Re-Cap of Women's Olympic Qualifying Games So Far..Day 6

January 24, 2012

Guatelmala vs Dominican Republic 3-0
USA vs Mexico 4-0

It was another fun day at BC Place.  Everyone was excited for the "big game" later in the evening, but first we had the Guatemala and Dominican Republic game to get through.  I had my team back but this time it was just myself and fellow volunteer, Christine.  We headed up to the Hospitality suites and did our thing.  We met some new ushers up in the area.  It seems as though the security and ushers get rotated alot up there.  Some actually remember seeing me before around the stadium, which is nice.  Especially since I also work BC Lions and Whitecaps games in that building as well and have been for the last 4 years.  Others were brand spanking new to the building and I knew the area more than they did.  Strange.  However, together we worked as a team to welcome the guests and get them seated in their suites as smoothly as possible.

The game with Guatemala and Dominican Republic had a few hundred fans show up which was great.  There were alot of Guatemalan supporters out in the crowds holding their flags and proudly wearing the jerseys, cheering on their team.  Guatemala did not disappoint their fans.  They were able to score 4 unanswered goals.  It was also great to see the Guatemalans score as they were the only team in the tournament so far that hadn't scored against any team.  They were very very happy.

Wendy Penida celebrating her goal with a teammate.

 Once the first match was over, the Hospitality suite areas picked up a bit and became very busy.  People were coming in fast to get to their suites and their seats.  I had a little bit of excitement when I saw some people from Whitecaps. I ran into the Women's Team Manager, Diane, for Whitecaps from a couple years ago.  She used to come sit in my section at Swangard when I was the Usher there and she would seat her girls in my section as well.  We got to know each other well.  Unfortunately, when we all moved to Empire Stadium for the MLS year, we were no longer in touch so it was nice to see her again.  We were able to catch up and she told me that she is now the Whitecaps Prospect Team (16-under) Manager and that she had the Whitecaps suite that night for the girls so they could watch the match.  It was really great seeing an old friend again.  Whitecaps really do feel like a family to me.

The other thing that happened was interesting as well.  The FIFA non-match referees and the Commissioner came to me and let me know that they were missing the Team Roster lists for the match that had all the substitutions and such on it.  Apparently they needed it to do their job and those sheets were usually in their suites when they arrived but they weren't there that day.  So I radioed back to the Volunteer Lounge to Stephanie and she got that all sorted out.  The media runner came up 5 mins later with the sheets they needed.  Thank god.  Those are the two people (referees and Commissioner)  in this tournament you don't want to rile up.

As I looked out into the stadium stands, all I could see were Mexican sombreros and American supporters.  It was going to be a great game.  I thought at least the Mexicans have a chance of either winning this game or at least keeping the score close.  They kept the score close.  USA won the match with a 4-0 win.  With this lose, the Mexicans now face off with the Canadian Team on Friday night to qualify for one of the spots to play in the London 2012 Summer Games.

Last I heard, the tickets were selling fast and furious and more than likely the lower bowl will be completely opened up for the public.  I'm sure the Mexicans will be coming out in full force to support their team as will the Canadians.  Its gonna be a great game, so get your tickets early if you haven't already.  I expect a full house and it to be a very very busy hospitality area.  There will be FREE BEER flowing in Suite 49 that night so I will have one of my CAT Team member volunteers with me that night.  Stephanie has given me Anne.  Anne is a "presence" that will be needed if there will be free beer flowing that night.  Her help is appreciated.

So, there are two days of training coming up, the 25th and 26th.  Then is the semi final with Canada vs Mexico.  I'm taking these days to relax, get some sleep and catch up on blogging and other things that I've managed to procrastinate on for the last couple of weeks.  Can't wait for Friday.  See you all there!

