It鈥檚 a long way from those Saturday mornings at Windsor Park in front of a handful of parents.
Bays United products Adam Straith and Simon Thomas will be part of history Friday night (7 p.m. on TSN 2) when they take to the pitch at sa国际传媒 Place before what is anticipated to be the largest crowd to watch a Canadian team play soccer.
More than 55,000 fans are expected as sa国际传媒 (1-0-1), with defender-midfielder Straith and goalkeeper Thomas part of the 23-player roster, meets regional-power Mexico (2-0) in a crucial fourth-round CONCACAF World Cup qualifying game for Russia 2018.
It will be personal for more than 500 of those fans, supporters from Straith鈥檚 and Thomas鈥檚 old Bays United club, among the several thousand expected to cross the strait from the Island for the game.
With ticket sales exceeding 53,500 as of Thursday afternoon, the throng is expected to surpass the previous record for Canadian soccer, when 54,027 came out to sa国际传媒 Place last summer for the 2015 FIFA women鈥檚 World Cup quarter-final between sa国际传媒 and England.
鈥淎s the week has progressed, we鈥檝e seen the excitement grow,鈥� Straith said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 noticeable this has turned into what will most likely be the biggest event our sport has hosted in sa国际传媒. The boys are focused, but at the same time, relaxed. We cannot wait for the game to start. We have a number of players who have played big games like this before for their [overseas] clubs. But to have something like this happen in our own country is something we have been working toward for years. It鈥檚 massive for us.鈥�
Straith and Thomas, also Lower Island Metro graduates, are both 25-year-olds from Oak Bay who play pro soccer in Norway. Straith has become a stout defender in which head coach Benito Floro has great faith. The Islander is the only player who has played every minute of 2018 World Cup qualifying for sa国际传媒 through six games and will likely earn his 34th cap tonight.
鈥淲e all know how tough of a game it will be against Mexico. But we will also try to make it difficult for them, too,鈥� Straith said.
鈥淲e are the home team with the home support, so we would obviously like to dictate spells of the game and try to put them on the back foot whenever possible. At this level, it usually turns out to be a very tight game. These are almost always decided by one or two key moments. So we will have to be well-concentrated defensively for 90-plus minutes. And when we get our chances, we will have to put them away.鈥�
Thomas, a Norwegian Premiership pro with Bodo/Glimt, was dressed in reserve along with Kenny Stamatopoulos, behind Canadian starting goalkeeper Milan Borjan, for the last two World Cup qualifying games against Honduras and El Salvador. The six-foot-three Islander is likely to see bench duty again tonight. Being named to the roster by Floro automatically ranks Thomas among the top three goalkeepers in sa国际传媒.
World No. 87 sa国际传媒 is second in Group A with four points. World No. 22 Mexico is on the full six points after its first two games. sa国际传媒 will need to make the most of sa国际传媒 Place tonight because what awaits is the return leg Tuesday in the howling cauldron of 95,000-seat Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
sa国际传媒 opened fourth-round qualifying play last November with a 1-0 win against Honduras at sa国际传媒 Place followed by a scoreless draw in El Salvador. sa国际传媒 closes the round with an away fixture at No. 89 Honduras (currently 0-2 for zero points) on Sept. 2. That will be followed by a home game against No. 99 El Salvador (0-1-1 for one point) on Sept. 6, likely at either sa国际传媒 Place or BMO Stadium in Toronto.
The top two teams in the Mexico, sa国际传媒, Honduras and El Salvador group will advance to next year鈥檚 six-team final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying, from which the top three will advance to Russia 2018. The fourth-place CONCACAF finisher will play Asia No. 5 for a wildcard berth.
sa国际传媒 has not qualified for the Word Cup since 1986, when Island players Ian Bridge, Jamie Lowery and George Pakos played and veteran UVic Vikes coach Bruce Wilson captained.
It has been a three-decade weight to carry, and that鈥檚 why it鈥檚 all hands on deck tonight for what could be a breakthrough for sa国际传媒.
鈥淭his is probably the strongest group of players that have been called in since I鈥檝e been a part of the national team,鈥� Straith said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 encouraging to see everyone available for selection and I think the coach was able to bring in everyone that he wanted, which is something that is often rare in international football.鈥�
