A night to forget for the Yanks, a day to remember for Winnipeg

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/06/2015 (4085 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

At times it sounded like a piano recital with stiff and polite applause. At others, it drifted into a full whine not unlike the backseat of a family car trip. Then finally, with an exhale and a roar, Team USA and its fan base behaved like world beaters.

Despite a convincing 3-1 final score in a win over Australia, this sounded and looked like a team and its supporters living on reputation.

Maybe it was nerves, maybe it was the plucky Aussies but this was not the Americans finest hour. The red, white and blue in the stands and the 11 women on the pitch performed haltingly for much of the match.

Tied 1-1 after 60 minutes, Christen Press scored after a gutsy run from striker Sydney Leroux. The 2-1 lead seemed to uncork the crowd and their squad followed. Loose and confident replaced timid and nervous and resulted in a muscular show in the stands for just the final 20 minutes or so.

American Outlaws? Huh. For a good stretch they sounded like American Mother-in-laws (Yes, it should be mothers-in-law, but grant me the alliteration, OK?). By the time they began to chant, “we are the U.S., mighty, mighty, U.S.,” this Yankee-heavy crowd seemed to be mocking themselves.

With an estimated 15,000 American fans in the house to cheer on Team USA, including the self-proclaimed Outlaws and their Unite and Strengthen banner, one expected a little more swagger and a lot less gripe.

The American fans, it seems, are already in on the joke. They know their side is soft and not what it has been in previous years. Every call against resulted in groans and every push by the Australians created gasps. They finally were able to put the game on cruise control but not until after a lot of stalling and slamming on brakes. Team USA looked itself for 30 minutes on Monday and while that proved to be enough against Australia, it won’t against the classier outfits in this tournament such as the Germans.

Big and physical, for sure, but also a step slower than they were when winning gold in London’s 2012 games, this could prove to be a difficult tournament for Team USA if what we saw in their opening game is a telling preview.

While this was mostly a night to forget for the Yanks, it was a day to remember for Winnipeg. The football stadium dressed up as a soccer ground came across nicely and our introduction to the global fans of this game was a sharp. The afternoon game between Sweden and Nigeria was a fast classic with all the back and forth lunging of a knife fight.

Nigeria’s fans stole the show dancing in the stands and packing their own brass band which played the same tune all afternoon but only delighted its patrons.

Soccer families from across Winnipeg took in the greatest show of girl power this town has ever seen.

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“I wanted to come and see how the best in the world played,” said 11-year-old Brenna Hughes, who splits her time between Ecole George McDowell and the Bonivital Flames. “This is so exciting. I just want to play with them. I want to be down there with them and learning the moves they make. They’re my heroes. This is different than a Jets game because these are girls too and they play soccer. They’re like me. I feel connected to them.”

If you don’t have a ticket to a game just yet, it’s worth the cash they’re asking to be a part of this spectacle. It’s unlikely our city will ever see an event much bigger. This has a global reach and is a cultural bonanza. It’s something to see.

The soccer is the best the women’s game has to offer and our facility, excluding the apparent sin of artificial turf and all the hidden little horrors only Winnipeggers know about, is coming across as world class.

“This has been incredible and Winnipeg has done an awesome job. I came here with my wife and my three daughters. I used to say the Miracle on Ice was my favourite American sporting moment but this is right there,” said Ben White of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. “Being here with my family and sharing the patriotism of watching your country play, this is special.”

The world only comes knocking on your door once in a while. Don’t miss it.