Re-Cap of Women's Olympic Qualifying Games So Far..Day 5

Courtesy of cbc.ca

January 23, 2012

Haiti vs Cuba 3-0
Canada vs. Costa Rica  5-1

As I waited for my shift to start sitting in the Volunteer Lounge, it became obvious that we were short-staffed for this game.   There were some no-shows on top a lot of volunteers being cut for the game that day so they wouldn't be sitting around with nothing to do. Although Canada was playing that night, it wasn't considered to be a very busy double header in the Hospitality area so it was pulled for the night and my team was disbanded and sent to other areas where they were short-staffed, such as Marketing and Media.  I was put on a team called the "back of house".  It was mainly just my friend and fellow volunteer, Carmen and a guy named Peter and myself. 

This job entailed Carmen and I going into the dressing rooms of the teams, introducing ourselves to them and letting them know that if they needed anything, to let us know.  Peter could only go into the rooms once they were out....he is a guy afterall.  So he would wait patiently while Carmen and I would go check it things out first.  Also, we were to take care of their dressing rooms before and after the game.  This meant making sure they had enough towels, product and ice in their rooms.  If not, we were to replenish those items.  We also went into the rooms after their matches to "tidy up" a bit.  Which meant picking up dirty towels (using gloves of course), throwing out the used drink bottles and banana peels and whatever else they left behind.  The BC Place cleaning crew would come later and do a more thorough cleaning.

I realized two things during this shift.  One, the Spanish I learned from watching Dora the Explorer with my neices really wasn't cutting it and two, that I shouldn't be wearing boots with heels when I have to run around so much on an 6 hr shift.

During the first match with Cuba vs Haiti, Carmen and I had walked into the Canadian Team's dressing room to introduce ourselves and just at that moment, Haiti scored their 2nd goal on the tv screen and all the girls on the team jumped up with excitement that they had scored.  It was genuine happiness for Haiti and it was wonderful to see that kind of sportsmanship shown by our Canadian team.  Trust me, you can be proud of them, Canada.  Its alot more than I can say for another powerhouse team at the tournament.  But I digress.  I wished them luck that night and left the room with Carmen to find team Costa Rica to make sure they were ok.

The crowd picked up during the Canada game.  I was going thru my twitter updates on my downtime and saw that four Canucks had come down to the game. David Booth had received tickets from Team Canada's Kaylyn Kyle and he brought Manny Malhotra, Dale Weise and Chris Higgins (Chiggy) with them.  They were in the Hospitality area that night.  Looks like its right in front of the Canadian Team's suite.  Figures the one night I don't work the suites and they show up!!  Oh well, it sounded like they had a great time.

Here is a pic of some lucky fans who got to meet the boys after the game.

Other than that it was  another great night as Canada won the match 5-1.  It was the first time in the tournament that the opposing team was able to score a goal.  Good on Costa Rica.  The Canadian goals came from Christine Sinclair (2), Sophie Schmidt, Kaylyn Kyle and a goal from Costa Rica when their defender sent and innocent looking pass towards her own goalkeeper who missed the ball and wasn't able to stop it from going into her own net. 

The Canadian "SouthSiders" were also out in full effect.  They kept the spirit up with songs like "We all dream of a world of Kaylyn Kyle, A world of Kaylyn Kyle, A World of Kaylyn Kyle."  and the every popular "Holy Schmidt! Holy Schmidt!"

There was a crowd of 8,105 that night, down from the 12,417 on Saturday but tickets have been selling rapidly since the win for the semi-final game on Friday.  It seems as though the entire lower bowl will be open if tickets keep selling at this pace.  This would be great for the Women's Team.  I'm expecting it to be busy and have a full crew of hospitality up in the suites to help out.  Who knows?? Maybe we'll see David Booth and gang back for the big game on Friday!

Re-Cap of Women's Olympic Qualifying Games So Far..Day 4

Janauary 22, 2012

Mexico vs Dominican Republic 7-0
USA vs Guatemala 13-0

I wasn't at the tournament today as I opted to attend the Canucks SuperSkills Competition in the building across the street from BC Place, Rogers Arena.  However, I did pop in after the competition to see if the staff needed me for anything before I went back home to Surrey.  When I got to the Volunteer Lounge, I noticed the Mexico vs Dominican Republic were playing already.  Mexico was up 3-0 in the first half.  This really wasn't the Dominican Republic's tournament.  They got shut out again with a 7-0 score at the end.  Three goals were scored by Anisa Guajardo, the others came from Rosario Saucedo, Marylin Diaz scored on a penalty kick and Jennifer Ruiz rounded out the rest.  Mexico is a good, solid team as I've mentioned before in my blog.  They will be a tough test for Canada in the semi-finals.

