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It's not even close to over yet


Elias

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quote:Originally posted by Elias

As stupid as this sounds, this win keeps Costa Rica in the hunt.

The reality is Canada needs 10 points. So that means they need to win their next 3 games. I don't understand all this talk of how hard it is to win "3 in a row", they play 2 games in October and 1 in November. And it doesn't matter if they win on the road or at home. They have to win period.

As they showed tonight, they can play on the road. The goal was a complete fluke, granted the shot was perfect, but the defense was sleeping. They easily outplayed Honduras the other night. And, against Guatemala they were missing Devos, Rad, etc. and it looked like they were shell shocked.

So, with a full and healthy team, a lot of them looked really tired and banged up like De Rosario who seemed to be limping the whole game. Rad was completely invisible.

And I would like to publicly apologize to Onstad. He played really well tonight and really didn't make any major mistakes.

Back to the fantasy, I mean schedule.

As of right now, after game 3:

Guatemala = 7

Honduras = 5

Costa Rica = 3

Canada = 1

GAME 4 - Canada beats Hon & CR beats Guat at home

*** Canada beat them at home, so why not away. CR played well in Guatemala

Guatemala = 7

Costa Rica = 6

Honduras = 5

Canada = 4

GAME 5 - Canada beats CR & Guat beast Hon

*** we played well tonight, imagine with a full squad at home, and hopefully Guatemala can come thorugh

x - Guatemala = 10

Canada = 7

Costa Rica = 6

Honduras = 5

GAME 6 - Canada beast Guat & who cares about the other 2

*** so this game is completely pointless for Guatemala as they qualify after game 5. So why risk injuring players or getting cards. Only danger is if they put on a bunch of youngsters who want to show off and destroy Canada. But if the CSA was smart, they would get some of this government sponsorship money, and sponsor the Guatemala team as refugees (I was trying to think of something funny and I obviously am too sad too).

x - Guatemala = 10

x - Canada = 10

Costa Rica = 6 max. 9

Honduras = 5 max. 8

PLEASE tell me this is possible! PLEEEEEASE before I go jump off a bridge.

I've honestly never been so sad about sports in my life :(

That means Honduras cant get anymore points
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quote:Originally posted by nutmeg

Dude. Denial ain't just a river in Egypt.

Actually there dude, the river in Egypt is called the Nile. Denial is when you won't admit you don't know what the flipping river is called. j/k [:P]

quote:Originally posted by nolando

Where the hell is xmas island? I wanna go there to get some of that good shaight you're smoking. Maybe a stright up trade for BC Grade A?

Dunno. When I was flipping through the country list to find Canada, I saw Christmas Island and I really want a couple early (2 in Oct and 1 in Nov) Christmas presents and I promise I won't ask Santa for anything else. Until next year.

For those of you that don't beLEAF any more, WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE? You're Canadian soccer fans. Honestly now.

And I don't smoke nothing. Once again, you guys support Canadian soccer. And you're asking ME what I smoke? :)

Like others posted, anybody can beat anybody in this group on any given day. An like somebody said, it's only 1 game at a time.

quote:Originally posted by The Beaver

Yeah, I hear you, though it is pretty clear to me that not having DeVos in the line-up is a massive blow to the team's confidence and core strength. He is the one player who organizes everyone, and because of this he frees players to do what they need to do out there. If our team feels that they are in good hands, that the defense is organized, then they will need not worry so much about what is happening at the back and make good things happen throughout the field. DeVos is the key to this very young team.

EXACTLY! I don't think that goal happens if Devos is there. And none of this long-ball crap would be happening. And the Canadians would be pushing up a lot more, if they had confidence in the back four (hey that rhymes). Plus, Devos would have been up there on those freek kicks and corners, etc.

quote:Originally posted by Dante79

That means Honduras cant get anymore points

Not true. I'm saying Canada must defeat Honduras, that's a given. Then Honduras plays Guatemala, it would be better for Canada if Guatemala wins cause then they clinch a spot. So then Honduras can still win the last game and finish with 8, but if Canada wins they would have 10, or even a Cdn tie would give them 8 and then it goes to tie-breakers, coin-flip anyone?

