Player ratings: Canada vs Honduras

[BearcatSA]

I'm going offline so I can replay the match and give some player ratings when I return in the morning; hopefully you can give your own assessments in the meantime.

Off the top of my head, I'd give Radz a 9 out of 10 (everything good for Canada came through him; seemed on his own most of the time) and Pesch a 5 (lots of effort but very little effect; not the best partner for the Fulham striker), but those grades may change when I watch the game again.

What are your thoughts and ratings?

[Daniel]

My first thought was why the hell is Pesch playing instead of Occéan and Imhoff instead of Serioux.

That Peters change was rather odd, too.

[mattbin]

I thought Imhof was okay, especially in the second half. Other than missing that sitter, of course.

Hume was his usual workhorse self. Watson and Onstad were both good, Jazic was cut to pieces in the first half but almost made up for it in the second, until... the Event that Shall Not Be Named.

Hutch looked good but never went forward. DeVos was excellent. DeGuzman may not have been great but he was a means on the ground to move the ball forward.

Once we eliminated the Honduras breaks in the second half, the game was ours.

Note ironic use of past tense.

[bettermirror]

gk-onstad - 6. (did well on the shots he faced, but were right at him. again poor with his feet.)

lb-jazic - 4. (poor first half. good second half until That Pass.)

cd-de vos - 10. (a perfect performance in all aspects considering his wonky knee)

cd-watson - 8. (surprisingly sprite. very well positioned. seemed to thrive knowing he wasn't the main man at the back)

rb-hutchinson - 7. (quality first half. slowed down in the second, but did the job. it's his spot to lose for the rest of his national team career, i say. especially with stalteri suspended - stalty is best in midfield anyway - or central defender???)

lm-de rosario - 7. (good game. did nothing wrong. ran at defenders. defended well. poor service to the box. but considering he is right footed it's not surprising. poor substitution)

cm-de guzman - 8. (ran the midfield. most talented player on the pitch. defence to offence. hands down an 8 - room for improvement. the pitch wasn't condusive to his style of play)

cm-imhof - 6. (did he play? why is he ahead of serioux? hope bircham can play sooner than later)

rm-hume - 7. (relatively poor first half. poor service. second half he really picked up when playing more of a right wing role/striker. set up both of our goals - even if one didn't count)

st-pesch - 4. (hard work. no production. good sub)

st-radzinski - 8. (all of our positive attacks were through him. he just may have won back some fans on that performance. he better come out again for the rest of the round tho - we obviously require his services)

the subs:

rm-peters - 3. (showed his age. at 17 with 2 caps, he's done well and can only improve as we saw a glimpse of his true ability against guatemala and that cross that imhof eventually missed)

lm-simpson - 5. (i think he may be my first choice left back. he has some growing up to do. i can see the cristiano ronaldo comparisons. he will be a positive servant for a LONG time)

cf-occean - 6. (limited time. scored a workmanlike goal. wasn't give enough time to impress me this time around tho - will start against costa rica with pesch suspended - THANK GOD)

no serioux? hope he starts ahead of imhof in midfield.

[Timotas]

Onstand - 7 - Disturbution wasn't great, but he didn't let in any bad goals this time

Jazic - 5 - Horrible back pass, I saw it coming too. In the first half he had a lousy tackle which Honduras almost scored with. Did have some good crosses and some really strong tackles though.

DeVos - 9 - So solid at the back, scored a great header.

Watson - 8 - Give the guy some credit, he was pretty solid back there, but still, he is very slow.

Hutchinson - 6.5 - Gave the ball away too much for my liking, but still a decent performance.

DeRo - 6.5 - First half he was brutal, gave the ball away tons, was really ineffective. Second half he started working harder.

DeGuzman - 8 - I thought he was good, disturbition was great, gave the ball away a little bit, but what do you expect? He gets the ball more than anyone on the Canadian Team.

Imhof - 4 - I thought he was brutal. Missed an open goal, very poor passer of the ball, I've never really liked Imhof in the middle, he really struggles there.

