The View from Germany: Soca Warriors Give Hope to World Cup Teams

If the first two days are an indication of what we can expect during the rest of the competition, it is going to be a fantastic World Cup. Saturday we saw the full spectrum of football. Get the full wrap up here. We witnessed an England team get an early lead and grind out a win. We watched the marvelous minnows from Trinidad and Tobago get a “win” by drawing against Sweden despite being a man down. We enjoyed every second of an action packed game between Ivory Coast and Argentina.

At the end of the day, two of the three favorites walked away with three points, but it was the other game that highlights how special the World Cup can be. Making their debut on the world’s biggest stage, the tournament’s smallest country, Trinidad and Tobago, played their guts out to earn a draw against Sweden.

Keeper Shaka Hislop earned his place in World Cup lore by playing out of his mind to keep the relentlessly attacking Swedes off the score sheet. It was as good of a scoreless game as you will see. No wonder people all over the world are leaving their comments of joy on our Trinidad and Tobago blog.

Will we see another underdog come up big today?

The first game between Serbia and Montenegro and Netherlands could be another Group C thriller like the Argentina-Ivory Coast match last night. Iran against Mexico also is poised to be a huge game that could ultimately decide who advances out of Group D. The final game features my beloved Angola against Portugal. The Palancas will try to be today’s Soca Warriors, while Portugal will try to take care of business.

We’ll be liveblogging each of the games so please stop on by and join us during the match. Also check out our photos and videos section to see some of the sights and sounds from the day’s action in Germany.