Bahamas surprises in Round 1 of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying.

So far I am 4 for 4 in predicting the winners in Round 1 of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying. I attest this to luck more than anything. I never viewed any of these teams play. I only guessed at their progress by looking at past performances, the domestic league and the commitment of their federation.

Bahamas v Turks and Caicos Islands

The only surprise I see is the lopsided victory the Bahamas enjoyed over the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Bahamas won the first game 4-0. Then the next game they won comfortably 6-0. Both of these games were played in the Bahamas. 22 year old St. Fleur scored 5 times in the second game, thus becoming CONCACAF’s leading scorer in World Cup qualifying. He is off to a great start and will have 10 more games to impress us all. I think the Bahamas look so good was because The Turks was so bad. Hopefully they can stay competitive and the nation of the Bahamas backs the national team. I am hopeful the Bahamas stay competitive.
**Correction. The first game was played in Turks and Caicos Island of Providenciales. FIFA does not have attendance listed. Credit to Lorric for my mis information. Sorry about that.

Belize v Monseratt

This has been a huge disappointment for me. I thought Belize would beat the worst team in CONCACAF (all of FIFA for that matter). Belize only won 5-2. The other aspect of this competition is happening off the field. The Belize government is interfering so much with the Belize Football Federation (BFF), that FIFA suspended the BFF for competition. This band was recently lifted but FIFA has warned the government and BFF to “get along" if they don’t , FIFA will suspend Belize from further participation. Monseratt will advance. This is the only competition still up for grabs and the final will be played in Estadio Olimpico, San Pedro Sula, Honduras. The game will not be played in Belize since the governemtns said it would not provide security for the games. FIFA moved the game........Since the first game was played in Trinidad and Tobago.. attendance was pitiful. Montsertatt will be an automatic win for everyone in round 2 if they advance. Belize just won the second game 3-1 today in Honduras.

Aruba v Saint Lucia

This was the most competitive competition of Round 1. Aruba won on their home field 4-2. Then they traveled to Saint Lucia only to lose by the same score. This competition had to be decided on penalty kicks and Saint Lucia prevailed 5-4. This was a thrill of a competition. Saint Lucia will move on to Round 2. Past performances indicate Saint Lucia will be quite a pest in Round 2.

Dominican Republic v Anguilla



Dominican Republic scoreing on Angilla

 I have been hoping the Dominican Republic would finally “take off” and be as good as their bordering neighbor Haiti. I was expecting a dominating performance here in round 1. The Dominican Republic only won the first game 2-0 against tiny Anguilla nad the game was a home game. The game was in San Cristobal, DR. The second game was at the same stadium. Dominican Republic enjoyed 2 home games in Round 1. The second game they won comfortably 4-0. That being said...they have not conseded a goal yet.
   I was also disappointed in the attendance of these games. I all I would say so far so good for Round 1. The biggest disappointment is lack of media attention for these games. Wiki has attendance of a few hundred however there is no reference for these figures. This is pathetic.

These 5 winners will advance to Round 2. These teams will be drawn into six groups of four teams at the main group draw in Brazil on 30 July 2011. The matches are foreseen to be played from 2 September to 15 November 2011.

Belize will play a World Cup qualifier



Belize national team in Trinidad & Tobago



   The good news is that Belize will be playing the second leg of their World Cup qualifier. The bad news for their fans is, they will not be playing at home. Since the Belize government will not guarantee security for the game. There is also a growing riff between the BFF and the government going back to the last World Cup Qualifier for years ago.
        FIFA wants the game to be played outside of Belize because of security measures. FIFA also has BFF and warning about it's governemtns interference with the BFF. This means that neither game between Belize and Monserrat will be played on home soil. So much for FIFA's  goal program to these nations......

   I am glad the Belize national team will be able to play. They will be much better competition in the next round than Monserrat.

Only post about Monserrat



Monserrat national team picture

    This poor team does not even know how to take a picture. Here they are getting ready to play Belize. The game was played in Trinidad and Tobago. The stadium was Ato Boldon Stadium. As you can tell there were no fans at this game. Belize did beat them 5-2...however it could be this pathetic group that advances if Belize remains suspended by Fifa.....this could get interesting.

WCQ First round update

The Bahamas vs Turks
       The Bahamas beat the Turks and Cacaos Island 4-0. The game was an away game for the Bahamas. The Bahamas have a commanding lead and they are hoping for many supporeters at home for their next game. the game will be played July 9th 2011. They will play at the Roscow a. l. Davis Soccer field. The Bahamas should advance here, especially now playing at home.


The Battle of the virgins:
        US Virgin Island beat the British Virgin Islands 2-0. this was the first ever win in World Cup qualifying for this virgin. Neither of the virgins will go far in the next round so this is as good as it gets for them.....The next game will be played in the  British Virgin Islands, Tortola. Sunday July 10th.

Belize vs Monseratt
    This battle has take a bad turn. the Central American Country has been suspended by FIFA because the governement of Belize is interfering to much. Belize has already taken a commanding lead winning the first game 5-2. This game was an away game for Belize. The second round of World Cup Qualifiers start in September....so if the Belize governemnt does not satisfy FIFA then Belize will not make the next round.
......latest update is that Belize will play their "home" game in Honduras July 17th. The reason is that "
in order to avoid the risk that the Belizean authorities do not provide security guarantees" but I did not realize local governments had to provide security for national team games. This is strange however hopefully the Belize governemnt can keep thie noses out of the BFF business.
Dominican Republic vs Anguilla
  The Dominican Republic is one of my favorite nations to watch progress. However after waiting for 6 years no real progress have been made. The Dominican Republic will play today July 8th at home against Anguilla. The second game will again be played in San Cristobal, Dominican republic. This give a huge advantage to the dominican. I think the Dominican Republic will easily win this home/home series and hopegully their fans will support them. The second game will be sunday the July 10th.

St Lucia vs Aruba
   St Lucia names squad for World Cup qualifier. They have a young team. The first game will be today July 8th on Oranjestad, Aruba. The return leg will be tuesday July 12th in Castries, St Lucia. My guess is St Lucia will prevail.