Hume - 8 - Was a real sparkplug, created a lot of chances, we really needed him against Guatemala.

Peters - 5 - Why does Yallop play him ahead of Serioux and the rest of the bench? He's great for a 17 year old, but he isn't ready for playing at this level. His teenage body really doesn't help either, a few times Honduran players would just step infront of him and win the ball.

Simpson - 7 - Well he didn't really get involved, but I give him a 7 because he did win us the freekick that lead up to the goal.

Pesch - 4 - Garbage. Simple as that. He does nothing. Why the hell does Occean sit on the bench while lil Peschy runs around being ineffective.

Radzinski - 9 - Holy sh!t, we really see WHY we need this guy after tonight. He creates most of our chances, hes got great pace, and all around the best player on the field.

Occean - 7 - Did well for the little time he was on. Should really be starting ahead of Pesch.

[nolando]

Great ratings Timotas!! I agree with almost everything, including your comments. My only changes are Deguzman at more like a 7, Imhoff a 5 and Hutch a 5.5.

Agreed that Pesch is done and that Occean should permanently start.

[JayWay]

Please, Pesch is not done. A striker is only as good as his service - case in point, Pesch tonight. We seemed to panic half way through the first half and revert to the long ball. Now how do you expect a player the size of a keebler elf to thrive in a system like that? Pesch would probably be best suited playing off a strong target man like Occean, but that's besides the point because any such duo would feature Radz as the roaver.

Alright, alright. It's possible my teetering emotional state throughout that match somehow clouded my ability to view the match in any type of analytical manner. Hence, it's also possible I'm not recalling a number of instances where Pesch failed to capitalize on solid opportunities. But as it stands, all that comes to mind when I think of Pesch in this match is the image of a 3-5 midget in Red helplessly jumping for balls that would be out of his reach even if he was on stilts.

[Gian-Luca]

Onstad - 7

Jazic - 7 - yeah I know he made a mistake, but just like all of his teammates in that regard. I'm not going to give him a lower mark because he had the bad luck to be the guy who's mistake was pounced on by the Ref

Watson -7 - Best match ever for Canada? He did shank the ball embarrasingly again but was excellent in central defense in the 2nd half when he actually stepped up instead of backing in like he was in the first half. A disgrace that he was given a yellow on the penalty.

De Vos - 7 - He got the goal, but his injury in the first half affected his performance a bit and I wish he had made himself properly available to receive a pass by Jazic, which forced Ante to make the back pass (either that or just needlessly give away possesion out of bounds).

De Guzman - 7 Gave the ball away a bit too cheaply at times but was otherwise excellent

Imhof - 7 Played well in the destroyer position, which judging by the responses here, is a thankless and not very noticeable job. Missed a sitter worse than any Honduran did though.

Hume - 7 Also missed a couple of chances but did set up the goal

Simpson - 7 (sensing a pattern here?)

Radz - 9 he was excellent

De Ro - 7 - a bit harsh to sub him I thought

Pesch - 5 - wasn't terribly effective. Needs to be a super-sub

Peters - 6 - didn't play out wide enough or anticipate but the kid won some balls, played some nice passes and beat a couple of guys on his short time on the field.

Occean - 8.5 - What a great goal he scored under pressure. What phucking $hit call against him.

Stalteri -9 He didn't play but I would have given him a 10 if he had hit the Ref in the head with the Water-bottle and it knocked some sense into him.

Edited to Add Atiba - 8.5 - Can't believe I forgot him initially. He was rock solid back there playing out of position. I would move him to the centre to replace De Vos is Menezes can't go & move Serioux to right back.