Team Mexico

USA played Guatemala later that evening. I'm sure after seeing how the Americans were playing, they really just wanted to pack it in and not bother playing today.  Especially since USA thumped them 13-0!!  That's just insane. I feel bad that Guatemala and the Domincan Republic were in the same group as the Americans.  It can't be good for soccer being beaten down hard like that.  After seeing and meeting these ladies over the last four days, you really start to feel for them.  I guess for most of them, just being able to play in Canada is a treat.  A lot of them are just sight seeing and having a good time according to the Team Liaisons I've been talking to.

Now that the Americans have thoroughly defeated the Guatemalans and the Dominican Republic with great humiliation, lets see how they do when they play the second strongest team in the tournament on Tuesday against Mexico.  Mexico is the only team that has been able to defeat the US team in the past.  Should be interesting.

Team Guatemala

Re-Cap of Women's Olympic Qualifying Games So Far..Day 3

Day 3 was interesting.  As I waited in the volunteer lounge, we were all talking about what happened the night before with the USA team beating the Guatemalan team 14-0 and the fallouts from that night.  We were also very concerned for Ednie Limage, injured goaltender, from the Haitan team.  On my way up thru the "ring road" of BC Place, my crew and I passed Ednie Limage in the road.  She was walking without any assistance, however she was limping.  Although she won't be playing in the tournament from here on in, it was great to see her out of the hospital and walking around.

This match was actually the best match of the tournament to watch so far as it wasn't an all out blowout or slaughter.  It was a pretty tight game and had the crowd into it throughout.  These teams were a bit more evenly matched and so it could of been anyone's game.  We all just watched the play go back and forth on the pitch. The scoring didn't start til the first few minutes of the second half.  Wendy Acosta scored twice in the second for a 2-0 victory over Haiti that night. Haiti has now been virtually eliminated from the tournament without scoring a goal.

The Haitian team have overcome alot in this tournament.  The Haitian team suffered a devastating loss a year ago when 30 members of their soccer federation were killed in the catastrophic 7.0 earthquake.  They decided they would carry on in their names.  They arrived here in Vancouver for the first time in their lives, with the exception of 2 players who have been here before.  The sponsor, Soccer City was able to provide the goalkeeper with actual soccer cleats as she had arrived to the tourney with only her runners in which she had always played in.  She was also provided with actual "goalkeeper gloves" as opposed to the regular gloves she wore in games.  Then to have their goalie, Ednie Limage go out with an injury was also traumatic. So, for them to make it this far is amazing.  Kudos to Haiti for hanging in there.  

Canada was up next.  They played against Cuba.  We knew the Canadians would do well in this game.  Cuba proved to be a very effective team against Canada.  It wasn't the greatest game Canada has displayed so far.  There was sloppy plays and a bit or disorganization.  However, they were able to pull this one out of their hats with a 2-0 score.  They didn't run up the score and they didn't have to.  They just had to get the win and they did.  Christine Sinclair provided one of the goals on a penalty kick and the other came from Melissa Tancredi.  This win most likely helps Canada avoid playing the powerhouse USA team in the semi-finals.  If all goes to plan, they will end up playing Mexico instead.  Either way, Canada will need to play sharp and score lots of goals.

Re-Cap of Women's Olympic Qualifying Games So Far..Day 2

January 20, 2012

Mexico vs Guatemala 5-0
USA vs Dominican Republic 14-0

This was another busy day.  As I walked into the Hospitality area with my crew, a couple new people on shift with me, I showed them the area and explained what I needed from them.  I told them it will be a bit slow in the beginning for the fist match but will pick up with more people coming into the suites to watch the USA match which is exactly what happened.

