The American team mounted a furious rally, including goals by Landon Donovan and Michael Bradley, to claim a 2-2 draw with Slovenia on Friday. At the end of the match we were as exhausted as the players -- watching a big screen presentation at the Canal Walk Mall in Cape Town. Hundreds of shoppers joined the 45,000 fans in cheering for every important play. Amidst this excitement, I discovered that my wife -- a world-class shopper in a mall with over 400 shops -- is now a true soccer fan.
As American visitors, we are something of an anomally, and folks are always surprised to hear our "accent" and inquire where we are from. But we are blending into the crowd with our vuvuzela, and up until today, our South African colors to also support the local team.
Maurice Edu's volley splashed into Slovenia's net in the 85th minute Friday, and for an instant, the U.S. national soccer team believed it had punctuated an epic comeback with a late go-ahead strike.
On a call that will be reviewed, examined, scrutinized, second-guessed and analyzed for weeks, if not years, to come, the referee waved off Edu's apparent goal, leaving the exhausted teams locked in a 2-2 draw in front of a pro-American crowd of 45,573.
With a victory over Algeria (0-1-1) in Pretoria, the United States (0-0-2) will secure passage. It can also advance with a tie if England -- also 0-0-2 but with fewer goals scored -- loses to Slovenia (1-0-1) or earns a tie but fails to erase the Americans' two-goal edge in overall tournament scoring.
It marked just the fourth time in U.S. history that the national team had earned a point after trailing by two goals at the half (1-30-3). Said goalkeeper Tim Howard, "I feel fortunate to come out of it, still alive to go through" to the round of 16.
We will be in full voice, vuvuvuzelas blasting, on next Wednesday when the USA meets Algeria in Pretoria. We have tickets to that match, and it will be the most important match for USA supporters. We have been here now for just over two weeks. We have watched 21 soccer matches -- only missing 2 matches while we were traveling in country. This is truly an experience of a lifetime.
GO USA!
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