[pgs]

Onstad-7 - distribution was poor, but seemed well positioned and was effective on the saves and punch outs.

hutch-7-great first half, faded in the second, but still was pretty solid. seems pretty poised for his age and experience.

watson-7-slow, but was strong in the air, and was getting stuck in.

devos-9- Why is he not wearing the captains armband?

jazic-6- would have been an 8 if not for the flub on the back pass. besides being broken down once early in the game, he was pretty solid and made some great tackles.

dero-6- did not seem to be taking guys on as much as usual, spent a lot of time back around our own box, not the best place for him to be.

imhoff-3- did improve in the second half, but missed a great chance, horrible in the first half, he would have been invisible if not for the many mistakes.

de guzman-5- sorry, i know this wont be a popular number, but i think he gave the ball away far to cheaply too many times in sensitives areas of the pitch. i did not think his distribution was that great, and overall did not play a positive game.

hume-7- played with a lot of fire, finally someone who can play a dead ball, set up both goals.

peters-4- did not have the energy from the guatemala game, and clearly Frank thought the same thing.

simpson-5- did not have a chance to do much

pesch-4- his legs are gone, and that was what his game was all about.

occean-8- should have started, held up the ball better in this game than against guatemala, opened up space for radz and hume immedietly.

radz-9- one of the best games i have seen him play, imagine if he got some service.

Frank Yallop-6- have to give him props for inserting hutch into right back, but otherwise was disapointed with a number of his decisions. Peters? Imhoff struggled and should have been subbed, and pesch starting were the most glaring.

Still, overall a much better game. Once again i am sure i will get criticized, but i thought de guz and imhoff played poorly, and cost us a lot of possession, and their distribution to the wings and strikers were poor.

[Bxl Boy]

Onstad (5) : Onstad...

Jazic (5) : good game with the ball. but a lot of Honduras danger on his side during 1st half and the pass... without that pass, we would never speak about the ref

Devos (8) : a goal and a fighter mentality. we need a lot like him

Watson (5) : some good things but not dominant. remember the poor first half of our defense

Hutchinson (6) : Good sub for Stalteri even if I'd like to see Nsaliwa there. Is younger but has more insurance than Onstad...

Imhof (4) : our worse player on the field. a lot of bad passes, a lot of lost balls and misses a huge opportunity

De Guzman (6) : some good technical skills but wants too much sometimes and lost some dangerous balls in the center

Hume (6.5) : some good, some worse, not consistant during the whole game. but good free kicks and set up both goals

De Rosario (6) : we all know he can better, but I still don't understand Yallop's choice to replace him

Pesch (4.5) : only present during his last 15 minutes. confirms the bad impression against Guatemala. Not to be paired with Radzinski.

Radzinski (8) : everywhere. but too much alone up front in second half when we weren't pressing. a lot of work to hire balls

Peters (?) : didn't play enough... why put him and then replace him ?

Simpson (?) : was he truly on the field ?

Occean : didn't play enough but more likely to be a complement to Radzinski than Pesch

[Natesta]

People rating Watson and Onstad low for this game have lost any credibility they had.

Watson played awesome, him along with De Vos were the core of the defence an did well.

Hutch and Jazic were terrible.

Is it really hard to praise them for a job well done?

[Wilfrid Laurier]

quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

Stalteri -9 He didn't play but I would have given him a 10 if he had hit the Ref in the head with the Water-bottle and it knocked some sense into him.

If only Pesch had taken the corner flag and started beating the ref I would give him 10 as well.

[Cheeta]

Funny thing is I liked more of what I saw of Peters last night than what I saw at Swangard. I'm not saying he has any business on a pitch where Canada's WCQ life is on the line but he's looking like a project worth investing time (bench and game) into.

And yeah, he definately got bullied around a bit out there but he can dribble that ball, he's quick, and if he had the mental ability those big, tiring Hondurian's could have been torn to shreds by the young lad.

Watson looked good. Two decent matchs in a row and improving! Helped having Imhof tracking back more I guess. Even if it was just to sheppard attackers, you'd be surprised how much easier that makes things back there.

Speaking of tracking back everyone must have noticed how far back Radz. was coming. The man ran his guts out and along with de Guzman was getting keyed on all night. Wonderful stuff. He'll put the fear of God into the Ticos yet!

