Elliott: Rooting for our soccer team
By Bob Elliott
Canadian Baseball Network
OK confession time.
One night I jumped into the car to drive home. The jute box had been on Newstalk 1010. I had even lingered in the car to hear the heavy hitters -- my pal Christie Blatchford and Kevin O’Leary interviewed.
Now on the drive home I had a choice: click to TSN which might have the women’s soccer on from Rio or The Fan, which I seldom listen to anymore unless the Blue Jays are playing and the Jays were playing.
The Jays were tied 2-2 against the Houston Astros at the Rogers Centre.
Our women’s soccer team was leading 1-0 over France with 14 minutes remaining.
At the risk of having Jerry Howarth never speak to me again, I admit I stuck with the soccer.
You could say I would watch two guys in a hammering nails into the wall contest if one was wearing a Canada jersey. And if they played our anthem ... well I’m a goner. Pass the Kleenex.
Canada held on the “whomp” France 1-0 and suddenly the car’s horn honked a couple of times.
Humm baby.
* * *
Usually this only happens watching the Olympics, the World Juniors between Christmas and New Year’s or last August in Ajax when for the first time ever I heard Oh Canada live -- despite attending the 1976, 1996 and 2004 Olympics -- and bolted from the mix zone, turned the corner of the screened in bench to see our flag being raised.
This was not any escape. There were coaches Larry Walker and Stubby Clapp, who both always made Canada proud, hugging each other, singing and wiping away a tear.
But soccer, our rather these women soccer players, got me for the first time four years ago in London when they beat France for bronze.
Four years ago I was on the road: driving to Lake County Ohio, then to Detroit to cover the Jays-Detroit Tiger series and then to Midland, Mich. The first and third stops I wrote about the Lansing Trip -- Aaron Sanchez, Noah Syndergaard and Justin Nicolino.
Duncan Armstrong a buddy of mine asked me to drive to Trenton as they were dedicating a ball diamond and raising money for three kids who lost their parents. I drove from Midland to Mississauga on the Saturday and Sunday morn to Trenton.
Little did I know it was all part of that Kraft TSN showcase weekend. The place was jammed as Kraft donated a new track for the sprinters and the sports desk show was filmed there. Was about to head out for home and Duncan asks as Duncan usually asks ... except it comes as sort of a plea: “go over to the autograph tent.”
“Yeah right,” I said.
He insisted. So I went. .
So there are two tables in the tent one for soccer player Diana Matheson, who scored the goal to beat France.
You could not miss the difference in the length of the lines.
It was a thumping. Like Canada playing Greenland or Argentina in hockey.
I counted the autographs signed. There was plenty of time for you see my line was not real busy. The count was about 174-to-6 when after about 40 minutes a guy came over and asked me to sign ... I asked why he wanted my autograph the boy shrugged and said ‘not really sure, Duncan came over and told me to get it.”
I waited and waited, like waiting for George Bell after he was ejected to tell Diana that I so happy “her team won and how her goal made me feel so proud to be Canadian ... and how powerful she was to make “an old man cry.”
Later I sent her an email thru the Soccer Canada folks and she sent me a thank you reply.
* * *
So you see I had a vested interest now in the women’s soccer team. I didn’t have a horse in the race. That is I wasn’t covering the event. It’s four years later, I have “matured” and will be 67 next month.
I was excited to see them beat Germany 2-1 ... so excited that I phoned my German friends to ask if they had heard a final ... since my wireless was down.
I was upset when Canada lost 2-0 to Germany in the semi-final. It was so bad that here I was bugging Christie Blatchford with stupid question like I was Sammy from Scarborough on Line 1: “why did Matheson not start?” or “why was a substitution made.” Talk about becoming a Socrates Soccer Know It All. That was me.
Am not an expert on bounce back theories or our make up of us as a nation. Yet, from watching puck tournaments (or the 2004 Olympics in Athens) when we lose a heartbreaker in the semi-final game thereby being eliminated from playing for gold ... well the results are not real pretty.
Yet, these young women regrouped before they got off the field after the semi-final loss. They dominated Brazil and I cried when the ref finally blew the final whistle as Canada “thumped” Brazil 2-1 in Sao Paulo at Corinthians Arena.
It was emotional watching Christine Sinclair hug pals and break down in tears.
Or coach John Herdman speaking of Sinclair losing her father in April.
Or reading Blatchford’s pieces which took us behind the scenes and into the soul of the bronze medallists.
Make no mistake I was excited and happy to see golds -- from wrassler Erica Wiebe in Stittsville, Ont. just beyond the fringe; high jumper Derek Drouin of Corunna, Ont. from the same home town as Robbie Thomson bench coach of the New York Yankees; Rosie MacLennan of King City, Ont. and Toronto swimmer Penny Oleksiak -- silver and bronze medals by our Canadians.
I enjoyed the women’s soccer bronze more.