The Footie Fool

Taking a look at the CONCACAF Gold Cup schedule released today and I am struck by 3 things.

Frequent Flyer Miles anyone?

3 matches in 3 different cities in every friggin corner of the US.

Let’s, for argument sake, say that the team starts in Toronto. They fly to LA to play Jamaica on July 3, then off to Columbus for a July 7 tilt with El Salvador, followed by Costa Rica on July 10 in Miami. A total of 8077 kilometers of travel in a week.

At least I take solace in the fact that every team is facing this brutal travel schedule. Our group travels with us. And speaking of our group….point 2

Is it a tough draw?

Oh wait a second. Groups in the Gold Cup are not drawn – they are picked by the CONCACAF executive based on what uniform colours will not clash with each other on the pitch. But I digress.

Jamaica, Costa Rica and El Salvador. At first I thought this was a tough draw. But sober second thought tells me that based on our recent form, ANY group would be a tough draw.

Jamaica came damn close to squeaking into the Hex, but don’t let their last result against us weigh too heavy on your minds (3:0 Jamaica in the final WCQ game). By the time that match rolled around last November the Dale Mitchell player revolt was in full swing and many of our key players didn’t make the trip.

We’ve had good luck against Costa Rica in recent years and know this team well.

The wildcard for me is El Salvador and, if it weren’t for the fact that they made the Hex and recently drew 2:2 with the U.S. I would say they would be the team we would nab points from. But that 2:2 U.S. draw looms large right now. We’ll learn more about them in early June when the next round of the Hex gets underway and they face a Sven-less Mexico and Honduras.

Out Of Touch, being the Johnny on the spot stats guy that he is, has a nice breakdown of the groups. Is Group A really worse than B or C, or am I on crack?

What????No Seattle?

It looks like Columbus will be the best option for Canada fans, and we all know how much Columbus police love Canadian soccer fans. I was really hoping that the rumours of a Seattle tilt for Canada would be true. But I guess I will have to content to watch it on the tube again, listening to some second rate ESPN wannabe butcher Julian De Guzman’s name.

Here are the groups and Group A games. No word yet on TV coverage, but I believe Sportsnet has the Gold Cup rights. Correct me if I am wrong internet.

GROUPS
GROUP A: Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Jamaica
GROUP B: Grenada, Haiti, Honduras, USA
GROUP C: Guadeloupe, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama

Friday, July 3 – Los Angeles (The Home Depot Center)
Canada vs. Jamaica, 5 p.m. (8 p.m. EDT)
Costa Rica vs. El Salvador, 7 p.m. (10 p.m. EDT)

Tuesday, July 7 – Columbus, Ohio (Crew Stadium)
Jamaica vs. Costa Rica, 7 p.m. (7 p.m. EDT)
El Salvador vs. Canada, 9 p.m. (9 p.m. EDT)

Friday, July 10 – Miami (Florida International University Stadium)
Costa Rica vs. Canada, 7 p.m. (7 p.m. EDT)
El Salvador vs. Jamaica, 9 p.m. (9 p.m. EDT)

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