[Canuck Oranje]

My Ratings

Onstad - Didn't do anthing to lose the game. I still find him unimpressive.

Hutchinson - Had some good stretches but looked like he was playing out of

position. Given our current situation going into the next game,

better leave him there. He will only get better.

Watson - Played within his capability and had a decent game as a result.

DeVos - Steady and the goal was a bonus.

Jazic - Overall, I thought he did his job but had some errors. I thought Grizzly

said a while back that Jazic was playing the wing at Kuban Krasnodar?

That means he is playing out of position in relation to where he plays

with his club. Still prepared to stick with him for CR.

Hume - A little too invisible for my liking. Didn't really create much in the

run of play. Also, as a coach, I like players who can switch roles playing the

flanks. Don't see that with Hume. As a result, Hutchinson's overlapping

opportunities are reduced.

DeRosario - Don't see ReRosario as my choice on the left side. He played better

in this game than against Guatemala.

Imhof - Saw a lot of the ball but really didn't do much. But then the only player

really working to get in positions to support were De Guzman and Radzinski.

DeGuzman - On the basis of pure skill, he and Radzinski are the best players we have.

Without the ball, he moved into positions of support. Unfortunately,

there wasn't many teammates moving to make themselves available in the

same way. I didn't think he played poorly; but, I think he can play

better. Still, I think Serioux or Stalteri would be a better partner

in the middle. Serioux with DeGuzman for CR.

Radzinski - Simply the best offensive weapon we have. But we aren't using him well.

Organizationally, the midfield needs to be constructed to get him the

ball in the right places.

Peschisolido - Strictly a Bench player. Occean should play ahead of him.

Yallop - I wasn't impressed. Initially, player selection was suspect.

Organizationally, the starting 11 was not well constructed (only six

players that can play defensively well). The Peters situation was a

wasted sub and shows the need for the Coach to know his players better.

I also feel embarrassed for Peters. The kid has a lot to learn and WCQ

is not the place for learning. That decision is the responsibility of

the Coach. I am still willing to give Yallop time but if we are out of

WCQ 2006, It think we need to reconsider our choice for Coach.

The Ref - If the CSA doesn't go to the wall for the players on this one, it will

be a disgrace. The CSA needs to stand up be heard. I hope TV stations

across Europe and South America show this disgusting horror show because

then it may embarrass Concacaf to clean up this play acting crap.

[Massive Attack]

Canuck Oranje, I totall agree with your assessment on Yallop. The only thing I wanted to add about Yallop, is that he must have made one amazing half time talk to the boys, because the way they came out and played in the second half made me proud to support that team.

[Canuck Oranje]

Yes, I forgot to say the Canadian team looked a lot better in the second half.

[marcl_19]

I'm doing my rankings before im reading everyone elses so if i repeat some1 elses stuff im sorry.

Onstad: played a strong game....better than i'd seenhim, Booted the abll downfield but it seemed to stay in every time.

Hutch: Impressed by his play, but he should have gone up more

Watson: PLayed a very strong match... Can't really fault him for much other than dragging his foot there when the penalty was made but really the ref's to blame there

deVos: Boy did we miss him vs the guats. I was scared ****less when he went down with the knee injury and i hope to god that its still ok.

Jazic: made some nice plays in the game and made some bad plays (one that really sticks out...) but all in all he had a strong game.

Hume: PLayed awesome all game, this guy's all heart and i was ecstatic to see him up front in the second half, i think thats where he should be more often as he had a scoring chance just minutes into the 2nd half.

Imhoff: Had some fiesty tackles....overall played well but had a foul or two in dangerous positions near out 18 yard box.

de Guzman: Inconsistant i thought. Did some nice things with the ball, but my some bad soft passes that got intertcepted. sort of like the equivelant of Jazic's disaster at the end but luckily in less dire situations. Still think he's awesome tho, he's pretty darn good with the ball at his feet

DeRo: Found that he made his way into the middle a little too often (ironically he appeared to yell at peters in the second half for doing the same thing). Sometimes he would be bunched up with deGuz whch pretty much takes him out of the play and juust crowds the space of deGuz. Otherwise he had some bright moments.......i believe his run at the defence in the second half led to imhoff's terrible miss at the open net. His yellow card didnt impress me either.

