United States v. Canada, June 30, 2012 Game Thread [R]

[lovetoplay]

Overall, front line non-existent except for the goal and 1 deflection. Mid field non-existent offensively and mostly run over defensively. Back line mostly held it together but with last minute bailouts. Goalkeeping was mostly bad - one good save but rest amounted to some poor judgements, bad communication & bad distributions of the ball.

Goalkeeping was bad? Not sure I understand that one. McLeod kept this team in the game big time, especially in the first half!

It appeared quite obvious in the first half that the team strategy was to play a defensive game, given the position of the mids and forwards playing way back. My guess is that their plan was to play a defensive game and counterattack should the opportunity arise. Given the emphasis Herdman put on fitness, I'm also guessing that part of the long ball strategy was to tire out the Americans, in the hope that the Canadians could outlast them in the second half. The American ball skills and speed on the ball is superior to ours and to have played an attacking possession game when the Americans had fresh legs would have, in my opinion, killed us.

In the second half when the Americans started to tire, the team got more offensive and showed some good form and plays. Just sad that they weren't quite able to keep up that momentum to the very end.

I do agree that in the first half the ball distribution was abysmal...I stopped counting how many times we just gave it away...not even close to a good pass. But in all fairness, they all gave it away, I don't think you can lay it all on one player.

My analysis is that it was not pretty but the right tactics for this opponent. If you factor in the own goal and the ball that apparently did not cross the line...although the US dominated the possession and attack, Canada did a good job of defending and counterattacking. There is no way that we were ever going to walk all over this opponent.

In those last few minutes, it was mental. Canada picked it up in the second half and appeared to have the edge on fitness but the Americans pulled it off with that need to win mentality.

[Ed]

Watched the game with my U12 daughter and she is learning to hate the USA. The USA looked pretty vulnerable until the last few minutes of the 2nd half. The refereeing was quite home friendly. She either calls a foul on Chapman or keeps the card in her pocket. That was a total homer call responding to the crowd. Also looked like a goal by Canada on the deflected shot Solo got a touch on, as our player put it over the line as Solo tried to corral it. Pretty good effort from the team in BLUE.

[adrenaline]

[adrenaline]

Using the back side of the post to lift the ball back up. Goal line technology can't come quickly enough.

For video, click here and go to 2:07.

[The Ref]

Clear as water that it was a goal. Once again those efing assistant referee distracted catching butterflies.

[gator]

When I saw the play it looked over the line all the way, I thought the ref had blown a phantom foul for the challenge on the keeper but that wasn't the case, it was a goal all the way IMHO! On the NBC feed they were saying "let's not have another goal line controversy here, all of the replays are inconclusive" then they showed a magnified shot where the ball appeared to be clearly over the line!

[The Ref]

According regulations (referees are supposed to check this during their field inspection) the goal posts must be lined up with the back of the goal line. So as in this case if the ball is on the back side of the goal post, it is over the line and it is a goal.

[DJT]

Maybe so but as far as I could tell, by coming out the way she did, she put the American goalscorer into an offside position. When the ball was backheeled up, only one Canadian was between the scorer and the line. We didn't get an adequate replay unfortunately but I'm, at minimum, very suspicious about the legality of that goal.

It was well onside:

USA-Canada-30June2012.jpg

Also, though it looked like it from the main camera, the one from behind the net shows that there wasn't anything close to a handball on either Wambach or Rodriguez:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWAFrHNmfx8

[redhat]

According regulations (referees are supposed to check this during their field inspection) the goal posts must be lined up with the back of the goal line. So as in this case if the ball is on the back side of the goal post, it is over the line and it is a goal.

Yep, it should have been a goal making it 1-1 before Tancredi's goal. It was a such a homer game...having the match at Salt Lake looked like it was designed for American suburban soccer moms in mind. As for their goal, it was a scramble that was on side for the Americans.

Respectable match for Sinclair and company.

[lovetoplay]

...having the match at Salt Lake looked like it was designed for American suburban soccer moms in mind.

What does this mean?