So here it finally is. The blog that I have been most looking forward to writing since I started this thing. I finally get to talk about my first real experience in supporting local soccer and I honestly hope that even just one person reads this post and decides to come and join the already passionate, but far to small, group of Canadians who came out last night.
Firstly I would like to thank all of the supporters who were in the Canadian section with me whether you are a member of the Red Patch Boys, from the Voyageurs, a die hard Canadian soccer fan for years, or like me were giving the team its first real chance. That group of folks proved that they know how to have a good time and how to be loud for the better part of 2 hours. That is a lot of strain on ones voice and I am sure that like me many of them have paid the price in terms of being able to talk today. I also know that like me many of the others were very frustrated about how the rest of BMO looked last night but I will come back to that latter. The Canadian supporters section actually reminded me of what sports were often like at my University the only difference was we were never out numbered at the school. What was similar is the fact that we were a few hundred passionate people who managed to make a whole lot of noise. In fact I would wager that the 3 sections in the corner of BMO field filled with Canadian fans made about 5 times as much noise as the roughly 10,000 folks wearing yellow.
The game itself was something to behold. Do not be deceived by the fact that both Canada and Ecuador have poor rankings from FIFA they are both better teams then that. It may not have been Argentina or Spain playing in terms of quality and it may have only been a friendly but there was not a single player in either side that did not play their heart out like they really wanted to win this game. Canadian Coach Stephen Hart was not happy with the play of his players after the match but I would have to disagree with him and say that besides a very poor stretch at the start of the second half Canada was the better side and were able to control much of the run of play. A lot of that control I would attribute to the excellent performance that Atiba Hutchinson put in at central mid. The Canadian side were clearly experimenting with their formation but Atiba was one player who never got moved around and he showed that he really was the engine that is going to make this Canadian team go when they get to the Gold Cup.
Canada's two goals in the match came from players making their debuts for the national team. In the first half Vancouver Whitecap's Terry Dunfield scored a very nice strike from 20 some odd yards out which he drove in to the top corner of the net taking advantage of the strong winds on the night. The second goal came from Tosaint Ricketts who took advantage of the confusion caused by Julian De Guzman taking a quick freekick while many of the Ecuadorian players were swarming the ref to protest. The freekick seemed to set up perfectly for Dwayne De Rosario to take it and try to score a heroic goal but instead it was taken quickly to Ricketts who took a couple of touches to settle the ball and move it on to his better foot before slotting it home. The tying goal came in basically the 93rd of a game that was supported to only have 3 minutes of stoppage time, despite two VERY drawn out injuries to Ecuadorian players. When the supporters at the opposite end of the pitch realized that the ball was in the back of the net in the final moments of the match it led to an eruption of noise that would not stop until several minutes after that match was over and the players had left. Ecuador's goals both came early in the half and were probably due to poor defending on the Canadians parts. Firstly leaving the undersized Christian Benitez unmarked on a corner to head the ball in and then De Guzman failing to close down leading to a 30 yard strike being curled into the top corner by Michael Arroyo. Canadian keeper Milan Borjan was left rooted to his spot as the strike either had an impressive curl on it or it was taken by the wind and pushed in to the top corner. Either way though it was an impressive strike which silenced that Canadian fans for about 30 seconds before they got right back to encouraging the team to push forward for the eventual equalizer.
Having already read a few interviews with players it is clear that seeming their home field filled with so much yellow was a tough thing to take. These players are so proud to pull on the Canadian jersey but for them it must really be starting to feel like there is nothing they can do to win over the support of their countrymen. If there home games look like that then there really is no advantage for them since last night we might as well have been in Ecuador with them outnumbering the Canadians maybe 6 to 1. The one nice thing though is that the Canadian players embraced the few of us that were there. First when Dunfield scored he jumped the boards and came over to be embraced by the Canadian fans in the front rows. He was then followed by basically every other Canadian player besides the keeper who all seemed compelled to come and party with a section of red and white clad folks who couldn't stop jumping and cheering. Again on the second goal the Canadian keeper turned and ran back towards the supporters and seemed compelled to come and party with us which I do not blame him for.
Now I have to get back to the rant that I promised I would delay. The fact is that if I had the time of my life at this game and if a couple of hundred fans could do their country so proud then what is stopping the rest of you from coming out. The "Support Local Soccer" campaign was very much present at the match last night and granted it is still in its early stages but I would have liked to see it have a greater impact. I know that a lot of the Canadian press had a hard time making sense of the crowd at last nights came with so many of them spending much of their match reports discussing the lack of fan presence. For people who truly do care about the national team it must be hard to understand. I would bet that if anyone, like myself and my brother, came to this game to give it a chance they will be back again the first chance they get. The match experience was so good, the weather was perfect, the game didn't go that late, and the tickets were affordable but despite that I guess you all had excuses for why you were not there. Well guess what I do not want to hear anyones excuses for why they can not come out and supporter their national team. If you claim to love your country and you also claim to love soccer then you just have to come to a Canadian mens national team. I personally guarantee that you will not regret doing so. I do understand that we are a multi-cultural country and that many of us hold on to our roots but when you consider that 1/4 of a million people play soccer in the greater Toronto area I would like to think that 20,000 of them would enjoy coming to a game like this. So if you coach a minor soccer team or are involved with a club try and bring them out next time because they will have the time of their lives and it will only increase their love of the game which is what we all want. I saw a team from Oakville soccer club last night and the kids were having so much fun, loving the game, and being proud Canadians. It seemed like last night was one that they were going to remember for quite a long time.
I could sit here now and respond to the normal excuses that people tend to give but Gerry Dobson already did that for me and I fully agree with what he wrote here: http://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/2011/06/02/dobson_canada_ecuador/
He may not be my personal favourite analyst of the game but here I am in complete agreement with him. If 10,000 or so Ecuadorian fans knew there was a game going on and were able to get tickets to it and bring their kids along then why do Canadians seem to think that they have an excuse for not being there?
I will challenge the Canadian and Ontario soccer associations to do a better job. Lets promote these games to death and have them all over the place so that there is no room for debate about people not knowing there was a match going on. Every time you turn on a Canadian tv channel in the Toronto area, or wherever the next match is, you should see a commercial advertising the game. I know that kind of promotion would be a greater investment on their part but getting a true home field advantage will only help the success of the national teams in the long run. As for the OSA I would task you of setting up a widely available discount group rate for teams in your member clubs. These kids are the future of the sport in our country and getting them to games would be priceless in terms of what it would do for their excitement and passion. If the Canadian supporters groups can get a deal set up for $17 dollar tickets I would like to think that the OSA and CSA could have set up something even better to bring out even just a couple hundred more kids teams.
If you want a little bit more to read/watch about the match go and check out the stuff that the guys from The Score's Footy Show have put up. Kristian Jack's article for example is a very worthwhile read: http://blogs.thescore.com/footyblog/2011/06/01/canada-2-2-ecuador/
Oh and next post here comes my better photos from the match!!!
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