World Cup 2010 Qualifiers- Us Qualifies For South Africa World Cup After Beating Honduras

After strong performances in the last games of the qualifiers

, the US finally managed a place in the South Africa World Cup when it beat Honduras 3-2 this past Saturday. This is the US's sixth consecutive qualification for the World Cup. But the win wasn't easy; Honduras entered the game with 8 previous victories at home. The San Pedro Sula home crowd was hoping for a victory; perhaps a locus for hope in a country suffering from political strife.

The Hondurans shone in the first half, beginning with major possession of the ball. Their game, however, grew complicated as they approached the US midfield; the best opportunity for the team to score occurred at minute 28, when Carlo Costly faced goalkeeper Tim Howard. His shot, however, went wide at the post.

The Americans reacted, cutting a ball in the middle and surprising the home team; a feat that the US repeated again. Conor Casey had a chance to open the score at minute 21, facing goalkeeper Noel Valladateres, but defender Maynor Figueroa interrupted Casey"s shot and sent the ball to the corner. Casey offered the US another shot when he headed a ball and Charlie Davis rebounded, but the ball again missed the net.

Carlos Pavn created three opportunities with a header and two shots, but all were saved by US goalkeeper Tim Howard. The first half ended 0-0, with Honduras in firm control of the ball but facing a solid US team. The Americans were able to group themselves in the middle and were fortunate in having a confident goalkeeper.

Honduras took the lead early in the second half, after Julio Cesar free kicked the ball at minute 46. Just a few minutes later, though, the US responded with a vengeance. Casey scored twice, silencing the 40,000 spectators at the Metropolitan Olympic Stadium. The blow was a difficult one for the Hondurans and their team, which fell short for a third goal: Landon Donovan sent a free kick to smash the net, bringing the score to 3-1.

At minute 78, Honduras responded with a goal from Cesar, who captured his second of the match. Then, Honduras had a chance to equalize the score. Pavn had an opportunity to score at minute 87 with a penalty kick, but he blew the chance, sending the ball far over Tim Howard's bar. The game ended in favor of the US, 3-2.

The victory gave the US a place in the 2010 World Cup, the team's sixth appearance in the tournament. The Americans are trying to redeem themselves after bowing out early in the tournament in 2006.

''We didn't want to go into that last game leaving anything to chance,'' Donovan said of the match. ''It feels great to qualify. It's the end of a long journey, a long grind, from the first game against Barbados. We had a very disappointing 2006, and we don't want to go through that again. I'm a person who likes to live in the moment, but if you don't learn from what happened then, then you get nothing out of it. I've learned a lot, and I hope we have, too.''

The loss signals the end of a long home-game winning streak for Honduras. In order for the team to qualify for the World Cup, Honduras will have to win against El Salvador and hope that Costa Rica will lose against the US on Wednesday.

by: Ally White

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