Canada vs South Africa; Post match

[Cheeta]

Let me start the post match topic by reporting the South African victory by their 2nd 11 over Canada's A team has gone out all across that country and the universal response seems to be

so what?

[tarnado1555362291]

Very dissapointing effort. De Guzman was the only player settling the team down and keeping positive possession.

[Bertuzzi44]

And this was with what? 5 or 6 days preparation?

Seems like no amount of preparation helps Dale Mitchell coached teams. 6 days.... 3 weeks... 2 years... doesn't seem to matter.

[Niagara Hammer]

The Mid Field was very poor. Passing and receiving a pass was not anywhere near the play at the Costa rica game in Sept. They lost control of the ball and there fore could not get it to the striker. On the occasion when they got down to the opposing end the cross was usually to nowhere.

!!!!

Fire the coach.

[RS]

Worst Canada match since the Guatemala debacle in Vancouver 3 years ago.

Every team has its crap matches, let's just hope that was Canada's.

[Bertuzzi44]

BEST PLAYERS:

-De Guzman (again)

-Hirchfield

-Radzinski

WORST PLAYERS:

-Stalteri

-Bernier

-Simpson

[Guest Ed]

Calling for a new coach is a bit premature. How about that Dutchman who pooped the bed with Russia? There are no magic bullets for our team. We need to call up our BEST players and have them perform. We do not have a lot of depth yet.

Can someone tell me why de Guzman is not our captain? He had his f*ing legs severed mid-thigh down and got up and got on with it in the GC. Playing at the highest level, our best player -- give him the armband.

I don't think Hume is a starter in a lone striker role. Why start him over Occean; don't get that at all. I don't think Simpson is on form. I don't think Stalteri is on form. Given that, and the fact that we are missing Friend and de Rosario, what did you expect?

I'll have to watch the game tonight before I buy Rudi's assessment though. No offense Rudi.

[RS]

quote:Originally posted by Bertuzzi44

BEST PLAYERS:

-De Guzman (again)

-Hirchfield

-Radzinski

WORST PLAYERS:

-Stalteri

-Bernier

-Simpson

Spot on.

It seems weird to say this, but we really missed De Ro out there. He seems to be that link that allows De Guz to really control the match.

I realize there were a lot more problems than De Ro's absence, but you could tell that the midfield just had no spark out there today (despite De Guzman's best efforts).

[RS]

quote:Originally posted by Bertuzzi44

BEST PLAYERS:

-De Guzman (again)

-Hirchfield

-Radzinski

WORST PLAYERS:

-Stalteri

-Bernier

-Simpson

Spot on.

It seems weird to say this, but we really missed De Ro out there. He seems to be that link that allows De Guz to really control the match.

I realize there were a lot more problems than De Ro's absence, but you could tell that the midfield just had no spark out there today (despite De Guzman's best efforts).

[RS]

quote:Originally posted by Ed

I'll have to watch the game tonight before I buy Rudi's assessment though. No offense Rudi.

None taken, as I'm sure you'll agree with me once you see the match.

I agree that De Guz should be Captain. Stalteri is too much of a hot head and has really fallen out of form since Spurs decided he wasn't good enough to play for their crap team.

[RS]

quote:Originally posted by Ed

I'll have to watch the game tonight before I buy Rudi's assessment though. No offense Rudi.

None taken, as I'm sure you'll agree with me once you see the match.

I agree that De Guz should be Captain. Stalteri is too much of a hot head and has really fallen out of form since Spurs decided he wasn't good enough to play for their crap team.

[CanadianSwede]

Man was there a lot of bad passing.

[CanadianSwede]

Man was there a lot of bad passing.

[Gordon]

I didn't think Stalteri played all that poorly, in fact, other than the red, he was amongst our top 4 players in this game IMO.

My ratings (of 10)

Hirschfeld - 6 Not at fault on the goals, a few good saves

Klukowski - 7 Man of the Match for Canada

Hasting - 5 So-so

McKenna - 4 Struggled playing the ball out

Stateri - 4 two points deducted for the card. Not at his best

Bernier - 3 Awful game, double digits in turnovers.

Hutchinson - 4 Invisible. He needs to impose himself more.

De Guzman - 6 solid game, lacked support, good effort

Radzinski - 5 a few good moments, a few not so good.

Hume - 4 out of position. Worked hard but ineffective

Simpson - 4 overmatched I felt.

Nakajima-Farran - 5 So-so

Not Rated - De Jong, Occean and Johnson

The biggest fault IMO, was how poorly we played the ball out of the back. The midfield turnovers were a close second. Hopefully a wake-up call for everyone. There are going to be WCQ games where there are one or two guys unavailable for various reasons, and our A- team has to be able to get it done.