Pesch: Maybe won 1 ball in the air all 1st half. Didnt really do much to impress me, was just another guy in a red shirt on the pitch...put hum there all the time instead.

Radz: Man we missed this guy vs the guats. He created a few good chances and was even coming back to help out the midfeilders defensively...He NEED this guy bad he's one of our best players....I dont care how much he wants ot travel....when he DOES come, he plays hard

Subs:

Peters: Sort of a waste of a sub. Had only a couple bright moments really. Guess he didnt have much time but neither did the team so the move to simpson was the right one, tho simpson didnt impress vs the guats, a change needed to be made, and with the short bench, what else can ya do...

Occean: Well, he should have had that goal. I didnt notice much else form him but his stats with the mens team should be "3 caps - 1 goal" o well, he'll just have to score 2 on wednesday

Simpson: Didnt see him do anything too terrible...didnt impress either

Stalteri: Not really a sub but her got that red card for the bottle incident. I can't blame him really .... i found it hard not to throw my laptop accross the room at that point...Its a shame he can't play in the next game too but we'll see who franky calls in his place (if anyone) hopefully bernier.

Set pieces: What can i say about Hume on corners and Freekicks?! The guy's damn good. Keep it up big fella

Frank: His boy watson and onstad came up with good performances today, but i dont like the peters sub, i think he should give the kick till the hex (if we make it) befor ehe give's him a call again, switch peters with bernier and im a happy camper. If watson plays like that for the rest of the way (nothing spectacular but he was solid) then im not so against him staying in the lineup....the key is whther or not deVos is there.

[Gordon]

Some random thoughts according to the my view from the centre of the field:

Hutchinson was outstanding at right back. He played really well, supported the midfield by playing high both offensively and defensively. He did not need to push any further forward than he did, and frankly was providing some good support for Watson and Devos when we were in the Honduran half. The latter two are both slow, and I don't think either of the outside backs can risk going too far forward when Hume and Derosario are on the outside.

Watson, pretty good game. There were two or three plays where he was slow to recognize what was going on, but with a comptent partner, and the assistance of Hutchinson and Jazic, was not exposed. There was no penalty, and he had reacted surprisingly well to the danger on that play.

DeVos, scored, generally played really well, a couple of mental error and exposed once or twice for his lack of pace, but really can't be faulted (as with Watson) for the limits on his physical gifts. My recollection of the play where Jazic coughed up the ball was that DeVos went back to Jazic when he really should have continued the play to the right. I might be superimposing a different play onto that one, but that is the way I remember it. There was a lot of open space had he continued right, while Jazic had little space or support on the right.

Jazic. Man of the Match - until 85 mins. He played well in the first and brilliantly in the second. He clearly got orders from Yallop at half time to push up. He had only two options on the play leading to the penalty, into touch or back to Onstad. The latter was a routine play, and it was one part mental error (he didn't strike the ball hard enough) and one part poor pitch (soggy turf slowed the ball).

Hume. Was really quite good. Made a lot of smart runs in the second half. He does not defend real well, but his offensive game was decent. If there was one element of the back four's play that was missing, particularly with Hutchinson, it was missing Hume on a couple of occasions where he got himself into real good position in the midfield and it wasn't recognised in time. In the second half when he was playing in the centre of the midfield, Canada played much better.

Deguzman. Excellent game. Turnovers happen, and I think some of you put too much value in this aspect. He was support the ball very well, and often recieved it under very tight marking. Definitely one of our top three or four players last night.

