An Entirely Different Universe

LONDON--Never again will I go along with the notion that Canadians beat themselves up over hockey in a way that no other country does over a sport.

Not even close, folks.

Indeed, compared to the manner in which the English national soccer team is being absolutely and thoroughly trashed after being ousted from the World Cup on Sunday, we Canadians look like we barely give a fig when it goes all wrong on the international hockey stage.

Our strongest reaction, after our juniors lost to Kazakhstan and our seniors fumbled away the Olympics, was to call a national summit in 1998 to sit down and discuss it all like civilized people, a gathering that actually resulted in enormously positive developments for the sport in Canada.

By comparison to the English reaction to the big footie loss, we look like we don't care.

This country is into its third full day of tearing and shredding Fabio Capello and his charges after the worst loss in the country's World Cup history, with no end in sight. It's not just on the sports pages, either, but on the front page of many daily newspapers, with related coverage on TV and radio.

Unrelenting and unmerciful, with plenty of war references thrown in, no surprise given that the defeat was at the hands of Germany. One columnist opined that if the British military had defended the country in similar fashion to John Terry and Co., "we'd all be speaking German now." Today, another paper showed two players smiling as they disembarked a flight back to the U.K., suggesting they were laughing as the country cried.

The key difference is that while Canada might severely criticize its players and coaches when defeat comes, here the athletes and administrators are treated like traitors, accused of betraying their country, of knowingly and intentionally bringing shame to every man and woman in England.

Yes, there have been a few howls over the disallowed English goal, which any reasonable person would agree made an enormous difference in the 4-1 result. Had that game, as it should have, gone into halftime tied 2-2, the second half would have been played in a different manner, although England's leaky defence would likely have, in the end, been unable to stop the German push.

But that goal has already been, if not forgotten, pushed to the side in favour of the most vicious and vile criticism of each and every English player imaginable. Capello, of course, has been drawn and quartered. Here, it's not like they just played badly, or got out-played. It's being treated as if they threw the match, and in so doing humiliated the country.

Given that England hasn't won a World Cup in decades, its not as though they were even a favourite. In fact, Germany's famed Franz Beckenbauer pretty much predicted the outcome beforehand, saying the English would be tired and "burnt out" because the heavy demands of the Premier League are so much greater than those faced by German players in the Bundesliga. But there remains a sense of entitlement here about soccer, not so different from Canada's attitude towards hockey, but expressed in a much more virulent, near lethal manner.

It really is ugly. Then there's the other side, the louts riding in a rickshaw through Trafalgar Square on Sunday chanting "We Won The War, We Won The War!"

They take their football very personally here. By comparison, we Canadians seem positively relaxed and reasonable about our national pastime.

Comments

[John Carss]

This is why they can't get a descent English coach. No one wants that job.

[Arthur Bailey]

No, Canadians do not care as much about our performance on the world stage. I think this is because we invest so much into our local NHL teams. I'd honestly rather see the Leafs win a Cup (or more preferably, the Coyotes back in Winnipeg) then Canada win the world juniors, or even the Olympic Gold (especially since we have won it 2 out of the last 3 olympics, the urgency is gone).

And what is with the England team. They gather the best players in England, and give them an Italian coach? Before that they had Swedish Sven-Göran Eriksson. Are you telling me that a country with over 50 million people can't find one person of British birth to coach their national team?

I don't get it. It seems like a huge issue to me.

Bob Bradley, an American, coached the US team.
The Spanish manager is spainard Vicente del Bosque González.
Brazil can look to Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri, a Brazilian, to coach their team.
Joachim Löw coaches his birth country Germany.

So why can't an Englishman coach England?

[Jon]

Damien, if you thought that no one like Canadians beat up on the national team after a poor performance then you must have forgotten about Andres Escobar. When he gave up an own goal in the 1994 World Cup an overzealous fan shot him to death in a parking lot.

When it comes to sport, hockey and how Canadians view it does not even come close to the religious fervor that people all across the world hold for their national soccer teams.

[Warren Z]

Oh the amount of parallels one can draw with the Maple Leafs...

1966 for England, 67 for Leafs.

An idiotic board focused on short term solutions and profit making (which is probably the only reason why the Premier League season hasn't instituted a winter break yet).

An obsessive media hanging onto the players/managements' every words.

Delusional fans who seem to think their team has a chance to win every single year, when people with some objectivity and intelligence can easily see they have no chance in hell.

The same fans who scream "tear it down and rebuild it from the ground!" every time they don't.

...And about 50 more.

[Jules]

England did have one of their own coaching (Steve McClaren), he was the Coach before Capello and it was an unmitigated disaster where England failed to qualify for the European Cup. Fabio Capello is widely considered one of the best coaches of all time, I don't think having an English coach would have helped much. The fact of the matter is that the English team isn't that good and they overate their chances of winning the thing every time, they haven't won since '66, the only time they won. England needs to start spending money on their development programs like Germany and then maybe we'll see another cup from them.

[Rasheed Serrao]

You know why Canadians didn't care as much in 1998? Because there are not many tournaments to judge the best hockey players then. Let's face it, the Olympics didn't matter because NHL players weren't there. There was the odd Canada Cup/World Cup and the Juniors are nice but it's not the senior team. So while we hadn't won anything at the senior level in a long time, England have missed out on the Euro and World Cup for 44 years now. If Canada goes that long without winning the Olympics (if NHL players are involved in that time) and we only win the Juniors once every 4 or 5 years I'm willing to bet Canadian media would be up in arms. This is not even close to being an apples-to-apples comparion Damien.

[La La La La Not Listening]

The English team aren't the only ones getting skewered by their own. Ask the French or Italians and it's the same song and dance. At least they have won a World Cup since the Beatles split up.

[other mark]

I enjoy sports. I'll play or watch just about anything if it's competitive. However, to invest so much importance on something so trivial is just plain stupid. If Canada loses a hockey game on the international stage, I think most Canadian feel a momentary big of anguish, do a bit of analysis (and sometimes see that the other team was simply better). But, the sun comes up the next day and we move on. The English should spend more energy fixing their lousy economy than worrying about their place in the soccer world rankings.

[Bharata]

I'm Canadian and I lived in England for 8 years. The real difference is that in England people are far more critical about everything - their poiltics and sport in particular. Just watch an interview on the BBC compared to a fawning CBC one. You know how Ron MacLean gives Bettmann a hard time? That would be normal in the UK.

The same thing happened at the Olympics this year. People complained the British press was too harsh - well that's just how they do things over there. When the Olympics go to London in 2012 they will be even more critical of themselves. Canadians are just a more laid back lot in general. There are 33 million of us in a huge country and 50 million of them in a little island, after all.

Also we usually DO win in hockey - although the US, I am afraid, will pass us in 10 years at this rate and with Bettman's control. England just hasnt' got much to show since 1966 - good point comparing it with the Leafs.