CONCACAF Final Round Futsal field confirmed; Draw set for next week

The draw for the respective group pairings to the 2004 CONCACAF Futsal Final Round Qualification will be held at the offices of the CONCACAF General Secretariat in New York City on Tuesday, 1 June at 11:00.
The host and defending champion, Costa Rica has been placed in Group A, while Cuba, who is the nation to qualify to the last two FIFA Futsal World Championships, has been placed in Group B.

The six remaining CONCACAF teams (Guyana, Mexico, Panama, Surinam, Trinidad & Tobago and USA) will be drawn into either Group A or B at the Futsal event that will run from 23-31 July 2004 at the Palacio de los Deportes in Herédia, Costa Rica. COMPLETE SCHEDULE

The eight-team CONCACAF Final Round will qualify two nations to the 2004 FIFA Futsal World Championship, to be held in Chinese Taipei from 21 November - 5 December.

CONCACAF's final futsal field confirmed
from FIFA.com

Outsiders Panama join renowned regional heavyweights Mexico and the USA as North and Central American representatives at the final CONCACAF futsal qualifying tournament next month.

With preliminary two-legged victories in the last week, the three will now link up with Cuba, Guyana, Surinam, Trinidad & Tobago and the host Ticos to round out the eight-team field in Heredia from 23-31 July. The two top finishers will go on to the 2004 FIFA Futsal World Championship in Chinese Taipei.

Simple wins for the States

Conceding just one goal over a pair of matches against Honduras, Keith Tozer's regional heavy hitters, the USA took full advantage of their home-field advantage to book easy passage to Costa Rica. The 7:1 aggregate scoreline is sure to have the waiting competition keeping a close eye on the star-studded Americans who are looking to get back to the World Championships after missing out on the last finals in Guatemala.

The first match on 18 May saw the stars & stripes far quicker off the blocks than their southern neighbours. Lee Edgerton finished off a simple tap in at the six-minute mark, shortly followed up by a well-taken goal from former MLS speed merchant Johnny Torres in the 11th minute. Greg Howes, Joel Shanker and Danny Kelly each grabbed one apiece in the second half to make Luis Martínez' counter strike nothing more than mere irrelevance.

The second leg - two days later and again in Milwaukee, Wisconsin - saw a sterner fight from the gritty Hondurans, but a similarly disappointing result. A second-half strike from the prolific Lee Edgerton of Major Indoor Soccer League's Cleveland Force, coupled with an unfortunate own-goal to see the States book their spot in Heredia with a slim 2:0 win on the day and a sizeable 7:1 overall.

Mexico rain goals, Panama come from behind

Mexico's first-leg win over El Salvador proved a futsal goal-fest for the ages. And despite scoring four, the salvadoreños upstarts eventually bowed to tricolor to the humiliating tune of 10:4. Guillermo Castañeda and Héctor Guzmán each turned in hat tricks in the goal bonanza from Pachuca. Jesus Contreras, Victor Huerta, Arturo Lopez and Miguel Olivera rounded out the scoring for the powerful Mexicans.

The second leg was a tougher test for El Tri, but conceding five, they still managed to score seven. Firmly establishing themselves as the region's entertainers, Mario Alberto Verti scored twice, while Sanchez Barriga, Jose Garcia, Victor Huerta, Arturo Lopez and Carlos Ramírez all added to the bloated scoreline.

Red-clad Canada must have thought it was to be their day after battling back from a 4:1 deficit against Panama in the first-leg to win 5:4 at the Gimnasio Roberto Duran in Panama City. After going down 1:4 with goals from Gilberto Rangel (2), Apolinar Gálvez and Moises Williams, the maple leafs stormed back in the second half. Kyriakos Selaidopoulos scored twice, while Gordon Chin and Jaime Lotresti added one more each in a dramatic fight back.

But plucky Panama -true to their reputation as the region's breakout up-and-comers - managed a comeback of their own to take the return leg. The 7:1 drubbing was an emphatic response to their earlier struggles and the cheek of the Canadians.

Two goals each by Apolinar Gálvez and Juan Murillo set the ball rolling, while Ameth De Leon, Enrique Valdés and Moisés Williamson all added tallies in the victory. Poacher Jaime Lotresti grabbed the only goal for Canada.

The final qualifying tournament in Costa Rica will see Mexico, the USA and Panama try their luck against the host ticos - whose futsal development is renowned in the region - and the top finishers from the recently played Caribbean preliminary competition in Trinidad & Tobago.

The USA look to get back

CONCACAF nations have had mixed results at the FIFA Futsal World Championship since its inception in 1989. The USA though have proved the region's kingfishers, finishing third at the inaugural event in Holland and runners-up three years later in Hong Kong. Despite the powerful start, no CONCACAF side has reached the last four at the last two tournaments in Spain and Guatemala. The USA even missed out on Guatemala 2000 entirely.

The 2004 edition of the FIFA Futsal World Championship will see a to Asia for the first time since Hong Kong 1992. Running from 21 November to 5 December 2004, the two CONCACAF competitors will be looking to upset the apple cart and defy Brazil's hegemony. Save for Spain's triumph in 2000, the quick-footed South Americans have won every title.