fan Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 Problems with soccer in Canada start at the top By GEORGE GROSS Add to Facebook The problem with soccer in Canada is this: The soccer ball is round, but it is being used by squarehead executives. How do I know? Well, FIFA -- the world's top soccer organization -- told me so by ranking Canada 55th behind such world soccer powers as Mali, Moldova, Honduras and Slovakia. Not to be alone in this assessment, I contacted Dick Howard, a former star goalkeeper in these parts, member of FIFA's Technical Committee, chairman of Ontario's Technical Committee and respected television analyst. "I think the problem with soccer in Canada is the fact that at the present time the Canadian Soccer Association is not showing leadership," Howard said. "The departure of Kevin Pipe (director general) and Colin Linford (president), left a vacuum in the CSA. Click here to find out more! "We had a chance of getting England's Dick Bate, one of the world's top technical directors, but once he found out the situation, he decided to join Watford in England, something he probably wanted to do, anyway. The problem is that in Canadian soccer the people are not working together. Indeed, the provinces are battling each other and it comes at the wrong time." What do you mean by wrong time, I asked. "You see, in CONCACAF we are not facing the U.S. and Mexico alone. Other countries, such as Jamaica and Honduras have greatly improved. What we need is leadership, which we don't have. We don't even have a president. We have an interim president from Quebec -- Dominik Maestracci -- who'll serve until the next annual general meting in the summer." Howard is not overly concerned with Canada's ranking. He believes it's much more important to prepare for the World Cup qualifiers. In his opinion, Canada has a good chance of getting past St. Vincent & The Grenadines in the first round, but would have to finish in the top two when meeting the trio of Mexico, Honduras and Jamaica. "This is a critical situation," Howard said. " If (coach) Dale Mitchell organizes a proper preparation for these matches, we have a shot of advancing to the next challenge. I can only say that it is time for all CSA executives to start pulling in the same direction." With 19 directors, including 11 provincial and territorial directors fighting each other, as well as a budget of some $13 million to grab at, it might be difficult. Why not make Dick Howard one of the top executives? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fan Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 Although I like Dick and he should hold some position just not a top one. Otherwise just more info we already know about Thought George was in the loop and would have some new info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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