World Cup Draw Friday

[sstackho]

England, Wales and Northern Ireland in one group! Now if only they'd drawn Scotland, and throw in Ireland for good measure, and that would be a group!

[matthew]

quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

Here's another thought - Honduras, Costa Rica & Guatemala all hate each other's guts. Perhaps we'll see them all get several players sent off in each match, so that they will then field depleted rosters when they play against Canada.

Gian-luca, I love your optiism. It totally brightened my day. Quite right too.

So does anyone know anything about Belize (the team I mean)?

cheers,

matthew

[jonovision]

quote:Originally posted by sstackho

England, Wales and Northern Ireland in one group! Now if only they'd drawn Scotland, and throw in Ireland for good measure, and that would be a group!

I suppose we'll hear this group be called the Battle of Britain (or is it the Battle for Britain?)

[George]

Here is a link to the Belizean Football Federation: http://www.belizefootball.bz/welcome.html .

[sstackho]

Blech, the Euro qualifying format isn't nearly as pretty this time around:

The winner of each group and the 2 best 2nd placed teams qualify directly.

To determine the 2 best 2nd placed teams, the results against the teams of the same group in

1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th place will be taken into consideration.

2nd Stage

The other 6 2nd placed teams are drawn against each other for 3 play-off matches (on home

and away basis) to determine the 3 other teams that qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup

Germany™.

I guess I'll have to put together another spreadsheet.

[Guest Ed]

Please put the Euro stuff in the General Forum. Don't want to wade through that.

[Joe05]

The bottom line is, if Canada want to qualify, we are going to have to beat teams like Costa Rica and Honduras anyway, with Mexico and the U.S. being so strong. I don't see this as a bad thing, it's just the reality of having to qualify for the World Cup. You're not going to get a free ride. I say bring it on!

[Gian-Luca]

Time to set up some friendlies against El Salvador & Panama, methinks (in those respective nations).

Got to get prepared to play in Central America.

[Varsity Tyler]

importantly, this means that we have at the most 7 months to wait until Canada plays at home. bring on Belize : )

[bettermirror]

ok, an earlier post said two teams play each other and then they meet (u.s.a.). but it didn't say who canada meets. does this mean the united states and what looks like a tonne of other countries have to play two extra matches to qualify for the semi-final group of 4 stage?

[DJT]

From http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Soccer/2003/12/05/278097-cp.html:

Canada draws Belize as first opponent in World Cup soccer qualifying

By NEIL DAVIDSON

(CP) - Canada will face modest Belize in its opening round of qualifying for the 2006 World Cup of soccer.

But things will get more difficult from there. Should Canada beat Belize, it appears headed for the toughest of the three semifinal qualifying groups in CONCACAF, which covers North and Central America and the Caribbean.

Canada, ranked 87th in the world, could end up in a semifinal group with No. 19 Costa Rica, No. 45 Honduras and No. 73 Guatemala. Only two will survive.

But first up is No. 174 Belize in a home-and-away playoff in June. The two countries have never played each other.

Both teams were given a first-round bye in Friday's qualifying draw in Frankfurt, Germany.

Belize is ranked 22nd in the region. At No. 174 in the world, it is rubbing shoulders with Cambodia and Kyrgyzstan.

The 34 countries in CONCACAF were placed in 12 groups. Ten of those groups feature preliminary matches. For example in Group 1, Grenada plays Guyana with the winner advancing to play the U.S.

There is no preliminary game in Canada's group.

The 12 group winners will advance to the semifinal stage of qualifying where they will be divided into three groups. The top two in each pool will move on to the final round of qualifying in the region.

Of the six finalists, the top three book their places in the 32-country World Cup finals. The fourth-place team will face the No. 5 team from Asian qualifying in a playoff to get to the finals.

Assuming no upsets, the other two CONCACAF semifinal groups look to be No. 12 U.S., No. 47 Jamaica, No. 98 El Salvador and No. 125 Panama; and No. 9 Mexico, No. 71 Trinidad and Tobago, No. 120 Barbados and No. 171 Nicaragua.

Belize, with a population of around 266,000, borders the Caribbean sea between Mexico and Guatemala. Its motto is I Flourish in the Shade.

[ditty]

I could have sworn we've played Belize before, at some level. I seem to remember Mobilio talking about how sick he got during a trip and how the field was literally a cow pasture.

Anyone else have a flashback?

[Andrew W]

quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

Time to set up some friendlies against El Salvador & Panama, methinks (in those respective nations).

Got to get prepared to play in Central America.

I agree wholeheartedly. Use two road friendlies in C. America to prepare for WCQ and two home friendlies (Scotland and Belgium perhaps) to re-introduce the side to the home folks.

As for our group should we dismiss Belize (and I'd expect we will) I kind of like being in the tough group. The players will be focused and determined to show that we are not the lowest ranked team in the group, plus you come out of that round of qualifying battle-hardened. Methinks the HDC or Crew Stadium doesn't look so intimidating after San Jose, Guatamala City etc.