A funny thing kept happening though.  As the teams and their staff were trickling into their suites, I kept being mistaken for being Spanish by the Dominican Republicans.  They would come up to me speaking in Spanish and then I'd tell them that I don't speak Spanish other than what I've learned on Dora the Explorer thanks to my nieces. The only word that stuck though was "Ola!". I might try Google translating a few phrases into Spanish to try on Tuesday when they play again.  Dora the Explorer obviously wasn't cutting it for me.

Mexico and Guatemala played first.  I was actually shocked to see so many Mexican supporters show up.  It was great.  Everyone was in great spirits and dressed up for their team in the nations colors and wore sombreros.  It was very festive in the lower bowls.

The Mexican team showed why they are one of the stronger teams in this tournament.  The team impressed alot of the volunteers with their type of play.  It was all clean, crisp passes and they played dominant.  It was obviously they are going to be one of the dominant teams in the end.  Quite possibly coming down to Canada or Mexico in the Finals.  The USA is obviously in as I'll later recap.  Goals on the Mexico side came from Marilyn Diaz, Dinora Garza and Maribel Dominguez scored 3 times - twice in the first and another in the second half to make it 5-0.

 USA and the Dominican Republic played the second match.  We all knew the USA was a strong contender coming into the tournament but here is where we actually see it for ourselves.  Within the first 6 mins of playm the USA team were up on the board 3-0.  And it kept getting worse for the Dominican Republic.  By the end of the night, USA had routed them 14-0!  While watching the game from the stands, I could hear the Canadian fans supporting the Dominican Rep whenever they were able to defend or move the ball up the pitch.  On the flip-side, even after USA scored the 14th goal, the American fans were shouting "One more goal! One more goal!".

As if that wasn't bad enough, the American team and Head Coach were celebrating each goal and showing much disrespect to the opposing team.  After the game, the Head Coach and the team were criticized for not downplaying each goal scored after they had gone up 5 or 6 goals.  At that point, they should have just walked away instead of air pumping their fist and jumping into their teammates every single goal.  I'm not sure if this score reflects the USA team and how strong they are or if it reflects on the Guatemala team for playing poorly.  In any case, everyone was glad when it was over.  You never want to see a team get slaughtered like that.

Re-Cap of Women's Olympic Qualifying Games So Far..Day 1

JANUARY 19, 2011

Costa Rica vs Cuba 2-0
Canada vs. Haiti 6-0

So, the first day of the tournament kicked off on Thursday evening with a double header.  It was Costa Rica vs Cuba.  I got the stadium at 2pm as I was scheduled to work til the end at 10pm.  There wasn't much to do at 2pm so we sat around and waited for a bit and chatted with other volunteers until it was time to get my team organized and head on up to the area we were working that day.  My area is Hospitality and I am a Team Leader.  My crew and myself meet and greet the VIP's of the tournament in the Hospitality area and help them find their way to their suites, bathrooms and concession areas.  We also try to answer any questions they may have.  Its a fairly easy and simple job compared to the other volunteers at the event.  Smile and be Friendly.  That's it.

So, at 3:50pm, 10 mins before doors opened to the public, I took my crew of three and headed on up to the other side of the stadium where the Hospitality suites are located.  I showed them how to get there from the bowels of the stadium and thru the 2nd floor concourse where the concessions were and up the ramp to our suites.  The doors opened at 4pm and we waited for the VIPs to come streaming in.  This, however, was not the case.  We waited and waited and then waited some more.  A few people showed up eventually towards the start of the match and we were more than happy to show them to their seats and to their suites.  Then more started to trickle in.  So once the match started, we all sat and watched it unfold on the tv screens provided outside the suites.  We were also able to take sneak peeks at the match from the tunnels standing next to the Ushers.

First up was Costa Rica vs Cuba.  We didn't know much about these two teams other than they have the same colors in their flags and they like to play soccer.  So this was interesting to watch.  Costa Rica won the match 2-0.  It wasn't a blowout but they were able to play and defend with great skill. They both had a decent showing of fans.  Not a whole lot, but the diehards did come out. Which was really nice to see.  Goals in this match came from Saudy Rosales and Wendy Acosta.