[Obinna]

McKenna never improved our backline. Klukowski played okay. This was the first time i've seen either for a while now. Staltari had an unusual game, but that happens to everyone from time to time. Unusual preformance by Staltari+additions of Klukowski and McKenna=no chemistry on the backline?

[redhat]

I'm looking for the kind of possession like we did in the Gold Cup, crisper

passing, and better finishing. This game had a lot of long ball, and instead

of taking it to the young South Africans, we seemed to wait for more individual

play. It's very clear that Stalteri and Simpson were out of form, yet the coach

allowed them to start.

In light of the Iceland and Costa Rica matches, this match confirms a style of

play advocated by Mitchell, and that is far from the fluid style under Stephen Hart.

Thank goodness for Lars Hirschfeld.

[Guest speedmonk42]

Calling for a new coach is not premature, when he should never have gotten the job after the U20.

[Guest Dave]

Agree generally.

Thought Stalteria and Simpson both were off their game.

I don't agree with the criticism of Bernier however, he looked fine in a holding/destroying role.

Was disappointed with Issey. He was not nearly at the standard I've seen in the past. Of course I only see him with Canada, so it's hard to really form an impression.

Thought DeJong looked very strong in his short appearance. Technically strong, physically adept, and with a lot of hustle and determination. Would have loved to see him as a starter. I could see him in a more central role as well as on the wing. Maybe try him into a defensive midfield role, with freedom to move up to add support.

[BrennanFan]

McKenna: was the worst player on the field.

Stalteri: had a horrible game. He was a serious liability out there. He has learned nothing since the water bottle incident. The last time we had a really good game from a right back was last year against Hungary when Nsaliwa played.

Hirschfeld: solid game

Hastings: solid game

Klukowski: what an average player, i expected more.

deJong: deserves a start at LB

Hume: he's an interesting player but cannot be relied on to score goals

Occean: did nothing

Hutch: invisible today

deGuz: cannot carry the team single handedly

Radz: he got forward ok a couple times, did well enough

Bernier: ok

Simpson: squandered all opportunities that came his way

Nakajima: i expected more

Johnson: needs more time

General comments: We REALLY missed deRo, he is our spark. Our midfield was totally disjointed. Simpson and Radz have NO understanding with Hutch and deGuz. We need to explore other options at RB. Oh yea, and McKenna is nowhere near the quality of Jason deVos. I would rather see Serioux, Hainault or Brennan in place of McKenna. He was embarrassing to watch and it happens EVERY time he plays.

[brandon]

Midfield was atrocious. Bernier was poor, Atiba invisible and de Guzman was left out to dry. Hume as a lone striker? WTF? I'm having a hard time remembering when i last saw Canada pass the ball that poorly.

[Guest speedmonk42]

quote:Originally posted by CanadianSwede

Man was there a lot of bad passing.

The bad passing was just staggering.

Even the good ones stank cause they were all back passes.

[loyola]

I don't know if I mixed DeGuzman and Bernier during the game but I thought DeGuzman was average today.

Lars was good but not superb (I'm sure hoping for a battle for the number 1 jersey).

Stalteri, no comments.

Give 90 minutes to OO and he'll do a lot more than Hume as a lone striker (our 2 best chances in the second half came from him, passing on the first and winning a long ball on the second).

Good to see DeJong earning his first cap.

I'm not discouraged by this game but a bit dissapointed by the coaching and some players performances.

[Cheeta]

More than a couple of things;

We tend to attach too much importance to meaningless friendlies like this one. It's the nature of a county which has enjoyed too little international success and lacks a domestic league where fans across the country can find comfort in club football. But that's the way it is and will be for the fore seeable future. Tough.

This was an A side. Friendly or no, I expected much, much better. Everyone is allowed an off game, it happens but this match cannot be dismissed as an off game.

I hate being outworked. Hate, hate, hate being outworked. It's all together un-Canadian.

Did Mitchell explain to the lads this match was being broadcast live back to Canada? Because whatever he said at half-time, if anything, it didn't work for a damn.

[Guest speedmonk42]

It was a bad performance, not a team that is crap.

We know they can play a lot better. Both as a team and individuals.

Out of curiosity, how many calls did the linesman blow anyway?

[jpg75]

That was just a brutal showing of football. What else can you say? A handful of dreadful giveaways in wide open play, a cheap penalty, red card, lots of long balls...embarassing. That is the worst passing performance since the 1-0 win over Luxembourg. A complete lack of cohesion, the on-field chemistry was lacking for some reason. Looked like we were always looking for a quick attacking fix instead of trying to build up the play. SA did put pressure on the ball, but we were too tentative alot of the time and didn't force a continued attack. There should have been more movement to the open space, instead i saw alot of standing around and no proactive play. Too cautious, looking not to lose instead of playing to win. Mitchell has to be on notice now.