Fourteen months from now, if the Americans are avoiding sunburn in Brazil, they will surely look back at a March blizzard that turned DSG Park into Aspen. In swirling snow, difficult footing and poor visibility, Clint Dempsey drove a yellow ball into the net in the 16th minute for a 1-0 victory over Costa Rica.
Friday March 22nd, 2013
Soccer games are rarely stopped or postponed but the snow continued to fall. And in the 55th minute, Salvadoran referee Joel Aguilar halted the action. During a brief interruption, however, players on both teams seemed to persuade him to resume play.
With more snow expected Saturday, Aguilar and the match commissioner, who is from the Caribbean island of Grenada, set out to finish the match in its entirety. At one point, U.S. defender Geoff Cameron placed his hand on the back of a grounds crew member armed with a shovel and guided him along a line marking.
“It was an embarrassment for soccer tonight,” Costa Rica Coach Jorge Luis Pinto said.
The Americans (1-1-0, three points) survived several scares in the second of their 10 final-round regional qualifiers to move into second place behind Honduras (1-0-1, four) in the six-nation standings.
They extended their home unbeaten streak in World Cup qualifiers to 23 games (21-0-2) dating from 2001, and gained valuable points after losing the opener at Honduras last month and enduring weeks of injuries and off-field distractions.
“It was a nice snow battle — the most important part is you get the three points,” U.S. Coach Juergen Klinsmann said.
The settings for the U.S. team’s first four qualifiers: sweltering heat in Honduras’ lowlands, freezing weather in Colorado’s high plains, oxygen deprivation in Mexico City next Tuesday and summer sizzle in Jamaica in June.
For many countries, venue selection is strategic in providing a clear advantage. In the U.S. Soccer Federation’s case, both climate and demographics in a diverse country come into play. The Mexico home match in September, for instance, will be held in Columbus, Ohio — a location that has hosted the Mexicans in the dead of winter.
Denver, the Mile High City, was also selected for altitude ahead of the trip to Mexico City (7,350 feet).
Spring welcomed the U.S. team early in the week, but conditions turned badly late Friday afternoon with strong winds and bursts of sideways snow.
Costa Rica is a tropical country but eight starters are employed by northern European or MLS clubs. So the weather advantage wasn’t as pronounced as one would expect.
Maintenance crews shoveled and mini-plows ran laps. The surface was marginally playable at the start and only got worse. During stoppages, the shovel brigade scurried out to re-expose the sidelines.
The breakthrough came in the 16th minute when Jozy Altidore ripped a low shot from beyond the penalty area. His target was the near corner, but as goalkeeper Keilor Navas slid over, the ball caromed off defender Roy Miller’s leg and spun into Dempsey’s path in the middle of the box for a simple finish – his 32nd goal in 93 appearances.
It continued a miserable month for Miller, who was recently benched by the New York Red Bulls after intentionally encroaching on a San Jose penalty kick. He said afterward he thought, incorrectly, such a violation would negate a possible goal. The shot was saved, but Miller’s actions led to a retake, which was converted.
The Americans had a case for a penalty kick in the 42nd minute when Dempsey was tripped, but Aguilar, positioned a few yards away, allowed play to continue.
When the half ended, the grounds crew rushed back to work, bringing only temporary relief. Aguilar had the power to stop the match but declined to intervene.
Costa Rica threatened several times in the second half, most notably in the 70th minute when an offside call wiped out an apparent goal.
When it ended, the Americans thanked the fans and played in the snow.
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Clinton Drew Dempsey was born on March 9th, 1983 according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clint_Dempsey
March 9th, 1983
3 + 9 +1+9+8+3 = 33 = his life lesson = Captain.
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March 9th, 1983
3 + 9 = 12 = his core number = Phenomenon. Phenomenal.
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March 9th, 1983
9 +1+9+8+3 = 30 = his “secret” number = Soccer.
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March 9th, 1983
March 9th
3 + 9 +2+0+1+3 = 18 = his personal year (from March 9th, 2013 to March 8th, 2014) = Surreal. This is crazy.
18 year + 3 (March) = 21 = his personal month (from March 9th, 2013 to April 8th, 2013) = On the world stage. For all the world to see.
21 year + 22 (22nd of the month on Friday March 22nd, 2013) = 43 = his personal day = Congratulations. Celebrating. Fun times.
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Each letter of thee first name rules 9 years of life. Ages 27 to 54 are ruled by the sum of the day of birth and the fourth, fifth, and sixth letters of the name.
March 9th, 1983 Clinton Drew Dempsey
9 (born on the 9th of the month) + 14 (n is the 14th letter of the alphabet) + 20 (t is the 20th letter of the alphabet) + 15 (o is the 15th letter of the alphabet) = 58
So the number 58 rules his ages twenty-seven to fifty-four.
58 = Relax, I got this.
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using the number/letter grid:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
A B C D E F G H I
J K L M N O P Q R
S T U V W X Y Z
Where:
A = 1 J = 1 S = 1
B = 2 K = 2 T = 2
C = 3 L = 3 U = 3
D = 4 M = 4 V = 4
E = 5 N = 5 W = 5
F = 6 O = 6 X = 6
G = 7 P = 7 Y = 7
H = 8 Q = 8 Z = 8
I = 9 R = 9
Clint Dempsey
33952 4547157 55
his path of destiny = 55 = Mind-blowing. Brilliant moves.
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predictions for the year 2013 are at:
http://predictionsyear2013.com/
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discover some of your own numerology for FREE at:
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learn numerology from numerologist to the world, Ed Peterson:
https://www.createspace.com/3411561
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sports astrology and numerology 