It’s a very, very late edition of 15 Minutes of Fame this week…darn technology!
Either way – this week on the show we’re discussing the latest in CBA talks between the NHL and the NHLPA, a cancelled KHL game in New York, a new home for the Islanders, a rough week for Lance Armstrong and some CFL notes.
In the GABBYs: Brett Hull, Andrew Luck, the Vancouver Whitecaps, Aaron Cawley, the NBA, and the NFL. The Punchline this week is Michael Phelps!
Canada does not have a rich men’s soccer history. Yes, they won the 1904 Olympic Games in St. Louis, qualified for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico City and won the 2000 Gold Cup in Los Angeles. But after that, Canada’s success in men’s soccer has been rather bleak.
In professional league play however, one of Canada’s greatest moments was when the Vancouver Whitecaps won the 1979 Soccer Bowl by defeating the Tampa Bay Rowdies 2-1 at New York’s Giants Stadium to win the North American Soccer League Championship. In a humurous moment, according to the Vancouver Sun, ABC commentator Jim McKay addressed the Whitecaps victory with the comment, “the people in the village of Vancouver will be excited.”
The NASL folded in 1984, and Vancouver had great success as the 86ers in the old Canadian Soccer League from 1987-1992, being the champion four times. Vancouver also played in the A-League and United Soccer League over the last two decades.
Andrea Neil (Yahoo! Images)
In the second of my six-part series profiling the recent inductees of Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame, here is my interview with Andrea Neil, a long-time member of the Canadian women’s soccer program.
Neil, from Vancouver, British Columbia, was a member of the Canadian women’s soccer team from 1991-2007, and is one of only two players to score 100 goals for the national team. Since her retirement, Neil was an assistant coach for two years with the Canadian Women’s National Team, and was also an assistant coach for the Vancouver Whitecaps of the W-League.
ANDREA NEIL
What are you currently doing?
I am currently in transition. I was part of the coaching staff of the Women’s World Cup Team. That was a two-and-a-half year stint upon retiring as a player. I’m just seeing what other options are out there right now.
With the disappointing results that Canada faced at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Germany, they turned it around with an outstanding victory over Brazil at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. What did you see from that particular team that impressed you significantly?
Well, I think that’s the great thing about our sport right now. On any given day, one can pick off another team. It’s unfortunate what happened to Canada. It did come down to a game. But that’s how the game works now. You have Australia that did remarkably well at the World Cup and exceeded expectations there, but then got knocked out of the Olympic qualifying and aren’t going to the Olympic Games. For Canada to bounce back at the Pan American Games is a great thing. To use that background experience should only springboard the team as they move forward.
Best & Worst
We saw the best and the worst of things on Wednesday night in Vancouver as the Stanley Cup Final came to an end – on one hand, a phenomenal series threw us another curve ball with the Boston Bruins finally beating the Canucks at Rogers Arena…but then, of course, all hell broke loose afterwards.
Seeing the pictures and video of the destruction in downtown Vancouver after that loss sends chills down my spine – it’s scary to watch a city turn into a madhouse like that, where regular people are flipping (and torching) cars or smashing windows and robbing stores. Let’s get a couple of things straight though – first of all, it was probably going to happen whether or not the Canucks won that game. Secondly, this isn’t just a Vancouver thing – it can (and does) happen in any big city! (After the Jump: More on the riots, Strangest goal of the NHL playoffs, Name That Team and Eric Hassli’s MLS wonder goal!) (more…)
This week on 15 Minutes of Fame, the boys talk about the NHL and the general manager meetings they had where they talked about curbing head shots and concussions in hockey.
They go over the NHL’s five-point plan for concussions and then ask, “is it enough?”
In this week’s GABBYs on the good side – NCAA basketball upsets, Steve Stamkos telling the truth and Jarome Iginla. On the bad side – the NHL only gives Patric Hornqvist a $2500 fine, Man City’s Mario Balotelli has some trouble putting on a pinny and the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche goes into a tailspin.
In Quick Hits: the Vancouver Whitecaps play Canadian rivals Toronto FC for the first time in the MLS, and should Halifax have a CFL team?
Check it out:
There’s a lot more after the jump. Click “continue reading.” ———————>
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