Another aspect is the ability to sell players on coming home for the qualifying matches. Might be easier to get Radz, JDG et al for teams ranked ahead of us.

Bring it on!! Party at my house if the first qualifier is in Edmonton (even though I live closer to Calgary).

[Andrew W]

quote:Originally posted by ditty

I could have sworn we've played Belize before, at some level. I seem to remember Mobilio talking about how sick he got during a trip and how the field was literally a cow pasture.

Anyone else have a flashback?

I've had flashbacks, but mine tend to focus more on a roadside ditch near Tijuana. [xx(]

[matthew]

Is anyone even considering going to Belize? I was kind of thinking of going, but I was hoping for Antigua or Barbados or something. A friend of mine visits Belize a lot and said it was a lot of fun and laid back, but a little sketchy at night.

I don't want to wait forever for a home date, but those October/November SF qualifying dates look tempting don't they

cheers,

matthew

[bettermirror]

oh i am rubbing my hands.

hey what can any of you tell me about the Turks & Caicos? Do they have any a-leaguers or anyone in lower-level euro leagues? anyone in mexico or south america for that matter? i ask because canada and t & c have been in talks to annex t & c to canada. once in the 70's. once in the 80's. and again this year. this time t & c approached us. just curious. don't make this a big debate. wow, i'd move in a second!

[DJT]

quote:Originally posted by ditty

I could have sworn we've played Belize before, at some level. I seem to remember Mobilio talking about how sick he got during a trip and how the field was literally a cow pasture.

Anyone else have a flashback?

According to the CSA's records, we've never played Belize at the senior level. Nor have we played them at the Olympic level or the U17 level. We did play them at the U20 level once: on August 18, 1994 at the U20 CONCACAF Championship in Honduras --- we won 7-0.

[Franky]

my parents vacationed in Turks & Caicos. They say, at the time (1995), there isn't much there. it is a haven for scuba divers and is protected by nice coral reefs. weather is immaculate all year round. There are a lot of haitian refugees. THere is a local casino, i believe at one of the resorts. However, it is very tranquil and weather is always guaranteed to be beautiful there.

[Franky]

my parents vacationed in Turks & Caicos. They say, at the time (1995), there isn't much there. it is a haven for scuba divers and is protected by nice coral reefs. weather is immaculate all year round. There are a lot of haitian refugees. THere is a local casino, i believe at one of the resorts. However, it is very tranquil and weather is always guaranteed to be beautiful there.

[Gordon]

So there is what? 7 countries in Central America? And our road to the world cup appears to go through 4 of them. Given the potential (likley) semi-final group we are in, Belize may have been the best possible draw for the first round. A taste of CA, but without spicy hot stuff.

[Gordon]

So there is what? 7 countries in Central America? And our road to the world cup appears to go through 4 of them. Given the potential (likley) semi-final group we are in, Belize may have been the best possible draw for the first round. A taste of CA, but without spicy hot stuff.

[Franky]

if canada pulls it off and makes it to the Hex, there could be a fith central american team, as in El Salvador. i highly doubt Panama has what it takes to make it through their group and Nicaragua is very weak and pretty much stand no chance, but i have seen funnier things happen before.

[Reza]

I think the only way we can set up a friendly in central america would be just prior to the Belize match. Other than that, there is really no time to set up a match. Let's play Panama and El Salvador just before the match against Belize.

[beachesl]

quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

Time to set up some friendlies against El Salvador & Panama, methinks (in those respective nations).

Got to get prepared to play in Central America.

El Salvador would be a great place to prepare (especially if the Aug 18 match is in Central Ameica, we could have a camp there for the week before). San Salvador has some decent elevation, like San Jose, Tegucigalpa and (especially) Guatemala City. We need to do some training at elevation, and Calgary won't cut it. How about a friendly in Mexico City in a Sunday in August?

Honduras may have their home game against us in San Pedro Sula on the Carribean coast if they get it in August or September, as the heat and humidity there would be frightening. They have done that before for qualifying matches, to good effect. Canada will see that when they play in Belize City in June!

It would be good if CSA scouted secure places to stay there, as you can be assured there will be hijinks around our hotels!

[beachesl]

For those who have asked about BELIZE as a tourist destination...

Belize City is very dangerous, a cocaine transhipment point with a long history of street crime. Poverty and refugees from elsewhere has created some desperation there, and elsewhere on the mainland. Some of the best diving in the world though, with the second biggest barrier reef in the world offshore. Best diving I've done, and I've been to some great places. And the people are great, if you don't meet them in a dark alley. If you bring your family, leave them at a secure resort (with their own transportation from the airport) away from any populated centres, and make it to the match from there yourself. I loved it there, but it is a lot more dangerous than publicized danger spots like those in Africa, Colombia and Asia I have been to.

Of the three probable Group 2 opponents, Guatemala City is the most dangerous. Even Costa Rica can be a little bit dangerous now, it's no longer the "Switzerland of Latin America" it once was.