Nah - not kidding. It was a much improved effort - but first of all, my apologies to Run-DeMB. Beaz actually had a pretty decent game - some of his old bad habits and shortcomings were evident at times, but overall, coming back from injury he had a good game, especially so on D, and his dribbling has improved. He shows that he has learned and absorbed many lessons. The fearless, attacking, sure, fleet-footed, goal scoring, tenacious Beaz - vs. the clumsy, scared, got pushed to the ground, freaked-out Beaz, well it is a Gemini thing. As he matures he will learn to switch on the World-Class Beaz, at will - and tell the little boy inside to go sit on the bench and enjoy the show. The team's improvement was in part due to their schedule (more games together under their belt), to being back home (relief, no more piss bags from the stands, or batteries, or bottles), and the shift from a recent game in the rain, with bad lighting, on a crappy field, to a well groomed professional pitch in clement weather. Their touch collectively showed, that a) they are getting more used to eachother, b) it's easier to have good touch and accurate passing on a dry field, with good lights and a well maintained surface, duh! And, c) that there is some coherence to the coaching and strategy. All that being said - yes, it was a weaker T&T team, but witness what England managed vs. ANDORRA! They struggled to make it 2-0. A result in WC qualifying, is a result, is a result, is a result. A solid performance by any other name. And, yes I watched the match v. Spain. I am Spanish-Scottish American. I was born with a soccer ball. My 'buelo played for the U18 of Atletico de Madrid, and in la Liga at age 18. Then he taught organic chemistry for 50 years, but that's besides the point. I started playing and watching games with knowledgeable elders and peers by my side at age can-stand-on-my-own. I get it, hombre! So we don't play like the Spanish. No, we are the USA, we play like the USA. Sadly we don't have a Xabi, or a Torres, or a Senna, or a David Villa - but there are players rising through the ranks of the USA's development program that have those kind of skills. Unfortunately at this point in history, soccer footbal doesn't have the same sway over the hearts and minds of American youth like NFL or NCAA football does. That matters - it's a cultural thing - the way we play soccer football. Good things are coming. Good things. The future is bright, fruitful and positive.
It begs the question, "what would the result of a competitive match between Andorra and T&T be?" Would both teams bunker?
Actually Castro is still alive (according to wikkipedia). He just stepped down as El Presidente on Feb 24th, 2008 EDIT: Memo to self... read the rest of the thread before posting.
As one of the guys standing behind the goal doing the chant in question, I'm pretty sure we didn't intend to do it for 20+ minutes...it just kind of happened that way...it was sort of like the Energizer Bunny...it just kept going and going, until we all sort of went, "ok...we've gone this long, and it isn't losing any steam...let's just keep going..." I know the players heard it, though...as soon as the final whistle blew, Timmay turned around as gave us the double fist pump, and some of the players joined in when they came over to salute the Army.
Props to you for being there and supporting the team, and thank you for being positive and not jumping on me or suggesting that I'm unpatriotic. I understand what you're saying, and my "complaint" is just a personal view which I hope is constructive in some way. Everybody's ears are different. I certainly don't expect everyone to agree with me on this.
I think somebody mentioned it earlier, but ESPN showed a shot of Hejduk sitting on the bench and bobbing his head to the tune.