Imhoff. Excelent game. Read the Deguzman section because the same applies to him. I was very imressed with his game, and can see why there may have been some Bundesliga interest in him. I recognize some of the comments from the TV viewers as bieng very similar to those I used to make about Imhoff, but let me tell you he played really, really well. On free kick he gave up was the best option as the Honduran was cuting across the back and would have had a real good go at net had he not been cut down. It was deliberate and professional from Imhoff.

DD. Mixed on him. He did not get himself into good support positions and there were time when he should have been hustling but wasn't. I wonder about his fitness ot if he has a tweak of some sort. Overall he worked hard, was occasionally dangerous. I think he should have been at forward. In the second half, I was not sure if they were playing a 4-5-1 or had moved DD up front (he tends to stay out on the wing when he plays forward.)

Radz, Was good. Seems to have looked better on TV than live, but, he was poorly supported. He created some chances, for himself and others and that is all you can ask from a striker. Radz was rarely close to where I was sitting so the TV may have been the more accurate reflection of his play.

Pesch. The weakest link, subbed at half. In fairness, however, Onstad seemed to be aiming for his head, despite Pesch giving up at least 6 inches and 40-50 lbs to the Honduran centre halves. Crazy.

Onstad. Other than the decision to punt to Pesch endlessly, there is little I can criticize. Wished Lars was in for the penalty (we needed a shot stopper there loyola ) but overall his play was acceptable. Nearly turned it over to Guevara in the box once - perhaps a bit causal there. Still waiting for that one big save from Pat.

Yallop - I can't really say anything against Frankie's management in this game. Peters actually looked decent to me while he was in. He subbed Pesch at half - maybe should have put in Occean, but I think he went to 4-5-1 formation. In any event, from minute 30 on, Canada was the better team by a decent enough margin. Honduras, for the first 30 mins. put a great deal of pressure on the back line and the ball generally. We don't have the ball skills - or enough support from the midfield (wings especially) - at the back to cope real well with that sort of pressure so a lot of back passes to Onstad was the result. Once Honduras tired, Canada started to take the game to them. Honduras was still dangerous, but the correct 2-0 scoreline would have been an accurate reflection of the overall play. Honduras missed a couple of chances, but so did Canada. But Canada was full value for the 2 goal victory that was stolen from us.

On the inclusion of Simpson and Peters. I have to say that I think this experiment hasn't panned out. Both show flashes, but are not delivering consistently. Their youth shows. Both are going to be outstanding. I have no doubts of this. But I think Simpson may be better off staying with Millwall and maturing his game, and Peters with Ipswich, Derby, Man U or whomever else wants him. This is nothing against either of those players, I just think there development might be better served by giving them a bit of a break after the Costa Rica game. I certainly don't think either have been a reason for our lack of success, and they are not so totally out of place on the field that it is detrimental.

[Marc]

I also though Jazic was good, other than the two bad plays which bookended his game.

[loyola]

Héhé Gordon, I've never seen Lars stop a pk before, against Martinique and the USA he stopped none. Onstad on the other hand has stopped a few in the MLS so I thought before the Pk was taken that it was a good thing to have Onstad in goal but......

I thought that Hutch played very well.

Occean should start with Radz.

I don't understand how come Serioux isn't starting over Imhof.

[bettermirror]

i think a lot of de guzman's poor passes were down to the field. it was absolute rubbish (sportsnet's morning guy called it gorgeous!!! haha - hoser). he is used to the best pitches in the world and it hurts him to play on these. regardless, i give him at least an 8.

[BearcatSA]

I'm back after watching the tape, again. Lots of range of opinion with regard to some individuals! I'll throw in my two bits:

Onstad: 7 - solid, generally well positioned, no real complaints, just don't like to see him receive so many backpasses.

Hutchison: 7 - a good debut at right back, not his natural position. Good speed for covering back and should start there vs the Ticos. Got caught ball watching on a give and go play at about the 70th minute, leading to a shot into the side netting.

Watson: 7 - played within his capabilities and made some nice tackles in the second half when Honduras were on the break. Lack of quickness resulted in letting through a dangerous first half cross when they had a 2 vs 4 counterattack (perhaps a harsh assessment there). Effectively shepherded another Honduran wide in the latter stages of the game, resulting in a side netting shot. Hard luck on penalty.

