USA-Honduras Reaction

Saturday, January 23, 2010 | View Comments
Bob Bradley

So Bob, What'd Ya Learn?


I honestly didn't expect to be writing about this game tonight. As I mentioned in my "preview" post, the excitement level topped out at "minimal" for a variety of reasons.


Yet here I am, attempting to put into context a pretty dismal result for the Yanks against Honduras at the Home Depot Center. Losing 1-3 looks bad, is bad, and can't simply be excused away; still, too many extenuating circumstances were at play for my angst level to rise too high.


Jimmy Conrad. Oh, Jimmy. I love ya buddy, and you're tweets are classic. But was it really necessary to put your team in a hole like that with an ill-advised jersey tug, after you had already picked up a yellow? Perhaps if you had waited until after halftime to do something so stupid, I might not be as disappointed; but you essentially ruined the match as an evaluation tool. Down to ten men and behind a goal doesn't make for a natural "let's see how these guys do" situation. Sure, the crucible of it all tells coaches something about a few players, but because the playing field was no longer level it really only allows for a view of intangibles.


Some Yanks acquitted themselves fairly well. Jonathan Bornstein was my American Man of the Match, and was clearly the most composed player on the field for the US. Others were terrible, and while I could point each of them out, it really wouldn't serve a purpose; none of them are going to South Africa, and most of them will never feature in any meaningful match for the US.


I hope Bob Bradley is able to glean something from that game. Robbie Findley did fine, though pairing him with Cunningham didn't go over, and was made worse by the loss of Conrad. Maybe that's enough to make the match worthwhile for the head coach.


That's it for now. As I said, what wasn't overly important in the first place had any real value stolen by the early sending off. On to February.


Consider this your open thread to share thoughts about the game. I'd love to hear what you guys made of the performance, with a particular eye to individuals.
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