Losing in sports can become a form of social art work. There is a certain je ne sais quoi over a side which has a certain character, or passage of youth, that rallies people behind inept teams which seem more adept at losing than winning. Fans can deal with seeing their David hitting himself in the head with a pebble provided David is blossoming into that goliath killer.
Take TFC as an example. Against all odds it had defied prognostications that no one cares about soccer. During the early years people packed BMO Field descending Toronto for a brief period into a soccer supporting renaissance sipping on five year plan Dixie cups like freshman rampaging on frosh week.
The seasons can drag on but the decades montage away in seconds. It took less than half a decade for the Toronto sports fan to realize they were being sold a product which did not match the 'Toronto' pricing they were paying.
The missed on Mista DP signing, endless streams of different coaches and the first ever Canadian DP Julian de Guzman sponsoring a photoshopped insult of front office apparatchik Earl Cochrane are small examples of the disasters which lead MLSE to take an unprecedented move in lowering ticket prices to first year listings.
Lower ticket prices made possible by Tom Anselmi and friends are meant to be the TFC Delorean, a vehicle of psychic proportions to create in the minds of the BMO faithful a time warp to go back seven years while processing an admission of grievous sporting error.
Fans seem willing to give their champion a chance figure it out after a fair bribe to acquire another season of patience.
The rollback was a massive mea culpa for a company bent on profits, whose acronym was once described as Making Losing $eem Easy. But with all credit due they made the tough call thereby stemming the onslaught of fan discontent. Nothing wins fans over like the biggest sports company in Canada taking it on the chin with a smile. It may have been the shrewdest move made by MLSE, ever.
Now that TFC is looking to find ways for fans and supporters to fall in love again for the first time with reasonable pricing and improved on field effort, their Canadian rivals in Vancouver and Montreal are looking to break into the top MLS sides discussion. In 2013 it appears the big professional three finally seem to have the sharp end of the stick pointing forward.
This leaves the perpetually lagging Canadian national body, the CSA, meandering through the motions throughout the course of its existence. No mea culpas and no evidence of change resulting in wins. Repetitive failure has created a warm blanket of excuses and minimal exceptions in an attempt to veil themselves from the sight of scrutiny.
Throughout the Canadian history of national team appointments it has been a disturbing cycle of former players taking over as interim coach followed by the promotion of friends from within the CSA.
Across the early 1980' through to 1999 this sort of promotion was commonplace.
The most successful was Tony Waiters who lead the program multiple times while taking the team to the sole World Cup it has ever attended. However, it is questionable if his continued appointment best served the program.
Other coaches include former Canadian international Bruce Wilson. Ontario Soccer Association technical director and Waiters assistant coach Bob Bearpark. Bearpark begat CSA youth coach Tony Taylor. Taylor quit which lead to former Canadian international Bob Lenarduzzi's appointment. Following Lendarduzzi and after former Canadian international Bruce Twamley, what could be considered the lone outsider in almost two decades saw Holger Osieck take over.
Osieck lead Canada to its first major title since the 1904 Olympics by winning the 2000 Gold Cup.
After a series of failed campaigns and disgruntled players the old way of internal promotion ensued with former Canadian international Frank Yallop taking over.
Since 2006 there has been a recent merry go round of individuals which should raise alarm regarding the appointment procedure for the men's program. There seems to be a continual process where success takes a backseat to those within the CSA structure.
Once Frank Yallop left to coach the LA Galaxy, it was his assistant another a former Canadian international in Dale Mitchell who took over the reigns. Mitchell’s announcement came prior to the 2007 U20 World Cup that was held in Canada and he lead the U-20 Canadian side into becoming the first ever host nation to never score a goal.
Stephan Hart, previously the Technical Director of Soccer Nova Soctia, ever present CSA youth coach, once assistant coach to Dale Mitchell and eventual CSA Technical Director, replaced Mitchell. It was under Hart that Canada was unable to beat minnows such as Puerto Rico at home and saw Canada take on a supremely embarrassing 8-1 loss in Honduras.
The methodology of appointments has been an ongoing cycle spanning multiple decades and two centuries leading to close calls and embarrassing moments with glory a very rare occurrence.
It would be fitting for parody if it not for examining the list of past appointments lends credibility to the assumption that the selection process appears to be mired by cronyism.
The myth that Canada does not have talented players on the national team is false. A team with players that play in the good competitions or feature for mid league sides around the world should beat on the little island nations as a bare minimum on a very regular basis.
Canada has not done that in years.
There is something to be said that the best two national team coaches since Holger Osieck were on the women’s side of the soccer house in Carolina Morace and John Herdman. Both of whom came from outside the CSA and do their best Sinatra impression by doing it their way.
Seems the ladies do not mind doing something called winning.
Imagine if the men were treated as unfairly at the Olympic games as the women were against the Americans, unjustly losing 4-3? To come back and beat France after the previous debacle and win a medal was a mark of leadership, desire and the tough mentality the men don’t have, haven’t had and won’t have until the CSA admits it does not know what it is doing when it comes to the men’s program.
Two vital wasted rounds of friendly matches. Would it not be logical to have the new coach of the program overseeing the vetting of the youth Canada has produced considering he will be in charge of the team in what one would hope to be in the near future?
That is unless the CSA intends to promote from within.
Former player or technical director temporarily taking over the team then an internal appointment after a period of silence. An all too familiar scenario dating back to the 1980's appears to be rehashing itself again.
The time is now to give the men’s team the same due as the women by bringing in someone from outside the Canadian soccer wilderness. Someone with a proven record of winning and answerable to them only in the farthest of arm reaches.
Unless the CSA borrows the TFC Delorean from BMO to buy time in order make real changes it appears that after one hundred years of soccer darkness the din of a breaking dawn never seemed so far away and the Canadian David will remain on his back for decades to come.
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