De Vos: 9 - the odd poor ball, got beaten one on one in the centre resulting in Onstad's first half save but commanding in the air and inspirational. Hope the knee's okay!

Jazic: 6 - picked on by the Hondurans in the first half, not all his fault though (see De Rosario assessment below), gambled and lost with slide challenge, but settled down to have a better second half, including a nice cross. Invited trouble by leading the defence in backpasses to the keeper (I counted 5) and seemed unsettled when he had possession. In watching the video again on the tying goal, I noticed the moment Jazic had the ball the Honduran centre forward started drifting immediately into an interception angle towards Onstad.

Imhoff: 7 - much maligned by many on this board, but as the holding midfielder he did a disciplined job (I agree with you, Gordon!), much quicker then his "World War One German railway gun" predecessers (ie. Colin Miller, Geoff Aunger, Nick Dasovic). Passing was so-so (one minute would hit a poor one, then would follow it with a nice long one, like the one to Hume), missed a sitter, but I had no real complaints otherwise. Like Gian-Luca stated, he does a thankless and not very noticeable job.

DeGuzman: 7 - comes back deep, wants the ball, the defenders are trying to give it to him, and we are trying to initiate attacks through him, which is great. Makes some errant passes, which as a young player he is prone to do, but disturbingly loses possession too easily when he tries to shield one on one. Julian, you're not as powerful as Patrick Vieira, so stop trying to play a big man's game!

Hume: 7 - sluggish first half, but works hard, will take defenders on and try to deliver crosses (unlike a guy like Jason Bent in the same position). Good set piece delivery, played better in central striking role.

De Rosario: 5 - watched him particularly closely on the tape since some here felt he should not have been subbed. Very poor first half on the left flank: 10 minute mark he received a pass from Jazic, tried to shield when there was a man on, got stripped when he should have chipped it up the left flank to Radz (Jazic had made a wall pass run, too, but was partially covered), turnover resulted in a Honduran scoring opportunity. Later in the half, he gave his ball carrying opponent way too much time and space, and the Honduran hit a slide rule pass that put Jazic under severe pressure. Poor defensive midfielding on that play! Had one great run in the second half. Strikes me as a guy trying to do too much, pressing and in a slump. Would like to see him as a partner for Radz, however.

Radz: 9 - worked hard, worked well with teammates, generated offence, a real dangerman who would benefit working off of a bigger target man (Koller at Anderlecht, Campbell at Everton). De Rosario or Occean, anyone?

Pesch: 4 - just not happening. Poor first touch a number of times, and what's the point of playing aerial balls to Mini Me? Won one out of at least ten. Just couldn't make anything happen: on poor form right now as a starter. That said, I think he'd make a great sub.

Peters: 4 - poor positional play, failed to provide width when we switched the point of attack, seemed to lose his focus and was duly subbed off.

Simpson: 5 - difficult to make an impression, but drew the free kick for De Vos' goal.

Occean: 6 - did well to get in position to score, but not enough time to make an impression.

Yallop: 6 - tried Pesch, then rightly subbed him, but should have tried Occean in that role. Subbing a sub for tactical reasons looks poor. De Rosario's brief revival kept him from being subbed earlier, probably for Serioux. With Occean on, Serioux's long throw-ins would have been a weapon, since the Honduran keeper struck me as Dracula (hates crosses!).

Commonwealth Stadium Groundskeepers: 1 - the pitch was a disgrace for a World Cup qualifier in this country. I do not believe they did the best they could do to prepare this surface.

[beachesl]

As for the Commonwealth pitch, you are right. The areas where the football benches were on Sunday had 6 days to be fixed up, including the obvius option of laying new turf. If they can do that over a few days in Skydome for a whole pitch, they could do the same in six days for two very small areas. Another example of the CSA/ASA not getting others to do anything.