The VIPs were starting to come in a little faster throughout the last half of the first match.  These were the people who were there to see the Canada vs. Haiti match up.  The suites were filling up fast after the first match ended.  There was a 30 min break between the two matches.  I ran into a few Whitecaps Managers I know quite well who also came to see the Canada match.  It was great seeing my current and former team leads again.  I'll be working with them again come March. After some catching up, they headed off to their Whitecaps Suite.

Then the match started. It was obvious early on that Canada was the stronger team.  They had ball possesion almost throughout. Canada won this match with a blowout score of 6-0.  Christine Sinclair was the star of the show.  She had the Canadian team up 3-0 going into the second half of the match.  She got her fourth goal at the 55 minute mark.  The other two goals came from Christina Julien and Kelly Parker.  The dejected Haitian team didn't put up much of a fight in the second half as they knew they were being outplayed by Canada.  I'm sure they were just hoping the match would end soon for them.

If things weren't bad enough for Haiti, it just got worse.  There was a collision with their goaltender, Ednie Limage and teammate Samantha Brand in the second half.  Limage was carried off the pitch on a stretcher and later taken to Vancouver General Hospital where she stayed overnight.  Reports seem to indicate that she has suffered a spinal cord injury. She was unable to move her legs last night but has since regained some of the feeling back this morning.  She is still recovering at VGH and is speculated not to return to the tournament.  Wishing Limage a speedy and healthy recovery.  You never want to see a player go down this way. 

In the pictures above by the Vancouver Sun, you can see Limage colliding with her teammate Brand.

So that was how the first day ended.  There were 7,600 in attendance to watch Canada and Haiti play.  The Whitecaps SouthSiders were also there to support the Women's team.  They were all placed in their regular seating area and they came armed with re-worded song sheets to cheer on Team Canada.  Instead of Blue and White, they all donned their Red and White.  They even sang O'Canada TWICE!!  The crowd was energetic and fun.  It was a great match and it was even nicer to see so many people come out and support the Women's team.  Hopefully, the numbers will grow as the team makes their push towards their goal on the 29th!

2012 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Soccer Orientation

I attended the CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying orientation tonight at BC Place.  The stadium looked so beautiful in the red light glowing from inside. 

As I entered the East Airlock enterance, the security guard told me where the rest of the crew were awaiting orientation.  I got there about 45 mins early which was fine as I had to stand in line to check in and get my shift information (turns out I'm a Team Leader again) and received my handout.  I then proceeded to the corner of the room and let some guy take a mugshot of me for my accreditation which I will receive at a later date.  Once the formalities were done, I then entered the conference area and found my fellow volunteers from Whitecaps and BC Lions scattered in seats facing a projection screen.  So I found a seat between two friends and got caught up with each other until the orientation started.  

There were three guest speakers.  One was from BC Place, second was from Soccer Canada and the third was the Volunteer Manager.  We watched videos, slides and were introduced to all the different volunteer team managers. Once the session was over, we broke into our groups and spoke with our Team Managers for the departments we were working in.  My team manager was sick, so the Soccer Canada rep, Joe, took his time out and explained to my group, Hospitality, as to what to expect in our roles.  I introduced myself to my team and let them know I'm a team lead and I got to meet the other team lead for our group.  Basically, we will be meeting and greeting the teams as they arrive and hosting and directing VIP's at BC Place in the suites.  

I will pick up my volunteer gear in a week but my shifts will start before that.  Adidas and Umbro will be dressing us up in shirts and hoodies as our uniform.  I've seen them and they look nice.  I'm excited that I'll also be receiving four tickets to the games on the 19th and 23rd.  I'll be working these days at the game so I'll have to find someone who wants to go instead.  I'm also excited that I'll be able to see the players like Christine Sinclair and others again.  The majority of the Canadian team are compromised of the Whitecaps Women's Team and so there is some familiarity there.  At Swangard when I was the Usher, they would all come into my tunnel and sit in our sections at times and Christine was one of them.  It will be nice to see them all again. 

I'll update on this tournament as it goes on....stay tuned.