But even if Honduras beats Guat in game 5, then going into the last game, Hon would have 8, Guat & Can 7, and CR 6, so the 2 winners of the last game would go through.

It's not over until I sing ... cause then trust me, y'all will start crying.

Gotta keep BeLEAFing people!

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You are very optimistic, unfortunately after watching games 1 and the second half last night (I did miss Honduras and the first half yesterday), it is impossible for me to believe that we can come back.

We played so horribly that it looked like there were 2 Costa Ricans for every one of our guys. We couldn't make any passes (passing around the back four while they were protecting the lead doesn't count, we had too many optimistic single man runs, our defending was absolute garbage, I just don't see it happening.

I can't believe that people are so blind as to say that we had a chance (maybe I did miss something in the first half) but they outclassed us last night in the second half without a doubt. If you try separate Canada fan from soccer observer, you could clearly see that we just didn't have it.

We couldn't create any dangerous chances, we couldn't defend tightly. I remember one play where we were not even in the final third attacking when they stole the ball and had two men in alone. If we had just been pressing and they got that kind of break, fine. But we were not even close to their goal and allowed them that opportunity (as one example)

Yes I am ranting, but I am frustrated. I'm frustrated with the fact that as our program is currently set up we are simply not good enough as a team to make it to the World Cup finals, let alone the CONCACAF hex round.

I don't know if some of the fans attitudes have permeated through the program, the whole bit of there always being convenient excuses, but something's got to change and fast.

I haven't posted in a long time (I used to post on the old board sometimes), but I keep coming in and seeing excuses. We didn't have so and so, this guy is hurt, jet lag, the ref was crap, the weather was awful, blah, blah, blah.

The reality of our current program is this:

- we won't have all of our best playing every game

- our best won't always be at their best every game

- we shouldn't have to leave the game in the refs hands, we should take control and whip all these "chumps" that we play

- we won't get enough friendlies in because of the dispersion of our players

- play pro in Europe, then come here for national games - there will be jet lag

- we have no deep development system, our grassroots clubs focus on numbers and not on quality and so we will never have depth

If we cannot thorougly beat the minnows like Honduras and Guatemala (not to take anything away from those sides) how the hell do we expect to walk on the same pitch as the top sides from Europe and South America without getting embarrassed?

P.S. I would love to see this above post again with demands that I eat my own words in November, but not being realistic is why our program is suffering so much. We cannot keep expecting a magic bullet, things need to change.

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I get the feeling that most of you never believed Canada could make the Hex to begin with, let alone the Gold Cup. If we don't have faith that our team has the ability to win 3 games (which is all they have to do regardless of what the other teams do) then I have to wonder what we are even doing on this board to begin with. It doesn't necessarily mean they will do it, but it is a bit shocking to see how fast people have given up - it's not like they have to win 10 matches in a row against Brazil. Sheesh!

I think some people need to watch that game again to gain a better perspective on what happened. I watched it already knowing the score ahead of time so perhaps was able to watch the game a little more dispassionately the first time round. And I hotly dispute the notion that Canada gave up after the Wanchope goal. They may have been begun to tire in the 2nd half, but I sense a lot of desire & fight out there and it is a shame that there are fans on the board who couldn't see that. It is even a further shame (right to the title of the match report on the front page of the board) to see that the fans have given up so easily and quickly. I certainly hope our players don't give up on their World Cup dreams as quickly as some of their supporters do. If they do, THAT is why we fail. You can only succeed if you believe you can.

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quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

I get the feeling that most of you never believed Canada could make the Hex to begin with, let alone the Gold Cup. If we don't have faith that our team has the ability to win 3 games (which is all they have to do regardless of what the other teams do) then I have to wonder what we are even doing on this board to begin with. It doesn't necessarily mean they will do it, but it is a bit shocking to see how fast people have given up - it's not like they have to win 10 matches in a row against Brazil. Sheesh!

