give it a go Mo. There’s really nothing to lose.

Greg Sutton Interview

Jonathan Cubas of  Grassrootsnorth.ca interviews Canadian, and now Toronto FC, goalkeeper Greg Sutton.  You can read it by clicking the link.

Training camp rocks

The Canadian National men’s soccer team is training in Florida.

Today I interviewed Dwayne De Rosario for grassrootsnorth.ca.

Dwayne made a great point that, in order to be competitive against other countries, the men’s national team needs time like this training camp to practice and play together.

It just makes sense that even as professionals you can’t expect a team to come together a day or two before a big game and sort everything out.

This training camp is good for Canada soccer. Good work coach Hart.