First Person View - St. Kitts and Nevis versus Canada – In Three Bites

    A terrible performance on the night, but lost in the storm of negativity was progression to the next round of qualifying and having a celebratory homecoming return fixture on Tuesday.

    How often will we have these moments to celebrate the team? Trophies will be few and far between and while circumstances could be better it’s best to take every opportunity to enjoy success. Failure will be there all too often.

    Supporting a nation like Canada in soccer is in many ways an exercise in futility and madness. If you want success and trophies on a regular basis, try watching hockey.

    Support is not about the good days, any fair-weather fan can latch themselves onto whatever champion comes passing by, but there will always be something special in supporting a loser, especially when they do come good.

    Inherently sport will always have more defeats to ponder; only one can win, many will lose. While concerns about the nature of progression, this hurdle is behind; having been overcome, let’s hope better competition brings out better performances and celebrate the small victories on Tuesday night.

It was all small axe on big tree; one purchase gets you many.
 

Black Remembrance; Straith to the right; De Ro Captain named.

“Work it, By Gumb(s)!” cried the axe. Four flights to the winds.

The mighty Lars, shook, a great failing Oak, though well-rooted in its unreliability.

Simeon, formerly of fire, doused by the humidity of the steel-drum rhythm, scuffed boots, tired shooting.

In these meek Kitensian times, take Hart in the small victories.
 

Battles are not won in the Caribbean, but in much more hostile climes.

    The poor performance made me wonder about the splits between playing the first match of a pair over an international break at home versus away. Only the first window saw Canada play at home first, as for the next two they will have begun on the road.

    Only that first pair gave Canada the acceptable results they were expecting, namely two wins, each by three goals, though neither was impressive. Subsequently each pair has contained at least one unexpected lifeless nil-nil draw, leading to a question of the role of home-away splits in the matter.

    Getting the diaspora of Canadian national team representatives together poses a multitude of complications and being forced on the road first could be a substantial problem. Most of the lead-up to that first match will be spent in transit, with players arriving at different times and the group as a whole not being able to come together in the necessary way.

    I gather that before this particular camp the group assembled in Florida prior to embarking on the pre-match journey, but the concern remains - how much does that loss of time together and general travel disruption play a role in these underwhelming performances.

    This will require further investigation, Wikipedia here I come.