I think some people need to watch that game again to gain a better perspective on what happened. I watched it already knowing the score ahead of time so perhaps was able to watch the game a little more dispassionately the first time round. And I hotly dispute the notion that Canada gave up after the Wanchope goal. They may have been begun to tire in the 2nd half, but I sense a lot of desire & fight out there and it is a shame that there are fans on the board who couldn't see that. It is even a further shame (right to the title of the match report on the front page of the board) to see that the fans have given up so easily and quickly. I certainly hope our players don't give up on their World Cup dreams as quickly as some of their supporters do. If they do, THAT is why we fail. You can only succeed if you believe you can.

G-L, I hear you and agree, though to be fair, many of us just need a few days to bolster our spirits again. I am still wiped out by the Honduran match, to be honest. I am dispirited and thin on hope, but I'm not giving up. What sort of fan gives up before their team is fully eliminated? Probably the same sod who, after 3 solid wins, quickly jumps back on the bandwagon claiming we'll win the World Cup for sure. We've got a month to prepare. Let's hope Yallop takes a few trips to Europe to scout our boys. Take a look at Nsaliwa and Reda and Kluka. let's hope everybody gets fit and into the groove with their clubs, and let's see a fierce, quality battle in Honduras one month from now.

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Win that 1st battle. That's all we need.

We've not been at our best. We've been hard done by. We've been outcoached, over coached, and underprepared. But there'll be a cold day in Hell before we roll over and gift anybody anything.

And maybe that's why I keep supporting.

Still can pull this off. What a start! But still we can pull this off.

And if we don't? Fu'k them! The lads will make sure they'll know they've earned the right to advance. And they'll know they're in for an easier go of it next round.

But bugger me, what a start. Didn't see that coming. Of course I didn't see Simpson, Peters, Serioux, Occean and Pizzolitto ALL earning caps this round either. Never mind in the 1st three matchs.

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quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

De Rosario & De Guzman were outstanding, unbelievable skill & desire they showed tonight. Incredible that some people are actually criticizing their performance - I think they need to watch the game again or start learning about the game of soccer. Grande very impressive in his debut in the d-mid role, Atiba fantastic defensively outside of the one questionable play. I hoped for a bit more from Hume tonight & actually thought Yallop might want to bring Peters (who also looked good) a little bit earlier.

Our biggest failure offensively though was getting the ball to Radz. He did have one great chance though and shanked it unfortunately

I'm upset about the result, but not the peformance. And frankly the result wouldn't be too much to be depressed about if we had gotten the 3 points we earned Saturday.

I finally saw the match on tape, for the second time, and the things I noticed about DeGuzman and DeRosario is that they tried to force the issue a few too many times, trying too hard to make something happen. DeGuzman flashes some great skill, as does DeRosario, but I too have criticized both players at times during this qualification, probably because I expect a lot out of them.

It seemed to me that DeRosario was off form during the Honduras game, but I felt he picked it up quite a bit more during the Ticos match: I think he is a very important player to our national team because I still believe he has "upside" and we haven't seen the best of his game yet. DeGuzman will mature into a terrific midfielder for this program, but he has to work on protecting the ball better, not so much in poor pass plays but more in shielding the ball and riding challenges: he seems to get muscled off the ball too much, and during this game he lost a number of dribbles. I haven't watched him enough in the Bundesliga, but if he lost the ball as much as he did this evening, he wouldn't be starting the next Hannover game.

I got very frustrated at the overall passing ability of the team; we had stretches where we could build up the play, but once the ball got to some players on our team, the Ticos pressured them into give-aways. Jazic spent much of the evening looking like a guy with zero confidence and he seemed to think the match ball was infected with SARS. Grande and Imhoff hustled defensively, but they too gave the ball away far too much at important moments. Hutchison's on the deck forward passing attempts were often wayward, as were many of Hume's. If you can't pass, you can't play.

