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Canada eliminated by Honduras in humiliating loss

Photo by ISIphotos.com

Canada needed only a draw to advance to the Hexagonal round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying and keep the dreams of reaching Brazil 2014 alive.

What transpired for the Canucks was nothing short of a nightmare.

Canada suffered a humiliating 8-1 loss to Honduras in San Pedro Sula on Tuesday afternoon, a shocking result that eliminated the visitors from World Cup qualifying and pushed Los Catrachos through to the Hexagonal. Tosaint Ricketts came close to giving Canada a dream start, but he missed a sitter in the opening minutes and that was as close as the Canucks ever got to pulling out a result.

Honduras scored shortly thereafter thanks to a strike from Jerry Bengston and they piled it on against a Canucks side that simply unraveled. Los Catrachos scored three more times before halftime to effectively end Canada’s hopes of advancing to the final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying for the first time since 1997.

Honduras added four more in the second half to further Canada’s embarrassment. Bengston and Carlo Costly each finished the match with hat-tricks while Mario Martinez scored two goals of his own.

The lone goal for the ashamed Canadians came off a well-taken free kick from Iain Hume, but that was little consolation in what was a brutal loss that few could have seen coming and that many will want to forget.

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What do you think of Canada’s embarrassing loss to Honduras? Surprised? What will be the repercussions of this defeat? What needs to change for Canada to become a more serious contender?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Canada had a very bad day, but Honduras also had a great day. Not sure how so many people can attribute an 8-1 result just to Canada’s poor performance….give Honduras some credit. They needed to win…not even a tie…to make it to next round. They got the job done emphatically. They looked shaky to start but were clearly better squad and deserved the result they worked for. Give credit were it is due…Martinez, Boniek, Bengston, etc all looked very sharp.

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  2. OHHHH CANADA??!!

    The simple fact is that not enough people care about CANADIAN SOCCER .. .. Like the USA, it takes a concerted National/Philantropic effort to pump Millions of $$$ into development, residency programs, etc. And it takes decades .. ..

    One Canada MNT member told me a few years ago that he will refuse future callups because 10+ hours bus rides and roadside motels to save $$$ just isn’t worth it .. .. Enough said .. ..

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    • If this is in fact true, it’s pretty depressing to give your all to your country while your Soccer Federation is searching on Kayak.com & Priceline.com searching for the most inexpensive way to house its players.

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  3. Stunned at this result. How does a team that gives up only 2 goals in 5 previous games allow 8 in 90 minutes?

    Oh well, at least they have hockey to talk about- arp, never mind.

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  4. I was really pulling for our neighbors to the north. I don’t understand how Canada gave up 8 goals with so much on the line. They made Honduras look “Barcelona-like”. The Canadian FA should really clean house. Their football program had been taking steps forward, this loss set them back tremendously.

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    • My thoughts exactly. Sure many players from both the Honduran and Canadian teams are from MLS, but Canada the country is part of our league and we should all be rooting for them to succeed as a rising tide lifts all boats. I’d love to see Canada make the world cup, and that would be great for the growth of soccer up there.
      There need to be serious changes up there, not only is this humiliating defeat unacceptable but no Canadian team has made the MLS playoffs yet.

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  5. I didn’t see this game. For someone who saw this match, can you explain how Canada could lose by 7 goals especially with so much on the line? Was Honduras just on fire tonight / unstoppable?

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    • No, Canada was just horrible. Honduras was actually kind of sloppy. Right from the start the team was poor. There was no effort. They couldn’t complete a pass. The defense was terrible. They gave up once it was 2-0. The only players that tried were Hutchinson, Hume, Cavallini, and Hirschfeld. I have never seen a team play that poorly. It was so bad I don’t even feel embarrassed or angry. Honduras is a better team, but they’re not that much better. I expected Honduras to win by a goal or two, not 7. You can’t look at this game and say it shows the team is shit. It just shows that the players are mentally weak. Canadian soccer has a lot of problems but I don’t think it needs to be blown up. Brazil was never realistic anyway. The hex was the goal and it’s disappointing to not get there but I don’t think it ruins our future. I am VERY confident Canada will be in Russia in 2018. We have made progress and will continue to. We just need patience. Unfortunately, I’m probably alone in these thoughts and my optimism so I have no idea where Canadian soccer will go from here.

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    • It was mostly Canada playing some horrendous defense, and at the beginning they blew their chances and the refs didnt help them out, not much of a shocker there. At least 3 of Honduras’s goals were masterclass, in particular Martinez’s 2nd which left me speechless, it was wasted in this game though, swerving shot over the keeper from a tight angle outside the box

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    • I suspect it was a case of something building upon itself … once Honduras went up, Canada pressed for a goal but only for that pressing to cause them to give up another one, then Canada pressed even harder but only for …. well, you follow.

      In any case, with Canada’s soccer resources, they should at least regularly be around 3rd – 5th in CONCACAF WC qualifying, NOT finding themselves routinely unable to get out of the semi’s of WC qualifying.

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    • I saw the first three goals on a dirty stream than shut it off.
      Canada actually caught Honduras on the break early on and had a few great chances – which they missed. The Canadian commentators spoke on this and Canada’s issues of finishing throught this 3rd round, you wonder if De Rosario and Occean were there instead of Ricketts if one of those chances would have been converted.
      Honduras continued to put on the pressure than caught Canada on some sloppy defending and scored (a deft touch goal by Bengston). I recall whom scored the 2nd and 3rd but it was much of the same theme, sloppy defending and relentless pressure by the Hondurans. Obviously after that Canada mentally crumbled and Honduras had a field day.

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  6. Soo… I wish USA had Canada in their group… ammmmmahright or ammmmmahright?!?! USA would love to have 3 easy points like that!

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    • That’s what’s so weird about Canada, they always give the USMNT a hell of a game, only to get walloped by lesser opponents. As a USMNT fan, I actually hate seeing them in our group because somehow they bottle up 4 games worth of good performances and unleash it all against us.

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  7. Time for Canada to clean house in the FA. They have far too much talent to be shocked like this.

    Sorry to all the Canadian fans.

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      • They are more talented then an 8-1 defeat to anyone in their group. They are also more talented then how they played during this round of qualifying.

        They are not world beaters but they are not a lump of dirt either.

      • They are no worse than that El Salvador team in the last WCQ cycle that gave the us and Mexico fits.
        They aren’t a supremely talented side, but they have enough quality to at least make the hex.
        Something is inherently broken at the CSA for these to repeatedly happen.

      • COMPLETELY RIGHT FELIX!!

        There is far more than enough talent for the CSA to finish in the top-four every cycle .. .. If CSA can’t get enough CAD to propel the program forward, then CANADA as a country just doesn’t care enough about their football .. ..

        IF THEY CAN’T MAKE IT, THEY DON’T WANT TO MAKE IT!

  8. This is what we do… build up our hope by showing we’re at least competitive in concacaf… and then get swiftly kicked in the balls… 1-0 would have hurt us all a lot but this… I’m just kind of numb to it…

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