I have harped on back passing to our keeper and I really dislike it, but if you are not going to discourage it, wouldn't it be worthwhile to have a legitimate target man presence up front? Often we would string together some passes, then a midfielder under pressure would play the way he faced and give the ball back to defender, and that player in turn would be pressured into knocking it back to Onstad. He clears somewhere up the middle of the field: the Tico defender inevitably outjumps our little Lone Ranger up front and Costa Rica gets possession. I was hoping DeRosario could have played a more central role during this match, one of the reasons being this scenario (which happened many times, if you include Onstad's punts). Late in the game Occean was able to latch on to one of these "plays" (if you could call them that), but that was too little, too late.

Possession is the best form of defence and we give up the ball more easily than any other team currently in qualification in this zone. If you can't keep the ball (as England showed during the Euros) your chances of winning are slim.

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You've got a good eye for the game Bearcat!

Couple of things to point out:

DeRosario is the equivalent of Darren Huckerby, lots of skill and pace but gets these brain cramps at critical moments. Like when he tried to dribble out of his own half with four players bearing down on him! That's not confidence, that's just stupid! I noticed that with Yallop gone he doesn't even get off the bench anymore at San Jose, what does that tell you?

Hume and Hutch showed they have that understanding of each other's game that comes from playing together since they were kids. Problem was they kept running out of room! Yallop had them pushed over to the right touchline and a couple of times they tried to link up but went out of bounds. Those two are going to be the HEART and SOUL of this team and should be given the responsibility of getting us to the World Cup...in Germany!

Jazic and Imhof played terribly, Gervais and Grande played as well as they could. Domestic players have an advantage over the guys playing in Europe, it's a given. But the standard isn't high enough to compete.

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quote:Originally posted by canso

You've got a good eye for the game Bearcat!

Thank you for the compliment, canso!

I agree that guys like Hutchison and Hume, along with DeGuzman, are absolutely crucial to our program . . . and their potential is huge. Hutchison hasn't even grown into his body frame yet; he strikes me as the awkward junior high kid who had a massive growth spurt over the summer holidays. He could be a Vieira-like player in the middle of our pitch, a really powerful force. Hume would take over the Radz role, with a bigger striker like Occean (or DeRosario) beside him, and DeGuzman providing the supply for them.

DeRosario's "brain cramps": I love it! And here I was giving him the benefit of the doubt, but I nonetheless appreciate your blunt commentary. Are you Dennis Miller in disguise?

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With our elimination, (ok i know it's still possible to qualify,but wont) we have to sight of sights on South Africa 2010. We need to starting building through our youth system,how to play the game cause

the national side havn't got a clue. 3 poor efforts in 3 games,have

killed the chances of Germany 2006, anyone you thinks otherwise is

a nutcase,we finished. Lets look to better years ahead,without,

Frank,Radz,Pesch,Onstad, it couldn't get any worse could it?

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quote:Originally posted by soccerbeast

we have to sight of sights on South Africa 2010.

You've said that a million times, but why would you want to ignore the World Youth Cup '07 in our own backyard, or Olympic qualification in '08? What about and subsequent Gold Cups that may pop up?

quote:Originally posted by amacpher

Again, Canada only needs 8 points to advance. Not 10.

Now I'm even more positive.

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GUA=7

HON=5

CRC=3

CAN=1

HON-1 CAN-1

CRC-2 GUA-0

GUA=7 >> 7

HON=5 >> 6

CRC=3 >> 6

CAN=1 >> 2

CAN-2 CRC-0

GUA-0 HON-1

GUA=7 >> 7 >> 7

HON=5 >> 6 >> 9

CRC=3 >> 6 >> 6

CAN=1 >> 2 >> 5

GUA-1 CAN-2

HON-1 CRC-1

GUA=7 >> 7 >> 7 >> 7

HON=5 >> 6 >> 9 >> 10*

CRC=3 >> 6 >> 6 >> 7

CAN=1 >> 2 >> 5 >> 8*

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